The Consolidator; or, Memoirs of Sundry Transactions from the World in the MoonDefoe, Daniel
Science
The Consolidator; or, Memoirs of Sundry Transactions from the World in the Moon
Defoe, Daniel
Fantasy fiction; Interplanetary voyages -- Fiction; Moon -- Fiction; Political fiction; Satire
There were two Solunarian High Priests in their proper Vestments, one
Privy Councellor of the State, one other Noble Man, and one who had
in his Hat a Token, to signifie that he possest one of the fine
Feathers of the Consolidator, of which I have given the Description
already.
The Book being read by one of the habited Priests, he starts up with
some warmth, by the Moon, says he, I have found this Fellow out, he
is certainly a Crolian, a meer Prestarian Crolian, and is crept into
our Church only in Disguise, for 'tis certain all this is but meer
Banter and Irony to expose us, and to ridicule the Solunarian
Interest.
The Privy Councellor took it presently, whether he is a Crolian or
no, says he, I cannot tell, but he has certainly done the Crolians so
much Service, that if they had hir'd him to act for them, they could
not have desir'd he should serve them better.
Truly, says the Man of the Feather, I was always for pulling down the
Crolians, for I thought them dangerous to the State; but this Man has
brought the Matter nearer to my View, and shown me what destroying
them is, for he put me upon examining the Consequences, and now I
find it would be lopping off the Limbs of the Government, and laying
it at the Mercy of the Enemy that they might lop off its Head; I
assure you he has done the Crolians great Service, for whereas
abundance of our Men of the Feather were for routing the Crolians,
they lately fell down to 134 or thereabouts.
All this confirm'd the first Man's Opinion that he was a Crolian in
Disguise, or an Emissary employ'd by them to ruin the Project of
their Enemies; for these Crolians are damn'd cunning People in their
way, and they have Mony enough to engage Hirelings to their side.
Another Party concern'd in this Plot was an old cast-out Solunarian
Priest, who, tho' professing himself a Solunarian, was turn'd out for
adhering to the Abrograzian King, a mighty Stickler for the Doctrin
of absolute Subjection.
This Man draws the most monstrous Picture of a Crolian that could be
invented, he put him in a Wolf's Skin with long Asses Ears, and hung
him all over full of Associations, Massacres, Persecutions,
Rebellions, and Blood. Here the People began to stare again, and a
Crolian cou'd not go along the Street but they were alway's looking
for the long Ears, the Wolf's Claws, and the like; 'till at last
nothing of these Things appearing, but the Crolians looking and
acting like other Folks, they begun to examine the Matter, and found
this was a meer Crolian Plot too, and this Man was hir'd to run these
extravagant lengths to point out the right meaning.
The Discovery being made, People ever since understand him that when
he talks of the Dissenters Associations, Murthers, Persecutions, and
the like, he means that his Readers should look back to the Murthers,
Oppressions and Persecutions they had suffered for several past
years, and the Associations that were now forming to bring them into
the same Condition again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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