The Consolidator Part 2

The first Voyage I ever made to this Country, was in one of these Engines; and I can safely affirm, I never wak'd all the way; and now having been as often there as most that have us'd that Trade, it may be expected I should give some Account of the Country; for it appears, I can give but little of the Road.

Only this I understand, That when this Engine, by help of these Artificial Wings, has raised it self up to a certain height, the Wings are as useful to keep it from falling into the Moon, as they were before to raise it, and keep it from falling back into this Region again.

This may happen from an Alteration of Centers, and Gravity having past a certain Line, the Equipoise changes its Tendency, the Magnetick Quality being beyond it, it inclines of Course, and pursues a Center, which it finds in the Lunar World, and lands us safe upon the Surface.

I was told, I need take no Bills of Exchange with me, nor Letters of Credit; for that upon my first Arrival, the Inhabitants would be very civil to me: That they never suffered any of Our World to want any thing when they came there: That they were very free to show them any thing, and inform them in all needful Cases; and that whatever Rarities the Country afforded, should be expos'd immediately.

I shall not enter into the Customs, Geography, or History of the Place, only acquaint the Reader, That I found no manner of Difference in any thing Natural, except as hereafter excepted, but all was exactly as is here, an Elementary World, peopled with Folks, as like us as if they were only Inhabitants of the same Continent, but in a remote Climate.

The Inhabitants were Men, Women, Beasts, Birds, Fishes, and Insects, of the same individual Species as Ours, the latter excepted: The Men no wiser, better, nor bigger than here; the Women no handsomer or honester than Ours: There were Knaves and honest Men, honest Women and Wh.o.r.es of all Sorts, Countries, Nations and Kindreds, as on this side the Skies.

They had the same Sun to shine, the Planets were equally visible as to us, and their Astrologers were as busily Impertinent as Ours, only that those wonderful Gla.s.ses hinted before made strange Discoveries that we were unacquainted with; by them they could plainly discover, That this World was their Moon, and their World our Moon; and when I came first among them, the People that flockt about me, distinguisht me by the Name of, the Man that came out of the Moon.

I cannot, however, but acquaint the Reader, with some Remarks I made in this new World, before I come to any thing Historical.

I have heard, that among the Generallity of our People, who being not much addicted to Revelation, have much concern'd themselves about Demonstrations, a Generation have risen up, who to solve the Difficulties of Supernatural Systems, imagine a mighty vast Something, who has no Form but what represents him to them as one Great Eye: This infinite Optick they imagine to be Natura Naturans, or Power-forming; and that as we pretend the Soul of Man has a Similitude in quality to its Original, according to a Notion some People have, who read that so much ridicul'd Old Legend, call'd Bible, That Man was made in the Image of his Maker: The Soul of Man, therefore, in the Opinion of these Naturallists, is one vast Optick Power diffus'd through him into all his Parts, but seated princ.i.p.ally in his Head.

From hence they resolve all Beings to Eyes, some more capable of Sight and receptive of Objects than others; and as to things Invisible, they reckon nothing so, only so far as our Sight is deficient, contracted or darkened by Accidents from without, as Distance of Place, Interposition of Vapours, Clouds, liquid Air, Exhalations, &c. or from within, as wandring Errors, wild Notions, cloudy Understandings, and empty Fancies, with a Thousand other interposing Obstacles to the Sight, which darken it, and prevent its Operation; and particularly obstruct the perceptive Faculties, weaken the Head, and bring Mankind in General to stand in need of the Spectacles of Education as soon as ever they are born: Nay, and as soon as they have made use of these Artificial Eyes, all they can do is but to clear the Sight so far as to see that they can't see; the utmost Wisdom of Mankind, and the highest Improvement a Man ought to wish for, being but to be able to see that he was Born blind; this pushes him upon search after Mediums for the Recovery of his Sight, and away he runs to School to Art and Science, and there he is furnisht with Horoscopes, Microscopes, Tellescopes, Caliscopes, Money-scopes, and the D---l and and all of Gla.s.ses, to help and a.s.sist his Moon-blind Understanding; these with wonderful Skill and Ages of Application, after wandring thro' Bogs and Wildernesses of Guess, Conjectures, Supposes, Calculations, and he knows not what, which he meets with in Physicks, Politicks, Ethicks, Astronomy, Mathematicks, and such sort of bewildring Things, bring him with vast Difficulty to a little Minute-spot, call'd Demonstration; and as not one in Ten Thousand ever finds the way thither, but are lost in the tiresome uncouth Journey, so they that do, 'tis so long before they come there, that they are grown Old and good for little in the Journey; and no sooner have they obtained a glimering of this Universal Eye-sight, this Eclaricissment General, but they Die, and have hardly time to show the way to those that come after.

