UNIVERSITY OF 
 ICltlH CAROUNft 
 
 ft«ift«*4 
 
 J H 18^23 
 
 Swift 
 
 Gulliver's Travels 
 
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 J 
 
 A 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF N.C. AT CHAPEL HILL 
 
 10000217169 
 
 
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 1 1994 
 
 
 
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 SEP 2 
 
 91995 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 26 1-2500 
 
 
 in USA 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2012 with funding from 
 
 University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
 
 http://archive.org/details/travelsintoseverOOswif 
 
GULLIVERS TRAVELS 
 
MACMILLAN AND CO., Limited 
 
 LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA • MADRAS 
 MELBOURNE 
 
 THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
 
 NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO 
 DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCO 
 
 THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 
 
 TORONTO 
 

 Three Great Scholars. 
 
 Page 114, 
 
TRAVELS 
 
 INTO SEVERAL REMOTE NATIONS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 WORLD 
 
 LEMUEL GULLIVER 
 
 FIRST A SURGEON, AND THEN A CAPTAIN OF SEVERAL SHIPS 
 
 WITH A PREFACE BY HENRY CRAIK 
 
 AND ONE HUNDRED ILLUSTRATIONS BY 
 CHARLES E. BROCK 
 
 MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED 
 
 ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON 
 
 T922 
 
cf 
 
 First Edition 1894 
 Reprinted 19 10, 1922 
 
 PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN 
 
Library, Univ. of 
 North Carolii 
 
 
 1 those who read Gulliver's Travels apart from the other works 
 of Swift, the question will probably present itself What had been 
 the life and experience of the man who could write such a book ? 
 It is not the work most typical of his genius : but it has achieved 
 a popularity which none of his other works has approached. What, 
 then, had been the course of his life when he produced a book 
 which takes its place without question amongst the few which have 
 become familiar as household words wherever books are either read 
 or known ? 
 
 When, in 171 4, Swift came to settle permanently in Irelatid, he 
 was a man of forty -seven, who had passed through an experience so 
 varied as falls to the lot of few literary men. With a character in- 
 domitably i?nperious, born to control all with whom he came in contact, 
 Swift had passed his childhood and his youth under the shadow of 
 poverty and dependence, and had spent his early ma?ihood in the 
 household of Sir William Temple, where he beca?tie familiar 
 with those who ivere ?naking history, and had made his power 
 
vin INTRODUCTION 
 
 felt by them, even though he had been compelled to school his pride 
 into the humility of subordination. As the henchman of his patron, 
 he had entered the lists in a great literary controversy, and in 
 The Battle of the Books had contributed to that controversy its 
 one immortal monument. Entering the Church with no con- 
 suming enthusiasm, but not until he could do so without any 
 suspicion of compulsion^ he -had become thenceforth her faithful 
 servant, per??iitting to himself no deviation from her discipli?ie, and 
 compelling a ??iind of unexampled freedom to a strict obedience to 
 her creed: an obedience which he demanded from others less in a 
 spirit of dogmatism than from a haughty contempt for any possible 
 liberty which human reason might assume. In the Tale of a 
 Tub he discussed with a freedom which he himself scarcely 
 recognised, much as it alarmed the more timid of his contemporaries, 
 the largest questions of the day — the pretensions of rising science, 
 the impotence of human reason, the inwieasurable follies of man- 
 kind : and he did so ivith an almost apathetic disregard for 
 conventional modes of thought, and habits of reverence. At first, 
 by accident and connexions, he had found himself the ally of the 
 Whigs : but his loyalty to the Church, his impatience of party 
 shibboleths, and the pervading influence of personal resentment, as 
 well as anger at personal neglect, had all combined to drive him 
 into the arms of their opponents. Received with ready welcome by 
 his new allies, he had found his p?ide flattered by their confidence, 
 and became their chief defender. The intimate adviser of ??iinisters, 
 deeply concerned in political schemes which were felt by some to 
 be the prelude to great and far-i'eaching cha?iges, and possibly the 
 ha?-bi?igers of high ideals, he was drawn into bonds of ever- 
 increasing strength and closeness : and personal attachment, satisfied 
 pride, the consciousness of poiver, the irresistible attraction of a 
 great scene of action, riveted these bonds with the intensity of 
 conviction. To him the schemes of the Tory Ministry of Queen 
 Anne's last years, although they were not rarely degraded by 
 
INTRODUCTION IX 
 
 dishonesty, faction, intrigue, and vacillation, seemed to embody all 
 that was best in politics, to provide a way of safety for the 
 country, and to promise an escape from the vanity of political 
 pretenders, and from the selfishness of party wire-pullers. When 
 that Ministry fell, all his hopes for his country were gone : he saw 
 nothing before him but the conti?iued triumph of those who, as he 
 deemed, pursued only narrow, petty, and factious aims. In the 
 days of his power, he had half despised reward because he knew 
 how it was obtained, and half sought it, as a means of influence, 
 and because his sarcastic insight taught him how insincere was 
 the commonplace assumption of indifference to personal advance- 
 ment. When the Deanery of St. Patrick's fell to him, he 
 regarded it as a recompense ill-proportioned to his deserts, and as 
 a provision uncongenial to his taste : but he accepted it as a refuge 
 after the wreck of all his hopes. 
 
 He came to Ireland, then, filled with that hatred for her soil 
 which made him, in spite of the accident of Irish birth, ever cling 
 to his English parentage : disappointed zuith the result of all his 
 efforts, his weapon of satire sharpened by the bitterness of political 
 strife ; and hopeless of the future. The one element of his genius 
 which now overshadowed all others was its saj-castic force : 
 and that sarcasm found abundant food amidst his new sur- 
 roundings. The glaring wrongs of Ireland : the contemptuous 
 indifference of English statesmen: the pettiness of the circle routid 
 him : the waste, the misery, the oppression — all these burned into a 
 spirit only loo ready to lash itself itito rage, and to wreak its 
 anger on the nearest victim. During all these earlier years of 
 Irish banishment, he was in constant correspondence with those in 
 England whose genius was the one redeeming feature of the time 
 to him, but zvho, like 'himself looked on the new world around 
 them with profound disgust. 
 
 The first subject that drew hi?n back to activity was the wrong 
 suffered by Ireland. He saw her commerce crippled, her finances 
 
X INTRODUCTION 
 
 disordered, her independence scoffed at, and her government a hot- 
 bed of intrigue : a?id what roused him most of all, was the slavish 
 and abject submission with zvhich all this was suffered, and the 
 despicable tyranny which the landlords wielded over their tenants, 
 with whom they might at least have had the sympathy of suffering 
 under a common yoke. His indignation first found voice in a 
 pamphlet on the Use of Irish Manufactures : and it presently 
 seized on a still more available topic, presented by a scandalous 
 job in connexion with the copper coinage of Ireland. This gave 
 rise to the famous Drapier Letters. Swift did not measure his 
 words : he hesitated at no exaggeration : he left his victims with 
 no shred of defence or excuse : out of their subterfuges he wrested 
 new and more damnatory charges : he rang the changes on this 
 one topic through every note of fierce denunciation and contemptu- 
 ous sarcasm : and for the first time he roused, in all its fury, 
 the envenomed bitterness of a wrath that embraced at once the 
 racial antipathy of ages and the political jealousy of the English 
 colonists against their brethren across the sea. 
 
 But this fight, however fierce and exciting, could not employ 
 the whole force of Swiff s genius. In his comparative loneliness and 
 isolation, other objects engaged him. His chief attack must be on 
 human nature and the human race, against which he waged an 
 undying war : and ill-health, melancholy, discontent, long absence 
 from friends, all combined to embitter the hatred with which he re- 
 garded it. Even the more tender feelings of Szvift added fuel to 
 this intensity of hate. Despising the "animal called man," Szvift 
 yet clung, with warm affection, to individuals: and this very affection, 
 in every instance, was now deepening his gloom. Amongst his Irish 
 friends, he could count the astute and witty Delany : but Delany 
 was an object of suspicion to the Whig intriguers. The gentle 
 unworldliness and ready humour of Sheridan formed a resting- 
 place for Swiff s troubled spirit, and soothed him, we are told, as 
 David's harp soothed Saul : but Sheridan was pursued by faction, 
 
INTRODUCTION xi 
 
 and Swift affects to defend even his scholarship from a suspicion of 
 Tory proclivities. Had he found only afezv more Arbuthnots, he 
 would, he tells us, have burned his travels: but Arbuthnot was 
 wearing into old age while Szvift zvas banished from the literary 
 circle in which he fonnerly took delight. And last of all, the one 
 devotion of his life — the one ray of a woman's tenderness that 
 shone upon it — was not only clouded by the mystery that had 
 gathered round his relation to Esther Johnson, and by the abiding 
 misery which its complications caused, but worse still, the shadow of 
 illness and the fear of her impe?iding death were darkening his life 
 zvith gloom. It was in such surroundings, and amid such feelings, 
 that the Travels of Gulliver were composed ; and their publication, 
 in 1726, followed inwiediately upon Swiff s last visit to London, 
 and preceded by a few months the death of Stella. 
 
 The book bears upon it in every line the vivid i7npress of 
 Swiff s deepest feeling, and is instinct zvith his saeva indignatio : 
 and this lessens the interest for the general reader of the literary 
 question as to the special circumstances of its genesis. These are, 
 indeed, somewhat obscure. In earlier days, Swift, Pope, Arbuthnot, 
 and Gay had formed plans for a series of sketches illustrating the 
 whims and vagaries of pedantic folly, zvhich zvere to be strung together 
 under the name of Martinus Scriblerus. This gave rise to the as- 
 sumption by the little coterie of the name of the " Scriblerus Club." 
 Arbuthnot alone was capable of dealing with the scientific side of 
 the picture : and he did execute some of the designs in the Memoirs 
 of Scriblerus. Gulliver seems to have been conceived as a part of 
 the scheme, and was talked of and discussed on that footing by the 
 friends. Its general plan zvas long known amongst them, and it 
 was doubtless read in part by them before its publication. But, 
 save in the Laputa, it is difficult to see how the Travels conform 
 in any way to the scheme as originally conceived. 
 
 Another question, which has been much discussed, is that of 
 the amount of suggestion zvhich Szvift may have had from other 
 
xn INTRODUCTION 
 
 tales modelled on the same plan. Models with a certain kind of 
 resembla?ice may be adduced almost without number: and without 
 attempting to gauge with any assurance the amount of Swiff s 
 indebtedness, it may be sufficient to repeat here, once again, the 7nore 
 obvious models 'which may have been present to his mind. The 
 first of these is the True History of Lucian : a book which Swift 
 had almost certainly read: which, in its direct simplicity of narra- 
 tion, combined tvith extravagance of marvellous episodes, bears a 
 strong resemblance to Gulliver : but which is chiefly designed, as 
 Gulliver is not, to ridicule the absurdities of historians. Cyrano 
 de Bergerac, in the previous century, had ivritten Voyages to the 
 Sun and Moon, which had been translated into English, and 
 which, also, was certainly known to Swift, as he borrows certain 
 episodes from it — such as the exhibition of the hero for money, as 
 Gulliver is exhibited in Brobdingnag : the comparison behveen the 
 hero and the apes {just as Gulliver is compared to the Yahoo) : 
 and some incidental remarks. The Gerania of Joshua Barnes, of 
 Cambridge (1675), describes a people called Pygmies, who, it is 
 suggested, may have given to Sivift the idea of the Lilliputians. 
 The Voyages i?i Rabelais have frequently been co?7ipared with those 
 of Gulliver : but there is really much more of contrast than of 
 parallel in the comparison between Rabelais 's extravagant fancy, 
 and the calm and merciless satire for which Swiff s story is merely 
 a convenient dress. Voltaire's Micromegas only shows that the 
 idea of representing an imaginary country in which the ordinary 
 proportions of size were transmogrified, was no unfamiliar one 
 when Swift was writing Gulliver. 
 
 Those to whom Swiff s genius is an object of the most profound 
 admiration may feel sometvhat jealous of the popularity which has 
 been universally accorded to the Travels of Gulliver. They may 
 be disposed to agree with Johnsons verdict, in which {zvhile paradox- 
 ically doubting Swiff s authorship) he pronounces the Tale of a 
 Tub to be without question the greatest of the zvorks that swell his 
 
INTRODUCTION xni 
 
 fame, a?id finds little to admire i?i the machinery of Gulliver. 
 They will probably agree that though the Tale yields its treasures only 
 to repeated and careful study, yet after such study, it takes its place 
 without question amongst the greatest products of human genius. 
 They may even doubt whether in perfection of style, in eloque?ice 
 which produces its effects by absolute simplicity, and in keen logic, 
 and quick rapier-play, some of his political pieces do not take a place 
 higher than Gulliver. They may miss in that the consummate grace 
 of his lighter verse, and the fiery energy by which, in his more 
 serious poems, he enthrals and captivates us. But mixed with 
 jealousy of that popularity there may also be some amusement. It 
 is strange indeed that a book animated by consuming hatred of 
 mankind, lenient, where it is lenient, only because contempt some- 
 limes prevails over hatred, should have been largely read for the 
 pvtertainment of children. But this is really a homage to the 
 greatness of Swiff s genius. Imagination was not the distinguishing 
 feature of Swiff s power. Rarely indeed can that be combined with a 
 consuming satire : he whom (to parody Swiff s own words) " Phoebus 
 in his ire Has blasted with satiric fire," rarely joins to that the 
 gift of cotistructive imagination. But Gulliver has captivated the 
 fancy by means of that gift of vivid reality — as different as 
 possible from what modern jargon styles realism — which was the 
 special attribute of Swiff s age, a?id was shared to the full by him. 
 In spite of all extravagance, and although all is presented to us 
 through a medium of inverted proportions, we never cease to feel the 
 personages in the book real from begimzing to end. We follow 
 their fortunes with interest ; we sympathise with their mishaps ; we 
 feel the inevitableness of their actions. The very inconsistencies of 
 the book are proofs of his genius. Neither the inhabitants of 
 Lilliput nor those of Brobdingnag are in all things good or in all 
 things bad. Both have their good traits — both have their inherent 
 weaknesses — all portrayed, not (we are made to fancy) with the 
 formed design of the satirist, but ivith the fidelity of the faithful 
 
xiv INTRODUCTION 
 
 narrator. It is not the invention of the machinery, but its co?i- 
 summate management, that proves Swifts greatness. 
 
 Of the four parts, the first hvo, Lilliput and Brobdingnag, are 
 the most simple in their plan, the most easy and natural in their 
 narrative, and the most direct in their effect upon the reader. 
 Laputa was Swift s favourite : and though it has never attained 
 the acceptance achieved by those that precede it, the cause of his 
 prefere7ice is not difficult to trace. In it, Swift comes nearest to the 
 subject of the Tale of a Tub : he attacks those foibles of intellectual 
 complacency and of pedantic folly which most moved his ire. Nor 
 can we forget that in the Struldbrugs we have perhaps the most 
 tragic passage in the whole book, as well as one of the finest 
 specimens of his style. In the Houyhnhnms he gives the most free 
 rein to his consuming indignation against his fellow-men. He 
 revels in admiration of the race, because it has least relation to 
 mankind. In that part the picture has no relief from modulated 
 colours : it is all fierce contrast of light and shadow : the calm 
 wisdom, self-control, and dignity of the Houyhnhnm is always 
 in the most striking contrast with the unmitigated brutality and 
 degradation of the Yahoo. 
 
 Critics and moralists have condemned the book, and have 
 ascribed its unflattering picture of human nature either to the 
 perversity of morbid fancy, or to the e?icroachment of incipient 
 madness. But readers of every generation and of every country 
 have found it irresistible in interest : and children have found in it 
 an unfailing store of enjoyment. WJio shall say that Swift has 
 not driven home a lesson and a moral in its pages ? And if 
 its writer is condemned for the gloom of the picture he has drawn, 
 we must yet re?nember that the fierceness of that saeva indignatio 
 which inspired it, lacerated his own heart more than any other. 
 
 H. C. 
 
THE PUBLISHER TO THE READER 
 
 The Author of these Travels, Mr. Lemuel Gulliver, is my 
 antient and intimate Friend ; there is likewise some Relation 
 between us by the Mother's Side. About three Years ago, 
 Mr. Gulliver growing weary of the Concourse of curious 
 People coming to him at his House in Redriff, made a small 
 Purchase of Land, with a convenient House, near Newark 
 in Nottinghamshire, his Native Country ; where he now lives 
 retired, yet in good Esteem among his Neighbours. 
 
 Although Mr. Gulliver was born in Nottinghamshire, where 
 his Father dwelt, yet I have heard him say, his Family came 
 from Oxfordshire ; to confirm which, I have observed in the 
 Church- Yard at Banbury, in that County, several Tombs and 
 Monuments of the Gullivers. 
 
 Before he quitted Redriff, he left the Custody of the 
 following Papers in my Hands, with the liberty to dispose 
 of them as I should think fit. I have carefully perused them 
 three times : The Style is very plain and simple ; and the 
 only Fault I find is, that the Author, after the manner of 
 Travellers, is a little too Circumstantial. There is an Air 
 of Truth apparent through the Whole ; and indeed the 
 Author was so distinguished for his Veracity, that it became 
 
xvi PUBLISHER'S NOTE 
 
 a sort of Proverb among his Neighbours at Redriff, when any 
 one affirm'd a Thing, to say, it was as true as if Mr. Gulliver 
 had spoke it. 
 
 By the Advice of several worthy Persons, to whom, with 
 the Author's Permission, I communicated these Papers, I now 
 venture to send them into the World, hoping they may be 
 at least, for some time, a better Entertainment to our young 
 Noblemen, than the common Scribbles of Politicks and Party. 
 
 This Volume would have been at least twice as large, if 
 I had not made bold to strike out innumerable Passages 
 relating to the Winds and Tides, as well as to the Variations 
 and Bearings in the several Voyages ; together with the 
 minute Descriptions of the Management of the Ship in 
 Storms, in the Style of Sailors : Likewise tne Account of the 
 Longitudes and Latitudes ; wherein I have Reason to appre- 
 hend that Mr. Gulliver may be a little dissatisfied : But I 
 was resolved to fit the Work as much as possible to the 
 general Capacity of Readers. However, if my own Ignorance 
 in Sea-Affairs shall have led me to commit some Mistakes, 
 I alone am answerable for them : And if any Traveller hath 
 a Curiosity to see the whole Work at large, as it came from 
 the Hand of the Author, I shall be ready to gratify him. 
 
 As for any further Particulars relating to the Author, the 
 Reader will receive Satisfaction from the first Pages of the 
 Book. 
 
 Richard Sympson. 
 
PART I 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 CHAP. I 
 
 The Author gives some Account of himself and Family. His first Induce* 
 ments to travel. . He is shipwrecked, and swims for his Life, gets safe 
 on Shoar in the Country of Lilliput, is made a Prisoner, and carried 
 up the Country ..... Page I 
 
 CHAP. II 
 
 The Emperor of Lilliput, attended by several of the Nobility, come to see 
 the Author in his Confinement. The Emperor's Person and Habit 
 described. Learned Men appointed to teach the Author their Language. 
 He gains Favour by his mild Disposition. His Pockets are searched, 
 and his Sword and Pistols taken from him . . .15 
 
 CHAP. Ill 
 
 The Author diverts the. Emperor and his Nobility of both Sexes, in a 
 very uncommon Manner. The Diversions of the Court of Lilliput 
 described. The Author hath his Liberty granted him, upon certain 
 Conditions . „ , . . . .27 
 
 b 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. IV 
 
 Mildenclo the Metropolis of Lilliput descried, together with the Emperor's 
 Palace. A Conversation between the Author and a principal Secretary •, 
 concerning the Affairs of that Empire. The Author's Offers to serve 
 the Emperor in his Wars .... Page 38 
 
 CHAP. V 
 
 The Author by an extraordinary Stratagem, prevents an Invasion. A 
 high Title of Honour is conferred upon him. Ambassadors arrive 
 from the Empei'or of Blefuscu, and sue for Peace . . 46 
 
 CHAP. VI 
 
 Of the Inhabitants of Lilliput, their Learning, Laws and Customs, the 
 Manner of educating their Children. The Author's way of living in 
 that Cottntrey. His Vindication of a great Lady . . 53 
 
 CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author being informed of a Design to accuse him of High-Treason, 
 makes his Escape to Blefuscu. His Reception there . . 66 
 
 CHAP. VIII 
 
 The Author, by a lucky Accident, finds Means to leave Blefuscu ; and, after 
 some Difficulties, returns safe to his native Cottntrey . . J 6 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PART II 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 CHAP. I 
 
 A great Storm described ; the Long-boat sent to fetch Water; the Author 
 goes with it to discover the Countrey. He is left on Shoar ; is seized 
 by one of the Natives, and carried to a Farmer's House. His 
 Reception there, with several Accidents that happened to him. A 
 Description of the Inhabitants . . . Page 87 
 
 CHAP. II 
 
 Description of the Farmer's Daughter. The Author carried to a 
 Market-Town, and then to the Metropolis. The Particulars of his 
 Journey . . . . . . .102 
 
 CHAP. Ill 
 
 The Author sent for to Court. The Queen buys him of his Master, the 
 Fanner, attd presents him to the King. He disputes with his 
 Majesty's great Scholars. An Apartment at Court provided for the 
 Author. He is i?i high Favour with the Queen. He stands up 
 for the Honour of his own Countrey. His Quarrels with the Queen's 
 Dwarf . . . . . . .110 
 
 CHAP. IV 
 
 The Countrey described. A Proposal for correcting modem Maps. The 
 King's Palace, and some Account of the Metropolis. The Author s 
 way of travelling. 77ie chief Temple described . .124 
 
 CHAP. V 
 
 Several Adventures that happened to the Author. The Execution of a 
 Criminal. The Author shews his Skill in A T avigation . 130 
 
XX CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. VI 
 
 Several Contrivances of I he Author to please the King and Queen. He 
 shews his Skill in Mustek. The King enquires into the State of 
 Europe, which the Author relates to him. The King s Observations 
 thereon ...... Page 143 
 
 CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author 's Love of his Countrey. He makes a Proposal of much 
 advantage to the King, which is rejected. The King^s great Ignorance 
 in Politicks. The Learning of that Countrey very imperfect and 
 confined. The Laws, and military Affairs, and Parties in the 
 State . . . . . . .154 
 
 CHAP. VIII 
 
 The King and Queen make a Progress to the Frontiers. The Author 
 attends them. The manner in which he leaves the Countrey very 
 particularly related. He returns to England . .163 
 
 PART III 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 CHAP. I 
 
 The Author sets out on his Third Voyage, is taken by Py rates. The 
 Malice of a Dutchman. His arrival at an Island. He is received 
 into Laputa ...... 182 
 
 CHAP. II 
 
 The Humours and Dispositions of the Laputians described. An account of 
 their Learning. Of the King and his Court. The Author 's Recep- 
 tion there. The Inhabitants subject to Fears and Disquietudes. An 
 account of the Women . , . . .190 
 
CONTENTS xxi 
 
 CHAR III 
 
 A Phenomenon solved by modern Philosophy and Astronomy. The 
 Laputians' great Improvements in the latter. The King's method of 
 suppressing Insurrections .... Page 204 
 
 CHAP. IV 
 
 The Author leaves Laputa, is conveyed to Balnibarbi, arrives at the 
 Metropolis. A Description of the Metropolis and the Country 
 adjoining. The Author hospitably received by a great lord. His 
 Conversation with that lord . . . . .213 
 
 CHAP. V 
 
 The Author permitted to see the grand Academy of Lagaclo. The 
 Academy largely described. The Arts wherein the Professors employ 
 themselves . . . . . . .221 
 
 CHAP. VI 
 
 A further Account of the Academy. The Author proposes some Improve- 
 ments which are honourably received . . . .232 
 
 CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author leaves Lagado, arrives at Maldonada. No Ship ready. 
 
 rile takes a short Voyage to Glubbdubdrib. His Reception by the 
 
 CHAP. VIII 
 
 A further account of Glubbdubdrib. Ancient and Modern History 
 corrected . . . . . . .245 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. IX 
 
 The Authors Return to Maldonada. Sails to the Kingdom of Luggnagg. 
 The Author confined. He is sent for to Court. The manner of his 
 admittance. The King 's great Lenity to his Subjects . Page 253 
 
 CHAP. X 
 
 The Luggnuggians commejtded. A particular description of the Struldbrugs, 
 with many conversations between the Author and some eminent persons 
 upon that subject . . . . . .259 
 
 CHAP. XI 
 
 The Author leaves Luggnagg and sails to Japan. From thence he 
 returns in a Dutch Ship to Amsterdam, and from Amsterdam to 
 England ....... 270 
 
 PART IV 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE COUNTRY OF 
 THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 CHAP. I 
 
 The Author sets out as Captain of a Ship. His Men conspire against 
 him, confijie him a long Time to his Cabbin, set him on shoar in an 
 unknown Land. He travels up in the Country. The Yahoos, 
 a strange Sort of Animal, described. The Author meets two 
 Houyhnhnms . . . . . . 280 
 
CONTENTS xxin 
 
 CHAP. II 
 
 The Author conducted by a Houyhnhnm to his House. The House 
 described. The Author's Reception. The Food of the Houyhnhnms. 
 The Author in Distress for want of Meat, is at last relieved. His 
 Manner of feeding in this Country . . . Page 289 
 
 CHAR III 
 
 The Author studious to learn the Language, the Houyhnhnm his 
 Master assists in teaching him. The Language described. Several 
 Houyhnhnms of Quality came out of Curiosity to see the Author. 
 He gives his Master a short Account of his Voyage . . 297 
 
 CHAP. IV 
 
 The Houyhnhnms Notion of Truth and Falshood. The Author's Dis- 
 course disapproved by his Master. The Author gives a more particular 
 Account of himself and the Accidents of his Voyage . . 304 
 
 CHAP. V 
 
 The Author at his Master s Commands informs him of the State of 
 England. Lhe Causes of War among the Princes of Europe. The 
 Author begins to explain the English Constitution . . 310 
 
 CHAP. VI 
 
 A Continuance of the State of England, so zvell governed by a Queen as to 
 need no first Minister. The Character of such an one in some 
 European Courts ...... 320 
 
XXiv CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author's great Love of his Native Country. His Masters Observa- 
 tions tipon the Constitution and Administration of England, as 
 described by the Author, with parallel Cases and Comparisons. His 
 Master's Observations upon Human Nature . . Page 330 
 
 CHAP. VIII 
 
 The Author relates several Particulars of the Yahoos. The great Virtues 
 of the Houyhnhnms. The Ediication and Exercise of their Youth. 
 Their general Assembly ..... 338 
 
 CHAP. IX 
 
 A grand Debate at the General Assembly of the Houyhnhnms, and how it 
 was determined. The Learning of the Houyhnhnms. Their Build- 
 ings. Their manner of Burials. The Defectiveness of their Lan- 
 guage ....... 346 
 
 CHAP. X 
 
 The Author's Oeconomy and happy Life among the Houyhnhnms. His 
 great Improvement in Virtue, by conversing with them. Their 
 Conversations. The Author has notice given hi?n by his Master 
 that he must depart from the Country. He falls into a Stvoon for 
 Grief, but submits. He contrives and finishes a Canoo, by the help 
 of a Fellow-Servant, and puts to Sea at a venture . . 353 
 
 CHAP. XI 
 
 The Author's dangerous Voyage. He arrives at New- Holland, hoping 
 to settle there. Is wounded with an Arrow by one of the Natives. 
 Is seized and carried by Force into a Portugueze Ship. The great 
 Civilities of the Captain. The Author arrives at England . 362 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAP. XII 
 
 The Author's Veracity. His Design in publishing this Work. His 
 Censure of those Travellers who swerve from the Truth. The Author 
 clears himself from any sinister Ends in writing. An Objection 
 answered. The Method of planting Colonies. His Native Country 
 commended. The Right of the Crown to those Countries described by 
 the Author, is justifed. The Difficulty of conquering them. The 
 Author t-^es his last leave of the Reader: proposeth his Manner of 
 Living for the future, gives good Advice, and cottcludes . Page 374 
 
hi 
 
 
 'ST or 
 
 p pistt&fj 
 
 
 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ' Three Great Scholars '"..■*.»•.. Frontispiece 
 
 Heading to Introduction 
 
 
 vii 
 
 Heading to Contents .... 
 
 
 
 xvii 
 
 Heading to List of Illustrations 
 
 
 
 xxvii 
 
 Heading to Part I. . 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 ' I roared ' . . . 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 ' Many Periods of Threatnings ' 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 1 To draw me towards the Metropolis ' 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 1 Whereupon I rose up ' 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 ' Reared up on his hinder Feet ' 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 ' Pushing them forwards into my reach ' 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 ' To deliver victuals for my sustenance : 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 1 We saw certain strange Figures ' 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 ' A Tryal of Dexterity ' 
 
 
 
 29 
 
 ' The Emperor took a fancy of diverting himself in 
 
 a very 
 
 singular 
 
 manner ' 
 
 
 • 33 
 
 ' I made my Acknowledgments ' . 
 
 
 
 36 
 
 ' I walked with the utmost circumspection ' . 
 
 
 
 " 39 
 
 ' Gave me her Hand to kiss ' . 
 
 
 
 4i 
 
 ' Happened to cut one of his Fingers ' 
 
 
 
 44 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 ' Drew P^ifty of the Enemies largest Men of War after me 
 
 ' A solemn Embassy ' . 
 
 ' And always in the presence of a Professor ' 
 
 ' Let fall a Plum line ' . 
 
 • I eat more than usual ' 
 ' You are to know, said he ' . 
 ' Rising up in Fury ' . 
 ' By the assistance of Two thousand men ' 
 ' Grazing in a Bowling-Green at Greenwich ' 
 Heading to Part II. . 
 ' I made a low Bow towards the farmer ' 
 ' I walked with Intrepidity ' . 
 ' Got my Plead in his Mouth ' 
 ' The other made his escape ' . 
 ' I could not forbear laughing very heartily ' 
 ' She often took me out of my Box ' . 
 ' Put the tip of it, with the utmost respect, to my Lip 
 ' Turning to his First Minister ' 
 ' A scurvy trick ' 
 ' Came flying into the room ' . 
 ' The People were very curious ' 
 ' One of them hit me on the back ' 
 ' Broke my Right shin against the shell of a Snail 
 ' Gave me a Gale with their Fans ' 
 ' The Frog climbed up ' 
 ' He dragged me out ' 
 
 ' The King had frequent Consorts at court ' 
 ' His Majesty proposed many Doubts ' 
 ' I have perused many of their Books ' 
 
 • A Cavalier mounted on a large Steed ' 
 ' Forced to let me drop ' 
 
 1 1 was taken into the Ship in a very weak condition 
 ' A Footman's Tooth ' 
 ' I stooped lower than her Knees ' 
 ' He plainly invited me ' 
 ' I made the Captain a very low bow ' 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 A vast opake body ' . 
 
 Wrapped up in cogitation ' . 
 
 He was then deep in a Problem ' 
 
 We sat together four Hours ' 
 
 Very ill made ' 
 
 The first Question is about the Sun's Health 
 
 Always so rapt in speculation ' 
 
 A Load-stone of a prodigious size 
 
 He took me in his Chariot to see the Town ' 
 
 He complained that his Stock was low ' 
 : Taught them to distinguish by feeling and smelling 
 
 A Device of plowing the Ground with Hogs ' 
 
 He then led me to the frame ' 
 
 Conversation ' 
 
 To prevent forgetfulness ' 
 
 I had the honour to dine with the Governour ' 
 
 In good Intelligence with each other ' 
 
 I was not able to get down a second Spoonful ' 
 
 I could plainly discover from whence one Family 
 
 Chin' 
 
 : Corruption ' . 
 
 I was examined very strictly upon my landing 
 ; More than matter of form ' . 
 ; I cryed out as in a Rapture ' 
 ; Desired I would give them Slumskudask ' . 
 : They knew the Seal ' 
 1 Twenty strokes on the Shoulders ' 
 : Binding me Hand and Foot ' 
 : Kept them off, by waving my Hanger ' 
 : The Grey steed rubbed my Hat all round ' . 
 ' The beast and I were brought close together ' 
 : Often looking on me ' 
 ' It cost me much trouble to explain ' . 
 ' Used to all kind of Drudgery till they died ' 
 1 Double Fee ' . 
 1 A sort of Liquid which made us merry : 
 
 XXIX 
 
 PAGE 
 l8 7 
 191 
 193 
 195 
 197 
 20I 
 202 
 
 der 
 
 a lorn 
 
XXX 
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ' Skill at Prognosticks ' ... 325 
 
 ' Would take the Advantage, and carry it away from them both ' . 334 
 
 ' I once caught a young Male '..... 339 
 
 ' They are ordered to leap into a Pond or River ' . . 344 
 
 ' They milk their Cows '...-... 350 
 
 ' I fell to imitate their Gate and Gesture ' . . . . 356 
 
 ' He did me the honour to raise it gently to my Mouth' . .361 
 
 ' Discharged an Arrow '...... 364 
 
 ' At last they found me '...... 366 
 
 ' The Captain forced me to cover myself with his cloak ' . . 370 
 
 ' I converse with them '...... 372 
 
 ' At the farthest End of a long Table ' 380 
 
 Tailpiece . . ..... 381 
 
 MAPS 
 
 Lilliput and Blefuscu . . . . . . . xxxii 
 
 Brobdingnag ........ 86 
 
 Lugnagg and Balnibarbi, with Islands of Laputa and Glubdrubdrib . 180 
 
 The Country of Balnibarbi, with floating Island of Laputa . . 207 
 
 Houyhnhnms Land ....... 278 
 
PART I 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
*V-Jogs I 
 
 P.OYd 
 
 I. Cood Fort ten 
 I 
 
 Str** 
 
 Blefi 
 
 Ovti 
 
 'efuscu 
 
 LILLIPUT 
 'Discovered, AD.ibgg 
 
 in 
 
 ^WaCker JrlBoutatf scufpserunt- 
 
t^^xt * 
 
 rsj&H^.ifefc* 
 
 CHAR I 
 
 7/$£ Author gives some Account of himself and Family. His first Induce- 
 ments to travel. He is shipwrecked, and swims for his Life, gets safe 
 on Shoar in tlie Country <?/" Lilliput, is made a Prisoner, and carried 
 up the Cotinlry. 
 
 Y Father had a small estate in Nottingham- 
 shire ; I was the Third of five Sons. 
 He sent me to Emanuel- College in 
 Cambridge at Fourteen years old, where 
 I resided Three years, and applyed 
 myself close to my Studies : But the 
 Charge of maintaining me (although I 
 had a very scanty Allowance) being too great for a narrow 
 Fortune, I was bound Apprentice to Mr. James Bates, an 
 eminent Surgeon in London, with whom I continued four 
 years ; and my Father now and then sending me small sums 
 
 IS B 
 
2 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 of Money, I laid them out in learning Navigation, and other 
 parts of the Mathematicks, useful to those who intend to 
 travel, as I always believed it would be some time or other my 
 fortune to do. When I left Mr, Bates, I went down to my 
 Father ; where, by the assistance of Him and my Uncle John, 
 and some other Relations, I got forty Pounds, and a promise 
 of thirty Pounds a year to maintain me at Leyden : There I 
 studied Physick two Years and seven Months, knowing it 
 would be useful in long Voyages. 
 
 Soon after my Return from Leyden, I was recommended, 
 by my good Master Mr. Bates, to be Surgeon to the Swallow, 
 Captain Abraha?n Pannell Commander ; with whom I continued 
 three Years and a half, making a Voyage or two into the 
 Levant, and some other Parts. When I came back, I resolved 
 to settle in London, to which Mr. Bates, my Master, encouraged 
 me, and by him I was recommended to several Patients. I 
 took part of a small House in the Old-Jury ; and being advised 
 to alter my condition, I married Mrs. Mary Burton, second 
 Daughter to Mr. Edmund Burton Hosier in Newgate-street, 
 with whom I received four hundred Pounds for a Portion. 
 
 But, my good Master Bates dying in two years after, and 
 I having few Friends, my Business began to fail ; for my 
 Conscience would not suffer me to imitate the bad practice of 
 too many among my Brethren. Having therefore consulted 
 with my Wife, and some of my Acquaintance, I determined to 
 go again to Sea. I was Surgeon successively in two Ships, 
 and made several Voyages, for six Years, to the East and 
 West-Lndies, by which I got some Addition to my Fortune. 
 My hours of Leisure I spent in reading the best Authors 
 ancient and modern, being always provided with a good 
 number of Books ; and when I was ashoar, in observing the 3 
 Manners and Dispositions of the People, as well as learning 
 their Language, wherein I had a great Facility by the strength 
 of my Memory. 
 
 The last of these Voyages not proving very fortunate, I < 
 grew weary of the Sea, and intended to stay at home with my 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 3 
 
 Wife and Family. I removed from the Old-Jury to Fetter- 
 Lane, and from thence to Wapping, hoping to get Business 
 among the Sailors ; but it would not turn to account. After 
 three years expectation that things would mend, I accepted an 
 advantageous Offer from Captain William Prichard, Master 
 of the Antelope, who was making a Voyage to the Soicth-Sea. 
 We set sail from Bristol May 4, 1699, and our Voyage at 
 first was very prosperous. 
 
 It would not be proper, for some reasons, to trouble the 
 Reader with the Particulars of our adventures in those Seas : 
 Let it suffice to inform him, that in our Passage from thence 
 to the East-Indies, we were driven by a violent Storm to the 
 Northward of Van Diemens Land. By an Observation, we 
 found ourselves in the Latitude of 30 Degrees 2 Minutes 
 South. Twelve of our Crew were dead by immoderate Labour 
 and ill Food, the rest were in a very weak condition. On the 
 fifth of November, which was the beginning of Summer in 
 those parts, the Weather being very hazy, the Seamen spyed a 
 Rock, within half a Cable's length of the Ship ; but the Wind 
 was so strong, that we were driven directly upon it, and 
 immediately split. Six of the Crew, of whom I was one, 
 having let down the Boat into the Sea, made a shift to get 
 clear of the Ship, and the Rock. We rowed by my Com- 
 putation about three Leagues, till we were able to work no 
 longer, being already spent with labour while we were in the 
 Ship. We therefore trusted ourselves to the mercy of the waves, 
 and in about half an hour the Boat was overset by a sudden 
 Flurry from the North. What became of my Companions in 
 the Boat, as well as of those who escaped on the Rock, or 
 were left in the Vessel, I cannot tell ; but conclude they were 
 all lost. For my own part, I swam as Fortune directed me, 
 and was push'd forward by Wind and Tide. I often let my 
 Legs drop, and could feel no bottom : But when I was almost 
 gone, and able to struggle no longer, I found myself within my 
 depth ; and by this time the Storm was much abated. The 
 Declivity was so small, that I walked near a Mile before I got 
 to the shore, which I conjectur'd was about eight a-clock in 
 
4 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 the Evening. I then advanced forward near half a Mile, but 
 could not discover any sign of Houses or Inhabitants ; at 
 least I was in so weak a condition, that I did not observe 
 them. I was extremely tired, and with that, and the Heat of 
 the weather, and about half a pint of Brandy that I drank as 
 I left the Ship, I found myself much inclined to sleep. I lay 
 down on the Grass, which was very short and soft, where I 
 slept sounder than ever I remember to have done in my life, 
 and as I reckoned, above Nine hours ; for when I awaked, it 
 was just Day-light. I attempted to rise, but was not able to 
 stir : For, as I happened to lie on my back, I found my Arms 
 and Legs were strongly fastened on each side to the ground ; 
 and my Hair, which was long and thick, tied down in the 
 same manner. I likewise felt several slender Ligatures across 
 my body, from my Arm-pits to my Thighs. I could only look 
 upwards ; the Sun began to grow hot, and the Light offended 
 mine Eyes. I heard a confused Noise about me, but in the 
 posture I lay, could see nothing except the Sky. In a little 
 time I felt something alive moving on my left Leg, which 
 advancing gently forward over my Breast, came almost up to 
 my Chin ; when bending mine Eyes downwards as much as I 
 could, I perceived it to be a Human creature not Six inches 
 high, with a Bow and Arrow in his Hands, and a Quiver at 
 his Back. , In the mean time, I felt at least forty more of the 
 same kind (as I conjectured) following the first. I was in the 
 utmost astonishment, and roared so loud, that they all ran 
 back in a fright ; and some of them, as I was afterwards told, 
 were hurt with the Falls they got by leaping from my sides 
 upon the ground. However, they soon returned, and one of 
 them, who ventured so far as to get a full sight of my Face, 
 lifting up his hands and eyes by way of Admiration, cryed out 
 in a shrill but distinct voice, Hekinah Degul : The others 
 repeated the same Words several times, but I then knew not 
 what they meant. I lay all this while, as the Reader may 
 believe, in great Uneasiness : At length struggling to get 
 loose, I had the fortune to break the Strings, and wrench 
 out the Pegs that fastened my Left arm to the ground ; 
 for, by lifting it up to my Face, I discover'd the methods 
 
vr^ 
 
 
 11 
 
6 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 they had taken to bind me ; and, at the same time, 
 with a violent Pull, which gave me excessive pain, I a 
 little loosened the Strings that tied down my Hair on 
 the Left side, so that I was just able to turn my Head 
 about Two inches. But the Creatures ran off a second time, 
 before I could seize them ; whereupon there was a great 
 Shout in a very shrill accent, and after it ceased, I heard one 
 of them cry aloud, Tolgo Phpnac ; when in an instant I felt 
 above an Hundred Arrows discharged on my Left hand, which 
 pricked me like so many Needles ; and besides they shot 
 another Flight into the Air, as we do Bombs in Europe, whereof 
 many, I suppose, fell on my Body (though I felt them not) 
 and some on my Face, which I immediately covered with my 
 Left hand. When this shower of Arrows was over, I fell a 
 groaning with Grief and Pain, and then striving again to get 
 loose, they discharged another Volly larger than the first, and 
 some of them attempted with Spears to stick me in the Sides ; 
 but, by good luck, I had on me a Buff Jerkin, which they 
 could not pierce. I thought it the most prudent method to 
 lie still, and my design was to continue so till night, when my 
 Left hand being already loose, I could easily free myself: 
 And as for the Inhabitants, I had reason to believe I might 
 be a match for the greatest Armies they could bring against 
 me, if they were all of the same size with him that I saw. 
 But Fortune disposed otherwise of me. When the People 
 observed I was quiet, they discharged no more Arrows : But 
 by the Noise I heard, I knew their numbers encreased ; and 
 about Four yards from me, over-against my Right ear, I heard 
 a knocking for above an hour, like that of people at work ; 
 when turning my head that way, as well as the Pegs and 
 Strings would permit me, I saw a Stage erected about a Foot 
 and a half from the ground, capable of holding Four of the 
 Inhabitants, with two or three Ladders to mount it : From 
 whence one of them, who seemed to be a Person of Quality, 
 made me a long Speech, whereof I understood not one 
 Syllable. But I should have mentioned, that before the 
 Principal person began his oration, he cryed out Three times 
 Langro Dehul san : (these words and the former were after- 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 7 
 
 wards repeated and explained to me.) Whereupon im- 
 mediately about Fifty of the Inhabitants came, and cut the 
 Strings that fastened the Left side of my head, which gave 
 me the liberty of turning it to the Right, and of observing the 
 
 Many Periods of Threatnings: 
 
 Person and Gesture of him that was to speak. He appeared 
 to be of a middle age, and taller than any of the other Three 
 who attended him, whereof one was a Page that held up his 
 train, and seemed to be somewhat longer than my Middle 
 finger ; the other Two stood one on each side to support him. 
 
8 A VOYAGE TO LILL1PUT part i 
 
 He acted every part of an Orator, and I could observe many 
 Periods of Threatnings, and others of Promises, Pity, and 
 Kindness. I answered in a few words, but in the most 
 submissive manner, lifting up my Left hand and both mine 
 Eyes to the Sun, as calling him for a Witness ; and being 
 almost famished with Hunger, having not eaten a Morsel for 
 some hours before I left the Ship, I found the Demands of 
 nature so strong upon me, that I could not forbear shewing my 
 Impatience (perhaps against the strict Rules of Decency) by 
 putting my finger frequently on my mouth, to signify that I 
 wanted Food. The Hurgo (for so they call a great Lord, as 
 I afterwards learnt) understood me very well. He descended 
 from the Stage, and commanded that several Ladders should 
 be applyed to my Sides, on which above an Hundred of the 
 Inhabitants mounted, and walked towards my Mouth, Jaden 
 with Baskets full of Meat, which had been provided, and sent 
 thither by the King's Orders upon the first Intelligence he 
 received of me. I observed there was the Flesh of several 
 Animals, but could not distinguish them by the Taste. There 
 were Shoulders, Legs, and Loins shaped like those of Mutton, 
 and very well dressed, but smaller than the Wings of a Lark. 
 I eat them by Two or Three at a mouthful, and took Three 
 Loaves at a time, about the bigness of Musket Bullets. They 
 supplyed me as they could, shewing a thousand marks of 
 Wonder and Astonishment at my Bulk and Appetite. I then 
 made another sign that I wanted Drink. They found by my 
 eating that a small quantity would not suffice me, and being a 
 most ingenious people, they slung up with great dexterity one 
 of their largest Hogsheads, then rolled it towards my Hand, 
 and beat out the Top ; I drank it off at a Draught, which I 
 might well do, for it did not hold Half a pint, and tasted like 
 a small Wine of Burgundy, but much more delicious. They 
 brought me a Second Hogshead, which I drank in the same 
 manner, and made signs for more, but they had none to give 
 me. When I had perform'd these Wonders, they shouted for 
 joy, and danced upon my breast, repeating several times as 
 they did at first, Hekinah Degul. They made me a sign that 
 I should throw down the two Hogsheads, but first warned the 
 
 
chap, l A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 9 
 
 people below to stand out of the way, crying aloud, Borach 
 Mivola, and when they saw the Vessels in the air, there was 
 an universal shout of Hekinah Degul. I confess I was often 
 tempted, while they were passing backwards and forwards on 
 my body, to seize Forty or Fifty of the first that came in my 
 reach, and dash them against the ground. But the re- 
 membrance of what I had felt, which probably might not be 
 the worst they could do, and the Promise of Honour I made 
 them, for so I interpreted my submissive behaviour, soon 
 drove out these Imaginations. Besides, I now consider'd 
 myself as bound by the Laws of Hospitality to a People who 
 had treated me with so much Expence and Magnificence. 
 However, in my thoughts I could not sufficiently wonder at the 
 Intrepidity of these diminutive Mortals, who durst venture to 
 mount and walk upon my Body, while one of my Hands was 
 at liberty, without trembling at the very sight of so prodigious 
 a Creature as I must appear to them. After some time, 
 when they observed that I made no more demands for Meat, 
 there appeared before me a Person of high Rank from his 
 Imperial Majesty. His Excellency having mounted on the 
 small of my Right Leg, advanced forward up to my Face, 
 with about a Dozen of his Retinue. And, producing his 
 Credentials under the Signet Royal, which he applyed close to 
 mine Eyes, spoke about Ten minutes, without any signs of 
 Anger, but with a kind of determinate Resolution ; often 
 pointing forwards, which, as I afterwards found, was towards 
 the Capital City, about Half a mile distant, whither it was 
 agreed by his Majesty in Council that I must be conveyed. 
 I answered in few Words, but to no purpose, and made a 
 sign with my Hand that was loose, putting it to the other 
 (but over his Excellency's Head, for fear of hurting him or his 
 Train) and then to my own Head and Body, to signify that 
 I desired my Liberty. It appeared that he understood me 
 well enough, for he shook his head by way of disapprobation, 
 and held his hand in a posture to shew that I must be carried 
 as a Prisoner. However, he made other Signs to let me 
 understand that I should have Meat and Drink enough, and 
 very good Treatment. Whereupon I once more thought of 
 
io A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 attempting to break my Bonds, but again, when I felt the 
 smart of their Arrows upon my Face and Hands, which were 
 all in Blisters, and many of the Darts still sticking in them, 
 and observing likewise that the number of my Enemies en- 
 creased, I gave tokens to let them know that they might do 
 with me what they pleased. Upon this the Hurgo and his 
 Train withdrew with much Civility and chearful Countenances. 
 Soon after I heard a general Shout, with frequent repetitions 
 of the words, Peplom Selan, and I felt great numbers of the 
 people on my Left side relaxing the cords to such a degree, 
 that I was able to turn upon my Right. But before this, 
 they had dawbed my Face and both my Hands with a sort 
 of Ointment very pleasant to the Smell, which in a few 
 minutes removed all the smart of their arrows. These 
 Circumstances, added to the Refreshment I had received by 
 their Victuals and Drink, which were very nourishing, dis- 
 posed me to sleep. I slept about Eight hours, as I was after- 
 wards assured ; and it was no wonder, for the Physicians, 
 by the Emperor's Order, had mingled a sleepy Potion in the 
 Hogsheads of Wine. 
 
 It seems that upon the first moment I was discovered sleep- 
 ing on the ground after my Landing, the Emperor had early 
 notice of it by an Express, and determined in Council that I 
 should be tyed in the manner I have related (which was done 
 in the Night while I slept), that Plenty of Meat and Drink 
 should be sent me, and a Machine prepared to carry me to 
 the Capital City. 
 
 This Resolution perhaps may appear very bold and 
 dangerous, and I am confident would not be imitated by any 
 Prince in Europe on the like occasion; however, in my 
 opinion it was extremely Prudent as well as Generous. For 
 supposing these People had endeavour'd to kill me with 
 their Spears and Arrows while I was asleep, I should cer- 
 tainly have awaked with the first Sense of Smart, which might 
 so far have rouzed my Rage and Strength, as to have en- 
 abled me to break the Strings wherewit^ I was tied ; after 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT n 
 
 which, as they were not able to make Resistance, so they 
 could expect no Mercy. 
 
 These people are most excellent Mathematicians, and 
 arrived to a great perfection in Mechanicks by the counte- 
 nance and encouragement of the Emperor, who is a renowned 
 Patron of Learning. This Prince hath several Machines 
 fixed on Wheels for the carriage of Trees and other great 
 Weights. He often builds his largest Men of War, whereof 
 some are Nine foot long, in the Woods where the Timber 
 grows, and has them carried on these Engines three or four 
 hundred yards to the Sea. Five hundred Carpenters and 
 Engineers were immediately set at work to prepare the 
 greatest Engine they had. It w r as a Frame of Wood raised 
 Three inches from the ground, about Seven foot long and 
 Four wide, moving upon Twenty-two wheels. The Shout I 
 heard was upon the arrival of this Engine, which it seems set 
 out in Four hours after my Landing. It was brought 
 parallel to me as I lay. But the principal Difficulty was to 
 raise and place me in this Vehicle. Eighty Poles, each of 
 One foot high, w r ere erected for this purpose, and very strong 
 Cords of the bigness of Packthread were fastened by Hooks to 
 many Bandages, which the Workmen had girt round my Neck, 
 my Hands, my Body, and my Legs. Nine hundred of the 
 strongest Men were employed to draw up these Cords by 
 many Pulleys fastned on the Poles, and thus in less than 
 Three hours, I was raised and slung into the Engine, and there 
 tyed fast. All this I was told, for while the whole operation 
 was performing, I lay in a profound sleep, by the force of 
 that soporiferous Medicine infused into my Liquor. Fifteen 
 hundred of the Emperor's largest Horses, each about Four 
 inches and an half high, were imployed to draw me towards 
 the Metropolis, which, as I said, was Half a mile distant. 
 
 About Four hours after we began our Journey, I awaked 
 by a very ridiculous Accident ; for the Carriage being stopt a 
 while to adjust something that was out of order, two or three 
 of the young natives had the curiosity to see how I looked 
 
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 PART 1 
 
 when I was asleep ; they climbed up into the Engine, and 
 advancing very softly to my Face, One of them, an Officer in 
 the Guards, put the sharp end of his Half-pike a good way up 
 into my Left nostril, which tickled my Nose like a Straw, and 
 made me sneeze violently : whereupon they stole off unper- 
 
 ' To draw me towards the Metropolis* 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 ceived, and it was Three weeks before I knew the cause of my 
 awaking so suddenly. We made a long March the remaining 
 part of that day, and rested at night with Five hundred Guards 
 on each side of me, half with Torches, and half with Bows 
 and Arrows, ready to shoot me if I should offer to stir. The 
 next morning at Sun-rise we continued our march, and arrived 
 
' Whereupon I rose up: 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan & Co. 
 
i 4 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 within Two hundred yards of the City-Gates about Noon. 
 The Emperor, and all his Court, came out to meet us, but 
 his Great Officers would by no means suffer his Majesty to 
 endanger his Person by mounting on my Body. 
 
 At the place where the Carriage stopt, there stood 
 an ancient Temple, esteemed to be the largest in the 
 whole Kingdom, which having been polluted some Years 
 before by an unnatural Murder, was, according to the Zeal of 
 those People, look'd on as Prophane, and therefore had been 
 applied to common Uses, and all the Ornaments and Furniture 
 carried away. In this Edifice it was determined I should 
 lodge. The great Gate fronting to the North was about Four 
 foot high, and almost Two foot wide, through which I could 
 easily creep. On each side of the Gate was a small Window 
 not above Six inches from the ground : into that on the Left 
 side, the King's Smiths conveyed Fourscore and eleven Chains, 
 like those that hang to a Lady's Watch in Europe, and almost 
 as large, which were locked to my Left leg with Six and thirty 
 Padlocks. Over-against this Temple, on t'other side of the 
 great Highway, at Twenty foot distance, there was a Turret at 
 least Five foot high. Here the Emperor ascended with many 
 principal Lords of his Court, to have an opportunity of viewing 
 me, as I was told, for I could not see them. It was reckoned 
 that above an Hundred-Thousand Inhabitants came out of the 
 town upon the same errand ; and in spight of my Guards, I 
 believe there could not be fewer than Ten thousand, at several 
 times, who mounted upon my body by the help of ladders. 
 But a Proclamation was soon issued to forbid it upon pain of 
 death. When the Workmen found it was impossible for me 
 to break loose, they cut all the Strings that bound me ; where- 
 upon I rose up with as melancholy a disposition as ever I had 
 in my life. But the noise and astonishment of the People at 
 seeing me rise and walk are not to be expressed. The Chains 
 that held my Left leg were about Two yards long, and gave 
 me not only the liberty of walking backwards and forwards in 
 a Semicircle ; but being fixed within Four inches of the gate, 
 allowed me to creep in, and lie at my full length in the Temple. 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 The Emperor <?/"Lilliput, attended by several of the Nobility \ come to see the 
 Author in his Confinement. The Emperor 's Person and Habit 
 described. Learned Men appointed to teach the Azithor their Language. 
 He gains Favour by his mild Disposition. His Pockets are search 'd, 
 and his Sword and Pistols taken from him. 
 
 When I found myself on my feet, I looked about me, and 
 must confess I never beheld a more entertaining Prospect. 
 The Countrey round appeared like a continued Garden, and 
 the inclosed Fields, which were generally Forty foot square, 
 resembled so many Beds of Flowers. These Fields were 
 intermingled with Woods of half a Stang, and the tallest Trees, 
 as I could judge, appeared to be Seven foot high. I viewed 
 the Town on my Left hand, which looked like the painted 
 Scene of a City in a Theatre. 
 
 The Emperor was already descended from the Tower, and 
 advancing on Horse-back towards me, which had like to have 
 cost him dear ; for the Beast, though very well trained, yet 
 wholly unused to such a Sight, which appeared as if a 
 Mountain moved before him, reared up on his hinder Feet : 
 But that Prince, who is an excellent Horseman, kept his Seat, 
 till his Attendants ran in, and held the Bridle, while his 
 Master had time to dismount. When he alighted, he surveyed 
 me round with great admiration, but kept without the length 
 of my Chain. He ordered his Cooks and Butlers, who were 
 already prepared, to give me Victuals and Drink, which they 
 pushed forward in a sort of Vehicles upon Wheels till I could 
 
i6 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 PART 1 
 
 reach them. I took those Vehicles, and soon emptied them 
 all; Twenty of them were filled with Meat, and Ten with Liquor, 
 each of the former afforded me two or three good mouthfuls, 
 and I emptied the Liquor of Ten Vessels, which was contained 
 in earthen Vials, into one Vehicle, drinking it off at a draught, 
 and so I did with the rest. The Empress, and young Princes 
 
 Reared up on his hinder Feet. 
 
 of the Blood, of both Sexes, attended by many Ladies, sate at 
 some distance in their Chairs ; but upon the Accident that 
 happened to the Emperor's Horse, they alighted, and came 
 near his Person, which I am now going to describe. He is 
 taller by almost the breadth of my Nail, than any of his Court, 
 which alone is enough to strike an Awe into the Beholders. 
 His Features are strong and masculine, with an Austrian Lip 
 and arched Nose, his Complexion olive, his Countenance 
 erect, his Body and Limbs well proportioned, all his Motions 
 
chap. II A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 17 
 
 graceful, and his Deportment majestick. He was then past 
 his Prime, being Twenty-eight years and three quarters old, of 
 which he had reigned about Seven, in great felicity, and 
 generally victorious. For the better convenience of beholding 
 him, I lay on my side, so that my Face was parallel to his, and 
 he stood but Three yards off : However, I have had him since 
 many times in my hand, and therefore cannot be deceived in 
 the description. His Dress was very plain and simple, and the 
 Fashion of it between the Asiatick and the European ; but he 
 had on his Head a light Helmet of Gold, adorned with Jewels, 
 and a Plume on the Crest. He held his Sword drawn in his 
 hand, to defend himself, if I should happen to break loose ; 
 it was almost Three inches long, the Hilt and Scabbard were 
 Gold enriched with Diamonds. His Voice was shrill, but very 
 clear and articulate, and I could distinctly hear it when I 
 stood up. The Ladies and Courtiers were all most magnifi- 
 cently clad, so that the Spot they stood upon seemed to 
 resemble a Petticoat spread on the ground, embroidered with 
 Figures of Gold and Silver.^Hls Imperial Majesty spoke 
 often to me, and I returned answers, but neither of us could 
 understand a syllable. There were several of his Priests and 
 Lawyers present (as I conjectured by their habits) who were 
 ■commanded to address themselves to me, and I spoke to 
 them in as many Languages as I had the least smattering of, 
 which were High and Low Dutch, Latin, F?'ench, Spanish, 
 Italian, and Lingua Franca ; but all to no purpose. After 
 about Two hours the Court retired, and I was left with a 
 strong Guard, to prevent the Impertinence, and probably the 
 Malice of the Rabble, who were very impatient to croud about 
 me as near as they durst, and some of them had the impu- 
 dence to shoot their Arrows at me as I sate on the ground by 
 the Door of my house, whereof one very narrowly missed my 
 Left eye. But the Colonel ordered Six of the Ring-leaders to 
 be seized, and thought no Punishment so proper as to deliver 
 them bound into my hands, which some of his Soldiers 
 accordingly did, pushing them forwards with the But-ends of 
 their Pikes into my reach ; I took them all in my Right hand, 
 put Five of them into my Coat-pocket, and as to the Sixth, I 
 
 c 
 
18 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 PART I 
 
 made a Countenance as if I would eat him alive. The poor 
 Man squalled terribly, and the Colonel and his Officers were in 
 much pain, especially when they saw me take out my Penknife : 
 But I soon put them out of fear ; for, looking mildly, and 
 immediately cutting the Strings he was bound with, I set him 
 gently on the ground, and away he ran ; I treated the rest in 
 the same manner, taking them one by one out of my Pocket, 
 
 ' Pushing them forwards into my reach.' 
 
 and I observed both the Soldiers and People were highly 
 obliged at this mark of my Clemency, which was represented 
 very much to my advantage at Court. 
 
 Towards night I got with some difficulty into my House, 
 where I lay on the ground, and continued so to do about a 
 Fortnight ; during which time the Emperor gave orders to have 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 19 
 
 a Bed prepared for me. Six hundred Beds of the common 
 Measure were brought in Carriages, and worked up in my house; 
 an hundred and fifty of their Beds sown together made up the 
 Breadth and Length, and these were Four double, which how- 
 ever kept me but very indifferently from the Hardness of the 
 Floor, that was of smooth Stone. By the same Computation 
 they provided me with Sheets, Blankets, and Coverlets, tolerable 
 enough for one who had been so long enured to Hardships as I. 
 
 As the news of my arrival spread through the Kingdom, it 
 brought prodigious numbers of rich, idle, and curious People to 
 see me ; so that the Villages were almost emptied, and great 
 neglect of Tillage and Houshold Affairs must have ensued, if 
 his Imperial Majesty had not provided, by several Proclama- 
 tions and Orders of State, against this Inconveniency. He 
 directed that those who had already beheld me, should return 
 home, and not presume to come within Fifty yards of my 
 House without License from Court ; whereby the Secretaries 
 of State got considerable Fees. 
 
 In the mean time, the Emperor held frequent Councils to 
 debate what course should be taken with me ; and I was 
 afterwards assured by a particular Friend, a Person of great 
 Quality, who was looked upon to be as much in the Secret as 
 any, that the Court was under many difficulties concerning me. 
 They apprehended my breaking loose, that my Diet would be 
 very expensive, and might cause a Famine. Sometimes they 
 determined to starve me, or at least to shoot me in the face 
 and hands with poisoned arrows, which would soon dispatch 
 me : But again they considered, that the Stench of so large a 
 carcase might produce a Plague in the Metropolis, and 
 probably spread through the whole Kingdom. In the midst 
 of these consultations, several Officers of the Army went to 
 the door of the great Council-Chamber; and two of them 
 being admitted, gave an account of my behaviour to the Six 
 Criminals above-mentioned, which made so favourable an 
 impression in the breast of his Majesty and the whole Board 
 in my behalf, that an Imperial Commission was issued out, 
 
20 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 obliging all the Villages Nine hundred yards round the City, 
 to deliver in every morning Six beeves, Forty sheep, and 
 other victuals for my sustenance ; together with a proportion- 
 able quantity of Bread, and Wine, and other Liquors : for the 
 due payment of which his Majesty gave Assignments upon 
 his Treasury. For this Prince lives chiefly upon his own 
 
 ' To deliver victuals for my sustenance. ' 
 
 Demesnes, seldom except upon great occasions raising any 
 Subsidies upon his Subjects, who are bound to attend him in 
 his Wars at their own expence. An Establishment was also 
 made of Six hundred persons to be my Domesticks, who had 
 Board-wages allowed for their maintenance, and Tents built 
 for them very conveniently on each side of my door. It was 
 likewise ordered, that Three hundred Taylors should make me 
 a Suit of Cloaths after the fashion of the Countrey : That Six 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 21 
 
 of his Majesty's greatest Scholars should be employed to 
 instruct me in their Language : And, lastly, that the Emperor's 
 Horses, and those of the Nobility and Troops of Guards should 
 be frequently exercised in my sight, to accustom themselves to 
 me. All these Orders were duly put in execution, and in 
 about Three weeks I made a great progress in learning their 
 Language ; during which time, the Emperor frequently 
 honoured me with his Visits, and was pleased to assist my 
 Masters in teaching me. We began already to converse 
 together in some sort ; and the first Words I learnt were to 
 express my desire that he would please to give me my 
 Liberty, which I every day repeated on my knees. His 
 Answer, as I could apprehend it, was, that this must be a 
 work of Time, not to be thought on without the Advice of his 
 Council, and that first I must Lwnos Kelmi?i pesso desmar Ion 
 Emposo ; that is, swear a Peace with him and his Kingdom. 
 However, that I should be used with all kindness, and he 
 advised me to acquire by my Patience, and discreet Behaviour, 
 the good Opinion of himself and his Subjects. He desired I 
 would not take it ill, if he gave orders to certain proper 
 Officers to search me ; for probably I might carry about me 
 several Weapons, which must needs be dangerous things, if 
 they. answered the Bulk of so prodigious a person. I said, his 
 Majesty should be satisfied, for I was ready to strip myself, and 
 turn up my Pockets before him. This I delivered part in 
 Words, and part in Signs. He replied, that by the Laws of 
 the Kingdom I must be searched by Two of his Officers ; 
 that he knew this could not be done without my Consent and 
 Assistance ; that he had so good an opinion of my Generosity 
 and Justice, as to trust their Persons in my hands : That 
 whatever they took from me should be returned when I left 
 the Country, or paid for at the rate which I would set upon 
 them.^itook up the Two Officers in my hands, put them 
 first into my Coat-pockets, and then into every other Pocket 
 about me, except my Two Fobs, and another secret Pocket I 
 had no mind should be searched, wherein I had some little 
 Necessaries that were of no consequence to any but myself. 
 In One of my Fobs there was a Silver Watch, and in the other 
 
22 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 a small quantity of Gold in a Purse. These Gentlemen, 
 having Pen, Ink and Paper about them, made an exact 
 Inventory of every thing they saw ; and when they had done, 
 desired I would set them down, that they might deliver it to 
 the Emperor. This Inventory I afterwards translated into 
 English^ and is word for word as follows. 
 
 Imprimis, In the Right Coat-pocket of the Great Man 
 Mountain (for so I interpret the words Quinbus Flestrin) after 
 the strictest search, we found only one great piece of coarse 
 Cloth, large enough to be a Foot-cloth for your Majesty's chief 
 Room of State. In the Left Pocket, we saw a huge Silver 
 Chest, with a Cover of the same Metal, which we the Searchers 
 were not able to lift. We desired it should be opened, and 
 One of us stepping into it, found himself up to the mid leg in 
 a sort of Dust, some part whereof flying up to our Faces, set 
 us both a sneezing for several times together. In his Right 
 Wastcoat-pocket, we found a prodigious bundle of white thin 
 Substances, folded one over another, about the bigness of 
 Three men, tied with a strong Cable, and marked with black 
 Figures ; which we humbly conceive to be Writings, every 
 Letter almost half as large as the Palm of our Hands. In the 
 Left, there was a sort of Engine, from the Back of which were 
 extended Twenty long Poles, resembling the Pallisado's before 
 your Majesty's Court ; wherewith we conjecture the Man 
 Mountain combs his head, for we did not always trouble him 
 with Questions, because we found it a great difficulty to make 
 him understand us. In the large Pocket on the Right side of 
 his middle Cover, (so I translate the word Ranfu-Lo, by which 
 they meant my Breeches) we saw a hollow Pillar of Iron, 
 about the length of a Man, fastened to a strong piece of 
 Timber, larger than the Pillar ; and upon One side of 
 the Pillar were huge pieces of Iron sticking out, cut into 
 strange Figures, which we know not what to make of. In the 
 Left pocket, another Engine of the same kind. In the 
 smaller pocket on the Right side, were several round flat 
 pieces of white and red Metal, of different bulk ; some of the 
 white, which seemed to be Silver, were so large and heavy, 
 
 
chap. ii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 23 
 
 that my Comrade and I could hardly lift them. In the Left 
 pocket were Two black Pillars irregularly shaped : We could 
 not, without difficulty, reach the top of them as we stood at 
 the bottom of his pocket. One of them was covered, and 
 seemed all of a piece : But at the upper end of the other, 
 there appeared a white round Substance, about twice the big- 
 
 ' We saw certain strange Figures.' 
 
 ness of our Heads. Within each of these was enclosed a pro- 
 digious Plate of Steel ; which, by our orders, we obliged him 
 to shew us, because we apprehended they might be dangerous 
 Engines. He took them out of their Cases, and told us, that 
 in his own country his practice was to shave his Beard with 
 one of these, and to cut his Meat with the other. There 
 were two pockets which we could not enter : These he called 
 his Fobs ; they were Two large Slits cut into the top of his 
 
24 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 middle Cover, but squeezed close by the pressure of his Belly. 
 Out of the Right Fob hung a great Silver Chain, with a 
 wonderful kind of Engine at the bottom. We directed him 
 to draw out whatever was fastened to that Chain ; which 
 appeared to be a Globe, half Silver, and half of some trans- 
 parent Metal : For on the transparent side we saw certain 
 strange Figures circularly drawn, and thought we could touch 
 them, till we found our Fingers stopped by that lucid 
 Substance. He put this Engine to our Ears, which made an 
 incessant Noise like that of a Water-mill : And we conjecture 
 it is either some, unknown Animal, or the God that he 
 worships ; but we are more inclined to the latter Opinion, 
 because he assures us, (if we understood him right, for he 
 expressed himself very imperfectly) that he seldom did any thing 
 without consulting it : He called it his Oracle, and said it 
 pointed out the Time for every Action of his life. From 
 the Left fob he took out a Net almost large enough for a 
 Fisherman, but contrived to open and shut like a Purse, and 
 served him for the same use : We found therein several massy 
 pieces of yellow Metal, which if they be real Gold, must be of 
 immense value. 
 
 Having thus, in obedience to your Majesty's Commands, 
 diligently searched all his Pockets, we observed a Girdle about 
 his Waist made of the Hide of some prodigious Animal ; from 
 which, on the Left side, hung a Sword of the length of Five 
 men ; and on the Right, a Bag or Pouch divided into Two 
 Cells, each Cell capable of holding Three of your Majesty's 
 Subjects. In one of these Cells were several Globes or Balls 
 of the most ponderous Metal, about the bigness of our Heads, 
 and required a strong Hand to lift them : The other Cell con- 
 tained a heap of certain black Grains, but of no great bulk or 
 weight, for we could hold above Fifty of them in the palms of 
 our Hands. 
 
 This is an exact Inventory of what we found about the 
 body of the Man-Mountain, who used us with great civility, 
 and due respect to your Majesty's Commission. Signed and 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 25 
 
 Sealed on the Fourth cay of the Eighty-ninth moon of your 
 Majesty's auspicious Reign. 
 
 Clefren Frelock, Marsi Frelock. 
 
