Latest / Thrilling Adventures - Daily / 28 - Gulliver's Travels - Jonathan Swift

Transcript

28 - Gulliver's Travels - Jonathan Swift · Thrilling Adventures - Daily

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Part four, A Voyage to the Country of the Whinnams.
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Chapter one, the author sets out as captain of a ship.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: His men conspire against him, confine him a long time
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: to his cabin, and set him on shore in an
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: unknown land. He travels up into the country the Aa,
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: who's a strange sort of animal described the author meets
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: two Whinnams. I continued at home with my wife and
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: children about five months, in a very happy condition. If
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: I could have learned the lesson of knowing when I
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: was well, I left my poor wife, big with child,
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: and accepted an advantageous offer made me to be captain
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: of the Adventurer, a stout merchantman of three hundred and
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: fifty tons, For I understood navigation well, and being grown
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: weary of a surgeon's employment at sea, which however, I
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: could exercise upon occasion, I took a skillful young man
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: of that calling, one Robert Purefoy, into my ship. We
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: set sail from Portsmouth upon the seventh day of September
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: seventeen ten. On the fourteenth who met with Captain Pocock
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: of Bristol at Tenerife, who was going to the Bay
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: of Campeachy to cut Logwood. On the sixteenth he was
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: parted from us by a storm. I heard since my
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: return that his ship founded, and none escaped but one
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: cabin boy. He was an honest man and a good sailor,
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: but a little too positive in his own opinions, which
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: was the cause of his destruction, as it has been
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: with several others, For if he had followed my advice,
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: he might have been safe at home with his family.
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: At this time, as well as myself, I had several
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: men who died in my ship of Callynchers, so that
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: I was forced to get recruits out of Barbados and
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: the Leeward Islands where I touched by the direction of
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: the merchants roomy me, which I had soon too much
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: cause to repent, for I found afterwards that most of
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: them had been buccaneers. I had fifty hands on board,
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: and my orders were that I should trade with the
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: Indians in the South Sea and make what discoveries I could.
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: These rogues, whom I had picked up, debauched my other men,
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: and they all formed a conspiracy to seize the ship
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: and secure me, which they did one morning, rushing into
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: my cabin and binding me hand and foot. Threatening to
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: throw me overboard if I offered to stir. I told
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: them I was their prisoner and would submit this. They
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: made me swear to do, and then they unbound me,
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: only fastening one of my legs of a chain near
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: my bed, and placed a sentry at my door with
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: his peace charged, who was commanded to shoot me dead
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: if I attempted my liberty. They sent me own victuals
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: and drink, and took the government of the ship to themselves.
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: Their design was to turn pirates and plunder the Spaniards,
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: which they could not do till they got more men.
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: But first they resolved to sell the goods in the
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: ship and then go to Madagascar for recruits, several among
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: them having died since my confinement. They sailed many weeks
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: and traded with the Indians. But I knew not what
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: course they took, being kept a prisoner in my cabin
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: and expecting nothing less than to be murdered, as they
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: often threatened me. Upon the ninth day of May seventeen eleven,
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: one James Welch came down to my cabin and said
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: he had orders from the captain to set me ashore.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: I expostulated with him, but in vain. Neither would he
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: so much as tell me who their new captain was.
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: They forced me into the long boat, let me put
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: on my best suit of clothes, which were as good
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: as new, and take a small bundle of linen, but
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: no arms except my hanger. And they were so civil
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: as not to search my pockets, into which I conveyed
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: what money I had, with some other little necessaries. They
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: rode about a league and then set me down on
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: a strand. I desired them to tell me what country
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: it was. They all swore they knew no more than myself,
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: but said that the captain, as they called him, was
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: resolved after they had sold the ladding to get rid
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: of me in the first place where they could discover land.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: They pushed off, immediately, advising me to make haste for
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: fear of being overtaken by the tide, and so bade
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: me farewell in this desolate condition. I advanced forward and
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: soon got upon firm ground, where I sat down on
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: a bank to rest myself and consider what I had
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: best do. When I was a little refreshed, I went
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: up into the country, resolving to deliver myself to the
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: first savages I should meet, and purchase my life from
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: them by some bracelets, glass rings, and other toys which
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: sailors usually provide themselves with in those voyages, and whereof
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: I had some about me. The land was divided by
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: long rows of trees, not regularly planted, but naturally growing.
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: There was great plenty of grass and several fields of oats.
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: I walked very circumspectully, for fear of being surprised or
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: suddenly shot with an arrow from behind or on either side.
