From Hogg's Instructor. ALEXANDER SELKIRK, THE ORIGINAL ROBINSON CRUSOE. | shall, however, stir their remembrance once more, that our young readers may have a knowledge of the real as well as the imaginary Robinson Crusoe. There is, besides, a moral to be derived from his eventful life which may be studied to advantage. Alexander Selkirk, or Selcraig, was the seventh son of John Selcraig and Euphan Mackie of Largo, in Fifeshire. The father was a shoemaker and tanner-most of the shoemakers in these days curing their own hides—and a man of some means. The property in which he lived, called Dunnochie, at the west end of Largo, was his own. Here Alexander was born in 1676. In boyhood he was naturally of a wayward temper, which humor was much aggravated by the ill-bestowed favor of his mother, who formed great expectations of her son because of his being the seventh, a charmed number, ac WE are not certain whether Defoe's admirable romance, The Adventures of Robinson Crusoe," is quite such a favorite with the "rising generation" of the present day as it was with their youthful progenitors. If it is, we feel some misgivings that we undertake a thankless task in directing the attention of the juvenile reader to the real prototype of that most interesting of all imaginary personages. So very much like a true narrative of facts has Defoe contrived to weave his imperishable fiction, that the young mind, if not the old, is unwilling to think of any one having sat for the portraiture save the veritable Robinson Crusoe himself. Nevertheless, such is the fact, and as truth is at all times preferable to fiction, even the most highly wrought, we cannot help embracing this opportunity of thanking honest John Howell for the zeal with which he set about gleaning the history of the bona fide adven-cording to superstition. He seems to have turer. This he accomplished with characteristic enthusiasm, some twenty years ago; yet it is singular that no second edition of his little work, so far as we are aware, has ever been called for-a circumstance which, perhaps, more than anything else, shows that the world did not care to be disabused of its belief in the ideal Robinson. It is true that the fact of Selkirk's having lived alone for four years and four months on an island, was known through the medium of several publications, prior to the fiction of Defoe, and from which he adopted the idea of his future work. Amongst others, it was made the sub-In ject of a paper in "The Englishman," by Sir Richard Steele, who saw and conversed with Alexander Selkirk. This account of him was published in 1713, six years before the production of Defoe's work. Still these notices had long been lost sight of by the general reader till Howell again revived them. Even his gathered statements, interesting as they certainly are, seem now in danger of experiencing a similar fate. We *The Life and Adventures of Alexander Selkirk, dc. By JOHN HOWELL early made choice of a seafaring life, and to have acquired some knowledge in navigation. That he soon became an able and expert seaman may be inferred from his subsequent history. Howell produces extracts from the session-records, to show that he was at home in 1701, as quarrelsome and reckless as could be well imagined.* In 1703, he was appointed sailing-master of the Cinque Ports galley, one of two privateer vessels sent out to the South Seas by a company under Captain Dampier, who had previously gained some reputation in that quarter of the world. this expedition, however, he proved himself very ill-qualified for the command he had undertaken. His "arbitrary, unsettled turn of mind" led to continual disputes and heart-burnings, while their success in capturing prizes was by no means commensurate with their expectations. After the death of Captain Charles Pickering of the Cinque Ports, and the promotion of Lieutenant Thomas Stradling, to whom he had conceived *He was summoned before the session for creating a tumult in his father's house, and fighting with his brothers. His an inveterate dislike, Selkirk seems to have | the 19th of May, the vessels parted, never resolved upon making his escape as soon as to meet again. Strange to say, although an possible. In the conduct of Captain Dam- | exchange of some of the men took place bepier he foresaw nothing but ruin to the ex- tween the two ships, Selkirk remained with pedition. A dream which he had at this the Cinque Ports, thinking probably, as time, to the effect that the Cinque Ports Howell presumes, that no money was to be would be shipwrecked, is said to have deci- got under Dampier's command. While cruisded him in his determination. The two ves- ing along the shores of Mexico, without any sels having reached Juan Fernandez (Feb. success, a violent quarrel ensued between 1704) for the purpose of taking in wood and Captain Stradling and Selkirk, and he re water, a violent quarrel ensued between Cap- solved to leave, whatever might be the contain Stradling and his crew. Forty-two out sequence. At length the want of provisions of the sixty men went on shore, determined and the crazy state of the ship compelled never to go on board again, so that the Stradling to sail for Juan Fernandez. Here Cinque Ports rode almost deserted at anchor. the vessel remained from the beginning to For two days the men wandered about the the end of September, the breach between island, undecided what to do. Howell is in- the Captain and Selkirk daily becoming worse. clined to believe, though the fact is not stated At length, while the vessel was getting under by Funnel, the historian of the expedition, weigh, Selkirk was landed, with his chest, that Selkirk was amongst the disaffected, and all his effects. It must