ving disposed of
their sister in marriage, and left a present of thirty thousand pieces of
gold to that son who should be found to have loved him best. The eldest
raised a tomb to his memory; the youngest increased his sister's portion,
by giving her part of his inheritance. Everyone said that the eldest son
loved his father best, and the youngest his sister; and that the thirty
thousand pieces belonged to the eldest.

Zadig sent for both of them, the one after the other. To the eldest he
said: "Thy father is not dead; he is recovered of his last illness, and is
returning to Babylon," "God be praised," replied the young man; "but his
tomb cost me a considerable sum." Zadig afterwards said the same to the
youngest. "God be praised," said he, "I will go and restore to my father
all that I have; but I could wish that he would leave my sister what I
have given her." "Thou shalt restore nothing," replied Zadig, "and thou
shalt have the thirty thousand pieces, for thou art the son who loves his
father best."

THE DISPUTES AND THE AUDIENCES

In this manner he daily discovered the subtilty of his genius and the
goodness of his heart. The people at once admired and loved him. He passed
for the happiest man in the world. The whole empire resounded with his
name. All the ladies ogled him. All the men praised him for his justice.
The learned regarded him as an oracle; and even the priests confessed that
he knew more than the old archmage Yebor. They were now so far from
prosecuting him on account of the griffin, that they believed nothing but
what he thought credible.

There had reigned in Babylon, for the space of fifteen hundred years, a
violent contest that had divided the empire into two sects. The one
pretended that they ought to enter the temple of Mitra with the left foot
foremost; the other held this custom in detestation and always entered
with the right foot first. The people waited with great impatience for the
day on which the solemn feast of the sacred fire was to be celebrated, to
see which sect Zadig would favor. All the world had their eyes fixed on
his two feet, and the whole city was in the utmost suspense and
perturbation. Zadig jumped into the temple with his feet joined together,
and afterwards proved, in an eloquent discourse, that the Sovereign of
heaven and earth, who accepted not the persons of men, makes no
distinction between the right and left foot. The envious man and his wife
alleged that his dis