An American Robinson Crusoe for American Boys and Girls

  Produced by Irma Spehar, dpcfmander, Jason Isbell and theOnline Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net

  AN AMERICANROBINSON CRUSOEFOR AMERICAN BOYS AND GIRLS

  THE ADAPTATION, WITH ADDITIONAL INCIDENTS

  BY

  SAMUEL B. ALLISON, Ph.D.

  ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS, CHICAGO, ILL.

  EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANYBOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO SAN FRANCISCO

  COPYRIGHT, 1918

  BY

  EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHING COMPANY

  CONTENTS

  I Robinson with His Parents 7

  II Robinson as an Apprentice 10

  III Robinson's Departure 13

  IV Robinson Far from Home 17

  V The Shipwreck 19

  VI Robinson Saved 21

  VII The First Night on Land 23

  VIII Robinson on an Island 28

  IX Robinson's Shelter 30

  X Robinson Makes a Hat 34

  XI Robinson's Calendar 38

  XII Robinson Makes a Hunting Bag 41

  XIII Robinson Explores the Island 44

  XIV Robinson as a Hunter 48

  XV Robinson's Shoes and Parasol 51

  XVI Getting Fire 53

  XVII Robinson Makes Some Furniture 55

  XVIII Robinson Becomes a Shepherd 57

  XIX Robinson Builds a Home for His Goats 60

  XX Robinson Gets Ready for Winter 64

  XXI How Robinson Lays up a Store of Food 67

  XXII Robinson's Diary 70

  XXIII Robinson is Sick 74

  XXIV Robinson's Bower 77

  XXV Robinson Again Explores His Island 81

  XXVI Robinson and His Birds 84

  XXVII Robinson Gets Fire 89

  XXVIII Robinson Makes Baskets 93

  XXIX Robinson Becomes a Farmer 98

  XXX Robinson as Potter 104

  XXXI Robinson as Baker 108

  XXXII Robinson as Fisherman 112

  XXXIII Robinson Builds a Boat 116

  XXXIV Robinson as a Sailor 120

  XXXV A Discovery 127

  XXXVI The Landing of the Savages 133

  XXXVII Robinson as Teacher 139

  XXXVIII Another Shipwreck 144

  XXXIX Saving Things from the Ship 149

  XL The Return of the Savages 155

  XLI Deliverance at Last 162

  XLII Robinson at Home 167

  PREFATORY NOTE

  "An American Robinson Crusoe" is the outcome of many years of experiencewith the story in the early grades of elementary schools. It was writtento be used as a content in giving a knowledge of the beginning anddevelopment of human progress. The aim is not just to furnish aninteresting narrative, but one that is true to the course of humandevelopment and the scientific and geographical facts of the island onwhich Robinson is supposed to have lived.

  The excuse for departing so widely from the original story is to befound in the use which was desired to be made of it. The story herepresented is simply the free adaptation of the original narrative to thedemand for a specific kind of content in a form which would beinteresting to the children.

  The teacher is and should be justified in using with entire freedom anymaterial accessible for the ends of instruction.

  The text as here given has been published with an introduction andsuggestive treatments as a Teacher's Manual for Primary Grades--"TheTeacher's Robinson Crusoe." Explicit directions and ample suggestionsare made for the use of the story as material for instruction in all thelanguage arts, drawing, social history, and the manual arts.

  Published by the Educational Publishing Company.

  AN AMERICAN ROBINSON CRUSOE

  I

  ROBINSON WITH HIS PARENTS

  There once lived in the city of New York, a boy by the name of RobinsonCrusoe. He had a pleasant home. His father and mother were kind to himand sent him to school. They hoped that he would study hard and grow upto be a wise and useful man, but he loved rather to run idle about thestreet than to go to school. He was fond of playing along the RiverHudson, for he there saw the great ships come and go. They were as bigas houses. He watched them load and unload their cargoes and hundreds ofpeople get off and on. His father had told him that the ships came fromfar distant lands, where lived many large animals and black men. Hisfather told him too, that in these faraway countries the nuts on thetrees grew to be as large as one's head and that the tree were as highas church steeples.

  When Robinson saw the ships put out to sea he would watch them till theywould disappear below the horizon far out in the ocean, and think, "Oh,if I could only go with them far away to see those strange countries!"Thus he would linger along the great river and wish he might find anopportunity of making a voyage. Often it would be dark before he wouldget home. When he came into the house his mother would meet him and sayin a gentle voice, "Why, Robinson, how late you are in getting home! Youhave been to the river again."

  ROBINSON WATCHING THE SHIPS]

  Then Robinson would hang his head and feel deeply ashamed, and when hisfather, who was a merchant, came home from the store, his mother wouldtell him that Robinson had again been truant.

