Pieces and so make themselves mutually Miserable Nor cou'd these People of Betica imagin why those Conquerors who subjugate great Empires shou'd be so much admir'd What a Folly 't is said they for a Man to place his Happiness in governing other Men the government of whom is so very troublesome if they are govern'd by reason and according to Justice But how can he take Pleasure in governing them against their Wills 'T is all that a wise Man ought to do to submit himself to govern a docile People of whom the Gods have given him Charge or a People who entrent him to be as a Father or Shepherd to 'em but to govern a People against their Will is to make himself most Miserable to gain a false Honour for kiiping them in Slavery A Conqueror is a Man whom the Gods irritated against Mankind have sent upon the Earth in their Wrath to lay Kingdoms wast spread Terrours Misery and Despair every where and to make as many Slaves as there are free Men. Is it not Glory enough to a Man that thirsts after Fame to rule those with Prudence whom the Gods have put under him Do's he think that he is not worthy of Praise unless he becomes Violent Unjust Insulting an Usurper and Tyrannick over all his Neighbours War shou'd never be thought on but for the defence of Liberty He is happy who being a Slave to no Man has not the vain Ambition to make another Man his Slave Those mighty Conquerors whom they represent to us with so much Glory are like those overflowing Rivers which appear Majestick but destroy those fertile Countrys which they shou'd only refresh After Adoam had given this Description of Betica Telemachus charm'd with his Relation ask'd him several particular Questions Do these People said he drink Wine They are so far from Drinking it reply'd Adoam that they never car'd to make any not that they want Grapes since no Country whatever produces more delicious but they are satisfi'd with eating Grapes as they do other Fruits for they dread Wine as the Corrupter of Mankind 'T is a kind of Poyson say they which makes 'em Mad it does not kill a Man indeed but it makes him a Beast Men may preserve their Health without Wine whose effect is to destroy good Manners Then said Telemachus I wou'd fain know what Laws are observ'd in Marriages in this Nation No Man replied Adoam can have more than one Wife whom he must keep as long as she lives The Honour of the Men in this Country depends as much on their Fidelity to their Wives as the Honour of the Wives depends in other Countries on their Fidelity to their Husbands Never were People so Honest and so jealous of their Chastity the Wives here are Beautiful and Agreeable but Plain Modest and Laborious their Marriages are Peaceable Fruitful and without Blemish the Husband and Wife seem to be but one Person in Two different Bodies the Husband and the Wife share the Cares of domestick Affairs together the Husband manages all the Concerns abroad the Wife keeps close to her Business at home she Comforts her Husband and seems to be made for nothing else but to please him she gains his Confidence and contributes less by her Beauty than her Virtue to heighten the Charms of their Society which lasts as long as they live The Sobriety Temperance and the Purity of Manners of these People give 'em a long Life and free from Diseases here are Men of an Hundred and of an Hundred and twenty Years Old who yet are Fresh and Vigorous I wou'd know now said Telemachus how they do to avoid going to War with other People their Neighbours Nature continued Adoam has separated them from other People on one side by the Sea and on the other side by high Mountains On the other hand the neighbouring Nations respect 'em for the sake of their Virtue Several times the other People falling out among themselves have made these Judges of their Differences and have entrusted the Lands and Towns for which they disputed with them As this wise Nation has never committed any Violence no Body distrusts ' em They Laugh when they hear of Kings who can't govern the Frontiers of their Estates among themselves Is it to be fear'd say they that Men shou'd want Lands There will ever be more than they can cultivate as long there remains free Lands we wou'd not so much as defend our own against our Neighbours who wou'd take 'em from us nor Envy nor Pride nor Falshood nor a Desire of enlarging their Dominions was ever known among the Inhabitants of Betica so that their Neighbours never have occasion to fear such a People nor can ever hope to make them fear it which is the reason that they never molest 'em These People wou'd sooner forsake their Country or wou'd deliver themselves up to Death than submit themselves to Slavery Thus they are as difficult to be Enslav'd as itis for them to desire to Enslave others 'T is that causes so profound a Peace between them and their Neighbours Adoam ended this Discourse with an Account of the menner of Traffick between the Phaenicians and those of Betica These People Pursu'd he were amaz'd when they saw strange Men come from so far on the Waves of the Sea They receiv'd us very kindly and gave us part of all that they had without taking any payment for it they offer'd us all that was left of their Wooll after they had sufficiently provided for their own use and indeed sent us a rich Present of it 'T is a Pleasure to them to give their overplus liberally to Strangers As for their Mines it was no manner of trouble at all to have parted with 'em to us they made no advantage of 'em they fancy'd Men were not overwise to search with so much Pains in the Bowels of the Earth what cou'd not make 'em happy nor satisfy true Necessity Do not dig said they to us so deep into the Earth content your selves with Ploughing and Tilling it it will afford you real Goods that will nourish you you will reap Fruits from it that are more valuble than Gold and Silver since Men desire neither Gold nor Silver only to purchase Necessaries to support Life We wou'd often have taught 'em Navigation and have carry'd the young Men of their Country into Phaenicia but they wou'd never consent that their Children shou'd learn to Live after our manner They wou'd learn said they to us to have occasion for all those Things that are meerly necessary to us they wou'd have 'em and they wou'd forsake Virtue to gain them they wou'd grow like a Man who has good Legs and who having lost the custom of Walking brings himself at last to the sad necessity of being always carry'd like a sick Man Indeed they admire Navigation because it is an industrious Art but they believe it is pernicious If those People say they have sufficient of what is
Fugitive whom the avenging Gods and Men pursue All my past Honours and Glory serv'd only to make my Fall the more ingnominious and insupportable I sought a shelter for my houshold-Gods on this desart Coast where I found nothing but wild uncultivated Lands over-run with Thorns and Briars cover'd with Trees as old as the Earth it self and huge steep Rocks inaccessible to all but fierce Beasts which harbour'd under them Yet such was the Extremity to which I was reduc'd that I was glad to enjoy with a few Soldiers and Friends who had been willing to accompany me in my Misfortunes that wild savage Land and make it my Country having no hopes ever to see again that fortunate Island whereof I was born King Alass said I to my self what a Change is here What a dreadful Example am I to Kings What wholsome Instructions they can draw from my Miscarriages They fancy there is nothing they ought to be afraid of because of their Elevation above the rest of Men But oh 't is that very Elevation which ought to make them more afraid than others I was dreaded by my Enemies and belov'd by my Subjects I Commanded over a powerful and warlike Nation Fame had spread my Renown as far as the remotest Countries I reign'd in a fruitful and delightful Island an hundred Cities paid me a yearly Tribute out of their Riches my People acknowledg'd me to be the Off-spring of great Jupiter and as I was born in their Country they lov'd me as the Grand-Son of wise Minos whose Laws make them so powerful and happy What could be wanting to my Felicity except the knowing how to use it with Moderation But alass my own Pride and the Flattery of others to which I listned but too much have over-turn'd my Throne and in the like manner will all Kings fall who will give up themselves to their own Desires and the deceitful Counsels of their Flatterers In the Day-time I endeavour'd to put on a Countenance both smiling and full of Assurance in order to keep up the Courage of those who had follow'd me Let us build said I to them a new City that will make us amends for all our Losses we are surrounded by Nations whose Example ought to animate us in this Undertaking we behold Tarentum which is rearing up pretty near us and 't is Phalantus with his Lacedemonians who possesses that new Kingdom Philoctctes builds another great City on the same Coast to which he gave the Name of Petilia Metapontus is likewise such another Colony why then should we do less than those Strangers who wander like us since