GULLIVER'S
TRAV ELS
wet % co f oared ' itfustnzticm by
ARTHUR &ACJCHAM
NY PUBL C L BRARY THE BRANCH LIBRARIES
3 3333 08115 2635
7
REFERENCE
CHILD* EN '
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
GULLIVER RELEASED FROM THE STRINGS
RAISES AND STRETCHES HIMSELF
GULLIVER'S
TRAVELS
INTO SEVERAL REMOTE
NATIONS OF THE WORLD
By JONATHAN SWIFT
ILLUSTRATED BY
ARTHUR RACKHAM
THE TEMPLE PRESS • LONDON • W.C.2
All rights reserved
Made in Great Britain
at The Temple Press Letchworth
First Published in this Edition 1699
Reprinted 1939
..: •.
.-. .•
NOTE
THE Publishers make no apology for a new
edition of this " evergreen " book. They feel that
the fine drawings of Mr. ARTHUR RACKHAM are
a sufficient raison d'etre for their reappearance.
Most of the designs appeared as line drawings
in an edition issued in 1899, but tney were
subsequently worked over, revised, and coloured
by the artist, some entirely new- designs added.
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT
115th STREET BRANCH 203 WEST 115th STREET
- - .
-
CONTENTS
PART I
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT
CHAPTER I
PAGE
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 shore in the country of Lilliput, is made a prisoner, and
carried up the country ....... i
CHAPTER II
The Emperor of Lilliput, attended by several of the nobility, comes 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 .......... 12
CHAPTER III
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 has his liberty granted him upon certain
conditions ....... 22
CHAPTER IV
Mildendo, 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 offer to serve the Emperor in his wars ... 30
vii
viii GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
CHAPTER V
PAGE
The Author, by an extraordinary stratagem, prevents an invasion.
A high title of honour is conferred upon him. Ambassadors
arrive from the Emperor of Blefuscu. and sue for peace . . 36
CHAPTER 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 country ......... 42
CHAPTER VII
The Author, being informed of a design to accuse him of high treason,
makes his escape to Blefuscu. His reception there . . 52
CHAPTER VIII
The Author, by a lucky accident, finds means to leave Blefuscu ; and,
after some difficulties, returns safe to his native country . . 60
PART II
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG
CHAPTER I
A great storm described. The long boat sent to fetch water; the
Author goes with it to discover the country. He is left on shore,
is seized by one of the natives, and carried to a farmer's house.
His reception there, with several accidents that happened. A
description of the inhabitants ...... 67
CHAPTER II
A description of the farmer's daughter. The Author carried to a
market town, and then to the metropolis. The particulars of
his journey ......... 80
CONTENTS ix
CHAPTER III
PAGE
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 country. His quarrels with the
Queen's dwarf ......... 88
CHAPTER IV
The country 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 . . 99
CHAPTER V
Several adventures that happened to the Author. The execution of
a criminal. The Author "shows his skill in navigation . .104
CHAPTER VI
Several contrivances of the Author to please the King and Queen.
He shows his skill in music. The King enquires into the state
of Europe, which the Author relates to him. The King's
observations thereon . . . . . . . .113
CHAPTER VII
The Author's love of his country. He makes a proposal of much
advantage to the King, which is rejected. The King's great
ignorance in politics. The learning of that country very im-
perfect and confined. Their laws, and military affairs, and
parties in the state . . . . . . . .122
CHAPTER VIII
The King and Queen make a progress to the frontiers. The Author
attends them. The manner in which he leaves the country very
particularly related. He returns to England . . .129
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
PART III
A VOYAGE TO LA PUT A, BALNIBARBI, LUGGNAGG,
GLUBBDUBDRIB AND JAPAN
CHAPTER I
PAGE
The Author sets out on his third voyage, is taken by pirates. The
malice of a Dutchman. His arrival at an island. He is received
into Laputa . . . . . . . . .143
CHAPTER II
The humours and dispositions of the Laputians described. An
account of their learning. Of the King, and his Court. The
Author's reception there. The inhabitants subject to fear and
disquietudes. An account of the women .... 149
CHAPTER III
A phenomenon solved by modern philosophy and astronomy. The
Laputians' great improvements in the latter. The King's
method of suppressing insurrections . . . . 157
CHAPTER 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 . . . . . .163
CHAPTER V
The Author permitted to see the grand academy of Lagado. The
academy largely described. The arts wherein the professors
employ themselves . . . . . . . .170
CHAPTER VI
A further account of the academy. The Author proposes some im-
provements, which are honourably received . . . 177
CONTENTS xi
CHAPTER VII
PAGK
The Author leaves Lagado, arrives at Maldonada. No ship ready.
He takes a short voyage to Glubbdubdrib. His reception by
the Governor . . . . . . . . .183
CHAPTER VIII
A further account of Glubbdubdrib. Ancient and modern history
corrected . 188
CHAPTER IX
The Author's return to Maldonada. Sails to the kingdom of Lugg-
nagg. The Author confined. He is sent for to Court. The
manner of his admittance. The King's great lenity to his
subjects .......... 194
CHAPTER X
The Luggnaggiana commended. A particular Description of the
Struldbrugs, with many conversations between the Author and
some eminent persons, upon that subject .... 198
CHAPTER XI
The Author leaves Luggnagg, and sails to Japan. From thence he
returns in a Dutch ship to Amsterdam, and from Amsterdam to
England . ......... 207
PART IV
A VOYAGE TO THE COUNTRY OF THE
HOUYHNHNMS
CHAPTER I
The Author sets out as captain of a ship. Ilis men conspire against
him, confine him a long time to his cabin. Set him ashore in an
unknown land. He travels up into the country. The Yahoos,
a strange sort of animal, described. The Author meets two
Houyhnhnms . . . . . . . . .211
xii GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
CHAPTER II
PAGE
The Author conducted by a Houyhnhnm to his house. The house
described. The Author's reception. The food of the Houy-
hnhnms. The Author in distress for want of meat, is at last
relieved. His manner of feeding in this country . . .218
CHAPTER III
The Author studious to learn the language; the Houyhnhnm, his
master, assists in teaching him. The language described.
Several Houyhnhnms of quality come out of curiosity to see
the Author. He gives his master a short account of his voyage . 224
CHAPTER IV
The Houyhnhnm's notion of truth and falsehood. The Author's
discourse disapproved by his master. The Author gives a more
particular account of himself, and the accidents of his voyage 230
CHAPTER V
The Author, at his master's 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 . . 236
CHAPTER VI
A continuation of the state of England. The character of a first or
chief minister of state in European Courts . . . .243
CHAPTER 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 Author, with parallel cases and comparisons.
His master's observations upon human nature . . . 249
CONTENTS xiii
CHAPTER VIII
PACE
The Author relates several particulars of the Yahoos. The great
virtues of the Houyhnhnms. The education and exercise of
their youth. Their general assembly ..... 256
CHAPTER 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 ........ 361
CHAPTER X
The Author's economy, 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 submits. He contrives and finishes a
canoe, by the help of a fellow servant, and puts to sea at a
venture .......... 266
CHAPTER 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 Portuguese ship.
The great civilities of the captain. The Author arrives at
England .......... 376
CHAPTER 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;
proposeth his manner of living for the future; gives good advice,
and concludeth . . . . . . . .285
ILLUSTRATIONS
GULLIVER RELEASED FROM THE STRINGS RAISES AND
STRETCHES HIMSELF ..... Frontispiece
THE EMPEROR OF LILLIPUT REVIEWS HIS TROOPS . facing page 26
GULLIVER SEIZES THE ENEMY'S FLEET ... ,, 36
THE LILLIPUTIAN TAILORS MEASURE GULLIVER FOR A
NEW SUIT OF CLOTHES ..... „ 48
GULLIVER is STRUCK WITH FEAR AT FIRST SIGHT OF
THE BROBDINGNAGIAN REAPERS ... „ 70
GULLIVER KISSES THE QUEEN OF BROBDINGNAGIA'S
HAND ........ „ 88
GULLIVER'S COMBAT WITH THE WASPS ... „ 96
APPLES CAME TUMBLING ABOUT MY EARS . . „ 104
GULLIVER'S ENCOUNTER WITH THE FROG . . „ 108
A LAPUTIAN GENTLEMAN TAKING A WALK . . „ 150
Two OF THOSE SAGES . . . LIKE PEDLARS AMONG us „ 174
THE STRULDBRUGS „ 200
PROPERTY OF THE
CITY OF NEW YORK
?v
PART
CHAPTER I
MY father had a small estate in Nottinghamshire; 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 applied 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 of money, I
laid them out in learning navigation, and other parts of
the mathematics, 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 Ley den: there I
2 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
studied physic 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 Abraham Pannell, commander; with whom I con-
tinued 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
Jewry; 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 there-
fore 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 Indies, 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 ashore, in observ-
ing the 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 wife and family. I removed from the Old Jewry 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 Pritchard, master of the Antelope, who was making
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 3
a voyage to the South Sea. We s?t sail from Bristol, May
4th, 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 north-west of Van Diemen's Land. By an
observation we found ourselves in the latitude of 30 degrees
2 minutes south. Twelve of our crew were dead by im-
moderate labour, and ill food, the rest were in a very weak
condition. On the fifth of November, which was the be-
ginning of summer in those parts, the weather being very
hazy, the seamen spied 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 computation, 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
pushed 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 de-
clivity was so small, that I walked near a mile before I got
to the shore, which I conjectured was about eight o'clock in
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
4 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 remembered to have
done in my life, and, as I reckoned, about nine hours; for
when I awaked it was just daylight. 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 my 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 some-
thing alive moving on my left leg, which advancing gently
forward, over my breast, came almost up to my chin ; when
bending my eyes downward 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
meantime, 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, cried
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 discovered the methods they
had taken to bind me, and, at the same time, with a violent
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 5
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
phonac ; 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 1 immediately covered with my left hand. When
this shower of arrows was over, I fell a groaning with griel
and pain, and then striving again to get loose, they dis-
charged another volley 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 army they could bring against
me, if they were all of the same size with him that I saw.
But fortune disposed otherways of me. When the people
observed I was quiet, they discharged no more arrows:
but, by the noise I heard, I knew their numbers increased;
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 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 cried out three
6 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
times, Langro dehul san (these words and the former were
afterwards repeated and explained to me). Whereupon
immediately 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 observ-
ing the 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. He acted every part of an orator, and I
could observe many periods of threatenings, 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 my 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 to 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 com-
manded that several ladders should be applied to my sides,
on which above an hundred of the inhabitants mounted,
and walked towards my mouth, laden 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 supplied
me as they could, shewing a thousand marks of wonder
and astonishment at my bulk and appetite. I then made
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 7
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 flung 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 per-
formed 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 warning the
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
remembrance 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 con-
sidered myself as bound by the laws of hospitality to a
people who had treated me with so much expense 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 forwards up to my face, with about
8 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
a dozen of his retinue. And producing his credentials
under the Signet Royal, which he applied close to my 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 bod}7, to signify
that I desired my liberty. It appeared that he understood
me well enough, for he shook his head by way of disappro-
bation, 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 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 increased, I gave tokens, to let them
know that they might do with me what they pleased.
JJpon this, the Hurgo and his train withdrew, with much
civility and cheerful countenances. Soon after, I heard a
general shout, with frequent repetitions of the words,
Peplom selan, and I felt great numbers of 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
daubed my face, and both my hands, with a sort of oint-
ment very pleasant to the smell, which in a few minutes
removed all the smart of their arrows. These circum-
stances, added to the refreshment I had received by their
victuals and drink, which were very nourishing, disposed
me to sleep. I slept about eight hours, as I was afterwards
assured; and it was no wonder, for the physicians, by the
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 9
Emperor's order, had mingled a sleepy potion in the hogs-
heads of wine.
It seems that, upon the first moment I was discovered
sleeping on the ground after my landing, the Emperor had
early notice of it by an express; and determined in council
that I should be tied in the manner I have related (which
was done in the night while I slept), that plenty of meat
and drink should be sent to 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 endeavoured to kill me
with their spears and arrows, while I was asleep, I should
certainly have awaked with the first sense of smart, which
might so far have roused my rage and strength, as to have
enabled me to break the strings wherewith I was tied ; after
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 mechanics, by the counten-
ance 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 feet 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 was a frame of wood raised
three inches from the ground, about seven feet 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
io GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
raise and place me in this vehicle. Eighty poles, each of
one foot high, were erected for this purpose, and very
strong cords, of the bigness of pack-thread, 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 fastened on the poles, and
thus, in less than three hours, I was raised, and flung into
the engine, and there tied fast. All this I was told, for,
while the whole operation was performing, I lay in a pro-
found sleep, by the force of that soporiferous medicine in-
fused into my liquor. Fifteen hundred of the Emperor's
largest horses, each about four inches and an half high,
were employed 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
stopped 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 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 unperceived, 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 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 booy.
At the place where the carriage stopped, there stood
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT n
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, looked on as profane, and therefore had been
applied to common use, 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
feet high, and almost two feet 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 smith 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 feet distance,
there was a turret at least five feet 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 spite of my guards, I believe there could
not be fewer than ten thousand, at several times, who
mounted my body by the help of ladders. But a pro-
clamation 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 ; whereupon 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 semi-circle,
but, being fixed within four inches
of the gate, allowed me to
creep in, and lie at my full
length in the temple.
CHAPTER II
WHEN I found myself on my feet I looked about me, and
must confess I never beheld a more entertaining prospect.
The country round appeared like a continual garden, and
the enclosed fields, which were generally forty feet 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 feet 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 horseback 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 Majesty had time to dismount. When he alighted, he
surveyed me round with great admiration, but kept with-
out 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 on
wheels, till I could reach them. I took these 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 of the blood, of
both sexes, attended by many ladies, sat at some distance
in their chairs; but, upon the accident that happened to
the Emperor's horse, they alighted, and came near his
12
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 13
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
graceful, and his deportment majestic. 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 behold-
ing him, I lay on my side, so that my face was parallel to
his, and he stood but three yards off: however, I 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 Asiatic 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 magnificently clad, so that the spot
they stood upon, seemed to resemble a petticoat spread on
the ground, embroidered with figures of gold and silver.
His 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, French, 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 crowd about me as
14 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
near as they durst, and some of them had the impudence to
shoot their arrows at me as I sat on the ground by the door
of my house, whereof one very narrowly missed my left
eye. But the colonel ordered six of the ringleaders 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 butt 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 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, and I observed both
the soldiers and people were obliged at this mark of my
clemency, which was represented very much to my advan-
tage at court.
Towards night I got with some difficulty into my house,
where I lay on the ground, and continued to do so about a
fortnight; during which time, the Emperor gave orders to
have 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, sewn
together, made up the breadth and length; and these were
four double, which, however, 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 inured to hardships.
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 household affairs must
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 15
have ensued, if his Imperial Majesty had not provided, by
several proclamations and orders of State, against this in-
conveniency. He directed that those who had already
beheld me should return home, and not presume to come
within fifty yards of my house, without licence from court;
whereby the Secretaries of State got considerable fees.
In the meantime, the Emperor had 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 despatch 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 con-
sultations, several officers of the army went to the door of
the great council chamber, and two of them, being ad-
mitted, 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,
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 propor-
tionable quantity of bread, and wine, and other liquors;
for the due payment of which, his Majesty gave assign-
ments upon his treasury. For this prince lives chiefly
upon his own demesnes, seldom, except upon great occa-
sions, raising any subsidies upon his subjects, who are
bound to attend him in his wars, at their own expense. An
establishment was also made of six hundred persons to be
my domestics, who had board wages allowed for their
1 6 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
maintenance, and tents built for them very conveniently on
each side of my door. It was likewise ordered, that three
hundred tailors should make me a suit of clothes, after the
fashion of the country: that six 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 Lumos kelmin peffo defmar
Ion Emposo ; that is, swear a peace with him and his
kingdom. However, that I should be used with all kind-
ness; 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 pro-
digious 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
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 17
paid for at the rate which I would set upon them. I took
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 a small
quantity of gold in a purse. These gentlemen, having pen,
ink, and paper, about them, made an exact inventory of
everything 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 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 waistcoat pocket, we found a pro-
digious 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 palisadoes 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 under-
stand us. In the large pocket on the right side of his
1 8 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
middle cover (so I translate the word Ran/u-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, 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 bigness of our heads. Within each of these was
enclosed a prodigious 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 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 transparent 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 un-
known animal, or the god that he worships: but we are
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 19
more inclined to the latter opinion, because he assured us
(if we understood him right, for he expressed himself very
imperfectly) that he seldom did anything without consult-
ing 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 com-
mands, 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 a most ponderous metal, about the big-
ness of our heads, and required a strong hand to lift them.
The other cell contained 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 sealed, on the fourth day of the eighty-ninth
moon of your Majesty's auspicious reign.
" CLEFRIN 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 scimitar,
which I took out, scabbard and all. In the meantime, 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
20 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
observe it, for mine eyes were wholly fixed upon his
Majesty. He then desired me to draw my scimitar, 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 surprise; for the
sun shone clear, and the reflection dazzled their eyes, as I
waved the scimitar 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 scab-
bard, and cast it on the ground as gently as I could, about
six feet from the end of my chain. The next thing he de-
manded, 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 closeness of
my pouch, happened to escape wetting in the sea (an incon-
venience 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 into the air. The astonishment
here was much greater than at the sight of my scimitar.
