The Hippogyps,
too, had already left us.


 



After sailing all the next night and day we arrived towards evening at what is called Lamptown, having already entered upon our downward
course. This city lies between the tracts of the
Pleiades and the Hyades, a good deal lower than
the Zodiac. Here we disembarked, but we found
no human being, only a multitude of lamps running about and transacting business in the market-place and on the wharves. Some were small,
the lower classes, as it were; but a few were large
and of high rank, and these were brilliant, and
could be seen afar. Each of them had his own
private residence or lantern, and a name, like a
man, and we heard them utter speech. They offered us no injury, but even invited us to be their
guests. Still we were afraid of them, and not one
of us dared either to sit at table or pass the night
with them. They have erected a palace in the
midst of the city, and there the ruler sits all night,
calling on each by name. If any one does not
respond, he is condemned to death as having deserted his post. Death with them is to be extinguished. We were present and saw what happened, and heard the lamps defending themselves
and explaining the reasons for their tardiness.
There I recognized also the lamp from our house,
and, addressing him, asked him how things were
going on at home, and he gave me a full account.
We spent that one night there, and the next




 



day we put out to sea again, being already nearer
the clouds. And there we saw Cloudcuckootown (to our amazement), but we did not put in,
as the wind was in the wrong direction. But
Crow, son of Blackbird, was said to be on the
throne, and I bethought me of Aristophanes the
poet, a grave man and truthful, and one whose
writings have been unworthily discredited.
On the third day thereafter we also got plain
sight of the ocean, but no land was anywhere to
be seen save those islands in the air, and they
had already taken on a fiery, dazzling look. On
the fourth day, about noon, the wind fell gently
and subsided, and we sank onto the sea.

 

When
we touched the water it was wonderful to see the
excesses of our joy and delight. We made what
cheer our means would allow, and sprang overboard and swam about, for there happened to be
a calm and the sea was quiet. But a change for
the better seems to be often the beginning of
greater evils, and so it was in our case. For two
days only we sailed with fine weather, and at daybreak, on the third, just before sunrise, we suddenly sighted a great number of sea-monsters
and whales, with one among them bigger than all
the rest, a hundred and seventy miles long. It
came on with its mouth yawning open, making
wide commotion in the sea, scattering foam in all
directions, and showing its great teeth. They


 



were all as sharp as pickets and white as ivory.
Well, we said our last farewells, embraced each
other, and waited. The creature was already
alongside, and swallowed us down at a gulp, ship
and all. However, it did not close its teeth in
time to crush us, but the ship slipped in through
the openings.

 
When we were within, all was dark at first,
and we saw nothing; but presently the creature
opened its mouth, and we beheld a great cavern,
so broad in all directions and so high that it
might have held a city of ten thousand souls. In
the midst lay the fragments of small fish and other animals, sails of ships, anchors, human bones,
and merchandise; and down the middle there
was dry land, with hills formed, I suppose, by the
settling of the mud the creature drank down. At
all events, there were woods on it, and plants of
all sorts grew there and vegetables had sprung
up, so that it was in all respects like tilled soil.
The circumference of the land was twenty-seven
miles. We could also see sea-fowl, gulls, and
halcyons building nests in the trees.

 
Well, at first we wept a long time, but by-andby I roused my comrades and we propped the
ship. Then we rubbed dry sticks together and
made a fire, and cooked a meal of anything we
could lay our hands on. There was an abundance
of fish at hand of all sorts, and we still had some



 


of the water we had laid in at the Morning-star.
Next morning when we arose, every time the
whale opened its mouth we saw now land, now
mountains, now sky alone, and often islands. By
this we perceived the creature was rushing swiftly
through all parts of the sea.
When we had already grown accustomed to this
manner of life, I took seven of my companions
and made my way into the forest, wishing to explore it thoroughly. I had not gone a thousand
yards before I came upon a temple dedicated to
Poseidon, as the inscription showed, and shortly
after a number of graves with headstones, and
near by a spring of clear water. Moreover, we
heard the barking of a dog, and perceived smoke
rising in the distance, so that we judged there
must be a habitation of some sort.

 Accordingly,
we hastened our steps, and came upon an old
man and a young one working very industriously
in a garden-plot, and watering it with water from
the spring. We halted, overjoyed, and at the
same time filled with fear, and they must have
had the same feeling towards us, for they stood
speechless.
But presently the old man said, "Who are you,
strangers? Are you," said he, "some of the gods
of the sea, or ill-fated mortals like ourselves?
For we are men, and we were reared on dry land;
but now we have become sea-dwellers, and we


 



swim about in company with this monster who
encloses us, not rightly knowing what condition
we are in; for reason tells us we are dead, and
yet we believe we are alive."
In answer to this I, too, spoke: "We, too, are
men, father-new-comers, at your service. We
were gulped down, the other day, ship and all.
We are making this expedition for the sake of
knowing what is in the forest, for it seemed large
and thickly wooded. Some god, I think, led us,
so that we might see you, and know that we are
not the only men penned up in this monster.
But come, tell us your story-who you are and
how you came hither."
But he said he would neither give nor seek information until he had offered us such hospitality
as was in his power; so he took possession of us
and led us to his dwelling, which was tolerably
made, with beds built in it and furnished with the
other necessaries. He set before us vegetables
and fruits and fish, and poured out wine for us,
too; and when we had eaten our fill, he inquired
what our adventures had been. I related them
all in order-the storm, our experiences on the
island, our voyage in the air, the war, everything
up to our engulfment by the whale.