Fortune is no more cross to us than to them Whilest with these and the like words I endeavour'd to alleviate the Troubles of my Companions I conceal'd a mortal Grief in the bottom of my Heart I felt some Comfort at the withdrawing of the day when in the gloomy Shade of silent Night I was at liberty to lament my wretched Fate my Eyes became two Streams of continual Tears and sweet Sleep had quite deserted my Bed The next day I resum'd my Toils with unwearied eagerness and that 's the Reason Oh! Mentor you found me so much alter'd by Age. Idomeneus having thus given Telemachus and Mentor the Relation of all his Misfortunes he desir'd their Assistance in the War wherein he was engag'd I will said he take care that you are safely conducted to Ithaca as soon as the War is over in the mean time I will send out Ships to the most distant Shoars to learn News of Ulysses into what Place of the known World he may be cast either by the stormy Winds or some angry Deity I will bring him back from thence may the Gods but grant that he be still alive As for you I will send you back into your own Country in the best Ships that ever were built in the Isle of Crete they are made of Trees fell'd on Mount Ida where great Jove was born that sacred Wood can never perish in the Waves the Winds and Rocks both fear and reverence it and even Neptune tho' never so angry dares not to raise his fierce Billows against it Therefore be assur'd that you will return to Ithaca with ease and safety and that no cross Deity shall be able to make you wander on so many Seas any more The Passage to your own Island is short and easie send away the Phenician Vessel that brought you hither and think now on nothing but on the Honour you shall reap in settling Idomeneus in his new Kingdom and making him amends for all his Losses 'T is by these Actions Oh! Son of Ulysses that you will be thought worthy of your Father and tho' cruel Fate should have already confin'd him within the gloomy Kingdom of Pluto yet all Greece shall have the Pleasure to find him again in you At these words Telemachus interrupting Idomeneus let us said he send away the Phenician Vessel Why do we defer any longer to take up Arms and attack your Enemies who are now become ours Since we were Victorious when we fought in Sicily for Acestes a Trojan and an Enemy of Greece can any one doubt but that we will shew a greater Ardour and Resolution and be more favour'd by the Gods when we fight for one of those Grecian Heroes who over-threw Troy the City of Priamus Mentor looking upon Telemachus with a serence and compos'd Countenance and perceiving that he burnt with a noble and eager Desire of Fighting spoke thus to him I am very glad Oh! Son of Ulysses to find in you so generous and commendable a Passion for Glory but remember that the great Renown your Father got amongst the Grecians at the Siege of Troy was only by approving himself the wisest and most moderate of them Altho ' the fierce Achilles was both invincible and invulnerable altho' he carried Terrour and Destruction where-ever he fought yet Achilles could not make himself Master of Troy he fell before the Walls of that famous City which triumph'd over the Murderer of Hector but Ulysses whose Valour was ever guided by Prudence carried Fire and Sword amongst the Trojans and 't is to him the fall of those lofty Towers which during ten Years defied whole Greece is entirely owing As much as Minerva is above Mars by so much a discreet and provident Valour surpasses a boisterous rash and wild Courage Therefore let us First consider the Reasons and Circumstances of this War which is to be carried on I decline no Dangers whatsoever but methinks Idomeneus you ought to let us know First whether the War you engage in be just Secondly against whom you wage it and lastly whether your Forces be such as you may reasonably hope to overcome your Enemies Idomeneus reply'd At our first landing on this Coast we found in it a savage People who liv'd in the Woods and fed upon what they kill'd in Hunting and the Mast of Trees they were frighted at the fight of our
left his Country voluntarily exiling himself and died Poor in a strange Land by this means to oblige his People always to observe these useful Laws according to their Oath That other Prince thou seest is the eleventh King of the Pylians and one of the Ancestors of wise Nestor When the Earth was ravag'd by a Pestilence which cover'd the Banks of Acheron with a multitude of new Ghosts he requested of the Gods that they would suffer him to appease their Anger in satisfying by his Death for so many Thousands of innocent Men. The Gods heard his Petition and gave him here a royal Grandeur in comparison of which all the Pomps of the Earth are but so many vain Shadows That old Man whom thou seest crown'd with Flowers is the famous Belus he reigned in Egypt and married Anchinoe the Daughter of the God Nilus who hides the source of his Streams and enriches the Countries which he Waters by his fruitful Inundations he had two Sons Danaus of whose History thou art not Ignorant and Egyptus who gives his Name to that considerable Kingdom Belus thought himself Richer by the Prosperity he gave his People and the love his Subjects bare to him than by all the Tributes he could have exacted of ' em These Men my Son whom thou supposest to be dead are alive and that Life which Men lead amidst many Miseries on Earth is no better than Death only the Names of Things are chang'd May it please the Gods to render thee Vertuous enough to merit this blessed Life which nothing can ever either end or disturb Haste away 't is time to go and seek thy Father before thou shalt find him alass how much Blood-shed shalt thou see But yet what Glory waits for thee in the Fields of Hesperia Remember the Counsels of the wise Mentor if thou follow'st them thy Name shall be great among the Nations and in all Ages Having said this he presently conducted Telemachus toward the Gate of Ivory which leads out of the gloomy Empire of Pluto Telemachus parted from him with Tears in his Eyes without being able to embrace him Being come out of these dark Regions he made what haste he could to return to the Camp of the Allies after he had again joyn'd the two young Cretans on the Way who had accompanied him very near the Cavern and had lost their hope of ever seeing him again In the mean time the chief Commanders of the Army met together to deliberate whether they should possess themselves of Venusia It was an old Fort which Adrastus had heretofore usurp'd upon his Neighbours the Appulians These were enter'd into the Confederacy against him to demand Satisfaction for this piece of Injustice Adrastus to appease 'em had put this City by way of Caution into the Hands of the Lucanians but had by Money corrupted both the Lucanian Garrison and the Person that Commanded it so that the ' Lucanians had in reality no more Authority than he in Venusia And thus the Appulians who had consented that the Lucanian Garrison should keep Venusia were trick'd in this Negotiation A Citizen of Venusia nam'd Demophantes had made a private Offer to the Allies to deliver up one of the Gates of the City in the Night This Advantage was so much the greater in that Adrastus had sent all the Ammunition and Provisions to a Castle near Venusia which could not defend it self if Venusia were taken Philoctetes and Nestor had already given their Opinion that such a happy Opportunity ought to be improv'd all the Principal Commanders sway'd by their Authority and attracted by the Advantage of so easie an Enterprize Applauded their Sentiment But Telemachus at his Return made his utmost Efforts to divert 'em from it I am not Ignorant said he that if ever any Man deserv'd to be surpriz'd and deceiv'd Adrastus does who has so often dealt fraudulently with every body else I see very well that in Venusia you 'l only put your selves in possession of a City that belongs to you since it pertains to the Appulians who are one of our Confederate Parties I confess you may do it with the better colour of Justice in as much as Adrastus who has put this City as a Pledge in the Hands of others has Corrupted the Commander and the Garrison that he may enter it when he thinks fit In fine I understand as well as you that if you take Venusia you 'l the next Day be Masters of the Castle where all Adrastus his Provisions are laid up and so may end this so formidable a War in two Days time But is it not much better to Perish than Conquer by such means as these Is Fraud to be repell'd by Fraud Shall it be said that so many Kings who enter'd into a Confederacy to punish the Impious Adrastus for his Guile are become fraudulent like him If'tis lawful for us to do as Adrastus has done he is not Guilty and we are to be blam'd to go about to punish him What has all Hesperia which is supported by so many Greek Colonies and by so many Hero 's return'd from the Siege of Troy Has Hesperia no other Arms against the Perfidiousness and Perjury of Adrastus than the practice of the same Vices You have sworn by the most sacred Things that you would