2023-03-10_The_Five_Laws_of_Gold
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00:00:30.800 | The Five Laws of Gold
00:00:34.480 | A bag heavy with gold or a clay tablet carved with words of wisdom. If thou hadst thy choice,
00:00:42.200 | which wouldst thou choose?
00:00:45.480 | By the flickering light from the fire of desert shrubs, the sun-tanned faces of the listeners
00:00:50.480 | gleamed with interest. "The gold, the gold!" chorused the Twenty-Seven.
00:00:55.960 | Old Calabab smiled knowingly. "Hark!" he resumed, raising his hand. "Hear the wild
00:01:02.440 | dogs out there in the night. They howl and wail because they are lean with hunger. Yet
00:01:08.280 | feed them, and what do they do? Fight and strut, then fight and strut some more, giving
00:01:15.340 | no thought to the morrow that will surely come."
00:01:19.320 | Just so it is with the sons of men. Give them a choice of gold and wisdom, what do they
00:01:25.200 | do? Ignore the wisdom and waste the gold. On the morrow they wail because they have
00:01:32.200 | no more gold. Gold is reserved for those who know its laws and abide by them.
00:01:41.640 | Calabab drew his white robe close about his lean legs, for a cool night wind was blowing.
00:01:47.280 | "Because thou hast served me faithfully upon our long journey, because thou cared
00:01:52.320 | well for my camels, because thou toiled uncomplainingly across the hot sands of the desert, because
00:01:59.620 | thou fought bravely the robbers that sought to despoil my merchandise, I will tell thee
00:02:05.380 | this night the tale of the five laws of gold, such a tale as thou never hast heard before.
00:02:15.600 | Mark ye with deep attention to the words I speak, for if you grasp their meaning and
00:02:20.040 | heed them, in the days that come thou shalt have much gold."
00:02:27.880 | He paused impressively. Above, in a canopy of blue, the stars shone brightly in the crystal-clear
00:02:34.860 | skies of Babylonia. Behind the group loomed their faded tents, tightly staked against
00:02:41.900 | possible desert storms. Beside the tents were neatly stacked bales of merchandise covered
00:02:47.600 | with skins. Nearby the camel herd sprawled in the sand, some chewing their cuds contentedly,
00:02:55.040 | others snoring in hoarse discord. "Thou hast told us many good tales, Calabab,"
00:03:00.920 | spoke up the chief packer. "We look to thy wisdom to guide us upon the morrow, when our
00:03:04.960 | service with thee shall be at an end." "I have but told thee of my adventures in
00:03:10.200 | strange and distant lands. But this night I shall tell thee of the wisdom of Arkad,
00:03:17.440 | the wise rich man." "Much have we heard of him," acknowledged
00:03:22.080 | the chief packer, "for he was the richest man that ever lived in Babylon."
00:03:26.520 | "The richest man he was, and that because he was wise in the ways of gold, even as no
00:03:32.560 | man had ever been before him. This night shall I tell you of his great wisdom, as it was
00:03:38.160 | told to me by Nomaseer, his son, many years ago in Nineveh, when I was but a lad. My master
00:03:45.600 | and myself had tarried long into the night in the palace of Nomaseer. I had helped my
00:03:50.320 | master bring great bundles of fine rugs, each one to be tried by Nomaseer until his choice
00:03:56.140 | of colors was satisfied. At last he was well pleased, and commanded us to sit with him
00:04:01.520 | and to drink a rare vintage odorous to the nostrils and most warming to my stomach, which
00:04:07.680 | was unaccustomed to such a drink. Then did he tell us this tale of the great wisdom of
00:04:13.000 | Arkad, his father, even as I shall tell it to you.
00:04:17.440 | In Babylon it is the custom, as you know, that the sons of wealthy fathers live with
00:04:22.460 | their parents in expectation of inheriting the estate. Arkad did not approve of this
00:04:28.000 | custom. Therefore, when Nomaseer reached man's estate, he sent for the young man and addressed
00:04:33.600 | him. "My son, it is my desire that thou succeed to my estate. Thou must, however,
00:04:41.680 | first prove that thou art capable of wisely handling it. Therefore, I wish that thou go
00:04:48.640 | out into the world and show thy ability both to acquire gold and to make thyself respected
00:04:54.980 | among men. To start thee well, I will give thee two things of which I myself was denied
00:05:00.500 | when I started as a poor youth to build up a fortune. First, I give thee this bag of
00:05:07.160 | gold. If thou use it wisely, it will be the basis of thy future success. Second, I give
00:05:14.240 | thee this clay tablet upon which is carved the five laws of gold. If thou dost but interpret
00:05:23.520 | them in thy own acts, they shall bring thee competence and security. Ten years from this
00:05:29.800 | day, come thou back to the house of thy father and give account of thyself. If thou prove
00:05:35.720 | worthy, I will then make thee the heir to my estate. Otherwise, I will give it to the
00:05:41.160 | priests that they may barter for my soul the kind consideration of the gods."