Now, as the earnest search after this thing call'd Demonstration fill'd me with Desires of seeing every thing, so my Observations of the strange mult.i.tude of Mysteries I met with in all Men's Actions here, spurr'd my Curiosity to examine, if the Great Eye of the World had no People to whom he had given a clearer Eye-sight, or at least, that made a better use of it than we had here.

If pursuing this search I was much delighted at my Arrival into China, it cannot be thought strange, since there we find Knowledge as much advanc'd beyond our common Pitch, as it was pretended to be deriv'd from a more Ancient Original.

We are told, that in the early Age of the World, the Strength of Invention exceeded all that ever has been arrived to since: That we in these latter Ages, having lost all that pristine Strength of Reason and Invention, which died with the Ancients in the Flood, and receiving no helps from that Age, have by long Search arriv'd at several remote Parts of Knowledge, by the helps of reading Conversation and Experience; but that all amounts to no more than faint Imitations, Apings, and Resemblances of what was known in those masterly Ages.

Now, if it be true as is hinted before, That the Chinese Empire was Peopled long before the Flood; and that they were not destroyed in the General Deluge in the Days of Noah; 'tis no such strange thing, that they should so much out-do us in this sort of Eye-sight we call General Knowledge, since the Perfections bestow'd on Nature, when in her Youth and Prime met with no General Suffocation by that Calamity.

But if I was extreamly delighted with the extraordinary things I saw in those Countries, you cannot but imagine I was exceedingly mov'd, when I heard of a Lunar World; and that the way was pa.s.sable from these Parts.

I had heard of a World in the Moon among some of our Learned Philosophers, and Moor, as I have been told, had a Moon in his Head; but none of the fine Pretenders, no not Bishop Wilkins, ever found Mechanick Engines, whose Motion was sufficient to attempt the Pa.s.sage. A late happy Author indeed, among his Mechanick Operations of the Spirit, had found out an Enthusiasm, which if he could have pursued to its proper Extream, without doubt might, either in the Body or out of the Body, have Landed him somewhere hereabout; but that he form'd his System wholly upon the mistaken Notion of Wind, which Learned Hypothesis being directly contrary to the Nature of things in this Climate, where the Elasticity of the Air is quite different and where the pressure of the Atmosphere has for want of Vapour no Force, all his Notion dissolv'd in its Native Vapour call'd Wind, and flew upward in blew Strakes of a livid Flame call'd Blasphemy, which burnt up all the Wit and Fancy of the Author, and left a strange stench behind it, that has this unhappy quality in it, that every Body that Reads the Book, smells the Author, tho' he be never so far off; nay, tho' he took Shipping to Dublin, to secure his Friends from the least danger of a Conjecture.

But to return, to the happy Regions of the Lunar Continent, I was no sooner Landed there, and had lookt about me, but I was surpriz'd with the strange Alteration of the Climate and Country; and particularly a strange Salubrity and Fragrancy in the Air, which I felt so Nourishing, so Pleasant and Delightful, that tho' I could perceive some small Respiration, it was hardly discernable, and the least requisite for Life, supplied so long that the Bellows of Nature were hardly imployed.

But as I shall take occasion to consider this in a Critical Examination into the Nature, Uses and Advantages of Good Lungs, of which by it self, so I think fit to confine my present Observations to things more particularly concerning the Eye-sight.

