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The Elegance Of Dress, Of Motion, And Of Manners Gives A Lustre To Beauty, And Inflames The Senses Through The Imagination. Luxurious Entertainments, Midnight Dances, And Licentious Spectacles, Present At Once Temptation And Opportunity To Female Frailty. From Such Dangers The Unpolished Wives Of The Barbarians Were Secured By Poverty, Solitude, And The Painful Cares Of A Domestic Life.

-Edward Gibbon

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The Elegance Of Dress,

Edward Gibbon

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The Elegance Of Dress, Of Motion, And Of Manners Gives A Lustre To Beauty, And Inflames The Senses Through The Imagination. Luxurious Entertainments, Midnight Dances, And Licentious Spectacles, Present At Once Temptation And Opportunity To Female Frailty. From Such Dangers The Unpolished Wives Of The Barbarians Were Secured By Poverty, Solitude, And The Painful Cares Of A Domestic Life.

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As Long As Mankind Shall Continue To Bestow More Liberal Applause On Their Destroyers Than On Their Benefactors, The Thirst Of Military Glory Will Ever Be The Vice Of The Most Exalted Characters.

In The End, More Than Freedom, They Wanted Security. They Wanted A Comfortable Life, And They Lost It All – Security, Comfort, And Freedom. When The Athenians Finally Wanted Not To Give To Society But For Society To Give To Them, When The Freedom They Wished For Most Was Freedom From Responsibility, Then Athens Ceased To Be Free And Was Never Free Again.

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Flattery Is A Foolish Suicide; She Destroys Herself With Her Own Hands.

The Image Of A Free Constitution Was Preserved With Decent Reverence: The Roman Senate Appeared To Possess The Sovereign Authority, And Devolved On The Emperors All The Executive Powers Of Government. During A Happy Period (a.d. 98-180) Of More Than Fourscore Years, The Public Administration Was Conducted By The Virtue And Abilities Of Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, And The Two Antonines.

The Philosopher, Who With Calm Suspicion Examines The Dreams And Omens, The Miracles And Prodigies, Of Profane Or Even Of Ecclesiastical History, Will Probably Conclude That, If The Eyes Of The Spectators Have Sometimes Been Deceived By Fraud, The Understanding Of The Readers Has Much More Frequently Been Insulted By Fiction.

Let Us Read With Method, And Propose To Ourselves An End To Which Our Studies May Point. The Use Of Reading Is To Aid Us In Thinking.

In The Various States Of Society, Armies Are Recruited From Very Different Motives. Barbarians Are Urged By The Love Of War; The Citizens Of A Free Republic May Be Prompted By A Principle Of Duty; The Subjects, Or At Least The Nobles, Of A Monarchy, Are Animated By A Sentiment Of Honor; But The Timid And Luxurious Inhabitants Of A Declining Empire Must Be Allured Into The Service By The Hopes Of Profit, Or Compelled By The Dread Of Punishment.

Such Events May Be Disbelieved Or Disregarded; But The Charity Of A Bishop, Acacius Of Amida, Whose Name Might Have Dignified The Saintly Calendar, Shall Not Be Lost In Oblivion.

I Understand By This Passion The Union Of Desire, Friendship, And Tenderness, Which Is Inflamed By A Single Female, Which Prefers Her To The Rest Of Her Sex, And Which Seeks Her Possession As The Supreme Or The Sole Happiness Of Our Being.

To A Lover Of Books The Shops And Sales In London Present Irresistible Temptations.

[peace] Cannot Be Honorable Or Secure, If The Sovereign Betrays A Pusillanimous Aversion To War.

Books Are Those Faithful Mirrors That Reflect To Our Mind The Minds Of Sages And Heroes.

The Communication Of Ideas Requires A Similitude Of Thought And Language . . .

Philosophy Alone Can Boast (and Perhaps It Is No More Than The Boast Of Philosophy), That Her Gentle Hand Is Able To Eradicate From The Human Mind The Latent And Deadly Principle Of Fanaticism.

The Author Himself Is The Best Judge Of His Own Performance; None Has So Deeply Meditated On The Subject; None Is So Sincerely Interested In The Event.

To A Philosophic Eye, The Vices Of The Clergy Are Far Less Dangerous Than Their Virtues.

[in] The National And Religious Conflict Of The [byzantine And Saracen] Empires, Peace Was Without Confidence, And War Without Mercy.

The Frequent Repetition Of Miracles Serves To Provoke, Where It Does Not Subdue, The Reason Of Mankind.

It Has Always Been My Practice To Cast A Long Paragraph In A Single Mould, To Try It By My Ear, To Deposit It In My Memory, But To Suspend The Action Of The Pen Till I Had Given The Last Polish To My Work.

The Revolution Of Ages May Bring Round The Same Calamities; But Ages May Revolve Without Producing A Tacitus To Describe Them.

But [the Arabs'] Friendship Was Venal, Their Faith Inconstant, Their Enmity Capricious: It Was An Easier Task To Excite Than To Disarm These Roving Barbarians; And, In The Familiar Intercourse Of War, They Learned To See, And To Despise, The Splendid Weakness Both Of Rome And Of Persia.

The Awful Mysteries Of The Christian Faith And Worship Were Concealed From The Eyes Of Strangers, And Even Of Catechumens, With An Affected Secrecy, Which Served To Excite Their Wonder And Curiosity.

But The Works Of Man Are Impotent Against The Assaults Of Nature . . .

Europe Is Secure From Any Future Irruptions Of Barbarians; Since, Before They Can Conquer, They Must Cease To Be Barbarous.

Religion Is A Mere Question Of Geography.

Freedom Is The First Wish Of Our Heart; Freedom Is The First Blessing Of Nature; And Unless We Bind Ourselves With Voluntary Chains Of Interest Or Passion, We Advance In Freedom As We Advance In Years

[a] Military Force Was Collected In Europe, Formidable By Their Arms And Numbers, If The Generals Had Understood The Science Of Command, And The Soldiers The Duty Of Obedience.

