The Essays, vol 10 | Page 5

spreads as that of military valour. There is another
virtue, true, perfect, and philosophical, of which I do not speak, and
only make use of the word in our common acceptation, much greater
than this and more full, which is a force and assurance of the soul,
equally despising all sorts of adverse accidents, equable, uniform, and
constant, of which ours is no more than one little ray. Use, education,
example, and custom can do all in all to the establishment of that
whereof I am speaking, and with great facility render it common, as by
the experience of our civil wars is manifest enough; and whoever could
at this time unite us all, Catholic and Huguenot, into one body, and set
us upon some brave common enterprise, we should again make our
ancient military reputation flourish. It is most certain that in times past
the recompense of this order had not only a regard to valour, but had a
further prospect; it never was the reward of a valiant soldier but of a
great captain; the science of obeying was not reputed worthy of so
honourable a guerdon. There was therein a more universal military
expertness required, and that comprehended the most and the greatest
qualities of a military man:
"Neque enim eaedem militares et imperatorix artes sunt,"
["For the arts of soldiery and generalship are not the same." --Livy, xxv.
19.]
as also, besides, a condition suitable to such a dignity. But, I say,
though more men were worthy than formerly, yet ought it not to be
more liberally distributed, and it were better to fall short in not giving it
at all to whom it should be due, than for ever to lose, as we have lately
done, the fruit of so profitable an invention. No man of spirit will deign
to advantage himself with what is in common with many; and such of

the present time as have least merited this recompense themselves
make the greater show of disdaining it, in order thereby to be ranked
with those to whom so much wrong has been done by the unworthy
conferring and debasing the distinction which was their particular right.
Now, to expect that in obliterating and abolishing this, suddenly to
create and bring into credit a like institution, is not a proper attempt for
so licentious and so sick a time as this wherein we now are; and it will
fall out that the last will from its birth incur the same inconveniences
that have ruined the other.--[Montaigne refers to the Order of the
Saint-Esprit, instituted by Henry III. in 1578.]--The rules for dispensing
this new order had need to be extremely clipt and bound under great
restrictions, to give it authority; and this tumultuous season is incapable
of such a curb: besides that, before this can be brought into repute, 'tis
necessary that the memory of the first, and of the contempt into which
it is fallen, be buried in oblivion.
This place might naturally enough admit of some discourse upon the
consideration of valour, and the difference of this virtue from others;
but, Plutarch having so often handled this subject, I should give myself
an unnecessary trouble to repeat what he has said. But this is worth
considering: that our nation places valour, vaillance, in the highest
degree of virtue, as its very word evidences, being derived from valeur,
and that, according to our use, when we say a man of high worth a good
man, in our court style--'tis to say a valiant man, after the Roman way;
for the general appellation of virtue with them takes etymology from
vis, force. The proper, sole, and essential profession of, the French
noblesse is that of arms: and 'tis likely that the first virtue that
discovered itself amongst men and has given to some advantage over
others, was that by which the strongest and most valiant have mastered
the weaker, and acquired a particular authority and reputation, whence
came to it that dignified appellation; or else, that these nations, being
very warlike, gave the pre-eminence to that of the virtues which was
most familiar to them; just as our passion and the feverish solicitude we
have of the chastity of women occasions that to say, a good woman, a
woman of worth, a woman of honour and virtue, signifies merely a
chaste woman as if, to oblige them to that one duty, we were indifferent

as to all the rest, and gave them the reins in all other faults whatever to
compound for that one of incontinence.

CHAPTER VIII
OF THE AFFECTION OF FATHERS TO THEIR CHILDREN
To Madame D'Estissac.
MADAM, if the strangeness and novelty of my subject, which are wont
to give value to things, do not save me, I shall never come off