The San Francisco call., 1896-04-13
: THE ARRIVAL OF
DANIEL DEFOE JR,
He Is the Great Great Great
Grandson of the
Novelist.
A SAILOR APPRENTICE.
The Last of Four Brothers, All
of Whom Were Given the
Same Name.
DOESN'T LIKE ROBINSON CRUsOE
Has Read the Famous Book Once, but
Prefers Those Of Captain
Marryatt.
DOESN'T LIKE ROBINSON CRUsoE

Those who have threaded the delightful
pages of Robinson Crusoe" and read the
despairing lines of Alexander Selkirk, the
monarch of his sea-girt isle, will hear with
interest that great-great-g grandson
of Daniel Defoe is here. His name is
Daniel Defoe. He is an apprentice-boy on
board the British ship Bass Rock, which
arrived in this port last Tuesday.
The young sailor is 20 years of age and
the last scion of the family whose name
was made illustrious by the great political
writer and novelist. So anxious was his
father, who was also christened Daniel, to
perpetuate the name that the oldest son
was given it. Nor did the effort stop at
that, for the second boy was called Daniel
Defoe Defoe. And still the name went on,
for the third son was christened Daniel
Defoe.
The spectacle of three living brothers
bearing almost the same name was re-
markable one. However, they died in
their early childhood and the family title
was again in jeopardy, as the remaining
three children were girls. In their old age
fourth son was born to the Defoes, and
he was given the name of his great-great-
grandfather, of his father and of his dead
brothers.
Daniel Defoe-many times-Jr., being
left an orphan at an early age, was ed
ucated at the celebrated "Bluecoat SCHOOL,
at Christ's Hospital, London. He re-
ceived the warrant of an apprentice in the
merchant service and visited this port in
the British ship Prior Hill in 1890. During
his five or six years of sea life young Defoe
hoa in RI 10 world
has become personally known to the read
ers of his celebrated ancestor wherever the
English language is spoken.
1.-THE press both in England ard abroad
have written me up pretty thoroughly"
said he in an interview yesterday. "a
year or two ago, when | came home, saw
on London Bridge big handful stating
that Daniel Defoe, the grandson of the
great novelist, like Robinson Crusoe, had
returned from foreign lands and would
appear in some entertainment. Some
shrewd fellow was evidently taking my
name for his show.
"I once visited San Juan Fernandez
island and while ashore on that almost
barren place tried to understand what my
eat-great-great-grand- found in Alex
ander Selkirk's adventures to inspire the
Robinson Crusoe yarn. l read the book
once and l can't say that 1 admired it
much. No, that novel didn't send me to
sea. Captain Marryatt did that for me.
His characters are much more to my taste
than Man Friday and the goats and par
rots Of my relative.
"Chopping out canoes from tree trunks
and raising fields of barley from few
seeds is hardly to my taste. l would
rather read Peter Simple 'Midshipman
Easy and Jacob Faithful However it
isn't quite in good taste and is rather a
family disloyalty for Defoe Jr. to speak
of Defoe Sr. in this style.
Young Defoe intends to leave the Bass
Rock and abandon the sea life, as his eye
sight is slightly defective.
He has served his apprenticeship and is
eligible for examination for an officer
billet in the British mercantile marine,
bat is quite sure the Board of Trade be-
fore which he must pass will reject him on
the ground of color blindness.
81 like this country" said he, land
would like to make my home in the United
States. Possibly 1 will be able to do so
some time"
The young fellow is intelligent and
shows unmstakable evidences of good
birth and breeding. His honesty and sim
pliciry is evinced in his naive confession
that he has only read Robinson Cruso'
once and doesn't much admire the book.