THE TRUE HISTORY.
BOOK I.
Lucian's True History is, as the author himself acknowledges in the
Preface to it, a collection of ingenious lies, calculated
principally to amuse the reader, not without several allusions, as
he informs us, to the works of ancient Poets, Historians, and
Philosophers, as well as, most probably, the performances of
contemporary writers, whose absurdities are either obliquely glanced
at, or openly ridiculed and exposed. We cannot but lament that the
humour of the greatest part of these allusions must be lost to us,
the works themselves being long since buried in oblivion. Lucian's
True History, therefore, like the Duke of Buckingham's Rehearsal,
cannot be half so agreeable as when it was first written; there is,
however, enough remaining to secure it from contempt. The vein of
rich fancy, and wildness of a luxuriant imagination, which run
through the whole, sufficiently point out the author as a man of
uncommon genius and invention. The reader will easily perceive that
Bergerac, Swift, and other writers have read this work of Lucian's,
and are much indebted to him for it.
PREFACE.
As athletics of all kinds hold it necessary, not only to prepare the
body by exercise and discipline, but sometimes to give it proper
relaxation, which they esteem no less requisite, so do I think it
highly necessary also for men of letters, after their severer
studies, to relax a little, that they may return to them with the
greater pleasure and alacrity; and for this purpose there is no
better repose than that which arises from the reading of such books
as not only by their humour and pleasantry may entertain them, but
convey at the same time some useful instruction, both which, I
flatter myself, the reader will meet with in the following history;
for he will not only be pleased with the novelty of the plan, and
the variety of lies, which I have told with an air of truth, but
with the tacit allusions so frequently made, not, I trust, without
some degree of humour, to our ancient poets, historians, and
philosophers, who have told us some most miraculous and incredible
stories, and which I should have pointed out to you, but that I
thought they would be sufficiently visible on the perusal.
Ctesias the Cnidian, son of Ctesiochus, wrote an account of India
and of things there, which he never saw himself, nor heard from
anybody else. Iambulus also has acquainted us with many wonders
which he met with in the great sea, and which everybody knew to be
absolute falsehoods: the work, however, was not unentertaining.
Besides these, many others have likewise presented us with their own
travels and peregrinations, where they tell us of wondrous large
beasts, savage men, and unheard-of ways of living. The great leader
and master of all this rhodomontade is Homer's "Ulysses," who talks
to Alcinous about the winds {75} pent up in bags, man-eaters, and
one-eyed Cyclops, wild men, creatures with many heads, several of
his companions turned into beasts by enchantment, and a thousand
things of this kind, which he related to the ignorant and credulous
Phaeacians.
These, notwithstanding, I cannot think much to blame for their
falsehoods, seeing that the custom has been sometimes authorised,
even by the pretenders to philosophy: I only wonder that they
should ever expect to be believed: being, however, myself incited,
by a ridiculous vanity, with the desire of transmitting something to
posterity, that I may not be the only man who doth not indulge
himself in the liberty of fiction, as I could not relate anything
true (for I know of nothing at present worthy to be recorded), I
turned my thoughts towards falsehood, a species of it, however, much
more excusable than that of others, as I shall at least say one
thing true, when I tell you that I lie, and shall hope to escape the
general censure, by acknowledging that I mean to speak not a word of
truth throughout. Know ye, therefore, that I am going to write
about what I never saw myself, nor experienced, nor so much as heard
from anybody else, and, what is more, of such things as neither are,
nor ever can be. I give my readers warning, therefore, not to
believe me.
* * * *
Once upon a time, {77} then, I set sail from the Pillars of
Hercules, and getting into the Western Ocean, set off with a
favourable wind; the cause of my peregrination was no more than a
certain impatience of mind and thirst after novelty, with a desire
of knowing where the sea ended, and what kind of men inhabited the
several shores of it; for this purpose I laid in a large stock of
provisions, and as much water as I thought necessary, taking along
with me fifty companions of the same mind as myself. I prepared
withal, a number of arms, with a skilful pilot, whom we hired at a
considerable expense, and made our ship (for it was a pinnace), as
tight as we could in case of a long and dangerous voyage.
We sailed on with a prosperous gale for a day and a night, but being
still in sight of land, did not make any great way; the next day,
however, at sun-rising, the wind springing up, the waves ran high,
it grew dark, and we could not unfurl a sail; we gave ourselves up
to the winds and waves, and were tossed about in a storm, which
raged with great fury for threescore and nineteen days, but on the
eightieth the sun shone bright, and we saw not far from us an
island, high and woody, with the sea round it quite calm and placid,
for the storm was over: we landed, got out, and happy to escape
from our troubles, laid ourselves down on the ground for some time,
after which we arose, and choosing out thirty of our company to take
care of the vessel, I remained on shore with the other twenty, in
order to take a view of the interior part of the island.
About three stadia from the sea, as we passed through a wood, we
found a pillar of brass, with a Greek inscription on it, the
characters almost effaced; we could make out however these words,
"thus far came Hercules and Bacchus:" near it were the marks of two
footsteps on a rock, one of them measured about an acre, the other
something less; the smaller one appeared to me to be that of
Bacchus, the larger that of Hercules; we paid our adorations to the
deities and proceeded. We had not got far before we met with a
river, which seemed exactly to resemble wine, particularly that of
Chios; {79} it was of a vast extent, and in many places navigable;
this circumstance induced us to give more credit to the inscription
on the pillar, when we perceived such visible marks of Bacchus's
presence here. As I had a mind to know whence this river sprung, I
went back to the place from which it seemed to arise, but could not
trace the spring; I found, however, several large vines full of
grapes, at the root of every one the wine flowed in great abundance,
and from them I suppose the river was collected. We saw a great
quantity of fish in it which were extremely like wine, both in taste
and colour, and after we had taken and eaten a good many of them we
found ourselves intoxicated; and when we cut them up, observed that
they were full of grape stones; it occurred to us afterwards that we
should have mixed them with some water fish, as by themselves they
tasted rather too strong of the wine.
We passed the river in a part of it which was fordable, and a little
farther on met with a most wonderful species of vine, the bottoms of
them that touched the earth were green and thick, and all the upper
part most beautiful women, with the limbs perfect from the waist,
only that from the tops of the fingers branches sprung out full of
grapes, just as Daphne is represented as turned into a tree when
Apollo laid hold on her; on the head, likewise, instead of hair they
had leaves and tendrils; when we came up to them they addressed us,
some in the Lydian tongue, some in the Indian, but most of them in
Greek; they would not suffer us to taste their grapes, but when
anybody attempted it, cried out as if they were hurt.
We left them and returned to our companions in the ship. We then
took our casks, filled some of them with water, and some with wine
from the river, slept one night on shore, and the next morning set
sail, the wind being very moderate. About noon, the island being
now out of sight, on a sudden a most violent whirlwind arose, and
carried the ship above three thousand stadia, lifting it up above
the water, from whence it did not let us down again into the seas
but kept us suspended {81a} in mid air, in this manner we hung for
seven days and nights, and on the eighth beheld a large tract of
land, like an island, {81b} round, shining, and remarkably full of
light; we got on shore, and found on examination that it was
cultivated and full of inhabitants, though we could not then see any
of them. As night came on other islands appeared, some large,
others small, and of a fiery colour; there was also below these
another land with seas, woods, mountains, and cities in it, and this
we took to be our native country: as we were advancing forwards, we
were seized on a sudden by the Hippogypi, {82a} for so it seems they
were called by the inhabitants; these Hippogypi are men carried upon
vultures, which they ride as we do horses. These vultures have each
three heads, and are immensely large; you may judge of their size
when I tell you that one of their feathers is bigger than the mast
of a ship. The Hippogypi have orders, it seems, to fly round the
kingdom, and if they find any stranger, to bring him to the king:
they took us therefore, and carried us before him. As soon as he
saw us, he guessed by our garb what we were. "You are Grecians,"
said he, "are you not?" We told him we were. "And how," added he,
"got ye hither through the air?" We told him everything that had
happened to us; and he, in return, related to us his own history,
and informed us, that he also was a man, that his name was Endymion,
{82b} that he had been taken away from our earth in his sleep, and
brought to this place where he reigned as sovereign. That spot,
{83a} he told us, which now looked like a moon to us, was the earth.
