If All I have said hitherto in Defence of the _Fable of the Bees_, and what I have quoted from it, have not alter"d the Opinion you seem to have had of the Book, I believe it is in vain to say any more: Other Readers, I hope, will be less obdurate, and convinced by this Time, that it was not wrote for the Encouragement of Vice and to debauch the Nation; which is all I want; for as to the Performance, whether good or bad, I shall say Nothing about it, whatever I think. I sincerely believe, Sir, that most Authors (whatever they say to the Contrary) have a better Opinion of their Works than they deserve; and I fancy, that most People believe so too: Therefore whether it is well or ill wrote, as to the Diction, Manner, and whatever regards the Composition, is what I would never have troubled my Head about, tho" it had been more generally condemn"d than it has been.
The Censurers of the Book themselves, who have publickly attack"d it, are not unanimous about the Merit of it; and Two of them, who have both wrote against it by Name, differ very widely in their Opinion concerning this Composition. A noted[24] Critick, who seems to hate all Books that sell, and no other, has, in his Anger at that Circ.u.mstance, p.r.o.nounced against _The Fable of the Bees_ in this Manner: _It is a wretched Rhapsody; the Wit of it is low; the Humour of it contemptibly low, and the language often barbarous_. But a Reverend Divine, who has wrote a long Preface against the same Book, seems not to have disliked the Performance of it, nor to wonder at the quick Sale of it, which he ascribes in a great Measure[25] _to the free, easy and lively Manner of the Author_. From this Contrariety of Opinions, I shall infer Nothing more, than that, if Men would be truly inform"d of the Book, it is not safe to trust to the Reports which are spread of it. What Pity it is, you did not know this before you wrote your _Minute Philosopher_!
[24] _Mr. Dennis._
[25] _Dr. Fiddes"s Treatise of Morality, Pref. Page XIX._
There are few Men, even among the most able, who can judge of Books impartially. We are often influenc"d by our Love, or our Hatred, before we are aware of it our selves. I have met with several good Judges of Books, who disliked, and spoke very slightingly of your _Alciphron_; and I found, the chief Reason was, because you attack"d all _Free Thinkers_, without Exception. But I declare, that I think your Book, for the Generality, to be well wrote; tho" you have us"d me most unmercifully, and not acted, if you had read _The Fable of the Bees_, like an honest Man. When a Person has a handsome Face, I can"t be so stupid as to believe him ugly, because he has us"d me ill. I differ from My Lord _Shaftesbury_ entirely, as to the Certainty of the _Pulchrum & Honestum_, abstract from Mode and Custom: I do the same about the Origin of Society, and in many other Things, especially the Reasons why Man is a Sociable Creature, beyond other Animals. I am fully persuaded, His Lordship was in the Wrong in these Things; but this does not blind my Understanding so far, as not to see, that he is a very fine Author, and a much better Writer than my self, or you either. If that n.o.ble Lord had been a much worse Author, and wrote on the Side of Orthodoxy and the Church, I fancy, you would have thought more favourably of his Capacity. I have seen what you have cited from him, and the Manner you have done it in. But what Proportion does that bear to Three large Volumes, and the many admirable Things he has said against Priestcraft, and on the Side of Liberty and Human Happiness.
Upon the Whole, I dare say, that your _Minute Philosopher_ will meet with very few Readers, among those that have read, and are not lash"d in the _Characteristicks_, who will think, that My Lord _Shaftsbury_ deserves one Tenth Part of the Indignity and Contempt, which you treat _Cratylus_ with.
Men may differ in Opinion, and both mean well. You, Sir, think it for the Good of Society, that human Nature should be extoll"d as much as possible: I think, the real Meanness and Deformity of it to be more instructive. Your Design is, to make Men copy after the beautiful Original, and endeavour to live up to the Dignity of it: Mine is, to enforce the Necessity of Education, and mortify Pride. I was very much delighted with what you say in your First Dialogue of Apple-trees and Oranges; the different Productions of the first, and the Culture of the other. The Allegory is very ingenious, and the Application just; but I don"t think, that the Conclusion, which must be drawn from it, will be of great Use to you. Page 51. _Euphranor_ asks _Alciphron, Why may we not conclude by a Parity of Reason, that Things may be natural to Human Kind, and yet neither found in all Men, nor invariably the same, where they are found?_ I answer, They may. But if all the Knowledge and Accomplishments, which Men can attain to, are to be look"d upon as natural, and peculiar to the whole Species, it must be the same with Vice and Wickedness, as it is with Virtue and the Liberal Arts; and, what I never could have imagin"d before, it must be as natural for a Man to murder his Father, as it is to reverence him; and for a Woman to poison her Husband, as it is to love him.
