The two books of Francis Bacon Author:Francis Bacon Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 158 Rale in Cases of conflicting Dutiti. ship and gratitude, the civil bond of companies, colleges, and politic bodies, of neighbourhood, and all other propor... more »tionate duties; not as they are parts of government and society, but as to the framing of the mind of particular persons. 11. The knowledge concerning good respecting society doth handle it also, not simply alone, but comparatively; whereunto belongeth the weighing of duties between person and person, case and case, particular and public : as we see in the proceeding of Lucius Brutus against his own sons, which was so much extolled; yet what was said? Infelix, utcunque ferent ea fata minores. So the case was doubtful, and had opinion on both sides. Again, we see when M. Brutus and Cassius invited to a supper certain whose opinions they meant to feel, whether they were fit to be made their associates, and cast forth the question touching the killing of a tyrant being a usurper, they were divided in opinion ; some holding that servitude was the extreme of evils, and others that tyranny was better than a civil war: and a number of the like cases there are of comparative duty; amongst which that of all others is the most frequent, where the question is of a great deal of good to ensue of a small injustice. Which Jason of Thessalia determined against the truth: Aliqua sunt in- juste facienda, ut multa juste fieri possint.4 But the reply is good,Auctoremprcesentisjustitic e habes, sponsoremfuturc e non hales. Men must pursue things which are just in present, and leave the future to the divine Providence. So then we pass on from this general part touching the exemplar and description of good. XXII. 1. Now therefore that we have Culture1i spoken of this fruit of life, it remaineth to " "'" speak of the husbandry that b...« less