He desired us withal not to make ourselves uneasy, for that we
should soon have everything we wanted. "If I succeed," says he, "in
the war which I am now engaged in against the inhabitants of the
sun, you will be very happy here." We asked him then what enemies
he had, and what the quarrel was about? "Phaeton," he replied, "who
is king of the sun {83b} (for that is inhabited as well as the
moon), has been at war with us for some time past. The foundation
of it was this: I had formerly an intention of sending some of the
poorest of my subjects to establish a colony in Lucifer, which was
uninhabited: but Phaeton, out of envy, put a stop to it, by
opposing me in the mid-way with his Hippomyrmices; {84} we were
overcome and desisted, our forces at that time being unequal to
theirs. I have now, however, resolved to renew the war and fix my
colony; if you have a mind, you shall accompany us in the
expedition; I will furnish you everyone with a royal vulture and
other accoutrements; we shall set out to-morrow." "With all my
heart," said I, "whenever you please." We stayed, however, and
supped with him; and rising early the next day, proceeded with the
army, when the spies gave us notice that the enemy was approaching.
The army consisted of a hundred thousand, besides the scouts and
engineers, together with the auxiliaries, amongst whom were eighty
thousand Hippogypi, and twenty thousand who were mounted on the
Lachanopteri; {85a} these are very large birds, whose feathers are
of a kind of herb, and whose wings look like lettuces. Next to
these stood the Cinchroboli, {85b} and the Schorodomachi. {85c} Our
allies from the north were three thousand Psyllotoxotae {85d} and
five thousand Anemodromi; {85e} the former take their names from the
fleas which they ride upon, every flea being as big as twelve
elephants; the latter are foot-soldiers, and are carried about in
the air without wings, in this manner: they have large gowns
hanging down to their feet, these they tuck up and spread in a form
of a sail, and the wind drives them about like so many boats: in
the battle they generally wear targets. It was reported that
seventy thousand Strathobalani {86a} from the stars over Cappadocia
were to be there, together with five thousand Hippogerani; {86b}
these I did not see, for they never came: I shall not attempt,
therefore, to describe them; of these, however, most wonderful
things were related.
Such were the forces of Endymion; their arms were all alike; their
helmets were made of beans, for they have beans there of a
prodigious size and strength, and their scaly breast-plates of
lupines sewed together, for the skins of their lupines are like a
horn, and impenetrable; their shields and swords the same as our
own.
The army ranged themselves in this manner: the right wing was
formed by the Hippogypi, with the king, and round him his chosen
band to protect him, amongst which we were admitted; on the left
were the Lachanopteri; the auxiliaries in the middle, the foot were
in all about sixty thousand myriads. They have spiders, you must
know, in this country, in infinite numbers, and of pretty large
dimensions, each of them being as big as one of the islands of the
Cyclades; these were ordered to cover the air from the moon quite to
the morning star; this being immediately done, and the field of
battle prepared, the infantry was drawn up under the command of
Nycterion, the son of Eudianax.
The left wing of the enemy, which was commanded by Phaeton himself,
consisted of the Hippomyrmices; these are large birds, and resemble
our ants, except with regard to size, the largest of them covering
two acres; these fight with their horns and were in number about
fifty thousand. In the right wing were the Aeroconopes, {87a} about
five thousand, all archers, and riding upon large gnats. To these
succeeded the Aerocoraces, {87b} light infantry, but remarkably
brave and useful warriors, for they threw out of slings exceeding
large radishes, which whoever was struck by, died immediately, a
most horrid stench exhaling from the wound; they are said, indeed,
to dip their arrows in a poisonous kind of mallow. Behind these
stood ten thousand Caulomycetes, {88a} heavy-armed soldiers, who
fight hand to hand; so called because they use shields made of
mushrooms, and spears of the stalks of asparagus. Near them were
placed the Cynobalani, {88b} about five thousand, who were sent by
the inhabitants of Sirius; these were men with dog's heads, and
mounted upon winged acorns: some of their forces did not arrive in
time; amongst whom there were to have been some slingers from the
Milky-way, together with the Nephelocentauri; {88c} they indeed came
when the first battle was over, and I wish {88d} they had never come
at all: the slingers did not appear, which, they say, so enraged
Phaeton that he set their city on fire.
Thus prepared, the enemy began the attack: the signal being given,
and the asses braying on each side, for such are the trumpeters they
make use of on these occasions, the left wing of the Heliots, unable
to sustain the onset of our Hippogypi, soon gave way, and we pursued
them with great slaughter: their right wing, however, overcame our
left. The Aeroconopes falling upon us with astonishing force, and
advancing even to our infantry, by their assistance we recovered;
and they now began to retreat, when they found the left wing had
been beaten. The defeat then becoming general, many of them were
taken prisoners and many slain; the blood flowed in such abundance
that the clouds were tinged with it and looked red, just as they
appear to us at sunset; from thence it distilled through upon the
earth. Some such thing, I suppose, happened formerly amongst the
gods, which made Homer believe that Jove {89} rained blood at the
death of Sarpedon.
When we returned from our pursuit of the enemy we set up two
trophies; one, on account of the infantry engagement in the spider's
web, and another in the clouds, for our battle in the air. Thus
prosperously everything went on, when our spies informed us that the
Nephelocentaurs, who should have been with Phaeton before the
battle, were just arrived: they made, indeed, as they approached
towards us, a most formidable appearance, being half winged horses
and half men; the men from the waist upwards, about as big as the
Rhodian Colossus, and the horses of the size of a common ship of
burthen. I have not mentioned the number of them, which was really
so great, that it would appear incredible: they were commanded by
Sagittarius, {90a} from the Zodiac. As soon as they learned that
their friends had been defeated they sent a message to Phaeton to
call him back, whilst they put their forces into order of battle,
and immediately fell upon the Selenites, {90b} who were unprepared
to resist them, being all employed in the division of the spoil;
they soon put them to flight, pursued the king quite to his own
city, and slew the greatest part of his birds; they then tore down
the trophies, ran over all the field woven by the spiders, and
seized me and two of my companions. Phaeton at length coming up,
they raised other trophies for themselves; as for us, we were
carried that very day to the palace of the Sun, our hands bound
behind us by a cord of the spider's web.
The conquerors determined not to besiege the city of the Moon, but
when they returned home, resolved to build a wall between them and
the Sun, that his rays might not shine upon it; this wall was double
and made of thick clouds, so that the moon was always eclipsed, and
in perpetual darkness. Endymion, sorely distressed at these
calamities, sent an embassy, humbly beseeching them to pull down the
wall, and not to leave him in utter darkness, promising to pay them
tribute, to assist them with his forces, and never more to rebel; he
sent hostages withal. Phaeton called two councils on the affair, at
the first of which they were all inexorable, but at the second
changed their opinion; a treaty at length was agreed to on these
conditions:--
The Heliots {92} and their allies on one part, make the following
agreement with the Selenites and their allies on the other:--"That
the Heliots shall demolish the wall now erected between them, that
they shall make no irruptions into the territories of the Moon; and
restore the prisoners according to certain articles of ransom to be
stipulated concerning them; that the Selenites shall permit all the
other stars to enjoy their rights and privileges; that they shall
never wage war with the Heliots, but assist them whenever they shall
be invaded; that the king of the Selenites shall pay to the king of
the Heliots an annual tribute of ten thousand casks of dew, for the
insurance of which, he shall send ten thousand hostages; that they
shall mutually send out a colony to the Morning-star, in which,
whoever of either nation shall think proper, may become a member;
that the treaty shall be inscribed on a column of amber, in the
midst of the air, and on the borders of the two kingdoms. This
treaty was sworn to on the part of the Heliots, by Pyronides, {93}
and Therites, and Phlogius; and on the part of the Selenites, by
Nyctor, and Menarus, and Polylampus."
