but he shall hold the discontented in the same esteem as the contented， because of submission to the Divine decrees. As for the king of the second order， he upholds the things of the Faith and of the world and compels the folk to follow the Law of God and to observe the precepts of humanity； and it behoves him to conjoin the sword and the pen； for whoso goeth astray from what the pen hath written， his feet slip， and the king shall rectify his error with the edge of the sword and pour forth his justice upon all men. As for the third kind of king， he hath no religion but the following his own lusts and fears not the wrath of his Lord， who set him on the throne； so his kingdom inclines to ruin，and the end of his arrogance is in the House of Perdition." And another sage says， "The king has need of many people， but the folk have need of but one king； wherefore it behoves that he be well acquainted with their natures， to the end that he may reduce their difference to concord， that he may encompass them one and all with his justice and overwhelm them with his bounties." And know， O King， that Ardeshir， styled Jemr Shedid， third of the Kings of Persia， conquered the whole world and divided it into four parts and let make for himself four seal-rings， one for each division of his realm. The first seal was that of the sea and the police and of prohibition， and on it was written， "Alternatives."
The second was the seal of revenue and of the receipt of monies，and on it was written， "Culture." The third was the seal of the commissariat， and on it was written， "Plenty." The fourth was the seal of （the Court of Enquiry into） abuses， and on it was written， "Justice." And these remained in use in Persia until the revelation of Islam. King Chosroes also， wrote to his son， who was with the army， "Be not over-lavish to thy troops， or they will come to have no need of thee； neither be niggardly with them， or they will murmur against thee. Do thy giving soberly and confer thy favours advisedly； be liberal to them in time of affluence and stint them not in time of stress." It is said that an Arab of the desert came once to the Khalif Mensour[FN#32] and said to him， "Starve thy dog and he will follow thee." When the Khalif heard his words， he was enraged， but Aboulabbas et Tousi said to him， "I fear that， if some other than thou should show him a cake of bread， the dog would follow him and leave thee."
Thereupon the Khalif"s wrath subsided and he knew that the Bedouin had meant no offence and ordered him a present. And know，O King， that Abdulmelik ben Merwan wrote to his brother Abdulaziz， when he sent him to Egypt， as follows： "Pay heed to thy secretaries and thy chamberlains， for the first will acquaint thee with necessary matters and the second with matters of etiquette and ceremonial observance， whilst the tribute that goes out from thee will make thy troops known to thee." Omar ben el Khettab[FN#33] （whom God accept） was in the habit， when he engaged a servant， of laying four conditions on him， the first that he should not ride the baggage-beasts， the second that he should not wear fine clothes， the third that he should not eat of the spoil and the fourth that he should not delay to pray after the proper time. It is said that there is no wealth better than understanding and no understanding like common sense and prudence and no prudence like the fear of God； that there is no offering like good morals and no measure like good breeding and no profit like earning the Divine favour；[FN#34] that there is no piety like the observance of the limits of the Law and no science like that of meditation， no devotion like the performance of the Divine precepts， no safeguard like modesty， no calculation like humility and no nobility like knowledge. So guard the head and what it contains and the body and what it comprises and remember death and calamity. Says Ali[FN#35]， （whose face God honour！），"Beware of the wickedness of women and be on thy guard against them. Consult them not in aught， but be not grudging of complaisance to them， lest they be tempted to have recourse to intrigue." And also， "He who leaves the path of moderation and sobriety， his wits become perplexed." And Omar （whom God accept）
says， "There are three kinds of women， first， the true-believing，God-fearing woman， loving and fruitful， helping her husband against fate， not helping fate against her husband； secondly， she who loves and tenders her children， but no more； and thirdly， the woman who is as a shackle that God puts on the neck of whom He will. Men also are three： the first， who is wise， when he exercises his judgment； the second， wiser than he， who， when there falls on him somewhat of which he knows not the issue，seeks folk of good counsel and acts by their advice； and the third， who is addle-headed， knowing not the right way nor heeding those who would instruct him." Justice is indispensable in all things； even slave-girls have need of justice； and highway robbers， who live by violence， bear witness of this， for did they not deal equitably among themselves and observe fairness in their divisions， their order would fall to pieces. For the rest， the chief of noble qualities is generosity and benevolence. How well says the poet：
"By largesse and mildness the youth chief of his tribe became， And it were easy for thee to follow and do the same."
And quoth another：
"In mildness stability lies and clemency wins us respect， And safety in soothfastness is for him who is soothfast and frank；
And he who would get himself praise and renown for his wealth from the folk， In the racecourse of glory must be， for munificence， first in the rank.""