[The following was retrieved from Great Books.]
You abandon your own powers of reason in order to try out mine; you condescend to consult me; you believe me capable of instructing you. My dear Mirza, there is one thing that flatters me more than the good opinion which you have formed of me: it is your friendship, to which I owe it.
To comply with your request, it seemed to me that there was no need to use any very abstract arguments. With truths of a certain kind, it is not enough to make them appear convincing: one must also make them felt. Of such a kind are moral truths. Perhaps this fragment of history will make a deeper impression on you than philosophical subtleties.
There was in Arabia a small nation of people called Troglodytes, descended from those Troglodytes of former times who, if we are to believe the historians, were more like animals than men. Ours were not so deformed as that: they were not hairy like bears, they did not hiss, they had two eyes; but they were so wicked and ferocious that there were no principles of equity or justice among them.
They had a king of foreign origin, who, in an attempt to reform their natural wickedness, treated them with severity; but they conspired against him, killed him, and exterminated all the royal family.
The deed accomplished, they held a meeting to choose a government, and after many disagreements they elected ministers. But hardly had they elected them than they found them unbearable; and they massacred them to. Freed of this new restriction, the nation let itself be ruled only by its natural wildness. Each individual agreed that he would not obey anybody any more, but that each one would look after his own interests exclusively, without considering those of others.
This unanimous decision greatly appealed to each individual Troglodyte. They said: 'What business is it of mine to go and kill myself working for people who mean nothing to me? I shall think uniquely of myself; I shall be happy, what does it matter to me if the others are or not? I shall get all I need, and provided that I do, I shan't care if all the other Troglodytes are miserable.'
It was the month for sowing the crops. Everybody said: 'I shall plough only enough land to grow the wheat necessary to feed myself. I should have no use for a larger amount; I won't put myself out to no purpose.'
The soil of this small country was not all the same. There were arid, mountainous districts, and others on low ground which were irrigated by a number of streams. That year it was extremely dry, so that the fields which were high up failed completely, while those which could be watered were very fertile: so that almost all the mountain dwellers died of hunger, because of the harshness of the others, who refused to share the harvest with them.
Next year it was very rainy. The high ground was unusually fertile, and the low-lying regions were inundated. For a second time, half the population cried famine; but the poor wretches found that the others were as harsh as they had been themselves.
One of the leading citizens had a very beautiful wife. His neighbour fell in love with her and abducted her. This caused a great quarrel, and after a good deal of insults and fighting they agreed to abide by the decision of a Troglodyte who, while the Republic had lasted, had had a certain amount of influence. They went to him, wanting to present their arguments. 'What does it matter to me,' he said, 'if this woman belongs to you, or to you? I have my land to plough; I am certainly not going to spend my time patching up your disputes, and looking after your affairs while I neglect my own. Please leave me in peace, and don't trouble me any more with your quarrels.'
With this he left them and went off to work on his fields. The abductor, who was the stronger, swore that he would sooner die than give the woman up, and the other man, overcome by the injustice of his neighbour and the judge's callousness, was going home in despair when he came across a young and beautiful woman returning from the fountain. He no longer had a wife; he found this women attractive, and he found her a great deal more attractive when he learnt that she was the wife of the man whom he had wanted to have as judge, and who had been so unfeeling about his misfortune. He carried her offend took her to his house.
There was a man who possessed quite a fertile piece of land, which he diligently cultivated. Two of his neighbours joined forces, turned him out of his house, and took possession of his field. They made an alliance to defend each other against any possible usurper, and did in fact manage to give each other mutual protection for several months. But one of the pair, tired of having to share something that he could have to himself, killed the other, and became sole master of the field. His reign was short: two other Troglodytes came and attacked him. He found that he was too weak to defend himself, and was massacred.
A Troglodyte with almost nothing to wear saw some wool for sale. He asked the price. The merchant said to himself: 'Ordinarily I could expect to get only as much for my wool as I should need to buy two measures of wheat; but I shall sell it for four times as much, so as to have eight measures.' There was no alternative, and the price had to be paid. 'That's good,' said the merchant; 'now I shall have some wheat.'
'What did you say?' retorted his customer. 'Do you need wheat? I have some to sell. There is only one thing that may surprise you, and that is the price. You must know that wheat is extremely expensive, and there is a famine almost everywhere. But give me my money back, and I will give you one measure of wheat: for otherwise I shall refuse to let any go, even if you were to die of hunger.'