Such was the peace made between them; the wall was immediately
pulled down, and we were set at liberty. When we returned to the
Moon, our companions met and embraced us, shedding tears of joy, as
did Endymion also. He intreated us to remain there, or to go along
with the new colony; this I could by no means be persuaded to, but
begged he would let us down into the sea. As he found I could not
be prevailed on to stay, after feasting us most nobly for seven
days, he dismissed us.
I will now tell you every thing which I met with in the Moon that
was new and extraordinary. Amongst them, when a man grows old he
does not die, but dissolves into smoke and turns to air. They all
eat the same food, which is frogs roasted on the ashes from a large
fire; of these they have plenty which fly about in the air, they get
together over the coals, snuff up the scent of them, and this serves
them for victuals. Their drink is air squeezed into a cup, which
produces a kind of dew.
He who is quite bald is esteemed a beauty amongst them, for they
abominate long hair; whereas, in the comets, it is looked upon as a
perfection at least; so we heard from some strangers who were
speaking of them; they have, notwithstanding, small beards a little
above the knee; no nails to their feet, and only one great toe.
They have honey here which is extremely sharp, and when they
exercise themselves, wash their bodies with milk; this, mixed with a
little of their honey, makes excellent cheese. {94} Their oil is
extracted from onions, is very rich, and smells like ointment.
Their wines, which are in great abundance, yield water, and the
grape stones are like hail; I imagine, indeed, that whenever the
wind shakes their vines and bursts the grape, then comes down
amongst us what we call hail. They make use of their belly, which
they can open and shut as they please, as a kind of bag, or pouch,
to put anything in they want; it has no liver or intestines, but is
hairy and warm within, insomuch, that new-born children, when they
are cold, frequently creep into it. The garments of the rich
amongst them are made of glass, but very soft: the poor have woven
brass, which they have here in great abundance, and by pouring a
little water over it, so manage as to card it like wool. I am
afraid to mention their eyes, lest, from the incredibility of the
thing, you should not believe me. I must, however, inform you that
they have eyes which they take in and out whenever they please: so
that they can preserve them anywhere till occasion serves, and then
make use of them; many who have lost their own, borrow from others;
and there are several rich men who keep a stock of eyes by them.
Their ears are made of the leaves of plane-trees, except of those
who spring, as I observed to you, from acorns, these alone have
wooden ones. I saw likewise another very extraordinary thing in the
king's palace, which was a looking-glass that is placed in a well
not very deep; whoever goes down into the well hears everything that
is said upon earth, and if he looks into the glass, beholds all the
cities and nations of the world as plain as if he was close to them.
I myself saw several of my friends there, and my whole native
country; whether they saw me also I will not pretend to affirm. He
who does not believe these things, whenever he goes there will know
that I have said nothing but what is true.
To return to our voyage. We took our leave of the king and his
friends, got on board our ship, and set sail. Endymion made me a
present of two glass robes, two brass ones, and a whole coat of
armour made of lupines, all which I left in the whale's belly. {96}
He likewise sent with us a thousand Hippogypi, who escorted us five
hundred stadia.
We sailed by several places, and at length reached the new colony of
the Morning-star, where we landed and took in water; from thence we
steered into the Zodiac; leaving the Sun on our left, we passed
close by his territory, and would have gone ashore, many of our
companions being very desirous of it, but the wind would not permit
us; we had a view, however, of that region, and perceived that it
was green, fertile, and well-watered, and abounding in everything
necessary and agreeable. The Nephelocentaurs, who are mercenaries
in the service of Phaeton, saw us and flew aboard our ship, but,
recollecting that we were included into the treaty, soon departed;
the Hippogypi likewise took their leave of us.
All the next night and day we continued our course downwards, and
towards evening came upon Lycnopolis: {97} this city lies between
the Pleiades and the Hyades, and a little below the Zodiac: we
landed, but saw no men, only a number of lamps running to and fro in
the market-place and round the port: some little ones, the poor, I
suppose, of the place; others the rich and great among them, very
large, light, and splendid: every one had its habitation or
candlestick to itself, and its own proper name, as men have. We
heard them speak: they offered us no injury, but invited us in the
most hospitable manner; we were afraid, notwithstanding: neither
would any of us venture to take any food or sleep. The king's court
is in the middle of the city; here he sits all night, calls every
one by name, and if they do not appear, condemns them to death for
deserting their post; their death is, to be put out; we stood by and
heard several of them plead their excuses for non-attendance. Here
I found my own lamp, talked to him, and asked him how things went on
at home; he told me everything that had happened. We stayed there
one night, and next day loosing our anchor, sailed off very near the
clouds; where we saw, and greatly admired the city of Nephelo-
coccygia, {98a} but the wind would not permit us to land. Coronus,
the son of Cottiphion, is king there. I remember Aristophanes,
{98b} the poet, speaks of him, a man of wisdom and veracity, the
truth of whose writings nobody can call in question. About three
days after this, we saw the ocean very plainly, but no land, except
those regions which hang in the air, and which appeared to us all
bright and fiery. The fourth day about noon, the wind subsiding, we
got safe down into the sea. No sooner did we touch the water, but
we were beyond measure rejoiced. We immediately gave every man his
supper, as much as we could afford, and afterwards jumped into the
sea and swam, for it was quite calm and serene.
It often happens, that prosperity is the forerunner of the greatest
misfortunes. We had sailed but two days in the sea, when early in
the morning of the third, at sun-rise, we beheld on a sudden several
whales, and one amongst them, of a most enormous size, being not
less than fifteen hundred stadia in length, he came up to us with
his mouth wide open, disturbing the sea for a long way before him,
the waves dashing round on every side; he whetted his teeth, which
looked like so many long spears, and were white as ivory; we
embraced and took leave of one another, expecting him every moment;
he came near, and swallowed us up at once, ship and all; he did not,
however, crush us with his teeth, for the vessel luckily slipped
through one of the interstices; when we were got in, for some time
it was dark, and we could see nothing; but the whale happening to
gape, we beheld a large space big enough to hold a city with ten
thousand men in it; in the middle were a great number of small fish,
several animals cut in pieces, sails and anchors of ships, men's
bones, and all kinds of merchandise; there was likewise a good
quantity of land and hills, which seemed to have been formed of the
mud which he had swallowed; there was also a wood, with all sorts of
trees in it, herbs of every kind; everything, in short, seemed to
vegetate; the extent of this might be about two hundred and forty
stadia. We saw also several sea-birds, gulls, and kingfishers,
making their nests in the branches. At our first arrival in these
regions, we could not help shedding tears; in a little time,
however, I roused my companions, and we repaired our vessel; after
which, we sat down to supper on what the place afforded. Fish of
all kinds we had here in plenty, and the remainder of the water
which we brought with us from the Morning-star. When we got up the
next day, as often as the whale gaped, we could see mountains and
islands, sometimes only the sky, and plainly perceived by our motion
that he travelled through the sea at a great rate, and seemed to
visit every part of it. At length, when our abode become familiar
to us, I took with me seven of my companions, and advanced into the
wood in order to see everything I could possibly; we had not gone
above five stadia, before we met with a temple dedicated to Neptune,
as we learned by the inscription on it, and a little farther on,
several sepulchres, monumental stones, and a fountain of clear
water; we heard the barking of a dog, and seeing smoke at some
distance from us, concluded there must be some habitation not far
off; we got on as fast as we could, and saw an old man and a boy
very busy in cultivating a little garden, and watering it from a
fountain; we were both pleased and terrified at the sight, and they,
as you may suppose, on their part not less affected, stood fixed in
astonishment and could not speak: after some time, however, "Who
are you?" said the old man; "and whence come ye? are you daemons of
the sea, or unfortunate men, like ourselves? for such we are, born
and bred on land, though now inhabitants of another element;
swimming along with this great creature, who carries us about with
him, not knowing what is to become of us, or whether we are alive or
dead." To which I replied, "We, father, are men as you are, and but
just arrived here, being swallowed up, together with our ship, but
three days ago; we came this way to see what the wood produced, for
it seemed large and full of trees; some good genius led us towards
you, and we have the happiness to find we are not the only poor
creatures shut up in this great monster; but give us an account of
your adventures, let us know who you are, and how you came here."
