الفصل الفصل 4 · Mildendo, the metropolis of Lilliput, described, together with the

. Mildendo, the metropolis of Lilliput, described, together with the

emperor’s palace. A conversation between the author and a principal

secretary, concerning the affairs of that empire. The author’s offers

to serve the emperor in his wars.

The first request I made, after I had obtained my liberty, was, that I

might have license to see Mildendo, the metropolis; which the emperor

easily granted me, but with a special charge to do no hurt either to

the inhabitants or their houses. The people had notice, by

proclamation, of my design to visit the town. The wall which

encompassed it is two feet and a half high, and at least eleven inches

broad, so that a coach and horses may be driven very safely round it;

and it is flanked with strong towers at ten feet distance. I stepped

over the great western gate, and passed very gently, and sidling,

through the two principal streets, only in my short waistcoat, for fear

of damaging the roofs and eaves of the houses with the skirts of my

coat. I walked with the utmost circumspection, to avoid treading on any

stragglers who might remain in the streets, although the orders were

very strict, that all people should keep in their houses, at their own

peril. The garret windows and tops of houses were so crowded with

spectators, that I thought in all my travels I had not seen a more

populous place. The city is an exact square, each side of the wall

being five hundred feet long. The two great streets, which run across

and divide it into four quarters, are five feet wide. The lanes and

alleys, which I could not enter, but only view them as I passed, are

from twelve to eighteen inches. The town is capable of holding five

hundred thousand souls: the houses are from three to five stories: the

shops and markets well provided.

The emperor’s palace is in the centre of the city where the two great

streets meet. It is enclosed by a wall of two feet high, and twenty

feet distance from the buildings. I had his majesty’s permission to

step over this wall; and, the space being so wide between that and the

palace, I could easily view it on every side. The outward court is a

square of forty feet, and includes two other courts: in the inmost are

the royal apartments, which I was very desirous to see, but found it

extremely difficult; for the great gates, from one square into another,

were but eighteen inches high, and seven inches wide. Now the buildings

of the outer court were at least five feet high, and it was impossible

for me to stride over them without infinite damage to the pile, though

the walls were strongly built of hewn stone, and four inches thick. At

the same time the emperor had a great desire that I should see the

magnificence of his palace; but this I was not able to do till three

days after, which I spent in cutting down with my knife some of the

largest trees in the royal park, about a hundred yards distant from the

city. Of these trees I made two stools, each about three feet high, and

strong enough to bear my weight. The people having received notice a

second time, I went again through the city to the palace with my two

stools in my hands. When I came to the side of the outer court, I stood

upon one stool, and took the other in my hand; this I lifted over the

roof, and gently set it down on the space between the first and second

court, which was eight feet wide. I then stept over the building very

conveniently from one stool to the other, and drew up the first after

me with a hooked stick. By this contrivance I got into the inmost

court; and, lying down upon my side, I applied my face to the windows

of the middle stories, which were left open on purpose, and discovered

the most splendid apartments that can be imagined. There I saw the

empress and the young princes, in their several lodgings, with their

chief attendants about them. Her imperial majesty was pleased to smile

very graciously upon me, and gave me out of the window her hand to

kiss.

But I shall not anticipate the reader with further descriptions of this

kind, because I reserve them for a greater work, which is now almost

ready for the press; containing a general description of this empire,

from its first erection, through a long series of princes; with a

particular account of their wars and politics, laws, learning, and

religion; their plants and animals; their peculiar manners and customs,

with other matters very curious and useful; my chief design at present

being only to relate such events and transactions as happened to the

public or to myself during a residence of about nine months in that

empire.

