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

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  Speaker 1: Chapter nine, the author returns to Maladonnada sails to the
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  Speaker 1: kingdom of Lugnak. The author confined, he is sent for
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  Speaker 1: to court. The manner of his admittance the King's great
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  Speaker 1: leniity to his subjects. The day of our departure being come,
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  Speaker 1: I took leave of his highness the governor of Club
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  Speaker 1: dub Drib, and returned with my two companions to Maladonada,
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  Speaker 1: where after a fortnight's waiting, a ship was ready to
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  Speaker 1: sail for Lugnak. The two gentlemen and some others were
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  Speaker 1: so generous and kind as to furnish me with provisions
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  Speaker 1: and see me on board. I was a month in
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  Speaker 1: this voyage. We had one violent storm and were under
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  Speaker 1: a necessity of steering westward to get into the trade wind,
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  Speaker 1: which holds for above sixty leagues. On the twenty first
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  Speaker 1: of April seventeen o eight, we sailed into the river
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  Speaker 1: of Clemignick, which is a seaport town at the south
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  Speaker 1: east point of Lucknek. We cast anchor within a league
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  Speaker 1: of the town and made a signal for a pilot.
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  Speaker 1: Two of them came on board in less than half
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  Speaker 1: an hour, by whom we were guided between certain shoals
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  Speaker 1: and rocks, which are very dangerous in the passage to
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  Speaker 1: a large basin where a fleet may ride in safety
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  Speaker 1: within a cable's length of the town wall. Some of
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  Speaker 1: our sailors, whether out of treachery or inadvertence, had informed
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  Speaker 1: the pilots that I was a stranger and great traveler,
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  Speaker 1: whereof these gave notice to a custom house officer by
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  Speaker 1: whom I was examined very strictly. Upon my landing. This
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  Speaker 1: officer spoke to me in the language about a barbie, which,
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  Speaker 1: by the force of much commerce, is generally understood in
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  Speaker 1: that town, especially by seamen and those employed in the customs.
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  Speaker 1: I gave him a short account of some particulars, and
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  Speaker 1: made my story as plausible and consistent as I could.
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  Speaker 1: But I thought it necessary to disguise my country and
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  Speaker 1: call myself a Hollander, because my intentions were for Japan,
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  Speaker 1: and I knew the Dutch were the only Europeans permitted
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  Speaker 1: to enter into that kingdom. I therefore told the officer that,
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  Speaker 1: having been shipwrecked on the coast of Bounabarbie and cast
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  Speaker 1: on a rock, I was received into Laputa, or the
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  Speaker 1: Flying Island of which he had often heard, and was
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  Speaker 1: now endeavoring to get to Japan. Whence I might find
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  Speaker 1: a convenience of returning to my own country. The officer
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  Speaker 1: said I must be confined till he could receive orders
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  Speaker 1: from court, for which he would write immediately and hope
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  Speaker 1: to receive an answer in a fortnight. I was carried
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  Speaker 1: to a convenient lodging with a sentry placed at the door. However,
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  Speaker 1: I had the liberty of a large garden and was
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  Speaker 1: treated with humanity enough, being maintained all the time at
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  Speaker 1: the King's charge. I was invited by several persons, chiefly
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  Speaker 1: out of curiosity, because it was reported that I came
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  Speaker 1: from countries very remote of which they had never heard.
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  Speaker 1: I hired a young man who came in the same
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  Speaker 1: ship to be an interpreter. He was a native of Lugnak,
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  Speaker 1: but had lived some years at Meldonada, and was a
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  Speaker 1: perfect master of both languages. By his assistance, I was
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  Speaker 1: able to hold a conversation with those who came to
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  Speaker 1: visit me, but this consisted only of their questions and
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  Speaker 1: my answers. The dispatch came from court about the time
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  Speaker 1: we expected. It contained a warrant for conducting me and
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  Speaker 1: my retinue to trial drag dub or trill drog drib,
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  Speaker 1: for it is pronounced both ways, as near as I
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  Speaker 1: can remember, by a party of ten horse. All my
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  Speaker 1: retinue was that poor lad for an interpreter, whom I
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  Speaker 1: persuaded into my service, and at my humble request, we
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  Speaker 1: had each of us a meal to ride on a
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  Speaker 1: messengers dispatched half a day's journey before us. To give
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  Speaker 1: the King notice of my approach, and to desire that
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  Speaker 1: his Majesty would please to appoint a day and hour
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  Speaker 1: when it would, by his gracious pleasure, that I might
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  Speaker 1: have the honor to lick the dust before his footstool.
