This Series of Honours seem’d very ridiculous to me, as it must to
everyone of our Globe. I guess’d indeed at some of the Reasons for
this inverted Order, what Foundation it was grounded on, and by what
Arguments the Subterraneans would defend it. But I confess upon the
whole it was a Paradox I could not comprehend.
Among other Things worthy of Observation, I remark’d the following: The
more Benefit any one receiv’d from the Government, with a proportional
Modesty and Humility he carry’d himself. Thus I frequently saw
_Bospolak_, the richest Man in the _Potuan_ Dominions, receive all he
met with such Condescension, that he lower’d all his Branches, and by
inclining his Head, testify’d to every common Tree his grateful Sense
of the Publick Favours. Upon my asking the Reason, I was told, that
thus it ought to be, since upon no Subject more Benefits were confer’d,
and that therefore he was the greatest Debtor to the Commonwealth.
Not that he was oblig’d by any Law to this Condescension; but as
the _Potuans_ in general act wisely and judiciously, so they make
a voluntary Virtue of it, holding themselves bound to use such a
Behaviour as Gratitude would dictate; far otherwise than it is with
us, where those, whom their Country has loaded with Wealth and Titles,
receive their Inferiors with a lofty and contemptuous Air.
But the most deserving Subjects of all, and who receive the most
universal Honour and Respect, are the Parents of a numerous Offspring.
These are the Heroes of the Subterranean World, and their Memory is
held sacred with Posterity. They are also the only Persons upon whom
the Name of +Great+ is conferr’d. Not so with us; where the Destroyers
of Mankind are complimented with that Title. One may easily guess
what Sentiments they would entertain here of _Alexander the Great_
and _Julius Cæsar_, each of whom having slain their Millions, died
without Offspring. I remember to have seen at _Keba_ this Epitaph of a
Husbandman: “_Here lies Jochtan the Great, Father of thirty Children,
the Heroe of his Time_.” It must be observ’d, that in order to acquire
this Glory, the mere Procreation of Children is not alone sufficient,
unless they be also liberally and virtuously educated.
In the enacting Laws, they proceed with a Deliberation equal to that
of the old _Romans_. The Proposal of a new Law is fix’d upon all the
Courts and Places of Resort through out the City. The Citizens are
free to examine it, and send their Sentiments and Advices upon it to
_the College of Wise Men_, instituted for this very Purpose. Here
every Thing is weigh’d that concerns the enacting, the disannulling,
approving, correcting, limiting, or extending this Law. And when it
has thus gone through all this Trial and Examination, it is offer’d to
the Prince for his Consent and Authority. This Delay may seem absurd
to some; but the Consequence of this Caution is, that their Laws are
immortal; and I have been inform’d, that not one of their Laws for
these five hundred Years past has suffer’d the least Alteration.
In the Custody of the Sovereign, there is a List of the most worthy and
valuable Trees, together with Certificates of their Learning from the
_Karatti_, and of their Life and Morals from their Neighbours. Hence
the Republick are never in Want of proper Persons to fill the vacant
Offices. It is particularly worth remarking, that no one has a Right or
Freedom to live in any City or Village without a Certificate from the
Place they came from, and Security for their future Behaviour.
A Law once enacted by publick Authority, all future canvassing and
criticising upon it is prohibited upon Pain of Death. So that in their
Politicks, their Liberty seems to be more restrained than in their
Religion. The Reason they assign is this: “If any one err in Matters of
Faith and Speculation, at his own Peril he errs; but if any one call
in Question the establish’d Laws, or endeavour to pervert the Sense of
them by some new Gloss or Interpretation, he is an Enemy to Society.”
Something has already been said of the State and Oeconomy of the Court.
It has been observ’d, that the _Kadoki_, or High Chancellor, is the
Supreme Officer. Next to him is the _Smirian_, or High Treasurer. This
Post was in my Time discharg’d by a Widow of seven Branches, call’d
_Rahagna_, who for her eminent Integrity and other great Endowments,
was advanced to an Office of that Weight and Trust. Long had she
presided at the Head of the Treasury, even many Years before the Death
of her Husband, who, tho’ extremely well vers’d in the State of the
Finances, yet was entirely ruled by the Counsels and Authority of his
Wife, and never ventur’d to act upon his own Judgment; hence he was
more her Official or Deputy than her Husband. The Edicts and Ordinances
indeed were issued out in his Name, as often as she was hindred, by
Lyings-in, or any other Malady; yet nothing was esteem’d firm and
authentic till her Subscription or Seal was affixed to it. _Rahagna_
had two Brothers, one of which was Butler, and the other Butcher to
the Court; nor, tho’ they had a Sister in the highest Exaltation, did
they dare to aim at any Thing greater by Reason of the Poverty and
Slenderness of their Abilities: With so much Equity are Preferments
here distributed.
