intend to travel, as I always believed it would be fome time or other my fortune to do. When I left Mr. Bates, I went down to my father; where, by the affiftance of him and my uncle John, and fome other relations, I got forty pounds, and a promise of thirty pounds a year to maintain me at Leyden; there I ftudied phyfic two years and feven months, knowing it would be useful in long voyages.

Soon after my return from Leyden, I was recommended by my good mafter Mr. Bates to be furgeon to the Swallow, captain Abraham Pannell, commander; with whom I continued three years and a half, making a voyage or two into the Levant, and fome other parts. When I came back, I refolved to fettle in London, to which Mr. Bates, my mafter, encouraged me, and by him I was recommended to feveral patients. I took part of a fmall houfe in the Old-Jewry; and being advised to alter my condition, I married Mrs. Mary Burton, fecond daughter to Mr. Edmund Burton, hofier in Newgate-street, with whom I received four hundred pounds for a portion.

But, my good mafter Bates dying in two years after, and I having few friends, my business began to fail; for my confcience would not fuffer me to imitate the bad practice of too many among my brethren. Having therefore confulted with my wife, and fome of my acquaintance, I determined to go again to fea. I was furgeon fucceffively in two hips, and made feveral voyages for fix years to the Eaft and Weft-Indies, by which I got fome addition to my fortune. My hours of leifure I fpent in reading the beft authors, antient and modern, being always provided with a good number of books; and when I was afhore, in obferving the manners and difpofitions of the people, as well as learning their language, wherein I had a great facility by the ftrength of my memory.

The last of these voyages not proving very fortunate, I grew weary of the fea, and intended to stay at home with my wife and family. I removed from the Old-Jewry to Fetter-lane, and from thence to Wapping, hoping to get bufi

nefs among the failors; but it would not turn to account. After three years expectation that things would mend, I accepted an advantageous offer from captain William Pritchard, master of the Antelope, who was making a voyage to the South-Sea. We fet fail from Bristol, May 4th, 1699, and our voyage at first was very profperous.

It would not be proper, for fome reafons, to trouble the reader with the particulars of our adventures in those seas : let it fuffice to inform him, that, in our paffage from thence to the East-Indies, we were driven by a violent form to the north-west of Van Diemen's land. By an obfervation we found ourselves in the latitude of 30 degrees 2 minutes fouth. Twelve of our crew were dead by immoderate labour, and ill food; the reft were in a very weak condition. On the fifth of November, which was the beginning of fummer in those parts, the weather being very hazy, the feamen fpied a rock within half a cable's length of the fhip; but the wind was fo ftrong, that we were driven directly upon it, and immediately fplit. Six of the crew, of whom I was one, having let down the boat into the fea, made a fhift to get clear of the fhip and the rock. We rowed by my computation. about three leagues, till we were able to work no longer, being already spent with labour while we were in the hip, We therefore trufted ourselves to the mercy of the waves, and in about half an hour the boat was overset by a fudden flurry from the north. What beçame of my companions in the boat, as well as of those who escaped on the rock, or were left in the veffel, I cannot tell; but conclude they were all loft. For my own part, I swam as fortune directed me, and was pushed forward by wind and tide. I often let my legs drop, and could feel no bottom; but when I was almoft gone, and able to ftruggle no longer, I found myself within my depth; and by this time the ftorm was much abated. The declivity was fo fmall, that I walked near a mile before 1 got to the fhore, which I conjectured was about eight o'clock in the evening. I then advanced forward near half a mile, but could not discover

any

the principal perfon began his oration, he cried out three times, langro debul fan; (these words and the former were afterwards repeated and explained to me.) Whereupon immediately about fifty of the inhabitants came and cut the strings that faftened the left fide of my head, which gave me the liberty of turning it to the right, and of obferv. ing the perfon and gesture of him that was to speak. He appeared to be of a middle age, and taller than any of the other three who attended him, whereof one was a page that held up his train, and feemed to be fomewhat longer than my middle finger; the other two ftood one on each fide to fupport him. He acted every part of an orator, and I could obferve many periods of threatenings, and others of promifes, pity, and kindness. I anfwered in a few words, but in the most fubmiffive manner, lifting up my left hand and both my eyes to the fun, as calling him for a witnefs; and being almoft famished with hunger, having not eaten a morfel for fome hours before I left the fhip, I found the demands of nature so strong upon me, that I could not forbear fhewing my impatience (perhaps against the ftrict rules of decency) by putting my finger frequently to my mouth, to fignify that I wanted food. The burgo (for fo they call a great lord, as I after wards learnt) understood me very well. He defcended from the ftage, and commanded that feveral ladders fhould be applied to my fides, on which above an hundred of the inhabitants mounted, and walked towards my mouth, laden with baskets full of meat, which had been provided and fent thither by the king's orders, upon the firft intelligence he received of me. I obferved there was the flesh of feveral animals, but could not diftinguish them by the tafte. There were fhoulders, legs, and loins fhaped like those of mutton, and very well dreffed, but fmaller than the wings of a lark. I eat them by two or three at a mouthful, and took three loaves at a time about the bignefs of mufket-bullets. They fupplied me as faft as they could, fhewing a thoufand marks of wonder and aftonishment at my bulk and appetite. I then made an

