Re: A Code of Gentoo Laws, by Nathaniel Brassey Halhed
Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2021 3:59 am
Account of the Qualities requisite for a Magistrate, and of his Employment.
PROVIDENCE created the Magistrate for the Guardianship of all. The Magistrate must not be considered as a mere Man; even in the Case of the Magistrate being a Child, he must still be looked upon in the Light of the Dewtah; in Truth, the Magistrate is the Dewtah in a human Form, born in this World: The Magistrate must never be held low and contemptible; if any Person conceives the Magistrate to be mean and abject, such Person the Magistrate destroys, together with all his Effects and Property; and to whomsoever the Magistrate behaves with Respect and Kindness, such Person's Effects and Property become extensive; and against whomsoever he is enraged, that Person dies; and whoever vilifies and abuses the Magistrate sports with his own Life. Providence created Punishment for the Preservation of the Magistracy; if the Magistrate inflicts Punishment according to the Shaster, his Subjects are obedient to his Commands; if he omits to punish according to the Shaster, his Kingdom and his Property become ruined and desolate.
For Four Months the Magistrate shall not collect Tribute from the Subjects, but shall give them free Agency; and endeavour, by promoting their Satisfaction and Content, to cause them to cultivate and improve their Lands: During the remaining Eight Months, he shall collect the settled yearly Tribute; and shall appoint Hircarrahs and Spies through his Kingdom, to inspect what Employment each Person pursues, and if Tranquillity is preserved; and when Men are guilty of Crimes, he shall cause them to be seized; and, becoming as inexorable as the Kingdom of Death, shall inflict Punishment on them: Such good Works let the Magistrate practise; and let him address the People in kind and affectionate Terms, that they may all be contented and thankful under him; and let him be so formidable, that his Enemy may not be able to come into his Presence; let him also be patient and forbearing, and support the Burthens of all his People.
The Magistrate shall cause to be made for himself a round Chat-her, or Umbrella of the feathers of the Bird Lut, or of Peacock's feathers.
Whoever is of laudable Principles and acute Judgment, and of good Actions, and of right Opinions, and a Man of Rank, and of Courage, and a Commender of what is laudable, and with whom the Reyots are contented, and who is Descended from a Father and Ancestors, who were Counsellors to the Magistrate, of such Persons the Magistrate shall constitute Seven or Eight Counsellors to himself.
Whoever has Memory to retain what he hears, and who speaks so intelligibly that no Doubt of his Meaning arises in his Audience, and who is a Man of good Actions, and not of profligate Habits, and who keeps in Subjection his Lust, his Anger, his Avarice, his Folly, his Drunkenness, and his Pride, and is a Man well Instructed in Science, such Person the Magistrate shall constitute his Leekhuk or Moonshi, and Writer.
Whoever is of laudable Principles, and very capable in all the Shaster, and in Business, and who can understand the Meaning of a Nod or a Sign, and who can discern from the Motion of the Magistrate's Lips, or the Aspect of his Countenance, the Magistrate's Pleasure or Displeasure, and who is respectable before all others, and who can well finish whatever Business he goes upon, and who can retain any Speech that he hears, and who is not governed by Lust, or Anger, or Avarice, or Folly, or Drunkenness, or Pride, and who is acquainted with the different Circumstances of all Kingdoms, and can distinguish proper from improper Seasons, and who is a Man of Strength, of Courage, and a fluent Speaker, such Person the Magistrate shall appoint his Doot, i.e. his Agent and Hircarrah.
The Magistrate shall erect a strong Fort in the Place where he chooses to reside; and shall build a Wall on all the Four Sides of the Fort, with Towers and Battlements; and shall make a full Ditch on all the Four Sides thereof, and shall have Water near it, that, at the Time of Necessity, when the Water fails in all the Nullahs, the Ditch may be completely full; and he shall plant Trees within the Fort, and he shall have within the Fort many Troops of Horse and Foot to guard the same, and great Store of Arms, and much Money, and many Things of all Kinds; and Store of Victuals and Drink, and Horses, and Elephants, and Camels, and Cattle, and all Beasts of Burthen in great Plenty; and he shall keep there great Stores of Hay; and many Bramins, and Painters, and Smiths, and all other Kind of Artificers; and all Sorts of Musical Instruments also shall be kept within the Fort; and he shall cause great Pools to be made: It is to be understood, that there should be Store of all Kinds of Things laid up within the Fort, that there may never be the Complaint of a Want of anything.
