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Crusoe Sowing Corn
Justyne, Leitch, Macquoid, Morgan, Pasquier, & Thomas
Engravers: Butterworth and Heath
1863-64
Wood-engraving
21.8 cm high by 14 cm wide.
Cassell's Robinson Crusoe, page 77.
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Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham.
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I was now, in the months of November and December, expecting my crop of barley and rice. The ground I had manured and dug up for them was not great; for, as I observed, my seed of each was not above the quantity of half a peck, for I had lost one whole crop by sowing in the dry season. But now my crop promised very well, when on a sudden I found I was in danger of losing it all again by enemies of several sorts, which it was scarcely possible to keep from it; as, first, the goats, and wild creatures which I called hares, who, tasting the sweetness of the blade, lay in it night and day, as soon as it came up, and eat it so close, that it could get no time to shoot up into stalk.
This I saw no remedy for but by making an enclosure about it with a hedge; which I did with a great deal of toil, and the more, because it required speed. However, as my arable land was but small, suited to my crop, I got it totally well fenced in about three weeks' time; and shooting some of the creatures in the daytime, I set my dog to guard it in the night, tying him up to a stake at the gate, where he would stand and bark all night long; so in a little time the enemies forsook the place, and the corn grew very strong and well, and began to ripen apace.
But as the beasts ruined me before, while my corn was in the blade, so the birds were as likely to ruin me now, when it was in the ear; for, going along by the place to see how it throve, I saw my little crop surrounded with fowls, of I know not how many sorts, who stood, as it were, watching till I should be gone. I immediately let fly among them, for I always had my gun with me. I had no sooner shot, but there rose up a little cloud of fowls, which I had not seen at all, from among the corn itself.[Chapter VIII, "Surveys His Position," pp. 78-79]
The particular moment realised reinforces Crusoe's status for much of the first half of the story as the castaway. Here, having survived a near-death experience, Crusoe turns from hunting and gathering to agriculture. Although he seems uncertain as to the outcome of his sowing, the ornate border of mature barely implies that his endeavours will bear fruit. By trial and error with agriculture as with all his other activities, he will eventually enjoy moderate success. Having had an evangelical conversion after his fever, Crusoe's replicating the image of the Sower of the Word is both symbolic and realistic. As the model planter, he lays the foundation for the island's plantations in the second half of the novel, and facilitates the Christianizing of the island.
Defoe, Daniel. The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe Of York, Mariner. As Related by himself. With upwards of One Hundred Illustrations. London: Cassell, Petter, and Galpin, 1863-64.
Last modified 12 March 2018