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 Englander ftoc.tex V2 - December 10, 2013 12:46 A.M. Page vi

CONTENTS

Preface xviii
About the Author xxv

PART ONE
AN OVERVIEW OF COMPUTER SYSTEMS 2
n CHAPTER 1 Computers and Systems 4
1.0 Introduction 5
1.1 The Starting Point 9
1.2 Components of the Computer System 11
The Hardware Component 13
The Software Component 16
The Communication Component 18
The Computer System 18
1.3 The Concept of Virtualization 20
1.4 Protocols and Standards 20
1.5 Overview of This Book 22
1.6 A Brief Architectural History of the Computer 23
Early Work 24
Computer Hardware 25
Operating Systems 28
Communication, Networks, and the Internet 33
Summary and Review 34 For Further Reading 34
Key Concepts and Terms 35 Reading Review Questions 35
Exercises 36

n CHAPTER 2 An Introduction to System Concepts and Systems

Architecture 38
2.0 Introduction 39
2.1 The General Concept of Systems 40
2.2 IT System Architectures 47
Distributed Processing Systems 49
The Role of the System Architect 59
vi
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CONTENTS vii

Google: A System Architecture Example 60

Another Example: Facebook’s Application Architecture 64
Summary and Review 65 For Further Reading 66
Key Concepts and Terms 66 Reading Review Questions 67
Exercises 67

PART TWO
DATA IN THE COMPUTER 70
n CHAPTER 3 Number Systems 72
3.0 Introduction 73
3.1 Numbers as a Physical Representation 74
3.2 Counting in Different Bases 74
3.3 Performing Arithmetic in Different Number Bases 78
3.4 Numeric Conversion Between Number Bases 82
An Alternative Conversion Method 83
3.5 Hexadecimal Numbers and Arithmetic 85
3.6 A Special Conversion Case—Number Bases that are Related 87
3.7 Fractions 88
Fractional Conversion Methods 90
3.8 Mixed Number Conversions 93
Summary and Review 94 For Further Reading 94
Key Concepts and Terms 95 Reading Review Questions 95
Exercises 96

n CHAPTER 4 Data Formats 100

4.0 Introduction 101
4.1 General Considerations 101
4.2 Alphanumeric Character Data 104
4.3 Visual Data 111
Bitmap Images 112
Object Images 116
Representing Characters as Images 119
Video Images 120
4.4 Audio Data 120
4.5 Data Compression 124
4.6 Page Description Languages 125
4.7 Internal Computer Data Format 126
Numerical Character to Integer Conversion 128
Summary and Review 129 For Further Reading 130
Key Concepts and Terms 130 Reading Review Questions 131
Exercises 132
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viii CONTENTS

n CHAPTER 5 Representing Numerical Data 136

5.0 Introduction 137
5.1 Unsigned Binary and Binary-Coded Decimal
Representations 138
5.2 Representations for Signed Integers 141
Sign-and-Magnitude Representation 141
Nine’s Decimal and 1’s Binary Complementary
Representations 143
Ten’s Complement and 2’s Complement 149
Overflow and Carry Conditions 152
Other Bases 153
Summary of Rules for Complementary Numbers 153
5.3 Real Numbers 154
A Review of Exponential Notation 154
Floating Point Format 156
Normalization and Formatting of Floating Point Numbers 158
A Programming Example 161
Floating Point Calculations 162
Floating Point in the Computer 164
Conversion between Base 10 and Base 2 166
5.4 Programming Considerations 167
Summary and Review 168 For Further Reading 169
Key Concepts and Terms 169 Reading Review Questions 169
Exercises 170

PART THREE
COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE AND HARDWARE
OPERATION 176
n CHAPTER 6 The Little Man Computer 178
6.0 Introduction 179
6.1 Layout of the Little Man Computer 179
6.2 Operation of the LMC 181
6.3 A Simple Program 182
6.4 An Extended Instruction Set 184
6.5 The Instruction Cycle 187
6.6 A Note Regarding Computer Architectures 190
Summary and Review 190
Key Concepts and Terms 191 Reading Review Questions 191
Exercises 191
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CONTENTS ix

n CHAPTER 7 The CPU and Memory 194

7.0 Introduction 195
7.1 The Components of the CPU 196
7.2 The Concept of Registers 197
7.3 The Memory Unit 200
The Operation of Memory 200
Memory Capacity and Addressing Limitations 204
Primary Memory Characteristics and Implementation 205
7.4 The Fetch–Execute Instruction Cycle 207
7.5 Buses 210
Bus Characteristics 210
7.6 Classification of Instructions 214
Data Movement Instructions (LOAD, STORE, and Other
Moves) 215
Arithmetic Instructions 217
Boolean Logic Instructions 218
Single Operand Manipulation Instructions 218
Bit Manipulation Instructions 218
Shift and Rotate Instructions 218
Program Control Instructions 219
Stack Instructions 220
Multiple Data Instructions 223
Other Instructions 224
7.7 Instruction Word Formats 224
7.8 Instruction Word Requirements and Constraints 226
Summary and Review 229 For Further Reading 229
Key Concepts and Terms 230 Reading Review Questions 230
Exercises 231

n CHAPTER 8 CPU and Memory: Design, Enhancement,

and Implementation 234
8.0 Introduction 235
8.1 CPU Architectures 236
Overview 236
Traditional Modern Architectures 237
8.2 CPU Features and Enhancements 238
Introduction 238
Fetch–Execute Cycle Timing Issues 239
A Model for Improved CPU Performance 241
Scalar and Superscalar Processor Organization 245
8.3 Memory Enhancements 248
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x CONTENTS

Wide Path Memory Access 249

Memory Interleaving 249
Cache Memory 250
8.4 The Compleat Modern Superscalar CPU 254
8.5 Multiprocessing 256
8.6 A Few Comments on Implementation 260
Summary and Review 260 For Further Reading 261
Key Concepts and Terms 262 Reading Review Questions 262
Exercises 263

n CHAPTER 9 Input/Output 266

9.0 Introduction 267
9.1 Characteristics of Typical I/O Devices 268
9.2 Programmed I/O 273
9.3 Interrupts 275
Servicing Interrupts 275
The Uses of Interrupts 277
Multiple Interrupts and Prioritization 282
9.4 Direct Memory Access 286
9.5 I/O Controllers 289
Summary and Review 291 For Further Reading 292
Key Concepts and Terms 292 Reading Review Questions 292
Exercises 293

n CHAPTER 10 Computer Peripherals 294

10.0 Introduction 295
10.1 The Hierarchy of Storage 296
10.2 Solid-State Memory 298
10.3 Magnetic Disks 299
Disk Arrays 306
10.4 Optical Disk Storage 307
10.5 Magnetic Tape 309
10.6 Displays 310
Basic Display Design 310
Graphical Processing Units (GPUs) 312
Liquid Crystal Display Technology 316
OLED Display Technology 317
10.7 Printers 317
Laser Printers 319
Inkjet Printers 320
10.8 User Input Devices 320
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CONTENTS xi