The Magistrate shall keep in Subjection to himself his Lust, Anger, Avarice, Folly, Drunkenness, and Pride: He who cannot keep these Passions under his own Subjection, How shall he be able to nourish and protect the People? Neither shall he be seduced by the Pleasures of the Chase, nor be perpetually addicted to Play; nor must he be always employed in dancing, singing, and playing on Musical Instruments; nor must he sleep in the Day-time; nor shall he falsely accuse any Person; nor shall he always remain concealed in his private Apartments; nor practise the drinking of Wine; nor shall he go to any Place without a Cause; and shall not dispraise any Person without knowing his Faults; nor shall he cause any Molestation to Men of Worth; nor shall he put any Person to Death by artful and deceitful Practices; nor shall he take away the Property of any Person; nor shall he envy another Person's superior Merit; nor shall he say, that such Persons as are Men of Capacity are Men of no Capacity; nor shall he abuse any Person; and shall not hold any Person guilty, without the Commission of a Crime.
To the good Man, the Magistrate shall give Effects and Money, and shall content and please Children, and old Men, and Men in Want, and Men who are worthy to perform Worship, by speaking kindly to them, and by giving them Money; and to such Persons as seek Defence from him, he shall shew Favour and Comfort, and shall preserve them under the Shadow of his Protection, and shall not take Bribes from them; and shall nourish the Reyots of his Kingdom, according to the Ordinations of the Shaster; and shall inflict a proper Punishment upon his Enemies; and shall not cherish any Resentment in his Heart against his Friends, but be of pure and clean Intentions; and in all Cases, he shall spare and excuse the Bramins; and if any Person, either his Superior or his Equal, or his Inferior in Strength, comes to make war against him, in the Presence of such Person, the Magistrate shall not fail of Courage.
The Magistrate shall not make war with any deceitful Machine, or with poisoned Weapons, or with Cannon and Guns, or any other Kind of Fire Arms; nor shall he slay in War a Person born an Eunuch, nor any Person who, putting his Hands together, supplicates for Quarter, nor any Person who has no Means of Escape, nor any Man who is sitting down, nor any Person who says, "I am become of your Party," nor any Man who is asleep, nor any Man who is naked, nor any Person who is not employed in War, nor any Person who is come to see the Battle, nor any Person who is fighting with another, nor any Person whose Weapons are broken, nor any Person who is wounded, nor any Person who is fearful of the Fight, nor any Person who runs away from the Battle.
If a Man hath taken in a Battle any Carriage, or Elephants, or Horses, or Camels, or Kine, or Buffaloes, or Goats, or Sheep, or any such Kind of Beasts, or Paddee, or Wheat, or Barley, or Gram, or Mustard Seed, or such Kinds of Seed and Grain, or Umbrellas, or Cloaths, or Salt, or Sugar, he shall become Possessor of them all; and if he hath taken, as a Prize, Gold or Silver, or Jewels, or Lands, all such Things shall belong to the Magistrate.
The Magistrate, at the Time of Battle, shall receive, from his Hircarrahs and Spies, Intelligence of the Adversary, and of his own Party, and of what is their immediate Employment; if his Counsellors and other Men are disheartened, then, by giving them Effects and Money, or by speaking kindly and comfortably to them, he shall endeavour to raise their Spirits.
The Magistrate shall first attempt with his Enemy Accommodations of Peace, and shall not at once prepare for War; if the Enemy does not make a Composition, then, by disbursing some Money, he shall shew the Way to a Reconciliation; if the Enemy is discontented with this also, he shall send to the adverse Party a Man of Intelligence, and well skilled in Artifice, to insinuate himself among the Enemy's Men, and make them dissatisfied with each other, that they may quarrel and fight among themselves, and so be ruined; if the Affair fails also of being compromised by these Means, he must then prepare for Battle.
Whenever the Army and the Implements of War are abundant, and the Counsellors contented and unanimous, then let them go to the Battle.
Whenever the Counsellors and Troops are contented, and in Spirits, and the Enemy has made but little Preparation, and the Troops and Counsellors of the Enemy are dissatisfied, then let them go to the Battle.
When the Enemy's Preparations are formidable, and your own Preparations are scanty, then you must divide your Army into Two Parts; and, by attaching the Enemy in Two Places, you shall obtain the Victory.
When the Enemy is victorious, and yourself defeated, Protection must be sought from such Person as is of a right Judgment, and of a peaceable Disposition.
The Leader of the Army shall keep a cautious Watch on all Sides; and on whatever Side the Enemy approaches, he shall on that Quarter go to Battle.
The Magistrate, whatever Province he shall conquer, and annex to his own Authority, shall pay Worship to the Dewtah of that Country, and shall give much Effects and Money to the Bramins of that Province, and shall shew Respect and Courtesy to Men of good Actions, and Kindness and Clemency to the Subjects there, and shall appoint whomsoever there shall happen to be descended from the same Grandfather with the Person whom he has conquered, to the Magistracy of that Province.
