No More Learning

<
In 1846 Eötvös wrote his second great novel, The Village No-
tary,' a book which secured him world-wide fame. It is intended to
be a true picture of the county administration system of Hungary at
the time: we find here the landed aristocracy, both great and small;
the poor nobleman without landed property; the official of the county
administration; the submissive peasant, and all the remaining pariahs
of Hungarian society. The novel contains three or four stories, more
or less connected: the family tragedy of the sheriff Rety; the fate of
the poor village notary Tengely, who is not able to prove his noble
birth and in consequence is subjected to many prosecutions and trials;
and finally the story of the honest but quick-tempered peasant Viola,
who is driven to a lawless life by the arbitrariness and cruelty of his
superior. This novel is inseparably linked with the name of Eötvös,
and may justly be considered one of the masterpieces of Hungarian
literature.


## p. 5486 (#46) ############################################

5486
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
When the progressive party under Kossuth conquered in 1848,
when the policy of the Opposition was sanctioned by the King and
the first responsible ministry was founded, Baron Eötvös accepted
the portfolio of Minister of Education. When the war with Austria
became inevitable he went abroad, and did not return until peace
was established. In Munich he wrote his work on The Equality
of the Nationalities,' and began his book on 'The Dominant Ideas
of the Nineteenth Century and Their Influence upon the State. ' The
Academy made him its vice-president in 1855, and the next year
president.
During the following years he continued his political activity as
member of the Reichstag and editor of a political weekly; and when
a reconcilation with the government took place in 1867, he again
became member of the cabinet, and remained so until his death.
Personally Eötvös was a man of unusual culture of mind and heart,
a nobleman in the truest and fullest sense of the word. As poet,
writer, and statesman, it is he more than any other Hungarian who
has exerted an influence upon the course of European culture.
VIOLA IN COURT
From The Village Notary'
THE
HE appearance of the prisoner produced a profound sensation.
in the court. Kishlaki felt deep pity for his misfortunes,
though he could not but admit that his fate was in part
merited. Völgyeshy, who had heard enough to convince him
that there was no hope of the court pronouncing in favor of
Viola, shuddered to think that the man whom he saw was
doomed to die before sunset. Mr. Catspaw showed great un-
easiness when he heard the rattling of the chains; and Shoskuty,
who had never seen the robber, was quite as much excited by
his curiosity as Mr. Skinner by the feelings of ill-dissembled tri-
umph with which he watched the prisoner's features and carriage.
Zatonyi alone preserved his habitual composure.
"At last you've put your head in the snare, you precious vil-
lain! " cried Mr. Skinner. "Well, what do you say? Whose turn
is it to be hanged? Yours or mine, eh? "
The president of the court looked amazed; but Mr. Skinner
laughed, and said:-
"Perhaps you are not aware of my former acquaintance with
Viola? There's a bet between us two, who is to hang first; for


## p. 5487 (#47) ############################################

JOSEF EÖTVÖS
5487
that fellow has sworn to hang me if ever I fall into his hands.
Is it not so, Viola? "
"No," said the prisoner, "it's not so. If I swore I would be
revenged, it is well known that I had good cause for it; I have
to thank this gentleman for my wretched life and shameful
death. But I never vowed to hang you! "
"Never mind! " shouted the justice. "You are humble enough,
now that you are in the trap; but I am sure you would have
kept your word if you had been able to put your hands upon
me. I too have sworn an oath, to hang you where I find you—
now tell me who has the worst of it? "
"I know that all is over with me," replied Viola, fixing his
dark eyes upon the justice; "there is no one to take my part —
I know I must die; but it is cruel to insult a dying man. ”
Völgyeshy, who was scarcely able to repress his feelings, inter-
fered, and protested in Latin that there was a vendetta between
the accused and one of the judges, and that another judge must
be found. But his protest had no other effect than an admoni-
tion, which the president gave Mr. Skinner in very bad Latin,
to eschew such light and irrelevant conversation; and the court
commenced forthwith to examine the prisoner.
Viola replied calmly and simply to the questions which were
put to him; and at last, as though wearied by the length of the
examination, he said:-
"What is the use of all this questioning? It is a pity the
gentlemen should lose their time with me. Mr. Skinner has told
me that I am to be hanged; why then should I waste my words
in an attempt to save my life? I'll confess anything you like,
I don't care what it is; for believe me, if it had not been for
my family, I would never have waited till this day. I would
have hanged myself in the forest to make an end of it, I assure
you. "
"But how can you possibly confess, when you are ignorant of
what you are accused of? " said Völgyeshy. "You stand before
righteous judges. Speak out, man, honestly and freely, as you
would speak to God; for believe me, the judges are by no means
agreed upon your sentence. "
"Thanks to you for your good-will," said the culprit; "but I
know there is no help. I am a robber; I have been taken in
arms; they will hang me. They may do it: but let them make
haste; and spare me your questions! "


