CHAPTER IX.
_Of the Little_ Spaniard _whom he met there, and of his quaint Wit; of_Vacuum, _Specific Weights, and sundry other Philosophical Matters_.
I was no sooner come, but they carryed me to the Palace, where theGrandees received me with more Moderation, than the people had done asI passed the streets: but both great and small concluded, that withoutdoubt I was the Female of the Queen's little Animal. My Guide was myInterpreter; and yet he himself understood not the Riddle, and knewnot what to make of that little Animal of the Queen's; but we weresoon satisfied as to that; for the King having some time consideredme, ordered it to be brought, and about half an hour after I saw acompany of Apes, wearing Ruffs and Breeches, come in, and amongst thema little Man almost of my own Built, for he went on Two Legs; so soonas he perceived me, he Accosted me with a _Criado de vuestra merced_[1]I answered his Greeting much in the same Terms. But alas! no soonerhad they seen us talk together, but they believed their Conjecture tobe true; and so, indeed, it seemed; for he of all the By-standers,that past the most favourable Judgment upon us, protested that ourConversation was a Chattering we kept for Joy at our meeting again.
That little Man told me, that he was an _European_, a Native of old_Castille_:[2] That he had found a means by the help of Birds[3] tomount up to the World of the Moon, where then we were: That fallinginto the Queen's Hands, she had taken him for a Monkey, because Fatewould have it so, That in that Country they cloath Apes in a _Spanish_Dress; and that upon his arrival, being found in that habit, she hadmade no doubt but he was of the same kind. "It could not otherwise be,"replied I, "but having tried all Fashions of Apparel upon them, nonewere found so Ridiculous, and by consequence more becoming a kind ofAnimals which are only entertained for Pleasure and Diversion." "Thatshews you little understand the Dignity of our Nation," answered he,"for whom the Universe breeds Men only to be our Slaves, and Natureproduces nothing but objects of Mirth and Laughter." He then intreatedme to tell him, how I durst be so bold as to Scale the Moon with theMachine I told him of? I answered, That it was because he had carriedaway the Birds, which I intended to have made use of. He smiled at thisRaillery; and about a quarter of an hour after, the King commandedthe Keeper of the Monkeys to carry us back. The King's Pleasure waspunctually obeyed; at which I was very glad, for the satisfactionI had, of having a Mate to converse with during the solitude of myBrutification.
The "Little Spaniard's" Trip to the Moon--From anEngraving in "The Strange Voyage of Domingo Gonzales to the World inthe Moon."]
One Day my Male (for I was taken for the Female) told me, That thetrue reason which had obliged him to travel all over the Earth, and atlength to abandon it for the Moon, was that he could not find so muchas one Country where even Imagination was at liberty. "Look ye," saidhe, "how the Wittiest thing you can say, unless you wear a CorneredCap, if it thwart the Principles of the Doctors of the Robe, you are anIdeot, a Fool, and something worse perhaps. I was about to have beenput into the Inquisition at home, for maintaining to the Pedants Teeth,That there was a _Vacuum_, and that I knew no one matter in the Worldmore Ponderous than another." I asked him, what probable Argumentshe had, to confirm so new an Opinion? "To evince that," answered he,"you must suppose that there is but one Element; for though we seeWater, Earth, Air and Fire distinct, yet are they never found to beso perfectly pure but that there still remains some Mixture. Forexample, When you behold Fire, it is not Fire but Air much extended;the Air is but Water much dilated; Water is but liquified Earth, andthe Earth it self but condensed Water; and thus if you weigh Matterseriously, you'll find it is but one, which like an excellent Comedianhere below acts all Parts, in all sorts of Dresses: Otherwise we mustadmit as many Elements as there are kinds of Bodies: And if you askme why Fire burns, and Water cools, since it is but one and the samematter, I answer, That that matter acts by Sympathy, according to theDisposition it is in at the time when it acts. Fire, which is nothingbut Earth also, more dilated than is fit for the constitution of Air,strives to change into it self, by Sympathy, what ever it meets with:Thus the heat of Coals, being the most subtile Fire, and most proper topenetrate a Body, at first slides through the pores of our Skin; andbecause it is a new matter that fills us, it makes us exhale in Sweat;that Sweat dilated by the Fire is converted to a Steam, and becomesAir; that Air being farther ratified by the heat of the _Antiperistasis_,or of the Neighbouring Stars, is called Fire, and the Earth abandonedby the Cold and Humidity which were Ligaments to the whole, falls tothe ground: Water, on the other hand, though it no ways differ from thematter of Fire, but in that it is closer, burns us not; because thatbeing dense by Sympathy, it closes up the Bodies it meets with, andthe Cold we feel is no more but the effect of our Flesh contracting itself, because of the Vicinity of Earth or Water, which constrains it toa Resemblance. Hence it is, that those who are troubled with a Dropsieconvert all their nourishment into Water; and the Cholerick convert allthe Blood that is formed in their Liver into Choler.
