Nasgig comes with a guard to fetch Peter—Long debate about his going—Nasgig's uneasiness at Peter's refusal—Relates a prediction to him, and proceedings thereon at Georigetti's court—Peter consents to go—Prepares a machine for that purpose.

WE were waked by the trumpet giving notice of Nasgig's coming; I did not care to inquire of the strangers into the particulars of his embassy; "for be it what it will," thinks I, "Nasgig is so much my friend that I can know the motives of it from him, and, or I am much deceived, he is too honest to impose upon me." But I had but little time for thought, for upon our entering the level, we found him and his train, of at least a hundred persons, just alighting before us.

We embraced, and professed the particular pleasure fortune had done us in once more meeting together. When we arrived at the grotto, he told me he was assured I had been informed of the occasion of his visit; and that it would be the greatest honour done to his country that could be imagined. He then laid his hand on my beard, which was now of about five months' growth, having never shaved it since my father went, and told he was glad to see that.—"And are you not so to see me?" says I.—"Yes, surely," says he, "for I prize that for your sake."—"But," says I, "pray be open with me, and tell me what you mean by my being informed of the occasion of your coming?"—"Why," says he, "of Georigetti's message to you, as it will be of such infinite service to our country: and," says he, "if you had not consented to it, the messengers had returned and stopped me."—"True," says I, "one of the messengers told me the king would be glad to see me; which as I, so well as he, knew it was impossible he should, in return to his compliment, I believe I might say what a happiness it would be to me if I could wait on him. But pray what is your immediate message? for I hear you are in great favour at court, and would never have come hither with this retinue in so much ceremony on a trifling account."

"My dear Peter," says Nasgig, "know that your fame has reached far and near since I saw you before; and our state, though a large and populous one, and once of mighty power and twice its present extent, by the revolt of the western part of it, who chose themselves a king, has been so miserably harassed by wars, that the revolters, who are ever fomenting discontent and rebellion amongst us, will, by the encroachments they daily make on us, certainly reduce us at last to a province under their government; which will render us all slaves to a usurped power, set up against our lawful sovereign. Now these things were foretold long enough before they actually began to be transacted; but all being then at peace, and no prospect of what has since happened, we looked not out for a remedy, till the disease became stubborn and incurable."—"Pray," says I, "by whom were the things you mention foretold?"—"By a very ancient and grave ragan," says he.—"How long ago?" says I.—"Oh, above four times the age of the oldest man living," says he.—"And when did he say it would happen?" says I.—"That," says he, "was not quite so clear then."—"But how do you know," says I, "that he ever said any such thing?"—"Why, the thing itself was so peculiar," says he, "and the ragan delivered it so positively, that his successors have ever since pronounced it twelve times a year publicly, word for word, to put the people in mind of it, and from whom they must hope for relief; and now the long-expected time being come, we have no hopes but in your destruction of the tyrant-usurper."—"I destroy him!" says I: "if he is not destroyed till I do it, I fear your state is but in a bad case."—"My good friend Peter," says he, "you or nobody can do it."—"Pugh," says I, "Nasgig, I took you for a man of more sense, notwithstanding the prejudices of education, than to think, because you have seen me kill a beast-fish that could not come to hurt me at the distance of twenty paces, that I can kill your usurper at the distance he is from me."—"No, my good friend," says Nasgig, "I know you take me to have more judgment than to think so."—"Why, what else can I do," says I, "unless he will come hither to be killed by me?"—"Dear Peter," says he, "you will not hear me out."—"I will," says I, "say on."—"You, as I said before, being the only person that can, according to our prediction, destroy this usurper and restore peace among us, my master Georigetti, and the whole state of Normnbdsgrsutt, were going to send a splendid embassy to you; but your father advising to repose the commission wholly in me, they all consented to it, and I am come to invite you over to Brandleguarp for that purpose. I know you will tell me you have not the graundee, and cannot get thither: but I am assured you have what is far better; the wisdom you have will help you to surmount that difficulty, which our whole moucheratt cannot get over. And I am sure did you apply half the thought to accomplish it you seem to do to invent excuses against it, you would easily overcome that. And now, dear friend," continues he, "refuse me not; for as my first rise was owing to your favour, so my downfall as absolutely attends your refusal."