The Magistrate, while there yet remains Four Ghurrees of the Night, shall rise from Sleep, perform his Ablutions, and, in a proper Manner, pay the Poojeh to his Deity; after which, he shall put on a choice Dress, and valuable Jewels; and, having first performed due Obeisance, and respectful Salutations to the Dewtah, and to the Bramins, shall seat himself upon the Musnud (or Throne) of the Magistracy, and dispatch the several Affairs of Government; and, in every Transaction, shall act in conformity to the Shaster.
The Magistrate mill appoint some one Person his Gomastah or Agent in each Town; and he shall constitute a Person to Two Towns; and also an Ihtimandar or Superintending Agent to Three Towns; so also one Person to Five Towns; and one Person to Ten Towns; and one Person to Twenty Towns; and one Person to One Hundred Towns; and one Person Ihtimandar to One Thousand Towns. If any Affair should happen in any Town, the Gomastah of that Town shall give Intelligence thereof to the Ihtimandar of Two Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Two Towns to the Ihtimandar of Three Towns; and the Gomastah of Three Towns to the Ihtimabdar of Five Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Five Towns to the Ihtimandar of Ten Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Ten Towns to the Ihtimandar of Twenty Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Twenty Towns to the Lord of One Hundred Towns; and the Lord of One Hundred Towns to the Lord of One Thousand Towns; and the Lord of One Thousand Towns to the Supreme Magistrate.
The Magistrate, in the Month of Cheyt (Part of March and April) shall not let any Person dress his Victuals in the Day-time; and shall, in different Places, cause Wells and Pools to be digged; and shall plaister the Houses of the Kingdom with Clay; and shall call out the Heaps of Wood and Grass from the cultivated Country to the Waste; and shall cause the Wells and Pools that are filled with Mud, and Briers, and Rubbish, to be cleansed; and shall not permit any Person to light a Fire in the Day-time, except only that the Bramins shall perform the Jugg, and the Ironmongers and Goldsmiths, and such Kinds of Artificers, may light a Fire in their own Work-Shops, for the Performance of their Business; but they must keep their Fire under the nicest Caution: And, exclusive of those, if any other Person, during the Month of Cheyt, kindles a Fire in the Day-time, the Magistrate shall hold him guilty; and he shall be circumspect, that not a single Sign of Sharpers, and Men of bad Principles, and such as cannot distinguish, between their own Good and Evil, and such as are born Eunuchs, and such as are accustomed to be intoxicated with Liquor, appear in his Kingdom: If such as these appear, he shall expel them out of his City, lest by Chance they set Fire to any Person's House.
The Magistrate, having erected in his Kingdom some Buildings of Strength and Elegance, shall place therein, with all Dignity and Respect, Ten Bramins learned in the Beids of the Shaster, and in the Shertee of the Shaster (who are also Men skilled in Works of Piety, and who employ themselves in worthy Actions, and who are Men of Compassion and Clemency, and of an exalted Family, and acquainted with all Business, and who know the Excellencies and the Blemishes of each particular Cast) to inspect and control the Affairs of the Kingdom, both religious and otherwise. If he cannot place therein Ten Bramins, he shall place there Seven Persons, or Five, or Three, or Two; and whenever any Doubt arises in the Magistrate upon any Circumstance, he shall apply for a Solution thereof to those Bramins, who, coinciding in Sentiments, shall give him an Answer, conformably to the Shaster; according to which, the Magistrate shall take his Measures. If any Concern of the Reyots should arise, they shall request an Ordination from the Bramins; and whatever the Bramins order from the Inspection of the Shaster, to that the Reyots shall pay Obedience.
The Pundit Bramins, who are in the Magistrate's Kingdom, shall perform the Nut-kerm, the Neemtuk-kerm, the Santee-kerm, and the Pooshtee-kerm, and such other Works which are necessary and proper, according to the Shaster, for the Advantage of the Magistrate, and of the Subject.
Nut-kerm is the daily Performance of the Worship to Dewtah, and of the Jugg, and such other Works of Piety.
Neemtuk-kerm is the Performance of certain religious Acts, and of the Dan, and of the Seradeh (or Festivals of the Dead) and such other Works, during the Time of the Eclipses of the Sun and Moon.
Santee-kerm is the Performance of Worship to the Dewtah, during the Time of a calamitous Season, or in a dry Year, or a Year of Famine, or when any Pestilence happens in the Kingdom, for the Adversation of such Misfortunes.
Pooshtee-kerm is the Performance of Worship to the Dewtah, and of the Jugg, for the strengthening of the Body, and for Increase of Wealth.
The Chehteree, the Bice, and the Sooder, shall be obedient to the Bramins; and whatever Order the Bramins shall issue, conformably to the Shaster, the Magistrate shall take his Measures accordingly.
