Thefe are the great and effential duties of the regal dignity. Indeed it is reasonable, and abfolutely neceffary, that the prince be affifted in the execution of that auguft function, as he is in others: But to be affifted, is not to be deprived, or difpoffeffed. He continues judge, as long as he continues king. Though he communicates his authority, yet does he not refign or divide it. It is therefore abfolutely neceffary for him to bestow fome time upon the ftudy of equity and juftice; not that he need enter into the whole detail of particular laws, but only acquaint himself with the principal rules and maxims of the law of his country, that he may be capable of doing justice, and of speaking wifely upon important points. For this reafon, the kings of Perfia never afcended the throne, till they had been for fome time under the care and inftruction of the Magi, who were to teach them that science whereof they were the only mafters and profeffors, as well as of theology.

Now fince to the fovereign alone, is committed the right of adminiftering juftice; and that within his dominions there is no other power of adminiftering it, than what is delegated by him; how greatly does it behove him to take care, into what hands he commits a part of so great a trust ; to know whether thofe he places fo near the throne, are worthy to partake of fuch a prerogative; and induftrioufly to keep all fuch at a diftance from it, as he judges unworthy? We find that in Perfia. their kings were extremely careful to have juftice rendered with integrity and impartiality. (r) One of their royal judges (for fo they called them) having fuffered himself to be corrupted by bribery, was condemned by Cambyfes to be put to death without mercy, and to have his skin put upon the feat where he used to fit and give judgment, and where his fon, who fucceeded him in his office, was to fit, that the very place, whence he gave judgment, fhould remind him of his own duty.

() Their ordinary judges were taken out of the clafs of old men, into which none were admitted till the age of fifty years fo that a man could not exercise the office of a judge before that age, the Perfians being of opinion, that too much matu rity could not be required in an employment which disposed of the fortunes, reputations, and lives of their fellow-citizens.

(2) Amongst them, it was not lawful either for a private perfon to put any of his flaves to death, or for the prince to inflict capital punishment upon any of his subjects for the first offence; because it might rather be confidered as an effect of L 2 human

(r) Herod. 1, v, 6. 25. (4) Xenoph. Cytop, ↳ i po 70

(7)

human weakness and frailty, than of a confirmed malignity of mind.

The Perfians thought it reasonable to put the good as well as the evil, the merits of the offender as well as his demerits, into the fcales of juftice: Nor was it juft, in their opinion, that one fingle crime fhould obliterate all the good actions a man had done during his life. (z) Upon this principle it was, that Darius, having condemned a judge to death for fome prevari sation in his office, and afterwards calling to mind the impor tant fervices he had rendered both the fate and the royal family, revoked the fentence at the very moment of its going to be executed, (w) and acknowledged, that he had pronounced it with more precipitation than wisdom.

But one important and effential rule which they observed in their judgments, was, in the first place, never to condemn any perfon without bringing his accufer to his face, and without giving him time, and all other means neceffary, for defending himself against the articles laid to his charge: And in the fecond place, if the perfon accufed was found innocent, to inflict the very fame punishment upon the accufer, as the other was to have fuffered, had he been found guilty. (x) Artaxerxes gave a fine example of the juft rigour which ought to be exercised on fuch occafions. One of the king's favou rites, ambitious of getting a place poffeffed by one of his best officers, endeavoured to make the king fufpect the fidelity of that officer; and to that end, fent informations to court full of calumnies against him, perfuading himself that the king, from the great credit he had with his majefty, would believe the thing upon his bare word, without farther examination. For fuch is the general character of calumniators. They are afraid of evidence and light; they make it their business to shut out the innocent from all access to the prince, and thereby put it out of their power to vindicate themfelves. The officer was imprisoned; but he defired of the king, before he was condemned, that his caufe might be heard, and his accufers ordered to produce their evidence against him. The king did fo: And as there was no proof but the letters which his enemy had writ against him, he was cleared, and his innocence fully juftified by the three commiffioners that fat upon his trial; all the king's indignation fell upon the perfidious accufer, who had thus attempted to abuse the favour and confidence of his royal mafter. This prince, who was very wife, and knew that one of the true figns of a prudent government, was to have the fubjects

(a) Herod. 1, vii. c. 194. ἐβασμένος εἴη, ἔλυσε,

(ε) Γιοὺς ὡς ταχύτερα αὐτὸς ἢ σοφώτερα (x) Diod. I. xv.-§• 333—336•

fubjects ftand more in fear of the laws, than of informers, would have thought, that to have acted otherwife than he did, would have been a direct violation of the most common rules of natural equity and humanity; it would have been opening a door to envy, hatred, calumny, and revenge, it would have been expofing the honeft fimplicity of good and faithful fubjects to the cruel malice of deteftable informers, and arming thefe with the fword of publick authority: In a word, it would have been divefting the throne of the moft noble privilege belonging to it, namely, of being a fanctuary for innocence and justice, against violence and calumny.

(y) There is upon record a ftill more memorable example of firmness and love of juftice, in another king of Perfia, before Artaxerxes; m him, I mean, whom the fcripture calls Ahafuerus, and who is thought to be the fame as Darius, the fon of Hyftafpes, from whom Haman had, by his earnest folicitations, extorted that fatal edict, which was calculated to exterminate the whole race of the Jews throughout the Perfian empire in one day. When God had, by the means of Efther, opened his eyes, he made hafte to make amends for his fault, not only by revoking his edict, and inflicting an exemplary punishment upon the impoftor who had deceived him ; but, which is more, by a publick acknowledgment of his error, which fhould be a pattern to all ages, and to all princes, and teach them, that far from debafing their dignity, or weakening their authority thereby, they procure them both the more refpect. After declaring, that it is but too common for calumniators to impofe, by their mifreprefentations and crafti nefs, on the goodness of their princes, whom their natural fincerity induces to judge favourably of others; he is not afhamed to acknowledge, that he had been fo unhappy as to fuffer himself to be prejudiced by fuch means against the Jews who were his faithful fubjects, and the children of the most high God,, through whofe goodness he and his ancestors had attained to the throne.

