Chapter 5

I return to my Subject. How shocking to Some, and ridiculous to others, the explanatory Part of the Title I mention'd, may have been, yet it is irrefragrably true; and there are various Ways, by which Private Vices may become Publick Benefits, Ways more real and practicable, than what, some Time ago, was offer'd by that serious Divine, whose Religion and Piety are so amply set forth in that undisguised Confession of his Faith, _The Tale of a Tub_. People may wrangle about the Definition of Luxury as long as they please; but when Men may be furnish'd with all the Necessaries for Life from their own Growth, and yet will send for Superfluities from Foreign Countries, which they might (as many actually do) live comfortably without, it certainly is a Degree of Luxury, if there be such a Thing as Luxury in the World. Now, if a Legislator, who is to take Care of the Welfare, and consequently the Defence, as well as the Tranquility of the Publick, perceiving this vicious Inclination and Longing after Superfluities, made use of it as a Means to provide for the Publick Safety, and actually raised Money by Licensing the Importation of such Foreign Superfluities; might it not be said, that, by such skilful Management, _Private Vices_ were turn'd into _Publick Benefits_? And is this not done, when heavy Duties are laid on Sugar, Wine, Silk, Tobacco, and a Hundred other Things less necessary, and not to be purchas'd but with infinite Toil and Trouble, and at the Hazard of Men's Lives? If you tell me, that Men may make use of all these Things with Moderation, and consequently that the Desire after them is no Vice, then I answer, that either no Degree of Luxury ought to be call'd a Vice, or, that it is impossible to give a Definition of Luxury, which Every body will allow to be a just one.

But I'll give you another Instance, how palpable and gross Vices may be, and are turn'd into Publick Benefits. It is the Business of all Law-givers to watch over the Publick Welfare, and, in order to procure that, to submit to any Inconveniency, any Evil, to prevent a much greater, if it is impossible to avoid that greater Evil at a cheaper Rate. Thus the Law, taking into Consideration the daily Encrease of Rogues and Villains, has enacted, that if a Felon, before he is convicted himself, will impeach two or more of his Accomplices, or any other Malefactors, so that they are convicted of a Capital Crime, he shall be pardon'd and dismiss'd with a Reward in Money. There is no Doubt but this is a good and wise Law; for without such an Expedient, the Country would swarm with Robbers and Highwaymen Ten-times more than it does; for by this Means we are not only deliver'd from a greater Number of Villains, than we could expect to be from any other; but it likewise stops the Growth of them, breaks their Gangs, and hinders them from trusting One another. For Three Rogues, acting separately, cannot do so much substantial Mischief on all Occasions, as when they act in Company. All this while it is evident, that in this Case the Law has only Regard to the Publick Good, and, to procure that, sets aside all other Laws, and proceeds rather contrary to the Common Notions we have of Justice; which, according to the _Civilians_, consists _in a constant and perpetual Desire of giving every one his Due_: For instead of Hanging, which is a Felon's Due, it pardons him; and for Fear he should have some Goodness left, and that natural Compassion might make him unwilling to destroy his dearest Friends, and perhaps his Brother, with his Breath, the Law invites him to it by a large Sum of Money, and actually bribes him to add to the Rest of his Crimes that Piece of Treachery to his Companions, whom he had sworn Fidelity to, and perhaps drawn into the Villany.

It is in vain to tell me, that this Impeaching of his Companions is no Crime in a Felon, but a Duty which he owes his Country; and that I don't know but it is the Effect of his sincere Repentance, which makes him look upon this open Confession as the only Attonement he is able to make the Publick for all his Offences against it. Those who would impeach Others from a Motive of Conscience, and a Sense of their Duty, were not the Men the Legislature had in View. When that Law was made, it was well known, from what was observed of Thieves, Pickpockets, and House-breakers, that those Common Villains will do any Thing to get Money, and still more to save Life, when they are conscious that it is forfeited. The Knowledge of this was the Foundation of that Law. For the Worst of Rogues have Friendship and Affection for one another; and Constancy, Faithfulness, and Intrepidity are 'counted valuable Qualities among them, as well as among other People. One Villain who betrays another merely for Money, and without Necessity, thinks himself to be guilty of a bad Action; and among the many Hundreds of Rogues, who have impeach'd and hang'd their Companions, I don't believe there ever was one, who made himself a Witness against an Associate, with whom he was not at Enmity before, if he could have got the same Temporal Advantage by holding his Tongue.

