THE FABLE OF THE BEES

(C.) The Soldiers, that were forced to fight,

If they survived, got Honour by’t.

PAGE 66. LINE 9. So unaccountable is the desire to be thought well of in Men, that tho’ they are drag’d into the War against their Will, and some of them for their Crimes, and are compell’d to fight with Threats and often Blows, yet they would be esteem’d for what they would have avoided, if it had been in their Power: Whereas if Reason in Man was of equal weight with his Pride, he could never be pleas’d with Praises, which he is conscious he don’t deserve.

By Honour in its proper and genuine Signification we mean nothing else but the good Opinion of others, which is counted more or less substantial, the more or less noise or bustle there is made about the demonstration of it, and when we say the Sovereign is the Fountain of Honour, it signifies that he has the Power by Titles or Ceremonies, or both together to stamp a Mark upon whom he pleases, that shall be as current as his Coin, and procure the Owner the good Opinion of every Body, whether he deserves it or not.

The Reverse of Honour is Dishonour or Ignominy, which consists in the bad Opinion and Contempt of others, and as the first is counted a Reward for good Actions, so this is esteem’d a Punishment for bad ones, and the more or less publick or heinous the manner is in which this Contempt of others is shewn, the more or less the Person so suffering is degraded by it. This Ignominy is likewise called Shame, from the effect it produces; for tho’ the Good and Evil of Honour and Dishonour are imaginary, yet there is a reality in Shame, as it signifies a Passion that has its proper Symptoms, over-rules our Reason, and requires as much Labour and Self denial to be subdued, as any of the rest; and since the most important Actions of Life often are regulated according to the Influence this Passion has upon us, a thorough understanding of it must help to illustrate the Notions the World has of Honour and Ignominy. I shall therefore describe it at large.

First to define the Passion of Shame I think it may be call’d a sorrowful Reflection on our own unworthiness proceeding from an Apprehension that others either do or might, if they knew all, deservedly despise us. The only Objection of weight that can be rais’d against this Definition is, that innocent Virgins are often asham’d, and blush when they are guilty of no Crime, and can give no manner of Reason for this Frailty: And that Men are often asham’d for others, for, or with whom, they have neither Friendship or Affinity, and consequently that there may be a thousand Instances of Shame given, to which the Words of the Definition are not applicable. To answer this, I would have it first consider’d, that the Modesty of Women is the Result of Custom and Education, by which all unfashionable Denudations and filthy Expressions are render’d frightful and abominable to them, and that notwithstanding this the most Vertuous young Woman alive will often, in spight of her Teeth, have Thoughts and confused Ideas of Things arise in her Imagination, which she would not reveal to some People for a thousand Worlds. Then I say, that when obscene Words are spoken in the presence of an unexperienc’d Virgin, she is afraid that some Body will reckon her to understand what they mean, and consequently that she understands this, and that, and several things which she desires to be thought ignorant of. The reflecting on this, and that Thoughts are forming to her Disadvantage, brings upon her that Passion which we call Shame; and whatever can fling her, tho’ never so remote from Lewdness, upon that Set of Thoughts I hinted, and which she thinks Criminal, will have the same effect, especially before Men, as long as her Modesty lasts.

To try the Truth of this, let them talk as much Bawdy as they please in the Room next to the same Vertuous young Woman, where she is sure that she is undiscover’d, and she will hear, if not hearken to it without blushing at all, because then she looks upon her self as no Party concern’d; and if the Discourse should stain her Checks with red, whatever her Innocence may imagine, it is certain that what occasions her Colour is a Passion not half so mortifying as that of Shame; but if in the same Place she hears something said of herself that must tend to her Disgrace, or any thing is named, of which she is secretly guilty, then ’tis Ten to One but she’ll be asham’d and blush, tho’ no Body sees her; because she has room to fear, that she is, or, if all was known, should be thought of Contemptibly.

That we are often asham’d, and blush for others, which was the second part of the Objection, is nothing else, but that sometimes we make the Case of others too nearly our own; so People shriek out when they see others in danger: Whilst we are reflecting with too much earnest on the effect which such a blameable Action, if it was ours, would produce in us, the Spirits and consequently the Blood, are insensibly moved after the same manner, as if the Action was our own, and so the same Symptoms must appear.

The Shame that raw, ignorant and ill bred People, tho’ seemingly without a Cause, discover before their Betters, is always accompanied with, and proceeds from a Consciousness of their Weakness and Inabilities, and the most modest Man, how Vertuous, Knowing and Accomplish’d soever he might be, was never yet asham’d without some Guilt or Diffidence. Such as out of Rusticity, and want of Education are unreasonably subject to, and at every turn overcome by this Passion, we call bashful; and those who out of disrespect to others, and a false Opinion of their own Sufficiency, have learn’d not to be affected with it, when they should be, are call’d Impudent or Shameless. What strange Contradictions Man is made of! The Reverse of Shame is Pride, (see Remark M.) yet no Body can be touch’d with the first, that never felt any thing of the latter; for that we have such an extraordinary Concern in what others think of us, can proceed from nothing but the vast Esteem we have for our selves.

That these two Passions, in which the Seeds of most Vertues are contained, are reallities in our frame and not imaginary Qualities, is demonstrable from the plain and different effects, that in spight of our Reason are produced in us as soon as we are affected with either.

When a Man is overwhelm’d with Shame, he observes a sinking of the Spirits, the Heart feels cold and condensed, and the Blood flies from it to the Circumference of the Body; the Face glows, the Neck and part of the Breast partake of the Fire: He is heavy as Lead; the Head is hung down; and the Eyes through a Mist of Confusion, are fix’d on the Ground: No Injuries can move him; he is weary of his Being, and heartily wishes he could make himself invisible: But when, gratifying his Vanity, he exults in his Pride he discovers quite contrary Symptoms: His Spirits swell and fan the Arterial Blood, a more than ordinary warmth strengthens and dilates the Heart; the Extremities are cool; he feels light to himself, and imagines he could tread on Air; his Head is held up, his Eyes rowl’d about with Sprightliness; he rejoyces at his Being, is prone to Anger, and would be glad that all the World could take Notice of him.¹²

It is incredible how necessary an Ingredient Shame is to make us sociable; it is a Frailty in our Nature, all the World, whenever it affects them, submit to it with Regret, and would prevent it if they could; yet the Happiness of Conversation depends upon it, and no Society could be polish’d, if the Generality of Mankind were not subject to it. As therefore the Sense of Shame is troublesome, and all Creatures are ever labouring for their own Defence, it is probable, that Man striving to avoid this Uneasiness would in a great Measure conquer his Shame by that he was grown up; but this would be detrimental to the Society, and therefore from his Infancy throughout his Education, we endeavour to increase instead of lessening or destroying this Sense of Shame; and the only Remedy prescrib’d, is a strict Observance of certain Rules to avoid those Things that might bring this troublesome Sense of Shame upon him. But as to rid or cure him of it, the Politician would sooner take away his Life.

The Rules I speak of consist in a dextrous Management of ourselves, a stifling of our Appetites, and hiding the real Sentiments of our Hearts before others. Those who are not instructed in these Rules long before they come to Years of Maturity, seldom make any Progress in them afterwards. To acquire and bring to Perfection the Accomplishment I hint at, nothing is more assisting than Pride and good Sense. The Greediness we have after the Esteem of others, and the Raptures we enjoy in the Thoughts of being liked, and perhaps admired, are Equivalents that over-pay the Conquest of the strongest Passions, and consequently keep us at a great Distance from all such Words or Actions that can bring shame upon us. The Passions we chiefly ought to hide for the Happiness and Embellishment of the Society are Lust, Pride, and Selfishness; therefore the Word Modesty has three different Acceptations, that vary with the Passions it conceals.

As to the first, I mean that Branch of Modesty, that has a general Pretension to Chastity for its Object, it consists in a sincere and painful Endeavour with all our Faculties to stifle and conceal before others, that Inclination which Nature has given us to propagate our Species. The Lessons of it, like those of Grammar, are taught us long before we have occasion for, or understand the Usefulness of them; for this Reason Children often are ashamed, and blush out of Modesty, before the Impulse of Nature I hint at makes any Impression upon them. A Girl who is modestly educated, may, before she is two Years old, begin to observe how careful the Women, she converses with, are of covering themselves before Men; and the same Caution being inculcated to her by Precept, as well as Example, it is very probable that at Six she’ll be asham’d of shewing her Leg, without knowing any Reason why such an Act is blameable, or what the Tendency of it is.

To be modest, we ought in the first place to avoid all unfashionable Denudations: A Woman is not to be found fault with for going with her Neck bare, if the Custom of the Country allows of it, and when the Mode orders the Stays to be cut very low, a blooming Virgin may, without Fear of rational Censure, shew all the World

How firm her pouting Breasts that white as Snow,

On th’ ample Chest at mighty distance grow.

But to suffer her Ancle to be seen, where it is the Fashion for Women to hide their very Feet, is a Breach of Modesty, and she is impudent, who shews half her Face in a Country where Decency bids her to be veil’d. In the second, our Language must be chaste, and not only free, but remote from Obscenities, that is, whatever belongs to the Multiplication of our Species is not to be spoke of, and the least Word or Expression, that tho’ at a great Distance has any relation to that Performance, ought never to come from our Lips. Thirdly, all Postures and Motions that can any ways sully the Imagination, that is, put us in mind of what I have call’d Obscenities, are to be forebore with great Caution.

A young Woman moreover, that would be thought well-bred, ought to be circumspect before Men in all her Behaviour, and never known to receive from, much less to bestow Favours upon them, unless the great Age of the Man, near Consanguinity, or a vast Superiority on either Side plead her Excuse. A young Lady of refin’d Education keeps a strict Guard over her Looks, as well as Actions, and in her Eyes we may read a Consciousness that she has a Treasure about her, not out of Danger of being lost, and which yet she is resolv’d not to part with at any Terms. Thousand Satyrs have been made against Prudes, and as many Encomiums to extol the careless Graces, and negligent Air of virtuous Beauty. But the wiser Sort of Mankind are well assured, that the free and open Countenance of the Smiling Fair, is more inviting, and yields greater Hopes to the Seducer, than the ever-watchful Look of a forbidding Eye.