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 scimitar, 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 likewise delivered up my watch, which the
Emperor was very 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 with-
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 21
out 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
scimitar, 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 my eyes), a
pocket perspective, and several other little conveniences,
which being of no consequence to the Emperor, I did not
think myself bound in honour to discover, and I appre-
hended they might be lost or spoiled, if I ventured them
out of my possession.
CHAPTER III
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 enter-
tain 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 feet, 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 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
themselves are commanded to shew their skill, and to con-
vince the Emperor that they have not lost their faculty.
Flimnap, the treasurer, is allowed to cut a capei on the
strait rope at least an inch higher than any other lord in
22
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 23
the whole empire. I have seen him do the somerset 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 com-
manded to show their dexterity; for, by contending to
excel themselves 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 before my arrival, Flimnap would have infallibly
broke his neck, if one of the king's cushions, that acci-
dentally 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 the table
three fine silken threads of six inches long; one is blue, the
other red, and the third green. These threads are pro-
posed 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 trial of
dexterity very different from the former, and such as I
have not observed the least resemblance of in any other
country of the old or 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 de-
pressed. Sometimes the Emperor holds one end of the
24 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 blue-coloured silk, the
red is given to the next, and the green 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 feet 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
woodmen 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
feet and a half square, I took four other sticks, and tied
them parallel at each corner, about two feet from the
ground ; then I fastened 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 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
in order, they divided into two parties, performed mock
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 25
skirmishes, discharged blunt arrows, drew their swords,
fled and pursued, attacked and retired, and in short dis-
covered 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
by good fortune that no ill accident happened in these
entertainments, 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 enterprises.
About two or three days before I was set at liberty, as
I was entertaining 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
oddly shaped, extended 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 other's shoulders, they had got to the
top, which was flat and even, and, stamping upon it, they
found it was hollow within; that they humbly conceived
it might be something belonging to the Man-Mountain;
26 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 ship-
wreck, I was in such confusion, that, before I came to the
place where I went to sleep, my hat, which I had fastened
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, describing 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 a half of
the edge, and fastened two hooks in the holes; these hooks
were tied 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 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
advanced. This body consisted of three thousand foot, and
a thousand horse.
I had sent so many memorials and petitions for my
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
THE EMPEROR OF LILLIPUT REVIEWS HIS TROOPS
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 27
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
complexion. 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-secretaries, 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
country, and afterwards in the method prescribed by their
laws, which was to hold my right foot in my left hand, and
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 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 re-
covered 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 public.
" GOLBASTO MOMAREN EVLAME GURDILO SHEFIN MULLY
TTLLY 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 extremities 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:
28 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
" ist. The Man-Mountain shall not depart from our
dominions without our licence 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 subjects into his hands, without their own consent.
" 5th. If an express requires extraordinary despatch,
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 Blefuscu, and do his utmost to destroy their fleet,
which is now preparing to invade us.
" 7th. That the said Man-Mountain shall, at his times
of leisure, be aiding and assisting to our workmen, in help-
ing 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 of meat and drink sufficient for the support of
1724 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."
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 29
I swore and subscribed to these articles with great
cheerfulness and content, although some of them were not
so honourable 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 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 commanded 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 stipu-
lates to allow me a quantity of meat and drink sufficient
for the support of, 1724 Lilliputians. Some time after,
asking a friend at court, how they came to fix on that deter-
minate number, he told me that his Majesty's mathemati-
cians, 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 concluded, from the similarity of
their bodies, that mine must contain, at least, 1724 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 economy of
so great a prince.
CHAPTER IV
THE first request I made, after I had obtained my liberty,
was that I might have licence 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 feet and a 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 feet dis-
tance. I stepped 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 eaves 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 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 feet long. The two great streets, which run cross,
and divide it into four quarters, are five feet wide. The
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.
30
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 31
The Emperor's palace is in the centre of the city, where
the two great streets met. It is inclosed by a wall of two
feet high, and twenty feet distance 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 feet, 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 feet high, and it was impos-
sible 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
distance from the city. Of these trees I made two stools,
each about three feet 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 feet wide. I then stepped over the building 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 on 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 about them. Her
32 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 de-
scriptions 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 politics, 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 public 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 seventy
moons past, there have been two struggling parties in this
empire, under the names of Tramecksan and Slamecksan,
from the high and low heels of their shoes, by which they
distinguish themselves. It is alleged indeed, that the high
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 33
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 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 appre-
hend his Imperial Highness, the heir to the crown, to have
some tendency towards the high heels; at least, we can
plainly discover that one of his heels is higher than the
other, which gives him a hobble in his gait. Now, in the
midst of these intestine disquiets, we are threatened 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 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 conjec-
ture that you dropped 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 cattle 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
34 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 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 rendered incapable by law of holding employments.
During the 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 fundamental doctrine of our great Prophet
Lustrog, in the fifty-fourth chapter of the Blundecral
(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 break their eggs at the convenient end.
And which is the convenient 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 Blefuscu's court and so much private assist-
ance and encouragement from their party here at home,
that a bloody war hath been carried on between the two
empires for thirty-six 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;
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT
35
and his Imperial Majesty, placing great confidence in your
valour and strength, hath commanded 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.
CHAPTER V
THE empire of Blefuscu is an island, situated to the 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 dis-
covered by some of the enemy's ships, who had received no
intelligence 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 whatsoever. 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 plumbed, who told me, that in the middle,
at high water, it was seventy glumgluffs deep, which is
about six feet of European measure ; and the rest of it fifty
glumgluffs at most. I walked towards the north-east
coast, over against Blefuscu; where, lying down behind a
hillock, I took out my small 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 of the strongest cable and
bars of iron. The cable was about as thick as pack-thread,
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, binding
the extremities into a hook. Having thus fixed fifty hooks
to as many cables, I went back to the north-east coast, and
36
GULLIVER SEIZES THE ENEMY'S FLEET
A VOYAGE TO LILL1PUT 37
putting off my coat, shoes, and stockings, walked into the
sea, in my leathern jerkin, about 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 to 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 the shore, where there could not be fewer than
thirty thousand souls. I then took my tackling, and,
fastening 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 exces-
sive 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 escaped the Emperor's searchers. These I took out
and fastened as strongly as I could upon my nose, and,
thus armed, went on boldly with my work in spite of the
enemy's arrows, many of which struck against the glasses
of my spectacles, but without any other effect, farther
than a little to discompose them. I had now fastened 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 enterprise
remained. I therefore let go the cord, and leaving the
hooks fixed to the ships, I resolutely cut with my knife the
cables that fastened 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 tied, and
with great ease drew fifty of the enemy's largest men-of-
war after me.
The Blefuscudians, who had not the least imagination
of what I intended, were at first confounded with astonish-
ment. They had seen me cut the cables, and thought my
38 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
design was only to let the ships run adrift, 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 im-
possible to describe or conceive. 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
expecting 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 in
more 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
fastened, 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 oppor-
tunity 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 viceroy; of destroying the Big-endian exiles, and
compelling that people to break the smaller end of their
eggs, by which he would remain the sole monarch of the
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 39
whole world. But I endeavoured to divert him from his
design, by many arguments drawn from the topics 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 politics of his Imperial Majesty, that he
could never forgive me; 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 balance 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
advantageous 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 heard so many
4o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
wonders; wherein I readily obliged them, but shall not
trouble the reader with the particulars.
When I had for some time entertained their Excel-
lencies to their infinite satisfaction and surprise, 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 admira-
tion, and whose royal person I resolved to attend before I
returned to my own country: accordingly, the next time
I had the honour to see our Emperor, I desired his general
licence to wait on the Blefuscudian monarch, which he was
pleased to grant me, as I could plainly perceive, in a very
cold manner; but could 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 con-
ceive 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 differ-
ing 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 advantage he had got by the seizure of their fleet,
obliged them to deliver their credentials and make their
speech in the Lilliputian tongue. And it must be con-
fessed that, from the great intercourse of trade and com-
merce 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 understanding men and manners, there are
few persons of distinction, or merchants, or seamen, who
dwell in the maritime parts, but what can hold conversa-
tion in both tongues; as I found some weeks after, when I
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 41
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 anything but an extreme necessity
have forced me to submit. But, being now a nardac 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.
CHAPTER VI
ALTHOUGH I intend to leave the description of this empire
to a particular treatise, yet, in the meantime, 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 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 dis-
tance. And, to shew the sharpness of their sight towards
objects that are near, I have been much pleased with
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
feet high; I mean some of those in the great Royal Park,
the tops whereof I could but just reach with my fist clinched.
The other vegetables are in the same proportion ; but this I
leave to the reader's imagination.
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; but aslant from one corner of the
paper to the other, like ladies in England.
They bury their dead with their heads directly down-
42
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 43
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 country, I should be tempted to say
a little in their justification. It is only to be wished 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 trial, the
accuser is immediately put to an ignominious death ; and,
out of his goods or lands, the innocent person is quadruply
recompensed 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 public 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
allege, 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 and 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
44 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 practice 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 appro-
priated for that use: he likewise acquires the title of Snil-
pall, or legal, which is added to his name, but does not
descend to posterity. And these people thought it a pro-
digious 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.
In choosing 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 public affairs a mystery, to be
comprehended only by a few persons of sublime genius, of
which there seldom 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
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 45
experience and a good intention, would qualify any man
for the service of his country, 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 conse-
quence to the public 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 incapable of holding any public 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 they act.
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 grand-
father of the Emperor now reigning, and grew to the present
height by the gradual increase of party and faction.
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. Their opinion is,
that parents are the last of all others to be trusted with
46 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
the education of their own children; and therefore they
have in every town public 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 tl eir
several deputies. The clothes and food of the children
are plain and simple. They are bred up in the principles
of honour, justice, courage, modesty, clemency, religion,
and love of their country; they are always employed in
some business, except in the times of eating and sleeping,
which are very short, and two hours for diversions, con-
sisting of bodily exercises. They are dressed by men till
four years of age, 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
smaller and 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 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.
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 47
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, mer-
chants, traders, and handicrafts, are managed proportion-
ably 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 exercises
till fifteen, which answers to twenty-one 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, they are publicly whipped
thrice about the city, imprisoned for a year, and banished
for life to the most desolate part of the country. 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 the females were
not altogether so robust; and that some rules were given
them relating to domestic life, and a smaller compass of
learning was enjoined them: For their maxim is, that,
among people of quality, a wife should be always a reason-
able and agreeable companion, 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 expressions of grati-
tude to the professors, and seldom without tears of the
young lady and her companion.
In the nurseries of the females of the meaner sort, the
48 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
children are instructed in all kinds of works proper for their
sex, and their several degrees: those intended for appren-
tices, are dismissed at seven years old, the rest are kept to
eleven.
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
expenses by the law. For the Lilliputians think nothing
can be more unjust, than for people to bring children into
the world, and leave the burthen of supporting them on
the public. 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 public: but the old and diseased among them are
supported by hospitals, for begging is a trade unknown in
this empire.
And here it may, perhaps, divert the curious reader, to
give some account of my domestic life, and my manner of
living in this country, 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 employed to make me shirts, and linen for 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
feet make a piece. The sempstresses took my measure as I
lay on the ground, one standing at my neck, and another at
THE LILLIPUTIAN TAILORS MEASURE
GULLIVER FOR A NEW SUIT OF CLOTHES
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 49
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 com-
putation, 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
tailors were employed in the same manner to make me
clothes; but they had another contrivance 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 plumb-line 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 have been able to hold them) they looked
like the patch-work 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 of 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
surloin so large, that I have been forced to make three
bites of it; but this is rare. My servants were astonished
to see me eat it, bones and all, as in our country we do the
leg of a lark. Their geese and turkeys I usually eat at a
mouthful; and, I must confess, they far exceed ours. Of
5o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 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 them upon
chairs of state on my table, just over against me, with
their guards about them. Flimnap, the lord high treasurer,
attended 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 country, 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 oppor-
tunity 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 condi-
tion 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 advisable in the Emperor
to take the first fair occasion of dismissing me.
On occasions when a servant gave me notice of the
arrival of a coach, my custom was to go immediately
to the door; and, after paying my respects, to take
up the coach and two horses very carefully in my hands
(for, if there were six horses, the postillion always un-
harnessed four) and place them on a table, where 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 sat in
my chair, leaning my face towards them; and, when I was
A VOYAGE TO LILL1PUT
51
engaged with one set, the coachman would gently drive
the others round my table. I have passed many an after-
noon very agreeably in these conversations. But I defy the
treasurer 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 then had the honour to be a nardac, which the treasurer
himself is not; for all the world knows that he is only a
glumglum, a title inferior by one degree, as that of a mar-
quis is to a duke in England, although I allow he preceded
me in right of his post. These false informations made
Flimnap, the treasurer, shew me an ill countenance ; and
although he were at last undeceived, 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.
CHAPTER VII
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 country,
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 sat down by it. After the
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
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
52
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 53
manner on your account; and it is but two days since his
Majesty came to a full resolution.
' You are very sensible that Skyresh Bolgolam (galbet,
or high admiral) hath been your mortal enemy almost ever
since your arrival: his original reasons I know not; but
his hatred is increased since your great success against
Blefuscu, by which his glory, as admiral, is much obscured.
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 inter-
rupt; when he intreated me to be silent, and thus pro-
ceeded :
" 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
viceroy 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
54 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
of unwillingness to force the consciences, or destroy the
liberties and lives of innocent people.
ARTICLE II
" ' That, whereas certain ambassadors arrived from the
court of Blefuscu, to sue for peace in his Majesty's court:
he the said Flestrin did, like a false traitor, aid, abet, com-
fort, 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 in
" ' 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 re-
ceived only verbal licence from his Imperial Majesty; and
under colour of the said licence doth falsely and traitor-
ously 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 afore-
said.'
' 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 and sheets, which would soon make you tear your
own flesh, and die in the utmost torture. The general came
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 55
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.
" 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 great, but that still there was room for mercy,
the most commendable virtue in a prince, and for which
his Majesty was so justly celebrated. He said the friend-
ship 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 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
impediment 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 bring-
ing 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
56 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 showed
to what straits his Majesty's revenue was reduced by the
charge of maintaining you, which would soon grow in-
supportable: that the secretary's expedient of putting out
your eyes was so far from being a remedy against this evil,
it would probably increase 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 consciences 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 consume in a few months; neither
would the stench of your carcase be then so dangerous,
when it should become more than half diminished; and
immediately, 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 cartloads, and bury
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 57
it in distant parts to prevent infection, leaving the skeleton
as a monument of admiration to posterity.
" Thus, by the great friendship of the secretary, the
whole affair was compromised. It was strictly enjoined
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.
" 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 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 dis-
charging 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 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 resent-
ment or the malice of a favourite, the Emperor always
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 anything terrify the people
so much as those encomiums on his Majesty's mercy,
because it was observed, that, the more these praises were
58 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
enlarged and insisted on, the more inhuman was the punish-
ment, 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 conceived it (perhaps erroneously) rather
to be rigorous than gentle. I sometimes thought of stand-
ing my trial; for, although I could not deny the facts
alleged in the several articles, yet I hoped they would
admit of some extenuation. But having in my life perused
many state-trials, 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 I might easily
with stones pelt the metropolis to pieces; but I soon re-
jected that project with horror, by remembering 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
acquitted 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 my 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
submitted to so easy a punishment. But hurried on by
the precipitancy of youth, and having his Imperial
Majesty's licence to pay my attendance upon the Emperor
of Blefuscu, I took this opportunity, before the three days
were elapsed, to send a letter to my friend the secretary,
A VOYAGE TO L1LLIPUT 59
signifying my resolution of setting out that morning for
Blefuscu, 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, tied v.
cable to the prow, and, lifting up the anchors, I stript
myself, put my clothes (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
desired them to signify my arrival to one of the secretaries,
and let him know, I there waited his Majesty's command.
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 a hun-
dred yards. The Emperor and his train alighted from 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, wrapped up in my coverlet.
CHAPTER VIII
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 immediately 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 pro-
vided with cordage, which I had beforehand twisted to a
sufficient strength. When the ships came up, I stripped
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 fastened
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 one of my hands;
and, the tide favouring me, I advanced so far, that I could
just hold up my chin and feel the ground. I rested 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, I took out my
60
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 61
other cables, which were stowed in one of the ships, and
fastened 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 within 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
under, by the help of certain paddles, which cost me ten
days making, to get my boat to the royal port of Blefuscu,
where a mighty concourse of people appeared upon my
arrival, full of wonder at the sight of so prodigious a vessel.
I told 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 country, and begged his
Majesty's orders for getting materials to fit it up, together
with his licence to depart, which, after some kind expostu-
lations, he was pleased to grant.
I did very much wonder, in all this time, not to have
heard of any express relating to me from our Emperor
to the court of Blefuscu. But I was afterwards given
privately to understand 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
the 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 farther than with the loss of my eyes; that I had fled
from justice, and, if I did not return in two hours, I should
be deprived of my title of nardac, and declared a traitor.
