"
While this was going on, one of the ministers of the goddess came hurriedly to the priest, and announced that a foreign maiden had taken refuge in the temple.
While this was going on, one of the ministers of the goddess came hurriedly to the priest, and announced that a foreign maiden had taken refuge in the temple.
Universal Anthology - v07
"Wretched slave!
" he exclaimed, " I have heard your love-sick lamentations, and know all ; instead of taking it as a compliment that I should speak to you, and regarding a kiss from your master as an honor, you must, forsooth, coquet and give yourself airs; for my part, I believe you to be a strumpet, for an adulterer is your love !
However, since you refuse to accept me as a lover, you shall feel my power as a master.
"
Leucippe meekly replied, " Use me as harshly as you please ; I will submit to everything except the loss of chastity ; " and turning to Sosthenes, " you can bear witness to my powers of endurance ; for I have received at your hands harder measure
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even than this ! " Ashamed at having his conduct brought to light, " This wench," said he, " deserves to be flayed with the scourge and to be put upon the rack, in order to teach her better manners towards her master. " "
" By all means follow his advice !
Thersander, " he gives good counsel ; do the worst which your malice can suggest ; extend my hands upon the wheel ; bare my back to the scourge ; burn my body in the fire ; smite off my head with the sword ; it will be a novel sight to see one weak woman contend against all your tortures, victorious against all ! You brand Clitopho as an adulterer, and yet you yourself would commit adultery ! Have you no reverence for your tutelary goddess Diana? Would you ravish a virgin in the very city sacred to a virgin ? O goddess, why do not thy shafts avenge the insult ? "
" You a virgin, forsooth ! " replied Thersander, contemptu ously ; " you who passed whole days and nights among the pirates ! Prythee were they eunuchs, or given only to platonic love, or were they blind? "
resumed Leucippe to
" Ask Sosthenes," said she, " whether or not I preserved my chastity against his attempts ; none of the freebooters behaved to me so brutally as you have done ; it is you who deserve the name of pirate, since you feel no shame in perpetrating deeds which they abstained from doing. You little think how your unblushing cruelty will redound hereafter to my praise ; you may kill me in your fury, and my encomium will be this : ' Leucippe preserved her chastity despite of buccaneers, despite of Chaereas, despite of Sosthenes, and crown of all (for this would be but trifling commendation), she remained chaste despite even of Thersander, more lascivious than the most lustful pirate ; and he who could not despoil her of her honor, robbed her of her life. ' Again, therefore, I say, bring into action all your engines and implements of torture, and employ the aid of Sosthenes, your right trusty counselor. I stand before you a feeble woman, naked and alone, having but one weapon of defense, my free spirit, which is proof against sword and fire and scourge. Burn me, if you will; you shall find that there be things over which even the fire is powerless ! "
The scornful reproaches of Leucippe stirred up a tumult of conflicting passions in Thersander's mind ; he was incensed by her taunts, vexed at his ill success, and perplexed how to secure the accomplishment of his desires. Without saying
264 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
another word he rushed out of the house to give vent to the storm and tempest of his soul. Shortly after, having conferred with Sosthenes, he went to the jailer, and endeavored to per suade him to administer a dose of poison to me ; this, however, the jailer refused to do, his predecessor having suffered death for taking off a prisoner in this manner. Failing in this, he obtained his consent to introduce a man (who was to pass for a criminal) into my cell, under pretense of wishing to extract some secrets out of me through him. The man had been pre viously tutored by Thersander, and was casually to introduce Leucippe's name, and to say that she had been murdered by the contrivance of Melitta. Thersander's object in persuading me of her death was to hinder me (in case I obtained a verdict of acquittal) from instituting any further search for her recov ery ; and Melitta's name was introduced in order that after learning Leucippe's death I might not entertain any thoughts of marrying her, and so by settling at Ephesus interrupt Ther sander in the prosecution of his schemes, but on the contrary might be induced to quit the city without delay, from hatred to Melitta for having contrived the death of my beloved.
As soon as this fellow came near me, he began to play his appointed part, and with a knavish groan exclaimed "Alacka- day ! what a miserable thing is life ! There is no keeping out of trouble ! It stands a man in no stead to be honest ! Some cross accident is sure to overtake him! Would I could have guessed the character of"my fellow-traveler, and what work he had been engaged in ! This, and much more of the same sort, he said speaking to himself, craftily endeavoring to attract my attention, and to make me inquire what it was that ailed him. He did not succeed, however, for I was sufficiently taken up with my own troubles, and he went on with his groans and ejaculations. At length — for the unfortunate take pleasure in listening to another's griefs, finding in it a kind of medi cine for their sorrows — one of the prisoners asked, "What trick has the jade Fortune been playing you ? I suspect that, like myself, she has laid you up in limbo without deserving it. " He then proceeded to tell his own story, giving an account of what had brought him into prison ; and having finished, re quested the other to favor him with the particulars of his own misfortune. He of course readily complied.
" I left the city yesterday," said he, " to go towards Smyrna, and had proceeded about half a mile, when I was joined by a
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 265
young man out of the country. He saluted me, and after walking with me for a few minutes, inquired whither I was going. I told him, and he said that luckily his road lay in the same direction, so that we proceeded in company, and entered into conversation. Stopping at an inn, we ordered dinner, and presently four men came in and did the same. Instead of eat ing, however, they continued watching us, and making signs to one another. I plainly enough saw that we were the objects of their notice, but was wholly at a loss to understand the meaning of their gestures. My companion gradually turned very pale, left off eating, and at last began to tremble all over. Instantly they sprang up, seized, and bound us ; one of them also dealt him a violent blow upon the face ; upon which, as if he had been already on the rack, and even without a question being asked him he cried out, ' I admit having killed the girl ! Melitta, Thersander's wife, hired me to do the deed, and gave me a hundred gold pieces for my trouble ; here they are every one — take them for yourselves ; and for heaven's sake let me off ! "
Upon hearing these names I started as if stung, and turning to him, "Who is Melitta? " I asked. "She is a lady of the first rank in this city," was his reply. " She took a fancy to a young man, said to be a native of Tyre ; he found a favorite wench of his (whom he had given up for lost), among the number of Melitta's slaves, and she, moved by jealousy, had the girl seized by the fellow whom ill luck made my fellow- traveler, and he, in obedience to Melitta's orders, has made away with her. But to return to my own story. I, who had never seen the man before, nor had dealings with him of any kind, was dragged along with him, bound, as an accomplice in his crime ; but what is harder than all, they had not gone far, before, for the sake of his hundred pieces, they let him go, but kept me in custody and carried me before the judge. "
Upon hearing this chapter of accidents, I neither uttered a sound nor shed a tear, for both voice and tears refused their office, but a general trembling seized me, my heart sunk within me, and I felt as at the point of death. After a time, recover ing in some degree from the stupor which his words had caused, " How did the ruffian "dispatch her ? " I asked, " and what has become of her body ? But having now performed the busi ness for which he was employed, by stimulating my curiosity, he became obstinately silent, and I could extract nothing more from him. In answer to my repeated questions, " Do you
266 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
think," said he, at length, " that I had a hand in the murder ? The man told me he had killed her; he said nothing of the place and manner of her death. " Tears now came to my relief, and I gave full vent to my sorrow. It is with mental wounds as with bodily hurts ; when one has been stricken in body some time elapses before the livid bruise, the result of the blow, is seen ; and so also any one who has been pierced by the sharp tusk of a boar, looks for the wound, but without immediately discovering it, owing to its being deeply seated ; but presently a white line is perceived, the precursor of the blood, which speedily begins to flow ; in like manner, no sooner have bitter tidings been announced, than they pierce the soul, but the suddenness of the stroke prevents the wound from being visible at once, and the tooth of sorrow must for some space have gnawed the heart ere a vent is found for tears, which are to the mind what blood is to the body. . . .
While thus plunged in grief, Clinias came to visit me. I related every particular to him, and declared my determination of putting an end to my existence. He did all in his power to console me. " Consider," he said, " how often she has died and come to life again ; who knows but what she may do the same on this occasion also? Why be in such haste to kill yourself? You will have abundant leisure when the tidings of her death have been positively confirmed. "
" This is mere trifling," I replied ; " there is small need of confirmation ; my resolve is fixed, and I have decided upon a manner of death which will not permit even the hated Melitta to escape unscathed. Listen to my plan : In case of being summoned into court it was my intention to plead not guilty. I have now changed my determination, and shall plead guilty, confessing the intrigue between Melitta and myself, and saying that we mutually planned Leucippe's death ; by this means she will suffer the punishment which is her due, and I shall quit this life which I so much detest. " "Talk not thus," replied he; "can you endure to die under the base imputation of being a murderer, and, what is more, the murderer of Leucippe ? " " Nothing is base," replied I, " by which we can wreak venge ance upon our enemies. " While we were engaged in argu ment, the fellow who had communicated the tidings of the fictitious murder was removed, upon pretense of being taken before the magistrate to undergo an examination. Clinias and Satyrus exerted themselves, but ineffectually, in order to per
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 267
suade me to alter my resolution ; and on the same day they removed into lodgings, so as to be no longer under the roof of Melitta's foster brother. The following day the case came on; Thersander had a great muster of friends and partisans, and had engaged ten advocates ; and Melitta had been equally on the alert in preparing for her defense. When the council on either side had finished speaking, I asked leave to address the court, and said, " All those who have been exerting their elo quence, either for Thersander or for Melitta, have been giving utterance to sheer nonsense ;
I will reveal the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I was once passionately in love with a female of Byzantium named Leucippe ; she was carried off by
pirates, and I had reason to believe that she was dead. Meet ing with Melitta in Egypt, we formed a connection, and after some time we traveled together to this city, and Leucippe, whom I just now mentioned, was found working as a slave on Thersander's estate, under his bailiff, Sosthenes. By what means he obtained possession of a freeborn female, and what were his dealings with the pirates, I leave it to you to guess.
