T i —
SKETCHES
OF THE
HISTORY OF MAN.
BY THE HONOURABLE
HENRY HOME OF KAMES,
ONE OF THE SENATORS OF THE COLLEGE OF JUSTICE, AND ONE OF THE LORDS COMMISSIONERS OF JUSTICIARY IN SCOTLAND.
V
CONSIDERABLY ENLARGED
m
BY THE LAST ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
OF THE AUTHOR.
"A NEW EDITION, IN THREE VOLUMES.
WHICH IS NOW ADDED
A GENERAL INDEX.
VOL. I.
*
EDINBURGH:
PRINTED FOR WILLIAM CREECH, EDINBURGH J AND T. CADELL & W. DAVIES, LONDON.
1807.
Ki
NEILL&CO Printers,} Edinburgh. t
CONTENTS.
VOL. I,
"preliminary Lifcourfe concerning the Origin of Men and Languages, „
BOOK I. PROGRESS OF MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY, 6j
£>K. i. Progrefs ref peeling Food and Population, ib.
3. Progrefs of Property, - - 91
3. Origin and Progefs of Commerce, - 100
4. Origin and Progrefs of Arts, . . 127
SECT. i. Ufeful Arts, - - ib.
2. Progrefs of Tajle and of tie Fine Arts, 153
5. Manners, . . .
6. Progrefs of tie Female Sex, . .
APP, Concerning Propagation of Animals, and Care of Progeny, -
7. Progrefs and Effetls of Luxury, , .
.
CCI
< '-
{''V J ' V?
, • 1 *
. L,;i,-'.y3Tv.
xt
^^y\-\ -^i
PREFACE.
THE following Work is the fubftance of various fpeculations, which occafionally occupied the author, and enlivened his leifure hours. It is not intended for the learned ; they are above it : nor for the vulgar ; they are below it. It is intended for thofe who, free from the corruption of opulence and depreffion of bodily labour, are fond of ufeful knowledge ; who, even in the delirium of youth, feel the dawn of patriotifm, arid who, in riper years, enjoy its meridian warmth. To fuch men this Work is dedicated ; and that they may profit by it, is the author's ardent wifh; and probably will be while he retains life fufficient to form a wifh.
May not he hope, that this Work, child of his gray hairs, will furvive, and bear teftimony for, him to good men, that even a laborious calling, which left him not many leifure hours, never banifhed from his mind, that he would little deferve to be of the human fpecies, were he indifferent about his fel- low-creatures :
Homofum : humani nihll a me alienum puto.
Moft of the fubjects handled in the following fheets, admit but of probable reafoning ; and, with refpecl: to fuch reafonings, it is often difficult to
VOL. I. a . - fay,
IV PREFACE.
/
fay, what degree of convi&ion they ought to pro- duce. It is eafy to form plaufible arguments ; but to form fuch as can Hand the tefl of time, is not always eafy. I could amufe the reader with numerous examples of conjectural arguments, 'which, fair at a diftant view, vanifh like a cloud on a near approach. Several examples, not to go farther, are mentioned in the preliminary difcourfe. The hazard of being milled by fuch arguments^ gave the author much anxiety ; and, after his ut- moft attention, he can but faintly hope, that he3 has not often wandered fat from truth.
To the READER.
As one great objea of the Editor is to make this & popular Work, he has. chiefly with a view to the female fex, fubjoined an Engliih translation of the quotations from other languages.
SKETCHES
OF THE
HISTORY OF MAN,
THE Human Species is in every view an inte- refting fubjedt, and has been in every age the chief inquiry of philofophers. The faculties of the mind have been explored, and the affections of the heart; but there is ftill wanting a hiftory of the fpecies, in its progrefs from the favage ftate to its higheft civilization and improvement. Above thir- ty years ago, the author began to collect materials for that hiftory ; and, in the vigour of youth, did not think the undertaking too bold even for a (ingle hand : but, in the progrefs of the work, he found his abilities no more than fufficient for profecuting a few imperfect Sketches. Thefe are brought un- der the following heads, i. Progrefs of Men in- dependent of Society. 2. Progrefs of Men in So-
A ciety,
2 HISTORY OF MAN.
ciety. 3. Progrefs of the Sciences. To explain thefe heads, a preliminary difcourfe is necelfary ; which is, to examine, Whether all men be of one lineage, defcended from a fingle pair, or whether there be different races originally liftincl:.
PRE-
PRELIMINART DISCOURSE, concerning the Origin of
MEN and of LANGUAGES.
WHETHER there are different races of men, or whether all men are of onq race with- out any difference but what proceeds from climate or other external caufe, is a queftion which philo- fophers differ widely about. As the queftion is of moment in tracing the hiftory of man, I purpofe to contribute my mite. And, in orde# to admit all the light poflible, a view of brute animals as di- vided into different races or kinds, will make a proper introduction.
As many animals contribute to our well-being, and as marry are noxious, man would be a being not a little imperfect, were he provided with no means but experience for diftinguiming the one fort from the other. Did every animal make a fpecies by itfelf (indulging the expreffion) dif- fering from all others, a man w?ould finifh his courfe without acquiring as much knowledge of animals as is neceffary even for felf-prefervation : be would be abfolutely at a lofs with refpect to unknown individuals. The Deity has left -none of his works imperfect. Animals are formed of different kinds ; refemblance prevailing among animals of the fame kind, diffimilitude among ani- mals of different kinds. And, to prevent confu-
A i ' fion,
4 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
fi.gn, kinds are distinguished externally by, figure, air, manner, fo clearly as not to efcape even a
child *. Nor does Divine Wifdom flop here : to
' .<v"> ' .
complete the fyftem, we are endued with an in- nate conviction, that each kind has properties pe- culiar to itfelf ; and that thefe properties belong to every individual of the kind f . Our road to the knowledge of animals is thus wonderfully fhortened : the experience we have of the difpofi- tion and properties of any animal, is applied without hefitation to every one of the kind. By that con- viction, a child, familiar with one dog, is fond of others that refemble it : An European, upon the firft fight of a cow in Africa, ftrokes it as gentle and innocent : and an African avoids a tiger in Hindoftan as at home.
If the foregoing theory be well founded, neither experience nor argument is required to prove, that a horfe is not an afs, or that a monkey is not a man J. Irj fome individuals indeed, there is fuch a mixture of refemblance and diffimilitude, as to render it uncertain to what fpecies they be- long. But fuch inftances are rare, and impinge not on the general law. Such queftions may be
curious, but they arq of little ufe.
Whether
* " And out of the ground the Lord God formed every ^ beaft of the field, and every fowl of the air, and brought *f them unto Adam to fee what he would call them. An4 ** Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, ** and to every beaft of the fjeld." Gen. ii. 19.
'. - f • : > j Jit r±
•j- flee Elements of Criticifm, y,ol. 2. p. 490. edit. 5.
fc - • *** i9
See M. Buffon's Natural Hiftory.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES, 5
Whether man be provided by nature with a faculty to diftinguifh innocent animals from what are noxious, feems not a clear point : fueh a fa- culty .may be thought unneceffary to man, being fupplied by reafon and experience. But as reafon and experience have little influence on brute ani* mals, they undoubtedly poffefs that faculty *. A beaft of prey would be ill fitted for its ftation, if nature did not teach it what creatures to attack, what to avoid, A rabbit is the prey of the ferret. Prefent a rabbit, even dead, to a young ferret that never had feeh a rabbit : it throws itfelf upon the body, and bites it with fury. A hound has the fame faculty with refpect to a hare ; and rnoft dogs have it. Unlefs directed by nature, innocent animals Would not know their enemy till they were in its clutches. A hare flies with precipita- tion from the firft dog it ever faw ; and a chicken, upon the fight of a kite, cowers under its dam. Social animals, without fcruple, connect with their own kind, and as readily avoid others f. Birds
A 3 are
* Brute animals have many inftin&s that are denied to man, becaufe the want of them can be fupplied by education An infant muft be taught to walk ; and it is long before it ac- quires the art in perfection. Brutes have no teacher but na- ture. A foal, the moment it fees the light, walks no lefs per- feclly than its parents. And fo does a partridge, lapwing, &c.
Dente lupus, cornu taurus petit j unde nifi intus
Monftratum. — HORACE.
f The populace about Smyrna have a cruel amufement. They lay the eggs of a hen in a ftork's neft. Upon feeing the
chickens,
6 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
v^ , '
are not afraid of quadrupeds ; not even of a cat, till they are taught by experience that a cat is their enemy. They appear to be as little afraid of a man naturally ; -and upon that account are far from being fhy when left unmolefted. In the un- inhabited ifland of Vifia Grande, one of the Phi~ lippines, Kempfer fays, that birds may be taken with the hand. Hawks, in fome of the South Sea iflands, are equally tame. At Port Egmont in the Falkland Iflands, geefe, far from being fliy, may be knocked down with a flick. The birds that inhabit certain rocks hanging over the fea, -in the ifland of Annabon, take food readily out of a man's hand. In Arabia Felix, foxes and apes fhow no fear of man ; the inhabitants of hot countries ha- ving no notion of hunting. In the uninhabited ifland Bering, adjacent to Kamfkatka, foxes are fo little fhy that they fcarce go out of a man's way. Doth not this obfervation fugged a final caufe ? A partridge, a plover, a pheafant, would be loft to man for food, were they naturally as much afraid of him as of a hawk or a kite.
The divifion of animals into different kinds, ferves another purpofe, no lefs important than thofe mentioned ; which is, to fit them for different cli- mates. We learn, from experience, that no ani- mal nor vegetable is equally fitted for every cli-
• ?.c,».t -*L<; , r».- • i i, < -j- jjol L ..-, J'r°;*r.sfi «?.t? n;ii ^H >-~'"r ,
mate :
>L$\ •
chickens, the male in amazement calls his neighbouring ftorks together ; who, to revenge the affront put upon them, deftroy
the poor innocent female : while he bewails his misfortune in
, heavy lamentation.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 7
mate ; and from experience we alfo learn, that there is no animal nor vegetable but what is fitted for fome climate, where it grows to perfection. Even in the torrid zone, plants of a cold climate are found upon mountains where plants of a hot climate will not grow ; and the height of a moun- tain may be determined with tolerable preciiion from the plants it produces. Wheat is not an in- digenous plant in Britain : no farmer is ignorant that foreign feed is requifite to preferve the plant in vigour. To prevent flax from degenerating in Scotland and Ireland, great quantities of foreign feed are annually imported. A camel is peculiarly fitted for the burning fands of Arabia ; and Lap- land would be uninhabitable but for rein-deer, an animal fo entirely fitted for piercing cold, that it cannot fubfift even in a temperate climate. Ara- bian and Barbary horfes degenerate in Britain ; and, to preferve the breed in fome degree of perfection, frequent fupplies from their original climate are requifite. Spanifh horfes degenerate in Mexico; but improve in Chili, having more vigour and fwiftnefs there, than even the Andalulian race, whofe offspring they are. Our dunghil-fowls, im- ported originally from a warm country in Afia, are not hardened, even after many centuries, to bear the cold of this country, like birds originally na- tive : the hen lays few or rio eggs in winter, unlefs in a houfe warmed with fire. The deferts of Zaa- ra and Biledulgerid in Africa, may be properly
A 4 termed
8 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
termed the native country of lions : there they are nine feet long and five feet high. Lions in the fouth of Africa toward the Cape of Good Hope, are but five feet and a half long, and three and a half high. A breed of lions tranfplanted from the latter to the former, would rife to the full fize ; and fink to the fmaller fize, if tranfplanted from the former to the latter *.
To preferve the different kinds or fpecies of ani- mals entire^ as far as necefTary, Providence is care- ful to prevent a mixed breed. Few animals of different fpecies copulate together* Some may be brought to copulate, but without effect ; and fome produce a mongrel^ a mule for example, which fel-
dom
* That every fpecies of plants has a proper climate where it grows to perfection, is a fact uncontroverted. The fame holds in brute animals. Biledulgerid, the kindly climate for' lions, would be mortal to the bear, the wolf, the deer, and other inhabitants of a cold region. Providence has tnot only fitted the productions of nature for different climates, but has guarded thefe productions againft the extremities of the wea- ther in the fame climate. Many plants clofe their leaves during night ; and fome clofe them at mid-day againft the burning rays of the fun. In cold climates, plants during win- ter are protected againft cold by fnow. tn thefe climates, the hair of fome animals grows long in winter : feveral animals are covered with much fat, which protects them againft cold ; and many birds are fatter in winter than in fummer, though probably their nourifliment is lefs plentiful. Several animals fleep during winter in flickered places ; and birds of paflage are taught by nature to change the climate, when too hot or too cold.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 9
dom procreates, if at all. In fome few inftances, where a mixture of fpecies is harmlefs, procreation goes on without limitation. All the different fpe- cies of the dog- kind copulate together ; and the mongrels produced generate others without end.
M. Buffon, in his Natural Hiftory, borrows from Ray * a very artificial rule for afcertaining the different fpecies of animals : " Any two animals " that can procreate together, and whofe iflue can " alfo procreate, are of the fame fpecies -(-." A horfe and an afs can procreate together ; but they are not, fays he, of the fame fpecies, becaufe their iflue, a mule, cannot procreate. He applies that rule to man ; holding all men to be of the fame fpecies, becaufe a man and a woman, however dif- ferent in lize, in fhape, in complexion, can procreate together without end. And by the fame rule he holds all dogs to be of the fame fpecies* With re- fpedl to other animals^ the author fliould peaceably be indulged in his fancy ; but as it comprehends al- fo man, I cannot pafs it without examination. Provi* dence, to prevent confufionj hath in many inftances withheld from animals of different fpecies a power of procreating together : but as our author has not attempted to prove that fuch reftraint is univerfai without a lingle exception, his rule is evidently a petltio prindpii. Why may not two animals dif- ferent
* Wifdom of God in the Works of Creation.
i f O&avo edit. vol. viii. p. 104. and in many other parts.
IO 'PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
ferent in fpecies produce. a mixed breed ? M. Buf- fon muft fay, that it is contrary to a law of nature^ But has he given any evidence of this fuppofed law of nature ? On the contrary, he proves it by various inflances, not to be a law of nature. He admits the fheep and the goat to be of different fpecies ; and yet we have his authority for affirming, that a he-goat and a ewe produce a mixed breed which generate for ever *. The camel and the dromedary, though near- ly related, are however no lefs diftinft than the horfe
, *\
and the afs. The dromedary is lefs than the ca- mel, more flender, and remarkably more fwift of foot : it has but one bunch on its back, the camel has two : the race is more numerous than that of the camel, and more widely fpread. One would not defire diflinguifhing marks more fatisfying ; and yet thefe two fpecies propagate together, no lefs freely than the different races of men and of dogs. M. Buffon indeed, with refped to the ca- mel and dromedary, endeavours to fave his credit by a diflindtion without a difference. " They " are," fays he, " one fpecies ; but their races are " different, and have been fo pafl all memory f." Is not this the fame with faying, that the camel and the dromedary are different fpecies of the fame genus? which alfo holds true of the different fpecies of men and of dogs. If our author will permit me to carry back to the creation the camel , and the dromedary as two diftinft races, I defire
no
* Vol. x. p. 138. f Vol. x. p. i.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. II
no other conceflion. He admits no fewer than ten kinds of goats, vifibly diftinguifhable, which alfo propagate together ; but fays, that thefe are varie- ties only, though permanent and unchangeable. No difficulty is unfurmountable, if words be al- lowed to pafs without meaning. Nor does he even adhere to the fame opinion : though, in diftinguifh- ing a horfe from an afs, he affirms the mule they generate to be barren ; yet afterward, entirely for- getting his rule, he admits the direct contrary*. At that rate, a horfe and an afs are of the fame fpecies. Did it never once enter into the mind of this author, that the human race would be ftrange- ly imperfect, if they were unable to diftinguifli a man from a monkey, or a hare from a hedge-hog, till it were known whether they can procreate to- gether ?
But it feems unneceflary, after all, to urge any argument againft the foregoing rule, which M. Buffon himfelf inadvertently abandons as to all animals, men and dogs excepted. We are indebt- ed to him for a remark, That not a lingle animal of the torrid zone is common to the old world and to the new. But how does he verify his remark ? Does he ever think of trying whether fuch ani- mals can procreate together ? " They are," fays he, " of different kinds, having no fuch refem- " blance as to make us pronounce them to be " of the fame kind. Linnaeus and Briffon," he
adds,
* Vol. xii- p. 223.
12 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE,
" have very improperly given the name " of the camel to the lama and the pacos of Pe- " ru. So apparent is the difference, that other " writers clafs thefe animals with iheep. Wool, *' however, is the only circumftance in which a " pacos refembles a fheep : nor doth the lama re- " femble a camel, except in length of neck." He diftinguifheth, in the fame manner, the true Afia- tic tiger from feveral American animals, that bear the fame name. He mentions its lize, its force, its ferocity, the colour of its hair, the ftripes black and white that like rings furround alternately its trunk, and are continued to the tip of its tail : " Chara&ers," fays he, " that clearly diftinguifh " the true tiger from all animals of prey in the new " world ; the largeft of which fcarce equals one " of our maftives." And he reafons in the fame manner upon the other animals of the torrid zone *. Here truth obliges our author to acknowledge, that we are taught by nature to diftinguifh animals in- to different kinds by vifible marks, without regard to his artificial rule. And if fo, there muft be dif- ferent kinds of men ; for certain tribes differ vifi- bly from each other, no lefs than the lama and pacos from the camel or from the fheep, nor lefs than the true tiger from the American animals of that namef. For proving that dogs were created of
different
* See vol. 8. feet. Of animals common to the two conti- nents.
f No perfon thinks that all trees can be traced back to one kind. Yet the figure leaves, fruit, &c. of different kinds, are
not
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 13
different kinds, what better evidence can be ex- peded than that the kinds continue diftinct to this day ? Our author pretends to derive the maftiff, the bull-dog, the hound, the greyhound, the ter- rier, the water-dog, &c. all of them from the prick- eared fhepherd's cur. Now, admitting the proge- ny of the original male and female cur to have fuf- fered every poffible alteration from climate, food, domeftication ; the refult would be endlefs varie- ties, fo that no one individual mould referable ano- ther. Whence then are derived the different fpe- cies of dogs above mentioned, or the different ra- ces or varieties, as M. Buffon is pleafed to name them ? Uniformity invariable mufl be a law in their nature, for it never can be afcribed to chance. There are mongrels, it is true, among dogs, from want of choice, or from a depraved appetite : but as all animals prefer their own kind, mongrels are few compared with animals of a true breed. There are mongrels alfo among men : tl^e feveral kinds however continue diftincl: ; and probably will fo continue for ever.
There remains an argument againft the fyftem of M. Buffon with refped to dogs, ftill more con- clufive. Allowing to climate its ulmoft influence, it may poflibly have an effect upon the fize and figure ; but furely M. Buffon cannot ferioufly think that the different inftincls of dogs are owing to climate. A terrier, whofe prey burrows under
ground,
not more diftinft, than the difference of figure, colour, &c. in the different races of men.
14 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
ground, is continually fcraping the earth, and
thrufting its nofe into it. A hound has always its
nofe on the furface, in order to trace a hare by
fmell. The fame inftincl: is remarkable in fpaniels.
It is by nature that thefe creatures are directed to
be continually going about, to catch the fmell, and
trace their prey. A greyhound which has not the
fmelling- faculty, is conftantly looking about for its
prey. A fhepherd's dog may be improved by
education, but nature prompts it to guard the
flock. A houfe-dog makes its round every night
to protect its mafter againft ftrangers, without ever
being trained to it. Such dogs have a notion of
property, and are trufty guardians of their matter's
goods : in his abfence, no perfon dares lay hold of
his hat or his great-coat. Waggoners employ dogs
of that kind to watch during night the goods they
carry. Is it conceivable, that fuch different in-
llincls, conftantly the fame in the fame fpecies,
can proceed from climate, from mixture of breed,
or from other accidental caufe ?
The celebrated Linnaeus, inftead of defcribing every animal according to its kind, as Adam our firft parent did, has wandered far from nature in claffing animals. He diftributes them into fix claffes, viz. Mammalia, Aves, Amphibia, Pifces, Infefta, Vermes. The Mammalia are diftributed into feven orders, chiefly from their teeth, viz. Primates, Bruta, Fera, Glires, Pecora, Bellute, Ceta. And the Primates are, Homo, Simia, Le- mur* .
'•- •
'- c
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 15
fnur, Vefpertilio. What may have been his purpofe in claffing animals fo contrary to nature, I cannot guefs, if it be not to enable us, from the nipples and teeth of any particular animal, to know where it is to be found in his book. It refembles the claffing books in a library by fixe, or by binding, without regard to the contents : it may ferve as a fort of dictionary ; but to no other purpofe. How whimfical is it to clafs together animals that na- ture hath widely feparated, a man for example and a bat? What will a plain man think of a manner of claffing, that denies a whale to be a fifh? Inf claffing animals, why does he confine him- felf t&the nipples and the teeth, when there are many other diftinguifhing marks ? Animals are no lefs diflinguiihable with refpect to tails; long tails, ihort tails, no tails : nor lefs diilinguifhable with refpecl to hands ; fome having four, forne two, fome none, &c. &c. Yet, after all, if any folid inftruclion can be acquired from fuch claffing, I fhall liften, not only with attention, but with fa- tisfaction.
Now, more particularly of man, after difcuf- ling other animals. — If the only rule afforded by 'nature for claffing animals can be depended upon, there are different fpecies of men as well as of dogs : a mailiff differs not more from a fpaniel, than a white man from a negro, or a Laplander from a Dane. And if we have any belief in Pro- vidence, it ought to be fo. Plants were created
of
l6 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
of different kinds to fit them for different cli- mates, and fo were brute arlimals. Certain it is, that all men are not fitted equally for every cli- mate* Is there not then reafon to conclude, that as there are different climates, fo there are differ- ent fpecies of men fitted for thefe different cli- mates ? The inhabitants of the frozen regions of the north, men, birds, beafls, fifh, are all provided with a quantity of fat which guards them againfl cold. Even the trees are full of rofin. The ifland St Thomas, under the line, is extremely foggy ; and the natives are fitted for that fort of weather, by the rigidity of their fibres. The fog is difpelled in July and Auguft by dry winds ; which give vigour to Europeans, whofe fibres are relaxed by a moift atmofphere as by a warm bath. The natives, on the contrary, who are not fitted for a dry air, have more difeafes in July and Au- guft than during the other ten months. On the other hand, inftances are without number of men degenerating in a climate to which they are not fitted by nature ; and I know not of a fingle in- ftance where in fuch a climate people have retain- ed their original vigour. Several European colo- nies have fubfifted in the torrid zone of America more than two centuries ; and yet even that length of time has not familiarized them to the climate : they cannot bear heat like the original inhabitants, nor like negroes tranfplanted from a country equal- ly hot : they are far from equalling in vigour of
mind
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
mind or body the nations from which they fprung. The Spanifh inhabitants of Carthagena in South America lofe their vigour and colour in a few months. Their motions are languid ; and their words are pronounced in a low voice, and with long and frequent intervals. The offspring of Eu- ropeans born in Batavia, foon degenerate. Scarce one of them has talents fufficient to bear a part in the adminiflration. There is not an office of truft but muft be filled with native Europeans. Some Portuguefe, who have been for ages fettled on the fea-coaft of Congo, retain fcarce the appearance of men. South Carolina, efpecially about Charlef- ton, is extremely hot, having no fea-breeze to cool the air : Europeans there die fo fail, that they have not time to degenerate. Even in Jamaica, though more temperate by a regular fucceffion of land and fea-breezes, recruits from Britain are ne- cefTary to keep up the numbers *. The climate of the northern provinces refembles our own, and population goes on rapidly.
What means are employed by Providence to qualify different races of men for different cli- mates, is a fubjecl to which little attention has been given. It lies too far out of fight to expect
VOL. I. B a
* As the Europeans lofe vigour by the heat of the climate, the free negroes, efpecially thofe in the mountains, are the fafeguard of the ifland ; and it was by their means chiefly, that a number of rebellious negro flaves were fubdued in the year 1760.
l8 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
' ' f
a complete difcovery ; but facts carefully collect- ed might afford fome glimmering of light. In that yiew, I mention the following fact. The inhabi- tants of the kingdom of Senaar in Africa are true Negroes, a jet black complexion, thick lips, fiat nofe, curled woolly hair. The country itfelf is the hotteft in the world. From the report of a late traveller, they are admirably protected by nature againft the violence of the heat. Their Ikin is to the touch remarkably cooler than that of an Eu- ropean ; and is fo in reality, no lefs than two de- grees on Fahrenheit's thermometer. The young women there are highly prized by the Turks for that quality.
Thus it appears, that there are different races of men fitted by nature for different climates. Upon examination, another fact will perhaps alfo appear, that the natural productions of qach climate make the moll wholefome food for the people who are fitted to live in it. Between the tropics, the na- tives live chiefly on fruits, feeds, and roots ; and it is the opinion of the moft knowing naturalifts, that fuch food is of all the moft wholefome for the tor- rid zone ; comprehending the hot plants, which grow there to perfection, and tend greatly to for- tify the ftomach. In a temperate climate, a mix- ture of animal and vegetable food is held to be the moil wholefome ; and there both animals and ve- getables abound. In a cold climate, animals are in plenty, but few vegetables that can ferve for |bod to man. What phylicians pronounce upon
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
that head, I know not ; but, if we dare venture a conjecture from analogy, animal food will be found the moft wholefome for fuch as are fitted by na- ture to live in a cold climate.
M. Buffon, from the rule, That animals which can procreate together, and whofe progeny can alfo procreate, are of one fpecies, concludes, that all men are of one race or fpecies ; and endeavours to fupport that favourite opinion, by afcribing to the climate, to food, or to other accidental caufes, all the varieties that are found among men. But is he ferioufly of opinion, that any operation of cli- mate, or of other accidental caufe, can account for the copper colour and fmooth chin univerfal among the Americans, the prominence of the pydenda uni- verfal among Hottentot women, or the black nipple no lefs univerfal among female Samoides ? The thick fogs of the iiland St Thomas may relax the fibres of the natives, but cannot make them more rigid than they are naturally. Whence, then, the difference with refpecl: to rigidity of fibres between them and Europeans, but from original nature ? Can one hope for belief in afcribing to climate the low flature of the Efquimaux, the fmallnefs of their feet, or the overgrown fize of their head ; or in afcribing to climate the low flature of the Lap- landers *, and their ugly vifage. Lapland is in-
B 2 deed
* By late accounts, it appears that the Laplanders are ori- ginally Huns. Pere Hel, an Hungarian, made lately this difcovery, when fent to Lapland for making aftronomical ob« Nervations
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
deed piercingly cold ; but fo is Finland, and the northern parts of Norway, the inhabitants of which are tall, comely, and well proportioned. The black colour of negroes, thick lips, flat nofe, crifp- ed woolly hair, and rank fmell, diftinguifh them from every other race of men. The Abyflinians, on the contrary, are tall and well made, their com- plexion a brown olive, features well proportioned, eyes large, and of a fparkling black, lips thin, a nofe rather high than flat. There is no fuch dif- ference of climate between Abyflinia and Negro- land, as to produce thefe ftriking differences. At any rate, there muft be a confiderable mixture both of foil and climate in thefe extenlive regions ; and yet not the leaft mixture is perceived in the people.
If the climate have any commanding influence, it muft be difplayed upon the complexion chiefly ; and in that article, accordingly, our author exults, " Man," fays he, " white in Europe, black in " Africa, yellow in Afia, and red in America, is " ftill the fame animal, tinged only with the co- " lour of the climate. Where the heat is excef- five, as in Guinea and Senegal, the people are perfectly black ; where lefs exceffive, as in Abyf- finia, the people are lefs black ; where it is more temperate, as in Barbary and in Arabia, they are brown ; and where mild, as in Europe and " LefTer Afia, they are fair *." But here he triumphs without a vidtory ; he is forced to ac- knowledge, * Bookv.
a
ei
(6
it
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 21
knowledge, that the Samoides, Laplanders, and Greenlanders, are of a fallow complexion ; for which he has the following falvo, that the extre* mities of heat and of cold produce nearly the fame effects on the ikin. But he is totally iilent upon a fact that alone overturns his whole fyftem of co- lour, viz. that all Americans, without exception, are of a copper colour, though in that valt conti- nent there is every variety of climate. The fouth- ern Chinefe are white, though in the neighbour- hood of the torrid zone ; and women of fafhion in the ifland Otaheite, who cover themfelves from the fun, have the European complexion. Neither doth the black colour of fome Africans, nor the brown colour of others, correfpond to the climate. The people of the defart of Zaara, commonly termed Lower Ethiopia, though expofed to the vertical rays of the fun in a burning fand yielding not in heat even to Guinea, are of a tawny colour, far from being jet-black like negroes. The natives of Monomotapa are perfectly black, with crifped woolly hair, though the fouthern parts of that ex- tenfive kingdom are in a temperate climate. And the Caffres, even thofe who live near the Cape of Good Hope, are the fame fort of people. The heat of Abyffinia approacheth nearer to that of Guinea ; and yet, as mentioned above, the inha-
i
bitants are not black. Nor will our author's in- genious obfervation concerning the extremities of heat .and cold, account for the fallow complexion
B3 of
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE;
of the Samoides, Laplanders, and GreenlanderS, The Finlariders and northern Norwegians live in a climate no lefs cold than that of the people men- tioned, and yet are fair beyond other Europeans. I fay more, there are many inftances of races of people preferving then: original colour in climates very different from their own ; and not a fingle inftance of the contrary, as far as I can learn. There have been four complete generations of ne- groes in Pennfylvania, without any vifible change of colour : they continue jet-black as originally. The Moors in Hindoftan retain their natural Co- lour, though tranfplanted there more than three centuries ago. And the Mogul family continue white, like their anceftors the Tartars, though they have reigned in Hindoftan above four centuries. Shaw, in his travels through Barbary, mentions a people inhabiting the mountains of Aurefs, bor- dering upon Algiers on the fouth, who appeared to be of a different race from the Moors. Their complexion, far from fwarthy, is fair and ruddy ; and their hair a deep yellow, inftead of being dark, as among the neighbouring Moors. He conjec- tures them to be a remnant of the Vandals, per- haps the tribe mentioned by Procopius in his firft book of the Vandalic war. If the European com- plexion be proof againft a hot climate for a thou- fand years, I pronounce that it will never yield to climate. In the fuburbs of Cochin, a town in Malabar, there is a colony of induftrious Jews of
the
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 23
the fame complexion they have in Europe. They pretend that they were eftabliihed there during the captivity of Babylon : it is certain that they have been many ages in that country. Thofe who afcribe all to the fun, ought to conlider how little probable it is, that the colour it impreifes on the parents Ihould be communicated to their infant children, who never faw the fun : I Ihould be as foon indu- ced to believe, with a German naturalift whofe name has efcaped me, that the Negro colour is owing to an ancient cuftom in Africa of dying the {kin black. Let a European for years expofe him- felf to the fun in a hot climate, till he be quite brown, his children will neverthelefs have the fame complexion with thofe in Europe. The Hottentots are continually at work, and have been for ages, to darken their complexion ; but that operation has no effect on their children. From the action of the fun, is it poilible to explain why a Negro, like a European, is born with a ruddy {kin, which turns jet-black the eighth or ninth day * ?
Different tribes are diftinguifhable no lefs by internal difpofition than by external figure. Na- tions are for the molt part fo blended by war, by commerce, or by other means, that vain would be the attempt to trace out an original character in any cultivated nation. But there are favage tribes,
B 4 which,
* Different flowers derive their colour from nature, and prefer ve the fame colour in every climate. What reafon is there to believe, that climate fhould have greater influence upon the colour of men than of flowers ?
24 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
, .(
which, as far as can be difcovered, continue to this day pure without mixture, which act by inftinct not art, which have not learned to difguife their paffions : to fuch I confine the inquiry. There is no propenfity in human nature more general than averfion from ftrangers, as will be made evi- dent afterward *. And yet fome nations muft be excepted, not indeed many in number, who are remarkably kind to ftrangers ; by which circum- ftance they appear to be of a lingular race. In order to fet the exceptions in a clear light, a few inftances mall be premifed of the general propen- fity. The nations that may be the moft relied on for an original character, are iflanders at a diftance from the continent and from each other. Among fuch, great variety of character is found. Some iflands adjacent to New Guinea are inhabited by Negroes, a bold, mifchievous, untractable race ; always ready to attack ftrangers when they ap- proach the more. The people of ^New Zealand are of a large fize and of a hoarfe voice. They ap- peared my according to Tafman's account. Some of them, however, ventured on board in order to trade ; but finding opportunity, they furprifed feven of his men in a ihallop, and without the flighteft provocation killed three of them, the reft having efcaped by fwimming. The ifland called Recreation, i6th degree fouthern latitude, and 148 th of longitude weft from London, was difcovered
in
* Book ii. Sketch i.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
in Roggewein's voyage. Upon light of the mips, the natives flocked to the fhore with long pikes. The crew made good their landing, having by fire- arms beat back the natives \ who, returning after a fhort interval, accepted prefents of beads, fmall looking- glafles, and other trinkets, without me wing the leaft fear : they even affifted , the crew in ga- thering herbs for thofe who were afflicted with the fcurvy. Some of the crew traveriing the iiland in great fecurity, and trufting to fome natives who led the way, were carried into a deep valley fur- rounded with rocks ; where they were inftantly attacked on every fide with large ftones : with dif- ficulty they made their efcape, but not without leaving feveral dead upon the field. In Commo- dore Byron's voyage to the South Sea, an ifland was difcovered, which he named Dif appointment. The fhore was covered with natives in arms to pre- vent landing. They were black, and without clothing, except what covered the parts that na- ture teaches to hide. But a fpecimen is fufficient here, as the fubjecl: will be fully illuftrated in the, iketch referred to above.
The kindnefs of fome tribes to ftrangers deferves more attention, being not a little fingular. Gon- neville, commander of a French fhip, in a voyage to the Eaft Indies, in the year 1503, was driven by a tempeft into an unknown country, and continued there fix months, while his vefTel was refitting. The manners he defcribes were in all appearance
original.
26 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
original. The natives had not made a greater prcM grefs in the arts of life, than the favage Canadians have done ; ill clothed, and worfe lodged, having no light in their cabins but what came in through a hole in the roof. They were divided into fmall tribes, governed each by a king, who, though nei- ther better clothed nor lodged than others, had power of life and death over his fubje&s. They were a limple and peaceable people, and in a man- ner worfhipped the French, providing them with necefTaries, and in return thankfully receiving knives, hatchets, fmall looking- glaffes, and other fuch baubles. In a part of California, the men go naked, and are fond of feathers and fhells. They are governed by a king with great mildnefs, and of all favages are the moft humane, even to ftrangers. An ifland difcovered in the South Sea by Tafman, 2ift degree of fouthern latitude, and ijjth of lon- gitude weft from London, was called by him Am- Jlerdam. The natives, who had no arms, offenlive or defenfive, treated the Dutch with great civility^ except in being given to pilfering. At no great diftance, another ifland was difcovered, named Annamocha by the natives, and Rotterdam by Taf- man, pofiefled by a people refembling thofe lad mentioned, particularly in having no arms. The Dutch, failing round the ifland, faw abundance of cocoa-trees planted in rows, with many other fruit- bearing trees, kept in excellent order. Commodore Roggewein, commander of a Dutch fleet, difco- vered,
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
vered, anno 1721, a new ifland in the South Sea, Inhabited by a people lively, adlive, and fwift of foot, of a fweet and modeft deportment, but ti- morous and faint-hearted ; for, having on their knees, prefented fome refreshments to the Dutch^ they retired with precipitation. Numbers of idols cut in (tone, were placed along the coaft, in the figure of men with large ears, and the head covered with a crown ; the whole nicely proportioned and highly finifhed. They fled for refuge to thefe idols : and they could do no better ; for they had no wea- pons either offenfive or defenfive. Neither was there any appearance of government or fubordi- nation ; for they all fpoke and acled with equal freedom. This ifland, lituated 28 degrees 30 mi- nutes fouthern latitude, and about 115 degrees of longitude weft from London, is by the Dutch call- ed Eafter or Pafch I/land *. The Commodore di- recting his courfe north-weft, difcovered in the fouthern latitude of 1 2 degrees, and in the longi- tude of 190, a clufter of iflands, planted with va- riety of fruit-trees, and bearing herbs, corn, and roots, in plenty. When the Ihips approached the fhore, the inhabitants came in their canoes with fifh, cocoa-nuts, Indian figs, and other refreih- ments ; for which they received fmall looking- glafles, firings of beads, and other toys. Thefe iflands were well peopled : ,many thoufands throng- ed
* The women were very loving, enticing the Dutchmen by every female art to the moft intimate familiarity.
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
ed to the fhore to fee the fhips, the men being arm- ed with bows and arrows, and appearing to be governed by a chieftain : they had the complexion of Europeans, only a little more fun-burnt. They were brifk and lively, treating one another with civility ; and in their behaviour expreffing no- thing wild nor favage. Their bodies were not painted ; but handfomely clothed, from the middle downwards, with iilk fringes in neat folds. Large hats fcreened the face from the fun, and collars of odoriferous flowers furrounded the neck. The view of the country is charming, finely diverlified with hills and vallies. Some of the iflands are ten miles in circumference, fome fifteen, fome twenty. The hiftorian adds, that thefe iilanders are in all refpecls the moil civilized and the beft tempered people he difcovered in the South Sea. Far from being 'afraid, they treated the Dutch with great kindnefs ; and expreffed much regret at their de- parture. Thefe iflands got the name of Bowman's Iflands, from the captain of the Tienhoven, who
•x
difcovered them. In Commodore Byron's voyage to the South Sea, while he was paffing through . the Straits of Magellan, fome natives approach- ed in their canoes ; and upon invitation came on board, without fear, or even fliynefs. They at the fame time appeared grofsly ftupid ; and particu- larly, could not comprehend the ufe of knives, of- fered to them in a prefent. In another part of the Straits, the natives were highly delighted
with
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 29
with prefents of the fame kind. M. Bougainville, in his voyage round the world, defcribes a people in the Straits of Magellan, probably thofe laft mentioned, as of fmall ftature, tame and peaceable, having fcarce any clothing in a climate bitterly cold. Commodore Byron difcovered another ifland in the South Sea covered with trees, which was named Byron Ifland. The inhabitants were nei- ther favage nor fhy, trafficking freely with the crew, though they feemed addicted to thieving. One of them ventured into the fhip. After lea- ving Otaheite, Mr Banks and Dr Solander, failing weftward, difcovered a clufter of iflands, termed by them Society I/lands: the natives were ex- tremely civil, and appeared to have no averfion to ftrangers. The ifland of Oahena, north- weft from that of Otaheite, is a delightful fpot ; the foil fer- tile, and the mores adorned with fruit-trees of va- rious kinds. The inhabitants are well proportion- ed, with regular engaging features ; the women uncommonly beautiful and delicate. The inha- bitants behaved with great hofpitality and probity to the crew of the fhip in which thefe gentlemen lately made a voyage round the world.
To find the inhabitants of thefe remote iflands differing fo widely from the reft of the world, as to have no averfion to ftrangers, but on the contrary fhowing great kindnefs to the firft they probably ever faw, is a fingular phenomenon. It is vain here to talk of climate ^ becaufe in all climates
we
30 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
we find an averfion to ftrangers. From the in- fiances given above, let us felect two iflands, or two clufters of iflands, fuppofe for example Bow- man's iflands inhabited by Whites, and thofe ad- jacent to New Guinea inhabited by Blacks. Kind- nefs to ftrangers is the national character of the former, and hatred to ftrangers is the national cha- racter of the latter. Virtues and vices of indivi- duals depend on caufes fo various, and fo variable, as to give an imprefiion of chance more than of de- lign. We are not always certain of uniformity in the conduct even of the fame perfon ; far lefs of different perfons, however intimately related: how fmall is the chance, that fons will inherit their fa- ther's virtues or vices ? In moft countries, a fa- vage who has no averfion to ftrangers, nor to neighbouring clans, would be noted as fingular : to find the fame quality in every one of his chil- dren, would be furprifing : and would be ftill more fo, were it difFufed widely through a multitude of his defcendents. Yet a family is as nothing compared with a whole nation ; and when we find kindnefs to ftrangers a national character in cer- tain tribes, we reject with difdain the notion of chance, and perceive intuitively that effects fo re- gular and permanent muft be owing to a conftant and invariable caufe. Such effects cannot be ac. cidental, more than the uniformity of male and fe- male births in all countries and at all times. They cannot be accounted for from education nor from
example *
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 3!
example ; which indeed may contribute to fpread a certain fafhion or certain manners, but cannot be their fundamental caufe. Where the greater part of a nation is of one character, education and ex- ample may extend it over the whole ; but the cha- racter of that greater part can have no foundation but nature. What refource then have we for ex- plaining the oppofite manners of the iflanders above mentioned, but that they are of different races ?
The fame doctrine is ftrongly confirmed upon finding courage or cowardice to be a national cha- racter. Individuals differ widely as to thefe ; but a national character of courage or cowardice muft depend on a permanent and invariable caufe. I therefore proceed to inftances of national courage and cowardice, that the reader may judge for him* felf, ' whether he can difcover any other caufe for fuch fteady uniformity but diverfity of race.
The northern nations of Europe and Alia have at all times been remarkable for courage. Lucan endeavours to account for the courage of the Scan- dinavians from a firm belief, univerfal among them, that they will be happy in another world.
Vobis au&oribus , umlr<e,
Non tacitas Erebi fides, Ditisque profundi
Pallida regna petunt ; regit ider.i fpiritus art us
Orbe alio : longa (camtisfi cognlta) i)it<e
Mors media eft. Certe populi, quos defpiclt drttuSi
Felices errore fuo ; quos illet timorum
haud urget kti melu^ Inde ruendi
In
\
32 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
In ferrum metis prona viris9 animaque capaces
Mortis *. Luc. lib. i.
4
Pretty well reafoned for a poet ! but among all na- tions the foul is believed to be immortal, though all nations have not the courage of the Scandinavians. The Caledonians were eminent for that virtue; and yet had no fuch opinion of happinefs after death, as to make them fond of dying. Souls after death were believed to have but a gloomy fort of exiftence, like what is defcribed by Homerf . Their courage there- fore was a gift of nature, not of faith. The people of Malacca and of the neighbouring iflands, who are all of the fame race, and fpeak the fame language, are fierce, turbulent, and bold above any other of
v the
* " If dying mortals dooms they (ing aright, *' No ghofts defcend to dwell in endlefs night ; " No parting fouls to grifly Pluto go, " Nor feek the dreary filent fhades below ; ^ But forth they fly, immortal in their kind, " And other bodies in new worlds they find. f( Thus life for ever runs its endlefs race, <c And, like a line, Death but divides the fpace j *' A flop which can but for a moment laft, c< A point between the future and the paft. *' Thrice happy they beneath the northern flues, " Who that worft fear, the fear of death difpife ; " Hence they no cares for this frail being feel, " But rufh undaunted on the pointed fteel ; *' Provoke approaching fate, and bravely fcorn " To fpare that life which muft fo foon return."
Rows.
Odyffey, b. xi.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 33
the human fpecies, though they inhabit the torrid zone, held commonly to be the land of cowardice. They never obferve a treaty of peace when they have any temptation to break it ; and are perpe- tually at war with their neighbours, or with one another. Inftanccs there are of twenty-five or thir- ty of them in a boat, with no other weapons but po- niards, venturing to attack a European fhip of war? Thefe men inhabit a fertile country, which mould naturally render them indolent and effeminate ; a country abounding with variety of exquifite fruits and odoriferous flowers in endlefs fucceflion, fuffi- cient to fink any other people into voluptuoufnefs. They are a remarkable exception from the obfer- vation of Herodotus, " That it is not given by the " gods to any country, to produce rich crops and " warlike men." This inftance, with what are to follow, mow pad contradiction, that a hot climate is no enemy to courage. The inhabitants of New Zealand are the moft intrepid, and the leaft apt to be alarmed at danger. The Giagas are a fierce and bold people in the midfl of the torrid zone of Africa : and fo are the Anfieki, bordering on Lo- ango. The wild Arabs, who live moftly within the torrid zone, are bold and refolute, holding war to be intended for them by Providence. The Af- rican negroes, though living in the hotteft known country, are yet flout and vigorous, and the mofl healthy people in the univerfe. I need fcarcely mention again the Negroes adjacent to New Gui- VOL. I, C nea,
I
34 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
/
nea, who have an uncommon degree of boldnef and ferocity. But I mention with pleafure the ifland Otaheite, difcovered in the South Sea by Wallis, becaufe the inhabitants are not exceeded by any other people in firmnefs of mind. Though the Dolphin was probably the firft fhip they had ever feen, yet they refolutely marched to the fhore, and attacked her with a fhower of (tones. Some volleys of fmall fhot made them give way : but returning with redoubled ardour, they did not to- tally lofe heart till the great guns thundered in their ears. Nor even then did they run away in terror ; but advifing together, they afuimed looks of peace, and fignified a willingnefs to forbear hoftilities. Peace being fettled, they were lingu- larly kind to our people, fupplying their wants, and mixing with them in friendly intercourfe *. When Mr Banks and Dr Solander were on the coaft of New Holland, the natives, feeing fome of our men timing near the fhore, fingled out a num- ber of their own equal to thofe in the boat, who marching down to the water-edge, challenged the flrangers to fight them ; an inflance of true heroic courage. The people in that part of New Hol- land mu ft be of a race very different from thofe whom Darnpier faw.
- ; •. - , . •..-.;: ;• A
* It is remarkable, that thefe people roaft their meat with ftones, as the Caledonians did in the days of Offian.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 35
A noted author * holds all favages to be bold, impetuous, and proud ; affigning for a caufe, their equality and independence. As in that obferva- tion he feems to lay no weight on climate, and as little on original difpofition, it is with regret, that my fubjedl leads me in this public manner to differ from him with refpect to the latter. The charac- ter he gives in general to all favages, is indeed ap- plicable to many favage tribes, our European fore- fathers in particular ; but not to all. It but faint- ly fu its even the North- American favages, whom our author feems to have had in his eye ; for in war they carefully avoid open force, relying chiefly on ftratagem and furprife. They value themfelves, it is faid, upon faving men ; but as that motive was no lefs weighty in Europe, and indeed every where, the pronenefs of our forefathers to open vio- lence, demonftrates their fuperiority in a&ive cou- rage. The following incidents reported by Char- levoix give no favourable idea of North-American boldnefs. The fort de Vercheres in Canada, be- longing to the French, was in the year 1690 at- tacked by fome Iroquois. They approached filent- ly, preparing to fcale the palifade, when a mufket- fhot or two made them retire. Advancing a fe- cond time, they were again repulfed, wondering that they could difcover none but a woman, who was feen every where. This was Madame de Ver- cheres, who appeared as refolute as if fupported
C2 by
* Mr Fergufon.
36 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
by a numerous garrifon. The hopes of florming a place without men to defend it, occafioned reiter rated attacks. After two days liege, they retired, fearing to be intercepted in their retreat. Two years after, a party of the fame nation appeared before the fort fo unexpectedly, that a girl of four- teen, daughter of the proprietor, had but time to ftiut the gate. With the young woman there was not a foul but one raw foldier. She fhewed her- felf with her affiftant, fometimes in one place, fome- times in another ; changing her drefs frequent- ly, in order to give fome appearance of a garri- fon, and always firing opportunely. The faint- hearted Iroquois decamped without fuccefs.
But if the Americans abound not with adlive courage, their paffive courage is beyond concep- tion. Every writer expatiates on the torments they endure, not only patiently, but with fingular fortitude ; deriding their tormentors, and braving their utmofl cruelty. North-American favages differ indeed fo widely from thofe formerly in Eu- rope, as to render it highly improbable that they are of the fame race. Paffive courage they have even to a wonder ; but abound not in active cou- rage : pur European forefathers, on the contrary, were much more remarkable for the latter than for the former. The Kamfkatkans in every article re-> femble the North-Americans. In war they are full of ft ratagcm, but never attack openly if they qan avoid it. When victorious, they murder with-
OF faEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
out mercy, burn their prifoners alive, or tear out their bowels. If they be furrounded and cannot efcape, they turn defperate, cut the throats of their wives and children, and throw themfelves into the midft of their enemies. And yet thefe people are abundantly free. Their want of active courage is the more furpriiing, becaufe they make no difficul- ty of fuicide when they fall into any diftrefs. But their paffive courage is equal to that of the Ameri- cans : when tortured in order to extort a confeffion, they (how the utmoft firmnefs ; and feldom difco- ver more than what they freely confefs at their firil examination.
The favages of Guiana are indolent, good-natu- red, fubmifiive, and a little cowardly $ though they are on a footing with the North- Americans in equality and independence. The inhabitants of the Marian or Ladrone iilands live in a ftate of per- fect equality : every man avenges the injury done to himfelf ; and even children are regardlefs of their parents. Yet thefe people are great cowards : in battle indeed they utter loud fhouts ; but it is more to animate themfelves than to terrify the enemy* The Negroes on the flave-coaft of Guinea are good-natured and obliging ; but not remark- able for courage *. The Laplanders are of all men
C 3 the
* The Cormantees, a tribe of Negroes on the Gold Coaft, are indeed brave and intrepid. When kindly treated in the Weft Indies, they make excellent fervants. The Negroes of Senegal are remarkable in the Weft Indies for fidelity and good underitanding.
38 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
the moil timid: upon the flighteft furprife they fall down in a fwoon, like the feebleft female in England : thunder deprives them of their five fenfes. The face of their country is nothing but rocks covered with mofs ; it would be fcarce ha- bitable but for rein -deer, on which the Laplanders chiefly depend for food.-**
The Macafiars, inhabitants of the ifland Ce-. lebes in the torrid 2,one, differ from all other people. They have active courage above even the fierceft European favages ; and they equal the North- American favages in paflive courage. Du- ring the reign of Cha Naraya King of Siam, a fmall party of Macaffars who were in the King's pay having revolted, it required a whole army of Siamites to fubdue them. Four Macaflars, taken alive, were cruelly tortured. They were beaten to mummy with cudgels, iron pins were thrufl un- der their nails, all their fingers broken, the flefh burnt off their arms, and their temples fqueezed between boards ; yet they bore all with unparal- leled firmnefs. They even refufed to be convert- ed to Chriftianity, though the Jefuits offered to in- tercede for them. A tiger, let loofe, having fa- ttened on the foot of one of them, the man never once offered to draw it away. Another, without uttering a word, bore the tiger breaking the bones of his back. A third fuffered the animal to lick the blood from his face, without fhrinking, or turning away his eyes. During the whole of that
horrid
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 39
v
horrid fpeclacle, they never once bewailed them^ felves, nor were heard to utter a groan.
The frigidity of the North Americans, men and women, differing in that particular from all other favages, is to me evidence of a feparate race. And I am the more confirmed in that opinion, when I find a celebrated writer, whofe abilities no perfon calls in queilion, endeavouring in vain to afcribe that circumftance to moral and phyfical caufes. Si Pergama d extra defendi pqffet.
In concluding from the foregoing fadts that there are different races of men, I reckon upon ftrenuous oppofition \ not only from men biaffed againft what is new or uncommon, but from num- berlefs fedate writers, who hold every diftinguifh- ing mark, internal as well as external, to be the effect of foil and climate. Againft the former, pa- tience is my cnly fhield ; but I cannot hope for any converts to a new opinion, without removing the arguments urged by the latter.
Among the endlefs number of writers who a- fcribe fupreme efficacy to the climate, Vitruvius fhall take the lead. The firft chapter of his lixth book is entirely employed in defcribing the in- fluence of climate on the conftitution and temper. The following is the fubftance. " For the fun, " where he draws out a moderate degree of moi- " fture, preferves the body in a temperate ftate ; " but where his rays are more fierce, he drains the " body of moifture. In very cold regions, where " the moifture is not fucked up by the heat, the
€4 " body
40 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
" body fucking in the dewy air, rifes to a great fize, " and has a deep tone of voice. Northern nations " accordingly, from cold and moifture, have large " bodies, a white fkin, red hair, gray eyes, and " much blood. Nations, on the contrary, near " the equator, are of fmall ftature, tawny com- " plexion, curled hair, black eyes, flender legs, " and little blood. From want of blood they are " cowardly : but they bear fevers well, their con- " ftitution being formed by heat. Northern na* " tions, on the contrary, fink under a fever ; but, " from the abundance of blood, they are bold in " war." In another part of the chapter he adds, " From the thinnefs of the air and enlivening " heat, fouthern nations are quick in thought, " and acute in reafoning. Thofe in the north, on " the contrary, who breathe a thick and cold air, " are dull and ftupid." And this he illuftrates from ferpents, which in fummer-heat are active and vigorous ; but in winter, become torpid and immoveable. He then proceeds as follows : " It " is then not at all furprifing, that heat Ihould " fharpen the underftanding, and cold blunt it. " Thus the fouthern nations are ready in counfel, " and acute in thought ; but make no figure in " war, their courage being exhaufted by the heat " of the fun* The inhabitants of cold climates, " prone to war, rufti on with vehemence without " the leaft fear ; but are flow of underftanding.'1 Then he proceeds to account, upon the fame prin- ciple, for the fuperiority of the Romans in arms,
and
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 4!
and for the extent of their empire. " For as the " planet Jupiter lies between the fervid heat of " Mars and the bitter cold of Saturn ; fo Italy, in " the middle of the temperate zone, poflefles all " that is favourable in either climate* Thus by " conduct in war, the Romans overcome the im- " petuous force of northern barbarians ; and by " vigour of arms confound the politic fchemes of " her fouthern neighbours. Divine Providence " appears to have placed the Romans in that hap- " py fituation, in order that they might become
" maflers of the world." Vegetius accounts
for the different characters of men from the fame principle : " Omnes nationes quae vicinae funt fo- " li, nimio calore ficcatas, amplius quidem fapere, " fed minus habere fanguinis dicunt : ac prop- " terea conftantiam ac fiduciam cominus non ha- " bere pugnandi, quia metuunt vulnera, qui fe " exiguum fanguinem habere noverunt. Contra, " feptentrionales populi, remoti a folis ardoribus, " inconfultiores quidem, fed tamen largo fanguine
" redundantes, funt ad bella promptiflimi *."
Servius,
* " Nations near the fun, being exficcated by exceffive " heat, are faid'to have a greater acutenefs of underftanding, " but lefs blood : on which account, in fighting they are de- '* ficient in firmnefs and refolution ; and dread the being ** wounded, as confcious of their want of blood. The north- " ern people, on the contrary, removed from the ardor of the " fun, are lefs remarkable for the powers of the mind ; but
abounding in blood, they are prone to war." — Lib. i. cap. 2. De re militari.
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
Servius, in his commentary on the ^neid of
Virgil*, fays, " Afri verfipelles, Graeci leves, Gal-
li pigrioris ingenii, quod natura climatum fa-
46 cit. f " —Mallet, in the introduction to his
Hiftory of Denmark, copying Vitruvius and Ve- getius, drains hard to derive ferocity and cou- rage in the Scandinavians from the climates " A " great abundance of blood, fibres ftrong and " rigid, vigour inexhauftible, formed the tempe- " rament of the Germans, the Scandinavians, and " of all other people who live under the fame cli- " mate. Robuft by the climate, and hardened " with exercife ; confidence in bodily ftrength " formed their character. A man who relies on " his own force, cannot bear reftraint, nor fubmif- " fion to the arbitrary will of another. As he has " no occafion for artifice, he is altogether a ftran- " ger to fraud or diflimulation. As he is always " ready to repel force by force, he is not fufpi- " cious nor diftruftful. His courage prompts him " to be faithful in friendfhip, generous, and even " magnanimous. He is averfe to occupations that " require more affiduity than action ; becaufe mo~ " derate exercife affords not to his blood and " fibres that degree of agitation which fuits them. " Hence his difguft at arts and manufactures ; and,
" as
* ./En. lib. vi. ver. 724.
•)• '« The Africans are fubtle and full of ftratagem, the «' Greeks are fickle, the Gauls flow of parts, all which diver* «' fities are occafioned by the climate."
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 43
" as paflion labours to juftify itfelf, hence his opi- " nion, that war only and hunting are honourable *' profefiions." Before fubfcribing to this doc- trine, I wifli to be fatisfied of a few particulars. Is our author certain, that inhabitants of cold countries have the greateft quantity of blood ? And is he certain, that courage is in every man proportioned to the quantity of his blood * ? Is he alfo certain, that ferocity and love of war did univerfally obtain among the northern Europeans ? Tacitus gives a very different character of the Chauci, who inhabited the north of Germany : " Tain immenfum terrarum fpatium non tenent " tantiim Chauci, fed et implent : populus inter " Germanos nobiliffimus, quique magnitudinem " fuam malit juftitia tueri. Sine cupiditate, fine
" impotentia,
* At that rate, the lofs of an ounce of blood may turn the balance. Courage makes an efTential ingredient in magnani- mity and heroifm : are fuch elevated virtues corporeal mere- ly ? is the mind admitted for no fhare ? This indeed would be a mortifying circumftance in the human race. But even fuppofmg courage to be corporeal merely, it is however far from being proportioned to the quantity of blood : a great- er quantity than can be circulated freely and eafily by the force of the heart and arteries, becomes a difeafe, termed a plethora. Bodily courage is chiefly founded on the folids. When, by the vigour and elafticity of the heart and arteries, a brifk circulation of blood is produced, a man is in good fpirits, lively and bold ; a greater quantity of blood, inftead of raif- ing courage to a higher pitch, never fails to produce fluggifh- nefs and depreffion of mind.
44
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
" impotentia, quieti, fecretique, nulla provocant " bella, nullis raptibus aut latrociniis populantur. " Idque praecipuum virtutis ac virium argumen- " turn eft, quod ut fuperiores agunt, non per inju- " rias aflequuntur. Prompta tamen omnibus ar- " ma, ac, fi res pofcat, exercitus*." Again, with refpecl: to the Arii, he bears witnefs, that belide ferocity, and ftrength of body, they were full of fraud and artifice. Neither do the Laplanders nor Samoides correfpond to his defcription, being remarkable for pufillanimity, though inhabitants of a bitter cold country f. Laftly, a cold climate doth not always make the inhabitants averfe to Occupations that require more affiduity than ac- tion : the people of Iceland formerly were much addicted to ftudy and literature ; and for many
centuries
* " So immenfe an extent of country is not poflefTed only, " but filled by the Chauci ; a race of people the noblefl " among the Germans, and who choofe to maintain their " grandeur by juftice rather than by violence. Confident of " their ftrength, without the third of increafmg their poffef- " fions, they live in quietnefs and fecurity : they kindle no " wars ; they are ftrar^ers to plunder and to rapine ; and " what is the chief evidence both of their power ana of their " virtue, without opprefling any, they have attained a fupe- " riority over all. Yet, when occafion requires, they are « prompt to take the field ; and their troops are fpeedily rai- tt fed." — De moribus Germanorum, cap. 35.
f Scheffer, in hrs Hiftory of Lapland, differs widely front the authors mentioned ; for he afcribes the pufillanimity of the Laplanders, to the eoldnefs of their climate.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 45
centuries were the chief hiftorians of the north. They are to this day fond of chefs, and fpend much of their time in that amufement : there is fcarce a peafant but who has a chefs-board and men. Mr Banks and Dr Solander report, that the peafants of Iceland are addidled to hiftory, not only of their own country, but of that of Europe*.
The
* A French author a upon this fubject obferves, that, like plants, we are formed by the climate ; and that as fruits de- rive their tafte from the foil, men derive their character and difpofition from the air they breathe. " The Englifti," fays he, " owe to the fogginefs pf their air, not only their rich " pafture, but the gloominefs of their difpofition ; which " makes tliem violent in their paffions, becaufe they purfue " with ardour every object that relieves them from melan- " choly. By that gloominefs they are exhaufted, and render- " ed infenfible to the pleafures of life. Deprefled in mind " they are unable to endure pain ; as it requires ftrength of mind to fuffer without extreme impatience. They are ne- ver content with their lot, hating tranquillity as much as they love liberty." Where a fact is known to be true, any jhing will pafs for a caufe ; and fliallow writers deal in fuch caufes. I need no better inftance than the prefent : for, if I miftake not, effects directly oppofite may be drawn from the caufe afligned by this writer ; as plaufible at leaft, I do not fay better founded on truth. I will make an attempt : it may amufp the reader. And to avoid difputing about facts, I (hall fuppofe the fogginefs of the fens of Lincoln and Effer to be general, which he erroneoufly feems to believe. From that fuppofition I reafon thus : « The fogginefs of the En- « glifti air, makes the people dull and languid. They fuffer
" under f Lettres d'un Francois.
"
"
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
The moft formidable antagonift remains flill on hand, the celebrated Montefquieu, who is a great champion for the climate ; obferving, that in hot climates people are timid like old men, and in cold climates bold like young men. This in effect is to maintain, that the torrid zone is an unfit habi- tation for men ; that they degenerate in it, lofe their natural vigour, and even in youth become like old men. That author certainly intended not any imputation on Providence ; and yet, doth it not look like an imputation, to maintain, that fo large a portion of the globe is fit for beafts only, not for men ? Some men are naturally fitted for a temperate or for a cold climate : he ought to have explained, why other men may not be fitted for a hot climate. There does not appear any oppofi- tion between heat and courage, more than between cold and courage : on the contrary, courage feems
more
'* under a conftant depreffion of fpirits ; and fcarce know " what it is to joke, or even to laugh at a joke. They. loiter "»away their time, without feeling either pleafure or pain; and " yet have not refolution to put an end to an infipid exiftence. " It cannot be faid that they are content with their lot, be- " caufe there is pleafure in content ; but they never think of " a change. Being reduced to a paflive nature from the in- " fluence of climate, they are fitted for being flaves : nor " would they have courage to rebel, were they even inclin- «' ed." Were the character here delineated that of the En- glifh nation, inftead of the oppofite, the argument would at lead be plaufible. But fuperficial reafoners will plunge into the depth of philofophy, without ever thinking it neceflary to ferve an apprenticeihip.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 47
more connected with the former than with the latter. The fiercer! and boldeft animals, the lion, for example, the tiger, the panther, thrive beft in the hotteft climates. The great condor of Peru, in the torrid zone, is a bird not a little fierce and rapacious. A lion vilibly degenerates in a temperate climate. The lions of Mount Atlas, which is fometimes crowned with fnow, have not the boldnefs, nor the force, nor the ferocity of fuch as tread the burning fands of Zaara and Biledul- gerid. This refpeclable author, it is true, endea- vours to fupport his opinion from natural caufes. Thefe are ingenious and plaufible ; but unluckily they are contradicted by ftubborn facts ; which will appear upon a very flight furvey of this globe. The Samoides and Laplanders are living inftances of uncommon pufillanimity in the inhabitants of a cold climate ; and inftances, not few in number, have been mentioned of warlike people in a hot climate. To thefe I add the Hindoos, whom our author will not admit to have any degree of cou- rage ; though he acknowledges, that, prompted by religion, the men voluntarily fubmit to dreadful tortures, and that even women are ambitious to burn themfelves alive with their deceafed huf- bands. In vain does he endeavour to account for fuch extraordinary exertions of fortitude, active as well as paflive, from the power of imagination ; as if imagination could operate more forcibly in a woman to burn herfelf alive, than on a man to
meet
48 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
meet his enemy in battle. The Malayans and Scandinavians live in oppolite climates, and yet are equally courageous. Providence has placed thefe nations, each of them, in its proper climate : cold would benumb a Malayan in Sweden, heat would enervate a Swede in Malacca ; and both would be rendered cowards. I Hop here ; for to enter the lifts again ft an antagonift of fo great fame, gives me a feeling as if I were treading on forbidden ground.
It is my firm opinion, that neither temper nor talents have much dependence on climate. I can- not difcover any probable exception, if it be not a tafte for the fine arts. Where the influence of the fun is great, people are enervated with heat : where little, they are benumbed with cold. A clear iky, with moderate heat, exhibit a very different fcene : the chearfulnefs they produce difpofes men to en- joyment of every kind. Greece, Italy, and the Lefler Afia, are delicious countries, affording va- riety of natural beauties to feaft every fenfe : and men accuftomed to enjoyment, fearch for it in art as well as in nature ; the pafTage from the one to the other being eafy and inviting. Hence the ori- gin and progrefs of ftatuary and of painting, in the countries mentioned. It has not efcaped obferva- tion, that the rude manners of favages are partly owing to the roughnefs and barrennefs of unculti- vated land. England has few natural beauties to boaft of; even high mountains, deep vallies, im- petuous
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 49
petuous torrents, and fuch other wild and awful beauties, are rare. But of late years, that coun- try has received manifold embellifhments from its induftrious inhabitants ; and in many of its fcenes may now compare with countries that are more favoured by the fun or by nature. Its foil has be- come fertile, its verdure enlivening, and its gar- dens the fineft in the world. The confequence is what might have been forefeen : the fine arts are gaining ground daily. May it not be expe&ed, that the genius and fenfibility of the inhabitants, will in time produce other works of art, to rival their gardens ? How delightful to a true-hearted Briton is the profpedl, that London, inftead of Rome, may become the centre of the fine arts.
Sir William Temple is of opinion, that courage depends much on animal food. He remarks, that the horfe and the cock are the only animals of cou- rage that live on vegetables. Provided the body be kept in good plight, I am apt to think, that the difference of food can have little influence on the mind. Nor is Sir William's remark fupported by experience. Several fmall birds, whofe only food is grain, have no lefs courage than the cock. The wolf, the fox, the vulture, on the other hand, are not remarkable for courage, though their only food is the fleih of animals.
The colour of the Negroes, as above obferved, affords a ftrong prefumption of their being a dif- ferent fpecies from the Whites ; and I once thought,
VOL. I. D that
50 PRELIMINARY
that the prefumption was fuppbrted by inferiority of underflanding in the former. But it appears to me doubtful, upon fecond thoughts, whether that inferiority may not be occafioned by their condi- tion. A man never ripens in judgment nor in prudence but by exerciling thefe powers. At home, the negroes have little occafion to exercife either : they live upon fruits and roots, which grow without culture : they need little clothing : and they erect houfes without trouble or art #.
'* ; ' is
Abroad, they are miferable Haves, having no en- couragement either to think or to adh Who can fay how far they might improve in a ftate of free- dom, were they obliged, like Europeans, to pro- cure bread with the fweat of their brows ? Some nations in Negroland, particularly that of Whi- dah, have made great improvements in govern- ment, in police, and in manners. The Negroes on the Gold coaft are naturally gay : they apprehend readily what is faid to them, have a good judg- ment, are equitable in their dealings^ and accom- modate themfelves readily to the manners of ftran- gers. And yet, after all, there feems to be fpme original difference between the Negroes and Hin- doos. In no country are food and raiment procu- red with lefs labour than in the fouthern parts df
Hindoftan,
* The Negro flaves in Jamaica, who have Sunday only at command for raifmg food to themfelves, live as well, if not better, than the free Negroes who command every day of the week. Such, in the latter, is the effect of indolence from, want of occupation.
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
Hindoftan, where the heat is great : and yet no people are more induftrious than the Hindoos.
I fhall clofe the furvey with fome inilances that feem to differ widely from the common nature of man. The Giagas, a fierce and wandering nation in the heart of Africa, are in effecl: land-pirates, at war with all trie world. They indulge in poly- gamy ; but bury all their children the moment of birth, and chooie in their ftead the molt promifing children taken in war. There is no principle a- mong animals more prevalent than affection to off- fpring : fuppofing the Giagas to be born without hands or without feet, would they be more diftin- guifhable from the reft of mankind * ? To move the Giagas, at firft, to murder their own children, and to adopt thofe of flrangers, is a proof of fome original principle peculiar to that people : and the
D 2 continuance
* I have oftener than once doubted whether the authors de- ferve credit from whom this account is taken j and, after all, 1 do not prefs it upon my readers. There is only one con- fideration that can bring it within the verge o£ probability, viz. the little affection that male favages have for their new- born children, which appears from the ancient practice of ex- pofmg them. The affection of the mother commences with the birth of the child ; and, had flie a vote, no infant would ever be deftroyed. But as the affection of the father begins much later, the practice of deftroying new-born infants may be thought not altogether incredible in a wandering nation, who live by rapine, and who can provide themfelves with, children more eafily than by the tedious and precarious me- thod of rearing them.
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
continuance of the fame practice among the per* fons adopted, is a ftrong inftance of the force of cuftom prevailing over one of the moft vigorous laws of nature. The author of an account of Guiana, mentioning; a deadly poifon compofed by the natives, fays, " I do not find, that even " in their wars they ever ufe poifoned arrows. " And yet it may be wondered, that a people " living under no laws, actuated with no religi- " ous principle, and unreltrained by the fear of pre- " fent or future punifhment, mould not fometimes " employ that fatal poifon for gratifying hatred, " jealoufy, or revenge. But in a ftate of nature, 4t though there are few restraints, there are alfo " fewer temptations to vice ; and the different " tribes are doubtlefs fenfible, that poifoned ar- " rows in war would upon the whole do more " mifchief than good." This writer, it would feem, has forgot that profpedts of future good or evil never have influence upon favages. Is it his opinion, that fear of future mifchief to themfelves, would make the Negroes of New Guinea abflain from employing poifoned arrows againft their ene- mies ? To account for manners fo fingular in the favages of Guiana, there is nothing left but origi- nal difpoiition. The Japanefe refent injuries in a manner that has not a parallel in any other part of the world : it would be thought inconfiftent with human nature, were it not well vouched. Others wreak their refentment on the perfon who affronts
them ;
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 53
them ; but an inhabitant of Japan wreaks it on himfelf: he rips up his own belly. Kempfer re- ports the following inftance. A gentleman going down the great flair of the Emperor's palace, patted another going up, and their fwords happened to clafh. The perfon defcending took offence: the other excufed himfelf, faying that it was acciden- tal ; adding, that the fwords only were concerned, and that the one was as good as the other. I'll fhow you the difference, fays the perfon who began the quarrel : he drew his fword, and ripped up his own belly. The other, piqued at being thus pre- vented in revenge, haftened up with a plate he had in his hand for the Emperor's table ; and return- ing with equal fpeed, he in like manner ripped up his belly in fight of his antagonift, faying, "If I " had not been ferving my prince, you mould not " have got the ftart of me : but I mail die fatis- " fied, having mowed you that my fword is as " good as yours.' The fame author gives an inftance of uncommon ferocity in the Japanefe, blended with manners highly polifhed. In the midft of a large company at dinner, a young wo- man, ftraining to reach a plate, unwarily fuffered wind to efcape. Afhamed and confounded, fhe raifed her breafts to her mouth, tore them with her teeth, and expired on the fpot. The Japanefe are equally fingular in fome of their religious opinions. They never fupplicate the gods in diftrefs ; hold- ing, that as the gods enjoy uninterrupted blifs,
D 3 fuch
54 FRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
fuch fupplications would be offenfive to them. Their holidays accordingly are dedicated to feafts, weddings, and all public and private rejoicings. It is delightful to the gods, fay they, to fee men happy. They are far from being fingulav in think- ing that a beneyolent Deity is pleafed to fee men happy ; but nothing can be more inconiiftent with the common feelings of men, than to hold, that in diftrefs it is wrong to fupplicate the Author of our Being for relief, and that he will be difpleafed with fuch fupplication. In deep affliction there is certainly no balm equal to that of pouring out the heart to a benevolent Deity, and exprefling entire refignation to. his will.
In fupport of the foregoing doflrine, many par- ticulars ftill more extraordinary might have been quoted from Greek and Roman writers : but truth has no occafion for artifice ; and I would not take advantage of celebrated names to vouch facts that appear incredible or doubtful. The Qreeks and Romans made an illuftrious figure in poetry, rhe- toric, and all the fine arts ; but they were little better than novices in natural hiftory. More than, half of the globe was to them the Terra Auftralij incognita ; and imagination operates without con- trol, when it is not checked by knowledge : the ignorant at the fame time are delighted with won- ders ; and the moft wonderful ftory is always the mod welcome. This may ferve as an apology for
ancient writers, even when they relate and believe
i •..•"•"* •• '
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 55
fads to us incredible. Men at that period were ignorant in a great meafure of nature, and of the limits of her operations. One conceffion will chearfully be made to me, that the writers men- tioned, who report things at fecond-hand, are much more excufable than the earljeil of our mo- dern travellers, who pretend to vouch endleis won- ders from their own knowledge. Natural hiftory, that of man efpecially, is of late years much ri- pened : no improbable tale is fuflfered to pafs with- out a ftricl: examination \ and J have been careful to adopt no fads, but what are vouched by late travellers and writers of credit. Were it true what Diodorus Siculus reports, on the authority of Agfitharchides of Cnidus, concerning the Ichthyo- phages on the eaft coaft of Afric, it would be a more pregnant proof of a diftindt race of men, than any I have difcovered. They are defcribed to be fo ftupid, that even when their wives and children are killed in their fight, they ftand infenlible, and give no figns either of anger or of compaflion. This I cannot believe upon fo flight teftimony ; efpecially as the Greeks and Romans were at that time extremely credulous, being lefs acquainted with neighbouring nations, than we are with the Antipodes. Varro, in his treatife De re ruftica, re- ports it as an undoubted truth, that in Lufitania mares were impregnated by the weft wind ; and both Pliny and Columella are equally pofitive. The Balearic iflantfs, Majorca, Minorca, Yvica, are
D 4 at
PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
at no great diftance from Sicily ; and yet Diodo- rus the Sicilian reports of the inhabitants, that at the folemnization of marriage all the male friends and even the houfehold fervants, enjoyed the bride before the bridegroom was admitted. Credat Ju- dceus apella, It would not be much more diffi- cult to make me believe what is faid by Pliny of the Blemmyans, that they had no head, and that the mouth and eyes were in the bread ; or of the Arimafpi, who had but one eye, placed in the middle of the forehead ; or of the Aftomi, who, having no mouth, could neither eat nor drink, but lived upon fmelling ; or of a thoufand other ab- furdities which Pliny relates, with a grave face, in the 6th book of his Natural JJiftory, cap. 30, and in the yth book, cap. 2.