Keyboards 320
Pointing Devices 321
Alternative Sources of Alphanumeric Input 322
Scanners 324
Multimedia Input 324
Mobile Devices 325
10.9 Network Communication Devices 326
Summary and Review 327 For Further Reading 327
Key Concepts and Terms 328 Reading Review Questions 328
Exercises 329

n CHAPTER 11 Modern Computer Systems 332

11.0 Introduction 333
11.1 Putting All the Pieces Together 335
11.2 System Architecture 340
Basic System Interconnection Requirements 341
Bus I/O 343
Channel Architecture 347
Blurring the Line 349
11.3 Computer Interconnection: A Brief Overview 349
11.4 Clusters 350
Overview 350
Classification and Configuration 350
Beowulf Clusters 352
11.5 High-Performance Computing 353
Grid Computing 354
Summary and Review 354 For Further Reading 355
Key Concepts and Terms 355 Reading Review Questions 356
Exercises 356

PART FOUR
NETWORKS AND DATA COMMUNICATIONS 358
n CHAPTER 12 Networks and Data Communications—An
Overview 360
12.0 Introduction 361
12.1 The Impact of Networking on Business Processes and User
Access to Knowledge and Services 362
12.2 A Simple View of Data Communications 363
12.3 Basic Data Communication Concepts 366
Messages 366
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xii CONTENTS

Packets 367
General Channel Characteristics 369
12.4 Networks 373
Network Topology 373
Types of Networks 376
Network Interconnection 390
12.5 Standards 393
Summary and Review 395 For Further Reading 396
Key Concepts and Terms 396 Reading Review Questions 397
Exercises 397

n CHAPTER 13 Ethernet and TCP/IP Networking 400

13.0 Introduction 401
13.1 TCP/IP, OSI, and Other Communication Protocol Models 402
13.2 Program Applications Versus Network Applications 406
13.3 The Physical and Data Link Layers 407
The Physical Layer 408
The Data Link Layer 408
Hub-Based Ethernet 410
Switched Ethernet 411
Wireless Ethernet (Wi-Fi) 411
13.4 The Network Layer 413
13.5 The Transport Layer 416
13.6 IP Addresses 421
IPv4 and DHCP 421
IPv6 425
13.7 Domain Names and DNS Services 425
13.8 Quality of Service 430
13.9 Network Security 431
Physical and Logical Access Restriction 432
Encryption 432
13.10 Alternative Protocols 433
A Comparison of TCP/IP and OSI 433
Other Protocol Suites and Components 434
SCSI Over IP 434
Cellular Technology 435
MPLS 435
SONET/SDH 436
Frame Relay 436
Summary and Review 436 For Further Reading 437
Key Concepts and Terms 437 Reading Review Questions 438
Exercises 439
 Englander ftoc.tex V2 - December 10, 2013 12:46 A.M. Page xiii

CONTENTS xiii

n CHAPTER 14 Communication Channel Technology 442

14.0 Introduction 443
14.1 Communication Channel Technology 444
14.2 The Fundamentals of Signaling Technology 447
Analog Signaling 448
Digital Signaling 456
Modems 461
14.3 Transmission Media and Signaling Methods 462
14.4 Alternative Technologies 464
Cellular Technology 464
Wi-Fi 466
Bluetooth 466
Summary and Review 467 For Further Reading 468
Key Concepts and Terms 468 Reading Review Questions 469
Exercises 470

PART FIVE
THE SOFTWARE COMPONENT 474
n CHAPTER 15 Operating Systems: An Overview 476
15.0 Introduction 477
15.1 The Barebones Computer System 478
15.2 The Operating Systems Concept: An Introduction 479
15.3 Services and Facilities 485
User Interface and Command Execution Services 486
File Management 487
Input/Output Services 489
Process Control Management 489
Memory Management 490
Scheduling and Dispatch 491
Secondary Storage Management 493
Network and Communications Support Services 494
Security and Protection Services 494
System Administration Support 495
15.4 Organization 499
15.5 Types of Computer Systems 502
Summary and Review 506 For Further Reading 506
Key Concepts and Terms 507 Reading Review Questions 507
Exercises 508
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xiv CONTENTS

n CHAPTER 16 The User View of Operating Systems 510

16.0 Introduction 511
16.1 Purpose of the User Interface 512
16.2 User Functions and Program Services 514
Program Execution 514
File Commands 515
Disk and Other I/O Device Commands 516
Security and Data Integrity Protection 516
Interuser Communication and Data Sharing Operations 517
System Status Information and User Administration 518
Program Services 519
16.3 Types of User Interface 519
The Command Line Interface 520
Batch System Commands 522
Graphical User Interfaces 523
Touchless Gesture- and Voice-Based Interfaces 528
Trade-offs in the User Interface 529
Software Considerations 530
16.4 X Window and Other Graphics Display Methodologies 532
16.5 Command and Scripting Languages 535
The Elements of a Command Language 536
The Command Language Start-up Sequence Files 537
16.6 Services to Programs 538
Summary and Review 540 For Further Reading 540
Key Concepts and Terms 540 Reading Review Questions 541
Exercises 541

n CHAPTER 17 File Management 544

17.0 Introduction 545
17.1 The Logical and Physical View of Files 545
17.2 The Role of the File Management System 550
17.3 Logical File Access Methods 555
Sequential File Access 555
Random Access 556
Indexed Access 557
17.4 Physical File Storage 557
Contiguous Storage Allocation 558
Noncontiguous Storage Allocation 559
Indexed Allocation 561
Free Space Management 564
Tape Allocation 565
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 Englander ftoc.tex V2 - December 10, 2013 12:46 A.M. Page xv