This shews the Usefulness of such a Law, and at the same Time the Wisdom of the Politician, by whose skilful Management the Private Vices of the Worst of Men are made to turn to a Publick Benefit. There are Men who are of Opinion, that no positive Evil may be done or commanded, that Good may come of it, on any Account whatever: Should any one of these be in doubt whether there is not some Reasonableness or other Merit in this Law, besides its contributing to the Welfare of the Society; I would ask him, if it would not be an unpardonable Folly, nay a wicked Action in any Legislature, to enact, that a most abandon'd Wretch, who has been guilty of many Capital Crimes, should, without having shewn any Remorse, not only be pardon'd, but likewise with a Reward in Money be let loose again upon the Publick; if what is design'd by such an extraordinary Conduct, to wit, the Decrease of Thefts and Villanies, might be obtain'd by any other Method, less clashing with the common Notions we have of Justice: Which being undeniably true, the only Reason that can be given, why Enacting this is neither Wickedness nor Folly, is Necessity, and the Publick Benefit, which is expected from it.

If All I have said hitherto in Defence of the _Fable of the Bees_, and what I have quoted from it, have not alter'd the Opinion you seem to have had of the Book, I believe it is in vain to say any more: Other Readers, I hope, will be less obdurate, and convinced by this Time, that it was not wrote for the Encouragement of Vice and to debauch the Nation; which is all I want; for as to the Performance, whether good or bad, I shall say Nothing about it, whatever I think. I sincerely believe, Sir, that most Authors (whatever they say to the Contrary) have a better Opinion of their Works than they deserve; and I fancy, that most People believe so too: Therefore whether it is well or ill wrote, as to the Diction, Manner, and whatever regards the Composition, is what I would never have troubled my Head about, tho' it had been more generally condemn'd than it has been.

The Censurers of the Book themselves, who have publickly attack'd it, are not unanimous about the Merit of it; and Two of them, who have both wrote against it by Name, differ very widely in their Opinion concerning this Composition. A noted[24] Critick, who seems to hate all Books that sell, and no other, has, in his Anger at that Circumstance, pronounced against _The Fable of the Bees_ in this Manner: _It is a wretched Rhapsody; the Wit of it is low; the Humour of it contemptibly low, and the language often barbarous_. But a Reverend Divine, who has wrote a long Preface against the same Book, seems not to have disliked the Performance of it, nor to wonder at the quick Sale of it, which he ascribes in a great Measure[25] _to the free, easy and lively Manner of the Author_. From this Contrariety of Opinions, I shall infer Nothing more, than that, if Men would be truly inform'd of the Book, it is not safe to trust to the Reports which are spread of it. What Pity it is, you did not know this before you wrote your _Minute Philosopher_!