He would not however, tell us anything himself, or ask us any
questions, till he had performed the rites of hospitality; he took
us into his house, therefore, where he had got beds, and made
everything very commodious; here he presented us with herbs, fruit,
fish, and wine: and when we were satisfied, began to inquire into
our history; when I acquainted him with everything that had happened
to us; the storm we met with; our adventures in the island; our
sailing through the air, the war, etc., from our first setting out,
even to our descent into the whale's belly.
He expressed his astonishment at what had befallen us, and then told
us his own story, which was as follows:--"Strangers," said he, "I am
a Cyprian by birth, and left my country to merchandise with this
youth, who is my son, and several servants. We sailed to Italy with
goods of various kinds, some of which you may, perhaps, have seen in
the mouth of the whale; we came as far as Sicily with a prosperous
gale, when a violent tempest arose, and we were tossed about in the
ocean for three days, where we were swallowed up, men, ship and all,
by the whale, only we two remaining alive; after burying our
companions we built a temple to Neptune, and here we have lived ever
since, cultivating our little garden, raising herbs, and eating fish
or fruit. The wood, as you see, is very large, and produces many
vines, from which we have excellent wine; there is likewise a
fountain, which perhaps you have observed, of fresh and very cold
water. We make our bed of leaves, have fuel sufficient, and catch a
great many birds and live fish. Getting out upon the gills of the
whale, there we wash ourselves when we please. There is a salt
lake, about twenty stadia round, which produces fish of all kinds,
and where we row about in a little boat which we built on purpose.
It is now seven-and-twenty years since we were swallowed up.
Everything here, indeed, is very tolerable, except our neighbours,
who are disagreeable, troublesome, savage, and unsociable." "And
are there more," replied I, "besides ourselves in the whale?" "A
great many," said he, "and those very unhospitable, and of a most
horrible appearance: towards the tail, on the western parts of the
wood, live the Tarichanes, {104a} a people with eel's eyes, and
faces like crabs, bold, warlike, and that live upon raw flesh. On
the other side, at the right hand wall, are the Tritonomendetes,
{104b} in their upper parts men, and in the lower resembling
weasels. On the left are the Carcinochires, {104c} and the
Thynnocephali, {104d} who have entered into a league offensive and
defensive with each other. The middle part is occupied by the
Paguradae, {105a} and the Psittopodes, {105b} a warlike nation, and
remarkably swift-footed. The eastern parts, near the whale's mouth,
being washed by the sea, are most of them uninhabited. I have some
of these, however, on condition of paying an annual tribute to the
Psittopodes of five hundred oysters. Such is the situation of this
country; our difficulty is how to oppose so many people, and find
sustenance for ourselves." "How many may there be?" said I. "More
than a thousand," said he. "And what are their arms?" "Nothing,"
replied he, "but fish-bones." "Then," said I, "we had best go to
war with them, for we have arms and they none; if we conquer them we
shall live without fear for the future." This was immediately
agreed upon, and, as soon as we returned to our ship, we began to
prepare. The cause of the war was to be the non-payment of the
tribute, which was just now becoming due: they sent to demand it;
he returned a contemptuous answer to the messengers: the
Psittopodes and Paguradae were both highly enraged, and immediately
fell upon Scintharus (for that was the old man's name), in a most
violent manner.
We, expecting to be attacked, sent out a detachment of five-and-
twenty men, with orders to lie concealed till the enemy was past,
and then to rise upon them, which they did, and cut off their rear.
We, in the meantime, being likewise five-and-twenty in number, with
the old man and his son, waited their coming up, met, and engaged
them with no little danger, till at length they fled, and we pursued
them even into their trenches. Of the enemy there fell an hundred
and twenty; we lost only one, our pilot, who was run through by the
rib of a mullet. That day, and the night after it, we remained on
the field of battle, and erected the dried backbone of a dolphin as
a trophy. Next day some other forces, who had heard of the
engagement, arrived, and made head against us; the Tarichanes; under
the command of Pelamus, in the right wing, the Thynnocephali on the
left, and the Carcinochires in the middle; the Tritonomendetes
remained neutral, not choosing to assist either party: we came
round upon all the rest by the temple of Neptune, and with a hideous
cry, rushed upon them. As they were unarmed, we soon put them to
flight, pursued them into the wood, and took possession of their
territory. They sent ambassadors a little while after to take away
their dead, and propose terms of peace; but we would hear of no
treaty, and attacking them the next day, obtained a complete
victory, and cut them all off, except the Tritonomendetes, who,
informed of what had passed, ran away up to the whale's gills, and
from thence threw themselves into the sea. The country being now
cleared of all enemies, we rambled through it, and from that time
remained without fear, used what exercise we pleased, went a-
hunting, pruned our vines, gathered our fruit, and lived, in short,
in every respect like men put together in a large prison, which
there was no escaping from, but where they enjoy everything they can
wish for in ease and freedom; such was our way of life for a year
and eight months.
On the fifteenth day of the ninth month, about the second opening of
the whale's mouth (for this he did once every hour, and by that we
calculated our time), we were surprised by a sudden noise, like the
clash of oars; being greatly alarmed, we crept up into the whale's
mouth, where, standing between his teeth, we beheld one of the most
astonishing spectacles that was ever seen; men of an immense size,
each of them not less than half a stadium in length, sailing on
islands like boats. I know what I am saying is incredible, I shall
proceed, notwithstanding: these islands were long, but not very
high, and about a hundred stadia in circumference; there were about
eight-and-twenty of these men in each of them, besides the rowers on
the sides, who rowed with large cypresses, with their branches and
leaves on; in the stern stood a pilot raised on an eminence and
guiding a brazen helm; on the forecastle were forty immense
creatures resembling men, except in their hair, which was all a
flame of fire, so that they had no occasion for helmets; these were
armed, and fought most furiously; the wind rushing in upon the wood,
which was in every one of them, swelled it like a sail and drove
them on, according to the pilot's direction; and thus, like so many
long ships, the islands, by the assistance of the oars, also moved
with great velocity. At first we saw only two or three, but
afterwards there appeared above six hundred of them, which
immediately engaged; many were knocked to pieces by running against
each other, and many sunk; others were wedged in close together and,
not able to get asunder, fought desperately; those who were near the
prows showed the greatest alacrity, boarding each other's ships, and
making terrible havoc; none, however, were taken prisoners. For
grappling-irons they made use of large sharks chained together, who
laid hold of the wood and kept the island from moving: they threw
oysters at one another, one of which would have filled a waggon, and
sponges of an acre long. AEolocentaurus was admiral of one of the
fleets, and Thalassopotes {109} of the other: they had quarrelled,
it seems, about some booty; Thalassopotes, as it was reported,
having driven away a large tribe of dolphins belonging to
AEolocentaurus: this we picked up from their own discourse, when we
heard them mention the names of their commanders. At length the
forces of AEolocentaurus prevailed, and sunk about a hundred and
fifty of the islands of the enemy, and taking three more with the
men in them: the rest took to their oars and fled. The conquerors
pursued them a little way, and in the evening returned to the wreck,
seizing the remainder of the enemy's vessels, and getting back some
of their own, for they had themselves lost no less than fourscore
islands in the engagement. They erected a trophy for this victory,
hanging one of the conquered islands on the head of the whale, which
they fastened their hawsers to, and casting anchor close to him, for
they had anchors immensely large and strong, spent the night there:
in the morning, after they had returned thanks, and sacrificed on
the back of the whale, they buried their dead, sung their Io Paeans,
and sailed off. Such was the battle of the islands.
