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EULOGIUM 
 
 ON 
 
 MARCUS AURELIUS. 
 
 By.THOMAS, 
 
 MEMBER OF THE FRENCH ACADEMY. 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH. 
 
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 NEWYORR, 
 
 PRINTED FOR BERNARD DORNIN, 
 
 BOOKSELLER AND STATIONER. 
 
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TO 
 
 THOMAS JEFFERSON, 
 
 The MARCUS AURELIUS of the UNITED STATES , 
 This translation is respectfully inscribed, 
 
 By liis most obedient 
 
 and very bumble servant, 
 
 D. B. WARDEN, 
 
 Paris , i December, 1807. 
 
re I could wish » says La Harpe , in his Literary 
 Correspondence , « that it were in my power often 
 « to announce works equal to the Eulogium on 
 « Marcus Aurelius by M. Thomas. This Eulogium, 
 « which had been read at a public sitting of the 
 « French Academy, on the day appointed for the 
 « reception of the Archbishop of Toulouse , made a 
 « very deep impression. The great truths it contains, 
 « and which then appeared so much the more bold, 
 « as they seemed an indirect satire upon a ministry 
 « who openly hated all truth and all virtue, gave 
 « a fine relief to a work, which did not however 
 « require satire to obtain the greatest success. 
 « Thomas was prohibited from printing the Eu- 
 « logium on Marcus Aurelius , and what is more 
 « extraordinary, the answer which he made to the 
 « inaugural discourse of the Archbishop of Tou- 
 « louse, and the discourse itself, were comprised 
 « in this prohibition. When it was permitted to 
 « praise virtue , the Eulogium on Marcus Aurelius 
 « reappeared with splendor : it is , without dispute, 
 « the best production of the author. He has given 
 « to this Eulogium a dramatic form , absolutely 
 » new, and the happiest, and most interesting that 
 « ever an orator conceived. It is the philosopher 
 « Apollonius , the friend of Marcus Aurelius, who 
 « stops the funeral procession of the Emperor, in 
 « the midst of Rome ; and who , in the presence of 
 
« an immense concourse of people, recalls thevir- 
 « tues and good actions of the friend he had lost, and 
 « the prince whom death had snatched from the 
 « world. It is a sage who praises a sage ; but here 
 « the sage is an orator. He addresses a people to whom 
 « he appeals for the truth of what he asserts , and 
 « who join their acclamations to the voice of the 
 « panegyrist. The varied emotions of the orator, 
 « which are interrupted, from time to time, and 
 « those of the citizens which are in unison with 
 « his : the words which he sometimes addresses 
 « to Commodus , the son and successor of Marcus 
 « Aurelius, who is present at the ceremony, and 
 « who already announces, by the air with which he 
 « listens to the philosopher , — that Marcus Aure- 
 « lius is indeed no more : the deputies of nations 
 « who , one after another , present to his ashes , the 
 « regrets and homage of three quarters of the world: 
 « the last words of Apollonius , who ventures , in 
 « his grief, to predict the tyranny with which Com- 
 « modus threatens the universe : in short , Commo- 
 a dus himself , who , tired of hearing praised , what 
 « he will never imitate , shakes his spear in a terrible 
 « manner, and suddenly interrupts, in the mouth 
 « of the orator , this Eulogium of virtue : all these 
 « emotions form a moral drama, full of majesty and 
 « interest , fit to be represented before philosophers 
 « and kings. 
 
 « That nothing might be wanting to the success 
 i and merit of this fine performance , the author 
 
V1 J 
 
 « has simplified his style , heightened its beauties , 
 « and improved its method. 
 
 « A particular obligation » adds La Harpe, « that 
 « letters owe to Thomas , is , that by a series of 
 « crowned works , and all of distinguished merit , 
 « he first gave lustre and importance to the prizes 
 « of the Academy , which , before his time , having 
 « been but seldom adjudged, except to very indif- 
 « ferent productions , scarcely attracted the atten- 
 « tion of the public, and were seldom contended 
 « for by men of superior talents . » 
 
 Thomas, who so often carried away the prize, 
 met with critics ; but his Marcus Aurelius has si- 
 lenced envy. 
 
 (Madam Necher.J 
 
 Thomas was born in ij35 , and died in the 5oth 
 year of his age, in i^SS. 
 
2 EULOGIUM 
 
 who has been sixty years virtuous, and who, 
 for twenty years together, has been useful to 
 itien : he , who , in the whole course of his life , 
 committed no error ; and who , on the throne, 
 betrayed no weakness : he, who was always 
 good, friendly, generous, and just, why weep 
 for him ? Romans , the funeral pomp of the 
 just man is the triumph of virtue returning 
 to the Great Supreme. Let us consecrate 
 this solemnity with our Eulogium : I know 
 that virtue has no need of this ; but it will 
 serve as the homage of our gratitude. There 
 are great men who resemble the gods. Load- 
 ed with their benefits, we have for them 
 no recompence but that of praise. May 
 I, at the end of my career, in surveying 
 the life of Marcus Aurelius , honor , in your 
 eyes , the last moments of mine ! and thou , 
 who art here present ; thou , his successor 
 and his son , listen to the virtues and actions 
 of thy father : thou art about to reign : flat- 
 tery waits to corrupt thee. Perhaps, for the 
 last time , thou hearest a voice altogether 
 free. Thy father, thou knowest, never accus- 
 tomed me to speak the language of a slave. 
 He loved truth : truth dictates his eulogium. 
 May she also one day dictate thine. 
 
 It is a custom, in praising the dead, to 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 3 
 
 commence with the praise of their ancestors ; 
 as if a great man had need of a descent : as 
 if he , who is no more , was raised by merit 
 other than his own. Let us guard, Romans, 
 against offering such an outrage to virtue; 
 let us not believe that she has need of birth. 
 Your family of the Cesars gave you four ty- 
 rants in succession, and Vespasian , who first 
 caused your empire to flourish, was the grand- 
 son of a Centurion. 
 
 The great grandfather of Marcus Aurelius 
 was born on the banks of the Tagus. To dis- 
 tinguish himself at Home , he carried there 
 those virtues which are no longer found 
 but at a distance from Rome , — simplicity 
 and antient manners. This heritage was pre- 
 served in his family. Such was the true no- 
 bleness of Marcus Aurelius. I know that he 
 was the relation of Adrian ; but he consider- 
 ed this honor , if such it be ? as a danger. I 
 know that they wished to trace his descent 
 from Numa ; but he was great enough to 
 despise this chimera of pride : he placed his 
 glory in being just. 
 
 Let us thank the gods that he was not ori- 
 ginally destined for the throne. Supreme 
 rank has corrupted more minds than it has 
 fortified. Born to be a simple citizen ? he be- 
 
4 EULOGIUM 
 
 came great. Perhaps, if he had been born a 
 prince, he would have been no more than 
 a common man. 
 
 Every thing united to his formation. He 
 first received that kind of education on which 
 your ancestors always set so high a value , 
 and which prepares , for the mind , a healthy 
 and robust body. His infancy was not effe- 
 minated by luxury : he was not surrounded 
 by a crowd of slaves , who , watching all his 
 movements, thought themselves honored in 
 obeying his caprice. They made him perceive 
 that he was man, and the habit of suffering 
 was the first lesson he received. Running, 
 wrestling, and military dances, completed 
 the developement of his strength : he was co- 
 vered with dust on the same plains of Mars 
 where your Scipios , your Mariuses , and your 
 Pompeys exercised. I recall to you , Romans, 
 this part of his education, because these manly 
 institutions are nearly lost among you . Already 
 you imitate the people of the East , amongst 
 whom luxury degrades man from his birth , 
 and your minds are almost enervated , before 
 they know themselves. Romans, you are in- 
 sulted by flattery : it is in communicating 
 truth , that I give you a proof of my respect. 
 
 This first education of Marcus Aurelius 
 
ON MARCUS AURfcLIUS. 5 
 
 made him a soldier : to this, was united another 
 which taught him knowledge. The language 
 of Plato became as familiar to him as his own : 
 eloquence instructed him how to speak to 
 men , and history how to judge of them : the 
 study of laws shewed him the basis and 
 foundation of states : he reviewed all legisla- 
 tions , and compared the laws of different 
 nations. He was not educated like those who 
 are flattered , when they are yet ignorant 
 and weak. No ill-judged respect feared to 
 fatigue him by efforts. A severe discipline 
 inured his younger years to industry ; and 
 tho' a relation of the master of the world , 
 he was obliged to instruct himself like the 
 most common citizen. 
 
 Thus was formed the Prince who was to 
 govern you : but it is the moral education 
 which completes the man , and constitutes 
 his greatness : it is that which enobles Mar- 
 cus Aurelius. This education commenced 
 with his birth : frugality , mildness , tender 
 friendship, these were the virtues with which 
 he was familiar on leaving his cradle. What do 
 1 say ? he was carried from Rome and from 
 the court : it was feared that , to him , they 
 might prove a fatal spectacle : for how, in 
 Rome , where all the vices assemble from the 
 
6 EULOGIUM 
 
 extremities of the world , can a mind be form- 
 ed austere and pure ? Could he have learned 
 to contemn shew , where luxury corrupts 
 even in poverty ? to despise riches , where 
 riches are the measure of honor ? to become 
 humane , where every thing that is powerful 
 crushes that which is weak? to have morals, 
 where vice has lost even the blush of shame ? 
 The protecting gods of your Empire sheltered 
 Marcus Aurelius from this danger. His father 
 carried him , at the age of three years , to a 
 retreat, where he was placed, intrust, under 
 the safeguard of morals. Far from Rome , he 
 learned to make the happiness of Rome : far 
 from the court , he merited to return there 
 to command. 
 
