Page:Works of Voltaire Volume 36.djvu/56

Her citizens enjoy serene repose,
More blessed than when they vanquished numerous foes.
Not that I think kings should the mitre wear,
And the cross jointly with the sceptre bear,
Or when they come from council should, aloud,
Utter their benediction to the crowd;
But I assert that kings, when they are crowned,
To maintain order are by duty bound,
That their authority's o'er all the same,
That all their fatherly protection claim.
On various orders well-formed states depend,
Merchants enrich them, warriors defend.
Religious ordinances level all,
The rich and poor, the great as well as small;
Equal authority has civil law,
This keeps both citizens and priests in awe.
Law in a state should equal sway extend
O'er all; all to it equally should bend.
Farther to treat of such points I decline,
Heaven ne'er for government formed souls like mine;
But from the port where now my life I close,
In tranquil happiness and calm repose,
Seeing the storms that all around me rage,
I with your lessons moralize my page.
From this discourse what inference shall we draw?
That prejudice to fools alone gives law;
We should not for it with fierce rage contend,
Earth teems with error, truths from heaven descend;
And amidst thistles which obstruct the way,
The sage finds paths that cannot lead astray.