## p. 5488 (#48) ############################################

5488
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
Mr. Catspaw, who showed some uneasiness, interposed, and
said:
-:
"If he refuses to confess, we cannot force him: it is expressly
set forth in the articles that no violence is to be used to obtain
a confession. Our best plan is to read the questions to him, and
if he refuses to answer them, why, it's his own business, not
ours. "
"No," said Völgyeshy; "this man ought to know that his
fate does not depend on the decision of the worshipful Mr. Paul
Skinner; that the court are prepared to listen to his defense, and
that the verdict will be dictated neither by hate nor revenge, but
by pure and impartial justice. If the prisoner knows all this,
which it appears he does not, he may possibly be induced to
reply to the charges. "
He turned to Viola, and continued:.
"Speak out, my man. Your life is in the hands of these gen-
tlemen, who have to answer for it to God, your Judge and theirs.
Pray consider that unless you speak, there is no hope for you.
Think of your family; and, tell us plainly, is there anything you
have to say for yourself? "
Kishlaki was deeply moved; Mr. Catspaw cast an angry look
at the speaker, and Zatonyi yawned.
"I will not speak in my own defense! " said the prisoner.
"Pray consider," urged the young lawyer; "the court will
listen to anything you may say. These gentlemen have a painful
duty to fulfill; but they are far from wishing to take your life.
If you can give us any excuses, do so, by all means. "
"It is provided in Chapter 6 of the Articles, that the prisoner
shall not be wheedled into a confession," said Zatonyi, with an
expression of profound wisdom.
«< Gentlemen," said Viola at length, "may God bless you for
your kindness, and for your wishing to help me! but you see
it's all in vain. There are indeed many things I might say in
defense; and when I go to my God, who knows all and every-
thing, I am sure he'll judge me leniently; but there is no salva-
tion for me in this world. You see, your worships, there is no
use of my telling you that once upon a time I was an honest
man, as every man in the village of Tissaret can prove. What is
the use of my saying that I became a robber not from my own
free will, but because I was forced to it; that I never harmed any
poor man; that I never took more from the gentry, in the way of