 When this Inventory was read over to the Emperor, he 
 directed me, although in very gentle terms, to deliver up the 
 several Particulars. He first called for my Scymiter, which I 
 took out, Scabbard and all. In the mean time he ordered 
 Three Thousand of his choicest Troops (who then attended 
 him) to surround me at a distance, with their Bows and 
 Arrows just ready to discharge : But I did not observe it, for 
 mine Eyes were wholly fixed upon his Majesty. He then 
 desired me to draw my Scymiter, which, although it had got 
 some Rust by the Sea-water, was in most parts exceeding 
 bright. I did so, and immediately all the Troops gave a Shout 
 between Terror and Surprize ; for the Sun shone clear, and 
 the Reflexion dazled their Eyes as I waved the Scymiter to and 
 fro in my hand. His Majesty, who is a most magnanimous 
 Prince, was less daunted than I could expect ; he ordered me 
 to return it into the Scabbard, and cast it on the ground as 
 gently as I could, about Six foot from the end of my Chain. 
 The next thing he demanded was One of the hollow Iron 
 Pillars, by which he meant my Pocket-pistols. I drew it out, 
 and at his desire, as well as I could, expressed to him the use 
 of it ; and charging it only with powder, which by the close- 
 ness of my Pouch happened to scape wetting in the Sea (an 
 inconvenience against which all prudent Mariners take special 
 care to provide) I first cautioned the Emperor not to be 
 afraid, and then I let it off in the Air. The Astonishment 
 here was much greater than at the sight of my Scymiter. 
 Hundreds fell down as if they had been struck dead ; and even 
 the Emperor, although he stood his ground, could not recover 
 himself in some time. I delivered up both my Pistols in the 
 same manner as I had done my Scymiter, and then my Pouch 
 of Powder and Bullets ; begging him that the former might be 
 kept from the Fire, for it would kindle with the smallest 
 Spark, and blow up his Imperial Palace into the Air. I like- 
 wise delivered up my Watch, which the Emperor was very 
 
26 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 curious to see, and commanded Two of his tallest Yeomen of 
 the Guards to bear it on a Pole upon their Shoulders, as Dray- 
 men in England do a Barrel of Ale. He was amazed at the 
 continual Noise it made, and the Motion of the Minute-hand, 
 which he could easily discern ; for their Sight is much more 
 acute than ours ; and asked the Opinions of his learned Men 
 about him, which were various and remote, as the Reader may 
 well imagine without my repeating ; although indeed I could 
 not very perfectly understand them. I then gave up my 
 Silver and Copper Money, my Purse with Nine large pieces of 
 Gold, and some smaller ones ; my Knife and Razor, my Comb 
 and Silver Snuff-box, my Handkerchief and Journal-book. 
 My Scymiter, Pistols, and Pouch, were conveyed in Carriages 
 to his Majesty's Stores ; but the rest of my Goods were 
 returned me. 
 
 I had, as I before observed, one private Pocket which 
 escaped their search, wherein there was a pair of Spectacles 
 (which I sometimes use for the weakness of mine eyes), a 
 Pocket Perspective, and several other little Conveniencies \ 
 which being of no consequence to the Emperor, I did not 
 think myself bound in Honour to discover, and I apprehended 
 they might be lost or spoiled if I ventured them out of my 
 possession. 
 
CHAP. Ill 
 
 The Author diverts the Emperor and his Nobility of both Sexes, in a very 
 uncommon Manner. The Diversions of the Court of Lilliput described. 
 The Author hath his Liberty granted him, upon certain Conditions. 
 
 My Gentleness and good Behaviour had gained so far on the 
 Emperor and his Court, and indeed upon the Army and 
 People in general, that I began to conceive hopes of getting 
 my Liberty in a short time. I took all possible methods to 
 cultivate this favourable disposition. The Natives came by 
 degrees to be less apprehensive of any Danger from me. I 
 would sometimes lie down, and let Five or Six of them dance 
 on my hand. And at last the Boys and Girls would venture 
 to come and play at Hide and Seek in my hair. I had now 
 made a good progress in understanding and speaking their 
 Language. The Emperor had a mind one day to entertain 
 me with several of the Country Shows, wherein they exceed all 
 Nations I have known, both for Dexterity and Magnificence. 
 I was diverted with none so much as that of the Rope-dancers, 
 performed upon a slender white Thread, extended about Two 
 foot, and Twelve inches from the ground. Upon which I 
 shall desire liberty, with the Reader's patience, to enlarge a 
 little. 
 
 This Diversion is only practised by those persons who are 
 Candidates for great Employments and high Favour at Court. 
 They are trained in this Art from their youth, and are not 
 always of noble Birth, or liberal Education. When a great 
 
28 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 Office is vacant either by Death or Disgrace (which often 
 happens) Five or Six of those Candidates petition the 
 Emperor to entertain his Majesty and the Court with a Dance 
 on the Rope, and whoever jumps the highest without falling 
 succeeds in the Office. Very often the Chief Ministers them- 
 selves are commanded to shew their Skill, and to convince the 
 Emperor that they have not lost their Faculty. Flimnap, the 
 Treasurer, is allowed to cut a Caper on the strait Rope, at 
 least an Inch higher than any other Lord in the whole 
 Empire. I have seen him do the Summerset several times 
 together upon a Trencher fixed on the Rope, which is no 
 thicker than a common Pack-thread in England. My Friend 
 Reldresal, Principal Secretary for private Affairs, is, in my 
 opinion, if I am not partial, the second after the Treasurer ; 
 the rest of the Great Officers are much upon a Par. 
 
 These Diversions are often attended with fatal Accidents, 
 whereof great numbers are on record. I myself have seen 
 Two or Three Candidates break a Limb. But the Danger is 
 much greater when the Ministers themselves are commanded 
 to shew their Dexterity ; for by contending to excel them- 
 selves and their Fellows, they strain so far, that there is 
 hardly One of them who hath not received a Fall, and some of 
 them Two or Three. I was assured that a Year or Two be- 
 fore my arrival, Flimnap would have infallibly broke his Neck, 
 if One of the King's Cushions, that accidentally lay on the 
 ground, had not weakened the force of his Fall. 
 
 There is likewise another Diversion which is only shewn 
 before the Emperor and Empress, and First Minister, upon 
 particular Occasions. The Emperor lays on a Table Three 
 fine silken Threads of Six inches long. One is Purple, the 
 other Yellow, and the Third White. These Threads are 
 proposed as Prizes for those persons whom the Emperor hath 
 a mind to distinguish by a peculiar mark of his Favour. The 
 Ceremony is performed in his Majesty's great Chamber of 
 State, where the Candidates are to undergo a Tryal of 
 Dexterity very different from the former, and such as I have 
 
^*«l-_^<p? 
 
3 o A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 not observed the least resemblance of in any other Countrey 
 of the old or the new World. The Emperor holds a Stick in 
 his hands, both ends parallel to the Horizon, while the 
 Candidates advancing one by one, sometimes leap over the 
 Stick, sometimes creep under it backwards and forwards 
 several times, according as the Stick is advanced or depressed. 
 Sometimes the Emperor holds one end of the Stick, and his 
 First Minister the other; sometimes the Minister has it 
 entirely to himself. Whoever performs his part with most 
 Agility, and holds out the longest in leaping and creeping, is 
 rewarded with the Purple coloured Silk ; the Yellow is given 
 to the next, and the White to the Third, which they all wear 
 girt twice round about the middle ; and you see few great 
 Persons about this Court who are not adorned with one of 
 these Girdles. , | 
 
 The Horses of the Army, and those of the Royal Stables, 
 having been daily led before me, were no longer shy, but 
 would come up to my very feet without starting. The Riders 
 would leap them over my hand as I held it on the ground, 
 and One of the Emperor's Huntsmen, upon a large Courser, 
 took my Foot, Shoe and all ; which was indeed a prodigious 
 Leap. I had the good fortune to divert the Emperor One 
 day after a very extraordinary manner. I desired he would 
 order several Sticks of Two foot high, and the thickness of an 
 ordinary Cane, to be brought me ; whereupon his Majesty 
 commanded the Master of his Woods to give directions 
 accordingly ; and the next morning Six Wood-men arrived 
 with as many Carriages, drawn by Eight Horses to each. 
 I took Nine of these Sticks, and fixing them firmly in the 
 ground in a Quadrangular Figure, Two foot and a half square, 
 I took four other Sticks, and tycd them parallel at each 
 Corner, about Two foot from the ground ; then I fastned 
 my Handkerchief to the Nine Sticks that stood erect, and 
 extended it on all sides till it was as tight as the top of a 
 Drum ; and the Four parallel Sticks rising about Five inches 
 higher than the Handkerchief, served as Ledges on each side. 
 When I had finished my Work, I desired the Emperor to let 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 31 
 
 a Troop of his best Horse, Twenty-four in number, come and 
 exercise upon this Plain. His Majesty approved of the 
 Proposal, and I took them up one by one in my hands, ready 
 mounted and armed, with the proper Officers to exercise 
 them. As soon as they got into order, they divided into 
 Two Parties, performed mock Skirmishes, discharged blunt 
 Arrows, drew their Swords, fled and pursued, attacked and 
 retired, and in short discovered the best Military Discipline I 
 ever beheld. The parallel Sticks secured them and their 
 Horses from falling over the Stage ; and the Emperor was so 
 much delighted, that he ordered this Entertainment to be 
 repeated several days, and once was pleased to be lifted up, 
 and give the word of Command ; and, with great difficulty, 
 persuaded even the Empress herself to let me hold her in her 
 close Chair within Two yards of the Stage, from whence she 
 was able to take a full view of the whole performance. It was 
 my good fortune that no ill Accident happened in these Enter- 
 tainments, only once a fiery Horse that belonged to one of 
 the Captains pawing with his Hoof struck a hole in my 
 Handkerchief, and his Foot slipping, he overthrew his Rider 
 and himself; but I immediately relieved them both, and 
 covering the Hole with one hand, I set down the Troop with 
 the other, in the same manner as I took them up. The 
 Horse that fell was strained in the Left shoulder, but the 
 Rider got no hurt, and I repaired my Handkerchief as well as 
 I could ; however, I would not trust to the strength of it any 
 more in such dangerous Enterprizes. 
 
 About Two or Three days before I was set at liberty, as I 
 was enteitaining the Court with these kind of Feats, there 
 arrived an Express to inform his Majesty that some of his 
 Subjects riding near the place where I was first taken up, had 
 seen a great black Substance lying on the ground, very odly 
 shaped, extending its Edges round as wide as his Majesty's 
 Bed-chamber, and rising up in the middle as high as a Man ; 
 that it was no living Creature, as they at first apprehended, 
 for it lay on the grass without motion, and some of them had 
 walked round it several times : That by mounting upon each 
 
32 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part I 
 
 others Shoulders, they had got to the top, which was flat and 
 even, and stamping upon it they found it was hollow within jj 
 that they humbly conceived it might be something belonging 
 to the Man-Mountain, and if his Majesty pleased, they would 
 undertake to bring it with only Five horses. I presently 
 knew what they meant, and was glad at heart to receive this 
 Intelligence. It seems upon my first reaching the shore 
 after our shipwreck, I was in such confusion, that before I 
 came to the place where I went to sleep, my Hat, which I 
 had fastned with a String to my Head while I was rowing, 
 and had stuck on all the time I was swimming, fell off after 
 I came to land ; the String, as I conjecture, breaking by some 
 accident which I never observed, but thought my Hat had 
 been lost at sea. I intreated his Imperial Majesty to give 
 orders it might be brought to me as soon as possible, describ- 
 ing to him the Use and the Nature of it : And the next day 
 the Waggoners arrived with it, but not in a very good condition : 
 they had bored two Holes in the Brim, within an Inch and 
 half of the Edge, and fastned Two Hooks in the Holes ] 
 these Hooks were tyed by a long Cord to the Harness, and 
 thus my Hat was dragged along for above half an English 
 Mile : But the Ground in that country being extremely 
 smooth and level, it received less damage than I expected. 
 
 Two days after this Adventure, the Emperor having 
 ordered that part of his Army which quarters in and about 
 his Metropolis to be in a readiness, took a fancy of diverting 
 himself in a very singular manner. He desired I would 
 stand like a Colossus, with my Legs as far asunder as I con- 
 veniently could. He then commanded his General (who was 
 an old experienced Leader, and a great Patron of mine) 
 to draw up the Troops in close Order, and march them under 
 me, the Foot by Twenty-four in a breast, and the Horse by 
 Sixteen, with Drums beating, Colours flying, and Pikes ad- 
 vanced. This Body consisted of Three thousand Foot, and a 
 Thousand Horse. 
 
 I had sent so many Memorials and Petitions for my 
 

 The Emperor took a fancy of divert big himself in a very singular manner.'' 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &■ Co. 
 
34 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 Liberty, that his Majesty at length mentioned the Matter first 
 in the Cabinet, and then in a full Council ; where it was 
 opposed by none, except Skyresh Bolgolam, who was pleased, 
 without any provocation, to be my mortal Enemy. But it 
 was carried against him by the whole Board, and confirmed 
 by the Emperor. That Minister was Galbet, or Admiral of 
 the Realm, very much in his Master's Confidence, and a 
 Person well versed in affairs, but of a morose and sour Com- 
 plexion. However, he was at length persuaded to comply; 
 but prevailed that the Articles and Conditions upon which I 
 should be set free, and to which I must swear, should be 
 drawn up by himself. These Articles were brought to me by 
 Skyresh Bolgolam in person, attended by Two Under-Secre- 
 taries, and several Persons of Distinction. After they were 
 read, I was demanded to swear to the performance of them ; 
 first in the manner of my own countrey, and afterwards in 
 the method prescribed by their Laws ; which was to hold my 
 Right foot in my Left hand, to place the Middle finger of my 
 Right hand on the Crown of my head, and my Thumb on 
 the Tip of my Right ear. But because the Reader may per- 
 haps be curious to have some idea of the Style and Manner 
 of expression peculiar to that People, as well as to know the 
 Articles upon which I recovered my Liberty, I have made a 
 Translation of the whole Instrument word for word, as near 
 as I was able, which I here offer to the publick. 
 
 GOLBASTO MOMAREN EvLAME GURDILO SHEFIN MULLY 
 
 Ully Gue, most Mighty Emperor of Lilliput, Delight and 
 Terror of the Universe, whose Dominions extend Five thousand 
 Blustrugs (about Twelve miles in Circumference) to the Ex- 
 tremities of the Globe ; Monarch of all Monarchs, taller than the 
 Sons of Men ; whose Feet press down to the Center, and whose 
 Head strikes against the Sun : At whose Nod the Princes of 
 the Earth shake their Knees ; pleasant as the Spring, comfortable 
 as the Summer, fruitful as Autumn, dreadful as Winter. His 
 most , sublime Majesty proposeth to the Man-Mountain, lately 
 arrived to our Celestial Dominions, the following Articles, 
 which by a solemn Oath he shall be obliged to perform. 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 35 
 
 First, The Man- Mountain shall not depart from our 
 Dominions, without our License under our Great Seal. 
 
 2d, He shall not presume to come into our Metropolis, 
 without our express Order ; at which time the Inhabitants shall 
 have Two hours warning to keep within their Doors. 
 
 3d, The said Man-Mountain shall confine his Walks to 
 our principal High Roads, and not offer to walk or lie down 
 in a Meadow or Field of Corn. 
 
 4th, As he walks the said Roads, he shall take the utmost 
 care not to trample upon the bodies of any of our loving 
 Subjects, their Horses, or Carriages, nor take any of our said 
 Subjects into his hands, without their own consent. 
 
 5th, If an Express requires extraordinary Dispatch, the 
 Man-Mountain shall be obliged to carry in his pocket the 
 Messenger and Horse a Six days Journey once in every 
 Moon, and return the said Messenger back (if so required) 
 safe to our Imperial Presence. 
 
 6th, He shall be our Ally against our Enemies in the Island 
 of Btefuscu, and do his utmost to destroy their Fleet, which is 
 now preparing to invade Us. 
 
 7 th, That the said Man-Mountain shall, at his times of 
 leisure, be aiding and assisting to our Workmen, in helping to 
 raise certain great Stones, towards covering the Wall of the 
 principal Park, and other our Royal Buildings. 
 
 8th, That the said Man-Mountain shall, in Two Moons 
 time, deliver in an exact Survey of the Circumference of our 
 Dominions by a Computation of his own Paces round the 
 Coast. 
 
 Lastly, That upon his solemn Oath to observe all the above 
 Articles, the said Man-Mountain shall have a daily Allowance 
 
3<> 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 of Meat and Drink sufficient for the Support of 1728 of our 
 Subjects, with free access to our Royal Person, and other 
 marks of our Favour. Given at our Palace at Belfaborac the 
 Twelfth Day of the Ninety-first Moon of our Reign. 
 
 I swore and subscribed to these articles with great Chearful- 
 ness and Content, although some of them were not so honour- 
 able as I could have wished ; which proceeded wholly from the 
 malice of Skyresh Bolgolam the High Admiral : Whereupon 
 my Chains were immediately unlocked, and I was at full 
 
 1 1 made my Ac7tnovuledgtuents. 
 
 liberty ; the Emperor himself in person did me the Honour to 
 be by at the whole Ceremony. I made my Acknowledgments 
 by prostrating myself at his Majesty's Feet : But he com- 
 manded me to rise ; and after many gracious expressions, 
 which, to avoid the censure of Vanity, I shall not repeat, 
 he added, that he hoped I should prove a useful Servant, 
 and well deserve all the Favours he had already conferred 
 upon me, or might do for the future. 
 
 The Reader may please to observe, that in the last Article 
 for the recovery of my Liberty the Emperor stipulates to allow 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 37 
 
 me a quantity of meat and drink sufficient for the support of 
 1728 Lilliputians. Some time after, asking a Friend at 
 Court how they came to fix on that determinate number ; he 
 told me, that his Majesty's Mathematicians, having taken the 
 Height of my Body by the help of a Quadrant, and finding it 
 to exceed theirs in the proportion of Twelve to One, they con- 
 cluded from the Similarity of their bodies, that mine must 
 contain at least 1728 of theirs, and consequently would 
 require as much Food as was necessary to support that 
 number of Lilliputians. By which, the Reader may conceive 
 an idea of the Ingenuity of that People, as well as the prudent 
 and exact Oeconomy of so great a Prince. 
 
CHAP. IV 
 
 Mildenclo the Metropolis of Lilliput described, together with the Emperor's 
 Palace. A Conversation between the Author and a principal Secretary , 
 concerning the Affairs of that Empire. The Author's Offei's to serve 
 the Emperor in his Wars. 
 
 The First request I made after I had obtained my Liberty, 
 was, that I might have license to see Mildendo, the Metro- 
 polis ; which the Emperor easily granted me, but with a 
 special charge to do no hurt, either to the Inhabitants, or 
 their Houses. The People had notice by Proclamation of my 
 design to visit the Town. The Wall which encompassed it, is 
 Two foot and an half high, and at least Eleven inches broad, 
 so that a Coach and Horses may be driven very safely round it ; 
 and it is flanked with strong Towers at Ten foot distance. I 
 stept over the great Western Gate, and passed very gently, 
 and sideling through the Two principal Streets, only in 
 my short Waistcoat, for fear of damaging the Roofs and 
 Eves of the Houses with the Skirts of my Coat. I walked 
 with the utmost circumspection, to avoid treading on any 
 Stragglers, that might remain in the Streets, although the 
 Orders were very strict, that all people should keep in their 
 houses, at their own peril. The Garret Windows and Tops 
 of houses were so crowded with Spectators, that I thought in 
 all my Travels I had not seen a more populous place. The 
 City is an exact Square, each side of the Wall being Five 
 hundred foot long. The two great Streets which run cross 
 and divide it into Four Quarters, are Five foot wide. The 
 

 ' I walked with the utmost circumspection. 
 Copyright 1804 by Macmilla.11 &• Co. 
 
4 o A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 Lanes and Alleys which I could not enter, but only viewed 
 them as I passed, are from Twelve to Eighteen inches. The 
 Town is capable of holding Five hundred thousand Souls. 
 The Houses are from Three to Five Stories. The Shops and 
 Markets well provided. 
 
 The Emperor's Palace is in the Center of the City, where 
 the Two great Streets meet. It is inclosed by a Wall of Two 
 foot high, and Twenty foot distant from the Buildings. I 
 had his Majesty's permission to step over this Wall ; and the 
 Space being so wide between that and the Palace, I could 
 easily view it on every side. The outward Court is a Square 
 of Forty foot, and includes Two other Courts : In the inmost 
 are the Royal Apartments, which I was very desirous to see, 
 but found it extremely difficult ; for the great Gates, from one 
 Square into another, were but Eighteen inches high, and 
 Seven inches wide. Now the Buildings of the outer Court 
 were at least Five foot high, and it was impossible for me to 
 stride over them, without infinite damage to the Pile, though 
 the Walls were strongly built of hewn Stone, and Four inches 
 thick. At the same time the Emperor had a great desire 
 that I should see the Magnificence of his Palace ; but this I 
 was not able to do till Three days after, which I spent in 
 cutting down with my Knife some of the largest Trees in the 
 Royal Park, about an Hundred yards distant from the City. 
 Of these Trees I made Two Stools, each about Three foot 
 high, and strong enough to bear my Weight. The People 
 having received notice a Second time, I went again through 
 the City to the Palace, with my Two Stools in my hands. 
 When I came to the side of the outer Court, I stood upon 
 One Stool, and took the other in my hand : This I lifted 
 over the Roof, and gently set it down on the Space between 
 the first and second Court, which was Eight foot wide. I 
 then stept over the Buildings very conveniently from one 
 Stool to the other, and drew up the first after me with a 
 hooked Stick. By this contrivance I got into the inmost 
 Court ; and lying down upon my Side, I applied my Face to 
 the Windows of the middle Stories, which were left open or 
 
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 4i 
 
 purpose, and discovered the most splendid Apartments that 
 can be imagined. There I saw the Empress, and the young 
 Princes in their several Lodgings, with their chief Attendants 
 
 ' Gave me her Hand to kiss. 
 
 
 about them. Her Imperial Majesty was pleased to smile 
 very graciously upon me, and gave me out of the Window her 
 Hand to kiss. 
 
 But I shall not anticipate the Reader with farther Descrip- 
 
42 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 tions of this kind, because I reserve them for a greater Work, 
 which is now almost ready for the Press, containing a general 
 Description of this Empire, from its first Erection, through 
 a long Series of Princes, with a particular Account of their 
 Wars and Politicks, Laws, Learning, and Religion; their Plants 
 and Animals, their peculiar Manners and Customs, with other 
 Matters very curious and useful ; my chief design at present 
 being only to relate such Events and Transactions as happened 
 to the publick, or to myself, during a Residence of about Nine 
 months in that Empire. 
 
 One morning, about a Fortnight after I had obtained my 
 liberty, Reldresal, Principal Secretary (as they style him) of 
 private Affairs, came to my House, attended only by one 
 Servant. He ordered his Coach to wait at a distance, and 
 desired I would give him an hour's Audience ; which I readily 
 consented to, on account of his Quality and personal Merits, 
 as well as the many good Offices he had done me during my 
 Solicitations at Court. I offered to lie down, that he might 
 the more conveniently reach my Ear ; but he chose rather to let 
 me hold him in my hand during our conversation. He began 
 with Compliments on my Liberty, said he might pretend to 
 some Merit in it ; but, however, added, that if it had not been 
 for the present Situation of things at Court, perhaps I might 
 not have obtained it so soon. For, said he, as flourishing a 
 Condition as we may appear to be in to Foreigners, we labour 
 under Two mighty Evils ; a violent Faction at home, and the 
 danger of an Invasion by a most potent Enemy from abroad. 
 As to the first, you are to understand, that for above Severity 
 moons past, there have been Two struggling Parties in this 
 Empire, under the Names of Tramecksan, and Slamecksan, 
 from the high and low Heels on their Shoes, by which they 
 distinguish themselves. It is alledged indeed, .that the high 
 Heels are most agreeable to our ancient Constitution : But 
 however this be, his Majesty hath determined to make use of 
 only low Heels in the Administration of the Government, and 
 all Offices in the gift of the Crown, as you cannot but observe ; 
 and particularly, that his Majesty's Imperial Heels are lower 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 43 
 
 at least by a Drurr than any of his Court ; {Drurr is a 
 Measure about the Fourteenth part of an inch.) The 
 Animosities between these Two parties run so high, that they 
 will neither eat nor drink, nor talk with each other. We 
 compute the Tramecksan, or High-heels, to exceed us in 
 number ; but the Power is wholly on our side. We apprehend 
 his Imperial Highness, the Heir to the Crown, to have some 
 Tendency towards the High-heels ; at least, we can plainly 
 discover one of his Heels higher than the other, which 
 gives him a Hobble in his Gait. Now, in the midst of 
 these intestine Disquiets, we are threatned with an Invasion 
 from the Island of Blefuscu, which is the other great Empire 
 of the Universe, almost as large and powerful as this of his 
 Majesty. For as to what we have heard you affirm, that there 
 are other Kingdoms and States in the world, inhabited by 
 human Creatures as large as yourself, our Philosophers are in 
 much doubt, and would rather conjecture that you dropt from 
 the Moon, or One of the Stars ; because it is certain, that an 
 hundred Mortals of your Bulk would, in a short time, destroy 
 all the Fruits and Cattel of his Majesty's Dominions. Besides, 
 our Histories of Six thousand Moons make no mention of 
 any other Regions, than the Two great Empires of Lilliput and 
 Blefuscu. Which Two mighty Powers have, as I was going 
 to tell you, been engaged in a most obstinate War for Six and 
 thirty Moons past. It began upon the following Occasion. 
 It is allowed on all hands, that the primitive way of breaking 
 Eggs before we eat them, was upon the larger End : But his 
 present Majesty's Grandfather, while he was a Boy, going to 
 eat an Egg, and breaking it according to the ancient practice, 
 happened to cut one of his Fingers. Whereupon the Emperor 
 his Father published an Edict, commanding all his Subjects, 
 upon great Penalties, to break the smaller End of their Eggs. 
 The People so highly resented this Law, that our Histories tell 
 us there have been Six Rebellions raised on that account ; 
 wherein one Emperor lost his Life, and another his Crown. 
 These Civil Commotions were constantly fomented by the 
 Monarchs of Blefuscu ; and when they were quelled, the Exiles 
 always fled for Refuge to that Empire. It is computed, that 
 
44 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 TART I 
 
 Eleven thousand Persons have, at several times, suffered 
 Death, rather than submit to break their Eggs at the smaller 
 End. Many hundred large Volumes have been published 
 upon this Controversy : But the Books of the Big-Endians 
 have been long forbidden, and the whole Party rendred 
 incapable by Law of holding Employments. During the 
 
 Happened to cut one of his Fingers. 
 
 Course of these Troubles, the Emperors of Blefuscu did 
 frequently expostulate by their Ambassadors, accusing us of 
 making a Schism in Religion, by offending against a funda- 
 mental Doctrine of our great Prophet Lustrog, in the Fifty- 
 fourth Chapter of the Bnmdecral (which is their Alcoran). 
 This, however, is thought to be a mere Strain upon the Text ; 
 For the Words are these ; That all true Believers shall break 
 their Eggs at the convenient End : And which is the Con- 
 

 chap, iv A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 45 
 
 venient end, seems, in my humble opinion, to be left to every 
 man's Conscience, or at least in the power of the Chief 
 Magistrate to determine. Now the Big-Endian Exiles have 
 found so much credit in the Emperor of Blefustu's Court, 
 and so much private Assistance and Encouragement from 
 their Party here at home, that a bloody War hath been carried 
 on between the Two Empires for Six and thirty moons with 
 various Success ; during which time we have lost Forty 
 Capital Ships, and a much greater number of smaller Vessels, 
 together with Thirty thousand of our best Seamen and 
 Soldiers ; and the Damage received by the Enemy is 
 reckoned to be somewhat greater than ours. However, they 
 have now equipped a numerous Fleet, and are just preparing to 
 make a Descent upon us ; and his Imperial Majesty placing 
 great Confidence in your Valour and Strength, hath com- 
 manded Me to lay this account of his Affairs before You. 
 
 I desired the Secretary to present my humble Duty to the 
 Emperor, and to let him know, that I thought it would not 
 become Me, who was a Foreigner, to interfere with Parties ; 
 but I was ready, with the hazard of my Life, to defend his 
 Person and State against all Invaders. 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 The Author by an extraordinary Stratagem, prevents an Invasion. A 
 high Title of Honour is conferred tipon him. Ambassadors arrive 
 from the Emperor of Blefuscu, and sue for Peace. 
 
 The Empire of Blefuscu is an Island situated to the North- 
 North-East side of Lilliput, from whence it is parted only by 
 a Channel of Eight hundred yards wide. I had not yet seen 
 it, and upon this notice of an intended Invasion, I avoided 
 appearing on that side of the Coast, for fear of being discovered 
 by some of the Enemies Ships, who had received no Intelli- 
 gence of me, all Intercourse between the Two Empires having 
 been strictly forbidden during the War, upon pain of Death, 
 and an Embargo laid by our Emperor upon all Vessels what- 
 soever. I communicated to his Majesty a Project I had 
 formed of seizing the Enemy's whole Fleet ; which, as our 
 Scouts assured us, lay at anchor in the Harbour ready to sail 
 with the first fair Wind. I consulted the most experienced 
 Seamen, upon the depth of the Channel, which they had 
 often plummed, who told me, that in the middle at High- 
 water it was Seventy Glumgluffs deep, which is about Six foot 
 of European measure ; and the rest of it Fifty Glumgluffs at 
 most. I walked towards the North-East Coast over-against 
 Blefuscu, and lying down behind a Hillock, took out my 
 small Pocket Perspective-Glass, and viewed the Enemy's Fleet 
 at anchor, consisting of about Fifty Men of War, and a great 
 number of Transports : I then came back to my House, and 
 gave order (for which I had a Warrant) for a great quantity 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 47 
 
 of the strongest Cable and Bars of Iron. The Cable was 
 about as thick as Packthread, and the Bars of the length and 
 size of a Knitting-needle. I trebled the Cable to make it 
 stronger, and for the same reason I twisted Three of the Iron 
 Bars together, bending the Extremities into a Hook. Having 
 thus fixed Fifty Hooks to as many Cables, I went back to the 
 North-East Coast, and putting off my Coat, Shoes, and Stock- 
 ings, walked into the Sea in my Leathern Jerkin, about half 
 an hour before High-water. I waded with what haste I could, 
 and swam in the middle about Thirty yards till I felt 
 ground ; I arrived at the Fleet in less than half an hour. 
 The Enemy was so frighted when they saw me, that they 
 leaped out of their ships, and swam to shore, where there 
 could not be fewer than Thirty thousand Souls. I then took 
 my Tackling, and fastning a Hook to the hole at the Prow 
 of each, I tied all the Cords together at the End. While I 
 was thus employed, the Enemy discharged several thousand 
 Arrows, many of which stuck in my Hands and Face ; and 
 besides the excessive smart, gave me much disturbance in my 
 Work. My greatest Apprehension was for mine Eyes, which 
 I should have infallibly lost, if I had not suddenly thought of 
 an Expedient. I kept among other little Necessaries a pair 
 of Spectacles in a private Pocket, which, as I observed before, 
 had scaped the Emperor's Searchers. These I took out and 
 fastned as strongly as I could upon my Nose, and thus 
 armed went on boldly with my Work in spight of the Enemies 
 Arrows, many of which struck against the Glasses of my 
 Spectacles, but without any other effect, further than a little to 
 discompose them. I had now fastned all the Hooks, and 
 taking the Knot in my hand, began to pull ; but not a Ship 
 would stir, for they were all too fast held by their Anchors, so 
 that the boldest part of my Enterprize remained. I there- 
 fore let go the Cord, and leaving the Hooks fixed to the Ships, 
 I resolutely cut with my Knife the Cables that fastned the 
 Anchors, receiving above Two hundred Shots in my Face and 
 Hands ; then I took up the knotted end of the Cables to 
 which my Hooks were tyed, and with great ease drew Fifty of 
 the Enemies largest Men of War after me. 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 49 
 
 The Blefuscudians, who had not the least imagination of 
 what I intended, were at first confounded with astonishment. 
 They had seen me cut the Cables, and thought my Design 
 was only to let the Ships run a-drift, or fall foul on each other : 
 But when they perceived the whole Fleet moving in order, 
 and saw me pulling at the end, they set up such a scream of 
 Grief and Despair, that it is almost impossible to describe or con- 
 ceive. When I had got out of danger, I stopt a while to pick 
 out the Arrows that stuck in my Hands and Face, and rubbed 
 on some of the same Ointment that was given me at my first 
 arrival, as I have formerly mentioned. I then took off my 
 Spectacles, and waiting about an hour till the Tide was a 
 little fallen, I waded through the middle with my Cargo, and 
 arrived safe at the Royal Port of Lilliput. 
 
 The Emperor and his whole Court stood on the shore ex- 
 pecting the Issue of this great Adventure. They saw the 
 Ships move forward in a large Half-moon, but could not 
 discern me, who was up to my Breast in Water. When I 
 advanced to the middle of the Channel, they were yet more 
 in pain because I was under Water to my Neck. The 
 Emperor concluded me to be drowned, and that the Enemy's 
 Fleet was approaching in a hostile manner : But he was soon 
 eased of his Fears, for the Channel growing shallower every 
 step I made, I came in a short time within hearing ; and 
 holding up the end of the Cable by which the Fleet was 
 fastned, I cried in a loud Voice, Long live the most puissant 
 Emperor of Lilliput ! This great Prince received me at my 
 landing with all possible Encomiums, and created me a 
 Nardac upon the spot, which is the highest Title of Honour 
 among them. 
 
 His Majesty desired I would take some other Opportunity 
 of bringing all the rest of his Enemy's Ships into his Ports. 
 And so unmeasurable is the Ambition of Princes, that he 
 seemed to think of nothing less than reducing the whole 
 Empire of Blefuscu into a Province, and governing it by a 
 Vice-Roy ; of destroying the Big-Endian Exiles, and com- 
 
 E 
 
50 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 pelling that People to break the smaller end of their Eggs, by 
 which he would remain the sole Monarch of the whole World. 
 But I endeavoured to divert him from this Design, by many 
 Arguments drawn from the Topicks of Policy as well as 
 Justice : And I plainly protested, that I would never be an 
 Instrument of bringing a Free and Brave People into Slavery. 
 And when the Matter was debated in Council, the wisest part 
 of the Ministry were of my opinion. 
 
 This open bold Declaration of mine was so opposite to 
 the Schemes and Politicks of his Imperial Majesty, that he 
 could never forgive it ; he mentioned it in a very artful 
 manner at Council, where I was told that some of the wisest 
 appeared, at least, by their silence, to be of my opinion ; but 
 others, who were my secret Enemies, could not forbear some 
 Expressions, which by a side-wind reflected on me. And 
 from this time began an Intrigue between his Majesty, and 
 a Junto of Ministers maliciously bent against me, which broke 
 out in less than Two months, and had like to have ended in 
 my utter Destruction. Of so little weight are the greatest 
 Services to Princes, when put into the ballance with a Refusal 
 to gratify their Passions. 
 
 About Three weeks after this Exploit, there arrived a 
 solemn Embassy from Blefuscu, with humble Offers of a Peace ; 
 which was soon concluded upon Conditions very advantage- 
 ous to our Emperor, wherewith I shall not trouble the Reader. 
 There were Six Ambassadors, with a Train of about Five 
 hundred Persons, and their Entry was very magnificent, suitable 
 to the Grandeur of their Master, and the Importance of 
 their Business. When their Treaty was finished, wherein I 
 did them several good Offices by the Credit I now had, or at 
 least appeared to have at Court, their Excellencies, who were 
 privately told how much I had been their Friend, made me a 
 Visit in form. They began with many Compliments upon my 
 Valour and Generosity, invited me to that Kingdom in the 
 Emperor their Master's Name, and desired me to shew them 
 some Proofs of my prodigious Strength, of which they had 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 5i 
 
 heard so many Wonders ; wherein I readily obliged them, but 
 shall not trouble the Reader with the Particulars. 
 
 When I had for some time entertained their Excellencies 
 to their infinite Satisfaction and Surprize, I desired they 
 
 would do me the Honour to present my most humble respects 
 to the Emperor their Master, the Renown of whose Virtues 
 had so justly filled the whole World with Admiration, and whose 
 Royal Person I resolved to attend before I returned to my 
 own Countrey : Accordingly, the next time I had the honour 
 to see our Emperor, I desired his general Licence to wait on 
 the Blcfuscudian Monarch, which he was pleased to grant me, 
 as I could plainly perceive, in a very cold manner ; but could 
 
52 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 not guess the Reason, till I had a Whisper from a certain 
 person, that Flimnap and Bolgolam had represented my 
 Intercourse with those Ambassadors as a mark of Disaffection, 
 from which I am sure my heart was wholly free. And this 
 was the first time I began to conceive some imperfect Idea of 
 Courts and Ministers. 
 
 It is to be observed, that these Ambassadors spoke to me 
 by an Interpreter, the Languages of both Empires differing as 
 much from each other as any Two in Europe ; and each 
 Nation priding itself upon the Antiquity, Beauty, and Energy 
 of their own Tongues, with an avowed Contempt for that of 
 their Neighbour ; yet our Emperor, standing upon the ad- 
 vantage he had got by the seisure of their Fleet, obliged them 
 to deliver their ' Credentials, and make their Speech in the 
 Lilliputian Tongue. And it must be confessed, that from the 
 great Intercourse of Trade and Commerce between both 
 Realms, from the continual Reception of Exiles, which is 
 mutual among them, and from the Custom in each Empire to 
 send their young Nobility and richer Gentry to the other, in 
 order to polish themselves, by seeing the World, and under- 
 standing Men and Manners ; there are few persons of 
 Distinction, or Merchants, or Seamen, who dwell in the 
 Maritime Parts, but what can hold conversation in both 
 Tongues ; as I found some Weeks after, when I went to pay 
 my respects to the Emperor of Blefuscu, which in the midst 
 of great misfortunes, through the Malice of my enemies, 
 proved a very happy Adventure to me, as I shall relate in its 
 proper place. 
 
 The Reader may remember, that when I signed those 
 Articles upon which I recovered my Liberty, there were some 
 which I disliked upon account of their being too servile, neither 
 could any thing but an extreme Necessity have forced me to 
 submit. But being now a JVardac, of the highest Rank in 
 that Empire, such Offices were looked upon as below my 
 dignity, and the Emperor (to do him justice) never once 
 mentioned them to me. 
 
CHAP. VI 
 
 Of the Inhabitants of Lilliput, their Learning, Laws and Customs, the 
 Manner of edzicati?ig their Children. The Atdhor's way of living in 
 that Countrey. His Vindication of a great Lady. 
 
 Although I intend to leave the Description of this Empire 
 to a particular Treatise, yet in the mean time I am content to 
 gratify the curious Reader with some general Ideas. As the 
 common size of the natives is somewhat under Six inches 
 high, so there is an exact Proportion in all other Animals, as 
 well as Plants and Trees : For instance, the tallest Horses 
 and Oxen are between Four and Five inches in height, the 
 Sheep an Inch and a half, more or less ; their Geese about 
 the bigness of a Sparrow, and so the several Gradations 
 downwards, till you come to the smallest, which, to my sight, 
 were almost invisible ; but Nature hath adapted the Eyes of 
 the Lilliputians to all Objects proper for their view : They see 
 with great exactness, but at no great distance. And to show 
 the sharpness of their sight towards Objects that are near, I 
 have been much pleased in observing a Cook pulling a Lark, 
 which was not so large as a common Fly ; and a young Girl 
 threading an invisible Needle with invisible Silk. Their 
 tallest Trees are about Seven foot high ; I mean some of 
 those in the great Royal Park, the Tops whereof I could but 
 just reach with my Fist clenched. The other Vegetables are 
 in the same proportion ; but this I leave to the Reader's 
 imagination. 
 
54 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 I shall say but little at present of their Learning, which for 
 many Ages hath flourished in all its branches among them : 
 But their manner of writing is very peculiar, being neither 
 from the Left to the Right, like the Europeans ; nor from the 
 Right to the Left, like the Arabians ; nor from up to down, 
 like the Chinese ; nor from down to up, like the Cascagiaiis ; 
 but aslant from one corner of the paper to the other, like 
 Ladies in England. 
 
 They bury their Dead with their Heads directly down- 
 wards, because they hold an opinion, that in Eleven thousand 
 moons they are all to rise again, in which period the Earth 
 (which they conceive to be flat) will turn upside down, and by 
 this means they shall, at their Resurrection, be found ready 
 standing on their feet. The Learned among them confess 
 the Absurdity of this Doctrine, but the Practice still continues, 
 in compliance to the Vulgar. 
 
 There are some Laws and Customs in this Empire very 
 peculiar, and if they were not so directly contrary to those of 
 my own dear Countrey, I should be tempted to say a little in 
 their justification. It is only to be wished, that they were as 
 well executed. The first I shall mention, relates to Informers. 
 All Crimes against the State are punished here with the 
 utmost severity ; but if the Person accused maketh his 
 Innocence plainly to appear upon his Tryal, the Accuser is 
 immediately put to an ignominious Death ; and out of his 
 Goods or Lands, the innocent Person is quadruply re- 
 compensed for the Loss of his Time, for the Danger he 
 underwent, for the Hardship of his Imprisonment, and for all 
 the Charges he hath been at in making his Defence. Or, if 
 that Fund be deficient, it is largely supplied by the Crown. 
 The Emperor does also confer on him some publick Mark of 
 his Favour, and Proclamation is made of his Innocence 
 through the whole City. 
 
 They look upon Fraud as a greater Crime than Theft, 
 and therefore seldom fail to punish it with Death ; for they 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 55 
 
 alledge, that Care and Vigilance, with a very common Under- 
 standing, may preserve a man's Goods from Thieves, but 
 Honesty has no fence against superior Cunning : and since it 
 is necessary that there should be a perpetual Intercourse of 
 Buying and Selling, and dealing upon Credit, where Fraud is 
 permitted or connived at, or hath no Law to punish it, the 
 honest Dealer is always undone, and the Knave gets the 
 advantage. I remember when I was once interceding with 
 the King for a Criminal who had wronged his Master of a 
 great Sum of Money, which he had received by order, and 
 ran away with ; and happening to tell his Majesty by way of 
 extenuation, that it was only a Breach of trust ; the Emperor 
 thought it monstrous in me to offer, as a Defence, the 
 greatest Aggravation of the Crime : And truly I had little to 
 say in return, farther than the common Answer, that different 
 Nations had different Customs ; for, I confess, I was heartily 
 ashamed. 
 
 Although we usually call Reward and Punishment the 
 Two Hinges upon which all Government turns, yet I could 
 never observe this Maxim to be put in practise by any Nation 
 except that of Lilliput. Whoever can there bring sufficient 
 proof that he hath strictly observed the Laws of his Country 
 for Seventy-three moons, hath a claim to certain Privileges, 
 according to his Quality and Condition of Life, with a 
 proportionable Sum of Money out of a Fund appropriated for 
 that use : He likewise acquires the Title of Snilpall, or Legal, 
 which is added to his Name, but does not descend to his 
 Posterity. And these people thought it a prodigious Defect 
 of Policy among us, when I told them that our Laws were 
 enforced only by Penalties without any mention of Reward. 
 It is upon this account that the Image of Justice, in their 
 Courts of Judicature, is formed with Six eyes, Two before, as 
 many behind, and on each side One, to signify Circumspection ; 
 with a bag of Gold open in her Right hand, and a Sword 
 sheathed in her Left, to shew she is more disposed to Reward 
 than to Punish. 
 
56 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 In chusing Persons for all Employments, they have more 
 regard to good Morals than to great Abilities ; for, since 
 Government is necessary to Mankind, they believe that the 
 common size of Human Understandings is fitted to some 
 Station or other, and that Providence never intended to make 
 the Management of publick Affairs a Mystery, to be com- 
 prehended only by a few Persons of sublime Genius, of which 
 there seldome are Three born in an Age : But they suppose 
 Truth, Justice, Temperance, and the like, to be in every man's 
 power ; the practice of which Virtues, assisted by Experience 
 and a good Intention, would qualify any Man for the Service 
 of his Countrey, except where a Course of Study is required. 
 But they thought the want of Moral Virtues was so far from 
 being supplied by superior Endowments of the mind, that 
 Employments could never be put into such dangerous hands 
 as those of Persons so qualified ; and at least, that the 
 Mistakes committed by Ignorance in a virtuous Disposition, 
 would never be of such fatal consequence to the Publick 
 Weal, as the Practices of a Man whose Inclinations led him to 
 be Corrupt, and had great Abilities to manage, and multiply, 
 and defend his Corruptions. 
 
 In like manner, the Disbelief of a Divine Providence 
 renders a Man uncapable of holding any Publick Station ; for 
 since Kings avow themselves to be the Deputies of Providence, 
 the Lilliputians think nothing can be more absurd, than for 
 a Prince to employ such men as disown the Authority under 
 which he acts. 
 
 In relating these and the following Laws, I would only be 
 understood to mean the original Institutions, and not the 
 most scandalous Corruptions into which these People are 
 fallen by the degenerate nature of man. For as to that 
 infamous Practice of acquiring great Employments by dancing 
 on the Ropes, or Badges of Favour and Distinction by 
 leaping over Sticks, and creeping under them ; the Reader is 
 to observe, that they were first introduced by the Grandfather 
 of the Emperor now reigning, and grew to the present height, 
 by the gradual increase of Party and Faction. 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 57 
 
 Ingratitude is among them a capital Crime, as we read 
 it to have been in some other Countries ; for they reason thus, 
 That whoever makes ill Returns to his Benefactor, must needs 
 be a common Enemy to the rest of Mankind, from whom he 
 hath received no Obligation, and therefore such a Man is not 
 fit to live. 
 
 Their Notions relating to the Duties of Parents and 
 Children differ extremely from ours. For, since the Con- 
 junction of Male and Female is founded upon the great Law 
 of Nature, in order to propagate and continue the Species, 
 the Lilliputians will needs have it, that Men and Women are 
 joined together like other Animals, by the Motives of Con- 
 cupiscence ; and that their Tenderness towards their Young 
 proceeds from the like natural Principle : For which reason 
 they will never allow, that a Child is under any obligation to 
 his Father for begetting him, or his Mother for bringing him 
 into the World ; which, considering the Miseries of human 
 Life, was neither a Benefit in itself, or intended so by his 
 Parents, whose Thoughts in their Love-Encounters were other- 
 wise employed. Upon these, and the like Reasonings, their 
 Opinion is, that Parents are the last of all others to be trusted 
 with the Education of their own Children : And therefore 
 they have in every town publick Nurseries, where all Parents, 
 except Cottagers and Labourers, are obliged to send their 
 Infants of both Sexes to be reared and educated when they 
 come to the Age of Twenty moons, at which time, they 
 are supposed to have some Rudiments of Docility. These 
 Schools are of several kinds, suited to different Qualities, and 
 to both Sexes. They have certain Professors well skilled in 
 preparing Children for such a condition of life as befits the 
 Rank of their Parents, and their own Capacities as well as 
 Inclinations. I shall first say something of the Male Nurseries, 
 and then of the Female. 
 
 The Nurseries for Males of noble or eminent Birth, are 
 provided with grave and learned Professors, and their several 
 Deputies. The Clothes and Food of the Children are plain 
 
5§ 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 and simple. They are bred up in the principles of Honour, 
 Justice, Courage, Modesty, Clemency, Religion, and Love of 
 their Countrey ; they are always employed in some Business, 
 except in the times of Eating and Sleeping, which are very 
 short ; and Two hours for Diversions, consisting of bodily 
 Exercises. They are dressed by Men till Four years of age 
 
 And always in the presence of a Professor.' 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 and then are obliged to dress themselves, although their 
 Quality be ever so great ; and the Women Attendants, who 
 are aged proportionably to ours at Fifty, perform only the most 
 menial Offices. They are never suffered to converse with 
 Servants, but go together in small or greater numbers to take 
 their Diversions, and always in the presence of a Professor, or 
 one of his Deputies ; whereby they avoid those early bad 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 59 
 
 Impressions of Folly and Vice to which our Children are 
 subject. Their Parents are suffered to see them only twice a 
 year ; the Visit is to last but an hour. They are allowed to 
 kiss the Child at meeting and parting ; but a Professor, who 
 always stands by on those occasions, will not suffer them to 
 whisper, or use any fondling Expressions, or bring any Presents 
 of Toys, Sweet-meats, and the like. 
 
 The Pension from each Family for the Education and 
 Entertainment of a Child, upon failure of due payment, is 
 levied by the Emperor's Officers. 
 
 The Nurseries for Children of ordinary Gentlemen, 
 Merchants, Traders, and Handicrafts, are managed propor- 
 tionably after the same manner ; only those designed for 
 Trades, are put out Apprentices at Eleven years old, whereas 
 those of Persons of Quality continue in their Nurseries till 
 Fifteen, which answers to One and twenty with us : But the 
 Confinement is gradually lessened for the last Three years. 
 
 In the Female Nurseries, the young Girls of Quality are 
 educated much like the Males, only they are dressed by 
 orderly Servants of their own Sex, but always in the presence 
 of a Professor or Deputy, till they come to dress themselves, 
 which is at Five years old. And if it be found that these 
 Nurses ever presume to entertain the Girls with frightful or 
 foolish Stories, or the common Follies practised by Chamber- 
 maids among us, they are publickly whipped thrice about the 
 City, imprisoned for a Year, and banished for life to the most 
 desolate part of the countrey. Thus the young Ladies there 
 are as much ashamed of being Cowards and Fools, as the 
 Men, and despise all personal Ornaments beyond Decency 
 and Cleanliness : Neither did I perceive any Difference in 
 their Education, made by their Difference of Sex, only that 
 the Exercises of their Females were not altogether so robust, 
 and that some Rules were given them relating to domestick 
 Life, and a smaller compass of Learning was enjoined them : 
 For the Maxim is, that among People of Quality, a Wife 
 should be always a reasonable and agreeable Companion, 
 
60 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 because she cannot always be young. When the Girls are 
 Twelve years old, which among them is the marriageable Age, 
 their Parents or Guardians take them home, with great ex- 
 pressions of Gratitude to the Professors, and seldom without 
 Tears of the young Lady and her Companions. « 
 
 In the Nurseries of Females of the meaner sort, the 
 Children are instructed in all kinds of Works proper for their 
 Sex, and their several degrees : Those intended for Apprentices 
 are dismissed at Nine years old, the rest are kept to Thirteen. 
 
 The meaner Families who have children at these nurseries, 
 are obliged, besides their annual Pension, which is as low as 
 possible, to return to the Steward of the Nursery a small 
 monthly share of their Gettings, to be a Portion for the child ; 
 and therefore all Parents are limited in their Expences by the 
 Law. For the Lilliputians think nothing can be more unjust, 
 than for people, in subservience to their own Appetites, to 
 bring Children into the World, and leave the Burthen of 
 supporting them on the Publick. As to Persons of quality, 
 they give Security to appropriate a certain Sum for each Child, 
 suitable to their Condition ; and these Funds are always 
 managed with good Husbandry, and the most exact Justice. 
 
 The Cottagers and Labourers keep their children at home, 
 their Business being only to till and cultivate the Earth, and 
 therefore their Education is of little consequence to the 
 Publick ; but the Old and Diseased among them are sup- 
 ported by Hospitals : For Begging is a Trade unknown in this 
 Kingdom. 
 
 And here it may perhaps divert the curious Reader, to 
 give some account of my Domesticks, and my manner of living 
 in this Countrey, during a Residence of Nine months and 
 Thirteen days. Having a Head mechanically turned, and 
 being likewise forced by necessity, I had made for myself a 
 Table and Chair convenient enough, out of the largest Trees 
 in the Royal Park. Two hundred Sempstresses were em- 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 61 
 
 ployed to make me Shirts, and Linen for my Bed and Table, 
 all of the strongest and coarsest kind they could get ; which, 
 however, they were forced to quilt together in several Folds, for 
 the thickest was some degrees finer than Lawn. Their Linen 
 is usually Three inches wide, and Three foot make a Piece. 
 The Sempstresses took my measure as I lay on the ground, 
 one standing at my Neck, and another at my Mid-leg, with a 
 strong Cord extended, that each held by the end, while the 
 third measured the length of the Cord with a Rule of an Inch 
 long. Then they measured my Right thumb, and desired no 
 more ; for by a mathematical computation, that twice round the 
 Thumb is once round the Wrist, and so on to the Neck and 
 the Waist, and by the help of my old Shirt, which I displayed 
 on the ground before them for a Pattern, they fitted me 
 exactly. Three hundred Taylors were employed in the same 
 manner to make me Clothes ; but they had another Contriv- 
 ance for taking my measure. I kneeled down, and they 
 raised a Ladder from the Ground to my Neck ; upon this 
 Ladder one of them mounted, and let fall a Plumline from 
 my Collar to the Floor, which just answered the length of my 
 Coat ; but my Waist and Arms I measured myself. When 
 my Clothes were finished, which was done in my house (for the 
 largest of theirs would not be able to hold them) they looked 
 like the Patchwork made by the Ladies in England, only that 
 mine were all of a Colour. 
 
 I had Three hundred Cooks to dress my Victuals, in little 
 convenient Huts built about my house, where they and their 
 Families lived, and prepared me Two dishes a-piece. I took 
 up Twenty Waiters in my Hand, and placed them on the 
 Table, an Hundred more attended below on the Ground, 
 some with Dishes of Meat, and some with Barrels of 
 Wine, and other Liquors, slung on their Shoulders ; all which 
 the Waiters above drew up as I wanted, in a very ingenious 
 manner, by certain Cords, as we draw the Bucket up a Well 
 in Europe. A Dish of their Meat was a good Mouthful, and 
 a Barrel of their Liquor a reasonable Draught. Their Mutton 
 yields to ours, but their Beef is excellent. I have had a 
 
62 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 Sirloin so large, that I have been forced to make Three bits 
 of it ; but this is rare. My Servants were astonished to see 
 
 1374" 
 
 ' Let fall a Plumline. ' 
 Copyright 1894 by Mac-millan &• Co. 
 
 me eat it Bones and all, as in our Countrey we do the Leg of a 
 Lark. Their Geese and Turkeys I usually eat at a Mouthful, and 
 
CHAP. VI 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 63 
 
 I must confess they far exceed ours. Of their smaller Fowl 
 I could take up Twenty or Thirty at the end of my Knife. 
 
 One day his Imperial Majesty being informed of my way 
 of living, desired that himself and his Royal Consort, with the 
 
 f I eat more than usual' 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmilla.11 &• Co. 
 
 young Princes of the Blood of both Sexes, might have the 
 Happiness (as he was pleased to call it) of dining with me. 
 They came accordingly, and I placed 'em upon Chairs of 
 State on my Table, just over-against me, with their Guards 
 about them. Flimnap the Lord High Treasurer attended 
 
64 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 there likewise, with his White Staff; and I observed he often 
 looked on me with a sour Countenance, which I would not 
 seem to regard, but eat more than usual, in honour to my dear 
 Countrey, as well as to fill the Court with admiration. I have 
 some private Reasons to believe, that this Visit from his 
 Majesty gave Flimnap an opportunity of doing me ill Offices 
 to his Master. That Minister had always been my secret 
 Enemy, though he outwardly caressed me more than was usual 
 to the Moroseness of his Nature. He represented to the 
 Emperor the low Condition of his Treasury ; that he was 
 forced to take up Money at great Discount ; that Exchequer 
 Bills would not circulate under Nine per Cent, below Par ; that 
 in short I had cost his Majesty above a Million and a half 
 of Sprugs (their greatest Gold Coin, about the bigness of a 
 Spangle ;) and upon the whole, that it would be adviseable in 
 the Emperor to take the first fair occasion of dismissing me. 
 
 I am here obliged to vindicate the Reputation of an 
 excellent Lady, who was an innocent Sufferer upon my 
 account. The Treasurer took a fancy to be jealous of his 
 Wife, from the Malice of some evil tongues, who informed 
 him that her Grace had taken a violent Affection for my 
 Person, and the Court-Scandal ran for some time, that she 
 once came privately to my Lodging. This I solemnly declare 
 to be a most infamous Falshood, without any grounds, 
 farther than that her Grace was pleased to treat me with all 
 innocent marks of Freedom and Friendship. I own she came 
 often to my house, but always publickly, nor ever without 
 Three more in the Coach, who were usually her Sister and 
 young Daughter, and some particular Acquaintance ; but this 
 was common to many other Ladies of the Court. And I still 
 appeal to my Servants round, whether they at any time saw a 
 Coach at my door without knowing what Persons were in it. 
 On those occasions, when a Servant had given me notice, my 
 Custom was to go immediately to the door ; and after paying 
 my respects, to take up the Coach and Two horses very care- 
 fully in my hands (for if there were Six horses, the Postillion 
 always unharnessed Four) and place them on a Table, where 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 65 
 
 I had fixed a moveable Rim quite round, of Five inches high, to 
 prevent Accidents. And I have often had Four Coaches and 
 horses at once on my Table full of Company, while I sate in 
 my Chair leaning my Face towards them ; and when I was 
 engaged with one Sett, the Coachman would gently drive the 
 others round my table. I have passed many an afternoon 
 very agreeably in these Conversations. But I defy the 
 Treasurer, or his Two Informers (I will name them, and let 
 'em make their best of it) Clustril and Drunlo, to prove that 
 any Person ever came to me incognito, except the Secretary 
 Reldresal, who was sent by express Command of his Imperial 
 Majesty, as I have before related. I should not have dwelt 
 so long upon this Particular, if it had not been a Point wherein 
 the Reputation of a great Lady is so nearly concerned, to say 
 nothing of my own ; though I had then the Honour to be a 
 Nardac, which the Treasurer himself is not ; for all the World 
 knows he is only a Chwighim, a Title inferiour by one degree, 
 as that of a Marquiss is to a Duke in England, although I 
 allow he preceded me in right of his Post. These false 
 Informations, which I afterwards came to the knowledge of, 
 by an accident not proper to mention, made Flimnap the 
 Treasurer shew his Lady for some time an ill countenance, 
 and me a worse ; and although he was at last undeceived and 
 reconciled to her, yet I lost all credit with him, and found my 
 Interest decline very fast with the Emperor himself, who was 
 indeed too much governed by that Favourite. 
 
CHAR VII 
 
 The Author being inform 'd of a Design to accuse him of High-Treason^ 
 makes his Escape to Blefuscu. His Reception there. 
 
 Before I proceed to give an account of my leaving this 
 Kingdom, it may be proper to inform the Reader of a private 
 Intrigue which had been for Two months forming against 
 me. 
 
 I had been hitherto all my life a stranger to Courts, for 
 which I was unqualified by the Meanness of my condition. 
 I had indeed heard and read enough of the Dispositions of 
 great Princes and Ministers ; but never expected to have 
 found such terrible effects of them in so remote a Countrey, 
 governed, as I thought, by very different Maxims from those 
 in Europe. 
 
 When I was just preparing to pay my attendance on the 
 Emperor of Blefuscu^ a considerable Person at Court (to 
 whom I had been very serviceable at a time when he lay 
 under the highest displeasure of his Imperial Majesty) came 
 to my House very privately at night in a close Chair, and 
 without sending his Name, desired admittance : The Chair- 
 men were dismissed ; I put the Chair, with his Lordship in 
 it, into my Coat-pocket ; and giving orders to a trusty Servant 
 to say I was indisposed and gone to sleep, I fastened the 
 Door of my house, placed the Chair on the Table, accord- 
 ing to my usual custom, and sate down by it. After the 
 
CHAP. VII 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 67 
 
 common Salutations were over, observing his Lordship's 
 countenance full of concern ; and enquiring into the reason, 
 he desired I would hear him with patience in a matter that 
 highly concerned my Honour and my Life. His Speech was 
 
 ' You are to know, said he' 
 
 to the following effect, for I took notes of it as soon as he 
 left me. 
 
 You are to know, said he, that several Committees of 
 Council have been lately called in the most private manner 
 on your account : And it is but Two days since his Majesty 
 came to a full Resolution. 
 
68 A VOYAGE. TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 You are very sensible that Skyris Bolgola7n (Galbet, or 
 High Admiral) hath been your mortal Enemy almost ever since 
 your Arrival. His original Reasons I know not, but his 
 hatred is much encreased since your great Success against 
 Blefuscu, by which his Glory, as Admiral, is obscur'd. This 
 Lord, in conjunction with Flimnap the High Treasurer, 
 whose Enmity against you is notorious on account of his 
 Lady, Limtoc the General, Lalcon the Chamberlain, and 
 Balmuff the Grand Justiciary, have prepared Articles of 
 Impeachment against you, for Treason, and other Capital 
 crimes. 
 
 This Preface made me so impatient, being conscious of 
 my own Merits and Innocence, that I was going to interrupt ] 
 when he entreated me to be silent, and thus proceeded. 
 
 Out of Gratitude for the favours you have done me, I 
 procured Information of the whole Proceedings, and a Copy 
 of the Articles, wherein I venture my Head for your service. 
 
 Articles of Impeachment against Quinbus Flestrin 
 (the Man-Mountain). 
 
 ARTICLE I 
 
 That the said Quinbus Flestrin having brought the 
 Imperial Fleet of Blefuscu into the Royal Port, and being 
 afterwards commanded by his Imperial Majesty to seize all 
 the other Ships of the said Empire of Blefuscu,, and reduce 
 that Empire to a Province, to be governed by a Vice-Roy 
 from hence, and to destroy and put to death not only all the 
 Big-Endian Exiles, but likewise all the people of that Empire, 
 who would not immediately forsake the Big-Endian Heresy : 
 He, the said Flestrin, like a false Traitor against his most 
 Auspicious, Serene, Imperial Majesty, did petition to be 
 excused from the said Service, upon pretence of unwillingness 
 to force the Consciences, or destroy the Liberties and Lives 
 of an innocent people. 
 
CHAr. vii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 69 
 
 ARTICLE II 
 
 That, whereas certain Ambassadors arrived from the 
 Court of Blefuscu to sue for Peace in his Majesty's Court : 
 He, the said Flestri?i, did, like a false Traitor, aid, abet, 
 comfort, and divert the said Ambassadors, although he knew 
 them to* be Servants to a Prince who was lately an open 
 Enemy to his Imperial Majesty, and in open War against his 
 said Majesty. 
 
 ARTICLE III 
 
 That the said Quinbus Flestrin, contrary to the Duty of a 
 faithful Subject, is now preparing to make a Voyage to the 
 Court and Empire of Blefuscu, for which he hath received 
 only verbal Licence from his Imperial Majesty ; and under 
 Colour of the said Licence, doth falsely and traiterously intend 
 to take the said Voyage, and thereby to aid, comfort, and 
 abet the Emperor of Blefuscu, so late an Enemy, and in open 
 War with his Imperial Majesty aforesaid. 
 
 There are some other Articles, but these are the most 
 important, of which I have read you an Abstract. 
 
 In the several Debates upon this Impeachment, it must be 
 confessed, that his Majesty gave many marks of his great 
 Lenity, often urging the Services you had done him, and 
 endeavouring to extenuate your Crimes. The Treasurer and 
 Admiral insisted, that you should be put to the most painful and 
 ignominious Death, by setting fire on your House at night, and 
 the General was to attend with Twenty thousand men armed 
 with poisoned Arrows to shoot you on the Face and Hands. 
 Some of your Servants were to have private orders to strew a 
 poisonous Juice on your Shirts, which would soon make you 
 tear your own Flesh, and die in the utmost Torture. The 
 General came into the same opinion, so that for a long 
 time there was a Majority against you. But his Majesty 
 resolving, if possible, to spare your Life, at last brought off 
 the Chamberlain. 
 
7o 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 Upon this Incident, Reldresal Principal Secretary for 
 private Affairs, who always approved himself your true Friend, 
 was commanded by the Emperor to deliver his Opinion, 
 which he accordingly did ; and therein justified the good 
 Thoughts you have of him. He allowed your Crimes to be 
 
 
 ' Rising Jip in Fiery. 
 
 great, but that still there was room for Mercy, the most com- 
 mendable Virtue in a Prince, and for which his Majesty was 
 so justly celebrated. He said the Friendship between you 
 and him was so well known to the World, that perhaps the 
 most honourable Board might think him partial : However, in 
 obedience to the Command he had received, he would freely 
 
CHAr. vii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 71 
 
 offer his Sentiments. That if his Majesty, in consideration of 
 your Services, and pursuant to his own merciful Disposition, 
 would please to spare your Life, and only give order to put out 
 both your Eyes, he humbly conceived that by this expedient, 
 Justice might in some measure be satisfied, and all the World 
 would applaud the Lenity of the Emperor, as well as the fair 
 and generous Proceedings of those who have the Honour to be 
 his Counsellors. That the loss of your Eyes would be no im- 
 pediment to your bodily strength, by which you might still be 
 useful to his Majesty. That Blindness is an addition to 
 Courage, by concealing Dangers from us ; that the Fear you 
 had for your Eyes was the greatest Difficulty in bringing over 
 the Enemy's Fleet, and it would be sufficient for you to see by 
 the Eyes of the Ministers, since the greatest Princes do no more. 
 
 This Proposal was received with the utmost Disappro- 
 bation by the whole Board. Bolgolam, the Admiral, could 
 not preserve his temper ; but rising up in Fury, said, he 
 wondered how the Secretary durst presume to give his opinion 
 for preserving the Life of a Traitor : That the Services you 
 had performed, were, by all true Reasons of State, the great 
 Aggravation of your Crimes ; that the same Strength which 
 enabled you to bring over the Enemy's Fleet, might serve, 
 upon the first Discontent, to carry it back : That he had 
 good Reasons to think you were a Big-Endian in your heart ; 
 and as Treason begins in the Heart before it appears in 
 Overt-Acts, so he accused you as a Traitor on that account, 
 and therefore insisted you should be put to death. 
 
 The Treasurer was of the same opinion ; he shewed to 
 what streights his Majesty's Revenue was reduced by the 
 charge of maintaining you, which would soon grow insupport- 
 able : That the Secretary's Expedient of putting out your 
 Eyes was so far from being a Remedy against this Evil, it 
 would probably encrease it, as it is manifest from the common 
 practice of blinding some kind of Fowl, after which they fed 
 the faster, and grew sooner fat : That his sacred Majesty, and 
 the Council, who are your Judges, were in their own Con- 
 
72 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 sciences fully convinced of your Guilt, which was a sufficient 
 Argument to condemn you to death, without the formal 
 Proofs required by the strict Letter of the Law. 
 
 But his Imperial Majesty fully determined against capital 
 Punishment, was graciously pleased to say, that since the 
 Council thought the loss of your Eyes too easy a Censure, 
 some other may be inflicted hereafter. And your Friend the 
 Secretary humbly desiring to be heard again, in answer to what 
 the Treasurer had objected concerning the great Charge his 
 Majesty was at in maintaining you, said, that his Excellency, 
 who had the sole disposal of the Emperor's Revenue, might 
 easily provide against that evil, by gradually lessening your 
 Establishment ; by which, for want of sufficient Food, you 
 would grow weak and faint, and lose your Appetite, and 
 consequently decay and consume in a few months ; neither 
 would the Stench of your Carcass be then so dangerous, when 
 it should become more than half diminished ; and immedi- 
 ately upon your death, Five or Six thousand of his Majesty's 
 Subjects might, in Two or Three days, cut your Flesh from 
 your Bones, take it away by Cart-loads, and bury it in distant 
 parts to prevent Infection, leaving the Skeleton as a Monu- 
 ment of Admiration to Posterity. 
 
 Thus by the great Friendship of the Secretary, the whole 
 Affair was compromised. It was strictly enjoin'd, that the 
 Project of starving you by degrees should be kept a Secret, 
 but the Sentence of putting out your Eyes was entered on the 
 books ; none dissenting except Bolgolam the Admiral, who 
 being a Creature of the Empress, was perpetually instigated 
 by her Majesty to insist upon your Death, she having born 
 perpetual malice against you. 
 
 In Three days your Friend the Secretary will be directed to 
 come to your house, and read before you the Articles of 
 Impeachment ; and then to signify the great Lenity and 
 Favour of his Majesty and Council, whereby you are only 
 condemned to the loss of your Eyes, which his Majesty doth 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 73 
 
 not question you will gratefully and humbly submit to ; and 
 Twenty of his Majesty's Surgeons will attend in order to see the 
 Operation well performed, by discharging very sharp-pointed 
 Arrows into the balls of your Eyes, as you lie on the ground. 
 
 I leave to your Prudence what measures you will take ; 
 and to avoid suspicion, I must immediately return in as 
 private a manner as I came. 
 
 His Lordship did so, and I remained alone, under many 
 Doubts and Perplexities of Mind. 
 
 It was a Custom introduced by this Prince and his 
 Ministry (very different, as I have been assured, from the 
 Practices of former times) that after the Court had decreed 
 any cruel Execution, either to gratify the Monarch's Re- 
 sentment, or the Malice of a Favourite, the Emperor made a 
 Speech to his whole Council, expressing his great Lenity and 
 Tenderness, as Qualities known and confessed by all the 
 World. This Speech was immediately published through the 
 Kingdom ; nor did any thing terrify the people so much as 
 those Encomiums on his Majesty's Mercy ; because it was 
 observ'd, that the more these Praises were enlarged and 
 insisted on, the more inhuman was the Punishment, and the 
 Sufferer more innocent. And as to myself, I must confess, 
 having never been designed for a Courtier either by my Birth 
 or Education, I was so ill a Judge of things, that I could not 
 discover the Lenity and Favour of this Sentence, but con- 
 ceived it (perhaps erroneously) rather to be rigorous than 
 gentle. I sometimes thought of standing my Tryal, for 
 although I could not deny the Facts alledged in the several 
 Articles, yet I hoped they would admit of some Extenuations. 
 But having in my Life perused many State-Tryals, which I 
 ever observed to terminate as the Judges thought fit to direct, 
 I durst not rely on so dangerous a Decision, in so critical a 
 Juncture, and against such powerful Enemies. Once I was 
 strongly bent upon Resistance, for while I had liberty, the 
 whole Strength of that Empire could hardly subdue me, and 
 
74 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 I might easily with Stones pelt the Metropolis to pieces ; but 
 I soon rejected that Project with Horror, by remembring the 
 Oath I had made to the Emperor, the Favours I received 
 from him, and the high Title of Nardac he conferred upon me. 
 Neither had I so soon learned the Gratitude of Courtiers, to 
 persuade myself that his Majesty's present Severities quitted 
 me of all past Obligations. 
 