BOOK II.
From this time our abode in the whale growing rather tedious and
disagreeable, not able to bear it any longer, I began to think
within myself how we might make our escape. My first scheme was to
undermine the right-hand wall and get out there; and accordingly we
began to cut away, but after getting through about five stadia, and
finding it was to no purpose, we left off digging, and determined to
set fire to the wood, which we imagined would destroy the whale, and
secure us a safe retreat. We began, therefore, by burning the parts
near his tail; for seven days and nights he never felt the heat, but
on the eighth we perceived he grew sick, for he opened his mouth
very seldom, and when he did, shut it again immediately; on the
tenth and the eleventh he declined visibly, and began to stink a
little; on the twelfth it occurred to us, which we had never thought
of before, that unless, whilst he was gaping, somebody could prop up
his jaws, to prevent his closing them, we were in danger of being
shut up in the carcase, and perishing there: we placed some large
beams, therefore, in his mouth, got our ship ready, and took in
water, and everything necessary: Scintharus was to be our pilot:
the next day the whale died; we drew our vessel through the
interstices of his teeth, and let her down from thence into the sea:
then, getting on the whale's back, sacrificed to Neptune, near the
spot where the trophy was erected. Here we stayed three days, it
being a dead calm, and on the fourth set sail; we struck upon
several bodies of the giants that had been slain in the sea-fight,
and measured them with the greatest astonishment: for some days we
had very mild and temperate weather, but the north-wind arising, it
grew so extremely cold, that the whole sea was froze up, not on the
surface only, but three or four hundred feet deep, so that we got
out and walked on the ice. The frost being so intense that we could
not bear it, we put in practice the following scheme, which
Scintharus put us in the head of: we dug a cave in the ice, where
we remained for thirty days, lighting a fire, and living upon the
fish which we found in it; but, our provisions failing, we were
obliged to loosen our ship which was stuck fast in, and hoisting a
sail, slid along through the ice with an easy pleasant motion; on
the fifth day from that time, it grew warm, the ice broke, and it
was all water again.
After sailing about three hundred stadia, we fell in upon a little
deserted island: here we took in water, for ours was almost gone,
killed with our arrows two wild oxen, and departed. These oxen had
horns, not on their heads, but, as Momus seemed to wish, under their
eyes. A little beyond this, we got into a sea, not of water, but of
milk; and upon it we saw an island full of vines; this whole island
was one compact well-made cheese, as we afterwards experienced by
many a good meal, which we made upon it, and is in length five-and-
twenty stadia. The vines have grapes upon them, which yield not
wine, but milk. In the middle of the island was a temple to the
Nereid {113} Galataea, as appeared by an inscription on it: as long
as we stayed there, the land afforded us victuals to eat, and the
vines supplied us with milk to drink. Tyro, {114a} the daughter of
Salmoneus, we were told, was queen of it, Neptune having, after her
death, conferred that dignity upon her.
We stopped five days on this island, and on the sixth set sail with
a small breeze, which gently agitated the waves, and on the eighth,
changed our milky sea for a green and briny one, where we saw a
great number of men running backwards and forwards, resembling
ourselves in every part, except the feet, which were all of cork,
whence, I suppose, they are called Phellopodes. {114b} We were
surprised to see them not sinking, but rising high above the waves,
and making their way without the least fear or apprehension; they
came up to, and addressed us in the Greek tongue, telling us they
were going to Phello, their native country; they accompanied us a
good way, and then taking their leave, wished us a good voyage. A
little after we saw several islands, amongst which, to the left of
us, stood Phello, to which these men were going, a city built in the
middle of a large round cork; towards the right hand, and at a
considerable distance, were many others, very large and high, on
which we saw a prodigious large fire: fronting the prow of our
ship, we had a view of one very broad and flat, and which seemed to
be about five hundred stadia off; as we approached near to it, a
sweet and odoriferous air came round us, such as Herodotus tells us
blows from Arabia Felix; from the rose, the narcissus, the hyacinth,
the lily, the violet, the myrtle, the laurel, and the vine.
Refreshed with these delightful odours, and in hopes of being at
last rewarded for our long sufferings, we came close up to the
island; here we beheld several safe and spacious harbours, with
clear transparent rivers rolling placidly into the sea; meadows,
woods, and birds of all kinds, chanting melodiously on the shore;
and, on the trees, the soft and sweet air fanning the branches on
every side, which sent forth a soft, harmonious sound, like the
playing on a flute; at the same time we heard a noise, not of riot
or tumult, but a kind of joyful and convivial sound, as of some
playing on the lute or harp, with others joining in the chorus, and
applauding them.
We cast anchor and landed, leaving our ship in the harbour with
Scintharus and two more of our companions. As we were walking
through a meadow full of flowers, we met the guardians of the isle,
who, immediately chaining us with manacles of roses, for these are
their only fetters, conducted us to their king. From these we
learned, on our journey, that this place was called the Island of
the Blessed, {116a} and was governed by Rhadamanthus. We were
carried before him, and he was sitting that day as judge to try some
causes; ours was the fourth in order. The first was that of Ajax
Telamonius, {116b} to determine whether he was to rank with the
heroes or not. The accusation ran that he was mad, and had made an
end of himself. Much was said on both sides. At length
Rhadamanthus pronounced that he should be consigned to the care of
Hippocrates, and go through a course of hellebore, after which he
might be admitted to the Symposium. The second was a love affair,
to decide whether Theseus or Menelaus should possess Helen in these
regions; and the decree of Rhadamanthus was, that she should live
with Menelaus, who had undergone so many difficulties and dangers
for her; besides, that Theseus had other women, the Amazonian lady
and the daughters of Minos. The third cause was a point of
precedency between Alexander the son of Philip, and Hannibal the
Carthaginian, which was given in favour of Alexander, who was placed
on a throne next to the elder Cyrus, the Persian. Our cause came on
the last. The king asked us how we dared to enter, alone as we
were, into that sacred abode. We told him everything that had
happened; he commanded us to retire, and consulted with the
assessors concerning us. There were many in council with him, and
amongst them Aristides, the just Athenian, and pursuant to his
opinion it was determined that we should suffer the punishment of
our bold curiosity after our deaths, but at present might remain in
the island for a certain limited time, associate with the heroes,
and then depart; this indulgence was not to exceed seven months.
At this instant our chains, if so they might be called, dropped off,
and we were left at liberty to range over the city, and to partake
of the feast of the blessed. The whole city was of gold, {118} and
the walls of emerald; the seven gates were all made out of one trunk
of the cinnamon-tree; the pavement, within the walls, of ivory; the
temples of the gods were of beryl, and the great altars, on which
they offered the hecatombs, all of one large amethyst. Round the
city flowed a river of the most precious ointment, a hundred cubits
in breadth, and deep enough to swim in; the baths are large houses
of glass perfumed with cinnamon, and instead of water filled with
warm dew. For clothes they wear spider's webs, very fine, and of a
purple colour. They have no bodies, but only the appearance of
them, insensible to the touch, and without flesh, yet they stand,
taste, move, and speak. Their souls seem to be naked, and separated
from them, with only the external similitude of a body, and unless
you attempt to touch, you can scarce believe but they have one; they
are a kind of upright shadows, {119} only not black. In this place
nobody ever grows old: at whatever age they enter here, at that
they always remain. They have no night nor bright day, but a
perpetual twilight; one equal season reigns throughout the year; it
is always spring with them, and no wind blows but Zephyrus. The
whole region abounds in sweet flowers and shrubs of every kind;
their vines bear twelve times in the year, yielding fruit every
month, their apples, pomegranates, and the rest of our autumnal
produce, thirteen times, bearing twice in the month of Minos.
Instead of corn the fields bring forth loaves of ready-made bread,
like mushrooms. There are three hundred and sixty-five fountains of
water round the city, as many of honey, and five hundred rather
smaller of sweet-scented oil, besides seven rivers of milk and eight
of wine.
