Then said the King, addressing his Chamberlain,
"Sir, I am informed my people are murmuring at my injustice. Is it
true?"
The officer cast an enquiring glance at the Prince, who met his eyes
gravely, before he replied,
"The people always murmur, Your Majesty. They are many, and not all
can be content, even when ruled by so wise and just a King. In every
land and in every age there are those who rebel against the laws, and
the protests of the few are ever heard above the contentment of the
many."
"I am told," continued the King, severely, "that my country is overrun
with beggars, who suffer for lack of the bread we have taken from them
by our taxations. Is this true?"
"There are always beggars, Your Majesty, in every country," replied
the Chamberlain, "and it is their custom to blame others for their own
misfortunes."
The King thought deeply for a moment; then he turned to the Lord of
the Treasury.
"Do we tax the poor?" he demanded.
"All are taxed, sire," returned the Treasurer, who was pale from
anxiety, for never before had the King so questioned him, "but from
the rich we take much, from the poor very little."
"But a little from the poor man may distress him, while the rich
subject would never feel the loss. Why do we tax the poor at all?"
"Because, Your Majesty, should we declare the poor free from taxation
all your subjects would at once claim to be poor, and the royal
treasury would remain empty.
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