THOUGHTS ON CIVIL LIBERTY, ON LICENTIOUSNESS, AND FACTION. By the AUTHOR of ESSAYS on the CHARACTERISTICS, &c.
—Sed in Vitium Libertas excidit, et Vim
Dignam Lege regi.—
NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE:
Printed by J. WHITE and T. SAINT, For L. DAVIS and C. REYMERS, against
Gray's-Inn-Gate, Holborn, London;
Printers to the ROYAL SOCIETY. MDCCLXV.
CONTENTS.
SECT. I.
The Design.
Page 9.
SECT. II.
Of the Nature of civil Liberty.
p. 11.
SECT. III.
Of Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 14.
SECT. IV.
Unassisted Laws no permanent Foundation of civil Liberty.
p. 15.
SECT. V.
Virtuous Manners and Principles the only permanent Foundation of civil Liberty.
p. 26.
SECT. VI.
An Objection considered.
Page 36.
SECT. VII.
A Confirmation of these Principles, drawn from the History of free States. 1st of Sparta.
p. 42.
SECT. VIII.
Of the Republic of Athens.
p. 61.
SECT. IX.
Of the Commonwealth of Rome.
p. 67.
SECT. X.
How far these Facts can properly be apply'd to the political State of Great Britain.
p. 78.
SECT. XI.
Of the general State of Manners and Principles, about the Time of the Revolution.
p. 88.
SECT. XII.
Of the Changes in Manners and Principles, through the succeeding Times.
Page 94.
SECT. XIII.
Among what Ranks, Licentiousness and Faction may most probably be expected.
p. 108.
SECT. XIV.
Of the most effectual Means of detecting Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 115.
SECT. XV.
Of the characteristic Marks of Liberty.
p. 118.
SECT. XVI.
Of the first characteristic Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 120.
SECT. XVII.
A second Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
Page 124.
SECT. XVIII.
A third Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 126.
SECT. XIX.
A fourth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 127.
SECT. XX.
A fifth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
p. 131.
SECT. XXI.
A sixth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
134.
SECT. XXII.
Some Objections obviated.
p. 137.
SECT. XXIII.
Of the Remedies against Licentiousness and Faction. The first Remedy.
Page 140.
SECT. XXIV.
A second Remedy.
p. 142.
SECT. XXV.
Some concomitant Remedies.
p. 149.
SECT. XXVI.
Of the chief and essential Remedy.
p. 156.
SECT. XXVII.
The Conclusion.
p. 160.
Errat. p. 63, for "imbibed, read "imbued."
THOUGHTS ON CIVIL LIBERTY,
&c.
SECTION I.
The
DESIGN.
THERE are two Causes, essentially distinct, though often interwoven, by which a free State may perish. These are,
external
and
internal
Violence:
Invasions
from Abroad, or
Dissentions
at Home: The Rage of foreign
War,
or domestic
Faction.
After a dangerous and exhausting War, Victory hath at length restored Peace to our bleeding Country. But in vain the Sword of War is sheathed, if in Time of Peace the Poignard of
Licentiousness
and
Faction
is drawn, and madly level'd by many of our Countrymen, at the Breasts of their Fellow-Subjects.
To prevent the fatal Consequences of this deluded or deluding Spirit, is the Purpose of this Essay: In which the Writer will endeavour to trace the present State of Things to its general Foundations: By pointing out the real Basis and genuine Characteristics of true Liberty; by unmasquing the Pretences, and laying open the secret
Sources
and distinctive
Marks
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
As the political Principles here laid down and inforced, will be found strictly connected with Religion and Morals; no Apology will be made for endeavouring to establish the public Happiness of Mankind on the solid Basis of
Virtue,
which is the
End
of
Religion itself.—
In this Point the Writer confirms himself on the Authority of an excellent and learned Prelate, whose political Researches were of like Tendency.
"As the Sum of human Happiness is supposed to consist in the Goods of Mind, Body, and Fortune, I would fain make my Studies of some Use to Mankind, with Regard to each of these three Particulars; and hope it will not be thought faulty or indecent in any Man, of what Profession soever, to offer his Mite towards improving the
Manners
(I will add, the
Religion) Health,
and
Prosperity
of his Fellow-Creatures.
Dr.
Berkley
's Misc. p. 118.
"
SECT. II. Of the Nature of Civil Liberty.
TO some it will doubtless appear a superfluous Labour, to fix the true Idea of
civil Liberty,
in a Country which boasts itself
free.
Yet the Writer esteems it a necessary though obvious Task: Not only that he may appeal to his Idea of it, thus established; but also, because in the
Conduct
(at least) if not in the
Writings
of his Countrymen, it seems to have been sometimes mistaken.
The
natural Liberty
of Man, considered merely as a solitary and savage Individual, would generally lead him to a full and unbounded Prosecution of all his Appetites. Some Savages there are, though few, who live nearly, if not altogether, in this
brutal
State of
Nature.
These last Expressions, it must be confessed, are inadequate to their Subject: For such a State of Man is worse than that of Brutes, and in the strict Sense, is also
contrary
to
Nature.
For Brutes are endowed with unerring Instincts, which Man possesseth not: Therefore such a solitary and wretched State is strictly
unnatural;
because it prevents the Exertion of those Powers, which his
Nature
is
capable
of
attaining:
But those
Powers Society
alone can
call forth
into
Action.
Man is therefore formed for
Society:
That is, Man is formed for Intercourse with Man: Hence, through the natural Developement of the human Powers, a Variety of new
Wants,
a Necessity for mutual
Aids
and distinct
Properties,
must arise: From these, a new
Accession,
as well as a frequent
Disagreement
and
Clashing
of
Desires
must inevitably ensue. Hence the Necessity of
curbing
and
fixing
the
Desires
of Man in the social State; by such
equal Laws,
as may compel the
Appetites
of each
Individual
to yield to the
common Good
of
all.
From this salutary
Restraint, civil Liberty
is derived. Every natural Desire which might in any Respect be inconsistent with the general Weal, is given up as a voluntary Tax, paid for the higher, more lasting, and more important
Benefits,
which we reap from
social Life.
SECT. III. Of Licentiousness and Faction.
FROM the Nature of civil Liberty, thus delineated, the Nature of
Licentiousness
will easily be fixed: Being indeed no other than
"Every Desire carry'd into Action, which in any Respect violates those equal Laws, established for the common Benefit of the Whole."
Thus, an
unlimited Indulgence
of Appetite, which in the
savage
State is called
natural Liberty,
in the
social
State is stiled
Licentiousness.
And
Licentiousness,
when its immediate Object is That of
"thwarting the Ends of civil Liberty,"
is distinguished by the Name of
Faction.
SECT. IV. Unassisted Laws no permanent Foundation of Civil Liberty.
THESE Remarks are obvious; and clear to every Man possessed of the common Degrees of Understanding. Let us now consider,
"What are the
permanent Foundations
of civil Liberty:"
That is, in other Words,
"What are the effectual Means by which every Member of Society may be uniformly sway'd, impelled, or induced, to sacrifice his private Desires or Appetites, to the Welfare of the Public."
—This is a Subject, which deserves a particular Elucidation, because in our own Country, and our own Times, it seems to have been
much
and
dangerously
mistaken.
It hath been affirmed as a first Principle by certain Writers, and hath been artfully or weakly suggested by others,
"that the coercive Power of human Laws is sufficient to sustain itself: That the Legislator or Magistrate hath properly no Concern with the private Opinions, Sentiments, or Operations of the Mind: And that
Actions
alone fall under the legal Cognizance of those in Power."
The Author of the
Fable of the Bees
hath boldly laid down this; which, as a ruling Principle, pervades his whole Work. He professes himself the Friend of Liberty: He derides private Virtue, as the Offspring of Flattery, begotten upon Pride: He discards Religion, as a political Fable; he treats the Principle of Honour, as an empty Chimera; he recommends private Vices as public Benefits;
Fable of the Bees,
passim.
and having thus level'd the whole Fabric of
Manners
and
Principles;
what, do you think, is the grand Arcanum of his Policy, for the Prevention of such Crimes as would indanger the Grandeur and Stability of the State? Why;—
"severe Laws, rugged Officers, Pillories, Whipping-Posts, Jails, and Gibbets."
Essay on Charity Schools.
This Principle, of the Sufficiency of human Laws to sustain their own Efficacy and Power, without Regard to the Opinions or Principles of Men, hath been, at least, indirectly held forth by other Writers.
An Author, who although a
sincere,
was certainly an
imprudent
Friend of Liberty, speaks in the following ambiguous Stile; which, if not designed to impress the Principle here called in Question, is at least very liable to be interpreted into it.
"It is foolish to say, that Government is concerned to meddle with the
private Thoughts
and Actions of Men, while they injure neither the Society, nor any of its Members. Every Man is in Nature and Reason, the
Judge
and
Disposer
of his own
domestic Affairs;
and according to the
Rules
of
Religion
and
Equity,
every Man must carry
his own Conscience:
So that neither has the Magistrate a Right to
direct
the
private Behaviour
of Men; nor has the Magistrate, or any Body else, any Manner of Power to
model
People's
Speculations,
no more than their
Dreams.
Government being intended to
protect
Men from the
Injuries
of one another, and not to direct them in
their own Affairs;
in which
no one is interested but themselves,
it is plain, that their
Thoughts
and
domestic Concerns
are
exempted
entirely from its Jurisdiction: In Truth, Men's
Thoughts
are not subject to
their own Jurisdiction."
—"Let People alone,
and they will
take Care of themselves,
and do it
best:
And if they do not, a sufficient
Punishment
will
follow
their
Neglect,
without the
Magistrate's Interposition
and
Penalties.
It is plain, that such busy Care and officious
Intrusion
into the
personal Affairs,
or
private Actions, Thoughts,
and
Imaginations
of Men, has in it more
Craft
than
Kindness:—
To
quarrel
with any Man for his
Opinions, Humours,
or the Fashion of his Cloaths, is an
Offence
taken without being given."
—
"True and impartial Liberty is therefore the Right of every Man, to pursue the
natural, reasonable,
and
religious
Dictates of his own Mind: To
think what he will,
and
act as he thinks,
provided he
acts not
to the
Prejudice
of another.
Cato
's Letters, No. 62.
"
These Expressions are crude, inaccurate, and ambiguous; leaving the thoughtful Reader at a Loss for the Author's precise and determined Meaning. For, first, they may possibly imply,
"that the Magistrate hath no Right to violate the Laws of what is commonly called
religious Toleration
or
christian Liberty;
but that every Man hath an unalienable Right to worship God in that
Manner
which accords to the Dictates of his own Conscience."
—In this Sense they are rational and true:
And to this Truth the Writer hath more than once born public Testimony.
See Vol. of Sermons, Serm. 4, 5, 12.
But, secondly, they may imply,
"that Thoughts, Speculations, Opinions, Principles, however received and imbibed by the Mind of Man, have no Connexion with his Actions; at most, no Connexion so necessary and strong as to give the Magistrate a Right to
regulate
them by
any Means
whatever. That no Direction is to be given either to the
grown
or the
infant Mind;
that as every Member of Society hath a Right to hold what Opinions and Principles he pleaseth, so he hath the same Privilege to communicate them to his
Family
and
Children:
That they are to think what they will, because Thoughts and Opinions are a private and personal Affair: That the Magistrate is only concerned to regulate their Actions."
This is not only a possible Interpretation, but in all Appearance, the more natural of the two. For it is not here once suggested by this Author, that
Opinions
have any
Influence
on
Actions;
but rather, that they concern
nobody
but
Him
who
holds
them. 'Tis true, he speaks of them as being
reasonable,
and
religious:
But if they be the mere Result of private and fortuitous Thought, unaided by the Regulations of civil Policy, I see not why they may not more probably be
unreasonable
and
irreligious:
Because they are more likely to be model'd by
ruling Appetites
than
rational Deduction.
At the same Time, it is but Justice to this Author to say, that he certainly meant not (like the Author of the
Fable of the Bees)
to discard all
moral
Principles as groundless and chimerical; whatever his Intentions were with Regard to
Religion.
But his Expressions are
ambiguous,
and have been laid hold of by Men of the most libertine Opinions: Therefore in whatever Sense they were
written,
it is necessary to oppose them, in that Sense in which they have been
received.
And farther, this is certain: That the Principle implied in this second Interpretation hath passed into a general Maxim in this Kingdom, among those who pique themselves on
unlimited Freedom
of
Thought.
These Men have long and openly derided every
Regulation
of
Opinion
and
Principle;
have discarded all
moral
and
religious Instruction,
under the despised Idea, of
Prejudice of Education;
have laid it down as their fundamental Maxim,
"that you are to think what you will: Only to act honestly."
Not attending to that essential Connexion which subsists between
Thoughts, Opinions, Principles,
and ACTIONS.
Doubtless, any Society of Men, aiming at the Establishment of civil Liberty, have a Right to unite themselves on what Conditions they please. But it is the Purpose of this Essay, to prove, by Reasonings confirmed by Facts, that a free Community built on the Maxims above delivered, cannot be of
long Duration:
That the mere
coercive Power
of
human Laws
is not sufficient to
sustain itself:
That there is a strong and unalterable
Connexion
between
Opinions
and
Actions:
That a certain
Regulation
of Principles is necessary to check the selfish Passions of Man; and prevent
Liberty
from degenerating into
Licentiousness:
And that
"a certain System of Manners and Principles, mutually supporting each other, and pervading the whole Community, are the only permanent Foundation on which true civil Liberty can arise."
The natural Appetites, Passions, and Desires of Man, are the universal Fountain of his Actions: Without the Impulse which he receives from
those,
he would be at once unfeeling and inactive. Consequently, according to the State and Character of his Desires, his Actions will
naturally
be good or evil; innocent, useful, or destructive.
Were these Desires universally coincident with the Welfare and Happiness of others, no coercive Power would be wanting, as the Means of producing and securing perfect Liberty.
But the acknowledged Necessity of penal Laws affords an incontestable Proof, that the
unbridled Desires
of Man are utterly inconsistent with the Welfare and Happiness of his Fellow Creatures.
Whatever Means, therefore, are most effectual in curbing and
subduing
the selfish
Desires
of Man, are the most effectual Means of
regulating
his
Actions,
and establishing civil Liberty on its most permanent Foundations.
The mere coercive Power of human Laws, without an assistant Regulation of the Passions and Desires, is utterly inadequate to the great Ends either of
private
Happiness or
public
Liberty.
It cannot produce
private
Happiness to the Individual, because while it leaves his Mind open to be
infested
by every
unruly
Passion
that may arise, it
forbids
him the
Gratification:
Thus it sets the distracted Soul at Variance with itself. The best Consequence that can be hoped for, is a continued Conflict of
Fear
and
Appetite;
of a
Dread
of human
Laws,
warring with inordinate and
selsish Passions.
It cannot be a
permanent
Foundation of public Liberty; because while the Passions are thus left without an inward Controul, they will often be too strong for
Fear,
even where a legal Punishment is the certain Consequence: For as they are suffered to subsist in their full Vigour, and when kindled in the Soul are blind and headlong, they will often carry away the whole Man; will bear him down in their Gratification, even to unavoidable Destruction.
Still farther, and chiefly: Human Power cannot penetrate the secret Recesses of the Soul, nor reach the dark Intentions of the Heart of Man, nor always be of Weight to combat the Strength of Individuals: Hence
Cunning
will often
evade,
and
Force
will often
defy,
the coercive Power of the best-formed Laws. Thus
public Wisdom
must give Way to
private Gratification,
the
Innocent
must become a
Prey
to the
Guilty;
that is, in other Words,
Liberty
must be
destroyed,
and
Licentiousness
must
triumph.
SECT. V. Virtuous Manners and Principles the only permanent Foundation of civil Liberty.