" Melitta, finding that I had recovered my former mistress, became apprehensive of her regaining her influence over my affections, and contrived a plan for putting her to death. I entered into her schemes, — for what avails it to conceal the truth ? — having received a promise that she would settle all her property upon me ; a man was found, who, for the reward of a hundred gold pieces, undertook the business. When the deed was done, he fled, and is now somewhere in concealment.
"As for myself, Love was not long in taking vengeance upon my cruelty. No sooner did I hear of the murder being perpe trated, than I bitterly repented of what had taken place, and all my former fondness revived. For this reason I have determined to turn evidence against myself, in order that you may send me whither she is gone to whom I am still so deeply attached. Life is intolerable to one who, in addition to being a murderer, loves her of whose death he has been the cause. "
Every one in court was utterly astounded at the unexpected tenor of my speech, especially Melitta. The advocates of Thersander already claimed a triumph, while those engaged in Melitta's behalf anxiously questioned her as to the truth of what I had said. She was in great confusion ; denied some points, virtually admitted others, confessed to having known Leucippe, and indeed confirmed most of what I had said, with
268 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
the exception of the murder. This general agreement, on her part, with the facts advanced by me, created a suspicion against her, even in the minds of her own counsel, and they were at a loss what line of defense to adopt on her behalf. At this critical juncture, while the court was being a scene of great clamor, Clinias came forward and requested to be heard, for "Remember," said he, "a man's life is now in jeopardy. " Obtaining permission to speak : —
" Men of Ephesus ! " he began (his eyes filling with tears), "do not precipitately condemn to die one who eagerly longs for death, the natural refuge of the unfortunate. He has been
himself, and has taken upon him the guilt of others. Let me briefly acquaint you with what has befallen him. What he has said respecting his mistress, her being carried off by pirates, about Sosthenes, and other circumstances which happened before the pretended murder, are strictly true. The young woman has undoubtedly disappeared ; but whether she is still alive, or has been made away with, it is impossible to say ; one thing is certain, that Sosthenes conceived a passion for her, that he used her cruelly for not consenting to his desires, and that he was leagued with pirates. My friend, believing her to be murdered, is disgusted with life, and has, therefore, invented this charge against himself ; he has already confessed with his own mouth that he is anxious to die owing to grief at the loss which he has sustained. Consider, I pray you, whether it is likely that one who is really a murderer would be so desirous of dying with his victim, and would feel life so insup portable. When do we ever find murderers so tender-hearted, and hatred so compassionate? In the name of the gods, there fore, do not believe his words ; do not condemn to death a man who is much more deserving of commiseration than of punish ment. If, as he says, he really planned this murder, let him bring forward the hired assassin ; let him declare what has become of the body. If neither the one nor the other can be produced, how can any belief be attached to such a murder? ' I was in love with Melitta,' he says, ' and therefore I caused Leucippe to be killed ! ' How comes he to implicate Melitta, the object of his affection, and to be so desirous of dying for Leucippe, whose death he compassed ? Is it usual for persons to hate the object of their love, and to love the object of their hatred? Is it not much more probable that in such circum stances he would have denied the crime (even had it been
calumniating
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 269
brought home to him) in order to save his mistress, instead of throwing away his own life afterwards, owing to a vain regret for her loss? What can possibly, therefore, be his motive for charging Melitta with a crime of which she is not guilty ? I will tell you, and in so doing do not suppose that I have any desire of inculpating this lady, — my sole wish is to make you acquainted with the real truth.
" Before this seafaring husband of hers came to life again so suddenly, Melitta took a violent fancy to this young man, and proposed marriage to him ; he on his part was not at all disposed to comply with her wishes, and his repugnance became yet greater when he discovered that his mistress, whom he had imagined dead, was in slavery, under the power of Sosthenes. Until aware who she was, Melitta, taking pity upon her, had caused her to be set at liberty, had received her into her own house, and treated her with the consideration due to a gentle woman in distress; but after becoming acquainted with her story, she was sent back into the country, and she has not been heard of since. The truth of what I say can be attested by Melitta herself and the two maids in whose company she was sent away. This was one thing which excited suspicions in my friend's mind that Leucippe had been foully dealt with through her rival's jealousy ; a circumstance which took place after he was in prison confirmed these suspicions, and has had the effect of exasperating him not only against Melitta, but against himself. One of the prisoners, in the course of lament ing his own troubles, mentioned that he had unwittingly fallen into the company of a man who had committed murder for the sake of gold ; the victim was named Leucippe, and the crime, he said, had been committed at the instigation of Melitta. Of course I cannot say whether this be true or not ; it is for you to institute inquiries. You can produce the prisoner who made mention of the hired assassin ; Sosthenes, who can declare from whom he purchased Leucippe, and the maids, who can explain her disappearance. Before you have thoroughly investigated each of these particulars, it is contrary to all law, whether human or divine, to pass sentence upon this unfortunate young man on the bare evidence of his frenzied words, for there can be no doubt that the violence of his grief has affected his intellect. "
The arguments of Clinias appeared just and reasonable to many of those present, but Thersander's counsel, together with
270 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
his friends, called out that sentence of death ought to be pro nounced without delay upon the murderer who, by the provi dence of the gods, had been made his own accuser. Melitta brought forward her maids, and required Thersander to pro duce Sosthenes, who might probably turn out to be the mur derer. This was the challenge mainly insisted upon by her counsel. Thersander, in great alarm, secretly dispatched one of his dependants into the country, with orders to Sosthenes to get out of the way at once, before the arrival of those who were about to be sent after him.
Mounting a horse without delay, the messenger rode full speed to inform the bailiff of the danger he ran of being put to the torture, if taken. Sosthenes was at that moment with Leu- cippe, doing his best to soothe her irritated feelings. Hearing himself summoned in a loud voice, he came out of the cottage ; and, upon learning the state of matters, overcome with fear, and thinking the officers were already at his heels, he got upon the horse, and rode off towards Smyrna ; after which the mes senger returned to his master. It is a true saying that fear drives away the power of recollection, for Sosthenes in his alarm for his own safety was so forgetful of everything else that he neglected to secure the door of Leucippe's cottage. Indeed slaves, generally speaking, when frightened, run into the very excess of cowardice. Melitta's advocates having given the above-mentioned challenge, Thersander came forward and said, " We have now surely had quite enough of this man's silly sto ries ; and I cannot but feel surprised at your want of sense, who, after convicting a murderer upon the strongest possible evidence, his own admission of his guilt, do not at once pass sentence of death upon him ; whereas, instead of doing this,
you suffer yourselves to be imposed upon by his plausible words and tears. For my part I believe him actuated by per sonal fears, and to be an accomplice in the murder ; nor can I see what possible need there can be for having recourse to the rack in a matter so clear already. Nay, more, I fully believe him to have had a hand in another murder ; for three days have now elapsed since I saw Sosthenes, the man whom they call upon me to bring forward ; it is not at all improbable that this is owing to their contrivance, since it was he who informed me of the act of adultery which has taken place, and having put him to death, they now craftily call upon me to produce the man, knowing it to be out of my power to do so. But
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even supposing he were alive and present, what difference could it make ? What questions would he put to him ? ' Did he ever purchase a certain female? ' 'Yes. ' 'Was this female in the power of Melitta ? ' ' Yes. ' Here would be an end of the examination, and Sosthenes would be dismissed. Let me now, however, address myself to Clitopho and Melitta.
" What have you done, I ask, with my slave ? — for a slave of mine she assuredly was, having been purchased by Sosthenes, and were she still alive, instead of having been murdered by them, my slave she would still be. " Thersander said this from mingled malice and cunning, in order that if Leucippe should turn out to be still alive, he might detain her in a state of servitude. He then continued : " Clitopho confessed that he killed her, he has therefore pronounced judgment upon him self. Melitta, on the other hand, denies the crime — her maids may be brought forward and tortured in order to refute what she says. If it should appear that they received the young woman from her, but have not brought her back again, the question will arise, What has become of her ? Why was she sent away ? And to whom was she sent ? Is it not self-evi dent that some persons had been hired to commit the murder, and that the maids were kept in ignorance of this, lest a num ber of witnesses might render discovery more probable ? No doubt they left her at some spot where a gang of ruffians were lying in concealment, so that it was out of their power to wit ness what took place. He has also trumped up some story about a prisoner who made mention of the murder. I should like to know who this prisoner is, who has not said a word on the subject to the chief magistrate, but has communicated, it seems, every particular to him, except the name of his informer. Again, I ask, will you not make an end of listening to such foolery, and taking any interest in such transparent absurdities ? Can you imagine that he would have turned a self-accuser with out the intervention of the deity ? " Thersander, after speaking to this effect, concluded by solemnly swearing that he was igno rant what had become of Sosthenes.
The presiding judge, who was of royal extraction, and who took cognizance of cases of blood, had, in accordance with the law, a certain number of assessors, men of mature age, whose province it was to assist him in judicial investigations. After conferring with them, he determined to pronounce sentence of death upon me, agreeably to a law which awarded capital pun
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ishment to any one standing convicted upon his own accusa tion. Melitta was to have a second trial, and her maids were to be examined by torture ; Thersander was to register his oath, declaratory of his ignorance as to Sosthenes. I, as already con demned to death, was to be tortured in order to make me con fess whether Melitta was privy to the murder. Already was I bound, stripped, and suspended aloft by ropes, while some were bringing scourges, others the fire and the wheel, and Clinias was lamenting loudly, and calling upon the gods, when lo ! the priest of Diana, crowned with laurel, was beheld approaching : the sign of a sacred embassy coming to offer sacrifices to the goddess. In such cases there is suspension of all judicial pun ishments during the days occupied in the performance of the sacrifice, and in consequence of this I was released. The chief of the sacred embassy was no other than Leucippe's father. Diana had appeared to the Byzantians, and had secured them victory in the war against the Thracians, in consequence of which they felt bound to send her a sacrifice in token of their gratitude. In addition to this, the goddess had appeared to Sostratus himself at night, signifying to him that he would find his daughter and his nephew at Ephesus. Just about this time, Leucippe perceived the door of the cottage to be left open ; and as, after a careful examination, Sosthenes was no where to be seen, her usual presence of mind and sanguine hopes returned. She remembered how often, contrary to all expectation, she had been preserved, and the thought of this gave her increased boldness. Fortune moreover favored her, since the temple of Diana was near the spot. Accordingly, hurrying thither, she sought refuge within its precincts. The temple afforded sanctuary to men and virgins, — any other woman incurred death by entering it, unless she happened to be a slave who had some cause of complaint against her master ; in which case she was permitted to take refuge there, and the matter was submitted to the decision of the magistrates ; supposing the master was acquitted, he took back his slave, being bound by oath to bear her no ill will on account of her having run away ; but on the contrary, the slave was proved to have justice on her side, she remained in the temple, and was employed in the service of the goddess. Leucippe arrived at the temple just at the time when Sostratus was conducting the priest to the scene of the trial, in order to suspend the proceedings, and was very near encountering her father.
if,
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When I was set free, the court broke up, and I was sur rounded by a concourse of people, some pitying me, some calling upon the gods in my behalf, others questioning me. Sostratus, coming by at the time, no sooner saw than he recog nized me ; for, as
I before mentioned, he had formerly been at Tyre upon the occasion of a festival of Hercules, and had passed a considerable time there before the period of our flight.