CONTENTS xv

CD, DVD, and Flash Drive Allocation 566

17.5 File Systems, Volumes, Disks, Partitions, and Storage Pools 566
17.6 The Directory Structure 569
Tree-Structured Directories 570
Acyclic-Graph Directories 573
17.7 Network File Access 576
17.8 Storage Area Networks 578
17.9 File Protection 578
17.10 Journaling File Systems 581
Summary and Review 581 For Further Reading 582
Key Concepts and Terms 582 Reading Review Questions 583
Exercises 584

n CHAPTER 18 The Internal Operating System 586

18.0 Introduction 587
18.1 Fundamental OS Requirements 588
Example: A Simple Multitasking Operating System 590
18.2 Starting the Computer System: The Bootstrap 592
18.3 Processes and Threads 595
Process Creation 597
Process States 598
Threads 600
18.4 Basic Loading and Execution Operations 600
18.5 CPU Scheduling and Dispatching 601
High-Level Scheduler 601
Dispatching 603
Nonpreemptive Dispatch Algorithms 605
Preemptive Dispatch Algorithms 606
18.6 Memory Management 608
Memory Partitioning 608
18.7 Virtual Storage 610
Overview 610
Pages and Frames 610
The Concept of Virtual Storage 616
Page Faults 617
Working Sets and the Concept of Locality 619
Page Sharing 620
Page Replacement Algorithms 620
Thrashing 624
Page Table Implementation 624
Segmentation 626
Process Separation 627
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xvi CONTENTS

18.8 Secondary Storage Scheduling 627

First-Come, First-Served Scheduling 627
Shortest Distance First Scheduling 628
Scan Scheduling 628
n-Step c-Scan Scheduling 628
18.9 Network Operating System Services 629
OS Protocol Support and Other Services 629
18.10 Other Operating System Issues 632
Deadlock 632
Other Issues 632
18.11 Virtual Machines 634
Summary and Review 636 For Further Reading 636
Key Concepts and Terms 637 Reading Review Questions 638
Exercises 639
Bibliography 645
Index 657

SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTERS
On the Web at www.wiley.com/college/englander

n SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER 1 An Introduction to Digital

Computer Logic
S1.0 Introduction
S1.1 Boolean Algebra
S1.2 Gates and Combinatorial Logic
S1.3 Sequential Logic Circuits
Summary and Review For Further Reading
Key Concepts and Terms Reading Review Questions
Exercises

n SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER 2 System Examples

S2.0 Introduction
S2.1 Hardware Examples
The x86 Family
The POWER Family
The IBM System 360/370/390/zSeries Family
S2.2 Operating System Examples
The Microsoft Windows Family
UNIX and Linux
The IBM z/OS Operating System
 Englander ftoc.tex V2 - December 10, 2013 12:46 A.M. Page xvii

CONTENTS xvii

S2.3 Networking Examples

Google
Summary and Review For Further Reading
Key Concepts and Terms Reading Review Questions
Exercises

n SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER 3 Instruction Addressing

Modes
S3.0 Introduction
S3.1 Register Addressing
S3.2 Alternatives to Absolute Addressing
S3.3 Alternatives to Direct Addressing
Immediate Addressing
Indirect Addressing
Register Indirect Addressing
Indexed Addressing
Indirect Indexed and Indirect Indexed Addressing
Summary and Review For Further Reading
Key Concepts and Terms Reading Review Questions
Exercises

n SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER 4 Programming Tools

S4.0 Introduction
S4.1 Program Editing and Entry
S4.2 The Concept of Program Translation
S4.3 Assembly Language and the Assembler
Operation of the Assembler
Assembly Language Formats
Features and Extensions
Relocatability
S4.4 Program Language Description and Rules
A Description of Written English
Programming Language Rules
Computer Language Descriptions
The Compilation Process
Interpreters
S4.5 Linking and Loading
S4.6 Debuggers
Summary and Review For Further Reading
Key Concepts and Terms Reading Review Questions
Exercises
 Englander f02.tex V2 - December 9, 2013 2:51 P.M. Page xviii

PREFACE

T
he modern world offers a lot of readily available online resources for learning. Wikipedia,
Google, news sources, millions of Web sites and blogs, even YouTube, offer access to
information in nearly any subject that triggers your curiosity and interest. Nonetheless,
I continue to believe that for deep understanding of something, nothing beats the integrated
approach and focus of an old-fashioned printed-on-paper textbook. Well—maybe the e-book
equivalent, but, still, a textbook.
When I open a new book, in any subject, the first thing I want to know is what the book
has to offer that makes it worth my while to read it. I would like to try to help you answer that
question for the book that you’re holding in your hand or on your tablet.
The information systems and technology fields are wonderfully exciting places to be! It
seems as though every day brings new developments that alter the ways we create and work
with information. Of course, with this excitement comes a challenge. To be a successful player
in IS or IT, we have to be adaptable and flexible.
Much of the change occurs around computer system technology. The computer is, after
all, at the foundation of information systems. A deep understanding of computer systems is,
therefore, an essential element of success. We must be able to understand each new development,
assess its value, and place it in the context of our knowledge of computer systems.
The subject of this book is the architecture of computer systems. Computer architecture is
about the structure and operation of digital computers and computer-based devices. Computer
architecture is concerned with the operational methods of the hardware; with the services
provided by operating system software; with the acquisition, processing, storage, and output of
data; and with the interaction between computer-based devices.
There is a tendency for people in information systems and technology to neglect a study
of computer architecture. After all, the technology changes so rapidly—is it really worth trying
to understand something that may be out of date by the time I finish this book? There is no
question that computer technology has evolved rapidly. The computer in a smartphone is far
more powerful than the mainframe computer of twenty-five years ago, with memory, disk and
flash storage capacity, display and multimedia capability, and ease of use that would have been
unthinkable just a few years ago. Even more important, connecting systems to work together is
now routine and simple.
Interestingly enough, however, as profound as advances in the technology have been, the
concepts of computer architecture that really matter have changed only nominally over the
last seventy years. The new technologies are based on a foundation of architectural concepts
that were developed many years ago. The architecture of a modern computer system was
developed in the 1940s. The instruction set in a modern personal computer or smartphone is
nearly identical to that of computers built in the 1950s and 1960s. Modern operating system
xviii
 Englander f02.tex V2 - December 9, 2013 2:51 P.M. Page xix