"Dear Nasgig," says I, "you know I love you, and could refuse you nothing in my power; but for me to be mounted in the air, I know not how, over these rocks, and then drowned by a fall into the sea, which is a necessary consequence of such a mad attempt; and all this in prosecution of a project founded upon an old wife's tale, is such a chimera as all men of sense would laugh at; as if there was no way of destroying me, but with a guard of a hundred men to souse me into the wide ocean. A very pretty conqueror of rebels I should prove, truly, kicking for life till the next wave sent me to the bottom."

Nasgig looked then so grave, I almost thought I should have heard no more of it; but after a short pause, "Peter," says he, "I am sorry you make so light of sacred things; a thing foretold so long ago by a holy ragan, kept up by undoubted tradition ever since, in the manner I have told you; in part performed, and now waiting your concurrence for its accomplishment; but if I cannot prevail with you, though I perish at my return, I dread to think you may be forced without thanks to perform what generously to undertake will be your greatest glory."

"Pray," says I, "Nasgig (for now I perceive you are in earnest), what may this famous prediction be?"

"Ah, Peter!" says Nasgig, "to what purpose should I relate so sacred a prediction to one who, though the most concerned in it, makes such a jest of it?"

His mentioning me as concerned in it, raised my curiosity once more to desire a relation of it. "Why should I relate it," says he, "if you are resolved not to fulfil it?"—I told him I had no resolution against anything that related to my own good, or that of my friends. "But the greatest question with me," says I, "is, whether I am at all concerned in it."—"Oh clearly, clearly!" says he, "there is no doubt of it; it must mean you or nobody."—I told him I must judge by the words of it that I was the person intended by it; and till that was apparent to my reason, it would be difficult to procure my consent to so perilous an undertaking.—"And," says he, "will you, upon hearing it, judge impartially, and go with me if you can take the application to yourself?"—"I cannot go quite so far as that," says I; "but this I'll promise you, I'll judge impartially, and if I can so apply it to myself, that it must necessarily mean me, and no other, and if you convince me I may go safely, I will go."

Nasgig was so rejoiced at this, he was at a loss how to express himself. "My dear Peter," says he, "you have given me new life! our state is free! our persons free! we are free! we are free! And, Peter," says he, "now I have given vent to my joy, you shall hear the prediction.

"You must know, this holy ragan lived four ages ago; and from certain dreams and revelations he had had, set himself to overturn our country-worship of the Great Image; and by his sanctity of life, and sound reasonings, had almost effected it under the assistance of Begsurbeck, then our king, who had fully embraced his tenets; but the rest of the ragans opposing him, and finding he could not advance his scheme, he withdrew from the ragans to a close retirement for several years; and just before his death, sending for the king and all the ragans, he told them he should certainly die that day, and that he could not die at peace till he had informed them what had been revealed to him; desiring them to take notice of it, not as a conjecture of his own, but a certain verity which should hereafter come to pass. Says he, 'you know you have rejected the alteration in your religion I proposed to you; and which Begsurbeck, here present, would have advanced; and now I must tell you what you have brought upon yourselves. As for Begsurbeck, he shall reign the longest and most prosperously of all your former and future kings; but in twice his time outrun, the west shall be divided from the east, and bring sorrow, confusion, and slaughter, till the waters of the earth shall produce a glumm, with hair round his head, swimming and flying without the graundee; who, with unknown fire and smoke, shall destroy the traitor of the west, settle the ancient limits of the monarchy, by common consent establish what I would have taught you, change the name of this country, introduce new laws and arts, add kingdoms to this state, and force tributes from the bowels of the earth of such things as this kingdom shall not know till then, and shall never afterwards want; and then shall return to the waters again. Take care,' says he, 'you miss not the opportunity when it may be had; for once lost, it shall never, never more return; and then, woe, woe, woe to my poor country!'—The ragan having said this, expired.

"This prediction made so great an impression on Begsurbeck, that he ordered all the ragans singly before him, and heard them repeat it; which having done, and made himself perfect in it, he ordered it to be pronounced twelve times in the year on particular days, in the moucherait, that the people might learn it by heart; that they and their children being perfect in it, might not fail of applying it, when the man from the waters should appear with proper description.