This strict Reservedness is to be comply’d with by all young Women, especially Virgins, if they value the Esteem of the Polite and knowing World; Men may take greater Liberty, because in them the Appetite is more violent and ungovernable. Had equal Harshness of Discipline been imposed upon both, neither of them could have made the first Advances, and Propagation must have stood still among all the Fashionable People: which being far from the Politician’s Aim, it was advisable to ease and indulge the Sex that suffer’d most by the Severity, and make the Rules abate of their Rigour, where the Passion was the strongest, and the Burthen of a strict Restraint would have been the most intollerable.

For this Reason, the Man is allow’d openly to profess the Veneration and great Esteem he has for Women, and shew greater Satisfaction, more Mirth and Gaiety in their Company, than he is used to do out of it. He may not only be complaisant and serviceable to them on all Occasions, but it is reckon’d his Duty to protect and defend them. He may praise the good Qualities they are possess’d of, and extol their Merit with as many Exaggerations as his Invention will let him, and are consistent with good Sense. He may talk of Love, he may sigh and complain of the Rigours of the Fair, and what his Tongue must not utter he has the Privilege to speak with his Eyes, and in that Language to say what he pleases; so it be done with Decency, and short abrupted Glances: But too closely to pursue a Woman, and fasten upon her with one’s Eyes, is counted very unmannerly; the Reason is plain, it makes her uneasy, and, if she be not sufficiently fortify’d by Art and Dissimulation, often throws her into visible Disorders. As the Eyes are the Windows of the Soul, so this staring Impudence flings a raw, unexperienc’d Woman into panick Fears, that she may be seen through; and that the Man will discover, or has already betray’d, what passes within her: It keeps her on a perpetual Rack, that commands her to reveal her secret Wishes, and seems design’d to extort from her the grand Truth, which Modesty bids her with all her Faculties to deny.

The Multitude will hardly believe the excessive Force of Education, and in the Difference of Modesty between Men and Women, ascribe that to Nature, which is altogether owing to early Instruction: Miss is scarce three Years old, but she’s spoke to every Day to hide her Leg, and rebuk’d in good Earnest if she shews it; whilst Little Master at the same Age is bid to take up his Coats, and piss like a Man. It is Shame and Education that contain the Seeds of all Politeness, and he that has neither, and offers to speak the Truth of his Heart, and what he feels within, is the most contemptible Creature upon Earth, tho’ he committed no other Fault. If a Man should tell a Woman, that he could like no body so well to propagate his Species upon, as her self, and that he found a violent Desire that Moment to go about it, and accordingly offer’d to lay hold of her for that Purpose; the Consequence would be, that he would be call’d a Brute, the Woman would run away, and himself never be admitted in any civil Company. There is no body that has any Sense of Shame, but would conquer the strongest Passion rather than be so serv’d. But a Man need not conquer his Passions, it is sufficient that he conceals them. Virtue bids us subdue, but good Breeding only requires we should hide our Appetites. A fashionable Gentleman may have as violent an Inclination to a Woman as the brutish Fellow; but then he behaves himself quite otherwise; he first addresses the Lady’s Father, and demonstrates his Ability splendidly to maintain his Daughter; upon this he is admitted into her Company, where, by Flattery, Submission, Presents, and Assiduity, he endeavours to procure her Liking to his Person, which, if he can compass, the Lady in a little while resigns her self to him before Witnesses in a most solemn manner; at Night they go to bed together, where the most reserv’d Virgin very tamely suffers him to do what he pleases, and the upshot is, that he obtains what he wanted without having ever ask’d for it.

The next Day they receive Visits, and no body laughs at them, or speaks a Word of what they have been doing. As to the young Couple themselves, they take no more Notice of one another, I speak of well-bred People, than they did the Day before, they eat and drink, divert themselves as usually, and having done nothing to be asham’d of, are look’d upon as, what in reality they may be, the most modest People upon Earth. What I mean by this, is to demonstrate, that by being well bred, we suffer no Abridgment in our sensual Pleasures, but only labour for our mutual Happiness, and assist each other in the luxurious Enjoyment of all worldly Comforts. The fine Gentleman I spoke of, need not practise any greater Self-Denial than the Savage, and the latter acted more according to the Laws of Nature and Sincerity than the first. The Man that gratifies his Appetites after the manner the Custom of the Country allows of, has no censure to Fear. If he is hotter than Goats or Bulls, as soon as the Ceremony is over let him sate and fatigue himself with Joy and Extasies of Pleasure, raise and indulge his Appetites by turns as extravagantly as his Strength and Manhood will give him leave, he may with safety Laugh at the Wise Men that should reprove him: all the Women, and above Nine in Ten of the Men are on his side; nay, he has the Liberty of valuing himself upon the Fury of his unbridled Passion, and the more he wallows in Lust and strains every faculty to be abandondly voluptuous, the sooner he shall have the Good Will and gain the Affection of the Women, not the Young, Vain and Lascivious only, but the Prudent, Grave and most Sober Matrons.

Because Impudence is a Vice, it does not follow that Modesty is a Virtue; it is built upon Shame, a Passion in our Nature, and may be either Good or Bad according to the Actions perform’d from that Motive. Shame may hinder a Prostitute from yielding to a Man before Company, and the same Shame may cause a Bashful good natur’d Creature, that has been overcome by frailty, to make away with her Infant. Passions may do Good by chance, but there can be no merit but in the conquest of them.

Was there Virtue in Modesty, it would be of the same force in the Dark as it is in the Light, which it is not. This the Men of Pleasure know very well, who never trouble their Heads with a Woman’s Virtue so they can but conquer her Modesty; Seducers therefore don’t make their Attacks at Noonday, but cut their Trenches at Night.

Illa verecundis lux est praebenda puellis,

Qua timidus latebras sperat habere pudor.¹³

People of Substance may Sin without being expos’d for their stolen Pleasure; but Servants and the Poorer sort of Women have seldom an Opportunity of concealing a Big Belly, or at least the Consequences of it. It is possible that an unfortunate Girl of Good Parentage may be left destitute, and know no other Shift for a Livelihood than to become a Nursery, or a Chambermaid: She may be Diligent, Faithful and Obliging, have abundance of Modesty, and, if you will, be Religious: She may resist Temptations, and preserve her Chastity for Years together, and yet at last meet with an unhappy Moment in which she gives up her Honour to a Powerful Deceiver, who afterwards neglects her. If she proves with Child, her Sorrows are unspeakable, and she can’t be reconcil’d with the Wretchedness of her Condition, the fear of shame Attacks her so lively, that every Thought distracts her. All the Family she lives in have a great opinion of her Virtue, and her last Mistress took her for a Saint. How will her Enemies, that envyed her Character, rejoyce, how will her Relations detest her! The more modest she is now, and the more violently the dread of coming to Shame hurries her away, the more Wicked and more Cruel her Resolutions will be, either against her self or what she bears.

It is commonly imagined, that she who can destroy her Child, her own Flesh and Blood, must have a vast stock of Barbarity, and be a Savage Monster, different from other Women; but this is likewise a mistake which we commit for want of understanding Nature and the force of Passions. The same Woman that Murders her Bastard in the most execrable manner, if she is Married afterwards, may take care of, cherish and feel all the tenderness for her Infant that the fondest Mother can be capable of. All Mothers naturally love their Children: but as this is a Passion, and all Passions center in Self-Love, so it may be subdued by any Superiour Passion, to sooth that same Self-Love, which if nothing had interven’d, would have bid her fondle her Offspring. Common Whores, whom all the World knows to be such, hardly ever destroy their Children, nay even those who assist in Robberies and Murders seldom are Guilty of this Crime; not because they are less Cruel or more Virtuous, but because they have lost their Modesty to a greater degree, and the fear of shame makes hardly any impression upon them.

Our Love to what never was within the reach of our Senses is but poor and inconsiderable, and therefore Women have no Natural Love to what they bear; their Affection begins after the Birth: what they feel before is the result of Reason, Education, and the Thoughts of Duty. Even when Children first are Born the Mother’s Love is but weak, and encreases with the sensibility of the Child, and grows up to a prodigious height, when by signs it begins to express his Sorrows and Joys, makes his wants known, and discovers his Love to novelty and the Multiplicity of his desires. What Labours and Hazards have not Women undergone to maintain and save their Children, what force and fortitude beyond their Sex have they not shewn in their Behalf! but the vilest Women have exerted themselves on this head as violently as the best. All are prompted to it by a natural Drift and Inclination, without any consideration of the Injury or Benefit the Society receives from it. There is no merit in pleasing our selves, and the very Offspring is often irreparably ruin’d by the excessive Fondness of Parents: for tho’ Infants for Two or Three Years may be the better for this indulging Care of Mothers, yet afterwards, if not moderated, it may totally Spoil them, and many it has brought to the Gallows.

If the Reader thinks I have been too tedious on that Branch of Modesty by the help of which we endeavour to appear Chaste, I shall make him amends in the Brevity with which I design to treat of the remaining part, by which we would make others believe, that the esteem we have for them exceeds the value we have for our selves, and that we have no disregard so great to any Interest as we have to our own. This laudable quality is commonly known by the name of Manners and good Breeding, and consists in a Fashionable Habit, acquired by Precept and Example, of flattering the Pride and Selfishness of others, and concealing our own with Judgment and Dexterity. This must be only understood of our Commerce with our Equals and Superiors, and whilst we are in Peace and Amity with them, for our Complaisance must never interfere with the Rules of Honour, nor the Homage that is due to us from Servants and others that depend upon us.