00:05:48.080 | So Nomaseer went forth to make his own way, taking his bag of gold, the clay tablet carefully
00:05:54.000 | wrapped in silken cloth, his slave, and the horses upon which they rode. The ten years
00:06:00.000 | passed and Nomaseer, as he had agreed, returned to the house of his father, who provided a
00:06:04.720 | great feast in his honor, to which he invited many friends and relatives. After the feast
00:06:10.180 | was over, the father and mother mounted their throne-like seats at one side of the great
00:06:14.820 | hall and Nomaseer stood before them to give an account of himself as he had promised his
00:06:19.560 | father. It was evening. The room was hazy with smokes from the wicks of the oil lamps
00:06:26.280 | that but dimly lighted it. Slaves in white woven jackets and tunics fanned the humid
00:06:32.600 | air rhythmically with long-stemmed palm leaves. A stately dignity colored the scene. The wife
00:06:40.100 | of Nomaseer and his two young sons, with friends and other members of the family, sat upon
00:06:44.600 | rugs behind him, eager listeners. "My father," he began deferentially, "I bow before thy
00:06:52.320 | wisdom. Ten years ago, when I stood at the gates of manhood, thou bade me go forth and
00:06:57.680 | become a man among men, instead of remaining a vassal to thy fortune. Thou gave me liberally
00:07:04.040 | of thy gold. Thou gave me liberally of thy wisdom. Of the gold, alas, I must admit of
00:07:11.800 | a disastrous handling. It fled indeed from my inexperienced hands, even as a wild hare
00:07:18.160 | flees at the first opportunity from the youth who captures it." The father smiled indulgently.
00:07:24.800 | "Continue, my son. Thy tale interests me in all its details. I decided to go to Nineveh
00:07:31.580 | as it was a growing city, believing that I might find there opportunities. I joined a
00:07:36.800 | caravan and among its members made numerous friends. Two well-spoken men, who had a most
00:07:43.640 | beautiful white horse as fleet as the wind, were among these. As we journeyed, they told
00:07:49.420 | me in confidence that in Nineveh was a wealthy man who owned a horse so swift that it had
00:07:55.120 | never been beaten. Its owner believed that no horse living could run with greater speed,
00:08:01.440 | therefore would he wager any sum, however large, that his horse could outspeed any horse
00:08:08.200 | in all Babylonia. Compared to their horse, so my friends said, it was but a lumbering
00:08:14.740 | ass that could be beaten with ease. They offered as a great favor to permit me to join them
00:08:20.800 | in a wager. I was quite carried away with the plan. Our horse was badly beaten and I
00:08:27.720 | lost much of my gold. The father laughed. Later I discovered that this was a deceitful
00:08:34.400 | plan of these men and they constantly journeyed with caravans seeking victims. You see, the
00:08:40.040 | man in Nineveh was their partner and shared with them the bets he won. This shrewd deceit
00:08:46.800 | taught me my first lesson in looking out for myself.
00:08:50.640 | I was soon to learn another equally bitter. In the caravan was another young man with
00:08:57.020 | whom I became quite friendly. He was the son of wealthy parents, like myself, journeying
00:09:03.980 | to Nineveh to find a suitable location. Not long after our arrival, he told me that a
00:09:09.860 | merchant had died and his shop with its rich merchandise and patronage could be secured
00:09:15.360 | at a paltry price. Saying that we would be equal partners, but first he must return to
00:09:20.400 | Babylon to secure his gold, he prevailed upon me to purchase the stock with my gold, agreeing
00:09:25.960 | that his would be used later to carry on our venture. He long delayed the trip to Babylon,
00:09:32.120 | proving in the meantime to be an unwise buyer and a foolish spender. I finally put him out,
00:09:38.520 | but not before the business had deteriorated to where we had only unsaleable goods and
00:09:43.440 | no gold to buy other goods. I sacrificed what was left to an Israelite for a pitiful sum.
00:09:51.920 | Soon there followed, I tell you, my father, bitter days. I sought employment and found
00:09:57.160 | it not, for I was without trade or training that would enable me to earn. I sold my horses.