 A greedy heir recollects, with pleasure, 
 all those from whom he has received riches : 
 Marcus Aurelius, more advanced in age, re- 
 membered all those , to whom , in infancy , 
 he owed the example of virtue. « My father, 
 said he , taught me to have nothing mean , 
 nor effeminate : my mother , to avoid even 
 the thought of evil : my grandfather , to be 
 beneficent : my brother, to prefer truth to 
 all things. » Here , Romans , are the reasons 
 why he offers thanks to the gods at the head 
 of a work in which he deposited all the sen- 
 timents of his heart. 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. J 
 
 He was soon taught, by preceptors, the 
 duties of man , and these by their practice. 
 They never said to him , Love the unfortu- 
 nate ; but they relieved , before him , those 
 who were so. No one said to him , Be worthy 
 of friends ; he saw one of his teachers sacri- 
 fice his fortune to an oppressed friend. I saw 
 a warrior, who, to give him a lesson of cou- 
 rage, shewed him his bosom all covered with 
 wounds. In the same way they spoke to him 
 of mildness , magnanimity, justice, and firm- 
 ness. I myself had the glory of being associated 
 with these illustrious instructors. Called to 
 Rome from the extremity of Greece , and char- 
 ged with his education , I was ordered to the 
 palace. If he had been no more than a simple 
 citizen , I would have gone there ; but I con- 
 ceived that the first lesson I owed a Prince 
 was that of dependance and equality : I re- 
 mained until he came to me. Pardon me , Mar- 
 cus Aurelius! I thought then that thou wert 
 only a common prince : I soon knew thee : 
 and whilst thou asked for lessons , I often in- 
 structed myself. 
 
 He had not yet emerged from childhood 
 when his breast had already caught the en- 
 thusiasm of virtue. At the age of twelve, he 
 devoted himself to a life the most austere : 
 
8 EULOGITJM 
 
 at fifteen , he ceded to his only sister , all the 
 wealth of his father : at seventeen, he was 
 adopted by Antoninus ; and ( I relate only 
 what I witnessed) he wept at his own great- 
 ness. 
 
 O day , which , after the lapse of forty years, 
 is to me still present ! He walked in the gar- 
 dens of his mother. I was with him : we 
 were conversing on the duties of man , when 
 they came to announce his elevation : I saw 
 his colour change , and he appeared a long 
 time uneasy and sad. His family, in the mean 
 time, surrounded him in transports of joy. 
 Surprised at his sadness, we asked the cause. 
 « Can you ask me that ? said he : I am an 
 Emperor. » 
 
 From that time , Antoninus became to him 
 a new master, who instructed him concerning 
 the great virtues. The rights of men respect- 
 ed, the laws flourishing, Rome tranquil, the 
 world happy; such were the new lessons 
 which Marcus Aurelius received during 
 twenty years. 
 
 They were sufficient to form a great man; 
 but this great man was to have a character 
 which distinguished him from all your em- 
 perors , and for this , he is indebted to phi- 
 losophy alone. At the word philosophy ; I 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. g 
 
 pause. What is this name , sacred in certain 
 ages , and abhorred in others : by turns , the 
 object of respect and hatred : which some 
 princes have persecuted with fury, and others 
 have placed at the side of their thrones? Ro- 
 mans ! dare I praise philosophy in Rome , 
 where philosophers have so often been ca- 
 lumniated , and from which they have been 
 so often banished ? It is hence , it is from 
 these sacred walls , we were exiled to rocks 
 and desert isles : here , our books were com- 
 mitted to the flames : here , our blood has 
 streamed by thepoignard. Europe, Asia, and 
 Africa, 'have seen us wandering and proscrib- 
 ed, seeking an asylum in the dens of fero- 
 cious beasts , or condemned to work in chains 
 with robbers and assassins (0. 
 
 (i) Musonius Rufus, a celebrated stoic, and Roman 
 knight , was banished from Rome under Nero , and exil- 
 ed to the island of Gyaros , was afterwards removed 
 from this isle to work with galley-slaves in cutting the 
 isthmus of Corinth. One of his friends, who recognized 
 him, shewed signs of grief. Thou art afflicted , said the 
 philosopher, to find me work at piercing the isthmus for 
 the utility of Greece : would you prefer to see me , like 
 Nero, singing, and playing o?i the flute on a theatre? 
 
 The persecutions , which this philosopher had endured 
 under Nero , recommenced under Domilian. 
 
IO EULOGIUM 
 
 What then ! Can philosophy be the enemy 
 of men , and the scourge of states ? Romans % 
 believe an old man, who, during eighty years, 
 has studied virtue , and sought to practise it. 
 Philosophy is that art by which men are en- 
 lightened and improved : it is the universal 
 morality of people and of kings , established 
 by nature and by eternal order. Look at this 
 tomb : he for whom you weep , was a sage : 
 philosophy , oil the throne , has given twenty 
 years of happiness to the world. It is in wip- 
 ing away the tears of nations that she has 
 refuted the calumny of tyrants. 
 
 Your emperor , from his infancy , was an 
 enthusiast in her cause. He never sought to 
 lose himself in sciences useless to man. He 
 soon saw that the study of nature is an abyss, 
 and applied philosophy wholly to morals. 
 First , he cast his view on the different sects 
 around him. He distinguished one which 
 taught to raise man above himself. He thus 
 discovered , as it were , a new world , in 
 which pleasure and pain are extinguished : 
 where the senses have lost all influence over 
 the mind ; where poverty, riches , life , death , 
 are nothing; where virtue alone triumphs. 
 Romans , it was this philosophy which gave 
 you Cato and Brutus : it was she who support- 
 
ON MARCUS ATJRELIUS. II 
 
 ed them amidst the ruins of liberty. She af- 
 terwards extended her sway, and became 
 more formidable to your tyrants. It seems 
 that she had become as a want to your op- 
 pressed ancestors , whose uncertain life was 
 continually under the axe of despotism. In 
 these ignominious times, she alone preserved 
 the dignity of human nature. She taught 
 men to live : she taught them to die : and \ 
 whilst tyranny degraded human nature , she 
 raised it up with more force and greatness. 
 This masculine philosophy was at all times 
 made for strong minds. Marcus Aurelius em- 
 braced it with transport : from that moment, 
 he had but one passion, that of forming him- 
 self to the most rigid virtues. Every thing 
 that could aid him in this design , he consi- 
 dered as a benefit from heaven. He remarked 
 that one of the happiest days of his life , was 
 when , in youth, for the first time , he heard 
 of Cato. He recollected , with gratitude , the 
 names of those who made him acquainted 
 with Brutus and Thraseas. He thanked the 
 gods , that he had been enabled to peruse 
 the maxims of Epictetus. His mind united 
 itself to those extraordinary minds which ex- 
 isted before him. « Receive me, said he, among 
 you : enlighten me, and elevate my senti- 
 
12 ETJLOGIUM 
 
 merits, that I may learn to lov6 only what is 
 true, and to do that which is just. » The bet- 
 ter to strengthen his heart with virtue , he 
 wished to penetrate to the source of his du- 
 ties : he wished to discover , if possible , the 
 true design of nature with respect to man. 
 Here , Romans, the mind of Marcus Aurelius 
 is completely developed , — the chain of his 
 ideas , the principles on which his moral life 
 reposed. It is not I who shall present you 
 this picture : it is Marcus Aurelius himself. 
 I shall read you a writing which he penned 
 with his own hand , more than thirty years 
 ago , when he was not yet emperor. « Here, 
 Apollonius, said he to me, take this writing, 
 and if ever I deviate from the sentiments my 
 hand has traced , make me blush in the eyes 
 of the universe. » Romans , and thou , his 
 successor and his son , judge whether the 
 conduct of Marcus Aurelius was conforma- 
 ble to these great ideas; and whether he once 
 deviated from the plan which he believed he 
 read in nature. 
 
 Here the philosopher paused for a moment. The innu- 
 merable crowd of citizens who listened to him , pres- 
 sed near him , eager to hear. To this great impulse , 
 a profound silence ensued. Alone between the people 
 and the philosopher, the new emperor was uneasy 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. l3 
 
 and pensive. One hand of Apollonius leaned on the 
 tomb , the other held a paper, traced with the pen 
 of Marcus Aurelius. He resumed his discourse, and 
 read as follows. 
 
 Conversation of Marcus Aurelius with him- 
 self V). 
 
 « I meditated during the night. I labour- 
 ed to find in what goodnes consists , and on 
 what basis justice rests. Marcus Aurelius , 
 said I to myself, till the present moment 
 thou hast been virtuous , or at least thou 
 wert willing to be so : but who assures thee 
 that thou wilt always have this intention ? 
 Who has even told thee , that what thou nam- 
 est virtue is so in reality? I was frightened 
 at this doubt, and I resolved to ascend, if 
 possible , to first principles , to assure myself 
 of myself, and to know the path which man 
 ought to follow. The place and time favored 
 my reflections. The night was deep and calm. 
 All around me was in repose. I only heard, 
 near my palace , the waters of the Tiber some- 
 
 (i) We know that Marcus Aurelius left a work entit- 
 led :from himself to himself a work which breathes the 
 sublimest philosophy and the purest morals. We have 
 here endeavored to seise its general features. 
 
l4 ETJLOGITJM 
 
 what agitated. But this continued and hollow 
 noise was itself favorable to thought , and I 
 gave myself up to the following meditations. 
 cc To know what virtue is, we must first 
 know what is man. I asked myself, who am 
 I? I perceived within me, sense, intelligence, 
 and will, and I saw myself thrown , as if by 
 chance , and by an unknown hand , on the 
 surface of the earth. But whence come I , 
 and who has placed me here ? To answer , I 
 was obliged to go out of myself , and interro- 
 gate nature. Then my eyes wandered around, 
 and I contemplated the universe. In seeing 
 this infinite assemblage of beings which com- 
 pose it , worlds added to worlds , and myself 
 so little and so weak, confined to a corner 
 of the earth , and as if lost in immensity , I 
 was , for a moment, discouraged. What then ! 
 said I , am I something in nature ? The recol- 
 lection of my intelligence on a sudden rea- 
 nimated me. Marcus Aurelius , that which 
 thinks, cannot be lost in the crowd. Then I 
 continued my researches , and observing 
 every thing, 1 examined the plan of the uni- 
 verse. I was struck with the harmony which 
 I every where perceived ; I saw that in the 
 heavens , and on the earth , all beings give 
 assistance to each other. The universe , said 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 1 5 
 