leave Venusia in Trust in the Hands of the Lucanians The Lucanian Garrison you say is Corrupted with Adrastus his Money I believe it as well as you but this Garrison is paid by the Lucanians and has not refus'd to obey 'em it has kept at least in appearance a Neutrality Neither Adrastus nor any of his Men have ever enter'd into Venusia the Treaty subsists your Oath is not forgotten by the Gods shall we not keep the Promises we have given but only when we want plausible pretexts to violate ' em Shall we not be faithful and religiously regard our Oaths but only when there is nothing to be got in breaking them If the Love of Virtue and the Fear of the Gods don't move you be concern'd at least for your Reputation and for your Interest If you shew the World this pernicious Example of violating your Faith and breaking your Oaths to terminate a War what Wars will you not stir up by your Impious Conduct Which of your Neighbours will not find themselves constrain'd to be jealous of you on all occasions and utterly to detest you Who will for the future confide in you in the most pressing Exigencies What Security will you be able to give if you should have a mind to be sincere and when it would be of great Consequence to you to perswade your Neighbours of your sincerity Shall it be a solemn Treaty when you have trampled such a one under your Feet Shall it be an Oath when it is known you make no account of the Gods if you have any hope of gaining an Advantage by Perjury Peace will give no more Security in respect of you than War all that
that we might prevent any Mischief But he would not give us either a Pilot or Mariners of his own Nation sor fear they might be expos'd to too much Hazard upon the Coast of Greece He committed us to the care of certain Phenician Merchants who Trading with all the People of the World had no occasion to fear and order'd them to bring back the Ship when they had left us safe in Ithaca But the Gods who sport with the Designs of Men had reserv'd us for farther Calamities The Tyrians by their Insolence had highly provoked the King of Egypt whose name was Sesostris and who had conquered many Kingdoms The Riches they had acquir'd by Trade and the impregnable Strength of Tyre which stands situated in the Sea had render'd this People so Proud that they not only refused to pay the Tribute which Sesostris imposed upon them in his ruturn from the Conquests he had made but assisted his Brother with Forces who had conspir'd to murder him on the Festival that was appointed to be celebrated on account of his great Victories For these Reasons Sesostris resolved to humble them by ruining their Commerce at Sea and commanded all his Ships to seek out and assault the Phenicians One of his Fleets met with us as soon as we lost sight of the Sicilian Mountains when the Harbour and Land seem'd to fly from behind us and lose themselves in the Clouds At the same time we saw the Egyptian Ships advancing towards us like a sloating City The Phenicians perceived and endeavour'd to avoid them but 't was too late Their Ships were better Sailors their Mariners more numerous the Wind favour'd them they Boarded us Took us and carried us Prisoners to Egypt I told them but in vain that I was no Phenician they hardly vouchsafed to hear me they look'd upon us as Slaves in which Merchandise they knew the Phenicians traded and thought only of making the best of their Prize We arrived in the Island of Pharos and rom thence were carried up the Nile to Memphis If the Grief we felt by reason of our Captivity had not render'd us insensible to all Pleasure our Eyes would have been charm'd with the fruitful Country of Egypt like a delicious Garden every where Water'd with the purest Streams We could not turn our Eyes on either side of the River without discovering many opulent Islands great numbers of well situated Villa's Lands richly cover'd with a golden Harvest Meadows full stock'd with Cattle Labourers bowing under the weight of the Fruits they had gather'd and Shepherds that made the Eccho's on every side repeat the sweet sound of their Pipes and Flutes Happy said Mentor is the People who are govern'd by a wise King They live in Plenty and Contentment and love him to whom they owe their Felicity Thus said he O Telemachus you ought to Reign and be the Joy of your People If ever the Gods give you the Possession of your Father's Kingdom love your People as your Children feel the Pleasure of being beloved by them and carry your self so that all the Tranquility and Pleasure they enjoy may lead them to remember that they are the rich Presents of a good King Kings who make it their only business to render themselves formidable to their own Subjects and to impoverish them in order to make them more submissive are the Plagues of Mankind They are perhaps feared as they desire but they are hated detested and have more reason to be afraid of their Subjects than their Subjects have to fear them I answer'd alas Mentor 'T is not now the Question by what Maxims a King ought to Reign We shall never see Ithaca again We shall never see our Country or Penelope more and tho' Ulysses should return full of Glory to his Kingdom he would never have the satisfaction of seeing me there nor I that of obeying him and learning the Rules of Government from him No Let us dye dear Mentor for we must have no other Thoughts Let us dye since the Gods have no Compassion for us As I spoke my Words were interrupted with sighs But Mentor tho' he could be apprehensive of approaching Evils knew not what it was to fear them when they had happen'd Unworthy Son of the wise Ulysses cried he Dost thou suffer thy self to be overcome by thy Misfortunes Know that you shall one Day see both Ithaca and Penelope You shall see what your Eyes have never seen The invincible Ulysses in his former Glory He whom Fortune cannot Conquer and who in greater Misfortune admonishes us never to Despair O! if he should hear in the Regions where he is driven by the Winds and Sea that his Son knows not how to imitate him either in Patience or Courage such News would overwhelm him with Shame and prove more heavy than all the Misfortunes he has yet suffered After this Mentor caused me to observe the Fertility and Happiness that was seen over all the Country of Egypt which contain'd Two and twenty thousand Cities He admir'd the regular Government of these Places the distribution of Justice which was every where exercised with great regard to the Poor the good Education of Children who were inur'd early to Obedience Labour Sobriety Arts or Learning the due observation of all the Ceremonies of Religion a generous and disinterested Spirit a great desire of Reputation an universal Sincerity in their Dealings with Men and a just Reverence of the Gods which every Father took care to infuse into his Children He thought he could never enough admire this beautiful Order He would often cry out in a Rapture of Joy O! how happy is that People which is thus govern'd by a wise King But yet more happy is that King who when he has provided for the Happiness of so great a People can find himself happy in his own Virtue Such a one is more than fear'd he is belov'd Men not only Obey him but they Obey him with Pleasure He Reigns universally in their Hearts and every Man is so far from desiring his Death that he fears it above all Misfortunes and would readily sacrifice his Life for him I heark'ned with Attention to what Mentor said and as he spoke I found my Courage to revive in the bottom of my Heart As soon as we were arriv'd at the rich and magnificent City of Memphis the Governor commanded us to be sent to Thebes in order to be presented to King Sesostris who being highly incens'd against the Tyrians had resolved to examin us himself So we proceeded in our Voyage up the River Nile till we came to the famous Thebes which has a Hundred Gates and serves for a Habitation to that great King This City appear'd to us of a vast Extent and more Populous than the most flourishing Cities of Greece The Orders are Excellent in all that regards the neatness and conveniency of the Streets the course of the publick Waters the Baths the advancement of Arts and Sciences and
