A VOYAGE TO THE MOON: WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS, SCIENCE AND PHILOSOPHY, OF THE PEOPLE OF MOROSOFIA, AND OTHER LUNARIANS. 

 BY GEORGE TUCKER (JOSEPH ATTERLEY)

 "It is the very error of the moon, She comes more near the earth than she was wont, And makes men mad. "--_Othello_. 

 1827

 CONTENTS. 

 CHAPTER I. 

Atterley's birth and education--He makes a voyage-- Founders off the Burman coast--Adventures in that Empire--Meets with a learned Brahmin from Benares. 

 CHAPTER II. 

The Brahmin's illness--He reveals an important secret to Atterley--Curious information concerning the Moon--The Glonglims--They plan a voyage to the Moon. 

 CHAPTER III. 

The Brahmin and Atterley prepare for their voyage-- Description of their travelling machine--Incidents of the voyage--The appearance of the earth; Africa; Greece--The Brahmin's speculations on the different races of men--National character. 

 CHAPTER IV. 

Continuation of the voyage--View of Europe; Atlantic Ocean; America--Speculations on the future destiny of the United States--Moral reflections-- Pacific Ocean--Hypothesis on the origin of the Moon. 

 CHAPTER V. 

The voyage continued--Second view of Asia--The Brahmin's speculations concerning India--Increase of the Moon's attraction--Appearance of the Moon --They land on the Moon. 

 CHAPTER VI. 

Some account of Morosofia, and its chief city, Alamatua --Singular dresses of the Lunar ladies--Religious self-denial--Glonglim miser and spendthrift. 

 CHAPTER VII. 

Physical peculiarities of the Moon--Celestial phenomena --Farther description of the Lunarians--National prejudice--Lightness of bodies--The Brahmin carries Atterley to sup with a philosopher-- His character and opinions. 

 CHAPTER VIII. 

A celebrated physician: his ingenious theories in physics: his mechanical inventions--The feather-hunting Glonglim. 

 CHAPTER IX. 

The fortune-telling philosopher, who inspected the finger nails: his visiters--Another philosopher, who judged of the character by the hair--The fortune-teller duped--Predatory warfare. 

 CHAPTER X. 

The travellers visit a gentleman farmer, who is a great projector: his breed of cattle: his apparatus for cooking--He is taken dangerously ill. 

 CHAPTER XI. 

Lunarian physicians: their consultation--While they dispute the patient recovers--The travellers visit the celebrated teacher Lozzi Pozzi. 

 CHAPTER XII. 

Election of the Numnoonce, or town-constable-- Violence of parties--Singular institution of the Syringe Boys--The prize-fighters--Domestic manufactures. 

 CHAPTER XIII. 

Description of the Happy Valley--The laws, customs, and manners of the Okalbians--Theory of population --Rent--System of government. 

 CHAPTER XIV. 

Further account of Okalbia--The Field of Roses-- Curious superstition concerning that flower--The pleasures of smell traced to association, by a Glonglim philosopher. 

 CHAPTER XV. 

Atterley goes to the great monthly fair--Its various exhibitions; difficulties--Preparations to leave the Moon--Curiosities procured by Atterley--Regress to the Earth. 

 CHAPTER XVI. 

The Brahmin gives Atterley a history of his life. 

 CHAPTER XVII. 

The Brahmin's story continued--The voyage concluded --Atterley and the Brahmin separate--Atterley arrives in New-York. 

 Appendix: Anonymous Review of _A Voyage to the Moon, _ reprinted from _The American Quarterly Review_ No. 5 (March 1828)

APPEAL TO THE PUBLIC. 

Having, by a train of fortunate circumstances, accomplished a voyage, ofwhich the history of mankind affords no example; having, moreover, exertedevery faculty of body and mind, to make my adventures useful to mycountrymen, and even to mankind, by imparting to them the acquisitionof secrets in physics and morals, of which they had not formed thefaintest conception, --I flattered myself that both in the characterof traveller and public benefactor, I had earned for myself an immortalname. But how these fond, these justifiable hopes have been answered, the following narrative will show. 

On my return to this my native State, as soon as it was noised abroadthat I had met with extraordinary adventures, and made a most wonderfulvoyage, crowds of people pressed eagerly to see me. I at first met theirinquiries with a cautious silence, which, however, but sharpened theircuriosity. At length I was visited by a near relation, with whom I feltless disposed to reserve. With friendly solicitude he inquired "how muchI had made by my voyage;" and when he was informed that, although I hadadded to my knowledge, I had not improved my fortune, he stared at me awhile, and remarking that he had business at the Bank, as well as anappointment on 'Change, suddenly took his leave. After this, I was notmuch interrupted by the tribe of inquisitive idlers, but was visitedprincipally by a few men of science, who wished to learn what I couldadd to their knowledge of nature. To this class I was more communicative;and when I severally informed them that I had actually been to theMoon, some of them shrugged their shoulders, others laughed in my face, and some were angry at my supposed attempt to deceive them; but all, with a single exception, were incredulous. 

It was to no purpose that I appealed to my former character for veracity. I was answered, that travelling had changed my morals, as it had changedother people's. I asked what motives I could have for attempting todeceive them. They replied, the love of distinction--the vanity of beingthought to have seen what had been seen by no other mortal; and theytriumphantly asked me in turn, what motives Raleigh, and Riley, andHunter, and a hundred other travellers, had for their misrepresentations. Finding argument thus unavailing, I produced visible and tangible proofsof the truth of my narrative. I showed them a specimen of moonstone. They asserted that it was of the same character as those meteoric stoneswhich had been found in every part of the world, and that I had merelyprocured a piece of one of these for the purpose of deception. I thenexhibited some of what I considered my most curious Lunar plants: butthis made the matter worse; for it so happened, that similar ones werethen cultivated in Mr. Prince's garden at Flushing. I next producedsome rare insects, and feathers of singular birds: but persons werefound who had either seen, or read, or heard of similar insects andbirds in Hoo-Choo, or Paraguay, or Prince of Wales's Island. In short, having made up their minds that what I said was not true, they had ananswer ready for all that I could urge in support of my character; andthose who judged most christianly, defended my veracity at the expenseof my understanding, and ascribed my conduct to partial insanity. 

There was, indeed, a short suspension to this cruel distrust. An oldfriend coming to see me one day, and admiring a beautiful crystal whichI had brought from the Moon, insisted on showing it to a jeweller, whosaid that it was an unusually hard stone, and that if it were a diamond, it would be worth upwards of 150, 000 dollars. I know not whether themistake that ensued proceeded from my friend, who is something of a wag, or from one of the lads in the jeweller's shop, who, hearing a part ofwhat his master had said, misapprehended the rest; but so it was, thatthe next day I had more visiters than ever, and among them my kinsman, who was kind enough to stay with me, as if he enjoyed my good fortune, until both the Exchange and the Banks were closed. On the same day, the following paragraph appeared in one of the morning prints:

 "We understand that our enterprising and intelligent traveller, JOSEPH ATTERLEY, Esquire, has brought from his Lunar Expedition, a diamond of extraordinary size and lustre. Several of the most experienced jewellers of this city have estimated it at from 250, 000 to 300, 000 dollars; and some have gone so far as to say it would be cheap at half a million. We have the authority of a near relative of that gentleman for asserting, that the satisfactory testimonials which he possesses of the correctness of his narrative, are sufficient to satisfy the most incredulous, and to silence malignity itself. "

But this gleam of sunshine soon passed away. Two days afterwards, anotherparagraph appeared in the same paper, in these words:

 "We are credibly informed, that the supposed diamond of the _famous_ traveller to the Moon, turns out to be one of those which are found on Diamond Island, in Lake George. We have heard that Mr. A----y means to favour the public with an account of his travels, under the title of 'Lunarian Adventures;' but we would take the liberty of recommending, that for _Lunarian_, he substitute _Lunatic_. "

Thus disappointed in my expectations, and assailed in my character, what could I do but appeal to an impartial public, by giving them acircumstantial detail of what was most memorable in my adventures, thatthey might judge, from intrinsic evidence, whether I was deficient eitherin soundness of understanding or of moral principle? But let me firstbespeak their candour, and a salutary diffidence of themselves, by oneor two well-authenticated anecdotes. 

During the reign of Louis the XIVth, the king of Siam having receivedan ambassador from that monarch, was accustomed to hear, with wonderand delight, the foreigner's descriptions of his own country: but theminister having one day mentioned, that in France, water, at one timeof the year, became a solid substance, the Siamese prince indignantlyexclaimed, --"Hold, sir! I have listened to the strange things you havetold me, and have hitherto believed them all; but now when you wish topersuade me that water, which I know as well as you, can become hard, Isee that your purpose is to deceive me, and I do not believe a word youhave uttered. "

But as the present patriotic preference for home-bred manufactures, mayextend to anecdotes as well as to other productions, a story of domesticorigin may have more weight with most of my readers, than one introducedfrom abroad. 

The chief of a party of Indians, who had visited Washington duringMr. Jefferson's presidency, having, on his return home, assembled histribe, gave them a detail of his adventures; and dwelling particularlyupon the courteous treatment the party had received from their "GreatFather, " stated, among other things, that he had given them ice, thoughit was then mid-summer. His countrymen, not having the vivacity of ourladies, listened in silence till he had ended, when an aged chief steppedforth, and remarked that he too, when a young man, had visited theirGreat Father Washington, in New-York, who had received him as a son, andtreated him with all the delicacies that his country afforded, but hadgiven him no ice. "Now, " added the orator, "if any man in the world couldhave made ice in the summer, it was Washington; and if he could have madeit, I am sure he would have given it to me. Tustanaggee is, therefore, aliar, and not to be believed. "

In both these cases, though the argument seemed fair, the conclusion wasfalse; for had either the king or the chief taken the trouble to satisfyhimself of the fact, he might have found that his limited experience haddeceived him. 

It is unquestionably true, that if travellers sometimes impose on thecredulity of mankind, they are often also not believed when they speakthe truth. Credulity and scepticism are indeed but different names forthe same hasty judgment on insufficient evidence: and, as the old womanreadily assented that there might be "mountains of sugar and riversof rum, " because she had seen them both, but that there were "fishwhich could fly, " she never would believe; so thousands give creditto Redheiffer's patented discovery of perpetual motion, because theyhad beheld his machine, and question the existence of the sea-serpent, because they have not seen it. 

I would respectfully remind that class of my readers, who, like theking, the Indian, or the old woman, refuse to credit any thing whichcontradicts the narrow limits of their own observation, that there are"more secrets in nature than are dreamt of in their philosophy;" andthat upon their own principles, before they have a right to condemn me, they should go or send to the mountains of Ava, for some of the metalwith which I made my venturous experiment, and make one for themselves. 

As to those who do not call in question my veracity, but only doubt mysanity, I fearlessly appeal from their unkind judgment to the sober andunprejudiced part of mankind, whether, what I have stated in the followingpages, is not consonant with truth and nature, and whether they do notthere see, faithfully reflected from the Moon, the errors of the learnedon Earth, and "the follies of the wise?"

JOSEPH ATTERLEY. 

_Long-Island, September_, 1827. 

VOYAGE TO THE MOON. 

CHAPTER I. 

_Atterley's birth and education--He makes a voyage--Founders off theBurman coast--Adventures in that Empire--Meets with a learned Brahminfrom Benares. _

Being about to give a narrative of my singular adventures to the world, which, I foresee, will be greatly divided about their authenticity, I will premise something of my early history, that those to whom I amnot personally known, may be better able to ascertain what credit isdue to the facts which rest only on my own assertion. 

I was born in the village of Huntingdon, on Long-Island, on the 11th dayof May, 1786. Joseph Atterley, my father, formerly of East Jersey, as itwas once called, had settled in this place about a year before, inconsequence of having married my mother, Alice Schermerhorn, the onlydaughter of a snug Dutch farmer in the neighbourhood. By means of theportion he received with my mother, together with his own earnings, he was enabled to quit the life of a sailor, to which he had been bred, and to enter into trade. After the death of his father-in-law, by whosewill he received a handsome accession to his property, he sought, in thecity of New-York, a theatre better suited to his enlarged capital. Hehere engaged in foreign trade; and, partaking of the prosperity whichthen attended American commerce, he gradually extended his business, andfinally embarked in our new branch of traffic to the East Indies andChina. He was now very generally respected, both for his wealth and fairdealing; was several years a director in one of the insurance offices;was president of the society for relieving the widows and orphans ofdistressed seamen; and, it is said, might have been chosen alderman, if he had not refused, on the ground that he did not think himselfqualified. 

My father was not one of those who set little value on book learning, from their own consciousness of not possessing it: on the contrary, hewould often remark, that as he felt the want of a liberal educationhimself, he was determined to bestow one on me. I was accordingly, atan early age, put to a grammar school of good repute in my native village, the master of which, I believe, is now a member of Congress; and, at theage of seventeen, was sent to Princeton, to prepare myself for someprofession. During my third year at that place, in one of my excursionsto Philadelphia, and for which I was always inventing pretexts, I becameacquainted with one of those faces and forms which, in a youth of twenty, to see, admire, and love, is one and the same thing. My attentions werefavourably received. I soon became desperately in love; and, in spite ofthe advice of my father and entreaties of my mother, who had formed otherschemes for me nearer home, I was married on the anniversary of mytwenty-first year. 

It was not until the first trance of bliss was over, that I began tothink seriously on the course of life I was to pursue. From the timethat my mind had run on love and matrimony, I had lost all relish forserious study; and long before that time, I had felt a sentiment borderingon contempt for the pursuits of my father. Besides, he had already takenmy two younger brothers into the counting-house with him. I thereforeprevailed on my indulgent parent, with the aid of my mother's intercession, to purchase for me a neat country-seat near Huntingdon, which presented abeautiful view of the Sound, and where, surrounded by the scenes of mychildhood, I promised myself to realise, with my Susanna, that life oftranquil felicity which fancy, warmed by love, so vividly depicts. 

If we did not meet with all that we had expected, it was because we hadexpected too much. The happiest life, like the purest atmosphere, hasits clouds as well as its sunshine; and what is worse, we never fullyknow the value of the one, until we have felt the inconvenience of theother. In the cultivation of my farm--in educating our children, a sonand two daughters, in reading, music, painting--and in occasional visitsto our friends in New-York and Philadelphia, seventeen years glidedswiftly and imperceptibly away; at the end of which time death, indepriving me of an excellent wife, made a wreck of my hopes and enjoyments. For the purpose of seeking that relief to my feelings which change ofplace only could afford, I determined to make a sea voyage; and, as oneof my father's vessels was about to sail for Canton, I accordinglyembarked on board the well-known ship the _Two Brothers_, captainThomas, and left Sandy-hook on the 5th day of June, 1822, having firstplaced my three children under the care of my brother William. 

I will not detain the reader with a detail of the first incidents ofour voyage, though they were sufficiently interesting at the time theyoccurred, and were not wanting in the usual variety. We had, in singularsuccession, dead calms and fresh breezes, stiff gales and sudden squalls;saw sharks, flying-fish, and dolphins; spoke several vessels: had avisit from Neptune when we crossed the Line, and were compelled topropitiate his favour with some gallons of spirits, which he seemsalways to find a very agreeable change from sea water; and touched atTable Bay and at Madagascar. 

On the whole, our voyage was comparatively pleasant and prosperous, untilthe 24th of October; when, off the mouths of the Ganges, after a fineclear autumnal day, just about sunset, a small dark speck was seen inthe eastern horizon by our experienced and watchful captain, who, afternoticing it for a few moments, pronounced that we should have a hurricane. The rapidity with which this speck grew into a dense cloud, and spreaditself in darkness over the heavens, as well as the increasing swell ofthe ocean before we felt the wind, soon convinced us he was right. Notime was lost in lowering our topmasts, taking double reefs, and makingevery thing snug, to meet the fury of the tempest. I thought I hadalready witnessed all that was terrific on the ocean; but what I hadformerly seen, had been mere child's play compared with this. Never canI forget the impression that was made upon me by the wild uproar of theelements. The smooth, long swell of the waves gradually changed into anagitated frothy surface, which constant flashes of lightning presentedto us in all its horror; and in the mean time the wind whistled throughthe rigging, and the ship creaked as if she was every minute going topieces. 

About midnight the storm was at its height, and I gave up all for lost. The wind, which first blew from the south-west, was then due south, andthe sailors said it began to abate a little before day: but I saw nogreat difference until about three in the afternoon; soon after whichthe clouds broke away, and showed us the sun setting in cloudless majesty, while the billows still continued their stupendous rolling, but with aheavy movement, as if, after such mighty efforts, they were seekingrepose in the bosom of their parent ocean. It soon became almost calm;a light western breeze barely swelled our sails, and gently wafted usto the land, which we could faintly discern to the north-east. Our shiphad been so shaken in the tempest, and was so leaky, that captain Thomasthought it prudent to make for the first port we could reach. 

At dawn we found ourselves in full view of a coast, which, though notpersonally known to the captain, he pronounced by his charts to be apart of the Burmese Empire, and in the neighbourhood of Mergui, on theMartaban coast. The leak had now increased to an alarming extent, sothat we found it would be impossible to carry the ship safe into port. We therefore hastily threw our clothes, papers, and eight casks ofsilver, into the long-boat; and before we were fifty yards from theship, we saw her go down. Some of the underwriters in New York, as Ihave since learnt, had the conscience to contend that we left the shipsooner than was necessary, and have suffered themselves to be sued forthe sums they had severally insured. It was a little after midday whenwe reached the town, which is perched on a high bluff, overlookingthe coasts, and contains about a thousand houses, built of bamboo, and covered with palm leaves. Our dress, appearance, language, andthe manner of our arrival, excited great surprise among the natives, and the liveliest curiosity; but with these sentiments some evidentlymingled no very friendly feelings. The Burmese were then on the eveof a rupture with the East India Company, a fact which we had not beforeknown; and mistaking us for English, they supposed, or affected tosuppose, that we belonged to a fleet which was about to invade them, and that our ship had been sunk before their eyes, by the tutelar divinityof the country. We were immediately carried before their governor, or chief magistrate, who ordered our baggage to be searched, and findingthat it consisted principally of silver, he had no doubt of our hostileintentions. He therefore sent all of us, twenty-two in number, to prison, separating, however, each one from the rest. My companions were releasedthe following spring, as I have since learnt, by the invading army ofGreat Britain; but it was my ill fortune (if, indeed, after what hassince happened, I can so regard it) to be taken for an officer of highrank, and to be sent, the third day afterwards, far into the interior, that I might be more safely kept, and either used as a hostage or offeredfor ransom, as circumstances should render advantageous. 

The reader is, no doubt, aware that the Burman Empire lies beyond theGanges, between the British possessions and the kingdom of Siam; andthat the natives nearly assimilate with those of Hindostan, in language, manners, religion, and character, except that they are more hardy andwarlike. 

I was transported very rapidly in a palanquin, (a sort of decoratedlitter, ) carried on the shoulders of four men, who, for greater despatch, were changed every three hours. In this way I travelled thirteen days, in which time we reached a little village in the mountainous districtbetween the Irawaddi and Saloon rivers, where I was placed under thecare of an inferior magistrate, called a Mirvoon, who there exercisedthe chief authority. 

This place, named Mozaun, was romantically situated in a fertile valley, that seemed to be completely shut in by the mountains. A small river, a branch of the Saloon, entered it from the west, and, after runningabout four miles in nearly a straight direction, turned suddenly rounda steep hill to the south, and was entirely lost to view. The villagewas near a gap in the mountain, through which the river seemed to haveforced its way, and consisted of about forty or fifty huts, built ofthe bamboo cane and reeds. The house of my landlord was somewhat largerand better than the rest. It stood on a little knoll that overlookedthe village, the valley, the stream that ran through it, and commandeda distant view of the country beyond the gap. It was certainly a lovelylittle spot, as it now appears to my imagination; but when the landscapewas new to me, I was in no humour to relish its beauties, and when mymind was more in a state to appreciate them, they had lost their novelty. 

My keeper, whose name was Sing Fou, and who, from a long exercise ofmagisterial authority, was rough and dictatorial, behaved to me somewhatharshly at first; but my patient submission so won his confidence andgood will, that I soon became a great favourite; was regarded more asone of his family than as a prisoner, and was allowed by him everyindulgence consistent with my safe custody. But the difficulties in theway of my escape were so great, that little restraint was imposed onmy motions. The narrow defile in the gap, through which the river rushedlike a torrent, was closed with a gate. The mountains, by which thevalley was hemmed in, were utterly impassable, thickly set as they werewith jungle, consisting of tangled brier, thorn and forest trees, ofwhich those who have never been in a tropical climate can form no adequateidea. In some places it would be difficult to penetrate more than amile in the day; during which time the traveller would be perpetuallytormented by noxious insects, and in constant dread of beasts of prey. 

The only outlet from this village was by passing down the valley alongthe settlements, and following the course of the stream; so that therewas no other injunction laid on me, than not to extend my rambles farin that direction. Sing Fou's household consisted of his wife, whom Irarely saw, four small children, and six servants; and here I enjoyednearly as great a portion of happiness as in any part of my life. 

It had been one of my favourite amusements to ramble towards a part ofthe western ridge, which rose in a cone about a mile and a half from thevillage, and there ascending to some comparatively level spot, or pointprojecting from its side, enjoy the beautiful scenery which lay beforeme, and the evening breeze, which has such a delicious freshness in atropical climate. 

Nor was this all. In a deep sequestered nook, formed by two spurs of thismountain, there lived a venerable Hindoo, whom the people of the villagecalled the Holy Hermit. The favourable accounts I received of hischaracter, as well as his odd course of life, made me very desirousof becoming acquainted with him; and, as he was often visited by thevillagers, I found no difficulty in getting a conductor to his cell. Hischaracter for sanctity, together with a venerable beard, might havediscouraged advances towards an acquaintance, if his lively piercing eye, a countenance expressive of great mildness and kindness of disposition, and his courteous manners, had not yet more strongly invited it. He wasindeed not averse to society, though he had seemed thus to fly from it;and was so great a favourite with his neighbours, that his cell wouldhave been thronged with visitors, but for the difficulty of the approachto it. As it was, it was seldom resorted to, except for the purpose ofobtaining his opinion and counsel on all the serious concerns of hisneighbours. He prescribed for the sick, and often provided the medicinethey required--expounded the law--adjusted disputes--made all their littlearithmetical calculations--gave them moral instruction--and, when hecould not afford them relief in their difficulties, he taught thempatience, and gave them consolation. He, in short, united, for the simplepeople by whom he was surrounded, the functions of lawyer, physician, schoolmaster, and divine, and richly merited the reverential respect inwhich they held him, as well as their little presents of eggs, fruit, andgarden stuff. 

From the first evening that I joined the party which I saw clambering upthe path that led to the Hermit's cell, I found myself strongly attachedto this venerable man, and the more so, from the mystery which hungaround his history. It was agreed that he was not a Burmese. None deemedto know certainly where he was born, or why he came thither. His ownaccount was, that he had devoted himself to the service of God, and inhis pilgrimage over the east, had selected this as a spot particularlyfavourable to the life of quiet and seclusion he wished to lead. 

There was one part of his story to which I could scarcely give credit. It was said that in the twelve or fifteen years he had resided in thisplace, he had been occasionally invisible for months together, and noone could tell why he disappeared, or whither he had gone. At thesetimes his cell was closed; and although none ventured to force theirway into it, those who were the most prying could hear no sound indicatingthat he was within. Various were the conjectures formed on the subject. Some supposed that he withdrew from the sight of men for the purposeof more fervent prayer and more holy meditation; others, that he visitedhis home, or some other distant country. The more superstitious believedthat he had, by a kind of metempsychosis, taken a new shape, which, bysome magical or supernatural power, he could assume and put off atpleasure. This opinion was perhaps the most prevalent, as it gained acolour with these simple people, from the chemical and astronomicalinstruments he possessed. In these he evidently took great pleasure, and by their means he acquired some of the knowledge by which he sooften excited their admiration. 

He soon distinguished me from the rest of his visitors, by addressingquestions to me relative to my history and adventures; and I, in turn, was gratified to have met with one who took an interest in my concerns, and who alone, of all I had here met with, could either enter into myfeelings or comprehend my opinions. Our conversations were carried onin English, which he spoke with facility and correctness. We soon foundourselves so much to each other's taste, that there was seldom an eveningthat I did not make him a visit, and pass an hour or two in his company. 

I learnt from him that he was born and bred at Benares, in Hindostan;that he had been intended for the priesthood, and had been well instructedin the literature of the east. That a course of untoward circumstances, upon which he seemed unwilling to dwell, had changed his destination, and made him a wanderer on the face of the earth. That in the neighbouringkingdom of Siam he had formed an intimacy with a learned French Jesuit, who had not only taught him his language, but imparted to him a knowledgeof much of the science of Europe, its institutions and manners. That afterthe death of this friend, he had renewed his wanderings; and having beendetained in this village by a fit of sickness for some weeks, he waswarned that it was time to quit his rambling life. This place beingrecommended to him, both by its quiet seclusion, and the unsophisticatedmanners of its inhabitants, he determined to pass the remnant of his dayshere, and, by devoting them to the purposes of piety, charity, andscience, to discharge his duty to his Creator, his species, and himself;"for the love of knowledge, " he added, "has long been my chief source ofselfish enjoyment. "

Our tastes and sentiments accorded in so many points, that our acquaintanceripened by degrees into the closest friendship. We were bothstrangers--both unfortunate; and were the only individuals here who had anyknowledge of letters, or of distant parts of the world. These are, indeed, the main springs of that sympathy, without which there is no love amongmen. It is being overwise, to treat with contempt what mankind hold inrespect: and philosophy teaches us not to extinguish our feelings, but tocorrect and refine them. My visits to the hermitage were frequently renewedat first, because they afforded me the relief of variety, whilst hisintimate knowledge of men and things--his remarkable sagacity and goodsense--his air of mingled piety and benignity, --cheated me intoforgetfulness of my situation. As these gradually yielded to the lenitivepower of time, I sought his conversation for the positive pleasure itafforded, and at last it became the chief source of my happiness. Day afterday, and month after month, glided on in this gentle, unvarying current, for more than three years; during which period he had occasionally thrownout dark hints that the time would come when I should be restored toliberty, and that he had an important secret, which he would one daycommunicate. I should have been more tantalized with the expectations thatthese remarks were calculated to raise, had I not suspected them to be agood-natured artifice, to save me from despondency, as they were never madeexcept when he saw me looking serious and thoughtful. 

CHAPTER II. 

_The Brahmin's illness--He reveals an important secret to Atterley--Curious information concerning the Moon--The Glonglims--They plan avoyage to the Moon. _

About this period, one afternoon in the month of March, when I repairedto the hermitage as usual, I found my venerable friend stretched on hishumble pallet, breathing very quickly, and seemingly in great pain. Hewas labouring under a pleurisy, which is not unfrequent in the mountainousregion, at this season. He told me that his disease had not yielded tothe ordinary remedies which he had tried when he first felt its approach, and that he considered himself to be dangerously ill. "I am, however, "he added, "prepared to die. Sit down on that block, and listen to whatI shall say to you. Though I shall quit this state of being for anotherand a better, I confess that I was alarmed at the thought of expiring, before I had an opportunity of seeing and conversing with you. I am thedepository of a secret, that I believe is known to no other living mortal. I once determined that it should die with me; and had I not met with you, it certainly should. But from our first acquaintance, my heart has beenstrongly attracted towards you; and as soon as I found you possessedof qualities to inspire esteem as well as regard, I felt disposed togive you this proof of my confidence. Still I hesitated. I first wishedto deliberate on the probable effects of my disclosure upon the conditionof society. I saw that it might produce evil, as well as good; but onweighing the two together, I have satisfied myself that the good willpreponderate, and have determined to act accordingly. Take this key, (stretching out his feverish hand, ) and after waiting two hours, inwhich time the medicine I have taken will have either produced a goodeffect, or put an end to my sufferings, you may then open that bluechest in the corner. It has a false bottom. On removing the paper whichcovers it, you will find the manuscript containing the important secret, together with some gold pieces, which I have saved for the day ofneed--because--(and he smiled in spite of his sufferings)--becausehoarding is one of the pleasures of old men. Take them both, and usethem discreetly. When I am gone, I request you, my friend, to dischargethe last sad duties of humanity, and to see me buried according to theusages of my caste. The simple beings around me will then behold thatI am mortal like themselves. And let this precious relic of femaleloveliness and worth, (taking a small picture, set in gold, from hisbosom, ) be buried with me. It has been warmed by my heart's blood fortwenty-five years: let it be still near that heart when it ceasesto beat. I have yet more to say to you; but my strength is too muchexhausted. "

The good old man here closed his eyes, with an expression of patientresignation, and rather as if he courted sleep than felt inclined to it:and, after shutting the door of his cell, I repaired to his littlegarden, to pass the allotted two hours. Left to my meditations, whenI thought that I was probably about to be deprived for ever of theHermit's conversation and society, I felt the wretchedness of my situationrecur with all its former force. I sat down on a smooth rock under atamarind tree, the scene of many an interesting conference between theBrahmin and myself; and I cast my eyes around--but how changed was everything before me! I no longer regarded the sparkling eddies of the littlecascade which fell down a steep rock at the upper end of the garden, andformed a pellucid basin below. The gay flowers and rich foliage of thisgenial climate--the bright plumage and cheerful notes of the birds--wereall there; but my mind was not in a state to relish them. I arose, and inextreme agitation rambled over this little Eden, in which I had passed somany delightful hours. 

Before the allotted time had elapsed--shall I confess it?--my fears forthe Hermit were overcome by those that were purely selfish. It occurredto me, if he should thus suddenly die, and I be found alone in his cell, I might be charged with being his murderer; and my courage, which, fromlong inaction, had sadly declined of late, deserted me at the thought. After the most torturing suspense, the dial at length showed me that thetwo hours had elapsed, and I hastened to the cell. 

I paused a moment at the door, afraid to enter, or even look in; made oneor two steps, and hearing no sound, concluded that all was over with theHermit, and that my own doom was sealed. My delight was inexpressible, therefore, when I perceived that he still breathed, and when, on drawingnearer, I found that he slept soundly. In a moment I passed from miseryto bliss. I seated myself by his side, and there remained for more thanan hour, enjoying the transition of my feelings. At length he awoke, andcasting on me a look of placid benignity, said, --"Atterley, my time isnot yet come. Though resigned to death, I am content to live. The worstis over. I am already almost restored to health. " I then administered tohim some refreshments, and, after a while, left him to repose. On againrepairing to the garden, every object assumed its wonted appearance. Thefragrance of the orange and the jasmine was no longer lost to me. Thehumming birds, which swarmed round the flowering cytisus and the beautifulwater-fall, once more delighted the eye and the ear. I took my usualbath, as the sun was sinking below the mountain; and, finding the Hermitstill soundly sleeping, I threw myself on a seat, under the shelter ofsome bamboos, fell asleep, and did not awake until late the next morning. 

When I arose, I found the good Brahmin up, and, though much weakened byhis disease, able to walk about. He told me that the Mirvoon, uneasy atmy not returning as usual in the evening, had sent in search of me, andthat the servant, finding me safe, was content to return without me. Headvised me, however, not to repeat the same cause of alarm. Sing Fou, onhearing my explanation, readily forgave me for the uneasiness I hadcaused him. After a few days, the Brahmin recovered his ordinary healthand strength; and having attended him at an earlier hour than usual, according to his request on the previous evening, he thus addressedme:--

"I have already told you, my dear Atterley, that I was born and educatedat Benares, and that science is there more thoroughly understood andtaught than the people of the west are aware of. We have, for manythousands of years, been good astronomers, chymists, mathematicians, andphilosophers. We had discovered the secret of gunpowder, the magneticattraction, the properties of electricity, long before they were heard ofin Europe. We know more than we have revealed; and much of our knowledgeis deposited in the archives of the caste to which I belong; but, forwant of a language generally understood and easily learnt, (for theserecords are always written in the Sanscrit, that is no longer a spokenlanguage, ) and the diffusion which is given by the art of printing, these secrets of science are communicated only to a few, and sometimeseven sleep with their authors, until a subsequent discovery, under morefavourable circumstances, brings them again to light. 

"It was at this seat of science that I learnt, from one of our sages, the physical truth which I am now about to communicate, and which hediscovered, partly by his researches into the writings of ancient Pundits, and partly by his own extraordinary sagacity. There is a principle ofrepulsion as well as gravitation in the earth. It causes fire to riseupwards. It is exhibited in electricity. It occasions water-spouts, volcanoes, and earthquakes. After much labour and research, this principlehas been found embodied in a metallic substance, which is met with in themountain in which we are, united with a very heavy earth; and thiscircumstance had great influence in inducing me to settle myself here. 

"This metal, when separated and purified, has as great a tendency tofly off from the earth, as a piece of gold or lead has to approach it. After making a number of curious experiments with it, we bethoughtourselves of putting it to some use, and soon contrived, with the aidof it, to make cars and ascend into the air. We were very secret inthese operations; for our unhappy country having then recently fallenunder the subjection of the British nation, we apprehended that if wedivulged our arcanum, they would not only fly away with all our treasures, whether found in palace or pagoda, but also carry off the inhabitants, to make them slaves in their colonies, as their government had not thenabolished the African slave trade. 

"After various trials and many successive improvements, in which ourdesires increased with our success, we determined to penetrate theaerial void as far as we could, providing for that purpose an apparatus, with which you will become better acquainted hereafter. In the courseof our experiments, we discovered that this same metal, which was repelledfrom the earth, was in the same degree attracted towards the moon; for inone of our excursions, still aiming to ascend higher than we had everdone before, we were actually carried to that satellite; and if we hadnot there fallen into a lake, and our machine had not been water-tight, we must have been dashed to pieces or drowned. You will find in thisbook, " he added, presenting me with a small volume, bound in greenparchment, and fastened with silver clasps, "a minute detail of theapparatus to be provided, and the directions to be pursued in makingthis wonderful voyage. I have written it since I satisfied my mind thatmy fears of British rapacity were unfounded, and that I should do moregood than harm by publishing the secret. But still I am not sure, "he added, with one of his faint but significant smiles, "that I amnot actuated by a wish to immortalize my name; for where is the mortalwho would be indifferent to this object, if he thought he could attain it?Read the book at your leisure, and study it. "

I listened to this recital with astonishment; and doubted at first, whether the Brahmin's late severe attack had not had the effect ofunsettling his brain: but on looking in his face, the calm self-possessionand intelligence which it exhibited, dispelled the momentary impression. I was all impatience to know the adventures he met with in the moon, asking him fifty questions in a breath, but was most anxious to learnif it had inhabitants, and what sort of beings they were. 

"Yes, " said he, "the moon has inhabitants, pretty much the same as theearth, of which they believe their globe to have been formerly a part. But suspend your questions, and let me give you a recital of the mostremarkable things I saw there. "

I checked my impatience, and listened with all my ears to the wondershe related. He went on to inform me that the inhabitants of the moonresembled those of the earth, in form, stature, features, and manners, and were evidently of the same species, as they did not differ more thandid the Hottentot from the Parisian. That they had similar passions, propensities, and pursuits, but differed greatly in manners and habits. They had more activity, but less strength: they were feebler in mind aswell as body. But the most curious part of his information was, that alarge number of them were born without any intellectual vigour, andwandered about as so many automatons, under the care of the government, until they were illuminated with the mental ray from some earthly brains, by means of the mysterious influence which the moon is known to exerciseon our planet. But in this case the inhabitant of the earth loses whatthe inhabitant of the moon gains--the ordinary portion of understandingallotted to one mortal being thus divided between two; and, as might beexpected, seeing that the two minds were originally the same, there is amost exact conformity between the man of the earth and his counterpart inthe moon, in all their principles of action and modes of thinking. 

These Glonglims, as they are called, after they have been thus imbuedwith intellect, are held in peculiar respect by the vulgar, and arethought to be in every way superior to those whose understandings areentire. The laws by which two objects, so far apart, operate on eachother, have been, as yet, but imperfectly developed, and the wildertheir freaks, the more they are the objects of wonder and admiration. "The science of _lunarology_, " he observed, "is yet in its infancy. But in the three voyages I have made to the moon, I have acquired somany new facts, and imparted so many to the learned men of that planet, that it is, without doubt, the subject of their active speculationsat this time, and will, probably, assume a regular form long before thenew science of phrenology of which you tell me, and which it must, intime, supersede. Now and then, though very rarely, the man of the earthregains the intellect he has lost; in which case his lunar counterpartreturns to his former state of imbecility. Both parties are entirelyunconscious of the change--one, of what he has lost, and the other ofwhat he has gained. "

The Brahmin then added: "Though our party are the only voyagers of whichauthentic history affords any testimony, yet it is probable, from obscurehints in some of our most ancient writings in the Sanscrit, that thevoyage has been made in remote periods of antiquity; and the Lunarianshave a similar tradition. While, in the revolutions which have so changedthe affairs of mankind on our globe, (and probably in its satellite, )the art has been lost, faint traces of its existence may be perceivedin the opinions of the vulgar, and in many of their ordinary forms ofexpression. Thus it is generally believed throughout all Asia, that themoon has an influence on the brain; and when a man is of insane mind, wecall him a lunatic. One of the curses of the common people is, 'May themoon eat up your brains;' and in China they say of a man who has doneany act of egregious folly, 'He was gathering wool in the moon. '"

I was struck with these remarks, and told the Hermit that the languageof Europe afforded the same indirect evidence of the fact he mentioned:that my own language especially, abounded with expressions which couldbe explained on no other hypothesis;--for, besides the terms "lunacy, ""lunatic, " and the supposed influence of the moon on the brain, when wesee symptoms of a disordered intellect, we say the mind _wanders_, which evidently alludes to a part of it rambling to a distant region, asis the moon. We say too, a man is "_out of his head_, " that is, hismind being in another man's head, must of course be out of his own. To "know no more than the man in the moon, " is a proverbial expressionfor ignorance, and is without meaning, unless it be considered to referto the Glonglims. We say that an insane man is "distracted;" by which wemean that his mind is drawn two different ways. So also, we call alunatic _a man beside himself_, which most distinctly expresses the twodistinct bodies his mind now animates. There are, moreover, many otheranalogous expressions, as "moonstruck, " "deranged, " "extravagant, " andsome others, which, altogether, form a mass of concurring testimony thatit is impossible to resist. 

"Be that as it may, " said he, "whether the voyage has been made in formertimes or not, is of little importance: it is sufficient for us to knowthat it has been effected in our time, and can be effected again. I amanxious to repeat the voyage, for the purpose of ascertaining some facts, about which I have been lately speculating; and I wish, besides, toafford you ocular demonstration of the wonders I have disclosed; for, in spite of your good opinion of my veracity, I have sometimes perceivedsymptoms of incredulity about you, and I do not wonder at it. "

The love of the marvellous, and the wish for a change, which had longslumbered in my bosom, were now suddenly awakened, and I eagerly caughtat his proposal. 

"When can we set out, father?" said I. 

"Not so fast, " replied he; "we have a great deal of preparation to make. Our apparatus requires the best workmanship, and we cannot here commandeither first-rate articles or materials, without incurring the risk ofsuspicion and interruption. While most of the simple villagers arekindly disposed towards me, there are a few who regard me with distrustand malevolence, and would readily avail themselves of an opportunityto bring me under the censure of the priesthood and the government. Besides, the governor of Mergui would probably be glad to lay hold ofany plausible evidence against you, as affording him the best chance ofavoiding any future reckoning either with you or his superiors. We musttherefore be very secret in our plans. I know an ingenious artificerin copper and other metals, whose only child I was instrumental in curingof scrofula, and in whose fidelity, as well as good will, I can safelyrely. But we must give him time. He can construct our machine at home, and we must take our departure from that place in the night. "

CHAPTER III. 