 I , is then an immense whole , all whose 
 parts correspond. The greatness and simpli- 
 city of this idea elevated my mind. Soon this 
 harmony excited the necessary idea of a cause. 
 To combine so many means and so many 
 separate beings, and to form, thus to say, 
 but one being , there must be an intelli- 
 gent mind, I called this mind , the universal 
 mind (i), I called it God. At this name, I 
 experienced a religious emotion , and the 
 universe appeared to me something sacred. 
 I here found a support , and here I stopped. 
 To this cause I attributed all effects. I per- 
 ceived that it was this which has stamped a 
 character of unity on every thing that exists. 
 It is this which has given r to the innume- 
 rable crowd of beings , whether inanimate or 
 sensitive , the law which unites them , to 
 make them at once serve to the good of each 
 other, and to the harmony of the whole. But 
 it is particularly among intelligent beings , 
 that this primitive law appeared to act wit^t 
 more force. Men , by a secret instinct, seek 
 
 (i) Marcus Aurelius is here made to speak according 
 to the system of the Stoics. He had adopted the princi- 
 ples of this sect, and these are every where found through* 
 Out his work. 
 
l6 EULOGIUM 
 
 and approach each other. In vain does the 
 interest of passion divide : a more imperious 
 force draws them together. It seems that a 
 thinking being is abandoned and solitary in 
 the midst of the physical world , and that 
 thought has need of the commerce of thought. 
 A second chain presented itself to me , that 
 of our wants. In fine, I saw that men are 
 united by still closer ties. For all minds , there 
 is one and the same reason ; as for all phy- 
 sical beings, there is one and the same light. 
 If there is but one reason , there is but one 
 law. Men of all countries, and of all ages, 
 are then subject to the same legislation : all 
 are fellow - citizens of the same town : this 
 town is the universe. Then it was that I saw 
 fall around me all the barriers which sepa- 
 rate nations, and I beheld only one people 
 and one family. 
 
 I thus discovered , that by the very order 
 of nature , there is fellowship among all men . 
 From that moment I considered myself un- 
 der a double relation. I saw myself as a weak 
 portion of the universe , swallowed up in the 
 whole , drawn on by that general impulse 
 which conducts all beings. I considered my- 
 self afterwards as detached from that im- 
 mense whole , and connected with men by 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. IJ 
 
 a particular relation. As a part of the whole, 
 Marcus Aurelius, thou oughtest to receive, 
 without murmuring , that which is a result 
 of the general order : hence arise constancy 
 in misfortune , and courage , which is no- 
 thing else than the resignation of a brave 
 mind. As a part of society, thou oughtest to 
 do that which is useful to man : hence all the 
 duties of friend , husband, father, and citizen. 
 To endure what the nature of the universe 
 imposes : to do what the condition of man 
 demands ; these are thy rules. I then con- 
 ceived what virtue is , and I no longer feared 
 to wander. 
 
 Here Apollonius stopped , and addressed himself to the 
 son of Marcus Aurelius. « Emperor , said he , that which 
 thou hast heard is suitable to all men , and might be 
 the philosophy of Epictetus, as well as of thy father; 
 but what follows, belongs to thee. It is the philosophy 
 of a prince ; it is that of all men who are worthy of 
 reigning : may it be thine ! Listen to thy predecessor 
 and thy father. » Then he thus proceeded. 
 
 Soon bringing back all my ideas to myself, 
 I wished to apply these principles to my con- 
 duct. I had discovered what was my place in 
 the universe ; I examined also my place in 
 society : I saw, with consternation, that I 
 there occupied the rank of a prince : Marcus 
 
l8 EULOGIUM 
 
 Aurelius , if thou wert confounded witii the 
 crowd , thou wouldst have to answer* to na- 
 ture for thyself only : but millions tif men 
 shall one day obey thee : the degree of hap- 
 piness allotted to each , is marked : all that 
 is wanting of this happiness by thy fault , be- 
 comes thy crime. If, in the whole world, 
 a single tear falls , which thou couldst have 
 staid, thou art guilty. Indignant nature will 
 say, I have confided to thee my children 
 to render them happy : what hast thou done 
 with them ? why have I heard these lamen- 
 tations on earth? why have men, with up- 
 lifted hands , prayed me to shorten their 
 existence? why has the mother wept her new 
 born son ? the harvest which I destined for 
 the nourishment of the poor , why has it 
 been snatched from them ? what wilt thou 
 answer? the miseries of men will plead against 
 thee , and justice will engrave thy name 
 among those of princes who have transgres- 
 sed her laws. 
 
 Here the people cried : Never, never. A thousand voi- 
 ces were raised together : one said , Thou hast been 
 our father : another, Thou didst never suffer oppres- 
 sors : others , Thou hast solaced our evils : and a 
 thousand at once : we have blessed thee , we bless 
 thee , O wise , O merciful , O just Emperor : may th- 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 19 
 
 memory he sacred ; may it be adored for ever. It shall 
 be , replied Apollonius : it shall be reverenced in all 
 ages : but it was the fear of evils which he might have 
 occasioned that carried him on to promote your hap- 
 piness , and to merit those acclamations which resound 
 from his tomb. Hear what he adds. 
 
 To prevent thy name from being disho- 
 nored , know thy duties : they embrace all 
 nations : they spring up every hour, every 
 moment. It is only by death that thy obli- 
 gations to a citizen cease ; but the birth of 
 each citizen imposes a new duty. Thou must 
 labor whilst it is day, for the day is destined for 
 action : often thou must watch in the night , 
 for crimes watch while princes sleep : weak- 
 ness must be protected : violence must be 
 chained. Marcus Aurelius, speak not of ease; 
 so long as there is upon earth one guilty , or 
 unfortunate individual, there is no ease for 
 thee. 
 
 Frightened with my duties , I wished to 
 know the means by which I could fulfil 
 them , and my fear redoubled. I saw that 
 my obligations were above man , and that 
 my faculties were only those of man. It would 
 b,e necessary that the eye of a prince should 
 embrace what is at an immense distance 
 from him , and that all the places of his em- 
 
SO EULOGItM 
 
 pire be assembled in one point , under his 
 view. It would be necessary that his ear 
 should be struck , at once , with all the 
 groans, the complaints, the cries of his sub- 
 jects. It would be necessary that his power 
 be as prompt as his will , to destroy and com- 
 bat continually all the forces which struggle 
 against the general good : but the organs of 
 the prince are as weak as those of the lowest of 
 his subjects. Marcus Aurelius, between truth 
 and thee > rivers , mountains > and seas , will 
 be continually interposed : often wilt thou 
 only be separated from her by the walls of 
 thy palace , and yet she will not reach thee : 
 thou wilt borrow T assistance , but this assist- 
 ance will be an imperfect remedy for thy 
 weakness. Action intrusted to other arms , 
 either changes the object, or is too weak or 
 too precipitate. Nothing is executed as the 
 prince conceived : he is told nothing , as if 
 he himself had seen it. They exaggerate the 
 good ; they extenuate the evil } they justify 
 crimes, and the prince, always weak or de- 
 ceived , exposed to the infidelity , or error of 
 those whom he has instructed to see and to 
 understand , finds himself continually placed 
 between the inability of knowing, and the 
 necessity of acting. 
 
ON MAHCUS AURELIUS. 2f 
 
 1 passed from the examination of my senses, 
 to that of my reason , and I again compared 
 it with my duties. I saw that to govern well ; 
 I had need of an intelligence almost divine ; 
 which , at one glance , might perceive all 
 principles and their application , and not be 
 influenced either by country, by times, or 
 by rank : which might judge all according 
 to truth, and nothing by convention. Is this 
 then the reason of man? Is it mine? 
 
 At last I inquired , if I was sure of my 
 will. Ask thyself then , if all that surrounds 
 thee has not taken hold of thy mind to cor- 
 rupt , or to lead it astray ? Marcus Aurelius , 
 ( and here Apollonius for a moment fixed his 
 eyes on the new Emperor,) tremble, espe- 
 cially when thou shalt be upon the throne : 
 thousands of individuals will seek to wrest 
 from thee thy will, that they may give thee 
 their own ; and for thy generous passions , 
 they will offer in exchange their vile ones. 
 What wilt thou be then ? the sport of all : 
 thou wilt obey, when thou shouldst com- 
 mand , thou wilt have the pomp of an Empe- 
 ror , and the mind of a slave. Yes, thy mind 
 shall be no longer thine own : it will submit 
 to some daring, and contemptible man , who 
 is resolved to guide it at will. 
 
'j.2 ICLOGITJM 
 
 These reflexions threw me almost into des- 
 pair. O God , cried I, seeing the race of men, 
 which thou hast cast upon the earth , had 
 nerd of being governed, why hast thou giv- 
 en men only to reign over them ? Benefi- 
 cent Being , have compassion on princes ; 
 they are perhaps more to be pitied than the 
 people they govern ; for it is doubtless more 
 frightful to commit , than to suffer evil : at 
 this moment I deliberated whether I should 
 renounce this dangerous and terrible power, 
 and I was for a moment resolved, yes, I re- 
 solved to abdicate the empire.... 
 
 At these words, the Romans, "who listened with pro- 
 found silence, appeared frightened, as if threatened 
 •with the loss of their Emperor : they forgot that this 
 great man was no more. This illusion soon ceased : it 
 might be said , they had lost him a second time. In a 
 tumultuous agitation , they inclined towards his tomb : 
 women, children, old men, all threw themselves near 
 it : all hearts were moved : tears flowed from every 
 eye : a confused noise of sadness broke forth from all 
 parts of this immense assembly; Apollonius himself 
 was troubled : the paper which he held , fell from his 
 hand : he embraced the coffin : the sight of this dis- 
 consolate old man appeared to augment the general 
 sorrow : by degrees the murmur lessened. Apollonius 
 raised himself, like a man awaking from a dream, and 
 his eye still half wandering by grief, and, leaning on 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIIIS. 23 
 
 the tomb , he again took the paper , and thus conti- 
 nued with a tremuk)us voice. 
 