62 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 to Lilliput, 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. He said that as for sending me bound, his
brother knew it was impossible; that although I had de-
prived him of his fleet, yet he owed great obligations to 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 insupport-
able an incumbrance.
With this answer the envoy returned to Lilliput, and
the monarch of Blefuscu related to me all that had passed;
offering me at the same time (but under the strictest con-
fidence) 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, w7here I could possibly avoid it, and, therefore,
with all due acknowledgments for his favourable inten-
tions, 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.
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 63
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 in-
credible pains in cutting down some of the largest timber-
trees for oars and masts, wherein I was, however, much
assisted by his Majesty's ship-carpenters, who helped me
in smoothing them after I had done the rough work.
In about a month, when all was prepared, I sent to receive
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 princes 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 carcases of an hundred oxen,
and three hundred sheep, with bread 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 ewes 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,
64 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 descried 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, 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 in-
tention was to reach, if possible, one of those islands which
I had reason to believe lay on the north-east of Van Diemen's
Land. I discovered nothing all that day; but upon the
next, about three in the afternoon, when I had by my com-
putation made twenty-four leagues from Blefuscu, I descried
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 slackened. I made all the sail I
could, and in half an hour she spied me, then hung out her
ancient, 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 country, and the dear pledges I had left
in it. The ship slackened her sails, and I came up with her
between five and six in the evening, September 26; 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
merchantman, returning from Japan by the north and south
seas, the captain, Mr. John Biddel 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
A VOYAGE TO LILLIPUT 65
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 country. 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.
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 I3th of April 1702.
I had 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
a-shore, and set them a-grazing in a bowling-green at
Greenwich, where 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
biscuit, which rubbed to powder, and mingled with water,
was their constant 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 con-
siderably 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
66
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
in goods, in hopes to improve my fortunes. My eldest
uncle 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 needlework. I took leave of my wife, and boy and
girl, with tears on both sides, and \vent on board the A dven-
ture, a merchant ship, of three hundred tons, bound for
Surat, Captain John Nicholas of Liverpool, commander.
But my account of this voyage must be referred to the second
part of my travels.
THE END OF THE FIRST PART
PART 2
CHAPTER I
HAVING been condemned by nature and fortune to
an active and restless life, in two months after my
return I again left my native country, and took shipping in
the Downs on the 2Oth 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
wintered there; for the captain 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 Straits
of Madagascar; but having got northward of that island,
and to about five degrees south latitude, the winds, which
in those seas were observed to blow a constant equal gale
between the north and west, from the beginning of December
to the beginning of May, on the gth 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,
67
68 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
and about three degrees northward of the line, as our captain
found by an observation he took the 2nd of May, at which
time the wind ceased, and it was a perfect calm, whereat I
was not a little rejoiced. But he, being a man experienced
in the navigation of those seas, bid us all prepare against
a storm, which accordingly happened 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 foresail; but, making foul weather,
we looked the guns were all fast, and handed the mizzen.
The ship lay very broad off, so we thought it better spooning
before the sea, than trying or hulling. We reefed the fore-
sail and set him, and hawled aft the fore-sheet; the helm
was hard a weather. The ship wore bravely. We belayed
the fore down-hall; but the sail was split, and we hawled
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 hawled off upon
the lanyard of the whipstaff, and helped the man at the
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
wholesomer, 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 mizzen, main top-sail, and the fore top-sail. Our course
was east north-east, the wind was at south-west. We got
the starboard tacks aboard, we cast off our weather
braces and lifts; we set in the lee-braces, and hawled
forward by the weather - bowlings, and hawled them
right, and belayed them, and hawled over the mizzen
tack to windward, and kept her full and by as near as she
would lie.
During this storm, which was followed by a strong wind
west south-west, we were carried by my computation about
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 69
five hundred leagues to the east, so that the oldest sailor
aboard could not tell in what part of the world we were.
Our provisions held out well, our ship was staunch, and our
crew 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 i6th day of June 1703, a boy on the top-mast
discovered land. On the I7th, 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 tons. 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 country, 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 wandered 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 country
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 holloa after them, although it had
been to little purpose, when I observed a huge creature
walking after 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 half a 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 the 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
7o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
the country. I found it fully cultivated; but that which
first surprised me was the length of the grass, which, in
those grounds that seemed to be kept for hay, was about
twenty feet high.
I fell into a high road, for so I took it to be, though
it served to the inhabitants only as a footpath through a
field of barley. Here I walked on for some time, but could
see little on either side, it being now at least harvest, and
the corn rising near forty feet. I was an hour walking to
the end of this field, which was fenced in with a hedge of
at least one hundred and twenty feet 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 feet 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 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.
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
GULLIVER IS STRUCK WITH FEAR AT FIRST
SIGHT OF THE BROBDINGNAGIAN REAPERS
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 71
the corn were sometimes not above a foot distant, so that I
could hardly squeeze my body betwixt them. However, I
made 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 through, and the
beards of the fallen ears so strong and pointed that they
pierced through my cloaths 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 inconsider-
able in this nation as one single Lilliputian would be among
us. But this, I conceived, was to be the least of my mis-
fortunes, 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 com-
parison. It might have pleased fortune to let the Lilli-
putians find some nation where the people were as diminutive
with respect to them as they were to me. And who knows
but that even this prodigious race of mortals might be equally
7z GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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,
approaching 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 con-
sidered a while, with the caution of one who endeavours to
lay hold on a small, dangerous animal, in such a manner
that it may 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 forefinger 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, about sixty
feet from the ground, although he grievously pinched my
sides, for fear I should slip through his fingers. All I ventured
was to raise my 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
meantime 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 73
pressure of his thumb and finger. He seemed to apprehend
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 suppose 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 hair 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
ah1 sat 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: 1 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
then 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 it to him several times,
I thought it best to do.
74 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
The fanner by this time was convinced I must be a 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 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,
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 farther security,
and in this manner carried me home to his house. There he
called his wife and showed 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 husbandman), in a dish of about
four and twenty feet diameter. The company were the
farmer and his wife, three children, and an old grandmother.
When they were set down, the farmer placed me at some
distance from him on the table, which was thirty feet 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 two gallons, and filled it with
drink; I took up the vessel with much difficulty in both
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 75
hands, and in a most respectful manner, drank to her lady-
ship's health, expressing the words as loud as I could in
English, which made the company laugh so heartily that
I was almost deafened 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 surprise 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. I got up immediately, and ob-
serving 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 huzzas, to show I had
got no mischief by my fall. But advancing forward towards
my master (as I shall henceforth call him) his youngest son,
who sat 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 spite, and well remembering
how mischievous all children among us naturally are to
sparrows, rabbits, 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 stroke 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 that 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
76 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
and stroking her. The fierceness of this creature's counte-
nance altogether discomposed me, though I stood at the
further end of the table above fifty feet 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 show 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 ; where-
upon 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 mastiff, equal in bulk to four elephants,
and a greyhound 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 spied
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 plaything. The mother out of pure indul-
gence took me up, and put me towards the child, who
presently seized me by the middle, and got my head into
his mouth, where I roared so loud that the urchin was
frighted and let me drop, and I should infallibly have
broken my neck if the mother had not held her apron under
me. The nurse to quiet her babe made use of a rattle, which
was a kind of hollow vessel filled with great stones, and
fastened by a cable to the child's waist; but all in vain, so
that she was forced to apply the last remedy by giving it
suck. 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 English
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 77
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 magnifying-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 Lilliput, 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 1 must beg leave to say
for myself, that I am as fair as most of my sex and country,
and very little sunburnt by travels. On the other side,
discoursing of the ladies in that Emperors' 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 dis-
tinguish. 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 feet, 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 per-
ceiving, 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.
78 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 feet wide, and above two
hundred high, lying in a bed twenty yards wide. My mistress
was gone about her household affairs, and had locked me in.
The bed was eight yards from the floor. I durst not presume
to call, and, if I had, it would have been in vain, with such
a voice as mine, at so great a distance as from the room
where I lay to the kitchen where the family kept. 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, whereupon
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 across the neck, I thoroughly
despatched 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 rejoiced, calling
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 79
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,
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 for dwelling on
particulars, which, however insignificant they may appear
to grovelling vulgar minds, yet will certainly help a philo-
sopher to enlarge his thoughts and imagination, and to
apply them to a benefit of public 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.
CHAPTER II
MY mistress had a daughter of nine years old, a child of
towardly parts for her age, very dexterous at her needle,
and skilful at 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 placed upon a hanging
shelf for fear of the rats. This was my bed all the time I
stayed 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 clothes 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 sack-cloth;
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 few days, I was
able to call for whatever I had a mind to. She was very
good-natured, and not above forty feet 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 Nanunculus, the Italians
Homunceletino, and the English Mannikin. To her I
chiefly owe my preservation in that country: we never
parted while I was there; I called her my Glumdalclitch,
or little nurse; and 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
80
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 81
unhappy instrument of her disgrace, as I have too much
reason to fear.
It now began to be known and talked of in the neigh-
bourhood 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 like-
wise 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 he 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 dis-
covered 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 show 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 our house. I
guessed there was some mischief contriving, when I observed
my master and his friend whispering long together, some-
times 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 out from
82 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
her mother. The poor girl laid me on her bosom, and tell
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 exposed for
money as a public 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 country, 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 care-
ful to put the quilt of her baby's bed into it, for me to lie
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 feet 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 farther than from London to St.
Alban's. My master alighted at an inn which he used to
frequent; and after consulting a while with the inn-keeper,
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 83
and making some necessary preparations, he hired the
grultrud or crier 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 country
very finely shaped, about six feet long), and in every
part of the body resembling an human creature, could
speak several words, and perform an hundred diverting
tricks.
I was placed upon a table in the largest room of the inn,
which might be near three hundred feet 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
crowd, 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 Glumdalclitch 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
shown to twelve sets of company, and as often forced to
go over again 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 to put me out of everybody's reach.
However, an unlucky school-boy aimed a hazel-nut directly
at my head, which very narrowly missed me; otherwise,
it came with so much violence that it would have infallibly
knocked out my brains, for it was almost as large as a small
84 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
pumpion ; but I had the satisfaction to see the young rogue
well beaten, and turned out of the room.
My master gave public notice, that he would show me
again the next market-day, and in the meantime 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 strength;
and that I might have no rest at home, all the neighbouring
gentlemen from a 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 country is very populous) ; and my master
demanded the rate of a full room whenever he showed 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 the 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 I7th 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 Glumdalclitch ride behind him. She carried
me on her lap, in a box tied about her waist. 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, pro-
vided 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 show me in all the towns by
the way, and to step out of the road for fifty or an hundred
GLUMDALCLITCH TEACHES GULLIVER TO READ
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 87
miles, to any village, or person of quality's house, where he
might expect custom. We made easy journeys of not above
seven or eight score miles a day; for Glumdalclitch, 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 show me the country,
but always held me fast by a leading-string. We passed
over five or six rivers, many degrees broader and deeper than
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 shown in eighteen large
towns, besides many villages and private families.
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 hundred feet wide. He provided a table sixty feet
in diameter, upon which I was to act my part, and pallisadoed
it round three feet 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 Glumdalclitch had been my instructor 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.
CHAPTER III
THE frequent labours I underwent, every day, made in
few weeks a very considerable change in my health: the
more my master got by me, the more insatiable he grew.
I had quite lost my stomach, and was almost reduced to
a skeleton. The farmer observed it, and, concluding I must
soon die, 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, com-
manding 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 demeanour: 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
lips. She made me some general questions about my
country, and my travels, which I answered as distinctly
and in as few words as I could. She asked whether I 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 ; but, 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 moidores; but,
GULLIVER KISSES THE QUEEN OF BROBDINGNAGIA'S HAND
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 89
allowing for the proportion of all things between that country
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 understood 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 recompensed by the gain he had
made in showing 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 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
9o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
improprieties and hesitation ; the latter part was altogether
framed in the style peculiar to that people, whereof I learned
some phrases from Gmmdalclitch, while she was carrying 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 splacknuck; 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 scrutoire,
and commanded me to give his Majesty an account of myself,
which I did in a very few words; and Glumdalclitch, 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, arid had been educated in the study of
philosophy, and particularly mathematics, 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 country arrived to a very great
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 Glumdalclitch and her father, who
had taught me a set of words to make me sell at a better
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 know-
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 91
ledge in the language, with some rustic 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
country. These gentlemen, after they had a while examined
my shape with much nicety, were of different opinions con-
cerning 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 swift-
ness, 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. Others
who observed my limbs to be perfect and finished, said
that I had lived several years, as it was manifest 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 feet high.
After much debate, they concluded unanimously that I
was only relplum scalcatch, which is interpreted literally,
lusus natures ; a determination exactly agreeable to the
modern philosophy of Europe, whose professors, disdaining
the old evasion of occult causes, whereby the followers of
Aristotle endeavoured 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 country which abounded
92 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
gentlemen's 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 Glumdalclitch
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 educa-
tion, 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 Glumdalclitch and I should agree upon.
This man was a most ingenious artist, and, according to my
directions, in three weeks finished for me a wooden chamber
of sixteen feet square and twelve high, with sash-windows, a
door, and two closets, like a London bed-chamber. The
board that made the ceiling was to be lifted up and down
by two hinges, to put in a bed ready furnished by her
Majesty's upholsterer, which Glumdalclitch 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 93
in. The room was quilted on all sides, as well as the floor
and the ceiling, to prevent any accident from the careless-
ness 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 ever was 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 Gmmdalclitch might
lose it. The queen likewise ordered the thinnest silks that
could be gotten to make me clothes, 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 and 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 ate, just at her left elbow, and a chair
to sit on. Glumdalclitch stood on 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's, 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 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 crunch the wing of a lark, bones and all,
between her teeth, although it were nine times as large as
94 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
that of a full-grown turkey ; and put a bit of bread into her
mouth as big as two twelve-penny loaves. She drank out
of a golden cup, above a hogshead at a draught. Her
knives were twice as long as a scythe, set straight upon the
handle. The spoons, forks, and other instruments were
all in the same proportion. I remember, when Glumdal-
clitch 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-
cellars. 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 reflections and observations
upon all I said. But I confess, that after I had been a little
too copious in talking of my own beloved country, 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 stroking me gently with the other,
after an hearty fit of laughing, asked me whether I was
a Whig or Tory. Then turning to his first minister, who
waited behind him with a white staff, near as tall as the
main-mast of the Royal Sovereign, he observed how con-
temptible a thing was human grandeur, which could be
mimicked by such diminutive insects as I: 'and yet,"
says he, "I dare engage, these creatures have their titles
and distinctions of honour, they contrive little nests and
burrows, that they call houses and cities; they make a
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 95
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 country, 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 was
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 proportion-
able magnitude, the horror I had at 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 birthday clothes, 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 the 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 angered and mortified me so much as the queen's
dwarf, who, being of the lowest stature that was ever in
that country (for I verily think he was not full thirty feet
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 ante-chamber while I
was standing on some table talking with the lords or ladies
of the Court, and he seldom failed of a smart word or two
upon 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
96 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
pages. One day, at dinner, this malicious little cub 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 Glumdalclitch, 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 clothes, 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 on 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 was
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 knock-
ing out the marrow, placed the bone again in the dish erect,
as it stood before; the dwarf, watching his opportunity,
while Glumdalclitch was gone to the side-board, mounted
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 waist, 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 me; for I thought it below me to cry out.
But, as princes seldom get their meat hot, my legs were not
GULLIVER'S COMBAT WITH THE WASPS
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 97
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 fearfulness ; and she used to ask me whether the people
of my country 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 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 up-
wards upon a ceiling. 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 schoolboys 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 Glumdalclitch had set
me in my box upon a window, as she usually did in the 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 break-
fast, 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
piecemeal 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
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 insects 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 pre-
served them all, and having since shown them with some
other curiosities, in several parts of Europe, upon my return
to England, I gave three of them to Gresham College, and
kept the fourth for myself.
CHAPTER IV
I NOW intend to give the reader a short description of this
country, 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 farther
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 reacheth 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 inhabited at all. On the three other sides it is bounded
by the ocean. There is not one sea-port 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
99
ioo GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 glom-
glungs (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 bare-foot, and
computing by the scale, measured it pretty exactly.
The king's palace is no regular edifice, but an heap of
building about seven miles round: the chief rooms are
generally two hundred and forty feet high, and broad and
long in proportion. A coach was allowed to Glumdalclitch
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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 101
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,
crowded to the sides of the coach, and gave me the most
horrible spectacles that ever an European 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 feet 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 journeys. 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 waist. 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 Majesties' favour than any merit of my own. In
journeys, when I was weary of the coach, a servant on horse-
back would buckle my box, and place it on a cushion before
him ; and there I had a full prospect of the country on three
sides from the three windows. I had in this closet a field-
bed and a hammock hung from the ceiling, 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-voyages, those motions,
io2 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 Glumdalclitch held in her
lap in a kind of open sedan, after the fashion of the country,
borne by four men, and attended by two others in the
queen's livery. The people, who had often heard of me,
were very curious to crowd 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
seen.
