282 A BUNGLING SHIPWRIGHT.

asked him if he would, and if we might venture over in her
“Yes,” he said; “he venture over in her very well, though great
blow wind.” However, I had a further design that he knew
nothing of; and that was, to make a mast and sail, and to fit her
with an anchor and cable, As to a mast, that was easy enough to
get; so I pitched upon a straight young cedar-tree, which I found
near the place, and which there was great plenty of in the island ;
and I set Friday to work to cut it down, and gave him directions
how to shape and order it. But as to the sail, that was my par-
ticular care. 1 knew I had old sails, or rather pieces of old sails
enough; but as I had had them twenty-six years by me, and had
not been very careful to preserve them, not imagining that [ should
ever have this kind of use for them, I did not doubt but they were
all rotten; and, indeed, most of them were so. However, I found
two pieces which appeared pretty good, and with these I went to
work, and with a great deal of pains, and awkward tedious stitch-
ing (you may be sure) for want of needles, I at length made a
three-cornered ugly thing, like what we call in England a shoulder-
of-mutton-sail, to go with a boom at bottom, and a little short
sprit at the top, such as usually our ships’ long-boats sail with; and
such as I best knew how to manage, because it was such a one as
Thad to the boat in which I made my escape from Barbary, as
related in the first part of my story.

T was near two months performing this last work—namely, rig-
ging and fitting my mast and sails; for I finished them very
complete, making a small stay, and a sail or fore-sail to it, to
assist if we should turn to windward. And, which was more than
all, I fixed a rudder to the stern of her, to steer with; and though
I was but a bungling shipwright, yet as I knew the usefulness, and
even necessity of such a thing, I applied myself with so much
pains to do it, that at last I brought it to pass, though considering
the many dull contrivances I had for it that failed, I think it cost
me almost as much labour as making the boat.

After all this was done, too, I had my man Friday to teach as
to what belonged to the navigation of my boat; for though he
knew very well how to paddle a canoe, he knew nothing what
belonged to a sail and a rudder, and was the most amazed when