With this Caution, I believe, that the Definition will quadrate with every thing that can be alledg’d as a piece or an example of either Good Breeding or Ill Manners; and it will be very difficult throughout the various Accidents of Human Life and Conversation to find out an instance of Modesty or Impudence that is not comprehended in, and illustrated by it in all Countries and in all Ages. A Man that asks considerable Favours of one who is a Stranger to him, without consideration, is call’d Impudent, because he shews openly his Selfishness without having any regard to the Selfishness of the other. We may see in it likewise the reason why a Man ought to speak of his Wife and Children, and every thing that is dear to him, as sparingly as is possible, and hardly ever of himself, especially in Commendation of them. A well Bred Man may be desirous, and even greedy after Praise and the Esteem of others, but to be prais’d to his Face offends his Modesty, the reason is this; all Human Creatures, before they are yet polish’d, receive an extraordinary Pleasure in hearing themselves prais’d: this we are all conscious of, and therefore when we see a Man openly enjoy and feast on this Delight, in which we have no share, it rouses our Selfishness, and immediately we begin to Envy and Hate him. For this reason the well Bred Man conceals his Joy, and utterly denies that he feels any, and by this means consulting and soothing our Selfishness, he averts that Envy and Hatred, which otherwise he would have justly to Fear. When from our Childhood we observe how those are ridicul’d who calmly can hear their own Praises, it is possible that we may so strenuously endeavour to avoid that Pleasure, that in tract of time we grow uneasy at the approach of it: but this is not following the Dictates of Nature; but warping her by Education and Custom, for if the generality of Mankind took no delight in being prais’d, there could be no Modesty in refusing to hear it.

The Man of Manners picks not the best but rather takes the worst out of the Dish, and gets of every thing, unless it be forc’d upon him, always the most indifferent Share. By this Civility the Best remains for others, which being a Compliment to all that are present, every Body is pleas’d with it: the more they love themselves the more they are forc’d to approve of his Behaviour, and Gratitude stepping in, they are obliged almost whether they will or not, to think favourably of him. After this manner it is that the well Bred Man insinuates himself in the esteem of all the Companies he comes in, and if he gets nothing else by it, the Pleasure he receives in reflecting on the Applause which he knows is secretly given him, is to a Proud Man more than an Equivalent for his former Self-denial, and over-pays to Self-love with Interest, the loss it sustain’d in his Complaisance to others.

If there are Seven or Eight Apples or Peaches among Six People of Ceremony, that are pretty near equal, he who is prevail’d upon to chuse first, will take that, which, if there be any considerable difference, a Child would know to be the worst: this he does to insinuate, that he looks upon those he is with to be of Superior Merit, and that there is not one whom he wishes not better to than he does to himself. ’Tis Custom and a general Practice that makes this Modish Deceit familiar to us, without being shock’d at the Absurdity of it; for if People had been used to speak from the Sincerity of their Hearts, and Act according to the Natural Sentiments they felt within, till they were Three or Four and Twenty, it would be impossible for them to assist at this Comedy of Manners without either lowd Laughter or Indignation; and yet it is certain, that such a Behaviour makes us more tollerable to one another than we could be otherwise.

It is very Advantageous to the Knowledge of our selves, to be able well to distinguish between good Qualities and Virtues. The Bond of Society exacts from every Member a certain Regard for others, which the Highest is not exempt from in the presence of the meanest even in an Empire: But when we are by our selves, and so far remov’d from Company as to be beyond the reach of their Senses, the Words Modesty and Impudence lose their meaning; a Person may be Wicked, but he cannot be Immodest whilst he is alone, and no Thought can be Impudent that never was communicated to another. A Man of Exalted Pride may so hide it, that no Body shall be able to discover that he has any; and yet receive greater Satisfaction from that Passion than another, who indulges himself in the Declaration of it before all the World. Good Manners have nothing to do with Virtue or Religion; instead of extinguishing, they rather inflame the Passions. The Man of Sense and Education never exults more in his Pride than when he hides it with the greatest dexterity, and in feasting on the Applause which he is sure all good Judges will pay to his Behaviour; he enjoys a Pleasure altogether unknown to the Short-Sighted, surly Alderman, that shews his Haughtiness glaringly in his Face, pulls off his Hat to no Body, and hardly deigns to speak to an Inferior.

A Man may carefully avoid every thing that in the Eye of the World is esteem’d to be the result of Pride, without mortifying himself, or making the least conquest of his Passion. It is possible that he only sacrifices the insipid outward part of his Pride, which none but silly Ignorant People take delight in, to that part we all feel within, and which the Men of the Highest Spirit and most Exalted Genius feed on with so much extasy in silence. The Pride of Great and Polite Men is no where more conspicuous than in the Debates about Ceremony and Precedency, where they have an Opportunity of giving their Vices the appearance of Virtues, and can make the World believe that it is their care, their Tenderness for the Dignity of their Office, or the Honour of their Masters, what is the result of their own personal Pride and Vanity. This is most manifest in all Negotiations of Ambassadors and Plenipotentiaries, and must be known by all that observe what is transacted at publick Treaties, and it will ever be true, that Men of the best Taste have no Relish in their Pride as long as any Mortal can find out that they are Proud.

(D.) For there was not a Bee, but would

Get more, I won’t say, than he should;

But than, &c.

PAGE 66. LINE 33. The vast Esteem we have of our selves, and the small value we have for others, make us all very unfair Judges in our own Cases. Few Men can be perswaded that they get too much by those they sell to, how extraordinary soever their Gains are, when at the same time there is hardly a Profit so inconsiderable, but they’ll grudge it to those they buy from; for this Reason the smallness of the Seller’s Advantage being the greatest Perswasive to the Buyer, Tradesmen are generally forc’d to tell Lyes in their own Defence, and invent a thousand improbable Stories, rather than discover what they really get by their Commodities. Some old Standers indeed that pretend to more Honesty, (or what is more likely, have more Pride) than their Neighbours, are used to make but few Words with their Customers, and refuse to sell at a lower Price than what they ask’d at first. But these are commonly cunning Foxes that are above the World, and know that those who have Money, get often more by being surly, than others by being obliging. The Vulgar imagine they can find more Sincerity in the sowr Looks of a grave old Fellow, than there appears in the submissive Air and inviting Complacency of a young Beginner. But this is a grand Mistake; and if they are Mercers, Drapers, or others, that have many sorts of the same Commodity, you may soon be satisfied; look upon their Goods and you’ll find each of them have their private Marks, which is a certain Sign that both are equally careful in concealing the prime Cost of what they sell.

(E.)—As your Gamesters do,

That, tho’ at fair Play, ne’er will own

Before the Losers what they’ve won.

PAGE 67. LINE 3. This being a general Practice which no Body can be ignorant of that has ever seen any Play, there must be something in the Make of Man that is the occasion of it: But as the searching into this will seem very trifling to many, I desire the Reader to skip this Remark, unless he be in perfect good Humour, and has nothing at all to do.

That Gamesters generally endeavour to conceal their Gains before the Losers, seems to me to proceed from a mixture of Gratitude, Pity and Self-Preservation. All Men are naturally grateful whilst they receive a Benefit, and what they say or do, whilst it affects and feels warm about them, is real, and comes from the Heart; but when that is over, the returns we make generally proceed from Virtue, good Manners, Reason, and the thoughts of Duty, but not from Gratitude, which is a Motive of the Inclination. If we consider, how tyrannically the Immoderate Love we bear to our selves, obliges us to esteem every body that with or without design acts in our favour, and how often we extend our Affection to things inanimate, when we imagine them to contribute to our present Advantage: If, I say, we consider this, it will not be difficult to find out which way our being pleased with those whose Money we win, is owing to a Principle of Gratitude. The next Motive is our Pity, which proceeds from our consciousness of the Vexation there is in losing; and as we love the Esteem of every body, we are afraid of forfeiting theirs by being the cause of their Loss. Lastly, we apprehend their Envy, and so Self-Preservation makes that we strive to extenuate first the Obligation, then the Reason why we ought to Pity, in hopes that we shall have less of their ill Will and Envy. When the Passions shew themselves in their full Strength, they are known by every body. When a Man in Power gives a great Place to one that did him a small kindness in his Youth, we call it Gratitude. When a Woman howls and wrings her Hands at the loss of her Child, the prevalent Passion is Grief; and the uneasiness we feel at the sight of great Misfortunes, as a Man’s breaking his Leg, or dashing his Brains out, is every where call’d Pity. But the gentle stroaks, the slight touches of the Passions are generally over-look’d or mistaken.

To prove my Assertion we have but to observe, what generally passes between the Winner and the Loser. The first is always Complaisant, and if the other will but keep his Temper more than ordinarily obliging, he is ever ready to humour the Loser, and willing to rectify his Mistakes with Precaution, and the height of good Manners. The Loser is uneasy, captious, morose, and perhaps Swears and Storms; yet as long as he says or does nothing designedly affronting, the Winner takes all in good part, without offending, disturbing, or contradicting him. Losers, says the Proverb, must have leave to rail: All which shews, that the Loser is thought in the right to complain, and for that very Reason pity’d. That we are afraid of the Loser’s ill Will is plain from our being conscious that we are displeased with those we lose to, and Envy we always dread when we think our selves happier than others: from whence it follows, that when the Winner endeavours to conceal his Gains, his design is to avert the Mischiefs he apprehends, and this is Self-Preservation; the Cares of which continue to affect us as long as the Motives that first produced them remain.

But a Month, a Week, or perhaps a much shorter time after, when the Thoughts of the Obligation, and consequently the Winner’s Gratitude are worn off, when the Loser has recover’d his Temper, laughs at his Loss, and the Reason of the Winner’s Pity ceases; when the Winner’s apprehension of drawing upon him the ill Will and Envy of the Loser is gone; that is to say, as soon as all the Passions are over, and the Cares of Self-Preservation employ the Winner’s Thoughts no longer, he’ll not only make no scruple in owning what he has won, but will, if his Vanity steps in, likewise, with Pleasure, brag of, if not exaggerate his Gains.

It is possible, that when People play together who are at Enmity, and perhaps desirous of picking a Quarrel, or where Men playing for Trifles contend for Superiority of Skill, and aim chiefly at the Glory of Conquest, nothing shall happen of what I have been talking of. Different Passions oblige us to take different Measures; what I have said I would have understood of ordinary Play for Money, at which Men endeavour to get, and venture to lose what they value: And even here I know it will be objected by many, that tho’ they have been guilty of concealing their Gains, yet they never observ’d those Passions which I alledge as the Causes of that Frailty; which is no wonder, because few Men will give themselves leisure, and fewer yet take the right Method of examining themselves as they should do. It is with the Passions in Men as it is with Colours in Cloth: It is easy to know a Red, a Green, a Blue, a Yellow, a Black, &c. in as manny different Pieces; but it must be an Artist that can unravel all the various Colours and their Proportions, that make up the Compound of a well mix’d Cloth. In the same manner may the Passions be discover’d by every body whilst they are distinct, and a single one employs the whole Man; but it is very difficult to trace every Motive of those Actions that are the Result of a mixture of Passions.

