CHAPTER I.

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 IN LAPUTA.

HAD not been at home above ten days when Captain William Robinson, a Cornishman, commander of the Hopewell, 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 arrival, made me a visit, as I

my

apprehended only out of friendship, for nothing passed more than what is usual after long absences. But repeating his visits often, expressing

The first two voyages of Gulliver were intended, as we have seen, to satirise the Whig Administration, and the members composing it, especially Sir Robert Walpole; and to com

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 for seeing the world, notwithstanding my past misfortunes, continuing as violent as ever. The only 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.

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ment on the defects in the political institutions of England. The object of the third voyage, that to Laputa, is to ridicule the mathematicians and philosophers of Swift's day, and in particular the members of the Royal Society, against some of whom he entertained a grudge. The undertaking was a bold one-too bold for even Swift-and accordingly it was neither as successful nor as amusing as the two voyages that preceded it. His success," Professor de Morgan remarks, perhaps rather too severely, "arises from his readers knowing as little of the class of men whom he ridicules as he does himself. It is dangerous to attempt an attack on any knowledge of which the assailant is ignorant, whether in fictitious representation or sober argument." "Swift's learning as a student of belles lettres," says Sir Walter Scott, "and even his extensive knowledge of mankind and of the human heart, were insufficient to guide him in a task which required depth of science, and where, above all, the assistance of Arbuthnot was indispensable to success.' But Arbuthnot did not approve of an attack on the Royal Society, of which he was a distinguished member, and so, we may presume, gave the author no assistance. It is, therefore, not to be wondered at that Swift at times displays his own ignorance of the principles which he assails. If, however, in this he is justly censurable, we must remember that he did good service in exposing with pitiless severity a class of men who had in his day done much mischief-those quacks who had just sufficient smattering of scientific knowledge to enable them to gull the public with supposed discoveries, which people of every condition in life received with avidity, to their own ruin. "He ridicules," says Lord Orrery, somewhat affectedly, "the vain attempts and irregular productions of those rash men who, like Ixion embracing a cloud instead of a goddess, plagued the world with centaurs, whilst Jupiter, from the embraces of a Juno and an Alcmena, blessed the earth with an Hebe and an Hercules."

The idea of the flying island would seem to have been borrowed from a romance attributed to the learned Bishop of Llandaff, Dr. Francis Godwin, entitled, "The Man in the Moon, or a Discourse of a Voyage Thither, by Domingo Gonzales," written between 1599 and 1603, and re-published, after his death, at Perth, in 1638-a work which Mr. Hallam, in his "Literary History of Europe," notices for "the natural and veracious tone of the author's lies," and the happy conjectures of his philosophy. In it we find men of enormous stature and wonderful longevity, as well as a flying engine or chariot, drawn by birds. Swift also appears to have been indebted to Rabelais for some of his illustrations of the pursuits of the pseudo philosophers.

George the 11th 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 resolved to continue some time, because many of the goods he intended to buy were not ready, nor could he expect to be dispatched in 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 overtook us; for my sloop was so deeply laden, that she sailed very slow, neither were we in a condition to defend ourselves.

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 our 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, of neighbouring countries in strict alliance, that he would move the captains to take some pity on us. This enflamed his rage; he repeated the threatenings, and turning to his companions, spoke with great vehemence in the Japanese language, as I suppose, often using the word Christianos.

The largest of the two pirate ships was commanded by a Japanese captain, who spoke a little Dutch, but very imperfectly. 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 appearance, 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 adrift in a small canoe, with paddles

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and a sail, and four days' provisions; which last the Japanese captain was so kind as 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 longitude of 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. 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, sometimes my paddles. But, not to trouble the reader with a particular 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 encompassed 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 sweetsmelling 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, watch, 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 disquiet 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