WHAT, then, are the
permanent Foundations,
on which perfect Liberty can arise?—I answer, it can only arise on the Power of such a System of
Manners
and
Principles
effectually impressed on the human Mind, as may be an
inward Curb
to every inordinate Desire; or rather, such as may so frame and model the Human Heart, that its ruling Desires may correspond, coincide, or coalesce, with all the great and essential Appointments of public Law.
The Nature of Man admits of this Improvement, though not in a perfect, yet in a considerable Degree. He is born with Appetites suited to his own Preservation, and the Continuance of his Species: Beyond this, he is by Nature at once
selfish
and
social; compassionate
and
resentful; docile,
either to
Good
or
Evil;
and hence, capable of acquiring
new Habits,
new Passions, new Desires, either to the
Welfare
or
Destruction
of his Fellow-Creatures.
Virtuous Manners
I call such acquired Habits of Thought and correspondent Action, as lead to a steady Prosecution of the general Welfare.
Virtuous Principles
I call such as tend to confirm these Habits, by superinducing the Idea of
Duty.
Virtuous Manners are a permanent Foundation for civil Liberty, because they lead the Passions and Desires themselves to coincide with the Appointments of public Law. The infant Mind is pregnant with a Variety of Passions: But it is in the Power of those who are intrusted with the Education of Youth, in a considerable Degree, to determine the Bent of the nascent Passions; to fix them on salutary Objects, or let them loose to such as are pernicious or destructive.
Here, then, lie the first Foundations of civil Liberty: In forming the Habits of the youthful Heart, to a
Coincidence
with the
general Welfare:
In checking every rising Appetite that is contrary to This, and in forwarding every Passion that may promote the Happiness of the Community: In implanting and improving Benevolence, Self-Controul, Humility, Integrity, and Truth; in preventing or suppressing the contrary Habits of Selfishness, Intemperance, Pride, Dishonesty, and Falsehood: In teaching the young Mind to
delight,
as far as is possible, in every Virtue for its own Sake: In a Word, in so forming the Pleasures and Displeasures of the opening Heart, that they may coalesce and harmonize with the Laws of public Freedom.
Above all,
This
will give Stability to civil Liberty, if the social Passions of Individuals can be so far extended, as to include the Welfare of the
whole
Community, as their
chief
and
primary
Object. This Affection is distinguished by the Name of
public Spirit,
or the
Love
of our
Country;
the highest Passion that can sway the human Heart, considered as a permanent Foundation of true Liberty.
But in some Minds the selfish Passions are strong, and the social ones weak or wanting: And in the best formed Heart incidental Temptations may arise, and overturn its pre-established Habits: Therefore it is a necessary Measure for the Security of private Virtue and public Freedom, that
virtuous Principles
be likewise implanted in the Heart. Such Principles, I mean, as may
strengthen
the good Habits of Thought and Action already contracted, by superinducing the Idea of
Duty.
Of these there are but
three,
which can sway the Manners of Men, and confirm the Foundation of civil Liberty. These are
Religion, Honour,
and natural
Conscience.
The first has the
Deity
for its Object; the second, the
Applause
of
Men;
the third, the
Approbation
of our own
Heart.
The Frame and Situation of Man admits of no other
Principle,
from whence the Idea of
Duty
can arise.
The Principle of
Religion
tends to this End of confirming civil Liberty, as it induces the Idea of
Duty;
and urges the Performance of it, on the Belief of a just, omnipotent, and all-seeing GOD; who approves and condemns, will reward or punish, according as our Thoughts and Actions are Good or Evil.
But, as the Means of rendering
Religion,
a firm
Ally
and
Support
of
Liberty,
it is necessary that their
Dictates
should be
coincident:
That is, that the Thoughts and Actions which Religion prescribes as Duties, and forbids as Sins, should coincide with the Dictates and Appointments of public Law. In free Countries, this is the natural State of Religion; which commonly either bends to the established Laws of the Community, or moulds them into its own Genius and Complexion.
The Principle of
Honour
affords a concomitant Support of civil Liberty, when properly directed. It works by a powerful and universal Passion,
"our Fondness for the Applause of Men:"
But in free Countries, this Principle is much more liable to abuse than that of Religion: Because it is apt be be warped by the fashionable and ruling Manners of the Times: For whatever is fashionable is apt to draw Respect and Applause: Whatever is unfashionable is for the present intitled only to Contempt. Hence the Principle of
Honour
becomes
fluctuating
and
uncertain
in its Nature, and therefore in its
Effects:
A
Regulation
of this Principle, therefore, is of the most important Consequence; because, if left to its own fantastic Dictates, it will often
endanger
instead of
strengthening
the Foundations of public Freedom.
The third Principle, that of natural
Conscience,
which tends to confirm the Establishment of Liberty, is founded in the Approbation of our own Heart. This Principle is in one Respect independent on the other two, but in another Respect seems to stand intimately related to them. It is independent of them, as it neither looks out for the Approbation of God, nor the Applause of Men: It seems intimately related to them, because on a strict Examination of the human Frame, as well as the History of Mankind, it appears generally to be the Result of the
one,
or
other,
or
both.
We transplant the acknowledged
Approbation
of
Heaven
and the
Applause
of
Men
into our own
Heart;
and from this, through the fertile Power of
Association,
springs a new Principle of
Self-Approbation
and
Self-Reproof,
as an additional
Regulator
of our Thoughts and Actions.
'Tis true, many Writers have resolved the
particular
Dictates of natural Conscience into an
unchangeable
Principle of Right and Wrong, arising universally in the human Heart. There is no Doubt, but the
general
Principle of Self-Approbation or Self-Rebuke ariseth in an
universal
Manner, in some Degree or other: But as it appears from the History of human Nature, that the
particular
Dictates of this Conscience
vary
with the other received Principles of the Mind, it is not necessary to debate or dwell on this speculative Point: We may take it as a Truth confirmed by Facts, that the
particular
Dictates of natural
Conscience
will generally be founded on those of
Religion
and
Honour.
Hence, then, it appears, that this Principle of Conscience stands in Need of a
Guide,
in the same Degree as those Principles on which it is founded. If it be founded on the
Religion
of a free State, it will generally
coincide
with the Principles of
Freedom:
If its Foundations are laid in the mere Principle of
Honour,
its Dictates will be
fantastic
as those of its Parent; and will therefore require a parallel
Regulation.
Each of these Principles, singly taken, is of Power, in
some
Degree or other, to strengthen the Basis of civil Liberty. On their
united
Influence, added to the Force of pre-established Habits of Thought and Manners, public Freedom might seem to arise on immoveable and everlasting Foundations.
But as the Nature of Man, even in his most virtuous State, is
imperfect
and
inconsistent;
so, in Spite of the most salutary Institutions, some
Defects
will intrude. Hence, from an unavoidable Alloy of Vice, civil Liberty must ever be
imperfect:
A certain Degree of Licentiousness (that is, of private Will, opposing the Public) will always mix itself, and in some Degree contaminate the Purity of every Commonwealth.
Yet, while virtuous Manners and Principles clearly predominate in their Effects, a State may still be justly called
free.
But in Proportion as these Manners and Principles decay, and their Contraries rise into Power and Action, public Freedom must necessarily decline. For in that Case, the Passions and Powers of the human Mind are all set in Conspiracy against the Dictates of public Law. Hence unbridled Passions will have their Course; every Man's Heart and Hand will be set against his Brethren; and the general Cement of Society, which bound all together, being thus dissolved; even without any external Violence offered, the Commonwealth through its
internal Corruption
must fall in Pieces.
SECT. VI. An Objection considered.
DOubtless, it will be objected (nay, it
hath
been objected) by the Patrons of unlimited Freedom of Thought, that This is indeed a System of
Slavery;
that it is building civil Liberty on the
Servitude
of the
Mind,
and shackling the infant Soul with
early Prejudice.
In Answer to this plausible Objection, the Writer replies (what he hath elsewhere advanced
Sermons on Education, &c. p. 62, &c.
"That a Prejudice doth not imply, as is generally supposed, the Falsehood of the Opinion instilled, but only that it is taken up, and held, without its proper Evidence. Thus the infant Mind may be prejudiced in Favour of
Truth
as well as
Falsehood;
and neither can the one or the other, thus instilled, be properly called more than an
Opinion."
Farther: The infant Mind cannot remain in a State of Indifference and Inaction, either with Regard to Habits of Conduct, or Principles and Opinions. Habits, Impressions, Beliefs, Principles, of one Kind or other, the growing Mind will inevitably contract, from its Communication with Mankind: If therefore rational Habits and Principles be not infused, in order to preclude Absurdities; it is Odds, but Absurdities will get the Start, and preclude all rational Habits and Opinions. The Passions and the Reason of a Child will put themselves in Action, however wretched and inconsistent; in the same Manner, as his Limbs will make an Effort towards
walking,
however awkward and absurd. The same Objection, therefore, that lies against instilling salutary Habits and Principles, will arise against teaching him to
walk erect:
This being indeed a Violation of the natural
Freedom
of the
Body,
as the other is of the natural
Liberty
of the Passions and the
Mind.
The Consequences, too, are of the same Nature: For sure, a Child left to the Direction of his own Appetites and Reason would stand the same Chance to grovel in Absurdities, as to crawl on Hands and Knees, and wallow in the Mire.
Neither is there any Difference, with Respect to the real and internal Freedom of the Mind, between
Opinions instilled,
and
Opinions caught by Accident.
For in Truth, the Mind cannot be
compelled
to receive any Habit of Thought, Principle, or Opinion. These may indeed be offered to the infant Mind, but the Reception of them is its own voluntary Act; and is equally so, whether they be presented by fortuitous Incidents, or designed Instruction. All the Difference is, that in the first Case such a System of Habits and Opinions will certainly arise, as tend to the Destruction of Society: In the second, such a System of Habits and Opinions may be infused into the free Mind, as will lay a sure and lasting Foundation of public Liberty and Happiness.
Nay, if any Difference could arise, with Respect to the true
Freedom
of the
Mind;
surely,
That Mind
ought, in the Eye of Reason, to be adjudged
most free,
which adopts a System of Thought and Action, founded on the
Wisdom
of the agreeing
Society;
rather than
That
which is suffered to be incurably tainted with the
vague
and
random
Conceptions of
untutor'd Infancy.—
This, at le
st, is consonant with the old Stoic Principle, that
"The wise Man alone is free.
Solus Sapiens liber.
"
Much hath been said in our Times, indeed, concerning the Force of
unassisted
human
Reason:
The Writer would not willingly either flatter or degrade its Powers. But to Him it appears, that they are superficially informed of the Frame and Tenor of the human Mind, who think that
mere Reason
(as it exists in Man) is more than a Power of discerning and chusing the
properest Means
for obtaining his
desired Ends,
whether these Ends be
Good
or
Evil.
The Passions, pre-established Habits, and infused Principles of the Soul are the universal Motives to human Action. Where these point not to an
End desired,
Reason may indolently exercise its Eye; but can never find nor create an Object, of Force sufficient to put the Powers of the Soul and Body in Motion. Hence, human Reason must always receive its particular Cast and Colour from the pre-established Passions, Habits, and Principles; will ever form its ruling Ideas of Good and Evil, Right and Wrong, Just and Unjust, from these great Fountains of human Action.
The History of human Nature confirms this Truth: Hence it is, that this boasted human Reason is indeed so poor and unprofitable a Possession; being warped and moulded into that particular Form, which the varying Accidents of Climate, Soil, established Manners, Religion, Policy, bodily Frame, or prevailing Passions and Principles, chance to give it.
Hence, then, it appears, that the private Freedom of the infant Mind is not
violated
but only
directed
to its
best End,
by early and salutary Instruction. Hence it appears to be the proper Destination of Man, that he shall not be left to the Follies of his own weak Understanding and nascent Passions; that he shall not be left
fortuitously
to imbibe the Maxims of corrupt Times and Manners; Maxims which, setting aside all Regard to their speculative Truth or Falsehood, do lead to the Dissolution of Law and Freedom: But that he shall be conducted voluntarily to adopt those Habits and Principles, which have been consecrated by the Approbation of the best and wisest Men, in every Age and Nation; such, in particular, as are suitable to the Laws, the Customs, the Genius, of his own free Country; such, in a Word, as are a
secure Foundation
of
public Liberty.
SECT. VII. A Confirmation of these Principles, drawn from the History of free States.
1st. Of Sparta.
THESE Reasonings, founded on the Nature and Constitution of Man, will receive a strong and unanswerable Confirmation from the History of free States. Hence we shall obtain the clearest Evidences of Fact, that while virtuous Manners and Principles retained their Efficacy and Power, civil Liberty remained unshaken: That as these decayed, Liberty declined: That as soon as these were lost, Liberty was no more; Licentiousness crept in; Faction triumphed; and overwhelmed these degenerate States in one common Ruin.
To this Purpose I shall briefly analyze the Genius of the three most eminent
Republics
that are recorded in Story: Those of SPARTA, ATHENS, and ROME. The Events are sufficiently known to those who are conversant in ancient History: But the fundamental and leading
Causes
of these Events deserve a particular Investigation: They will form a concurrent Proof of the Principles here given.
The Republic of SPARTA claims the first Place; both on Account of its Antiquity, and Perfection. By its Perfection is meant, not the moral Perfection of its
particular Institutions,
but of the
Means
and
Principles
by which
These
Institutions were secured.
The leading Institutions which LYCURGUS fixed as the Essence of his Commonwealth, were these which follow.
1. He established a Senate of
twenty-eight,
as an
intermediate Power
between that of
Prince
and
People...
2. He made an equal Partition of Lands and Goods, among the free Members of the Community... 3. He introduced the Use of Iron Money, instead of Gold and Silver... 4. He banished or prevented all the Arts of Commerce, Elegance, and Luxury... 5. He ordained, that all the Members of the Society should eat together, and partake alike of the same coarse Fare... 6. He established an occasional Community of Wives: So that a Wife was not so much the Property of her Husband, as of the Republic, to the End of Population... 7. With a parallel View, he ordained a Kind of Community of Children: By This, no Father had the Care of his own Child; which, on its Birth, was immediately delivered over to the Officers of the State; and was either preserved or destroyed according to their Decree... 8. A continued Attention to the Preservation of the State, and an unremitted Preparation and Readiness for defensive War, formed the chief Employment of the
Spartan
State... 9. He committed the Cultivation of their Lands to a large Body of Slaves, who dwelt in the surrounding Country, were deprived of all the natural Rights of Men, and were often laid in Wait for, and butchered in cold Blood by the young Men of SPARTA.
This Enormity, practised with Impunity by the young Men of Sparta, hath been held unaccountable: But seems to have been allowed on the same warlike Principle with That other Allowance
"of stealing Victuals."
Both were probably established as the Means of preparing them for the Exercise of
Stratagem
in War.
These were the public and essential Institutions of the Spartan Republic: Many of them strange in their Nature: Yet formed for long Duration, through the Means and Principles on which they were established: Which we shall find to be consistent with, and corroborative of the Principles of civil Liberty above laid down.
The first and best Security of civil Liberty, hath been shewn to consist
"in impressing the infant Mind with such Habits of Thought and Action, as may correspond with and promote the Appointments of public Law."
—This Security was laid by LYCURGUS, in the deepest and most effectual Manner, by the Mode of
Education
which he prescribed to the
Spartan
Youth.
No Father had a Right to educate his Children according to the Caprice of his own Fancy. They were delivered to public Officers, who initiated them early in the Manners, the Maxims, the Exercises, the Toils, in a Word, in all the mental and bodily Acquirements and Habits, which
corresponded
with the
Genius
of the
State.
Family Connexions had no Place: The first and leading Object of their Affection, was the general Welfare. This Tuition was carefully continued, till they were enrolled in the List of
Men:
To secure the Manners thus acquired, they were prohibited from travelling into other Countries, lest they should catch Infection from ill Example: On the same Foundation, all Visits from Strangers were forbidden.