 I did not dwell long on this project of re- 
 nouncing the empire. I saw that the gods 
 called me to serve my country, and that I 
 ought to obey. And what ! said I to myself, 
 a soldier who quits his post , is punished with 
 death , and thou , wilt thou quit thine? Is it 
 the necessity of being virtuous on the throne 
 with which thou art frightened ? Then I 
 thought I heard a secret voice which thus 
 addressed me : Whatsoever thou doest, thou 
 wilt be always a man , but think to what a 
 degree of perfection a man may raise him- 
 self? Mark the distance between Antoninus 
 and Nero. I resumed courage , and not being 
 able to improve my senses , I resolved to 
 seek every means of improving my mind , 
 that is, of perfecting my reason and forti- 
 fying my will : I found these means in the 
 very idea of my duties. Marcus Aurelius, 
 when God puts thee at the head of the human 
 race, thou art associated for a part of the go- 
 vernment of the world. To govern well, thon 
 oughtest to catch the spirit of God himself, 
 liaise thyself towards him : meditate on this 
 Great Being : draw from his bosom the love 
 of order and of general good, that the har- 
 
24 EULOGIUItf 
 
 mony of the universe may shew thee what 
 ought to be the harmony of thy empire. Those 
 prejudices and passions, which govern so 
 many princes and men , will be extinguished 
 in thee ; thou .wilt see only thy duties and 
 thy God, and that supreme reason which 
 ought to be thy model and thy law. 
 
 But the resolution of observing constantly 
 this supreme reason will not suffice : it is 
 necessary that thou mayest not be led astray 
 by error. Then I began to review all my opi- 
 nions , and I compared each of my ideas with 
 the eternal idea of truth and justice : I saw 
 that there was no good, except that which is 
 useful to society , and conformable to order : 
 no evil, but the contrary. I examined phy- 
 sical evils ; in them I only perceived the ine- 
 vitable effect of the laws of the universe. 
 I wished to meditate on pain : night was al- 
 ready advanced : my eye -lids were fatigued 
 from want of repose : I struggled, but was 
 obliged to yield to sleep ; in this interval , I 
 had a dream : I imagined I saw a multitude 
 of men assembled 4n a vast portico : they 
 had all, in their appearance, something no- 
 ble and great. Although I had never lived 
 with them , their features were not those 
 of strangers. I thought I had often contem- 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 2J 
 
 plated their statues at Rome : I surveyed 
 them all , when a terrible and loud voice re- 
 sounded in the portico : Mortals, learn to 
 suffer. At the same moment , I saw flames 
 kindle , in which one thrust his hand : to 
 another was brought poison : he drank , and 
 made a libation to the gods : a third was 
 standing near a mutilated statue of liberty : 
 in one hand, he held a book, in the other, 
 a sword , on the point of which he gazed : far- 
 ther off, I distinguished a man all bloody, 
 but calm , and more tranquil than his execu- 
 tioner : I ran to him , crying : O Regulus , is 
 it thee ? I could no longer support the sight 
 of his sufferings, and turned aside my looks. 
 When I perceived Fabricius in poverty , Sci- 
 pio in exile, Epictetus in chains, Seneca and 
 Thraseas , with their veins open , and look- 
 ing , with a tranquil eye , on their stream- 
 ing blood : surrounded by these great and 
 unfortunate men , I shed tears : they appear- 
 ed astonished. One of them, (it was Cato,) 
 approached me , and said : weep not , but 
 imitate us; learn to conquer pain. He ne- 
 vertheless appeared to turn against him- 
 self the sword he held : I wished to stay his 
 hand : I shuddered, and awoke. Reflecting 
 on this dream, I conceived that these pre- 
 
26 EULOGIUM 
 
 tended evils ought not to shake my courage : 
 I resolved to be man ; to do good, and to bear 
 evil. 
 
 But, said Apollonius , there are more sensible evils , and 
 ■which make a deeper impression on the mind ; these 
 are ingratitude, injury, and calumny, and all the vi- 
 ces of the wicked , which torment and fatigue us. 
 Marcus Aurelius asks himself, whether these vile and 
 cruel men merit our attention and goodness. 
 
 Philosopher, said the young Emperor hastily, I also 
 make the same demand. 
 
 Emperor , said Apollonius , I shall read to you the answer 
 of thy predecessor and father. He ponders, in silence, 
 on the evils which man inflicts on man , and says to 
 himself : 
 
 The source of thy actions must be in thy 
 own breast , and not in the breast of others. 
 Thou art injured ; of what importance is it? 
 God is thy law-giver and thy judge. There are 
 wicked men : they are useful to thee : Avith- 
 out them , what need would there be for 
 virtues? Thou complainest of the ungrateful! 
 imitate nature ; she gives all to man , and seeks 
 nothing in return : but injury? injury vili- 
 fies him who commits , and not him who 
 receives it : and calumny? thank the gods 
 that thy enemies ; to speak evil of thee , have 
 recourse to falsehood : but disgrace ? there is 
 no disgrace for the just. 
 
ON MARCUS AUHELIUS. 2J 
 
 He therefore resolved, if necessary, to displease men, in 
 order to serve them : he consented to be odious , in 
 order to be useful. 
 
 Having examined the evils , he proposed now to review 
 the blessings of life. 
 
 I asked myself, said he , what is reputation? 
 a cry , which is heard for a moment , and 
 then dies in a corner of the earth : and the 
 praise of courts? a tribute of interest to pow- 
 er, or of baseness to pride : and authority? 
 the greatest misfortune for him who is not 
 the most virtuous of men ; and life?... (at this 
 moment , I perceived , in the place where I 
 meditated , one of those sand instruments 
 which measure time ; my eye was fixed upon 
 it : I looked at the grains of dust , which , in 
 falling, marked the portions of its duration.) 
 Marcus Aurelius, said I to myself, time was 
 given thee to be useful to men : what hast 
 thou already done for them ? Life vanishes ; 
 years flow on ; one falls on another like these 
 grains of sand. Make haste : thou art placed 
 between two abysses , — of time which pre- 
 ceded, and of time which must follow thee. 
 Between these , life is a point : let it be mark- 
 ed by thy virtues : be good; be free, and des- 
 pise death. 
 
 In pronouncing this word , (he repeated this often to me,) 
 
2 
 
 8 r TJ L O G I V ML 
 
 he felt his mind shaken ; he reflected a moment , and 
 continued. 
 
 What ! death frightens thee ; go , to die is 
 but an action of life , and perhaps the easiest : 
 death is the end of all our struggles : it is the 
 moment in which thou canst say , at last my 
 virtue belongs to me : it is this that frees 
 thee from the greatest of dangers , that of 
 becoming wicked. Marcus Aurelius , thou art 
 embarked , follow thy route , and when thou 
 seest the end of thy voyage , disembark , and 
 thank the gods on the shore. 
 
 Thus he ran over , in succession , all the objects which 
 agitate and trouble man, to learn how to judge them , 
 and to conform , in every thing , his views to those 
 of nature. He guarded himself against opinions : he 
 proposed also to secure himself against the influence 
 of the senses. Prince, it appears that man really com- 
 bats , and is opposed to himself. My reason makes my 
 force; my senses , my weakness. It is my reason which 
 raises me to ideas of order and of general good : my 
 senses bring me down to personal views , and make 
 me descend to myself. Thus my reason enobles , and 
 my senses vilify me. Thy father, to be free , labored to 
 subdue the latter ; from that moment he devoted him- 
 self to a life the most austere, and said : 
 
 I will subdue my passions, and even the 
 most terrible of all, because the most agree- 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 2Q 
 
 able, the love of pleasure. Life is a combat; 
 we must continually struggle : I shall shun 
 luxury because luxury enervates the mind 
 through all the senses : I shall avoid it, because 
 a luxurious prince exhausts his treasures to 
 satisfy his caprice. I shall almost live as if I 
 were poor : though a prince , I have only the 
 wants of a man. I shall give to sleep the time 
 of which I cannot deprive it : I shall say to 
 myself every morning : this is the hour when 
 crimes awake , when passions and vices take 
 possession of the universe , when the un- 
 happy awake to the sentiment of their evils ; 
 when the oppressed , moving in his prison , 
 again feels the weight of his chains. It is for 
 virtue , it is for beneficence , it is for the 
 sacred authority of the laws, to awake at 
 the same moment : let labor alone form the 
 relaxation of my labor. If study and business 
 occupy all my hours , pleasure will find no 
 void of which she can take possession. 
 
 Here Commodus , with a troubled voice, again inter- 
 rupted Apollonius : What ! are all pleasures denied a 
 prince ? 
 
 Thy father made the same question, replied the philoso- 
 pher, and here is his answer. 
 
 No, Marcus Aurelius , thou shalt not be 
 
3o EU LOGIUM 
 
 deprived of all pleasures ; the gods have re- 
 served thee the most exquisite and pure. Thy 
 pleasures are to soften pain , to console the 
 unfortunate , to be able , by a word , to relieve 
 provinces, and to render every day two hun- 
 dred nations happy. Tell me, would you pre- 
 fer either the languors of voluptuousness, 
 the shew of gladiators , or the more barba- 
 rous amusements of the arena? Each duty 
 ought to be to thee a source of pleasure. 
 
 ( Prince , such was the answer of thy father to the ques- 
 tion thou hast made. ) He paused. He had perceived 
 what nature required of him : he knew God, his mind, 
 his reason, his place in the universe , his place in so- 
 ciety, the duties of man, the duties of a prince. He 
 had endeavoured to fortify his mind against all the 
 obstacles which might one day retard its march. Then 
 he raised his hands towards heaven, and said; (and 
 thou also, young Emperor, say with him.) 
 
 O God ! thou hast not made kings to be op- 
 pressors , nor people to be oppressed : I do 
 not ask thee to make me better : have I not 
 will to perfect , to combat , and to overcome 
 myself? but I ask, what I cannot give to my- 
 self, — to know and understand the truth : 
 I ask that best of blessings — friends. May 
 Marcus Aurelius die before he cease to be 
 just. 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 3l 
 
 He recovers himself : he perceives that night was already 
 gone, and that the sun rose above the horizon. Already 
 the people, in crowds, filled the streets of Rome : al- 
 ready acclamations were heard which announced that 
 Antoninus advanced towards the public place. 
 
 I went out ? added he , to join my father : 
 in all the course of his actions , I saw that 
 he practised that which I had resolved to do, 
 and I felt myself still more encouraged to 
 virtue. 
 
