) I had no sooner shot, but there arose
up a little cloud of fowls, which I had not seen at all, from among the
corn itself.

This touched me sensibly; for I foresaw, that in a few days they would
devour all my hopes; that I should be starved, and never be able to
raise a crop at all; and what to do I could not tell: however, I
resolved not to lose my corn, if possible, though I should watch it
night and day. In the first place, I went among it to see what damage
was already done, and found they had spoiled a good deal of it; but
that, as it was yet too green for them, the loss was not so great, but
the remainder was like to be a good crop, if it could be saved.

I stayed by it to load my gun, and then coming away, I could easily see
the thieves sitting upon all the trees about me, as if they only waited
till I was gone away, and the event proved it to be so; for as I walked
off as if I was gone, I was no sooner out of their sight, but they
dropped down one by one into the corn again. I was so provoked, that I
could not have patience to stay till more came on, knowing that every
grain that they ate now was, as it might be said, a peck loaf to me in
the consequence; but coming up to the hedge, I fired again, and killed
three of them. This was what I wished for; so I took them up, and served
them as we serve notorious thieves in England, viz. hanged them in
chains for a terror to others. It is impossible to imagine almost, that
this should have such an effect as it had; for the fowls would not only
not come at the corn, but in short they forsook all that part of the
island, and I could never see a bird near the place as long as my
scarecrows hung there.

This I was very glad of, you may be sure; and about the latter end of
December, which was our second harvest of the year, I reaped my corn.

I was sadly put to it for a scythe or a sickle to cut it down, and all I
could do was to make one as well as I could out of one of the
broad-swords, or cutlasses, which I saved among the arms out of the
ship. However, as my crop was but small, I had no great difficulty to
cut it down: in short, I reaped it my way, for I cut nothing off but the
ears, and carried it away in a great basket which I had made, and so
rubbed it out with my hands: and at the end of all my harvesting I
found, that out of my half-peck of seed I had near two bushels of rice,
and above two bushels and a half of barley, that is to say, by my guess,
for I had