I was, you may be sure, not a little surprized, when being upon an Eminence I found my self capable by common Observation, to see and distinguish things at the distance of 100 Miles and more, and seeking some Information on this point, I was acquainted by the People, that there was a certain grave Philosopher hard by, that could give me a very good Account of things.

It is not worth while to tell you this Man's Lunar Name, of whether he had a Name, or no; 'tis plain, 'twas a Man in the Moon; but all the Conference I had with him was very strange: At my first coming to him, he askt me if I came from the World in the Moon? I told him, no: At which he began to be angry, told me I Ly'd, he knew whence I came as well as I did; for he saw me all the way. I told him, I came to the World in the Moon, and began to be as surly as he. It was a long time before we could agree about it, he would have it, that I came down from the Moon; and I, that I came up to the Moon: From this, we came to Explications, Demonstrations, Spheres, Globes, Regions, Atmospheres, and a Thousand odd Diagrams, to make the thing out to one another. I insisted on my part, as that my Experiment qualified me to know, and challeng'd him to go back with me to prove it. He, like a true Philosopher, raised a Thousand Scruples, Conjectures, and Spherical Problems, to Confront me; and as for Demonstrations, he call'd 'em Fancies of my own. Thus we differ'd a great many ways; both of us were certain, and both uncertain; both right, and yet both directly contrary; how to reconcile this Jangle was very hard, till at last this Demonstration happen'd, the Moon as he call'd it, turning her blind-side upon us three Days after the Change, by which, with the help of his extraordinary Gla.s.ses, I that knew the Country, perceived that side the Sun lookt upon was all Moon, and the other was all world; and either I fancy'd I saw or else really saw all the lofty Towers of the Immense Cities of China: Upon this, and a little more Debate, we came to this Conclusion, and there the Old Man and I agreed, That they were both Moons and both Worlds, this a Moon to that, and that a Moon to this, like the Sun between two Looking-Gla.s.ses, and shone upon one another by Reflection, according to the oblique or direct Position of each other.

This afforded us a great deal of Pleasure; for all the World covet to be found in the right, and are pleas'd when their Notions are acknowledg'd by their Antagonists: It also afforded us many very useful Speculations, such as these;

1. How easy it is for Men to fall out, and yet all sides to be in the right?

2. How Natural it is for Opinion to despise Demonstration?

3. How proper mutual Enquiry is to mutual Satisfaction?

From the Observation of these Gla.s.ses, we also drew some Puns, Crotchets and Conclusions.

1st, That the whole World has a Blind-side, a Dark-side, and a Bright-side, and consequently so has every Body in it.

2dly, That the Dark-side of Affairs to Day, may be the Bright-side to Morrow; from whence abundance of useful Morals were also raised; such as,

1. No Man's Fate is so dark, but when the Sun shines upon it, it will return its Rays, and shine for it self.

2. All things turn like the Moon, up to Day, down to Morrow, Full and Change, Flux and Reflux.

3. Humane Understanding is like the Moon at the First Quarter, half dark.

3dly, The Changing-sides ought not to be thought so strange, or so much Condemn'd by Mankind, having its Original from the Lunar Influence, and govern'd by the Powerful Operation of Heavenly Motion.

4thly, If there be any such thing as Destiny in the World, I know nothing Man is so predestinated to, as to be eternally turning round; and but that I purpose to entertain the Reader with at least a whole Chapter or Section of the Philosophy of Humane Motion, Spherically and Hypocritically Examin'd and Calculated, I should inlarge upon that Thought in this place.

Having thus jumpt in our Opinions, and perfectly satisfied our selves with Demonstration, That these Worlds were Sisters, both in Form, Function, and all their Capacities; in short, a pair of Moons, and a pair of Worlds, equally Magnetical, Sympathetical, and Influential, we set up our rest as to that Affair, and went forward.

