History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 21Carlyle, Thomas
History
History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 21
Carlyle, Thomas
Frederick II, King of Prussia, 1712-1786; Prussia (Germany) -- History -- Frederick II, 1740-1786; Social problems
"There was no credit, by trading people, even for the daily necessaries
of life." And furthermore, what we were not prepared for, "No police in
the Towns: to habits of equity and order had succeeded a vile greed of
gain and an anarchic disorder. The Colleges of Justice and of Finance
had, by these frequent invasions of so many enemies, been reduced to
inaction:" no Judge, in many places not even a Tax-gatherer: the silence
of the Laws had produced in the people a taste for license; boundless
appetite for gain was their main rule of action: the noble, the
merchant, the farmer, the laborer, raising emulously each the price of
his commodity, seemed to endeavor only for their mutual ruin. Such, when
the War ended, was the fatal spectacle over these Provinces, which had
once been so flourishing: however pathetic the description may be, it
will never approach the touching and sorrowful impression which the
sight of it produced."
Friedrich found that it would never do to trust to the mere aid of Time
in such circumstances: at the end of the Thirty-Years War, "Time"
had, owing to absolute want of money, been the one recipe of the Great
Elector in a similar case; and Time was then found to mean "about a
hundred Years." Friedrich found that he must at once step in with active
remedies, and on all hands strive to make the impossible possible.
Luckily he had in readiness, as usual, the funds for an Eighth Campaign,
had such been needed. Out of these moneys he proceeded to rebuild the
Towns and Villages; "from the Corn-Stores (GRANARIES D'ABONDANCE,"
Government establishments gathered from plentiful harvests against
scarce, according to old rule) "were taken the supplies for food of the
people and sowing of the ground: the horses intended for the artillery,
baggage and commissariat," 60,000 horses we have heard, "were
distributed among those who had none, to be employed in tillage of the
land. Silesia was discharged from all taxes for six months; Pommern and
the Neumark for two years. A sum of about Three Million sterling [in
THALERS 20,389,000] was given for relief of the Provinces, and as
acquittance of the impositions the Enemy had wrung from them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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