Their symposia are held in a place without the city, which they call
the Elysian Field. This is a most beautiful meadow, skirted by a
large and thick wood, affording an agreeable shade to the guests,
who repose on couches of flowers; the winds attend upon and bring
them everything necessary, except wine, which is otherwise provided,
for there are large trees on every side made of the finest glass,
the fruit of which are cups of various shapes and sizes. Whoever
comes to the entertainment gathers one or more of these cups, which
immediately, becomes full of wine, and so they drink of it, whilst
the nightingales and other birds of song, with their bills peck the
flowers out of the neighbouring fields, and drop them on their
heads; thus are they crowned with perpetual garlands. Their manner
of perfuming them is this. The clouds suck up the scented oils from
the fountains and rivers, and the winds gently fanning them, distil
it like soft dew on those who are assembled there. At supper they
have music also, and singing, particularly the verses of Homer, who
is himself generally at the feast, and sits next above Ulysses, with
a chorus of youths and virgins. He is led in accompanied by Eunomus
the Locrian, {121a} Arion of Lesbos, Anacreon, and Stesichorus,
{121b} whom I saw there along with them, and who at length is
reconciled to Helen. When they have finished their songs, another
chorus begins of swans, {122a} swallows, and nightingales, and to
these succeeds the sweet rustling of the zephyrs, that whistle
through the woods and close the concert. What most contributes to
their happiness is, that near the symposium are two fountains, the
one of milk, the other of pleasure; from the first they drink at the
beginning of the feast; there is nothing afterwards but joy and
festivity.
I will now tell you what men of renown I met with there. And first
there were all the demigods, and all the heroes that fought at Troy
except Ajax the Locrian, {122b} who alone, it seems, was condemned
to suffer for his crimes in the habitations of the wicked. Then
there were of the barbarians both the Cyruses, Anacharsis the
Scythian, Zamolxis of Thrace, {123a} and Numa the Italian; {123b}
besides these I met with Lycurgus the Spartan, Phocion and Tellus of
Athens, and all the wise men except Periander. {123c} I saw also
Socrates, the son of Sophroniscus, prating with Nestor and
Palamedes; near him were Hyacinthus of Sparta, Narcissus the
Thespian, Hylas, and several other beauties: he seemed very fond of
Hyacinthus. Some things were laid to his charge: it was even
reported that Rhadamanthus was very angry with him, and threatened
to turn him out of the island if he continued to play the fool, and
would not leave off his irony and sarcasm. Of all the philosophers,
Plato {123d} alone was not to be found there, but it seems he lived
in a republic of his own building, and which was governed by laws
framed by himself. Aristippus and Epicurus were in the highest
esteem here as the most polite, benevolent, and convivial of men.
Even AEsop the Phrygian was here, whom they made use of by way of
buffoon. Diogenes of Sinope had so wonderfully changed his manners
in this place, that he married Lais the harlot, danced and sang, got
drunk, and played a thousand freaks. Not one Stoic did I see
amongst them; they, it seems, were not yet got up to the top of the
high hill {124a} of virtue; and as to Chrysippus, we were told that
he was not to enter the island till he had taken a fourth dose of
hellebore. The Academicians, we heard, were very desirous of coming
here, but they stood doubting and deliberating about it, neither
were they quite certain whether there was such a place as Elysium or
not; perhaps they were afraid of Rhadamanthus's judgment {124b} on
them, as decisive judgments are what they would never allow. Many
of them, it is reported, followed those who were coming to the
island, but being too lazy to proceed, turned back when they were
got half way.
Such were the principal persons whom I met with here. Achilles is
had in the greatest honour among them, and next to him Theseus.
Two or three days after my arrival I met with the poet Homer, and
both of us being quite at leisure, asked him several questions, and
amongst the rest where he was born, that, as I informed him, having
been long a matter of dispute amongst us. We were very ignorant
indeed, he said, for some had made him a Chian, others a native of
Smyrna, others of Colophon, but that after all he was a Babylonian,
and amongst them was called Tigranes, though, after being a hostage
in Greece, they had changed his name to Homer. I then asked him
about those of his verses which are rejected as spurious, and
whether they were his or not. He said they were all his own, which
made me laugh at the nonsense of Zenodotus and Aristarchus the
grammarians. I then asked him how he came to begin his "Iliad" with
the wrath of Achilles; he said it was all by chance. I desired
likewise to know whether, as it was generally reported, he wrote the
"Odyssey" before the "Iliad." He said, no. It is commonly said he
was blind, but I soon found he was not so; for he made use of his
eyes and looked at me, so that I had no reason to ask him that
question. Whenever I found him disengaged, I took the opportunity
of conversing with him, and he very readily entered into discourse
with me, especially after the victory which he obtained over
Thersites, who had accused him of turning him into ridicule in some
of his verses. The cause was heard before Rhadamanthus, and Homer
came off victorious. Ulysses pleaded for him.
I met also Pythagoras the Samian, who arrived in these regions after
his soul had gone a long round in the bodies of several animals,
having been changed seven times. All his right side was of gold,
and there was some dispute whether he should be called Pythagoras or
Euphorbus. Empedocles came likewise, who looked sodden and roasted
all over. He desired admittance, but though he begged hard for it,
was rejected.
A little time after the games came on, which they call here
Thanatusia. {126} Achilles presided for the fifth time, and Theseus
for the seventh. A narrative of the whole would be tedious; I shall
only, therefore, recount a few of the principal circumstances in the
wrestling match. Carus, a descendant of Hercules, conquered Ulysses
at the boxing match; Areus the Egyptian, who was buried at Corinth,
and Epeus contended, but neither got the victory. The Pancratia was
not proposed amongst them. In the race I do not remember who had
the superiority. In poetry Homer was far beyond them all; Hesiod,
however, got a prize. The reward to all was a garland of peacock's
feathers.
When the games were over word was brought that the prisoners in
Tartarus had broken loose, overcome the guard, and were proceeding
to take possession of the island under the command of Phalaris the
Agrigentine, {127a} Busiris of Egypt, {127b} Diomede the Thracian,
{128a} Scyron, {128b} and Pityocamptes. As soon as Rhadamanthus
heard of it he despatched the heroes to the shore, conducted by
Theseus, Achilles, and Ajax Telamonius, who was now returned to his
senses. A battle ensued, wherein the heroes were victorious, owing
principally to the valour of Achilles. Socrates, who was placed in
the right wing, behaved much better than he had done at Delius
{128c} in his life-time, for when the enemy approached he never
fled, nor so much as turned his face about. He had a very
extraordinary present made him as the reward of his courage, no less
than a fine spacious garden near the city; here he summoned his
friends and disputed, calling the place by the name of the Academy
of the Dead. They then bound the prisoners and sent them back to
Tartarus, to suffer double punishment. Homer wrote an account of
this battle, and gave it me to show it to our people when I went
back, but I lost it afterwards, together with a great many other
things. It began thus--
"Sing, Muse, the battles of the heroes dead--"
The campaign thus happily finished, they made an entertainment to
celebrate the victory, which, as is usual amongst them, was a bean-
feast. Pythagoras alone absented himself on that day, and fasted,
holding in abomination the wicked custom of eating beans.
Six months had now elapsed, when a new and extraordinary affair
happened. Cinyrus, the son of Scintharus, a tall, well-made,
handsome youth, fell in love with Helen, and she no less desperately
with him. They were often nodding and drinking to one another at
the public feasts, and would frequently rise up and walk out
together alone into the wood. The violence of his passion, joined
to the impossibility of possessing her any other way, put Cinyrus on
the resolution of running away with her. She imagined that they
might easily get off to some of the adjacent islands, either to
Phellus or Tyroessa. He selected three of the bravest of our crew
to accompany them; never mentioning the design to his father, who he
knew would never consent to it, but the first favourable
opportunity, put it in execution; and one night when I was not with
them (for it happened that I stayed late at the feast, and slept
there) carried her off.
