Gulliver's Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World
to learn wisdom from brutes, as industry is taught by the ant, and
building by the swallow (for so I translate the word _lyhannh_,
although it be a much larger fowl); that this invention might be
practised upon the younger _Yahoos_ here, which besides rendering them
tractable and fitter for use, would in an age put an end to the whole
species, without destroying life; that in the mean time the
_Houyhnhnms_ should be exhorted to cultivate the breed of asses, which,
as they are in all respects more valuable brutes, so they have this
advantage, to be fit for service at five years old, which the others
are not till twelve.”
This was all my master thought fit to tell me, at that time, of what
passed in the grand council. But he was pleased to conceal one
particular, which related personally to myself, whereof I soon felt the
unhappy effect, as the reader will know in its proper place, and 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 burdening their
memories. I have already observed that they are subject to no diseases,
and therefore can have no need of physicians. However, they have
excellent medicines, composed of herbs, to cure accidental bruises and
cuts in the pastern or frog of the foot, by sharp stones, as well as
other maims and hurts in the several parts of the body.
They calculate the year by the revolution of the sun and 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 inconvenient, but well contrived to defend
them from all injuries of cold and heat. They have a kind of tree,
which at forty years old loosens in the root, and falls with the first
storm: 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, between them. The roof is made after
the same manner, and so are the doors.
The _Houyhnhnms_ use the hollow part, between the pastern and the hoof
of their fore-foot, 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 requires
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 likewise 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 _shnuwnh_. The word is strongly
expressive 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
fourscore. Some weeks before their death, they feel a gradual decay;
but without pain. During this time they are much visited by their
friends, because they cannot go abroad with their usual ease and
satisfaction. However, about ten days before their death, which they
seldom fail in computing, they return the visits that have been made
them by those who are nearest in the neighbourhood, being carried in a
convenient sledge drawn by _Yahoos_; which vehicle they use, not only
upon this occasion, but when they grow old, upon long journeys, or when
they are lamed by any accident: and therefore when the dying
_Houyhnhnms_ return those visits, they take a solemn leave of their
friends, as if they were going to some remote part of the country,
where they designed to pass the rest of their lives.
I know not whether it may be worth observing, that the _Houyhnhnms_
have no word in their language to express any thing that is evil,
except what they borrow from the deformities or ill qualities of the
_Yahoos_. Thus they denote the folly of a servant, an omission of a
child, a stone that cuts their feet, a continuance of foul or
unseasonable weather, and the like, by adding to each the epithet of
_Yahoo_. For instance, _hhnm Yahoo_; _whnaholm Yahoo_, _ynlhmndwihlma
Yahoo_, and an ill-contrived house _ynholmhnmrohlnw Yahoo_.
I could, with great pleasure, enlarge further upon the manners and
virtues of this excellent people; but intending in a short time to
publish a volume by itself, expressly upon that subject, I refer the
reader thither; and, in the mean time, proceed to relate my own sad
catastrophe.
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.
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 _Yahoos’_ hairs, and were excellent food. I had worked two
chairs with my knife, the sorrel nag helping me in the grosser and more
laborious part. When my 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, flattering, or pimping, to procure the
favour of any great man, or of his minion; I wanted no fence against
fraud or oppression: here was neither physician to destroy my body, nor
lawyer to ruin my fortune; no informer to watch my words and actions,
or forge accusations against me for hire: here were no gibers,
censurers, backbiters, pickpockets, highwaymen, housebreakers,
attorneys, bawds, buffoons, gamesters, politicians, wits, splenetics,
tedious talkers, controvertists, ravishers, 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, strolling whores, or poxes; no ranting, lewd, expensive
wives; no stupid, proud pedants; no importunate, overbearing,
quarrelsome, noisy, roaring, empty, conceited, swearing companions; no
scoundrels raised from the dust upon the merit 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 _Houyhnhnms_, who came to
visit or dine with my master; where his honour graciously suffered me
to wait in the room, and listen to their discourse. Both he and his
company would often descend to ask me questions, and receive my
answers. I had also sometimes the honour of attending my master in his
visits to others. I never presumed to speak, except in answer to a
question; and then I did it with inward regret, because it was a loss
of so much time for improving myself; but I was infinitely delighted
with the station of an humble auditor in such conversations, where
nothing passed but what was useful, expressed in the fewest and most
significant words; where, 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 does much improve conversation: this I found to be true;
for during those little intermissions of talk, new ideas would arise in
their minds, which very much enlivened the discourse. Their subjects
are generally on friendship and benevolence, on order and economy;
sometimes upon the visible operations of nature, or ancient traditions;
upon the bounds and limits of virtue; upon the unerring rules of
reason, or upon some determinations to be taken at the next great
assembly: and often upon the various 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 humankind: and
for that reason I shall not repeat what they said; only I may be
allowed to observe, that his honour, to my great admiration, appeared
to understand the nature of _Yahoos_ 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