But A Wild Democracy . . . Too Often Disdains The Essential Principles Of Justice.

It Is Seldom That Minds Long Exercised In Business Have Formed Any Habits Of Conversing With Themselves, And In The Loss Of Power They Principally Regret The Want Of Occupation.

Imam Hussain's Sacrifice Is For All Groups And Communities, An Example Of The Path Of Rightousness.

Where Error Is Irreparable, Repentance Is Useless.

Under A Democratical Government The Citizens Exercise The Powers Of Sovereignty; And Those Powers Will Be First Abused, And Afterwards Lost, If They Are Committed To An Unwieldy Multitude.

If A Man Were Called To Fix The Period In The History Of The World During Which The Condition Of The Human Race Was Most Happy And Prosperous, He Would, Without Hesitation, Name That Which Elapsed From The Death Of Domitian To The Accession Of Commodus.

War, In Its Fairest Form, Implies A Perpetual Violation Of Humanity And Justice.

The Complaints Of Contemporary Writes, Who Deplore The Increase Of Luxury And Deprevation Of Manners, Are Commonly Expressive Of Their Peculiar Temper And Situation. There Are Few Observers Who Possess A Clear And Comprehensive View Of The Revolutions Of Society, And Who Are Capable Of Discovering The Nice And Secret Springs Of Action Which Impel, In The Same Uniform Direction, The Bland And Capricious Passions Of A Multitude Of Individuals.

[the] Events By Which The Fate Of Nations Is Not Materially Changed, Leave A Faint Impression On The Page Of History, And The Patience Of The Reader Would Be Exhausted By The Repetition Of The Same Hostilities [between Rome And Persia], Undertaken Without Cause, Prosecuted Without Glory, And Terminated Without Effect.

Sixty Thousand Blacks Are Annually Embarked From The Coast Of Guinea, Never To Return To Their Native Country; But They Are Embarked In Chains: And This Constant Emigration, Which, In The Space Of Two Centuries, Might Have Furnished Armies To Overrun The Globe, Accuses The Guilt Of Europe And The Weakness Of Africa.

The Decline Of Rome Was The Natural And Inevitable Effect Of Immoderate Greatness. Prosperity Ripened The Principle Of Decay; The Cause Of The Destruction Multiplied With The Extent Of Conquest; And, As Soon As Time Or Accident And Removed The Artificial Supports, The Stupendous Fabric Yielded To The Pressure Of Its Own Weight. The Story Of The Ruin Is Simple And Obvious: And Instead Of Inquiring Why The Roman Empire Was Destroyed We Should Rather Be Surprised That It Has Subsisted For So Long.

The Mathematics Are Distinguished By A Particular Privilege, That Is, In The Course Of Ages, They May Always Advance And Can Never Recede.

The Style Of An Author Should Be The Image Of His Mind, But The Choice And Command Of Language Is The Fruit Of Exercise.

The Courage Of A Soldier Is Found To Be The Cheapest And Most Common Quality Of Human Nature.

In Populous Cities, Which Are The Seat Of Commerce And Manufactures, The Middle Ranks Of Inhabitants, Who Derive Their Subsistence From The Dexterity Or Labour Of Their Hands, Are Commonly The Most Prolific, The Most Useful, And, In That Sense, The Most Respectable Part Of The Community.

It Is Scarcely Possible That The Eyes Of Contemporaries Should Discover In The Public Felicity The Latent Causes Of Decay And Corruption. This Long Peace, And The Uniform Government Of The Romans, Introduced A Slow And Secret Poison Into The Vitals Of The Empire. The Minds Of Men Were Gradually Reduced To The Same Level, The Fire Of Genius Was Extinguished, And Even The Military Spirit Evaporated.

Yet The Civilians Have Always Respected The Natural Right Of A Citizen To Dispose Of His Life . . .

It Has Been Sagaciously Conjectured, That The Artful Legislator Indulged The Stubborn Prejudices Of His Countrymen.

But The Severe Rules Of Discipline Which The Prudence Of The Bishops Had Instituted Were Relaxed By The Same Prudence In Favour Of An Imperial Proselyte, Whom It Was So Important To Allure, By Every Gentle Condescension, Into The Pale Of The Church; And Constantine Was Permitted, At Least By A Tacit Dispensation, To Enjoy Most Of The Privileges, Before He Had Contracted Any Of The Obligations, Of A Christian.

The Authority Of Plato And Aristotle, Of Zeno And Epicurus, Still Reigned In The Schools; And Their Systems, Transmitted With Blind Deference From One Generation Of Disciples To Another, Precluded Every Generous Attempt To Exercise The Powers, Or Enlarge The Limits, Of The Human Mind.

Active Valour May Often Be The Present Of Nature; But Such Patient Diligence Can Be The Fruit Only Of Habit And Discipline.

My Early And Invincible Love Of Reading I Would Not Exchange For All The Riches Of India.

In The Field Of Controversy I Always Pity The Moderate Party, Who Stand On The Open Middle Ground Exposed To The Fire Of Both Sides.

But In Almost Every Province Of The Roman World, An Army Of Fanatics, Without Authority And Without Discipline, Invaded The Peaceful Inhabitants; And The Ruin Of The Fairest Structures Of Antiquity Still Displays The Ravages Of Those Barbarians Who Alone Had Time And Inclination To Execute Such Laborious Destruction.

It Was [totila's] Constant Theme, That National Vice And Ruin Are Inseparably Connected; That Victory Is The Fruit Of Moral As Well As Military Virtue; And That The Prince, And Even The People, Are Responsible For The Crimes Which They Neglect To Punish.

The Mixture Of Sarmatic And German Blood Had Contributed To Improve The Features Of The Alani, To Whiten Their Swarthy Complexions, And To Tinge Their Hair With A Yellowish Cast, Which Is Seldom Found In The Tartar Race.