 The Romans had listened in profound silence. During 
 this reading, their hearts were filled, by turns, with 
 regret, admiration, and tenderness. They had seen 
 this great man act ; during forty years they had been 
 witnesses of his virtues : but of his principles they were 
 ignorant. Their eyes, with deeper sadness , were fixed 
 upon his ashes , and soon , as if by an involuntary 
 movement , they were directed towards the son of 
 Marcus Aurelius , who was to prove unworthy of 
 this name; and whose looks , they knew, were down- 
 cast. 
 
 Son of Marcus Aurelius, cried Apollonius, 
 these looks , turned upon thee , ask , if thou 
 wilt resemble thy father? Forget not the tears 
 which thou seest flow; (and turning towards 
 the people) let us suspend our regrets to 
 complete the homage we render to his vir- 
 tues : I have only presented to you one half 
 
J2 EULOGIUM 
 
 of the portrait : Ave must see him faithful to 
 his principles , following the plan which he 
 traced, and applying, during twenty years , 
 to the happiness of the world , those ideas of 
 morals , which philosophy had suggested to 
 him when far from the throne. 
 
 Marcus Aurelius perceived that nature has 
 infused a general spirit of fellowship among 
 men ; from this he saw spring up the idea of 
 liberty , because there is no fellowship where 
 there is only a master and a slave ; no pro- 
 perty, because without the assurance of pos- 
 session there is no longer any social order : 
 no justice, because justice alone can reesta- 
 blish the equilibrium which the passions tend 
 to destroy : nor, in short , is there benevo- 
 lence , since men being all associated , there is 
 no man vile in the eyes of nature ; and if all 
 have not the same right to the same rank , they 
 have all a right to the same happiness. Such 
 was the general principle of his reign. 
 
 I begin with liberty, Romans, because li- 
 berty is the first right of man , the right of 
 obeying, and fearing the laws alone. Wo to 
 the slave who dreads to pronounce this name ! 
 Wo to the country in which it is a crime to 
 pronounce the name of liberty ! Under your 
 tyrants it was a crime : but what has their 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 33 
 
 vain fury produced ? Have they extinguished, 
 in the breasts of your fathers , this generous 
 sentiment ? It may be combated ; it cannot 
 be destroyed : it subsists wherever there are 
 strong minds : it supports itself in chains : 
 it lives in prisons , and revives under the axes 
 of your lictors. As long as ye possess it, Ro- 
 mans, ye will have courage and virtues. Mar- 
 cus Aurelius in ascending the throne , knew 
 this sacred right : he saw that man, born 
 free, but requiring to be governed , submit- 
 ted himself to laws , though never to the ca- 
 prices of a master ; that no man has a right 
 arbitrarily to command another : that he , 
 who usurps this power , destroys the power 
 itself. He had seen , in your annals, the wrongs 
 of your ancestors under Tiberius and Nero , 
 with whom there was no other virtue than 
 to know how to die : — he had seen a des- 
 potism as odious and still more base , that of 
 the freedmen : he had seen the empire op- 
 pressed , the world enslaved , and a man , 
 under the name of Emperor , who extinguish- 
 ed all, because he made himself the center 
 of all, and seemed to say to nations : — your 
 property and blood, all is mine : suffer and 
 die. I know, Romans, that you have never 
 given , nor could give these odious rights to 
 
 3 
 
34 EULOGIUM 
 
 your Emperors ; but seeing they are at once 
 princes , magistrates, pontifs and generals, 
 who shall put barriers to their power , if they 
 put none themselves? 
 
 O gods, must two hundred nations be un- 
 fortunate , if it happen that a single indivi- 
 dual is without virtue ? Marcus Aurelius , arm- 
 ed with all the force of despotism , volunta- 
 rily throws it off. Not to abuse his power , he 
 sets limits to it on all sides. He augments the 
 authority of laws , which too many Emperors 
 wished to destroy : he strengthens that of 
 magistrates, who often Avere but phantoms 
 or slaves. Never under his empire did a se- 
 nator, or weak citizen dare to assert that the 
 prince ought not to be submissive to the 
 laws. « Unfortunate, Marcus Aurelius would 
 i( have said to him , what have I done that 
 a thou shouldst vilify me ? Learn that this 
 « submission is my glory : learn that the 
 « power to do what is unjust , is a weakness. » 
 Romans , I fear not to say it , never in the 
 happiest days of Rome , never even under 
 your consuls , have your ancestors been more 
 free than you. Of what importance is it to be 
 governed by one, or by many? Kings, dicta- 
 tors , consuls , decemvirs , emperors , all these 
 different names express but the same thing — 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 35 
 
 ministers of the law. The law is every thing: 
 the constitution of states may change : the 
 rights of citizens are always the same. They 
 are independent both of the ambitious who 
 usurp , and of the vile who barter their 
 freedom : founded in nature, they are, like 
 her, unalterable. 
 
 I can then call you all to witness, and ask, 
 whether Marcus Aurelius ever oppressed a 
 citizen : if such be present, let him rise and 
 contradict me ! 
 
 All the people cried : None , none. 
 
 I also ask, whether, under his reign, a 
 single individual among you was ever op- 
 pressed by the freedmen of his palace , who , 
 making themselves slaves to become tyrants, 
 command with as much pride as they obey; 
 who, armed with a power not their own, 
 greedy of enjoying, and uncertain of its du- 
 ration, put every spring of it into motion, 
 and hasten the reign of public slavery? Say, 
 Romans , did such an individual exist under 
 his reign ? 
 
 All again cried with one voice ; None , none. He con- 
 tinued. 
 
 Thanks to the immortal gods , you had a 
 
 3. 
 
36 EULOGIUM 
 
 prince , and this prince had no master. That 
 you might be free, he neither allowed him- 
 self to be a slave, nor a tyrant : he defended 
 your liberty against himself : he defended it 
 against all those who surrounded the throne. 
 But for what would this liberty have serv- 
 ed , if at the same time , the possession of 
 your property had not been secured? What 
 do I say ? where one is wanting , the other is 
 but a phantom. Alas ! there was a time, Avhen 
 Rome and the empire were a prey to plun- 
 der ; a time , when arbitrary confiscations , 
 odious exactions , prodigality without mo- 
 tive, and without cause, unceasing rapine, 
 desolated families, exhausted provinces, and 
 empoverished the poor. Almost all the riches 
 of the empire were devoured by a greedy 
 master , or by some favorite who deigned to 
 divide them with his chief : this is a small 
 part of the evils your ancestors suffered. And 
 if such evils existed always upon earth , would 
 it not be better to wander in the woods, and 
 to share the retreats of savage beasts ? no gree- 
 dy hand would come there to snatch the food 
 from the hungry man. The cave which he 
 selected , would serve as an asylum , and he 
 might say : here — the rock which covers me, 
 and the water that quenches my thirst , are 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 3^ 
 
 mine : here — I do not pay for the air I 
 breathe. None of you, Romans, under the 
 empire of Marcus Aurelius , was ever reduced 
 to a state which would prompt this choice. 
 He began by suppressing the tyranny of re- 
 venue ; a kind of war in which law is made 
 to combat against justice , and the sovereign 
 against his subjects. Every charge which serves 
 only to increase the revenue , is put aside : 
 every claim of the treasury , which is equi- 
 vocal, is decided against it. He rejects con- 
 fiscations as a barbarous abuse , which pu- 
 nishes the son for the father , the innocent 
 for the guilty , because it every where seeks 
 to find the rich criminal. He is not willing 
 that the crimes of citizens become the patri- 
 mony of a prince , and that he who is the 
 chief of a country , may find a shameful 
 profit in whatever afflicts it. 
 
 This moderation extended to the public 
 treasury. You have seen him , under the most 
 pressing wants , give back all that was due , 
 when he thought the tax too burdensome. It 
 was during the time when wants multiplied, 
 that he multiplied his benefits on the peo- 
 ple. But in speaking of Marcus Aurelius, I 
 blush to employ the language which flattery 
 has consecrated to princes. That which I call 
 
38 EULOGIUM 
 
 benefits , he called justice. No; the state has 
 no right upon misery : it would be as shame- 
 ful, as barbarous, were we to endeavour to 
 enrich it from poverty , and to snatch from 
 him who has little , to give to him who has 
 all. Under Marcus Aurelius the labourer was 
 inspected : the man who had his arms, could 
 enjoy the necessaries which his arms pro- 
 cured : luxury and effeminacy payed in ri- 
 ches what poverty paid in labor. He gave a 
 still greater example : placed between ardent 
 enemies, and an oppressed people, it is on 
 himself , Romans , he raises taxes , which 
 without empoverishing you , you could not 
 have paid. He is asked where are the trea- 
 sures for war? here they are, said he, shew- 
 ingthe furniture of his palace. Lay bare these 
 walls ; — carry away these statues and these 
 pictures ; transport these vases of gold to the 
 public place : let all be sold in the name of 
 the state : let these vain ornaments , which 
 serve for the decorations of the palace of the 
 Emperors, serve for the expence of the em- 
 pire. I was with him at the time he gave, and 
 that they executed these orders : I appeared 
 surprised. He turned towards me : « Apollo- 
 « nius, said he, what ! thou admirest also as 
 « the people ! would it be right then , instead 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 3$ 
 
 « of these vases of gold , to sell the pitcher 
 « of the poor man, and the corn which noti- 
 ce rishes his children ? » Pausing for a moment , 
 <c My friend , said he , perhaps these riches 
 « have drawn tears from twenty nations : this 
 « sale will be a small expiation for the evils 
 « done to humanity. » 
 
 Romans , these empty apartments , these 
 walls almost naked, had more shew and gran- 
 deur for you , than the golden palaces of your 
 tyrants. The house of Marcus Aurelius , in 
 this condition, resembled an august temple, 
 which has no other ornament than the divi- 
 nity that inhabits it. 
 
 It was not enough thus to dispossess him- 
 self : he had the courage to refuse to others 
 that which he had not the right to give. He 
 learned to defend himself against that gene- 
 rosity which is sometimes the malady of great 
 minds — a seduction so much the more dan- 
 gerous, as it resembles virtue , but which for 
 the happiness of one , sometimes causes the 
 misery of thousands. 
 
