(Continuing from Part 15)
December 10, 1659
For many days, I continued digging into the hillside behind my tent.
The work was difficult, but I was pleased with my progress. I wanted to make a large storage room where I could keep my tools, food, and other possessions.
Then, one morning, something frightening happened.
While I was working inside the cave, a large quantity of earth suddenly fell from the roof.
The noise was terrible.
I jumped backward and escaped just before the earth struck the ground.
If I had been standing a little farther inside, I might have been buried alive.
For several moments, I could hardly move.
I realized how dangerous my work had become.
There was nobody on the island who could rescue me if I were trapped beneath the earth.
I decided that I must strengthen the cave before digging any farther.
December 11 to December 17
I began cutting strong wooden posts to support the roof.
I placed them upright and fixed long pieces of timber across the top.
The work was slow because I had to measure, cut, and carry everything myself.
Gradually, I made the cave safer.
I also discovered that the posts could serve another purpose.
By placing boards between them, I could make shelves for storing my possessions.
This was a useful improvement.
My tools and supplies were becoming easier to find.
December 20
Today I moved more of my possessions into the cave.
I arranged my tools, boxes, and smaller objects on the new shelves.
I also finished making a few useful pieces of furniture.
My shelter was becoming more comfortable.
It was still a rough home, but I was proud of what I had accomplished.
December 27
I went hunting and shot a young goat.
I wounded another goat in the leg.
Instead of killing it, I decided to take it home alive.
I tied its injured leg and carried it back to my shelter.
For several days, I cared for the animal.
Eventually, its leg healed.
It became so familiar with me that it no longer tried to escape.
I began thinking that perhaps I could keep goats instead of always hunting them.
If I could raise a herd, I might have a regular supply of meat without wasting my gunpowder.
This idea would become important later.
January 3, 1660
I continued working on my fence.
I wanted it to be strong enough to protect my shelter from animals and possible enemies.
I cut wooden posts and placed them close together.
Some were very heavy, and moving them required great effort.
January 14
Today I explored farther into the island.
I discovered more goats, but they were difficult to approach.
They seemed especially frightened when I walked below them.
I learned that I could sometimes get closer by approaching from higher ground.
This made hunting easier.
February 3
I spent several days making small baskets.
I remembered watching basket makers in England when I was young.
At the time, I had paid little attention to their work.
Now I wished that I had learned more.
I found flexible branches and tried to weave them together.
My first baskets were poor, but with practice I made some that could hold earth and other materials.
They were useful for my work.
March 1
My home was becoming more secure.
I had strengthened the fence, improved the cave, and arranged my supplies.
I was beginning to feel that I could survive here for a long time.
But I still hoped that a ship would eventually come.
Every time I climbed the hill and looked across the sea, I searched for sails on the horizon.
I saw none.
April 16
Today I finished the ladder that allowed me to enter my fenced home.
I climbed over the wall and pulled the ladder inside after me.
There was no ordinary doorway.
This made my shelter more difficult for strangers or animals to enter.
I felt safer than before.
April 17
While organizing my supplies, I remembered a bag that had once contained grain for feeding poultry aboard the ship.
Most of the grain had been spoiled by rats.
I had shaken the remaining dust and husks onto the ground near my shelter.
I had thought nothing more about it.
But now I noticed something remarkable.
Several green plants were growing where I had emptied the bag.
At first, I did not recognize them.
Then, as they grew taller, I realized that some were barley.
Others appeared to be rice.
I was astonished.
I had believed that I possessed no grain suitable for planting.
Yet these plants had grown from the few seeds left in the old bag.
For a moment, I considered the discovery a miracle.
It seemed that God had provided food for me in a place where I had expected nothing.
Then I remembered the bag of grain and understood how the seeds had reached the ground.
Still, I felt deeply grateful.
I carefully protected the plants.
I decided not to eat the first harvest.
Instead, I would save the seeds and plant them again.
If I succeeded, I might eventually grow enough grain to make bread.
This was an exciting possibility.
Until then, I had depended on the food rescued from the ship and the animals I could hunt.
Now I had discovered another way to provide for myself.
April 19
I continued examining the young grain.
I counted the plants and watched their growth carefully.
I knew almost nothing about farming in this climate.
I did not understand the seasons or the best time for planting.
I would have to learn through experience.
April 20
Today, while I was working near my shelter, the ground suddenly began to shake.
At first, I thought something heavy had fallen inside the cave.
Then I heard a deep noise from beneath the earth.
The hillside trembled.
Large pieces of rock and soil fell from above.
I was terrified.
I ran away from the rock and stood in an open area.
A few moments later, the ground shook again.
Then came a third movement.
Each shock seemed powerful enough to destroy my shelter.
I had never experienced an earthquake before.
I feared that the entire hillside would collapse and bury my tent and cave.
For some time, I stood trembling, unable to decide what to do.
I realized that the place I had chosen for safety might become my greatest danger.
If the rock fell, my strong fence would be useless.
I began thinking that I should move my home to open ground.
But moving everything would require many weeks of labor.
Before I could make a decision, the weather changed.
Dark clouds gathered, and the wind became stronger.
Soon, a violent storm approached the island.
I had survived the earthquake, but another danger was beginning.