That

course, in hopes of buying fome bifcuit, his own beginning to fall short. That upon coming nearer, and finding his error, he fent out his long-boat to discover what I was; that his men came back in a fright, fwearing that they had seen a swimming houfe. That he laughed at their folly, and went himself in the boat, ordering his men to take a ftrong cable along with them. That the weather being calm he rowed round me feveral times, obferved my windows, and the wire-lattices that defended them. he difcovered two ftaples upon one fide, which was all of boards, without any paffage for light. He then commanded his men to row up to that fide, and fastening a cable to one of the staples, ordered them to tow my cheft (as they called it) towards the fhip. When it was there, he gave directions to faften another cable to the ring fixed in the cover, and to raise up my cheft with pullies, which all the failors were not able to do above two or three feet. He faid, they faw me ftick an handkerchief thruft out of the hole, and concluded that fome unhappy man must be fhut up in the cavity. I asked whether he or the crew had seen any prodigious birds in the air about the time he firft difcovered me? To which he anfwered, that, difcourfing this matter with the failors while I was afleep, one of them faid, he had obferved three eagles flying towards the north; but remarked nothing of their being larger than the ufual fize, which I fuppofe must be imputed to the great height they were at; and he could

not guess the reafon of my queftion. I then afked the captain, how far he reckoned we might be from land? He faid, by the beft computation he could make, we were at leaft an hundred leagues. I affured him he must be

miftaken by almoft half, for I had not left the country from whence I came above two hours before I dropt into the fea. Whereupon he began again to think that my brain was disturbed, of which he gave me a hint, and advised me to go to bed in a cabbin he had provided. I affured him I was well refreshed with his good entertainment and company, and as much in my fenfes as ever I was in my life. He then grew ferious, and defired me to speak freely, whether I were not troubled in mind by the consciousness of fome enormous crime, for which I was punished at the command of fome prince, by expofing me in that cheft, as great criminals in other countries have been forced to fea in a leaky veffel without provifions: For although he fhould be forry to have taken fo ill a man into his fhip, yet he would engage his word to fet me fafe afhore in the firft port where we arrived. He added, that his fufpicions were much increased by fome very abfurd speeches abfurd speeches I had delivered at firft to the failors, and afterwards to himself, in relation to my closet or cheft, as well as by my odd looks and behaviour while I was at fupper.

I begged his patience to hear me tell my story, which I faithfully did from the last time I left England to the moment he first discovered me!

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And

And as truth always forceth its way into rational minds, fo this honeft worthy gentleman, who had fome tincture of learning, and very good fenfe, was immediately convinced of my candour and veracity. But, farther to confirm all I had faid, I entreated him to give order that my cabinet should be brought, of which I had the key in my pocket, (for he had already informed me how the feamen difpofed of my clofet). I opened it in his own prefence, and fhewed him the finall collection of rarities I made in the country from whence I had been fo ftrangely delivered. There was the comb I had contrived out of the ftumps of the King's beard, and another of the fame materials, but fixed into a paring of her Majefty's thumb-nail, which ferved for the back. There was a collection of needles and pins, from a foot to half a yard long; four wafp-ftings, like joiners tacks; fome combings of the Queen's hair; a gold ring, which one day fhe made me a prefent of in a moft obliging manner, taking it from her little finger, and throwing it over my head like a collar. I defired the captain would please to accept this ring in return of his civilities; which he absolutely refufed. I fhewed him a corn that I had cut off with my own hand from a maid of honour's toe; it was about the bignefs of a Kentish pippin, and grown fo hard, that, when I returned to England, I got it hollowed into a cup, and fet in filver. Laftly, I defired him to fee the breeches I had then on, which were made of a mouse's skin.

I

I could force nothing on him but a footman's tooth, which I obferved him to examine with great curiosity, and found he had a fancy for it. He received it with abundance of thanks, more than fuch a trifle could deferve. It was drawn by an unskilful surgeon, in a mistake, from one of Glumdalclitch's men, who was afflicted with the tooth-ach; but it was as found as any in his head. I got it cleaned, and put into my cabinet. It was about a foot long, and four inches in dia

meter.

The captain was very well fatisfied with this plain relation I had given him, and faid, he hoped, when we returned to England, I would oblige the world by putting it on paper, and making it public. My answer was, that I thought we were already overftocked with books of travels: That nothing could now pass which was not extraordinary; wherein I doubted fome authors lefs confulted truth, than their own vanity or intereft, or the diversion of ignorant readers: That my ftory could contain little besides common events, without thofe ornamental defcriptions of ftrange plants, trees, birds, and other animals; or of the barbarous customs and idolatry of favage people, with which mof writers abound. However, I thanked him for his good opinion, and promised to take the matter into my thoughts.

He faid, he wondered at one thing very much, which was, to hear me fpeak fo loud, afking me whether the King or Queen of that country were

thick of hearing. I told him, it was what I had been used to for above two years paft; and that I admired as much at the voices of him and his men, who seemed to me only to whisper, and yet I could hear them well enough. But, when I fpoke in that country, it was like a man talking in the street to another looking out from the top of a steeple, unless when I was placed on a table, or held in any perfon's hand. I told him, I had likewise obferved another thing, that when I first got into the fhip, and the failors ftood all about me, I thought they were the moft little contemptible creatures I had ever beheld. For indeed, while I was in that prince's country, I could never endure to look in a glafs, after mine eyes had been accustomed to fuch prodigious objects, because the comparison gave me fo despicable a conceit of myself. The captain faid, that while we were at fupper he obferved me to look at every thing with a fort of wonder, and that I often feemed hardly able to contain my laughter, which he knew not well how to take, but imputed it to fome disorder in my brain. I anfwered, it was very true; and I wondered how I could forbear, when I faw his difhes of the fize of a filver threepence, a leg of pork hardly a mouthful, a cup not fo big as a nut-fhell; and fo I went on, defcribing the rest of his household stuff and provifions after the fame manner. For although the Queen had ordered a little equipage of all things neceffary for me, while I was in her service, yet my ideas were wholly taken up with what I faw VOL. V. S

on