(F.) And Vertue, who from Politicks

Had learn’d a Thousand cunning Tricks,

Was, by their happy Influence,

Made Friends with Vice.—

PAGE 68. LINE 6. It may be said, that Virtue is made Friends with Vice, when industrious good People, who maintain their Families and bring up their Children handsomely, pay Taxes, and are several ways useful Members of the Society, get a livelyhood by something that chiefly depends on, or is very much influenc’d by the Vices of others, without being themselves guilty of, or accessary to them any otherwise than by way of Trade, as a Druggist may be to Poysoning, or a Sword-Cutler to Bloodshed.

Thus the Merchant, that sends Corn or Cloth into Foreign Parts to purchase Wines and Brandies, encourages the Growth or Manufactury of his own Country; he is a Benefactor to Navigation, encreases the Customs, and is many ways beneficial to the Publick; yet it is not to be denied but that his greatest dependance is Lavishness and Drunkenness: For if none were to drink Wine but such only as stand in need of it, nor any body more than his Health required, that multitude of Wine-Merchants, Vintners, Coopers, &c. that make such a considerable Shew in this flourishing City, would be in a miserable Condition. The same may be said not only of Card and Dice-makers, that are the immediate Ministers to a Legion of Vices; but of Mercers, Upholsterers, Taylors, and many others that would be starv’d in half a Years time, if Pride and Luxury were at once to be banish’d the Nation.

(G.) The Worst of all the Multitude

Did something for the common Good.

PAGE 68. LINE 10. This I know will seem to be a strange Paradox to many; and I shall be ask’d what Benefit the Publick receives from Thieves and House-breakers. They are, I own, very pernicious to Human Society, and every Government ought to take all imaginable Care to root out and destroy them; yet if all People were strictly honest, and no body would meddle with or pry into any thing but his own, half the Smiths of the Nation would want Employment; and abundance of Workmanship (which now serves for Ornament as well as Defence) is to be seen every where both in Town and Country, that would never have been thought of, but to secure us against the Attempts of Pilferers and Robbers.¹⁴

If what I have said be thought far fetch’d, and my Assertion seems still a Parodox, I desire the Reader to look upon the Consumption of things, and he’ll find that the lazyest and most unactive, the profligate and most mischievous are all forc’d to do something for the common good, and whilst their Mouths are not sow’d up, and they continue to wear and otherwise destroy what the Industrious are daily employ’d about to make, fetch and procure, in spight of their Teeth oblig’d to help maintain the Poor and the publick Charges. The Labour of Millions would soon be at an end if there were not other Millions as I say in the Fable

—————Employ’d,

To see their Handy-works destroy’d.

But Men are not to be Judg’d by the Consequences that may succeed their Actions, but the Facts themselves, and the Motives which it shall appear they acted from. If an Ill-natur’d Miser, who is almost a Plumb,¹⁵ and spends but Fifty Pounds a Year, tho’ he has no Relation to inherit his Wealth, should be Robb’d of Five Hundred or a Thousand Guineas, it is certain that as soon as this Money should come to Circulate, the Nation would be the better for the Robbery, and receive the same and as real a Benefit from it, as if an Archbishop had left the same Sum to the Publick, yet Justice and the peace of the Society require that he or they who robb’d the Miser should be Hang’d, tho’ there were Half a Dozen of ’em concern’d.

Thieves and Pick-pockets steal for a Livelihood, and either what they can get Honestly is not sufficient to keep them, or else they have an aversion to constant Working: they want to gratify their Senses, have Victuals, Strong Drink, Lewd Women, and to be Idle when they please. The Victualler, who Entertains them and takes their Money, knowing which way they come at it, is very near as great a Villain as his Guests. But if he Fleeces them well, minds his Business and is a prudent Man, he may get Money and be punctual with them he deals with: The Trusty Out-Clerk, whose chief aim is his Master’s Profit, sends him in what Beer he wants, and takes care not to lose his Custom; whilst the Man’s Money is good he thinks it no Business of his to examine whom he gets it by. In the mean time the Wealthy Brewer, who leaves all the Management to his Servants, knows nothing of the matter, but keeps his Coach, treats his Friends and enjoys his Pleasure with ease and a good Conscience, he gets an Estate, Builds Houses and Educates his Children in Plenty, without ever thinking on the Labour which Wretches perform, the shifts Fools make, and the Tricks Knaves play to come at the Commodity by the vast Sale of which he amasses his great Riches.

A Highwayman having met with a considerable Booty, gives a poor common Harlot, he fancys, Ten Pounds to New Rig her from Top to Toe; is there a Spruce Mercer so Conscientious that he will refuse to sell her a Thread Sattin, tho’ he knew who she was? She must have Shoes and Stockings, Gloves, the Stay and Manto-maker, the Sempstress, the Linnen-draper, all must get something by her, and a hundred different Tradesmen dependent on those she laid her Money out with, may touch part of it before a Month is at an end. The Generous Gentleman, in the mean time, his Money being near spent, ventur’d again on the Road, but the Second Day having committed a Robbery near Highgate, he was taken with one of his Accomplices, and the next Sessions both were Condemn’d, and suffer’d the Law. The Money due on their Conviction fell to three Country Fellows, on whom it was admirably well bestow’d. One was an Honest Farmer, a Sober Pains-taking Man but reduced by Misfortunes: The Summer before by the Mortality among the Cattle he had lost Six Cows out of Ten, and now his Landlord, to whom he ow’d Thirty Pounds had seiz’d on all his Stock. The other was a Day Labourer, who struggl’d hard with the World, had a Sick Wife at Home and several small Children to provide for. The Third was a Gentleman’s Gardiner, who maintain’d his Father in Prison, where being Bound for a Neighbour he had lain for Twelve Pounds almost a Year and a Half; this Act of Filial Duty was the more meritorious, because he had for some time been engaged to a Young Woman whose Parents lived in good Circumstances, but would not give their Consent before our Gardiner had Fifty Guineas of his own to shew. They receiv’d above Fourscore Pounds each, which extricated every one of them out of the difficulties they labour’d under, and made them in their Opinion the happiest People in the World.

Nothing is more destructive, either in regard to the Health or the Vigilance and Industry of the Poor than the infamous Liquor, the name of which deriv’d from Juniper in Dutch, is now, by frequent use and the Laconick Spirit of the Nation, from a word of midling length shrunk into a Monosyllable, Intoxicating Gin, that charms the Unactive, the desperate and crasy of either Sex, and makes the starving Sot behold his Rags and Nakedness with stupid Indolence, or banter both in Senseless Laughter, and more insipid Jests; It is a Fiery Lake that sets the Brain in Flame, Burns up the Entrails, and scorches every part within; and at the same time a Lethe of Oblivion, in which the Wretch immers’d drowns his most pinching Cares, and with his Reason all anxious reflection on Brats that cry for Food, hard Winters Frosts, and horrid Empty Home.

In hot and adust Tempers it makes Men Quarrelsome, renders ’em Brutes and Savages, sets ’em on to Fight for nothing, and has often been the cause of Murder. It has broke and destroy’d the strongest Constitutions, thrown ’em into Consumptions, and been the fatal and immediate occasion of Apoplexies, Phrensies and Sudden Death. But as these latter Mischiefs happen but seldom, they might be overlook’d and conniv’d at, but this cannot be said of the many Diseases that are familiar to the Liquor, and which are daily and hourly produced by it; such as Loss of Appetite, Fevers, Black and Yellow Jaundice, Convulsions, Stone and Gravel, Dropsies, and Leucophlegmacies.

Among the doating Admirers of this Liquid Poyson, many of the meanest Rank, from a sincere Affection to the Commodity it self, become Dealers in it, and take delight to help others to what they love themselves, as Whores commence Bawds to make the profits of one Trade subservient to the Pleasures of the other. But as these Starvlings commonly drink more than their Gains, they seldom by selling mend the wretchedness of Condition they labour’d under whilst they were only Buyers. In the Fag-end and Out-skirts of the Town, and all places of the vilest Resort, it’s Sold in some part or other of almost every House, frequently in Cellars, and sometimes in the Garret. The petty Traders in this Stygian Comfort are supply’d by others in somewhat higher Station, that keep profess’d Brandy Shops, and are as little to be envied as the former; and among the midling People, I know not a more miserable Shift for a Livelihood than their calling; whoever would thrive in it must in the first place be of a Watchful and Suspicious, as well as a bold and resolute Temper, that he may not be imposed upon by Cheats and Sharpers, nor out-bully’d by the Oaths and Imprecations of Hackney Coachmen and Foot Soldiers; in the second he ought to be a dabster at gross Jokes and loud Laughter, and have all the Winning Ways to allure Customers and draw out their Money, and be well vers’d in the low Jests and Ralleries the Mob make use of to Banter Prudence and Frugality. He must be affable and obsequious to the most despicable; always ready and officious to help a Porter down with his Load, shake Hands with a Basket-Woman, pull off his Hat to an Oyster Wench, and be familiar with a Beggar; with Patience and good Humour he must be able to endure the filthy Actions and viler Language of Nasty Drabs, and the lewdest Rakehells, and without a frown or the least aversion bear with all the Stench and Squallor, Noise and Impertinence that the utmost Indigence, Laziness and Ebriety, can produce in the most shameless and abandon’d Vulgar.

