An American Robinson Crusoe | Page 5

me and tear my flesh with his teeth and claws. How shall
I save myself? Where shall I fly for safety? Where shall I turn? I have
nothing but my clothes and my life saved from the water. All that I had
the waves have swallowed up."
And then hunger and thirst began to trouble him. He had eaten nothing
the whole day and the salt water had made him sick.
In the meantime the night had come on. Robinson was very tired.
Everything was new and strange. He did not know which way to move.
He was in the greatest terror.
He expected to hear the roar of wild beasts from every secluded spot.
Lions and tigers and dreadful serpents filled his thoughts. He must find
shelter from them. But where should he pass the night? Not a house, a
hut or a cave was to be seen. He stood a long time hesitating and did
not know what to do. Finally he thought, "I will do as the birds do and
get into a tree." He very soon found a tree which had such thick
branches that it would hold him up.
Robinson climbed up into the tree, made himself as comfortable as
possible, said his prayers, and as he was thoroughly exhausted, he soon
fell asleep. When he awoke the sun was high in the sky. At first he
could not remember where he was. Then the truth burst upon him. He
tried to move. He was stiff and sore. His flesh was bruised from being
thrown against the rocks and beaten by the waves.
He was dreadfully thirsty. His mouth and throat were dry and parched
from the salt water. His tongue was thick and swollen. He said, "I must
find some water to drink or I shall die!"

It was hard work to get down from the tree. His limbs and back ached
from sitting in the tree all night At last he slipped down and fell on the
ground. He clasped his hands in prayer and thanked God for keeping
him through the night.
[Illustration]
Then he got up and tried to walk. He was so weak he could not stand.
He threw himself down on the ground and began to sob and cry, "O
Lord, do not let me die! Do not let me die!" As he lay there he heard a
queer sound. He listened. It sounded like water running over rocks. He
tried to get to the place from which the sound came. He tried to walk.
When he fell he crawled on his hands and knees. At last the sound was
close by. He dragged himself up on the rocks. Yes, there was a spring
of clear, cool, sparkling water bubbling up and trickling over the stones.
Robinson was so thirsty he put his face into the water and drank and
drank.
Then he sat down, and after a while he drank again and again.
After Robinson had satisfied his thirst and rested awhile, he felt much
better. He said, "I must try to walk and see whether I can find
something to eat." He found many kinds of fruits and berries all around
him, but he was afraid to eat them, as they were strange to him and he
feared they might be poisonous.
As he was walking along, all at once he spied a tall plant in the distance
which had a familiar look. It looked like corn. He said to himself, "I
wonder if it can be corn." At last he came near enough to recognize it.
Yes, it was corn. It did not look exactly like the corn that he saw at
home, but still he knew it would be safe to eat it. He broke off an ear
and eagerly ate the kernels raw. Oh, how good it was! Robinson could
not remember anything that tasted half so good.
He ate as much as he wanted and then filled his pockets with ears of
corn for his supper. Then he went back to the spring to get another
drink.

[Illustration]

VIII
ROBINSON ON AN ISLAND
After his hunger and thirst were satisfied, Robinson thought he would
try to find another dwelling place. "My legs are stiff and sore from
sitting so uncomfortably last night, and there is so much danger of
falling," he said. "I will climb yonder hill and look around and see on
which side the houses are. I will find me a stick to help me on my
way."
He broke a stick from a dry bush and climbed up the steep sides of the
hill. After a half hour's climb he was on top. What a sight met his eyes!
There were no houses, no huts to be seen, no smoke arose