SECT. VIII.
XXVIII. I am not surprized that some Princes have gone to this extreme, but rather wonder that all have not proceeded to it. The thirsty desire of domineering, which is never satiated, is natural to the heart of man; and this principle which is born with us, in Princes, is stimulated and inflamed by flattery. We frequently hear them addressed, in terms which are exquisitely hyperbolical, some to blazon the perfections of their characters, others those of their persons. They represent to them their superiority in a manner, that tends to persuade them, they are more than men, and that other people are less. This ostentatious image of grandeur is very grateful to their feelings, and therefore it is not wonderful, they should set it up as an idol, for the people who are under them to offer as sacrifices to, all they possess which is most valuable. Some politicians have thought it expedient, in order to give Princes a higher idea of their own excellence, and fill them with more exalted notions, to place flatterers about their persons; and I have no doubt but this may be proper, when you perceive them to be very pusillanimous. But in general, the thing of most consequence in their education, ought to be taking care to impress on their minds, such maxims only, as are dictated by religion, virtue, and humanity. And this is the manner in which they should be propounded to them.
XXIX. That a King is a man, as other men are, son like them, of the same common father, equal by nature, and only unequal in fortune.
XXX. That this fortune, imagine it to be great as you will, he owes all to God, who has power to place one of another race on the throne; and no man, if he pleases to do it, has a right to find fault or complain of injustice, even though he should raise to the rank of Majesty a person of the most humble station in the kingdom, and reduce to the lowest class, him, who the day before was seated on a throne.
XXXI. That so much the greater the idea of his own grandeur is, by so much the greater ought his gratitude and thankfulness to be to the Divine Majesty, who has conferred it upon him; and that in proportion to the superiority of his rank, are his obligations to serve and obey God as an example to other men.
XXXII. That God did not make the kingdom for the King, but the King for the kingdom. Therefore the object of his government should not be directed to support his own private interest or convenience, but that of the republic. For this reason, Aristotle points out the essential distinction between a King and a tyrant, that the first only attends to his own convenience, the other to the public good.
XXXIII. That consequently, the expression used in edicts, that such is the King’s pleasure, he having thought fit to order the thing specified to be done for the advancement or good of his service, should be understood to imply, that he is pleased with ordaining such things only as are for the good of the public. It is the duty of the subjects to obey the King; and it is the duty of the King to command such things only, as are for the benefit and advantage of his subjects.
XXXIV. That as the subjects are obliged to obey and execute what the King is pleased to direct, the King is obliged to order such things only as are pleasing to God, and consistent with his laws and commandments.
XXXV. That the power of ordering only what is right and just, does not diminish his authority, but rather aggrandizes it; for although it is impossible for God to do any act which is not right and just, he does not on that account cease to be omnipotent.
XXXVI. That a King, having risen to the summit of human glory, cannot ascend to a superior degree of altitude, but by the arduous path of virtue; that is, he can only be greater by being better.
XXXVII. That the most difficult and most glorious part of the exercise of the kingly office, consists, not in a Prince’s conquering new kingdoms, but in his good government of that he possesses. A Courtier in the presence of Augustus said, that Alexander, at thirty-two years of age, upon reflecting that in a little time he should subjugate all the world, was at a loss to think how he should employ himself when that was done: Alexander at that rate, replied Augustus, must have been very simple; for the most arduous and difficult part of the work remained still to be executed, which was, governing well the kingdoms he had conquered.
XXXVIII. If we were to take an account of the Princes who were great warriors, and of those who were eminent for their virtue, we should find the number of the last much smaller than that of the first; so that although virtue should not be so much admired in Kings as military glory, its being more scarce, is sufficient to make it more valuable. Flavius Vopiscus relates, that a buffoon, to express the smallness of the number of the good Princes who had been known in he world, said, the effigies of them all might be carved on a ring. As he talked of idolatrous Kings, for he knew no others, he may be supposed to have spoken the truth; but things are quite otherwise at present, although the numbers of the warlike and political ones, may be reckoned in all times to have exceeded those of the pious ones.
XXXIX. That as the subjects owe to their King their obedience and respect, he owes to them his tender care and protection. A King has two sorts of children, some as a man, others as a Prince; those of the one sort are natural, those of the other political; but they are all his subjects, and as such he ought to love them. The inhabitants of Sichem, of whom Hamor was Prince, are called in scripture the children of Hamor.
XL. That this love should not impede, but rather stimulate him to punish delinquents; because the greatest benefit a King can confer on his subjects, is to root out from among them evil-doers.