The Magistrate, with all possible Circumspection, shall nourish the Four Ifrum; an Account of the Four Ifrum will be given in the Chapter of Justice. Whoever hath forsaken the Principles of his own Cast, the Magistrate shall cause him to return to the Duties of that Cast; if he will not return, he shall oblige him by Menaces.
In whatever Magistrate's Kingdom the Bramins are unable to procure Food and Cloaths, that Kingdom becomes desolate; in such Case, the Magistrate shall most certainly appoint them Subsistence and Cloathing.
Whomsoever the Magistrate shall retain as a Servant, he shall appoint him a Stipend proportionably to his Occupation, that he may not be reduced to Necessity and Distress.
The Magistrate shall keep the High-Road open and plain, that Men and Cattle may have sufficient Room to pass and repass; and shall place in some retired Situation his Store-Houses, and Elephant Stalls, and Armories, and Stables, and Barracks for the Soldiers.
The Magistrate shall keep many intelligent Physicians, and Magicians (or Men who cure by Spells) and Surgeons, i.e. Men skilled in Operations of Surgery, and in applying Plaisters; and he shall keep great Quantities of Medicines, and of Oils of all Kinds in the Physick Shop; and shall retain in his Service a great Number of Buffoons, or Parasites, and jesters, and Dancers, and Athleticks; and he shall render all his Servants, both Counsellors and other tendants, contented and grateful.
If the Magistrate cannot punish Robbers and Night Murderers, and is unable, by apprehending the Thief, to restore Effects stolen from any Person, then he shall give to that Person, from his own Store-Houses, the Value of the Thing so stolen.
Such Things as are not proper for him to take, he shall not take on any Pretence; and of such Things as are right and proper for him to take, even although they are exceedingly minute, he shall not forego his Claim: And he shall esteem the Subjects in the Light of his own Children. And if any Calamity should happen to the Magistrate, yet he must not be terrified, nor remain afflicted, even during the Calamity. Also he must be easy and tranquil; but must not take any Diversions.
The Magistrate shall not be impatient and angry at hearing any Subject's Complaints; and if any Person, not having gained his Cause, speaks abusively to the Magistrate, even then he shall not be enraged against that Person, but shall forgive his Error. Upon performing the Jugg and Poojeh, and other pious Ceremonies, he shall give to the Bramins the Duchneh, i.e. the Wages for the Performance of the Jugg and Poojeh, and shall not require ought from any Person.
The Magistrate shall take all prudential Measures in his own Kingdom, that no Person commit Adultery with another Person's Wife, and that no Person have Power to commit any Violence to another. And every Magistrate who causes the guilty to be punished is commendable.
The Magistrate shall collect from the People the necessary Tribute; and shall never commit Injustice; and shall listen upon all Affairs to such Men as are possessed of an acute Judgment, and who are very expert in all Affairs.
If a Plunderer should attack the Magistrate's Kingdom, and grievously Molest the People, the Magistrate shall most surely punish him; if he does not, he is unworthy of the Magistracy. And a Magistrate, who, without protecting and taking care of the Subjects, collects the accustomed Tribute from them, will go to Hell.
The Magistrate shall keep such a guard upon himself, that his Foibles may never be discovered; and, by sending Hircarrahs and Spies, he shall inform himself of the Faults of others.
If a Burrut, i.e. a Religious Foundation, hath been appointed to any Bramin, or other Person, being a stipulated Sum for the Performance of Poojeh to the Dewtah, the Magistrate has no Power to resume the Donation. Whoever resumes the established Burrut of a Bramin and the Dewtah, or of any other Person, will remain in Hell One Thousand Years.
In a Kingdom, where Men of Rank eat in the Houses of Prostitutes, or have carnal Connexion with Prostitutes, or practise the drinking of Wine, such Kingdom becomes desolate; therefore it is the Duty of the Magistrate to appoint Persons to prohibit such Practices.
If a Magistrate, not distinguishing between good and bad Men, takes Fines, in contradiction to the Shaster, his Kingdom becomes desolate.
If a Thief, or any other Person within the Observation of the Magistrate, and of the Magistrate's Counsellors, should cause any Molestation to the People, and the Magistrate and his Counsellors should not punish the Offender, such Magistrate and Counsellors, during their Life-time, are like dead Persons.
The Magistrate, at what Time he is desirous to consult with his Counsellors, shall choose a retired Place, on the Top of the House, or on the Top of a Mountain, or in the Desart, or some such secret Recess, and shall hold his Council there; and in Places where there are Parrots, or other talkative Birds, he shall not hold his Council while they are present.
The Magistrate shall not take Counsel of a weak old Man, or of a Woman, or of a Person unacquainted with Works of Piety. If any Person, exclusive of the Magistrate's Counsellors, is acquainted with the Designs of the Magistrate, his Magistracy is not of a long Duration.