_The Brahmin and Atterley prepare for their voyage--Description of theirmachine--Incidents of the voyage--The appearance of the earth; Africa;Greece--The Brahmin's speculations on the different races of men--Nationalcharacter. _

Having thus formed our plan of operations, we the next day proceeded toput them in execution. The coppersmith agreed to undertake the workwe wanted done, for a moderate compensation; but we did not think itprudent to inform him of our object, which he supposed was to make somephilosophical experiment. It was forthwith arranged that he shouldoccasionally visit the Hermit, to receive instructions, as if for thepurpose of asking medical advice. During this interval my mind wasabsorbed with our project; and when in company, I was so thoughtfuland abstracted, that it has since seemed strange to me that Sing Fou'ssuspicions that I was planning my escape were not more excited. Atlength, by dint of great exertion, in about three months every thingwas in readiness, and we determined on the following night to set outon our perilous expedition. 

The machine in which we proposed to embark, was a copper vessel, thatwould have been an exact cube of six feet, if the corners and edgeshad not been rounded off. It had an opening large enough to receiveour bodies, which was closed by double sliding pannels, with quiltedcloth between them. When these were properly adjusted, the machinewas perfectly air-tight, and strong enough, by means of iron bars runningalternately inside and out, to resist the pressure of the atmosphere, when the machine should be exhausted of its air, as we took the precautionto prove by the aid of an air-pump. On the top of the copper chestand on the outside, we had as much of the lunar metal (which I shallhenceforth call _lunarium_) as we found, by calculation and experiment, would overcome the weight of the machine, as well as its contents, and take us to the moon on the third day. As the air which the machinecontained, would not be sufficient for our respiration more than aboutsix hours, and the chief part of the space we were to pass through wasa mere void, we provided ourselves with a sufficient supply, by condensingit in a small globular vessel, made partly of iron and partly of lunarium, to take off its weight. On my return, I gave Mr. Jacob Perkins, whois now in England, a hint of this plan of condensation, and it hasthere obtained him great celebrity. This fact I should not have thoughtit worth while to mention, had he not taken the sole merit of theinvention to himself; at least I cannot hear that in his numerous publicnotices he has ever mentioned my name. 

But to return. A small circular window, made of a single piece of thickclear glass, was neatly fitted on each of the six sides. Several piecesof lead were securely fastened to screws which passed through the bottomof the machine; as well as a thick plank. The screws were so contrived, that by turning them in one direction, the pieces of lead attachedto them were immediately disengaged from the hooks with which theywere connected. The pieces of lunarium were fastened in like mannerto screws, which passed through the top of the machine; so that byturning them in one direction, those metallic pieces would fly intothe air with the velocity of a rocket. The Brahmin took with him athermometer, two telescopes, one of which projected through the topof the machine, and the other through the bottom; a phosphoric lamp, pen, ink, and paper, and some light refreshments sufficient to supplyus for some days. 

The moon was then in her third quarter, and near the zenith: it was, ofcourse, a little after midnight, and when the coppersmith and his familywere in their soundest sleep, that we entered the machine. In about an hourmore we had the doors secured, and every thing arranged in its place, when, cutting the cords which fastened us to the ground, by means of small steelblades which worked in the ends of other screws, we rose from the earthwith a whizzing sound, and a sensation at first of very rapid ascent: butafter a short time, we were scarcely sensible of any motion in the machine, except when we changed our places. 

The ardent curiosity I had felt to behold the wonderful things which theBrahmin related, and the hope of returning soon to my children and nativecountry, had made me most impatient for the moment of departure; duringwhich time the hazards and difficulties of the voyage were entirelyoverlooked: but now that the moment of execution had arrived, and I foundmyself shut up in this small chest, and about to enter on a voyage so new, so strange, and beset with such a variety of dangers, I will not deny thatmy courage failed me, and I would gladly have compromised to return toMozaun, and remain there quietly all the rest of my days. But shamerestrained me, and I dissembled my emotions. 

At our first shock on leaving the earth, my fears were at their height; butafter about two hours, I had tolerably well regained my composure, to whichthe returning light of day greatly contributed. By this time we had a fullview of the rising sun, pouring a flood of light over one half of thecircular landscape below us, and leaving the rest in shade. While thosenatural objects, the rivers and mountains, land and sea, were fast recedingfrom our view, our horizon kept gradually extending as we mounted: but ere10 o'clock this effect ceased, and the broad disc of the earth begansensibly to diminish. 

It is impossible to describe my sensations of mingled awe and admiration atthe splendid spectacle beneath me, so long as the different portions of theearth's surface were plainly distinguishable. The novelty of the situationin which I found myself, as well as its danger, prevented me indeed atfirst from giving more than a passing attention to the magnificent scene;but after a while, encouraged by the Brahmin's exhortation, and yet more bythe example of his calm and assured air, I was able to take a moreleisurely view of it. At first, as we partook of the diurnal motion of theearth, and our course was consequently oblique, the same portion of theglobe from which we had set out, continued directly under us; and as theeye stretched in every direction over Asia and its seas, continents andislands, they appeared like pieces of green velvet, the surrounding oceanlike a mirror, and the Ganges, the Hoogley, and the great rivers of China, like threads of silver. 

About 11 o'clock it was necessary to get a fresh supply of air, whenmy companion cautiously turned one of the two stop-cocks to let outthat which was no longer fit for respiration, requesting me, at thesame time, to turn the other, to let in a fresh supply of condensedair; but being awkward in the first attempt to follow his directions, I was so affected by the exhaustion of the air through the vent nowmade for it, that I fainted; and having, at the same time, given freerpassage to the condensed air than I ought, we must in a few secondshave lost our supply, and thus have inevitably perished, had not thewatchful Hermit seen the mischief, and repaired it almost as soon asit occurred. This accident, and the various agitations my mind hadundergone in the course of the day, so overpowered me, that at an earlyhour in the afternoon I fell into a profound sleep, and did not awakeagain for eight hours. 

While I slept, the good Brahmin had contrived to manage both stop-cockshimself. The time of my waking would have been about 11 o'clock at night, if we had continued on the earth; but we were now in a region where therewas no alternation of day and night, but one unvarying cloudless sun. Itsheat, however, was not in proportion to its brightness; for we found thatafter we had ascended a few miles from the earth, it was becoming muchcolder, and the Brahmin had recourse to a chemical process for evolvingheat, which soon made us comfortable: but after we were fairly in the greataerial void, the temperature of our machine showed no tendency to change. 

The sensations caused by the novelty of my situation, at first checkedthose lively and varied trains of thought which the bird's-eye view of somany countries passing in review before us, was calculated to excite: yet, after I had become more familiar with it, I contemplated the beautifulexhibition with inexpressible delight. Besides, a glass of cordial, as wellas the calm, confiding air of the Brahmin, contributed to restore me to myself-possession. The reader will recollect, that although our motion, atfirst, partook of that of the earth's on its axis, and although the_positive_ effect was the same on our course, the _relative_ effect wasless and less as we ascended, and consequently, that after a certainheight, every part of the terraqueous globe would present itself to ourview in succession, as we rapidly receded from it. At 9 o'clock, the wholeof India was a little to the west of us, and we saw, as in a map, thatfertile and populous region, which has been so strangely reduced tosubjection, by a company of merchants belonging to a country on theopposite side of the globe--a country not equal to one-fourth of it, inextent or population. Its rivers were like small filaments of silver; theRed Sea resembled a narrow plate of the same metal. The peninsula of Indiawas of a darker, and Arabia of a light and more grayish green. 

The sun's rays striking obliquely on the Atlantic, emitted an effulgencethat was dazzling to the eyes. For two or three hours the appearanceof the earth did not greatly vary, the wider extent of surface we couldsurvey, compensating for our greater distance; and indeed at that timewe could not see the whole horizon, without putting our eyes close tothe glass. 

When the Brahmin saw that I had overcome my first surprise, and hadacquired somewhat of his own composure, he manifested a dispositionto beguile the time with conversation. "Look through the telescope, "said he, "a little from the sun, and observe the continent of Africa, which is presenting itself to our view. " I took a hasty glance overit, and perceived that its northern edge was fringed with green; thena dull white belt marked the great Sahara, or Desert, and then it exhibiteda deep green again, to its most southern extremity. I tried in vainto discover the pyramids, for our telescope had not sufficient powerto show them. 

I observed to him, that less was known of this continent than of theothers: that a spirit of lively curiosity had been excited by thewestern nations of Europe, to become acquainted with the inhabitedparts of the globe; but that all the efforts yet made, had still lefta large portion almost entirely unknown. I asked if he did not think itprobable that some of the nations in the interior of Africa were moreadvanced in civilization than those on the coast, whose barbarous customof making slaves of their prisoners, Europeans had encouraged andperpetuated, by purchasing them. 

"No, no, " said he; "the benefits of civilization could not have been soeasily confined, but would have spread themselves over every part of thatcontinent, or at least as far as the Great Desert, if they had everexisted. The intense heat of a climate, lying on each side of the Line, at once disinclines men to exertion, and renders it unnecessary. Vegetablediet is more suited to them than animal, which favours a denser population. Talent is elicited by the efforts required to overcome difficultiesand hardships; and their natural birth-place is a country of frost andsnow--of tempests--of sterility enough to give a spur to exertion, butnot enough to extinguish hope. Where these difficulties exist, and giveoccasion to war and emulation, the powers of the human mind are mostfrequently developed. "

"Do you think then, " said I, "that there is no such thing as naturalinferiority and differences of races?"

"I have been much perplexed by that question, " said he. "When I regardthe great masses of mankind, I think there seems to be among them somecharacteristic differences. I see that the Europeans have every whereobtained the ascendancy over those who inhabit the other quarters ofthe globe. But when I compare individuals, I see always the same passions, the same motives, the same mental operations; and my opinion is changed. The same seed becomes a very different plant when sowed in one soil oranother, and put under this or that mode of cultivation. "

"And may not, " said I, "the very nature of the plant be changed, after along continuance of the same culture in the same soil?"

"Why, that is but another mode of stating the question. I rather think, if it has generally degenerated, it may, by opposite treatment, be alsogradually brought back to its original excellence. "

"Who knows, then, " said I, "what our missionaries and colonizationsocieties may effect in Africa. "

He inquired of me what these societies were; and on explaining theirhistory, observed: "By what you tell me, it is indeed a small beginning;but if they can get this grain of mustard-seed to grow, there is nosaying how much it may multiply. See what a handful of colonists havedone in your own country. A few ship-loads of English have overspreadhalf a continent; and, from what you tell me, their descendants willamount, in another century, to more than one hundred millions. There isno rule, " he continued, "that can be laid down on this subject, to whichsome nations cannot be found to furnish a striking exception. If meredifficulties were all that were wanting to call forth the intellectualenergies of man, they have their full share on the borders of the GreatDesert. There are in that whitish tract which separates the countrieson the southern shores of the Mediterranean from the rest of Africa, thousands of human beings at this moment toiling over that dreary oceanof sand, to whom a draught of fresh water would be a blessing, and thesimplest meal a luxury. 

"Perhaps, however, you will say they are so engrossed with the animalwants of hunger and thirst, that they are incapable of attending to anything else. Be it so. But in the interior they are placed in parallelcircumstances with the natives of Europe: they are engaged in strugglesfor territory and dominion--for their altars and their homes; and thisstate of things, which has made some of them brave and warlike, has madenone poets or painters, historians or philosophers. There, poetry has notwanted themes of great achievement and noble daring; but heroes havewanted poets. Nor can we justly ascribe the difference to the enervatinginfluence of climate, for the temperature of the most southern parts ofAfrica differs little from that of Greece. And the tropical nations, too, of your own continent, the Peruvians, were more improved than those whoinhabited the temperate regions. Besides, though the climate had instilledsoftness and feebleness of character, it might also have permitted thecultivation of the arts, as has been the case with us in Asia. On thewhole, without our being able to pronounce with certainty on the subject, it does seem probable that some organic difference exists in the variousraces of mankind, to which their diversities of moral and intellectualcharacter may in part be referred. "--By this time the Morea and theGrecian Archipelago were directly under our telescope. 

"Does not Greece, " said I, "furnish the clearest proof of the influenceof moral causes on the character of nations? Compare what that countryformerly was, with what it now is. Once superior to all the rest of thehabitable globe, (of which it did not constitute the thousandth part, )in letters, arts, and arms, and all that distinguishes men from brutes;not merely in their own estimation, (for all nations are disposed to ratethemselves high enough, ) but by the general consent of the rest of theworld. Do not the most improved and civilized of modern states still takethem as their instructors and guides in every species of literature--inphilosophy, history, oratory, poetry, architecture, and sculpture? Andthose too, who have attained superiority over the world, in arms, yielda voluntary subjection to the Greeks in the arts. The cause of theirformer excellence and their present inferiority, is no doubt to be foundin their former freedom and their present slavery, and in the loss ofthat emulation which seems indispensable to natural greatness. "

"Nay, " replied he, "I am very far from denying the influence of moralcauses on national character. The history of every country affordsabundant evidence of it. I mean only to say, that though it does much, it does not do every thing. It seems more reasonable to impute the changesin national character to the mutable habits and institutions of man, than to nature, which is always the same. But if we look a little nearer, we may perhaps perceive, that amidst all those mutations in the characterof nations, there are still some features that are common to the samepeople at all times, and which it would therefore be reasonable toimpute to the great unvarying laws of nature. Thus it requires noextraordinary acuteness of observation, no strained hypothesis, toperceive a close resemblance between the Germans or the Britons ofantiquity and their modern descendants, after the lapse of eighteencenturies, and an entire revolution in government, religion, language, and laws. And travellers still perceive among the inhabitants of modernGreece, deteriorated and debased as they are by political servitude, many of those qualities which distinguished their predecessors: thesame natural acuteness--the same sensibility to pleasure--the samepliancy of mind and elasticity of body--the same aptitude for the artsof imitation--and the same striking physiognomy. That bright, serenesky--that happy combination of land and water, constituting the perfectionof the picturesque, and that balmy softness of its air, which have provedthemselves so propitious to forms of beauty, agility, and strength, alsooperate benignantly on the mind which animates them. Whilst the fruitis still fair to the eye, it is not probable that it has permanentlydegenerated in fragrance or flavour. The great diversities of nationalcharacter may, perhaps, be attributed principally to moral and accidentalcauses, but partly also to climate, and to original diversities in thedifferent races of man. "

CHAPTER IV. 

_Continuation of the voyage--View of Europe; Atlantic Ocean; America--Speculations on the future destiny of the United States--Moral reflections--Pacific Ocean--Hypothesis on the origin of the Moon. _

By this time the whole Mediterranean Sea, which, with the Arabian Gulf, was seen to separate Africa from Europe and Asia, was full in our view. The political divisions of these quarters of the world were, of course, undistinguishable; and few of the natural were discernible by the nakedeye. The Alps were marked by a white streak, though less bright than thewater. By the aid of our glass, we could just discern the Danube, theNile, and a river which empties itself into the Gulf of Guinea, and whichI took to be the Niger: but the other streams were not perceptible. Themost conspicuous object of the solid part of the globe, was the GreatDesert before mentioned. The whole of Africa, indeed, was of a lighter huethan either Asia or Europe, owing, I presume, to its having a greaterproportion of sandy soil: and I could not avoid contrasting, in my mind, the colour of these continents, as they now appeared, with the complexionsof their respective inhabitants. 

I was struck too, with the vast disproportion which the extent of theseveral countries of the earth bore to the part they had acted in history, and the influence they had exerted on human affairs. The British islandshad diminished to a speck, and France was little larger; yet, a fewyears ago it seemed, at least to us in the United States, as if therewere no other nations on the earth. The Brahmin, who was well read inEuropean history, on my making a remark on this subject, reminded me thatAthens and Sparta had once obtained almost equal celebrity, althoughthey were so small as not now to be visible. As I slowly passed thetelescope over the face of Europe, I pictured to myself the fat, ploddingHollander--the patient, contemplative German--the ingenious, sensualItalian--the temperate Swiss--the haughty, superstitious Spaniard--thesprightly, self-complacent Frenchman--the sullen and reflecting Englishman--who monopolize nearly all the science and literature of the earth, to which they bear so small a proportion. As the Atlantic fell under ourview, two faint circles on each side of the equator, were to be perceivedby the naked eye. They were less bright than the rest of the ocean. TheBrahmin suggested that they might be currents; which brought to my memoryDr. Franklin's conjecture on the subject, now completely verified by thiscircular line of vapour, as it had been previously rendered probable bythe floating substances, which had been occasionally picked up, at greatdistances from the places where they had been thrown into the ocean. Thecircle was whiter and more distinct, where the Gulf Stream runs parallelto the American coast, and gradually grew fainter as it passed along theBanks of Newfoundland, to the coast of Europe, where, taking a southerlydirection, the line of the circle was barely discernible. A similar circleof vapour, though less defined and complete, was perceived in the SouthAtlantic Ocean. 

When the coast of my own beloved country first presented itself to myview, I experienced the liveliest emotions; and I felt so anxious to seemy children and friends, that I would gladly have given up all thepromised pleasures of our expedition. I even ventured to hint my feelingsto the Brahmin; but he, gently rebuking my impatience, said--

"If to return home had been your only object, and not to see what not oneof your nation or race has ever yet seen, you ought to have so informedme, that we might have arranged matters accordingly. I do not wish youto return to your country, until you will be enabled to make yourselfwelcome and useful there, by what you may see in the lunar world. Takecourage, then, my friend; you have passed the worst; and, as the proverbsays, do not, when you have swallowed the ox, now choke at the tail. Besides, although we made all possible haste in descending, we should, ere we reached the surface, find ourselves to the west of your continent, and be compelled then to choose between some part of Asia or the PacificOcean. "

"Let us then proceed, " said I, mortified at the imputation on my courage, and influenced yet more, perhaps, by the last argument. The Brahmin thentried to soothe my disappointment, by his remarks on my native land. 

"I have a great curiosity, " said he, "to see a country where a man, byhis labour, can earn as much in a month as will procure him bread, andmeat too, for the whole year; in a week, as will pay his dues to thegovernment; and in one or two days, as will buy him an acre of good land:where every man preaches whatever religion he pleases; where the priestsof the different sects never fight, and seldom quarrel; and, strangerthan all, where the authority of government derives no aid from an army, and that of the priests no support from the law. "

I told him, when he should see these things in operation with hisown eyes, as I trusted he would, if it pleased heaven to favour ourundertakings, they would appear less strange. I reminded him of thepeculiar circumstances under which our countrymen had commenced theircareer. 

"In all other countries, " said I, "civilization and population havegone hand in hand; and the necessity of an increasing subsistencefor increasing numbers, has been the parent of useful arts and ofsocial improvement. In every successive stage of their advancement, such countries have equally felt the evils occasioned by a scanty andprecarious subsistence. In America, however, the people are in the fullenjoyment of all the arts of civilization, while they are unrestrictedin their means of subsistence, and consequently in their power ofmultiplication. From this singular state of things, two consequencesresult. One is, that the progress of the nation in wealth, power, andgreatness, is more rapid than the world has ever before witnessed. Another is, that our people, being less cramped and fettered by theirnecessities, and feeling, of course, less of those moral evils whichpoverty and discomfort engender, their character, moral and intellectual, will be developed and matured with greater celerity, and, I inclineto think, carried to a higher point of excellence than has ever yetbeen attained. I anticipate for them the eloquence and art of Athens--thecourage and love of country of Sparta--the constancy and military prowessof the Romans--the science and literature of England and France--theindustry of the Dutch--the temperance and obedience to the laws of theSwiss. In fifty years, their numbers will amount to forty millions; ina century, to one hundred and sixty millions; in two centuries, (allowingfor a decreasing rate of multiplication, ) to three or four hundredmillions. Nor does it seem impossible that, from the structure of theirgovernment, they may continue united for a few great national purposes, while each State may make the laws that are suited to its peculiar habits, character, and circumstances. In another half century, they will extendthe Christian religion and the English language to the Pacific Ocean. 

"To the south of them, on the same continent, other great nations willarise, who, if they were to be equally united, might contend in terribleconflicts for the mastery of this great continent, and even of the world. But when they shall be completely liberated from the yoke of Spanishdominion, and have for some time enjoyed that full possession of theirfaculties and energies which liberty only can give, they will probablysplit into distinct States. United, at first, by the sympathy of menstruggling in the same cause, and by similarity of manners and religion, they will, after a while, do as men always have done, quarrel and fight;and these wars will check their social improvement, and mar theirpolitical hopes. Whether they will successively fall under the dominionof one able and fortunate leader, or, like the motley sovereignties ofEurope, preserve their integrity by their mutual jealousy, time only canshow. "

"Your reasoning about the natives of Spanish America appears veryprobable, " said the Brahmin; "but is it not equally applicable to yourown country ?"

I reminded him of the peculiar advantages of our government. He shookhis head. 

"No, Atterley, " said he, "do not deceive yourself. The duration of everyspecies of polity is uncertain; the works of nature alone are permanent. The motions of the heavenly bodies are the same as they were thousandsof years ago. But not so with the works of man. He is the identical animalthat he ever was. His political institutions, however cunningly devised, have always been yet more perishable than his structures of stone andmarble. This is according to all past history: and do not, therefore, count upon an exception in your favour, that would be little short ofthe miraculous. But, " he good-naturedly added, "such a miracle may takeplace in your system; and, although I do not expect it, I sincerelywish it. "

We were now able to see one half of the broad expanse of the Pacific, which glistened with the brightness of quicksilver or polished steel. 

"Cast your eyes to the north, " said he, "and see where your continentand mine approach so near as almost to touch. Both these coasts areat this time thinly inhabited by a rude and miserable people, whosewhole time is spent in struggling against the rigours of their drearyclimate, and the scantiness of its productions. Yet, perhaps the Indiansand the Kamtschadales will be gradually moulded into a hardy, civilizedpeople: and here may be the scene of many a fierce conflict between yourpeople and the Russians, whose numbers, now four times as great as yours, increase almost as rapidly. "

He then amused me with accounts of the manners and mode of life of theHyperborean race, with whom he had once passed a summer. Glancing my eyethen to the south, --"See, " said I, "while the Kamtschadale is providinghis supply of furs and of fish, for the long winter which is alreadyknocking at the door of his hut, the gay and voluptuous native of theSandwich and other islands between the tropics. How striking the contrast!The one passes his life in ease, abundance, and enjoyment; the other intoil, privation, and care. No inclemency of the seasons inflicts presentsuffering on these happy islanders, or brings apprehensions for thefuture. Nature presents them with her most delicious fruits spontaneouslyand abundantly; and she has implanted in their breast a lively relish forthe favours she so lavishly bestows upon them. "

The Brahmin, after musing a while, replied: "The difference is far lessthan you imagine. Perhaps, on balancing their respective pleasures andpains, the superior gain of the islander will be reduced to nothing: for, as to the simplest source of gratification, that of palatable food, ifnature produces it more liberally in the islands, she also produces theremore mouths to consume it. The richest Kamtschadale may, indeed, oftenergo without a dinner than the richest Otaheitan; but it may be quite thereverse with the poorest. Then, as to quality of the food: if naturehas provided more delicious fruits for the natives of tropical climates, she has given a sharper appetite and stronger digestion to the Hyperborean, which equalizes the sum of their enjoyments. A dry crust is relished, whenan individual is hungry, more than the most savoury and delicate daintieswhen he is in a fever; and water to one man, is a more delicious beveragethan the juice of the grape or of the palm to another. As to the necessityfor labour, which is ever pressing on the inhabitants of cold countries, it is this consequent and incessant activity which gives health to theirbodies, and cheerful vigour to their minds; since, without such exercise, man would have been ever a prey to disease and discontent. And, if noother occupation be provided for the mind of man, it carves out employmentfor itself in vain regrets and gloomy forebodings--in jealousy, envy, andthe indulgence of every hateful and tormenting passion: hence theproverb, --'If you want corn, cultivate your soil; if you want weeds, letit alone. '

"But again: the native of those sunny isles is never sensible of thebounty of Providence, till he is deprived of it. Here, as well as everywhere else, desire outgoes gratification. Man sees or fancies much thathe cannot obtain; and in his regret for what he wants, forgets what healready possesses. What is it to one with a tooth-ache, that a savourydish is placed before him? It is the same with the mind as the body: whenpain engrosses it in one way, it cannot relish pleasure in another. Everyclimate and country too, have their own evils and inconveniences. "

"You think, then, " said I, "that the native of Kamtschatka has theadvantage?"

"No, " he rejoined, "I do not mean to say that, for the evils of hissituation are likewise very great; but they are more manifest, andtherefore less necessary to be brought to your notice. "

It was now, by our time-pieces, about two o'clock in the afternoon--thatis, two hours had elapsed since we left terra firma; and, saving a fewbiscuits and a glass of cordial a-piece, we had not taken any sort ofrefreshment. The Brahmin proposed that we now should dine; and, openinga small case, and drawing forth a cold fowl, a piece of dried goat'sflesh, a small pot of ghee, some biscuits, and a bottle of arrackflavoured with ginger and spices, with a larger one of water, we ate asheartily as we had ever done at the hermitage; the slight motion of ourmachine to one side or the other, whenever we moved, giving us nearlyas much exercise as a vessel in a smooth sea. The animal food had beenprovided for me, for the Brahmin satisfied his hunger with the ghee, sweetmeats, and biscuit, and ate sparingly even of them. We each tooktwo glasses of the cordial diluted with water, and carefully puttingback the fragments, again turned our thoughts to the planet we had left. 

The middle of the Pacific now lay immediately beneath us. I had neverbefore been struck with the irregular distribution of land and water onour globe, the expanse of ocean here being twice as large as in anyother part; and, on remarking this striking difference to the Brahmin, he replied:

"It is the opinion of some philosophers in the moon, that their globeis a fragment of ours; and, as they can see every part of the earth'ssurface, they believe the Pacific was the place from which the moon wasejected. They pretend that a short, but consistent tradition of thedisruption, has regularly been transmitted from remote antiquity; andthey draw confirmation of their hypothesis from many words of the Chinese, and other Orientals, with whom they claim affinity. "

"Ridiculous!" said I; "the moon is one-fourth the diameter of the earth;and if the two were united in one sphere, the highest mountains musthave been submerged, and of course there would have been no humaninhabitants; or, if any part of the land was then bare, on the watersretiring to fill up the chasm made by the separation of so large a bodyas the moon, the parts before habitable would be, instead of two, three, or at most four miles, as your Himalah mountains are said to be, sometwenty or thirty miles above the level of the ocean. "

"That is not quite so certain, " said he: "we know not of what the interiorof the earth is composed, any more than we could distinguish the contentsof an egg, by penetrating one hundredth part of its shell. But we see, that if one drop of water be united with another, they form one largedrop, as spherical as either of the two which composed it: and on theseparation of the moon from the earth, if they were composed of mingledsolids and fluids, or if the solid parts rested on fluid, both thefragment and the remaining earth would assume the same globular appearancethey now present. 

"On this subject, however, I give no opinion. I only say, that it is notcontradicted by the facts you have mentioned. The fluid and the solidparts settling down into a new sphere, might still retain nearly theirformer proportion: or, if the fragment took away a greater proportionof solid than of fluid, then the waters retiring to fill up the cavity, would leave parts bare which they had formerly covered. There are somefacts which give a colour to this supposition; for most of the highmountains of the earth afford evidence of former submersion; and thosewhich are the highest, the Himalah, are situated in the country to whichthe origin of civilization, and even the human species itself, may betraced. The moon too, we know, has much less water than the earth: andall those appearances of violence, which have so puzzled cosmogonists, the topsy-turvy position in which vegetable substances are occasionallyfound beneath the soil on which they grew, and the clear manifestationsof the action of water, in the formation of strata, in the undulatingforms it has left, and in the correspondent salient and retiring anglesof mountains and opposite coasts, were all caused by the disruption;and as the moon has a smaller proportion of water than the earth, shehas also the highest mountains. "

"But, father, " said I, "the diameter of the earth being but four timesas large as that of the moon, how can the violent separation of so largea portion of our planet be accounted for? Where is the mighty agent torend off such a mass, and throw it to thirty times the earth's diameter?"

"Upon that subject, " said he, "the Lunarian sages are much divided. Many hypotheses have been suggested on the subject, some of which arevery ingenious, and all very fanciful: but the two most celebrated, andinto which all the others are now merged, are those of Neerlego andDarcandarca; the former of whom, in a treatise extending to nine quartovolumes, has maintained that the disruption was caused by a comet; andthe latter, in a work yet more voluminous, has endeavoured to prove, thatwhen the materials of the moon composed a part of the earth, this planetcontained large masses of water, which, though the particles cohered witheach other, were disposed to fly off from the earth; and that, by anaccumulation of the electric fluid, according to laws which he hasattempted to explain, the force was at length sufficient to heave therocks which encompassed these masses, from their beds, and to projectthem from the earth, when, partaking of the earth's diurnal motion, theyassumed a spherical form, and revolved around it. And further, thatbecause the moon is composed of two sorts of matter, that are differentlyaffected towards the earth in its revolution round that planet, the sameparts of its surface always maintain some relative position to us, whichthus necessarily causes the singularity of her turning on her axisprecisely in the time in which she revolves round the earth. "

"I see, " said I, "that doctors differ and dispute about their own fanciesevery where. "

"That is, " said he, "because they contend as vehemently for what theyimagine as for what they see; and perhaps more so, as their _perceptions_are like those of other men, while their _reveries_ are more exclusivelytheir own. Thus, in the present instance, the controversy turns upon themode in which the separation was effected, which affords the widest fieldfor conjecture, while they both agree that such separation has takenplace. As to this fact I have not yet made up my mind, though it mustbe confessed that there is much to give plausibility to their opinion. I recognise, for instance, a striking resemblance between the animaland vegetable productions of Asia and those of the moon. "

"Do you think, father, " said I, "that animal, or even vegetable life, could possibly exist in such a disruption as is supposed?"

"Why not?" said he: "you are not to imagine that the shock would be feltin proportion to the mass that was moved. On the contrary, while it wouldoccasion, in some parts, a great destruction of life, it would, in others, not be felt more than an earthquake, or rather, than a succession ofearthquakes, during the time that the different parts of the mass wereadjusting themselves to a spherical form; whilst a few pairs, or even asingle pair of animals, saved in some cavity of a mountain, would besufficient, in a few centuries, to stock the whole surface of the earthwith as many individuals as are now to be found on it. 

"After all, " he added, "it is often difficult in science to distinguishTruth from the plausibility which personates her. But let us not, however, be precipitate; let us but hear both sides. In the east we have a saying, that 'he who hears with but one ear, never hears well. '"

CHAPTER V. 

_The voyage continued--Second view of Asia--The Brahmin's speculationsconcerning India--Increase of the Moon's attraction--Appearance of theMoon--They land on the Moon. _

The dryness of the preceding discussion, which lay out of the course ofmy studies, together with the effect of my dinner, began to make me alittle drowsy; whereupon the Brahmin urged me to take the repose whichit was clear I needed; remarking, that when I awoke, he would followmy example. Reclining my head, then, on my cloak, in a few minutes mysenses were steeped in forgetfulness. 

I slept about six hours most profoundly; and on waking, found the goodBrahmin busy with his calculations of our progress. I insisted on hisnow taking some rest. After requesting me to wake him at the end of threehours, (or sooner, if any thing of moment should occur, ) and putting upa short prayer, which was manifested by his looks, rather than by hiswords, he laid himself down, and soon fell into a quiet sleep. 

Left now to my own meditations, and unsupported by the example andconversation of my friend, I felt my first apprehensions return, andbegan seriously to regret my rashness in thus venturing on so bold anexperiment, which, however often repeated with success, must ever behazardous, and which could plead little more in its favour than a vainand childish curiosity. I took up a book, but whilst my eye ran over thepage, I understood but little what I read, and could not relish even that. I now looked down through the telescope, and found the earth surprisinglydiminished in her apparent dimensions, from the increased rapidity of ourascent. The eastern coasts of Asia were still fully in view, as well asthe entire figure of that vast continent--of New Holland--of Ceylon, andof Borneo; but the smaller islands were invisible. I strained my eye tono purpose, to follow the indentations of the coast, according to the mapbefore me; the great bays and promontories could alone be perceived. TheBurman Empire, in one of the insignificant villages of which I had beenconfined for a few years, was now reduced to a speck. The agreeablehours I had passed with the Brahmin, with the little daughter of Sing Fou, and my rambling over the neighbouring heights, all recurred to my mind, and I almost regretted the pleasures I had relinquished. I tried, withmore success, to beguile the time by making notes in my journal; and afterhaving devoted about an hour to this object, I returned to the telescope, and now took occasion to examine the figure of the earth near the Poles, with a view of discovering whether its form favoured Captain Symmes'stheory of an aperture existing there; and I am convinced that thatingenious gentleman is mistaken. Time passed so heavily during thesesolitary occupations, that I looked at my watch every five minutes, andcould scarcely be persuaded it was not out of order. I then took up mylittle Bible, (which had always been my travelling companion, ) read afew chapters in St. Matthew, and found my feelings tranquillized, andmy courage increased. The desired hour at length arrived; when, on wakingthe old man, he alertly raised himself up, and at the first view of thediminished appearance of the earth, observed that our journey was a thirdover, as to time, but not as to distance. After a few moments, the Brahminagain cast his eye towards his own natal soil; on beholding which, hefetched a deep sigh, and, if I was not mistaken, I saw a rising tear. 

"Alas!" said he, "my country and my countrymen, how different you are inmany respects from what I should wish you to be! And yet I do not loveyou the less. Perhaps I love you the more for your faults, as well asfor your misfortunes. 

"Our lot, " continued he, "is a hard one. That quarter of the world hassent letters, and arts, and religion abroad to adorn and benefit theother four; and these, the chief of human blessings and glories, havedeserted us!"

I told him that I had heard the honours, which he claimed for India, attributed to Egypt. He contended, with true love of country, greatplausibility, and an intimate knowledge of Oriental history, that lettersand the arts had been first transplanted from Asia into Egypt. 

"No other part of Africa, " said he, "saving Egypt, can boast of anyancient monuments of the arts or of civilization. Even the pyramids, the great boast of Egypt, are proofs of nothing more than ordinary patientlabour, directed by despotic power. Besides, look at that vast region, extending five thousand miles from the Mediterranean to the Cape of GoodHope, and four thousand from the Red Sea to the Atlantic. Its immensesurface contains only ignorant barbarians, who are as uncivilized now asthey were three thousand years ago. Is it likely that if civilization andletters originated in Egypt, as is sometimes pretended, it would havespread so extensively in one direction, and not at all in another?I make no exception in favour of the Carthagenians, whose origin wascomparatively recent, and who, we know, were a colony from Asia. "

I was obliged to admit the force of this reasoning; and, when he proceededto descant on the former glories and achievements of Asiatic nations, and their sad reverses of fortune--while he freely spoke of the presentdegradation and imbecility of his countrymen, he promptly resisted everycensure of mine. It was easy, indeed, to see that he secretly cherisheda hope that the day would come, when the whole of Hindostan would beemancipated from its European masters, and assume that rank among nationsto which the genius of its inhabitants entitled it. He admitted that thedominion of the English was less oppressive than that of their nativeprinces; but said, that there was this great difference between foreignand domestic despotism, --that the former completely extinguished allnational pride, which is as much the cause as the effect of nationalgreatness. 

I asked him whether he thought if his countrymen were to shake off theyoke of the English, they could maintain their independence?

"Undoubtedly, " said he. "Who would be able to conquer us?"

I suggested to him that they might tempt the ambition of Russia; andcautiously inquired, whether the abstinence from animal food might notrender his country much less capable of resistance; and whether it mightnot serve to explain why India had so often been the prey of foreignconquest? Of this, however, he would hear nothing; but replied, withmore impatience than was usual with him--

"It is true, Hindostan was invaded by Alexander--but not conquered; andthat it has since submitted, in succession, to the Arabians, to theTartars, under Genghis Khan, and under Tamerlane; to the Persians, underNadir Shah, and, finally, to the British. But there are few countriesof Europe which have not been conquered as often. That nation from whichyou are descended, and to which mine is now subject, furnishes noexception, as it has been subjugated, in succession, by the Romans, theDanes, the Saxons, the Normans. And, as to courage, we see no differencebetween those Asiatics who eat animal food as you do, and those whoabstain from it as I do. I am told that the Scotch peasantry eat muchless animal food than the English, and the Irish far less than they; andyet, that these rank among the best troops of the British. But surely anation ought not to be suspected of fearing death, whose very women showa contempt of life which no other people have exhibited. "

This led us to talk of that strange custom of his country, which impelsthe widow to throw herself on the funeral pile of her husband, and to beconsumed with him. I told him that it had often been represented ascompulsory--or, in other words, that it was said that every art and meanswere resorted to, for the purpose of working on the mind of the woman, byher relatives, aided by the priests, who would be naturally gratified bysuch signal triumphs of religion over the strongest feelings of nature. Headmitted that these engines were sometimes put in operation, and thatthey impelled to the sacrifice, some who were wavering; but insisted, thatin a majority of instances the _Suttee_ was voluntary. 

"Women, " said he, "are brought up from their infancy, to regard our sexas their superiors, and to believe that their greatest merit consists inentire devotion to their husbands. Under this feeling, and having, atthe same time, their attention frequently turned to the chance of such acalamity, they are better prepared to meet it when it occurs. How few ofthe officers in your western armies, ever hesitate to march, at the headof their men, on a forlorn hope? and how many even court the danger forthe sake of the glory? Nay, you tell me that, according to your code ofhonour, if one man insults another, he who gives the provocation, and hewho receives it, rather than be disgraced in the eyes of their countrymen, will go out, and quietly shoot at each other with firearms, till one ofthem is killed or wounded; and this too, in many cases, when the injuryhas been merely nominal. If you show such a contempt of death, indeference to a custom founded in mere caprice, can it be wondered thata woman should show it, in the first paroxysms of her grief for theloss of him to whom was devoted every thought, word, and action of herlife, and who, next to her God, was the object of her idolatry? My dearAtterley, " he continued, with emotion, "you little know the strength ofwoman's love!"

Here he abruptly broke off the conversation; and, after continuingthoughtful and silent for some time, he remarked:

"But do not forget where we are. Nature demands her accustomed rest, andlet us prepare to indulge her. I feel little inclined to sleep atpresent; yet, by the time you have taken some hours' repose, I shallprobably require the same refreshment. "

I would willingly have listened longer; but, yielding to his prudentsuggestion, again composed myself to rest, and left my good monitor tohis melancholy meditations. When I had slept about four hours, I wasawakened by the Brahmin, in whose arms I found myself, and who, feebleas he was, handled me with the ease that a nurse does a child, or rather, as a child does her doll. On looking around, I found myself lying on whathad been the ceiling of our chamber, which still, however, felt like thebottom. My eyes and my feelings were thus in collision, and I could onlyaccount for what I saw, by supposing that the machine had been turnedupside down. I was bewildered and alarmed. 

After enjoying my surprise for a moment, the Brahmin observed: "We have, while you were asleep, passed the middle point between the earth's and themoon's attraction, and we now gravitate less towards our own planet thanher satellite. I took the precaution to move you, before you fell by yourown gravity, from what was lately the bottom, to that which is now so, and to keep you in this place until you were retained in it by the moon'sattraction; for, though your fall would have been, at this point, likethat of a feather, yet it would have given you some shock and alarm. Themachine, therefore, has undergone no change in its position or course;the change is altogether in our feelings. "

The Brahmin then, after having looked through either telescope, but fora longer time through the one at the bottom, and having performed hiscustomary devotions, soon fell into a slumber, but not into the samequiet sleep as before, for he was often interrupted by sudden starts, of so distressing a character, that I was almost tempted to wake him. After a while, however, he seemed more composed, when I betook myselfto the telescope turned towards the earth. 

