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28 - Gulliver's Travels - Jonathan Swift · Classic Adventure Books - Daily

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  Speaker 1: Part four, A Voyage to the Country of the Whinnams.
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  Speaker 1: Chapter one, the author sets out as captain of a ship.
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  Speaker 1: His men conspire against him, confine him a long time
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  Speaker 1: to his cabin, and set him on shore in an
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  Speaker 1: unknown land. He travels up into the country the Aa,
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  Speaker 1: who's a strange sort of animal described the author meets
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  Speaker 1: two Whinnams. I continued at home with my wife and
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  Speaker 1: children about five months, in a very happy condition. If
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  Speaker 1: I could have learned the lesson of knowing when I
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  Speaker 1: was well, I left my poor wife, big with child,
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  Speaker 1: and accepted an advantageous offer made me to be captain
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  Speaker 1: of the Adventurer, a stout merchantman of three hundred and
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  Speaker 1: fifty tons, For I understood navigation well, and being grown
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  Speaker 1: weary of a surgeon's employment at sea, which however, I
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  Speaker 1: could exercise upon occasion, I took a skillful young man
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  Speaker 1: of that calling, one Robert Purefoy, into my ship. We
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  Speaker 1: set sail from Portsmouth upon the seventh day of September
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  Speaker 1: seventeen ten. On the fourteenth who met with Captain Pocock
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  Speaker 1: of Bristol at Tenerife, who was going to the Bay
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  Speaker 1: of Campeachy to cut Logwood. On the sixteenth he was
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  Speaker 1: parted from us by a storm. I heard since my
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  Speaker 1: return that his ship founded, and none escaped but one
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  Speaker 1: cabin boy. He was an honest man and a good sailor,
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  Speaker 1: but a little too positive in his own opinions, which
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  Speaker 1: was the cause of his destruction, as it has been
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  Speaker 1: with several others, For if he had followed my advice,
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  Speaker 1: he might have been safe at home with his family.
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  Speaker 1: At this time, as well as myself, I had several
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  Speaker 1: men who died in my ship of Callynchers, so that
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  Speaker 1: I was forced to get recruits out of Barbados and
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  Speaker 1: the Leeward Islands where I touched by the direction of
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  Speaker 1: the merchants roomy me, which I had soon too much
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  Speaker 1: cause to repent, for I found afterwards that most of
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  Speaker 1: them had been buccaneers. I had fifty hands on board,
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  Speaker 1: and my orders were that I should trade with the
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  Speaker 1: Indians in the South Sea and make what discoveries I could.
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  Speaker 1: These rogues, whom I had picked up, debauched my other men,
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  Speaker 1: and they all formed a conspiracy to seize the ship
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  Speaker 1: and secure me, which they did one morning, rushing into
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  Speaker 1: my cabin and binding me hand and foot. Threatening to
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  Speaker 1: throw me overboard if I offered to stir. I told
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  Speaker 1: them I was their prisoner and would submit this. They
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  Speaker 1: made me swear to do, and then they unbound me,
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  Speaker 1: only fastening one of my legs of a chain near
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  Speaker 1: my bed, and placed a sentry at my door with
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  Speaker 1: his peace charged, who was commanded to shoot me dead
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  Speaker 1: if I attempted my liberty. They sent me own victuals
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  Speaker 1: and drink, and took the government of the ship to themselves.
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  Speaker 1: Their design was to turn pirates and plunder the Spaniards,
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  Speaker 1: which they could not do till they got more men.
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  Speaker 1: But first they resolved to sell the goods in the
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  Speaker 1: ship and then go to Madagascar for recruits, several among
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  Speaker 1: them having died since my confinement. They sailed many weeks
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  Speaker 1: and traded with the Indians. But I knew not what
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  Speaker 1: course they took, being kept a prisoner in my cabin
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  Speaker 1: and expecting nothing less than to be murdered, as they
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  Speaker 1: often threatened me. Upon the ninth day of May seventeen eleven,
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  Speaker 1: one James Welch came down to my cabin and said
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  Speaker 1: he had orders from the captain to set me ashore.
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  Speaker 1: I expostulated with him, but in vain. Neither would he
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  Speaker 1: so much as tell me who their new captain was.
