fion, as is perhaps worse than the most despotic government. But where luxury nourishes commerce and induftry, the peasants, by a proper cultivation of the land, become rich and independent: while the tradesmen and merchants acquire a fhare of the property, and draw authority and confideration to that middling rank of men, who are the best and firmest basis of public liberty. These submit not to flavery, like the peafants, from poverty and meanness of spirit; and having no hopes of tyrannizing over others, like the barons, they are not tempted, for the fake of that gratification, to fubmit to the tyranny of their fovereign. They covet equal laws, which may secure their property, and preferve them from monarchical, as well as aristocratical tyranny.

The lower houfe is the fupport of our popular government; and all the world acknowledges, that it owed its chief influence and confideration to the encrease of commerce, which threw fuch a balance of property into the hands of the commons. How inconfiftent then is it to blame fo violently a refinement in the arts, and to reprefent it as the bane of liberty and public spirit!

To declaim against prefent times, and magnify the virtue of remote ancestors, is a propenfity almost inherent in human nature: And as the fentiments and opinions of civilized ages alone are tranfmitted to pofterity, hence it is that we meet with fo many fevere judgments pronounced againft luxury, and even fcience; and hence it is that at prefent we give fo ready an affent to them. But the fallacy is eafily perceived, by comparing different nations that are contemporaries; where we both judge more impartially, and can better fet in oppofition thofe manners, with which we are fufficiently acquainted. Treachery and cruelty, the moft pernicious and most odious of all vices, feem peculiar to uncivilized ages; and, by

U

4

by the refined GREEKS and ROMANS, were afcribed to all the barbarous nations which furrounded them. They might juftly, therefore, have prefumed, that their own ancestors, fo highly celebrated, poffeffed no greater virtue, and were as much inferior to their pofterity in honour and humanity, as in tafte and science. An ancient FRANK or SAXON may be highly extolled: But I believe every man would think his life or fortune much lefs fecure in the hands of a MOOR or TARTAR, than in thofe of a FRENCH OF ENGLISH gentleman, the rank of men the most civilized in the most civilized nations.

3

We come now to the fecond pofition which we proposed to illuftrate, to wit, that, as innocent luxury, or à refinement in the arts and conveniencies of life, is advantageous to the public; fo wherever luxury ceafes to be innocent, it alfo ceafes to be beneficial; and when carried a degree farther, begins to be a quality pernicious, though, perhaps, not the most pernicious, to political fociety.

Let us confider what we call vicious luxury. No gratification, however fenfual, can of itself be esteemed vicious. A gratification is only vicious, when it engroffes all a man's expence, and leaves no ability for fuch acts of duty and generofity as are required by his fituation and fortune. Suppofe, that he correct the vice, and employ part of his expence in the education of his children, in the fupport of his friends, and in relieving the poor; would any prejudice refult to fociety? On the contrary, the fame confumption would arife; and that labour, which, at prefent, is employed only in producing a flender gratification to one man, would relieve the neceffitous, and beftow fatisfaction on hundreds. The fame care and toil that raise a difh of peas at CHRISTMAS, would give bread to a whole family

during fix months. To fay, that, without a vicious luxury, the labour would not have been employed at all, is only to fay, that there is fome other defect in human nature, fuch as indolence, felfifhnefs, inattention to others, for which luxury, in fome measure, provides a remedy; as one poifon may be an antidote to another. But virtue, like wholefome food, is better than poifons, however corrected.

Suppose the fame number of men, that are at present in GREAT BRITAIN, with the fame foil and climate; I afk, is it not poffible for them to be happier, by the most perfect way of life that can be imagined, and by the greatest reformation that Omnipotence itself could work in their temper and difpofition? To affert, that they cannot, appears evidently ridiculous. As the land is able to maintain more than all its prefent inhabitants, they could never, in fuch a UTOPIAN state, feel any other ills than those which arise from bodily fickness: and thefe are not the half of human miferies. All other ills fpring from fome vice, either in ourselves or others; and even many of our diseases proceed from the fame origin. Remove the vices, and the ills follow. You must only take care to remove all the vices. If you remove part, you may render the matter worfe. By banishing vicious luxury, without curing floth and an indifference to others, you only diminish industry in the state, and add nothing to men's charity or their generofity. Let us, therefore, reft contented with afferting, that two oppofite vices in a state may be more advantageous than either of them alone; but let us never pronounce vice in itself advantageous. Is it not very inconfiftent for an author to affert in one page, that moral diftinctions are inventions of politicians for public intereft; and in the next page maintain, that vice is advantageous to the public? And indeed it feems,

Fable of the Bees.

upon

upon any system of morality, little less than a contradiction in terms, to talk of a vice, which is in general beneficial to fociety.

I thought this reafoning neceffary, in order to give fome light to a philofophical queftion, which has been much difputed in ENGLAND. I call it a philofophical que flion, not a political one. For whatever may be the confequence of fuch a miraculous transformation of mankind, as would endow them with every fpecies of virtue, and free them from every species of vice; this concerns not the magiftrate, who aims only at poffibilities. He cannot cure every vice by fubftituting a virtue in its place. Very often he can only cure one vice by another; and in that cafe, he ought to prefer what is leaft pernicious to fociety. Luxury, when exceffive, is the fource of many ills; but is in general preferable to floth and idleness, which would commonly fucceed in its place, and are more hurtful both to private perfons and to the public. When floth reigns, a mean uncultivated way of life prevails amongst individuals, without fociety, without enjoyment. And if the fovereign, in fuch a fituation, demands the fervice of his fubjects, the labour of the state fuffices only to furnish the neceffaries of life to the la bourers, and can afford nothing to thofe who are em ployed in the public service.

ESSA A Y

III.

Of MONEY.

ONEY is not, properly fpeaking, one of the

M fubjects of commerce; but only the inftrument

which men have agreed upon to facilitate the exchange of one commodity for another. It is none of the wheels of trade: It is the oil which renders the motion of the wheels more smooth and easy. If we confider any one kingdom by itself, it is evident, that the greater or less plenty of money is of no confequence; fince the prices of commodities are always proportioned to the plenty of money, and a crown in HARRY VII.'s time ferved the fame purpose as a pound does at prefent. It is only the public which draws any advantage from the greater plenty of money; and that only in its wars and negociations with foreign ftates. And this is the reafon, why all rich and trading countries from CARTHAGE to GREAT BRITAIN and HOLLAND, have employed mercenary troops, which they hired from their poorer neighbours. Were they to make use of their native fubjects they would find less advantage from their fuperior riches, and from their great plenty of gold and filver; fince the pay of all their fervants must rife in proportion to the public opulence. Our small army of 20,000 men is maintained at as great expence as a FRENCH army twice as numerous. The ENGLISH fleet, during the late war, required