Book V

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defervcs dignity, only in proportion as he gives up private enjoyments for the pubHc good. Minos dire(?led, that his children should not Aicceed to his throne, but upon condition that they should govern by these maxims; for he loved his people yet more than, his family; and by this wife inilitution, he enfured power and happiness to his kingdom. Thus did Minos, the peaceful legiflator, ^clipfe the glory of mighty conquerors, who sacrificed nations to their own vanity, and imagined they were great: the power of these tyrants, after a few years, left them in the grave; but the justice of Minos has placed him on a more awful tribunal in the world of spirits, where he diilributes everlalling rewards and punishments as the supreme judge of the dead."

" As we were lillening to MfiNTor?, we arrived at the island; and as soon as wc came on lliore, we viewed the celebrated labyrinth which had been built by Daedalus, in imitation of that of miuch larger extent which we had seen in Egypt. While we were contemplating -this curious edifice, we perceived all the coall covered with a multitude of people, who gathered in a croud at a place not far distant from the fca; we enquired the cause of this commotion, and our curiosity was immediately gratified by a Cretan, whose name was Nauficrates.

" Idomeneus, said he, the son of Deucalion, and grandfon of Minos, accompanied the other princes of Greece, in their expedition against Troy; and, after the dc{lru<5lion of that city, he set fail for Crete: but they were overtaken by fo violent a tcmpeft, that the pilot and all the persons on board the vessel, who v/ere fkilled in navigation, believed their shipwreck to be inevitable. Death was present to every imagination; every one thought he saw the abyss open to fwallow him; and every one deplored the misfortune, which did not leave him the mournful hope of that 5 imperfe(5t

8» B O O K V.

imperfedl rest, to which the spirits of the dead are admitted beyond the waters of the Styx, after funeral rites have been paid to the body. In this situation, Idomeneus, Hfting up his hands and his €yes to heaven, and invoking Neptune, cried out, " O mighty Deity, to whom belong the dominions of the deep, vouchfafe to hear me in this uttermoft distress! If thou wilt protedl me from the fury of the waves, and reftorc me in safety to my country, I will offer up to thee the firll living object that I see at my return L"

" In the mean time, his son hafted to meet him with all thea^'dour of filial affection, and pleased himself with the thought of receiving the firfl embrace. Unhappy youth! he knew not, that, to hasten to his father, was to rufh upon deftru(5tion. Idomeneus,. efcaping the tempeft, arrived at his port, and returned- thanks to Neptune for having heard his vow j but he was soon sensible of the fatal effedts it would produce: a certain prefage of misfortune made him repent his indifcretion with the utmost anguifla.of mind; he dreaded his arrival among his people, and thought of meeting those who were moll dear to him, with horror; but Nemefis, a cruel and inexorable Goddefs, who is ever vigilant to punish mankind, and rejoices to humble the mighty and the proud, impelled him forward with a fatal and invisible hand^ He proceeded from the vessel to the shore; but he had fcarce ventured to lift up his eyes, when he beheld his son: he started back, pale and trembling; he turned his eyes on every fide, to find another vitftim, to whom he was less tenderly allied, but it was. too late: his son fprung to him, and threw his arms round his neck; but perceived, with astonishment, that, inHead" of returning his careffes, he Hood motionlefs, and at length burst into tears.

" O my father, said he, what is the cause of this sorrow? After fo long an absence, art thou grieved to return to thy people, and restore

B o o K v: 8f reflore happiness to thy son? In what, alas! have I offended? thy eyes are still turned from me, as if they loathed or dreaded to behold me." — The father, overwhelmed with grief, was not yes able to reply; but, after some fighs that ftrugglcd in his bosom had burst away, he cried out, " O! Neptune, what have I promised thee? On what condition hast thou preserved me from shipwreck! O leave me again to the billows and the rocks; let me be daflied to pieces and fwallowed in the deep; but preserve my son! Cruel and unrelenting God! let my blood be accepted, as a recompence for his." He then fnatched out his sword, and attempted to plunge it in his bosom; but those who flood near him, held back his hand j and Sophronimus, an hoary prophet, who had long interpreted the will of the Gods, alTured him, that Neptune might be satisfied without the death of his son: " Your vow, said he, was rafh and iniquitous; the Gods are not honoured, but offended by cruelty; do not, therefore, add one enormity to another, and violate the laws of nature, to accomplish that vow which it was a crime to make. Select an hundred bulls, whiter than snow; decorate the altar of Neptune with flowers; let thcfe vi(ftims be thy blamelefs offering, and let a cloud of grateful incense ascend in honour of the God."