have been an and that it was during this misunderstanding, impressive scene to witness the leave-taking having ample leisure to survey the island, he of his comrades, while the surly commander had resolved upon making it his subsequent sat in the boat urging their return. Selkirk retreat. At length, through the mediation described his feelings as almost insupportaof Captain Dampier, the refractory crew ble when he heard the plash of the oars as were reconciled to their captain, and returned the boat rowed away, leaving him to solitude to their duty. While the vessels were lying and himself on an uninhabited island. here a sail appeared in sight, when chase heart literally sank within him. was immediately given, and at length coming up with her she proved to be a French ship of about four hundred tons burden, with thirty guns, and well provided and manned. A desperate action ensued, the brunt of which was borne by the St. George, the Cinque Ports, after firing a few shots, having fallen astern and been becalmed. The fight was maintained yardarm and yardarm for seven hours, when at length the fire of the Frenchman began to slacken, there not being men left sufficient to work the guns, and she was on the point of yielding when a breeze sprang up, and she made sail, the St. George not being in a condition to follow her. Thus the gallant prize was lost just at the moment fortune seemed about to place her in their power. The Cinque Ports having bore up, the two captains, in opposition to the remonstrances of the crews, determined to return to Juan Fernandez, and allow the Frenchman to escape. On their return, however, they found the bay occupied by two French South Sea vessels of thirty-six guns each, too strong a force for them to compete with; so they bore away direct for the coast of Peru. But it is not our purpose to follow Dampier in his unfortunate expedition. After sundry adventures, a few captures, and no small mismanagement, a serious misunderstanding occurred between the two captains, and on The Island of Juan Fernandez, of which Alexander Selkirk was for the time the only inhabitant, is situated in the Pacific Ocean, about a hundred and ten leagues west of Chili. It is peculiarly rich in natural beauty --rocks, hills, and valleys-and abounding with delightful springs and streams of water, with umbrageous woods, and wild flowers. innumerable. The shores abounded with fish, and numerous goats-a breed of which had been imported at some unknown period before browsed upon its herbage. Such was the island-home of Selkirk, and, in the beautiful words of Cowper, he might have exclaimed, as he looked around "I am monarch of all I survey, My right there is none to dispute;" but his heart still beat violently in response to the farewell salute of his friends; the plash of the receding oars still filled his ear, and his eye strained toward the little speck on the horizon long after it had disappeared. The most intense feeling of desolation took. hold of him "Oh solitude! where are the charms He felt, in short, an entire prostration of his faculties. It was not till the darkness of night overshadowed all things that he closed his weary eyes, and even then not to sleep, so dreadful did he feel the indescribable loneliness of his situation. He tasted no food until prompted by extreme hunger, and then he fed upon such shellfish as the beach supplied, for he felt as if spellbound to the shore. It was now the beginning of October (1704), the "springtime of the year" in those southern latitudes in which Juan Fernandez is situated. The island was glowing in all the freshness of its vernal beauty, but nature spread her charms in vain before the deserted in his present mood. He felt as "out of humanity's reach," and was miserable. Nor was this to be wondered at. The life of a seaman is perhaps the worst of all training for a recluse; for, although they may be said to be shut out from the world for years in long voyages, still they are always associated in little communities, and enjoy each other's society with greater relish because of their peculiar situation. To be at once transferred from a floating world of some sixty men, bound to each other by a common danger and a common interest, to an uninhabited island, where he never could "hear the sweet music of speech," was a trial of fortitude which no one can properly conceive. Neither was the temper of Selkirk of that phlegmatic character to bear calmly the ills which beset him. Often did he contemplate putting an end to his sufferings by a violent death. "It was in this trying situation," says Howell, "when his mind, deprived of all outward occupation, was turned back upon itself, that the whole advantages of that inestimable blessing, a religious education in his youth, was felt in its consoling influence when every other hope and comfort had fled. When misery had subdued the pride of his hard and stubborn heart, it was then he turned to that Divine Being of whom he had thought so little at an earlier period. Then the uninhabited wilderness of Juan Fernandez was turned into a smiling garden, and the darkness of that despair that had nearly overwhelmed him began to clear away. By slow degrees he became reconciled to his fate, and as winter approached, he saw the necessity of procuring some kind of shelter from the weather; for, even in that genial clime, frost is common during the night, and snow is sometimes found upon the ground in the morning." One of the greatest difficulties experienced by the recluse was the living fresh food. He had no salt, and the upon loathing induced by the want of it was almost intolerable. It is astonishing, however, how accommodating the human constitution is. The palate became