"Thus, Peter," says he, "has this prediction been kept up in our memories as perfectly as if it had but just been pronounced to us."—:"'Tis very true," says I, "here may have been a prediction, and it may have been, as you say, handed down very exactly from Begsurbeck's days till now; but how does that affect me? how am I concerned in it? Surely, if any marks would have denoted me to be the man, some of the colambs who have so lately left me, and were so long with me, would have found them out in my person, or among the several actions of my life I recounted to them."—"Upon the return of the colambs from you," says Nasgig, "they told his majesty what they had heard and seen at Graundevolet, and the story was conveyed through the whole realm: but every man has not the faculty of distinction. Now, one of the ragans, when he had heard of you, applying you to the prediction, and that to you, soon found our deliverer in you; and at a public moucheratt, after first pronouncing the prediction, declared himself thereon to the following effect:

"'May it please your majesty—and you the honourable colambs—the reverend ragans—and people of this state,' says he, 'you all know that our famous king Begsurbeck, who reigned at the time of this prediction, did live sixty years after it in the greatest splendour, and died at the age of one hundred and twenty years, having reigned full ninety of them; and herein you will all agree with me, no king before or since has done the like. You all likewise know, that within two hundred years after Begsurbeck's death, that is, about twice his reign of ninety years outrun, the rebellion in the west began, which has been carried on ever since; and our strength diminishing as theirs increases, we are now no fair match for them, but are fearful of being undone. So far you will agree matters have tallied with the prediction; and now, to look forward to the time to come, it becomes us to lay hold of the present opportunity for our relief, for that, once slipped, will never return; and if I have any skill in interpretations, now is the time of our deliverance.

"'Our prediction foretells the past evils, their increase and continuance, till the waters of the earth shall produce a glumm. Here I must appeal to the honourable colambs present, if the waters have not done so in the person of glumm Peter of Graundevolet, as they have received it from his own report.'

"All the colambs then rising, and making reverence to the king, declared it was most true.

"'The next part,' says the ragan, 'is, he is to be hairy round his head; and how his person in this respect agrees with the prediction, I beg leave to be informed by the colambs.'

"The colambs then rising, declared that having seen and conversed with him, they could not observe any hair on the fore part of his head; but I answered that when I left you I well remembered your having short stubbs of hair upon your cheeks and chin; which I had no sooner mentioned than your father arose and told the assembly that though he did not mind it whilst he was with you, yet he remembered that his daughter, a year before, had told him that you had hair on your face before as long as that behind.

"This again putting new life into the ragan, he proceeded—'Then let this,' says he, 'be put to the trial by an embassy to glumm Peter; and if it answers, there will be no room to doubt the rest. Then,' says the ragan, 'it is plain by the report of the colambs, that glumm Peter has not the graundee.

"'As to the next point, he is to swim and fly. Now I am informed he swims daily in a thing he calls a boat.'—To which the colambs all agreed.—'And now,' says he, 'that he flies too, that must be fulfilled; for every word must have a meaning, and that indeed he must do if ever he comes hither. I therefore advise that a contrivance be somehow found out for conveying glumm Peter through the air to us, and then we shall answer that part of the prediction; and I think, and do not doubt, but that may be done.

"'Now,' says he, 'let us see the benefit predicted to us upon the arrival of glumm Peter. Our words are: "Who, with unknown fire and smoke, shall destroy the traitor of the west." What can be plainer than this? For I again appeal to the colambs for his making unknown fire and smoke.

"'Thus far,' says the ragan, 'we have succeeded happily towards a discovery of the person; but it ends not here with the death of the traitor; but such other benefits are to accrue as are mentioned in the following part of the prediction: they are blessings yet to come, and who knows the end of them?

"'I hope,' says the ragan, 'I have given satisfaction in what I have said, and shall now leave it to the care of those whose business it is to provide that none of those woes pronounced against us may happen, by missing the time which, when gone, will never return.'

"The assembly were coming to a resolution of sending you a pompous embassy, but your father prevailed for sending me only; 'For,' says he, 'my son thinks better of him than of the rest of our whole race.' So this important affair was committed to me, with orders to prepare a conveyance for you, which I cannot attempt to do; but shall refer myself to your more solid judgment in the contrivance of it."

