CHAPTER EIGHT

The End of My Story

It took a full year for me to reach England. I had traveled alone in my canoe for about a week before finding a Portuguese ship with many men. It took months before I could speak to these "Yahoos" without feeling sick, but I was finally able to talk to their captain, a man named Don Pedro de Mendez. The ship arrived back in Portugal eleven months later. For a few days, I waited to find a ship going to England, In all this time, I could not stop thinking about the wonderful Houyhnhnms.

My wife and children were surprised and happy to see me. They had thought I was certainly dead. When my wife tried to kiss me, I fainted and did not awake for more than an hour. I could not touch a horrible Yahoo! Seeing my family filled me with anger and sadness; I was ashamed to be one of them! All I wanted was to live peacefully with the Houyhnhnms again. When I realized that I was the father of more Yahoos, I felt terrible. I did not ever want to see or talk to any of them again, but I had nowhere else to go.

Now it has been five years since I returned to England from the land of the Houyhnhnms. During my first year back at home, I could not stay in the same room with my wife and children. The smell of them made me sick, and they seemed just like the Yahoos on the island to me! Now, neither my wife nor children are allowed to touch me or anything that belongs to me. Sometimes I allow my wife to sit across from me at the table. She is only allowed to speak to me when I ask her a question, however.

One of the first things I did when I returned to England was to buy two strong, beautiful horses. I keep them in a stable near my house, and I spend many hours every day with them. When I am with the horses, the only other person I see is the stable boy. I do not mind him, because he smells like the wonderful horses! I have taught my two friends the Houyhnhnms' language so that we can speak together. I tell them stories of the country of the Houyhnhnms, which they enjoy, and we are very happy together.

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