 Bad Emperors corrupted camps, to make 
 of them a defence against Rome : and gold 
 lavished upon armies served to forge the 
 chains which despotism extended over the 
 universe. Marcus Aurelius would have blush- 
 
4d BULOGltM 
 
 ed to purchase the armies of the empire against 
 the empire itself. He grants to them in the 
 name of the state , all that the state owes, but 
 he gives nothing in the name of the prince : 
 he is not willing that, enriched by his hands, 
 they accustom themselves to separate the qua- 
 lity of citizens from that of soldiers. 
 
 Apollonius was continuing, when a centurion, who was 
 near him , suddenly interrupted him. 
 
 Philosopher , said he , permit a soldier to 
 cite a trait of our great Emperor of which 
 thou art perhaps ignorant. We were in Ger- 
 many , and he had just obtained a victory : 
 we asked him for a distribution of money: 
 this was his answer : I recollect it well : we 
 were on the field of battle, and he held in his 
 hand his helmet pierced with javelins. « My 
 « friends , said he , we have conquered ; but 
 « if you must have the spoil of citizens , of 
 « what importance is your victory to the 
 « state? All that I give you beyond what is 
 « due , will be drawn from the blood of your 
 « neighbours and your fathers. » We blushed 
 and asked nothing. 
 
 I knew this reply of Marcus Aurelius , said 
 the old man to the soldier : it is well that 
 thou hast communicated it to the common 
 
ON MARCUS AtfRELITJg. 4 1 
 
 people. Then Apollonius resumed his dis- 
 course : he spoke of justice, and how it was 
 executed by Marcus Aurelius at Rome. Of 
 what importance is it , said he , that the chief 
 is neither an oppressor nor a tyrant, if ci- 
 tizens oppress citizens ? The despotism of each 
 individual , if without bounds , would not be 
 less terrible than the despotism of a prince. 
 
 Personal interest every where attacks the 
 interest of the whole : all fortunes are at 
 variance : all passions at war : it is justice 
 which combats and prevents anarchy. Ro- 
 mans , cried he , why is it necessary that 
 amongst men , every thing that is the source 
 of good , may also become the source of evil ? 
 This sacred justice , the stay and support of 
 society, under your tyrants, had become the 
 very principle of its destruction. There had 
 arisen, within your walls, a race of men, who, 
 under the pretext of supporting the laws, 
 betrayed all laws ; living by accusations, bar- 
 tering calumnies, and always ready to sell 
 innocence to hatred, or riches to avarice. 
 Then every thing was a crime of state. It 
 was a crime to claim the rights of men , to 
 praise virtue , to lament the unhappy , to 
 cultivate the arts which elevate the mind : it 
 was a crime to invoke the sacred name of 
 
42 EULOGIUM 
 
 the laws. Actions , words , silence itself, all 
 were accused. What do I say? Even thought 
 itself was divined ; to find it culpable it was 
 misinterpreted in a thousand ways. Thus 
 the art of information poisoned all ; infor- 
 mers were loaded with the riches of the em- 
 pire , and the excess of their dignities was 
 proportioned to that of their infamy. What 
 resource is there in a state , where innocence 
 is butchered in the name of the laws which 
 ought to defend it ? Often they did not even 
 deign to have recourse to the vain formality 
 of laws : arbitrary power , without control , 
 imprisoned , exiled , or pronounced sen- 
 tence of death. Romans, 30U know whether 
 Marcus Aurelius held in horror this tyran- 
 nic justice, which puts the will of man in 
 place of the decision of the law : which 
 makes the life and fortune of a citizen to de- 
 pend on error or on mistake : w r hose strokes 
 are the more terrible, as they are often si- 
 lent and concealed, and only permit the un- 
 fortunate to feel the arrow which pierces 
 him , without seeing the hand from which it 
 came; or which, separating him from all the 
 world, and condemning him to live that he 
 may die continually , leave him under a 
 weight of chains , at once ignorant of his ac- 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 4^ 
 
 cuser and his crime ; far from freedom whose 
 august image is for ever veiled from his eyes ; 
 far from the laws, which, in prison or in 
 exile, ought always to answer to the cries 
 of the unfortunate by whom they are invok- 
 ed. Marcus Aurelius considered the formali- 
 ties of law as so many barriers which pru- 
 dence has set up against injustice. Under 
 him , those crimes of high treason disap- 
 peared , which multiply only under bad prin- 
 ces. Every accusation was sent to the accus- 
 ed, with the name of the accuser : it was a 
 check against base men : it was a rampart for 
 those who have nothing to fear, w r hen allow- 
 ed the privilege of defence. 
 
 Citizens, the unfortunate who is pursued, 
 seeks refuge in the temples of worship, where 
 he embraces the altars of the gods. Under 
 Marcus Aurelius, your sanctuaries and your 
 temples were the tribunals of your magis- 
 trates : « May all those , said he , who fear 
 oppression retire under that sacred shelter : 
 There, and I call the gods to witness, if ever 
 you are oppressed , I wish , Romans , that you 
 may find an asylum against myself. » 
 
 With what dignity did this great man speak 
 to magistrates and judges of their duty ! « If 
 you have to judge your enemy, felicitate your- 
 
44 EULOGITJM 
 
 selves : you have , at the same time , a great 
 passion to conquer, and a great action toper- 
 form. If power wishes to corrupt you, put, 
 on one side , the price that is offered ; on the 
 other , the virtue and the right of esteeming 
 yourselves. If they intimidate you... But who 
 can make you afraid ? Is it I whom , [when you 
 are doing a good action] you fear to offend? 
 Hated by your Emperor because you have 
 been just, it is you who would be great ; it is I 
 who would be unhappy and culpable. » Thus, 
 the mind of Marcus Aurelius animated all the 
 tribunals of the empire* 
 
 Under him , justice was then neither venal, 
 nor corrupted , nor precipitate , nor slow : it 
 was neither necessary to seize it by impor- 
 tunity, nor to purchase it with presents. A 
 horrible abuse multiplied the days in which 
 the tribunals were shut, as if on these days, 
 they had prevented the rich from usurpa- 
 tion , the powerful from committing violence, 
 the unfortunate from feeling the weight of 
 his sorrow. Romans, time flow T ed for dis- 
 sensions and for crimes , and its course was 
 suspended for the re-establishment of order. 
 Marcus Aurelius reformed this abuse : he 
 thought that even on sacred days, justice 
 rendered to men cannot give offence to the 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 4$ 
 
 gods ; and time , the most sacred of treasures, 
 was restored to the country. 
 
 Occupied with the general administration, 
 he knew how to find moments to decide him- 
 self the affairs of citizens. « Philosopher, [sud- 
 denly observed a man in the crowd,] like thee 
 I respect and admire Marcus Aurelius, but 
 believest thou that the power of judging is 
 never to be dreaded by a prince ? » I know it , 
 replied Apollonius : one ought to dread to be 
 accustomed to power ; he was unwilling to be, 
 at the same time , both the magistrate and the 
 law : so that if he pronounces alone, he may 
 not be deceived : and if he presides in the 
 tribunals, his authority, in spite of him, may 
 not corrupt the judges, nor flattery sacrifice 
 the law to him who is master of all. But these 
 abuses which were more than once felt un- 
 der our tyrants, depend on the man who 
 tolerates them , or on him to whom they owe 
 their origin. The power of judging, in a 
 prince , has also its advantages when the 
 prince has virtues. Dare I say it, he is then 
 nearer the people : he hears more particu- 
 larly the misfortunes of men : he learns to 
 submit his thoughts to the law : and will, al- 
 ways impetuous, accustoms itself to feel the 
 chain by which it is restrained. Such was the 
 
£6 EULOGIUM 
 
 mind of Marcus Aurelius in its judgments. I 
 never weary in speaking of the justice of this 
 great man. I have seen him pass many nights 
 in succession , in the examination of an im- 
 portant affair which he had to decide. We 
 studied together : I wished to engage him to 
 take, repose. « Apollonius, said he to me , let 
 « us give an example to all these men greedy 
 « of pleasure , and fatigued with business , 
 « who pretend to separate labors and ho- 
 cc nors. » Be not surprised at this language : 
 it is conformable to the system of a prince 
 who was just from principle, and who , from 
 duty, loving all men, occupied himself equally 
 with the interests of all. 
 
 Here the philosopher paused : he appeared to be filled 
 with a deep and sad sentiment. 
 
 Romans , I confess to you , said he , there 
 is an idea which overwhelms me, and which 
 has more than once, excited sorrow : it is the 
 immense inequality which pride has placed 
 between men. Nature always beneficent , had 
 created beings equal and free : tyranny came, 
 and made them weak and unfortunate. Then 
 a small number seized upon all : it usurped 
 the dominion of the world , and the human 
 race is disinherited. Hence arose insulting 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. ^ 
 
 contempt and proud disdain , ferocious sway, 
 and the pity of pride , still more cruel than 
 contempt. It belonged to philosophy upon 
 the throne to avenge those insults offered to 
 the human race. O you, who are neither pa* 
 tricians nor senators; you who have neither 
 riches nor honors , but who are citizens and 
 men, I fear not that your secret impreca- 
 tions may mix with the praises with which 
 I honor the memory of your Emperor. His 
 sympathizing goodness saw, in all the or- 
 ders of the state ? a numerous society of bro- 
 thers, relations and friends. How often have 
 you seen him , moved by your wants, soften 
 them by his bounty , and , to know them , 
 penetrating to the bosom of your families ! 
 To console you in your labors , he bestowed 
 upon you numerous amusements and fetes, 
 and by the allurement of public shews, mak- 
 ing the poor man forget his poverty, he 
 suspended the sentiment of his evils : he 
 made him forget, for some moments at least, 
 the goods which he did not enjoy.* Under 
 him the most obscure name was not an ex- 
 clusion from the offices and dignities of the 
 empire. To distinguish ranks, Marcus Aure- 
 lius consulted prejudices ; to appreciate men , 
 he judged but men. The hand which had di- 
 
48 ETILOGIUM 
 
 rected the plough - share , has conducted , 
 under him, the pretorian guards : and to 
 choose a husband to his daughter, he cast 
 his eyes on Pompeius, who, instead of ances- 
 tors, had merit. An alliance with virtue, 
 said he , cannot dishonor the master of the 
 world. 
 