This Lady, tho’ ingag’d in the most arduous Affairs of the Kingdom, yet
at the same Time suckled an Infant she was deliver’d of soon after the
Death of her Husband. This I thought was too troublesome and too mean
an Employment for so great a Matron. And upon my giving my Opinion,
they reply’d in this Manner: “Can you imagine that Nature has given
Breasts to Women only as a softer Ornament, and not rather for the
Nourishment of their Offspring? The Quality of the Milk, and the Temper
of the Nurse, go farther than we imagine, in forming the Disposition
of the Infant. And Mothers who disdain to nourish their own Issue,
dissolve one of the finest and strongest Ties of Nature.” And hence
there is hardly a Lady throughout all these Dominions but suckles her
own Children.
The Heir apparent of the Crown was a Youth of six Years old, in whom
’twas easy to discover the Seeds of many great and shining Virtues.
Nature had been so liberal, as to adorn him with six Pair of Branches;
an uncommon Circumstance in that tender Age. His Preceptor, the wisest
Tree in all the Empire, instructed him in the Knowledge of the Creator,
in History, in Mathematicks and moral Philosophy. I obtain’d a Sight
of that Moral System or Political Compendium, which he compos’d for
the Use of his Pupil. The Title of it was, _Mahalda Libab helil_,
which in the Subterranean Language signifies _a Key to Government_. It
consists of a Collection of Precepts and Maxims, the most solid and
advantageous; some of which I yet perfectly remember, and shall here
set them down.
* * * * *
1. Aspersions or Encomiums are not hastily to be credited; but the
Judgment is to be suspended, till an indubitable Knowledge can be
procur’d.
2. When any one is accus’d and convicted of a Crime, it should be
examin’d what Good the Delinquent has ever done; thus his good Actions
being compar’d with his bad, let Reason interpose and pronounce
Sentence.
3. Those Counsellors who are given to Contradiction and Contest, the
Sovereign may safely confide in as the heartiest Subjects; for no one
will expose themselves to Danger, but those to whom the Welfare of
their Country is dearer than their private Safety.
4. Let none but large estated Men compose the Senate. Their Advantage
is united with the Publick Advantage: Whereas those who possess but a
moveable Estate, look upon the Kingdom not as their Country, but as an
Inn, and themselves as Travellers.
5. The Prince may make use of the Ministry or Agency of bad Men, if
they should happen to be fit for a particular Business, but never
load them with uncommon Favours; for if a wicked or an obnoxious Man
be receiv’d into Favour, the worst of Subjects will rise under his
Patronage, and work themselves into Office.
6. Let him most of all suspect those, who perpetually haunt the Court:
Such either have committed, or are prepar’d to commit the most daring
Things.
7. Let him be very backward to reward those who are most impatient of
Honours. For as no one begs an Alms till oppress’d with Poverty and
Hunger, so none insatiably haunt after Dignities, but who despair to
rise by real Merit and Virtue.
8. The eighth Precept is indeed a very useful one, but what I could
not be pleas’d with upon Account of the odious Example with which it
was illustrated. The Precept is this: No Subject is to be consider’d
as altogether useless; none are so dull but may be made subservient
to some good Purpose, nay even may be made to excel in some Point.
For Instance, one excels in Judgment, another in Ingenuity; one’s
Excellence shall be in the Mind, another’s in the Body; this shall make
a good Judge, that a better Advocate. One shall have a vast Power of
Invention, another shall labour at the Execution of a Thing; insomuch,
that there are few entirely unprofitable. That some Creatures indeed
seem so, is not the Fault of the Creator, but of those who will not
perceive or enquire where their chief Strength lies, and follow that
Clue. This Position he thus illustrated. We have seen, says he, in
this our Age, one of the Superterranean Animals, who, by the unanimous
Suffrage of all was deem’d as an unprofitable Load upon the Earth, by
reason of that Quickness and Forwardness of his Judgment; but yet we
see his great Swiftness of Foot is of no small Service to us. Upon
reading this Paragraph, I could not help saying, _This is a very honest
Preface, but a scandalous Conclusion_.
9. It is of no small Importance to a Prince who would know the Arts of
governing, to be very nice and cautious in the Choice of a Preceptor to
the Heir of his Dominions. Let him therefore chuse one of remarkable
Piety, and eminent Learning, since from the Institution of the future
Successor, the Welfare of the State must be determin’d. What we learn
in the tender Age of Life, passes into Nature. Hence it is necessary,
that the young Prince’s Tutor should be a Lover of his Country, that
he may instil into his Prince a Love for his Subjects, the first and
principal Mark that all his Precepts should be aim’d at.
10. ’Tis necessary the Prince should study the Genius of his
Government, and conform to it; and if he would correct the Disorders of
his Subjects, let him do it rather from his own Example than the Laws.
——_Velocius & citius nos
Corrumpunt vitiorum exempla domestica, magnis
Cum subeant animos autoribus._
11. Let none be suffer’d to be idle, since such are a dead Weight upon
their Country. By constant Industry and Toil, the Republick rises into
Strength and Power; nor is there any Room left for pernicious Counsels
and Contrivances against the State. And therefore it is safer for the
State to allow the Subjects their insignificant Diversions, than to
indulge them in a Laziness, which would be a Source of Conspiracies.