PROVIDENCE created the Magistrate for the Guardianship of all. The Magistrate must not be considered as a mere Man; even in the Case of the Magistrate being a Child, he must still be looked upon in the Light of the Dewtah; in Truth, the Magistrate is the Dewtah in a human Form, born in this World: The Magistrate must never be held low and contemptible; if any Person conceives the Magistrate to be mean and abject, such Person the Magistrate destroys, together with all his Effects and Property; and to whomsoever the Magistrate behaves with Respect and Kindness, such Person's Effects and Property become extensive; and against whomsoever he is enraged, that Person dies; and whoever vilifies and abuses the Magistrate sports with his own Life. Providence created Punishment for the Preservation of the Magistracy; if the Magistrate inflicts Punishment according to the Shaster, his Subjects are obedient to his Commands; if he omits to punish according to the Shaster, his Kingdom and his Property become ruined and desolate.
For Four Months the Magistrate shall not collect Tribute from the Subjects, but shall give them free Agency; and endeavour, by promoting their Satisfaction and Content, to cause them to cultivate and improve their Lands: During the remaining Eight Months, he shall collect the settled yearly Tribute; and shall appoint Hircarrahs and Spies through his Kingdom, to inspect what Employment each Person pursues, and if Tranquillity is preserved; and when Men are guilty of Crimes, he shall cause them to be seized; and, becoming as inexorable as the Kingdom of Death, shall inflict Punishment on them: Such good Works let the Magistrate practise; and let him address the People in kind and affectionate Terms, that they may all be contented and thankful under him; and let him be so formidable, that his Enemy may not be able to come into his Presence; let him also be patient and forbearing, and support the Burthens of all his People.
The Magistrate shall cause to be made for himself a round Chat-her, or Umbrella of the feathers of the Bird Lut, or of Peacock's feathers.
Whoever is of laudable Principles and acute Judgment, and of good Actions, and of right Opinions, and a Man of Rank, and of Courage, and a Commender of what is laudable, and with whom the Reyots are contented, and who is Descended from a Father and Ancestors, who were Counsellors to the Magistrate, of such Persons the Magistrate shall constitute Seven or Eight Counsellors to himself.
Whoever has Memory to retain what he hears, and who speaks so intelligibly that no Doubt of his Meaning arises in his Audience, and who is a Man of good Actions, and not of profligate Habits, and who keeps in Subjection his Lust, his Anger, his Avarice, his Folly, his Drunkenness, and his Pride, and is a Man well Instructed in Science, such Person the Magistrate shall constitute his Leekhuk or Moonshi, and Writer.
Whoever is of laudable Principles, and very capable in all the Shaster, and in Business, and who can understand the Meaning of a Nod or a Sign, and who can discern from the Motion of the Magistrate's Lips, or the Aspect of his Countenance, the Magistrate's Pleasure or Displeasure, and who is respectable before all others, and who can well finish whatever Business he goes upon, and who can retain any Speech that he hears, and who is not governed by Lust, or Anger, or Avarice, or Folly, or Drunkenness, or Pride, and who is acquainted with the different Circumstances of all Kingdoms, and can distinguish proper from improper Seasons, and who is a Man of Strength, of Courage, and a fluent Speaker, such Person the Magistrate shall appoint his Doot, i.e. his Agent and Hircarrah.
The Magistrate shall erect a strong Fort in the Place where he chooses to reside; and shall build a Wall on all the Four Sides of the Fort, with Towers and Battlements; and shall make a full Ditch on all the Four Sides thereof, and shall have Water near it, that, at the Time of Necessity, when the Water fails in all the Nullahs, the Ditch may be completely full; and he shall plant Trees within the Fort, and he shall have within the Fort many Troops of Horse and Foot to guard the same, and great Store of Arms, and much Money, and many Things of all Kinds; and Store of Victuals and Drink, and Horses, and Elephants, and Camels, and Cattle, and all Beasts of Burthen in great Plenty; and he shall keep there great Stores of Hay; and many Bramins, and Painters, and Smiths, and all other Kind of Artificers; and all Sorts of Musical Instruments also shall be kept within the Fort; and he shall cause great Pools to be made: It is to be understood, that there should be Store of all Kinds of Things laid up within the Fort, that there may never be the Complaint of a Want of anything.