who I was Narbal who commanded the Ship that carried me ask'd me my Name and my Country Of what City said he in Phenicia are you I am not a Phenician said I but the Egyptians took me at Sea in a Phenician Ship I have been a long time Prisoner in Egypt as a Phenician under that Name I have suffer'd and under that Name I am deliver'd Of what Country art thou then said Narbal I am said I Telemachus Son to Ulysses King of Ithaca in Greece My Father made himself famous among the Kings who beseig'd the City of Troy but the Gods have not permitted him to return to his Country I have sought him in many Climates and Fortune Persecutes me also You see an unfortunate Person who desires no other Happiness than to return to his Country and to find his Father Narbal look'd upon me with Astonishment and thought he saw in my Face some Marks of Happiness that proceed from the favour of Heaven and are not in the rest of Men. He was by Nature sincere and generous He was mov'd with my Misfortunes and put a confidence in me that the Gods inspir'd him with for my Preservation Telemachus said he I doubt not the Truth of what you say neither can I doubt The lively Images of Grief and Virtue drawn upon your Face will not give me leave to distrust you I perceive that the Gods which I have always serv'd love you and will have me to love you as if you were my Son I will give you safe and useful Advice and for my Recompence desire nothing of you but Silence Fear not said I for I can without difficulty keep any thing secret that you shall trust to my Discretion Tho' I am young yet I have grown up in the Habit of not discovering my own Secret and much more of not betraying under any pretext the Secret of another How have you been able said he to accustom your self to keep Secrets in such tender years I shall be glad to know by what means you have acquir'd this admirable Quality which is the Foundation of the wisest Conduct and without which all other Talents are Useless When Ulysses said I departed to assist in the Siege of Troy he took me upon his Knees and embrac'd me for thus I have been told the Story and after he had kiss'd me in the tenderest manner he said these Words to me tho' I could not then understand them O my Son may the Gods prevent me from ever seeing thee again let rather the fatal Scissars cut the Thread of thy early Days as the Reaper cuts down with his Sicle the tender Flower that begins to blow let my Enemies dash thee in pieces before the Eyes of thy Mother and Me if ever thou art to be Corrupted and to relinquish the Ways of Virtue O! my Friends continued he I leave my dear Son with you take care of his tender years if you love me banish all Pernicious Flattery from about him instruct him how to overcome his Passions and let him be like a tender Plant that Men often bend in order to make it grow upright Above all forget not to render him Just Benificent Sincere and faithful in keeping a Secret Whoever is guilty of a Lie is unworthy to be accounted a Man and whoever knows not how to be Silent is unworthy to govern I am exact in the Repetition of these Words because care was taken to inculcate them often into me My Father's Friends made it their Business to exercise me early in keeping Secrets I was yet in my Infancy when they trusted me with all the Troubles they sustained to see my Mother expos'd to the Persecutions of so many that pretended to marry her Already they treated me as a Man of Reason and Fidelity They entertain'd me privately of the most important Affairs and acquainted me with all the measures they took to expel the Pretenders I was over-joy'd to be trusted in this manner I never abus'd the confidence repos'd in me I never let fall one single Word that might discover the least Secret The Pretenders often endeavour'd to make me talk expecting that a Child who had seen or heard any thing of Importance would not have been able to conceal it But I knew how to answer them without lying and without informing them of any thing that I ought not to discover Upon this Narbal said to me You see Telemachus the Power of the Phenicians They are formidable to all their Neighbours by their numerous Fleets The Trade they drive as far as the Columns of Hercules furnishes them with Riches surpassing all those of the most flourshing Nations The great Sesostris who could never have subdued them by Sea did with great difficulty defeat them by Land with those Armies that had conquer'd all the East and impos'd a Tribute upon us which has not continued long The Phenicians found themselves too Rich and too Potent to wear the Yoak of Servitude with Patience Sesostris was prevented by Death from finishing the War against us 'T is true we had reason to fear the Event and that much more on account of his wisdom than his Power But as soon as his Power without his Wisdom had pass'd into the Hands of his Son we concluded we had no more to fear In effect the Egyptians have been so far from returning in Arms to make an intire Conquest of our Country that they have been constrain'd to call us to their Assistance to deliver them from the Fury of an impious and outragious King We have been their Deliverers and have added the glory of this Action to the Liberty and Riches of our Country But whilst we deliver others we our selves are Slaves O Telemachus beware of falling into the cruel Hands of Pygmalion our King He has already died them in the Blood of Sicheus his Sister Dido's Husband Dido full of Horror and Revenge is fled from Tyre with many Ships Most of those who are best affected to Liberty and Virtue have attended her She has founded a Magnificent City upon the Coast of Africk and called it Carthage Pygmalion tormented with and insatiable Thirst of Wealth renders himself every day more wretched and odious to all his Subjects 'T is a Crime at Tyre to be Rich. His Avarice fills him with Suspicion Distrust and Cruelty He persecutes the Wealthy and fears the Poor Every thing disturbs him affrights him preys upon him He trembles at his own Shadow he sleeps neither by Night nor by Day The Gods to confound him load him with Treasures which he dares not enjoy The things he covets to make him happy are precisely those that make him miserable He regrets whatever he gives dreads to loose and torments himself with Hopes of Gain He is seldom seen He shuts himself up in the remotest parts of his Palace sad alone disconsolate His Friends dare not approach him for fear of being suspected A Guard terrible to see stands round his House with Swords
Cythera went to that God and spoke to him full of Grief and with Eyes dissolved in Tears at least 't is what Mentor who is acquainted with Celestial Things has assur'd me Oh! Neptune said she will you suffer those impious Men to defie my Power unpunish'd The God themselves are sensible of it and these rash Mortals have dared to condemn all they have seen in my Island they pretend to a Wisdom which is proof against all Passions and look upon Love as a Fit of Madness Have you forgot that I was born in your Dominions Why do you delay any farther to swallow up in the deep Abyss of your Kingdom those two Men whom I abhor She had scarce done speaking when Neptune made his boisterous Waves rise up to the very Skies and Venus smil'd believing our Wreck inevitable Our Pilot being now beside himself cry'd out That he could no longer oppose the violence of the Winds which fiercely drove us upon some Rocks a Gust of Wind broke our Main-Mast and a moment after we heard the bottom of our Ship splitting against the pointed Rocks The Water comes in at several Places the Ship sinks all the Crew of Rowers fill the tempestuous Airwith lamentable Cries I embrac'd Mentor and told him Death is come at last we must embrace it with Courage the Gods have deliver'd us from so many Dangers only to destroy us this day Let 's die Oh! Mentor let 's die 't is a comfort to me that I die with you 't were in vain to contend for our Lives against the Storm To this Mentor answer'd True Courage finds always some Remedy or other it is not enough to expect Death calmly and unconcern'd unless without being affraid of it we use all our Endeavours to avoid it Let You and I take one of the Rower's Seats whilest that Multitude of fearful and troubled Men regret the loss of their Lives without using Means to prevent it let 's not lose one moment to save our selves Thereupon he took a Hatchet and cut off the broken Mast which leaning into the Sea made the Ship heel a-port The Mast being thus sever'd from its Stump he shov'd it out of the Ship and leap'd upon it amidst the furious Waves Then he call'd me by my Name and encourag'd me to follow him And now as a great Tree which all the confederate Winds attack in vain and which remains unmov'd and fix'd to its deep Roots so Mentor not only resolute and couragious but also calm and undisturb'd seem'd to command the Winds and the Sea I follow'd him For who would not have follow'd being encourag'd by Mentor And now we are a-drift upon the Mast which we steer sometimes one way sometimes another This Mast prov'd a great help to us for we sate a-stride upon it whereas had we been forc'd to swim all the while our strength had soon fail'd us But the Storm did often over-set that great Tree so that being sunk into the Sea we swallow'd great Draughts of the briny Flood which run afterwards out of our Mouths Ears and Noses and we were fain to contend with the Waves to get uppermost again Sometimes also we were over-whelm'd by a Billow as big as a Mountain and then we kept fast to the Mast for fear that violent Push should make us lose our Hold of that which was all our Hopes Whilest we were in that dreadful Condition Mentor as calm and unconcern'd as he is now upon this green Turf told me Do you think Oh! Telemachus that your Life is abandon'd to the Winds and the Waves Do you believe they can destroy you unless the Gods have order'd it No no the Gods over-rule and decree all Things and therefore 't is the Gods and