PREFACE xix

techniques were developed in the 1960s. The graphical user interface is based on a 1960s’
project. The Internet is built from concepts developed more than forty years ago.
So you see that an understanding of computer architecture makes it possible to “ride the
wave” of technological change, secure in the feeling that you are equipped to deal with new
developments as they occur, and to have fun doing so. When you are done reading this book,
you will have substantial knowledge about how a computer works and a good understanding of
the operating concepts, the hardware, and system software that make up a computer. You will
see the interaction between computers and between data and the computer. Plus, you will have
learned lots of jargon that you can show off at parties and job interviews.
This textbook is designed for a wide range of readers, both undergraduate and graduate.
The material is specifically directed toward IS and IT majors. There are no explicit prerequisites,
although the book assumes that the student is familiar with a personal computer. It also assumes
(but does not require) some basic programming skills: although there is no programming in
the book, program code is occasionally used as an example to clarify an idea, and a knowledge
of programming is helpful at understanding instruction set design and program execution
concepts. The material in this textbook conforms to the criteria of the IT Infrastructure courses
and core concepts, as described in the ACM and AIS standard IS2010 and IT2008 curricula.
Although the material in this book may be useful as background for system design and
implementation project courses, the course can be placed anywhere in the curriculum.
Most instructors will not cover the entire textbook in a single semester. The organization
of this book is designed to allow an instructor to cover the major topic areas in different levels
of depth, depending on the experience and needs of the students. On the other hand, it is my
intention that this book will serve a student as a useful reference long after the formal course is
completed. It is designed for use as a book where a professional can look up the basic concepts
that clarify new developments as they occur.
This text is the outgrowth of courses that I have taught to CIS majors and minors at
Bentley University at both the undergraduate and graduate levels for more than thirty years.
Student responses to the material and the approach have generally been very enthusiastic. Many
students have returned after graduation to tell me that their knowledge in this area has directly
contributed to their career development. Along the way, student comments have also been
extremely helpful to me in the book’s continuing evolution.
Those familiar with previous editions will notice that the organization of recent editions
has undergone substantial revision to reflect current technological practices and trends.
In particular, it is no longer reasonable to discuss computers as individual units without
also considering the networks that tie them together; computer networking is now covered
thoroughly in its own section, and there is an increased emphasis on the integration and synergy
of the various components of the computer system and on the system as a whole. Still, the basic
philosophy, organization, and approach remain essentially similar to those of the first edition,
reflecting the unchanging nature of the underlying principles.

ORGANIZATION OF THE FIFTH EDITION,

NOTING CHANGES FROM PREVIOUS EDITIONS
The biggest challenge for me as the author of this book has been to preserve the guiding principles
established in the first edition, while reflecting the major changes in the way computers are
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 CHAPTER X.
A hundred bottles of champagne not worth a glass of water.—My clothes leave
me.—I commence the combat.—Great fight of a man against an island full of
apes.—The verandah about to fall.—It does not last any longer.—A skin saves
me.