## p. 5489 (#49) ############################################

JOSEF EÖTVÖS
5489
robbing, than what was necessary to keep life in my body; and
that I never killed any one, unless it was in self-defense? Am
I the less punishable for saying all this? No. Whatever my
comrades may have done is scored down to my account. I am a
robber and a dead man. ”
"All this may serve to modify the sentence. But what do
you mean by saying that you were forced to be a robber? »
"Ask his worship, the justice of the district," said the prisoner,
looking at Mr. Skinner; "he knows what made me a robber. "
And he proceeded to tell the tale of his first crime.
"It's true; its true as gospel," sighed Kishlaki. "I came to
Tissaret on the day after the thing had happened, when the
sheriff told me all about it. "
"Nihil ad rem! " said Zatonyi.
"But what does it avail me? " continued the prisoner, whose
pale face became flushed as he spoke. "What can it avail me to
tell you all the revolting cruelties which were practiced against
me, and which to think of gives me pain? Am I the less a
robber? Will these things cause you to spare me? No; I ought
to have suffered the stripes, and kissed the hands of my tyrant;
or I ought to have left my wife in her darkest hour, because
nothing would serve my lady but that I should drive her to
Dustbury. How then could I, a good-for-nothing peasant, dare
to love my wife! How could I dare to resist when the justice.
told them to tie me to the whipping-post! But I dared to do it.
I was fool enough to fancy that I, though a peasant, had a right
to remain with my wife; I could not understand that a poor man
is a dog, which anybody may beat and kick. Here I am, and
you may hang me. "
"I'll tell you what, you'll swing fast enough, my fine fellow! "
said Zatonyi, whose cynicism was not proof against the prisoner's
last words. "What, man! hanging's too good for you; that's all
I have to say! "
"You see, sir," said Viola, appealing to Völgyeshy, "you see
there is nothing that can excuse me in the eyes of mankind.
But there's a request I have to address to the court. "
Mr. Catspaw trembled, as the prisoner went on.
"When I left the burning hut in which Ratz Andor shot him-
self, I held some papers in my hands, which were stolen from
the house of the notary of Tissaret. '
"So you confess to the robbery? " cried Zatonyi.
X-344


## p. 5490 (#50) ############################################

5490
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
"No, sir; I do not. God knows I am guiltless of that rob-
bery," cried Viola, raising his hands to heaven; "but that's no
matter. All I say is that I had the papers, and that I took
them away with me; and if you mean to prove by that that I
committed the robbery, you may. I do not care: all I say is,
that I took the papers with me. "
"It's a lie! " murmured Mr. Skinner.
"No; it's not a lie; it's the truth, and nothing but the truth!
When I left the hut I was blind and unarmed: I held the papers
in my hands, and I felt some one snatch them away from me
I can take my oath on it! - and my senses left me; when I re-
covered I was bound, and in the hands of the Pandurs and
peasants. They dragged me to St. Vilmosh. I asked for the
papers, for they belong to Mr. Tengelyi: and it was for their sake
I surrendered, because I did not wish them to be burned; for
they are the notary's important papers. But I understand that
when left the hut there was no one by except the justice and
Mr. Catspaw; and the justice says that I had no papers. I most
humbly beseech the court to order the justice to give those
papers to the rightful owner. "
"May the devil take me by ounces, if I've seen the least rag
of paper! " cried Mr. Skinner.
«< Sir,"
» said Viola, "I am in your power: you may do with
me as you please; you may hang me if you like; but for God's
sake do not deny me the papers. I am under great obligations
to Mr. Tengelyi. He relieved my family in the time of their
distress; and I wish to show my gratitude by restoring those
papers to him.
I have come to suffer a disgraceful death — ”
"You impertinent dog! " cried Mr. Skinner: "how dare you
insinuate? how dare you say? how dare you I am insulted;
I insist on the court giving me satisfaction. ”
"I am in the hands of the court," said the prisoner.
me, kick me, torture me; but give me the papers! "
"I am sure it's a plot," whispered Mr. Catspaw to the as-
sessor. "Tengelyi declares that his diplomas are gone. Who
knows but he may be a patron of this fellow? "
"Nothing is more likely," replied the assessor.
"What, fellow! what, dog! do you mean to say that I stole
the papers? "
"All I say is, that I had the papers in my hands, and that
some person took them away. I wish the court would please to
"Beat