Meanwhile, a cruel disease was rife throughout the area. A skilled doctor arrived from a neighbouring country, and gave treatment so expertly that he cured everyone who went to him. When the epidemic was over he went round all his patients to ask for payment, but he met with nothing but refusals. He went back to his own country, and arrived exhausted with the strain of his long journey. But soon afterwards he heard that the same disease had struck again, and was now taking a heavier toll than ever of the ungrateful country. This time the Troglodytes went to him, instead of waiting for him to come to them. 'Away with you!' he said, 'for you are unjust. In your souls is a poison deadlier than that for which you want a cure. You do not deserve to have a p]ace on earth, because you have no humanity, and the rules of equity are unknown to you. It seems to me that I should be offending against the gods, who are punishing you, if I were to oppose their rightful anger.'
From Erzerum, the 3rd of the second moon of Jomada, 1711
You have seen, my dear Mirza, how the Troglodytes perished because of their wickedness, and fell victim to their own injustice. Of all the families that there had been, only two remained, and escaped the national misfortune. There had been two very extraordinary men in this country. They were humane; they understood what justice was; they loved virtue. Attached to each other as much by the integrity of their own hearts as by the corruption of the others, they saw the general desolation and felt nothing but pity: which was another bond between them. They worked with equal solicitude in the common interest; they had no disagreements except those which were due to their tender and affectionate friendship; and in the remotest part of the country, separated from their compatriots, who were unworthy to be with them, they led a calm and happy life. The earth seemed to produce of its own accord, cultivated by these virtuous hands.
They loved their wives, by whom they were tenderly cherished. Their only concern was to bring up their children to be virtuous. They constantly described to them the distress of their fellow- countrymen, letting their wretchedness serve as an example to them. Above all they made them realize that the individual's self-interest is always to be found in the common interest; that wanting to cut oneself off from it is the same as wanting to ruin oneself; that virtue is not such as to cost us anything, and should not be considered as a wearisome exercise; and that justice to others is charity for ourselves.
Soon they had the reward of virtuous parents, which is to have children who resemble them. The younger generation which grew up before their eyes increased through happy marriages. As their numbers grew larger, they remained just as closely united, and virtue, so far from becoming weaker among the multitude, was on the contrary fortified by a greater number of examples.
Who could now describe the happiness of these Troglodytes? So just a race of men was bound to be cherished by the gods. As soon as they opened their eyes to know the gods, they learnt to fear them, and religion appeared, to soften any roughness of manner left over from nature.
They instituted festivals in the honour of the gods. The girls, adorned with flowers, and the youths celebrated them with dancing and the music of rustic harmonies. Then came feasting, and joy reigned equally with frugality. It was at these gatherings that the innocence of nature spoke. There the young people discovered how to give their hearts, and how to receive the gift; there virginal delicacy, blushing, made a confession obtained by surprise, but soon confirmed by the parents' consent; and there the affectionate mothers took pleasure in foreseeing a tender and faithful union from afar.
They would go to the temple to ask the favours of the gods: not the burdens of wealth and superfluity, for such wishes were unworthy of the happy Troglodytes; they were incapable of desiring them except for their fellow-countrymen. They had come to the altar only to ask for their fathers' health, unity among their brothers, their wives' afFection, the love and obedience of their children. The young girls came with ehe tender sacrifice of their hearts, and asked no favour except to be able to make a Troglodyte happy.
In the evenings, as the herds came in from the fields and the tired oxen brought in the ploughs, they would gather together, and over a simple meal they would sing of the injustice of the first Troglodytes, their misfortunes, the rebirth of virtue with a new generation, and its happiness. They celebrated the greatness of the gods, the constancy with which they bestow their favours on those who pray to them, and the inevitability of their anger towards those who do not fear them. They described the delights of the pastoral life and the happiness of a situation that was always adorned by innocence. Soon they would abandon themselves to a sleep which was never interrupted by worry or anxiety.
Nature provided for their desires as abundantly as for their needs. In this happy land, cupidity was alien. They would give each other presents, and the giver always thought that the advantage was his. The Troglodyte nation regarded themselves as a single family; the herds were almost always mixed up together, and the only task that was usually neglected was that of sorting them out.
Erom Erzerum, the 6th of the second moon of Jomada, 1711