The earth's appearance I found so diminished as not to exceed four timesthe diameter of the moon, as seen from the earth, and its whole face wasentirely changed. After the first surprise, I recollected it was themoon I was then regarding, and my curiosity was greatly awakened. Onraising myself up, and looking through the upper telescope, the earthpresented an appearance not very dissimilar; but the outline of hercontinents and oceans were still perceptible, in different shades, andcapable of being easily recognised; but the bright glare of the sun madethe surfaces of both bodies rather dim and pale. 

After a short interval, I again looked at the moon, and found not onlyits magnitude very greatly increased, but that it was beginning topresent a more beautiful spectacle. The sun's rays fell obliquely onher disc, so that by a large part of its surface not reflecting the light, I saw every object on it, so far as I was enabled by the power of mytelescope. Its mountains, lakes, seas, continents, and islands, werefaintly, though not indistinctly, traced; and every moment broughtforth something new to catch my eye, and awaken my curiosity. Thewhole face of the moon was of a silvery hue, relieved and varied by thesoftest and most delicate shades. No cloud nor speck of vapour interceptedmy view. One of my exclamations of delight awakened the Brahmin, whoquickly arose, and looking down on the resplendent orb below us, observedthat we must soon begin to slacken the rapidity of our course, bythrowing out ballast. The moon's dimensions now rapidly increased; theseparate mountains, which formed the ridges and chains on her surface, began to be plainly visible through the telescope; whilst, on the shadedside, several volcanoes appeared upon her disc, like the flashes ofour fire-fly, or rather like the twinkling of stars in a frosty night. He remarked, that the extraordinary clearness and brightness of theobjects on the moon's surface, was owing to her having a less extensiveand more transparent atmosphere than the earth: adding--"The differenceis so great, that some of our astronomical observers have been inducedto think she has none. If that, however, had been the case, our voyagewould have been impracticable. "

After gazing at the magnificent spectacle, with admiration and delight, for half an hour, the Brahmin loosed one of the balls of the lunar metal, for the purpose of checking our velocity. At this time he supposed wewere not more than four thousand miles, or about twice the moon'sdiameter, from the nearest point of her surface. In about four hoursmore, her apparent magnitude was so great, that we could see her bylooking out of either of the dark side-windows. Her disc had now lostits former silvery appearance, and began to look more like that of theearth, when seen at the same distance. It was a most gratifying spectacleto behold the objects successively rising to our view, and steadilyenlarging in their dimensions. The rapidity with which we approached themoon, impressed me, in spite of myself, with the alarming sensation offalling; and I found myself alternately agitated with a sense of thisdanger, and with impatience to take a nearer view of the new objects thatgreeted my eyes. The Brahmin was wholly absorbed in calculations for thepurpose of adjusting our velocity to the distance we had to go, hisestimates of which, however, were in a great measure conjectural; andever and anon he would let off a ball of the lunar metal. 

After a few hours, we were so near the moon that every object was seen inour glass, as distinctly as the shells or marine plants through a pieceof shallow sea-water, though the eye could take in but a small part ofher surface, and the horizon, which bounded our view, was rapidlycontracting. On letting the air escape from our machine, it did not nowrush out with the same violence as before, which showed that we werewithin the moon's atmosphere. This, as well as ridding ourselves of themetal balls, aided in checking our progress. By and bye we were within afew miles of the highest mountains, when we threw down so much of ourballast, that we soon appeared almost stationary. The Brahmin remarked, that he should avail himself of the currents of air we might meet with, to select a favourable place for landing, though we were necessarilyattracted towards the same region, in consequence of the same half ofthe moon's surface being always turned towards the earth. 

"In our second voyage, " said he, "we were glad to get foothold any where;for, not having lightened our machine sufficiently, we came down, with aconsiderable concussion, on a barren field, remote from any humanhabitation, and suffered more from hunger and cold, for nearly three days, than we had done from the perils and privations of the voyage. The nexttime we aimed at landing near the town of Alamatua, which stands, as youmay see, a little to the right of us, upon an island in a lake, and lookslike an emerald set in silver. We came down very gently, it is true, butwe struck one of the numerous boats which ply around the island, and hadnearly occasioned the loss of our lives, as well as of theirs. In ourlast voyage we were every way fortunate. The first part of the moon weapproached, was a level plain, of great extent, divided into corn-fields, on which, having lowered our grapnel, we drew ourselves down withoutdifficulty. 

"We must now, " continued he, "look out for some cultivated field, in oneof the valleys we are approaching, where we may rely on being not farfrom some human abode, and on escaping the perils of rocks, trees, andbuildings. "

While the Brahmin was speaking, a gentle breeze arose, as appeared by ourhorizontal motion, which wafted us at the rate of about ten miles an hour, in succession, over a ridge of mountains, a lake, a thick wood, and asecond lake, until at length we reached a cultivated region, recognisedby the Brahmin as the country of the Morosofs, the place we were mostanxious to reach. 

"Let off two of the balls of lead to the earth, " said he. I did so, andwe descended rapidly. When we were sufficiently near the ground to seethat it was a fit place for landing, we opened the door, and found theair of the moon inconceivably sweet and refreshing. We now loosed one ofthe lower balls, and somewhat checked our descent. In a few minutes more, however, we were within twenty yards of the ground, when we let go thelargest ball of lunarium, which, having a cord attached to it, served usin lieu of a grapnel. It descended with great force to the ground, whilethe machine, thus lightened, was disposed to mount again. We, however, drew ourselves down; and as soon as the machine touched the ground, we let off some of our leaden balls to keep it there. We releasedourselves from the machine in a twinkling; and our first impulse wasto fall on our knees, and return thanks for our safe deliverance fromthe many perils of the voyage. 

CHAPTER VI. 

_Some account of Morosofia, and its chief city Alamatua--Singulardresses of the Lunar ladies--Religious self denial--Glouglim miser andspendthrift. _

My feelings, at the moment I touched the ground, repayed me for all Ihad endured. I looked around with the most intense curiosity; but nothingthat I saw, surprised me so much as to find so little that was surprising. The vegetation, insects and other animals, were all pretty much of thesame character as those I had seen before; but after I became betteracquainted with them, I found the difference to be much greater than I atfirst supposed. Having refreshed ourselves with the remains of our stores, and secured the door of our machine, we bent our course, by a plain road, towards the town we saw on the side of a mountain, about three milesdistant, and entered it a little before the sun had descended behind theadjacent mountain. 

The town of Alamatua seemed to contain about two thousand houses, and tobe not quite as large as Albany. The houses were built of a soft shiningstone, and they all had porticoes, piazzas, and verandas, suited to thetropical climate of Morosofia. The people were tall and thin, of a paleyellowish complexion; and their garments light, loose, and flowing, andnot very different from those of the Turks. The lower order of peoplecommonly wore but a single garment, which passed round the waist. Onehalf the houses were under ground, partly to screen them from the continuedaction of the sun's rays, and partly on account of the earthquakes causedby volcanoes. The windows of their houses were different from any I hadever seen before. They consisted of openings in the wall, sloping somuch upwards, that while they freely admitted the light and air, the sunwas completely excluded: and although those who were within could readilysee what was passing in the streets, they were concealed from the gaze ofthe curious. In their hot-houses, it was common to have mirrors in theceilings, which at once reflected the street passengers to those who wereon the floor, and enabled the ostentatious to display to the public eyethe decorations of their tables, whenever they gave a sumptuous feast. 

The inhabitants subsist chiefly on a vegetable diet; live about as longas they do on the earth, notwithstanding the great difference of climate, and other circumstances; and, in short, do not, in their manners, habits, or character, differ more from the inhabitants of our planet, than some ofthese differ from one another. Their government was anciently monarchical, but is now popular. Their code of laws is said to be very intricate. Theirlanguage, naturally soft and musical, has been yet further refined by thecultivation of letters. They have a variety of sects in religion, politics, and philosophy. The territory of Morosofia is about 150 milessquare. This brief sketch must content the reader for the present. I referthose who are desirous of being more particularly informed, to the workwhich I propose to publish on lunar geography; and, in the mean time, some of the most striking peculiarities of this people, in opinions, manners, and customs, will be developed in this, which must be consideredas my _personal narrative_. 

As soon as we were espied by the inhabitants, we were surrounded by atroop of little boys, as well as all the idle and inquisitive near us. The Brahmin had not gone far, before he was met by some persons of hisacquaintance, who immediately recognised him, and seemed very much pleasedto see him again in the moon. They politely conducted us to the house ofthe governor, who received us very graciously. He appeared to be aboutforty-five years of age, was dressed in a pearl-coloured suit, and had amild, amiable deportment. He began a course of interesting inquiry aboutthe affairs of the earth; but a gentleman, whom we afterwards understoodwas one of the leaders of the popular party, coming in, he soon despatchedus; having, however, first directed an officer to furnish us with allthat was necessary for our accommodation, at the public expense--whichact of hospitality, we have reason to fear, occasioned him some troubleand perplexity at the succeeding election. We very gladly withdrew, asboth by reason of our long walk, and the excitement produced by so manynew objects, we were greatly fatigued. The officer conducted us torespectable private lodgings, in a lightsome situation, which overlookedthe chief part of the city. 

After a frugal, but not unpalatable repast, and a few hours' sleep, the Brahmin took me round the city and a part of its environs, to make meacquainted with the public buildings, streets, shops, and the appearanceof the inhabitants. I soon found that our arrival was generally knownand that we excited quite as much curiosity as we felt, though many ofthe persons we met had seen the Brahmin before. I was surprised that wesaw none of their women; but the Brahmin told me that they were everywhere gazing through their windows; and, on looking up, through theseslanting apertures I could often see their eyes peeping over the upperedge of the window-sill. 

I shall now proceed to record faithfully what I deem most memorable; notas many travellers have done, from their recollection, after their returnhome, but from notes, which I regularly made, either at the moment ofobservation, or very shortly afterwards. When we first visited the shops, I was equally gratified and surprised with what was familiar and what wasnew; but I was particularly amused with those of the tailors and milliners. In the lower part of their dress, the Lunarians chiefly resemble theEuropeans; but in the upper part, the Asiatics--for they shave the head, and wear turbans; from which fact the Brahmin drew another argument infavour of the hypothesis, that the moon was originally a part of theearth. Some of the female fashions were so extremely singular andfanciful, as to deserve particular mention. 

One piece of their attire was formed of a long piece of light stiffwood, covered with silk, and decorated with showy ornaments. It wasworn across the shoulders, beyond each of which it jutted out about halfa yard; and from either end a cord led to a ring running round the upperpart of the head, bearing no small resemblance to the yard of a ship'smast, and the ropes used for steering it. Several other dresses Isaw, which I am satisfied would be highly disapproved by my modestcountrywomen. Thus, in some were inserted glasses like watch crystals, adapted to the form and size of the female bosom. But, to do the Lunarladies justice, I understood that these dresses were condemned by thesedate part of the sex, and were worn only by the young and thoughtless, who were vain of their forms. I observed too, that instead of decoratingtheir heads with flowers, like the ladies of our earth, they taxed theanimal world for a correspondent ornament. Many of the head-dresses weremade of a stiff open gauze, occasionally stuck over with insects of thebutterfly and _coccinella_ species, and others of the gayest hues. Atother times these insects were alive; when their perpetual buzzing andfluttering in their transparent cages, had a very animating effect. Onedecoration for the head in particular struck my fancy: it was formed of asilver tissue, containing fireflies, and intended to be worn in the night. 

But the most remarkable thing of all, was the whim of the ladies inthe upper classes, of making themselves as much like birds as possible;in which art, it must be confessed, they were wonderfully successful. The dress used for this purpose, consisted of a sort of thick cloak, covered with feathers, like those of the South Sea islands, and was sofashioned, by means of a tight thick quilting, as to make the wearer, ata little distance, very much resemble an overgrown bird, except that thelegs were somewhat too thick. Their arms were concealed under the wings;and the resemblance was yet further increased, by marks with beaks adaptedto the particular plumage: some personating doves, some magpies; othersagain, hawks, parrots, &c. , according to their natural figure, humour, &c. ; while the deception was still further assisted by their extraordinaryagility, compared with ours, by means of which they could, with ease, hop eighteen or twenty feet. I told the Brahmin that some of the Indiansof our continent showed a similar taste in dress, by decorating themselveswith horns like the buffalo, and with tails like horses; which furnishedhim with a further argument in favour of a common origin. 

We spent above an hour in examining these curious habiliments, and ininquiring the purposes and uses of the several parts. Sometimes I wasinduced, through the Brahmin, to criticise their taste and skill, havingbeen always an admirer of simplicity in female attire. But I remarkedon this occasion, as on several others, subsequently, that the people ofthe moon were neither very thankful for advice, nor thought very highlyof the judgment of those who differ from them in opinion. 

After having rambled over the city about six hours, our appetites toldus it was time to return to our lodgings; and here I met with a newcause of wonder. The family with whom we were domesticated, belongedto a numerous and zealous sect of religionists, and were, in their way, very worthy, as well as pious people. Their dinner consisted of severaldishes of vegetables, variously served up; of roots, stalks, seeds, flowers, and fruits, some of which resembled the productions of theearth; and in particular, I saw a dish of what I at first took to bevery fine asparagus, but supposed I was mistaken, when I saw them eatthe coarse fibrous part alone. On tasting it, however, in the ordinaryway, I found it to be genuine, good asparagus; but I perceived that thefamily looked extremely shocked at my taste. After the other dishes wereremoved, some large fruit, of the peach kind, were set on the table, when the members of the family, having carefully paired off the skin, ate it, and threw the rest away. They in like manner chewed the shellsof some small grayish nuts, and threw away the kernels, which to me werevery palatable. The younger children, consisting of two boys and a girl, exchanged looks with each other at the selections I made, and I thoughtI perceived in the looks of the mother, still more aversion than surprise. I found too, that my friend the Brahmin abstained from all these things, and partook only of those vegetables and fruits of which both they and Iate alike. Some wine was offered us, which appeared to me to be neithermore nor less than vinegar; and, what added to my surprise, a bottle, which they said was not yet fit to drink, seemed to me to be pretty good, the Brahmin having passed it to me for my judgment, as soon as theypronounced upon it sentence of condemnation. 

After we arose from this strange scene, and had withdrawn to our chamber, I expressed my surprise to my companion at this contrariety in the tastesof the Terrestrials and Lunarians: whereupon he told me, that thedifference was rather apparent than real. 

"These people, " said he, "belong to a sect of Ascetics in this country, who are persuaded that all pleasure received through the senses is sinful, and that man never appears so acceptable in the sight of the Deity, aswhen he rejects all the delicacies of the palate, as well as othersensual gratifications, and imposes on himself that food to which hefeels naturally most repugnant. You may see that those peaches, whichwere so disdainfully thrown into the yard, are often secretly picked upby the children, who obey the impulses of nature, and devour them mostgreedily. Even in the old people themselves, there is occasionally somebacksliding into the depravity of worldly appetite. You might haveperceived, that while the old man was abusing the wine you drank asunripe, and making wry faces at it, he still kept tasting it; and if Ihad not reached it to you, he would probably, before he had ceased hismeditations, have finished half the bottle. It must be confessed, thatalthough religion cherishes our best feelings, it also often proves acloak for the worst. "

I told him that our clergy were superior to this weakness, most of themmanifesting a proper sense of the bounty of Providence, by eating anddrinking of the best, (not very sparingly neither); and that in New-York, we considered some of our preachers the best judges of wine among us. Soonafterwards, we again sallied forth in quest of adventures, and bent ourcourse towards the suburbs. 

We had not gone far, before we saw several persons looking at a manworking hard at a forge, in a low crazy building. On approaching him, wefound he was engaged in making nails, an operation which he performedwith great skill and adroitness; and as soon as he had made as manyas he could take up in his hand at once, he carried them behind hislittle hovel, and dropped them into a narrow deep well. Some of theby-standers wished to beg a few of what he seemed to value so lightly, and others offered to give him bread or clothes in exchange for hisnails, but he obstinately resisted all their applications; in fact, little heeding them, although he was almost naked, had a starved, haggardappearance, and evidently regarded the food they proffered with awishful eye. 

The lookers on told us the blacksmith had been for years engaged in thisbusiness of nail-making; he worked with little intermission, scarcelyallowing himself time for necessary sleep or refreshment; that all thefruits of his incessant labour were disposed of in the manner we hadjust seen; and that he had already three wells filled with nails, whichhe had carefully closed. He had, moreover, a large and productive farm, the increase arising from which, was laid out in exchange for the metalof which his nails were made. He had, we were informed, so much attachmentto these pieces of metal, that he was often on the point of starvationbefore he would part with one. 

I observed to the Brahmin, that it was a singular, and somewhatinexplicable, species of madness. 

"True, " he replied; "this man's conduct cannot be explained upon anyrational principles--but he is one of the Glonglims, of which I havespoken to you; and examples are not wanting on our planet, of conductas irreconcilable to reason. This man is making an article which isscarce, as well as useful, in this country, where gravity is less thanit is with us: the force of the wind is very great, and the metal ispossessed but by a few. Now, if you suppose these nails to be piecesof gold and silver, his conduct will be precisely that of some of ourmisers, who waste their days and nights in hoarding up wealth which theynever use, nor mean to use; but, denying themselves every comfort oflife, anxiously and unceasingly toil for those who are to come afterthem, though they are so far from feeling, towards these successors, any peculiar affection, that they often regard them with jealousy andhatred. "

While we thus conversed, there stepped up to us a handsome man, foppishlydressed in blue trowsers, a pink vest, and a red and white turban; who, after having shaken my companion by the ears, according to the custom ofthe country among intimate friends, expressed his delight at seeing himagain in Morosofia. He then went on, in a lively, humorous strain, toridicule the nail-smith, and told us several stories of his singularattachment to his nails. In the midst of these sallies, however, a harshlooking personage in brown came up, upon which the countenance of ourlively acquaintance suddenly changed, and they walked off together. 

"I apprehend, " said the Brahmin, "that my gay acquaintance yondercontinues as he formerly was. The man in brown, who so unseasonablyinterrupted his pleasantry, is an officer of justice, and has probablytaken him before a magistrate, to answer some one of his numerouscreditors. You must know, " added he, "that the people of the moon, however irrational themselves, are very prompt in perceiving theabsurdities of others: and this lively wit, who, as you see, wants neitherparts nor address, acts as strangely as the wretch he has been ridiculing. He inherited a large estate, which brought him in a princely revenue;and yet his desires and expenses so far outgo his means, that he isalways in want. Both he and the nailmaker suffer the evils of poverty--of poverty created by themselves--which, moreover, they can terminatewhen they please; but they must reach the same point by directly oppositeroads. The blacksmith will allow himself nothing--the beau will denyhimself nothing: the one is a slave to pleasure--the other, the victimof fear. I told you that there were but few whose estates produced themetal of which these nails are made; and this thoughtless youth happensto be one. A few years since, he wanted some of the blacksmith's nailsto purchase the first rose of the season, and pledged his mines to pay, at the end of the year, three times the amount he received in exchange;and although, if he were to use but half his income for a single year, the other half would discharge his debts. I apprehend, from what I haveheard, that he has, from that time to this, continued to pay the sameexorbitant interest. When I was here before, I prevailed on him to takea ride with me into the country, and, under one pretext or another, detained him ten days at a friend's house, where he had no inducementto expense. When he returned, he found his debts paid off; but knowinghe was master of so ready and effectual an expedient, he, the next day, borrowed double the sum at the old rate. Since that time his debts haveaccumulated so rapidly, that he will probably now be compelled tosurrender his whole estate. "

"Is he also a Glonglim?" I asked. 

"Assuredly: what man, in his entire senses, could act so irrationally?"

"There is nothing on earth that exceeds this, " said I. 

"No, " said the Brahmin; "human folly is every where the same. "

CHAPTER VII. 

_Physical peculiarities of the Moon-Celestial phenomena--Furtherdescription of the Lunarians--National prejudice--Lightness of bodies--TheBrahmin carries Atterley to sup with a philosopher--His character andopinions_. 

After we had been in the moon about forty eight hours, the sun had sunkbelow the horizon, and the long twilight of the Lunarians had begun. I willhere take occasion to notice the physical peculiarities of this country, which, though very familiar to those who are versed in astronomy, may notbe unacceptable to the less scientific portion of my readers. 

The sun is above the horizon nearly a fortnight, and below it as long; ofcourse the day here is equal to about twenty-seven of ours. The earthanswers the same purpose to half the inhabitants of the moon, that the moondoes to the inhabitants of the earth. The face of the latter, however, ismore than twelve times as large, and it has not the same silvery appearanceas the moon, but is rather of a dingy pink hue, like that of her iron whenbeginning to lose its red heat. As the same part of the moon is alwaysturned to the earth, one half of her surface is perpetually illuminated bya moon ten times as large to the eye as the sun; the other hemisphere iswithout a moon. The favoured part, therefore, never experiences totaldarkness, the earth reflecting to the Lunarians as much light as weterrestrials have a little before sunrise, or after sunset. But our planetpresents to the Lunarians the same changes as the moon does to us, according to its position in relation to the sun. It always, however, appears to occupy nearly the same part of the heavens, when seen from thesame point on the moon's surface; but its altitude above the horizon isgreater or less, according to the latitude of the place from which it isseen: so that there is not a point of the heavens which the earth may notbe seen permanently to occupy, according to the part of the moon from whichthe planet is viewed. 

From the length of time that the sun is above the horizon, the continuedaction of his rays, in those climates where they fall vertically, or nearlyso, would be intolerable, if it was not for the high mountains, from whosesnow-clad summits a perpetual breeze derives a refreshing coolness, and forthe deep glens and recesses, in which most animals seek protection from hismeridian beams. The transitions from heat to cold are less than one wouldexpect, from the length of their days and nights--the coolness of the one, as well as the heat of the other, being tempered by a constant east wind. The climate gradually becomes colder as we approach the Poles; but there islittle or no change of seasons in the same latitude. 

The inhabitants of the moon have not the same regularity in their meals, ortime for sleep, as we have, but consult their appetites and inclinationslike other animals. But they make amends for this irregularity, by a verystrict and punctilious observance of festivals, which are regulated by themotions of the sun, at whose rising and setting they have their appropriateceremonies. Those which are kept at sunrise, are gay and cheerful, like thehopes which the approach of that benignant luminary inspires. The othersare of a grave and sober character, as if to prepare the mind for seriouscontemplation in their long-enduring night. When the earth is at the full, which is their midnight, it is also a season of great festivity with them. 

_Eclipses of the sun_ are as common with the Lunarians as those of themoon are with us--the same relative position of the three bodies producingthis phenomenon; but an _eclipse of the earth_ never takes place, asthe shadow of the moon passes over the broad disc of our planet, merely asa dark spot. 

The inhabitants of the moon can always determine both their latitude andlongitude, by observing the quarter of the heavens in which the earth isseen: and, as the sun invariably appears of the same altitude at theirnoon, the inhabitants are denominated and classed according to the lengthof their shadows; and the terms _long shadow_, or _short shadow_, arecommon forms of national reproach among them, according to the relativeposition of the parties. I found the climate of those whose shadows areabout the length of their own figure, the most agreeably to my ownfeelings, and most like that of my own country. 

Such are the most striking natural appearances on one side of thissatellite. On the other there is some difference. The sun pursues the samepath in the corresponding latitudes of both hemispheres; but being withoutany moon, they have a dull and dreary night, though the light from thestars is much greater than with us. The science of astronomy is muchcultivated by the inhabitants of the dark hemisphere, and is indebted tothem for its most important discoveries, and its present high state ofimprovement. 

If there is much rivalship among the natives of the same hemisphere, whodiffer in the length of their shadows, they all unite in hatred andcontempt for the inhabitants of the opposite side. Those who have thebenefit of a moon, that is, who are turned towards the earth, are lively, indolent, and changeable as the face of the luminary on which they pridethemselves; while those on the other side are more grave, sedate, andindustrious. The first are called the Hilliboos, and the last theMoriboos--or bright nights, and dark nights. And this mutual animosity isthe more remarkable, as they often appeared to me to be the same race, andto differ much less from one another than the natives of differentclimates. It is true, that enlightened and well educated men do not seem tofeel this prejudice, or at least they do not show it: but those who travelfrom one hemisphere to the other, are sure to encounter the prejudices ofthe vulgar, and are often treated with great contempt and indignity. Theyare pointed at by the children, who, according as they chance to have beenbred on one side or the other say, "There goes a man who never sawGlootin, " as they call the earth; or, "There goes a Booblimak, " which meansa night stroller. 

All bodies are much lighter on the moon than on the earth; by reason ofwhich circumstance, as has been mentioned, the inhabitants are more active, and experience much less fatigue in ascending their precipitous mountains. I was astonished at first at this seeming increase in my muscular powers;when, on passing along a street in Alamatua, soon after my arrival, andmeeting a dog, which I thought to be mad, I proposed to run out of his way, and in leaping over a gutter, I fairly bounded across the street. Imeasured the distance the next day, and found it to be twenty-seven feetfive inches; and afterwards frequently saw the school-boys, when engaged inathletic exercises, make running leaps of between thirty and forty feet, backwards and forwards. Another consequence of the diminished gravity hereis, that both men and animals carry much greater burdens than on the earth. 

The carriages are drawn altogether by dogs, which are the largest animalsthey have, except the zebra, and a small buffalo. This diminution ofgravity is, however, of some disadvantage to them. Many of their tools arenot as efficient as ours, especially their axes, hoes, and hammers. On theother hand, when a person falls to the ground, it is nearly the same thingas if an inhabitant of the earth were to fall on a feather bed. Yet I sawas many instances of fractured limbs, hernia, and other accidents there, asI ever saw on the earth; for when they fall from great heights, or miscarryin the feats of activity which they ambitiously attempt, it inflicts thesame injury upon them, as a fall nearer the ground does upon us. 

After we had been here sufficiently long to see what was most remarkable inthe city, and I had committed the fruit of my observations to paper, theBrahmin proposed to carry me to one of the monthly suppers of a philosopherwhom he knew, and who had obtained great celebrity by his writings andopinions. 

We accordingly went, and found him sitting at a small table, and apparentlyexhausted with the labour of composition, and the ardour of intensethought. He was a small man, of quick, abrupt manners, occasionally veryabstracted, but more frequently voluble, earnest, and disputatious. Hefrankly told us he was sorry to see us, as he was then putting the lastfinish to a great and useful work he was about to publish: that we had thusunseasonably broken the current of his thoughts, and he might not be ableto revive it for some days. Upon my rising to take my leave, he assured methat it would be adding to the injury already done, if we then quitted him. He said he wished to learn the particulars of our voyage; and that he, inturn, should certainly render us service, by disclosing some of the resultsof his own reflections. He further remarked, that he expected six or eightfriends--that is, (correcting himself, ) "enlightened and congenial minds, "to supper, on the rising of a constellation he named, which time, heremarked, would soon arrive. Finding his frankness to be thus seasoned withhospitality, we resumed our seats. It soon appeared that he was moredisposed to communicate information than to seek it; and I became a patientlistener. If the boldness and strangeness of his opinions occasionallystartled me, I could not but admire the clearness with which he stated hispropositions, the fervour of his elocution, and the plausibility of hisarguments. 

The expected guests at length arrived; and various questions of morals andlegislation were started, in which the disputants seemed sometimes as ifthey would have laid aside the character of philosophers, but for theseasonable interposition of the Brahmin. Wigurd, our host, often labouredwith his accustomed zeal, to prove that every one who opposed him, waseither a fool, or biassed by some petty interest, or the dupe of blindprejudice. 

After about two hours of warm, and, as it seemed to me, unprofitablediscussion, we were summoned to our repast in the adjoining room. Butbefore we rose from our seats, our host requested to know of each of us ifwe were hungry; and, whether it were from modesty, perverseness, or reallybecause they had no appetite, I know not, but a majority of the company, inwhich I was included, voted that their hour of eating was not yet come:upon which Wigurd remarked that his own vote, as being at home, and theBrahmin's, as being at once a philosopher and a stranger, should each countfor two; and by this mode of reckoning there was a casting vote in favourof going to supper. 

We found the table covered with tempting dishes, served up in a costly andtasteful style, and a sprightly, well-looking female prepared to do thehonours of the feast. She reproved our host for his delay, and told him thebest dish was spoiled, by being cold. I was fearful of a discussion; but hesat down without making a reply, and immediately addressing the company, descanted on the various qualities of food, and their several adaptationsto different ages, constitutions, and temperaments. He condemned the absurdpractice which prevailed, for the master or mistress of the house to lavishentreaties on their guests to eat that which they might be better without;and insisted, at the same time, that the guests ought not to consult theirown tastes exclusively. He maintained, that the only course worthy ofrational and benevolent beings, was for every man to judge for hisneighbour as well as for himself; and, should any collision arise betweenthe different claimants, then, if any one were guided by that decision, which an honest and unbiassed judgment would tell him was right, they wouldall come to the same just and harmonious result. 

"But, " added he, "you have not yet been sufficiently prepared for thisdisinterested operation. As ye have proved this night that ye are not yetpurged of the feelings and prejudices of a vicious education, I willperform this office for you all, and set you an example, by which ye mayhereafter profit. To begin, then, with you--(addressing himself to acorpulent man, of a florid complexion, at the lower end of the table:)--Asyou already have a redundancy of flesh and blood, I assign the _soupemaîgre_ to you; while to our mathematical friend on this side, whosedelicate constitution requires nourishment, I recommend the smoking ragoût. This cooling dish will suit your temperament, " said he to a third; "andthis stimulating one, yours, " to a fourth. "Those little birds, which costme five pieces, I shall divide between my terrestrial friend here (lookingat the Brahmin) and myself, we being the most meritorious of the company, and it being of the utmost importance to society, that food so wholesomeshould give nourishment to our bodies, and impart vigour and vivacity toour minds. "

From this decision there was no appeal, and no other dissent than what wasexpressed by a look or a low murmur. But I perceived the corpulentgentleman and the wan mathematician slily exchange their dishes, by whichthey both seemed to consider themselves gainers. The dish allotted to me, being of a middling character, I ate of it without repining; though, fromthe savoury fumes of my right-hand neighbour's plate, I could not helpwishing I had been allowed to choose for myself. 

This supper happening near the middle of the night, (at which time it wasalways pretty cool, ) a cheerful fire blazed in one side of the room and Iperceived that our host and hostess placed themselves so as to be at themost agreeable distance, the greater part of the guests being either toonear or too far from it. 

After we had finished our repast, various subjects of speculation wereagain introduced and discussed, greatly to my amusement. Wigurd displayedhis usual ingenuity and ardour, and baffled all his antagonists by hisvehemence and fluency. He had two great principles by which he tested thegood or evil of every thing; and there were few questions in which he couldnot avail himself of one or the other. These were, general _utility_and _truth_. 

By a skilful use of these weapons of controversy, he could attack or defendwith equal success. If any custom or institution which he had denounced, was justified by his adversaries, on the ground of its expediency, heimmediately retorted on them its repugnancy to sincerity, truth, andunsophisticated nature; and if they, at any time, resorted to a similarjustification for our natural feelings and propensities, he triumphantlyshowed that they were inimical to the public good. Thus, he condemnedgratitude as a sentiment calculated to weaken the sense of justice, and tosubstitute feeling for reason. He, on the other hand, proscribed the littleforms and courtesies, which are either founded in convenience, or give agrace and sweetness to social intercourse, as a direct violation of honestnature, and therefore odious and mean. He thus was able to silence everyopponent. I was very desirous of hearing the Brahmin's opinion; but, whilehe evidently was not convinced by our host's language, he declined engagingin any controversy. 

After we retired, my friend told me that Wigurd was a good man in the main, though he had been as much hated by some as if his conduct had beenimmoral, instead of his opinions merely being singular. "He not long ago, "added the Brahmin "wrote a book against marriage, and soon afterwardswedded, in due form, the lady you saw at his table. She holds as strangetenets as he, which she supports with as much zeal, and almost as muchability. But I predict that the popularity of their doctrines will notlast; and if ever you visit the moon again, you will find that their glory, now at its height, like the ephemeral fashions of the earth, will havepassed away. "

CHAPTER VIII. 

_A celebrated physician: his ingenious theories in physics: his mechanicalinventions--The feather-hunting Glonglim. _

On returning to our lodgings, we, acting under the influence of long habit, went to bed, though half the family were up, and engaged in their ordinaryemployments. One consequence of the length of the days and nights here is, that every household is commonly divided into two parts, which watch andsleep by turns: nor have they any uniformity in their meals, except inparticular families, which are regulated by clocks and time-pieces. Thevulgar have no means of measuring smaller portions of time than a day ornight, (each equal to a fortnight with us, ) except by observing theapparent motion of the sun or the stars, in which, considering that it isnearly thirty times as slow as with us, they attain surprising accuracy. They have the same short intervals of labour and rest in their long nightas their day--the light reflected from the earth, being commonly sufficientto enable them to perform almost any operation; and, ere our planet is inher second quarter, one may read the smallest print by her light. 

To compensate their want of this natural advantage, the inhabitants ofMoriboozia are abundantly supplied with a petroleum, or bituminous liquid, which is found every where about their lakes, or on their mountains, andwhich they burn in lamps, of various sizes, shapes, and constructions. Theyhave also numerous volcanoes, each of which sheds a strong light for manymiles around. 

We slept unusually long; and, owing in part to Wigurd's good cheer, I awokewith a head-ache. I got up to take a long walk, which often relieves mewhen suffering from that malady; and, on ascending the stairs, I met ourlandlord's eldest daughter, a tall, graceful girl of twenty. I found shewas coming down backwards, which I took to be a mere girlish freak, orperhaps a piece of coquetry, practised on myself: but I afterwards found, that about the time the earth is at the full, the whole family pursued thesame course, and were very scrupulous in making their steps in this awkwardand inconvenient way, because it was one of the prescribed forms of theirchurch. 

As my head-ache became rather worse, than better, from my walk, the Brahminproposed to accompany me to the house of a celebrated physician, calledVindar, who was also a botanist, chemist, and dentist, to consult him on mycase; and thither we forthwith proceeded. I found him a large, unwieldyfigure, of a dull, heavy look, but by no means deficient in science ornatural shrewdness. He confirmed my previous impression that I ought tolose blood, and plausibly enough accounted for my present sensation offulness, from the inferior pressure of the lunar atmosphere to that which Ihad been accustomed. He proposed, however, to return to my veins a portionof thinner blood in place of what he should take away, and offered me thechoice of several animals, which he always kept by him for that purpose. There were two white animals of the hog kind, a male and a female lama, three goats, besides several birds, about the size of a turkey, sometortoises, and other amphibious animals. He professed himself willing, incase I had any foolish scruples against mixing my blood with that ofbrutes, to purify my own, and put it back; but I obstinately declined bothexpedients; whereupon he opened a vein in my arm, and took from it aboutfourteen ounces of blood. Finding myself, weakened as well as relieved, bythe operation, he invited me to rest myself; and while I was recovering mystrength, he discoursed with the Brahmin and myself on several of hisfavourite topics. On returning home, I committed to paper some of the mostremarkable of his opinions, which it may be as well to notice, that thosewho have since propounded, or may hereafter propound, the same to theworld, may not claim the merit of originality. 

He maintained that the number of our senses was greater than that commonlyassigned to us. That we had, for example, a sense of acids, of alkalies, ofweight, and of heat. That acid substances acted upon our bodies by apeculiar set of nerves, or through some medium of their own, was evidentfrom this, that they set the teeth on edge, though these, from their hardand bony nature, are insensible to the touch. That astringents shrivelledup the flesh and puckered the mouth, even when their taste was notperceived. That when the skin shrunk on the application of vinegar, couldit be said that it had not a peculiar sense of this liquid, or rather ofits acidity, since the existence of the senses was known only by effectswhich external matter produced on them? That the senses, like that oftouch, were seated in most parts of the body, but were most acute in themouth, nose, ears, and eyes. He showed some disposition to maintain thepopular notions of the Greeks and Romans, that the rivers and streams areendowed with reason and volition; and endeavoured to prove that some oftheir windings and deviations from a straight line, cannot be explainedupon mechanical principles. 

Vindar is, moreover, a projector of a very bold character; and not long agopetitioned the commanding general of an army, suddenly raised to repel anincursion of one of their neighbours, to march his troops intoGoolo-Tongtoia, for the purpose of digging a canal from one of theirpetroleum lakes into Morosofia, and conducting it, by smaller streams, overthat country, for the purpose of warming it during their long cool nights. 

He has, too, a large grist and saw mill, which are put in motion by theexplosion of gunpowder. This is conveyed, by a sufficiently ingeniousmachine, in very small portions, to the bottom of an upright cylinder, which is immediately shut perfectly close. A flint and steel are at thesame time made to strike directly over it, and to ignite the powder. Theair that is thus generated, forces up a piston through a cylinder, whichpiston, striking the arm of a wheel, puts it in motion, and with it themachinery of the mills. A complete revolution of the wheel again preparesthe cylinder for a fresh supply of gunpowder, which is set on fire, andproduces the same effect as before. 

He told me he had been fifteen years perfecting this great work, in whichtime it had been twice blown up by accidents, arising from the carelessnessor mismanagement of the workmen; but that he now expected it would repayhim for the time and money he had expended. He had once, he said, intendedto use the expansive force of congelation for his moving power; but hefound, after making a full and accurate calculation, that the labourersrequired to keep the machine supplied with ice, consumed something morethan twice as much corn as the mill would grind in the same time. He thenwas about to move it to a fine stream of water in the neighbourhood, which, by being dammed up, so as to form a large pond, would afford him aconvenient and inexhaustible supply of ice. But the millwright, after thedam was completed, having artfully obtained his permission to use the wastewater, and fraudulently erected there a common water-mill, which soonobtained all the neighbouring custom, he had sold out that property, andresorted to the agency of gunpowder, which is quite as philosophical aprocess as that of congelation, and much less expensive. In answer to aninquiry of the Brahmin's, he admitted, that though he had been able, by theforce of congelation, to burst metallic tubes several inches thick, he hadnever succeeded in making it put the lightest machinery into a continuedmotion. 

Having now nearly recovered, and being, I confess, somewhat bewildered bythe variety and complexity of these ingenious projects, I felt disposed totake my leave; but Vindar insisted on conducting us into an innerapartment, to see his _poetry box_. This was a large piece of furniture, profusely decorated with metals of various colours, curiously andfantastically inlaid. It contained a prodigious number of drawers, which were labelled after the manner of those in an apothecary's shop, (from whence he denied, however, that he first took the hint, ) and thelabels were arranged in alphabetical order. 

"Now, " says he, "as the excellence of poetry consists in bringing beforethe mind's eye what can be brought before the corporeal eye, I have herecollected every object that is either beautiful or pleasing in nature, whether by its form, colour, fragrance, sweetness, or other quality, aswell as those that are strikingly disagreeable. When I wish to exhibitthose pictures which constitute poetry, I consult the appropriate cabinet, and I take my choice of those various substances which can best call up theimage I wish to present to my reader. For example: suppose I wish to speakof any object that is white, or analogous to white, I open the drawer thatis thus labelled, and I see silver, lime, chalk, and white enamel, ivory, paper, snow-drops, and alabaster, and select whichever of these substanceswill best suit the measure and the rhyme, and has the most soft-soundingname. If the colour be yellow, then there are substances of all shades ofthis hue, from saffron and pickled salmon to brimstone and straw. I havesixty-two red substances, twenty-seven green ones, and others in the sameproportion. It is astonishing what labour this box has saved me, and howmuch it has added to the beauty and melody of my verse. 

"You perceive, " he added, "the drawer missing. That contained substancesoffensive to the sight or smell, which my maid, conducted to it by hernose, conceived to be some animal curiosities I had been collecting, in astate of putrefaction and decay, and did not hesitate to throw them intothe fire. I afterwards found myself very much at a loss, whenever mysubject led me to the mention of objects of this character, and I thereforespoke of them as seldom as possible. " After bestowing that tribute ofadmiration and praise which every great author or inventor expects, in hisown house, and not omitting his customary medical fee, we took our leave. 