not the Sea you ought to fear were you in the deep bottom of the Sea great Joue's Hand were able to deliver you out of it and were you on the Top of Olympus having the Stars under your Feet he might sink you to the deep Abyss or cast you down into the Flames of black Tartarus I listened to and admir'd his wise Speech which gave me a little comfort but my Mind was not calm enough to answer him We past a whole Night without seeing one another trembling and half dead with Cold not knowing whether the Storm would drive us At length the Winds began to be pacified and the roaring Sea was like one who having been a long time in a great Passion has almost spent his Spirits and feals only a ruffling Motion which draws toward a Calm thus the Sea grown weary as it were of its own Fury made but a hollow rumbling Noise and its Waves were little higher than the Ridges of Land betwixt two Furrows in a plough'd Field In the mean time bright Aurora with her dewy Wings came to open the Gates of the Sky to introduce the radiant Sun and seem'd to promise a fair Day All the East was streak'd with fiery Beams and the Stars which had so long been hid begun to twinkle again but withdrew as soon as Phoebus appear'd on the lighten'd Horizon We descry'd Land afar off and the Wind help'd us on towards it I felt Hopes reviving in my Heart but we saw none of our Companions 'T is probable their Courage fail'd them and that they sunk with the Ship Being come pretty near the Shore the Sea drove us against sharp-pointed Rocks which were like to have bruis'd us to pieces but we endeavour'd to oppose to them the end of our Mast which Mentor us'd to as much advantage as a wise Steers-man does the best Rudder Thus we escap'd those dreadful Rocks and found at last a clear and easie Coast where we swam without any hindrance and came at last to a sandy Shore there you saw us Oh! great Goddess who Reignest in this Island there you vouchsafed to receive and comfort us Telemachus having ended his Speech all those Nymphs whose deep Attention had kept them motionless with Eyes fix'd upon him began to look upon one another and enquire among themselves who those two Men were of whom the Gods took so much care Who did ever hear said they such wonderful Adventures The Son of Vlysses does already surpass his Father both in Eloquence Wisdom Valour What a Look What a Beauty What Gentleness What Modesty But withal What Nobleness and Majesty If we did not know him to be the Son of a Mortal he might easily pass either for Bacchus Mercury or even the great Apollo But who is this Mentor who looks like a plain obscure Man of mean Extraction When one views him closely there appears in him something above a Man Calypso listened to the Discourse with a Concern which she could not well conceal her Eyes still wandered from Mentor to Telemachus and from Telemachus to Mentor Sometimes she would have Telemachus begin again that long Story of his Adventures then on the sudden she contradicted her self and at last rising abruptly from her Seat she carried Telemachus
Ships and Arms and fled to the Neighbouring Mountains but the Soldiers being desirous to see the Country as they were in pursuit of some Stags they met with those fugitive Savages thereupon the Leaders of those Savages told them We have abondon'd the pleasant Sea Shore and yielded it to you we have nothing left but wild Mountains almost inaccessible and it is but just you suffer us to live in them in Peace and Liberty we have met you wandring and weaker than we so that nothing could hinder us from destroying you and concealing even from your Companions the knowledge of your Misfortunes but we disdain to imbrue our Hands in the Blood of those who are our Fellow-Creatures Go your ways remember you are indebted for your Lives to our Sentiments of Humanity and never forget that 't is from a People whom you call rude and savage that you receiv'd this Lesson of Generosity and Moderation Those of our Men who were thus dismist by the Barbarians return'd to the Camp and related what had happen'd to them our Soldiers were mov'd at it and asham'd that Cretans should owe their Lives to a despicable Company of wild Men Thereupon they went out a Hunting in greater Numbers than at first and provided themselves with all manner of Arms 'T was not long before they met with the Savages and fell upon them the Fight was cruel and obstinate the Darts flew on both sides as thick as Hail in a Storm The Savages were at last forc'd to retire to their steep Mountains where our Men durst not follow them A little while after those People sent to me two of their wisest old Men who came to sue for Peace and brought Presents to me which consisted in Skins of wild Beasts they had kill'd in Hunting and several sorts of Fruit which the Country yields having deliver'd their Presents they addrest themselves to me in these words Oh! King thou seest we hold the Sword in one of our Hands and an Olive-branch in the other for they had both in their Hands so that you may chuse either Peace or War We confess we had rather Peace and 't is for that Reason we are not asham'd to yield to thee the pleasant Sea-Shore where the Sun chears the Land with its warm Beams and makes it produce so many sorts of delicious Fruits yet Peace is sweeter and pleasanter than all those Fruits and therefore we retir'd to those high Mountains ever cover'd with Ice and Snow where we never see either the Flowers of the Spring or the rich Fruits of the Autumn We have an abhorrence for that Brutality which under the fair Names of Ambition and Honour lays waste whole Provinces and spills the Blood of Men who are all Brothers and Fellow-Creatures if thou art Ambitious of that false Honour we are so far from envying thee that we rather pity thee and beg the Gods to keep us from such a wild Fury If Sciences which the Grecians learn with so much study and the Politeness and Civility which they value themselves upon inspire them with nothing but this detestable Injustice we think our selves too happy in being depriv'd of those Advantages we will pride in being Barbarians as long as we are just human faithful disinterested contented with little and despising that vain Nicety which multiplies our Wants what we value most is Health Frugality Liberty a sound and vigorous Body and Mind the love of Virtue the fear of the Gods a kind Nature towards our Relations a constant Affection to our Friends Faithfulness and Honesty with every Body Moderation in Prosperity Constancy in adverse Fortune a couragious Boldness in speaking the Truth at all times and an abhorrence for Flattery These are the People whom we offer to thee for Neighbours and Allies If the angry Gods blind your Eyes so far as not to let you see your own Interest and if thou refusest Peace thou shalt find but too late that those People are most to be dreaded in War who love Peace out of a Principle of Moderation While those old Men spoke thus to me I could not keep my Eyes from being fixt on them they had long Beards short hoary Hair thick Eye-brows quick and lively Eyes a resolute Look and Countenance plain and ingenuous Manners The Furs they wore for Cloaths being ty'd negligently over their Shoulders one might see their Arms more nervous and brawny than those of our Wrestlers I made answer to those two Envoys That I was inclin'd to Peace We settled together by mutual Promise several Conditions invoking all the Gods to be Witnesses of our Treaty and so I sent them back with Presents But the Gods who drove me from the Kingdom of my Ancestors were not yet weary of Persecuting me Our Hunts-men who could not be acquinted so soon with the Peace we had made met the same day a great Company of those Barbarians who attended their Ambassadors as they return'd from our Camp they attack'd 'em with great Fury kill'd many of 'em and pursued the rest into the Woods Thus the War is kindled anew for those Barbarians think they cannot be safe in trusting either to our Promises or Oaths they call to their Assistance the Locrians Apulians Lucanians Brutians those of Crotona Nevitta and Brundusium The Lucanians came with Chariots arm'd with sharp Sythes The Apulians are every one of them cover'd with the Skin of some wild Beast which they have kill'd they were in their Hands great wooden Clubs full of Knots and tipp'd with Iron Spikes they are almost as tall as Giants and their Bodies become so strong and brawny by the laborious Exercises to which they inure themselves that their very Looks are dreadful and terrifying The Locrians who are come from Greece do still retain something of their Origin and have more Humanity than the rest but they add the exact Discipline of the Grecian Troops to the fierceness and resolution of those Barbarians and their hard way of living which renders them invincible They have long Swords and a sort of light Bucklers made of twisted and woven Osiers and cover'd with Skins The Brutians are nimble-footed like Bucks or Stage and when they run one can scarce perceive that the tenderest Grass is foil'd by their Steps they hardly leave any print of their Feet on the Sand they rush on the sudden on their Foes and disappear with the same rapidity The People of Crotona are very skilful Archers it is not common among the Grecians to see ordinary Men know how to draw a Bow as it is among the Crotonians and if these would contend in our Games they would certainly carry the Prizes Their Arrows are steep'd in the Juice of some venomous Herbs which are said to come from the Banks of Avernus and whose Poison is mortal As for those of Nevitta Messapia and Brundusium they are endued only with bodily Strenght and a rude and untaught Valour At the sight of their Enemies they rend the Skies with