I had sat very attentive to Nasgig, and from what he had declared, could not say but there was a very great resemblance between myself and the person predicted of. "But then," says I, "they are idolaters: Providence would not interpose in this affair, when all the glory of its success must redound to an idol. But," says I, "has not the same thing often happened from oracular presages, where the glory must redound to the false deity? But what if, as is predicted, their religion is to be changed to the old ragan's plan, and that will be to the abolition of idolatry? I know not what to say; but if I thought my going would gain a single soul to the eternal truth, I would not scruple to hazard my life in the attempt."

I then called in Youwarkee, told her the whole affair of the prediction, which she had often heard, I found, and could have repeated. I told her that the king and states had pitched on me as the person intended by their prediction, and that Nasgig was sent to fetch me over: "And indeed," says I, "Youwee, if this be a true prediction, it seems very applicable to me as far as I can see."—"Yes, truly," says she, "so it does, now I consider it in the light you say the ragan puts it."—

"Why," says I, "prophecies and predictions are never so plain as to mention names; but yet, upon the solution, they become as intelligible as if they did, the circumstances tallying so exactly. But what would you have me do? Shall I, or shall I not, go?"—"Go!" says she, "how can you go?"—"Oh," says I, "never fear that. If this is from above, means will soon be found; Providence never directs effects without means."

Youwarkee, whose head ran only on the dangers of the undertaking, had a violent conflict with herself; the love of me, of her children, and of her country, divided her so, she was not capable of advising. I pressed her opinion again, when she told me to follow the dictates of my own reason; "And but for the dread of losing you, and for my children's sakes," says she, "I should have no choice to make when my country is at stake: but you know best."

I told Youwarkee that I really found the prediction the plainer the more I thought of it; and that, above all, the change of religion was the uppermost; for if I can reduce a State from the misery and bondage of idolatry to a true sense of the Supreme Being, and seemingly by His own direction, shall I fear to risk my own life for it? or, will He suffer me to perish till somewhat at least is done towards it? And how do I know but the whole tendency of my life has been by impulse hither for this very purpose? "My dear Youwee," says I, "fear nothing, I will go."

I called Nasgig, and told him my resolution, and that he had nothing now to do but prepare a means of conveying me.—He said he begged to refer that to me, for my own thoughts would suggest to me both the safest and easiest means.

I wanted to venture on the back of some strong glumm; when Nasgig told me no one could endure my weight so long a flight. But what charmed me most was, the lovely Youwarkee offered to carry me herself if she could: "And if I can't hold out," says she, "my dear, we can but at last drop both together." I kissed the charming creature with tears in my eyes, but declined 'the experiment.

I told Nasgig I wanted to divide my weight between two or four glumms, which I believed I could easily do; and asked if each could hold out with a fourth part of my weight.—He told me there was no doubt of that; but he was afraid I should drop between their graundees, he imagining I intended to lie along on their backs, part of me on each of them, or should bear so much on them as to prevent their flight. I told him I did not purpose to dispose of myself in the manner he presumed, but if two or four could undoubtedly bear my weight so long a flight, I would order myself without any other inconvenience to my bearers than their burden. He made light of my weight between four, as a trifle, and said he would be one with all his heart.—"Nay," says I, "if four cannot hold out, can eight?" He plainly told me, as he knew not what I meant, he could say nothing to it, nor could imagine how I could divide so small a body as mine into eight different weights, for it seemed impossible, he said, to him; but if I would show him my method, he would then give me his opinion.

I then, leaving him, took out my tools: I pitched upon a strong board my wife had sent me from the ship, about twelve feet long, and a foot and a half broad, upon the middle of which I nailed down one of my chairs; then I took one cord of about thirty-four feet long, making handloops at each end, and nailed it down in the middle to the under-side of my board, as near as I could to the fore-end of it, and I took another cord of the same length and make, and this I nailed within three feet of the farther end of my board. I then took a cord of about twenty feet long, and nailed about three feet before the foremost, and a fourth of the same length, at the farther end of my board; by which means the first and third ropes being the longest and at such a distance from the short ropes, the glumms who held them would fly so much higher and forwarder than the short-rope ones, that they and their ropes would be quite out of the others' way, which would not have happened if either the ropes had been all of one length, or nearer to or farther from one another; and then considering that if I should receive a sudden jerk or twitch, I might possibly be shook off my chair, I took a smaller rope to tie myself with fast to the chair, and then I was sure if I fell into the sea I should at least have the board and chair with me, which might possibly buoy me up till the glumms could descend to my assistance.