The Magistrate shall keep in Subjection to himself his Lust, Anger, Avarice, Folly, Drunkenness, and Pride: He who cannot keep these Passions under his own Subjection, How shall he be able to nourish and protect the People? Neither shall he be seduced by the Pleasures of the Chase, nor be perpetually addicted to Play; nor must he be always employed in dancing, singing, and playing on Musical Instruments; nor must he sleep in the Day-time; nor shall he falsely accuse any Person; nor shall he always remain concealed in his private Apartments; nor practise the drinking of Wine; nor shall he go to any Place without a Cause; and shall not dispraise any Person without knowing his Faults; nor shall he cause any Molestation to Men of Worth; nor shall he put any Person to Death by artful and deceitful Practices; nor shall he take away the Property of any Person; nor shall he envy another Person's superior Merit; nor shall he say, that such Persons as are Men of Capacity are Men of no Capacity; nor shall he abuse any Person; and shall not hold any Person guilty, without the Commission of a Crime.
To the good Man, the Magistrate shall give Effects and Money, and shall content and please Children, and old Men, and Men in Want, and Men who are worthy to perform Worship, by speaking kindly to them, and by giving them Money; and to such Persons as seek Defence from him, he shall shew Favour and Comfort, and shall preserve them under the Shadow of his Protection, and shall not take Bribes from them; and shall nourish the Reyots of his Kingdom, according to the Ordinations of the Shaster; and shall inflict a proper Punishment upon his Enemies; and shall not cherish any Resentment in his Heart against his Friends, but be of pure and clean Intentions; and in all Cases, he shall spare and excuse the Bramins; and if any Person, either his Superior or his Equal, or his Inferior in Strength, comes to make war against him, in the Presence of such Person, the Magistrate shall not fail of Courage.
The Magistrate shall not make war with any deceitful Machine, or with poisoned Weapons, or with Cannon and Guns, or any other Kind of Fire Arms; nor shall he slay in War a Person born an Eunuch, nor any Person who, putting his Hands together, supplicates for Quarter, nor any Person who has no Means of Escape, nor any Man who is sitting down, nor any Person who says, "I am become of your Party," nor any Man who is asleep, nor any Man who is naked, nor any Person who is not employed in War, nor any Person who is come to see the Battle, nor any Person who is fighting with another, nor any Person whose Weapons are broken, nor any Person who is wounded, nor any Person who is fearful of the Fight, nor any Person who runs away from the Battle.
If a Man hath taken in a Battle any Carriage, or Elephants, or Horses, or Camels, or Kine, or Buffaloes, or Goats, or Sheep, or any such Kind of Beasts, or Paddee, or Wheat, or Barley, or Gram, or Mustard Seed, or such Kinds of Seed and Grain, or Umbrellas, or Cloaths, or Salt, or Sugar, he shall become Possessor of them all; and if he hath taken, as a Prize, Gold or Silver, or Jewels, or Lands, all such Things shall belong to the Magistrate.
The Magistrate, at the Time of Battle, shall receive, from his Hircarrahs and Spies, Intelligence of the Adversary, and of his own Party, and of what is their immediate Employment; if his Counsellors and other Men are disheartened, then, by giving them Effects and Money, or by speaking kindly and comfortably to them, he shall endeavour to raise their Spirits.
The Magistrate shall first attempt with his Enemy Accommodations of Peace, and shall not at once prepare for War; if the Enemy does not make a Composition, then, by disbursing some Money, he shall shew the Way to a Reconciliation; if the Enemy is discontented with this also, he shall send to the adverse Party a Man of Intelligence, and well skilled in Artifice, to insinuate himself among the Enemy's Men, and make them dissatisfied with each other, that they may quarrel and fight among themselves, and so be ruined; if the Affair fails also of being compromised by these Means, he must then prepare for Battle.
Whenever the Army and the Implements of War are abundant, and the Counsellors contented and unanimous, then let them go to the Battle.
Whenever the Counsellors and Troops are contented, and in Spirits, and the Enemy has made but little Preparation, and the Troops and Counsellors of the Enemy are dissatisfied, then let them go to the Battle.
When the Enemy's Preparations are formidable, and your own Preparations are scanty, then you must divide your Army into Two Parts; and, by attaching the Enemy in Two Places, you shall obtain the Victory.
When the Enemy is victorious, and yourself defeated, Protection must be sought from such Person as is of a right Judgment, and of a peaceable Disposition.
The Leader of the Army shall keep a cautious Watch on all Sides; and on whatever Side the Enemy approaches, he shall on that Quarter go to Battle.
The Magistrate, whatever Province he shall conquer, and annex to his own Authority, shall pay Worship to the Dewtah of that Country, and shall give much Effects and Money to the Bramins of that Province, and shall shew Respect and Courtesy to Men of good Actions, and Kindness and Clemency to the Subjects there, and shall appoint whomsoever there shall happen to be descended from the same Grandfather with the Person whom he has conquered, to the Magistracy of that Province.
