Chapter 2 My Life in Lilliput

Early next day I came out of my house and looked round me. To me,the country of Lilliput was as small as a garden.The tallest trees were about two metres high. I turned and looked at the city. Was this little city a picture in a child's book?

Across the road from my church, about six metres away from me, there was a very big house. I saw people on top of it. The king was there with other men, women and servants.

“They're watching me, ” I thought.

After a time, the king came down. He got up on his horse and came nearer me. The horse was afraid of me, the man-mountain. It began to jump up and down. But the king — a very good horseman— stayed on his horse. The servants ran to the animal's head and stayed with it.

When he could, the king got down. He walked round me, but he never came too near.

Men brought me food, and the queen and her young sons watched me from the top of the house. After a time the king went away.A number of his men stayed and looked after me.

“Some of our people want to hurt you, ” they showed me with their hands. I sat on the ground near the door of my house and tried to sleep.

Suddenly,I felt arrows again and one arrow nearly hit my eye.The king's men caught these bad people — six men — and threw them to me.

I put five men in one hand. I took the other man and put him into my open mouth. He was very afraid. But I laughed and put the six men carefully on the ground again. They ran away from me as fast as they could!

At this time, I slept on the floor of the church or outside on the ground. But the king said to his workmen: “Make a bed for him.” So they brought 600 little beds to my house and made them into one big bed.

Then the king and his great men met and discussed me.

“Perhaps he is dangerous, ”said the first man.“We cannot untie his strings.”

“He eats too much food, ” said the second man. “The people of our country will be hungry.”

“Let's kill him now, ” said the third man. “We can do it when he is sleeping.”

“No, ”said his friend.“What can we do with his dead body? It is too big.”

Then a man said to the king: “Some people tried to kill this big man with their arrows, but he was kind to them. He did not hurt them.”

“This is good, ” said the king. “We will not kill him now. But we will teach him our language.”

They did this, and in about three weeks I could speak quite well.

The king often came to see me and helped my teachers. We began to talk.

“Please untie these strings, ” I asked him.

“Not now, ” he answered. “But I will think about it. First — and do not be angry — my men will look at your things.”

“I'll happily show your men these things, ” I answered, “but I'll never hurt you or your people with them.”

The next day two men came and walked over me. They looked inside my clothes. They made notes on everything — my notebook,the glasses for my weak eyes,my money and my money-bag.

The king called to me: “Your sword is as big as five men. Please give it to me. Wait! I will bring more men.”

Three thousand men stood round me and watched.

“Pull out your sword now! ” shouted the king.

I took my sword from under my clothes. The sun shone on it and hurt everybody's eyes. I put it on the ground and the king's men quickly carried it away.

“Now give me those other strange things, ” he shouted.

I gave him my guns.

After this,the king sent me his“Rules”:

“Follow my rules and we will untie your strings, ”he told me.

Rules of King of Lilliput

1. The Man-Mountain will ask before he leaves our country.

2. He will ask before he comes into the city. (Two hours before this, everybody will go into their houses and stay there. )

3. He will only walk on the roads.

4. He will walk carefully. He will not put his foot on any person, or on their horses. He will not take anybody up in his hands.

5. He will help our ships and our men in the war with the people of the Island of Blefuscu.

6. He will help our workmen when they build a wall round our garden.

7. We will give him food — food for 1,728 of our people.

The reader will ask: “Why did the king use the number 1,728? ”Well, I was as tall as twelve people from Lilliput. So my body was as large and as heavy as 12x12x12 people from Lilliput — 12x12 is 144;144x12 is 1,728. This was the answer of the king's clever men. I read the rules and said to the king: “I will follow them.” The next day, men came and untied the strings from my leg. Now I could walk again!