He at once knew me, and the more readily because his dream had led him to expect that he should find me and his daughter there. Coming up to me, therefore, "Do I see Clitopho? " said he; "and where is Leucippe? " Instantly recognizing him, I cast my eyes to the ground and remained silent, while the bystanders related to him every particular relative to my self-accusation. He no sooner heard what they had to say than, with an ejaculation of bitter grief, and smiting his head, he made a rush at me, and was very near pulling out my eyes, for I remained altogether passive and offered no resistance to his violence. At length Clinias, coming forward, checked his fury, and endeavored to pacify him. " What are you about ? " said he; "why are you venting your wrath against him; he loves Leucippe more dearly than you do, for he has"courted death from belief that she was no longer in existence ; and he added a great deal more in order to calm his irritation. He, on the other hand, continued to vent his grief, and to call upon Diana. " Is it for this that thou hast summoned me hither, O goddess? Is this the fulfilment of my vision? I gave cre dence to the dreams which thou didst send, and flattered my self that I should find my daughter ! In lieu of which thou offerest"me, forsooth, a welcome present, — my daughter's mur derer ! Hearing of the vision sent by Diana, Clinias was overjoyed. "Take courage, sir," he said; "the goddess will not belie herself ! Rest assured your daughter is alive ; be lieve me, I am prophesying truth; do you not remark how wonderfully she has rescued your nephew from the clutches of his torturers ?
"
While this was going on, one of the ministers of the goddess came hurriedly to the priest, and announced that a foreign maiden had taken refuge in the temple. This intelligence, given in my hearing, inspired me with new life; my hopes revived, and I summoned courage to look up. " My prediction is being fulfilled, sir," said Clinias, addressing Sostratus ; and
then turning to the messenger he inquired, "Is the maiden vol. vn. — 18
274 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
handsome ? " " She is second in beauty only to Diana herself," was the reply.
At these words I leaped for joy, and exclaimed, " It must be Leucippe ! " " You are right in your conjecture," said he ; " this was the very name she gave ; saying likewise that she was the daughter of one Sostratus, and a native of Byzantium. " Clinias now clapped his hands and shouted with delight, while Sostratus, overcome by his emotions, was ready to sink upon the ground. For my part, in spite of my fetters, I made a bound into the air, and then shot away towards the temple, like an arrow from a bow. The keepers pursued me, suppos ing that I was trying to escape, and bawled out to every one, " Stop him ! stop him ! " At that moment, however, I seemed to have wings upon my heels, and it was with much difficulty that some persons at length caught hold of me in my mad career. The keepers upon coming up were disposed to use violence, to which, however, I was no longer inclined to sub mit; nevertheless they persisted in dragging me towards the prison. By this time Clinias and"Sostratus had arrived at the
spot ; and the former called out, Whither are you taking this man ? — he is not guilty of the murder for which he has been condemned ! " Sostratus spoke to the same effect, and added that he was father to the maiden supposed to have been mur dered. The bystanders, learning the circumstances which had taken place, were loud in their praises of Diana, and surround ing me would not permit me to be taken to prison ; on the other hand, the keepers declared that they had no authority to set a prisoner at liberty who had been condemned to death. In the end, the priest, at the urgent entreaty of Sostratus, agreed to become bail, and to produce me in court whenever it should be required. Then at length freed from my fetters, I hurried on towards the temple, followed by Sostratus, whose feelings of joy could hardly, I think, equal my own.
Rumor, who outstrips the swiftest of men, had already reached Leucippe, and informed her of all particulars respect ing me and Sostratus. Upon catching sight of us she darted out of the temple, and threw her arms around her father, but at the same time her looks were turned on me ; the presence of Sostratus restrained me from embracing her, though I gazed intently upon her face ; and thus our greetings were confined to eyes.
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. By MENCIUa.
[Manq-tsze, Latinized Mencius, the greatest of the Chinese teachers fol lowing Confucius, flourished from about n. c. 880 to 289. Of an old feudal house, deeply learned, and an enthusiastic follower of Confucius, he became the head of an influential school, and determined to raise China from the sink of anarchy, misery, and leveling doctrines into which it had fallen — there were seven war ring kingdoms — by becoming the chief adviser of a good king, whom he should find or make. He persevered in the effort for many years, treated well and listened to with respect, but his advice not followed ; finally he desisted, and went into retirement. His writings, full of deep moral truths, sagacious advice, and charm of style, have inspired every generation of Chinese since his time. ]
King Hwut of Leang said : " Small as my virtue is, in the government of my kingdom I do indeed exert my mind to the utmost. If the year be bad on the inside of the river, I remove as many of the people as I can to the east of the river, and convey grain to the country in the inside ; when the year is bad on the east of the river, I act on the same plan. On examining the government of the neighboring kingdoms, I do not find that there is any prince who employs his mind as I do. And yet the people of the neighboring kingdoms do not decrease, nor do my people increase. How is this? "
Mencius replied, " Your Majesty is fond of war. Let me take an illustration from war. The soldiers move forward to the sound of the drums ; and after their weapons have been crossed, on one side they throw away their coats of mail, trail their arms behind them, and run. Some run a hundred paces and stop ; some run fifty paces and stop. What would you think if those who run" fifty paces were to laugh at those who run a hundred paces ?
The king said, " They may not do so. They only did not run a hundred paces ; but they also ran away. "
"Since your Majesty knows this," replied Mencius, "you need not hope that your people will become more numerous than those of the neighboring kingdoms.
"If the seasons of husbandry be not interfered with, the grain will be more than can be eaten. If close nets are not allowed to enter the pools and ponds, the fishes and turtles will be more than can be consumed. If the axes and bills enter the hills and forests only at the proper time, the wood will be
276 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
more than can be used. When the grain and fish and turtles are more than can be eaten, and there is more wood than can be used, this enables the people to nourish their living and bury their dead, without any feeling against any. This con dition, in which the people nourish their living and bury their dead without any feeling against any, is the first step of royal government.
" Let mulberry trees be planted about the homesteads with their five mow, and persons of fifty years may be clothed with silk. In keeping fowls, pigs, dogs, and swine, let not their times of breeding be neglected, and persons of seventy years may eat flesh. Let there not be taken away the time that is proper for the cultivation of the farm with its hundred mow, and the family of several mouths that is supported by it shall not suffer from hunger. Let careful attention be paid to education in schools, inculcating in it especially the filial and fraternal duties, and gray-haired men will not be seen upon the roads, carrying burdens on their backs or on their heads. It never has been that the ruler of a state where such results were seen — persons of seventy wearing silk and eating flesh, and the black-haired people suffering neither from hunger nor cold — did not attain to the imperial dignity.
" Your dogs and swine eat the food of men, and you do not know to make any restrictive arrangements. There are people dying from hunger on the roads, and you do not know to issue the stores of your granaries for them. When people die you say,'Itisnotowingtome; itisowingtotheyear. ' Inwhat does this differ from stabbing a man and killing him, and then
'
empire the people will come to you. "
King Hwuy of Leang said : " There was not in the empire
saying, ' It was not I
; it was the weapon ?
cease to lay the blame on the year, and instantly from all the
a stronger state than Tsin, as you, venerable Sir, know. But since it descended to me, on the east we have been defeated by Ts'e, and then my eldest son perished ; on the west we have lost seven hundred li of territory to Ts'in ; and on the south we have sustained disgrace at the hands of Ts'oo. I have brought shame on my departed predecessors, and wish on their account to wipe it away, once for all. What course is to be pursued to accomplish this ? "
Mencius replied, " With a territory which is only a hundred li square, it is possible to attain the imperial dignity.
Let your Majesty
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. 277
" If your Majesty will indeed dispense a benevolent govern ment to the people, being sparing in the use of punishments and fines, and making the taxes and levies light, so causing that the field shall be plowed deep, and the weeding of them be carefully attended to, and that the strong-bodied, during their days of leisure, shall cultivate their filial piety, fraternal respectfulness, sincerity, and truthfulness, serving thereby, at home, their fathers and elder brothers, and abroad, their elders and superiors, you will then have a people who can be employed, with sticks which they have prepared, to oppose the strong mail and sharp weapons of the troops of Ts'in and Ts'oo.
"The rulers of those states rob their people of their time, so that they cannot plow and weed their fields in order to support their parents. Their parents suffer from cold and hunger. Brothers, wives, and children are separated and scattered abroad.
" Those rulers, as it were, drive their people into pitfalls or drown them. Your Majesty will go to punish them. In such a case, who will oppose your Majesty ?
" In accordance with this is the saying, ' The benevolent has no enemy. ' I beg your Majesty not to doubt what I say. "
Mencius went to see the King Seang of Leang.