*' Idomeneus heard this address in an attitude of defpcratlon, and without reply: his eyes fparkled with fury, his vifage became ghaflly, his colour changed every moment, and his whole body iliook with the agony of his mind. His son was touched with his diflrefs; and having no wish but to relieve it, " My father, said he, am I not here? delay not to appeafe the God to whom thou hast vowed, nor bring down his vengeance upon thy head: if thy life can be redeemed with mine, I will die content: strike then, O! my father, and fear not that, at the approach of death, I should discover a weakness that is unworthy of thy son."

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82 B O O K V.

" At this moment Idomeneus, starting from his pofture with the fuddcn violence of outrageous phrcnzy, as if rouzed by the fcourge of the infernal furies, furprized the vigilance of those. who had their eyes upon him, and plunged his sword in the bosom of his son: he drew it haftily back, and, while it was yet Warm, made an effort to Iheath it a second time in his own breasts. but in this he was again prevented. The youth, who immediately fell, lay weltering in his blood; his eyes were fuffufed with the fhades of death, he attempted to open them, but, not being able to bear the light, they were immediately closed in everlasting darkness.

" A lilly of the field, when its root is cut away by the ploughjEhare, being no longer supported by the ftalk, languifhes upon the ground; and, though it does not immediately lose all the luflre of its beauty, yet it is no more nouriihed by the earth, nor quickened by a vital principle: thus fell the son of Idomeneus; cut down* like a flower, by an untimely flroke, in the firil bloom of his. youth.

*' The father, ftupified by excess of grief, knew neither where he was, what he had done, nor what he ought to do; but walked with faltering fl:eps toward the city, and enquired eagerly for his child.

" hi the mean time, the peopk, who were moved, with compaflion for the youth, and with horror at the cruehy of the father, cried out, that the juflice of the Gods had given him up to the furies. Their rage immediately supplied them with weapons; one fnatched a flick, others caught up a flone, and difcord infused rancour and malignity into every bosom. The Cretans, however wife, were at this time exafperated to folly, and renounced their allegiance to their king:. his friends, therefore,, as they could no other-

B O O K V. 83 wife preserve him from popular fury, condu6Ved him back to the fleet, where they went on board with him, and once more comr mitted themselves to the mercy of the waves. Idomerxus, as soon as he recovered from his phrenzy, thanked them, for having forced him from a country which he had flained with the blood of his son, and which, therefore, he could not bear to inhabit. The winds wafted them to the coafl of Hefperia, and they are now forming a new Hate in the country of the Salentines.

" The Cretans, having thus lost their king, resolved to ele(5t such a person in his Head, as should adminifter the established laws of the nation in their utmost purity: for this purpose the principal inhabitants of every city have been summoned to this place; the sacrifices which are the first solemnities of the ele<5lion, are already begun; the most celebrated fages of all the neighbouring countries are aflembled, to propofe questions to the candidates as a trial of their fagacity J and preparations are made for public games, to determine their courage, strength, and acSlivity: for the Cretans are resolved, that as their kingdom is the prize, they will bestow it upon him only, who shall be adjudged superior to all others, both in body and in mind; and to render the vidtory more difficult by encrcafmg the number of competitors, all foreigners are invited to the conteft."

" Nauficrates, after having related these aftonifhing events, prefled us to enter the lists: " Make hafte, said he, O strangers! to our airembly, and engage among others in the contcft; for if the Gods decree the vidtory to eitiier of you, he will be the fovercign of Crete:" he then turned haftily from us, and we followed, him; not with any desire of vicHiory, but only that we might gratify our curiosity, by being present at fo uncommon and important a tranfadtion.

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84 B O O K V.