If you would but look into the Reasons, Sir, I have given for distinguishing between what is natural, and what is acquired, you would not find any ill Intention in that Practice. Many Things are true, which the Vulgar think Paradoxes. Believe me, Sir, to understand the Nature of Civil Society, requires Study and Experience. Evil is, if not the Basis of it, at least a necessary Ingredient in the Compound; and the temporal Happiness of Some is inseparable from the Misery of others. They are silly People who imagine, that the Good of the Whole is consistent with the Good of every Individual; and the best of us are insincere. Every body exclaims against Luxury; yet there is no Order of Men which is not guilty of it; and if the Lawgivers are not always endeavouring to keep up all Trades and Manufactures, that supply us with the Means and Implements of Luxury, they are blamed. To wish for the Encrease of Trade and Navigation, and the Decrease of Luxury at the same Time, is a Contradiction. For suppose, that the Legislature, by the Help of the Clergy, could introduce a general Frugality in this Nation, we could never keep up our Traffick, and employ the same Hands and Shipping, unless they could likewise persuade the Nations, we deal with, to be more profuse than now they are, that they might take off from our Hands so much more of the Implements of Luxury, as our Consumption of them should be less than it had been before.
The very same Things, which are Blessings in One Year, are Calamities in another. In every Nation, those who are employ"d in Gardening and Agriculture, are taught by Experience to manage their Affairs, as is most suitable to the Climate and the Certainty or Irregularities of the Seasons. If there were no Blasts in _England_, nine Tenths of the Apple-trees would be superfluous. Ask the Gardeners about _London_, whether they don"t get more by a middling Crop, than a plentiful Product; and whether Half of them would not be ruin"d, if every Thing they sow or plant should come to Perfection: Yet Every body wishes for Plenty and Cheapness of Provisions: But they are often Calamities to a great Part of the Nation. If the Farmer can"t have a reasonable Price for his Corn, he can"t pay his Landlord. We have often had the good Fortune of having great Plenty, when other Nations have wanted. This is a real Gain: But when all our Neighbours are sufficiently provided, and we can no where export our Corn with Profit, Two plentiful Years, one after an other, are a greater Detriment to the Publick by far, than a middling Scarcity. A benevolent Man, who has a favourable Opinion of his Kind, would perhaps imagine, that Labourers of all Sorts would go to their Work with greater Alacrity, and bear the Fatigue of it with more Chearfulness, in plentiful Years, than when Corn is at a high Price, and with all their Industry they can hardly procure Food for their Families. But the Contrary is true; and ask all considerable Dealers, of Experience, who for many Years have employ"d a great Number of Hands in the Woollen Manufacture, in Hard Ware, or Agriculture, and they will tell you unanimously, that the Poor are most insolent, and their Labour is least to be depended upon, when Provisions are very cheap; and that they never can have so much Work done, or their Orders so punctually comply"d with, as when Bread is dear.
Your _Crito_ and _Euphranor_ are very good Characters; but what I admire the most in them, is the consummate Patience in keeping Company, and bearing for a whole Week together, with two such insupportable, out of the way Rascals, as you have represented _Alciphron_ and _Lysicles_ to be. I believe with you, that among the Vain and Voluptuous, there are Abundance of superficial People, who call themselves _Free Thinkers_, and are proud of being thought to be Unbelievers, without having laid the Foundation of any Philosophy at all. But there never were Two such Creatures in the World as those whom you have made the Champions for Free-thinking. I don"t speak as to their Irreligion and Impiety, or their Incapacity of maintaining what they loudly a.s.sert; for such there are many among Rakes and Gamesters. But the Knowledge, good Sense and Penetration, which your Libertines display at some Times, are inconsistent with the Ignorance, Folly and Stupidity they shew at others. It is impossible that Men of Parts, and the least Spirit, how much soever they were in the Wrong, could see themselves defeated, banter"d and exposed with so much Tranquility and Chearfulness; and I can"t conceive how any, but egregious c.o.xcombs, without Sense of Shame, could behave as _Alciphron_ and _Lysicles_ do throughout your Dialogues. They are Fellows without Feeling or Manners.