the best and surest Hostage for Idomeneus's Promises You may easily imagine that I should be loath if the lose of the Son should follow that of the Father and that the wretched and disconsolate Penelope should reproach Mentor with having sacrific'd her Son to the Ambition of the new King of Salenta With this Surety who offers himself of his own accord and whom the Gods who are lovers of Peace have sent to you I begin to offer to all these assembled Nations such Proposals as will establish for ever a solid and lasting Peace At this Word of Peace a confused Noise began to spread from Rank to Rank all those different Nations murmur'd with Anger and Indignation thinking so much time lost while they delay'd Fighting and that all those Speeches tended only to allay their Fury and rob them of their Prey Among the rest the Manducians bore with great impatience that Idomeneus should ever be in a condition to deceive them again Therefore they osten attempted to interrupt Mentor for they fear'd lest his wise Discourse should slacken their Allies nay they began to grow Jealous of all the Grecians who were in the Assembly Mentor perceiving this made it his Business to fortify their Jealousy the better to divide the Minds of those different Nations I confess said he that the Manducians have just reason to complain and to demand reparation for the Wrongs they have suffer'd but at the same time it is not reasonable that the Grecians who make up the best govern'd Colonies should be suspected and odious to the Natives On the contrary the Grecians ought to be united together and make themselves respected by others the only Thing they must observe is to be contented with what they enjoy and never to encroach upon their Neighbour's Territories I know Idomeneus has been so unhappy as to create Jealousies among you but 't will be an easie matter to remove all your Suspicions Telemachus and my Self will become your Hostages We 'll answer for Idomeneus's Fidelity and will remain in your power till he has faithfully perform'd all his Promises to you You are provok'd Oh! Manducians because the Cretan Troops have made themselves Masters of your Mountains by surprize and that by that means they are able to make Incursions whenever they please into the Country whither you did retire to leave them the open Country near the Sea-shore Upon the whole Matter those narrow Passages which the Cretans have Fortified with high Towers full of armed Men are the true occasion of this War Pray answer me can you alledge any other Thereupon the chief of the Manducians advanc'd and thus spoke What Means have we not us'd to avoid this War The Gods themselves can Witness that we renounc'd Peace only because it was no longer in our Power to live in Peace through the stiring Ambition of the Cretans and the impossibility of trusting to their Oaths again a senseless Nation who drove us to the hard necessity of running all Hazards and seeking our safety in their Ruin as long as they keep those narrow Passages we shall ever be afraid of their Designs of incroaching upon our Lands and bringing us under subjection Had they no other Thoughts than to live in Peace with their Neighbours they would be contented with what we yielded up to them of our own accord and would not desire to keep an Entrance into a Country upon which they have no ambitious Design You are little acquainted with them oh wise old Man but it has been our Misfortune to know them too too well Cease cease for the future oh thou beloved by the Gods cease to put a stop to a just and necessary War without which a constant Peace can never be settled in Hesperia Oh! Ungrateful treacherous and cruel Nation whom the angry Gods have sent among us to trouble our Repose and punish us for our Faults Yet after you have punish'd us Oh great Gods You will revenge us too neither will you be less just to our Enemies than to our selves At these Words all the Assembly was in an Uproar It seem'd as if Mars and Bellona went from Rank to Rank to kindle in every one's Breast the raging fury of War which Mentor endeavour'd to quench Whereupon Mentor thus resum'd his Discourse Had I nothing but Promises to make to you you might chuse whether you would accept or reject them but what I offer is real and certain If you are not contented to have Telemachus and my self for Hostages I will cause Twelve of the most noble and valiant Cretans to be deliver'd up to you But at the same time it is but just that you should give us Hostages also For tho' Idomeneus have a sincere desire for Peace yet he desires it without Fear or Weakness he seeks Peace just as you seem to desire it out of Wisdom and Moderation and not out of a fond Love for a soft and effeminate Life nor out of fear at the impending Dangers of War He is ready either to Conquer or to Die but he prefers Peace to the most glorious Victory he would be asham'd of being overcome but he fears the being unjust and is not ashamed to make amends for what he has done amiss Tho he offers Peace with Sword in Hand he would not be thought to impose its Conditions with Imperiousness for he sets no value upon a forc'd Friendship He would have a Peace wherein all Parties concern'd may find their mutual Satisfaction a Peace that may remove all Jealousies stifle all Feuds and Resentments and reconcile all Distrusts In a Word Idomeneus has all the Sentiments which I am sure you desire he should have my chief Business now is to persuade you of his real Intentions which I may do with ease if you will but hear me with animpartial and unprejudiced Mind Hear me Oh! Warlike People and you Oh! Wise and united Captains hear what I offer to you from Idomeneus As it not just that he should have a free Entrance into his Neighbours's Territories so it were unreasonable that he should be expos'd to the Inroads of his Neighbours therefore he consents that those Streights which he has fortified with high Towers may be guarded by Troops that shall stand neuter You Nestor and you Philoctetes are born Grecians yet upon this occasion you declar'd against Idomeneus and so cannot be suspected of being too favourable to his side You are mov'd and animated by the common Interest of the repose and liberty of Hesperia and therefore 't is fit you should be the Trustees and Keepers of those narrow Passages which have occasion'd this War You are as much concern'd in hindering the old Inhabitants of Hesperia from destroying Salenta which is a new Greek Colony like one of those you have founded as in hindering Idomeneus from encroaching upon his Neighbours You ought to keep an equal Ballance betwixt both Parties and instead of destroying with Fire and Sword a People whom you ought to Love
Servitude as his only Refuge Formerly I would have chosen Death in Sicily to avoid Slavery but my first Misfortunes were only the weak Essays of Fortunes Injustice Now I tremble lest I should not be receiv'd among Slaves O Gods See my Calamity O Hazael remember Minos whose Wisdom you admire and who will judge us both in the Kingdom of Pluto Hazael looking upon me with Kindness and Compassion put forth his Hand and rais'd me up I am not ignorant said he of the Wisdom and Virtue of Ulysses Mentor has often told me of the Glory he has acquir'd among the Greeks and besides Fame has not been wanting to spread his Name over all the Nations of the East Follow me thou Son of Ulysses I will be your Father till you find him who gave you Life But tho' I were not mov'd with the Glory of your Father his Misfortunes and your own yet the Friendship I have for Mentor would engage me to take care of you 'T is true I bought him as a Slave but I keep him as a faithful Friend the Mony he cost has acquir'd me the dearest and most valuable Friend that I have in the World In him I have found Wisdom I owe all the Love I have for Virtue to his Instructions From this Moment he is free and you shall be so too I ask nothing of either but your Heart In an Instant I pass'd from the bitterest Grief to the most lively Joy that Men can feel I saw my self deliver'd from the worst of Dangers I was drawing near to my Country I had found One to assist me in my Return I had the Pleasure of being with a Man who lov'd me already for the sake of Virtue in Word I found every thing in finding Mentor and that which endear'd my good Fortune to me was that I feared not to lose him again In the mean time Hazael advanc'd to the Shoar we follow'd we Imbark'd with him our