1

other fign, that I wanted drink. They found by my eating, that a fmall quantity would not fuffice me, and being a most ingenious people, they flung up with great dexterity one of their largest hogheads, then rolled it towards my hand, and beat out the top; I drank it off at a draught, which I might well do, for it did not hold half a pint, and tafted like a fmall wine of Burgundy, but much more delicious. They brought me a fecond hogfhead, which I drank in the fame manner, and made figns for more; but they had none to give me. When I had performed these wonders, they fhouted for joy, and danced upon my breaft, repeating several times as they did at firft, hekinah degul. They made me a fign that I fhould throw down the two hogfheads, but first warnning the people below to ftand out of the way, crying aloud, borach mevola, and when they faw the veffels in the air, there was an univerfal fhout of he kinah degul. I confefs, I was often tempted, while they were paffing backwards and forwards on my body, to feize forty or fifty of the first that came in my reach, and dash them against the ground. But the remembrance of what I had felt, which probably might not be the worft they could do, and the promife of honour I made them, for fo I interpreted my fubmiffive behaviour, foon drove out thefe imaginations. Befides, I now confidered myfelf as bound by the laws of hofpitality to a people, who had treated me with fo much expence and magnificence. However, in my thoughts I could not fufficiently. wonder at the intrepidity of these diminutive mortals, who durft venture to mount and walk upon my body, while one of my hands was at liberty, without trembling at the very fight of fo prodigious a creature, as I must appear to them. After fome time, when they obferved that I made no more demands for meat, there appeared before me a perfon of high rank from his imperial majefty. His excellency, having mounted on the fmall of my right leg, advanced forwards up to my face, with about a dozen of his retinue. And producing his credentials under the fignet royal, which he applied close to my

eyes,

and place me in this vehicle. Eighty poles, each of one foot high, were erected for this purpofe, and very trong cords, of the bignefs of packthread, were faltened by hooks to many bandages, which the workmen had girt round my neck, my hands, my body, and my legs. Nine hundred of the ftrongest men were employed to draw up these cords by many pullies faftened on the poles, and thus, in lefs than three hours, I was raised and flung into the engine, and there tied faft. All this I was told, for, while the whole operation was performing, I lay in a profound fleep by the force of that foporiferous medicine infufed into my liquor. Fifteen hundred of the emperor's largest horfes, each about four inches and an half high, were employed to draw me towards the metropolis, which, as I faid, was half a mile diftant.

About four hours after we began our journey, I awaked by a very ridiculous accident; for the carriage being ftopt awhile to adjust fomething that was out of order, two or three of the young natives had the curiosity to fee how I looked when I was afleep; they climbed up into the engine, and advancing very foftly to my face, one of them, an officer in the guards, put the fharp end of his half-pike a good way up into my left noftril, which tickled my nofe like a ftraw, and made me faceze violently: whereupon they fiole off unperceived, and it was three weeks before I knew the caufe of my awaking fo fud. denly. We made a long march the remaining part of the day, and refled at night with five hundred guards an each fide of me, half with torches, and half with bows and arrows, ready to fhoot me, if I fhould offer to tir. The next

It has been remarked, that courage in whatever caufe, though it sometimes excites indignation, is never the object of contempt; but this appears to be true, only becaufe courage is fuppofed to imply fuperiority for this officer in the guards becomes extremely ridiculous and contemptible by an a& of the moft daring curiofity, which fets him in comparifon with Gulliver; to whom he was fo much inferior, that a blaft of the Manmountain's noftrils would have endangered his life; and if heroifin itself is not proof against ri dicule, thofe furely are Lilliputians in philofophy, who confider ridicule as the test of truth.

morning at fun-rife we continued our march, and arrived within two hundred yards of the city-gates about noon, The emperor, and all his court, came out to meet us, but his great officers would by no means fuffer his majesty to endanger his perfon by mounting on my body.

At the place where the carriage ftopt, there flood an ancient temple, efteemed to be the largest in the whole kingdom, which, having been polluted fome years before by an unnatural murder, was, according to the zeal of those people, looked upon as prophane, and therefore had been applied to common ufe, and all the ornaments and furniture carried away. In this edifice it was determined I fhould lodge. The great gate fronting to the north was about four feet high, and almost two feet wide, through which I could easily creep. On each fide of the gate was a fmall window, not above fix inches from the ground: into that on the left fide the king's fmith conveyed fourfcore and eleven chains, like thofe that hang to a lady's watch in Europe, and almost as large, which were locked to my left leg with fix and thirty padlocks. Overagainst this temple, on the other fide of the great highway, at twenty feet diftance, there was a turret at least five feet high. Here the emperor afcended, with many principal lords of his court, to have an opportunity of viewing me, as I was told, for I could not fee them. It was reckoned that above an hundred thousand inhabitants came out of the town upon the fame errand; and, in spite of my guards, I believe, there could not be fewer than ten thoufand at feveral times, who mounted my body by the help of ladders. But a procla mation was foon iffued to forbid it on When the workmen pain of death. found it was impoffible for me to break loofe, they cut all the ftrings that bound me; whereupon I rofe up with as melancholy a difpofition as ever I had in my life. But the noife and astonishment of the people at feeing me rife and walk are not to be expreffed. The chains that held my left leg were about two yards long, and gave me not only the liberty of walking backwards and 3 G

forwards