Thus, upon an extenlive furvey of the inhabited parts of our globe, many nations are found differ- ing fo widely from each other, not only in com- plexion, features, fhape, and other external cir- cumftances, but in temper and difpofition, parti- cularly in two capital articles, courage, and beha- viour to ftrangers, that even the certainty of diffe- rent races could not make one expect more flriking varieties. Doth M. Buffon think it fufficient to fay dryly, that fuch varieties may poffibly be the effect of climate, or of other accidental caufes ? The prefumption is, that the varieties fubfifting at prefent have always fubfifted ; which ought to be Ijeld as true, till pofitive evidence be brought of
tbe
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 57
the contrary : inftead of which we are put off with mere fuppofitions and poflibilities.
But not to reft entirely upon prefumptive evi- dence, to me it appears clear from the very frame of the human body, that there mud be different races of men fitted for different climates. Few animals are more affected than men generally are, not only with change of feafons in the fame cli- mate, but with change of weather in the fame fea- fon. Can fuch a being be fitted for all climates equally? Impofiible. A man muft at lead be har- dened by nature againft the flighter changes of feafons or weather : he ought to be altogether in- fenfible of fuch changes. Yet from Sir John Pringle's obfervations on the difeafes of the army, to go no further, it appears, that even military men, who ought of all to be the hardieft, are great- ly affeded by them. Horfes and horned cattle fleep on the bare ground, wet or dry, without harm, and yet are not made for every climate : can a man be made for every climate, who is fo much more delicate, that he cannot fleep on wet ground without hazard of fome mortal difeafe ?
But the argument I chiefly rely on is, That were all men of one fpecies, there never could have exifted, without a miracle, different kinds, fuch as exift at prefent. Giving allowance for every fuppofable variation of climate or of other natural caufes, what can follow, as obferved about dog-kind, but endlefs varieties among indivi- duals,
58 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
duals, as among tulips in a garden, fo as that no individual {hall refemble another? Inftead of which, we find men of different kinds, the indi- viduals of each kind remarkably uniform, and dif- fering no lefs remarkably from the individuals of every other kind. Uniformity without variation is the offspring of nature, never of chance.
There is another argument that appears alfo to
t
have weight. Horfes, with refpect to fize, fhape, and fpirit, differ widely in different climates. But let a male and a female of whatever climate be carried to a country where horfes are in perfection, their progeny will improve gradually, and will ac- quire in time the perfection of their kind. Is not this a proof, that all horfes are of one kin£d ? If fo, men are not all of one kind ; for if a White mix with a Black in whatever climate, or a Hot- tentot with a Samoide, the refult will not be either an improvement of the kind, or the contrary, but a mongrel breed differing from both parents.
It is thus afcertained beyond any rational doubt, that there are different races or kinds of men, and that tjiefe races or kinds are naturally fitted for different climates : whence we have reafon to con- clude, that originally each kind was placed in its proper climate, whatever change may have hap- pened in later times by war or commerce.
There is a remarkable fact that confirms the foregoing conjectures. As far back as hiftory goes, or tradition kept alive by hiftory, the earth was in*
habited
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 59
Iiabited by favages divided into many fmall tribes, e^ach tribe having a language peculiar to itfelf. Is i.t not natural to fuppofe, that thefe original tribes were different races of men, placed in proper cli- mates, and left to form their own language ?
Upon fu ram ing up the whole particulars men- tioned above, would one hefitate a moment to adopt the following opinion, were there no coun- terbalancing evidence, namely, " That God crea- " ted many pairs of the human race, differing " from each other both externally and internally ; " that he fitted thefe pairs for different climates, " and placed each pair in its proper climate ; that " the peculiarities of the original pairs were pre- " ferved entire in their defcendents ; who, having " no affiftance but their naturaj talents, were left " to gather knowledge from experience, and, in " particular, were left (each tribe) to form a lan- " guage for itfelf; that figns were fufficient for the original pairs, without any language but what nature fuggefls ; and that a language was formed gradually, as a tribe increafed in num- " bers, and in different occupations, to make " fpeech neceffary ?' But this opinion, however plaufible, we are not permitted to adopt ; being taught a different leffon by revelation, namely, That God created but a fingle pair of the human fpecies. Though we cannot doubt of the authori- ty of Mofes, yet his account of the creation of man j§ not a little puzzling, as it feems to contradict
every
"
"
60 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
every one of the facts mentioned above. Accord- ing to that account, different races of men were not created, nor were men framed originally for different climates. All men muft have fpoken the fame language, that of our firft parents. And what of all feems the moft contradictory to that account, is the favage ftate : Adam, as Mofes in- forms us, was endued by his Maker with an emi- nent degree of knowledge ; and he certainly muft have been an excellent preceptor to his children and their progeny, among whom he lived many generations. Whence then the degeneracy of all men into the favage ftate ? To account for that difmal cataftrophe, mankind muft have fuffered fome terrible convulfion.
That terrible convulfion is revealed to us in the hiftory of the Tower of Babel, contained in the nth chapter of Genefis, which is, " That for ma- *' ny centuries after the deluge, the whole earth " was of one language, and of one fpeech ; that ** they united to build a city on a plain in the " land of Shinar, with a tower whofe top might " reach into heaven ; that the Lord beholding the " people to be one, and to have all one language, " and that nothing would be reftrained from them " which they imagined to do, confounded their " language, that they might not underftand one <f another ; and fcattered them abroad upon the " face of all the earth." Here light breaks forth in the midft of darknefs. By confounding the
language
I
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 6l
language of men, and fcattering them abroad upon the face of all the earth, they were rendered fava- ges. And to harden them for their new habita- tions, it was neceffary that they mould be divided into different kinds, fitted for different climates. Without an immediate change of bodily conftitu- tion, the builders of Babel could not poilibly have fubfifted in the burning region of Guinea, nor in the frozen region of Lapland ; efpecially without houfes, or any other convenience to protect them againft a deftru&ive climate. Againft this hiftory it has indeed been urged, " That the circum- " ftances mentioned evince it to be purely an al- " legory ; that men never were fo frantic as to " think of building a tower whofe top might " reach to heaven ; and that it is grofsly abfurd, " taking the matter literally, that the Almighty " was afraid of men, and reduced to the neceffity " of faving himfelf by a miracle." But that this is a real hiftory, muft neceffarily be admitted, as the confulion of Babel is the only known fact that can reconcile facred and profane hiftory.
And this leads us to conlider the diverfity of languages *. If the common language of men had
not
\
* As the focial fta.te is eflential to man, and fpeech to the focial ftate, the wifdom of Providence in fitting men for ac- quiring that neceflary art, deferves more attention than is commonly beftowed on it. The Oran Outang has the ex- ternal organs of fpeech in perfection ; and many are puzzled to account why it never fpeaks. But the external organs of
fpeech
\/
f 6i PRELIMINARY
not been confounded upon their undertaking the* tower of Babel, I affirm, that there never could have been but one language. Antiquaries con- ilantly fuppofe a migrating fpirit in the original inhabitants of this earth ; not only without evi- dence, but contrary to all probability. Men ne- ver defert their connexions nor their country with- out neceffity : fear of enemies and of wild beads,' as well as the attraction of fociety, are mare than fufficient to reftrain them from wandering ; not to mention, that favages are peculiarly fond of tfysir natal foil*. The firil migrations were probably
oecafioned
fpeech make but a fmall part of the necefiary apparatus. The faculty of imitating founds is an eflential part ; and wonder- ful would that faculty appear, were it not rendered familiar by daily practice : a child of two or three years is able, by nature alone, without the leaft inftruction, to adapt its organs of fpeech to every articulate found ; and a child of four or five years can pitch its windpipe fe as to emit a found of any elevation, which enables it, with an ear, to imitate the fongi it hears. But, above all the other parts, fenfe and underftand* ing are eflential to fpeech. A parrot can pronounce articu- late founds, and it has frequently an inclination to fpeak ; but, for want of underftanding, none of the kind can form a fingle fentence. Has an Oran Outang underftanding to form a mental proportion ? has he a faculty to exprefs that propo- fition in founds ? and fuppofing him able to exprefs what he fees and hears , what would he make of the connective and disjunctive particles ?
* With refpect to the fuppofed migrating fpirit, even Bo- chart mud yield to Kempfer in boldnefs of conjecture. After
proving,
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES. 63
occalioned by factions and civil wars ; the next by commerce. Greece affords inflances of the former, Phoenicia of the latter. Unlefs upon fuch occa- lions, members of a family or of a tribe will nevet retire farther from their fellows than is neceflary for food ; and by retiring gradually, they lofe nei- ther their connections nor their manners, far lefs their language, which is in conftant exercife. As far back as hiilory carries us, tribes without num- ber are difcovered, each having a language pecu- liar
proving, from difference of language and from other circum ftances, that Japan wad not peopled by the Chinefe, Kempfer, without the leaft hefitation, fettles a colony there of thofe who thought of building the tower of Babel. Nay, he traces moft minutely their route to Japan ; and concludes, that they rhuft have travelled with great expedition, becaufe their language has no tincture of any other. He did not think it neceflary to explain what temptation they had to wander fo far from home ; nor why they fettled in an ifland, not preferable either in foil or climate to many countries they muft have traverfed.
An ingenious French writer obferves, that plaufible reaibns would lead one to conjecture, that men were more early po- lifhed in iflands than in continents J as people crowded toge- ther foon find the neceflity of laws to reftrain them from mif- chief. And yet, fays he, the manners of iflanders and their laws are commonly the lateft formed. A very fimple reflec- tion would have unfolded the myftery. Many many cen- turies did men exift without thinking of navigation. That art was not invented till men, ftraitened in their quarters the continent, thought of occupying adjacent iflands.
64 PRELIMINARY DISCOURSE.
x /
liar to itfelf. Strabo * reports, that the Albanians were divided into fever al tribes, differing in ex- ternal appearance and in language. Caefar found in Gaul feveral fuch tribes ; and Tacitus records the names of many tribes in Germany. There are a multitude of American tribes which to this day continue diftincl: from each other, and have each a different language. The mother-tongues at pre- fent, though numerous, bear no proportion to what formerly exifted. We find original tribes gradu- ally enlarging ; by conquefl frequently, and more frequently by the union of weak tribes for mutual defence. Such events leiTen the number of lan- guages. The Coptic is not a living language any where. The Celtic tongue, once extenfive, is at prefent confined to the Highlands of Scotland, to Wales, to Britany, and to a part of Ireland. In a few centuries, it will mare the fate of many other original tongues : it will totally be forgotten.
If men had not been fcattered every where by the confufion of Babel, another particular mult have occurred, differing no lefs from what has really happened than that now mentioned. As paradife is eonje&ured to have been fittiated in the heart of Afia, the furrounding regions, for the reafon above given, mull have been firft peopled ; and the civilization and improvements of the mo- ther-country were undoubtedly carried along to every new fettlement. In particular, the colonies
planted
* Book 2.
i
OF MEN, AND OF LANGUAGES.
planted in America and the South Sea iilands muft have been highly polifhed ; becaufe, being at the greatefl diftance, they probably were the lateft. And yet thefe and other remote people, the Mexicans and Peruvians excepted, remain to this day in the original favage ftate of hunting and fifhing.
Thus, had not men wildly attempted to build a tower whofe top might reach to heaven, all men would not only have had the fame language, but would have made the fame progrefs towards ma- turity of knowledge and civilization. That deplo- rable event reverfed all nature : by fcattering men over the face of all the earth, it deprived them o fociety, and rendered them favages. From that ftate of degeneracy, they have been emerging gra- dually. Some nations, Simulated by their own na- ture, or by their climate, have made a rapid pro- grefs y fome have proceeded more flowly ; and fome continue favages. To trace out that progrefs towards maturity in different nation?, is the fulp- ject of the prefent undertaking.
VOL, I. E SKETCHES
SKETCHES
OF THE
HISTORY OF MAN.
BOOK I.
PROGRESS OF MEN INDEPENDENT OF
SOCIETY.
SKETCH I.
\
PROGRESS RESPECTING FOOD AND POPULATION.
IN temperate climes, men fed originally on fruits that grow without culture, and on the flefh of land- animals. As fuch animals become my when often hunted, there is a contrivance of nature, no lefs fimple than effectual, which engages men to bear with chearfulnefs the fatigues of hunting, and the uncertainty of capture ; and that is, an appe- tite for hunting. Hunger alone is not fufficient : favages who act by fenfe, not by forefight, move
£2 not
66 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
not when the ftomach is full ; and it would be too late when the ftomach is empty, to form a hunt- ing-party. As that appetite is common to all fa- vages whofe food depends on hunting ; it is an il- luftrious inftance of providential care, the adapting the internal conftitution of man to his external circumftances f . The appetite for hunting, though
among
* It would be an agreeable undertaking, to collect all the inftances where the internal conftitution of man is adapted to his external ftruclure, and to other circumfteinces ; but i]t would be a laborious work, as the inftances are extremely nu- merous ; and, in the courfe of the prefent undertaking, there will be occafion to mark feveral of them. " How finely are " the external parts of animals adjufted to their internal dif- " pofitions ? That ftrong and nervous leg armed with tear- *' ing fangs, how peifectly does it correfpond to the fierce- " nefs of the lion ! Had it been adorned like the human *' arm with fingers inftead of fangs, the natural energies of " a lion had been all of them defeated. That more delicate " ftruclure of an arm terminating in fingers fo nicely diver- " fified, how perfedly does it correfpond to the pregnant in- " vention of the human foul ! Had thefe fingers been fangs, " what had become of poor Art that procures us fo many '* elegancies and utilities ! JTic here we behold the harmony 'f between the vifiblc world and the invifible f." The fol- Jowing is another inftance of the fame kind, which I mention here becaufe it falls not under common obfervation. How finely, in the human fpecies, are the throat and the ear adjuft- ed to each other, the one to emit mufical founds, the other to enjoy them ! the one withou* the other would be an ufelefs talent. May it not be, jufUy thought, that to the power wp
havg
Harris.
SK. I;] FOOD AND POPULATION. 69
among us little neceflary for food, is to this day remarkable in young men, high and low, rich and poor. Natural propenfities may be rendered faint or obfcure, but never are totally eradicated.
Fiih was not early the food of man. Water is not our element ; and favages probably did not at- tempt to draw food from the fea or from rivers, till land- animals became fcarce. Plutarch in his Sympoiiacs obferves, that the Syrians and Greeks
£3 of
have of emitting miifical founds by the throat, we owe the
^^
invention of mufical inftruments ? A man would never think of inventing a mufical inftrument, but in order to imitate founds that his ear had been delighted with. But there is a faculty in man ftill more remarkable, which ferves to correct the organs of external fenfe, where they tend to miflead him. I give two carious inftances. The image of every vilible ob- ject is painted on the retina tunica, and by that means the ob- ject makes an impreflion on the mind. In what manner this is done, cannot be explained ; becaufe we have no conception how mind acts on body, or body on mind. But, as far as we can conceive or conjecture, a vifible object ought to appear to. us inverted, becaufe the image painted on the retina tunica is inverted. But this is corrected by the faculty mentioned, which makes us perceive objects as they really exift. The other inftance follows. As a man has two eyes, and fees with each of them, every object naturally ought to appear double ; and yet with two eyes we fee every object fmgle, precifely as if we had but one. Many philofophers, Sir Ifaac Newton in particular, have endeavoured to account for this phenomenon by- mechanical principles, but evidently without giving Satis- faction. To explain this phenomenon, it appears to me that we muft have recourfe to the faculty mentioned acting againfl; mechanical principles.
7<5 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
of old abftaincd from fifh. Menelaus * complains, that his companions had been reduced by hunger to that food ; and though the Grecian camp at the fiege of Troy was on the fea-fhore, there is not in Homer a fingle hint of their feeding on fifh. We learn from Dion Caflius, that the Caledonians did not eat fifb, though they had them in plenty ; which is confirmed by Adamannus, a Scotch hifto- rian, in his life of St Columba. The ancient Ca- ledonians depended almoft entirely on deer for food; becaufe in a cold country the fruits that grow fpontaneoufly afford little nourifhment ; and domeftic animals, which at prefent fo much abound, were not early known in the north of Britain.
Antiquaries talk of acorns, nuts, and other fhell- fruits, as the only vegetable food that men had originally, overlooking wheat, rice, barley, &c. which muft from the creation have grown fponta- neoufly : for furely, when agriculture firft com- menced, it did not require a miracle to procure the feeds of thefe plants f . The Laplanders, pof-
feffing
*
* Book 4. of the OdyfTey.
f Writers upon natural hiftory have been felicitous to dif- cover the original climate of thefe plants, but without much fuccefs. The original climate of plants left to nature, cannot be a fecret: but in countries well peopled, the plants men- tioned are not left to nature : the feeds are carefully gathered, and ftored up for food. As this practice could not fail to make thefe feeds fcarce, agriculture was early thought of
which
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION.
fefling a country where corn will not grow, make bread of the inner bark octrees ; and Linnaeus re- ports, that fwine there fatten on that food, as well as in Sweden upon corn.
Plenty of food procured by hunting and fifhing, promotes population : but as confumption of food increafes with population, wild animals, forely per- fecuted, become not only more rare, but more fhy. Men, thus pinched for food, are excited to try other means for fupplying their wants. A fawn* a kid, or a lamb, taken alive and tamed for amufe- ment, fuggefted probably flocks and herds, and in- troduced the fhepherd-itate. Changes are not per-
E 4 fected
which, by introducing plants into new foils and new climates, has rendered the original climate obfcure. If we can trace that climate, it muft be in regions deftitute of inhabitants, or but thinly peopled. Anfon found in the ifland Juan Fernan- dez many fpots of ground covered with oats. The Sioux, a very fmall tribe in North America, poflefs a vaft country, where oats grow fpontaneoufly in meadows and on the fides of rivers, which make part of their food, without neceffity of agriculture. While the French poflefied Port Dauphin, in the ifland of Madagafcar, they raifed excellent wheat. That fta- tion was deferted many years ago ; and wheat to this day grows naturally among the grafs in great vigour. In the country about Mount Tabor in Paleftine, barley and oats grow fpontaneoufly. In the kingdom of Siam, there are many fpots where rice grows year after year, without any culture^ Diodorus Siculus is our authority for faying, that in the ter- ritory of Leontinum, and in other places of Sicily, wheat grew wild without any culture. And it. does fo at prefent about Mount Etna.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY;
fecled but by flow degrees : hunting and fifliing continue for a long time favourite occupations ; and the few animals that are domeflicated, ferve as a common ftock to be diftributed among indi- viduals, according to their wants. But as the idle and indolent, though the leail deferving, are thus the greatefl confumers of the common ftock, an improvement crept in, that every family mould rear a ftock for themfelves. Men by that means being taught to rely on their own induftry, dif- played the hoarding principle, which multiplied flocks and herds exceedingly. And thus the {hep- herd- ftate was perfected, plenty of food being fup- plied at home, without ranging the woods or the "waters. Hunting and fifliing, being no longer ne- ceflary for food, became an amufement merelyx and a gratification of the original appetite for hunting.
The finger of God may be clearly traced in the provifion made of animal food for man. Gramini- vorous animals, perhaps all, make palatable and wholefome food. I except not the horfe : fome nations feed on it ; others do not, becaufe it is more profitable by its labour. Carnivorous ani- mals, generally fpeaking, make not wholefome food nor palatable. The firft-mentioned animals are gentle, and eafily tamed : the latter are fierce, not eafily tamed, and uncertain in temper when tamed, Grafs grows every where in temperate regions ; and men befide can multiply animal food
without
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 73
without end, by training domeftic animals to live on turnip, carrot, potato, and other roots. He- rodotus adds the following admirable refle&ion : " We may rationally conjecture, that Divine Pro- " vidence has rendered extremely prolific fuch " creatures as are naturally fearful, and ferve for " food, left they fhould be deftroyed by conftant' " confumption : whereas the rapacious and cruel " are almoft barren. The hare, which is the prey " of beafts, birds, and men, is a great breeder : a " lionefs, on the contrary, the ftrongeft and fierceft " of beafts, brings forth but once.'1
The fhepherd-ftate is friendly to population. Men by plenty of food multiply apace; and, in procefs of time, neighbouring tribes, ftraitened in their pafture, go to war for extenfion of territory, or migrate to land not yet occupied. Neceffity, the mother of invention, fuggefted agriculture. When corn growing fpontaneoufly was rendered fcarce by confumption, it was an obvious thought
-.
to propagate it by art : nature was the guide, which carries on its work of propagation with feeds that drop from a plant in their maturity, and fpring up new plants. As the land was pof- fefled in common, the feed of courfe was fown in common ; and the product was ftored in a common repofitory, to be parcelled out among individuals in want, as the common ftock of animals had been formerly. We have for our authority Diodorus Siculus, that the Celtiberians divided their land
*
annually
74 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
annually among individuals, to be laboured foi* the ufe of the public ; and that the product was ftored up, and diftributed from time to time among the neceffitous. A lafting divifion of the land among the members of the ftate, fecuring to each man the product of his own ikill and labour, was a great fpur to induftry, and multiplied food ex- ceedingly. Population made a rapid progrefs, and government became an art ; for agriculture and commerce cannot flourifh without falutary laws.
Natural fruits ripen to greater perfection in a temperate than in a cold climate, and cultivation is more eafy ; which circumftances make k highly probable, that agriculture became firft an art in temperate climes. The culture of corn was fo early in Greece, as to make a branch of its fabulous hiftory : in Egypt it mull have been coeval with the inhabitants ; for while the Nile overflows, they cannot fubfift without corn *. Nor without corn could the ancient monarchies of Aflyria and Ba- bylon have been fo populous and powerful as they are faid to have been. In the northern parts of Europe, wheat, barley, peafe, and perhaps oats, are foreign plants : as the climate is not friendly to corn, agriculture muft have crept northward by flow degrees : and, even at prefent, it requires no fmall portion both of {kill and induftry to bring corn to maturity in fuch a climate. Hence it may be inferred with certainty, that the fhepherd- ftate
continued •
* Hiftorical Law-Tratfs, traft i.
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 75
\
continued longer in northern climates than in thofe nearer the fun. Cold countries, however, are friendly to population ; and the northern people, multiplying beyond the food that can be fupplied by flocks and herds, were compelled to throw off many fwarms in fearch of new habitations. Their frequent migrations were for many years a dreadful fcourge to neighbouring nations. People, amazed at the multitude of the invaders, judged, that the countries from whence they iflued mufthave been exceedingly populous ; and hence the North was termed officina gentium. But fcarcity of food in the fhepherd-ftate was the true caufe ; the north of Europe, in all probability, is as well peopled at prefent as ever it was, though its migrations have ceafed, corn and commerce having put an end to that terrible fcourge *. Denmark at pre- fent \
* Aliquando bonus dormitat Homerus. Montefquieu accounts as follows for the great fwarms of Barbarians that overwhelm- ed the Roman empire. " Ces eflaims de Barbaras qui for- " tirent autrefois du nord, ne paroifTent plus aujourd'hui. Les " violences des Remains avoient fait retirer les peuple du " midi au nord : tandis que la force qui les contenoit fub- " fifta, ils y refterent ; quand elle fut affbiblie, ils fe repan- " dirent de toutes parts." Grandeur des Romains, c. 16. — \_In Englifi thus : " The fwarms of Barbarians who poured former- " ly from the north, appear no more. The violence of the 4< Roman arms had driven thofe nations from the fouth to- " wards the north : there they remained during the fub- " fiftence of that force which retained them j but that being
*' once
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY: [fi. iV
fent feeds 2,000,000 inhabitants ; Sweden, accord-* ing to a lift made up anno 1760, 2,383,113 ; and thefe countries muft be much more populous than of old, when over- run with immenfe woods, and when agriculture was unknown. Had the Danes and Norwegians been acquainted with agriculture in the ninth and tenth centuries, when they pour- ed out multitudes upon their neighbours, they would not have ventured their lives in frail vef- fels upon a tempeftuous ocean, in order to diftrefs nations who were not their enemies. But hunger is a cogent motive ; and hunger gave to thefe pi- rates fuperiority in arms above every nation that enjoyed plenty at home. Luckily fuch depreda- tions muft have intervals ; for as they neceffarily occaiion great havock even among the victors, the remainder rinding fufficiency of food at home, reft there till an increaling population forces them again to aclion *. Agriculture, which fixes people to a fpot, is an invincible obftacle to migration ; and happy it is for Europe, that this art, now univer- fally diffufed, has put an end for ever to that- fcourge, more deftrudive than a peftilence : people
find
" once weakened, they fpread abroad to every quarter."] — » It has quite efcaped him, that men cannot, like water, be damm'd up without being fed.
* Joannes Magnus, in the 8th book of his Hiftory of the Goths, mentions, that a third part of the Swedes, being com- pelled by famine to leave their native country, founded the kingdom of the Longobards in Italy.
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 77
find now occupation and fubfiilence at home, with- out infefting others. Agriculture is a great blef- fing : it not only affords us food in plenty, but fe- cures the fruits of our induftry from hungry and rapacious invaders *.
That the progrefs above traced muft have pro- ceeded from fome vigorous impulfe, will be ad- mitted, considering the prevailing influence of cuf- tom : once hunters, men will always be hunters, till they be forced out of that ftate by fome over- powering caufe. Hunger, the caufe here affigned, is of all the moft overpowering ; and the fame caufe, overcoming indolence and idlenefs, has in- troduced manufactures, commerce, and variety of arts f .
The
* Mahomet Bey, King of Tunis, was dethroned by his fub- jetfs ; but having the reputation of the philofopher's ftone, he was reftored by the Dey of Algiers, upon promifing to com- municate the fecret to him. Mahomet, with pomp and fo. lemnity, fent a plough ; intimating, that agriculture is the ftrength of a kingdom, and that the only philofopher's ftone is a good crop, which may be eafily converted into gold.
f M. Buffon, difcourfmg of America, " Is it not fingular," fays he, " that, in a world compofed almoft wholly of fava- " ges, there never fhould have been any fociety or commerce " between them and the animals about them ? There was " not a domeftic animal in America when difcovered by Co- *' lumbus, except among the polifhed people of Mexico and (t Peru. Is not this a proof, that man, in his favage ftate, is 'f but a fort of brute animal ; having no faculties but to pro- ff vide for his fubfiftence, by attacking the weak, and avoid-
"
78 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
The progrefs here delineated has, in all tempe- rate climates of the Old World, been precifely uniform ; but it has been different in the extremes of cold and hot climates. In very cold regions, which produce little vegetable food for man, the hunter-Hate was originally effential. In temperate regions, as obferved above, men fublifted partly on vegetable food, which is more or lefs plentiful in proportion to the heat of the climate. In the tor- rid zone, natural fruits are produced in fuch plenty and perfection, as to be more than fufficient for a moderate population : and, in cafe of extraordinary population, the traniition to hufbandry is eafy. There are found, accordingly, in every populous country of the torrid zone, crops of rice, maize, roots, and other vegetable food, raifed by the hand of man. As hunting becomes thus lefs and lefs-
neceflary
*' ing the ftrong ; and having no idea of his fuperiority over " other animals, which he never once thinks of bringing un- ** der fubjection ? This is the more furprifing, as moft of " the American animals are by nature docile and timid." Our author, without being fenfible of it, lays a foundation for a fatisfa&ory anfwer to thefe queftions, by what he adds, That, in the whole compafs of America, when difcovered by the Spaniards, there were not half the number of people that are in Europe ; and that fuch fcarcity of men favoured great- ly the propagation of wild animals, which had few enemies, and much food. Was it not obvious to conclude, from thefe premifes, that while men, who by nature are fond of hunt- ing, have game in plenty, they never think of turning ihep* lierds ?
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 79
necefiary in the progrefs from cold to hot countries, the appetite for hunting keeps pace with that pro- grefs : it is vigorous in very cold countries, where men depend on hunting for food : it is lefs vigor- ous in temperate countries, where they are partly fed with natural fruits ; and there is fcarce any veftige of it in hot countries, where vegetables are the food of men, ,and where meat is an article of luxury. The original occupation of favages, both in cold and temperate climates, is hunting, alto- gether efiential in the former, as the only means of procuring food. The next ftep of the progrefs in both, is the occupation of a fhepherd ; and there the progrefs flops fhort in very cold regions, unfit for corn- Lapland, in particular, produces no ve- getable but mofs, which is the food of no animal but the rein-deer. This circumftance folely is what renders Lapland habitable by men. Without rain- deer, the fea-coafts within the reach of fifh would admit fome inhabitants ; but the inland parts would be a defert. As the fwiftnefs of that animal makes it not an eafy prey, the taming it for food muft have been early attempted ; and its natural docility made the attempt fucceed. It yields to no other animal in ufefulnefs : it is equal to a horfe for draught : its flefh is excellent food ; and the female gives milk more nourifhing than that of a cow : its fur is fine ; and the leather made of its Ikin is both foft and durable. , In Tartary, though a great part of it lies in a temperate jtone, there is
little
8O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
little corn. As far back as tradition reaches, the Tartars have had flocks and herds ; and yet, in a great meafure, they not only continue hunters, but retain the ferocity of that ftate : they are not fend of being fhepherds, and have no knowledge of hufbandry. This, in appearance, is fingular ; but nothing happens without a caufe. Tartary is one continued mountain from weft to eaft, riling high above the countries to the fouth, and declin- ing gradually to the northern ocean, without a lingle hill to intercept the bitter blafts of the north. A few fpots excepted, a tree above the fize of a fhrub cannot live in it *. In Europe, the moun- tains of Norway and Lapland are a comfortable fcreen againfl the north wind : whence it is, that the land about Stockholm f produces both trees and corn ; and even about Abo J the climate is tolerable. Great Tartary abounds with pafture ; but extreme cold renders it very little capable of corn. Through all Chinefe Tartary, even as low as the 43d degree of latitude, the frofl continues feven or eight months yearly ; and that country, though in the latitude of France, is as cold as Ice- land. The caufes are its nitrous foil, and its
height,
* May not a fimilar fituation, in fome parts of North Ame- rica, be partly the occafion of the cold that is felt there, be- yond what Europe feels in the fame latitude ?
f Latitude 59°. Latitude 61°.
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 8l
height, without any fhelter from the weft wind, that has pafTed through an immenfe continent ex- tremely cold. A certain place near the fource of the river Kavamhuran, and within 80 leagues of the great wall, was found by Father Verbeift to be 3000 geometrical paces above the level of the fea. Thus the Tartars, like the Laplanders, are chained to the fhepherd-ftate, and can never ad- vance to be hufbandmen. If population among them ever become fo confiderable as to require more food than the fhepherd-ftate can fupply> mi- gration will be their only refource.
In every ftep of the progrefs, the torrid zone dif- fers. We have no evidence that either the hunter or fhepherd-ftate ever exifted there : the inhabi- tants, at prefent, fubfift on vegetable food ; and probably did fo from the beginning. In Manila, one of the Philippine iflands, the trees bud, blof- fom, and bear fruit, all the year round. The na- tives, driven by Spanifh invaders from the fea- coaft to the inland parts, have no particular place of abode, but live under the fhelter of trees, which afford them food as well as habitation : and, when the fruit is confumed in one fpot, they remove to another. The orange, lemon, and other European trees, bear fruit twice a-year : a fprig planted bears fruit within the year. And this picture of Manila anfwers to numberlefs places in the torrid zone. The Marian or Ladrone iflands are ex- tremely populous, and yet the inhabitants live en-
VOL. I. F tirety
82 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B.I.
tirely on fifh, fruits, and roots. The inhabitants of the new Philippine iilands live on cocoa-nuts, 'alads, roots, and fifh. The inland negroes make but one meal a-day, which is in the evening. Their diet is plain, confiding moflly of rice, fruits, and roots. The ifland of Otaheite is healthy, the people tall and well made ; and by temperance, vegetables and fifh being their chief nourimment, they live to a good old age, almoft without any ail- ment. There is no fuch thing known among them as rotten teeth : the very fmell of wine or fpirits is difagreeable ; and they never deal in tobacco nor fpiceries. In many places Indian corn is the chief nourimmeut, which every man plants for himfelf. The inhabitants of Biledulgerid and the defert of Zaara, have but two meals a-day, one in the morn- ing, and one in the evening. Being temperate, and ftrangers to difeafes arifing from luxury, they generally live to a great age. Sixty with them is the prime of life, as thirty is in Europe. An in- habitant of Madagafcar will travel two or three days without any food but a fugar-cane. There is indeed little appetite for animal food in hot cli- mates ; though beef and fowl have in fmall quan- tities been introduced to the tables of the great, as articles of luxury. In America are obfervable fome variations from the progrefs • but thefe are referved for a feparate fketch *.
* Book 2. Sko 13,
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 83
With refpect to population, that plenty of food is its chief caufe, may be illuftrated by the follow- ing computation. The foutheni provinces of Chi- na produce two crops of rice in a year, fometimes three ; and an acre, well cultivated, gives food to ten perfons. The peafants go almoft naked ; and the better fort wear but a lirigle garment made of cotton, of which as much is produced upon an acre as may clothe four or five hundred. Hence the ex- treme populoufnefs of China and other rice coun- tries. The Caflave root, which ferves the Ameri- cans for bread, is produced in fuch plenty, that an acre of it will feed more perfons than fix acres of wheat. It is not, then, for want of food that Ame- rica is ill peopled. That Negroland is well peo- pled is pad doubt, confidering the great annual draughts from that country to America, without any apparent diminution of numbers. Inftances are not extremely rare, of two hundred children born to one man by his different wives. Food mud be in great plenty, to enable a man to maintain fo many children. It would require wonderful fkill and labour to make Europe ib populous : an acre and a half of wheat is barely fufficient to maintain a fingle family of peafants \ and their clothing re- quires many acres more. A country where the inhabitants live chiefly by hunting, mud be very thin of inhabitants, as 10,000 acres, or double that number, are no more than fufficient for maintain- ing a fingle family. If the multiplication of ani-
F % mals
$4 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. !•
mals depended chiefly on fecundity, wolves would be more numerous than (heep : a- great proportion of the latter are deprived of the procreating power,
and many more of them are killed than of the for-
%
mer ; yet we fee every where large flocks of {heep, feldom a wolf ;' for what reafon, other than that the former have plenty of food, the latter very little ? A wolf refembles a favage who lives by hunting, and confumes the game of five or fix thoufand acres.
Waving the queftion, Whether the human race be the offspring of one pair or of many, it appears the intention of Providence, that the earth fhould be peopled, and population be kept up by the ordi- nary means of procreation. By thefe means a tribe foon becomes too populous for the primitive ilate of hunting and fiming : it may even become too populous for the Ihepherd-ftate ; but it cannot ea- fily become too populous for hufbandry. In the two former ftates, food muft decreafe in quantity as confumers increafe in number : but agriculture has the fignal property of producing, by induftry, food in proportion to the number of confumers. In fact, the greateft quantities of corn and of cattle are commonly produced in the mod populous diftricts, where each family has its proportion of land. An ancient Roman, fober and induftf ious, made a fhift to maintain his family on the produce of a few acres *.
' '" ••••:•'• ' "; ' : ";'; ; - " \''"; The
* Scotland muft have been very ill peopled in the days of its
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION.
The bounty given in Britain for exporting com is friendly to population in two refpects ; firft, be- caufe hufbandry requires many hands ; and, next, becaufe the bounty lowers the price of corn at home. To give a bounty for exporting cattle would obftrucl population ; becaufe pafture re- quires few hands, and exportation raifes the price of cattle at home. From the fingle port of Cork, an. 1735, were exported 107,161 barrels of beef, 7379 barrels of pork, 13,461 cafks of butter, and 85,727 firkins of the fame commodity. Thus a large portion of Ireland is fet apart for feeding other nations. What addition of ftrength would it not be to Britain, if that large quantity of food were confumed at home by ufeful manufacturers !
No manufacture contributes more to population than that of filk. It employs as many hands as wool ; and it withdraws no land from tillage or pafture.
Lapland is but thinly inhabited even for the fhepherd-ftate, the country being capable of main- taining a greater number of rein-deer, and, con- fequently, a greater number of the human fpe- cies than are found in it. Yet the Laplanders are well acquainted with private property : every fa- mily has tame rein-deer of their own, to the ex-
F 3 •."-.: . tent
fifth James, when at one hunting in the high country of Rox- burghfhire, that prince killed three hundred and fixty red-deer ; and in Athol, at another time, iix hundred, befide roes, wolves, foxes, and wild cats.
86 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. X.
tent fometimes of four or five hundred : they in- deed appear to have more rein-deer than there is a demand for. Why then is Lapland fo thinly peopled ? Either it muft have been but lately planted, or the inhabitants are not prolific. I in- cline to the latter, upon the authority of Scheffer. Tartary is alfo but thinly peopled ; and as I find not that the Tartars are lefs prolific than their neighbours, it is probable that Tartary, being the moft barren country Afia, has not been early plant- ed. At the fame time, population has been much retarded by the reftlefs and roaming fpirit of that people : it is true, they have been forced into the ihepherd-ftate by want of food ; but fo averfe are they to the fedentary life of a ihepherd, that they truft their cattle to flaves, and perfevere in their favourite occupation of hunting. This difpofition has been a dreadful pefl to the human fpecies, the Tartars having made more extenfive conquefts, and deilroyed more men, than any other nation known in hiftory : more cruel than tigers, they feemed to have no delight but in blood and mafiacre, without any regard either to fex or age *. Luckily for the human fpecies, rich fpoils dazzled their eyes, and roufed an appetite for wealth. Avarice is fome- times productive of good : it moved thefe mon-
ilers
* When the Tartars under Genhizkan conquered China, it was ferioufly deliberated, whether they fhould not kill all the inhabitants, and convert that vaft, country into pafture-fields for their cattle.
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION* 87
fters to fell the conquered people for Haves, which preferved the lives of millions. Conqueils, how- ever fuccefsful, cannot go on for ever ; they are not accomplifhed without great lofs of men ; and the conquefts of the Tartars depopulated their coun- try.
But as fome centuries have elapfed without any conliderable eruption of that fiery people, their numbers muft at prefent be conliderable by the ordinary progrefs of population. Have we not reafon to dread new eruptions, like what formerly happened ? Our foreknowledge of future events extends not far; but in all appearance we have nothing to fear from that quarter. The Tartars fubdued a great part of the world by ferocity and undaunted courage, fupported by liberty and in- dependence. They acknowledged Genhizkan as their leader in war, but were as far from being flaves, as the Franks were when they conquered Gaul. Tamerlane again enjoyed but a fubftituted power, and never had the boldnefs to afTume the title of Chan or Emperor. But the Tartars have fubmitted to the fame yoke of defpotifm that their ferocity impofed upon others ; and being now go- verned by a number of petty tyrants, their cou- rage is broken by ilavery, and they are no longer formidable to the reft of mankind *.
F 4 Depopulation
* " Gallos in bellis floruifle accepimus," fays Tacitus in his life of Agricola ; " mox fegnities cum otio intravit, amiffd vir-
« tutn
88 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. ffi. !•
Depopulation enters into the prefent fketch as well as population. The latter follows not with greater certainty from equality of property, than the former from inequality. In every great ftate, where the people by profperity and opulence are funk into voluptuoufnefs, we hear daily complaints of depopulation. Cookery depopulates likes a pef- tilence ; becaufe, when it becomes an art, it brings within the compafs of one ilomach what is fuffi- cient for ten days of temperance ; and is fo far worfe than a peftilence, that the people never re- cruit again. The inhabitants of France devour at prefent more food than the fame number did for- merly. The like is obfervable in Britain, and in every country where luxury abounds. Remedies are propofed arid put in practice, celibacy difgra- cedj marriage encouraged, and rewards given for a numerous offspring. All in vain ! The only ef- feclual remedies are to encourage hufbandry, and to reprefs luxury. Olivares hoped to repeople Spain, by encouraging matrimony. Abderam, a Mahometan king of Cordova, was a better poli- tician
" tute pariter ac libertate." [/» Englt/h thus; "We have te heard that the Gauls formerly made a figure in war ; but *' becoming a prey to indolence, the confequence of peace, " they loft at once their valour and their liberty."] — Spain, which defended itfelf with great bravery againft the Romans, became an eafy prey to the Vandals in the fifth century. When attacked by the Romans, it was divided into many free ftates : when attacked by the Vandals, it was enervated by flavery under Roman defpotifm.
SK* I.] FOOD AND POPULATION.
tician. JBy encouraging induftry, and procuring plenty of food, he repeopled his kingdom in lefs than thirty years*.
Luxury is a deadly enemy to population, not on- ly by intercepting food from the induftrious, but by weakening the power of procreation. Indo- lence accompanies voluptuoufnefs, or rather is a branch of it ; women of rank employ others to move them, being too delicate to move them- felves ; and a woman, enervated by indolence and intemperance, is ill qualified for the fevere labour of child-bearing. Hence it is, that people of rank, where luxury prevails, are not prolific. This in- firmity not only prevents population, but increafes luxury, by accumulating wealth among a few blood relations. A barren woman among the labouring poor, is a wonder. Could women of rank be per- fuaded to make a trial, they would find more felf- enjoyment in temperance and exercife, than in the moft refined luxury ; nor would they have caufe to envy others the bleffing of a numerous and healthy offspring.
Luxury
* A foundling-hofpital is a greater enemy to population, than liberty to expofe infants, which is permitted to parents in China and in fome other countries. Both of them, indeed, en* courage matrimony : but in fuch hofpitals, thoufands perifh yearly beyond the ordinary proportion ; whereas few infants perifh by the liberty of expofmg them, parental affection pre- vailing commonly over the diftrefs of proverty. And, upon the whole, population gains more by that liberty than it lofes.
9O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [&. t.
Luxury is not a greater enemy to population,}by enervating men and women, than defpotifm is by reducing them to flavery, and destroying induftry. Defpotifm is a greater enemy to the human fpe- cies than an Egyptian plague ; for, by rendering men miferable, it weakens both the appetite for procreation and the power. Free ftates, on the contrary, are always populous : a man who is hap- py, longs for children to make them alfo happy ; and induftry enables him to accomplim his long- ing. This obfervation is verified from the hiftory of Greece, and of the Lefler Alia : the inhabit- ants anciently were free and numerous : the pre- fent inhabitants are reduced by flavery to a fmali number. A peftilence deftroys thofe only who ex- ift, and the lofs is foon repaired ; but defpotifm, as above obferved, flrikes at the very root of popula- tion.
An overflowing quantity of money in circula- tion, is another caufe of depopulation. In a na- tion that grows rich by commerce, the price of la- bour increafes with the quantity of circulating coin, which of courfe raifes the price of manufac- tures ; and manufacturers, who cannot find a vent for their high-rated goods in Jforeign markets, muft kgive over bufinefs, and commence beggars, or re- tire to another country, where they may have a profpedt of fuccefs. But luckily, there is a reme- dy, in that cafe, to prevent depopulation : land is cultivated to greater perfection by the fpade than
-
SK. I.] FOOD AND POPULATION. 9!
by the plough ; and the more plentiful crops pro- duced by the former, are fully fufficient to defray the additional expence. This is a refource for employing thofe who cannot make bread as manu- facturers, and deferves well the attention of the le- giflature. The advantage of the fpade is confpi- cuous with refped: to war ; it provides a multi- tude of robuft men for recruiting the army, the want of whom may be fupplied by the plough, till they return in peace to their former occupation.
SKETCH II.
i f
PROGRESS OF PROPERTY.
AMONG the fenfes inherent in man, the fenfe of property is eminent. That fenfe is the foundation of yours and mine, a diftindion which no human being is ignorant of. By that fenfe, wild animals, caught with labour or art, are per- ceived to belong to the hunter or fifher: they be- come his property. There is the fame perception of property with refpecl to wild animals tamed for ufe, with their progeny. A field feparated from the common, and cultivated by a man for bread to
himielf
92 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
\
himfelf and family, is equally perceived to be his property #Jfjsi6fRul ' :''
The fenfe of property is flower in its growth to* ward maturity than the external fenfes, which are perfect even in childhood ; but it ripens more early than the fenfe of congruity, of fymmetry, of dignity, of grace, and the other refined fenfes, which fcarce malte any figure before the age of manhood. Children difcover a fenfe of property in diftingaifhing their own chair, and their own fpoon. In them, however, it is faint and obfcure, requiring time to ripen. The gradual progrefs of that fenfe, from its infancy among favages to its maturity among polifhed nations, is one of the moll inftrudtve articles that belong to the prefent un- dertaking. But as that article makes a part of Hiftorical Law-trads f , nothing remains here but a few gleanings.
Man is by nature a hoarding animal, having an appetite for ftoring up things of ufe ; and the fenfe of property is beftowed on men, for fecuring to them what they thus ftore up. Herrce it appears, that things defiined by Providence for our fuf- tenance and accommodation, were not intended to be pofTefled in common. It is even probable, that in the earlieft ages every man feparately hunted for himfelf and his family. But chance prevails
in
* See Principles of Morality and Natural Religion, p.
• , -
it. 2.
\ Traft 3.
SK. 2.] PROPERTY. 93
in that occupation ; and it may frequently happen, that while fome get more than enough, others mud go fupperlefs to bed. Senfible of that incon- venience, it crept into practice, for hunting and fifhing to be carried on in common *. We find, accordingly, the practice of hunting and fifhing in common, even among grofs favages. Thofe of New Holland, above mentioned, live upon fmall fifti dug out of the fand when the fea retires. Sometimes they get plenty, fometimes very little ; and all is broiled and eat in common. After eat- ing they go to reft : they return to their fifliing
next
1
* Inequalities of chance, which are great in a few trials, va- nifh almoft entirely when an operation is frequently reiterated during a courfe of time. Did every man's fubfiftence depend on the fruits of his own field, many would die of hunger, while others wallowed in plenty. Barter and commerce among the inhabitants of a diftricl:, leflen the hazard of fa- mine : the commerce of corn through a large kingdom, fuch as France or Britain, lefTens it dill more. Extend that com- merce through Europe, through the world, and there will re- main fcarce a veftige of the inequalities of chance : the crop of corn may fail in one province, or in one kingdom ; but that it fhould fail univerfally, is beyond the varieties of chance. The fame obfervation holds in every other matter of chance ; one'f gain or lois at game for a night, for a week, may be confider- able ; but carry on the game for a year, and fo little of chance remains, that it is almoft the fame whether one play for a gui- nea or for twenty. Hence a fkilful infurer never ventures much upon one bottom, but multiplies his bargains as much as poffible : the more bargains he is engaged in, the greater is the probability of gain.
94 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
next ebb of the tide, whether it be day or night, foul or fair ; for go they muft, or ftarve. In fmall tribes, where patriotifm is vigorous, or in a coun- try thinly peopled in proportion to its fertility, the living in common is agreeable : but in a large Hate where felfifhnefs prevails, or in any ftate where great population requires extraordinary cul- ture, the beft method is to permit every man to fhift for himfelf and his family : men wifh to labour for themfelves ; and they labour more ardently for themfelves, than for the public. Private pro- perty became more and more facred in the pro- grefs of arts and manufactures : to allow an artift of fuperior fkill no profit above others, would be a fad difcouragement to induftry, and be fcarce con- fident with juftice.
The fenfe of property is not confined to the hu- man fpecies. The beavers perceive the timber they ftore up for food, to be their property ; and the bees feem to have the fame perception with refpecl to their winter's provifion of honey. Sheep know when they are in a trefpafs, and run to their own pafture on the firft glimpfe of a man, IVIonkies do the fame when detected in robbing an orchard. Sheep and horned cattle have a fenfe of property with refpecl: to their refling-place in a fold or in- clofure, which every one guards againft the in- croachments of others. He muft be a fceptic in- deed, who denies that perception to rooks : thieves there are among them as among men ; but if a
rook
SK. 2.] PROPERTY. 95
rook purloin a flick from another's neft, a council is held, much chattering enfues, and the lex talio- nis is applied by demolifhing the neft of the cri- minal. To man are furnifhed rude materials on- ly : to convert thefe into food and clothing re- quires induftry ; and if he had not a fenfe that the produdt of his labour belongs to himfelf, his in- duftry would be faint. In general, it is pleafant to obferve, that the fenfe of property is always gi- ven where it is ufeful, and never but where it is ufeful.
An ingenious writer, defcribing the inhabitants of Guiana, who continue hunters and fiihers, makes an eloquent harangue upon the happinefs they en- joy, in having few wants and delires, and little no- tion of private property. " The manners of thefe " Indians exhibit an amiable picture of primeval " innocence and happinefs. The eafe with which " their few wants are fupplied, renders divifion of " land unneceiTary ; nor does it afford any temp- " tation to fraud or violence. That pronenefs to " vice, which among civilized nations is efteemed " a propenlity of nature, has no exiftence^ in a u country where every man enjoys in perfection ** his native freedom and independence, without " hurting or being hurt by others. A perfect " equality of rank, baniming all diftinctions but of " age and perfonal merit, promotes freedom in " converfation, and firmnefs in action, and fuggefts ff no defires but what may be gratified with in-
" nocence.
06 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
^ i »< *~
" nocence. Envy and difcontent cannot fubfift " where there is perfect equality ; we fcarce even " hear of a difcontented lover, as there is no diffe- " rence of rank and fortune, the common obftacles " that prevent fruition. Thofe who have been " unhappily accuftomed to the refinements of luxu- " ry, will fcarce be able to conceive, that an In- " dian, with no covering but what modefty re- " quires, with no fhelter that deferves the name " of a houfe, and with no food but of the coarfeft " kind, painfully procured by hunting, can feel " any happinefs ; and yet, to judge from external " appearance, the happinefs of thefe people may " be envied by the wealthy of the moft refined na- " tions ; and juftly, becaufe their ignorance of ex- " travagant defires, and endlefs purfuits, that tor- " ment the great world, excludes every wifh be- " yond the prefent. In a word, the inhabitants " of Guiana are an example of what Socrates juftly *' obferves, That they who want the leaft, approach " the neareft to the gods, who want nothing." It is admitted, that the innocence of favages, here painted in fine colours, is in every refpect more amiable than the luxury of the opulent. But is our author unacquainted with a middle ftate, more fuitable than either extreme to the dignity of hu- man nature ? The appetite for property is not be- ftowed upon us in vain : it has given birth to many arts : it is highly beneficial by furnifhing opportunity for gratifying the moft dignified na- tural
SK. 2.] PROPERTY- 97
tural afie&ions ; for without private property, what place would there be for benevolence or charity * ? Without private property there would be no induftry ; and without induftry, men would remain favages for ever.
The appetite for property, in its nature a great bleffing, degenerates, I acknowledge, into a great curfe when it tranfgrefles the bounds of modera- tion. Before money was introduced, the appetite feldom was immoderate, becaufe plain neceflaries were its only objects. But money is a fpecies of property, of fuch extenlive ufe as greatly to in- flame the appetite. Money prompts men to be in- duftrious • and the beautiful productions of induf- try and art, muling the imagination, excite a vio- lent delire for grand houfes, fine gardens, and for every thing gay and fplendid. Habitual wants multiply : luxury and fenfuality gain ground : the appetite for property becomes headftrong, and muft be gratified, even at the expence of juftice and ho- nour. Examples of this progrefs are without num-
f «^ A
ber ; and yet the following hiilory,deferves to be kept in memory, as a Unking and lamentable illuf- tration. Hifpaniola was that part of America which Columbus firft difcovered anno 1497. He landed upon the territory of Guacanaric, one of the principal Cacics of the ifland. That prince, who had nothing barbarous in his manners, recei- VOL. I. G ved
* Hiftorical Law Trails, Tra<2 3,
08 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIEfV. [B. I.
f 'x« i • j*j • t
ved his gueits with cordiality, and encouraged his people to vie with one another in obliging them. To gratify the Spanilh appetite for gold, they parted freely with their richeft ornaments; and, in return, were fatisfied with glafs beads, and fuch baubles. The Admiral's fhip having been darned againft the rocks in a hurricane, Guacanaric ' was not wanting to his friend on that occafion : he convened a number of men to aifift in unloading the fhip ; and attended himfelf till the cargo was fafely lodged. The Admiral having occafion to return to Spain, left a part of his crew behind ; who, forgetting the leilbns of moderation he had taught them, turned licentious. The remonftrances of Guacanaric were fruitlefs : they feized upon the gold and wives of the Indians, and in general treat- ed them with great cruelty. Such enormities did not long pafsunrefented : the rapacious Spaniards, after much bloodlhed, were fhut up in their fort, and reduced to extremity. Unhappily a reinforce- ment arrived from Spain : a long and bloody war enfued, which did not end till the iilanders were entirely fubdued. Of this ifland, about 200 leagues in length, and between fixty and eighty in breadth, a Spaniih hiftorian bears witnefs, that the inhabi- tants amounted to a million when Columbus land- ed*. The Spaniards, relentlefs in their cruelty, forced thefe poor people to abandon the culture of
their
* The numbers poffibly are exaggerated. But whether a million, or a half of that number, the moral is the fame.
SK. 2.] PROPERTY. 99
their fields, and to retire to the woods and moun- tains. Hunted like wild beafts even in thefe re- treats, they fled from mountain to mountain, till hunger and fatigue, which deftroyed more than the fword, made them deliver themfelves up to their implacable enemies. There remained at that
X
time but 60,000, who were divided among the Spaniards as flaves. Exceffive fatigue in the mines, and want even of neceflaries, reduced them in five years to 14,000. Confidering them to be only beafts of burden, they would have yielded more profit had they been treated with lefs inhumanity. Avarice frequently counteracts its own end : by grafping too much, it lofes all. The Emperor Charles refolded to apply fome remedy ; but being retarded by various avocations, he got intelligence that the poor Indians were totally extirpated. And they were fb in reality, a handful excepted, who lay hid in the mountains, and fubiifted as by a miracle in the midft of their enemies. That handful were difcovered many years after by fome hunters, who treated them with humanity, regret- ting perhaps the barbarity of their forefathers. The poor Indians, docile and fubmiffive, embraced the Chriftian religion, and arTumed by degrees the manners and cuftoms of their mailers. They ftill exift, and live by hunting and fiihing.
Affection for property ! Janus double-faced, pro- ductive of many blefiings, but degenerating often to be a curfe. In thy right hand, Induitry, a cor-
G 2 nucopia
100 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. ffi. 1+
L
nucopia of plenty : in thy left, Avarice, a Pando- ra's box of deadly poif on.
-Li I j f ! i ,'..-.',*'/ 1 II .01
fl:r CM/ /"Y'rtsrf.
SKETCH m.
* »\
•-.(•» ! 'if f V} in-
ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF COMMERCE.
,
THE few wants of men in the firft ftage of fo- ciety, are fupplied by barter in its rudeft form. In barter, the rational coniideration is, what is wanted by the one, and what can be fpared by the other. But favages are not always fo clear- lighted : a favage who wants a knife, will give for it any thing that is lefs ufeful to him at the time, without coniidering either the prefent wants of the perfon he is dealing with, or his own future wants. An inhabitant of Guiana will for a fifh-hook give more at one time, than at another he will give for a hatchet, or for a gun» Kempfer reports, that an inhabitant of Puli Timor, an ifland adjacent to Malacca, will, for a bit of coarfe linen not worth three-halfpence, give provifions worth three or four millings. But people improve by degrees, attend- ing to what is wanted on the one fide, and to what can be fpated on the other ; and in that leflbn, the American favages in our neighbourhood are not a little expert.
Barter
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. IOI
Barter or permutation, in its original form, pro- ved miferably deficient when men and their wants multiplied. That fort of commerce cannot be carried on at a diftance ; and, even among neigh- bours, it does not always happen that the one can fpare what the other wants. Barter is fomewhat enlarged by covenants : a bufhel of wheat is de- livered to me, upon my promiling an equivalent at a future time. But what if I have nothing that my neighbour may have occaiion for ? or what if my promife be not relied on ? Thus bar- ter, even with the aid of covenants, proves ftill de- fe&ive. The numberlefs wants of men cannot readily be fup plied, without fome commodity in general eftimation, which will be gladly accepted in exchange for every other. That commodity ought not to be bulky, nor be expenfive in keep- ing, nor be confumable by time. Gold and lil-
*-' * '
ver are metals that poffefs thefe properties in an eminent degree. They are at the fame time per- fectly homogeneous in whatever country produ- ced : two mafles of pure gold or of pure iilver are always equal in value, provided they be of the fame weight. Thefe metals are alfo diviiible into fmall parts, convenient to be given for goods of fmall value *.
^ r< 1 i
G 3 Gold
.
•
^
* " Origo emendi vendendique a permutationibus ccepit. Olim enim non ita erat nummus : neque aliud merx, aliud pre* tlum vocabatur ; fed unufquifque, fecunditin neceffitatem tern
porum,
102 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
L'L
Gold and iilver, when introduced into commerce, were probably bartered, like other commodities, by bulk merely. Rock-falt in Ethiopia, white as fnow, and hard as ftone, is to this day bartered in
— rr •i-'"i , »i;> < •- fij *
that manner with other goods. It is dug out of the mountain Lafta, formed into plates a foot long, and three inches broad and thick: and a portion
••7JJ •-" i J 13^/1^1 i jirit-f' . ~ ? r
is broken off equivalent in value to the thing want- .ed,,: But more accuracy came to be introduced into tjie commerce of gold and filver : inflead of being given loofely by bulk, every portion was weighed in fcales : and this method of barter is practifed in China, in Ethiopia, and in many other Countries. Even weight was at length difcovered to .be an imperfect ftandard. Ethiopian fait may
' ' T •* "O '
be proof againil adulteration ; but weight is no fecurity againft mixing gold and iilver with bafe metals. To prevent that fraud, pieces of gold and filver are imprefled with a public ftamp, vouching both the purity and quantity ; and fuch pieces are termed coin. This was a notable improvement in
: ti *•
iv/Iil '.- -:o -10 };• j lo ^I^
porum, ac rerum, utilibus inutilia permutabat, quando plerum- que evenit, ut quod alteri fupereft, alteri defit- Sed quia non iemper, nee facile cqncurrebat, ut, cum tu haberes quod ego deflderarem, invicem haberem quod tu accipere velles, eledta roateria eft, cujus publica ac perpetua asftimatio difficultatibus permutationum, nsqualitate quantitatis fubveniret: ea [quae] materia forma publica percufla, ufum dominiumque non tarn ex fubftantia prabet, quam ex quantitate ; nee ultra merx utrumque, fed alterum/r^'«OT vocatur j" /. I. Digeft. De con- trahenda emptlone.
SK. 3.} COMMERCE. IO3
•
commerce ; and was probably at firft thought com- plete. It was not forefeen, that thefe metals wear by much handling in the courfe of circulation ; and confequently, that in time the public {lamp is reduced to be a voucher of the purity only, not of the quantity. Hence proceed manifold inconve- niences ; for which no other remedy occurs, but to reftore the former method of weighing, trufting to the (lamp for the purity only. This proves an embarraflment in commerce, which is remedied by the ufe of paper-money. And paper-money is at- tended with another advantage, that of preventing the lofs of much gold and lilver by wearing. For- merly in China, gold and iilver were coined as among us ; but the wearing of coin by handling obliged them to recur to fcajes ; and now weight alone is relied on for determining the quantity. Copper is the only metal that is circulated among them without weighing ; and it is with it that fmall debts are paid, and fmall purchafes made.
When gold or filver in bullion is exchanged with other commodities, fuch commerce parTes un- der the common name of barter®? permutation: when current coin is exchanged, fuch commerce is termed buying and felling ; and the money ex- changed is termed tbe price of tbe goods.
As commerce cannot be carried on to any ex- tent without a ftandard /or comparing goods of different kinds, and as every commercial country is poflefled of fuch a ftandard, it feems difficult to
G 4 fay
JO4 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. !.
fay by what means the ftandard has been eftablim- cd. It is plainly not founded on nature ; for the different kinds of goods have naturally no com- mon meafure by which they can be valued : two quarters of wheat can be compared with twenty ; but what rule have we for comparing wheat with broad-cloth, or either of them with gold, or gold with filver or copper ? Several ingenious writers have endeavoured to account for the comparative value of commodities, by reducing them all to the labour employed in railing food ; which labour is "faid to be a ftandard for meafuring the value of all other labour, and confequently of all things pro- duced by labour. V If, for example, a bufhel of " wheat and an ounce of filver be produced by " the fame quantity of labour, will they not be " equal in value ?'' This ftandard is imperfect in many refpedts. I obferve, firft, that to give it a plauiible appearance, there is a neceflity to main- tain, contrary to fact, that all materials on which labour is employed are of equal value. It requires as much labour to make a brafs candleftick as one of Iilver, though far from being of the fame value. A bufhel of wheat may fometdmes equal in value an ounce of iilver ; but an ounce of gold does not always require more labour than a bufhel of wheat ; and yet they differ widely in value. The value of labour, it is true, enters into the value of every thing produced by it ; but is far from ma- king the whole value. If an ounce of filver were
' • •
. 3.] COMMERCE. 105
of no greater value than the labour of procuring it, that ounce would go for payment of the labour, and nothing be left to the proprietor of the mine : fuch a dodrine will not relim with the King of Spain ; and as little with the Kings of Gplconda and Portugal, proprietors of the diamond- mines. Secondly, The ftandard under review fuppofes every fort of labour to be of equal value, which however will not be maintained. An ufeful art in great requeft may not be generally known : the few who are fkilful will juilly demand more for their labour than the common rate. An expert hulbandman beftows no more labour in railing a hundred bufhels of wheat, than his ignorant neigh- bour in railing fifty : if labour be the only ftand- ard, the two crops ought to afford the fame price. Was not Raphael entitled to a higher price for one of his fine pictures, than a dunce is for a tavern- fign, fuppofing the labour to have been equal ? Laftly, As this ftandard is applicable to things only that require labour, what rule is to be followed with refpecl to natural fruits, and other things that require no labour ?
Where a pound of one commodity gives the fame price with a pound of another, thefe commo- dities are faid to be of equal value ; and therefore* whatever rule can be given for the price of com- modities, that rule determines alfo their compara- tive values. Montefquieu * attempts to account
for
f Liv. 22, ch.
IO6 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
for the price as follows. He begins with fuppo- fing, that there is but one commodity in com- merce, divilible like gold and iilver into parts, the parts like thofe of gold and filver uniform and equally perfect. Upon that fuppolition, the price, fays he, of the whole commodity collected into a mafs, will be the whole current gold and filver ; and the price of any particular quantity of the for- mer, will be the correfponding quantity of the lat- ter, the tenth or twentieth part of the one corre- fponding to the tenth or twentieth part of the other. He goes on to apply the fame computation to all the variety of goods in commerce ; and con- cludes in general, that as the whole mafs of goods in commerce correfponds to the whole mafs of gold and filver in commerce as its price, fo the price of the tenth or twentieth part of the former will be the tenth or twentieth part of the latter. According to this computation, all different goods muft give the fame price, or, which is the fame, be of equal value, provided their weight or mea- fure be the fame. Our author certainly did not intend fuch an abfurdity ; and yet I can draw no other inference from his reafoning. In the very next chapter he* admits the Negroes on the coaft of Afric to be an exception from the general rule, who, fays he, value commodities according to the ufe they have for them. But, do not all nations value commodities in the fame manner ?
Rejecting,
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. IOJ
Rejecting, then, the foregoing attempts to ac- count for the comparative value of commodities, I take a hint from what was lail faid to maintain, that it is the demand chiefly which fixes the value of every commodity. Quantity beyond the de- mand renders even neceffaries of no value ; of which water is an inflance. It may be held ac- cordingly as a general rule, That the value of goods in commerce depends on a demand beyond what their quantity can fatisfy ; and rifes in pro- portion to the excefs of the demand above the quantity. Even water becomes valuable in coun- tries where the demand exceeds the quantity : in arid regions, fprings of water are highly valued ; and, in old times, were frequently the occafioq of broils and bloodfhed. Comparing next different commodities with refpecl to value, that commodi- ty of which the excefs of the demand above the quantity is the greater, will be of the greater va- lue. Were utility or intrinfic value only to be confidered, a pound of iron would be worth ten pounds of gold ; but as the excefs of the demand for gold above its quantity is much greater than that of iron, the latter is of lefs value in the mar- ket. A pound of opium, or of Jefuits bark, is, for its falutary effects, more valuable than gold; and yet, for the reafon given, a pound of gold will purchafe many pounds of thefe drugs. Thus, in general, the excefs of the demand above the quan- tity is the flandard that chiefly fixes the mercan- tile
I®8 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
tile value of commodities *. Intereil is the price or premium given for the loan of money ; and the rate of intereft, like the price of other commodi- ties, is regulated by the demand. Many borrow- ers and few lenders produce high interell : many lenders and few borrowers produce low interell f .
The caufes that make a demand feem not fo ea- fily afcertained. One thing is evident, that the demand for neceflaries in any country, muft de- pend on the number of its inhabitants. This rule holds not fo ftri&ly in articles of convenience ; be- caufe fome people are more greedy of convenien- ces than others. As to articles of tafte and luxu- ry, the demand appears fo arbitrary as not to be reducible to any rule. A tafte for beauty is gene- ral, but fo different in different perfons, as to make the demand extremely variable : the faint repre- fentation of any plant in an agate, is valued by fome for its rarity ; but the demand is far from be- ipg univerfal. Savages are defpifed for being fond
of
* In a voyage to Arabia Faslix, arm. 1708, the King of the territory where the crew landed, gave them an ox weighing a thoufand or twelve hundred pounds for a fufee, and three-fcore pound- weight . 'of rice for twenty-eight ounces of gun-powder. The goods bartered were eftimated according to the wants of each party, or, in other wprds, according to the demand above the quantity.
f From what is faid in the treatife DCS corps poMquest (liv. 6. ch. 8.) it appears doubtful whether high or low intereft be the nioft friendly to commerce.
$K. 3.] eoMMERCE^ 109
of glafs-beads ; but were fuch toys equally rare among us, they would be coveted by many : a cop- per coin of the Emperor Otho is of no intrinfic va- lue, and yet, for its rarity, would draw a great price.
The value of gold and iilver in commerce, like that of other commodities, was at firft, we may be- lieve, both arbitrary and fluctuating ; and, like other commodities, they found in time their va- lue in the market. With refpecl to value, how- ever, there is a great difference between money and other commodities. Goods that are expeniive in keeping, fuch as cattle, or that are impaired by time, fuch as corn, will always be firft offered in exchange for what is wanted ; and when fuch goods are offered to fale, the vender mud be con- tented with the current price : in making the bar- gain, the purchafer has the advantage ; for he fuf* fers riot by referving his money to a better mar- ket. And thus commodities are brought down by money, to the loweft value that can afford any pro- fit. At the fame time, gold and filver fooner find their value than other commodities. The value of the latter depends both on the quantity and on the demand ; the value of the former depends on the quantity only, the demand being unbounded : and even with refpedl to quantity, thefe precious metals are lefs variable than other commodities.
Gold and filver, being thus fooner fixed in their value than other commodities, become a ftandard
for
no
MEN IMDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.
[B. i.
for valuing every other commodity, and, confe- quently, for comparative values. A bufhel of wheat, for example, being valued at five (hillings, a yard of broad-cloth at fifteen, their comparative values are as one to three.
A ftandard of values is efTential to commerce ; . and therefore, where gold and filver are unknown, other ftandards are eftabliftied in practice. The only ftandard among the favages of North Ameri- ca is the fkin of a beaver* Ten of thefe are given for a gun, two for a pound of gunpowder, one for four pounds of lead, one for fix knives, one for a hatchet, fix for a coat of woollen cloth, five for a petticoat, and one for a pound of tobacco. Some nations in Africa employ fhells, termed couries, for a ftandard.
As my chief view in this fketch is, to examine how far induftry and commerce are affedled by the quantity of circulating coin, I prernife the fol- lowing plain propofitions. Suppofing, firft, the quantity of money in circulation, and the quanti- ty of goods in the market, to continue the fame, the price will rife and fall with the demand. For when more goods are demanded than the market affords, thofe who offer the higheft price will be preferred : as, on the other hand, when the goods brought to market exceed the demand, the vend- ers have no refource but to entice purchafers by a low price. The price of fifh, flefh, butter, and cheefe, is much higher than formerly ; for thefe
being
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. Ill
being now the daily food even of the loweft people, the demand for them is greatly increafed.
Suppofing a fluctuation in the quantity of goods only, the price falls as the quantity increafes, and rifes as the quanity decreafes. The farmer whofe quantity of corn is doubled by a favourable fea- fon, muft fell at half the ufual price ; becaufe the purchafer, who fees a fuperfluity, will pay no more for it. The contrary happens upon a fcanty crop ; thofe who want corn, muft ftarve, or give the market-price, however high. The manufactures of wool, flax, and metals, are much cheaper than formerly ; for though the demand has increafed, yet by (kill and induftry the quantities produced have increafed in a greater proportion. More pot- herbs are confumed than formerly : and yet by fkilful culture the quantity is fo much greater in proportion, as to have lowered the price to lefs than one-half of what is was eighty years ago.
It is eafy to combine the quantity and demand, fuppoiing a fluctuation of both. Where the quan- tity exceeds the ufual demand, more people will be tempted to purchafe by the low price ; and where the demand rifes conliderably above the quantity, the price will rife in proportion. In ma- thematical language, thefe propofitions may be thus exprefled, That the price is direfflyas the demand, and inverfely as the quantity.
A variation in the quantity of circulating coin is the mod intricate circumftance ; becaufe it never
happens
112 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [3. I,
happens without making a variation in the demand for goods, and frequently in the quantity. I take the liberty, however, to fuppofe that there is no variation but in the quantity of circulating coin .;. for though that cannot happen in reality, yet the refult of the fuppolition will throw light upon what really happens : the fubjecl is involved, and I wifh to make it plain. I put a fimple cafe, that the half of our current coin is at once fwept away by fome extraordinary accident. This at firft will embarrafs our internal commerce, as the vender will infift for the ufual price, which now cannot be afforded. But the error of fuch demand will foon be difcovered ; and the price of commodities, after fome fluctuation, will fettle at the one-half of what it was formerly. At the fame time, there is here no downfal in the value of commodities, which cannot happen white the quantity and demand continue unvaried. The purchafing for a fixpence what formerly coil a milling, makes no alteration in the value of the thing purchafed ; becaufe a fix- pence is equal in value to what a milling was for- merly. In a word, when money is fcarce, it mufl bear a high value : it muft in particular go far in the purchafe of goods ; which we exprefs by fay- ing, that goods are cheap. Put next the cafe, that by fome accident our coin is inftantly doubled : the refult muft be, not inftantaneous indeed, to double the price of commodities. Upon the former fuppofition, a fixpence is in effect advanced to be
SK. 3.] COMMERCE.
a (hilling : upon the prefent fuppofition, a (hilling has in effect funk down to a iixpence. And here again it ought to be obferved, that though the price is augmented, there is no real alteration in the value of commodities. A bullock that, fome years ago, could have been purchafed for ten pounds, will at prefent yield fifteen. The vulgar ignorant- ly think, that the value of horned cattle has arifen in that proportion. The advanced price may, in fome degree, be ocgafioned by a greater confump- tion ; but it is chiefly occafioned by a greater quantity of money in circulation.
Combining all the circumflances, the refult is, that if the quantity of goods and of money conti- nue the fame, the price will be in proportion to the demand. If the demand and quantity of goods continue the fame, the price will be in proportion to the quantity of money. And if the demand and quantity of money continue the fame, the price will fall as the quantity increafes, and rife as the quantity dimmilhes.
Thefe fpeculative notions will enable us with accuracy to examine, how induftry and commerce are affected by variations in the quantity of circu*- lating coin, It is evident, that arts and manufac- tures cannot be carried on to any extent without coin. Perfons totally employed in any art or ma- nufacture require wages daily or weekly, becaufe they mud go to market for every neceffary of life. The clothier, the tailor, the ihoemaker, the gar-
Voi,. I. H dener,
JJ4 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
dejier, the farmer, muft employ fervants to pre- pare their goods for the market ; to whom, for that reafon, wages ought to be regularly paid. In a word, commerce among an endlefs number of in- dividuals, who depend on each other even for ne- ceflaries, would be inextricable without a quanti- ty of circulating coin. Money may be juftly Conceived to be the oil, that lubricates all the fprings and wheels of a great machine, and pre- ferves it in motion *. Suppofing us now to be pro- vided with no more of that precious oil than is barely fufficient for the eafy motion of our induk try and manufactures, a diminution of the neceffa- ry quantity muft retard them : our induftry and manufactures muft decay ; and if we do not confine the expence of living to our prefent circumftances, which feldom happens, the balance of trade with foreign nations will turn againft us, and leave us no refource for making the balance equal but to ex» port our gold and filver. And when we are drain- ed of thefe metals, farewell to arts and manufacr tures : we fliali be reduced to the condition of fa-
vages,
* Money cannot be juftly faid to be deficient where there is fufficiency to purchafe every commodity, and to pay for every kind of labour that is wanted. Any greater quantity is hurt- ful to commerce, as will be feen afterward. But to be forced to contract debt even when one deals prudently and profitably, and confequently to be fubjecled to legal execution, is a proof, by no means ambiguous, of fcarcity of money, which till of was remarkably the cafe in Scotland.
