persons of ingenuity and taste. Finally, let your aim be levelled against that ill-founded bulwark of idle books of chivalry, abhorred by many, but applauded by more, which, if you can batter down, you will have achieved no inconsiderable exploit." I listened to my friend's advice in profound silence, and his remarks made such impres sion upon my mind, that I admitted them without hesitation or dispute, and resolved that they should appear instead of a preface. Thou wilt, therefore, gentle reader, perceive his discretion and my good luck in finding such a counsellor in such an emergency; nor wilt thou be sorry to receive, thus genuine and undisguised, the history of the renowned Don Quixote de la Mancha, who, in the opinion of all the people that live in the district of Montiel, was the most virtuous and valiant knight who had appeared for many years in that neighbourhood. I shall not pretend to enhance the merit of having introduced thee to such a famous and honourable cavalier; but I expect thanks for having made thee acquainted with Sancho Panza, in whom I think are united all the 'squirish graces which we find scattered through the whole tribe of vain books written on the subject of chivalry. So, praying that God will give thee health, without forgetting such an humble creature as me, I bid thee heartily farewell. THE ACHIEVEMENTS OF THE SAGE AND VALIANT DON QUIXOTE DE LA MANCHA. CHAP. I. PART I.-BOOK I. Of the quality and amusements of the renowned In a certain corner of la Mancha, the name of which I do not choose to remember, there lately lived one of those country gentlemen who adorn their halls with a rusty lance and wormeaten target, and ride forth on the skeleton of a horse, to course with a sort of a starved greyhound. Three-fourths of his income were scarce sufficient to afford a dish of hodge-podge, in which the mutton bore no proportion to the beef, for dinner; a plate of salmagundy commonly at supper; gripes and grumblings on Satur days, lentils on Fridays, and the addition of a pigeon or some such thing on the Lord's-day. The remaining part of his revenue was consumed in the purchase of a fine black suit, with velvet breeches and slippers of the same, for holidays; and a coat of homespun, which he wore, in honour of his country, during the rest of the week. He maintained a female housekeeper turned of forty, a niece of about half that age, and a trusty young fellow, fit for field and market, who could turn his hand to any thing, either to saddle the horse or handle the hoe.§ • Mutton, in Spain, is counted greatly preferable to beef. Salpicon, which is the word in the original, is no other than cold beef sliced, and eaten with oil, vinegar, and pepper. Gripes and grumblings, in Spanish Duelos y Quebrantos; the true meaning of which the former translators have been at great pains to investigate, as the importance of the subject, no doubt, required. But their labours have, unhappily, ended in nothing else but conjectures, which, for the entertainment and instruction of our readers, we beg leave to repeat. One interprets the phrase into collops and eggs, "being," saith he," a very sorry dish." In this decision, however, he is contradicted by another commentator, who affirms," it is a mess too good to mortify withal;" neither can this virtuoso agree with a late editor, who translates the passage in question into an amlet; but takes occasion to fall out with Boyer for his description of that dish, which he most sagaciously understands to be a "bacon froize," or rather fryze, from its being fried, from frit in French; and concludes with this judicious query:" After all these learned disquisitions, who knows but the author means a dish of nichils ?" If this was his meaning indeed, surely we may venture to conclude, that fasting was very expensive in la Mancha; for the author mentions the Duclos y Quebrantos among those articles that consumed three-fourths of the knight's income. Having considered this momentous affair with all the deliberation it deserves, we in our turn present the reader with cucumbers, greens, or pease-porridge, as the fruit of our industrious researches; being thereunto determined by the literal signification of the text, which is not "grumblings and groanings," as the last-mentioned ingenious annotator seems to think, but rather pains and breakings; and evidently points at such eatables as generate and expel wind,—qualities (as every body knows) eminently inherent in those vegetables we have mentioned as our hero's Saturday's repast. § Podadera literally signifies a pruning-hook. He, notwithstanding, bestowed great com mendations on the author who concludes his book with the promise of finishing that interminable adventure; and was more than once inclined to seize the quill with a view of performing what was left undone; nay, he would have actually accomplished the affair and published it accordingly, had not reflections of greater moment employed his imagination and diverted him from the execution of that design. Our 'squire, who bordered upon fifty, was of a tough constitution, extremely meagre and