[24] _Mr. Dennis._

[25] _Dr. Fiddes's Treatise of Morality, Pref. Page XIX._

There are few Men, even among the most able, who can judge of Books impartially. We are often influenc'd by our Love, or our Hatred, before we are aware of it our selves. I have met with several good Judges of Books, who disliked, and spoke very slightingly of your _Alciphron_; and I found, the chief Reason was, because you attack'd all _Free Thinkers_, without Exception. But I declare, that I think your Book, for the Generality, to be well wrote; tho' you have us'd me most unmercifully, and not acted, if you had read _The Fable of the Bees_, like an honest Man. When a Person has a handsome Face, I can't be so stupid as to believe him ugly, because he has us'd me ill. I differ from My Lord _Shaftesbury_ entirely, as to the Certainty of the _Pulchrum & Honestum_, abstract from Mode and Custom: I do the same about the Origin of Society, and in many other Things, especially the Reasons why Man is a Sociable Creature, beyond other Animals. I am fully persuaded, His Lordship was in the Wrong in these Things; but this does not blind my Understanding so far, as not to see, that he is a very fine Author, and a much better Writer than my self, or you either. If that noble Lord had been a much worse Author, and wrote on the Side of Orthodoxy and the Church, I fancy, you would have thought more favourably of his Capacity. I have seen what you have cited from him, and the Manner you have done it in. But what Proportion does that bear to Three large Volumes, and the many admirable Things he has said against Priestcraft, and on the Side of Liberty and Human Happiness. Upon the Whole, I dare say, that your _Minute Philosopher_ will meet with very few Readers, among those that have read, and are not lash'd in the _Characteristicks_, who will think, that My Lord _Shaftsbury_ deserves one Tenth Part of the Indignity and Contempt, which you treat _Cratylus_ with.

Men may differ in Opinion, and both mean well. You, Sir, think it for the Good of Society, that human Nature should be extoll'd as much as possible: I think, the real Meanness and Deformity of it to be more instructive. Your Design is, to make Men copy after the beautiful Original, and endeavour to live up to the Dignity of it: Mine is, to enforce the Necessity of Education, and mortify Pride. I was very much delighted with what you say in your First Dialogue of Apple-trees and Oranges; the different Productions of the first, and the Culture of the other. The Allegory is very ingenious, and the Application just; but I don't think, that the Conclusion, which must be drawn from it, will be of great Use to you. Page 51. _Euphranor_ asks _Alciphron, Why may we not conclude by a Parity of Reason, that Things may be natural to Human Kind, and yet neither found in all Men, nor invariably the same, where they are found?_ I answer, They may. But if all the Knowledge and Accomplishments, which Men can attain to, are to be look'd upon as natural, and peculiar to the whole Species, it must be the same with Vice and Wickedness, as it is with Virtue and the Liberal Arts; and, what I never could have imagin'd before, it must be as natural for a Man to murder his Father, as it is to reverence him; and for a Woman to poison her Husband, as it is to love him.

If you would but look into the Reasons, Sir, I have given for distinguishing between what is natural, and what is acquired, you would not find any ill Intention in that Practice. Many Things are true, which the Vulgar think Paradoxes. Believe me, Sir, to understand the Nature of Civil Society, requires Study and Experience. Evil is, if not the Basis of it, at least a necessary Ingredient in the Compound; and the temporal Happiness of Some is inseparable from the Misery of others. They are silly People who imagine, that the Good of the Whole is consistent with the Good of every Individual; and the best of us are insincere. Every body exclaims against Luxury; yet there is no Order of Men which is not guilty of it; and if the Lawgivers are not always endeavouring to keep up all Trades and Manufactures, that supply us with the Means and Implements of Luxury, they are blamed. To wish for the Encrease of Trade and Navigation, and the Decrease of Luxury at the same Time, is a Contradiction. For suppose, that the Legislature, by the Help of the Clergy, could introduce a general Frugality in this Nation, we could never keep up our Traffick, and employ the same Hands and Shipping, unless they could likewise persuade the Nations, we deal with, to be more profuse than now they are, that they might take off from our Hands so much more of the Implements of Luxury, as our Consumption of them should be less than it had been before.

