I staid by it to load my gun, and then coming away, I could easily see the thieves sitting upon all the trees about me, as if they only waited till I was gone away; and the event proved it to be so; for as I walked off, as if gone, I was no sooner out of their sight, than they dropt down, one by one, into the corn again. I was so provoked, that I could not have patience to stay till more came on, knowing that every grain they eat now was, as it might be said, a peck-loaf to me in the consequence; so coming up to the hedge, I fired again, and killed three of them. This was what I wished for; so I took them up, and served them as we serve notorious thieves in England, viz. hanged them in chains, for a terror to others. It is impossible to imagine that this should have such an effect as it had; for the fowls not only never came to the corn, but, in short, they forsook all that part of the island, and I could never see a bird near the place as long as my scare-crows hung there. This I was very glad of, you may be sure; and about the latter end of December, which was our second harvest of the year, I reaped my corn.
I was sadly put to it for a scythe or sickle to cut it down: and all I could do was to make one as well as I could, out of one of the broad swords, or cutlasses, which I saved among the arms out of the ship. However, as my first crop was but small, I had no great difficulty to cut it down: in short, I reaped it my way, for I cut nothing off but the ears, and carried it away in a great basket which I had made, and so rubbed it out with my hands; and at the end of all my harvesting, I found that out of my half peck of seed I had near two bushels of rice, and above two bushels and a half of barley; that is to say, by my guess, for I had no measure.
However, this was great encouragement to me; and I foresaw that, in time, it would please God to supply me with bread; and yet here I was perplexed again; for I neither knew how to grind, or make meal of my corn, or indeed how to clean it and part it; nor if made into meal, how to make bread of it; and if how to make it, yet I knew not how to bake it: these things being added to my desire of having a good quantity for store, and to secure a constant supply, I resolved not to taste any of this crop, but to preserve it all for seed against the next season; and, in the mean tune, to employ all my study and hours of working to accomplish this great work of providing myself with corn and bread.