Plutarch: in Lycurgo.
Thus were they strongly and unalterably possessed with the
Love
of their
Country.
These severe Manners were confirmed by all the Principles that could strengthen them in the Mind of Man.
The Principle of
Religion
laid at the very Foundation of the State: For LYCURGUS expressly modeled his Commonwealth on the Pretence of a divine Authority. He declared to the People, that its essential Institutions were given him by the Oracle of DELPHI, which he went on Purpose to consult.
Plutarch: in Lycurgo.
Again, after he had modeled his Republic, he repaired once more to the sacred Tripod; and enquired,
"whether the God approved of the Laws he had established."
The Answer was in the Affirmative: And this Reply LYCURGUS sent to SPARTA.
Ib.
This Principle was so intimately blended with that of the State, that their
Kings
were at the same Time the
High Priests
of the Community.
Ib.
—The Religion and Power of an Oath was so strongly impressed on their Minds, that LYCURGUS trusted the future Execution of his Laws, to
That
Oath which the People took, on his last Departure from the City:
Plutarch: in Lycurgo.
—An Oath, which proves, that the Religion of the Country was not at Variance with the Appointments of the State; because it obliged them never to depart from the Institutions of LYCURGUS.
The Principle of
Honour
was not at Variance, but
co-operated
with and
sustained
That of
Religion.
PLUTARCH is very particular, on their early and continued Encouragement of this Principle. Their Songs (which made a Part of their Education) tended to inflame their Minds with honest Ambition.
"Their Subject was generally the
Praise
of such Men as had dy'd in Defence of their Country; or in
Derision
of Those who had shrunk from the public Service. The
old
Men talked high of what they had done: The
younger
Part echo'd back their Song; declaring their Resolution, not to disgrace the Valour of their Forefathers.
Plutarch: in Lycurgo.
"
The Principle of natural
Conscience
was so intimately interwoven with those of their
Religion
and
Honour,
that it affords a striking Proof how far natural Conscience depends on these other Principles. If natural Conscience were in itself a well-regulated and
sufficient Guide;
could any Thing have been more odious to its Dictates, than
Prostitution, Adultery, Thieving,
and
Assassination?
Yet all these did the severe
Spartans
practise, not only
without Remorse,
but with
Self-Approbation;
the infant Mind being before-hand modeled to this
preposterous
System of
imagined Duty.
For, on the very ruling Principles of the State, their Daughters were debauched, their Wives were common, their Victuals were stolen, their Slaves were murdered.
Ib.
Thus was the famed Republic of
Sparta
strongly fortify'd, by the united and concurrent Power of
Manners
and
Principles,
all pointing to the
same
End, the
Strength
and
Duration
of the
State:
Of Manners and Principles, which in their particular Application, seemed to sacrifice the Happiness of Individuals to the Preservation of the Whole: And while they were most
abhorrent
from the Maxims of
improved
human Nature,
secured
the Institutions of a
savage
Policy.
From this View of the
Spartan
Commonwealth, these farther Remarks may naturally arise.
1. It hath been Matter of Surprize to those who have written on this famed Republic,
"by what Means LYCURGUS should be able to perswade the
Spartans,
not only to change the Form of their Government, but to quit their private Possessions, their Manner of Life, the Use of Money, the Advantages of Commerce, the Property of their Wives, the Care of their Children; and adopt a contrary System, so abhorrent from the Desires of civilized Man."
And indeed, supposing the
Fact,
it should seem a Paradox utterly unaccountable.—The true Solution seems of a quite different Nature.—PLUTARCH leads me to it.—
"There is so much Uncertainty (saith he) in the Accounts which Historians have left us of LYCURGUS, that scarce any Thing is asserted by one, which is not contradicted by others. Their Sentiments are quite different as to the Family he came of, the Voyages he undertook, the Place and Manner of his Death: But most of all, when they speak of the Laws he made, and the Commonwealth he founded.—They cannot be brought to agree, as to the very
Age
when he lived.—TIMAEUS conjectures, that there were two of his Name, and in different Times; but that the one being more famous than the other, Men gave to Him the Glory of both their Exploits.
Plutarch: in Lycurgo.
"
—Hence it appears, that the true History of this Lawgiver was lost in the Darkness of fabulous and obscure Ages: And that, as to the Beginnings of this Commonwealth, we have nothing to depend on, but the traditionary Rumours of a barbarous and lying Period. Now this seems to be fairly weighed down by the internal Evidence arising from the Nature of the Establishment itself. For it was indeed
"the Establishment of barbarous Manners, carried into Permanency by political Institutions."
That Mankind should be
carry'd back
to
This,
from a State of
Humanity
and
Civilization;—
that they should quit private Property, Money, Commerce, Decency, domestic Comforts, Wives and Children, and give them up to the Possession of the Public, is a Contradiction to all the known Powers and Passions of the human Mind. To effect a
Change
of
Government only,
is a Work sufficient for the Abilities of the greatest Legislator: But to overturn all the pre-established Habits of the Head and Heart, to destroy or reverse all the fixed Associations, Maxims, Manners, and Principles, of a whole civilized Community; were a Labour, which might well be ranked among the most extravagant Legends of fabulous GREECE.
On the other Hand, to
bring forward
a Tribe of untaught Savages
one Degree
towards
Civilization,
and
there
to
fix
them;—to assign equal Portions of Land to those among whom Lands laid in Common;—to introduce Iron Money, where
no Money
had been in Use;—to prohibit Commerce, where Commerce was almost unknown;—to make the Girls dance naked in Public, where they had never known the decent Use of Cloaths;—to allow of Theft and Homicide under certain Limitations, where
Both
had been practised without Limitation;—to make Wives at Times a public Property, where promiscuous Concubinage had prevailed; to give Children a public Education, where no Education had taken Place;—These might all seem the natural and practicable Efforts of a
Pagan
Legislator.
Thus, the Formation of the
Spartan
Republic seems clearly accounted for. A Tribe of untaught Savages, were brought forward by LYCURGUS one Degree towards Civilization and Humanity, and There fixed by severe Institutions.
The Fate of AGIS, their patriot King, confirms this Solution. He, with a Degree of public Virtue seldom seen in any Station, attempted to bring back the corrupt State to its first rigorous Institutions. But That which LYCURGUS could establish among untaught Savages, AGIS found impracticable, among a corrupted People. He was seized, imprisoned, and murdered by a Faction, in his Attempt to restore Freedom to a degenerate Republic.
2. If the Argument here alledged be just, concerning the first Institution of this Republic; it follows (what, indeed, seems probable in its own Nature) that the strongest political Institutions may be formed on the savage State of Man. In this Period the Legislator hath few or no prior Institutions to contend with; and therefore can form a System of Legislation consistent with itself in all its Parts. While the Lawgiver who reforms a State already modeled and corrupted, must content himself with such partial Regulations, as the Force of prior Establishments and public Habits will admit.
3. The long united State of this Republic afford a Proof against a political Maxim commonly received,
"That Divisions are necessary to a free State; and that inward Tranquillity is a certain Symptom of its approaching Ruin."
For, from the History of SPARTA, it appears, that during the Space of at least five hundred Years, intestine Divisions were unknown. This common and mistaken Maxim (adopted by almost all political Writers
Among others, by MACHIAVEL and MONTESQUIEU.
) hath been founded on a Supposition, that where Opinion is
free,
it must ever be
divided.
The
Spartan
Commonwealth presents a clear Proof of the Reverse: That Opinion may be
free,
yet still
united.
But this
free Union
can only be the happy Effect of an early and rigorous Education; by which the growing Minds of the Community are voluntarily led, by public Institutions, into
one common Channel
of
Habit, Principle,
and
Action. . .
PLUTARCH tells us, that the Effect of this entire Union was so conspicuous in SPARTA, that
"the Commonwealth resembled
one
great and powerful Person,
actuated by one Soul,
rather than a State composed of
many
Individuals.
In Lycurgo.
"
4. It appears, that the Institutions of the
Spartan
Republic were admirably calculated for each other's Support, while their perfect Union was maintained: And further, that when an Inroad was made into any one of them, the Ruin of the Whole was inevitable.
"Its Institutions were admirably calculated for each other's Support, while their perfect Union was maintained."
Because they tended strongly to prevent the
first Inroads
of
Temptation
to the
Mind,
the very
first Impulses
of
selfish Passion.
The equal Partition of Lands and Goods took away all Hope of Superiority in Wealth: The Introduction of Iron Money rendered Wealth cumbersome and untractable: The Prohibition of Commerce prevented the Materials of Luxury: The Banishment of elegant Arts prevented the first Conception of them. Their public Meals eaten in common, cut off the Hope, nay, prevented the Desire of all private Indulgence of the Palate, the Disorders of Intemperance. To secure these rigid Institutions, the public Education of their Children was ordained, lest private Passion should mix its Alloy, with the rigorous Appointments of the State. Thus the Republic was so round and compact in all its Parts, that it might seem to defy the Attacks of the most powerful Enemy.
"But supposing an Inroad made into any one of its capital Institutions, the Ruin of the Whole was inevitable."
For its several Parts receiving their Strength from each other, were therefore mutually
dependent;
and the Whole being an austere Contradiction to the natural Appetites of Man, the least Inroad of Indulgence naturally led on to more forcible Temptations. Thus,
Inequality
of Possessions brought in
Wealth
and
Poverty. Wealth
brought in
Luxury: Poverty
gave Birth to
Envy
and
Avarice.
Licentiousness and Faction thus crept in; and the Fall of SPARTA was
inevitable.
Yet even amidst the
Decays
of this Republic, the Force of a rigorous Education essentially mixed with the Principles of the State, was still conspicuous. The Power of Manners and Maxims thus imbibed was so untractable, even in the declining Periods of the
Spartan
Commonwealth, that PHILOPAEMEN, after many fruitless Attempts to annihilate its Influence, declared,
"that the only effectual Method of destroying SPARTA, must be in
dissolving
the
Education
of their
Youth.
Plutarch: in Philopaem.
"
This Analysis is clearly confirmed by PLUTARCH in the following Passages.
"Since we may blame the Legislators of common Rank, who, through Want of Power or Wisdom, commit Mistakes in the Formation of fundamental Laws; how much more may we censure the Conduct of NUMA, who for the Reputation of his Wisdom only, being called by the general Voice of an unsettled People to be their King, did not in first Place constitute Laws for the Education of Children, and Discipline of Youth? For Want of which, Men become seditious and turbulent, and live not peaceable in their Families and Tribes: But when they are inured from their Cradle to good Principles, and imbibe from their Infancy the Rules of Morality, they receive such Impressions of Virtue, as convinces them of that Advantage which mutual Concord brings to a Commonwealth. This, with many others, was one of the Policies of LYCURGUS: And was of singular Force in the Confirmation and Establishment of his Laws:"
—
"Hence the
Spartans
having sucked in these Principles with their Milk, were possessed with a most reverend Esteem of all his Institutions: So that the Fundamentals of his Laws continued in Force for above five hundred Years, without any Violation.
Comparison of NUMA and LYCURGUS.
"
Such then was the Force of concurrent Manners and Principles, all centering on one Point, impressed on the infant Mind, and continued by a Variety of rigorous Institutions.—Thus, the Strength of the
Spartan
Republic, like the firm-compacted Weight of the
Macedonian Phalanx,
bore down every opposing Power.
SECT. VIII. Of the Republic of Athens.
WE have seen the Force of Manners Principles in the strong Formation, the
Unanimity,
and
Continuance
of the
Spartan
State. We shall now see the Effects of the
Want
of Manners and Principles, in the weak Establishment, the unceasing
Factions,
and early
Dissolution
of the Commonwealth of ATHENS.
It appears above, that LYCURGUS, probably forming his People in the first and earliest Period of Civilization, was thus enabled to establish a perfect Republic. SOLON, on the contrary, having a
corrupted
People to
reform,
could only institute such a Kind of Government, as their
pre-established
Habits, Vices, and Forms of Polity could admit.
Here we discover the Foundation of that striking Remark of SOLON himself.
"That he gave not the
Athenians
the
best
Laws that could be
given,
but the
best
they were
capable
of
receiving.
Plut. Solon.
"
The first and ruling Defect in the Institution of this Republic seems to have been
"the total Want of an established Education, suited to the Genius of the State."
There appears not to have been any public, regular, or prescribed Appointment of this Kind, beyond what Custom had accidentally introduced. 'Tis true, that the Parents often had Masters to instruct their Children in the
gymnastic
Arts, and in
Music.
Which last, in the ancient Acceptation of the Word, included
Poem
as well as
Melody:
'Tis farther true, that the Poems thus taught their Children, included often the great Actions, but withal, the Vices of Gods and ancient Heroes.
See a Dissertation on Music and Poetry, Sect. v.
Yet in this first and ruling Circumstance, in the Institution of a free State, the Parents were much at Liberty, to do as seemed good to them. Hence, a dissimilar and discordant System of Manners and Principles took Place; while some youthful Minds were imbibed with proper and
virtuous
Principles, some with
no
Principles, and some with
vicious
Principles; with such as must, therefore, on the Whole, tend to shake the Foundations of true Freedom.
The second ruling Defect in the Constitution of this Republic, was the Establishment of an unmixed and absolute Democracy. This naturally arose from the
licentious
State of
Manners
and
Prinples,
which SOLON found already prevalent among the
People.
A
virtuous
People would have been content to have
shared
the legislative Power with the higher Ranks of the Commonwealth. But a
licentious
People naturally grasped the Whole, as the likliest Means (in their deluded Eye) of gratifying their own unbridled Passions. From this partial Distribution of Power, the State was blindly ruled by the Dregs of the Community. For
All
who were of Ability to maintain a
Horse,
were admitted to the Rank of
Magistracy:
Plut. in Solon.
And all who were
admitted
to the Rank of
Magistracy
were
excluded
from any Share in the
legislative Power.
Ib.
Hence it followed, that
"All they who possessed the
Legislative Power,
were such as were
not
of
Ability
to
maintain
a
Horse."
—
"Do not you despise (said SOCRATES to his Pupil ALCIBIADES, who was afraid to speak in Presence of the
Athenian
People) do not you despise That
Cobler?
I do, reply'd the Youth. Do not you (rejoyned the Philospher) equally contemn that
Cryer,
and yon
Tent-Maker?
ALCIBIADES confessing that he did; then said SOCRATES, "Is not the Body of the
Athenian People
composed of Men
like these?
And therefore, when you
despise
the
Individuals,
why should you fear the
Whole?
Aeliani Var: Hist. L. ii. C. 1.
"
—A hopeful Tribe of
Legislators!
and such as might naturally be supposed to give Rise to that Licentiousness, Discord, and Ruin, in which they were soon swallowed up.
From this weak and imperfect Establishment, founded on the Caprices of an ignorant, unprincipled, and
licentious Populace,
all the subsequent
Factions,
which ended in the
Ruin
of this
Republic,
are clearly derived.
Even SOLON, the original Legislator, outlived the Commonwealth he had formed. On his Departure from ATHENS,
Factions
immediately arose. PISISTRATUS, the first ruling Demagogue,
led
the
People;
obtained a Guard; seized the Castle; and
established
a
Tyranny.
Plut: in Solon.
We need go no farther into the History of this Republic, for a Discovery of the Causes of its final Ruin. It is true, that an imperfect Semblance of Liberty often appeared, amidst the Factions of succeeding Times: It is true, that Wealth and Luxury contributed to hasten the Fall of ATHENS: It is true, that PERICLES and ALCIBIADES, in their Turn, while they seemed to polish the Manners, inflamed the Vices of the Populace; and led them on to the certain Destruction of the State. But for the Ruin of this Commonwealth, we need not have Recourse to the Inroads of Wealth or Luxury, as the Causes of its Dissolution. It resembled a beautiful
Edifice
founded in
Sand
and
Rubbish:
Where an
uneducated,
an
unprincipled,
a
licentious Populace,
ruled the State; That State was destined to the convulsive Struggles of
Faction
while it lived, and then to a
speedy Death.