12. Let the Prince preserve Peace among his Subjects; however, it would
not be amiss to encourage an Emulation among his Counsellors, as it
leads to the Discovery of Truth. A skilful Judge will often extract the
Truth from the Passions of the Advocates.
13. He would act wisely, if in Affairs of the last Moment he heard the
Sentiments of every Member of the Senate, and that, rather apart than
when conven’d. For in a full Senate, where Opinions are openly given,
it often falls out that the most fluent Speaker bears all before him
with a Torrent of Eloquence, and so the Sovereign hears but one Opinion.
14. Punishments are not less necessary than Rewards: The first puts
a Stop to Evil, as the latter encourages Good. Hence it may not be
wrong even to reward a bad Subject for a good Action, if it were only,
that others may thereby be whetted up and incited to do their Duty
vigorously.
15. In Promotions to Honours and publick Posts, let Regard be had
principally to the Person’s Dexterity and Adroitness for that
particular Employment. Though Piety and Integrity are of themselves
most commendable Virtues, yet ’tis possible we may be deceiv’d by
their Appearance. Every one would affect a Sanctity of Behaviour, if
he knew that this Shew of Virtue was the Road to Honours; and would
in Words profess the utmost Probity and Uprightness, with the same
View. Besides, it is no easy Matter to form a Judgment of a Person’s
Virtues, till he is admitted to Employment, in which, as upon a Stage,
he is to exhibit Specimens of his Virtues. But nothing is easier than
to make Experiment of any one’s Aptness for Business before-hand. It
is infinitely harder for the Stupid and the Ignorant to conceal their
Stupidity and Ignorance, than for a Hypocrite to cover his Impiety,
or a Knave his Roguery. Besides, great Abilities and much Virtue are
not so very opposite but they may be often found united in the same
Character. And if a Person of large Abilities be at the same Time
honest and virtuous, nothing more can be wanting. An Ignorant is either
good or bad; if bad, who knows what Monsters Ignorance and Wickedness
in Conjunction produce? If good, his very Dulness must indubitably
hinder the Exercise of his Virtues. And if he of himself neither can
nor dare attempt the Commission of some atrocious Crime, yet the
Servant, whose Assistance he must make use of, in all Likelihood may.
A foolish Landlord has commonly a roguish Bailiff, and a dull Justice
a knavish Clerk, who fearlesly commits Frauds and Errors under the
Protection of his Master. In Promotions therefore, let Dexterity be the
principal Thing regarded.
16. Let none be hastily censur’d as ambitious, for aiming at an
Employment he is in Reality unfit for, or for that Reason excluded
from all Hopes of Preferment. For if, in the Distribution of publick
Honours, the Prince should happen to adhere to this Rule too closely,
the most Ambitious will soon put on the Mask of Humility, as a safer
Road and a shorter Cut to Preferment. And thus the Sovereign would,
contrary to his Inclination, prefer the most forward Worshippers of
Fortune, as being to all Appearance the most humble; that is, he would
prefer those, who about the Time of any Vacancy pretend to fly from
Court and retire into the Shade, giving out by their Friends that
they are averse to Grandeur. To illustrate this Point, he inserted an
Example of one who, during the Vacancy of a considerable Employment he
was all on Fire to obtain, wrote to the Prince to this Effect, _viz._
“That it was reported, that his Serene Highness design’d the vacant
Dignity for him, tho’ sollicited for it by Numbers; that he for his
Part must beg Leave to decline an Office to which he profess’d himself
unequal; that he intreated his Majesty to confer it upon some more
proper Person, and that being perfectly contented with his present
Station, he aspir’d to nothing greater.” The Monarch mov’d with so
strong an Attestation of Humility, preferr’d this humble Hypocrite
to the said Dignity. But he soon learnt that he was abus’d; for no
Minister ever behav’d with such Pride, or acted with such Weakness.
17. To set a poor Insolvent at the Head of the Treasury, is the same
Thing as to put a hungry Man in your Pantry. Nor is a covetous rich Man
a better Choice. The former has nothing, and the other thinks nothing
enough.
18. Let there be no Foundations or Establishments for the Maintenance
of slothful Trees. Accordingly, throughout this Empire, the Monasteries
and Colleges admit only the Industrious and the Diligent; those who
either by some useful Manufacture help to advance the Interest of the
Republick, or who by their Studies and Learning can be an Ornament
to the Society they are Members of. A few Monasteries indeed are to
be excepted, which maintain the Aged and the Helpless; such by the
Privilege of Age being exempted from all Labour.
19. When the Disorders of the State call loud for Reformation, it
will be right to proceed slowly in it. For to endeavour to extirpate
inveterate Evils at a Blow is as absurd as to prescribe Purging,
Bleeding, and Vomiting all at once to a Patient.
20. Those who boldly attempt every Thing, and undertake a Multitude of
Affairs together, are either Fools who have not duly compar’d their own
Strength with the Weight of the Things, or else they are wicked and
unnatural Members of their Society, who consult their own Interest
alone, instead of that of the Commonwealth. A prudent Man will try his
Arms before he takes his Burden up; and an honest Subject, who loves
his Country, will not transact the Affairs of it superficially.