 At this moment Apollonius , casting his eyes on the as- 
 sembly of Roman people , perceived Pertinax : he was 
 a warrior celebrated by his victories : and his merit 
 was destined to raise him to the empire. He entered 
 Rome with a part of his army, accompanying the 
 body of Marcus Aurelius. He was at a small distance 
 from the crowd : his hands upon his spear, and 
 with his back leaning sadly against a column : sud- 
 denly Apollonius addressed him : 
 
 It is thee whom I call to witness, Perti- 
 nax ! thou hast the courage to avow that thy 
 father was a slave , and died free : this gives 
 thee a greater claim to our respect. Dare I 
 here call to remembrance a disgrace which 
 does not honor thee less than thy Emperor. 
 Thou wast accused : he was surprised, and 
 thou appearedst to be guilty. Soon thy in- 
 nocence was manifest : Marcus Aurelius was 
 great enough to pardon the wrong he had 
 committed : he named thee senator and con- 
 sul : men, who thought themselves thy rivals, 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 49 
 
 dared to say , that the glory of the consulate 
 was disgraced by thy birth : « And what , 
 « replied Marcus Aurelius , the place of the 
 « Scipios disgraced by a warrior who resem- 
 « bles them ! » 
 
 He who thus elevated the illustrious Ple- 
 beians , could not forget the nobility of the 
 empire : but he wishes to have its titles sup- 
 ported by its actions. If it be only proud, he 
 despises it : if it have virtues , he honors it ; 
 if it be poor , he supports it : he is not will- 
 ing, that in a town corrupted by luxury, 
 men, whose duty it is to be generous, should 
 descend to the most shameful means of self- 
 aggrandizement. 
 
 In speaking of the protection which Marcus 
 Aurelius afforded to useful men of all ranks , 
 can I forget , Romans , that which he extended 
 to ourselves, and to all those, who, like him, 
 cultivated their reason by study? I take the 
 gods to witness that it is not the recollection 
 of a selfish-interest, which at this moment, 
 makes me praise my Emperor. If, during sixty 
 years, I have neither aspired to honors, nor 
 courted riches; if, beloved by Marcus Aure- 
 lius, I have justified my power by my con- 
 duct; if, sometimes injured, I have answered 
 hatred by good will, and calumny by bene- 
 
 4 
 
f)0 EULOGIUM 
 
 fits, I have perhaps a right to speak of all 
 that this great man has done for philosophy 
 and letters. I know riot whether they still 
 have enemies at Rome : I know not whether 
 proscription and exile shall yet be our por- 
 tion; but at no time can they extinguish the 
 cry of nature , which warns us that the people 
 have a right to happiness. We shall weep over 
 the evils of the human race; and when, in 
 some portion of the world , there shall rise 
 up a prince like Marcus Aurelius , who shall 
 announce that he proposes to place with him 
 on the throne , both knowledge and morals ; 
 from the bosom of our retreats , we shall to- 
 gether raise our hands and offer thanks to the 
 gods. Here I could wish to reanimate my 
 trembling voice. Marcus Aurelius ; from* the 
 summit of his Capitol , gives a signal ; all 
 those throughout the empire , who love and 
 seek truth , assemble around him ; he encou- 
 rages and protects them : you have seen him 
 more than once, when he was Emperor, en- 
 ter the public schools to instruct himself : it 
 might be said that he came to the crowd to 
 seek truth which flies from kings. Under his 
 reign , we were useful ; to us this glory had 
 been sufficient : to this , that great man ad- 
 ded honors. He has raised many among us to 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS, 5l 
 
 the first places of the empire , and has caused 
 statues to be erected to them at the side of 
 Socrates and Cato. Romans, if your tyrants 
 could rise from their tombs , and reappear 
 within our walls, how would they be asto- 
 nished to see their own statues thrown down 
 and mutilated, and , in their place, those of 
 the successors of men, whom they had dragged 
 to prison , and whose blood had been shed on 
 the scaffold ? 
 
 Marcus Aurelius , in throwing his eyes over 
 all classes of citizens , casts a marked look on 
 those who are unfortunate enough to despise 
 virtue. Their irregularities are arrested by wise 
 laws, but the first law was his own example. 
 His authority astonished effeminacy : weak 
 minds felt the courage of virtue; those who 
 were ambitious had morals from interest : 
 those whom he cannot correct, he laments 
 and chides , but he cannot hate. Austere to 
 himself alone , he possessed that mild huma- 
 nity which is so well accomodated to our 
 weakness. Wicked men dared to offend him: 
 he disdained a vengeance to which there was 
 an easy recourse, and the philosopher forgot 
 the injury done to the Magistrate. 
 
 Here Commodus made a movement : his visage was 
 
 h. 
 
52 EULOGIUM. 
 
 changed : his eyes inflamed. He appeared ready to 
 speak ; but he stopped , and the philosopher pro- 
 ceeded. 
 
 Goodness formed the character of this great 
 man : it appeared in his discourse , and in his 
 actions : it was painted in the features of his 
 face : what do I say? it was the object of his 
 worship. Look at that Capitol , where his hand 
 erected to her a temple. O God of the uni- 
 verse , in almost all countries of the world , 
 thou hast been insulted even in the adora- 
 tion that was paid thee ! In all places hath 
 barbarous superstition had altars , where to 
 appease thee, she has offered the groans and 
 cries of human victims : Marcus Aurelius in- 
 voked thee under the idea of a Being equally 
 omnipotent and good ; he painted thee to men 
 as thou wast painted in his heart. No ; I shall 
 never forget that day, that solemn day, when 
 a prince, a sovereign pontiff, as Emperor of 
 his country, entered for the first time the 
 temple dedicated to goodness, where he burn- 
 ed the first incense upon its altar, in the 
 midst of the acclamations and joy of a peo- 
 ple , who appeared to take him for the di- 
 vinity himself. Romans , it was impossible 
 for your ancestors to find Manlius guilty, 
 while they had in view the Capitol, which 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 53 
 
 y lie had saved ; and here I supplicate that the 
 sight of this new temple , in this same Capi- 
 tol , may, arrest your Emperors , as often as 
 they would commit a criminal or tyrannic 
 action. People, may all those who reign over 
 you, come and swear on this altar, to be good 
 like Marcus Aurelius ; and to think like him T 
 that every benefit granted to man is an act 
 of worship to the Deity ! 
 
 In this assembly of Roman people , there was a crowd 
 of citizens and strangers from all parts of the empire. 
 Some had been a long while at Rome : others from 
 different provinces had followed the funeral Chariot ,. 
 and had accompanied it from respect. On a sudden 
 one of them ( he was the first magistrate of a town at 
 the foot of the alps ) raised his voice. 
 
 Orator , said he , thou hast spoken to us of 
 the good which Marcus Aurelius did to un- 
 happy individuals ; speak to us of that which 
 he has done for towns and nations : recall 
 the famine which desolated Italy. We heard 
 the cries of children who demanded bread : 
 our barren fields and empty markets left us 
 no resource : we invoked Marcus Aurelius, 
 and the famine ceased. Then he approached, 
 touched the tomb , and said : « I present to 
 the ashes of Marcus Aurelius the homage of 
 all Italy. » 
 
54 EULOGIUM 
 
 Another man appeared. His face was embrowned by the 
 burning sun : his features had something in them inex- 
 pressibly noble, and he was the tallest of the whole 
 assembly : he was an African : he raised his voice and 
 said : 
 
 I was born at Carthage : I saw our houses 
 and our temples consumed by a general con- 
 flagration. Escaped from the flames , and lying 
 several days on ruins and heaps of ashes, we 
 invoked Marcus Aurelius : Marcus Aurelius 
 repaired our misfortunes. Carthage thanked 
 the gods that it was Roman. — He approach- 
 ed, touched the tomb, and said : « I present 
 to the ashes of Marcus Aurelius the homage 
 of Africa. » 
 
 Three inhabitants of Asia advanced. In one hand of each 
 was incense , in the other garlands of flowers. One of 
 them thus spoke : 
 
 In Asia we saw the soil, on which we trod, 
 crumble under our feet , and our three towns 
 overthrown by one earthquake. In the midst 
 of desolation we invoked Marcus Aurelius, 
 and our towns arose from their ruins. — They 
 placed, upon the tomb, incense and crowns, 
 and said : « We present to the ashes of Mar- 
 cus Aurelius the homage of Asia. » 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 5j 
 
 At last , a man appeared from the banks of the Danube. 
 He wore the dress of a barbarian , and held a club in 
 his hand. His visage, full of scars, was bold and ter- 
 rible ; but his features at this moment , appeared to 
 be softened by grief. He advanced and said : 
 
 Romans, our country was poisoned by 
 pestilence ; it was said to have run over the 
 world ,• and that it came from the frontiers 
 of Parthia to us. Death was in our houses : it 
 pursued us in our forests : we could no longer 
 hunt nor fight : every thing perished : I my- 
 self experienced this terrible scourge , and I 
 could no longer support the weight of my 
 arms. In this desolation, we invoked Marcus 
 Aurelius : Marcus Aurelius was our protector 
 and preserver. — He approached, laid his club 
 upon the tomb , and said : oc I present to thy 
 ashes the homage of twenty nations which 
 thou hast saved. » 
 
 You hear , Romans , replied Apollonius , 
 that his cares extended to all parts of the 
 world. In the space of twenty years the earth 
 experienced all manner of scourges : but na- 
 ture had given to the earth , as her solace , 
 Marcus Aurelius. 
 
 And this great man had enemies! Is it then 
 necessary, — is it a decree of the Eternal, 
 that virtue never can disarm hatred ? Romans, 
 
56 EULOGICM 
 
 your best Emperors have seen the poignards 
 whetted against them. »rva saw himself at- 
 tacked in his palace : they conspired against 
 Titus : Antoninus and Trajan were obliged to 
 pardon conspirators , and Marcus Aurelius , 
 ves , Marcus Aurelius has struggled for his 
 life ! Already you think of the revolt of Cas- 
 sius, of that proud and audacious man , aus- 
 tere , furious, voluptuous, and passionate; 
 willing sometimes to be Cataline, sometimes 
 Cato ; excessive in his virtues and in his vi- 
 ces ; a barbarian who, in rebelling, pronoun- 
 ced the words virtue and country , and spoke 
 of abuses, reformation , and morals : for in 
 all times, the public good has served as a 
 pretext for crimes ; and , in oppressing indi- 
 viduals, we have heard of the happiness of 
 die state. 
 