## p. 5491 (#51) ############################################

JOSEF EÖTVÖS
5491
examine the Pandurs, who will tell you that nobody was near
me but the justice and Mr. Catspaw. "
"This is indeed strange," murmured Mr. Kishlaki. Mr. Skin-
ner pushed his chair back, and cried:-
"The court cannot possibly suffer one of its members to be
accused of theft! "
"Yes, too much is too much," said Zatonyi, with a burst of
generous indignation; "if you do not revoke your words, and if
you do not ask their worships' pardon, we will send you to the
yard and have you whipped! "
Viola answered quietly that he was in their worships' power,
but that he would repeat what he had said to the last moment
of his life; and Zatonyi was just about to send the prisoner away
to be whipped, when Völgyeshy reminded him in Latin that the
Sixth Chapter of the Articles made not only prohibition of what
the assessor had been pleased to term "wheedling," but also of
threats and ill-treatment.
Baron Shoskuty remarked that the young lawyer's explanation
of the articles was sheer nonsense; for the prisoner would not be
under restraint if Mr. Völgyeshy's commentaries were accepted
as law. He might call the worshipful magistrates asses; nay, he
might even go to the length of beating them, without suffering
any other punishment than being hanged. This able rejoinder
induced the judges to reconsider Mr. Zatonyi's proposition to
inflict corporal punishment on the prisoner; and nobody can say
what would have come of it but for the firmness of Völgyeshy,
who protested that he would inform the lord-lieutenant and the
government of any act of violence to which they might subject
the culprit. This threat had its effect. Baron Shoskuty, indeed,
was heard to murmur against the impertinence of young men,
while Mr. Zatonyi made some edifying reflections about sneaking
informers; but this was all. No further mention was made of
the whipping.
While the above conversation was being carried on in a tongue
of which he could but catch the sounds and not the meaning,
Viola stood quietly by, although a lively interest in the words
and motions of the speakers was expressed in his face. Messrs.
Catspaw and Skinner conversed in a whisper. At length the
attorney turned round and addressed the court:
"As the prisoner has thought proper to accuse me," said
he, "it is but right that I should be allowed to ask him a few


## p. 5492 (#52) ############################################

5492
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
questions.
You said I was near you when you left the hut, did
Now tell me, did you see me at the time? "
you not?
"No, I did not; I was blind with the smoke and fire in the
hut; but the peasants told me that the two gentlemen were near
me, and I felt somebody snatch the papers from my hand. "
"Do you mean to say that the smoke in the hut was very
dense ? »
"I could not see through it; at times the flames were SO
fierce that they nearly blinded me. "
"But how did you manage to save the papers ? »
"They lay by my side on my bunda. I seized them and
took them out. They were wrapped in a blue handkerchief. "
I
"He speaks the truth," said Mr. Catspaw smiling; "or rather
he tells us what he believes to be the truth. He held something
in his hand, when he rushed from the hut more like a beast than
like a human creature, I assure you, my honorable friends.
was not at all sure whether it was not a weapon of defense; I
snatched it away, and on examination I identified it as a most
harmless handkerchief, which certainly was wrapped round some
soft substance. But," continued he, addressing the prisoner, "if
you fancy you saved the papers, my poor fellow, you are much
mistaken, indeed you are! My dear Mr. Skinner, pray fetch the
parcel which we took from Viola at the time of his capture. "
Mr. Skinner rose and left the room.
"The papers were in the handkerchief, I'll swear!
" said Viola;
but his astonishment and rage were unbounded when the judge
returned with the parcel, which on examination was found to
contain a pair of cotton drawers. He knew it was the handker-
chief, the same in which he had wrapped the papers, and yet
they were not there! How could he prove that they had been
stolen ?
"I trust my honorable friends are convinced," said Mr. Cats-
paw,
"that the wretched man has no intention of imposing upon
the court. I believe, indeed, nothing can be more probable than
that he was possessed of Tengelyi's documents; and it is likewise
very probable that he intended to save those papers; but accord-
ing to his own statement, he was half blind with the fire and
smoke, and instead of the papers he took another parcel — some
other booty, perhaps. Nothing can be more natural- »
"Yes, indeed! " interposed Baron Shoskuty.
-you know! Awkward mistakes will happen.
"Nemo omnibus!
Perhaps you will
1