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  Speaker 1: They forced me into the long boat, let me put
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  Speaker 1: on my best suit of clothes, which were as good
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  Speaker 1: as new, and take a small bundle of linen, but
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  Speaker 1: no arms except my hanger. And they were so civil
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  Speaker 1: as not to search my pockets, into which I conveyed
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  Speaker 1: what money I had, with some other little necessaries. They
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  Speaker 1: rode about a league and then set me down on
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  Speaker 1: a strand. I desired them to tell me what country
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  Speaker 1: it was. They all swore they knew no more than myself,
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  Speaker 1: but said that the captain, as they called him, was
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  Speaker 1: resolved after they had sold the ladding to get rid
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  Speaker 1: of me in the first place where they could discover land.
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  Speaker 1: They pushed off, immediately, advising me to make haste for
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  Speaker 1: fear of being overtaken by the tide, and so bade
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  Speaker 1: me farewell in this desolate condition. I advanced forward and
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  Speaker 1: soon got upon firm ground, where I sat down on
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  Speaker 1: a bank to rest myself and consider what I had
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  Speaker 1: best do. When I was a little refreshed, I went
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  Speaker 1: up into the country, resolving to deliver myself to the
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  Speaker 1: first savages I should meet, and purchase my life from
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  Speaker 1: them by some bracelets, glass rings, and other toys which
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  Speaker 1: sailors usually provide themselves with in those voyages, and whereof
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  Speaker 1: I had some about me. The land was divided by
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  Speaker 1: long rows of trees, not regularly planted, but naturally growing.
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  Speaker 1: There was great plenty of grass and several fields of oats.
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  Speaker 1: I walked very circumspectully, for fear of being surprised or
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  Speaker 1: suddenly shot with an arrow from behind or on either side.
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  Speaker 1: I fell into a beaten road, where I saw many
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  Speaker 1: tracks of human feet, and some of cows, but most
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  Speaker 1: of horses. At last I beheld several animals in a field,
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  Speaker 1: and one or two of the same kind sitting in trees.
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  Speaker 1: Their shape was very singular and deformed, which a little
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  Speaker 1: discomposed me, so that I lay down behind a thicket
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  Speaker 1: to observe them better. Some of them, coming forward near
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  Speaker 1: the place where I lay, gave me an opportunity of
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  Speaker 1: distinctly making their form. Their heads and breasts were covered
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  Speaker 1: with a thick hair, some frizzled and others lank. They
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  Speaker 1: had beards like goats, and a long ridge of hair
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  Speaker 1: down their backs and the foreparts of their legs, and feet,
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  Speaker 1: but the rest of their bodies was bare, so that
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  Speaker 1: I might see their skins, which were of a brown
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  Speaker 1: buff color. They had no tails, nor any hair at
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  Speaker 1: all on their buttocks, except about the anus, which I
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  Speaker 1: presume nature had planted there to defend them as they
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  Speaker 1: sat on the ground. For this posture they used as
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  Speaker 1: well as lying down, and often stood on their hind feet.
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  Speaker 1: They climbed high trees as nimbly as a squirrel, for
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  Speaker 1: they had strong, extended claws before and behind, terminating in
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  Speaker 1: sharp points, and hooked. They would often spring and bound
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  Speaker 1: and leap with prodigious agility. The females were not so
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  Speaker 1: large as the males. They had long, lank hair on
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  Speaker 1: their heads, but none on their faces, nor anything more
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  Speaker 1: than a sort of down on the rest of their bodies,
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  Speaker 1: except about the anus and pudenda. The dogs hung between
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  Speaker 1: their fore feet and often reached almost to the ground
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  Speaker 1: as they walked. The hair of both sexes was of
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  Speaker 1: several colors, brown, red, black, and yellow. Upon the whole.
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  Speaker 1: I never beheld in all my travels so disagreeable an animal,
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  Speaker 1: or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an antipathy,
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  Speaker 1: so that, thinking I had seen enough. Full of contempt
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  Speaker 1: and aversion, I got up and pursued the beaten road,
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  Speaker 1: hoping it might direct me to the cabin of some Indian.