Persuasion Is The Resource Of The Feeble; And The Feeble Can Seldom Persuade . . .

[the] Penalty Of Death Was Abolished In The Roman Empire, A Law Of Mercy Most Delightful To The Humane Theorist, But Of Which The Practice, In A Large And Vicious Community, Is Seldom Consistent With The Public Safety.

Passion, Interest, Or Caprice, Suggested Daily Motives For The Dissolution Of Marriage; A Word, A Sign, A Message, A Letter, The Mandate Of A Freedman, Declared The Separation; The Most Tender Of Human Connections Was Degraded To A Transient Society Of Profit Or Pleasure.

The Slightest Force, When It Is Applied To Assist And Guide The Natural Descent Of Its Object, Operates With Irresistible Weight; And Jovian Had The Good Fortune To Embrace The Religious Opinions Which Were Supported By The Spirit Of The Times And The Zeal And Numbers Of The Most Powerful Sect. Under His Reign, Christianity Obtained An Easy And Lasting Victory; And, As Soon As The Smile Of Royal Patronage Was Withdrawn, The Genius Of Paganism, Which Had Been Fondly Raised And Cherished By The Arts Of Julian, Sunk Irrecoverably In The Dust.

In The Second Century Of The Christian Era, The Empire Of Rome Comprehended The Fairest Part Of The Earth, And The Most Civilized Portion Of Mankind.

But How Shall We Excuse The Supine Inattention Of The Pagan And Philosophic World To Those Evidences Which Were Presented By The Hand Of Omnipotence, Not To Their Reason, But To Their Senses? During The Age Of Christ, Of His Apostles, And Their First Disciples, The Doctrine Which They Preached Was Confirmed By Innumerable Prodigies. The Lame Walked, The Blind Saw, The Sick Were Healed, The Dead Were Raised, Daemons Were Expelled, And The Laws Of Nature Were Frequently Suspended For The Benefit Of The Church.

To An Active Mind, Indolence Is More Painful Than Labor.

History Should Be To The Political Economist A Wellspring Of Experience And Wisdom.

Corruption, The Most Infallible Symptom Of Constitutional Liberty.

Actuated By These Motives, And Apprehensive Of Disturbing The Repose Of An Unsettled Reign, Julian Surprised The World By An Edict Which Was Not Unworthy Of A Statesman Or A Philosopher. He Extended To All The Inhabitants Of The Roman World The Benefits Of A Free And Equal Toleration; And The Only Hardship Which He Inflicted On The Christians Was To Deprive Them Of The Power Of Tormenting Their Fellow-subjects, Whom They Stigmatised With The Odious Titles Of Idolaters And Heretics.

Instead Of Pressing, With The Foremost Of The Crowd, Into The Palace Of Constantinople, Libanius Calmly Expected His Arrival At Antioch; Withdrew From Court On The First Symptoms Of Coldness And Indifference; Required A Formal Invitation For Each Visit; And Taught His Sovereign An Important Lesson, That He Might Command The Obedience Of A Subject, But That He Must Deserve The Attachment Of A Friend.

Both Moscow And [kiev], The Modern And The Ancient Capitals, Were Reduced To Ashes [by The Tartars]; A Temporary Ruin, Less Fatal Than The Deep, And Perhaps Indelible, Mark, Which A Servitude Of Two Hundred Years Has Imprinted On The Character Of The Russians.

Instead Of A Perpetual And Perfect Measure Of The Divine Will, The Fragments Of The Koran Were Produced At The Discretion Of Mahomet; Each Revelation Is Suited To The Emergencies Of His Policy Or Passion; And All Contradiction Is Removed By The Saving Maxim That Any Text Of Scripture Is Abrogated Or Modified By Any Subsequent Passage.

That Public Virtue Which Among The Ancients Was Denominated Patriotism, Is Derived From A Strong Sense Of Our Own Interest In The Preservation And Prosperity Of The Free Government Of Which We Are Members. Such A Sentiment, Which Had Rendered The Legions Of The Republic Almost Invincible, Could Make But A Very Feeble Impression On The Mercenary Servants Of A Despotic Prince; And It Became Necessary To Supply That Defect By Other Motives, Of A Different, But Not Less Forcible Nature; Honour And Religion.

An Absolute Monarch, Who Is Rich Without Patrimony, May Be Charitable Without Merit; And Constantine Too Easily Believed That He Should Purchase The Favour Of Heaven If He Maintained The Idle At The Expense Of The Industrious, And Distributed Among The Saints The Wealth Of The Republic.

A People Who Still Remembered That Their Ancestors Had Been The Masters Of The World Would Have Applauded, With Conscious Pride, The Representation Of Ancient Freedom, If They Had Not Long Since Been Accustomed To Prefer The Solid Assurance Of Bread To The Unsubstantial Visions Of Liberty And Greatness.

The Orator, Who May Be Silent Without Danger, May Praise Without Difficulty And Without Reluctance; And Posterity Will Confess That The Character Of Theodosius Might Furnish The Subject Of A Sincere And Ample Panegyric. The Wisdom Of His Laws And The Success Of His Arms Rendered His Administration Respectable In The Eyes Both Of His Subjects And Of His Enemies. He Loved And Practised The Virtues Of Domestic Life, Which Seldom Hold Their Residence In The Palaces Of Kings.

Instructed By History And Reflection, Julian Was Persuaded That, If The Diseases Of The Body May Sometimes Be Cured By Salutary Violence, Neither Steel Nor Fire Can Eradicate The Erroneous Opinions Of The Mind.

This Variety Of Objects Will Suspend, For Some Time, The Course Of The Narrative; But The Interruption Will Be Censured Only By Those Readers Who Are Insensible To The Importance Of Laws And Manners, While They Peruse, With Eager Curiosity, The Transient Intrigues Of A Court, Or The Accidental Event Of A Battle.

