aid, according to the
formality of a debate, in which things are generally repeated more
faithfully than they are answered; as if the chief trial to be made
were of men's memories. 'You have talked prettily for a stranger,' said
he, 'having heard of many things among us which you have not been able
to consider well; but I will make the whole matter plain to you, and
will first repeat in order all that you have said, then I will show how
much your ignorance of our affairs has misled you, and will in the last
place answer all your arguments. And that I may begin where I promised,
there were four things----' 'Hold your peace,' said the Cardinal, 'this
will take up too much time; therefore we will at present ease you of the
trouble of answering, and reserve it to our next meeting, which shall be
to-morrow, if Raphael's affairs and yours can admit of it. But,
Raphael,' said he to me, 'I would gladly know upon what reason it is
that you think theft ought not to be punished by death? Would you give
way to it? Or do you propose any other punishment that will be more
useful to the public? For since death does not restrain theft, if men
thought their lives would be safe, what fear or force could restrain ill
men? On the contrary, they would look on the mitigation of the
punishment as an invitation to commit more crimes.' I answered, 'It
seems to me a very unjust thing to take away a man's life for a little
money; for nothing in the world can be of equal value with a man's life:
and if it is said, that it is not for the money that one suffers, but
for his breaking the law, I must say, extreme justice is an extreme
injury; for we ought not to approve of these terrible laws that make the
smallest offences capital, nor of that opinion of the Stoics, that makes
all crimes equal, as if there were no difference to be made between the
killing a man and the taking his purse, between which, if we examine
things impartially, there is no likeness nor proportion. God has
commanded us not to kill, and shall we kill so easily for a little
money? But if one shall say, that by that law we are only forbid to kill
any, except when the laws of the land allow of it; upon the same
grounds, laws may be made in some cases to allow of adultery and
perjury: for God having taken from us the right of disposing, either of
our own or of other people's lives, if it is pretended that the mutual
consent of man in making laws can authorize man-slaughter in cases in