64 EARLY LIFE. 



said the spirit, 'is five hundred millions of leagues 

 from the sun, in a little star near Sirius ; as you see 

 here.' ' Dear, what a nice country!' said Memnon : 

 1 so you have no sluts who dupe a poor man ; no 

 particular friends who win his money and knock out 

 his eye; no bankrupts; no satraps who laugh at 

 you because they refuse you justice.' ' No/ said 

 the native of the star, 'none of these things at all. 

 We are never cozened by women, for we have 

 no women. We never commit excess at table, for 

 we never feed. We have no bankrupts, for with 

 us there is neither silver nor gold. We can't have 

 our eyes closed up, because we have not bodies 

 made like yours ; and satraps never do us injustice, 

 because in our little star all the world is on a foot- 

 ing/ Memnon then addressed him : ' My good mas- 

 ter, wifeless and dinnerless \ how do you contrive 

 to pass your time V 'In watching over the other 

 world intrusted to our care/ said he, ' and I am come 

 here just now to console thee.' ' Alackaday ! ' re- 

 plied Memnon, ' why didn't you come last night to 

 prevent me from committing so many follies V 'I 

 was with thy eldest brother Haspar/ said the celestial 

 being. ' He is more to be pitied than thou. His 

 gracious Majesty the King of the Indians, at whose 

 court he has the honour of belonging, hath caused 

 put out both his eyes for some petty indiscretion ; 

 and he is at this moment in a dungeon with his hands 

 and feet in irons/ ' It's very hard/ said Memnon, 

 'when one has a good genius in the family, that one 