On coming out from the interview, he said to some persons : " When I looked at him from a distance, he did not appear like a sovereign ; when I drew near to him, I saw nothing venerable about him. Abruptly he asked me, ' How can the empire be settled? ' I replied, 'It will be settled by being united under one sway. '
'
"'Whocan giveittohim? '
" I replied : ' All the people of the empire will unanimously give it to him. Does your Majesty understand the way of the growing grain ? During the seventh and eighth months, when drought prevails, the plants become dry. Then the clouds col lect densely in the heavens, they send down torrents of rain, and the grain erects itself, as if by a shoot. When it does so, who can keep it back? Now among the shepherds of men throughout the empire, if there were one who did not find
" ' Who can so unite it?
" I replied, ' He who has no pleasure in killing men can so unite it. '
278 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
pleasure in killing men, all the people in the empire would look towards him with outstretched necks. Such being, indeed, the case, the people would flock to him, as water flows down wards with a rush, which no one can repress. ' "
The King Seuen of Ts'e asked, saying, " May I be informed by you of the transactions of Hwan of Ts'e and Wan of
Ts'in? " " Mencius replied :
There were none of the disciples of Chun- que who spoke about the affairs of Hwan and Wan, and there
fore they have not been transmitted to these after ages, — your servant has not heard them. If you will have me speak, let it be about imperial government. "
The king said, " What virtue must there be in order to the attainment of imperial sway ? " Mencius answered, " The love and protection of the people ; with this there is no power which can prevent a ruler from attaining it. "
The king asked again, " Is such an one as I competent to love and protect the people? " Mencius said, "Yes. " " From
what do you know that I am competent to that ? "
the following incident from Hoo Heih : ' The king,' said he, ' was sitting aloft in the hall, when a man appeared, leading an
ox past the lower part of it. The king saw him, and asked, Where is the ox going ? The man replied, We are going to con secrate a hell with its blood. The king said, Let it go. I can not bear its frightened appearance, as if it were an innocent person going to the place of death. The man answered, Shall we then omit the consecration of the hell? The king said, How can that be omitted? Change it for a sheep. ' I do not know whether this incident really occurred. "
The king replied, " It did," and then Mencius said, " The heart seen in this is sufficient to carry you to the imperial sway. The people all supposed that your Majesty grudged the animal, but your servant knows surely that it was your Majesty's not being able to bear the sight, which made you do as you did. " "
You are right. And yet there really was
The king said,
an appearance of what the people condemned. But though Ts'e be a small and narrow state, how should I grudge one ox? Indeed it was because I could not bear its frightened ap pearance, as if it were an innocent person going to the place of death, that therefore I changed it for a sheep. "
"
I heard
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. 279
Mencius pursued, " Let not your Majesty deem it strange that the people should think you were grudging the animal. When you changed a large one for a small, how should they know the true reason? If you felt pained by its being led without guilt to the place of death, what was there to choose between an ox and a sheep ? "
I did not grudge the expense of it, and changed
it for a sheep ! There was reason in the people's saying that I
grudged it. "
" "There is no harm in their saying so," said Mencius.
Your conduct was an artifice of benevolence. You saw the ox, and had not seen the sheep. So is the superior man affected towards animals, that, having seen them alive, he cannot bear to see them die ; having heard their dying cries he cannot bear to eat their flesh. Therefore, he keeps away from his cook- room. " " '
The king was pleased, and said, It is said in the Book of Poetry,' 'The minds of others, I am able by reflection to measure ; ' this is verified, my master, in your discovery of my motive. I indeed did the thing, but when I turned my thoughts inward, and examined into it, I could not discover my own mind, when you, Master, spoke those words, the movements of compassion began to work in my mind. How is it that this heart has in it what is equal to the imperial sway ? "
Mencius replied, " Suppose a man were to make this state ment to your Majesty : ' My strength is sufficient to lift three thousand catties, but it is not sufficient to lift one feather; my eyesight is sharp enough to examine the point of an autumn hair, but I do not see a wagonload of fagots ; ' would your Majesty allow what he said ? " " No," was the answer, on which Mencius proceeded, "Now here is kindness sufficient to reach to animals, and no benefits are extended from it to the people. How is this? Is an exception to be made here? The truth is, the feather's not being lifted is because the strength is not used ; the wagonload of firewood's not being seen is because the vision is not used ; and the people's not being loved and protected is because the kind ness is not employed. Therefore your Majesty's not exercising the imperial sway is because you do not do it, not because you are not able to do it. "
The king laughed and said, " What really was my mind in
the matter?
280 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
The king asked, " How may the difference between the not doing a thing and the not being able to do it, be represented ? " Mencius replied : " In such a thing as taking the T'ae Moun tain under your arm, and leaping over the North Sea with it, if you say to your people, ' I am not able to do it,' that is a real case of not being able. In such a matter as breaking off a branch from a tree at the order of a superior, if you say to people, ' I am not able to do it,' that is a case of not doing it, it is not a case of not being able to do it. Therefore your Maj esty's not exercising the imperial sway is not such a case as that of taking the T'ae Mountain under your arm, and leaping over the North Sea with it. Your Majesty's not exercising the imperial sway is a case like that of breaking off a branch from a tree.
" Treat with the reverence due to age the elders in your own family, so that the elders in the families of others shall be simi larly treated ; treat with the kindness due to youth the young in your own family, so that the young in the families of others shall be similarly treated ; do this, and the empire may be made to go round in your palm. It is said in the ' Book of Poetry,' ' His example affected his wife. It reached to his brothers, and his family of the state was governed by it. ' The language shows how King Wan simply took this kindly heart, and exercised it towards those parties. Therefore, the carrying out his kindly heart by a prince will suffice for the love and protection of all within the four seas, and if he do not carry it out, he will not be able to protect his wife and children. The way in which the ancients came greatly to surpass other men was no other than this, — simply that they knew how to carry out, so as to affect others, what they themselves did. Now, your kindness is sufficient to reach to animals, and no benefits are extended from it to reach the people. How is this ? Is an exception to be made here ?
" By weighing, we know what things are light, and what heavy. By measuring we know what things are long, and what short. The relations of all things may be thus deter mined, and it is of the greatest importance to estimate the motions of the mind. I beg your Majesty to measure it.
" You collect your equipments of war, endanger your sol diers and officers, and excite the resentment of the other princes : do these things cause you pleasure in your mind ? "
The king laughed, and did not speak. Mencius resumed :
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
281
" Are you led to desire it because you have not enough of rich and sweet food for your mouth ? Or because you have not enough of light and warm clothing for your body? Or because you have not enow of beautifully colored objects to delight your eyes ? Or because you have not voices and tones enow to please your ears ? Or because you have not enow of attendants and favorites to stand before you and receive your orders ? Your Majesty's various officers are sufficient to sup ply you with those things. How can your Majesty be led to entertain such a desire on account of them ? " " No," said the king; "my desire is not on account of them. " Mencius added, " Then, what your Majesty greatly desires may be known. You wish to enlarge your territories, to have Ts'in and Ts'oo wait at your court, to rule the Middle Kingdom, and to attract to you the barbarous tribes that surround it. But to do what you do to seek for what you desire is like climbing a tree to seek for fish. " "
The king said, "Is it so bad as that?
was the reply. " If you climb a tree to seek for fish, although you do not get the fish, you will not suffer any subsequent calamity. But if you do what you do to seek for what you desire, doing it moreover with all your heart, you will as suredly afterwards meet with calamities. " The king asked, " May I hear from you the proof of that ? " Mencius said, " If the people of Tsow should fight with the people of Ts'oo, which of them does your Majesty think would conquer ? " "The people of Ts'oo could conquer. " "Yes; — and so it is certain that a small country cannot contend with a great, that few cannot contend with many, that the weak cannot contend with the strong. The territory within the four seas embraces nine divisions, each of a thousand li square. All Ts'e to gether is but one of them. If with one part you try to subdue the other eight, what is the difference between that and Tsow's contending with Ts'oo ? For, with the desire which you have, you must likewise turn back to the radical course for its attainment.
" Now, if your Majesty will institute a government whose action shall all be benevolent, this will cause all the officers in the empire to wish to stand in your Majesty's court, and the farmers all to wish to plow in your Majesty's fields, and the merchants, both traveling and stationary, all to wish to store their goods in your Majesty's market places, and traveling
"Itis even worse,"
282 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
strangers all to wish to make their tours on your Majesty's roads, and all throughout the empire who feel aggrieved by their rulers to wish to come and complain to your Majesty. And when they are so bent, who will be able to keep them back? " "
I am stupid, and not able to advance to this. I wish you, my master, to assist my intentions. Teach me clearly ; although I am deficient in intelligence and vigor, I
The king said,
will essay and try to carry your instructions into effect. " Mencius replied, "They are only men of education, who,
without a certain livelihood, are able to maintain a fixed heart. As to the people, if they have not a certain livelihood, it follows that they will not have a fixed heart. And if they have not a fixed heart, there is nothing which they will not do, in the way of self-abandonment, of moral deflection, of depravity, and of wild license. When they thus have been involved in crime, to follow them up and punish them, — this is to entrap the people. How can such a thing as entrapping the people be done under the rule of a benevolent man ?
" Therefore an intelligent ruler will regulate the livelihood of the people, so as to make sure that, above, they shall have sufficient wherewith to serve their parents, and, below, suffi cient wherewith to support their wives and children ; that in good years they shall always be abundantly satisfied, and that in bad years they shall escape the danger of perishing. After this he may urge them, and they will proceed to what is good, for in this case the people will follow after that with ease.
"Now, the livelihood of the people is so regulated that, above, they have not sufficient wherewith to serve their parents, and below, they have not sufficient wherewith to support their wives and children. Notwithstanding good years, their lives are continually embittered, and, in bad years, they do not escape perishing. In such circumstances they only try to save them selves from death, and are afraid they will not succeed. What leisure have they to cultivate propriety and righteousness ?
" If your Majesty wishes to effect this regulation of the livelihood of the people, why not turn to that which is the essential step to it ?
