The House of Assir
You are a clan of priests and generals. Generals do not run universities, military training yes, colleges no. The generals may have been the figurehead but the priests were the ones who made it all work so to say the priests were in no way involved is wrong.
You speak lies again Hereclius. The college which was built by us was not run my generals, or priests, our clan only built it. It was the teachers who were left to run the college, and you. And it is you who betrayed our trust. We are pleased though, that you have chosen to willingly return to us that which is ours, but do not argue ownership with philosophic dribble. For by your logic, your money, your clothes, your home, they do not belong to you. By this logic, I ask you to give these things to me, since they are seemingly of no value to you, and since you do not own them.
We are happy to hand you back an empty university and the people of Dis may cheer to see the radicals disappear. Yet when we leave the progressive ideas we formed leave with us and the knowledge of the people of Dis will stagnate. The Tralysans may catalogue healing plants but they may never truly understand how they heal and how illness spreads without progressive teachers and professors to help them. Our architecture will struggle; the golden ratios of current masonry will be all that is left for there will be no-one to find new ones.
The people of Dis shall indeed cheer, but do not be so arrogant as to think that you are the only source of knowledge within this city. The audacity of such a statement is truely appauling, there are many more individuals, ready and willing to teach a our university, there are many students, ready and willing to learn humbly from the elders. Your arrogance will be your downfall.
While you opened this university for education, would you support the dissection of human bodies to further our understanding or outright blasphemy, as you would call it, by relegating the Divine to a more metaphorical, guiding concept as opposed to a direct way of explaining the natural world. There are limits you have or would impose, you cannot deny it, thus the issue was and is a matter of when not if.
You speak of conjecture. If's and maybe's. However I speak of
Fact, never did the House of Assir seek to limit the scholarly paths of the college. Never did we step in. We simply provided a service, but you have twisted and corrupted it to your political ends. You say that we would oppress you? Restrict knowledge? You claim only fiction, you spout only tall tales, spun to please your own financial backers. You are a slave Hereclius, and those backer swill manipulate you to their ends.
Indeed the many who would not support us were calmly escorted off the premise, with the teachers outstanding wages paid and the students fees for the rest of the year returned. Did you design the sewage system or did you hand it over to the university and the masons to deal with? Do you use the sewers or do the people of Ulerian Hill use it? Would it be justifiable for you to close down the sewage system if it ever became too expensive to maintain just because you paid for it?The idea that you can own something just because you paid for it is a symbol of the kind of illogic a university under your direction would bring. What is the point in owning something you do not or cannot use? The law is on your side but logic is on ours. Which will prevail?
The House of Assir proposed the sewer project. We convinced the friends of the senate to vote for it and commit the senate's budget.
We donated 400 shillings of our own funds to the building of this great sewer. There was no profit in building the sewers for us. We will never make back the 400 shillings that we willingly donated to aid the Ulerian's. You seem to be saying that we do everything sorely out of profit, yet it is you who have sought profit. You have not abolished the fees that the students pay, you simply took over a building that wasn't yours in order to gain the wealth which it provided. Were you not content with the stipend your brothers paid you? Truly your greed knows no bounds.
As for your argument regarding ownership, you confuse
practicality with the hypothetical nonsene you seem so intent on focusing on. As I mentioned before, if there is no ownership, please hand over all of your belongings to the House of Assir. We shall gladly unburden you.
As for your question as to what shall preval, it seems you make the mistake of questioning the law of Dis. By your logic, the laws that our fore fathers handed down to us is useless. Shall we throw it away and be plunged into anarchy? We must have law, for if we do not, we are no better than the savages who are outside of these walls.
We shall not know for, once we are generating an income other than from fees, which we will abolish as soon as it is humanly possible to do so, we are willing to pay for our university in instalments, though it will take many years. I am afraid that is the best we can offer you.
I am confused by this statement. Do you intend to pay us for the university? Refund our money? Please elaborate.
In your forth argument you raise a vaguely interesting point that those who seek knowledge are chasing shadows.
I raise no such point, please reread my statement. I was referring to the price of knowledge, as with anything, is not free. Knowledge must be bought, or earned. Time must be spent to gain it, determination and hard work must be spent to perfect it and for some, money must be spent.
Finally you strip me of a label. Is this meant to insult me? Am I to give up because I have been stripped of a label? The idea is laughable. I will still be Assir in blood and bone, will you strip me of those too? That is an offence known as murder and not even priests or generals are allowed to perform it.
Are you accusing me of attempted murder? Because I assure you I and my family plot no such thing. However any and all affiliation you previously had with the House of Assir is not ended. You are a fatherless and motherless man. You have no brothers, you have no sisters. Your cousins, nieces and nephews are no longer yours.
You have betrayed our family Hereclius. You have spit on the name of your father, and your brothers, those who cared for you in your time of need. You have cut us Hereclius, and the sting of betrayal is one that remains for a lifetime.
Signed
General Bato Assir
***
An Address to the Senate, by Desinos Assir
If the Senate refuses we will appeal to the merchants, who it would benefit most directly, for aid. If they are not forthcoming then we will indeed press on alone as the Assir both demand and wish. We apologise for taking up valuable Senate time, if you decision is unanimous along with the Assir we will leave now, if not we will stay, with your leave, so we may argue our case further. We apologise for mentioning our intentions regarding the Tralysans, we were hoping you might also help fund the materials for the codices but seeing as you will not fund an expedition we doubt you will fund the even more expensive process of making the wax tablets, writing the information down, binding the tablets together to form a codex and then renewing the process if the codices begin to deteriorate.
I, as well as the rest of my clan, vote to deny your request. You will quickly learn that when addressing the Senate, rudeness will get you nowhere. However as for your business, I again fail to see how it is the concern of the Senate. You may do as you will, and as an Elite, you have more than enough funds to do so. What you do with those funds is your concern. An apology regarding your mentioning of the Tralysans is also not necessary. You are free to suggest it, but again, I fail to see the relevance in respect to the duties of the Senate.
As to your other objections we are not proposing legislation but appealing to the Senate, which any citizen is entitled to do. We know you do not control the Senate but religion holds great sway in their minds. You, naturally, oppose us and they will be more inclined to do the same. Finally how was our request disrespectful to the Senate? It may have offended you, the Assir, but we could sing every hymn you have ever written and you would find some way to be offended by us until we return the university and beg for forgiveness. We do not intend to do either. Oh and you have just tried to shoot us down, see even we heretics have the gift of Prophesy!
You insult my family and the High Priest Hadak Assir. Have your senses left you Hereclius? You falsely proclaim prophecy? You insult the religion of the entire city of Dis? Is it a wonder that you continue to get nothing from us.
In regards to the statement regarding the university and an apology, while the later is not required by law, the former is. Just moments ago in a letter to Bato Assir, you stated that you would vacate the university and hand it over to the rightful owners, the House of Assir. Am I to understand that you know have gone back on your word and are intent on keeping stolen property. If this is the case then let me assure you that I will put forth charges of thievery against you to the Senate.
Still your arrogant flapping lips before you dig your hole even further Hereclius. You are to return the university facilities to us immediately, intact, and unharmed. As for the apology, that is up to you Hereclius. I am ready to forgive if you are truly sincere.
****
To The Tralysans
We regret to inform you that Hereclius, leader of the Hlyngbanite movement is not legally in possession of the university facility which has, illegally, offered you. However we have no qualms about you using our facilities, and indeed constructing an additional wing onto it (the cost can be worked out at a later time).