SECT. IX. Of the Commonwealth of Rome.
LET us now pass to a Review of the Commonwealth of ROME: In the History and Fate of which, we shall find most abundant Proof of the Truths here laid down, concerning the Power of Manners and Principles, in the Preservation or the Dissolution of public Freedom.
MONTESQUIEU remarks finely, in his Discourse on this Republic, that
"more States have perished, thro' a Violation of Manners, than thro' a Violation of Laws
Grandeur, &c.
"
The Reason (though he does not assign it) appears evident on the Principles here given. He who violates established
Manners,
strikes at the general
Foundation;
he who violates
Law,
strikes only at a particular Part of the
Superstructure
of the State.
In the Republic of SPARTA, we have seen the original State of Manners and Principles conspiring strongly to the
Preservation
of the Republic: In that of ATHENS, we have seen the original State of Manners and Principles tending no less clearly to its
Dissolution.
In analysing the original State of Manners and Principles in the
Roman
Commonwealth, we shall find a different and
intermediate
State of Things; mixing the
Strength
of the
Spartan,
with the
Weakness
of the
Athenian
Institutions; tending first to
enlarge
and
aggrandize
the Republic, and in the End to
corrupt
and
destroy
it.
The Manners and Principles of early ROME, which tended to enlarge and aggrandize the Republic, were 1. A
Love
of their
Country
instilled into their rising Youth: Formed chiefly on the Power of
Custom;
and more particularly on the
warlike
Genius of the State. Their Annals abound with so many Instances of this grand Passion, that present Times stand amazed, and with Difficulty credit their Story.
2. This Passion, founded on an
early,
though
not
a
prescribed
Education, was so strengthened by their
religious
System, that till the fatal Entrance of the Doctrine of EPICURUS, no
Roman
was ever known to have violated his Oath.
See Montesq. Grand. des Rom. C. x. Polyb. L. 6.
3. Their Principle of
Honour
coincided with that of their Religion. It was so strong, at the Time of the first Formation of the Republic, that the Punishment of
Disgrace
was judged sufficient to deter the People from a Violation of the Laws.
"When a Delinquent was cited before the People (saith LIVY) the
Valerian
Law ordained only, that he should be branded as
infamous.
Liv. Hist. L. 10.
"
4. From the Truths laid down above, it appears, that the Principle of natural
Conscience
must of Course co-operate with these, for the Confirmation of civil Freedom. The Force of this Principle is no less conspicuous in the early Periods of
Roman
Liberty: It arose even into a ferocious Pride of Virtue, independent of all outward Testimony, which hath distinguished the great Names of ancient ROME, from Those of every other People upon Earth.
5. To these we must add the
Equality
of Property, the
Mediocrity
of Possession, the
Simplicity
of Life, which prevailed in early ROME; all these were the Outworks that guarded the internal Strength of Manners and Principles; and seemed, like the Institutions of SPARTA, to promise an Eternity of Freedom.
But in Spite of all these Foundations of civil Liberty, there were three fatal Circumstances, admitted into the very Essence of the Republic, which contained the
Seeds
of
certain Ruin:
While the
Tree
seemed to
flourish
in its full Growth and Vigour,
These,
like
Canker-Worms,
lay
eating
at the Root.
The first of these was the Neglect of instituting public Laws, by which the
Education
of their Children might have been
ascertained.
This is justly charged by PLUTARCH, as a capital Defect in NUMA's Legislation:
See above, Sect. vii.
This Defect, when once admitted into the Essence of the State, could not easily be rectify'd in succeeding Times: The Principle could only have been effectually infused, at the general Formation of the whole Mass. In Consequence of this Error in the first Concoction, the supporting Principles of Freedom were vague and fluctuating: For Want of this
preventing
Power, the incidental Vices of a Parent were naturally transmitted to his Children, and thence to future Ages. The rigorous Education of SPARTA was a strong Check to the Proneness of human Nature towards Degeneracy and Corruption: Through This, every incidental Vice dy'd with its first Possessor: While the more lax Institution of the
Roman
Republic, suffered every original Taint in Manners and Principles to be transfused into, and to contaminate succeeding Times.
The second of these was
"Their Principle of
unlimited Conquest."
Their early Passion for War arose from their
Necessities.
On their first Establishment, they had neither
Territory
nor
Commerce:
They lived by
Plunder:
Hence, the
ruling Genius
of the
State
was
warlike:
Their warlike Genius was
unchecked
by any other Principle: Hence, unremitted Exercises, unceasing Improvements in Discipline, increasing Valour and Ferocity arose. Thus they attempted to subdue, and thus they subdued the World.
But such an Empire is utterly
untenable: Valour
may
acquire,
but cannot
maintain
it. The
Body
of such a State is too enormous to be effectually animated by the
Soul.
This is a Cause of Ruin so clear, that it hath met every Writer's Observation; and therefore needs no farther Proof.
The third Principle of inevitable Destruction, which seems to have been inwrought into the very Essence of the
Roman
Republic, was the fatal Principle of
Change:
This is a Cause not so obvious; and therefore may require a farther Investigation.
MONTESQUIEU hath justly observed, that one Cause of the
Roman Greatness
was
"their
adopting
any Institution or Custom of other Nations whom they conquer'd, provided it was better than their own.
Grandeur, &c. C. i. ii.
"
It seems to have escaped the Observation of this great Writer, that the same Principle of
Adoption,
carried through every Period of the Republic, led the Way to its final
Ruin.
For altho' in the early Periods, when Manners were simple, and concurrent Principles were strong, this Spirit of
Adoption
was confined to Customs that were
better
than their own; yet in the succeeding Periods, when Manners grew more relaxed, and Principles were weakened, the same Spirit of
Adoption
opened a Door for the Admission of
Customs
that were
pernicious.
Thus the Admission of
Change,
which in the virtuous Ages led to the
Greatness,
in succeeding Times brought on the
Destruction
of the Republic.
The sagacious Romans soon found the Consequences of this Defect: They saw, that through a Want of original,
preventive,
and salutary Institutions, bad Manners were creeping insensibly on the State. Hence the Creation of the
Censors
had its Rise: An Office, which immediately took Cognizance of the Manners of the
Citizens.
But this high Office was ineffectual in its End; because it had not Power universally to
prevent, but
only in Part to
remedy
the Evil. Hence, while
particular
and
detected Offences
only, could be punished by the
Censor,
the
Hearts
and
Manners
of the People were laid open to a
general Corruption,
from the fatal Principle of
Novelty
and
Adoption.
The Danger arising from this Principle manifestly increased with the increasing Empire: That
Identity
and
Integrity
of Manners and Principles, which is the Soul and Security of every free State, gave Way to Manners and Principles wholly
dissimilar.
New Maxims of Life, new Principles of Religion and Irreligion, of Honour and Dishonour, of Right and Wrong, picked up indiscriminately among the Nations which they conquered, by Degrees infused themselves into the Heads and Hearts of the
Roman
Citizens.
Here, then, we see the original Foundation of all the Misery and Ruin which ensued. On the Conquest of the
luxurious, immoral,
and
unprincipled
Tribes of GREECE, the
Romans,
having no
preventive Remedy
in the Essence of their State, of Course
adopted
the
Luxury,
the
Immoralities,
the
Irreligion,
of the conquered People.
"It seems to me (says the excellent MONTESQUIEU) that the
Epicurean
Sect, which made its Way into ROME towards the Close of the Republic, contributed much to corrupt the Hearts of the
Romans.
The
Greeks
had been infatuated with it before them; accordingly, they were sooner corrupt. POLYBIUS tells us, that in His Time, no
Greek
could be trusted, on the Security of his Oath; whereas, a
Roman
was inevitably bound by it.
Grandeur, &c. C. x.
"
—He adds,
"CYNEAS having discoursed on the
Epicurean
System at the Table of PYRRHUS, FABRICIUS wished that all the Enemies of ROME might hold the
Principles
of
such a Sect.
Ib.
"
Thus, as in the early Periods of the Commonwealth, they had adopted the
Virtues,
in the later Times they assumed the
Vices
of the conquered Nations. Thus, by unperceived Gradations, the same Principle,
"The Admission of
Change,
first led to the
Greatness,
and then to the
Ruin
of the Republic."
All the particular Consequences that followed, were
occasional
and
inevitable.
The Rapacity, the Factions, the civil Wars; the enormous Profligacy of Individuals, the horrible Calamities of the State;—All these are finely pursued by MONTESQUIEU; and were no more than the natural and incidental Effects of this general Cause,
"The Loss of Manners and Principles."
Hence, the
Progress
and
Retreat
of the
Roman Power
resembled the
Flow
and the
Ebb
of a vast Ocean; which, rowzed from its Bed by central Concussions,
overwhelmed
and
forsook
the
Earth.
SECT. X. How far these Facts can properly be apply'd to the political State of Great Britain.
THOUGH the Study of History be often instructive and useful, yet, in one Respect, it becomes the Source of frequent Error, even when it is written with Impartiality and Truth. This ariseth from a mistaken Application of historical Facts. Errors of this Kind are apt to creep into all Reasonings, on every Subject, where Men and Manners are concerned: But they are liable to infect
political
Reasonings, above all others.
As the political Interests of Men form the principal Subject of History, the Reasoner on this Subject hath Recourse to Facts, as the best Support of his Argument. Yet, the Politician seems, of all others, most liable to be mistaken in the Application of History to his own Purpose; because the political Connexions and Interests of Men are, above all others,
complicated
and
various.
Hence, as no two political Constitutions were ever the
same
in
all
their Circumstances, though
similar
in
many;
so, all Arguments drawn from a
partial
Resemblance, must be inadequate and inconclusive; unless when it appears, that no other Circumstances took Place, by which That
partial
Resemblance might be
counteracted,
and its Effects destroyed.
Yet, it hath been a Practice too common among political Reasoners, from a
partial
Resemblance between two States, to infer a
total
one; and because they have been
like
in
some
Respects, to draw Conclusions, as if they had been
like
in
all.
Much Caution, therefore, is necessary, in the Application of historical Facts: Without This, we shall run into perpetual Error. Let us, then, remark some of the most
essential
Circumstances, in which the Constitution of the
British
State differs from those of SPARTA, ATHENS, and ROME; and then draw such Conclusions, as may be consistent with these Distinctions.
1. We may lay it down as a fundamental Truth generally acknowledged, that the
political
Constitution of GREAT BRITAIN, in its
main Outline,
is
better modeled
than those of SPARTA, ATHENS, or ROME. The legislative and executive Powers are more equally balanced, and more clearly distinguished. Now, if Laws could support themselves, it would follow, that this political State must
therefore
be of
longer Duration.
But as it hath been made appear, that the Duration of free States depends not so much on their mere
Form,
as on the
Manners
and
Principles
which support them; so, nothing can be decided concerning the
Duration
of the
British
State, from its mere
external Model.
2. The
Christian
Religion, established in BRITAIN, is, in its own Nature, far superior to that of these ancient Commonwealths. The absolute Perfection and glorious Attributes of the Deity; the great Principle of universal Charity; the particular Duties of Man to Man, thence resulting; the Sanctions of future Reward and Punishment; all these tend to purify and exalt the Soul, far beyond the Rites of ancient Paganism: For This, even in its best Forms, was ever built on the History and Examples of deify'd Men, whose Lives had often been blotted with the most flagrant Crimes; and therefore, could never exalt the Heart of Man, beyond this weak Principle of Elevation.—But as the
Power
of a
Religion
depends, not only on its
excellent Genius,
but on its being
effectually impressed
on the Mind; so, no Consequence can be justly drawn, from the mere
un-apply'd
Excellence of its Nature.
3. That
Self-Consistence,
and perfect
Unity
of Parts which distinguished the Republic of SPARTA, cannot be expected nor found in that of BRITAIN. For the first was the entire Work of a single Legislator, struck out at one Heat; all its Institutions conspiring to one End, and centering (like the Radii of a Circle) in one single Point: To This, the outward Form of Government, the internal State of Education, of Religion, Manners and Principles, were uniformly subordinate. But at the Time of the
Revolution,
which was the first Aera of BRITAIN'S Freedom, many prior Institutions and Establishments, both in Religion and Policy, Manners and Principles, had taken Place: These had been formed on the fortuitous Events of Time; and had resulted from a Variety of contending Parties; of
Power,
fluctuating at different Periods, between the
Kings,
the
Nobles,
the
Priesthood,
and the
People.
All these it was impossible for human Art to remove and new-model, without shaking the State to its Foundations: Hence, though the Form of the
British
Constitution, civil and religious, be of unrivaled Excellence; yet in its very Birth it came attended with unalterable Weakness.—It wanted that general Self-Consistence, that entire Unity of Parts, as well as of established Habits, Manners and Principles, suited to the Genius of the State, which was the very Spirit and Support of the
Spartan
Commonwealth. In this Circumstance, it appears likewise inferior to the
Roman
Commonwealth; yet, perhaps, superior to that of
Athens.
4. The
British
System of Polity and Religion, perfect in its leading Parts, but imperfectly united and supported, is not upheld in its native Power (like that of SPARTA) by correspondent and effectual Rules of Education. The Fundamental Laws of our Country, the Principles and Duties of Christianity, are indeed occasionally explained and taught, in a certain Manner and Degree: But it is in the Power of every Private Man to educate his Child, not only without a Reverence for These, but in an absolute Contempt of them. It is much in every Parent's Option, whether he will impress his Childrens Hearts with such Habits and Principles as accord to the Genius of the State, or with Impunity suffer them to contract such Manners and Opinions as tend to its Dissolution. A Circumstance pregnant with Danger to this free State: For hence, Manners and Principles, its chief Support, are liable to be incurably perverted in the Heart, at that Time of Life, in which alone they can be effectually impressed.
5. In the important Circumstance of
"the Admission of
Change,"
or the
"Principle of
Adoption,"
the
British
Constitution is contrary to That of SPARTA; and nearly on a Level with Those of ATHENS and ROME.—Foreign Commerce, foreign Travel, new Manners, new Principles, new Modes of Dress, of Amusement, of Luxury, are here adopted with a Degree of Avidity almost unbounded.—Happy would the Writer esteem his Labours; if this Principle, which
in some Respects
hath tended so much to the
Improvement
of his Country, could in any Degree be checked by his weak Admonitions, from
degenerating
into a
Cause
of its
Destruction.
6. The last Circumstance of Note, here to be remarked, is
"The Difference of Character among the several
Ranks
of the Community in these ancient free States, and That of
Britain."
In Point of
Knowledge
and
Ability,
the Difference was great between the
Nobles
and the
People,
in these ancient States: In BRITAIN, the
Nobles
and the
People
(in their
legislative
Capacity) are fairly on a
Level.
When ALCIBIADES addressed the legislative Body of the
Athenian
People, he addressed
Coblers, Brasiers, Tanners, Tent-Makers.
When the People of ROME retired in Discontent to the sacred Mountain, they were appeased by the Fable of the
Belly, Head,
and
Hands.
A
Lord
of Parliament would make but a sorry Figure, who should come armed with
such
an
Apologue,
for the
Conviction
of a
British
House of
Commons.
Again: In each of these ancient Republics, the collective Body of the
People
were much of one uniform Character; being Inhabitants of the same City, and nearly on a Level with Respect to Employment and Property. In ATHENS, they were all
Artisans
or
Tradesmen:
In SPARTA and ROME, they were all
Soldiers.
A low Degree of Knowledge was their general Lot: For much Knowledge can only be acquired by much Leisure; which their Occupations did not allow. The People of SPARTA were intentionally virtuous: Those of ATHENS were corrupt: Those of ROME were of a mixed Character. As these free States voted not by Representatives, the Presence of the People was necessary, in all Decisions of a public Nature: Hence, such a People from their Ignorance, Wants, collective Presence, and Pride of Power, must ever and suddenly be swayed by the Eloquence of public Demagogues.