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  Speaker 1: I had not got far when I met one of
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  Speaker 1: these creatures, full in my way and coming up directly
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  Speaker 1: to me. The ugly monster, when he saw me, distorted
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  Speaker 1: several ways every feature of his visage and steared as
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  Speaker 1: at an object he had never seen before. Then, approaching nearer,
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  Speaker 1: lifted up his forepow. Whether out of curiosity or mischief,
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  Speaker 1: I could not tell, But I drew my hanger and
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  Speaker 1: gave him a good blow with the flat side of it,
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  Speaker 1: for I durst not strike with the edge, fearing the
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  Speaker 1: inhabitants might be provoked against me if they should come
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  Speaker 1: to know that I had killed or maimed any of
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  Speaker 1: their cattle. When the beast felt the smart he drew
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  Speaker 1: back and roared so loud that I heard of at
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  Speaker 1: least forty came flocking about me from the next field,
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  Speaker 1: howling and making odious faces. But I ran to the
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  Speaker 1: body of a tree, and, leaning my back against it,
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  Speaker 1: kept them off by waving my hanger. Several of this
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  Speaker 1: cursed brew getting hold of the branches behind leaped up
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  Speaker 1: into the tree, whence they began to discharge their excrements
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  Speaker 1: on my head. However, I escaped pretty well by sticking
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  Speaker 1: close to the stem of the tree, but was almost
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  Speaker 1: stifled with the filth which fell about me on every side.
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  Speaker 1: In the midst of this distress, I observed them all
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  Speaker 1: to run away on a sudden as fast as they could,
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  Speaker 1: at which I ventured to leave the tree and pursue
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  Speaker 1: the road, wondering what it was that could put them
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  Speaker 1: into this fright. But looking on my left hand, I
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  Speaker 1: saw a horse walking softly in the field, which my persecutors,
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  Speaker 1: having sooner discovered, was the cause of their flight. The
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  Speaker 1: horse started a little when he came near me, but
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  Speaker 1: soon recovering himself, looked full in my face with manifest
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  Speaker 1: tokens of wonder. He viewed my hands and feet walking
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  Speaker 1: round me. Several times. I would have pursued my journey,
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  Speaker 1: but he placed himself directly in the way, yet looking
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  Speaker 1: with a very mild aspect, never offering the least violence.
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  Speaker 1: We stood gazing at each other for some time. At
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  Speaker 1: last I took the boldness to reach my hand towards
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  Speaker 1: his neck, with a design to stroke it using the
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  Speaker 1: common style and whistle of jockeys when they are going
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  Speaker 1: to handle a strange horse. But this strange animal seemed
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  Speaker 1: to receive my civilities with disdain, shook his head and
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  Speaker 1: bent his brows, softly, raising up his right forefoot to
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  Speaker 1: remove my hand. Then he neighed three or four times,
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  Speaker 1: but in so different accadence that I began to think
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  Speaker 1: he was speaking to himself in some language of his own.
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  Speaker 1: While he and I were thus employed, another horse came up, who,
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  Speaker 1: applying himself to the first, in a very formal manner,
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  Speaker 1: they gently struck each other's right hoof, before neighing several times,
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  Speaker 1: by turns and varying the sound, which seemed to be
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  Speaker 1: almost articulate. They went some paces off, as if it
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  Speaker 1: were to confer together, walking side by side, backward and forward,
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  Speaker 1: like persons deliberating upon some affair of weight, but often
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  Speaker 1: turning their eyes towards me, as if it were to
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  Speaker 1: watch that I might not escape. I was amazed to
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  Speaker 1: see such actions and behavior in brute beasts, and concluded
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  Speaker 1: with myself that if the inhabitants of this country were
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  Speaker 1: endued with a proportional degree of reason, they must needs
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  Speaker 1: be the wisest people upon earth. This thought gave me
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  Speaker 1: so much comfort that I resolved to go forward until
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  Speaker 1: I could discover some house or village, or meet with
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  Speaker 1: any of the natives, leaving the two horses to discourse
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  Speaker 1: together as they pleased. But the first, who was a
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  Speaker 1: dapple gray, observed having me to steal off, nade after
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  Speaker 1: me in so expressive a tone that I fancied myself
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  Speaker 1: to understand what he meant. Whereupon I turned back and
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  Speaker 1: came near to him to expect his father commands, but
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  Speaker 1: concealing my fear as much as I could, for I
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  Speaker 1: began to be in some pain. How this adventure might terminate,
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  Speaker 1: and the reader will easily believe I did not much
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  Speaker 1: like my present situation. The two horses came up close
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  Speaker 1: to me, looking with great earnestness upon my face and hands.