Menelaus, rising in the middle of the night, and perceiving that his
wife was gone, made a dreadful noise about it, and, taking his
brother along with him, proceeded immediately to the king's palace.
At break of day the guards informed him that they had seen a vessel
a good distance from land. He immediately put fifty heroes on board
a ship made out of one large piece of the asphodelus, with orders to
pursue them. They made all the sail they possibly could, and about
noon came up with and seized on them, just as they were entering
into the Milky Sea, close to Tyroessa; so near were they to making
their escape. The pursuers threw a rosy chain over the vessel and
brought her home again. Helen began to weep, blushed, and hid her
face. Rhadamanthus asked Cinyrus and the rest of them if they had
any more accomplices: they told him they had none. He then ordered
them to be chained, whipped with mallows, and sent to Tartarus.
It was now determined that we should stay no longer on the island
than the time limited, and the very next day was fixed for our
departure. This gave me no little concern, and I wept to think I
must leave so many good things, and be once more a wanderer. They
endeavoured to administer consolation to me by assuring me that in a
few years I should return to them again; they even pointed out the
seat that should be allotted to me, and which was near the best and
worthiest inhabitants of these delightful mansions. I addressed
myself to Rhadamanthus, and humbly entreated him to inform me of my
future fate, and let me know beforehand whether I should travel. He
told me that, after many toils and dangers, I should at last return
in safety to my native country, but would not point out the time
when. He then showed me the neighbouring islands, five of which
appeared near to me, and a sixth at a distance. "Those next to
you," said he, "where you see a great fire burning, are the
habitations of the wicked; the sixth is the city of dreams; behind
that lies the island of Calypso, which you cannot see yet. When you
get beyond these you will come to a large tract of land inhabited by
those who live on the side of the earth directly opposite to you,
{132} there you will suffer many things, wander through several
nations, and meet with some very savage and unsociable people, and
at length get into another region."
Having said thus, he took a root of mallow out of the earth, and
putting it into my hand, bade me remember, when I was in any danger,
to call upon that; and added, moreover, that if, when I came to the
Antipodes, I took care "never to stir the fire with a sword, and
never to eat lupines," I might have hopes of returning to the Island
of the Blessed.
I then got everything ready for the voyage, supped with, and took my
leave of them. Next day, meeting Homer, I begged him to make me a
couple of verses for an inscription, which he did, and I fixed them
on a little column of beryl, at the mouth of the harbour; the
inscription was as follows:
"Dear to the gods, and favourite of heaven,
Here Lucian lived: to him alone 'twas given,
Well pleased these happy regions to explore,
And back returning, seek his native shore."
I stayed that day, and the next set sail; the heroes attending to
take their leave of us; when Ulysses, unknown to Penelope, slipped a
letter into my hand for Calypso, at the island of Ogygia.
Rhadamanthus was so obliging as to send with us Nauplius the pilot,
that, if we stopped at the neighbouring islands, and they should lay
hold on us, he might acquaint them that we were only on our passage
to another place.
As soon as we got out of the sweet-scented air, we came into another
that smelt of asphaltus, pitch, and sulphur burning together, with a
most intolerable stench, as of burned carcases: the whole element
above us was dark and dismal, distilling a kind of pitchy dew upon
our heads; we heard the sound of stripes, and the yellings of men in
torment.
We saw but one of these islands; that which we landed on I will give
you some description of. Every part of it was steep and filthy,
abounding in rocks and rough mountains. We crept along, over
precipices full of thorns and briers, and, passing through a most
horrid country, came to the dungeon, and place of punishment, which
we beheld with an admiration full of horror: the ground was strewed
with swords and prongs, and close to us were three rivers, one of
mire, another of blood, and another of fire, immense and impassable,
that flowed in torrents, and rolled like waves in the sea; it had
many fish in it, some like torches, others resembling live coals;
which they called lychnisci. There is but one entrance into the
three rivers, and at the mouth of them stood, as porter, Timon of
Athens. By the assistance, however, of our guide, Nauplius, we
proceeded, and saw several punished, {135a} as well kings as private
persons, and amongst these some of our old acquaintance; we saw
Cinyrus, {135b} hung up and roasting there. Our guides gave us the
history of several of them, and told us what they were punished for;
those, we observed, suffered most severely who in their lifetimes
had told lies, or written what was not true, amongst whom were
Ctesias the Cnidian, Herodotus, and many others. When I saw these I
began to conceive good hopes of hereafter, as I am not conscious of
ever having told a story.
Not able to bear any longer such melancholy spectacles, we took our
leave of Nauplius, and returned to our ship. In a short time after
we had a view, but confused and indistinct, of the Island of Dreams,
which itself was not unlike a dream, for as we approached towards
it, it seemed as it were to retire and fly from us. At last,
however, we got up to it, and entered the harbour, which is called
Hypnus, {136a} near the ivory gates, where there is a harbour
dedicated to the cock. {136b} We landed late in the evening, and
saw several dreams of various kinds. I propose, however, at
present, to give you an account of the place itself, which nobody
has ever written about, except Homer, whose description is very
imperfect.
Round the island is a very thick wood; the trees are all tall
poppies, or mandragorae, {136c} in which are a great number of bats;
for these are the only birds they have here; there is likewise a
river which they call Nyctiporus, {136d} and round the gates two
fountains: the name of one is Negretos, {137a} and of the other
Pannychia. {137b} The city has a high wall, of all the colours of
the rainbow. It has not two gates, as Homer {137c} tells us, but
four; two of which look upon the plain of Indolence, one made of
iron, the other of brick; through these are said to pass all the
dreams that are frightful, bloody, and melancholy; the other two,
fronting the sea and harbour, one of horn, the other, which we came
through, of ivory; on the right hand, as you enter the city, is the
temple of Night, who, together with the cock, is the principal
object of worship amongst them. This is near the harbour; on the
left is the palace of Somnus, for he is their sovereign, and under
him are two viceroys, Taraxion, {138a} the son of Mataeogenes, and
Plutocles, {138b} the son of Phantasion. In the middle of the
market-place stands a fountain, which they call Careotis, {138c} and
two temples of Truth and Falsehood; there is an oracle here, at
which Antiphon presides as high-priest; he is inventor of the
dreams, an honourable employment, which Somnus bestowed upon him.
The dreams themselves are of different kinds, some long, beautiful,
and pleasant, others little and ugly; there are likewise some golden
ones, others poor and mean; some winged and of an immense size,
others tricked out as it were for pomps and ceremonies, for gods and
kings; some we met with that we had seen at home; these came up to
and saluted us as their old acquaintance, whilst others putting us
first to sleep, treated us most magnificently, and promised that
they would make us kings and noblemen: some carried us into our own
country, showed us our friends and relations, and brought us back
again the same day. Thirty days and nights we remained in this
place, being most luxuriously feasted, and fast asleep all the time,
when we were suddenly awaked by a violent clap of thunder, and
immediately ran to our ship, put in our stores, and set sail. In
three days we reached the island of Ogygia. Before we landed, I
broke open the letter, and read the contents, which were as follows:
ULYSSES TO CALYPSO.
"This comes to inform you, that after my departure from your coasts
in the vessel which you were so kind as to provide me with, I was
shipwrecked, and saved with the greatest difficulty by Leucothea,
who conveyed me to the country of the Phaeacians, and from thence I
got home; where I found a number of suitors about my wife, revelling
there at my expense. I destroyed every one of them, and was
afterwards slain myself by Telegonus, a son whom I had by Circe. I
still lament the pleasures which I left behind at Ogygia, and the
immortality which you promised me; if I can ever find an
opportunity, I will certainly make my escape from hence, and come to
you."
This was the whole of the epistle except, that at the end of it he
recommended us to her protection.
On our landing, at a little distance from the sea, I found the cave,
as described by Homer, and in it Calypso, spinning; she took the
letter, put it in her bosom, and wept; then invited us to sit down,
and treated us magnificently. She then asked us several questions
about Ulysses, and inquired whether Penelope was handsome and as
chaste as Ulysses had reported her to be. We answered her in such a
manner as we thought would please her best; and then returning to
our ship, slept on board close to the shore.
