Latest / Thrilling Adventures - Daily / 19 - Gulliver's Travels - Jonathan Swift

Transcript

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

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Chapter three, a phenomenon solved by modern philosophy and astronomy,
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: the Aputi's great improvements in the latter the King's method
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: of suppressing insurrections. I desired leave of this Prince to
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: see the curiosities of the island, which he was graciously
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: pleased to grant, and ordered my tutor to attend me.
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: I chiefly wanted to know to what cause, in art
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: or in nature it owed its several motions, whereof I
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: will now give a philosophical account to the reader. The
• 0:36
  Speaker 1: flying off floating island is exactly circular, its diameters seven thousand,
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: eight hundred thirty seven yards or about four miles and
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: a half, and consequently contains ten thousand acres. It is
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: three hundred yards thick. The bottom or under surface, which
• 0:55
  Speaker 1: appears to those who view it below, is one even
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: regular plate of adamant, shooting up to the height of
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: about two hundred yards. Above it lie the several minerals
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: in their usual order, and over all is a coat
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: of rich mold ten or twelve feet deep. The declivity
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: of the upper surface from the circumference to the centre
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: is the natural cause by all the Jews and rains
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: which fall upon the island are conveyed in small rivulets
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: towards the middle, where they are emptied into four large basins,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: each of about half a mile in circuit and two
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: hundred yards distant from the center. From these basins, the
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: water is continually exhaled by the sun in the daytime,
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: which effectually prevents their overflowing. Besides, as it is in
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: the power of the monarch to raise the island above
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: the rain of clouds and vapors, he can prevent the
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: falling of dews and rain whenever he pleases. For the
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: highest clouds cannot rise above two miles, as naturalists are,
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: at least they were never known to do so. In
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: that country. At the center of the island there is
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: a chasm about fifty yards in diameter, whence the astronomers
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: descend into a large dome, which is thereof called Flandona Gagnol,
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: or the Astronomer's cave, situated at the depth of one
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: hundred yards beneath the upper surface of the adamant. In
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: this cave are twenty lamps continually burning, which, from the
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: reflection of the adamant, cast a strong light into every
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: part the place is stored with great variety of sextants, quadrants, telescopes, astrolabs,
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: and other astronomical instruments. But the greatest curiosity upon which
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: the fate of the island depends is a loadstone of
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: a prodigious size in shape resembling a weaver's shuttle. It
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: is in length six yards and in the thickest part
• 2:59
  Speaker 1: of it least three yards over. This magnet is sustained
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: by a very strong axle of adamant passing through its middle,
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: upon which it plays and is poised so exactly that
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: the weakest hand can turn it. It is hooped round
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: with a hollow cylinder of adamant four feet yards in diameter,
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: placed horizontally and supported by eight adamantin feet each six
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: yards high. In the middle of the concave side. There
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: is a groove twelve inches deep in which the extremities
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: of the axle are lodged and turned around as there
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: is occasion. The stone cannot be removed from its place
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: by any force, because the hoop and its feet are
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: one continued piece with that body of adamant which constitutes
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: the bottom of the island. By means of this loadstone,
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: the island is made to rise and fall, and move
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: from one place to another. For with respect to that
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: part of the earth over which the monarch presides, the
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: stone is endured at one side of its side with
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: an attractive power, and at the other with a repulsive
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: upon place in the magnet. Erect with its attracting end
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: towards the earth, the island descends. But when the repelling
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: extremity points downwards, the island bounds directly upwards. When the
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: position of the stone is oblique, the motion of the
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: island is too, for in this magnet the forces always
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: act in lines parallel to its direction. By this oblique motion,
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: the island is conveyed to different parts of the monarch's dominions.
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: To explain the manner of its progress, let a B
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: represent a line drawn across the dominions of Banna Barbi.
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: Let the line CD represent the loadstone, of which D
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: be the repelling end, and C the attracting en, and
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: the island being over capital C. Let the stone be
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: placed in position C D with its repelling end downwards.
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: Then the island will be driven upwards obliquely towards capital D.
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: When it has arrived at capital D, let the stone
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: be turned upon its axil till the attracting end points
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: towards E, and then the island will be carried obliquely
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: towards E. Where if the stone being again turned upon
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: its axil till it stands in the position e F,
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: with its repelling point downwards, the island will rise obliquely
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: towards F. Where by directing the attracting end towards G,
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: the island may be carried to G, and from G
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: to H. By turning the stone so as to make
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: its repelling extremity to point directly downwards, and thus by
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: changing the situation of the stone, as often as there
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: is occasion, the island is made to rise and fall
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: by turns in an oblique direction, and by those alternate
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: risings and fallings, the obliquity, being not considerable, is conveyed
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: from one part of the dominions to the other. But
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: it must be observed that this island cannot move beyond
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: the extent of the dominions below, nor can it rise
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: above the height of four miles, for which the astronomers
