The Further Adventures of Robinson Crusoe | Page 7

afore the wind. My thoughts ran all away again into the
old affair; my head was quite turned with the whimsies of foreign
adventures; and all the pleasant, innocent amusements of my farm, my
garden, my cattle, and my family, which before entirely possessed me,
were nothing to me, had no relish, and were like music to one that has
no ear, or food to one that has no taste. In a word, I resolved to leave
off housekeeping, let my farm, and return to London; and in a few
months after I did so.
When I came to London, I was still as uneasy as I was before; I had no
relish for the place, no employment in it, nothing to do but to saunter
about like an idle person, of whom it may be said he is perfectly useless

in God's creation, and it is not one farthing's matter to the rest of his
kind whether he be dead or alive. This also was the thing which, of all
circumstances of life, was the most my aversion, who had been all my
days used to an active life; and I would often say to myself, "A state of
idleness is the very dregs of life;" and, indeed, I thought I was much
more suitably employed when I was twenty-six days making a deal
board.
It was now the beginning of the year 1693, when my nephew, whom, as
I have observed before, I had brought up to the sea, and had made him
commander of a ship, was come home from a short voyage to Bilbao,
being the first he had made. He came to me, and told me that some
merchants of his acquaintance had been proposing to him to go a
voyage for them to the East Indies, and to China, as private traders.
"And now, uncle," says he, "if you will go to sea with me, I will engage
to land you upon your old habitation in the island; for we are to touch
at the Brazils."
Nothing can be a greater demonstration of a future state, and of the
existence of an invisible world, than the concurrence of second causes
with the idea of things which we form in our minds, perfectly reserved,
and not communicated to any in the world.
My nephew knew nothing how far my distemper of wandering was
returned upon me, and I knew nothing of what he had in his thought to
say, when that very morning, before he came to me, I had, in a great
deal of confusion of thought, and revolving every part of my
circumstances in my mind, come to this resolution, that I would go to
Lisbon, and consult with my old sea-captain; and if it was rational and
practicable, I would go and see the island again, and what was become
of my people there. I had pleased myself with the thoughts of peopling
the place, and carrying inhabitants from hence, getting a patent for the
possession and I know not what; when, in the middle of all this, in
comes my nephew, as I have said, with his project of carrying me
thither in his way to the East Indies.
I paused a while at his words, and looking steadily at him, "What
devil," said I, "sent you on this unlucky errand?" My nephew stared as

if he had been frightened at first; but perceiving that I was not much
displeased at the proposal, he recovered himself. "I hope it may not be
an unlucky proposal, sir," says he. "I daresay you would be pleased to
see your new colony there, where you once reigned with more felicity
than most of your brother monarchs in the world." In a word, the
scheme hit so exactly with my temper, that is to say, the prepossession
I was under, and of which I have said so much, that I told him, in a few
words, if he agreed with the merchants, I would go with him; but I told
him I would not promise to go any further than my own island. "Why,
sir," says he, "you don't want to be left there again, I hope?" "But," said
I, "can you not take me up again on your return?" He told me it would
not be possible to do so; that the merchants would never allow him to
come that way with a laden ship of such value, it being a month's sail
out of his way, and might be three or four. "Besides, sir, if I should
miscarry," said he, "and not return at all, then you would be just
reduced to the condition you were in before."
This was very rational; but we both found out a remedy for it, which
was to carry