I desir'd no better Acquaintance in my new Travels, than this new Sociate; never was there such a Couple of People met; he was the Man in the Moon to me, and I the Man in the Moon to him; he wrote down all I said, and made a Book of it, and call'd it, News from the World in the Moon; and all the Town is like to see my Minutes under the same t.i.tle; nay, and I have been told, he published some such bold Truths there, from the Allegorical Relations he had of me from our World: That he was call'd before the Publick Authority, who could not bear the just Reflections of his d.a.m.n'd Satyrical way of Writing; and there they punisht the Poor Man, put him in Prison, ruin'd his Family; and not only Fin'd him Ultra tenementum, but expos'd him in the high Places of their Capital City, for the Mob to laugh at him for a Fool: This is a Punishment not unlike our Pillory, and was appointed for mean Criminals, Fellows that Cheat and Couzen People, Forge Writings, Forswear themselves, and the like; and the People, that it was expected would have treated this Man very ill, on the contrary Pitied him, wisht those that set him there placed in his room, and exprest their Affections, by loud Shouts and Acclamations, when he was taken down.

But as this happen'd before my first Visit to that World, when I came there all was over with him, his particular Enemies were disgrac'd and turn'd out, and the Man was not at all the worse receiv'd by his Country-folks than he was before; and so much for the Man in the Moon.

After we had settled the Debate between us, about the Nature and Quality, I desir'd him to show me some Plan or Draft of this new World of his; upon which, he brought me out a pair of very beautiful Globes, and there I had an immediate Geographical Description of the Place.

I found it less by Degrees than Our Terrestial Globe, but more Land and less Water; and as I was particularly concern'd to see something in or near the same Climate with Our selves, I observ'd a large extended Country to the North, about the Lat.i.tude of 50 to 56 Northern Distance; and enquiring of that Country, he told me it was one of the best Countries in all their World: That it was his Native Climate, and he was just a going to it, and would take me with him.

He told me in General, the Country was Good, Wholsome, Fruitful, rarely Scituate for Trade, extraordinarily Accommodated with Harbours, Rivers and Bays for Shipping; full of Inhabitants; for it had been Peopled from all Parts, and had in it some of the Blood of all the Nations in the Moon.

He told me, as the Inhabitants were the most Numerous, so they were the strangest People that liv'd; both their Natures, Tempers, Qualities, Actions, and way of Living, was made up of innumerable Contradictions: That they were the Wisest Fools, and the Foolishest Wise Men in the World; the Weakest Strongest, Richest Poorest, most Generous Covetous, Bold Cowardly, False Faithful, Sober Dissolute, Surly Civil, Slothful Diligent, Peaceable Quarrelling, Loyal Seditious Nation that ever was known.

Besides my Observations which I made my self, and which could only furnish me with what was present, and which I shall take time to inform my Reader with as much Care and Conciseness as possible; I was beholding to this Old Lunarian, for every thing that was Historical or Particular.

And First, He inform'd me, That in this new Country they had very seldom any Clouds at all, and consequently no extraordinary Storms, but a constant Serenity, moderate Breezes cooled the Air, and constant Evening Exhalations kept the Earth moist and fruitful; and as the Winds they had were various and strong enough to a.s.sist their Navigation, so they were without the Terrors, Dangers, Ship-wrecks and Destructions, which he knew we were troubled with in this our Lunar World, as he call'd it.

The first just Observation I made of this was, That I suppos'd from hence the wonderful Clearness of the Air, and the Advantage of so vast Optick Capacities they enjoy'd, was obtained: Alas! says the Old Fellow, You see nothing to what some of our Great Eyes see in some Parts of this World, nor do you see any thing compar'd to what you may see by the help of some new Invented Gla.s.ses, of which I may in time let you see the Experiment; and perhaps you may find this to be the reason why we do not so abound in Books as in your Lunar World; and that except it be some extraordinary Translations out of your Country, you will find but little in our Libraries, worth giving you a great deal of Trouble.

We immediately quitted the Philosophical Discourse of Winds, and I began to be mighty Inquisitive after these Gla.s.ses and Translations, and

1st, I understood here was a strange sort of Gla.s.s that did not so much bring to the Eye, as by I know not what wonderful Operation carried out the Eye to the Object, and quite varies from all our Doctrine of Opticks, by forming several strange Phanomena in Sight, which we are utterly unacquainted with; nor could Vision, Rarification, or any of our School-mens fine Terms, stand me in any stead in this case; but here was such Additions of piercing Organs, Particles of Transparence, Emission, Transmission, Mediums, Contraction of Rays, and a Thousand Applications of things prepar'd for the wondrous Operation, that you may be sure are requisite for the bringing to pa.s.s something yet unheard of on this side the Moon.