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  Speaker 1: The gray steed rubbed my hat all around with his
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  Speaker 1: right forehoof and discomposed it so much that I was
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  Speaker 1: forced to adjust it better by taking it off and
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  Speaker 1: settling it again, whereat both he and his companion, who
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  Speaker 1: was a brown bay, appeared to be much surprised. The
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  Speaker 1: latter felt the lappet of my coat, and finding it
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  Speaker 1: to hang loose about me. They both looked with new
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  Speaker 1: signs of wonder. He stroked my right hand, seeming to
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  Speaker 1: admire the softness and color, but he squeezed it so
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  Speaker 1: hard between his hoof and his pastern that I was
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  Speaker 1: forced to roar, after which they both touched me with
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  Speaker 1: all possible tenderness. They were under great perplexity about my
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  Speaker 1: shoes and stockings, which they felt, very often neighing to
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  Speaker 1: each other and using various gestures, not unlike those of
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  Speaker 1: a philosopher when he would attempt to solve some new
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  Speaker 1: and difficult phenomenon. Upon the whole, the behavior of these
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  Speaker 1: animals was so orderly and rational, so acute and judicious,
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  Speaker 1: that I at last concluded they must needs be magicians
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  Speaker 1: who had thus metamorphosed to themselves upon some design, and
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  Speaker 1: seeing a stranger in the way, resolved to divert themselves
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  Speaker 1: with him, or perhaps were really amazed at the sight
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  Speaker 1: of a man so very different in habit, feature and
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  Speaker 1: complet from those who might probably live in so remote
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  Speaker 1: a climate. Upon the strength of this reasoning, I ventured
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  Speaker 1: to address them in the following manner. Gentlemen, if you
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  Speaker 1: be conjurers, as I have good cause to believe you
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  Speaker 1: can understand my language. Therefore I make bold to let
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  Speaker 1: your worships know the I'm a poor, distressed Englishman, driven
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  Speaker 1: by his misfortunes upon your coast, and I entreat one
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  Speaker 1: of you to let me ride upon his back, as
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  Speaker 1: if you were a real horse, to some house or
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  Speaker 1: village where I can be relieved. In return of which favor,
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  Speaker 1: I will make you a present of this knife and bracelet.
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  Speaker 1: Taken them out of my pocket. The two greatiors stood
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  Speaker 1: silent while I spoke, seeming to listen with great attention,
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  Speaker 1: and when I had ended, they neighed frequently towards each other,
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  Speaker 1: as if they were engaged in serious conversation. I plainly
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  Speaker 1: observed that their language expres rest the passions very well,
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  Speaker 1: and the words might, with little pains, be resolved into
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  Speaker 1: an alphabet more easily than the Chinese. I could frequently
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  Speaker 1: distinguish the word yahoo, which was repeated by each of
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  Speaker 1: them several times, And although it was impossible for me
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  Speaker 1: to conjecture what it meant, yet, while the two horses
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  Speaker 1: were busy in conversation, I endeavored to practice this word
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  Speaker 1: upon my tongue, And as soon as they were silent,
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  Speaker 1: I boldly pronounced yahoo in a loud voice, imitating at
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  Speaker 1: the same time as near as I could, the neighing
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  Speaker 1: of a horse, at which they were both visibly surprised,
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  Speaker 1: and the gray repeated the same word twice, as if
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  Speaker 1: he meant to teach me the right accent. Wherein I
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  Speaker 1: spoke after him as well as I could, and found
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  Speaker 1: myself perceivably to improve every time, though very far from
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  Speaker 1: any degree of perfection. The Bay tried me with a
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  Speaker 1: second word, much harder to be pronounced, but reducing it
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  Speaker 1: to the English orthography, may be spelt thus hinnum. I
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  Speaker 1: did not succeed in this so well as in the former,
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  Speaker 1: but after two or three father trials, I had better fortune,
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  Speaker 1: and they both appeared amazed at my capacity. After some
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  Speaker 1: further discourse, which I then conjectured might relate to me,
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  Speaker 1: the two friends took their leave with the same compliment
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  Speaker 1: of striking each other's hoof, and the gray made me
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  Speaker 1: signs that I should walk before him, wherein I thought
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  Speaker 1: it prudent to comply till I could find a better director.
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  Speaker 1: When I offered to slacken my pace, he would cry
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  Speaker 1: hum hum. I guessed his meaning and gave him to
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  Speaker 1: understand as well as I could, that I was weary
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  Speaker 1: and not able to walk faster upon which he would
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  Speaker 1: stand awhile to let me rest end Apart four, Chapter one,