For the remainder of the day my haggard eyes, reflecting my

troubled mind, hovered over the last lines of this journal, which I
pictured to myself as terminating in a description of a fête and a
general massacre. But who could have committed this massacre?
Hardly the Malays, for they stay to plunder, and there had evidently
been no pillage of the station. The only other supposition which
flashed across my mind seemed a great deal too absurd to be
seriously entertained—no, I could not believe that a conspiracy of
apes, although my life depended upon them at the present moment,
could have been guilty of so atrocious a crime.
Night came, and it was positively hideous to me with nightmares,
hallucinations, and sudden shocks of alarm, which awoke me out of
my sleep. By daylight, when I became a little less agitated, I said to
myself that if all the people belonging to the station had been
assassinated in some mysterious way, I should at least have come
across their remains, since, according to my calculations, it was now
July, and the journal finished in June, so that a month had elapsed
since this outrage was committed.
This very reasonable idea having entered my head, I considered
over the facts mentioned in Lord Campbell’s journal, and arrived step
by step at the following conclusions:—
The Tagal spies must have let their secret escape or allowed it to
be guessed on the occasion of their first voyage to Sooloo.
The Malay pirates, finding their plans discovered, would not allow
the Tagals to return to Kouparou after their second voyage. They
would have flayed Admiral Campbell’s unfortunate spies alive, or
would perhaps have eaten them, since the Malays are somewhat
inclined to cannibalism.
After having eaten the Tagals, the Malays, whose vengeance
never halts by the way, would have made a first descent by night on
the island of Kouparou, which would explain the distant fires seen by
Mr. Dawson, Lord Campbell’s secretary.
The poignard stuck in the sand was the symbolical menace
addressed by the pirates to the sailors of the station, advising them,
by this figurative but most expressive warning, that they would return
and either poignard them or make themselves masters of them in
some way or other.
They had actually returned, and the moment of their descent must
have been at the time the fête given to the officers of the Halcyon by
Vice-Admiral Campbell was taking place.
The pirates had, in all probability, succeeded in capturing all the
officers and sailors whom they found on the island itself; they would
next have attacked the Halcyon, when resistance would have been
for the most part impossible, as nearly all the crew would have been
on shore. They would then have taken the ship with all their
prisoners to Sooloo, or to some other port of the archipelago known
by this name.
The descent, the surprise, and the carrying of the prisoners off had
occurred in the midst of the banquet which was to have preceded the
ball, and from this in all probability arose the disorder and confusion
remarked by me in the courtyard of the verandah on the day I first
entered it.
The pirates and their prisoners departed, the apes, those millions
of apes, of whom Admiral Campbell complained so bitterly in his
journal, would have taken possession of the officers’ apartments,
and profiting by the spoils left so unaccountably by the pirates, would
have proceeded to dress themselves in the uniforms which the
unfortunate officers and sailors of the Halcyon had not time or
opportunity to take with them.
 Lastly, not allowing the logical thread which I held as it were
between my fingers to break for a single instant, I proceeded from all
these incontestable inferences to this certain conclusion—namely,
that in the island of Kouparou apes of a certain superior species had
formerly possessed the sovereignty; that these apes had been
dispossessed by the Tagals; that the Tagals had been sent to the
right about by the English; that the English had been expelled by the
Malay pirates; that the Malay pirates in their turn had just been
dispossessed of it, if not by force, at least in fact, by the apes, to
whom had returned again the sovereign authority over the island of
Kouparou—a lot, indeed, which has befallen most of the islands of
Oceania, many of which still attest by their ruins that they were
formerly inhabited by people intelligent enough to cover these
islands with handsome buildings, and who had afterwards to make
room for a population of apes. Frightful revolution!
Plunged in the most gloomy reflections, after having thus pictured
to myself the misfortunes which had happened to the English station
of Kouparou, I quitted Admiral Campbell’s study, and descended to
the lower apartments, resolved henceforth not to think seriously of a
deliverance which I now felt to be impossible. “I shall live on in this
tomb,” said I to myself, “so long as it pleases God to preserve me.”
To dream of leaving it was now one of those extravagant hopes
which only spring from madness—watched, guarded, surrounded,
menaced as I was by gaolers a thousand times more crafty and cruel
than the Malay pirates. I re-examined all the doors; I barricaded
them more efficiently, and decided not to behold the light of day any
more, since I could no longer enjoy it without looking upon that
sinister and menacing cordon of besiegers; I lighted some candles,
and installed myself in these lower apartments as though it were for
eternity.
After having examined my provisions, I believed in the possibility
of spending at least three years in this vault without dying of hunger
and thirst. But at the end of fifteen days of this existence, insipid and
monotonous as sleep, I found myself exposed to an intolerable
suffering produced by the exceptional kind of life which I was
leading. But before I say anything further about this unforeseen
calamity, I have to speak of another misery by which I was beset. My
poor clothes, which had been in rags for a long time past through
their owner’s tribulations, had one fine day the coolness to leave me
entirely. As I had neither needle nor thread to draw the rags together
again, I was obliged to resign myself to going about perfectly naked.
The inconvenience was great, for we had just entered on the
season when the nights were damp and frequently as cold as they
are in Europe, and I had nothing whatever to cover me. The apes
had taken possession of every scrap of clothing and every vestige of
drapery. Joined to the scantiness of my Adamite costume, this
change in the temperature affected my health. I had excessive pains
in the joints, accompanied by a low fever which would not leave me.
The graver inconvenience of which I have to speak is this. I have
already said that water was not abundant in the offices of the
verandah. In the first few days the deprivation of this natural
necessary affected me but little. I drank the different wines contained
in the cases and hampers. These wines, as I have already
mentioned, were very powerful, and the necessity of quenching
one’s thirst exclusively with these ardent liquids without the
moderating admixture of water parched up my throat to that extent
that I was always thirsty, and the more I drank the more thirsty I
became. How could I appease this thirst? Ah! with how much delight
I would have given a hundred bottles of champagne for a single
glass of water! For an entire fortnight I endured this suffering, which
became every hour more poignant; the crisis, however, was
approaching; my tongue was as dry as a piece of leather, my eyes
were swollen and bloodshot, my hands were burning with fever, my
brain throbbed against my skull.
In my lucid moments I demonstrated to myself how very false our
tastes are in our artificial life of civilisation. People in a certain
position would never condescend to drink water, despised water, and
yet partaking continuously for a fortnight of the best wines and rarest
liquors had almost made me mad. Since this painful passage of my
existence I have always had a religious respect for rivers, and I
admire the Hindoos, who rightly regard the Ganges, my beautiful
Indian river, as sacred.
 With my blood heated by fever, and driven to extremities by
suffering, I darted one day up the staircase which led to Admiral
Campbell’s study, opened the cupboard containing the arms, and
loaded the thirty fowling-pieces which I found there; I then carried
them with the packets of ammunition to the bell-tower, where I
proceeded to break two panes of glass in the turret, so as to make
loopholes of them. This done, and vowing the death of my
adversaries or else my own, I place myself in a position to open fire
against those who prevent my obtaining water from the lake, the
beautiful blue of which I could perceive in the distance.
But what an unexpected spectacle met my sight through the
loopholes of my tower, which would become a redoubt in a few
seconds’ time! I had left two or three thousand apes on the watch on
the day when I descended from it, with the intention of never again
re-ascending. To-day they are increased to twenty thousand at the
very least! But who could pretend to count them? As well try to count
the insects swarming in the ocean of space on a summer’s evening
under the line! A month ago the apes had gathered near them only
some insignificant heaps of stones; now these heaps have increased
to that enormous extent that they are perfect hills of projectiles,
placed, too, so close to one another that they have raised, as it were,
the field of battle and the camp of the besiegers to the highest point
of the verandah. The bell-tower, which formerly overlooked
everything, is now itself overlooked. Instead of being elevated above
all around, it is depressed.
But no matter! I determine to open fire; and I do so, letting fly right
into the midst of this mass of living creatures. I had loaded each gun
with six small bullets, so that at the first fire I knock over an ourang-
outang, a mandrill, and a baboon; what besides I know not. It was
necessary that I should kill, and I do kill. I seize with a like frenzy
another gun, and fire with the same result; I make gaps in their line
twenty-four feet in extent. But at the moment when, drunk with my
heroic slaughter, I am about to fire my third gun, a dense shower of
stones descends on the front, sides, and indeed every part of the
verandah. What a frightful row! The noise of this shower of stones
mixed with handfuls of sand, and accompanied as it was by sneering
grunts from foul mouths overflowing with abuse, is not possible to be
rendered in words. To convey any idea of them it would be
necessary to have the instruments themselves, to have rough steel
files grating harshly against angles of granite. Amidst this horrible din
the report of my guns even can be no longer heard. All that I am
certain of, all that I can distinguish clearly, is that I keep on killing; I
kill by twenties, by hundreds, in fact; but these twenties, these
hundreds who utter their death-shriek and fall over, are immediately
replaced. The moment at last arrives when I am obliged to pause to
reload my arms. But my adversaries do not pause! They simply
redouble their fire. It is then I perceive that the great art of war is not
a whit less familiar to animals than to men. Both alike have recourse
to the most subtle ruses. For instance, at the very moment when I
was about to give way, Karabouffi, till then hidden behind some
trees, made his appearance, to give, as it were, a new inspiration to
his troops. The great Condé used to rush forward and throw his
marshal’s baton within Senef’s lines. Karabouffi, like the great
French general, threw his baton of defiance through the air.
It caused my overthrow. The baboon’s stick was so well aimed that
it entered like an arrow through the turret of the bell-tower, struck
me, and sent me rolling to the bottom. My rage was unbounded.
Although somewhat dizzy from my fall, I nevertheless remounted
as quickly as I had descended. But from this moment such a fearful
storm of projectiles rained on the turret that it soon became
unroofed. The four sides seemed as though they were about to fall. It
was time vigorously to retake the offensive, and I do so. I
recommence firing, although my face was lacerated, several of my
teeth broken, my fingers literally flayed, and my breast bleeding. The
reader has not forgotten that I was naked. Twenty times before night,
which never before seemed to me so slow in coming, I reloaded my
thirty guns. What desperate work! The greater part of them, however,
were beginning to be no longer of any use, for they required
cleaning; three had burst in my hands. Fortunately, night at length
came and threw its mantle over this scene of carnage, without
parallel, I believe, in the world’s history. Animals, although they are
said to be more wicked than men, do not fight at night. They ceased
their fire and I ceased mine. Victory was for the time undecided.
To tell the truth, however, it was they who had already gained it,
since an enemy who can reinforce himself without ceasing, were he
twenty times, were he indeed a hundred times, less clever and brave
than his adversary, must triumph in the end. Victory, then, is only
number.
I descended into my vault more ill than ever. Excitement had
joined itself to fever, and fever to despair. A cold shivering took
possession of me, my teeth chattered. The air was far more chilly
than it had been during the preceding nights. I felt that I should
perish with the cold, unless I had the marvellous good luck to find
some covering to throw over me. While I was feeling in one of Lord
Campbell’s boxes for some ammunition for the next day, I placed my
hand on the thick fur of a skin, soft as silk. Delighted at the
discovery, I examined it all over, and while considering its prodigious
size was struck with the idea that this fine fur must be the skin of the
gigantic mandrill killed by Admiral Campbell, that same mandrill
whose skeleton, hanging to a mimosa, had struck me with surprise
and fear in the dim glimmering moonlight.
I wrapped myself up in this superb black fur, which was as warm
as that of a bear. I did better: I placed my legs in those of the animal,
my arms in his arms, or rather I applied those parts of the skin to my
own arms and legs. Then I fastened the whole with the aid of a piece
of string, so that I should not lose any portion of the warmth through
any openings. Lastly, being able to have a cap of the same fur which
had furnished me with coat and trousers, I applied the skin of the
mandrill’s head to my own. When all was arranged I looked at myself
in a glass—I drew back in amazement.
With my brown skin, thin cheeks, and open mouth, which allowed
my teeth to be seen, my prominent cheek-bones, long dishevelled
hair falling over my shoulders, and two months’ beard matted
together with my hair, with my eyes rendered restless and
melancholy by the fever which was pressing upon me, I took myself
for the mandrill whose black dress suit I was wearing. It is not
possible to imagine a more striking resemblance. I was troubled at it,
troubled to such a degree that I commenced to jump and gambol
over the chairs and tables to assure myself by these acts of stupidity
that I was still possessed of my manly dignity. Alas! must I confess
it? If I had not entirely lost it, it was seriously compromised, for in this
skin I found myself to be endowed with an elasticity and flexibility
altogether alarming.
The day had scarcely broke when it became necessary for me to
remount to the clock-tower, and to do it very quickly. This time it was
not I who opened fire, but my adversaries. I had set them the
example the day before, and they followed it to-day. This
commencement of hostilities turned out badly for me—in fact, very
badly. At the end of five minutes the wall fronting the verandah, weak
as all walls of this construction usually are, gave way and fell under
the shock of stones. The bell-tower, which was partly sustained by
this principal wall, trembled at its base. I was lost—my last moments
were approaching; I was separated from them only by a few
seconds. Everything was crumbling around me. There remained to
me the choice of being crushed under the remains of the verandah
or of precipitating myself into the midst of this crowd of savage and
exasperated beings, maddened with the thoughts of vengeance,
intoxicated with the idea of a victory which they knew very well could
not escape them. I decided to die like a man. I seized hold of a
Malay poignard with one hand and a revolver in the other, and
leaped into the centre of the arena.
I fell to the ground, when, just as I believed myself about to
disappear beneath a perfect network of claws, a wide space was
cleared before me. The entire army of apes drew back with respect,
with terror, with cast-down looks and stricken spirits.
I was thunderstruck. But let us pursue the story of this sudden
change of fortune, which we may almost regard in the light of a
resurrection.
 CHAPTER XI.
Whence this enchanted skin comes.—I owe to it my life and the crown.—In what manner I
govern.—I learn the fate of the English station.