If among Gentlemen there are abandon"d Wretches, who harbour Sentiments so abominable and openly destructive to Society, as several are which they advance, I am very well a.s.sured, that no well-bred Men would vent them before Strangers in so shocking a Manner as they do. No Mortal ever saw such Disputants before; they always begin with swaggering and boasting of what they"ll prove; and in every Argument they pretend to maintain, they are laid upon their Backs, and constantly beaten to Pieces, till they have not a Word more to say; and when this has been repeated above half a Score times, they still retain the same Arrogance and _mal-a-pert_ Briskness they were made to set out with at first; and immediately after every Defeat, they are making fresh Challenges, seemingly with as much Unconcern and Confidence of Success, as if Nothing had pa.s.s"d before, or they remember"d Nothing of what had happened. Such an Undauntedness in a.s.saulting, and Alacrity in yielding, as you have made them display, never met in the same Individuals before.
I know, Sir, that in drawing those Characters, you design"d them for Monsters to be abhorr"d and detested; and in this you have succeeded to Admiration, at least with me; for I can a.s.sure you, that I never saw any two Interlocutors in the same Dialogue or Drama, whose Behaviour and Principles I execrate more heartily, than I do theirs. And if you would read the _Fable of the Bees_ impartially, you would be convinced of this, from my Description of the Company I would chuse to converse with. Upon, such a Condescension, I would likewise demonstrate to you, how you and I might a.s.sist and be useful to one another, as Authors.
You allow, that there are vicious Clergymen, who are unworthy of their Function. I foresee, that Some of these, who have neither _Crito"s_ Learning, nor _Euphranor_"s good Sense, will make use of your _Alciphron_ for an evil Purpose. Having by their bad Courses made themselves contemptible to all who know them, they will endeavour to stop the Mouths of all Opposers, by barely naming the _Minute Philosopher_; and having, by the Credit of that Book, repell"d the Censure they had deserv"d, insult the Laity, and lay claim to the Honour and Deference, which ought only to be paid to worthy Divines.
These I will take in Hand, and convince, that you have not wrote to justify those Ecclesiasticks, who by their Practice contradict the Doctrine of _Christ_; and that they misconstrued your Intentions; who leading vicious Lives themselves, demanded the same Respect from Others, which you only affirm to be due to Clergymen of Merit and good Morals. And as I would handle these, so you, in like Manner, would take to Task those vile Profligates, who, copying after your Originals, should at any Time endeavour to shelter themselves under my Wings.
Should ever a second _Lysicles_ pretend to prove, that the more Mischief Men did, the more they acted for the Publick Welfare, because it is said, in _The Fable of the Bees_, that without Vices, no great Nation can be rich and flourishing, you would laugh at his Folly; and if, for the same Reason, he urged, that Rapes, Murder, Theft, and all Manner of Villanies ought to be applauded, or at least pa.s.s"d by with Impunity, you would demonstrate to him, how immensly far my Design was from screening Criminals, and shew him the many Pa.s.sages, where I insist upon it, that impartial Justice ought to be administer"d, and that even for the Welfare of worldly-minded Men, Crimes should be severely punish"d. You would inform him likewise, that I thought Nothing more cruel, than the Lenity of Juries, and the Frequencies of _Pardons_, and not forget to tell him, that my Book contained several Essays on Politicks; that the greatest Part of it was a Philosophical Disquisition into the Force of the Pa.s.sions, and the Nature of Society, and that they were silly People, who made any other Construction of it.
I observe in your fifth Dialogue, that you think the Mult.i.tudes among Christians to have better Morals, than they were possess"d of among the antient Heathens. The Vices of Men have always been so inseparable from great Nations, that it is difficult to determine any Thing with Certainty about that Matter. But I am of Opinion, that the Morals of a People in general, I mean the Virtues and Vices of a whole Nation, are not so much influenced by the Religion that is profess"d among them, as they are by the Laws of the Country, the Administration of Justice, the Politicks of the Rulers, and the Circ.u.mstances of the People. Those who imagine, that the Heathens were encouraged and led to criminal Pleasures by the bad Examples of the Deities they worship"d, seem not to distinguish between the Appet.i.tes themselves, the strong Pa.s.sions in our Nature, that prompt Men to Vices, and the Excuses they make for committing them. If the Laws and Government, the Administration of Justice, and the Care of the Magistrates were the same, and the Circ.u.mstances of the People were likewise the same, I should be glad to hear a Reason, why there should be more or less Incontinence in _England_, if we were Heathens, than there is, now we are Christians.