" Let mulberry trees be planted about the homesteads with their five mow, and persons of fifty years may be clothed with silk. In keeping fowls, pigs, and swine, let not their times of breeding be neglected, and persons of seventy years may eat
THE CLAY CART. 283
flesh.
Leucippe meekly replied, " Use me as harshly as you please ; I will submit to everything except the loss of chastity ; " and turning to Sosthenes, " you can bear witness to my powers of endurance ; for I have received at your hands harder measure
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 263
even than this ! " Ashamed at having his conduct brought to light, " This wench," said he, " deserves to be flayed with the scourge and to be put upon the rack, in order to teach her better manners towards her master. " "
" By all means follow his advice !
Thersander, " he gives good counsel ; do the worst which your malice can suggest ; extend my hands upon the wheel ; bare my back to the scourge ; burn my body in the fire ; smite off my head with the sword ; it will be a novel sight to see one weak woman contend against all your tortures, victorious against all ! You brand Clitopho as an adulterer, and yet you yourself would commit adultery ! Have you no reverence for your tutelary goddess Diana? Would you ravish a virgin in the very city sacred to a virgin ? O goddess, why do not thy shafts avenge the insult ? "
" You a virgin, forsooth ! " replied Thersander, contemptu ously ; " you who passed whole days and nights among the pirates ! Prythee were they eunuchs, or given only to platonic love, or were they blind? "
resumed Leucippe to
" Ask Sosthenes," said she, " whether or not I preserved my chastity against his attempts ; none of the freebooters behaved to me so brutally as you have done ; it is you who deserve the name of pirate, since you feel no shame in perpetrating deeds which they abstained from doing. You little think how your unblushing cruelty will redound hereafter to my praise ; you may kill me in your fury, and my encomium will be this : ' Leucippe preserved her chastity despite of buccaneers, despite of Chaereas, despite of Sosthenes, and crown of all (for this would be but trifling commendation), she remained chaste despite even of Thersander, more lascivious than the most lustful pirate ; and he who could not despoil her of her honor, robbed her of her life. ' Again, therefore, I say, bring into action all your engines and implements of torture, and employ the aid of Sosthenes, your right trusty counselor. I stand before you a feeble woman, naked and alone, having but one weapon of defense, my free spirit, which is proof against sword and fire and scourge. Burn me, if you will; you shall find that there be things over which even the fire is powerless ! "
The scornful reproaches of Leucippe stirred up a tumult of conflicting passions in Thersander's mind ; he was incensed by her taunts, vexed at his ill success, and perplexed how to secure the accomplishment of his desires. Without saying
264 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
another word he rushed out of the house to give vent to the storm and tempest of his soul. Shortly after, having conferred with Sosthenes, he went to the jailer, and endeavored to per suade him to administer a dose of poison to me ; this, however, the jailer refused to do, his predecessor having suffered death for taking off a prisoner in this manner. Failing in this, he obtained his consent to introduce a man (who was to pass for a criminal) into my cell, under pretense of wishing to extract some secrets out of me through him. The man had been pre viously tutored by Thersander, and was casually to introduce Leucippe's name, and to say that she had been murdered by the contrivance of Melitta. Thersander's object in persuading me of her death was to hinder me (in case I obtained a verdict of acquittal) from instituting any further search for her recov ery ; and Melitta's name was introduced in order that after learning Leucippe's death I might not entertain any thoughts of marrying her, and so by settling at Ephesus interrupt Ther sander in the prosecution of his schemes, but on the contrary might be induced to quit the city without delay, from hatred to Melitta for having contrived the death of my beloved.
As soon as this fellow came near me, he began to play his appointed part, and with a knavish groan exclaimed "Alacka- day ! what a miserable thing is life ! There is no keeping out of trouble ! It stands a man in no stead to be honest ! Some cross accident is sure to overtake him! Would I could have guessed the character of"my fellow-traveler, and what work he had been engaged in ! This, and much more of the same sort, he said speaking to himself, craftily endeavoring to attract my attention, and to make me inquire what it was that ailed him. He did not succeed, however, for I was sufficiently taken up with my own troubles, and he went on with his groans and ejaculations. At length — for the unfortunate take pleasure in listening to another's griefs, finding in it a kind of medi cine for their sorrows — one of the prisoners asked, "What trick has the jade Fortune been playing you ? I suspect that, like myself, she has laid you up in limbo without deserving it. " He then proceeded to tell his own story, giving an account of what had brought him into prison ; and having finished, re quested the other to favor him with the particulars of his own misfortune. He of course readily complied.
" I left the city yesterday," said he, " to go towards Smyrna, and had proceeded about half a mile, when I was joined by a
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 265
young man out of the country. He saluted me, and after walking with me for a few minutes, inquired whither I was going. I told him, and he said that luckily his road lay in the same direction, so that we proceeded in company, and entered into conversation. Stopping at an inn, we ordered dinner, and presently four men came in and did the same. Instead of eat ing, however, they continued watching us, and making signs to one another. I plainly enough saw that we were the objects of their notice, but was wholly at a loss to understand the meaning of their gestures. My companion gradually turned very pale, left off eating, and at last began to tremble all over. Instantly they sprang up, seized, and bound us ; one of them also dealt him a violent blow upon the face ; upon which, as if he had been already on the rack, and even without a question being asked him he cried out, ' I admit having killed the girl ! Melitta, Thersander's wife, hired me to do the deed, and gave me a hundred gold pieces for my trouble ; here they are every one — take them for yourselves ; and for heaven's sake let me off ! "
Upon hearing these names I started as if stung, and turning to him, "Who is Melitta? " I asked. "She is a lady of the first rank in this city," was his reply. " She took a fancy to a young man, said to be a native of Tyre ; he found a favorite wench of his (whom he had given up for lost), among the number of Melitta's slaves, and she, moved by jealousy, had the girl seized by the fellow whom ill luck made my fellow- traveler, and he, in obedience to Melitta's orders, has made away with her. But to return to my own story. I, who had never seen the man before, nor had dealings with him of any kind, was dragged along with him, bound, as an accomplice in his crime ; but what is harder than all, they had not gone far, before, for the sake of his hundred pieces, they let him go, but kept me in custody and carried me before the judge. "
Upon hearing this chapter of accidents, I neither uttered a sound nor shed a tear, for both voice and tears refused their office, but a general trembling seized me, my heart sunk within me, and I felt as at the point of death. After a time, recover ing in some degree from the stupor which his words had caused, " How did the ruffian "dispatch her ? " I asked, " and what has become of her body ? But having now performed the busi ness for which he was employed, by stimulating my curiosity, he became obstinately silent, and I could extract nothing more from him. In answer to my repeated questions, " Do you
266 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
think," said he, at length, " that I had a hand in the murder ? The man told me he had killed her; he said nothing of the place and manner of her death. " Tears now came to my relief, and I gave full vent to my sorrow. It is with mental wounds as with bodily hurts ; when one has been stricken in body some time elapses before the livid bruise, the result of the blow, is seen ; and so also any one who has been pierced by the sharp tusk of a boar, looks for the wound, but without immediately discovering it, owing to its being deeply seated ; but presently a white line is perceived, the precursor of the blood, which speedily begins to flow ; in like manner, no sooner have bitter tidings been announced, than they pierce the soul, but the suddenness of the stroke prevents the wound from being visible at once, and the tooth of sorrow must for some space have gnawed the heart ere a vent is found for tears, which are to the mind what blood is to the body. . . .
While thus plunged in grief, Clinias came to visit me. I related every particular to him, and declared my determination of putting an end to my existence. He did all in his power to console me. " Consider," he said, " how often she has died and come to life again ; who knows but what she may do the same on this occasion also? Why be in such haste to kill yourself? You will have abundant leisure when the tidings of her death have been positively confirmed. "
" This is mere trifling," I replied ; " there is small need of confirmation ; my resolve is fixed, and I have decided upon a manner of death which will not permit even the hated Melitta to escape unscathed. Listen to my plan : In case of being summoned into court it was my intention to plead not guilty. I have now changed my determination, and shall plead guilty, confessing the intrigue between Melitta and myself, and saying that we mutually planned Leucippe's death ; by this means she will suffer the punishment which is her due, and I shall quit this life which I so much detest. " "Talk not thus," replied he; "can you endure to die under the base imputation of being a murderer, and, what is more, the murderer of Leucippe ? " " Nothing is base," replied I, " by which we can wreak venge ance upon our enemies. " While we were engaged in argu ment, the fellow who had communicated the tidings of the fictitious murder was removed, upon pretense of being taken before the magistrate to undergo an examination. Clinias and Satyrus exerted themselves, but ineffectually, in order to per
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 267
suade me to alter my resolution ; and on the same day they removed into lodgings, so as to be no longer under the roof of Melitta's foster brother. The following day the case came on; Thersander had a great muster of friends and partisans, and had engaged ten advocates ; and Melitta had been equally on the alert in preparing for her defense. When the council on either side had finished speaking, I asked leave to address the court, and said, " All those who have been exerting their elo quence, either for Thersander or for Melitta, have been giving utterance to sheer nonsense ;
I will reveal the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I was once passionately in love with a female of Byzantium named Leucippe ; she was carried off by
pirates, and I had reason to believe that she was dead. Meet ing with Melitta in Egypt, we formed a connection, and after some time we traveled together to this city, and Leucippe, whom I just now mentioned, was found working as a slave on Thersander's estate, under his bailiff, Sosthenes. By what means he obtained possession of a freeborn female, and what were his dealings with the pirates, I leave it to you to guess.
" Melitta, finding that I had recovered my former mistress, became apprehensive of her regaining her influence over my affections, and contrived a plan for putting her to death. I entered into her schemes, — for what avails it to conceal the truth ? — having received a promise that she would settle all her property upon me ; a man was found, who, for the reward of a hundred gold pieces, undertook the business. When the deed was done, he fled, and is now somewhere in concealment.
