Part I. opportunity of doing me ill offices to his mafter. That minifter had always been my fecret enemy, tho' he outwardly careffed me more than was ufual to the morofenefs of his nature. He reprefented to the Emperor the low condition of his treasury; that he was forced to take up money at great discount; that exchequer bills would not circulate under nine per cent below par; that I had coft his Majefty above a million and a half of rugs (their greatest gold coin, about the bignefs of a fpangle) and upon the whole, that it would be advifeable in the Emperor to take the firft fair occafion of difmiffing me.

I am here obliged to vindicate the reputation of an excellent lady, who was an innocent fufferer upon my account. The Treasurer took a fancy to be jealous of his wife, from the malice of fome evil tongues, who informed him that her Grace had taken a violent affection for my perfon ; and the court-fcandal ran for some time, that the once came privately to my lodging. This I folemnly declare to be a moft infamous falflood, without any grounds, farther than that her Grace was pleased to treat me with all innocent marks of freedom and friendship. I own the came often to my houfe, but always publicly, nor ever without three more in the coach, who were ufually her fifter and young daughter, and fome particular acquaintance; but this was common to many other ladies of the court. And I ftill appeal to my fervants round, whether they at any time faw a coach at my door, without knowing what perfons were in it. On thofe occafions, when a fervant had given me notice, my custom was to go immediately to the door; and, after paying my refpects, to take up the coach and two horfes very carefully in my hands (for, if there were fix horfes, the poftillion always unharneffed four) and placed them on a table, where I had fixed a moveable rim quite round of five inches high, to prevent accidents. And I have often had four coaches and horfes at once on my table full of company, while I fat in my chair, leaning my face towards them; and, when I was engaged with one fet, the coachman would gently drive the others round my table. I have paffed many an afternoon very agreeably in thefe converfations. But I defy the Treasurer, or his two informers (i will name them, and let them make their beft of it) Cluftril and Drunlo,

1

H

Drunlo, to prove that any perfon ever came to me incog nito, except the Secretary Reldrefal, who was fent by exprefs command of his Imperial Majefty, as I have before related. I fhould not have dwelt fo long upon this particular, if it had not been a point wherein the reputation of a great lady is fo nearly concerned, to fay nothing of my own, tho' I then had the honour to be a Nardac, which the Treafurer himself is not; for all the world knows, that he is only a Glumglum, a title inferior by one degree, as that of a Marquis is to a Duke in England; yet I allow he preceeded me in right of his post. These falfe informations, which I afterwards came to the knowledge of by an accident not proper to mention, made the Treasurer fhew his lady for fome time an ill countenance, and me a worfe; and altho' he was at laft undeceived and reconciled to her, yet I loft all credit with him, and found my intereft decline very faft with the Emperor himself, who was indeed too much governed by that favourite.

CHAP. VII.

The author, being informed of a defign to accuse him of high-treason, maketh his escape to Blefujcu. His re ception there.

B

EFORE I proceed to give an account of my leaving this kingdom, it may be proper to inform the reader of a private intrigue, which had been for two months forming against me."

I had been hitherto all my life a ftranger to courts, for which I was unqualified by the meannefs of my condition. I had indeed heard and read enough of the dif pofitions of great princes and minifters; but never expected to have found fuch terrible effects of them in fo remote a country, governed, as I thought, by very different maxims from thofe in Europe.

WHEN I was juft preparing to pay my attendance on the Emperor of Blefufcu, a confiderable perfon at court (to whom I had been very serviceable at a time when he lay under the higheft difpleasure of his Imperial Majefty) came to my house very privately at night in a clofe chair,

and

and, without fending his name, defired admittance: the chairmen were dismissed; I put the chair with his Lordship in it into my coat-pocket; and giving orders to a trufty fervant to fay I was indifpofed and gone to fleep, I fastened the door of my house, placed the chair on the table, according to my ufual cuftom, and fat down by it. After the common falutations were over, obferving his Lordship's countenance full of concern, and inquiring into the reafon, he defired I would hear him with patience in a matter that highly concerned my honour and my life. His fpeech was to the following effect, for I took notes of it as foon as he left me.

You are to know, faid he, that several committees of council have been lately called in the most private manner on your account; and it is but two days fince his Majefty came to a full refolution.