The real Cause of Fornication, and Adultery, the Root of the Evil, is l.u.s.t. This is the Pa.s.sion, which is so difficult to conquer, whilst it affects us. There are many Christians, no doubt, who subdue it by the Fear of G.o.d, and Punishment hereafter; but I believe, that the Heathens, who triumph"d over this Pa.s.sion, from a Regard to Virtue, were as considerable in Number. Among the nominal Christians, there are not a Few, who forbear indulging this Pa.s.sion, from worse Principles. I believe it was the same with the Heathens. However, in _Great-Britain_ there are Thousands that abstain from unlawful Pleasures, who would not be so cautious, if they were not deterr"d from them by the Expence, the Fear of Diseases, and that of losing their Reputation. These are three Evils, against which all the bad Examples of the G.o.ds can bring no Remedy.
In all Ages, Men have display"d Virtues and Vices, which their Religion had Nothing to do with; and in many Actions, and even the most important Affairs, they are not more influenced by what they believe of a Future State, than they are by the Name of the Street they live in.
When People shew great Attachment to the World and their Pleasure, and are very cool, and even neglectful in Religious Duties, it is ridiculous to ascribe their good Qualities to their Christianity.
You"ll give me Leave, Sir, to expatiate a little upon this Head, and ill.u.s.trate my Meaning in a Character or two, which I am going to draw.
_Lepidus_, a Man of good Sense, is a Batch.e.l.lor, and never intends to marry. He is far from being chast, but cautious in his Amours. He is a Lover of Mirth and Gaiety, hates Solitude, and would rather take up with almost any Company, than be alone. He keeps a very good Table; no Man treats with a better Grace; and seems never to be better pleased, than when he is entertaining his Friends. He has a very great Estate, yet at the Year"s End he lays up but little of his large Revenue.
Notwithstanding this, he lives within Compa.s.s, and would think Nothing more miserable, than not to be rich. He is a Man of Honour, and has a high Value for Reputation. He is of the establish"d Church, and commonly goes to it once every Sunday; but never comes near it at any other Time. Once likewise every Year, either at _Easter_ or _Whitsuntide_, he takes the Sacrament. For the Rest, Pleasure and Politeness are his chief Study: He seems to be little affected with Religion, and seldom speaks of it, either for or against it. Now, if a Man, having well weigh"d and examin"d this Character, was ask"d what he thought of _Lepidus_, as to his Principle, and the Motives of his Actions, and he should give it as his Opinion, that this Sociableness, this generous and _debonnair_ Temper of _Lepidus_ were owing to his being a Christian, and not a Heathen or a Freethinker, it might be call"d a charitable Construction, but I could never think it well judg"d. But be that as it will, if a _Crito_ or an _Euphranor_ had a Mind to advance such an Opinion, and stand to it, I am fully persuaded, that it would be easy for them to say so much in Behalf of it; that it would not only be difficult to disprove it, but likewise a very odious Task to set about it.
_Nicanor_ is a very sober Man; hardly ever drinks to Excess; yet he is never without Wine of several Sorts, and is very free with it to his Friends, and all who come to see him. But whatever his Company may do, he always fills very sparingly for himself, and seldom drinks above half a Pint at a Sitting. He never goes to a Tavern but about Business; and when he is alone, Small Beer or Water are the Liquors he chuses.
_Nicanor_, who was always an industrious Man, is become rich by his Trade, yet as indefatigable as ever, and seems to know no greater Pleasure than the getting of Money. He is not void of Ambition; is Deputy of the Ward he lives in, and hopes to be an Alderman before he dies. Once in his Life he was drunk, but that was in driving a Bargain, by which he got Five Hundred Pound in one Morning. Let us suppose, that this Character being likewise look"d into, a Man shou"d take it into his Head to affirm, that the Industry and Desire after Wealth of _Nicanor_ were owing to his Love of Wine, One would imagine, that it would not be difficult to refute this Man, and to prove, that what he advanced was a wrong Judgment, if not a ridiculous Surmise.