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: I fell into a beaten road, where I saw many
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: tracks of human feet, and some of cows, but most
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: of horses. At last I beheld several animals in a field,
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: and one or two of the same kind sitting in trees.
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: Their shape was very singular and deformed, which a little
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: discomposed me, so that I lay down behind a thicket
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: to observe them better. Some of them, coming forward near
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: the place where I lay, gave me an opportunity of
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: distinctly making their form. Their heads and breasts were covered
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: with a thick hair, some frizzled and others lank. They
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: had beards like goats, and a long ridge of hair
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: down their backs and the foreparts of their legs, and feet,
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: but the rest of their bodies was bare, so that
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: I might see their skins, which were of a brown
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: buff color. They had no tails, nor any hair at
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: all on their buttocks, except about the anus, which I
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: presume nature had planted there to defend them as they
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: sat on the ground. For this posture they used as
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: well as lying down, and often stood on their hind feet.
• 6:50
  Speaker 1: They climbed high trees as nimbly as a squirrel, for
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: they had strong, extended claws before and behind, terminating in
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: sharp points, and hooked. They would often spring and bound
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: and leap with prodigious agility. The females were not so
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: large as the males. They had long, lank hair on
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: their heads, but none on their faces, nor anything more
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: than a sort of down on the rest of their bodies,
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: except about the anus and pudenda. The dogs hung between
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: their fore feet and often reached almost to the ground
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: as they walked. The hair of both sexes was of
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: several colors, brown, red, black, and yellow. Upon the whole.
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: I never beheld in all my travels so disagreeable an animal,
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: or one against which I naturally conceived so strong an antipathy,
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: so that, thinking I had seen enough. Full of contempt
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: and aversion, I got up and pursued the beaten road,
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: hoping it might direct me to the cabin of some Indian.
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: I had not got far when I met one of
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: these creatures, full in my way and coming up directly
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: to me. The ugly monster, when he saw me, distorted
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: several ways every feature of his visage and steared as
• 8:11
  Speaker 1: at an object he had never seen before. Then, approaching nearer,
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: lifted up his forepow. Whether out of curiosity or mischief,
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: I could not tell, But I drew my hanger and
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: gave him a good blow with the flat side of it,
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: for I durst not strike with the edge, fearing the
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: inhabitants might be provoked against me if they should come
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: to know that I had killed or maimed any of
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: their cattle. When the beast felt the smart he drew
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: back and roared so loud that I heard of at
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: least forty came flocking about me from the next field,
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: howling and making odious faces. But I ran to the
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: body of a tree, and, leaning my back against it,
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: kept them off by waving my hanger. Several of this
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: cursed brew getting hold of the branches behind leaped up
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: into the tree, whence they began to discharge their excrements
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: on my head. However, I escaped pretty well by sticking
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: close to the stem of the tree, but was almost
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: stifled with the filth which fell about me on every side.
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: In the midst of this distress, I observed them all
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: to run away on a sudden as fast as they could,
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: at which I ventured to leave the tree and pursue
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: the road, wondering what it was that could put them
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: into this fright. But looking on my left hand, I
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: saw a horse walking softly in the field, which my persecutors,
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: having sooner discovered, was the cause of their flight. The
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: horse started a little when he came near me, but
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: soon recovering himself, looked full in my face with manifest
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: tokens of wonder. He viewed my hands and feet walking
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: round me. Several times. I would have pursued my journey,
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: but he placed himself directly in the way, yet looking
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: with a very mild aspect, never offering the least violence.
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: We stood gazing at each other for some time. At
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: last I took the boldness to reach my hand towards
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: his neck, with a design to stroke it using the
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: common style and whistle of jockeys when they are going
• 10:23
  Speaker 1: to handle a strange horse. But this strange animal seemed
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: to receive my civilities with disdain, shook his head and
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: bent his brows, softly, raising up his right forefoot to
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: remove my hand. Then he neighed three or four times,
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: but in so different accadence that I began to think
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: he was speaking to himself in some language of his own.