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 disap-
pointed; for the height is not above three thousand feet,
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 feet thick, built of hewn
stone, whereof each is about forty feet 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
the statues, and lay unperceived among some rubbish, ard
found it exactly four feet and an inch in length. Glum-
dalclitch wrapped it up in her 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 feet high. The great oven
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 103
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 critic would be apt to think I enlarged a
little, as travellers are often suspected to do. To avoid
which censure, I fear I have run too much into the other
extreme, and that if this treatise should happen to be trans-
lated into the language of Brobdingnag (which is the general
name of that kingdom) and transmitted thither, the king
and his people would have reason tc> 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
feet 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.
CHAPTER V
I SHOULD have lived happy enough in that country 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 watching 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 Glumdalclitch left me on a smooth grass
plot to divert myself, while she walked at some distance
with her governess. In the meantime there suddenly fell
such a violent shower of hail, that I was immediately, by
the force of it, struck to the ground: and, when I was
down, the hailstones gave me such cruel bangs all over
the body, as if I had been pelted with tennis balls; how-
ever, I made a shift to creep on all four, and shelter myself
by lying flat on my face, on the lee side of a border of
lemon 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 country observing the
104
APPLES CAME TUMBLING ABOUT MY EARS
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 105
same proportion through all her operations, a hailstone 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 gardeners, 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 straight 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 gardener, 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 few minutes I came to myself, and he carried
me safe to my little nurse, who by this time had returned
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 gardener 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 Glumdalclitch 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
106 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
in those times when I was left by myself. Once a kite,
hovering over the garden, made a stoop at me, and if I had
not resolutely 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 lie, not worth
remembering, to excuse myself for spoiling my clothes.
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's distance, looking for worms and other
food with as much indifference and security as if no creature
at all were near them. I remember a thrush had the con-
fidence to snatch out of my hand with his bill a piece of
cake that Glumdalclitch had just given me for my break-
fast. 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 hop 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 England swan.
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 107
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 that purpose, and his head cut
off at one blow, with a sword of about forty feet long. The
veins and arteries spouted up such a prodigious quantity
of blood, and so high in the air, that the great jet 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.
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 sail, or an oar, and whether a little exercise of rowing
might not be convenient for my health? I answered, that
I understood both very well: for, although my proper
employment had been to be surgeon or doctor to the ship,
yet often, upon a pinch, I was forced to work like a common
mariner. But I could not see how this could be done in
their country, 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 contrive a boat, her own joiner would 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
io8 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
full of water, with me in it, by way of trial ; 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 joiner to make a wooden trough of three hundred feet
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 showed my art by
steering starboard or larboard, as I pleased. When I had
done, Glumdalclitch 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 liked
to have cost me my life: for, one of the pages having put
my boat into the trough, the governess who attended Glum-
dalclitch very officiously lifted me up to place me in the
boat, but I happened to slip through her fingers, and
should infallibly have fallen down forty feet upon the floor,
if, by the luckiest chance in the world, I had not been
stopped by a corking-pin that stuck in the good gentle-
woman's stomacher; the head of the pin passed between
my shirt and the waistband of my breeches, and thus I was
held by the middle in the air, till Glumdalclitch ran to my
relief.
Another time, one of the servants, whose office it was to
fill my trough every third day with fresh water, was so care-
less, 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 so much
GULLIVER'S ENCOUNTER WITH THE FROG
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 109
on one side, that I was forced to balance it witli 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,
daubing 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 Glum-
dalclitch 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 king-
dom, 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 doors of my bigger box, in
which I usually lived, because of its largeness and conveni-
ency. 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 were much
alarmed, yet I ventured to look out, but not stirring from
my seat; and then I saw this frolicsome 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 have easily done. After some time spent in peeping,
grinning, and chattering, he at last espied 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 seized the lappet of my coat (which, being made
of that country silk, 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
no GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
have seen the same sort of creature do with a kitten in
Europe; and when I offered to struggle, he squeezed me
so 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 stroking my face very gently
with his other paw. In these diversions, he was interrupted
by a noise at the closet door, as if somebody 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 clambered up to a roof that was next to ours. I heard
Glumdalclitch give a shriek 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 tile, and made
his escape. Here I sat for some time, five 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 eaves: but
an honest lad, one of my nurse's footmen, climbed up, and,
putting me into his breeches pocket, brought me down safe.
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG in
I was almost choked 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.
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 sharpened
my stomach. He desired to know what I would have done
upon such an occasion in my own country. 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. However, my speech pro-
duced 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 com-
I I 2
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
parison 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 Glumdalclitch, although she loved me to excess,
yet was arch enough to inform the queen, whenever I com-
mitted any folly that she thought would be diverting to
her Majesty.
CHAPTER VI
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 country, 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 country 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 with
my friend the cabinet-maker, who had received general
orders to do little jobs 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,
113 H
1 14 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 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 feet long, with her Majesty's
name deciphered in gold letters, which I gave to Glumdal-
clitch, 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 music, had frequent concerts
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 music not disagreeable.
I had learned in my youth to play a little upon the spinet.
Glumdalclitch 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 was played
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 feet long, 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 stroke 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 about the
bigness of common cudgels; they were thicker at one
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 115
end than the other, and I covered the thicker ends
with a piece of 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 feet 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 jig, 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 mind he was master of. That
reason did not extend itself with the bulk of the body:
on the contrary, we observed in our country, 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
n6 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
of other monarchs by my former discourses) he should be
glad to hear of anything 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 praise of my own
dear native country, in a style 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
plantations 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 Parlia-
ment, 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 extra-
ordinary care always taken of their education in arts and
arms, to qualify them for being counsellors both 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 country, 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
assembly called the House of Commons, who were all
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 117
principal gentlemen, freely picked and culled out by the
people themselves, for their great abilities, and love of
their country, 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 pro-
perties of men, as well as for the punishment of vice, and
protection of innocence. I mentioned the prudent manage-
ment of our Treasury, the valour and achievements 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 country.
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 are to be created
new lords: whether the humour of the prince, a sum of
money to a court lady, or a prime minister, or a design
of strengthening a party opposite to the public interest,
u8 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
ever happened to be motives in those advancements. What
share of knowledge these lords had in the laws of their
country, and how they came by it, so as to enable them
to decide the properties of their fellow-subjects in their
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 choose 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 expense, often to the ruin of their families,
without any salary or pension : because that appeared such
an exalted strain of virtue and public 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 public
good to the designs of a weak and vicious prince, in con-
junction 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 was the better able to do, having been formerly
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 119
almost ruined by a long suit in chancery, which was decreed
for me with costs. He asked what time was usually spent
in determining between right and wrong, and what degree
of expense. Whether advocates and orators had liberty
to plead in causes manifestly known to be unjust, vexatious,
or oppressive. Whether party in religion or politics were
observed to be of any weight in the scale of j ustice. 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 some-
times amounted to more than double ; for the notes he had
taken were very particular 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 calcula-
tions: 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 wondered to hear me
talk of such chargeable and expensive 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 coast with our fleet. Above all, he was amazed
120 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
to hear me talk of a mercenary 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 represen-
tatives, 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 arithmetic (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 politics. He said he knew no reason
why those who entertain opinions prejudicial to the public,
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 dependence, as well as habituate them to
vile companions, wholly take them from the improvement of
their minds, and force them, by the losses they had 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 a heap of conspiracies, rebellions, murders,
massacres, revolutions, banishments, the very worst effects
that avarice, faction, hypocrisy, perfidiousness, cruelty,
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 121
rage, madness, hatred, envy, lust, malice, or ambition,
could produce.
His Majesty in another audience was at the pains to re-
capitulate 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 stroking 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 panegyric upon your .country :
you have clearly proved, that ignorance, idleness, and vice
are the proper ingredients for qualifying a legislator; that
laws are best explained, interpreted, and applied by those
whose interest and abilities lie 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 perfection is required toward the procure-
ment 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 country, 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 country. But, by what I have gathered
from your own relation, and the answers I
have with much pain 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."
CHAPTER VII
NOTHING but an extreme love of truth could have hindered
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 country 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 vindi-
cation, 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 borne that laudable partiality to my own country,
which Dionysius Halicarnassensis with so much justice re-
commends 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
mighty monarch, although it unfortunately failed of success.
But great allowances should be given to a king who
lives wholly secluded from the rest of the world, and must
therefore be altogether unacquainted with the manners
and customs that must 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
122
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 123
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 agitation 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 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 work-
men how to make those tubes of a size proportionable to
all other things in his Majesty's kingdom, and the largest
need not be above an hundred feet 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 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 for so many marks
that I had received of his royal favour and protection.
124 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 grovelling
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 desola-
tion 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, although 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 char-
acter, I am sensible, will on this account be very much
lessened, in the opinion of an English reader: but I take
this defect among them to have risen from their ignorance,
by not having hitherto reduced politics 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 125
prince or a minister. He could not tell what I 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 bounds, to common sense and reason,
to justice and lenity, to the speedy determination of civil
and criminal causes ; with some other obvious topics, 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 country, than the whole race of
politicians put together.
The learning of this people is very defective, consisting
only in morality, history, poetry, and mathematics, 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 country 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 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 them.
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 feet long, from whence I had liberty to
borrow what books I pleased. The queen's joiner had
126 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
contrived, in one of Glumdalclitch's rooms, a kind of wooden
machine, five and twenty feet high, formed like a standing
ladder, the steps were each fifty feet long: it was, indeed,
a moveable pair of stairs, the lowest end placed at ten feet
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 paste-board, and, in
the largest folios, not above eighteen or twenty feet long.
Their style 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 Glumdalclitch's bed-
chamber, and belonged to her governess, a grave elderly
gentlewoman, who dealt in writings of morality and devo-
tion. 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
country could say upon such a subject. This writer went
through all the usual topics of European moralists, shewing
how diminutive, contemptible, and helpless an animal was
man in his own nature; how unable to defend himself from
inclemencies 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 127
only small 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 con-
firmed by huge bones and skulls casually dug up in several
parts of the kingdom, far exceeding the common dwindling
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
being drowned in a little brook. From this way of reason-
ing, the author drew several moral applications useful in
the conduct of life, but needless here to repeat. For my
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 country, 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 Venice by ballot !
I have often seen the militia of Lorbrulgrud drawn out
to exercise in a great field near the city, of twenty miles
square. They were, in all, not above twenty-five thousand
128 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 ninety feet 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
dominions there is no access from any other country, 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 the whole race of mankind is 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 that kingdom, have been some-
times 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 grandfather in a general
composition; and the militia, then settled with common
consent, hath been ever since kept in the strictest duty.
CHAPTER VIII
I HAD always a strong impulse, that I should some time
recover 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 Lorbrulgrud. 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 forget those domestic 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 with-
out being afraid 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 circumstances of which I shall faithfully relate.
I had now been two years in this country; 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 feet wide. And I had ordered a hammock
129 i
1 3o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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, just over the middle of the hammock,
I ordered the joiner 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 Flan-
flasnic, 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 pre-
tended to be worse than I really was, and desired leave to
take the fresh air of the sea, with a page I was very fond of,
and who had sometimes been trusted with me. I shall
never forget with what unwillingness Glumdalclitch con-
sented, 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,
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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 131
upon the ring which was fastened at the top of my box, for
the conveniency of carriage. I felt my box raised very high
in the air, and then borne forward with prodigious speed.
The first jolt had like to have shaken me out of my ham-
mock, but afterwards 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 over
my head like the clapping of wings, and then began to per-
ceive 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 enabled 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 flutter of wings
to increase 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
perpendicularly down for above a minute, but with such
incredible swiftness that I almost lost my breath. My fall
was stopped by a terrible squash, that sounded louder to
my 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
the 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 above five
feet deep in water. I did then, and do now suppose that
the eagle which flew 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
i 32 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
the prey. The plates of iron fastened at the bottom of the
box (for those were the strongest) preserved the balance
while it fell, and hindered it from being broken on the sur-
face 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 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 Glum-
dalclitch, 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 dis-
tress 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
anything have preserved the windows but the strong
lattice-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 sat 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 133
window, and into which the servant who used to carry me
on horseback would put a leathern belt, and buckle it about
his waist. 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 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 fastened 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 fastened 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 the box.
I found no effect from all I could do, but plainly per-
ceived 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 feet 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
i34 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
voice in the English tongue, if there be anybody 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 was moving, to be de-
livered out of the dungeon I was in. The voice replied, I
was safe, for my box was fastened to their ship; and the
carpenter should immediately come and saw a hole in the
cover large enough to pull me out. I answered, that was
needless, and would take up too much time, for there was
no more to be done, 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 cabin. Some of them, upon hear-
ing 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 car-
penter came, and in few minutes sawed a passage about
four feet 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
thousand 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 Shrop-
shire man, observing I was ready to faint, took me into his
cabin, gave me a cordial to comfort me, and made me to
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 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 cabin, I would open it there before him, and shew him
my goods. The captain, hearing me utter these absurdi-
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 135
ties, 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
bedstead, 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
havoc they 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 o'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 incon-
sistently; 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 o'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
136 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
windows, and the wire-lattices that defended them. That
he discovered two staples upon one side, which was all of
boards, without any passage for light. He then com-
manded his men to row up to that side, and, fastening a
cable to one of the staples, ordered them to tow my chest
(as they called it) towards the ship. 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 pulleys, which all
the sailors were not able to do above two or three feet. He
said they saw my stick and handkerchief thrust out of the
hole, and concluded that some unhappy man must be shut
up in the cavity. I asked whether he or the crew had seen
any prodigious bird in the air about the time he first dis-
covered me? To which he answered that, discoursing this
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 he could not guess the reason of my
question.
I then asked the captain, how far he reckoned 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 country 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 cabin he had provided. I
assured him I was well refreshed with his good entertain-
ment 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 conscious-
ness of some enormous crime, for which I was punished at
the command 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
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 137
should be sorry to have taken so ill a man into his ship, yet
he would engage his word to set me safe ashore in the first
port where we arrived. He added that his suspicions were
much increased by some very absurd speeches I had de-
livered 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 candour and
veracity. But, farther 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 in-
formed me how the seamen disposed of my closet). I
opened it in his presence, and showed him the small collec-
tion of rarities I made in the country 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 materials, 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 wasp-stings, like joiners' 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 showed 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 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.
138 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
Glumdalclitch's men, who was afflicted with the toothache,
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 public. 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 country 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 country,
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, or held in any person's hand. I told him I had like-
wise observed another thing, that when I first got into the
ship, and the sailors stood all about me, I thought they
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 139
were the most little contemptible creatures I had ever
beheld. For, indeed, while I was in that prince's country,
I could never endure to look in a glass, after my eyes had
been accustomed 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 household-stuff 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 my 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 a height into the sea; which would certainly have
been a most astonishing object, worthy to have the descrip-
tion of it transmitted to future ages: and the comparison
of Phaeton was so obvious, that he could not forbear apply-
ing 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 a
long time, and coasting New Holland, kept our course
west-south-west, and then south-south-west, till we doubled
i4o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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-
boat for provisions and fresh water, but I never went out of
the ship till we came into the Downs, which was on the
third day of June, 1706, about nine months after my
escape. I offered to leave my goods in security for pay-
ment of my freight; but the captain protested he would
not receive one farthing. We took kind leave of each
other, and I 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 vvay, 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 feet; and then I went to take her up with
one hand by the waist. 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.
A VOYAGE TO BROBDINGNAG 141
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 meantime, I here conclude the
second part of my unfortunate voyages.
THE END OF THE SECOND PART
PART 3
CHAPTER I
I 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 tons, 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 salary 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
i44 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
difficulty that remained was to persuade my wife, whose
consent, however, I at last obtained, by the prospect of
advantage she proposed to her children.
We set out the 5th day of August, 1706, and arrived at
Fort St. George the nth of April, 1707. We stayed there
three weeks to refresh our crew, many of whom were sick.
From thence we went to Tonquin, where the captain re-
solved to continue some time, because many of the goods
he intended to buy were not ready, nor could he expect to
be dispatched in several 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 traffic, 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 pirates, who soon over-
took us; for my sloop was so deep loaden that she sailed
very slow, neither were we in a condition to defend our-
selves.
We were boarded about the same time by both the pirates,
who entered 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 Dutchman, 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 tied 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 145
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 threatenings, and, turning to his
companions, spoke with great vehemence, in the Japanese
language, as I suppose, often using the word Christianas.
The largest of the two pirate ships was commanded by
a Japanese captain, who spoke a little Dutch, but very im-
perfectly. He came up to me, and after several questions,
which I answered in great humility, he said we should not
die. I made the captain a very low bow, and, then turning
to the Dutchman, 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 die) however prevailed so far as to have a
punishment inflicted on me, worse, in all human appear-
ance, than death itself. My men were sent, by an equal
division, into both the pirate 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
Dutchman, standing upon the deck, loaded me with all the
curses and injurious terms his language could afford.
About an hour before we saw the pirates, 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 pirates, 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.
146 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
I ate no other supper, being resolved to spare my provisions
as much as I could. I passed the night under the shelter
of a rock, strewing 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 parti-
cular account of my distresses, let it suffice that, on the fifth
day, 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 fuel. I slept very little, for the disquiets of my mind
prevailed over my weariness, and kept me awake. I con-
sidered 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 obscure, as I thought, in a
manner very different from what happens by the interposi-
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 147
tion of a cloud. I turned back, and perceived a vast
opaque 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 darkened, than
if I had stood under the shade of a mountain. As it ap-
proached nearer over the place where I was, it appeared to
be a firm substance, the bottom flat, smooth, and shining
very bright from the reflection of the sea below. I stood
upon a height, about two hundred yards from the shore,
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.