Having carried the machine down to the level with the help of two of Nasgig's men, he being out on a walk, and having never seen it, I ordered one of the men to sit upon the chair, and eight more to hold by the loops and rise with him; but, as I found it difficult at their first rising, not being able to mount all equally, to carry the board up even, and the back part rising first, the front pitched against the ground and threw the fellow out of the chair, I therefore bade them stop, and ordering eight others to me, said I, "Hold each of you one of these ropes as high as you can over your heads; then." says I to the eight bearers, "mount on your graundees, and come round behind him in the chair gently, two and two, and take each of you a loop, and hover with it till you are all ready, and then rise together, keeping your eye on the board that it rises neither higher at one end nor one side than the other, and see you all feel your weight alike; then fly across the lake and back again." They did so, and with as much ease, they told me, as if they had nothing in their hands; and the man rode with so much state and composure, he said, that I longed to try it myself; so, shifting places with the glumm, I mounted the chair, and tying myself round, I asked if any one knew which way Nasgig walked. One of them pointing to where he saw him just before in the wood, I ordered them to take me up as before, and go that way.

Upon coming to the place where I expected Nasgig was, I hallooed and called him; who, knowing my voice, ran to the skirt of the wood; and seeing me mounted in my flying chair, I jokingly told him I was going, if he had any commands; but he mounting immediately came up to me, and viewing me round, and seeing the pleasure the men seemed to carry me with, says he, "Are you all sure you can carry him safe to Battringdrigg?"—They all replied, "Yes, with ease."—"This then," says he, "is your doom: if you perform it not, every one shall be slit; but if you carry the deliverer safe, you are filgays every man of you!" he verily thinking I was then going off; but I undeceived him, by ordering them to turn about and set me down where I was taken up.

Nasgig alighting and viewing my contrivance, "This, Peter," says he, "is but a very plain thing."—"It is so," says I, "but it is as far as my ingenuity could reach."—"Ah, Peter!" says he "say not so, for if the greatest difficulties, as I and all my nation thought it would be to convey you to them, are so plain and easy to you, what must lesser things be? No, Peter, I did not call it plain because it might be easily done when it was seen, but in respect to the head that formed it; for the nearest way to attain one's end is always the best, and attended for the most part with fewest inconveniences; and I verily think, Peter, though we believe the rise or fall of our State wholly depends on you, you must have stayed at Graundevolet but for your own ingenuity. Well, and when shall we set out?" says he.—I told him it would take up some time to settle the affairs of my family, and to consider what I had best take with me; and required at least three days, being as little as I could have told him for that purpose.

Nasgig, who as he was an honest man, and for making the best for his patrons, was sorry it was so long, though he, imagining at the same time it was short enough for one who was to go on such an enterprise, was glad it was no longer; and immediately despatched a trumpet express with notice, that on the fourth day he should be at the height of Battringdrigg, and that having myself formed a machine for that purpose, I would accompany him.

I began next to consider what part I had to act at Doorpt Svangeanti (for I neither could nor would call it by any other name when I came thither), and what it was they expected from me. I am, says I, to kill a traitor; good, that may be, but then I must take a gun and ammunition; and why not some pistols and cutlasses? If I cannot use them all, I can teach others who may. I will take several of them, and all my guns but two, and I will leave a pair of pistols; I may return and want them. I will take my two best suits of clothes, and other things suitable; for if I am to perform things according to this prediction, it may be a long time before I get back again. Thinks I, Youwarkee shall stay here with the children, and if I like my settlement I can send for her at any time. I then began to see the necessity of making at least one more machine to carry my goods on. And says I, as they will be very weighty, I must have more lasks to shift in carrying them, for I will retain sixteen for my own body-machine, in order to relieve each other; and as the distance is so great, I will not be stinted for want of fresh hands.

Being come to this resolution, I called Nasgig, and ordered eight fresh lasks to attend my baggage; these he soon singled out: so, having settled all matters with my wife, and taken leave of her and the children, I charged them not to stir out of the grotto till I was gone; and leaving them all in tears, I set out with a heavy heart for the level, where the whole convoy and my two machines waited for me.