In Such Manner He Won The Egyptians To Himself, So
That They Consented To Be His Subjects; And His Ordering Of Affairs
Was This:
- In the early morning, and until the time of the filling of
the market he did with a good will the business which was brought
before him; but after this he passed the time in drinking and in
jesting at his boon-companions, and was frivolous and playful.
And his
friends being troubled at it admonished him in some such words as
these: "O king, thou dost not rightly govern thyself in thus letting
thyself descend to behaviour so trifling; for thou oughtest rather to
have been sitting throughout the day stately upon a stately throne and
administering thy business; and so the Egyptians would have been
assured that they were ruled by a great man, and thou wouldest have
had a better report: but as it is, thou art acting by no means in a
kingly fashion." And he answered them thus: "They who have bows
stretch them at such time as they wish to use them, and when they have
finished using them they loose them again; for if they were stretched
tight always they would break, so that the men would not be able to
use them when they needed them. So also is the state of man: if he
should always be in earnest and not relax himself for sport at the due
time, he would either go mad or be struck with stupor before he was
aware; and knowing this well, I distribute a portion of the time to
each of the two ways of living." Thus he replied to his friends.
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