Robinson Crusoe(excerpt)
When day came，the sea was quiet again.I looked for our ship and，to my surprise，it was still there and still in one piece.“I think I can swim to it，”I said to myself.So I walked down to the sea and before long，I was at the ship and was swimming round it.But how could I get on to it？In the end，I got in through a hole in the side，but it wasn't easy.
There was a lot of water in the ship，but the sand under the sea was still holding the ship in one place.The back of the ship was high out of the water，and I was very thankful for this because all the ship's food was there.I was very hungry so I began to eat something at once.Then I decided to take some of it back to the shore with me.But how could I get it there?
I looked around the ship，and after a few minutes，I found some long pieces of wood.I tied them together with rope.Then I got the things that I wanted from the ship.There was a big box of food—rice，and salted meat，and hard ship's bread.I also took many strong knives and other tools，the ship's sails and ropes，paper，pens，books，and seven guns.Now I needed a little sail from the ship，and then I was ready.Slowly and carefully，I went back to the shore.It was difficult to stop my things from falling into the sea，but in the end I got everything on to the shore.
Now I needed somewhere to keep my things.
There were some hills around me，so I decided to build myself a little house on one of them.I walked to the top of the highest hill and looked down，I was very unhappy，because I saw then that I was on an island.There were two smaller islands a few miles away，and after that，only the sea.Just the sea，for mile after mile after mile.
After a time，I found a little cave in the side of a hill.In front of it，there was a good place to make a home.So，I used the ship's sails，ropes，and pieces of wood，and after a lot of hard work I had a very fine tent.The cave at the back of my tent was a good place to keep my food，and so I called it my“kitchen”．That night，I went to sleep in my new home.
The next day I thought about the possible dangers on the island.Were there wild animals，and perhaps wild people too，on my island？I didn't know，but I was very afraid.So I decided to build a very strong fence.I cut down young trees and put them in the ground，in a halfcircle around the front of my tent.I used many of the ship's ropes too，and in the end my fence was as strong as a stone wall.Nobody could get over it，through it，or round it.
Making tents and building fences is hard work.I needed many tools to help me.So I decided to go back to the ship again，and get some more things.
I went back twelve times，but soon after my twelfth visit there was another terrible storm.The next morning，when I looked out to sea，there was no ship.
When I saw that，I was very unhappy.“Why am I alive，and why are all my friends dead？”I asked myself.“What will happen to me now，alone on this island without friends？How can I ever escape from it？”
Then I told myself that I was lucky—lucky to be alive，lucky to have food and tools，lucky to be young and strong.But I knew that my island was somewhere off the coast of South America.Ships did not often come down this coast，and I said to myself，“I'm going to be on this island for a long time.”So，on a long piece of wood，I cut these words：
I came here on 30th September 1659.After that，I decided to make a cut for each day.
