THE NOBLE DEMOCRACY 259
concluded with the singing of a Te Deum in the cathedral, the payment of mem-
bers' expenses by the Treasurer, and the departure of all and sundry to the
provinces. With the return of the envoys to the dietines with their 'relations' of
what the Sejm had enacted, the legislative process, initiated by the King's mani-
festo six months before, was now complete.^10
Lobbying was an established part of political and constitutional life. Sessions
of the Sejm provided the only occasion where noblemen from all the Republic's
far-flung provinces could meet together informally, and press their affairs on
influential courtiers and senators. But the sessions were of special importance to
those estates of the realm who were not directly represented in the legislature.
The incorporated cities frequently addressed detailed petitions to the Sejm, and
municipal records made regular provision for expenses incurred by delegations
suitably armed with instructions, gifts, and bribes.^11 The Jewish Council
employed a professional Sbtadlan or 'lobbyist', who resided at the royal court
and who was also empowered to intercede with the Sejm on all matters con-
cerning the Jews' welfare. His function mirrored that of similar provincial lob-
byists directed by each of the Jewish communes to the local dietines and city
councils. Liberal payments behind the scenes, and lavish entertainments, were
essential elements in their stock-in-trade.^12
The Sejm, the dietines, and the Royal elections were all governed by the prin-
ciple of unanimity. It seems incredible to the modern observer that such an ideal
should have been taken seriously. But it was, and it formed the basis of all their
proceedings. No proposal could become law, and no decision was binding,
unless it received the full assent of all those persons who were competent to con-
sider it. A single voice of dissent was equivalent to total rejection. Majority vot-
ing was consciously rejected. There was to be unanimity or nothing; there was
to be no middle ground between a state of perfect harmony, and total chaos.
Three lines of reasoning can be discerned. One argument, in a state where the
executive arm depended on the voluntary support of all its citizens, was purely
practical. Laws and decisions which were passed in the face of opposition could
not have been properly enforced. The second was based on the consideration
that the prospect of chaos might concentrate men's minds on harmony. The
third derived from the somewhat naive belief that institutions which are less
than perfect are not worth keeping anyhow. In the hurly-burly of the dietines
and the Royal elections, the principle of unanimity could not be applied with
finesse. But in the Sejm it was the subject of serious debate, and applied with
meticulous insistence. It was responsible for two constitutional practices, the
Confederation and the Liberum Veto, which made the Republic famous
throughout Europe.
The Confederation - confederatio, konfederacja - was an institution of
ancient lineage in Poland, and an expression of the citizen's fundamental right
to resist. It was an armed league, an association of men sworn to pursue their
grievance until justice was obtained. It could be formed by any individual or
group of individuals. It could be formed by the King, or against him. In 1302, the