sible
wholly for himself. And this religion does not give any creature an
exemption on account of any force which may be used against him; because
no one, according to its precepts, is to do evil, not even that good may
come. But if he be persecuted, he is to adhere to that which is right,
and to expect his reward in the other state. The impossibility,
therefore, of breaking or dissolving individual responsibility, in the
case of immoral action, is an argument to many, of the unlawfulness of
these wars. And those who reason in this manner, think they have
reasoned right, when they consider besides, that, if any of the beings
in question were to kill one of his usually reputed enemies in the time
of peace, he would suffer death for it, and be considered as accountable
also for his crime in a future state. They cannot see, therefore, how
any constituted authorities among them can alter the nature of things,
or how these beings can kill others in time of war, without the
imputation of a crime, whom they could not kill without such an
imputation in time of peace. They see in the book of the Great Spirit no
dispensation given to societies to after the nature of actions, which
are pronounced to be crimes.

But the superior being would say, is it really defined, and is it
defined clearly in the great book of the Spirit, that if one of them
should kill another, he is guilty of a crime! It would be replied, not
only of a crime, but of the greatest of all crimes, and that no
dispensation is given to any of them to commit it in any case. And it
would be observed farther, that there are other crimes, which these
fightings generally include, which are equally specified and forbidden
in the great book, but which they think it proper to sanction in the
present case. Thus, all kinds of treachery and deceit are considered to
be allowable, for a very ancient philosopher among them has left a maxim
upon record, and it has not yet been beaten out of their heads,
notwithstanding the precepts of the great book, in nearly the following
words: "Who thinks of requiring open courage of an enemy, or that
treachery is not equally allowable in war?"[15]

[Footnote 15: Dolus an virtus quis in hoste requirat?]

Strange! the superior being would reply. They seem to me to be reversing
the order of their nature, and the end of their existence. But how do
they justify themselves on these occasions? It would be answered, that
they not only justify them