The vast Number of the Shops I speak of throughout the City and Suburbs, are an astonishing Evidence of the many Seducers, that in a Lawful Occupation are accessary to the Introduction and Increase of all the Sloth, Sottishness, Want and Misery, which the Abuse of Strong Waters is the immediate Cause of, to lift above Mediocrity, perhaps half a score Men that deal in the same Commodity by wholesale, whilst among the Retailers, tho’ qualify’d as I required, a much greater Number are broke and ruin’d, for not abstaining from the Circean Cup they hold out to others, and the more fortunate are their whole Life-time obliged to take the uncommon Pains, endure the Hardships, and swallow all the ungrateful and shocking Things I named, for little or nothing beyond a bare Sustenance, and their daily Bread.

The short-sighted Vulgar in the Chain of Causes seldom can see further than one Link; but those who can enlarge their View, and will give themselves the Leisure of gazing on the Prospect of concatenated Events, may, in a hundred Places see Good spring up, and pullulate from Evil, as naturally as Chickens do from Eggs. The Money that arises from the Duties upon Malt, is a considerable Part of the National Revenue, and should no Spirits be distill’d from it, the Publick Treasure would prodigiously suffer on that Head. But, if we would set in a true Light the many Advantages, and large Catalogue of solid Blessings that accrue from, and are owing to the Evil I treat of, we are to consider the Rents that are received, the Ground that is till’d, the Tools that are made, the Cattle that are employ’d, and above all, the Multitude of Poor that are maintain’d, by the Variety of Labour, required in Husbandry, in Malting, in Carriage and Distillation, before we can have that Product of Malt, which we call Low Wines, and is but the Beginning from which the various Spirits are afterwards to be made.

Besides this, a sharp-sighted good-humour’d Man might pick up abundance of Good from the Rubbish, which I have all flung away for Evil. He would tell me, that whatever Sloth and Sottishness might be occasion’d by the Abuse of Malt-Spirits, the moderate Use of it was of inestimable Benefit to the Poor, who could purchase no Cordials of higher Prices, that it was an universal Comfort, not only in Cold and Weariness, but most of the Afflictions that are peculiar to the Necessitous, and had often to the most destitute supply’d the Places of Meat, Drink, Cloaths, and Lodging. That the stupid Indolence in the most wretched Condition occasion’d by those composing Draughts, which I complain’d of, was a Blessing to Thousands, for that certainly those were the happiest, who felt the least Pain. As to Diseases, he would say, that, as it caused some, so it cured others, and that if the Excess in those Liquors had been sudden Death to some few, the Habit of drinking them daily prolong’d the Lives of many, whom once it agreed with; that for the Loss sustain’d from the insignificant Quarrels it created at home, we were over-paid in the Advantage we receiv’d from it abroad, by upholding the Courage of Soldiers, and animating the Sailors to the Combat; and that in the two last Wars no considerable Victory had been obtain’d without.

To the dismal Account I have given of the Retailers, and what they are forc’d to submit to, he would answer, that not many acquired more than middling Riches in any Trade, and that what I had counted so offensive and intollerable in the Calling, was trifling to those who were used to it; that what seem’d irksome and calamitous to some, was delightful and often ravishing to others; as Men differ’d in Circumstances and Education. He would put me in mind, that the Profit of an Employment ever made amends for the Toil and Labour that belong’d to it, nor forget, Dulcis odor lucri e re qualibet¹⁶; or to tell me, that the Smell of Gain was fragrant even to Night-Workers.

If I should ever urge to him, that to have here and there one great and eminent Distiller was a poor Equivalent for the vile Means, the certain Want, and lasting Misery of so many thousand Wretches, as were necessary to raise them, he would answer, that of this I could be no Judge, because I don’t know what vast Benefit they might afterwards be of to the Commonwealth. Perhaps would he say, the Man thus rais’d will exert himself in the Commission of the Peace, or other Station, with Vigilance and Zeal against the Dissolute and Disaffected, and retaining his stirring Temper, be as industrious in spreading Loyalty, and the Reformation of Manners throughout every cranny of the wide populous Town, as once he was in filling it with Spirits; till he becomes at last the Scourge of Whores, of Vagabonds and Beggars, the Terrour of Rioters and discontented Rabbles, and constant Plague to Sabbath-breaking Butchers. Here my good humour’d Antagonist would Exult and Triumph over me, especially if he could instance to me such a bright Example. What an uncommon Blessing would he cry out, is this Man to his Country, how shining and illustrious his Virtue!

To justify his Exclamation he would demonstrate to me, that it was impossible to give a fuller Evidence of Self-denial in a grateful mind, than to see him, at the Expence of his quiet and hazzard of his Life and Limbs, be always harazzing, and even for Trifles persecuting that very Class of Men, to whom he owes his Fortune, from no other Motive than his Aversion to Idleness, and great concern for Religion and the Publick Welfare.

(H.) Parties directly opposite

Assist each oth’r, as ’twere for Spight.

PAGE 68. LINE 16. Nothing was more instrumental in forwarding the Reformation, than the Sloth and Stupidity of the Roman Clergy; yet the same Reformation has rous’d ’em from the Laziness and Ignorance they then labour’d under, and the followers of Luther, Calvin, and others, may be said to have reform’d not only those whom they drew in to their Sentiments, but likewise those who remain’d their greatest Opposers. The Clergy of England by being severe upon the Schismaticks, and upbraiding them with want of Learning, have raised themselves such formidable Enemies as are not easily answer’d; and again, the Dissenters by prying into the Lives, and diligently watching all the Actions of their powerful Antagonists, render those of the Establish’d Church more cautious of giving Offence, than in all probability they would, if they had no malicious overlookers to fear. It is very much owing to the great number of Hugonots that have always been in France, since the late utter Extirpation of them, that that Kingdom has a less dissolute and more learned Clergy to boast of than any other Roman Catholick Country. The Clergy of that Church are no where more Sovereign than in Italy, and therefore no where more debauch’d; nor any where more Ignorant than they are in Spain, because their Doctrine is no where less oppos’d.

Who would imagine, that Virtuous Women, unknowingly should be instrumental in promoting the Advantage of Prostitutes? Or (what still seems the greater Paradox) that Incontinence should be made serviceable to the Preservation of Chastity? And yet nothing is more true. A Vicious young Fellow, after having been an Hour or two at Church, a Ball, or any other Assembly, where there is a great parcel of handsome Women dress’d to the best Advantage, will have his Imagination more fired than if he had the same time been Poling at Guildhall, or walking in the Country among a Flock of Sheep. The consequence of this is, that he’ll strive to satisfy the Appetite that is raised in him; and when he finds honest Women obstinate and uncomatable, ’tis very natural to think, that he’ll hasten to others that are more compliable. Who wou’d so much as surmise, that this is the fault of the Virtuous Women? They have no Thoughts of Men in dressing themselves, Poor Souls, and endeavour only to appear clean and decent, every one according to her Quality.

I am far from encouraging Vice, and think it would be an unspeakable Felicity to a State, if the Sin of Uncleanness could be utterly banish’d from it; but I am afraid it is impossible. The Passions of some People are too violent to be curb’d by any Law or Precept; and it is Wisdom in all Governments to bear with lesser Inconveniencies to prevent greater. If Courtezans and Strumpets were to be prosecuted with as much Rigour as some silly People would have it, what Locks or Bars would be sufficient to preserve the Honour of our Wives and Daughters? For ’tis not only that the Women in general would meet with far greater Temptations, and the Attempts to ensnare the Innocence of Virgins would seem more excusable even to the sober part of Mankind than they do now: But some Men would grow outragious, and ravishing would become a common Crime. Where Six or Seven Thousand Sailors arrive at once, as it often happens at Amsterdam, that have seen none but their own Sex for many Months together, how is it to be sup-pos’d that honest Women should walk the Streets unmolested, if there were no Harlots to be had at reasonable Prices? For which Reason the Wise Rulers of that well order’d City always tolerate an uncertain number of Houses, in which Women are hir’d as publickly as Horses at a Livery Stable; and there being in this Toleration a great deal of Prudence and Oeconomy to be seen, a short account of it will be no tiresome digression.

In the first place the Houses I speak of are allow’d to be no where but in the most slovenly and unpolished part of the Town, where Seamen and Strangers of no Repute chiefly lodge and resort. The Street in which most of them stand is counted scandalous, and the Infamy is extended to all the Neighbourhood round it. In the second, they are only Places to meet and bargain in to make Appointments, in order to promote Interviews of greater Secrecy, and no manner of Lewdness is ever suffer’d to be transacted in them; which order is so strictly observ’d, that bar the ill Manners and Noise of the Company that frequent them, you’ll meet with no more Indecency, and generally less Lasciviousness there, than with us are to be seen at a Playhouse. Thirdly, the Female Traders that come to these Evening Exchanges are always the Scum of the People, and generally such as in the Day time carry Fruit and other Eatables about in Wheel barrows. The Habits indeed they appear in at Night are very different from their ordinary ones; yet they are commonly so ridiculously Gay, that they look more like the Roman Dresses of stroling Actresses than Gentlewomen’s Cloaths: If to this you add the awkwardness, the hard Hands, and course breeding of the Damsels that wear them, there is no great Reason to fear, that many of the better sort of People will be tempted by them.

The Musick in these Temples of Venus is perform’d by Organs, not out of Respect to the Deity that is worship’d in them, but the frugality of the Owners, whose Business it is to procure as much sound for as little Money as they can, and the Policy of the Government, who endeavour as little as is possible, to encourage the Breed of Pipers and Scrapers. All Sea-faring Men, especially the Dutch, are like the Element they belong to, much given to loudness and roaring, and the Noise of half a dozen of them, when they call themselves Merry, is sufficient to drown twice the number of Flutes or Violins; whereas with one pair of Organs they can make the whole House ring, and are at no other Charge than the keeping of one scurvy Musician which can cost them but little; yet notwithstanding the good Rules and strict Discipline that are observ’d in these Markets of Love, the Schout¹⁷ and his Officers are always vexing, mulcting, and upon the least Complaint removing the miserable Keepers of them: Which Policy is of two great uses; first it gives an opportunity to a large parcel of Officers, the Magistrates make use of on many Occasions, and which they could not be without, to squeeze a Living out of the immoderate Gains accruing from the worst of Employments, and at the same time punish those necessary Profligates, the Bawds and Panders, which, tho’ they abominate, they desire yet not wholly to destroy. Secondly, as on several accounts it might be dangerous to let the Multitude into the Secret, that those Houses and the Trade that is drove in them are conniv’d at, so by this means appearing unblameable, the wary Magistrates preserve themselves in the good Opinion of the weaker sort of People, who imagine that the Government is always endeavouring, tho’ unable, to suppress what it actually tolerates: Whereas if they had a mind to rout them out, their Power in the Administration of Justice is so sovereign and extensive, and they know so well how to have it executed, that one Week, nay one Night, might send them all a packing.