Oars cut the yielding Waters the Zephyrs plaid in our Sails gave Life and easie Motion to the Ship the Island of Cyprus soon disappear'd Hazael impatient to know my Sentiments ask'd me what I thought of the Manners of that Island I told him ingenuously to what Dangers my Youth had been expos'd and the Combat I had suffer'd within me He was tenderly mov'd with my abhorrence of Vice and said these Words O Venus I acknowledge your Power and that of your Son I have burnt Incense upon your Altars But give me leave to detest the infamous dissolution of the Inhabitants of your Island and the brutal Impudence with which they celebrate your Festivals After this he discours'd with Mentor of that first Being which form'd the Heavens and the Earth of that pure infinite and unchangeable Light which is communicated to all without any Diminution of that supreme and universal Truth which enlightens the Spiritual World as the Sun enlightens the Corporeal He who has never seen this Light said he is as blind as one born without Sight he passes his Life in a dismal Night like that of those Regions where the Sun never shines for many Months of the Year he thinks himself Wise and is a Fool he fancies he sees all and sees nothing he Dies without seeing any thing at most he perceives only false and obscure Flashes vain Shadows Phantoms that have no real Being Of this kind are all those who are carried away by sensual Pleasures and the Inchantments of Imagination There are no true Men upon the Earth but those who consult love and obey this eternal Reason 'T is she that inspires us when we think well 'T is she that reproves us when we think ill Our Reason as well as our Life is her Gift She is as a vest Ocean of Light the Reason of Men is like little Rivulets emaning from her which return and lose themselves in her again Tho' I did not yet throughly comprehend the Wisdom of this Discourse I tasted nevertheless something in it so Pure and so Sublime that my Heart grew warm and Truth seem'd to shine in all these Words They continued to speak of the Original of the Gods of the Hero's of the Poets of the Golden Age of the Deluge of the first Histories of the World of the River of Oblivion into which the Souls of the Dead are plung'd of the eternal Punishments prepar'd for the Impious in the dark Gulph of Tartarus and of that happy Tranquility which the Just enjoy in the Elysian Fields without any apprehensions of Change During this Conversation we saw great numbers of Dolphins cover'd with Scales that seem'd to be of Gold and Azure They play'd in the Sea and lash'd the Floods into a Foam After them came the Tritons sounding their wreathed Trumpets made of Shells They surrounded the Chariot of Amphitrite that was drawn by Sea-Horses whiter than Snow They cut the Briny Sea and left vast Furrows behind them Their Eyes darted Fire and Smoak issued from their Nostrils The Chariot of the God-dess was a Shell of a wonderful Figure 't was more white than the finest Ivory and the Wheels were all of Gold This Chariot seem'd to fly upon the surface of the Waters A Troop of Nymphs came Swimming behind the Chariot Their lovely Hair hung loose upon their Shoulders floating at the Pleasure of the Winds The Goddess had in one Hand a golden Scepter with which she commanded the Waves With the other she held upon her Knee the little God Palemon her Son who hung upon her Breast Her Face was so bright and so majestick that the black Tempests and all the seditious Winds fled from before her The Tritons guided the Horses and held the golden Reins A large Sail of the richest Purple hung floating in the Air above the Chariot a Multitude of little Zephyrs hover'd about it and labour'd to fill it with their Breath In the midst of the Air Eolus appear'd diligent restless and vehement his stern and wrinkled Face his menacing Voice his Eye-brows hanging down to his Beard his Eyes full of a dim and austere Fire dispers'd the Clouds and kept the fierce Aquilons silent The vast Whales and all the Monsters of the Sea came out of their profound Grotto's to gaze upon the Goddess and with their Nostrils made the briny Waters ebb and flow After we had admir'd this wonderful Sight we began to discover the Mountains of Creet tho' yet we could hardly distinguish them from the Clouds of Heaven and flowings of the Sea Then we saw the summet of Mount Ida which rises above all other Mountains of the Island as an antient Stag carries his branching Head above the young Fawns that follow him in the Forest By degrees we saw more distinctly the Coast of the Island representing the form of an Amphitheater as we found the Lands in Cyprus neglected and uncultivated so those of Creet appear'd plentifully cover'd with all manner of Fruits by the Industry of the Inhabitants On all sides we
perceived Towns equalling Cities well-built Villages and magnificent Cities We saw neither Hill nor Vale where the Hand of the diligent Husbandman was not stampt the Plow had left deep Furrows in every part Thorns Bryars and such Plants as are a useless Burden to the Earth are utterly unknown in this Country We contemplated with Pleasure the fruitful Vallies where Troops of Oxen go lowing in the sweet Pastures that abound with Springs of running Water the Sheep every where Feeding upon the descent of the Hills the champion Ground cover'd with Corn presented with a liberal Hand by the bountiful Ceres in a Word the Mountains adorn'd with Vines and Grapes of a rich purple Colour promising a plentiful Vintage of the delicious Presents of Bacchus which charm the Cares of Men. Mentor told us he had been formerly in Creet and informed us of what he knew This Island said he justly admir'd by all Strangers and famous for its hundred Cities is more than sufficient to nourish all the Inhabitants tho' they are innumerable for the Earth never ceases to produce her Fruits if Industry be not wanting her fertil Bosom can never be exhausted The more numerous Men are in a Country provided they be Laborious the greater abundance they enjoy They need not be jealous of one another for this tender Mother multiplies her Gifts according to the number of her Children if they deserve her Favours by their Labour The Ambition and Covetousness of Men are the only Springs of their Unhappiness They covet all and make themselves miserable by desiring what is superfluous If they would be moderate and contented with what is necessary we should see Plenty Peace Union and Happiness restor'd to the World Minos the wisest and best of Kings understood this well All the admirable Things you shall see in this Island are owing to the excellency of his Laws The Education he appointed for Children renders their Bodies strong and healthful They are accustomed from their Infancy to a plain frugal laborious Life because Pleasure enervates both the Body and the Mind No other Pleasure is ever propos'd to them but the acquisition of an invincible Virtue and solid Glory This People do not measure Mens Courage only by despising Death in the hazards of War but by the contempt of great Riches and ignominious Pleasures Three Vices are punish'd here which remain unpunish'd in all other Nations Ingratitude Dissimulation Covetousness They have no need of Laws to suppress Luxury and dissolution of Manners for such Things are unknown in Creet Every Man Works yet no Man desires to be rich They think all their Labour sufficiently recompenced with an easy and regular Life in which they enjoy plentifully and quietly all that is truly necessary to Men. Costly Furniture rich Apparel delicious Feasts and guilded Palaces are not permitted in this Country Their Cloths are of fine Wool wrought with Art and beautiful in Colour but without Embroidery or any other Ornament Their Tables are sober They drink little Wine good Bread with excellent Fruits and the Milk of the Cattle make the principal part of their Meals At the most their Meat is plain dress'd without Sauce or Ragou and they always take care to reserve the best and strongest of the Cattle to be employ'd in Husbandry Their Houses are neat commodious pleasant but without Ornaments They are not ignorant of the most magnificent Architecture but that 's reserv'd for the Temples of the Gods They dare not live in Houses like those of the immortal Beings The great Riches of this People are Health Strength Courage Peace and Union in Families the liberty of all the Citizens plenty of Things necessary and a contempt of those that are superfluous a habit of Labour and an abhorrence of Sloth a mutual emulation of virtuous Actions submission to the Laws and a reverence of the just Gods I ask'd him in what the Authority of the King consisted And he answer'd thus The King is above all the People but the Laws are above the King He has an absolute Power to do Good but his Hands are tied so soon as he attempts to do Ill. The Laws entrust him with the care of the People as the most valuable of all Trusts on condition to be the Father of his Subjects They intend that one Man shall serve by his Wisdom and Moderation to make whole Nations happy and not that so