00:10:02.800 | I sold my slave. I sold my extra robes that I might have food and a place to sleep. But
00:10:08.120 | each day, grim want crouched closer. But in those bitter days, I remembered thy confidence
00:10:17.560 | in me, my father. Thou had sent me forth to become a man, and this I was determined to
00:10:23.200 | accomplish. The mother buried her face and wept softly. At this time, I bethought me
00:10:31.660 | of the table thou had given to me upon which thou had carved the five laws of gold. Thereupon,
00:10:38.000 | I read most carefully thy words of wisdom and realized that had I but sought wisdom
00:10:43.280 | first, my gold would not have been lost to me. I learned by heart each law and determined
00:10:49.880 | that when once more the goddess of good fortune smiled upon me, I would be guided by the wisdom
00:10:55.020 | of age and not by the inexperience of youth. For the benefit of you who are seated here
00:11:01.920 | this night, I will read the wisdom of my father as engraved upon the clay tablet which he
00:11:06.800 | gave to me ten years ago. The Five Laws of Gold
00:11:11.520 | 1. Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity, to any man who will put by not less than one
00:11:22.160 | tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family.
00:11:28.760 | 2. Gold laboureth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable
00:11:36.880 | employment multiplying even as the flocks of the field.
00:11:41.040 | 3. Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice
00:11:46.700 | of men wise in its handling. 4. Gold slippeth away from the man who invests
00:11:53.520 | it in businesses or purposes with which he is not familiar or which are not approved
00:11:59.140 | by those skilled in its keep. 5. Gold flees the man who would force it
00:12:06.160 | to impossible earnings or who followeth the alluring advice of tricksters and schemers
00:12:12.280 | or who trusts it to his own inexperience and romantic desires in investment.
00:12:19.740 | These are the five laws of gold as written by my father. I do proclaim them as of greater
00:12:24.920 | value than gold itself, as I will show by the continuance of my tale.
00:12:30.840 | He again faced his father. "I have told thee of the depth of poverty
00:12:35.040 | and despair to which my inexperience brought me. However, there is no chain of disasters
00:12:40.460 | that will not come to an end. Mine came when I secured employment managing a crew of slaves
00:12:46.660 | working upon the new outer wall of the city. Profiting from my knowledge of the first law
00:12:51.360 | of gold, I saved a copper from my first earnings, added to it at every opportunity until I had
00:12:56.980 | a piece of silver. It was a slow procedure, for one must live. I did spend grudgingly,
00:13:04.280 | I admit, because I was determined to earn back before the ten years were over as much
00:13:08.680 | gold as you, my father, had given to me. One day the slave master, with whom I had become
00:13:14.640 | quite friendly, said to me, 'Thou art a thrifty youth who spends not wantonly what
00:13:19.440 | he earns. Hast thou gold put by that is not earning?' 'Yes,' I replied, 'it is my
00:13:25.400 | greatest desire to accumulate gold to replace that which my father gave to me and which
00:13:29.360 | I have lost. 'Tis a worthy ambition I will grant, and do you know that the gold which
00:13:34.820 | you have saved can work for you and earn much more gold? Alas, my experience has been bitter,
00:13:42.020 | for my father's gold has fled from me, and I am in much fear lest my own do the same.'
00:13:46.340 | 'If thou hast confidence in me, I will give thee a lesson in the profitable handling of
00:13:51.620 | gold,' he replied. 'Within a year the outer wall will be complete and ready for
00:13:56.780 | the great gates of bronze that will be built at each entrance to protect the city from
00:14:00.860 | the king's enemies. In all Nineveh there is not enough metal to make these gates, and
00:14:05.260 | the king has not thought to provide it. Here is my plan. A group of us will pool our gold
00:14:11.420 | and send a caravan to the mines of copper and tin which are distant, and bring to Nineveh
00:14:16.100 | the metal for the gates. When the king says, "Make the great gates," we alone can supply
00:14:21.620 | the metal, and a rich price he will pay. If the king will not buy from us, we will yet
00:14:27.020 | have the metal which can be sold for a fair price.'