 At last I fixed upon a Resolution, for which it is probable 
 I may incur some Censure, and not unjustly ; for I confess I 
 owe the preserving mine Eyes, and consequently my Liberty, 
 to my own great Rashness and want of Experience : because 
 if I had then known the nature of Princes and Ministers, 
 which I have since observed in many other Courts, and 
 their Methods of treating Criminals less obnoxious than 
 myself, I should with great alacrity and readiness have sub- 
 mitted to so easy a punishment. But hurry'd on by the 
 Precipitancy of Youth, and having his Imperial Majesty's 
 Licence to pay my attendance upon the Emperor of Blefiiscu, 
 I took this Opportunity, before the Three days were elapsed, 
 to send a Letter to my Friend the Secretary, signifying my 
 Resolution of setting out that morning for Blefuscn pursuant 
 to the leave I had got ; and without waiting for an answer, I 
 went to that side of the Island where our Fleet lay : I seized 
 a large Man of War, ty'd a Cable to the Prow, and lifting up 
 the Anchors, I stript myself, put my Cloaths (together with my 
 Coverlet, which I brought under my Arm) into the Vessel, 
 and drawing it after me between wading and swimming, 
 arrived at the Royal Port of Blefuscu, where the People had 
 long expected me ; they lent me two Guides to direct me to 
 the Capital City, which is of the same name. I held them 
 in my hands till I came within Two Hundred Yards of the 
 Gate, and desir'd them to signify my Arrival to one of the 
 Secretaries, and let him know, I there waited his Majesty's 
 Commands. I had an Answer in about an hour, that his 
 Majesty, attended by the Royal Family, and great Officers of 
 the Court, was coming out to receive me. I advanced an 
 Hundred yards. The Emperor and his train alighted from 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 75 
 
 their Horses, the Empress and Ladies from their Coaches, 
 and I did not perceive they were in any Fright or Concern. 
 I lay on the Ground to kiss his Majesty's and the Empress's 
 Hand. I told his Majesty that I was come according to my 
 Promise, and with the Licence of the Emperor my Master, to 
 have the Honour of seeing so Mighty a Monarch, and to 
 offer him any Service in my power, consistent with my Duty 
 to my own Prince ; not mentioning a word of my Disgrace, 
 because I had hitherto no regular Information of it, and might 
 suppose myself wholly ignorant of any such Design ; neither 
 could I reasonably conceive that the Emperor would discover 
 the Secret while I was out of his power : Wherein, however, 
 it soon appeared I was deceived. 
 
 I shall not trouble the reader with the particular account 
 of my reception at this Court, which was suitable to the 
 Generosity of so great a Prince ; nor of the Difficulties I was 
 in for want of a House and Bed, being forced to lie on the 
 ground, wrapt up in my Coverlet. 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 The Author, by a lucky Accident, finds Means to leave Blefuscu ; and, after 
 some Difficulties, returns safe to his native Countrey. 
 
 Three days after my arrival, walking out of curiosity to the 
 North-East Coast of the Island, I observed, about Half a 
 league off, in the sea, somewhat that looked like a Boat 
 overturned. I pulled off my Shoes and Stockings, and 
 wading Two or Three hundred yards, I found the Object to 
 approach nearer by force of the Tide, and then plainly saw it 
 to be a real Boat, which I supposed might, by some Tempest, 
 have been driven from a Ship ; whereupon I returned im- 
 mediately towards the City, and desired his Imperial Majesty 
 to lend me Twenty of the tallest Vessels he had left after the 
 loss of his Fleet, and Three thousand Seamen under the 
 Command of the Vice-Admiral. This Fleet sailed round, 
 while I went back the shortest way to the Coast where I first 
 discovered the Boat; I found the Tide had driven it still 
 nearer. The Seamen were all provided with Cordage, which 
 I had beforehand twisted to a sufficient strength. When the 
 Ships came up, I stript myself, and waded till I came within 
 an Hundred yards of the Boat, after which I was forced to 
 swim till I got up to it. The Seamen threw me the end of 
 the Cord, which I fastned to a Hole in the fore-part of the 
 Boat, and the other end to a Man of War : But I found all 
 my labour to little purpose ; for being out of my depth, I was 
 not able to work. In this necessity, I was forced to swim 
 behind, and push the Boat forwards as often as I could, with 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 77 
 
 one of my hands ; and the Tide favouring me, I advanced so 
 far, at I could just hold up my Chin and feel the Ground. 
 I r< ced Two or Three minutes, and then gave the Boat 
 another shove, and so on till the Sea was no higher than my 
 Arm-pits; and now the most laborious part being over, 1 
 took out my other Cables which were stowed in one of the 
 
 my*. 
 
 ' By the assistance of Two thousand men.' 
 
 Ships, and fastning them first to the Boat, and then to Nine 
 of. the Vessels which attended me ; the Wind being favourable, 
 the Seamen towed, and I shoved till we arrived wnthin Forty 
 yards of the Shore, and waiting till the Tide was out, I got 
 dry to the Boat, and by the assistance of Two thousand men, 
 With Ropes and Engines, I made a shift to turn it on its 
 bottom, and found it was but little damaged. 
 
 I shall not trouble the reader with the difficulties I was 
 
78 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part ; 
 
 under by the help of certain Paddles, which cost me Ten days 
 making, to get my Boat to the Royal Port of Blefuscu* here 
 a mighty concourse of people appeared upon my arrive full 
 of wonder at the sight of so prodigious a Vessel. I tola! the 
 Emperor that my good fortune had thrown this Boat in my way, 
 to carry me to some place from whence I might return into 
 my native Countrey, and begged his Majesty's orders for getting 
 Materials to fit it up, together with his Licence to depart ; 
 which, after some kind expostulations, he was pleased to 
 grant. 
 
 I did very much wonder, in all this time, not to have heart 
 of any Express relating to me from our Emperor to the Court 
 of Blefuscu. But I was afterwards given privately to under- 
 stand, that his Imperial Majesty, never imagining I had the 
 least notice of his Designs, believed I was only gone to 
 Blefuscu in performance of my Promise, according to the 
 Licence he had given me, which was well known at our Court, 
 and would return in a few days when that Ceremony was 
 ended. But he was at last in pain at my long absence; and, 
 after consulting with the Treasurer, and the rest of that 
 Cabal, a Person of Quality was dispatched with the copy of 
 the Articles against me. This Envoy had Instructions to 
 represent to the Monarch of Blefuscu, the great Lenity of his 
 Master, who was content to punish me no further than with 
 the loss of mine Eyes ; that I had fled from Justice, and if 
 I did not return in Two hours, I should be deprived of my 
 Title of JVardac, and declared a Traitor. The Envoy further 
 added, that in order to maintain the Peace and Amity 
 between both Empires, his Master expected, that his Brother 
 of Blefuscu would give orders to have me sent back \.o Lillipwf 
 bound Hand and Foot, to be punished as a Traitor. 
 
 The Emperor of Blefuscu having taken Three days to 
 consult, returned an Answer consisting of many Civilities 
 and Excuses. Lie said, that as for sending me boun.d, 
 his Brother knew it was impossible ; that although I had 
 deprived him of his Fleet, yet he owed great Obligations to 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 79 
 
 me for many good Offices I had done him in making the 
 Peace. That however both their Majesties would soon be 
 made easy ; for I had found a prodigious Vessel on the 
 Shore, able to carry me on the Sea, which he had given 
 order to fit up with my own Assistance and Direction, and 
 he hoped in a few weeks both Empires would be freed from 
 so insupportable an Incumbrance. 
 
 With this Answer the Envoy returned to Lilliput, and the 
 Monarch of Blefuscu related to me all that had past, offer- 
 ing me at the same time (but under the strictest Confidence) 
 his gracious Protection, if I would continue in his Service ; 
 wherein although I believed him sincere, yet I resolved never 
 more to put any confidence in Princes or Ministers, where I 
 could possibly avoid it ; and therefore, with all due acknow- 
 ledgments for his favourable Intentions, I humbly begged to 
 be excused. I told him, that since Fortune, whether good 
 or evil, had thrown a Vessel in my way, I was resolved to 
 venture myself in the Ocean, rather than be an occasion of 
 difference between two such mighty Monarchs. Neither did 
 I find the Emperor at all displeased ; and I discovered by a 
 certain Accident, that he was very glad of my Resolution, 
 and so were most of his Ministers. 
 
 These considerations moved me to hasten my departure 
 somewhat sooner than I intended ; to which the Court, 
 impatient to have me gone, very readily contributed. Five 
 hundred Workmen were employed to make two Sails to my 
 Boat, according to my directions, by quilting Thirteen fold of 
 their strongest Linen together. I was at the pains of making 
 Ropes and Cables, by twisting Ten, Twenty or Thirty of the 
 thickest and strongest of theirs. A great Stone that I 
 happened to find, after a long search, by the Sea -'shore, 
 served me for an Anchor. I had the Tallow of Three 
 hundred cows for greasing my Boat, and Other uses. I was 
 at incredible pains in cutting down some of the largest 
 Timber Trees for Oars and Masts, wherein I was, how- 
 ever, much assisted by his Majesty's Ship -Carpenters, who 
 
8o A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT part i 
 
 helped me in smoothing them, after I had done the rough 
 work. 
 
 In about a month, when all was prepared, I sent to re- 
 ceive his Majesty's Commands, and to take my leave. The 
 Emperor and Royal Family came out of the Palace ; I lay 
 down on my Face to kiss his Hand, which he very graciously 
 gave me ; so did the Empress, and young Princess of the 
 Blood. His Majesty presented me with Fifty purses of Two 
 hundred Sprugs a-piece, together with his Picture at full 
 length, which I put immediately into one of my Gloves, to 
 keep it from being hurt. The Ceremonies at my Departure 
 were too many to trouble the reader with at this time. 
 
 I stored the Boat with the carcasses of an Hundred oxen, 
 and Three hundred sheep, with Br^ead and Drink proportion- 
 able, and as much Meat ready dressed as Four Hundred 
 cooks could provide. I took with me Six cows and Two 
 bulls alive, with as many yews and rams, intending to carry 
 them into my own country, and propagate the breed. And 
 to feed them on board, I had a good bundle of Hay, and a 
 bag of Corn. I would gladly have taken a Dozen of the 
 natives, but this was a thing the Emperor would by no means 
 permit ; and besides a diligent search into my Pockets, his 
 Majesty engaged my Honour not to carry away any of his 
 Subjects, although with their own consent and desire. 
 
 Having thus prepared all things as well as I was able, I 
 set sail on the Twenty-fourth day of September 1701, at Six in 
 the morning ; and when I had gone about Four leagues to 
 the Northward, the Wind being at South-East, at Six in the 
 evening, I descryed a small Island about Half a league to 
 the North-West. I advanced forward, and cast anchor on 
 the Lee-side of the Island, which seemed to be uninhabited. 
 I then took some refreshment, and went to my rest. I slept 
 well, and I conjecture at least Six hours, for I found the day 
 broke in Two hours after I awaked. It was a clear night. I 
 eat my breakfast before the Sun was up ; and heaving anchor, 
 
chap, vin , A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 81 
 
 the Wind being favourable, I steered the same course that I 
 had done the day before, wherein I was directed by my 
 Pocket-Compass. My intention was to reach, if possible, one 
 of those Islands, which I had reason to believe lay to the 
 North-East of Van Diemeris Land. I discovered nothing all 
 that day ; but upon the next, about Three in the afternoon, 
 when I had, by my computation, made Twenty-four leagues 
 from Blefuscu, I descryed a Sail steering to the South-East ■ 
 my course was due East. I hailed her, but could get no 
 answer; yet I found I gained upon her, for the Wind 
 slackned. I made all the sail I could, and in Half an hour 
 she spied me, then hung out her Antient, and discharged a 
 Gun. It is not easy to express the joy I was in upon the 
 unexpected hope of once more seeing my beloved Countrey, 
 and the dear Pledges I had left in it. The Ship slackned 
 her Sails, and I came up with her between Five and Six in 
 the evening ; Septe?7iber 2 6 ; but my heart leapt within me to 
 see her English Colours. I put my Cows and Sheep into my 
 Coat-Pockets, and got on board with all my little Cargo of 
 Provisions. The Vessel was an English Merchant-Man, 
 returning from Japan by the North and South Seas; the 
 Captain, Mr. John Biddle of Deptford, a very civil Man, and 
 an excellent Sailor. We were now in the Latitude of 30 
 Degrees South. There were about Fifty men in the ship ; 
 and here I met an old Comrade of mine, one Peter Williams, 
 who gave me a good character to the Captain. This 
 Gentleman treated me with kindness, and desired I would 
 let him know what place I came from last, and whither I was 
 bound ; which I did in few words, but he thought I was 
 raving, and that the dangers I underwent had disturbed my 
 head ; whereupon I took my black Cattle and Sheep out 
 of my Pocket, which, after great astonishment, clearly con- 
 vinced him of my Veracity. I then shewed him the Gold 
 given me by the Emperor of Blefuscu, together with his 
 Majesty's Picture at full length, and some other Rarities of 
 that countrey. I gave him Two Purses of Two hundred 
 Sprugs each, and promised, when we arrived in England, to 
 make him a Present of a Cow and a Sheep big with young. 
 
 G 
 
82 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 
 
 I shall not trouble the reader with a particular account 
 of this voyage, which was very prosperous for the most part. 
 We arrived in the Downs on the 13th of April 1702. I had 
 
 m T. 
 
 
 Grazing in a Bowling-Green at Greenwich.' 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 only one misfortune, that the Rats on board carried away 
 one of my Sheep ; I found her Bones in a hole, picked clean 
 from the flesh. The rest of my Cattle I got safe on shore, 
 and set them a grazing in a Bowling-Green at Greenwich, where 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 83 
 
 the Fineness of the Grass made them feed very heartily, 
 though I had always feared the contrary : neither could I 
 possibly have preserved them in so long a Voyage, if the 
 Captain had not allowed me some of his best Bisket, which 
 rubbed to Powder, and mingled with Water, was their con- 
 stant food. The short time I continued in England, I made 
 a considerable profit by shewing my Cattle to many Persons 
 of Quality, and others : And before I began my second 
 Voyage, I sold them for Six Hundred pounds. Since my last 
 return, I find the breed is considerably increased, especially 
 the Sheep ; which I hope will prove much to the advantage 
 of the Woollen Manufacture, by the Fineness of the Fleeces. 
 
 I stayed but Two months with my Wife and Family ; for 
 my insatiable Desire of seeing foreign Countries would suffer 
 me to continue no longer. I left Fifteen Hundred pounds 
 with my Wife, and fixed her in a good house at Redriff. My 
 remaining Stock I carried with me, part in Money, and part 
 in Goods, in hopes to improve my fortunes. My eldest 
 TJncle John had left me an Estate in Land, near Epping, of 
 about Thirty pounds a Year ; and I had a long Lease of the 
 Black Bull in Fetter-Lane, which yielded me as much more : 
 so that I was not in any danger of leaving my Family upon 
 the Parish. My Son Johnny, named so after his Uncle, was 
 at the Grammar-School, and a towardly Child. My Daughter 
 Betty (who is now well married, and has children) was then at 
 her Needle-work. I took leave of my Wife, and Boy and 
 Girl, with tears on both sides, and went on board the 
 Adventure, a Merchant-Ship of Three hundred Tons, bound 
 for Sural, Captain John Nicholas of Leverpool Commander. 
 But my Account of this Voyage must be referred to the 
 Second Part of my Travels. 
 
 The End of the First Part. 
 
PART II 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
s^VaCker &-Doutatf scufyserMrU*. 
 
p^tvt ii 
 
 CHAP. I 
 
 A great Storm described ; the Long-boat sent to fetch Water ; the Author 
 goes with it to discover the Countrey. He is left on Shoar ; is seized 
 by one of the Natives , and carried to a Farmer's House. His 
 Reception there, with several Accidents that happened to him. A 
 Description of the Inhabitants. 
 
 'AVING been condemned by nature and 
 fortune to an active and restless Life, in 
 Two months after my Return, I again left 
 my native Countrey, and took shipping 
 in the Downs on the 20th Day of June 
 1702, in the Adventure, Captain John 
 Nicholas a Cornish Man Commander, bound for Surat. We 
 had a very prosperous Gale till we arrived at the Cape of Good- 
 hope, where we landed for fresh Water, but discovering a Leak 
 we unshipped our Goods, and winter'd there ; for the Captain 
 
88 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part n 
 
 falling sick of an Ague, we could not leave the Cape till the 
 end of March. We then set sail, and had a good Voyage till 
 we passed the Streights of Madagascar ; but having got North- 
 ward of that Island, and to about five Degrees South Latitude, 
 the Winds, which in those Seas are observed to blow a 
 constant equal Gale between the North and West from the 
 beginning of December to the beginning of May, on the i glA 
 of April began to blow with much greater Violence, and 
 more Westerly than usual, continuing so for Twenty days 
 together, during which time we were driven a little to the 
 East of the Molucca Islands, and about Three Degrees North- 
 ward of the Line, as our Captain found by an observation he 
 took the Second of May, at which time the Wind ceased, and 
 it was a perfect Calm, whereat I was not a little rejoyced. 
 But he, being a Man well experienc'd in the Navigation of 
 those Seas, bid us all prepare against a Storm, which accord- 
 ingly happen'd the day following: For a Southern Wind, 
 called the Southern Monsoon, began to set in. 
 
 Finding it was like to overblow, we took in our Sprit- 
 sail, and stood by to hand the Fore-sail ; but making foul 
 Weather, we look'd the Guns were all fast, and handed the 
 Mizen. The Ship lay very broad off, so we thought it better 
 spooning before the Sea, than trying or hurlling. We reeft 
 the Fore-sail and set him, we hawl'd aft the Fore-sheet ; the 
 Helm was hard a Weather. The Ship wore bravely. We 
 belay'd the Fore-down-hall; but the Sail was split, and we 
 hawl'd down the Yard, and got the Sail into the ship, and 
 unbound all the things clear of it. It was a very fierce 
 Storm ; the Sea broke strange and dangerous. We hawl'd 
 off upon the Lanniard of the Whipstaff, and helped the Man at 
 Helm. We would not get down our Top-Mast, but let all 
 stand, because she scudded before the Sea very well, and we 
 knew that the Top-Mast being aloft, the Ship was the whole- 
 somer, and made better way through the Sea, seeing we had Sea- 
 room. When the Storm was over, we set Fore-sail and Main- 
 sail, and brought the Ship to : Then we set the Mizen, Main- 
 top-sail, and the Foretop-sail. Our Course was East North- 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 89 
 
 east, the Wind was at South-west. We got the Star-board Tacks 
 aboard, we cast off our Weather-braces, and Lifts ; we set in 
 the Lee-braces, and hawl'd forward by the Weather-bowlings, 
 and hawl'd them tight, and belayed them, and hawled over 
 the Mizen-Tack to Windward, and kept her full and by as 
 near as she would lye. 
 
 During this storm, which was followed by a strong Wind 
 West-south-west, we were carried by my computation about 
 Five hundred leagues to the East, so that the oldest Sailor on 
 board could not tell in what part of the world we were. Our 
 Provisions held out well, our Ship was staunch, and our 
 Cre.w all in good health ; but we lay in the utmost distress 
 for Water. We thought it best to hold on the same course 
 rather than turn more Northerly, which might have brought 
 us to the North-west parts of Great Tartary, and into the 
 Frozen Sea. 
 
 On the 16th Day of June, 1703, a Boy on the Top-mast 
 discovered Land. On the 17 th we came in full view of a 
 great Island or Continent (for we knew not whether) on the 
 South side whereof was a small Neck of Land jutting out into 
 the . Sea, and a Creek too shallow to hold a Ship of above 
 One hundred tuns. We cast anchor within a League of this 
 creek, and our Captain sent a Dozen of his men well armed 
 in the Long-boat, with Vessels for Water if any could be 
 found. I desired his leave to go with them, that I might see 
 the countrey, and make what discoveries I could. When 
 we came to land, we saw no River or Spring, nor any sign of 
 Inhabitants. Our men therefore wander'd on the shore to 
 find out some fresh Water near the sea ; and I walked alone 
 about a Mile on the other side, where I observed the countrey 
 all barren and rocky. I now began to be weary, and, seeing 
 nothing to entertain my curiosity, I returned gently down 
 towards the Creek; and, the Sea being full in my view, I saw 
 our men already got into the Boat, and rowing for life to the 
 Ship. I was going to hollow after them, although it had been 
 to little purpose, when I observed a huge Creature walking after 
 
9 o A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 them in the sea, as fast as he could : He waded not much 
 deeper than his knees, and took prodigious strides : But our 
 men had the start of him Haifa league, and the Sea thereabouts 
 being full of sharp-pointed Rocks, the Monster was not able 
 to overtake the Boat. This I was afterwards told, for I durst 
 not stay to see the issue of that adventure ; but ran as fast as 
 I could the way I first went ; and then climbed up a steep 
 Hill which gave me some prospect of the countrey. I found 
 it fully cultivated ; but that which first surprized me was the 
 length of the Grass, which in those grounds that seemed to 
 be kept for Hay, was above Twenty foot high. 
 
 I fell into a high Road, for so I took it to be, though it 
 served to the inhabitants only as a foot Path through a Field of 
 barley. Here I walked on for some time, but could see little 
 on either side, it being now near Harvest, and the Corn 
 rising at least Forty foot. I was an Hour walking to this 
 end of the field, which was fenced in with a Hedge of at 
 least One hundred and twenty foot high, and the Trees so 
 lofty that I could make no computation of their Altitude. 
 There was a Stile to pass from this field into the next. It 
 had Four steps, and a Stone to cross over when you came to 
 the uppermost. It was impossible for me to climb this stile, 
 because every Step was Six foot high, and the upper Stone 
 above Twenty. I was endeavouring to find some Gap in the 
 hedge, when I discovered one of the Inhabitants in the next 
 field advancing towards the stile, of the same size with him 
 whom I saw in the sea pursuing our Boat. He appeared as 
 tall as an ordinary Spire-steeple, and took about Ten yards 
 at every stride, as near as I could guess. I was struck with 
 the utmost fear and astonishment, and ran to hide myself in 
 the corn, from whence I saw him at the top of the stile, 
 looking back into the next field on the right hand, and heard 
 him call in a voice many degrees louder than a Speaking 
 Trumpet ; but the Noise was so high in the air, that at first 
 I certainly thought it was Thunder. Whereupon Seven 
 Monsters like himself came towards him with Reaping-hooks 
 in their hands, each Hook about the largeness of Six Scythes. 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 91 
 
 These people were not so well clad as the first, whose servants 
 or labourers they seemed to be. For, upon some words he 
 spoke, they went to reap the corn in the field where I lay. 
 I kept from them at as great a distance as I could, but was 
 forced to move with extreme difficulty, for the Stalks of the 
 corn were sometimes not above a Foot distant, so that I could 
 hardly squeeze my body betwixt them. However, I made a shift 
 to go forward till I came to a part of the field where the corn 
 had been laid by the Rain and Wind. Here it was impossible 
 for me to advance a step ; for the Stalks were so interwoven 
 that I could not creep thorough, and the Beards of the fallen 
 Ears so strong and pointed that they pierced through my 
 clothes into my flesh. At the same time I heard the Reapers 
 not above an Hundred yards behind me. Being quite 
 dispirited with toil, and wholly overcome by grief and despair, 
 I lay down between Two Ridges, and heartily wished I might 
 there end my days. I bemoaned my desolate Widow, and 
 Fatherless Children. I lamented my own folly and wilfulness 
 in attempting a Second Voyage against the advice of all my 
 friends and relations. In this terrible agitation of mind I 
 could not forbear thinking of Lilliput, whose Inhabitants 
 looked upon me as the greatest Prodigy that ever appeared 
 in the world ; where I was able to draw an Imperial Fleet in 
 my hand, and perform those other actions which will be 
 recorded for ever in the Chronicles of that Empire, while 
 Posterity shall hardly believe them, although attested by 
 Millions. I reflected what a mortification it must prove to 
 me to appear as inconsiderable in 'this nation as one single 
 Lilliputian would be among us. But, this I conceived was to 
 be the least of my misfortunes : For, as human Creatures are 
 observed to be more savage and cruel in proportion to their 
 Bulk, what could I expect but to be a Morsel in the mouth of 
 the first among these enormous Barbarians that should happen 
 to seize me? Undoubtedly Philosophers are in the right 
 when they tell us, that nothing is great or little otherwise 
 than by Comparison. It might have pleased fortune to let 
 the Lilliputians find some nation, where the people were as 
 Diminutive with respect to them, as they were to me. And 
 
92 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 who knows but that even this prodigious Race of Mortals 
 might be equally overmatched in some distant part of the 
 world, whereof we have yet no discovery ? 
 
 Scared and confounded as I was, I could not forbear going 
 on with these reflections, when one of the reapers approach- 
 ing within Ten yards of the Ridge where I lay, made me 
 apprehend that with the next step I should be squashed to 
 death under his Foot, or cut in Two with his Reaping-hook. 
 And therefore when he was again about to move, I screamed as 
 loud as fear could make me. Whereupon the huge Creature 
 trod short, and looking round about under him for some time, 
 at last espied me as I lay on the ground. He considered a while 
 with the caution of one who endeavours to lay hold on a small 
 dangerous animal in such a manner that it should not be able 
 either to scratch or to bite him, as I myself have sometimes 
 done with a Weasel in England. At length he ventured to 
 take me up behind by the Middle between his Fore-finger and 
 Thumb, and brought me within Three yards of his eyes, that 
 he might behold my shape more perfectly. I guessed his 
 meaning, and my good fortune gave me so much Presence 
 of mind, that I resolved not to struggle in the least as he held 
 me in the Air above Sixty foot from the ground, although he 
 grievously pinched my sides, for fear I should slip through his 
 fingers. All I ventured was to raise mine eyes towards the 
 Sun, and place my hands together in a supplicating posture, and 
 to speak some words in an humble melancholy tone, suitable to 
 the condition I then was in : For I apprehended every moment 
 that he would dash me against the ground, as we usually do 
 any little hateful Animal which we have a mind to destroy. 
 But my good star would have it, that he appeared pleased 
 with my voice and gestures, and began to look upon me as a 
 Curiosity, much wondering to hear me pronounce articulate 
 words, although he could not understand them. In the 
 mean time I was not able to forbear groaning and shedding 
 tears, and turning my Head towards my Sides, letting him 
 know, as well as I could, how cruelly I was hurt by the 
 Pressure of his Thumb and Finger. He seemed to apprehend 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 93 
 
 my meaning; for, lifting up the Lappet of his Coat, he put 
 me gently into it, and immediately ran along with me to his 
 Master, who was a substantial Farmer, and the same person 
 I had first seen in the field. 
 
 The Farmer having (as I supposed by their talk) received 
 such an account of me as his servant could give him, took 
 a piece of a small Straw, about the size of a Walking-staff, 
 and therewith lifted up the Lappets of my Coat ; which it 
 seems he thought to be some kind of covering that nature 
 had* given me. He blew my Hairs aside to take a better 
 view of my Face. He called his hinds about him, and asked 
 them (as I afterwards learned) whether they had ever seen 
 in the fields any little Creature that resembled me. He 
 then placed me softly on the ground upon all four, but 
 I got immediately up, and walked slowly backwards and 
 forwards, to let those people see I had no intent to run 
 away. They all sate down in a Circle about me, the better 
 to observe my motions. I pulled off my hat, and made a low 
 Bow towards the farmer, I fell on my Knees, and lifted up my 
 Hands and Eyes, and spoke several words, as loud as I could : 
 I took a Purse of Gold out of my pocket, and humbly 
 presented it to him. He received it on the Palm of his 
 Hand, then applied it close to his eye, to see what it was, and 
 afterwards turned it several times with the point of a Pin 
 (which he took out of his Sleeve) but could make nothing of it. 
 Whereupon I made a sign that he should place his Hand on 
 the ground. I took the Purse, and opening it, poured all the 
 Gold into his Palm. There were Six Spanish pieces of Four 
 Pistoles each, besides Twenty or Thirty smaller Coins. I saw 
 him wet the Tip of his Little finger upon his Tongue, and 
 take up one of my largest Pieces, and then another, but he 
 seemed to be wholly ignorant what they were. He made me 
 a sign to put them again into my Purse, and the Purse again 
 into my pocket, which after offering to him several times, I 
 thought it best to do. 
 
 
 The Farmer by this time was convinced I must be a 
 
94 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 Rational creature. He spoke often to me, but the Sound of 
 his voice pierced my ears like that of a Water-Mill, yet his 
 words were articulate enough. I answered as loud as I could 
 
 
 is^^f- 
 
 ' I made a lo%v Bow towards the farmer.' 1 
 
 in several Languages, and he often laid his ear within Two 
 yards of me, but all in vain, for we were wholly unintelligible 
 to each other. He then sent his Servants to their work, and 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 95 
 
 taking his Handkerchief out of his Pocket, he doubled and 
 spread it on his left Hand, which he placed flat on the ground 
 with the palm upwards, making me a sign to step into it, as 
 I could easily do, for it was not above a Foot in thickness. 
 I thought it my part to obey, and for fear of falling, laid myself 
 at length upon the Handkerchief, with the remainder of which 
 he lapped me up to the Head for further security, and in this 
 manner carried me home to his house. There he called his 
 Wife, and shewed me to her ; but she screamed and ran 
 back, as Women in England do at the sight of a Toad or a 
 Spider. However, when she had a while seen my behaviour, 
 and how well I observed the signs her Husband made, she was 
 soon reconciled, and by degrees grew extremely tender of me. 
 
 It was about Twelve at noon, and a servant brought in 
 Dinner. It was only One substantial dish of Meat (fit for 
 the plain condition of an Husband-man) in a Dish of about 
 Four and twenty foot Diameter. The company were 
 the Farmer and his Wife, Three Children, and an old 
 Grandmother : When they were sat down, the Farmer 
 placed me at some distance from him on the Table, which 
 was Thirty foot high from the floor. I was in a terrible 
 fright, and kept as far as I could from the Edge for fear 
 of falling. The Wife minced a bit of Meat, then crumbled 
 some Bread on a trencher, and placed it before me. I made 
 her a low Bow, took out my Knife and Fork, and fell to eat, 
 which gave them exceeding delight. The Mistress sent her 
 Maid for a small Dram-cup, which held about Three gallons, 
 and filled it with drink, I took up the vessel with much difficulty 
 in both hands, and in a most respectful manner drank to her 
 Ladyship's Health, expressing the words as loud as I could in 
 English, which made the company laugh so heartily, that I was 
 almost deafned with the noise. This liquor tasted like a small 
 Cyder, and was not unpleasant. Then the Master made me 
 a sign to come to his trencher side ; but as I walked on the 
 Table, being in great surprize all the time, as the indulgent 
 reader will easily conceive and excuse, I happened to stumble 
 against a Crust, and fell flat on my face, but received no hurt. 
 
96 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 I got up immediately, and observing the good people to be 
 in much concern, I took my Hat (which I held under my 
 arm out of good manners) and waving it over my head, made 
 Three Huzza's to shew I had got no mischief by my fall. But 
 advancing forwards toward my Master (as I shall henceforth 
 call him) his youngest Son who sate next him, an arch Boy 
 of about ten Years old, took me up by the Legs, and held 
 me so high in the Air, that I trembled every limb ; but his 
 Father snatched me from him, and at the same time gave him 
 such a Box on the left Ear, as would have felled an European 
 Troop of Horse to the earth, ordering him to be taken from the 
 table. But, being afraid the Boy might owe me a spight, and 
 well remembring how mischievous all Children among us 
 naturally are to Sparrows, Rabbets, young Kittens, and Puppy 
 Dogs, I fell on my knees, and pointing to the boy, made my 
 Master to understand, as well as I could, that I desired his 
 son might be pardoned. The Father complied, and the lad 
 took his seat again ; whereupon I went to him and kissed his 
 hand, which my Master took, and made him stroak me 
 gently with it. 
 
 In the midst of dinner my Mistress's favourite Cat leapt 
 into her lap. I heard a Noise behind me like that of a 
 Dozen Stocking-Weavers at work ; and turning my Head I 
 found it proceeded from the purring of this Animal, who 
 seemed to be Three times larger than an Ox, as I computed 
 by the View of her Head, and one of her Paws, while her 
 Mistress was feeding and stroaking her. The Fierceness of 
 this Creature's Countenance altogether discomposed me ; 
 though I stood at the further end of the Table, above Fifty 
 foot off, and although my Mistress held her fast for fear she 
 might give a spring, and seize me in her talons. But it 
 happened there was no danger ; for the Cat took not the 
 least notice of me when my Master placed me within Three 
 yards of her. And as I have been always told, and found 
 true by experience in my travels, that flying, or discovering 
 Fear before a fierce animal, is a certain way to make it pursue 
 or attack you ; so I resolved in this dangerous juncture to 
 
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 97 
 
 shew no manner of concern. I walked with Intrepidity Five 
 or Six times before the very Head of the Cat, and came 
 within half a Yard of her ; whereupon she drew herself back, 
 as if she were more afraid of me : I had less apprehension 
 concerning the Dogs, whereof Three or Four came into the 
 room, as it is usual in Farmers houses ; one of which was a 
 
 ' / walked with Intrepidity. 
 
 Mastiff equal in bulk to Four Elephants, and a Grey-hound 
 somewhat taller than the Mastiff, but not so large. 
 
 When dinner was almost done, the Nurse came in with a 
 Child of a Year old in her arms, who immediately spy'd me, 
 and began a squall that you might have heard from London- 
 Bridge to Chelsea^ after the usual Oratory of infants, to get 
 me for a Play-thing. The Mother out of pure indulgence 
 took me up, and put me towards the Child, who presently 
 
 H 
 
98 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG . part 11 
 
 seized me by the Middle, and got my Head in his Mouth, 
 where I roared so loud that the Urchin was frighted, and let 
 me drop ; and I should infallibly have broke my neck if the 
 Mother had not held her Apron under me. The Nurse, to 
 
 ' Got my Head in'his Mouth.' 
 
 quiet her babe, made use of a Rattle, which was a kind of 
 hollow Vessel filled with great stones, and fastned by a Cable 
 to the Child's wast : But all in vain, so that she was forced to 
 apply the last remedy by giving it suck. I must confess no 
 Object ever disgusted me so much as the sight of her 
 
chap, i A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 99 
 
 monstrous Breast, which I cannot tell what to compare with, 
 so as to give the curious reader an Idea of its Bulk, Shape and 
 Colour. I had a near sight of her, she sitting down the more 
 conveniently to give suck, and I standing on the table. This 
 made me reflect upon the fair skins of our Eiiglish Ladies, 
 who appear so beautiful to us, only because they are of our own 
 size, and their Defects not to be seen but through a Magnify- 
 ing-Glass, where we find by experiment that the smoothest 
 and whitest skins look rough and coarse, and ill coloured. 
 
 I remember when I was at Lillifint, the Complexions of 
 those diminutive people appeared to me the Fairest in the 
 world, and talking upon this subject with a person of Learning 
 there, who was an intimate friend of mine, he said that my 
 Face appeared much fairer and smoother when he looked on 
 me from the ground, than it did upon a nearer view when I 
 took him up in my hand, and brought him close, which he 
 confessed was at first a very shocking sight. He said he 
 could discover great Holes in my skin, that the Stumps of my 
 beard were Ten times stronger than the Bristles of a Boar, 
 and my Complexion made up of several colours altogether 
 disagreeable : Although I must beg leave to say for myself, 
 that I am as fair as most of my Sex and Countrey, and very 
 little sunburnt by all my travels. On the other side, 
 discoursing of the Ladies in that Emperor's Court, he used 
 to tell me, one had freckles, another too wide a mouth, a 
 third too large a nose, nothing of which I was able to 
 distinguish. I confess this reflection was obvious enough ; 
 which however I could not forbear, lest the Reader might 
 think those vast Creatures were actually deformed : For I 
 must do them justice to say they are a comely Race of people; 
 and particularly the Features of my Master's Countenance, 
 although he were but a Farmer, when I beheld him from the 
 height of Sixty foot, appeared very well proportioned. 
 
 When dinner was done, my Master went out to his 
 labourers, and as I could discover by his voice and gesture, 
 gave his Wife a strict charge to take care of me. I was very 
 much tired and disposed to sleep, which my Mistress 
 
ioo A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 perceiving, she put me on her own bed, and covered me 
 with a clean white Handkerchief, but larger and coarser 
 than the Main-sail of a Man of War. 
 
 I slept about Two hours, and dreamed I was at home 
 with my Wife and Children, which aggravated my sorrows 
 when I awaked and found myself alone in a vast room, 
 between Two and Three hundred foot wide, and above Two 
 hundred high, lying in a bed Twenty yards wide. My 
 Mistress was gone about her houshold affairs, and had 
 locked me in. The bed was eight yards from the floor. 
 While I was under these circumstances, two Rats crept up 
 the curtains, and ran smelling backwards and forwards on 
 the bed. One of them came up almost to my Face, where- 
 upon I rose in a fright, and drew out my Hanger to defend 
 myself. These horrible Animals had the boldness to attack 
 me on both sides, and one of them held his Fore-feet at my 
 Collar ; but I had the good fortune to rip up his belly before 
 he could do me any mischief. He fell down at my feet, and 
 the other, seeing the fate of his Comrade, made his escape, 
 but not without one good Wound on the Back, which I gave 
 him as he fled, and made the blood run trickling from him. 
 After this exploit I walked gently to and fro on the bed, to 
 recover my Breath and Loss of Spirits. These Creatures 
 were of the size of a large Mastiff, but infinitely more nimble 
 and fierce, so that if I had taken off my Belt before I went 
 to sleep, I must have infallibly been torn to pieces and 
 devoured. I measured the tail of the dead Rat, and found 
 it to be Two yards long wanting an Inch ; but it went against 
 my stomach to drag the Carcass off the bed, where it lay still 
 bleeding ; I observed it had yet some Life, but with a strong 
 slash cross the neck I thoroughly dispatched it. 
 
 Soon after my Mistress came into the room, who seeing 
 me all bloody, ran and took me up in her hand. I pointed 
 to the dead Rat, smiling and making other signs to shew I 
 was not hurt, whereat she was extremely rejoyced, calling the 
 Maid to take up the dead Rat with a pair of tongs, and 
 throw it out of the window. Then she set me on a table 
 
CHAP. I 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 where I shewed her my Hanger all bloody, and wiping it on 
 the Lappet of my Coat, returned it to the Scabbard. 
 
 I hope the gentle reader will excuse me from dwelling on 
 Particulars, which however insignificant they may appear to 
 grovelling vulgar minds, yet will certainly help a Philosopher 
 to enlarge his thoughts and imagination, and apply them to 
 the Benefit of Publick as well as Private life, which was my 
 sole design in presenting this and other accounts of my 
 Travels to the world ; wherein I have been chiefly studious of 
 Truth, without affecting any ornaments of Learning or of 
 Style. But the whole Scene of this voyage made so strong 
 an Impression on my mind, and is so deeply fixed in my 
 memory, that, in committing it to Paper, I did not omit one 
 material circumstance : However upon a strict review, I 
 blotted out several Passages of less moment which were in 
 my first Copy, for fear of being censured as tedious and 
 trifling, whereof Travellers are often, perhaps not without 
 justice, accused. 
 
 ex(rb 
 
 The other made his escape. 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 A Description of the Farmer's Daughter. The Author carried to a 
 Market- Town, and then to the Metropolis. The Particulars of his 
 Joicrney. 
 
 My Mistress had a Daughter of Nine years old, a child of 
 forward Parts for her age, very dextrous at her Needle, and 
 skilful in dressing her Baby. Her Mother and she contrived 
 to fit up the Baby's Cradle for me against night : The Cradle 
 was put into a small Drawer of a Cabinet, and the Drawer 
 placed upon a hanging Shelf for fear of the Rats. This was 
 my Bed all the time I stay'd with those people, though 
 made more convenient by degrees, as I began to learn their 
 Language, and make my wants known. This young Girl was 
 so handy, that after I had once or twice pulled off my 
 cloaths before her, she was able to dress and undress me, 
 though I never gave her that trouble when she would let 
 me do either myself. She made me Seven shirts, and some 
 other Linen of as fine Cloth as could be got, which indeed 
 was coarser than Sackcloth ; and these she constantly washed 
 for me with her own hands. She was likewise my School- 
 mistress to teach me the Language : When I pointed to any 
 thing, she told me the name of it in her own tongue, so 
 that in a few days I was able to call for whatever I had a 
 mind to. She was very good-natur'd, and not above Forty 
 foot high, being little for her age. She gave me the name 
 of Grildrig, which the Family took up, and afterwards the 
 whole Kingdom. The Word imports what the Latins call 
 
 
CHAr. ii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 103 
 
 Nanunculus, the Italians Homunceletino, and the English 
 Mannikin. To her I chiefly owe my Preservation in that 
 countrey : We never parted while I was there ; I called her 
 my Glumdalclitch, or little Nurse : And I should be guilty 
 of great Ingratitude if I omitted this honourable mention 
 of her Care and Affection towards me, which I heartily wish 
 it lay in my power to requite as she deserves, instead of being 
 the innocent but unhappy Instrument of her Disgrace, as 
 I have too much reason to fear. 
 
 It now began to be known and talked of in the 
 neighbourhood, that my Master had found a strange Animal 
 in the field about the bigness of a Splacknuck, but exactly 
 shaped in every part like a human creature ; which it 
 likewise imitated in all its actions ; seemed to speak in a 
 little language of its own, had already learned several words 
 of theirs, went erect upon Two legs, was tame and gentle, 
 would come when it was called, do whatever it was bid, 
 had the finest Limbs in the world, and a Complexion fairer 
 than a Nobleman's Daughter of Three years old. Another 
 Farmer who lived hard by, and was a particular friend of 
 my Master, came on a visit on purpose to enquire into the 
 Truth of this story. I was immediately produced, and 
 placed upon a Table, where I walked as I was commanded, 
 drew my Hanger, put it up again, made my reverence to my 
 Master's Guest, asked him in his own language how he did, 
 and told him he was welcome, just as my little Nurse had 
 instructed me. This Man, who was old and dim-sighted, 
 put on his Spectacles to behold me better, at which I could 
 not forbear laughing very heartily, for his Eyes appeared 
 like the Full-Moon shining into a chamber at Two windows. 
 Our people, who discovered the cause of my Mirth, bore 
 me company in Laughing, at which the old Fellow was fool 
 enough to be angry and out of countenance. He had the 
 character of a great Miser, and, to my misfortune, he well 
 deserved it by the cursed advice he gave my Master to shew 
 me as a Sight upon a Market-Day in the next town, which 
 was Half an hour's riding, about Two and twenty miles from 
 
io4 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 PART II 
 
 our house. I guessed there was some mischief contriving, 
 when I observed my Master and his Friend whispering long 
 together, sometimes pointing at me ; and my Fears made 
 me fancy that I overheard and understood some of their 
 words. But, the next morning Glumdalclitch my little Nurse 
 told' me the whole matter, which she had cunningly picked 
 
 ' / could notforbea?- laughing very heartily, .' 
 
 out from her Mother. The poor Girl laid me on her bosom, 
 and fell a weeping with shame and grief. She apprehended 
 some mischief would happen to me from rude vulgar 
 folks, who might squeeze me to death or break one of my 
 Limbs by taking me in their hands. She had also observed 
 how modest I was in my nature, how nicely I regarded my 
 Honour, and what an Indignity I should conceive it to be 
 
Chap, ii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 105 
 
 exposed for Money as a publick Spectacle to the meanest 
 of the people. She said, her Papa and Mamma had promised 
 that Grildrig should be hers, but now she found they meant 
 to serve her as they did last year, when they pretended to 
 give her a Lamb, and yet, as soon as it was fat, sold it to 
 a butcher. For my own part, I may truly affirm that I was 
 less concerned than my Nurse. I had a strong hope which 
 never left me, that I should one day recover my Liberty ; 
 and as to the Ignominy of being carried about for a Monster, 
 I considered myself to be a perfect Stranger in the Countrey, 
 and that such a Misfortune could never be charged upon 
 me as a Reproach if ever I should return to England ; since 
 the King of Great Britain himself, in my condition, must 
 have undergone the same Distress. 
 
 My Master, pursuant to the advice of his Friend, carried 
 me in a Box the next Market-day to the neighbouring Town, 
 and took along with him his little daughter my Nurse upon a 
 Pillion behind him. The Box was close on every side, with 
 a little Door for me to go in and out, and a few Gimlet-holes 
 to let in Air. The Girl had been so careful to put the Quilt 
 of her baby's bed into it, for me to lye down on. However, 
 I was terribly shaken and discomposed in this journey, 
 though it were but of Half an hour. For the Horse went 
 about Forty foot at every step, and trotted so high, that the 
 Agitation was equal to the rising and falling of a Ship in a 
 great storm, but much more frequent : Our Journey was 
 somewhat further than from London to St. Albans. My 
 Master alighted at an Inn which he used to frequent ; 
 and after consulting a while with the Inn - keeper, and 
 making some necessary Preparations, he hired the Grnl- 
 trud, or Oyer, to give notice through the town of a 
 strange Creature to be seen at the sign of the Green Eagle, 
 not so big as a Splacknuck (an Animal in that Countrey 
 very finely shaped, about Six foot long) and in every 
 part of the body resembling an human creature, could 
 speak several words, and perform an hundred diverting 
 tricks. 
 
106 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 I was placed upon a Table in the largest room of the Inn, 
 which might be near Three hundred foot square. My little 
 Nurse stood on a low Stool close to the table, to take care 
 of me, and direct what I should do. My Master, to avoid a 
 croud, would suffer only Thirty People at a time to see me. 
 I walked about on the table as the Girl commanded ; she 
 asked me Questions as far as she knew my Understanding of 
 the language reached, and I answered them as loud as I 
 could. I turned about several times to the company, paid 
 my humble respects, said they were welcome, and used some 
 other speeches I had been taught. I took up a Thimble 
 filled with liquor, which Glumdalditch had given me for a 
 Cup, and drank their health. I drew out my Hanger, and 
 flourished with it after the manner of Fencers in England. 
 My Nurse gave me part of a Straw, which I exercised as a 
 Pike, having learned the art in my youth. I was that day 
 shewn to Twelve Sets of company, and as often forced to go 
 over again with the same Fopperies, till I was half dead with 
 weariness and vexation. For those who had seen me made 
 such wonderful Reports, that the people were ready to break 
 down the Doors to come in. My Master for his own 
 Interest would not suffer any one to touch me except my 
 Nurse ; and, to prevent danger, Benches were set round the 
 Table at such a distance as put me out of every body's 
 reach.. However, an unlucky School-boy aimed a hazel Nut 
 directly at my head, which very narrowly missed me ; other- 
 wise, it came with so much violence that it would have 
 infallibly knocked out my brains, for it was almost as large as 
 a small Pumpion : But I had the satisfaction to see the 
 young Rogue well beaten, and turned out of the room. 
 
 My Master gave publick notice, that he would shew me 
 again the next Market-day, and in the mean time he pre- 
 pared a more convenient Vehicle for me, which he had 
 reason enough to do ; for I was so tired with my first 
 Journey, and with entertaining company for Eight hours 
 together, that I could hardly stand upon my legs, or speak a 
 word. It was at least Three days before I recovered my 
 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 107 
 
 strength ; and that I might have no rest at home, all the 
 neighbouring Gentlemen from an Hundred miles round, 
 hearing of my fame, came to see me at my Master's own 
 house. There could not be fewer than Thirty persons with 
 their Wives and Children (for the Countrey was very 
 populous ;) and my Master demanded the rate of a full room 
 whenever he shewed me at home, although it were only to a 
 single family. So that for some time I had but little ease 
 every day of the week (except Wednesday, which is their 
 Sabbath) although I were not carried to their town. 
 
 My Master finding how profitable I was like to be, 
 resolved to carry me to the most considerable Cities of the 
 kingdom. Having therefore provided himself with all things 
 necessary for a long journey, and settled his affairs at home, 
 he took leave of his Wife, and upon the 17th of August 1703, 
 about Two months after my arrival, we set out for the 
 Metropolis, situated near the middle of that Empire, and 
 about Three thousand miles distance from our house : My 
 Master made his Daughter Glumdalditch ride behind him. 
 She carried me on her Lap in a Box tyed about her Wast. 
 The Girl had lined it on all sides with the softest Cloth she 
 could get, well quilted underneath, furnished it with her 
 Baby's bed, provided me with Linen and other Necessaries, 
 and made every thing as convenient as she could. We had no 
 other company but a Boy of the house, who rode after us 
 with the Luggage. 
 
 My Master's Design was to shew me in all the towns by 
 the way, and to step out of the road for Fifty or an Hundred 
 miles, to any Village or Person of Quality's house where he 
 might expect custom. We made easy journies of not above 
 Seven or Eightscore miles a Day : For Glumdalditch, on 
 purpose to spare me, complained she was tired with the 
 trotting of the Horse. She often took me out of my Box at 
 my own desire, to give me Air, and shew me the Countrey, 
 but always held me fast by a Leading-string. We passed 
 over Five or Six Rivers many degrees broader and deeper than 
 
io8 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDlNGNAG 
 
 PART 11 
 
 the Nile or the Ganges ; and there was hardly a Rivulet so 
 small as the Thames at London-Bridge. We were Ten Weeks 
 in our Journey, and I was shewn in Eighteen large Towns 
 besides many Villages and private Families. 
 
 She often took mc out of )>iy Box.'' 
 
 On the 26th Day of October, we arrived at the Metropolis, 
 called in their language Lorbrulgrud, or Pride of the Universe. 
 My Master took a lodging in the principal Street of the City, 
 not far from the Royal Palace, and put out Bills in the usual 
 form, containing an exact Description of my Person and 
 Parts. He hired a large room between Three and Four 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 109 
 
 hundred foot wide. He provided a Table Sixty foot in 
 diameter, upon which I was to act my part, and palisadoed 
 round Three foot from the Edge, and as many high, to 
 prevent my falling over. I was shewn Ten times a day to 
 the Wonder and Satisfaction of all people. I could now 
 speak the language tolerably well, and perfectly understood 
 every word that was spoken to me. Besides, I had learned 
 their Alphabet, and could make a shift to explain a Sentence 
 here and there ; for Glumdalditch had been my Instructer 
 while we were at home, and at leisure hours during our 
 Journey. She carried a little Book in her pocket, not much 
 larger than a Sanson's Atlas ; it was a common Treatise for 
 the use of young Girls, giving a short account of their 
 Religion ; out of this she taught me my Letters, and 
 interpreted the Words. 
 
CHAR III 
 
 The Author sent for to Court. The Queen buys him of his Master, the 
 Farmer, and presents him to the King. He disputes with his 
 Majesty 's great Scholars. An Apartment at Court provided for the 
 Author. He is in high Favour with the Queen. He stands up 
 for the Honour of his own Countrey. His Qicarrels with the Queen's 
 Dwarf. 
 
 The frequent Labours I underwent every day made in a few 
 weeks a very considerable change in my health : The more 
 my Master got by me, the more unsatiable he grew. I had 
 quite lost my Stomach, and was almost reduced to a 
 Skeleton. The Farmer observed it, and concluding I soon 
 must dye, resolved to make as good a hand of me as he 
 could. While he was thus reasoning and resolving with 
 himself, a Slardral, or Gentleman Usher came from Court, 
 commanding my Master to carry me immediately thither for 
 the Diversion of the Queen and her Ladies. Some of the 
 latter had already- been to see me, and reported strange 
 things of my Beauty, Behaviour, and good Sense. Her 
 Majesty and those who attended her were beyond Measure 
 delighted with my Demeanor. I fell on my knees, and 
 begged the honour of kissing her Imperial Foot ; but this 
 Gracious Princess held out her little Finger towards me 
 (after I was set on a Table) which I embraced in both my 
 Arms, and put the tip of it, with the utmost respect, to my 
 Lip. She made me some general questions about my 
 Countrey and my Travels, which I answer'd as distinctly 
 and in as few words as I could. She asked whether I 
 
Put the tip of it, with the -utmost respect, to my Lip. 
 Copyright 1894 by MacmUlan &■ Co. 
 
ii2 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 would be content to live at Court. I bowed down to the board 
 of the Table, and humbly answered, that I was my Master's 
 Slave, bat if I were at my own disposal, I should be proud 
 to devote my Life to her Majesty's Service. She then asked 
 my Master whether he were willing to sell me at a good 
 price. He, who apprehended I could not live a Month, 
 was ready enough to part with me, and demanded a 
 Thousand pieces of Gold, which were ordered him on the 
 spot, each piece being about the bigness of Eight hundred 
 Moydores ; but, allowing for the proportion of all things 
 between that Countrey and Europe, and the high price of 
 Gold among them, was hardly so great a sum as a Thousand 
 Guineas would be in England. I then said to the Queen, 
 since I was now her Majesty's most humble Creature and 
 Vassal, I must beg the favour, that Glumdalclitch, who had 
 always tended me with so much care and kindness, and under- 
 stood to do it so well, might be admitted into her service, 
 and continue to be my Nurse and Instructor. Her Majesty 
 agreed to my Petition, and easily got the Farmer's consent, 
 who was glad enough to have his Daughter preferred at 
 Court ; and the poor Girl herself was not able to hide her 
 Joy : My late Master withdrew, bidding me farewell, and 
 saying he had left me in a good Service ; to which I replied 
 not a word, only making him a slight bow. 
 
 The Queen observed my coldness, and when the Farmer 
 was gone out of the Apartment, asked me the reason. 
 I made bold to tell her Majesty that I owed no other 
 obligation to my late Master, than his not dashing out the 
 brains of a poor harmless Creature found by chance in his 
 field ; which Obligation was amply recompenced by the 
 gain he had made in shewing me through half the Kingdom, 
 and the price he had now sold me for. That the Life I 
 had since led, was laborious enough to kill an Animal of 
 ten times my strength. That my Health was much impaired 
 by the continual drudgery of entertaining the Rabble every 
 hour of the day, and that if my Master had not thought my 
 life in danger, her Majesty, perhaps, would not have got 
 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 113 
 
 so cheap a bargain. But as I was out of all fear of being 
 ill treated under the protection of so great and good an 
 Empress, the Ornament of Nature, the Darling of the World, 
 the Delight of her Subjects, the Phoenix of the Creation ; 
 so, I hoped my late Master's apprehensions would appear 
 to be groundless, for I already found my Spirits to revive by 
 the Influence of her most August Presence. 
 
 This was the sum of my Speech, delivered with great 
 Improprieties and Hesitation ; the latter part was altogether 
 framed in the Style peculiar to that people, whereof I learned 
 some Phrases from Glumdalclitch, while she was carying me 
 to Court. 
 
 The Queen giving great allowance for my Defectiveness 
 in speaking, was however surprised at so much Wit and 
 good Sense in so diminutive an Animal. She took me in her 
 own hands, and carried me to the King, who was then retired 
 to his Cabinet. His Majesty, ' a Prince of much Gravity, 
 and austere Countenance, not well observing my shape at first 
 view, asked the Queen after a cold manner, how long it was 
 since she grew fond of a Splack?iuck? for such it seems he 
 took me to be, as I lay upon my breast in her Majesty's 
 Right hand. But this Princess, who hath an infinite 
 deal of Wit and Humour, set me gently on my feet upon 
 the scrutore, and commanded me to give His Majesty an 
 account of myself, which I did in a very few words ; and 
 Glumdalditch, who attended at the Cabinet door, and could 
 not endure I should be out of her sight, being admitted, 
 confirmed all that had passed from my Arrival at her Father's 
 House. 
 
 The King, although he be as learned a Person as any 
 in his Dominions, and had been educated in the study of 
 Philosophy, and particularly Mathematicks ; yet when he 
 observed my shape exactly, and saw me walk erect, before 
 I began to speak, conceived I might be a piece of Clock- 
 work (which is in that countrey arrived to a very great 
 
 1 
 
ii 4 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 perfection) contrived by some ingenious Artist. But, when 
 he heard my Voice, and found what I delivered to be regular 
 and rational, he could not conceal his Astonishment. He 
 was by no means satisfied with the relation I gave him of 
 the manner I came into his Kingdom, but thought it a 
 Story concerted between Glumdaklitch and her Father, who 
 had taught me a Sett of words to make me sell at a higher 
 price. Upon this imagination he put several other Questions 
 to me, and still received rational Answers, no otherwise 
 defective than by a foreign Accent, and an imperfect 
 Knowledge in the language, with some rustick Phrases 
 which I had learned at the Farmer's house, and did not 
 suit the polite Style of a Court. 
 
 His Majesty sent for Three great Scholars who were 
 then in their weekly waiting (according to the custom in 
 that countrey). These Gentlemen, after they had a while 
 examined my Shape with much nicety, were of different 
 opinions concerning me. They all agreed, that I could not 
 be produced according to the regular laws of Nature, because 
 I was not framed with a capacity of preserving my life, either 
 by Swiftness, or climbing of Trees, or digging Holes in the 
 Earth. They observed by my Teeth, which they viewed 
 with great Exactness, that I was a carnivorous Animal ; yet 
 most Quadrupeds being an Overmatch for me, and Field- 
 Mice, with some others, too nimble, they could not imagine 
 how I should be able to support myself, unless I fed upon 
 Snails and other Insects, which they offered by many learned 
 arguments to evince that I could not possibly do. One 
 of these Virtuosi seemed to think that I might be an Embry, 
 or abortive Birth. But this opinion was rejected by the 
 other Two, who observed my limbs to be perfect and finished, 
 and that I had lived several years, as it was manifested from 
 my Beard, the Stumps whereof they plainly discovered 
 through a Magnifying-Glass. They would not allow me to 
 be a Dwarf, because my Littleness was beyond all Degrees 
 of comparison ; for, the Queen's favourite Dwarf, the smallest 
 ever known in that kingdom, was near Thirty foot high. 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 115 
 
 After much debate, they concluded unanimously that I was 
 only Relplum Scalcatk, which is interpreted literally, Lusus 
 Matura ; a Determination exactly agreeable to the Modern 
 Philosophy of Europe, whose Professors, disdaining the old 
 evasion of occult Causes, whereby the Followers of Aristotle 
 endeavour in vain to disguise their ignorance, have invented 
 this wonderful Solution of all Difficulties to the unspeakable 
 advancement of human knowledge. 
 
 After this decisive Conclusion, I entreated to be heard 
 a word or two. I applied myself to the King, and assured 
 His Majesty that I came from a countrey which abounded 
 with several Millions of both sexes, and of my own stature ; 
 where the Animals, Trees, and Houses were all in Proportion, 
 and where by consequence I might be as able to defend 
 myself, and to find sustenance, as any of his Majesty's 
 Subjects could do here ; which I took for a full Answer to 
 those Gentlemens' Arguments. To this they only replied 
 with a smile of Contempt," saying, That the Farmer had 
 instructed me very well in my Lesson. The King, who had 
 a much better Understanding, dismissing his learned Men, 
 sent for the Farmer, who by good fortune was not yet gone 
 out of town : Having therefore first examined him privately, 
 and then confronted him with me and the young Girl, his 
 Majesty began to think that what we told him might possibly 
 be true. He desired the Queen to order that a particular 
 care should be taken of me, and was of opinion, that 
 Glumdalditch should still continue in her office of tending 
 me, because he observed we had a great affection for each 
 other. A convenient Apartment was provided for her at 
 Court ; she had a sort of Governess appointed to take care 
 of her education, a Maid to dress her, and Two other 
 servants for menial offices ; but, the care of me was wholly 
 appropriated to herself. The Queen commanded her own 
 Cabinet-maker to contrive a Box that might serve me for 
 a Bed-chamber, after the Model that Glumdalditch and I 
 should agree upon. This Man was a most ingenious Artist, 
 and according to my directions, in Three weeks finished for 
 
n6 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 me a wooden Chamber of Sixteen foot square, and Twelve 
 high, with Sash Windows, a Door, and Two Closets, like a 
 London Bed-chamber. The Board that made the Cieling 
 was to be lifted up and down by Two Hinges, to put in a 
 Bed ready furnished by her Majesty's Upholsterer, which 
 Glumdalditch took out every day to air, made it with her own 
 hands, and letting it down at night, locked up the Roof over 
 me. A nice Workman, who was famous for little curiosities, 
 undertook to make me Two Chairs, with Backs and Frames, 
 of a Substance not unlike Ivory, and Two Tables, with a 
 Cabinet to put my things in. The Room was quilted on all 
 sides, as well as the Floor and the Cieling, to prevent any 
 Accident from the Carelessness of those who carried me, and 
 to break the Force of a Jolt when I went in a Coach. I 
 desired a Lock for my Door to prevent Rats and Mice from 
 coming in : The Smith after several Attempts made the 
 smallest that was ever seen among them, for I have known a 
 larger at the Gate of a Gentleman's house in England. I 
 made a shift to keep the Key in a Pocket of my own, fearing 
 Glumdalditch might lose it. The Queen likewise ordered the 
 thinnest Silks that could be gotten, to make me Cloaths, not 
 much thicker than an English Blanket, very cumbersome till 
 I was accustomed to them. They were after the fashion of 
 the Kingdom, partly resembling the Persian, and partly the 
 Chinese, and are a very grave decent Habit. 
 
 The Queen became so fond of my company, that she 
 could not dine without me. I had a Table placed upon the 
 same at which her Majesty eat, just at her Left elbow, and 
 a Chair to sit on. Glumdalditch stood upon a Stool on 
 the Floor, near my Table, to assist and take care of me. I 
 had an entire Set of Silver Dishes and Plates, and other 
 Necessaries, which in proportion to those of the Queen, were 
 not much bigger than what I have seen of the same kind in 
 a London Toy-shop, for the furniture of a Baby-house : These 
 my little Nurse kept in her pocket in a Silver Box, and gave 
 me at meals as I wanted them, always cleaning them herself. 
 No Person dined with the Queen but the Two Princesses 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 117 
 
 Royal, the elder Sixteen years 'old, and the younger at that 
 time Thirteen and a month. Her Majesty used to put a bit 
 of meat upon one of my dishes, out of which I carved for 
 myself; and her diversion was to see me eat in Miniature. 
 For the Queen (who had indeed but a weak stomach) took 
 up at one mouthful, as much as a dozen English Farmers 
 could eat at a meal, which to me was for some time a very 
 nauseous sight. ■ She would craunch the Wing of a Lark, 
 bones and all, between her teeth, although it were Nine 
 times as large as that of a full grown Turkey ; and put a bit 
 of Bread in her mouth, as big as Two Twelvepenny Loaves. 
 She drank out of a golden Cup, above a Hogshead at a 
 draught. Her Knives were twice as long as a Scythe set 
 strait upon the handle ; the Spoons, Forks, and other 
 Instruments were all in the same proportion. I remember 
 when Glumdalditch carried me out of curiosity to see some 
 of the Tables at Court, where Ten or a Dozen of these 
 enormous Knives and Forks were lifted up together, I 
 thought I had never till then beheld so terrible a sight. 
 
 It is the custom that every Wednesday (which, as I have 
 before observed, was their Sabbath) the King and Queen, 
 with the Royal Issue of both sexes, dine together in the 
 apartment of his Majesty, to whom I was now become a 
 great Favourite ; and at these Times my little Chair and 
 Table were placed at his Left hand before one of the Salt- 
 sellers. This Prince took a pleasure in conversing with me, 
 enquiring into the Manners, Religion, Laws, Government, 
 and Learning of Europe, wherein I gave him the best 
 account I was able. His Apprehension was so clear, and his 
 Judgment so exact, that he made very wise Reflexions and 
 Observations upon all I said. But, I confess, that after I 
 had been a little too copious in talking of my own beloved 
 Countrey, of our Trade, and Wars by Sea and Land, of our 
 Schisms in Religion, and Parties in the State ; the Prejudices 
 of his education prevailed so far, that he could not forbear 
 taking me up in his Right hand, and stroaking me gently with 
 the other, after an hearty Fit of laughing, asked me whether I 
 
n8 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 were a Whig or a Tory. Then turning to his First Minister, 
 who waited behind him with a White staff, near as tall as the 
 
 ' Twning to his First Minister.' 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 Main-mast of the Royal Soverain ; he observed how con- 
 temptible a Thing was human Grandeur, which could be 
 mimicked by such diminutive insects as I : And yet, said he, 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 119 
 
 I dare engage, these Creatures have their Titles and Distinc- 
 tions of Honour, they contrive little Nests and Burrows, that 
 they call Houses and Cities ; they make a figure in Dress 
 and Equipage ; they love, they fight, they dispute, they 
 cheat, they betray. And thus he continued on, while my 
 colour came and went several times with indignation to hear 
 our noble Countrey, the Mistress of Arts and Arms, the 
 Scourge of France^ the Arbitress of Europe, the Seat of 
 Virtue, Piety, Honour, and Truth, the Pride and Envy of the 
 World, so contemptuously treated. 
 
 But, as I was not in a condition to resent Injuries, so, 
 upon mature thoughts, I began to doubt whether I were 
 injured or no. For, after having been accustomed several 
 months to the sight and converse of this people, and 
 observed every object upon which I cast mine eyes to be of 
 proportionable Magnitude, the Horror I had first conceived 
 from their Bulk and Aspect was so far worn off, that if I 
 had then beheld a company of English Lords and Ladies in 
 their Finery and Birth-day Cloaths, acting their several Parts 
 in the most courtly manner of Strutting, and Bowing, and 
 Prating ; to say the truth, I should have been strongly 
 tempted to laugh as much at them as this King and his 
 Grandees did at me. Neither indeed could I forbear smiling 
 at myself, when the Queen used to place me upon her hand 
 towards a Looking-glass, by which both our Persons appeared 
 before me in full view together ; and there could nothing be 
 more ridiculous than the Comparison : So that I really began 
 to imagine myself dwindled many degrees below my usual size. 
 
 Nothing angred and mortified me so much as the 
 Queen's Dwarf, who being of the lowest stature that was ever 
 in that countrey (for I verily think he was not full Thirty foot 
 high) became insolent at seeing a Creature so much beneath 
 him, that he would always affect to swagger and look big as 
 he passed by me in the Queen's Antichamber, while I was 
 standing on some Table talking with the Lords or Ladies of 
 the Court, and he seldom failed of a small word or two upon 
 
120 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 my Littleness ; against which I could only revenge myself by 
 calling him Brother, challenging him to wrestle, and such 
 Repartees as are usual in the mouths of Court Pages. One 
 day at dinner this malicious little Cubb was so nettled with 
 something I had said to him, that raising himself upon the 
 Frame of her Majesty's Chair, he took me up by the middle, 
 as I was sitting down, not thinking any harm, and let me 
 drop into a large Silver Bowl of Cream, and then ran away as 
 fast as he could. I fell over head and ears, and if I had not 
 been a good swimmer, it might have gone very hard with 
 me ; for Glumdalditch in that instant happened to be at the 
 other end of the room, and the Queen was in such a Fright 
 that she wanted Presence of mind to assist me. But my 
 little Nurse ran to my relief, and took me out, after I had 
 swallowed above a Quart of Cream. I was put to bed ; 
 however I received no other damage than the loss of a Suit of 
 Cloaths, which was utterly spoiled. The Dwarf was soundly 
 whipped, and as a further Punishment, forced to drink up 
 the Bowl of cream, into which he had thrown me ; neither 
 was he ever restored to favour : For, soon after the Queen 
 bestowed him to a Lady of high Quality, so that I saw him 
 no more, to my very great satisfaction ; for I could not tell to 
 what extremity such a malicious Urchin might have carried 
 his resentment. 
 
 He had before served me a scurvy trick, which set the 
 Queen a laughing, although at the same time she were 
 heartily vexed, and would have immediately cashiered him, if 
 I had not been so generous as to intercede. Her Majesty 
 had taken a Marrow-bone upon her Plate, and after knocking 
 out the Marrow, placed the Bone again in the Dish erect as 
 it stood before ; the Dwarf watching his opportunity, while 
 Glu?ndalclitch was gone to the side-board, mounted upon the 
 Stool she stood on to take care of me at meals, took me up 
 in both hands, and squeezing my legs together, wedged them 
 into the Marrow-bone above my Waste, where I stuck for 
 some time, and made a very ridiculous figure. I believe it 
 was near a minute before any one knew what was become of 
 
CHAP. Ill 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 me, for I thought it below me to cry out. But, as Princes 
 seldom get their meat hot, my legs were not scalded, only 
 my stockings and breeches in a sad condition. The Dwarf 
 at my entreaty had no other punishment than a sound 
 Whipping. 
 
 I was frequently rallied by the Queen upon account of my 
 
 ' A scurvy trick.' 
 
 Fearfulness, and she used to ask me whether the People of 
 my countrey were as great Cowards as myself. The occasion 
 was this. The Kingdom is much pestered with Flies in 
 summer, and these odious Insects, each of them as big as a 
 Dunstable Lark, hardly gave me any rest while I sat at dinner, 
 with their continual humming and buzzing about mine ears. 
 They would sometimes alight upon my victuals. Sometimes 
 
122 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 they would fix upon my Nose or Forehead, where they 
 stung me to the quick, smelling very offensively, and I could 
 easily trace that viscous matter, which our Naturalists tell us 
 enables those Creatures to walk with their feet upwards upon 
 
 Came flying into the room.' 
 
 a cieling. I had much ado to defend myself against these 
 detestable Animals, and could not forbear starting when they 
 came on my face. It was the common practice of the Dwarf 
 to catch a number of these Insects in his hand, as School- 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 123 
 
 boys do among us, and let them out suddenly under my nose on 
 purpose to frighten me, and divert the Queen. My Remedy 
 was to cut them in pieces with my Knife as they flew in the 
 air, wherein my Dexterity was much admired. 
 
 I remember one morning when Glumdaklitch had set me 
 in my box upon a Window, as she usually did in fair days to 
 give me air (for I durst not venture to let the Box be hung 
 on a Nail out of the Window, as we do with Cages in 
 England) after I had lifted up one of my Sashes, and sat 
 down at my table to eat a piece of Sweet Cake for my 
 Breakfast, above Twenty Wasps, allured by the smell, came 
 flying into the room, humming louder than the Drones of as 
 many Bagpipes. Some of them seized my Cake, and carried 
 it piece-meal away, others flew about my Head and Face, 
 confounding me with the noise, and putting me in the 
 utmost terror of their Stings. However I had the Courage 
 to rise and draw my Hanger, and attack them in the air. I 
 dispatched Four of them, but the rest got away, and I 
 presently shut my Window. These Creatures were as large 
 as Partridges, I took out their Stings, found them an Inch 
 and a Half long, and as sharp as Needles. I carefully 
 preserved them all, and having since shewn them with some 
 other curiosities in several parts of Europe ; upon my return 
 to England I gave Three of them to Greskam College, and 
 kept the Fourth for myself. 
 