X
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. JJJjj
vages, which is, that each individual muft depend entirely on his own labour for procuring every ne- ceflary of life. The confequences of the balance turning for us, are at firft directly oppofite : but at the long-run come to be the fame : they are fweet in the mouth, but bitter in the ftomach. An in- flux of riches by this balance, roufes our activity. Plenty of money elevates our fpirits, and infpires an appetite for pleafure : we indulge a tafte for fhow and embellilhment, become hofpitable, and refine upon the arts of luxury. Plenty of mo- ney is a prevailing motive even with the mod fe- date, to exert themfelves in building, in hufband- ry, in manufactures, and in other folid improve- ments. Such articles require both hands and ma- terials, the prices of which are raifed by the addi- tional demand. The labourer now whofe wages are thus raifed, is not fatisfied with mere necefla- ries, but infifts for conveniences, the price of which alfo is raifed by the new demand. Iji fhort, in- creafe of money raifes the price of every commo- dity; partly from the greater quantity of money, and partly from the additional demand for fupply- ing artificial wants. Hitherto a delightful view of profperous commerce : but behold the remote confequences. High wages at firft promote induf- try, and double the quantity of labour : but the utmoft exertion of labour is limited within certain bounds \ and a perpetual influx of gold and filver; will not for ever be attended with a proportional
H 2 quantity
Il6 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.1 [B. I.
quantity of work ! The price of labour will rife in proportion to the quantity of money , but the pro- duce will not rife in the fame proportion ; and for that reafon our manufactures will be dearer than formerly. Hence a difmal fcene. The high price at home of our manufactures will exclude us from foreign markets ; for if the merchant cannot draw there for his goods what he paid at home, with fome profit, he muft abandon foreign commerce al- together. And, what is dill more difmal, we fhall be deprived even of our own markets ; for in fpite of the utmoft vigilance, foreign commodities, cheaper than our own, will be poured in upon us. The laft fcene is to be deprived of our gold and lil- yer, and reduced to the fame miferable ft^te as if the balance had been againft us from the begin.- ning.
However certain it may be, that an addition tq the quantity of money muft raife the price of la- bour and of manufactures, yet there is a fact that feems to contradict the proportion, which is, that in no other country are labour and manufactures fo cheap as in the two peninfulas on the right and left of the Ganges, though in no other country is there fuch plenty of money. To account for this fingular fact, political writers fay, that money is there amaffed by the Nabobs, and withdrawn from circulation. This is not fatisfactory : the chief ex- portation from thefe peninfulas is their manufac- tures, the price of which comes firft to the mer- chant
SK. 3.] COMMERCE.
chant and manufacturer ; and how can that happen without raifing the price of labour ? Rice, it is true, is the food of their labouring poor ; and an acre of rice yields more food than five acres of wheat : but the cheapnefs of necefTaries, though it hath a confiderable influence in keeping down the price of labour, cannot keep it conftantly down, in oppofition to an overflowing current of money. The populoufnefs of thefe two countries is a cir- cumftance totally overlooked. Every traveller is amaled how fuch fwarms of people can find bread, however fertile the foil may be. Let us examine that circumftance. One thing is evident, that, were the people fully employed, there would not be a demand for the tenth part of their manufac- tures. Here, then, is a country where hand-la- bour is a drug for want of employment. The peo- ple, at the fame time, fober and inclining to in- duftry, are glad to be employed at any rate ; and whatever pittance is gained by labour, makes al- ways fome addition. Hence it is, that in thefe, pe- ninfulas, fuperfluity of hands overbalancing both the quantity of money and the demand for their manufactures, ferves to keep the price extremely low.
What is now faid difcovers an exception to the propofition above laid down. It holds undoubted- ly in Europe, and in every country where there is work for all the people, that an addition to the circulating coin raiies the price of labour and o£
H 3 manufactures ;
*l8 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. Is
manufa&ures ; but fuch addition has no fenfible effect in a country where there is a fuperfluity of hands, who are always difpofed to work when they find employment.
From, thefe premifes it is evident, that, unlefs there is a fuperfluity of hands, manufactures can never flourifti in a country abounding with mines of gold and filver. This in effect is the cafe of Spain : a conftant influx of thefe metals, railing the price of labour and manufactures, has depri- ved the Spaniards of foreign markets, and alfo of their own ; they are reduced to purchafe from ftrangers even the neceflaries of life* What a dif- mal condition will they be reduced to, when their mines come to be exhaufted ! The Gold coaft in Guinea has its name from the plenty of gold that is found there. As it is wafhed from the hills with the foil in fmall quantities, every one is on the watch for it ; and the people, like gamefters, def- pife every other occupation. They are according- ly lazy and poor. The kingdom of Fidah, in the neighbourhood, where there is np gold, is popu- lous : the people are induftriou's, deal in many branches of manufacture, and are all in eafy cir- cumftances.
To illuftrate this obfervation, which is of great importance, I enter more minutely into the condi- tion of Spain. The rough materials of filk, wpojjj and iron, are produced there more perfect than in any other country \ and yet flourishing manufac- tures
. 3.] COMMERCE. JI9
tures of thefe, would be ruinous to it in its prefent ftate. Let us only fuppofe, that Spain itfelf could furnifh all the commodities that are demanded in its American territories, what would be the confe- quence ? The gold and filver produced by that trade would circulate in Spain : money would be- come a drug : labour and manufactures would rife to a high price ; and every necefTary of life, not excepting manufactures of lilk, wool, and iron, would be fmuggled into Spain, the high price there being fufficient to overbalance every rifk : Spain would be left without induftry, and without peo- ple. Spain was actually in the flouriming ftate here fuppofed when America was difcovered : the American gold and filver mines enflamed the dif- eafe, and confequently was the greateft misfortune that ever befel that once potent kingdom. The exportation of our lilver coin to the Eaft Indies, fo loudly exclaimed againft by mallow politicians, is to us, on the contrary, a moft fubftantial bleffing : it keeps up the value of filver, and confequently leflens the value of labour and of goods, which enable us to maintain our place in foreign mar- kets. Were there no drain for our filver, its quan- tity in our continent would fink its value fo much as to render the American mines unprofitable. Notwithstanding the great flow of money to the Eaft Indies, many mines in the Weft Indies are given up, becaufe they afford not the expence of working ; and were the value of filver in Europe
H 4 brought
120 [MSN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
brought much lower, the whole filver mines in the Weft Indies would be jibandoned. Thus our Eaft-
*
India commerce, which is thought ruinous by many, becaufe it is a drain to much of our filver, is for that very reafon profitable to all. The Spaniards profit by importing it into Europe ^ and other nations profit, by receiving it for their manufactures.
How ignorantly do people ftruggle againfl the necelfary chain of caufes and effeds I If money do not overflow, a commerce in which the im- ports exceed in value the exports, will foon drain a nation of money, and put an end to its induftry. Commercial nations for that reafon ftruggle hard for the balance of trade ; and they fondly imagine, that it cannot be too advantageous. If greatly advantageous to them, it muft in the fame pro- portion be difadvantageousto thofe they deal with ; which proves equally ruinous to both. They fore- iee indeed, but without concern, immediate ruin to thofe they deal with ; but they have no inclina- tion to forefee, that ultimately it muft prove equal- ly ruinous to themfelves. It appears the intention of Providence that all nations fhould benefit by commerce as by fun-fhine ; and it is fo ordered, that an unequal balance is prejudicial to the gam- ers as well as to the lofers : the latter are imme- diate fufferers ; but no lefs fo, ultimately, are the former. This is one remarkable inftance, among many, of providential wifdom in inducting hu- man
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. 121
man affairs, independent of the will of man, and frequently againft his will. An ambitious nation, placed advantageoufly for trade, would willingly engrofs all to themfelves, and reduce their neigh- bours to be hewers of wood and drawers of water. But an invincible bar is oppofed to fuch ambition, making an overgrown commerce the means of its own deftrucliori. The commercial balance held by the hand of Providence, is never permitted to preponderate much to one fide ; and every nation partakes, or may partake, of all the comforts of life. Engroffing is bad policy : men are prompt- ed, both by intereft and duty, to fecond the plan of Providence ; and to preferve, as near as poflible, equality in the balance of trade.
Upon thefe principles, a wife people, having ac- quired a ftock of money fufficient for an extenfive commerce, will tremble at a balance too advan- tageous : they will reft fatisfied with an equal ba- lance, which is the golden mean. A hurtful ba- lance may be guarded againft by induftry and fru- gality : but by what means is a balance too fa- vourable to be guarded againft ? With refpedl to that queftion, it is not the quantity of gold and filver in a country that raifes the price of labour and manufactures, but the quantity in circulation ; and may not that quantity be regulated by the ftate, permitting coinage as far only as is bene- ficial to its manufactures ? Let the regifters of fo- reign mints be carefully watched, in order that
our
112 MEN INDEPENDENT Otf SOCIETY* B. I.
our current coin may not exceed that of our in- duftrious neighbours. There will always be a de*- mand for the furplus of our bullion, either to be exported as a commodity, or to be purchafed at home for plate ; which cannot be too much en- couraged, being ready at every crifis to be coined for public fervice. The fenate of Genoa has wife- ly burdened porcelain with a heavy tax, being a foreign luxury ; but it has no lefs wifely left gold and iilver plate free ; which we moft un wifely have loaded with a duty *.
The accumulating money in the public trea- fury, anciently the practice of every prudent mo- narch, prevents fuperfluity. Lies there any good objection againil that practice in a trading nation, where gold and filver flow in with impetuofity ? A great fum locked up by a frugal King, Henry VII. of England for example, leflens the quantity of money in circulation : profulion in a fucceffbr, which was the cafe with Henry VIII., is a fpur to induftry, limilar to the influx of gold and Iilver from the new world. The canton of Berne, by locking up money in its treafury, poflefTes the mi- raculous art of reconciling immenfe wealth with frugality and cheap labour. A climate not kindly, and a foil not naturally fertile, enured the inha- bitants to temperance and to virtue. Patriotifm is their ruling paffion ; they confider themfelves as
children
f •»
* That duty is wifely taken away by a late
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. 123
^
children of the republic ; are fond of ferving their mother : and hold themfelves fufficiently recom- penfed by the privilege of ferving her. The pu- blic revenue greatly exceeds the expence of govern- ment : they carefully lock up the furplus for pur- chafing land when a proper opportunity offers ; which is a mining proof of their difintereftednefs as well as of their wifdom. By that politic meafure, much more than by war, the canton of Berne, from a very flender origin, is now far fuperior to any of the other cantons in extent of territory. But in what other part of the globe are there to be found minifters of ftate, moderate and difinterefted like the citizens of Berne ! In the hands of a Britifh miniftry, the greateft treafure would vanifh in the twinkling of an eye; and do more mifchief, by augmenting money in circulation above what is falutary, than formerly it did good by confining it within moderate bounds. But againft fuch a mea- fure there lies an objection flill more weighty than its being an ineffectual remedy : in the hands of an ambitious prince, it would prove dangerous to liberty.
If the foregoing meafures be not relifhed, I can difcover no other means for preferving our ftation in foreign markets, but a bounty on exportation. The fum would be great : but the preferving our induflry and manufactures, and the preventing an influx of foreign manufactures, cannot be purchafed too dear. At the fame time, a bounty on expor- tation
124 MEN INDEPENDENT 6F SOCIETY. [fi'. J.
*t
tation would not be an unfupportable load : on the contrary, fuperfluity of wealth, procured by a ba- lance conftantly favourable, would make the load abundantly eafy. A proper bounty would balance the growing price of labour and materials at home, and keep open the foreign market. By neglecting that falutary meafure, the Dutch have loft all their manufactures ; a negledl that has greatly benefited both England and France. The Dutch indeed adt prudently in withholding that benefit as much as poffible from their powerful neighbours : to pre- vent purchafing from them, they confume the manufactures of India,
The manufactures of Spain, once extenfive, have been extirpated by their gold and iilver mines. Authors afcribe te the fame caufe the decline of their agriculture ; but erroneoufly : on the con- trary, fuperfluity of gold and filver is favourable to agriculture, by raifmg the price of its produc- tions. It raifes alfo, it is true, the price of labour -y but Jhat additional expence is far from balancing the profit made by high prices of whatever the ground produces. Too much wealth indeed is apt to make the tenant prefs into a higher rank : but that is eafily prevented by a proper heightening of the rent, fo as always to confine the tenant with- in his own fphere.
As gold and filver are eflential to commerce, fo- reign and domeftic, feveral commercial nations have endeavoured moil abfurdly to bar the expor- tation
SK. 3.] COMMERCE. 125
tation by penal laws -? forgetting that gold and fil- ver will never be exported while the balance of trade is on their fide, and that they muft necefiarily be exported when the balance is againft them. Neither do they coniider, that if a people continue induftrious, they cannot be long afflicted with an unfavourable .balance ; for the value of money, riling in proportion to its fcarcity, will lower the price of their manufactures, and promote exporta- tion : the balance will turn in their favour ; and money will flow in, till by plenty its value be re- duced to a par with that of neighbouring nations. It is an important queftion, Whether a bank, upon the whole, be friendly to commerce. It is undoubtedly a fpur to induftry, like a new influx of money ; but then, like fuch influx, it raifes the price of labour and of manufactures. Weighing thefe two fads in a juft balance, the rer fult feems to be, that in a country where money is fcarce, a bank properly conftituted is a great blef- iing, as it in effect increafes the quantity of money, and promotes induftry and manufactures ; but that in a country which pofferTes money fufficient for extenfive commerce, the only bank that will not injure foreign commerce, is \yhat is erected for; fupplying the merchant with ready money by dif- counting bills. At the fame time, much caution and circumfpection is neceflary with refpect to banks of both kinds. A bank credited for difcount- jng bills, ought to be cojifined $o bills $ eally grant- ed
126 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi, I.
ed in the courfe of commerce ; rejecting fictitious bills drawn merely for procuring a loan of money. And with refpect to a bank purpofely creeled for lending money, there is great danger of extending credit too far ; not only with refpect to the bank itfelf, but with refpecl to the nation in general, by railing the price of labour and of manufactures, which is the never- failing refult of top great plenty of money, whether coin or paper.
The different effects of plenty and fcarcity of money, have not efcaped that penetrating genius, the Sovereign of Pruffia. Money is not fo plenti- ful in his dominions as to make it necefTary to withdraw a quantity by heaping up treafure. He indeed always retains in his treafury fix or feven millions Sterling for anfwering unforefeen demands : but being fenfible that the withdrawing from cir- culation any larger fum would be prejudicial to commerce, every farthing faved from the necefTary expence of government, is laid out upon buildings, upon operas, upon any thing rather than cramp circulation. In tha,t kingdom, a bank eftablifhed for lending money would promote induflry and} manufactures.
SKETCH
SK.4» !• ARTS. 127
SKETCH IV.
ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF ARTS.
SECTION I.
Ufeful Arts.
t
SOME ufeful arts mud be nearly coeval with the human race ; for food, clothing, and ha- bitation, even in their original fimplicity, require fome art! Many other arts are of fuch antiquity as to place the inventors beyond the reach of tra- dition. Several have gradually crept into exiftence, without an inventor. The bufy mind, however, accuftomed to a beginning in things, cannot reft till it find or imagine a beginning to every art. Bacchus is faid to have invented wine ; and Sta- phylus the mixing water with wine. The bow and arrow are afcribed by tradition to Scythos, fon of Jupiter, though a weapon all the world over. Spinning is fo ufeful, that it muft be honoured with fome illuilrious inventor : it was afcribed by the jpgyptians to their goddefs Ifis ; by the Greeks to
Minerva ;
128 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
Minerva ; by the Peruvians to Mamma Ella, wife to their firft fovereign Mango Capac ; and by the Chinefe to the wife of their Emperor Yao. Mark here by the way a connexion of ideas : fpinning is a female occupation, and it muft have had a fe- male inventor *,
In the hunter-date, men are wholly employed upon the procuring food, clothing, habitation, and other neceflkries ; and have no time nor zeal for ftudying conveniences. The eafe of the fhepherd- ilate affords both time and inclination for ufeful arts ; which are greatly promoted by numbers who are relieved by agriculture from bodily la- bour: the foil, by gradual improvements in huf- bandry, affords plenty with lefs labour than at firft ; and the furplus hands are employed, firft, in •ufeful arts, and, next, in thofe of ^mufement. Arts accordingly make the quickeft progrefs in a fertile foil, which produces plenty with little labour. Arts flourifhed early in Egypt and Chalde^, coun- tries extremely fertile.
When men, who originally lived in caves like fome wild animals, began tg think of a more com-r
modious
>
* The Ilinois are induftrious above all their American neighbours, Their women are neat-handed : they fpin the wool of their horned cattle, which is as fine as that of Englifti fheep. The fluffs made of it are dyed black, yellow, or red, and cut into garments fewed with roe-buck finews. After drying thefe finews in the fun, and beating them, they draw out threads as white an4 fine as any that are made of fla.x> but much tougher.
SK. 4* § I.] ARTS. JC29
modious habitation, their firft houfes were ex- tremely limple ; witnefs thofe of the Canadian fa- vages, than which none can be more limple, even at prefent. Their houfes, fays Charlevoix, are built with lefs art, neatnefs, and folidity, than thofe of the beavers ; having neither chimneys nor windows : a hole only is left in the roof, for ad- mitting light and emitting fmoke. That hole mull be flopped when it rains or fnows ; and, of courfe', the fire is put out, that the inhabitants may not be ilifled with fmoke. To have palfed fo many ages in that manner without thinking of any im- provement, mows how greatly men are influenced by cuflom. The blacks of Jamaica are ilill more rude in their buildings : their huts are erected without even a hole in the roof; and, according- ly, at home they breathe nothing but fmoke.
Revenge produced early hoftile weapons. The club and the dart are obvious inventions : not fo the bow and arrow ; and for that reafon it is not eafy to fay how that weapon came to be uni* verfal. As iron differs from other metals, being feldom found pure, it was a late difcovery : at the liege of Troy, fpears, darts, and arrows, were headed with brafs. Meneflheus, who fucceeded Thefeus in the kingdom of Athens, and led fifty Ihips to the- liege of Troy, was reputed the firft who marlhalled an army in battle-array. Inftru- ments of defence are made neceflary by thofe of offence. Trunks of trees, interlaced with branches,
VOL. I. I and
,^^
I3O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
and fupported with earth, made the firft fortifica- tions ; to which fucceeded a wall finifhed with a parapet for (hooting arrows at befiegers. As a pa- rapet covers but half of the body, holes were left in the wall from fpace to fpace, no larger than to give paflage to an arrow. Befiegers had no reme- dy but to beat down the wall : a battering ram was firft ufed by Pericles the Athenian, and per- fected by the Carthaginians at the liege of Gadesu To oppofe that formidable machine, the wall was built with advanced parapets for throwing flones and fire upon the enemy, which kept him at a di- flance. A wooden booth upon wheels, and pufhed clofe to the wall, iecured the men who wrought the battering ram. This invention was rendered ineffectual, by furrounding the wall with a deep and broad ditch. Befiegers were reduced to the neceffity of inventing engines for throwing itones and javelins upon thofe who occupied the advan- ced parapets, in order to give opportunity for fill- ing up the ditch ; and ancient hiftories expatiate upon the powerful operation of the catapulta and balifta. Thefe engines fuggefted a new invention for defence : inflead of a circular wall, it was built with f alien t angles, like the teeth of a faw, in or- der that one part might flank another. That form of a wall was afterwards improved, by railing round towers upon the falient angles ; and the
towers were improved by making them fquare.
*'± \ jiv/ T j'
The ancients had no occafion for any form more
complete,
SK. 4. $ I.] ARTS. 13*
complete, being fufficient for defending againft all the miffile weapons at that time known* The in- vention of cannon required a variation in military architecture. The firfl cannons were made of iron bars, forming a concave cylinder, united by rings of copper. The firft cannon balls were of ftone, which required a very large aperture. A cannon was reduced to a fmaller fize, by ufing iron for balls inftead of ftone ; and that deftruclive engine was perfected by making it of caft metal. To relift its force, baftions were invented, horn- works, crown- works, half- moons, &c. &c. ; and military archi- tecture became a fyftem, governed by principles and general rules. But all in vain : it has indeed produced fortifications that have made lieges hor- ridly bloody ; but artillery, at the fame time, has been carried to fuch perfection, and the art of at- tack fo improved, that no fortification, it is thought, can be rendered impregnable. The only impreg- nable defence, is good neighbourhood among weak, princes, ready to unite, whenever one of them is attacked by a fuperior force. And nothing tends more effectually to promote fuch union, than con- ftant experience that fortifications cannot be re- lied on.
With refpect to naval architecture, the firfl vef- fels were beams joined together, and covered with planks, pufhed along with poles in fhallow water, and in deep water drawn by animals on the more. To thefe fucceeded trunks of trees cut hollow,
I 2 termed
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY; « [fi. I.
termed by the Greeks fnonoxyles. The next were planks joined together in form of a monoxyle. The thought of imitating a fifh advanced naval architecture. A prow, was conftru&ed in imita- tion of the head, a ftern with a moveable helm in imitation of the tail, and oars in imitation of the fins* Sails were at laft added ; which invention was fo early that the contriver is unknown. Be- fore the year 1545, mips of war in England had no port-holes for guns, as at prefent : they had Only a few cannon placed on the upper- deck.
When Homer compofed his poems, at leaft du- ring the Trojan war, the Greeks had not acquired the art of gelding cattle : they ate the flefh of bulls and of rams. Kings and princes killed and cooked their visuals : fpoons, forks, table-cloths, napkins, were unknown. They fed fitting, the cuftom of reclining upon beds being afterward co- pied from Afia \ and, like other favages, they were great eaters. At the tiftie mentioned, they had no chimneys, nor candles, nor lamps. Torches are frequently mentioned by Homer, but lamps never : a vafe was placed upon a tripod, in which was burnt dry wood for giving light. Locks and keys were not common at that time. Bundles were fe- cured with ropes intricately combined # ; and hence the famous Gordian knot. Shoes and Hoc- kings were not early known among them, nor but- tons, nor faddles, nor ftirrups. Plutarch reports,
Odyfley, b. 8. 1.483. Pope's tranflation.
SK. 4. § I.] ARTS. 133
that Gracchus caufed ftones to be eredted along the highways leading from Rome, for the conve- nience of mounting a horfe ; for at that time ftir- rups were unknown in Rome, though an obvious invention. Linen for fhirts was not ufed in Rome for many years after the government became def- potic. Even fo late as the eighth century, it was not common in Europe. We are informed by He- rodotus, that the Lydians were reputed to be the firft who coined gold and filver mon.ey. This was probably after the Trojan war ; for during that war the Greeks and Trojans trafficked by barter, as Homer relates : Priam weighs out the ten talents of gold which were the ranfom of his fon's body* Thales, one of the feven wife men of Greece about fix hundred years before Chrjft, invented the following method for meafuring the height of an Egyptian pyramid. He watched the progrefs of the fun, till his body and its fhadow were of the fame length ; and at that inftant meafured the fha- dow of the pyramid, which consequently gave its height. Amaiis King of Egypt, prefent at the operation, thought it a wonderful effort of genius ; and the Greeks admired it highly. Geometry muft have been in its cradle at that time. Anaxi- rnander, fome ages before Chrift, made the firft map of the earth, as far as then known. About the end of the thirteenth century, fpe&acles for afiifting the fight were invented by "Alexander Sp.ina, a monk of Pifa. So ufeful an inventjpn
1 3 canno£
134 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
cannot be too much extolled. At a period of life when the judgment is in maturity, and reading is of great benefit, the eyes begin to grow dim. One cannot help pitying the condition of bookifh men before that invention, many of whom muft have had their fight greatly impaired, while their ap- petite for reading was in vigour.
The origin and progrefs of writing make a ca- pital article in the hiftory of arts. To write, or, in other words, to exhibit thoughts to the eye, was early attempted in Egypt by hieroglyphics. But thefe were not confined to Egypt : figures compofed of painted feathers were ufed in Mexico to exprefs ideas ; and by fuch figures Montezuma received intelligence of the Spanilh invafion : in Peru, the only arithmetical figures known were knots of various colours, which ferved to caft up accounts. The fecond ftep naturally in the pro- grefs of the art of writing, is, to reprefent each word by a mark, termed a letter, which is the Chi- nefe way of writing : they have about 11,000 of thefe marks or letters in common ufe ; and, in matters of fcience, they employ to the number of 60,000. Our way is far more eafy and commo- dious : inftead of marks or letters for words, which are infinite, we reprefent by marks or letters, the articulate founds that compofe words : thefe founds exceed not thirty in number ; and confequently the fame number of marks or letters are fufficient for writing. It was a lucky movement to pafs at
" T *
'- ' ft f '•""•. • r
pne
SK. 4. § I.] ARTS. "135
one ftep from hieroglyphics, the moft imperfecl: mode of writing, to letters reprefenting founds, the moft perfect ; for there is no appearance that the Chinefe mode was ever pra&ifed in this part of the world. With us, the learning to read is fo eafy as to he acquired in childhood ; and we are ready for the fciences as foon as the mind is ripe for them : the Chinefe mode, on the contrary, is an unfurmountable obftru&ion to knowledge ; he- caufe, it being the work of a lifetime to read with eafe, no time remains for ftudying the fciences. Our cafe was in fome meafure the fame at the re- ftoration of learning : it required an age to be fa- miliarized with Greek and Latin ; and too little time remained for gathering knowledge from books compofed in thefe languages. The Chinefe (land upon a more equal footing with refpecl to arts ; for thefe may be acquired by imitation or oral inftru&ion, without books.
The art of writing with letters reprefenting founds, is of all inventions the moft important, and the leaft obvious. The way of writing in China makes fo naturally the fecond ftep in the progrefs of the art, that our good fortune in Humbling up- on a way fo much more perfect cannot be fuffi- ciently admired, when to it we are indebted for our fuperiority in literature above the Chinefe. Their way of writing will for ever continue an unfurmountable obftruction to fcience ; for it is fo rivetted by inveterate practice, that the difficulty
1 4 would
136 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
i!)ji*i*J rnjii ,
would not be greater to make them change their language than their letters. Hieroglyphics were a fort of writing, fo miferably imperfect, as to make every improvement welcome ; but as the Chinefe make a tolerable fhift with their own let-
\*'i ; '
ters, they never dream of any improvement. Hence it may be pronounced with great certainty, that in China, the fciences, though Hill in infancy, will never arrive at maturity.
There is no appearance that writing was known in Greece fo early as the time of Homer ; for in none of his works is there any mention of it. This, it is true, is but negative evidence ; but negative evidence mud always command our affent, where no pofitive evidence Hands in oppoiition. If it was known, it mull have been newly introduced, and ufed probably to record laws, religious pre- cepts, or other fhort compolitions. Cyphers, in- vente$ in Hindoftan, were brought into France from Arabia about the end of the tenth century. The art of printing made a great revolution in learning. In the days of William the Conqueror, books were extremely fcarce. Grace Countefs of Anjou paid for a collection of homilies two hun- dred fheep, a quarter of wheat, another of rye, and a third of millet, befides a number of martern Ikins.
JIulbandry made a progrefs from Egypt to Greece, and from Africa to Italy. Mago, a Car- thaginian general, compofed twenty- eight books
SK.4' § !•] ARTS. 137
upon hufbandry, which were tranilated into Latin by order of the Roman fenate. From thefe fine and fertile countries, it made its way to colder and lefs kindly climates. According to that progrefs, agriculture muft have been pra&ifed more early in France than in Britain ; and yet the Englifh, at prefent, make a greater figure in that art than the French, inferiority in foil and climate notwith- ftanding. Before hufbandry became an art in the northern parts of Europe, the French noblefie had deferted the country, fond of fociety in a town- life. Landed gentlemen in England, more rough, and delighting more in hunting and other country amufements, found leifure to pradife agriculture. Skill in that art proceeded from them to their te- nants, who now profecute hufbandry with fuccefs, though their landlords have generally betaken themfeves to a town- life.
When Caefar invaded Britain, agriculture was unknown in the inner parts: the inhabitants fed upon milk and flefh, and were clothed with (kins, Hollinfhed, whc^vwrote in the period of Queen Eli- fabeth, defer ib2$ the rudenefs of the preceding ge- neration in the arts of life : " There were very " few chimneys even in capital towns : the fire " was laid to the wall, and the fmoke ifiued out " at the roof, or door, or window. The houfes " were wattled and plaftered over with clay ; and " all the furniture and uteniils were of wood. 1* The people flept on ftraw-pallets, with a log of
*' wood
138 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. f». I.
•»/ ju< •> >
^ wood for a pillow." Henry II. of France, at the marriage of the Duchefs of Savoy, wore the firfl filk ftockings that were made in France. Queen Elifabeth, the third year of her reign, received in a prefent a pair of black filk knit ftockings ; and Dr Howel reports, that me never wore cloth hofe any more. Before the conqueft, there was a tim- ber bridge upon the Thames between London and Southwark, which was repaired by King William Rufus, and was burnt by accident in the reign of Henry II. anno 1176. At that time a ftone bridge in place of it was projected, but not finifhed till the year 1212. The bridge of Notre-Dame over the Seine in Paris, was firft of wood. It fell down anno 1499 ; and, as there was not in France a man who would undertake to rebuild it of ftone, an Ita- lian cordelier was employed, whofe name was Jo- conde, the fame upon whom Sanazarius made the following pun :
dus gemlmtm impofuit tibi, Seqvana, pontem } Hunc injure potes dicere pontificem.
Two Genoefe, Stephen Turquet ^nd Bartholomew JJarres, laid in the 1536 the foundation of the filk manufacture at Lyons. The art of making glafs was imported from France into England anno 674, for the ufe of monafteries. Glafs windows in pri- vate houfes were rare even in the twelfth century, and held to be great luxury. King Edward III. Jnvited three clockmakers of Delft, in JHolland to
fettle
SK. 4. § I.] ARTS. 139
fettle in England. In the former part of the reign of Henry VIII. there did not grow in England cabbage, carrot, turnip, or other edible root ; and it has been noted, that even Queen Catharine her- felf could not command a falad for dinner, till the King brought over a gardener from the Nether- lands. About the fame time, the artichoke, the apricot, the damafk rofe, made their firft appear- ance in England. Turkeys, carps, and hops, were firft known there in the year 1524. The currant- Ihrub was brought from the iiland of Zant anno J533 > and in the year 1540, cherry-trees from Flanders were firft planted in Kent. It was in the year 1563 that knives were firft made in Eng- land. Pocket- watches were brought there from Germany anno 1577. About the year 1580, coaches were introduced ; before which time Queen Elifa- beth, on public occafions, rode behind her cham- berlain. A faw-mill was erected near London anno 1633, but afterward demoliihed, that it might not deprive the labouring poor of employment, How crude was the fcience of politics even in that late age? CorTee-houfes were opened in London no fooner than the year 1652.
People who are ignorant of weights and mea- fures fall upon odd Ihifts to fupply the defect. Howel Dha Prince of Wales, who died in the year 948, was a capital lawgiver. One of his laws is, " If any one kill or fteal the cat that guards the *' Prince's granary, he forfeits a milch ewe with
"her
I4O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
" her lamb ; or as much wheat as will cover the " cat when fufpended by the tail, the head touch- " ing the ground." By the fame lawgiver a fine of twelve cows is enacted for a rape committed upon a maid, eighteen for a rape upon a matron. If the fact be proved after being denied, the cri- minal for his falfity pays as many millings as will cover the woman's polteriors. The meafure of the mid ftream for falmon among our forefathers is not lefs rifible. It is, that the mid ftream mail be fo wide as that a fwine may turn itfelf in it, without touching either fide with its fnout or tail.
The Negroes of the kingdom of Ardrah, in Guinea, have made great advances in arts. Their towns, for the moft part, are fortified, and con- nected by great roads, kept in good repair. Deep canals from river to river are commonly filled with canoes, for pleafure fome, and many for bufinefs. The vallies are pleafant, producing wheat, millet, yams, potatoes, lemons, oranges, cocoa-nuts, and dates. The marfhy grounds near the fea are drain- ed ; and fait is made by evaporating the ftagnating water. Salt is carried to the inland countries by the great canal of Ba, where numberlefs canoes are daily feen going with fait, and returning with gold-duft or other commodities.
In all countries where the people are barbarous and illiterate, the progrefs of arts is wofully flow. It is vouched by an old French poem, that the virtues of the loadftone were known in France be-
forq
SK. 4. §1.} ARTS.
fore the 1180. The mariner's compafs was ex- hibited at Venice anno 1260 by Paulus Venetus, as his own invention. John Goya of Amalphi was the firft who, many years afterward, ufed it in na- vigation ; and alfo pafled for being the inventor. Though it was ufed in China for navigation long before it was known in Europe, yet to this day it is not fo perfect as in Europe. Inflead of fufpend- ing it in order to make it adl freely, it is placed upon a bed of fand, by which every motion of the fhip difturbs its operation. Hand-mills, termed querns, were early ufed for grinding corn ; and when corn came to be raifed in greater quantity, horfe-miUs fucceeded. Water-mills for grinding corn are defcribed by Vitruvius*. Wind- mills were known in Greece and in Arabia as early as the feventh century ; and yet no mention is made of them in Italy till the fourteenth century. That they were not known in England in the reign of Henry VIII. appears from a houfehold-book of an Earl of Northumberland, cotemporary with that King, ftating an allowance for three mill-horfes, " two to draw in the mill, and one to carry fturF " to the mill and fro." Water-mills for corn muft in England have been of a later date. The an- cients had mirror-glafTes, and employed glafs to imitate cryftal vafes and goblets : yet they never thought of ufing it in windows. In the thirteenth century, the Venetians were the only people who
had * L. 10. cap. ID,
142 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. B. I.]
had the art of making cryftal-glafs for mirrors. A clock that ftrikes the hours was unknown in Europe till the end of the twelfth century. And hence the cuftom of employing men to proclaim the hours during night, which to this day conti- nues in Germany, Flanders, and England. Ga- lileo was the firfl who conceived an idea that a pendulum might be ufeful for meafuring time ; and Hughens was the firft who put the idea in execution, by making a pendulum clock. Hook, in the year 1660, invented a fpiral fpring for a watch, though a watch was far from being a new invention. Paper was made no earlier than the fourteenth century, and the invention of print- ing was a century later. Silk manufactures were long eflablimed in Greece before lilk- worms were introduced there. The manufacturers were pro- vided with raw lilk from Perfia : but that com- merce being frequently interrupted by war, two monks, in the reign of Juftinian, brought eggs of the lilk- worm from Hindoftan, and taught their countrymen the method of managing them. The art of reading made a very flow progrefs. To encourage that art in England, the capital punifh- ment for murder was remitted, if the criminal could but read, which in law-language is termed benefit of clergy. One would imagine that the art muft have made a very rapid progrefs when fo greatly favoured : but there is a fignal proof of the contrary ; for fo fmall an edition of the Bible
as
SK.IV. § i.] ARTS: 143
as fix hundred copies, tranflated into Englifh in the reign of Henry VIII. was not wholly fold off in three years. The people of England muft have been profoundly ignorant in Queen Elizabeth's time, when a forged claufe added to the twen- tieth article of the Englifh creed pafTed unnoticed till about forty years ago*. The Emperor Ro- dolphus, anno 1281, appointed all public acls to be written in the German language, inftead of Latin as formerly. This was imitated in France,
but not till the year 1539. In Scotland to this
•
day charters, feilins, precepts of Clare conftat, and fome other land-titles, continue to be in La- tin, or rather in a fort of jargon. Ignorance is the mother of devotion, to the church and to law^ yers.
The
* In the a& I3th Elizabeth, anno 1571, confirming the thirty-nine articles of ,the church of England, thefe articles are not engrdfTed, but referred to as comprifed in a printed bookj intitled, Articles agreed to ly the ivholf clergy, in the convocation bolden at London 1562. The forged claufe is, " The church 4< has power to decree rites and ceremonies, and authority in '*' controvei fies of faith." That claufe is not in the articles referred to ; nor the flighted hint of any authority with re- fpe& to matters of faith. In the fame year 1571, the articles •were printed both in Latin and Englifh, precifely as in the year 1562. But foon after came out fpurious editions, in which the faid claufe was foifted into the twentieth article, and continues fo to this day. A forgery fo impudent would not pafs at prefent ; and its fuccefs (hows great ignorance in the people of England at that period.
144 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
The difcoveries of the Portuguefe in the weft coafl of Africa, is a remarkable inftance of the flow
*
progrefs of arts." In the beginning of the fifteenth • century, they were totally ignorant of that coafl beyond Cape Non, 28 deg. north latitude. In the 1410, the celebrated Prince Henry of Portugal fitted out a fleet for difcoveries, which proceeded along the coaft to Cape Bojadore, in 26 deg. but had not courage to double it. In 1418, Triftan
C' t t
Vaz difcovered the ifland Porto Santo ; and the year after, the ifland Madeira was difcovered. In 1439, a Portuguefe captain doubled Cape Boja- dore ; and the next year the Portuguefe reached Cape Blanco, lat. 20 deg. In 1446, Nuna Triftan
**•' ^ *•» •••
doubled Cape Verd, lat. 14° 40'. In 1448, Don Gonzallo Vallo took pofleirlon of the Azores. In the 1449, the iflands of Cape Verd were difco- vered for Don Henry. In the 1471, Pedro d'Ef-
covar difcovered the ifland St Thomas and Prince's
Fi
ifland. In 1484, Diego Cam difcovered the king- dom of Congo. In 1486, Bartholomew Diaz, em- ployed by John II. of Portugal, doubled the Cape of Good Hope, which he called Cabo Tormentofo, from the tempeftuous weather he found in the paflaee.
More arts have been invented by accident than by inveftigation. The art of porcelain is more in- tricate than that of glafs. The Chinefe, however, have pofTeiTed the former many ages, without
knowing
•Mrrfrjfc'- bnfifjji
SK. 4. § I.] ART3. 145
.knowing any thing of the latter till they were taught by Europeans.
The exertion of national fpirit upon any parti- cular art, promotes activity to profecute other arts. The Romans, by conftant ftudy, came to excel in the art of war, which led them to im- prove upon other arts. Having in the progrefs of fociety acquired fome degree of tafte and polim, a talent for writing broke forth. Naevius compofed in verfe feven books of the Punic war, befide co- medies, replete with bitter raillery againft the no- bility *. Ennius wrote annals, and an epic poem f . Lucius Andronicus was the father of dramatic poetry in Rome J. Pacuvius wrote tragedies |j. Plautus and Terence wrote comedies. Lucilius compofed fatires, which Cicero efteems to be flight, and void of erudition §. Fabius Pictor, Cincius Alimentus, Pifo Frugi, Valerius Antias, and Cato, were rather annalifts than hiilorians, confining themfelves to naked fadts, ranged in order of time. The genius of the Romans for the fine arts was much inflamed by Greek learning, when free in- tercourfe between the two nations was opened. Many of thofe who made the greateil figure in the Roman (late commenced authors, Caefar, Cicero,
* Titus Livius, lib. 7. c. 2. •f Quintilum, lib. 10. c. 17.
Cicero De oratore, lib. 2. No. 72.
- J)e oratore, lib. 2. No. 193*
§ — De finibus, lib. I. No. 7
VOL. I. K
146 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY* [fi. 1.
&-c. Sylla compofed memoirs of his own tranfao tions, a work much efteemed even in the days of Plutarch.
The progrefs of art feldom fails to be rapid, when a people happen to be roufed out qf a torpid Hate by fome fortunate change of circumflances ; profperity contrafted with former abafement, gives to the mind a fpring, which is vigoroufly exerted in every new purfuit. The Athenians made no figure under the tyranny of Pififtratus ; but upon regaining freedom and independence, they became heroes- Miletus, a Greek city of Ionia, being de- ilroyed by the King of Perlia, and the inhabitants made ilaves, the Athenians, deeply affedted with the mifery of their brethren, boldly attacked that King in his own dominions, and burnt the city of Sardis. In lefs than ten years after, they gained a fignal victory over him at Marathon ; and under Themiilocles, made head againfl a prodigious ar- my, with which Xerxes threatened utter ruin to Greece. Such profperity produced its ufual effect : arts flourifhed with arms, and Athens became the chief theatre for fciences as well as fine arts. The reign of Auguftus Caefar, which put an end to the rancour of civil war, and reftored peace to Rome with the comforts of fociety, proved an aufpicious aera for literature ; and produced a cloud of La- tin hiftorians, poets, and philofophers, to whom the moderns are indebted for their tafte and talents.
One
SK. 4. § 1.] ARTS. • 147
One who makes a figure roufes emulation in all : one catches fire from another, and the national fpi- rit flourifhes : clafiical works are compofed, and ufeful difcoveries made in every art and fcience. This fairly accounts for the following obfervation of Velleius Paterculus *, that eminent men gene- rally appear in the fame period of time. " One " age,'1 fays he, " produced ^Efchylus, Sophocles, ^ and Euripides, who advanced tragedy to a great " height. In another age the old comedy flou- " rimed under Eupolis, Cratinus, and Arifto- " phanes ; and the new was invented by Menan- " der, and his cotemporaries Diphilus and Phile- " mon, whofe competitions are fo perfect that they " have left to pofterity no hope of rivalftiip. The " philofophic fages of the Socratic fchool, appear- u ed all about the time of Plato and Ariftotle. " And as to rhetoric, few excelled in that art be- " fore Ifocrates, and as few after the fecond def- " cent of his fcholars." The hiflorian applies the fame obfervation to the Romans, and extends it even to grammarians, painters, ftatuaries, and fculp- tors. With regard to Rome, it is true that the Roman government under Auguftus was in effect defpotic : but defpotifm, in that fingle inftance, made.no obstruction to literature, it having been the policy of that reign to hide power as much as poffible. A fimilar revolution happened in Tuf- cany about three centuries ago. That country
K 2 was
* Hiftoria Romaiia, lib. I. in fine.
148 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B, I.
was divided into many fmall republics, which, by mutual hatred, ufual between nations in clofe neighbourhood, became ferocious and bloody*. Thefe republics being united under the Great Duke of Tufcany, enjoyed the fweats of peace in a mild government. That comfortable revolution, which made the deeper impreflion by a retrofpecl to recent calamities, roufed the national fpirit, and produced ardent application to arts and literature. The reftoration of the royal family in England, which put an end to a cruel and envenomed civil war, promoted improvements of every kind : arts and induftry made a rapid progrefs among the people, though left to themfelves by a weak and fluctuating adminiftration. Had the nation, upon that favourable turn of fortune, been bleffed with a fucceffion of able and virtuous princes, to what a height might not arts and fciences have been carried ! In Scotland, a favourable period for im- provements was the reign of the firft Robert, after lhaking off the Englifti yoke : but the domineer- ing fpirit of the feudal fyftem rendered abortive every attempt. The reftoration of the royal fa- mily, mentioned above, animated the legiflature of Scotland to promote manufactures of various kinds: but in vain ; for the union of the two crowns had introduced defpotifm into Scotland, which funk the genius of the people, and rendered them heart- lefs and indolent. Liberty, indeed, and many other advantages, were procured to them by the
union
.
9K. 4» § I.] ARTS. 149
union of the two kingdoms ; but thefe falutary effects were long fufpended by mutual enmity, fuch as commonly fubfifts between neighbouring na- tions. Enmity wore away gradually, and the eyes of the Scots were opened to the advantages of their prefent condition : the national fpirit was roufed to emulate and to excel : talents were ex- erted, hitherto latent ; and Scotland, at prefent* makes a figure in arts and fciences, above what it ever made while an independent kingdom *.
Another caufe of activity and animation, is the being engaged in fome important action of doubt- ful event, a ftruggle for liberty, the refitting a po- tent invader, or the like, Greece, divided into fmall flates, frequently at war with each other, advanced literature and the fine arts to unrivalled perfection. The Corficans, while engaged in a pe- rilous war for defence of their liberties, exerted a vigorous national fpirit : they founded an univer- fity for arts and fciences, a public library, and a
K 3 public
* In Scotland, an innocent bankrupt imprifoned for debt, obtains liberty by a procefs termed ccjjlo bonorum. From the year 1694. to the 1744, there were but twenty-tour procefTes of that kind, which fhows how languidly trade was carried on while the people remained ignorant of their advantages by the union. From that time to the year 1771, there have been thrice that number every year, taking one year with another ; an evident proof of the late rapid progrefs of commerce in Scotland. Every one is roufed to venture his fmall ftock, though every one cannot be fuccefsful.
I5O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. B. I.
public bank. After a long ftupor during the dark ages of Chriftianity, arts and literature revived among the turbulent dates of Italy. The Royal Society in London, and the Academy of Sciences in Paris, were both of them inflituted after civil wars that had animated the people, and roufed their activity.
An ufeful art is feldom loft, becaufe it is in con* ftant practice. And yet, though many ufeful arts were in perfection during the reign of Auguftus Caefar, it is amazing how ignorant and ftupid men became, after the Roman empire was fhattered by northern barbarians ; they degenerated into fava- ges. So ignorant were the SpaniQl Chriflians du- ring the eighth and ninth centuries, that Alphon- fusfthe Great, King of Leon, was neceflitated to employ Mahometan preceptors for educating his eldefl fon. Even Charlemagne could not fign his name : nor was he iingular in that refpect, being kept in countenance by feveral neighbouring princes.
As the progrefs of arts and fciences toward per- fection is greatly promoted by emulation, nothing is more fatal to an art or fcience than to remove that fpur, as where fome extraordinary genius appears who foars above rivalfliip. Mathematics feem to be declining in Europe : the great Newton, hav- ing furpafled all the ancients, has not left to the moderns even the faintefl hope of equalling him ; and what man will enter the lifts who defpairs of victory ?
' -•' "
SK. 4. § I.] ARTS. 151
In early times, the inventors of ufeful arts were remembered with fervent gratitude. Their hifto- ry became fabulous by the many incredible ex- ploits attributed to them. Diodorus Siculus men- tions the Egyptian tradition of Ofiris, that with a numerous army he traverfed every inhabited part of the globe, in order to teach men the culture of wheat and of the vine. Befide the impracticability of fupporting a numerous army where hufbandry is unknown, no army could enable Ofiris to introduce wheat or wine among ftupid favages who live by hunting and fifhing ; which probably was the cafe, in that early period, of all the nations he vifited.
In a country thinly peopled, where even necef- fary arts want hands, it is common to fee one per- fon exercifing more arts than one : in feveral parts of Scotland, the fame man ferves as a phyiician, furgeon, and apothecary. In a very populous country, even fimple arts are fplit into parts, and there is" an artift for each part : in the populous towns of ancient Egypt, a phyiician was confined to a fingle difeafe. In mechanic arts, that mode is excellent. As a hand confined to a fingle operation becomes both expert and expeditious, a mechanic art is perfected by having its different operations diflributed among the greateft number of hands : many hands are employed in making a watch ; and a ftill greater number in manufacturing a web of woollen cloth. Various arts or operations car-
K 4 rie4
152 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I*
ried on by the fame man, envigorate his mind, be- caufe they exercife different faculties ; and, as he cannot be equally expert in every art or operation, he is frequently reduced to fupply want of (kill by thought and invention. Conftant application, on the contrary, to a fingle operation, confines the mind to a fingle object, and excludes all thought and invention : in fuch a train of life, the operator becomes dull and ftupid, like a bead of burden. The difference is vifible in the manners of the people : ^n a country where, from want of hands, feveral occupations mud be carried on by the fame perfon, the people are knowing and con- verfable : in a populous country where manufac- tures flourifh, they are ignorant and unfociable. The fame effect is vifible in countries where an art or manufacture is confined to a certain clafs of men. It is vifible in Hindoflan, where the people are divided into cafts, which never mix even by by marriage, and where every man follows his fa- ther's trade. The Dutch lint-boors are a fimilar inflance : the fame families carry on the trade from generation to generation, and are according- ly ignorant and brutiih even beyond other Dutch peafants. The inhabitants of Buckhayen, a fea- port in the county of Fife, were originally a colo- ny of foreigners, invited hither to teach our people the art of fitting. They continue fifhers to this day, marry among themfelves, have little inter-
caurfe
SK.4* § 2.] ARTS. 153
courfe with their neighbours, and are dull and ftu- pid to a proverb *.
A gentleman of a moderate fortune pafled his time while hufbandry was afleep, like a Birming- ham workman who hammers a button from morn- ing to evening. A certain gentleman, for example, who lived on his eftate, iflued forth to walk as the clock ft ruck eleven. Every day he trod the fame path, leading to an eminence which opened to a view of the fea. A rock on the fummit was his feat, where, after refting an hour, he returned home at leifure. It is not a little fingular, that this exercife was re- peated day after day for forty-three years, without interruption for the laft twenty years of the gentle- man's life. And though he has been long dead, the impreffion of his heels in the fod remains vilible to this 4ay. Men by inaction degenerate into oyfters.
SECT. II.
Progrefs ofFafte and of the Fine Arts.
THE fenfe by which we perceive right and wrong in actions, is termed the moral fenfe : the fenfe by which we perceive beauty and deformi- ty in objects, is termed tajle. Perfection in the mo- ral
* Population has one advantage not commonly thought of which is, that it baniflies ghofts and apparitions. Such ima- ginary beings are never feen but by folitary perfons in folitary places. In great towns they are unknown : you never hear of fuch a thing in Holland, which in effeft is one great town*.
154 MSN" INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ral fenfe confifts in perceiving the minuteil diffe- rences between right and wrong : perfection in tafte confifts in perceiving the minuteft differences between beauty and deformity ; and fuch perfec- tion is termed delicacy of tafte*.
The moral fenfe is born with us ; and fo is tafte J yet both of them require much cultivation. A- mong favages, the moral fenfe is faint and obfcure ; and tafte ftill more fo f . Even in the moft en- lightened ages, it requires in a judge both educa- tion and experience to perceive accurately the va- rious modifications of right and wrong : and to ac- quire delicacy of tafte, a man muft grow old in examining beauties and deformities. In Rome, abounding with productions of the fine arts, an il- literate fhopkeeper is a more correct judge of fta- tues, of pictures, and of buildings, than the beft educated citizen of London J. Thus tafte goes hand in hand with the moral fenfe in their pro- grefs toward maturity ; and they ripen equally by the fame fort of culture. Want, a barren foil, cramps the growth of both : fenfuality, a foil too fat, corrupts both : the middle ftate, equally dif- tant from difpiritingtpoverty and luxurious fenfua- lity, is the foil in which both of them flourifh.
• '•: - ; • As'
* Some Iroquois. after feeing all the beauties of Paris, ad- mired nothing but the ftreet Pe la Houchette, where they found a conftant fupply of eatables.
f Elements of Criticifm, vol. i. p. 112. edit. 5. Elements of Criticifm, chap. 25.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 155
As the fine arts are intimately connected with tafte, it is impracticable, in tracing their progrefs, to feparate them by accurate limits. I join there- fore the progrefs of the fine arts to that of tafle, where the former depends entirely on the latter ; and I handle feparately the progrefs of the fine arts, where that progrefs is influenced by other cir- cumftances befide tafte.
During the infancy of tafte, imagination is fuf- fered to roam, as in fleep, without control. Won- der is the pafiion of favages and of nifties ; to raife which, nothing is necelfary but to invent giants and magicians, fairy-land and inchantment. The earlieft exploits recorded of warlike nations, are giants mowing down whole armies, and little men overcoming giants ; witnefs Joannes Magnus, Torfaeus, and other Scandinavian writers. Hence the abfurd romances that delighted the world for ages, which are now funk into contempt every where. The more fupernatural the facts related are, the more is wonder raifed ; and in proportion to the degree of wonder, is the tendency to belief among the vulgar*. Madame de la Fayette led the way to novels in the prefent mode. She was the firft who introduced fentiments inftead of won- derful adventures, and amiable men inftead of bloody heroes. In fubftituting diftrefies to pro- digies, (lie made a difcovery, that perfons of tafte
and
* Elements of Critiqfm, vol. i. p. 163. edit. 5,
156 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. t.
and feeling are more attached by compaflion than by wonder.
By the improvement of our rational faculties, truth and nature came to bear fway : incredible fictions were banifhed : a remaining bias, how- ever, for wonder paved the way to bombaft lan- guage, turgid fimiles, and forced metaphors. The Song of Solomon, and many other Afiatic compo- fitions, afford examples without end of fach figures, Thefe are commonly attributed to force of imagi- "" nation in a warm climate ; but a more extenfive view will mow this to be a miftake. In every climate, hot and cold, the figurative ftyle is car- ried to extravagance, during a certain period in the progrefs of writing ; a ftyle that is relifhed by all at firft, and continues to delight many, till it yield to a tafte poliftied by long experience*. Even in the bitter-cold country of Iceland, we arex at no lofs for examples. A rainbow is termed Bridge of the gods : gold, Tears of Fry a : the earth is termed Daughter of Night, the veffel that floats upon Ages ; and herbs and plants are her hair, or her fleece. Ice is termed the great bridge: a fhip, horfe of the floods. Many authors foolifhly con- je&ure, that the Hurons and fome other neigh- bouring nations, are of Afiatic extraction ; becaufe, like the Afiatics, their difcourfe is highly figura- tive.
•'- .''••••-: •;-'," ,'_• ; ;;:'.> - ! The
* Elements of Criticifm, vol. ii. p. 184. 284. edit. 5.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 157
The national progrefs of morality is flow : the national progrefs of tafte is flower. In proportion as a nation polifhes and improves in the arts of peace, tafte ripens. The Chinefe had long enjoy- ed a regular fyftem of government, while the Eu- ropeans were comparatively in a chaos ; and ac- cordingly literary compofitions in China were brought to perfection more early than in Europe. In their poetry they indulge no incredible fables, like thofe of Ariofto or the Arabian Tales ; but commonly felect fuch as afford a good moral. Their novels, like thofe of the moil approved kind among us, treat of misfortunes unforefeen, unex- pected good luck, and perfons finding out their real parents. The Orphan of China, compofed in the fo5rteenth century, furpafles far any European play of that early period. But good writing has made a more rapid progrefs with us ; not from fu- periority of talents, but from the great labour the Chinefe muft undergo, in learning to read and write their own language. The Chinefe tragedy- is indeed languid, and not fufficiently interefting, which M. Voltaire afcribes to want of geryus. With better reafon he might have afcribed it to the nature of their government, fo well contrived for preferving peace and order, as to afford few examples of furpriiing events, and little opportu- nity for exerting manly talents.
A nation cannot acquire a tafte for ridicule till it emerges out of the favage ftate. Ridicule, how- ever,
158 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY;
ever, is too rough for refined manners : Cicero dif- covers in Plautus a happy talent for ridicule, and peculiar delicacy of wit ; but Horace, who figured in the court of Auguftus, eminent for delicacy of tafte, declares againft the low roughnefs of that au- thor's raillery *. The fame Cicero, in a letter to Papirius Poetus, complains that by the influx of fo- reigners the true Roman humour was loft. It was not the influx of foreigners, but the gradual pro- grefs of manners from/ the rough to the polifhed. The high burlefque ftyle prevails commonly in the period between barbarity and politenefs, in which a tafte fomewhat improved difcovers the ridicule of former manners. Rabelais in France, and Butler in England, are illuftrious examples. Dr Swift i our lateft burlefque writer, and probably' is the
Emulation among a multitude of finall ftates in Greece, was inflamed by their public games : by that means tafte ripened, and the fine arts were promoted. Tafte refines gradually,- and is advan- ced towards perfection by a diligent ftudy of beau- tiful productions. Rome was indebted to Greece .for that delicacy of tafte which figured during the reign of Auguftus, efpecially in literary compofi-- tions. But tafte could not long flourifh in a defpo- tic government : fo low had the Roman tafte fallen in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, that nothing
v would
* Elements of Criticifm, chap. ii. part 2.
SK.4* §2.] ARTS. 159
would pleafe him but to fupprefs Homer, and in his place to inftall a lilly Greek poet, named Anti- jnachus.
The northern barbarians who defolated the Ro- man Empire, and revived in fome meafure the fa- vage ftate, occalioned a woful decay of tafte. Pope Gregory the Great, ftruck with the beauty of fome Saxon youths expofed to fale in Rome, afked to what country they belonged. Being told they were Angles, he faid that they ought more proper- ly to be denominated angels ; and that it was a pi- ty fo beautiful a countenance Ihould cover a mind devoid of grace. Hearing that the name of their province was Defri, a diviiion of Northumberland, " De'iri !' replied he, " excellent : they are called " to the mercy of God from his anger \de ira~\." Being alfo told, that Alia was the king of that pro- vince, " Alleluia," cried he, " we muft endeavour " that the praifes of God be fung in their coun- " try." Puns and conundrums paiTed in ignorant times for fteiTmg wit. Pope Gregory VII. anno 1080, prefented to the Emperor Rodolph a crown of gold, with the following infcription, Petra dedit Petro, Petrus diadema Rodolpbo. Miferably low muft tafte have been in that period, when a childiih play of words was relifhed as a proper decoration for a ferious folemnity.
Pope Innocent III. anno 1207, made a prefent of jewels to John King of England, accompanied with the following letter, praifed by Pere Orleans
as
tt
6<
l6o MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
as full of fpirit and beauty. " Confider this pre- " fent with refpect to form, number, matter, and " colour. The circular figure of the ring denotes " eternity, which has neither beginning nor end. " And by that figure your mind will be elevated " from things terreftrial to things celeftial. The " number of four, making a fquare, denotes the " firmnefs of a heart, proof againft both adveriity " and profperity, efpecially when fupported by " the four cardinal virtues, juftice, ftrength, pru- dence, and temperance. By the gold, which is the metal of the ring, is denoted wifdom, which excels among the gifts of Heaven, as gold does " among metals. Thus it is faid of the Meffiah, " that the fpirit of wifdom mail reft upon him : " nor is there any thing more neceffary to a king, " which made Solomon requeft it from God pre- " ferably to all other goods. As to the colour of " the ftones, the green of the emerald denotes " faith ; the purity of the fapphire, hope ; the red " of the granite, charity ; the clearnefs of the to- " paz, good works. You have therefore in the " emerald what will increafe your faith ; in the " fapphire, what will encourage yoir to hope ; in " the granite, what will prompt you to love ; in " the topaz, what will excite you to act ; till, ha- " ving mounted by degrees to the perfection of all " the virtues, you come at laft to fee the God of *' gods in the celeftial Sion."
The
SK» 4. $ 2.] ARTS. l6~I
The famous golden bull of Germany, digefted anno 1356, by Bartolus, a celebrated lawyer, and intended for a mailer- piece of compoiition, is re- plete with wild conceptions, without the lead re- gard to truth, propriety, or connection. It begins with an apoftrophe to Pride, to Satan, to Choler, and to Luxury : it afferts, that there muft be feven electors, for oppoiing the feven mortal iins : the fall of the angels, terreilrial paradife, Pompey and Caefar, are introduced ; and it is faid, that Germa- ny is founded on the Trinity, and on the three theological virtues. What can be more puerile I A fermon preached by the Bifhop of Bitonto, at the opening of the council of Trent, excels in that mode of compoiition. He proves that a council is neceffary ; becaufe feveral councils have extirpated herefy, and depofed kings and emperors ; becaufe the poets aflemble councils of the gods ; becaufe Mofes writes, that at the creation of man, and at confounding the language of the giants, God a&ed in the manner of a council ; becaufe religion has three heads, doctrine, facraments, and charity, and that thefe three are termed a council. He exhorts the members of the council to ftricl: unity, like the heroes in the Trojan ho rfe. He aflerts, that the gates of paradife and of the council are the fame ; that the holy fathers Ihould fprinkle their dry hearts with the living water that flowed from it ; and that otherwife the Holy Ghoit would open
VOL. I. L their
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. {B. U
their mouths like thofe of Balaam and Caiaphas '*. James I. of Britain dedicates his Declaration a- gainft Vorftius to our Saviour, m the following words : *' To the honour of our Lord and Saviour " Jefus Chrift, the eternal Son of the eternal Fa- " ther, the only Theanthropos, mediator, and re- te conciler of mankind ; in Iign of thankfulnefs, his " moft humble and obliged fervant, James, by the " grace of God, King of Great Britain, France, " and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, doth dedi- " cate and confecrate this his Declaration." Fu- neral orations were fome time ago in fafhion. Reg- nard, who was in Stockholm about the year 1680, heard a funeral oration at the burial of a fervant- maid. The prieft, after mentioning her parents and the place of her birth, praifed her as an excellent cook, and enlarged upon every ragout that me had made in perfection. She had but one fault, he faid, which was the falting her dimes too much ; but that fhe mowed thereby her prudence, of which fait is the fymbol ; a ftroke of wit that probably was admired by the audience. Funeral orations are out of fafhion : the futility of a trite panegyric purchafed with money, and indecent flattery in circumftances that require fincerity and truth, could not long ftand againft improved tafte. The yearly feaft of the afs that carried the mother of
God into Egypt, was a moft ridiculous farce, high- ly
* Father Paul's Hiftory of Trent, lib. i.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS.
ly relifhed in the dark agefc of Chriftianity. See the defcription of that feaft in Voltaire's General Hif- tory *.
The public amufements of our forefathers, ihow the groffnefs of their taile after they were reduced to barbarifm by the Goths and Vandals. The plays termed Myjleries, becaufe they were borrow- ed from the Scriptures, indicate grofs manners, as well as infantine taile ; and yet in France, not far- ther back than three or four centuries, thefe My- ileries were fuch favourites as conftantly to make a part at every public feftival. In a Spanifh play or myflery, Jefus Chrift and the devil, ridiculouily drefled, enter into a difpute about fome point of controverfy, are enflamed, proceed to blows, and finim the entertainment with a faraband. The re- formation of religion, which roufed a fpirit of in- quiry, banifhed that amufement, not only as low but as indecent. A fort of plays fucceeded, term- ed Moralities, lefs indecent indeed, but little pre- ferable in point of compofition. Thefe Moralities have alfo been long banifhed, except in Spain, where they ftill continue in vogue. The devil is commonly the hero : nor do the Spaniards make any diliiculty, even in their more regular plays, to introduce fupernatural and allegorical beings upon the fame ilage with men and women. The Cardi- nal Colonna carried into Spain a beautiful buft of
Ici the
* Chap.
164 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
the Emperor Caligula. In the war about the fuc- ceffion of Spain, after the death of its king CharlesIL Lord Gallway, upon a painful fearch, found that bail ferving as a weight to a church-clock.
In the days of our unpolifhed forefathers, who were governed by pride as well as by hatred, princes and men of rank entertained a changeling> diftinguifhed by the name of fool; who being the butt of their filly jokes, flattered their felf-conceit. Such amufement, no lefs grofs than inhuman, could not mow its face even in the dawn of tafte : it was rendered lefs infipid and lefs inhuman, by entertaining one of real wit, who, under difguife of a fool, was indulged in the moft fatirical truths. Upon a further purification of tafte, it was difco- vered, that to draw amufement from folly, real or pretended, is below the dignity of human nature. More refined amufements were invented, fuch as balls, public fpe&acles, gaming, and fociety with women. Parafites, defcribed by Plautus and Te- rence, were of fuch a rank as to be permitted to dine with gentlemen ; and yet were fo defpicable, as to be the butt of every man's joke. They were placed at the lower end of the table \ and the guefts diverted themfelves with daubing their faces, and even kicking and cuffing them ; all which was patiently borne for the fake of a plen- tiful meal. They refembled the fools and clowns of later times, being equally intended to be laugh- ed at: but the parafite profeifion ihows grofier
manners ;
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 165
manners ; it being fhockingly indelicate in a com- pany of gentlemen to abufe one of their own num- ber, however contemptible in point of character.
Pride, which introduced fools, brought dwarfs alfo into fafhion. In Italy, that tafte was carried to extravagance. " Being at Rome in the year " 1566,'" fays a French writer, " I was invited by " Cardinal Vitelli to a feaft, where we were ferved " by no fewer than thirty-four dwarfs, moft of " them horribly diftorted." Was not the tafte of that Cardinal horribly diftorted ? The fame au- thor adds, that Francis I. and Henry II. Kings of France, had many dwarfs : one named Great John, was the lead ever had been feen, except a dwarf at Milan, who was carried about in a cage.
In the eighth and ninth centuries, no fort of commerce was carried on in Europe but in mar- kets and fairs. Artificers and manufacturers were difperfed through the country, and fo were mona- fteries ; the towns being inhabited by none but clergymen, and thofe who immediately depended on them. The nobility lived on their eflates, un- lefs when they followed the court. The low peo- ple were not at liberty to defert the place of their birth : the villain was annexed to the eftate, and ihcjlave to the perfon of his lord. Slavery fofter- ed rough manners ; and there could be no im- provement in manners, nor in tafte, where there was no fociety. Of all the polite nations in Eu- rope, the Englifti were the lateft of taking to a
L 3 town-life -3
l66 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
town-life ; and their progrefs in tafte and manners has been proportionally flow.
Our celebrated poet Ben Johnfon lived at a time when turgid conceptions and bombaft language were highly relifhed ; and his compofitions are in the perfe&ion of that tafte, witnefs the quotations from him in Elements of Criticifm %. He was but too faithfully imitated by Beaumont and Fletcher, and other writers of that age. We owe to Dryden- the dawn of a better tafte. For though the mode of writing in his time led him to the bombaft, yet a juft imitation of nature frequently breaks forth, efpecially in his later compofitions. And, as na- ture will always at laft prevail, the copies of nature given by that eminent writer were highly relifhed, produced many happy imitations, and in time brought about a total revolution of tafte, which kept pace with that of government, both equally happy for this nation. Here is a fair deduction of the progrefs of tafte in Britain. But, according to that progrefs, what fhall be faid of the immortal Shakefpeare, in whofe works is difplayed the per- fection of tafte ? Was not his appearance at leaft a century too early ? Such events happen fome- times contrary to the ordinary progrefs. This was the cafe of Roger Bacon, as well as of Shake- fpeare : they were blazing ftars that gave but a temporary luftre, and left the world as void of 1 '
f Vol. i. p. 244. edit.
1 >
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 167
i x
light as before. Ben Johnfon, accordingly, and even Beaumont and Fletcher, were greater nation- al favourites than Shakefpeare ; and, in the fame manner, the age before, Lucan was ranked above Virgil by every critic. By the fame bad tafte, the true fublime of Milton was little relilhed for more than half a century after Paradife Loft was publilhed. Ill-fated Shakefpeare! who appeared^ in an age unworthy of him. That divine writer, who, merely by force of genius, fo far furpafled his co tern paries, how far would he have furpafled even himfelf, had he been animated with the praifes fo juftly beftowed on him in later times ? We have Dry den's authority, that tafte in his time was con-*
liderably refined :
" They who have beft fucceeded on the ftage, " Have ftill conformed their genius to their age. " Thus Johnfon did mechanic humour fhow, " When men were dull, and converfation low. " Then comedy was faultlefs, but 'twas coarfe : M Cobb's Tankard was a jeft, and Otter's Horfe. et Fame then was cheap, and the firft comer fped t " And they have kept it fmce by being dead. " But were they now to write, when critics weigh " Each line and ev'ry word throughout a play, " None of them, no not Johnfon in his height, <* Could pafs without allowing grains for weight. " If love and honour now are higher rais'd, ft It's not the poet, but the age is prais'4 : " Wit's now arriv'd to a more high degree, " Our native language more refin'd and free. t: Our ladies and our men now fpeak more wit converfation, than thofe poets writ."
L4 The
l68 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
The high opinion Dry den had of himfelf, and of his age, breaks out in every line. Johnfon probably had the fame opinion of himfelf, and of his age : the prefent age is not exempted from that bias ; nor will the next age be, though pro- bably maturity in tafte will be ftill later. We humble ourfelves before the ancients, who are far • removed from us ; but not to foar above our im- mediate predeceflbrs, would be a fad mortification. Many fcenes in Dryden's plays, if not lower than Cobb's Tankard or Otter's Horfe, are more out of place. In the Wild Gallant, the hero is a wretch conftantly employed, not only in cheating his cre- ditors, but in cheating his miftrefs, a lady of high rank and fortune. And how abfurd is the fcene, where he convinces the father of his miftrefs, that the devil had got him with child ! The character of Sir Martin Marall is below contempt. The fcenes in the fame play, of a bawd inftru&ing one of her novices how to behaye to her gallants, and of the novice pra&ifing her leflbns, are perhaps not lower than Cobb's Tankard or Otter's Horfe, but furely they are lefs innocent.
It is common to fee people, fond of a new fa-
„ • *•• * •* ."•'''•
fliion, vainly imagining that tafte is greatly impro- ved. Difguifed difhes are a fort of baftard wit, like turrets jutting out at the £op of a building. Such difhes were lately in high fafhion, without having even the flender merit of being a new fa- fhion. They prevailed in the days of Charles II.
(• h <•
as
"
«
"
"
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 169
as we learn from one of Dry den's plays. " Ay, it " look'd like variety, till we came to tafte it ; there were twenty feveral dimes to the eye, but in the palate nothing but fpices. I had a mind to eat of a pheafant ; and, fo foon as I got it into my " mouth, I found I was chewing a limb of cinna- mon ; then I went to cut a piece of kid, and no fooner it had touched my lips, but it turn'd to red pepper : at laft I began to think myfelf ano- " ther kind of Midas, that every thing I had " touched fhould be turned to fpice."
Portugal was riling in power and fplendor when Camoens wrote the Lufiad ; and, with refpecl: to the mufic of verfe, it has merit. The author, how- ever, is far from mining in point of tafte. He makes a ftrange jumble of Heathen and Chriftian Deities. " Gama," obferves Voltaire, " in a ftorm " addrefles his prayers to Chrift, but it is Venus " who comes to his relief." Voltaire's obfervation is but too well founded. In the firft book, Jove fummons a council of the gods, which is defcribed at great length, for no earthly purpofe but to fhow that he favoured the Portuguefe. Bacchus, on the other hand, declares againft them upon the follow- ing account, that he himfelf had gained immortal glory, as conqueror of the Indies ; which would be eclipfed if the Portuguefe fhould alfo conquer them. A Moonfh commander having received Gama with fmiles, but with hatred in his heart, the poet brings down Bacchus from heaven to
confirm
170 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
confirm the Moor in his wicked purpofes ; which would have been perpetrated, had not Venus inter- pofed in Gama's behalf. In the fecond canto, Bacchus feigns himfelf to be a Chriftiari, in order to deceive the Portuguefe ; but Venus implores her father Jupiter to protedl them. And yet, after all, I am loth to condemn an early writer for in- troducing Heathen Deities as a&ors in a real hifto- ry, when, in the age of Lewis XIV. celebrated for refinement of tafte, we find French writers, Boileau in particular, guilty fometimes of the fame abfur- dity*.
At the meeting anno 15-20 near Calais between Francis I. of France and Henry VIII. of England, it is obferved by feveral French writers, that the French nobility difplayed more magnificence, the Englifh more tafte. If fo, the alteration is great iince that time : France at prefent gives the law to the reft of Europe in every matter of tafte, garden- ing alone excepted. At the fame time, though tafte in France is more correcl: than in any other country, it will bear ftill fome purification. The fcene of a clyfter-pipe in Moliere is too low even for a farce ; and yet to this day it is aded, with a few foftenings, before the moft polite audience in Europe f .
. • ' : ',;,-,^ •^•:u.f(_:' In
* Elements of Criticifm, chap. 22.
f No nation equals the French in drefs, houfehold furni- ture, watches, fnuff-boxes, and in toys of every kind. The Italians have always excelled in architecture and painting,
the
5K. 4- § 2«] ARTS'
In Elements of Criticifin* feveral caufes are' mentioned that may retard tafte in its progrefs to- ward maturity, and that may give it a retrogade motion when it is in maturity. There are many biafies, both natural and acquired, that tend to miflead perfons even of the bed tafte. Of the lat- ter, inftances are without number. I felecl: one or two, to mow what influence even the flighted cir- cumftances have on tafte. The only tree beautiful at all feafons is the holly : in winter, its deep and fhining green entitles it to be the queen of the grove : in fummer, this colour completes the har- monious mixture of (hades, fo pleafing in that fea- fon ! Mrs D — • — is lively and fociable. She is eminent above moft of her fex for a correct tafte, difplayed not only within doors but in the garden and in the field. Having become miftrefs of a great houfe by matrimony, the moft honourable of all titles, a group of tajl hollies, which had long ob- fcured one of the capital rooms, foon attracted her eye. She took an averiion to a holly, and was not at eafe till the group was extirpated. Such a bias is perfectly harmlefs. What follows is not fo.
The
the Englifb in gardening. How are fuch national differences to be explained ? A nation, like an individual, may be difpo- fed to grand objects, which fwell the mind. A nation, like an individual, may relifh things neat, pretty, and elegant. And if a tafte of any kind happen once to prevail among men of figure, it foon turns general. The verdure of the fields int- England invites a polifhing hand.
* Chap. 25.
J72 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
The Oxonians difliked the great Newton, becaufe he was educated at Cambridge ; and they favour- ed every book writ againft him. That bias, I hope, has not come down to the prefent time.
Refinement of tafte in a nation, is always accom- panied with refinement of manners : people accuf- tomed to behold order and elegance in public buildings and public gardens, acquire urbanity in private. But it is irkfome to trudge long in a beaten track, familiar to all the world ; and there- fore, leaving what is faid above, like a ftatue cur- tailed of legs and arms, I haften to the hiftory of the fine arts.
Ufeful arts paved the way to fine arts. Men upon whom the former had beftowed every conve- nience, turned their thoughts to the latter. Beau- ty was ftudied in objects of fight ; and men of tafte attached themfelves to the fine arts, which multi- plied their enjoyments and improved their bene- volence. Sculpture and painting made an early figure in Greece ; which afforded plenty of beau- tiful originals to be copied in thefe imitative arts. Statuary, a more fimple imitation than painting^ was fooner brought to perfection : the ftatue of Ju- piter by Phidias, and of Juno by Polycletes, though the admiration of all the world, were executed long before the art of light and lhade was known. Apollodorus, and Z.euxis his difcipie, who flourifh- ed in the fifteenth Olympiad, were the firft who figured in that eut. Another caufe concurred to
advance
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. :-rij 173
advance ftatuary before painting in Greece, name- ly, a great demand for ftatues of their gods. Ar- chitecture, as a fine art, made a flower progrefs. Proportions, upon which its elegance chiefly de- pends, cannot be accurately afcertained but by an infinity of trials in great buildings : a model can- not be relied on ; for a large and a fmall building, even of the fame form, require different propor- tions. Gardening made a ftill flower progrefs than architecture : the palace of Alcinoous, in the feventh book of the Odyffey, is grand, and highly orna- mented ; but his garden is no better than what we term a kitchen-garden. Gardening has made a great progrefs in England. In France, nature is facrificed to conceit. The gardens of Verfailles deviate from nature no lefs than the hanging gar- dens at Babylon. In Scotland, a tafte is happily commenced for neat houfes and ornamented fields ; and the circumftances of the people make it pro- bable, that tafte there will improve gradually till it arrive at perfection. Few gentlemen in Scotland . can afford the expence of London ; and fuppofing them to pafs the winter in a provincial town, they return to the occupations of the country with re* doubled ardor. As they are fafe from the corrup- tion of opulence, nature will be their guide in every plan ; and the very face, of their country will oblige them to follow nature ; being diverfi- fied with hills and plains, rocks and rivers, that re- quire nothing but polifhing. It is no unpleafing
profpect,
174 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY, [B.I,
profpecl, that Scotland may in a century, or foon- er, compare with England ; not, indeed, in mag- nificence of country-feats, but in fvveetnefs and va- riety of concordant parts.