In Italy the Toleration of Strumpets is yet more barefac’d, as is evident from their publick Stews. At Venice and Naples Impurity is a kind of Merchandize and Traffick; the Courtezans at Rome, and the Cantoneras in Spain, compose a Body in the State, and are under a Legal Tax and Impost. ’Tis well known, that the Reason why so many good Politicians as these tollerate lewd Houses, is not their Irreligion, but to prevent a worse Evil, an Impurity of a more execrable kind, and to provide for the Safety of Women of Honour. About Two hundred and fifty Years ago, says Monsieur de St Didier, Venice being in want of Courtezans, the Republick was obliged to procure a great number from Foreign Parts. Doglioni, who has written the memorable Affairs of Venice, highly extols the Wisdom of the Republick in this Point, which secured the Chastity of Women of Honour daily exposed to publick Violences, the Churches and consecrated Places not being a sufficient Azylum for their Chastity.

Our Universities in England are much bely’d if in some Colleges there was not a Monthly Allowance ad expurgandos Renes; and time was when the Monks and Priests in Germany were allow’d Concubines on paying a certain yearly Duty to their Prelate. ’Tis generally believ’d, says Monsieur Bayle, (to whom I owe the last Paragraph) that Avarice was the Cause of this shameful Indulgence; but it is more probable their design was to prevent their tempting modest Women, and to quiet the uneasiness of Husbands, whose Resentments the Clergy do well to avoid. From what has been said it is manifest, that there is a Necessity of sacrifising one part of Womankind to preserve the other, and prevent a Filthinyss of a more heinous Nature. From whence I think I may justly conclude (what was the seeming Paradox I went about to prove) that Chastity may be supported by Incontinence, and the best of Virtues want the Assistance of the worst of Vices.

(I.) The Root of evil Avarice,

That damn’d ill-natur’d baneful Vice,

Was Slave to Prodigality.

PAGE 68. LINE 20. I have joyn’d so many odious Epithets to the Word Avarice, in compliance to the Vogue of Mankind, who generally bestow more ill Language upon this than upon any other Vice; and indeed not undeservedly; for there is hardly a Mischief to be named which it has not produc’d at one time or other: But the true Reason why every Body exclaims so much against it, is, that almost every Body suffers by it; for the more the Money is hoarded up by some, the scarcer it must grow among the rest, and therefore when Men rail very much at Misers, there is generally self Interest at bottom.

As there is no living without Money, so those that are unprovided, and have no Body to give them any, are oblig’d to do some Service or other to the Society, before they can come at it; but every Body esteeming his Labour as he does himself, which is generally not under the Value, most People that want Money only to spend it again presently, imagine they do more for it than it is worth. Men can’t forbear looking upon the Necessaries of Life as their due, whether they work or not, because they find that Nature, without consulting whether they have Victuals or not, bids them eat whenever they are hungry; for which Reason every Body endeavours to get what he wants with as much Ease as he can; and therefore when Men find that the trouble they are put to in getting Money is either more or less, according as those they would have it from are more or less tenacious, it is very natural for them to be angry at Covetousness in general; for it obliges them either to go without what they have occasion for or else to take greater Pains for it than they are willing.

Avarice, notwithstanding it is the occasion of so many Evils, is yet very necessary to the Society to glean and gather what has been dropt and scatter’d by the contrary Vice. Was it not for Avarice, Spendthrifts would soon want Materials; and if none would lay up and get faster than they spend, very few could spend faster than they get. That it is a Slave to Prodigality, as I have call’d it, is evident from so many Misers as we daily see toil and labour, pinch and starve themselves to enrich a lavish Heir. Tho’ these two Vices appear very opposite, yet they often assist each other. Florio is an extravagant young Blade, of a very profuse Temper; as he is the only Son of a very rich Father, he wants to live high, keep Horses and Dogs, and throw his Money about, as he sees some of his Companions do; but the old Hunks will part with no Money, and hardly allows him Necessaries. Florio would have borrow’d Money upon his own Credit long ago; but as all would be lost, if he died before his Father, no prudent Man would lend him any. At last he has met with the greedy Cornaro, who lets him have Money at Thirty per Cent, and now Florio thinks himself happy, and spends a Thousand a Year. Where would Cornaro ever have got such a prodigious Interest, if it was not for such a Fool as Florio, who will give so great a price for Money to fling it away? And how would Florio get it to spend, if he had not lit of such a greedy Usurer as Cornaro, whose excessive Covetousness makes him overlook the great Risque he runs in venturing such great Sums upon the Life of a wild Debauchee.

Avarice is no longer the Reverse of Profuseness, than whilst it signifies that sordid love of Money, and narrowness of Soul that hinders Misers from parting with what they have, and makes them covet it only to hoard up. But there is a sort of Avarice which consists in a greedy desire of Riches, in order to spend them, and this often meets with Prodigality in the same Persons, as is evident in most Courtiers and great Officers, both Civil and Military. In their Buildings and Furniture, Equipages and Entertainments, their Gallantry is display’d with the greatest Profusion, whilst the base Actions they submit to for Lucre, and the many Frauds and Impositions they are guilty of, discover the utmost Avarice. This mixture of contrary Vices comes up exactly to the Character of Catiline, of whom it is said, that he was appetens alieni & sui profusus greedy after the Goods of others and lavish of his own.¹⁸

(K.) That Noble Sin——

PAGE 68. LINE 23. The Prodigality, I call a noble Sin, is not that which has Avarice for its Companion, and makes Men unreasonably profuse to some of what they unjustly extort from others, but that agreeable good natur’d Vice that makes the Chimney smoak and all the Tradesmen smile, I mean the unmix’d Prodigality of heedless and Voluptuous Men, that being educated in Plenty, abhor the vile Thoughts of Lucre, and lavish away only what others took Pains to scrape together; such as indulge their Inclinations at their own Expence, that have the continual Satisfaction of bartering old Gold for new Pleasures, and from the excessive largeness of a diffusive Soul, are made guilty of despising too much what most People over-value.

When I speak thus honourably of this Vice, and treat it with so much Tenderness and good Manners as I do, I have the same thing at Heart that made me give so many ill Names to the Reverse of it, viz. The Interest of the Publick; for as the Avaricious does no Good to himself, and is injurious to all the World besides, except his Heir, so the Prodigal is a Blessing to the whole Society, and injures no body but himself: It is true, that as most of the first are Knaves, so the latter are all Fools; yet they are delicious Morsels for the Publick to feast on, and may with as much Justice as the French call the Monks the Partridges of the Women, be stiled the Woodcocks of the Society. Was it not for Prodigality, nothing could make us amends for the Rapine and Extortion of Avarice in Power. When a Covetous Statesman is gone, who spent his whole Life in fat’ning himself with the spoils of the Nation, and had by pinching and plundering heap’d up an immense Treasure, it ought to fill every good Member of the Society with Joy, to behold the uncommon Profuseness of his Son. This is refunding to the Publick what was robb’d from it. Resuming of Grants is a barbarous way of stripping, and it is ignoble to ruin a Man faster than he does it himself, when he sets about it in such good earnest. Does he not feed an infinite number of Dogs of all sorts and sizes, tho’ he never Hunts; keep more Horses than any Nobleman in the Kingdom, tho’ he never rides ’em, and give as large an allowance to an ill favour’d Whore as would keep a Dutchess, tho’ he never lies with her? Is he not still more extravagant in those things he makes use of? Therefore let him alone or praise him, call him Publick-spirited Lord, nobly Bountiful and magnificently Generous, and in a few Years he’ll suffer himself to be stript his own way. As long as the Nation has its own back again, we ought not to quarrel with the manner in which the Plunder is repaid.

Abundance of moderate Men I know that are Enemies to Extreams, will tell me that Frugality might happily supply the Place of the two Vices I speak of, that, if Men had not so many profuse ways of spending Wealth, they would not be tempted to so many evil Practices to scrape it supply the Place of the two Vices I speak of, that, if Men by equally avoiding both Extreams, might render themselves more happy, and be less vicious without than they could with them. Whoever argues thus shews himself a better Man than he is a Politician. Frugality is like Honesty, a mean starving Virtue, that is only fit for small Societies of good peaceable Men, who are contented to be poor so they may be easy; but in a large stirring Nation you may have soon enough of it. ’Tis an idle dreaming Virtue that employs no Hands, and therefore very useless in a trading Country, where there are vast numbers that one way or other must be all set to Work. Prodigality has a thousand Inventions to keep People from sitting still, that Frugality would never think of; and as this must consume a prodigious Wealth, so Avarice again knows innumerable Tricks to rake it together, which Frugality would scorn to make use of.

Authors are always allow’d to compare small things to great ones, especially if they ask leave first. Si licet exemplis, &c. but to compare great things to mean trivial ones is insufferable, unless it be in Burlesque; otherwise I would compare the Body Politick (I confess the Simile is very low) to a Bowl of Punch. Avarice should be the sow’ring, and Prodigality the sweetning of it. The Water I would call the Ignorance, Folly and Credulity of the floating insipid Multitude; whilst Wisdom, Honour, Fortitude, and the rest of the sublime Qualities of Men, which separated by Art from the dregs of Nature, the fire of Glory has exalted and refin’d into a Spiritual Essence, should be an equivalent to Brandy. I don’t doubt but a Westphalian, Laplander, or any other dull Stranger that is unacquainted with the wholesome Composition, if he was to taste the several Ingredients apart, would think it impossible they should make any tolerable Liquor. The Lemons would be too sower, the Sugar too luscious, the Brandy he’ll say is too strong ever to be drank in any quantity, and the Water he’ll call a tasteless Liquor only fit for Cows and Horses: Yet Experience teaches us, that the Ingredients I named judiciously mixt, will make an excellent Liquor, lik’d of and admir’d by Men of exquisite Palates.