  This would grieve his father deeply and he would go to the boy's bedsideand talk earnestly with him. "Why do you do so?" he would say. "Howoften have I told you to go to school every day?" This would for a timewin Robinson back to school, but by the next week it had been forgottenand he would again be loitering along the river in spite of his father'sremonstrances.

  II

  ROBINSON AS AN APPRENTICE

  In this way one year after another slipped by. Robinson was not morediligent. He was now almost sixteen years old and had not learnedanything. Then came his birthday. In the afternoon his father called himinto his room. Robinson opened the door softly. There sat his fatherwith a sad face. He looked up and said, "Well, Robinson, all yourschoolmates have long been busy trying to learn something, so that theymay be able to earn their own living. Paul will be a baker, Robert abutcher, Martin is learning to be a carpenter, Herman a tailor, Otto ablacksmith, Fritz is going to high school, because he is going to be ateacher. Now, you are still doing nothing. This will not
do. From thistime on I wish you to think of becoming a merchant. In the morning youwill go with me to the store and begin work. If you are attentive andskillful, when the time comes you can take up my business and carry iton. But if you remain careless and continue to idle about, no one willever want you and you must starve because you will never be able to earna living."

  So the next morning Robinson went to the store and began work. Hewrapped up sugar and coffee, he weighed out rice and beans. He sold mealand salt, and when the dray wagon pulled up at the store, loaded withnew goods, he sprang out quickly and helped to unload it. He carried insacks of flour and chests of tea, and rolled in barrels of coffee andmolasses. He also worked some at the desk. He looked into the accountbooks and saw in neat writing, "Goods received" and "Goods sold." Henoticed how his father wrote letters and reckoned up his accounts. Heeven took his pen in hand and put the addresses on the letters andpackages as well as he could.

  But soon he was back in his careless habits. He was no longer attentiveto business. He wrapped up salt instead of sugar. He put false weightson the scales. He gave some too much and others too little. His hands,only, were in the business, his mind was far away on the ocean with theships. When he helped unload the wagons, he would often let the chestsand casks drop, so that they were broken and their contents would runout on the ground. For he was always thinking, "Where have these caskscome from and how beautiful it must be there!" And many times packagescame back because Robinson had written the name of the place or thecountry wrong. For when he was writing the address, he was alwaysthinking, "You will be laid upon a wagon and will then go into theship." One day he had to write a letter to a man far over the sea. Hecould stand it no longer. His father had gone out. He threw down thepen, picked up his hat and ran out to the Hudson to see the ships, andfrom that time on he spent more time loitering along the river than hedid in the store.

  III

  ROBINSON'S DEPARTURE

  Robinson's father soon noticed that his son was no longer attending tohis work, and one morning sent for him to come to his office. WhenRobinson came in his father arose from his chair and looked him long andearnestly in the face. Then he said, "I am very sorry, Robinson, thatyou seem determined to continue your evil ways. If you do not do betteryou will grow up to be a beggar or worse." Robinson cast his eyes downand said, "I do not want to be a merchant, I would rather sail in a shiparound the world." His father answered, "If you do not know anything youcannot be of use on a ship, and no one will want you. In a strange landyou cannot live without working. If you run away from your parents youwill come to be sorry for it." Robinson wept, for he saw that his fatherwas right, and he promised to obey.

  After two or three weeks, Robinson went to his mother and said,"Mother, won't you go to father and tell him that if he will only let metake one voyage and it proves to be unpleasant, I will come back to thestore and work hard?" But the mother cried. With tears in her eyes, shesaid: "Robinson, your brothers are both dead. You are the only childleft to us and if you go away, we shall be entirely alone. How easy itwould be to be drowned in the sea, or torn to pieces by wild animalsaway there in a foreign country. Both your father and myself are gettingalong in years and who will take care of us when we are sick? Do notcause us the grief we must suffer if you go away so far amid so manydangers. I cannot bear to have you speak of it again."

  Robinson did not speak of it again, but he did not forget it. He wasnineteen years old. It was one day in August that Robinson stood at thewharf looking longingly after the departing ships. As he stood there,someone touched him on the shoulder. It was a ship captain's son. Hepointed to a long ship and said, "My father sails to-day in that shipfor Africa and takes me with him."

  "Oh, if I could only go with you!" cried Robinson.

  "Do come along," cried his comrade.

  "But I have no money," said Robinson.

  "That doesn't make any difference," returned the captain's son. "We willtake you anyway."

  Robinson, without thinking for a moment, gave his friend his hand andpromised to go with him.

  So without saying "Good-bye" to his parents, Robinson went immediatelyon board the ship with his friend. This happened on the 10th of August.