The ancient churches in this iiland cannot be our own invention, being unfit for a cold climate. The vaft fpace they occupy, quantity of ftone, and gloominefs by excluding the fun, afford a refrefh- ing coolnefs, and fit them for a hot climate. It is? highly probable that they have been copied from the mofques in the fouth of Spain, creeled there by the Saracens. Spain, when pofferTed by that people, was the centre of arts and fciences, and led the falhion in every thing beautiful and magnifi- cent.
From the fine arts mentioned, we proceed to li- terature. It is agreed among all antiquaries, that the firft writings were in verfe, and that profe was of a much later date. The firft Greek who wrote in profe, was Pherecides Syrus : the firft Roman, was Appius Caecus, who compofed a declamation againft Pyrrhus. The four books of Chatah Bhade, the facred book of Hindoftan, are compofed in verfe ftanxas ; and the Arabian compofitions in profe followed long after thofe in verfe. To ac- count for that fingular fact, many learned pens have been employed ; but without fuccefs. By fome it has been urged, that as memory is the only record of events where writing is unknown, hiftory origi- nally was compofed in verfe for the fake of
SK. 4. §2.] ARTS. 175
ry. This is not fatisfactory. To undertake the painful talk of compofing in verfe for the fake of memory, would require more foreiight than ever was exerted by a barbarian ; not to mention that other means were ufed for preferving the memory of remarkable events, a heap of ftones, a pillar, or other object that catches the eye. The account given by Longinus is more ingenious. In a frag- ment of his treatife on verfe, the only part that re- mains, he obferves, " that meafure or verfe belongs " to poetry, becaufe poetry reprefents the various " paflions with their language ; for which reafon " the ancients, in their ordinary difcourfe, deliver- " ed their thoughts in verfe rather than in profe.'1 Longinus thought, that anciently men were more expofed to accidents and dangers, than when they
4
were protected by good government and by forti- fied cities. But he feems not to have confidered, that fear and grief, infpired by dangers and mis- fortunes, are better fuited to humble profe than to elevated verfe. I add, that however natural poe- tical diction may be when one is animated with any .vivid pailion, it is not fuppofable that the an- cients never wrote nor fpoke but when excited by pafiion. Their hiflory, their laws, their cove- nants, were certainly not compofed in that tone of mind.
An important article in the progrefs of the fine arts, which writers have not fufficiently attended to, will, if I miftake not, explain this myftery.
The
176 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY* [B. I*
The article is the profeflion of a bard, which fprung up in early times before writing was known, and died away gradually as writing turned more and more common. . The curiofity of men is great with refpedt to the tranfadions of their forefa- thers ; and, when fuch tranfadlions are defcribed in verfe, accompanied with mulic, the perform- ance is enchanting. 'An ear, a voice, fkill in in- ftrumental mufic, and, above all, a poetical genius, are requifite to excel in that complicated art. As fuch talents are rare, the few that poffefled them were highly efteemed ; and hence the profeffion of a bard, which, betide natural talents, required more culture and exercife than any other known art. Bards were capital perfons at every feftival and at every folemnity. Their fongs, which, by recording the atchievements of kings and heroes, animated every hearer, muft have been the enter- tainment of every warlike nation. We have He- liod's authority, that in his time bards were as com- mon as potters or joiners, and as liable to envy. Demodocus is mentioned by Homer as a celebrated bard* ; and Phemius, another bard, is introduced by him deprecating the wrath of Ulyffes, in the following words :
** " "
O king ! to mercy be thy foul inclined, And fpare the poet's ever gentle kind. A deed like this thy future fame would wrong* " For dear to gods and men is facred fong.
«' Self- * Ody/Tey, b. viii,
3K. 4. $ 2.] ARTS.
" Self-taught I fing : by "heav'n, and heav'n alone.,
" The genuine feeds of poefy are fown ;
" And (what the gods beftow) the lofty lay,
" To gods alone, and godlike worth, we pay.
" Save then the poet, and thyfelf reward ;
" 'Tis thine- to merit, mine is to record."
Cicero reports, that at Roman feftivals anciently, the virtues and exploits of their great men were lung*. The fame cuftom prevailed in Peru and Mexico, as we learn from GarcilafTo and other au- thors. Strabo f gives a very particular account of the Gallic bards. The following quotation is from Ammianus Marcellinus J : " Bardi quidem fortia *' virorum illuftrium facta, heroicis compofita ver- " fibus, cum dulcibus lyree modulis, cantitarunt." We have for our authority Father Gobien, that even the inhabitants of the Marian iflands have bards, who are greatly admired, becaufe in tjieir fongs are celebrated the feats of their anceftors. There are traces of the fame kind among the Apa- lachites in North America §. And we fhall fee
afterward,
* Tnfculan Queftions, lib. iv. N° 3. & 4.
f Lib. iv. J Lib. xv. cap. 9.
§ The firft feal that a young Greenlander catches, is m#de 4 feaft for the family and neighbours. The young champion^ during the repaft, defcants upon his addrefs in catching the animal : the guefts admire his dexterity, and extol the flavour of the meat. Their only mufic is a fort of drum, which ac- companies a fong in praife of feal-catching ; in praife of their
anceftors ;
VOL. I. M
17$ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. Ir
+
afterward t, that in no other part of the world were bards more honoured than in Britain and
v - •
Scandinavia.
Bards were the only hiftorians before writing •was introduced. Tacitus f fays, that the fongs of the German bards were their only annals. And Joannes Magnus, Archbifhop of Upfal, acknow- ledges, that, in compiling his hiftory of the ancient Goths, he had no other records but the fongs of the bards. As thefe fongs made an illuftrious fi- gure at every feftival, they were conveyed in eve- ry family by parents to their children ; and in that manner were kept alive before writing was known.
, t
The invention of writing made a change in the bard-profeffion. It is now an agreed point, that
* * " * tt
'"•' ' ' V ' •••'•. :•' : :'••'• r'}'' :'• no
• /• , ^^- •
anceftors ; or in welcoming £he fun's return tp them. Here are the rudiments of the bard-profeffion. The fong is made for a chorus, as many of our ancient fongs are. Take the following example :
" The welcome fun returns again, " Amna ajah, ajah, ah hu J *' And brings us weather fine and fair, " Amna ajah, ajah, ah-hu !"
The bard fings the firft and third lines, accompanying it with
his drum, and with a fort of dance. The other lines, terme4
....
the burden of the fong, are fung by the guefts, * Sketch vi . Progrefs of Manners.
s.
t De Moribus Germanoruxn, cap. 2,
1 - '• •• •' •'• • -•• •* *•
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 179
no poetry is fit to be accompanied with mufic, but •what is iimple : a complicated thought or defcrip- tion requires the utmoft attention, and leaves none for the mufic ; or, if it divide the attention, it
v
makes but a faint impreffion *. The fimple ope- ras of Quinault bear away the palm from every thing of the kind compofed by Boileau or Racine. But when a language, in its progrefs to maturity, is enriched with a variety of phrafes fit to exprefs the mod elevated thoughts, men of genius afpire, to the higher ftrains of poetry, leaving mufic and fong to the bards : which diftinguifhes the profef- fion of a poet from that pf a bard. Homer, in a lax fenfe, may be termed a bard ; for in that cha- racter he ftrolled from feaft to feaft. Bqt he was not a bard in the original fenfe : he indeed recited his poems to crowded audiences; but his poems are too complex for mufic, and he probably did riot fing them, nor accompany them with the lyre, The Trovadores of Provence were bards in the original fenfe ; and made a capital figure in days of ignorance, when few could read, and fewer write. In later times the fongs of the bards were taken down in writing, which gave every one ac- cefs to them without a bard ; and the profeffion funk by degrees into oblivion. Among the High- landers of Scotland, reading and writing in their own tongue is not common even at prefent ; and that circumftarice fupported long the bard-profef-
M 2 fion
* See Elements of Criticifm, vol. ii. Appendix, article 33,
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
fion among them, after being forgot among neigh- bouring nations. Oflian was the mod celebrated bard in Caledonia, as Homer was in Greece *.
From the foregoing hiftorical deduction, the reader will difcover without my affiftance why the firfl writings were in verfe. The fongs of the bards, being univerfal favourites, were certainly the firft compofitions that writing was employed upon : they would be carefully collected by the mod Ikil- ful writers, in order to preferve them in perpetual remembrance. The following part of the pro- grefs is equally obvious. People acquainted with no written compofitions but what were in verfe, compofed in verfe their laws, their religious cere- monies, and every memorable tranfaclion. But when fubjedls of writing multiplied, and became more and more involved, when people began to reafon, to teach, and to harangue, they were obli- ged to defcend to humble profe : for to confine a writer or fpeaker to verfe in handling fubjeds of that nature, would be a burden unfupportable.
The profe compofitions of early hiftorians are all of them dramatic. A writer deftitute of art is na- turally
* The multitude are ftruck with what is new and fplendid,--* but feldom continue long in a wrong tafte. Voltaire holds it to be a ftrong teftimony for the Gierufaleme Liberata, that even the gondoliers in Venice have it moftly by heart ; and that one no fooner pronounces a ftanza than another carries it on. Offian has the fame teftimony in his favour : there are not many Highlanders, even of the loweft rank; but can re- peat long pafTages out of his works.
SK. 4. § 2J AK-TS, l8l
turally prompted to relate fadls as he favv them performed : he introduces his perfonages as fpeak- ing and conferring \ and relates only what was adted and not fpoken *. The hiftorical books of the Old Teftament are compofed in that mode ; and fo ad- dicted to the dramatic are the authors of thefe books, that they frequently introduce God himfelf into the dialogue. At the fame time, the fimpli- city of that mode is happily fuited to the poverty of every language in its early periods. The dra- matic mode has a delicious effecl in expreffing fen- timents, and every thing that is ilmple and ten- der f. Take the following inftance of a low in- cident becoming by that means not a little inte- refting. Naomi having loft her hufband and her two fons in foreign parts, and purpoiing to return to the land of her forefathers, faid to her two daughters-in-law, " Go, return each to her mo- " ther's houfe : the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me. The LORD grant you that you may find reft, each of you in the houfe of her hufband. Then Ihe kifled them : and they lift up their voice and wept. And they faid unto her, Surely we will return " with thee unto thy people. And Naomi faid,
" Turn
tt
if
tt
* Low people to this day tell their ftory in dialogue, as an- cient writers did, and for the fame reafon. They relate thing's as they faw and heard them.
f See Elements of Criticifm, chap. 22. '
l82 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. 1,
a <t
tt
(6
Turn again, my daughters : why will ye go with me ? are there yet any more huibands in my " womb, that they may be your hufbands? Turn " again, my daughters, go your way, for I am too " old to have an hulband : If I mould fay, I have " hope, if I fhould have a hufband alfo to night, and " fhould alfo bear fons ; would you tarry for them till they were grown ? would ye flay for them from having hufbands ? nay, my daughters ; for "- it grieveth me much for your fakes, that the " hand of the LORD is gone out againft me. And " they lift up their voice and wept again : and " Orpah kiffed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clave " unto her. And (he faid, Behold, thy fifter-in- " law is gone back unto her people, and unto her " gods : return thou after thy fifter-in-law. And " Ruth faidj Entreat me not to leave thee, or to " return from following after thee : for whither " thou goefl, I will go ; and where thou lodgefl I " will lodge : thy people £hall be my people, and ** thy God my God : where thou dieft, will I die^ " and there will I be buried : the Lord do fo to " me, and more alfo, if ought but death part thee " and me* When ftie faw that fhe was ftedfaftly " minded to go with her, then fhe left fpeaking " unto her.
" So they two went until they came to Beth- " lehem* And it came to pafs when they were /• " come to Beth-lehem, that all the city was mo- " ved about them, and they faid, Is this Naomi ?
" And
.4» § 2.] ARTS. 183
" And fhe faid unto them, Call me not Naomi* " call me Mara : for the Almighty hath dealt ve- " ry bitterly with me. I went out full, and the " LORD hath brought me home again empty : " why then call ye me Naomi, feeing the LORD " hath teftified againft me, and the Almighty hath " afflicted me ? So Naomi returned, and Ruth the " Moabitefs her daughter-in-law with her, which " returned out of the country of Moab : and they " came to Beth lehem in the beginning of barley- " harveft.
" And Naomi had a kinfman of her hufband's, " a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Eli- " melech ; and his name was Boaz. And Ruth " the Moabitefs faid unto Naomi, Let me now go " to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in " whofe fight I (hall find grace. And fhe faid " unto her, Go, my daughter. And fhe went, and " came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers t " and her hap was to light on a part of the field " belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred " of Elimelech.
" And behold, Boaz came from Beth-lehem, and " faid unto the reapers, The LORD be with you : " and they anfwered him, The LORD blefs thee. " Then faid Boaz unto his fervant that was fet " over the reapers, Whofe damfel is this ? And " the fervant that was fet over the reapers auiwcr- " ed arid faid, It is the Moabrifh damfei that " came back with Naomi, out of the countr, of
M 4 •' Moab ;
6t tt
184 MEN INDEPENDENT OT SOCIETY. [B. I*
" Moab : and fhe faid, I pray you let me glean, **. and gather after the reapers, amongft the fheaves : " fo fhe came, and hath continued even from the *' morning until now, that fhe tarried a little in " the houfe. Then faid Boaz unto Ruth,, Heareft " thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in " another field, neither go from hence, but abide " here faft by my maidens. Let thine eyes be on M the field that they do reap, and go thou after " them : have I not charged the young men, that " they fhall not touch thee ? and when thou art athirft, go unto the vefTels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn. Then fhe " fell on her face, and bowed herfelf to the ground, " and faid unto him, Why have I found grace in " thine eyes, that thou fhouldft take knowledge " of me, feeing I am a ftranger ? And Boaz an- " fwered and faid unto her, It hath fully been " fhewed me all that thou haft done unto thy mo- " ther-in-law fince the death of thine hufband : " and how thou haft left thy father and thy mo- " ther, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou kneweft not here- tofore. The LORD recompenfe thy work, and a " full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Ifraet, under whofe wings thou art come to trurL Then fhe faid, Let me find favour in thy fight, my lord, for that thou haft comforted me, and *' for that thou haft fpoken friendly unto thine " handmaid, though I be not like unto one of
" thine
6t tt
ft
•i
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 185
" thine handmaidens. And Boaz iaid unto her, " At meal-time come thou hither, and eat of the " bread, and dip thy morfel in the vinegar. And " ihe fat beiide the reapers: and he reached her " parched corn, and me did eat, and was fufficed, " and left. And when ihe was rifen up to glean, " Boaz commanded his young men, faying, Let " her glean even among the iheaves, and reproach " her not. And let fall alfo fome of the handfuls " of purpofe for her, and leave them, that ihe may " glean them, and rebuke her riot. So ihe glean- " ed in the field until even, and beat out that ihe " had gleaned : and it was about an ephah of " barley.
" And ihe took it up, and went into the city : " and her mother-in-law faw what ihe had glean- " ed : and ihe brought forth, and gave to her that " ihe had referved, after (he was fufficed. And " her mother-in-law faid unto her, Where haft " thou gleaned to day ? and where wroughteft " thou ? blefied be he that did take knowledge of 4< thee. And ihe mewed her mother-in-law with " whom ihe had wrought, and faid, The man's *' name with whom I wrought to day, is Boaz. " And Naomi faid unto her daughter-in-law, ** BleiTed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off " hiskindnefs to the living and to the dead. And " Naomi faid unto her, The man is near of kin ** unto us, one of our next kinfmen. And Ruth " the Moabitefs faid, He faid unto me alfo, Thou
" ihah
186 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY* [B. f«
" fhalt keep faft by my young men, until they " have ended all my harveft. And Naomi faid " unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my " daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, " that they meet thee not in any other field. Sb " fhe kept faft by the maidens of Boaz to glean, " unto the end of barley-harveft, and of wheat- " harveft ; and dwelt with her mother-in-law.
" Then Naomi her mother-in-law faid unto her, " My daughter, fhall I not feek reft for thee, that " it may be well with thee ? And now is not " Boaz of our kindred, with whofe maidens thou " waft ? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night " in the threfhing- floor. Wafh thyfelf therefore, " and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, " and get thee down to the floor : but make not " thyfelf known unto the man, until he fhall have " done eating and drinking. And it fhall be when " he lieth down, that thou fhalt mark the place " where he fhall lie, and thou fhall go in, and un- " cover his feet, and lay thee down, and he will " tell thee what thou fhalt do. And fhe faid un- " to her, All that thou fayeft unto me, I will do.
And fhe went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn', and fhe came foftly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.
" And
4t
€4
Sfc. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 187
" And it came to pafs at midnight, that the " man was afraid, and turned himfelf : and be- " hold, a woman lay at his feet. And he faid, " Who art thou ? And fhe anfwered, I am Ruth " thine handmaid : fpread therefore thy fkirt over " thine handmaid, for thou art a near kinfman. <* And he faid, BlefTed be thou of the LORD, my " daughter : for thou haft fhewed more kindnefs " in the latter end, than at the beginning, inaf- " much as thou folio wedft not young men, whe- " ther poor or rich. And now, my daughter, " fear not, I will do to thee all that thou requi- " reft : for all the city of my people doth know, " that thou art a virtuous woman. And now it " is true, that 1 am thy near kinfman : howbeit " there is a kinfman nearer than I. Tarry this " night, and it fhall be in the morning, that if he rt will perform unto thee the part of a kinfman, " well, let him do the kinfman' s part ; but if he " will not do the part of a kinfman to thee, then " will I do the part of a kinfman to thee, as the " LORD liveth : lie down until the morning.
" And fhe lay at his feet until the morning : " and fhe rofe up before one could know another. " And he faid, Let it not be known that a woman *' came into the floor. Alfo he faid, Bring the " vail that thou haft upon thee, and hold it. And " when fhe held it, he meafured fix meafures of. ** barley, and laid it on her : and fhe went into " the city. And when fhe came to her mother-
" in-law,
188 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
" in-law, fhe faid, Who art thou, my daughter? " And fhe told her all that the man had done to " her. And Ihe faid, Thefe fix meafures of bar- •« iey gave he me ; for he faid to me, Go not " empty unto thy mother-in-law. Then faid Iher " Sit ftill, my daughter, until thou know how the " matter will fall : for the man will not be in reft, " until he have finiihed the thing this day.
" Then went Boax up to the gate, and fat him " down there : and behold, the kinfman of whom " Boaz fpake, came by ; unto whom he faid, Ho, " fuch a one, turn afide, fit down here. And he " turned afide, and fat down. And he took ten " men of the elders of the city, and faid, Sit ye " down here. And they fat down. And he faid " unto the kinfman, Naomi that is come again out *' of the country of Moab, felleth a parcel of land, " which was our brother Elimelech's. And J " thought to advertife thee, faying, Buy it before " the inhabitants, and before the elders of my " people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it ; but " if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I <c may know : for there is none to redeem it be-r " fide thee, and I am after thee. And he faid, I " will redeem k. Then faid Boaz, What day " thou buyeft the field of the hand of Naomi, thou " muft buy it alfo of Ruth the Moabitefs, the wife ** of the dead, to raife up the name of the dead ^ upon his inheritance. And the kinfman faid, I " cannot redeem it for myfelf, left I mar mine
" own
(t
it
it u it
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS,
" own inheritance : redeem thou my right to thy- " felf, for I cannot redeem it. Now this was the manner in former time in Ifrael, concerning re- deeming, and concerning changing, for to con- firm all things : A man plucked off his fhoe, jand gave it to his neighbour : and this was a tefti- mony in Ifrael. Therefore the kinfman faid unto Boaz, Buy it for thee : fo he drew off his *f fhoe. And Boaz faid unto the elders, and unto " all the people, Ye are witneffes this day, that I f have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all " that was Chilion's, and Mahlon's, of the hand " of Naomi. Moreover, Ruth the Moabitefs, the " wife of Mahlon, have I purchafed to be my " wife, to raife up the name of the dead upon his " inheritance, that the name of the dead be not " cut off from among his brethren, and from the " gate of his place : ye are witneffes this day. " And all the people that were in the gate, and " the elders faid, We are witneffes : The Lord ** make the woman that is come into thine houfe, •" like Rachel, and like Leah, which two did build " the houfe of Ifrael : and do thou worthily in f* Ephratah, and be famous in Beth-lehem. And " let thy houfe be like the houfe of Pharez (whonj. 4< Tamar bare unto Judah) of the feed which the " LORD fhall give thee of this young woman.
" So Boaz took Ruth, and fhe was his wife : an4 " when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her #' conception, and fhe bare a fon. And the wo-
"• men
I9O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.' [fi. I.
" men faid unto Naomi, BlefTed be the LORD, " which hath not left thee this day without a kinf- " man, that his name may be famous in IfraeL " And he fhall be unto thee a reftorer of thy life, " and a nourifher of thine old age : for thy daugh- " ter-in-law which loveth thee, which is better to " thee than feven fons, hath born him. And " Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bofom, " and became nurfe unto it *."
The dramatic mode is far from being fo agree- able in relating bare hiftorical fadts. Take the fol- lowing example.
" Wherefore Nathan fpake unto Bath-fheba the " mother of Solomon, faying, Haft thou not heard " that Adonijah the fon of Haggith doth reign, " and David our lord knoweth it not ? Now " therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee " counfel, that thou mayft fave thine own life, " and the life of thy fon Solomon. Go, and get " thee in unto king David, and fay unto him, " Didfl not thou, my lord O king, fwear unto " thine handmaid, faying, AfTuredly Solomon thy " fon fhall reign after me, and he fhall fit upon *' my throne ? Why then doth Adonijah reign ? " Behold, while thou yet talkeft there with the " king, I alfo will come in after thee, and confirm " thy words.
" And Bath-fheba went in unto the king, into *' the chamber : and the king was very old ; and
* Ruth i. $. — iv. 16.
4.1 ll
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 191
" Abiihag the Shunammite miniilered unto the " king. And Bath-iheba bowed, and did obei- " fance unto the king : and the king faid, What " wouldil thou ? And me faid unto him, My lord, f thou fwareil by the LORD thy God unto thine " handmaid, faying, Afluredly Solomon thy fon ihall reign after me, and he ihall fit upon my throne : and now behold, Adonijah reigneth ; *' and now my lord the king, thou knoweft it not. " And he hath ilain oxen, and fat cattle, and *' fheep in abundance, and hath called all the fons " of the king, and Abiathar the prieft, and Joab " the captain of the hoil : but Solomon thy fer- " vant hath he not called. And thou, my lord *' O king, the eyes of all Ifrael are upon thee, that " thou ihouldft tell them who fhall fit on the " throne of my lord the king after him. Other- " wife it ihall come to pafs, when my lord the *' king fhall ileep with his fathers, that I and my " fon Solomon ihall be counted offenders.
" And lo, while fhe yet talked with the king, *' Nathan the prophet alfo came in. And they ?* told the king, faying, Behold, Nathan the pro- " phet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himfelf before the king with his face to the ground. And Nathan faid, My lord " O king, hail thou faid, Adonijah ihall reign af- " ter me, and he ihall fit upon my throne ? For ?' he is gone down this day, and hath flain oxen, tt and fat cattlej and llieep in aoundance, and hath
" called
it 4(
,J92 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" called all the king's fons, and the captains of " the hoft, and Abiathar the prieft ; and behold, " they eat and drink before him, and fay, God " fave king Adonijah. But me, even me thy fer- " vant, and Zadok the prieft, and Benaiah the fon " of Jehoiada, and thy fervant Solomon hath he " not called. Is this thing done by my lord the " king, and thou haft not fhewed it unto thy fer- " vant who fhould fit on the throne of my lord ** the king after him ?
" Then king David anfwered and faid, Call me " Bath-lheba : and fhe came into the king's pre- " fence, and ftood before the king. And the king " fware, and faid, As the LORD liveth, that hath " redeemed my foul out of all diftrefs, even as I " fware unto thee by the LORD God of Ifrael, fay- " ing, Aflu redly Solomon thy fon fhall reign after " me, and he fhall fit upon my throne in my ftead ; " even fo will I certainly do this day. Then " Bath-fheba bowed with her face to the earth, " and did reverence to the king, and faid, Let my " lord king David live for ever.
" And king David faid, Call me Zadok the prieft, " and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the fon 41 of Jehoiada. And they came before the king, " The king alfo faid unto them, Take with you " the fervants of your lord, and caufe Solomon my f fon to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him " down to Gihon. And let Zadok the prieft, and " Nathan the prophet, anoint him there king over
" Ifrael:
4t tt it tt tt
SK. 4. § 2.J ARTS.
*' Ifrael : and blow ye with the trumpet, and " fay, God fave king Solomon. Then ye fhall '* come up after him, that he may come and fit upon my throne \ for he fhall be king in my flead : and I have appointed him to be ruler over Ifrael, and over Judah. And Benaiah the fon of Jehoiada anfwered the king, and faid, Amen : the LORD GOD of my lord the king fay " fo too. As the LORD hath been with my lord " the king, even fo be he with Solomon, and make " his throne greater than the throne of my lord " king David. So Zadok the prielt, and Nathan " the prophet, and Benaiah the fon of Jehoiada, " and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went " down and caufed Solomon to ride upon king " David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. And " Zadok the prieft took an horn of oil out of the " tabernacle, and anointed Solomon : and they " blew the trumpet, and all the people faid, God " fave king Solomon. And all the 'people came " up after him, and the people piped with pipes, " and rejoiced with great joy, fo that the earth " rent with the found of them.
" And Adonijah, and all the guefts that were " with him, heard it, as they had made an end of " eating : and when Joab heard the found of the " trumpet, he faid, Wherefore is this noife of the " city, being in an uproar ? And while he yet " fpake, behold, Jonathan the fon of Abiathar the *' pried came, and Adonijah faid unto him, Come VOL, I. N a " in,
194 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [8. I.
" in, for thou art a valiant man, and bringeft good " tidings. And Jonathan anfwered and. faid to " Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath • *' made Solomon king. And the king has fent " with him Zadok the prieft, and Nathan the pro- *' phet, and Benaiah the fon of Jehoiada, and the " Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have " caufed him to ride upon the king's mule. And " Zadok the prieft, and Nathan the prophet have " anointed him king in Gihon : and they are come " up from thence rejoicing, fo that the city rang " again : this is the noife that ye have heard. " And alfb Solomon fitteth on the throne of the " kingdom. And moreover the king's fervants " came to blefs our lord king David, faying, God " make the name of Solomon better than thy " name, and make his throne greater than thy " throne : and the king bowed himfelf upon the " bed. And alfo thus faid the king, Bleffed be " the LORD GOD of Ifrael, which hath given one " to fit on my throne this day, mine eyes even " feeing it. And all the guefts that were with " Adonijah were afraid, and rofe up, and went «' every man his way *."
In the example here given are found frequent repetitions ; not however by the fame perfon, but by different perfons who have occafion in the courfe of the incidents to fay the fame things;, which is
natural
* i Kings i. ii. — 49.
'• -. • '
SK. 4. § 2.] • • ARTS. 195
natural in 'the dramatic mode, where things are reprefented precifely as they were tranfa&ed. In that view, Homer's repetitions are a beauty, not a blemilh ; for they are confined to the dramatic part, and never occur in the narrative. In the 24th chapter of Genelis, there is a repetition pre- cifely in the manner of Homer.
But the dramatic mode of compofition, however pleafing, is tedious and intolerable in a long hif- tory. In the progrefs of fociety, new appetites and new paflions arife ; men come to be involved with each other in various connections; incidents and events multiply, and hiftory becomes intricate l)y an endlefs variety of circumilances. Dialogue, accordingly, is more fparingly ufed, and in hiftory plain narration is mixed with it. Narration is as it were the ground- work, and dialogue is raifed, upon it, like flowers in embroidery. Homer is admitted by all to be the great mafter in that mode of compofltion. Nothing can be more perfect in that tefpedlthan the Iliad. The Odyfley is far inferior ; and to guard myfelf againft the cenfure of the un- diftinguifhing admirers of Homer, a tribe extremely formidable, I call to my aid a celebrated critic, whofe fuperior tafte and judgment never was difput- ed. " The Odyfley," fays Longinus, " fhows how **- natural it is for a writer of a great genius, in his " declining age, to flnk down to fabulous narration , " for that Homer compofed the Odyfley after, the " Iliad, is evident from many circumilances. As
N 2 " the
196 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. fr
" the Iliad was compofed while his genius was in * *its greateft vigour, the ftrudure of that work " is dramatic and full of adlion ; the Odyfley, on " the contrary, is moftly employed in narration, " proceeding from the coldnefs of old age. In " that later compofition, Homer may be compared " to the fetting fun, which has ftill the fame great- " nefs, but not the fame ardor or force. We fee " not in the Odyfley that fublime of the Iliad, " which conftantly proceeds in the fame anima- '* ted tone, that ftrong tide of motions and paf- " lions flowing fucceflively like waves in a ftorm. " But Homer, like the ocean, is great, even when " he ebbs, and lofes himfelf in narration and in- " credible fictions ; witnefs his defcription of tem- " pefts, the adventures of Ulyfles with Polyphe- " mus the Cyclops, and many others *."
The narrative mode came in time fo to prevail, that in a long chain of hiftory, the writer, com- monly leaves off dialogue altogether. Early wri- ters of that kind appear to have had very little judgment in diftinguifhing capital fa&s from mi- nute circumftances, fuch as can be fupplied by the reader without being mentioned. The hiftory of the Trojan war by Dares Phrygius is a curious in-
ftance
* The Pilgrim's Progrefs, and Robifon Crufoe^ great favou- rites of the vulgar, are compofed in a ftyle enlivened like that of Homer, by a proper mixture of the dramatic and narrative j and upon that account, chiefly, have been tranflated into feve- ral European languages. &
SK.. 4. § 2.J ARTS. Ip7
fiance of that cold and creeping manner of com- pofition. Take the following palTage. Hercules having made a defcent upon Troy, flew King Lao- medon, and made a prefent of Hefione, the king's daughter, to Telamon his companion. Priamus, who fucceeded to the kingdom qf Troy upon the death of his father Laomedon, fent Antenor to de- mand his fifter Hefione. Our author proceeds in the following mannner : " Antenor, as command- " ed by Priamus, took fhipping, and failed to Mag- " nefia, where Peleus refided. Peleus entertain- *' ed him hofpitably three days, and the fourth " day demanded whence he came. Antenor faid, *' that he was ordered by Priamus to deniand from " the Greeks, that they fhould reftore Hefione. " When Peleus heard this he was angry, becaufe " it concerned his family, Telamon being his bro- " ther ; and ordered the ambafTador to depart, " Antenor, without delay, retired to his fftip, and " failed to Salamis, where Telamon refided, and " demanded of him, that he fhould reftore He-p " fione to her brother Priamus, as it was unjuft to " detain fo long in fervitude a young woman of " royal birth. Telamon anfwered, that he had " done nothing to Priamus ; and that he would " not reftore what he had received as a reward " for his valour ; and ordered Antenor to leave " the ifland. Antenor went to Achaia ; and fail- " ing from thence to Caftor and Pollux, demanded *•' of them to fatisfy Priamus, by reftoring to him
N 3 .« his
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY, [B.I.
" his lifter Helione. Caftor and Pollux denied " that they had done any injury to Priamus, but " that Laomedon had firft injured them; order- " ing Antenor to depart. From thence he failed *4 to Neftor in Pylus, telling him the caufe of his *' coming ; which when Neftor heard, he begun *' to exclaim, how Antenor durft fet his foot in " Greece, feeing the Greeks were firft injured by " the Phrygians. When Antenor found that he. " had obtained nothing, and that Priamus was con- " tumelioufly treated, he went on ihipboard, and " returned home." The Roman hiftories, before the time of Cicero are chronicles merely. Cato, Fabius Piftor, and Pifo, confined themfelves to naked facts *. In the Auguftee Hijlorice fcriptores we find nothing but a jejune narrative of facts, commonly very little interefting, concerning a de- generate people, without a {ingle incident that can roufe the imagination, or exercife the judgment, The monkifh hiftories are all of them gompofed in
the fame manner -|-,
•.--,,,, .-rfr-M. Thq * Cicero &e Oratore, lib. ii. N° 5.
•j- Euripides, in his Phoenicians, introduces CEdipus, under fentence of banifhment, and blind, calling for his ftaff, his daughter Antigone putting it in his hand and directing every ftep, to kejep him from ftumbling. Such minute circumftan- ces, like what are frequent in Rkhardfon's novels, tend in- deed to make the reader conceive himfelf to be a fpectator * : but whether that advantage be not more than over-balanced by the languor of a creeping narrative, may be jjiftly doubt-
* See Elements of Criticifra, ch. ii, part I. feel. jr.
SK. 4. § 2.] -ARTS.
The dry; narrative manner being very little in- terefting or agreeable, a tafte for embellifhment prompted fome writers to be copious and verbofe, £axo Grammaticus, who in the i2th century com- pofed in Latin a hiftory of Denmark, furpriiingly pure for that early period, is extremely verbofe, and full of tautologies. Such a ftyle, at any rate unpleafant, is intolerable in a modern tongue, be- fore it is enriched with a ftock of phrafes for ex- preffing aptly the great variety of incidents that enter into hiftory. Take the following example out of an endlefs number. Henry VII. of Eng- land, having the young Queen of Naples in view for a wife, deputed three men, in chara&er of am- baiTadors, to vifit her, and to anfwer certain que- Jlions contained in curious and exquiftte inftruttions for taking a furvey of her perfon, complexion, $3 c. as expreffed by Bacon in his life of that prince. One of the inftructions was, to procure a picture of the Queen, which one would think could not re- quire many words, yet behold the inftruction it- felf. " The King's faid fervants (hall alfo, at their comyng to the parties of Spayne, diligently en- quere for fome conynge paynter having good " experience in making and paynting of vifages ** and portretures, and fuche oon they fhall take " with them to the place where the faid Quuins " make their abode, to the intent that the {hid " paynter maye draw a picture of the vifage and " femblance of the faid young Quine, as like
N4
" "
5tOO MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ft her as it can or may be conveniently doon, which " picture and image they lhall fubftantially note, ?'. and marke in every pounte and circumftance, ^ foo that it agree in ii militude and likenefle as f* near as it may poflible to the veray vifage., counT I ' tenance, and fembla ice of the faid iQuine ; and ?' hi cafe they may perceyve that the paynter, «at "the furft or fecond making thereof, hath not " made the fame perfaite to her fimilytude and " likenefle, or that he hath omitted any feiture or fc circumftance, either in colours, or other propor- " cions of the faid vifage, then they ihall caufe the *f fame paynter, or fome other the moft conyng V paynter that they can gete foo oftentimes to re- "newe«and reforrne the fame pidhire, till it be " made perfaite, and agreeable in every behalfe, " with the very image and vifage of the faid ** Quine f ." After this fpecimen fo much appro- ved by his Lordftiip, one will not be furprifed at the flatnefs of the^ hiftorical ftyle during that pe- riod. By that flatnefs of ftyle Lord Bacon's hifto-
* The following pafTage, copied from an Edinburgh newf- paper, may almoft rival this eloquent piece. After obferving that the froft was intenfe, which, fays the writer, renders tra- velling very dangerous either in town or country, he proceeds thus : " We would therefore recommend it to fhop keepers, 4* and thofe whofe houfes are clofe upon the ftreets or lanes,
» • '''1' '; T ''•'•1*(-: i ' • ' >' • i •' ' *•)'
** to fcatter afties oppofite to their doors, as it may be a means *' of preventing paflengers from falling, which they are in " great danger of doing at prefent, from the flippinefs of the <* ftreets, where that practice is nqt followed."
. I , : 1," ;. 1 ..'.,,...•,-. ! , . . * V.
2.] ARTS. 2O1
>y of Henry VII. finks below the gravity and dig- - nity of hiftory ; particularly in his fimiles, meta- phors, and allufions, no lefs diftant than flat. Of Perkin Warbeck and his followers, he fays, " that •" they were now like fand without lime, ill bound " together.'3 Again, *' But Perkin, advifed to keep " his fire, which hitherto burned as it were upon « green wood, alive with continual blowing, failed " again to Ireland." Again, " As in the tides of -" people once up, there want not commonly ftir- " ring winds to make them more rough, fo this 4< people dj.d light upon two ringleaders or cap- ." tains." Again, fpeaking of the Cornifh infur- gents, and of the caufes that inflamed them, " But " now thefe bubbles by much ftirring began to " meet, as they ufed to do on the top of water." Again, fpeaking of Perkin, " And as it fareth with " fmoak, that never lofeth itfelf till it be at the " htgheft, he did now before his end raife his ftile " intytling himfelf no more Richard Duke of York, " but Richard the Fourth, King of England." He defcends fometimes fo low as to play upon words ; witnefs the following fpeech made for Perkin to the King of Scotland. " High and mighty King ! " your Grace may be pleafed beningly to bow your ears to hear the tragedy of a young man that by right ought to hold in his hand the ball of a kingdom, but by fortune is made himfelf a ball, toffed from mifery to mifery> and from place to place." The following is a ftrangely
forced
n
-I it
.
et
2O2 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
forced alluiion. Talking of Margaret Duchefs of Burgundy, who had patronized Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck, he fays, " It is the ftrangeft " thing in the world, that the Lady Margaret " fhould now, when other women give over child* V bearing, bring forth two fuch mo&fters, be- " ing, at birth, not of nine or ten months, but of *' many years. And whereas other natural mo- *' thers bring furth children weak, and not able " to help themfelves, me bringeth furth tall ftrip- " lings, able, foon after their coming into the " world, to bid battle to mighty kings.'* I fhould not have given fo many inftances of puerilities in compolition, were they not the performance of a great philofopher. Low indeed muft have been the tafte of that age, when it infe&ed its greateft genius.
The perfection of hiftorical compofition, which writers at laft attain to after wandering through various imperfect modes, is a relation of interefting fadls connected with their motives and confequen- ces. A hiftory of that kind is truly a chain of caufes and effects. The hiftory of Thucydides, and flill more that of Tacitus, are fhining inftances of that mode. There was not a book written in France correct in its ftyle before the year 1654, when the Lettres Provinciates appeared ; nor a book in a good hiftorical ftyle before the hiftory of the confpiracy againft Venice by the Abbe St Real. £ ^« £ftr#d'P.f>i ? iff '-".-- ' .; ...
A
it tt
it it tl
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 203
A language in its original poverty, being defi- cient in flrength and variety, has nothing at com- mand for enforcing a thought but to redouble the expreffion. Inftances are without number in the Old Teftament. " And they fay, How doth God know, and is there knowledge in the Moil High?" Again, " Thus fhalt thou fay to the houfe of Jacob, and tell to the children of If- rael." Again, " I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adverfary unto thine adverfa~ ries." Again, " To know wifdom and inftruc- tion, to perceive the words of underilanding, to " receive the inftruction of wifdom." " She lay- 4< eth her hands to the fpindle, and her hands hold " the diftaff." " Put away from thee a froward " mouth, and perverfe lips put far from thee. Let " thine eyes look right on, and let thine eye-lids " look ftraight before thee.'1
Eloquence was of a later date than the art of literary compofition ; for till the latter was impro- \7ed, there were no models for ftudying the former. Cicero's oration for Rofcius is compofed in a ftyle diffufe and highly ornamented ; which, fays Plu- tarch, was univerfally approved, becaufe at that time the ftyle of Alia, introduced into Rome with its luxury, was in high vogue. But Cicero, in a
journey to Greece, where he leifurely itudied Greek
.
authors, was taught to prune off fuperfluities, and to purify his ilyle, which he did to a high degree of refinement. He introduced into his native
tongue
204 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
tongue a fweetnefs, a grace, a majefty, that fur- prifed the world, and even the Romans themfelves. Cicero obferves with great regret, that if ambition for power had not drawn Julius Caefar from the bar to command legions, he would have become the molt complete orator in the world. So partial are men to the profeflion in which they excel. Eloquence triumphs in a popular affembly, makes fome figure in a court of law compofed of many judges ; very little where there is but a iingle judge, and none at all in a defpotic government. Eloquence flourifhed in the republics of Athens and of Rome ; and makes fome figure at prefent in a Britifh Houfe of Commons.
In Athens eloquence could not but flourim. In an affembly of the people, confifling of 5000 and upward, where every individual was entitled to give his opinion, the certainty of employing the talent of eloquence, was a ftrong motive with every young man of ambition to ftudy that art. In Bri- tain, very few are certain of obtaining a feat in the Houfe of Commons ; and that man muft have great perfeverance who can beftow years in acqui- ring an art that he may never have occafion to exercife. The eldefl fons of peers have indeed a nearer profpect of a feat in the upper houfe : but young men of quality are commonly too much ad- dicted to pleafure ; and many of them come not to be peers till the fire of youth is fpent. I am forry to add another reafon. Eloquence can never
make,
SK.4- § 2.] ARTS. 205
make a capital figure, but where patriotifm is the ruling paflion 5 for what can it avail among men who are deaf to every motive but what contributes to the intereft or ambition of their party ? When Demofthenes commenced his career of eloquence, patriotifm made a figure in Athens, though it was on the decline. Had that great orator appeared more early, his authority in Athens would have been fupreme #.
The Greek ftage has been juftly admired among all polite nations. The tragedies of Sophocles and Euripides in particular are by all critics held to be perfect in their kind, excellent models for imita- tion, but far above rivalfhip. If the Greek ftage was fo early brought to maturity, it is a pheno- menon not a little lingular in the progrefs of arts. The Greek tragedy made a rapid progrefs from Thefpes to Sophocles and Euripides, whofe com- politions are indeed the moil complete that ever were exhibited in Greece : but whether they be really fuch mafterpieces as is generally thought, will admit fome doubt. The fubject is curious : and the candid reader will give attention.
No
* Eloquence is neceflary to thofe only who requeft, not to thofe who command. The Spartans, a bold and firm people, were deciuve in their refolutions, and of few words ; whence the laconic ftyle. Take a modern inftance of that ftyle. In the year 1487, caufes of difcontent arifing between O'Neal and Tirconuel, two Irilh chieftains, the former wrote to the latter, " Send me tribute, or elfe." The latter anfwered, 4< I owe you none, and if."
106 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
No human voice could fill the Greek theatre, which was fo fpacious as to contain feveral thou- fands without crowding. A brafs pipe was in- vented to llrengthen the voice ; but that invention deftroyed the melody of pronunciation, by con- fining the voice to a harfh monotony. The pipe was not the only unpleafant circumftance : every actor wore a maik ; for what end or purpofe is not explained. It may be true, that the expreffions of the* countenance could not be diflinctly feen by thofe who occupied the back rows ; and a malk poffibly was thought necelfary in order to put all the citizens upon a level. But without prying in- to the caufe, let us only figure an actor with a malk and a pipe. He may reprefent tolerably a limple incident or plain thought, fuch as are the materials of an Italian opera ; but the voice, coun- tenance, and geftures, are indifpenfable in expref- iing refined fentiments, and the more delicate tones of paffion.
Where then lies the charm in ancient tragedies that captivated all ranks of men ? Greek tragedies are more active than fentimental : they contain many judicious reflections on morals, manners, and upon life in general ; but no fentiments except what are plain and obvious. The fubjects are of the fimpleft kind, fuch as give rife to the paflions of hope, fear, love, 'hat red, envy, and revenge, in their moft ordinary exertions : no intricate or delicate fituation to occafion any fingular emotion ; no gra- dual
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 207
dual fwelling and fubfiding of paffion ; and feldom any conflict between different paflions. I would not however be underftood as meaning to depre- ciate Greek tragedies. They are indeed wonder- ful productions of genius, confidering that the Greeks at that period were but beginning to e- merge from roughnefs and barbarity into a tafte for literature. * The compolitions of ^Efchylus, So- phocles, and Euripides, muft have been highly re- limed among a people who had no idea of any thing more perfedt : we judge by comparifon, and every work is held to be perfedt that has no rival. It ought at the fame time to be kept in view, that it was not the dialogue which chiefly enchanted the Athenians, nor variety in the paf- lions reprefented, nor perfection in the adors, but machinery and pompous decoration, accompanied with exquilite mufic. That thefe particulars were carried to the greateft height, we may with cer- tainty conclude from the extravagant fums be- llowed on them : the exhibiting a lingle tragedy was more expenfive to the Athenians than their fleet or their army in any lingle campaign.
One would imagine, however, that thefe com- pofitions are too iimple to enchant for ever ; as without variety in adlion, fentiment, and paflion, the ilage will not continue long a favourite enter- tainment : and yet we find not a fingle improve- ment attempted after the days of Sophocles and Euripides, This may appear a? matter of wonder
at
» . r-
208 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
-, i
at firft view. But the wonder valnifhes upon con- lidering, that the manner of performance prevent- ed abfolutely any improvement. A fluctuation of paffion and refined fentiments would have made no figure on the Greek ftage. Imagine the dif- cording fcene between Brutus and Caffius, in Ju- lius Caefar, to be there exhibited, or the handker- chief in the Moor of Venice : how flight would be their efFecl, when pronounced in a mafk, and through a pipe ? The workings of nature upon the countenance and the flexions of voice expref- five of various feelings, fo deeply affedling in mo- dern reprefentation, would have been entirely loft. If a great genius had arifen with talents for com- poling a pathetic tragedy in perfection, he would have made no figure in Greece. An edifice muft have been ere&ed of a moderate lize : new players muft have been trained to act without a mafk, and to pronounce in their own voice. And, after all, there remained a greater miracle ftill to be wrought,
•
namely, a total reformation of tafte in the people of Athens. In one word, the fimplicity of the Greek tragedy was fuited to the manner of acting, and that manner excluded all improvements.
In compofing a tragedy, the Grecian writers feem to have had no aim but to exhibit on the ftage fome known event as it was fuppofed to have happened. To give a diftincl: notion of the event before-hand, a perlbn introduced on the ftage re- lated every incident to the audience ; and that
perfonr
ARTS. 2O9
perfon fometimes gave a particular account of all that was to happen during the action, which feems to me a very idle thing. This fpeech was term- ed the prologue. There was no notion of an in- vented fable, by which the audience might be kept in fufpenfe during the action. In a word, a Greek tragedy refembles in every refpect a hiftory-pic- ture, in which is reprefented fome event known to all the world. Thus we fee the fame fubject handled by different tragic writers, each fhowing his genius in the manner of reprefenting it. Shake- fpeare's hiilorical plays are all of the fame kind. But the entertainment afforded by fuch a compo- lition is far inferior to what arifes from an unknown ftory, where every incident is new, where the hopes and fears of the audience are kept in conflant agi- tation, and where all is fufpended till the final con- clulion.
From thefe premifes an inference may with cer- tainty be drawn, that delicacy of tafte and feeling were but faintly known among the Greeks, even when they made the greateft figure. Mufic, in- deed, may be fuccefsfully employed in a fentimen- tal tragedy ; but pomp and fplendour avail no- thing. A fpectator deeply affected is regardlefs of decoration. I appeal to the reproving fcene be- tween Hamlet and the Queen his mother : does any man of tafte give the flighteft attention to the beauty of the fcenery ? It would, however, be rafh to involve in the fame cenfure every Atheni-
VOL. I. O an.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.
[B. i.
an. Do not pantomime-fhow, rope-dancing, and other fuch fafhionable fpeftacles, draw multitudes from the deepeft tragedies ? and yet among us there are perfons of tafte, no£ a few, who defpife fuch fpeclacles as fit only for the mob, perfons who never bowed the knee to Baal. And, if there were fuch perfons in Athens, of which we have no rea- fon to doubt, it evinces the fuperiority of their tafte : they had no example of more refined com- politions than were exhibited on their flage ; we have many.
With refpecl: to comedy, it does not appear that the Greek comedy furpafied the tragedy, in its progrefs toward perfection. Horace mentions three ftages of Greek comedy. The firft was well fuited to the rough and coarfe manners of the Greeks when Eupolis, Cratinus, and Ariftophanes wrote, Thefe authors were not afhamed to reprefent on the ftage real perfons, not even difguiiing their names ; ©f which we have a ftriking inftance in a comedy of Ariftophanes, called The Clouds, where Socrates is introduced, and moft contemptuoufly treated. This fort of comedy, fparing neither gods nor men, was. reftrained by the magiftrates of Athens forbidding perfons to be named on the ftage. Ttyis led writers to do what is imitated by us : the characters and manners of known perfons were painted fo much to the life, that there could be no rniftake. The fatire was indeed heightened by this regulation, as every one contributed to the
ft -4 . ...W " • Y
fatire
SX. 4. 2.] ARTS. ill
fatire by detecting the perfons who were meant in the reprefentation. This was termed the middle comedy. But, as there dill remained too great fcope for obloquy and licentioufnefs, a law was made, prohibiting real events or incidents to be introduced upon the ftage. This law happily ba- ni(hed fatire againft individuals, and confined it to manners and cuftoms in general. Obedient to this law, are the comedies of Menander, Philemon, and Diphiiiis, who flourifhed about 300 years before the Chriftian era. And this is termed the third Jlage of Greek comedy. The comedies of Arifto- phanes, which ftill remain, err no lefs againft tafte than againft decency. But we have good ground to believe, that the Greek comedy was conflderably refined by Menander and his cotemporaries ; tho* we muft rely upon collateral evidence, having very few remains of them. Their works, however, were far from perfection, if we can draw any con- jecture from their imitator Plautus, who wrote about a century later. Plautus was a writer of genius ; and it may reafonably be fuppofed that his copies did not fall greatly fnort of the originals, in matters at leaft that can be faithfully copied. At that rate, they muft have been extremely de- fective «in their fubjects, as well as in the conduct of their pieces, for he (hows very little art in ei- ther. With refpect to the former, his plots are wondrous limple, very little varied, and very lit- tle interefting. The fubject of almoft every
O 2 piece
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
piece is a young man in love with a mulic-girl, deiiring to purchafe her from the procurer, and employing a favourite flave to cheat his father out of the price ; and the different ways of ac- qomplifhing the cheat, is all the variety we find. Jn fofne fe, w of his comedies, the flory rifes to a higher tone, the mufic-girl being difcovered to be the daughter of a free man, which removes every ob- ft ruction to a, marriage between her and her lover. With refpect to the conduct of his pieces, there is a miferable defeft of art. Inflead of unfolding the fubject in the progrefs of the action, as is done by Terence and by every modern writer, Plautus in- itroduces an a&or, for no better purpofe than to •explain the ftory to the audience. In one of his comedies, a houfehold-god is fo obliging as not on- ly to unfold the fubject, but to relate beforehand every particular that is to be reprefented, not ex- cepting the cataftrophe. Did not Plautus know, that it is pleafant to have our curiolity raifed about .what will happen next ? In the courfe of the ac- tion, perfons are frequently introduced who are heard talking to themfelves on the open ftreet. One would imagine the Greeks to have been great babblers, when they could not refrain foliloquies even in public. Gould Plautus have been fo art- lefs in the conduct of his pieces, had a more per- fect model been exhibited to him by Menander or
4 i
the other Authors mentioned ?
*" . JF I f , t'l i* * « * *~J J * V 7 »
^
SK. 4* § 2.] ARTS. 213
£ It is obferved in Elements of Criticifm *, that when a language has received fome polifh, and the meaning of words is tolerably afcertained, then it is that a play of words comes to be relifhed. At that period of the Roman language, Plautus wrote. His wit confifts almoft entirely in a play of words, an eternal jingle, words brought together that have nearly the fame found, with different meanings, and words of different founds that have the fame meaning. As the Greek language had arrived to its perfection many years before, fuch falfe wit may be juflly afcribed to Plautus himfelf, not to the Greeks from whom he copied. What was the period of that bailard wit in Greece, I kpow not ; but it appears not to have been antiquated in Homer's days, witnefs the joke in the Odyffey, where Ulyffes impofed upon Polyphemus, by call- ing him Houtis or No-man. Nor feems it to have been antiquated in the days of Euripides, who in his Cyclops repeats the fame filly joke. The Ro- man genius foon purged their compofitions of fuch, infantine beauties ; for in Terence, who wrote about fifty years later than Plautus, there is fcarce a veflige of them. The dialogue befide of Terence is more natural and correct, not a word but to the purpofe : Plautus is full of tautologies, and di- greflions very little to the purpofe. In a word, confidering the flow progrefs of arts, the Roman theatre, from the time of PL.utus to that of Te- rence, made as rapid a progrefs as perhaps ever
O 3 happened
* Chap. 13.
214 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
happened in any country. Ariftotle defines co- medy to be an imitation of light and trivial fub- jects provoking laughter. The comedies of Plau- tus correfpond accurately to that definition : thofe of Terence rife to a higher tone.
Befide the difadvantages of the mafk and pipe mentioned above, there are two caufes that tended tp keep back the Greek and Roman comedy from the perfection of its kind. The firft is the flow progrefs of fociety among thefe nations, occaiioned by feparating from the female fex. Where wo- men are excluded from fociety, it never can arrive at any degree of refinement, not to talk of per- fection. In a fociety of men and women, every one endeavours to fhine : every latent talent, and every variety of character, are brought to light. To judge from ancient writers, man was a very plain being. Tacitus wrote when fociety between the fexes was abundantly free ; and hi no author before him is to be found any thing beyond the outlines of character. In ancient comedies there are mifers, lovers, parafites, procurers; but the individuals of each clafs are caft in the fame mould. In th.e Rudens of Plautus, it is true, a mifer is painted with much anxiety about his hidden trea- fure, every trifling incident being converted by him intp a caufe of fufpicion ; but he is ftill the fame mifer that is painted by others, without any lhade or fingularity in the character. Homer is the only ancient that deferves to be excepted : his
heroes
1
SK. 4. $ 2.] ARTS
heroes have all courage ; but courage in each is clearly of a diftinct kind. Knowledge of an end*
efs variety of character in the human fpecies, ac- quired from unreflrained fociety, has enabled the moderns to enrich the theatre with new characters without end. What elfe is it but defect of know- ledge in the difpoiitions of men, that has confined
he comedies of Plautus and Terence, like thofe of Italy, to a very few characters ?
Nothing is more evident, than the fuperiority of Terence above Plautus in the art of writing -y and, coniidering that Terence is a later writer, no- thing would appear more natural, if they did not copy the fame originals. It may t>e owing to ge* nius that Terence excels in purity of language, and propriety of dialogue ; but how account for his fuperiority over Plautus in the conilrudion and conduct of a play ? It will not certainly be thought, that Plautus would copy the worft models leaving the bed to future writers. This difficulty has not occurred to any of the commentators, as far as I can recollect. If it be fair to judge of Menander and of his cotemporaries from Plautus their imita- tor, the talents of Terence muft have been great, to excel all of them fo much both in the conflruc* tion and conduct of his plays.
Homer, for more than two thoufand years, has been held the prince of poets. Such perfection in- an author who flourifhed when arts were far fhort of maturity, would be furpriiing, would be mira-
O 4 culous.
2l6 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. L
culous. An author of genius * has endeavoured to account for this extraordinary phenomenon ; and I willingly acknowledge, that he has exerted much indultry, as well as invention ; but, in my apprehenlion, without giving fatis faction . The new light that is thrown above upon the Greek theatre, has emboldened me to attempt a criticifm on the Iliad, in order to judge whether Homer has fo far anticipated the ordinary progrefs of nature, as in a very early period to have arrived at the perfection of his art.
To form a good writer, genius and judgment- muft concur. Nature fupplies the former ; but, to the latter, inftruction and imitation are efTential. Shakefpeare lived in an age that afforded him little opportunity to cultivate or improve his judgment ; and, though inimitable in every article that de- pends on genius, there are found many defects in the conduct of his plays, and in other particulars, that require j udgment ripened by experience. Ho- mer lived in a rude age, little advanced in ufeful arts, and ftill lefs in civilization and enlarged be- nevolence. The nations engaged in the Trojan war, are defcribed by him as in a progrefs from the fhepherd-ftate to that of agriculture. In the Iliad, many eminent men are faid to be fhep- herds. Andromache, in particular f, mentions fe- ven of her brethren, who were ilain by Achilles as
they
* EfTay on the Life and Writings of Homer.
f Book vi.
SK.4« § I-] ARTS. 217
they tended their father's flocks tind herds. In that ftate, garments of woollen cloth were ufed ;* but the Ikins of beafts, the original clothing, were flill worn as an upper garment : every chief in the Iliad appears in that drefs. Such, indeed, was- the limplicity of this early period, that a black ewe was promifed by each chief to the man who would undertake to be a fpy. In fuch times li- terature could not be far advanced ; and it is a great doubt, whether there was at that time a fingle poem of the epic kind, for Homer to imi- tate or improve upon. Homer is undoubtedly a wonderful genius, perhaps the greateft that ever exifted : his fire, and the boldnefs of his concep- tions are inimitable. But, in that early age, it would fall little fhort of a real miracle, to find fuch ripenefs of judgment and correctnefs of exe- cution, as in modern writers are the fruits of long experience and progreffive improvements, during the courfe of many centuries. Homer is far from being fo ripe or fo correct. I fhall mention but two or three particulars ; for, to dwell upon the imperfections of fo illuftrious an author, is not pleafant. The firft is, that he reduces his heroes to be little better than puppets. Not one of them performs an action of eclat, but with the afiiftance of fome deity : even Achilles hiinfelf is every where aided by fuperior powers. It is Jupiter who infpires Hector with boldnefs to perforin the heroic actions fo finely defcribed in the I5th book ;
and
21$ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. f.
and it is Jupiter who, changing fides, fills his heart with difmay. Glaucus, defperately wound- ed, fupplicates Apollo, is miraculoufly healed, and returns to the battle perfedly found. Hedor, ftruck to the ground with a ftone, and at the point of giving up the ghoft, is cured by Apollo, and fent back to the battle with redoubled vigour. Homer refembles a feel: of Chriilians, who hold, that a man can do nothing of himfelf, and that he is merely an inftrument which God employs, as we do a fpade or a hatchet. Can Homer's ad- mirers be fo blind as not to perceive, that this fort of machinery detrads from the dignity of his heroes, renders them lefs interefting, and lefs wor- thy of admiration ? Homer, however, is defervedly fuch a favourite, that we are prone to admit any excufe. In days of ignorance, people are much addided to the marvellous. Homer himfelf, it may be juftly fuppofed, was infected with that weaknefs ; and he certainly knew, that his hearers would be enchanted with every thing wonderful, and out of the common courfe of nature. Another particular is his digreflions without end, which draw our attention from the principal fubjed, I wifh fome apology could be made for them. Dio- medes*, for inftance, meeting with Glaucus in the field of battle, and doubting, from his majeftic air, whether he might not be an immortal, inquires who he was, declaring that he would not fight
with,
* Book vi.
. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 219
with a god. Glaucus lays hold of thfs very flight opportunity, in the heat of action, to give a long hiftory of his family. In the mean time, the reader's patience is put to a trial, and his ardor cools. Agamemnon * deiiring advice how to re- fift the Trojans, Diomedes fprings forward ; but, before he offers advice, gives the hiftory of all his progenitors, and of their characters, in along train. And, after all, what was the fage advice that re- quired fuch a preface ? It was, that Agamemnon Ihould exhort the Greeks to fight bravely. At any rate, was Diomedes fo little known, as to make it proper to fufpend the action at fo critical a juncture for a genealogical hiftory ? A third par- ticular, is an endlefs number of minute circum- ftances, efpecially in the defcription of battles, where they are the leaft tolerable. One capital beauty of an epic poem, is the felection of fuch in- cidents and circumftances as make a deep impref- fion, keeping out of view every thing low or fa- miliar f An account of a (ingle battle employs the whole fifth book of the Iliad, and a great part of the fi^th : yet in the whole there is no general action ; but warriors, whom we never heard of be- fore, killed at a diftance with an arrow or a jave- lin ; and every wound defcribed with anatomi- cal accuracy. The whole fcventeenth book is em- ployed in the conteft about the dead body of Pa-
troclus,
* Book xiv.
Elements of Criucifm, vol. i. p. 232. edit. 5.
-
220 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I*,
troclus, fluffed with minute circumftances below the dignity of an epic poem : the reader fatigued, has nothing to relieve him but the melody of Ho- mer's verfification. Gratitude would prompt an apology for an author who affords fo much enter- tainment : Homer had no good models to copy<- after ; and, without good models, we cannot ex- peft maturity of judgment. In a word, Homer was a blazing ftar, and the more to be admired, . becaufe he blazed in an obfcure age. But that he fhould, in no degree, be tainted with the imperfec- tions of fuch an age, is a wild thought : it is fcarce poflible, but by fuppofing him to be more than man.
Particular caufes that advance the progrefs of fine arts, as well as of ufeful arts, are mentioned in the firft part of this Sketch, and to thefe I refer.
HAVING traced the progrefs of the fine arts to- ward maturity in a fummary way, the decline of- thefe arts comes next in order. A ufeful art fel- dom turns retrograde, becaufe every one has an in- tereft to preferve it in perfection. Fine arts de- pend on more flender principles than thofe of Uti- lity ; and therefore the judgment formed of them is more fluctuating. The variety of form that is admitted into the fine arts by fuch fluctuation of judgment, excites artifts to indulge their love of novelty. Reftlefs man knows no golden mean, but will be attempting innovations without end. Such
innovations
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 221
innovations do well in an art diftant from perfec- tion : but they are commonly the caufe of de- generacy in arts that are in perfection: for an artilt ambitious to excel, aims always to be an original, and cannot fubmit to be an imitator. This is the plain meaning of a florid paflage of Velleius Paterculus (Roman Hiftory, lib. i.) " Naturaque, quod fummo ftudio petitum eft, " afcendit in fummum ; difficilisque in perfecto " mora eft ; naturaliterque, quod procedere noil " poteft, recedit." Which may pafs in a learn- ed language, but will never do in our own tongue. " The idea,'' fays Winchleman, of " beauty could not be made more perfect ; and " thofe arts that cannot advance farther, become " retrograde, by a fatality attending all human " things, that if they cannot mount, they muft " fall down, becaufe liability is not a quality of " any created thing." 1 fhall endeavour to il- luftrate the caufe afligned by me above for decline of the fine arts, beginning with architecture. The Ionic was the favourite order when architecture was in its height of glory. The Corinthian order came next ; which, in attempting greater perfec- tion, has deviated from the true iimplicity of na- ture : and the deviation is ftill greater in the Com. polite order *.
With refpect to literary productions, the firft efiays of the Romans were very imperfect. We
may
f Elements of Criticifm, vol. i. p. 206. edit. .
222 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
may judge of this from Plautus, whofe competi- tions are abundantly rude, though much admired by his cotemporaries, being the beft that exifted at that time in Rome. The exalted fpirit of the Romans hurried them on to the grand and beauti- ful ; and literary productions of ail kinds were in perfection when Auguitus reigned. In attempting ftill greater perfection, the Roman compolitions became a ftrange jumble of inconiirtent parts ; they were tumid and pompous, and, at the fame time, full of antithefes, conceit, and tinfel wit. JEvery thing new in a fine art pleafes ; and, for that reafon, fuch compofitions were reliflied. We fee not by what gradual fteps writers, after the time of Auguftus, deviated from the patterns that were before them ; for no book of moment, from the death of that Emperor, is preferred till we come down to Seneca, in whofe works nature and fimplicity give place to quaint thought and ba- ftard wit. He was a great corrupter of the Ro- man tafle ; and after him nothing was relifhed but brilliant ftrokes of fancy, with very little regard to fentiment : even Virgil and Cicero made no fi- gure in comparifon. Lucan has a drained eleva- tion of thought and ftyle, very difficult to be fup- ported : he finks often into puerile reflections ; witnefs his encomium on the river Po, which, fays he, would equal the Danube, had it the fame num- ber of tributary ftreams. Quintilian, a writer of true and claflical tafte, who was protected and en-
co^raged
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 223
couraged by Vefpafian, attempted to ftem the tide of falfe writing. His rhetoric is compofed in an elegant ftyle ; and his obfervations contain every delicacy of the critical art. At the fame time flourifhed Tacitus, poffefling a more extenfiv& knowledge of human nature than any other author ancient or modern, if Shakefpeare be not except- ed. His ftyle is original, concife, compact, and comprehenfive ; and, in what is properly called his hiftory, perfectly correct and beautiful. He has been imitated by feveral, but never equalled by any. Brutus is faid to be the laft of the Romans for love of liberty : Quintilian and Tacitus may be faid to be the laft of the Romans for literary ge- nius. Pliny the younger is no exception : his ftyle is affected, turgid, and full of childifh bril- liancy. Seneca and Pliny are proper examples of writers who ftudy mow more than fubftance, and who make fenfe yield to found.
Whether mufic be or be not on the decline, feems a doubtful point, as the virtuofi are divided about it. In Greece, celebrated for tafte, mufic was a theatrical entertainment, and had a dignified pffice, that of enlivening or enforcing the impref- fions made on the audience by the action. Ii> that office, harmony being of little ufe, was little cultivated : nor did the mufical inftruments at that time known afford great fcope for harmony. Among us, harmony is brought to perfection ; and, in modern compofitions, it commonly is the
chief
224 M^N INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [&. I.
chief part. To have melody and harmony both in perfection, they can never be united in the fame piece. The heart, fwoln by a melancholy ilrain, is regardlefs of harmony ; and, when fub- dued by a delightful ilrain of whatever kind, it has no leifure for complicated harmony. Rich harmony, on the other hand engroffing the whole attention, leaves the heart in a meafure vacant *. The Greeks excelled in melody : the moderns ex- cel in harmony. A juft comparifon between thefe, with refpeft to their effects on the hearer, will give inftrudlion, and perhaps may enable us to de- termine whether mufic be or be not on the de- cline.
Nature, kindly to its favourite man, has furnifh- ed him with five external fenfes, not only for fup- porting animal life, but for procuring to him va- riety of enjoyments. A towering hill as an object of fight, a blufhing rofe as an object of fmell, a pine-apple as an object of tafte, a fine fur as an object of touch, do every one of them produce a pleafant feeling. With refpect to the fenfe of hearing in particular, certain founds heard at the fame inilant raife a pleafant feeling \ and certain founds heard in fucceifion raife another pleafant feeling ; the former termed barmony, the latter me-
lody,
* Corelli excells in combining harmony with melo_dy. His melody could not be richer without impoverifhing his har- mony ; nor his harmony richer without impoverifhing his me- lody.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 235
lody. Harmony, like the pleafure of tafiing or of fmelling, affects us at the organ of fenfe only, and ceafes when its object is removed. But melody is not confined to the organ of fenfe : it pierces to the heart, and pvoduces different emotions, accord- ing to the nature of the modulation. An emotion fo raifed, fuch as that of gaiety, of melancholy, of pity, of courage, of benevolence, fubfifts after the mufic ceafes, and even fwells into a paffion where it meets with a proper object. An air, fweet and melting, raifes an emotion in the tone of love, and readily is elevated to the paffion of love on the fight of a beautiful object. An air, flow and plaintive, produces an emotion in the tone of pity or grief, which, on the appearance of a perfon in diftrefs, becomes a paffion. A lively and animating ftrain produces an emotion of courage : the hearer ex- alted to a hero, longs for an opportunity to exert his prowefs.
Spumantanque dariy fecora inter inertia, votis Optat aprumt autfuhum dffcendere monte leonem.
Can harmony produce an effect in any degree fimi- lar? The greatefl admirer of harmony will not affirm that it can. The emotion raifed by harmo- ny has no affinity to paffion or fentiment, more than the fmell of a tuberofe, or the tafte of an or- tolan ; and it vanifhes inftantaneoufly with the con- cordant founds that produced it.
Hence it may fairly be concluded, that, as far as melody is fuperior to harmony, as far was Greek
VOL. I. P rnufic
236 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
mufic fuperior to the generality of what is now in practice. Exceptions there are undoubtedly that rival whatever could be performed by the ancients : but they are not many in number : the talent of compofing mufic in the tone of a paffion, feems in a great meafure to lie dormant. The Italian ope- ra refembles in form the Greek tragedy, from which evidently it is copied, but very little in fub- ilance. In the latter, the dialogue maintains its fuperior flation ; and mufic, confined to its proper place, has the flrongeft effedt that mufic can pro- duce. In the former, mufic ufurping the fuperior ftation, commands attention by a ftorm of found, leaving the dialogue languid and uninterefting. This unnatural disjunction of found from fenfe, has introduced a fort of baftard mufic, termed re* citative. Suffering the words to pafs, though abun- dantly flat and languid *, I objed: to the execution, an unnatural movement between pronouncing and finging, that cannot be agreeable but to thofe who have been long accuftomed to it. Of one thing I am certain, that graceful pronunciation, whether in the calm narrative tone, or in the warm tone of paffion, is far more pleafant. What puts the pre- ference of the Greek model far beyond a doubt, is, that the tragedies of Sophocles and Euripides were for a long courfe of time the delight of the molt re- fined nation that ever exiiled : an Italian opera, on
* No perfon will fufpedt that under this cenfure is compre- hended the celebrated Metaftafio.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 237
the contrary, never runs above a feafon ; and, after being once laid afide, is never revived. But this flight and fuperficial tafte for harmony above me- lody, cannot be lafting: nature maybe wrefted, but foon or late refumes its empire. Sentimental mufic will be feriouily cultivated, and reftored to the place in the theatre it anciently poflefled with dignity and propriety. Then it is that we may* hope to rival the Greeks in mufic as in other arts. Upon the whole, mufic undoubtedly is much im- proved with refpect to its theory ; but, with refpecl to the practical part, there appears as little doubt of a woful degeneracy.
I lay hold of this opportunity to add a Ihort ar- ticle concerning the hiftory of mufic, which regard to my native country will not fuffer me to omit. We have in Scotland a mulitude of fongs tender and pathetic, expreffive of love in its varieties, of hope, fear, fuccefs, defpondence, and defpair. The ftyle of the rrlufic is wild and irregular, extremely pleafing to the natives, but little relifhed by the bulk of thofe who are accuftomed to the regularity of the Italian flyle. None but men of genius, who follow nature and break loofe from the thraldom of cuftom, efteem that mufic. It was a favourite of the late Geminiani, whofe compofitions fhow delicacy of tafte equal to the fuperiority of his genius ; and it is warmly praifed by Aleflandro Taflbni, the cele- brated author of Secchia Rapita. Difcourfing of ancient and modern mufic, and quoting from vari-
P 2 ous
238 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
ous authors the wonderful effe&s produced by fbme modern competitions, he fubjoins the follow- ing paffage : " Noi ancora poffiamo connumerar " tra noftri, lacopo Re de Scozia, che non pur cofe *' facre compofe in tanto, ma trovo da feftefib una " nuovo mulica lamentevole e mefta, difFerente da " tutte 1'atre. Nel che poi e ftato imitato da Car- " lo Gefualdo Principe di Venofa, che in quefta " noflra eta ha illuftrata anch' egli la mulica con " nuova mirabili invenzioni #.'' The king men- tioned muil be James I. of Scotland, the only one of our kings who feems to have had any remark- able tafte in the fine arts ; and the mufic can be no other than the fongs mentioned above. Thefe are commonly attributed to David Rizzio, becaufe he was an Italian and a mulician ; but erroneoufly, as we now difcover from Taflbni. Our James I. was eminent for poetry no lefs than for mufic. He is praifed for the former by Bifhop Leflie, one of our hlftorians, in the following words : " Patrii car- " minis gloria nulli fecundus." We have many poems afcribed by tradition to that king ; one in t particular,
* ** We may reckon among the compofers of the moderns " James^ King of Scotland, who not only compofed facred " fongs, but was himfelf the inventor of a new ftyle of mufic, ** plaintive and jpathetic, different from all others. Iri this " manner of compofition, he has been imitated in our times *' by Carlo Gefualdo, Prince of Venofa, who has illuftrated *? that ftyle of mufic with new and wonderful invention."—- Penfieri diverfi, lib. IQ. cap. 23.
SX. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 239
particular, Chrift's kirk on the green, is a ludicrous poem, defcribing low manners with no lefs proprie- ty than fprightlincfs.
