to it. Nor is it so becoming the dignity of
a king to reign over beggars as over rich and happy
subjects. And therefore Fabricius, a man of a
noble and exalted temper, said ’he would rather
govern rich men than be rich himself; since for one
man to abound in wealth and pleasure when all about
him are mourning and groaning, is to be a gaoler and
not a king.’ He is an unskilful physician
that cannot cure one disease without casting his patient
into another. So he that can find no other way
for correcting the errors of his people but by taking
from them the conveniences of life, shows that he
knows not what it is to govern a free nation.
He himself ought rather to shake off his sloth, or
to lay down his pride, for the contempt or hatred
that his people have for him takes its rise from the
vices in himself. Let him live upon what belongs
to him without wronging others, and accommodate his
expense to his revenue. Let him punish crimes,
and, by his wise conduct, let him endeavour to prevent
them, rather than be severe when he has suffered them
to be too common. Let him not rashly revive
laws that are abrogated by disuse, especially if they
have been long forgotten and never wanted. And
let him never take any penalty for the breach of them
to which a judge would not give way in a private man,
but would look on him as a crafty and unjust person
for pretending to it. To these things I would
add that law among the Macarians—a people
that live not far from Utopia—by which
their king, on the day on which he began to reign,
is tied by an oath, confirmed by solemn sacrifices,
never to have at once above a thousand pounds of gold
in his treasures, or so much silver as is equal to
that in value. This law, they tell us, was made
by an excellent king who had more regard to the riches
of his country than to his own wealth, and therefore
provided against the heaping up of so much treasure
as might impoverish the people. He thought that
moderate sum might be sufficient for any accident,
if either the king had occasion for it against the
rebels, or the kingdom against the invasion of an
enemy; but that it was not enough to encourage a prince
to invade other men’s rights—a circumstance
that was the chief cause of his making that law.
He also thought that it was a good provision for
that free circulation of money so necessary for the
course of commerce and exchange. And when a
king must distribute all those extraordinary accessions
that increase treasure beyond the due pitch, it makes
him less disposed to oppress his subjects. Such
a king as this will be the terror of ill men, and
will be beloved by all the good.