Voltaire's Romances, Complete in One VolumeVoltaire
Philosophy
Voltaire's Romances, Complete in One Volume
Voltaire
French fiction -- Translations into English
After divers questions of this nature, he asked how many substances,
essentially different, they counted in the world of Saturn; and
understood that they numbered but thirty: such as God; space; matter;
beings endowed with sense and extension; beings that have extension,
sense, and reflection; thinking beings who have no extension; those that
are penetrable; those that are impenetrable, and also all others. But
this Saturnian philosopher was prodigiously astonished when the Sirian
told him they had no less than three hundred, and that he himself had
discovered three thousand more in the course of his travels. In short,
after having communicated to each other what they knew, and even what
they did not know, and argued during a complete revolution of the sun,
they resolved to set out together on a small philosophical tour.
III.
THE VOYAGE OF THESE INHABITANTS OF OTHER WORLDS.
Our two philosophers were just ready to embark for the atmosphere of
Saturn, with a large provision of mathematical instruments, when the
Saturnian's mistress, having got an inkling of their design, came all in
tears to make her protests. She was a handsome brunette, though not
above six hundred and threescore fathoms high; but her agreeable
attractions made amends for the smallness of her stature.
"Ah! cruel man," cried she, "after a courtship of fifteen hundred years,
when at length I surrendered, and became your wife, and scarce have
passed two hundred more in thy embraces, to leave me thus, before the
honeymoon is over, and go a rambling with a giant of another world! Go,
go, thou art a mere virtuoso, devoid of tenderness and love! If thou
wert a true Saturnian, thou wouldst be faithful and invariable. Ah!
whither art thou going? what is thy design? Our five moons are not so
inconstant, nor our ring so changeable as thee! But take this along with
thee, henceforth I ne'er shall love another man."
The little gentleman embraced and wept over her, notwithstanding his
philosophy; and the lady, after having swooned with great decency, went
to console herself with more agreeable company.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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