"As for myself, Love was not long in taking vengeance upon my cruelty. No sooner did I hear of the murder being perpe trated, than I bitterly repented of what had taken place, and all my former fondness revived. For this reason I have determined to turn evidence against myself, in order that you may send me whither she is gone to whom I am still so deeply attached. Life is intolerable to one who, in addition to being a murderer, loves her of whose death he has been the cause. "
Every one in court was utterly astounded at the unexpected tenor of my speech, especially Melitta. The advocates of Thersander already claimed a triumph, while those engaged in Melitta's behalf anxiously questioned her as to the truth of what I had said. She was in great confusion ; denied some points, virtually admitted others, confessed to having known Leucippe, and indeed confirmed most of what I had said, with
268 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
the exception of the murder. This general agreement, on her part, with the facts advanced by me, created a suspicion against her, even in the minds of her own counsel, and they were at a loss what line of defense to adopt on her behalf. At this critical juncture, while the court was being a scene of great clamor, Clinias came forward and requested to be heard, for "Remember," said he, "a man's life is now in jeopardy. " Obtaining permission to speak : —
" Men of Ephesus ! " he began (his eyes filling with tears), "do not precipitately condemn to die one who eagerly longs for death, the natural refuge of the unfortunate. He has been
himself, and has taken upon him the guilt of others. Let me briefly acquaint you with what has befallen him. What he has said respecting his mistress, her being carried off by pirates, about Sosthenes, and other circumstances which happened before the pretended murder, are strictly true. The young woman has undoubtedly disappeared ; but whether she is still alive, or has been made away with, it is impossible to say ; one thing is certain, that Sosthenes conceived a passion for her, that he used her cruelly for not consenting to his desires, and that he was leagued with pirates. My friend, believing her to be murdered, is disgusted with life, and has, therefore, invented this charge against himself ; he has already confessed with his own mouth that he is anxious to die owing to grief at the loss which he has sustained. Consider, I pray you, whether it is likely that one who is really a murderer would be so desirous of dying with his victim, and would feel life so insup portable. When do we ever find murderers so tender-hearted, and hatred so compassionate? In the name of the gods, there fore, do not believe his words ; do not condemn to death a man who is much more deserving of commiseration than of punish ment. If, as he says, he really planned this murder, let him bring forward the hired assassin ; let him declare what has become of the body. If neither the one nor the other can be produced, how can any belief be attached to such a murder? ' I was in love with Melitta,' he says, ' and therefore I caused Leucippe to be killed ! ' How comes he to implicate Melitta, the object of his affection, and to be so desirous of dying for Leucippe, whose death he compassed ? Is it usual for persons to hate the object of their love, and to love the object of their hatred? Is it not much more probable that in such circum stances he would have denied the crime (even had it been
calumniating
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 269
brought home to him) in order to save his mistress, instead of throwing away his own life afterwards, owing to a vain regret for her loss? What can possibly, therefore, be his motive for charging Melitta with a crime of which she is not guilty ? I will tell you, and in so doing do not suppose that I have any desire of inculpating this lady, — my sole wish is to make you acquainted with the real truth.
" Before this seafaring husband of hers came to life again so suddenly, Melitta took a violent fancy to this young man, and proposed marriage to him ; he on his part was not at all disposed to comply with her wishes, and his repugnance became yet greater when he discovered that his mistress, whom he had imagined dead, was in slavery, under the power of Sosthenes. Until aware who she was, Melitta, taking pity upon her, had caused her to be set at liberty, had received her into her own house, and treated her with the consideration due to a gentle woman in distress; but after becoming acquainted with her story, she was sent back into the country, and she has not been heard of since. The truth of what I say can be attested by Melitta herself and the two maids in whose company she was sent away. This was one thing which excited suspicions in my friend's mind that Leucippe had been foully dealt with through her rival's jealousy ; a circumstance which took place after he was in prison confirmed these suspicions, and has had the effect of exasperating him not only against Melitta, but against himself. One of the prisoners, in the course of lament ing his own troubles, mentioned that he had unwittingly fallen into the company of a man who had committed murder for the sake of gold ; the victim was named Leucippe, and the crime, he said, had been committed at the instigation of Melitta. Of course I cannot say whether this be true or not ; it is for you to institute inquiries. You can produce the prisoner who made mention of the hired assassin ; Sosthenes, who can declare from whom he purchased Leucippe, and the maids, who can explain her disappearance. Before you have thoroughly investigated each of these particulars, it is contrary to all law, whether human or divine, to pass sentence upon this unfortunate young man on the bare evidence of his frenzied words, for there can be no doubt that the violence of his grief has affected his intellect. "
The arguments of Clinias appeared just and reasonable to many of those present, but Thersander's counsel, together with
270 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
his friends, called out that sentence of death ought to be pro nounced without delay upon the murderer who, by the provi dence of the gods, had been made his own accuser. Melitta brought forward her maids, and required Thersander to pro duce Sosthenes, who might probably turn out to be the mur derer. This was the challenge mainly insisted upon by her counsel. Thersander, in great alarm, secretly dispatched one of his dependants into the country, with orders to Sosthenes to get out of the way at once, before the arrival of those who were about to be sent after him.
Mounting a horse without delay, the messenger rode full speed to inform the bailiff of the danger he ran of being put to the torture, if taken. Sosthenes was at that moment with Leu- cippe, doing his best to soothe her irritated feelings. Hearing himself summoned in a loud voice, he came out of the cottage ; and, upon learning the state of matters, overcome with fear, and thinking the officers were already at his heels, he got upon the horse, and rode off towards Smyrna ; after which the mes senger returned to his master. It is a true saying that fear drives away the power of recollection, for Sosthenes in his alarm for his own safety was so forgetful of everything else that he neglected to secure the door of Leucippe's cottage. Indeed slaves, generally speaking, when frightened, run into the very excess of cowardice. Melitta's advocates having given the above-mentioned challenge, Thersander came forward and said, " We have now surely had quite enough of this man's silly sto ries ; and I cannot but feel surprised at your want of sense, who, after convicting a murderer upon the strongest possible evidence, his own admission of his guilt, do not at once pass sentence of death upon him ; whereas, instead of doing this,
you suffer yourselves to be imposed upon by his plausible words and tears. For my part I believe him actuated by per sonal fears, and to be an accomplice in the murder ; nor can I see what possible need there can be for having recourse to the rack in a matter so clear already. Nay, more, I fully believe him to have had a hand in another murder ; for three days have now elapsed since I saw Sosthenes, the man whom they call upon me to bring forward ; it is not at all improbable that this is owing to their contrivance, since it was he who informed me of the act of adultery which has taken place, and having put him to death, they now craftily call upon me to produce the man, knowing it to be out of my power to do so. But
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 271
even supposing he were alive and present, what difference could it make ? What questions would he put to him ? ' Did he ever purchase a certain female? ' 'Yes. ' 'Was this female in the power of Melitta ? ' ' Yes. ' Here would be an end of the examination, and Sosthenes would be dismissed. Let me now, however, address myself to Clitopho and Melitta.
" What have you done, I ask, with my slave ? — for a slave of mine she assuredly was, having been purchased by Sosthenes, and were she still alive, instead of having been murdered by them, my slave she would still be. " Thersander said this from mingled malice and cunning, in order that if Leucippe should turn out to be still alive, he might detain her in a state of servitude. He then continued : " Clitopho confessed that he killed her, he has therefore pronounced judgment upon him self. Melitta, on the other hand, denies the crime — her maids may be brought forward and tortured in order to refute what she says. If it should appear that they received the young woman from her, but have not brought her back again, the question will arise, What has become of her ? Why was she sent away ? And to whom was she sent ? Is it not self-evi dent that some persons had been hired to commit the murder, and that the maids were kept in ignorance of this, lest a num ber of witnesses might render discovery more probable ? No doubt they left her at some spot where a gang of ruffians were lying in concealment, so that it was out of their power to wit ness what took place. He has also trumped up some story about a prisoner who made mention of the murder. I should like to know who this prisoner is, who has not said a word on the subject to the chief magistrate, but has communicated, it seems, every particular to him, except the name of his informer. Again, I ask, will you not make an end of listening to such foolery, and taking any interest in such transparent absurdities ? Can you imagine that he would have turned a self-accuser with out the intervention of the deity ? " Thersander, after speaking to this effect, concluded by solemnly swearing that he was igno rant what had become of Sosthenes.
The presiding judge, who was of royal extraction, and who took cognizance of cases of blood, had, in accordance with the law, a certain number of assessors, men of mature age, whose province it was to assist him in judicial investigations. After conferring with them, he determined to pronounce sentence of death upon me, agreeably to a law which awarded capital pun
272 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
ishment to any one standing convicted upon his own accusa tion. Melitta was to have a second trial, and her maids were to be examined by torture ; Thersander was to register his oath, declaratory of his ignorance as to Sosthenes. I, as already con demned to death, was to be tortured in order to make me con fess whether Melitta was privy to the murder. Already was I bound, stripped, and suspended aloft by ropes, while some were bringing scourges, others the fire and the wheel, and Clinias was lamenting loudly, and calling upon the gods, when lo ! the priest of Diana, crowned with laurel, was beheld approaching : the sign of a sacred embassy coming to offer sacrifices to the goddess. In such cases there is suspension of all judicial pun ishments during the days occupied in the performance of the sacrifice, and in consequence of this I was released. The chief of the sacred embassy was no other than Leucippe's father. Diana had appeared to the Byzantians, and had secured them victory in the war against the Thracians, in consequence of which they felt bound to send her a sacrifice in token of their gratitude. In addition to this, the goddess had appeared to Sostratus himself at night, signifying to him that he would find his daughter and his nephew at Ephesus. Just about this time, Leucippe perceived the door of the cottage to be left open ; and as, after a careful examination, Sosthenes was no where to be seen, her usual presence of mind and sanguine hopes returned. She remembered how often, contrary to all expectation, she had been preserved, and the thought of this gave her increased boldness. Fortune moreover favored her, since the temple of Diana was near the spot. Accordingly, hurrying thither, she sought refuge within its precincts. The temple afforded sanctuary to men and virgins, — any other woman incurred death by entering it, unless she happened to be a slave who had some cause of complaint against her master ; in which case she was permitted to take refuge there, and the matter was submitted to the decision of the magistrates ; supposing the master was acquitted, he took back his slave, being bound by oath to bear her no ill will on account of her having run away ; but on the contrary, the slave was proved to have justice on her side, she remained in the temple, and was employed in the service of the goddess. Leucippe arrived at the temple just at the time when Sostratus was conducting the priest to the scene of the trial, in order to suspend the proceedings, and was very near encountering her father.
if,
CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE. 273
When I was set free, the court broke up, and I was sur rounded by a concourse of people, some pitying me, some calling upon the gods in my behalf, others questioning me. Sostratus, coming by at the time, no sooner saw than he recog nized me ; for, as
I before mentioned, he had formerly been at Tyre upon the occasion of a festival of Hercules, and had passed a considerable time there before the period of our flight.