00:14:30.860 | In his offer I recognized an opportunity to abide by the third law and invest my savings
00:14:35.960 | under the guidance of wise men. Nor was I disappointed. Our pool was a success, and
00:14:42.540 | my small store of gold was greatly increased by the transaction. In due time I was accepted
00:14:48.380 | as a member of this same group in other ventures. They were men wise in the profitable handling
00:14:53.580 | of gold. They talked over each plan presented with great care before entering upon it. They
00:14:58.660 | would take no chance on losing their principal or tying it up in unprofitable investments
00:15:03.260 | from which their gold could not be recovered. Such foolish things as the horse race and
00:15:07.940 | the partnership into which I had entered with my inexperience would have had scant consideration
00:15:12.420 | with them. They would have immediately pointed out their weaknesses. Through my association
00:15:17.280 | with these men I learned to safely invest gold to bring profitable returns. As the years
00:15:23.140 | went on, my treasure increased more and more rapidly. I not only made back as much as I
00:15:28.020 | lost but much more. Through my misfortunes, my trials, and my success, I have tested time
00:15:34.140 | and again the wisdom of the five laws of gold, my father, and have proven them true in every
00:15:39.820 | test. To him who is without knowledge of the five laws, gold comes not often and goeth
00:15:45.880 | away quickly. But to him who abide by the five laws, gold comes and works as his dutiful
00:15:52.060 | slave." Nomaseer ceased speaking and motioned to a
00:15:58.020 | slave in the back of the room. The slave brought forward one at a time three heavy leather
00:16:03.980 | bags. One of these, Nomaseer took and placed upon the floor before his father, addressing
00:16:08.560 | him again, "Thou didst give to me a bag of gold, Babylon gold. Behold, in its place I
00:16:15.240 | do return to thee a bag of Nineveh gold of equal weight, an equal exchange as all will
00:16:20.620 | agree. Thou didst give to me a clay tablet inscribed with wisdom. Behold, in its stead
00:16:28.100 | I do return two bags of gold." So saying, he took from the slave the other two bags
00:16:34.220 | and likewise placed them upon the floor before his father. "This I do to prove to thee,
00:16:40.340 | my father, of how much greater value I consider thy wisdom than thy gold. Yet who can measure
00:16:46.060 | in bags of gold the value of wisdom? Without wisdom, gold is quickly lost by those who
00:16:51.720 | have it. But with wisdom, gold can be secured by those who have it not, as these three bags
00:16:57.980 | of gold do prove. It does indeed give to me the deepest satisfaction, my father, to stand
00:17:04.460 | before thee and say that because of thy wisdom I have been able to become rich and respected
00:17:11.040 | before men." The father placed his hand fondly upon the head of Nomaseer. "Thou hast learned
00:17:17.180 | well thy lessons and I am indeed fortunate to have a son to whom I may entrust my wealth."
00:17:23.820 | Calabab ceased his tale and looked critically at his listeners. "What means this to thee,
00:17:30.340 | this tale of Nomaseer?" he continued. "Who amongst thee can go to thy father or to the
00:17:35.780 | father of thy wife and give an account of wise handling of his earnings? What would
00:17:41.620 | these venerable men think were you to say, 'I have traveled much and learned much and
00:17:46.780 | labored much and earned much, yet alas, of gold I have little. Some I spent wisely, some
00:17:52.800 | I spent foolishly, and much I lost in unwise ways.' Dost still think it but an inconsistency
00:17:59.020 | of fate that some men have much gold and others have not? Then you err. Men have much gold
00:18:06.420 | when they know the five laws of gold and abide thereby."
00:18:11.180 | Because I learned these five laws in my youth and abided by them, I have become a wealthy
00:18:17.060 | merchant. Not by some strange magic did I accumulate my wealth. Wealth that comes quickly
00:18:22.960 | goeth the same way. Wealth that stayeth to give enjoyment and satisfaction to its owner
00:18:28.020 | comes gradually because it is a child born of knowledge and persistent purpose.
00:18:34.100 | To earn wealth is but a slight burden upon the thoughtful man. Bearing the burden consistently
00:18:39.020 | from year to year accomplishes the final purpose. The five laws of gold offer to thee a rich
00:18:44.500 | reward for their observance. Each of these five laws is rich with meaning, and lest thou
00:18:50.280 | overlook this in the briefness of my tale, I will now repeat them. I do know them each
00:18:55.620 | by heart because in my youth I could see their value and would not be content until I knew
00:19:00.340 | them word for word.
00:19:03.780 | The First Law of Gold
00:19:04.780 | "Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity to any man who will put by not less than one
00:19:10.860 | tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family. Any
00:19:16.980 | man who will put by one tenth of his earnings consistently and invest it wisely will surely
00:19:21.940 | create a valuable estate that will provide an income for him in the future and further
00:19:26.920 | guarantee safety for his family in case the gods call him to the world of darkness. This
00:19:32.360 | law always sayeth that gold cometh gladly to such a man. I can truly certify this in
00:19:38.100 | my own life. The more gold I accumulate the more readily it comes to me and in increased
00:19:43.580 | quantities. The gold which I save earns more, even as yours will, and its earnings earn
00:19:49.500 | more and this is the working out of the first law."