The Magistrate, while there yet remains Four Ghurrees of the Night, shall rise from Sleep, perform his Ablutions, and, in a proper Manner, pay the Poojeh to his Deity; after which, he shall put on a choice Dress, and valuable Jewels; and, having first performed due Obeisance, and respectful Salutations to the Dewtah, and to the Bramins, shall seat himself upon the Musnud (or Throne) of the Magistracy, and dispatch the several Affairs of Government; and, in every Transaction, shall act in conformity to the Shaster.
The Magistrate mill appoint some one Person his Gomastah or Agent in each Town; and he shall constitute a Person to Two Towns; and also an Ihtimandar or Superintending Agent to Three Towns; so also one Person to Five Towns; and one Person to Ten Towns; and one Person to Twenty Towns; and one Person to One Hundred Towns; and one Person Ihtimandar to One Thousand Towns. If any Affair should happen in any Town, the Gomastah of that Town shall give Intelligence thereof to the Ihtimandar of Two Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Two Towns to the Ihtimandar of Three Towns; and the Gomastah of Three Towns to the Ihtimabdar of Five Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Five Towns to the Ihtimandar of Ten Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Ten Towns to the Ihtimandar of Twenty Towns; and the Ihtimandar of Twenty Towns to the Lord of One Hundred Towns; and the Lord of One Hundred Towns to the Lord of One Thousand Towns; and the Lord of One Thousand Towns to the Supreme Magistrate.
The Magistrate, in the Month of Cheyt (Part of March and April) shall not let any Person dress his Victuals in the Day-time; and shall, in different Places, cause Wells and Pools to be digged; and shall plaister the Houses of the Kingdom with Clay; and shall call out the Heaps of Wood and Grass from the cultivated Country to the Waste; and shall cause the Wells and Pools that are filled with Mud, and Briers, and Rubbish, to be cleansed; and shall not permit any Person to light a Fire in the Day-time, except only that the Bramins shall perform the Jugg, and the Ironmongers and Goldsmiths, and such Kinds of Artificers, may light a Fire in their own Work-Shops, for the Performance of their Business; but they must keep their Fire under the nicest Caution: And, exclusive of those, if any other Person, during the Month of Cheyt, kindles a Fire in the Day-time, the Magistrate shall hold him guilty; and he shall be circumspect, that not a single Sign of Sharpers, and Men of bad Principles, and such as cannot distinguish, between their own Good and Evil, and such as are born Eunuchs, and such as are accustomed to be intoxicated with Liquor, appear in his Kingdom: If such as these appear, he shall expel them out of his City, lest by Chance they set Fire to any Person's House.
The Magistrate, having erected in his Kingdom some Buildings of Strength and Elegance, shall place therein, with all Dignity and Respect, Ten Bramins learned in the Beids of the Shaster, and in the Shertee of the Shaster (who are also Men skilled in Works of Piety, and who employ themselves in worthy Actions, and who are Men of Compassion and Clemency, and of an exalted Family, and acquainted with all Business, and who know the Excellencies and the Blemishes of each particular Cast) to inspect and control the Affairs of the Kingdom, both religious and otherwise. If he cannot place therein Ten Bramins, he shall place there Seven Persons, or Five, or Three, or Two; and whenever any Doubt arises in the Magistrate upon any Circumstance, he shall apply for a Solution thereof to those Bramins, who, coinciding in Sentiments, shall give him an Answer, conformably to the Shaster; according to which, the Magistrate shall take his Measures. If any Concern of the Reyots should arise, they shall request an Ordination from the Bramins; and whatever the Bramins order from the Inspection of the Shaster, to that the Reyots shall pay Obedience.
The Pundit Bramins, who are in the Magistrate's Kingdom, shall perform the Nut-kerm, the Neemtuk-kerm, the Santee-kerm, and the Pooshtee-kerm, and such other Works which are necessary and proper, according to the Shaster, for the Advantage of the Magistrate, and of the Subject.
Nut-kerm is the daily Performance of the Worship to Dewtah, and of the Jugg, and such other Works of Piety.
Neemtuk-kerm is the Performance of certain religious Acts, and of the Dan, and of the Seradeh (or Festivals of the Dead) and such other Works, during the Time of the Eclipses of the Sun and Moon.
Santee-kerm is the Performance of Worship to the Dewtah, during the Time of a calamitous Season, or in a dry Year, or a Year of Famine, or when any Pestilence happens in the Kingdom, for the Adversation of such Misfortunes.
Pooshtee-kerm is the Performance of Worship to the Dewtah, and of the Jugg, for the strengthening of the Body, and for Increase of Wealth.
The Chehteree, the Bice, and the Sooder, shall be obedient to the Bramins; and whatever Order the Bramins shall issue, conformably to the Shaster, the Magistrate shall take his Measures accordingly.