 I would here wish to present to your view 
 the annals of those times ill which tyrants 
 discovered a conspiracy, or triumphed over 
 revolt. You recollect it well : proscription 
 was aright, reasons of state justified murder: 
 no citizen was innocent when he knew a per- 
 son to be guilty : the finest sentiments of na- 
 ture passed as a crime : the tear which stole 
 from the eye of friendship was punished as 
 l crime; and the mother dragged to punish- 
 
OX MARCUS ATJRELIUS. 5j 
 
 ment who wept the death of her son. We 
 must from time to time recollect these hor- 
 rors , that princes , by the excess of their ven- 
 geance , may learn to dread the excess of their 
 power. Let us see in the mean time, what 
 was the conduct of Marcus Aurelius : they 
 bring him the head of a usurper who per 
 rished by the hands of his accomplices : he 
 turns away his eyes , and orders that these 
 remains might be decently inhumed. Sub^ 
 duer of insurrections, he saves the lives of 
 those who wished to take from him the em- 
 pire : what do I say? he becomes their pro- 
 tector. The senate proposes to avenge its 
 prince : he implores from the senate the par- 
 don of his enemies. « I pray you in the name 
 of the gods , not to shed blood ; let the exiles 
 return : let the goods be rendered to those 
 who have been plundered, and would to 
 heaven, added he, that I could open the 
 tombs ! » Be not then astonished , Romans , 
 if the family even of Cassius , which in other 
 times , expected nothing but proscription and 
 death, have recovered all the splendor of their 
 ancient fortune. Turn your eyes to that side. 
 
 The people looked ; they saw at the gate of rhe palace, 
 a woman of noble figure , and whose beauty was not 
 
58 EULOGIUM 
 
 yet effaced by age. She was near a portico , a little 
 raised above the crowd , and her head half covered 
 with a veil ; around her were seen children of dif- 
 ferent ages : it was the wife and the children of Cas- 
 sius. Too far from the crowd, they could not hear 
 what the philosopher said , but they looked at this 
 grand spectacle. Sometimes the mother fixed her tender 
 eyes upon the children : then all of a sudden , stretch- 
 ing her arms to the tomb , she appeared to thank 
 Marcus Aurelius for the preservation of her off- 
 spring. 
 
 People , cried Apollonius , behold the wit- 
 nesses of his clemency. After having reduced 
 Rome to peace , he marches to Asia to strength- 
 en the shaken provinces : he shews himself 
 every where the beneficent master , the phi- 
 losophic prince, whose empire some guilty 
 towns had dared to despise. They present him 
 the papers of rebels ; he burns them without 
 knowing their contents : I wish not, said he, 
 to be forced to hate. All threw themselves at 
 his feet : he pardons towns and provinces : 
 kings of the east come to render him homage : 
 he maintains or reestablishes peace , and uni- 
 versal admiration attends the philosopher so 
 worthy of the throne. Again, after eight years, 
 he reappears on the banks of the Tiber: with 
 what transport was he received ! never had 
 so many virtues together appeared in Rome : 
 
ON MARCUS AURELITJS. %Q 
 
 to the knowledge of Adrian , he united the 
 mind of Titus : he had governed like Augus- 
 tus , fought like Trajan , and pardoned like 
 Antoninus. The people were happy : the se- 
 nate was great : even his enemies adored him : 
 foreign wars terminated in victory ; civil war 
 in clemency : from the Danube to the Eu- 
 phrates, and from the Nile to Britannia (0, 
 troubles had ceased , and all was calm : Eu- 
 rope and Africa reposed in peace : then he, 
 a second time , triumphed. Men of all nations, 
 and the ambassadors of all kings increased 
 this splendor : the blood of victims flowed in 
 the temple : incense smoked on the altars : 
 the people with cries , surrounded the sta- 
 tues , and adorned them with flowers : all 
 resounded with acclamations : and he in the 
 , midst of this splendor , in the march of tri- 
 umph , tranquil and without ostentation , 
 enjoyed in silence the felicity of Rome, and 
 of the empire ; and from the height of his Ca- 
 pitol , appeared to cast a serene eye over the 
 universe. Who of you, Romans, did not then 
 wish that this great man might be immortal; 
 
 (i) In the original it is Great Britain. The author was 
 evidently guilty of an anachronism , as that country was 
 then not known by this name. T. 
 
60 EULOGITTM 
 
 or, at least, that the gods might grant him 
 many and happy years? What! are benevolent 
 men so rare, and shall the earth enjoy them 
 for so short a time ? Alas ! evils surround and 
 attack us; and when a prince springs up, 
 whose only care is to soften them ; when the 
 human race , withered by misfortune , is re- 
 vivified, and begins again to be happy, the 
 prop which supported it is taken away, and 
 with one man perishes the felicity of an age ! 
 Marcus Aurelius remained yet two years 
 among vis , when the eternal enemies of the 
 empire recalled him , the third time , to the 
 extremity of Germany : then in spite of de- 
 clining health , he returned to the banks of 
 the Danube. It was in the midst of those la- 
 bors we lost him. His last moments ( as I was 
 present , I can render you an account of them) 
 were those of a great man and a sage. The 
 sickness with which he was attacked, did not 
 trouble him : accustomed during fifty years, to 
 meditate on nature , he had learned to know 
 her, and was taught submission to her laws. 
 I recollect well that one day he said to me : 
 a Apollonius, every thing changes around me : 
 the world to day is not that of yesterday, 
 and that of to morrow will not be what we 
 have to day. Amongst all these motions can 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS, 6l 
 
 I alone remain fixed ? The torrent must also 
 drag me along : every thing warns me that 
 one day I shall cease to exist. The ground on 
 which I tread , has been trodden by thou- 
 sands of men who have disappeared : the an- 
 nals of empires , the ruins of towns , urns 
 and statues , what are all these , but images 
 of what is no more? That sun which thou 
 seest , shines only upon tombs. » — Thus 
 the philosophic prince exercised , and for- 
 tified his mind : when his last moments ap- 
 proached , he was not astonished : I felt my- 
 self elevated by his discourse. Romans, this 
 great man, when dying, had something in- 
 expressibly imposing and august : it appear- 
 ed that in proportion as he was detached 
 from the earth , he took something of the 
 divine and unknown nature with which he 
 was soon to be associated. I could not touch 
 his dying hands without respect ; and the 
 mournful bed , on which he waited death , 
 appeared a kind of sanctuary. In the mean 
 time , the army was in consternation ; the 
 soldier wept in his tent : nature herself ap- 
 peared in mourning : the sky of Germany 
 was obscured ; a tempest agitated the top of 
 the forest which environed the camp; and 
 these mournful objects appeared to augment 
 
62 EULOGIUM 
 
 our desolation. He wished to be left alone, 
 either to review his life , in presence of the 
 Supreme Being, or to have another, and last 
 meditation : at length he called us to him : 
 all the friends of this great man and the ge- 
 nerals of the army came and ranged them- 
 selves around him : he was pale : his eyes half 
 shut , his lips almost cold : still however we 
 could remark a tender concern upon his vi- 
 sage. Prince ! he appeared to be reanimated 
 a moment for thee : his dying hand presented 
 thee to all the old men who had served under 
 him : he recommended to them thy youth. 
 « Be to him a father , said he : be to him a 
 father. » He then gave thee advice , such as 
 Marcus Aurelius , dying , ought to give to 
 his son : and soon after , he was lost to Rome 
 and to the world. * 
 
 At these words , all the Roman people remained sad and 
 immoveable. Apollonius was silent : his tears flowed. 
 He sunk on the body of Marcus Aurelius : he grasped 
 him a long time in his arms , and suddenly raising 
 himself , he said : 
 
 But thou who art to succeed this great man ; 
 Son of Marcus Aurelius ! My son [allow an old 
 man who saw thee born , and who once held 
 thee an infant in his arms, to uset his expres- 
 
ON MARCUS AURELIUS. 63 
 
 sion] think on the charge which the gods 
 have i nposed upon thee ; — think of the rights 
 of those who obey. Destined to reign, thou 
 must be either the most just , or the most 
 guilty of men : can the son of Marcus Aure- 
 lius hesitate on the choice ? Thou wilt soon 
 be told, thou art all-powerful : they will de- 
 ceive thee : the bounds of thy authority are 
 marked by the law. They will also say to thee, 
 that thou art great and adored by thy people. 
 Hear : when Nero had poisoned his brother, 
 he was told that he had saved Rome : when 
 he had butchered his wife , they praised his 
 justice : when he had assassinated his mo- 
 ther , they kissed his parricidal hand , and 
 ran to the temples to give thanks to the gods. 
 Suffer not thyself to be dazzled by respect : 
 if thou hast not virtues, they will at once 
 render thee homage and hate thee. Believe 
 me , the people will not be abused : insulted 
 justice watches in all hearts : master of the 
 world , thou mayest order my death , but 
 thou canst not force me to love thee. O son 
 of Marcus Aurelius ! pardon : I speak in the 
 name of the gods; in the name of the uni- 
 verse which is confided to thee : I speak for 
 thine, and for the happiness of men. No : thou 
 wilt not be insensible to a glory so pure. I 
 
64 EULOGIUM 
 
 approach the end of my days : soon \ shall 
 go to join thy father. If thou art just , <may I 
 still live long enough to contemplate thy vir- 
 tues ! But if one day thou shouldst — 
 
 On a sudden Commodus, who wore the dress of a war- 
 rior, shook his spear in a terrible manner. All the 
 Romans grew pale : Apollonius was struck with the 
 misfortunes which menaced Rome. He could not finish. 
 The venerable old man covered his face. The funeral 
 pomp, which had been suspended, was resumed. The 
 people followed in consternation and profound silence. 
 They then felt that Marcus Aurelius was indeed no 
 more. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
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