The very same Things, which are Blessings in One Year, are Calamities in another. In every Nation, those who are employ'd in Gardening and Agriculture, are taught by Experience to manage their Affairs, as is most suitable to the Climate and the Certainty or Irregularities of the Seasons. If there were no Blasts in _England_, nine Tenths of the Apple-trees would be superfluous. Ask the Gardeners about _London_, whether they don't get more by a middling Crop, than a plentiful Product; and whether Half of them would not be ruin'd, if every Thing they sow or plant should come to Perfection: Yet Every body wishes for Plenty and Cheapness of Provisions: But they are often Calamities to a great Part of the Nation. If the Farmer can't have a reasonable Price for his Corn, he can't pay his Landlord. We have often had the good Fortune of having great Plenty, when other Nations have wanted. This is a real Gain: But when all our Neighbours are sufficiently provided, and we can no where export our Corn with Profit, Two plentiful Years, one after an other, are a greater Detriment to the Publick by far, than a middling Scarcity. A benevolent Man, who has a favourable Opinion of his Kind, would perhaps imagine, that Labourers of all Sorts would go to their Work with greater Alacrity, and bear the Fatigue of it with more Chearfulness, in plentiful Years, than when Corn is at a high Price, and with all their Industry they can hardly procure Food for their Families. But the Contrary is true; and ask all considerable Dealers, of Experience, who for many Years have employ'd a great Number of Hands in the Woollen Manufacture, in Hard Ware, or Agriculture, and they will tell you unanimously, that the Poor are most insolent, and their Labour is least to be depended upon, when Provisions are very cheap; and that they never can have so much Work done, or their Orders so punctually comply'd with, as when Bread is dear.

Your _Crito_ and _Euphranor_ are very good Characters; but what I admire the most in them, is the consummate Patience in keeping Company, and bearing for a whole Week together, with two such insupportable, out of the way Rascals, as you have represented _Alciphron_ and _Lysicles_ to be. I believe with you, that among the Vain and Voluptuous, there are Abundance of superficial People, who call themselves _Free Thinkers_, and are proud of being thought to be Unbelievers, without having laid the Foundation of any Philosophy at all. But there never were Two such Creatures in the World as those whom you have made the Champions for Free-thinking. I don't speak as to their Irreligion and Impiety, or their Incapacity of maintaining what they loudly assert; for such there are many among Rakes and Gamesters. But the Knowledge, good Sense and Penetration, which your Libertines display at some Times, are inconsistent with the Ignorance, Folly and Stupidity they shew at others. It is impossible that Men of Parts, and the least Spirit, how much soever they were in the Wrong, could see themselves defeated, banter'd and exposed with so much Tranquility and Chearfulness; and I can't conceive how any, but egregious Coxcombs, without Sense of Shame, could behave as _Alciphron_ and _Lysicles_ do throughout your Dialogues. They are Fellows without Feeling or Manners. If among Gentlemen there are abandon'd Wretches, who harbour Sentiments so abominable and openly destructive to Society, as several are which they advance, I am very well assured, that no well-bred Men would vent them before Strangers in so shocking a Manner as they do. No Mortal ever saw such Disputants before; they always begin with swaggering and boasting of what they'll prove; and in every Argument they pretend to maintain, they are laid upon their Backs, and constantly beaten to Pieces, till they have not a Word more to say; and when this has been repeated above half a Score times, they still retain the same Arrogance and _mal-à-pert_ Briskness they were made to set out with at first; and immediately after every Defeat, they are making fresh Challenges, seemingly with as much Unconcern and Confidence of Success, as if Nothing had pass'd before, or they remember'd Nothing of what had happened. Such an Undauntedness in assaulting, and Alacrity in yielding, as you have made them display, never met in the same Individuals before.

I know, Sir, that in drawing those Characters, you design'd them for Monsters to be abhorr'd and detested; and in this you have succeeded to Admiration, at least with me; for I can assure you, that I never saw any two Interlocutors in the same Dialogue or Drama, whose Behaviour and Principles I execrate more heartily, than I do theirs. And if you would read the _Fable of the Bees_ impartially, you would be convinced of this, from my Description of the Company I would chuse to converse with. Upon, such a Condescension, I would likewise demonstrate to you, how you and I might assist and be useful to one another, as Authors.