" We came to a kind of circus of vast extent, in the niiddle of a thick forcft: within the circus was an area prepared for the combatants, surrounded by a circular bank of frcfli turf, on which was seated an innumerable multitude of fpectators. We were received with the utmofl civility; for the Cretans excel all other people, in a liberal and religious performance of the duties of hofpitality. They not only caused us to be seated, but invited us to engage in the exercises. Mentor declined it, on account of his age, and Hazael, as being in an ill flate of health; my youth and vigour left me no excuse: however, I glanced my eye upon Mentor, to discover his sentiments; and I perceived that he wifhetl I flioulri engage. I, therefore, accepted the offer that had been made me; and throwing off my apparel, my limbs were anointed with oil, and I placed myself among the other combatants. A rumour immediately passed through the whole multitude, that the new candidate for the kingdom, was the son of Ulysses j for several of the Cretans, who had been at Ithaca whea I was a child, remembered my face.

" The firfl exercise was wreflling. A Rhodian, who appeared to be about thirty-five years of age, threw all that ventured to encounter him: he was flill in his full vigour; his arms were nervous and brawny; his mufcles were discovered at every motion.; and his limbs were not Icfs fupple than flrong. There was now no competitor remaining but myself j and, as he thought no honour was to be gained by overcoming fo feeHe an opponent, he indulged the Gompaffion which he felt for my youtb, and would have retired.? but I preiled forward, and presented myself before him: we imme*diately feizcd each other, and grappled, till both were out of breath; we flood shoulder to Ihoulder, and foot to foot; every nerve was ftrained, our arms were entwined like ferpents in each other, and each of us endeavoured to lift his antagonift from the ground: he attemptedi

B O O K V. 8j attempted to throw mc, fomctimes by furprizc, and fomctlmes by mere flrength; ibmetimes on one fide, and sometimes on the other: but, while he was thus pratftifmg all his skill and force upon me, I threw myself forward by a sudden effort, with such violence, that the mufclcs of his back giving way, he fell to the ground, and drew nie upon him: all his efforts to get me under him, were ineffedlual; I held him immoveable under mc, till the multitude fliouted, " Victory to the son of Ulysses!" and then I alTifled him to rise, and he retired in confufian.

" The combat of the ceflus was more difficult. The son of a wealthy citizen of Saraos, had acquired such reputation in this, cxercifc, that the rest of the candidates yielded to him without conteft, and the hope of vidtory animated no bosom but mine, hi the firfl onfet, I received such blows on the head and flomach, that blood gufhed from my mouth and noftrils, and a thick mifl fcemed to fall upon my eyes: I reeled; my antagonift prefled upon me, and I was jufl finking faint and breathlefs, when I heard Mentor cry out, ** O son of Ulysses! wilt thou be vanquifhed.'" the voice of my friend encouraged me to farther refiflance, and difdain supplied me with new flrength. I avoided several blows, which I mufl otherwise have funk under; and my antagonift having, miffed a flroke, I feifed the opportunity of his arm being carried away by its own vigour and his body bent forward, to aim a blow at him that he could not ward off, and I raised my cellus that it might descend with greater force i he saw my advantage; and,, flepping back, he writhed his body to avoid the ftroke j by this motion the equilibrium was dcflroycd, and I easily threw him to the ground. I immediately offered him my hand, which he refused, and he got up without affiflance, covered with dufl and blood; but though he fhewcd the utmost shame at his defeat, yet he did not dare to renew the combat.

« The

S6 B O O K V.

" The chariot races immediately followed. The chariots were distributed by lot, and mine happened to be the worll of the whole number; the wheels were more heavy and the horses less vigorous. We started; and the cloud of dufl that rose behind us, obfcured the sky. At the beginning of the race, I fuifered the others to get before me: but a young Lacedemonian, whose name was Grantor, left them all behind him; and Polycletus, a Cretan, followed him at a small diflance. Hippomachus, a relation of Idomeneus, who was ambitious to succeed him, giving reins to his horses, which were covered with sweat, leaned forward over their necks; and the wheels whirled round with such rapidity, that, like the wings of an eagle floating upon the air, they feerhed not to move at all. My horses, which had been breathed by degrees, beginning now to exert themselves, soon left almost all those that had set out with fo much ardour at a great diftancc behind them; and Hippomachus, prefling forward to keep his advantage with too much eagerness, the mofl vigorous of his horses fell down, and put an end to the hopes of his mailer. Polycletus, leaning too much over his horses, was thrown out of his chariot by a sudden Ihock; the reins were forced out of his hand; and though he had now no hope of vi(5lory, he thought himself happy to have escaped with his life. Grantor perceiving, with jealousy and indignation, that I was now close behind him, urged forward with more eagerness j sometimes vowing rich offerings to the Gods, and sometimes encouraging his horses: he was afraid I should pass him, by driving between his chariot and the barrier of the course; because my horses, having been less exhausted, were able to get before him, if they had room, though they jQiould wheel round on the outside of the track: this could be no otherwise prevented, than by obflruding the paffiigej he, therefore, though he saw the danger of the attempt, drove up fo close to the barrier, that his wheel being forced against it, was torn off, and his chariot difmounted. I had now nothing to do but to turn ihort.

