their word of honour, that in visiting one another they would give no money to servants, nor allow their own servants to take any money from their guests." The example given by this country was rapidly followed throughout the kingdom, till in the end the practice was universally abolished. Gulliver in Brobdingnag. CHAPTER VI. MORE dangerous accident happened to me in the garden, when my little nurse, believing she put me in a secure place, went to another part of the garden with her governess and some ladies of her acquaintance. While she was absent, and out of hearing, a small white spaniel, belonging to one of the chief gardeners, having got by accident into the garden, happened to go near the place where I lay. The dog following the scent, came directly up, and, taking me in his mouth, ran straight to his master, wagging his tail, and set me gently on the ground. By good fortune, he had been so well taught, that I was carried between his teeth without the least hurt, or even tearing my clothes. But the poor gardener, who knew me well, and had a great kindness for me, was in a terrible fright. He gently took me up in both his hands and asked me how I did; but I was so amazed and out of breath that I could not speak a word. In a few minutes I came to myself, and he carried me safe to my little nurse, who by this time had returned to the place where she left me, and was in cruel agonies when I did not appear, nor answer when I was called. She severely rebuked the gardener on account of his dog; but the thing was hushed up and never known at court, for the girl was afraid of the queen's anger; and truly, as for myself, I thought it would not be for my reputation that such a story should go about. I had had before some little accidents of this kind, which I had concealed from my nurse. Once a kite, hovering over the garden, made a stoop at me; and if I had not resolutely drawn my sword, he would have certainly carried me away in his talons. Another time, walking to the top of a fresh molehill, I fell to my neck in the hole, through which that animal had cast up the earth. I likewise broke my right shin against the shell of a snail, which I happened to stumble over as I was walking alone, and thinking on poor England. The smaller birds did not appear to be at all afraid of me, but would hop about within a yard's distance, looking for worms and other food with as much indifference and security as if no creature at all were near them. I remember a thrush had the confidence to snatch out of my hand a piece of cake that Glumdalditch had just given me for my breakfast. When I attempted to catch any of these birds, they would boldly turn against me, endeavouring to peck my fingers, which I durst not venture within their reach; and then they would hop back unconcerned to hunt for worms and snails as they did before. But one day I took a thick cudgel, and threw it with all my strength so luckily at a linnet, that I knocked him down, and, seizing him by the neck with both my hands, ran with him in triumph to my nurse. However, the bird, who had only been stunned, recovering himself, gave me so many boxes with his wings on both sides of my head and body (though I held him at arms' length, and was out of the reach of his claws), that I was twenty times thinking to let him go. But I was soon relieved by one of our servants, who wrung off the bird's neck; and I had him next day for dinner, by the queen's command. This linnet, as near as I can remember, seemed to be somewhat larger than an English swan. The queen, who often used to hear me talk of my sea voyages, and took all occasions to divert me when I was melancholy, asked me whether I understood how to handle a sail or an oar, and whether a little exercise in rowing might not be good for my health. I answered that I understood both very well; for, although my proper employment had been to be surgeon or doctor to the ship, yet often, upon a pinch, I was forced to work like a common mariner. But I could not see how this could be done in their country, where the smallest wherry was equal to a man-of-war amongst us; and such a boat as I could manage would never live in any of their rivers. Her majesty said if I would contrive a boat, her own joiner should make it, and she would provide a place for me to sail in. The joiner was a clever workman, and, by my instructions, in ten days finished a pleasure boat, with all its tackling, able to hold eight Europeans. When it was finished, the queen was so delighted, that she ran with it in her lap to the king, who ordered it to be put into a cistern full of water, with me in it, by way of trial, where I could not manage my two sculls, or little oars, for want of room. But the queen had before contrived another project. She ordered the joiner to make a wooden trough, three hundred feet long, fifty broad, and eight deep; which, being well filled to prevent leaking, was placed on the floor along the wall in an outer room of the palace. This could be easy filled by two servants in half an hour. Here I often used to row for my own diversion, as