[\"Ifnobilitybevirtue，itlosesitsqualityinallthingswhereinnotvirtuous:andifitbenotvirtue，’tisasmallmatter。\"
——LaByuyere。]
’tisavirtue，ifitbeone，thatisartificialandapparent，dependingupontimeandfortune:variousinform，accordingtothecountry;livingandmortal;withoutbirth，astheriverNile;genealogicalandcommon;，ofsuccessionandsimilitude;drawnbyconsequence，andaveryweakone。
Knowledge，strength，goodness，beauty，riches，andallotherqualities，fallintocommunicationandcommerce，butthisisconsummatedinitself，andofnousetotheserviceofothers。Therewasproposedtooneofourkingsthechoiceoftwocandidatesforthesamecommand，ofwhomonewasagentleman，theothernot;heorderedthat，withoutrespecttoquality，theyshouldchoosehimwhohadthemostmerit;butwheretheworthofthecompetitorsshouldappeartobeentirelyequal，theyshouldhaverespecttobirth:thiswasjustlytogiveititsrank。Ayoungmanunknown，comingtoAntigonustomakesuitforhisfather’scommand，avaliantmanlatelydead:\"Friend，\"saidhe，\"insuchprefermentsasthese，Ihavenotsomuchregardtothenobilityofmysoldiersastotheirprowess。\"
And，indeed，itoughtnottogoasitdidwiththeofficersofthekingsofSparta，trumpeters，fiddlers，cooks，thechildrenofwhomalwayssucceededtotheirplaces，howignorantsoever，andwerepreferredbeforethemostexperiencedinthetrade。TheyofCalicutmakeofnoblesasortofsuperhumanpersons:theyareinterdictedmarriageandallbutwarlikeemployments:theymayhaveofconcubinestheirfill，andthewomenasmanylovers，withoutbeingjealousofoneanother;but’tisacapitalandirremissiblecrimetocouplewithapersonofmeanerconditionsthanthemselves;andtheythinkthemselvespolluted，iftheyhavebuttouchedoneinwalkingalong;andsupposingtheirnobilitytobemarvellouslyinterestedandinjuredinit，killsuchasonlyapproachalittletoonearthem:insomuchthattheignobleareobligedtocryoutastheywalk，likethegondoliersofVenice，attheturningsofstreetsforfearofjostling;andthenoblescommandthemtostepasidetowhatparttheyplease:bythatmeanstheseavoidwhattheyreputeaperpetualignominy，thosecertaindeath。Notime，nofavouroftheprince，nooffice，orvirtue，orriches，caneverprevailtomakeaplebeianbecomenoble:towhichthiscustomcontributes，thatmarriagesareinterdictedbetwixtdifferenttrades;thedaughterofoneofthecordwainers’gildisnotpermittedtomarryacarpenter;andparentsareobligedtotrainuptheirchildrenpreciselyintheirowncallings，andnotputthemtoanyothertrade;bywhichmeansthedistinctionandcontinuanceoftheirfortunesaremaintained。