hard-featured, an early riser, and, in point of exercise, another Nimrod. He is said to have gone by the name of Quixada, or Quesada, (for, in this particular, the authors who mention this circumstance disagree), though, from the most probable conjectures, we may conclude, that he was called by the significant name of Quixada; but this is of small importance to the history, in the course of which it will be sufficient if we swerve not a tittle from the truth. Divers and obstinate were the disputes he Be it known, therefore, that this said honest maintained against the parson of the parish (a gentleman, at his leisure hours, which engrossed man of some learning, who had taken his dethe greatest part of the year, addicted himself to grees at Siguenza‡), on that puzzling question, the reading of books of chivalry, which he pe- whether Palmerin of England, or Amadis de rused with such rapture and application, that Gaul, was the most illustrious knight-errant ? he not only forgot the pleasures of the chase, But Mr Nicholas, who acted as barber to the but also utterly neglected the management of village, affirmed, that none of them equalled the his estate: nay, to such pass did his curiosity Knight of the Sun, or indeed could be comparand madness in this particular drive him, that ed to him in any degree, except Don Galaor, he sold many good acres of terra firma, to pur- brother of Amadis de Gaul; for his disposition chase books of knight-errantry, with which he was adapted to all emergencies; he was neither furnished his library to the utmost of his power; such a precise nor such a puling coxcomb as his but none of them pleased him so much as those brother; and, in point of valour, his equal at that were written by the famous Feliciano de Sil- least. va, whom he admired as the pearl of all authors, for the brilliancy of his prose, and the beautiful perplexity of his expression. How was he transported, when he read those amorous complaints and doughty challenges, that so often occur in his works! "The reason of the unreasonable usage my reason has met with, so unreasons my reason, that I have reason to complain of your beauty:" and how did he enjoy the following flower of composition! "The high heaven of your divinity, which with stars divinely fortifies your beauty, and renders you meritorious of that merit, which by your highness is merited." The poor gentleman lost his senses in poring over and attempting to discover the meaning of these and other such rhapsodies, which Aristotle himself would not be able to unravel, were he to rise from the dead for that purpose only. He could not comprehend the probability of those direful wounds, given and received by Don Bellianis, whose face and whole carcass must have remained quite covered with marks and scars, even allowing him to have been cured by the most expert surgeons of the age in which he lived. So eager and entangled was our Hidalgo§ in this kind of history, that he would often read from morning to night, and from night to morning again, without interruption; till, at last, the moisture of his brain being quite exhausted with indefatigable watching and study, he fairly lost his wits: all that he had read of quarrels, enchantments, battles, challenges, wounds, tortures, amorous complaints, and other improbable conceits, took full possession of his fancy; and he believed all those romantic exploits so implicitly, that, in his opinion, the holy scripture was not more true. He observed, that Cid Ruydias was an excellent knight; but not equal to the Lord of the Flaming-sword, who, with one back-stroke, had cut two fierce and monstrous giants through the middle. He had still a better opinion of Bernardo del Carpio, who, at the battle of Roncevalles, put the enchanted Orlando|| to death by the same means that Hercules used when he strangled the earth-born Anteus. Neither was he silent in the praise of Morgante, who, though of that gigantic race which is noted for insolence and incivility, was perfectly affable and well-bred. But his chief favourite was Reynaldo of Montalban, In the original, a lover of hunting. Quixadas signifies jaws, of which our knight had an extraordinary provision. Siguenza, a town situated on the banks of the Henares, in New Castile, in which there is a small uni versity. Hidalgo has much the same application in Spain as 'squire in England, though it literally signifies the son of somebody, in contradistinction to those who are the sons of nobody. || Orlando, the supposed nephew of Charlemagne, and poetical hero of Boiardo and Ariosto, is said to have been invulnerable in all parts of his body, except the soles of his feet, which he therefore took care to secure with double plates of armour. whom he hugely admired for his prowess, in sallying from his castle to rob travellers, and, above all things, for his dexterity in stealing the idol of the impostor Mahomet, which, ac cording to the history, was of solid gold. For an opportunity of pummelling the traitor Galalon, he would willingly have given his housekeeper, body and soul, nay, his niece into the bargain. In