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One day the king said, "The palace orchestra will play tonight, Grildig.

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Come to the concert.

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Afterward, you can tell me about English music."

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That evening Glumdalclitch and I went to hear the orchestra.

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Unfortunately, the music was too loud for me.

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"Glumdalclitch, take me back to your room," I begged.

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"The music hurts my ears."

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From the apartment, the music sounded nice.

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It gave me an idea.

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As a child, I had taken piano lessons.

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At first I had not liked practicing.

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Later I started to love playing music.

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I often played the piano for my wife.

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I decided to play the piano for the king.

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The piano in Glumdalclitch's apartment was huge, like everything else in Brobdingnag.

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I could reach only five piano keys when I stretched out my arms.

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I had to hit the keys hard with my fist to make the notes sound.

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I needed something to push the keys with.

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I got two strong sticks from the garden.

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I covered one end of each stick with some soft cloth.

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The carpenter made me a bench to stand on.

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He placed it in front of the piano.

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As I ran back and forth on the bench, I hit the keys with the sticks.

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"Well done!" the king and queen shouted when they heard me play.

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The king laughed and said, "You get a lot of exercise when you play our piano."

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As the weeks passed, the king and I met often to talk.

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He asked me about the laws and rulers of England.

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"Perhaps there are some laws or customs that we could use in Brobdingnag," he said.

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"Even a king can learn from the wisdom of others."

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"England rules Scotland, Ireland, and several other places," I explained proudly.

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"Two groups of men make our laws.

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One group has men from the richest families.

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The other group has men whom the people choose.

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Judges decide how to punish criminals.

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Our army and navy are the strongest in the world."

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I described the many wars England had won against other countries.

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"What if the rich men are poor leaders or dishonest?" asked the king.

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"Do some men pay money to be chosen for the group that makes laws?

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Do people pay your judges to get easy punishments?

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And why is England always at war?

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Do the English just like fighting?

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If England were peaceful, it would not fear other countries."

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"Interesting questions," I replied.

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The truth is, I did not know how to answer them.

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"It seems to me," he continued, "that England fights too much.

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It rules other lands that should be free.

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It doesn't cooperate with other countries.

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I don't like the way your country does things, Grildig."

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I was surprised by what the king said about my country.

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But I still liked the king.

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He had treated me well during my stay.

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"Your Majesty," I said, "I would like to give you something to thank you for your kindness.

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We English know how to make a special thing called gunpowder.

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When you set fire to it, it explodes."

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"Why would I want such a thing?" the king asked, puzzled.

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"You can use it to shoot heavy metal balls at your enemies," I explained.

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"The balls can cut men in half and sink ships.

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I will show you how to make this powder."

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"No!" he shouted. "Brobdingnag has no enemies.

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Your idea of hurting people disgusts me!

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Never mention this again!"

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"This king is very different from my king," I said to myself.

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"He does not want to fight wars the way we English do!

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He makes me look at things in a new way.

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What if he is right, and we English are wrong?"