reconciled at last. The first great enterprise engaged in by Selkirk was the building of a hut. This roused his energies, and necessarily took him away from the beach, where he used to maintain a hopeless outlook for some vessel to relieve him from his melancholy situation. He found this occupation so agreeable that he built two huts. They were constructed of "the wood of the pimento-tree, and thatched with a species of grass, that grows to the height of seven or eight feet upon the plains and smaller hills, and produces straw resembling that of oats." The one was much larger than the other, and situated near a spacious wood. This he made his sleeping-room, spreading the bed-clothes he had brought on shore with him upon a frame of his own construction; and as these wore out, or were used for other purposes, he supplied their place with goats' skins. His pimento bedroom he used also as his chapel; for here he kept up that simple but beautiful form of family-worship which he had been accustomed to in his father's house. Soon after he left his bed, and before he commenced the duties of the day, he sang a psalm or part of one; then he read a portion of Scripture, and finished with devout prayer. In the evening, before he retired to rest, the same duties were performed. His devotions he repeated aloud, to retain the use of speech, and for the satisfaction man feels in hearing the human voice, even when it is only his own. The greater part of his time was spent in devotion. He had been heard afterward to say, with tears in his eyes, that he was a better Christian in his solitude than ever he was before, and feared he would ever be again. To distinguish the Sabbath, he kept an exact account of the days of every week and month, although the method he adopted to do so is not mentioned. fuel and candle. Fire he obtained, after the Indian fashion, by rubbing two pieces of pimento wood together, until they ignited. As time wore on, Selkirk not only became reconciled to his lot, but began to take a pleasure in his island kingdom. He ornamented the little dormitory with fragrant branches, cut from the spacious wood near to which it was situated, so that it formed a delicious bower, round which the soft breezes of the south played in balmy luxuriance, as he soundly slept after the fatigues of the day. He had food in abundance. The goats supplied him with milk and flesh, and he enjoyed great varieties of fish. The crawfish which he caught, weighing eight or nine pounds, he boiled or broiled, seasoning it with pimento (Jamaica pepper). The cabbage-palm, of which there was plenty on the island, served him for bread. He had also a species of parsnip of good flavor, Sicilian radishes, and water-cresses, which latter he found in the neighboring brooks. His mode of catching the goats was solely by speed of foot, the powder which he had brought from the ship having been soon expended; but he was careful to have always a number of tame ones browsing around his huts, by way of supply in case of accident or sickness. From the temperate life he led, coupled with moderate exercise and a salubrious climate, he enjoyed the best health, and became remarkably strong. His mind was also buoyant and cheerful in proportion to his bodily vigor. At first he could only overtake kids in the chase, but ultimately he was capable of overrunning the fleetest goat in a few minutes. He became, of course, intimately familiar with every corner of the island-all the by-paths and accessible parts of the mountains. He could bound from crag to crag, and slip down the precipices with the utmost confidence. Hunting became his chief amusement, allowing the goats to escape when he did not require them for food. The only drawback to his happiness-and this annoyance he did not long endure arose from the multitude of rats which infested the island, having been brought thither at some period or other by vessels. They used to gnaw his feet and other parts of his body as he slept. He at length caught some of the cats that ran wild on the island, and succeeding, after much labor, in taming them, they put the rats to flight. He used to amuse himself in teaching his feline companions to dance, in which accomplishment he also contrived to instruct the young kids, dancing himself the while to the music of his own voice. Having no writing materials, and unwilling that all remembrance of his fate should be forgotten, he occasionally amused himself by cutting out his name, the day of the year, and other particulars, on the trees; but these had all disappeared when Lord Anson visited Juan Fernandez in 1741. Only two or three memorable events occurred during Selkirk's residence on the island. The first was his finding a few iron hoops on the beach one day in his rambles, which had been left by some vessel as unworthy of being taken away. To the lonely islander they were more precious than gold. Of these he made knives when his own were worn out. One of them, used as a chopper, about two feet in length, was, according to Isaac James, long kept as a curiosity at the Golden Head coffee-house, near Buckingham gate. It had been changed from its original simple form, having, when last seen, a buckhorn handle, with some verses upon it. At different times our hero saw vessels from the island, but two only ever came to anchor. On both occasions he concealed himself, being afraid that they were Spaniards. It was at that time a maxim of Spanish policy never to allow an Englishman to return to Europe who had gained any knowledge of the South Seas. On the last occasion, being anxious to learn whether the ship was Spanish or French, he approached too near, and was perceived. A pursuit was the consequence; but although the sailors