many Men shall by their Misery and abject Slavery serve to flatter the Pride and Luxury of one Man The King ought to have nothing more than other Men except such assistance as is necessary either to the discharge of his painful Functions or to imprint on the Minds of the People that Respect which is due to the Person who is to maintain the vigour of the Laws On the other Hand the King ought to be more sober more 〈◊〉 to Luxury more free from Vanity Haughtiness and Ostentation than any other Man He is not to have more Riches and Pleasures but more Wisdom Virtue and Glory than the rest of Men. Abroad he is to be the Defende of his Country at the Head of their Armies at Home he is to distribute Justice to the People to make them good wise and happy 'T is not for his own sake that the Gods have made him King but only that he may be the Man of his People He owes all his Time to the People all his Care all his Affection and he is no otherwise worthy of the Crown than as he forgets his own Interests to sacrifice himself to the Publick Good Minos appointed that his Children should not reign after him unless they would reign by these Rules for he lov'd his People more than his Family By this Wisdom he render'd Greet so powerful and so happy By this Moderation he has effac'd the Glory of all Conquerors who make their People subservient to their Greatness that is to their Vanity In a Word by his Justice he do serv'd to be the supreme Judg of the Dead in the Regions below Whilst Mentor was speaking we arrived in the Island we saw the famous Labyrinth built by the Hands of the ingenious Dedalus in imitation of the great Labyrinth which we had seen in Egypt As we were considering this curious Fabrick we beheld the Shoar cover'd with People and Multitudes pressing towards a Place that was near the Sea We ask'd the reason of their hast and receiv'd this Account from one Nausicrates a Native of Creet Idomeneus the Son of Deucalion and Grand-son to Minos wint with the rest of the Grecian Kings to the Siege of Troy After the Destruction of that City he set Sail in order to return to Creet but was surpris'd by so violent a Storm that the Pilot and the most experienc'd Mariners in the Ship gave themselves for lost Every one had Death before his Eyes every one saw the Abyss open to swallow him up every one deplor'd his Misfortune and had not so much as the
liberally rewards the Labour of 'em all whereas she is tenacious and reserv'd to them that Cultivate her after a negligent manner Endeavour therefore principally to acquire this real Wealth which Answers the real Necessaries of Mankind As for Money no Account ought to be made of it any farther than it is necessary either to carry on such Wars as you are unavoidably engag'd in abroad or in the way of Commerce for such necessary Commodities as are wanting in your own Countrey and it were to be wish'd that Trasfick were suffer'd to fall to the Ground for all such things as serve only to maintain Luxury Vanity and Effeminacy The Wise Ericthon would often say My dear Children I am much afraid I have made you a fatal Present in giving you the Invention of Money I foresee it will excite Ambition Avarice and Pride that it will support an infinite number of pernicious Arts which only tend to debase and corrupt the meanest of Men that it will make you disrelish that happy Simplicity which makes your Lives so very quiet and secure In fine That it will make you despise Agriculture which is the support of Humane Life and the source of all solid Riches but the Gods are my Witnesses that my Heart was upright when I imparted this Invention to you which indeed is useful in it self But at length when Ericthon found that Money as he had foreseen corrupted the People he for Grief retired into a solitary Mountain where he lived in Poverty at a distance from Mankind 'till he became extreme Old without being willing to meddle with the Government of Cities Not long after him appear'd in Greece the famous Triptolemus whom Ceres had taught the Art of Tilling the Ground and covering it every Year with a Gilded Harvest Not that Men were 'till then ignorant of Corn and the manner of multiplying it by sowing but they knew not the Art of Husbandry to that Perfection till Triptolemus sent by Ceres came with the Plow in his Hand to offer the Favours of this Goddess to all those Nations who had Courage enough to overcome their natural Laziness and to addict themselves to assiduous Labour Triptolemus soon taught the Greeks the way of cleaving the Ground with Furrows and of rendring her fertile in tearing up her Bosom The sweating and indefatigable Reapers soon made the Ripe standing Corn that cover'd the Fields fall under their sharp Sicles even the Wild and Barbarous People that were scatter'd up and down in the Forests of Epirus and AEtolia seeking Acorns for their Food became civiliz'd and submitted to Laws when they had learn'd the way of making Corn grow and of baking Bread Triptolemus made the Greeks know the Pleasure of owing their Riches to nothing but their Labour and of finding in their own Fields whatever was necessary to render their Lives commodious and Happy This simple and innocent Plenty entail'd on Agriculture made them remember Ericthon's Counsel so that they slighted Money and all Artifical Riches that become so only by the Fancy of Men which tempts 'em to seek after dangerous Pleasures and divert 'em from Labour in which they would find all real Wealth with Purity of Manners in the full Enjoyment of Liberty They were then convinc'd that a Fruitful and well Cultivated Field was the true Treasure of a Family that was wise enough to be content to live frugally as their Fathers had done before ' em And happy had the Greeks been if they had continued firm and steady in embracing Maxims so proper to render 'em powerful Happy Lovers of Liberty and Virtue But alas they begin to admire false Riches and gradually neglect the true they degenerate from their once admir'd Simplicity O my Son thou shalt one Day Reign and then remember to bring Men back to the Exercise of Husbandry to Honour that Art to support those that apply themselves to it and neither to suffer the People to live in Idleness nor to employ their Time in those soft Arts that uphold Luxury and Vanity These two Men that were so wise when upon Earth are here cherish'd by the Gods themselves Observe it well my Son their Glory as far surpasses that of Achilles and other Hero's who have only excell'd in Battel as the agreeable Spring exceeds the frozen Winter and as the Lustre of the Sun out-shines the feebler Light of the Moon While Arcesius was thus speaking he perceived Telemachus had his Eyes continually fix'd on the side of a little Wood of Laurel by a little River the Banks of which were painted with Violets Roses Lillies and many other sorts of odoriferous Flowers whose lively Colours resembled those that invest Iris when she descends from Heaven to bring some Message from the Gods to mortal Men. 'T was the great King Sesostris that Telemachus saw in this lovely Place he was a thousand times more full of Majesty than he had ever been when upon the Throne of Egypt his Eyes emitted mild Rays of Light which dazzled those of Telemachus any one that saw him would think he were overcharg'd with Nectar the Spirit of the Gods had put him into such a Transport above the reach of human Reason to recompense his Vertues Said Telemachus to Arcesius O my Father I know Sesostris that wise King of Egypt whom I saw not long ago Ay there he is reply'd Arcesius and thou seest by his Example how magnificent the Gods are in rewarding vertuous Princes But you ought to know that all this Felicity is nothing in Comparison of what was design'd for him if too great Prosperity had not made him forget the Rules of Moderation and Justice The passionate Desire he had to abase the Pride and Insolence of the Tyrians engag'd him to take their City This Conquest gave him the Ambition to attempt the making of others so that he suffer'd himself to be seduced by the vain-glory of Conquerors He subjugated or to speak more properly ravaged all Asia At his return into Egypt he found his Brother possess'd of the Throne who by an unjust Government had alter'd the best Laws of the Country These are the Mischiefs Conquerors bring upon their own States while they seek to usurp those of their Neighbours This is the Injury a King otherwise so Just and Beneficent did to the Laws and 't is this that diminishes the Glory which the Gods had prepar'd for him Dost thou not see that other Person my Son whose Wound appears so bright and glorious 't is a King of Caria nam'd Dioclides who devoted himself to Die in Battle for his People because the Oracle had predicted that in the War of the Carians and Licians that Nation whose King should Perish should be Victorious Here is another I would have thee consider 't is a wise Legislator who having given Laws to the Nation under his Conduct proper to make 'em Vertuous and Happy made 'em Swear they would never violate any of those Laws during his Absence after which he