We had not long left Vindar's house, before we saw a short fat man in thesuburbs, preparing to climb to the top of a plane tree, on which there wasone of the tail feathers of a sort of flamingo. He was surrounded byattendants and servants, to whom he issued his commands with great rapidityand decision, occasionally intermingling with his orders the mostthreatening language and furious gesticulations. Some offered to get aladder, and ascend, and others to cut down the tree; all of which heobstinately rejected. He swore he would get the feather--he would get it byclimbing--and he would climb but one way, which way was on the shoulders ofhis men. His plan was to make a number of them form a solid square, andinterlock their arms; then a smaller number to mount upon their shoulders, on whom others were in like manner placed, and so on till the pyramid wassufficiently high, when he himself was to mount, and from the shoulders ofthe highest pluck the darling object of his wishes. He had in this way, Iafterwards learnt, gathered some of the richest flowers of the bignoniascarlatina, as well as such fruits as had tempted him by their lusciousappearance, and at the same time frightening all the birds from theirnests, which he commonly destroyed: and although some of his attendantswere occasionally much hurt and bruised in this singular amusement, hestill persevered in it. He had continued it for several years, with nointermission, except a short one, when he was engaged in breaking a youngllana in the place of an old one, which had been many years a favourite, but was now in disgrace, because, as he said, he did not think it so safefor going down hill, but in reality, because he liked the figure andmovements of the young one better. 

I could not see this rash Glonglim attempt to climb that dangerous ladder, without feeling alarm for his safety. At first all seemed to go on verywell; but just as he was about to lay hold of the gaudy prize, there arosea sudden squall, which threw both him and his supporters into confusion, and the whole living pyramid came to the ground together. Many werekilled--some were wounded and bruised. Polenap himself, by lighting on hismen, who served him as cushions, barely escaped with life. But he receiveda fracture in the upper part of his head, and a dislocation of the hip, which will not only prevent him from ever climbing again, but probably makehim a cripple for life. 

The Brahmin and I endeavoured to give the sufferers some assistance; butthis was rendered unnecessary, by the crowd which their cries andlamentations brought to their relief. I thought that the author of so muchmischief would have been stoned on the spot; but, to my surprise, hisservants seemed to feel as much for his honour as their own safety, andwarmly interfered in his behalf, until they had somewhat appeased the rageof the surrounding multitude. 

CHAPTER IX. 

_The fortune-telling philosopher, who inspected the finger nails: hisvisiters--Another philosopher, who judged of the character by thehair--The fortune-teller duped--Predatory warfare. _

As we returned to our lodgings, we saw a number of persons, some of whomwere entering and some leaving a neat small dwelling; and on joining thethrong, we learnt that a famous fortune-teller lived there, who, atstated periods, opened his house to all that were willing to pay forbeing instructed in the events of futurity, or for having the secrets ofthe present or past revealed to them. On entering the house, anddescending a flight of steps, we found, at the farther end of a darkroom, lighted with a chandelier suspended from the ceiling, an elderlyman, with a long gray beard, and a thin, pale countenance, deeplyfurrowed with thought rather than care. He received us politely, andthen resumed the duties of his vocation. His course of proceeding was toexamine the finger nails, and, according to their form, colour, thickness, surface, and grain, to determine the character and destiniesof those who consulted him. I was at once pleased and surprised at theminuteness of his observation, and the infinite variety of hisdistinctions. Besides the qualities of the nails that I have mentioned, he noticed some which altogether eluded my senses, such as theirmilkiness, flintiness, friability, elasticity, tenacity, andsensibility; whether they were aqueous, unctious, or mealy; with manymore, which have escaped my recollection. 

A modest, pensive looking girl, apparently about seventeen, was timidlyholding forth her hand for examination, at the time we entered. Avarabet, (for that was the name of this philosopher, ) uttered two orthree words, with a significant shake of his head, upon which I saw therising tear in her eyes. She withdrew her hand, and had not courage tolet him take another look. 

A fat woman, of a sanguine temperament, holding a little girl by thehand, then stepped up and showed her fingers. He pronounced her amorous, inconstant, prone to anger, and extravagant; that she had made one manmiserable, and would probably make another. She also abruptly withdrew, giving manifest signs of one of the qualities ascribed to her. 

An elderly matron then approached, holding forth one trembling, palsiedhand, with a small volume in the other. Avarabet hesitated for sometime; examined the edges as well as the surface of the nails; drew hisfinger slowly over them, and then said, --"You have a susceptible heart;you are in sorrow, but your affliction will soon have an end. " It waseasy to see, in the look of the applicant, signs of pious resignation, and a lively hope of another and a better state of existence. 

I thought I perceived in the scene that was passing before us, anexhibition that is not uncommon on our earth, of cunning knaveryimposing on ignorance and credulity; and I expressed my opinion to theBrahmin; but he assured me that the class of persons in the moon, whowere resorted to on account of their supposed powers of divination, wasvery different from the similar class in Asia or Europe, and thatoracular art was here regularly studied and professed as a branch ofphilosophy. "You would be surprised, " said he, "to find how successfulthey have been in investing their craft with the forms and trappings ofscience, the parade of classification, and the mystery imparted bytechnical terms. By these means they have given plausibility enough totheir theories, to leave many a one in doubt, whether it is really a newtriumph of human discovery, or merely a later form of empiricism. Itsprofessors are commonly converts to their own theories, at least in agreat degree; for, strange as it may seem, there can mingle with thedisposition to deceive others, the power of deceiving one's self; andwhile they exercise much acuteness and penetration in discovering, bythe air, look, dress, and manner of those who consult them, the leadingpoints in the history or character of persons of whom they have noprevious knowledge, they at the same time persuade themselves that theysee something indicative of their circumstances in their finger nails. Such is the equivocal character of the greater part of their sect: butthere are some who are mere honest dupes to the pretensions of thescience; and others again, who have not one tittle of credulity toextenuate their impudent pretensions. 

"When I was here before, I remember a physician, who acquired greatcelebrity by affecting to cure diseases by examining a lock of thepatient's hair; and, not content with merely pronouncing on the natureof the disease, and suggesting the remedy, he would enter into anelaborate, and often plausible course of reasoning, in defence of hissystem. That system was briefly this: that the hair derived its length, strength, hue, and other properties, from the brain; which opinion hesupported by a reference to acknowledged facts--as, that it changes itshue with the difference of the mental character in the different stagesof life; that violent affections of the mind, such as grief or fear, have been known to change it in a single night. Science on this, as onother occasions, is merely augmenting and methodizing facts that themass of mankind had long observed--as, that red hair had always beenconsidered indicative of warm temperament; that affliction, and evenlove, were believed to create baldness; and that in great terror, thehair stands on end. The different ages too, are distinguished as much bytheir hair as their complexion, their facial angle, or in any other way. He was led to this theory first, by observing at school that a boy of astiff, bristly head of hair, was remarkably cruel. He professed to havebeen able, from a long course of observation, to assign to everydifferent colour and variety of hair, its peculiar temperament andcharacter. One mental quality was indicated by its length, another byits fineness, and others again as it chanced to be greasy, or lank, orcurled. He would also blow on it with a bellows, to see how the partsarranged themselves: hold it near the fire, and watch the operation ofits crisping by the heat: and although he had often been mistaken in hisestimates of character, by the rules of his new science, he did not losethe confidence of his disciples on that account--some of them refusingto believe the truth, rather than to admit themselves mistaken; andothers insisting that, if his science was not infallible, it very rarelydeceived. "

It was now our turn to submit our hands to Avarabet for examination. Hediscovered signs of the loftiest virtues and most heroic enterprise inthe Brahmin; and, near the bottom of one of his nails, a deep-rootedsorrow, which would leave him only with his life. A transient shade ofgloom on the Brahmin's countenance was soon succeeded by a piercing, inquisitive glance cast on the diviner. He saw the other's eyes directedon the miniature which he always wore, and which discovered itself toAvarabet as he stooped forward. A smile of contempt now took the placeof his first surprise, and he seemed in a state of abstraction, duringthe continued rhapsodies of the oracle. 

My hand was next examined; but little was said of me, except that I hadbeen a great traveller, and should be so again; that I should encountermany dangers and difficulties; that I possessed more intelligence thansensibility, and more prudence than generosity. Thus he discovered in megreat courage, enterprise, and constancy of purpose. 

A hale, robust, well-set man, now bursting through the crowd, andthrusting out his hand, abruptly asked the wise man to tell him, if hecould, in what part of the country he lived. Avarabet mentioned adistant district on the coast of Morosofia. 

"Good, " said the other; "and what is my calling?"

After a slight pause, he replied, that he got his living on the water. 

"Good again. Shall I ever be rich?"

"No, not very:--never. "

"Better and better, " rejoined the inquirer, at the same time giving ventto a loud and hearty laugh. Surely, thought I, sailors are every wherethe same sort of beings, rough and boisterous as the elements theyroam over. 

"And what is your opinion of me farther?"

"You are bold, frank, improvident, credulous and good-natured. "

"Excellent, indeed! Now, what will you say, old sham wisdom, when I tellyou that I never made a voyage in my life; was never two days' journeyfrom this spot, and am seldom off my own dominion? That I own the forestof Tongloo, where I sometimes hunt, from morning till night, and fromnight till morning, twelve out of the thirteen days in the year? That mywealth, which was considerable when I came to my estate, has, by myhabits of life, greatly increased, and that I am bent upon adding to ityet more? I drink nothing but water; and have come here only to win awager, that you were not as knowing as you pretended to be, and that Icould impose on you. You thus have a specimen of my candour, improvidence, and credulity. " So saying, he leaped on his zebra, gave asort of huntsman's shout, and was off in a twinkling. 

This adventure created great tumult in the crowd, a few enjoying thejest, but the greater number manifesting ill-will and resentment towardsthe sportsman. The Brahmin and I took advantage of the confusion, towithdraw unnoticed by the bystanders. After remaining at our lodgingslong enough to take rest and refreshment, and to make minutes of what wehad seen, we proposed to spend the remainder of the night in thecountry, the weather being more pleasant at this time in that climate, than when the sun is above the horizon. 

We accordingly set out when the earth was in her second quarter, and itwas about two of our days before sunrise. After walking about threemiles, the freshness of the morning air, the fragrance of the flowers, and the music of innumerable birds, whose unceasing carols testifiedtheir joy and delight at the approach of a more genial month, we came toa large, well cultivated farm, in which a number of coarse looking menwere employed, with the aid of dogs, cross-bows, and other martialweapons, in hunting down llamas, and a small kind of buffalo, which, inone of our former walks, we had seen quietly feeding on a rich andextensive pasture. We inquired of some stragglers from the throng, themeaning of what we saw; but they were too much occupied with their sportto afford us any satisfaction. We walked on, indulging our imaginationsin conjecture; but had not proceeded more than a quarter of a mile, before we beheld a similar scene going on to our left, by the sameill-looking crew. Our curiosity was now redoubled, and we resolved towait a while on the highway, for the chance of some passenger more atleisure to answer our inquiries, and more courteously inclined thanthese fierce marauders. We had not stopped many minutes, before awell-dressed man, wearing the appearance of authority, having ridden up, we asked him to explain the cause of their violent, and seeminglylawless proceedings. 

"You are strangers, I see, or you would have understood that I amexercising my baronial privilege of doing myself justice. These cattlebelong to the owners of a neighbouring estate, by whom I and my tenantshave been injured and insulted; and, according to the usage in suchcases, I have given the signal to my people to lay hold on what they canof his flocks and herds, and, to quicken their exertions, I give themhalf of what they catch. "

"And how does your neighbour bear this in the mean time?" said theBrahmin. 

"Oh, for that matter, " said the other, "he is not at all behindhand, andI lose nearly as many cattle as I get. But it gives me much morepleasure to kill one of his buffaloes or llamas, than it does pain mewhen he kills one of mine. I consider how much it will vex him, and thatsome of his vassals are thereby deprived of their sustenance. I haveupwards of thirty strong men employed in ranging this plain and wood, and during the last year they took for me four hundred head. "

"Indeed!--and how many did you lose in the same time?

"Not above three hundred and eighty. "

"But very inferior?" said the Brahmin. 

"Why, no, " replied he: "as my pastures are richer and more luxuriantthan his, two of my cattle are worth perhaps three of his. "

"Is this custom, " asked the Brahmin, "an advantage or a tax on yourestate?"

"A tax, indeed! Why it is worth from four to five hundred head a-year. "

"And how much is it worth to your neighbour?"

"I presume nearly as much. "

"Do your vassals get rich by the bounty you give them?"

"As to that matter, some who are lucky succeed very well, and the restmake a living by it. "

"And what do they give you for the privilege of hunting your neighbour'scattle?"

"Nothing at all: I even lose my customary rent from those who engage init. "

"And it is the same case with your neighbour?"

"Certainly, " said he. 

"Then, " said the Brahmin, "it seems to me, if you would agree to layaside this old custom, you would both be considerable gainers. I see youlook incredulous, but listen a moment. Each one would, in that case, instead of having half his neighbour's cattle, have all his own; and, being kept in their native pastures, they would be less likely to strayaway, and you could therefore slay and eat as you wanted them; whereas, in your hunting matches many more are either killed or maimed than arewanted for present use, and they are consequently consumed in waste. Youwould, moreover, be a gainer by the amount of the labour of these thirtyboors, whom you keep in this employment, and who very probably acquirehabits of ferocity, licentiousness, and waste, which are not veryfavourable to their obedience or fidelity. "

The proprietor, having pondered a while upon my friend's remarks, in atone of exultation said, --"Do you think, then, I could ever prevail onmy people to forbear, when they saw a likely flock, from laying violenthands on it; or could I resist so favourable an opportunity of revenge?Nay, more; if we were then tamely to tie up our hands, do you think thatBulderent and his men would consent to do the same? No, no, old man, " hecontinued, with great self-complacency, "your arguments appear plausibleat first, but when closely considered, they will not stand the lest ofexperience. They are the fancies of a stranger--of one who knows more oftheory than practice. Had you lived longer among us, you would haveknown that your ingenious project could never be carried into execution. If I observed it, Bulderent would not; and if he observed it, I verilybelieve I could not--and thus, you see, the thing is altogetherimpracticable. " As one soon tires of preaching to the winds, the Brahmincontented himself with asking his new acquaintance to think more on thesubject at his leisure; and we proceeded on our walk. 

CHAPTER X. 

_The travellers visit a gentleman farmer, who is a great projector: hisbreed of cattle: his apparatus for cooking: he is takendangerously ill. _

After we had gone about half a mile farther, our attention was arrestedby a gate of very singular character. It was extremely ingenious in itsstructure, and, among other peculiarities, it had three or four latches, for children, for grown persons, for those who were tall and those whowere short, and for the right hand as well as the left. In the act ofopening, it was made to crush certain berries, and the oil they yielded, was carried by a small duct to the hinge, which was thus made to turneasily, and was prevented from creaking. While we were admiring itsmechanism, an elderly man, rather plainly dressed, on a zebra in lowcondition, rode up, and showed that he was the owner of the mansion towhich the gate belonged, and that he was not displeased with thecuriosity we manifested. We found him both intelligent and obliging. Heinformed us that he was an experimental farmer; and when he learnt thatwe were strangers, and anxious to inform ourselves of the state ofagriculture in the country, he very civilly invited us to take our nextmeal with him. Our walk having now made us hungry and fatigued, wegladly accepted of his hospitality; whereupon he alighted, and walkedwith us to his lodgings. 

He was very communicative of his modes of cultivation and management, but chiefly prided himself on his success in improving the size of hiscattle. He informed us that he had devoted sixteen years of his life tothis object, and had then in his farm-yard a buffalo nearly as heavy asthree of the ordinary size. His practice was to kill all the younganimals which were not uncommonly large and thrifty; to cram those hekept, with as much food as they would eat, and to tempt their appetitesby the variety of their nourishment, as well as of the modes ofpreparing it. 

"All this, " said he, "costs a great deal, it is true; but I am paid forit by the additional price. " I was struck with this notable triumph ofindustry and skill in the goodly art of husbandry--that art which Ivenerate above every other; and I was all anxiety to receive from himsome instructions which I might, in case I should have the good fortuneto get safely back, communicate to my friends on Long-Island, who hadnever been able even to double the common size, and who boasted greatlyof that: but a hesitating look, and a few inquiries on the part of mysly friend, checked my enthusiasm. 

"Have you always, " he asked, "had the same number of acres in grain andgrass under your new and old system?"

"Pretty nearly, " says the other. "My new breed, however, though fewer, consume more than their predecessors. "

"How many head did you formerly sell in a year?"

"About thirty. "

"How many do you now sell?"

"Though for some years I have not sold more than nine or ten, I expectto exceed that number in another year. "

"Which you expect will yield you more than the thirty did formerly?"

"Certainly; because such meat as mine commands an extraordinary price. "

"So long, " replied the Brahmin, "as this is novelty, you may receive apart of the price which men are ever ready to pay for it; but as soon asothers profit by your example, your meat falls to the ordinary rate, andthen, if I understand you aright, as you will have somewhat less inquantity than you formerly had, your gross receipts will be less, to saynothing of your additional labour and expense. "

"But who has the skill, " quickly rejoined the other, "of which I canboast? and who would take the same trouble, although they hadthe skill?"

"But stop here a moment, " said our host, "till I go to see how my lastimproved oil-cake is relished by my cattle. "

The Brahmin then turning to me, said, --"This gentleman may, indeed, improve his fortune by the business of a grazier; but the same pains andunremitting attention would always be sure of a liberal reward, thoughthe system on which they were exerted was not among the best. Nothing, my dear Atterley, is more true than the saying of your wise book--_thatall flesh is grass;_ and it always takes the same quantity of one tomake a given quantity of the other, whether that given quantity may bein the form of a single individual, or two or three. But in the formercase, great labour is required to force nature beyond her ordinarylimits, and the same labour must be unceasingly kept up, or she willcertainly relapse to her original dimensions. This system may do, as ourhost here tells us it actually does, for the moon, but it is not suitedto our earth. If, however, you are ambitious of a name among thespeculative men of your country, this little stone, " added he, stooping, and picking up a small stone from the ground, "will answer your purposequite as well as any improvement in husbandry. It is precisely of thesame species as those which we threw over in our aerial voyages, andwhich, though correctly called moon-stones by the vulgar, (who areoftener right than the learned suppose, ) some of the westernphilosophers declared to have been gravitated in the atmosphere. "

"And is this really the origin, " said I, "of that strange phenomenon, which has furnished so much matter of speculation to the sages both ofEurope and America?"

"Nothing is more true, " replied he. "These stones are common to theearth and to the moon; and some of those which have been so carefullyanalyzed by your most celebrated chemists, and pronounced different fromany known mineral production of the earth, were small fragments of avery common rock in the mountains of Burma. In our first voyages we hadtaken some of them with us as ballast; and those which we first threwover, we afterwards learnt from the public journals, fell in France, some of the others fell in India, but the greater number in the ocean. Those which have fallen at other times, have been real fossils of themoon, and either such stones as this I hold in my hand, or such metallicsubstances as are repelled from that body, and attracted towards theearth; and it is the force with which they strike the earth, which firstsuggested the idea of a thunder-bolt. 

"Our party were greatly amused at the disputations of a learned societyin Europe, in which they undertook to give a mathematical demonstrationthat they could not be thrown from a volcano of the earth, nor from themoon, but were suddenly formed in the atmosphere. I should as soonbelieve that a loaf of bread could be made and baked in the atmosphere. "

Finding that our landlord prided himself on his interior management, aswell as on that without doors, we expressed a wish to see some of hishousehold improvements. He readily consented, and conducted us at onceinto his kitchen, and showed us inventions and contrivances out ofnumber, for saving fuel, and meat, and labour; in short, for savingevery thing but money. The large room into which he carried us, appearedas a vast laboratory, from the infinite variety of pots, pans, skillets, knives, forks, ladles, mortars, sieves, funnels, and other utensils ofmetal, glass, pottery, and wood. The steam which he used for cooking, was carried along a pipe under a succession of kettles and boilers, descending in regular gradation, by which a great saving of fuel waseffected; and, to perfect this part of the apparatus, the pipe could beremoved, to give place to one of the size suited to the occasion. 

His seven-guest pipe was now in use. The wood, which was all cut to thesame length, and channelled out to admit the free passage of the air, was then duly placed in the stove, and set on fire; but the heat notpassing very readily through all the sinuosities of the pipe, he orderedhis head cook to screw on his exhauster. The man, in less than tenminutes, unscrewed a plate at the farther end, and fixed on an air-pump, made for the purpose, on which the door of the stove suddenly slammedto. Our host saw the accident, and hurrying to open the stove, fell overa heap of channelled logs, and cut a gash in his forehead. The cook ranto help him up; and after he was on his legs, and his forehead wiped, the stove was opened, when the fire, which had been deprived of itsaliment, was entirely extinguished. I thought he was hardly sorry forthe accident, as it afforded him an occasion of showing how ingeniouslyhe kindled a fire. He had an electric machine brought to him, by meansof which he set fire to a few grains of gunpowder; this lighted sometinder, which again ignited spirits, whose blaze reached the lowerextremity of his lamp. Taking the precaution of keeping the stove openthis time, the air was again exhausted at the farther end of the pipe, and in a little time the flame was seen to ascend even to the air-pump, and to scorch the parts made of wood; whereupon I saw a glow of triumphon his face, which amply compensated him for his wound and vexation. There was a grand machine for roasting, that carried the fire round themeat, the juices of which, he said, by a rotary motion, would be thrownto the surface, and either evaporate or be deteriorated. Here was alsohis digestor, for making soup of rams' horns, which he assured mecontained a good deal of nourishment, and the only difficulty was inextracting it. He next showed us his smoke-retractor, which received thesmoke near the top of the chimney, and brought it down to be burnt overagain, by which he computed that he saved five cords and a half of woodin a year. The fire which dressed his victuals, pumped up, by means of asteam engine, water for the kitchen turned one or more spits, as well astwo or three mills for grinding pepper, salt, &c. ; and then, by aspindle through the wall, worked a churn in the dairy, and cleaned theknives: the forks, indeed, were still cleaned by hand; but he said hedid not despair of effecting this operation in time, by machinery. Imentioned to him our contrivance of silver forks, to lessen this labour;but he coldly remarked, that he imagined science was in its infancywith us. 

He informed us that he had been ten years in completing this ingeniousmachine; and certainly, when it was in full operation, I never sawexultation and delight so strongly depicted in any human face. Thevarious sounds and sights, that met the ear and eye, in rapidsuccession, still farther worked on his feelings, and heightened hisraptures. There was such a simmering, and hissing, and bubbling ofboiled, and broiled, and fried--such a whirling, and jerking, andcreaking of wheels, and cranks, and pistons--such clouds of steam, andvapours, and even smoke, notwithstanding all of the latter that wasburnt, --that I almost thought myself in some great manufactory. 

After having suffered as much as we could well bear, from the heat andconfined air of this laboratory of eatables, and passed the propernumber of compliments on the skill and ingenuity they displayed, weascended to his hall, to partake of that feast, to prepare which we hadseen all the elements and the mechanical powers called into action. There were a few of his city acquaintances present, besides ourselves:but whether it was owing to the effect of the steam from the dishes onour stomachs, or that this scientific cookery was not suited to ourunpractised palates, I know not, but we all made an indifferent repast, except our host, who tasted every dish, and seemed to relish them all. 

After sitting some time at table, conversing on the progress of science, its splendid achievements, and the pleasing prospects which it yet dimlyshowed in the future, our hospitable entertainer, perceiving we werefatigued with the labours of the day, invited us to take our next_lallaneae_, or sleep, with him, for which hospitality we felt verygrateful. We were then shown to a room, in which there were marks of thesame fertile invention, in saving labour and promoting convenience; butwe were too sleepy to take much notice of them. Our beds were filledwith air, which is quite as good as feathers, except that when theleather covering gets a hole in it, from ripping, or other accidents, itloses its elasticity with its air--an accident which happened to me thisvery night; for a mouse having gnawed the leather where the housemaid'sgreasy fingers had left a mark, I sunk gently down, not to soft repose, but on the hard planks, where I uncomfortably lay until the bell warnedus to rise for breakfast. 

As soon as I was dressed, I walked out into a large garden, and, as thesun was not yet so high as to make it sultry, was enjoying the balmysweetness of the air, and the flowering shrubs, which in beauty andfragrance almost exceeded those of India, when I saw a servant run bythe garden wall, enter the stable, and bring out a zebra. On inquiringthe cause, I was made to understand that our noble host was takensuddenly ill. I immediately returned to the house, and found thedomestics running to and fro, and manifesting the greatest anxiety, aswell as hurry, in their looks. I went into the Brahmin's room, and foundhim dressed. He went out, and after some time, informed me that our kindhost had a violent _cholera morbus_, in consequence of the various kindsof food with which he had overloaded his stomach at dinner; that heconsidered himself near his last end, and was endeavouring to arrangehis affairs for the event. 

I could not help meditating on the melancholy uncertainty of human life, when I contrasted the comforts, the pleasures, the pride of conscioususefulness and genius felt by this gentleman a short time since, withthe agony which that trying and bitter hour brings to the stoutest andmost callous heart--when it must quit this state of being for another, of which it knows so little, and over which fear and doubt throw a gloomthat hope cannot entirely dispel. 

CHAPTER XI. 

_Lunarian physicians: their consultation--While they dispute the patientrecovers--The travellers visit the celebrated teacher Lozzi Pozzi. _

While I indulged in these sad meditations, and felt for my host while Ifelt no less for myself, I saw the physician approach who had been sentfor. He was a tall, thin man, with a quick step, a lively, piercing eye, a sallow complexion, and very courteous manners, and always willing todisplay the ready flow of words for which he was remarkable. I feltgreat curiosity to witness the skill of this Lunar Aesculapius, and hewas evidently pleased with the interest I manifested. It turned out thathe was well acquainted with the Brahmin; and learning from the latter mywish, he conducted me into the room of our sick host. We found him lyingon a straw bed, and strangely altered within a few hours. The physician, after feeling his pulse, (which, as every country has its peculiarcustoms, is done here about the temples and neck, instead of thewrist)--after examining his tongue, his teeth, his water, and feces, proposed bleeding. We all walked to the door, and ventured to oppose thedoctor's prescription, suggesting that the copious evacuations he hadalready experienced, might make bleeding useless, if not dangerous. 

"How little like a man of sense you speak, " said the other; "how readilyyou have chimed in with the prejudices of the vulgar! I should haveexpected better things from you: but the sway of empiricism is destinedyet to have a long struggle before it receives its final overthrow. Ihave attacked it with success in many quarters; but when it has beenprostrated in one place, it soon rises up in another. Have you, my goodfriend, seen my last essay on morbid action?"

The Brahmin replied, that he had not yet had an opportunity of meetingwith it. 

"I am sorry you have not, " said the other. "I have there completelydemonstrated that disease is an unit, and that it is the extreme offolly to divide diseases into classes, which tend but to produceconfusion of ideas, and an unscientific practice. Sir, " continued he, ina more animated tone, "there is a beautiful simplicity in this theory, which gives us assurance of its conformity to nature and truth. It needsbut to be seen to be understood--but to be understood, to be approved, and carried into successful operation. "

The Brahmin asked him if this unit did not present different symptoms ondifferent occasions. 

"Certainly, " he replied: "from too much or too little action, in thisset of vessels or that, it is differently modified, and must be treatedaccordingly. "

"This unit, then, " said my friend, "assumes different forms, andrequires various remedies? Is there not, then, a convenience inseparating these modifications (or _forms_, if you prefer it) from oneanother, by different names?"

"Stop, my friend; you do not apprehend the matter. I will explain. " Atthis moment two other gentlemen, of a grave aspect and demeanour, entered the room. They also were physicians of great reputation in thecity. They appeared to be formal and reserved towards one another, butthey each manifested still more shyness and coldness towards the learnedShuro. They entered the sick chamber, and having informed themselves ofthe state of the patient, all three withdrew to a consultation. 

They had not been long together, before their voices grew, from awhisper, so loud, that we could distinctly hear all they said. "Sir, "says Dr. Shakrack, "the patient is in a state of direct debility: wemust stimulate, if we would restore a healthy action. Pour in the_stimulantia_ and _irritentia_, and my life for it, the patientis saved. "

"Will you listen to me for one moment?" says Dr. Dridrano, the youngestof the three gentlemen. "It may be presumption for one of my humblepretensions to set myself in opposition to persons of your age, experience, and celebrity; but I am bound, by the sacred duties of thehigh functions I have undertaken to perform, to use my poor abilities insuch a way as I can, to advance the noble science of medicine, and, inso doing, to give strength to the weak, courage to the disheartened, andcomfort to the afflicted. Gentlemen, I say, I hope if my simple viewsshould be found widely different from yours, you will not impute it to apresumption which is as foreign to my nature as it would be unsuited toyour merits. I consider the human body a mere machine, whose parts arecomplicated, whose functions are various, and whose operations areliable to be impeded and frustrated by a variety of obstacles. There is, you know, one set of tubes, or vessels, for the blood; another for thelymph; another for the sweat; and so on. Now, although each of thesefluids has its several channels, yet, if by any accident any one of themis obstructed, and there is so great an accumulation of the obstructedfluid that it cannot find vent by its natural channel, or duct, then youmust carry off the redundancy by some other; for you well know, thatthat which can be carried off by one, can be carried off by all. Gentlemen, I beg you not to turn away; hear me for a moment. Then, ifthe current of the blood be obstructed, I make large draughts of urine, or sweat or saliva, or of the liquor amnii; and I find it matters littlewhich of these evacuants I resort to. This system, to which, withdeference to your longer experience, I have had the honour of givingsome celebrity in Morosofia, explains how it is that such variousremedies for the same disease have been in vogue at different times. They have all had in town able advocates. I could adduce undeniabletestimonials of their efficacy, because, in fact, they are allefficacious; and it seems to me a mere matter of earthshine, whether weresort to one or the other mode of restoring the equilibrium of thehuman machine; all that we have to do, being to know when and to whatextent it is proper to use either. Determine, then, gentlemen, --you, forwhose maturer judgment and years I feel profound respect, --whether weshall blister, or sweat, or bleed, or salivate. "

Dr. Shuro, who had manifested his impatience at this long harangue, byfrequent interruptions, and which Dridrano's show of deference couldscarcely keep down, hastily replied: "You have manifestly taken the hintof your theory from me; and because I have advanced the doctrine thatdisease is an unit, you come forward now, and insist that remedy is anunit too. "

"You do me great honour, learned sir, " said Dridrano. "Surely it wouldbe very unbecoming, in one of my age and standing, to set up a theory inopposition to yours, but it would be yet more discreditable to be aplagiarist; and, with all due respect for your superior wisdom, it doesseem to my feeble intellect, that no two theories can be more different. You use several remedies for one disease: I admit several diseases, anduse one remedy. "

"And does not darkness remind us of light, " replied Shuro, "by thecontrast? heat of cold--north of south?"

"Gentlemen, " then said Shakrack, who had been walking to and fro, duringthe preceding controversy, "as you seem to agree so ill with each other, I trust you will unite in adopting my course. Let us begin with thiscordial; we will then vary the stimulus, if necessary, by means of theelixir, and you will see the salutary effects immediately. A loss ofblood would still farther increase the debility of the patient; and Iappeal to your candour, Dr. Shuro, whether you ever practisedvenesection in such a case?"

"In such a case? ay, in what _you_ would call much worse. I was not longsince called in to a man in a dropsy. I opened a vein. He seemed fromthat moment to feel relief; and he so far recovered, that after a shorttime I bled him again. I returned the next day, and had I arrived halfan hour sooner, I should have bled him a third time, and in all humanprobability have saved his life. "

"If you had stimulated him, you might have had an opportunity of makingyour favourite experiment a little oftener, " said Shakrack. 

"You are facetious, sir; I imagine you have been using your own panaceasomewhat too freely to-day. "

"Not so, " said his opponent, angrily; "but if you are not more guardedin your expressions, I shall make use of yours, in a way youwon't like. "

Upon which they proceeded to blows, Dridrano all the while bellowing, "Ibeg, my worthy seniors, for the honour of science, that youwill forbear!"

The noise of the dispute had waked the patient, who, learning the causeof the disturbance, calmly begged they would give themselves no concernabout him, but let him die in peace. The domestics, who had been forsome time listening to the dispute, on hearing the scuffle, ran in andparted the angry combatants, who, like an abscess just lanced, weregiving vent to all the malignant humours that had been so long silentlygathering. 

In the mean while, the smooth and considerate Dr. Dridrano stept intothe sick room, with the view of offering an apology for the unmannerlyconduct of his brethren, and of tendering his single services, as theother sages of the healing art could not agree in the course to bepursued; when he found that the patient, profiting by the simpleremedies of the Brahmin, and an hour's rest, had been so much refreshed, that he considered himself out of danger, and that he had no need ofmedical assistance; or, at any rate, he was unwilling to follow theprescriptions of one physician, which another, if not two others, unhesitatingly condemned. Each one then received his fee, and hurriedhome, to publish his own statement of the case in a pamphlet. 

The Brahmin, who had never left the sick man's couch during his sleep, now that he was out of danger, was greatly diverted at the dispute. Buthe good-naturedly added, that, notwithstanding the ridiculous figurethey had that day made, they were all men of genius and ability, but haddone their parts injustice by their vanity, and the ambition oforiginating a new theory. "With all the extravagance, " said he, "towhich they push their several systems, they are not unsuccessful inpractice, for habitual caution, and an instinctive regard for humanlife, which they never can extinguish, checks them in carrying theirhypotheses into execution: and if I might venture to give an opinion ona subject of which I know so little, and there is so much to be known, Iwould say, that the most common error of theorists is to consider man asa machine, rather than an animal, and subject to one set of the laws ofmatter, rather than as subject to them all. 

"Thus, " he continued, "we have been regarded by one class of theoristsas an hydraulic engine, composed of various tubes fitted with theirseveral fluids, the laws and functions of which have been deduced fromcalculations of velocities, altitudes, diameters, friction, &c. Anotherclass considered man as a mere chemical engine, and his stomach as analembic. The doctrine of affinities, attractions, and repulsions, nowhad full play. Then came the notion of sympathies and antipathies, bywhich name unknown and unknowable causes were sought to be explained, and ignorance was cunningly veiled in mystery. But the science willnever be in the right tract of improvement, until we consider, conjointly, the mechanical operations of the fluids, the chemical agencyof the substances taken into the stomach, and the animal functions ofdigestion, secretion, and absorption, as evinced by actual observation. "I told him that I believed that was now the course which was actuallypursued in the best medical schools, both of Europe and America. 

Our worthy host, though very feeble, had so far recovered as to dresshimself, and receive the congratulations of his household, who had allmanifested a concern for his situation, that was at once creditable tohim and themselves. Expressing our gratitude for his kind attentions, and promising to renew our visit if we could, we bade him adieu. 

We took a different road home from the way we had come, and had notwalked far, before we met a number of small boys, each having a bag onhis back, as large as he could stagger under. Surprised at seeingchildren of their tender years, thus prematurely put to severe labour, Iwas about to rail at the absurd custom of this strange country, when myfriend checked me for my hasty judgment, and told me that these boyswere on their way to school, after their usual monthly holiday. Weattended them to their schoolhouse, which stood in sight, on the side ofa steep chalky hill. The Brahmin told me that the teacher's name wasLozzi Pozzi, and that he had acquired great celebrity by his system ofinstruction. When the boys opened their bags, I found that instead ofbooks and provisions, as I had expected, they were filled with sticks, which they told us constituted the arithmetical lessons they wererequired to practise at home. These sticks were of different lengths anddimensions, according to the number marked on them; so that by lookingat the inscription, you could tell the size, or by seeing or feeling thesize, you could tell the number. 

The master now made his appearance, and learning our errand, was verycommunicative. He descanted on the advantages of this manual, and ocularmode of teaching the science of numbers, and gave us practicalillustrations of its efficacy, by examining his pupils in our presence. He told the first boy he called up, and who did not seem to be more thanseven or eight years of age, to add 5, 3, and 7 together, and tell himthe result. The little fellow set about hunting, with great alacrity, over his bag, until he found a piece divided like three fingers, then apiece with five divisions, and lastly, one with seven, and putting themside by side, he found the piece of a correspondent length, and thus, inless than eight minutes and a half, answered, "fifteen. " The ingeniousmaster then exercised another boy in subtraction, and a third inmultiplication: but the latter was thrown into great confusion, for oneof the pieces having lost a division, it led him to a wrong result. 

The teacher informed us that he taught geometry in the same way, and hadeven extended it to grammar, logic, rhetoric, and the art ofcomposition. The rules of syntax were discovered by pieces of wood, interlocking with each other in squares, dovetails, &c. , after themanner of geographical cards; and as they chanced to fit together, sowas the concordance between the several parts of speech ascertained. Themachine for composition occupied a large space; different sets ofsynonymes were arranged in compartments of various sizes. When thesubject was familiar, a short piece was used; when it was stately orheroic, then the longest slips that could be found were resorted to. Those that were rounded at the ends were mellifluous; the jagged oneswere harsh; the thick pieces expressed force and vigour. Where thecurves corresponded at one end, they served for alliteration; and whenat the other, they answered for rhyme. By way of proving its progress, he showed us a composition by a man who was deaf and dumb, in praise ofMorosofia, who, merely by the use of his eyes and hands, had made aningenious and high-sounding piece of eloquence, though I confess thatthe sense was somewhat obscure. We went away filled with admiration forthe great Lozzi Pozzi's inventions. 

Having understood that there was an academy in the neighbourhood, inwhich youths of maturer years were instructed in the fine arts, we wereinduced to visit it; but there being a vacation at that time, we couldsee neither the professors nor students, and consequently could gainlittle information of the course of discipline and instruction pursuedthere. We were, however, conducted to a small _menagerie_ attached tothe institution, by its keeper, where the habits and accomplishments ofthe animals bore strong testimony in favour of the diligence and skillof their teachers. 

We there saw two game-cocks, which, so far from fighting, (though theyhad been selected from the most approved breed, ) billed and cooed liketurtle-doves. There was a large zebra, apparently ill-tempered, whichshowed his anger by running at and butting every animal that came in hisway. Two half-grown llamas, which are naturally as quiet and timid assheep, bit each other very furiously, until they foamed at the mouth. And, lastly, a large mastiff made his appearance, walking in a slow, measured gait, with a sleek tortoise-shell cat on his back; and she, inturn, was surmounted by a mouse, which formed the apex of thissingular pyramid. 

The keeper, remarking our unaffected surprise at the exhibition, askedus if we could now doubt the unlimited force of education, after such adisplay of the triumph of art over nature. While he was speaking, themastiff, being jostled by the two llamas still awkwardly worrying eachother, turned round so suddenly, that the mouse was dislodged from hislofty position, and thrown to the ground; on seeing which, the catimmediately sprang upon it, with a loud purring noise, which being heardby the dog, he, with a fierce growl, suddenly seized the cat. Thellamas, alarmed at this terrific sound, instinctively ran off, andhaving, in their flight, approached the heels of the zebra, he gave akick, which killed one of them on the spot. 

The keeper, who was deeply mortified at seeing the fabric he had raisedwith such indefatigable labour, overturned in a moment, protested thatnothing of the sort had ever happened before. To which we replied, byway of consolation, that perhaps the same thing might never happenagain; and that, while his art had achieved a conquest over nature, thiswas only a slight rebellion of nature against art. We then thanked himfor his politeness, and took our leave. 

CHAPTER XII. 