fired several shots after him, he easily made his escape, and kept concealed until the vessel left the island. The third and most serious occurrence, was an accident which nearly deprived him of life. In pursuing a goat, he came upon the brink of a precipice of which he was not aware, it being covered with the foliage of trees. Extending his arms to catch the animal as it suddenly stopped, the branches gave way, and both fell from a great height to the ground. He lay upon the dead body of the goat for twenty-four hours, insensible, and when at last able to crawl, he reached his hut with great difficulty. He was for ten days confined to bed by his bruises-no one, of course, being at hand to give him a drink of water. With this exception, he enjoyed uninterrupted good health. The few clothes Selkirk had with him soon wore out. When his shoes were done he never attempted to supply their place; but as his other habiliments decayed, he con verted the skins of the goats into garments, | nothing but salt provisions for them to live sewing them with slender thongs of leather, upon. When day at length opened, he still which he cut for the purpose, and using a saw them, but at a distance from the shore. sharp nail for a needle. In this way he His fire had caused great consternation on made for himself a cap, jacket, and short board, for they knew the island to be uninbreeches. The hair being retained upon the habited, and supposed the light to have proskin, gave him a very uncouth appearance; ceeded from some French ships at anchor. but in this dress he was enabled to run In this persuasion they prepared for action, through the woods with as little injury as as they must either fight or want water and the animal he pursued. He had a plentiful other refreshments, and stood to their quarsupply of linen in his chest-thanks, no ters all night, ready to engage; but, not doubt, to his good old mother-and with perceiving any vessel, they next day, about the threads of his woolen stockings, which noon, sent a boat on shore, with Captain he untwisted for the purpose, and his nail Dover, Mr. Fry, and six men, all well armed, for a needle, he contrived to keep himself in to ascertain the cause of the fire, and to see good linens. The hair of his head and that all was safe. Selkirk saw the boat leave beard never having been touched since he the Duke, and pull for the beach. He ran left the ship, became of great length, so that down joyfully to meet his countrymen, and his appearance must have been wild in the to hear once more the human voice. He extreme, though, as Howell remarks, quite took in his hand a piece of linen tied upon a neighbor-like beside his cats and goats. small pole as a flag, which he waved as they drew near, to attract their attention. At length he heard them call to him, inquiring for a good place to land, which he pointed out, and, flying as swift as a deer toward it, arrived first, where he stood ready to receive them as they stepped on shore. He embraced them by turns; but his joy was too great for utterance, while their astonishment at his uncouth appearance struck them dumb. At length they began to converse, and he invited them to his hut; but its access was so very difficult and intricate, that only Mr. Fry accompanied him over the rocks which led to it. When Selkirk had entertained him in the best manner he could, they returned to the boat, our hero bearing a quantity of his roasted goat's flesh for the refreshment of the crew. During their repast he gave them an account of his adventures and stay upon the island, at which they were much surprised. Captain Dover and Mr. Fry invited him to come on board; but he declined their invitation, until they satisfied him that Dampier had no command in this expedition; after which, he gave a reluctant consent." 66 At length the day of relief was at hand. In 1708, another privateering expedition was promoted by Dampier in England. Two ships were fitted up-the Duke" and "Duchess "to cruise against the French and Spaniards. Dampier, however, held no command, being appointed only "pilot for the South Seas." On the 31st of January, 1709, as Selkirk was as usual surveying the watery waste which circumscribed his small dominion, mentally exclaiming, no doubt 'Ye winds, that have made me your sport, Of a land I shall visit no more," he descried two vessels in the distance. Slowly they rose in his view, and as they gradually neared the island, he discovered, to his infinite delight, that they were English. The tumult of joyous feelings with which the sight inspired him, may, to use a common but very expressive phrase, be more easily conceived than described. "It was late in the afternoon," says Howell, "when they first came in sight; and lest they should sail again without knowing that there was a person on the island, he prepared a quantity of wood to burn as soon as it was dark. He kept his eye fixed upon them until night fell, and then kindled his fire, and kept it up till morning dawned. His hopes and fears having banished all desire for sleep, he employed himself in killing several goats, and in preparing an entertainment for his expected guests, knowing how acceptable it would be to them after their long run, with His aversion to Dampier could not be of a personal nature, but proceeded, no doubt, from his experience of him as a commander. When he came on board the "Duke," Dampier gave Selkirk an excellent character, telling Captain Rogers that he was one of the best men on board the Cinque Ports. Upon this recommendation he was immediately engaged as mate of the “Duke.” the afternoon the ships were cleared, the sails bent and taken on shore to be mended, and to make tents for the sick men. Sel "In |