You are very fenfible that Skyris Bolgolam (Galbet, or High-Admiral) hath been your mortal enemy almost ever fince your arrival: his original reasons I know not; but his hatred is increased fince your great fuccefs against Blefufcu, by which his glory, as Admiral, is much obfcured. This Lord, in conjunction with Flimnap the HighTreasurer, whofe enmity against you is notorious on account of his Lady, Limtoc the General, Lalcon the Chamberlain, and Balmuff the Grand Jufticiary, have prepared articles of impeachment against you for treason, and other capital crimes.

THIS preface made me fo impatient, being conscious of my own merits and innocence, that I was going to interrupt: when he entreated me to be filent, and thus proceeded.

Our of gratitude for the favours you have done me, I procured information of the whole proceedings, and a copy of the articles; wherein I venture my head for. your fervice.

Articles of impeachment againft Quinbus Fleftrin the

man-mountain.

ARTICLE

I.

WHEREAS, by a statute made in the reign of his Imperial Majefty Calin Deffar Plune, it is enacted, that

whoever

whoever shall make water within the precincts of the royal palace, fhall be liable to the pains and penalties of hightreafon notwithstanding the faid Quinbus Fleftrin, in open breach of the faid law, under colour of extinguifhing the fire kindled in the apartment of his Majefty's most dear imperial confort, did maliciously, traiteroufly, and devilishly, by discharge of his urine, put out the faid fire kindled in the faid apartment, lying and being within the precincts of the faid royal palace, against the statute in that cafe provided, &c. against the duty, &c.

THAT the faid Quinbus Fleftrin having brought the imperial fleet of Blefufcu into the royal port, and being afterwards commanded by his Imperial Majefty to seize all the other ships of the faid empire of Blefufcu, and reduce that empire to a province to be governed by a viceroy from hence, and to deftroy and put to death not only all the Big-endian exiles, but likewife all the people of that empire who would not immediately forfake the Bigendian herefy: he the faid Fleftrin, like a falfe traitor against his most aufpicious, ferene, Imperial Majefty, did petition to be excufed from the faid fervice, upon pretence of unwillingness to force the confciences, or destroy the liberties and lives of an innocent people *.

THAT, whereas certain ambaffadors arrived from the tourt of Belfufcu to fue for peace in his Majefty's court: he the faid Fleftrin did, like a falfe traitor, aid, abet, comfort, and divert the said ambassadors, altho' he knew them to be fervants to a prince, who was lately an open enemy to his Imperial Majefty, and in open war against his faid Majefty.

ARTICLE

A lawyer thinks himself honeft if he does the best he can for his client; and a statesman, if he promotes the interest of his country but the Dean here inculcates an higher notion of right and wrong, and obligations to a larger community,

Hawkef.

ARTICLE IV.

THAT the faid Quinbus Fleftrin, contrary to the duty of a faithful fubject, is now preparing to make a voyage to the court and empire of Blefufcu, for which he hath received only verbal licence from his Imperial Majesty; and under colour of the faid licence doth falfly and traiterously intend to take the said voyage, and thereby to aid, comfort, and abet the Emperor of Blefufcu, fo late an enemy, and in open war with his Imperial Majesty aforefaid.

THERE are fome other articles, but thefe are the most important, of which I have read you an abstract.

In the feveral debates upon this impeachment it muft be confeffed that his Majefty gave many marks of his great lenity, often urging the fervices you had done him, and endeavouring to extenuate your crimes. The treafurer and admiral infifted that you should be put to the most painful and ignominious death, by fetting fire on your house at night, and the general was to attend with twenty thousand men armed with poisoned arrows to fhoot you on the face and hands. Some of your fervants were to have private orders to ftrew a poisonous juice on your fhirts and sheets, which would foon make you tear your own flesh, and die in the utmost torture. The general

came into the fame opinion; fo that for a long time there was a majority against you: but his Majefty refolving, if poffible, to fpare your life, at laft brought off the chamberlain.

UPON this incident Reldrefal, principal fecretary for private affairs, who always approved himself your true friend, was commanded by the Emperor to deliver his opinion, which he accordingly did and therein justified the good thoughts you have of him. He allowed your crimes to be great, but that ftill there was room for mercy, the moft commendable virtue in a prince, and for which his Majefty was fo juftly celebrated. He faid, the friendfhip between you and him was fo well known to the world, that perhaps the most honourable board might think him partial: however, in obedience to the com

mand