Ihoi-t, that I might keep clear of Iiim; and the next moment, he saw me at the goal. The multittule once more fliouted, " Vidlory to the son of Ulysses! It is he, whom the Gods have appointed to reign over us!"

" We were then condudled, by the most illullrious and venerable of the Cretans, into a wood, which had been long kept sacred from the vulgar and the prophane; where we Avere convened by those ancient oracles of wisdom, M^ho had been appointed by Minos to preserve the laws from violation, and adminifler juitice to the people. But, into this aflcmbly, those only who had contended in the games, were admitted, llie fages opened the book, into which all the laws of Minos had been collecled: I was touched with reverence and humility, when I approached thcfe fathers of their country, whom age had rendered venerable without impairing their vigour of mind. They sat, with great order and solemnity, in a fixed pofture; their hair was white as snow, but some of them had fcarce any left; and their countenances, though grave, were brightened with a calm and placid fagacity. They were not forward to speak j and they said nothing, that was not the result of mature deliberation: when their opinions were different, they supported them with fo much candour and moderation, that ir could fcarce be believed they were not of one mind. By long experience, and close application, they had acquired the most acute discernment and extensive knowledge; but that which principally conduced to the strength and redtitude of their judgment, was the fedate difpaffionate tranquillity of minds, that had been long freed from the tumultuous passions and capricious levity of youth. Wisdom alone was their principle of acT:ion; and, by the long and habitual pra6lice of virtue, they had fo corrected every irregular disposition, that they tafted the culm, yet elevated delights of reason without alloy. To these awful beings, 1 lifted up my^ eyes with admiration t y

88 B O O K V.

admiration; and wilhed that, by a sudden cbntradion of my life, I might immediately arrive at fo desirable an old age; for I perceived youth to be a flate of infelicity, fubjeft to the blind impetuofity of passion, and far from the perfpicacious tranquillity of their virtue.

" The person who presided in this aflembly, opened the book, into which all the laws of Minos had been collected: it was a large volume, and was kept locked up with the richest perfumes in a golden box. When it was taken out, all the fages kifTed it with a profound refpedt, and said, " That, the Gods only excepted, from whom all good is originally derived, nothing should be held fo facrcd, as thofc laws which promote wisdom virtue and happiness: those, who put these laws in execution for the government of others, should also, by these laws, govern themselves; for it is the law that ought to reign, and not the man." Such were the sentiments of this hoary council: and the president then proposed three queflions, which were to be resolved by the maxims of Minos.

" The firfl question was, " What man is most free?" One answered, that it was a king, who governed his people with absolute authority, and had triumphed over all his enemies: another said, that it was he, whose riches enabled him to purchase whatever he delired: in the opinion of some, it was a man who had never married, and who was perpetually travelling from one country to another, without fubje(5ling himfclf to the laws of any: others supposed it might be a favage, who, living wild in the Avoods, and subsisting himself by hunting, was independent of all society, and fufFcred no want as an individual: others thought of a slave, immediately after emancipation; because, being just relieved from the feverities of servitude, he would have a more lively sense of the fweets s o o K V. e?

fweets of freedom: and there were some who said, that a man, at the point of death, was more free than all others; because death breaks every bond, and over the dead the united world has no power.