_Election of the Numnoonce, or town-constable--Violenceof parties--Singular institution of the Syringe Boys--Theprize-fighters--Domestic manufactures. _

When we got back to the city, we found an unusual stir and bustle amongthe citizens, and on inquiring the cause, we understood they were aboutto elect the town-constable. After taking some refreshment at ourlodgings, where we were very kindly received, we again went out, andwere hurried along with the crowd, to a large building near the centreof the city. The multitude were shouting and hallooing with greatvehemence. The Brahmin remarking an elderly man, who seemed very quietin the midst of all this ferment, he thought him a proper person toaddress for information. 

"I suppose, " says he, "from the violence of these partisans, they are ondifferent sides in religion or politics?"

"Not at all, " said the other; "those differences are forgotten at thepresent, and the ground of the dispute is, that one of the candidates istall, and the other is short--one has a large foretop, and the other isbald. Oh, I forgot; one has been a schoolmaster, and the othera butcher. "

Curiosity now prompted me to enter into the thickest of the throng; andI had never seen such fury in the maddest contests between old GeorgeClinton and Mr. Jay, or De Witt Clinton and Governor Tompkins, in mynative State. They each reproached their adversaries in the coarsestlanguage, and attributed to them the vilest principles and motives. Ourguide farther told us that the same persons, with two others, had beencandidates last year, when the schoolmaster prevailed; and, as thesupporters of the other two unsuccessful candidates had to choose nowbetween the remaining two, each party was perpetually reproaching theother with inconsistency. A dialogue between two individuals of oppositesides, which we happened to hear, will serve as a specimen of the rest. 

"Are you not a pretty fellow to vote for Bald-head, whom you have sooften called rogue and blockhead?"

"It becomes you to talk of consistency, indeed! Pray, sir, how does ithappen that you are now against him, when you were so lately swornfriends, and used to eat out of the same dish?"

"Yes; but I was the butcher's friend too. I never abused him. You'llnever catch me supporting a man I have once abused. "

"But I catch you abusing the man you once supported, which is ratherworse. The difference between us is this:--you professed to be friendlyto both; I professed to be hostile to both: you stuck to one of yourfriends, and cast the other off; and I acted the same towards myenemies. " A crowd then rushed by, crying "Huzza for the Butcher'sknives! Damn pen and ink--damn the books, and all that read in them!Butchers' knives and beef for ever!"

We asked our guide what these men were to gain by the issue of thecontest. 

"Nineteenths of them nothing. But a few hope to be made deputies, iftheir candidates succeed, and they therefore egg on the rest. "

We drew near to the scaffold where the candidates stood, and our earswere deafened with the mingled shouts and exclamations of praise andreproach. "You cheated the corporation!" says one. "You killed two blacksheep!" says another. "You can't read a warrant!" "You let Dondon cheatyou!" "You tried to cheat Nincan!" "You want to build a watch-house!""You have an old ewe at home now, that you did not come honestly by!""You denied your own hand!"--with other ribaldry still more gross andindecent. But the most singular part of the scene was a number of littleboys, dressed in black and white, who all wore badges of the parties towhich they belonged, and were provided with a syringe, and two canteens, one filled with rose-water, and the other with a black liquid, of a veryoffensive smell, the first of which they squirted at their favouritecandidates and voters, and the last on those of the opposite party. Theywere drawn up in a line, and seemed to be under regular discipline; for, whenever the captain of the band gave the word, "Vilti Mindoc!" theydischarged the dirty liquid from their syringes; and when he said "ViltiGoulgoul!" they filled the air with perfume, that was so overpowering assometimes to produce sickness. The little fellows would, between whiles, as if to keep their hands in, use the black squirts against one another;but they often gave them a dash of the rose-water at the same time. 

I wondered to see men submit to such indignity; but was told that thecustom had the sanction of time; that these boys were brought up in thechurch, and were regularly trained to this business. "Besides, " added myinformer, "the custom is not without its use; for it points out thecandidates at once to a stranger, and especially him who is successful, those being always the most blackened who are the most popular. " But itwas amusing to see the ludicrous figure that the candidates and some ofthe voters made. If you came near them on one side, they were like rosesdripping with the morning dew; but on the other, they were as black aschimney sweeps, and more offensive than street scavengers. As theseSyringe Boys, or Goulmins, are thus protected by custom, the personsassailed affected to despise them; but I could ever and anon see some ofthe most active partisans clapping them on the back, and saying, "Welldone, my little fellows! give it to them again! You shall have aginger-cake--and you shall have a new cap, " &c. Surely, thought I, ourcustom of praising and abusing our public men in the newspapers, is farmore rational than this. After the novelty of the scene was over, Ibecame wearied and disgusted with their coarseness, violence, and wantof decency, and we left them without waiting to see the result ofthe contest. 

In returning to our lodgings, the Brahmin took me along a quarter of thetown in which I had never before been. In a little while we came to alofty building, before the gate of which a great crowd were assembled. "This, " said my companion, "is one of the courts of justice. " Anxious tosee their modes of proceeding in court, I pushed through the crowd, followed by the Brahmin, and on entering the building, found myself in aspacious amphitheatre, in the middle of which I beheld, with surprise, several men engaged, hand to hand, in single combat. On asking anexplanation of my friend, he informed me that these contests werefavourite modes of settling private disputes in Morosofia: that theprize-fighters I saw, hired themselves to any one who conceived himselfinjured in person, character, or property. "It seems a strange mode ofsettling legal disputes, " I remarked, "which determines a question infavour of a party, according to the strength and wind of his champion. "

"Nor is that all, " said the Brahmin, "as the judges assign the victoryaccording to certain rules and precedents, the reasons of which areknown only to themselves, if known at all, and which are oftensufficiently whimsical--as sometimes a small scratch in the head availsmore than a disabling blow in the body. The blows too, must be given inthe right time, as well as in the right place, or they pass for nothing. In short, of all those spectators who are present to witness the powersand address of the prize-fighters, not one in a hundred can tell who hasgained the victory, until the judges have proclaimed it. "

"I presume, " said I, "that the champions who thus expose their personsand lives in the cause of another, are Glonglims?"

"There, " said he, "you are altogether mistaken. In the first place, theprize-fighters seldom sustain serious injury. Their weapons do notendanger life; and as each one knows that his adversary is merelyfollowing his vocation, they often fight without animosity. After thecontest is over, you may commonly see the combatants walking and talkingvery sociably together: but as this circumstance makes them a littlesuspected by the public, they affect the greater rage when in conflict, and occasionally quarrel and fight in downright earnest. No, " hecontinued, "I am told it is a very rare thing to see one of theseprize-fighters who is a Glonglim; but most of their employers belong tothis unhappy race. "

On looking more attentively, I perceived many of these beings among thespectators, showing, by their gestures, the greatest anxiety for theissue of the contest. They each carried a scrip, or bag, the contents ofwhich they ever and anon gave to their respective champions, whose wind, it is remarked, is very apt to fail, unless thus assisted. 

Having learnt some farther particulars respecting this singular mode oflitigation, which would be uninteresting to the general reader, I tookmy leave, not without secretly congratulating myself on the morerational modes in which justice is administered on earth. 

When we had nearly reached our lodgings, we heard a violent altercationin the house, and on entering, we found our landlord and his wifeengaged in a dispute respecting their domestic economy, and they bothmade earnest appeals to my companion for the correctness of theirrespective opinions. The old man was in favour of their children makingtheir own shoes and clothes; and his wife insisted that it would bebetter for them to stick to their garden and dairy, with the proceeds ofwhich they could purchase what they wanted. She asserted that they couldreadily sell all the fruits and vegetables they could raise; and thatwhilst they would acquire greater skill by an undivided attention to onething, they who followed the business of tailors, shoemakers, andseamstresses, would, in like manner, become more skilful in theiremployments, and consequently be able to work at a cheaper rate. Shefarther added, that spinning and sewing were unhealthy occupations; theywould give the girls the habit of stooping, which would spoil theirshapes; and that their thoughts would be more likely to be running onidle and dangerous fancies, when sitting at their needles, than whenengaged in more active occupations. 

This dame was a very fluent, ready-witted woman, and she spoke with theconfidence that consciousness of the powers of disputation commonlyinspires. She went on enlarging on the mischiefs of the practice shecondemned, and, by insensible gradations, so magnified them, that atlast she clearly made out that there was no surer way of rendering theirdaughters sickly, deformed, vicious, and unchaste, than to set themabout making their own clothes. 

After she had ceased, (which she did under a persuasion that she hadanticipated and refuted every argument that could be urged in oppositionto her doctrine, ) the husband, with an emotion of anger that he couldnot conceal, began to defend his opinion. He said, as to the greatereconomy of his plan, there could be no doubt; for although they might, at particular times, make more by gardening than they could save byspinning or sewing, yet there were other times when they could not tillthe ground, and when, of course, if they did not sew or spin, they wouldbe idle; but if they did work, the proceeds would be clear gain. He saidhe did not wish his daughters to be constantly employed in makingclothes, nor was it necessary that they should be. A variety of otheroccupations, equally indispensable, claimed their attention, and wouldleave but a comparatively small portion of time for needlework: that inthus providing themselves with employment at home, they at least savedthe time of going backwards and forwards, and were spared some trips tomarket, for the sale of vegetables to pay, as would then be necessary, for the work done by others. Besides, the tailor who was most convenientto them, and who, it was admitted, was a very good one, was insolent andcapricious; would sometimes extort extravagant prices, or turn them intoridicule; and occasionally went so far as to set his water-dogs uponthem, of which he kept a great number. He declared, that for his part hewould incur a little more expense, rather than he would be so imposedupon, and subjected to so much indignity and vexation. 

He denied that sewing would affect his daughters' health, unless, perhaps, they followed it exclusively as an occupation; but, as theywould have it in their power to consult their inclinations andconvenience in this matter, they might take it up when the occasionrequired, and lay it down whenever they found it irksome or fatiguing:that as they themselves were inclined to follow this course, it was aplain proof that the occupation was not unhealthy. He maintained thatthey would stoop just as much in gardening, and washing and nursingtheir children, as in sewing; and that we were not such frail orunpliant machines as to be seriously injured, unless we persisted in oneset of straight, formal notions, but that we were adapted to variety, and were benefited by it. That as to the practice being favourable towantonness and vice, while he admitted that idleness was productive ofthese effects, he could not see how one occupation encouraged them morethan another. That the tailor, for example, whom he had been speakingof, though purse-proud, overbearing, and rapacious, was not more immoralor depraved than his neighbours, and had probably less of the libertinethan most of them. He admitted that evil thoughts would enter the mindin any situation, and could not reasonably be expected to be kept out ofhis daughters' heads (being, as he said, but women): yet he conceivedsuch a result as far less probable, if they were suffered to rambleabout in the streets, and to chaffer with their customers, than if theywere kept to sedate and diligent employment at home. 

Having, with great warmth and earnestness, used these arguments, heconcluded, by plainly hinting to his wife that she had always been theapologist of the tailor, in all their disputes; and that she could notbe so obstinately blind to the irrefragable reasoning he had urged, ifshe were not influenced by her old hankering after this fellow, and didnot consult his interests in preference to those of her own family. Uponthis remark the old woman took fire, and, in spite of our presence, theyboth had recourse to direct and the coarsest abuse. 

The Brahmin did not, as I expected, join me in laughing at the scene wehad just witnessed; but, after some musing, observed: "There is muchtruth in what each of these parties say. I blame them only for thecourse they take towards each other. Their dispute is, in fact, of amost frivolous and unmeaning character; for, if the father was to carryhis point, the girls would occasionally sell the productions of theirgarden, and pay for making their clothes, or even buy them ready made. Were the mother, on the other hand, to prevail, they would stilloccasionally use their needles, and exercise their taste and skill insewing, spinning, knitting, and the like. Nay, " added he, "if you hadnot been so much engrossed with this angry and indecorous altercation, you might have seen two of them at their needles, in an adjoiningapartment, while one was busy at work in the garden, and another up tothe elbows in the soap-suds--all so closely engaged in their severalpursuits, that they hardly seemed to know they were the subject ofdiscussion. "

I told the Brahmin that a dispute, not unlike this, had taken place inmy own country, a few years since; some of our politicians contendingthat agricultural labour was most conducive to the national wealth, whilst others maintained that manufacturing industry was equallyadvantageous, wherever it was voluntarily pursued;--but that thecontroversy had lately assumed a different character--the question nowbeing, not whether manufactures are as beneficial as agriculture, butwhether they deserve extraordinary encouragement, by taxing those who donot give them a preference. 

"That is, " said the Brahmin, "as if our landlady, by way of inducing herdaughters to give up gardening for spinning, were to tell them, if theydid not find their new occupation as profitable as the old, she wouldmore than make up the difference out of her own pocket, which, though itmight suit the daughters very well, would be a losing business tothe family. "

CHAPTER XIII. 

_Description of the Happy Valley--The laws, customs, and manners of theOkalbians--Theory of population--Rent--System of government. _

The Brahmin, who was desirous of showing me what was most remarkable inthis country, during the short time we intended to stay, thought this afavourable time to visit Okalbia, or the Happy Valley. The Okalbians area tribe or nation, who live separated from the rest of the Lunar world, and whose wise government, prudence, industry, and integrity, are veryhighly extolled by all, though, by what I can learn, they have fewimitators. They dwell about three hundred miles north of the city ofAlamatua, in a fertile valley, which they obtained by purchase about twohundred years since, and which is about equal to twenty miles square, that is, to four hundred square miles. A carriage and four well-brokedogs, was procured for us, and we soon reached the foot of the mountainthat encloses the fortunate valley, in about fifty-two hours. We thenascended, for about three miles, with far fatigue than I formerlyexperienced in climbing the Catskill mountains of my native State, andfound ourselves on the summit of an extensive ridge, which formed themargin of a vast elliptical basin, the bottom of which presented a mostbeautiful landscape. The whole surface was like a garden, interspersedwith patches of wood, clumps of trees, and houses standing singly or ingroupes. A lake, about a mile across, received several small streams, and on its edge was a town, containing about a thousand houses. Afterenjoying the beauties of the scene for some minutes, we descended by arough winding road, and entered this Lunar Paradise, in about fourhours. Along the sides of the highway we travelled, were planted rows oftrees, not unlike our sycamores, which afforded a refreshing shade tothe traveller; and commonly a rivulet ran bubbling along one side or theother of the road. 

After journeying about eight miles, we entered a neat, well built town, which contained, as we were informed, about fifteen thousandinhabitants. The Brahmin informed me, that in a time of religiousfervour, about two centuries ago, a charter was granted to the founderof a new sect, the Volbins, who had chanced to make converts of some ofthe leading men in Morosofia, authorising him and his followers topurchase this valley of the hunting tribe to whom it belonged, and togovern themselves by their own laws. They found no difficulty in makingthe purchase. It was then used as a mere hunting ground, no one likingto settle in a place that seemed shut out from the rest of the world. Atfirst, the new settlers divided the land equally among all theinhabitants, one of their tenets being, that as there was no differenceof persons in the next world, there should be no difference in sharingthe good things of this. They tried at first to preserve this equality;but finding it impracticable, they abandoned it. It is said that afterabout thirty years, by reason of a difference in their industry andfrugality, and of some families spending less than they made, and somemore, the number of land owners was reduced to four hundred, and thatfifty of these held one half of the whole; since which time the numberof landed proprietors has declined with the population, though not inthe same proportion. As the soil is remarkably fertile, the climatehealthy, and the people temperate and industrious, they multiplied veryrapidly until they reached their present numbers, which have been longstationary, and amount to 150, 000, that is, about four hundred to asquare mile; of these, more than one half live in towns and villages, containing from one hundred to a thousand houses. 

They have little or no commerce with any other people, the valleyproducing every vegetable production, and the mountains every mineral, which they require; and in fact, they have no foreign intercoursewhatever, except when they visit, or are visited from curiosity. Thoughthey have been occasionally bullied and threatened by lawless andoverbearing neighbours; yet, as they can be approached by only a singlegorge in the mountain, which is always well garrisoned, (and theypresent no sufficient object to ambition, to compensate for the scandalof invading so inoffensive and virtuous a people, ) they have never yetbeen engaged in war. 

I felt very anxious to know how it was that their numbers did notincrease, as they were exempt from all pestilential diseases, and livein such abundance, that a beggar by trade has never been known amongthem, and are remarkable for their moral habits. 

"Let us inquire at the fountain-head, " said the Brahmin; and we went tosee the chief magistrate, who received us in a style of unaffectedfrankness, which in a moment put us at our ease. After we had explainedto him who we were, and answered such inquiries as he chose to make:

"Sir, " said I, through the Brahmin, who acted as interpreter, "I haveheard much of your country, and I find, on seeing it, that it exceedsreport, in the order, comfort, contentment, and abundance of the people. But I am puzzled to find out how it is that your numbers do notincrease. I presume you marry late in life?"

"On the contrary, " said he; "every young man marries as soon as hereceives his education, and is capable of managing the concerns of afamily. Some are thus qualified sooner, and some later. "

"Some occasionally migrate, then?"

"Never. A number of our young men, indeed, visit foreign countries, butnot one in a hundred settles abroad. "

"How, then, do your associates continue stationary?"

"Nothing is more easy. No man has a larger family than his land orlabour can support, in comfort; and as long as that is the case withevery individual, it must continue to be the case with the wholecommunity. We leave the matter to individual discretion. The prudentialcaution which is thus indicated, has been taught us by our ownexperience. We had gone on increasing, under the encouraging influenceof a mild system of laws, genial climate, and fruitful soil, until, about a century ago, we found that our numbers were greater than ourcountry, abundant as it is, could comfortably support; and our seasonsbeing unfavourable for two successive years, many of our citizens wereobliged to banish themselves from Okalbia; and their education notfitting them for a different state of society, they suffered severely, both in their comforts and morals. It is now a primary moral duty, enforced by all our juvenile instructors with every citizen, to adapthis family to his means; and thus a regard which each individual has forhis offspring, is the salvation of the State. "

"And can these prudential restraints be generally practised? What avirtuous people! Love for one another brings the two sexestogether--love for their offspring makes them separate!"

"I see, " said the magistrate, smiling, "you are under an error. Noseparation takes place, and none is necessary. "

"How, then, am I to believe. .. .. ?"

"You are to believe nothing, " said he, with calm dignity, "which isincompatible with virtue and propriety. I see that the most important ofall sciences--that one on which the well-being and improvement ofsociety mainly depends, --is in its infancy with you. But whenever youbecome as populous as we are, and unite the knowledge of real happinesswith the practice of virtue, you will understand it. It is one of ourmaxims, that heaven gives wisdom to man in such portions as hissituation requires it; and no doubt it is the same with the people ofyour earth. "

I did not, after this, push my inquiries farther; but remarked, aside tothe Brahmin, --"I would give a good deal to know this secret, provided itwould suit our planet. "

"It is already known there, " replied he, "and has been long practised bymany in the east: but in the present state of society with you, it mightdo more harm than good to be made public, by removing one of the checksof licentiousness, where women are so unrestrained as they arewith you. "

Changing now the subject, I ventured to inquire how they employed theirleisure hours, and whether many did not experience here a wearisomesameness, and a feeling of confinement and restraint. 

"It is true, " said the magistrate, "men require variety; but I would nothave you suppose he cannot find it here. He may cultivate his lands, improve his mind, educate his children; these are his seriousoccupations, affording every day some employment that is, at once, newand interesting: and, by way of relaxation, he has music, painting, andsculpture; sailing, riding, conversation, storytelling, and reading thenews of what is passing, both in the valley and out of it. "

I asked if they had newspapers. He answered in the affirmative; andadded, that they contained minute details of the births, deaths, marriages, accidents, state of the weather and crops, arbitrations, public festivals, inventions, original poetry, and prose compositions. In addition to which, they had about fifty of their most promising youngmen travelling abroad, who made observations on all that was remarkablein the countries they passed through, which they regularly transmittedonce a month to Okalbia. I inquired if they travelled at the publicexpense or their own?

"They always pursue some profession or trade, by the profits of whichthey support themselves. We have nothing but intellect and ingenuity toexport; for though our country produces every thing, there is nocommodity that we can so well spare. Their talents find them employmentevery where; and the necessity they are under of a laborious exertion ofthese talents, and of submitting to a great deal from those whosecustoms and manners are not to their taste, and whom they feel inferiorto themselves, is a considerable check to the desire to go abroad, somuch so, that we hold out the farther inducement of politicaldistinction when they return. "

"What, then! you have ambition among you?"

"Certainly; our institutions have only tempered it, and not vainlyendeavoured to extinguish it; and we find it employment in this way: Ofour youthful travellers, those who are most diligent in their vocation;who give the most useful information, and communicate it in the happiestmanner, are made magistrates, on their return, and sometimes havestatues decreed to them. Besides, the name which their conduct ortalents procure them abroad, is echoed back to the valley, long beforetheir return, and has much influence in the general estimate of theircharacter. 

"But have you not many more competitors, than you have public offices?"

"There are, without doubt, many who desire office; but to manifest theirwish, would be one of the surest means of defeating it. We requiremodesty, (at least in appearance, ) moderation and disinterestedness, andof course, the less pains a candidate takes to show himself off, the better. "

"But have they no friends, who can at once render them this service, andrelieve them from the odium of it?"

"There is, indeed, somewhat of this; but you must remember, that thehighest of our magistrates has comparatively little power. He has noarmy, no treasury, no patronage; he merely executes the laws. But, as afarther check on the immoderate zeal of friends, the expense of doingthis, as well as of maintaining him in office, is defrayed by those whovote for him. There seems, at first view, but little justice in thisregulation; but we think, that as every one cannot have his way, thosewho carry their point, and have the power, should also bear the burden:besides, in this way the voices of the most generous and disinterestedprevail. We have, " he added, "found this the most difficult part of ourgovernment. We once thought that the very lively interest excited in theelectioneering contests, particularly for that of Gompoo, or chiefmagistrate, was to be ascribed to the power he possessed; and weresorted to various expedients to lessen it--such as dividing it among agreater number--requiring a quick rotation of office--abridging thepowers themselves: but we discovered, that however small the power, thedistinction it gave to those who possessed it, was always an object oflively interest with the ambitious, and indeed with the public ingeneral. We have, therefore, enlarged the power, and the term of holdingit, and make him who would attain it, purchase it by previous exertionand self-denial: and we farther compel those who favour him, to lose aswell as gain. We array the love of money against the love of power; orrather, one love of power to another. Moreover, as it is only by thecivic virtues that our citizens recommend themselves to popular favour, there is nothing of that enthusiasm which military success excites amongthe natives. "

Our Washington then presented himself to my mind, and for a moment Ibegan to question his claim to the unexampled honours bestowed on him byhis countrymen, until I recollected that he was as distinguished by hisrespect for the laws, and his sound views of national policy, as for hismilitary services. 

I then inquired into the occupations and condition of those who werewithout land; and was told that they were either cultivators of thesoil, or practised some liberal or mechanical art; and, partly owing tothe education they receive, and partly from the active competition thatexists among them, they are skilful, diligent, and honest. Now and thenthere are some exceptions, according to the proverb, that _in the bestfield of grain there will be some bad ears_. The land-owners sometimescultivate the soil with their own hands--sometimes with hiredlabourers--and sometimes they rent them for about a third of theirproduce. The smallest proprietors commonly adopt the first course; themiddling, the second; and the great landholders the third. "

"But I thought, " said I, "that all the land in the valley was of equalfertility. "

"So it is; but what has that to do with rent?"

"Sir, " said I, "our ablest writers on this subject have latelydiscovered that there can be no rent where there is not a gradation ofsoils, such as exists in every country of the earth. "

"I see not, " said he, "what could have led them into that error. It istrue, if there was inferior land, there would be a difference of rent inproportion to the difference of fertility; and if it was so poor asmerely to repay the expense of cultivation, it would yield no rent atall. But surely, if one man makes as much as several consume, (and thishe can easily do with us, ) he will be able to get much of their labourin exchange for this surplus, which is so indispensable to them, and toget more and more, until the greatest number has come into existencewhich such surplus can support. What they thus give, if the proprietorretains the land himself, you may regard as the extraordinary profits ofagricultural labour, or rent, if paid to any one to whom he transfersthis benefit. This is precisely our present situation. "

There was no denying this statement of facts: but I could not helpexclaiming, --"Surely there is nothing certain in the universe; orrather, truth is one thing in the moon, and another thing on the earth. "

CHAPTER XIV. 

_Farther account of Okalbia--The Field of Roses--Curious superstitionconcerning that flower--The pleasures of smell traced to association, bya Glonglim philosopher. _

Though I felt some reluctance to abuse the patience of this polite andintelligent magistrate, I could not help making some inquiry about thejurisprudence of his country, and first, what was their system ofpunishment. 

"We have no capital punishment, " says he; "for, from all we learn, it isnot more efficacious in preventing crime, than other punishments whichare milder; and we prefer making the example to offenders a lasting one. But we endeavour to prevent offences, not so much by punishment as byeducation; and the few crimes committed among us, bring certain censureon those who have the early instruction of the criminal. Murders arevery rare with us; thefts and robbery perhaps still more so. Ourordinary disputes about property, are commonly settled by arbitration, where, as well as in court, each party is permitted to state his case, to examine what witnesses and to ask what questions he pleases. "

"You do not, " said I, "examine witnesses who are interested?"

"Why not? The judges even examine the parties themselves. "

I then told him that the smallest direct interest in the issue of thecontroversy, disqualified a witness with us, from the strong bias itcreated to misrepresent facts, and even to misconceive them. 

He replied with a smile, --"It seems to me that your extreme fear ofhearing falsehood, must often prevent you from ascertaining the truth. It is true, that wherever the interest of a witness is involved, it hasan immediate tendency to make him misstate facts: but so would personalill-will--so would his sympathies--so would any strong feeling. What, then, is your course in these cases?"

I told him that these objections applied to the credibility, and not tothe competency, of witnesses, which distinctions of the lawyers Iendeavoured to explain to him. 

"Then I think you often exclude a witness who is under a small bias, andadmit another who is under a great one. You allow a man to givetestimony in a case in which the fortune or character of his father, brother or child is involved, but reject him in a case in which he isnot interested to the amount of a greater sum than he would give to thefirst beggar he met. Is it not so?"

"That, indeed, may be the operation of the rule. But cases of suchflagrant inconsistency are very rare; and this rule, like every other, must be tried by its general, and not its partial effects. "

"True; but your rule must at least be a troublesome one, and give riseto a great many nice distinctions, that make it difficult in theapplication. All laws are sufficiently exposed to this evil, and we donot wish unnecessarily to increase it. We have, therefore, adopted theplan of allowing either party to ask any question of any witness hepleases, and leave it to the judges to estimate the circumstances whichmay bias the witness. We, in short, pursue the same course ininvestigating facts in court that we pursue out of it, when no one formsa judgment until he has first heard what the parties and their friendssay on the subject. "

On my return home, I repeated this conversation to a lawyer of myacquaintance, who told me that such a rule of evidence might do for thepeople in the moon, but it certainly would not suit us. I leave thematter to be settled by more competent heads than mine, and return to mynarrative. 

I farther learnt from this intelligent magistrate, that the territory ofthe Happy Valley, or Okalbia, is divided into forty-two counties, andeach county into ten districts. In each district are three magistrates, who are appointed by the legislature. Causes of small value are decidedby the magistrates of the district; those of greater importance, by thecounty courts, composed of all the magistrates of the ten districts; afew by the court of last court, consisting of seven judges. Thelegislature consists of two houses, of which the members are electedannually, three from each county for one branch, and one member for theother. No qualification of property is required either to vote, or to beeligible to either house of the legislature, as they believe that thenatural influence of property is sufficient, without adding to thatinfluence by law; and that the moral effects of education among them, together with a few provisions in their constitution, are quitesufficient to guard against any improper combination of those who havesmall property. Besides, there are no odious privileges exclusivelypossessed by particular classes of men, to excite the envy or resentmentof the other classes, and induce them to act in concert. 

"Have you, then, no parties?" said I. 

"Oh yes; we are not without our political parties and disputes; and wesometimes wrangle about very small matters--such as, what amount oflabour shall be bestowed on the public roads--the best modes ofconducting our schools and colleges--the comparative merits of thecandidates for office, or the policy of some proposed change in thelaws. Man is made, you know, of very combustible materials, and may bekindled as effectually by a spark falling at the right time, in theright place, as when within reach of a great conflagration. "

The women appeared here to be under few restraints. I understood thatthey were taught, like our sex, all the speculative branches ofknowledge, but that they were more especially instructed, by professedteachers, in cookery, needlework, and every sort of domestic economy; aswere the young men in the occupations which require strength andexposure. They have a variety of public schools, and some houses forpublic festivals, but no public hospitals or almshouses whatever, thefew cases of private distress or misfortune being left for relief to themerits of the sufferer and the compassion of individuals. 

After passing a week among this singular and fortunate people, whom weevery where found equally amiable, intelligent, and hospitable, wereturned to Alamatua in the same way that we had come; that is, in alight car, drawn by four large mastiffs. When we had recovered from thefatigues of the journey, and I had carefully committed to paper all thatI had learnt of the Okalbians, the Brahmin and I took a walk towards apart of the suburbs which I had not yet seen, and where some of theliterati of his acquaintance resided. The sun appeared to be not morethan two hours high (though, in fact, it was more than fifty); the skywas without a cloud, and a fresh breeze from the mountains contributedto make it like one of the most delightful summer evenings of atemperate climate. 

We carelessly rambled along, enjoying the balmy freshness of the air, the picturesque scenery of the neighbouring mountains, the beauty orfragrance of some vegetable productions, and the oddity of others, until, having passed through a thick wood, we came to an extensiveplain, which was covered with rose-bushes. The queen of flowers hereappeared under every variety of colour, size, and species--red, white, black, and yellow--budding, full-blown, and half-blown;--some withthorns, and some without; some odourless, and others exhaling theirunrivalled perfume with an overpowering sweetness. I was about to pluckone of these flowers, (of which I have always been particularly fond, )when a man, whom I had not previously observed, stepping up behind me, seized my arm, and asked me if I knew what I was doing. He told us thatthe roses of this field, which is called Gulgal, were deemed sacred, andwere not allowed to be gathered without the special permission of thepriests, under a heavy penalty; and that he was one of those whose dutyit was to prevent the violation of the law, and to bring the offendersto punishment. 

The Brahmin, having diverted himself a while with my surprise anddisappointment, then informed me, that the rose had ever been regardedin Morosofia, as the symbol of female purity, delicacy, and sweetness;which notion had grown into a popular superstition, that whenever amarriage is consummated on the earth, one of these flowers springs up inthe moon; and that in colour, shape, size, or other property, it is afit type of the individual whose change of state is thus commemorated. 

"What, father, " said I, "could have given rise to so strange anopinion?"

"I know not, " said he; "but I have heard it thus explained:--That theroses generally spring up, as well as blow, in the course of their longnights, during which the earth's resplendent disc is the mostconspicuous object in the heavens; which two facts stand, in the opinionof the multitude, in the relation of cause and effect. Attributing, then, the symbolical character of the rose to its tutelary planet, theyregard the earth in the same light as the ancients did the chaste Diana, and believe that she plants this her favourite flower in the moon, whenever she loses a votary. The priesthood encourage this superstition, as they have grafted on it some mystical rites, which add to their powerand profit, and which one of our Pundits thinks has a great resemblanceto the Eleusinian mysteries. There is, however, my dear Atterley, littlesatisfaction in tracing the origin of vulgar superstitions. They grow uplike a strange plant in a forest, without our being able to tell how theseed found its way there. It is generally believed in the east, that themoon, at particular periods of her revolution round the earth, has agreat influence in causing rain; though every one must see, that, notwithstanding such influence must be the same in every part of theearth, it is invariably fair in one place, at the very time that it israiny in another. Nay, we may safely aver that there is not a day, noran hour, in the year, in which it is not dry and rainy, cloudy andclear, windy and calm, in hundreds of places at once. "

I told the Brahmin that the same opinion prevailed in my country. Thatthe vulgar also believe the moon, according to its age, to haveparticular effects on the flesh of slaughtered animals; and that allsailors distinguish between a wet and a dry day, according to theposition of the crescent. 

We then inquired of the warden of this flowery plain, if he had everremarked any difference in the number of roses which sprung up in agiven period of time. He said he thought they were more numerous aboutfive and twenty or thirty years ago, than he had ever seen them beforeor since. With that exception, he said, the number appeared to be nearlythe same every year. 

The Brahmin happening to be in one of those pleasant moods which areoccasionally experienced by amiable tempers, even when under thepressure of sorrow and age, now amused himself in pointing out theflowers which probably represented the different nations of the earth;and when he saw any one remarkably small, pale and delicate, he insistedthat it belonged to his own country; which point, however, I, notyielding to him in nationality, warmly contested. I would here remark, that as the rose is called _gul_ in the Persian language and the ancientSanscrit, the name of this field furnished another argument in supportof the Brahmin's hypothesis of the origin of the moon. 

While thus oblivious of the past, and reckless of the future, we wereenjoying the present moment in this _badinage_, and I was extolling theodour of the rose, as beyond every other grateful to the olfactorynerves of man, a lively, flippant little personage came up, and accostedthe Brahmin with the familiarity of an acquaintance. My companionimmediately introduced me to him, and at the same time gave me tounderstand that this was the great Reffei, one of the most distinguishedliterati of the country. Although his eye was remarkably piercing, Iperceived in it somewhat of the wildness which always characterizes aGlonglim. He was evidently impatient for discussion; and having informedhimself of the subject of my rhapsody when he joined our party, hevehemently exclaimed, --"I am surprised at your falling in with thatpopular prejudice; while it is easy to show, that but for some feelingof love, or pity, or admiration, with which the rose happens to beassociated--some past pleasure which it brings to your recollection, orsome future pleasure which it suggests, --any other flower would beequally sweet. You see the rose a very beautiful flower; and you havebeen accustomed, whenever you saw and felt its beauty, to perceive, atthe same time, a certain odour. The beauty and the odour thus becomeassociated in your mind, and the smell brings along with it the pleasureyou feel in looking at it. But the chief part of the gratification youreceive from smelling a rose, arises from some past scene of delight ofwhich it reminds you; as, of the days of your innocence and childhood, when you ran about the garden--or when you were decorated withnosegays--or danced round a may-pole, (this is rather a freetranslation)--or presented a bunch of flowers to some little favourite. "He said a great deal more on the subject, and spoke so prettily andingeniously, as almost to make a convert of me; when, on bringing mynose once more to the flower, I found in it the same exquisitefragrance as ever. 

"Why do we like, " he continued, "the smell of a beef-steak, or of a cupof tea, except for the pleasure we receive from their taste?"

I mentioned, as an exception to his theory, the codfish, which isesteemed a very savoury dish by my countrymen, but which no one everregarded as very fragrant. But he repelled my objection by an ingenioushypothesis, grounded on certain physiological facts, to show that thissupposed disagreeable smell was also the effect of some earlyassociations. I then mentioned to him assafoetida, the odour of which Ibelieved was universally odious. He immediately replied, that we arealways accustomed to associate with this drug, the disagreeable ideas ofsickness, female weakness, hysterics, affectation, &c. Unable tocontinue the argument, I felt myself vanquished. I again stooped to theflower, and as I inhaled its perfume, "Surely, " said I to myself, "thisrose would be sweet if I were to lose my memory altogether:" butrecollecting the great Reffei's argument, I mentally added thanks todivine philosophy, which always corrects our natural prejudices. 

CHAPTER XV. 

_Atterley goes to the great monthly fair--Its various exhibitions;difficulties--Preparations to leave the Moon--Curiosities procured byAtterley--Regress to the Earth. _

The philosopher, not waiting to enjoy the triumph of victory, abruptlytook his leave, and we, refreshed and delighted with our walk, returnedhome. Our landlord informed us that we had arrived in good time toattend the great fair, or market, which regularly takes place a littlebefore the sun sinks below the horizon. Having taken a short repast, while the Brahmin called on one of his acquaintance, I sallied forthinto the street, and soon found myself in the bustling throng, who werehastening to this great resort of the busy, the idle, the knavish, andthe gay; some in pursuit of gain, and some of pleasure; whilst othersagain, without any settled purpose, were carried along by the vaguedesire of meeting with somewhat to relieve them from the painof idleness. 

The fair was held in a large square piece of ground in one of thesuburbs, set apart for that purpose; and on each of its four sides along low building, or rather roof, supported on massy white columns, extended about six hundred yards in length, and was thirty yards wide. Immediately within this arcade were arranged the finer kinds ofmerchandise, fabrics of cotton or silk, and articles of jewelry, cutlery, porcelain, and glass. On the outside were provisions of everykind, vegetable and animal, flesh, fish, and fowl, as well as thecoarser manufactures. At no great distance from this hollow square, (which was used exclusively for buying and selling, ) might be seen aninfinite variety of persons, collected in groupes, all engaged in someoccupation or amusement, according to their several tastes and humours. Here a party of young men were jumping, or wrestling, or shooting at amark with cross-bows. There, girls and boys were dancing to the sound ofa pipe, or still smaller children were playing at marbles, or amusingthemselves with the toys they had just purchased. Not far from these, aquack from one scaffold was descanting on the virtues of his medicines, whilst a preacher from another was holding forth to the graver part ofthe crowd, the joys and terrors of another life; and yet farther on, amotley groupe were listening to a blind beggar, who was singing to themusic of a sort of rude guitar. Here and there curtains, hanging from aslight frame of wood-work, veiled a small square from the eyes of all, except those who paid a nail for admittance. Some of these curtainedboxes contained jugglers--some tumblers--some libidinous pictures--andothers again, strange birds, beasts, and other animals. I observed thatnone of the exhibitions were as much frequented as these booths; and Iwas told that the corporation of the city derived from them aconsiderable revenue. Amidst such an infinite variety of objects, myattention was so distracted that it could not settle down upon any one, and I strolled about without object or design. 

When I had become more familiar with this mixed multitude of sights andsounds, I endeavoured to take a closer survey of some of the objectscomposing the medley. The first thing which attracted my particularnotice, was a profusion of oaths and imprecations, which proceeded fromone of the curtained booths. I paid the admittance money to awell-dressed man, of smooth, easy manners, and entered. I found thereseveral parties paired off, and engaged at different games; but, likethe rest of the bystanders, I felt myself most strongly attractedtowards the two who were betting highest. One of these was an elderlyman, of a tall stature, in a plain dress; the other was a short man, invery costly apparel, and some years younger. For a long time the scalesof victory seemed balanced between them; but at length the tall man, whohad great self-possession, and who played with consummate skill, won thegame: soon after which he rose up, and making a graceful, respectful bowto the rest of the company, he retired. Not being able to catch his eye, so intent was he on his game, I felt some curiosity to know whether hewas a Glonglim; but could not ascertain the fact, as some of whom theBrahmin inquired, said that he was, while others maintained that he wasnot. His adversary, however, evidently belonged to that class, and, whenflushed with hope, reminded me of the feather-hunter. At first heendeavoured, by forced smiles, to conceal his rage and disappointment. He then bit his lips with vexation, and challenged one of the bystandersto play for a smaller stake. Fortune seemed about to smile on him onthis occasion; but one of the company, who appeared to be very muchrespected by the rest, detected the little man in some false play, andpublicly exposing him, broke up the game. I understood afterwards, thatbefore the fair was over, the gamester avenged himself for this injuryin the other's blood: that he then returned to the fair, secretlyentered another gambling booth, where he betted so rashly, that he soonlost not only his patrimonial estate, which was large, but his acquiredwealth, which was much larger. Having lost all his property, and evenhis clothes, he then staked and lost his liberty, and even his teeth, which were very good; and he will thus be compelled to live on soups forthe rest of his life. 