He at once knew me, and the more readily because his dream had led him to expect that he should find me and his daughter there. Coming up to me, therefore, "Do I see Clitopho? " said he; "and where is Leucippe? " Instantly recognizing him, I cast my eyes to the ground and remained silent, while the bystanders related to him every particular relative to my self-accusation. He no sooner heard what they had to say than, with an ejaculation of bitter grief, and smiting his head, he made a rush at me, and was very near pulling out my eyes, for I remained altogether passive and offered no resistance to his violence. At length Clinias, coming forward, checked his fury, and endeavored to pacify him. " What are you about ? " said he; "why are you venting your wrath against him; he loves Leucippe more dearly than you do, for he has"courted death from belief that she was no longer in existence ; and he added a great deal more in order to calm his irritation. He, on the other hand, continued to vent his grief, and to call upon Diana. " Is it for this that thou hast summoned me hither, O goddess? Is this the fulfilment of my vision? I gave cre dence to the dreams which thou didst send, and flattered my self that I should find my daughter ! In lieu of which thou offerest"me, forsooth, a welcome present, — my daughter's mur derer ! Hearing of the vision sent by Diana, Clinias was overjoyed. "Take courage, sir," he said; "the goddess will not belie herself ! Rest assured your daughter is alive ; be lieve me, I am prophesying truth; do you not remark how wonderfully she has rescued your nephew from the clutches of his torturers ?
"
While this was going on, one of the ministers of the goddess came hurriedly to the priest, and announced that a foreign maiden had taken refuge in the temple. This intelligence, given in my hearing, inspired me with new life; my hopes revived, and I summoned courage to look up. " My prediction is being fulfilled, sir," said Clinias, addressing Sostratus ; and
then turning to the messenger he inquired, "Is the maiden vol. vn. — 18
274 CLITOPHO AND LEUCIPPE.
handsome ? " " She is second in beauty only to Diana herself," was the reply.
At these words I leaped for joy, and exclaimed, " It must be Leucippe ! " " You are right in your conjecture," said he ; " this was the very name she gave ; saying likewise that she was the daughter of one Sostratus, and a native of Byzantium. " Clinias now clapped his hands and shouted with delight, while Sostratus, overcome by his emotions, was ready to sink upon the ground. For my part, in spite of my fetters, I made a bound into the air, and then shot away towards the temple, like an arrow from a bow. The keepers pursued me, suppos ing that I was trying to escape, and bawled out to every one, " Stop him ! stop him ! " At that moment, however, I seemed to have wings upon my heels, and it was with much difficulty that some persons at length caught hold of me in my mad career. The keepers upon coming up were disposed to use violence, to which, however, I was no longer inclined to sub mit; nevertheless they persisted in dragging me towards the prison. By this time Clinias and"Sostratus had arrived at the
spot ; and the former called out, Whither are you taking this man ? — he is not guilty of the murder for which he has been condemned ! " Sostratus spoke to the same effect, and added that he was father to the maiden supposed to have been mur dered. The bystanders, learning the circumstances which had taken place, were loud in their praises of Diana, and surround ing me would not permit me to be taken to prison ; on the other hand, the keepers declared that they had no authority to set a prisoner at liberty who had been condemned to death. In the end, the priest, at the urgent entreaty of Sostratus, agreed to become bail, and to produce me in court whenever it should be required. Then at length freed from my fetters, I hurried on towards the temple, followed by Sostratus, whose feelings of joy could hardly, I think, equal my own.
Rumor, who outstrips the swiftest of men, had already reached Leucippe, and informed her of all particulars respect ing me and Sostratus. Upon catching sight of us she darted out of the temple, and threw her arms around her father, but at the same time her looks were turned on me ; the presence of Sostratus restrained me from embracing her, though I gazed intently upon her face ; and thus our greetings were confined to eyes.
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. By MENCIUa.
[Manq-tsze, Latinized Mencius, the greatest of the Chinese teachers fol lowing Confucius, flourished from about n. c. 880 to 289. Of an old feudal house, deeply learned, and an enthusiastic follower of Confucius, he became the head of an influential school, and determined to raise China from the sink of anarchy, misery, and leveling doctrines into which it had fallen — there were seven war ring kingdoms — by becoming the chief adviser of a good king, whom he should find or make. He persevered in the effort for many years, treated well and listened to with respect, but his advice not followed ; finally he desisted, and went into retirement. His writings, full of deep moral truths, sagacious advice, and charm of style, have inspired every generation of Chinese since his time. ]
King Hwut of Leang said : " Small as my virtue is, in the government of my kingdom I do indeed exert my mind to the utmost. If the year be bad on the inside of the river, I remove as many of the people as I can to the east of the river, and convey grain to the country in the inside ; when the year is bad on the east of the river, I act on the same plan. On examining the government of the neighboring kingdoms, I do not find that there is any prince who employs his mind as I do. And yet the people of the neighboring kingdoms do not decrease, nor do my people increase. How is this? "
Mencius replied, " Your Majesty is fond of war. Let me take an illustration from war. The soldiers move forward to the sound of the drums ; and after their weapons have been crossed, on one side they throw away their coats of mail, trail their arms behind them, and run. Some run a hundred paces and stop ; some run fifty paces and stop. What would you think if those who run" fifty paces were to laugh at those who run a hundred paces ?
The king said, " They may not do so. They only did not run a hundred paces ; but they also ran away. "
"Since your Majesty knows this," replied Mencius, "you need not hope that your people will become more numerous than those of the neighboring kingdoms.
"If the seasons of husbandry be not interfered with, the grain will be more than can be eaten. If close nets are not allowed to enter the pools and ponds, the fishes and turtles will be more than can be consumed. If the axes and bills enter the hills and forests only at the proper time, the wood will be
276 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
more than can be used. When the grain and fish and turtles are more than can be eaten, and there is more wood than can be used, this enables the people to nourish their living and bury their dead, without any feeling against any. This con dition, in which the people nourish their living and bury their dead without any feeling against any, is the first step of royal government.
" Let mulberry trees be planted about the homesteads with their five mow, and persons of fifty years may be clothed with silk. In keeping fowls, pigs, dogs, and swine, let not their times of breeding be neglected, and persons of seventy years may eat flesh. Let there not be taken away the time that is proper for the cultivation of the farm with its hundred mow, and the family of several mouths that is supported by it shall not suffer from hunger. Let careful attention be paid to education in schools, inculcating in it especially the filial and fraternal duties, and gray-haired men will not be seen upon the roads, carrying burdens on their backs or on their heads. It never has been that the ruler of a state where such results were seen — persons of seventy wearing silk and eating flesh, and the black-haired people suffering neither from hunger nor cold — did not attain to the imperial dignity.
" Your dogs and swine eat the food of men, and you do not know to make any restrictive arrangements. There are people dying from hunger on the roads, and you do not know to issue the stores of your granaries for them. When people die you say,'Itisnotowingtome; itisowingtotheyear. ' Inwhat does this differ from stabbing a man and killing him, and then
'
empire the people will come to you. "
King Hwuy of Leang said : " There was not in the empire
saying, ' It was not I
; it was the weapon ?
cease to lay the blame on the year, and instantly from all the
a stronger state than Tsin, as you, venerable Sir, know. But since it descended to me, on the east we have been defeated by Ts'e, and then my eldest son perished ; on the west we have lost seven hundred li of territory to Ts'in ; and on the south we have sustained disgrace at the hands of Ts'oo. I have brought shame on my departed predecessors, and wish on their account to wipe it away, once for all. What course is to be pursued to accomplish this ? "
Mencius replied, " With a territory which is only a hundred li square, it is possible to attain the imperial dignity.
Let your Majesty
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. 277
" If your Majesty will indeed dispense a benevolent govern ment to the people, being sparing in the use of punishments and fines, and making the taxes and levies light, so causing that the field shall be plowed deep, and the weeding of them be carefully attended to, and that the strong-bodied, during their days of leisure, shall cultivate their filial piety, fraternal respectfulness, sincerity, and truthfulness, serving thereby, at home, their fathers and elder brothers, and abroad, their elders and superiors, you will then have a people who can be employed, with sticks which they have prepared, to oppose the strong mail and sharp weapons of the troops of Ts'in and Ts'oo.
"The rulers of those states rob their people of their time, so that they cannot plow and weed their fields in order to support their parents. Their parents suffer from cold and hunger. Brothers, wives, and children are separated and scattered abroad.
" Those rulers, as it were, drive their people into pitfalls or drown them. Your Majesty will go to punish them. In such a case, who will oppose your Majesty ?
" In accordance with this is the saying, ' The benevolent has no enemy. ' I beg your Majesty not to doubt what I say. "
Mencius went to see the King Seang of Leang.