But the
collective
Body of the People of BRITAIN are of a Nature and Character less uniform, and essentially different. They may properly be divided into two Classes;
"The
People
of the
Kingdom;"
and
"the
Populace
of its
Cities."
The
Populace
of its
Cities
resemble Those of ATHENS in most Things; except only, that they are not possessed of the
legislative Power.
For the
People
of ATHENS were
"a Body of
Labourers
and
Mechanics,
who earned their Bread with the Sweat of their Brows; too generally ignorant and ill-educated; too generally prosligate in Manners, and void of Principle."
But the
People
of this
Kingdom,
in their
collective
Body, are upon the Whole, of a quite different Character. For under this Title are properly comprehended
"all Those who send Representatives for the Counties to Parliament."
This Catalogue will include the landed
Gentry,
the beneficed Country
Clergy,
many of the more considerable
Merchants
and Men in
Trade,
the substantial and industrious
Freeholders
or
Yeomen:
A collective Body of Men, with all their incidental Failings, as
different
in Character from the
Populace
of any great
City,
as the
Air
of RICHMOND HILL from that of BILLINGSGATE or WAPPING.
SECT. XI. Of the general State of Manners and Principles, about the Time of the Revolution.
AT this famed Period, it is evident, that the Manners and Principles of the Nation did, upon the Whole, tend to the Establishment of
Liberty;
otherwise, Liberty had not been established. This Revolution was perhaps the noblest public
Reform
that ever was made in any State: And such a Reform, nothing but the
Prevalence
of
upright Manners
and
Principles
could have
effected.
The
religious
Principle of
Protestant Christianity
seems to have taken the Lead, even of the Love of civil Freedom. The Dread of
Popery
was, at least, equal to That of
arbitrary Power:
The national
Honour
and
Conscience
(on the whole) coincided with, and confirmed the
Christian
Principle: These three united Powers raised Liberty to the brightest Throne she ever sat on: A Throne which nothing but their
Contraries
can
shake.
Yet notwithstanding the unrivaled Excellence of this civil and religious Establishment, there could be little Hope of its immediate and perfect Efficacy. Declaimers may express their Wonder, that a System so perfect should not at once attain its End: But they who take a nearer View of the Manners and Principles of those Times, will rather say, that the Tumults and Dissentions which instantly arose, were in their own Nature
inevitable.
The Manners of the Times, tho' in the Main favourable to Liberty, were mixed with a gross Alloy of
private Licentiousness:
And hence, factious Measures of Course arose, from the Prospect of Power or Gain.
See
Estimate,
V. i. Part 2.
The preceding Age had caught a strong Tincture of
Vice,
from the prevalent Example of a debauched Court. The
Education
of Children was still left in an
imperfect
State: This great Revolution having confined itself to the Reform of
public
Institutions; without ascending to the first great Fountain of political Security,
"the private and effectual Formation of the
infant
Mind."
The
religious
Principle, though chiefly consonant with the new Constitution, and indeed its leading Support, was in
Part
at
Variance
with it.—A numerous Body of
Papists
held a whole System of Principles diametrically opposite to its most essential Dictates.—Another Body of Protestant
Jacobites
were at War with the Principles of the State: For they held an hereditary and unalienable Right of Kings, founded on certain
mistaken
Passages of the sacred Scriptures.—A third Body of Men, though they allowed the Necessity and Justice of the Revolution, on the Principle of an
Abdication,
yet still retained an Opinion at Variance with the State: They asserted an
independent Hierarchy,
vindicated a religious
Intolerance,
and on some misconstrued Passages of Scripture, affirmed the Duty of a
passive Obedience
without Limitation.—A fourth Body was That of some bigoted
Dissenters,
who not content with a religious Toleration which had been justly granted them, aimed, on a mistaken Principle of Religion, to erect their own System upon the Ruins of the established Church.—All these Parties held
religious Principles
at
Variance
with the
Laws
of
Freedom.
The Principle of
Honour,
tho' in many, and great Instances, co-operating with that of Religion; yet when not founded on it, was often at
Variance
with it. This Principle, as it hath appeared in modern Times, was in its Origin chiefly
Military.
Hence it hath generally taken Cognizance of Actions, not as they are
just
or
unjust,
but merely as they are
splendid
or
mean, brave
or
cowardly:
Thus, it overlooks all Laws, both human and divine: Hence unbounded Contempt of Enemies, furious Party-Rage, unlimited Resentment and Revenge,
were
and still
are
its favourite Dictates. Thus it hath come to pass, that Honour often forbids what Religion approves; and approves what Religion forbids. This uncontrouled and dangerous Principle mixed itself with the licentious Manners of the Times: Hence, Attachments, Resentments, and Party-Rage, arose and were persisted in, essentially contradictory to the Principles of Freedom.
Consonant with what hath been above delivered, the Principle of
Conscience
did not
correct,
but
followed
one or other of these various Principles, according to their Predominance and Power. And
These
being incurably discordant among themselves, the national Ideas of Right and Wrong, Just and Unjust, which were formed on
These,
could not but prove themselves of the like
motley
and
disagreeing
Complexion.
Here, then, we behold the natural and unavoidable Source of all the Dissentions that disgraced the Reigns of King WILLIAM and Queen ANNE. And while some affect to wonder, how so generous a System of Religion and Polity, so noble a Constitution in Church and State, could fail to produce private Virtue and public Happiness; we now obtain an additional Proof of the irresistable Power of
pre-established Manners
and
Principles,
when at
Variance
with the
Laws
of
Freedom:
We may see, even to Demonstration, that the
Animosities
of
Those Times
were
not incidental,
but
inevitable.
SECT. XII. Of the Changes in Manners and Principles, through the succeeding Times.
THE Accession of GEORGE the First seemed the Aera of perfect Freedom. And if an excellent King, at the Head of an unrivaled Constitution, could have secured Liberty; it had now been fixed on immoveable Foundations.
The Alloy of
licentious Manners
and
contradictory Principles
which had tarnished the preceding Reign, still maintained their Influence: But the declared and zealous Advocates for Liberty now assumed the Reins of Power, and began more effectually to combat those
false Principles
which were at
Enmity
with the
State.
Would to God, these intentional Friends of public Liberty had been as much the Friends of private Virtue and Religion! They would not, then, have undermined the Foundations, while they were building the Superstructure of civil Freedom.
The Seeds of Irreligion had for some Time been privately fermenting: But they did not break forth into open Growth till about this Period.—'Tis remarkable, that BURNET,
Conclusion of his History.
enumerating the Dangers by which the State was threatened in the Year 1708, makes no Mention of
Irreligion,
as an Evil worth being obviated. But soon after, this Pestilence came on, with a terrible Swiftness and Malignity.
The slavish Principle of absolute
Non-Resistance,
and an
independent Hierarchy,
were still prevalent in Part, especially among the
Clergy.
To combat
these,
and expose them to the public Contempt, certain Writers were encouraged by Those in Power. A vigorous and effectual Attack was made on the Advocates for Despotism. But in their Zeal against Tyranny, these Writers supplanted Freedom.
They assailed
Superstition
with such Weapons as destroyed
Religion:
They opposed
Intolerance
by Arguments and Ridicule which tended to sweep away all public
Establishments:
While they only aimed (perhaps) to contend for
Freedom
of
Thought,
they unwarily sapped the Foundation of all salutary
Principles.
See the Div. Leg. of Moses. Dedication Vol. ii. p. 6, &c.
CATO's
Letters,
and the
Independent Whig,
among many other Tracts of less Note, seem palpable Instances of this Truth: The one was written in Defence of
civil,
the other, of
religious
Liberty. Yet both tended, in their general Tour, to relax those Principles by which alone Freedom, either civil or religious, can be sustained: By their intemperate Insults on religious Institutions; by their public and avowed Contempt of all Opinions, Principles, (or, if you please) Prejudices, instilled into the infant Mind, as the necessary Regulators of human Conduct: By exalting unaided human Reason, far beyond the Rank she holds in Nature: By debasing all those Assistances which the Wisdom of Ages had prescribed and consecrated, as the necessary Means of correcting her vague and wandering Dictates.
While These Authors made this illjudged, and perhaps undesigned Attack, on the Foundations of civil Liberty; others made a still bolder and more fatal Inroad; and opened a wider Door for
Licentiousness,
by an Attack on
Christianity
itself.
In this List of Enemies to their Country, it must be a Mortification to every Friend of Virtue and Liberty, to find the noble Author of the
Characteristics.
His Morals were unblemished, his Love of Virtue and Freedom indisputable: But by confounding two Things, which he saw
accidently united,
though in their Nature
essentially distinguished,
he polluted his
Arguments
against
Intolerance,
with the grossest
Buffoonries
on
Christianity.
There is no Doubt, but that the current Reasonings of the Times had brought him to a Habit of Belief, that all This was harmless Pastime. To this Purpose he seems to speak himself.
"'Tis certain, that in Matters of Learning and Philosophy, the Practice of
pulling down
is
pleasanter,
and affords more
Entertainment,
than that of
building
and
setting up.—
In the literate warring World, the
springing
of
Mines,
the
blowing up
of Towers, Bastions, and Ramparts of Philosophy, with
Systems, Hypotheses, Opinions,
and
Doctrines
into the Air, is a
Spectacle
of all other the most naturally
rejoicing.
Miscell. iii. Chap. 1.
"
These intemperate Sallies of Gaiety may serve as a Comment on the Passage already cited from CATO's
Letters.
They are a clear and concurrent Indication of the ruling Principle of the Times; when
Opinions
and
Doctrines
began to be derided as Things
indifferent.
The noble Writer was naturally led to embrace this growing Error of the Times, by a too flattering Opinion which he had imbibed concerning unassisted human Nature; as being sufficient of itself to establish the unerring Practice of Virtue, unless beforehand sophisticated by servile Institutions.
The noble Writer, indeed, attempts a Vindication of this licentious Conduct, by an Appeal to the Practice of ancient GREECE and ROME. There, he tells us,
"Philosophy
had a free Course, and was permitted as a
Balance
against
Superstition.
And while some Sects, such as the
Pythagorean
and latter
Platonic,
joined in with the Superstition and Enthusiasm of the Times; the EPICUREAN, the
Academic,
and
others,
were allowed to use all the Force of
Wit
and
Raillery
against it.
Letter on Enthusiasm.
"
—This hath a plausible Appearance: Yet I am perswaded, the noble Author would have looked grave, had he been put in Mind of the Remark which FABRICIUS made on the
Epicurean
Sect,
"that he wished
such Principles
to all the
Enemies
of ROME.
See above, p. 76.
"
Or had he recollected, that when the
irreligious
System of EPICURUS prevailed in GREECE and ROME, these
unprincipled
and
profligate
States were on the
Eve
of their
Destruction.
Soon after the Author of the
Characteristics,
another more dissolute Writer appeared on the public Stage. I mean, the Author of
"The Fable of the Bees."
This Gentleman, as hath been observed above, leveled his Artillery on the whole Fabric of
Morals
and
Religion.
His System was diametrically opposite to that of Lord SHAFTESBURY: The one was founded on the
unaided Excellence,
the other on the
incurable Depravity
of
human Nature.
But now the vagrant Spirit of Irreligion was Abroad; and the most inconsistent Productions were greedily swallowed, provided only they
disgraced
CHRISTIANITY.
The Avidity with which these Compositions were received, soon emboldened a succeeding Writer, to make a formal Attack on the Religion of his Country:
Christianity as old as the Creation
now appeared: In which the Gospel was grosly misrepresented, insulted, and disgraced; and in Compliance with the ruling Malady of the Times, that
poor
and
sickly
Creature,
"unassisted
Human Reason,"
was vainly exalted to the
Throne
of ETERNAL TRUTH!
Other inferior Workmen in this patriot Amusement of blowing up the Religion of their Country, such as WOOLSTON, and MORGAN, I pass unnoticed.
In a succeeding Period, and down to the present Time, the Evil hath increased, and been compleated. For now, not only
revealed
but
natural
Religion hath been publicly attacked, in the Writings of Lord BOLINGBROKE: An Author who stands convicted of designed Profligacy, even on his own Confession.
"Some Men there are,
the Pests
of
Society I think them,
who pretend a great Regard to Religion in general, but who take every Opportunity of declaiming publicly against that System of Religion, or at least that Church Establishment, which is received in BRITAIN.
Dissert. on Parties. Let. xii.
"
—You See, this patriot Writer proclaims his Abhorrence even of Those who assault the
Out-Works
of Religion: And then, with Modesty unparallel'd, proceeds to blow up the
Citadel.
The last of these patriot Worthies, by which the present Age stands distinguished, is the Author of
"Essays philosophical and moral:"
Who, disdaining the vulgar Practice of a particular Attack,
undermines
all the
Foundations
of
Religion, revealed
and
natural;
and with a Pen truly
Epicurean,
dissolves at once all the
Fears
of the
Guilty,
the
Comforts
of the
Afflicted,
and the
Hopes
of the
Virtuous.
Such, then, hath been the Progress of this public Evil; which hath proceeded almost without
Cognizance
from the Magistrate: Instead of
That,
it is well known, that some of these public Enemies of their Country and Mankind were formerly pensioned, and others privately encouraged by Those in Power. How This came to pass, and aggravated the growing Evil, it is now necessary to point out.
We have seen above, that a Foundation was laid for this, in an ill-conducted Opposition to the Enemies of Freedom. They who were employed to sweep away
false Principles,
imprudently struck at
all Principles.
But beyond This, a famous Minister assumed, and long held the Reins of Power. There seems not the least Foundation for the Charge laid against him by his Enemies,
"That his Design was to inslave his Country."
Neither had he any natural Inclination to corrupt Practices: Yet he rather chose to rule by These, than to resign his Power. Nay, perhaps he thought this corrupt System the only one, which, under the Circumstances of Those Times, could support that illustrious Family, which was brought in, as the happy Support of Liberty. Farther, perhaps, he judged This the only possible Expedient for prolonging a
Peace,
which He thought
necessary,
till Time should wear out the false Principles, on which the expelled Family still held their Influence in the Minds of the People.—From
some
or
all
of these Motives, He not only
gave Way
to Corruption, but
encouraged
it. To this End,
Religion
was
discountenanced:
And
Christian Principle,
which would have been the firmest
Friend
of
Liberty,
was
discarded,
as the
Enemy
of
Corruption.
In the mean Time,
Trade, Wealth,
and
Luxury
increased: These, in their
Extreme,
having an unalterable Tendency to a Dissolution of Manners and Principles, went Hand in Hand with the Progress of Corruption; which, in its most improved State, this mistaken Minister left, as a lasting Legacy to his Country.
See an Estimate, &c. Vol. ii. p. 204, &c.
The Effects of this established System of Corruption did not immediately appear: But about the Year fifty-seven, they came to their
Crisis;
advancing with the Appearances even of
public Ruin.
That powerful Correctress, NECESSITY, gave a
temporary Union
to all Parties, and a
temporary Restoration
to the
State.
See ib. Vol. i. p. the last.
But from the Deduction of Causes here given, it was natural to expect, that as soon as
Danger
ceased,
Faction
would arise.
It follows also, that it must arise on Foundations widely different from Those in the Reigns of WILLIAM and ANNE. For the Dissentions of these
past
Times were chiefly founded in
false Principles:
Those of the
present
Age, on a
Want of Principle.
For the false Principles which disgraced the Protestants of the last Age, are vanished. The mistaken Interpretations of Scripture, on which the
Jacobite,
the
Tory,
the
bigoted Dissenter,
founded their various Pretensions and Attempts, are
now
held in general Derision: A Preacher, of whatever religious Congregation, who should
now
advance these obsolete State-Heterodoxies, would be the Contempt of his wiser Audience.