For if _Nicanor_ loved Wine, he would drink more of it. He is rich enough to buy it, nay he has Plenty of it, tho" he hardly ever touches it, when he is by himself. He grudges it not to Others; and it is incredible, that if he loved Wine, he should only fill Thimbles full for himself, whilst he saw Others drink b.u.mpers to his Cost with Pleasure. You will think perhaps, that I have said too much already, to prove a Thing that is as clear as the Sun. But if it was as reputable, and "counted as necessary to real Happiness to love Wine, as it is to be Religious; and a Man of _Euphranor_"s Capacity had a Mind to be _Nicanor_"s Advocate, and maintain, that the Love of Wine was the Motive of his Industry, in Spight of all the Appearances to the Contrary; if, I say, a Man had a Mind to maintain this, and had _Euphranor_"s Capacity, he might make a great Shew for his Client, without the Learning of _Crito_, and would certainly baffle his Adversaries, if he had such pliable ones as _Alciphron_ and _Lysicles_ to deal with. Come, would _Euphranor_ say, answer me, _Alciphron_; is it not demonstrable, that the more Money a Man has, the more able he is to buy Wine. _Alciphron_ would answer, I cannot deny that; and here the Dialogue would begin. _Euphr._ When there are plain Evidences that a Man has been drunk, would you deny it to be true? _Alciph._ I would never speak against Matter of Fact. _Euph._ Would you pretend to prove from a Man"s having been drunk, that he does not love Wine? _Alciph._ I own I would not. _Euph._ You, who are a Free Thinker, and have enquir"d so minutely into Human Nature, do you think there is a Capacity in Man, by which he can dive into the Hearts of others, and know their most secret Thoughts with Certainty? _Alciph._ I don"t think there is.
_Euph._ When Actions are good and laudable in themselves, and there are two different Motives from which they might proceed, the one very honourable, and the other scandalous; which is it most charitable, to ascribe these Actions to the first Motive, or the latter? Why do you hesitate, _Alciphron_? Would not a polite Man, speaking to another"s Face, say, that he thought his Actions proceeded from that Motive which does the most Honour to him? _Alciph._ I should think so. _Euph._ O _Alciphron_! from your own Concessions I can prove to you, how we ought to judge of _Nicanor_; and that it is highly injurious to ascribe his Industry, and the Pains he takes to get Money, to any Thing but his Love of Wine. The Minute Philosophers may say what they please; but Wine is not to be bought without Money; and you have own"d your self, that the more Money a Man has, the more he is able to buy Wine. These Things are self-evident: What a Man chuses, who is at Liberty to do what he pleases, he must prefer to that which he chuses not; and why should _Nicanor_ drink Wine any more than he would eat Cheese, if he did not love it? That he drinks it, is plain; all his Friends and Acquaintance can testify it; they have been Eye-witnesses to it; therefore he loves it. And that he must love it beyond Measure, is plain; for he has forfeited his Reason for the Sake of it, and has drank Wine till he was drunk. _Alciphron_ being silenced by the Force of these Arguments, _Lysicles_ perhaps would say, that he could not give up this Point as _Alciphron_ had done; but that he was not prepar"d to speak to it now, and therefore desired, that they might break off the Discourse. Thus _Euphranor_ would triumph over his Adversary, and the Dialogue would end.
Duely to weigh these Two Characters, it is plain, that _Nicanor_ was an abstemious Man; that the Motives which spurred him on to Industry, were his Love of Money, and Desire after worldly Greatness. Considering the small Delight he always seem"d to take in strong Liquors, and his known Thirst after Gain, it is impossible to account rationally for his excessive Drinking one Morning, than by ascribing it to his darling Pa.s.sion, the Love of Lucre, which made him venture to lose his Sobriety rather than the Advantage which he expected from the Bargain he was driving. Therefore it is plain from this Character, that the Love of Wine, whether it was, counted blameable or praise-worthy, had no Influence upon _Nicanor_"s Actions, and consequently that, tho" it had been less than it was, it would never have diminish"d his Industry.
In _Lepidus_ we see a fond Admirer of Company, and a discreet Lover of himself, who would enjoy as much of the World as is possible, without forfeiting the good Opinion of it: And a rich Man, of an even Temper, might perform all this in a Christian Country, from no better Principles than Pride and worldly Prudence, tho" he had very little or no Religion.
