Accidents > Life and most surprising adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, mariner, who lived eight and twenty years in an uninhabited island on the coast of America, near the mouth of the great river Oroonoque

284 ROBINSON CRUSOE.
they make the men ftrifoners or flaves; fo that novr
we might fairly fay we were furrounded by enemies
both by fea and land.
As the fliip had been leaky, we took the oppor¬
tunity, in this place, to fearch her, and to flop up
the places which let in the water. We accordingly
lightened her, and bringing our guns and other
moveable tilings to one fide, we efiayed to bring her
down, that wc might comeat her bottom: But, upon
fecond confideration, we did not think it fafe to let
her lie on dry ground, neither indeed was the place
convenient for it. The inhabitants, not ufed to fuch
a fight as to fee a (hip lie down on one fide, and
heel it towards tlae Ihore, not perceiving her men,
who were at work on her bottom, with ftages and
boats on the off-fide, prefently imagined the ihip had
been call away, and lay faft on the ground. Agree¬
able to this fuppofition they furrounded us with ten
or twelve large boats, with a refolutioui, undoubtedly,
to plunder the fhip, and to carry away thofe they
found alive for flaves to their king. But when they
perceived our men hard at work on the Blip’s bot¬
tom and fide, walking, graving, and flopping her,,
itfilledthem all with fuch furprife, that they flood ga¬
zing, as tho’ they were confounded. Nor could we
imagine wrhat their delign was ; however, for fear of
danger, we handed down arms and ammunition to
thofe at work, in order to defend themfelves ; and
indeed this precaution was abfoiutely necefiary ; for,
in a quarter of an hour after, the natives, conclud¬
ing it was really a fliipwreck, and that we were fa-
ving our lives and goods, which they thought be¬
longed to them, came down upon our men, as
though it had been in a line of battle. We lay at
prefent but in a very unfit pofture to fight; and be¬
fore the ftages could be gotdowm, or the men in the
boat come on board as they were ordered, the Co-
chinchinefes were upon them, and two of their boats
boarding