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  Speaker 1: This is the court style, and I found it to
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  Speaker 1: be more than matter or form, For upon my admittance
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  Speaker 1: two days after my arrival, I was commanded to crawl
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  Speaker 1: upon my belly and lick the floor as I advanced,
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  Speaker 1: but on account of my being a stranger, care was
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  Speaker 1: taken to have it made so clean that the dust
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  Speaker 1: was not offensive. However, this was a peculiar grace, not
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  Speaker 1: allowed to any but persons of the highest rank when
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  Speaker 1: they desire an admittance, Nay, sometimes the floor is strewed
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  Speaker 1: with dust on purpose when the person to be admitted
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  Speaker 1: happens to have powerful enemies at court. And I have
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  Speaker 1: seen a great lord with his mouth so crammed that
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  Speaker 1: when he had crept to the proper distance from the throne,
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  Speaker 1: he was not able to speak a word. Neither is
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  Speaker 1: there any remedy, because it is capital for those who
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  Speaker 1: receive an audience to spit or wipe their mouths in
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  Speaker 1: His Majesty's presence. There is indeed another custom which I
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  Speaker 1: cannot altogether approve of. When the King has a mind
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  Speaker 1: put any of his nobles to death in a gentle,
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  Speaker 1: indulgent manner, he commands the floor to be strewed with
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  Speaker 1: a certain brown powder of a deadly composition, which, being
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  Speaker 1: looked up infallibly kills him in twenty four hours. But
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  Speaker 1: in justice to this Prince's great clemency and the care
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  Speaker 1: he has of his subject's lives, wherein it were much
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  Speaker 1: to be wished that the monarchs of Europe would imitate him,
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  Speaker 1: it must be mentioned for his honor that strict orders
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  Speaker 1: are given to have the infected parts of the floor
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  Speaker 1: well after every such execution, which, if his domestics neglect
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  Speaker 1: they are in danger of incurring his royal displeasure. I
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  Speaker 1: myself heard him give directions that one of his pages
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  Speaker 1: should be whipped, whose turn it was to give notice
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  Speaker 1: about washing the floor after an execution, but maliciously had
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  Speaker 1: omitted it, by which neglect, a young lord of great
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  Speaker 1: hopes coming to an audience was unfortunately poisoned. Although the
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  Speaker 1: King at the time had no design against his life.
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  Speaker 1: But this good prince was so gracious as to forgive
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  Speaker 1: the poor page his whipping, upon promise that he would
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  Speaker 1: do so no more without special orders. To return from
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  Speaker 1: this digression. When I had crept within four yards of
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  Speaker 1: the throne, I raised myself gently upon my knee, and then,
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  Speaker 1: striking my forehead seven times against the ground, I pronounced
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  Speaker 1: the following word words as they had been taught me
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  Speaker 1: the night before ink plane glofft throb squat, cerembly hop
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  Speaker 1: m laschnault as wynn snod balkafum to nudbalkoff slenop had
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  Speaker 1: gridlop ashed. This is the compliment established by the laws
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  Speaker 1: of the land for all persons admitted to the King's presence.
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  Speaker 1: It may be rendered into English. Thus may your celestial
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  Speaker 1: Majesty outlive the sun eleven moons and a half. To this,
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  Speaker 1: the King returned some answer which, although I could not
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  Speaker 1: understand yet, I replied, as I had been directed, fluff
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  Speaker 1: drin yalaric dweldham prastadmrpush, which properly signifies my tongue is
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  Speaker 1: in the mouth of my friend. And by this expression
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  Speaker 1: was meant that I desired leave to bring my interpreter.
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  Speaker 1: Whereupon the young man already mentioned was accordingly introduced, by
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  Speaker 1: whose intervention I answered as many questions as his Majesty
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  Speaker 1: could put in above an hour. I spoke in the
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  Speaker 1: bownla Barbian tongue, and my interpreter delivered my meaning in
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  Speaker 1: that of Lugnak. The King was much delighted in my company,
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  Speaker 1: and ordered his bliff mark Club or high Chamberlain, to
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  Speaker 1: appoint a lodging in the court for me and my interpreter,
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  Speaker 1: with a daily allowance for my table and a large
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  Speaker 1: purse of gold for my common expenses. I stayed three
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  Speaker 1: months in this country out of perfect obedience to His Majesty,
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  Speaker 1: who was pleased highly to favor me and made me
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  Speaker 1: very honorable offers. But I thought it more consistent with
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  Speaker 1: prudence and justice to pass the remainder of my days
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  Speaker 1: with my wife and family, and apart three Chapter nine,