The Laws Of A Nation Form The Most Instructive Portion Of Its History

A Bloody And Complete Victory Has Sometimes Yielded No More Than The Possession Of The Field And The Loss Of Ten Thousand Men Has Sometimes Been Sufficient To Destroy, In A Single Day, The Work Of Ages.

The Union Of The Roman Empire Was Dissolved; Its Genius Was Humbled In The Dust; And Armies Of Unknown Barbarians, Issuing From The Frozen Regions Of The North, Had Established Their Victorious Reign Over The Fairest Provinces Of Europe And Africa.

The Love Of Study, A Passion Which Derives Fresh Vigor From Enjoyment, Supplies Each Day, Each Hour, With A Perpetual Source Of Independent And Rational Pleasure.

The Progress Of Despotism Tends To Disappoint Its Own Purpose.

Bad Roads And Indifferent Inns, ... The Continual Converse One Is Obliged To Have With The Vilest Part Of Mankind - Innkeepers, Post-masters, And Custom House Officers.

The Gravest Of The Ecclesiastical Historians, Eusebius Himself, Indirectly Confesses That He Has Related Whatever Might Redound To The Glory, And That He Has Suppressed All That Could Tend To The Disgrace, Of Religion.

There Is More Pleasure To Building Castles In The Air Than On The Ground.

[arabs Are] A People, Whom It Is Dangerous To Provoke, And Fruitless To Attack.

So Natural To Man Is The Practice Of Violence That Our Indulgence Allows The Slightest Provocation, The Most Disputable Right, As A Sufficient Ground Of National Hostility.

I Will Not Dissemble The First Emotions Of Joy On The Recovery Of My Freedom, And, Perhaps, The Establishment Of My Fame. But My Pride Was Soon Humbled, And A Sober Melancholy Was Spread Over My Mind, By The Idea That I Had Taken An Everlasting Leave Of An Old And Agreeable Companion, And That Whatsoever Might Be The Future Date Of My History, The Life Of The Historian Must Be Short And Precarious.

Our Ignorance Is God; What We Know Is Science.

[it] Is The Interest As Well As Duty Of A Sovereign To Maintain The Authority Of The Laws.

If Julian Had Flattered Himself That His Personal Connexion With The Capital Of The East Would Be Productive Of Mutual Satisfaction To The Prince And People, He Made A Very False Estimate Of His Own Character, And Of The Manners Of Antioch. The Warmth Of The Climate Disposed The Natives To The Most Intemperate Enjoyment Of Tranquillity And Opulence; And The Lively Licentiousness Of The Greeks Was Blended With The Hereditary Softness Of The Syrians.

Genius May Anticipate The Season Of Maturity; But In The Education Of A People, As In That Of An Individual, Memory Must Be Exercised, Before The Powers Of Reason And Fancy Can Be Expanded: Nor May The Artist Hope To Equal Or Surpass, Till He Has Learned To Imitate, The Works Of His Predecessors.

It Has Been Calculated By The Ablest Politicians That No State, Without Being Soon Exhausted, Can Maintain Above The Hundredth Part Of Its Members In Arms And Idleness.

Feeble And Timid Minds . . . Consider The Use Of Dilatory And Ambiguous Measures As The Most Admirable Efforts Of Consummate Prudence.

It Is Impossible To Reduce, Or, At Least, To Hold A Distant Country Against The Wishes And Efforts Of Its Inhabitants.

The Two Antonines (for It Is Of Them That We Are Now Speaking) Governed The Roman World Forty-two Years, With The Same Invariable Spirit Of Wisdom And Virtue. ... Their United Reigns Are Possibly The Only Period Of History In Which The Happiness Of A Great People Was The Sole Object Of Government.

Yet The People, And Even The Clergy, Incapable Of Forming Any Rational Judgment Of The Business Of Peace And War, Presumed To Arraign The Policy Of Stilicho, Who So Often Vanquished, So Often Surrounded, And So Often Dismissed The Implacable Enemy Of The Republic. The First Moment Of The Public Safety Is Devoted To Gratitude And Joy; But The Second Is Diligently Occupied By Envy And Calumny.

But The Power Of Instruction Is Seldom Of Much Efficacy, Except In Those Happy Dispositions Where It Is Almost Superfluous.

The Criminal Penalties [for Suicide] Are The Production Of A Later And Darker Age.

The First Of Earthly Blessings, Independence.

A Martial Nobility And Stubborn Commons, Possessed Of Arms, Tenacious Of Property, And Collected Into Constitutional Assemblies Form The Only Balance Capable Of Preserving A Free Constitution Against The Enterprise Of An Aspiring Prince

My English Text Is Chaste, And All Licentious Passages Are Left In The Decent Obscurity Of A Learned Language.

Every Person Has Two Educations, One Which He Receives From Others, And One, More Important, Which He Gives To Himself.

The Policy Of The Emperors And The Senate, As Far As It Concerned Religion, Was Happily Seconded By The Reflections Of The Enlightened, And By The Habits Of The Superstitious, Part Of Their Subjects. The Various Modes Of Worship, Which Prevailed In The Roman World, Were All Considered By The People, As Equally True; By The Philosopher, As Equally False; And By The Magistrate, As Equally Useful. And Thus Toleration Produced Not Only Mutual Indulgence, But Even Religious Concord.

The Revenge Of A Guilty Woman Is Implacable.

The Difference Of Language, Dress, And Manners . . . Severs And Alienates The Nations Of The Globe.

During The Games Of The Circus, He Had, Imprudently Or Designedly, Performed The Manumission Of A Slave In The Presence Of The Consul. The Moment He Was Reminded That He Had Trespassed On The Jurisdiction Of Another Magistrate, He Condemned Himself To Pay A Fine Of Ten Pounds Of Gold, And Embraced This Public Occasion Of Declaring To The World That He Was Subject, Like The Rest Of His Fellow-citizens, To The Laws, And Even To The Forms, Of The Republic.

Boethius Might Have Been Styled Happy, If That Precarious Epithet Could Be Safely Applied Before The Last Term Of The Life Of Man.

