Fors Clavigera (Volume 6 of 8): $b Letters to the workmen and labourers of Great BritainRuskin, John
General
Fors Clavigera (Volume 6 of 8): $b Letters to the workmen and labourers of Great Britain
Ruskin, John
Aesthetics; Conduct of life; Great Britain -- Social conditions -- 19th century; Social problems; Working class -- Great Britain
The next members of the Feudal System in order of rank, are the Lord of
the Landlords, and Lady of the Landladies; commonly called their Duke,
Doge, or leader, and Duchess or Dogaressa: the authority of this fourth
member of the Feudal System being to enforce law and hear appeal
between Lord and Lord; and to consult with them respecting the
harmonious government of their, estates over such extent of land as may
from some speciality of character be managed by common law referring to
some united interest,—as, for instance, Cumberland, by a law having
reference to pastoral life, Cornwall by laws involving the inspection
of mines of tin, and the like,—these provinces, or shires, having each
naturally a capital city, cathedral, town hall, and municipality of
merchants.
As examples of which Fourth Order [97] in the Feudal System, the Dukes
and Dukedoms of York, Lancaster, Venice, Milan, Florence, Orleans, and
Burgundy, may be remembered by you as having taken very practical part
in the government, or, it may be, misgovernment, of the former world.
Then the persons of the Fifth Order, in the Feudal System, are the Duke
of the Dukes, and Duchess of the Duchesses, commonly called the King
and Queen, having authority and magistracy over the Dukes of the
provinces, to the extent in which such provinces may be harmoniously
joined in a country or kingdom, separated from other portions of the
world by interests, manners, and dialect.
Then the Sixth Order in the Feudal System, much, of late years,
misunderstood, and even forgotten, is that of the Commander or
Imperator of the Kings; having the same authority and office of hearing
appeal among the Kings of kingdoms, as they among the Dukes of
provinces.
The systems of all human civilized governments resolve themselves
finally into the balance of the Semitic and lapetic powers under the
anointed Cyrus of the East and Karl of the West. [98]
The practical power of the office has been necessarily lost since the
Reformation; and in recent debates in an English Parliament on this
subject, it appeared that neither the Prime Minister of England, nor
any of her Parliamentary representatives, had the slightest notion of
the meaning of the word.
The reason that the power of the office has been lost since the
Reformation, is that all these temporal offices are only perfected, in
the Feudal System, by their relative spiritual offices. Now, though the
Squire and the Rector still in England occupy their proper symmetrical
position, the equally balanced authority of the Duke and Bishop has
been greatly confused: that of the King and Cardinal was so even during
the fully animated action of both; and all conception of that of the
Emperor and Pope is of course dead in Protestant minds.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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