  ROBINSON AND THE CAPTAIN'S SON]

  IV

  ROBINSON FAR FROM HOME

  ROBINSON'S VOYAGE

  Once on board, Robinson watched the preparations for departure. Atcommand the sailors clambered up into the rigging and loosened thesails. Then the captain from his bridge called out, "Hoist the anchor!"Then the great iron hooks that held the ship fast were lifted up, acannon sounded a final farewell. Robinson stood on the deck. He saw thegreat city shimmer in the sunshine before him. Very fast now the landwas being left behind. It was not long until all that could be seen ofhis native city was the tops of the highest towers. Then all faded fromsight. Behind, in front, right and left, he saw nothing but waters.

  He became a little afraid. At noon there arose a strong wind and theship rocked to and fro. He became dizzy and had to hold fast tosomething. The masts and rigging began to dance. It seemed to him as ifall was turning around. Suddenly he fell full length on the deck and itwas impossible for him to get up. He was seasick. He wailed and cried,but no one heard him, no one helped him. Then he thought of his home,his parents whom he had so ungratefully left.

  He had been on the water about two weeks when one day as he lay in hisroom, Robinson heard people over his head running about and crying, "Astorm is coming!" The ship's sides trembled and creaked. The ship wastossed like a nutshell. Now it rolled to the right, now to the left. AndRobinson was thrown from one side to the other. Every moment he expectedthe ship to sink. He turned pale and trembled with fear. "Ah, if I wereonly at home with my parents, safe on the land," he said. "If I ever getsafe out of this, I will go home as quickly as I can and stay with mydear parents!" The storm raged the whole day and the whole night. But onthe next morning the wind went down and the sea was calm. By evening thesky was clear and Robinson was again cheerful. He ran about the ship. Helooked at the glittering stars and was contented and happy.

  V

  THE SHIPWRECK

  Several weeks went by. Robinson had long ago forgotten his resolutionsto return home. It was very hot. The glowing sun beat down upon theship. The wide surface of the sea glistened. No breeze stirred. Thesails hung loose on the top of the mast. But far away on the shore couldbe seen a black bank of clouds.

  All at once the ship was thrown violently to one side by a fierce gustof wind. Robinson threw himself on the deck. The sea began to rise andfall. The waves were as high as mountains. Now the ship was borne aloftto the skies, and now it would seem that it must be overwhelmed in thesea. When it sank down between the great waves of water, Robinsonthought it would never again rise. The waves beat violently on theship's side. Robinson went down the steps into his little room, but hecame back full of anxiety. He believed every minute he would meet deathin the waves. The night at last came on. The lightning flashed. Thestorm howled. The ship trembled. The water roared. So the night wore on.The storm raged for six days. Then on the seventh day it was somewhatabated. But the hope was soon dashed. The storm had abated but to getnew strength. Suddenly it bore down with frightful power on the doomedvessel, struck it, and shot it like an arrow through the water. ThenRobinson felt a fearful crash. The ship groaned as if it would fall intoa thousand pieces. It had struck a rock and there held fast. At the samemoment the sailors raised the cry, "The ship has sprung a leak!" Thewater surged into the ship. All called for help. Each one thought onlyof himself. There was only one boat. The others had all been torn away.It was soon let down into the sea. All sprang in. For a moment thesailors forgot the waves, but all at once a wave, mountains high, struckthe boat and swallowed it up. Robinson shut his eyes. The water roaredin his ears. He sank into the sea.

  VI

  ROBINSON SAVED

  Robinson was borne down far, far into the ocean. He attempted to workhimself up, so that he coul
d see light and breathe the air. But againand again the waves carried him down. Finally a wave threw him up and hesaw, for a moment, the light of day and got a breath of air, but thenext instant he was deep under the water. Then another wave bore him onits crest. He breathed a deep breath and at the same time saw land notfar away. He bent all his strength toward reaching the land. He gotalmost to it, when a wave caught him and hurled him on a jutting rock.With all his strength he seized the rock with both hands and held on.

  Presently he worked himself up a little and at last got a foothold. But,scarcely had he done so, when his strength left him and he fell on theground as one dead. But he soon revived. He opened his eyes and lookedaround. He saw above him the blue sky, and under him the solid brownearth, and before him the gray angry sea. He felt to see if he stillbreathed. The storm had destroyed the ship. The waves had overwhelmedthe boat. The water wished to draw him into the deep. The rocks seemedto want to hurl him back, but storm and wave and rock had accomplishednothing. There was One who was stronger than they.

  Then Robinson sank on his knees and folded his hands. Tears came to hiseyes. He breathed hard. At last he said, "Dear Father in Heaven, I live.Thou hast saved me. I thank Thee."

  VII

  THE FIRST NIGHT ON LAND

  "Where are my companions?" That was his first thought. He began to calland halloo: "Where are you? Come here!" But no one answered. Then hewished to see if anyone lived on the land, and he cried, "Is there noone here? Hello!" but all remained still.