CHAP. IV 
 
 The Countrey described. A Proposal for correcting modern Maps. The 
 King's Palace, and some Account of the Metropolis. The Author s 
 way of travelling. The chief Temple described. 
 
 I now intend to give the reader a short Description of this 
 countrey, as far as I travelled in it, which was not above 
 Two thousand miles round Lorbrulgrud the Metropolis. For, 
 the Queen, whom I always attended, never went further 
 when she accompanied the King in his Progresses, and there 
 staid till his Majesty returned from viewing his Frontiers. 
 The whole Extent of this Prince's dominions reaching about 
 Six thousand miles in Length, and from Three to Five in 
 Breadth. From whence I cannot but conclude that our 
 Geographers of Europe are in a great error, by supposing 
 nothing but Sea between Japan and California ; for it was 
 ever my opinion, that there must be a balance of earth to 
 counterpoise the great Continent of Tartary ; and therefore 
 they ought to correct their Maps and Charts, by joining this 
 vast Tract of Land to the North-west parts of America, 
 wherein I shall be ready to lend them my assistance. 
 
 The Kingdom is a Peninsula, terminated to the North- 
 east by a Ridge of Mountains Thirty miles high, which are 
 altogether impassable by reason of the Volcanoes upon the 
 tops. Neither do the most Learned know what sort of 
 mortals inhabit beyond those mountains, or whether they be 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 125 
 
 inhabited at all. On the Three other sides it is bounded by 
 the Ocean. There is not one Seaport in the whole Kingdom, 
 and those Parts of the Coasts into which the Rivers issue are 
 so full of pointed Rocks, and the Sea generally so rough, that 
 there is no venturing with the smallest of their Boats, so 
 that these people are wholly excluded from any Commerce 
 with the rest of the world. But the large Rivers are full of 
 Vessels, and abound with excellent Fish, for they seldom get 
 any from the Sea, because the Sea-fish are of the same size 
 with those in Europe, and consequently not worth catching ; 
 whereby it is manifest, that Nature in the Production of 
 Plants and Animals of so extraordinary a bulk is wholly 
 confined to this Continent, of which I leave the reasons to 
 be determined by Philosophers. However, now and then 
 they take a Whale that happens to be dashed against the 
 Rocks, which the common people feed on heartily. These 
 Whales I have known so large that a Man could hardly carry 
 one upon his Shoulders^ and sometimes for curiosity they are 
 brought in Hampers to Lorbrulgrud : I saw one of them in a 
 Dish at the King's Table, which passed for a Rarity, but I 
 did not observe he was fond of it ; for I think indeed the 
 Bigness disgusted him, although I have seen one somewhat 
 larger in Greenland. 
 
 The Country is well inhabited, for it contains Fifty-one 
 Cities, near an Hundred walled Towns, and a great number 
 of Villages. To satisfy my curious reader, it may be 
 sufficient to describe Lorbrulgrud. This City stands upon 
 almost Two equal Parts on each side the River that passes 
 through. It contains above Eighty thousand Houses, and 
 about Six hundred thousand Inhabitants. It is in length 
 Three Glongluns (which make about Fifty-four English Miles) 
 and Two and a half in breadth, as I measured it myself 
 in the Royal Map made by the King's Order, which was laid 
 on the ground on purpose for me, and extended an Hundred 
 Feet ; I paced the Diameter and Circumference several times 
 barefoot, and computing by the Scale, measured it pretty 
 exactly. 
 
126 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 The King's Palace is no regular Edifice, but an heap of 
 Buildings about Seven miles round : The chief Rooms are 
 generally Two hundred and Forty foot high, and broad and 
 long in proportion. A Coach was allowed to Ghwidalclitch 
 and me, wherein her Governess frequently took her out to see 
 the town, or go among the shops ; and I was always of the 
 party, carried in my Box ; although the Girl at my own desire 
 would often take me out, and hold me in her hand, that I 
 might more conveniently view the Houses and the People 
 as we passed along the Streets. I reckoned our Coach to 
 be about a Square of Westminster-Hall, but not altogether 
 so high ; however, I cannot be very exact. One day the 
 Governess ordered our Coachman to stop at several Shops, 
 where the Beggars, watching their opportunity, crouded to 
 the sides of the Coach, and gave me the most horrible 
 Spectacles that ever an English Eye beheld. 
 
 Beside the large Box in which I was usually carried, the 
 Queen ordered a smaller one to be made for me, of about 
 Twelve foot square, and Ten high, for the convenience of 
 travelling, because the other was somewhat too large for 
 Glumdalclitch 's Lap, and cumbersome in the Coach ; it was 
 made by the same Artist, whom I directed in the whole 
 contrivance. This travelling Closet was an exact Square with 
 a Window in the middle of Three of the Squares, and each 
 Window was latticed with Iron Wire on the outside, to 
 prevent accidents in long journies. On the fourth side, 
 which had no Window, two strong Staples were fixed, 
 through which the Person that carried me, when I had a 
 mind to be on horseback, put in a Leathern Belt, and 
 buckled it about his Waste. This was always the office of 
 some grave trusty Servant in whom I could confide, whether 
 I attended the King and Queen in their Progresses, or were 
 disposed to see the Gardens, or pay a visit to some great 
 Lady or Minister of State in the Court, when Glumdalclitch 
 happened to be out of order : For I soon began to be known 
 and esteemed among the greatest Officers, I suppose more 
 upon account of their Majesty's Favour than any Merit of 
 
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 127 
 
 my own. In journies, when I was weary of the Coach, a 
 Servant on horseback would buckle my Box, and place it on 
 a Cushion before him ; and there I had a full Prospect of the 
 Countrey on Three Sides from my Three Windows. I had 
 in this Closet a Field-bed and a Hammock hung from the 
 Cieling, Two Chairs and a Table, neatly screwed to the 
 Floor, to prevent being tossed about by the Agitation of the 
 Horse or the Coach. And having been long used to Sea- 
 
 ' The People were very curious.' 
 
 Voyages, those Motions, although sometimes very violent, did 
 not much discompose me. 
 
 Whenever I had a mind to see the Town, it was always 
 in my Travelling-Closet, which Glumdalditch held in her Lap 
 in a kind of open Sedan, after the fashion of the countrey, 
 born by Four Men, and attended by Two others in the 
 
128 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 Queen's Livery. The People who had often heard of me, 
 were very curious to croud about the Sedan, and the Girl 
 was complaisant enough to make the Bearers stop, and to 
 take me in her hand that I might be more conveniently 
 
 I was very desirous to see the chief Temple, and particu- 
 larly the Tower belonging to it, which is reckoned the highest 
 in the Kingdom. Accordingly one day my Nurse carried me 
 thither, but I may truly say I came back disappointed ; for, 
 the height is not above Three thousand foot, and reckoning 
 from the Ground to the highest Pinnacle top ; which allowing 
 for the difference between the size of those people, and us in 
 Europe, is no great matter for admiration, nor at all equal in 
 proportion (if I rightly remember) to Salisbury Steeple. But, 
 not to detract from a Nation to which during my life I shall 
 acknowledge myself extremely obliged, it must be allowed 
 that whatever this famous Tower wants in Height is amply 
 made up in Beauty and Strength. For the Walls are near an 
 Hundred foot thick, built of hewn Stone, whereof each is 
 about Forty foot square, and adorned on all sides with Statues 
 of Gods and Emperors cut in Marble larger than the Life, 
 placed in their several Niches. I measured a Little finger 
 which had fallen down from one of these Statues, and lay 
 unperceived among some rubbish, and found it exactly Four 
 foot and an inch in length. Glumdalclitch wrapped it up in 
 a Handkerchief, and carried it home in her Pocket to keep 
 among other Trinkets, of which the Girl was very fond, as 
 Children at her age usually are. 
 
 The King's Kitchen is indeed a noble Building, vaulted at 
 top, and about Six hundred foot high. The great Oven is not 
 so wide by Ten paces as the Cupola at St. Paul's : For I 
 measured the latter on purpose after my return. But if I 
 should describe the Kitchen-grate, the prodigious Pots and 
 Kettles, the joints of Meat turning on the Spits, with many 
 other particulars, perhaps I should be hardly believed ■ at 
 least a severe Critick would be apt to think I enlarged a little, 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 129 
 
 as Travellers are often suspected to do. To avoid which 
 censure, I fear I have run too much into the other extream ; 
 and that if this Treatise should happen to be translated into 
 the Language of Brobdingnag (which is the general name of 
 that Kingdom) and transmitted thither, the King and his 
 People would have reason to complain that I had done them 
 an injury by a false and diminutive Representation. 
 
 His Majesty seldom keeps above Six hundred Horses in his 
 Stables : They are generally from Fifty-four to Sixty foot high. 
 But, when he goes abroad on solemn days, he is attended for 
 state by a Militia Guard of five hundred Horse, which indeed 
 I thought was the most splendid Sight that could be ever 
 beheld, till I saw part of his Army in Battalia, whereof I shall 
 find another occasion to speak. 
 
CHAR V 
 
 Several Adventures that happened to the Author. The Execution of a 
 Criminal. The Author shews his Skill in Navigation. 
 
 I should have lived happy enough in that countrey, if my 
 Littleness had not exposed me to several ridiculous and 
 troublesome accidents ; some of which I shall venture to 
 relate. Glumdalclitch often carried me into the Gardens of 
 the Court in my smaller Box, and would sometimes take me 
 out of it and hold me in her hand, or set me down to walk. 
 I remember, before the Dwarf left the Queen, he followed us 
 one day into those Gardens, and my Nurse having set me 
 down, he and I being close together, near some Dwarf Apple- 
 trees, I must need shew my Wit by a silly Allusion between 
 him and the Trees, which happens to hold in their language 
 as it doth in ours. Whereupon, the malicious Rogue watch- 
 ing his opportunity, when I was walking under one of them, 
 shook it directly over my Head, by which a dozen Apples, 
 each of them near as large as a Bristol Barrel, came tumbling 
 about my ears ; one of them hit me on the back as I chanced 
 to stoop, and knocked me down flat on my face ; but I 
 received no other hurt, and the Dwarf was pardoned at my 
 desire, because I had given the Provocation. 
 
 Another day Gktfn'dalclitch left me on a smooth Grass-plot 
 to divert myself while she walked at some distance with her 
 Governess. In the mean time there suddenly fell such a 
 violent shower of Hail, that I was immediately by the force 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 131 
 
 of it struck to the ground : And when I was down, the Hail- 
 stones gave me such cruel bangs all over the body, as if I 
 had been pelted with Tennis-balls ; however I made a shift to 
 creep on all Four, and shelter myself by lying flat on my face 
 
 
 ' One of them hit me on the back.' 
 
 on the Lee -side of a border of Lemmon Thyme, but so 
 bruised from head to foot that I could not go abroad in Ten 
 days. Neither is this at all to be wondered at, because 
 Nature in that Countrey observing the same proportion 
 
1 32 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 through all her operations, a Hail-stone is near Eighteen 
 hundred times as large as one in Europe, which I can assert 
 upon experience, having been so curious to weigh and measure 
 them. 
 
 But, a more dangerous Accident happened to me in the 
 same Garden, when my little Nurse believing she had put me 
 in a secure Place, which I often entreated her to do, that I 
 might enjoy my own thoughts, and having left my Box at 
 home to avoid the trouble of carrying it, went to another part 
 of the Garden with her Governess and some Ladies of her 
 acquaintance. While she was absent and out of hearing, a 
 small white Spaniel belonging to one of the chief Gardiners, 
 having got by accident into the Garden, happened to range 
 near the Place where I lay. The Dog following the Scent, 
 came directly up, and taking me in his mouth ran strait to his 
 Master, wagging his tail, and set me gently on the ground. 
 By good fortune he had been so well taught, that I was carried 
 between his Teeth without the least hurt, or even tearing 
 my clothes. But, the poor Gardiner, who knew me well, and 
 had a great kindness for me, was in a terrible fright. He 
 gently took me up in both his hands, and asked me how I 
 did ; but I was so amazed and out of Breath, that I could not 
 speak a word. In a few minutes I came to myself, and he 
 carried me safe to my little Nurse, who by this time had re- 
 turned to the Place where she left me, and was in cruel agonies 
 when I did not appear, nor answer when she called ; she 
 severely reprimanded the Gardiner on account of his Dog. 
 But, the thing was hushed up, and never known at Court ; 
 for the Girl was afraid of the Queen's Anger, and truly as to 
 myself, I thought it would not be for my reputation that such 
 a story should go about. 
 
 This Accident absolutely determined Glumdalditch never 
 to trust me abroad for the future out of her sight. I had 
 been long afraid of this Resolution, and therefore concealed 
 from her some little unlucky Adventures that happened in 
 those times when I was left by myself. Once a Kite hovering 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 over the Garden made a stoop at me, and if I had not resol- 
 utely drawn my Hanger, and run under a thick Espalier, he 
 would have certainly carried me away in his talons. Another 
 time walking to the top of a fresh Mole-hill, I fell to my neck 
 in the hole through which that Animal had cast up the earth, 
 and coined some Lye not worth remembring, to excuse my- 
 
 ' Broke my Right shin against the shell of a Snail.' 
 
 self for spoiling my cloaths. I likewise broke my Right shin 
 against the shell of a Snail, which I happened to stumble 
 over, as I was walking alone, and thinking on poor England. 
 
 I cannot tell whether I were more pleased or mortified to 
 observe in those solitary Walks, that the smaller Birds did 
 not appear to be at all afraid of me, but would hop about 
 within a Yard distance, looking for worms, and other food with 
 
m 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 as much Indifference and Security as if no creature at all were 
 near them. I remember, a Thrush had the confidence to 
 snatch out of my hand with his Bill a piece of Cake that 
 Glumdalclitch had just given me for my breakfast. When I 
 attempted to catch any of these Birds, they would boldly turn 
 against me, endeavouring to pick my fingers, which I durst 
 not venture within their reach ; and then they would turn 
 back unconcerned to hunt for Worms or Snails, as they did 
 before. But, one day I took a thick Cudgel, and threw it 
 with all my strength so luckily at a Linnet, that I knocked 
 him down, and seizing him by the neck with both my hands, 
 ran with him in triumph to my Nurse. However, the Bird, 
 who had only been stunned, recovering himself, gave me so 
 many Boxes with his Wings on both sides of my head and 
 Body, though I held him at Arm's length, and was out of the 
 reach of his Claws, that I was Twenty times thinking to let 
 him go. But I was soon relieved by one of our Servants, who 
 wrung off the Bird's Neck, and I had him next day for dinner 
 by the Queen's command. This Linnet, as near as I can 
 remember, seemed to be somewhat larger than an English 
 Swan. 
 
 One day, a young Gentleman who was Nephew to my Nurse's 
 Governess, came and pressed them both to see an Execution. 
 It was of a Man who had' murdered one of that Gentleman's 
 intimate acquaintance. Glumdalclitch was prevailed on to be 
 of the company, very much against her inclination, for she 
 was naturally tender-hearted : And, as for myself, although. I 
 abhorred such kind of spectacles, yet my curiosity tempted 
 me to see something that I thought must be extraordinary. 
 The Malefactor was fixed in a Chair upon a Scaffold erected 
 for the purpose, and his Head cut off at a blow with a Sword 
 of about Forty foot long. The Veins and Arteries spouted 
 up such a prodigious quantity of blood, and so high in the 
 air, that the great Jett d'eau at Versailles was not equal for 
 the time it lasted ; and the Head when it fell on the Scaffold 
 floor, gave such a bounce, as made me start, although I were 
 at least Half an English mile distant. 
 
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 135 
 
 The Queen, who often used to hear me talk of my Sea 
 Voyages, and took all occasions to divert me when I was 
 melancholy ; asked me whether I understood how to handle a 
 
 ' Gave me a Gale with their Fans. 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 Sail or an Oar, and whether a little exercise of Rowing might 
 not be convenient for my health. I answered, that I under- 
 stood both very well. For although my proper Employment 
 had been to be Surgeon or Doctor to the Ship, yet often 
 
136 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG tart ii 
 
 upon a pinch, I was forced to work like a common Mariner. 
 But, I could not see how this could be done in their countrey, 
 where the smallest Wherry was equal to a First rate Man of War 
 among us, and such a Boat as I could manage would never 
 live in any of their Rivers : Her Majesty said, if I would con- 
 trive a Boat, her own Joyner should make it, and she would 
 provide a place for me to sail in. The Fellow was an 
 ingenious Workman, and by my instructions in Ten days 
 finished a Pleasure-boat with all its Tackling, able conveniently 
 to hold Eight Europeans. When it was finished, the Queen 
 was so delighted, that she ran with it in her Lap to the King, 
 who ordered it to be put in a Cistern full of Water, with me in 
 it, by way of tryal, where I could not manage my two Sculls 
 or little Oars for want of room. But, the Queen had before 
 contrived another Project. She ordered the Joyner to make a 
 wooden Trough of Three hundred foot long, Fifty broad, and 
 Eight deep ; which being well pitched to prevent leaking, was 
 placed on the floor along the Wall, in an outer room of the 
 Palace. It had a Cock near the bottom to let out the Water 
 when it began to grow stale, and Two Servants could easily fill 
 it in Half an hour. Here I often used to row for my own 
 diversion, as well as that of the Queen and her Ladies, who 
 thought themselves well entertained with my skill and agility. 
 Sometimes I would put up my Sail, and then my business was 
 only to steer, while the Ladies gave me a Gale with their 
 Fans ; and when they were weary, some of the Pages would 
 blow my Sail forward with their breath, while I shewed my 
 Art by steering Starboard or Larboard as I pleased. When. I 
 had done, Glnmdaklitch always carried back my Boat into her 
 Closet, and hung it on a Nail to dry. 
 
 In this exercise I once met an accident which had like to 
 have cost me my life. For, one of the Pages having put my 
 Boat into the Trough, the Governess who attended Glwndal- 
 ditch, very officiously lifted me up to place me in the Boat, but 
 I happened to slip through her Fingers, and should have infal- 
 libly fallen down Forty foot upon the Floor, if by the luckiest 
 chance in the world, I had not been stopp'd by a Corking- 
 
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 137 
 
 pin that stuck in the good Gentlewoman's Stomacher ; the 
 Head of the Pin passed between my Shirt and the Waste-band 
 of my Breeches, and thus I was held by the middle in the air 
 till Glwndahiitch ran to my relief. 
 
 
 ' The Frog climbed up.'' 
 
 Another time, one of the Servants, whose Office it was to 
 fill my Trough every Third day with fresh Water, was so 
 careless to let a huge Frog (not perceiving it) slip out of his 
 Pail. The Frog lay concealed till I was put into my Boat, 
 but then seeing a resting Place, climbed up, and made it lean 
 
138 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 so much on one side, that I was forced to balance it with all 
 my weight on the other, to prevent overturning. When the 
 Frog was got in, it hopped at once Half the length of the Boat, 
 and then over my Head, backwards and forwards, dawbing 
 my Face and Clothes with its odious Slime. The largeness 
 of its Features made it appear the most deformed Animal 
 that can be conceived. However, I desired Glumdalclitch to 
 let me deal with it alone. I banged it a good while with one 
 of my Sculls, and at last forced it to leap out of the Boat. 
 
 But, the greatest Danger I ever underwent in that kingdom, 
 was from a Monkey, who belonged to one of the Clerks 
 of the Kitchen. Glumdalclitch had locked me up in . her 
 Closet, while she went somewhere upon business or a visit. 
 The Weather being very warm, the Closet Window was left 
 open, as well as the Windows and the Door of my bigger 
 Box, in which I usually lived, because of its Largeness and 
 Conveniency. As I sat quietly meditating at my table, I heard 
 something bounce in at the Closet Window, and skip about 
 from one side to the other ; whereat although I was much 
 alarmed, yet I ventured to look out, but stirred not from my 
 seat ; and then I saw this frolicksome Animal, frisking 
 and leaping up and down till at last he came to my Box, 
 which he seemed to view with great pleasure and curiosity, 
 peeping in at the door and every window. I retreated to the 
 farther corner of my Room, or Box, but the Monkey looking 
 in at every side, put me into such a fright, that I wanted 
 presence of Mind to conceal myself under the Bed, as I might 
 easily have done. After some time spent in peeping, 
 grinning, and chattering, he at last espyed me, and reaching 
 one of his paws in at the door, as a Cat does when she plays 
 with a Mouse, although I often shifted place to avoid him, he 
 at length caught hold of the Lappet of my Coat (which being 
 made of that Countrey Cloth, was very thick and strong) and 
 dragged me out. He took me up in his right Fore-foot and 
 held me as a Nurse does a Child she is going to suckle, just 
 as I have seen the same sort of Creature do with a Kitten in 
 Europe : And when I offered to struggle, he squeezed me so 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 139 
 
 hard, that I thought it more prudent to submit. I have good 
 reason to believe that he took me for a young one of his own 
 Species, by his often stroaking my Face very gently with his 
 other paw. In these Diversions he was interrupted by a 
 
 
 II e dragged me ozet.' 
 
 Noise at the Closet Door, as if some body were opening it ; 
 whereupon he suddenly leaped up to the Window at which 
 he had come in, and thence upon the Leads and Gutters, 
 walking upon Three Legs, and holding me in the fourth, till 
 he clamber'd up to a Roof that was next to ours. I heard 
 
140 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part 11 
 
 Glumdalclitch give a shreek at the moment he was carrying 
 me out. The poor Girl was almost distracted : That quarter 
 of the Palace was all in an uproar ; the Servants ran for 
 Ladders ; the Monkey was seen by hundreds in the Court 
 sitting upon the ridge of a Building, holding me like a Baby 
 in one of his Fore-paws, and feeding me with the other, by 
 cramming into my mouth some Victuals he had squeezed out 
 of the Bag on one side of his Chaps, and patting me when I 
 would not eat ; whereat many of the Rabble below could not 
 forbear laughing ; neither do I think they justly ought to be 
 blamed, for without question the Sight was ridiculous enough 
 to everybody but myself. Some of the people threw up 
 Stones, hoping to drive the Monkey down ; but this was 
 strictly forbidden, or else very probably my Brains had been 
 dashed out. 
 
 The Ladders were now applied, and mounted by several 
 Men, which the Monkey observing, and finding himself almost 
 encompassed ; not being able to make speed enough with his 
 Three legs, let me drop on a ridge Tyle, and made his 
 escape. Here I sat for some time Three hundred Yards 
 from the ground, expecting every moment to be blown 
 down by the Wind, or to fall by my own Giddiness, and come 
 tumbling over and over from the Ridge to the Eeves. But 
 an honest Lad, one of my Nurse's Footmen, climbed up, 
 and putting me into his Breeches Pocket, brought me down 
 safe. 
 
 I was almost choaked with the filthy stuff the Monkey had 
 crammed down my throat ; but, my dear little Nurse picked 
 it out of my mouth with a small Needle, and then I fell a 
 vomiting, which gave me great relief. Yet I was so weak and 
 bruised in the sides with the Squeezes given me by this 
 odious Animal, that I was forced to keep my bed a Fortnight. 
 The King, Queen and all the Court sent every day to enquire 
 after my health, and her Majesty made me several Visits 
 during my sickness. The Monkey was killed, and an Order 
 made that no such Animal should be kept about the Palace. 
 
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 141 
 
 When I attended the King after my Recovery, to return 
 him thanks for his favours, he was pleased to rally me a good 
 deal upon this Adventure. He asked me what my Thoughts 
 and Speculations were while I lay in the Monkey's Paw, how 
 I liked the Victuals he gave me, his manner of Feeding, and 
 whether the fresh Air on the Roof had sharpned my Stomach. 
 He desired to know what I would have done upon such an 
 occasion in my own Countrey. I told his Majesty, that in 
 Europe we had no Monkeys, except such as were brought for 
 Curiosities from other places, and so small, that I could deal 
 with a dozen of them together, if they presumed to attack me. 
 And as for that monstrous Animal with whom I was so lately 
 engaged (it was indeed as large as an Elephant) if my Fears 
 had suffered me to think so far as to make use of my Hanger 
 (looking fiercely and clapping my Hand upon the Hilt as I 
 spoke) when he poked his Paw into my Chamber, perhaps I 
 should have given him such a Wound, as would have made 
 him glad to withdraw it with more haste than he put it 
 in. This I delivered in a firm tone, like a person who was 
 jealous lest his Courage should be called in question. How- 
 ever, my Speech produced nothing else besides a loud 
 Laughter, which all the Respect due to his Majesty from 
 those about him could not make them contain. This made 
 me reflect how vain an attempt it is for a man to endeavour 
 doing himself Honour among those who are out of all degree 
 of Equality or Comparison with him. And yet I have seen 
 the Moral of my own Behaviour very frequent in England 
 since my return, where a little contemptible Varlet, without 
 the least Title to Birth, Person, Wit, or common Sense, shall 
 presume to look with Importance, and put himself upon a 
 foot with the greatest Persons of the kingdom. 
 
 I was every day furnishing the court with some ridiculous 
 Story; and Glumdalditch, although she loved me to excess, yet 
 was arch enough to inform the Queen, whenever I committed 
 any folly that she thought would be diverting to her Majesty. 
 The Girl who had been out of order, was carried by her 
 Governess to take the air about an Hour's distance, or Thirty 
 
142 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 miles from town. They alighted out of the Coach near a 
 small Foot-path in a Field, and G'himdalditch setting down 
 my Travelling box, I went out of it to walk. There was a 
 Cow-dung in the path, and I must needs try my activity by 
 attempting to leap over it. I took a Run, but unfortunately 
 jumped short, and found myself just in the middle up to my 
 knees. I waded through with some difficulty, and one of the 
 Footmen wiped me as clean as he could with his Hand- 
 kerchief ; for I was filthily bemired, and my Nurse confined 
 me to my Box till we returned home ; where the Queen was 
 soon informed of what had passed, and the Footmen spread 
 it about the Court, so that all the Mirth, for some days, was 
 at my expence. 
 
CHAP. VI 
 
 Several Contrivances of the Author to please the King and Queen. He 
 
 shews his Skill in Mustek. The King enquires into the State of 
 
 Europe, which the Author relates to him. The King s Observations 
 thereon. 
 
 I used to attend the King's Levee once or twice a week, and 
 had often seen him under the Barber's hand, which indeed 
 was at first very terrible to behold. For, the Razor was 
 almost twice as long as an ordinary Scythe. His Majesty 
 according to the custom of the countrey was only shaved 
 twice a week. I once prevailed on the Barber to give me 
 some of the Suds or Lather, out of which I picked Forty or 
 Fifty of the strongest Stumps of hair. I then took a piece of 
 fine Wood, and cut it like the back of a Comb, making several 
 Holes in it at equal distance with as small a Needle as I 
 could get from Glumdalclitch. I fixed in the Stumps so 
 artificially, scraping and sloping them with my Knife towards 
 the points, that I made a very tolerable Comb ; which was a 
 seasonable supply, my own being so much broken in' the 
 teeth, that it was almost useless : Neither did I know any 
 Artist in that countrey so nice and exact, as would undertake 
 to make me another. 
 
 And this puts me in mind of an Amusement wherein I 
 spent many of my leisure hours. I desired the Queen's 
 Woman to save for me the Combings of her Majesty's 
 Hair, whereof in time I got a good quantity, and consulting 
 
144 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 with my Friend the Cabinet-maker, who had received 
 general orders to do little jobbs for me ; I directed him to 
 make Two Chair-frames, no larger than those I had in my 
 Box, and then to bore little Holes with a fine Awl round 
 those parts where I designed the Backs and Seats ; through 
 these holes I wove the strongest Hairs I could pick out, just 
 after the manner of Cane-chairs in England. When they 
 were finished, I made a present of them to her Majesty, who 
 kept them in her Cabinet, and used to shew them for 
 Curiosities, as indeed they were the wonder of every one that 
 beheld them. The Queen would have had me sit upon one of 
 these Chairs, but I absolutely refused to obey her, protesting 
 I would rather die a thousand deaths than place a dis- 
 honourable part of my body on those precious Hairs that 
 once adorned her Majesty's Head. Of these Hairs (as I had 
 always a Mechanical Genius) I likewise made a neat little 
 Purse about Five foot long, with her Majesty's Name de- 
 cyphered in Gold Letters, which I gave to Glumdalditch, by 
 the Queen's consent. To say the truth, it was more for 
 Shew than Use, being not of strength to bear the weight of 
 the larger Coins, and therefore she kept nothing in it, but 
 some little Toys that girls are fond of. 
 
 The King, who delighted in Musick, had frequent Con- 
 sorts at court, to which I was sometimes carried, and set 
 in my Box on a table to hear them : But, the Noise was 
 so great, that I could hardly distinguish the Tunes. I am 
 confident that all the Drums and Trumpets of a Royal Army, 
 beating and sounding together just at your ears, could not 
 equal it. My practice was to have my Box removed from 
 the places where the Performers sat, as far as I could, then 
 to shut the Doors and Windows of it, and draw the Window- 
 curtains, after which I found their Musick not disagreeable. 
 
 I had learned in my youth to play a little upon the 
 Spinet. Glumdalditch kept one in her chamber, and a 
 Master attended Twice a week to teach her : I call it a 
 Spinet, because it somewhat resembled that Instrument, and 
 
CHAP. VI 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 145 
 
 was play'd upon in the same manner. A fancy came into my 
 head that I would entertain the King and Queen with an 
 English Tune upon this Instrument. But this appeared 
 extremely difficult : For, the Spinet was near Sixty foot long, 
 
 ' The King had/7-equent Consorts at court.' 
 
 each Key being almost a Foot wide, so that, with my Arms 
 extended, I could not reach to above Five keys, and to press 
 them down required a good smart stroak with my fist, which 
 would be too great a labour, and to no purpose. The 
 Method I contrived was this ; I prepared Two round Sticks 
 
i 4 6 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 about the bigness of common Cudgels, they were thicker at 
 one end than the other, and I covered the thicker ends with 
 a piece of a Mouse's Skin, that by rapping on them, I might 
 neither damage the tops of the Keys, nor interrupt the 
 Sound. Before the Spinet a Bench was placed about Four 
 foot below the Keys, and I was put upon the Bench : I 
 ran sideling upon it that way and this, as fast as I could, 
 banging the proper Keys with my Two Sticks, and made a 
 shift to play a Jigg, to the great satisfaction of both their 
 Majesties : But, it was the most violent Exercise I ever 
 underwent, and yet I could not strike above Sixteen Keys, 
 nor, consequently, play the Bass and Treble together, as 
 other Artists do ; which was a great disadvantage to my 
 performance. 
 
 The King, who, as I before observed, was a Prince of 
 excellent understanding, would frequently order that I should 
 be brought in my Box, and set upon the table in his Closet. 
 He would then command me to bring one of my Chairs out 
 of the Box, and sit down within Three yards distance upon 
 the top of the cabinet, which brought me almost to a level 
 with his face. In this manner I had several conversations 
 with him. I one day took the freedom to tell his Majesty, 
 that the Contempt he discovered towards Europe^ and the 
 rest of the world, did not seem answerable to those excellent 
 Qualities of the Mind he was Master of. That, Reason did 
 not extend itself with the bulk of the Body : On the contrary, 
 we observed in our countrey that the Tallest persons were 
 usually least provided with it. That among other Animals, 
 Bees and Ants had the reputation of more Industry, Art, and 
 Sagacity than many of the larger kinds. And that, as 
 inconsiderable as he took me to be, I hoped I might live to 
 do his Majesty some signal service. The King heard me 
 with attention, and began to conceive a much better opinion 
 of me than he had ever before. He desired I would give 
 him as exact an account of the Government of England as I 
 possibly could ; because, as fond as Princes commonly are of 
 their own Customs (for so he conjectured of other Monarchs 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 147 
 
 by my former discourses) he should be glad to hear of any 
 thing that might deserve imitation. 
 
 Imagine with thyself, courteous Reader, how often I then 
 wished for the tongue of Demosthenes or Cicero, that might 
 have enabled me to celebrate the Praises of my own dear 
 native Countrey in a Stile equal to its Merits and Felicity. 
 
 I began my discourse by informing his Majesty that our 
 Dominions consisted of Two Islands, which composed Three 
 mighty Kingdoms under one Sovereign, besides our Plant- 
 ations in America. I dwelt long upon the Fertility of our 
 Soil, and the Temperature of our Climate. I then spoke at 
 large upon the Constitution of an English Parliament, partly 
 made up of an illustrious Body called the House of Peers, 
 Persons of the noblest Blood, and of the most ancient and 
 ample Patrimonies. I described that extraordinary Care 
 always taken of their Education in Arts and Arms, to qualify 
 them for being Counsellors born to the King and Kingdom, 
 to have a share in the Legislature, to be Members of the 
 highest Court of Judicature from whence there could be no 
 Appeal ; and to be Champions always ready for the defence 
 of their Prince and Countrey by their Valour, Conduct and 
 Fidelity. That these were the Ornament and Bulwark of 
 the kingdom, worthy Followers of their most renowned 
 Ancestors, whose Honour had been the Reward of their 
 Virtue, from which their Posterity were never once known to 
 degenerate. To these were joined several holy Persons, as 
 part of that Assembly, under the Title of Bishops, whose 
 peculiar business it is, to take care of Religion, and of those 
 who instruct the people therein. These were searched and 
 sought out through the whole Nation, by the Prince and his 
 wisest Counsellors, among such of the Priesthood as were 
 most deservedly distinguished by the Sanctity of their Lives, 
 and the Depth of their Erudition ; who were indeed the 
 spiritual Fathers of the Clergy and the People. 
 
 That, the other part of the Parliament consisted of an 
 
148 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part 11 
 
 Assembly called the House of Commons, who were all 
 principal Gentlemen, freely picked and culled out by the 
 people themselves, for their great Abilities, and Love of their 
 Countrey, to represent the Wisdom of the whole Nation. 
 And, these Two Bodies make up the most august Assembly 
 in Europe, to whom, in conjunction with the Prince, the 
 whole Legislature is committed. 
 
 I then descended to the Courts of Justice, over which the 
 Judges, those venerable Sages and Interpreters of the Law, 
 presided, for determining the disputed Rights and Properties 
 of Men, as well as for the Punishment of Vice, and Protection 
 of Innocence. I mentioned the prudent Management of 
 our Treasury ; the Valour and Atchievements of our Forces 
 by Sea and Land. I computed the Number of our People, 
 by reckoning how many Millions there might be of each 
 Religious Sect, or Political Party among us. I did not omit 
 even our Sports and Pastimes, or any other Particular which 
 I thought might redound to the Honour of my Countrey. 
 And, I finished all with a brief historical account of Affairs 
 and Events in England for about an Hundred years past. 
 
 This Conversation was not ended under Five Audiences, 
 each of several hours, and the King heard the whole with 
 great attention, frequently taking Notes of what I spoke, as 
 well as Memorandums of several Questions he intended to 
 ask me. 
 
 When I had put an end to these long discourses, his 
 Majesty in a Sixth Audience consulting his notes, proposed 
 many Doubts, Queries, and Objections, upon every Article. 
 He asked, what Methods were used to cultivate the Minds 
 and Bodies of our young Nobility, and in what kind of 
 Business they commonly spent the first and teachable part of 
 their Lives ? What Course was taken to supply that Assembly 
 when any noble Family became extinct ? What Qualifications 
 were necessary in those who were to be created new Lords ? 
 Whether the Humour of the Prince, a Sum of Money to a 
 
aifhRKiif ;■- 
 
 \i §!vgi,> - ■-' I Vr-' 'if. ; 
 
 -fiT/j Majesty proposed 'many Doubts. 
 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &■ Co. 
 
iSo A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 Court-Lady, or a Prime Minister, or a Design of strengthning 
 a Party opposite to the publick Interest, ever happened to 
 be motives in those Advancements ? What Share of Know- 
 ledge these Lords had in the Laws of their Countrey, and 
 how they came by it, so as to enable them to decide the 
 Properties of their Fellow-subjects in the last Resort ? Whether 
 they were always so free from Avarice, Partialities, or Want, 
 that a Bribe, or some other sinister View, could have no 
 place among them ? Whether those holy Lords I spoke of 
 were always promoted to that Rank upon account of their 
 Knowledge in religious Matters, and the Sanctity of their 
 Lives, had never been Compilers with the times while they 
 were common Priests, or slavish prostitute Chaplains to some 
 Nobleman, whose Opinions they continued servilely to follow 
 after they were admitted into that Assembly ? 
 
 He then desired to know what Arts were practised in 
 electing those whom I called Commoners : Whether, a 
 Stranger with a strong Purse might not influence the vulgar 
 Voters to chuse him before their own Landlord, or the most 
 considerable Gentleman in the Neighbourhood ? How it came 
 to pass, that People were so violently bent upon getting into 
 this Assembly, which I allowed to be a great Trouble and 
 Expence, often to the Ruin of their Families, without any 
 Salary or Pension ? Because this appeared such an exalted 
 strain of Virtue and publick Spirit, that his Majesty seemed 
 to doubt it might possibly not be always sincere : And he 
 desired to know whether such zealous Gentlemen could 
 have any views of refunding themselves for the Charges and 
 Trouble they were at, by sacrificing the publick Good to the 
 Designs of a weak and vicious Prince in conjunction with a 
 corrupted Ministry. He multiplied his Questions, and sifted 
 me thoroughly upon every part of this Head, proposing 
 numberless Enquiries and Objections, which I think it not 
 prudent or convenient to repeat. 
 
 Upon what I said in relation to our Courts of Justice, his 
 Majesty desired to be satisfied in several points : And, this I 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 151 
 
 was the better able to do, having been formerly almost ruined 
 by a long Suit in Chancery, which was decreed for me with 
 Costs. He asked, What Time was usually spent in deter- 
 mining between Right and Wrong, and what degree of Expence. 
 Whether Advocates and Orators had liberty to plead in 
 Causes manifestly known to be unjust, vexatious, or oppressive. 
 Whether Party in Religion of Politicks were observed to be of 
 any weight in the Scale of Justice. Whether those pleading 
 Orators were persons educated in the general Knowledge of 
 Equity, or only in provincial, national, and other local Customs. 
 Whether they or their Judges had any part in penning 
 those Laws which they assumed the Liberty of interpreting 
 and glossing upon at their pleasure. Whether they had 
 ever at different times pleaded for and against the same 
 Cause, and cited Precedents to prove contrary Opinions. 
 Whether they were a rich or a poor Corporation. Whether 
 they received any pecuniary Reward for pleading or delivering 
 their opinions. And particularly whether they were ever 
 admitted as Members in the lower Senate. 
 
 He fell next upon the Management of our Treasury ; and 
 said, he thought my Memory had failed me, because I computed 
 our Taxes at about Five or Six millions a year, and when I came 
 to mention the Issues, he found they sometimes amounted to 
 more than double ; for, the notes he had taken were very par- 
 ticular in this point, because he hoped, as he told me, that the 
 Knowledge of our Conduct might be useful to him, and he could 
 not be deceived in his Calculations. But, if what I told him 
 were true, he was still at a loss how a Kingdom could run out 
 of its Estate like a private Person. He asked me, who were 
 our Creditors ? and, where we should find money to pay them ? 
 He wondred to hear me talk of such chargeable and extensive 
 Wars ; that, certainly we must be a quarrelsome People, or 
 live among very bad Neighbours, and that our Generals must 
 needs be richer than our Kings. He asked what business 
 we had out of our own Islands, unless upon the Score of 
 Trade or Treaty, or to defend the Coasts with our Fleet. 
 Above all, he was amazed to hear me talk of a mercenary 
 
152 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 standing Army in the midst of Peace, and among a Free 
 People. He said if we were governed by our own Consent 
 in the persons of our Representatives, he could not imagine 
 of whom we were afraid, or against whom we were to fight, 
 and would hear my Opinion, whether a private Man's House 
 might not better be defended by himself, his Children, and 
 Family, than by half a dozen Rascals picked up at a venture 
 in the Streets, for small Wages, who might get an Hundred 
 times more by cutting their Throats. 
 
 He laughed at my odd kind of Arithmetick (as he was 
 pleased to call it) in reckoning the Numbers of our people 
 by a Computation drawn from the several Sects among us in 
 Religion and Politicks. He said, he knew no reason, why 
 those who entertain Opinions prejudicial to the Publick, 
 should be obliged to Change, or should not be obliged to 
 conceal them. And as it was Tyranny in any Government 
 to require the first, so it was Weakness not to enforce the 
 second : For, a Man may be allowed to keep Poisons in his 
 closet, but not to vend them about for Cordials. 
 
 He observed, that among the Diversions of our Nobility 
 and Gentry, I had mentioned Gaming. He desired to know at 
 what Age this entertainment was usually taken up, and when it 
 was laid down. How much of their Time it employed, whether 
 it ever went so high as to affect their Fortunes. Whether 
 mean vicious People by their Dexterity in that Art might not 
 arrive at great Riches, and sometimes keep our very Nobles 
 in Dependance, as well as habituate them to vile Companions, 
 wholly take them from the Improvement of their minds, and 
 force them by the Losses they have received, to learn and 
 practise that infamous Dexterity upon others. 
 
 He was perfectly astonished with the historical Account I 
 gave him of our Affairs during the last Century, protesting it 
 was only an heap of Conspiracies, Rebellions, Murders, 
 Massacres, Revolutions, Banishments, the very worst Effects 
 that Avarice, Faction, Hypocrisy, Perfidiousness, Cruelty, 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 153 
 
 Rage, Madness, Hatred, Envy, Lust, Malice, or Ambition 
 could produce. 
 
 His Majesty in another Audience was at the pains to 
 recapitulate the Sum of all I had spoken, compared the 
 Questions he made with the Answers I had given ; then 
 taking me into his hands, and stroaking me gently, delivered 
 himself in these words, which I shall never forget, nor the 
 manner he spoke them in. My little Friend Grildrig, you 
 have made a most admirable Panegyrick upon your Countrey : 
 You have clearly proved that Ignorance, Idleness and Vice 
 may be sometimes the only Ingredients for qualifying a 
 Legislator ; that Laws are best explained, interpreted, and 
 applied, by those whose Interest and Abilities lye in perverting, 
 confounding, and eluding them. I observe among you some 
 Lines of an Institution, which in its Original might have been 
 tolerable, but these half erased, and the rest wholly blurred 
 and blotted by Corruptions. It doth not appear from all you 
 have said, how any one Virtue is required towards the pro- 
 curement of any one Station among you, much less that Men 
 are ennobled on account of their Virtue, that Priests are 
 advanced for their Piety or Learning, Soldiers for their 
 Conduct or Valour, Judges for their Integrity, Senators for 
 the Love of their Countrey, or Counsellors for their Wisdom. 
 As for yourself (continued the King) who have spent the 
 greatest part of your life in travelling, I am well disposed to 
 hope you may hitherto have escaped many Vices of your 
 Countrey. But, by what I have gathered from your own 
 relation, and the Answers I have with much pains wringed 
 and extorted from you, I cannot but conclude the Bulk of 
 your Natives, to be the most pernicious Race of little odious 
 Vermin that Nature ever suffered to crawl upon the Surface 
 of the Earth. 
 
CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author's Love of his Countrey. He makes a Proposal of much 
 advantage to the King, which is j'ejected. The King's great Ignorance 
 in Politicks. The Learning of that Countrey very imperfect and 
 confined. The Laws, and military Affairs, and Parties in the 
 State. 
 
 Nothing but an extreme Love of Truth could have hindred 
 me from concealing this part of my story. It was in vain to 
 discover my Resentments, which were always turned into 
 ridicule ; and I was forced to rest with patience while my 
 noble and most beloved Countrey was so injuriously treated. 
 I am heartily sorry as any of my readers can possibly be, that 
 such an occasion was given : But this Prince happened to be 
 so curious and inquisitive upon every Particular, that it could 
 not consist either with Gratitude or good Manners to refuse 
 giving him what satisfaction I was able. Yet thus much I may 
 be allowed to say in my own vindication, that I artfully 
 eluded many of his Questions, and gave to every point a 
 more favourable Turn by many degrees than the strictness of 
 Truth would allow. For, I have always born that laudable 
 Partiality to my own Countrey, which Dionysius Halicarnassensis 
 with so much justice recommends to an Historian. I would 
 hide the Frailties and Deformities of my Political Mother, 
 and place her Virtues and Beauties in the most advantageous 
 light. This was my sincere endeavour in those many 
 discourses I had with that Monarch, although it unfortunately 
 failed of Success. 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 155 
 
 But, great allowances should be given to a King who lives 
 wholly secluded from the rest of the world, and must there- 
 fore be altogether unacquainted with the Manners and 
 Customs that most prevail in other Nations : The want of 
 which Knowledge will ever produce many Prejudices, and a 
 certain Narrowness of Thinking, from which we and the politer 
 Countries of Europe are wholly exempted. And it would be 
 hard indeed, if so remote a Prince's Notions of Virtue and 
 Vice were to be offered as a Standard for all Mankind. 
 
 To confirm what I have now said, and further to shew the 
 miserable Effects of a confined Education, I shall here insert 
 a Passage which will hardly obtain Belief. In hopes to 
 ingratiate myself farther into his Majesty's favour, I told him 
 of an Invention discovered between Three and Four hundred 
 Years ago, to make a certain Powder, into an heap of which 
 the smallest spark of Fire falling, would kindle the whole in 
 a Moment, although it were as big as a Mountain, and make 
 it all fly up in the air together, with a Noise and Agita- 
 tion greater than Thunder. That, a proper quantity of 
 this Powder rammed into an hollow Tube of Brass or Iron, 
 according to its Bigness, would drive a Ball of Iron or Lead 
 with such a Violence and Speed as nothing was able to 
 sustain its Force. That the largest Balls thus discharged, 
 would not only destroy whole Ranks of an Army at once, but 
 batter the strongest Walls to the ground, sink down Ships 
 with a Thousand Men in each, to the bottom of the Sea; 
 and when linked together by a Chain, would cut through 
 Masts and Rigging, divide Hundreds of Bodies in the middle, 
 and lay all waste before them. That we often put this 
 Powder into large hollow Balls of Iron, and discharged them 
 by an Engine into some City we were besieging, which would 
 rip up the Pavements, tear the Houses to pieces, burst and 
 throw Splinters on every side, dashing out the Brains of all 
 who came near. That I knew the Ingredients very well, 
 which were cheap, and common ; I understood the manner 
 of compounding them, and could direct his Workmen how to 
 make those Tubes of a Size proportionable to all other things 
 
156 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 in his Majesty's Kingdom, and the largest need not to be 
 above an Hundred foot long ; Twenty or Thirty of which 
 Tubes charged with the proper quantity of Powder and Balls, 
 would batter down the Walls of the strongest Town in his 
 Dominions in a few hours, or destroy the whole Metropolis, 
 if ever it should pretend to dispute his absolute Commands. 
 This I humbly offered to his Majesty as a small Tribute of 
 Acknowledgment in return of so many Marks that I had 
 receiv'd of his Royal Favour and Protection. 
 
 The King was struck with Horror at the description I had 
 given of those terrible Engines, and the Proposal I had made. 
 He was amazed how so impotent and groveling an Insect as 
 I (these were his Expressions) could entertain such inhuman 
 Ideas, and in so familiar a manner as to appear wholly 
 unmoved at all the Scenes of Blood and Desolation, which I 
 had painted as the common Effects of those destructive 
 Machines, whereof he said, some evil Genius, Enemy to 
 Mankind, must have been the first Contriver. As for himself, 
 he protested, that altho' few things delighted him so much as 
 new Discoveries in Art or in Nature, yet he would rather lose 
 half his Kingdom than be privy to such a Secret, which he 
 commanded me, as I valued my life, never to mention any 
 more. 
 
 A strange Effect of narrow Principles and short Views! 
 that a Prince possessed of every Quality which procures 
 Veneration, Love and Esteem ; of strong Parts, great Wisdom 
 and profound Learning, endued with admirable Talents' for 
 Government, and almost adored by his Subjects, should from 
 a nice unnecessary Scruple, whereof in Europe we can have no 
 conception, let slip an Opportunity put into his hands, that 
 would have made him absolute Master of the Lives, the 
 liberties, and the Fortunes of his People. Neither do I say 
 this with the • least Intention to detract from the many 
 Virtues of that excellent King, whose Character I am 
 sensible will on this account be very much lessened in the 
 opinion of an English reader : But, I take this Defect among 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO BROBUINGNAG 157 
 
 them to have risen from their Ignorance, they not having 
 hitherto reduced Politicks into a Science, as the more acute 
 Wits of Europe have done. For, I remember very well, in a 
 Discourse one day with the King, when I happened to say 
 there were several Thousand Books among us written upon 
 the Art of Government, it gave him (directly contrary to my 
 intention) a very mean opinion of our Understandings. He 
 professed both to abominate and despise all Mystery, 
 Refinement, and Intrigue, either in a Prince or a Minister. 
 He could not tell what L meant by Secrets of State, where an 
 Enemy or some rival Nation were not in the Case. He 
 confined the Knowledge of governing within very narrow 
 Boimds ; to common Sense and Reason, to Justice and 
 Lenity, to the speedy Determination of civil and criminal 
 Causes ; with some other obvious Topicks which are not 
 worth considering. And, he gave it for his Opinion, that 
 whoever could make Two Ears of Corn, or Two Blades of 
 Grass to grow upon a Spot of ground where only one grew 
 before, would deserve better of Mankind, and do more 
 essential Service to his Countrey, than the whole Race of 
 Politicians put together. 
 
 The Learning of this people is very defective, consisting 
 only in Morality, History, Poetry and Mathematicks, wherein 
 they must be allowed to excel. But, the last of these is 
 wholly applied to what may be useful in life, to the improve- 
 ment of Agriculture and all mechanical Arts ; so that among 
 us it would be little esteemed. And as to Ideas, Entities, 
 Abstractions and Transcendentals, I could never drive the 
 least Conception into their heads. 
 
 No Law of that Countrey must exceed in Words the 
 number of Letters in their Alphabet, which consists only in 
 Two and twenty. But indeed, few of them extend even to 
 that Length. They are expressed in the most plain and 
 simple terms, wherein those People are not mercurial enough 
 to discover above one Interpretation. And to write a 
 Comment upon any Law is a capital Crime. As to the 
 
158 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part 11 
 
 Decision of civil Causes, or Proceedings against Criminals, 
 their Precedents are so few, that they have little reason to 
 boast of any extraordinary Skill in either. 
 
 They have had the Art of Printing, as well as the Chinese, 
 time out of mind. But their Libraries are not very large ; 
 for that of the King's, which is reckoned the biggest, doth 
 not amount to above a Thousand Volumes, placed in a 
 Gallery of Twelve hundred foot long, from whence I had 
 liberty to borrow what books I pleased. The Queen's 
 Joyner had contrived in one of GlumdalclitcKs rooms a kind 
 of wooden Machine Five and twenty foot high, formed like a 
 standing Ladder, the Steps were each Fifty foot long : It was 
 indeed a moveable pair of Stairs, the lowest end placed at 
 Ten foot distance from the Wall of the Chamber. The book 
 I had a mind to read was put up leaning against the Wall. 
 I first mounted to the upper Step of the Ladder, and turning 
 my face towards the Book, began at the top of the Page, and 
 so walking to the Right and Left about Eight or Ten paces 
 according to the Length of the lines, till I had gotten a little 
 below the level of mine eyes, and then descending gradually 
 till I came to the bottom : After which I mounted again, and 
 began the other Page in the same manner, and so turned 
 over the leaf, which I could easily do with both my hands, 
 for it was as thick and stiff as a Past- board, and in the 
 largest Folios not above Eighteen or Twenty foot long. 
 
 Their Stile is clear, masculine, and smooth, but not 
 florid, for they avoid nothing more than multiplying un- 
 necessary Words, or using various Expressions. I have 
 perused many of their Books, especially those in History and 
 Morality. Among the rest, I was much diverted with a little 
 old Treatise, which always lay in GlnmdalclitcJis Bed-chamber, 
 and belonged to her Governess, a grave elderly Gentlewoman, 
 who dealt in Writings of Morality and Devotion. The Book 
 treats of the Weakness of Human kind, and is in little 
 esteem except among the Women and the Vulgar. However, 
 I was curious to see what an Author of that Countrey could 
 

 CHAP. VII 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 159 
 
 say upon such a Subject. This Writer went through all the 
 usual Topicks of European Moralists, shewing how diminutive, 
 contemptible, and helpless an Animal was Man in his own 
 nature ; how unable to defend himself from the Inclemencies 
 
 : / have perused many of their Books.' 
 
 of the Air, or the Fury of wild Beasts. How much he 
 was excelled by one Creature in Strength, by another in 
 Speed, by a third in Foresight, by a fourth in Industry. He 
 added, that Nature was degenerated in these latter declining 
 Ages of the world, and could now produce only small 
 
160 A VOYAGE TO BROBDL\ T GNAG part n 
 
 abortive Births in comparison of those in ancient times. He 
 said it was very reasonable to think, not only that the Species 
 of Men were originally much larger, but also that there must 
 have been Giants in former ages, which, as it is asserted by 
 History and Tradition, so it hath been confirmed by huge 
 Bones and Sculls casually dug up in several parts of the 
 Kingdom, far exceeding the common dwindled Race of Man 
 in our days. He argued, that the very Laws of Nature 
 absolutely required we should have been made in the 
 beginning, of a size more large and robust, not so liable to 
 Destruction from every little Accident of a Tile falling from an 
 House, or a Stone cast from the Hand of a Boy, or of being 
 drowned in a little Brook. From this way of Reasoning the 
 Author drew several more Applications useful in the Conduct 
 of life, but needless here to repeat. For my own part, I 
 could not avoid reflecting how universally this Talent was 
 spread of drawing Lectures in Morality, or indeed rather 
 matter of Discontent and Repining from the Quarrels we 
 raise with Nature. And, I believe upon a strict Enquiry, 
 those Quarrels might be shewn as ill-grounded among us, as 
 they are among that People. 
 
 As to their military Affairs, they boast that the King's 
 Army consists of an Hundred and Seventy-six thousand foot, 
 and Thirty-two thousand Horse : If that may be called an 
 Army which is made up of Tradesmen in the several Cities, 
 and Farmers in the Countrey, whose Commanders are only 
 the Nobility and Gentry without Pay or Reward. They are 
 indeed perfect enough in their Exercises, and under very 
 good Discipline, wherein I saw no great Merit ; for, how 
 should it be otherwise, where every Farmer is under the 
 Command of his own Landlord, and every Citizen under that 
 of the principal Men in his own City, chosen after the 
 manner of Ve?iice by Ballot ? 
 
 I have often seen the Militia of Lorbmlgrud drawn out- to 
 Exercise in a great Field near the City, of Twenty miles 
 square. They were in all not above Twenty-five thousand 
 
'A Cavalier mounted on a large Steed; 
 
 M 
 
162 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 Foot, and Six thousand Horse ; but it was impossible for me 
 to compute their Number, considering the space of Ground 
 they took up. A Cavalier mounted on a large Steed might 
 be about an Hundred foot high. I have seen this whole 
 Body of Horse upon a Word of Command draw their Swords 
 at once, and brandish them in the Air. Imagination can 
 figure nothing so grand, so surprising, and so astonishing. 
 It looked as if Ten thousand Flashes of Lightning were 
 darting at the same time from every Quarter of the Sky. 
 
 I was curious to know how this Prince, to whose 
 Dominion there is no access from any other Countrey, came 
 to think of Armies, or to teach his People the practice of 
 military Discipline. But I was soon informed, both by 
 Conversation, and reading their Histories. For, in the 
 Course of many ages they have been troubled with the same 
 Disease to which so many other Governments are subject ; 
 the Nobility often contending for Power, the People for 
 Liberty, and the King for absolute Dominion. All which, 
 however happily tempered by the Laws of the Kingdom, 
 have been sometimes violated by each of the Three Parties, 
 and have once or more occasioned Civil Wars, the last 
 whereof was happily put an end to by this Prince's Grand- 
 father by a general Composition ; and the Militia then settled 
 with common Consent hath been ever since kept in the 
 strictest Duty. 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 The King and Queen make a Progress to the Frontiers. The Author 
 attends them. The manner in which he leaves the Countrey very 
 particularly related. He returns to England. 
 
 I had always a strong impulse that I should sometime re- 
 cover my Liberty, though it was impossible to conjecture by 
 what means, or to form any Project with the least hope of 
 succeeding. The Ship in which I sailed was the first ever 
 known to be driven within sight of that Coast, and the King 
 had given strict Orders, that if at any time another appeared, 
 it should be taken ashore, and with all its Crew and 
 Passengers brought in a Tumbril to Lorbntlgrud. He was 
 strongly bent to get me a Woman of my own size, by whom 
 I might propagate the Breed : But I think I should rather 
 have died than undergone the Disgrace of leaving a Posterity 
 to be kept in cages like tame Canary Birds, and perhaps in 
 time sold about the kingdom to Persons of Quality for 
 Curiosities. I was indeed treated with much kindness ; I 
 was the Favourite of a great King and Queen, and the 
 Delight of the whole Court, but it was upon such a foot as., 
 ill became the Dignity of Human kind. I could never for- 
 get those domestick Pledges I had left behind me. I wanted 
 to be among People with whom I could converse upon even 
 terms, and walk about the Streets and Fields without fear of 
 being trod to death like a Frog or a young Puppy. But, 
 my Deliverance came sooner than I expected, and in a 
 manner not very common : The whole Story and Circurru 
 stances of which I shall faithfully relate. 
 
1 64 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 I had now been Two years in this Countrey ; and, about 
 the beginning of the Third, Glumdalclitch and I attended the 
 King and Queen in a Progress to the South Coast of the 
 Kingdom. I was carried as usual in my Travelling-Box, 
 which, as I have already described, was a very convenient 
 Closet of Twelve foot wide. And, I had ordered a Hammock 
 to be fixed by silken ropes from the Four corners at the top, 
 to break the Jolts, when a Servant carried me before him on 
 horseback, as I sometimes desired, and would often sleep in 
 my Hammock while we were upon the road. On the Roof 
 of my Closet, not directly over the middle of the Hammock, 
 I ordered the Joyner to cut out a Hole of a Foot square to 
 give me air in hot weather as I slept, which Hole I shut at 
 pleasure with a Board that drew backwards and forwards 
 through a Groove. 
 
 When we came to our Journey's end, the King thought 
 proper to pass a few days at a Palace he hath near Flanflasnic, 
 a City within Eighteen English miles of the Sea -side. 
 Glumdalclitch and I were much fatigued ; I had gotten a 
 small Cold, but the poor Girl was so ill as to be confined to 
 her chamber. I longed to see the Ocean, which must be 
 the only Scene of my Escape, if ever it should happen. I 
 pretended to be worse than I really was, and desired leave 
 to take the fresh air of the Sea, with a Page whom I was 
 very fond of, and who had sometimes been trusted with me. 
 I shall never forget with what Unwillingness Glumdalclitch 
 consented, nor the strict Charge she gave the Page to be 
 careful of me, bursting at the same time into a flood of tears, 
 as if she had some foreboding of what was to happen. The 
 Boy took me out in my Box about Half an hour's walk from 
 the Palace towards the Rocks on the Sea-shore. I ordered 
 him to set me down, and lifting up one of my Sashes, cast 
 many a wistful melancholy look towards the Sea. I found 
 myself not very well, and told the Page that I had a mind to 
 take a nap in my Hammock, which I hoped would do me good. 
 I got in, and the Boy shut the Window close down to keep out 
 the Cold. I soon fell asleep, and all I can conjecture is, 
 
chap, vin A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 165 
 
 that while I slept, the Page thinking no danger could happen, 
 went among the Rocks to look for Birds-eggs, having before 
 observed him from my window searching about, and picking 
 up One or Two in the Clefts. Be that as it will, I found 
 myself suddenly awaked with a violent Pull upon the Ring 
 which was fastned at the top of my Box for the conveniency 
 of carriage. I felt my Box raised very high in the air, and 
 then born forward with prodigious speed. The first Jolt 
 had like to have shaken me out of my Hammock, but after- 
 wards the Motion was easy enough. I called out several 
 times as loud as I could raise my voice, but all to no purpose. 
 I looked towards my Windows, and could see nothing but 
 the Clouds and Sky. I heard a noise just over my head like 
 the clapping of Wings, and then began to perceive the 
 woful condition I was in ; that some Eagle had got the 
 Ring of my Box in his Beak, with an intent to let it fall on a 
 Rock like a Tortoise in a Shell, and then pick out my Body 
 and devour it. For the Sagacity and Smell of this Bird 
 enable him to discover his Quarry at a great distance, though 
 better concealed than I could be within a Two-inch Board. 
 
 In a little time I observed the noise and nutter of Wings 
 to encrease very fast, and my Box was tossed up and down 
 like a Sign-post in a windy day. I heard several Bangs or 
 Buffets, as I thought, given to the Eagle (for such I am 
 certain it must have been that held the Ring' of my Box in 
 his Beak) and then all on a sudden felt myself falling perpen- 
 dicularly down for above a Minute, but with such incredible 
 Swiftness that I almost lost my Breath. My Pall was stopped 
 by a terrible Squash, that sounded" louder to mine ears than 
 the Cataract of Niagara ; after which I was quite in the dark 
 for another Minute, and then my Box began to rise so 
 high that I could see Light from the tops of my Windows. 
 I now perceived that I was fallen into the Sea. My Box, by 
 the weight of my Body, the Goods that were in, and the 
 broad Plates of Iron fixed for strength at the Four corners of 
 the top and bottom, floated about Five foot deep in water. 
 I did then, and do now suppose that the Eagle which flew 
 
1 66 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 PART II 
 
 away with my Box was pursued by Two or Three others, and 
 forced to let me drop while he was defending himself against 
 the rest, who hoped to share in the Prey. The Plates of 
 Iron fastned at the bottom of the Box (for those were 
 the strongest) preserved the Balance while it fell, and 
 
 1 Forced to let me drofi.' 
 
 Copyright 1894 by Macmillan &• Co. 
 
 hindred it from being broken on the surface of the water. 
 Every joint of it was well grooved, and the Door did not 
 move on Hinges, but up and down like a Sash, which kept 
 my Closet so tight that very little Water came in. I got 
 with much difficulty out of my Hammock, having first 
 
chap, vni A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 167 
 
 ventured to draw back the Slip-board on the Roof already 
 mentioned, contrived on purpose to let in Air, for want of 
 which I found myself almost stifled. 
 
 How often did I then wish myself with my dear Glumdal- 
 clitck, from whom one single Hour had so far divided me ! 
 And I may say with truth, that in the midst of my own 
 misfortunes I could not forbear lamenting my poor Nurse, 
 the Grief she would suffer for my loss, the Displeasure of 
 the Queen, and the Ruin of her Fortune. Perhaps many 
 Travellers have not been under greater Difficulties and 
 Distress than I was at this juncture, expecting every moment 
 to see my Box dashed in pieces, or at least overset by the 
 first violent Blast, or a rising Wave. A Breach in one single 
 Pane of Glass would have been immediate Death : Nor could 
 any thing have preserved the Windows but the strong 
 Lettice Wires placed on the outside against accidents in 
 travelling. I saw the Water ooze in at several Crannies, 
 although the Leaks were not considerable, and I endeavoured 
 to stop them as well as I could. I was not able to lift up the 
 Roof of my Closet, which otherwise I certainly should have 
 done and sate on the top of it, where I might at least 
 preserve myself some hours longer than by being shut up, as 
 I may call it, in the Hold. Or, if I escaped these Dangers 
 for a day or two, what could I expect but a miserable Death 
 of Cold and Hunger ! I was Four hours under these circum- 
 stances, expecting and indeed wishing every moment to be 
 my last. 
 
 I have already told the Reader, that there were Two 
 strong Staples fixed upon that side of my Box which had no 
 Window, and into which the Servant who used to carry me 
 on horseback would put a leathern Belt, and buckle it about 
 his Waste. Being in this disconsolate state, I heard or at 
 least thought I heard some kind of grating noise on that side 
 of my Box where the Staples were fixed, and soon after I 
 began to fancy that the Box was pulled, or towed along in the 
 Sea ; for I now and then felt a sort of tugging which made 
 
1 68 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part 11 
 
 the Waves rise near the tops of my Windows, leaving me almost 
 in the dark. This gave me some faint hopes of Relief, although 
 I was not able to imagine how it could be brought about. I 
 ventured to unscrew one of my Chairs, which were always 
 fastned to the Floor; and having made a hard shift to screw 
 it down again directly under the Slipping-board that I had 
 lately opened, I mounted on the Chair, and putting my mouth 
 as near as I could to the hole, I called for help in a loud 
 voice, and in all the languages I understood. I then fastned 
 my Handkerchief to a Stick I usually carried, and thrusting 
 it up the Hole, waved it several times in the air, that if any 
 Boat or ship were near, the Seamen might conjecture some 
 unhappy Mortal to be shut up in this Box. 
 
 I found no effect from all I could do, but plainly perceived 
 my Closet to be moved along ; and in the space of an Hour 
 or better, that side of the Box where the Staples were, and 
 had no Window, struck against something that was hard : I 
 apprehended it to be a Rock, and found myself tossed more 
 than ever. I plainly heard a Noise upon the Cover of my 
 Closet, like that of a Cable, and the grating of it as it passed 
 through the Ring. I then found myself hoisted up by degrees 
 at least Three Foot higher than I was before. Whereupon, I 
 again thrust up my Stick and Handkerchief, calling for help 
 till I was almost hoarse. In return to which, I heard a great 
 Shout repeated Three times, giving me such Transports of 
 joy as are not to be conceived but by those who feel them. I 
 now heard a trampling over my head, and somebody calling 
 through the Hole with a loud voice in the English Tongue ; 
 if there be any body below let them speak. I answered, I 
 was an Englishman^ drawn by ill fortune into the greatest 
 Calamity that ever any creature underwent, and begged, by 
 all that is moving, to be delivered out of the Dungeon I was 
 in. The Voice replied, I was safe, for my Box was fastned 
 to their Ship ; and the Carpenter should immediately come, 
 and saw an hole in the Cover, large enough to pull me 
 out. I answer'd, that was needless, and would take up 
 too much time, for there was no more to be done. 
 
' I iv as taken into the SkiJ> in a very weak condition. 
 
170 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part ii 
 
 but let one of the Crew put his Finger into the Ring, and 
 take the Box out of the Sea into the Ship, and so into the 
 Captain's Cabbin. Some of them upon hearing me talk so 
 wildly thought I was mad ; others laughed ; for indeed it 
 never came into my head that I was now got among People 
 of my own Stature and Strength. The Carpenter came, and 
 in a few minutes sawed a Passage about Four foot square, 
 then let down a small Ladder, upon which I mounted, and 
 from thence was taken into the Ship in a very weak condition. 
 
 The Sailors were all in amazement, and asked me a Thou- 
 sand Questions, which I had no inclination to answer. I was 
 equally confounded at the Sight of so many Pigmies, for such 
 I took them to be, after having so long accustomed mine 
 eyes to the monstrous Objects I had left. But the Captain, 
 Mr. Thomas Wilcocks, an honest worthy Shropshire man, 
 observing I was ready to faint, took me into his Cabbin, gave 
 me a Cordial to comfort me, and made me turn in upon his 
 own bed, advising me to take a little rest, of which I had 
 great need. Before I went to sleep I gave him to understand 
 that I had some valuable Furniture in my Box too good to be 
 lost ; a fine Hammock, an handsome Field-Bed, two Chairs, 
 a Table and a Cabinet: That my Closet was hung on all sides, 
 or rather quilted with Silk and Cotton : That if he would let 
 one of the Crew bring my Closet into his Cabbin, I would open 
 it there before him, and shew him my Goods. The Captain 
 hearing me utter these Absurdities, concluded I was raving : 
 However (I suppose to pacify me) he promised to give order. as 
 I desired, and going upon Deck sent some of his men down 
 into my Closet, from whence (as I afterwards found) they drew 
 up all my Goods, and stripped off the Quilting; but the Chairs, 
 Cabinet and Bed-sted being screwed to the floor, were much 
 damaged by the Ignorance of the Seamen, who tore them up 
 by force. Then they knocked off some of the Boards for the use 
 of the Ship, and when they had got all they had a mind for, let 
 the Hulk drop into the Sea, which by reason of many Breaches 
 made in the bottom and sides, sunk to rights. And indeed 
 I was glad not to have been a Spectator of the Havock they 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 171 
 
 made ; because I am confident it would have sensibly touched 
 me, by bringing former Passages into my mind, which I had 
 rather forget. 
 