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: While he and I were thus employed, another horse came up, who,
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: applying himself to the first, in a very formal manner,
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: they gently struck each other's right hoof, before neighing several times,
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: by turns and varying the sound, which seemed to be
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: almost articulate. They went some paces off, as if it
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: were to confer together, walking side by side, backward and forward,
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: like persons deliberating upon some affair of weight, but often
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: turning their eyes towards me, as if it were to
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: watch that I might not escape. I was amazed to
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: see such actions and behavior in brute beasts, and concluded
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: with myself that if the inhabitants of this country were
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: endued with a proportional degree of reason, they must needs
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: be the wisest people upon earth. This thought gave me
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: so much comfort that I resolved to go forward until
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: I could discover some house or village, or meet with
• 11:50
  Speaker 1: any of the natives, leaving the two horses to discourse
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: together as they pleased. But the first, who was a
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: dapple gray, observed having me to steal off, nade after
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: me in so expressive a tone that I fancied myself
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: to understand what he meant. Whereupon I turned back and
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: came near to him to expect his father commands, but
• 12:13
  Speaker 1: concealing my fear as much as I could, for I
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: began to be in some pain. How this adventure might terminate,
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: and the reader will easily believe I did not much
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: like my present situation. The two horses came up close
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: to me, looking with great earnestness upon my face and hands.
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: The gray steed rubbed my hat all around with his
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: right forehoof and discomposed it so much that I was
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: forced to adjust it better by taking it off and
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: settling it again, whereat both he and his companion, who
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: was a brown bay, appeared to be much surprised. The
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: latter felt the lappet of my coat, and finding it
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: to hang loose about me. They both looked with new
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: signs of wonder. He stroked my right hand, seeming to
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: admire the softness and color, but he squeezed it so
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: hard between his hoof and his pastern that I was
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: forced to roar, after which they both touched me with
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: all possible tenderness. They were under great perplexity about my
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: shoes and stockings, which they felt, very often neighing to
• 13:23
  Speaker 1: each other and using various gestures, not unlike those of
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: a philosopher when he would attempt to solve some new
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: and difficult phenomenon. Upon the whole, the behavior of these
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: animals was so orderly and rational, so acute and judicious,
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: that I at last concluded they must needs be magicians
• 13:44
  Speaker 1: who had thus metamorphosed to themselves upon some design, and
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: seeing a stranger in the way, resolved to divert themselves
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: with him, or perhaps were really amazed at the sight
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: of a man so very different in habit, feature and
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: complet from those who might probably live in so remote
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: a climate. Upon the strength of this reasoning, I ventured
• 14:08
  Speaker 1: to address them in the following manner. Gentlemen, if you
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: be conjurers, as I have good cause to believe you
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: can understand my language. Therefore I make bold to let
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: your worships know the I'm a poor, distressed Englishman, driven
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: by his misfortunes upon your coast, and I entreat one
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: of you to let me ride upon his back, as
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: if you were a real horse, to some house or
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: village where I can be relieved. In return of which favor,
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: I will make you a present of this knife and bracelet.
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: Taken them out of my pocket. The two greatiors stood
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: silent while I spoke, seeming to listen with great attention,
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: and when I had ended, they neighed frequently towards each other,
• 14:53
  Speaker 1: as if they were engaged in serious conversation. I plainly
• 14:58
  Speaker 1: observed that their language expres rest the passions very well,
• 15:02
  Speaker 1: and the words might, with little pains, be resolved into
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: an alphabet more easily than the Chinese. I could frequently
• 15:11
  Speaker 1: distinguish the word yahoo, which was repeated by each of
• 15:14
  Speaker 1: them several times, And although it was impossible for me
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: to conjecture what it meant, yet, while the two horses
• 15:22
  Speaker 1: were busy in conversation, I endeavored to practice this word
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: upon my tongue, And as soon as they were silent,
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: I boldly pronounced yahoo in a loud voice, imitating at
• 15:34
  Speaker 1: the same time as near as I could, the neighing
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: of a horse, at which they were both visibly surprised,
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: and the gray repeated the same word twice, as if
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: he meant to teach me the right accent. Wherein I
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: spoke after him as well as I could, and found
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: myself perceivably to improve every time, though very far from
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: any degree of perfection. The Bay tried me with a
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: second word, much harder to be pronounced, but reducing it
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: to the English orthography, may be spelt thus hinnum. I
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: did not succeed in this so well as in the former,
• 16:15
  Speaker 1: but after two or three father trials, I had better fortune,
• 16:19
  Speaker 1: and they both appeared amazed at my capacity. After some
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: further discourse, which I then conjectured might relate to me,
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: the two friends took their leave with the same compliment
• 16:31
  Speaker 1: of striking each other's hoof, and the gray made me
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: signs that I should walk before him, wherein I thought
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: it prudent to comply till I could find a better director.
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: When I offered to slacken my pace, he would cry
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: hum hum. I guessed his meaning and gave him to
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: understand as well as I could, that I was weary
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: and not able to walk faster upon which he would
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: stand awhile to let me rest end Apart four, Chapter one,