"It being then supposed, that there is but one Element; it is mostcertain, that all Bodies, according to their several qualities, inclineequally towards the Center of the Earth. But you'll ask me, Why thendoes Iron, Metal, Earth and Wood, descend more swiftly to the Centerthan a Sponge, if it be not that it is full of Air which naturallytends upwards? That is not at all the Reason, and thus I make it out:Though a Rock fall with greater Rapidity than a Feather, both ofthem have the same inclination for the Journey; but a Cannon Bullet,for instance, were the Earth pierced through, would precipitate withgreater haste to the Center thereof than a Bladder full of Wind; andthe reason is, because that mass of Metal is a great deal of Earthcontracted into a little space, and that Wind a very little Earth ina large space: For all the parts of Matter, being so closely joinedtogether in the Iron, encrease their force by their Union; becausebeing thus compacted, they are many that Fight against a few, seeing aparcel of Air equal to the Bullet in Bigness is not equal in Quantity.
"Not to insist on a long Deduction of Arguments to prove this, tellme in good earnest, How a Pike, a Sword or a Dagger wounds us? If itbe not because the Steel, being a matter wherein the parts are morecontinuous and more closely knit together than your Flesh is, whosePores and Softness shew that it contains but very little Matter withina great extent of Place; and that the point of the Steel that pricksus, being almost an innumerable number of Particles of matter againsta very little Flesh, it forces it to yield to the stronger, in thesame manner as a Squadron in close order will easily break through amore open Battalion; for why does a Bit of red hot Iron burn more thana Log of Wood all on Fire? Unless it be, that in the Iron there ismore Fire in a small space, seeing it adheres to all the parts of theMetal, than in the Wood which being very Spongy by consequence containsa great deal of _Vacuity_; and that _Vacuity_, being but a Privationof Being, cannot receive the form of Fire. But, you'll object, yousuppose a _Vacuum_, as if you had proved it, and that's begging of thequestion: Well then I'll prove it, and though that difficulty be theSister of the _Gordian knot_, yet my Arms are strong enough to becomeits _Alexander_.
"Let that vulgar Beast, then, who does not think it self a Man, had itnot been told so, answer me if it can: Suppose now there be but oneMatter, as I think I have sufficiently proved; whence comes it, thataccording to its Appetite it enlarges or contracts its self; whence isit, that a piece of Earth by being Condensed becomes a Stone? Is itthat the parts of that Stone are placed one with another, in such amanner that wherever that grain of Sand is settled, even there, or inthe same point, another grain of Sand is Lodged? That cannot be, no notaccording to their own Principles, seeing there is no Penetration ofBodies: But that matter must have crowded together, and if you will,abridged it self, so that it hath filled some place which was emptybefore. To say that it is incomprehensible, that there should be aNothing in the World, that we are in part made up of Nothing: Why not,pray? Is not the whole World wrapt up in Nothing? Since you yield methis point, then confess ingeniously, that it's as rational that theWor
ld should have a Nothing within it, as Nothing about it.
"I well perceive you'll put the question to me, Why Water compressedin a Vessel by the Frost should break it, if it be not to hindera Vacuity? But I answer, That that only happens, because the Airoverhead, which as well as Earth and Water tends to the Center, meetingwith an empty Tun by the way, takes tip his Lodging there: If it findthe pores of that Vessel, that's to say, the ways that lead to thatvoid place, too narrow, too long, and too crooked, with impatience itbreaks through and arrives at its Tun.