You allow, that there are vicious Clergymen, who are unworthy of their Function. I foresee, that Some of these, who have neither _Crito's_ Learning, nor _Euphranor_'s good Sense, will make use of your _Alciphron_ for an evil Purpose. Having by their bad Courses made themselves contemptible to all who know them, they will endeavour to stop the Mouths of all Opposers, by barely naming the _Minute Philosopher_; and having, by the Credit of that Book, repell'd the Censure they had deserv'd, insult the Laity, and lay claim to the Honour and Deference, which ought only to be paid to worthy Divines. These I will take in Hand, and convince, that you have not wrote to justify those Ecclesiasticks, who by their Practice contradict the Doctrine of _Christ_; and that they misconstrued your Intentions; who leading vicious Lives themselves, demanded the same Respect from Others, which you only affirm to be due to Clergymen of Merit and good Morals. And as I would handle these, so you, in like Manner, would take to Task those vile Profligates, who, copying after your Originals, should at any Time endeavour to shelter themselves under my Wings. Should ever a second _Lysicles_ pretend to prove, that the more Mischief Men did, the more they acted for the Publick Welfare, because it is said, in _The Fable of the Bees_, that without Vices, no great Nation can be rich and flourishing, you would laugh at his Folly; and if, for the same Reason, he urged, that Rapes, Murder, Theft, and all Manner of Villanies ought to be applauded, or at least pass'd by with Impunity, you would demonstrate to him, how immensly far my Design was from screening Criminals, and shew him the many Passages, where I insist upon it, that impartial Justice ought to be administer'd, and that even for the Welfare of worldly-minded Men, Crimes should be severely punish'd. You would inform him likewise, that I thought Nothing more cruel, than the Lenity of Juries, and the Frequencies of _Pardons_, and not forget to tell him, that my Book contained several Essays on Politicks; that the greatest Part of it was a Philosophical Disquisition into the Force of the Passions, and the Nature of Society, and that they were silly People, who made any other Construction of it.

I observe in your fifth Dialogue, that you think the Multitudes among Christians to have better Morals, than they were possess'd of among the antient Heathens. The Vices of Men have always been so inseparable from great Nations, that it is difficult to determine any Thing with Certainty about that Matter. But I am of Opinion, that the Morals of a People in general, I mean the Virtues and Vices of a whole Nation, are not so much influenced by the Religion that is profess'd among them, as they are by the Laws of the Country, the Administration of Justice, the Politicks of the Rulers, and the Circumstances of the People. Those who imagine, that the Heathens were encouraged and led to criminal Pleasures by the bad Examples of the Deities they worship'd, seem not to distinguish between the Appetites themselves, the strong Passions in our Nature, that prompt Men to Vices, and the Excuses they make for committing them. If the Laws and Government, the Administration of Justice, and the Care of the Magistrates were the same, and the Circumstances of the People were likewise the same, I should be glad to hear a Reason, why there should be more or less Incontinence in _England_, if we were Heathens, than there is, now we are Christians. The real Cause of Fornication, and Adultery, the Root of the Evil, is Lust. This is the Passion, which is so difficult to conquer, whilst it affects us. There are many Christians, no doubt, who subdue it by the Fear of God, and Punishment hereafter; but I believe, that the Heathens, who triumph'd over this Passion, from a Regard to Virtue, were as considerable in Number. Among the nominal Christians, there are not a Few, who forbear indulging this Passion, from worse Principles. I believe it was the same with the Heathens. However, in _Great-Britain_ there are Thousands that abstain from unlawful Pleasures, who would not be so cautious, if they were not deterr'd from them by the Expence, the Fear of Diseases, and that of losing their Reputation. These are three Evils, against which all the bad Examples of the Gods can bring no Remedy.

In all Ages, Men have display'd Virtues and Vices, which their Religion had Nothing to do with; and in many Actions, and even the most important Affairs, they are not more influenced by what they believe of a Future State, than they are by the Name of the Street they live in. When People shew great Attachment to the World and their Pleasure, and are very cool, and even neglectful in Religious Duties, it is ridiculous to ascribe their good Qualities to their Christianity. You'll give me Leave, Sir, to expatiate a little upon this Head, and illustrate my Meaning in a Character or two, which I am going to draw.