I saw several other matches played, in which great sums were betted, great skill was exhibited, and occasionally much unfairness practised. There was one man in the crowd, whose extraordinary good fortune I couldnot but admire. He went about from table to table, sometimes bettinghigh and sometimes low, but was generally successful, until he had wonas much as he could fairly carry; after which he went out, and amusedhimself at a puppet-show, and the stall of a cake-woman, with whom hehad formerly quarrelled, but who now, when she learnt his success, wasobsequiously civil to him. I did not see that he manifested superiorskill, but still he was successful; and in his last great stake with ayoung, but not inexpert player, he won the game, though the chances werethree to two against him. "Surely, " thought I, "fortune rules thedestinies of man in the moon as well as on the earth. "

On looking now at my watch, I found that I had been longer a witness ofthese trials of skill and fortune, than I had been aware; and on leavingthe booth, perceived that the sun had sunk behind the western mountains, and that the earth began to beam with her nocturnal splendour. Those whohad come from a distance, were already hurrying back with their carts;and here and there light cars, of various forms and colours, and drawnby dogs, were conveying those away whose object had been amusement. Somewere snatching a hasty meal; and a few, by their quiet air, seemed as ifthey meant to continue on the spot as long as the regulations permit, after sunset, which is about twenty of our hours. I found the Brahmin athome when I returned, and I felt as much pleased to see him, as if wehad not seen each other for many months. 

As the shades of night approached, my anxiety to return to my nativeplanet increased, and I urged my friend to lose no time in preparing forour departure. We were soon afterwards informed that a man high inoffice, and renowned for his political sagacity, proposed to detain us, on the ground that when such voyages as ours were shown to bepracticable, the inhabitants of the earth, who were so much morenumerous than those of the moon, might invade the latter with a largearmy, for the purposes of rapine and conquest. We farther learnt thatthis opinion, which was at first cautiously circulated in the highercircles, had become more generally known, and was producing a strongsensation among the people. 

The Brahmin immediately presented himself before the council of state, to remove the impression. He pointed out to them the insurmountableobstacles to such an invasion, physical and moral. He urged to them thatthe nations of the earth felt so much jealousy and ill-will towards oneanother, that they never cordially co-operated in any enterprise fortheir common interest or glory; and that if any one nation were to sendan army into the moon, such a scheme of ambition would afford at once atemptation and pretext for its neighbours to invade it. That his countryhad not the ability, and mine had not the inclination, to attack theliberties of any other: so far from that, he informed them, on myauthority, that we were in the habit of sending teachers abroad, toinstruct other nations in the duties of religion, morals, and humanity. He entered into some calculations, to show that the project was alsoimpracticable on account of its expense; and, lastly, insisted that ifall other difficulties were removed, we should find it impossible toconvince the people of the earth that we had really been to the moon. Ihave since found that the Brahmin was more right in his last argument, than I then believed possible. 

I am not able to say what effect these representations of the Brahminwould have produced, if they had not been taken up and enforced by thepolitical rival of him who had first opposed our departure; but by hispowerful aid they finally triumphed, and we obtained a formal permissionto leave the moon whenever, we thought proper. 

As we meant to return in the same machine in which we came, we were notlong in preparing for our voyage. We proposed to set out about themiddle of the night; and we passed the chief part of the interval inmaking visits of ceremony, and in calling on those who had shown uscivility. I endeavoured also, to collect such articles as I thoughtwould be most curious and rare in my own country, and most likely toproduce conviction with those who might be disposed to question the factof my voyage. I was obliged, however, to limit myself to such things aswere neither bulky nor weighty, the Brahmin thinking that after we hadtaken in our instruments and the necessary provisions, we could notsafely take more than twenty or thirty pounds in addition. 

Some of my lunar curiosities, which I thought would be most new andinteresting to my countrymen, have proved to be very familiar to our menof science. This has been most remarkably the case with my mineralspecimens. Of the leaves and flowers of above seventy plants, which Ibrought, more than forty are found on the earth, and several of thesegrow in my native State. With the insects I have been more successful;but some of these, as well as of the plants, I am assured, are found onthe coasts of the Pacific, or in the islands of that ocean; which fact, by the way, gives a farther support to the Brahmin's hypothesis. 

Besides the productions of nature that I have mentioned, I procured somespecimens of their cloth, a few light toys, a lady's turban decoratedwith cantharides, a pair of slippers with heavy metallic soles, whichare used there for walking in a strong wind, and by the dancing girls toprevent their jumping too high. As this metal, which gravitates to themoon, is repelled from the earth, these slippers assist the wearer herein springing from the ground as much as they impeded it in the moon, andtherefore I have lent them to Madame ----, of the New-York Theatre, whois thus enabled to astonish and delight the spectators with herwonderful lightness and agility. 

But there is nothing that I have brought which I prize so highly as afew of their manuscripts. The Lunarians write as we do, from left toright; but when their words consist of more than one syllable, all thesubsequent syllables are put over the first, so that what we call _longwords_, they call _high_ ones: which mode of writing makes them morestriking to the eye. This peculiarity has, perhaps, had some effect ingiving their writers a magniloquence of style, something like that whichso laudably characterises our Fourth of July Orations and FuneralPanegyrics: that composition being thought the finest in which the wordsstand highest. Another advantage of this mode of writing is, that theycan crowd more in a small page, so that a long discourse, if it is alsovery eloquent, may be compressed in a single page. I have left some ofthe manuscripts with the publisher of this work, for the gratificationof the public curiosity. 

Having taken either respectful or affectionate leave of all, and gotevery thing in readiness, on the 20th day of August, 1825, aboutmidnight we again entered our copper balloon, if I may so speak, androse from the moon with the same velocity as we had formerly ascendedfrom the earth. Though I experienced somewhat of my former sensations, when I again found myself off the solid ground, yet I soon regained myself-possession; and, animated with the hope of seeing my children andcountry, with the past success of our voyage, and (I will not disguiseit, ) with the distinction which I expected it would procure me from mycountrymen, I was in excellent spirits. The Brahmin exhibited the samemild equanimity as ever. 

As the course of our ascent was now less inclined from the vertical linethan before, in proportion as the motion of the moon on its axis, isslower than that of the earth, we for some hours could see the former, only by the light reflected from our planet; and although the objects onthe moon's surface were less distinct, they appeared yet more beautifulin my eyes than they had done in the glare of day. The difference, however, may be in part attributed to my being now in a better frame ofmind for enjoying the scene. As our distance increased, the face of themoon became of a lighter and more uniform tint, until at length itlooked like one vast lake of melted silver, with here and there smallpieces of greyish dross floating on it. After contemplating this lovelyand magnificent spectacle for about an hour, I turned to the Brahmin, and reminded him of his former promise to give me the history of hisearly life. He replied, "as you have seen all that you can see of themoon, and the objects of the earth are yet too indistinct to excite muchinterest, I am not likely to have a more suitable occasion;" and after ashort pause, he began in the way that the reader may see in thenext chapter. 

CHAPTER XVI. 

_The Brahmin gives Atterley a history of his life. _

"I have already informed you that I was born at Benares, which, as youknow, is a populous city on the banks of the Ganges, and the mostcelebrated seat of Hindoo science and literature. My father was a priestof Vishun, of a high rank; and as his functions required him to livewithin the precincts of the Pagoda, he was liberally maintained out ofits ample revenues. I was his only son, and according to the usage ofour country, was destined to the same holy calling. At an early age Iwas put under a private tutor, and then sent to one of the schoolsattached to the Pagoda. Upon what little matters, my dear Atterley, doour fortunes, and even our characters depend! Had I been sent to anotherschool, the whole destiny of my life would have been changed. 

"I was in my twelfth year when I entered this school, which containedfrom thirty to forty boys about my age. The cleverest of these was BaltyMahu, who, like myself, belonged to the higher order of Brahmins. Hetook the lead, not only in the exercises within the school, but in allthe sports and pastimes out of it. Nature, however, had not been equallykind to him in temper and disposition. He was restless, ambitious, proud, vindictive, and implacable. He could occasionally, too, practisecunning and deception; although anger and violence were more congenialto his nature. 

"It soon appeared that I was to be his rival in the school, and fromthat moment he cordially hated me. The praises that had previously beenlavished on him by the teacher, were now shared by me, and most of theboys secretly rejoiced to see his proud spirit humbled. In our sports Iwas also his successful competitor. Nature had given me an excellentconstitution; and though I had not a very robust frame, I could boast ofgreat agility and flexibility of limbs. When the sun had descendedbehind the mountain which screened our play-ground from his eveningrays, we commonly amused ourselves in foot-races, and other pastimes, ofwhich running was an important part. In this exercise I had no equal. Icould also jump higher and farther than any boy in school, except one, and that one was not Balty Mahu. 

"His ill-will was not slow in manifesting itself. He took every occasionof contradicting me: sometimes indulged in sly sneers at my expense, andnow and then even attempted to turn me into open ridicule. I alwaysreplied with spirit; but I found such contests as disagreeable to me asthey were new. One evening, under the pretext that I had purposelyjostled him in running, he struck me, and we fought. Although he wasprobably stronger than I, as he was heavier and older, my supplenessenabled me to get the better of him in a wrestle; and I got him underme, when the master, attracted by the shouts of the boys, made hisappearance. He separated and reproved us, and sent us off in disgrace toour respective rooms. From that time Balty Mahu treated me with moreoutward respect than before; but I believe he hated me with more rancourthan ever. 

"I had now become the general favourite of the boys. The school was, indeed, divided into parties, but mine was much the strongest; and ofthose who adhered to my rival, very few seemed cordially to dislike me. Though this state of things was very annoying to me, it provedadvantageous in one respect, as it made me more diligent in my studies, lest I should furnish my rival with an occasion of triumphing ever me;so that I owe a part of what I gained to the enmity of my rival. 

"When I had reached my sixteenth year, I was removed to the college inBenares. This is commonly a very interesting event in the life of ayouth, as it reminds him that he is drawing near the period of manhood, and leaves him more a master of his actions. But on the present occasionmy pleasure had two drawbacks: I could not but feel the contrast betweenthe warm and confiding attachment of my late school-fellows, and thecoldness and reserve of my new companions. Yet the most disagreeablecircumstance was, that I here met with my former rival, Balty Mahu. Hehad entered the college about a month before me, and, aware of myintention, had spared no pains, as I afterwards learnt, of prejudicingthe students against me. 

"After a few months, however, our relative standing was the same here asit had been at the school. I gradually overcame the prejudices of thestudents, and gained their good will, while he was always giving offenceby his meddlesome disposition and overbearing manners: yet his talentsand force of character always procured him a few followers, whom hemanaged as he pleased. Of their aid he made use to gratify hismalevolence towards me, for this feeling had grown with his growth, andnow seemed to be the master passion of his breast. I was able to tracethe result of their machinations every where. Sometimes it was intimatedto the teachers that I had been assisted in my exercises; at others, that I had infringed the college rules, or had put false reports incirculation, or had neglected some of the many ceremonies required byour religion. This was their favourite, as well as the most efficientmode of attack, as in these respects there was some colour for theiraccusation. 

"In my early childhood I had been spared, by the tenderest of mothers, from many of the ablutions practised by the Hindoos, under the beliefthat they would be injurious to my constitution, which, though healthy, had never been robust. A foundation was thus laid with me for habitualremissness in these ceremonies; and after I grew up, I persuaded myselfthat they were of less importance than they were deemed by mycountrymen. My chief delight had ever been in books; and although, whenengaged in active pursuits, I took a lively interest in them for thetime, I always returned to my first love with unabated ardour. 

"Some of these accusations, being utterly groundless, I was able todisprove; but the few that were true I endeavoured to excuse, and thus, by their admission, credit was procured for their most unfoundedcalumny. These petty transgressions, (for I cannot even now regard themas sins, ) industriously reported and artfully exaggerated, did melasting injury with all the most pious of our caste. The charitableportion, indeed, were merely estranged from me; but the more bigotedpart began to regard me with aversion and horror. 

"In one of our vacations, my father allowed me to visit a brother ofhis, who lived in the country, about thirty miles from Benares. My unclehad two sons, of nearly my own age, and several daughters. With theformer I rode, played chess, and engaged in such sports as are notforbidden to my profession; but my female cousins I seldom saw, as theyrarely left their Zenana, into which I was not permitted to enter. I wasof an age to be desirous of becoming better acquainted with my femalecousins, especially after I learnt that they then had as guests, a ladyand her daughter, who had come to pass some weeks here during theabsence of her husband, then employed in some public mission toCalcutta. But it was only now and then that I had been able to catch atransient and distant view of these females, during the first week aftermy arrival; and the little I saw, served but to increase my curiosity. Chance, however, soon afforded me the means of gratifying it. 

"An important festival in our calendar was now approaching, andpreparations were made to celebrate it in various modes, and, amongstothers, by a fight between a _royal_ tiger and an elephant. For severaldays all was bustle and confusion in my uncle's family. Howdahs, newlygilded and painted, were provided for the elephants--new caparisons forthe horses--new liveries for the attendants--cloth and silk, of therichest dyes and hues, united with a profusion of gold and silverornaments, to dazzle the eye with their varied splendour. This was oneof those exhibitions, which those who were intended for the priesthood, were prohibited from attending. I confess, when I witnessed these showyand costly preparations, and pictured to myself the magnificent scenefor which they were intended--those formidable animals contending inmortal conflict--the thousands of gaily dressed spectators, gazing inbreathless anxiety, --I repined at my lot, and regretted I had not beenborn in a condition which, though of less dignity, would not have cut meoff from some of the most exquisite pleasures of life. At length theimportant day arrived, and I found my mortification so acute, that Idetermined to withdraw myself, as much as I could, from a scene that Icould not witness without pain. Among my acquirements at college, was aknowledge of your language; and I had now begun to take the liveliestinterest in its beautiful fictions, which I greatly preferred to ours, as being more true to nature, and as exhibiting women in characters atonce lovely, pure, and elevated. I was then reading "The Vicar ofWakefield, " and had reached the middle of that interesting tale, on themorning of the festival, when my tranquillity was interrupted in the wayI have mentioned. Accordingly, taking my book and English dictionary, Iretired to a small summer-house at the foot of the garden, anddetermined to remain there till the cavalcade had set out. It was sometime before I could fix my attention on what I read; but after a while, the interest the book had previously excited returned, and I became atlength so engrossed by the incidents of the story, as to forget thefestival, the procession, the tiger, and the elephant, as much as ifthey had never before entered my head. 

"After some hours passed in this intellectual banquet, I waked from myday dream, and I thought again of the spectacle with a feeling borderingon indifference. I walked towards the house, where all appeared to bestill and silent as a desert. I entered it, and of the forty or fiftymenials belonging to it, not one was to be seen. Those who were not inattendance on the family, had sought some respite from their ordinarylabours. The Zenana then caught my eye, and I felt irresistibly impelledto enter it. I used great caution, however, looking around me in everydirection as I proceeded there. I found the same silence and desertionas in the other parts of the mansion. I passed through a sitting-roominto a long gallery, with which the bed-chambers of the ladiescommunicated. The doors were all open, and the whole interior of theirapartments exhibited so strange a medley of unseemly objects, and suchutter disorder, as materially to affect my opinion of female delicacy, and to damp my desire of becoming acquainted with my cousins. I passedon, with a feeling of disappointment bordering on disgust, when I cameto a room which went far to redeem the character of the sex in myestimation. Here all was neatness and propriety: every thing was eitherin place, or only enough out of it to indicate the recent occupation ofthe room, or to show the taste or talent of the occupant; such as a bookleft half open at one end of an ottoman, and a piece of embroidery atthe other. The flowers too, which decorated the room, showed by theirfreshness that they had not long left their beds. I could not helpstopping to survey a scene which accorded so well with my previousnotions of female refinement. At the end of the gallery was a veranda, facing the east, and surrounded by lattices. In this were a number offlower-pots, arranged with the same air of neatness and taste as hadbeen conspicuous in the chamber. I entered it, for the purpose oflooking into the flower-garden, with which it communicated; and onapproaching the lattice, I saw, seated in an alcove not far from theveranda, a face and form that struck me as being the most beautiful Ihad ever beheld. I remained for some time riveted to the spot, but soonfound myself irresistibly impelled to get a nearer view of the lovelyobject. With as light a step and as little noise as possible, Idescended into the garden from the veranda, and approaching the alcoveon the side where its foliage was thickest, I found that the beauty, ofwhich I had before thought so highly, did not appear less on a closersurvey. The vision on which I gazed in silent rapture, a maiden, who, though she had apparently attained her full stature, did not seem to bemore than thirteen or fourteen years of age. Her eyes had the brightnessand fulness of the antelope's, but, owing to their long silken lashes, were yet more expressive of softness than of spirit; and at this timethey evinced more than usual languor. She was in a rich undress, and wasapparently an invalid. Her long raven locks hung with careless grace, partly behind, and partly over, a neck that might have served as a modelfor the sculptor. She was looking wistfully on a bunch of flowers in herhand, which I felt pleasure in recognising to be the same I had seen onthe piece of embroidery. I feared to advance, lest I should giveoffence; but I felt also unable to retreat. I fancied I saw one of thoselovely and dignified females which the writers in your language describeso well. But a sudden movement of the fair damsel to get up, bringing mefull in her view, she started back with alarm and surprise, and in amoment afterwards her cheek, which had been before pale, almost toEuropean whiteness, was deeply suffused. I respectfully approached her, and inquired if she was one of my cousins. She answered in the negative;said she was on a visit to the family, to whom she was related: addedthat she had not expected to see any one in the garden; but this wassaid as if she meant rather to apologise for her undress, than toreproach me for my intrusion. These remarks were uttered with apropriety and sweetness that won upon me yet more than her beauty. Ithen, in return, assured her that I had not supposed any of the familyhad remained at home, when I strolled to this part of the mansion. Ibegged she would not regard me with the formality of a stranger; andinsisted that, as she was the cousin of my relation, she was also mine. To this ingenious argument she answered with so much good sense, and atthe same time, so much gentleness and artlessness, that I thought Icould have listened to her for ever. While I spoke, she continued tomove on. I entreated to know if she was satisfied with my apology;repeated that I had not meant to intrude on her privacy. She mildlyreplied that she was. I then asked permission to call her cousin. Shesaid she should not object, if it would gave me pleasure. It was, mydear Atterley, her ineffable sweetness of disposition, and of manners soentirely free from pride, coquetry, or affectation, in which this lovelycreature excelled all other women, yet more than in beauty and grace. Ithen inquired when I should again see my lovely cousin. She replied, "Iwalk in the great garden sometimes with my companions, when theirbrothers are away; but the girls will not think it proper to walk whenyou are there. " Perceiving that I looked chagrined, she added: "It issaid, you know, that the light from mens' eyes is yet worse for womens'faces than the light of the sun;" and she blushed as if she had saidsomething wrong. I stammered out I know not what extravagant complimentin reply, and entreated that I might have an opportunity of seeing andconversing with her sometimes: to which she promptly answered that sheshould not object, if her mother approved it. I inquired why she had notattended the exhibition; when I learnt from her, that, as she had beenslightly indisposed the day before, and her mother being unwilling sheshould expose herself to the heat of the weather and the crowd, she hadbeen left under the care of her nurse; but that finding herself better, she had permitted her attendants to walk over the grounds, while sheamused herself in embroidery; and that she had come into the garden toget a fresh supply of the flowers she was working. 

"She had by this time approached a small gate, which communicated withthe apartments on the ground-floor of the Zenana; when, turning to me, she said, "You can return the way you came, but I must leave you here;"and, making a slight bow, she sprung like a young fawn through the gate, and was out of sight in a moment. 

"You may wonder, my dear Atterley, that I should remember all theseminute circumstances, after the lapse of more than forty years; butevery incident of that day is as fresh in my memory as the occurrence ofyesterday. To this single green spot in my existence, my mind is nevertired of returning. 

"I continued for some time in a sort of dreaming ecstasy; but as soon asI collected my thoughts, I began to devise some scheme by which I couldagain have the happiness of seeing and conversing with the lovelyVeenah. My brain had before that time teemed with ambitious projects ofdistinguishing myself; sometimes as a priest--sometimes as a writer; andoccasionally I thought I would bend all my efforts to rouse mycountrymen to throw off the ignominious yoke of Great Britain. But thisshort interview had changed the whole current of my thoughts. I had nowa new set of feelings, opinions, and wishes. My mind dwelt solely uponthe pleasures of domestic life--the surpassing bliss of loving and ofbeing beloved. 

"When the cavalcade returned in the evening, its gaudy magnificence, which I would not permit myself even to see in the morning, I nowregarded with cold indifference; nay, more, I congratulated myself onhaving missed the exhibition, though a few hours before I had deemedthis privation one of the misfortunes of my life. 

"The next day I went to the garden betimes; and as it communicated withthe shrubbery and grounds attached to the Zenana, and the males of thefamily occasionally entered it when the ladies were not present, Iprevailed on the gardener to grant me admission, under the pretext ofgathering some uncommonly fine mangoes, which were then ripe. I went tothe several spots where I had first seen Veenah--where I had conversedwith her--where I had parted from her; and they each had some secret andindescribable charm for me. I fear, Atterley, I fatigue you. Thefeelings of which I speak, are fully known only to the natives of warmclimates, and to those but once in their lives. "

I assured him that he was mistaken; that the emotions he described, werethe same in all countries, and at all times, and begged him to proceed. 

"I repeated my visit, " he continued, "several times the same day, underany pretext I could invent--to gather an orange, or other fruit--topluck a rose--to frighten away mischievous birds--to catch theunobstructed breeze, or sit in a cooler shade; in which artifices Iplayed a part that had before been foreign to my nature. I wasdisappointed, however, in my wishes. I thought, indeed, I once saw someone in the veranda, looking through the lattice into the garden, but thefigure soon disappeared. 

"On the following day I had the satisfaction to hear my young companionspropose to go on a fishing party, an amusement in which, by the rules ofmy caste, I was not allowed to partake. They had scarcely left the housebefore I flew to the garden with a book in my hand, and passing asbefore to the shrubbery, I buried myself in a close thicket at one endof it. I remained there from the morning till late in the afternoon, without refreshment of any kind; and such was the intensity of myemotion, that I did not feel the want of it. At length, a little beforesunset, I saw Veenah and her three cousins enter the garden. I sooncontrived to show myself, with my book in my hand. I approached, bowedto them all, but to Veenah last; and although my cousins showed surpriseat seeing me in their garden, at this time, they did not seemdispleased. I felt very desirous, I could not tell why, to conceal myfeelings from every person except her who was the object of them. Iforced a conversation with my two eldest cousins, who were modestpleasing girls, and then with an embarrassed air addressed a few wordsto Veenah and her companion, the youngest of my cousins. Occasionally Iwould stray off from them as if I was about to leave them, and thensuddenly return. In one of these movements, I perceived that Veenah andher associate had separated from the others, and strolled to a distantpart of the garden. I soon joined them as if it were by accident, entered into conversation with them alternately, and of course only onehalf of that which I either heard or said proceeded from the heart orfound its way thither. I know not if Veenah expected to see me, but shewas dressed with unusual care. We had not been conversing many minutesbefore the eldest sister beckoning to them, they bid me good night andreturned to the house. 

"To the same sort of management I had recourse every day, and seldomfailed to see and converse with Veenah, sometimes in company with allher cousins, but oftener with Fatima, the youngest. By dividing myattentions among them all, I succeeded for a while in concealing fromthem the object of my preference; but the sex are too sharp-sighted tobe long deceived in these matters. As soon as I perceived that my secretwas discovered, I endeavoured to make a friend of Fatima, in which I wassuccessful. After this our meetings were more frequent, and what was ofgreater importance, they were uninterrupted. Fatima, who was one of themost generous and amiable girls in the world, would often take Veenahout to walk, when her sisters were otherwise engaged; at which times shewas perpetually contriving, under some little pretext, to leave usalone. We were not long in understanding each other; and when I urgedour early marriage, she ingenuously replied, that I had her consentwhenever I had her father's, and that she hoped I could obtain that; butadded, (and she trembled while she spoke) she did not know his viewsrespecting her. In the first raptures of requited affection, what loverthinks of difficulties? In obtaining Veenah's heart I believed that allmine were at an end, and my time was passed in one dream of unmixeddelight. Oh! what happiness I enjoyed in these interviews--in seeingVeenah--in gazing on her lovely features--in listening to hersentiments, that were sometimes gay and thoughtless, sometimes seriousand melancholy, but always tender and affectionate, --and now and then, when not perceived, in venturing to take her hand. These fleeting joysare ever recurring to my imagination, to show me what my lot might havebeen, and to contrast it with its sad reverse!

"The time now approached for Veenah and her mother to return to Benares. On the evening before they set out, Fatima contrived for us a longerinterview than usual. It was as melancholy as it was tender. But in themidst of my grief, at the prospect of our separation, I recollected thatwe were soon to meet again in the city; while Veenah's tears, for shedid not attempt to disguise or suppress her feelings, seemed already toforebode that our happiness was here to terminate. 

"When about to part, we exchanged amaranths I took her hand to bid heradieu, and, without seeming to intend it, our lips met, and the firstkiss of love was moistened with a tear. Pardon me, Atterley, nature willhave her way. "--And here the venerable man wept aloud. 

I availed myself of this interruption to the narrative, to propose to myvenerable friend to take some refreshment. Having partaken of a frugalrepast, and invigorated ourselves, each with about four hours sleep, theBrahmin thus resumed his story. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

_The Brahmin's story continued--The voyage concluded--Atterley and theBrahmin separate--Atterley arrives in New--York. _

"I was not slow to follow Veenah to the city, and as had been agreedupon, had to ask the consent of her father to our union, as soon as Ihad obtained the approbation of my own. Here I met with a difficultywhich I had not expected. My partial father had formed very high hopesof my future advancement, and thought that an early marriage, though notincompatible with my profession, or a successful discharge of itsduties, would put an end to my ambition, or at all events, lessen myexertions. He first urged me to postpone my wishes, till I had completedmy college course, and had by travelling seen something of the world. But finding me immoveable on this point, he then suggested that I mightmeet with serious obstacles from Veenah's father, whom he represented asremarkable both for his avarice and his bigotry; that consequently hewas likely to dispose of his daughter to the son-in-law who could paymost liberally for her; and that the imputations which had been cast onmy religious creed, would reach his ears, if they had not already doneso, and be sure to prejudice him against me. 

"These last considerations prevailed on me to defer my application toShunah Shoo, until the suspicions regarding my faith had either diedaway, or been falsified by my scrupulous observance of all religiousduties. My excellent mother, who at first had entered into my feelingsand seconded my views, readily acquiesced in the good sense of myfather's advice. 

"My next object was to communicate this to Veenah. I accordingly satdown, and wrote a full account of all that had occurred, and folding upthe packet, hurried to the opposite quarter of the town where ShunahShoo lived. It was then in the dusk of the evening, and I was fearful itwas too late for me to be recognised; but after I had taken two or threeturns in the street, I saw the white amaranth I had given Veenah, suspended by a thread from the lattice of an upper window. I immediatelyheld up the packet, and soon afterwards a cord was let down from thesame lattice to the ground. To this I hastily fastened the paper, andpassed on to avoid observation. The next evening you may be sure I wasat the same spot. The little amaranth again announced that I wasrecognised; and as soon as we were satisfied that no one was observingus, the cord let down one letter and took up another. Veenah's pen hadgiven an expression to her feelings, that her tongue had never venturedto do before. She moreover commended my course--besought me to beprudent--and above all, to do nothing to offend her father. 

"The first letter which a lover receives from his mistress, is a new erain his life. Again and again I kissed the precious paper, and almostwore it out in my bosom. We afterwards improved in this mode ofintercourse, and, by various preconcerted signals, were able to carry onour correspondence altogether in the night. Not a day passed that we didnot exchange letters, which, though they contained few facts, and alwaysexpressed the same sentiments, still repeated what we were never tiredof hearing. To the moment at which I was to receive a letter fromVeenah, my thoughts were continually and anxiously turned: and it nowseems to me as if our passion was inflamed yet more by this sort ofintercourse, than by our personal interviews. I am convinced it wroughtmore powerfully upon our imaginations. In the mean time I continued mydaily attendance at college, though my studies were utterly neglected, one single object absorbing all my thoughts and feelings. 

"I know not whether the evident change in my habits induced my oldenemy, Balty Mahu, to observe my motions. But so it was, that onemoonlight night I thought I was watched by some person; and on thefollowing night an individual of the same figure, and whom I nowsuspected to be Balty Mahu, came suddenly from a cross street, andpassed near me. A few evenings afterwards, instead of a letter, Ireceived a scrap of paper from Veenah, on which was written thefollowing words:--

"We are discovered. Balty Mahu, who is my relative and your enemy, hasbeen here. He has persuaded my father that you are an unbeliever. I amdenied pen and ink. If you cannot convince my father of his error, O!pity, and try to forget, your unhappy VEENAH. "

"This writing was indistinctly traced with a burnt stick, on a blankleaf torn out of a book. In the first moment of indignation, I feltdisposed to seek Balty Mahu, the great enemy of my life, and wreak myvengeance on him for all his persecutions; but the conviction that sucha course would extinguish the last spark of hope, restrained me. I thendetermined to see Shunah Shoo, and endeavour to remove his prejudices. Iaccordingly called on him at his own house: but after he had heard myvindication, (to which he evidently gave no credit, ) he coolly told methat he meant to dispose of his daughter in another way. The words felllike ice upon my heart. I expostulated; and, offensive as was hishaughty air, even had recourse to entreaty. But he, in a yet harshermanner, told me that he must be permitted to manage his own affairs inhis own way; and added, that he did not wish to be longer prevented fromattending to them. I was compelled to retire, with my heart almost asfull of hatred for the father, as of love for the child. 

"On the same night, I again betook myself to the street in which ShunahShoo lived, but not by the ordinary route. I cautiously approached hishouse. All was stillness and quiet: no light appeared to be burning inVeenah's room, nor indeed in any other part of the house. I henceconcluded that they had now deprived her of light, as well as of pen andink. I continued in the street until near morning, straining my eyes andears in the hope of catching something that would give me intelligenceconcerning her. Often, in the course of that painful suspense, did Ifancy I heard a noise at the lattice in Veenah's apartment, or in someother part of the mansion; and once I persuaded myself I saw a light:but these illusions served only to aggravate my disappointment. The nextmorning, before I had left my room, my father informed me that ShunahShoo, with his family, had left Benares early the preceding evening; butwhither they had gone, he had not learnt. 

"I rose, and immediately set about discovering their course; but all Icould learn was, that they had embarked in one of the passage-boatswhich ply on the Ganges, and that Shunah had taken his palanquins andmany of his servants with him: and, as Balty Mahu had suddenly absentedhimself from college at the same time, I did not doubt that he had aidedin executing the plan which he had also probably formed. My father, whosaw what I suffered, spared no pains to discover the place of theirretreat; but our endeavours were all ineffectual. 

"At the end of three months, in which time my anxiety increased ratherthan diminished, the mystery was dispelled. It was now trumpeted throughthe city, that Shunah Shoo had returned to Benares in great pomp, accompanied by a wealthy Omrah of a neighbouring district, to whom hehad given, or rather sold, his daughter. The news came upon me like aclap of thunder. My previous state of suspense was happiness comparedwith what I now felt, when I knew she was in the arms of another. In thefirst transports of my grief and rage, I could have freely put to deaththe father, daughter, husband, and myself. I was particularly desirousof seeing Veenah, and venting on her the bitterest reproaches. Unjustthat I was! Her sufferings were not inferior to mine; but she had not, like me, the privilege of making them known. I soon found thatHircarrahs, in the pay of Balty Mahu, watched all my motions; and if Ihad attempted any scheme of vengeance, its execution would have beenimpracticable. 

"After my first transports had subsided into deep and settled grief, mylove and tenderness for Veenah returned in full force. I endeavoured toget a sight of her, and thought I should be comparatively happy if Icould converse with her, as formerly, though she was the wife ofanother. After a short time, my uncle's family came to Benares, on avisit to my father and to Shunah Shoo. By the aid of my indulgentmother, who was seriously alarmed for what she saw I suffered, I wasable to see Fatima, and to make her the bearer of a letter to Veenah, complaining of her breach of faith, and soliciting an interview. Sheverbally replied to it through Fatima; and stated, in her justification, that she was hurried from Benares to a town on the river, whence she wasrapidly transported to the castle of Omrah, who had not long before losthis wife, and who was more than four times her age. That notwithstandingthe notions of filial obedience in which she had been brought up, andthe severity with which her father had ever exercised his authority, shehad resisted his commands on this occasion, and would have preferreddeath to marrying the Omrah--nay, would have inflicted it on herself;but that finding her unyielding after all their exertions, they hadeffected their purpose by a deception which they had practised on her, wherein it seemed that I had unconsciously concurred; for, by means ofan intercepted letter of mine to Fatima, in which, hopeless of learningthe place of Veenah's retreat, I had expressed an intention of visitingEngland; and, by the farther aid of some dexterous forgeries, calculatedto impose on more experienced minds than hers, they succeeded inpersuading her that I had actually set out for Europe, with an intentionof never returning. That entertaining no doubt of this intelligence--hopeless of ever seeing me again, and indifferent to everything besides, she had been led an unresisting victim to the altar. 

"Such was the vindication which she considered it just to make me. Butall the entreaties of Fatima--all my letters, impassioned as they were, appealing at once to her generosity, humanity, and love, --could notprevail on her to grant me an interview. 

"'Tell him, ' said she, 'that heaven has forbid it, and to its decrees weare bound to submit. I am now the wife of another, and it is our duty toforget all that is past. But if this be possible, my heart tells me itcan be only by our never meeting!'

"In saying this, she wept bitterly; but at the same time exacted apromise from Fatima, that she would never mention the subject to heragain. Finding her thus inexorable, I fell into a settled melancholy, and my health was visibly declining. The Europeans consider the nativesof Hindostan to be feeble and effeminate; but the soul, that whichdistinguishes man from brutes, acts with an intensity and constancy ofpurpose of which they can furnish no examples. 

"How long I could have withstood the corrosive effects of my hopelesspassion, irritated as it was by my being in the vicinity of itsobject--by hearing perpetually of her beauty, and sometimes catching aglimpse of it, --I know not; but the Omrah, after a few months spent withhis father-in-law, returned with his bride to his castle in the country. Yielding now to the wishes of my anxious parents, I consented to travel. I was at first benefited by the exercise and change of scene; but aftera while, my melancholy returned, and my health grew worse. Thoughindifferent to life itself, and all that it now promised, I exertedmyself for the sake of my parents, especially of my mother, who sufferedso acutely on my account: but I carried a barbed arrow in my heart, andthe greater the efforts to extract it, the more they rankled the wound. 

"After spending more than a year in travelling, first through themountainous district of our country, and then along the coast, andfinding no change for the better, I determined to try the effect of asea voyage. I accordingly embarked at Calcutta, in a coasting vesselthat was bound to Madras. At this time I had wasted away to a mereskeleton, and no one who saw me, believed I could live a month. Such, indeed, were my own impressions. In the letter which I wrote to myparents, I endeavoured to prepare them for the worst. When, after a longvoyage, we reached Madras, my health was evidently improved; but a pieceof intelligence I here received, had perhaps a still greater effect Ilearnt that Balty Mahu, who had kept himself concealed from me before Ileft Benares, had lately visited Madras, on a travelling tour. This newsoperated on me like a charm. The idea of avenging myself on the authorof all my calamities, infused new life into my exhausted frame, and fromthe moment that I determined to pursue him, I felt like another man. 

"You must not, however, suppose that I even then entertained the purposeof taking away my enemy's life. No, I could not bring my mind exactly tothat; but I had a vague, undefined hope, that if we met, some newprovocation on his part would afford me just occasion for avengingmyself on all; so ingenious, my dear friend, is the sophistry ofthe passions. 

"I lost no time in setting out on the track of Balty Mahu, and, ere manydays, overtook him at a small town which he had left just as I enteredit, but not before he had received, through his servant, notice of myarrival. My wary enemy, who had little expected to see me here, and whohad travelled as much to keep out of my way as to see the country, conjectured my purpose, from the consciousness of what he had done toprovoke it. Thus, while we both appeared to others to be merely making atour of Hindostan, it was soon known to both of us, that my chiefpurpose was to pursue him, and his to elude my pursuit. In the ardour, as well as exercise of the chase, my health mended rapidly, but I was nonearer the object of my pursuit; for, although I travelled somewhatfaster than Bally Mahu, as he wished to avoid the appearance of flyingfrom me, he sometimes contrived to put me on a wrong track. In this wayI was once led to travel towards the coast, while he proceeded in anopposite direction to Benares, where he considered he would be most safefrom my vengeance, and where the restraints both of religion and lawwould be more likely to operate on me than in a foreign district. 

"My usual practice, on arriving at any town, was to endeavour to learnif Balty Mahu had passed through it; if so, when and in what direction;and to get the information, if possible, without seeming to seek it. Onone of these occasions, I heard from a party of merchants that the OmrahAddaway, whose health had been declining for some time, had gone toBenares, for the benefit of medical advice; that his disease, however, had become more serious; and that it was generally thought it would soonoccasion his death. What a train of new thoughts, hopes, and desires, did this intelligence excite in me! At first, influenced by the customof my country, which prohibits widows from marrying again, I thoughtonly of the pleasure of Veenah's society, which I should, of course, bepermitted to enjoy, when duty no longer forbade it; but my imaginationkindling in its course, I soon pictured her to myself as my wife. Theusages which stood in the way of our union, appeared to me barbarous andabsurd, and I thought that, banishment from my country, with Veenah, would be infinitely better than any other condition of life without her. These new-born visions so entirely absorbed me, that Balty Mahu wasentirely forgotten, or remembered only as we think of an insect whichhad stung us an hour before. I travelled on at a yet more rapid ratethan I had done; and, without stopping on the road to make inquiries, Iheard enough to satisfy me that the Omrah could not long survive. Whenwithin something more than ten leagues of Benares, I called, abouttwilight, at a small inn, and meant, after refreshing myself with a fewhours' rest, to proceed on my journey. Two travellers were there, whohad just left Benares, and had taken up their quarters for the night. They soon fell into conversation about the place they had left, when themention of Shunah Shoo's name excited my attention. 

"'What a shame, ' said one, 'that he should have sacrificed thatbeautiful young creature to the rich old Omrah, when she had so good anoffer as Gurameer, the Brahmin Gafawad's only son. '

"'And is it not strange, ' said the other, 'that a woman so young andbeautiful, should be content to follow to the grave one who is oldenough to be her grandfather, and whom she once loathed? But I supposethat that old miser, Shunah Shoo, is at the bottom of it; and, as hedeprived her of the man she loved, he has compelled her to sacrificeherself to the one she hates, that he may have her jewels and wealth. '

"'For that matter, ' said the first, 'though Shunah Shoo is bad enoughfor any thing where money is in the way, yet it is said that Veenah goesto the funeral pile of her own accord. She has never seemed to set anyvalue on life since her marriage; and after she heard of Gurameer'sdeath, she has never been seen to smile. Poor young man!'--And here theylaunched out into a strain of panegyric, which is often bestowed on thedead; but I heeded only the first part of their discourse. Had it notbeen nearly dark, they must have discovered the force of the feelingswhich then agitated me. I trembled from head to foot, and, thoughburning with impatience to obtain from them farther particulars, it wassome moments before I could trust myself to speak. At length I askedthem when the Suttee would take place; and was answered by one of them, that it would certainly be performed on the following day; and that hehad seen the funeral pile himself. Without any farther delay, I set outimmediately for the city, and reached it in as short a time as a jadedhorse could carry me. 