All This an hasty and inconsiderate Reader will call Folly, and tell me, that I am fighting with my own Shadow; and that, from the Character of _Nicanor_, no Mortal would imagine, that his Industry and Desire after Wealth could proceed from, and be owing to his Love of Wine: But I insist upon it, and you must allow it, Sir, that there would be no greater Absurdity in an Attempt of proving this, than there would be in ascribing the Sociableness and generous Behaviour of _Lepidus_ to his being a Christian. All Men who are born of Christian Parents, and brought up among Christians, are always deem"d to be such themselves, whilst they acquiesce in, and not disown the Name: But unless People are palpably influenc"d by their Religion, in their Actions and Behaviour, there is no greater Advantage in being a Christian, than there is in being a Mahometan or a Heathen. If a Person was made free of a Company which presided over Artizans, in a toilsome laborious Trade, and he neither had serv"d his Time to it before, nor ever followed it afterwards, it could not be said of such a Person, whatever other Use he might make of his Freedom, that he actually was, or had been, of that laborious, toilsome Employment. A Man who was baptiz"d in his Infancy, may comply with all the outward Forms of his Religion; and, if he loves his Reputation, never be guilty of any notorious Wickedness. But if all this While, which is not impossible, his Heart is closely attach"d to this World; if he has a far greater Value for Sensual, than he has for Spiritual Pleasures, and persists in a Course of a voluptuous Life for many Years, without Repentance: A Man, I say, who does this, cannot be a more real Christian, tho" he conform"d to all the Rites and Ceremonies, and bore a great Sway in the Vestry, than a Linnen-Draper could be a real Blacksmith, tho" he was free of the Blacksmiths Company, and was a Livery-Man amongst them.
That weak silly People may form such wrong Judgments, as I have hinted at, from no worse Cause, than Want of Capacity, and mere Folly, I am willing to believe. But when I see Men of very good Sense, and considerable Knowledge, guilty of it, I can"t help thinking, that they do it with Design, and because they find their Interest in it. This is certain, that when once it is taken for granted, that to be a Christian, it is sufficient to acquiesce in being call"d so, and attend the outward Worship of some Sect or other, it saves the Clergy a vast Deal of Trouble, from Friends as well as Foes. For to quiet and satisfy all scrupulous Consciences, is as great a Drudgery as it is to write in Defence of Miracles.
The Reason, Sir, why I have said so much on this Head, is, that among those who outwardly shew the greatest Zeal for Religion and the Gospel, I see hardly Any who teach us, either by Precept or Example, the Severity of Manners which Christianity requires. They seem to be much more sollicitous about the Name, than they are about the Thing it self; as if, when Men would but own themselves to be Christians, it was no great Matter for the Qualifications which must make them so. When of late I have cast my Eyes upon the Behaviour of some People, who shall be nameless, it has put me in Mind of the _Free-Masons_. These, you know, are divided in several Companies; each Company have a Lodge of their own; every Lodge has a Master; over all these Masters again, there is a Grand Master. Some of them meet once a Month; others not so often; they pretend to Mysteries, and eat and drink together; they make use of several Ceremonies, which are peculiar to themselves, with great Gravity; and with all this Bustle they make, I could never learn yet, that they had any Thing to do, but to be _Free-Masons_, speak well of the Honour of their Society, and either pity or despise all those who are not Members of it: Out of their a.s.semblies, they live and converse like other Men: And tho" I have been in Company with several of them, I profess, unless I am told it, I can never know, who is a _Free-Mason_, and who is not.
