Moral essays. With an English translation by J.W. Basore

ON ANGER, III. -xxxiii. i-xxxiv. 1cut-throats ; it is daubed Mith our blood ; because ofit husbands and \Wves make night hideous with theirquarrels, crowds swarm to the tribunals of the magistrates,kings rage and plunder and overthrow statesthat have been built by the long labour of centuries,in order that they may search for gold and silverin the very ashes of cities. It is a pleasure, you say,to see money-bags lying in the corner. But theseare what men shout for until their eyeballs t>tart ; forthe sake of these the law-courts resound ^^ith thedin of trials, and jurors summoned from distant partssit in judgement to decide which man's greed has thejuster claim. But what if it is not even a bag ofmoney, but only a handful of copper or a silver piece,reckoned by a slave, which causes an heirless oldman on the verge of the grave to spUt with rage ?And what if it is only a paltry one per cent ofinterest " that causes the money-lender, sick thoughhe be, with crippled feet and with gnarled handsthat no longer serve for counting money, to shoutaloud, and in the very throes of his malady torequire securities for his pennies ? If you were tooffer me all the money from all the mines, whichwe are now so busy in digging, if you were to castbefore my eyes all the money that buried treasureshold—for greed restores to earth what it once inwickedness drew forth—I should not count thatwhole assembled hoard worth even a good man'sfro^vn. With what laughter should we attend thethings that now draw tears from our eyes !Come, now, run through the other causes of anger—foods, driiiks, and the refinements in regard to themdevised to gratify pride, insulting words, disrespectfulgestures, stubborn beasts of burden and lazy slaves,335