(z) The Perfians were not only enemies of injuftice, as we have now fhewn; but also abhorred lying, which always was deemed amongst them as a mean and infamous vice. What they efteemed moft pitiful, next to lying, was to liye upon truft, or by borrowing. Such a kind of life feemed to them idle, ignominious,

L 3

(z) Herod. 1. i. c. 138.

(y) Efth. c. iii, &c. Non jam delatores, fed leges ti-tigat, irritat. Sueton. in vit. Demit. mentur. Plin. in Paneg. Traj. + Princeps, qui delatores non caf

c. ix.

nominious, fervile, and the more defpicable, because it makes · people liars.

I

SECT. IV. The cart of the provinces.

T feems to be no difficult matter to maintain good order in the metropolis of a kingdom, where the conduct of the magiftrates and judges is nearly infpected; and the very fight of the throne is capable of keeping the fubjects in awe. The cafe is otherwife with refpect to the provinces, where the diftance from the fovereign, and the hopes of impunity, may occafion many misdemeanours on the part of the magiftrates and officers, as well as great licentioufnefs and diforder on that of the people. In this the Perfian policy exerted itself with the greatest care; and, we may alfo fay, with the greatest fuccefs.

The Perfian empire was divided into an hundred and twenty-feven governments, the governors whereof were called fatrapa. Over them were appointed three principal minifters, who infpected their conduct, to whom they gave an account of all the affairs of their feveral provinces, and who were afterwards to make their report of the fame to the king. It was Darius the Mede, that is, Cyaxares, or rather Cyrus, in the name of his uncle, who put the government of the empire into this excellent method. Thefe fatrapa were, by the very defign of their office, each in his refpective district, to have the fame care and regard for the interests of the people, as for thofe of the prince: For it was a maxim with Cyrus, that no difference ought to be admitted between these two interefts, which are neceffarily linked together; fince neither the people can be happy, unless the prince is powerful, and in a condition to defend them; nor the prince truly powerful, unless his people be happy.

Thefe fatrapæ being the moft confiderable perfons in the kingdom, Cyrus affigned them certain funds and revenues proportionable to their ftation and the importance of their employments. He was willing they fhould live nobly in their refpective provinces, that they might gain the refpect of the nobility and common people within their jurifdiction; and for that reason their retinue, their equipage, and their table, should be answerable to their dignity, yet without exceeding the bounds of prudence and moderation. He himself was their model in this refpect, as he defired they fhould be to all perfons of diftinguished rank within the extent of their authority : So

Authors differ about the number of governments or provinces. Xenoph. Cyrop. l. viii, p. 229, 232.

So that the fame order, which reigned in the prince's court, might likewise proportionably be observed in the courts of the fatrapæ, and in the noblemen's families. And to prevent, as far as poffible, all abuses, which might be made of fo extenfive an authority as that of the fatrapa, the king reserved to himself alone the nomination of them, and caufed the governors of places, the commanders of the troops, and other fuch like officers, to depend immediately upon the prince himself; from whom alone they were to receive their orders and inftructions, that, if the fatrapa were inclined to abuse their power, they might be fenfible thofe officers were fo many overseers and cenfors of their conduct. And, to make this correfpondence, by letters, the more fure and expeditious, the king caufed poft-houses to be erected throughout all the empire, and appointed couriers, who travelled night and day, and made wonderful difpatch. But I fhall fpeak more particularly on this article at the end of this fection, that I may not break in upon the matter in hand.

Notwithstanding all this, the care of the provinces was not entirely left to the fatrapæ and governors: The king himself took cognizance of them in his own perfon, being perfuaded, that the governing only by others, is but to govern by halves. An officer of the houshold was ordered to repeat these words to the king every morning, when he waked: (a) Rife, Sir, and think of difcharging the duties, for which Oromafdes has placed you upon the throne, Oromafdes was the principal god, anciently worshipped by the Perfians. A good prince, fays Plutarch in the account he gives of this cuftom, has no occafion for an officer to give him this daily admonition: His own heart, and the love he has for his people, are fufficient monitors.

(b) The king of Perfia thought himself obliged. according to the ancient cuftom established in that country, from time to time perfonally to vifit all the provinces of his empire; being perfuaded, as Pliny fays of Trajan, that the moft folid glory, and the most exquifite pleafure, a good prince can enjoy, is from time to time to let the people fee their common father; to reconcile the diffenfions and mutual animofities of rival cities; to calm commotions or feditions among the people, and that not fo much by the dint of power and feverity, as by reaL 4

(a) Plut, ad P.in. indođ. p. 780.

Reconciliare æmulas civitates, | tumentefque populos non imperio magis quàm ratione compefcere, intercedere iniquitatibus magiftratuum, infe&tumque reddere quicquid fieri non

fon

(b) Xenoph. in Oeconom. p. 228. oportuerit; poftremò velociffimi fideris more omnia invifere, omnia audire, & undecumque invocatum, Aatim, velut numen, adeffe & adfifere. Plin. in Panegyr. Traj.