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now pafs which was not extraordinary; wherein I doubted fome authors lefs confulted truth, than their own vanity, or intereft, or the diverfion of ignorant readers: that my story could contain little befides common events, without thofe ornamental deferiptions of strange plants, trees, birds, and other animals; or of the barbarous cuftom and idoJatry of favage people, with which moft writers abound. However, I thanked him for his good oopinion, and promised to take the matter into my thoughts.

He faid, he wondered at one thing very much, which was, to hear me fpeak fo loud, afking 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 paft; 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 ftreet to another looking out from the top of a steeple, unlefs when I was placed on a table, or held in any perfon's hand. I told him, I had likewife obferved another thing, that when I first got into the ship, and the failors ftood all about me, I thought they were the moft 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 mine eyes had been accuftomed to fuch prodigious objects, because the comparifon gave me fo defpicable a conceit of myself. The captain faid, that while we were at fupper he obferved me to look at every thing with a fort of wonder, and that I often feemed hardly able to contain my laughter, which he knew not well how to take, but imputed it to fome diforder in my brain. I anfwered, it was very true; and I wondered how I could forbear, when I saw his difhes of the fize of a filver threepence, a leg of pork hardly a mouthful, a cup not fo big as a nut-fhell; and fo I went on, defcribing

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the rest of his household-stuff and provifions after the fame manner. For although the Queen had ordered a little equipage of all things neceflary for me, while I was in her fervice, yet my ideas were wholly taken up with what I faw on every fide of me, and I winked at my own littleness, as people do at their own faults. The captain understood my raillery very well, and merrily replied with the old English proverb, that he doubted mine eyes were bigger than my belly, for he did not obferve my ftomach fo good although I had fafted all day: and, continuing in his mirth, protested he would gladly have given an hundred pounds to have feen my clofet in the eagle's bill, and afterwards in its fall from fo great a height into the fea; which would certainly have been a moft astonishing object, worthy to have the defcrip. tion of it tranfmitted to future ages and the comparifon of Phaeton was fo obvious, that he could not forbear applying it, although I did not much admire the conceit.

The captain, having been at Tonquin, was in his return to England driven north-eastward to the latitude of 44 degrees, and of longitude 143. But meeting a trade-wind two days after I came on board him, we failed fouthward a long time, and coafting New-Holland, kept our courfe weft fouthweft, and then fouth-fouth weft, till we dou. bled the Cape of Good Hope. Our voyage was very profperous, but I fhall not trouble the reader with a journal of it. The captain called in at one or two ports, and fent in his long-boat for provifions and fresh water, but I never went out of the fhip till we came into the Downs, which was on the third day of June 1706, about nine months after my efcape. I offered to leave my goods in fecurity for payment of my freight; but the captain protefted he would not receive one farthing. We took a kind leave of each other, and I made him promise he would come to fee me at my houfe in Redriff. I

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hired a horfe and guide for five fhillings, which I borrowed of the captain.

As I was on the road, obferving the littleness of the houfes, 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 ftand out of the way, fo that I had like to have gotten one or two broken heads for my impertinence.

When I came to my own houfe, for which I was forced to inquire, one of the fervants opening the door, I bent down to go in (like a goofe under a gate) for fear of ftriking my head. My wife ran out to embrace me, but I ftooped lower than her knees, thinking the could otherwife never be able to reach my mouth. My daughter kneeled to afk my blefling, but I could not fee her till fhe arose, having been fo long ufed to ftand with my head and eyes erect to above fixty feet; and then I went to take her up with one hand by the waist. I looked down upon the fervants, and one or two friends who were in the house, as if they had been pigmies, and I a giant. I told my wife fhe had been too thrifty, for I found the had starved herfelf and her daughter to nothing. In fhort I bahaved myfelf fo unaccountably, th at they were all of the captain's opinion when he firft faw me, and concluded I had loft my wits. This I mention as an inftance of the great power of habit and prejudice.

In a little time, I and my family and friends came to a right understanding: but my wife protefted I fhould never go to fea any more: although my evil deftiny fo ordered, that the had not power to hinder me, as the reader may know hereafter. In the mean time, I here conclude the fecond part of my unfortunate voyages *.

*From the whole of thefe two voyages to Lilliput and Brobding. nag, arifes one general remark, which, however obvious, has been overlooked by thofe who confider them as little more than the

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fport of a wanton imagination. When human actions are ascribed to pigmies and giants, there are few that do not excite either contempt, difguft, or horror. To afcribe them therefore to fuch beings, was perhaps the most probable method of engaging the mind to examine them with attention, and judge of them with impartiality, by suspending the fafcination of habit, and exhibiting familiar objects in a new light. The ufe of the fable then is not lefs apparent, than important and extenfive; and that this ufe was intended by the author, can be doubted only by thofe who are difpofed to affirm, that order and regularity are the effects of chance.

Upon reading over the two first parts of thefe travels, I think that I can difcern a very great refemblance between certain paffages in Gulliver's voyage to Lilliput, and the voyage of Cyrano de Bergerac to the fun and moon. Cyrano de Bergerac is a French author of a fingular character, who had a very peculiar turn of wit and humour, in many refpects refembling that of Swift. He wanted the advan tages of learning, and a regular education. His imagination was lefs guarded and correct, but more agreeably extravagant. He has introduced into his philofophical romance, the fyftem of Descartes, (which was then much admired) intermixed with feveral fine ftrokes of juft fatire on the wild and immechanical inquiries of the philofophers and aftronomers of that age; and in many parts he has evidently directed the plan which the Dean of St. Patrick's has pursued. Orrery.

TRAVELS

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TRAVELS

Into feveral REMOTE NATIONS of the World.

PART III.

A VOYAGE to LAPU TA, BALNIBARBI, LUGGNAGG, GLUBBDU BURIB, and JAPAN *

CHAP. I.

The author fets out on hi third voyage, is taken by pirates The malice of a Dutchman.

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His arrival at an ifland. He is received into Laputa.

HAD not been at home above ten days, when Captain Willian Robinfon, a Cornish man, commander of the Hope-well, a ftout ship of three hundred tuns, came to my house. I had formerly

*The third part is in gene al written against chymifts, mathema ticians, mechanics, and projectors of all kinds.

Swift was little acquainted with mathematical knowledge, and was prejudiced against it, by obferving the ftrange effects it produced in thofe who applied themselves entirely to that science. No part of hu man literature has given greater ftrength to the min, or has produced greater benefits to mankind, than the feveral branches of learning, that may pafs under the general denomination of mathematics. But the abufes of this ftudy, the idle, thin, immechanical refinement of it, are juft fubjects of fatire. The real ufe of knowledge is to invigorate, no to enervate the faculties of reafon. Learning degenerates into a fpecies of madnefs, when it is not fuperior to what it poffeffeth. The fcientific powers are most evident, when they are capable of exerting themselves in the focial duties of life; when they

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