Nay, what is more, these false Principles tending to Despotism, are generally banished, even from the Breasts of the Clergy; except only a very few of the most aged. For the Bishops being appointed by the Patrons of Liberty, have been such, as held Principles consistent with the Freedom of the State: And much Caution having been required of them, and used by them, in the Appointments of their Clergy, the general Complexion of this Body hath changed from That of being the
Enemies,
to That of being the
Friends
of Freedom.
Much it were to be wished, that along with the
Tares,
the
Wheat
had not also perished. But the general System of
Manners
being
relaxed
though
refined;
See the Estimate, Part i.
and
Education
still left more and more
imperfect;
the Principle of
Religion
being unhappily
destroyed
among certain Ranks, and
weakened
among
others;
Ib.
—That of
Honour
being thus left to its own
false
and
fantastic
Dictates;
Ib.
—and
Conscience
naturally following the
Whims
of its
untutored
Parent;
—Licentiousness
and
Faction,
founded on a
Want
of
Principle,
cannot but arise, and stand among the
"leading Characters
of the
present Times."
SECT. XIII. Among what Ranks, Licentiousness and Faction may most probably be expected.
THOUGH this Want of Principle must naturally infect every Rank of Men, in a certain Degree; yet some Ranks stand more exposed to it than others.
And, that we may give as little Offence as possible, while we speak the Truth; let it be observed, that all Orders of Men being born with an equal Tendency to Virtue or Vice; their adopting the One, or falling into the Other, depends chiefly on the Temptations to which their
Rank
exposes them.
Let us consider the Temptations to Licentiousness and Faction, to which the
leading Ranks
stand exposed.
Wealth and Power give Opportunities of Indulgence; Indulgence naturally inflames Appetite.—Flattery awakens contempt; and Contempt weakens the Fear of Offence or Shame.—Laws which bind little Men, are often too weak for Great ones.—Leisure, when not dignify'd by suitable Accomplishments, ends in Idleness; and Idleness is the Parent and the Nurse of licentious Folly. To such Temptations do the
Great
stand exposed, in the important Article of
Manners.
With Respect to the
Principle
of
Religion,
their present Situation is no less unfavourable. Dissolute Opinions flatter their disordered Passions: Nor will they ever want Sycophants, to present this alluring Bait to their Desires.—The Maxims of Irreligion are now so generally established among Those with whom the young Men of Fashion converse, that they must be peculiarly fortunate, if they escape the
Infection.
Wherever This Taint is given, the Principles of
Honour
and
Conscience
become vague and ineffectual, if considered as the Supports of Liberty. Certain
Delicacies
of
personal
Conduct they may produce; but can never rise to an unbiassed and steady Prosecution of the
public Welfare.
Another Circumstance unfavourable to the
public
Virtue of the higher Ranks presents itself. Their Situation leads them to
expect,
and to
claim,
the great and
lucrative Offices
of the State. I need not
here
point out, how strongly This tends to betray them into the Extremes of selfish Views, Ambition, Party-Rage, Licentiousness, and Faction.
See the Estimate, &c. Vol. i. Part 2.
Add to all these Considerations, their frequent and long-continued Meetings in the Capital: A Circumstance which, from the powerful Effects of
free Communication,
cannot but inflame all these Causes of political Dissention.
If we next examine the State of the
Populace
of the great Cities, we shall find that Their Situation naturally exposes them to such Temptations as lead to factious Conduct, when not early fortify'd by a virtuous Education. They are often urged by
Want;
of which,
Discontent
and
Envy
are the inevitable Effects. They are let loose to every Impulse of Appetite, by frequent Opportunity and Secrecy of Action: They are tempted by wicked Examples; inflamed by evil Communication and intoxicating Liquors: And though the industrious Mechanic may sometimes escape the Infection; yet the Life of the
uninstructed Poor
in great Cities, is too commonly a horrid Compound of Riot and Distress, Rapacity and Thieving, Prostitution and Robbery, Wickedness and Despair.
Now if this Body of Men be indeed, what Candour itself cannot deny,
"too generally ignorant and ill-educated; too generally profligate in Manners, and void of Principle;"
it follows, that like
"the
Athenian Populace
of old, they must be liable to the
Seduction
of artful Men;
the ready
Tools
of every unprincipled
Leader,
who may choose to misguide them, to the Ends of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
But
"The
PEOPLE
of
GREAT BRITAIN, as above distinguished,
See p. 87, 88.
are of a Character essentially different from both These. The landed
Gentry,
the Country
Clergy,
the more considerable
Merchants
and Men in Trade, the substantial and industrious
Freeholders
and
Yeomen,"
possess a
middle
State of Life, which guards them from many of those Temptations that surround the
higher
and the
lower
Ranks. Their
imaginary
Wants are
fewer
than those of the
Great:
Their
real
Wants are
fewer
than those of the
Poor:
Hence Their Appetites are less inflamed to Evil.—Their Education generally seconds this happy Situation, in a certain Degree: Though imperfect, it is commonly more consistent with the main Outlines of public Law, than that of the superior or inferior Ranks.—Their Principles of Religion confirm this Education: They stand not generally exposed to the Infection of dissolute Opinions. Their Sentiments of
Honour
and
Conscience
are most commonly built on the
Doctrines
of
Christianity.—
Their
Numbers
and their
Station
conspire to
exclude
them from a
general Claim
to the lucrative Offices of the State. Their
collective Knowledge
is of sufficient Reach to prevent their
general Seduction
to the Purposes of
Licentiousness:
Their
Dispersion,
and rural Life, prevent those continued and unrestrained Communications, which are alike fatal to private and public Virtue.
Let not the Writer be misunderstood. There are Examples of Integrity and Dishonour, of Virtue and Vice, among all Degrees of Men. He only points out the Circumstances which naturally tend, upon the Whole, to form the several Ranks into these distinct Characters.
From this View of the several Ranks, it follows, that although
"The
People
of this Kingdom"
must inevitably partake of the various Manners and Principles of the
Great
and the
Populace,
with which they at Times communicate; though they be subject to the common Failings of Men, and to the
incidental
Inroads of Licentiousness from
higher
and
lower
Life;—yet upon the Whole, and considered as one
collective Body,
they stand comparatively clear of many Temptations to Vice; and therefore must naturally be least exposed to the Influence of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
One Consequence, arising from their
Dispersion,
must not pass unnoticed. It not only prevents the general Depravation of their Manners and Principles, but likewise prevents their
uniting
in large
Bodies,
upon all
slight
Occasions. Hence, though they are apt to
doubt,
nay to be
alarmed,
on the
factious Clamours
of the
Capital;
yet they are not rowzed into
Action,
but on
singular
and
important
Emergencies.
To conclude: They are a
great,
but
quiescent
Power; on whose
collective Knowledge
and
Integrity,
the Freedom and Fate of this Nation must
finally
depend. In the last Age, through the Influence of
false Principles,
pre-established or infused, they had well-nigh shaken the Foundations of Liberty:
See above, p. 91.
In the present,
these
mistaken Principles being
no more,
They are now
"the firmest
Bulwark
of BRITAIN's
Freedom."
SECT. XIV. Of the most effectual Means of detecting Licentiousness and Faction.
WHERE Faction is founded on false
Principles,
it is easily
detected,
because it is generally
avowed.
It implies no moral
Depravity,
but only an
Error
of the Mind: And he who holds this
Error,
is not naturally
ashamed
of it, because he holds it as a
Truth.
But where Faction is founded on Licentiousness and Want of Principle, it cannot be so easily detected: For as it implies a moral Depravity, it will naturally attempt to
veil
itself; and to this End, will assume the
Garb
and
Appearance
of
Freedom.
The favourite Subject of its Clamours will be the
Misconduct
of Those who
govern.
And in a Country where Liberty is justly ranked among the greatest national Blessings, the most plausible Pretence of Faction will be,
"to load the executive Power with the Charge of Despotism."
In every free State there will frequently occur certain Subjects and Measures,
"of
doubtful Expediency."
These, in the wide Field of political Contention, may justly be stiled
"the
debateable Grounds."
On these doubtful Points, even the Friends of Liberty may sometimes differ: Therefore the Patrons of Faction will naturally lay hold on these, as the most successful and effectual Means of State Distraction: Because Thus they may hope to mingle with, and to pass for the Friends of Freedom.
When therefore such doubtful Measures become the Subject of political Contention; it may be difficult to determine, from the mere Circumstance of
Opinion, who
are the Friends of Liberty, and
who
the Abettors of Faction: Because, in these Points, there may be an incidental Difference of Opinion, even among the Friends of Liberty themselves.
A much surer Determination may be formed on the
Manner
and
Conduct
of the
dissenting Party:
For the Friend of Liberty, having no selfish Views, will be rational, honest, equitable, in the Prosecution of his Wishes. He who is actuated by the Spirit of Licentiousness and Faction, will be irrational, dishonest, iniquitous.
Let us, then, endeavour to particularize these distinctive
Marks
or
Characters:
Thus shall we best be able to determine,
"who
are the
Friends
of
Liberty,
and
who
the
Abettors
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction."
SECT. XV. Of the Characteristic Marks of Liberty.
THESE which follow, are perhaps some of the clearest
Characteristics
of the Spirit of
Liberty:
By which the Friends of public Freedom, though dissentient from any Measure of Government, will be evidently distinguished.
—Each
of these Marks may seem
decisive,
even when
separately
viewed: But to do Justice to this Argument, it will be necessary to consider and
weigh
them in
Union;
because as they in Part
depend
on
each other,
they will
illustrate each other,
and at once
receive
and
give
additional
Confirmation.
1.
"The Friend of Liberty will endeavour to preserve that just Balance of divided Power, established by Law, for the Security of Freedom."
—Because the
public Welfare
is the leading Object of his Wishes; and can only be effectually obtained by the Preservation of such a Balance.
This will be the general Aim and End of the true Friend of Liberty: This
End
will be prosecuted by
suitable Means;
and its
Reality
will be
confirmed
and
illustrated
by these which follow.
2.
"He will be attached to Measures, without respecting Men."
—Because the Passions and Interests of Individuals ought to yield to the public Weal.
3.
"He will be generally self-consistent, both in Speech and Action."
—Because, the public Welfare being the uniform Object of his Pursuits, This can only be steadily and effectually promoted, on clear and uniform Principles.
4.
"He will not attempt to inflame an ignorant Populace against their legal Governors."
—Because an ignorant Populace are, in all Cases, unqualify'd to decide on the Measures of Government.
5.
"His Debates, either in the Senate, or from the Press, will be void of undistinguishing and injurious Imputations on any whole Bodies of Men, who may differ from him in Opinion."
Because, Truth and the public Welfare being his desired End, he will clearly seé, that
others
have the same Right of
approving,
as
Himself
hath of
disapproving,
the Measures of Government.
6.
"He will not industriously and indiscriminately defame the private Characters of the Individuals who differ from him in Opinion."
—Because Calumny thrown on Individuals is a still more aggravated Crime, than That which is promiscuously aimed at Bodies of Men.
SECT. XVI. Of the first characteristic Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
THOUGH we have seen, that the Patrons of Faction will attempt to mix and confound themselves with the Friends of Liberty; yet, in Spite of their Pretences, they will be detected by the following characteristic Marks, which will stand in
clear Opposition
to Those of
Freedom.
These, like the former, may seem sufficiently decisive, even when
separately
viewed: But to do Justice to this Argument, it will in the same Manner be necessary to
consider
and
weigh
them in
Union:
Because, as they in Part
depend
on
each other,
they will
illustrate each other,
and at once
receive
and
give
additional
Confirmation.
1.
"The Leaders of Faction (being naturally of the higher Ranks
See above, Sect. xiii.
) would aim to establish an
aristocratic Power;
and
inslave
both
Prince
and
People
to their own Avarice and Ambition."
Thus, if any Set of Men had in
former
Times been in Power; and while in Power, had oppressed embarrassed Majesty; had threatened the Prince with a general Resignation; had thus intimidated him to their own Purposes; had by these Means usurped the
legal Prerogatives
of the
Crown;
and apply'd them rather to the Support of their own
Influence,
than to the
public Welfare:—
If the
legal Privileges
of the
People
had fared no better in their Hands:—If These, too, had been swallowed up, in the great Gulph of aristocratic Power:—If the Members of the lower House, while they seemed to be the free Representatives of the People, had been in Truth, a great Part of them, no more than the
commissioned Deputies
of their
respective Chiefs,
whose Sentiments they declared, and whose Interests they pursued:—
If such a Set of Men, as soon as they had lost their Influence, should now rail at the Privileges of the Crown, as the Engines of Despotism, though they had been formerly allowed by the Wisdom of the State, as the occasional Securities of Freedom:—
If they should now absurdly magnify and exalt the Privileges of the lower House, beyond the Limits prescribed by a free Constitution:—If their Pretence should be the Vindication of the People's Rights; while their real Motive was
"the
Restoration
of their own
exorbitant Power,
founded on an
expected Majority
of their own
Dependents:"
If this Conduct was pursued by any Set of Men, they would stand convicted of a
clear Mark
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
Such
would be their main
End
or
Purpose:
And this
End
would be pursued by
suitable Means:
These Means, considered in
Union,
would still farther confirm and illustrate the End they aimed at: And these Means would be such as follow.
SECT. XVII. A second Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
"THE Patrons of Faction would be attached to Men, to the Neglect of Measures."
If the same Men, when formerly in Power, should have obstinately adhered to each other in every public Debate and Opinion; should have execrated every Man, as the Enemy of his Country, who dissented even in the slightest Article of political Belief:—
If on any sudden Change in the Fountain of Power, a more generous System of Government should have taken Place:—If the
Sovereign
had aimed to unite all
honest Men
of
all Parties,
and had invited them to co-operate for the Welfare of their Country:—
If these Men, determined still to engross all public Power, should threaten the Sovereign (as they had effectually threatened his royal Predecessor) with a general Resignation:—
If their Leaders should be taken at their Word, and unexpectedly stripped of all Power and Influence:—
If on This, the Clamours of their attendant Populace should arise;
See Sect. xix.]
and for the Sake of the public Tranquillity, Overtures should be made by the Prince to the Discontented:—If the
same Principle
should still predominate, and
Demands
in Favour of
Men
should be the
leading Object
of
Accommodation:—
If these Demands should be not only irrational in their Kind, but exorbitant and oppressive in their Degree; requiring a
general Restoration
of All the Discontented, and a
general Dismission
of all who were in Power, tho' of known Fidelity to their King and Country:—
If such should be the Conduct of any Set of Men, they would stand evidently convicted of Licentiousness and Faction.
SECT. XVIII. A third Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
"THE Patrons of Faction would be
self-contradictory
and
inconsistent,
not only on
different,
but on
parallel
Occasions."
Thus, if the
Exercise
of a
Privilege
should be quietly
allowed
to
one
Officer of State, and by the
same Persons
should be
clamoured against
in his
Successor:
The Persons thus
acquiescing
and
clamouring
by
Turns,
would stand convicted of a
self-contradictory
and
inconsistent
Conduct: And without deciding on the Propriety or Impropriety of the Privilege in Question, would carry upon them a clear Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
Again, if a certain Mode of political
Influence
on
Dependents
was generally exercised among all the Ranks of a free Country:—If the same Persons already characterized, should
now condemn
This as a
despotic
Measure in the
Servants
of the
Crown,
which They themselves
formerly
exercised when in
Power,
and still
continue
to exercise towards their
private Dependents:—
These Gentlemen would betray a very notable Inconsistence in their Conduct: And therefore, without any Decision on the
Rectitude
of such a general
Practice,
would stand convicted of an undeniable Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
SECT. XIX. A fourth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
"THE Patrons of Faction would endeavour to delude and inflame an ignorant and licentious Populace against their legal Governors."
