his Resentment reasonable, till an ample Satisfaction be made him;
therefore it is He who is to be appeas'd, and He only who is to be
applied to. The Laws that were compiled by the Marshals of _France_,
don't pretend to mend the Heart, and lay no greater Restraint on the
Spirit of Revenge, than Matrimony does on the Desire of Procreation;
on the Contrary, they flatter the Frailty, and are administring to the
Haughtiness of the offended: They are so far from denying him his
Demands, or refusing to give him Satisfaction for the Affront, that
they appoint it by Authority; in the ordering of which they make such
ample Provisions for the Gratification of his Pride, as no reasonable
Man could ever think of without blushing. The only Thing they oblige
him to is, that he shall take the Satisfaction in such a Manner, as
shall be most safe to himself, and least detrimental to the Publick.
Now if you will consider first, that those who made these Regulations
were Men of undoubted Honour, who hourly feeling the Force of it
within themselves, were perfectly well acquainted with the Principle
which it is built upon; and secondly, that the profound Humility of
the Offender, and his asking Pardon of the offended, are two main
Points in the repairing of Honour, necessary _postulata_, without which
those knowing Judges thought it impossible, that an Affront could be
forgiven: If, I say, you'll consider these two Things, you'll see
plainly, what Passion in Human Nature it is, which those Laws of
Honour tally'd with, and likewise that it is true, what I have
asserted of them, that instead of reproving, curbing, or diminishing
the Frailty that is offensive, which seems to be the Intention of all
other Laws, their Aim is to prevent Mischief and do Service to the
Civil Society, by approving of, cherishing, and indulging that very
Passion, from which the Evil they would prevent can only proceed.

Hor. You think those Regulations were effectual, and yet you seem to