"But not to trifle away time, in answering all their objections, Idare be bold to say, That if there were no _Vacuity_, there could beno Motion; or else a Penetration of Bodies must be admitted; for itwould be a little too ridiculous to think, that when a Gnat pushesback a parcel of Air with its Wings, that parcel drives another beforeit, that other another still; and that so the stirring of the littleToe of a Flea should raise a bunch upon the Back of the Universe. Whenthey are at a stand, they have recourse to Rarefaction: But in goodearnest, How can it be when a Body is ratified, that one Particle ofthe Mass does recede from another Particle, without leaving an emptySpace betwixt them; must not the two Bodies, which are just separated,have been at the same time in the same place of this; and that so theymust have all three penetrated each other? I expect you'll ask me, whythrough a Reed, a Syringe or a Pump, Water is forced to ascend contraryto its inclination? To which I answer, That that's by violence, andthat it is not the fear of a _Vacuity_ that turns it out of the rightway; but that being linked to the Air by an imperceptible Chain, itrises when the Air, to which it is joined, is rarified.
"That's no such knotty Difficulty, when one knows the perfect Circleand the delicate Concatenation of the Elements: For if you attentivelyconsider the Slime which joines the Earth and Water together inMarriage, you'll find that it is neither Earth nor Water; but theMediator betwixt these Two Enemies. In the same manner, the Water andAir reciprocally send a Mist, that dives into the Humours of both, tonegotiate a Peace betwixt them; and the Air is reconciled to the Fire,by means of an interposing Exhalation which Unites them."
I believe he would have proceeded in his Discourse, had they notbrought us our Victuals; and seeing we were a hungry, I stopt my Earsto his discourse, and opened my Stomack to the Food they gave us.
I remember another time, when we were upon our Philosophy, for neitherof us took pleasure to Discourse of mean things: "I am vexed," said he,"to see a Wit of your stamp infected with the Errors of the Vulgar. Youmust know then, in spight of the Pedantry of _Aristotle_ with whichyour Schools in _France_ still ring, That every thing is in everything; that's to say, for instance, That in the Water there is Fire,in the Fire Water, in the Air Earth, and in the Earth Air: Though thatOpinion makes Scholars open their Eyes as big as Sawcers, yet it iseasier to prove it, than perswade it. For I ask them, in the firstplace, if Water does not breed Filth: If they deny it, let them dig aPit, fill it with meer Element,[4] and to prevent all blind Objectionslet them if they please strain it through a Strainer, and I'll obligemy self, in case they find no Filth therein within a certain time,to drink up all the Water they have poured into it: But if they findFilth, as I make no doubt on't; it is a convincing Argument that thereis both Salt and Fire there. Consequentially now, to find Water inFire; I take it to be no difficult Task. For let them chuse Fire, eventhat which is most abstracted from Matter, as Comets are, there isa great deal in them still; seeing if that Unctuous Humour, whereofthey are engendered, being reduced to a Sulphur by the heat of theAntiperistasis which kindles them, did not find a curb of its Violencein the humid Cold that qualifies and resists it, it would spend it selfin a trice like Lightning. Now that there is Air in the Earth, theywill not deny it; or otherwise they have never heard of the terribleEarth-quakes, that have so often shaken the Mountains of _Sicily_:Besides, the Earth is full of Pores, even to the least grains of Sandthat com[pose] it. Nevertheless no Man hath as yet said, that theseHollows were filled with _Vacuity_: It will not be taken amiss then, Ihope, if the Air takes up its quarters there. It remains to be proved,that there is Earth in the Air; but I think it scarcely worth my pains,seeing you are convinced of it, as often as you see such numberlessLegions of Atomes fall upon your heads, as even stiffle Arithmetick.
"But let us pass from simple to compound Bodies, they'll furnish mewith much more frequent Subjects; and to demonstrate that all thingsare in all things, not that they change into one another, as your_Peripateticks_ Juggle:[5] for I will maintain to their Teeth, that thePrinciples mingle, separate, and mingle again in such a manner, thatthat hath been made Water by the Wise Creator of the World, will alwaysbe Water; I shall suppose no Maxime, as they do, but what I prove.
