Page:The Present State of Peru.djvu/192

164 which had been destroyed in Judea, by the princes his predecessors, was restored. He freed the Jews from the galling yoke of the Gentiles; ameliorated their condition; selected Joppa for a haven; and made an entrance to the islands of the sea. The earth, cultivated with care, afforded copious harvests. The elders, seated in the streets, had but one theme, that of the abundance amid which they lived. The young men were clad in rich and gaudy attire. The temple was embellished with sumptuous vessels which served for the sacrifice. The kings who were hostile to him, held Simon in respect. And, lastly, he distributed justice with impartiality; fulfilled his promises; and was solely occupied by the grandeur and freedom of his subjects.

To soften the asperities of a people, to purify their customs, and to extirpate their inveterate abuses, is the fruit of wisdom, and not of a rigorous legislation. In this part, the weakness of the law is the necessary effect of its vigour. The furious surge of the enraged ocean does not leave any mark on the rock against which it breaks; and the impetuous torrent moistens the earth less than does the gently falling shower. Thus, the useful mechanism by which heavy bodies are raised, does not require the greatest degree of force, but the favourable combination of distances and directions.

Every beneficial result is to be expelled from the influence of letters. Being present to our mind, they are at once the accuser, the witness, and the judge of our actions. If they do not always free the heart from the disorders by which it is enthralled, they succour it in the respective intervals of silence and repose, when the tumult of the passions allows a glimpse of the precipice to which they lead. This return to truth can never