The Best And Most Important Part Of Every Man's Education Is That Which He Gives Himself.

The Incapacity Of A Weak And Distracted Government May Often Assume The Appearance And Produce The Effects Of A Treasonable Correspondence With The Public Enemy. If Alaric Himself Had Been Introduced Into The Council Of Ravenna, He Would Probably Have Advised The Same Measures Which Were Actually Pursued By The Ministers Of Honorius.

Among The Innumerable Monuments Of Architecture Constructed By The Romans, How Many Have Escaped The Notice Of History, How Few Have Resisted The Ravages Of Time And Barbarism! And Yet Even The Majestic Ruins That Are Still Scattered Over Italy And The Provinces, Would Be Sufficient To Prove That Those Countries Were Once The Seat Of A Polite And Powerful Empire.

But This Inestimable Privilege Was Soon Violated: With The Knowledge Of Truth The Emperor Imbibed The Maxims Of Persecution; And The Sects Which Dissented From The Catholic Church Were Afflicted And Oppressed By The Triumph Of Christianity. Constantine Easily Believed That The Heretics, Who Presumed To Dispute His Opinions Or To Oppose His Commands, Were Guilty Of The Most Absurd And Criminal Obstinacy; And That A Seasonable Application Of Moderate Severities Might Save Those Unhappy Men From The Danger Of An Everlasting Condemnation.

Style Is The Image Of Character.

The Dark Cloud, Which Had Been Cleared By The Phoenician Discoveries, And Finally Dispelled By The Arms Of Caesar, Again Settled On The Shores Of The Atlantic, And A Roman Province [britain] Was Again Lost Among The Fabulous Islands Of The Ocean.

The Inactivity Of A Conqueror Betrays The Loss Of Strength And Blood . . .

I Am Indeed Rich, Since My Income Is Superior To My Expenses, And My Expense Is Equal To My Wishes.

Hope, The Best Comfort Of Our Imperfect Condition, Was Not Denied To The Roman Slave; And If He Had Any Opportunity Of Rendering Himself Either Useful Or Agreeable, He Might Very Naturally Expect That The Diligence And Fidelity Of A Few Years Would Be Rewarded With The Inestimable Gift Of Freedom.

In The Purer Ages Of The Commonwealth, The Use Of Arms Was Reserved For Those Ranks Of Citizens Who Had A Country To Love, A Property To Defend, And Some Share In Enacting Those Laws Which It Was Their Interest, As Well As Duty, To Maintain. But In Proportion As The Public Freedom Was Lost In Extent Of Conquest, War Was Gradually Improved Into An Art, And Degraded Into A Trade.

In Their Censures Of Luxury The Fathers Are Extremely Minute And Circumstantial; And Among The Various Articles Which Excite Their Pious Indignation, We May Enumerate False Hair, Garments Of Any Colour Except White, Instruments Of Music, Vases Of Gold Or Silver, Downy Pillows, White Bread, Foreign Wines, Public Salutations, The Use Of Warm Baths, And The Practice Of Shaving The Beard, Which, According To Tertullian, Is A Lie Against Our Own Faces, And Am Impious Attempt To Improve The Works Of The Creator.

In The Second Century Of The Christian Era, The Empire Of Rome Comprehended The Fairest Part Of The Earth, And The Most Civilised Portion Of Mankind. The Frontiers Of That Extensive Monarchy Were Guarded By Ancient Renown And Disciplined Valour. The Gentle But Powerful Influence Of Laws And Manners Had Gradually Cemented The Union Of The Provinces. Their Peaceful Inhabitants Enjoyed And Abused The Advantages Of Wealth And Luxury.

The Peace Of The Eastern Church Was Invaded By A Swarm Of Fanatics [monks], Incapable Of Fear, Or Reason, Or Humanity; And The Imperial Troops Acknowledged, Without Shame, That They Were Much Less Apprehensive Of An Encounter With The Fiercest Barbarians.

At The Hour Of Midnight The Salerian Gate Was Silently Opened, And The Inhabitants Were Awakened By The Tremendous Sound Of The Gothic Trumpet. Eleven Hundred And Sixty-three Years After The Foundation Of Rome, The Imperial City, Which Had Subdued And Civilised So Considerable A Part Of Mankind, Was Delivered To The Licentious Fury Of The Tribes Of Germany And Scythia.

Fear Has Been The Original Parent Of Superstition, And Every New Calamity Urges Trembling Mortals To Deprecate The Wrath Of Their Invisible Enemies.

To The Love Of Pleasure We May Therefore Ascribe Most Of The Agreeable, To The Love Of Action We May Attribute Most Of The Useful And Respectable, Qualifications. The Character In Which Both The One And The Other Should Be United And Harmonised Would Seem To Constitute The Most Perfect Idea Of Human Nature.

A Sentence Of Death And Infamy Was Often Founded On The Slight And Suspicious Evidence Of A Child Or A Servant: The Guilt [of The Defendant] Was Presumed By The Judges [due To The Nature Of The Charge], And Paederasty Became The Crime Of Those To Whom No Crime Could Be Imputed.

Every Man Who Rises Above The Common Level Has Received Two Educations: The First From His Teachers; The Second, More Personal And Important, From Himself.

Constantinople Was The Principal Seat And Fortress Of Arianism; And, In A Long Interval Of Forty Years, The Faith Of The Princes And Prelates Who Reigned In The Capital Of The East Was Rejected In The Purer Schools Of Rome And Alexandria.

Such, Indeed, Is The Policy Of Civil War: Severely To Remember Injuries, And To Forget The Most Important Services. Revenge Is Profitable, Gratitude Is Expensive.

That Country [carthage] Was Rapidly Sinking Into The State Of Barbarism From Whence It Had Been Raised By The Phoenician Colonies And Roman Laws; And Every Step Of Intestine Discord Was Marked By Some Deplorable Victory Of Savage Man Over Civilized Society.