The Magistrate, with all possible Circumspection, shall nourish the Four Ifrum; an Account of the Four Ifrum will be given in the Chapter of Justice. Whoever hath forsaken the Principles of his own Cast, the Magistrate shall cause him to return to the Duties of that Cast; if he will not return, he shall oblige him by Menaces.
In whatever Magistrate's Kingdom the Bramins are unable to procure Food and Cloaths, that Kingdom becomes desolate; in such Case, the Magistrate shall most certainly appoint them Subsistence and Cloathing.
Whomsoever the Magistrate shall retain as a Servant, he shall appoint him a Stipend proportionably to his Occupation, that he may not be reduced to Necessity and Distress.
The Magistrate shall keep the High-Road open and plain, that Men and Cattle may have sufficient Room to pass and repass; and shall place in some retired Situation his Store-Houses, and Elephant Stalls, and Armories, and Stables, and Barracks for the Soldiers.
The Magistrate shall keep many intelligent Physicians, and Magicians (or Men who cure by Spells) and Surgeons, i.e. Men skilled in Operations of Surgery, and in applying Plaisters; and he shall keep great Quantities of Medicines, and of Oils of all Kinds in the Physick Shop; and shall retain in his Service a great Number of Buffoons, or Parasites, and jesters, and Dancers, and Athleticks; and he shall render all his Servants, both Counsellors and other tendants, contented and grateful.
If the Magistrate cannot punish Robbers and Night Murderers, and is unable, by apprehending the Thief, to restore Effects stolen from any Person, then he shall give to that Person, from his own Store-Houses, the Value of the Thing so stolen.
Such Things as are not proper for him to take, he shall not take on any Pretence; and of such Things as are right and proper for him to take, even although they are exceedingly minute, he shall not forego his Claim: And he shall esteem the Subjects in the Light of his own Children. And if any Calamity should happen to the Magistrate, yet he must not be terrified, nor remain afflicted, even during the Calamity. Also he must be easy and tranquil; but must not take any Diversions.
The Magistrate shall not be impatient and angry at hearing any Subject's Complaints; and if any Person, not having gained his Cause, speaks abusively to the Magistrate, even then he shall not be enraged against that Person, but shall forgive his Error. Upon performing the Jugg and Poojeh, and other pious Ceremonies, he shall give to the Bramins the Duchneh, i.e. the Wages for the Performance of the Jugg and Poojeh, and shall not require ought from any Person.
The Magistrate shall take all prudential Measures in his own Kingdom, that no Person commit Adultery with another Person's Wife, and that no Person have Power to commit any Violence to another. And every Magistrate who causes the guilty to be punished is commendable.
The Magistrate shall collect from the People the necessary Tribute; and shall never commit Injustice; and shall listen upon all Affairs to such Men as are possessed of an acute Judgment, and who are very expert in all Affairs.
If a Plunderer should attack the Magistrate's Kingdom, and grievously Molest the People, the Magistrate shall most surely punish him; if he does not, he is unworthy of the Magistracy. And a Magistrate, who, without protecting and taking care of the Subjects, collects the accustomed Tribute from them, will go to Hell.
The Magistrate shall keep such a guard upon himself, that his Foibles may never be discovered; and, by sending Hircarrahs and Spies, he shall inform himself of the Faults of others.
If a Burrut, i.e. a Religious Foundation, hath been appointed to any Bramin, or other Person, being a stipulated Sum for the Performance of Poojeh to the Dewtah, the Magistrate has no Power to resume the Donation. Whoever resumes the established Burrut of a Bramin and the Dewtah, or of any other Person, will remain in Hell One Thousand Years.
In a Kingdom, where Men of Rank eat in the Houses of Prostitutes, or have carnal Connexion with Prostitutes, or practise the drinking of Wine, such Kingdom becomes desolate; therefore it is the Duty of the Magistrate to appoint Persons to prohibit such Practices.
If a Magistrate, not distinguishing between good and bad Men, takes Fines, in contradiction to the Shaster, his Kingdom becomes desolate.
If a Thief, or any other Person within the Observation of the Magistrate, and of the Magistrate's Counsellors, should cause any Molestation to the People, and the Magistrate and his Counsellors should not punish the Offender, such Magistrate and Counsellors, during their Life-time, are like dead Persons.
The Magistrate, at what Time he is desirous to consult with his Counsellors, shall choose a retired Place, on the Top of the House, or on the Top of a Mountain, or in the Desart, or some such secret Recess, and shall hold his Council there; and in Places where there are Parrots, or other talkative Birds, he shall not hold his Council while they are present.
The Magistrate shall not take Counsel of a weak old Man, or of a Woman, or of a Person unacquainted with Works of Piety. If any Person, exclusive of the Magistrate's Counsellors, is acquainted with the Designs of the Magistrate, his Magistracy is not of a long Duration.