 I slept some hours, but perpetually disturbed with Dreams 
 of the Place I had left, and the Dangers I had escaped. 
 However, upon waking I found myself much recovered. It 
 was now about Eight a clock at night, and the Captain ordered 
 Supper immediately, thinking I had already fasted too long. 
 He entertained me with great kindness, observing me not to 
 look wildly, or talk inconsistently ; and when we were left 
 alone, desired I would give him a relation of my Travels, and 
 by what accident I came to be set adrift in that monstrous 
 wooden Chest. He said, that about Twelve a clock at noon, 
 as he was looking through his Glass, he spied it at a distance, 
 and thought it was a Sail, which he had a mind to make, 
 being not much out of his course, in hopes of buying some 
 Biscuit, his own beginning to fall short. That upon coming 
 nearer, and finding his error, he sent out his Long-boat to 
 discover what I was ; that his Men came back in a fright, 
 swearing they had seen a swimming House. That he 
 laughed at their Folly, and went himself in the Boat, ordering 
 his men to take a strong Cable along with them. That the 
 Weather being calm, he rowed round me several times, 
 observed my Windows, and the wire Lettices that defended 
 them. That he discovered two Staples upon one side, which 
 was all of Boards, without any passage for Light. He then 
 commanded his men to row up to that side, and fastning a 
 Cable to one of the Staples, ordered them to tow my Chest 
 (as he called it) towards the Ships. When it was there, he 
 gave directions to fasten another Cable to the Ring fixed in 
 the Cover, and to raise up my Chest with Pullies, which all 
 the Sailors were not able to do above Two or Three foot. 
 He said, they saw my Stick and Handkerchief thrust out of 
 the Hole, and concluded, that some unhappy Men must be 
 shut up in the Cavity. I asked whether he or the Crew had 
 seen any prodigious Birds in the Air about the time he first 
 discovered me. To which he answered, that discoursing this 
 
172 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part if 
 
 matter with the Sailors while I was asleep, one of them said, 
 he had observed Three Eagles flying towards the North, but 
 remarked nothing of their being larger than the usual Size, 
 which I suppose must be imputed to the great Height they 
 were at ; and could not guess the reason of my Question. I 
 then asked the Captain how far he reckon'd we might be 
 from Land ; he said, by the best computation he could make, 
 we were at least an Hundred Leagues. I assured him, that 
 he must be mistaken by almost Half, for I had not left the 
 Countrey from whence I came above Two hours before I 
 dropt into the Sea. Whereupon he began again to think 
 that my brain was disturbed, of which he gave me a hint, and 
 advised me to go to bed in a Cabbin he had provided. I 
 assured him I was well refreshed with his good Entertainment 
 and Company, and as much in my senses as ever I was in 
 my life. He then grew serious, and desired to ask me freely 
 whether I were not troubled in mind by the Consciousness of 
 some enormous Crime, for which I was punished at the Com- 
 mand of some Prince, by exposing me in that Chest, as great 
 , Criminals in other Countries have been forced to Sea in a leaky 
 Vessel without Provisions : For, although he should be sorry 
 to have taken so ill a man into his Ship, yet he would engage 
 his word to set me safe on shore in the first Port where we 
 arrived. He added, that his Suspicions were much increased 
 by some very absurd Speeches I had delivered at first to the 
 Sailors, and afterwards to himself, in relation to my Closet or 
 Chest, as well as by my odd Looks and Behaviour while I 
 was at supper. 
 
 I begged his patience to hear me tell my Story, which I 
 faithfully did from the last time I left England to the moment 
 he first discovered me. And, as Truth always forceth its 
 way into rational minds ; so, this honest worthy Gentleman, 
 who had some tincture of Learning, and very good Sense, 
 was immediately convinced of my Candor and Veracity. But 
 further to confirm all I had said, I entreated him to give 
 order that my Cabinet should be brought, of which I had 
 the Key in my Pocket (for he had already informed me how 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 173 
 
 the Seamen disposed of my Closet), I opened it in his 
 presence, and shewed him the small Collection of Rarities I 
 made in the Countrey from whence I had been so strangely 
 delivered. There was the Comb I had contrived out of the 
 Stumps of the King's Beard, and another of the same 
 Material, but fixed into a paring of her Majesty's Thumb- 
 nail, which served for the Back. There was a collection of 
 Needles and Pins from a Foot to Half a yard long. Four 
 
 A Footman s Tooth. 
 
 Wasp Stings, like Joyner's Tacks : Some Combings of the 
 Queen's Hair : A gold Ring which one day she made me a 
 Present of in a most obliging manner, taking it from her Little 
 finger, and throwing it over my Head like a Collar. I desired 
 the Captain would please to accept this Ring in return of 
 his Civilities, which he absolutely refused. I shewed him a 
 Corn that I had cut off with my own hand from a maid of 
 Honour's Toe, it was about the bigness of a Kentish Pippin, 
 and grown so hard, that when I returned to England^ I got it 
 
 
174 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG part 11 
 
 hollowed into a Cup and set in Silver. Lastly, I desired 
 him to see the Breeches I had then on, which were made of 
 a Mouse's Skin. 
 
 I could force nothing on him but a Footman's Tooth, 
 which I observed him to examine with great Curiosity, and 
 found he had a fancy for it. He received it with abundance 
 of thanks, more than such a Trifle could deserve. It was 
 drawn by an unskilful Surgeon in a mistake from one of 
 GlumdalclitcKs Men, who was afflicted with the Toothach, 
 but it was as sound as any in his head. I got it cleaned, 
 and put it into my Cabinet. It was about a Foot long, and 
 Four inches in Diameter. 
 
 The Captain was very well satisfied with this plain 
 Relation I had given him ; and said, he hoped when we 
 returned to England, I would oblige the World by putting it 
 in Paper, and making it publick. My Answer was, that I 
 thought we were already over-stocked with Books of Travels : 
 That nothing could now pass which was not extraordinary, 
 wherein I doubted some Authors less consulted Truth than 
 their own Vanity or Interest, or the Diversion of ignorant 
 Readers. That my Story could contain little besides 
 common Events, without those ornamental Descriptions of 
 strange Plants, Trees, Birds, and other Animals, or of the 
 barbarous Customs and Idolatry of savage People, with 
 which most Writers abound. However, I thanked him for 
 his good Opinion, and promised to take the matter into my 
 thoughts. 
 
 He said he wondered at one thing very much, which was 
 to hear me speak so loud, asking me whether the King or 
 Queen of that Countrey were thick of hearing. I told him it 
 was what I had been used to for above Two Years past, and 
 that I admired as much at the Voices of him and his men, 
 who seemed to me only to whisper, and yet I could hear them 
 well enough. But, when I spoke in that Countrey, it was 
 like a man talking in the Street to another looking out from 
 the top of a Steeple, unless when I was placed on a Table, 
 
chap, vin A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 175 
 
 or held in any Person's Hand. I told him I had likewise 
 observed another thing, that when I first got into the Ship, 
 and the Sailors stood all about me, I thought they were the 
 most little contemptible Creatures I had ever beheld. For, 
 indeed, while I was in that Prince's Countrey, I could never 
 endure to look in a Glass after mine eyes had been ac- 
 customed to such prodigious objects, because the comparison 
 gave me so despicable a conceit of myself. The Captain 
 said, that while we were at supper, he observed me to look 
 at everything with a sort of wonder, and that I often seemed 
 hardly able to contain my laughter, which he knew not well 
 how to take, but imputed it to some Disorder in my brain. 
 I answered, it was very true, and I wondered how I could 
 forbear, when I saw his Dishes of the size of a silver Three- 
 pence, a Leg of Pork hardly a Mouthful, a Cup not so big as 
 a Nut-shell : and so I went on, describing the rest of his 
 Houshold-stufT and Provisions after the same manner. For 
 although the Queen had ordered a little Equipage of all 
 things necessary for me while I was in her service, yet my 
 Ideas were wholly taken up with what I saw on every side of 
 me, and I winked at my own Littleness as People do at their 
 own Faults. The Captain understood my Raillery very well, 
 and merrily replied with the old English Proverb, that he 
 doubted mine Eyes were bigger than my Belly, for he did not 
 observe my Stomach so good, although I had fasted all day ; 
 and continuing in his mirth, protested he would have gladly 
 given an Hundred Pounds to have seen my Closet in the 
 Eagle's Bill, and afterwards in its Fall from so great an height 
 into the Sea ; which would certainly have been a most 
 astonishing object, worthy to have the Description of it 
 transmitted to future ages : And the Comparison of Phaeton 
 was so obvious, that he could not forbear applying it, although 
 I did not much admire the Conceit. 
 
 The Captain having been at Tonquin, was in his return 
 to England driven North eastward to the Latitude of 44 
 Degrees, and of Longitude 143. But meeting a Trade Wind 
 Two days after I came on board him, we sailed Southward 
 
i;6 
 
 A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 
 
 PART II 
 
 a long time, and coasting New-Holland kept our Course 
 West-south-west, and then South-south-west till we doubled 
 the Cape of Good-hope. Our Voyage was very prosperous, 
 but I shall not trouble the reader with a Journal of it. The 
 Captain called in at One or Two Ports and sent in his Long- 
 
 ' / stooped lower than her Knees:'' 
 
 boat for Provisions and fresh Water, but I never went out of 
 the Ship till we came into the Downs, which was on the 3d 
 Day of June 1706, about Nine months after my Escape. I 
 offered to leave my Goods in security for payment of my 
 Freight ; but the Captain protested he would not receive 
 One Farthing. We took kind leave of each other, and I 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 177 
 
 made him promise he would come to see me at my House 
 in Redriff. I hired a Horse and Guide for Five Shillings, 
 which I borrowed of the Captain. 
 
 As I was on the road, observing the Littleness of the 
 Houses, the Trees, the Cattle and the People, I began to 
 think myself in Lilliput. I was afraid of trampling on every 
 Traveller I met, and often called aloud to have them stand out 
 of the way, so that I had like to have gotten One or Two 
 broken Heads for my Impertinence. 
 
 When I came to my own House, for which I was forced 
 to enquire, one of the Servants opening the Door, I bent 
 down to go in (like a Goose under a Gate) for fear of striking 
 my Head. My Wife ran out to embrace me, but I stooped 
 lower than her Knees, thinking she could otherwise never be 
 able to reach my Mouth. My Daughter kneeled to ask my 
 Blessing, but I could not see her till she arose, having been 
 so long used to stand with my Head and Eyes erect to above 
 Sixty foot ; and then I went to take her up with One hand, 
 by the Waste. I looked down upon the Servants and One 
 or Two Friends who were in the House, as if they had been 
 Pigmies, and I a Giant. I told my Wife she had been too 
 thrifty, for I found she had starved herself and her Daughter 
 to nothing. In short, I behaved myself so unaccountably, 
 that they were all of the Captain's opinion when he first saw 
 me, and concluded I had lost my Wits. This I mention as 
 an Instance of the great Power of Habit and Prejudice. 
 
 In a little time I and my Family and Friends came to a 
 right understanding : But my Wife protested I should never 
 go to Sea any more ; although my evil Destiny so ordered 
 that she had not Power to hinder me, as the reader may 
 know hereafter. In the mean time I here conclude the 
 Second Part of my unfortunate Voyages. 
 
 The End of the Second Part. 
 
 N 
 
PART III 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC 
 
''WaCker Sr'BoutaCC ScuCpserunt^. 
 
JPS=KFOT th 
 
 j^ff * = \0^m. 
 
 m 
 
 ^<3> e )|ggW^ 
 
 M 
 
 
 He plainly invited me. ' 
 
CHAR I 
 
 The Author sets out on his Third Voyage, is taken by Pyrates. The 
 Malice of a Dutchman. His arrival at an Island. He is received 
 into Laputa. 
 
 HAD not been at home above ten days, 
 when Captain William Robinson, a Cornish 
 Man, Commander of the Hope-well, a stout 
 Ship of Three Hundred Tuns, came to 
 my house. I had formerly been Surgeon 
 of another Ship where he was Master, 
 and a fourth part owner, in a voyage to 
 the Levant ; he had always treated me 
 more like a Brother than an inferior Officer, and hearing of 
 my arrival made me a visit, as I apprehended only out of 
 friendship, for nothing passed more than what is usual after 
 long Absences. But repeating his visits Often, expressing his 
 Joy to find me in good health, asking whether I were now 
 settled for life, adding that he intended a voyage to the East- 
 Indies, in two months ; at last he plainly invited me, though 
 with some apologies, to be Surgeon of the Ship ; that I should 
 have another Surgeon under me besides our two Mates ; that 
 my Sallary should be double to the usual pay; and that 
 having experienced my knowledge in Sea-Affairs to be at least 
 equal to his, he would enter into any engagement to follow 
 my advice, as much as if I had shared in the command. 
 
 He said so many other obliging things, and I knew him to 
 be so honest a Man, that I could not reject his proposal ; the 
 thirst I had of seeing the World, notwithstanding my past 
 misfortunes, continuing as violent as ever. The only difficulty 
 that remained, was to persuade my Wife, whose consent how- 
 ever I at last obtained by the prospect of advantage she 
 proposed to her Children. 
 
 We set out the 5th of August 1706, and arrived at Fort 
 
chap, i A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 183 
 
 Saint George, the nth of April 1707, stayed there three weeks 
 to refresh our Crew, many of whom were sick. From thence 
 we went to Tonquin, where the Captain resolved to continue 
 some time, because many of the Goods he intended to buy 
 were not ready, nor could he expect to be dispatched in some 
 Months. Therefore in hopes to defray some of the charges 
 he must be at, he bought a Sloop, loaded it with several sorts 
 of Goods, wherewith the Tonquinese usually trade to the 
 neighbouring Islands, and putting Fourteen Men on board, 
 whereof three were of the Country, he appointed me Master 
 of the Sloop, and gave me power to traffick for two months, 
 while he transacted his affairs at Tonquin. 
 
 We had not sailed above three days, when a great Storm 
 arising, we were driven five days to the North-North-East, and 
 then to the East ; after which we had fair weather, but still 
 with a pretty strong gale from the West. Upon the tenth 
 day we were chased by two Pyrates, who soon overtook us ; 
 for my Sloop was so deep loaden, that she sailed very slow, 
 neither were we in a condition to defend ourselves. 
 
 We were boarded about the same time by both the Pyrates, 
 who enter'd furiously at the head of their Men, but finding us 
 all prostrate upon our faces, (for so I gave order) they 
 pinioned us with strong ropes, and setting a guard upon us, 
 went to search the Sloop. 
 
 I observed among them a Dutch-man, who seemed to be of 
 some authority, though he was not Commander of either Ship. 
 He knew us by our countenances to be Englishmen, and 
 jabbering to us in his own language, swore we should be tyed 
 back to back, and thrown into the Sea. I spoke Dutch 
 tolerably well ; I told him who we were, and begged him in 
 consideration of our being Christians and Protestants, of 
 neighbouring Countries, in strict alliance, that he would move 
 the Captains to take some pity on us. This inflamed his 
 Rage, he repeated his Threatnings, and turning to his 
 
1 84 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 Companions, spoke with great vehemence, in the Japanese 
 language, as I suppose, often using the word Christianos. 
 
 ' I made the Captain a very low 5ow.' 
 
 The largest of the two Pyrate Ships was commanded by a 
 Japanese Captain, who spoke a little Dutch, but very imper- 
 
chap, i A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 185 
 
 fectly. He came up to me, and after several questions, which 
 I answered in great humility, he said we should not dye. I 
 made the Captain a very low bow, and then turning to the 
 Dutch-man, said, I was sorry to find more mercy in a Heathen, 
 than in a brother Christian. But I had soon reason to repent 
 those foolish words : For that malicious Reprobate, having 
 often endeavoured in vain to persuade both the Captains that 
 I might be thrown into the Sea (which they would not yield to 
 after the promise made me, that I should not dye) however 
 prevailed so far as to have a punishment inflicted on me, 
 worse in all human appearance than death itself. My men 
 were sent by an equal division into both the Pyrate Ships, 
 and my Sloop new manned. As to myself, it was determined 
 that I should be set a drift, in a small Canoe, with Paddles 
 and a Sail, and four days Provisions, which last the Japanese 
 Captain was so kind to double out of his own Stores, and 
 would permit no man to search me. I got down into the 
 Canoe, while the Dutch-man standing upon the deck, loaded 
 me with all the curses and injurious terms his language could 
 afford. 
 
 About an hour before we saw the Pyrates, I had taken an 
 observation, and found we were in the Latitude of 46 N. 
 and of Longitude 183. When I was at some distance from 
 the Pyrates, I discovered by my pocket Glass several Islands 
 to the South-East. I set up my Sail, the wind being fair, with 
 a design to reach the nearest of those Islands, which I made a 
 shift to do in about three hours. It was all rocky; however I got 
 many Birds Eggs, and striking fire, I kindled some Heath and 
 dry Sea-weed, by which I roasted my Eggs. I eat no other 
 Supper, being resolved to spare my Provisions as much as I 
 could. I passed the night under the shelter of a Rock, 
 strowing some Heath under me, and slept pretty well. 
 
 The next day I sailed to another Island, and thence to a 
 third and fourth, sometimes using my Sail, and sometimes my 
 Paddles. But not to trouble the reader with a particular 
 account of my Distresses, let it suffice that on the fifth day, 
 
1 86 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 I arrived at the last Island in my sight, which lay South-South- 
 East to the former. 
 
 This Island was at a greater distance than I expected, 
 and I did not reach it in less than five hours. I encom- 
 passed it almost round before I could find a convenient 
 Place to land in, which was a small Creek, about three times 
 the wideness of my Canoe. I found the Island to be all 
 rocky, only a little intermingled with Tufts of Grass, and 
 sweet smelling Herbs. I took out my small Provisions, and 
 after having refreshed myself, I secured the remainder in a 
 Cave, whereof there were great numbers. I gathered plenty 
 of Eggs upon the rocks, and got a quantity of dry Sea-weed, 
 and parched Grass, which I designed to kindle the next day, 
 and roast my Eggs as well as I could. (For I had about me 
 my Flint, Steel, Match, and Burning-glass.) I lay all night 
 in the Cave where I had lodged my provisions. My Bed was 
 the same dry Grass and Sea-weed which I intended for fewel. 
 I slept very little, for the Disquiets of my mind prevailed 
 over my weariness, and kept me awake. I considered how 
 impossible it was to preserve my Life, in so desolate a place, 
 and how miserable my end must be. Yet I found myself so 
 listless and desponding, that I had not the heart to rise, and 
 before I could get spirits enough to creep out of my Cave, 
 the day was far advanced. I walked a while among the 
 Rocks, the Sky was perfectly clear, and the Sun so hot, that 
 I was forced to turn my face from it : When all on a sudden 
 it became obscured as I thought, in a manner very different 
 from what happens by the interposition of a Cloud. I 
 turned back, and perceived a vast opake body between me 
 and the Sun, moving forwards towards the Island : it seemed 
 to be about two Miles high, and hid the Sun six or seven 
 Minutes, but I did not observe the Air to be much colder, or 
 the Sky more darkned, than if I had stood under the shade 
 of a Mountain. As it approached nearer over the place 
 where I was, it appeared to me a firm substance, the bottom 
 flat, smooth, and shining very bright from the reflexion of the 
 Sea below. I stood upon a height about two hundred Yards 
 
CHAP. I 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 187 
 
 from the Shoar, and saw this vast body descending almost 
 to a parallel with me, at less than an English Mile distance. 
 I took out my Pocket-Perspective, and could plainly discover 
 numbers of People moving up and down the sides of it, 
 which appeared to be sloping, but what those People were 
 doing, I was not able to distinguish. 
 
 A vast opake body. 
 
 The natural love of Life gave me some inward motions 
 of Joy, and I was ready to entertain a hope, that this 
 adventure might some way or other help to deliver me from 
 the desolate place and condition I was in. But at the same 
 time the Reader can hardly conceive my Astonishment, to 
 behold an Island in the Air, inhabited by Men, who were 
 able (as it should seem) to raise or sink, or put it into a 
 
1 88 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 progressive motion, as they pleased. But not being at that 
 time in a disposition to philosophise upon this Phcenomenon, 
 I rather chose to observe what course the Island would take, 
 because it seemed for a while to stand still. Yet soon after 
 it advanced nearer, and I could see the sides of it, en- 
 compassed with several gradations of Galleries and Stairs, at 
 certain Intervals, to descend from one to the other. In the 
 lowest Gallery, I beheld some People fishing with long 
 Angling Rods, and others looking on. I waved my Cap (for 
 my Hat was long since worn out) and my Handkerchief 
 towards the Island ; and upon its nearer approach, I called 
 and shouted with the utmost strength of my Voice ; and then 
 looking circumspectly, I beheld a crowd gathered to that 
 side which was most in my View. I found by their pointing 
 towards me and to each other, that they plainly discovered 
 me, although they made no return to my shouting. But I 
 could see four or five Men running in great haste up the 
 Stairs to the top of the Island, who then disappeared. I 
 happened rightly to conjecture, that these were sent for 
 Orders to some Person in authority upon this occasion. 
 
 The number of People encreased, and in less than half an 
 hour, the Island was moved and raised in such a manner, 
 that the lowest Gallery appeared in a Parallel of less than an 
 hundred Yards distance from the height where I stood. I 
 then put myself into the most supplicating Postures, and 
 spoke in the humblest Accent, but received no Answer. 
 Those who stood nearest over-against me, seemed to be 
 Persons of Distinction, as I supposed by their habit. They 
 conferred earnestly with each other, looking often upon me. 
 At length one of them called out in a clear, polite, smooth 
 Dialect, not unlike in sound to the Italian; and therefore I 
 returned an answer in that Language, hoping at least that 
 the cadence might be more agreeable to his Ears. Although 
 neither of us understood the other, yet my meaning was 
 easily known, for the People saw the distress I was in. 
 
 They made Signs for me to come down from the Rock, 
 
chap, i A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC 189 
 
 and go towards the Shoar, which I accordingly did ; and the 
 flying Island being raised to a convenient height, the Verge 
 directly over me, a Chain was let down from the lowest 
 Gallery, with a Seat fastned to the bottom, to which I fixed 
 myself, and was drawn up by Pullies. 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 The Humours and Dispositions of the Laputians described. An account 4 
 their Learning. Of the King and his Court. The Author's Recep 
 tion there. The Inhabitants szibject to Fears and Disquietudes. At 
 account of the Women. 
 
 At my alighting 1 was surrounded with a crowd of People, 
 but those who stood nearest seemed to be of better Quality. 
 They beheld me with all the Marks and Circumstances oi 
 wonder, neither indeed was I much in their debt ; having 
 never till then seen a race of Mortals so singular in their 
 Shapes, Habits, and Countenances. Their heads were all 
 reclined either to the right or the left ; one of their Eyes 
 turned inward, and the other directly up to the Zenith. 
 Their outward Garments were adorned with the figures of Suns, 
 Moons and Stars, interwoven with those of Fiddles, Flutes, 
 Harps, Trumpets, Guittars, Harpsicords, and many more 
 Instruments of Musick, unknown to us in Europe. I observed 
 here and there many in the habit of Servants, with a blown 
 Bladder fastned like a Flayl to the end of a short Stick, which 
 they carried in their Hands. In each Bladder was a small 
 quantity of dryed Pease or little Pebbles (as I was afterwards 
 inform'd). With these Bladders they now and then flapped 
 the Mouths and Ears of those who stood near them, of which 
 practice I could not then conceive the meaning ; it seems, the 
 Minds of these People are so taken up with intense Specula- 
 tions, that they neither can speak, nor attend to the Dis- 
 courses of others, without being rouzed by some external 
 Taction upon the Organs of Speech and Hearing ; for which 
 

 Wrapped up in cogitation.' 
 
1 92 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 reason, those Persons who are able to afford it always keep a 
 Flapper (the original is Climenole) in their Family, as one of 
 their Domesticks, nor ever walk abroad or make Visits with- 
 out him. And the business of -this Officer is, when two or 
 three more persons are in Company, gently to strike with his 
 Bladder the Mouth of him who is to speak, and the right Ear 
 of him or them to whom the Speaker addresseth himself. 
 This Flapper is likewise employed diligently to attend his 
 Master in his Walks, and upon occasion to give him a soft 
 Flap on his Eyes, because he is always so wrapped up in 
 cogitation, that he is in manifest danger of falling down every 
 Precipice, and bouncing his Head against every Post, and in 
 the Streets, of justling others or being justled himself into the 
 Kennel. 
 
 It was necessary to give the reader this information, with- 
 out which he would be at the same loss with me, to under- 
 stand the proceedings of these People, as they conducted me 
 up the Stairs, to the top of the Island, and from thence to the 
 Royal Palace. While we were ascending, they forgot several 
 times what they were about, and left me to myself, till their 
 Memories were again rouzed by their Flappers ; for they 
 appeared altogether unmoved by the sight of my foreign Habit 
 and Countenance, and by the Shouts of the Vulgar, whose 
 Thoughts and Minds were more disengaged. 
 
 At last we entred the Palace, and proceeded into the 
 chamber of Presence, where I saw the King seated on his 
 Throne, attended on each side by Persons of prime Quality. 
 Before the Throne, was a large Table filled with Globes and 
 Spheres, and Mathematical Instruments of all kinds. His 
 Majesty took not the least notice of us, although our entrance 
 was not without sufficient noise, by the concourse of all Persons 
 belonging to the Court. But he was then deep in a Problem, 
 and we attended at least an Hour, before he could solve it. 
 There stood by him on each side, a young Page, with Flaps 
 in iheir Hands, and when they saw he was at leisure, one of 
 them gently struck his Mouth, and the other his right Ear, at 
 

 ' He was then deep in a Problem. ' 
 Copyright 1894 by Maanillan <3- Co. 
 
194 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part ill 
 
 which he started like one awaked on the sudden, and looking 
 towards me, and the Company I was in, recollected the 
 occasion of our coming, whereof he had been informed before. 
 He spoke some words, whereupon immediately a young Man 
 with a Flap came up to my side, and flapt me gently on the 
 right Ear, but I made Signs as well as I could, that I had no 
 occasion for such an instrument ; which as I afterwards found 
 gave his Majesty and the whole Court a very mean Opinion 
 of my Understanding. The King, as far as I could conjecture, 
 asked me several Questions, and I addressed myself to him 
 in all the Languages I had. When it was found, that I could 
 neither understand nor be understood, I was conducted 
 by the King's order to an Apartment in his Palace (this 
 Prince being distinguished above all his Predecessors for his 
 Hospitality to Strangers) where two Servants were appointed 
 to attend me. My Dinner was brought, and four Persons of 
 Quality, whom I remembered to have seen very near the 
 King's Person, did me the honour to dine with me. We 
 had two Courses, of three Dishes each. In the first Course, 
 there was a Shoulder of Mutton, cut into an Equilateral 
 Triangle, a piece of Beef into a Rhomboides, and a Pudding 
 into a Cycloid. The second Course was two Ducks, trussed 
 up into the form of Fiddles ; Sausages and Puddings resem- 
 bling Flutes and Haut-boys, and a breast of Veal in the shape 
 of a Harp. The Servants cut our Bread into Cones, 
 Cylinders, Parallelograms, and several other Mathematical 
 Figures. 
 
 While we were at Dinner, I made bold to ask the Names 
 of several things in their Language, and those noble Persons, 
 by the assistance of their Flappers, delighted to give me 
 Answers, hoping to raise my Admiration of their great Abilities, 
 if I could be brought to converse with them. I was soon 
 able to call for Bread and Drink, or whatever else I wanted. 
 
 After Dinner my Company withdrew, and a Person was 
 sent to me by the King's Order, attended by a Flapper. He 
 brought with him. Pen, Ink, and Paper, and three or four 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. i 95 
 
 Books, giving me to understand by Signs, that he was sent to 
 teach me the Language. We sat together four Hours, in 
 
 We sat together four Hours. 
 
 which time I wrote down a great number of words in Columns, 
 with the Translations over against them ; I likewise made a 
 
196 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 shift to learn several short Sentences. For my Tutor 
 would order one of my Servants to fetch something, to turn 
 about, to make a Bow, to sit, or stand, or walk, and the like. 
 Then I took down the Sentence in writing. He shewed me 
 also in one of his Books, the Figures of the Sun, Moon, and 
 Stars, the Zodiack, the Tropics, and Polar Circles, together 
 with the Denominations of many Figures of Planes and Solids. 
 He gave me the Names and Descriptions of all the musical 
 Instruments, and the general Terms of Art in playing on each 
 of them. After he had left me, I placed all my Words with 
 their Interpretations in alphabetical Order. And thus in a 
 few days, by the help of a very faithful Memory, I got some 
 insight into their Language. 
 
 The word, which I interpret the Flying or Floating Island, 
 is in the Original, Laputa, whereof I could never learn the 
 true Etymology. Lap in the old obsolete Language signifieth 
 High, and Untuh a Governor, from which they say by Corrup- 
 tion was derived Laputa from Lapuntuh. But I do not 
 approve of this Derivation, which seems to be a little strained. 
 I ventured to offer to the learned among them a Conjecture 
 of my own, that Laputa was quasi Lap outed ; Lap signifying 
 properly the dancing of the Sun Beams in the Sea, and outed 
 a Wing ; which however I shall not obtrude, but submit to the 
 judicious reader. 
 
 Those to whom the King had entrusted me, observing 
 how ill I was clad, ordered a Taylor to come next 
 Morning, and take my measure for a suit of Cloths. This 
 Operator did his Office after a different manner from those of 
 his Trade in Europe. He first took my Altitude by a Quad- 
 rant, and then with Rule and Compasses, described the 
 Dimensions and Out-Lines of my whole Body, all which he 
 entred upon Paper, and in Six Days brought my Cloths 
 very ill made, and quite out of shape, by happening to mis- 
 take a figure in the Calculation. But my comfort was, 
 that I observed such accidents very frequent and little 
 regarded. 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 197 
 
 During my Confinement for want of Cloths, and by an 
 Indisposition that held me some days longer, I much en- 
 larged my Dictionary; and when I went next to Court, was able 
 to understand many things the King spoke, and to return him 
 some kind of answers. His Majesty had given orders that the 
 
 ' Very ill made.' 
 
 Island should move North-East and by East, to the Vertical 
 Point over Lagado, the Metropolis of the whole Kingdom below 
 upon the firm Earth. It was about ninety Leagues distant, 
 and our Voyage lasted four days and an half. I was not in 
 the least sensible of the progressive motion made in the Air 
 by the Island. On the second morning about eleven a 
 
 
198 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 Clock, the King himself in person, attended by his Nobility, 
 Courtiers, and Officers, having prepared all their musical 
 Instruments, played on them for three hours without Inter- 
 mission, so that I was quite stunned with the noise ; neither 
 could I possibly guess the meaning till my Tutor informed 
 me. He said that the People of their Island had their Ears 
 adapted to hear the Musick of the Spheres, which always 
 played at certain Periods, and the Court was now prepared to 
 bear their part in whatever Instrument they most excelled. 
 
 In our Journey towards Lagado the capital City, his 
 Majesty ordered that the Island should stop over certain 
 Towns and Villages, from whence he might receive the 
 Petitions of his Subjects. And to this purpose several 
 Packthreads were let down with small weights at the bottom. 
 On these Packthreads the People strung their Petitions, 
 which mounted up directly like the scraps of paper fastned 
 by School-boys at the end of the String that holds their Kite. 
 Sometimes we received Wine and Victuals from below, which 
 were drawn up by Pullies. 
 
 The knowledge I had in Mathematicks gave me great 
 assistance in acquiring their Phraseology, which depended 
 much upon that Science and Musick ; and in the latter I was 
 not unskilled. Their Ideas are perpetually conversant in 
 lines and figures. If they would, for example, praise the 
 beauty of a woman or any other animal, they describe it by 
 Rhombs, Circles, Parallelograms, Ellipses, and other Geo- 
 metrical Terms, or by words of Art drawn from Musick, 
 needless here to repeat. I observed in the King's Kitchen 
 all sorts of mathematical and musical Instruments, after the 
 figures of which they cut up the Joynts that were served to 
 his Majesties Table. 
 
 Their Houses are very ill built, the Walls Bevil, without 
 one Right Angle in any Apartment, and this defect ariseth 
 from the Contempt they bear to practical Geometry ; which 
 they despise as Vulgar and Mechanick, those Instructions 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 199 
 
 they give being too refined for the Intellectuals of their 
 Workmen, which occasions perpetual mistakes. And although 
 they are dextrous enough upon a piece of paper in the 
 management of the Rule, the Pencil and the Divider, yet in 
 the common actions, and behaviour of life, I have not seen a 
 more clumsy, awkward, and unhandy People, nor so slow and 
 perplexed in their Conceptions upon all other Subjects, 
 except those of Mathematicks and Musick. They are very 
 bad Reasoners, and vehemently given to Opposition, unless 
 when they happen to be of the right Opinion, which is 
 seldom their case. Imagination, Fancy, and Invention, they 
 are wholly strangers to, nor have any Words in their Language 
 by which those Ideas can be expressed ; the whole compass 
 of their Thoughts and Mind being shut up within the two 
 forementioned Sciences. 
 
 Most of them, and especially those who deal in the Astro- 
 nomical part, have great Faith in judicial Astrology, although 
 they are ashamed to own it publickly. But, what I chiefly 
 admired, and thought altogether unaccountable, was the strong 
 disposition I observed in them towards News and Politicks, 
 perpetually enquiring into Publick affairs, giving their Judg- 
 ments in matters of State ; and passionately disputing every 
 Inch of a Party Opinion. I have indeed observed the same 
 disposition among most of the Mathematicians I have known 
 in Europe, although I could never discover the least Analogy 
 between the two Sciences ; unless those People suppose, that 
 because the smallest Circle hath as many degrees as the 
 largest, therefore the regulation and management of the 
 World require no more Abilities than the handling and 
 turning of a Globe. But, I rather take this quality to spring 
 from a very common infirmity of human nature, inclining us 
 to be more curious and conceited in matters where we have 
 least concern, and for which we are least adapted either by 
 study or nature. 
 
 These People are under continual disquietudes, never 
 enjoying a minute's peace of mind ; and their disturbances 
 
200 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 proceed from Causes which very little affect the rest of 
 Mortals. Their apprehensions arise from several Changes 
 they dread in the celestial Bodies. For instance ; that the 
 Earth by the continual approaches of the Sun towards it, 
 must in course of Time be absorbed or swallowed up. That 
 the face of the Sun will by degrees be encrusted with its own 
 Effluvia, and give no more Light to the World. That the 
 Earth very narrowly escaped a brush from the Tail of the last 
 Comet, which would have infallibly reduced it to Ashes ; and 
 that the next, which they have calculated for one and thirty 
 Years hence, will probably destroy us. For, if in its Peri- 
 helion it should approach within a certain degree of the Sun 
 (as by their Calculations they have reason to dread) it will 
 conceive a degree of heat ten thousand times more intense 
 than that of red-hot glowing Iron ; and in its absence from 
 the Sun, carry a blazing tail ten hundred thousand and 
 fourteen Miles long ; through which if the Earth should pass 
 at the distance of one hundred thousand Miles from the 
 Nucleus or main Body of the Comet, it must in its Passage be 
 set on Fire, and reduced to Ashes. That the Sun daily 
 spending its Rays without any Nutriment to supply them, 
 will at last be wholly consumed and annihilated ; which must 
 be attended with the Destruction of this Earth, and of all the 
 Planets that receive their Light from it. 
 
 They are so perpetually alarmed with the Apprehensions 
 of these and the like impending Dangers, that they can 
 neither sleep quietly in their Beds, nor have any relish for 
 the common Pleasures or Amusements of Life. When they 
 meet an Acquaintance in the Morning, the first Question is 
 about the Sun's Health, how he looked at his Setting and 
 Rising, and what hopes they have to avoid the stroak of the 
 approaching Comet. This Conversation they are apt to run 
 into with the same Temper that Boys discover, in delighting 
 to hear terrible stories of Sprites and Hobgoblins, which they 
 greedily listen to, and dare not go to Bed for fear. 
 
 The Women of the Island have abundance of Vivacity; 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 A. VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 they contemn their Husbands, and are exceedingly fond of 
 Strangers, whereof there is always a considerable number 
 from the Continent below, attending at Court, either upon 
 Affairs of the several Towns and Corporations, or their own 
 particular occasions,, but are much despised, because they 
 
 ' The first Question is about the Sun's Health.' 
 
 want the same Endowments. Among these the Ladies chuse 
 their Gallants : But the Vexation is, that they act with too 
 much ease and security, for the Husband is always so rapt in 
 speculation, that the Mistress and Lover may proceed to the 
 greatest Familiarities before his face, if he be but provided 
 with paper and implements, and without his Flapper at his 
 side. 
 
202 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 The Wives and Daughters lament their Confinement to 
 the Island, although I think it the most delicious spot of 
 
 
 'Always so rapt in speculation.' 
 
 ground in the World; and although they live here in the 
 greatest plenty and magnificence, and are allowed to do 
 whatever they please, they long to see the World, and take 
 

 chap, ii . A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 203 
 
 the diversions of the Metropolis, which they are not allowed 
 to do without a particular Licence from the King ; and this 
 is not easy to be obtained, because the People of quality 
 have found by fre,quent Experience, how hard it is to 
 persuade their women to return from below. I was told that 
 a great Court Lady, who had several children, is marryed to 
 the Prime Minister, the richest Subject in the Kingdom, a 
 very graceful Person, extremely fond of her, and lives in the 
 finest Palace of the Island, went down to Lagado, on the 
 pretence of health, there hid herself for several months, till 
 the King sent a Warrant to search for her, and she was 
 found in an obscure Eating-House all in Rags, having pawned 
 her Cloths to maintain an old deformed Foot-man, who beat 
 her every day, and in whose company she was taken much 
 against her Will. And although her Husband received her 
 with all possible kindness, and without the least Reproach, 
 she soon after contrived to steal down again with all her 
 Jewels, to the same Gallant, and hath not been heard of 
 since. 
 
 This may perhaps pass with the Reader rather for an 
 European or English story, than for one of a Country so 
 remote. But he may please to consider, that the Caprices 
 of womenkind are not limited by any Climate or Nation, 
 and that they are much more uniform than can be easily 
 imagined. 
 
 In about a Month's time I had made a tolerable pro- 
 ficiency in their Language, and was able to answer most of 
 the King's Questions, when I had the honour to attend him. 
 His Majesty discovered not the least Curiosity to enquire 
 into the Laws, Government, History, Religion, or Manners 
 of the Countries where I had been, but confined his 
 Questions to the state of Mathematicks, and received the 
 account I gave him, with great Contempt and Indifference, 
 though often rouzed by his Flapper on each side. 
 
CHAP. Ill 
 
 A Phenomenon solved by modern Philosophy and Astronomy. The 
 Laputians' great Improvements in the latter. The King's method op 
 suppressing Insurrections. 
 
 I desired leave of this Prince to see the Curiosities of the 
 Island, which he was graciously pleased to grant, and ordered 
 my Tutor to attend me. I chiefly wanted to know to what 
 cause in Art or in Nature, it owed its several Motions, 
 whereof I will now give a philosophical account to the 
 Reader. 
 
 The flying or floating Island is exactly circular, its 
 Diameter 7837 Yards, or about four Miles and an half, and 
 consequently contains ten thousand Acres. It is three 
 hundred Yards thick. The bottom or under surface, which 
 appears to those who view it from below, is one even regular 
 Plate of Adamant, shooting up to the height of about two 
 hundred Yards. Above it lye the several Minerals in their 
 usual order, and over all is a Coat of rich Mould ten or twelve 
 Foot deep. This Declivity of the upper Surface, from the 
 Circumference to the Center, is the natural course why all the 
 Dews and Rains which fall upon the Island, are conveyed in 
 small Rivulets towards the middle, where they are emptyed 
 into four large Basons, each of about half a Mile in Circuit, 
 and two hundred Yards distant from the Center. From 
 these Basons the Water is continually exhaled by the Sun in 
 the day-time, which effectually prevents their over-flowing. 
 
CHAP. TIE 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 205 
 
 Besides, as it is in the power of the Monarch to raise the 
 Island above the Region of Clouds and Vapours, he can 
 prevent the falling of Dews and Rains whenever he pleases. 
 For the highest Clouds cannot rise above two Miles, as 
 Naturalists agree, at least they were never known to do so in 
 that Country. 
 
 At the Center of the Island there is a Chasm about fifty 
 
 A Load-stone of a prodigious size. 
 
 Yards in Diameter, from whence the Astronomers descend 
 into a large Dome, which is therefore called Flandona Gagnote, 
 or the Astronomer's Cave, situated at the depth of a hundred 
 Yards beneath the upper surface of the Adamant. In this 
 Cave are twenty Lamps continually burning, which from the 
 Reflection of the Adamant cast a strong Light into every 
 part. The place is stored with great variety of Sextants, 
 Quadrants, Telescopes, Astrolabes, and other Astronomical 
 Instruments. But the greatest Curiosity, upon which the 
 
206 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 fate of the Island depends, is a Load-stone of a prodigious 
 size, in shape resembling a Weaver's-Shuttle. It is in length 
 six Yards, and in the thickest part at least three Yards over. 
 This Magnet is sustained by a very strong Axle of Adamant 
 passing through its middle, upon which it plays, and is 
 poized so exactly that the weakest hand can turn it. It is 
 hooped round with an hollow Cylinder of Adamant, four 
 Foot deep, as many thick, and twelve Yards in Diameter, 
 placed horizontally, and supported by eight Adamantine 
 Feet, each six Yards high. In the middle of the Concave 
 side there is a Groove twelve Inches deep, in which the 
 Extremities of the Axle are lodged, and turned round as 
 there is occasion. 
 
 The Stone cannot be moved from its place by any force, 
 because the Hoop and its Feet are one continued piece with 
 that body of Adamant which constitutes the bottom of the 
 Island. 
 
 By means of this Load-stone, the Island is made to rise 
 and fall, and move from one place to another. For, with 
 respect to that part of the Earth over which the Monarch 
 presides, the Stone is endued at one of its sides with an 
 attractive Power, and at the other with a repulsive. Upon 
 placing the Magnet erect with its Attracting end towards the 
 Earth, the Island descends ; but when the Repelling ex- 
 tremity points downwards, the Island mounts directly upwards. 
 When the Position of the Stone is oblique, the Motion of the 
 Island is so too. For in this Magnet the forces always act 
 in lines parallel to its direction. 
 
 By this oblique motion the Island is conveyed to different 
 parts of the Monarch's Dominions. To explain the manner 
 of its progress, let A B represent a line drawn cross the 
 Dominions of Balnibarbi, let the line c d represent the Load- 
 stone, of which let d be the Repelling end, and c the 
 Attracting end, the Island being over C ; let the Stone be 
 placed in the Position c d with its Repelling end downwards \ 
 
'MJaCker fcHoHtcttf scufpserun^ 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 209 
 
 then the Island will be driven upwards obliquely towards D. 
 When it is arrived at D, let the Stone be turned upon its 
 Axle till its Attracting end points towards E, and then the 
 Island will be carried obliquely towards E ; where if the 
 Stone be again turned upon its Axle till it stands in the 
 Position E E, with its Repelling point downwards, the Island 
 will rise obliquely towards E, where by directing the Attracting 
 end towards G, the Island may be carried to G, and from G 
 to H, by turning the Stone, so as to make its Repelling 
 extremity point directly downwards. And thus by changing 
 the Situation of the Stone as often as there is occasion, the 
 Island is made to rise and fall by turns in an oblique 
 Direction, and by those alternate Risings and Fallings (the 
 Obliquity being not considerable) is conveyed from one part 
 of the Dominions to the other. 
 
 But it must be observed, that this Island cannot move 
 beyond the extent of the Dominions below, nor can it rise 
 above the height of four Miles. For which the Astronomers 
 (who have written large Systems concerning the Stone) assign 
 the following Reason : That the Magnetick Virtue does not 
 extend beyond the distance of four Miles, and that the 
 Mineral which acts upon the Stone in the Bowels of the 
 Earth, and in the Sea about six Leagues distant from the 
 Shoar, is not diffused through the whole Globe, but terminated 
 with the Limits of the King's Dominions ; and it was easy 
 from the great Advantage of such a superior Situation, for a 
 Prince to bring under his Obedience whatever Country lay 
 within the Attraction of that Magnet. 
 
 When the Stone is put parallel to the Plane of the 
 Horizon, the Island standeth still ; for in that case, the 
 Extremities of it being at equal distance from the Earth, 
 act with equal Force, the one in drawing downwards, the 
 other in pushing upwards, and consequently no Motion can 
 ensue. 
 
 This Load-stone is under the care of certain Astronomers, 
 
210 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 who from time to time give it such Positions as the Monarch 
 directs. They spend the greatest part of their Lives in 
 observing the celestial Bodies, which they do by the assist- 
 ance of Glasses far excelling ours in goodness. This advan- 
 tage hath enabled them to extend their Discoveries much 
 farther than our Astronomers in Europe ; for they have made 
 a Catalogue of ten thousand fixed Stars, whereas the largest 
 of ours do not contain above one third part of that Number. 
 They have likewise discovered two lesser Stars, or Satellites, 
 which revolve about Mars, whereof the innermost is distant 
 from the Center of the primary Planet exactly three of the 
 Diameters, and the outermost five ; the former revolves in the 
 space of ten Hours, and the latter in twenty-one and an half; 
 so that the Squares of their Periodical Times are very near in 
 the same Proportion with the Cubes of their distance from 
 the Center of Mars, which evidently shews them to be 
 governed by the same Law of Gravitation, that influences the 
 other heavenly Bodies. 
 
 They have observed ninety-three different Comets, and 
 settled their Periods with great Exactness. If this be true 
 (and they affirm it with great Confidence) it is much to be 
 wished that their Observations were made publick, whereby 
 the Theory of Comets, which at present is very lame and 
 defective, might be brought to the same Perfection with other 
 parts of Astronomy. 
 
 The King would be the most absolute Prince in the 
 Universe, if he could but prevail on a Ministry to join with 
 him ; but these having their Estates below on the Continent, 
 and considering that the Office of a Favourite hath a very 
 uncertain Tenure, would never consent to the enslaving their 
 Country. 
 
 If any Town should engage in Rebellion or Mutiny, fall 
 into violent Factions, or refuse to pay the usual Tribute, the 
 King hath two Methods of reducing them to Obedience. The 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 211 
 
 first and the mildest Course is by keeping the Island hovering 
 over such a Town, and the Lands about it, whereby he can 
 deprive them of the Benefit of the Sun and the Rain, and 
 consequently afflict the Inhabitants with Dearth and Diseases. 
 And if the Crime deserve it, they are at the same time pelted 
 from above with great Stones, against which they have no 
 Defence but by creeping into Cellars or Caves, while the 
 Roofs of their Houses are beaten to pieces. But if they still 
 continue obstinate, or offer to raise Insurrections, he proceeds to 
 the last Remedy, by letting the Island drop directly upon their 
 Heads, which makes an universal Destruction both of Houses 
 and Men. However, this is an Extremity to which the Prince 
 is seldom driven, neither indeed is he willing to put it in 
 Execution, nor dare his Ministers advise him to an Action, 
 which as it would render them odious to the People, so it 
 would be a great damage to their own Estates, which lie 
 all below, for the Island is the King's Demesn. 
 
 But there is still indeed a more weighty Reason, why the 
 Kings of this Country have been always averse from executing 
 so terrible an Action, unless upon the utmost Necessity. For 
 if the Town intended to be destroyed should have in it any 
 tall Rocks, as it generally falls out in the larger Cities, a Situa- 
 tion probably chosen at first with a View to prevent such a 
 Catastrophe ; or if it abound in high Spires or Pillars of Stone, 
 a sudden Fall might endanger the bottom or under surface of 
 the Island, which although it consist as I have said of one 
 entire Adamant two hundred Yards thick, might happen to 
 crack by too great a Choque, or burst by approaching too 
 near the Fires from the Houses below, as the backs both of 
 Iron and Stone will often do in our Chimneys. Of ail this 
 the People are well apprized, and understand how far to carry 
 their Obstinacy, where their Liberty or Property is concerned. 
 And the King, when he is highest provoked, and most deter- 
 mined to press a City to Rubbish, orders the Island to 
 descend with great gentleness, out of a Pretence of Tender- 
 ness to his People, but indeed for fear of breaking the 
 Adamantine Bottom ; in which Case it is the Opinion of 
 
212 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 all their Philosophers, that the Load-stone could no longer 
 hold it up, and the whole Mass would fall to the ground. 
 
 By a fundamental Law of this Realm, neither the King 
 nor either of his two elder Sons are permitted to leave the 
 Island, nor the Queen till she is past Child-bearing. 
 
CHAP. IV 
 
 The Author leaves Laputa, is conveyed to Balnibarbi, arrives at the 
 Metropolis. A Description of the Metropolis and the Country 
 adjoining. The Author hospitably received by a great Lord. His 
 Conversation with that Lord. 
 
 Although I cannot say that I was ill treated in this Island, 
 yet I must confess I thought myself too much neglected, not 
 without some degree of Contempt. For neither Prince nor 
 People appeared to be curious in any part of Knowledge, 
 except Mathematicks and Musick, wherein I was far their 
 inferior, and upon that account very little regarded. 
 
 On the other side, after having seen all the Curiosities of 
 the Island, I was very desirous to leave it, being heartily 
 weary of those People. They were indeed excellent in two 
 Sciences for which I have great Esteem, and wherein I am 
 not unversed, but at the same time so abstracted and 
 involved in Speculation that I never met with such dis- 
 agreeable Companions. I convers'd only with Women, 
 Tradesmen, Flappers, and Court-Pages during Two Months of 
 my abode there, by which at last I render'd myself extremely 
 contemptible, yet these were the only People from whom I 
 could ever receive a reasonable answer. 
 
 I had obtained by hard Study a good degree of Knowledge in 
 their Language ; I was weary of being confined to an Island 
 where I received so little Countenance, and resolved to leave 
 it with the first Opportunity. 
 
214 A VOYAGE TO LA PUT A, ETC. part hi 
 
 There was a great Lord at Court, nearly related to the 
 King, and for that reason alone used with respect. He was 
 universally reckoned the most ignorant and stupid Person 
 among them. He had performed many eminent Services for 
 the Crown, had great natural and acquired Parts, adorned 
 with Integrity and Honour, but so ill an Ear for Musick, that 
 his Detractors reported he had been often known to beat 
 Time in the wrong place ; neither could his Tutors without 
 extreme difficulty teach him to demonstrate the most easy 
 Proposition in the Mathematicks. He was pleased to shew me 
 many Marks of Favour, often did me the Honour of a Visit, 
 desired to be informed in the Affairs of Europe, the Laws and 
 Customs, the Manners and Learning of the several Countries 
 where I .had travelled. He listned to me with great Atten- 
 tion, and made very wise Observations on all I spoke. He 
 had two Flappers attending him for State, but never made 
 use of them except at Court, and in Visits of Ceremony, and 
 would always command them to withdraw when we were 
 alone together. 
 
 I intreated this illustrious Person to intercede in my behalf 
 with his Majesty for leave to depart, which he accordingly 
 did, as he was pleased to tell me, with Regret : For, indeed 
 he had made me several Offers very advantageous, which 
 however I refused with Expressions of the highest Acknow- 
 ledgment. 
 
 On the 1 6th Day of February, I took leave of His Majesty 
 and the Court. The King made me a Present to the value 
 of about two hundred Pounds English, and my Protector his 
 Kinsman as much more, together with a Letter of Recom- 
 mendation to a Friend of his in Lagado, the Metropolis ; The 
 Island being then hovering over a Mountain about two 
 Miles from it, I was let down from the lowest Gallery, in the 
 same manner as I had been taken up. 
 
 The Continent, as far as it is subject to the Monarch of 
 the Flying Island, passes under the general name of Bal- 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 215 
 
 nibarbi, and the Metropolis, as I said before, is called Lagado. 
 I felt some little Satisfaction in finding myself on firm 
 Ground. I walked to the City without any concern, being 
 clad like one of the Natives, and sufficiently instructed to 
 converse with them. I soon found out the Person's House 
 to whom I was recommended, presented my Letter from his 
 Friend the Grandee in the Island, and was received with 
 much Kindness/ This great Lord, whose name was Munodi, 
 ordered me an Apartment in his own House, where I 
 continued during my stay, and was entertained in a most 
 hospitable manner. 
 
 The next Morning after my Arrival he took me in his 
 Chariot to see the Town, which is about half the bigness of 
 London, but the Houses very strangely built, and most of 
 them out of repair. The People in the Streets walked fast, 
 looked wild, their Eyes fixed, and were generally in Rags. 
 We passed through one of the Town Gates, and went about 
 three Miles into the Country, where I saw many Labourers 
 working with several sorts of Tools in the Ground, but was 
 not able to conjecture what they were about, neither did I 
 observe any expectation either of Corn or Grass, although the 
 Soil appeared to be excellent. I could not forbear admiring 
 at these odd Appearances both in Town and Country, and I 
 made bold to desire my Conductor, that he would be pleased 
 to explain to me what could be meant by so many busy 
 Heads, Hands and Faces, both in the Streets and the 
 Fields, because I did not discover any good Effects they 
 produced; but on the contrary, I never knew a Soil so 
 unhappily cultivated, Houses so ill contrived and so ruinous, 
 or a People whose Countenances and Habit expressed so 
 much Misery and Want. 
 
 This Lord Munodi was a Person of the first Rank, and 
 had been some Years Governor of Lagado, but by a Cabal of 
 Ministers was discharged for Insufficiency. However the 
 King treated him with Tenderness, as a well-meaning Man, 
 but of a low contemptible Understanding. 
 
' //£ z'tftf/? ?;/s- ?"« /«*.y Chariot to see the Town, 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 217 
 
 When I gave that free Censure of the Country and its 
 Inhabitants, he made no further answer than by telling me, 
 that I had not been long enough among them to form a 
 Judgment ; and that the different Nations of the World had 
 different Customs, with other common Topicks to the same 
 Purpose. But when we returned to his Palace, he asked me 
 how I liked the Building, what Absurdities I observed, and 
 what Quarrel I had with the Dress and Looks of his 
 Domesticks. This he might safely do, because every thing 
 about him was Magnificent, regular and polite. I answered 
 that his Excellencies Prudence, Quality, and Fortune, had 
 exempted him from those defects which Folly and Beggary 
 had produced in others. He said if I would go with him to 
 his Country House about twenty Miles distant, where his 
 Estate lay, there would be more leisure for this kind of 
 Conversation. I told his Excellency that I was entirely at 
 his Disposal, and accordingly we set out next Morning. 
 
 During our Journey, he made me observe the several 
 Methods used by Farmers in managing their Lands, which to 
 me were wholly unaccountable, for except in some very few 
 places, I could not discover one Ear of Corn or Blade of 
 Grass. But, in three Hours travelling, the Scene was wholly 
 altered ; we came into a most beautiful Country • Farmers 
 Houses at small distances, neatly built, the Fields enclosed, 
 containing Vineyards, Corn-grounds and Meadows. Neither 
 do I remember to have seen a more delightful Prospect. 
 His Excellency observed my Countenance to clear up ; he 
 told me with a Sigh, that there his Estate began, and would 
 continue the same till we should come to his House. That 
 his Countrymen ridiculed and despis'd him for managing his 
 Affairs no better, and for setting so ill an Example to the 
 Kingdom, which however was followed by very few, such as 
 were old and wilful, and weak like himself. 
 
 We came at length to the House, which was indeed a 
 noble Structure, built according to the best Rules of ancient 
 Architecture. The Fountains, Gardens, Walks, Avenues, and 
 
218 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part in 
 
 Groves were all disposed with exact Judgment and Taste. I 
 gave due Praises to every thing I saw, whereof his Excellency 
 took not the least Notice till after Supper, when there being 
 no third Companion, he told me with a very melancholy Air, 
 that he doubted he must throw down his Houses in Town 
 and Country, to rebuild them after the present Mode, destroy 
 all his Plantations, and cast others in such a Form as modern 
 Usage required, and give the same Directions to all his 
 Tenants, unless he would submit to incur the Censure of 
 Pride, Singularity, Affectation, Ignorance, Caprice, and per- 
 haps encrease His Majesties Displeasure. 
 
 That the Admiration I appeared to be under, would cease 
 or diminish when he had informed me of some Particulars, 
 which probably I never heard of at Court, the People there 
 being too much taken up in their own Speculations, to have 
 regard to what passed here below. 
 
 The Sum of his Discourse was to this Effect. That about 
 forty Years ago, certain Persons went up to Laputa either 
 upon Business or Diversion, and after five Months continuance 
 came back with a very little smattering in Mathematicks, but full 
 of Volatile Spirits acquired in that Airy Region. That these 
 Persons upon their Return began to dislike the Management of 
 every thing below, and fell into Schemes of putting all Arts, 
 Sciences, Languages, and Mechanicks upon a new Foot. To 
 this End they procured a Royal Patent for erecting an 
 Academy of Projectors in Lagado ; And the Humour pre- 
 vailed so strongly among the People, that there is not a Town 
 of any Consequence in the Kingdom without such an 
 Academy. In these Colleges, the Professors contrive new 
 Rules and Methods of Agriculture and Building, and new 
 Instruments and Tools for all Trades and Manufactures, 
 whereby, as they undertake, one Man shall do the Work of 
 ten ; a Palace may be built in a Week, of Materials so 
 durable as to last for ever without repairing. All the Fruits 
 of the Earth shall come to Maturity at whatever Season we 
 think fit to chuse, and increase an hundred Fold more than 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 219 
 
 they do at present, with innumerable other happy Proposals. 
 The only Inconvenience is, that none of these Projects are yet 
 brought to Perfection, and in the mean time the whole 
 Country lies miserably wast, the Houses in Ruins, and the 
 People without Food or Cloths. By all which, instead of 
 being discouraged, they are fifty times more violently bent 
 upon prosecuting their Schemes, driven equally on by Hope 
 and Despair; That as for himself, being not of an Enter- 
 prizing Spirit, he was content to go on in the old Forms, to live 
 in the Houses his Ancestors had built, and act as they did in 
 every part of Life without Innovation. That, some few other 
 Persons of Quality and Gentry had done the same, but were 
 looked on with an Eye of Contempt and Ill-will, as Enemies 
 to Art, ignorant, and ill Common-wealths-men, preferring 
 their own Ease and Sloth before the general Improvement of 
 their Country. 
 
 His Lordship added, that he would not by any further 
 Particulars prevent the Pleasure I should certainly take in 
 viewing the grand Academy, whither he was resolved I should 
 go. He only desired me to observe a ruined Building upon 
 the side of a Mountain about three Miles distant, of which 
 he gave me this Account. That he had a very convenient 
 Mill within half a Mile of his House, turned by a Current 
 from a large River, and sufficient for his own Family as well 
 as a great number of his Tenants. That, about seven Years 
 ago, a Club of those Projectors came to him with Proposals to 
 destroy this Mill, and build another on the side of that 
 Mountain, on the long Ridge whereof a long Canal must be 
 cut for a Repository of Water, to be conveyed up by Pipes 
 and Engines to supply the Mill : Because the Wind and Air 
 upon a Height agitated the Water, and thereby made it fitter 
 for Motion : And because the Water descending down a 
 Declivity would turn the Mill with half the Current of a River 
 whose Course is more upon a Level. He said, that being 
 then not very well with the Court, and pressed by many of 
 his Friends, he complyed with the Proposal ; and after 
 employing an hundred Men for two Years, the Work mis- 
 
220 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 carried, the Projectors went off, laying the blame entirely 
 upon him, railing at him ever since, and putting others upon 
 the same Experiment, with equal Assurance of Success, as 
 well as equal Disappointment. 
 
 In a few Days we came back to Town, and His Excellency, 
 considering the bad Character he had in the Academy, would 
 not go with me himself, but recommended me to a Friend of 
 his to bear me company thither. My Lord was pleased to 
 represent me as a great Admirer of Projects, and a Person of 
 much Curiosity and easy Belief, which indeed was not with- 
 out Truth, for I had myself been a sort of a Projector in my 
 younger Days. 
 

 CHAP. V 
 
 The Author permitted to see the grand Academy of Lagado. The Academy 
 largely described. The Arts wherein the Professor's eniploy themselves. 
 
 This Academy is not an entire single Building, but a Con- 
 tinuation of several Houses on both sides of a Street, which 
 growing waste was purchased and applied to that Use. 
 
 I was received very kindly by the Warden, and went for 
 many Days to the Academy. Every Room hath in it one or 
 more Projectors, and I believe I could not be in fewer than 
 five hundred Rooms. 
 
 The first Man I saw was of a meager Aspect, with sooty 
 Hands and Face, his Hair and Beard long, ragged and singed 
 in several places. His Cloths, Shirt, and Skin were all of the 
 same Colour. He had been eight Years upon a Project for 
 extracting Sun-Beams out of Cucumbers, which were to be 
 put into Vials hermetically Sealed, and let out to warm the 
 Air in raw inclement Summers. He told me, he did not 
 doubt in eight Years more, he should be able to supply the 
 Governor's Gardens with Sun-shine at a reasonable Rate ; 
 but he complained that his Stock was low, and entreated me 
 to give him something as an Encouragement to Ingenuity, 
 especially since this had been a very dear Season for 
 Cucumbers. I made him a small Present, for my Lord had 
 furnished me with Money on purpose, because he knew their 
 Practice of begging from all who go to see them. 
 
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 PART III 
 
 I saw one at work to calcine Ice into Gun-Powder, who 
 likewise shewed me a Treatise he had written concerning the 
 Malleability of Fire, which he intended to publish. 
 
 ' He complained that his Stock ivas low.' 
 
 There was a most ingenious Architect who had contrived 
 a new method for building Houses, by beginning at the Roof 
 and working downwards to the Foundation, which he justified 
 
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 223 
 
 to me by the like practice of those two prudent Insects the 
 Bee and the Spider. 
 
 Taught them to distinguish by feeling and smelling.' 
 
 There was a man born blind, who had several Apprentices 
 in his own condition : Their Employment was to mix Colours 
 for Painters, which their Master taught them to distinguish by 
 
224 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 PART III 
 
 feeling and smelling. It was indeed my misfortune to find 
 them at that time not very perfect in their Lessons, and the 
 Professor himself happened to be generally mistaken : This 
 
 ; A Device of plowing- the Ground with Hogs. 
 
 , Artist is much encouraged and esteemed by the whole 
 Fraternity. 
 
 In another Apartment I was highly pleased with a Pro- 
 jector, who had found a Device of plowing the Ground with 
 Hogs, to save the charges of Plows, Cattle, and Labour. 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 225 
 
 The method is this ; in an Acre of Ground you bury at six 
 Inches distance, and eight deep, a quantity of Acorns, Dates, 
 Chesnuts, and other Maste or Vegetables whereof these 
 Animals are fondest : Then you drive six hundred or more of 
 them into the Field, where in a few days they will root up 
 the whole ground in search of their Food, and make it fit for 
 sowing, at the same time manuring it with their dung ; it is 
 true upon Experiment they found the charge and trouble 
 very great, and they had little or no Crop. However, it is 
 not doubted that this invention may be capable of great 
 improvement. 
 
 I went into another room, where the Walls and Ceiling 
 were all hung round with Cobwebs, except a narrow passage 
 for the Artist to go in and out. At my entrance he called 
 aloud to me not to disturb his Webs. He lamented the fatal 
 mistake the world had been so long in of using Silk-Worms, 
 while we had such plenty of domestick Insects, who infinitely 
 excelled the former, because they understood how to weave 
 as well as spin. And he proposed farther, that by employing 
 Spiders, the charge of dying silks should be wholly saved, 
 whereof I was fully convinced when he shewed me a vast 
 number of Flies most beautifully coloured, wherewith he fed 
 his Spiders, assuring us, that the Webs would take a Tincture 
 from them ; and as he had them of all hues, he hoped to fit 
 every body's fancy, as soon as he could find proper Food for 
 the Flies of certain Gums, Oyls, and other glutinous matter 
 to give a strength and consistence to the threads. 
 
 There was an Astronomer who had undertaken to place 
 a Sun-Dial upon the great Weather-cock on the Town-house, 
 by adjusting the annual and diurnal Motions of the Earth 
 and Sun, so as to answer and coincide with all accidental 
 turnings by the Wind. 
 
 I visited many other Apartments, but shall not trouble 
 my Reader with all the Curiosities I observed, being studious 
 of brevity. 
 
 Q 
 
226 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 I had hitherto seen only one side of the x\cademy, the 
 other being appropriated to the Advancers of speculative 
 Learning, of whom I shall say something when I have men- 
 tioned one illustrious person more, who is called among them 
 the universal Artist. He told us he had been thirty Years 
 employing his Thoughts for the Improvement of human Life. 
 He had two large Rooms full of wonderful Curiosities, and 
 fifty men at work. Some were condensing Air into a dry 
 tangible substance, by extracting the Nitre, and letting the 
 aqueous or fluid Particles percolate ; others softening Marble 
 for Pillows and Pincushions ; others petrifying the Hoofs of a 
 living Horse to preserve them from foundring. The Artist 
 himself was at that time busy upon two great Designs ; the 
 first to sow Land with Chaff, wherein he affirmed the true 
 seminal virtue to be contained, as he demonstrated by several 
 Experiments which I was not skilful enough to comprehend. 
 The other was, by a certain composition of Gums, Minerals, 
 and Vegetables outwardly applied, to prevent the growth of 
 Wool upon two young Lambs ; and he hoped in a reasonable 
 time to propagate the breed of naked Sheep all over the 
 Kingdom. 
 
 We crossed a Walk to the other part of the Academy, 
 where, as I have already said, the Projector in Speculative 
 Learning resided. 
 
 The first Professor I saw was in a very large Room, with 
 forty Pupils about him. After Salutation, observing me to 
 look earnestly upon a frame, which took up the greatest part 
 of both the length and breadth of the Room, he said perhaps 
 I might wonder to see him employed in a Project for im- 
 proving Speculative Knowledge by Practical and Mechanical 
 Operations. But the world would soon be sensible of its 
 usefulness, and he flattered himself that a more noble exalted 
 thought never sprung in any other man's head. Every one 
 knew how laborious the usual method is of attaining to Arts 
 and Sciences ; whereas by his contrivance, the most ignorant 
 person at a reasonable charge, and with a little bodily labour, 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 227 
 
 may write Books in Philosophy, Poetry, Politicks, Law, 
 Mathematicks and Theology, without the least assistance from 
 genius or study. He then led me to the frame, about the 
 sides whereof all his Pupils stood in ranks. It was twenty 
 foot square, placed in the middle of the room. The 
 
 
 : He then led vie to the frame.'' 
 
 superficies was composed of several bits of wood, about the 
 bigness of a Dye, but some larger than others. They were 
 all linked together by slender Wires. These bits of wood 
 were covered on every square with paper pasted on them, and 
 on these papers were written all the words of their Language 
 in their several Moods, Tenses and Declensions, but without 
 any Order. The Professor then desired me to observe, for 
 
228 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 he was going to set his Engine at work. The Pupils at his 
 command took each of them hold of an iron handle, whereof 
 there were forty fixed round the edges of the frame, and 
 giving them a sudden turn, the whole disposition of the 
 words was entirely changed. He then commanded six and 
 thirty of the Lads to read the several lines softly as they 
 appeared upon the frame ; and where they found three or 
 four words together that might make part of a Sentence, 
 they dictated to the four remaining Boys who were Scribes. 
 This work was repeated three or four times, and at every 
 turn the Engine was so contrived, that the words shifted 
 into new places, as the square bits of wood moved upside 
 down. 
 
 Six hours a-day the young Students were employed in 
 this Labour, and the Professor shewed me several Volumes 
 in large Folio already collected, of broken Sentences, which 
 he intended to piece together, and out of those rich Materials 
 to give the world a compleat body of all Arts and Sciences ; 
 which however might be still improved, and much expedited, 
 if the Publick would raise a Fund for making and employing 
 five hundred such frames in Lagado, and oblige the Managers 
 to contribute in common their several Collections. 
 
 He assured me, that this Invention had employed all his 
 Thoughts from his youth, that he had employed the whole 
 vocabulary into his frame, and made the strictest computation 
 of the general proportion there is in books between the 
 numbers of Particles, Nouns and Verbs, and other Parts of 
 Speech. 
 
 I made my humblest acknowledgement to this illustrious 
 person for his great Communicativeness, and promised if 
 ever I had the good fortune to return to my native Country, 
 that I would do him justice, as the sole Inventor of this 
 wonderful Machine ; the form and contrivance of which 
 I desired leave to delineate upon paper. I told him, 
 although it were the custom of our learned in Europe 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 229 
 
 to steal Inventions from each other, who had thereby at 
 least this advantage, that it became a Controversy which 
 was the right Owner, yet I would take such caution, that 
 he should have the honour entire without a Rival. 
 
 We next went to the School of Language, where three 
 Professors sate in consultation upon improving that of their 
 own Country, 
 
 The first Project was to shorten Discourse by cutting 
 Polysyllables into one, and leaving out Verbs and Participles, 
 because in reality all things imaginable are but Nouns. 
 
 The other was a Scheme for entirely abolishing all words 
 whatsoever ; and this was urged as a great advantage in point 
 of Health as well as brevity. For, it is plain, that every word 
 we speak is in some degree a diminution of our Lungs by 
 Corrosion, and consequently contributes to the shortning of 
 our Lives. An expedient was therefore offered, that since 
 words are only names for Things, it would be more con- 
 venient for all men to carry about them, such Things as were 
 necessary to express the particular business they are to 
 discourse on. And this Invention would certainly have 
 taken place, to the great ease as well as health of the 
 Subject, if the Women in conjunction with the vulgar and 
 illiterate had not threatned to raise a Rebellion, unless they 
 might be allowed the liberty to speak with their Tongues, 
 after the manner of their Ancestors ; Such constant ir- 
 reconcileable Enemies to Science are the common people. 
 However, many of the most learned and wise adhere to the 
 new Scheme of expressing themselves by Things, which hath 
 only this Inconvenience attending it, that if a man's business 
 be very gre'at, and of various kinds, he must be obliged in 
 proportion to carry a greater Bundle of Things upon his back, 
 unless he can afford one or two strong servants to attend him. 
 I have often beheld two of those Sages almost sinking under 
 the weight of their packs, like Pedlers among us ; who when 
 they met in the Streets would lay down their Loads, open 
 
2 3 o A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC part hi 
 
 their Sacks and hold Conversation for an hour together; 
 
 { Conversation.' 
 
 then put up their Implements, help each other to resume 
 their burthens, and take their leave. 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 231 
 
 But for short conversations a man may carry Implements 
 in his Pockets and under his Arms, enough to supply him, 
 and in his House he cannot be at a loss ; Therefore the 
 room where company meet who practice this Art, is full of all 
 Things ready at hand, requisite to furnish matter for this kind 
 of artificial converse. 
 
 Another great advantage proposed by this Invention, was 
 that it would serve as an universal Language to be understood 
 in all civilised nations, whose goods and utensils are generally 
 of the same kind, or nearly resembling, so that their uses 
 might easily be comprehended. And thus Embassadors 
 would be qualified to treat with foreign Princes or Ministers 
 of State to whose Tongues they were utter Strangers. 
 
 I was at the Mathematical School, where the Master 
 taught his Pupils after a method scarce imaginable to us in 
 Europe. The Proposition and Demonstration were fairly 
 written on a thin Wafer, with Ink composed of a Cephalick 
 Tincture. This the Student was to swallow upon a fasting 
 Stomach, and for three days following eat nothing but Bread 
 and Water. As the Wafer digested, the Tincture mounted 
 to his Brain, bearing the Proposition along with it. But the 
 success hath not hitherto been answerable, partly by some 
 error in the Quantum or Composition, and partly by the 
 Perverseness of Lads, to whom this Bolus is so nauseous that 
 they generally steal aside, and discharge it upwards before it 
 can operate, neither have they been yet persuaded to use so 
 long an Abstinence as the Prescription requires. 
 