short, his understanding being quite perverted, he was seized with the strangest whim that ever entered the brain of a madman. This was no other than a full persuasion, that it was highly expedient and necessary, not only for his own honour, but also for the good of the public, that he should profess knight-errantry, and ride through the world in arms to seek adventures, and conform in all points to the practice of those itinerant heroes whose exploits he had read; redressing all manner of grievances, and courting all occasions of exposing himself to such dangers, as in the event would entitle him to everlasting renown. This poor lunatic looked upon himself already as good as seated, by his own single valour, on the throne of Trebisond; and, intoxicated with these agreeable vapours of his unaccountable folly, resolved to put his design in practice forthwith. In the first place, he cleaned an old suit of armour, which had belonged to some of his ancestors, and which he found in his garret, where it had lain for several ages, quite covered over with mouldiness and rust; but having scoured and put it to rights as well as he could, he perceived, that, instead of a complete helmet, there was only a simple head-piece without a beaver. This unlucky defect, however, his industry supplied by a vizor, which he made of pasteboard, and fixed so artificially to the morrion, that it looked like an entire helmet. True it is, that, in order to try if it was strong enough to risk his jaws in, he unsheathed his sword, and bestowed upon it two hearty strokes, the first of which, in a twinkling, undid his whole week's labour. He did not at all approve of the facility with which he hewed it in pieces; and, therefore, to secure himself from any such danger for the future, went to work anew. He faced it with a plate of iron, in such a manner, as that he remained satisfied of its strength, without putting it to a second trial, and looked upon it as a most finished piece of armour. He next visited his horse, which (though he had more corners than a rial,† being as lean as Gonela's, that "tantum pellis et ossa fuit,") nevertheless, in his eye, appeared infinitely preferable to Alexander's Bucephalus, or the Cid's Babieca. Four days he consumed in inventing a name for this remarkable steed; suggesting to himself what an impropriety it would be, if an horse of his qualities, belonging to such a renowned knight, should go without some sounding and significant appellation: he therefore resolved to accommodate him with one that should not only declare his past, but also his present capacity; for he thought it but reasonable, that, since his master had altered his condition, he should also change his horse's name, and invest him with some sublime and sonorous epithet, suitable to the new order and employment he professed: accordingly, after having chosen, rejected, amended, tortured, and revolved a world of names in his imagination, he fixed upon Rozinante,+-an appellation, in his opinion, lofty, sonorous, and expressive not only of his former, but likewise of his present situation, which entitled him to the preference over all other horses under the sun. Having thus denominated his horse so much to his own satisfaction, he was desirous of doing himself the like justice, and, after eight days study, actually assumed the title of Don Quixote: from whence, as hath been observed, the authors of this authentic history concluded, that his former name must have been Quixada, and not Quesada, as others are pleased to affirm. But, recollecting that the valiant Amadis, not satisfied with that simple appellation, added it to that of his country, and, in order to dignify the place of his nativity, called himself Amadis de Gaul, he resolved, like a worthy knight, to follow such an illustrious example, and assume the name of Don Quixote de la Mancha ; which, in his opinion, fully expressed his generation, and, at the same time, reflected infinite honour on his fortunate country. Accordingly, his armour being scoured, his beaver fitted to his head-piece, his steed accommodated with a name, and his own dignified with these additions, he reflected, that nothing else was wanting but a lady to inspire him with love; for a knight-errant without a mistress would be like a tree destitute of leaves and fruit, or a body without a soul. "If (said he) for my sins, or rather for my honour, I should engage with some giant, an adventure common in knight-errantry, and overthrow him in the field by cleaving him in twain, or, in short, dis◄ Galalon is said to have betrayed Charlemagne's army at Roncevalles, where it was roughly handled by the Moors, in his retreat from Spain. This is a joke upon the knight's steed, which was so meagre, that his bones stuck out like the corners of a Spanish rial, a coin of very irregular shape, not unlike the figure in geometry called Trapezium. Rozinante implies that which was formerly an ordinary horse, though the ante seems to have been intended by the knight as a badge of distinction, by which he was ranked before all other horses. arm and subdue him, will