Crawling on their bellies after the manner of serpents, these new reptiles
came towards me. Karabouffi crawled at their head. Overwhelmed by fear, his
enormous head had disappeared between his shoulders; his quickened
breath swept over the ground; his body, far more considerable in its natural
state than that of a tall man, was now nothing but a flattened and trembling
trunk pressed against the earth. When he had reached my feet he licked them
for more than a quarter of an hour; and this act of abasement over, he moved
a little on one side to make room for others, who in their turn licked my feet as
he had done. Not one of them was bold enough to render a similar act of
homage to my hands. These abject proceedings of theirs confounded me with
astonishment.
But what did it all mean? For surely this singular homage of which I had
been the object must be open to some kind of explanation.
The explanation was this: that with my mandrill’s skin, my mandrill’s head,
my mandrill’s breast, my mandrill’s hands and legs, I was taken—now you will
guess it all—for the gigantic mandrill whom Vice-Admiral Campbell had
suspected to be, and not, as we see, without reason, an old sovereign of
Kouparou. Yes, I was taken for that same great mandrill who would have
disembowelled Karabouffi had not Admiral Campbell knocked the monster
over with a ball from his fowling-piece.
This fanatic veneration of theirs, instead of diminishing, only increased. It
became a universal sentiment. An Indian god is not more adored by his
superstitious worshippers than I was by these grovelling apes. I might have
walked, stamping on this living carpet, without even a skin daring to move.
I was, then, saved? Without doubt; but I was also become an ape. More
than that! I was unquestionably recognised as king by all the apes of
Kouparou. And how had all this been brought about? Why, in precisely the
same way that other sovereigns had raised themselves to power—by firing a
few guns, by losing my head, and by disguising myself in the garments of an
illustrious predecessor.
 Since it was so, and since it was necessary either to “perish or reign,” as
they say, I believe, in tragedies, and in actual life as well, I resigned myself to
reign, although my people appeared very ugly-looking in my eyes. But I had
no choice.
This resolution being taken, I generously extended my paw to my
predecessor Karabouffi, whom I raised by this dignified movement, easily
comprehended, to the high rank of prime minister.
This first act of authority exercised by me prodigiously astonished all
around; but I perceived that on the whole it gave great satisfaction. My good
sense, then, had not deceived me. I had always said to myself, and that long
before a nation of apes had placed the sceptre in my hands, that it was bad
policy on the part of a minister to torment, abase, and punish those whom he
was called upon to aid in governing, since if he should act thus, if he should
listen to the inspirations of hate, or to counsels bewildered by fear, he is
certain to create for himself secret and implacable enemies, critics ever ready
to condemn all his actions, who are so much the more to be feared since they
foment discontent among the people, who, while regretting the loss of that
liberty which they no longer possess, will indulge in the hope that one day it
may again be theirs.
And how very difficult, if not impossible, is rendered the return to power of
those who have been overthrown if they are only left where they have fallen!
An open tolerance which will only lower them still more is preferable to raising
them up by a marked display of aversion, or by a colouring of persecution, no
matter how faint.
I exercised, then, no severity against Karabouffi, who, it must be
remembered, had had the generosity, when I was entirely in his power, not to
flay me alive from head to foot.
Nevertheless, whatever forbearance I may have been disposed to exercise
towards Karabouffi, I could not avoid the performance of one act which I knew
would be very mortifying to his self-love and passions. But by the side of that
prudence which I had just shown it was necessary that I should show a like
degree of energy and equity. Moreover, in what I proposed doing I was only
about to extend the principle in accordance with which I had spared Karabouffi
himself. All the vervets, all the old followers of the mandrill whose place I
occupied, were brought from exile and disgrace. Some old ourang-outangs,
some baboons of the late reign, some old Dianas, wearing cocked hats
crowned with big plumes stolen from Vice-Admiral Campbell’s station,
murmured behind their beards. But I took no notice of their suppressed
disgust. I knew the step that I was taking was a politic one, for it conciliated
the others. One is always strong when one is in the right. The consequence
was that the grand dignitaries of all kinds, those who held the rank of judges,
generals, and grand officers of the palace, smiled at the proposition, and
welcomed the outlaws with open arms. Vervets and baboons embraced one
another weeping. Was the reconciliation sincere? It is very doubtful. Those
who have an interest in keeping parties divided say that it is perilous to society
to bring them together; but to continue my story—for these reflections are out
of place.
The most cruel trial to which I was obliged to expose my predecessor, in
spite of my well-known character for humanity, was this. Followed by all my
subjects and the members of my court, and having my prime minister
Karabouffi on my right hand, I directed my steps towards the prison of the
unfortunate Mococo. The cortège was a most imposing one. We arrived at
length in front of the horrible iron cage, on the floor of which lay the poor
captive pining away through grief and love. The faithful Saïmira, who was at
this moment consoling him through the bars, started back at the appearance
of this crowd. She believed that we had come to seek her lover to drag him to
the scaffold. How was I to undeceive her without betraying myself?
The event soon reassured her. After setting Mococo free, I placed his
trembling hand in that of the gentle Saïmira, and made the two lovers
understand, by keeping them for some minutes locked as it were in this soft
pressure, that I united them in the face of this huge assembly, which had no
doubt often seen among themselves infinitely worse assorted unions. At the
sight of this happiness, which I had been the means of procuring for my two
poor chimpanzees, Karabouffi rent the air with a cry of despair and rage. I
pitied his position, and to spare him the slow agony of witnessing day by day
the love which existed between this happy couple, I sent the two chimpanzees
away for a time. They went under my protection to spend their honeymoon in
an isolated spot which I had selected for them in a corner of the island, a
charming retreat surrounded by clear and limpid waters, by pink and yellow
convolvuli, and mysterious flowers which, opening only during the night, would
not yield their perfume to the sun. The lady-monkeys, I am happy to say,
appeared highly satisfied with my conduct.
 They went to spend their honeymoon in an isolated spot
which I had selected for them.—Page 130.

