Points to Ponder — Page 22
— 22 When Tolstoy went to the king, the prince also went along in great fury, and said, “The gatekeeper ha s insulted me today. ” The king asked, “What happened?” The prince said, “I wanted to come in, but your gatekeeper would not let me come in. ” The king, as though he knew nothing of what had happened, said, “Tolstoy , why did you stop the prince from coming in ?” Tolstoy said, “It was your order that no one should be allowed to come in. ” The king looked at the prince, and asked, “D id he tell you that I had ordered that no one should be allowed in?” The prince said, “Yes, he told me, but no one can stop a prince from entering the castle. ” The king said, “I know that no one but the king can stop a prince from entering. Despite being a prince you have desecrated the law while Tolstoy being a gatekeeper realized the sanctity of the law. And despite the fact that he had told you that it was my order, you beat him. Now your punishment is to be beaten by the gatekeeper as you have beaten him. ” Then the king ordered Tolstoy to stand up and beat the prince. According to the Russian law, no civilian could beat a soldier. The prince said, “I am a soldier and he is a civil ian. He cannot beat me. ” The king said, “Captain Tolstoy , I order you to beat him up. ”