"And therefore take a Billet, or any other combustible stuff, and setFire to it, they'll say when it is in a Flame, That what was Wood isnow become Fire; but I maintain the contrary, and that there is no moreFire in it, when it is all in Flame, than before it was kindled; butthat which before was hid in the Billet, and by the Humidity and Coldhindered from acting; being now assisted by the Stranger, hath ralliedits forces against the Phlegm that choaked it, and commanding the Fieldof Battle, that was possessed by its Enemy, triumphs over his Jaylorand appears without Fetters. Don't you see how the Water flees out atthe two ends of the Billet, hot and smoaking from the Fight it wasengaged in. That flame which you see rise on high is the purer Fire,unpestered from the Matter, and by consequence the readiest to returnhome to it self: Nevertheless it Unites it self by tapering into aPiramide till it rise to a certain height, that it may pierce throughthe thick Humidity of the Air which resists it; but as mounting itdisengaged it self by little and little from the violent company of itsLandlords; so it diffuses it self, because then it meets with nothingthat thwarts its passage, which negligence, though, is many times thecause of a second Captivity: For marching stragglingly, it wanderssometimes into a Cloud, and if it meet there with a Party of its ownsufficient to make head against a Vapour, they Engage, Grumble, Thunderand Roar, and the Death of Innocents is many times the effect of theanimated Rage of those inanimated Things. If, when it finds it selfpestered among those Crudities of the middle Region, it is not strongenough to make a defence, it yields to its Enemy upon discretion;which by its weight constrains it to fall again to the Earth: And thisWretch,[6] inclosed in a drop of Rain, may per haps fall at the Footof an Oak, whose Animal Fire will invite the poor Straggler to take aLodging with him; and thus you have it in the same condition again asit was a few Days before.
"But let us trace the Fortune of the other Elements that composed thatBillet. The Air retreats to its own Quarters also, though blendedwith Vapours; because the Fire all in a rage drove them brisklyout _Pell-mell_ together. Now you have it serving the Winds for aTennis-ball, furnishing Breath to Animals, filling up the Vacuitiesthat Nature hath left; and, it may be also, wrapt up in a drop of Dew,suckling the thirsty Leaves of that Tree, whither our Fire retreated:The Water driven from its Throne by the Flame, being by the heatelevated to the Nursery of the Meteors, will distil again in Rain uponour Oak, as soon as upon another; and the Earth being turned to Ashes,and then cured of its Sterility, either by the nourishing Heat of aDunghill on which it hath been thrown, or by the vegetative Salt ofsome neighbouring Plants, or by the teeming Waters of some Rivers, mayhappen also to be near this Oak, which by the heat of its Germ willattract it, and convert it into a part of its bulk.
"In this manner, these Four Elements undergo the same Destiny, andreturn to the same State, which they quitted but a few days before: Sothat it may be said, that all that's necessary for the composition ofa Tree, is in a Man; and in a Tree, all that's necessary for making ofa Man. In fine, according to this way, all things will be found in allthings; but we want a _Prometheus_, to pluck us out of the Bosom ofNature, and render us sensible, which I am willing to call the _FirstMatter_"[7]
These were the things, I think, with which we past the time; for thatlittle _Spaniard_ had a quaint Wit. Our conversation, howev
er, was onlyin the Night time; because from Six a clock in the morning until night,Crowds of the People, that came to stare at us in our Lodging, wouldhave disturbed us: For some threw us Stones, others Nuts, and othersGrass; there was no talk, but of the Kings Beasts; we had our Victualsdaily at set hours. I cannot tell, whether it was that I minded theirGestures and Tones more than my Male did: But I learnt sooner than heto understand their Language, and to smatter a little of it, which madeus to be lookt upon in another guess manner than formerly; and the newsthereupon flew presently all over the Kingdom, that two Wild Men hadbeen found, who were less than other Men, by reason of the bad Food wehad had in the Desarts; and who through a defect of their Parents Seed,had not the fore Legs strong enough to support their Bodies.
[1] "Your excellency's servant."
[2] Domingo Gonzales, the hero of Bishop Francis Godwin's _The Man inthe Moone_ (see Translator to Reader, note 2), who says of himself: "Imust acknowledge my Stature is so little, as I think no Man living isless."
[3] The engraving opposite, showing how he was carried up by his birds,is copied from an old edition of _The Man in the Moone_. The otherwinged figures about him are supposed to represent demons who attackedhim when just above "the middle region."
[4] With the _pure_ element (Lat., _merus_); _i.e._, water aloneunmixed with impurities or other elements.
[5] Fr. gazouillent, _babble_.
[6] Unfortunate creature ("ce malheureux").
[7] The translator has here mistaken a Dative for an Accusative. Thesense of the French is: "But we need a Prometheus to pluck out for us,from the bosom of Nature, and make tangible to us, that which I willcall _First Matter_."
Histoire comique des états et empires de la lune. English Page 12