----But to return to my mother.
My uncle _Toby's_ opinion, Madam, "that there could be no harm in _Cornelius Gallus_, the _Roman_ prtor's lying with his wife;" ----or rather the last word of that opinion, --(for it was all my mother heard of it) caught hold of her by the weak part of the whole sex: ----You shall not mistake me, --I mean her curiosity, --she instantly concluded herself the subject of the conversation, and with that prepossession upon her fancy, you will readily conceive every word my father said, was accommodated either to herself, or her family concerns.
----Pray, Madam, in what street does the lady live, who would not have done the same?
From the strange mode of _Cornelius's_ death, my father had made a transition to that of _Socrates_, and was giving my uncle _Toby_ an abstract of his pleading before his judges; ----'twas irresistible: ----not the oration of _Socrates_, --but my father's temptation to it. ----He had wrote the Life of _Socrates_[5.1] himself the year before he left off trade, which, I fear, was the means of hastening him out of it; ----so that no one was able to set out with so full a sail, and in so swelling a tide of heroic loftiness upon the occasion, as my father was. Not a period in _Socrates's_ oration, which closed with a shorter word than _transmigration_, or _annihilation_, --or a worse thought in the middle of it than _to be--or not to be_, --the entering upon a new and untried state of things, --or, upon a long, a profound and peaceful sleep, without dreams, without disturbance? ----_That we and our children were born to die, --but neither of us born to be slaves_. ----No--there I mistake; that was part of _Eleazer's_ oration, as recorded by _Josephus_ (_de Bell. Judaic._)----_Eleazer_ owns he had it from the philosophers of _India_; in all likelihood _Alexander_ the Great, in his irruption into _India_, after he had over-run _Persia_, amongst the many things he stole, --stole that sentiment also; by which means it was carried, if not all the way by himself (for we all know he died at _Babylon_), at least by some of his maroders, into _Greece_, --from _Greece_ it got to _Rome_, --from _Rome_ to _France_, --and from _France_ to _England_: ----So things come round.----
By land carriage, I can conceive no other way.----
By water the sentiment might easily have come down the _Ganges_ into the _Sinus Gangeticus_, or _Bay of Bengal_, and so into the _Indian Sea_; and following the course of trade (the way from _India_ by the _Cape of Good Hope_ being then unknown), might be carried with other drugs and spices up the _Red Sea_ to _Joddah_, the port of _Mekka_, or else to _Tor_ or _Sues_, towns at the bottom of the gulf; and from thence by karrawans to _Coptos_, but three days' journey distant, so down the _Nile_ directly to _Alexandria_, where the SENTIMENT would be landed at the very foot of the great stair-case of the _Alexandrian_ library, ----and from that store-house it would be fetched. ------Bless me! what a trade was driven by the learned in those days!
[Footnote 5.1: This book my father would never consent to publish; 'tis in manuscript, with some other tracts of his, in the family, all, or most of which will be printed in due time.]
But to return to my mother.
My uncle Toby's opinion, Madam, 'that there could be no harm in Cornelius Gallus, the Roman praetor's lying with his wife;' - or rather the last word of it (for that was all my mother heard) caught hold of her by the weak part of the whole sex.
- Do not mistake me; I mean her curiosity. She instantly concluded that she was the subject of the conversation; and every word my father said, she applied to herself.
Pray, Madam, what lady would not have done the same?
From Cornelius's death, my father had gone on to that of Socrates, and was giving my uncle Toby an outline of his pleading before his judges; 'twas irresistible - not the speech of Socrates, but my father's temptation to it. He had wrote the Life of Socrates himself the year before he left off trade, which, I fear, was the means of hastening him out of it.
So no one was able to set out with so full a sail, and on so swelling a tide of heroic loftiness upon the subject, as my father. Not a line in Socrates's speech ended with a shorter word than annihilation; there was not a worse thought in it than to be - or not to be - the entering upon a new and untried state of things, - or was it upon a profound and peaceful sleep, without disturbance? That we and our children were born to die - but not born to be slaves - no - there I mistake; that was part of Eleazer's oration, as recorded by Josephus, which Eleazer had from the philosophers of India; in all likelihood Alexander the Great, in his invasion of India, stole that sentiment, amongst other things; so that it was carried, if not by himself (for we all know he died at Babylon), by some of his marauders, to Greece, then Rome, then France, and thence to England. So things come round.
By land carriage; I can conceive no other way.
By water the sentiment might easily have come down the Ganges into the Bay of Bengal, and so into the Indian Sea; and following the course of trade (the route by the Cape of Good Hope being then unknown), it might be carried with spices up the Red Sea to Joddah, or Sues, and from thence by caravans to Coptos, three days' journey distant, and so down the Nile directly to Alexandria, where the Sentiment would be landed at the very foot of the great stair-case of the Alexandrian library. Bless me! what a trade was driven by the learned in those days!
[Note: My father's work on Socrates, which he never published, is in manuscript, with some other tracts which will be printed in due time.]
Book 5 - Chapter 12