"I came in sight of Benares the next morning, from a hill whichoverlooks it from the east. The sun was just rising, and pouring a floodof light ever the city, the river, and the surrounding country. Neverwas contrast greater than between my present feelings, and those whichthe same spectacle had formerly excited. I now sickened at the prospect, which once would have set my heart bounding with joy. I pressed on indesperate haste, scarcely, however, knowing what I did, being at onceoverpowered with fatigue, loss of sleep, and harassing emotions. I stillhad to travel a circuitous course of some two or three miles; and when Ireached the city, its crowded population was already in motion: a greatmultitude of women, of the lower order, with alarm and expectationstrongly depicted in their faces, were to be seen mingling in the crowd, and pressing on in the same direction. I would have proceededimmediately to my father's house, but for the fear of being too late. Alighting, therefore, from my horse, I gave him in charge to my servant, whom I sent to inform my parents of my arrival, and to request my fatherto meet me at the Suttee. I then joined the mixed multitude, which nowthronged the streets. Occupied, as my thoughts were, with the scene Iwas about to witness, and with fears for its issue, they were ofteninterrupted with remarks made in the crowd, in which Veenah's name ormine were mentioned--some lamenting her cruel fate, others pitying mine;but all condemning and execrating Shunah Shoo. Fortunately I was notrecognised by any whom I saw. When we reached the spot selected for thesacrifice, the crowd that had there assembled, was not so great as toprevent our getting near the funeral pile; but the numbers continued toaugment, until nothing could be seen from the slight eminence on which Istood, but one dense mass of heads, all looking one way, and expressingthe intense interest they felt. At length a murmur, like that of distantthunder, ran through the crowd: a passage was, with some difficulty, effected through the multitude by the officers in attendance, and thewretched Veenah made her appearance, supported by her own father on oneside, and an uncle on the other--pale enough to be taken for anEuropean--emaciated indeed, but still retaining the same exquisite beautyof features and symmetry of form. She moved with the air of one who wasutterly indifferent to the concerns of this world, and to the awful fatewhich awaited her. She turned her head on hearing the sound of my voice, and, seeing me, shrieked out, "He lives! he lives!" but immediatelyafterwards fainted in the arms of her supporters: at the same moment Iwas forcibly held back by some of the attendants, and a number of thebystanders rushed in between us, and intercepted my view. I heard myname now repeated in every direction by the multitude--some calling outto the priests to desist, and others to proceed. I struggled toextricate myself, and passion lent me momentary strength; but it wasinsufficient. After a short interval, I distinctly heard Veenahimploring them to spare her. I called to the Brahmins who held her, toleave her to herself. I endeavoured to rouse the multitude; but theytook the precaution to drown our voices, by the musical instrumentswhich are used on these occasions. Four of these monsters I sawprofaning the name of religion, by forcibly placing their victim on thepile, under the show of assisting her to mount it; and there held herdown, beside the dead body of her husband, until, by cords provided forthe purpose, she was prevented from rising. I besought--I threatened--Iraved;--but all thoughts and minds were engrossed by the premature fateof one so young and beautiful, and I was unheeded. 

"Among the relatives who pressed around the funeral pile, I saw BaltyMahu; and indignation for a moment got the better of grief. The pile wasnow lighted, and in a moment all was hidden in smoke. I sickened at thesight, and was obliged to turn away. Even then I heard, or thought Iheard, the dying shrieks of the victim, amid the groans and cries, andthe thousand shouts that rent the air! The pile and its contents beingnow enveloped in flame, my keepers set me free, when, by an impulse offrenzy, I rushed' to the pile, to make a last vain effort to rescueVeenah, or to share her fate; but was stopped by some of the bystanders, who called my act a profanation. 

"'Yes, ' said Balty Mahu, 'he has always been a scoffer of our religion. 'As soon as these words reached my ears, with the quickness of thought Isnatched a cimeter from the hands of one of the guards, and plunged itin his breast. Of all that happened afterwards, my recollection is veryconfused. I was rudely seized, and hurried to prison. My father wascoming to meet me, when he was informed of the fatal deed. I rememberthat my coolness, or rather stupor, was in strong contrast with theviolence of his emotion. He accompanied me to prison, and continued withme that night. 

"It is not easy to take the life of one of my caste in India; and, bydint of the exertions of my friends, in spite of the influence of ShunahShoo, and the family of the Omrah, I was pardoned, on condition of doingpenance, which was, that I should never live in a country in which thereligion of Brahmin prevailed, and should not again look at, or conversewith, any woman for two minutes together. Ere this took place, myexcellent mother, unable to withstand the shocks she had received frommy supposed death, my misfortunes, and my crime, died a martyr tomaternal affection. Wishing to conform to the sentence, and to be asnear my father as I could, I removed to the kingdom of Ava, where, youknow, they are followers of Buddha. Here I continued as long as myfather lived, which was about six years. In this period, time had soalleviated my grief, that I began to take pleasure in the cultivation ofscience, which constituted my chief employment. 

"After my father's death, I indulged a curiosity I had felt in my youth, of seeing foreign countries; and I visited China, Japan, and England. During my residence in Asia, I had discovered lunarium ore in themountain near Mogaun; and this circumstance, many years afterwards, whenI determined to rest from my labours, induced me to settle in thatmountain, as I have before stated. I have occasionally used the metal tocounterbalance the gravity of a small car, by which I have profited, bya favourable wind, to indulge the melancholy satisfaction of lookingdown on the tombs of my parents, and of the ill-fated Veenah:approaching the earth near enough, in the night, to see the sacredspots, but not enough to violate the religious injunctions of my caste;to avoid which, however, it was sometimes necessary for me to go acrossHindostan to Arabia or Persia, and there wait for a change of windbefore I could return: and it was these excursions which suggested tothe superstitious Burmans that my form had undergone a temporarytransformation. When such have been the woes of my life, you can nolonger think it strange, Atterley, that I delayed their painful recital;or that, after having endured so much, all common dangers andmisfortunes should appear to me insignificant. "

 * * * * *

The venerable Brahmin here concluded his narrative, and we both remainedthoughtful and silent for some time; he, apparently absorbed in therecollections of his eventful life; and I, partly in the reflectionsawakened by his story, and partly in the intense interest of revisitingmy native earth, and beholding once more all who were dear to me. Already the extended map beneath us was assuming a distinct and variedappearance; and the Brahmin, having applied his eye to the telescope, and made a brief calculation of our progress, considered thattwenty-four hours more, if no accident interrupted us, would end ourvoyage; part of which interval I passed in making notes in my journal, and in contemplating the different sections of our many-peopled globe, as they presented themselves successively to the eye. It was my wish toland on the American continent, and, if possible, in the United States. But the Brahmin put an end to that hope, by reminding me that we shouldbe attracted towards the Equator, and that we had to choose betweenAsia, Africa, and South America; and that our only course would be, tocheck the progress of our car over the country of greatest extent, through which the equinoctial circle might pass. Saying which, herelapsed into his melancholy silence, and I betook myself once more tothe telescope. With a bosom throbbing with emotion, I saw that we weredescending towards the American continent. When we were about ten ortwelve miles from the earth, the Brahmin arrested the progress of thecar, and we hovered over the broad Atlantic. Looking down on the ocean, the first object which presented itself to my eye, was a smallone-masted shallop, which was buffeting the waves in a south-westerlydirection. I presumed it was a New England trader, on a voyage to somepart of the Republic of Colombia: and, by way of diverting my friendfrom his melancholy reverie, I told him some of the many stories whichare current respecting the enterprise and ingenuity of this portion ofmy countrymen, and above all, their adroitness at a bargain. 

"Methinks, " says the Brahmin, "you are describing a native of Canton orPekin. But, " added he, after a short pause, "though to a superficialobserver man appears to put on very different characters, to aphilosopher he is every where the same--for he is every where moulded bythe circumstances in which he is placed. Thus; let him be in a situationthat is propitious to commerce, and the habits of traffic produce in himshrewdness and address. Trade is carried on chiefly in towns, because itis there carried on most advantageously. This situation gives the tradera more intimate knowledge of his species--a more ready insight intocharacter, and of the modes of operating on it. His chief purpose is tobuy as cheap, and to sell as dear, as he can; and he is often able toheighten the recommendations or soften the defects of some of thearticles in which he deals, without danger of immediate detection; or, in other words, his representations have some influence with hiscustomers. He avails himself of this circumstance, and thus acquires thehabit of lying; but, as he is studious to conceal it, he becomes wary, ingenious, and cunning. It is thus that the Phenicians, theCarthagenians, the Dutch, the Chinese, the New-Englanders, and themodern Greeks, have always been regarded as inclined to petty frauds bytheir less commercial neighbours. " I mentioned the English nation. 

"If the English, " said he, interrupting me, "who are the most commercialpeople of modern times, have not acquired the same character, it isbecause they are as distinguished for other things as for traffic: theyare not merely a commercial people--they are also agricultural, warlike, and literary; and thus the natural tendencies of commerce are mutuallycounteracted. "

We afterwards descended slowly; the prospect beneath us becoming morebeautiful than my humble pen can hope to describe, or will even attemptto portray. In a short time after, we were in sight of Venezuela. We metwith the trade-winds, and were carried by them forty or fifty milesinland, where, with some difficulty, and even danger, we landed. TheBrahmin and myself remained together two days, and parted--he to explorethe Andes, to obtain additional light on the subject of his hypothesis, and I, on the wings of impatience, to visit once more my long-desertedfamily and friends. But before our separation, I assisted my friend inconcealing our aerial vessel, and received a promise from him to visit, and perhaps spend with me the evening of his life. Of my journey home, little remains to be said. From the citizens of Colombia, I experiencedkindness and attention, and means of conveyance to Caraccas; where, embarking on board the brig Juno, captain Withers, I once more set footin New York, on the 18th of August, 1826, after an absence of fouryears, resolved, for the rest of my life, to travel only in books, andpersuaded, from experience, that the satisfaction which the wanderergains from actually beholding the wonders and curiosities of distantclimes, is dearly bought by the sacrifice of all the comforts anddelights of home. 

THE END. 

 * * * * *

APPENDIX

Anonymous Review of _A Voyage to the Moon_

Reprinted from the American Quarterly Review No. 5 (March 1828), 61-88. 

ART. III. --_A Voyage to the Moon: with some account of the Mannersand Customs, Science and Philosophy, of the People of Morosofia andother Lunarians_: By JOSEPH ATTERLEY. New-York: Elam Bliss, 1827. 12mo. Pp. 264. 

It is somewhat remarkable, that perhaps the _only_ "Voyages tothe Moon, " which have been published in the English tongue, shouldhave been the productions of English bishops:--the first forming atract, re-published in the Harleian Miscellany, and said to have beenwritten by Dr. Francis Goodwin, Bishop of Landaff, (who died in 1633, )and entitled "_The Man in the Moon, or the discourse of a voyagethither_, by Domingo Gonsales, "--and the second written in 1638, byDr. John Wilkins, Bishop of Chester, under the title of "_TheDiscovery of a New World, or a Discourse tending to prove, that 'tisprobable there may be another habitable world in the Moon, with adiscourse concerning the possibility of a passage thither. "_ Thesetwo works differ in several essential particulars:--in Dr. Goodwin's, we have men of enormous stature and prodigious longevity, with aflying chariot, and some other slight points of resemblance to theTravels of Gulliver:--whilst Bishop Wilkins's is intended honestly andscientifically to prove, "that it is possible for some of ourposterity to find out a conveyance to this other world; and, if therebe inhabitants there, (which the Bishop, satisfactorily to himself, settles, ) to have commerce with them!" From the first of these, Swifthas derived many hints in his voyage to Laputa, and improved them intothose humorous and instructive allusions, which have caused thereputation of the author of the _"Travels of Gulliver"_ to beextended to every portion of the civilized globe. Since the appearanceof this celebrated satire, no one sufficiently comprehensive to lashthe follies of the age--the _quicquid agunt homines_--has madeits appearance: we have had numerous ephemeral productions, inflictingsevere castigations upon particular vices or absurdities; but thevisionary conceits of the many, constantly promulgated in theprogressive advancement of human knowledge, although legitimateobjects of censure, have not, since the time of Swift, been embodiedinto one publication. 

The evident aim of the author of the Satirical Romance before us, isto fulfil for the present age, what _Swift_ so successfullyaccomplished for that which has passed by:--to attack, by the weaponsof ridicule, those votaries of knowledge, who may have sought to availthemselves of the universal love of novelty amongst mankind, to acquirecelebrity; or who may have been misled by their own ill-regulatedimaginations, to obtrude upon the world their crude and imperfecttheories and systems, to the manifest retardation of knowledge:--aneffect, too, liable to be induced in a direct ratio with the degreeof talent and ingenuity by which their views may have been supported. Several of these may always be more successfully attacked by ridiculethan by reason; inasmuch as they are, in this way, more likely to becomethe subjects of popular animadversion; and many, who could withstandthe serious arguments of their fraternity, cannot placidly endure theirridicule. Satire has, indeed, often done more service to the cause ofreligion and morality than a sermon, since the remedy is agreeable, whilst it at the same time communicates indignation or fear:--

 "Of all the ways that wisest men could find, To mend the age and mortify mankind, Satire, well writ, has most successful prov'd. And cures, because the remedy is lov'd. "

To produce, however, the full effect, satire must possess a certaindegree of impartiality, and be levelled in all instances at the vicesor follies, and not at the man. The first sketch of Gulliver's Travelsoccurs in the proposed Travels of Martinus Scriblerus, devised in thatpleasing society where most of Swift's miscellanies were planned. Hadthe work, however, been executed under the same auspices, it wouldprobably, as Sir Walter Scott has suggested, [1] "have been occupied bythat personal satire, upon obscure and unworthy contemporaries, towhich Pope was but too much addicted. But when the Dean mused insolitude over the execution of his plan, it assumed at once a moregrand and a darker complexion. The spirit of indignant hatred andcontempt with which he regarded the mass of humanity; his quiet andpowerful perception of their failings, errors, and crimes; his zealfor liberty and freedom of thought, tended at once to generalize, while it embittered, his satire, and to change traits of personalseverity for that deep shade of censure which Gulliver's Travels throwupon mankind universally. " Most of the sentiments which impressedSwift, seem also to have been felt by the unknown author of the workbefore us: it is not, however, free from personal allusions; but theyare all conveyed in so good natured a manner, as to satisfy the readerthat the author has been solicitous to animadvert only on the vices ofthe individual; and in no part of the work is there the slightestevidence of prejudice or venom. 

The pseudo _Joseph Atterley_, the hero of the narrative, was bornin Huntingdon, Long-Island, on the 11th of May, 1786. He was the sonof a seafaring individual, who, by means of the portion he received byhis wife, together with his own earnings, was enabled to quit thatlaborious occupation, and to enter into trade; and, after the death ofhis father-in-law, by whose will he received a handsome accession tohis property, he sought, in the city of New-York, a theatre betteradapted to his enlarged capital. "He here engaged in foreign trade, and partaking of the prosperity which then attended American commerce, gradually extended his business, and finally embarked in the then newbranch of traffic to the East Indies and China; he was now generallyrespected both for his wealth and fair dealing; was several years adirector in one of the insurance offices; was president of the societyfor relieving the widows and orphans of distressed seamen; and, it issaid, might have been chosen alderman, if he had not refused, on theground that he did not think himself qualified. "

Our hero was, at an early age, put to a grammar school of good repute, in his native village, and, at seventeen, was sent to Princeton, toprepare himself for some profession; during his third year at thatplace, in one of his excursions to Philadelphia, he became enamoured"with one of those faces and forms, which, in a youth of twenty, tosee, admire, and love, is one and the same thing;" and was united tothe object of his affections, on the anniversary of his twenty-firstyear. This event gave him a distaste for serious study; and, longbefore this, he had felt a sentiment, bordering on contempt, formercantile pursuits; he therefore prevailed upon his father topurchase him a neat country seat in the vicinity of Huntingdon. Here, seventeen happy years glided away swiftly and imperceptibly, whendeath, by depriving him of the partner of his felicity, prostrated allhis hopes and enjoyments. For the purpose of seeking for that reliefto the feelings, which variety can best afford, he now determined tomake a voyage; and, as one of his father's vessels was about to sailfor Canton, embarked on board of her, and left Sandyhook on the 5thday of June, 1822. From this period, until the 24th of October, theirvoyage was comparatively agreeable; but when off the mouths of theGanges, one of those hurricanes, well known to the experiencednavigators of the eastern seas, struck the ship, and rendered her soleaky, that the captain considered it advisable to make for thenearest port; the leak, however, increasing rapidly, and findingthemselves off a coast, which the captain, by his charts, pronouncedto be a part of the Burman empire, and in the neighbourhood of Mergui, on the Martaban coast, they hastily threw their clothes, papers, andeight casks of silver, into the long-boat; and, before they were fiftyyards from the ship, had the melancholy satisfaction to see her godown. 

 "It was a little after mid-day when we reached the town, which is perched on a high bluff, overlooking the coasts, and contains about a thousand houses, built of bamboo, and covered with palm leaves. Our dress, appearance, language, and the manner of our arrival, excited great surprise among the natives, and the liveliest curiosity; but with these sentiments some evidently mingled no very friendly feelings. The Burmese were then on the eve of a rupture with the East India Company, a fact which we had not before known; and mistaking us for English, they supposed, or affected to suppose, that we belonged to a fleet which was about to invade them, and that our ship had been sunk before their eyes, by the tutelar divinity of the country. We were immediately carried before their governor, or chief magistrate, who ordered our baggage to be searched, and finding that it consisted principally of silver, he had no doubt of our hostile intentions. He therefore sent all of us, twenty-two in number, to prison, separating, however, each one from the rest. My companions were released the following spring, as I have since learnt, by the invading army of Great Britain; but it was my ill fortune (if, indeed, after what has since happened, I can so regard it) to be taken for an officer of high rank, and to be sent, the third day afterwards, far into the interior, that I might be more safely kept, and either used as a hostage or offered for ransom, as circumstances should render advantageous. "

Our hero was transported very rapidly in a palanquin, for thirteensuccessive days, when he reached Mozaun, a small village delightfullysituated in the mountainous district between the Irawaddi and Saloonrivers, where he was placed under the care of an inferior magistrate, who there exercised the chief authority. By submissive and respectfulbehaviour, he succeeded in ingratiating himself so completely with hiskeeper, that he was regarded more as one of his family, than as aprisoner; and was allowed every indulgence, consistently with his safecustody. It had been one of his favourite recreations, to ascend apart of the western ridge of mountains, which rose in a cone, about amile and a half from the village, for the purpose of enjoying theenchanting scenery that lay before him, and the evening breeze, whichpossesses so delicious a degree of freshness in tropical climates. Here he became acquainted with a personage, of whom, as he exerted animportant influence over the future conduct of our hero, it is ofconsequence that the reader should acquire early information:--

 "In a deep sequestered nook, formed by two spurs of this mountain, there lived a venerable Hindoo, whom the people of the village called the Holy Hermit. The favourable accounts I received of his character, as well as his odd course of life, made me very desirous of becoming acquainted with him; and, as he was often visited by the villagers, I found no difficulty in getting a conductor to his cell. His character for sanctity, together with a venerable beard, might have discouraged advances towards an acquaintance, if his lively piercing eye, a countenance expressive of great mildness and kindness of disposition, and his courteous manners, had not yet more strongly invited it. He was indeed not averse to society, though he had seemed thus to fly from it; and was so great a favourite with his neighbours, that his cell would have been thronged with visiters, but for the difficulty of the approach to it. As it was, it was seldom resorted to, except for the purpose of obtaining his opinion and counsel on all the serious concerns of his neighbours. He prescribed for the sick, and often provided the medicine they required--expounded the law--adjusted disputes--made all their little arithmetical calculations--gave them moral instruction--and, when he could not afford them relief in their difficulties, he taught them patience, and gave them consolation. He, in short, united, for the simple people by whom he was surrounded, the functions of lawyer, physician, schoolmaster, and divine, and richly merited the reverential respect in which they held him, as well as their little presents of eggs, fruit, and garden stuff. 

 "From the first evening that I joined the party which I saw clambering up the path that led to the Hermit's cell, I found myself strongly attached to this venerable man, and the more so, from the mystery which hung around his history. It was agreed that he was not a Burmese. None deemed to know certainly where he was born, or why he came thither. His own account was, that he had devoted himself to the service of God, and in his pilgrimage over the east, had selected this as a spot particularly favourable to the life of quiet and seclusion he wished to lead. 

 "There was one part of his story to which I could scarcely give credit. It was said that in the twelve or fifteen years he had resided in this place, he had been occasionally invisible for months together, and no one could tell why he disappeared, or whither he had gone. At these times his cell was closed; and although none ventured to force their way into it, those who were the most prying could hear no sound indicating that he was within. Various were the conjectures formed on the subject. Some supposed that he withdrew from the sight of men for the purpose of more fervent prayer and more holy meditation; others, that he visited his home, or some other distant country. The more superstitious believed that he had, by a kind of metempsychosis, taken a new shape, which, by some magical or supernatural power, he could assume and put off at pleasure This opinion was perhaps the most prevalent, as it gained a colour with these simple people, from the chemical and astronomical instruments he possessed In these he evidently took great pleasure, and by then means he acquired some of the knowledge by which he so often excited their admiration. 

 "He soon distinguished me from the rest of his visiters, by addressing questions to me relative to my history and adventures, and I, in turn, was gratified to have met with one who took an interest in my concerns, and who alone, of all I had here met with, could either enter into my feelings or comprehend my opinions. Our conversations were earned on in English, which he spoke with facility and correctness We soon found ourselves so much to each other's taste, that there was seldom an evening that I did not make him a visit, and pass an hour or two in his company

 "I learned from him that he was born and bred at Benares, in Hindostan, that he had been intended for the priesthood, and had been well instructed in the literature of the east That a course of untoward circumstances, upon which he seemed unwilling to dwell, had changed his destination, and made him a wanderer on the face of the earth That in the neighbouring kingdom of Siam he had formed an intimacy with a learned French Jesuit, who had not only taught him his language, but imparted to him a knowledge of much of the science of Europe, its institutions and manners That after the death of this friend, he had renewed his wanderings, and having been detained in this village by a fit of sickness for some weeks, he was warned that it was time to quit his rambling life. This place being recommended to him, both by its quiet seclusion, and the unsophisticated manners of its inhabitants, he determined to pass the remnant of his days here, and, by devoting them to the purposes of piety, charity, and science, to discharge his duty to his Creator, his species, and himself, 'for the love of knowledge, ' he added, 'has long been my chief source of selfish enjoyment'"

The acquaintance between Atterley and the Brahmin, ripened by degrees, into that close friendship, which a congeniality of tastes andsentiments, under proper opportunities, never fails to engender. Atterley's visits to the hermitage, became more and more frequent, forupwards of three years, during which period, the Brahmin hadoccasionally thrown out obscure hints, that the time would come, whenour hero should be restored to liberty, and that he had an importantsecret which he would one day communicate. About this period, oneafternoon in the month of March, when Atterley repaired, as usual, tothe hermitage, he found the Brahmin dangerously ill of a pleuriticaffection, and apprehensive that the attack might prove fatal--

 "Sit down, " said he, "on that block, and listen to what I shall say to you Though I shall quit this state of being for another and a better, I confess that I was alarmed at the thought of expiring, before I had an opportunity of seeing and conversing with you I am the depository of a secret, that I believe is known to no other living mortal I once determined that it should die with me, and had I not met with you, it certainly should But from our first acquaintance, my heart has been strongly attracted towards you, and as soon as I found you possessed of qualities to inspire esteem as well as regard, I felt disposed to give you this proof of my confidence Still I hesitated I first wished to deliberate on the probable effects of my disclosure upon the condition of society I saw that it might produce evil, as well as good, but on weighing the two together, I have satisfied myself that the good will preponderate, and have determined to act accordingly Take this key, (stretching out his feverish hand, ) and after waiting two hours, in which time the medicine I have taken will have either produced a good effect or put an end to my sufferings, you may then open that blue chest in the corner It has a false bottom On removing the paper which covers it, you will find the manuscript containing the important secret, together with some gold pieces, which I have saved for the day of need--because--(and he smiled in spite of his sufferings)--because hoarding is one of the pleasures of old men. Take them both, and use them discreetly. "

Atterley quitted the cell, and waited with feverish expectation forthe termination of the allotted two hours, when, to his inexpressibledelight, he found, on re-entering the cell, that not only did theBrahmin breathe, but that he slept soundly; and, in the course of anhour, he awoke, almost restored to health. This event, however, wasthe occasion of a more early disclosure of the Brahmin's importantsecret, but not until he had recovered his ordinary health andvigour:--

 "I have already told you, my dear Atterley, that I was born and educated at Benares, and that science is there more thoroughly understood and taught than the people of the west are aware of. We have, for many thousands of years, been good astronomers, chymists, mathematicians, and philosophers. We had discovered the secret of gunpowder, the magnetic attraction, the properties of electricity, long before they were heard of in Europe. We know more than we have revealed, and much of our knowledge is deposited in the archives of the castle to which I belong, but, for want of language generally understood and easily learnt, (for these records are always written in the Sanscrit, that is no longer a spoken language, ) and the diffusion which is given by the art of printing, these secrets of science are communicated only to a few, and sometimes even sleep with their authors, until a subsequent discovery, under more favourable circumstances, brings them again to light. 

 "It was at this seat of science that I learned, from one of our sages, the physical truth which I am now about to communicate, and which he discovered, partly by his researches into the writings of ancient Pundits, and partly by his own extraordinary sagacity. There is a principle of repulsion as well as gravitation in the earth. It causes fire to rise upwards. It is exhibited in electricity. It occasions water-spouts, volcanoes, and earthquakes. After much labour and research, this principle has been found embodied in a metallic substance, which is met with in the mountain in which we are, united with a very heavy earth, and this circumstance had great influence in inducing me to settle myself here. 

 "This metal, when separated and purified, has as great a tendency to fly off from the earth, as a piece of gold or lead has to approach it. After making a number of curious experiments with it, we bethought ourselves of putting it to some use, and soon contrived, with the aid of it, to make cars and ascend into the air. We were very secret in these operations, for our unhappy country having then recently fallen under the subjection of the British nation, we apprehended that if we divulged our arcanum, they would not only fly away with all our treasures, whether found in palace or pagoda, but also carry off the inhabitants, to make them slaves in their colonies, as their government had not then abolished the African slave trade. 

 "After various trials and many successive improvements, in which our desires increased with our success, we determined to penetrate the aerial void as far as we could, providing for that purpose an apparatus, with which you will become better acquainted hereafter. In the course of our experiments, we discovered that this same metal, which was repelled from the earth, was in the same degree attracted towards the moon, for in one of our excursions, still aiming to ascend higher than we had ever done before, we were actually carried to that satellite, and if we had not there fallen into a lake, and our machine had not been water-tight, we must have been dashed to pieces or drowned. You will find in this book, " he added, presenting me with a small volume, bound in green parchment, and fastened with silver clasps, "a minute detail of the apparatus to be provided, and the directions to be pursued in making this wonderful voyage. I have written it since I satisfied my mind that my fears of British rapacity were unfounded, and that I should do more good than harm by publishing the secret. But still I am not sure, " he added, with one of his faint but significant smiles, "that I am not actuated by a wish to immortalize my name; for where is the mortal who would be indifferent to this object, if he thought he could attain it? Read the book at your leisure, and study it. "

Here, by the way, we may remark, that the kind of vehicle best adaptedfor conveyance through the aerial void, has been a weighty stumblingblock to authors, from the time of the eagle-mounted Ganymede, to thatof Daniel O'Rourke; or of the wing furnished Daedalus and Icarus, tothat of the flying Turk in Constantinople, referred to by Busbequius;or of the flying artist of the happy valley, in Rasselas. WhenTrygaeus was desirous of reaching the Gods, he erected, we are told, aseries of small ladders--[Greek: epeita lepta klimakia]--but receivinga severe contusion on the head, from their downfall, he ingeniouslyhad recourse to a scheme of flying through the air, on a colossalvariety of those industrious but not over-delicate insects, the_Scarabaeus Carnifex_--the only insect, notwithstanding, accordingto Aesop, privileged to ascend to the habitations of the gods--

 [Greek: monos peteinoon eis theous aphigmenos. [2]]

Most of the stories of Pegasi and Hippogriffs, and of flying chariots, from that of Phaeton downwards to Astolfo's, [3] were evidentlyintended by their authors as mythical; not so, however, with BishopWilkins;--he boldly avers, for several reasons which he keeps tohimself, and for others not very comprehensible to us, which hedetails "seriously and on good grounds, " "that it is possible to makea flying chariot, in which a man may sit, and give such a motion untoit, as shall convey him through the air; and this perhaps might bemade large enough to carry divers men at the same time, together withfood for their _viaticum_, and commodities for traffic. " "It isnot, " lucidly continues the Bishop, "the bigness of any thing in thiskind, that can hinder its motion, if the motive faculty be answerablethereunto. We see a great ship swims as well as a small cork; and aneagle flies in the air, as well as a little gnat. This engine may becontrived from the same principles by which Archytas made a woodendove, and Regiomontanus a wooden eagle. I conceive it were nodifficult matter, (if a man had leisure, ) to show more particularlythe means of composing it"!--which want of leisure in the credulousBishop, our readers will regret with us, especially those inventivegeniuses, who, like the projector in the reign of George I. , publisheda scheme for manufacturing pine plank from pine saw-dust, or the stillmore ingenious undertaker of later times, who proposed to make _pineplank_ out of _oak_ saw-dust, by the mere addition of a littleturpentine!

Again, Swift's flying Island of Laputa is a phenomenon so opposed toall scientific probability, and so directly at variance with naturallaws, that it loses in interest in a direct ratio with the violence itdoes to our feelings. Nor is the mode of conveyance imagined byVoltaire less incongruous than that of Swift. When Micromegas, ahinhabitant of Sirius, whose adventures were evidently suggested bythose of Gulliver, accompanied by an inhabitant of Saturn, leaves thelatter planet, they are, in the first place, made to leap upon theRing of Saturn, which they find tolerably flat, "comme l'a fort biendeviné un illustre habitant de notre petit globe:" thence they go frommoon to moon, and a comet passing close to one of these, they throwthemselves upon it, with their attendants and instruments. In theircourse, they fall in with the satellites of Jupiter, and pass on toJupiter itself, where they remain for a year; but what becomes of thecomet in the mean time, we are not informed! Leaving Jupiter, they"coast" along the planet Mars, and finally reach the earth, where theyresolve to disembark. Accordingly "ils passèrent sur la queue de lacomète; et trouvant une aurore boréale toute prête, ils se mirentdedans, et arrivèrent à terre sur le bord septentrional de la MerBaltique"![4]

The vehicle, however, has not formed the sole obstacle to thoseprojectors:--the _viaticum_, especially the food, has been adifficulty not readily got over. Before Bishop Wilkins alludes to hisflying chariot, he remarks, that even if men could fly, the swiftestof them would probably be half a year in reaching the end of hisjourney; and hence a problem would arise, "how it were possible totarry so long without sleep or diet?" Of the former obstacle, however, he quickly disposes, --"seeing we do not then spend ourselves in anylabour, we shall not, it may be, _need_ the refreshment of sleep:but if we do, we cannot desire a softer bed than the air, where we mayrepose ourselves firmly and safely as in our chambers"! Of the latterhe finds somewhat more difficulty in disposing, --"and here it isconsiderable, that, since our bodies will then be devoid of gravityand other impediments of motion, we shall not at all spend ourselvesin any labour, and so, consequently, not much need the reparation ofdiet, but may perhaps live altogether without it, as those creatureshave done, who, by reason of their sleeping for many days together, have not spent any spirits, and so not wanted any food; which iscommonly related of serpents, crocodiles, bears, cuckoos, swallows, and such like. To this purpose, Mendoca reckons up divers strangerelations, as that of Epimenides, who is storied to have sleptseventy-five years; and another of a rustic in Germany, who, beingaccidentally covered with a hay-rick, slept there for all the autumnand the winter following, without any nourishment Or, if we must needsfeed upon something else, why may not smells nourish us? Plutarch, andPliny, and divers other ancients, tell us of a nation in India, thatlived only upon pleasing odours; and it is the common opinion ofphysicians, that these do strangely both strengthen and repair thespirits. Hence was it that Democritus was able, for divers daystogether, to feed himself with the mere smell of hot bread. [5] Or, ifit be necessary that our stomachs must receive the food, why then itis not impossible that the purity of the etherial air, being not mixedwith any improper vapours, may be so agreeable to our bodies, as toyield us sufficient nourishment, " with many other arguments of thelike nature. The Bishop ultimately, however, severs the knot, by thesuggestion of his flying chariot, which he makes large enough (for, _ce n'est que le premier pas qui coute!_) to carry not only foodfor the _viaticum_ of the passengers, but also commodities fortheir traffic!

Infinitely more ingenuity did the great comic poet of antiquitydisplay, when he selected the _Scarabaeus;_ as the food which hadalready served the purposes of digestion with the Rider, was stillcapable of affording nutrition to the animal:--

 [Greek: nun d'att'an autos kataphagoo ta sitia. Toutoisi tois autoisi touton chortasoo[6]]

Now all these schemes, ingenious as they may be, are objectionable forthe same reasons as the flying Island of Laputa--their glaringviolation of verisimilitude, and many of them of possibility. In theserespects, that of the author of the work before us is liable to lessobjection: he only resorts to an extension of avowed physicalprinciples; and if we could suppose a substance, which, instead ofgravitating towards the earth, is repelled from it and attractedtowards the moon, (certainly a difficult "_premier pas_, ") theremainder of the machinery, for reaching that luminary, would not beinconsistent with probability or the known laws of physics. 

But, to return to the narrative:--The Brahmin having given Atterley adescription of some of the remarkable objects which he met with, inhis voyage to the moon; expressed his anxiety to repeat it, for thepurpose of ascertaining some facts about which he had beenspeculating, as well as of removing the incredulity with which, hecould not but perceive, his story had impressed his hearer, notwithstanding his belief in the Hermit's integrity; when Atterleyeagerly caught at the proposal. Their preparations, however, requiredtime as well as considerable skill, not only for the construction ofthe vehicle, but also to avoid suspicion and interruption from theGovernor of Mergui, --and the priesthood, who possessed the usualOriental superstition and intolerance. 

For the construction of their apparatus they had recourse to aningenious artificer in copper and other metals, whose child theBrahmin had been instrumental in curing of a chronic disease, and inwhose fidelity as well as good will they could securely rely. 

 "The coppersmith agreed to undertake the work we wanted done, for a moderate compensation, but we did not think it prudent to inform him of our object, which he supposed was to make some philosophical experiment. It was forthwith arranged that he should occasionally visit the Hermit, to receive instructions, as if for the purpose of asking medical advice. During this interval my mind was absorbed with our project; and when in company, I was so thoughtful and abstracted, that it has since seemed strange to me that Sing Fou's suspicions that I was planning my escape were not more excited. At length, by dint of great exertion, in about three months every thing was in readiness, and we determined on the following night to set out on our perilous expedition. 

 "The machine in which we proposed to embark, was a copper vessel, that would have been an exact cube of six feet, if the corners and edges had not been rounded off. It had an opening large enough to receive our bodies, which was closed by double sliding pannels, with quilted cloth between them. When these were properly adjusted, the machine was perfectly air-tight, and strong enough, by means of iron bars running alternately inside and out, to resist the pressure of the atmosphere, when the machine should be exhausted of its air, as we took the precaution to prove by the aid of an air pump. On the top of the copper chest and on the outside, we had as much of the lunar metal (which I shall henceforth call _lunarium_) as we found by calculation and experiment, would overcome the weight of the machine, as well as its contents, and take us to the moon on the third day. As the air which the machine contained, would not be sufficient for our respiration more than about six hours, and the chief part of the space we were to pass through was a mere void, we provided ourselves with a sufficient supply, by condensing it in a small globular vessel, made partly of iron and partly of lunarium, to take off its weight. On my return, I gave Mr. Jacob Perkins, who is now in England, a hint of this plan of condensation, and it has there obtained him great celebrity. This fact I should not have thought it worth while to mention, had he not taken the sole merit of the invention to himself, at least I cannot hear that in his numerous public notices he has ever mentioned my name. 

 "But to return. A small circular window, made of a single piece of thick clear glass, was neatly fitted on each of the six sides. Several pieces of lead were securely fastened to screws which passed through the bottom of the machine as well as a thick plank. The screws were so contrived, that by turning them in one direction, the pieces of lead attached to them were immediately disengaged from the hooks with which they were connected. The pieces of lunarium were fastened in like manner to screws, which passed through the top of the machine; so that by turning them in one direction, those metallic pieces would fly into the air with the velocity of a rocket. The Brahmin took with him a thermometer, two telescopes, one of which projected through the top of the machine, and the other through the bottom; a phosphoric lamp, pen, ink, and paper, and some light refreshments sufficient to supply us for some days. 

 "The moon was then in her third quarter, and near the zenith: it was, of course, a little after midnight, and when the coppersmith and his family were in their soundest sleep, that we entered the machine. In about an hour more we had the doors secured, and every thing arranged in its place, when, cutting the cords which fastened us to the ground, by means of small steel blades which worked in the ends of other screws, we rose from the earth with a whizzing sound, and a sensation at first of very rapid ascent, but after a short time, we were scarcely sensible of any motion in the machine, except when we changed our places. "

After the apprehensions of Atterley, occasioned by the novelty anddanger of his situation, had partly subsided, he was enabled, withmingled awe and admiration, to contemplate the magnificent spectaclebeneath him. As the earth turned round its axis, during their ascent, every part of its surface came successively under view. At nineo'clock, the whole of India was to the west of them; its riversresembling small filaments of silver, and the Red Sea a narrow plateof the same metal. The peninsula of India was of a dark, and Arabia ofa light, grayer green, and the sun's rays striking on the Atlantic, emitted an effulgence dazzling to the eyes. On looking, some timeafterwards, through the telescope, they observed the AfricanContinent, at its northern edge; fringed, as it were, with green;"then a dull white belt marked the great Sahara or Desert, and then itexhibited a deep green to its most southern extremity. " The Morea andGrecian Archipelago now fell under their telescope, and gradually thewhole Mediterranean, and Arabian Gulf--the great media separatingAfrica from Europe and Asia; "the political divisions of thesequarters of the world were of course undistinguishable, and few of thenatural were discernible by the naked eye. The Alps were marked by awhite streak, though less bright than the water. " By the aid of theglass they could just discern the Danube, the Nile, and "a river whichempties itself into the Gulf of Guinea, " and which Atterley took to bethe Niger; but the other streams were not perceptible. The mostconspicuous object of the solid part of the globe was the greatDesert; the whole of Africa, however, appeared of a brighter hue thaneither Asia or Europe. 

 "I was struck too, with the vast disproportion which the extent of the several countries of the earth bore to the part they had acted in history, and the influence they had exerted on human affairs. The British islands had diminished to a speck, and France was little larger, yet, a few years ago it seemed, at least to us in the United States, as if there were no other nations on the earth. The Brahmin, who was well read in European history, on my making a remark on this subject, reminded me that Athens and Sparta had once obtained almost equal celebrity, although they were so small as not now to be visible. As I slowly passed the telescope over the face of Europe, I pictured to myself the fat, plodding Hollander--the patient, contemplative German--the ingenious, sensual Italian--the temperate Swiss--the haughty, superstitious Spaniard--the sprightly, self-complacent Frenchman--the sullen and reflecting Englishman--who monopolise nearly all the science and literature of the earth, to which they bear so small a proportion. As the Atlantic fell under our view, two faint circles on each side of the equator, were to be perceived by the naked eye. They were less bright than the rest of the ocean. The Brahmin suggested that they might be currents; which brought to my memory Dr. Franklin's conjecture on the subject, now completely verified by this circular line of vapour, as it had been previously rendered probable by the floating substances, which had been occasionally picked up, at great distances from the places where they had been thrown into the ocean. The circle was whiter and more distinct, where the Gulf Stream runs parallel to the American coast, and gradually grew fainter as it passed along the Banks of Newfoundland, to the coast of Europe, where, taking a southerly direction, the line of the circle was barely discernible. A similar circle of vapour, though less defined and complete, was perceived in the South Atlantic Ocean. "

By degrees the travellers saw one half of the broad expanse of thePacific, which glistened like quicksilver or polished steel, andsubsequently the middle of the Pacific lay immediately beneath them;the irregular distribution of land and water on the globe, the expanseof Ocean here, being twice as large as in any other part, givesoccasion to some amusing discussions on the various theories ofcosmogony, to which we can only refer the reader; wearied, however, bythese and other discussions, Atterley slept for six hours, and onawaking, found the Brahmin busy in calculating their progress; afterwhich the latter lay down and soon fell into a tranquil sleep, havingpreviously requested that he might be awakened at the expiration ofthree hours, or sooner if any thing of moment should occur. Atterleynow looked down again through the telescope, and found the earthsurprisingly diminished in its apparent dimensions, from the increasedrapidity of their ascent; the eastern coasts of Asia were still fullin view, as well as the whole figure of that extensive continent--ofNew-Holland, of Ceylon and of Borneo; but the smaller islands wereinvisible. 