As to our two Vices in particular, I could compare Avarice, that causes so much Mischief, and is complain’d of by every body who is not a Miser, to a griping Acid that sets our Teeth on edge, and is unpleasant to every Palate that is not debauch’d: I could compare the gaudy Trimming and splendid Equipage of a profuse Beau, to the glistning brightness of the finest Loaf Sugar; for as the one by correcting the sharpness prevents the injuries which a gnawing Sower might do to the Bowels, so the other is a pleasing Balsam that heals and makes amends for the smart, which the Multitude always suffers from the Gripes of the Avaricious; whilst the substances of both melt away alike, and they consume themselves by being beneficial to the several Compositions they belong to. I could carry on the Simile as to proportions, and the exact nicety to be observ’d in them, which would make it appear how little any of the Ingredients could be spared in either of the Mixtures: But I will not tire my Reader by pursuing too far a ludicrous Comparison, when I have other Matters to entertain him with of greater Importance; and to sum up what I have said in this and the foregoing Remark, shall only add, that I look upon Avarice and Prodigality in the Society as I do upon two contrary Poysons in Physick, of which it is certain that the noxious qualities being by mutual mischief corrected in both, they may assist each other, and often make a good Medicine between them.

(L.) ——— Whilst Luxury

Employ’d a Million of the Poor, &c.

PAGE 68. LINE 23. If every thing is to be Luxury (as in strictness it ought) that is not immediately necessary to make Man subsist as he is a living Creature, there is nothing else to be found in the World, no not even among the naked Savages; of which it is not probable that there are any but what by this time have made some Improvements upon their former manner of Living; and either in the preparation of their Eatables, the ordering of their Huts, or otherwise added something to what once sufficed them. This definition every body will say is too rigorous; I am of the same Opinion, but if we are to abate one Inch of this Severity, I am afraid we shan’t know where to stop. When People tell us they only desire to keep themselves sweet and clean, there is no understanding what they would be at, if they made use of these Words in their genuine, proper, litteral Sense, they might soon be satisfy’d without much cost or trouble, if they did not want Water: But these two little adjectives are so comprehensive, especially in the Dialect of some Ladies, that no body can guess how far they may be stretcht. The Comforts of Life are likewise so various and extensive, that no body can tell what People mean by them, except he knows what sort of Life they lead. The same obscurity I observe in the words Decency and Conveniency, and I never understand them unless I am acquainted with the quality of the Persons that make use of them. People may go to Church together, and be all of one Mind as much as they please, I am apt to believe that when they Pray for their daily Bread, the Bishop includes several things in that Petition which the Sexton does not think on.

By what I have said hitherto I would only shew, that if once we depart from calling every thing Luxury that is not absolutely necessary to keep a Man alive, that then there is no Luxury at all; for if the wants of Men are innumerable, then what ought to supply them has no bounds; what is call’d superfluous to some degree of People will be thought requisite to those of higher Quality; and neither the World nor the Skill of Man can produce any thing so curious or extravagant, but some most Gracious Sovereign or other, if it either eases or diverts him, will reckon it among the Necessaries of Life; not meaning every Body’s Life, but that of his Sacred Person.

It is a receiv’d Notion, that Luxury is as destructive to the Wealth of the whole Body Politick, as it is to that of every individual Person who is guilty of it, and that a National Frugality enriches a Country in the same manner as that which is less general increases the Estates of Private Families. I confess, that tho’ I have found Men of much better Understanding than my self of this Opinion, I cannot help dissenting from them in this Point. They argue thus: We send, say they, for Example to Turkey of Woollen Manufactury, and other things of our own Growth, a Millions worth every Year; for this we bring back Silk, Mohair, Drugs, &c. to the value of Twelve Hundred Thousand Pounds, that are all spent in our own Country. By this, say they, we get nothing; but if most of us would be content with our own Growth, and so consume but half the quantity of those Foreign Commodities, then those in Turkey, who would still want the same quantity of our Manufactures, would be forc’d to pay ready Money for the rest, and so by the Ballance of that Trade only, the Nation should get Six Hundred Thousand Pounds per Annum.

To examine the force of this Argument, we’ll suppose (what they would have) that but half the Silk, &c. shall be consumed in England of what there is now; we’ll suppose likewise, that those in Turkey, tho’ we refuse to buy above half as much of their Commodities as we used to do, either can or will not be without the same quantity of our Manufactures they had before, and that they’ll pay the Balance in Money; that is to say, that they shall give us as much Gold or Silver as the value of what they buy from us exceeds the value of what we buy from them. Tho’ what we suppose might perhaps be done for one Year, it is impossible it should last: Buying is Bartering, and no Nation can buy Goods of others that has none of her own to purchase them with. Spain and Portugal, that are yearly supply’d with new Gold and Silver from their Mines, may for ever buy for ready Money as long as their yearly encrease of Gold or Silver continues, but then Money is their Growth and the Commodity of the Country. We know that we could not continue long to purchase the Goods of other Nations, if they would not take our Manufactures in Payment for them; and why should we judge otherwise of other Nations? If those in Turkey then had no more Money fall from the Skies than we, let us see what would be the consequence of what we supposed. The Six Hundred Thousand Pounds in Silk, Mohair, &c. that are left upon their Hands the first Year, must make those Commodities fall considerably: Of this the Dutch and French will reap the Benefit as much as our selves; and if we continue to refuse taking their Commodities in Payment for our Manufactures, they can Trade no longer with us, but must content themselves with buying what they want of such Nations as are willing to take what we refuse, tho’ their Goods are much worse than ours, and thus our Commerce with Turkey must in few Years be infallibly lost.

But they’ll say, perhaps, that to prevent the ill consequence I have shew’d, we shall take the Turkish Merchandizes as formerly, and only be so frugal as to consume but half the quantity of them our selves, and send the rest Abroad to be sold to others. Let us see what this will do, and whether it will enrich the Nation by the Balance of that Trade with Six Hundred Thousand Pounds. In the first Place, I’ll grant them that our People at Home making use of so much more of our own Manufactures, those who were employ’d in Silk, Mohair, &c. will get a living by the various Preparations of Woollen Goods. But in the second, I cannot allow that the Goods can be sold as formerly; for suppose the half that is wore at Home to be sold at the same rate as before, certainly the other half that is sent Abroad will want very much of it: For we must send those Goods to Markets already supply’d; and besides that, there must be Freight, Insurance, Provision, and all other Charges deducted, and the Merchants in general must lose much more by this half that is re-shipp’d, than they got by the half that is consumed here. For tho’ the Woollen Manufactures are our own Product, yet they stand the Merchant that Ships them off to Foreign Countries, in as much as they do the Shopkeeper here that retails them; so that if the Returns for what he sends Abroad repay him not what his Goods cost him here, with all other Charges, till he has the Money and a good Interest for it in Cash, the Merchant must run out, and the upshot would be, that the Merchants in general finding they lost by the Turkish Commodities they sent Abroad, would Ship no more of our Manufactures than what would pay for as much Silk, Mohair, &c. as would be consumed here. Other Nations would soon find ways to supply them with as much as we should send short, and some where or other to dispose of the Goods we should refuse: So that all we should get by this Frugality would be, that those in Turkey would take but half the quantity of our Manufactures of what they do now, whilst we encourage and wear their Merchandizes, without which they are not able to purchase ours.

As I have had the Mortification for several Years to meet with abundance of sensible People against this Opinion, and who always thought me wrong in this Calculation, so I had the Pleasure at last to see the Wisdom of the Nation fall into the same Sentiments, as is so manifest from an Act of Parliament made in the Year 1721, where the Legislature disobliges a powerful and valuable Company, and overlooks very weighty Inconveniencies at Home to promote the Interest of the Turkey Trade, and not only encourages the Consumption of Silk and Mohair, but forces the Subjects on Penalties to make use of them whether they will or not.¹⁹

What is laid to the charge of Luxury besides, is, that it encreases Avarice and Rapine; and where they are reigning Vices, Offices of the greatest Trust are bought and sold; the Ministers that should serve the Publick, both great and small, corrupted, and the Countries every Moment in danger of being betray’d to the highest Bidders: And lastly, that it effeminates and enervates the People, by which the Nations become an easy Prey to the first Invaders. These are indeed terrible things; but what is put to the account of Luxury belongs to Male-Administration, and is the fault of bad Politicks. Every Government ought to be thoroughly acquainted with, and stedfastly to pursue the Interest of the Country. Good Politicians, by dextrous Management, laying heavy Impositions on some Goods, or totally prohibiting them, and lowering the Duties on others, may always turn and divert the course of Trade which way they please; and as they’ll ever prefer, if it be equally considerable, the Commerce with such Countries as can pay with Money as well as Goods to those that can make no Returns for what they buy, but in the Commodities of their own Growth and Manufacture, so they will always carefully prevent the Traffick with such Nations as refuse the Goods of others, and will take nothing but Money for their own. But above all, they’ll keep a watchful Eye over the Ballance of Trade in general, and never suffer that all the Foreign Commodities together that are imported in one Year, shall exceed in value what of their own Growth or Manufacture is in the same exported to others. Note, that I speak now of the Interest of those Nations that have no Gold or Silver of their own Growth, otherwise this Maxim need not to be so much insisted on.

If what I urg’d last be but diligently look’d after, and the Imports are never allow’d to be superior to the Exports, no Nation can ever be impoverish’d by Foreign Luxury; and they may improve it as much as they please, if they can but in proportion raise the Fund of their own that is to purchase it.