A blind and unprincipled Populace have ever been the most effectual Engines of Sedition: And above all, Those of the
Capital,
being near to the grand Scene of political Contention, must ever be a ready and dangerous Engine in the Hands of Licentiousness and Faction.
But in a Nation like this, to make the
Populace
of the
Capital
a more successful Instrument of Sedition, a Degree of Art would be necessary. For it appears above, that the
People
of this
Kingdom,
and the
Populace
of its
Cities,
are of a Character essentially
opposite
to each other: That the
one
is collectively
knowing
and
upright;
the
other,
collectively
ignorant
and
immoral.
See above, Sect. xiii.
—The first Step, therefore, that
Faction
would take, as the surest Method for Success, would be to
confound
the
one
with the
other;
and dignify
"the
Clamour
of the
Populace,"
by stiling it
"the
VOICE
of the
PEOPLE."
The Fury of such a Populace, thus awakened by Vanity, Vice, and Ignorance, would arise in a Variety of Shapes.
If an Order of the Senate should be given for the Burning of a
Paper
legally declared seditious; such a
Populace
would be incited to rescue it from the Fire: And they who had thus incited them would boast, that it was rescued by the Hands of
"the
PEOPLE."
Every talking Demagogue, who should oppose the Measures of Government, would be artfully and indiscriminately obtruded on such an ignorant
Populace,
as a
Patriot
or a
Heroe.
And They who had thus obtruded him would boast, that he was the
Favourite
of
"the
PEOPLE."
Every distinguished Friend to the Measures of Government would be artfully obtruded on such a Populace, as the Enemy of his Country: And They who had thus obtruded him would boast, that he was the
Detestation
of
"the
PEOPLE."
Every Act of the Legislature, which contradicted the Passions or partial Interests of such a
Populace
or their
Leaders,
would be branded by them, as arbitrary and oppressive: And they would boast, that it was branded by the
Voice
of
"the
PEOPLE."
If daily or periodical Papers of Intelligence were circulated from the Capital through the Nation, and These were open to the Admission of every Thing which private Pique, Passion, or Interest, might suggest; they would of Course become the general Repositories of popular Slander: And as
Malice
is always more eager to
accuse,
than injured
Innocence
to
defend,
these Slanders would often seem to
preponderate
in the public Ear: And hence, would be boasted by Those who raised them, as the prevailing
Voice
of
"the
PEOPLE."
Thus,
hatched
by
Licentiousness,
FACTION would attain to its
enormous Growth:
The
unprincipled
among the
Great
would form the
Head,
the
unprincipled
among the
Populace
would form the
Body,
of this
rapacious Monster.
SECT. XX. A fifth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
"THE Abettors of Faction would throw injurious and undistinguishing Imputations on every Body of Men who differed from them in Opinion."
Having thus gained an ignorant and licentious Populace, as the Trumpets of Sedition; the Patrons of Faction would leave no Means untry'd to load their Adversaries with the most envenomed Calumny.
Thus if any mistaken Principle had formerly been maintained, but was now generally forsaken and derided; a Faction could not be detected by any clearer Mark, than by its Attempt to conjure up the Ghost of this
departed
Principle, in order to alarm and terrify not only the
Populace,
but the PEOPLE.
If on This Pretence, any Men should attempt to revive Animosities which Time had bury'd;—should attempt to divide and distract the Subjects of an
united
Kingdom, whose
common Welfare
depended on their
Union;—
should revile all Men without Distinction, who were born in a
certain District;
and indiscriminately endeavour to exclude them from a Participation of those public Trusts, Honours, and Emoluments, to which, with the rest of their Fellow-Subjects, they might stand intitled by their
Capacity
or
Virtue:—
Who would not discover, in this
unequal Conduct,
a clear and distinctive Mark of Licentiousness and Faction?
Again: If ever there had been a Time, when All who presumed to
dissent
in any Degree from those in Power, were indiscriminately and unjustly branded with the Name of
Jacobite
or
Tory;—
and if These very Men who had bestowed such Appellations should
now
deal them as freely round, on All who
assent
to Those in Power:—This were surely a clear Indication, that the Spirit of Faction were abroad.
But if, in the Course of political Revolutions, some of these Men's
former Adherents
should
now
be their
Adversaries;
and some
former Adversaries
should
now
be their
Adherents;
another
characteristic
Circumstance would arise: For Those whom they had once
reviled,
they would now
applaud,
as being the
Friends
of
Liberty;
and Those whom they had formerly
applauded,
they would now
revile,
as having become
Jacobites
or
Tories.—
Such a Conduct, and such
Names
thus
arbitrarily imposed,
however speciously coloured over by the
Pretence
and
Cry
of
Liberty,
might seem to stand, with all impartial Judges, as a clear
Mark
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
The Views of such Men would be still more apparent, should they insinuate, that the
Prince
received Those very Men as his Ministers and Favourites, whose Principles tended to the
Subversion
of his
Throne
and
Family.
This Insinuation, indeed, would not so much merit
Detestation,
as
Contempt
and
Ridicule.
SECT. XXI. A sixth Mark of Licentiousness and Faction.
"THE Abettors and Instruments of Faction would promiscuously calumniate the private Characters of the principal individuals of the opposing Party."
It was the just Observation of an ancient Writer, that
"the Wicked is an Abomination to the Righteous, and the Righteous an Abomination to the Wicked."
—Yet the Measures which these two Parties take, in their Treatment of each other, are essentially different.—The
good
Man never maliciously
stabs
the
Reputation
of his Neighbour: The
wicked
Man, on the contrary, delights in this
most practicable,
but
most atrocious
of all
Mischiefs.—
Invenomed Hints, ambiguous Imputations, private Crimes darkly alledged, but void of all Foundation:—These are the deadly Weapons of the abandoned but cunning Defamer.
Here then is a secure and ample Field for every profligate Minister of Faction: Here
"he tosseth about Arrows, Firebrands, and Death; and cries, am I not in Sport?"
If a Prince, whose Words and Actions might justly be given, as an Example of Integrity to all his Subjects, should be ambiguously accused of such Things as his Honour would abhor:—
If such a Prince should be indirectly charged with Ignorance, for not distinguishing in a Point of Law, which even some of the ablest Lawyers in his Kingdom had not attended to:—
If neither the Virtues nor the Condescension of a Queen could protect her from the Insults of Those whom she had never injured:—
If any other Branch of a royal Family should be basely traduced, by the grossest and most audacious Calumnies, studiously contrived to inflame an ignorant and unbridled Populace:—
If the Servants of the Crown, and Members of the Legislature, who had legally exerted themselves in Defence of their injured Sovereign, should in their private Character be impudently vilify'd, misrepresented, and abused; and even their unoffending Families traduced with study'd and unexampled Virulence:—
If neither Age nor Virtue should be a Security against the Arrows of public Calumny:—If a MAN of the most distinguished Worth in private Life, a known and zealous Friend of public Liberty, one of the Ornaments of his Age and Country, should be overwhelmed by a Load of the most unprovoked and malicious Slander; merely because he had dared to assert his own Right of private Judgment, in Opposition to the Opinion of another:—
If these Outrages should be publicly
committed
by
some;
and
winked
at or
countenanced,
or
patronized
by
others;—
surely, all honest Men ought to joyn, in declaring their Abhorrence of such atrocious Acts of Licentiousness and Faction, perpetrated in Defiance of All
Laws,
both
human
and
divine.
SECT. XXII. Some Objectious obviated.
SHOULD it be objected to the Writer, that while he blames the Practice in others▪ He indiscriminately characterizeth whole Bodies of Men who dissent from public Measures; he would reply, that the Accusation is groundless: For he hath expressly distinguished Those who
dissent
on
Principles
of
Liberty,
from such as
dissent
on
Motives
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
Should it be objected, that he hath attacked even
private
Characters, in the Way of indirect Description: This Accusation would be equally ill-founded. For all personal Peculiarities are avoided, save only the single Facts alluded to, as the Proofs of his Allegations: These were essentially necessary for the Support of the Argument; and relate not to
private
Life, but to
public
and
political
Conduct.
Should it be objected, that he hath indirectly censured Those, whose Conduct he had formerly applauded: He replies, that he never was attached to
Men,
but
Measures.
Should it be objected, that some of these characteristic Marks may seem to involve Men of good Morals in private Life: He would reply, that the Affections of
good
Men in
private
Life may not
always
extend to the
Public.
Should it be objected, that some of these characteristic Marks may seem to involve Men, who have been eminently serviceable to their Country in public Stations: He would reply, that He ever hath been, and ever will be proud to do Justice to Merit, when exercised in any public Station.
Should it be objected, that he questions the Conduct of Those only who are now out of Power: He would reply, that he formerly questioned their Conduct with the same Freedom, when in the Fulness of their Power: And that his Reasons in both Instances were the same; because in both Instances he judged their general Conduct to be
essentially
ill-founded, narrow, selfish, reprehensible.
SECT. XXIII. Of the most effectual Means of checking the Growth of Licentiousness and Faction.
THUS the Writer hath endeavoured to lay open the Foundations and Characters of Licentiousness and Faction: He now proceeds to consider the most effectual Means of checking them in their Progress; of restoring internal Uhanimity; and securing public Freedom.
In every national Malady of this Nature, there are two Kinds of Remedies essentially distinct: The one is palliative, and temporary; the other is radical, and lasting.
The palliative Remedies ought to be first apply'd; because it will appear, that they are the only Means by which we can come at Those which are radical.
'Tis evident, then, that the first Advance towards a Cure of this national Evil must arise from the steady Conduct of the Prince. For Faction, unopposed, and led on by the higher Ranks, will never cease in its Demands, till it terminates in the Possession of an unbounded aristocratic Power: This is a Power, which nothing but the Courage and Steadiness of the Prince can possibly contend with: Because the final Object of such a Faction will always be,
"Those high and lucrative Offices of State, which are in
His
sole
Disposal."
If a Sovereign once gives Way to the Storms in which such a Faction will involve him, his Peace and Freedom, together with Those of his People, are inevitably destroyed. On the contrary, if amidst all the Tumults of Sedition, he discovers an unalterable Firmness and Fortitude, founded in upright Intentions and real Virtue; the Rage of hopeless Faction will by Degrees subside; and a Prospect of better Times will open upon
Him
and his
People.
This general Truth
might
be
commented
on: But at present, the Writer can with Satisfaction leave it to the impartial
Public,
to find a
more instructive
and LIVING COMMENT.
SECT. XXIV. Of a second Remedy.
THE next Remedy, which can effectually aid the Firmness of the Prince, must be the Steadiness of the Minister, in discouraging, as far as in him lies, the Inroads of
Venality
and
Corruption.
This is a large Topic, and fitter for a Book than a Section: However, what is most essential to the present Subject may be briefly touched on.
A plausible Objection, then, is here to be obviated: For a late Writer hath very calmly and systematically attempted to prove the universal and unconditional Necessity of political Corruption, in all free Governments.
See a free Inquiry into the Nature and Origin of Evil, Let. v.
What follows is the Foundation of his Argument.
"All human Government is the Offspring of Violence and Corruption; and must inherit the Imperfection of both its Parents.
Origin of Evil, p. 128.
"
"All Governments must be administered by the same Violence and Corruption, to which they are indebted for their Origin.
Ib. p. 129.
"
"Corruption
(therefore)
must always increase in due Proportion to the Decrease of arbitrary Power; since where there is less Power to command Obedience, there must be more Bribery to purchase it; or there can be no Government carry'd on at all.
Ib. p. 135.
"
Such is the Sum of this Gentleman's Argument: To which, the following Observations are offered, as a Reply.
There have been two different Pictures given of
Man,
by different Writers, diametrically opposite to each other. By some, the human Species hath been represented as a natural Society of Angels; by others, as a Crew of Devils. Both these Representations have arisen from a partial View of Mandkind▪ One Party regarding his
social
Qualities only; the other overlooking These, and fixing on the Appetites which are commonly called the
felfish.
Were Mankind of the first of these Characters, they would need no Law! Were they of the latter, no Law could unite or bind them. The Truth is, they are a Mixture of Both. As they have the several Modes of Self-Love, for the Preservation of the Individual; so, by
proper Culture,
they gain Habits of Benevolence, Religion, social Prudence, the Love of honest Reputation, and sometimes even a Regard for the general Welfare of the Society to which they belong. As these social Passions and Regards are strong or weak, frequent or uncommon; the Character of a Nation is good or bad, honest or corrupt, upright or profligate. A Variety of Proofs hath been given of these different Degrees of moral Character, in the preceding Parts of this Essay.
See above, Sect. vii, &c.
But that we may not seem to build on a Principle which this Author admits not, we hear him virtually declaring all This himself in another Part of his Book.
"Here
He (Man)
has an Opportunity given him of
improving
or
debasing
his Nature, in such a Manner as to render himself
fit
for a Rank of
higher Perfection
and Happiness; or to
degrade
himself to a State of
greater Imperfection
and Misery.
Origin of Evil, p. 93.
"
Again, he speaks of a
Reformation
of
Manners,
as a Thing
practicable:
And recommends it, as the only Remedy for political Evil.
Ib. 149.
But while he treats of the absolute
Necessity
of political Corruption, all the
better Part
of
Man
is
hid;
his
Imperfections
and
Vices
alone are
set
in
View.
During the Progress of this Argument, if it deserves that Name, we hear of nothing but
"such imperfect and
vicious
Creatures as
Men, tyrannizing
over
others
as imperfect and
vicious
as themselves:
Origin of Evil, p. 126.
"
We have nothing presented to us, but
"Pride, Avarice, and Cruelty on one Side; Envy, Ignorance, and Obstinacy on the other; Injustice and Self-Interest on both.
Ib.
"
In a Word, Mankind are represented as an
abandoned
and
incurable
Race, utterly
void
of all
good
Qualities; and such as
"must be always bribed or beat into Obedience.
Ib. p. 130.
"
Here, then, this Maxim of the absolute and unconditional Necessity of Political Corruption appears in all its Nakedness and Deformity: For it is founded on
"the supposed incurable Wickedness of Man:"
An Error too glaring to need a Confutation; and which there is still the less Occasion to confute, because this Author himself admits the contrary.
It follows then, that his leading Proposition is as false in itself, as it is pernicious to Society, that
"Corruption must always increase in due Proportion to the Decrease of arbitrary Power:"
Because Virtue and Religion, upright Manners and Principles, properly instilled, may much better supply Corruption's Place.
Were it necessary to pursue this Gentleman through all the Windings of his political Labyrinth, and trace him to the End of his Course, where he suddenly starts up in the Form of a severe Moralist; there could not, perhaps, be exhibited a more striking Instance of Self-Contradiction, in the whole Compass of literary Debate.—At present I shall only remark, that this Essay was published in the Year 1757, at a Time when the System of political Corruption much needed some Kind of Apology, because its fatal Effects began to gla
e too strongly upon the Nation to be longer doubted. Hence, though we should not inquire
"who
the Author is,"
we may give a
shrewd Guess,
"what
political School
he was
bred
in."
On this Foundation, therefore, it appears, that every upright Minister ought, as far as possible, to check the Progress of Corruption: And tho' at Times he may be embarassed, and under a
political
Necessity
of yielding; 'tis clearly both his Duty and his Interest to oppose this dangerous and encroaching Spirit, in the leading Outlines of his public Conduct.
It is his Duty; both because Corruption can only flourish on the Ruins of Virtue and Religion, good Morals and Principles, without which public Liberty is essentially destroy'd; and because Corruption tends inevitably and invariably to weaken the public Administration of Government, by filling every high Department with the Venal, the Ignorant, the Selfish, the Dishonest.
See Estimate, Part ii.
It is both his Duty and Interest; because
Licentiousness,
and its Attendants,
Venality
and
Faction,
are of an
insatiable
Appetite. The more the Venal are fed, they grow more importunate: If you gorge one of These to the full, and thus lay him to sleep; ten will rise in his Place, every one more clamourous than the first.