I know, Sir, you love _Allegory_; and on that Score, I have been extremely delighted with what you say, Page 332, of your first Volume; where you justly ridicule and expose those Libertines, who pretend to be Patriots for _Liberty and Property_. I beg Leave, for the Benefit of other Readers, to transcribe the Pa.s.sage. _When I hear, says Crito, these two Words in the Mouth of a_ Minute Philosopher, _I am put in Mind of the_ Teste di Ferro _at Rome. His Holiness, it seems, not having Power to a.s.sign Pensions, on_ Spanish _Benefices, to Any but Natives of_ Spain, _always keeps at_ Rome _Two Spaniards, call"d_ Teste di Ferro, _who have the Name of all such Pensions, but not the Profit, which goes to_ Italians. _As we may see every Day, both Things and Notions placed to the Account of Liberty and Property, which in Reality neither have, nor are meant to have any Share in them. What! is it impossible for a Man to be a Christian, but he must be a Slave; or a Clergyman, but he must have the Principles of an Inquisitor?_ This is very _a propos_, and admirably well applied. I thank you for it. I know Abundance of Divines, who seem to be very fond of the World, and are always grasping at Wealth and Power; and whenever I hear Any of these mention their Concern for Religion, and the Spiritual Welfare of Others, as they often do, I shall always think on _Crito_"s Story, laugh heartily, and say no more. For if I should imitate him, in exclaiming every Time I saw _both Things and Notions placed to the Account of_ Religion and the Spiritual Welfare of Others, _which, in Reality, neither have, nor are meant to have any Share in them_, I should never be able to follow any other Business, than to cry out, What! is it impossible, that the Christian Religion should be taken Care of, unless Ecclesiasticks ride in Coaches and Six; or the Spiritual Welfare of the Laity, without Temporal Dominion and an extravagant Power in the Clergy?
My _Allegory_, you see, Sir, is but a Copy of yours, and therefore cannot have the same Merit. How you will like it I can"t tell; but I fancy, that most of my Readers besides, will be of Opinion, that if his Holiness makes no greater Advantage by his _Teste di Ferro_ at _Rome_, than the Cause, which you espouse, is like to get by yours here, it will hardly be worth his while to keep them any longer.
Here, Sir, I shall take my Leave of you, in full Expectation, that, in what relates to me, I shall find great Alterations in your next Edition. To furnish you with as many Materials for this Purpose as I can conveniently, I shall fill what Room I have left with another Quotation from _The Fable of the Bees_, beginning Page 410. If my Paper would have held out, and I could have added a Page or two more, you would have seen how wickedly I have been misrepresented in what I say about the Fire of _London_.
_It is certain, that the fewer Desires a Man has, and the less he Covets, the more easy he is to himself: The more active he is to supply his own Wants, and the less he requires to be waited upon, the more he will be beloved, and the less Trouble he is in a Family: The more he loves Peace and Concord, the more Charity he has for his Neighbour: And the more he shines in real Virtue, there is no doubt, but that in Proportion he is acceptable to G.o.d and Man. But let us be Just. What Benefit can these Things be of, or what Earthly Good can they do, to promote the Wealth, the Glory and Worldly Greatness of Nations? It is the Sensual Courtier, that sets no Limits to his Luxury; the Fickle Strumpet that invents New Fashions every Week; the Haughty Dutchess, that in Equipage, Entertainments, and all her Behaviour, would imitate a Princess; the Profuse Rake and lavish Heir, that scatter about their Money without Wit or Judgment, buy every Thing they see, and either destroy or give it away the next Day; the Covetous and perjur"d Villain, that squeez"d an immense Treasure from the Tears of Widows and Orphans, and left the Prodigals the Money to spend. It is these that are the Prey and proper Food of a full-grown_ Leviathan; _or, in other Words, such is the calamitous Condition of Human Affairs, that we stand in Need of the Plagues and Monsters I named, to have all the Variety of Labour perform"d, which the Skill of Men is capable of inventing, in order to procure an Honest Livelihood to the vast Mult.i.tudes of Working Poor, that are required to make a large Society: And it is Folly to imagine, that great and wealthy Nations can subsist, and be at once Powerful and Polite, without._