" When my opinion was demanded, I was in no doubt what to answer, because I remembered what had been often told me by Men TO K: " The mod free of all men, said I, i& he:, whose freedom slavery itself cannot take away: he, and he only is free, ia every country and in every condition, who fears the Gods, and whose fear has no other objecSl. In other words, he only is truly free, over whom fear and dcfire have no power, and who is fubjedt only to reason and the Gods." The fathers looked upon each other with a smile, and were furprized to find my answer exadly the fame with that of Minos.

*' The second quellion was, " Who is moll unhappy?" To this, every one gave such an answer as was fuggefled by his fancy: one said, that the most unhappy man was he, who was without money, health, and reputation: another said, it was he that had no friend: some imagined none could be fo wretched as those, who had degenerate and ungrateful children: but a native of Lefbos, a man celebrated for wisdom, said, that the most unhappy of all men was he that thought himfclf fo; because unhappiness depends much less upon adverlity, than impatience; and imfortunate events derive all their power to afHi^, from the minds of those to whom they happen. The aflembly heard this opinion with a Ihout of applaufe; and every one believed that, in this question, the Lefbian would be declared viftor. But my opinion being asked, I formed my answer upon the maxims of Mentor: The most unhappy of all men, said I, is a king, who believes he shall become happy, by rendering others miserable: his wretchednefs is doubled by his ignorance 5 for, as

90 B O O K V.

he does not know whence it proceeds, he can apply no remedy; he is, indeed, afraid to know, and he suffers a crowd of fycophants to furround him, that keep truth at a distance; he is a slave to his own pallions, and an utter stranger to his duty; he has never tafled the pleasure of doing good, nor been warmed to feniibiHty by the charms of virtue; he is wretched, but the wretchedncfs that he suffers he deserves, and his misery, however great, is perpetually increafmg; he ruflies down the precipice of perdition, and the gulph of everlasting punishment receives him." The aflembly attefted my victory over the Lefbian, and the judges declared that I had exprefTed the sense of Minos.

" The third question was, " Which of the two ought to be preferred, a king who was invincible in war; or a king, who, without any experience in war, could adminifter civil government, with great wisdom, in a time of peace." The majority determined this question in favour of the warrior; for skill to govern in a time of peace, said they, -will be of but little use, if the king cannot defend his country in a time of war, since he will himself be diverted of his authority, and his people will become slaves to the enemy. Others preferred the pacific prince, because, as he would have more to fear from a war, he would be more careful to avoid it: but they were answered, that the atchievemems of a conqueror would not only encreafe his own glory, but the glory of his people, to whom he would fubjugate many nations; but that, under a pacific government, quiet and fccurity would degenerate into cowardice and sloth. My sentiments were then asked, and I answered thus: " Although he, who can only govern either in peace or in war, is biut half a king; yet the prince, who, by his fagacity, can discover the merit of others, and can defend his country when it is attacked,, if, not in person, yet by his generals, is, in my opinion, to be preferred before him, who knows no art but that of war: a prince,

4. whole

U O O K V. 91 whose genius is entirely military, will levy endless wars to extend his dominions; and ruin his people to add a new title to his name. If the nation, which he now governs, is unhappy, what is it to them how many more he conquers? A foreign war, long continued, cannot fail of producing disorder at home: the manners of the vi(ftors themfclves become corrupt during the general confulion. How much has Greece suffered, by the conquest of Troy? she was more than ten years deprived of her kings; and wherever the flame of war is kindled, the laws are violated with impunity, agriculture is negledted, and the fcicnces'are forgotten. The bed prince, when he has a war to sustain, is compelled to the fame conduft which difgraces the worst, to tolerate licentioufnefs, and employ villainy in his service: how many daring profligates are punished in a time of peace, whom it is neceflary to reward during the disorders of war? No nation was ever governed by a conqueror, that did not suffer by his ambition. The vidtorious, and the vanquiflied, are involved almost in the fame ruin, w^hile the king grows giddy amidst the tumult of a triumph. As he is utterly ignorant of the arts of peace, he knows not how to derive any popular advantages from a successful war; he is like a man, that not only defends his own field, but forcibly takes pofleffion of his neighbours, yet can neither plough nor fow, and consequently reaps no harvcft from either: he seems born, not to difFufe happiness among his fubjc<5ls by a wife and equitable government, but to fill the world with violence tumult and desolation.