This commencement of a reign in appearance so easy did not leave me

altogether without inquietude, although I hasten to declare after experience
that nothing is more easy than to govern, and to govern well. When I was a
bird-fancier at Macao, I have often found it more difficult to sell a parrot than it
proved to become master of the wills of one hundred thousand subjects of by
no means pliable natures who had fallen to my care.
But I must here mention the grave inquietude which troubled me in the early
days of my reign. How could I feel perfectly tranquil so long as the mandrill’s
skeleton remained suspended to the tree in the mimosa forest? The first one
among my new subjects who might perceive it would not fail to divulge the fact
to the others; and then what would become of me? How could I be at the
same time both living and dead—hung and yet reigning? It would be indeed
vexatious for a sovereign to have his own skeleton brought against him as a
witness.
It was necessary, then, at all risks to put an end to this embarrassment. The
simplest way, the reader will think, would be to get rid of this confounded
skeleton; the simplest way—yes, but not for me, since I was constantly
surrounded by thousands of courtiers. Notwithstanding this, during one of
those stormy nights which are rarely known in other countries of the world—
one of those nights, in fact, of brimstone and electricity which make tigers and
elephants fall asleep on their knees, the air is so heavy to their eyes and
brains—I sallied forth. My body-guards, chamberlains, and valets-de-chambre
slept too soundly to have been aroused even by the trumpet of the last
judgment. The wind drove the clouds so rapidly through the sky, that the moon
appeared to leave its orbit and fall with all its weight to the horizon, to remount
as rapidly to the zenith. Trees a hundred and forty feet high were snapped like
reeds, and after having been blown down, and then into the air again, twirled
round me like whirlwinds of straw; a single dry leaf—it is true some are half a
yard long—catching me a blow would have cut me in two with the cleanness
of a razor. I saw this hurricane mow down portions of the forests in the space
of three minutes, and clear the ground bare to the solid rock. One would not
understand how it was that I was not carried away like an atom, if one were
ignorant of the fact that these hurricanes proceed by currents, which vary but
little in extent. There are bands—kinds of lines almost as regular as if drawn to
scale. Well, two paces from the tempest one can see it pass without being
touched by it in the slightest degree. Such was the night chosen by me for my
expedition.
No one saw me leave the verandah. I stole away in the shade, and, hidden
by the contortions of the tempest, gained the wood of mimosas where I knew
that my skeleton was hanging up. I say my skeleton, since henceforth I
considered myself in all respects as neither more nor less than the mandrill
discovered by Admiral Campbell. In due course I arrived at the tree,
suspended to which were my poor bones rattling in the wind, when, after
having dug a trench seven feet long, I interred myself with all possible
precautions. I covered myself over at first with vegetable earth, then with
sand, then with turf, and lastly with a layer of dry leaves. At this strange and
solemn moment I believed myself a far more extraordinary personage than the
Emperor Charles V. He only assisted at his own funeral procession at the
Convent of Saint-Just, whereas I, Polydorus Marasquin, performed my own
obsequies, and was my own undertaker, gravedigger, and mourner. Surely it
will not be disputed that I was the first example of a sovereign or even of a
man who had buried himself with his own hands.

After having dug a trench seven feet long, I interred myself with all possible precautions.—
Page 132.