Majorian Presents The Welcome Discovery Of A Great And Heroic Character, Such As Sometimes Arise, In A Degenerate Age, To Vindicate The Honor Of The Human Species.

One Must Search Diligently To Find Laudatory Comments On Education (other Than Those Pious Platitudes Which Are Fodder For Commencement Speeches). It Appears That Most Persons Who Have Achieved Fame And Success In The World Of Ideas Are Cynical About Formal Education. These People Are A Select Few, Who Often Achieved Success In Spite Of Their Education, Or Even Without It. As Has Been Said, The Clever Largely Educate Themselves, Those Less Able Aren't Sufficiently Clever Or Imaginative To Benefit Much From Education.

The Gauls Were Endowed With All The Advantages Of Art And Nature; But As They Wanted Courage To Defend Them, They Were Justly Condemned To Obey, And Even To Flatter, The Victorious Barbarians, By Whose Clemency They Held Their Precarious Fortunes And Their Lives.

Amiable Weaknesses Of Human Nature.

[every] Hour Of Delay Abates The Fame And Force Of The Invader, And Multiplies The Resources Of Defensive War.

Of The Various Forms Of Government Which Have Prevailed In The World, An Hereditary Monarchy Seems To Present The Fairest Scope For Ridicule.

British Monarchy

To Maintain The Harmony Of Authority And Obedience, To Chastise The Proud, To Protect The Weak, To Reward The Deserving, To Banish Vice And Idleness From His Dominions, To Secure The Traveller And Merchant, To Restrain The Depredations Of The Soldier, To Cherish The Labors Of The Husbandman, To Encourage Industry And Learning, And, By An Equal And Moderate Assessment, To Increase The Revenue, Without Increasing The Taxes, Are Indeed The Duties Of A Prince . . .

[the] Vain And Transitory Scenes Of Human Greatness Are Unworthy Of A Serious Thought.

Suspicious Princes Often Promote The Last Of Mankind, From A Vain Persuasion That Those Who Have No Dependence Except On Their Favor Will Have No Attachment Except To The Person Of Their Benefactor.

Our Sympathy Is Cold To The Relation Of Distant Misery.

The Active, Insatiate Principle Of Self-love Can Alone Supply The Arts Of Life And The Wages Of Industry; And As Soon As Civil Government And Exclusive Property Have Been Introduced, They Become Necessary To The Existence Of The Human Race.

When A Public Quarrel Is Envenomed By Private Injuries, A Blow That Is Not Mortal Or Decisive Can Be Productive Only Of A Short Truce, Which Allows The Unsuccessful Combatant To Sharpen His Arms For A New Encounter.

If The Emperor Had Capriciously Decreed The Death Of The Most Eminent And Virtuous Citizen Of The Republic, The Cruel Order Would Have Been Executed Without Hesitation By The Ministers Of Open Violence Or Of Specious Injustice. The Caution, The Delay, The Difficulty With Which He Proceeded In The Condemnation And Punishment Of A Popular Bishop, Discovered To The World That The Privileges Of The Church Had Already Revived A Sense Of Order And Freedom In The Roman Government.

Language Is The Leading Principle Which Unites Or Separates The Tribes Of Mankind.

I Have But One Lamp By Which My Feet Are Guided, And That Is The Lamp Of Experience. I Know No Way Of Judging Of The Future But By The Past.

We Stand In Need Of Such Reflections To Comfort Us For The Loss Of Some Illustrious Characters, Which In Our Eyes Might Have Seemed The Most Worthy Of The Heavenly Present. The Names Of Seneca, Of The Elder And The Younger Pliny, Of Tacitus, Of Plutarch, Of Galen, Of The Slave Epictetus, And Of The Emperor Marcus Antoninus, Adorn The Age In Which They Flourished, And Exalt The Dignity Of Human Natures.

But The Sages Of Greece And Rome Turned Aside From The Awful Spectacle, And, Pursuing The Ordinary Occupations Of Life And Study, Appeared Unconscious Of Any Alterations In The Moral Of Physical Government Of The World.

The Indian Who Fells The Tree That He May Gather The Fruit, And The Arab Who Plunders The Caravans Of Commerce Are Actuated By The Same Impulse Of Savage Nature, And Relinquish For Momentary Rapine The Long And Secure Possession Of The Most Important Blessings.

Yet The Arts Of Severus Cannot Be Justified By The Most Ample Privileges Of State Reason. He Promised Only To Betray; He Flattered Only To Ruin; And However He Might Occasionally Bind Himself By Oaths And Treaties, His Conscience, Obsequious To His Interest, Always Released Him From The Inconvenient Obligation.

The Single Combats Of The Heroes Of History Or Fable Amuse Our Fancy And Engage Our Affections: The Skillful Evolutions Of War May Inform The Mind, And Improve A Necessary, Though Pernicious, Science. But In The Uniform And Odious Pictures Of A General Assault, All Is Blood, And Horror, And Confusion . . .

A Nation Of Slaves Is Always Prepared To Applaud The Clemency Of Their Master Who, In The Abuse Of Absolute Power, Does Not Proceed To The Last Extremes Of Injustice And Oppression.

[the Monks'] Credulity Debased And Vitiated The Faculties Of The Mind: They Corrupted The Evidence Of History; And Superstition Gradually Extinguished The Hostile Light Of Philosophy And Science.

The Value Of Money Has Been Settled By General Consent To Express Our Wants And Our Property, As Letters Were Invented To Express Our Ideas; And Both These Institutions, By Giving A More Active Energy To The Powers And Passions Of Human Nature, Have Contributed To Multiply The Objects They Were Designed To Represent.

The Voice Of History Is Often Little More Than The Organ Of Hatred Or Flattery.

A Warlike Nation Like The Germans, Without Either Cities, Letters, Arts, Or Money, Found Some Compensation For This Savage State In The Enjoyment Of Liberty. Their Poverty Secured Their Freedom, Since Our Desires And Our Possessions Are The Strongest Fetters Of Despotism.