Trade is the Principal, but not the only Requisite to aggrandize a Nation; there are other Things to be taken Care of besides. The Meum and Tuum must be secur’d, Crimes punish’d, and all other Laws concerning the Administration of Justice, wisely contriv’d, and strictly executed. Foreign Affairs must be likewise prudently manag’d, and the Ministry of every Nation ought to have a good Intelligence Abroad, and be well acquainted with the Publick Transactions of all those Countries, that either by their Neighbourhood, Strength or Interest, may be hurtful or beneficial to them, to take the necessary Measures accordingly, of crossing some and assisting others, as Policy and the Balance of Power direct. The Multitude must be aw’d, no Man’s Conscience forc’d, and the Clergy allow’d no greater Share in State Affairs than our Saviour has bequeathed them in his Testament. These are the Arts that lead to worldly Greatness; what Sovereign Power soever makes a good use of them, that has any considerable Nation to govern, whether it be a Monarchy, a Commonwealth, or a mixture of both, can never fail of making it flourish in spight of all the other Powers upon Earth, and no Luxury or other Vice is ever able to shake their Constitution.—— But here I expect a full mouth’d Cry against me. What! has God never punish’d and destroy’d great Nations for their Sins? Yes, but not without means; by infatuating their Governors, and suffering them to depart from either all or some of those general Maxims I have mention’d; and of all the famous States and Empires the World has had to boast of hitherto, none ever came to Ruin whose Destruction was not principally owing to the bad Politicks, Neglects, or Mismanagements of the Rulers.

There is no doubt but more Health and Vigour is to be expected among a People, and their Offspring, from Temperance and Sobriety, than there is from Gluttony and Drunkenness; yet I confess, that as to Luxury’s effeminating and enervating a Nation, I have not such frightful Notions now as I have had formerly. When we hear or read of things which we are altogether Strangers to, they commonly bring to our Imagination such Ideas of what we have seen, as (according to our apprehension) must come the nearest to them: And I remember, that when I have read of the Luxury of Persia, Ægypt, and other Countries where it has been a reigning Vice, and that were effeminated and enervated by it, it has sometimes put me in mind of the cramming and swilling of ordinary Tradesmen at a City Feast, and the beastliness their over-gorging themselves is often attended with; at other times it has made me think on the Distraction of dissolute Sailors, as I had seen them in Company of half a dozen lewd Women roaring along with Fiddles before them; and was I to have been carried into any of their great Cities, I would have expected to have found one third of the People Sick a Bed with Surfeits; another laid up with the Gout, or crippled by a more ignominious Distemper, and the rest, that could go without leading, walk along the Streets in Petticoats.

It is happy for us to have Fear for a Keeper, as long as our Reason is not strong enough to govern our Appetites; and I believe that the great Dread I had more particularly against the Word, to enervate, and some consequent Thoughts on the Etymology of it did me abundance of good when I was a School-boy: But since I have seen something of the World, the Consequences of Luxury to a Nation seem not so dreadful to me as they did. As long as Men have the same Appetites, the same Vices will remain. In all large Societies, some will love Whoring and others Drinking. The Lustful that can get no handsome clean Women, will content themselves with dirty Drabs; and those that cannot purchase true Hermitage or Pontack, will be glad of more ordinary French Claret. Those that can’t reach Wine, take up with worse Liquors, and a Foot Soldier or a Beggar may make himself as drunk with Stale-Beer or Malt-Spirits, as a Lord with Burgundy, Champaign or Tockay. The cheapest and most slovenly way of indulging our Passions, does as much Mischief to a Man’s Constitution, as the most elegant and expensive.

The greatest Excesses of Luxury are shewn in Buildings, Furniture, Equipages and Cloaths; clean Linnen weakens a Man no more than Flannel, Tapistry, fine Painting or good Wainscot are no more unwholesome than bare Walls; and a rich Couch, or a gilt Charriot are no more enervating than the cold Floor or a Country Cart. The refin’d Pleasures of Men of Sence are seldom injurious to their Constitution, and there are many great Epicures that will refuse to eat or drink more than their Heads or Stomachs can bear. Sensual People may take as great Care of themselves as any; and the Errors of the most viciously Luxurious, don’t so much consist in the frequent Repetitions of their Lewdness, and their eating and drinking too much, (which are the things which would most enervate them) as they do in the operose Contrivances, the Profuseness and Nicety they are serv’d with, and the vast Expence they are at in their Tables and Amours.

But let us once suppose that the Ease and Pleasure the Grandees and the rich People of every great Nation live in, render them unfit to endure Hardships, and undergo the Toils of War. I’ll allow that most of the Common Council of the City would make but very indifferent Foot Soldiers; and I believe heartily, that if your Horse was to be compos’d of Aldermen, and such as most of them are, a small Artillery of Squibs would be sufficient to rout them; But what have the Aldermen, the Common Council, or indeed all People of any Substance to do with the War, but to pay Taxes. The Hardships and Fatigues of War that are Personally suffer’d, fall upon them that bear the Brunt of every thing, the meanest indigent Part of the Nation, the working slaving People: For how excessive soever the Plenty and Luxury of a Nation may be, some Body must do the work. Houses and Ships must be built, Merchandizes must be remov’d, and the Ground till’d. Such a variety of Labours in every great Nation requires a vast multitude, in which there are always loose, idle, extravagant Fellows enough to spare for an Army, and those that are Robust enough to Hedge and Ditch, Plow and Thrash, or else not too much enervated to be Smiths, Carpenters, Sawyers, Clothworkers, Porters or Carmen, will always be strong and hardy enough in a Campaign or two to make good Soldiers, who, where good Orders are kept, have seldom so much Plenty and Superfluity come to their Share as to do them any hurt.

The Mischief then to be fear’d from Luxury among the People of War, cannot extend itself beyond the Officers. The greatest of them are either Men of a very high Birth and Princely Education, or else extraordinary Parts and no less Experience, and whoever is made choice of by a wise Government to command an Army en chef, should have a consummate Knowledge in Martial Affairs, Intrepidity to keep him calm in the midst of danger, and many other Qualifications that must be the work of Time and Application, on Men of a quick Penetration, a distinguish’d Genius, and a world of Honour. Strong Sinews and supple Joints are trifling Advantages not regarded in Persons of their Reach and Grandeur, that can destroy Cities o’Bed, and ruin whole Countries whilst they are at Dinner. As they are most commonly Men of great Age, it would be ridiculous to expect a hail Constitution and Agility of Limbs from them: So their Heads be but Active and well furnish’d, ’tis no great Matter what the rest of their Bodies are. If they cannot bear the Fatigue of being on Horseback, they may ride in Coaches, or be carried in Litters. Men’s Conduct and Sagacity are never the less for their being Cripples, and the best General the King of France has now, can hardly crawl along.²⁰ Those that are immediately under the chief Commanders must be very nigh of the same Abilities, and are generally Men that have rais’d themselves to those Posts by their Merit. The other Officers are all of them in their several Stations oblig’d to lay out so large a share of their Pay in fine Cloaths, Accoutrements, and other Things by the luxury of the Times call’d necessary, that they can spare but little Money for Debauches, for as they are advanced and their Sallaries rais’d, so they are likewise forc’d to increase their Expences and their Equipages, which as well as every thing else, must still be proportionable to their Quality. By which means the greatest part of them are in a manner hindred from those Excesses that might be destructive to Health, whilst their Luxury thus turn’d another way serves moreover to heighten their Pride and Vanity, the greatest Motives to make them behave themselves like what they would be thought to be. (See Remark (R.).)

There is nothing refines Mankind more than Love and Honour. Those two Passions are equivalent to many Virtues, and therefore the greatest Schools of Breeding and good Manners are Courts and Armies; the first to accomplish the Women, the other to polish the Men. What the generality of Officers among civiliz’d Nations affect is a perfect Knowledge of the World and the Rules of Honour, an Air of Frankness, and Humanity peculiar to Military Men of Experience, and such a Mixture of Modesty and Undauntedness, as may bespeak them both Courteous and Valiant. Where good Sense is fashionable, and a genteel Behaviour is in esteem, Gluttony and Drunkenness can be no reigning Vices. What Officers of Distinction chiefly aim at, is not a Beastly, but a Splendid way of Living, and the Wishes of the most Luxurious in their several degrees of Quality, are to appear handsomely, and excel each other in Finery of Equipage, Politeness of Entertainments, and the Reputation of a judicious Fancy in every thing about them.

But if there should be more dissolute Reprobates among Officers than there are among Men of other Professions, which is not true, yet the most debauch’d of them may be very serviceable, if they have but a great share of Honour. It is this that covers and makes up for a multitude of Defects in them, and it is this that none (how abandon’d soever they are to Pleasure) dare pretend to be without. But as there is no Argument so convincing as Matter of Fact, let us look back on what so lately happen’d in our two last Wars with France.²¹ How many puny young Striplings have we had in our Armies tenderly Educated, nice in their Dress, and curious in their Dyet, that underwent all manner of Duties with Gallantry and Chearfulness?

Those that have such dismal Apprehensions of Luxury’s enervating and effeminating People, might in Flanders and Spain, have seen embroider’d Beaux with fine lac’d Shirts and powder’d Wigs, stand as much Fire and lead up to the Mouth of a Cannon, with as little Concern as it was possible for the most stinking Slovens to have done in their own Hair, tho’ it had not been comb’d in a Month; and met with abundance of wild Rakes, who had actually impair’d their Healths, and broke their Constitutions with Excesses of Wine and Women, that yet behav’d themselves with Conduct and Bravery against their Enemies. Robustness is the least thing requir’d in an Officer, and if sometimes Strength is of use, a firm Resolution of Mind, which the hopes of Preferment, Emulation, and the Love of Glory inspire them with, will at a push supply the Place of Bodily Force.

Those that understand their Business, and have a sufficient sense of Honour, as soon as they are used to Danger will always be capable Officers: and their Luxury, as long as they spend no Body’s Money but their own, will never be prejudicial to a Nation.

By all which I think I have proved what I design’d in this Remark on Luxury. First, that in one sense every thing may be call’d so, and in another there is no such thing. Secondly, that with a wise Administration all People may swim in as much foreign Luxury as their Product can purchase, without being impoverish’d by it; and lastly, that where Military Affairs are taken care of as they ought, and the Soldiers well paid and kept in good Discipline, a wealthy Nation may live in all the Ease and Plenty imaginable, and in many Parts of it shew as much Pomp and Delicacy, as Humane Wit can invent, and at the same time be formidable to their Neighbours, and come up to the Character of the Bees in the Fable, of which I said, That

REMARKS