it not be highly proper that I should have a mistress to whom I may send my conquered foe, who, coming into the presence of the charming fair, will fall upon his knees, and say, in an humble and submissive tone, 66 Incomparable princess, I am the giant Carculiambro, lord of the island of Malindrania, who, being vanquished in single combat by the invincible knight Don Quixote de la Mancha, am commanded by him to present myself before your beauty, that I may be disposed of according to the pleasure of your highness?" How did the heart of our worthy knight dance with joy, when he uttered this address; and still more, when he found a lady worthy of his affection! This, they say, was an hale, buxom, country wench, called Aldonza Lorenco, who lived in the neighbourhood, and with whom he had formerly been in love: though, by all accounts, she never knew, nor gave herself the least concern about, the matter. Her he looked upon as one qualified, in all respects, to be the queen of his inclinations; and, putting his invention again to the rack for a name that should bear some affinity with her own, and at the same time become a princess or lady of quality, he determined to call her Dulcinea del Toboso, she being a native of that place, a name, in his opinion, musical, romantic, and expressive, like the rest which he had appropriated to himself and his concerns. CHAP. II. had well nigh induced our hero to abandon his enterprise directly: for he recollected that he had never been knighted; and therefore, according to the laws of chivalry, he neither could nor ought to enter the lists with any antagonist of that degree; nay, even granting he had received that mark of distinction, it was his duty to wear white armour, like a new knight, without any device on his shield, until such time as his valour should entitle him to that honour.* These cogitations made him waver a little in his plan; but his madness prevailing over every other consideration, suggested, that he might be dubbed by the first person he should meet, after the example of many others who had fallen upon the same expedient, as he had read in those mischievous books which had disordered his imagination. With respect to the white armour, he proposed, with the first opportunity, to scour his own, until it should be fairer than ermine: and, having satisfied his conscience in this manner, he pursued his design, without following any other road than that which his horse was pleased to choose; being persuaded that in so doing he manifested the true spirit of adventure. Thus proceeded our flaming adventurer, while he uttered the following soliloquy: "Doubtless, in future ages, when the true history of my famed exploits shall come to light, the sage author, when he recounts my first and early sally, will express himself in this manner: 'Scarce had ruddy Phoebus, o'er this wide and spacious earth, displayed the golden threads of Of the sage Don Quixote's first sally from his his refulgent hair; and scarce the little painted own habitation. THESE preparations being made, he could no longer resist the desire of executing his design; reflecting with impatience on the injury his delay occasioned in the world, where there was abundance of grievances to be redressed, wrongs to be rectified, errors to be amended, abuses to be reformed, and doubts to be removed; he therefore, without communicating his intention to any body, or being seen by a living soul, one morning before day, in the scorching month of July, put on his armour, mounted Rozinante, buckled his ill-contrived helmet, braced his target, seized his lance, and, through the backdoor of his yard, sallied into the fields, in a rapture of joy, occasioned by this easy and successful beginning of his admirable undertaking: but scarce was he clear of the village, when he was assaulted by such a terrible objection, as warblers, with their forky tongues, in soft, mellifluous harmony, had hailed the approach of rosy-winged Aurora, who, stealing from her jealous husband's couch, through the balconies and aerial gates of Mancha's bright horizon, stood confessed to wondering mortals; when, lo! the illustrious knight Don Quixote de la Mancha, upspringing from the lazy down, be strode famed Rozinante, his unrivalled steed; and through Montiel's ancient, well-known field (which was really the case), pursued his way.' Then he added, "O fortunate age! O happy times! in which shall be made public my incomparable achievements, worthy to be engraved in brass, on marble sculptured, and in painting shewn, as great examples to futurity! and, O! thou sage enchanter, whatsoever thou may'st be, doomed to record the wonderous story! forget not, I beseech thee, my trusty Rozinante, the firm companion of my various According to the ancient rules of chivalry, no man was entitled to the rank and degree of knighthood, until he had been in actual battle, and taken a prisoner with his own hand. + It was common for one knight to dub another. Francis I., King of France, was knighted, at his own desire, by the chevalier Bayard, who was looked upon as the flower of chivalry. |