The Simple Circumstantial Narrative (did Such A Narrative Exist) Of The Ruin Of A Single Town, Of The Misfortunes Of A Single Family, Might Exhibit An Interesting And Instructive Picture Of Human Manners; But The Tedious Repetition Of Vague And Declamatory Complaints Would Fatigue The Attention Of The Most Patient Reader.

Greek Is A Musical And Prolific Language, That Gives A Soul To The Objects Of Sense, And A Body To The Abstractions Of Philosophy.

But The Wisdom And Authority Of The Legislator Are Seldom Victorious In A Contest With The Vigilant Dexterity Of Private Interest.

Hope, The Best Comfort Of Our Imperfect Condition.

The Savage Nations Of The Globe Are The Common Enemies Of Civilized Society; And We May Inquire, With Anxious Curiosity, Whether Europe Is Still Threatened With A Repetition Of Those Calamities, Which Formerly Oppressed The Arms And Institutions Of Rome.

The Love Of Freedom, So Often Invigorated And Disgraced By Private Ambition, Was Reduced, Among The Licentious Franks, To The Contempt Of Order, And The Desire Of Impunity.

Philosophy Had Instructed Julian To Compare The Advantages Of Action And Retirement; But The Elevation Of His Birth And The Accidents Of His Life Never Allowed Him The Freedom Of Choice. He Might Perhaps Sincerely Have Preferred The Groves Of The Academy And The Society Of Athens; But He Was Constrained, At First By The Will, And Afterwards By The Injustice Of Constantius, To Expose His Person And Fame To The Dangers Of Imperial Greatness; And To Make Himself Accountable To The World And To Posterity For The Happiness Of Millions.

It Was The Fashion Of The Times To Attribute Every Remarkable Event To The Particular Will Of The Deity; The Alterations Of Nature Were Connected, By An Invisible Chain, With The Moral And Metaphysical Opinions Of The Human Mind; And The Most Sagacious Divines Could Distinguish, According To The Colour Of Their Respective Prejudices, That The Establishment Of Heresy Tended To Produce An Earthquake, Or That A Deluge Was The Inevitable Consequence Of The Progress Of Sin And Error.

The Knowledge That Is Suited To Our Situation And Powers, The Whole Compass Of Moral, Natural, And Mathematical Science, Was Neglected By The New Platonists; Whilst They Exhausted Their Strength In The Verbal Disputes Of Metaphysics, Attempted To Explore The Secrets Of The Invisible World, And Studied To Reconcile Aristotle With Plato, On Subjects Of Which Both These Philosophers Were As Ignorant As The Rest Of Mankind.

In Everyage And Country, The Wiser, Or At Least The Stronger, Ofthetwosexes, Hasusurped Thepowers Ofthe State, And Confined The Other To The Cares And Pleasures Of Domestic Life.

[the] Noblest Of [arabs] United The Love Of Arms With The Profession Of Merchandise.

Our Work Is The Presentation Of Our Capabilities.

A Small Number Of Temples Was Protected By The Fears, The Venality, The Taste, Or The Prudence Of The Civil And Ecclesiastical Governors. The Temple Of The Celestial Venus At Carthage, Whose Sacred Precincts Formed A Circumference Of Two Miles, Was Judiciously Converted Into A Christian Church; And A Similar Consecration Has Preserved Inviolate The Majestic Dome Of The Pantheon At Rome.

[the Monks'] Minds Were Inaccessible To Reason Or Mercy . . .

In The Productions Of The Mind, As In Those Of The Soil, The Gifts Of Nature Are Excelled By Industry And Skill . . .

Corruption, The Most Infallible Symptom Of Constitutional Liberty, Was Successfully Practised; Honours, Gifts, And Immunities Were Offered And Accepted As The Price Of An Episcopal Vote; And The Condemnation Of The Alexandrian Primate Was Artfully Represented As The Only Measure Which Could Restore The Peace And Union Of The Catholic Church.

[every Age], However Destitute Of Science Or Virtue, Sufficiently Abounds With Acts Of Blood And Military Renown.

Their Poverty Secured Their Freedom, Since Our Desires And Our Possessions Are The Strongest Fetters Of Despotism.

A Society In Which Marriage Is Encouraged And Industry Prevails Soon Repairs The Accidental Losses Of Pestilence And War.

Although The Progress Of Civilisation Has Undoubtedly Contributed To Assuage The Fiercer Passions Of Human Nature, It Seems To Have Been Less Favourable To The Virtue Of Chastity, Whose Most Dangerous Enemy Is The Softness Of The Mind. The Refinements Of Life Corrupt While They Polish The Intercourse Of The Sexes. The Gross Appetite Of Love Becomes Most Dangerous When It Is Elevated, Or Rather, Indeed, Disguised By Sentimental Passion.

The Books Of Jurisprudence Were Interesting To Few, And Entertaining To None: Their Value Was Connected With Present Use, And They Sunk Forever As Soon As That Use Was Superseded By The Innovations Of Fashion, Superior Merit, Or Public Authority.

Philosophy, With The Aid Of Experience, Has At Length Banished The Study Of Alchymy; And The Present Age, However Desirous Of Riches, Is Content To Seek Them By The Humbler Means Of Commerce And Industry.

Extreme Distress, Which Unites The Virtue Of A Free People, Imbitters The Factions Of A Declining Monarchy.

A Philosopher May Deplore The Eternal Discords Of The Human Race, But He Will Confess, That The Desire Of Spoil Is A More Rational Provocation Than The Vanity Of Conquest.

But The Human Character, However It May Be Exalted Or Depressed By A Temporary Enthusiasm, Will Return By Degrees To Its Proper And Natural Level, And Will Resume Those Passions That Seem The Most Adapted To Its Present Condition.

In A Distant Age And Climate, The Tragic Scene Of The Death Of Hosein Will Awaken The Sympathy Of The Coldest Reader.

