What
is it to be king, sheikh, tetrarch, or emperor over a 'bit of a bit' of
this little earth?" "All rising to great place," says Bacon, "is by a
winding stair;" and "princes are like heavenly bodies, which have much
veneration, but no rest."
Plato in the _Republic_ mentions an old myth that after death every soul
has to choose a lot in life for the existence in the next world; and he
tells us that the wise Ulysses searched for a considerable time for the
lot of a private man. He had some difficulty in finding it, as it was
lying neglected in a corner, but when he had secured it he was delighted;
the recollection of all he had gone through on earth, having disenchanted
him of ambition.
Moreover, there is a great deal of drudgery in the lives of courts.
Ceremonials may be important, but they take up much time and are terribly
tedious.
A man then is his own best kingdom. "He that ruleth his speech," says
Solomon, "is better than he that taketh a city." But self-control, this
truest and greatest monarchy, rarely comes by inheritance.
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