The Minister, therefore, both in Consideration of his own Peace, and the public Welfare, ought as far as possible, to obviate this Evil in its
Beginnings;
fortify
Himself,
as well as the
State,
with the
Honest,
the
Firm,
and the
Capable;
resist, to the utmost, the exorbitant Demands of
Venality:
Thus
Faction
will either
bark
itself
asleep;
or
die despairing.
SECT. XXV. Of some concomitant Remedies.
LET us now consider, what might be in the Power of the
Legislature
and the
Magistrate
immediately to effect.
1. 'Tis generally acknowledged, that Power naturally follows Property. Therefore exorbitant Property in Individuals must always be unfavourable to civil Liberty; must always tend to produce Licentiousness and Faction; because it throws exorbitant Power into the Hands of Individuals: And the greater the
Inequality
between the
Poor
and
Rich,
the more the
one
will ever be under the
Influence
of the
other.
It should seem, then, to be the
particular
Interest even of the most
Wealthy,
if they be the real Friends of Liberty,—'tis certainly the
general
Interest of a
free Community;
that some legal Limitation of Property should take Place. I speak not of the Probability, but the Expediency of such a Measure.
2. It follows, that some
Regulation
in Respect to
Boroughs
would be of great Importance. For in Boroughs, contrary to all sound Policy,
"Power is lodged without annexed Property."
The natural Consequence is, that
"this ill-placed Power will be seized by Those who are possessed of exorbitant Property."
Thus Power settles on its natural Foundation: But a Foundation, in this Instance, most dangerous to Freedom; as it leads to the Establishment of an Aristocracy. In This Instance, too, I speak not of the Probability, but the Expediency of the Measure.
3. The Limitation of extended Conquest and Empire might seem an Object worthy the Attention of the highest Powers.—ROME perished by its Avidity of unbounded Empire. Colonies, when peopled beyond a certain Degree, become a Burthen to the Mother Country: They exhaust her Numbers; they distract her Attention; they divide her compacted Strength. Such Extent of Colonies, as may be necessary to maintain the Empire of the Seas, will always be a just Object of
British
Regard. More than this, sound Policy perhaps could hardly dictate.
4. This Limitation is of more Importance, as it would naturally set Bounds to another Excess: I mean, That of Trade and Wealth. This, the Writer knows, is of all other Topics the most unpopular: Notwithstanding which, he presumes to persist in what appears to Him a demonstrative Truth, that
"exorbitant Trade and Wealth are most dangerous to private Virtue and therefore to public Freedom."
The Topic is too large, to be here insisted on. He therefore refers to what he hath already written on this Subject;
See Estimate, Part iii. passim.
which hath been much clamoured against, indeed; but never confuted.
For the Conviction of Those who chuse rather to attend to
present
than
future
Consequences, the following Circumstance may deserve Notice. Much hath been said
"on the Cause of the present exorbitant Price of Provisions, and general Distress of the Poor:"
Every Cause hath been assigned except the true one, which seems to be
"the sinking Value of Money, arising necessarily from the exorbitant Increase of Trade and Wealth."
If this be so, it follows, that the Evil is incurable, excepting only by a general Augmentation of the Wages of the Poor.—Now This, which is the necessary Effect of the Exorbitancy of Commerce, naturally tends (by the increased Price of Manufactures) to the Destruction of Commerce. If the Exorbitancy of Trade should still run higher, this Evil will be aggravated in Proportion. The Consequences which must follow, are such as the Writer chuseth not to enlarge on; because he knows, the Spirit of the Times would not bear it.
5. The immediate Care of upright Manners and Principles might seem an Object worthy the strictest Attention both of the Legislature and Magistrate.
To this End, if the growing Spirit of
Novelty
and
Adoption
could by any Means be checked, it would be a Work attended with the most salutary Consequences. The Writer would not willingly be thought chimerically to adopt all the Rigours of the
Spartan
State: But could wish to see a Law enacted, parallel to That of LACEDAEMON, by which their raw and unexperienced Youth were prohibited from bringing Home the new Follies and Vices of foreign Countries, picked up in a premature and too early Travel.
See Estimate, Vol. ii. Part i. Sect. 10.
He would by no Means discourage the
Freedom
of the
Press:
Yet, sure, its
Licentiousness
might seem an Object of the Magistrate's Regard. The Search of Truth is good: But to search for This in the Hoards of
Irreligion,
is like searching for
Hope
in PANDORA'S
Box;
where the sole Reward of Industry can only be
Pestilence, Despair
and
Death.
National Virtue never was maintained, but by national Religion: He, therefore, who shakes the essential Principles of Religion, undermines the Virtue of his Fellow-Subjects; and therefore deserves to feel the Rigour of the Law, as a determined
Enemy
of his
Country.—
This may seem a practicable Remedy: But how to destroy those irreligious Writings, which already lie exposed on Stalls and Counters, or deposited in private Libraries, like so many Heaps of Poison, for the Gratification of Vice, and the Destruction of Virtue:—Or how to pluck from the Minds of Men those poisoned Arrows, which these Authors have already planted there!—That were a
Task indeed!—
The Shaft is already flown; and cannot be recalled: And this Nation, thro' succeeding Times will have Cause to say,
—"Haeret Lateri lethalis Arundo."
Immoral Writings
should seem no less the Object of the Magistrate's Attention. Tho' These may not shake the
Principles,
yet they inevitably corrupt the
Manners
of a Nation.
Personal Defamation,
or Calumny thrown on
private
Characters, is another Evil, which seems rising at present with unheard-of Aggravations. Two
slagrant
Instances of This Enormity the Writer will pass unnoticed, lest he should seem to insult over the
Exiled
or the
Dead.
In these two Kinds of modern Profligacy,
immoral Writings,
and
personal Calumny,
there is one professed Author, now said to be living in this Kingdom with Impunity; who, in a better policed State would ere this have felt the full Weight of that public Punishment and Infamy which is due to an Enemy of Mankind. This Man, supposed to be one
C—,
first writ a Volume of execrable
Memoirs,
for the Corruption of Youth and Innocence: Since That, a
Reverie,
or
Dream,
which
Hunger
and
Malice
probably conspired to suggest; replete with the most impudent Falsehoods, and injurious Calumnies on Individuals, for the Entertainment of
base
and
envious
Minds.
SECT. XXVI. Of the chief and essential Remedy.
ALL these may be regarded as temporary and concomitant Supports of Freedom. But the chief and essential Remedy to Licentiousness and Faction, the fundamental Means of the lasting and secure Establishment of civil Liberty, can only
"lie in a general and prescribed Improvement of the Laws of Education."
We have seen above, that upright Manners and Principles are the only Basis of true Liberty; that the infant Mind, if left to its own untutored Dictates, inevitably wanders into such Follies and Vices, as tend to the Destruction of itself and others. We have seen, that the early and continued Culture of the Heart can alone produce such upright Manners and Principles, as are necessary to check and subdue the selfish Passions of the Soul; and that Liberty can only arise from a general Subordination of These, to the public Welfare. We have seen these Truths confirmed, by an Appeal to the State of three famed Republics, which by Turns
arose
and
fell,
on the very Principles here delivered. We have seen the Defects, as well as Excellencies, of our own public Constitution, both
civil
and
religious:
That its Form is excellent and unrivaled; but that the practical
Application
of this unrivaled Excellence is attended with Defects incurable: That it hath all along been inevitably counterworked by Manners and Principles discordant with its Genius, and discordant with each other: That for Want of a prescribed Code of Education, to which all the Members of the Community should legally submit, the Manners and Principles on which alone the State can rest, are ineffectually instilled, are vague, fluctuating, and self-contradictory.
Nothing, then, is more evident, than that some Reform in this great Point, is necessary, for the Security of public Freedom. Till this be effected, in Spite of all temporary Remedies, Licentiousness and Faction, tho' checked for a Time, will ever be gathering new Strength, and returning to the Charge with redoubled Fury.
This Reform, to some, may appear easy to effect: By others it will be derided, as wholly impracticable. Perhaps the Truth may lie between these two Opinions: To throw the Manners and Principles of a Nation into any new Channel, is certainly a Work of no small Difficulty.—On the other Hand, we seem to have many Materials lying round us, ready to be converted into the Means of this great Work. A pure and rational Religion; a generous System of Policy, founded on that Religion; Manners, tho' apparently degenerating, yet by no Means generally profligate; much true Religion, Integrity, and Honour among the
middle
Ranks; many Instances of
domestic Worth
among the
higher;
and in Spite of the Temptations that surround the
Great,
true
Piety,
and the
moral Virtues
adorning the
most exalted Station.
Therefore, without dreaming of the perfect Republic of PLATO;—and fairly acknowledging the incurable Defect of our political State, in not having a correspondent and adequate Code of Education inwrought into its first Essence;—we may yet hope, that in a secondary and inferior Degree, something of this Kind may be still
inlaid:
It cannot have that perfect Efficacy, as if it had been originally
of the Piece:
Yet, if well conducted, it may strengthen the weak Parts; and
alleviate
Defects, though not compleatly
remove
them.
Among
what Ranks,
in the Writer's Opinion, these
Defects
in
Education
chiefly
lie,
may be sufficiently collected from some of the preceding Sections. But as to the most
effectual Methods
of
relieving
these
Defects,
he pretends not at present to attempt so great a Subject.
This, however, he is well perswaded of; that till something of the Kind be attempted and performed; all the laboured Harangues that can be given from the
Bench,
the
Pulpit,
or the
Press,
will be of little Avail: They may tend
occasionally
to
obviate
some of the
Evils
of
Licentiousness;
but never can
radically cure them.
SECT. XXVII. The Conclusion.
THESE Remedies, however
just
in their
Nature,
can only be
effectual
through a proper Application: And this can only lie
"in a zealous and unfeigned Union of the
Honest
among all
Ranks
and
Parties,
for the
Accomplishment
of
these Ends,
against the Patrons and Instruments of Licentiousness and Faction."
This Union, at first View, seems of such a Nature as could hardly need to be inforced: Yet it is frequently retarded by several Circumstances.
Among the
Great,
this rational Union is often counteracted by the Ties of false Honour; a dangerous Principle, which we have already noted, as being productive of Party-Rage and Faction.
See above, p. 92.
This Principle, even in honest Minds, will sometimes prevail over the Dictates of Religion and private Virtue. On this false Foundation, political Connexions are often maintained, in Defiance of a just Sense of public Utility: While the unhappy Man who acts on this mistaken Motive, is inwardly rent by two contrary and contending Powers. Severe Moralists may perhaps discard such a Character from the List of the
Honest:
But it should seem, that he is rather an Object of Clemency than Indignation. Remove but the unhappy Prejudice from his Breast; And such a Character would press forward among the first, towards the
Goal
of
public Virtue.
Again: This rational and salutary Union may be retarded by Connexions of
Friendship, Gratitude,
or
Blood.
This Cause tends to confirm and extend the Influence of the former.
Fathers, powerful Friends,
and
Patrons,
connect themselves with Parties, and cleave to them on a mistaken Principle:
Sons, obliged Friends,
and
Dependents,
are naturally inlisted in their Party; and are rivetted in it, not only by
false Honour,
but
Education, Gratitude, Affection.
How peculiarly unfortunate is this Circumstance; that the
generous Passions
should ever become the
Adversaries
of
public Virtue!
The same false Attachment to Friends, Patrons, and Relations, naturally prevails, in a certain Proportion, among the middle Ranks of the Kingdom. Their Interests, Passions, and Prejudices, are not so immediately concerned as Those of the higher Ranks; and therefore 'tis natural to suppose, that their mutual Attachments of mistaken Honour or private Affection, will upon the Whole be more moderate and less culpable. Yet still, while these false Attachments are prevalent among the
Great,
the
People
must in some Degree catch the Infection, from the various Relations which they bear to their Superiors. Hence untractable Prejudices arise, and are maintained: While
Measures
are less regarded, than the
Party
which
adopts
them.
But besides This, another Circumstance ariseth, which inevitably tends to
disunite,
and
distract
the
Honest
among the
People;
even when their personal Attachments are conquered by their Integrity. Their
Dispersion
in the Country hath already been remarked, as a Circumstance worthy of Attention. Here it meets us again, as a Cause of their frequent
Disunion.
We have seen how naturally (under the present State of Things) every factious Clamour that riseth in the Capital, is transmitted with aggravated Circumstances, through the whole Kingdom.
See above, Sect. xix, p. 130.
And the People of the Villages being easy of Belief, because not suspecting the abandoned Profligacy of these
Town-Defamers,
are apt to receive every insinuated
personal Slander,
as a
Truth.
These Calumnies being seldom contradicted by the injured Party, take Root in the Minds of the less knowing. Hence Doubts arise; Surmises and Dislikes are spread; Facts, though void of all Foundation, are alledged and persisted in; the more credulous Part are misled: Thus an honest People are divided; and not only a
Province
or a
Village,
but even an
House
often set at Variance within itself.
These Contentions
sometimes
arise to a Degree which is ridiculous: And have formerly been so described
without Exception,
by the Tools of Faction. Notwithstanding This, every Friend of Liberty ought to grieve, if a
free,
an
honest,
and a
sensible
PEOPLE should ever desist (were it possible) to debate on Affairs of Government. Tho' they may be occasionally alarmed and misled on slight Occasions, yet their mature and collective Judgment on important Subjects, will
seldom
be
erroneous.
On this Foundation, MONTESQUIEU'S Remark is solid:
"Tell me not, that such a People will sometimes
reason ill:"
'Tis sufficient,
"that
they reason.
L'Esprit des Loix.
"
The Guilt and ill Consequences, then, arise from the malevolent Clamours of the Capital, transmitted thence to the Provinces. These Clamours, though not of Power to seduce an
honest
PEOPLE into actual Sedition, are yet often sufficient to
alarm
and
divide
them.
See above, Sect. xiii. p. 114.
Much Caution, therefore, ought to be used by the Inhabitants of the
Country,
how they give Credit to the
political
Rumours of the
Town;
which are seldom spread without Design; and are in general spread most industriously by the Malevolent. They who act on good Principles, are apt to trust to the native Force of Truth: The Patrons of Falsehood are conscious of a Defect
here;
and therefore endeavour to supply it by a misapply'd Diligence and Cunning.
One Mark of Licentiousness and Faction is peculiarly applicable to these Clamours from the Metropolis: If they are fraught with
personal Calumny,
and attack private Characters, they assuredly come from the
Enemies
of
Virtue
and
Freedom.
All These, therefore, a
sensible
and
honest
PEOPLE will learn to
suspect
and
deride.
This Foundation once laid, they will not be far from a
general Union
against the
hidden Designs
of
Licentiousness
and
Faction.
In Conclusion, therefore, let the
Honest
among every
Rank
and
Party
recollect; that their first and highest Obligations are to God, their King, and Country. That every
subordinate
Connexion ought to
yield
to
These:
That true
Honour
can never be at
Variance
with the Laws of
Religion
and
Virtue:
That if any
Desertion
be
shameful,
it is the
Desertion
from
Truth
and the Welfare of their
Country:
If any
Attachment
be
honourable,
it is an impartial
Attachment
to the
public Weal,
unbiassed by private Affections and Regards. If any
Acknowledgment
be the certain Mark of a
great
and
ingenuous
Mind, it is the
Acknowledgment
of
its own Errors,
or those of a
Patron, Friend,
or
Ancestor.
These Remarks the Writer submits to the Impartiality and Candor of his Countrymen; desiring that they may be regarded as his Mite, thrown in towards the Accomplishment of the Sovereign's Wish, on his Accession to the Throne; that of
"founding the Liberty and Happiness of this Kingdom on the solid Basis of
Religion
and
Virtue,
and uniting ALL HONEST MEN in the steady Prosecution of this great Purpose.
THE END.
By the same AUTHOR, With all Convenient SPEED,
Will be Published,
PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN LEGISLATION.