The causes and motives of seditions are, innova-tion in religion; taxes; alteration of laws and cus-toms; breaking of privileges; general oppression;advancement of unworthy persons; strangers; dearths; disbanded soldiers; factions grown des-perate; and what soever, in offending people, joineth and knitteth them in a common cause.
For the remedies; there may be some general preservatives, whereof we will speak: as for the just cure, it must answer to the particular disease;and so be left to counsel, rather than rule.
The first remedy or prevention is to remove, by all means possible, that material cause of sedition whereof we spake; which is, want and poverty in the estate. To which purpose serveth the opening, and well-balancing of trade; the cherishing of manufactures; the banishing of idleness; the re-pressing of waste, and excess, by sumptuary laws;the improvement and husbanding of the soil; the regulating of prices of things vendible; the moder-ating of taxes and tributes; and the like. Generally, it is to be foreseen that the population of a king-dom (especially if it be not mown down by wars)do not exceed the stock of the kingdom, which should maintain them. Neither is the population to be reckoned only by number; for a smaller num-ber, that spend more and earn less, do wear out an estate sooner, than a greater number that live lower, and gather more. Therefore the multiply-ing of nobility, and other degrees of quality, in an over proportion to the common people, doth speed-ily bring a state to necessity; and so doth likewise an overgrown clergy; for they bring nothing to the stock; and in like manner, when more are bred scholars, than preferments can take off .
It is likewise to be remembered, that forasmuch as the increase of any estate must be upon the foreigner (for whatsoever is somewhere gotten, is somewhere lost), there be but three things, which one nation selleth unto another; the commodity as nature yieldeth it; the manufacture; and the vec-ture, or carriage. So that if these three wheels go, wealth will flow as in a spring tide. And it cometh many times to pass, that materiam superabit opus;that the work and carriage is more worth than the material, and enricheth a state more; as is notably seen in the Low-Countrymen, who have the best mines above ground, in the world.
Above all things, good policy is to be used, that the treasure and moneys, in a state, be not gath-ered into few hands. For otherwise a state may have a great stock, and yet starve. And money is like muck, not good except it be spread. This is done, chiefly by suppressing, or at least keeping a strait hand, upon the devouring trades of usury, ingrossing great pasturages, and the like.
For removing discontentments, or at least the danger of them; there is in every state (as we know) two portions of subjects; the noblesse and the commonalty. When one of these is discontent, the danger is not great; for common people are of slow motion, if they be not excited by the greater sort; and the greater sort are of small strength, except the multitude be apt, and ready to move of themselves. Then is the danger, when the greater sort, do but wait for the troubling of the waters amongst the meaner, that then they may declare themselves. The poets feign, that the rest of the gods would have bound Jupiter; which he hearing of, by the counsel of Pallas, sent for Briareus, with his hundred hands, to come in to his aid. An em-blem, no doubt, to show how safe it is for mon-archs, to make sure of the good will of common people. To give moderate liberty for griefs and dis-contentments to evaporate (so it be without too great insolency or bravery), is a safe way. For he that turneth the humors back, and maketh the wound bleed inwards, endangereth malign ulcers, and pernicious imposthumations.
The part of Epimetheus mought well become Prometheus, in the case of discontentments: for there is not a better provision against them. Epime-theus, when griefs and evils flew abroad, at last shut the lid, and kept hope in the bottom of the vessel. Certainly, the politic and artificial nourish-ing, and entertaining of hopes, and carrying men from hopes to hopes, is one of the best antidotes against the poison of discontentments. And it is a certain sign of a wise government and proceeding, when it can hold men's hearts by hopes, when it cannot by satisfaction; and when it can handle things, in such manner, as no evil shall appear so peremptory, but that it hath some outlet of hope;which is the less hard to do, because both particu-lar persons and factions, are apt enough to flatter themselves, or at least to brave that, which they believe not.
Also the foresight and prevention, that there be no likely or fit head, whereunto discontented per-sons may resort, and under whom they may join, is a known, but an excellent point of caution. Iunderstand a fit head, to be one that hath great-ness and reputation; that hath confidence with the discontented party, and upon whom they turn their eyes; and that is thought discontented, in his own particular: which kind of persons, are either to be won, and reconciled to the state, and that in a fast and true manner; or to be fronted with some other, of the same party, that may oppose them, and so divide the reputation. Generally, the divid-ing and breaking, of all factions and combinations that are adverse to the state, and setting them at distance, or at least distrust, amongst themselves, is not one of the worst remedies. For it is a desper-ate case, if those that hold with the proceeding of the state, be full of discord and faction, and those that are against it, be entire and united.