CHAR VI 
 
 A farther Account of the Academy. The Author proposes some Improve- 
 ments which are honourably received. 
 
 In the School of Political Projectors I was but ill entertained, 
 the Professors appearing in my Judgment wholly out of their 
 Senses, which is a Scene that never fails to make me 
 melancholy. These unhappy People were proposing Schemes 
 for persuading Monarchs to chuse Favourites upon the Score 
 of their Wisdom, Capacity and Virtue • of teaching Ministers 
 to consult the Publick Good ; of rewarding Merit, great 
 Abilities and eminent Services ; of instructing Princes to 
 know their true Interest by placing it on the same foundation 
 with that of their people : Of chusing for employments 
 persons qualified to exercise them ; with many other wild 
 impossible Chimaeras, that never entred before into the 
 heart of man to conceive, and confirmed in me the old 
 Observation, that there is nothing so extravagant and ir- 
 rational which some Philosophers have not maintained for 
 truth. 
 
 But, however, I shall so far do justice to this part of the 
 Academy, as to acknowledge that all of them were not so 
 visionary. There was a most ingenious Doctor who seemed to 
 be perfectly versed in the whole nature and system of Govern- 
 ment. This illustrious person had very usefully employed his 
 studies in finding out effectual remedies for all Diseases and 
 Corruptions, to which the several kinds of publick Admin- 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 233 
 
 istration are subject by the Vices or Infirmities of those who 
 govern, as well as by the licentiousness of those who are to 
 obey. For instance ; whereas all Writers and Reasoners have 
 agreed, that there is a strict universal resemblance between the 
 Natural and the Political body ; can there be any thing more 
 evident, than that the health of both must be preserved, and 
 the diseases cured by the same prescription ? It is allowed, 
 that Senates and great Councils are often troubled with 
 redundant, ebullient, and other peccant humours, with many 
 diseases of the head, and more of the heart ; with strong 
 Convulsions, with grievous Contractions of the Nerves and 
 Sinews in both hands, but especially the right : With Spleen, 
 Flatus, Vertigos and Deliriums ; with Scrophulous Tumours 
 full of faetid purulent Matter ; with sower frothy Ructations, 
 with canine Appetites and crudeness of Digestion, besides 
 many others needless to mention. This Doctor therefore 
 proposed, that upon the meeting of a Senate, certain 
 Physicians should attend at the three first days of their 
 sitting, and at the close of each days debate, feel the Pulses 
 of every Senator ; after which having maturely considered, 
 and consulted upon the nature of the several Maladies, and 
 title methods of cure, they should on the fourth day return to 
 the Senate House, attended by their Apothecaries stored with 
 proper Medicines, and before the Members sate, administer 
 to each of them Lenitives, Aperitives, Abstersives, Corrosives, 
 Restringents, Palliatives, Laxatives, Cephalalgicks, Ictericks, 
 Apophlegmaticks, Acousticks, as their several cases required, 
 and according as these Medicines should operate, repeat, 
 alter, or omit them at the next Meeting. 
 
 This Project could not be of any great expence to the 
 publick, and would in my poor opinion, be of much use for 
 the dispatch of business in those Countries where Senates 
 have any share in the Legislative Power, beget Unanimity, 
 shorten Debates, open a few Mouths which are now closed, 
 and close many more which are now open ; curb the Petu- 
 lancy of the Young, and correct the Positiveness of the 
 Old ; rouze the Stupid, and damp the Pert. 
 
234 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 PART III 
 
 Again, Because it is a general complaint that the favourites 
 of Princes are troubled with short and weak Memories ; the 
 same Doctor proposed, that whoever attended a first Minister, 
 after having told his business with the utmost brevity, and in the 
 plainest words ; should at his departure give the said Minister 
 a tweak by the Nose, or a kick in the Belly, or tread on his 
 
 ' To prevent forgetfulness. 
 
 Corns, or lug him thrice by both Ears, or run a pin into his 
 Breech, or pinch his Arm black and blew, to prevent forget- 
 fulness : and at every Levee Day repeat the same Operation, 
 till the business were done or absolutely refused. 
 
 He likewise directed, that every Senator in the great 
 Council of a Nation, after he had delivered his Opinion, and 
 
CHAr. vi A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 235 
 
 argued in the- defence of it, should be obliged to give his 
 Vote directly contrary ; because if that were done, the result 
 would infallibly terminate in the good of the Publick. 
 
 When parties in a State are violent, he offered a wonderful 
 contrivance to reconcile them. The method is this. You 
 take an hundred Leaders of each party, you dispose them 
 into couples of such whose heads are nearest of a size j then 
 let two nice Operators saw off the Occiput of each couple at 
 the same time, in such a manner that the brain may be 
 equally divided. Let the Occiputs thus cut off be inter- 
 changed, applying each to the head of his opposite party-man. 
 It seems indeed to be a work that requireth some exactness, 
 but the Professor assured us, that if it were dextrously per- 
 formed, the cure would be infallible. For he argued thus ; that 
 the two half brains being left to debate the matter between 
 themselves within the space of one Scull, would soon come to 
 a good understanding, and produce that Moderation as well 
 as Regularity of thinking, so much to be wished for in the 
 heads of those, who imagine they come into the world only 
 to watch and govern its motion : And as to the difference of 
 brains in quantity or quality, among those who are directors 
 in faction ; the Doctor assured us from his own knowledge, 
 that it was a perfect trifle. 
 
 I heard a very warm debate between two Professors, about 
 the most commodious and effectual ways and means of raising 
 money without grieving the Subject. The first affirmed the 
 justest method would be to lay a certain tax upon Vices and 
 Folly, and the sum fixed upon every man, to be rated after 
 the fairest manner by a Jury of his Neighbours. The second 
 was of an opinion directly contrary, to tax those qualities of 
 body and mind for which men chiefly value themselves, the 
 rate to be more or less according to the degrees of excelling, 
 the decision whereof should be left entirely to their own 
 breast. The highest tax was upon men, who are the 
 greatest favourites of the other sex, and the assessments 
 according to the number and natures of the favours they 
 
236 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 have received ; for which they are allowed to be their own 
 vouchers. Wit, Valour, and Politeness were likewise pro- 
 posed to be largely taxed, and collected in the same manner, 
 by every person's giving his own word for the Quantum of 
 what he possessed. But as to Honour, Justice, Wisdom and 
 Learning, they should not be taxed at all, because they are 
 qualifications of so singular a kind, that no man will either 
 allow them in his neighbour, or value them in himself. 
 
 The Women were proposed to be taxed according to 
 their Beauty and skill in Dressing, wherein they had the 
 same privilege with the Men, to be determined by their own 
 judgment. But Constancy, Chastity, good Sense, and good 
 Nature were not rated, because they would not bear the 
 charge of collecting. 
 
 To keep Senators in the interest of the Crown, it was 
 proposed that the members should raffle for employments, 
 every man first taking an oath, and giving security that he 
 would vote for the Court, whether he won or no, after which 
 the losers had in their turn the liberty of raffling upon the 
 next vacancy. Thus Hope and Expectation would be kept 
 alive, none would complain of broken promises, but impute 
 their disappointments wholly to Fortune, whose shoulders are 
 broader and stronger than those of a ministry. 
 
 The whole discourse was written with great acuteness, 
 containing many observations both curious and useful for 
 Politicians, but as I conceived not altogether compleat. This 
 I ventured to tell the author, and offered if he pleased to 
 supply him with some additions. He received my proposition 
 with more Compliance than is usual among writers, especially 
 those of the Projecting species, professing he would be glad 
 to receive farther Information. 
 
 I told him, that should I happen to live in a kingdom 
 where Plots and Conspiracies were either in vogue from the 
 turbulancy of the meaner people, or could be turned to the 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 237 
 
 use and service of the higher rank of them, I first would take 
 care to cherish and encourage the breed of Discoverers, 
 Witnesses, Informers, Accusers, Prosecutors, Evidences, 
 Swearers, together with their several subservient and sub- 
 altern instruments ; and when I had got a competent number 
 of them of all sorts and capacities, I would put them under 
 the colour and conduct of some dextrous persons in sufficient 
 power both to protect and reward them. Men thus qualified 
 and thus empowered might make a most excellent use and 
 advantage of Plots, they might raise their own characters and 
 pass for most profound Politicians, they might restore new 
 vigour to a crazy Administration, they might stifle or divert 
 general Discontents ; fill their pockets with forfeitures, and 
 advance or sink the opinion of publick Credit, as either 
 might answer their private Advantage. This might be done 
 by first agreeing and settling among themselves what sus- 
 pected persons should be accused of a Plot. Then effectual 
 care being taken to secure all their Letters and Papers, and 
 put the criminal in safe and secure custody; these Papers 
 might be delivered to a sett of Artists of dexterity sufficient 
 to find out the mysterious meanings of Words, Syllables and 
 Letters. They should be allowed to put what interpretation 
 they pleased upon them, giving them a sense not only which 
 has no relation at all to them, but even what is quite contrary 
 to their true intent and real meaning ; thus for instance, they 
 may, if they so fancy, interpret a Sieve to signify a Court 
 Lady, a lame Dog an Livader, the Plague a standing Army, a 
 Buzzard a great Statesman, the Gout a High Priest, a Broom a 
 Revolution, a Mouse-trap an Imployment, a Bottomless-pit a 
 Treasury, a Sink a Court, a Cap and Bells a Favorite, a broke?i 
 Reed a Court of Justice, an empty Tu?i a General, a running Sore 
 an- Administration. 
 
 But should this method fail, recourse might be had to 
 others more effectual, by learned men called Acrosticks and 
 Anagrams. First, might be found men of skill and penetration 
 who can discern that all initial Letters have political Meanings. 
 Thus JV shall signify a Plot, B a Regiment of Horse, L a 
 
238 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 Fleet at Sea. Or secondly, by transposing the Letters of the 
 Alphabet in any suspected Paper, who can discover the 
 deepest designs of a discontented Party. So for example, if 
 I should say in a Letter to a Friend, Our Brother Tom has 
 just got the Piles, a man of skill in this Art would discover 
 how the same Letters which compose that Sentence, may be 
 
 analysed in the following words ; Resist, a Plot is brought 
 
 home The Tower. And this is the Anagrammatick Method. 
 
 The Professor made me great acknowledgments for com- 
 municating these observations, and promised to make honour- 
 able mention of me in his Treatise. 
 
 I saw nothing in this Country that could invite me to a 
 longer continuance, and began to think of returning home to 
 England. 
 
CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author leaves Lagado, arrives at Maldonada. No Ship ready. He 
 takes a short Voyage to Glubbdubdrib. His Receptio?i by the Governor. 
 
 The Continent of which this Kingdom is a part, extends it- 
 self, as I have reason to believe, Eastward to that unknown 
 Tract of America, Westward of California, and North to the 
 Pacifick Ocean, which is not above a hundred and fifty Miles 
 from Lagado, where there is a good Port and much Commerce 
 with the great Island of Luggnagg, situated to the North- 
 West about 29 Degrees North Latitude, and 140 Longitude. 
 This Island of Luggnagg stands South Eastwards of Japan, 
 about an hundred Leagues distant. There is a strict Alliance 
 between the Japanese Emperor and the King of Luggnagg, 
 which affords frequent opportunities of sailing from one Island 
 to the other. I determined therefore to direct my course this 
 way in order to my return to Europe. I hired two Mules 
 with a Guide to shew me the way, and carry my small 
 Baggage. I took leave of my noble Protector, who had 
 shewn me so much Favour, and made me a generous Present 
 at my departure. 
 
 My Journey was without any Accident or Adventure 
 worth relating. When I arrived at the Port of Maldonada 
 (for so it is called) there was no Ship in the Harbour bound 
 for Luggnagg, nor like to be in some time. The Town is 
 about as large as Portsmouth. I soon fell into some Ac- 
 quaintance, and was very hospitably received. A Gentleman 
 
240 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 of Distinction said to me, that since the Ships bound for 
 Luggnagg could not be ready in less than a Month, it might 
 be no disagreeable Amusement for me to take a trip to the 
 little Island of Glubbdubdrib, about five Leagues off to the 
 South-West. He offered himself and a Friend to accompany 
 me, and that I should be provided with a small convenient 
 Barque for the Voyage. 
 
 GLUBB DUB DRIB, as nearly as I can interpret the 
 word, signifies the Island of Sorcerers or Magicians. It is 
 about one third as large as the Isle of Wight, and extremely 
 fruitful : It is governed by the head of a certain Tribe, who are 
 all Magicians. This Tribe marries only among each other, 
 and the eldest in succession is Prince or Governor. He hath 
 a noble Palace and a Park of about three thousand Acres, 
 surrounded by a Wall of hewn Stone twenty Foot high. In 
 this Park are several small Inclosures for Cattle, Corn, and 
 Gardening. 
 
 The Governour and his Family are served and attended by 
 Domesticks of a kind somewhat unusual. By his skill in 
 Necromancy, he hath a power of calling whom he pleaseth 
 from the Dead, and commanding their service for twenty-four 
 hours, but no longer ; nor can he call the same persons up 
 again in less than three Months, except upon very extra- 
 ordinary Occasions. 
 
 When we arrived at the Island, which was about eleven 
 in the Morning, one of the Gentlemen who accompanied me, 
 went to the Governour, and desired admittance for a 
 Stranger, who came on purpose to have the honour of 
 attending on his Highness. This was immediately granted, 
 and we all three entered the Gate of the Palace between two 
 Rows of Guards, armed and dressed after a very antick 
 manner, and something in their Countenances that made my 
 flesh creep with a Horror I cannot express. We passed 
 through several Apartments between Servants of the same 
 sort, ranked on each side as before, till we came to the 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 241 
 
 Chamber of Presence, where after three profound Obeysances, 
 and a few general Questions, we were permitted to sit on 
 three Stools near the lowest step of his Highness's Throne. 
 He understood the Language of Balmbarbi, although it were 
 different from that of his Island. He desired me to give him 
 
 ' / had the honour to dine -with the Governour' 
 
 some account of my Travels ; and to let me see that I should 
 be treated without Ceremony, he dismissed all his Attendants 
 with a turn of his Finger, at which to my great Astonishment 
 they vanished in an instant, like Visions in a Dream, when we 
 awake on a sudden. I could not recover myself in some 
 time, till the Governour assured me that I should receive no 
 
242 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 hurt ; and observing my two Companions to be under no 
 concern, who had been often entertained in the same 
 manner, I began to take courage, and related to his Highness 
 a short History of my several Adventures, yet not without 
 some hesitation, and frequently looking behind me to the 
 place where I had seen those Domestick Spectres. I had 
 the honour to dine with the Governour, where a new sett of 
 Ghosts served up the Meat, and waited at Table. I now 
 observed myself to be less terrified than I had been in the 
 Morning. I stayed till Sun-set, but humbly desired his 
 Highness to excuse me for not accepting his Invitation of 
 lodging in the Palace. My two Friends and I lay at a 
 private house in the Town adjoining, which is the capital of 
 this little Island ; and the next Morning we returned to pay 
 our duty to the Governour, as he was pleased to command us. 
 
 After this manner we continued in the Island for ten 
 Days, most part of every Day with the Governour, and at 
 Night in our Lodging. I soon grew so familiarized to the 
 sight of Spirits, that after the third or fourth time they gave 
 me no Emotion at all • or if I had any Apprehensions left, 
 my Curiosity prevailed over them. For his Highness the 
 Governour ordered me to call up whatever persons I would 
 chuse to name, and in whatever numbers among all the Dead 
 from the beginning of the World to the present time, and 
 command them to answer any Questions I should think fit to 
 ask ; with this condition, that my Questions must be confined 
 within the compass of the times they lived in. And one 
 thing I might depend upon, that they would certainly tell me 
 truth, for Lying was a talent of no use in the Lower world. 
 
 I made my humble Acknowledgements to his Highness 
 for so great a Favour. We were in a Chamber, from whence 
 there was a fair Prospect into the Park. And because my 
 first Inclination was to be entertained with scenes of Pomp 
 and Magnificence, I desired to see Alexander the Great, at 
 the head of his Army just after the Battle of Arbela, which 
 upon a motion of the Governor's Finger immediately ap- 
 
CHAP. VII 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 243 
 
 peared in a large Field under the Window, where we stood. 
 Alexander was called up into the Room : It was with great 
 difficulty that I understood his Greek, and had but little of 
 
 <fy 
 
 ' In good Intelligence with each othe?'." 1 
 
 my own. He assured me upon his Honour that he was not 
 poisoned, but dyed of a Fever by excessive Drinking. 
 
 Next I saw Hannibal passing the Alps, who told me he 
 had not a drop of Vinegar in his camp. 
 
244 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 I saw Ccesar and Pompey at the head of their Troops just 
 ready to engage. I saw the former in his last great Triumph. 
 I desired that the Senate of Rome might appear before me in 
 one large Chamber, and an Assembly of somewhat a later 
 Age, in Counterview in another. The first seemed to be an 
 Assembly of Heroes and Demy-Gods ; the other a knot of 
 Pedlars, Pick-pockets, High-way-men and Bullies. 
 
 The Governor at my request gave the sign for Ccesar and 
 Brutus to advance towards us. I was struck with a profound 
 Veneration at the sight of Brutus, and could easily discover 
 the most consummate Virtue, the greatest Intrepidity, and 
 firmness of Mind, the truest Love of his Country, and general 
 Benevolence for Mankind in every Lineament of his Coun- 
 tenance. I observed with much pleasure, that these two 
 persons were in good Intelligence with each other, and 
 Ccesar freely confessed to me, that the greatest Actions of his 
 own Life were not equal by many degrees to the Glory of 
 taking it away. I had the Honour to have much Con- 
 versation with Brutus ; and was told that his Ancestor Junius, 
 Socrates, Epaminondas, Cato the Younger, Sir Thomas More 
 and himself, were perpetually together : a Sextumvirate to 
 which all the Ages of the World cannot add a Seventh. 
 
 It would be tedious to trouble the Reader with relating 
 what vast numbers of illustrious persons were called up, to 
 gratify that insatiable desire I had to see the World in every. 
 Period of Antiquity placed before me. I chiefly fed mine 
 Eyes with beholding the Destroyers of Tyrants and Usurpers, 
 and the Restorers of Liberty to oppressed and injured 
 Nations. But it is impossible to express the Satisfaction I 
 received in my own Mind, after such a manner as to make it 
 a suitable Entertainment to the Reader. 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 A further account of Glubbdubdrib. Ancient and Modern History 
 corrected. 
 
 Having a desire to see those Ancients, who were most 
 renowned for Wit and Learning, I set apart one day on 
 purpose. I proposed that Homer and Aristotle might appear 
 at the Head of all their Commentators ; but these were so 
 numerous that some Hundreds were forced to attend in the 
 Court and outward Rooms of the Palace. • I knew and 
 could distinguish those two Heroes at first sight, not only 
 from the Croud, but from each other. Homer was the taller 
 and comlier Person of the two, walked very erect for one of 
 his Age, and his Eyes were the most quick and piercing I 
 ever beheld. Aristotle stooped much, and made use of a 
 staff. His Visage was meager, his Hair lank and thin, and 
 his Voice hollow. I soon discovered that both of them were 
 perfect Strangers to the rest of the Company, and had never 
 seen or heard of them before. And I had a Whisper from a 
 Ghost, who shall be nameless, that these Commentators 
 always kept in the most distant Quarters from their Principals 
 in the lower world, through a consciousness of Shame and 
 Guilt, because they had so horribly misrepresented the 
 meaning of those Authors to Posterity. I introduced Didymus 
 and Eustathius to. Homer, and prevailed on him to treat them 
 better than perhaps they deserved, for he soon found they 
 wanted a genius to enter into the Spirit of a Poet. But 
 Aristotle was out of all Patience with the account I gave him 
 
246 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 TART III 
 
 of Scotus and Ramus, as I presented them to him, and he 
 asked them whether the rest of the Tribe were as great 
 Dunces as themselves. 
 
 I then desired the Governour to call up Descartes and 
 Gassendi, with whom I prevailed to explain their Systems to 
 Aristotle. This great Philosopher freely acknowledged his 
 
 C8£> «y* 
 
 £ / was not able to get down a second Spoonful.' 
 
 own Mistakes in Natural Philosophy, because he proceeded 
 in many things upon Conjecture, as all Men must do ; and 
 he found, that Gassendi, who had made the Doctrine of 
 Epicurus as palatable as he could, and the Vortices of Descartes, 
 were equally exploded. He predicted the same Fate to 
 Attraction, whereof the present learned are such zealous 
 Asserters. He said, that new Systems of Nature were but- 
 new Fashions, which would vary in every Age ; and even 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 247 
 
 those who pretend to demonstrate them from Mathematical 
 Principles, would flourish but a short period of time, and be 
 out of Vogue when that was determined. 
 
 I spent five Days in conversing with many others of the 
 ancient learned. I saw most of the first Roman Emperors. 
 I prevailed on the Governour to call up Eliogabulus's Cooks to 
 dress us a Dinner, but they could not shew us much of their 
 Skill, for want of Materials. A Helot of Agesilaus made us 
 a Dish of Spartan Broth, but I was not able to get down a 
 second Spoonful. 
 
 The two Gentlemen who conducted me to the Island 
 were pressed by their private affairs to return in three Days, 
 which I employed in seeing some of the modern Dead, who 
 had made the greatest Figure for two or three hundred Years 
 past in our own and other Countries of Europe ; and having 
 been always a great Admirer of old illustrious Families, I 
 desired the Governour would call up a dozen or two of Kings 
 with their Ancestors in order for eight or nine Generations. 
 But my Disappointment was grievous and unexpected. For 
 instead of a long train with Royal Diadems, I saw in one 
 Family two Fidlers, three spruce Courtiers, and an Italian 
 Prelate. In another a Barber, an Abbot, and two Cardinals. 
 I have too great a Veneration for Crowned Heads to dwell 
 any longer on so nice a Subject. But as to Counts, 
 Marquesses, Dukes, Earls, and the like I was not so 
 scrupulous. And I confess it was not without some Pleasure 
 that I found myself able to trace the particular Features, by 
 which certain Families are distinguished up to their Originals. 
 I could plainly discover from whence one Family derives a 
 long Chin, why a second hath abounded. with Knaves for two 
 Generations, and Fools for two more ; why a third happened 
 to be crack-brained, and a fourth to be Sharpers. Whence it 
 came what Polydore Virgil says of a certain great House, Nee 
 Vir fortis, nee Foemina casta. How Cruelty, Falshood, and 
 Cowardice grew to be Characteristicks by which certain 
 Families are distinguished as much as by their Coat of Arms. 
 
248 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 Neither could I wonder at all this, when I saw such an 
 Interruption of Lineages by Pages, Lacqueys, Valets, Coach- 
 men, Gamesters, Captains, and Pick-pockets. 
 
 I was chiefly disgusted with modern History. For having 
 
 ' 'I could plainly discover front whence one Family derives a long Chin.'' 
 
 strictly examined all the Persons of greatest Name in the 
 Courts of Princes for an hundred Years past, I found how the 
 world had been misled by prostitute writers, to ascribe the 
 greatest Exploits in War to Cowards, the wisest Counsel to 
 Fools, Sincerity to Flatterers, Ro7nan Virtue to Betrayers of 
 their Country, Piety to Atheists, Truth to Informers. How 
 many innocent and excellent Persons had been condemned 
 
chap, vin A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 249 
 
 to Death or Banishment, by the practising of great Ministers 
 upon the corruption of Judges, and the malice of Factions. 
 How many Villains had been exalted to the highest places 
 of Trust, Power, Dignity, and Profit : How great a share in 
 the Motions and Events of Courts, Councils, and Senates 
 might be challenged by Pimps, Parasites, and Buffoons : 
 How low an opinion I had of human Wisdom and Integrity, 
 when I was truly informed of the Springs and Motives 
 of great Enterprizes and Revolutions in the World, and 
 of the contemptible accidents to which they owed their 
 Success. 
 
 Here I discovered the roguery and ignorance of those 
 who pretend to write Anecdotes, or secret history, who send so 
 many Kings to their Graves with a cup of Poison ; will repeat 
 the Discourse between a Prince and chief Minister, where no 
 Witness was by ; unlock the Thoughts and Cabinets of 
 Embassadors and Secretaries of State, and have the perpetual 
 Misfortune to be mistaken. Here I discovered the secret 
 Causes of many great Events that have surprized the world. 
 A General confessed in my Presence, that he got a Victory 
 purely by the force of Cowardice and ill Conduct : and an 
 Admiral, that for want of proper Intelligence, he beat the 
 Enemy to whom he intended to betray the Fleet. Three 
 Kings protested to me, that in their whole Reigns they did 
 never once prefer any person of Merit, unless by Mistake or 
 Treachery of some Minister in whom they confided : Neither 
 would they do it if they were to live again ; and they shewed 
 with great strength of Reason, that the Royal Throne could 
 not be supported without Corruption, because that positive, 
 confident, restive Temper, which Virtue infused into Man, 
 was a perpetual clog to publick Business. 
 
 I had the curiosity to enquire in a particular manner, by 
 what Method great numbers had procured to themselves high 
 Titles of Honour, and prodigious Estates ; and I confined 
 my Enquiry to a very modern period : However without 
 grating upon present times, because I would be sure to give 
 
250 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part iii 
 
 no Offence even to Foreigners (for I hope the Reader need 
 not be told that I do not in the least intend my own 
 Country in what I say upon this occasion) a great number of 
 persons concerned were called up, and upon a very slight 
 Examination, discovered such a Scene of Infamy, that I 
 cannot reflect upon it without some Seriousness. Perjury, 
 Oppression, Subornation, Fraud, Pandarism, and the like 
 Infirmities were amongst the most excusable arts they had to 
 mention, and for these I gave, as it was reasonable, great 
 allowance. But when some confessed they owed their great- 
 ness and wealth to vice ; others to the betraying their Country 
 or their Prince ; some to poisoning, more to the perverting 
 of justice in order to destroy the innocent : I hope I may 
 be pardoned if these discoveries inclined me a little to abate 
 of that profound veneration which I am naturally apt to 
 pay to persons of high rank, who ought to be treated with 
 the utmost respect due to their sublime Dignity, by us their 
 Inferiors. 
 
 I had often read of some great services done to Princes 
 and States, and desired to see the persons by whom those 
 services were performed. Upon enquiry I was told that their 
 names were to be found on no Record, except a few of them 
 whom history hath represented as the vilest Rogues and 
 Traitors. As to the rest, I had never once heard of them. 
 They all appeared with dejected Looks, and in the meanest 
 habit, most of them telling me they died in poverty and 
 disgrace, and the rest on a Scaffold or a Gibbet. 
 
 Among the rest there was one person whose Case ap- 
 peared a little singular. He had a Youth about eighteen 
 years old standing by his side. He told me he had for many 
 years been Commander of a Ship, and in the Sea Fight at 
 Actium, had the good fortune to break through the Enemies 
 great line of Battle, sink three of their capital Ships, and take 
 a fourth, which was the sole cause of Anthony's Flight, and of 
 the Victory that ensued ; that the Youth standing by him, his 
 only Son, was killed in the Action. He added, that upon 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 251 
 
 the confidence of some Merit, this War being at an end, he 
 went to Rome, and solicited at the Court of Augustus to be 
 preferred to a greater Ship, whose Commander had been 
 killed ; but without any regard to his Pretensions, it was 
 given to a Youth who had never seen the Sea, the son of 
 Libertina, who waited on one of the Emperor's Mistresses. 
 Returning back to his own Vessels, he was charged with 
 neglect of duty, and the Ship given to a favourite Page of 
 Publicola the Vice- Admiral ; whereupon he retired to a poor 
 Farm, at a great distance from Rome, and there ended his 
 life. I was so curious to know the truth of this story, that I 
 desired Agrippa might be called, who was Admiral in that 
 fight. He appeared and confirmed the whole account, 
 but with much more advantage to the Captain, whose 
 modesty had extenuated or concealed a great part of his 
 Merit. 
 
 I was surprised to find corruption grown so high and so 
 quick in that Empire, by the force of Luxury so lately 
 introduced, which made me less wonder at many parallel cases 
 in other countries, where vices of all kinds have reigned so 
 much longer, and where the whole Praise as well as Pillage 
 hath been engrossed by the chief Commander, who perhaps 
 had the least Title to either. 
 
 As every person called up made exactly the same ap- 
 pearance he had done in the world, it gave me melancholy 
 Reflections to observe how much the race of human kind 
 was degenerate among us, within these Hundred years past. 
 
 I descended so low as to desire that some English 
 Yeomen of the old stamp, might be summoned to appear, 
 once so famous for the simplicity of their Manners, Diet and 
 Dress, for Justice in their Dealings, for their true spirit of 
 Liberty, for their valour and love of their Country. Neither 
 could I be wholly unmov'd after comparing the Living with 
 the Dead, when I considered how all these pure native 
 Virtues were prostituted for a piece of Money by their 
 
252 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 Grand-children, who in selling their Votes, and managing at 
 Elections have acquired every Vice and Corruption that can 
 possibly be learned in a Court, 
 
 W/ 
 
 &S8* 
 
 ' Corruption.'' 
 
CHAR IX 
 
 The Author's Return to Maldonada. Sails to the Kingdom of Luggnagg. 
 The Author confined. lie is sent for to Court. The manner of his 
 admittatice. The King's great Lenity to his Subjects. 
 
 The day of our departure being come, I took leave of his 
 Highness the Governour of Glubbdubdrib, and returned with 
 my two companions to Maldonada, where after a Fortnight's 
 waiting, a Ship was ready to sail for Luggnagg. The two 
 Gentlemen and some others were so generous and kind as 
 to furnish me with Provisions, and see me on board. I was 
 a Month in this A^oyage. We had one violent storm, and 
 were under a necessity of steering westward to get into the 
 trade-wind which holds for above sixty Leagues. On the 
 2 1 st of April, 1709, we sailed in the River Clumegm'g, which 
 is a Sea port Town, at the south-east point of Luggnagg. 
 We cast anchor within a League of the Town, and made a 
 signal for a Pilot. Two of them came on board in less than 
 half an hour, by whom we were guided between certain 
 Shoals and Rocks which are very dangerous in the passage to 
 a large Basin, where a Fleet may ride in safety within a cable's 
 length of the town Wall. 
 
 Some of our Sailors, whether out of treachery or in- 
 advertence, had informed the Pilots that I was a stranger 
 and a great traveller, whereof these gave notice to a custom- 
 house Officer, by whom I was examined very strictly upon 
 my landing. This Officer spoke to me in the language of 
 

 '/ Tras examined very strictly upon my landing.' 
 
chap, ix A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 255 
 
 Balnibarbi, which by the force of much commerce is generally 
 understood in that Town, especially by Sea-men, and those 
 employed in the Customs. I gave him a short account 
 of some particulars, and made my story as plausible and 
 consistent as I could ; but I thought it necessary to disguise 
 my country, and call myself an Hollander, because my 
 Intentions were for Japan, and I knew the Dutch were the 
 only Europeans permitted to enter into that Kingdom. I 
 therefore told the Officer, that having been Shipwrecked on 
 the coast of Balnibarbi, and cast on a Rock, I was received 
 up into Laputa, or the flying Island (of which he had often 
 heard) and was now endeavouring to get to Japan, from 
 whence I might find a convenience of returning to my own 
 country. The Officer said I must be confined till he could 
 receive Orders from Court, for which he would write im- 
 mediately, and hoped to receive an Answer in a Fortnight. 
 I was. carried to a convenient Lodging, with a Centry placed 
 at the Door ; however I had the liberty of a large Garden, 
 and was treated with humanity enough, being maintained 
 all the time at the King's charge. I was visited by several 
 persons, chiefly out of curiosity, because it was reported that 
 I came from countries very remote of which they had never 
 heard. 
 
 I hired a young Man who came in the same ship to be an 
 Interpreter ; he was a native of Luggnagg, but had lived some 
 years at Maldonada, and was a perfect master of both Languages. 
 By his assistance I was able to hold a conversation with those 
 who came to visit me ; but this consisted only of their 
 questions, and my answers. 
 
 The dispatch came from Court about the time we ex- 
 pected. It contain'd a warrant for conducting me and my 
 retinue to Traldragdubh or Trildrogdrib, for it is pronounced 
 both ways as near as I can remember, by a party of ten 
 Horse. All my retinue was that poor lad for an Inter- 
 preter, whom I persuaded into my service, and at my humble 
 request, we had each of us a Mule to ride on. A Messenger 
 
25 6 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 PART III 
 
 was dispatch'd half a day's Journey before us, to give the 
 King notice of my approach, and to desire that his Majesty 
 would please to appoint a day and hour, when it would be 
 'his gracious pleasure that I might have the honour to lick the 
 
 ' More than matter offorin. 
 
 dust before his Footstool This is the Court style, and I found 
 it to be more than matter of form. For upon my admittance 
 two days after my arrival, I was commanded to crawl on my 
 Belly, and lick the Floor as I advanced ; but on account of 
 my being a stranger, care was taken to have it swept so clean 
 that the dust was not offensive. However, this was a 
 
chap, ix A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 257 
 
 peculiar grace, not allowed to any but persons of the highest 
 rank, when they desire an admittance. Nay, sometimes the 
 Floor is strewed with dust on purpose, when the person to 
 be admitted happens to have powerful Enemies at Court. 
 And I have seen a great Lord with his mouth so crammed, 
 that when he had crept to the proper distance from the 
 Throne, he was not able to speak a word. Neither is there 
 any Remedy, because it is Capital for those who receive an 
 audience to spit or wipe their mouths in his Majesty's 
 Presence. There is indeed another custom, which I cannot 
 altogether approve of. When the King hath a mind to put 
 any of his Nobles to death in a gentle indulgent manner, he 
 commands to have the Floor strowed with a certain brown 
 Powder, of a deadly Composition, which being licked up 
 infallibly kills him in twenty-four hours. But in Justice to 
 this Prince's great clemency, and the care he hath of his 
 subjects Lives, (wherein it were much to be wished that the 
 Monarchs of Europe would imitate him) it must be mentioned 
 for his honour, that strict orders are given to have the infected 
 parts of the Floor well washed after every such Execution, which 
 if his domesticks neglect, they are in danger of incurring his 
 Royal displeasure. I myself heard him give directions, that one 
 of his Pages should be whipt, whose turn it was to give notice 
 about washing the Floor after an Execution, but maliciously 
 had omitted it, by which neglect a young Lord of great hopes 
 coming to an audience, was unfortunately poisoned, although 
 the King at that time had no design against his Life. But 
 this good Prince was so gracious, as to forgive the poor Page 
 his Whipping, upon promise that he would do so no more, 
 without special Orders. 
 
 To return from this Digression ; when I had crept within 
 four yards of the Throne, I raised myself gently upon my 
 Knees, and then striking my Forehead seven times on the 
 ground, I pronounced the following words, as they had been 
 taught me the night before, Ickpling Gloffthrobb Squid serumm 
 blhiop Mlashnalt Zwin tnodbalkguffh Slhiophad Gurdlubh Asht. 
 This is the compliment established by the Laws of the Land 
 
258 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 for all persons admitted to the King's presence. It may be 
 rendered into English thus : May your coelestial Majesty out-live 
 the Sun, eleven Moons and an half. To this the King returned 
 some answer, which although I could not understand, yet I 
 replied as I had been directed ; Fluft dri?i Yalerick Dwuldom 
 prastrad mirpush, which properly signifies, My Tongue is in the 
 Mouth of my Friend, and by this Expression was meant that 
 I desired leave to bring my Interpreter; whereupon the 
 young Man already mentioned was accordingly introduced, 
 by whose Intervention I answer'd as many questions as his 
 Majesty could put in above an hour. I spoke in the Balni- 
 barbian Tongue, and my Interpreter delivered my meaning 
 in that of Zuggnagg. 
 
 The King was much delighted with my company, and 
 ordered his Bliffmarklub or high Chamberlain to appoint a 
 lodging in the Court for me and my Interpreter, with a daily 
 allowance for my table, and a large purse of gold for my 
 common Expences. 
 
 I stayed three months in this country out of perfect 
 obedience to his Majesty, who was pleased highly to favour 
 me, and made me very honourable Offers. But I thought 
 it more consistent with Prudence and Justice to pass the 
 remainder of my days with my Wife and Family. 
 
CHAP. X 
 
 The Luggnuggians commended. A partictdar description of the Struldbrugs, 
 with many conversations between the Author and some eminent persons 
 upon that subject. 
 
 The Luggnuggians are a polite and generous People, and 
 although they are not without some share of that Pride which 
 is peculiar to all eastern countries, yet they shew themselves 
 courteous to strangers, especially such who are countenanced 
 by the Court. I had many acquaintance among persons of 
 the best fashion, and being always attended by my Inter- 
 preter, the conversation we had was not disagreeable. 
 
 One day in much good company I was asked by a person 
 of Quality, whether I had seen any of their Struldbrugs or 
 Immortals. I said I had not, and desired he would explain to 
 me what he meant by such an Appellation applyed to a mortal 
 Creature. He told me, that sometimes, though very rarely, 
 a child happened to be born in a Family with a red circular 
 spot in the Forehead, directly over the left Eye-brow, which 
 was an infallible Mark that it should never die. The Spot, 
 as he described it, was about the compass of a silver Three- 
 pence, but in the course of Time grew larger, and changed 
 its colour ; for at twelve years old it became green, so continued 
 till five and Twenty, then turned to a deep blue ; at five and 
 Forty it grew coal black, and as large as an English Shilling, 
 but never admitted any farther Alteration. He said these 
 Births were so rare, that he did not believe there could be 
 
2 6o A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 above eleven hundred Struldbrugs of both Sexes in the whole 
 Kingdom, of which he computed about fifty in the Metropolis, 
 and among the rest a young Girl born about three Years ago. 
 That these Productions were not peculiar to any Family 
 but a meer effect of Chance, and the Children of the Struld- 
 brugs themselves, were equally mortal with the rest of the 
 People. 
 
 I freely own myself to have been struck with inexpressible 
 delight upon hearing this account : and the Person who gave 
 it me happening to understand the Balnibarbian Language, 
 which I spoke very well, I could not forbear breaking out 
 into expressions perhaps a little too extravagant. I cryed out 
 as in a Rapture ; Happy Nation where every Child hath at 
 least a chance for being immortal ! Happy People who enjoy 
 so many living Examples of ancient Virtue, and have Masters 
 ready to instruct them in the Wisdom of all former Ages ! 
 But, happiest beyond all comparison are those excellent 
 Struldbrugs, who born exempt from that universal Calamity 
 of human Nature, have their Minds free and disingaged, 
 without the weight and depression of Spirits caused by the 
 continual apprehension of death. I discover'd my Admiration 
 that I had not observed any of these illustrious persons at 
 Court ; the black Spot on the Forehead, being so remarkable 
 a distinction, that I could not have easily overlooked it : And 
 it was impossible that his Majesty, a most judicious Prince, 
 should not provide himself with a good number of such wise 
 and able Councellours. Yet perhaps the Virtue of those 
 reverend Sages was too strict for the corrupt and libertine 
 Manners of a Court. And we often find by Experience that 
 young Men are too opinionative and volatile to be guided by 
 the sober Dictates of their Seniors. However, since the 
 King was pleased to allow me access to his royal Person, I 
 was resolved upon the very first occasion to deliver my 
 opinion to him on this Matter freely, and at large, by the 
 help of my Interpreter ; and whether he would please to take 
 my advice or no, yet in one thing I was determined, that his 
 Majesty having frequently offered me an Establishment in 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 261 
 
 this Country, I would with great thankfulness accept the 
 Favour, and pass my Life here in the Conversation of those 
 
 ' / cryed out as in a Rapture' 
 
 superiour Beings the Struldbmgs, if they would please to 
 admit me. 
 
 The Gentleman to whom I addressed my Discourse, 
 
262 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part in 
 
 because (as I have already observed) he spoke the Language 
 of Balnibarbi, said to me with a sort of a Smile, which usually 
 ariseth from Pity to the ignorant, that he was glad of any 
 occasion to keep me among them, and desired my Per- 
 mission to explain to the company what I had spoke. He 
 did so, and they talked together for some time in their own 
 Language, whereof I understood not a Syllable, neither could 
 I observe by their Countenances what impression my Dis- 
 course had made on them. After a short silence the same 
 person told me, that his Friends and mine (so he thought fit 
 to express himself) were very much pleased with the judicious 
 Remarks I had made on the great Happiness and Advantages 
 of immortal Life, and they were desirous to know in a 
 particular manner, what Scheme of Living I should have 
 formed to myself, if it had fallen to my Lot to have been 
 born a Struldbrug. 
 
 I answered, it was easy to be Eloquent on so copious and 
 delightful a Subject, especially to me who have been often 
 apt to amuse myself with Visions of what I should do if I 
 were a King, a General, or a great Lord : And upon this very 
 Case I had frequently run over the whole System how I 
 should employ myself, and pass the time if I were sure to 
 live for ever. 
 
 That, if it had been my good Fortune to come into the 
 World a Struldbrug, as soon as I could discover my own. 
 Happiness by understanding the difference between Life 
 and Death, I would first resolve by all Arts and Methods 
 whatsoever to procure myself Riches. In the pursuit of 
 which by Thrift and Management, I might reasonably expect 
 in about two hundred Years, to be the wealthiest Man in the 
 Kingdom. In the second place, I would from my earliest 
 Youth apply myself to the study of Arts and Sciences, by 
 which I should arrive in time to excel all others in Learning. 
 Lastly, I would carefully record every Action and Event of 
 Consequence that happened in the Publick, impartially draw 
 the Characters of the several Successions of Princes, and 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 263 
 
 great Ministers of State, with my own Observations on every 
 Point. I would exactly set down the several changes in 
 Customs, Language, Fashions of Dress, Dyet and Diversions. 
 By all which acquirements, I should be a living Treasury of 
 Knowledge and Wisdom, and certainly become the Oracle of 
 the Nation. 
 
 I would never marry after threescore, but live in an hospitable 
 manner, yet still on the saving side. I would entertain my- 
 self in forming and directing the Minds of hopeful young 
 Men, by convincing them from my own Remembrance, 
 Experience and Observation, fortified by numerous Examples, 
 of the usefulness of Virtue in publick and private Life. But 
 my choice and constant Companions should be a sett of my 
 own immortal Brotherhood, among whom I would elect a 
 dozen from the most ancient down to my own Con- 
 temporaries. Where any of these wanted Fortunes, I would 
 provide them with convenient Lodges round my own Estate, 
 and have some of them always at my Table, only mingling a 
 few of the most valuable among you Mortals, whom length of 
 Time would harden me to lose with little or no Reluctance, 
 and treat your Posterity after the same manner ; just as a 
 Man diverts himself with the annual Succession of Pinks and 
 Tulips in his Garden, without regretting the loss of those 
 which withered the preceding Year. 
 
 These Struldbrugs and I would mutually communicate 
 our Observations and Memorials through the course of Time, 
 remark the several Gradations by which Corruption steals 
 into the World, and oppose it in every step, by giving per- 
 petual warning and instruction to Mankind \ which, added to 
 the strong influence of our own Example, would probably 
 prevent that continual degeneracy of human Nature so justly 
 complained of in all ages. 
 
 Add to all this the pleasure of seeing the various Re- 
 volutions of States and Empires, the Changes in the lower 
 and upper world, ancient Cities in Ruins, and obscure 
 
264 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 Villages become the Seats of Kings. Famous Rivers 
 lessening into shallow Brooks, the Ocean leaving one Coast 
 dry, and overwhelming another : The Discovery of many 
 Countries yet unknown. Barbarity over-running the politest 
 Nations, and the most barbarous become civilized. I should 
 then see the Discovery of the Longitude, the perpetual Motion, 
 the Universal Medicine, and many other great Inventions brought 
 to the utmost Perfection. 
 
 What wonderful Discoveries should we make in As- 
 tronomy, by out-living and confirming our own Predictions, 
 by observing the- Progress and Returns of Comets, with the 
 changes of Motion in the Sun, Moon and Stars. 
 
 I enlarged upon many other Topicks which the natural 
 desire of endless Life and sublunary Happiness could easily 
 furnish me with. When I had ended, and the Sum of my 
 Discourse had been interpreted as before, to the rest of the 
 Company, there was a good deal of Talk among them in the 
 Language of the Country, not without some Laughter at my 
 Expence. At last the same Gentleman who had been my 
 Interpreter said, he was desired by the rest to set me right in 
 a few Mistakes, which I had fallen into through the common 
 Imbecillity of human Nature, and upon that allowance was 
 less answerable for them. That this Breed of Struldbrugs 
 was peculiar to their Country, for there were no such People 
 either in Balnibarbi or Japan, where he had the honour to be 
 Embassador from his Majesty, and found the Natives in both 
 those Kingdoms very hard to believe that the Fact was pos- 
 sible, and it appeared from my Astonishment when he first 
 mentioned the matter to me, that I received it as a thing 
 wholly new, and scarcely to be credited. That in the two 
 Kingdoms above mention'd, where during his residence he 
 had conversed very much, he observed long Life to be the 
 universal desire and wish of Mankind. That whoever had 
 one Foot in the Grave, was sure to hold back the other as 
 strongly as he could. That the oldest had still hopes of 
 living one Day longer, and looked on Death as the greatest 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 265 
 
 Evil, from which Nature always prompted him to retreat ; 
 only in this Island of Luggnagg, the appetite for living was 
 not so eager, from the continual Example of the Struldbrugs 
 before their Eyes. 
 
 That the System of Living contrived by me was un- 
 reasonable and unjust, because it supposed a Perpetuity of 
 Youth, Health and Vigour, which no man could be so foolish 
 to hope, however extravagant he may be in his Wishes. 
 That the question therefore was not whether a man would 
 chuse to be always in the prime of Youth, attended with 
 Prosperity and Health, but how he would pass a perpetual 
 Life under all the usual disadvantages which old age brings 
 along with it. For although few Men will avow their Desires 
 of being immortal upon such hard Conditions, yet in the two 
 Kingdoms before-mentioned of Balnibarbi and Japan, he 
 observed that every Man desired to put off death for some time 
 longer, let it approach ever so late, and he rarely heard of 
 any Man who died willingly, except he were incited by the 
 Extremity of Grief or Torture. And he appealed to me 
 whether in those Countries I had travelled as well as my 
 own, I had not observ'd the same general Disposition. 
 
 After this Preface he gave me a particular account of the 
 Struldbrugs among them. He said they commonly acted 
 like Mortals, till about thirty years old, after which by 
 degrees they grew melancholy and dejected, encreasing in 
 both till they came to Fourscore. This he learn'd from 
 their own Confession ; for otherwise there not being above 
 two or three of that Species born in an Age, they were too 
 few to form a general Observation by. When they came to 
 fourscore Years, which is reckoned the Extremity of living in 
 this Country, they had not only all the Follies and Infirmities 
 of other old Men, but many more which arose from the 
 dreadful Prospects of never dying. They were not only 
 opinionative, peevish, covetous, morose, vain, talkative, but 
 uncapable of Friendship, and dead to all natural Affection, 
 which never descended below their Grand-children. Envy 
 
266 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 and impotent Desires are their prevailing Passions. But 
 those Objects against which their Envy seems principally 
 directed, are the Vices of the younger sort, and the Deaths 
 of the old. By reflecting on the former, they find themselves 
 cut off from all possibility of Pleasure ; and whenever they 
 see a Funeral, they lament and repine that others are 
 gone to an Harbour of Rest, to which they themselves never 
 can hope to arrive. They have no Remembrance of any- 
 thing but what they learned and observ'd in their Youth 
 and middle Age, and even that is very imperfect. And for 
 the Truth or Particulars of any Fact, it is safer to depend on 
 common Traditions than upon their best Recollections. The 
 least miserable among them appear to be those who turn to 
 Dotage, and entirely lose their Memories ; these meet with 
 more Pity and Assistance, because they want many bad 
 Qualities which abound in others. 
 
 If a Struldbrug happen to marry one of his own kind, 
 the Marriage is dissolved of course by the courtesy of the 
 Kingdom, as soon as the younger of the two comes to be 
 Fourscore. For the Law thinks it a reasonable Indulgence, 
 that those who are condemned without any Fault of their 
 own to a perpetual continuance in the World, should not 
 have their Misery doubled by the Load of a Wife. 
 
 As soon as they have compleated the term of eighty Years, 
 they are looked on as dead in Law ; their Heirs immediately 
 succeed to their Estates, only a small Pittance is reserved for 
 their support, and the poor ones are maintained at the pub- 
 lick Charge. After that Period they are held incapable of 
 any Employment of Trust or Profit, they cannot purchase 
 Lands or take Leases, neither are they allowed to be 
 Witnesses in any Cause, either Civil or Criminal, not even for 
 the Decision of Meers and Bounds. 
 
 At Ninety they lose their Teeth and Hair, they have at 
 that age no distinction of Taste, but eat and drink whatever 
 they can get, without Relish or Appetite. The Diseases 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 267 
 
 they were subject to still continue without encreasing or 
 diminishing. In talking they forget the common Appellation 
 of things, and the names of Persons, even of those who are 
 their nearest Friends and Relations. For the same reason 
 they never can amuse themselves with Reading, because their 
 Memory will not serve to carry them from the beginning of a 
 Sentence to the end ; and by this defect they are deprived 
 of the only Entertainment whereof they might otherwise be 
 capable. 
 
 The Language of this Country being always upon the 
 Flux, the Struldbrugs of one age do not understand those of 
 another, neither are they able after two hundred Years to 
 hold any Conversation (farther than by a few general words) 
 with their Neighbours the Mortals, and thus they lie under 
 the disadvantage of living like Foreigners in their own 
 Country. 
 
 This was the account given me of the Struldbrugs, as 
 near as I can remember. I afterwards saw five or six of 
 different Ages, the youngest not above two hundred Years 
 old, who were brought to me at several times by some of my 
 Friends ; but although they were told that I was a great 
 Traveller, and had seen all the World, they had not the least 
 curiosity to ask me a Question ; only desired I would give 
 them Slumskudask, or a Token of Remembrance, which is a 
 modest way of begging, to avoid the Law that strictly forbids 
 it, because they are provided for by the Publick, although 
 indeed with a very scanty Allowance. 
 
 They are despised and hated by all sorts of People \ when 
 one of them is born, it is reckoned ominous, and their Birth 
 is recorded very particularly ; so that you may know their 
 Age by consulting the Registry, which however hath not been 
 kept above a thousand Years past, or at least hath been 
 destroyed by time or publick Disturbances. But the usual 
 way of computing how old they are is by asking them what 
 Kings or great Persons they can remember, and then con- 
 

 Desired I would give tJiem Slumskudask.' 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 269 
 
 suiting history, for infallibly the last Prince in their mind did 
 not begin his Reign after they were Fourscore years old. 
 
 They were the most mortifying sight I ever beheld, and 
 the women more horrible than the men. Besides the usual 
 Deformities in extreme old age, they acquired an additional 
 Ghastliness in proportion to their number of years, which is 
 not to be described, and among half a dozen I soon distin- 
 guished which was the eldest, although there was not above a 
 Century or two between them. 
 
 The Reader will easily believe, that from what I had heard 
 and seen, my keen Appetite for perpetuity of Life was much 
 abated. I grew heartily ashamed of the pleasing Visions I 
 had formed, and thought no Tyrant could invent a Death into 
 which I would not run with pleasure from such a Life. The 
 King heard of all that had passed between me and my Friends 
 upon this occasion, and rallied me very pleasantly, wishing I 
 would send a couple of Struldbrugs to my own country, to 
 arm our people against the fear of Death • but this it seems 
 is forbidden by the fundamental Laws of the Kingdom, or 
 else I should have been well content with the trouble and 
 expence of transporting them. 
 
 I could not but agree that the Laws of this Kingdom, 
 relating to the Struldbrugs, were founded upon the strongest 
 Reasons, and such as any other country would be under the 
 necessity of enacting in the like circumstances. Otherwise, 
 as Avarice is the necessary consequent of old age, those 
 immortals would in time become Proprietors of the whole 
 Nation, and engross the civil power, which, for want of 
 Abilities to manage, must end in the Ruin of the Publick. 
 
CHAR XI 
 
 The Author leaves Luggnagg and sails to Japan. From thence he returns 
 in a Dutch Ship to Amsterdam, and from Amsterdam to England. 
 
 I thought this account of the Struldbrugs might be some 
 Entertainment to the Reader, because it seems to be a little out 
 of the common way, at least, I do not remember to have met 
 the like in any Book of Travels that hath come to my hands : 
 And if I am deceived, my Excuse must be, that it is necessary 
 for Travellers, who describe the same country, very often to 
 agree in dwelling on the same Particulars, without deserving 
 the censure of having borrowed or transcribed from those who 
 wrote before them. 
 
 There is indeed a perpetual Commerce between this 
 Kingdom and the great Empire of Japan, and it is very 
 probable that the Japanese Authors may have given some 
 account of the Struldbrugs ; but my stay in Japan was so 
 short, and I was so intirely a stranger to that Language, that 
 I was not qualified to make any Enquiries. But I hope the 
 Dutch upon this notice will be curious and able enough to 
 supply my Defects. 
 
 His Majesty having often pressed me to accept some 
 Employment in his Court, and finding me absolutely deter- 
 mined to return to my native country, was pleased to give me 
 his Licence to depart, and honoured me with a Letter of 
 Recommendation under his own hand to the Emperor of 
 
A VOYAGE TO LArUTA, ETC. 
 
 27: 
 
 Japan. He likewise presented me with four hundred and 
 forty-four large pieces of Gold (this Nation delighting in even 
 Numbers) and a red Diamond which I sold in England for 
 eleven hundred Pounds. 
 
 On the sixth Day of May 1709, I took a solemn leave of 
 
 They knew the Seal. ' 
 
 his Majesty, and all my Friends. This Prince was so gracious 
 as to order a Guard to conduct me to Glanguensiald, which 
 is a Royal Port to the South- West part of the Island. In six 
 Days I found a Vessel ready to carry me to Japan, and spent 
 fifteen Days in the Voyage. We landed at a small Port- 
 Town called Xamoschi, situated on the South- East part of 
 JaJ>an ; the Town lies on the Western Point where there is 
 
272 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 a narrow Streight, leading Northward into a long Arm of the 
 Sea, upon the North- West part of which, Yedo the Metropolis 
 stands. At Landing I shewed the Custom-House Officers 
 my Letter from the King of Luggnagg to his Imperial 
 Majesty. They knew the Seal perfectly well, it was as broad 
 as the Palm of my Hand. The Impression was, A King 
 lifting up a lame Beggar from the Earth. The Magistrates of 
 the Town hearing of my Letter, received me as a Publick 
 Minister, they provided me with Carriages and Servants, and 
 bore my Charges to Yedo, where I was admitted to an Audience, 
 and delivered my Letter, which was opened with great 
 Ceremony, and explained to the Emperor by an Interpreter, 
 who then gave me notice by his Majesty's Order, that I 
 should signify my Request, and whatever it were, it should 
 be granted for the sake of his Royal Brother of Luggnagg. 
 This Interpreter was a person employed to transact affairs 
 with the Hollanders ; he soon conjectured by my Countenance 
 that I was an European, and therefore repeated his Majesty's 
 Commands in Low-Dutch, which he spoke perfectly well. I 
 answered (as I had before determined) that I was a Dutch 
 Merchant, shipwrecked in a very remote country, from whence 
 I travelled by Sea and Land to Luggnagg, and then took 
 shipping for Japan, where I knew my countrymen often 
 traded, and with some of these I hoped to get an opportunity 
 of returning into Europe : I therefore most humbly entreated 
 his Royal Favour to give order, that I should be conducted 
 in safety to Nangasac : To this I added another Petition, 
 that for the sake of my Patron the King of Luggnagg, his 
 Majesty would condescend to excuse my performing the 
 Ceremony imposed on my countrymen of trampling upon the 
 Crucifix, because I had been thrown into his Kingdom by 
 my Misfortunes, without any intention of trading. When 
 this latter Petition was interpreted to the Emperor, he seemed 
 a little surprized, and said, he believed I was the first of my 
 countrymen who ever made any scruple in this Point, and 
 that he began to doubt whether I was a real Hollander or 
 no ; but rather suspected I must be a Christian. However, 
 for the Reasons I had offered, but chiefly to gratify the King 
 
CHAP. XI 
 
 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 
 
 273 
 
 of Luggnagg, by an uncommon mark of his Favour, he would 
 comply with the singularity of my Humour • but the Affair 
 must be managed with Dexterity, and his Officers should be 
 commanded to let me pass as it were by Forgetfulness. For 
 he assured me, that if the secret should be discovered by my 
 
 1 Twenty strokes 071 the Sho7ilders.' 
 
 countrymen, the Dutch, they would cut my Throat in the 
 Voyage. I returned my Thanks by the Interpreter for so 
 unusual a Favour, and some Troops being at that time on 
 their March to Nangasac, the Commanding Officer had Orders 
 to convey me safe thither, with particular Instructions about 
 the business of the Crucifix. 
 
274 A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. part hi 
 
 On the 9th Day of June 1709, I arrived at Nangasac, 
 after a very long and troublesome Journey. I soon fell into 
 company of some Dutch Sailors belonging to the Amboyna of 
 Amsterdam, a stout Ship of 450 Tuns. I had lived long in 
 Holland, pursuing my Studies at Leyden, and I spoke Dutch 
 well. The Seamen soon knew from whence I came last ; 
 they were curious to enquire into my Voyages and course of 
 Life. I made up a Story as short and probable as I could, 
 but concealed the greatest part. I knew many persons in 
 Holland, I was able to invent names for my Parents, whom 
 I pretended to be obscure People in the Province of Gelder- 
 land. I would have given the Captain (one Theodorus 
 Vangrult) what he pleased to ask for my Voyage to Holland ; 
 but understanding I was a Surgeon, he was contented to 
 take half the usual Rate, on condition that I would serve 
 him in the way of my calling. Before we took shipping, I 
 was often asked by some of the Crew, whether I had performed 
 the Ceremony above-mentioned ? I evaded the question by 
 general answers, that I had satisfied the Emperor and Court 
 in all particulars. However, a malicious Rogue of a Skipper 
 went to an Officer, and pointing to me, told him, I had not 
 yet trampled on the Crucifix: But the other, who had received 
 Instructions to let me pass, gave the Rascal twenty strokes 
 on the Shoulders with a Bamboo, after which I was no more 
 troubled with such questions. 
 
 Nothing happened worth mentioning in this Voyage. 
 We sail'd with a fair Wind to the Cape of Good Hope, where 
 we staid only to take in fresh Water. On the 16th of April 
 we arrived safe at Amsterdam, having lost only three Men by 
 Sickness in the Voyage, and a fourth who fell from the Fore- 
 mast into the Sea, not far from the Coast of Guinea. From 
 Amsterdam I soon after set sail for England in a small Vessel 
 belonging to that City. 
 
 On the 10th of April 17 10, we put in at the Downs. I 
 landed the next Morning, and saw once more my native 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 275 
 
 Country after an Absence of five Years and six Months 
 compleat. I went strait to Redriff, where I arrived the same 
 day at two in the Afternoon, and found my Wife and Family 
 in good Health. 
 
 The End of the Third Part. 
 
PART IV 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE COUNTRY OF 
 THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
Edels Land 
 Lewins La 
 
 Nuyts Land 
 
 StTieter 
 
 HOUYHNHNMS 
 LAND 
 isco\/ered AD ijn 
 
 I 0\£aeCsuy£et 
 
 HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 LAND 
 
 'SSL 
 
 ~Wafker tr1ioi*ta.& scufj>se 
 
j=>j^fctjs: 
 
 j0.^\^^L<^m, 
 
 °B><§> 
 
 ©f Turn, M® 
 
 m 
 
 ' Binding me Hand and Foot. 
 
CHAP. I 
 
 The Author sets out as Captain of a Ship. His Men conspire against 
 him, confine him a long Time to his Cabbin, set him on shoar in an 
 unknown Land. He travels up in the Country. The Yahoos, 
 a strange Sort of Animal, desc?'ibed. The Author meets two 
 Houyhnhnms. 
 
 CONTINUED at home with my Wife and 
 Children about five Months in a very 
 happy condition, if I could have learned 
 the lesson of knowing when I was well. 
 I left my poor Wife big with Child, and 
 accepted an advantagious offer made me 
 to be Captain of the Adventure, a stout 
 Merchant-man of 350 Tuns: For I under- 
 stood Navigation well, and being grown 
 weary of a Surgeon's employment at sea, which however I 
 could exercise upon occasion, I took a skilful young man of 
 that Calling, one Robert Purefoy, into my ship. We set sail 
 from Portsmouth upon the Second day of August 1 7 1 o ; on 
 the Fourteenth, we met with Captain Pocock of Bristol, at 
 Tenariff, who was going to the Bay of Campechy, to cut 
 Logwood. On the Sixteenth, he was parted from us by a 
 Storm ; I heard since my return, that his ship foundered, and 
 none escaped, but one Cabbin-Boy. He was an honest man, 
 and a good Sailor, but a little too positive in his own 
 opinions, which was the cause of his Destruction, as it hath 
 been of several others. For if he had followed my Advice, 
 he might have been safe at home with his Family at this 
 time, as well as myself. 
 
 I had several men died in my ship of Calentures, so that 
 I was forced to get Recruits out of Barbadoes, and the 
 Leeward Islands, where I touched by the direction of the 
 Merchants who employed me, which I had soon too much 
 cause to repent; for I found afterwards that most of them 
 had been Bucaneers. I had Fifty hands on board, and my 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 281 
 
 Orders were, that I should trade with the Indians, in the 
 South-Sea, and make what Discoveries I could. These rogues 
 whom I had picked up debauched my other Men, and they 
 all formed a Conspiracy to seize the ship and secure me ; 
 which they did one morning, rushing into my Cabbin, and 
 binding me Hand and Foot, threatning to throw me over- 
 board, if I offered to stir. I told them, I was their Prisoner, 
 and would submit. This they made me swear to do, and 
 then they unbound me, only fastening one of my Legs with a 
 Chain near my Bed, and placed a Centry at my Door with 
 his piece charged, who was commanded to shoot me dead, if 
 I attempted my Liberty. They sent me down victuals and 
 drink, and took the Government of the Ship to themselves. 
 Their Design was to turn Pyrates, and plunder the Spaniards, 
 which they could not do, till they got more Men. But first 
 they resolved to sell the Goods in the ship, and then go to 
 Madagascar for Recruits, several among them having died 
 since my Confinement. They sailed many Weeks, and traded 
 with the Indians, but I knew not what course they took, 
 being kept a close Prisoner in my Cabbin, and expecting 
 nothing less than to be murdered, as they often threatned 
 me. 
 
 Upon the Ninth day of May 171 1, one James Welch came 
 down to my Cabbin ; and said he had Orders from the 
 Captain, to set me a-shore. I expostuled with him, but in 
 vain ; neither would he so much as tell me who their new 
 Captain was. They forced me into the Long-boat, letting me 
 put on my best Suit of Cloaths, which were as good as New, 
 and a small bundle of Linnen, but no Arms except my 
 Hanger ; and they were so civil as not to search my Pockets, 
 into which I conveyed what Money I had, with some other 
 little Necessaries. They rowed about a League ; and then 
 set me down on a Strand. I desired them to tell me what 
 Country it was. They all swore, they knew no more than 
 myself, but said, that the Captain (as they called him) was 
 resolved, after they had sold the Lading, to get rid of me 
 in the first place, where they could discover Land. They 
 
282 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 pushed off immediately, advising me to make haste, for fear 
 of being overtaken by the Tide, and so bad me Farewell. 
 
 In this desolate condition I advanced forward, and soon 
 got upon firm ground, where I sate down on a Bank to rest 
 myself, and consider what I had best to do. When I was a 
 little refreshed, I went up into the Country, resolving to 
 deliver myself to the first Savages I should meet, and pur- 
 chase my Life from them by some Bracelets, Glass-rings, 
 and other Toys which Sailors usually provide themselves with 
 in those Voyages, and whereof I had some about me : The 
 Land was divided by long rows of Trees not regularly planted, 
 but naturally growing ; there was great plenty of Grass, and 
 several Fields of Oats. I walked very circumspectly for fear 
 of being surprized, or suddenly shot with an Arrow from be- 
 hind or on either side. I fell into a beaten road, where I 
 saw many tracks of human feet, and some of Cows, but most 
 of Horses. At last I beheld several animals in a Field, and 
 one or two of the same kind sitting in Trees. Their Shape 
 was very singular, and deformed, which a little discomposed 
 me, so that I lay down behind a Thicket to observe them 
 better. Some of them coming forward near the Place where 
 I lay, gave me an opportunity of distinctly marking their 
 Form. Their Heads and Breasts were covered with a thick 
 Hair, some frizled and others lank, they had Beards like 
 Goats, and a long ridge of Hair down their Backs, and the 
 fore-parts of their Legs and Feet, but the rest of their bodies 
 were bare, so that I might see their Skins, which were of a 
 brown buff Colour. They had no Tails, and used the sitting 
 Posture, as well as lying down, and often stood on their hind 
 Feet. They climbed high Trees, as nimbly as a Squirrel, 
 for they had strong extended Claws before and behind, 
 terminating in sharp points, and hooked. They would often 
 spring, and bound, and leap with prodigious Agility. The 
 Females were not so large as the Males, they had long lank 
 Hair on their Backs but none on their Faces, nor any thing 
 more than a sort of Down on the rest of their Bodies. The 
 Hair of both Sexes was of several Colours, brown, red, black 
 
chap, i A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 283 
 
 and yellow. Upon the whole, I never beheld in all my 
 travels so disagreeable an Animal, nor one against which I 
 naturally conceived so strong an antipathy. So that thinking 
 I had seen enough, full of Contempt and Aversion, I got up 
 and pursued the beaten road, hoping it might direct me to 
 the Cabbin of some Indian. I had not gone far when I met 
 one of these Creatures full in my way, and coming up directly 
 to me. The ugly Monster, when he saw me, distorted 
 several ways every Feature of his Visage, and stared as at an 
 Object he had never seen before ; then approaching nearer, 
 lifted up his Fore-paw, whether out of Curiosity or Mischief, 
 I could not tell. But I drew my Hanger, and gave him a 
 good Blow with the flat Side of it, for I durst not strike him 
 with the Edge, fearing the Inhabitants might be provoked 
 against me, if they should come to know, that I had killed or 
 maimed any of their Cattle. When the beast felt the Smart, 
 he drew back, and roared so loud, that a Herd of at least 
 Forty came flocking about me from the next Field, houling 
 and making odious faces ; but I ran to the Body of a Tree, 
 and leaning my Back against it, kept them off, by waving my 
 Hanger. 
 
 In the midst of this Distress, I observed them all to run 
 away on a sudden as fast as they could, at which I ventured 
 to leave the Tree, and pursue the Road, wondering what it 
 was that could put them into this Fright. But looking on 
 my left-hand, I saw a Horse walking softly in the Field : 
 which my Persecutors having sooner discover'd, was the 
 cause of their flight. The Horse started a little when he 
 came near me, but soon recovering himself, looked full in my 
 Face with manifest tokens of wonder : He viewed my Hands 
 and Feet, walking round me several times. I would have 
 pursued my Journey, but he placed himself directly in the 
 way, yet looking with a very mild Aspect, never offering the 
 least Violence. We stood gazing at each other for some 
 time ; at last I took the Boldness, to reach my Hand towards 
 his Neck, with a design to stroak it, using the common style 
 and whistle of Jockies when they are going to handle a 
 
284 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 strange Horse. But this Animal seeming to receive my 
 Civilities with disdain, shook his head, and bent his brows, 
 softly raising up his right Fore-foot to remove my Hand. 
 
 ' Kept them off, by waving my Hanger. ' 
 
 Then he neighed three or four times, but in so different a 
 Cadence, that I almost began to think he was speaking to 
 himself in some language of his own. 
 
 While He and I were thus employed, another Horse 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 285 
 
 came up ; who applying himself to the first in a very formal 
 manner, they gently struck each other's right Hoof before, 
 neighing several times by Turns, and varying the Sound, 
 which seemed to be almost articulate. They went some 
 Paces off, as if it were to confer together, walking Side by 
 Side, backward and forward, like Persons deliberating upon 
 some affair of Weight, but often turning their Eyes towards 
 me, as it were to watch that I might not escape. I was 
 amazed to see such Actions and Behaviour in Brute Beasts, 
 and concluded with myself, that if the Inhabitants of this 
 Country were endued with a proportionable degree of Reason, 
 they must needs be the wisest people upon Earth. This 
 Thought gave me so much Comfort, that I resolved to go 
 forward untill I could discover some House or Village, or 
 meet with any of the Natives, leaving the two Horses to 
 discourse together as they pleased. But the first, who was 
 a Dapple-Grey, observing me to steal off, neighed after me 
 in so expressive a tone, that I fancied myself to understand 
 what he meant ; whereupon I turned back, and came near 
 him, to expect his farther commands. But concealing my 
 fear as much as I could, for I began to be in some Pain, how 
 this Adventure might terminate ; and the Reader will easily 
 believe I did not much like my present situation. 
 
 The two Horses came up close to me, looking with great 
 Earnestness upbn my Face and Hands. The Grey steed 
 rubbed my Hat all round with his right Fore-hoof, and 
 discomposed it so much, that I was forced to adjust it better, 
 by taking it off, and setling it again ; whereat both he and 
 his Companion (who was a brown Bay) appeared to be much 
 surprized, the latter felt the Lappet of my Coat, and finding 
 it to hang loose about me, they both looked with new signs 
 of Wonder. He stroked my Right-hand, seeming to admire 
 the Softness, and Colour ; but he squeezed it so hard between 
 his Hoof and his Pastern, that I was forced to roar; after 
 which they both touched me with all possible tenderness. 
 They were under great Perplexity about my Shoes and 
 Stockings, which they felt very often, neighing to each other, 
 
' The Grey steed rubbed my Hat all round. 1 
 
chap. I A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 287 
 
 and using various Gestures, not unlike those of a Philosopher, 
 when he would attempt to solve some new and difficult 
 Phsenomenon. 
 