" As to the pacific prince, it must, indeed, be confefi^ed, that he is not qualified for conquefl; or, in other words, he is not born to harrafs his people, by perpetual hoftilities, in a reftlefs attempt to fubjugate others, over whom he can have no equitable right: but if he is perfectly qualified for peaceful governsnent, these very qualifications will fecurc his fubjedts against the

N z encroacli-

92 B O O K V.

encroachments of an enemy: his justice, moderation, and quietnefs, render him a good neighbour; he engages in no enterprife that can interrupt the peace subsisting between him and other ttates; and he fulfils all his engagements with a religious exadlnefs; he is, therefore, regarded by his allies rather with love than feai% and they trufi: him with unlimited confidence: if any refllefs haughty and ambitious power should moleft him, all the neighbouring princes will mterpofe in his behalf; because, from him, they apprehend no attempt against their own quiet, but have every thing to fear from his enemy. His fteady justice impartiality and public faith, render him the arbiter of all the kingdoms that furround his own: and while the enterprif^s of ambition make the warrior odious, and the common danger unites the world against: him; a glory, superior to that of conquest, comes unlooked for to the friend of peace, on whom the eyes of every other potentate are turned, with reverence and affection, as the father and the guardian of them all: these are his advantages abroad, and those at home are yet more confidci-able. If he is qualified to govern in peace, it follows, that he must govern by the wifeft laws: he mull restrain parade and luxury; he must fupprefs every art which can only gratify vice; and he must encourage those which supply the neceflaries of life, especially agriculture, to which the principal attention of his people must be turned: whatever is neceftary, will then become abundant; and the people, being inured to labour, simple in their manners, habituated to live upon a little, and, therefore, easily gaining a fubfiftence from the field, will multiply without end. This kingdom then will soon become extremely populous; and the people will be healthful, vigorous and hardy; not effeminated by luxury, but veterans in virtue; not flaviflily attached to a life of voluptuous indolence, but free in a magnanimous contempt of death, and chufing rather to die, than lose the manly privileges which they enjoy under a prince, who reigns only

B O O K V. 93 only as tliefubftimtc of reason. If a neighbouring conqueror should attack such a people as this, he might probably find them unlkilful in marking out a camp, forming'the order of battle, and managing the unwieldy engines of deftrucflion that are used in a siege; but he would find them invincible by their numbers, and their courage, their patience of fatigue, their habit of induring hardfhip, the impetuofity of their attack, and the perseverance of that virtue which difappointment cannot fubdue. Besides, if their prince is not himself qualified to command his forces, he may fubflitute such persons as he knows to be equal to the trufl, and ufc them as instruments, without giving up his authority; fuccours may be obtained from his allies; his fubje(5ts will rather perish, than become the slaves of injustice and opprellion; and the Gods themselves will fight in his behalf. Thus will the pacific prince be fuftaincd, when his danger is most imminent: and, therefore, I conclude, that, though his ignorance in the art of war is an imperfecSlion in his charadler, since it difables him to execute one of the principal duties of his fl:ation, the chaftifcment of those who invade his dominion, or injure his people; yet he is infinitely superior to a king, who is wholly unacquainted with civil government, and knows no art but that of war."

" I perceived, but without wonder, that many persons in the aflembly did not approve the opinion that I had been labouring to maintain; for the greater part of mankind, dazzled by the false lufire of vi6lories and triumphs, prefer the tumult and show of successful hoftilities, to the quiet simplicity of peace, and the intrinsic advantages of good government. The judges, however, declared, that I had spoken the sentiments of Minos; and the prcfident cried out, " The oracle of Apollo, known to all Crete, is fulfilled: Minos enquired of the God, how long his posterity should govern by the laws which he had established; and he was answered, Thy posterity shall

Ihall cease to reign, when a stranger Ihall eftabllfh the reign of thy laws. We feared, that some foreigner would make a conquest of our island; but the misfortunes of Idoraeneus, and the wisdom of the son of Ulysses, who, of all mortals, best understands the laws of Minos, have difclofed the true sense of the oracle: why, then, do we delay to crown him, whom the Gods have appointed to be our king?"

The E N D of the FIFTH BOOK,

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C Orf^murxfcu^).