Another caufe that precipitates the downfal of every fine artf is defpotifm. The reafon is ob- vious ; and there was a difmal example of it in Rome, particularly with regard to eloquence. We learn from a dialogue accounting for the corrup- tion of the Roman eloquence, that, in the decline of the art, it became fafhtonable to fluff harangues with impertinent poetical quotations, without any view but ornament merely ; and this alfo was long fafhionable in France. It happened unluckily for the Romans, and for the world, that the fine arts were at their height in Rome, and not much upon the decline in Greece, when defpotifm put an end to the republic. Auguftus, it is true, retarded their fall, particularly that of literature ; it being the policy of his reign to hide defpotifm, and to give his government an air of freedom. His court was a fchool of urbanity, where people of genius ac- quired that delicacy of tafle, that elevation of fen- timent, and that purity of exprefiion, which cha- racterize the writers of his time. He honoured men of learning, admitted them to his table, and was bountiful to them. It would be painful to fol- low the decline of the fine arts in Rome to their total extirpation. The tyranny of Tiberius and of Uibfequent emperors, broke at laft the elevated and independent fpirit of the brave Romans, reduced
P 3 theiri
340 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
them to abject flavery, and left not a fpark of ge- nius *. The fcience of law is the only exception, as it flourifhed even in the worft of times : the Roman lawyers were a refpeclable body, and lefs the object of jealoufy than men of power and ex- tenfive land property* Among the Greeks alfo, a conquered people, the fine arts decayed, but not fo rapidly as at Rome : the Greeks, farther removed from the feat of government, were lefs within the reach of a Roman tyrant. During their depref- fion, they were guilty of the moft puerile con- ceits ; witnefs verfes compofed in the form of an axe, an egg, wings, and fuch like. The ftyle of Greek writers in the reign of the Emperor Ha-
v . -•.]•.- .- r •> -' •;..*.• i
drian,
* A fingular persecution was carried on by Pope Gregory, moft improperly furnamed the Great, againft the works of Cice- ro, Titus Livius, and Cornelius Tacitus, which in every cor- ner of Chriftendom were publicy burnt ; and from that time,
I \* *'•'-. - - • . • - ' . : • <
there has not been feen a complete copy of any of thefe au- thors. This happened in the fixth century : fo foon had the Romans fallen from the perfection of tafte and knowledge to the moft humbling barbarity. Nor was that the only perfe- cution of books on the fcore of religion. Many centuries ber fore, a fimilar inftance happened in China, directed by a fool- ifh emperor. The Alexandrian Library was twice confumed by fire, once in the time of Julius Csefar, and once in the tim^ of the Calif Omar. What a profufion of knowledge was loft paft redemption ! And yet, upon the whole, it feems doubt- ful, whether the moderns have fuffered by thefe events. At what corner of a library (hall a man begin where he fees an infinity of books, choice ones too ? He will turn his back to the library, and begin at no corner.
'
SK. 4. § 2] ARTS. 241
drian, is unequal, obfcure, ftiff, and affe&ed. Lu- cian is the only exception I am acquainted with.
We need fcarce look for any other caufe but def- potifm, to account for the decline of ftatuary and painting in Greece. Thefe arts had arrived at their utmoft perfection about the time of Alexan- der the Great : from that time they declined gra- dually along with the vigour of a free people ; for Greece was now enilaved by the Macedonian power. It may in general be obferved, that when a nation becomes ftationary in that degree of power and eminence which it acquires from its conftitution and fituation, the national fpirit fubfides, and men of talents become rare. It is {till worfe with a na- tion that is funk below its former power and emi- nence ; and worft of all when it is reduced to flave- ry. Other caufes concurred to accelerate the downfal of the arts mentioned. Greece, in the days of Alexander, was filled with ftatues of ex- cellent workmanfhip ; and there being little de- mand for more, the later ftatuaries were reduced to heads and bufts. At laft the Romans put a to-? tal end both to ftatuary and painting in Greece, by plundering it of its fineft pieces ; and the Greeks, expofed to the avarice of the conquerors, bellowed no longer any money on the fine arts.
The decline of the fine arts in Rome, is by a wri- ter of tafte and elegance afcribed to a caufe differ- ent from any above mentioned, a caufe equally de- ftruclive to manhood and to the fine arts ; and that
P4 is
(6 *( U
242 MEN INDEPENPENT OF SOCIETY, [B, |.
is opulence, joined with its conftant attendants ava- rice and luxury. Jt would b,e doing injuftice to that author to quote him in any words but his own. " Prifcis temporibus, quum adhuc nudgi " virtus placeret, vigebant artes ingenuaey fum- " mumque certamen inter homines erat, ne quid " profuturum feculis diu lateret. Itaque, Hercu- *'. les ! oinnium herbarum fuccos Democritus ex- *' preflit : et ne lapidum virgultorumque vis late- ret, aetatem inter experimenta confumpfit. Eu- doxus quidem in c^cumine excelfiflimi montis confenuit, ut aftrorum coelique motus deprehen- " deret : et Chryfippus, ut ad inventionem fuffici- " ret, ter helleboro animum deterfit. Verum ut " ad plaftas convertar, Lyfippum ftatuae unius w lineamentis inhaerentem inopia extinxit : et " Myron, qui pene hominum animas ferarumque aere comprehenderat, non invenit hceredem. At nos, vino fcortisque, demerfi, ne paratas quidem " artes audemus cognofcere ; fed accufatores an- " tiquitatis, vitia tantum docemus, et difcimus. " Ubi eft dialectica ? ubi aftronomia ? ubi fapien- " tiae confultiflima via ? Quis unquam venit in " templum, et votum fecit ft ad eloquentiam per- " veniflet ? quis, ft philpfophiae fontem inveniflet ? <€ Ac ne bonam quidem men tern, aut bonam va- ^ letudinem, petunt : fed ftatim, antequam limen " capitolii tangunt, alius donum promittit ii pro- ?' pinquum divitem extulerit ; alius, ft thefaurum ff pfFoderit ; alius, fi ad trccenties H — S. falvus
" perveneri|,f
if. it
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 243
" pervenerit. Ipfe fenatus, rccli bonique praecep-
" tor, mille pondo auri capitolio promittere folet :
" et ne quis dubitet pecuniam concupifcere, Jovem
" quoque peculio exorat. Nolito ergo mirari, fi
" pi&ura defecit, quum omnibus diis hominibusque
" formoiior videatur mafia auri, quarn quidquid
" Apelles Phidiasve fecerunt *.'' In England,
- the
* '* In ancient times, when naked virtue had her admirers, tl the liberal arts were in their higheft vigour ; and there was *' a generous conteft among men, that nothing of real and " permanent advantage fhould long remain undiicovered. " Democritus extracted the juic£ of every herb and plant ; *' and, left the virtue of a fmgle done or twig Ihould efcape " him, he confumed a lifetime in experiments. Eudoxus, im- " merfed in the ftudy of aftronomy, fpent his age upon the " top of a mountain. Chryfippus, to ftimulate his inventive *• faculty, thrice purified his genius with hellebore. To turn " to the imitative arts : Lyfippus, while labouring on the " forms of a fmgle ftatue periftied from want. Myron, whofe " powerful hand gave to the brak almoft the foul of man, and *' animals, — at his death found not an heir ! Of us of modern " times what fhall we fay ? Immerfed in drunkennefs and de~ ** bauchery, we want the fpirit to cultivate thofe arts which " we poflefs. We inveigh againft the manners of antiquity ; " we ftudy vice alone ; and vice is all we teach. Where now " is the art of reafoning ? where aftronomy ? where is the right path of wifdom ? What man now-a-days is heard in our temples to make a vow for the attainment of eloquence, " or for the difcovery of the fountain of true philofophy ? Nor " do we even pray for health of body, or a found underftand- " ing. One, while he has fcarce entered the porch of the f ' temple, devotes a gift in the event of the death of a rich re-
f lation ;
(C
«
244 M£N INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
the fine arts are far from *fuch perfection as to fuf- fer by opulence. They are in a progrefs, it is true, toward maturity ; but, gardening alone excepted, they proceed in a very flow pace.
There is a particular caufe that never fails to undermine a fine art in a country where it is brought to perfection, abftracting from every one of the caufes above mentioned. In the firft part of the prefent {ketch it is remarked, that nothing is more fatal to an art or to a fcience, than a per- formance fo much fuperior to all of the kind, as to extinguifh emulation. This remark is exemplified
/ » *
in the great Newton, who, having furpaffed all the ancients, has not left to his countrymen even the fainteft hope of rivalling him ; and to that caufe is attributed the viiible decline of mathematical knowledge in Great Britain. The fame caufe would have been fatal to the arts of ftatuary and painting among the Greeks, even though they had continued a free people. The decay of painting in modern Italy, is probably owing to the fame
caufe :
<l lation ; another prays for the difcovery of a treafure ; €t a third for a minifterial fortune. The fenate itfelf, the " exemplary preceptor of what is good and laudable, has «' promifed a thoufand pounds of gold to the capitol ; and 0 to remove all reproach from the crime of avarice, has offer. " ed a bribe to Jupiter himfelf. How fhould we wonder that <( the art of painting has declined, when, in the eyes both of " the gods and men, there is more beauty in a mafs of gold, «« than in all the works of Phidias and Apelles ?"— Petroniuts Arbiter.
66 66
*
6t 66
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 245
caufe : Michael Angelo, Raphael, Titian, &c. are lofty oaks that keep down young plants in their neighbourhood, and intercept from them the fun- Ihine of emulation. Had the art of painting made a flower progrefs in Italy, it might have there con- tinued in vigour to thi& day. Valleius Paterculus fays judicioufly, " Ut primo ad confequendos quos priores ducimus accendiinur ; ita, ubi aut prae- teriri aut aequari eos poffe defperavimus, ftudium cum fpe fenefcit ; et quod adfequi non poteft, fequi definit : praeteritoque eo in quo eminere " non poflimus, aliquid in quo nitarnuv conquiri-? " mus*."
The decline of an art or fcience proceeding from the foregoing caufe, is the mod rapid where a ftridt comparifon can be inilituted between the works of different matters. The fuperiority of Newton above every other mathematician, can be afcer- tained with precilion ; and hence the fudden de- cline of that fcience in Great Britain. In Italy, a talent for painting continued many years in vigour ;. becaufe no painter appeared with fuch fuperiority of genius, as to carry perfection into every branch of the art. A$ one. furpafled in deiign, one in co- lours,
* " As at firft we are excited to emulate thofe fuperior '* models, fo, when once we have loft the hope of excelling, or " even of equalling them, our ambition fails us with our " hopes : we ceafe to purfue what we cannot attain ; and, nc- " gle&ing that ftudy in which we are debarred from arriving 1 at excellence, we fearch for a different field of emulation."
246 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
lours, one in graceful attitudes, there was Hill fcope for emulation. But when, in the progrefs of the art, there was not a lingle perfection but had been feized by one or other mailer, from that period the art began to languifh. Architecture continued longer in vigour than painting, becaufe the principles of comparifon in the former are lefs precife than in the latter. The artift who could not rival his predecefTors in an eilablifhed mode, fought out a new mode for himfelf, which, though perhaps lefs elegant or perfect, was for a time fup- ported by novelty.
Corruption of the Latin tongue makes a proper appendix to the decline of the fine arts in Rome. That the Latin tongue did not long continue in purity after the Emperor Auguflus, is certain ; and all writers agree, that the caufe of its early cor- ruption was a continual influx into Rome of men, to whom the Latin was a foreign language. The teafon is plauiible, but whether folid, may be doubted. In all countries, there are provincial diale&s, which, however, tend not to corrupt the language of the capital, becaufe they are carefully avoided by all who pretend to fpeak properly ; and, accordingly, the multitude of provincials who flock to Paris and to London, have no influence to corrupt the language. The fame probably was the cafe in old Rome, especially with refpect to ftrangers whofe native tongue was totally different from that of Rome : their imperfect manner of
fpeaking
SK.4- $ 2.] ARTS. % 247
fpeaking Latin might be excufed, but certainly was not imitated. Slaves in Rome had little con- verfation with their matters, except in receiving orders or reproof ; which had no tendency to vi- tiate the Latin tongue. The corruption of that tongue, and at laft its death and burial as a living language, were the refult of two combined caufes ; of which the early prevalence of the Greek lan- guage in Rome is the firft. Latin was native to the Romans only, and to the inhabitants of Latium. The languages of the reft of Italy were numerous : the MeiTapian was the mother-tongue in Apulia, the Hetrufcan in Tufcany and Umbria, the Greek in Magna Graecia, the Celtic in Lombardy and Li- guria, &c. &-c. Latin had arrived at its purity not many years before the reign of Auguftus, and had not taken deep root in thofe parts of Italy where it was not the mother-tongue, when Greek became the fafhionable language among people of rank, as French is in Europe at prefent. Greek, the ftorehoufe of learning, prevailed in Rome even in Cicero's time ; of which he himfelf bears tefti- mony in his oration for the poet Archias : " Graeca< " leguntur in omnibus fere gentibus : Latina fuis " finibus, exiguis fane, continentur." And, for that reafon, Atticus is warmly folicited by him to write the hiftory of his confulate in Greek. Thus Latin, juftled by Greek out of its place, was left to inferiors, and probably would have funk to ut- ter oblivion, even though the republic had conti- nued
248 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B, I.
nued in vigour. But the chief caufe was the def- potifm of the Roman government, which proved the deftruction of the fine arts, and of literature in particular. In a country of fo many different lan- guages, the Latin tongue could not be preferved in purity, but by conftant perufal of Roman claf- fics : but thefe were left to rot in libraries, a dark cloud of ignorance having overfpread the whole empire. Every perfon carelefsly fpoke the lan- guage acquired in the nurfery ; and people of dif- ferent tongues being mixed under one govern- ment, without a common ftandard, fell gradually into a fort of mixed language, which every one made a fhift to underftand. The irruption of many barbarous nations into Italy, feveral of whom fet- tled there, added to the jargon. And that jargon, compofed of many heterogeneous parts, was in procefs of time purified to the tongue that is now native to all the inhabitants of Italy.
In a hiftory of the Latin tongue, it ought not to be overlooked, that it continued long in purity among the Roman lawyers. The fcience of law was in Rome more cultivated than hi any other country. The books written upon that fcience in Latin were numerous ; and, being highly regard- ed, were the conftant ftudy of every man who afpired to be an eminent lawyer. Neither could fuch men have any bias to the Greek tongue, as law was little cultivated in Greece. Thus it hap- pened, that the Latin tongue, as far as concerns
law,
SK* 4. § 2.] ARTS. 249
law, was preferved in purity, even to the time of the Emperor Juftinian.
Greek was preferved in purity much longer than Latin. The fame language was fpoken through all Greece, with fome flight varieties in dialecl. It was brought to great perfection and firmly root- ed during the profperous days of Greece. Its daffies were numerous, and were ftudied by every perfon who pretended to literature *. Now, though the free and manly fpirit of the Greeks yielded to Roman defpotifm, yet while any appe- tite for literature remained, their invaluable dailies were a ilandard, which preferved the language in purity. But ignorance at length became univer- fal ; and the Greek claffics ceafed to be a ftandard, being buried in libraries, as the Roman claffics had been for centuries. In that ftate, the Greek tongue could not fail to degenerate among an ig- norant and fervile people, who had no longer any ambition to act well, write well, or fpeak well. And yet, after all, that beautiful tongue, far be- yond a rival, has fufFered lefs alteration than any other ever did in fimilar circumftances ; one caufe of which is, that to this day the Greeks live fepa- rate from their mailers the Turks, and have little commerce with them.
From the fate of the Latin tongue, an obferva- tion is drawn by many writers, that all languages
are
* There ftill remain about three thoufand Greek books ; of Latin books not above fixty.
250 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
are in a continual flux, changing from age to age without end. And fuch as are fond of fame, de- plore it as a heavy misfortune, that the language in which they write will foon become obfolete and unintelligible. But it is a common error in rea- foning, to found a general conclulion upon a fingle fadl. In its progrefs toward perfe&ion, a language is continually improving, and therefore continually changing. But fuppofing a language to have ac- quired its utmoft perfection, I fee nothing that Ihould neceflarily occafion any change : on the con- trary, the claffical books in that language become a ftandard for writing and fpeaking, to which every man of tafte and figure conforms himfelf. Such was the cafe of the Greek tongue, till the Greeks were brutified by defpotifm. The Italian has con- tinued in perfection more than three centuries, and the French more than one. The Arabic has continued without change more than a thoufand years : there is no book in that language held to be in a ftyle more pure or perfect than the Koran #. The Englifh language has not yet acquired all the
purity
* I am far from thinking that the language of the Ara- bians, an illiterate people in the days of their prophet Ma- ; hornet, was at that time carried to fuch purity and perfection, as not to be fufceptible of improvement. The fixing that language was undoubtedly owing to the Koran, which was held the word of God delivered to Mahomet by the angel Gabriel, and confequently was pioufly judged to be the (land- a.r4 of perfection.
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 251
purity it is fufceptible of; but, when there is no place for further improvements, there feems little doubt of its becoming ftationary, like the languages mentioned. I bar always fuch a revolution as era- dicates knowledge, and reduces a people to a ftate of barbarity. In an event fo difmal, the deftruc- tion of claflical books and of a pure language, is not the greateft calamity : they will be little regretted in the univerfal wreck. In the mean time, to a writer of genius in a polilhed nation, it cannot but be a charming profpecl, that his works will fland and fall with his country. To make fuch a writer exert his talents for purifying his mother-tongue, and for adding to the number and reputation of its claffics, what nobler excitement, than the cer- tainty of being tranfmitted to pofterity, and ad- mired by every perfon of tafte through all ages- !
As before the invention of printing, writers could have nothing in view but reputation and praife, they endeavoured to give the utmoft per- fection to their compolitions. They at the fame time iludied brevity, in order that their works might pafs through many hands ; for the expence of tranfcribing great volumes, could not t>e afford- ed by every reader. The art of printing has made- a great revolution : the opportunity it furnilhes to multiply copies, has degraded writing to be a lu- crative employment. Authors now ftudy to fwell their works, in order to raife the price ; and being in a hurry for money, they reject the precept ot
VOL. I. Horace
2-52 REN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
Horace, Nonum prematur in annum. Take for ex- ample the Natural Hiftory of Aldrovandus, in many folio volumes. After filling his common-place book with paffages from every author ancient and modern, to the purpofe and not to the purpofe; be fits down to compofe, bent to transfufe into his book every article thus painfully collected. For example, when he introduces the ox, the cock, or any other animal ; far from confining himfelf to jits natural hiftory, he omits nothing that has been faid of it in books where it has been occafionally introduced, not even excepting tales for amufing children : he mentions all the fuperftitious notions concerning it, every poetical comparison drawn from it, the ufe it has ferved in hieroglyphics and in coats- armorial; in $ word, all the hiftories and all the fables in which it has been named. Take another jnftance from a German or Dutch chronologer, whofe name has efcaped me, and which I give in a tranflation from the Latin, to prevent the bias that one has for a learned lan- guage. " Samfon was the fame with the Theban " Hercules ; which appears from the actions attri- " buted to each of them, efpecially from the fol- " lowing, That Hercules, unarmed, is faid to have " fuffocated the Nemean lion with a fqueeze of his " arms : Samfon, unarmed, did the fame, by tear- " ing a lion to pieces ; and Jofephus fays, that he " did not tear the lion, but put out his breath with ?c a fqueeze ; which could be done, and was done
" by M/
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS. 253
" by Scutilius the wrefller, as reported by Suidas. " David alfo, unarmed, tore to pieces* a lion, i Sa- " muel, chap. 17. ; and Benaiah the fon of Jehoiada " alfo flew a lion, 2 Sam. chap. 23. ver. 20. More- " over we read, that Samfon having caught three <" hundred foxes, tied lighted firebrands to their " tails, and drove them into the Handing corn of " the Philiilines, by which both the fhocks and '" Handing corn, with the vineyards and olives, " were burnt up. Many think it incredible, that *' three hundred foxes Ihould be caught by one " man ; as the fox, being the moH cunning of all " animals, would not fuffer itfelf to be eafily ta- u ken. Accordingly Oppian, a Greek poet who 46 writes upon hunting, aflerts, that no fox will fuf- " fer itfelf to be taken in a gin or a net ; though " we are taught the contrary by Martial, lib. 10. " epig. 37.
" Hie olidum clamofus ages in retla vulfiem*
" In India, eagles, hawks, and ravens, are taugh^ *' to hunt foxes, as we are informed by Olianus, " Var. hiH. lib. 9. cap. 26. They are alfo caught 44 by traps and fnares, and in covered pits, as " wolves are, and other large animals. Nor is it " wonderful that fuch a multitude of foxes were u caught by Samfon, conlidering that PaleHine " abounded with foxes. He had hunters without ** number at command ; and he was not confined '* in time. The fame of that exploit was fpread
" far
"
((
<(
254 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. j~B. I.
far and near. Even among the Romans there " were veftiges of it, as appears from Ovid, Faft. lib. 9. ver. 68 1. In one Roman feflival, armed foxes were let loofe in the circus ; which Ovid, in the place quoted, fays was done in memory of the Carfiolan fox, which, having deilroyed " many hens belonging to a country woman, was f' caught by her, and plinimed as follows. She wrapped up the fox in hay, which fhe fet fire to ; and the fox being let go, fled through the {land- ing corn, and fet it on fire. There can be no f< doubt but that this feftival was a veilige of Sam- " fon's foxes, not only from congruity of circum- " fiances, but from the time of celebration, which " was the month of April, the time of harveft in *' Paleftine. See more about foxes in Burman's *' works.-* Not to mention the ridiculous argu- ments of this writer to prove Samfon to be the fame with the Theban Hercules, nor the childifh wanderings from that fubjecl ; he has totally over- looked the chief difficulties. However well fixed the fire-brands might be, it is not eafily concei- vable, that the foxes, who would naturally fly to their lurking-holes, could much injure the corn, or the olive-trees. And it is as little conceivable, what fhould have moved Samfon to employ foxes, when, by our author's fuppofition, he had men at command, much better qualified than foxes for pommitting wafle. This author would have faved himfelf much idle labour, had he embraced a very
*, 14 ..-•:. ' J
probabjc
SK. 4. § 2.] ARTS* 255
\
probable opinion, that, if the tranilation be not er- roneous, the original text muft be corrupted. But enough, and more than enough, of thefe writers. Maturity of tafte has banifhed fuch abfurdities ; and at prefent, happily, books are lefs bulky, and more to the pnrpofe than formerly.
It is obferved above *, that in a country thinly peopled, where the fame perfon muft for bread undertake different employments, the people are knowing and con verf able ; but ftupid and igno- rant in a populous country where induftry and manufactures abound. That obfervation holds not with refpecl to the fine arts. It requires fo much genius to copy even a lingle figure, whether in painting or in fculpture, as to prevent the opera- tor from degenerating into a brute. The great exertion of genius, as well as of invention, requi- red in grouping figures, and in imitating human actions, tends to invigorate thefe faculties, with re- fpecl to every fubject, and of courfe to form a man of parts.
SKETCH
f Firlt fetfion of the prefent Sketch.
i.
256 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
SKETCH V.
MANNERS.
* *
SOME perfons have a peculiar air, a peculiar manner of fpeaking or of acting, which, in oppofition to the manners of the generality, are termed their manners. Such peculiarities in a whole nation, by which it differs from other na- tions or from itfelf at different periods, are termed the manners of that nation. Manners therefore lignify a mode of behaviour peculiar to a certain perfon, or to. a certain nation. The term is not applied to mankind in general ; except perhaps in contradiftinction to other beings.
Manners are diftinguifhed from morals ; but in what refpedt has not been clearly ftated. Do not
} i
the fame actions come under both ; Certainly ; but in different refpects ; an action confidered as right or wrong, belongs to morals ; confidered as peculiar to a perfon or to a people, it belongs to manners.
The intention of the prefent fketch is, to trace out fuch manners only as appear to proceed imme- diately
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 257
diately from the nature and character of a people, whether influenced by the form of government, or depending on the degree of civilization. I am far from regretting, that manners produced by cli- mate, by foil, and by other permanent caufes, fall not under my plan : I Ihould indeed make a forry figure upon a fubjecl: that has been acutely dif- cufled by the greateft genius of the prefent age *.
I begin with external appearance, being the firil thing that draws attention. The human coun- tenance and geilures have a greater variety of ex- preflions than thofe of any other animal : and fome perfons differ widely from the generality in thefe exprefiions, fo as to be known by their manner of walking, or even by fo flight an action as that of putting on or taking off a hat : fome men are known even by the4bund of their feet in walking. Whole nations are diftinguifhable by fuch pecu- liarities.. And yet there is lefs variety in looks and geflures, than the different tones of mind would produce, were men left to the impulfes of pure nature : man, an imitative animal, is prone to copy others ; and by imitation, external behaviour is nearly uniform among thofe who ftudy to be agree- able ; witnefs people of fafhion in France. I reft upon thefe outlines : to enter fully into the fub- jedt would be an endlefs work ; difproportioned at any rate to the narrownefs of my plan.
Q^4 Drefs
* Montefquieu.
258 MEN INDEPENDENT tiF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
Drefs muft not be omitted, becaufe it enters alfo into external appearance. Providence hath clo- thed all animals that are unable to clothe them- felves. Man can clothe himfelf; and he is en- dowed befide with an appetite for drefs, no lefs natural than an appetite for food. That appetite is proportioned in degree to its ufe : in cold cli- mates it is vigorous ; in hot climates, faint. Sa- vages muft go naked till they learn to cover them- felves ; and they foon learn where covering is ne- ceflary. The Patagonians, who go naked in a bit- ter-cold climate, muft be wofully ftupid. And the Picts, a Scotch tribe, who, it is faid, continued naked down to the time of Severus, did not pro- bably much furpafs the Patagonians in the talent of invention.
Modefty is another caufe for clothing : few fa- vages expofe the whole of the body. It gives no high idea of Grecian modefty, that at the Olym- pic games people wreftled and run races ftark na- ked.
There is a third caufe for clothing, which is, tfie pleafure it affords. A fine woman, feen naked once in her life, is made a defirable object by no- velty. But let her go naked for a month, how much more charming will me appear, when dref- fed with propriety and elegance ! Clothing is fo effential to health, that to be lefs agreeable than nakednefs would argue an incongruity in our nature. Savages probably at firft thought of clo- thing
SK. 5«] MANNERS. 259
thing as a prote&ion only againft the weather ; but they foon difcovered a beauty in drefs : men led the way, and women followed. Such favages as go naked paint their bodies, excited by the fame fondnefs for ornament that our women Ihew in their party-coloured garments. Among the Jews, the men wore ear-rings as well as the women *. When Media was governed by its own kings, the men were fumptuous in drefs: they wore loofe robes, floating in the air ; had long hair covered with a rich bonnet, bracelets, chains of gold, and precious ftones : they painted their faces, and mix- ed artificial hair with that of nature. As authors are filent about the women, they probably made no figure in that kingdom, being ihut up, as at prefent, in feraglios. In the days of Socrates, married women in Greece were confined to be houfehold drudges merely. Xenophon in his Me- morabilia Socratis, introduces Ifomachus, an Athe- .nian of great riches and reputation, difcourfing to Socrates of his family affairs, " that he told his " wife that his main objedfc in marrying her was to *' have a perfon in whofe difcretion he could con- " fide, who would take proper care of his fervants, " and lay out his money with economy ;'' thajt one day he obferved her face painted, and with high-heeled fhoes ; that he chid her feverely for fuch follies, " could fhe imagine to pafs fuch filly *' tricks on a hulband ? If fhe wanted to have at
/
" better
* JExod. xxxii. 2..
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. X.
" better complexion, why not weave at her loom " Handing upright, why not employ herfelf in " baking and other family exercifes, which would " give her fuch a bloom as no paint could imi- " tate ?' But when the Athenian manners came to be more polifhed, greater indulgence was given to the ladies in drefs and ornament. They con- fumed the whole morning at the toilette ; employ- ing paint, and every drug for cleaning and whiten- ing the fkin : they laid red even upon their lips, and took great care of their teeth ; their hair, made up in buckles with a hot iron, was perfu- med and fpread upon the fhoulders : their drefs was elegant, and artfully contrived to fet off a fine fhape. Such is the influence of appetite for drefs : vanity could not be the fole motive, as married ladies were never feen in public *. We learn from St Gregory, that women in his time dreffed the head extremely high, environing it with many treffes of falfe hair, difpofed in knots and buc- kles, fo as to refemble a regular fortification. Jo- fephus reports, that the Jewifh ladies powder- ed their hair with gold duftj a fafhion that was carried from Afia to Rome. The firft wri- ter who mentions white powder for the hair, the fame we ufe at prefent, is L'Etoile, in his
journal
* Young women in Athens appeared frequently in public, but always by themfelves. In feftivals, facrifices, &c. they /made part of the {how. crowned with flowers, chanting hymn? and dancing in knots.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 26t
journal for the year 1593. He relates, that nuns walked the flreets of Paris curled and powdered. That fafhion fpread by degrees through Europe. For many years after the civil wars in France, it was a fafhion in Paris to wear boots and fpurs, with a long fword : a gentleman was not in full drefs without thefe accoutrements. The fword con- tinues an article of drefs, though it diftinguifhes not a gentleman from his valet. To mow that a tafte for drefs and ornament is deeply rooted in human nature, favages difplay that tafte upon the body, having no covering to difplay it upon. Sel- dom is a child of a favage left to nature : it is de- prived of a tefticle, a finger, a tooth ; or its fkin is engraved with figures.
Clothing hath no flight influence, even with re- fpecl to morals. I venture to affirm, at the hazard of being thought paradoxical, that nakednefs is more friendly to chaflity than covering. Adultery is unknown among favages, even in hot climates where they have icarce any covering. Drefs gives play to the imagination, which pictures to itftflf many fecret beauties which vanifh when rendered familiar by fight: if a lady accidentally difcover half a leg, imagination is inftantly inflamed ; though an adrefs appearing in breeches is beheld with indifference : a naked Venus makes not fuch an impreflion as when a garter only is difcovered.
Cleannefs is an article in external appearance. Whether cleanlinefs be inherent in the nature of
man.
262 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
man, or only a refinement of polifhed nations, may at firft appear doubtful. What pleads for the former is, that cleannefs is remarkable in feveral nations which have made little progrefs in the arts of life. The favagesof the Caribbee iilands, once a numerous tribe, were remarked by writers as neat and cleanly. In the iiland Otaheite, or King George's ifland, both fexes are cleanly : they bathe frequently, never eat nor drink without wafhing before and after, and their garments, as well as their perfons, are kept free of fpot or blemifh. Ammianus Marcellinus, defcribing the Gauls, fays, that they were cleanly ; and that even the pooreft women were never feen with dirty garments. The Negroes, particularly thofe of Ardrah in the Have- coaft, have a fcrupulous regard to cleannefs. They warn, morning and evening, and perfume them- felves jvith aromatic herbs. In the city of Benin, women are employed to keep the ftreets clean ^ and in that refpecl they are not undone by the Dutch. In Corea, people mourn three years for the death of their parents ; during which time they never warn. Dirtinefs muft appear difmal to that people, as to us*. But inftances are no lefs numerous that favour the other fide of the, queftion. Ammianus Marcellinus reports of the
Huns,
* Many animals are remarkable for cleannefs. Beavers are fo, and fo are cats. This muft be natural. Though a tafte for cleannefs is not remarkable in dogs, yet, like men, they learn to be cleanly.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 263
Huns, that they wore a coat till it fell to pieces with dirt and rottennefs. Plan Carpin, who vilited the Tartars anno 1246, fays, " That they " never wafh face nor hands ; that they never " clean a dim, a pot, nor a garment ; that, like " fwine, they make food of every thing, not " excepting the vermin that crawl on them.' The prefent people of Kamlkatka anfwer to that defcription in every article. The naflinefs of North-American favages, in their food, in their cabins, and in their garments, pafles all conception. As they never change their garments till they fall to rags, nor ever think of wafhing them, they arc eat up with vermin. The Efquimaux, and many other tribes, are equally nafty.
As cleannefs requires attention and induftry, the cleannefs of fome favages muft be the work of na- ture, and the dirtinefs of others muft proceed from indolence counteracting nature. In fact, clean- nefs is agreeable to all, and naftinefs difagreeable : no perfon prefers dirt ; and even thofe who are the moft accuftomed to it are pleafed with a cleanly appearance in others. It is true, that a tafte for cleannefs, like that for order, for fymmetry, for congruity, is extremely faint during its infancy among favages. Its ftrongeft antagonift is indo- lence, which favages indulge to excefs : the great fatigue they undergo in hunting, makes them fond of eafe at home ; and dirtinefs, when once habi- tual, is not ealily conquered. But cleannefs im- proves
264 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. 1.
proves gradually with manners, and makes a figure •in every induftrious nation. Nor is a tafte for cleannefs beftowed on man in vain : its final caufe is confpicuous, cleannefs being extremely whole- fome, and naftinefs no lefs unwholefome*.
Thus
* The plague, peftilential fevers, and other putrid difeafes, were more frequent in Europe formerly than at prefent, efpe- cially in great cities, where multitudes were crowded together in fmall houfes, feparated by narrow ftreets. Paris, in the days of Henry IV. occupied not the third part of its prefent fpace, and yet contained nearly the fame number of inhabi- tants ; and in London the houfes are much larger, and the ftreets wider than before the great fire 1666. There is alio a remarkable alteration in point of diet. Formerly, people of rank lived on fait meat the greater part of the year : at pre- fent, frefh meat is common all the year round. Pot-herbs and roots are now a confiderable article of food : about Lon- don, in particular, the confumption at the Revolution was not the fixth part of what it is now. Add the great con- fumption of tea and fugar, which I am told by phyficians to be no inconfiderable antifeptics. But the chief caufe of all is cleannefs, which is growing more and more general, efpeci-, ally in the city of London. In Conftantinople, putrid difeafes reign as much as ever ; not from unhealthinefs in the climate, but from the narrownefs and naftinefs of the ftreets. How it comes that Turkifh camps differ fo much from the metropo- lis, I cannot fay. Bufbequius vifited a Turkifh camp in the days of Solyman the Magnificent. The ordure was carefully buried under ground ; not any noifome fmell ; in every cor- ner it was clean and neat. The excrements, which appear every where in our camps when ftationary, create a fort of plague among the men. Captain Cook lately made a voyage
round
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 26$
Thus it appears, that a tafte for cleannefs is in- herent in our nature. I fay more : cleannefs is evidently a branch of propriety, and confequently a felf-duty. The performance is rewarded with approbation ; and the negledl is punifhed with con- tempt #.
A tafte for cleannefs is not equally diftributcd among all men ; nor indeed is any branch of the moral fenfe equally diftributed : and if, by nature, one perfon be more cleanly than another, a whole nation may be fo. I judge that to be the cafe of the Japanefe, fo finically clean as to find fault even with the Dutch for dirtinefs. Their inns are not an exception ; nor their little houfes, in which wa- ter is always at hand for warning after the opera- tion. I judged it alfo to be the cafe of the Eng- lifh, who, high and low, rich and poor, are re- markable for cleannefs all the world over ; and I have often amufed myfelf with fo fingular a re- femblance between iilanders, removed at the great- eft diftance from each other. But I was forced to abandon the refemblance, upon a difcovery that
the
round the world, and loft but a Angle man by difeafe, who at the fame time was fickly when he entered the fhip. One main article that preferred the health of the crew, was clean- nefs The Captain regularly one morning every week, re- viewed his iliip's company, to fee that every one of them had clean linen ; and he beftowed the fame care with refpedl to their clothes and bedding.
t Elements of Criticifm, chap. x.
266 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
the Englifti have not always been fo clean as at prefent. Many centuries ago, as recorded in Monk- ifh hiftory, one caufe of the averfion the Englifh had to the Danes was their cleannefs : they comb- ed their hair, and put on a clean fhirt once a-week. It was reputed an extraordinary effort in Thomas a Becket, that he had his parlour ftrewed every day with clean ftraw. The celebrated Erafmus, who vilited England in the reign of Henry VIII, com- plains of the naftinefs and flovenly habits of its people ; afcribing to that caufe the frequent plagues which infefted them. " Their floors," fays he, " are commonly of clay ftrewed with rufhes, im- 41 der which lies unmolefted a collection of beer, *' greafe, fragments, bones, fpittle, excrements of " dogs and cats, and of every thing that is nau- " feous #." And the ftrewing a floor with draw or. ruihes was common in Queen Elizabeth's time, not excepting even her prefence-cbamber. A change fo extraordinary in the tafte and manners of the Englifh, roufes our curiolity \ and J fatter myfelf that the following caufe will be fatisfactory. A favage, remarkably indolent at home, though not infenfible of his dirtinefs, cannot roufe up ac- tivity fufficient to attempt a ferious purgation ; and would be at a lofs where tQ begin. The induf- trious, on the contrary, are improved in neatnefs and propriety, by the art or manufacture that conftantly employs them : they are never reduced
to
. 432.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 267
to purge the liable of Augeas ; for being prone to adtion, they fuffer not dirt to reft unmolefted. In- duftrious nations, accordingly, all the world over, are the moft cleanly. Arts and induftry had long flourifhed in Holland, where Erafmus was born and educated : the people were clean above all their neighbours, becaufe they were induftrious above all their neighbours ; and, upon that ac- count, the dirtinefs of England could not fail to ftrike a Hollander. At the period mentioned, in- duftry was as great a ftranger to England as clean- nefs : from which conlideration, may it not fairly be inferred, that the Englifh are indebted for their cleanlinefs to the great progrefs of induftry among them in later times ? If this inference hold, it places induftry in an amiable light. The Spa- niards, who are indolent to a degree, are to this day as dirty as the Englifh were three centuries ago. Madrid, their capital, is naufeouily nafty : heaps of unmolefted dirt in every ftreet, raife in that warm climate a peftiferous fleam, which threatens to knock down every ftranger. A pur- gation was lately fet on foot by royal authority. But people habituated to dirt are not eafily reclaim- ed : to promote induftry is the only effectual re- medy *. The naftinefs of the ftreets of Lifbon be- fore
* Till the year 1760 there was not a privy in Madrid, though it is plentifully fupplied with water. The ordure, during night, was thrown from the windows into the ftreet,
where
VOL. I. R
268 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
fore the late earthquake, was intolerable ; and fo is at prefent the naftinefs of the ftreets of Cadiz.
Though induftry be the chief promoter of clean- nefs, yet it is feldom left to operate alone ; other caufes mix, fome to accelerate the progrefs, fome to retard it. The moifture of the Dutch climate has a confiderable influence in promoting cleanli- nefs ; and, joined with induftry, produces a fur- prifing neatnefs and cleannefs among people of bu- finefs : men of figure and famion, who generally refort to the Hague, the feat of government, are < not fo cleanly. On the other hand, the French are lefs cleanly than the Englifh, though not lefs in- duftrious. But the lower claffes of people being in England more at their eafe than in France, have a greater tafte for living well, and in particular for
keeping themfelves clean *.
A
where it was gathered into heaps. By a royal proclamation, privies were ordered to be built. The inhabitants, though long accuftomed to an arbitrary government, refented this proclamation as an infringement of the common rights of mankincl , and ftruggled vigoroufly againft it. The phyfi" cians were the moft violent oppofers -. they remonftrated, that if the filth was not thrown into the ftreets, a fatal ficknefs would enfue ; becaufe the putrefcent particles of air, which the filth attra&ed, would be imbibed by the human body.
* In a country thinly peopled, cleannefs feldom prevails. The incitement is wanting of appearing agreeable to others, and the natural inclination for cieannefs yields to indolence. In the high country between Derby and Matlock, thinly peopled, the inhabitants are as dirty as in the wildeft parts of Scptland.
SK. 5.] MANNERS, 269
A beard gives to the countenance a rough and fierce air, fuited to the manners of a rough and fierce people. The fame face without a beard ap- pears milder ; for which reafon, a beard becomes unfafhionable in a poliihed nation. Demolthenes, the orator, lived in the fame period with Alexan- der the Great, at which time the Greeks began to leave off beards. A buft, however, of that orator, found in Herculaneum, has a beard, which muft either have been done for him when he was young, or from reluctance in an old man to a new famion. Barbers were brought to Rome from Sicily the 454th year after the building of Rome. And it muft relate to a time after that period what Aulus Gellius fays*, that people accufed of any crime, were prohibited to fhave their beards till they were abfolved. From Hadrian downward, the Roman Emperors wore beards. Julius Capitolinus reproaches the Emperor Verus for cutting his beard at the inftigation of a concubine. All the Roman generals wore beards in Juftinian's timef. The Pope fhaved his beard, which was held a mariifeft apoftafy by the Greek church, becaufe Mofes, Je- fus Chrift, and even God the Father, were always drawn with beards by the Greek and Latin paint- ers. Upon the dawn of fmooth manners in France, the beaus cut the beard into mapes, and curled the whiikers. That famion produced a whimlical ef-
R 2 * Lib. Hi. cap. 4.
Procopii Hifloria Vandalica, lib. ii.
270 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. 1.
fed : men of gravity left off beards altogether. A beard in its natural fhape, was too fierce even for them ; and they could not for fhame copy after the beans. This'accounts for a regulation, anno 1534, of the Univerfity of Paris, forbidding the profeffors to wear a 'beard.
Language, when brought to any perfection among
r •
a polifhed people, may juftly be confidered as one of the fine arts; and, in that view, is handled above. But, confidered as a branch of external be- haviour, it belongs to the prefent fketch. Every part of external behaviour is influenced by temper and difpofition, and fpeech more than any other part. In Elements of Criticifm * it is obferved, that an emotion in many inftances bears a refem- blance to its caufe. The like holds univerfally in all the natural founds prompted by paffion. Let a paffion be bold, rough, cheerful, tender, or humble, ftili it holds, that the natural founds prompted by it, are in the fame tone : and hence the reafon why thefe founds are the fame in all languages. Some flight refemblance of the fame kind is difcoverable in many artificial founds. The language of a fa- vage is' harfh ; of polite people fmooth ; and of
women, foft and mufical. The tongues of favage
•
nations abound in gutturals, or in nafals : yet one would imagine that fuch words, being pronounced with difficulty, mould be avoided by favages, as they are by children. But temper prevails, and fuggeils to favages harfh founds, conformable to
their
* Chap. ii. part 6.
SK..5-J MANNERS. 271
their roughnefs. The Efquimaux have a language compofed of the harfheft gutturals ; and the lan- guages of the northern European nations are not remarkably fmoother. The Scotch peafants are a frank and plain people ; and their dialed: is in the? tone of their character. The Huron tongue hath flatelinefs and energy above mod known languages, which is more conformable to the elevation of their fentiments, than to their prefent low condition. Thus the manners of a people may, in fome meafure, be gathered from their language. Nay, manners may frequently be gathered from fingle words. The Hebrew word LECHOM fignifies both food and^/.tf- ing ; and TEREPH fignifies both food and plunder. KARAB fignifies to draw near to one, and fignifies allb to fight. The Greek word LEIA, which figniried ori- gmallyjpoil procured by war or piracy, came to fig- nify wealth. And the great variety of Greek words fignifying^ otfd and better, fignified originally^ro^ and violent.
Government, according to its different kinds, hath confiderable influence in forming the tone of a language. Language in a democracy is com- monly rough and coarfe ; in. an ariflocracy, manly and plain ; in a monarchy, courteous. and infinuat- iflg; in defpotifm, imperious with refpeft to infe- riors, and humble with refpecl to fuperiors. The government of the Greek empire is well reprefent- ed in Juflinian's edicts, termed Novella Conftitu- tiones ; the ftyle of which is ftiff, formal, and af-
R 3 fededly
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIEtY. [B. t.
/
fe&edly {lately, but deftitute of order, of force, and of ligament. About three centuries ago, Tufcany was filled with fmali republics, whofe dialed: was manly and plain. Its rough tones were purged oft* by their union under the Great Duke of Tufcany ; and the Tufcan dialed: has ar- rived nearer to perfection than any other in Italy. The tone of the French language is well fuited to the nature of its government : every man is polite- ly fubmiflive to thofe above him ; and this tone forms the character of the language in general, fo as even to regulate the tone of the few who have occa- lion to fpeak with authority. The freedom of the Englifh government forms the manners of the peo- ple : the Englifh language is accordingly more manly and nervous than the French, and abounds more with rough founds. The Lacedemonians of old, a proud and auftere people, affected to talk with brevity, in the tone of command more than of advice ; and hence the Laconic ftyle, dry but mafculine. The Attic ftyle is more difficult to be accounted for : it is fweet and copious, and had a remarkable delicacy above the ftyle of any other nation. And yet the democracy of Athens produ- ced rough manners ; withefs the comedies of Arif- tophanes, and the orations of Efchines and Demoft- henes. We are not fo intimately acquainted with the Athenians, as to account for the difference be- tween their language and their manners. We are equally at a lofs about the Ruffian tongue, which,
-notwithftanding •
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 273
notwithftanding the barbarity of the people, is fmooth and .timorous : and, though the Malayans are the fierceft people in the univerfe, their lan- guage is the fofteil of all that are fpoken in Afia. All that can be faid is, that the operation of a ge- neral caufe may be difturbed by particular cir- cumftances. Languages refembie tides : the in- fluence of the moon, which is the general caufe of tides, is in feveral inftances overbalanced by parti- cular caufes adting in oppoiition.
There may be obferved in fome favage tribes a certain refinement of language that might do ho- nour to a poliihed people. The Canadians never give a man his proper name, in fpeaking to him. If he be a relation, he is addrefled to in that quality ; if a ftranger, the fpeaker gives him fome appella- tion that marks affection ; fuch as brother, coulin, friend.
In early times, people lived in a very iimple manner, ignorant of fuch habitual wants as are commonly termed luxury. Rebecca, Rachel, and and the daughters of Jethro, tended their father's flocks : they were really fhepherdeiTes. Young women of falhion drew water from the well with their own hands. The joiner who made the bridal bed of UlyiTes, was UlyfTes himfelf #. The Prin- cefs Naulicaa wafhes the family-clothes ; and the Princes her brothers, upon her return, unyoke the car, and carry in the clothes f. Queens, and even,
R 4 female
* -Odyffey, book 23. t Book 6, & 7.
274 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
female deities, are employed in fpinning*. Is it .from this fafhion that young women in England are denominated fplnjlers ? Telernachus goes to council with no attendants but two dogs :
" Soon as in folernn form th* aflembly fat, " From his high dome himfelf defcends in ftate ; " Bright in his hand a ponderous jav'lin (hin'd ; " Two dogs, a faithful guard, attend behind."
Ody/eyt book 2.
Priam's car is yoked by his own fons, when he goes to redeem from Achilles the body of his fon Hec- tor. Telernachus yokes his own carf. Homer's heroes kill and drefs their own victuals J. Achilles entertaining Priam, flew a fnow-white fheep ; and his two friends flea'd and drefled it. Achilles him- felf divided the roafted meat among hisguefts§. The ftory of Ruth is a pleafing inftance of iimpli- city in ancient times ; and her laying herfelf down to fleep at the feet of Boaz, a no lefs pleafing in- ftance of innocence in thefe times. No people li- ved more innocently than the ancient Germans, though men and women lived together without re- ferve. They flept promifcuoufly round the walls of their houfes ; and yet we never read of adultery
among * Book 10.
f OdyiTey, book 15. J Odyffey, book 19. & 20.
§ Pdpe, judging it below the dignity of Achilles to act the butcher, fupprefles that article, impofmg the talk upon his two friends. Pope did not confider, that from a lively pic- ture of ancient manners, proceeds one of the capital pleafures we have in perufmg Homer.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 275
among them. The Scotch Highlanders to this day live in the fame manner. In Sparta, men and women lived familiarly together : public baths were com- mon to both ; and in certain games, they danced and combated together naked as when born. In a later period, the Spartan dames were much cor- rupted ; occafioned, as authors fay, by a fhameful freedom of intercourfe between the fexes. But re- mark, that corruption was not confined to the fe- male fex, men having degenerated as much from their original manhood as women from their ori- ginal chaftity ; and I have no difficulty to main- tain, that gold and filver, admitted contrary to the °
laws of Lycurgus, were what corrupted both fexes. Opulence could not fail to have the fame efFedl
there that it has every where : which is to excite
w •
luxury and every fpecies of fenfuality. The Spar-- tans accordingly, renouncing aufterity of manners, abandoned themfelves to pleafure : the mod expen- iive furniture, the fofteft beds, fuperb tapeftry, pre- cious vafes, exquifite wines, delicious viands, were
not now too delicate for an effeminate Spartan, once
•*• 7
illuftrious for every manly virtue. Lycurgus un- derftood human nature better than the writers do
who carp at him. It was his intention, to make * 7
his countrymen foldiers, not whining lovers : and he juftly thought, that familiar intercourfe be- tween the fexes, would confine their appetites
r rr
within the bounds of nature ; an ufeful leflbn to women of falhion in our days, who expofe their
nakeariefs
276 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
nakednefs in order to attract and enflame lovers. What juftifies this reafoning is, the aicendant that Spartan dames had over their hufbands while the laws of Lycurgus were in vigour : they in effect ruled the ilate as well as their own families. Such afcendant cannot be obtained n5r preferved but by ftrict virtue : a women of looie manners may be the object of loofe defire ; but feldom will fhe gain an afcendant over any man, and never over her hufband.
Not to talk of gold, lilver was fcarce in Eng- land during the reign of the third Edward. Rents were paid in kind ; and what money they had, was locked up in the coffers of the great barons. Pieces of plate were bequeathed even by kings of JEngland, fo trifling in our eflimation, that a gen- tlemen of a moderate fortune would be afhamed to mention fuch in his will.
Next of action. Man is naturally prone to mo- tion ; witnefs children, who are never at reft but •when afleep. Where reafon governs, a man reftrains that reftlefs difpofition, and never acts without a motive. Savages have few motives to action when the belly is full ; their huts require little work, and their covering of ikins flill lefs. Hunting and fifhing employ all their activity. After much fa- tigue in hunting, reft is fweet ; which the favage prolongs, having no motive to action till the time of hunting returns. Savages accordingly, like dogs, are extremely active in the field, and ex- tremely
SK. 5.] MANNERS.
tremely indolent at home *. Savages in the tor- rid zone are indolent above all others ; they go na- ked ; their huts coil them no trouble ; and vege- tables, that grow fpontaneouily, are their only food. The Spaniards who firft landed in Hifpa- niola, were furprifed'at the manners of the inha- bitants. They are defcribed as lazy, and without ambition ; paffing part of their time in eating and dancing, and the reft in fleep ; having no great mare of memory, and ftill lefs of underftanding. The character given of thefe favages belongs to all, efpecially to favages in hot climates. The im- perfection of their memory and judgment is oc- caiioned by want of exercife. The fame imper- fection was remarkable in the people of Paraguay,
when
/
* " Quoties bella non ineunt, non multum venatibus, plus per otium, tranfigunt, dediti fomno, ciboque. Fortiflimus quifque ac bellicofiffimus nihil agens, delegata domus et pe- natium et agrorum cura fceminis fenibusque, et infirmiffimo cuique ex familia, ipfi hebent ; mira diverfitate naturae, cum iidem homines lie ament inertiam, et oderint quietem." Taci- tus , De moribus Germanorum^ cap. 15.— -[V» Englt/b thus : '* While *' not engaged in war, they do not often fpend their time in *' hunting, but chiefly in indolence minding nothing but *' their fleep and food. The braveft and moft warlik-. among " them, having nothing to do, pafs the time in a fluggifli ftupidy , committing the care of the houfe, the family, and the culture of the lands, to women, old men, and to the moft weakly. Such is the wonderful diverfity of their nature, that ** they are at once the mod indolent of beings, and the moil *' impatient of reft."]
"
"
278 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
when under Jefuit government ; of which after- ward *.
We now take under confide rat ion, the progrefs of fuch manners as are more peculiarly influenced by internal difpoiition ; preparing the reader by a general view, before entering into particulars, Man is by nature a timid animal, having little ability to fecure himfelf againft harm : but he be- comes bold in fociety, and gives vent to paffion againft his enemies. In the hunter-ftate, the daily practice of flaughtering innocent animals for food, hardens men in cruelty : more favage than bears or wolves, they are cruel even to their own kindf.
The
* Book 2. fketch i.
f Though it is beyond the reach of conception, that blood, fiefh, fibres, or bones, can be ^fubjlratum for thought, for will, for paffion, or for any mental quality ; yet certain philofo- phers boldly undertake to derive even the nobleft principles from external circumftances relative to the body only. Thus, courage and cowardice are held to depend on the climate by the celebrated Montefquieu and feveral others. Sir William1 Temple afcribes thefe qualities to food, maintaining, that no- animal which lives on vegetables is endowed with courage', the horfe and cock alone excepted. I relifh not doftrines that tend to degrade the moft refined mental principles into' bodily properties. With refpect to the point under confide- ration, a very acute philofopher, taking a hint from Sir Wil- liam Temple, derives from the difference of food the mental qualities of cruelty and humanity, (a) " Certain it is, (fays " that author), that the people who fubfift moftly on animal
"food*
(«) Era lie, liv. r.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 279
The calm and fedentary life of a fhepherd, tends to foften the harfli manners of hunters ; and agri- culture,
" food are cruel and fierce above others. The barbarity of *' the Englifh is well known : the Gaures, who live wholly " on vegetables, are the fweeteft-tempered of all men. Wicked " men harden themfelves to murder by drinking blood.'* Even the moft acute thinkers are not always on their guard againft trivial analogies. Blood and {laughter are the fruits of cruelty ; and hence it is rafhly inferred, that the drinking blood and eating flefh tend to infpire cruelty. The Carribbees, in the fame way of thinking, abftain from fwlnes flefh ; " which (fay they), would make our eyes fmall like thofe of *' fwine." Before venturing on a general rule, one ought to be prepared by an'extenfive induction of particulars. What .will M. RolTeau fay as to the Macaflars, whp never taft.e ani- mal food, and yet are acknowledged to be the fierceft of mortals ? And what will he fay as to the Negroes of New Guinea, remarkably brutal and cruel ? A favourite dog» companion to his mafter, lives commonly on the refufe of his table, and yet is remarkably gentle. The Engliih are noted for love of liberty : they cannot bear oppreffion ; and they know no bounds to refentment againfl opprefTors. He may call this cruelty if he be fo difpofed : others, more can- did, will efteem it a laudable property. But to charge a nation in general with cruelty and ferocity, can admit no ex- cufe but flubborn truth. Ignorance cannot be admitted : and yet he fhews grofs ignorance, as no people are more noted for humanity: in no other nation do fympatheac af- fections prevail more : none are more ready, in cafes of di- ftrefs, to ftretch out a relieving hand. Did not the Englifh, in abolifhing the horrid barbarity of torture, give an illuftrious example of humanity to all other nations ? Nay, his inftance that butchers are prohibited from being put upon a jury, the
only
28O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
culture, requiring the union of many hands in one operation, improves benevolence. But here the hoarding appetite ftarts up to difturb that aufpi- cious commencement of civilization. Skilful huf- bandry, producing the necefTaries of life in plenty, paves the way to arts and e manufactures. Fine hotifes, fplendid gardens, and rich apparel, are de- firable objeds : the appetite for property becomes headftrong, and to obtain gratification tramples down every obftacle of juftice or honour*. Diffe- rences arife, fomenting difcord and refentment : war fprings up, even among thofe of the fame tribe ; and while it was lawful for a man to take revenge at his own hand f , that fierce paffion fwal- lovved up all others. Inequality of rank and fortune foftered diflbcial paffions ; witnefs pride, in parti-
cular^
only particular inftance he gives of their cruelty, is, on the contrary, a proof of their humanity. For why are butchers excluded from being judges in criminal trials ? for no other reafon than that being inured to the blood of animals, they may have too little regard to the lives of their fellow-fubjecls. Flefli is compofed of particles of different kinds. In the ftomach, as in a ftill, it is refolved into its component par- ticles, and ceafes to be flefh before it enters the lacleals. Will M. Roffeau venture to fay, which of thefe component par- ticles it is that generates a cruel difpofition ? Man, from the form of his teeth, and from other circumftances, is evidently fitted by his maker for animal as well as vegetable food ; and it would be an imputation on providence, that either of them Ihould have any bad effect on his mind more than on his body.
* See Sketch 3. f See Historical Law-tra&s, tracl i.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 28l
cular, which produced a cuftom, once univerfal a- mong barbarians, of killing men, women, dogs, and horfes, for the ufe of a chieftain in the other world. Such complication of hateful and violent paffions, rendering fociety uncomfortable, cannot be ftem- med by any human means, other than whole- fome laws : a momentary obftacle inflames defire ; but perpetual reftraint deadens even the mod fer- vid paffion. The authority of good government gave vigour to kindly affections ; and appetite for fociety, which acts inceffantly, though not violent- ly, gave a currency to mutual good offices. A cir- cumflance concurred to blunt the age of dnTocial paffions : the firft focieties were fmall ; and fmall ftates in clofe neighbourhood engender difcord and refentment without end : the junction of many fuch ftates into a great kingdom, removes people farther from their enemies, and renders them more gen- tle *. In that fituation, men have leifure and fe- datenefs to relifh the comforts of focial life : they find that felfifh and turbulent paffions are fubver- five of fociety ; and through fondnefs for focial in- tercourfe, they patiently undergo the fevere diici- pline, of retraining paffion and fmoothing manners. Violent paffions that difturb the peace of fociety have fubfided, and are now feldom heard of: hu- manity is in fafhion, and focial affections prevail; Men improve in urbanity by converfing with wo- men ; and, however felfifh at heart, they conciliate
favour
* See this more fully handled, book 2. {ketch i.
282 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
favour, by afTuming an air of dilintereftednefs. Selfifhnefs, thus refined, becomes an effectual caufe of civilization. But what follows ? Turbulent and violent pailions are buried, never again to revive ; leaving the mind totally ingroffed by felf-interefl. In the original flate of hunters, there being little connection among individuals, every man minds his own concerns, and felfifhnefs governs. The difco- very that hunting is beft carried on in company, promotes fome degree of fociety in that flate : it gains ground in the fhepherd flate, and makes a ca- pital figure where hufbandry arid commerce flou- rifh. Private concord is promoted by focial affec- tion ; and a nation is profperous in proportion as the amor pat rice prevails. But wealth, acquired whether by conquefl or commerce, is productive of luxury, and every fpecies of fenfuality. As thefe
increafe, focial affections decline, and at lad vanifh.
' * ,
This is vifible in every opulent city that has long flourifhed in extenfive commerce. Selfiihnefs be- comes the ruling paffion : friendfhip is no more ; and even blood- relation is little regarded. Every man ftudies his own interefl : opulence and fenfual pleafure are idols worfhipped by all. And thus, in the progrefs of manners, men end as they be- gan : felfifhnefs is no lefs eminent in the lafh and moft polifhed flate of fociety, than in the firfl and mofl rude flate.
From a general view of the progrefs of manners we defcend to particulars. And the firfl fcene that
prefents.
• 5-3
283
prefents itfelf is, cruelty to ftrangers, extended, in,
p
procefs of time, againft members of the fame tribe. Anger and refentment are predominant in favages, who never think of reftraining pailion. But this character is not univerfal : fome tribes are remark- able for humanity, as mentioned in the firft {ketch. Anger and refentment formed the character of our European anceftors, and rendered them fierce and cruel. The Goths were fo prone to blood, that, in their firft inroads into the Roman territories, they mafTacred man, woman, and child. Procopius re- ports, that in one of thefe inroads they left Italy thin of inhabitants. They were however an ho- neft people ; and by the polifh they received in the civilized parts of Europe, they became no lefs re- markable for humanity, than formerly for cruelty. Totila, their king, having mattered Rome after a long and bloody liege^ permitted not a {ingle per- fon to be killed in cold blood, nor the chaflity of any woman to be attempted. One cannot without horror think of the wanton cruelties exercifed by the Tartars againft the nations invaded by them, under Gengiican and Timor Bee.
A Scythian, fays Herodotus, prefents the king with the heads of the enemies he has killed in bat- tle ; and the man who brings not a head, gets no fhare of the plunder. He adds, that niany Scythi- ans clothe themfelves with the {kins of men, and make ufe of the flculls of their enemies to drink out Diodorus Siculus reports of the Gauls, that
VOL. I. S they
284 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. X.
they carry home the heads of their enemies (lain in battle ; and after embalming them, depolit them in chefts as their chief trophy ; bragging of the fums offered for thefe heads by the friends of the decea- fed, and refufed. In iimilar circumftances, men are the fame all the world over. The fcalping of enemies, in daily ufe among the North- American favages, is equally cruel and barbarous.
No favages are more cruel than the Greeks and Trojans were, as defcribed by Homer ; men but- chered in cold blood, towns reduced to allies, fove- reigns expofed to the mofl humbling indignities, no refpect paid to age nor to fex. The young Adraf- tus *, thrown from his car, and lying in the dufr, obtained quarter from Menelaus. Agamemnon up- braided his brother for lenity : " Let none from de- " ftruction efcape, not even the lifping infant in " the mother's arms : all her fons muil with Ilium " fall, and on her ruins unburied remain." He pierced the fupplicant with his fpear; and fetting his foot on the body, pulled it out. Hedor, ha- ving ftripped Patroclus of his arms, drags the ilain along, vowing to lop the head from the trunk, and to give the mangled corfe a prey to the dogs of Troy. And the feventeenth book of the Iliad is wholly employed in defcribing the conteft about the body between the Greeks and Trojans. Belide the brutality of preventing the lail duties from be- ing
*Book 6. of the Iliad.
SK. 5.] MANNERS, 285
ing performed to a deceafed friend, it is a low fcene, unworthy of heroes. It was equally brutal in Achilles to drag the corfe of He&or to the fhips tied to his car. In a fcene between Hector and Andromaqhe *, the treatment of vanquifhed ene- mies is pathetically defcribed ; fovereigns mafia - cred, and their bodies left a prey to dogs and vul- tures ; fucking infants darned againft the pavement; ladies of the firft rank forced to perform the lowed acts of flavery. Hector doth not difiemble, that if Troy fhould be conquered, his poor wife would be condemned to draw water like the vileft Have. He- cuba, in Euripides, laments that me was chained like a dog at Agamemnon's gate ; and the fame fa- vage manners are defcribed in many other Greek tragedies. Prometheus makes free with the hea- venly fire, in order to give life to man. As a pu- niihment for bringing rational creatures into exift- ence, the gods decree, that he be chained to a rock, and abandoned to birds of prey. Vulcan is intro- duced by ^Efchylus rattling the chain, nailing one end to a rock, and the other to the breaft-bone of the criminal. Who but an American favage can at prefent behold fuch a fpectacle, and not be fhocked ? A fcene reprefenting a woman murder- ed by her children, would be hified by every mo- dern aucjience ; and yet that horrid fcene was re- prefented with applaufe in the Elect ra of Sopho-
82 x cles.
* Iliad, book 6.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.
[B.
cles. Stoboeus reports a faying of Menander, that even the gods cannot infpire a foldier with civility- no wonder that the Greek foldiers were brutes and barbarians, when war was waged, not only againft the ftate, but againft every individual. At prefent, humanity prevails among foldiers as among others -x becaufe we make war only againft a ftate, not a- gainft individuals. The Greeks are the lefs excu- fable for their cruelty, as they appear to have been fenfible that humanity is a cardinal virtue. Bar- barians are always painted by Homer as cruel ; po~ lifhed nations as tender and compaffionate :
*' Ye gods ! (he cried) upon what barren coafl> " In what new region is Ulyfles toft ? *' Poflefs'd by wild barbarians fierce in arms, '* Or men whofe bofom tender pity warms ?"
Book 13. 241.
Cruelty is inconiiftent with true heroifm ; and,, accordingly, very little of the latter is difcoverable in any of Homer's warriors. So much did they retain of the favage character, as, even without blufhing, to fly from an enemy fuperior in bodily ftrength. Biomedes, who makes an illuftrious figure in the fifth book of the Iliad, retires when Hedlor appears : " Diomedes beheld the chief, and " fhuddered to his inmoft foul." Antilochus, fon of Neftor, having flam Melanippus *, rufUed for- ward, eager to feize his bright arms. But feeing
He∨
* Book 15.
SK. 5.] MANNERS*
Hector, he fled like a beaft of prey who Ihuns the gathering hinds. And the great Hector himfelf lhamefully turns his back upon the near approach of Achilles : " Periphetes, endowed with every " virtue, renowned in the race, great in war, in " prudence excelling his fellows, gave glory to *' Hector, covering the chief with renown." One would expect a fierce combat between thefe two bold warriors. Not fo, Periphetes Humbling, Jfell to the ground; and Hector was not afhamed to transfix with his fpear the unrefifting hero.
In the fame tone of character, nothing is more common among Homer's warriors than to infult a vanquilhed foe. Patroclus, having beat Cebriones to the ground with a huge ftone, derides his fall in the following words :
" Good heav'ns ! what a&ive feats yon artift fhows, " What fldlful divers are our Phrygian foes ! * ' Mark with what eafe they fink into the fand. " Pity ! that all their practice is by land."
The Greeks are reprefented * one after another' ftabbing the dead body of Hector: " Nor flood an " Argive pear the chief who inflicted not a wound. " Surely now, faid they, more eafy of accefs is " Hector, than when he launched on the fhips " brands of devouring fire.''
When fuch were the manners of warriors at the liege of Troy, it is no furprife to find the heroes on
S 3 both
* JSook 22,
•288 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
both fides no lefs intent on ftripping the flain, than on victory. They are every where reprefented as greedy of fpoil.
The Jews did not yield to the Greeks in cruel- ty. It is unnecefiary to give inftances, as the hif- torical books of the Old Teftament are in the hands of every one. I fhall feledr. one inftance for a fpe- cimen, dreadfully cruel without any juft provoca- tion : " And David gathered all the people toge- " ther, and went to Rabbah, and fought againil it, " and took it. And he brought forth the people " that were therein, and put them under faws, and " under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, " and made them pafs through the brick-kiln : and " thus did he unto all the cities of the children of " Ammon*."
That cruelty was predominant among the Ro- mans, is evident from every one of their hjftorians. If a Roman citizen was found murdered in his own houfe, his whole houfehold Haves, perhaps two or three hundred, were put to death without mercy, unlefs they could detect the murderer. Such a law, cruel and unjuft, could never have been en- acted among a people of any humanity. Brutality to their offspring was glaring. Children were held, like cattle, to be the father's property : and fo tenacious was the patria pote/las, that if a fon or daughter fold to be a Have was fet free, he or me
fell
* 2 Samuel, xii. 20.
" • 4*
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 289
fell again under the father's power, to be fold a fe- cond time, and even a third time. The power of life and death over children was much lefs unna- tural, while no public tribunal exifted for punifh- ing crimes. A fon, being a Have, could have no property of his own. Julius Caefar was the firft who privileged a fon to retain for his own ufe fpoils acquired in war. When law became a lucra- tive profeffion, what a fori gained in that way was declared to be his property. In Athens, a man had power of life and death over his children ; but, as they were not flaves, what they acquired be- longed to themfelves. So late as the days of Dio- clefian, a fon's marriage did not dhTolve the Ro- man patria poteftas*. But the power of felling- children wore out of ufe f . When powers fo un- natural were given to men over their children, and exercifed fo tyrannically, can there be any doubt of their cruelty to others £ ? During the fecond
S 4 triumvirate,
* 1. i. Cod. cap. De patria poteftate. f 1. 10. eod.
The effect of fuch unnatural powers was to eradicate natural affedion between a man and his children. And, in- deed, fo little of nature was left in this connexion, that a law was found neceffary, prohibiting a man to difmherit his chil- dren, except for certain caufes fpecified, importing grofs in- gratitude in the latter ; which was done by Juftinian the Em- peror in one of his novels. But behold what follows. A 'prohibition to exheredate childen fenders them independent ; and fuch independence produces an effect flill more perniciou$
than
290 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. J.
triumvirate, horrid cruelties were every day per- petrated without pity or remorfe. Antony, having ordered Cicero to be beheaded, and the head to be brought to him, viewed it with favage pleafure. His wife Fulvia laid hold of it, ftmck it on the face, uttered many bitter execrations, and, having placed it between her knees, drew out the tongue, and pierced it with a bodkin. The delight it gave the Romans to fee wild beails fet loofe a- gainft one another in their circus, is a proof not at all ambiguous of their tafte for blood, even at the time of their higheft civilization. The edile Scau- rus fent at one time to Rome 150 panthers, Pom- pey 410, and Auguftus 420, for the public fpecla- cles. Their gladiatorian combats are a lefs evi- dent proof of their ferocity : the courage and ad- drefs exerted in thefe combats gave a manly plea- fure, that balanced in fome meafure the pain of feeing thefe poor fellows cut and flam one another. And, that the Romans were never cured of their thirft for blood, appears from Caligula, Nero, and many other monfters, who tormented the Romans
It * • . - i ; . . • .A - • • • • •
after
than defpotic power in a father. Awe and reverence to pa- rents make the only effectual check againft the headftrong paffions of youth : remove that check, and young men of fortune wijl give the rein to every vice. It deferves to be fe-
\ '• '' • - , , ' i • ', >
rioufly pondered, whether the fame encouragement be not given to vice, by a practice general in England among men of fortune in their marriage-articles, which is, to veft the eftate in truftees, for behoof of the beir of the marriage.
. 4-3 MANNERS. 2J)jt
after Auguftus. There is no example in modern times of fuch monfters in France, though an abib- lute monarchy, nor even in Turkey.
Ferocity was, in the Roman empire, confiderably mollified by literature and other fine arts ; but it acquired new force upon the irruption of the bar- barous nations who crufhed that empire. In the year 559, Clotaire, King of the Franks, burnt alive his fon, with all his friends, becaufe they had re- belled againfl him. Queen Brunehaud, being by Clotaire II. condemned to die, was dragged through the camp at a horfe's tail, till fhe gave up the ghoil. The ferocity of European nations became boundlefs during the anarchy of the feudal fyftem. Many peafants in the northern provinces of France being forely opprefled in civil wars carried on by the nobles againft each other, turned defperate, gathered together in bodies, refolving to extirpate all the nobles. A party of them, anno 1358, forced open the caftle of a knight, hung him upon a gal- lows, violated in his prefence his wife and daugh- ters, toafted him upon a fpit, compelled his wife and children to eat of his fleih, and terminated that horrid fcene with maflacring the whole family, and turning the caftle. When they were alked, fays FroifTard, why they committed fuch abominable adlions, their anfwer was, " That they did as ther " faw others do ; and that all the nobles in tr^e " world ought to be deftroyed." The nobles, when they got the upper hand, were equally cruel.
They
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY* [j3. I.
They put all to fire and fword, and maflacred eve- ry peafant who came in the way, without trou- bling themfelves to feparate the innocent from the guilty. The Count de Ligny encouraged his ne- phew, a boy of fifteen, to kill with his own hand fome prifoners who were his countrymen ; in which, fays Monftrelet, the young man took great delight. How much worfe than brutal muft have been the manners of that age ! for even a beaft of prey kills not but when iniligated by hunger. The third act of Healing from the lead-mines in Derby was, by a law of Edward I. punifhed in the follow- ing manner. A hand of the criminal was nailed to a table ; and, in that condition, he was left with- out meat or drink, having no means of freedom but to employ the one hand to cut off the other. The barbarity of the Englifh at that period made fevere punimments neceflary : but the punifhment men- tioned goes beyond feverity ; it is brutal cruelty. The barbarous treatment of the Jews, during the dark ages of Chriilianity, gives pregnant evidence, that Chriftians were not fhort of Pagans in cruel- ty. Poifoning and affailination were moft licen- tioufly perpetrated no farther back than the lad century. Some pious men made vigorous efforts in more than one general council, to have afTailina- tion condemned, as repugnant to the law of God ;
but in vain *.
I
* It required the ferocity and cruelty of a barbarous age to give currency to a Mahometan doctrine, That the fword is
the
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 293
I wifli to foften the foregoing fcene : it may be foftened a little. Among barbarians, punimments muft be fanguinary, as their bodies only are fen- lible of pain, not their minds *.
The reftoration of arts and fciences in Europe, and a reformation in religion, had a wonderful ef- fect in fweetening manners, and promoting the in- terefls of fociety. Of all crimes, high treafon is the moft involved in circumilances, and the moll difficult to be defined or circumfcribed- And yet, for that crime, are referved the moft exquifite tor- ments. In England, the punimment is, to cut up the criminal alive, to tear out his heart, to dafh it about his ears, and to throw it into the flames. The fame puniihment continues in form, not in reality: the heart indeed is torn out, but not till the criminal is ftrangled. Even the virulence of
religious
the moft effectual means of converting men to a dominant re- ligion. The eftablifhment of the Inquifition will not permit me to fay, that Chriftians never put in practice a doctrine fo deteftable : on the contrary, they furpafled the Mahometans, giving no quarter to heretics, either in this life, or in that to come. The eternity of hell-torments is a doctrine no lefs in- confiftent with the juftice of the Deity, than with his benevo- lence.
* The Ruffians are far from refinement, either in manners or feelings. The Baron de Manftein, talking of the feverity of Count Munich's military difcipline, obferves, that it is in- difpenfable in Ruffia, where mildnefs make no impreffion ; and the Ruffians are governed by fear, not by love.
294 M£N INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
religious zeal is coniiderably abated. Savonarola was condemned to the flames as an impious impof- tor j but he was firft privately flrangled. The fine arts, which humanize manners, were in Italy at 'that time accelerating toward perfection. The fa- mous Latimer was in England condemned to be burnt for herefy : but bags of gunpowder were put under his arms, that he might be burnt with the lead pain. Even Knox, a violent Scotch reformer, acknowledges, that Wifhart was flrangled before he was thrown into the flames for herefy. \ So bitter was the late perfecution againfl the Jefuits, that not only were their perfons profcribed, but in ma- ny places their books, not even excepting books upon mathematics, and other abftradl fubjedts. That perfecution refembled in many particulars the perfecution againft the knights -templars : fifty- nine of the latter were burnt alive : the former were really lefs innocent ; and yet fuch humanity prevails at prefent, that not a drop of Jefuit-lplood has been fhed. A bankrupt in Scotland, if he have not fufFered by unavoidable misfortune, is by law condemned to wear a party-eoloured garment. That law is not now put in execution, unlefs where a bankrupt defer ves to be ftigmatized for his cul- pable mifcondudl.
