him, that I told him then, and often after, that I would never send him
away from me, if he was willing to stay with me.

Upon the whole, as I found by all his discourse a settled affection to
me, and that nothing should part him from me, so I found all the
foundation of his desire to go to his own country was laid in his ardent
affection to the people, and his hopes of my doing them good; a thing,
which as I had no notion of myself, so I had not the least thought, or
intention, or desire of undertaking it. But still I found a strong
inclination to my attempting an escape, as above, founded on the
supposition gathered from the former discourse; viz. that there were
seventeen bearded men there; and therefore, without any delay, I went to
work with Friday, to find out a great tree proper to fell, and make a
large periagua or canoe, to under take the voyage: there were trees
enough in the island to have built a little fleet, not of periaguas and
canoes only, but even of good large vessels: but the main thing I looked
at, was to get one so near the water, that we might launch it when it
was made, to avoid the mistake I committed at first.

At last Friday pitched upon a tree; for I found he knew much better than
I what kind of wood was fittest for it; nor can I tell to this day what
wood to call the tree we cut down, except that it was very like the tree
we call tustick, or between that and the Nicaragua wood, for it was much
of the same colour and smell. Friday was for burning the hollow or
cavity of this tree out, to make it into a boat: but I shewed him how
rather to cut it out with tools, which after I shewed him how to use, he
did very handily; and in about a month's hard labour we finished it, and
made it very handsome, especially, when, with our axes, which I shewed
him how to handle, we cut and hewed the outside into the true shape of a
boat; after this, however, it cost us near a fortnight's time to get her