Before my reign learned men had been sometimes prone to seclude themselves from the world, while the opulent indulged in amusements to excess, and had indeed need of laws rather to restrain than to enjoin indulgence.  Now, however, few, except the “humble” classes (for we have no “poor” in your sense of the word), would have sought after diversions had not my laws enjoined them as a duty.

As regards learned men, I knew that if one part of the brain was unduly excited and overworked, the other portions would lie dormant and suffer.  All classes therefore were required to “undergo” amusements, and many were the precepts to encourage them in the pursuit.  I added to these the force of my own example; for, though occupied incessantly with the cares of government and with abstruse meditations, I nevertheless attended amusements of all kinds, and often gave fetes of great beauty and magnificence for the recreation of the people.  I was a frequent attendant at places of amusement, public games, and races, and refreshed myself almost daily with the sympathetic contact of the numerous society which my hospitality brought round my table.

When my laws on the subject of social intercourse were first promulgated there were many wise men who questioned the wisdom of my requiring the learned to cultivate social relations.  These addressed to me many arguments in support of their views and objected that, without having their thoughts interrupted by the clang of society, simple changes of subject, or at least the simplest distractions, would amply suffice to give the necessary repose.  I always encouraged the learned to communicate to me their opinions, to which I invariably listened with attention; and in this case the arguments they adduced in support of their views were so plausible that I resolved to convince them by an actual experiment.

To satisfy them, and confirm the belief of others, I allowed the chief opponents of my doctrines to select ten learned men who desired to pursue their own idea of seclusion, and ten others were selected by me from those who were converts to my views in matters of recreation and amusement.  The twenty men thus selected were, as nearly as possible, equal in point of talent, and were all engaged on the same engrossing subject—­one which required great concentration of thought.  The utmost care was taken that the experiment might be fairly and conclusively tried.

The result of this experiment, which extended over many years, proved indisputably that I was right; for whilst the productions of the “amusing and amused” men were equal in all, and in many respects superior to, those of the “seclusionists,” the latter showed visible marks of the evils of their abstinence.

After a few years their indifference for the world had grown into positive misanthropy.  They refused to receive any visits, became negligent of their personal appearance, and centred their whole affection upon the object of their study.