Whether the following late inftance of barbarity do not equal any of thofe above mentioned, I leave to the reader. No traveller who vifited Peterf- burgh during the reign of the Emprefs Elizabeth
can
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 295
can be ignorant of Madam Lapouchin, the great ornament of that Court. Her intimacy with a foreign ambaflador having brought her under fuf- picion of plotting with him againft the govern- ment, me was condemned to undergo the punifh- ment of the knout. At the place of execution, me appeared in a genteel undrefs, which height- ened her beauty. Of whatever indifcretion me might have been guilty, the fweetnefs of her countenance and her compofure, left not in the fpe&ators the flighted fufpicion of guilt. Her youth alfo, her beauty, her life and fpirit pleaded for her. But all in vain : me was deferted by all, and abandoned to furly executioners ; whom me beheld with aftonifhment, feemihg to doubt whe- ther fuch preparations were intended for her. The cloak that covered her bofom being pulled off, mo- deity took the alarm, and made her ftart back : me turned pale, and burft into tears. One of the executioners dripped her naked to the wafte, feized her with both hands, and threw her on his back, railing her fome inches from the ground. The other executioner laying hold of her delicate limbs with his rough fifts, put her in a poilure for re- ceiving the punifhment. Then laying hold of the knout, a fort of whip made of a leathern ftrap, he with a lingle flroke tore off a flip of ikin from the neck downward, repeating his ftrokes till all the fkin of her back was cut off in (mall flips. The
executioner
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY, [B. I.
executioner finifhed his taik with cutting out her tongue ; after which me was banifhed to Siberia *.
The native inhabitants of the ifland Amboyna are Malayans. Thofe on the fea-coaft are fubjedt to the Dutch : thofe in the inland parts are their declared enemies, and never give quarter. A Dutch captive, after being confined five days without food, is ripped up, his heart cut out, and the head fevered from the body, is preferved in fpice for a trophy. Thofe who can mow the greateft num- ber of Dutch heads are the moft honourable.
In early times, when revenge and cruelty tramp- led on law, people formed aflbciations for fecuring their lives and their pofleflions. Thefe were com- mon in Scandinavia and in Scotland. They were alfo common in England during the Anglo-Saxon government, and for fome ages after the Conqueft. But, inftead of fup porting juftice, they contributed more than any other caufe to confufion and anar- chy, the members protecting each other, even in
robbery
* The prefent Emprefs has laid an excellent foundation for civilizing her people ; which is a code of laws, founded on principles of civil liberty, banifhing llavery and torture,, and expreffing the utmoft regard for the life, property, and liberty, of all her fubjecls, high and low. Peter I. reformed many bad cuftoms : but being rough in his own manners, he left the manners of his people as he found them. If this Emprefs happen to enjoy a long and profperous reign, fhe may poflibly accomplidi the moft difficult of all undertakings^ that of polifhing a barbarous people. No tafk is too arduous for a woman of fuch fpirit.
SK. 5.] MANNERS.
robbery and murder. They were fupprefTed in England by a ftatute of Richad II. ; and in Scot- land by reiterated ftatutes.
Roughnefs and harfhnefs of manners are gene- rally connected with cruelty ; and the manners of the Greeks and Trojans are accordingly reprefented in the Iliad as remarkably rough and harlh. When the armies were ready to engage*, Meneftheus King of Athens, and Ulyfles of Ithaca, are bitterly reproached by Agamemnon for lingering, while others were more forward. " Son of Pelens, he " faid, and thou verfed in artful deceit, in mif- " chief only wife, why trembling Ihrink ye back " from the field ; why wait till others engage in " fight ? You it became, as firft in rank, the firft 46 to meet. the flame of war. Ye firft to the ban- quet are called, when we fpread the feaft. Your delight is to eat, to regale, to quaff unftinted the generous wine." In the fifth book, Sarpedon upbraids Hector for cowardice. And Tlepolemus, ready to engage with Sarpedon, attacks him firft with reviling and fcurrilous words. Becaufe Hec- tor was not able to refcue the dead body of Sar- pedon from the Greeks, he is upbraided by Glau- cus, Sarpedon' s friend, in the following words : " Hector, though fpecious in form, diftant art thou ** from valour in arms. Undeferved haft thou " fame acquired, when thus thou fhrinkeft from " the field. Thou fuftaineft not the dreadful arm,
•".",'•• " not.
* Book 4.
«
«
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [BV I;
" not even the light of godlike AjaX. Thou haft " fhunned his face in the fight : thou dareft not " approach his fpear.'1
Rough and harm manners produced ftavery -7 and flavery foftered rough and harm manners, by giving them conftant exercife. The brutality of the Spartans to the Helots, their Haves, is a re- proach to the human fpecies. Befide f offering the harfheft ufage, they were prevented from multi- plying by downright murder and maflacre. Why did not fuch barbarity render the Spartans de- teftable, inftead of being refpe&ed by their neigh- bours as the moft virtuous people in Greece ? There" can be but one reafon, that the Greeks were all of them cruel, the Spartans a little more perhaps than the reft. In Rome, a flave, chained at the gate of every great houfe, gave admittance to the guefts" invited to a feaft: could any but barbarians be- hold fuch a fpectacle without pain ?
Whence the rough and harm manners of oiu* Weft Indian planters, but from the unreftrained licence of venting ill humour upon their Negro ilaves * ? Why are carters a rugged fet of men ?
Plainly
•*
* t( C'eft de cet efclavage des negres, que les Creoles tirent peut-etre en partie un certain caraclere, qui les fait paroitre bizarres, fantafques, et d'une foeiete peu goutee en Europe'. A peine peuvent-ils marcher dans Penfance, qu'ils voient autour d'eux des hommes grands et robuftes, deftines a de- viner, a prevenir Tear volonte. Ce premier coup d'oeil doit'
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 299
Plainly becaufe horfes, their flaves, fubmit without refiftance. An ingenious writer, defcribing Guiana
in,
leur donner d'etix-memes 1'opinion la plus extravagante. Rare- ment exposes a trouver de la refiftance dans leurs fantaifies meme injuftes, Us prennent un efprit de prefomption, de ty- rannie, et de mepris extreme, pour une grande portion du genre humain Rien n'eft plus infolent que 1'hornme qui vit prefque toujours avec fes infrrieurs ; mais quand ceux-ci font des efclaves, accoutumes a fervir des enfans, a craindre jusqu* a des cris qui doivent leur attirer des chatiments, que peuvent devenir des maitres qui n'ont jamais obei, des medians qui n'ont jamais etc punis, des foux qui mettent des hommes a la chaine ?" Htftolre Philofophique et Politique des ctallffemens des Eu- rope ens dans les Deux Indes, L 4. p. 2OI.— [/» Englijh thus : '* It " is from the flavery of the Negroes that the Creoles derive in " a great meafure that character which makes them appear " capricious and fantaftical, and of a ftyle of manners which " is not relifhed in Europe. Scarcely have the children " learned to walk, when they fee around them tall and robuft " men, whofe province it is to guefs their inclinations, and ** to prevent their wifhes. This firft obfervation muft give <« them the mod extravagant opinion of themfelves. From " being feldom accuftomed to meet with any oppofition, even ** in their moft unreafonable whims, they acquire a pre- " fumptuous and tyrannical difpofition, and entertain an ex- " treme contempt for a great part of the human race. None t{ is fo infolent as the man who lives almoft always with his et inferiors ; but when thefe inferiors are (laves accuftomed to '* ferve infants, and to fear even their crying, for which •' they muft fuffer punifhment, what can be expedted of thofe " mafters who have never obeyed, profligates who have never " met with chaftifement, and madmen who load their fellow- # creatures with chains ?"]
VOL. I. T
f
30O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
in the fouthern continent of America, obferves, that the negroes, who are more numerous than the whites, mull be kept in awe by feverity of dif- cipline. And he endeavours to juftify the practice ; urging, that beiide contributing to the fafety of the white inhabitants, it makes the Haves themfelves lefs unhappy. " Impoffibility of attainment,'1 fays he, " never fails to annihilate delire of en- " joyment ; and rigid treatment, fupprefiing " every hope of liberty, makes them peaceably " fubmit to flavery." Sad indeed muft be the condition of Haves, if harfh treatment contribute to make them lefs unhappy. Such reafoning may be relilhed by rough European planters, intent upon gain : I am inclined, however, to believe, that the harfh treatment of thefe poot people is more owing to the avarice of their matters than to their own perverfenefs *. That flaves in all ages have been harfhly treated, is a melancholy truth. One ex- ception I know, and but one, which I gladly men- tion in honour of the Mandingo Negroes. Their Haves, who are numerous, receive very gentle treatment ; the women efpecially, who are gene- rally
* In England, flavery fubfifted fo late as the fixteenth century. A commiffion was iffued by Queen Elizabeth, anno 1574, for inquiring into the lands and goods of all her bond- men and bondwomen in the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Somerfet, and Gloucefler, in order to compound with them for their manumiffion or freedom, that they might enjoy their own lands and goods as free men.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 30!
rally fo well drefled as not to be diftinguifhable from thofe who are free.
Many political writers are of opinion, that for crimes iniligated by avarice otily, flavery for life, and hard work, would be a more adequate punifh- ment than death. I would fubfcribe to that opi- nion but for the following conlideration, that the having fuch criminals perpetually in view, would harden our hearts, and eradicate pity, a capital moral paflion. Behold the behaviour of the Dutch in the ifland of Amboyrta. A native who is found guilty of theft, is deprived of his ears and nofe, and made a flave for life. William Funnel, who was there anno 1705, reports, that 500 of thefe wretches were fecured in prifon, and never fuffered to go abroad but in order to faw timber, to cut Hone, or to carry heavy burdens. Their food is a pittance of coarfe rice boiled in water, and their bed the hard ground. What is ilill worfe, poor people who happen to run in debt, are turned over to the Jervants of the £aft India company, who fend them to work among their flaves, with a daily allowance of twopence, which goes to the creditor. A nation muft be devoid of bowels who can eftablifh fuch inhumanity by law. But time has rendered that pra&ice fo familiar to the Dutch, that they behold with abfolute indifference the multiplied miferies of their fellow creatures. It appears, indeed, that fuch a puniihment would be more effectual than death to reprefs theft ; but can any one doubt,
T 2 that
302 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. 1.
that fociety would fuffer more by eradicating pity and humanity, than it would gain by punifhing capitally every one who is guilty of theft ? At the fame time, the Dutch, however cruel to the na- tives, are extremely complaifant to one another : feldorn is any of them punifhed but for murder : a fmall fum will procure pardon for any other crime.
Upon the brutality and harm manners of fa- vages, was founded an opinion univerfally preva-* lent, that man is an obdurate being who muft be governed by fear, not by love. It was the politic of princes to keep their fubjects in awe ; and every fubject became a creeping Have. Hence the uni- verfal practice of never appearing before a fove- reign or a prince but with a fplendid prefent, in order to deprecate his wrath or foften his temper, Philofophy has in time banifhed thefe crude no- tions of human nature, and taught us that man is a focial being, upon whom benevolence has a more powerful influence than fear. Benevolence, ac- cordingly, has become the ruling principle in fo- ciety ; and it is now the glory of princes to bellow favours and to receive none. This change of man- ners governs equally the worfhip paid to the Deity. Among rude nations, the Deity is reprefented as an angry God, vifiting the fins of the fathers upon the children ; and hence oblations, offerings, fa- crifices, not even excepting human victims. Happy it is for us to have received more refined riotions
' of
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 303
of the Deity. The opinion, juftly founded, that benevolence is his prime attribute, has banifhed oblations, facrifices, and fuch trumpery ; and we depend on the goodnefs of the Deity, without any retribution but that of a grateful heart.
A degree of coarfenefs and indelicacy is con- nected with rough manners. The manners of the Greeks, as copied by Plautus and Terence from Menander and other Greek writers, were extreme- ly coarfe ; fuch as may be expected from a people living among their flaves, without any fociety with virtuous women. The behaviour of Demofthenes and Efchines to each other in their public ha- rangues is wofully coarfe. But Athens was a de- mocracy ; and a democracy, above all other go- vernments, is rough and licentious. In the Athe- nian comedy, neither gods nor men are fpared. The mod refpeclable perfons of the republic are ridiculed by name in the comedies of Ariilophanes, which wallow in loofenefs and detraction. In the third act of Andromache, a tragedy of Euripedes, Peleus and Menelaus, Kings of Theflaly and Sparta, fall into downright ribaldry ; Menelaus fwearing that he will not give up his victim, and Peleus threatening to knock him down with his flafF. The manners of Jafon, in the tragedy of Medea by Euripides, are wofully indelicate. With un- paralleled ingratitude to his wife Medea, he, even in her prefence, makes love to the King of Co- rinth's daughter, and obtains her in marriage. In-
T 3 Head
304 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOGTETy. [B. I,
ileaid of blufhing to fee a perfon he had fo deeply injured, he coolly endeavours to excufe himfelf, " that he was an exile like herfelf, without fup- " port; and that his marriage would acquire " powerful. friends to them and to their children." Could he imagine that fuch frigid reafons would touch a woman of any fpirit ? A moil finking picture of indelicate manners is exhibited in the tragedy of Alceftes. Admetus prevails upon Al- ceftes, his loving and beloved wife, to die in hi$ ilead. What a barbarian muft the man be who grafps at life, upon fuch a condition ? How ridi- culous is the bombaft flourifh of Admetus, that, if he were Orpheus, he would pierce to hell, brave the three-headed Cerberus, and bring his wife to earth again ! and how indecently does he fcold his father for refuiing to die for him ! What pretext could the monfler have to complain of his father, when he himfelf was fo difgracefully fond of life, as even to folicit his beloved fpoufe to die in his Head ! What ilronger inilance, after all, would one require of indelicacy in the manners of the Greeks, than that they held all the world except themfelves to be barbarians ? In that particular, however, they are not altogether fingular. Though the Tartars, as mentioned above, were foul feeders, and hoggifhly nafly, yet they were extremely proud, defpifmg, Jike the Greeks, every other na- tion. The 'people of Congo think the world to be the work of angels, except their own country,
which
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 30$
which they hold to be the handiwork of the fu- preme architect. The Greenlanders have a high conceit of themfelves ; and in private make a mock of the Europeans, or Kablunets, as they call them. Defpiling arts and fciences, they value themfelves on their fkill in catching feals, conceiving it to be the only ufeful art. They hold themfelves to be the only civilized and well-bred people ; and when they fee a modeft ftranger, they fay, " he begins " to be a man ;r that is, to be like one of them- felves. Sometimes, however, fparks of light are perceived breaking through the deepeft gloom. When the Athenians were at war with Philip King of Macedon, they intercepted fome letters addrefled by him to his minifters. Thefe they opened for intelligence : but one to his Queen Olympias they left with the meffenger untoudie'd. This was done not by a {ingle perfon, but by au- thority of the whole people.
So coarfe and indelicate, were Roman manners, that whipping was a punifhment infli&ed on the officers of the army, not even excepting centu- rions*. Doth it not fhow extreme grojTnefs of manners, to exprefs in plain words the parts that modefly bids us conceal ? and yet this is common in Greek and Roman writers. In the Cyclops of Euripides, there is reprefented a fcene of the vice againft nature, grofsly obfcene, without the leaft difguife. How wofully indelicate muft the man
T 4 Jiave
* Julius Capitolinus, in the life of Albinus*
306 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
have been, who could fit down gravely to compofe fuch a piece ! and how diflblute muft the fpedta- tors have been who could behold fuch a fcene without hiffing ! Next to the indecency of expor fing one's nudities in good company, is the talk- ing of them without referve. Horace is extreme- ly obfcene, and Martial no lefs. But I cenfure neither of them, and as little the Queen of Navarre for her tales ; for they wrote according to the- manners of the times : it is the manners I cenfure, not the writers. In Rome, a woman taken in adul- tery was proflituted on the public ftreet to all comers, a bell ringing the whole time. This abo- minable practice was abolilhed by the Emperor Theodofius *..
The manners of Europe, before the revival of letters, were no lefs coarfe than cruel. In the Cartularies of Charlemagne, judges are forbidden to hold courts but in the morning, with an empty ilomach. It would appear, that men in thofe days were not afhamed to be feen drunk, even in a court of juflice. It was cuftomary, both in France and Italy, to collect for fport all the ftrumpets in the neighbourhood, and to make them run races. Se- veral feudal tenures give evidence of manners both
\
low and coarfe. Struvius mentions a tenure, bind- ing the vaflal, on the birth- day of his lord, to (lance and fart before him. The cod-piece, which, 8, few centuries ago, made part of a man's drefs,
and t Socrates, Hift. Eccl. liy. 5. chap. 18.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 307
and which fwelled by degrees to a monftrous fize, teftifies fhamefully coarfe manners ; and yet it was a modeft ornament, compared with one ufed in France during the reign of Lewis XI. which was the figure of a man's privy parts fixed to the coat or breeches. In the fame period, the judgment of Paris was a favourite theatrical entertainment : three women flark-naked reprefented the three goddefles, Juno, Venus, and Minerva. Nick- names, fo common not long ago, are an inflance of the fame coarfenefs of manners ; for to fix a nick- name on a man, is to ufe him with contemptuous familiarity. In the thirteenth century, many cler- gymen refufed to adminifter the facrament of the Lord's fupper, unlefs they were paid for it*. In the tenth century, Edmond King of England, at a feftival in the county of Gloucefter, obferved Leolf, a notorious robber, under fentence of banilh- ment,* fitting at table with the King's attendants. Enraged at this infolence, he ordered Leolf to leave the room. On his refufing to obey, the King leaped on him, and feized him by the hair. The ruffian drew his dagger, and gave the King a wound, of which he immediately expired. How lamentable would be our condition, were we as
much
* *' Corpus Chrifti tejientes in manibus, (fays the canon), ac fi dicerent, Quid mihi vultus daie. et ego eum vobis tradam ?" — [/« Engli/b thus : •' Holding the body of Chrift in M their hands, as if they faid, What will you give me for
308 MEK INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
much perfecuted as our forefathers were with omens, dreams, prophelies, aftrologers, witches, and apparitions ? Our forefathers were robufl both in mind and body, and could bear without much pain what would totally overwhelm us.
Even after the revival of letters, the European manners were a long time coarfe and indelicate. In the year 1480, the Cardinal Bibiena exhibited the Calendra, a comedy of intrigue upon a good model, but extremely licentious, as all compoii- tions of that age were. The Mandragora of Ma- chiavel is equally licentious ; and, coniidering the author, the Queen of Navarre's tales, woril of all.
Swearing as an expletive of fpeech, is a violent fymptom of rough and coarfe manners. It prevails among all barbarous nations. Even women in Plautus ufe it fluently. It prevailed in Spain and in France, till it was banifhed by polite manners. Our Queen Elifabeth was a bold fwearer * ; and the Englilh populace, who are rough beyond their neighbours, are noted by ilrangers for that vice. John King of England fwore commonly, " by the '•' teeth of God." Charles VIII. of France, " by
« God's
'* Writing to her fitter the Queen, begging that fhe might not be imprifoned in the Tower, fhe concludes her letter thus : " As for that traitor Wyat, he might peradventure write me ** a. letter : but on my faith I never received any from him. ** And, as for the copy of my letter fent to the French King, * " I pray God confound me eternally if ever I fent him *' word, meffage, token, or letter."
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 309
** God's day." Francis I. " upon the faith of a " gentleman." And the oath of Lewis XII. was, " May the devil take me." Though f weaving, m order to enforce an expreffion, is not in itfelf im- moral ; it is, however, hurtful in its confequences, rendering facred names too familiar. God's beard, the common oath of William Rufus, fuggefts an image of our Maker as an old man with a long beard. In vain have acts of parliament been made againft fwearing: it is eafy to evade the penalty, by coining new oaths ; and, as that vice proceeds from an overflow of fpirits, people in that condition brave penalties. Polifhed manners are the only effectual cure for that malady.
When a people begin to emerge out of barbarity, loud mirth and rough jokes come in place of ran- cour and refentment. About a century ago, it was ufual for the fervants and retainers of the Court of Seffion in Scotland, to break out into riotous mirth and uproar the laft day of every term, throw- ing bags, duft, fand, or ftones, all around. We have undoubted evidence of that diforderly prac- tice from an act of the Court, prohibiting it under a fevere penalty, as difhonourable to the Court, and unbecoming the civility requilite in fuch a place *.
And this leads to the lownefs of ancient man- ners; plainly diftinguilhable from limplicity of manners : the latter is agreeable, not the former.
Among f Aft of Sedenmt, 2ift February 1663. ,
3IO MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY: [B. f.
Among the ancient Egyptians, to cram a man was an act of high refpecT:. Jofeph, the King's firft minifter, in order to honour Benjamin above his brethren, gave him a five-fold-mefs *. The Greeks, in their feafts, diftinguifhed their heroes by a double portion f . UlyfTes cut a fat piece out of the chine of a wild boar for Demodocus the bard J. The fame refpeclful politenefs is practifed at prefent among the American favages, fo much are all men alike in fimilar circumftances. Telemachus [| com- plains bitterly of Penelope's fuitors, that they were gluttons, and confumed his beef and mutton. The whole 1 4th book of the Odyffey, containing the reception of Ulyfles by Eumseus the fwine-herd, is miferably low. Manners muft be both grofs and low, where common beggars are admitted to the feails of princes, and receive fcraps from their hands § . In Rome every gueft brought his own napkin to a feaft. A flave carried it home, filled with what was left from the entertainment. So- phbcles, in his tragedy of Iphigenia in Aulis, re- prefents Clytemneflra, ftepping down from her car, and exhorting her fervants to look after her bag- gage, with the anxiety and minutenefs of a lady's wait ing- woman. In the tragedy of Jon, this man, a fervant in the temple of Delphos, is reprefented
cleaning
* Gen- xliii. 34. f Odyfley, b. 8. v. 513. B. 15. v. 156,
J Odyfley, b. 8. v. 519. || Odyfley, b. 2.
§ See i7th and i8th books of the Odyfley.
SK. 5.] MANNERS.
cleaning the temple, and calling out to a flock of birds, each by name, threatening to pierce them with his arrows if they dunged upon the offerings. Homer paints in lively colours the riches of the Phoeacians, their Ikill in navigation, the magnifi- cence of the King's court, of his palace, and of the public buildings. But, with the fame breath, he defcribes Nauficaa, the King's daughter, tra- velling to the river on a waggon of greafy clothes, to be warned by her and her maids. Poffibly it may be urged, that fuch circumilances, however low in our opinion, did not appear low in Greece, as they were introduced by their chief poet, and the greatelt that ever exilted. I acknowledge the force of this argument : but what does it prove, more than that the Greeks were not fenfible of the lownefs of their manners ? Is any nation fen- fible of the lownefs of their own manners ? The manners of the Greeks did not correfpond to the delicacy of their taile in the fine arts : nor can it be expected, when they were ftrangers to that po- lite fociety with women, which refines behaviour, and elevates manners. The firft kings in Greece, as Thucydides obferves, were elective, having no power but to command their armies in time of war \ which refembles the government r,that obtains at prefent in the ifthmus of Darien. The Greeks had no written laws, being governed by cuftom mere- ly. To live by plunder was held honourable ; for it was their opinion, that the rules of juftice are
not
312 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B.I.
not intended for retraining the powerful. All ftrangers were accounted enemies, as among the Romans ; and inns were unknown, becaufe people lived at home, having very little intercourfe even with thofe of their own nation. Inns were un- known in Germany, and to this day are unknown in the remote parts of the Highlands of Scotland ; but for an oppolite reafon, that hofpitality prevail- ed greatly among the ancient Germans, and con- tinues to prevail fo much among our Highlanders, that a gentleman takes it for an affront if a ftr an- ger pafs his door. At a congrefs between Fran- cis I. of France and Henry VIII. of England, a- mong other fpedacles for public entertainment, the two Kings had a wreftling match. Had they for- got that they were fovereign princes ?
One would imagine war to be a foil too rough for the growth of civilization ; and yet it is not always an unkindly foil. War between two fmall tribes is fierce and cruel : but a large ftate miti- gates refentment, by directing it not againft indi- viduals, but againft the ftate. We know no ene- mies but thofe who are in arms : we have no re- fentment againft others, but rather find a pleafure in treating them with humanity *. Cruelty, ha~
_ ving
* The conftable du Guefclin, the greateft warrior of hfc time, being on deathbed, anno 1380, and bidding adieu to his; veteran officers who had ferved under him for forty years, entreated them not to forget what he had faid to them a
thoufand
«
It «
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 313
ving thus in war few individuals for its object, naturally fubfides ; and magnanimity in its ftead transforms foldiers from brutes to heroes. Some time ago, it was ufual in France to demand battle ; and it was held difhonourable to decline it, how- ever unequal the match. Before the battle of Pavia, Francis I. wrote to the Marquis Pefcara, the Imperial General, " You will find me before " Pavia, and you ought to be here in fix days : I give you twenty. Let not the fuperiority of my forces ferve for an excufe ; I will fight you with equal numbers." Here was heroifm with- out prudence ; but, in all reformations, it is natu- ral to go from one extreme to the other. While the King of England held any pofieffions in France, war was perpetual between the two nations, which was commonly carried on with more magnanimity than is ufual between inveterate enemies. It be- came cultomary to give prifoners their freedom, upon a fimple parole to return with their ranfom at a day named. The fame was the cuftom in the border-wars between the Engliih and Scots, before their union under one monarch. But parties found their account equally in fuch honourable beha- viour. Edward Prince of Wales, in a pitched battle againft the French, took the illuflrious Ber- trand du Guefclin prifoner. He long declined to
accept
thoufand times, '«• that in whatever country they made war, " churchmen, women, infants, and the poor people, were " not their enemies."
314 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I*
accept a ranfom; but, finding it whifpered that he was afraid of that hero, he inftantly fet him at liberty without a ranfom. This may be deemed impolitic or whimfical : but is love of glory lefs praife-worthy than love of conqueft ? The Duke of Guife, victor in the battle of Dreux, refted all night in the field of battle ; and gave the Prince of Conde, his prifoner, a mare of his bed, where they lay like brothers. The Chevalier Bayard, commander of a French army anno 1524, being mortally wounded in retreating from the Impe- rialifts, placed himfelf under a tree, his face, how- ever, to the enemy. The Marquis de Pefcara, general of the Imperialifts, finding him dead in that poilure, behaved with the generofity of a gal- lant adverfary : he directed his body to be em- balmed, and to be fent to his relations in the molt honourable manner. Magnanimity and heroifm, in which benevolence is an efiential ingredient, are inconfiilent with cruelty, perfidy, or any grovel- ling paffion. Never was gallantry in war carried to a greater height, than between the Englifh and Scotch borderers before the crowns were united. The night after the battle of Otterburn, the vic- tors and vanquifhed lay promifcuouily in the fame camp, without apprehending the leaft danger one from the other. The manners of ancient warriors were very different. Homer's hero, though fupe- rior to all in bodjly ftrength, takes every advan- tage of his eneay, and never feels cither compaf- ,
fion
SK« 5.] MANNERS, 315
fion or remorfe. The policy of the Greeks and Romans in war, was to weaken a (late by plunder- ing its territory, and deftroying its people. Hu- manity with us prevails even in war. Individuals not in arms are fecure, which faves much innocent blood. Prifoners were fet at liberty upon paying a ranfom \ and, by later improvements in manners, even that practice is left off as too mercantile, a more honourable practice being fubftituted, name- ly, a cartel for exchange of prifoners. Humanity was carried to a flill greater height, in our late war with France, by an agreement between the Duke de Noailes and the Earl of Stair, That the hofpitals for the lick and wounded foldiers mould be fecure from all hoftilities. The humanity of the Duke de Randan in the fame war, makes an illuftrious figure even in the prefent age, remark- able for humanity to enemies. When the French troops were compelled to abandon their conquefts in the electorate of Hanover, their Generals every where burnt their magazines, and plundered the people. The Duke de Randan, who commanded in the city of Hanover, put the magiftrates in pof- feflion of his magazines, requefting them to diftri- bute the contents among the poor ; and he was, beiide, extremely vigilant to prevent his foldiers from committing ads of violence *. I relifh not VOL. I. U the
* Such kindnefs in an enemy from whom nothing is ex- but znifchief, is an illuftrious inftance of humanity.
And
316 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
the brutality exercifed in theprefent war between the Turks and Ruffians. The latter, to fecure their
winter
And a fimilar inftance will not make the lefs figure that it was done by a man of inferior rank. When Monf. Thurot, during our late war with France, appeared on the coaft of Scotland with three armed veffels ; the terror he at firft fpread, foon yielded to admiration of his humanity. He paid a full price for every thing ; and, in general, behaved with fo much affability, that a country -man ventured to complain to him of an officer who had robbed him of fifty or fixty guineas. The officer acknowledged the fact, but faid, that he had divided the money among his men. Thurot ordered the officer to give his bill for the money, which, he faid, fliould be flopped out of his pay, if they were fo fortunate as to return to France. Compare this incident with that of the great Scipio, celebrated in Roman ftory, who reftored a beautiful young woman to her bridegroom, and it will not fuffer by the comparifon- Another inftance is no lefs re- markable. One of his officers gave a bill upon a merchant in France, for the price of provifions purchafed by him. Thurot having accidentally feen the bill, informed the coun- try-man that it was of no value, reprimanded the officer bit- terly for the cheat, and compelled him to give a bill upon a merchant who he knew would pay the money. At that very time, Thurot's men were in bad humour, and difpofed to mutiny. In fuch circumftances, would not Thurot have been excufed for winking at a fraud to which }ie was not accefibry ? But he acted all along with the ftricteft honour, even at the hazard of his life. Common honefty to an enemy is not a common practice in war, Thurot was ftrictly honeft in cir- cumftances that made the exertion of common honefty an act pf the higheft magnanimity. Thefe incidents ought to be up to princes as examples of true heroifm. War carried
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 317
winter quarters on the left hand of the Danube, laid wade a large territory on the right. To reduce fo many people to mifery merely to prevent a furprife, which can be more effectually done by Uriel: difci- pline, is a barbarous remedy. But the peace con- cluded between thefe great powers, has given an opening to manners very different from what were to be expected from the fact now mentioned. This peace has been attended with fignal marks not only of candour, but of courtefy. The Grand Signior, of his own accord, has difmiffed from chains every Chriflian taken prifoner during the war ; and the Emprefs of Ruflia has fet at liberty 3000 Turks, with an order to fet at liberty every Turk within her dominions. The neceffity of fortifying towns to guard from definition the in- nocent and defencelefs, affords convincing evidence of the favage cruelty that prevailed in former times. By the growth of humanity, fuch fortifi- cations have become lefs frequent : and they ferve no purpofe at prefent, but to defend againft inva- fion ; in which view a fmall fortification, if but fufficient for the garrifon, is greatly preferable, be- ll 1 ing
on in that manner, would, from defolation and horror, be converted into a fair field for acquiring true military glory, and for exercifing every manly virtue. I feel the greateft fatisfa&ion, in paying this tribute of praife to the memory of that great man. He will be kept in remembrance by every true-hearted Briton, though he died fighting againft us. But he died in the field of honour, fighting for his country.
318 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.
ing conftructed at a much lefs expence, and ha- ving the garrifon only to provide for.
In the progrefs of fociety, there is commonly a remarkable period, when focial and diflbcial paf- iions feem to bear equal fway, prevailing alter- rjately. In the hiftory of Alexander's fucceflbrs, there are frequent inftances of cruelty, equalling that of American favages ; and inftances no lefs frequent of gratitude, of generoiity, and even of clemency, that betoken manners highly polifhed. Ptolemy of Egypt, having gained a complete, vic- tory over Demetrius, fon of Antigonus, reftored to him his equipage, his friends, and his domeftics, faying, that " they ought not to make war for " plunder, but for glory.': Demetrius having de- feated one of Ptolemy's generals, was lefs delighted with the victory, than with the opportunity of ri- valling his antagorjift in humanity. The fame Demetrius having reftored liberty to the Atheni- ans, was treated by them as a demi-god ; and yet afterward, in his adverfity, found their gates fhut againftV him. Upon a change of fortune, he laid fiege to Athens, refolving to chaftife that rebellious and ungrateful people. He afTembled the inhabi- tants in the theatre, furrounding them with his ar- my, as preparing for a total maflacre. Their ter- ror was extreme, but fhort : he pronounced their pardon, and beftowed on them 100,000 meafures pf wheat. Ptolemy, the fame who is mentioned above, having, at t|ie fiege of Tyre, fummoned
Andronicus
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 319
Andronicus the governor to furfender, received a provoking and contemptuous anfwer. The town being taken, Andronicus gave himfelf up to de- fpair : but the King, thinking it below his dignity to refent an injury done to him by an inferior, now his prifoner, not only overlooked the injury, but courted Andronicus to be his friend. Edward, the Black Prince, is an inftance of refined manners, breaking, like a fpark of fire, through the gloom of barbarity. The Emperor Charles V. after lo- ling 30,000 men at the fiege of Metz, made an ignominious retreat, leaving his camp filled with lick and wounded, dead and <lying. Though the war between him and the King of France was car- ried on with unufual rancour, yet the Duke of Guife, governor of the town, exerted, in thofe bar- barous times, a degree of humanity that would make a fplendid figure even at prefent. He order- ed plenty of food for thofe who were dying of hun- ger, appointed furgeons to attend the lick and wounded, removed to the adjacent villages thofe who could bear motion, and admitted the remain- der into the hofpitals that he had fitted up for his own foldiers : thofe who recovered their health were fent home, with money to defray the ex- pence of the journey.
In the period that intervenes between barbarity and humanity, there are not wanting inftances of oppofite paffions in the fame perfon, governing al- ternately \ as if a man could this moment be mild
TJ 3 and
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
and gentle, and next moment harih and brutal. To vouch the truth of this obfervation, I beg leave to introduce two rival monarchs, who for many years diftrefied their own people, and difturbed Europe, the Emperor Charles, and the French King Francis. The Emperor, driven by contrary winds on J the coaft of France, was invited by Francis, who happened to be in the neighbourhood, to take fhelter in his dominions, propofing an interview at Aigues-Mortes, a fea-port town. The Emperor inftantly repaired there in his galley ; and Francis, relying on the Emperor's honour, vilited him on fhipboard, and was received with every expreflion of affection. Next day the Emperor repaid the confidence repofed in him : he landed at Aigues- Mortes with as little precaution, and found a re- ception equally cordial. After twenty years of open hoflilities or of fecret enmity ; after having formally given the lie and challenged each other rto fingle combat; after the Emperor had public- ly inveighed againll Francis as void of honour, and Francis had accufed the Emperor as murderer of his own fon, — a behaviour fo open and frank will fcarce be thought confident with human na* ture. But thefe monarchs lived in a period ver- ging from cruelty to humanity ; and fuch periods abound with furprifing changes of temper and be- haviour. In the prefent times, changes fo violent are unknown.
Conqueft has not always the fame effect: upon
the
. 5.] MANNERS. 321
the manners of the conquered. The Tartars who fubdued China in the thirteenth century, adopted immediately the Chinefe manners : the govern- ment, laws, cuftoms, continued without variation. And the fame happened upon their fecond conqueft of China in the feventeenth century. The barba- rous nations alfo who crufhed the Roman empire, adopted the laws, cuftoms, and manners, of the conquered. Very different was the fate of the Greek empire when conquered by the Turks. That warlike nation introduced every where their own laws and manners : even at this day they con- tinue a diftind people as much as ever. The Tar- tars, as well as the barbarians who overthrew the Roman empire, were all of them rude and illite- rate, deftitute of laws, and ignorant of govern- ment. Such nations readily adopt the laws and manners of a civilized people whom they admire. The Turks had laws, and a regular government ; and the Greeks, when fubdued by them, were re- duced by fenfuality to be objects of contempt, not of imitation.
Manners are deeply affected by perfecution. The forms of procedure in the Inquilition enable the inquifitors to ruin whom they pleafe. A per- fon accufed is not confronted with the accufer : every fort of accufation is welcome, and from every perfon: a child, a common proftitute, one branded with infamy, are reputable vvitnefles : a man is compelled to give evidence againft his father, and
U4 a
322 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
a woman againft her hufband. Nay, the perfons accufed are compelled to inform againil themfelves, by gueffing what fin they may have been guilty of. Such odious, cruel, and tyrannical proceed- ings, made all Spain tremble : every man diftrufted his neighbour, and even his own family : a total end was put to friendfhip, and to focial freedom. Hence the gravity and referve of a people, who have naturally all the vivacity arifing from a tem- perate clime and bountiful foil*. Hence the pro- found ignorance of that people, while other Euro- pean nations are daily improving in every art and in every fcience. Human nature is reduced to its lowed ftate, when governed by fuperftition clothed with power.
We proceed to another capital article in the hi- ilory of manners, namely, the felfifh and focial branches of our nature, by which manners are greatly influenced. Selfifhnefs prevails among fa- vages ; becaufe corporeal pleafures are its chief objects, and of thefe every favage is perfectly fen- fible. Benevolence and kindly affedtion are too refined for a favage, unlefs of the limpleft kind, fuch as the ties of blood. While artificial wants ^ere unknown, felfilhnefs, though prevalent, made no capital figure : the means of gratifying the calls
of
* The populace of Spain, too low game for the Inquifition, are abundantly chearful, perhaps more fo than thofe of France. And I am credibly informed, that the Spanifh woman are perpetually dancing, finging, laughing or talking.
SK. 5.] MANNERS* 323
of nature were in plenty ; and men, who are not afraid of ever being in want, never think of pro- viding againft it ; and far lefs do they think of co- veting what belongs to another. The Caribbeans, who know no wants but what nature infpires, are amazed at the induftry of the Europeans in amaf- iing wealth. Liften to one of them expoftulating with a Frenchman in the following terms : " How " miferable art thou, to expofe thy perfon to te- " dious and dangerous voyages, and to fuffer thy- " felf to be oppreiTed with anxiety about futurity ! " An inordinate appetite for wealth is thy bane ; " and yet thou art no lefs tormented in preferving " the goods thou haft acquired, than in acquiring " more : fear of robbery or fhipwreck fuffers thee " not to enjoy a quiet moment. Thus thou grow- " eft old in thy youth, thy hair turns gray, thy " forehead is wrinkled, a thoufand ailments afflicl: " thy body, a thoufand diftrefles furround thy " heart, and thou moveft with painful hurry to the " grave. Why art thou not content with what " thy own country produceth ? Why not contemn " fuperfluities, as we do ?" But men are not long contented with iimple neceftaries : an unwearied appetite to be more and more comfortably, provi- ded, leads them from neceflaries to conveniences, and from thefe to every fort of luxury. Avarice turns headftrong ; and locks and bars, formerly unknown, become neceflary to protect people from the rapacity of their neighbours. When the goods
of
3^4 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. J.
of fortune, money in particular, come to be prized, felfifhnefs foon difplays itfelf. In Madagafcar, a man who makes a prefent of an ox or a calf, ex- pects the value in return ; and fcruples not to fay, " You my friend, I your friend ; you no my friend, " I no your friend ; I falamanca you, you fala- " manca me*." Admiral Watfon being introdu- ced to the king of Baba, in Madagafcar, was aflced by his Majefty, What prefents he had brought ? Hence the cuftom, univerfal among barbarians, of always accofting a king, or any man of high rank, with prefents. Sir John Chardin fays, that this cuftom goes through all Afia. It is reckoned an honour to receive prefents : they are received in public ; and a time is chofen when the crowd is greateft. It is a maxim too refined for the poten- tates of Afia, that there is more honour in beftow- ing than in receiving.
The peculiar excellence of man above all other animals, is the capacity he has of improving by education and example. In proportion as his fa- culties refine, he acquires a relifh for fociety, and finds a pleafure in benevolence, generofity, and in every other kindly affection, far above what felfifh- nefs can afford. How agreeable is this fcene ! Alas, too agreeable to be lafting. Opulence and luxury inflame the hording appetite ; and felfifh- nefs at laft prevails as it did originally. The fel- fifhnefs, however, of favages differs from that of pampered people. Luxury confining a man's whole
views * Salamanca means the making 2
SK-. 5«] MANNERS. 3^5
views to rthimfelf, admits not of friendihip, and fcarce of any other focial paflion. But where a favage takes a liking to a particular perfon, the whole force of his focial affedlion being directed to a fingle object, becomes extremely fervid. Hence the unexampled friendfhip between Achilles and Patroclus in the Iliad ; and hence many fuch friend- Ihips among favages.
But there is much more to be faid of the influ- ence of opulence on manners. Rude and illiterate nations are tenacious of their laws and manners ; for they are governed by cuftom, which is more and more rivetted by length of time. A people, on the contrary, who are polifhed by having paf- fed through various fcenes, are full of invention, and conftantly thinking of new modes. Man- ners, in particular, can never be flationary in a na- tion refined by profperity and the arts of peace. Good government will advance men to a high de- gree of civilization ; but the very bed government will not preferve them from corruption, after be- coming rich by profperity. .Opulence begets luxu- ry, and envigorates the appetite for fenfual plea- fure. The appetite, when inflamed, is never con- fined within moderate bounds, but clings to every objedt of gratification, without regard to propriety; or decency. When Septimius Severus was elected Emperor, he found on the roll of caufes depending before the judges in Rome no fewer than three thoufand accufations of adultery. From that mo- ment
326 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ment he abandoned all thoughts of a reformation. Love of pleafure is limilar to love of money : the more it is indulged the more it is inflamed. Po- lygamy is an incentive to the vice againft nature j one act of incontinence leading to others without end. When the Sultan Achmet was depofed at Conftantinople, the people, breaking into the houfe of one of his favourites, found not a lingle woman. It is reported of the Algerines, that in many of their feraglios there are no women. For the fame reafon polygamy is far from preventing a- dultery, a truth finely illuflrated in Nathan's pa- rable to David. What judgment, then, are we to form of the opulent cities, London and Pa- ris, where pleafure is the ruling paffion, and where riches are coveted as inftruments of fen- fuality ? What is to be expected but a peftife- rous corruption of manners ? Selfifhnefs, ingroffing. the whole foul, eradicates patriotifm, and leaves not a cranny for fbcial virtue. If in that condition men abftain from robbery or from murder, it is not love of juilice that reftrains them, but dread of punifhment. Babylon is arraigned by Greek wri- ters for luxury, fenfuality, and profligacy. But Babylon reprefents the capital of every opulent kingdom, ancient and modern : the manners of all are the fame ; for power and riches never fail to produce luxury, fenfuality, and profligacy #. Can-
gni,
* In Paris and London, people of fafhion are inceflantly running after pleafure, without ever attaining it. Diffatisfied
with
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 327
ghi, Emperor of China, who died in the year 1722, deferves to be recorded in the annals of fame, for refilling the foftnefs and effeminacy of an Afiatic court. Far from abandoning himfelf to fenfual pleafure, he pafled feveral months yearly in the mountains of Tartary, moflly on horfeback, and declining no fatigue. Nor in that fituation were affairs of flate neglected : many hours he borrow- ed from fleep, to hear his minifters, and to ifTue or- ders. How few monarchs, bred up like Canghi in the downy indolence of a feraglio, have refolu- tion to withftand the temptations of fenfual plea- fure !
In no other hiftory is the influence of profperity and opulence on manners fo confpicuous as in that of old Rome. During the fecond Punic war, when the Romans were reduced by Hannibal to fight pro aris et focis, Hiero, King of Syracufe, fent to Rome a large quantity of corn, with a golden ftatue of Vic- tory weighing three hundred and twenty pounds, which the fenate accepted. But, though their fi- nances were at the loweft ebb, they accepted but the lighted of forty golden vafes prefented to them by the city of Naples , and politely returned, with many thanks, fome golden vafes fent by the city of Paeftum, in Lucania : a rare inftance of magnanimity. But no degree of virtue is proof
againft
with the prefent, they fondly imagine that a new purfuit will relieve them. Life thus pafles like a dream, with no enjoy- ment buj; what arifes from
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B.I.
againft the corruption of conqueft and opulence. Upon the influx of Afiatic riches and luxury, the Romans abandoned themfelves to every vice : they became, in particular, wonderfully avaricious, breaking through every reftraint of juftice and hu- manity *. Spain in particular, which abounded with gold and lilver, was for many years a fcene, not only of oppreflion and cruelty, but of the bafeft treachery, praclifed againft the natives by fuccef- live Roman generals, in order to accumulate wealth. Lucullus, who afterwards made a capital figure in the Mithridatic war, attacked Cauca, a Celtiberian city, without the flighteft provocation. Some of the principal citizens repaired to his camp with olive branches, defiring to be informed upon what conditions they could purchafe his friendfhip. It was agreed that they mould give hoftages, with a hundred talents of lilver. They alfo confented to admit a garrifon of 2000 men, in order, faid Lucul- lus, to protect them againft their enemies. But how were they protected ? The gates were opened by
' the
* " Poftquam divitte honori efle coeperunt, et eas gloria, im- perium, potentia fequebatur; hebefcere virtus, paupertas pro- bro haberi, innocentia pro malevolentia duel, coepit. Igitur ex divitiis juventutem luxuria, atque avaritia, cum fuperbia invafere." Salluft. Bell. Cat. c. 12 — [In Engltfb thus : " After ** it had become an honour to be rich, and glory, empire, and " power, became the attendants of riches, virtue declined " apace, poverty was reckoned difgraceful, and innocence " was held fecret malice. Thus to the introduction of riches «< our youth owe their luxury, their avarice, and pride."]
SK. 5.J MANNERS. 329
the garrifon to the whole army ; and the inhabi- tants were butchered, without diflinclion of fex or age. What other remedy had they, but to invoke the gods prefiding over oaths and covenants, and to pour out execrations againft the Romans for their perfidy ? Lucullus, enriched with the fpoils of the town, felt no remorfe for leaving 20,000 perfons dead upon the fpot. Shortly after, having laid fiege to Intercatia, he folicited a treaty of peace. The citizens reproaching him with the ilaughter of the Cauceans, afked, Whether, in ma- king peace, he was not to employ the fame right hand, and the fame faith, he had already pledged to their countrymen ? Seroclius Galba, another Roman general, perfuaded the Lufitanians to lay down their arms, promifing them a fruitful terri- tory inftead of their own mountains ; and having thus got them into his power, he ordered all of them to be murdered. Of the few that efcaped, Viriathus was one, who, in a long and bloody war againft the Romans, amply avenged the, maffacre of his countrymen. Our author Appian reports, that Galba, furpafling even Lucullus in covetouf- nefs, diftributed but a fmall ihare of the plunder among the foldiers, converting the bulk of it to his own ufe. He adds, that though Galba was one of the richeft men in Rome, yet he never fcrupled at lies nor perjury to procure money. But the cor- ruption was general : Galba being accufed of many mifdemeanours, was acquited by the fenate,
through
330 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
through the force of bribes. A tribe of the Celti- berians, who had long ferved the Romans againfl the Lufitanians, had an offer made them by Titus Didius of a territory in their neighbourhood, late- ly conquered by him. He appointed them a day to receive pofTeffion ; and having inclofed them in his camp, under mow of friendfhip, he put them all to the fword ; for which mighty deed he obtained the honour of a triumph. The double-dealing and treachery of the Romans, in their laft war againfl Carthage, is beyond example. The Carthagi- nians, fufpecting that a florm was gathering againfl them, fent deputies to Rome for fecuring peace at any rate. The fenate, in appearance, were difpo- fed to amicable meafures, demanding only hofta- ges ; and yet, though three hundred hoflages were delivered without lofs of time, the Roman army landed at Utica. The Carthaginian deputies at- tended the Confuls there, deliring to know what more was to be done on their part. They were required to deliver up their arms ; which they chearfully did, imagining that they were now cer- tain of peace. Inftead of which, they received per- emptory orders to evacuate the city, with their wives and children, and to make no fettlement within eighty furlongs of the fea. In perufing Appian's hiflory of that memorable event, compaf- fion for the diftrefled Carthaginians is ftifled by in- dignation at their treacherous oppreflbrs. Could the monfters, after fuch treachery, have the impu^
dence
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 33!
dence to talk of Punica fides ? The profligacy of the Roman people, during the triumvirate of Cae- far, Pompey, and CrafTus, is painted in lively co- lours by the fame author. " For a long time, dif- " order and confulion overfpread the common- " wealth : no office was obtained but by faction, " bribery, or criminal fervice : no man was afha- " med to buy votes, which were fold in open mar- " ket. One man there was, who, to obtain a lu- " crative office, expended eight hundred talents* : " ill men enriched themfelves with public money, " or with bribes : no honeft man would ftand can- " didate for an office ; and, into a lituation fo mi- " ferable was the commonwealth reduced, that " once for eight months it had not a fingle magif- " trate.' Cicero, writing to Atticus, that Clodius was acquitted by the influence of Crafllis, expref fes himfelf in the following words : " Biduo, per unum fervum, et eum ex gladiatorio ludo, con- fecit totum negotium. Acceriivit ad fe, promi- fit, interceffit, dedit. Jam vero, O dii boni, rem perditam ! etiam nodles certarum mulierum, at- que adolefcentulorum nobilium, introdudiones nonnullis judicibus pro mercedis cumulo fue- runt f ." Ptolomy, King of Egypt, was dethro- ned
*• About L. 150,000 Sterling.
ii (i it tt
" In two days he completed the affair, by the means of " one flave, a gladiator. He fent for him, and by promifes,
" wheedling,
VOL. I. X
INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ned by his fubjeds for tyranny. Having repaired to Rome for protection, be found means to poifou the greater part of a hundred Egyptians, his accu- fers, and to affaffiqate Dion their chief. And yet thefe crimes, perpetrated in the heart of Rome, were fufferecj to pals with impunity. But he had fecured the leading men by money, and was pro- tected by Pompey. The following inftance is, if poflible, ilill more grofs. Ptolomy, King of Cy- prus, had always been a faithful ally to the Ro- mans. But his gold, jewels, and precious move- 3bles, were a tempting bait : and all was confifca- ted by a decree of the people, without even a pretext. Money procured by profligacy is not commonly hoarded up ; and the Romans were no lefs voluptuous than avaricious. Alexander ab Alexandro mentions the Faniari, Orchian, Didjan, Qppian, Corneljan, Andan, and Julian laws, for reprefling luxury of drefs and of eating, all of which proved ineffectual. He adds, that Tibe- rius had it long at heart to contrive fome effectual law againft luxury, which now had fufpafled all pounds, but that he found it impracticable to ftem. the tide. He concludes, that by tacit agreement
among
<* wheedling, and large gifts, he gained his point. Good " God, to what an infamous height has corruption at length -*' arrived ! Some judges were rewarded with a night's lodg- " ing of certain ladies ; and others, for an illuftrious bribq, " had fome young boys pf noble family introduced to them/' — Lib, i. epift. 1 3.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 333
among a corrupted people, all fumptuary laws were in effect abrogated ; and that the Roman people, abandoning themfelves to vice, broke through every reftraint of morality and religion*. Trem- ble, O Britain, on the brink of a precipice ! how little diflant in rapacity from Roman fenators are the leaders of thy people f !
The free ftates of Italy, which had become rich by commerce, employed mercenary troops to fave their own people, who were more profitably em- ployed at home. But, as mercenaries gained no- thing by victory or bloodfhed, they did very little execution againfl one another. They exhaufted the ftates which employed them, without doing
X 2 any
* Lib. iii. cap. u.
f Down on your knees, my countrymen, down on your knees, and render God thanks from the bottom of your hearts, for a Minifter very different from his immediate predecefTors. Untainted with luxury or avarice, his talents are dedicated to his King and his country. Nor was there ever a period in Britain, when prudence and difcernment; in a Minifter were more neceflary than in the prefent year 1775. ®UT colonies, pampered with profperity, aim at no lefs than independence, and have broken out into every extravagance. The cafe is extremely delicate, it appearing equally dangerous to pardon or to punifli. Hitherto the moil falutary meafures have been profecuted ; and we have great reafon to hope a happy iiTue equally fatisfaclory to both parties. But tremble ftill, O Bri- tain, on the brink of a precipice ! Our hold of that eminent Minifter is fadly precarious ; and, in a nation as deeply funk in felfifhnefs as formerly it was exalted by patriotifm, how frnall i$ our chance of a fucceflbr equal tp him 1
334 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
any real fervice. Our condition is in fome degree fimilar. We employ generals and admirals, who, by great appointments, foon lofe relifh for glory, intent only to prolong a war for their own benefit. According to our prefent manners, where luxu- ry and felfifhnefs prevail, it appears an egregious blunder, to enrich a general or admiral during his command : have we any reafon to expeft, that he will fight like one whofe fortune depends on his good behaviour ? This fingle error againft good policy has reduced Britain more than once to a low condition, and will prove its ruin at laft.
Riches produce another lamentable effect : they enervate the pofleflbr, and degrade him into a coward. He who commands the labovir of others, who eats without hunger, and refls without fa- tigue, becomes feeble in mind as well as in body, has no confidence in his own abilities, and is re- duced to flatter his enemies, becaufe he hath not courage to brave them.
Selfiftinefs among the rude and illiterate is rough, blunt, and undifguifed. Selfifhnefs, which in an opulent kingdom ufurps the place of patriotifm, is fmooth, refined, and covered with a veil. Pecu- niary intereft, a low obje6t, muft be covered with the thickeft veil : ambition, lefs difhonourable, is lefs covered : but delicacy as to character and love of fame, are fo honourable, that even the thinneft veil is held unneceflary. Hiftory justifies thefe obfervations. During the prolpenty of Greece
U'.'t-. :i ? • •.-•;, i -i, .. W =. X A *
and
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 335
and Rome, when patriotifm was the ruling paflion, no man ever thought of employing a hoftile wea- pon but againft the enemies of his country : fwords were not worn during peace, nor was there an in- flance of a private duel. The frequency of duels in modern times, is no flight fymptom of degene- racy : regardlefs of our country, felfifhnefs is ex- erted without difguife when reputation or charac- ter is in queftion ; and a nice fenfe of honour prompts revenge for every imagined affront, with- out regard to juftice. How much more manly and patriotic was the behaviour of Themiftocles, when infulted by the Lacedemonian general in de- liberating about the concerns of Greece ! " Strike," fays he, " but firft hear me *."
- X3 When
* Is duelling a crime by the law of nature ? A diftinction is neceffary. If two men, bent to deftroy each of them the other, meet armed, and one or both be (lain, the ad is highly criminal : it is murder in the ftricteft fenfe of the word. If they appoint time and place to execute their murderous pur- pofe, fuch agreement will not be more innocent than an agreement among a band of robbers to attack every paffenger : they will be abhorred as unfit for civil fociety. A duel which an affront forces a man upon for vindicating his ho- nour, when no fatisfa&ion is offered, or no proper fatisfaclion, is very different. I cannot fee that the perfon affronted is guilty of any crime ; and, if the perfon who gave the affront have offered what he thinks full fatisfadion, I fee no crime on either fide. The parties have agreed to decide their quarrel in the honourable way, and no other perfon is hurt. II it be urged, that duelling is a crime agaiml the ftate, which is in-
terefted
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [», I.
When a nation, formerly in profperity, is de- prefled by luxury and felfifhnefs, what follows
next ?
terefted in the lives of its fubje&s, I anfwcr, that individuals are entitled to be protected by the ftate ; but that if two men, waving that prote&ion, agree to end the difpute by fingle combat, the ftate has no concern. There is nothing Snconfift- ent with the laws of fociety, that men, in an affair of honour, ihould referve the privilege of a duel ; and, for that reafon, the privilege may be juftly underftood as referved by every man when he enters into fociety, I admit, that the ufmg the privilege on every flight occafion, cannot be too much dif- couraged ; but fuch difcouragement, if duelling be not cri- minal, belongs to a court of police, not to a court of law. What then (hall be faid of our ftatutes, which punilh with death and confifcation of moveables thofe who fight a fmgle combat without the King's licence ; and which punifh even the giving or accepting a challenge with banifhment and confifcation of moveables ? Where a man thinks his honour at (lake, fear of death will not deter him from feeking re- drefs : nor is an alternative left him, as the bearing a grofa affront is highly difhonourable in the opinion of all the world. Have we not inftances without number, of men adhering to the fuppofed orthodoxy of their religious tenets, unawed by flames arid gibbets ? How abfurd, then, is it in our legifla- ture to punifh a man for doing what is indifpenfable, if he wifh to avoid contempt ? Laws that contradict honeft prin- ciples, or even honeft prejudices, never are effectual : nature revolts againft them. And, it is believed, that thefe ftatutes have never been effectual in any one inftance, unlefs perhaps to furnijh an excufe for declining a fingle combat.
As duelling falls under cenforian powers, the proper cen- fvfe for jaihnefs or intemperance in duelling, is difgrace, not
death
SK. g.] MANNERS. 337
next ? Let the Egyptians anfwer the queftion. That unhappy people, having for many ages been
X4 a
death or confifcation of moveables. In that view, the follow- ing, or fome fuch plan, may be adopted. It appears, from the ftatute firft mentioned, to be a branch of the royal prero- gative, to licenfe a duel. Therefore, if an affront be fo grofs, as in the perfon's opinion nd't to admit of any reparation but a duel, let him be entitled to apply to his Majefty for liberty to give a challenge. In Britain formerly, and through all Europe, fmgle combat was a legal method of determining controverfies, even in matters of right and wrong ; and there is great reafon for continuing that law, with refpect to matters of honour. If the King have any doubt whether other repa^ ration may not be fufficient, he is to name three military offi- cers who have ferved with honour for twenty years, granting to them full powers, as a court of honour, to judge of the application ; and upon calling the parties before them, to pronounce fentence. If a duel be judged neceflary, it muft be done in prefence of the court, with proper folemnities. Obedience will of courfe be given to this judgment ; becaufe to decline it would be attended with public infamy. If other reparation be enjoined, the party who ftands out fhall be de- clared infamous ; unworthy for ever of the privilege of a duel ; which ought to fatisfy the other party, as he. comes off with honour. If, notwithftanding the prohibition of the court, they afterward proceed to a duel, and both be killed, the pub- lic gains by having two quarrelfome men removed out of the way. If one of them be killed, the furvivor (hall be incapable of any public office, civil or military, mall be incapable of electing or being elected a member of parliament, fhall be prohibited to wear a fword, fliall forfeit his title of honour, and have his arms erazed out of the herald's regifter. If both Awvive, this cenfure ihall reach both. Degrading cen-
fure*
338 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. - [fi. I.
a prey to every barbarous invader, are now be- come effeminate, treacherous, cruel, and corrupted with every vice that debafes humanity. A nation in its infancy, however favage, is fufceptible of every improvement ; but a nation worn out with age and difeafe is fufceptible of no improvement. There is no remedy, but to let the natives die out* and to repeople the country with better men. Egypt has for many ages been in the fame languid and fervile ftate. An Arabian author, who wrote the hiftory of the great Saladin, obferves, that the Egyptians never thought of fupporting the monarch in pofieffion, but tamely fubmitted to every con- queror. " It was," fays he, " the cuftom in Egypt " at that time to deliver to the vidtor the enligns " of royalty, without ever thinking of inquiring " into his title." What better than a flock of
fheejT,
fares which difgrace a man, are the only proper punifhment in an affair of honour. The tranfgreffion of the act of Par- liament, by fighting privately without licence from the King, ihall be attended with the fame degrading puniftiments.
It is a capital circumftance, that the court of honour has power to authorife a duel. A man grofsly affronted will not be eafily perfuaded to fubmit his caufe to a court that cannot decree him adequate reparation ; and this probably is the caufe why the court of honour in France has fallen into con- tempt. But they muft be perverfe indeed, or horribly obfti- nate, who decline a court which can decree them ample repa- ration. At the fame time, the neceflity of applying for a court of honour affords time for paffion. to fubfide, and for friends to bring about a reconciliation.
SK.5-] MANNERS; 339
fhecp, obedient to the call of the prefent fhep-* herd !
I fly from a fcene fo difmal to one that will give no pain. Light is intended by our Maker for ac- tion, and darknefs for reft. In the fourteenth cen- tury, the fhops in Paris were opened at four in the morning : at prefent, a fhopkeeper is fcarce a- wake at feven. The King of France dined at eight in the morning, and retired to his bed-cham- ber at the fame hour in the evening ; an early hour at prefent for public amufements *. The Spainards adhere to ancient cuftomsf. Their King to this day dines precifely at noon, and fups no lefs precifely at nine in the evening. During the reign of Henry VIII. fafhionable people in Eng- land breakfafted at feven in the morning, and dined at ten in the forenoon. In Elizabeth's time, the nobility, gentry, and ftudents, dined at eleven fore- noon, and fupped between five arid fix afternoon. In the 'reign of Charles II. four in the afternoon, was the appointed hour for adting plays. At pre- fent, even dinner is at a later hour. The King of
Ye man,
* Louts XII. of France, after taking for his fecond wife Mary, fifter to Henry VIII. of England, much under him in years, totally changed his manner of living. Inftead of di- ning at eight in the morning, he now dined at mid-day : in- ftead of going to bed at fix in the evening, he now frequently fat up till midnight.
f Manners and fafliions feldom change where women are locked up.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
Yeman, the greateft prince in Arabia Felix, dines at nine in the morning, fups at five afternoon, and goes to reft at eleven. From this Ihort fpecimen it appears, that the occupations of day-light com- mence gradually later and later ; as if there were a tendency in polite nations, of converting night into day, and day into night. Nothing happens without a caufe. Light difpofes to action, dark- nefs to reft : the diverfionsof day are tournaments, tennis, hunting, racing, and other active exercifes : the diverfions of night are fedentary ; plays, cards, converfation. Balls are of a mixed nature, partly active in dancing, partly fedentary in converfing. Formerly, adlive exercifes prevailed among a robuft and plain people * : the milder pleafures of fociety prevail as manners refine. Hence it is, that candle- light amufements are now fafhionable in France, and in other polifhed countries ; and when fuch amufements are much relifhed, they banifh the ro- buft exercifes of the field. Balls, I conjecture, were formerly more frequent in day-light : at pre- fent, candle-light is their favourite time : the ac- tive part is at that time equally agreeable ; and the fedentary part, more fo.
Gaming is the vice of idle people. Savages are addicted to gaming y and thofe of North America
in
* The exercifes that our forefathers delighted in were fo violent as that, in the days of Henry II. of England, cock- fighting and horfe-racing were defpifed as unmanly and child- iih amufements.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 34!
in particular are fond to diilradlion of a game termed the platter. A lofing gamefter will (trip himfelf to the fkin ; and fome have been known to flake their ^liberty, though by them valued above all other bleffings. Negoes on the ilave-coaft of Guinea, will llake their wives, their childern, and even themfelves. Tacitus, talking of gaming a- mong the Germans, fays, " Extreme ac noviffimo " jaclu, de libertate et de corpore contendant *." The Greeks were an active and fprightly people, conflantly engaged in war, or in cultivating the fine arts. They had no leifure for gaming, nor any knowledge of it. Happy for them was their ignorance ; for no other vice tends more to render men felfifh, difhoneft, and, in the modifh ftyle, dif- honourable. A gamefter, a friend to no man, is a bitter enemy to himfelf. The luxurious of the prefent age, pafs every hour in gaming that can be fpared from fenfual pleafure. Idlenefs is their ex- cufe, as it is among favages ; and they would in fome degree be excufable, were they never adtua- ted by a more difgraceful motive.
Writers do not carefully diftinguifh particular cuftoms from general manners, Formerly, women were not admitted upon the ftage in France, Italy, or England : at that very time, none but women were admitted in Spain. From that fauYion it would be rafh to infer, that women have more li- berty
* '* For their laft throw they flake their liberty and life." «— De Moribus Germanorum, c. 24.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
berty in Spain than in the other countries men- tioned y for the contrary is true. In Hindoftan, eftablifhed cuftom prompts women to burn them- felves alive with the bodies of their deceafed huf- bands ; but from that fingular cuftom, it would be a falfe inference, that the Hindoo women are ei- ther more bold, or more affectionate to their huf- bands, than in other countries. The Polanders, even after they became Chriftians in the thirteenth century, adhered to the cuftoms of their forefa- thers, the Sarmatians, in killing infants born de- formed, and men debilitated by age ; which would betoken horrid barbarity, if it were not a fingular cuftom. Roman Catholics imagine, that there is no religion in England nor in Holland ; becaufe, from a fpirit of civil liberty, all feds are there to- lerated. The encouragement given to aflaffination in Italy, where every church is a fan&uary, makes ftrangers ralhly infer, that the Italians are all af- faffins. Writers fometimes fall into an oppofite miftake, attributing to a particular nation, certain manners and cuftoms common to all nations in one or other period of their 'progrefs. It is remarked by Heraclides Ponticus as peculiar to the Atha- manes, that the men fed the flocks, and the women cultivated the ground. This has been the prac- tice of all nations, in their progrefs from the Ihep- herd-ftate to that of huibandry ; and is at prefent the practice among American favages. The fame author obferves, as peculiar to the Celtae and Aphi-
taei.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 343
taei, that they leave their doors open without ha- zard of theft. But that practice is common among all favages in the firft ftage of fociety, before the ufe of money is known.
Hitherto there appears as great uniformity in the progrefs of manners, as can reafonably be ex- pected among fo many different nations. There is one exception, extraordinary indeed if true, which is, the manners of the Caledonians defcri*^ bed by Offian, manners fo pure and refined as fcarce to be paralleled in the moil cultivated na- tions. Such manners among a people in the firft ftage of fociety, acquainted with no arts but hunt- ing and making war, I acknowledge, miraculous. And yet to fuppofe thefe manners to be the inven- tion of an illiterate favage, is really no lefs mira- culous : I mould as foon expect from a favage a performance equal to the elements of Euclid, or even to the Principia of Newton. One, at firft view, will boldly declare the whole a modern fic- tion ; for how is it credible, that a people, rude at prefent and illiterate, were, in the infancy of their fociety, highly refined in fentiment and manners ? And yet, upon a more accurate infpec- tion, many weighty confiderations occur to balance that opinion.
From a thoufand circumftances it' appears, that the works of Offian are not a late production. They are competed in an old dialect of the Celtic tongue } and as, till lately, they were known only
in
344 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
in the highlands of Scotland, the author muft have been a Caledonian. The tranflator* faw, in the Jfle of Sky, the fir ft four books of the poem Fingal, written in a fair hand on vellum, and bearing date in the year 1403. The natives be- lieve that poem to be very ancient : every perfon has pafiages of it by heart, tranfmitted by memo- ry from their forefathers. Their clogs bear com- monly the name of Luath, Bran, &c. mentioned in thefe poems, as our dogs do of Pompey and Ctzfar-^. Many other particulars might be mentioned ; but thefe are fufficient to prove, that the work muft have exifted at leaft three or four centuries. Ta- king that for granted, I proceed to certain conii- derations tending to evince, that the manners de- fcribed in Offian were Caledonian manners, and not a pure fiction. And, after perilling with at- tention thefe confiderations, I am not afraid that even the moft incredulous will continue altogether unfhaken.
It is a noted and well-founded pbfervation, That manners are never painted to the life by any one to whom they are not familiar. It is not difficult
to
* Mr Macpherfon.
f In the Ifle of Sky, the ruins of the Caftle of Dunfcaicfc, upon an abrupt rock hanging over the fea, are ft ill vifible. That caftle, as vouched by tradition, belonged to Cuchullin, Lord of that ifle, whofe hiftory is recorded in the Poem of Fingal. Upon the green before the caftle there is a great ftone, to which, according to the fame tradition, his dog; Luath was chained.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 345
to draw the outlines of imaginary manners ; but to fill up the pi&ure with all the variety of tints that manners afiume in different circumftances, uniting all concordantly in one whole — bic labor, hoc opus eft. Yet the manners here fuppofed to be invent- ed, are delineated in a variety of incidents, of fentiments, of images, and of allulions, making one entire picture, without once deviating into the flighteft incongruity. Every fcene in Offian relates to hunting, to fighting, or to love, the fole occupations of men in the original ftate of fociety t there is not a fingle image, fimile, or allufion, but what is borrowed from that ftate, without a jar- ring circumftance.— Suppofing all to be mere in- vention, is it not amazing to find no mention of Highland clans, or of any name now in ufe ? Is it not dill more amazing, that there is not the flighteft hint of the Chriftian religion, not even in a metaphor or allufion ? Is it not equally ama- zing, that, in a work where deer's flefh is fre- quently mentioned, and a curious method of roaft- ing it, there Ihould not be a word of fifti as food, fo common in later times ? Very few Highland- ers know that their forefathers did not eat fi(h ; and, fuppofing it to be known, it would require fingular attention, never to let a hint of it enter j:he poem. Can it be fuppofed, that a modern writer could be fo conftantly on his guard, as never to mention corn nor cattle ? In a ftory fo fcanty
<qf poetical images, the fedentary life of a fhepherd,
,
and
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
and the induftry of a hufbandman, would make a capital figure : the cloven foot would fomewhere peep out. And yet, in all the works of Offian, there is no mention of agriculture ; and but a flight hint of a herd of cattle in one or two allu- lions. I willingly give all advantages to the un- believer : Suppofing the author of Oflian to be a late writer, adorned with every refinement of mo- dern education ; yet, even upon that fuppofition, he is a miracle, far from being^ equalled by any other author ancient or modern.
But difficulties multiply when it is taken into the account, that the poems of Oflian have exifted three or four centuries at lead. Our highlanders at prefent are rude and illiterate ; and were in fact little better than favages at the period mentioned. Now, to hold the manners defcribed in that work to be imaginary/is in effect to hold, that they were invented by a highland favage, acquainted with the rude manners of his country, but utterly un- acquainted with every other fyftem of 'manners. The manners of different countries are now fo well known as to make it an eafy talk to invent man- ners by blending the manners of one country vyith thofe of another ; but to invent manners of which the author has no example, and yet neither whim-, lical nor abfurd, but congruous to human nature in its moft polifhed flate, I pronounce to be far above
the powers of man. Is it fo much as fuppofable,
•
at fuch a work could be the production of a Tar- tar,
SK. 5»jh~ MANNEBLS. 347
tar, or of a Hottentot ? From what fource then did Oflian draw the refined manners fo delicioufly painted by him : Suppoling hirri to have been a traveller, of which we have not the flighted hint, the manners of France at that period, of Italy, and of other neighbouring nations, were little lefs bar- barous than thofe of his own country. I can dif- cover no fource but infpiration. In a word, who- ever ferioufly believes the manners of Oflian to be fictitious, may well fay, with the religious enthu- fiaft, " Credo quia impojjibile eft t I believe it be- " caufe it is impoffible."
But further : The uncommon talents of the au- thor of this work will cheerfully be acknowledged by every reader of tafle : he certainly was a great matter in his way. Now, whether the work be late, or compofed four centuries ago, a man of fuch talents inventing a hiftorical fable, and laying the fcene of action among favages in the hunter-flate, would naturally frame a fyftem of manners the belt fuited in his opinion to that flate. What then could tempt him to adopt a fyftem of manners, fo oppofite to any notion he could form of favage manners ? The abfurdity is fo grofs, that we are forced, however reluctantly, to believe, that thefe manners are not fictitious, but in reality the man- tiers of his country, coloured perhaps, or a little heightened, according to the privilege of an epic poet. And once admitting that fact, there can be no hefitation in afcribing the work to Offian, fon
VOL. I. Y of
348 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I
of Fingal, whofe name it bears : we have no ter evidence for the authors of feveral Greek and Roman books. Upon the fame evidence, we muft believe, that Offian lived in the reign of the Em- peror Caracalla, of whom frequent mention is made under the deiignation of Caracul the Great King ; at which period, the (hepherd-ftate was fcarce known in Caledonia, and hufbandry not at all. Had he lived fo late as the twelfth century, when there were flocks and herds in that country, and fome fort of agriculture, a poet of genius, fuch as Offian undoubtedly was, would have drawn from thefe his fined images.
The foregoing conliderations, I am perfuaded, would not fail to convert the moft incredulous ; were it not for a confequence extremely impro- bable,. that a people, little better at prefent than favages, were in their primitive hunter-ftate high- ly refined ; for fuch Offian defcribes them. And yet it is BO lefs improbable, that fuch manners fhould be invented by an illiterate highland bard. Let a man chufe either fide, the difficulty cannot be folved but by a fort of miracle. What mall we conclude upon the whole ? for the mind cannot for ever remain in fufpenfe. As dry reafoning has left us in a dilemma, tafte perhaps and feeling may ex- tricate us. May not the cafe be here as in real painting ? A portrait drawn from fancy, may re- femble the human vifage ; but fuch peculiarity of countenance and expreffion as ferves to diftinguifii
a
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 349
a certain perfon from every other, is always want- ing. Prefent a portrait to a man of tafte, and he will be at no lofs to fay, whether it be copied from life, or be the product of fancy. If Offian paint from fancy, the cloven foot will appear: but if his portraits be complete, fo as to exprefs every peculia- rity of character, wby mould we doubt of their be- ing copied from life ? In that view, the reader, I am hopeful, will not think his time thrown away in examining fome of Oflian's ftriking pictures; I perceive not another refource.
Love of fame is painted by Offian as the ruling pafiion of his countrymen the Caledonians. War- riors are every where defcribed, as efteeming it their chief happinefs to be recorded in the fongs of the bards : that feature is never wanting in any of Offian' s heroes. Take the following inftances*
" King of the roaring Strumon, faid the rifmg joy of Fin- «' gal, do I behold thee in arms after thy ftrength has failed ? " Often bath Morni fhone in battles, like the beam of the ri- " fmg fun, when he difperfes the ftorms of the hill, and " brings peace to the glittering fields. But why didft ihou " not reft in thine age ? Thy renown is in the fong the " people behold thee, and blefs the departure of mighty " Morni *." <« Son of Fingal, he faid, why burns the foul '• of Gaul ? My heart beats high : my fteps are difordered ; " and my hand trembles on my fword. When I look to- •' ward the foe, my foul lightens before me, and I fee their " fleeping hoft. Tremble thus the fouls of the valiant, in « battles of the fpear ? How would the foul of Morni rife, if
Y 2 " we
* Lathmon.
35° MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. T*
" we fliould rufti oh the foe ! Our renown would grow in the * fong, and our fteps be (lately in the eye of the brave *."
