CHA P. VI. Page 150. Influence of Education upon Manners. CHA P. VII. Page 159. Of Punishments. CHA P. VIII. Page 172. Able Statesmen apply themselves to forming the Manners of the People. CHA P. IX. Page 246. Of the liberty of Speech and Writing on Political CONCLUSION. Page 267. Addressed to the independent Part of the People of POLITICAL POLITICAL DISQUISITIONS, &c. BOOK I. Of Manners. T CHA P. I. Importance of Manners in a State. HIS work profeffes itself to be an inquiry into public errors, deficiencies, and abuses. And furely there is no groffer error, no deficiency more fatal, no abuse more fhameful, than a nation's lofing the proper delicacy of fentiment with regard to right and wrong, and deviating into a general corruption of manners. Has ambition raised a tyrant, a Cæfar, or a Charles, to defpotic power? The fword of a Brutus, or the axe in the hand of the man in the mask, in a moment fets the people free. Has an aristocracy of thirty tyrants, as at Athens, seized the liberties of a country? A bold Thrafybulus a may be found, who coming upon them in their fecure hour, fhall, by means perhaps feemingly very inadequate, VOL. III. B blast a Corn. Nep. VIT, THRASY B. blaft all their schemes, and overthrow the edifice of of tyranny they had fet up, burying them in its ruins. The people thus fet free, if the spirit of liberty be not extinct among them, and their manners generally corrupt, will preferve their recovered liberties. If their manners be fo univerfally debauched, as to render them uncapable of liberty, they will, as the degenerate Romans, upon the fall of Julius, fet up an Auguftus in his place. It is impoffible to pronounce with certainty concerning any country, as the angel did of the devoted cities, that the decline of manners in it is universal and irretrievable. But where that is the case, the ruin of that country is unavoidable, the disease is incurable. For vice prevailing would deftroy not only a kingdom, or an empire, but the whole moral dominion of the Almighty throughout the infinitude of space. The excellent Montefquieu a teaches the neceffity of manners, in order to gain the effect proposed by laws; and brings feveral inftances where the manners defeated the purpose of laws. Nothing, he fays, could appear to the Germans more unfupportable than Varus's tribunal. They cut out the tongues of the advocates, who pleaded at the bar, with these sarcastic words, as related by Tacitus, Viper! give over hisfing. The trial ordered by the emperor Juftinian, on occafion of the murder of the king of the Lazians, appeared to that people a horrible and barbarous thing. Mithridates, king of Pontus, haranguing against the Romans, reproaches them, above all things, with the formalities of their courts of juftice. The Parthians could not endure a king, fet over them by the Romans, because, having been educated in a commonwealth, he a Montefq. 11. 119. was was free and affable. Even liberty and virtue to an enflaved and vicious people, become odious and infupportable, as a pure air is difagreeable to thofe who have lived in a marshy country. No people ever loft the spirit of liberty but through the fault of their government. Liberty cannot be preserved, if the manners of the people are corrupted; nor abfolute monarchy introduced, where they are fincere, fays Sidney ON Go VERNMENT. When Antigonus, and the Achaians, restored liberty to the Spartans, they could not keep it; the fpirit of liberty was gone. When Thrafybulus delivered Athens from the thirty tyrants, liberty came too late; the manners of the Athenians were then too far gone into licentiousness, avarice, and debauchery. There is a time, when a people are no longer worth faving, When the Tarquins were expelled, Rome recovered her liberty. When Julius was stabbed, Rome continued in flavery. What occafioned fuch different confequences from the fame measure in this fame country at different periods? In the times of the Tarquins, Rome was incorrupt; in thofe of Cafar, debauched. Even in the dictator's times, a few more Catos and Brutufes would have restored liberty. For the people are always interesfted against tyranny, if they can but be properly headed. Half the firmnefs the Dutch fhewed against the Spanish tyranny, would emancipate France. When the Romans were defeated by Hannibal, moft of their allies forfook them. But Hiero king of Sicily faw that the conftitution of the republic was ftill found, and rightly concluded, that she would recover. would not have thought fo in the times of Lucullus, of He Cinna, Cinna, Sylla, &c. when corruption was wafting all like a peftilence. "Il ne faut pas beaucoup de probite, &c. Great probity is not effentially neceffary for the fupport of a monarchy, or defpotic government. The force of laws in the former, in the latter the arm of the prince lifted up, commands all. In a popular government, another engine is neceffary, viz. virtue; because nothing else will keep up the execution of the laws, and the practice of what is right a.' This fentiment is oracular. And what then is the profpect we have before us? Where the manners of a people are gone, laws are of no avail. They will refufe them, or they will neglect them. There are in our times more of the laws ineffectual, than thofe that operate. And on every occafion of mifbehaviour, we hear people cry, there ought to be fuch or fuch a law made; whereas, upon inquiry, it is perhaps found that there are already several unexceptionable laws upon the head ftanding; but, through want of manners, a mere dead letter. If all parts of the ftate do not with their utmost power promote the public good; if the prince has other aims than the fafety and welfare of his country; if fuch as reprefent the people do not preferve their courage and integrity; if the nation's treasure is wafted; if minifters are allowed to undermine the conftitution with impunity; if judges are fuffered to pervert juftice and wreft the law; then is a mixed government the greatest tyranny in the world: it is tyranny established by a law; it is authorifed by confent, and fuch a people are bound with fetters of their a Montefq. 1. 31. |