One morning, about a fortnight after I had obtained my liberty,

Reldresal, principal secretary (as they style him) for private affairs,

came to my house attended only by one servant. He ordered his coach to

wait at a distance, and desired I would give him an hour’s audience;

which I readily consented to, on account of his quality and personal

merits, as well as of the many good offices he had done me during my

solicitations at court. I offered to lie down that he might the more

conveniently reach my ear, but he chose rather to let me hold him in my

hand during our conversation. He began with compliments on my liberty;

said “he might pretend to some merit in it;” but, however, added, “that

if it had not been for the present situation of things at court,

perhaps I might not have obtained it so soon. For,” said he, “as

flourishing a condition as we may appear to be in to foreigners, we

labour under two mighty evils: a violent faction at home, and the

danger of an invasion, by a most potent enemy, from abroad. As to the

first, you are to understand, that for about seventy moons past there

have been two struggling parties in this empire, under the names of

_Tramecksan_ and _Slamecksan_, from the high and low heels of their

shoes, by which they distinguish themselves. It is alleged, indeed,

that the high heels are most agreeable to our ancient constitution;

but, however this be, his majesty has determined to make use only of

low heels in the administration of the government, and all offices in

the gift of the crown, as you cannot but observe; and particularly that

his majesty’s imperial heels are lower at least by a _drurr_ than any

of his court (_drurr_ is a measure about the fourteenth part of an

inch). The animosities between these two parties run so high, that they

will neither eat, nor drink, nor talk with each other. We compute the

_Tramecksan_, or high heels, to exceed us in number; but the power is

wholly on our side. We apprehend his imperial highness, the heir to the

crown, to have some tendency towards the high heels; at least we can

plainly discover that one of his heels is higher than the other, which

gives him a hobble in his gait. Now, in the midst of these intestine

disquiets, we are threatened with an invasion from the island of

Blefuscu, which is the other great empire of the universe, almost as

large and powerful as this of his majesty. For as to what we have heard

you affirm, that there are other kingdoms and states in the world

inhabited by human creatures as large as yourself, our philosophers are

in much doubt, and would rather conjecture that you dropped from the

moon, or one of the stars; because it is certain, that a hundred

mortals of your bulk would in a short time destroy all the fruits and

cattle of his majesty’s dominions: besides, our histories of six

thousand moons make no mention of any other regions than the two great

empires of Lilliput and Blefuscu. Which two mighty powers have, as I

was going to tell you, been engaged in a most obstinate war for

six-and-thirty moons past. It began upon the following occasion. It is

allowed on all hands, that the primitive way of breaking eggs, before

we eat them, was upon the larger end; but his present majesty’s

grandfather, while he was a boy, going to eat an egg, and breaking it

according to the ancient practice, happened to cut one of his fingers.

Whereupon the emperor his father published an edict, commanding all his

subjects, upon great penalties, to break the smaller end of their eggs.

The people so highly resented this law, that our histories tell us,

there have been six rebellions raised on that account; wherein one

emperor lost his life, and another his crown. These civil commotions

were constantly fomented by the monarchs of Blefuscu; and when they

were quelled, the exiles always fled for refuge to that empire. It is

computed that eleven thousand persons have at several times suffered

death, rather than submit to break their eggs at the smaller end. Many

hundred large volumes have been published upon this controversy: but

the books of the Big-endians have been long forbidden, and the whole

party rendered incapable by law of holding employments. During the

course of these troubles, the emperors of Blefuscu did frequently

expostulate by their ambassadors, accusing us of making a schism in

religion, by offending against a fundamental doctrine of our great

prophet Lustrog, in the fifty-fourth chapter of the Blundecral (which

is their Alcoran). This, however, is thought to be a mere strain upon

the text; for the words are these: ‘that all true believers break their

eggs at the convenient end.’ And which is the convenient end, seems, in

my humble opinion to be left to every man’s conscience, or at least in

the power of the chief magistrate to determine. Now, the Big-endian

exiles have found so much credit in the emperor of Blefuscu’s court,

and so much private assistance and encouragement from their party here

at home, that a bloody war has been carried on between the two empires

for six-and-thirty moons, with various success; during which time we

have lost forty capital ships, and a much greater number of smaller

vessels, together with thirty thousand of our best seamen and soldiers;

and the damage received by the enemy is reckoned to be somewhat greater

than ours. However, they have now equipped a numerous fleet, and are

just preparing to make a descent upon us; and his imperial majesty,

placing great confidence in your valour and strength, has commanded me

to lay this account of his affairs before you.”

I desired the secretary to present my humble duty to the emperor; and

to let him know, “that I thought it would not become me, who was a

foreigner, to interfere with parties; but I was ready, with the hazard

of my life, to defend his person and state against all invaders.”