The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-05-16
BY DANIEL DEFOE

Say how many editions Of ft nave been printed or even how many are printed today. The majority of Ensiisn-spsah. ing people persist In calling the island of Juan Fernandez Robinson Crusoes Tsland.- The only shadow of an .ex- cuse for this Ia in the fact that . saii- or, Alexander Seikirk, was marooned there by his cap ain in 1704 and spent four years alone on t. If Defoe owes anything to this adventure It is only slight debt, for the story of Robinson Crusoe does not resemble the story of Selkirk to any great degree. Robin son Crusoe never rounded Cape Horn He was shipwrecked in the South Att lantic off the mouth of the River orin- oco. near the great island of Trinidad. His man Friday was carib Indian, Everything in the Story Is correct geo graphically, meterologicaIly and ethno- logically for an island near the Orin- oco: but it would be nonsensicai If as- cribed to the island of Juan Fernahdez.
 The title page of the book In the original edition is: "The Life ana Strange Surprising Adventures of Eop- Lived Eight and Twenty Years. All Alone in an uninhabited Island on the Coast of America, Near the Mouth Of the Great River Oronoque; Having Been Cast on Shore by Shipwreck, Wherein All the Men Perished but Himself. . as Strangely Deliver'd by Pyrates. written by Himself. London: Printed for W. Taylor at the Ship in Pater- Noster-Row. MDCCxIv."
 Robinson Crusoe was born in York in 1882 of. good family. His fathers name was Kreutznaer. His mothers z family name was Robinson. He was named Robinson Kreuznaer. and his companions did as the English always do; they changed the name to some- 7 thing that they thought more English and .cailed him Robinson Crusoe.
 He was not bred to any trade. and his head became full of thoughts of adventure. muchSto the sorrow of his father. who was wise and grave man. content with the station In which he had been placed and abhoring under takings out of the respectable and com mon road "Yours is the middle state. or what might be called the upper station of low life." said he to his restless son, which is the best station fnfthe world. the most suited to human happiness, not exposed to the miseries and labors of the mechanic part of mankind and not embarrassed with the pride. luxury and ambition of the upper part of man kind. Kings have frequently lament ed the miserable consequences of be- ing born to great things and have wished they had been placed in the middle of the two extremes. between the mean and the great"
 Strange assit may seem, this sensible discourse did not in the least reconcile Robinson Crusoe to the idea of ex- changing life of adventure for a life of respectable competence. He slipped away one day without asking either Gods blessing or his fathers. and W,ok ship at Hull.
 1t was September I. 1esi. when he sailed away on his first cruise. which ddt not last long. The ship got Into a storm as soon as 1t left the Humber. and Robinson Crusoe became so sea- sick that he thought with great se- rionsness how wicked he had been. All the good counsels of his parents came into his mind.
 and as the weather cleared up his mind bebame more tranquil A great bowl oftpunch that was brewed in the fore castle that evening, drowned his refjec- tions and fenorse effectua1iy.
 On the sixth day the ship entered Yarmouth Roads and lay there week. Then great wind came up. Soon 1t was blowing a very terrible storm in- deed. Two ships near by cut away their masts. Two others, dismasted. drove out to sea. Robinson Crusoe's ship rode foreeastie in, shipped sea af- ter sea and at last was so close to foundering that the captain ordered both masts cut away.
 Despite this and despite their frantic labors at the pumps, the ship filled fast endo.had to be abandoned. The crew took to the boats and scarcely had they been struggling a quarter of an hour before the ship sank. Half row ins. half driving. they managed to make shora
 Now Robinson crusoe should have gone home to settle down. into that middle state which his father had the good sense to like. But as youth Is not ashamed so much to sin asito re- pent, and would do second foolish &C., ton rather than to confess the fool ishness of the first, he went to Lon- don and took passage on a vessel bound Co the coast of Africa for the Guinea ; trade, as the sailors called it. He had obtained about forty pounds from his relatives, and had reason to suppose that his father or his mother had con- tributed the greater part of the sum- He invested it in tradestuffs and brought home five pounds nine ounces of gold, which yielded him almost BOO pounds in London.
 His success elated him and made him greedy for more. He left 200 pounds with the widow of friend for safe- keeping and invested the other 100
 
 Between the Canary Islands and tho African shore a Turkish rover of Sal- lee gave chase to them, and as he could outsail their vessel the English traders decided to fight, although they had only stwelve guns against the TO- ver's eighteen. They raked the Turk once and beat his boarders off twice but in the end they were taken and carried into the Moorish port of Sallee.
 Robinson Crusoe's companions were carried up country to the Emperor's court. Hes- being young and nimbla was kept by the rover as his own slave This surprising change of eircumstan- ces led Robinson Crusoe to think most seriously again of. his fathers dis- course. and he felt that the hand of Heaven had overtaken him.
 He was in this statutory frame of mind for two years when an opportu- nity came to him to escape and turned his mind to adventurous thoughts again His master, who loved fishing. had caused his ships carpenter to build A little cabin in an English longboat that he had captured. He kept this craft we'll provisioned so that he could start on little cruises at any time. Now and then he used to send Crusoe out with two native slaves to catch fish for him. and from that time forth the English captive watched for his change to escape.
 If came one day when his master put more supplies than usual and also three |uzaes with powder and shot aboard, fntendinR to entertain some distin- guished guests. They were prevented Srona going. and sent Crusoe out with Che two African slaves to catch hsh