412 ROBINSON CRUSOE.

sunk within me at the thought, that in one blast it might be
destroyed—on which not only my defence, but the providing of
my food entirely depended. No sooner was the storm over,
than I laid aside every other work to make boxes and bags, in
order to separate my powder, I put them into holes up and
down the rocks, in such a manner, that one parcel could not fire
another. While all this was doing, I walked out at least once
every day with my gun, to see if I could kill anything fit for
food, and to acquaint myself with what the island produced.
‘The first time 1 went out I had the pleasure to find that there
were goats in the island ; but they were so shy, that it was the
most difficult thing in the world to come up with them; but
observing that they did not easily see objects above them, I
killed them by climbing the rocks, and shooting at those in the
valley. I found in the woods a sort of wild pigeon, which built
in holes of the rocks ; and taking some young ones, I endea-
voured to bring them up tame, but when they grew old they
flew away; however, I frequently found their nests, and got
their young ones, which were very good meat. After I had been
ten or twelve days on shore, it came into my thoughts that I
should lose my reckoning of time, and should not be able to dis-
tinguish the Sundays from the working days. To prevent this,
J set up a large square post on the shore where I first landed,
and cut upon it with a knife, “I came on shore here, the 30th
of September, 1657.” Upon the sides I cut every day a notch,
and every seventh was as long again as the rest, and every first
day of the month as long again as that long one, and thus I
kept my weekly, monthly, and yearly reckoning.

I got from the ship some pens, ink, and paper, some mathe-
matical instruments, and three good Bibles, with several other
books, which I carefully secured. I also brought to shore with
me two cats ; and a dog swam on shore, which was a trusty ser-