_I protest against Popery as much as ever Luther or_ Calvin _did, or Queen_ Elizabeth _herself; but I believe from my Heart, that the Reformation has, scarce been more instrumental in rendring the Kingdoms and States, that have embraced it, flourishing beyond other Nations, than the silly and capricious Invention of Hoop"d and Quilted Petticoats. But if this should be denied me by the Enemies of Priestly Power, at least I am sure, that, bar the brave Men, who have fought for and against that Lay-Man"s Blessing, it has from its first Beginning to this Day, not employ"d so many Hands, honest industrious labouring Hands, as the abominable Improvement on Female Luxury, I named, has done in Few Years. Religion is one Thing, and Trade is another. He that gives most Trouble to Thousands of his Neighbours, and invents the most operose Manufactures is, right or wrong, the greatest Friend to the Society._
_What a Bustle is there to be made in several Parts of the World, before a fine Scarlet, or Crimson Cloth can be produced? What a Multiplicity of Trades and Artificers must be employ"d? Not only such as are obvious, as Wool-combers, Spinners, the Weaver, the Cloth-worker, the Scowrer, the Dyer, the Setter, the Drawer, and the Packer; but others that are more remote, and might seem foreign to it; as the Mill-wright, the Pewterer, and the Chymist, which yet are all necessary, as well as a great Number of other Handicrafts, to have the Tools, Utensils, and other Implements belonging to the Trades already named: But all these Things are done at Home, and may be perform"d without extraordinary Fatigue or Danger; the most frightful Prospect is left behind, when we reflect on the Toil and Hazard that are to be undergone Abroad, the vast Seas we are to go over, the different Climates we are to endure, and the several Nations we must be obliged to for their a.s.sistance._ Spain _alone, it is true, might furnish us with Wool to make the finest Cloth; but what Skill and Pains, what Experience and Ingenuity are required to dye it of those beautiful Colours! How widely are the Drugs and other Ingredients dispers"d through the Universe, that are to meet in one Kettle. Allom, indeed, we have of our own; Argol we might have from the_ Rhine, _and Vitriol from_ Hungary; _all this is in_ Europe; _but then for Saltpetre in Quant.i.ty, we are forc"d to go as far as the_ East-Indies: _Cochenille, unknown to the Ancients, is not much nearer to us, tho" in a quite different Part of the Earth; we buy it, "tis true, from the_ Spaniards; _but not being their Product, they are forc"d to fetch it for us from the remotest Corner of the New World in the_ West-Indies. _Whilst so many Sailors are broiling in the Sun, and swelter"d with Heat in the_ East _and_ West _of us, another Set of them are freezing in the_ North, _to fetch Potashes from_ Russia.
_When we are thoroughly acquainted with all the Variety of Toil and Labour, the Hardships and Calamities, that must be undergone to compa.s.s the End I speak of, and we consider the vast Risques and Perils that are run in those Voyages, and that Few of them are ever made, but at the Expence, not only of the Health and Welfare, but even the Lives of Many: When we are acquainted with, I say and duely consider the Things I named, it is scarce possible to conceive a Tyrant so inhuman and void of Shame, that beholding Things in the same View, he should exact such terrible Services from his innocent Slaves; and at the same Time dare to own, that he did it for no other Reason, than the Satisfaction a Man receives from having a Garment made of Scarlet or Crimson Cloth. But to what Height of Luxury must a Nation be arriv"d, where not only the King"s Officers, but likewise his Guards, even the Private Soldiers, should have such impudent Desires!_
_But if we turn the Prospect, and look on all those Labours, as so many voluntary Actions, belonging to different Callings and Occupations, that Men are brought up to for a Livelihood, and in which Every one works for himself, how much soever he may seem to labour for Others: If we consider, that even the Sailors, who undergo the greatest Hardships, as soon as one Voyage is ended, even after a Ship-wreck, are looking out and solliciting for Employment in another: If we consider, I say, and look on these Things in another View, we shall find, that the Labour of the Poor is so far from being a Burthen, and an Imposition upon them, that to have Employment is a Blessing, which, in their Addresses to Heaven, they pray for; and to procure it for the Generality of them, is the greatest Care of every Legislature._
_FINIS._
PUBLICATIONS OF THE AUGUSTAN REPRINT SOCIETY
FIRST YEAR (1946-47)
Numbers 1-6 out of print.
SECOND YEAR (1947-1948)
7. John Gay"s _The Present State of Wit_ (1711); and a section on Wit from _The English Theophrastus_ (1702).
8. Rapin"s _De Carmine Pastorali_, translated by Creech (1684).
9. T. Hanmer"s (?) _Some Remarks on the Tragedy of Hamlet_ (1736).
10. Corbyn Morris" _Essay towards Fixing the True Standards of Wit, etc._ (1744).
11. Thomas Purney"s _Discourse on the Pastoral_ (1717).
12. Essays on the Stage, selected, with an Introduction by Joseph Wood Krutch.
THIRD YEAR (1948-1949)
13. Sir John Falstaff (pseud.), _The Theatre_ (1720).