Chapter-5
My master consented to my request and he desired that I would go on with my utmost diligence to learn their language. He was more astonished at my capacity for speech and reason, than at the figure of my body whether it was covered or uncovered. Every day, he would ask me several questions concerning myself.
The first account I gave of myself was as follows:
“I have come from a very far country, as I already had attempted to tell you. I was accompanied by fifty more of my own species. We travelled upon the seas in a great hollow vessel made of wood which was large than his house. There was a quarrel among us and I was set on shore on this coast, where I walked forward. I did not know where to go till I was saved by you from the hounding of those terrible yahoos.” He asked me, “How could stupid animals like yahoos made these things called ships and how could they sail these ships?”
I explained, “Yahoos in my country are very clever. They rule my country just like Houyhnhnms rule your country. I know this is a surprise to you. It was the same for me when I came to your country. I was surprised to find Houyhnhnms ruling the country.”
“Are there Houyhnhnms in England?” my master asked.
“Oh yes,” I told him, “We call them ‘horses’ but they are not so clever as Houyhnhnms here. We use them for travelling and for racing. We ride on them or use them to pull beautiful carts. We are very kind to these horses and they have servants to look after them. But not all horses have a happy life. Some work very hard and have cruel masters. They don’t have enough to eat and they work until they die.”
My master did not like this and said, “How can yahoos like you to do this?”
“Yahoos are not strong enough. We train the horses when they are young,” I answered.
He did not understand a country where yahoos were clever and horses were stupid.
“I know it is hard to understand,” I told him, “When I go back to my country, they will think I am telling lies about you.” This was hard for my master to understand too. I told my master many other things about my country and he listened carefully.
After several days, my master said to me, “The yahoos in your country have more intelligence than the yahoos here do not have. But I think they are very similar. Even when there is enough food for everyone, our yahoos fight amongst another for the food. Your yahoos fight for things, they want, like money and land. I don’t understand why they do this when there is enough for everyone. Our yahoos like little white stones. They pick up as many as they can. They fight to stop other yahoos getting them. Then they take them back to their kennels and dig holes in the ground to put them in. They don’t use these stones for anything. They just hide them from others. In your country, yahoos also fight to keep things they can’t use. Our yahoos hate another and fight all the time. Sometimes a group of our yahoos fight with another group. I don’t understand the reason for this fighting. You told me your yahoos have fights like this as well. You have not given me good reasons for these fights. You call them wars but they are the same. Our yahoos use their claws to fight and kill. Your yahoos made weapons.” What could I say to my master? When I looked at the people of my country through my master’s eyes, I felt he was right.
“There are some other things I have noticed about our yahoos,” my master continued, “Male yahoos often fight against the females. The males are much bigger and they sometime hurt the females badly. I do not know any other animal that does this. Other animals are clean but our yahoos like being dirty. Our yahoos are selfish, greedy and nasty. No other animal likes this. Are yahoos from your country like this to?”
I did not answer my master. I was ashamed. I now saw that we were yahoos just like the ones in my master’s country.
I will now tell you about the way Houyhnhnms lived. I am sure you will see they had better lives than yahoos like us. I have already told you that Houyhnhnms did not have a word for ‘lie’. They did not have arguments because they believed there was only one true answer. Also, all Houyhnhnms were equal. Hoyhnhnms who lived far away were given the same friendship and kindness as those who lived near by. The group was more important than one houyhnhnm or one family. They did everything for the good of the group.
Houyhnhnms loved all children equally. A family was allowed only two children: a male and a female. This was to keep the population low. But houyhnhnm servants could have three male and three female children, who were then trained to be servants. The young ones ate only grass until they were eighteen years old. After that period, they could have oats and milk as well. Children were trained to be strong and fast. They were taught to be hardworking and clean.
Houyhnhnms lived a simple life. They did not have expensive houses or furniture or paintings. They did not have clothes. They had no books. They did not write anything down.
They did not play music, but they sang songs to young Houyhnhnms when they won races. Houyhnhnms did not marry for love. Their parents and friends chose the best partner for them. They joined two Houyhnhnms who would make strong, beautiful children together. They did not join different coloured horses together because they might have children with ugly colours. Married partners lived together all their lives without arguments.
Every four years, Houyhnhnms from all over the country met. They asked about one another’s district. If any district did not have enough hay or cows or yahoos, the other districts gave them some. At these meetings, families were made equal too. If one family had two males and no females and another family had only two females, they exchanged children.
I had a good time in the wonderful country of the Houyhnhnms for about three years. I didn’t have to worry about thieves or governments or stupid people. I just had to keep away from the yahoos and I had a servant horse to keep them away from me. My life was like my master’s, i.e. quiet and peaceful. I was happy. When I thought of my family and friends, I saw they were yahoos and only a little better than the yahoos in my master’s country. When I saw my reflection in a lake or pond, I felt bad. I saw that I looked like a yahoo. I wanted to be a Houyhnhnm.