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: who have written large systems concerning the stone as sign
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: the following reason that the magnetic virtue does not extend
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: beyond the distance of four miles, and that the mineral
• 6:42
  Speaker 1: which acts upon the stone in the bowels of the
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: earth and in the sea about six leagues distance from
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: the shore, is not diffused through the whole globe, but
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: terminated with the limits of the king's dominions. And it
• 6:56
  Speaker 1: was easy, from the great advantage of such a superior
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: situation for a prince to bring under his obedience whatever
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: country lay within the attraction of that magnet. When the
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: stone is put parallel to the plane of the horizon,
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: the islands stand still, for in that case the extremities
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: of it, being at equal distance from the earth, act
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: with equal force, the one in drawing downwards, the other
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: in pushing upwards, and consequently no motion can ensue. This load.
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: Stone is under the care of certain astronomers, who, from
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: time to time gimmit such positions as the Monarch directs.
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: They spend the greatest part of their lives and observe
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: in the celestial bodies, which they do by the assistance
• 7:45
  Speaker 1: of glasses far excelling hours and goodness, for although their
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: largest telescopes do not exceed three feet, they magnify much
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: more than those of a hundred with us, and show
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: the stars with greater clears. This advantage has enabled them
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: to extend their discoveries much further than now astronomers in Europe,
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: For they have made a catalog of ten thousand fixed stars,
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: whereas the largest of ours do not contain above one
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: third part of that number. They have likewise discovered two
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: lesser stars or satellites, which revolve about Mars, whereof the
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: innermost is distant from the center of the primary planet
• 8:31
  Speaker 1: exactly three of his diameters, and the outermost five. The
• 8:38
  Speaker 1: former revolves in the space of ten hours, and the
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: latter in twenty one and a half, so that the
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: squares the periodical times are very near in the same
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: proportion with the cubes of their distance from the center
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: of Mars, which evidently shows them to be governed by
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: the same law of gravitation that influences the other heavenly bodies.
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: They have observed ninety three different comets and settled their
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: periods with great exactness. If this be true, and they
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: affirm it with great confidence, it is much to be
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: wished that their observations were made public. Whereby the theory
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: of comets, which at present is very lame and defective,
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: might be brought to the same perfection with other arts
• 9:23
  Speaker 1: of astronomy. The king would be the most absolute prince
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: in the universe if he could but fail on the
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: ministry to join with him. But these, having their estates
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: below on the continent, and considering that the office of
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: a favorite has a very uncertain tenure, would never consent
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: to the enslaving of their country. If any town should
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: engage in rebellion or mutiny, fall into violent factions, or
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: refuse to pay the usual tribute, the king as two
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: methods of reducing them to obedience. The first and mildest
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: course is by keep in the island hovering over such
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: a town and the lands about it, whereby he can
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: deprive them of the benefit of the sun and the rain,
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: and consequently afflict the inhabitants with dearth and disease. And
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: if the crime deserve it, they are at the same
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: time pelted from above with great stones, against which they
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: have no defense, but by creeping into cellars or caves,
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: while the roofs of their houses are beaten to pieces.
• 10:30
  Speaker 1: But if they still continue obstinate or offer to raise insurrections,
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: he proceeds to the last remedy by letting the island
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: drop directly upon their heads, which makes a universal destruction,
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: both of houses and men. However, this is an extremity
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: to which the Prince is seldom driven. Neither indeed is
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: he willing to put it in execution, nor dare his
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: ministers advise him to an action which, as it would
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: render them odious to the people, so it would be
• 11:04
  Speaker 1: a great damage to their own estates, which all lie below,
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: for the island as the king's domain. But there is still,
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: indeed a more weighty reason. Wings of this country have
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: always been averse from executing so terrible an action, unless
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: upon the utmost necessity. For if the town intended to
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: be destroyed should have in it any tall rocks, as
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: it generally falls out in the largest cities, a situation
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: probably chosen at first with a view to prevent such
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: a catastrophe, Or if it abound in high spires or
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: pillars of stone, a sudden full might endanger the bottom
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: or under surface of the island, which, although it couldsist,
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: as I have said, of one entire adamant two hundred
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: yards thick, might happen to crack by too great a
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: shock or burst, by approaching two near the fires from
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: the houses below, as the backs both of iron and stone,
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: will often do in our chimneys. Of all this, the
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: people are well appraised and understand how far to carry
• 12:15
  Speaker 1: their obstinacy where their liberty or property is concerned. And
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: the King, when he is highest provoked and most determined
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: to press a city to rubbish, orders the island to
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: descend with great gentleness, out of a pretense of tenderness
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: to his people, but indeed for fear of break in
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: the adamantine bottom, in which case it is the opinion
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: of all the philosophers that the lodestone could no longer
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: hold it up, and the whole mass would fall to
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: the ground. By a fundamental lore of this realm, neither
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: the King nor either of his two eldest sons are
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: permitted to leave the island, nor the Queen till she
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: is past child bearing end Apart three. Chapter three