The natural love of life gave me some inward motions of
joy, and I was ready to entertain a hope that this adven-
ture 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
progressive motion, as they pleased. But, not being at
that time in a disposition to philosophise upon this pheno-
menon, 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, encompassed 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
148 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 shout-
ing. But I could see four or five men running in great
haste up the stairs to the top of the island, who then dis-
appeared. I happened rightly to conjecture that these
were sent for orders to some person in authority upon this
occasion.
The number of people increased, 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 a
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,
and go towards the shore, 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 fastened to the bot-
tom, to which I fixed
myself, and was
drawn up by
pulleys.
CHAPTER II
AT my alighting, I 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 of
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, guitars, harpsicords, and many
other instruments of music, unknown to us in Europe. I
observed, here and there, many in the habit of servants,
with a blown bladder fastened like a flail to the end of a short
stick, which they carried in their hands. In each bladder
was a small quantity of dried pease, or little pebbles (as I
was afterwards informed). 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 speculations, that they neither can speak,
nor attend to the discourses of others, without being roused
by some external taction upon the organs of speech and
hearing; for which reason, those persons, who are able to
afford it always keep a flapper (the original is climenole) in
their family, as one of their domestics, nor ever walk abroad,
or make visits, without 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
149
1 5o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
addresseth himself. This flapper is likewise employed
diligently to attend his master in his walks, and, upon occa-
sion, 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 jostling others, or being
jostled himself, into the kennel.
It was necessary to give the reader this information,
without which he would be at the same loss with me, to
understand the proceedings of these people, as they con-
ducted 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 roused 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 entered 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 en-
trance 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 their hands, and, when they saw he was
at leisure, one of them gently struck his mouth, and the
other his right ear; at 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 flapped me gently on the right ear, but I
A LAPUTIAN GENTLEMAN TAKING A WALK
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 151
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
his 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 rhomboid, and a pudding into a cycloid.
The second course was two ducks, trussed up into the form
of fiddles; sausages and puddings resembling flutes and
hautboys, and a breast of veal in the shape of a harp. The
servants cut our bread into cones, cylinders, parallelo-
grams, 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 abili-
ties, 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
books, giving me to understand by signs, that he was sent
to teach me the language. We sat together four hours, in
which time I wrote down a great number of words in
columns, with the translations over-against them; I like-
wise made a shift to learn several short sentences. For my
152 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
tutor would order one of my servants to fetch something, to
turn about, to make a bow, to sit, or to 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 Zodiac, 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, signi-
fieth high, and untuh, a governor, from which they say, by
corruption, 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 tailor to come next morning
and take my measure for a suit of clothes. This operator
did his office after a different manner from those of his
trade in Europe. He first took my altitude by a quadrant,
and then, with rule and compasses, described the dimen-
sions and outlines of my whole body, all which he entered
upon paper, and in six days brought my clothes very ill
made, and quite out of shape, by happening to mistake a
figure in the calculation. But my comfort was, that I
observed such accidents very frequent, and little regarded.
During my confinement for want of clothes, and by an
indisposition that held me some days longer, I much en-
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 153
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 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 progres-
sive motion made in the air by the island. On the second
morning, about eleven o'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 intermission, 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 music 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 peti-
tions of his subjects. And, to this purpose, several pack-
threads 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 fastened
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 pulleys.
The knowledge I had in mathematics gave me great
assistance in acquiring their phraseology, which depended
much upon that science and music ; 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 geome-
i54 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
trical terms, or by words of art drawn from music, 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 joints that were served to his
Majesty's 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 mechanic, those instructions they
give being too refined for the intellectuals of their workmen,
which occasions perpetual mistakes. And although they
are dexterous enough upon a piece of paper in the manage-
ment 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 mathematics and music. 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
astronomical part, have great faith in judicial astrology,
although they are ashamed to own it publicly. But, what
I chiefly admired, and thought altogether unaccountable,
was the strong disposition I observed in them towards news
and politics, perpetually enquiring into public affairs, giving
their judgments in matters of state, and passionately dis-
puting every inch of a party opinion. I have, indeed,
observed the same disposition among most of the mathe-
maticians 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 155
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
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 perihelion 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 anni-
hilated; 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
156 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 stroke of the
approaching comet. This conversation they are apt to
run into with the same temper that boys discover, in de-
lighting to hear terrible stories of spirits and hobgoblins,
which they greedily listen to, and dare not go to bed for
fear.
The wives and daughters lament their confinement to
the island, although I think it the most delicious spot of
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
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 frequent experience how hard it is to per-
suade their women to return from below.
In about a month's time, I had made a tolerable profi-
ciency 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 mathematics, and received the account I
gave him with great contempt and indifference, though
often roused by his flapper on each side.
CHAPTER III
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 a 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 lie the several minerals in
their usual order, and over all is a coat of rich mould, ten
or twelve feet deep. The declivity of the upper surface,
from the circumference to the centre, is the natural cause
why all the dews and rains which fall upon the island are
conveyed in small rivulets towards the middle, where they
are emptied into four large basins, each of about half a
mile in circuit, and two hundred yards distant from the
centre. From these basins, the water is continually ex-
haled by the sun in the daytime, which effectually prevents
their overflowing. 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 when-
ever 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 centre of the island there is a chasm about fifty
yards in diameter, from whence the astronomers descend
158 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
into a large dome, which is therefore called Flandona
Gagnole, 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 sex-
tants, quadrants, telescopes, astrolabes, and other astrono-
mical instruments. But the greatest curiosity, upon which
the fate of the island depends, is a loadstone 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 poised so exactly that the weakest hand can turn it.
It is hooped round with a hollow cylinder of adamant, four
feet 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 loadstone 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
extremity 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.
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 159
Laputa D
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 across the
dominions of Balnibarbi, let the line c d represent the load-
stone, of which let d be the repelling end, and c the attract-
ing end, the island being over C ; let the stone be placed in
the position c d, with its repelling end downwards; then
the island will be driven up obliquely towards D. When it
has 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 F,
with its repelling point downward, the island will rise
obliquely towards F, 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 downward. And thus, by changing the
situation of the stone as often as there is occasion, the
160 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
island is made to rise and fall by turns in an oblique direc-
tion, 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 magnetic 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
shore, is not diffused through the whole globe, but ter-
minated 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 stands still; for, in that case, the ex-
tremities 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 loadstone is under the care of certain astronomers,
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 assistance of glasses far excelling ours in goodness.
For, although their largest telescopes do not exceed three
feet, they magnify much more than those of a hundred
yards among us, and, at the same time, shew the stars with
greater clearness. This advantage 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 dis-
covered two lesser stars, or satellites, which revolve about
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 161
Mars, whereof the innermost is distant from the centre of
the primary planet exactly three of his diameters, and the
outermost five; the former revolves in the space of ten
hours, and the latter in twenty-one and a half; so that the
squares of their periodical times are very near in the same
proportion with the cubes of their distance from the centre
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 public, 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 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 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 insurrec-
tions, he proceeds to the last remedy, by letting the island
drop directly upon their heads, which makes a universal
1 62 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 demesne.
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 situation 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 shock,
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 all this the people are well apprised, 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 determined to press a city to
rubbish, orders the island to descend with great gentleness,
out of a pretence of tenderness to his people; but, indeed,
for fear of breaking the adamantine bottom ; in which case,
it is the opinion of all their philosophers that the loadstone
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.
CHAPTER IV
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 mathematics and music, 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
disagreeable companions. I conversed only with women,
tradesmen, flappers, and Court pages during two months of
my abode there; by which, at last, I rendered myself ex-
tremely 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 know-
ledge 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.
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
music, that his detractors reported he had been often
known to beat time in the wrong place; neither could his
163
1 64 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
tutors, without extreme difficulty, teach him to demon-
strate the most easy proposition in the mathematics. He
was pleased to show 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
listened to me with great attention, 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 entreated this illustrious person to intercede in my
behalf with his Majesty for leave to depart, which he ac-
cordingly did, as he was pleased to tell me, with regret;
for, indeed, he had made me several offers very advan-
tageous, which, however, I refused with expressions of the
highest acknowledgment.
On the i6th 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 Balni-
barbi ; 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,
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 165
ordered me an apartment in his own house, where I con-
tinued 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 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 pro-
duced; but, on the contrary, I never knew a soil so un-
happily 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.
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 topics 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 or looks of his domestics.
1 66 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
This he might safely do, because everything about him
was magnificent, regular, and polite. I answered that his
Excellency's 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 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 despised 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 groves, were all disposed with exact judgment and
taste. I gave due praise to everything 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, Ere. 167
present mode, destroy all his plantations, and cast others
into such a form as modern usage required; and give the
same directions to all his tenants, unless he would sub-
mit to incur the censure of pride, singularity, affectation,
ignorance, caprice, and, perhaps, increase his Majesty's
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 specula-
tions 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' continu-
ance, came back with a very little smattering in mathe-
matics, but full of volatile spirits, acquired in that airy
region. That these persons, upon their return, began to
dislike the management of everything below, and fell into
schemes of putting all arts, sciences, languages, and
mechanics upon a new foot. To this end they procured a
royal patent for erecting an academy of projectors in
Lagado; and the humour prevailed 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 what-
ever season we think fit to choose, and increase an hundred
fold more than 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
meantime, the whole country lies miserably waste, the
houses in ruins, and the people without food or clothes. By
all which, instead of being discouraged, they are fifty times
1 68 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
more violently bent upon prosecuting their schemes, driven
equally on by hope and despair: that as for himself, being
not of an enterprising 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 commonwealth's
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 con-
venient 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, descend-
ing 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 complied with the pro-
posal; and, after employing an hundred men for two years,
the work miscarried, the projectors went off, laying the
blame entirely upon him, railing at him ever since, and
putting others upon the same experiment, with equal assur-
ance of success, as well as equal disappointment.
In a few days we came back to town, and his Excellency,
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 169
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
without truth; for I had myself been a sort of projector in
my younger days.
CHAPTER V
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 meagre aspect, with sooty
hands and face, his hair and beard long, ragged and singed
in several places. His clothes, 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 sunshine 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.
I saw another at work to calcine ice into gunpowder,
who likewise shewed me a treatise he had written concern-
ing the malleability of fire, which he intended to publish.
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 justi-
fied to me, by the like practice of those two prudent insects,
the bee and the spider.
170
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 171
There was a man born blind, who had several appren-
tices in his own condition: their employment was to mix
colours for painters, which their master taught them to dis-
tinguish by feeling and smelling. It was, indeed, my mis-
fortune to find them, at that time, not very perfect in their
lessons, and the professor himself happened to be generally
mistaken: this 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 ploughs, cattle, and labour.
The method is this: in an acre of ground you bury, at six
inches distance, and eight deep, a quantity of acorns, dates,
chestnuts, and other mast, or vegetables, whereof these
animals are fondest: then you drive six hundred, or more
of them, into the field, where, in few days, they will root up
the whole ground in search of their food, and make it fit
for sowing; 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 domestic 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 would 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 everybody's fancy, as soon as he
could find proper food for the flies, of certain gums, oils, and
i72 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
other glutinous matter, to give a strength and consistence
to the threads.
There was an astronomer, who had undertaken to place
a sundial upon the great weather-cock on the town house,
by adjusting the annual and diurnal motions oi the earth
and sun, so as to answer and coincide with all accidental
turnings of the wind.
I visited many other apartments, but shall not trouble
my reader with all the curiosities I observed, being studious
of brevity.
I had hitherto seen only one side of the academy, 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 pin-cushions; others petrifying the
hoofs of a living horse, to preserve them from foundering.
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 projectors 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 173
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 sprang in any other man's head.
Every one knew how laborious the usual method is of attain-
ing to arts and sciences; whereas, by his contrivance, the
most ignorant person, at a reasonable charge, and with a
little bodily labour may write books in philosophy, poetry,
politics, law, mathematics, 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 feet square, placed in the middle of the
room. The superficies was composed of several bits of
wood, about the bigness of a die, 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 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
174 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 complete body of all arts and
sciences; which, however, might be still improved, and
much expedited, if the public 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 emptied the whole
vocabulary into his frame, and made the strictest compu-
tation 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 acknowledgment 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 to steal inven-
tions from each other, who had thereby, at least, this ad-
vantage, 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 languages, where three
professors sat 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 project 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 diminu-
TWO OF THOSE SAGES . . LIKE PEDLARS AMONG US
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 175
tion of our lungs by corrosion; and consequently con-
tributes to the shortening of our lives. An expedient was
therefore offered, that since words are only names for things,
it would be more convenient 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 threatened to raise a
rebellion, unless they might be allowed the liberty to speak
with their tongues after the manner of their fore-fathers;
such constant irreconcilable 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 great, 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 pedlars among us; who, when they met in the streets,
would lay down their loads, open their sacks, and hold
conversation for an hour together; then put up their
implements, help each other resume their burthens, and
take their leave.
But, for short conversations, a man may carry imple-
ments 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 practise this art, is full
of all things ready at hand, requisite to furnish matter for
tlu's 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
1 76 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
ambassadors 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 cephalic
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 had 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.
CHAPTER VI
IN the school of political projectors, I was but ill enter-
tained; 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 choose favourites upon
the score of their wisdom, capacity, and virtue ; of teaching
ministers to consult the public 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 choosing for em-
ployments persons qualified to exercise them; with many
other wild impossible chimaeras, that never entered before
into the heart of man to conceive ; and confirmed in me the
old observation, that there is nothing so extravagant and
irrational 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
government. 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
public administration are subject, by the vices or infirmi-
ties 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 anything more evident, than that the health of
both must be preserved, and the diseases cured by the same
prescriptions ? It is allowed that senates and great councils
I77 M
178 GULLIVERS TRAVELS
are often troubled with redundant, ebullient, and other
peccant humours; with many diseases of the head, and
more of the heart. 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 day's debate, feel the pulses of every senator;
after which, having maturely considered, and consulted
upon the nature of the several maladies, and the methods
of cure, they should on the fourth day return to the senate-
house, attended by their apothecaries stored with proper
medicines; and, according as these medicines should
operate, repeat, alter, or admit them at the next meeting.
This project could not be of any great expense to the
public, 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,
rouse the stupid, and damp the pert.
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 corns, or lug him thrice by
both ears, or run a pin into his breech, or pinch his arm
black and blue, to prevent forgetf ulness ; 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
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 public.
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 179
When parties in a state are violent, he offered a wonder-
ful 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 ;
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
interchanged, 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
dexterously performed, 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
skull, would soon come to a good understanding, and pro-
duce 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 have received; for which they are allowed to
be their own vouchers. Wit, valour, and politeness were
i8o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
like\vise proposed to be largely taxed, and collected in the
same manner, by every person 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.
Another professor shewed me a large paper of instruc-
tions for discovering plots and conspiracies against the
government.
The whole discourse was written with great acuteness,
containing many observations both curious and useful for
politicians; but, as I conceived, not altogether complete.
This I ventured to tell the author, and offered, if he pleased,
to supply him with some additions. He received my pro-
position with more compliance than usual among writers,
especially those of the projecting species; professing he
would be glad to receive farther information.
I told him, that in the kingdom of Tribnia, by the
natives called Langden, where I had sojourned some time
in my travels, the bulk of the people consist, in a manner,
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 181
wholly of discoverers, witnesses, informers, accusers, prose-
cutors, evidences, swearers, together with their several
subservient and subaltern instruments, all under the
colours, the conduct, and pay of ministers of state, and their
deputies. The plots in that kingdom are usually the work-
manship of those persons, who desire to raise their own
characters of profound politicians; to restore new vigour to
a crazy administration; to stifle or divert general discon-
tents; to fill their pockets with forfeitures; and raise or
sink the opinion of the public credit, as either shall best
answer their private advantage. It is first agreed and
settled among them, what suspected persons shall be
accused of a plot; then effectual care is taken to secure all
their letters and papers, and put the criminals in chains.
These papers are delivered to a set of artists, very dexterous
in finding out the mysterious meanings of words, syllables,
and letters: for instance, they can discover a flock of geese
to signify a senate; a lame dog, an invader; the plague, a
standing army; a buzzard, a prime minister; the gout, a
high priest ; a gibbet, a secretary of state ; a sieve, a court
lad}'; a broom, a revolution; a mouse-trap, an employ-
ment; a bottomless pit, a treasury; a sink, a court; a cap
and bells, a favourite; a broken reed, a court of justice;
an empty tun, a general ; a running sore, the adminis-
tration.
Where this method fails, they have two others more
effectual, which the learned among them call acrostics and
anagrams. First, they can decipher all initial letters into
political meanings. Thus N shah1 signify a plot, B a regi-
ment of horse, L a fleet at sea: or, secondly, by transposing
the letters of the alphabet in any suspected paper, they can
lay open 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 skilful decipherer
would discover that the same letters which compose that
sentence, may be analysed in the following words: Resist,
182
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
-the tour. And this is the
a plot is brought home-
anagrammatic method.
The professor made me great acknowledgments for com-
municating these observations, and promised to make
honourable 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.
