CHAPTER III.

A phenomenon solved by modern philosophy and astronomy. The Laputians’

great improvements in the latter. The king’s method of suppressing

insurrections.

I desired leave of this prince to see the curiosities of the island,

which he was graciously pleased to grant, and ordered my tutor to

attend me. I chiefly wanted to know, to what cause, in art or in

nature, it owed its several motions, whereof I will now give a

philosophical account to the reader.

The flying or floating island is exactly circular, its diameter 7837

yards, or about four miles and a half, and consequently contains ten

thousand acres. It is three hundred yards thick. The bottom, or under

surface, which appears to those who view it below, is one even regular

plate of adamant, shooting up to the height of about two hundred yards.

Above it lie the several minerals in their usual order, and over all is

a coat of rich mould, ten or twelve feet deep. The declivity of the

upper surface, from the circumference to the centre, is the natural

cause why all the dews and rains, which fall upon the island, are

conveyed in small rivulets toward the middle, where they are emptied

into four large basins, each of about half a mile in circuit, and two

hundred yards distant from the centre. From these basins the water is

continually exhaled by the sun in the daytime, which effectually

prevents their overflowing. Besides, as it is in the power of the

monarch to raise the island above the region of clouds and vapours, he

can prevent the falling of dews and rain whenever he pleases. For the

highest clouds cannot rise above two miles, as naturalists agree, at

least they were never known to do so in that country.

At the centre of the island there is a chasm about fifty yards in

diameter, whence the astronomers descend into a large dome, which is

therefore called _flandona gagnole_, or the astronomer’s cave, situated

at the depth of a hundred yards beneath the upper surface of the

adamant. In this cave are twenty lamps continually burning, which, from

the reflection of the adamant, cast a strong light into every part. The

place is stored with great variety of sextants, quadrants, telescopes,

astrolabes, and other astronomical instruments. But the greatest

curiosity, upon which the fate of the island depends, is a loadstone of

a prodigious size, in shape resembling a weaver’s shuttle. It is in

length six yards, and in the thickest part at least three yards over.

This magnet is sustained by a very strong axle of adamant passing

through its middle, upon which it plays, and is poised so exactly that

the weakest hand can turn it. It is hooped round with a hollow cylinder

of adamant, four feet deep, as many thick, and twelve yards in

diameter, placed horizontally, and supported by eight adamantine feet,

each six yards high. In the middle of the concave side, there is a

groove twelve inches deep, in which the extremities of the axle are

lodged, and turned round as there is occasion.

The stone cannot be removed from its place by any force, because the

hoop and its feet are one continued piece with that body of adamant

which constitutes the bottom of the island.

By means of this loadstone, the island is made to rise and fall, and

move from one place to another. For, with respect to that part of the

earth over which the monarch presides, the stone is endued at one of

its sides with an attractive power, and at the other with a repulsive.

Upon placing the magnet erect, with its attracting end towards the

earth, the island descends; but when the repelling extremity points

downwards, the island mounts directly upwards. When the position of the

stone is oblique, the motion of the island is so too. For in this

magnet, the forces always act in lines parallel to its direction.

By this oblique motion, the island is conveyed to different parts of

the monarch’s dominions. To explain the manner of its progress, let _A_

_B_ represent a line drawn across the dominions of Balnibarbi, let the

line _c_ _d_ represent the loadstone, of which let _d_ be the repelling

end, and _c_ the attracting end, the island being over _C_; let the

stone be placed in the position _c_ _d_, with its repelling end

downwards; then the island will be driven upwards obliquely towards

_D_. When it is arrived at _D_, let the stone be turned upon its axle,

till its attracting end points towards _E_, and then the island will be

carried obliquely towards _E_; where, if the stone be again turned upon

its axle till it stands in the position _E_ _F_, with its repelling

point downwards, the island will rise obliquely towards _F_, where, by

directing the attracting end towards _G_, the island may be carried to

_G_, and from _G_ to _H_, by turning the stone, so as to make its

repelling extremity to point directly downward. And thus, by changing

the situation of the stone, as often as there is occasion, the island

is made to rise and fall by turns in an oblique direction, and by those

alternate risings and fallings (the obliquity being not considerable)

is conveyed from one part of the dominions to the other.

But it must be observed, that this island cannot move beyond the extent

of the dominions below, nor can it rise above the height of four miles.

For which the astronomers (who have written large systems concerning

the stone) assign the following reason: that the magnetic virtue does

not extend beyond the distance of four miles, and that the mineral,

which acts upon the stone in the bowels of the earth, and in the sea

about six leagues distant from the shore, is not diffused through the

whole globe, but terminated with the limits of the king’s dominions;

and it was easy, from the great advantage of such a superior situation,

for a prince to bring under his obedience whatever country lay within

the attraction of that magnet.

When the stone is put parallel to the plane of the horizon, the island

stands still; for in that case the extremities of it, being at equal

distance from the earth, act with equal force, the one in drawing

downwards, the other in pushing upwards, and consequently no motion can

ensue.

This loadstone is under the care of certain astronomers, who, from time

to time, give it such positions as the monarch directs. They spend the

greatest part of their lives in observing the celestial bodies, which

they do by the assistance of glasses, far excelling ours in goodness.

For, although their largest telescopes do not exceed three feet, they

magnify much more than those of a hundred with us, and show the stars

with greater clearness. This advantage has enabled them to extend their

discoveries much further than our astronomers in Europe; for they have

made a catalogue of ten thousand fixed stars, whereas the largest of

ours do not contain above one third part of that number. They have

likewise discovered two lesser stars, or satellites, which revolve

about Mars; whereof the innermost is distant from the centre of the

primary planet exactly three of his diameters, and the outermost, five;

the former revolves in the space of ten hours, and the latter in

twenty-one and a half; so that the squares of their periodical times

are very near in the same proportion with the cubes of their distance

from the centre of Mars; which evidently shows them to be governed by

the same law of gravitation that influences the other heavenly bodies.