On coming out from the interview, he said to some persons : " When I looked at him from a distance, he did not appear like a sovereign ; when I drew near to him, I saw nothing venerable about him. Abruptly he asked me, ' How can the empire be settled? ' I replied, 'It will be settled by being united under one sway. '
'
"'Whocan giveittohim? '
" I replied : ' All the people of the empire will unanimously give it to him. Does your Majesty understand the way of the growing grain ? During the seventh and eighth months, when drought prevails, the plants become dry. Then the clouds col lect densely in the heavens, they send down torrents of rain, and the grain erects itself, as if by a shoot. When it does so, who can keep it back? Now among the shepherds of men throughout the empire, if there were one who did not find
" ' Who can so unite it?
" I replied, ' He who has no pleasure in killing men can so unite it. '
278 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
pleasure in killing men, all the people in the empire would look towards him with outstretched necks. Such being, indeed, the case, the people would flock to him, as water flows down wards with a rush, which no one can repress. ' "
The King Seuen of Ts'e asked, saying, " May I be informed by you of the transactions of Hwan of Ts'e and Wan of
Ts'in? " " Mencius replied :
There were none of the disciples of Chun- que who spoke about the affairs of Hwan and Wan, and there
fore they have not been transmitted to these after ages, — your servant has not heard them. If you will have me speak, let it be about imperial government. "
The king said, " What virtue must there be in order to the attainment of imperial sway ? " Mencius answered, " The love and protection of the people ; with this there is no power which can prevent a ruler from attaining it. "
The king asked again, " Is such an one as I competent to love and protect the people? " Mencius said, "Yes. " " From
what do you know that I am competent to that ? "
the following incident from Hoo Heih : ' The king,' said he, ' was sitting aloft in the hall, when a man appeared, leading an
ox past the lower part of it. The king saw him, and asked, Where is the ox going ? The man replied, We are going to con secrate a hell with its blood. The king said, Let it go. I can not bear its frightened appearance, as if it were an innocent person going to the place of death. The man answered, Shall we then omit the consecration of the hell? The king said, How can that be omitted? Change it for a sheep. ' I do not know whether this incident really occurred. "
The king replied, " It did," and then Mencius said, " The heart seen in this is sufficient to carry you to the imperial sway. The people all supposed that your Majesty grudged the animal, but your servant knows surely that it was your Majesty's not being able to bear the sight, which made you do as you did. " "
You are right. And yet there really was
The king said,
an appearance of what the people condemned. But though Ts'e be a small and narrow state, how should I grudge one ox? Indeed it was because I could not bear its frightened ap pearance, as if it were an innocent person going to the place of death, that therefore I changed it for a sheep. "
"
I heard
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT. 279
Mencius pursued, " Let not your Majesty deem it strange that the people should think you were grudging the animal. When you changed a large one for a small, how should they know the true reason? If you felt pained by its being led without guilt to the place of death, what was there to choose between an ox and a sheep ? "
I did not grudge the expense of it, and changed
it for a sheep ! There was reason in the people's saying that I
grudged it. "
" "There is no harm in their saying so," said Mencius.
Your conduct was an artifice of benevolence. You saw the ox, and had not seen the sheep. So is the superior man affected towards animals, that, having seen them alive, he cannot bear to see them die ; having heard their dying cries he cannot bear to eat their flesh. Therefore, he keeps away from his cook- room. " " '
The king was pleased, and said, It is said in the Book of Poetry,' 'The minds of others, I am able by reflection to measure ; ' this is verified, my master, in your discovery of my motive. I indeed did the thing, but when I turned my thoughts inward, and examined into it, I could not discover my own mind, when you, Master, spoke those words, the movements of compassion began to work in my mind. How is it that this heart has in it what is equal to the imperial sway ? "
Mencius replied, " Suppose a man were to make this state ment to your Majesty : ' My strength is sufficient to lift three thousand catties, but it is not sufficient to lift one feather; my eyesight is sharp enough to examine the point of an autumn hair, but I do not see a wagonload of fagots ; ' would your Majesty allow what he said ? " " No," was the answer, on which Mencius proceeded, "Now here is kindness sufficient to reach to animals, and no benefits are extended from it to the people. How is this? Is an exception to be made here? The truth is, the feather's not being lifted is because the strength is not used ; the wagonload of firewood's not being seen is because the vision is not used ; and the people's not being loved and protected is because the kind ness is not employed. Therefore your Majesty's not exercising the imperial sway is because you do not do it, not because you are not able to do it. "
The king laughed and said, " What really was my mind in
the matter?
280 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
The king asked, " How may the difference between the not doing a thing and the not being able to do it, be represented ? " Mencius replied : " In such a thing as taking the T'ae Moun tain under your arm, and leaping over the North Sea with it, if you say to your people, ' I am not able to do it,' that is a real case of not being able. In such a matter as breaking off a branch from a tree at the order of a superior, if you say to people, ' I am not able to do it,' that is a case of not doing it, it is not a case of not being able to do it. Therefore your Maj esty's not exercising the imperial sway is not such a case as that of taking the T'ae Mountain under your arm, and leaping over the North Sea with it. Your Majesty's not exercising the imperial sway is a case like that of breaking off a branch from a tree.
" Treat with the reverence due to age the elders in your own family, so that the elders in the families of others shall be simi larly treated ; treat with the kindness due to youth the young in your own family, so that the young in the families of others shall be similarly treated ; do this, and the empire may be made to go round in your palm. It is said in the ' Book of Poetry,' ' His example affected his wife. It reached to his brothers, and his family of the state was governed by it. ' The language shows how King Wan simply took this kindly heart, and exercised it towards those parties. Therefore, the carrying out his kindly heart by a prince will suffice for the love and protection of all within the four seas, and if he do not carry it out, he will not be able to protect his wife and children. The way in which the ancients came greatly to surpass other men was no other than this, — simply that they knew how to carry out, so as to affect others, what they themselves did. Now, your kindness is sufficient to reach to animals, and no benefits are extended from it to reach the people. How is this ? Is an exception to be made here ?
" By weighing, we know what things are light, and what heavy. By measuring we know what things are long, and what short. The relations of all things may be thus deter mined, and it is of the greatest importance to estimate the motions of the mind. I beg your Majesty to measure it.
" You collect your equipments of war, endanger your sol diers and officers, and excite the resentment of the other princes : do these things cause you pleasure in your mind ? "
The king laughed, and did not speak. Mencius resumed :
THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
281
" Are you led to desire it because you have not enough of rich and sweet food for your mouth ? Or because you have not enough of light and warm clothing for your body? Or because you have not enow of beautifully colored objects to delight your eyes ? Or because you have not voices and tones enow to please your ears ? Or because you have not enow of attendants and favorites to stand before you and receive your orders ? Your Majesty's various officers are sufficient to sup ply you with those things. How can your Majesty be led to entertain such a desire on account of them ? " " No," said the king; "my desire is not on account of them. " Mencius added, " Then, what your Majesty greatly desires may be known. You wish to enlarge your territories, to have Ts'in and Ts'oo wait at your court, to rule the Middle Kingdom, and to attract to you the barbarous tribes that surround it. But to do what you do to seek for what you desire is like climbing a tree to seek for fish. " "
The king said, "Is it so bad as that?
was the reply. " If you climb a tree to seek for fish, although you do not get the fish, you will not suffer any subsequent calamity. But if you do what you do to seek for what you desire, doing it moreover with all your heart, you will as suredly afterwards meet with calamities. " The king asked, " May I hear from you the proof of that ? " Mencius said, " If the people of Tsow should fight with the people of Ts'oo, which of them does your Majesty think would conquer ? " "The people of Ts'oo could conquer. " "Yes; — and so it is certain that a small country cannot contend with a great, that few cannot contend with many, that the weak cannot contend with the strong. The territory within the four seas embraces nine divisions, each of a thousand li square. All Ts'e to gether is but one of them. If with one part you try to subdue the other eight, what is the difference between that and Tsow's contending with Ts'oo ? For, with the desire which you have, you must likewise turn back to the radical course for its attainment.
" Now, if your Majesty will institute a government whose action shall all be benevolent, this will cause all the officers in the empire to wish to stand in your Majesty's court, and the farmers all to wish to plow in your Majesty's fields, and the merchants, both traveling and stationary, all to wish to store their goods in your Majesty's market places, and traveling
"Itis even worse,"
282 THE ART OF GOVERNMENT.
strangers all to wish to make their tours on your Majesty's roads, and all throughout the empire who feel aggrieved by their rulers to wish to come and complain to your Majesty. And when they are so bent, who will be able to keep them back? " "
I am stupid, and not able to advance to this. I wish you, my master, to assist my intentions. Teach me clearly ; although I am deficient in intelligence and vigor, I
The king said,
will essay and try to carry your instructions into effect. " Mencius replied, "They are only men of education, who,
without a certain livelihood, are able to maintain a fixed heart. As to the people, if they have not a certain livelihood, it follows that they will not have a fixed heart. And if they have not a fixed heart, there is nothing which they will not do, in the way of self-abandonment, of moral deflection, of depravity, and of wild license. When they thus have been involved in crime, to follow them up and punish them, — this is to entrap the people. How can such a thing as entrapping the people be done under the rule of a benevolent man ?
" Therefore an intelligent ruler will regulate the livelihood of the people, so as to make sure that, above, they shall have sufficient wherewith to serve their parents, and, below, suffi cient wherewith to support their wives and children ; that in good years they shall always be abundantly satisfied, and that in bad years they shall escape the danger of perishing. After this he may urge them, and they will proceed to what is good, for in this case the people will follow after that with ease.
"Now, the livelihood of the people is so regulated that, above, they have not sufficient wherewith to serve their parents, and below, they have not sufficient wherewith to support their wives and children. Notwithstanding good years, their lives are continually embittered, and, in bad years, they do not escape perishing. In such circumstances they only try to save them selves from death, and are afraid they will not succeed. What leisure have they to cultivate propriety and righteousness ?
" If your Majesty wishes to effect this regulation of the livelihood of the people, why not turn to that which is the essential step to it ?
" Let mulberry trees be planted about the homesteads with their five mow, and persons of fifty years may be clothed with silk. In keeping fowls, pigs, and swine, let not their times of breeding be neglected, and persons of seventy years may eat
THE CLAY CART. 283
flesh.