That a warrior has acquired his fame is a confo- lation in every diflrefs :
*' Carril, faid the King in fecret, the ftrength of Cuchullin " fails. My days are with the years that are paft ; and no " morning of mine fhall arife. They (hall feek me at Temo- " ra, but I fhall not be found. Cormac will weep in his hall, " and fay, Where is Tura's chief? Bat my name is renown- " ed, my fame in the fong of bards. The youth will fay, 0 " let me die -as Cuckullin died s renown clothed htm like a robe ; and f< the light of his fame is great. Draw the arrow from my fide ; " and lay Cuchullin below that oak. Place the fhield of " Caithbat near, that they may behold me amid the arms df " m'y fathers f ."
/ '
Fiiigal fpeaks :
•' Ullin, my aged bard, take the fhip of the Kingi Carry " Ofcar to Selma, and let the daughters of Morven weep. *' We fhall fight in Erin for the race of fallen Cormac. The " days of my years begin to fail : I feel the weaknefs of my
" arm.
-, • -___^ .^ ; , ^_^ ^J^_^_^___—_^^___^_
* Lathmon.
Love of fame is a laudable paflion, which every man va- lues himfelf upon. Fame in war is acquired by courage and candour, which are efleemed by all. It is not acquired by fighting for fpoil, becaufe avarice is defpifed by all. The fpoils of in enemy were difplayed at a Roman triumph, not for their own fake, but as a mark of victory. When nations at war degenerate from love of fame to love of gain, ftrata- gem, deceit, breach of faith, and every fort of immorality, are never-failing confequences.
f The death of Cuchullin.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 35 1
*' arm. My fathers bend from their clouds to receive their " gray-hair'd fon. But, Trenmor ! before I go hence, one *' beam of my fame ihall rife : in fame (hall my days end, as " my years began ; my life fhall be one ft ream of light to " other times *."
*
Oflian fpeaks :
" Did thy beauty laft, Q Ryno ! ftopd the ftrength of car- ' borne Ofcar f ! Fingal himfelf pafled away, and the halls " of his fathers forgot his fteps. And (halt thou remain, aged " bard, when the mighty have failed ? But my fame ihall «' remain ; and grow like the oak of Morven, which lifts its *' broad head to the ftorm, and rejoiceth in the courfe of the ft wind
The chief caufe of affliction when a young man is cut off in battle, is his not having received his fame :
i
" And fell the fwifteft in the race, fald the King, the firfl ** to bend the bow ? Thou fcarce haft been known to me ; " why did young Ryno fall ? But fleep thou foftly on Lena, " Fingal Ihall foon behold thee. Soon Ihall my voice be •*' heard no more, and my footfteps ceafe to be feen. The *' bards will tell of Fingal's name ; the ftones will talk of me. " Bup, Jlyno ! thou art low indeed, thou haft not received thy
Y 3 fame.
* Temora.
f Several of Offian's heroes are defcribed as fighting in cars. The Britons, in general, fought in that manner. *' Britanni " demicant non equitatu modo, aut pedite, verum et bigis et " curribusj" Pomponius Mela, 1. 3. — [/« Engli/h thus : ''The " Britons fight, not only with cavalry, or foot, but alfp lyith " cars and chariots."]
Berrathon.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
< * fame. Ullin, ftrike the harp for Ryno ; tell what the chief " would have been. Farewell thou fir ft in every field. No " more (Hall I direft thy dart. Thou that haft been fo fair ; ?' I behold thee not. - Farewell *." <*' Calthon rufhed in- " to'the ft ream : I bounded forward on my fpear : Teutha's " race fell before us : night came rolling down. Dunthalmq " refted on a rock, amidft an aged wood : the rage of his bo- " fom burned againft the car-borne Calthon. But Calthon " ftood in his grief ; he mourned the fallen Colmar ; Colmar «' flain in youth, before his fame arofe f ."
Lamentation for lofs of fame. Cuchullin fpeaks :
" But, O ye ghofts of the lonely Cromla ! ye fouls of chiefs " that are no more, be ye the companions of Cuchullin, and " talk to him in the cave of his forrow. For never more " (hall I be renowned among the mighty in the land. I am, f ( like a beam that has fhone ; like a mift that fled away when " the blaft of the morning came, and brightened the fliaggy '* fide of the hill. Connal, talk of arms no more ; departe4 " is my fame. My fighs (hall be on Cromla's wind, till my ** footfteps ceafe to be feen. And thou white-bofom'd Bra- f gela, mourn over the fall of my fame ; for, vanquifhed, ne- f ver will I return to thee, thou fun-beam of Dunfcaich
Love of fame begets heroic actions, which go hand in hand with elevated fentiments : of the for- mer there are examples in every page ; of the lat- ter take the following, examples :
" And let him come, replied the King. I love a foe like f ' Cathmor : his foul is great ; his arm ftrong ; and his battles *' full of fame. But the little foul is like a vapour that ho-
« vers
*
Fingal. f Calthon and Colmar. $ FingaL
SK. 5.] ^MANNERS. 353
* vers round the marfhy lake, which never rifes oh the green " hill, left the winds meet it there *."
Offian fpeaks :
*' But let us fly, fon of Morni, Lathmon defcends the hill*- «« Then let our Heps be flow, replied the fair-hair'd Gaul, left " the foe fay with a fmile, Behold the warriors of night :
they are like ghofts, terrible in darknefs ; but they melt away " before the beam of the Eaft f." " Son of the feeble hand, *' faid Lathmon, fnall my hoft defcend ! They are but two, ** and lhall a thoufand lift their fteel ! Nuah would mourn in " his hall for the departure of Lathmon's fame : his eyes «' would turn from Lathmon, when the tread of his feet ap- "- preached. Go thou to the heroes, fon of Dutha, for " I behold the ftately fteps of Offian. His fame is worthy *' of my fteel : let him fight with Lathmon J." " Fingal " does not delight in battle, though his arm is ftrong. My i* renown grows on the fall of the haughty : the lightning of *' my fteel pours on the proud in arms. The battle comes ; " and the tombs of the valiant rife ; the tombs of my people '* rife, O my fathers ! and I at laft muft remain alone. But " I will remain renowned, and the departure of my foul fhall " be one ftream of light § ." " I raifed my voice for Fovar- " gormo, when they laid the chief in earth. The aged Cro- " thar was there, but his figh was not heard. He fearched " for the wound of his fon, and found it in his breaft : joy ** arofe in the face of the aged ; he came and fpoke to Oflian : «' King of fpears, my fon hath not fallen without his fame : ** the young warrior did not fly, but met death as he went for- 4< ward in his ftrength. Happy are they who die in youth, " when their renown is heard : their memory fliall be honour- •** ed in the fong; the young tear of the virgin falls ||." Cu-
Y 4 " chullin
* Lathmon. f Lathmon. J
Lathmon. |] Croma,
354 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. i.
•
" chullin kindled at the fight, and darknefs gathered on his " brow His hand was on the fword of his fathers : his red- " rolling eye on the foe. He thrice attempted to rufh to 11 battle, and thrice did Connal ftop him. Chief of the ifle of ** mi ft, he faid, Fingal fubdues the foe : feek not a part of the '* fame of the King *."
pi&ures tfyat Oflian draws of his country- men, are no lefs remarkable for tender fentiments, than for elevation. Parental affedion is finely couched in the following paflage ;
" Son of Cqmhal, replied the chief, the ftrength of Morni's " arm has failed. I attempt to draw the fwprd of my youth, " but it remains in its place : I throw the fpear, but it falls " fhort of the mark ; and I feiel the weight of my fhield. We ?' decay like the grafs of the mountain, and our ftrength re- f turns no more. I have a fon, O Fingal ! his foul has de- *' lighted in the aclions of Morni's youth ; but his fword has " not been lifted againft the foe, neither has his fame begun. *' I come with him to battle, to dired his arm. His renown '* will be a fun t© my foul, in the dark hour of my departure. *' O that the name of Morni were forgot among the people, " that the heroes would only fay, Behold the father of V Gaulf!" ' ' ' • , '
And no lefs finely touched is grief for the lofs of children :
** We faw Ofcar leaning oij his fhield; we faw his blood f around. Silence darkened on the face of every hero : each «' turned his back and wept. The King ftrove to hide his *f tears. He bends |^is head pve^r his fon ; and his words are ff mixed with fighs. And ar^thou fallen, Ofcar, in the mid ft " ,of thy courfe ! The heart of the aged beats over thee. I
" fee
* Fingal. f Lathmon.
'*
•*'
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 355
tf fee thy coming battles : I behold the battles that ought to " come, but they are cut off from thy fame. When fhall joy a dwell at Selma ? when fhall the fong of grief ceafe on Mor- ven ? My fons fall by degrees, Fingal will be the laft of his race. The fame I have received fhall pafs away : my age (hall be without friends. I fhall fit like a gray cloud in my «' hall : nor fhall I expe<5t the return of a fon with his founding '* arms. Weep, ye Jieroes of Morven : never more will 0£car « rife *."
Crothar fpeaks :
'* Son of Fingal ! doft though not behold tke darknefs of ¥ Crothar's hall of fhells ? My foul was not dark at the feaft, V when my people lived.. I rejoiced in the prefence of ftran- *-' gers, when my fon fhone in the hall. But, Oflian, he is a <* beam that is departed, and left no ftreak of light behind. " He is fallen, fon of Fingal, in the battles of his father. " Rothmar, the chief of grafly Tromlo, heard that my eyes " had failed ; he heard that my arms were fixed in the hall, '* and the pride of his foul arofe. He came toward Cronu » '* my people fell before him. 1 took iny arms in the hall ; but M what could ilghtlefs Crothar do ? My fteps were unequal ; f ' my grief was great. I wifhed for the days that were paft, " days wherein I fought and won in the field of blood. My «' fon returned from the chace, the fair-hair'd Fovar-gormo. " He had not lifted his fword in battle, for his arm was young. ". But the foul of [the youth was great; the fire of valour " burnt in his eyes. He faw the difordered fteps of his, fa- " ther, and his figh arofe. King of Croma, he faid, is it be- " caufe thou haft no fon ; is it for the weaknefs of Fovar- «' gormo's arm that thy fighs arife ? I begin, my father, to «' feel the ftrength of my arm ; I have drawn the fword of ** my youth ; and I have hent the bow. Let me meet this ?« Rothmar with the youths of Croma : let me meet him, O
"my
t Temora.
356 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" my father ; for I feel my burning foul. And thou (halt " meet him, I faid, fon of the fightlefs Crothaj I But let o- « thers advance before thee, that I may hear the tread of thy '* feet at thy return ; for my eyes behold thee not, fair-hair'd
" Fovar-gormo ! He went, he met the foe ; he fell. The
*' foe advances toward Croma. He who flew my fon is near, '* with all his pointed fpears *."
The following fentiments about the fhortnefs of human life, are pathetic.
" Defolate is the dwelling of Moinna, filence in the houfe *' of her fathers. Raife the fong of mourning over the ftran- " gers. One day we muft fall ; and they have only fallen
" before us Why doft thou build the hall, fon of the
" winged days ! Thou looked from thy towers to day : foon " will the blaft of the defert come. It howls in thy empty ** court, and whittles over thy half-worn fhield f." gt How " long fhall we weep on Lena, or pour tears in Ullin ! The *{ mighty will not return ; nor Ofcar rife in his ftrength : the ** valiant muft: fall one day, and be no more known. Where *' are our fathers, O warriors, the chiefs of the times of old ! " They are fet, like ftars that have (hone : we only hear the *' found of their praife. But they were renowned in their day, " and the terror of other times. Thus fhall we pafs, O war- " riors, in the day of our fall. Then let us be renowned while " we may ; and leave our fame behind us, like the laft beams " of the fun, when he hides his red head in the weft J. "
In Homer's time, heroes were greedy of plun- der ; and, like robbers, were much difpofed to in- fult a vanquimed foe. According to Offian, the ancient Caledonians had no idea of plunder : and as they fought for fame only, their humanity over- flowed to the vanquilhed. American favages, it is
true, t Croma. t Carthon. J Temora.
SK, 5-J MANNERS.
true, are not addicted to plunder, and are ready to beftow on the firft comer what trifles they force from the enemy. But they have no notion of a pitched battle, nor of {ingle combat : on the con- trary, they value themfelves upon flaughtering their enemies by furprife, without riiking their own fweet perfons. Agreeable to the magnani- mous character given by Offian of his countrymen, we find humanity blended with courage in all their actions,
" Fingal pitied the white- armed maid : he ftayed the up- lifted fword. The tear was in the eye of the King, as bend- ing forward he fpoke : King of ftreamy Sora, fear not the " fword of Fingal : it was never ftained with the blood of the ** vanquifhed ; it never pierced a fallen foe. Let thy people " rejoice along the blue waters of Tora : let the maids of thy *' love be glad. Why fhould'ft thou fall in thy ycuth, King of 1* ftreamy Sora*."
Fingal f peaks :
" Son of my ftrength, he faid, take the fpear of Fingal : go " to Teutha's mighty ilream, and fave the car-borne Colmar. •' Let thy fame return before thee like a pleafant gale ; that " my foul may rejoice over my fon, who renews the renown " of our fathers. Oflian ! be thou a ftorm in battle, but mild '* where the foes are low. It wa? thus my fame arofe, O my * fon ; and be thou like Selma's chief. When the haughty e come to my hall, my eyes behold them not ; but my arm '* is ft retched forth to the unhappy, my fword defends the <* weak f." «' O Ofcar, bend the ftrong in arm, but fpare the " feeble hand. Be thou a flream of many tides againft the *f foes of thy people, but like the gale that moves the grafs to
" thofc ^ Carric-thura. f Calthon and Colmar.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" thofe who afk thy aid. Never fearch for the battle, nor ftmn " it when it comes. So Trenmor lived ; fuch Trathal was ; " and fuch has Fingal been. My arm was the fupport of the '« injured ; and the weak refted behind the lightning of my " fteel V
Humanity to the vanquifhed is difplayed in the following paflTages, After defeating in battle Swa- ran King of Lochlin, Fingal fays,
" Raife, Ullin, raife the fong of peace, and foothe my foul (< after battle, that my ear may forget the noife of arms. And *' let a hundred harps be near to gladden the King of Loch- *' lift : he muft depart from us with joy : none ever went fad *' from Fingal. Ofcar, the lightning of my fword is againft *' the ftrong ; but peaceful it hangs by my fide when warriors " yield in battle f." '* Uthal fell beneath my fword, and the '* fons of Berrathon fled. It was then I faw him in his beauty, " and the tear hung in my eye. Thou art fallen, young tree, <{ I faid, with all thy budding beauties round thee. The *' winds come from the defert, and there is no found in thy << leaves. Lovely art thou in death, fon of car-borne Lath-. '« mor
After perilling thefe quotations, it will not be thought that Offian deviates from the manners re- prefented by him, in defcribing the hofpitality of bis chieftains :
" We heard the voice of joy on the coaft, and we thought «' that the mighty Cathmor came ; Cathmor, the friend of « ftrangers, the brother of red-hair'd Cairbar. But their fouls <* were not the fame ; for the light of heaven was in the bofom " of Cathmor. His towers rofe on the banks of Atha : feven " paths led to his hall : feven chiefs flood on thefe paths, and " called the ftranger to the feaft. But Cathmor dwelt in the
*' wood, * Fingal, book 3. f Fingal, book 6. $ Berrathon.
SK. 5»] MANNERS* 359
" wood, to avoid the voice of praife *." €t Rathmot1 was a " chief of Clutha. The feeble dwelt in his hall. The gates " of Rathmor were never clofed ; his feaft was always fpread. " The fons of the ftranger came, and bleflpd the generous " chief of Glutha. Bards raifed the fong, and touched the <c harp : joy brightened on the face of the mournful. Dun- " thalmo came in his pride, and rufhed into combat with " Rathmor. The chief of Clutha overcame. The rage of " Dunthalmo rofe : he came by night with his warriors ; and " the mighty Rathmor fell : he fell in his hall, where his feaft " had been often fpread for ftrangers f ."
It feems not to exceed the magnanimity of his chieftains, intent upon glory only, to feaft even an enemy before a battle. Cuchullin, after the firfl day's engagement with Swaran, King of Lochlin or Scandinavia, fays to Carril, one of his bards,
*' Is this feaft fpread for me alone, and the King of Lochlin 11 on Ullin's fhore ; far from the deer of his hills, and found- " ing halls of his feafts ? Rife, Carril of other times, and *' carry my words to Swaran 5 tell him from the roaring of *' waters, that Cuchullin gives his feaft. Here let him liften " to the found of my groves amid the clouds of night : for cold " and bleak the bluftering winds rufti over the foam of his " feas. Here let him praife the trembling harp, and hear the " fongs of heroes J."
The Scandinavian King, lefs polifhed, refufed the invitation. Cairbar fpeaks :
'* Spread the feaft on Lena, and let my hundred bards at- " tend. And thou, red-hair'd Olla, take the harp of the *« King. Go to Ofcar, King of fwords, and bid him to our «' feaft. To day we feaft and hear the fong ; to-morrow break
"the
* Temora. f Calthon and Colmar. t Fingal, book i.
360 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
" the fpears *." " Olla came with his fongs. Ofcar went to " Cairbar' s feaft. Three hundred heroes attend the chief, and *' the clang of their arms is terrible. The gray dogs bound on *' the heath, and their howling is frequent. Fingal faw the " departure of the hero : the foul of the King was fad. He " dreads the gloomy Cairbar : but who of the race of Tren- •' mor fears the foe f ?"
Cruelty is every where condemned as an infa- mous vice. Speaking of the bards,
" Cairbar feared to ftretch his fword to the bards, though
i
" his foul was dark ; but he clofed us in the midft of dark- " nefs. Three days we pined alone : on the fourth the noble " Cathmore came. He heard our voice from the cave, and 4< turned the eye of his wrath on Cairbar. Chief of Atha, he " faid, how long wilt thou pain my foul ? Thy heart is like " the rock of the defert, and thy thoughts are dark. But thou " art the brother of Cathmor, and he will fight thy battles. " Cathmor' s foul is not like thine, thou feeble hand of war. " The light of my bofom is ftained with thy deeds. The '< bards will not fmg of my renown ; they may fay, Cath- *' mor was brave, but he fought for gloomy Cairbar ; they " will pafs over my tomb in filence, and my fame fhall " not be heard. Cairbar, loofe the bards ; they are the fons '* of other times : their voice fliall be heard in other ages when " the Kings of Temora have failed J." " Ullin raifed his white " fails : the wind of the fouth came forth. He bounded on ** the waves toward Selma's walls. The feaft is fpread on " Lena : an hundred heroes reared the tomb of Cairbar ; but " no fong is raifed over the chief, for his foul had been dark " and bloody. We remembered the fall of Cormac ; and " what could we fay in Cairbar's praife } ?"
Genuine * Temora. f Temora, J Temora. § Temora.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 361
Genuine manners never were reprefented more to the life by a Tacitus nor a Shakefpeare. Such painting is above the reach of pure invention : it mufl be the work of knowledge and feeling.
One may difcover the manners of a nation from the figure their women make. Among favages, women are treated like flaves ; and they acquire not the dignity that belongs to the fex, till man- ners be confiderably refined *. According to the manners above defcribed, women ought to have made a confiderable figure among the ancient Ca- ledonians. Let us examine Offian upon that fub- jecl:, in order to judge whether he carries on the fame tone of manners through every particular. That women were highly regarded, appears from the following paffages.
" Daughter of the hand of fnow ! I was not fo mournful " and blind, I was not fo dark and forlorn, when Everallin *' loved me, Everallin with the dark-brown hair, the white- " bofomed love of Cormac. A thoufand heroes fought the " maid, ftie denied her love to a thoufand ; the fons of the " fword were defpifed ; for graceful in her eyes was Offian* '" I went in fuit of the maid to Lego's fable furge ; twelve of " my people were there, fons of the ftreamy Morven. We " came to Branno friend of ftrangers, Branno of the founding " mail.— From whence, he faid, are the arms of fteei ? Not " eafy to win is the maid that has denied the blue-eyed fons " of Erin. But bleft be thou, O fon of Fingal, happy is the " maid that waits thee. Though twelve daughters of beauty " were mine, thine were the choice, thou fon of fame ! Then «' he opened the hall of the maid, the dark-haired Everallin.
" Joy*
* See the Sketch immediately following.
362 MEN INDEPENDENT OT SOCIETY. [fi. tv
*' Joy kindled in our breafts of fteel, and bleft the maid of " Branno *." " Now Connal, on Cromla's windy fide, fpoke " to the chief of the noble car. Why that gloom, fon of Se- " mo ? Our friends are the mighty in battle. And renowned " art thou, O warrior f many were the deaths of thy fteel. ** Often has Bragela met thee wrth blue-rolling eyes of joy ; '* often has {he met her hero returning in the mid ft of the va~ " liant, when his fword was red with (laughter, and his foes '* filent in the field of the tomb. Pleafant to her ears were " thy bards, when thine a&ions rofe in the fong f." '* But, " King of Morven, if I {hall fall, as one time the warrior inuft " fall, raife my tomb in the midft, and let it be the greateft " on Lena. And fend over the dark-blue wave the fword of " Orla, to the fpoufe of his love ; that ihe may {how it to her w fon, with tears, to kindle his foul to war J." "1 lifted my " eyes to Cromla, and I faw the fon of generous Semo. — Sad " and flow he retired from his hill toward the lonely cave of " Tura. He faw Fingal vi&orious, and mixed his joy with 4< grief. The fun is bright on his armour, and Connal {lowly fr< followed. They funk behind the hill, like two pillars of the " fire of night, when winds purfue them over the mountain, " and the flaming heath refounds. Befide a ftream of roar- " ing foam, his cave is in a rock. One tree bends above it ; " and the rufliing winds echo againft its fides. There refts <' the chief of Dunfcaich, the fon of generous Semo. His thoughts are on the battles he loft ; and the tear is on his cheek. He mourned the departure of his fame, that fled ft like the mi ft of Cona. O Bragela, thou art too far remote ** to cheer the foul of the hero. But let him fee thy bright form in his foul ; that his thoughts may return to the lonely fun beam of Dunfcakh j{." " Ofiian King of fwords, re-^ plied the bard, thou beft raifeft the fong. Long haft thou been known to Carril, thou ruler of battles. Often have I
.." touched
* Fingal, book iv. f Fingal, book v.
Fingal, book v. |j Fingal, book v.
«
C(
«
t(
• S'3 MANNERS. 363
" touched the harp to lovely Everallin. Thou, too, haft of* " ten accompanied my voice in Branno's hall of fhells. And " often amidft our voices was heard the mildeft Everallin. " One day {he fung of Cormac's fall, the youth that died for " her love. I faw the tears on her- cheek, and on thine, thou chief of men. Her foul was touched for the unhappy, " though flie loved him not. How fair amfcng a thoufand " maids, was the daughter of the generous Branno *." " It *' was in the days of peace, replied the great Cleffammor, I *' came in my bounding fhip to Balclutha's walls of towers. " The winds had roared behind my fails, and'Clutlja's ftreams received my dark-bofomed veflel. Three days I remained tf in Reuthamir's halls, and faw that beam of light, hi? " daughter. The joy of the jfhell went round, and the aged *' hero gave the fair. Her breads were like foam on the ** wave, and her eyes like ftars of light : her hair was dark as '* the raven's wing ; her foul was generous and mild. My *' love for Moina was great : and my heart poured forth in " j°7 1~'" " The fame of Offian fhall rife : his deeds fhall be ** like his father's. Let us rufli in our arms, fon of Morni, '* let us rufh to battle. Gaul, if thou ihalt return, go to t( Selma's lofty hall. Tell Everallin that I fell with fame : " carry the fword to Branno's daughter : let her give it to " Ofcar when the years of his youth fhall arife j."
Next to war, love makes the principal figure : and well it may ; for in Offian' s poems it breathes every thing fweet, tender, and elevated.
" On Lubar's graffy banks they fought ; and Grudar fell. " Fierce Cairbar came to the vale of the echoing Tura., where '* BrafTolis, faireft of his fi tiers, all alone raifed the fong of *« grief. She fung the actions of Grudar, the youth of her 4< fecret foul : {he mourned him in the field of blood ; but (till
" fhe * Fingal, book v. •(• Carthon, J Lathmon.
VOL. I. X
364 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" flie hoped his return. Her white bofom is feen from her .
" robe, as the moon from the clouds of night : her voice was
** fofter than the harp, to raife the fong of grief : her foul was
" fixed on Grudar, the fecret look of her eye was his ; — when
" wilt thou come in thine arms, thou mighty in the war ?
" Take, Braflblis, Cairbar faid, take this fhield of blood : fix
" it on high within my hall, the armour of my foe. Her foft
*' heart beat againft her fide : diftracled, pale, (he flew, and
" found her youth in his blood — She died on Cromla's
" heath. Here refts their duft, Cuchullin ; and thefe two
<c lonely yews, fprung from their tombs, wifti to meet on
*< high. Fair was Braflblis on the plain, and Grudar on the
" hill. The bard fhall preferve their names, and repeat
'* them to future times*." '" Pleafant is thy voice, O Car-
<•< ril, faid the blue-eyed chief of Erin ; and lovely are the
" words of other times : they are like the calm fhower of
" fpring, when the fun looks on the field, and the light cloud
** flies over the hill. O ftrike the harp in praife of my love,
" the lonely fun-beam of Dunfcaich : ftrike the harp in
" praife of Bragela, whom I left in the ifle of mift, the
" fpoufe of Semo's fon. — Doft thou raife thy fair face from
€t the rock to find the fails of Cuchullin ? the fea is rolling
•' far diftant, and its white foam will deceive thee for my
•*' fails. Retire, my love, for it is night, and the dark winds
0 figh in thy hair : retire to the hall of my feafts, and think
w of times that are paft ; for I will not return till the ftorm
" of war ceafe. — O Connal, fpeak of war and arms, and fend
" her from my mind ; for lovely with her raven hair is the
<4 white-bofomed daughter of Sorglan f ."
Malvina fpeaks.
'* But thou dwelled in the foul of Malvina, fon of mighty *' Offian. My fighs arife with the beam of the eaft, my tears
" defcend
* Fingal, book i. f Fingal, book i.
S£. 5.] MANNERS. 365
*' defcend with the drops of the night. I Was a lovely tree " in thy prefence, Ofcar, with all my branches round me : " but thy death came like a blaft from the defert, and laid " my green head low : the fpring returned with its fhowers, " but of me not a leaf fprung. The virgins faw me filent " in the hall, and they touched the harp of joy. The tear <l was on the cheek of Malvina, and the virgins beheld my " grief. Why art thou fad, they faid, thou firfl of the maids " of Lutha ? Was he lovely as the beam of the morning, *' and (lately in thy fight * ?" " Fingal came in his xnild- *< nefs, rejoicing in fecret over the actions of his fon. Mor- " ni's face brightened with gladnefs, and his aged eyes look- " ed faintly through tears of joy. We came to the halls of " Selma, and fat round the feaft of {hells. The maids of the " fong came into our prefence, and the mildly-blufhing Eve- " rallin. Her dark hair fpreads on her neck of fnow, her " eye rolls in fecret on Offian. She touches the harp of " mufic, and we blefs the daughter of Branno f ."
Had the Caledonians made Haves of their wo- men, and thought as meanly of them as favages commonly do, Offian could never have thought, even in a dream, of bellowing on them thofe num- berlefs graces that exalt the female fex, and ren- der many of them objeds of pure and elevated af- fe&ion. I fay more : Suppofing a favage to have been divinely infpired, manners fo inconiiftent with their own would not have been reliftied, nor even comprehended, by his countrymen. And yet that they were highly relifhed is certain, having been diffufed among all ranks, and preferved for many ages by memory alone, without writing. Here
Z 2- , the
* Crorna. f Lathmon.
366 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [#. T,
the argument mentioned above ftrikes with double force, to evince, that the manners of the Caledo- nians muft have been really fuch as Oflian de- fer ibes.
Catharina Alexowna, Emprefs of Ruflia, pro- moted aflemblies of men and women, as a means to polifh the manners of her fubjecls. And in or- der to preferve decency in fuch aflemblies, me pu- blifhed a body of regulations, of which the follow- ing are a fpecimen. " Ladies who play at for- " feitures, queftions and commands, See. mail not " be noify nor riotous. No gentleman muft at- " tempt to force a kifs, nor ftrike a woman in the " aflembly, under pain of exclufion. Ladies are " not to get drunk upon any pretence whatever ; " nor gentlemen before nine.'' Compare the man- ners that required fuch regulations with thofe de- fcribed above. Can we fuppofe, that the ladies and gentlemen of Oflian' s poems ever amufed them- felves, after the age of twelve, with hide and feek, queftions and commands, or fuch childifh play. Can it enter into our thoughts, that Bragela or Malvina were fo often drunk, as to require the re- primand of a public regulation ? or that any hero of Oflian ever ftruck a woman of fafhion in ire ?
The immortality of the foul was a capital ar- ticle in the Celtic creed, inculcated by the Druids *. And in Valerius Maximus we find the following paflage : — " Gallos, memoriae proditum eft, pecu-
" nias * Pomponius Mela. Ammianus Marcellinus.
SK. 5»] MANNERS. 367
" nias mutuas, quae fibi apud inferos redderentur, " dare : quia perfuafum habuerint, animas homi- " num immortales efle. Dicerem ftultos, nifi idem " braccati fenfuTent quod pajliatus Pythagoras fen- " fit*.': All favages have an impreffion of im- mortality ; but few, even of the moft enlightened before Chriftianity prevailed, had the lealt notion of any occupations in another life, but what they were accuftomed to in this. Even Virgil, in his poetical fervency, finds no amufements for his de- parted heroes, but what they were fond of when alive ; the fame love for war, the fame tafte for Bunting, and the fame affection to their friends. As we have no reafon to expect more invention in Offian, the obfervation may ferve as a key to the ghofts introduced by him, and to his whole ma- chinery, as termed by critics. His defcription of thefe ghofts is copiepl plainly from the creed of his country.
In a historical account of t]ie progrefs of man*- ners, it would argue grofs infenlibility to overlook thofe above mentioned. The fubject, it is, true, has fwelled upon my hands beyond expectation ;
I
but it is not a little intereiting. If theje manners be genuine, they are a imgular phenomenon in the
7, 3 Hiftory
* " It is reported, that the Gauls frequently lent money to '* be paid back in the infernal regions, from a firm perfuafion " that the fouls of men were immortal. I would have called " them fools, if thofe wearers of breeches had not thought " the fame as Pythagoras who wore a cloak.". — *%Lib«. 3»
368 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
Hiftory of Man : if they be the invention of an il- literate bard, among favages utterly ignorant of fuch manners, the phenomenon is no lefs fingular. Let either fide be taken, and a fort of miracle mult be admitted. In the inftances above given, fuch a beautiful mixture there is of fimplicity and dig- nity, and fo much life given to the manners de- fcribed, that real manners were never reprefented with a more flriking appearance of truth. If thefe manners be fictitious, I fay again, that the author
«
muft have been infpired : they plainly exceed the invention of a favage ; nay, they exceed the in- vention of any known writer. . Every man will judge for himfelf : it is perhaps fondnefs for fuch refined manners, that makes me incline to reality againft fidion.
I am aware at the fame time, that manners fo pure and elevated, in the firft itage of fociety, are difficult to be accounted for. The Caledonians were not an original tribe, who may be fuppofed to have had manners peculiar to themfelv7es : they were a branch of the Celtae, and had a language common to them with the inhabitants of Gaul, and of England. The manners probably of all were the fame, or nearly fo ; and if we expect any light for explaining Caledonian manners, it muft be from that quarter : we have indeed no other refource. Diodorus Siculus * reports of the Celtae, that, though warlike, they were upright in their deal- ings,
v
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 369
ings, and far removed from deceit and duplicity. CadTar #, " Galli homines aperti minimeque inli- , " dioli, qui per virtutem, non per dolum, dimi- " care confueverunt f .'' And though cruel to their enemies, yet Pomponius Mela If. obferves, that they were kind and compaffionate to the fupplicant and unfortunate, Strabo § defcribes the Gauls as ftudious of war, and of great alacrity in fighting ; otherwife an innocent people, altogether void of malignity. He fays, that they had three orders of men, bards, priefts, and druids ; that the province of the bards was to ftudy poetry, and to compofe longs in praife of their deceafed heroes ; that the priefts prelided over divine worfhip ; and that the druids, beiide ftudying moral and natural philofo- phy, determined all controveriies, and had fome direction even in war. Caefar, lefs attentive to civil matters, comprehends thefe three orders un- der the name of druids ; and obferves, that the druids teach their difciples a vaft number of ver- fes, which they muft get by heart. Diodorus Si- culus fays, that the Gauls had poets termed bards, who fung airs accompanied with the harp, in praife of fome/and difpraife of others. Lucan, fpeaking of the three orders, fays,
X 4 " Vos
* De bello Africo. *
\
f " The Gauls are of an open temper, not at all infidious; 41 and in fight they rely on valour, not on ftratagem."
Lib. 3. { Lib. 4.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
I
" Vos quoque, qui fortes animas, belloque peremptas, " Laudibus in longum, vates, dimittitis aevum, " Plurima fecuri fudiftis carmina bardi *."
With rcfpedl to the Celtic women in particular, it is agreed by all writers, that they were extreme- ly beautiful f ; and no lefs remarkable for fpirit than for beauty. If we can rely on Diodorus Si- culus, the women in Gaul equalled the men in cou- rage. Tacitus, in his life of Agricola, fays, that the Britifh women frequently joined with the men, when attacked by an enemy. And fo much were they regarded, as. to be thought capable of the higheft command. '* Neque enim fexum in impe- *' riis difcernunt," fays the fame author J. And accordingly, during the war carried on by Carac- tacus, a gallant Britiih King, agaipft the Romans, Cartifmandua was Queen of the Brigantes. Boa- dicea is recorded in Roman annals as a Queen of ^ warlike fpirit. She led on a great army againfi the Romans ; and in exhorting her people to be-
have
* «' You too, ye bards ! whom facred raptures fire,
** To chant your heroes to your country's lyre ;
'* Who confecrate in your immortal ftrain,
" Brave patriot fouls, in righteous battle flam ;
" Securely .;w the tuneful ta£k renew,
" And nobleft themes in dcathlefs fongs purfue." r
Diodorus Siculus, lib. 5. Athena?us, lib. 13.
' They made no diftin&ion of fex in conferring authp rity."- - Vita Agncolx, cap. 16.
* - r '• ^\ '
£K. 5.] MANNERS. 37!
have with courage, fhe obferved, that it was not unufual to fee a Britifh army led on to battle by a woman ; to which Tacitus adds his teftimony : " Solitum quidem Britannis foeminarum ductu bel- " lare *.v No wonder that Celtic women, foam- ply provided with fpirit, as well as beauty, made a capital figure in every public entertainment f .
The Gallic Celtae undoubtedly carried with them their manners and cultoms to Britain, and fpread them gradually from fouth to north. Arid as the Caledonians, inhabiting a mountainous country in the northern parts of the ifland, had little com- merce with other nations, they preferved long in purity many Celtic cuftoms, particularly that of retaining bards. Arthur the laft Celtic King of England, who was a hero in the defence of his country againft the Saxons, protected the bards, and was immortalized by them. All the chief- tains had bards in their pay, whofe province it was to compofe fongs in praife of their anceilors, and to /accompany thefe fongs with the harp. This entertainment enflamed their love for war, and at the fame time foftened their manners, which, as Strabo reports, were naturally innocent and void of malignity. It had beiide a wonderful influence in forming virtuous manners : the bards, in prai- iing deceafed heroes, would naturally feled: vir- tuous actions, which are peculiarly adapted to he- roic
* " The Britons even followed women as leaders in the <* field/' — Annalium, lib. 14. f Athenaeus, lib. 10.
372 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY^ [B. I.
roic poetry, and tend the moft to illuftrate the hero of their fong : vice may be flattered ; but praife is never willingly nor fuccefsfully bellowed upon any atchievement but what is virtuous and heroie. It is accordingly obferved by Ammianus Marcelli- nus *, that the bards inculcated in their fongs vir- tue and actions worthy of praife. The bards, who were in high eftimation, became great, proficients in poetry ; of which we have a confpicuous in- flate in the works of Oflian. Their capital com- politions were diligently ftudied by thofe of their own order, and admired by all. The fongs of the bards, accompanied with the harp, made a deep impreffion on the young warrior, elevated fome into heroes, and promoted virtue in every hearer f . Another circumftance, common to the Caledonians with every other nation in the firft ftage of fociety, concurred to form their manners ; which is, that avarice was unknown among them. People in that ftage, ignorant of habitual wants, and having a ready fupply of all that nature requires, have little notion of property, and not the ilighteft delire of
accumulating * Lib. 15.
j- Polydore Virgil fays, Hiberm funt mufica perittffim [7«
Engllfh thus : " The Irifh are moft Ikilful in mulic."]-— Ire- land was peopled from Britain ; and the mufic of that coun- try muft have been derived from Britifli bards. The Welfh bards were the great champions of independence ; and in par- ticular promoted an obftinate refiftance to Edward I. when he carried his arms into Wales. And hence the tradition* that the Welfli bards were all Slaughtered by that King.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 373
accumulating the goods of fortune ; and for that reafon are always found honeft and difinterefted. With refped: to the female fex, who make an il- luftrious figure in Offian' s poems, if they were fo eminent both for courage and beauty as they are re- prefented by the beft authors, it is no wonder to find them painted by Offian as objects of love the moil pure and refined. Nor ought it to be overlooked, that the foft and delicate notes of the harp have a tendency to purify manners, and to refine love.
Whether the caufes here afiigned of Celtic man- ners be fully adequate, may well admit of a doubt ; but if authentic hiftory be relied on, we can enter- tain no doubt, that the manners of the Gallic and Britilh Celtae, including the Caledonians, were fuch as are above defcribed. And as the manners afcri- bed by Offian to his countrymen the Caledonians, are in every particular conformable to thofe now mentioned, it clearly follows, that Offian was no inventor, but drew his pictures of manners from real life. This is made highly probable from in- trinfic evidence, the fame that is fo copioufly urged above : and now by authentic hiftory, that probability is fo much heightened, as fcarce to leave room for a doubt.
Our prefent highlanders are but a fmall part of the inhabitants of Britain ; and they have been finking in their importance, from the time that arts and fciences made a figure, and peaceable manners prevailed. And yet in that people are
difcernible
374 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
difcernible many remaining features of their fore- fathers the Caledonians. They have to this day a difpofitipn to war, and when difciplined make ex- cellent foldiers, fober, active, and obedient. They are eminently hofpitable ; and the character given by Strabo of the Gallic Celtae, that they were in- nocent and devoid of malignity, is to them per- fectly applicable. That they have not the magna- nimity and heroifm of the Caledonians, is eafily ac- counted for. The Caledonians were a free and in- dependent people, unawed by any fuperior power, and living under the mild government of their o\yn chieftains ; compared with their forefathers, the prefcnt highlanders make a very inconfiderable figure : their country is barren, and at any rate is but a fmall part of a potent kingdom ; and their language deprives them of intercourfe with their polifned neighbours.
There certainly never happened in literature, a, difcovery more extraordinary than the works of Offian. To lay the fcene of action among hunters in the firft ftage of fociety, and to beftovv upon fuch a people a fyflem of manners that would do ho- nour to the moft polimed ftate, feemed at firft an ill-contrived forgery. But if a forgery, why fo bold and improbable ? why not invent manners more congruous to the favage ftate ? And as at any rate the wrork has great merit, why did the author conceal himfelf ? Thefe coniiderations rou- fed my attention, and produced the foregoing dif-
quifition ;
SK.5-] MANNERS. 3?5
quifition; which I finiihed, without imagining that any more light could be obtained. But, after a long interval, a thought ftruck me, that as the Caledonians formerly were much connected with the Scandinavians, the manners of the latter might probably give light in the prefent inquiry. I cheerfully fpread my fails in a wide ocean, not without hopes of importing precious merchandife. Many volumes did I turn over of Scandinavian hiflory ; attentive to thofe paiTages where the man- ners of the inhabitants in the firft ftage of fociety are delineated. And now I proceed to prefent my reader with the goods imported.
The Danes, fays Adam of Bremen, are remark- able for elevation of mind : the punifhment of death is lefs dreaded by them than that of whip- ping. " The philofophy of the Cimbri,r fays Valerius Maximus, " is gay and refolute : they " leap for joy in a battle, hoping for a glorious " end : in licknefs they lament, for fear of the " contrary.'' What fortified their courage, was a perfuafion, that thofe who die in battle righting bravely are inftantly tranflated to the hall of Odin, to drink beer out of the fkull of an enemy. " Hap- " py in their miitake,'' fays Lucan, " are the " people who live near the pole : perfuaded that " death is only a paflage to long life, they are un- " diilurbed by the moil grievous of all fears, that " of dying : they eagerly run to arms, and efteem " it cowardice to fpare a life they fhall foon reco*-
" ver
376 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" ver in another world." Such was their mag- nanimity, that they fcorned to fnatch a vidlory by furprife. Even in their piratical expeditions, inftances are recorded of fetting aiide all the ihips that exceeded thofe of the enemy, leit the victory mould be attributed to fuperiority of num- bers. It was held unmanly to decline a combat, however unequal ; for courage, it was thought, rendered all men equal. The. fhedding tears was unmanly, even for the death of friends.
The Scandinavians were tenfible in a high de^ gree to praife and to reproach ; for love of fame was their darling paffion. Olave, King of Nor- way, placing three of his fcalds or bards around him in a battle, " You mall not relate," faid he, " what you have only heard, but what you are " eye-witnefles of." Upon every occalion we find them infilling upon glory, honour, and contempt of death, as leading principles. The bare fufpi- cion of cowardice was attended with univerfal con- tempt : a man who loft his buckler, or received a wound behind, durft never again appear in public. Frotho King of Denmark, made captive in a battle, obflinately refufed either liberty or life. " To " what end," fays he," " mould I furvive the " difgrace of being made a captive ? Should you " even reftore to me my fifter, my treafure, and " my kingdom, would thefe benefits reftore me to " m.y honour ? Future ages will always have to " fay, that Frotho was taken by his enemy *."
Much * Saxo Grajnmaticus.
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 377
Much efficacy is above afcribed to the fongs of Caledonian bards ; and with fatisfadion I find my obfervations juftified in every Scandinavian hitlory. The Kings of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, are reprefented in ancient chronicles as conftantly at- tended with fcalds or bards, who were treated with great refpecl:, efpecially by princes diftin- guifhed in war. Harold Harfager at his feafts placed them above all his other officers; and em- ployed them in negotiations of the greateft im- portance. The poetic art, held in great eilima- tion, was cultivated by men of the firil rank. Rog- vald, Earl of Orkney, pafled for an able poet. King Regnar was diftinguifhed in poetry, no lefs than in war. It was the proper province of bards in Scandinavia, as in other countries, to celebrate in odes the atchievements of deceafed heroes. They were frequently employed in animating the troops before a battle. Hacon, Earl of Norway, in his famous engagement againft the warriors of lomf- burg, had five celebrated poets, each of whom fung an ode to the foldiers ready to engage. Saxo Grammaticus, defcribing a battle between Walde- mar and Sueno, mentions a fcald belonging to the former, who, advancing to the front of the army, reproached the latter in a pathetic ode as the mur- derer of his own father.
The odes of the Scandinavian bards . have a pe- culiar energy ; which is not difficult to be accoun- ted for. The propenfity of the Scandinavians to-
378 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
war, their love of glory, their undaunted courage, and their warlike exploits, naturally produced elevated fentiments, and an elevated tone of lan- guage ; both of which were difplayed in cele- brating heroic deeds. Take the following inftan- ces. The firft is from the Edda, which contains
"""^k •'
the birth and genealogy of their gods. •" The " giant Rymer arrives from the ealt, carried in a " chariot : the great ferpent, rolling himfelf fu- " rioufly iR the waters, lifteth up the fea. The " eagle fc reams, and with his horrid beak tears " the dead. The vefTel of the gods is fet afloat. " The black prince of fire hTues from the fouth, " furrounded with flames : the f words of the gods " beam like the fun : fhaken are the rocks, and " fall to pieces. The female giants wander about " weeping : men in crowds tread the paths of " death. Heaven is fplit afunder, the fun darken- " ed, and the earth funk in the ocean. The fhin- " ing ftars vanilh : the fire rages : the world draws " to an end; and the flame afcending licks the " vault of heaven. From the bofom of the waves " an earth emerges, clothed with lovely green ; " the floods retire : the fields produce without " culture : misfortunes are banimed from the " world. Balder and his brother, gods of war, " return to inhabit the ruin'd palace of Odin. A " palace more refplendent than the fun, rifes now " to view ; adorned with a roof of gold : there good men mall inhabit ; and live in joy and
pleafure
g\JVi/M. JLO.lV.il AllCvAL *IJ,1AL4,U/I.I. •, «4.iiW J.1 » \*
at
it
(6
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 379
" pleafure through all ages." In a collection of ancient hiftorical monuments of the north, pu- blifhed by Bionar, a learned Swede, there is the following paflage. " Grunder, perceiving Gry- " mer rufhing furioufly through oppoling bat- " talions, cries aloud, Thou alone remaineft to en- " §aS6 with me in Jingle combat. It is now thy turn " to feel the keennefs of my fword. Their fabres, " like dark and threatening clouds, hang dreadful " in the air. Grymer' s weapon darts down like a thunderbolt : their fwords furioufly Ilrike : they are bathed in gore. Grymer cleaves the " cafque of his enemy, hews his armour in pieces, " and pours the light into his bofom. Grunder " finks to the ground ; and Grymer gives a dread- " ful fhout of triumph.'' This piclure is done with a mafterly hand. The capital circumflances are judicioufly felefted ; and the narration is com- pact and rapid. Indulge me with a moment's paufe, to compare this picture with one or two in Oflian's manner. " As autumn's dark florms pour from " two echoing hills ; fo to each other approach the " heroes. As from high rocks two 4ark flreams " meet, and mix and roar on the plain ; fo meet " Lochlin and Inis-fail, loud, rough, and dark in " battle. Chief mixes his flrokes with chief, and " man with man ; fleel founds on fleel, helmets are " cleft on high. Blood burfls, and fmoaks around. " Strings murmur on the polifhed yew. Darts " rufh along the fky. Spears fall like fparks of VOL. I. A a " flame
380 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
" flame that gild the ftormy face of night. As the " noife of the troubled ocean when roll the waves ** on high, as the laft peal of thundering heaven, " fuch is the noife of battle. Though Cor mac' 5 *' hundred bards were there, feeble were the voice P of an hundred bards to fend the deaths to future " times , for many were the heroes who fell, and " wide poured the blood of the valiant." Again, " As roll a thoufand waves to the rocks, fo came " on Swaran's hoft : as meets a rock a thoufand " waves, fo Inis-fail met Swaran. The voice of " death is heard all around, and mixes with the M found of fhields. Each hero is a pillar of dark- " nefs, and the fword a beam of fire in his hand, f4 From wing to wing echoes the field, like a hun- " dred hammers that rife by turns on the red fun ?' of the furnace. Who are thqfe on Lena's heath, " fo gloomy and dark ? they are like two clouds, " and their fworjis lighten above. Who is it but f Ofiian's fon and the car-borne chief of Erin ?' Thefe two defcriptions make a deeper imprefiion, and fwell the Jieart more than the former : they are more poetical, by Ihort fimiles finely interwoT yen , and the images are far more lofty. And yet Offian's chief talent is fentiment, in which Scandi- navian bards are far inferior : in the generofity, tendernefs, and humanity of his fentiments, he has not a rival.
The ancient Scandinavians were undoubtedly a barbarous people, compared with the fouthern na- tions^
5K. 5-] MANNERS. 381
tions of Europe ; but that they were far from be- ing grofs favages, may be gathered from a poem Hill extant, named Havamaal; or, Tbefublime dif- courfe of Odin. Though that poem is of great an- tiquity, it is replete with good leflbns and judicious reflections ; of which the following are a fpeei*- men :
" Happy he who gains the applaufe and good will of men.
" Love your friends, and love alfo their friends.
" Be not the fir ft to break with your friend : for- row gnaws the heart of him who has not a fingle friend to advife with.
" Where is the virtuous man that hath not a failing ? Where is the wicked man that hath not fome good quality ?
4< Riches take wing ; relations die : you yourfelf fhall die. One thing only is out of the reach of fate; which is, the judgment that paiTes on the dead.
" There is no malady more fevere than the be- ing difeontented with one's lot.
" Let not a man be overwife nor overcurious : if he would ileep in quiet, let him not feek to know his deftiny.
" While we live, let us live well : a man lights his fire, but before it be burnt out death may enter.
" A coward dreams that he may live for ever ; if he (hould efcape every other weapon, he cannot efcape old age.
A a 2 " The
382 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
" The flocks know when to retire from pafture : the glutton knows not when to retire from the feaft.
" The lewd and diflblute make a mock of every thing, not confidering how much they deferve to be mocked.
" The beft provifion for a journey, is ftrength of underftanding : more ufeful than treafure, it wel- comes one to the table of the ftranger.'
Hitherto the manners of the Scandinavians re- femble in many capital circumftances thofe deli- neated in the works of Offian. I lay not, however, great ftrefs upon that refemblance, becaufe fuch manners are found among feveral other warlike nations in the firft ftage of fociety. The circum- ftance that has occafioned the greateft doubt about Offian's fyftem of manners, is the figure his women make. Among other favage nations, they are held to be beings of an inferior rank ; and as fuch are treated with very little refpecl : in Offian they make an illuftrious figure, and are highly regarded by the men. I have not words to exprefs my fa- tisfadtion, when I difcovered, that anciently among the barbarous Scandinavians, the female fex made a figure no lefs illuftrious. A refemblance fo com- plete with refpecl: to a matter extremely fingular among barbarians, cannot fail to convert the molt obftinate infidel, leaving no doubt of Offian's vera- city.— But I ought not to anticipate. One. cannot pafs a verdict till the evidence be fummed up ; and
to
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 383
to that talk I now proceed with fanguine hopes of fuccefs.
It is a fad afcertained by many writers, That women in the north of Europe were eminent for refolution and courage. Caefar, in the firft book of his Commentaries, defcribing a battle he fought with the Helvetii, fays, that the women with a warlike fpirit exhorted their hufbands to perlift, and placed the waggons in a line to prevent their flight. Florus and Tacitus mention, that feveral battles of thofe barbarous nations were renewed by their women, prefenting their naked bofoms, and declaring their abhorrence of captivity. Fla- vius Vopifcus, writing of Proculus Caefar, fays, that a hundred Sarmatian virgins were taken in battle. The Longobard women, when many of their hufbands were cut off in a battle, took up arms, and obtained the victory *. The females of the Galaclophagi, a Scythian tribe, were as war- like as the males, and went often with them to
V
war f . In former times, many women in Den- mark applied themfelves to arms J. Jornandes defcribes the women of the Goths as full of co.u- rage, and trained to arms like the men. Joannes Magnus, Archbifhop of Upfal, fays the fame; and mentions in particular an expedition of the Goths to invade a neighbouring country, in which more
A a 3 women
* Paulus Diaconus. f Nicolaus Damafcenus.
J Saxo Grammaticus.
384 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
women went along with the men than were left at home #. Several Scandinavian women exercifed piracy f . The Cimbri were always attended with their wives even in their diftant expeditions, and were more afraid of their reproaches than of the blows of the enemy. The Goths, compelled by famine to furrender to Belifarius the city of Raven- na, were bitterly reproached by their wives for cowardice J. In a battle between Regner King of Denmark and Fro King of Sweden, many women took part with the former, Langertha in particu- lar, who fought with her hair flowing about her moulders. Regner, being victorious, demanded who that woman was who had behaved fo gallant- ly ; and finding her to be a virgin of noble birth, he took her to wife. He afterwards divorced her, in order to make way for a daughter of the King of Sweden. Regner, being unhappily engaged in a civil war with Harald, who afpired to the throne of Denmark ; Langertha, overlooking her wrongs, brought from Norway a body of men to aflift her hufband ; and behaved fo gallantly, that, in the opinion of all, Regner was indebted to her for the victory*
To find womenr in no conliderable portion of the globe, rivalling men in their capital property of courage, is a fingular phenomenon. That this
phenomenon
* Book i. f Olaus Magijus. Procopius, Hiftoria Gothica, lib. 2.
SK. £.] MANNERS. 385
phenomenon muft have had an adequate caufe, 13 certain ; but of that caufe, it is better to acknow- ledge our utter ignorance, however mortifying, than to fqueeze out conjectures that will not bear examination.
In rude nations^ prophets and foothfayers are held to be a fuperior clafs of men : what a figure then muft the Vandal women have made, when in that nation, as Procopius fays, all the prophets and foothfayers were of the female fex ? In Scandina- via, women are faid to have been ikilful in magic arts as well as men. Tacitus informs us, that the Germans had no other phyficians but their women. They followed the armies, to ftaunch the blood, and fuck the wounds of their hufbands *. He mentions a fact that fets the German women in a confpicuous light, That female hoftages bound the
^
Germans more ftrictly to their engagements than male hoftages. He adds, " Inefle quinetiam fane- " turn aliquid et providum putant : nee aut conli- " lia earum afpernantur, aut refponfa negligun-
Aa 4 Vkj^dt ..|i!:.'« tur."
* The expreflion of Tacitus is beautiful : " Ad matres, ad *' conjuges, vulnera ferunt : nee illae numerare aut exfugere " plag-as pavent : cibosque et hortamina pugnantibus geftant." — (/« Englift) thus: '* When wounded, they find phyficians in " their mothers and wives, who are not afraid to count and <* fuck their wounds. They carry provifions for their fons " and hufbands, and animate them in battle by their eahorta- « tions.")
386 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. (fi. 1*
" tur #." The hiftories and romances of the north reprefent women, and even princefles, ading as phyficians in war.
Polygamy fprung up in countries where women are treated as inferior beings : it can never take place where the two fexes are held to be of equal rank. For that reafon, polygamy never was known among the northern nations of Europe. Saxo Grammaticus, who wrote the hiflory of Denmark in the twelfth century, gives not the flighteft hint of polygamy, even among kings and princes. Crantz, in his hiftory of the Saxons f , affirms, that polygamy was never known among the northern nations of Europe ; which is confirmed by every other writer who gives the hiflory of any of thefe nations. Scheffer in particular, who writes the hiftory of Lapland, obferves, that neither polyga- my nor divorce were ever heard of in that country, not even during Paganifm.
We have the authority of Procopius J, that the women in thofe countries were remarkable for beauty, and that thofe of the Goths and Vandals were the fineft that ever had been feen in Italy ;
and
'i
* " They believe that there is fomething facred in their cha- " rafter, and that they have a forefight of futurity : for this " reafon, their counfels are always refpefted j nor are their '* opinions ever disregarded."
•(• Lib. i. cap. 2.
Hiftoria Gothica, lib. 3.
sjt. 5.] MANNERS. 387
and we have the authority of Crantz, that chaftity was in high eftimation among the Danes, Swedes, and other Scandinavians. When thefe fads are added to thofe above mentioned, it will not be thought ftrange, that love between the fexes, even among that rude people, was a pure and elevated paflion. That it was in fad fuch, is certain, if hif- tory can be credited, or the fentiments of a people expreffed in their poetical compofitions. I begin with the latter, as evidence the moil to be relied on. The ancient poems of Scandinavia contain the warmed expreflions of love and regard for the fe- male fex. In an ode of King Regner Lodbrog, a very ancient poem, we find the following fenti- ments : " We fought with fwords upon a promon- " tory of England, when I faw ten thoufand of my " foes rolling in the duft. A dew of blood diftil- " led from our fwords : the arrows that flew in " fearch of the helmets, hhTed through the air. " The pleafure of that day was like the clafping a " fair virgin in my arms." Again, " A young " man fhould march early to the conflict of arms ; " in which coniifts the glory of the warrior. He " who afpires to the love of a miilrefs, ought to be " dauntlefs in the clam of fwords." Thefe Hy- perboreans, it would appear, had early learned to combine the ideas of love and of military prowefs ; which is ftill more confpicuous in an ode of Harald the Valiant, of a later date. That prince, who figured in the middle of the eleventh century, tra-
verfed
1
388 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY* [B. I.
verfed all the feas of the north, and made piratical incurfions even upon the coails of the Mediterra- nean. In this ode he complains, that the glory he had acquired made no impreffion on Eliffir, daugh- ter to Jariflas, King of Ruffia. " I have made the " tour of Sicily. My brown vefTel, full of mari- " ners, made a fwift progrefs. My courfe I " thought would never ilacken — and yet a Ruffian " maiden fcorns me. The troops of Drontheim, *' which I attacked in my youth, exceeded ours in " number. Terrible was the conflict : I left their " young king dead on the field— and yet a Ruffian " maiden fcorns me. Six exercifes I can perform : " I fight valiantly : firm is my feat on horfeback : " inured I am to fwimming : fwift is my motion " on fcates : I dart the lance : I am fkilful at the " oar — and yet a Ruffian maiden fcorns me. Can " fhe deny, this young and lovely maiden, that " near a city in the fouth I joined battle, and left " behind me lailing monuments of my exploits ? " — and yet a Ruffian maiden fcorns me. My " birth was in the high country of Norway, fa* " mous for archers : but mips were my delight ; " and, far from the habitations of men, I have tra- " verfed the feas from north to fouth — and yet a " Ruffian maiden fcorns me.1' In the very an-* cient poem of Havamaal, mentioned above, there are, many expreffions of love to the fair fex. " He " who would gain the love of a maiden, mufl ad- " drefs her with fmooth fpeeches, and fhowy gifts.
"It
SK. 5.] MANNERS.. 389
" It requires good fenfe to be a ikilful lover." Again, " If I afpire to the love of the chafteft vir- " gin, I can bend her mind, and make her yield to " my defires." The ancient Scandinavian chro- nicles prefent often to our view young warriors en- deavouring to acquire the favour of their miftreiTes, by boafting of their accomplilhments, fuch as their dexterity in fwimming and fcating, their talent in poetry, their.ikill in chefs, and their knowing all the ftars by name. Mallet, in the introdu&ion to his Hiftory of Denmark, mentions many ancient Scandinavian novels that turn upon love and hero- ifm. Thefe may be juftly held as authentic evi- dence of the manners of the people : it is common to invent fadls ; but it is not common to attempt the inventing of manners. * ,
It is an additional proof of the great regard paid to women in Scandinavia, that in Edda, the Scan- dinavian Bible, female deities make as -great a figure as male deities.
Agreeable to the manners defcribed, we find it univerfally admitted among the ancient Scandina- vians, that beauty ought to be the reward of cou- rage and military (kill. A warrior was thought entitled to demand in marriage any young woman, even of the higheft rank, if he overcame his rivals in fingle combat : nor was it thought any hardfhip on the young lady, to be yielded to the viclor. The ladies were not always of that opinion ; for the ftouteft fighter is not always the handfomeft
man,
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
man, nor the moil engaging. And in the hiftories of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, many inftances are related, of men generoufly interpoiing to refcue young beauties from brutes, deflitute of every ac- complimment but ftrength and boldnefs. Such ilories have a fabulous air, and many of them pro- bably are mere fables. Some of them, however, have a ftrong appearance of truth : men are intro- duced who make a figure in the real hiftory of the country ; and many circumflances are related, that make links in the chain of that hiftory. Take the following fpecimen. The ambaffadors of Frotho, King of Denmark, commiffioned to demand in marriage the daughter of a King of the Huns, were feafted for three days, as the cuftom was in ancient times ; and being admitted to the young Princefs, me rejected the offer ; " Becaufe," fays Ihe, *' your King has acquired no reputation in " war, but pafles his time effeminately at home." In Biorner's collection of ancient hiftorical monu- ments, mentioned above, there is the following hif- tory : Charles King of Sweden kept on foot an ar- my of chofen men. He had a daughter named In- guegerda, whofe lively and graceful accomplim- ments were admired ftill more than her birth and fortune. The breaft of the King overflowed with felicity. Grymer, a youth of noble birth, knew to dye his fword in the blood of his enemies, to run over craggy mountains, to wreftle, to play at chefs, and to trace the motions of the ftars. He
ftudied
<l «
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 39!
u died to fhow his fkill in the apartment of the damfels, before the lovely Inguegerda. At length he ventured to open his mind. " Wilt thou, O fair Princefs ! accept of me for a hufband, if I obtain the King's confent?" "Go," fays fhe, " and fupplicate my father." The courtly youth refpedlfully addreffing the King, faid, " O King ! " give me in marriage thy beautiful daughter.' He anfwered fternly, " Thou haft learned to handle " thy arms : thou haft acquired fome honourable " diftindions : but haft thou ever gained a victory, " or given a banquet to favage beafts that rejoice " in blood ?" " Where fhall I go, O King ! that " I may dye my fword in crimfon, and render my- " felf worthy of being thy fon-in-law ?" — " Hial- " mar, fon of Harec," faid the King, " who go- " verns Biarmland, has become terrible by a keen " fword : the firmeft fhields he hews in pieces, and " loads his followers with booty. Go, and prove thy valour by attacking that hero : caufe him to bite the duft, and Inguegerda fhall be thy re- " ward." Grymer, returning to his fair miftrefs, " faluted her with ardent looks of love. " What " anfwer haft thou received from the King:' " To obtain thee I muft deprive the fierce Hial- " mar of life." Inguegerda exclaimed with grief, " Alas ! my father hath devoted thee to " death.'1 Grymer felected a troop of brave war- riors, eager to follow him. They launch their veflels into the wide ocean : they unfurl the fails,
which
ti n
392- MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
*.
which catch the fpringing gale : the fhrouds rattle : the waves foam, and dafh againfl the prows : they fleer their numerous veflels to the fhore of Goth- land ; bent to glut the hungry raven, and to gorge the wolf with prey. Thus landed ^Grymer on Gothland ! and thus did a beauteous maiden oc- cafion the death of many heroes. Hialmar de- manded who the ftrangers were. Grymer told his name ; adding, that he had fpent the fummer in queft of him. " May your arrival, replied Hi- *' almar, be fortunate ; and may health and ho- *' nour attend you. You (hall partake of my gold, " with the unmixed juice of the grape. Thy of- " fers, faid Grymer, I dare not accept. Prepare " for battle ; and let us haften to give a ban- " quet to beads of prey. Hialmar laid hold of '*' his white cuirafs, his fword, and his buckler. " Grymer, with a violent blow of his fabre, trans- " fixes Hialmar's (hield, and cuts off his left hand. *' Hialmar enraged, brandifhes his fword, and " ftriking off Grymer's helmet and cuirafs, pierces " his bread and fides : an effufion of blood fol- lows. Grymer raifinghis fabre with both hands, lays Hialmar proftrate on the ground ; and he " himfelf finks down upon the dead body of his " adverfary. He was put on fhipboard, and when " landed feemed to be at the laft period of life. " The diftrefied Princefs undertook his cure ; and " reftored him to health. They were married " with great folemnity j and the beauteous bride
'* of
it tf
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 393
" of Grymer filled the heart of her hero with un- " fading joy."
According to the rude manners of thofe times, a lover did not always wait for the confent of his rniflrefs. Joannes Magnus, Archbifhop of Upfal, obierves in his Hiftory of the Goths, that ravifhing of women was of old no lefs frequent among the Scandinavians than among the Greeks. He re- Jates, that Gram, fon to the King of Denmark, carried off the King of Sweden's daughter, whofe beauty was celebrated in verfes remembered even iq his time. Another inftance he gives, of Ni- cqlaus King of Denmark *, who courted Uluilda, a noble and beautiful Norvegian lady, and obtained her confent. Nothing remained but the celebra- tion of the nuptials, when me was carried off by Suercher, King of Sweden. We have the autho- rity of Saxo Grammaticus, that Sldold, one of the firft Kings of Denmark, fought a duel for a beau- tiful young woman, and obtained her for a wife. That author relates many duels of the fame kind. It was indeed common among the Scandinavians, before they became Chriitians, to fight for a wife, and to carry off the defired objedt by force of arms. No caufe of War between neighbouring kings was rnore frequent. Fridlevus King of Denmark fent a folemn ernbafly to Hafmundus King of Norway, to demand in marriage his daughter. Hafmundus had a rooted averfion to the Danes, who had done
much f Book 1 8.
394 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
much mifchief in his country. " Go," fays he to the ambafladors, " and demand a wife where you " are lefs hated than in Norway." The young lady, who had no averlion to the match, intreated leave to fpeak. " You feem," faid fhe, " not to " confult the good of your kingdom in rejecting " fo potent a fon-in-law, who can carry by force " what he is now applying for by intreaties." The father continuing obitinate, difmifTed the am- bafladors. Fridlevus fent other ambafladors, re- doubling his intreaties for a favourable anfwer. Hafmundus faid, that one refufal might be thought fufficient ; and in a fit of paflion put the ambaf- fadors to death. Fridlevus invaded Norway with a potent army ; and, after a defperate battle, car- ried off the lady in triumph.
The figure that women made in the north of Europe by their courage, their beauty, and their chaftity, could not fail to produce mutual efteem and love between the fexes : nor could that love fail to be purified into the moft tender affection, when their rough manners were fmoothed in the progrefs of fociety. If love between the fexes prevail in Lapland as much as any where, which is vouched by Scheffer in his hiftory of that coun- try, it muft be for a reafon very different from that now mentioned. The males in Lapland, who are great cowards, have no reafon to defpife the females for their timidity ; and in every country where the women equal the men, mutual efteem and af- fection
SK. 5.] MANNERS* 395
^ . fedlion naturally take place. Two Lapland odes
communicated to us by the author mentioned, leave no doubt of this fact, being full of the ten- dereft fentiments that love can infpire. The fol- lowing is a literal tranflation.
FIRST ODE.
I.
Kulnafatz my rein-dee^
We have a long journey to go t
The moors are vaft,
And we muft hafte ;
Our ftrength, I fear,
Will fail if we are flow ;
Andfo
V
Our fongs will do.
II,
Kaige, the watery moor,
Is pleafant unto me,
Though long it be ;
Since it doth to my miftrefs lead
Whom I adore :
The Kilwa moor
I ne'er again will tread.
III.
Thoughts fill'd my mind Whilft I thro' Kaige paft Swift as the wind,
•
And my defire, Wing'd with impatient fire : My rein-deer let us hafte.
IV.
So (hall we quickly end our pleafing pain : Behold my miftrefs there,
VOL. I. B b With
396
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY.
[B.I.
With decent motion walking o'er the plain.
Kulnafatz my rain-deer,
Look yonder, where
She waflies in the lake :
See while fhe fwims,
The waters from her purer limbs
New clearnefs take.
SECOND ODE.
/
i
I.
With brighteft beams let the fun ftiine
On Orra moor.
Could I be fure
That from the top o* th* lofty pine
I Orra moor might fee,
I to its higheft bow would climb,
And with indufti ious labour try
Thence to defcry
My miflrefs, if that there fhe be.
II.
Could I but know, amid what flowers, Or in what (hade fhe ftays, The gaudy bowers, With all their verdant pride, Their bloflbms and their fprays, Which make my miftrefs difappear, And her envious darknefs hide, I from the roots and bed of earth would tear.
III.
Upon the raft of clouds I'd ride, Which unto Orra fly : OJ th* ravens I would borrow wings, And all the feather'd inmates of the fky : But wings, alas, are me deny'd, The ftork and fwan their pinions will not lend,
There's
. 5.] MANNERS. 397
There's none who unto Orra brings,
Or will by that kind conduct me befriend*
IV.
Enough, enough ! thou haft delay'd So many fummers days The bed of days that crown the year, Which light upon the eye-lids dart, And melting joy upon the heart : But fmce that thou fo long haft ftay'd, They in unwelcome darknefs difappear. Yet vainly doft thou me forfake ; 1 will purfue and overtake.
V.
What ftronger is than bolts of fteel ? What can more furely bind ? Love is ftronger far than it ; Upon the head in triumph {he doth fit j Fetters the mind, And doth control The thought and foul.
VI.
A youth's defire is the defire of wind ; All his efTays Are long delays : No iflue can they find. Away fond counfellors, away, No more advice obtrude : I'll rather prove The guidance of blind love ; To follow you is certainly to ftray : One fmgle counfel, tho' unwife, is good.
In the Scandinavian manners here defcribed, is
i V
difcovered a ftriking refemblance to thole defcri- bed by Ofiian. And as fuch were the manners of
B b 2 the
398 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
the Scandinavians in the firft ftage of fociety, it no longer remains a wonder, that the manners of Ca- ledonia ftiould be equally pure in the fame early period. And now every argument above urged for Offian as a genuine hiitorian has its full weight, without the lead counterpoife. It is true, that Caledonian manners appear from Offian to have been (till more polifhed and refined than thofe of Scandinavia ; but that difference may have pro- ceeded from accidents which time has buried in oblivion.
I make no apology for infifting fo largely on Scandinavian manners ; for they tend remarkably to fupport the credit of Offian ; and confequently to afcertain a facl: sot a little interefting, that our forefathers were not fuch barbarians as they are commonly held to be. All the inhabitants of Bri- tain were of Celtic extraction ; and there is rea- fon to believe, that the manners of Caledonia were the manners of every part of the ifland, before the inhabitants of the plains were enflaved by the Ro- mans. The only circumftance peculiar to the Ca- ledonians, is their mountainous fituation : being lefs expofed to the oppreffion of foreigners, and farther removed from commerce, they did longer than their fouthern neighbours preferve their man- ners pure and untainted.
I have all along conlidered the poems of Offian in a hiftorical view merely. In the view of cri- ticifm they have been examined by a writer of
diftinguifhed
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 399
%
diftinguifhed tafte * ; and however bold to enter a field where he hath reaped laurels, I imagine that there ftill remain fome trifles for ihe to glean. Two of thefe poems, Fingal and Temora, are regular epic poems ; and perhaps the fingle inftances of epic poetry moulded into the form of an opera. We have in thefe two poems hoth the Recitativo and Aria of an Italian opera ; dropped indeed in the translation, from difficulty of imitation. Of* iian's poems were all of them compofed with a view to mufic ; though in the long poems men- tioned, it is probable that the airs only were ac- companied with the harp, the recitative being left to the voice. The poems of Offian are fingular in another refpecl:, being probably the only regular work now remaining that was compofed in the hunter-ilate. Some fongs of that early period may poffibly have efcaped oblivion ; but no other poem of the epic kind. One may advance a ftep far- ther, and pronounce, with a high degree of proba- bility, that Fingal and Temora are the only epic poems that ever were compofed in that ftate. How great muft have been the talents of the author, be- fet with every obftruction to genius, the manners of his country alone excepted ; a cold unhofpi- table climate ; the face of the country fo deform- ed as fcarce to afford a pleafing objecl; ; and he himfelf abfolutely illiterate ! One may venture^
B b 3 boldly
* Dr Blair, ProfeiTor of Rhetoric in the College of Edin-
4OO MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
boldly to affirm, that fuch a poem as Fingal or Temora never was compofed in any other part of the world, under fuch difadvantageous circum- ftances.
•
Though permanent manners enter not regularly into the prefent fketch, I am however tempted to add a few words concerning the influence of foil upon the manners of men. The ilupidity of the inhabitants of New Holland, mentioned above, is occalioned by the barrennefs of their foil, yielding nothing that can be food for man or bead. Day and night they watch the ebb of the tide, in or- der to dig fmall fifti out of the fand ; and fleep in the intervals, without an hour to fpare for any other occupation. People in that condition, muft for ever remain ignorant and brutim. Were all the earth barren like New Holland, all men would be ignorant and brutim, like the inhabitants of New Holland. On the other hand, were every portion of this earth fo fertile as fpontaneoufly to feed all its inhabitants, which is the golden age figured by poets, what would follow ? Upon the former fup^ petition, man would be a meagre, patient, and ti- mid animal : upon the latter fuppofition, he would be pampered, lazy, and effeminate. In both cafes, he would be ftupidly ignorant, and incapable of any manly exertion, whether of mind or body. But the foil of our earth is in general more wifely accommodated to man, its chief inhabitant. It is neither fo fertile as to fuperfede labour, nor fa
SK. 5.] MANNERS. 4OI
barren as to require the utmoft labour. The la- borious occupation of hunting for food, produced originally fome degree of induftry : and though all the induftry of man was at firft neceflary for procuring food, clothing, and habitation ; yet the foil, by fkill in agriculture, came to produce plenty with lefs labour; which to fome afforded time for thinking of conveniences. A habit of in- duftry thus acquired, excited many tobeftow their leifure hours upon the arts, proceeding from ufeful arts to fine arts, and from thefe to fciences. Wealth, accumulated by induftry, has a wonderful influ- ence upon manners : feuds and war, the offspring of wealth, call- forth into action friendship, cou- rage, heroifm, and every focial Virtue, as well as many felfifh vices. How like brutes do we pafs our time, without once reflecting on the wifdoni of Providence vifible even in the foil we tread upon !