CHAPTER VII
THE continent of which this kingdom is a part extends
itself, as I have reason to believe, eastward to that unknown
tract of America, westward of California, and north to the
Pacific Ocean, which is not above a hundred and fifty miles
from Lagado; where there is a good port, and much com-
merce with the great island of Luggnagg, situated to the
north-west about 29 degrees north latitude, and 140 longi-
tude. 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 pro-
tector, 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
acquaintance, and was very hospitably received. A gentle-
man 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.
183
184 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
Glubbdubdrib, 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 fruit-
ful : 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 feet high. In
this park are several small inclosures for cattle, corn, and
gardening.
The governor and his family are served and attended
by domestics 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 governor, 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 antique 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 chamber
of presence, where, after three profound obeisances, 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 Balnibarbi, although it were
different from that of this island. He desired me to give
him 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 185
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 governor assured me that I
should receive no 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 domestic
spectres. I had the honour to dine with the governor,
where a new set 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 in-
vitation 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 governor, 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 governor, and at
night in our lodging. I soon grew so familiarised 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 governor ordered me to call up whatever persons I
would choose to name, and in whatever numbers, among
all the dead, from the beginning of the world to this 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 the truth, for lying was a talent of
no use in the lower world.
I made my humble acknowledgments to his highness
for so great a favour. We were in a chamber from whence
1 86 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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-
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 my own. He assured me, upon his honour,
that he was not poisoned, but died 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.
I saw Caesar 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 a modern representa-
tive in counterview, in another. The first seemed to be an
assembly of heroes and demi-gods, the other a knot of
pedlars, pick-pockets, highway-men, and bullies.
The governor, at my request, gave the sign for Caesar
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 countenance. I observed, with much
pleasure, that these two persons were in good intelligence
with each other ; and Caesar 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 conversation with Brutus, and was told, that
his ancestors 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.
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 187
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 my 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.
CHAPTER VIII
HAVING a desire to see those ancients who were most
renowned for wit and learning, I set apart one day on pur-
pose. 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 crowd, but from each other. Homer was the taller
and comelier 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 meagre, 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 commen-
tators 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 misrepre-
sented the meaning of those authors to posterity. I intro-
duced Didyinus 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 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 governor to call up Descartes and
Gassendi, with whom I prevailed to explain their systems
to Aristotle. This great philosopher freely acknowledged
1 88
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. i
his own mistakes in natural philosophy, because he pro-
ceeded in many things upon conjecture, as all men must
do; and he found that Gassendi, who had made the doc-
trine 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 those who pretend to demonstrate them from mathe-
matical 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 governor to call up Eliogabalus's cooks
to dress us a dinner, but they could not show 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 governor 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 fiddlers, 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 parti-
cular features by which certain families are distinguished
1 9o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 femina casta. How
cruelty, falsehood, and cowardice grew to be characteristics
by which certain families are distinguished as much as by
their coat of arms.
Neither could I wonder at all this, when I saw such an
interruption of lineages by pages, lacqueys, valets, coach-
men, gamesters, fiddlers, players, captains, and pickpockets.
I was chiefly disgusted with modern history. For,
having 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, Roman virtue to
betrayers of their country, piety to atheists, truth to in-
formers: how many innocent and excellent persons had
been condemned 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 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 enterprises 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 ambassadors and secretaries of state; and have the
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 191
perpetual misfortune to be mistaken. Here I discovered
the true causes of many great events that have surprised 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 con-
fided: 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, w'as a perpetual clog to public
business.
I had the curiosity to inquire, in a particular manner, by
what method great numbers had procured to themselves
high titles of honour and prodigious estates; and I con-
fined my inquiry to a very modern period: however, with-
out grating upon present times, because I would be sure to
give 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, and the like infirmities were
amongst the most excusable arts they had to mention, and
for these I gave, as it was reasonable, due allowance. But
when some confessed they owed their greatness 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 pro-
found veneration which I am naturally apt to pay to persons
of high rank, who ought to be treated with the utmost
i92 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
respect due to their sublime dignity by us, their in-
feriors.
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 inquiry, 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 ah1 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 others, 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
enemy's 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 the confidence of some merit, the war
being at an end, he went to Rome, and solicited at the court
of Augustus, to be preferred to a greater ship, whose com-
mander 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 vessel,
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.
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 193
I was surprised to find corruption grown so high and so
quick in that empire, by the force of luxury so lately in-
troduced, 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 com-
mander, who, perhaps, had the least title to either.
As every person called up made exactly the same
appearance he had done in the world, it gave me melan-
choly 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 unmoved, 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
grandchildren, who, in selling their votes, and managing
at elections, have acquired every vice and corruption that
can possibly be learned in a court.
N
CHAPTER IX
THE day of our departure being come, I took leave of his
highness, the governor of Glubbdubdribb, 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 voyage. 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 2ist of April, 1708, we sailed into the river of Clumegnig,
which is a seaport town, at the south-east point of Lugg-
nagg. 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 inad-
vertence, 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
Balnibarbi, which, by the force of much commerce, is
generally understood in that town, especially by seamen,
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.
194
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 195
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 immedi-
ately, and hoped to receive an answer in a fortnight. I was
carried to a convenient lodging, with a sentry 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 invited 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 conver-
sation 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
expected. It contained a warrant for conducting me and
my retinue to Traldragdubb, or Trildrogdrib, for it is pro-
nounced both ways, as near as I can remember, by a party
of ten horse. All my retinue was that poor lad for an
interpreter, whom I persuaded into my service, and, at my
humble request, we had each of us a mule to ride on. A
messenger was dispatched 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 dust before his foot-stool. 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
196 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
advanced; but, on account of my being a stranger, care
was taken to have it made so clean that the dust was not
offensive. However, this was a 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 the floor
to be strewed 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 domestics neglect, they are in danger of incurring his
royal displeasure. I myself heard him give directions that
one of his pages should be whipped, 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
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 197
ground, I pronounced the following words, as they had been
taught me the night before, Ickpling gloffthrobb squut
serumm blhiop mlashnalt zwin tnodbalkuffh slhiophad gurd-
lubh asht. This is the compliment established by the laws
of the land, for all persons admitted to the king's presence.
It may be rendered into English thus: May your celestial
Majesty outlive the sun eleven moons and a half. To this
the king returned some answer, which although I could not
understand, yet I replied as I had been directed: Fluff
drin 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
answered as many questions as his Majesty could put in
above an hour. I spoke in the Balnibarbian tongue, and
my interpreter delivered my meaning in that of Luggnagg.
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 expenses.
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.
CHAPTER X
THE Luggnaggians 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 as are
countenanced by the Court. I had many acquaintances
among persons of the best fashion, and being always at-
tended by my interpreter, 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 struld-
brugs, or immortals. I said I had not; and desired he
would explain to me what he meant by such an appellation,
applied 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 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 mere
effect of chance; and the children of the struldbrugs them-
selves were equally mortal with the rest of the people.
198
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 199
I freely own myself to have been struck with inex-
pressible 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 extra-
vagant. I cried out, as in a rapture: ' Happy nation,
where every child hath at least a chance of 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 disengaged, without the weight
and depression of spirits caused by the continual apprehen-
sion of death." I discovered my admiration that I had
not observed any of these illustrious persons at Court; the
black spot on the forehead being so remarkable a distinc-
tion, 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 councillors. 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 this
country, I would with great thankfulness accept the favour,
and pass my life here in the conversation of those superior
beings, the struldbrugs, if they would please to admit me.
The gentleman to whom I addressed my discourse,
because (as I have already observed) he spoke the language
200 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
permission 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
discourse 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 public,
impartially draw the characters of the several successions
of princes, and great ministers of state, with my own obser-
THE STRULDBRUGS
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 201
vations on every point. I would exactly set down the
several changes in customs, language, fashions of dress,
diet and diversions. By all which acquirements, I should
be a living treasury of knowledge and wisdom, and cer-
tainly 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 myself 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 public
and private life. But my choice and constant companions
should be a set of my own immortal brotherhood, among
whom I would elect a dozen from the most ancient, down
to my own contemporaries. 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 revo-
lutions of states and empires ; the changes in the lower and
upper world; ancient cities in ruins, and obscure villages
become the seats of kings; famous rivers lessening into
202 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
shallow brooks; the ocean leaving one coast dry, and over-
whelming another; the discovery of many countries yet
unknown; barbarity over-running the politest nations, and
the most barbarous become civilised. 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 astro-
nomy, 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 topics, 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 intrepreted, 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
expense. 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 imbecility 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 ambassador from his Majesty, and found
the natives in both those kingdoms very hard to believe
that the fact was possible; 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 mentioned,
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 evil, from which Nature
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 203
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 stmldbrugs 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 choose to be always in the prime of youth, at-
tended 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 observed 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, increasing
in both till they came to fourscore. This he learned 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 in-
firmities 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 incapable of friendship, and dead to all
natural affection, which never descended below their grand-
204 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
children. Envy 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 anything but what they learned
and observed 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 completed the term of eighty
years, they are looked on as dead in law; their heirs im-
mediately succeed to their estates, only a small pittance is
reserved for their support; and the poor ones are main-
tained at the public 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 what-
ever they can get, without relish or appetite. The diseases
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 205
they were subject to still continue, without increasing or
diminishing. In talking, they forget the common appel-
lation 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 public,
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 register; which, however, hath
not been kept above a thousand years past, or, at least,
hath been destroyed by time, or public 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 consulting history; for, infallibly, the last prince in
206 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 distinguished which was the eldest, although
there was not above a century or two between them.
The reader will easily believe that from what I have
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 expense of transporting them.
I could not but agree that the laws of this king-
dom, 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 abili-
ties to manage, must
end in the ruin
of the public.
CHAPTER XI
I THOUGHT this account of the strudlbrugs 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 tran-
scribed 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 entirely a stranger to the language,
that I was not qualified to make any inquiries. 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
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 6th day of May 1709, I took a solemn leave of
his Majesty, and all my friends. This prince was so gracious
as to order a guard to conduct me to Glanguenstald, which
is a royal port to the south-west part of the island. In six
207
zoS GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
Japan; the town lies on the western point, where there is
a narrow strait, leading northward into a long arm of the
sea, upon the north-west part of which, Yedo, the metro-
polis, 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 magis-
trates of the town, hearing of my letter, received me as a
public minister; they provided me with carriages and
servants, and bore my charges to Yedo, where I was ad-
mitted to an audience, and delivered my letter, which was
opened with great ceremony, and explained to the Emperor
by an interpreter, who 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 weh1. I answered (as I had before deter-
mined) that I was a Dutch merchant, shipwrecked in a very
remote country, from whence I had 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 conde-
scend 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,
A VOYAGE TO LAPUTA, ETC. 209
without any intention of trading. When this latter peti-
tion was interpreted to the Emperor, he seemed a little
surprised; 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
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 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 in-
structions about the business of the crucifix.
On the gth 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 tons. 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 inquire 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 Gelderland. 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?
zio GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
I evaded the question by general answers, that I had satis-
fied the Emperor, and Court, in all particulars. However,
a malicious rogue of a skipper went to an officer, and, point-
ing 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 sailed with a fair wind to the Cape of Good Hope, where
we stayed only to take in fresh water. On the i6th of April
we arrived safely 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 loth of April 1710, we put in at the Downs. I
landed next morning, and saw once more my native country,
after an absence of five years and six months complete. I
went straight 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
CHAPTER I
I 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 and accepted an advantageous offer
made me, to be captain of the Adventure, a stout merchant-
man, of 350 tons; for I understood 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 2nd day
of August 1710; on the I4th we met with Captain Pocock,
of Bristol, at Teneriffe, who was going to the Bay of Cam-
pechy, to cut logwood. On the i6th he was parted from
us by a storm; I heard, since my return, that his ship
foundered, and none escaped but one cabin-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
211
212 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 buccaneers. I had fifty hands on board, and my
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
cabin, and binding me hand and foot, threatening to throw
me overboard 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 sentry 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 pirates, 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 cabin, and expecting nothing less than to be
murdered, as they often threatened me.
Upon the Qth day of May 1711, one James Welch came
down to my cabin, and said he had orders from the captain
to set me ashore. I expostulated 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 clothes, which were as good as new, and a
small bundle of linen, 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 213
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 pushed off
immediately, advising me to make haste, for fear of being
overtaken by the tide, and so bade me farewell.
In this desolate condition I advanced forward, and soon
got upon firm ground, where I sat down on a bank to rest
myself, and consider what I had best 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 circum-
spectly, for fear of being surprised, or suddenly shot with
an arrow from behind, 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 frizzled, 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
were accustomed to sit as well as to lie down, and often
stood on their hind feet. They climbed high trees as
2i4 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 pro-
digious agility. The females were not so large as the males ;
they had long lank hair on their heads, but none on their
faces, nor anything more than a sort of down on the rest of
their bodies. The hair of both sexes was of several colours,
brown, red, black, 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 cabin of some Indian. I had not
got 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 with the edge, fearing the inhabi-
tants 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, howling 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 discovered, was the
cause of their flight. The horse started a little when he
came near me, but soon recovering himself looked full in my
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 215
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
v/ay, 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 stroke it, using the
common style and whistle of jockeys, when they are going
to handle a strange horse. But this animal seemed to
receive my civilities with disdain, shook his head, and bent
his brows, softly raising up his right fore-foot to remove my
hand. 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
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, until 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 further commands, but concealing my
fear as much as I could; for I began to be in some pain how
216 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 upon my face and hands. The grey steed
rubbed my hat all round with his right fore-hoof, and dis-
composed it so much, that I was forced to adjust it better,
by taking it off, and settling it again; whereat both he and
his companion (who was a brown bay) appeared to be much
surprised ; the latter felt the lappet of my coat, and, finding
it to hang loose about me, they both looked with 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, and
using various gestures, not unlike those of a philosopher,
when he would attempt to solve some new and difficult
phenomenon.
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 under-
stand any language; therefore, I make bold to let your
worships know, that I am a poor distressed Englishman,
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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 217
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, although
it was impossible for me to conjecture what it meant, yet,
while the two horses were busy in conversation, I en-
deavoured to practise 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
surprised, and the grey repeated the same word twice, as if
he meant to teach me the right accent, wherein I spoke
after him as well as I could, and found myself perceivably
to improve every time, though far from any degree of per-
fection. 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.
CHAPTER II
HAVING travelled about three miles, we came to a long kind
of building, made of timber, stuck in the ground, and
wattled across; 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 domestic business. These seemed but ordinary cattle;
however, this confirmed my first opinion, that a people who
could so far civilise 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 the
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
218
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 219
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 comprehension. I
feared my brain was disturbed by my sufferings and mis-
fortunes : 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 appear-
ances could be nothing else but necromancy and magic.
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 foal, sitting on their haunches,
upon mats of straw, not unartfu'ly made, and perfectly
neat and clean.
The mare, soon after my entrance, rose from her mat,
and coming up close, after having nicely observed my hands
and face, gave me a most contemptuous look; then, turn-
ing to the horse, I heard the word Yahoo often repeated
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 beckoning to me with
his head, and repeating the word Hhuun, Hhunn, as he did
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 entered, and I
saw three of those 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.
220 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
They were all tied by the neck with strong withes, 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 observed 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
grovelling 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, though 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 clothes,
whereof they had no conception : the sorrel nag offered me
a root, which he held (after their manner, as we shall de-
scribe 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 221
shewed me a wisp of hay, and a fetlock 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. This
the master horse observed by my behaviour, and therefore
sent the Yahoo back to his kennel. He then put his fore-
hoof to his mouth, at which I was much surprised, although
he did it with ease, and with a motion that appeared per-
fectly 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 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 sat
on their haunches upon bosses of straw. In the middle was
222 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 foal appeared very modest; and that of the master
and mistress extremely cheerful 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.
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 com-
pany was pleased 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,
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 hluunh. 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 ordered 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 223
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 ate
warm with milk. It was at first a very insipid diet, though
common enough in many parts of Europe, but grew toler-
able 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 stayed in this
island. It is true, I sometimes made a shift to catch a
rabbit, or bird, by springs made of Yahoo's hairs; and I
often gathered wholesome herbs, which I boiled, or eat as
salads 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 me to the
want of it; and I am confident that the frequent use of
salt among us is an effect of luxury, and was first intro-
duced only as a provocative to drink; except where it is
necessary for preserving 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 anything that I ate.
This is enough to say upon the subject of my diet, where-
with other travellers fill their books, as if the readers were
personally concerned, whether we fared well or ill. How-
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 clothes,
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.
CHAPTER III
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 everything, and inquired 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 grace-
ful 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 to those animals. He was most perplexed
about my clothes, 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 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
224
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 225
and pronouncing their words and sentences. To help my
memory, I formed all I learned into the English alphabet,
and writ the words down, with the translations. This last,
after some time, I ventured 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 im-
prove 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 foal, and the servants of the family,
to take all opportunities of instructing me; and every day,
p
226 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 won-
derful Yahoo, that could speak like a Houyhnhnm, and
seemed, in his words and actions, to discover some glimmer-
ings 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 spoken, and could express myself tolerably
well.