First we were inform'd, by the help of these Gla.s.ses, strange things, which pa.s.s in our World for Non-Ent.i.ties, is to be seen, and very perceptible; for Example:

State Polity, in all its Meanders, Shifts, Turns, Tricks, and Contraries, are so exactly Delineated and Describ'd, That they are in hopes in time to draw a pair of Globes out, to bring all those things to a certainty.

Not but that it made some Puzzle, even among these Clear-sighted Nations, to determine what Figure the Plans and Drafts of this undiscover'd World of Mysteries ought to be describ'd in: Some were of Opinion, it ought, to be an Irregular Centagon, a Figure with an Hundred Cones or Angles: Since the Unaccountables of this State-Science, are hid in a Million of undiscover'd Corners; as the Craft, Subtilty and Hypocrisy of Knaves and Courtiers have concealed them, never to be found out, but by this wonderful D---l-scope, which seem'd to threaten a perfect Discovery of all those Nudities, which have lain hid in the Embrio, and false Conceptions of Abortive Policy, ever since the Foundation of the World.

Some were of Opinion, this Plan ought to be Circular, and in a Globular Form, since it was on all sides alike, full of dark Spots, untrod Mazes, waking Mischiefs, and sleeping Mysteries; and being delineated like the Globes display'd, would discover all the Lines of Wickedness to the Eye at one view: Besides, they fancied some sort of a.n.a.logy in the Rotundity of the Figure, with the continued Circular Motion of all Court-Policies, in the stated Round of Universal Knavery.

Others would have had it Hyrogliphical as by a Hand in Hand, the Form representing the Affinity between State Policy here, and State Policy in the Infernal Regions, with some unkind Similies between the Oeconomy of Satan's Kingdom, and those of most of the Temporal Powers on Earth; but this was thought too unkind. At last it was determin'd, That neither of these Schemes were capable of the vast Description; and that, therefore, the Drafts must be made single, tho' not dividing the Governments, yet dividing the Arts of Governing into proper distinct Schemes, viz.

1. A particular Plan of Publick Faith; and here we had the Experiment immediately made: The Representation is quallified for the Meridian of any Country, as well in our World as theirs; and turning it to'ards our own World, there I saw plainly an Exchequer shut up, and 20000 Mourning Families selling their Coaches, Horses, Wh.o.r.es, Equipages, &c. for Bread, the Government standing by laughing, and looking on: Hard by I saw the Chamber of a great City shut up, and Forty Thousand Orphans turn'd adrift in the World; some had no Cloaths, some no Shoes, some no Money; and still the City Magistrates calling upon other Orphans, to pay their money in. These things put me in mind of the Prophet Ezekiel, and methoughts I heard the same Voice that spoke to him, calling me, and telling me, Come hither, and I'll show thee greater Abominations than these: So looking still on that vast Map, by the help of these Magnifying Gla.s.ses, I saw huge Fleets hir'd for Transport-Service, but never paid; vast Taxes Antic.i.p.ated, that were never Collected; others Collected and Appropriated, but Misapplied: Millions of Talleys struck to be Discounted, and the Poor paying 40 per Cent, to receive their Money.

I saw huge Quant.i.ties of Money drawn in, and little or none issued out; vast Prizes taken from the Enemy, and then taken away again at home by Friends; Ships sav'd on the Sea, and sunk in the Prize Offices; Merchants escaping from Enemies at Sea, and be Pirated by Sham Embargoes, Counterfeit Claims, Confiscations, &c a-sh.o.a.r: There we saw Turkey-Fleets taken into Convoys, and Guarded to the very Mouth of the Enemy, and then abandon'd for their better Security: Here we saw Mons. Pouchartrain shutting up the Town-house of Paris, and plundring the Bank of Lyons.