 Upon the whole, the Behaviour of these Animals was so 
 orderly and rational, so acute and judicious, that I at last 
 concluded, they must needs be Magicians, who had thus 
 metamorphosed themselves upon some design, and seeing a 
 Stranger in the way, were resolved to divert themselves with 
 him ; or perhaps were really amazed at the sight of a Man so 
 very different in Habit, Feature and Complexion from those 
 who might probably live in so remote a Climate. Upon the 
 strength of this Reasoning, I ventured to address them in the 
 following Manner : Gentlemen, if you be Conjurers, as I have 
 good cause to believe, you can understand any Language ; 
 therefore I make bold to let your Worships know, that I am 
 a poor distressed English Man, driven by his misfortunes 
 upon your Coast, and I entreat one of you, to let me ride 
 upon his Back, as if he were a real Horse, to some House or 
 Village, where I can be relieved. In return of which Favour, 
 I will make you a Present of this Knife and Bracelet (taking 
 them out of my Pocket). The two creatures stood silent 
 while I spoke, seeming to listen with great Attention ; and 
 when I had ended, they neighed frequently towards each 
 other, as if they were engaged in serious Conversation. I 
 plainly observed, that their Language expressed the Passions 
 very well, and the words might with little Pains be resolved 
 into an Alphabet more easily than the Chinese. 
 
 I could frequently distinguish the word Yahoo, which was 
 repeated by each of them several times ; and altho' it was 
 impossible for me to conjecture what it meant, yet while the 
 two Horses were busy in Conversation, I endeavour'd to 
 practice this word upon my Tongue ; and as soon as they 
 were silent, I boldly pronounced Yahoo in a loud Voice, 
 imitating, at the same time, as near as I could the Neighing 
 of a Horse ; at which they were both visibly surprized, and 
 the Grey repeated the same Word twice, as if he meant to 
 
288 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 teach me the right Accent, wherein I spoke after him as well 
 as I could, and found myself perceivably to improve every 
 time, though very far from any Degree of Perfection. Then 
 the Bay tried me with a second Word, much harder to be 
 pronounced ; but reducing it to the English Orthography, 
 may be spelt thus, Houyhnhnm. I did not succeed in this 
 so well as the former, but after two or three farther Trials, 
 I had better fortune ; and they both appeared amazed at my 
 Capacity. 
 
 After some farther Discourse, which I then conjectured 
 might relate to me, the two Friends took their leaves, with 
 the same Compliment of striking each other's Hoof; and the 
 Grey made me signs that I should walk before him, wherein 
 I thought it prudent to comply, till I could find a better 
 Director. When I offered to slacken my Pace, he would cry 
 Hhuun, Hhuun ; I guessed his meaning, and gave him to 
 understand, as well as I could, that I was weary, and not 
 able to walk faster ; upon which, he would stand a while to 
 let me rest. 
 
CHAP. II 
 
 The Author conducted by a Houyhnhnm to his House. The House 
 described. The Author's Reception. The Food of the Houyhnhnms. 
 The Author iti Distress for want of Meat, is at last relieved. His 
 Manner of feeding in this Country. 
 
 Having travelled about three Miles, we came to a long kind 
 of Building, made of Timber, stuck in the Ground, and 
 wattled a-cross ; the Roof was low, and covered with Straw. I 
 now began to be a little comforted, and took out some Toys, 
 which Travellers usually carry for Presents to the Savage 
 Indians of America and other Parts, in hopes the People of 
 the House would be thereby encouraged to receive me 
 kindly. The Horse made me a sign to go in first ; it was a 
 large Room with a smooth Clay Floor, and a Rack and 
 Manger extending the whole length on one side. There 
 were three Nags, and two Mares, not eating, but some of them 
 sitting down upon their Hams, which I very much wondered 
 at ; but wondered more to see the rest employed in domestick 
 business. They seemed but ordinary Cattle ; however this 
 confirmed my first opinion, that a People who could so far 
 civilize brute Animals, must needs excel in Wisdom all the 
 Nations of the World. The Grey came in just after, and 
 thereby prevented any ill treatment, which the others might 
 have given me. He neighed to them several times in a style 
 of Authority, and received Answers. 
 
 Beyond this Room there were three others, reaching the 
 length of the House, to which you passed through three 
 
 u 
 
290 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Doors, opposite to each other, in the manner of a Vista ; we 
 went through the second Room towards the third, here 
 the Grey walked in first, beckoning me to attend : I 
 waited in the second Room, and got ready my Presents 
 for the Master and Mistress of the house : They were two 
 Knives, three Bracelets of false Pearl, a small Looking-glass 
 and a Bead Necklace. The Horse neighed three or four 
 times, and I waited to hear some Answers in a human voice, 
 but I observed no other Returns, than in the same Dialect, 
 only one or two a little shriller than his. I began to think 
 that this House must belong to some person of great note 
 among them, because there appeared so much Ceremony 
 before I could gain Admittance. But, that a Man of Quality 
 should be served all by Horses, was beyond my compre- 
 hension. I feared my Brain was disturbed by my suffer- 
 ings and misfortunes : I roused myself, and looked about 
 me in the Room where I was left alone ; this was furnished 
 like the first, only after a more elegant manner. I rubbed 
 my eyes often, but the same Objects still occurred. I 
 pinched my Arms and Sides, to awake myself, hoping I 
 might be in a Dream. I then absolutely concluded, that 
 all these Appearances could be nothing else but Necromancy 
 and Magick. But I had no Time to pursue these Reflections ; 
 for the Grey Horse came to the door, and made me a sign to 
 follow him into the third Room, where I saw a very comely 
 Mare, together with a Colt and Fole, sitting on their 
 Haunches, upon Matts of Straw, not unartfully made, and 
 perfectly neat and clean. 
 
 The Mare soon after my Entrance, rose from her Matt, 
 and coming up close, after having nicely observed my Hands 
 and Face, gave me a most contemptuous Look ; then 
 turning to the Horse, I heard the word Yahoo often re- 
 peated betwixt them ; the meaning of which word I could 
 not then comprehend, although it were the first I had learned 
 to pronounce ; but I was soon better informed, to my ever- 
 lasting Mortification : For the Horse beckning to me with 
 his Head, and repeating the word Hhuun, Hhuun^ as he did 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 291 
 
 upon the Road, which I understood was to attend him, led 
 me out into a kind of Court, where was another Building at 
 some Distance from the House. Here we enter'd, and I saw 
 three of these detestable Creatures, whom I first met after 
 my landing, feeding upon Roots, and the Flesh of some 
 Animals, which I afterwards found to be that of Asses and 
 Dogs, and now and then a Cow dead by accident or Disease. 
 They were all tyed by the Neck with strong Wyths, fastened 
 to a Beam ; they held their Food between the Claws of their 
 Fore-feet, and tore it with their Teeth. 
 
 The Master horse ordered a sorrel nag, one of his 
 Servants, to untie the largest of these animals, and take him 
 into the yard. The beast and I were brought close together ; 
 and our countenances diligently compared, both by Master 
 and Servant, who thereupon repeated several times the word 
 Yahoo. My horror and astonishment are not to be described, 
 when I observ'd in this abominable animal, a perfect Human 
 figure ; the Face of it indeed was flat and broad, the Nose 
 depressed, the Lips large, and the Mouth wide. But these 
 differences are common to all savage nations, where the 
 lineaments of the countenance are distorted by the natives 
 suffering their infants to lie groveling on the earth, or by 
 carrying them on their backs, nuzzling with their face against 
 the Mother's shoulders. The Fore-feet of the Yahoo differed 
 from my Hands in nothing else, but the length of the Nails, 
 the coarseness and brownness of the Palms, and the hairiness 
 on the Backs. There was the same resemblance between 
 our Feet, with the same differences, which I knew very well, 
 tho' the Horses did not, because of my Shoes and Stockings ; 
 the same in every Part of our Bodies, except as to hairiness 
 and Colour, which I have already described. 
 
 The great difficulty that seemed to stick with the two 
 Horses, was, to see the rest of my Body so very different from 
 that of a Yahoo, for which I was obliged to my Cloaths, 
 whereof they had no conception : The Sorrel Nag offered me 
 a Root, which he held (after their manner, as we shall describe 
 
292 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 in its proper place) between his Hoof and Pastern ; I took it 
 in my hand, and having smelt it, returned it to him again as 
 civilly as I could. He brought out of the Yahoo's kennel a 
 piece of Ass's Flesh, but it smelt so offensively that I turned 
 from it with loathing ; he then threw it to the Yahoo, by whom 
 it was greedily devoured. He afterwards shewed me a Whisp 
 
 ' The beast and I vuere brought close together. ' 
 
 of Hay, and a Fettlock full of Oats ; but I shook my head, to 
 signify, that neither of these were Food for me. And indeed, 
 I now apprehended that I must absolutely starve, if I did not 
 get to some of my own species : For as to those filthy Yahoos, 
 although there were few greater lovers of Mankind, at that time, 
 than myself; yet I confess I never saw any sensitive Being 
 so detestable on all accounts ; and the more I came near them, 
 the more hateful they grew, while I stayed in that Country. 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 293 
 
 This the Master Horse observed by my behaviour, and there- 
 fore sent the Yahoo back to his Kennel. He then put his 
 Fore-hoof to his Mouth, at which I was much surprized, 
 although he did it with ease, and with a motion that appeared 
 perfectly natural, and made other signs to know what I would 
 eat; but I could not return him such an answer as he was able 
 to apprehend ; and if he had understood me, I did not see 
 how it was possible to contrive any way for finding myself 
 nourishment. While we were thus engaged, I observed a 
 Cow passing by, whereupon I pointed to her, and expressed 
 a desire to let me go and milk her. This had its effect ; for 
 he led me back into the House, and ordered a Mare-servant 
 to open a Room, where a good store of Milk lay in earthen 
 and wooden vessels, after a very orderly and cleanly manner. 
 She gave me a large Bowl full, of which I drank very heartily, 
 and found myself well refreshed. 
 
 About noon I saw coming towards the House a kind of 
 Vehicle drawn like a Sledge by four Yahoos. There was in it 
 an old Steed, who seemed to be of Quality ; he alighted with 
 his Hind-feet forward, having by accident got a hurt in his 
 left Fore-foot. He came to dine with our Horse, who received 
 him with great Civility. They dined in the best Room, and 
 had Oats boiled in Milk for the second course, which the old 
 Horse eat warm, but the rest cold. Their Mangers were 
 placed circular in the middle of the Room, and divided into 
 several Partitions, round which they sate on their Haunches 
 upon Bosses of Straw. In the middle was a large Rack with 
 Angles answering to every Partition of the Manger. So that 
 each Horse and Mare eat their own Hay, and their own mash 
 of Oats and Milk, with much decency and regularity. The 
 Behaviour of the young Colt and Fole appeared very modest, 
 and that of the Master and Mistress extremely chearful and 
 complaisant to their Guest. The Grey ordered me to stand 
 by him, and much discourse passed between him and his 
 friend concerning me, as I found by the stranger's often 
 looking on me, and the frequent Repetition of the word 
 Yahoo, 
 
294 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 I happened to wear my Gloves, which the Master-Grey 
 observing, seemed perplexed, discovering signs of Wonder 
 what I had done to my Fore-feet ; he put his Hoof three or 
 four times to them, as if he would signify, that I should reduce 
 them to their former shape, which I presently did, pulling 
 off both my Gloves, and putting them into my Pocket. This 
 occasioned farther talk, and I saw the company was pleased 
 
 : Often looking on me. ' 
 
 with my Behaviour, whereof I soon found the good Effects. 
 I was ordered to speak the few words I understood, and while 
 they were at dinner, the Master taught me the Names for 
 Oats, Milk, Fire, Water, and some others; which I could 
 readily pronounce after him, having from my youth a great 
 facility in learning Languages. 
 
 When dinner was done, the Master Horse took me aside, 
 
chap, ii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 295 
 
 and by signs and words made me understand the Concern 
 that he was in, that I had nothing to eat. Oats in their 
 Tongue are called Hlunnh. This word I pronounced two or 
 three times ; for although I had refused them at first, yet 
 upon second thoughts, I considered that I could contrive to 
 make of them a kind of Bread, which might be sufficient with 
 Milk to keep me alive, till I could make my escape to some 
 other . country, and to Creatures of my own species. The 
 Horse immediately order'd a white Mare -servant of his 
 Family to bring me a good quantity of Oats in a sort of 
 wooden Tray. These I heated before the fire as well as I 
 could, and rubbed them till the Husks came off, which I 
 made a shift to winnow from the Grain ; I ground and beat 
 them between two Stones, then took Water, and made them 
 into a Paste or Cake, which I toasted at the Fire, and eat 
 warm with Milk. It was at first a very insipid diet, though 
 common enough in many parts of Europe, but grew tolerable 
 by time ; and having been often reduced to hard fare in my 
 life, this was not the first Experiment I had made how easily 
 Nature is satisfied. And I cannot but observe, that I never 
 had one hour's sickness, while I staid in this Island. 'Tis 
 true, I sometimes made a shift to catch a Rabbet, or Bird, 
 by springes made of Yahoo's hairs, and I often gathered 
 wholesome herbs, which I boiled, or eat as Salades with my 
 bread, and now and then, for a rarity, I made a little Butter, 
 and drank the Whey. I was at first at a great loss for Salt, 
 but custom soon reconciled the want of it ; and I am con- 
 fident that the frequent use of Salt among us is an effect of 
 luxury, and was first introduced only as a provocative to 
 drink • except where it is necessary for preserving of flesh in 
 long voyages, or in places remote from great markets. For 
 we observe no animal to be fond of it but Man : And as to 
 myself, when I left this Country, it was a great while before 
 I could endure the taste of it in any thing that I eat. 
 
 This is enough to say upon the subject of my Dyet, 
 wherewith other Travellers fill their books, as if the Readers 
 were personally concerned, whether we far'd well or ill. How- 
 
296 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 ever, it was necessary to mention this matter, lest the World 
 should think it impossible that I could find sustenance for 
 three years in such a Country, and among such Inhabitants. 
 
 When it grew towards Evening, the Master horse ordered 
 a place for me to lodge in ; it was but six yards from the 
 House, and separated from the Stable of the Yahoos. Here 
 I got some Straw, and covering myself with my own cloaths, 
 slept very sound. But I was in a short time better accom- 
 modated, as the Reader shall know hereafter, when I come to 
 treat more particularly about my way of living. 
 
CHAP. Ill 
 
 The Author studiotis to learn the Language, the Houyhnhnm his 
 Master assists in teaching him. The Language described. Several 
 Houyhnhnms of Quality came out of Curiosity to see the Author. 
 He gives his Master a short Account of his Voyage. 
 
 My principal Endeavour was to learn the Language, which 
 my Master (for so I shall henceforth call him) and his 
 Children, and every Servant of his House were desirous to 
 teach me. For they looked upon it as a Prodigy that a 
 brute animal should discover such marks of a rational 
 Creature. I pointed to every thing, and enquired the Name 
 of it, which I wrote down in my Journal-Book when I was 
 alone, and corrected my bad Accent, by desiring those of the 
 Family to pronounce it often. In this Employment a Sorrel 
 Nag, one of the under Servants, was ready to assist me. 
 
 In speaking, they pronounce through the Nose and 
 Throat, and their Language approaches nearest to the High- 
 Dutch or German, of any I know in Europe ; but is much 
 more graceful and significant. The Emperor Charles V. 
 made almost the same Observation, when he said, That if he 
 were to speak to his Horse, it should be in High-Dutch. 
 
 The Curiosity and Impatience of my Master were so great, 
 that he spent many hours of his leisure to instruct me. He 
 was convinced (as he afterwards told me) that I must be 
 a Yahoo, but my Teachableness, Civility and Cleanliness 
 astonished him; which were qualities altogether so opposite 
 
298 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 to those animals. He was most perplexed about my Cloaths, 
 reasoning sometimes with himself, whether they were a part 
 of my Body ; for I never pulled them off till the family were 
 asleep, and got them on before they waked in the Morning. 
 My Master was eager to learn from whence I came, how I 
 
 ' // cost me much trouble to explain.' 
 
 acquired those Appearances of Reason, which I discovered in 
 all my actions, and to know my story from my own mouth, 
 which he hoped he should soon do by the great proficiency 
 I made in learning and pronouncing their Words and 
 Sentences. To help my memory, I formed all I learned in 
 the English Alphabet, and writ the Words down with the 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 299 
 
 Translations. This last, after some time, I ventur'd to do in 
 my Master's presence. It cost me much trouble to explain 
 to him what I was doing ; for the Inhabitants have not the 
 least idea of Books or Literature. 
 
 In about ten weeks time I was able to understand most of 
 his questions, and in three months could give him some 
 tolerable answers. He was extremely curious to know from 
 what part of the Country I came, and how I was taught to 
 imitate a rational creature, because the Yahoos (whom he saw 
 I exactly resembled in my Head, Hands and Face, that were 
 only visible,) with some appearance of cunning, and the 
 strongest disposition to mischief, were observed to be the 
 most unteachable of all Brutes. I answered, That I came 
 over the Sea, from a far place, with many others of my own 
 kind, in a great hollow Vessel made of the Bodies of Trees. 
 That my companions forced me to land on this Coast, and 
 then left me to shift for myself. It was with some difficulty, 
 and by the help of many Signs, that I brought him to 
 understand me. He replied, That I must needs be mistaken, 
 or that I said the thing which was not. (For they have no 
 Word in their Language to express Lying or Falsehood.) He 
 knew it was impossible that there could be a Country beyond 
 the Sea, or that a parcel of Brutes could move a wooden 
 Vessel whither they pleased upon water. He was sure no 
 Houyhnhnm alive could make such a Vessel, nor would trust 
 Yahoos to manage it. 
 
 The word Houyhnhnm, in their tongue, signifies a Horse, 
 and in its Etymology, the Perfection of Nature. I told my 
 Master, that I was at a loss for Expression, but would improve 
 as fast as I could ; and hoped in a short time I should be 
 able to tell him Wonders : He was pleased to direct his own 
 Mare, his Colt and Fole, and the Servants of the family to 
 take all opportunities of instructing me, and every day for 
 two or three hours, he was at the same pains himself : Several 
 Horses and Mares of quality in the neighbourhood came 
 often to our house upon the report spread of a wonderful 
 
300 A VOYA<JE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part i 
 
 1 
 
 Yahoo, that could speak like a Houyhnhnm, and seemed in 
 his words and actions to discover some glimmerings of 
 Reason. These delighted to converse with me ; they put 
 many questions, and received such answers, as I was able to 
 return. By all these advantages, I made so great a progress, 
 that in five months from my arrival, I understood whatever 
 was spoke, and could express myself tolerably well. 
 
 The Houyhnhnms who came to visit my Master, out of a 
 design of seeing and talking with me, could hardly believe me 
 to be a right Yahoo, because my Body had a different cover- 
 ing from others of my kind. They were astonished to observe 
 me without the usual Hair or Skin, except on my Head, 
 Face and Hands ; but I discovered that Secret to my 
 Master, upon an Accident, which happened about a Fort- 
 night before. 
 
 I have already told the Reader, that every night when 
 the Family were gone to bed, it was my custom, to strip and 
 cover myself with my Cloaths : It happened one morning' 
 early, that my Master sent for me, by the Sorrel Nag, who 
 was his Valet ; when he came I was fast asleep, my Cloaths 
 fallen off on one side. I awaked at the Noise he made, and 
 observed him to deliver his message in some Disorder ; after 
 which he went to my Master, and in a great Fright gave him 
 a very confused Account of what he had seen : This I 
 presently discover'd ; for going as soon as I was dressed, to 
 pay my Attendance upon his Honour, he asked me the 
 meaning of what his Servant had reported, that I was not the 
 same Thing when I slept as I appeared to be at other times. 
 
 I had hitherto concealed the Secret of my Dress, in order 
 to distinguish myself as much as possible, from that cursed 
 race of Yahoos; but now I found it in vain to do so any 
 longer. Besides, I considered that my Cloaths and Shoes 
 would soon wear out, which already were in a declining 
 condition, and must be supplied by some contrivance from 
 the Hides of Yahoos or other brutes ; whereby the whole 
 
chai\ in A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 301 
 
 Secret would be known : I therefore told my Master, That in 
 the Country from whence I came, those of my kind always 
 covered their Bodies with the Hairs of certain Animals 
 prepared by Art, as well for decency, as to avoid the 
 inclemencies of air both hot and cold ; of which, as to my 
 own person, I would give him immediate conviction, if he 
 pleased to command me. Whereupon, I first unbuttoned 
 my Coat, and pulled it off. I did the same with my Waste- 
 coat ; I drew off my Shoes, Stockings and Breeches. 
 
 My Master observed the whole performance with great 
 signs of Curiosity and Admiration. He took up all my 
 Cloaths in his Pastern, one piece after another, and examined 
 them diligently ; he then stroaked my Body very gently, and 
 looked round me several times, after which he said, it was 
 plain I must be a perfect Yahoo ; but that I differed very 
 much from the rest of my species, in the Softness, and White- 
 ness, and smoothness of my Skin, my want of Hair in several 
 Parts of my Body, the shape and shortness of my Claws 
 behind and before, and my affectation of walking continually 
 on my two Hinder-feet. He desired to see no more, and 
 gave me leave to put on my Cloaths again, for I was shudder- 
 ing with cold. 
 
 I expressed my uneasiness at his giving me so often the 
 appellation of Yahoo, an odious Animal, for which I had so 
 utter an hatred and contempt, I begged he would forbear 
 applying that Word to me, and take the same Order in his 
 Family, and among his Friends whom he suffered to see me. 
 I requested likewise that the Secret of my having a false 
 covering to my body might be known to none but Himself, 
 at least as long as my present cloathing should last ; for, as 
 to what the Sorrel Nag his Valet had observed, his Honour 
 might command him to conceal it. 
 
 All this my Master very graciously consented to, and thus 
 the Secret was kept till my Cloaths began to wear out, which 
 I was forced to supply by several • contrivances, that shall 
 
302 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 hereafter be mentioned. In the mean time, he desired I 
 would go on with my utmost diligence to learn their Language, 
 because he was more astonish'd at my capacity for Speech 
 and Reason, than at the Figure of my Body, whether it were 
 covered or no ; adding, that he waited with some impatience 
 to hear the Wonders which I promised to tell him. 
 
 From thenceforward he doubled the pains he had been at 
 to instruct me ; he brought me into all Company, and made 
 them treat me with civility, because, as he told them privately, 
 this would put me into good humour, and make me more 
 diverting. 
 
 Every Day when I waited on him, beside the Trouble he 
 was at in teaching, he would ask me several questions con- 
 cerning myself, which I answered as well as I could ; and by 
 these means he had already received some general ideas, 
 though very imperfect. It would be tedious to relate the 
 several steps, by which I advanced to a more regular con- 
 versation : But the first account I gave of myself in any order 
 and length, was to this purpose : 
 
 That I came from a very far country, as I already had 
 attempted to tell him, with about fifty more of my own 
 species ; that we travelled upon the Seas, in a great hollow 
 Vessel made of Wood, and larger than his honour's House. 
 I described the Ship to him in the best terms I could, and 
 explained by the help of my handkerchief displayed, how it 
 was driven forward by the Wind. That upon a Quarrel among 
 us, I was set on shore on this Coast, where I walked forward 
 without knowing whither, till he delivered me from the perse- 
 cution of those execrable Yahoos. He asked me, Who made 
 the Ship, and how it was possible that the Houyhnhnms of my 
 country would leave it to the Management of Brutes ? My 
 Answer was, That I durst proceed no farther in my Relation, 
 unless he would give me his word and honour that he would 
 not be offended, and then I would tell him the Wonders 
 I had so often promised. He agreed \ and I went on by 
 
chap, in A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 303 
 
 assuring him, that the Ship was made by creatures like my- 
 self, who in all the countries I had travelled, as well as in my 
 own, were the only governing, rational animals ; and that upon 
 my arrival hither, I was as much astonished to see the Houyhn- 
 hnms act like rational beings, as he or his Friends could be 
 in finding some Marks of Reason in a creature he was pleased 
 to call a Yahoo, to which I owned my Resemblance in every 
 part, but could not account for their degenerate and brutal 
 Nature. I said farther, That if good Fortune ever restored 
 me to my native Country, to relate my Travels hither, as I 
 resolved to do, every body would believe that I said the thing 
 which was not ; that I invented the Story out of my own head; 
 and with all possible respect to Himself, his Family and 
 Friends, and under his Promise of not being offended, our 
 Countrymen would hardly think it probable, that a Houyhnhnm 
 should be the Presiding creature of a Nation, and a Yahoo the 
 Brute. 
 
CHAR IV 
 
 The Houyhnhnms Notion of Truth and Falshood. The Author s Dis- 
 course disapproved by his Master. The Atithor gives a more particular 
 Account of himself, and the Accidents of his Voyage. 
 
 My Master heard me with great appearances of uneasiness 
 in his Countenance, because doubting or not believing, are so 
 little known in this Country, that the Inhabitants cannot tell 
 how to behave themselves under such Circumstances. And I 
 remember in frequent Discourses with my Master concerning 
 the Nature of Manhood, in other Parts of the World, having 
 occasion to talk of Lying, and false representation, it was with 
 much difficulty that he comprehended what I meant, although 
 he had otherwise a most acute Judgment. For he argued 
 thus ; That the use of Speech was to make us understand one 
 another, and to receive information of Facts ; now if any one 
 said the Thing which was not, these Ends were defeated ; 
 because I cannot properly be said to understand him, and I 
 am so far from receiving Information, that he leaves me worse 
 than in Ignorance, for I am led to believe a Thing Black 
 when it is White, and Short when it is Long. And these were 
 all the notions he had concerning that faculty of Lying, so 
 perfectly well understood among human Creatures. 
 
 To return from this Digression ; when I asserted that the 
 Yahoos were the only governing Animals in my Country, 
 which my Master said was altogether past his Conception, he 
 desired to know, whether we had Houyhnhnms among us, and 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 305 
 
 what was their Employment : I told him, we had great 
 numbers, that in Summer they grazed in the Fields, and in 
 winter were kept in Houses, with Hay and Oats, where Yahoo- 
 Servants were employed to rub their Skins smooth, comb 
 their Manes, pick their Feet, serve them with Food, and 
 
 ' Used to all kind of Drudgery till they died.' 
 
 make their Beds. I understand you well, said my Master, it 
 is now very plain, from all you have spoken, that whatever 
 share of Reason the Yahoos pretend to, the Houyhnhnms 
 are your Masters ; I heartily wish our Yahoos would be 
 so tractable. I begged his Honour would please to 
 excuse me from proceeding any farther, because I was very 
 certain that the Account he expected from me would 
 
 x 
 
306 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 be highly displeasing. But he insisted in commanding 
 me to let him know the best and the worst : I told him, he 
 should be obeyed. I owned, that the Houyhnhnms among us, 
 whom we called Horses, were the most generous and comely 
 Animal we had, that they excelled in Strength and Swiftness ; 
 and when they belonged to Persons of Quality, employed in 
 Travelling, Racing, or drawing Chariots, they were treated 
 with much kindness and care, till they fell into Diseases or 
 became foundred in the Feet ; and then they were sold and 
 used to all kind of Drudgery till they died ; after which their 
 Skins were stripped and sold for what they were worth, and 
 their Bodies left to be devoured by Dogs and Birds of prey. 
 But the common race of Horses had not so good Fortune, 
 being kept by Farmers and Carriers and other mean people, 
 who put them to great Labour, and fed them worse. I 
 described as well as I could, our way of riding, the Shape and 
 Use of a Bridle, a Saddle, a Spur and a Whip, of Harness 
 and Wheels. I added, that we fastned Plates of a certain 
 hard Substance called Iron at the Bottom of their Feet, to 
 preserve their Hoofs from being broken by the stony Ways 
 on which we often travelled. 
 
 My Master, after some Expressions of great Indignation, 
 wondered how we dared to venture upon a Houyhnhnirf% 
 Back, for he was sure that the weakest Servant in his House 
 would be able to shake off the strongest Yahoo, or by lying 
 down, and rolling on his Back, squeeze the Brute to death. I 
 answered, That our Horses were trained up from three or 
 four years old to the several Uses we intended them for; 
 That if any of them proved intolerably vicious, they were 
 employed for Carriages ; that they were severely beaten while 
 they were young, for any mischievous Tricks : that they 
 were indeed sensible of Rewards and Punishments; but his 
 Honour would please to consider, that they had not the least 
 tincture of Reason any more than the Yahoos in this Country. 
 
 It put me to the Pains of many Circumlocutions to give 
 my Master a right idea of what I spoke ; for their Language 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 307 
 
 doth not abound in variety of Words, because their Wants 
 and Passions are fewer than among us. But it is impossible 
 to represent his noble Resentment at our savage Treatment 
 of the Houyhnhnm race. He said, if it were possible there 
 could be any Country where Yahoos alone were endued with 
 Reason, they certainly must be the governing Animal, 
 because Reason will in time always prevail against Brutal 
 Strength. But, considering the Frame of our Bodies, and 
 especially of mine, he thought no Creature of equal bulk was 
 so ill contrived, for employing that Reason in the common 
 Offices of Life ; whereupon he desired to know whether those 
 among whom I lived, resembled me or the Yahoos of his 
 Country. I assured him that I was as well shaped as most 
 of my Age : but the younger and the Females were much 
 more soft and tender, and the Skins of the latter generally 
 as white as Milk. He said, I differed indeed from other 
 Yahoos, being much more cleanly, and not altogether so 
 deformed, but in point of real Advantage, he thought I 
 differed for the worse. That my Nails were of no use 
 either to my Fore or Hinder-Feet ; as to my Fore-feet he 
 could not properly call them by that Name, for he never 
 observed me to walk upon them ; that they were too soft to 
 bear the Ground ; that I generally went with them uncovered, 
 neither was the covering I sometimes wore on them, of the 
 same Shape, or so strong as that on my Feet behind. That 
 I could not walk with any Security, for if either of my 
 Hinder-feet slipped, I must inevitably fall. He then began 
 to find fault with other parts of my Body, the Flatness of my 
 Face, the prominence of my Nose, mine Eyes placed directly in 
 front, so that I could not look on either side without turning 
 my Head : That I was not able to feed myself, without lifting 
 one of my Fore-feet to my Mouth : And therefore Nature 
 had placed those Joynts to answer that Necessity. He knew 
 not what could be the use of those several Clefts and 
 Divisions in my Feet behind, that these were too soft to bear 
 the Hardness and Sharpness of Stones without a Covering 
 made from the Skin of some other Brute ; that my whole 
 Body wanted a Fence against Heat and Cold, which I was 
 
3 o8 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 forced to put on and off every Day with Tediousness and 
 Trouble. And lastly, that he observed every Animal in this 
 Country naturally to abhor the Yahoos, whom the weaker 
 avoided, and the Stronger drove from them. So that 
 supposing us to have the Gift of Reason, he could not see 
 how it were possible to cure that natural Antipathy which 
 every Creature discover'd against us ; nor consequently, how 
 we could tame and render them serviceable. However, he 
 would (as he said) debate the matter no farther, because he 
 was more desirous to know my own Story, the Country where 
 I was born, and the several Actions and Events of my Life 
 before I came hither. 
 
 I assured him, how extremely desirous I was that he should 
 be satisfied in every Point ; but I doubted much, whether it 
 would be possible for me to explain myself on several 
 Subjects whereof his Honour could have no conception, 
 because I saw nothing in his Country to which I could 
 resemble them. That however, I would do my best, and 
 strive to express myself by Similitudes, humbly desiring his 
 Assistance when I wanted proper Words ; which he was 
 pleased to promise me. 
 
 I said, my Birth was of honest Parents in an island called 
 England, which was remote from this Country, as many Days 
 journey as the strongest of his Honour's Servants could travel 
 in the Annual Course of the Sun. That I was bred a 
 Surgeon, whose Trade it is to cure Wounds and Hurts in the 
 Body, got by accident or violence ; that my Country was 
 govern'd by a Female Man, called a Queen. That I left it to 
 get Riches, whereby I might maintain myself and Family 
 when I should return. That in my last Voyage, I was 
 Commander of the Ship, and had about fifty Yahoos under me, 
 many of which died at Sea, and I was forced to supply them 
 by others picked out from several Nations. That our Ship 
 was twice in danger of being sunk ; the first time by a great 
 Storm, and the second, by striking against a Rock. Here my 
 Master interposed, by asking me, How I could persuade 
 
chap, iv A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 309 
 
 Strangers out of different Countries to venture with me, after 
 the Losses I had sustained, and the Hazards I had run. I 
 said, they were fellows of desperate fortunes, forced to fly 
 from the Places of their birth, on account of their Poverty or 
 their Crimes. Some were undone by Law-suits ; others spent 
 all they had in Drinking and Gaming ; others fled for 
 Treason ; many for Murder, Theft, Poysoning, Robbery, 
 Perjury, Forgery, coining false Money, for flying from their 
 Colours, or deserting to the Enemy, and most of them had 
 broken Prison ; none of these durst return to their native 
 Countries for fear of being hanged, or of starving in a Jail ; 
 and therefore were under a necessity of seeking a livelihood 
 in other Places. 
 
 During this Discourse, my Master was pleased to interrupt 
 me several times ; I had made use of many circumlocutions 
 in describing to him the nature of several crimes, for which 
 most of our crew had been forced to fly their country. This 
 Labour took up several Days conversation before he was able 
 to comprehend me. He was wholly at a loss to know what 
 could be the use or necessity of practising those Vices. To 
 clear up which I endeavoured to give him some ideas of the 
 desire of Power and Riches, of the terrible effects of Lust, 
 Intemperance, Malice and Envy. All this I was forced to 
 define and describe by putting .of cases, and making of 
 suppositions. After which, like one whose imagination was 
 struck with something never seen or heard of before, he 
 would lift up his Eyes with amazement and indignation. 
 Power, Government, War, Law, Punishment, and a thousand 
 other things had no terms, wherein that Language could 
 express them, which made the difficulty almost insuperable 
 to give my Master any conception of what I meant. But 
 being of an excellent understanding, much improved by 
 contemplation and converse, he at last arrived at a competent 
 Knowledge of what Human Nature in our parts of the 
 World is capable to perform, and desired I would give him 
 some particular account of that Land, which we call Europe, 
 but especially of my own Country. 
 
CHAP. V 
 
 The Author at his Masters Commands informs him of the State of 
 England. The Causes of War among the Princes of Europe. The 
 Author begins to explain the English Constitution. 
 
 The Reader may please to observe, that the following extract 
 of many conversations I had with my Master, contains a 
 Summary of the most material points, which were discoursed 
 at several times for above two Years ; his Honour often 
 desiring fuller Satisfaction as I farther improved in the 
 Houyhnhnm Tongue. I laid before him, as well as I could, 
 the whole State of Europe; I discoursed of Trade and 
 Manufactures, of Arts and Sciences ; and the Answers I 
 gave to all the Questions he made, as they arose upon several 
 Subjects, were a Fund of conversation not to be exhausted. 
 But I shall here only set down the substance of what passed 
 between us concerning my own Country, reducing it into 
 order as well as I can, without any regard to time or other 
 circumstances, while I strictly adhere to Truth. My only 
 concern is, that I shall hardly be able to do Justice to my 
 Master's Arguments and Expressions, which must needs suffer 
 by my want of capacity, as well as by a Translation into our 
 barbarous English. 
 
 In obedience therefore to his Honour's Commands, I 
 related to him the Revolution under the Prince of Oratige, 
 the long War with France entered into by the said Prince, 
 and renewed by his successor the present Queen, wherein 
 the greatest powers of Christendo?n were engaged, and which 
 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 311 
 
 still continued : I computed at his request, that about a 
 Million of Yahoos might have been killed in the whole 
 progress of it, and perhaps a hundred or more cities taken, 
 and thrice as many Ships burnt or sunk. 
 
 He asked me what were the usual Causes or Motives that 
 made one Country go to war with another. I answered they 
 were innumerable, but I should only mention a few of the 
 chief. Sometimes the ambition of Princes, who never think 
 they have Land or People enough to govern : Sometimes the 
 corruption of Ministers, who engage their Master in a War in 
 order to stifle or divert the clamour of the Subjects against 
 their evil Administration. Difference in Opinions hath cost 
 many Millions of Lives : For instance, whether Flesh be Bread, 
 or Bread be Flesh ; whether the Juice of a certain Berry be 
 Blood or Wine ; whether Whistling be a Vice or Virtue ; 
 whether it be better to kiss a Post, or throw it into the Fire ; 
 what is the best Colour for a Coat, whether Black, White, 
 Red or Gray ; and whether it should be long or short, narrow 
 or wide, dirty or clean, with many more. Neither are any 
 Wars so furious and bloody, or of so long continuance, as 
 those occasioned by difference in Opinion, especially if it be 
 in things indifferent. 
 
 Sometimes the Quarrel between two Princes is to decide 
 which of them shall dispossess a third of his Dominions, 
 where neither of them pretend to any Right. Sometimes 
 one Prince quarrelleth with another, for fear the other should 
 quarrel with him. Sometimes a War is entered upon, because 
 the Enemy is too strong, and sometimes because he is too 
 weak. Sometimes our Neighbours want the Things which 
 we have, or have the things which we want; and we both 
 fight, till they take ours or give us theirs. It is a very 
 justifiable cause of a War to invade a Country after the 
 People have been wasted by Famine, destroyed by Pestilence, 
 or embroiled by factions among themselves. It is justifiable 
 to enter into War against our nearest Ally, when one of his 
 Towns lies convenient for us, or a Territory of Land, that 
 
3 i2 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 would render our Dominions round and compleat. If a 
 Prince sends Forces into a Nation, where the People are 
 poor and ignorant, he may lawfully put half of them to death, 
 and make Slaves of the rest, in order to civilize and reduce 
 them from their barbarous Way of living. It is a very 
 kingly, honourable, and frequent Practice, when one Prince 
 desires the assistance of another to secure him against an 
 Invasion, that the Assistant, when he hath driven out the 
 Invader, should seize on the Dominions himself, and kill, 
 imprison or banish the Prince he came to relieve. Allyance 
 by Blood or Marriage, is a sufficient frequent cause of War 
 between Princes, and the nearer the kindred is, the greater 
 is their Disposition to quarrel : Poor Nations are hungry, and 
 rich Nations are proud, and Pride and Hunger will ever be at 
 Variance. For these Reasons, the Trade of a Soldier is held 
 the most honourable of all others : Because a Soldier is a 
 Yahoo hired to kill in cold Blood as many of his own Species, 
 who have never offended him, as possibly he can. 
 
 There are likewise a kind of Princes in Europe, not able 
 to make War by themselves, who hire out their Troops to 
 richer Nations, for so much a Day to each Man ; of which 
 they keep three-fourths to themselves, and it is the best part 
 of their Maintenance ; such are those in many Northern Parts 
 of Europe. 
 
 What you have told me (said my Master) upon the 
 Subject of War, does indeed discover most admirably the 
 Effects of that Reason you pretend to : However it is happy 
 that the Shame is greater than the Danger ; and that Nature 
 hath left you utterly uncapable of doing much Mischief. 
 
 For your Mouths lying flat with your Faces, you can 
 hardly bite each other to any purpose, unless by Consent. 
 Then as to the Claws upon your Feet before and behind, 
 they are so short and tender, that one of our Yahoos would 
 drive a dozen of yours before him. And therefore in 
 recounting the Numbers of those who have been killed in 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 313 
 
 Battle, I cannot but think that you have said the Thing which 
 is not. 
 
 I could not forbear shaking my Head and smiling a little 
 at his Ignorance. And being no Stranger to the Art of War, 
 I gave him a Description of Cannons, Culverins, Muskets, 
 Carabines, Pistols, Bullets, Powder, Swords, Bayonets, Sieges, 
 Retreats, Attacks, Undermines, Countermines, Bombard- 
 ments, Sea-fights ; Ships sunk with a Thousand Men, Twenty 
 Thousand killed on each Side ; dying Groans, Limbs flying 
 in the Air, Smoak, Noise, Confusion, trampling to death 
 under Horses Feet; Flight, Pursuit, Victory; Fields strewed 
 with Carcases left for Food to Dogs and Wolves, and Birds 
 of Prey ; Plundering, Stripping, Ravishing, Burning and 
 Destroying. And to set forth the Valour of my own dear 
 Countrymen, I assured him, that I had seen them blow up 
 a Hundred Enemies at once in a Siege, and as many in a 
 Ship, and beheld the dead Bodies come down in pieces from 
 the Clouds, to the great Diversion of the Spectators. 
 
 I was going on to more Particulars, when my Master 
 commanded me Silence. He said, Whoever understood the 
 Nature of Yahoos might easily believe it possible for so vile 
 an Animal, to be capable of every Action I had named, if 
 their Strength and Cunning equalled their Malice. But as 
 my Discourse had increased his Abhorrence of the whole 
 Species, so he found it gave him a Disturbance in his Mind, 
 to which he was wholly a Stranger before. He thought his 
 Ears being used to such abominable Words, might by 
 Degrees admit them with less Detestation. That although 
 he hated the Yahoos of this Country, yet he no more blamed 
 them for their odious Qualities, than he did a Gnnayh (a 
 Bird of Prey) for its Cruelty, or a sharp Stone for cutting his 
 Hoof. But when a Creature pretending to Reason, could be 
 capable of such Enormities, he dreaded lest the Corruption 
 of that Faculty might be worse than Brutality itself. He 
 seemed therefore confident, that instead of Reason, we were 
 only possessed of some Quality fitted to increase our natural 
 
314 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Vices ; as the Reflection from a troubled Stream returns the 
 Image of an ill-shapen Body, not only larger, but more 
 distorted. 
 
 He added, That he had heard too much upon the Subject 
 of War, both in this, and some former Discourses. There 
 was another Point which a little perplexed him at present. 
 I had informed him, that some of our Crew left their 
 Country on account of being ruined by Law ; that I had 
 already explained the meaning of the Word ; but he was at a 
 Loss how it should come to pass, that the Law which was 
 intended for every Man's Preservation, should be any Man's 
 Ruin. Therefore he desired to be farther satisfied what I 
 meant by Law, and what sort of Dispensers thereof it could 
 be by whose Practices the Property of any Person could be 
 lost, instead of being preserved. He added, he saw not what 
 great Occasion there could be for this thing called Law, 
 since all the Intentions and Purposes of it may be fully 
 answered by following the Dictates of Nature and Reason, 
 which are sufficient Guides for a reasonable Animal, as we 
 pretended to be, in shewing us what we ought to do, and 
 what to avoid. 
 
 I assured his honour, that Law was a Science wherein I 
 had not much conversed, having little more Knowledge of it 
 than what I had obtained by employing Advocates, in vain, 
 upon some injustices that had been done me, and by 
 conversing with some others who by the same Method had 
 first lost their substance and then left their own country 
 under the Mortification of such Disappointments, however I 
 would give him all the Satisfaction I was able. 
 
 I said that those who made profession of this Science 
 were exceedingly multiplied, being almost equal to the 
 Caterpillars in number ; that they were of diverse Degrees, 
 Distinctions and Denominations. The numerousness of 
 those that dedicated themselves to this Profession were such 
 that the fair and justifiable Advantage and Income of the 
 
chap. V A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 315 
 
 Profession was not sufficient for the decent and handsome 
 Maintenance of Multitudes of those who followed it. Hence 
 it came to pass that it was found needful to supply that by 
 Artifice and Cunning, which could not be procured by just 
 and honest Methods : The better to bring which about, very 
 many Men among us were bred up from their Youth in the 
 Art of proving by Words multiplied for the purpose, that 
 White is Black, and Black is White, according as they are 
 paid. The Greatness of these Mens Assurance and the 
 Boldness of their Pretensions gained upon the Opinion of the 
 Vulgar, whom in a Manner they made Slaves of, and got 
 into their Hands much the largest share of the Practice of 
 their Profession. These Practitioners were by Men of 
 Discernment called Pettifoggers (that is, Confounders, or 
 rather, Destroyers of Bight), as it was my ill Hap as well as 
 the Misfortune of my suffering Acquaintance to be engaged 
 only with this Species of the Profession. I desired his 
 Honour to understand the Description I had to give, and the 
 Ruin I had complained of to relate to these Sectaries only ; 
 and how and by what means the Misfortunes we met with 
 were brought upon us by the Management of these Men, 
 might be more easily conceived by explaining to him their 
 Method of Proceeding, which could not be better done than 
 by giving him an Example. 
 
 My Neighbour, said I, I will suppose, has a mind to my 
 Cow, he hires one of these advocates to prove that he ought 
 to have my Cow from me. I must then hire another of 
 them to defend my right, it being against all rules of Law 
 that any man should be allowed to speak for himself. Now 
 in this case, I who am the right Owner lie under two great 
 Disadvantages. First, my Advocate, being as I said before 
 practised almost from his Cradle in defending Falshood, is 
 quite out of his Element when he would argue for Right, 
 which as an Office unnatural he attempts with great Awk- 
 wardness, if not with an Ill-will. The second disadvantage is 
 that my Advocate must proceed with great Caution ; for, 
 since the Maintenance of so many depends on the keeping 
 
3i6 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 pArt iv 
 
 up of Business, should he proceed too summarily, if he does 
 not incur the Displeasure of his Superiors, he is sure to gain 
 the Ill-will and Hatred of his Brethren, as being by them 
 esteemed one that would lessen the Practice of the Law. 
 This being the Case, I have but two Methods to preserve my 
 Cow. The first is, to gain over my Adversaries Advocate 
 with a double Fee ; from the Manner and Design of whose 
 
 Double Fee. 
 
 Education before mentioned it is easy to expect he will be 
 induced to drop his Client and let the Ballance fall on my 
 Side. The second way is for my Advocate not to insist on 
 the Justice of my Cause, by allowing the Cow to belong to 
 my Adversary ; and this if it be dexterously and skilfully done 
 will go a great way towards obtaining a favourable Verdict, it 
 having been found, from a careful Observation of Issues and 
 Events, that the wrong side, under the Management of such 
 Practitioners, has the fairer Chance for Success, and this 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 317 
 
 more especially if it happens, as it did in mine and my 
 Friend's Case, and may have done since, that the Person 
 appointed to decide all Controversies of Property as well as 
 for the Tryal of Criminals, who should be taken out of the 
 most knowing and wise of his Profession, is by the Recom- 
 mendation of a great Favourite, or Court-Mistress, chosen out 
 of the Sect before mentioned, and so, having been under a 
 strong Biass all his Life against Equity and fair dealing, lies 
 as it were under a fatal Necessity of favouring, shifting, double 
 dealing and Oppression, and besides through Age, Infirmity, 
 and Distempers grown lazy, unactive, and inattentive, and 
 thereby almost incapacitated from doing any thing becoming 
 the Nature of his Imployment, and the Duty of his Office. 
 In such Cases, the Decisions and Determinations of Men so 
 bred, and so qualified, may with Reason be expected on the 
 wrong side of the Cause, since those who can take Harangue 
 and Noise (if pursued with Warmth, and drawn out into a 
 Length) for Reasoning, are not much to be wondered at, if 
 they infer the weight of the Argument from the heaviness of 
 the Pleading. 
 
 It is a Maxim among these Men, That whatever has been 
 done before may legally be done again : And therefore they 
 take special Care to record all the Decisions formerly made, 
 even those which have through Ignorance or Corruption 
 contradicted the Rules of common Justice and the general 
 Reason of Mankind. These, under the name of Precedents, 
 they produce as Authorities, and thereby endeavour to 
 justify the most iniquitous Opinions ; and they are so lucky in 
 this Practice, that it rarely fails of Decrees answerable to 
 their Intent and Expectation. 
 
 In pleading, they studiously avoid entring into the Merits 
 of the Cause ; but are loud, violent and tedious in dwelling 
 upon all Circumstances which are not to the Purpose. For 
 instance, in the Case already mentioned : They never desire 
 to know what Claim or Title my Adversary hath to my Cow, 
 but whether the said Cow were Red or Black, her Horns 
 
318 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 long or short ; whether the Field I graze her in be round 
 or square, whether she was milked at home or abroad, 
 what Diseases she is subject to, and the like ; after which 
 they consult Precedents, adjourn the Cause, from Time to 
 Time, and in Ten, Twenty, or Thirty Years come to an 
 Issue. 
 
 It is likewise to be observed that this Society hath a 
 peculiar Cant and Jargon of their own, that no other Mortal 
 can understand, and wherein all their Laws are written, which 
 they take special Care to multiply ; whereby they have gone 
 near to confound the very Essence of Truth and Falshood, 
 of Right and Wrong ; so that it may take Thirty Years to 
 decide whether the Field, left me by my Ancestors for six 
 Generations belongs to me or to a Stranger three hundred 
 Miles off. 
 
 In the Tryal of Persons accused for Crimes against the 
 State, the Method is much more short and commendable : 
 For if those in power, who know well how to choose In- 
 struments fit for their Purpose, take care to recommend and 
 promote out of this Clan a proper Person, his Method of 
 Education and Practice makes it easy to him, when his 
 Patron's Disposition is understood, without Difficulty or 
 Study either to condemn or acquit the Criminal, and at the 
 same time strictly preserve all due Forms of Law. 
 
 Here my Master interposing said it was a Pity, that 
 Creatures endowed with such prodigious Abilities of Mind as 
 these Advocates by the Description I gave of them must 
 certainly be, were not rather encouraged to be Instructors of 
 others in Wisdom and Knowledge. In answer to which I 
 assured his Honour that the Business and Study of their own 
 Calling and Profession so took up all their Thoughts and en- 
 grossed all their Time, that they minded nothing else, and that 
 therefore, in all points out of their own Trade, many of them 
 were of so great Ignorance and Stupidity, that it was hard to 
 pick out of any Profession a Generation of Men more des- 
 
chap, v A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 319 
 
 picable in common Conversation, or who were so much 
 looked upon as avowed Enemies to all Knowledge and 
 Learning, being equally disposed to pervert the general 
 reason of Mankind in every other Subject of Discourse, as in 
 that of their own Calling. 
 
CHAP. VI 
 
 A Continuance of the State of England, so well governed by a Queen as to 
 need no first Minister. The Character of such an one in some 
 European Courts. 
 
 My Master was yet wholly at a Loss to understand what 
 Motives could incite this Race of Lawyers to perplex, disquiet, 
 and weary themselves, and engage in a Confederacy of Injustice, 
 merely for the sake of injuring their Fellow-Animals ; neither 
 could he comprehend what I meant in saying they did it for 
 Hire. Whereupon I was at much Pains to describe to him 
 the Use of Money, the Materials it was made of, and the 
 Value of the Metals ; that when a Yahoo had got a great 
 Store of this precious Substance, he was able to purchase 
 whatever he had a mind to, the finest Cloathing, the noblest 
 Houses, great Tracts of Land, the most costly Meats and 
 Drinks, and have his choice of the most beautiful Females. 
 Therefore since Money alone, was able to perforin all these 
 Feats, our Yahoos thought, they could never have enough of 
 it to spend or save, as they found themselves inclined from 
 their natural Bent either to Profusion or Avarice. That the 
 Rich Man enjoyed the Fruit of the Poor Man's Labour, and 
 the latter were a thousand to one in proportion to the former. 
 That, the Bulk of our People were forced to live miserably, 
 by labouring every Day for small Wages to make a few live 
 plentifully. I enlarged myself much on these and many 
 other Particulars to the same purpose : But his Honour was 
 still to seek : For he went upon a supposition that all 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 321 
 
 Animals had a Title to their share in the Productions of 
 the Earth, and especially those who presided over the rest. 
 Therefore he desired I would let him know, what these 
 costly Meats were, and how any of us happened to want 
 them. Whereupon I enumerated as many sorts as came into 
 my Head, with the various Methods of dressing them, which 
 could not be done without sending Vessels by Sea to every part 
 of the World, as well for Liquors to Drink, as for Sauces, and 
 innumerable other Conveniencies. I assured him, that this 
 whole Globe of Earth must be at least three times gone round, 
 before one of our better Female Yahoos could get her Break- 
 fast, or a Cup to put it in. He said, That must needs be a 
 miserable Country which cannot furnish Food for its own 
 Inhabitants. But what he chiefly wondered at was how such 
 vast Tracts of Ground as I described should be wholly without 
 Fresh-water, and the People put to the Necessity of sending 
 over the Sea for Drink. I replied, that England (the dear 
 Place of my Nativity) was computed to produce three times 
 the quantity of Food, more than its Inhabitants are able to 
 consume, as well as Liquors extracted from Grain, or pressed 
 out of the Fruit of certain Trees, which made excellent 
 Drink, and the same Proportion in every other Convenience 
 of Life. But in order to feed the Luxury and Intemperance 
 of the Males, and the Vanity of the Females, we sent away 
 the greatest Part of our necessary Things to other Countries, 
 from whence in return we brought the Materials of Diseases, 
 Folly, and Vice, to spend among ourselves. Hence it follows 
 of Necessity, that vast numbers of our People are compelled 
 to seek their Livelihood by Begging, Robbing, Stealing, 
 Cheating, Forswearing, Flattering, Suborning, Forging, Gam- 
 ing, Lying, Fawning, Hectoring, Voting, Scribling, Star- 
 gazing, Poysoning, Canting, Libelling, Free-thinking, and the 
 like Occupations : Every one of which Terms, I was at much 
 Pains to make him understand. 
 
 That Wine was not imported among us from foreign 
 Countries, to supply the want of Water or other Drinks, but 
 because it was a sort of Liquid which made us merry, by 
 
 Y 
 
322 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 putting us out of our Senses; diverted all melancholy 
 
 - 7/ 
 
 A sort of Liquid which made us merry: 
 
 Thoughts, begat wild extravagant Imaginations in the Brain, 
 raised our Hopes, and banished our Fears, suspended every 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 323 
 
 Office of Reason for a Time, and deprived us of the Use of 
 our Limbs, till we fell into a profound Sleep ; although it 
 must be confessed, that we always awaked sick and dispirited, 
 and that the Use of this Liquor filled us with Diseases, which 
 made our Lives uncomfortable and short. 
 
 But beside all this, the Bulk of our People supported 
 themselves by furnishing the Necessities or Conveniencies of 
 Life to the Rich, and to each other. For instance, when I 
 am at home and dressed as I ought to be, I carry on my 
 Body the Workmanship of an hundred Tradesmen ; the 
 Building and Furniture of my House employ as many more, 
 and five times the number to adorn my Wife. 
 
 I was going on to tell him of another sort of People, who 
 get their Livelihood by attending the Sick, having upon 
 some Occasions informed his Honour that many of my Crew 
 had died of Diseases. But here it was with the utmost 
 Difficulty, that I brought him to apprehend what I meant. 
 He could easily conceive, that a Houyhnhnm grew weak and 
 heavy a few Days before his Death, or by some Accident 
 might hurt a Limb. But that Nature, who works all Things 
 to Perfection, should suffer any Pains to breed in our Bodies, 
 he thought it impossible, and desired to know the reason 
 of so unaccountable an Evil. I told him, we fed on a 
 thousand Things which operated contrary to each other; 
 that we eat when we were not hungry, and drank without the 
 Provocation of Thirst • That we sate whole Nights drinking 
 strong Liquors without eating a Bit, which disposed us to 
 Sloth, enflamed our Bodies, and precipitated or prevented 
 Digestion. That it would be endless to give him a Catalogue 
 of all Diseases incident to human Bodies ; for they could not 
 be fewer than five or six hundred, spread over every Limb, 
 and Joynt ; in short, every Part, external and intestine, having 
 Diseases appropriated to them. To remedy which, there 
 was a Sort of People bred up among us, in the Profession 
 or Pretence of curing the Sick. And because I had some 
 Skill in the Faculty, I would in Gratitude to his Honour, let 
 
324 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 him know the whole Mystery and Method by which they 
 proceed. 
 
 Their Fundamental is, That all Diseases arise from Re- 
 pletion, from whence they conclude, that a great Evacuation of 
 the Body is necessary, either through the natural Passage, or 
 upwards at the Mouth. Their next Business is, from Herbs, 
 Minerals, Gums, Oyls, Shells, Salts, Juices, Seaweed, Barks of 
 Trees, Serpents, Toads, Frogs, Spiders, dead Mens Flesh 
 and Bones, Beasts and Fishes, to form a Composition for 
 Smell and Taste the most abominable, nauseous and "de- 
 testable, they can possibly contrive, which the Stomach 
 immediately rejects with loathing ; and this they call a 
 Vomit ; or else from the same Store-house, with some other 
 poysonous Additions, they command us to take in a Medicine 
 equally annoying and disgustful to the Bowels, which relaxing 
 the Belly, drives down all before it, and this they call a 
 Purge, or a Clyster. 
 
 But, besides real Diseases, we are subject to many that 
 are only imaginary, for which the Physicians have invented 
 imaginary Cures ; these have their several Names, and so have 
 the Drugs that are proper for them, and with these our 
 Female Yahoos are always infested. 
 
 One great Excellency in this Tribe is their Skill at 
 Prognostics, wherein they seldom fail ; their Predictions in 
 real Diseases, when they rise to any Degree of Malignity, 
 generally portending Death, which is always in their Power, 
 when Recovery is not : And therefore, upon any unexpected 
 Signs of Amendment, after they have pronounced their Sen- 
 tence, rather than be accused as false Prophets, they know 
 how to approve their Sagacity to the World by a seasonable 
 Dose. 
 
 They are likewise of special Use to Husbands and Wives, 
 who are grown weary of their Mates, to eldest Sons, to great 
 Ministers of State, and often to Princes. 
 
CHAr. vi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 325 
 
 I had formerly upon occasion discoursed with my Master 
 
 $m 
 
 ' Skill at Prognosticks.' 
 
 upon the Nature of. Government in general, and particularly of 
 our own excellent Constitution, deservedly the Wonder and 
 
326 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Envy of the whole World. But having here accidentally 
 mentioned a Minister of State ; he commanded me some 
 time after to inform him, what Species of Yahoo I particularly 
 meant by that Appellation. 
 
 I told him, that our She Governor or Queen having no 
 Ambition to gratify, no Inclination to satisfy of extending her 
 Power to the Injury of her Neighbours, or the Prejudice of 
 her own Subjects, was therefore so far from needing a corrupt 
 Ministry to carry on or cover any sinister Designs, that she 
 not only directs her own Actions to the Good of her People, 
 conducts them by the Direction, and restrains them within 
 the Limitation of the Laws of her own Country ; but submits 
 the Behaviour and Acts of those She intrusts with the 
 Administration of Her Affairs to the Examination of Her 
 great Council, and subjects them to the Penalties of the 
 Law ; and therefore never puts any such Confidence in any 
 of her Subjects as to entrust them with the whole and entire 
 Administration of her Affairs : But I added, that in some 
 former Reigns here, and in many other Courts of Europe 
 now, where Princes grew indolent and careless of their own 
 Affairs through a constant Love and Pursuit of Pleasure, they 
 made use of such an Administrator, as I had mentioned, 
 under the Title of first or chief Minister of State, the De- 
 scription of which, as far as it may be collected not only from 
 their Actions, but from the Letters, Memoirs, and Writings 
 published by themselves, the Truth of which has not yet 
 been disputed, may be allowed to be as follows : That he is a 
 Person wholly exempt from Joy and Grief, Love and Hatred, 
 Pity and Anger ; at least makes use of no other Passions but 
 a violent Desire of Wealth, Power and Titles ; That he 
 applies his Words to all Uses, except to the Indication of his 
 Mind ; That he never tells a Truth, but with an Intent that 
 you should take it for a Lye ; nor a Lye, but with a Design 
 that you should take it for a Truth ; That those he speaks worst 
 of behind their Backs, are in the surest way of Preferment ; 
 and whenever he begins to praise you to others or to your- 
 self, you are from that Day forlorn. The worst Mark you 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 327 
 
 can receive is a Promise, especially when it is confirmed with 
 an Oath ; after which every wise Man retires, and gives over 
 all Hopes. 
 
 There are three Methods by which a Man may rise to be 
 chief Minister : The first is, by knowing how with Prudence 
 to dispose of a Wife, a Daughter, or a Sister : The second, by 
 betraying or undermining his Predecessor : And the third is, 
 by a furious Zeal in publick Assemblies against the Cor- 
 ruptions of the Court. But a Wise Prince would rather 
 choose to employ those who practice the last of these Methods ; 
 because such Zealots prove always the most obsequious and 
 subservient to the Will and Passions of their Master. That 
 these Ministers having all Employments at their Disposal, 
 preserve themselves in Power by bribing the Majority of a 
 Senate or great. Council ; and at last by an Act of Indemnity 
 (whereof I described the Nature to him) they secured them- 
 selves from after Reckonings, and retired from the Publick, 
 laden with the Spoils of the Nation. 
 
 The Palace of a Chief Minister, is a Seminary to breed 
 up others in his own Trade : The Pages, Lacquies, and 
 Porter, by imitating their Master, become Ministers of State 
 in their several Districts, and learn to excel in the three 
 principal Ingredients, of Insolence, lying and Bribery. Ac- 
 cordingly, they have a Subaltern Court paid to them by 
 Persons of the best Rank, and sometimes by the Force of 
 Dexterity and Impudence, arrive through several Gradations 
 to be Successors to their Lord. 
 
 He is usually governed by a decayed Wrench or favourite 
 Footman, who are the Tunnels through which all Graces are 
 conveyed, and may properly be called, in the last Resort, the 
 Governours of the Kingdom. 
 
 One Day in Discourse my Master, having heard me 
 mention the Nobility of my Country, was pleased to make me 
 
328 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 a Compliment which I could not pretend to deserve : That 
 he was sure, I must have been born of some noble Family, 
 because I far exceeded in Shape, Colour, and Cleanliness, all 
 the Yahoos of his Nation, although I seemed to fail in 
 Strength and Agility, which must be imputed to my different 
 Way of Living from those other Brutes ; and besides, I was 
 not only endowed with the Faculty of Speech, but likewise 
 with some Rudiments of Reason, to a Degree, that with all 
 his Acquaintance I passed for a Prodigy. 
 
 He made me observe, that among the Houyhnhnms, the 
 White, the Sorrel, and the Iron-grey, were not so exactly 
 shaped as the Bay, the Dapple-grey, and the Black ; nor born 
 with equal Talents of the Mind, or a Capacity to improve 
 them ; and therefore continued always in the Condition of 
 Servants, without ever aspiring to match out of their own 
 Race, which in that Country would be reckoned monstrous 
 and unnatural. 
 
 I made his Honour my most humble Acknowledgements 
 for the good Opinion he was pleased to conceive of me ; but 
 assured him at the same time, that my Birth was of the 
 lower Sort, having been born of plain honest Parents, who 
 were just able to give me a tolerable Education : That Nobility 
 among us was altogether a different Thing from the Idea he 
 had of it ; That our Young Noblemen are bred from their 
 Childhood in Idleness and Luxury ; and when their Fortunes 
 are almost ruined, they marry some Woman of mean Birth, 
 disagreeable Person, and unsound Constitution, merely for the 
 Sake of Money, whom they hate and despise. That the 
 Productions of such Marriages are generally scrophulous, 
 ricketty, or deformed Children, by which means the Family 
 seldom continues above Three Generations. That a weak 
 diseased Body, a meager Countenance, and sallow Com- 
 plexion, are no uncommon Marks of a Great Man; and a 
 healthy robust Appearance is so far disgraceful in a Man of 
 Quality, that the World is apt to conclude his real Father to 
 
chap, vi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 329 
 
 have been one of the inferiors of the Family, especially when 
 it is seen that the Imperfections of his Mind run parallel 
 with those of his Body and are little else than a Composi- 
 tion of Spleen, Dulness, Ignorance, Caprice, Sensuality, and 
 Pride. 
 
CHAP. VII 
 
 The Author's great Love of his Native Country. His Master's Observa- 
 tions upon the Constitution and Administration of England, as 
 described by the Atdhor, with parallel Cases and Comparisons. His 
 Master's Observations upon Human Nature. 
 
 The Reader may be disposed to wonder how I could prevail 
 on myself to give so free a Representation of my own Species, 
 among a race of Mortals who were already too apt to conceive 
 the vilest opinion of human kind from that entire congruity 
 betwixt me and their Yahoos. But I must freely confess, 
 that the many Virtues of those excellent Quadrupeds placed 
 in opposite View to human Corruptions, had so far opened 
 my Eyes and enlarged my Understanding, that I began to 
 view the Actions and Passions of Man in a very different 
 Light, and to think the Honour of my own kind not worth 
 managing ; which, besides, it was impossible for me to do 
 before a Person of so acute a Judgment as my Master, who 
 daily convinced me of a thousand Faults in myself, whereof I 
 had not the least Perception before, and which among .us 
 would never be numbered even among human Infirmities. 
 I had likewise learned from his Example an utter Detesta- 
 tion of all Falsehood or Disguise ; and Truth appeared so 
 amiable to me, that I determined upon sacrificing every 
 thing to it. 
 
 Let me deal so candidly with the Reader, as to confess, 
 that there was yet a much stronger motive for the P'reedom I 
 took in my Representation of Things. I had not been a 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 331 
 
 Year in this country, before I contracted such a Love and 
 Veneration for the Inhabitants, that I entered on a firm 
 Resolution never to return to human kind, but to pass the 
 rest of my Life among these admirable Houyhnhnms in the 
 Contemplation and Practice of every Virtue ; where I could 
 have no Example or Incitement to Vice. But it was decreed 
 by Fortune, my perpetual Enemy, that so great a Felicity 
 should not fall to my share. However, it is now some 
 Comfort to reflect, that in what I said of my countrymen, I 
 extenuated their Faults as much as I durst before so strict an 
 Examiner, and upon every Article, gave as favourable a Turn 
 as the matter would bear. For indeed, who is there alive 
 that will not be swayed by his Byass and Partiality to the 
 Place of his Birth ? 
 
 I have related the Substance of several Conversations I 
 had with my Master, during the greatest part of the Time I 
 had the Honour to be in his Service, but have indeed for 
 Brevity sake omitted much more than is here set down. 
 
 When I had answered all his Questions, and his Curiosity 
 seemed to be fully satisfied ; he sent for me one Morning 
 early, and commanding me to sit down at some distance (an 
 Honour which he had never before conferred upon me) he 
 said, he had been very seriously considering my whole Story, 
 as far as it related both to myself and my Country : That he 
 looked upon us as a sort of Animals to whose share, by what 
 Accident he could not conjecture, some small Pittance of 
 Reason had fallen, whereof we made no other Use than by 
 its Assistance to aggravate our natural Corruptions, and to 
 acquire new ones which Nature had not given us. That we 
 disarmed ourselves of the few Abilities she had bestowed, 
 had been very successful in multiplying our original Wants, 
 and seemed to spend our whole Lives in vain Endeavours to 
 supply them by our own Inventions. That as to myself, it 
 was manifest I had neither the Strength nor Agility of a 
 common Ya/zoo, that I walked infirmly on my hinder Feet, 
 had found out a Contrivance to make my Claws of no Use or 
 
332 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Defence, and to remove the Hair from my Chin, which was 
 intended as a shelter from the Sun and the Weather. 
 Lastly, That I could neither run with Speed, nor climb Trees 
 like my Brethren (as he called them) the Yahoos in this 
 Country. 
 
 That our Institutions of Government and Law were plainly 
 owing to our gross Defects in Reason, and by consequence, 
 in Vertue ; because Reason alone is sufficient to govern a 
 Rational Creature ; which was therefore a Character we had 
 no Pretence to challenge, even from the account I had 
 given of my own People, although he manifestly perceived, 
 that in order to favour them, I had concealed many Particulars, 
 and often said the Thing ivhich zvas not. 
 
 He was the more confirmed in this Opinion, because he 
 observed, that as I agreed in every Feature of my Body with 
 other Yahoos, except where it was to my real Disadvantage in 
 point of Strength, Speed and Activity, the shortness of my 
 Claws, and some other Particulars where Nature had no Part ; 
 so from the Representation I had given him of our Lives, our 
 Manners, and our Actions, he found as near a Resemblance 
 in the Disposition of our Minds. He said the Yahoos were 
 known to hate one another more than they did any different 
 Species of Animals ; and the Reason usually assigned, was, 
 the Odiousness of their own Shapes, which all could see in 
 the rest, but not in themselves. He had therefore begun to 
 think it not unwise in us to cover our Bodies, and by that 
 Invention, conceal many of our own Deformities from each 
 other, which would else be hardly supportable. But he now 
 found he had been mistaken, and that the Dissentions of 
 those Brutes in his Country were owing to the same Cause 
 with ours, as I had described them. For, if (said he) you 
 throw among Five Yahoos as much Food as would be 
 sufficient for Fifty, they will, instead of eating peaceably, fall 
 together by the Ears, each single one impatient to have all 
 to itself ; and therefore a Servant was usually employed to 
 stand by while they were feeding abroad, and those kept at 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 333 
 
 home were tied at a Distance from each other • that if a Cow 
 died of Age or Accident, before a Houyhnhnm could secure it 
 for his own Yahoos, those in the Neighbourhood would come 
 in Herds to seize it, and then would ensue such a Battle as I 
 had described, with terrible Wounds made by their Claws on 
 both Sides, although they seldom were able to kill one 
 another, for want of such convenient Instruments of Death 
 as we had invented. At other times the like Battles have 
 been fought between the Yahoos of several Neighbourhoods 
 without any visible Cause : Those of one District watching all 
 Opportunities to surprize the next before they are prepared. 
 But if they find their Project hath miscarried, they return 
 home, and for want of Enemies, engage in what I call a Civil 
 War among themselves. 
 
 That in some Fields of his Country, there are certain 
 shifting Stones of several Colours, whereof the Yahoos are 
 violently fond, and when Part of these Stones is fixed in the 
 Earth, as it sometimes happeneth, they will dig with their 
 Claws for whole Days to get them out, then carry them away, 
 and hide them by Heaps in their Kennels ; but still looking 
 round with great Caution, for fear their Comrades should 
 find out their Treasure. My Master said, he could never 
 discover the Reason of this unnatural Appetite, or how these 
 Stones could be of any Use to a Yahoo ; but now he believed 
 it might proceed from the same Principle of Avarice, which I 
 had ascribed to Mankind ; that he had once, by way of 
 Experiment, privately removed a heap of these Stones from 
 the Place where one of his Yahoos had buried it : Where- 
 upon, the sordid Animal missing his Treasure, by his loud 
 lamenting brought the whole Herd to the Place, there 
 miserably howled, then fell to biting and tearing the rest, 
 began to pine away, would neither eat, nor sleep, nor work, 
 till he ordered a Servant privately to convey the Stones into 
 the same Hole, and hide them as before ; which when his 
 Yahoo had found, he presently recovered his Spirits and good 
 Humour, but took care to remove them to a better hiding- 
 place, and hath ever since been a very serviceable Brute. 
 