So soon as I was fairly under the turf I turned my thoughts to the future, and
occupied myself with studying how to reign well. Subjects generally render this
task easy enough to their rulers. They are determined at every hazard to
believe the successor infinitely superior in all things to his predecessor. Let
him do what he may, he is always more intelligent, energetic, and generous.
This is the first stage of forced popularity. Even Nero, Louis XI. of France, and
George IV. of England, have not escaped it. The second stage of popularity
often to a new sovereign is for him to be always doing exactly the reverse of
his predecessor. If the latter was fond of talking, then it should be your aim to
be silent; if he was silent, you should be fond of talking; if he always went out
on foot, you should never go out except on horseback; if he went out on
horseback, you should only go out on foot; if he was proud, you should be
familiar; if he was familiar, you should be proud; if he was peaceful, you
should be warlike; if he was warlike, you should be peaceful; if he loved the
arts, you should despise them; if he despised them, you ought to pretend to
love them; if he adored his children, you should remain a bachelor; if he
practised celibacy, you ought in this case to marry; if he scattered gold about,
your plan would be to be saving; if he was miserly, then you should scatter
your gold with an open hand. I have said sufficient for the reader to perceive
the value of my theory. Let us pass now, so far as the matter concerns me, to
the application of it.
It will be readily understood that not having really to govern men, but
creatures vastly inferior to them, who bore, however, at the same time, a grim
resemblance to mankind in general, I did not have occasion to apply my
theory in all its rigour. I simply set myself to work to see how I could twist it so
as to turn to my own purposes minds which were alike inconsistent, frivolous,
and, as we all know, imitative to a degree.
My predecessor, Karabouffi, had urged on his subjects, now my subjects, to
destroy my comfortable verandah. I could not imagine anything more
agreeable to them than to decree its immediate reconstruction. I therefore
took some of the stones detached by the force of their projectiles, and in their
presence placed them one upon another in the symmetrical order which they
had occupied before their overthrow. Immediately, as if by a fairy’s command,
the stones were placed in a most workmanlike manner. I filled up the
interstices with plaster which I had mixed with water to serve as a kind of
mortar; at the same moment all my subjects, seized with a rage for building,
pounded plaster, broke up freestone, carried water, mixed, stirred, and made
me mortar sufficient to rebuild the Tower of Babel. They presented a curious
sight, whitened all over as they were with plaster, even to their moustaches,
elbows, and knees.
Karabouffi, on seeing the part which I took with his old subjects, looked as if
he were thinking how easy it would have been for him to have followed the
same course, and to have arrived at the same end. He was right, no doubt,
but he had not done so.
However, warned as he now was by experience, should he ever regain his
sceptre, all he would then have to do to render himself popular would be to
demolish my work.
The verandah raised from its ruins, I traced through the neighbouring woods
four splendid roads, several leagues in length, all radiating from a given point,
and all leading to the sea. These magnificent openings were completed in a
few days, and by the same simple means as those I had had recourse to
when engaged in the reconstruction of my palace. I commenced by felling
three trees to the right and three trees to the left of the four lines representing
the four routes to be opened in the thicknesses of the forest. Immediately
hands and hatchets were hard at work felling trees. It was like a renewal of the
hurricane with which I was assailed on the night of my funeral. My object in
opening these four roads was to catch sight from as far off as possible of any
vessel that might touch at the island, and be the means of setting me free.
The reader will easily understand that when once I had secured for myself
something like liberty in my movements, I did not rest without searching for
any vestiges which might be scattered about the island, and which might give
a clue to the fatal lot which had, in all probability, befallen the brave sailors of
the naval station. My investigations were attended with the following result:—
While examining the land-locked bay which Admiral Campbell’s journal
indicated as the anchorage of the Halcyon, I was struck by a circumstance
which clearly proved that this fine frigate had not left the bay in accordance
with the ordinary rules of navigation. Had she done so she would have raised
her anchor and the buoys which marked the spot where they had been
dropped. Instead of this the buoys were in their places, and I had only to slip
my hand under one of them to assure myself that the anchors had never been
weighed. In their thievish haste the pirates had cut the cables above the
buoys, and had thus set the frigate free in order to carry her off, Heaven only
knows where.
I was, then, irrevocably condemned to endure my present lot; my original
deductions had proved to be correct. The entire naval station had become the
prey of the Malay scum of the archipelago of Sooloo.
While speaking of the expedition undertaken by me to the Halcyon’s
anchorage, I ought not to omit mentioning that I was accompanied on this
occasion by the various dignitaries of my household. Their zeal carried them
so far as to induce them to throw themselves into the water with me when I
swam to the place where the buoys were floating, through want of a boat or
canoe to take me there. The reader will see that if the affection of my subjects
for my royal person was all that could be desired, my marine was nevertheless
in a very inefficient state.
I returned to my dominions, after this short absence, amid the acclamations
of my subjects, who evidently grew more and more fond of me. I must mention
here that the one thing which made me more popular than ever among them,
and which marvellously proved the efficacy of my governmental theory, was
being in respect of the matter of dress the exact opposite of my predecessor,
who was accustomed, even up to the moment of his unmerited fall, to dress
himself out in a most ridiculous style, whereas I went totally naked. One can
scarcely believe how much this contrast helped to keep me in favour. “What
simplicity!” murmured they; “how natural and charming! He shows his bare
back as we do, and is just as ugly as we are.”
This proves that it is not necessary always to wear a theatrical-shaped hat
in order to be regarded as a great king. I am, however, bound to acknowledge
that this habit of reigning quite naked was productive to me of more bitter
distress than it is possible to imagine; it made me, moreover, incur the most
serious dangers, considering the exceptional position in which I was placed.
When I think of the matter a cold shiver runs through me, my hair stands on
end, my heart fails me, and I feel as though I am on the point of fainting.
 CHAPTER XII.
Royal happiness troubled by a rent.—I am more and more adored by my subjects.
—A cloud in the sky.—Sinister preoccupation.—My kingdom for a pair of
trousers!—Supreme joy of being an animal.—My happiness again troubled.—
A fatal tear.

One day, on the occasion of a grand military review, when I was

cutting solemn capers before my subjects by way of saluting them,
the mandrill’s skin, in which, as a matter of course, I was always
clad, unfortunately cracked!—it cracked, too, as a matter of course,
at the part where it fitted me tightest, and where it was certainly a
little worn—in other words, at the part on which the mandrill during
his lifetime had been accustomed to seat himself. An unusual chill
followed this deplorable rent. It was like the mask falling off in the
middle of the ball. I felt that I was lost—that the man was recognised
beneath the skin of the ape, and that my reign, my greatness, and
my life were at an end.
Alas! I had not foreseen how short a time even the most illustrious
skins last! What imprudence! or rather what a misfortune! Had my
subjects already perceived my accident, and what did they think of it
if they had perceived it? It was a most grave situation. I no longer
dared to make a single military movement during the continuance of
the review, which appeared, indeed, endless to me, I was suffering
so much from anxiety and fear. No one can imagine the ruses to
which I was compelled to have recourse so as to pass in front of the
ranks, and at the same time conceal from my troops the misfortune
which had befallen me, and the discovery of which would have been
the signal for my death. I hid my disaster as well as I could, I dodged
about in a nervous way, and finally I gained the verandah, where I
arrived more dead than alive.
I passed a most horrible night; I passed it in endeavoring, by all
manner of ingenious contrivances, to repair the rent in my skin. Oh!