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the commonwealth of oceana-第21章

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ather…in…law; and did all that he had said。 And Moses chose able men out of all Israel; and made them heads over the people;〃 tribunes; as it is in the vulgar Latin; or phylarchs; that is; princes of the tribes; sitting upon twelve thrones; and judging the twelve tribes of Israel; and next to these he chose rulers of thousands; rulers of hundreds; rulers of fifties; and rulers of tens; which were the steps and rise of this commonwealth from its foundation or root to its proper elevation or accomplishment in the Sanhedrim; and the congregation; already opened in the preliminaries。     The second is taken out of Lacedaemon; as Lycurgus (for the greater impression of his institutions upon the minds of his citizens) pretended to have received the model of that commonwealth from the oracle of Apollo at Delphos; the words whereof are thus recorded by Plutarch in the life of that famous legislator: 〃When thou shalt have divided the people into tribes (which were six) and oboe (which were five in every tribe); thou shalt constitute the Senate; consisting; with the two Kings; of thirty councillors; who; according as occasion requires; shall cause the congregation to be assembled between the bridge and the river Gnacion; where the Senate shall propose to the people; and dismiss them without suffering them to debate。〃 The oboe were lineages into which every tribe was divided; and in each tribe there was another division containing all those of the same that were of military age; which being called the mora; was subdivided into troops and companies that were kept in perpetual discipline under the command of a magistrate called the polemarch。     The third is taken out of the Commonwealth of Rome; or those parts of it which are comprised in the first and second books of Livy; where the people; according to the institution by Romulus; are first divided into thirty curias or parishes; whereof he elected; by three out of each curia; the Senate; which; from his reign to that or Servius Tullius; proposed to the parishes or parochial congregations; and these being called the Comitia curiata; had the election of the kings; the confirmation of their laws; and the last appeal in matters of judicature; as appears in the case of Horatius that killed his sister; till; in the reign of Servius (for the other kings kept not to the institution of Romulus); the people being grown somewhat; the power of the Curiata was for the greater part translated to the Centuriata comitia instituted by this King; which distributed the people; according to the sense of valuation of their estates; into six classes; every one containing about forty centuries; divided into youth and elders; the youth for field…service; the elders for the defence of their territory; all armed and under continual discipline; in which they assembled both upon military and civil occasions。 But when the Senate proposed to the people; the horse only; whereof there were twelve centuries; consisting of the richest sort over and above those of the foot enumerated; were called with the first classes of the foot to the suffrage; or if these accorded not; then the second classes were called to them; but seldom or never any of the rest。 Wherefore the people; after the expulsion of the kings; growing impatient of this inequality; rested not till they had reduced the suffrage as it had been in the Comitia curiato to the whole people again; but in another way; that is to say; by the Comitia tributa; which thereupon were instituted; being a council where the people in exigencies made laws without the Senate; which laws were called plebiscita。 This Council is that in regard whereof Cicero and other great wits so frequently inveigh against the people; and sometimes even Livy as at the first institution of it。 To say the truth; it was a kind of anarchy; whereof the people could not be excusable; if there had not; through the courses taken by the Senate; been otherwise a necessity that they must have seen the commonwealth run into oligarchy。     The manner how the Comitia curiata; centuriata or tributa were called; during the time of the commonwealth; to the suffrage; was by lot: the curia; century; or tribe; whereon the first lot fell; being styled principium; or the prerogative; and the other curioe; centuries or tribes; whereon the second; third; and fourth lots; etc。; fell; the jure vocatoe。 From henceforth not the first classes; as in the times of Servius; but the prerogative; whether curia; century; or tribe; came first to the suffrage; whose vote was called omen proerogativum; and seldom failed to be leading to the rest of the tribes。 The jure vocatoe; in the order of their lots; came next: the manner of giving suffrage was; by casting wooden tablets; marked for the affirmative or the negative; into certain urns standing upon a scaffold; as they marched over it in files; which for the resemblance it bore was called the bridge。 The candidate; or competitor; who had most suffrages in a curia; century; or tribe; was said to have that curia; century; or tribe; and he who had most of the curioe; centuries; or tribes; carried the magistracy。     These three places being premised; as such upon which there will be frequent reflection; I come to the narrative; divided into two parts; the first containing the institution; the second the constitution of the commonwealth; in each whereof I shall distinguish the orders; as those which contain the whole model; from the rest of the discourse; which tends only to the explanation or proof of them。     In the institution or building of a commonwealth; the first work; as that of builders; can be no other than fitting and distributing the materials。     The materials of a commonwealth are the people; and the people of Oceana were distributed by casting them into certain divisions; regarding their quality; their age; their wealth; and the places of their residence or habitation; which was done by the ensuing orders。     The first order 〃distributes the people into freemen or citizens and servants; while such; for if they attain to liberty; that is; to live of themselves; they are freemen or citizens。〃     This order needs no proof; in regard of the nature of servitude; which is inconsistent with freedom; or participation of government in a commonwealth。     The second order 〃distributes citizens into youth and elders (such as are from eighteen years of age to thirty; being accounted youth; and such as are of thirty and upward; elders); and establishes that the youth shall be the marching armies; and the elders the standing garrisons of this nation。〃       A commonwealth; whose arms are in the hands of her servants; had need be situated; as is elegantly said of Venice by Contarini; out of the reach of their clutches; witness the danger run by that of Carthage in the rebellion of Spendius and Matho。 But though a city; if one swallow makes a summer; may thus chance to be safe; yet shall it never be great; for if Carthage or Venice acquired any fame in their arms; it is known to have happened through the mere virtue of their captains; and not of their orders; wherefore Israel; Lacedaemon; and Rome entailed their arms upon the prime of their citizens; divided; at least in Lacedaemon 
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