 "I strained my eye to no purpose, to follow the indentations of the coast, according to the map before me, the great bays and promontories could alone be perceived. The Burman Empire, in one of the insignificant villages of which I had been confined for a few years, was now reduced to a speck. The agreeable hours I had passed with the Brahmin, with the little daughter of Sing Fou, and my rambling over the neighbouring heights, all recurred to my mind, and I almost regretted the pleasures I had relinquished. I tried with more success to beguile the time by making notes in my journal, and after having devoted about an hour to this object, I returned to the telescope, and now took occasion to examine the figure of the earth near the Poles, with a view of discovering whether its form favoured Captain Symmes's theory of an aperture existing there, and I am convinced that that ingenious gentleman is mistaken. Time passed so heavily during these solitary occupations, that I looked at my watch every five minutes, and could scarcely be persuaded it was not out of order. I then took up my little Bible, (which had always been my travelling companion, ) read a few chapters in St. Matthew, and found my feelings tranquillized, and my courage increased. The desired hour at length arrived; when, on waking the old man, he alertly raised himself up, and at the first view of the diminished appearance of the earth, observed that our journey was a third over, as to time, but not as to distance. "

After having again composed himself to rest for about four hours, Atterley was awakened by the Brahmin, in whose arms he found himself, and, on looking around, discovered that he was lying on what had beenthe ceiling of the chamber, which still, however, felt like thebottom. The reason of this phenomenon was thus explained to him by theBrahmin--"we have, while you were asleep, passed the middle pointbetween the earth's and the moon's attraction; and we now gravitateless towards our own planet than (to) her satellite. I took theprecaution to move you, before you fell by your own gravity, from whatwas lately the bottom, to that which is now so, and to keep you inthis place until you were retained in it by the moon's attraction; forthough your fall would have been, at this point, like that of afeather, yet it would have given you some shock and alarm. Themachine, therefore, has undergone no change in its position orcourse;--the change is altogether in our feelings. "

The whole face of the moon, Atterley now found to be entirely changed, and on looking through the upper telescope, the earth presented anappearance not very dissimilar; but the outline of her continents andoceans was still perceptible in different shades, and capable of beingreadily recognised; the bright glare of the sun, however, made thesurfaces of both bodies somewhat dim and pale. 

 "After a short interval, I again looked at the moon, and found not only its magnitude very greatly increased, but that it was beginning to present a more beautiful spectacle. The sun's rays fell obliquely on her disc, so that by a large part of its surface not reflecting the light, I saw every object on it, so far as I was enabled by the power of my telescope. Its mountains, lakes, seas, continents, and islands, were faintly, though not indistinctly, traced; and every moment brought forth something new to catch my eye, and awaken my curiosity. The whole face of the moon was of a silvery hue, relieved and varied by the softest and most delicate shades. No cloud nor speck of vapour intercepted my view. One of my exclamations of delight awakened the Brahmin, who quickly arose, and looking down on the resplendent orb below us, observed that we must soon begin to slacken the rapidity of our course, by throwing out ballast. The moon's dimensions now rapidly increased; the separate mountains, which formed the ridges and chains on her surface, began to be plainly visible through the telescope; whilst, on the shaded side, several volcanoes appeared upon her disc, like the flashes of our fire-fly, or rather like the twinkling of stars in a frosty night. He remarked, that the extraordinary clearness and brightness of the objects on the moon's surface, was owing to her having a less extensive and more transparent atmosphere than the earth: adding--'The difference is so great, that some of our astronomical observers have been induced to think she has none. If that, however, had been the case, our voyage would have been impracticable. '"

After gazing for some time on this magnificent spectacle, withadmiration and delight, one of their balls of _lunarium_ was letoff for the purpose of checking their velocity. At this time theBrahmin supposed they were not more than four thousand miles from thenearest point of the moon's surface. In about four hours more, herapparent magnitude was so great, that they could see her by lookingout of either of the side windows. 

 "Her disc had now lost its former silvery appearance, and began to look more like that of the earth, when seen at the same distance. It was a most gratifying spectacle to behold the objects successively rising to our view, and steadily enlarging in their dimensions. The rapidity with which we approached the moon, impressed me, in spite of myself, with the alarming sensation of falling; and I found myself alternately agitated with a sense of this danger, and with impatience to take a nearer view of the new objects that greeted my eyes. The Brahmin was wholly absorbed in calculations for the purpose of adjusting our velocity to the distance we had to go, his estimates of which, however, were in a great measure conjectural; and ever and anon he would let off a ball of the lunar metal. 

 "After a few hours, we were so near the moon that every object was seen in our glass, as distinctly as the shells or marine plants through a piece of shallow sea-water, though the eye could take in but a small part of her surface, and the horizon, which bounded our view, was rapidly contracting. On letting the air escape from our machine, it did not now rush out with the same violence as before, which showed that we were within the moon's atmosphere. This, as well as ridding ourselves of the metal balls, aided in checking our progress. By and by we were within a few miles of the highest mountains, when we threw down so much of our ballast, that we soon appeared almost stationary. The Brahmin remarked, that he should avail himself of the currents of air we might meet with, to select a favourable place for landing, though we were necessarily attracted towards the same region, in consequence of the same half of the moon's surface being always turned towards the earth. "

The Brahmin now pointed out the necessity of looking out for somecultivated field, in one of the valleys they were approaching, wherethey might rely on being not far distant from some human habitation, and on escaping the perils necessarily attendant on a descent amongstrocks, trees, and buildings. A gentle breeze now arising, as appearedby their horizontal motion, which wafted them at the rate of about tenmiles an hour, over a ridge of mountains, a lake, a thick wood, &c. They at length reached a cultivated region, which the Brahminrecognised as the country of the Morosofs, the place they were anxiousto visit. By now letting off two balls of lead to the _Earth_, they descended rapidly; and when they were sufficiently near theground to observe that it was a fit place for landing, opened the doorof their Balloon, and found the air of the moon inconceivably sweetand refreshing. They now let loose one of their lower balls, whichsomewhat retarded their descent; and in a few minutes more, beingwithin twenty yards of the ground, they let go the largest ball oflunarium, which, having a cord attached to it, served in lieu of agrapnel; by this they drew themselves down, were disengaged from themachine in a twinkling, and landed "safe and sound" on, we presume, "_luna firma!_"

Having seen our travellers securely deposited in the moon, we mayremark, that in the passage from the earth, various topics of aninteresting and important character were canvassed by the Brahmin andhis companion; one, _on the causes of national superiority_, suggested by the views of Africa, and a comparison between thatbenighted country and others more illuminated, is especially worthy ofattention, as containing a condensed and philosophical view of thesubject; eloquently and perspicuously conveyed. 

The view of America, suggests some remarks on the _politicalpeculiarities of the United States_, with speculations on theirfuture destiny. 

A lively description of the contrast between the circumstances of theKamtschadale--

 "The shuddering tenant of the frigid zone, "

and the gay, voluptuous native of the Sandwich, and other isles withinthe tropics--the one passing his life in toil, privation, and care--theother in ease, abundance, and enjoyment--leads to a similar conclusionto that expressed by Goldsmith:--

 "And yet, perhaps, if countries we compare, And estimate the blessings which they share, Though patriots flatter, still shall wisdom find An equal portion dealt to all mankind. "

A disquisition also takes place--_whether India or Egypt were theparent of the Arts?_

This leads them to refer to the strange custom in the country of theBrahmin, which impels the widow to throw herself on the funeral pile, and be consumed with her husband:--

 "I told him, " says Atterley, "that it had often been represented as compulsory--or, in other words, that it was said that every art and means were resorted to, for the purpose of working on the mind of the woman, by her relatives, aided by the priests, who would be naturally gratified by such signal triumphs of religion over the strongest feelings of nature. He admitted that these engines were sometimes put in operation, and that they impelled to the sacrifice, some who were wavering; but insisted, that in a majority of instances, the _Suttee_ was voluntary. 

 "'Women, ' said he, 'are brought up from their infancy, to regard our sex as their superiors, and to believe that their greatest merit consists in entire devotion to their husbands. Under this feeling, and having, at the same time, their attention frequently turned to the chance of such a calamity, they are better prepared to meet it when it occurs. How few of the officers in your western armies, ever hesitate to march, at the head of their men, on a forlorn hope? and how many even court the danger for the sake of the glory? Nay, you tell me that, according to your code of honour, if one man insults another, he who gives the provocation, and he who receives it, rather than be disgraced in the eyes of their countrymen, will go out, and quietly shoot at each other with fire-arms, till one of them is killed or wounded; and this too, in many cases, when the injury has been merely nominal. If you show such a contempt of death, in deference to a custom founded in mere caprice, can it be wondered that a woman should show it, in the first paroxysms of her grief for the loss of him to whom was devoted every thought, word, and action of her life, and who, next to her God, was the object of her idolatry? My dear Atterley, ' he continued, with emotion, 'you little know the strength of woman's love!'"

Other topics of interest are also discussed with the like ingenuity. 

After this episode, it is time for us to return to our travellers, whose feelings, the moment they touched the ground, repayed them forall they had endured. Atterley looked around with the most intensecuriosity; but nothing he saw, "surprised him so much, as to find solittle that was surprising:"--vegetation, insects, and other animals, were pretty much of the same character as those he had before seen;but, on better acquaintance, he found the difference greater than hehad at first supposed. Having refreshed themselves with the remains oftheir stores, and secured the door of the machine, they bent theircourse to the town of Alamatua, about three miles distant, whichseemed to contain about two thousand houses, and to be not quite aslarge as Albany; the people were tall and thin, and of a pale, yellowish complexion; their garments light, loose, and flowing, andnot very different from those of the Turks; they subsist chiefly on avegetable diet, live about as long as we do on the earth, notwithstanding the great difference of climate, and othercircumstances; and do not, in their manners, habits, or character, differ more from the inhabitants of this globe, than some of thelatter do from one another; their government, anciently monarchical, is now popular; their code of laws very intricate; their language, naturally soft and musical, has been yet further refined by thecultivation of letters; and they have a variety of sects in religion, politics, and philosophy. 

The lunarians do not, as Butler has it--

 "When the sun shines hot at noon, Inhabit cellars under ground, Of eight miles deep and eighty round. "

But, one half of their houses is beneath the surface, partly for thepurpose of screening them from the continued action of the sun's rays, and partly on account of the earthquakes caused by volcanoes. Thewindows of the houses consisted of openings in the wall, sloping somuch upwards, that, whilst they freely admitted the light and air, thesun was completely excluded. As soon as they were espied by thenatives, great curiosity was of course excited; not, however, to sotroublesome an extent, as might have been, from the circumstance ofthe Brahmin's having visited the moon before. Hence he was soonrecognised by some of his acquaintances, and conducted to the house ofthe governor, by whom they were graciously received, and who "began acourse of interesting inquiries regarding the affairs of the earth;"but a gentleman, whom they afterwards understood to be one of theleaders of the popular party, coming in, he soon despatched them;having, however, first directed an officer to furnish them with allthat was necessary for their accommodation, at the public expense;"which act of hospitality, they had reason to fear, occasioned himsome trouble and perplexity at the succeeding election. "

A more minute description follows, of the dress of the male and femalelunarians, especially of that of the latter, to which we can merelyrefer the reader. There is one portion, however, of the inhabitants, with whom the reader must be made acquainted, inasmuch as they formsome of the author's most prominent characters. A large number oflunarians, it seems, are born without any intellectual vigour, andwander about like so many automatons, under the care of thegovernment, until illumined by the mental ray, from some terrestrialbrain, through the mysterious influence which the moon is known toexercise on our planet. But, in this case, the inhabitant of the earthloses what he of the moon gains, the ordinary portion of understandingbeing divided between two; and, "as might be expected, there is a mostexact conformity between the man of the earth, and his counterpart inthe moon, in all their principles of action, and modes of thinking:"--

 "These Glonglims, as they are called, after they have been thus imbued with intellect, are held in peculiar respect by the vulgar, and are thought to be in every way superior to those whose understandings are entire. The laws by which two objects, so far apart, operate on each other, have been, as yet, but imperfectly developed, and the wilder their freaks, the more they are the objects of wonder and admiration. "

"Now and then, though very rarely, the man of the earth regains theintellect he has lost; in which case, his lunar counterpart returns tohis former state of imbecility. Both parties are entirely unconsciousof the change--one, of what he has lost, and the other, of what he hasgained. "[7]

The belief of the influence of the moon on the human intellect, theBrahmin remarks, may be perceived in the opinions of the vulgar, andin many of the ordinary forms of expression; and he takes occasion toremark, that these very opinions, as well as some obscure hints in theSanscrit, give countenance to the idea, that they were not the onlyvoyagers to the moon; but that, on the contrary, the voyage had beenperformed in remote antiquity; and the Lunarians, we are told, have asimilar tradition. Many ordinary forms of expression are adduced insupport of these ideas. 

"Thus, " says the Brahmin, "it is generally believed, throughout allAsia, that the moon has an influence on the brain: and when a man isof insane mind, we call him a lunatic. One of the curses of the commonpeople is, 'May the moon eat up your brains!' and in China, they sayof a man who has done any act of egregious folly, 'He was gatheringwool in the moon. '" I was struck with these remarks; and told thehermit that the language of Europe afforded the same indirect evidenceof the fact he mentioned, --that my own language, especially, aboundedwith expressions which could be explained on no other hypothesis: for, besides the terms "lunacy, " "lunatic, " and the supposed influence ofthe moon on the brain, when we see symptoms of a disordered intellect, we say the mind _wanders_, which evidently alludes to a part ofit rambling to a distant region, as is the moon. We say too, a man is"_out of his head_, " that is, his mind being in another man'shead, must of course be out of his own. To "know no more than the manin the moon, " is a proverbial expression for ignorance, and is withoutmeaning, unless it be considered to refer to the Glonglims. [8]

"We say that an insane man is 'distracted, ' by which we mean that hismind is drawn two different ways. So also, we call a lunatic _a manbeside himself_, which most distinctly expresses the two distinctbodies his mind now animates. There are, moreover, many otheranalogous expressions, as 'moonstruck, ' 'deranged, ' 'extravagant, ' andsome others, which, altogether, form a mass of concurring testimonythat it is impossible to resist. "

Leaving this ingenious _badinage_ with the defence of the seriousand sentimental Schiller, "Hoher Sinn liegt oft in Kindischen Spiele, "

we return to our travellers, who, at their lodgings, meet with aninstance of _lunar puritanism_--the family eating those portionsof fruits, vegetables, &c. , which are thrown away by us, and _viceversa_, "from a persuasion that all pleasure received through thesenses is sinful, and that man never appears so acceptable in the sightof the Deity, as when he rejects all the delicacies of the palate, aswell as other sensual gratifications, and imposes on himself that foodto which he feels naturally most repugnant. "

_Avarice_ is satirized by the story of one of these Glonglims, whois occupied in making nails, and then dropping them into a well--refusingto exchange them for bread or clothes, notwithstanding his starved, haggard appearance, and evident desire for the food proffered:--

 "Mettant toute sa gloire et son souverain bien A grossir un trésor qui ne lui sert de rien. "

And this is followed by a picture of _reckless prodigality_ inanother Glonglim. 

We pass over the description of the physical peculiarities of themoon, which seem to be according to the received opinions ofastronomers, as well as the satire on _National Prejudices_, inthe persons of the Hilliboos and Moriboos, and that on the Godwiniansystem of morals. 

An indisposition experienced by Atterley, occasions his introductionto Vindar, [9] a celebrated physician, botanist, &c. , on whose opinionswe have a keen satire. 

On leaving Vindar's house, they observed a short man, (Napoleon, )preparing to climb to the top of a plane tree, on which there was oneof the tail feathers of a flamingo; and this he would only mount inone way--on the shoulders of his men:--

 "I could not see this rash Glonglim attempt to climb that dangerous ladder, without feeling alarm for his safety. At first all seemed to go on very well; but just as he was about to lay hold of the gaudy prize, there arose a sudden squall, which threw both him and his supporters into confusion, and the whole living pyramid came to the ground together. Many were killed--some were wounded and bruised. Polenap himself, by lighting on his men, who served him as cushions, barely escaped with life. But he received a fracture in the upper part of his head, and a dislocation of the hip, which will not only prevent him from ever climbing again, but probably make him a cripple for life. 

 "The Brahmin and I endeavoured to give the sufferers some assistance; but this was rendered unnecessary, by the crowd which their cries and lamentations brought to their relief. I thought that the author of so much mischief would have been stoned on the spot; but, to my surprise, his servants seemed to feel as much for his honour as their own safety, and warmly interfered in his behalf, until they had somewhat appeased the rage of the surrounding multitude. "

The _absurdities_ of the _physiognomical system_ of Lavater, and of the _craniological system_ of MM. Gall and Spurzheim, werenot likely to escape animadversion, in a work of general satire, fruitful as they have already been in such themes. The representativeof the former, is a fortune-telling philosopher, Avarabet, (Lavater, )whose course of proceeding was, to examine the finger nails, and, according to their form, colour, thickness, surface, grain, and otherproperties, to determine the character and destinies of those whoconsulted him; and that of the latter, a physician, who judged of thecharacter of disposition or disease, by the examination of a lock ofthe hair. The upshot of the story is, as might be anticipated, thatthe fortune-telling philosopher is caught, and exposed in his owntoils. 

The _impolicy of privateers, and of letters of marque andreprisals_, is next animadverted on, by the story of twoneighbours, who are at variance, and whose dependants are occupied inlaying hold of what they can of each other's flocks and herds, anddoing as much mischief as possible, by which both parties, ofnecessity, suffer. 

A visit to a projector in building, husbandry, and cookery, introducesus to some inventions not unworthy of the occupation, of the courtiersof _La Reine Quinte_, or of the Professors of the Academy ofLagado. 

The doctrine of the aerial formation of meteoric stones, receives, too, a passing notice from our author, who is clearly no supporter ofit. It was a long time before the ancients received credit for theirstories of showers of stones; and all were ready to joke with Butler, at the story of the Thracian rock, which fell in the river Aegos:--

 "For Anaxagoras, long agon, Saw hills, as well as you i'th' moon, And held the sun was but a piece Of red hot iron as big as Greece. Believ'd the heavens were made of stone, Because the sun had voided one: And, rather than he would recant Th' opinion, suffered banishment. "

A difficulty surrounds the subject, however we view it. _Aerolites_, as they have been designated, have now been found inalmost every region and climate of the globe--from Arabia to thefarthest point of Baffin's Bay; and this very circumstance would seemto be opposed to their aerial origin, unless we are to suppose thatthey can be formed in every state, and in the opposite extremes of theatmosphere. The Brahmin assigns them a lunar origin, and adds, "ourparty were greatly amused at the disputations of a learned society inEurope, in which they undertook to give a mathematical demonstration, that they could not be thrown from a volcano of the earth, nor fromthe moon, but were suddenly formed in the atmosphere. I should as soonbelieve, that a loaf of bread could be made and baked in theatmosphere. "

The "gentleman farmer and projector, " being attacked, during theirvisit, with cholera morbus, and considering himself _in extremis_, a consultation of physicians takes place, in which one portraitwill be obvious--that of Dr. Shuro, who asserts disease to bea unit; and that it is the extreme of folly, to divide diseases intoclasses, which tend but to produce confusion of ideas, and anunscientific practice. The enthusiasm of the justly celebratedindividual--the original of this portrait, was so great, that theslightest data were sufficient for the formation of some of his mostelaborate _hypotheses_--for _theories_ they could not properlybe called; and, accordingly, many of his beautiful and ingenioussuperstructures are now prostrated, leaving, in open day, theinsufficiency of their foundation. One of the most strikingexamples of this nature, was his belief that the black colour ofthe negro is a disease, which depletion, properly exercised, mightbe capable of remedying--a scheme not a whit more feasible, thanthat of the courtiers of _La Reine Quinte_, referred to byRabelais, "who made blackamoors white, as fast as hops, by justrubbing their stomachs with the bottom of a pannier. "

The satire here is not so fortunately displayed, as in otherinstances, owing probably to the difficulty of saying any thing new onso hackneyed a subject; for it has ever happened, that, --

 "The Galenist and Paracelsian, Condemn the way each other deals in. "

The affair concludes, by the Doctors quarrelling; and, in the meantime, the patient, profiting by some simple remedies administered bythe Brahmin, and an hour's rest, was so much refreshed, that heconsidered himself out of danger, and had no need of medicalassistance. 

_Pestolozzi's system of education_, is with justice satirized;since, instead of affording facilities to the student, as thesuperficial observer might fancy, it retards his acquisition ofknowledge, by teaching him to exercise his external senses, ratherthan his reflection. [10]

In a _menagerie_ attached to an academy, in which youths ofmaturer years were instructed in the fine arts, the travellers had anopportunity of observing the vain attempts of education, to controlthe natural or instinctive propensities. 

 "Naturam expellas furca tamen usque recurret. "

 "For nature driven out, with proud disdain, All powerful goddess, will return again. "

The election of a town constable, exhibits the violence of _LunarPolitics_ to be much the same as the terrestrial, and seems to havesome allusion to an existing and important controversy amongstourselves. The _prostitution of the press_ is satirized by thestory of a number of boys dressed in black and white--wearing thebadges of the party to which they respectively belong, and eachprovided with a syringe and two canteens, the one filled with rosewater, and the other with a black, offensive, fluid: the rose waterbeing squirted at the favourite candidates and voters--the other fluidon the opposite party. All these were under regular discipline, and atthe word of command discharged their syringes on friend or foe, as thecase might be. 

The "_glorious uncertainty of the law_" (proverbial with us, )falls also under notice. In Morosofia, it seems, a favourite mode ofsettling private disputes, whether concerning person, character, orproperty, is by the employment of prize fighters who hire themselvesto the litigants:--

 "And out of foreign controversies By aiding both sides, fill their purses: But have no int'rest in the cause For which th' engage and wage the laws Nor farther prospect than their pay Whether they lose or win the day. "

The chapter concludes with a discussion between an old man and hiswife, in which the _policy of encouraging manufactures_, isargued. 

In an account of Okalbia--a happy valley--similar only in name to thatin _Rasselas_, the author seems to sketch his views of a _perfectcommonwealth_, and glances at some important questions of_politics_ and _political economy_. Prudential restraints areconsidered sufficient to obviate a _redundancy of population_--andon _Ricardo's theory of rent_, the author holds the same opinionsas those already expressed in this Journal. 

Some useful hints are also afforded on the subject of _legislationand jurisprudence_. 

After having passed a week amongst the singular and happy Okalbians, whom our travellers found equally amiable, intelligent, andhospitable, they returned to Alamatua. 

Jeffery's _theory of beauty_, as developed in the article_beauty_, of the _supplement to the Encyclopaedia Britannica_, in which he denies the existence of original beauty and refersit to association, is ridiculed by an extension of a similar kindof reasoning to the smell. 

A description of a _Lunar fair_ follows, which, like aterrestrial, is the resort of the busy, the idle, the knavish, and thegay: some in pursuit of pleasure; others again, without any settledpurpose, carried along by the vague desire of meeting with somethingto relieve them from the pain of idleness. _Political contests_are here represented under the character of gambling transactions, andif we mistake not, there is a distinct allusion to more than oneimportant contest in the annals of this country. 

Having now satisfied his curiosity, Atterley became anxious to returnto his native planet, and accordingly urged the Brahmin to lose notime in preparing for their departure. They were soon, however, informed that a man high in office, by way of affecting politicalsagacity, had proposed to detain them, on the ground that when suchvoyages as their's were shown to be practicable, the inhabitants ofthe earth, who were so much more numerous than those of the moon, might invade the latter with a large army, for the purpose of rapineand contest; but notwithstanding the influence of this sapientpolitician, they finally obtained leave to quit the moon whenever theythought proper. 

Having taken a "respectful or affectionate" leave of all theirlunarian friends, and got every thing in readiness, --at midnight ofthe twentieth of August, they again entered their copper_balloon_, and after they had ascended until the face of the moonlooked like one vast lake of melted silver, with here and there smallpieces of grayish dross floating on it, Atterley reminded the Brahminof a former promise to detail the history of his early life, to whichhe assented:--of this, perhaps the most interesting part of the book, to the general reader, we regret that our limits will only admit ofour giving a very condensed and imperfect narrative. 

Gurameer, the Brahmin, was born at Benares. He was the only son of apriest of Vishnu, of rank, and was himself intended for thepriesthood. At school, he meets with a boy of the name of _BaltyMahu_, between whom and himself a degree of rivalry, andsubsequently the most decided enmity, existed--a circumstance thatdecided the character of Gurameer's subsequent life. They afterwardsmet at college, where a more extended theatre was afforded for theexercise of Balty Mahu's malignity. During a vacation, Gurameer, beingon a visit to an uncle in the country, one day, when the family hadgone to witness a grand spectacle in honour of an important festivalin their calendar, which he could not himself attend consistently withthe rules of his caste, was tempted to visit the deserted Zenana, orladies' apartment, where he accidentally meets with a beautiful youngfemale. The acquaintance, thus begun, soon ripened into intimacy, bymeans of walks in the garden, contrived by Fatima, one of his femalecousins. At length they are constrained to separate. Veenah (for sothe young lady is named) returns to Benares, whither Gurameer soonfollows her. On making his father acquainted with his attachment, thelatter endeavours to persuade him to overcome it, and informs him thatVeenah's father is avaricious, and a bigot, and hence, that he wouldprobably be prejudiced against him, owing to some imputations whichhad been cast on Gurameer's religious creed, and industriouslycirculated by his old enemy, Balty Mahu, who proves to be the cousinof Veenah These considerations prevail upon Gurameer to defer anyapplication to Veenah's father, until the suspicions regarding hisfaith had either died away or been falsified by his scrupulousobservance of all religious duties. This resolution he determines tocommunicate to his mistress. Accordingly, in the evening, he betakeshimself to the quarter of the city where Veenah's father lives; and, walking to and fro before the house, soon discovers that he isrecognised. By a cord, let down from the window, he conveys a letterto her, which, the following evening, she answers; and thus a regularcorrespondence was kept up, which, by the exercise it afforded totheir imaginations, and the difficulties attendant upon it, inflamedtheir passion to the highest pitch. He had, however, soon themisfortune to be discovered by Balty Mahu, and, in consequence, Veenahis debarred from pen and ink, but contrives to acquaint her lover thattheir intercourse has been discovered, by a short note, written with aburnt stick. Gurameer now goes in despair to Veenah's father, fromwhom he experiences a haughty repulse, and who, in the followingnight, secretly leaves the city, with his daughter, embarking on theGanges, and taking measures to prevent the discovery of the place ofhis retreat. At the expiration of two or three months, an end is putto Gurameer's doubts and apprehensions, by his return, with hisdaughter and son-in-law--a rich Omrah, four times her age. After thefirst ebullitions of rage have subsided, his love returns; but he isnever able to succeed in obtaining an interview with Veenah. By hiscousin Fatima, he learns the circumstances of Veenah's marriage, andthe deceptions which had been practised on her, aided by the unboundedauthority which parents exercise in eastern countries. The unhappyVeenah, as firm in her principles as she was gentle in disposition, refuses to see him. "Tell him, " said she, "that Heaven has forbiddenit, and to its decrees we are bound to submit I am now the wife ofanother, and it is our duty to forget all that is past. But if this bepossible, my heart tells me it can be only by our never meeting!"

Gurameer now fell into a state of settled melancholy, and consented totravel, more for the purpose of pleasing his parents, than from anyconcern for his own health; but travelling had little effect--"hecarried a barbed arrow in his heart; and the greater the efforts toextract it, the more they rankled the wound. " When so much emaciatedthat he was not expected to live a month, he took a voyage, coastwise, to Madras; and, on his arrival there, learned that Balty Mahu hadrecently left that place. This intelligence operated like a charm; thedesire of revenge roused all his energies and became his masterpassion. He immediately set off in pursuit; but, although often near, could never overtake him. His health rapidly improves; and at lengthhe hears that the old Omrah's health is rapidly declining. Thisinformation awakens new thoughts and hopes, and Balty Mahu isforgotten. He hastens hack to Benares; and when near the city, hearstwo merchants, in conversation, remark that the Omrah is dead, andthat his widow was the next day to perform the _Suttee_. Heimmediately mounts his horse, and reaches the city the next morning atsunrise. In the street he mixes with the throng;--hears Veenah pitied, her father blamed, and himself lamented. He now sees Veenah approachthe funeral pile, who, at the well known sound of his voice, shriekedout, "he lives! he lives!" and would have attempted to save herselffrom the flames; but the shouts of the surrounding multitude, and thesound of the instruments, drowned her voice. He now attempts toapproach the pile for the purpose of rescuing her, but is forciblyheld back until the wretched Veenah is enveloped in flames. On hisagain attempting to reach the pile, he was charged with profanation;and, on Balty Mahu's making his appearance and encouraging the charge, in frantic desperation he seizes a scymetar from one of the guards, and plunges it in his breast. The influence of his friends, and thesacred character of persons of his caste, saved the Brahmin fromcapital punishment; but he was banished from Hindostan. He now removedto the kingdom of Ava, where he continued so long as his parentslived, after which he visited several countries, both of Asia andEurope; and in one of his journeys, having discovered Lunarium Ore inthe mountain near Mogaun, he determined to pass the remainder of hisdays in that secluded retreat. --"So ends this strange, eventfulhistory. "

When the Brahmin terminated his narrative, the extended map beneaththem was already assuming a distinct and varied appearance:--

 "The Brahmin, having applied his eye to the telescope, and made a brief calculation of our progress, considered that twenty-four hours more, if no accident interrupted us, would end our voyage; part of which interval I passed in making notes in my journal, and in contemplating the different sections of our many peopled globe, as they presented themselves successively to the eye. It was my wish to land on the American continent, and, if possible, in the United States. But the Brahmin put an end to that hope, by reminding me that we should be attracted towards the Equator, and that we had to choose between Asia, Africa, and South America; and that our only course would be, to check the progress of our car over the country of greatest extent, through which the equinoctial circle might pass. Saying which, he relapsed into his melancholy silence, and I betook myself once more to the telescope. With a bosom throbbing with emotion, I saw that we were descending towards the American continent. When we were about ten or twelve miles from the earth, the Brahmin arrested the progress of the car, and we hovered over the broad Atlantic. Looking down on the ocean, the first object which presented itself to my eye, was a small one-masted shallop, which was buffetting the waves in a south-westerly direction. I presumed it was a New-England trader, on a voyage to some part of the Republic of Colombia: and, by way of diverting my friend from his melancholy reverie, I told him some of the many stories which are current respecting the enterprise and ingenuity of this portion of my countrymen, and above all, their adroitness at a bargain. 

 "'Methinks, ' says the Brahmin, 'you are describing a native of Canton or Pekin. But, ' added he, after a short pause, 'though to a superficial observer man appears to put on very different characters, to a philosopher he is every where the same--for he is every where moulded by the circumstances in which he is placed. Thus; let him be in a situation that is propitious to commerce, and the habits of traffic produce in him shrewdness and address. Trade is carried on chiefly in towns, because it is there carried on most advantageously. This situation gives the trader a more intimate knowledge of his species--a more ready insight into character, and of the modes of operating on it. His chief purpose is to buy as cheap, and to sell as dear, as he can; and he is often able to heighten the recommendations or soften the defects of some of the articles in which he deals, without danger of immediate detection; or, in other words, big representations have some influence with his customers. He avails himself of this circumstance, and thus acquires the habit of lying; but, as he is studious to conceal it, he becomes wary, ingenious, and cunning. It is thus that the Phenicians, the Carthagenians, the Dutch, the Chinese, the New-Englanders, and the modern Greeks, have always been regarded as inclined to petty frauds by their less commercial neighbours. ' I mentioned the English nation. 

 "'If the English, ' said he, interrupting me; 'who are the most commercial people of modern times, have not acquired the same character, it is because they are as distinguished for other things as for traffic: they are not merely a commercial people--they are also agricultural, warlike, and literary; and thus the natural tendencies of commerce are mutually counteracted. '

 "We afterwards descended slowly; the prospect beneath us becoming more beautiful than my humble pen can hope to describe, or will even attempt to portray. In a short time after, we were in sight of Venezuela. We met with the trade winds and were carried by them forty or fifty miles inland, where, with some difficulty, and even danger, we landed. The Brahmin and myself remained together two days, and parted--he to explore the Andes, to obtain additional light on the subject of his hypothesis, and I, on the wings of impatience, to visit once more my long-deserted family and friends. But before our separation, I assisted my friend in concealing our aerial vessel, and received a promise from him to visit, and perhaps spend with me the evening of his life. Of my journey home, little remains to be said. From the citizens of Colombia, I experienced kindness and attention, and means of conveyance to Caraccas; where, embarking on board the brig Juno, captain Withers, I once more set foot in New-York, on the 18th of August, 1826, after an absence of four years, resolved, for the rest of my life, to travel only in books, and persuaded, from experience, that the satisfaction which the wanderer gains from actually beholding the wonders and curiosities of distant climes, is dearly bought by the sacrifice of all the comforts and delights of home. "

We have thus placed before the reader an analysis of this interestingSatirical Romance. The time and space we have occupied sufficientlyindicate the favourable sentiments respecting it with which we havebeen impressed. Of the execution of the satires, from the severalextracts we have given, the reader will himself be enabled to judge. This is of course unequal, but generally felicitous. In the personalallusions which occur through the work, the author exhibits, as wehave before noticed, a freedom from malice and all uncharitableness, and in many of them has attained that happy _desideratum_ whichDryden considered a matter of so much difficulty:--

 "How easy is it, " he observes, "to call rogue and villain, and that wittily! But how hard to make a man appear a fool, a blockhead, or a knave, without using any of those opprobrious terms! To spare the grossness of the names, and to do the thing yet more severely, is to draw a full face, and to make the nose and cheeks stand out, and yet not to employ any depth of shadowing. This is the mystery of that noble trade, which yet no master can teach to his apprentice; he may give the rules, but the scholar is never the nearer in his practice; neither is it true, that this fineness of raillery is offensive. A witty man is tickled, while he is hurt, in this manner, and a fool feels it not: the occasion of an offence may possibly be given, but he cannot take it. If it be granted, that, in effect, this way does more mischief--that a man is secretly wounded, and, though he be not sensible himself, yet the malicious world will find it out for him, yet, there is still a vast difference betwixt the slovenly butchering of a man, and the fineness of a stroke that separates the head from the body, and leaves it standing in its place. A man may be capable, as Jack Ketch's wife said of his servant, of a plain piece of work, a bare hanging; but to make a malefactor die sweetly, was only belonging to her husband. "[11]

In conclusion, we must express our regret, that the author should nothave added notes to the work--the want of them will be seriously feltby every one; some of the satires, indeed, must escape the reader, unless he pay a degree of attention, which notes would have renderedunnecessary. In his next edition, we trust that this deficiency may besupplied; and we anticipate as much instruction and entertainment, from the wide scope which such an undertaking will afford, as we havederived from the perusal of the text. Cheerfully would we extend tohim, if required, the leisure claimed by Spenser, after he hadcomposed the first six books of his "_Faerie Queene_, " providedhe would promise us similar conditions:--

 "After so long a race as I have run Through Faery Land, which those six books compile, Give leave to rest me, being half foredonne, And gather to myself new breath awhile;

 "Then, as a steed refreshed after toyle, Out of my prison will I break anew, And stoutly will that second work assoyle, With strong endeavour, and attention due. "

 * * * * *

[APPENDIX FOOTNOTES]

[Footnote 1: Scott's Swift, vol. Xi. P. 4]

[Footnote 2: Aristoph. In Pace. 130. ]

[Footnote 3: Orlando furioso, Canto xxxiv. St. 68 and 69. ]

[Footnote 4: Micromègas, Histoire Philosophique, chap. 8. ]

[Footnote 5: Fuller, a learned contemporary of the Bishop, has givenus an amusing case of litigation, originating from this nourishingcharacter of odours. --

"A poor man, being very hungry, staid so long in a cook's shop, whowas dishing up meat, that his stomach was satisfied with only thesmell thereof. The choleric cook demanded of him to pay for hisbreakfast, the poor man denied having had any; and the controversy wasreferred to the deciding of the next man that should pass by, whochanced to be the most notorious idiot in the whole city be, on therelation of the matter, determined that the poor man's money should beput betwixt two empty dishes, and the cook should be recompensed withthe jingling of the poor man's money, as he was satisfied with thesmell of the cook's meat. "--_Fuller's Holy State_, lib. Iii. C. 12. ]

[Footnote 6: Aristophan. In pace. 137. ]

[Footnote 7: The idea of the Glonglims is the author's. Ariosto makesthe lost intellect, of those who become insane upon the earth, ascendto the moon, where it is kept _bottled_. --

 "Era come un liquor suttile e molle, Atto a esalar, se non si tien ben chiuso; E si vedea raccolto in varie ampolle, Qual più, qual men capace, atte a quell' uso. "

 _Orlando furioso_, Cant. 34. St. 83. ]

[Footnote 8: Our author might also have alluded to the old apology forevery thing inane or contemptible--"It is a tale of the man in themoon. " When that arch flatterer, John Lylie, published (in 1591) his"_Endymion_, or _the man in the moon_"--a _court comedy_, as itwas afterwards called; in other words, intended for the gratificationof Queen Elizabeth, and in which her personal charms and attractionsare grossly lauded--he pleads guilty to its defect in plot, in thefollowing exquisite apologetic prologue:--

"Most high and happy Princess, we must tell you a tale of the man inthe moon; which, if it seem ridiculous for the method, or superfluousfor the matter, or for the means incredible, for three faults we canmake but one excuse, --it is a tale of the man of the moon. "

"It was forbidden in old time to dispute of Chymera, because it was afiction: we hope in our times none will apply pastimes, because theyare fancies: for there liveth none under the sun that knows what tomake of the man in the moon. We present neither comedy, nor tragedy, nor story, nor any thing, but that whosoever heareth may say this:--'Why, here is a tale of the man in the moon. ' Yet this is the mandesignated by Blount, who re-published his plays in 1632, as the '_onlyrare poet of that time, the witie, comicall, facetiously-quicke, andunparallel'd John Lylie, Master of Arts!'"]

[Footnote 9: It is to be regretted that the author has not followedthe good example set him by Johnson, in his _Debates in the Senateof Magna Lilliputia_, published in the Gentlemen's Magazine for1738: the denominations of the speakers being formed of the letters oftheir real names, so that they might be easily deciphered. Thisneglect has obscured many of the author's most interesting satires. Who could suppose from the letters alone, that _Wigurd_, _Vindar_, and _Avarabet_, were respectively intended for _Godwin_, _Darwin_, and _Lavater_?]

[Footnote 10: It is a curious circumstance, that Swift, in hisdescription of the Academy of Lagado, should have so completelyanticipated the Pestalozzian invention. ]

[Footnote 11: Dryden's Essay on Satire]