Having now acquainted myself with the circumference of the lake, and settled a communication with my rill, I began to think of commencing housekeeper. In order thereunto, I set about removing my goods up to the grotto. By constant application, in a few days I had gotten all thither but my two great chests and my water-cask; and how to drag or drive any of those to it, I was entirely at a loss. My water-cask was of the utmost importance to me, and I had thoughts sometimes of stopping it close, and rolling it to the place; but the ascent through the wood to the grotto was so steep, that, besides the fear of staving it, which would have been an irreparable loss, I judged it impossible to accomplish it by my strength; so with a good deal of discontent, I determined to remit both that and the chests to future consideration.
An account of the grotto--A room added to it---A view of that building--The author makes a little cart--Also a wet dock for his boat--Goes in quest of provision--A description of divers fruits and plants--He brings home a cart-load of different sorts--Makes experiments on them--Loads his cart with others--A great disappointment--Makes good bread--Never sees the sun--The nature of the light
Having come to a full resolution of fixing my residence at the grotto, and making that my capital seat, it is proper to give you some description of it.
This grotto, then, was a full mile from the lake, in the rock which encompassed the wood. The entrance was scarcely two feet wide, and about nine feet high, rising from the height of seven feet upward to a point in the middle. The cavity was about fifteen feet long within, and about five wide. Being obliged to lie lengthwise in it, full six feet of it were taken up at the farther end for my lodging only, as nothing could stand on the side of my bed that would leave me room to come at it. The remaining nine feet of the cave's length were taken up, first, by my fireplace, which was the deepest side of the doorway, ranging with my bed (which I had set close to the rock on one side), and took up near three feet in length; and my furniture and provisions, of one sort or other, so filled up the rest, that I had much ado to creep between them into my bed.