well as that of the queen and her ladies, who thought themselves well entertained with my skill. Sometimes I would put up my sail, and then my business was only to steer, while the ladies gave me a gale with their fans; and, when they were weary, some of their pages would blow my sail forward with their breath, while I showed my art by steering starboard, or larboard, as I pleased. When I had done, Glumdalditch always carried back my boat into her closet, and hung it on a nail to dry. One day, however, one of the servants whose office it was to fill my trough with water was so careless as to let a huge frog (not seeing it) slip out of his pail. The frog lay concealed till I was put in my boat; but then, seeing a resting place, climbed up, and made it lean so much on one side, that I was forced to balance it with all my might on the other to prevent overturning. When the frog had got in, it hopped at once half the length of the boat, and then over my head backwards and forwards, daubing my face and clothes with its odious slime. The largeness of its features made it look the most deformed animal that can be conceived. However, I desired Glumdalditch to let me deal with it alone: I banged it a good while with one of my sculls; and at last forced it to leap out of the boat. Testimony is like an arrow shot from a long bow-the force of it depends on the hand that draws it. Argument is like an arrow from a cross-bow, which has great force, though shot by a child. Bacon. The Chinese Language. HE Chinese language is like no other on the globe. It is said to contain not more than about 330 words. It is by no means monotonous, for it has four accents, which are as difficult for a European to understand as it is for an Englishman to comprehend the six pronunciations of the French "e." In fact, they can so change their words of one syllable by the different tones which they give them, that the same word differently accented signifies sometimes ten or more different things. Bourgeois, one of the missionaries, attempted, after ten months' residence at Pekin, to preach in the Chinese language. He says: "You cannot imagine how much this first Chinese sermon cost me! I can assure you this language resembles no other. The same word has never but one termination; and then adieu to all that in our declensions distinguishes the gender and the number of things we would speak of. With the Chinese, the same word is noun, adjective, verb, singular, plural, masculine, feminine, &c. The person who hears must arrange the circumstances, and guess them. Add to all this, that the words of this language are reduced to three hundred and a few more; that they are pronounced in so many different ways that they signify eighty thousand different things; and you have some idea of the difficulty attending this study. "I will give you an example of their words. They told me chou signifies a book; so that I thought whenever the word chou was pronounced a book was the subject. Not at all !—chou, the next time I heard it, was explained to be a tree. Now I was to recollect chou was a book, or a tree. But this amounted to nothing: chou, I found, also expressed great heats; chou is to relate; chou is the Aurora; chou means to be accustomed; chou expresses the loss of a wager. I should not finish were I to attempt to give you all the things it stands for. "Their pronunciation is still more difficult. Every word may be pronounced in five different tones; yet every tone is not so distinct that an unpractised ear can easily distinguish it. I recited my sermon at least fifty times to my servant before I spoke it in public; and yet I am told, though he continually corrected me, that of the ten parts of the sermon (as the Chinese express themselves) they hardly understood three Fortunately, the Chinese are wonderfully patient; and they are astonished that any ignorant foreigner should be able to learn two words of their language." Poems to be Remembered. INTIMATIONS OF IMMORTALITY FROM RECOLLECTIONS PART II. THE poet explains that every child born into the world "comes from God, who is our home.' It comes "trailing clouds of glory," and this glory is seen in its features and manners. As the babe grows up into the youth, the glory becomes paler; and when he becomes a man, "it fades into the light of common day," and is seen no more. V. UR birth is but a sleep and a forgetting; The soul that rises with us, our life's star, And cometh from afar: Not in entire forgetfulness, And not in utter nakedness, But trailing clouds of glory do we come From God, Who is our home. Heaven lies about us in our infancy! Shades of the prison-house begin to close But he beholds the light, and whence it flows— The youth who daily farther from the east Is on his way attended : At length the man perceives it die away, The child so clothed with glory finds things to amuse him on the earth, which, with the natural desire of a mother, tries to please "her foster-child" with her own possessions, and to make him "forget the glories he hath known, and that imperial palace [Heaven] whence he came." |