[the] Liberty Of Divorce Does Not Contribute To Happiness And Virtue. The Facility Of Separation Would Destroy All Mutual Confidence, And Inflame Every Trifling Dispute . . .

Antoninus Diffused Order And Tranquility Over The Greatest Part Of The Earth. His Reign Is Marked By The Rare Advantage Of Furnishing Very Few Materials For History; Which Is, Indeed, Little More Than The Register Of The Crimes, Follies, And Misfortunes Of Mankind.

History Has Scarcely Deigned To Notice [libius Severus's] Birth, His Elevation, His Character, Or His Death.

The Fabric Of A Mighty State, Which Has Been Reared By The Labours Of Successive Ages, Could Not Be Overturned By The Misfortune Of A Single Day, If The Fatal Power Of The Imagination Did Not Exaggerate The Real Measure Of The Calamity.

There Are Two Very Natural Propensities Which We May Distinguish In The Most Virtuous And Liberal Dispositions, The Love Of Pleasure And The Love Of Action. If The Former Is Refined By Art And Learning, Improved By The Charms Of Social Intercourse, And Corrected By A Just Regard To Economy, To Health, And To Reputation, It Is Productive Of The Greatest Part Of The Happiness Of Private Life.

The Grateful Applause Of The Clergy Has Consecrated The Memory Of A Prince, Who Indulged Their Passions And Promoted Their Interest. Constantine Gave Them Security, Wealth, Honours, And Revenge; And The Support Of The Orthodox Faith Was Considered As The Most Sacred And Important Duty Of The Civil Magistrate. The Edict Of Milan, The Great Charter Of Toleration, Had Confirmed To Each Individual Of The Roman World The Privilege Of Choosing And Professing His Own Religion.

There Exists In Human Nature A Strong Propensity To Depreciate The Advantages, And To Magnify The Evils, Of The Present Times.

It Was No Longer Esteemed Infamous For A Roman To Survive His Honor And Independence.

Whenever The Spirit Of Fanaticism, At Once So Credulous And So Crafty, Has Insinuated Itself Into A Noble Mind, It Insensibly Corrodes The Vital Principles Of Virtue And Veracity.

The Science Of The Laws Is The Slow Growth Of Time And Experience.

The Comparative View Of The Powers Of The Magistrates, In Two Remarkable Instances, Is Alone Sufficient To Represent The Whole System Of German Manners. The Disposal Of The Landed Property Within Their District Was Absolutely Vested In Their Hands, And They Distributed It Every Year According To A New Division. At The Same Time, They Were Not Authorised To Punish With Death, To Imprison, Or Even To Strike, A Private Citizen.

To Resume, In A Few Words, The System Of The Imperial Government, As It Was Instituted By Augustus, And Maintained By Those Princes Who Understood Their Own Interest And That Of The People, It May Be Defined An Absolute Monarchy Disguised By The Forms Of A Commonwealth. The Masters Of The Roman World Surrounded Their Throne With Darkness, Concealed Their Irresistible Strength, And Humbly Professed Themselves The Accountable Ministers Of The Senate, Whose Supreme Decrees They Dictated And Obeyed.

His Sumptuous Tents, And Those Of His Satraps, Afforded An Immense Booty To The Conqueror; And An Incident Is Mentioned Which Proves The Rustic But Martial Ignorance Of The Legions In The Elegant Superfluities Of Life. A Bag Of Shining Leather, Filled With Pearls, Fell Into The Hands Of A Private Soldier; He Carefully Preserved The Bag, But He Threw Away Its Contents, Judging That Whatever Was Of No Use Could Not Possibly Be Of Any Value.

The End Comes When We No Longer Talk With Ourselves. It Is The End Of Genuine Thinking And The Beginning Of The Final Loneliness.

Bizarreness Masqueraded As Creativity.

From The Paths Of Blood (and Such Is The History Of Nations) I Cannot Refuse To Turn Aside To Gather Some Flowers Of Science Or Virtue.

On The Slightest Touch The Unsupported Fabric Of Their Pride And Power Fell To The Ground. The Expiring Senate Displayed A Sudden Lustre, Blazed For A Moment, And Was Extinguished For Ever.

The Imprudent Maximus Disregarded These Salutary Considerations: He Gratified His Resentment And Ambition; He Saw The Bleeding Corpse Of Valentinian At His Feet; And He Heard Himself Saluted Emperor By The Unanimous Voice Of The Senate And People. But The Day Of His Inauguration Was The Last Day Of His Happiness.

I Was Never Less Alone Than When By Myself.

Since The Primitive Times, The Wealth Of The Popes Was Exposed To Envy, Their Powers To Opposition, And Their Persons To Violence.

A Jurisdiction Thus Vague And Arbitrary Was Exposed To The Most Dangerous Abuse: The Substance, As Well As The Form, Of Justice Were Often Sacrificed To The Prejudices Of Virtue, The Bias Of Laudable Affection, And The Grosser Seductions Of Interest Or Resentment.

The Romans, Who So Coolly And So Concisely Mention The Acts Of Justice Which Were Exercised By The Legions, Reserve Their Compassion And Their Eloquence For Their Own Sufferings, When The Provinces Were Invaded And Desolated By The Arms Of The Successful Barbarians.

The Patient And Active Virtues Of A Soldier Are Insensibly Nursed In The Habits And Discipline Of A Pastoral Life.

It Is Incumbent On Us Diligently To Remember That The Kingdom Of Heaven Was Promised To The Poor In Spirit, And That Minds Afflicted By Calamity And The Contempt Of Mankind Cheerfully Listen To The Divine Promise Of Future Happiness; While, On The Contrary, The Fortunate Are Satisfied With The Possession Of This World; And The Wise Abuse In Doubt And Dispute Their Vain Superiority Of Reason And Knowledge.

Vicissitudes Of Fortune, Which Spares Neither Man Nor The Proudest Of His Works, Which Buries Empires And Cities In A Common Grave.

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Remy De Gourmont

Margaret Drabble

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