Page:Works of Voltaire Volume 02.djvu/26

6 never afraid of obliging the ungrateful ; remembering the grand precept of Zoroaster, "When thou eatest, give to the dogs, should they even bite thee." He was as wise .as it is possible for a man to be; for he sought to live with the wise. Instructed in the sciences of the ancient Chaldæans, he understood the principles of natural philosophy, such as they were then supposed to be; and knew as much of metaphysics as has ever been known in any age, that is, little or nothing at all. He was firmly persuaded, notwithstanding the new philosophy of the times, that the year consisted of three hundred and sixty-five days and six hours, and that the sun was the centre of the solar system. When the principal magi told him, with a haughty and contemptuous air, that his sentiments were of a dangerous tendency, and that it was to be an enemy to the state to believe that the sun revolved around its own axis, and that the year had twelve months, he held his tongue with great modesty and meekness.

Possessed as he was of great riches, and consequently of many friends, blessed with a good constitution, a handsome figure, a mind just and moderate, and a heart noble and sincere, he fondly imagined that he might easily be happy. He was going to be married to Semira, who, in point of beauty, birth and fortune, was the first match in Babylon. He had a real and virtuous affection for this lady, and she loved him with the most passion-