ds, the richest are they
that share most of the power at home; whereas the richest among
the provincials, though native subjects, or citizens that have been
transplanted, are least admitted to the government abroad; for men, like
flowers or roots being transplanted, take after the soil wherein they
grow. Wherefore the Commonwealth of Rome, by planting colonies of its
citizens within the bounds of Italy, took the best way of propagating
itself, and naturalizing the country; whereas if it had planted such
colonies without the bounds of Italy it would have alienated the
citizens, and given a root to liberty abroad, that might have sprung up
foreign or savage, and hostile to her: wherefore it never made any such
dispersion of itself and its strength, till it was under the yoke of
the Emperors, who, disburdening themselves of the people, as having less
apprehension of what they could do abroad than at home, took a contrary
course.

The Mamelukes (which, till any man show me the contrary, I shall presume
to have been a commonwealth consisting of an army, whereof the common
soldier was the people, the commissioned officer the Senate, and the
general the prince) were foreigners, and by nation Circassians, that
governed Egypt; wherefore these never durst plant themselves upon
dominion, which growing naturally up into the national interest, must
have dissolved the foreign yoke in that province.

The like in some sort may be said of Venice, the government whereof is
usually mistaken; for Venice, though it does not take in the people,
never excluded them. This commonwealth, the orders whereof are the
most democratical or popular of all others, in regard of the exquisite
rotation of the Senate, at the first institution took in the whole
people; they that now live under the government without participation of
it, are such as have since either voluntarily chosen so to do, or
were subdued by arms. Wherefore the subject of Venice is governed by
provinces, and the balance of dominion not standing, as has been said,
with provincial government; as the Mamelukes durst not cast their
government upon this balance in their provinces, lest the national
interest should have rooted out the foreign, so neither dare the
Venetians take in their subjects upon this balance, lest the foreign
interest should root out the national (which is that of the 3,000
now governing), and by diffusing the commonwealth throughout her
territories, lose the advantag