Gulliver's Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World
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
considered how impossible it was to preserve my life in so desolate a
place, and how miserable my end must be: yet 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 awhile 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 interposition 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 approached 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 motion of joy, and I was
ready to entertain a hope that this adventure might, some way or other,
help to deliver me from the desolate place and condition I was in. But
at the same time the reader can hardly conceive my astonishment, to
behold an island in the air, inhabited by men, who were able (as it
should seem) to raise or sink, or put it into progressive motion, as
they pleased. But not being at that time in a disposition to
philosophise upon this phenomenon, 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 toward 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 gather to that side which was
most in my view. I found by their pointing towards me and to each
other, that they plainly discovered me, although they made no return to
my shouting. But I could see four or five men running in great haste,
up the stairs, to the top of the island, who then disappeared. I
happened rightly to conjecture, that these were sent for orders to some
person in authority upon this occasion.
The number of people 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 in the most supplicating
posture, 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 bottom, to which I
fixed myself, and was drawn up by pulleys.
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.
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, harpsichords,
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 stick, which they
carried in their hands. In each bladder was a small quantity of dried
peas, 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, three, or 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 addresses himself. This flapper is
likewise employed diligently to attend his master in his walks, and
upon occasion to give him a soft flap on his eyes; because he is always
so wrapped up in cogitation, that he is in manifest danger of falling
down every precipice, and bouncing his head against every post; and in
the streets, of justling others, or being justled himself into the
kennel.
It was necessary to give the reader this information, without which he
would be at the same loss with me to understand the proceedings of
these people, as they conducted me up the stairs to the top of the
island, and from thence to the royal palace. While we were ascending,
they forgot several times what they were about, and left me to myself,
till their memories were again 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
entrance was not without sufficient noise, by the concourse of all
persons belonging to the court. But he was then deep in a problem; and
we attended at least an hour, before he could solve it. There stood by
him, on each side, a young page with flaps in 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 startled 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 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 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 rhomboides, and a pudding
into a cycloid. The second course was two ducks trussed up in 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, parallelograms, and several other mathematical
figures.
While we were at dinner, I made bold to ask the names of several things
in their language, and those noble persons, by the assistance of their
flappers, delighted to give me answers, hoping to raise my admiration
of their great abilities if I could be brought to converse with them. I
was soon able to call for bread and drink, or whatever else I wanted.
After dinner my company withdrew, and a person was sent to me by the
king’s order, attended by a flapper. He brought with him pen, ink, and
paper, and three or four 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 likewise made a shift to learn
several short sentences; for my tutor would order one of my servants to
fetch something, to turn about, to make a bow, to sit, or to stand, or
walk, and the like. Then I took down the sentence in writing. He showed
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 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, signifies high;