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; as has been shown; was plainly lost through the want of a good aristocracy。     〃But the sufficiency of an aristocracy goes demonstrably upon the hand of the nobility or gentry; for that the politics can be mastered without study; or that the people can have leisure to study; is a vain imagination; and what kind of aristocracy divines and lawyers would make; let their incurable running upon their own narrow bias and their perpetual invectives against Machiavel (though in some places justly reprovable; yet the only politician; and incomparable patron of the people) serve for instruction。 I will stand no more to the judgment of lawyers and divines in this work; than to that of so many other tradesmen; but if this model chances to wander abroad; I recommend it to the Roman speculativi (the most complete gentlemen of this age) for their censure; or with my Lord Epimonus his leave; send 300 or 400 copies to your agent at Venice to be presented to the magistrates there; and when they have considered them; to be proposed to the debate of the Senate; the most competent judges under heaven; who; though they have great affairs; will not refuse to return you the oracle of their ballot。 The councillors of princes I will not trust; they are but journeymen。 The wisdom of these later times in princes' affairs (says Verulamius) is rather fine deliveries and shiftings of dangers when they be near; than solid and grounded courses to keep them off。 Their councillors do not derive their proceedings from any sound root of government that may contain the demonstration; and assure the success of them; but are expedient…mongers; givers of themselves to help a lame dog over a stile; else how comes it to pass that the fame of Cardinal Richelieu has been like thunder; whereof we hear the noise; but can make no demonstration of the reason? But to return: if neither the people; nor divines and lawyers; can be the aristocracy of a nation; there remains only the nobility; in which style; to avoid further repetition; I shall understand the gentry also; as the French do by the word noblesse。     〃Now to treat of the nobility in such sort as may be less obnoxious to mistake; it will be convenient; and answerable to the present occasion; that I divide my discourse into four parts:     〃The first treating of nobility; and the kinds of it;     〃The second; of their capacity of the Senate;     〃The third。 of the divers kinds of senates;     〃The fourth; of the Senate; according to the foregoing orders。     〃Nobility may be defined divers ways; for it is either ancient riches; or ancient virtue; or a title conferred by a prince or a commonwealth。     〃Nobility of the first kind may be subdivided into two others; such as hold an overbalance in dominion or property to the whole people; or such as hold not an overbalance。 in the former case; a nobility (such was the Gothic; of which sufficient has been spoken) is incompatible with popular government; for to popular government it is essential that power should be in the people; but the overbalance of a nobility in dominion draws the power to themselves。 Wherefore in this sense it is that Machiavel is to be understood; where he says; that these are pernicious in a commonwealth; and of France; Spain; and Italy; that they are nations which for this cause are the corruption of the world: for otherwise nobility may; according to his definition (which is; 'that they are such as live upon their own revenues in plenty; without engagement either to the tilling of their lands; or other work for their livelihood '); hold an underbalance to the people; in which case they are not only safe; but necessary to the natural mixture of a well…ordered commonwealth。     〃For how else can you have a commonwealth that is not altogether mechanic? or what comparison is there of such commonwealths as are; or come nearest to mechanic  for example; Athens; Switzerland; Holland; to Lacedaemon; Rome; and Venice; plumed with their aristocracies? Your mechanics; till they have first feathered their nests; like the fowls of the air whose whole employment is to seek their food; are so busied in their private concernments that they have neither leisure to study the public; nor are safely to be trusted with it; because a man is not faithfully embarked in this kind of ship; if he has no share in the freight。 But if his share be such as gives him leisure by his private advantage to reflect upon that of the public; what other name is there for this sort of men; being a leur aise; but (as Machiavel you see calls them) nobility? Especially when their families come to be such as are noted for their services done to the commonwealth; and so take into their ancient riches ancient virtue; which is the second definition of nobility; but such a one as is scarce possible in nature without the former。 'For as the baggage;' says Verulamius; 'is to an army; so are riches to virtue; they cannot be spared nor left behind; though they be impediments; such as not only hinder the march; but sometimes through the care of them lose or disturb the victory。' Of this latter sort is the nobility of Oceana; the best of all others because they; having no stamp whence to derive their price; can have it no otherwise than by their intrinsic value。 The third definition of nobility; is a title; honor; or distinction from the people; conferred or allowed by the prince or the commonwealth。 And this may be two ways; either without any stamp or privilege; as in Oceana; or with such privileges as are inconsiderable; as in Athens after the battle of Plataea; whence the nobility had no right; as such; but to religious offices; or inspection of the public games; to which they were also to be elected by the people; or with privileges; and those considerable ones; as the nobility in Athens before the battle of Plataea; and the patricians in Rome each of which had right; or claimed it; to the Senate and all the magistracies; wherein for some time they only by their stamp were current。     〃But to begin higher; and to speak more at large of nobility in their several capacities of the Senate。 The phylarchs; or princes of the tribes of Israel; were the most renowned; or; as the Latin; the most noble of the congregation; whereof by hereditary right they had the leading and judging。 The patriarchs; or princes of families; according as they declared their pedigrees; had the like right as to their families; but neither in these nor the former was there any hereditary right to the Sanhedrim: though there be little question but the wise men and understanding; and known among their tribes; which the people took or elected into those or other magistracies; and whom Moses made rulers over them; must have been of these; seeing they could not choose but be the most known among the tribes; and were likeliest by the advantages of education to be the most wise and understanding。     〃Solon having found the Athenians neither locally nor genealogically; but by their different ways of life; divided into four tribes  that is; into the soldiery; the tradesmen; the husbandmen; and the goatherds  instituted a new distribution of them; according to the sense or valuation of their estates; into four classes: the first; second; and third consisting of such as were proprietors in land; distinguished by the rate of their freeholds; with that stamp upon them; which making them capable of adding honor to their riches; that is to say; of the Senate; and all the magistracies; excluded the fourth; being the body of the people; and far greater in number than the former three; from all other right; as to those capacities; except the election of these; who by this means became an hereditary aristocracy or senatorian order of nobility。 This was that course which came afterward to be the destruction of Rome; and had now ruined Athens。 The nobility; according to the inevitable nature of such a one; having laid the plot how to divest the people of the result; and so to draw the whole power of the commonwealth to themselves; which in all likelihood they had done; if the people; coming by mere chance to be victorious in the battle of Plataea; and famous for defending Greece against the Persians; had not returned with such courage as irresistibly broke the classes; to which of old they had borne a white tooth; brought the nobility to equal terms; and the Senate with the magistracies to be common to both; the magistracies by suffrage; and the Senate (which was the mischief of it; as I shall show anon in that constitution) by lot only。〃 The Lacedaemonians were in the manner; and for the same cause with the Venetians at this day; no other than a nobility even according to the definition given of nobility by Machiavel; for they neither exercised any trade; nor labored their lands or lots; which was done by their helots: wherefore some nobility may be far from pernicious in a commonwealth by Machiavel's own testimony; who is an admirer of this; though the servants thereof were more in number than the citizens。 To these servants I hold the answer of Lycurgus when he bade him who asked why he did not admit the people to the government of his commonwealth; to go home and admit his servants to the government of his family…to relate: for neither were the Laced

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