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JOSEF EÖTVÖS
5493
be pleased to remember the fire in the house of the receiver of
revenues in the
county. The poor man was so bewildered
with fear that all he managed to get out of the house was a
pair of old boots. The whole of the government money was
burned. The visiting justices found the money-box empty-
empty, I say! All the bank-notes were burned, and nothing was
left but a small heap of ashes. "
"Gentlemen! —" said Viola at length; but Mr. Catspaw inter-
rupted him.
"I implore my honorable friends not to resent anything this
wretched creature may say! I am sure he speaks from his con-
science; nor is he deserving of chastisement. He is a prey to
what we lawyers term 'Ignorantia invincibilis'! »
"Of course! of course! " said Baron Shoskuty. "It's a legal
remedy, you know. "
"Gentlemen! " said the prisoner, “I am a poor condemned
criminal, but the judge and Mr. Catspaw are mighty men. And
I am doomed to appear this day before God's judgment seat!
What motive should I have for not telling you the truth? May
I be damned now and forever - yes, and may God punish my
children to the tenth generation · - if the papers were not in this
very cloth! "
-
"I told you so! " said Mr. Catspaw, still smiling. "I knew
it. This man is doting — 'borné,' to use a French term. He'd
say the same if we were to put him on the rack! - It's all very
natural," said he to the prisoner. "You've made a mistake,
that's all. Pray be reasonable, and consider, if you had brought
Mr. Tengelyi's papers from the hut, what reason could I or Mr.
Skinner have for refusing to produce them? "
"Of course! " said Baron Shoskuty. "What reason could
these gentlemen have? How is it possible to suppose such a
thing? "
Viola was silent. He stood lost in deep and gloomy thoughts.
At last he raised his head and asked that the attendants might
be sent away, adding, "I am in chains, and there are no less
than six of you. You are safe, I assure you. "
The room was cleared. Viola looked at Mr. Catspaw, and
said:
--
"What I have to tell you will astonish you all, except Mr.
Catspaw. I never wished to mention it, and I would not now
allow the servants to hear it; for my wife and children live at


## p. 5494 (#54) ############################################

5494
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
Tissaret, and the Retys may perhaps be induced to pity the
poor orphans. But if it is asked what reason the attorney can
have for not producing the notary's papers, I will simply say
that Mr. Catspaw is most likely to know his own mind and his
own reasons- and good reasons they must be- to induce him
to bribe somebody to steal the papers; for to tell you the truth,
it was he who planned the robbery. "
The attorney trembled.
"Really, this man is malicious! " cried he. "I am curious to
know what can induce him to accuse an honest man of such a
thing. "
"Don't listen to his nonsense! " said Baron Shoskuty.
But Mr. Völgyeshy insisted on the prisoner's being heard,
and Viola told them the history of the robbery, from the even-
ing on which he had listened to the attorney's conversation with
Lady Rety, to the night in which he seized the Jew in Ten-
gelyi's house, knocking him down, and fled with the papers.
The only circumstances which he did not mention were the fact
of his having been hid in the notary's house when Messrs. Cats-
paw and Skinner pursued him in Tissaret, and his conversations.
with the Liptaka and Peti. Mr. Catspaw listened with a smile
of mingled fear and contempt; and when Viola ceased speaking,
he asked for permission to put a few questions to the prisoner.
"Not, indeed," said he, "for the purpose of defending myself
or Lady Rety against so ridiculous an accusation; but merely to
convince this fellow of the holes, nay, of the large gaps, in his
abominable tissue of falsehoods. " And turning to Viola he
asked: :-
"Did you inform anybody of the conversation which you pre-
tend to have overheard between me and Lady Rety? "
"No, I did not. ”
"Pray consider my question. Is there any one to whom you
said that some one wished to steal the notary's papers? We
ought to know your associates. Now, did you not speak to Peti
the gipsy, or to that old hag the Liptaka? "
Viola persisted in denying the fact. He was too well aware
of the disastrous consequence this avowal would have for his
friends.
Mr. Catspaw went on.
"Where did you hide at the time we pursued you at Tis-
saret ? »