334 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 My Master farther assured me, which I also observed 
 myself, That in the Fields where these shining Stones abound, 
 the fiercest and most frequent Battles are fought, occasioned 
 by perpetual Inroads of the Neighbouring Yahoos. 
 
 Would take the Advantage, and carry it away from them both. 
 
 He said, it was common when two Yahoos discovered 
 such a Stone in a Field, and were contending which of them 
 should be the Proprietor, a third would take the Advantage, 
 and carry it away from them both ; which my Master would 
 needs contend to have some kind of Resemblance with our 
 Suits at Law ; wherein I thought it for our Credit not to 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 335 
 
 undeceive him ; since the Decision he mentioned was much 
 more equitable than many Decrees among us : Because the 
 Plaintiff and Defendant there lost nothing beside the Stone 
 they contended for, whereas our Courts of Equity would 
 seldom have dismissed the Cause while either of them had 
 any thing left. 
 
 My Master continuing his Discourse, said, There was 
 nothing that rendered the Yahoos more odious, than their 
 undistinguishing Appetite to devour every thing that came 
 in their way, whether Herbs, Roots, Berries, the corrupted 
 Flesh of Animals, or all mingled together : And it was 
 peculiar in their Temper, that they were fonder of what they 
 could get by Rapine or Stealth at a greater distance, than 
 much better Food provided for them at home. 
 
 There was also another kind of Root very juicy, but 
 somewhat rare and difficult to be found, which the Yahoos 
 sought for with much Eagerness, and would suck it with 
 great Delight; and it produced in them the same Effects 
 that Wine hath upon us. It w r ould make them sometimes 
 hug, and sometimes tear one another, they would howl and 
 grin, and chatter, and tumble, and then fall asleep in the 
 Dirt. 
 
 I did indeed observe, that the Yahoos w r ere the only 
 Animals in this Country subject to any Diseases ; which, 
 however, were much fewer than Horses have among us, and 
 contracted not by any ill Treatment they meet with, but by 
 the Nastiness and Greediness of that sordid Brute. Neither 
 has their Language any more than a general Appellation for 
 those Maladies, which is borrowed from the name of the 
 Beast, and called Hnea- Yahoo or the Yahoo' s-Evil. 
 
 As to Learning, Government, Arts, Manufactures, and 
 the like, my Master confessed he could find little or no 
 Resemblance between the Yahoos of that Country and those 
 in ours. For, he only meant to observe what Parity there 
 
336 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 was in our Natures. He had heard indeed some curious 
 Houyhnhnms observe, that in most Herds there was a sort of 
 ruling Yahoo (as among us there is generally some leading or 
 principal Stag in a Park) who was always more deformed in 
 Body, and mischievous in Disposition, than any of the rest. 
 That this Leader had usually a Favourite as like himself as he 
 could get. This Favorite is hated by the whole Herd, and 
 therefore to protect himself, keeps always near the Person 
 of his Leader. He usually continues in Office till a worse 
 can be found; but the very Moment he is discarded, his 
 Successor, at the Head of all the Yahoos in that District, 
 Young and Old, Male and Female, come in a Body, and 
 attack him. But how far this might be applicable to our 
 Courts and Favourites, and Ministers of State, my Master said 
 I could best determine. 
 
 I durst make no return to this malicious Insinuation, 
 which debased human Understanding below the Sagacity of 
 a common Hound, who has Judgment enough to distinguish 
 and follow the Cry of the ablest Dog in the Pack, without 
 being ever mistaken. 
 
 My Master told me that a thing he wondred at in the 
 Yahoos, was their strange Disposition to Nastiness and Dirt, 
 whereas there appears to be a natural Love of Cleanliness in 
 all other Animals. As to the tv/o former Accusations, I was 
 glad to let them pass without any Reply, because I had not 
 a Word to offer upon them in Defence of my Species, which 
 otherwise I certainly had done from my own Inclinations. 
 But I could have easily vindicated Human kind from the 
 Imputation of Singularity upon the last Article, if there had 
 been any Swine- in that Country (as unluckily for me there 
 were not), which although it may be a sweeter Quadi-uped than 
 a Yahoo, cannot I humbly conceive in Justice pretend to 
 more Cleanliness ; and so his Honour himself must have 
 owned, if he had seen their filthy way of feeding, and their 
 Custom of wallowing and sleeping in the Mud. 
 
chap, vii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 337 
 
 My Master likewise mentioned another Quality which his 
 Servants had discovered in several Yahoos, and to him was 
 wholly unaccountable. He said, a Fancy would sometimes 
 take a Yahoo, to retire into a Corner, to lie down and howl 
 and groan, and spurn away all that came near him, although 
 he were young and fat, wanted neither Food nor Water : 
 nor did the Servants imagine what could possibly ail him. 
 And the only Remedy they found was to set him to hard 
 Work, after which he would infallibly come to himself. To 
 this I was silent out of Partiality to my own kind ; yet here I 
 could discover the true Seeds of Spleen, which only seizeth on 
 the Lazy, the Luxurious, and the Rich; who, if they were 
 forced to undergo the same Regimen, I would undertake for 
 the Cure. 
 
CHAP. VIII 
 
 The Author relates several Particulars of the Yahoos. The great Virtues 
 of the Houyhnhnms. The Education and Exercise of their Youth. 
 Their general Assembly. 
 
 As I ought to have understood Human Nature much better 
 than I supposed it possible for my Master to do, so it was 
 easy to apply the Character he gave of the Yahoos to myself 
 and my Countrymen, and I believed I could yet make farther 
 Discoveries from my own Observation. I therefore often 
 begged his Favour to let me go among the Herds of Yahoos 
 in the Neighbourhood, to which he always very graciously 
 consented, being perfectly convinced that the Hatred I bore 
 those Brutes would never suffer me to be corrupted by them ; 
 and his Honour ordered one of his Servants, a strong Sorrel 
 Nag, very honest and good-natured, to be my Guard, without 
 whose Protection I durst not undertake such Adventures. 
 For I have already told the Reader how much I was 
 pestered by those odious Animals upon my first Arrival. 
 And I afterwards failed very narrowly three or four times of 
 falling into their Clutches, when I happened to stray at any 
 Distance without my Hanger. And I have reason to believe 
 they had some Imagination that I was of their own Species, 
 which I often assisted myself, by stripping up my Sleeves, 
 and shewing my naked Arms and Breast in their sight, when 
 my Protector was with me. At which times they would 
 approach as near as they durst, and imitate my Actions 
 after the manner of Monkeys, but ever with great signs of 
 Hatred, as a tame Jack-Daw with Cap and Stockings, is 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 339 
 
 always persecuted by the wild ones, when he happens to be 
 got among them. 
 
 They are prodigiously nimble from their Infancy ; how- 
 ever, I once caught a young Male of three Years old, and 
 
 ' / once caught a yoicng Male 
 
 endeavoured by all Marks of Tenderness to make it quiet • 
 but the little Imp fell a squalling, and scratching, and biting 
 with such Violence, that ■ I was forced to let it go, and it was 
 high time, for a whole Troop of old ones came about us at 
 the Noise, but finding the Cub was safe (for away it ran) and 
 
340 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 my Sorrel Nag being by, they durst not venture near us. I 
 observed the young Animal's Flesh to smell very rank, and 
 the stink was somewhat between a Weasel and a Rox, but 
 much more disagreeable. 
 
 By what I could discover, the Yahoos appear to be the 
 most unteachable of all animals ; their capacities never 
 reaching higher than to draw or carry Burthens. Yet I am 
 of opinion this Defect ariseth chiefly from a perverse, restive 
 Disposition. For they are cunning, malicious, treacherous 
 and revengeful. They are strong and hardy, but of a 
 cowardly Spirit, and by consequence, insolent, abject, and 
 cruel. It is observed, that the Red-haired of both Sexes are 
 more mischievous than the rest, whom yet they much exceed 
 in Strength and Activity. 
 
 The Houyhnhnms keep the Yahoos for present use in 
 Huts not far from the House ; but the rest are sent abroad 
 to certain Fields, where they dig up Roots, eat several kinds 
 of Herbs, and search about for Carrion, or sometimes catch 
 Weasels and Luhimuhs (a sort of wild Rat) which they 
 greedily devour. Nature hath taught them to dig deep 
 Holes with their Nails on the side of a rising Ground, 
 wherein they lie by themselves, only the Kennels of the 
 Females are larger, sufficient to hold two or three Cubs. 
 
 They swim from their Infancy like Frogs, and are able 
 to continue long under Water, where they often take Fish, 
 which the Females carry home to their Young. 
 
 Having lived three Years in this Country, the Reader I 
 suppose will expect, that I should, like other Travellers, give 
 him some Account of the Manners and Customs of its 
 Inhabitants, which it was indeed my principal Study to 
 learn. 
 
 As these Noble Houyhnhnms are endowed by Nature with 
 a general Disposition to all Virtues, and have no Conceptions 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 341 
 
 or Ideas of what is Evil in a Rational Creature, so their 
 grand Maxim is, to cultivate Reason, and to be wholly 
 governed by it. Neither is Reason among them a Point 
 Problematical as with us, where Men can argue with Plausi- 
 bility on both sides of a Question ; but strikes you with 
 immediate Conviction ; as it must needs do where it is not 
 mingled, obscured, or discoloured by Passion and Interest. 
 I remember it was with extreme Difficulty that I could bring 
 my Master to understand the meaning of the Word Opinion, 
 or how a Point could be disputable ; because Reason taught 
 us to affirm or deny only where we are certain ; and beyond 
 our Knowledge we cannot do either. So that Controversies, 
 Wranglings, Disputes, and Positiveness in false or dubious 
 Propositions are Evils unknown among the Houyhnhnms. In 
 the like manner when I used to explain to him our several 
 Systems of Natural Philosophy, he would laugh that a 
 creature pretending to Reason, should value itself upon the 
 Knowledge of other peoples Conjectures, and in Things, 
 where that Knowledge, if it were certain, could be of no Use. 
 Wherein he agreed entirely with the Sentiments of Socrates, 
 as Plato delivers them ; which I mention as the highest 
 Honour I can do that Prince of Philosophers. I have often 
 since reflected what Destruction such a Doctrine would make 
 in the Libraries of Europe, and how many Paths to Fame 
 would be then shut up in the Learned World. 
 
 Friendship and Benevolence are the two principal Virtues 
 among the Houyhnhruns, and these not confined to particular 
 Objects, but universal to the whole Race. For a Stranger 
 from the remotest Part is equally treated with the nearest 
 Neighbour, and wherever he goes, looks upon himself as at 
 home. They preserve Decency and Civility in the highest 
 Degrees, but are altogether ignorant of Ceremony. They have 
 no Fondness for their Colts or Foles, but the Care they take 
 in educating them proceeds entirely from the Dictates of 
 Reason. And I observed my Master to shew the same 
 Affection to his Neighbour's Issue that he had for his own. 
 They will have it that Nature teaches them to love the 
 
342 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS Part iv 
 
 whole Species, and it is Reason only that maketh a 
 Distinction of Persons, where there is a superior Degree of 
 Virtue. 
 
 When the Matron Houyhnhnms have produced one of 
 each Sex, they no longer accompany with their Consorts, 
 except they lose one of their Issue by some Casualty, which 
 very seldom happens : But in such a Case they meet again, 
 or when the like Accident befals a Person, whose Wife is past 
 bearing, some other Couple bestow him one of their own 
 Colts. This Caution is necessary to prevent the Country 
 from being over-burthened with Numbers. But the Race of 
 inferior Houyhnhnms bred up to be Servants is not so 
 strictly limited upon this Article ; These are allowed to 
 produce three of each Sex, to be Domesticks in the Noble 
 Families. 
 
 In their Marriages they are exactly careful to choose such 
 Colours as will not make any disagreeable Mixture in the 
 Breed. Strength is chiefly valued in the Male, and Comeliness 
 in the Female, not upon the account of Love, but to preserve 
 the Race from degenerating ; for where a Female happens 
 to excell in Strength, a Consort is chosen with regard to 
 Comeliness. Courtship, Love, Presents, Joyntures, Settle- 
 ments, have no place in their Thoughts ; or Terms whereby 
 to express them in their Language. The young Couple meet 
 and are joyned, merely because it is the Determination of 
 their Parents and Friends : It is what they see done every 
 Day, and they look upon it as one of the necessary Actions 
 of a Rational Being. But the Violation of Marriage, or any 
 other Unchastity, was never heard of: And the married Pair 
 pass their Lives with the same Friendship and mutual 
 Benevolence that they bear to all others of the same Species, 
 who come in their Way ; without Jealousy, Fondness, 
 Quarrelling, or Discontent. 
 
 In educating the Youth of both Sexes, their Method is 
 admirable, and highly deserves our Imitation. These are 
 
chap, viii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 343 
 
 not suffered to taste a Grain of Oats, except upon certain 
 Days, till Eighteen Years old ; nor Milk, but very rarely ; and 
 in Summer they graze two Hours in the Morning, and as 
 long in the Evening, which their Parents likewise observe, 
 but the Servants are not allowed above half that time, and a 
 great part of their Grass is brought home, which they eat at 
 the most convenient Hours, when they can be best spared 
 from Work. 
 
 Temperance, Industry, Exercise and Cleanliness, are the 
 Lessons equally enjoyned to the young ones of both Sexes : 
 And my Master thought it monstrous in us to give the 
 Females a different kind of Education from the Males, except 
 in some Articles of Domestick Management ; whereby as he 
 truly observed, one half of our Natives were good for nothing 
 but bringing Children into the world : And to trust the Care of 
 our Children to such useless Animals, he said was yet a 
 greater Instance of Brutality. 
 
 But the Houyhnhnms train up their Youth to Strength, 
 Speed, and Hardiness, by exercising them in running Races 
 up and down steep Hills, and over hard stony Grounds, and 
 when they are all in a Sweat, they are ordered to leap over 
 Head and Ears, into a Pond or River. Four times a Year 
 the Youth of a certain District meet to shew their Pro- 
 ficiency in Running, and Leaping, and other Feats of 
 Strength and Agility, where the Victor is rewarded, with a 
 Song made in his or her Praise. On this Festival the 
 Servants drive a Herd of Yahoos into the Field, laden with Hay, 
 and Oats, and Milk for a Repast to the Houyhnhnms ; after 
 which, these Brutes are immediately driven back again, for 
 fear of being noisome to the Assembly. 
 
 Every fourth Year at the Vernal Equinox, there is a 
 Representative Council of the whole Nation, which meets in 
 a Plain about twenty Miles from our House, and continues 
 about five or six Days. Here they enquire into the State 
 and Condition of the several Districts, Whether they abound 
 
&f%* 
 
 * They are ordered to leafi into a Pond or River.' 
 
chap, vin A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 345 
 
 or be deficient in Hay or Oats, or Cows or Yahoos ? And 
 wherever there is any Want (which is but seldom) it is im- 
 mediately supplied by unanimous Consent and Contribution. 
 Here likewise the Regulation of Children is settled : As for 
 instance, if a Houyhnhnm hath two Males, he changeth one 
 of them with another that hath two Females : And when a 
 Child hath been lost by any Casualty, where the Mother is 
 past Breeding, it is determined what Family shall breed 
 another to supply the Loss. 
 
CHAP. IX 
 
 A grand Debate at the General Assembly of the Houyhnhnms, and how 
 it was determined. The Learning of the Houyhnhnms. Their 
 Buildings. Their manner of Burials. The Defectiveness of their 
 Language. 
 
 One of these Grand Assemblies was held in my time, about 
 three Months before my Departure, whither my Master went 
 as the Representative of our District. In this Council was 
 resumed their old Debate, and indeed, the only Debate that 
 ever happened in that Country ; whereof my Master after his 
 Return gave me a very particular Account. 
 
 The Question to be debated was, Whether the Yahoos 
 should be exterminated from the Face of the Earth. One of 
 the Members for the Affirmative offered several Arguments of 
 great Strength and Weight, alledging, That as the Yahoos 
 were the most filthy, noisome, and deformed Animal which 
 Nature ever produced, so they were the most restive and 
 indocible, mischievous and malicious : They would privately 
 suck the Teats of the Houyhnhnms Cows, kill and devour 
 their Cats, trample down their Oats and Grass, if they were 
 not continually watched, and commit a thousand other 
 Extravagancies. He took notice of a general Tradition, 
 That Yahoos had not been always in that Country : but, that 
 many Ages ago, two of these Brutes appeared together upon 
 a Mountain, whether produced by the Heat of the Sun upon 
 corrupted Mud and Slime, or from the Ooze and Froth of 
 the Sea, was never known. That these Yahoos engendered, 
 
chap, ix A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 347 
 
 and their Brood in a short time grew so numerous as to over- 
 run and infest the whole Nation. That the Houyhnhnms to 
 get rid of this Evil, made a general Hunting, and at last 
 enclosed the whole Herd, and destroying the elder every 
 Houyhnhnm kept two young ones in a Kennel, and brought 
 them to such a degree of Tameness, as an Animal so savage 
 by Nature can be capable of acquiring ; using them for 
 Draught and Carriage. That there seemed to be much 
 Truth in this Tradition, and that those Creatures could not 
 be Ylnhniamshy (or Aborigines of the Land) because of the 
 violent Hatred the Houyhnhnms^ as well as all other Animals 
 bore them ; which, although their evil Disposition sufficiently 
 deserved, could never have arrived at so high a Degree, if 
 they had been Aborigines, or else they would have long since 
 been rooted out. That the Inhabitants taking a Fancy to 
 use the Service of the Yahoos, had very imprudently 
 neglected to cultivate the Breed of Asses, which were a 
 comely Animal easily kept, more tame and orderly, without 
 any offensive Smell, strong enough for Labour, although they 
 yield to the other in Agility of Body ; and if their Braying 
 be no agreeable Sound, it is far preferable to the horrible 
 Howlings of the Yahoos. 
 
 Several others declared their Sentiments to the same 
 purpose, when my Master proposed an Expedient to the 
 Assembly, whereof he had indeed borrowed the Hint from 
 me. He approved of the Tradition, mentioned by the 
 Honourable Member, who spoke before, and affirmed, that the 
 two Yahoos said to be first seen among them had been driven 
 thither over the Sea ; that coming to Land, and being for- 
 saken by their Companions, they retired to the Mountains, 
 and degenerating by degrees, became in process of time, 
 much more savage than those of their own Species in the 
 Country from whence these two Originals came. The reason 
 of his Assertion was, that he had now in his Possession, a 
 certain wonderful Yahoo (meaning myself), which most of 
 them had heard of, and many of them had seen. He then 
 related to them, how he first found me, that my Body was 
 
3*8 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part IV 
 
 all covered with an artificial Composure of the Skins and 
 Hairs of other Animals : That I had a Language of my own, 
 and had thoroughly learned theirs : That I had related to him 
 the Accidents which brought me thither : That when he saw 
 me without my Covering, I was an exact Yahoo in every 
 Part, only of a whiter colour, less hairy, and with shorter 
 Claws. He added, how I had endeavoured to persuade him, 
 that in my own and other Countries the Yahoos acted as the 
 Governing, Rational Animal, and held the Houyhnhnms in 
 Servitude : That he observed in me all the Qualities of a 
 Yahoo, only a little more civilized by some Tincture of Reason, 
 which however was in a degree as far inferior to the Houyhn- 
 hnm Race, as the Yahoos of their Country were to me : That, 
 among other things, I mentioned a Custom we had of pre- 
 venting Houyhnhnms from propagating their kind ; that it was 
 no Shame to learn Wisdom from Brutes, as Industry is taught 
 by the Ant, and Building by the Swallow. (For so I translate 
 the Word Lyhannh, although it be a much larger Fowl.) That 
 this Invention might be practiced upon the Yahoos here, which 
 would in an Age put an end to the whole Species without 
 destroying Life. That, in the mean time the Houyhnhnms 
 should be exhorted to cultivate the Breed of Asses, which as 
 they are in all respects more valuable Brutes, so they have 
 this Advantage, to be fit for Service at five Years old, which 
 the others are not till twelve. 
 
 This was all my Master thought fit to tell me at that time, 
 of what passed in the Grand Council. But he was pleased 
 to conceal one Particular, which related personally to myself, 
 whereof I soon felt the unhappy Effect, as the Reader will 
 know in its proper Place, and from whence I date all the 
 succeeding Misfortunes of my Life. 
 
 The Houyhnhnms have no Letters, and consequently, their 
 Knowledge is all Traditional. But there happening few 
 Events of any Moment among a People so well united, 
 naturally disposed to every Virtue, wholly governed by Reason, 
 and cut off from all Commerce with other Nations, the 
 
chap, ix A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 349 
 
 Historical Part is easily preserved without burthening their 
 Memories. I have already observed, that they are subject to 
 no Diseases, and therefore can have no need of Physicians. 
 However, they have excellent Medicines composed of Herbs, 
 to cure accidental Bruises and Cuts in the Pastern or Frog of 
 the Foot by sharp Stones, as well as other Maims and Hurts 
 in the several parts of the Body. 
 
 They calculate the Year by the Revolution of the Sun 
 and the Moon, but use no Subdivisions into Weeks. They 
 are well enough acquainted with the Motions of those two 
 Luminaries, and understand the Nature of Eclipses ; and this 
 is the utmost Progress of their Astronomy. 
 
 In Poetry they must be allowed to excel all other Mortals ; 
 wherein the Justness of their Similies, and the Minuteness, as 
 well as Exactness of their Descriptions, are indeed inimitable. 
 Their Verses abound very much in both of these, and usually 
 contain either some exalted Notions of Friendship and 
 Benevolence, or the Praises of those who were Victors in 
 Races, and other bodily Exercises. Their Buildings, although 
 very rude and simple, are not inconvenient, but well con- 
 trived to defend them from all Injuries of Cold and Heat. 
 They have a kind of Tree, which at Forty Years old loosens in 
 the Root, and falls with the first Storm ; they grow very strait, 
 and being pointed like Stakes with a sharp stone (for the 
 Houyhnhnms know not the Use of Iron) they stick them erect 
 in the Ground about ten Inches asunder, and then weave in 
 Oat-straw, or sometimes Wattles betwixt them. The Roof is 
 made after the same manner, and so are the Doors. 
 
 The Houyhnhnms use the hollow part between the Pastern 
 and the Hoof of their Fore-feet, as we do our Hands, and this 
 with greater Dexterity, than I could at first imagine. I have 
 seen a White Mare of our Family thread a Needle (which I 
 lent her on purpose) with that Joynt. They milk their Cows, 
 reap their Oats, and do all the Work which requires Hands, 
 in the same manner. They have a kind of hard Flints, which 
 
35o 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 by grinding against other Stones, they form into Instruments, 
 that serve instead of Wedges, Axes, and Hammers. With 
 Tools made of these Flints, they likewise cut their Hay, and 
 
 They milk their Cows.' 
 
 reap their Oats, which there groweth naturally in several 
 Fields : The Yahoos draw home the Sheaves in Carriages, and 
 the Servants tread them in certain covered Hutts, to get out 
 the Grain, which is kept in Stores. They make a rude kind 
 
chap, ix A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 351 
 
 of earthen and wooden Vessels, and bake the former in the 
 Sun. 
 
 If they can avoid Casualties, they die only of Old-Age, 
 and are buried in the obscurest Places that can be found, 
 their Friends and Relations expressing neither Joy nor Grief 
 at their Departure ; nor does the dying Person discover the 
 least Regret that he is leaving the World, any more than if 
 he were upon returning home from a Visit to one of his 
 Neighbours. I remember my Master having once made an 
 Appointment with a Friend and his Family to come to his 
 House upon some Affair of Importance, on the Day fixed, 
 the Mistress and her two Children came very late ; she made 
 two Excuses, first for her Husband, who, as she said, happened 
 that very Morning to Shnuwnh. The Word is strongly ex- 
 pressive in their Language, but not easily rendred into 
 English^ it signifies, to retire to his first Mother. Her Excuse 
 for not coming sooner was, that her Husband dying late in 
 the Morning, she was a good while consulting her Servants 
 about a convenient Place where his Body should be laid ; 
 and I observed she behaved herself at our House, as chear- 
 fully as the rest, and died about three Months after. 
 
 They live generally to Seventy or Seventy-five Years, very 
 seldom to Fourscore : Some Weeks before their Death they 
 feel a gradual Decay, but without Pain. During this time 
 they are much visited by their Friends, because they cannot 
 go abroad, with their usual Ease and Satisfaction. However, 
 about ten Days before their Death, which they seldom fail 
 in computing, they return the Visits that have been made 
 them by those who are nearest in the Neighbourhood, being 
 carried in a convenient Sledge drawn by Yahoos, which 
 Vehicle they use, not only upon this Occasion, but when 
 they grow old, upon long Journeys, or when they are lamed 
 By any Accident. And therefore when the dying Houyhnhnms 
 return those Visits, they take a solemn leave of their Friends, 
 as if they were going to some remote Part of the Country, 
 where they designed to pass the rest of their Lives. 
 
352 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part rv 
 
 I know not whether it may be worth observing, that the 
 Houyhnhnms have no Word in their Language to express 
 any thing that is Evil, except what they borrow from the 
 Deformities or ill Qualities of the Yahoos. Thus they denote 
 the Folly of a Servant, an Omission of a Child, a Stone that 
 cuts their Feet, a continuance of foul or unseasonable Weather, 
 and the like, by adding to each the Epithet of Yahoo. For 
 Instance, khnm Yahoo, Whnaholm Yahoo, Ynlhmndwihlma 
 Yahoo, and an ill contrived House, Ynholmhnmrohlnw Yahoo. 
 
 I could with great Pleasure enlarge farther upon the 
 Manners and Virtues of this excellent People ; but intending 
 in a short time to publish a Volume by itself expressly upon 
 that Subject, I refer the Reader thither. And in the mean 
 time, proceed to relate my own sad Catastrophe. 
 
CHAP. X 
 
 The Author's Oeconomy and happy Life among the Houyhnhnms. His 
 great Improvement in Virtue, by conversing with them. Their 
 Conversations. The Author has notice given him by his Master 
 that he must depart from the Country. He falls into a Swoon for 
 Grief but sub?nits. He contrives and finishes a Canoo, by the help 
 .of a Fellow-Servant, a?id puts to Sea at a venture. 
 
 I had settled my little Oeconomy to my own Heart's content. 
 My Master had ordered a Room to be made for me after 
 their manner, about six yards from the House, the Sides and 
 Floors of which I plaistered with Clay, and covered with 
 Rush-matts of my own contriving; I had beaten Hemp, 
 which there grows wild, and made of it a sort of Ticking : 
 This I filled with the Feathers of several Birds I had taken 
 with Springes made of Yahoos Hairs, and were excellent 
 Food. I had worked two Chairs with my Knife, the Sorrel 
 Nag helping me in the grosser and more laborious Part. 
 When my Cloaths were worn to Rags, I made myself others 
 with the Skins of Rabbets, and of a certain beautiful Animal 
 about the same size, called Nnuhnoh, the Skin of which is 
 covered with a fine Down. Of these I also made very 
 tolerable Stockings. I soaled my Shoes with Wood which I 
 cut from a Tree, and fitted to the upper Leather, and when 
 this was worn out, I supplied it with the Skins of Yahoos 
 dried in the Sun. I often got Honey out of hollow Trees, 
 which I mingled with Water, or eat with my Bread. No 
 Man could more verify the Truth of these two Maxims, 
 That Nature is very easily satisfied ; and, That Necessity is the 
 
 2 A 
 
354 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Mother of Invention. I enjoyed perfect Health of Body and 
 Tranquility of Mind ; I did not find the treachery or in- 
 constancy of a Friend, nor the injuries of a secret or open 
 Enemy. I had no occasion of bribing or flattering to procure 
 the favour of any great Man or of his Minion. I wanted no 
 Fence against Fraud or Oppression ; Here was neither 
 Physician to destroy my Body, nor Lawyer to ruin my 
 Fortune ; No Informer to watch my Words, and Actions, or 
 forge Accusations against me for hire : Here were no Gibers, 
 Censurers, Backbiters, Pick - pockets, Highwaymen, House- 
 breakers, Attorneys, Buffoons, Gamesters, Politicians, Wits, 
 Splenaticks, tedious Talkers, Controvertists, Ravishers, 
 Murderers, Robbers, Virtuoso's ; no Leaders or Followers 
 of Party and Faction ; no encouragers to Vice, by seduce- 
 ment or examples : No Dungeon, Axes, Gibbets, Whipping- 
 posts, or Pillories : No cheating Shopkeepers or Mechanicks : 
 No Pride, Vanity or Affectation : No Fops, Bullies, Drunkards : 
 No ranting, expensive Wives : No stupid, proud Pedants : 
 No importunate, overbearing, quarrelsome, noisy, roaring, 
 empty, conceited, swearing companions : No Scoundrels, 
 raised from the Dust for the sake of their Vices, or Nobility 
 thrown into it on account of their Virtues : No Lords, Fidlers, 
 Judges or Dancing-Masters. 
 
 I had the favour of being admitted to several Honyhnhnms, 
 who came to visit or dine with my Master, where his Honour 
 graciously suffered me to wait in the Room, and listen to 
 their Discourse. Both he and his Company would often 
 descend to ask me Questions, and receive my Answers. I 
 had also sometimes the Honour of attending my Master in 
 his Visits to others. I never presumed to speak, except in 
 answer to a Question, and then I did it with inward Regret, 
 because it was a loss of so much Time for improving myself : 
 but I was infinitely delighted with the Station of an humble 
 Auditor in such conversations, where nothing passed but 
 what was useful, expressed in the fewest and most significant 
 Words : where the greatest Dece?icy was observed, without 
 the least degree of Ceremony : where no Person spoke with- 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 355 
 
 out being pleased himself, and pleasing his companions : 
 where there was no Interruption, Tediousness, Heat, or 
 Difference of Sentiments. They have a Notion, That when 
 People are met together, a short Silence doth much improve 
 conversation : This I found to be true ; for during those 
 little Intermissions of talk, new ideas would arise in their 
 Thoughts, which very much enlivened the Discourse. Their 
 Subjects are generally on Friendship and Benevolence, on 
 Order and Oeconomy, sometimes upon the visible Operations 
 of Nature, or ancient Traditions, upon the Bounds and 
 Limits of Virtue, upon the unerring Rules of Reason, or upon 
 some Determinations, to be taken at the next great Assembly ; 
 and often upon the various excellencies of Poetry. I may add 
 without vanity, that my presence often gave them sufficient 
 matter for discourse, because it afforded my Master an occa- 
 sion of letting his Friends into the History of me and my 
 Country, upon which they were all pleased to descant in a 
 manner not very advantageous to Human Kind ; and for 
 that reason I shall not repeat what they said : Only I may be 
 allowed to observe, That his Honour, to my great Admiration, 
 appeared to understand the Nature of Yahoos in all Countries, 
 much better than myself. He went through all our Vices 
 and Follies, and discovered many which I had never men- 
 tioned to him, by only supposing what Qualities a Yahoo of 
 this Country, with a small proportion of Reason, might be 
 capable of exerting ; and concluded, with too much Proba- 
 bility, how vile as well as miserable such a creature must be. 
 
 I freely confess, that all the little knowledge I have of 
 any value, was acquired by the Lectures I received from my 
 Master, and from hearing the Discourses of him and his 
 Friends ; to which I should be prouder to listen, than to 
 dictate to the greatest and wisest Assembly in Europe. I 
 admired the Strength, Comeliness, and Speed of the Inhabit- 
 ants ; and such a Constellation of Virtues in such amiable 
 Persons produced in me the highest veneration. At first, 
 indeed, I did not feel that natural awe which the Yahoos and 
 all other Animals bear towards them, but it grew upon me by 
 
356 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 degrees, much sooner than I imagined, and was mingled with 
 a respectful Love and Gratitude, that they would condescend 
 to distinguish me from the rest of my species. 
 
 When I thought of my Family, my Friends, my Country- 
 men, or Human Race in general, I considered them as they 
 
 ' I fell to imitate their Gate and Gesture.' 
 
 really were, Yahoos in shape and disposition, only a little 
 civilized, and qualified with the Gift of Speech, but making 
 no other use of Reason, than to improve and multiply those 
 Vices, whereof their brethren in this Country had only the 
 share that Nature allotted them. When I happened to behold 
 the Reflection of my own Form in a Lake or a Fountain, I 
 turned away my Face in horror and detestation of myself, and 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 357 
 
 could better endure the sight of a common Yahoo, than of my 
 own Person. By conversing with the Houyhnhnms, and look- 
 ing upon them with delight, I fell to imitate their Gate and 
 Gesture, which is now grown into an habit, and my Friends 
 often tell me in a blunt way, that / trot like a Horse ; which, 
 however, I take for a great compliment : Neither shall I dis- 
 own, that in speaking I am apt to fall into the voice and 
 manner of the Houyhnhnms, and hear myself ridiculed on 
 that account without the least Mortification. 
 
 In the midst of all this Happiness, and when I looked 
 upon myself to be fully settled for Life, my Master sent for 
 me one morning a little earlier than his usual Hour. I 
 observed by his Countenance that he was in some perplexity, 
 and at a loss how to begin what he had to speak. After a 
 short silence, he told me, He did not know how I would take 
 what he was going to say ; that in the last general assembly, 
 when the Affair of the Yahoos was entered upon, the Repre- 
 sentatives had taken offence at his keeping a Yahoo (meaning 
 myself) in his Family more like a Houyhnhnm, than a Brute 
 Animal. That he was known frequently to converse with 
 me, as if he could receive some advantage or pleasure in 
 my Company : That such a practice was not agreeable to 
 Reason or Nature, nor a thing ever heard of before among 
 them. The Assembly did therefore exhort him, either to 
 employ me like the rest of my species, or command me to 
 swim back to the place from whence I came. That the first 
 of these expedients was utterly rejected by all the Houyhnhnms, 
 who had ever seen me at his House or their own : For they 
 alledged, That because I had some rudiments of Reason, 
 added to the natural pravity of those Animals, it was to be 
 feared, I might be able to seduce them into the woody and 
 mountainous parts of the Country, and bring them in Troops 
 by night to destroy the Houyhnhnms Cattle, as being naturally 
 of the ravenous Kind, and averse from Labour. 
 
 My Master added, That he was daily pressed by the 
 Houyhnhnms of the neighbourhood to have the Assembly's 
 
358 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Exhortation executed, which he could not put off much longer. 
 He doubted it would be impossible for me to swim to another 
 Country, and therefore wished I would contrive some sort of 
 vehicle resembling those I had described to him, that might 
 carry me on the Sea, in which work I should have the assist- 
 ance of his own Servants, as well as those of his Neighbours. 
 He concluded, That for his own part he could have been 
 content to keep me in his Service as long as I lived, because 
 he found I had cured myself of some bad habits and disposi- 
 tions, by endeavouring as far as my inferior nature was 
 capable, to imitate the Houyhnhnms. 
 
 I should here observe to the Reader, That a Decree of 
 the general Assembly in this Country, is expressed by the 
 Word Hnhloayn, which signifies an Exhortation, as near as I 
 can render it : For they have no conception how a rational 
 Creature can be compelled, but only advised, or exhorted, 
 because no person can disobey Reason, without giving up his 
 claim to be a rational creature. 
 
 I was struck with the utmost grief and despair at my 
 Master's Discourse, and being unable to support the Agonies 
 I was under, I fell into a Swoon at his Feet ; when I came 
 to myself, he told me, that he concluded I had been dead. 
 (For these People are subject to no such imbecillities of 
 Nature.) I answered in a faint voice, That Death would have 
 been too great an Happiness ; that although I could not 
 blame the Assembly's Exhortation, or the urgency of his 
 Friends ; yet in my weak and corrupt Judgment, I thought it 
 might consist with Reason to have been less rigorous. That 
 I could not swim a League, and probably the nearest Land 
 to theirs might be distant above an Hundred : That many 
 Materials, necessary for making a small Vessel to carry me 
 off, were wholly wanting in this Country, which, however, I 
 would attempt in obedience and gratitude to his Honour, 
 although I concluded the thing to be impossible, and 
 therefore looked on myself as already devoted to Destruction. 
 That the certain prospect of an unnatural Death, was the 
 
chap, x A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 359 
 
 least of my Evils : For, supposing I should escape with Life 
 by some strange Adventure, how could I think with temper, 
 of passing my Days among Yahoos, and relapsing into my old 
 corruptions, for want of examples to lead and keep me 
 within the Paths of Virtue. That I knew too well upon 
 what solid Reasons all the determinations of the wise 
 Houyhnhmns were founded, not to be shaken by Arguments 
 of mine, a miserable Yahoo ; and therefore after presenting 
 him with my humble Thanks for the Offer of his Servants 
 Assistance in making a Vessel, and desiring a reasonable 
 Time for so difficult a Work, I told him I would endeavour 
 to preserve a wretched Being ; and, if ever I returned to 
 England, was not without Hopes of being useful to my 
 own Species, by celebrating the praises of the renowned 
 Houyhnhnms, and proposing their Virtues to the imitation of 
 Mankind. 
 
 My Master in a few Words made me a very gracious 
 Reply, allowed me the space of two Months to finish my 
 Boat ; and ordered the Sorrel Nag, my Fellow-Servant (for 
 so at this distance I may presume to call him) to follow my 
 instructions, because I told my Master, that his Help would 
 be sufficient, and I knew he had a tenderness for me. 
 
 In his company my first business was to go to that part 
 of the Coast, where my rebellious Crew had ordered me to 
 be set on Shore. I got upon a height, and looked on every 
 side into the Sea, fancied I saw a small Island, towards the 
 North-East: I took out my Pocket-glass, and could then 
 clearly distinguish it about five Leagues off, as I computed ; 
 but it appeared to the Sorrel Nag to be only a blue Cloud : 
 For, as he had no conception of any Country beside his own, 
 so he could not be as expert in distinguishing remote Objects 
 at Sea, as we who so much converse in that Element. 
 
 After I had discovered this Island, I considered no 
 farther ; but resolved, it should, if possible, be the first place 
 of my Banishment, leaving the Consequence to Fortune. 
 
360 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 I returned home, and consulting with the Sorrel Nag, 
 we went into a Copse at some distance, where I with my 
 knife, and he with a sharp Flint fastned very artificially, 
 after their manner, to a wooden Handle, cut down several 
 Oak Wattles about the thickness of a Walking-staff, and some 
 larger pieces. But I shall not trouble the Reader with a 
 particular Description of my own Mechanicks ; let it suffice 
 to say, that in six Weeks time, with the help of the Sorrel 
 Nag, who performed the parts that required most labour, I 
 finished a sort of Indian Canoo, but much larger, covering it 
 with the Skins of Yahoos well stitched together, with hempen 
 Threads of my own making. My Sail was likewise composed 
 of the Skins of the same Animal; but I made use of the 
 youngest I could get, the older being too tough and thick, 
 and I likewise provided myself with four Paddles. I laid in 
 a stock of boiled Flesh, of Rabbets and Fowls, and took with 
 me two Vessels, one filled with Milk, and the other with 
 Water. 
 
 I tried my Canoo in a large Pond near my Master's 
 House, and then corrected in it what was amiss ; stopping 
 all the Chinks with Yahoos Tallow, till I found it stanch, and 
 able to bear me, and my freight. And when it was as 
 compleat as I could possibly make it, I had it drawn on a 
 Carriage very gently by Yahoos, to the Sea-side, under the 
 conduct of the Sorrel Nag, and another Servant. 
 
 When all was ready, and the Day came for my Departure, 
 I took leave of my Master and Lady, and the whole Family, 
 mine Eyes flowing with Tears, and my Heart quite sunk 
 with Grief. But his Honour, out of curiosity, and perhaps 
 (if I may speak it without Vanity) partly out of kindness, was 
 determined to see me in my Canoo, and got several of his 
 neighbouring Friends to accompany him. I was forced to 
 wait above an hour for the Tide, and then observing the 
 Wind very fortunately bearing towards the Island, to which I 
 intended to steer my Course, I took a second leave of my 
 Master: But as I was going to prostrate myself to kiss his 
 
CHAP. X 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 36i 
 
 Hoof, he did me the honour to raise it gently to my Mouth. 
 I am not ignorant how much I have been censured for 
 mentioning this last Particular. For my detractors are 
 pleased to think it improbable, that so illustrious a Person 
 should descend to give so great a Mark of distinction to 
 a Creature so inferior as I. Neither have I forgot, how apt 
 
 'He did me the honour to raise it gently to my Mouth.' 
 
 some Travellers are to boast of extraordinary Favours they 
 have received. But if these censurers were better acquainted 
 with the noble and courteous disposition of the Houyhnhnms, 
 they would soon change their Opinion. 
 
 I paid my respects to the rest of the Houyhnhnms in his 
 Honour's Company; then getting into my Canoo, I pushed 
 off from Shore. 
 

 CHAP. XI 
 
 The Authors dangerous Voyage. He arrives at New-Holland, hoping to 
 settle there. Is wounded with an Arrow by one of the Natives. Is 
 seized and carried by Force into a Portugueze Ship. The great 
 Civilities of the Captain. The Author arrives at England. 
 
 I began this desperate Voyage on February 15, 171^, at 
 9 o'Clock in the Morning. The Wind was very favourable ; 
 however I made use at first only of my Paddles, but 
 considering I should soon be weary, and that the Wind 
 might chop about, I ventured to set up my little Sail ; and 
 thus, with the help of the Tide, I went at the rate of a 
 League and a half an hour, as near as I could guess. My 
 Master and his Friends continued on the Shoar, till I was 
 almost out of sight ; and I often heard the Sorrel Nag (who 
 always loved me) crying out, Hnuy ilia nyha majah Yahoo, 
 Take care of thyself, gentle Yahoo. 
 
 My design was, if possible, to discover some small Island 
 uninhabited, yet sufficient with my Labour to furnish me 
 with the Necessaries of Life, which I would have thought a 
 greater Happiness than to be first Minister in the politest 
 Court of Europe; so horrible was the idea I conceived of 
 returning to live in the Society and under the Government 
 of Yahoos. For in such a Solitude as I desired, I could at 
 least enjoy my own thoughts, and reflect with delight on 
 the Virtues of those inimitable Houyhnhnms, without any 
 opportunity of degenerating into the Vices and Corruptions 
 of my own species. 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 363 
 
 The Reader may remember what I related when my Crew 
 conspired against me, and confined me to my Cabbin. How 
 I continued there several Weeks, without knowing what 
 course we took, and when I was put a shoar in the Long-boat, 
 how the Sailors told me with Oaths, whether true or false, 
 that they knew not in what part of the World we were. 
 However, I did then believe us to be about ten Degrees 
 Southward of the Cape of Good-Hope, or about 45 Degrees 
 Southern Latitude, as I gathered from some general W^ords I 
 overheard among them, being I supposed to the South-East 
 in their intended Voyage to Madagascar. And although this 
 were but little better than conjecture, yet I resolved to steer 
 my course Eastward, hoping to reach the South- West coast 
 of New-Holland, and perhaps some such Island as I desired, 
 lying Westward of it. The Wind was full West, and by six 
 in the Evening I computed I had gone Eastward at least 
 eighteen Leagues, when I spied a very small Island about 
 half a League off, which I soon reached. It was nothing but 
 a Rock with one creek naturally arched by the force of 
 Tempests. Here I put in my Canoo, and climbing up a 
 part of the Rock, I could plainly discover Land to the East, 
 extending from South to North. I lay all Night in my 
 Canoo, and repeating my Voyage early in the Morning, I 
 arrived in seven Hours to the South-East Point of New- 
 Holland. This confirmed me in the opinion I have long 
 entertained, that the Maps and Charts place this Country 
 at least three Degrees more to the East than it really is ; 
 which Thought I communicated many Years ago to my 
 worthy Friend Mr. Herman Moll, and gave him my Reasons 
 for it, although he hath rather chosen to follow other 
 Authors. 
 
 .1 saw no Inhabitants in the Place where I landed, and 
 being unarmed, I was afraid of venturing far into the 
 Country. I found some Shell-fish on the Shore, and eat 
 them raw, not daring to kindle a Fire, for fear of being 
 discovered by the Natives. I continued three Days feeding 
 on Oysters and Limpets, to save my own Provisions, and I 
 
364 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 fortunately found a Brook of excellent Water, which gave me 
 great Relief. 
 
 On the fourth Day, venturing out early a little too far, I 
 
 ' Discharged an Arrow. 
 
 saw twenty or thirty Natives upon a Height, not above five 
 hundred Yards from me. They were stark naked, Men, 
 Women, and Children round a Fire, as I could discover by 
 the Smoak. One of them spied me, and gave notice to the 
 rest j five of them advanced towards me, leaving the Women 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 365 
 
 and Children at the Fire. I made what haste I could to the 
 Shore, and getting into my Canoo, shoved off: The Savages 
 observing me retreat, ran after me ; and before I could 
 get far enough into the Sea, discharged an Arrow, which 
 wounded me deeply on the inside of my left Knee (I shall 
 carry the Mark to my Grave). I apprehended the Arrow 
 might be poisoned, and paddling out of the reach of their 
 Darts (being a calm Day) I made a shift to suck the Wound, 
 and dress it as well as I could. 
 
 I was at a Loss what to do, for I durst not return to the 
 same Landing-place, but stood to the Norths and was forced 
 to paddle ; for the Wind though very gentle was against me, 
 blowing North-West. As I was looking about for a secure 
 Landing-place, I saw a Sail to the North North-East, which 
 appearing every Minute more visible, I was in some Doubt, 
 whether I should wait for them or no, but at last my 
 Detestation of the Yahoo Race prevailed, and turning my 
 Canoo, I sailed and paddled together to the South, and got 
 into the same Creek from whence I set out in the Morning, 
 chusing rather to trust myself among these Barbarians, than 
 live with European Yahoos. I drew up my Canoo as close 
 as I could to the Shore, and hid myself behind a Stone by 
 the little Brook, which, as I have already said, was excellent 
 Water. 
 
 The Ship came within half a League of this Creek, and 
 sent out her Long-Boat with Vessels to take in Fresh Water 
 (for the Place it seems was very well known), but I did not 
 observe it till the Boat was almost on Shore, and it was too 
 late to seek another Hiding-place. The Seamen at their 
 landing observed my Canoo, and rummaging it all over, 
 easily conjectured that the Owner could not be far off. Four 
 of them well-armed searched every Cranny and Lurking-hole, 
 'till at last they found me flat on my Face behind the Stone. 
 They gazed a while in admiration at my strange uncouth 
 Dress, my Coat made of Skins, my wooden-soaled Shoes, and 
 my furred Stockings ; from whence, however, they concluded 
 
3 66 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 PART IV 
 
 I was not a Native of the Place, who all go naked. One of 
 the Seamen in Portugueze bid me rise, and asked who I was. 
 I understood that Language very well, and getting upon 
 my Feet, said, I was a poor Yahoo, banished from the 
 
 ; A t last they found me. 
 
 Houyhnhnms, and desired they would please to let me depart. 
 They admired to hear me answer them in their own Tongue, 
 and saw by my complexion I must be an European ; but were 
 at a loss to know what I meant by Yahoos and Houyhnhnms, 
 and at the same time fell a laughing at my strange Tone in 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 367 
 
 speaking, which resembled the Neighing of a Horse. I 
 trembled all the while betwixt Fear and Hatred: I again 
 desired leave to depart, and was gently moving to my Canoo ; 
 but they laid hold on me, desiring to know, What Country I 
 was of? whence I came ? with many other Questions. I 
 told them, I was born in England, from whence I came about 
 five Years ago, and then their Country and ours were at 
 Peace. I therefore hoped they would not treat me as an 
 Enemy, since I meant them no harm, but was a poor Yahoo, 
 seeking some desolate Place where to pass the Remainder of 
 his unfortunate Life. 
 
 When they began to talk, I thought I never heard or saw 
 any thing so unnatural ; for it appear'd to me as monstrous 
 as if a Dog or a Cow should speak in England, as a Yahoo 
 in Houyhnhnm-land. The honest Portagueze were equally 
 amazed at my strange Dress, and the odd manner of 
 delivering my Words, which however they understood very 
 well. They spoke to me with great Humanity, and said 
 they were sure the Captain would carry me gratis to Lisbon, 
 from whence I might return to my own country; that two 
 of the Seamen would go back to the Ship, inform the 
 Captain of what they had seen, and receive his Orders ; in 
 the mean time, unless I would give my solemn Oath not to 
 fly, they would secure me by Force. I thought it best to 
 comply with their Proposal. They were very curious to know 
 my Story, but I gave them very little Satisfaction ; and they 
 all conjectured, that my Misfortunes had impaired my 
 Reason. In two Hours the Boat, which went loaden with 
 Vessels of Water, returned with the Captain's Command to 
 fetch me on Board. I fell on my Knees to preserve my 
 Liberty ; but all was in vain, and the Men having tied me 
 with Cords, heaved me into the Boat, from whence I was 
 taken into the Ship, and from thence into the Captain's 
 Cabbin. 
 
 His Name was Pedro de Mendez, he was a very courteous 
 and generous Person ; he entreated me to give some account of 
 
368 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUVHNHNMS part iv 
 
 myself, and desired to know what I would eat and drink ; 
 said, I should be used us well as himself, and spoke so many 
 obliging things, that I wondered to find such civilities from 
 a Yahoo. However, I remained silent and sullen; I was 
 ready to faint at the very smell of him and his Men. At last 
 I desired something to eat out of my own Canoo ; but he 
 ordered me a Chicken and some excellent Wine, and then 
 directed that I should be put to Bed in a very clean Cabbin. 
 I would not undress myself, but lay on the Bed-cloaths, and 
 in half an Hour stole out, when I thought the Crew was at 
 Dinner, and getting to the side of the Ship was going to leap 
 into the Sea, and swim for my Life, rather than continue 
 among Yahoos: But one of the Seamen prevented me, and 
 having informed the Captain, I was chained to my Cabbin. 
 
 After Dinner Don Pedro came to me, and desired to 
 known my Reason for so desperate an Attempt, assured me 
 he only meant to do me all the Service he was able, and 
 spoke so very movingly, that at last I descended to treat him 
 like an Animal which had some little portion of Reason. I 
 gave him a very short Relation of my Voyage, of the con- 
 spiracy against me by my own Men, of the Country where 
 they set me on Shore, and of my three Years Residence 
 there. All which he looked upon as if it were a Dream or a 
 Vision ; whereat I took great Offence ; for I had quite forgot 
 the Faculty of Lying, so peculiar to Yahoos in all countries 
 where they preside, and consequently the Disposition of 
 suspecting Truth in others of their own Species. I asked 
 him, Whether it were the custom in his country to say the 
 Thing that was not ? I assured him I had almost forgot what 
 he meant by Falsehood, and if I had lived a thousand Years 
 in Houyhnhnm-land, I should never have heard a Lye from 
 the meanest Servant ; that I was altogether indifferent 
 whether he believ'd me or no ; but however, in return for 
 his Favours, I would give so rrnach Allowance to the cor- 
 ruption of his Nature, as to answer any Objection he 
 would please to make, and then he might easily discover the 
 Truth. 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 369 
 
 The Captain, a wise Man, after many Endeavours to 
 catch me tripping in some part of my Story, at last began to 
 have a better opinion of my Veracity, and the rather because 
 he confessed he met with a Dutch Skipper, who pretended to 
 have landed with Five others of his Crew upon a certain 
 Island or Continent South of New - Holland, where they 
 went for fresh Water, and observed a Horse driving before 
 him several Animals exactly resembling those I described 
 under the Name of Yahoos, with some other particulars, 
 which the Captain said he had forgot; because he then 
 concluded them all to be Lies. But he added, that since I 
 professed so inviolable an attachment to Truth, I must give 
 him my Word and Honour to bear him company in this 
 Voyage without attempting any thing against my Life, or else 
 he would continue me a Prisoner till we arrived at Lisbon. I 
 gave him the promise he required; but at the same time 
 protested that I would suffer the greatest Hardships rather 
 than return to live among Yahoos. 
 
 Our Voyage passed without any considerable Accident. 
 In Gratitude to the Captain I sometimes sate with him at his 
 earnest Request, and strove to conceal my Antipathy to 
 human Kind, although it often broke out, which he suffered 
 to pass without Observation. But the greatest part of the 
 Day, I confined myself to my Cabbin, to avoid seeing any of 
 the Crew. The Captain had often entreated me to strip 
 myself of my savage Dress, and offered to lend me the best 
 suit of cloaths he had. This I would not be prevailed on to 
 accept, abhorring to cover myself with any thing that had 
 been on the back of a Yahoo. I only desired he would 
 lend me two clean Shirts, which having been washed since he 
 wore them, I believed would not so much defile me. These 
 I changed every second Day, and washed them myself. 
 
 We arrived at Lisbon, Nov. 5, 1 7 1 5. At our landing the 
 Captain forced me to cover myself with his cloak, to prevent 
 the Rabble from crouding about me. I was conveyed to his own 
 House, and at my earnest Request, he led me up to the highest 
 
 2 B 
 
^The Captain forced 7iie to cover myself with his cloak 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 371 
 
 Room backwards. I conjured him to conceal from all Persons 
 what I had toid him of the Houyhnhnms, because the least 
 hint of such a Story would not only draw numbers of People 
 to see me, but probably put me in Danger of being imprisoned 
 or burnt by the Inquisition. The Captain persuaded me to 
 accept a suit of cloaths newly made, but I would not suffer 
 the Taylor to take my Measure ; however, Don Pedro being 
 almost of my Size, they fitted me well enough. He ac- 
 coutred me with other Necessaries all new, which I aired for 
 twenty-four Hours before I would use them. 
 
 The Captain had no Wife, nor above three Servants, 
 none of which were suffered to attend at Meals, and his 
 whole Deportment was so obliging, added to very good 
 human Understanding, that I really began to tolerate his 
 company. He gained so far upon me, that I ventured to 
 look out of the back Window. By degrees I was brought 
 into another Room, from whence I peeped into the Street, 
 but drew my Head back in a Fright. In a Week's time he 
 seduced me down to the Door. I found my Terror gradually 
 lessened, but my hatred and contempt seemed to encrease. 
 I was at last bold enough to walk the Street in his company, 
 but kept my Nose well stopped with Rue, or sometimes with 
 Tobacco. 
 
 In ten Days Don Pedro, to whom I had given some 
 account of my Domestick Affairs, put it upon me as a 
 matter of Honour and Conscience, that I ought to return to 
 my native country, and live at home with my Wife and 
 Children. He told me, there was an English Ship in the Port 
 just ready to sail, and he would furnish me with all things 
 necessary. It would be tedious to repeat his Arguments, 
 and my contradictions. He said it was altogether impossible 
 to find such a solitary Island as I had desired to live in ; but 
 I might command in my own House, and pass my time in a 
 manner as recluse as I pleased. 
 
 I complied at last, finding I could not do better. I left 
 
372 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 Lisbon the 24th Day of November, in an English Merchant- 
 Man, but who was the Master I never enquired. Don Pedro 
 accompanied me to the Ship, and lent me Twenty Pounds. He 
 took kind leave of me, and embraced me at parting, which I 
 bore as well as I could. During the last Voyage I had no 
 commerce with the Master or any of his Men, but pretending 
 I was sick, kept close to my Cabbin. On the Fifth of 
 December, 1 7 1 5, we cast Anchor in the Downs about Nine in 
 
 / converse with them^ 
 
 the Morning, and at three in the Afternoon I got safe to my 
 House at Rotherhith. 
 
 My Wife and Family received me with great surprize and 
 Joy, because they concluded me certainly dead ; but I must 
 freely confess the sight of them filled me only with Hatred, 
 Disgust and Contempt, and the more by reflecting on the 
 near Alliance I had to them. For, although since my 
 unfortunate Exile from the Houyhnhnm country, I had com-' 
 
chap, xi A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 373 
 
 pelled myself to tolerate the Sight of Yahoos ^ and to converse 
 with Do?i Pedro de Me?idez ; yet my Memory and Imagination 
 were perpetually filled with the Virtues and Ideas of those 
 exalted Houyhnhnms. And when I began to consider, that I 
 had become a Parent of more, it struck me with the utmost 
 Shame, Confusion and Horror. 
 
 As soon as I entered the House, my Wife took me in her 
 Arms, and kissed me, at which having not been used to the 
 Touch of that odious Animal for so many Years, I fell in a 
 Swoon for almost an Hour. At the Time I am writing it is 
 Five Years since my last Return to England : During the first 
 Year I could not endure my Wife or Children in my Presence, 
 much less could I suffer them to eat in the same Room. 
 To this hour they dare not presume to touch my Bread, or 
 drink out of the same Cup, neither was I ever able to let 
 one of them take me by the Hand. The first Money I laid 
 out was to buy two young Horses which I keep in a good 
 Stable, and next to them the Groom is my greatest Favourite ; 
 for I feel my Spirits revived by the Smell he contracts in the 
 Stable. My Horses understand me tolerably well ; I converse 
 with them at least four Hours every Day. They are Strangers 
 to Bridle or Saddle, they live in great Amity with me, and 
 Friendship to each other. 
 
CHAP. XII 
 
 The Author's Veracity. His Design in publishing this Work. His 
 Censure of those Travellers who swerve from the Truth. The Author 
 clears himself from any sinister Ends in writing. An Objection 
 answered. The Method of planting Colonies. His Native Country 
 commended. The Right of the Crown to those Countries described by 
 the Author, is justified. The Difficulty of conquering them. The 
 Author takes his last leave of the Reader : propose th his Manner of 
 Living for the future, gives good Advice, and concludes. 
 
 Thus, Gentle Reader, I have given thee a faithful History of 
 my Travels for Sixteen Years, and above Seven Months, 
 wherein I have not been so studious of Ornament as Truth. 
 I could perhaps like others have astonished thee with strange 
 improbable Tales ; but I rather chose to relate plain Matter 
 of Fact in the simplest Manner and Style, because my 
 principal Design was to inform, and not to amuse thee. 
 
 It is easy for us who travel into remote Countries, which 
 are seldom visited by Englishmen or other Europeans, to 
 form Descriptions of wonderful Animals both at Sea and 
 Land. Whereas a Traveller's chief Aim should be to make 
 Men wiser and better, and to improve their Minds by the 
 bad as well as good Example of what they deliver con- 
 cerning foreign Places. 
 
 I could heartily wish a Law was enacted, that every 
 Traveller before he were permitted to publish his Voyages, 
 should be obliged to make Oath before the Lord High 
 
chap, xii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 375 
 
 Chancellor that all he intended to print was absolutely true 
 to the best of his Knowledge ; for then the World would no 
 longer be deceived as it usually is, while some Writers, to 
 make their Works pass the better upon the Publick, impose 
 the grossest Falsities on the unwary Reader. I have perused 
 several Books of Travels with great delight in my younger 
 Days ; but having since gone over most parts of the Globe, 
 and been able to contradict many fabulous Accounts from 
 my own Observation, it hath given me a great Disgust against 
 this part of Reading, and some Indignation to see the 
 credulity of Mankind so impudently abused. Therefore since 
 my Acquaintance were pleased to think my poor Endeavours 
 might not be unacceptable to my country, I imposed on 
 myself as a Maxim, never to be swerved from, that I would 
 strictly adhere to Truth ; neither indeed can I be ever under 
 the least temptation to vary from it, while I retain in my 
 Mind the Lectures and Example of my Noble Master, and 
 the other Illustrious Houyhnhmns, of whom I had so long the 
 Honour to be an humble Hearer. 
 
 . . . Nee si miserum Fortuna Sinonem 
 Finxit, vanum etiam, mendacemque improba finget. 
 
 I know very well how little Reputation is to be got by 
 Writings which require neither Genius nor Learning, nor 
 indeed any other Talent, except a good Memory, or an exact 
 Journal. I know likewise, that Writers of Travels, like 
 Dictionary-Makers, are sunk into Oblivion by the Weight and 
 Bulk of those who come after, and therefore lie uppermost. 
 And it is highly probable, that such Travellers who shall 
 hereafter visit the Countries described in this Work of mine, 
 may by detecting my Errors (if there be any) and adding 
 many new Discoveries of their own, justle me out of Vogue, 
 and stand in my Place, making the World forget that I was 
 ever an Author. This indeed would be too great a Mortifi- 
 cation if I wrote for Fame : But, as my sole Intention was 
 the Publick Good, I cannot be altogether disappointed. 
 For who can read of the Virtues I have mention'd in the 
 
376 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 Glorious Houyhnhnms, without being ashamed of his own 
 Vices, when he considers himself as the reasoning, governing 
 Animal of his Country ? I shall say nothing of those remote 
 Nations where Yahoos preside, amongst which the least 
 corrupted are the Brobdingnagians, whose wise Maxims in 
 Morality and Government, it would be our Happiness to 
 observe. But I forbear descanting farther, and rather leave 
 the Judicious Reader to his own Remarks and Applications. 
 
 I am not a little pleased that this Work of mine can 
 possibly meet with no Censurers : For what Objections can 
 be made against a Writer who relates only plain Facts that 
 happened in such distant Countries, where we have not the 
 least Interest with respect either to Trade or Negotiations ? 
 I have carefully avoided every Fault with which common 
 Writers of Travels are often too justly charged. Besides, I 
 meddle not with any Party, but write without Passion, 
 Prejudice, or Ill-will against any Man or number of Men 
 whatsoever. I write for the noblest End, to inform and 
 instruct Mankind, over whom I may, without Breach of 
 Modesty, pretend to some Superiority from the Advantages 
 I received by conversing so long among the most accomplished 
 Houyhnhnms. I write without any view towards Profit or 
 Praise. I never suffer a Word to pass that may look like 
 Reflection, or possibly give the least Offence even to those 
 who are most ready to take it. So that I hope I may with 
 Justice pronounce myself an Author perfectly blameless, 
 against whom the Tribes of Answerers, Considerers, Observers, 
 Reflecters, Detecters, Remarkers, will never be able to find 
 Matter for exercising their Talents. 
 
 I confess, it was whispered to me, that I was bound in 
 Duty as a Subject of England, to have given in a Memorial 
 to a Secretary of State, at my first coming over; because, 
 whatever Lands are discovered by a Subject belong to the 
 Crown. But I doubt whether our Conquests in the Countries 
 I treat of, would be as easy as those of Ferdinando Cortez 
 over the naked Americans. The Lilliputians I think, are 
 
chap, xil A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 377 
 
 hardly worth the charge of a Fleet and Army to reduce them, 
 and I question whether it might be prudent or safe to attempt 
 the Brobdingnagians. Or whether an English Army would be 
 much at their ease with the Flying Island over their Heads. 
 The Houyhnhnms, indeed, appear not to be so well prepared 
 for War, a Science to which they are perfect Strangers, and 
 especially against missive Weapons. However, supposing 
 myself to be a Minister of State, I could never give my 
 Advice for invading them. Their Prudence, Unanimity, 
 Unacquaintedness with Fear, and their Love of their Country 
 would amply supply all Defects in the Military Art. Imagine 
 Twenty thousand of them breaking into the midst of an 
 European Army, confounding the Ranks, overturning the 
 Carriages, battering the Warriors Faces into Mummy, by 
 terrible Yerks from their hinder Hoofs. For they would well 
 deserve the Character given to Augustus ; Recalcitrat undique 
 tutus. But instead of Proposals for conquering that mag- 
 nanimous Nation, I rather wish they were in a Capacity or 
 Disposition to send a sufficient Number of their Inhabitants 
 for civilizing Europe, by teaching us the first Principles of 
 Honour, Justice, Truth, Temperance, Publick Spirit, Fortitude, 
 Chastity, Friendship, Benevolence, and Fidelity. The Names 
 of all which Virtues are still retained among us in most 
 Languages, and are to be met with in modern as well as 
 ancient Authors : which I am able to assert from my own 
 small Reading. 
 
 But I had another Reason which made me less forward 
 to enlarge his Majesty's Dominions by my Discoveries. To 
 say the truth, I had conceived a few Scruples with relation to 
 the Distributive Justice of Princes upon those Occasions. 
 For instance, A Crew of Pyrates are driven by a Storm they 
 know not whither, at length a Boy discovers Land from the 
 Top-mast, they go on Shore to Rob and Plunder ; they see 
 an harmless People, are entertained with Kindness, they give 
 the Country a new Name, they take formal Possession of it 
 for their King, they set up a rotten Plank or a Stone for a 
 Memorial, they murder two or three Dozen of the Natives, 
 
378 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS part iv 
 
 bring away a couple more by Force for a Sample, return 
 home, and get their Pardon. Here commences a new 
 Dominion acquired with a Title by Divine Right. Ships are 
 sent with the first Opportunity, the Natives driven out or 
 destroyed, their Princes tortured to discover their Gold ; a 
 free Licence given to all Acts of Inhumanity and Lust, the 
 Earth reeking with the Blood of its Inhabitants : And this 
 execrable Crew of Butchers employed in so pious an Expedi- 
 tion, is a modern Colony sent to convert and civilize an 
 idolatrous and barbarous People. 
 
 But this Description, I confess, doth by no means affect 
 the British Nation, who may be an Example to the whole 
 World for their Wisdom, Care, and Justice in planting Colonies \ 
 their liberal Endowments for the Advancement of Religion 
 and Learning; their Choice of devout and able Pastors to 
 propagate Christianity, their Caution in stocking their Provinces 
 with People of sober Lives and Conversations from this their 
 Mother Kingdom ; their strict regard to the Distribution of 
 Justice, in supplying the civil Administration through all their 
 Colonies with Officers of the greatest Abilities, utter Strangers 
 to Corruption ; and to crown all, by sending the most vigilant 
 and virtuous Governors, who have no other views than the 
 Happiness of the People over whom they preside, and the 
 Honour of the King their Master. 
 
 But, as those Countries which I have described, do not 
 appear to have any Desire of being conquered, and enslaved, 
 murdered or driven out. by Colonies, nor abound either in 
 Gold, Silver, Sugar or Tobacco ; I did humbly conceive they 
 were by no means proper Objects of our Zeal, our Valour, or 
 our Interest. However, if those whom it more concerns, 
 think fit to be of another Opinion, I am ready to depose, 
 when I shall be lawfully called, That no European did ever 
 visit these Countries before me. I mean, if the Inhabitants 
 ought to be believed ; unless a Dispute may arise about the 
 two Yahoos, said to have been seen many Ages ago in a 
 Mountain in Houyhnhnm-land, from whence the Opinion is, 
 
chap, xii A VOYAGE. TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 379 
 
 that the Race of those Brutes hath descended; and these, 
 for any thing I know, may have been English, which indeed 
 I was apt to suspect from the Lineaments of their Posterity's 
 Countenances, although very much defaced. But, how far 
 that will go to make out a Title, I leave to the Learned in 
 Colony-Law. 
 
 But as to the Formality of taking possession in my 
 Sovereign's Name, it never came once into my Thoughts ; 
 and if it had, yet as my Affairs then stood, I should perhaps 
 in point of Prudence and Self-preservation, have put it off to 
 a better Opportunity. 
 
 Having thus answered the only objection that can ever be 
 raised against me as a Traveller, I here take a final Leave of 
 all my courteous Readers, and return to enjoy my own 
 Speculations in my little Garden at Redriff. to apply those 
 excellent Lessons of Virtue which I learned among the Houyhn- 
 hnms, to instruct the Yahoos of my own Family as far as I 
 shall find them docible Animals, to behold my Figure often 
 in a Glass, and thus if possible habituate myself by time to 
 tolerate the sight of a human Creature : To lament the 
 Brutality of Houyhnhnms in my own Country, but always treat 
 their Persons with Respect, for the sake of my noble Master, 
 his Family, his Friends, and the whole Houyhnhnm Race, 
 whom these of ours have the Honour to resemble in all their 
 Lineaments, however their Intellectuals came to degenerate. 
 
 I began last Week to permit my Wife to sit at Dinner 
 with me, at the farthest End of a long Table, and to answer 
 (but with the utmost brevity) the few Questions I asked her. 
 Yet the smell of a Yahoo continuing very offensive, I always 
 kept my Nose well stopt with Rue, Lavender, or Tobacco- 
 leaves. And although it be hard for a Man late in life 
 to remove old Habits, I am not altogether out of hopes in 
 some time to suffer a Neighbour Yahoo in my Company 
 without the Apprehensions I am yet under of his Teeth or 
 his Claws. 
 
3 8o 
 
 A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 My Reconcilement to the Yahoo kind in general might 
 not be so difficult if they would be content with those Vices 
 and Follies only, which Nature hath intitled them to. I am 
 not in the least provoked at the Sight of a Lawyer, a Pick- 
 pocket, a Colonel, a Fool, a Lord, a Gamester, a Politician, 
 
 A t the farthest End of a long Table. 
 
 a Physician, an Evidence, a Suborner, an Attorney, a Traitor, 
 or the like : This is all according to the due course of Things : 
 But when I behold a Lump of Deformity, and Diseases both 
 in Body and Mind, smitten with Pride, it immediately breaks 
 all the Measures of my Patience ; neither shall I be ever able 
 to comprehend how such an Animal and such a Vice could 
 
chap, xii A VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 
 
 38i 
 
 tally together. The wise and virtuous Houyhnhnms, who 
 abound in all Excellencies that can adorn a rational Creature, 
 have no Name for this Vice in their Language, which hath 
 no Terms to express any thing that is evil, except those 
 whereby they describe the detestable Qualities of their Yahoos, 
 among which they were not able to distinguish this of Pride, 
 for want of thoroughly understanding Human Nature, as it 
 sheweth itself in other Countries, where that Animal presides. 
 But I, who had more Experience, could plainly observe some 
 Rudiments of it among the wild Yahoos. 
 
 But the Houyhnhnms, who live under the Government of 
 Reason, are no more proud of the good Qualities they possess, 
 than I should be for not wanting a Leg or an Arm, which 
 no Man in his Wits would boast of, although he must be 
 miserable without them. I dwell the longer upon this Subject 
 from the Desire I have to make the Society of an English 
 Yahoo by any means not insupportable, and therefore I here 
 entreat those who have any Tincture of this absurd Vice, that 
 they will not presume to come in my Sight. 
 
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