The Houyhnhnms who came to visit my master, out
of a design of seeking and talking with me, could hardly
believe me to be a right Yahoo, because my body had
a different covering 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 fortnight 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 clothes: 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 clothes
fallen off on one side, and my shirt above my waist. 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 discovered;
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; that his valet
assured him some part of me was white, some yellow, at
least not so white, and some brown.
I had hitherto concealed the secret of my dress, in order
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 227
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 clothes 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
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 waist-
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
clothes in his pastern, one piece after another, and examined
them diligently; he stroked 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
whiteness, 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 clothes again, for
I was shuddering 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 make 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, so long as my present clothing should last ; for as
228 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 clothes began to wear out,
which I was forced to supply by several contrivances, that
shall hereafter be mentioned. In the meantime, he desired
I would go on with my utmost diligence to learn their
language, because he was more astonished 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, besides the trouble
he was at in teaching, he would ask me several questions
concerning 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 persecution of those execrable Yahoos. He asked me
who made the ship, and how it was possible that the
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 229
Houyhnhnms of my country would leave it to the manage-
ment of brutes? My answer was, that I durst proceed no
further 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 assuring him that the ship was made
by creatures like myself, 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 Houyhnhnms 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
further, that if good fortune ever restored me to my native
country, to relate my travels hither, as I resolved to do,
everybody 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 country-
men would hardly think it probable that a Houyhnhnm
should be the presiding creature of a nation, and a Yahoo
the brute.
CHAPTER IV
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 represen-
tation, 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 that
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 per-
fectly well understood, and so universally practised, 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 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 make their beds. " I understand you well," said my
230
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 231
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 further, because I was
very certain that the account he expected from me would
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 foundered in the feet; but 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 greater 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 fastened 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 Houyhnhnm's
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
232 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
beaten, while they were young, for any mischievous tricks;
that they were, indeed, sensible of rewards and punish-
ments: 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
doth not abound in variety of words, because their wants
and passions are fewer than among us. But it is impos-
sible to represent his noble resentment at our savage treat-
ment 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 233
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 joints 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 forced to put on and off every day with tedious -
ness 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 discovered 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 concep-
tion, 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
234 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
governed 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 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, poisoning,
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 cases, and making sup-
positions. 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.
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 235
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 com-
petent 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.
CHAPTER V
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. 7 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 1
related to him the revolution under the Prince of Orange;
the long war with France entered into by the said Prince,
and renewed by his successor the present Queen, wherein
the greatest powers of Christendom were engaged, and which
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 five times 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
236
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 237
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; some-
times 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 opinion hath
cost many millions of lives: for instance, 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 grey; 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 would
render our dominions round and complete. 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 civilise and reduce them from their
barbarous way of living. It is a very kingly, honourable,
and frequent practice when one prince desires the assist-
ance of another to secure him against an invasion, that the
assistant, when he hath driven out the invader, should seize
238 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
on the dominions himself, and kill, imprison, or banish the
prince he came to relieve. Alliance by blood, or marriage, is
a 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 had never offended
him, as possibly he can.
There is, likewise, a kind of beggarly 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
Germany and other northern parts of Europe.
" What you have told me " (said my master) " upon the
subject of war, does, indeed, discover most admirably the
defects 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 incapable 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 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,
carbines, pistols, bullets, powder, swords, bayonets, battles,
sieges, retreats, attacks, undermines, countermines, bom-
bardments, sea-fights; ships sunk with a thousand men;
twenty thousand killed on each side; dying groans, limbs
flying in the air; smoke, noise, confusion, trampling to death
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 230
under horses' feet; flight, pursuit, victory; fields strpwed
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
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
240 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 further satisfied
what I meant by law, and the dispensers thereof, according
to the present practice in my own country; because he
thought Nature and reason were sufficient guides for a
reasonable animal, as we pretended to be, in showing us
what we ought to do, and what to avoid.
I assured his honour that law was a science in which
I had not much conversed, further than by employing
advocates in vain, upon some injustices that had been
done me; however, I would give him all the satisfaction
I was able.
I said, there was a society of men among us, 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. ' To this society all the rest of the people
are slaves. For example, if my neighbour hath a mind to my
cow, he hires a lawyer to prove that he ought to have my
cow from me. I must then hire another 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 disadvantages; first, my
lawyer, being practised almost from his cradle in defending
falsehood, is quite out of his element, when he would be an
advocate for justice, which is an unnatural office he always
attempts with great awkwardness, if not with ill-will. The
second disadvantage is, that my lawyer must proceed with
great caution, or else he will be reprimanded by the judges,
and abhorred by his brethren, as one that would lessen the
practice of the law. And therefore I have but two methods
to preserve my cow. The first is to gain over my adversary's
lawyer with a double fee; who will then betray his client,
by insinuating that he hath justice on his side. The second
way is for my lawyer to make my cause appear as unjust
as he can, by allowing the cow to belong to my adversary;
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 241
and this, if it be skilfully done, will certainly bespeak the
favour of the bench. Now, your honour is to know that
these judges are persons appointed to decide all controversies
of property, as well as for the trial of criminals, and picked
out from the most dexterous lawyers, who are grown old
or lazy, and having been biassed all their lives against truth
and equity, are under such a fatal necessity of favouring
fraud, perjury, and oppression, that I have known several
of them refuse a large bribe from the side where justice
lay, rather than injure the faculty by doing anything
unbecoming their nature or their office.
' It is a maxim among these lawyers, that whatever hath
been done before, may legally be done again ; and therefore
they take special care to record all the decisions formerly
made against common justice, and the general reason of
mankind. These, under the name of precedents, they pro-
duce as authorities, to justify the most iniquitous opinions,
and the judges never fail of directing accordingly.
' In pleading, they studiously avoid entering 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 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
wholly confounded the very essence of truth and false-
hood, of right and wrong; so that it will take thirty years
to decide whether the field left me by my ancestors for six
Q
242 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
generations, belongs to me, or to a stranger three hundred
miles off.
" In the trial of persons accused for crimes against the
state, the method is much more short and commendable:
the judge first sends to sound the disposition of those in
power, after which he can easily hang or save a criminal,
strictly preserving all due forms of law."
Here my master interposing, said it was a pity that
creatures endowed wTith such prodigious abilities of mind
as these lawyers, 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, in all points out of their own trade,
they were usually the most ignorant and stupid generation
among us, the most despicable in common conversation,
avowed enemies to all knowledge and learning, and equally
disposed to pervert the general reason of mankind in
every other subject of discourse, as in that of their own
profession.
CHAPTER VI
MY master was yet wholly at a loss to understand what
motives could incite this race of lawyers to perplex, dis-
quiet, 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 clothing,
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 perform
all these feats, our Yahoos thought they could never have
enough of it to spend, or to 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 pro-
portion 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 puzzled : for he went upon
a supposition, that all 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
243
244 (.ILLIVER'S TRAVELS
vessels by sea to every part of the world, as well for liquors
to drink, as for sauces, and innumerable other conveniences.
1 .inured him, that this whole globe of earth must be at
le.i>t three times gone round, before one of our better female
Yahoos could get her breakfast, or a cup to put it in. He
-aid, tli.it must needs be a miserable country, which cannot
furnish food for its own inhabitants. But what he chiefly
wondered at, was Imw such vast tracts of ground as I de-
^< nbed, should be wholly without fn-sh water, and the people
put to the necessity of sending over the sea for drink. I
replied, that I-.n-l.md (the dear place of my nativity) was
. omputed tn produce three times the quantity of food, more
than its inhal'itants are able t» musnine. as well as liquors
<•xtr.ii ted fmm k'rain, or pre-^i <1 nut of the fruit of certain
tree>, which made e\( rllrnt drink; and the same proportion
in every other convenience of life. But in order to feed tin-
luxury and intrmpi ranee of the rn.de^, and the vanity of the
females, we sent away the gn-ate-t part of our neo-ss.iry
things to other countries, from whence, in return, we
brought the materials of diseases, lolly, and vice, to spend
among ourselves. Hence it follows of necessity, that vast
numbers of our people are compelled to seek their livelihood
bv be-ging, robbing, stealing, cheating, forswearing, flatter-
ing, suborning, forging, gaming, lying, fawning, hectoring,
voting, 9 iibblmg, star-dazing, poisoning, 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
< "imtries, to supply the want of water, or other drinks,
but because it was a sort of liquid which made us merry,
by putting us out of our senses; diverted ah1 melancholy
thoughts, begat wild extravagant imaginations in the brain,
raised our hopes, and banished our fears; suspended every
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;
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 245
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 conveniences
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 build-
ing 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 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 ate
when we were not hungry, and drank without the provoca-
tion of thirst; that we sat whole nights drinking strong
liquors without eating a bit, which disposed us to sloth,
inflamed 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
joint; in short, every part, external and intestine, having
diseases appropriated to each. 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 him know the whole mystery and method by which
they proceed.
But, besides real diseases, we are subject to many that
246 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 prog-
nostics, 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 sentence,
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 eldest sons, to great
ministers of state, and often to princes.
I had formerly, upon occasion, discoursed with my master
upon the nature of government in general, and particularly
of our own excellent constitution, deservedly the wonder
and 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 particu-
larly meant by that appellation.
I told him, that a first or chief minister of state, who was
the person I intended to describe, was a creature 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 the truth, but with an intent that you should take it
for a lie; nor a lie, 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 yourself, you are from
that day forlorn. The worst mark you 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 247
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 public assemblies against the cor-
ruptions of the Court. But a wise prince would rather
choose to employ those who practise 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
expedient called an Act of Indemnity (whereof I described
the nature to him) they secure themselves from after
reckonings, and retire from the public, laden with the
spoils of the nation.
The palace of the chief minister is a seminary to breed
up others in his own trade: the pages, lacqueys, 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. Accordingly,
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 suc-
cessors to their lord.
One day, in discourse, my master, having heard me
mention the nobility of my country, was pleased to make me
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
248 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 humble acknowledgments 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 a weak diseased
body, a meagre countenance, and sallow complexion are
the true marks of noble blood; and a healthy robust appear-
ance disgraceful in a man of quality. The imperfections of
his mind run parallel with those of his body, being a com-
position of spleen, dulness, ignorance, caprice, sensuality,
and pride.
Without the consent of this illustrious body, no law can
be made, repealed, or altered; and these have the decisions
of all our possessions, without appeal.
CHAPTER VII
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 are 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 detestation
of all falsehood or disguise ; and truth appeared so amiable
to me, that I determined upon sacrificing everything to it.
Let me deal so candidly with the reader as to confess
that there was yet a much stronger motive for the freedom
I took in my representation of things. I had not been a
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
249
250 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 would not be swayed by his bias 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 on 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 or
agility of a common Yahoo; that I walked infirmly on my
hinder feet; had found out a contrivance to make my
claws of no use or 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 virtue; because reason alone is sufficient to govern a
rational creature; which was therefore a character \ve had
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 251
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 par-
ticulars, and often said the thing which was 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 there-
fore 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 dis-
sensions 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 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 neighbour-
hood 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 instru-
ments of death as we had invented. At other times, the
like battles have been fought between the Yahoos of several
252 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
neighbourhoods, without any visible cause: those of one
district watching all opportunities to surprise 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
shining 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 hea,ps 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 ; whereupon,
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.
My master further assured me, which I also observed
myself, that, in the fields where the shining stones abound,
the fiercest and most frequent battles are fought, occasioned
by perpetual inroads of the neighbouring Yahoos.
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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 253
needs contend to have some kind of resemblance with our
suits at law; wherein I thought it for our credit not to
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
never have dismissed the cause, while either of them had
anything left.
My master, continuing his discourse, said, there was
nothing that rendered the Yahoos more odious, than their
undistinguishing appetite to devour everything 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 a kind of root, very juicy, but somewhat
rare and difficult to be found, which the Yahoos fought for
with much eagerness, and would suck it with great delight;
it produced in them the same effects that wine hath upon us.
It would make them sometimes hug, and sometimes tear
one another; they would howl and grin, and chatter, and
reel, and tumble, and then fall asleep in the mud.
I did, indeed, observe that the Yahoos were 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 appella-
tion 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 resem-
blance between the Yahoos of that country and those in ours.
For he only meant to observe what parity there was in our
natures. He had heard, indeed, some curious Houyhnhnms
254 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 favourite 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 wondered 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 two 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 was not) which, although it may be a sweeter quad-
ruped 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.
My master likewise mentioned another quality which his
servants had discovered in several Yahoos, and to him was
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 255
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 plainly 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.
CHAPTER VIII
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
further 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 under-
take 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 showing 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 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
endeavoured, by all marks of tenderness, to make it quiet;
but the little imp fell a-squalling, and scratching, and biting,
256
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 257
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 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 fox,
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 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
£
258 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 plausibility on both
sides of a question, but strikes you with immediate convic-
tion; 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 people's 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 Houyhnhnms; and these not confined to par-
ticular 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 foals, but the care
they take in educating them proceeds entirely from the
dictates of reason. And I observed my master to show
the same affection to his neighbour's issue that he had for
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 259
his own. They will have it, that Nature teaches them to
love the whole species, and it is reason only that maketh a
distinction of persons, where there is a superior degree of
virtue.
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 come-
liness in the female; not upon the account of love, but to
preserve the race from degenerating; for where a female
happens to excel in strength, a consort is chosen with regard
to comeliness. Courtship, love, presents, jointures, settle-
ments, have no place in their thoughts, or terms whereby
to express them in their language. The young couple meet
and are joined, 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
reasonable 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, quarrel-
ing, or discontent.
In educating the youth of both sexes, their method is
admirable, and highly deserves our imitation. These are
not suffered to take 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
many 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 enjoined 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
260 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
articles of domestic 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 proficiency
in running, and leaping, and other feats of strength and
agility; where the victor is rewarded with a song 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
or be deficient in hay or oats, or cows or Yahoos. And
wherever there is any want (which is but seldom)
it is immediately supplied by unanimous
consent and contribution. Here likewise
the regulation of children is settled:
as for instance, if a Houyhnhnm
hath two males, he chan-
geth one of them with-
another that hath
two females.
CHAPTER IX
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
which 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 argu-
ments of great strength and weight; alleging, 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 extravagances. 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. Their brood, in a short
time, grew so numerous as to overrun 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 tradi-
tion, and that those creatures could not be Yhihniamshy
(or aborigines of the land) because of the violent hatred the
261
262 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 agree-
able 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 the first seen among them, had
been driven thither over the sea; that coming to land, and
being forsaken by their companions, they retired to the
mountains, and, degenerating by degrees, became, in pro-
cess of time, much more savage than those of their own
species in the country from whence these two originals
came. The reason of this 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 all covered with an artificial composure
of the skins and hairs of other animals: that I spoke in 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 263
observed in me all the qualities of a Yahoo, only a little
more civilised by some tincture of reason; which, however,
was in a degree as far inferior to the Houyhnhnm race, as
the Yahoos of their country were to me.
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 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 com-
posed 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 similes, 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 incon-
venient, but well contrived to defend them from all injuries
264 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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;
it grows very straight, 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 forefeet, 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 joint. They milk
their cows, reap their oats, and do all the work which re-
quires hands in the same manner. They have a kind of
hard flints, which, by grinding against other stones, they
form into instruments that serve instead of wedges, axes,
and hammers. With tools made of these flints they like-
wise cut their hay, and reap their oats, which there grow
naturally in several fields: the Yahoos draw home the
sheaves in carriages, and the servants tread them in certain
covered huts, to get out the grain, which is kept in stores.
They make a rude kind 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 Ihnuwnh. The word is strongly ex-
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 265
pressive in their language, but not easily rendered 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
cheerfully as the rest : she died about three months after.
They live generally to seventy, or seventy-five years,
very seldom to four-score: 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 neigh-
bourhood, 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.
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 de-
formities 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, Hhnm Yahoo, Whnaholm Yahoo, Ynlhmndivihlma
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 meantime,
proceed to relate my own sad catastrophe.
CHAPTER X
I HAD settled my little economy 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 plastered with clay, and covered with rush-mats
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 Yahoo's 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 clothes were
worn to rags, I made myself others with the skins of rabbits,
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
soled 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
ate 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 mother of invention. I enjoyed
perfect health of body, and tranquillity of mind; I did not
feel the treachery or inconstancy 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, back -biters, pick - pockets, highway -
266
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 267
men, house-breakers, attorneys, buffoons, gamesters, poli-
ticians, wits, splenetics, tedious talkers, controvertists,
murderers, robbers, virtuosos; no leaders or followers of
party and faction; no encouragers to vice, by seducement
or examples; no dungeon, axes, gibbets, whipping-posts,
or pillories; no cheating shopkeepers or mechanics; no
pride, vanity, or affectation; no fops, bullies, drunkards; no
ranting, expensive wives; no stupid, proud pedants; no
importunate, over-bearing, 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, fiddlers,
judges, or dancing-masters.