XLI. That the effects of his love should be more felt by his subjects at large, than by his ministers, and especially those who are nearest his person; for to these, he should dispense the tokens of his regard, in proportion to their merit; and it is of the utmost importance, that he should not extend his esteem for them beyond those limits. It is good that ministers should love their Prince; but I judge it would be more beneficial to the public, that they should fear him. That kingdom is in a most happy state, where the subjects fear the ministers, the ministers the King, and the King God.
XLII. Those above all should experience him terrible, who are found wanting to the truth in any informations they give him relating to important public affairs, or even concerning private ones; for there are few Princes, who would not wish to do what is most for the advantage of their subjects; but it happens, that they fail to attain this end, on account of the indirect and fallacious informations which come to their ears.
XLIII. That in order to insure the receiving them pure, there is no other method to be pursued, but that of admitting easy access to all men; some would then remove the deceptions, which others had imposed; or no one would venture to deceive, for fear that some other should detect him. If any one arrives at the sole possession of the King’s ear, he, without using further industry, becomes the sole master of the King and his kingdom.
XLIV. That he should listen courteously to all who address him, but should be more particularly gracious to those in humble stations of life, because these, as more timorous and bashful, stand in most need of encouragement to enable them to express themselves. Augustus, with a most humane air, asked a man who approached him with fear and trembling to deliver a petition, if he thought he was addressing himself to a lion or a tiger. This courteous manner in a Prince, besides conciliating the love of his subjects, facilitates to those who obtain an audience, a clear and entire exposition of all they have to say; for a tremulous tongue can never articulate plainly, and fear cuts off the communication between the lips and the breast.
XLV. That he should shew himself so zealous a lover of justice, as even for the sake of it, to dispense with his own interest or convenience; and he should give the judges to understand, that whenever his concerns come in question, and that any thing which is supposed to be his is claimed by one of his subjects, if the merits of the case are not on his side, they would not recommend themselves to him, by pronouncing sentence in his favour. This was the great lesson, which, among others, was given on his death-bed by the pious King Louis to his heir and successor Philip. The Senescal Joinville, the beloved minister of that Prince, relates the advice to have been conceived in the following terms: If any one shall have a dispute or litigation with you, shew yourself favourably disposed to the suit of your opponent, till the truth can with certainty be established. By pursuing this method, you will ensure, that your ministers and counsellors will always act in favour of justice. A caution worthy to be written and preserved in letters of gold.
XLVI. That whenever it is evidentally established, that some resolution is necessary to be taken for the good of the public, maugre the compassion, benignity, and love, which are so much recommended; it should not be omitted to be carried into execution, on account of the complaints or injury it may occasion to some particular people; for they sometimes are not aware of the importance of the measure; and sometimes it is also necessary, to suffer a grievance to be born by a small part of a kingdom, for the good of the whole.
XLVII. That when he consults the lawyer, the divine, or the politician, he should conceal the inclinations of his own mind, and hear their answers with perfect indifference. If he does not act thus, but on the contrary rewards him who coincides with his wishes, and frowns on the man who speaks with christian freedom and integrity; the precaution of a consultation will not remove from him the guilt of any miscarriage that may happen; for it is very well known, that a King is never at a loss for politicians, divines, and lawyers, to say that is right and proper, which he is desirous of doing.
XLVIII. That in the end, he must one day die, and that at the instant of his dissolution, he must appear upon a level with the most humble sinner of the earth before the King of Kings, to give an account of all his actions. I contemplate the appearance of a King at that tremendous tribunal, in a terrible light. Private delinquents are charged with here and there a homicide, and here and there a theft; but to the account of an iniquitous King, homicides and robberies are charged by thousands and by millions. In one unjust war which he commences, all those who die on one side and the other have their deaths charged to his account, which although they should be estimated at a few, will always be found to amount to several thousands. All the diminutions which the subjects of both kingdoms sustain in their properties, in order to support the expences of the war, are imputed to him as the author and cause of the mischief; and the number of people injured amounting to millions, the account of his injustices amounts to millions also.
XLIX. It appears just and proper to me, to instill into the minds of Princes in their tender age, these and such like admonitions, taking care not to propound them with that dryness, and in the bald and naked shape, in which they appear in this writing; but observing to combine and interweave them, into such conversations on political subjects, as may naturally present themselves. In the doing this, all odious magisterial affectation should be avoided, and the instruction should be conveyed under the form, and habited in the dress of rational amusement.
L. I am not ignorant, that if Princes are pusillanimous, it will be necessary in various instances, in order to enlarge their minds, to educate them with less severe maxims; but those who are appointed to instruct them in their youth, need not be very attentive to this consideration; for they may naturally conclude, that when their pupils mount the throne, there will always be people enough at their elbows ready to supply this defect.