When the settled season began to come in, as the thought of my design returned with the fair weather, I was preparing daily for the voyage; and the first thing I did was to lay by a certain quantity of provisions, being the stores for our voyage; and intended, in a week or a fortnight’s time, to open the dock, and launch out our boat. I was busy one morning upon something of this kind, when I called to Friday, and bid him to go to the sea-shore and see if he could find a turtle or a tortoise, a thing which we generally got once a week, for the sake of the eggs as well as the flesh. Friday had not been long gone when he came running back, and flew over my outer wall, or fence, like one that felt not the ground, or the steps he set his foot on; and before I had time to speak to him, he cries out to me, “O master! O master! O sorrow! O bad!” “What’s the matter, Friday?” says I. “O yonder, there,” says he, “one, two, three canoe! one, two, three!” By this way of speaking I concluded there were six; but on inquiry I found there were but three! “Well, Friday,” says I, “do not be frightened.” So I heartened him up as well as I could. However, I saw the poor fellow was most terribly scared; for nothing ran in his head but that they were come to look for him, and would cut him in pieces, and eat him; and the poor fellow trembled so, that I scarce knew what to do with him. I comforted him as well as I could, and told him I was in as much danger as he, and that they would eat me as well as him. “But,” says I, “Friday, we must resolve to fight them. Can you fight, Friday?” “Me shoot,” says he, “but there come many great number.” “No matter for that,” said I again; “our guns will fright them that we do not kill.” So I asked him whether, if I resolved to defend him, he would defend me, and stand by me, and do just as I bid him. He said, “Me die when you bid die, master.” So I went and fetched a good dram of rum and gave him; for I had been so good a husband [husband〈n.〉節儉的人] of my rum, that I had a great deal left. When we had drunk it, I made him take the two fowling-pieces [fowling-piece〈n.〉鳥槍], which we always carried, and load them with large swan-shot, as big as small pistol-bullets. Then I took four muskets [musket〈n.〉步槍], and loaded them with two slugs [slug〈n.〉彈丸] and five small bullets each; and my two pistols I loaded with a brace of bullets each. I hung my great sword, as usual, naked by my side, and gave Friday his hatchet.
When I had thus prepared myself, I took my perspective-glass, and went up to the side of the hill to see what I could discover; and I found quickly, by my glass, that there were one and twenty savages, three prisoners, and three canoes; and that their whole business seemed to be the triumphant banquet upon these three human bodies, a barbarous feast indeed, but nothing more than, as I had observed, was usual with them. I observed also that they had landed, not where they had done when Friday made his escape, but nearer to my creek, where the shore was low, and where a thick wood came close almost down to the sea. This, with the abhorrence of the inhuman errand these wretches came about, filled me with such indignation [indignation〈n.〉憤慨] that I came down again to Friday, and told him I was resolved to go down to them, and kill them all, and asked him if he would stand by me. He had now gotten over his fright, and his spirits being a little raised with the dram I had given him, he was very cheerful, and told me, as before, he would die when I bid die.
In this fit of fury, I divided the arms which I had charged, as before, between us. I gave Friday one pistol to stick in his girdle, and three guns upon his shoulder; and I took one pistol, and the other three guns myself, and in this posture we marched out. I took a small bottle of rum in my pocket, and gave Friday a large bag with more powder and bullets; and as to orders, I charged him to keep close behind me, and not to stir, or shoot, or do anything, till I bid him, and in the meantime not to speak a word. In this posture I fetched a compass to my right hand of near a mile, as well to get over the creek as to get into the wood, so that I might come within shot of them before I should be discovered, which I had seen by my glass, it was easy to do.