They have observed ninety-three different comets, and settled their

periods with great exactness. If this be true (and they affirm it with

great confidence) it is much to be wished, that their observations were

made public, whereby the theory of comets, which at present is very

lame and defective, might be brought to the same perfection with other

arts of astronomy.

The king would be the most absolute prince in the universe, if he could

but prevail on a ministry to join with him; but these having their

estates below on the continent, and considering that the office of a

favourite has a very uncertain tenure, would never consent to the

enslaving of their country.

If any town should engage in rebellion or mutiny, fall into violent

factions, or refuse to pay the usual tribute, the king has two methods

of reducing them to obedience. The first and the mildest course is, by

keeping the island hovering over such a town, and the lands about it,

whereby he can deprive them of the benefit of the sun and the rain, and

consequently afflict the inhabitants with dearth and diseases. And if

the crime deserve it, they are at the same time pelted from above with

great stones, against which they have no defence but by creeping into

cellars or caves, while the roofs of their houses are beaten to pieces.

But if they still continue obstinate, or offer to raise insurrections,

he proceeds to the last remedy, by letting the island drop directly

upon their heads, which makes a universal destruction both of houses

and men. However, this is an extremity to which the prince is seldom

driven, neither indeed is he willing to put it in execution; nor dare

his ministers advise him to an action, which, as it would render them

odious to the people, so it would be a great damage to their own

estates, which all lie below; for the island is the king’s demesne.

But there is still indeed a more weighty reason, why the kings of this

country have been always averse from executing so terrible an action,

unless upon the utmost necessity. For, if the town intended to be

destroyed should have in it any tall rocks, as it generally falls out

in the larger cities, a situation probably chosen at first with a view

to prevent such a catastrophe; or if it abound in high spires, or

pillars of stone, a sudden fall might endanger the bottom or under

surface of the island, which, although it consist, as I have said, of

one entire adamant, two hundred yards thick, might happen to crack by

too great a shock, or burst by approaching too near the fires from the

houses below, as the backs, both of iron and stone, will often do in

our chimneys. Of all this the people are well apprised, and understand

how far to carry their obstinacy, where their liberty or property is

concerned. And the king, when he is highest provoked, and most

determined to press a city to rubbish, orders the island to descend

with great gentleness, out of a pretence of tenderness to his people,

but, indeed, for fear of breaking the adamantine bottom; in which case,

it is the opinion of all their philosophers, that the loadstone could

no longer hold it up, and the whole mass would fall to the ground.

About three years before my arrival among them, while the king was in

his progress over his dominions, there happened an extraordinary

accident which had like to have put a period to the fate of that

monarchy, at least as it is now instituted. Lindalino, the second city

in the kingdom, was the first his majesty visited in his progress.

Three days after his departure the inhabitants, who had often

complained of great oppressions, shut the town gates, seized on the

governor, and with incredible speed and labour erected four large

towers, one at every corner of the city (which is an exact square),

equal in height to a strong pointed rock that stands directly in the

centre of the city. Upon the top of each tower, as well as upon the

rock, they fixed a great loadstone, and in case their design should

fail, they had provided a vast quantity of the most combustible fuel,

hoping to burst therewith the adamantine bottom of the island, if the

loadstone project should miscarry.

It was eight months before the king had perfect notice that the

Lindalinians were in rebellion. He then commanded that the island

should be wafted over the city. The people were unanimous, and had laid

in store of provisions, and a great river runs through the middle of

the town. The king hovered over them several days to deprive them of

the sun and the rain. He ordered many packthreads to be let down, yet

not a person offered to send up a petition, but instead thereof very

bold demands, the redress of all their grievances, great immunities,

the choice of their own governor, and other the like exorbitances. Upon

which his majesty commanded all the inhabitants of the island to cast

great stones from the lower gallery into the town; but the citizens had

provided against this mischief by conveying their persons and effects

into the four towers, and other strong buildings, and vaults

underground.

The king being now determined to reduce this proud people, ordered that

the island should descend gently within forty yards of the top of the

towers and rock. This was accordingly done; but the officers employed

in that work found the descent much speedier than usual, and by turning

the loadstone could not without great difficulty keep it in a firm

position, but found the island inclining to fall. They sent the king

immediate intelligence of this astonishing event, and begged his

majesty’s permission to raise the island higher; the king consented, a

general council was called, and the officers of the loadstone ordered

to attend. One of the oldest and expertest among them obtained leave to

try an experiment, he took a strong line of an hundred yards, and the

island being raised over the town above the attracting power they had

felt, he fastened a piece of adamant to the end of his line, which had

in it a mixture of iron mineral, of the same nature with that whereof

the bottom or lower surface of the island is composed, and from the

lower gallery let it down slowly towards the top of the towers. The

adamant was not descended four yards, before the officer felt it drawn

so strongly downwards that he could hardly pull it back, he then threw

down several small pieces of adamant, and observed that they were all

violently attracted by the top of the tower. The same experiment was

made on the other three towers, and on the rock with the same effect.

This incident broke entirely the king’s measures, and (to dwell no

longer on other circumstances) he was forced to give the town their own

conditions.

I was assured by a great minister that if the island had descended so

near the town as not to be able to raise itself, the citizens were

determined to fix it for ever, to kill the king and all his servants,

and entirely change the government.

By a fundamental law of this realm, neither the king, nor either of his

two eldest sons, are permitted to leave the island; nor the queen, till

she is past child-bearing.