## p. 5495 (#55) ############################################

JOSEF EÖTVÖS
5495
Viola replied that he was not in Tissaret.
"Do you mean to say that you were not in the village? "
"No! "
The attorney sent for the old Liptaka, to whom he read her
depositions, from which it appeared that the prisoner attempted
to inform Tengelyi of the intended robbery.
"What do you say to this evidence? " added he.
"That it is true, every word of it. I'll swear to the truth of
my words! " said she.
"Viola has confessed," said Mr. Catspaw, "that he told you of
the matter when hiding in the notary's house, while we pursued
him through Tissaret. Is there any truth in this statement? "
The Liptaka, feeling convinced that Viola must have confessed
as much, said it was quite true, but that Tengelyi was ignorant
of the prisoner's presence. The old woman was sent away, and
Mr. Catspaw, turning to the court, asked triumphantly:-
"Did you ever hear of such impertinence? The prisoner pro-
tests that he did not inform anybody of the alleged intended rob-
bery; and the old woman swears that Viola did inform her, for
the purpose of cautioning the notary. Then again, the old woman
did not say anything to the notary, without having any ostensible
reason for not doing what she alleges she promised to do. The
prisoner will have it that he was not in Tissaret at the time we
pursued him; and the witness-why, gentlemen, the witness de-
poses that the subject in question was mentioned to her at that
very time.
I say, you great fool! if you had time for another
batch of lies, I would advise you to make out a better story.
But let us go on. Who told you that the Jew and Tzifra in-
tended to rob the notary? "
"I cannot answer that question," replied Viola.
"Indeed? What a pity! I'd like to know the gentleman who
gives you such correct information; unless, indeed, you keep a
'familiaris,' —a devil, I mean. "
"The only thing I told you was that I knew of the robbery. ”
"But how did you know of it? "
"The Jew and Tzifra talked about it in the pot-house near
Dustbury. "
"Were you present? Did you hear them? "
"No; I had it from a friend. "
"I'm sure it was your familiaris,' your devil,-your artful
dodger! " said Mr. Catspaw smiling; "but since you knew that


## p. 5496 (#56) ############################################

5496
JOSEF EÖTVÖS
the robbery was to take place, why did you not inform the just-
ice of it? ”
"I was outlawed; a prize was offered for my head. "
"Indeed, so it was; but your friend-why did not he inform
the proper authorities? Was he also wanted? and if so, why did
he not inform Tengelyi, or Mr. Vandory, who I understand has
likewise lost his papers? "
"I cannot tell you. Perhaps he did not find the notary. At
all events, he knew that I would prevent the robbery, so he
told me of it. "
"A very extraordinary thing, this! " said Mr. Catspaw; "for
a man to apply to a robber with a view to prevent a robbery!
And you wanted to prevent the robbery, did you not? Now tell
me, did you set about it by yourself? And what became of
your comrade-I mean the man who told you about it? Did he
too go to Tissaret ? "
"There was no occasion for it. "
«< Still, it is very extraordinary that you should not have hunted
in couples, knowing as you did that there were two men to com-
mit the robbery. What a capital thing for you, if you could
summon your comrades to explain it all! For if some went to
Tissaret to prevent the robbery, there can be no harm in our
knowing who your comrade is. He ought to be rewarded for his
zeal. "
"I had no comrade.
I was alone," said Viola.
"Very well, you were alone; let it be so. Whom did you see
in the notary's house? "
No one but the Jew; he who is now waiting in the hall. "
"Did you see Tzifra? »
«No.
The Jew was alone in the house. "
«< But the Jew swears that it was you who committed the
robbery!
"I don't care. I've said what I've said. "
"Is there anything else you have to say? "
"No. "
>>
"Very well.
I've done with you," said the attorney, as he
rang for the servants.
"Take him away," said he, as the haiduks made their appear-
ance. Viola turned round and left the room.