In the morning, a brisk gale springing up, we set sail. For two
days we were tossed about in a storm; the third drove us on the
pirates of Colocynthos. These are a kind of savages from the
neighbouring islands, who commit depredations on all that sail that
way. They have large ships made out of gourds, six cubits long;
when the fruit is dry, they hollow and work it into this shape,
using reeds for masts, and making their sails out of the leaves of
the plant. They joined the crews of two ships and attacked us,
wounding many of us with cucumber seeds, which they threw instead of
stones. After fighting some time without any material advantage on
either side, about noon we saw just behind them some of the
Caryonautae, {141a} whom we found to be avowed enemies to the
Colocynthites, {141b} who, on their coming up, immediately quitted
us, and fell upon them. We hoisted our sail, and got off, leaving
them to fight it out by themselves; the Caryonautae were most
probably the conquerors, as they were more in number, for they had
five ships, which besides were stronger and better built than those
of the enemy, being made of the shells of nuts cut in two, and
hollowed, every half-nut being fifty paces long. As soon as we got
out of their sight, we took care of our wounded men, and from that
time were obliged to be always armed and prepared in case of sudden
attack. We had too much reason to fear, for scarce was the sun set
when we saw about twenty men from a desert island advancing towards
us, each on the back of a large dolphin. These were pirates also:
the dolphins carried them very safely, and seemed pleased with their
burden, neighing like horses. When they came up, they stood at a
little distance, and threw dried cuttle-fish and crabs'-eyes at us;
but we, in return, attacking them with our darts and arrows, many of
them were wounded; and, unable to stand it any longer, they
retreated to the island.
In the middle of the night, the sea being quite calm, we
unfortunately struck upon a halcyon's nest, of an immense size,
being about sixty stadia in circumference; the halcyon was sitting
upon it, and was herself not much less; as she flew off, she was
very near oversetting our ship with the wind of her wings, and, as
she went, made a most hideous groaning. As soon as it was day we
took a view of the nest, which was like a great ship, and built of
trees; in it were five hundred eggs, each of them longer than a
hogshead of Chios. We could hear the young ones croaking within;
so, with a hatchet we broke one of the eggs, and took the chicken
out unfledged; it was bigger than twenty vultures put together.
When we were got about two hundred stadia from the nest, we met with
some surprising prodigies. A cheniscus came, and sitting on the
prow of our ship, clapped his wings and made a noise. Our pilot
Scintharus had been bald for many years, when on a sudden his hair
came again. But what was still more wonderful, the mast of our ship
sprouted out, sent forth several branches, and bore fruit at the top
of it, large figs, and grapes not quite ripe. We were greatly
astonished, as you may suppose, and prayed most devoutly to the gods
to avert the evil which was portended.
We had not gone above five hundred stadia farther before we saw an
immensely large and thick wood of pines and cypresses; we took it
for a tract of land, but it was all a deep sea, planted with trees
that had no root, which stood, however, unmoved, upright, and, as it
were, swimming in it. Approaching near to it, we began to consider
what we could do best. There was no sailing between the trees,
which were close together, nor did we know how to get back. I got
upon one of the highest of them, to see how far they reached, and
perceived that they continued for about fifty stadia or more, and
beyond that it was all sea again; we resolved therefore to drag the
ship up to the top boughs, which were very thick, and so convey it
along, which, by fixing a great rope to it, with no little toil and
difficulty, we performed; got it up, spread our sails, and were
driven on by the wind. It put me in mind of that verse of
Antimachus the poet, where he says--
"The ship sailed smoothly through the sylvan sea."
We at length got over the wood, and, letting our ship down in the
same manner, fell into smooth clear water, till we came to a horrid
precipice, hollow and deep, resembling the cavity made by an
earthquake. We furled our sails, or should soon have been swallowed
up in it. Stooping forward, and looking down, we beheld a gulf of
at least a thousand stadia deep, a most dreadful and amazing sight,
for the sea as it were was split in two. Looking towards our right
hand, however, we saw a small bridge of water that joined the two
seas, and flowed from one into the other; we got the ship in here,
and with great labour rowed her over, which we never expected.
From thence we passed into a smooth and calm sea, wherein was a
small island with a good landing place, and which was inhabited by
the Bucephali: a savage race of men, with bulls' heads and horns,
as they paint the minotaur. As soon as we got on shore we went in
search of water and provision, for we had none left; water we found
soon, but nothing else; we heard, indeed, a kind of lowing at a
distance, and expected to find a herd of oxen, but, advancing a
little farther, perceived that it came from the men. As soon as
they saw us, they ran after and took two of our companions; the rest
of us got back to the ship as fast as we could. We then got our
arms, and, determined to revenge our friends, attacked them as they
were dividing the flesh of our poor companions: they were soon
thrown into confusion and totally routed; we slew about fifty of
them, and took two prisoners, whom we returned with. All this time
we could get no provision. Some were for putting the captives to
death, but not approving of this, I kept them bound till the enemy
should send ambassadors to redeem them, which they did; for we soon
heard them lowing in a melancholy tone, and most humbly beseeching
us to release their friends. The ransom agreed on was a quantity of
cheeses, dried fish, and onions, together with four stags, each
having three feet, two behind and one before. In consideration of
this, we released the prisoners, stayed one day there, and set sail.
We soon observed the fish swimming and the birds flying round about
us, with other signs of our being near the land; and in a very
little time after saw some men in the sea, who made use of a very
uncommon method of sailing, being themselves both ships and
passengers. I will tell you how they did it; they laid themselves
all along in the water, they fastened to their middle a sail, and
holding the lower part of the rope in their hands, were carried
along by the wind. Others we saw, sitting on large casks, driving
two dolphins who were yoked together, and drew the carriage after
them: these did not run away from, nor attempt to do us any injury;
but rode round about us without fear, observing our vessel with
great attention, and seeming greatly astonished at it.
It was now almost dark, when we came in sight of a small island
inhabited by women, as we imagined, for such they appeared to us,
being all young and handsome, with long garments reaching to their
feet. The island was called Cabalusa, and the city Hydamardia.
{147a} I stopped a little, for my mind misgave me, and looking
round, saw several bones and skulls of men on the ground; to make a
noise, call my companions together, and take up arms, I thought
would be imprudent. I pulled out my mallow, {147b} therefore, and
prayed most devoutly that I might escape the present evil; and a
little time afterwards, as one of the strangers was helping us to
something, I perceived, instead of a woman's foot, the hoof of an
ass. Upon this I drew my sword, seized on and bound her, and
insisted on her telling me the truth with regard to everything about
them. She informed me, much against her will, that she and the rest
of the inhabitants were women belonging to the sea, that they were
called Onoscileas, {148} and that they lived upon travellers who
came that way. "We make them drunk," said she, "and when they are
asleep, make an end of them." As soon as she had told me this, I
left her bound there, and getting upon the house, called out to my
companions, brought them together, showed them the bones, and led
them in to her; when on a sudden she dissolved away into water, and
disappeared. I dipped my sword into it by way of experiment, and
the water turned into blood.
We proceeded immediately to our vessel and departed. At break of
day we had a view of that continent which we suppose lies directly
opposite to our own. Here, after performing our religious rites,
and putting up our prayers, we consulted together about what was to
be done next. Some were of opinion that, after making a little
descent on the coast, we should turn back again; others were for
leaving the ship there, and marching up into the heart of the
country, to explore the inhabitants. Whilst we were thus disputing
a violent storm arose, and driving our ship towards the land, split
it in pieces. We picked up our arms, and what little things we
could lay hold on, and with difficulty swam ashore.
Such were the adventures which befell us during our voyage, at sea,
in the islands, in the air, in the whale, amongst the heroes, in the
land of dreams, and lastly, amongst the Bucephali, and the
Onoscileae. What we met with on the other side of the world, shall
be related in the ensuing books. {149}