, into, to be kept
dry, either from rain or the spray of the sea; and a little, long,
hollow place I cut in the inside of the boat, where I could lay my
gun, making a flap to hang down over it to keep it dry.
I fixed my umbrella also in the step at the stern, like a mast, to
stand over my head, and keep the heat of the sun off me, like an
awning; and thus I every now and then took a little voyage upon the
sea, but never went far out, nor far from the little creek. At
last, being eager to view the circumference of my little kingdom, I
resolved upon my cruise; and accordingly I victualled my ship for
the voyage, putting in two dozen of loaves (cakes I should call
them) of barley-bread, an earthen pot full of parched rice (a food
I ate a good deal of), a little bottle of rum, half a goat, and
powder and shot for killing more, and two large watch-coats, of
those which, as I mentioned before, I had saved out of the seamen's
chests; these I took, one to lie upon, and the other to cover me in
the night.
It was the 6th of November, in the sixth year of my reign - or my
captivity, which you please - that I set out on this voyage, and I
found it much longer than I expected; for though the island itself
was not very large, yet when I came to the east side of it, I found
a great ledge of rocks lie out about two leagues into the sea, some
above water, some under it; and beyond that a shoal of sand, lying
dry half a league more, so that I was obliged to go a great way out
to sea to double the point.
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