## p. 5497 (#57) ############################################

5497
EPICTETUS
(FIRST CENTURY A. D. ? )
BY THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON
F THE three great authors among the later Stoics, Marcus
Aurelius Antoninus offers the most cultivated literary flavor,
Seneca the most varied and discursive knowledge, and Epic-
tetus the simplest and most practical tonic. As compared with the
two other writers, Epictetus shortens his sword; that is, his sentences.
They have the merit which Thoreau set above all others: they are
"concentrated and witty. " Some of them have attained to the rank of
proverbs,— that is, of being quoted by those who never heard of the
author; as when men say, "All things have two handles; beware of
the wrong one," which is not the precise phrase used by Epictetus,
but comes very near it. What is more essential than any matter of
language is that he, like the other later Stoics, and even more than
the rest of these, had outgrown the earlier tradition of their pred-
ecessors and recognized human feeling. In this respect, indeed, he
went further than many Christian teachers. When Cardinal Manning
was on his way to Rome, after his conversion, he lost his portman-
teau containing family letters. The moral lesson to be drawn from
this is thus noted in his diary: "To be dead to earthly and natural
affections. " Epictetus, although a Stoic by profession and practice,
would not have gone so far.
The system of Epictetus is not hard to grasp, for it is very sim-
ple, and wholly practical. All objects, all events, in short, every-
thing earthly, may be divided into classes: the things which are
within our own control and the things over which we have no con-
trol. We must live for the one class - the things controllable; and
must hold the other as absolutely secondary. All possessions that
come to us from without, all joys, even those of domestic happiness,
are beyond our own control and must be held as loans, not as gifts;
the inward life is apart from these and goes on the same, whether
they come or go, and this alone we can control. Children are dear,
love is real, God is good; but we must acquiesce quietly in the loss
of every human joy at the word of command, and never murmur.
There is no hardness, as of the elder Stoics; no jaunty refusal of per-
sonal ties, as with Epicurus; behind the brief, terse maxims of this
slave-philosopher there is an atmosphere of love and faith. It even


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5498
EPICTETUS
meets curiously the maxims of some of the mystics. It teaches
humility, unselfishness, forgiveness, trust in Providence. "What is
the first business of one who studies philosophy? To part with self-
conceit. " The philosopher, "when beaten, must love those who beat
him. " There is a special chapter, headed "That we ought not to be
angry with the erring. " "All is full of beloved ones
by na-
ture endeared to one another. " "Who is there, whom bright and
agreeable children do not attract to play and creep and prattle with
them ? » In several places he speaks with contempt of suicide;
although he vindicates Divine providence by showing that we are not
forcibly held down to a life of sorrow, since we always keep the
power of exit in our own hands. To make this exit, at any rate, is
but the cowardice of a moment, while a life of wailing is prolonged
cowardice. *
There is absolutely no hair-splitting, no cloud of metaphysics. He
does not aim at these things; he bears hard on all pretenders to
abstract philosophy, and brings all to a strict practical test. Even
the man who professes such a modest practical philosophy as his own
must bring it constantly to the proof. "It is not reasonings that are
wanted now," he says; "for there are books stuffed full of Stoical
reasonings. What is wanted, then? The man who shall apply them;
whose actions may bear testimony to his doctrines. Assume this
character for one, that we may no longer make use in the schools of
the examples of the ancients, and may have some examples of our
own. " Elsewhere, in a similar spirit, he spurns the thought of meas-
uring virtue by the mere degree of familiarity with some great
teacher. He refers, for instance to Chrysippus, who was accepted as
the highest authority among the later Stoics, although not one of his
seven hundred volumes has come down to the present age. "Who is
in a state of progress? He who has best studied Chrysippus? Does
virtue consist in having read Chrysippus through?