ariondas/full_text_dataset · Datasets at Hugging Face

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and in winter in the halls where they eat, where they entertain each
other either with music or discourse. They do not so much as know dice,
or any such foolish and mischievous games. They have, however, two sorts
of games not unlike our chess; the one is between several numbers, in
which one number, as it were, consumes another; the other resembles a
battle between the virtues and the vices, in which the enmity in the
vices among themselves, and their agreement against virtue, is not
unpleasantly represented; together with the special opposition between
the particular virtues and vices; as also the methods by which vice
either openly assaults or secretly undermines virtue; and virtue, on the
other hand, resists it. But the time appointed for labour is to be
narrowly examined, otherwise you may imagine that since there are only
six hours appointed for work, they may fall under a scarcity of necessary
provisions: but it is so far from being true that this time is not
sufficient for supplying them with plenty of all things, either necessary
or convenient, that it is rather too much; and this you will easily
apprehend if you consider how great a part of all other nations is quite
idle. First, women generally do little, who are the half of mankind; and
if some few women are diligent, their husbands are idle: then consider
the great company of idle priests, and of those that are called religious
men; add to these all rich men, chiefly those that have estates in land,
who are called noblemen and gentlemen, together with their families, made
up of idle persons, that are kept more for show than use; add to these
all those strong and lusty beggars that go about pretending some disease
in excuse for their begging; and upon the whole account you will find
that the number of those by whose labours mankind is supplied is much
less than you perhaps imagined: then consider how few of those that work
are employed in labours that are of real service, for we, who measure all
things by money, give rise to many trades that are both vain and
superfluous, and serve only to support riot and luxury: for if those who
work were employed only in such things as the conveniences of life
require, there would be such an abundance of them that the prices of them
would so sink that tradesmen could not be maintained by their gains; if
all those who labour about useless things were set to more profitable
employments, and if all they that languish out their lives in sloth and
idleness (every one of whom consumes as much as any two of the men that
are at work) were forced to labour, you may easily imagine that a small
proportion of time would serve for doing all that is either necessary,
profitable, or pleasant to mankind, especially while pleasure is kept
within its due bounds: this appears very plainly in Utopia; for there, in
a great city, and in all the territory that lies round it, you can scarce
find five hundred, either men or women, by their age and strength capable
of labour, that are not engaged in it. Even the Syphogrants, though
excused by the law, yet do not excuse themselves, but work, that by their
examples they may excite the industry of the rest of the people; the like
exemption is allowed to those who, being recommended to the people by the
priests, are, by the secret suffrages of the Syphogrants, privileged from
labour, that they may apply themselves wholly to study; and if any of
these fall short of those hopes that they seemed at first to give, they
are obliged to return to work; and sometimes a mechanic that so employs
his leisure hours as to make a considerable advancement in learning is
eased from being a tradesman and ranked among their learned men. Out of
these they choose their ambassadors, their priests, their Tranibors, and
the Prince himself, anciently called their Barzenes, but is called of
late their Ademus.

"And thus from the great numbers among them that are neither suffered to
be idle nor to be employed in any fruitless labour, you may easily make
the estimate how much may be done in those few hours in which they are
obliged to labour. But, besides all that has been already said, it is to
be considered that the needful arts among them are managed with less
labour than anywhere else. The building or the repairing of houses among
us employ many hands, because often a thriftless heir suffers a house
that his father built to fall into decay, so that his successor must, at
a great cost, repair that which he might have kept up with a small
charge; it frequently happens that the same house which one person built
at a vast expense is neglected by another, who thinks he has a more
delicate sense of the beauties of architecture, and he, suffering it to
fall to ruin, builds another at no less charge. But among the Utopians
all things are so regulated that men very seldom build upon a new piece
of ground, and are not only very quick in repairing their houses, but
show their foresight in preventing their decay, so that their buildings
are preserved very long with but very little labour, and thus the
builders, to whom that care belongs, are often without employment, except
the hewing of timber and the squaring of stones, that the materials may
be in readiness for raising a building very suddenly when there is any
occasion for it. As to their clothes, observe how little work is spent
in them; while they are at labour they are clothed with leather and
skins, cut carelessly about them, which will last seven years, and when
they appear in public they put on an upper garment which hides the other;
and these are all of one colour, and that is the natural colour of the
wool. As they need less woollen cloth than is used anywhere else, so
that which they make use of is much less costly; they use linen cloth
more, but that is prepared with less labour, and they value cloth only by
the whiteness of the linen or the cleanness of the wool, without much
regard to the fineness of the thread. While in other places four or five
upper garments of woollen cloth of different colours, and as many vests
of silk, will scarce serve one man, and while those that are nicer think
ten too few, every man there is content with one, which very often serves
him two years; nor is there anything that can tempt a man to desire more,
for if he had them he would neither be the, warmer nor would he make one
jot the better appearance for it. And thus, since they are all employed
in some useful labour, and since they content themselves with fewer
things, it falls out that there is a great abundance of all things among
them; so that it frequently happens that, for want of other work, vast
numbers are sent out to mend the highways; but when no public undertaking
is to be performed, the hours of working are lessened. The magistrates
never engage the people in unnecessary labour, since the chief end of the
constitution is to regulate labour by the necessities of the public, and
to allow the people as much time as is necessary for the improvement of