I had the favour of being admitted to several Houy-
hnhnms, 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 condescend 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 (as I have already said) the greatest
decency was observed, without the least degree of ceremony ;
where no person spoke, without 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, or order and economy; sometimes upon
268 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
excellences of poetry. I may add, without vanity, that my
presence often gave them sufficient matter for discourse,
because it afforded my master an occasion 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 under-
stand the nature of Yahoos much better than myself. He
went through all our vices and follies, and discovered many
which I had never mentioned to him, by only supposing
what qualities a Yahoo of their country, with a small
proportion of reason, might be capable of exerting; and
concluded, with too much probability, 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 inhabi-
tants; 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 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 the human race in general, I considered them as
they really were, Yahoos in shape and disposition, perhaps
GULLIVER HAS THE HONOUR OF BEING QUESTIONED
BY ins MASTER'S GUESTS
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 271
a little more civilised, 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 could better endure the sight
of a common Yahoo than of my own person. By con-
versing with the Houyhnhnms, and looking upon them
with delight, I fell to imitate their gait and gesture, which
is now grown into an habit; and my friends often tell me
in a blunt way, that I trot like a horse; which, however,
I take for a great compliment : neither shall I disown, 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, or 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 Houy-
hnhnms who had ever seen me at his house or their own;
for they alleged that, because I had some rudiments of
272 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
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 assistance 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 dispositions, 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 persons 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 imbecilities 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 con-
sist with reason to have been less rigorous. That I could
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 273
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 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 corrup-
tions, 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 Houyhnhnms 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, looking 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:
274 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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
further; but resolved it should, if possible, be the first place
of my banishment, leaving the consequence to fortune.
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 fastened 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 mechanics; let it suffice to say, that
in six weeks' time, with the help of the sorrel nag, who per-
formed the parts that required most labour, I finished a
sort of Indian canoe, 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 like-
wise provided myself with four paddles. I laid in a stock
of boiled flesh, of rabbits and fowls ; and took with me two
vessels, one filled with milk, and the other with water.
I tried my canoe 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 staunch, and able
to bear me and my freight. And when it was as complete
as I could possibly make it, I had it drawn on a carriage,
very gently, by Yahoos, to the seaside, under the conduct
of the sorrel nag and another servant.
When all was ready, and the day came for my depar-
ture, I took leave of my master and lady, and the whole
family, my 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 canoe; and got several of
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 275
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
hoof, he did rne 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 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 canoe, I pushed
off from shore.
CHAPTER XI
I BEGAN this desperate voyage on February 15, 1714-15, at
nine o'clock in the morning. The wind was very favour-
able; however, I made use, at first, only of my paddles;
but considering I should soon be weary, and that the wind
might probably 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 shore 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.
The reader may remember what I related when my crew
conspired against me, and confined me to my cabin. How
I continued there several weeks, without knowing what
course we took ; and when I was put ashore 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 forty-five
276
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 277
degrees southern latitude, as I gathered from some general
words 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 canoe, 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 canoe; and, repeating my voyage early in the morn-
ing, 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.
I 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 ate
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
fortunately found a brook of excellent water, which gave
me great relief.
On the fourth day, venturing out early a little too far,
I 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 smoke. One of them spied me, and gave notice to the
278 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
rest ; five of them advanced towards me, leaving the women
and children at the fire. I made what haste I could to the
shore, and, getting into my canoe, 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
cany 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 I could.
I was at a loss what to do, for I durst not return to the
same landing-place, but stood to the north, 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 canoe, I sailed and paddled together to the south, and
got into the same creek from whence I set out in the morn-
ing, choosing rather to trust myself among these barbarians
than live with European Yahoos. I drew up my canoe 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 canoe, and, rummaging it all over,
easily conjectured that the owner could not be far off.
Four of them, well armed, searched every cranny and lurk-
ing-hole, till at last they found me flat on my face behind
the stone. They gazed awhile in admiration at my strange
uncouth dress; my coat made of skins, my wooden-soled
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 279
shoes, and my furred stockings; from whence, however,
they concluded, I was not a native of the place, who all
go naked. One of the seamen, in Portuguese, 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 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 a 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 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 canoe, 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, seek-
ing some desolate place where to pass the remainder of his
unfortunate life.
When they began to talk, I thought I never heard or
saw anything so unnatural; for it appeared to me as
monstrous, as if a dog or a cow should speak in England,
or a Yahoo in Houyhnhnmland. The honest Portuguese
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 meantime, 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
28o GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
curious to know my story, but I gave them very little satis-
faction; and they all conjectured, that my misfortunes had
impaired my reason. In two hours the boat, which went
loaded 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 cabin.
His name was Pedro de Mendez; he was a very
courteous and generous person; he entreated me to give
some account of myself, and desired to know what I would
eat or drink; said I should be used as 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 canoe; but he ordered me a chicken, and some excel-
lent wine, and then directed that I should be put to bed in
a very clean cabin. I would not undress myself, but lay
on the bedclothes, 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 cabin.
After dinner, Don Pedro came to me, and desired to
know 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 281
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 Houyhnhnmland, I should never have heard a lie
from the meanest servant ; that I was altogether indifferent
whether he believed me or no; but however, in return for
his favours, I would give so much allowance to the corrup-
tion of his nature, as to answer any objection he would
please to make, and then he might easily discover the
truth.
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. 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 anything 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 hard-
ships rather than return to live among Yahoos.
Our voyage passed without any considerable accident.
In gratitude to the captain, I sometimes sat 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 cabin, 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 clothes he had. This I would not be prevailed
on to accept, abhorring to cover myself with anything 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.
282 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
These I changed every second day, and washed them
myself.
We arrived at Lisbon, Nov. 5, 1715. At our landing
the captain forced me to cover myself with his cloak, to
prevent the rabble from crowding about me. I was con-
veyed to his own house; and, at my earnest request, he
led me up to the highest room backwards. I conjured him
to conceal from all persons what I had told 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 clothes newly made, but I would not suffer the tailor
to take my measure; however, Don Pedro being almost of
my size, they fitted me well enough. He accoutred 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 a 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 increase. 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 domestic 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 con-
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 287
V*
tradictions. 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 Lisbon the 24th day of November, in an English mer-
chantman, but who was the master I never inquired. 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 in my cabin.
On the 5th of December 1715 we cast anchor in the Downs
about nine in the morning, and at three in the afternoon
I got safe to my house at Rotherhithe.
My wife and family received me with great surprise
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
compelled myself to tolerate the sight of Yahoos, and to
converse with Don Pedro de Mendez, yet my memory and
imagination were perpetually filled with the virtues and
ideas of those exalted Houyhnhnms.
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, the very smell of them was intolerable ; 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 ot
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
284
GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
buy two young horses, which I kept 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 con-
verse with them at least four hours every day. They are
strangers to bridle or saddle ; they li ve in great amity with
me, and friendship to each other.
CHAPTER XII
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 concerning
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 Chan-
cellor, 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 public, 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
acquaintances were pleased to think my poor endeavours
might not be unacceptable to my country, I imposed on
285
286 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
myself, as a maxim never to be swerved from, that I would
strictly adhere to truth; neither, indeed, can 1 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 Houyhnhnms, 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 last, and therefore lie upper-
most. 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, jostle 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 mortification, if I wrote for fame: but, as my
sole intention was the public good, I cannot be altogether
disappointed. For who can read of the virtues I have
mentioned in the 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 287
that happened in such distant countries, whore we have not
the least interest, with respect either to trade or negotia-
tions? I have carefully avoided every fault with which
common writers of travels are often too justly charged.
Besides, I meddle not the least 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, de-
tecters, 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 Lilli-
putians, I think, are 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
288 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
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 char-
acter given to Augustus: Recalcitrat undique tutus. But,
instead of proposals for conquering that magnanimous
nation, I rather wish they were in a capacity, or disposi-
tion, to send a sufficient number of their inhabitants for
civilising Europe, by teaching us the first principles of
honour, justice, truth, temperance, public 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 pirates are driven by
a storm they know not whether; 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, 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 oppor-
tunity; 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
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 2
employed in so pious an expedition, is a modern colony,
sent to convert and civilise 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 the mother kingdom;
their strict regard to the distribution of justice, in supply-
ing 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 en-
slaved, 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.
But, as to the formality of taking possession in my
sovereign's name, it never came 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
T
290 GULLIVER'S TRAVELS
enjoy my own speculations in my little garden at Redriff;
to apply those excellent lessons of virtue which I learned
among the Houyhnhnms; 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 keep my nose well stopped 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.
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 had entitled them to.
I am not in the least provoked at the sight of a lawyer, a
pickpocket, a colonel, a fool, a lord, a gamester, a politician,
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 tally together. The wise
and virtuous Houyhnhnms, who abound in all excellencies
that can adorn a rational creature, have no name for this
VOYAGE TO THE HOUYHNHNMS 291
vice in their language, which hath no terms to express
anything 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.
FINIS
At TMt^
MWO1JTM
H«*I _ - A i«
Dent
Children's
Books
A Selection
A Child's Grace
In photographs by
Harold Burdekin
The art of the photographer is seen at its best when the
camera catches the unstudied and appealing attitudes of
small children. Mr Burdekin has hit upon the idea of
illustrating the Grace by Mrs Leatham :
Thank you for the world so sweet, Thank you for the birds that sing,
Thank you for the food we eat, Thank you, God, for everything,
supplemented by further appropriate verses by Dr Claxton,
and with nearly thirty lovely photographic studies has
made a perfect picture book for small children.
FOR YOUNGEST READERS [10 ins. square] 5/'
Sabu, The Elephant Boy
By
Frances Flaherty
and Ursula Leacock
This is a true account of the discovery of Sabu, the mahout's
son, the boy chosen to play the part of Little Toomai in the
film version of Kipling's famous story.
Sabu is an orphan, who was found playing in the Maha-
rajah of Mysore's elephant stables, and who turned out to be
a natural actor of extraordinary ability. This story describes
his love for Irawatha the great tusker and his care of the
elephant, and contains a message from Sabu, written in his
own handwriting, to his young readers.
FOR YOUNG READERS [Small crown 410} 5/~
With 46 full-page photogravure illustrations. [Prospectus]
Heron's Island
By
G. Dewi Roberts
With over 40 line drawings and wrapper design by
GEOFFREY WEDGWOOD, R.E.
This sequel to The House that was Forgotten, a story for young
children under twelve, chronicles the further adventures
of Heron, Cat, Rabbit, Jock the sheepdog, and Wilding
the red outlaw cat.
Forced to leave 'The House that was Forgotten,' The
Happy Family takes up residence on a small island in-
habited by puffins. Heron's Island tells the story of the
many strange adventures which were in store for them in
their new home.
Mr Roberts's five animals are all clearly naturalized
citizens, and the spirit of their story has been brilliantly
interpreted by Geoffrey Wedgwood in a series of fanciful
drawings, in which it seems the most natural thing in the
world that Cat should wear coat and trousers and even
goggles when piloting his sea-plane.
llerorfs Island, like The House that was Forgotten, has already
been broadcast as a dialogue story, and earned the compli-
ment of being repeated in Request Week.
FOR YOUNG READERS [Deny 8vo] 5/~
Robin Hood
THE PRINCE OF OUTLAWS
A Tale of the Fourteenth Century, from the
'Lytell Geste'
By
Carola Oman
Illustrated by JACK MATTHEW
There are several versions of the classic Robin Hood legend
in print to-day, and many conflicting theories as to its
historical accuracy.
Miss Carola Oman, whose work as a serious historian
is too well known to need introduction here, has studied
every one of the thirty-eight ballads, starting with the
first story of all — of which the only copy in the world is
in the Cambridge University Library.
It was published about 1495, and in her particularly
interesting preface Miss Oman describes it, and the second
copy of it that was published fifty years later.
She has set her tale of Robin Hood in the days of Edward
II. The book is a first-rate piece of work, and a valuable
contribution to the literature on this ever-popular charac-
ter, as well as a thrilling historical story.
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 3/6
Library Edition 5/-
Popular volumes in
Dent's Young People's Classics
The Arabian Nights
Edited by
E. Dixon
Illustrated by
JOHN D. BATTEN
also
A Wonder Book
and Tanglewood Tales
By
Nathaniel Hawthorne
Illustrated by
MERLYN MANN
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 3/6 EACH
Fully illustrated in colour and line. Special library edition bound
in extra-quality cloth, sections reinforced, plates guarded. 5/- each
This famous series of classic stories now comprises 18
volumes.
A selection of tales from The Arabian Nights has now been
added, and the popular Wonder Book and Tanglewood Tales
are bound together in one volume.
Both these books have coloured jackets and are illustrated
throughout.
A descriptive list of the series is to be had on application.
The Fifth of
November
AN HISTORICAL TALE OF GUY FAWKES
By
L. A. G. Strong
Illustrated by JACK MATTHEW
FOR OLDER READERS [Large Crown 8vo]
The Everyday Series
Told by M. C. CAREY
Pictured by
Mary Shillabeer
i. THE POSTMAN 2. THE POLICEMAN
3. THE MILKMAN
Here is the story of the everyday life and work of people
who come within a child's range of vision. The Postman
brings the letters, the Policeman walks past the door, tin-
Milkman and his pony come jingling down the street.
How docs your letter ever reach the Postman's bag? Or
the milk get into the jug for breakfast on the nursery table?
These gaily printed little books provide the answer.
FOR YOUNGEST READERS 1/6 EACH
Illustrated in colour. 5 ins. square, paper boards.
TALES OF SPORT AND GAMES SERIES
Tennis Shoes
By
Noel Streatfeild
Illustrated by D. L. MAYS
Miss Streatfeild had a great success with her first
children's book BALLET SHOES. It owed its popu-
larity, apart from the story itself, to her peculiar
faculty for vividly describing life as it is lived by an
ordinary family, with the ups and downs of ballet train-
ing and difficult times at home.
She now follows this up with a story about lawn tennis,
written with the same wit and vivacity and strict attention
to detail. The father of the family is a doctor, who was a
first-class player in his day and coaches the family himself
in his spare moments. Jim, Susan, Nicky, and David all
play on the hard courts near their home. The best of them
all is Nicky. Every girl who is keen on the game and
plays at school will be fascinated by this account of how a
young player is trained to the standard required to enter
for various junior tournaments open to schoolgirls. The
book is illustrated by the well-known Punch artist.
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 5/~
&
TALES OF SPORT AND GAMES SERIES
The
Saturday
Match
By
Hugh de
Selincourt
THE CHOICE OF
THE JUNIOR BOOK CLUB
Illustrated by
JAMES THORPE
'Whether Mr de Selincourt is writing of the Kimptons in
their home or on the cricket field, he gives a vivid picture
of a keen and sensible family. It is no small feat to
have described the match in which young Kimpie, aged
fourteen, made his first appearance for Tillingfold, so
delightfully that the game from start to finish can be
followed with zest. Mr James Thorpe's numerous illustra-
tions harmonize so completely with the text that they are
most valuable additions to this pleasant story.' — Punch.
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 5/~
Two Boys go Sailing
By
Conor O Brien
Illustrated by
BRIGID GANLY
'To any man with sons, nephews, or any young thing
on his hands, I recommend this book.'- -Tackling World.
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 5/~
Ballet
Shoes
By
Noel
Streatfeild
Illustrated throughout by
RUTH GERVIS
Some press opinions :
'Noel Streatfcild's Ballet Shoes
has a charm all its own. The
silver dust jacket and the green
cover, with its silver lettering and
pair of ballet shoes, gives a true foretaste of the exquisite
story within.' — Library World.
'One is frequently asked if there are any "really good new
books — not school stories — for girls." Here is one which
can confidently be recommended for the nine to fourteen
year old. The book grips because it is sincere and per-
fectly possible. Pauline, Petrova, and Posy are nice, un-
spoilt, naughty, natural children. They ought to be
immensely popular.' — LORNA LEWIS in The Junior Bookshelf.
'Thank Heaven (and Miss Streatfeild) for a new kind of
book for children.' — Amateur Theatre.
FOR OLDER READERS [Large crown 8vo] 6/-
Elephant Twins
Written and Illustrated by
Inez Hogan
Elephant Twins comes this year as a delightful companion
to Bear Twins, which had such a success that a reprint was
necessary before the season was half over.
Tommy and Toby, the baby elephants, run away, just as
Johnny and Jimmy did. But they get separated, and havr
many strange adventures.
The pictures are enchanting, and what happens to them
when Mother finally gets them home ends an attnu live
little tale for readers of about four to seven.
FOR YOUNGEST READERS
With decorated endpapers, cover,
and wrapper. Size 8 by 6 ins.
2/6
THE
Petersham Story Books
ABOUT REAL THINGS
Written and Illustrated by
Maud & Miska Petersham
SHIPS • TRAINS • AIRCRAFT • WHEELS
GOLD • OIL • FOOD • TRANSPORTATION
COAL • HOUSES • IRON AND STEEL
CLOTHES
FOR YOUNG READERS 2/6 EACH
Printed throughout in colour lithography, with manilla
boards and decorated wrapper. Size 8\ by 8 ins.
CHOSEN BY THE FIRST EDITION CLUB AS ONE OF THE FIFTY
MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOKS OF THE YEAR
THE CHOICE OF THE JUNIOR LITERARY GUILD IN AMERICA
The Little Boy and
His House
Written and Illustrated by
Stephen Bone
and Mary Adshead
:An ideal combination of fantastic adventure and sternly
practical observation.' — Time and Tide.
FOR YOUNGER READERS [io± by i2\ ins.] 7/6
With 14 full-page drawings in colour, and many in black
. and white. Reproduced throughout in lithography.
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