00:19:53.940 | The Second Law of Gold
00:19:54.940 | "Gold laboureth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable
00:20:01.340 | employment, multiplying even as the flocks of the field. Gold indeed is a willing worker.
00:20:07.980 | It is ever eager to multiply when opportunity presents itself. To every man who hath a store
00:20:13.060 | of gold set by, opportunity comes for its most profitable use. As the years pass it
00:20:18.460 | multiplies itself in surprising fashion."
00:20:22.020 | The Third Law of Gold
00:20:23.100 | "Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice
00:20:28.060 | of men wise in its handling. Gold indeed clingeth to the cautious owner even as it flees the
00:20:35.140 | careless owner. The man who seeks the advice of men wise in handling gold soon learneth
00:20:40.900 | not to jeopardize his treasure, but to preserve in safety and to enjoy in contentment its
00:20:46.360 | consistent increase."
00:20:49.300 | The Fourth Law of Gold
00:20:50.300 | "Gold slippeth away from the man who invests it in businesses or purposes with which he
00:20:56.020 | is not familiar, or which are not approved by those skilled in its keep. To the man who
00:21:01.860 | hath gold yet is not skilled in its handling, many uses for it appear most profitable. Too
00:21:07.940 | often these are fraught with danger of loss, and, if properly analyzed by wise men, show
00:21:13.740 | small possibility of profit. Therefore, the inexperienced owner of gold who trusts to
00:21:19.900 | his own judgment and invests it in business or purposes with which he is not familiar
00:21:24.940 | too often finds his judgment imperfect, and pays with his treasure for his inexperience.
00:21:32.460 | Wise indeed is he who investeth his treasures under the advice of men skilled in the ways
00:21:37.160 | of gold."
00:21:39.340 | The Fifth Law of Gold
00:21:41.340 | "Gold flees the man who would force it to impossible earnings, or who followeth the
00:21:46.260 | alluring advice of tricksters and schemers, or who trusts it to his own inexperience and
00:21:51.520 | romantic desires in investment. Fanciful propositions that thrill like adventure tales always come
00:21:57.940 | to the new owner of gold. These appear to endow his treasure with magic powers that
00:22:03.180 | will enable it to make impossible earnings. Yet heed ye the wise men, for verily they
00:22:08.780 | know the risks that lurk behind every plan to make great wealth suddenly. Forget not
00:22:14.340 | the rich men of Nineveh who would take no chance of losing their principal or tying
00:22:18.240 | it up in unprofitable investments. This ends my tale of the Five Laws of Gold, in telling
00:22:24.380 | it to thee I have told the secrets of my own success. Yet they are not secrets, but truths
00:22:30.640 | which every man must first learn, and then follow who wishes to step out of the multitude
00:22:35.620 | that you, like yawn-wild dogs, must worry each day for food to eat."
00:22:41.380 | Tomorrow we enter Babylon. Look! See the fire that burns eternal above the Temple of Bel.
00:22:48.800 | We are already in sight of the Golden City. Tomorrow each of thee shall have gold, the
00:22:54.460 | gold thou hast so well earned by thy faithful services. Ten years from this night what can
00:23:00.000 | you tell me about this gold? If there be men among you who, like no messiah, will use a
00:23:05.540 | portion of their gold to start for themselves an estate and be thenceforth wisely guided
00:23:10.880 | by the wisdom of Arkad, ten years from now, 'tis a safe wager like the son of Arkad
00:23:15.240 | they will be rich and respected among men. Our wise acts accompany us through life to
00:23:21.600 | please us and to help us, just as surely our unwise acts follow us to plague and torment
00:23:29.260 | us. Alas, they cannot be forgotten. In the front rank of the torments that do follow
00:23:34.280 | us are the memories of the things we should have done, of the opportunities which came
00:23:38.000 | to us and we took not. Rich are the treasures of Babylon, so rich no man can count their
00:23:44.980 | value in pieces of gold. Each year they grow richer and more valuable. Like the treasures
00:23:51.060 | of every land, they are a reward, a rich reward awaiting those men of purpose who determine
00:23:56.580 | to secure their just share. In the strength of thine own desires is a magic power. Guide
00:24:03.460 | this power with thy knowledge of the five laws of gold, and thou shalt share the treasures
00:24:09.940 | of Babylon.
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