and in winter in the halls where they eat, where they entertain each

other either with music or discourse. They do not so much as know dice,

or any such foolish and mischievous games. They have, however, two sorts

of games not unlike our chess; the one is between several numbers, in

which one number, as it were, consumes another; the other resembles a

battle between the virtues and the vices, in which the enmity in the

vices among themselves, and their agreement against virtue, is not

unpleasantly represented; together with the special opposition between

the particular virtues and vices; as also the methods by which vice

either openly assaults or secretly undermines virtue; and virtue, on the

other hand, resists it. But the time appointed for labour is to be

narrowly examined, otherwise you may imagine that since there are only

six hours appointed for work, they may fall under a scarcity of necessary

provisions: but it is so far from being true that this time is not

sufficient for supplying them with plenty of all things, either necessary

or convenient, that it is rather too much; and this you will easily

apprehend if you consider how great a part of all other nations is quite

idle. First, women generally do little, who are the half of mankind; and

if some few women are diligent, their husbands are idle: then consider

the great company of idle priests, and of those that are called religious

men; add to these all rich men, chiefly those that have estates in land,

who are called noblemen and gentlemen, together with their families, made

up of idle persons, that are kept more for show than use; add to these

all those strong and lusty beggars that go about pretending some disease

in excuse for their begging; and upon the whole account you will find

that the number of those by whose labours mankind is supplied is much

less than you perhaps imagined: then consider how few of those that work

are employed in labours that are of real service, for we, who measure all

things by money, give rise to many trades that are both vain and

superfluous, and serve only to support riot and luxury: for if those who

work were employed only in such things as the conveniences of life

require, there would be such an abundance of them that the prices of them

would so sink that tradesmen could not be maintained by their gains; if

all those who labour about useless things were set to more profitable

employments, and if all they that languish out their lives in sloth and

idleness (every one of whom consumes as much as any two of the men that

are at work) were forced to labour, you may easily imagine that a small

proportion of time would serve for doing all that is either necessary,

profitable, or pleasant to mankind, especially while pleasure is kept

within its due bounds: this appears very plainly in Utopia; for there, in

a great city, and in all the territory that lies round it, you can scarce

find five hundred, either men or women, by their age and strength capable

of labour, that are not engaged in it. Even the Syphogrants, though

excused by the law, yet do not excuse themselves, but work, that by their

examples they may excite the industry of the rest of the people; the like

exemption is allowed to those who, being recommended to the people by the

priests, are, by the secret suffrages of the Syphogrants, privileged from

labour, that they may apply themselves wholly to study; and if any of

these fall short of those hopes that they seemed at first to give, they

are obliged to return to work; and sometimes a mechanic that so employs

his leisure hours as to make a considerable advancement in learning is

eased from being a tradesman and ranked among their learned men. Out of

these they choose their ambassadors, their priests, their Tranibors, and

the Prince himself, anciently called their Barzenes, but is called of

late their Ademus.

"And thus from the great numbers among them that are neither suffered to

be idle nor to be employed in any fruitless labour, you may easily make

the estimate how much may be done in those few hours in which they are

obliged to labour. But, besides all that has been already said, it is to

be considered that the needful arts among them are managed with less

labour than anywhere else. The building or the repairing of houses among

us employ many hands, because often a thriftless heir suffers a house

that his father built to fall into decay, so that his successor must, at

a great cost, repair that which he might have kept up with a small

charge; it frequently happens that the same house which one person built

at a vast expense is neglected by another, who thinks he has a more

delicate sense of the beauties of architecture, and he, suffering it to

fall to ruin, builds another at no less charge. But among the Utopians

all things are so regulated that men very seldom build upon a new piece

of ground, and are not only very quick in repairing their houses, but

show their foresight in preventing their decay, so that their buildings

are preserved very long with but very little labour, and thus the

builders, to whom that care belongs, are often without employment, except

the hewing of timber and the squaring of stones, that the materials may

be in readiness for raising a building very suddenly when there is any

occasion for it. As to their clothes, observe how little work is spent

in them; while they are at labour they are clothed with leather and

skins, cut carelessly about them, which will last seven years, and when

they appear in public they put on an upper garment which hides the other;

and these are all of one colour, and that is the natural colour of the

wool. As they need less woollen cloth than is used anywhere else, so

that which they make use of is much less costly; they use linen cloth

more, but that is prepared with less labour, and they value cloth only by

the whiteness of the linen or the cleanness of the wool, without much

regard to the fineness of the thread. While in other places four or five

upper garments of woollen cloth of different colours, and as many vests

of silk, will scarce serve one man, and while those that are nicer think

ten too few, every man there is content with one, which very often serves

him two years; nor is there anything that can tempt a man to desire more,

for if he had them he would neither be the, warmer nor would he make one

jot the better appearance for it. And thus, since they are all employed

in some useful labour, and since they content themselves with fewer

things, it falls out that there is a great abundance of all things among

them; so that it frequently happens that, for want of other work, vast

numbers are sent out to mend the highways; but when no public undertaking

is to be performed, the hours of working are lessened. The magistrates

never engage the people in unnecessary labour, since the chief end of the

constitution is to regulate labour by the necessities of the public, and

to allow the people as much time as is necessary for the improvement of