Diverfity of manners, at the fame time, enters into the plan of Providence, as well as diverlity of talents, of feelings, and of opinions. Our Maker hath given us a tafte for variety \ and he hath pro- vided objects in plenty for its gratification. Some foils, naturally fertile, require little labour : fome foils, naturally barren, require much labour. But the advantages of the latter are more than fufficient to counterbalance its barrennefs : the inhabitants are fober, induftrious, vigorous ; and confequently courageous, _as far as courage depends on bodily
B b 4 ftrength,
402 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ftrength *. The difadvantages of a fertile foil, on the contrary, are more than fufficient to counter- balance its advantages : the inhabitants are ren- dered indolent, weak, and cowardly. Hindoftan may feem to be an exception ; for though it be extremely fertile, the people are induftrious, and export manufactures in great abundance at a very low price. But Hindoftan properly is not an ex- ception, The Hindoos, who are prohibited by their religion to kill any living creature, muft aban- don to animals for food a large proportion of land ; which obliges them to cultivate what remains with double induftry, in order to procure food for them- felves. The populoufnefs of their country contri- butes alfo to make them induftrious. Arragon was once the moft limited monarchy in Europe, Eng- land not excepted : the barrennefs of the foil was the caufe, which rendered the people hardy and courageous. In a preamble to one of their laws, the dates declare, that, were they not more free
than
* That a barren country is a great fpur to induftry, appears from Venice and Genoa in Italy, Nuremberg in Germany, and Limoges in France. The fterility of Holland required all the induftry of its inhabitants for procuring the neceflaries of life ; and by that means chiefly they became remarkably in- duftrious. Camden afcribes the fuccefs of the town of Ha- lifax in the cloth manufacture, to its barren foil. A feel of pampered Englishmen, it is to be hoped not many in number, who center all their devotion in a luxurious board* defpife Scotland for its plain fare j and in bitter contumely, jri^e it as a poor country,
SK. 5-] MANNERS. 403
than other nations, the barrennefs of their country would tempt them to abandon itv Oppofed to Arra- gon (lands Egypt, the fertility of which renders the inhabitants foft and effeminate, and confequent- ly an eafy prey to every invader #. The fruitful- nefs of the province of Quito in Peru, and the low price of every neceflary, occalioned by its diftance from the fea, have plunged the inhabitants into fupine indolence, and exceflive luxury. The peo- ple .of the town of Quite- in particular, have aban- doned themfelves to every fort of debauchery : the time they have to fpare from wine and women, is employed in exceflive gaming. In other refpecls alfo the manners of a people are influenced by the country they inhabit. A great part of Calabria, formerly populous and fertile, is at prefent covered-
with
* Fear imprefled by ftrange and uaforefeen accidents, is the moft potent caufe of fuperftition. No other country is lefs liable to ftrange and unforefeen accidents than Egypt ; no thunder, fcarce any rain, perfect regularity in the feafons, and in the rife and fall of the river. So little notion had the Egyptians of variable weather, as to be furprifed that the n-, vers in Greece did not overflow like the Nile. They could not comprehend how their fields were watered ; rain, they faid, was very irregular ; and what if Jupiter fhould take a conceit to fend them no rain ? What then made the ancient Egyptians fo fuperftitious ? The fertility of the foil, and the inaction of the inhabitants during the inundation of the river, enervated both mind and body, and rendered them timid and pufillanimous. Superftition was the offspring of this cha- racter in Egypt, as it is of ftrange and unforefeen accidents in other countries,
404 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. j.
with trees and flirubs, like the wilds of America ; and the ferocity of its inhabitants correfponds to the rudenefs of the fields. The fame is vifible in the inhabitants of Mount Etna in Sicily : the coun- try and its inhabitants are equally rugged.
SKETCH VI.
PROGRESS OF THE FEMALE SEX.
THE progrefs of the female fex, a capital branch of the hiftory of man, comprehends great variety of matter, curious and interefting. But fketches are my province, not complete hiflories ; and I propofe in the prefent iketch to trace the gradual progrefs of women, from their low Hate in favage tribes, to their elevated ftate in civilized nations.
With regard to the outlines, whether of internal difpofition or of external figure, men 'and women are the fame. Nature, however, intending them for mates, has given them difpofitions different but concordant, fo as to produce together delicious har- mony. The man, more robuft, is fitted for fevere labour and for field-exercifes : the woman, more delicate, is fitted for fedentary occupations ; and particularly for nurfing children. That difference
1 ia
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 405
is remarkable in the mind, no lefs than in the body. A boy is always running about ; delights in a top or a ball, and rides upon a flick as a horfe. A girl has lefs inclination to move : her firft amufement is a baby ; which me delights to drefs and undrefs. I have feen oftener than once a female child under fix getting an infant in its arms, carefling it, fing- ing, and walking about flaggering under the weight. A boy never thinks of fuch a paflime. The man, bold and vigorous, is qualified for being a protec- tor : the woman, delicate and timid, requires pro- tection *. The man, as a protector, is directed by nature to govern : the woman, confcious of infe- riority, is difpofed to obey. Their intellectual powers correfpond to the deflination of nature: men have penetration and folid judgment to fit them for governing : women have fufficient un- derflanding to make a decent figure under good government ; a greater proportion would excite dangerous rivalfhip. Women have more imagina- tion and more fenfibility than men ; and yet none of them have made an eminent figure in any of the fine arts. We hear of no fculptor nor flatuary among them ; and none of them have rifen above a mediocrity in poetry or painting. Nature has avoided rivalfhip between the fexes, by giving them different talents. Add another capital difference
of
* From which it appears to proceed, that women naturally are more careful of their reputation than men, and more hurt by obloquy.
406 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. t.
of difpofition : the gentle and infinuating manners
x
of the female fex, tend to f often the roughnefs of the other fex ; and wherever women are indulged with any freedom, they polifh fooner than men *.
Thefe are not the only particulars that diftin- guifh the fexes. With refpedl to matrimony, it is the privilege of the male, as fuperior and protec- tor, to make a choice ; the female preferred has no privilege but barely to confent or to refufe. Na- ture fits them for thefe different parts : the male is bold, the female bamful. Hence among all na- tions it is the practice for men to court, and for women to be courted : which holds alfo among many other animals, probably among all that pair.
Another diftindlion is equally viiible : The maf- ter of a family is immediately conne&ed with his country ; his wife, his children, his fervants, are immediately connected with him, and with their country through him only. Women accordingly
have
* The chief quality of women, fays Roufleau, is fweetnefs of temper. Made by nature for fubmiffion in the married ftate, they ought to learn to fuffer wrong, even without com- plaining. Sournefs and ftubbornefs ferve but to increafe the hufband's unkindnefs and their own diflrefles. It was not to indulge bad humour, that Heaven beftowed on them manners infmuating and perfuafive : they were not made weak in order to be imperious : a fweet voice fuits ill with fcolding ; deli- cate features ought not to be disfigured with paflion. They frequently may have reafon for complaints : but never, to ut- ;er them publicly.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX, 407
have lefs patriotifm than men ; and lefs bitternefs againft the enemies of their country.
The peculiar modefty of the female fex, is alfo a diftinguiihing circumftance. Nature hath provided them with it as a defence againft the artful felici- tations of the other fex before marriage, and alfo as a fupport of conjugal fidelity.
A fundamental article in the prefent iketch is matrimony ; and it has been much controverted, whether it be an appointment of nature, or only of municipal law. Many writers have exercifed their talents in that controverfy, but without giv- ing fatisfaction to a judicious inquirer. If I mif- take not, it may be determined upon folid princi- ples ; and as it is of importance in the hiftory of man, the reader, I am hopeful, will not be difgufted at the length of the argument.
Many writers hold that women were originally common ; that animal love was gratified as among horfes and horned cattle ; and that matrimony was not known, till nations grew in fome degree to be orderly and refined. I feledt Cicero as an author of authority : " Nam fuit quoddam tempus, cum " in agris homines paflim, beftiarum more, vaga- " bantur, et fibi victu ferino vitam propagabant : " nee ratione animi quicquam fed pleraque viribus " corporis adminiftrabant. Nondum divinae re- " ligionis non humani officii ratio colebatur. Nemo " legitimas vide rat nuptias, non certos quifquam
" infpexerat
408 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I*
" infpexerat liberos*." — Pliny, in fupport of that dodrine, informs us, that among the Garamantes, an African nation, male and female lived promifcu- ouily together, without any notion of matrimony. Among the Aufes, a people of Libya, as Herodotus fays, matrimony was not known, and men coha- bited with women indifferently, like other animals. A boy educated by his mother was at a certain age admitted to an aflembly of men, and the man he clung to was reputed his father. Juftin and other authors report, that before Cecrops, who reigned in Attica about 1600 years before Chrift, marriage was not known in Greece ; and that the burden of children lay upon the mother.
Before entering dire&ly into the matter, it is proper to remove, if poflible, the bias of thefe great names. The practice of the Garamantes and of the Aufes is mentioned by Pliny and Herodotus as lingular ; and, were it even well vouched, it would avail very little againft the practice of all other nations. Little weight can be laid upon Pliny's evidence in particular, conlidering what he reports, in the fame chapter, of the Blemmyans, that they
had
* " For there was a time, when men, like the brutes, roam- '* ed abroad over the earth, and fed like wild beafts upon, " other animals. Then reafon bore no fway, but all was '* ruled by fuperior ftrength. The ties of religion, and the ** obligations of morality, were then unfelt. Lawful mar- 4< riage was unknown, and no father was certain of his off- " fpring." — De Inventione, lib. i.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 409
had no head, and that the mouth and eyes were in the breaft. Pliny at the fame time, as well as Herodotus, being very deficient in natural know- ledge, were grofsly credulous ; and cannot be relied on with refpect to any thing ftrange or un- common. As to what is reported of ancient Greece, Cecrops poflibly prohibited polygamy, or introdu- ced fome other matrimonial regulation, which by writers might be miftaken for a law appointing matrimony. However that be, one part of the report is undoubtedly erroneous ; for it will be made evident afterward, that, in the hunter-ftate, or even in that of Ihepherds, it is impracticable for any woman, by her own induftry alone, to rear a numerous iflue. If this be at all poffible, it can only be in the torrid zone, where people live on fruits and roots, which are produced in plenty with very little labour. Upon that account, Dio- dorus Siculus is lefs blameable. for liftening to a re- port, that the inhabitants of Taprobana, fuppofed to be the ifland of Ceylon, never marry, but that women are ufed promifcuoufly. At the fame time, as there is no fuch cuftom at prefent in the Eaft Indies, there is no good ground to believe, that it ever was cuftomary ; and the Eaft Indies were fo little known to the ancient Greeks, that their au- thors cannot be much relied on, in the accounts they give of that diftant region. The authority of Cicero, however refpectable in other matters, will not be much regarded upon the prefent queftion,
when
410 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. t.
•when the paffage above quoted is dhTefted. How crude muft his notions be of the primitive ftate of man, when he denies to favages any fenfe of reli- gion or of moral duty ! Ought we to rely more on him, when he denies that they have any notion of matrimony ? Caefar's account of the ancient Britons approaches the neareft to a loofe commerce with women, though in the maift it is good evi- dence againft Cicero. It was common, he fays, for a number of brothers, or other near relations, to ufe their wives promifcuoufly. - The offspring however were not common ; for each man main- tained the children that were produced by his own wife. Herodotus reports the fame of the Mafla- .getae.
Laying thus afide the great names of Cicero, He- rodotus, and Pliny, the field lies open to a fair and impartial inveftigation. And as the means provi- ded by nature for continuing the race of other a- nimals, may probably throw light upon the eco- nomy of nature with refpec"l to man ; I begin with that article, which has not engaged the attention of naturalifts fo much as it ought to have done. With refpecl to animals whofe nourifhment is grafs, pairing would be of no ufe : the female feeds her- felf and her young at the fame inftant ; and no- thing is left for the male to do. On the other hand, all brute animals whofe young require the nurfing care of both parents, are di reded by na- ture to pair j nor is that connection difiblved till
the
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 4!!
till the young can provide for themfelves. Pairing is indifpenfable to wild birds that build on trees ; be- caufe the male muft provide food for his mate while me is hatching the jeggs. And as they have com- monly a. numerous ifliie, it requires the labour of both to pick up food for themfelves and for their young. Upon that account it is fo ordered, that the young are fufficiently vigorous to provide for themfelves, before a new brood is produced.
What I have now opened fuggefts the following queftion, Whether, according to the economy a- bove difplayed, are we to prefume, or not, that man is diredted by nature to matrimony ? If ana- logy can be relied on, the affirmative muft be held, as there is no other creature in the known world to which pairing is fo neceflary. Man is an ani- mal of long life, and is proportionally flow in grow- ing to maturity : he is a helplefs being before the age of fifteen or fixteen ; and there may be in a family ten or twelve children of different births, before the eldeft can fhift for itfelf. Now, in the original ftate of hunting and fifhing, which are la- borious occupations, and not always fuccefsful, a woman, fuckling her infant, is not able to provide food even for herfelf, far lefs for ten or twelve vo- racious children. Matrimony, therefore, or pair- ing, is fo neceflary to the human race, that it muft be natural and inftindive. When fuch ample means are provided for continuing every other a- nimal race, is it fuppofable that the chief race is
VOL. I. C c neglected ?
412 kEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
neglected ? Providential care defcends even to ve- getable life ; every plant bears a profufion of feed •, and in order to cover the earth with vegetables, fome feeds have wings, fome are fcattered by means of a fpring, and fome are fo light as to be carried about by the wind. Brute animals which do not pair, have grafs and other food in plenty, enabling the female to feed her young without needing any affiftance from the male. But where the young require the nuriing care of both parents, pairing is a law of nature. When other races are fo amply provided for, can it be ferioufly thought, that Pro- vidence is lefs attentive to the human race ? If men and women were not impelled by nature to matrimony, they would be lefs fitted for continu- ing the fpecies, than even the humblefl plant. Have we not then reafon fairly to conclude, that matri- mony in the human race is an appointment of na^- ture ? Can that conclulion be refilled by any one who believes in Providence, and in final caufes *.
To confirm this doctrine, let the confequences of a loofe commerce between the fexes be examit ned. The carnal appetite, when confined to one object, feldom tranfgreiles the bounds of tempe- rance.
* It appears a wife appointment of Providence, that women give over child-bearing at fifty, while they are ftill in vigour of mind and body to take care of their offspring. Did the power of procreation continue in women to old age as in men, children would often be left in the wide world, without a mor- tal to look after them.
. 6.] FEMALE $££. 413
ranee. But were it encouraged to roam, like a bee fucking honey from every flower, every new object would inflame the imagination ; and fatiety with refpect to one, would give new vigour with refpect to others : a generic habit would be form- ed of intemperance in fruition * ; and animal love would become the ruling pailion. Men, like the hart in rutting-time, would all the year round fly with impetuofity from object to object, giving no quarter even to women fuckling their infants : and women, abandoning themfelves to the fame appe- tite, would become altogether regardlefs of their offspring. In that ftate, the continuance of the human- race would be a miracle. In the favage ftate, as mentioned above, it is beyond the power of any woman to provide food for a family of chil- dren ; and now it appears, that intemperance in animal love would render a woman carelefs of her family, however eafy it might be to provide for
Cca
* Elements of Criticifm, chap. 14.
I have often been tempted to blame Providence for bring- ing to perfection in early youth the carnal appetite, long before people have acquired any prudence or felf-command. It rages the moft when young men fhould be employed in ac- quiring knowledge, and in fitting themfelves for living com- fortably in the world. I have fet this thought in various lights ; but I now perceive that the cenfure is without foun- dation. The early ripenefs of this appetite, proves it to be the
intention
4*4 M£N INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. la
I fay more. The promifcuous ufe of women, would unqualify them in a great meafure to pro- create. The carnal appetite in man refembles his appetite for food : each of them demands gratifi- cation, after fhort intervals. Where the carnal appetite is felt but a Ihort fpace annually, as among animals who feed on grafs, the promifcuous ufe of females is according to the order of nature : but fuch a law in man, where the carnal appetite is al- ways awake, would be an effectual bar to procrea- tion ; it being an undoubted truth, that women who indulge that appetite to excefs, feldom have children ; and if all women were common, all women would in effecl: be common proftitutes.
If undifguifed nature fhow itfelf any where, it is in children. So truly is matrimony an appoint- ment of nature, as to be underftood even by chil- dren.
intention of Providence that people ftiould early fettle in ma- trimony. In that ftate the appetite is abundantly moderate^ and gives no obftruclion to education. It never becomes un- ruly, till a man, forgetting the matrimonial tie, wanders from object to object. Pride and luxury are what dictate late mar- ' riages : induftry never fails to afford the means of living com- fortably, provided men confine themfelves to the demands of nature. A young man, at the fame time, who has the care of a family upon him, is impelled to be active in order to provide- food for them. And fuppofing him to have a fufficiency with- out labour, attention to his wife and children produces a habit of doing good, which is regularly extended to all around. And married men become thus good citizens ; and fome of
,
them eminent patriots.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 415
dren. They often hear, it is true, people talking of matrimony ; but they alfo hear of logical, me- taphylical, and commercial matters, without un- derftanding a fyllable. Whence then their notion of marriage but from nature ? Marriage is a com- pound idea, which no inftruftion could bring with- in the compreheniion of a child, did not nature co- operate.
That the arguments urged above againfl a pro- mifcuous ufe of women, do not necefiarily con- clude againft polygamy, or the union of one man with a plurality of women, will not efcape an at- tentive reader. St Auguftin and other fathers ad- mit, that polygamy is not prohibited by the law of nature ; and the learned Grotius profefles the fame opinion #. But great names terrify me not ; and I venture to maintain, that pairing, in the ftri&eft fenfe, is a law of nature among men as among wild birds ; and that polygamy is a grofs infringement of that law. My reafons follow.
I urge, in the firft place, the equal number of males and females, as a clear indication that Pro- vidence intends every man to be confined to one wife, and every woman to one huiband. That equality, which has fubfifted in all countries and at all times, is a iignal inftance of over- ruling Pro- vidence ; for the chances againft it are infinite. All men are by nature equal in rank ; no man is privileged above another to have a wife ; and
C c 3 therefore
* De'jure belli ac pacis, lib. 2. cap. 5. § 9.
416 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. \E. !„•
therefore polygamy is contradictory to the plan of Providence. Were ten women born for one man, as is erroneoufly reported to be the cafe in Ban- tam, polygamy might be the intention of Provi- dence ; but from the equality of males and fe- males, it is clearly the voice of nature, as well as of the Sacred Scripture, " That a man fhall leave " his father and mother, and cleave to his wife ; " and they fliall be one flefh.':
Coniider, in the next place, that however plau- lible polygamy may appear in the prefent ftate of things, where inequality of rank and of fortune have produced luxury and fenfuality ; yet that the laws of nature were not contrived by our Ma- ker for a forced ftate, where numberlefs indivi- duals are degraded below their natural rank, for the benefit of a few who are elevated above it. To form a juft notion of polygamy, we muft look back to the original ftate of man, where all arc equal. In that ftate, every man cannot have two wives ; and confequently no man is entitled to more than one, till every other be upon an equal footing with him. At the fame time, the union of one man with one woman is much better cal- culated for continuing the race, than the union of one man with many women. Think of a favage who may have fifty or fixty children by different wives, all depending for food upon his induftry : chance muft turn out much in his favour, if the half of them perifh not by hunger. How much a
VZ**S • f <f Q
better;
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 417
better chance for life have infants who are diftri- buted more equally in different families ?
Polygamy has an effect flill more pernicious, with refpecl to children even of the mofl opulent families. Unlefs affection be reciprocal and equal, there can be no proper fociety in the matrimonial ftate, no cordiality, nor due care of offspring. But fuch affection is inconfiftent with polygamy : a woman in that ftate, far from being a companion to her hufband, is degraded to the rank of a fer- vant, a mere inftrurnent of pleafure and propaga- tion. Among many wives there will always be a favourite : the reft turn peevifh ; and if they re- fent not the injury againft their hufband, and againft their children as belonging to him, they will at leaft be dimeartened, and turn negligent of them. At the fame time, fonduefs for the favou- rite wife and her children, makes the hufband in- different about the reft ; and woful is the condi- tion of children who are neglected by both pa- rents *. To produce fuch an effect, is certainly not the purpofe of nature.
It merits peculiar attention, that Providence has provided for an agreeable union, among all crea- tures who are taught by nature to pair. Animal love among creatures who pair not, is confined within a narrow fpace of time : while the dam is occupied about her young, animal love lies dor-
C c 4 mant,
* J-'Efprit des Loix, liv. 16. chap. 6*
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
rnant, that fhe may not be abftracted from her duty. In pairing animals, on the contrary, ani- mal love is always awake : frequent enjoyment endears a pair to each other, and makes condancy a pleafure. Such is the cafe of the human race ; and fuch is the cafe of wild birds *. Among the wild birds that build on trees, the male, after feed- ing his mate in the neft, plants himfelf upon the next fpray, and cheers her with a fong f . There is flill greater enjoyment provided for the human race in the matrimonial Hate, and ftronger incite- ments to conftancy. Sweet is the fociety of a pair fitted for each other, in whom are collected the af- fections of huiband, wife, lover, friend, the ten^ dereft affections of human nature. Public govern- ment is in perfection, when the fovereign com- mands with humanity, and the fubjects are cordial in their obedience. Private government in conju- gal fociety arrives at flill greater perfection, where huiband and wife govern and are governed reci- procally, with entire fatisfaction to both. The man bears rule over his wife's perlbn and conduct ; fhe bears rule over his inclinations : he governs by law : fhe by perfuafion. Nor can her authority
ever
* Buffon, lib. 5. p. 359. o&avo edition.
i
f A male canary bird, finging to his mate on her neft in a breeding-cage, fell down dead. The female alarmed left her neft and pecked at him : finding him immovable, jflie refufed fiourifhment, and died at his fide.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 419
ever fail, where it is fupported by fweetnefs of temper, and zeal to make him happy *.
The
* *' L 'empire de la femme eft un empire de douceur, d'ad- drefle, et de complaifance ; fes ordres font des carefies, fes me- naces font des pleurs. Elle doit regner dans la maifon comme un miniftre dans 1'etat, en fe faifant commander ce qu'elle veut faire? En ce fens il eft conftant que les meilleurs menage^ font ceux ou la femme a le plus d'autorite. Mais quand elle meconnoit la voix du chef, qu'elle veut ufurper fes droits et commander elle-m£me : il ne refulte jamais de ce defordre, que mifere, fcandale, et difhonneur ;" Roujfiau, Emite, ii<v. 5. p. 96. — [/« EngHJh thus : '* The empire of the woman is an empire •" of foftnefs, of addrefs, of complacency ; her commands are " careiTes, her menaces are tears. She ought to reign in the " family \like a minifter in the ftate, by making that which is " her inclination be enjoined to her as her duty. Thus it is *' evident, that the beft domeftic ceconomy is that where the *' wife has moft authority. But when fhe is infenfible to the " voice of her chief, when (he tries to ufurp his prerogative, " and to command alone, what can refult fKom fuch diforder, " but mifery, fcandal, and difbonour ?"J — The Emprefs Li via being queftioned by a married lady, how fhe had obtained fuch afcendent over he'r hufband Auguftus, anfwered, " By " being obedient to his commands, by not wiftiing to know his *' fecrets, and by hiding my knowledge of his amours." The late Queen of Spain was a woman of fmgular prudence, and of folid judgment. A character of her, publiflied after hep death, contains the following paflage : " She had a great af- " cendency over the King, founded on his perfuafion of her " fuperior fenfe, which flie fhowed in a perfect fubmiflion to *' his commands ; the more eauly obeyed, as they were com, *' monly, though to him imperceptibly, dictated by herfelf. ft She cured him of many foibles, and, in a word, was his '* Minerva, under the appearance of Mentor."
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
The God of nature has enforced conjugal fo- ciety, not only by making it agreeable, but by the principle of chaftity inherent in our nature. To animals that have no inftincl for pairing, chaftity is utterly unknown ; and to them it would be ufe- lefs. The mare, the cow, the ewe, the me- goat, receive the male without ceremony, and admit the firft that comes in the way without diftinclion. Neither have tame fowl any notion of chaftity : they pair not ; and the female gets no food from the male, even during incubation. But chaftity and mutual fidelity are eflential to all pairing ani- mals ; for wandering inclinations would render them negligent in nurfing their young. Wild birds pair ; and they are by inftincl: faithful to each other, while their young require nurture. Chafti- ty is eflential to the human race ; enforced by the principle of chaftity, a branch of the moral fenfe. Chaftity is eflential even to the continuation of the human race. As the carnal appetite is always alive, the fexes would wallow in pleafure, and be foon rendered unfit for procreation, were it not for the reftraint of chaftity.
Nor is chaftity confined to the matrimonial ftate. Matrimony is inftituted by nature for continuing the fpecies ; and it is the duty of man to abftain from animal enjoyment, except in that ftate. The ceremonies of marriage and the caufes of fepara- tion and divorce, are fubjecled to municipal law : but, if a man beget children, it is his duty to unite
with
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 42*
with the mother in taking care of them ; and fuch union is matrimony according to the law of na- ture. Hence it is, that the firft acts of inconti- nence, where enjoyment only is in view, are al- ways attended with lhame, and with a degree of remorfe *. At the fame time, as chaility in per- fons who are lingle is only a felf-duty, it is not fo lirongly enforced by the moral fenfe as chaftity is in married perfons, who owe fidelity to each other. Deviations accordingly from the former make a lefs figure than from the latter: we fcarce ever hear of adultery among favages ; though among them incontinence before marriage is not uncom- mon. In Wales, even at prefent, and in the High- lands of Scotland, it is fcarce a difgrace for a young woman to have a baftard. In the country lait mentioned, the firft inftance known of a baftard- child being deilroyed by its mother through fhame, is a late one. The virtue of chaility appears to be there gaining ground ; as the only temptation, a woman can have to deflroy her child, is to con- ceal her frailty. The principle of chaftity, like that of propriety or of decency, is faint among fa- vages ; and has little of that influence which pre- vails among polilhed nations before they are cor- rupted
" * Quand enfin cette aimable jeuneffe vient a fe marier, les deux epoux fe dormant mutuellement les premices de leur per- fonne, en font plus chers 1'un a 1'autre ; des multitudes d'en- fans fains et robuftes deviennent le gage d'une union que rien n'altere j" Roffeau, Emik,
422 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
rupted by luxury. We ihall have occafion to fee afterward, that even the great duty of juftice is faint among barbarians ; and that it yields readily to every irregular impulfe, before the moral fenfe has arrived to maturity.
Chaftity is a reftraint upon nature ; and, there- fore, if fhame be removed by making it lawful to obey the appetite, nature will prevail. In the year 1707, a contagious diftemper having carried off a large proportion of the inhabitants of Iceland, the King of Denmark fell on a device to repeople the country, which fucceeded to a wiih. A law was made, authoriiing young women in that ifland to have baftards, even to the number of fix, without wounding their reputation*. The young women were fo zealous to repeople their country, that af- ter a few- years it was found proper to abrogate the law.
Modefty is by nature intended to guard chaftity, as chaftity is to guard matrimony. And modefty, like chaftity, is one of thofe delicate principles that make no great figure among favages. In the land
of Jeflb, young women fometimes go naked in fum- \
mer
* Don Juan de Ulloa, in his voyage to Peru, mentions a very fingular tafte prevalent in that country, that a man never takes a virgin to wife ; and thinks himfelf dishonoured if his. wife have not, before marriage, enjoyed many lovers. If we can truft Paulus Venetus, a young woman of Thibet, in Afia, *s not reckoned fit to be married till fhe be deflowered.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 425
mer : if however they meet a ftranger, they hang the head, and turn away through fhame. Nature here is their only inftru&or*. Some favage tribes have fo little notion of modefty, as to go naked, without even covering their privy parts. Reg- nard reports, upon his own knowledge, that in Lapland, man, woman, and child, take the hot bath promifcuoufly, and are not afhamed to be feen in that condition, even by a ftranger. As this appeared lingular, I took an opportunity to men- tion it to Dr Solander, who had made more than one vifit to that country. He faid, that Regnard's report might be true ; but without any imputation on the modefty of the Laplanders, for that their place of bathing is always fo dark that nothing can be feen. He added, that the females in Lap- land, both married and unmarried, are extremely chafte. The inhabitants of Otaheite, if Bougain- ville can be trufted, feern to have as little notion of modefty as of chaftity. But many of that au- thor's facts ftarid contradicted by later voyagers. The women of New Zealand are both chafte and modeft. Captain Cook, in his voyage round the world, ftumbled upon fome of them naked, diving for lobfters ; and they were in great confulion foi
being feen in that condition by ftrangeraf
But
* Doth not modefty prevail among many animals ? Ele- phants are never feen in copulation, nor cats, nor beads of prey.
4^4 MEN INDEPENDENT OT SOCIETY. [B. It
But now, if pairing in the ftricteft fenfe be a law of nature among men, as among fome other animals, how is polygamy to be accounted for, which formerly was univerfal, and to this day ob- tains among many nations ? Polygamy, I anfwer, is derived from two fources ; firft, from favage manners, once univerfal ; and next, from voliip- tuoufnefs in warm climates, which inftigates men of wealth to tranfgrefs every rule of temperance. Thefe two fources I propofe to handle with care, becaufe they make a large branch in the hiftory of the female fex.
With refpecl to the firft, fweetnefs of temper, a capital article in the female character, di-fplays- itfelf externally by mild looks and gentle manners. But fuch graces are fcarce difcernible in a female favage ; and even in the moft poliftied women, would not be perceived by a male favage. Among favages, ftrength and boldnefs are the only valued qualities : in thefe females are miferably deficient : and for that reafon, are contemned by the males, as beings of an inferior order. The North Ame- rican tribes glory in idlenefs : the drudgery of la- bour degrades a man in their opinion, and is pro- per for women only. To join young perfons in marriage is accordingly the bufinefs of parents ; and it would be unpardonable meannefs in the bridegroom, to Ihew any fondnefs for the bride. Young men among the Hottentots, are admitted in- to fociety with their feriiors at the age of eighteen ;
after
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 425
after which it is difgraceful to keep company with women. In Guiana, a woman never eats with her hufband ; but after every meal attends him with water for warning. In the Caribbee iilands, fhe is not permitted to eat even in prefence of her hufband ; and yet we are allured *, that women there obey with fuch fweetnefs and refpecl, as never to give their hufbands occaiion to remind them of their duty ; " an example," adds our fage author, " worthy the imitation of Chriftian wives, " who are daily inftrudled from the pulpit in the " duties of obedience and conjugal fidelity, but to " very little purpofe.*' Dampier obferves in ge- neral, that, among all the wild nations he was ac- quainted with, the women carry the burdens, while the men walk before, and carry nothing but their arms. Women even of the higheft rank are not better treated. The fovereign of Giaga, in Africa, has many wives, who are literally his Haves : one carries his bow, one his arrows, and one gives him drink; and while he is drinking they all fall on their knees, clap their hands, and fing. Not many centuries ago, a law was made in England, prohibiting the New Teftament in En- glilh to be read by women, 'prentices, journey- men, or ferving men f , What a pitiful figure muft the poor females have made in that age ! In Siberia, and even in Ruffia, the capital excepted,
men
* Labat's Voyages to the American Iflands. 34th and 35th Henry VIII. cap. i.
426 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
men treat their wives in every refpeft as flaves. The regulations of Peter I. put marriage upon a more refpe&able footing among people of rank j and yet fuch are the brutal manners of the Ruf- fians, that tyrannical treatment of wives'is far from being eradicated.
The low condition of the female fex among fa- vages and barbarians, paved the way to polygamy. Savages, excited by a tafte for variety, and ftill more by pride, which is gratified by many fe*- vants, delight in a multiplicity of wives. The pairing principle, though rooted in human nature, makes little figure among favages, yielding to every irregular appetite ; and this fairly accounts why polygamy was once univerfal. It might indeed be thought, that animal love, were there nothing elfe, mould have raifed women to fome degree of eftimatiori among the men. But male favages, ut- ter ftrangers to decency or refinement, gratify ani- mal love with as little ceremony as they do hunger or thirft.
Hence appears the reafon of a practice that will furprife thofe who are unacquainted with ancient cuftoms ; which is, that a man purchafed a woman to be his wife, as one purchafes an ox or a fheep to be food. Women by marriage became flaves ^ and no man will give his daughter to be a flave, but for a valuable confideration. The practice was univerfal. I begin with the Jews. Abraham bought Rebekah, and gave her to his fon Ifaac for
a
<(
if,
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 427
a wife *. Jacob, having nothing elfe to give, fer- ved Laban fourteen years for two wives f. Sechem demanding in marriage Dinah, Jacob's daughter, faid, " Afk me never fo much dowry and gift, and
I will give according as ye (hall fay unto me :
but give me the damfel to wife £." To David demanding Saul's daughter in marriage, Saul faid, " The king deiireth not any dowry, but an hun- " dred forefkins of the Philiflines §." In the Iliad, Agamemnon offers his daughter to Achilles for a wife ; and fays, that he would not demand for her any price. Paufanias reports of Danaus, that no fuitors appearing to demand any of his daughters, he publifhed, that he would give them without dowry. In Homer, there is frequent men- tion of nuptial gifts from a bridegroom to his bride's father. From terming them gifts, it is probable that the former method of purchafe was beginning to wear out. It wore out before the time of Ariftotle ; who infers, that their forefa- thers muft have been a very rude people. The ancient Spaniards purchafed their wives. We have the authority of Herodotus and of Heraclides Ponticus, that the Thracians followed the fame practice. The latter adds, that if a wife was ill treated, her relations could demand her back, up- on repaying the price they got for her. In the Ro- man law mention is made of matrimony per <es et VOL. I. D d libram,
* Genefis, xxiv. 53. f Genefis, chap, xxix.
J Genefis, xxxiv. 12. § i Samuel, xviii. 25,
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
libram, which was folemnized by laying down a quantity of brafs with a balance for weighing it, underftood to be the price paid for the bride. This muft have been once a reality \ though it funk down to be a mere ceremony, after it be- came cuftomary for a Roman bride to bring a dowry with her. The Babylonians and the Afiy- rians, at ftated times, collected all the marriageable young women, and difpofed of them by auction. Rubruguis, in his voyage to Tartary anno 1253, reports, that there every man bought his wife. " They believev he adds, that their wives ferve " them in another world as they do in this ; for " which reafon, a widow has no chance for a fe- " cond hufband, whom me cannot ferve in the " other world." Olaus Magnus, remarking that among the ancient Goths no dower was provided on the bride's part, gives a reafon, better fuited perhaps to the time he lived in, than to what he defcribes. " Apud Gothos, non mulier viro fed " vir mulieri dotem aflignat ; ne conjux, ob mag- " nitudinem dotis infolefcens, aliquando ex pla- " cida conforte proterva evadet, atque in ma- " ritum dominari contendat* ;" as if the hazard of petulance in a wife would hinder a man to ac- cept a dower with her : — a fad doctrine for an hei- refs. There is preferved in the abbey of St Peter
a
* " Among the Goths, a man gave a dowry for his bride, ** inftead of receiving one with her ; to prevent pride and in- " folence, that commonly accompany riches on the woman's " part."
sic. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 429
a charter, judged to be 700 years old, in which the Countefs of Amiens gifts to the faid Abbey land (he received from her hufband at their marriage, " ac- " cording to the Salic law," fays fhe, " obliging " the hufband to give a dowry to his wife." By the laws of King Ethelbert, feel. 32* a man who committed adultery with his neighbour's wife, was obliged to pay him a fine, and to buy him another wife. Giraldus Cambrenfis, in his defcription of Wales, fays, that formerly they hardly ever mar- ried without a prior cohabitation ; it having been cuftomary for parents to let out their daughters to ^oung men upon trial, for a fum of money told down, and under a penalty if the girls were return- ed. This I believe to be a miftake. It is more probable, that in Wales men purchafed their wives, as was done all the world over, with liberty to re- turn them if they proved not agreeable. The bride's parents retained the dowry, and her chance for a hufband was as good as ever.
The fame cuftom continues among barbarous nations. It continues among the Tartars, amon^ the Mingrelians, among the Samojdes, among the. Oftiacs, among the people of Pegu, and of the Mo- lucca iflands. In the ifland of Sumatra, a man purchafes his wives. He may return a wife to her relations ; but they keep the purchafe- money. If a woman diflike her hufband, fhe or her relations mud pay to him double the purchafe money. In Timor, an Eaft-Indian iflund, men fell evea their
D d 2 children
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fc. f*
children to purchafe more wives. The Prince of Circaffia demanded from the Prince of Mingrelia, who was in fuit of his daughter, a hundred flaves loaded with tapeftry and other houfehold-furni- ture, a hundred cows, as many oxen, and as many horfes. We have evidence of the fame cuftqm in Africa, particularly in Biledulgerid, among the Ne- groes on the fea-coaft, and in Monomotapa. Among the Caribbees, there is one inftance where a man gets a wife without paying for her. After a fuccefs- ful war, the vidlors are entertained at a feaft, where the General harangues on the valour of the young men who made the beft figure. Every man who has marriageable daughters, is fond to offer them to fuch young men without any price. The purcha- iing of wives is univerfal among the wild Arabs, When the bargain is concluded, the bridegroom is permitted to vifit the bride : if me anfwer not his expectations, he may turn her off; but has no claim for the price he paid. In Arabia, fays Niebuhr, a young married woman fufpeded of not being a virgin, is fent back to her father, who muft reftore the price that was paid for her. The inland Ne- groes are more polilhed than thofe on the coafl ; and there is fcarce any remains among them of purchafing wives : the bridegroom makes prefents to his bride, and her father makes prefents to him. There are remaining traces in Ruflia of purchafing wives. Even fo late as the time of Peter I. Ruf- iians married without feeing each other ; and be- fore
S'K. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 43!
fore folemnization, the bride received from the bridegroom a prefent of fweatmeats, foap, and other little things.
The purchafing of wives made it a lawful prac- tice, to lend a wife as one does a Have. The Spar- tans lent thei* wives to their friends ; and Cato the elder is faid to have done the fame. The Indians of Calicut frequently exchange wives.
If brutifh manners alone be fufficient to degrade the female fex, they may reckon upon harm treat- ment when purchafed to be Haves. The Giagas, a fierce and wandering nation in the central parts of Africa, being fupinely idle at home, fubjecl: their wives and their Haves to every fort of drudgery, fuch as digging, fowing, reaping, cutting wood, grinding corn, fetching water, &c. Thefe poor creatures are fuffered to toil in the fields and -woods, ready to faint with exceffive labour ; while the monfters of men will not give themfelves the trouble even of training animals for work, though they have the example of the Portuguefe before their eyes. It is the bufinefs of the women among the wandering Arabs of Africa, to card, fpin, and weave, and to manage other houfehold affairs. They milk the cattle, grind, bake, brew, drefs the victuals, and bring home wood and water. They even take care of their hufband's horfes, feed, cur- ry, comb, bridle, and faddle them. They would alfo be obliged, like Moorim wives, to dig, fow, and reap their corn; but luckily for them the
D d 3 Arabs
432 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
Arabs live entirely upon plunder. Father Jofeph Gumilla, in his account of a country in South America, bordering upon the great river Oroono- ko, defcribes pathetically the miferable flavery of married women there ; and mentions a practice, that would appear incredible to one -unacquainted with that country, which is, that married women frequently deftroy their female infants. A mar- ried woman, of a virtuous character and good un- derftanding, having been guilty of that crime, was reproached by our author in bitter terms. She heard him patiently with eyes fixed on the ground ; and anfwered as follows : " I wim to God, Fa- " ther, I wim to God, that my mother had by my " death prevented the manifold diftreffes I have " endured, and have yet to endure as long as I live. " Had me kindly ftifled me at birth, I had not felt " the pain of death, nor numberlefs other pains that " life hath fubjected me to. Confider, Father, our deplorable condition. Our hulbands go to hunt with their bows and arrows, and trouble them- felves no farther. We are dragged along, with one " infant at the bread, and another in a bafket, f1 They return in the evening without any burden^ " we return with the burden of our children ; and, " though tired with a long march, are not per- " mitted to fleep, but muil labour the whole " night, in grinding maize to make chica for " them. They get drunk, and in their drunken- " nefs beat us, draw us by the hair of the head,
" and
u It ft
(6 it
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 433
" and tread us under foot. And what have we to " comfort us for flavery that has no end ? A young " wife is brought in upon us, who is permitted to " abufe us and our children, becaufe we are no " longer regarded. Can human nature endure " fuch tyranny ! What kindnefs can we fhow to our female children equal to that of relieving them from fuch oppreffion, more bitter a thou- " fand times than death ? I fay again, would to " God that my mother had put me under ground " the moment I was born." One would readily imagine, that the women of that country fhould have the greatefl abhorrence at matrimony : but all-prevailing nature determines the contrary ; and the appetite for matrimony overbalances every ra- tional confideration.
Nations polifh by degrees ; and, from the loweft ftate to which a human creature can be reduced, women were reftored to their native dignity. At- tention to drefs is the firft fymptom of the progrefs. Male favages, even of the grofTeft kind, are fond of drefs. Charlevoix mentions a young American hired as a rower, who adjufted his drefs with care before he entered the boat ; and at intervals infpedled his looking-glafs, to fee whether vio- lence of motion had not difcompofed the red upon his cheeks. We read not of paffion for drefs in females of fuch favage nations : they are too much difpirited to think of being agreeable. Among nations in any degree humanized, a different fcene
JP d 4 opens.
434 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
opens. In the ifthmus of Darien, government has made fome progrefs, and a chieftain is eledled for life : a glimmering of civility appears among the inhabitants ; and as fome regard is paid to women, they rival the men in drefs. Both fexes wear rings in their ea»s and nofes ; and are adorned with many rows of fhells hanging from the neck. A female in a fultry climate fubmits to fry all day long, under a load of twenty or thirty pounds of {hells ; ai.d a male under double that load. Well may they exclaim with Alexander, " Oh Athe- " nians ! what do I not endure to gain your ap- " probation !r The female Caribbeans and Brali- lians, are no lefs fond of ornament than the males. Hottentot ladies ftrive to outdo each other in a- dorning their croffes, and the bag that holds their pipe and tobacco : European ladies are not more vain of their filks and embroideries. Women in Lapland are much addi&ed to finery. They wear broad girdles, upon which hang chains and rings without end, commonly made of tin, fometimes of lilver, weighing perhaps twenty pounds. The Greenlanders are nafty and flovenly, eat with their dogs, make food of the vermin that make food of them, feldom or never wafh themfelves ; and yet the women, who make fome figure among the men, are gaudy in their drefs. Their cheif ornaments are pendants at. their ears, with glafs beads of va- rious colours ; and they draw lines' with a needle and black thread between their eyes, crofs the fore- head,
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 435
head, upon the chin, hands, and legs. The Ne- groes of the kingdom of Ardrah in Guinea have made a confiderable progrefs in police, and in the art of living. Their women carry drefs and finery to an extravagance. They are cloathed with loads of the fineft fatins and chintzes, and are adorned with a profuiion of gold. In a fultry climate, they gratify vanity at the expence of eafe. Among the inland Negroes, who are more polifhed than thofe on the fea-coaft, the women, befide domeftic con- cerns, fow, plant, and reap. A man however fuf- fers in the efteem of his neighbours, if he permit his wives to toil like flaves, while he is indulging in eafe.
From that aufpicious commencement, the female fex have rifen, in a flow but fteady progrefs, to higher and higher degrees of eftimation. Con- verfation is their talent, and a difplay of delicate fentiments : the gentlenefs of their manners and winning behaviour, captivate every fenfible heart. Of fuch refinements, favages have little conception : but, when the more delicate fenfes are unfolded, the peculiar beauties of the female fex, internal as well as external, are brought into full ligjit ; and women, formerly coniulered as .qbjedts of animal love merely, are now valued as faithful friends and a- greeable companions. Matrimony afiumes a more decent form, being the union, not of a matter and flave, but of two perfons equal in rank uniting to form a family. And it contributed greatly to this
delicious
436 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
delicious refinement, that in temperate climes a- nimal love is moderate, and women long retain good looks, and power of procreation. Thus marriage became honourable among poliftied nations : which banifhed the barbarous cuftom of purchaiing wives ; for a man who wifhes to have his daughter advantageoufly matched, will gladly give a dowry with her.
Polygamy is intimately connected with the cuf- tom of purchaiing wives. There is no limitation in purchaiing Haves : nor has a woman purchafed as a wife or a Have, any juft caufe for complain- ing that others are purchafed as fhe was : on the contrary, addition of hands for performing the fervile offices of the family, is fome relief to her. Polygamy accordingly has always been permitted, where men pay for their wives. The Jews purchafed their wives, and were indul- ged in polygamy #. Diodorus Siculus fays, that polygamy was permitted in Egypt, except to prieftsf. This probably was the cafe originally ; but when the Egyptian manners came to be po- lifhed, a man gave a dowry with his daughter, in- ftead of receiving a price for her ; witnefs Solo- mon, who got the city of Gazer in dowry with the King of Egypt's daughter. When that cuftom became univerfal, we may be certain that it put an end to polygamy. And accordingly Herodotus affirms, that polygamy was prohibited in Egypt J.
Polygamy
* Leviticus, xviii. 18. f Lib. i. J Lib. 2. § 92.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 437
Polygamy undoubtedly prevailed in Greece and Rome, while it was cuftomary to purchafe wives ; but improved manners put an end to the latter, and confequently to the former. Polygamy, to this day, obtains in the cold country of Kamikat- ka, and in the ftill colder country round Hudfon's Bay. In the land of Jeflb, near Japan, a man may have two wives, who perform every fort of domef- tic drudgery. The Negroes, in general, purchafe their wives, and indulge in polygamy : and this is alfo law in Monomotapa. Polygamy, and the purchafing wives, were cuftomary among the ori- ginal inhabitants of the Canary Iflands, and among the people of Chili. ,
The low condition of women among barbarians, introduced the purchafing them for wives, and confequently polygamy. The juft refpect paid to them among civilized nations, reftored the law of nature, and confined a man to one wife. Their equality as to rank and dignity, bars the man from taking another wife, as it bars the woman from taking another hufband. We find traces in ancient hiftory of polygamy wearing out gradual- ly. It wore out in Greece as manners refined ; but fuch was the influence of long habit, that though a man was confined to one wife, he was indulged in concubines without limitation. In Germany, when Tacitus wrote, very few traces re- jnained of polygamy. 4< Severa iilic matrimonia,
" ne^c
ti (I tc. tt
43$ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi, I.
" nec ullam morum partem magis laudaveris : nam prope foli barbarorum fingulis uxoribus content! funt, exceptis admodum paucis, qui non libidine, fed ob nobilitatem, plurimis nup- tiis ambiuntur *.v As polygamy was in that country little praclifed, we may be certain the purchafing wives did not remain in vigour. And Tacitus accordingly, mentioning the general rule, " dotem non uxor marito, fed uxori maritus of- " fertf," explains it away by obferving, that the only dos given by the bridegroom were marriage- prefents, and that he at the fame time received marriage-prefents on the bride's part f. The equality of the matrimonial engagement for the mutual benefit of hufband and wife, was well un- derftood among the Gauls. Caefar fays, " Viri " quantas pecunias ab uxoribus dotis nomine ac- " ceperunt, tantas ex fuis bonis, aeftimatione facia, cum dotibus communicant. Hujus omnis pe- cuniar conjundlim ratio habetur, frudtusque fer- ** vantur. Uter eorum vita fuperarit, ad eum pars " utriufque cum fruclibus fuperiorum temper um
" pervenit.';
* " Marriage is there rigidly refpecled ; nor is there any " part of their morality more laudable : for they are almoft " the only race of barbarians who are contented with a fmgle " wife ; a very few excepted, who, not from incontinency, but tc from an ambition of nobility, take more wives than one."
•f te The hufband gives a dowry to the wife, but the wife *' brings none to the hufband."
De moribus Germanorum, cap. 18.
it
tt
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 439
" pervenit *." In Japan, and in Nicaragua, a man can have but one wife ; but he may have many concubines. In Siam, polygamy is Hill per- mitted, though the bride brings a dowry with her : but that abfurdity is corrected by refined manners ; it being held improper, and even dif- graceful, to have more than one wife. The pur- chaling wives wore out of falhion among the an- cient Tufcans ; for it was held infamous, that mar- riage fhould be the refult of any motive but mu- tual love. This at the fame time put an end to polygamy. Polygamy was probably early eradi- cated among the ancient Periians ; for the bride's dowry was fettled in marriage-articles, as among us. And there is the fame reafon for prefuming, that it was not long permitted in Mexico ; mar- riage there being folemnized by the prieft, and the bride's dower fpecified, which was reftored in cafe of feparation. In the countries where the Chriftian religion was firft propagated, women were fail advancing to an equality with the men, and polygamy was wearing out of fafhion. The pure fpirit of the Gofpel battened its extinction ; and, though not prohibited exprefsly, it was how- ever
* " Whatever fum the hufband has received as his wife's 41 -portion, he joins as much of his own effects. An account « is kept of this joint flock, and the fruits of it are preferred. " Upon the death of either, the furviving fpoufe has the pro- « perty of both fhares, with the fruits or profits." — Lib. 6. cap. 19. De bello Gallico.
44^ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ever held, that Chriftianity is a religion too pure for polygamy.
But, as hinted above, it was by flow degrees that the female fex emerged out of flavery, to pof- fefs the elevated (lation they are entitled to by nature. The practice of expofing infants among the Greeks and many other nations, is an invin- cible proof of their depreflion, even after the cu- ftom ceafed of purchafing them. It is wifely order- ed by Providence, that the affection of a woman to her children commences with their birth ; becaufe, during infancy, all depends on her care. As du- ring that period, the father is of little ufe to his child, his affection is but flight, till the child be- gin to prattle and mew fome fondnefs for him, The expofing an infant therefore fhewi, that the mother was little regarded : if (he had been al- lowed a vote, the practice never would have ob- tained in any country. In the firft book of the Iliad, Achilles fays to Agamemnon, who threaten- ed to force from him his miftrefs Brifeis, " An- " other thing I will tell thee : record it in thy " foul. For a woman thefe hands mail never " fight, with thee nor with thy foes. Come, feize *' Brifeis : ye Argives, take the prize ye gave. " But beware of otfrer fpoil, which lies flowed in " my Ihips on the more. I will not be plundered " farther. If other be thy thoughts, Atrides, " come in arms, a trial make : thefe very flaves of " thine mail behold thy blood pouring around
" my
V
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 44!
" myfpear*." The comedies of Menander, Phi- lemon, and Diphilus, are loft ; but manners muft have been little polifhed in their time, as far as can be conjectured from their tranflators or imi- tators, Plautus and Terence. Married women in their comedies are fometimes introduced and treat- ed with very little refpedl. A man commonly vents his wrath on his wife, and fcolds her as the caufe of the mifcondu6l of their children. A lady, perhaps too inquifitive about her hufband's amours, is addreffed by him in the following words :
" Ni mala, ni ftulta fis, ni indomita imposque anim?, " Quod viro efle odio videas, tute tibi odia habeas.
" Prster
* Pope difguifes that fentiment as follows :
*'* Seize on Brifeis, whom the Grecians doom'd
" My prize of war, yet tamely fee refumed ;
" And feize fecure ; no more Achilles draws
" His conquering fword in any woman's caufe.
" The gods command me to forgive the paft j
" But let this firft invafion be the laft :
" For know, thy blood, when next thou dar'ft invade,
" Shall flream in vengeance on my reeking blade."
*v
Such contempt of the female fex as exprefled by Achilles was perhaps thought too grofs for a modern ear. But did not Pope difcover, that one capital beauty in Homer, is the deli- neation of ancient manners ? At that rate, had it fallen to his {hare to defcribe Julius Caefar, he would have drefTed him like a modem beau. And why not ? for in a genteel aflembly, what a favage would he appear, without breeches, aad with-, out linen !
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
" Praeter hac fi mihi tale poft hunc diem " Faxis, faxo foris vidua vifas patrem *."
So little formerly were women regarded in Eng- land, that the benefit of clergy was not extended to them, till the days of William and Mary, when an acl of parliament was made, bellowing that privilege on them.
One will not be furprifed that women in Greece were treated with no great refpecl: by their huf- bands. A woman cannot have much attraction who pafles all her time in folitude : to be admired, {he mufl receive the polifh of fociety. At the fame time, men of fafhion were fo much improved in manners, as to relifh fociety with agreeable wo- men, where fuch could be found. And hence the
i
figure that courtezans made at that period, efpe- cially in Athens. They ftudied the temper and taile of the men, and endeavoured to gain their af- fe&ion, by every winning art. The daily conver-
fations they liftened to, on philofophy, politics,
\
poetry, enlightened their underftanding, and im- proved their taile. Their houfes became agreeable fchools, where every one might be inftru6led in his
owrv
* " Would you be held a wife and virtuous fpoufe, *' And of difcretion due, obferve this counfel : "Whatever I, your lord, blame or approve, " Still let your praife or cenfure be the fame.
«* But harkee, be this reprimand the laft :
" If you again offend, no more a wife
" Within thefe walls j — your father has you back."
3KL. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 443
own art. Socrates and Pericles met frequently at the houfe of Afpafia : from her they acquired de- licacy of tafte, and, in return, procured to her pu- blic refpecT: and reputation. Greece at that time was governed by orators, over whom fome cele- brated courtezans had great influence ; and by that means entered deep into the government. It was faid of the famous Demofthenes, " The meafure " he hath meditated on for a year, will be over- " turned in a day by a woman." It appears ac- ^ordingly from Plautus and Terence, that Athe- nian courtezans lived in great fplendor. See in particular Heautontimoroumenos, Ac~l 3. Scene 2.
I proceed to the other caufe of polygamy, viz. opulence in a hot climate. Men there have a burn- ing appetite for animal enjoyment ; and women become old, and lofe the prolific quality, at an age which carries them little beyond the prime of life in a temperate climate. Thefe circumftances difpofe men of opulence to purchale their wives, triat they may not be confined to one ; and purchafe they muft ; for no man, without a valuable con- iideration, will furrender his daughter, to be one of many who are deftined to gratify the carnal ap- petite of a Jingle man. The numerous wives and concubines in Aiiatic harems, are all of them pur- chafed with money. In the hot climate of Hin- cjoftan polygamy is univerfal, and men buy theij? wives. The fame obtains in China : After the price is adjufted and paid, the bride is conducted VOL. I. E e to
444 MEN INDEPENDENT OT SOCIETY. [B. I,
to the bridegroom's houfe, locked in a fedan, and the key delivered to him : If he be not fatisfied with his bargain, he fends her back, at the expence of lofing the fum he paid for her : If fatisfied, he feafts his male friends in one room, and me her female friends in another. A man who has little fubftance takes a wife for his fon from an hofpital, which faves him a dowry.
It has been pleaded for polygamy in warm cli- mates, that women are fit for being married at or before the age of ten ; that they are pail child- bearing at twenty-five, while men are yet in the prime of life ; and therefore that a fecond wife ought to be permitted who can bear children. Are women then created for no other purpofe but pro- creation merely, to be laid afide as ufelefs animals when they ceafe to bear children ? In the hotter! climates, a woman may be the mother of ten or twelve children ', and are not both parents ufefully employed, in rearing fuch a number, and fitting them to do for themfelves ? After this important talk is performed, is not the woman well entitled, for the remainder of life, to enjoy the conjugal fociety of a man, to whom me dedicated the flower of her youth ? But, even attending to the male fex only, without paying any regard to the other' fex, it ought to be confidered, that a man, by ta- king a fecond wife, prevents fome other man from having any. The argument for polygamy would indeed be conclufive, were ten females born for
one
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 445
one male, as is erroneoufly faid to be the cafe in Bantam : But, as an equality of males and females is the invariable rule of Nature, the argument has no force. All men are born equal by Nature ; and to permit polygamy in any degree, is to au- thorife fome to ufurp the privilege of others.
Thus, in hot climates, women remain in the fame humble and dependent ftate, in which all women were originally, when all men were favages. As polygamy is a forced ftate, contradictory to nature, locks and bars are the only fure means for reftrain- ing a number of women confined to one hufband. When the King of Perfia, with his wives, removes from Ifpachan to any of his villas, the hour of his departure, and the ftreet through which he is to pafs, are proclaimed three days before, in order that every man may keep out of the way. Wo- men, by the law of Hindoflan, are not admitted to be witnefTes, even in a civil caufe ; and I blulh to acknowledge, that, in Scotland, the fame law has not been long in difufc.
In contradiction to the climate, Chriilianity has banifhed polygamy from Ethiopia, though the judges arc far from being fevere upon that crime. The heat of the climate makes them wifh to*in- dulge in a plurality of wives, even at the expence of purchafing each of them. Among the Chri- ftians of Congo, polygamy is in ufe, as formerly when they were Pagans. To be confined to one wife during life, is held by the nioft zealous Chri-
E e 2 flians
44^ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
ftians there, to be altogether irrational : Rather than be fo confined, they would renounce Ghriftia- nity.
Belide polygamy, many other cuftoms depend on the nature of the matrimonial engagement, and vary according to its different kinds. Marriage- ceremonies, for that reafon, vary in different coun- tries, and at different times, Where the pradlice is to purchafe a wife, whether among favages or among pampered people in hot climates, pay- ment of the price completes the marriage without any other ceremony. Other ceremonies, however, are fometimes practifed. In old Rome, the bride was attended to the bridegroonVs houfe with a fe^ male Have carrying a dillaff and a fpindle, import- ing that fhe ought to fpin for the family. Among the favages of Canada, and of the neighbouring countries, a flrap, a kettle, and a faggot, are put in the bride's cabin, as fymbols of her duty, viz. to carry burdens, to drefs victuals, and to provide wood. On the other hand, the bride, in token of her flavery, takes her axe, cuts wood, bundles it up, and lays it before the dpor of the bridegroom's hut. All the falutation fhe receives is, " It is time *' to go to reft.' - The inhabitants of Sierra Leona, a negro country, have in all their towns a board- ing-fchool, Xvhere young ladies are educated for a year, under the cafe of a venerable old gentleman. When their education i? completed, they are car- ried in their beft attire to a public affembly ; which
may
SK. 6\] FEMALE SEX. 447
may be termed a matrimonial market, becaufe there young men convene to make a choice. Thofe who fit themfelves to their fancy, pay the dowry ; and, over and above, gratify the old fuperinten- dant for his extraordinary care in educating the bride. In the ifland of Java, the bride, in token of fubjeclion, wafhes the bridegroom's feet ; and this is a capital ceremony. In Ruffia, the bride prefents to the bridegroom a bundle of rods, to be ufed againft her when Ihe deferves to be chaflifed ; and at the fame time me pulls off his boots. The prefent Emprefs, intent upon reforming the rude manners of her fubje&s, has difcountenanced that ceremony among people of fafhion. Very diffe- rent were the manners of Peru, before the Spanifh conqueit. The bridegroom carried fhoes to the bride, and put them on with his own hands. But there, purchafing of wives was unknown. Mar- riage-ceremonies in Lapland are directed by the fame principle. It is the cuftom there for a man to make prefents to his children of rain-deer ; and young women, fuch as have a large llock of thefe animals, have lovers in plenty. A young man looks for fuch a wife, at a fair, or at a meeting for paying taxes. He carries to the houfe of the young woman's parents, fome of his relations ; being felicitous in particular to have an eloquent fpeaker. They are all admitted except the lover, who muft wait till he be called in. After drink- ing fome fpirits, brought along for the purpofe,
E'e 3 the
448 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. ['B. I.
the fpokefman addreffes the father in humble terms, bowing the knee, as if he were introduced to a prince. He flyles him, the worlhipful father, the high and mighty father, the bed and moft illuf- trious father, &-c. &c.
In viewing the chain of caufes and effects, in- ftances fometimes occur of bizarre facts, Ilarting from the 'chain without any caufe that can be dif- covered. The marriage-ceremonies among the Hot- tentots are of that nature. After all matters are adjufted among the old people, the young couple are fliut up by themfelves ; and pafs the night in ftruggling for fuperiority, which proves a very fe- rious work where the bride is reluctant. If me perfevere to the laft without yielding, the young man is difcarded ; but, if he prevail, which com- monly happens, the marriage is completed by ano- ther ceremony, no lefs lingular. The men and women fquat on the ground in different circles; the bridegroom in the centre of one, and the bride in the centre of another. The Suri, or mailer of religious ceremonies, piffes on the bridegroom ; Who receives the ftream with eagernefs, and rubs it into the furrows of the fat with which he is co- vered. He performs the fame ceremony on the bride, who is equally refpectful. The ceremonies of marriage among the prefent Greeks are no lefs bizarre. Among other particulars, the bridegroom and bride walk three rounds ; during which they are kicked and cuffed heartily. Our author Tour-
\
nefort
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 449
nefort adds, that he only and his companions for- bore to join in the ceremony ; which was af- cribed to their rufticity and ignorance of polite manners. Marriage- ceremonies among the Kam- ikatkans are extremely whimfical. A young man, after making his propofals, enters into the fervice of his intended father-in-law. If he prove agree- able, he is admitted to the trial of the* touch. The young woman is Twaddled up in leathern thongs ; and in that condition is put under the guard of fome old women. Watching every opportu- nity of a flack guard, he endeavours to uncafe her, in order to touch what is always the moft concealed. The bride muft refill, in appearance at leaft ; and therefore cries out for her guards ; who fall with fury on the bridegroom, tear his hair, fcratch his face, and act in violent oppofition. The attempts of the lover prove fometimes unfuc- cefsful for months ; but the moment the touch is atchieved, the bride teftifies her fatisfadion, by pronouncing the words Ni, Ni, with a foft arid lo- ving voice. The next night they bed together without any oppofition. One marriage-ceremony among the inland Negroes, is fingular. As foon as preliminaries are adjufted, the bridegroom, with a number of his companions, fet out at night, and furround the houfe of the bride, as if intending to carry her off by force. She and her female at- tendants, pretending to make all poffible refiftance, cry aloud for help, but no perfon appears. This
E e 4 refembles
45^ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [#. i,
refembles flrongly a marriage-ceremony that is or was cuftomary in Wales. On the morning of the wedding-day, the bridegroom, accompanied with his friends on horfeback, demands the bride. Her friends, who are likewife on horfeback, give a poiitive refufal, upon which a mock fcufHe enfues. The bride, mounted behind her neareft kinfman, is carried off, and is purfued by the bridegroom and his friends, with loud fhouts* It is not uncommon on fuch an occalion to fee two or three hundred ilurdy Cambro-Britains riding at full fpeed, crofT- ing and joflling, to the no fmall amufement of the fpe&ators. When they have fatigued themfelves and their horfes, the bridegroom is fuffered to overtakejhis bride. He leads her away in triumph, and the fcene is concluded with feafting and fefti- vity. The fame marriage-ceremony was ufual in Mufcovy, Lithuania, and Livonia, as reported by Olaus Magnus *.
Divorce alfo depends on the nature of the matri- monial engagement. Where the law is, that a man muft purchafe his wife as one does a Have, it follows naturally, that he may purchafe as many as he can pay for, and that he may turn them off at his pleafure. This law is univerfal, without a lingle exception. The Jews, who purchafed their wives, were privileged to divorce them, without being obliged to affign a caufe f . The Negroes
purchafe * Lib. 14. cap. 9.
Deuteronomy, chap. 24.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 45*
purchafe their wives, and turn them off when they think proper. The fame law obtains in China, ia Monomotapa, in the ifthmus of Darien, in Caribe- ana, and even in the cold country round Hudfon's Bay. All the favages of South America who live near the Oroonoko, purchafe as many wives as they can maintain ; and divorce them without ceremony.
Very different is a matrimonial engagement be- tween equals, where a dowry is contracted with the bride. The nature of the engagement implies, that neither of them mould difmifs the other, with- out a juft caufe. In Mexico, Where the bride brought a dowry, there could be no divorce but by mutual confent. In Lapland, the women who have a flock of rain-deer, as above mentioned, make a confiderable figure. This lays a foundation for a matrimonial covenant as among us, which bars polygamy, and confequently divorce, without a juft caufe. And, when thefe are tarred in feveral in- flances, the prohibition in time becomes general.
I proceed to adultery, the criminality of which depends alfo in fome meafure on the nature of the matrimonial engagement. Where wives are pur- chafed, and polygamy is indulged, adultery can fcarce be reckoned a crime in the hufband ; and, where there are a plurality of wives, found fenfe makes it but a venial crime in any of them. But, as men are the lawgivers, the punifhment of female adultery, where polygamy takes place, is generally
. too
45^ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
too fevere. It is, however, more or lefs fevere in different countries, in proportion as the men are more or lefs prone to revenge. The Chinefe are a mild people, and depend more on locks and bars for preventing adultery, than on feverity ; the punifhment being only to fell an adulterefs for a Have. The fame law obtains in the kingdom of Laos, bordering upon China. An adulterefs among the ancient Egyptians was puniihed with the lofs of her nofe. In ancient Greece, a pecuniary pe- nalty was inflidted on an adulterer*. An adul- terefs was probably punifhed more feverely. Among the Negroes, who have very little delicacy, adul- tery is but flightly punifhed ; except in the king- dom of Benin. There, an adulterefs, after a fevere
t • .- -
whipping, is banimed ; and the adulterer forfeits his goods, which are beflowed on the injured huf- band. Among the ancient Germans, a grave and virtuous people, adultery was rare. An adulterefs was deprived of her hair, expelled from her huf- band's houfe, and whipped through the village f . In Japan, where the people are remarkably fierce, female adultery is always puniihed with death. In Tonquin, a woman guilty of adultery is thrown to an elephant to be deftroyed. By the law of Mofes, an adulterefs is punifhed with death, as alfo the adulterer J. Margaret of Burgundy, Queen
to
* OdyfTey, b. 8. 1. 384.
-4i
f Tacitus, De moribus Germanorum, cap. 19. J Leviticus, xx. 10.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 453
to Lewis Hutin King of France, was hanged for adultery ; and her lovers were fleaed alive. Such were the favage manners of thofe times. There is an old law in Wales, that, for defiling the Prince's bed, the offender muft pay a rod of pure gold, of the thicknefs of the finger of a ploughman who has ploughed nine years, and in length from the ground to the Prince's mouth when fitting.
Matrimony between a fingle pair, for mutual comfort, and for procreating children, implies the flriftefi mutual fidelity. Adultery, however, is a deeper crime in the wife than in the hufband : in him it may happen occafionally, with little or no alienation of affection ; but the fuperior modefly of the female fex is fuch, that a wife does not yield, till unlawful love prevails, not only over modelty, but over duty to her hufband. Adultery, there- fore, in the wife, is a breach of the matrimonial engagement in a double refpeft : it is an alienation of affection from the hufband, which unqualifies her to be his friend and companion ; and it tends to bring a fpurious iffue into the family, betraying the hufband to maintain and educate children who are not his ov/n.
The gradual advance of the female fex to an equality with the male fex, is vifible in the laws of female fucceffion that have been eflablifhed at dif- ferent times, and in different countries. It is not probable that, in any country, women were early admitted to inherit land : they are too much de-
fpife4
454 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY'. [fi. iV
fpifed among favages, for fo valuable a privilege. The fiercenefs and brutality of the ancient Romans in particular unqualified the women to be their com- panions : it never entered their thoughts that wo- men mould inherit land, which they cannot defend by the fword. But women came to be regarded in proportion as the national manners refined. The law prohibiting female fucceflion in land, efta- blifhed in days of rufticity, was held to be rigo- rous and tinjuft when the Romans were more po- lifhed. Proprietors of land, fuch of them as had no fons, were difpofed to evade the law, by ample provifions to their daughters, which rendered the land of little value to the collateral heir-male. To reform that abufe, as termed by thofe who adhe- red to ancient cuftoms, the lex Voconia was made, confining fuch provifions within moderate bounds: and this regulation continued in force, till regard for the female fex broke through every legal re- ftraint, and eftablifhed female fucceflion in, land, as formerly in moveables *» The barbarous na- tions
* Juftinian, or more properly the lawyers employed by him upon that abfurd compilation the Pandefts, is guilty of a grofs error, in teaching, that, by the Twelve Tables, males and fe- males of the fame degree fucceeded equally to land. The lex Voconia (explained in Alexandri ab Alexandra geniales dies, lib. 6. cap. 15.) vouches the contrary. And one cannot fee, without pain, Juftinian's error, not only adopted by an illuftrious mo- dern, but a caufe affigned for it fo refined and fubtile, as to go4 quite out of fight, L'Efprit de Loixt tiv. 27. chap. I. I venture
to
SK. 6-] FEMALE SEX.- 455
tions who crufhed the Roman power, were not late in adopting the mild manners of the conquered : they admitted women to inherit land, and they exacted a double compofition for injuries done to them. By the Salic law among the Franks, wo- men were exprefsly prohibited to inherit land : but we learn from the forms of Marculfus, that this prohibition was in time eluded by the follow- ing folemnity. The man who wanted to put his daughter upon a footing with his fons, carried her before the commiffary, faying, '« My dear child, " an ancient and impious cuftom bars a young " woman from fucceeding to her father : but, as " all my children are equally given me by God, I " ought to love them equally ; therefore, my dear *' child, my will is, that my effects (hall divide f equally between you and your brethren." In polifhed dates, women are not excluded from fuc- ceeding even to the crown. Ruffia and Britain af- ford examples of women capable to govern, in an abfolute as well as in a limited monarchy*.
What
to affirm, that fubtile reafoning never had any influence upon a rough and illiterate people ; and therefore, at the time of the Decemvirs, who compofed the Twelve Tables of law, the fubtile caufe affigned by our author could not have been the motive, had the Decemvirs introduced female fucceffion in land, which they certainly did not.
* The kingdom of Gurrah, in Hindoftan, was governed by Queen Dargoutte, eminent for fpirit and beauty. Small as
that
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
What I have faid regards thofe nations only where polygamy is prohibited. I take it for grant- ed, that women are not admitted to inherit land where polygamy is lawful : they are not in fuch eilimation as to be entitled to a privilege fo illuf- trious.
Among the Hurons in North America, where the regal dignity is hereditary, and great regard paid to the royal family, the fuccefiion is continu- ed through females, in order to preferve the royal blood untainted. When the chief dies, his fon fucceeds not, but his fitter's fon ; who certainly is of the royal blood, whoever be the father : and, when the royal family is at an end, a chief is elected by the nobleft matron of the tribe. The
fame
that kingdom is, it contained about 70,000 towns and villages, the effect of long peace and profperity. Being invaded by Afaph Can, not many years ago, the Queen, mounted on an elephant, led her troops to battle. Her fon, Rajan Bier Shaw, being wounded in the heat of action, was by her orders car- ried from the field. That accident having occafioned a gene- ral panic, the Queen was left with but 300 horfemen. Ad- har, who conducted her elephant, exhorted her to retire while it could be done with fafety. The heroine rejected the advice. " It is true," faid fhe, " we are overcome in battle ; but not et in honour. Shall I, for a lingering ignominious life, lofe a " reputation that has been my chief ftudy ! Let your grati- 4< tude repay now the obligations you owe me : pull out your *{ dagger, and fave me from flavery, by putting an end to *' my life." The kingdom of Agonna in Guinea was go. by a Queen when Bofman wrote.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. A?«
fame rule of fuccefiion obtains among the Natches, a people bordering on the Mififfippi ; it being an article in their creed, That their royal family are children of the fun. On the fame belief was founded a law in Peru, appointing the heir of the crown to marry his fifter ; which, equally with the law mentioned, preferved the blood of the fun in the royal family, and did not incroach fo much upon the natural order of fuccefiion.
Female fucceflion depends in fome degree on the nature of the government. In Holland, all the children, male and female, fucceed equally. The Hollanders live by commerce, which women are capable of as well as men. Land at the fame time is fo fcanty in that country, as to render it impracticable to raife a family by engroffing a great eftate in land ; and there is nothing but the ambition of railing a family, that can move a man to prefer one of his children before the reft. The fame law obtains in Hamburgh, for the fame rea- fons. Exteniive eftates in land fupport great fa- milies in Britain, a circumftance unfavourable to younger children. But probably in London, and in other great trading towns, mercantile men pro- vide againft the law, by making a more equal diftribution of their effedls among their children.
After traverfing a great part of the globe with painful induftry, would not one be apt to con- clude, that originally females were every where fcjefoifed, as they are at prefent among the favages
45$ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
of America ; that wives, like flaves, were procu- red by barter ; that polygamy was univerfal ; and that divorce depended on the whim of the huf- band ? but no fort of reafoning is more fallible, than the drawing general conclufions from parti- cular facts. The northern nations of Europe, as appears from the foregoing (ketch, mud be ex- cepted from thefe conclufions. Among them, women were from the beginning courted and ho- noured, nor was polygamy ever known among {hern.
We proceed now to a capital article in the pro- grefs of the female fex ; which is, to trace the different degrees of reflFaint impofed upon mar- ried women in different countries, and at different times in the fame country ; and to affign the caufes of thefe differences. Where luxury is unknown, and where people have no wants but what are fuggefted by uncorrupted nature ; men and wo- men live together with great freedom, and with great innocence. In Greece anciently, even young women of rank miniftered to men in bathing.
" While thefe officious tend the rites divine,
'? T(ie laft fair branch of the Neftorian line,
" Sweet Polycafte, took the pleafant toifc
" To bathe the Prince, and pour the fragrant oil V
Men and women among the Spartans bathed pro- mi feu oufly, and wreftled together (lark naked.
Tacitus
* Odyfley, b. 3. See alfo b. 8. 1. 491.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 450
Tacitus reports, that the Germans had not even feparate beds, but lay promifcuoufly upon reeds or heath along the walls of the houfe. The fame cuftom prevails even at prefent among the tempe- rate Highlanders of Scotland ; and is not quite worn out in New England. A married woman is under no confinement, becaufe no man thinks of an a£t fo irregular as to attempt her chaftity. In the Caribbee iflands, adultery was unknown, tell European Chriftians made fettlements there. At the fame time, there fcarce can be any fuel for jealoufy, where men purchafe their wives, put them away at pleafure, and even lend them to a friend. But when, by ripening fenfibility, a man feels pleafure in his wife's attachment to him, jea- loufy commences ; jealoufy of a rival in her affec- tions. Jealoufy accordingly is a fymptorn tif in- creafing efteem for the female fex ; and that paf- lion is vifibly creeping in among the natives of Virginia. It begins to have a real foundation, when inequality of rank and of riches takes place. Men of opulence ftudy pleafure : married women become objedls of a corrupted tafte ; and often fall a facrifice, where morals are imperfedl, and the climate an incentive to animal love. Greece is a delicious country, the people handfome ; and when the ancient Greeks made the greateft figure, they were miferably defective in morals. They became jealous of rivals ; which prompted them, According to the rough manners of thofe times, to VOL. i, Ff exclude
460 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
exclude women from fociety with men. Their women accordingly were never feen in public ; and, if my memory ferve me, an accidental inter- view of a man and a woman on the public ftreet brings on the cataftrophe in a Greek tragedy. In Hecuba, a tragedy of Euripides, the Queen excu- fes herfelf for declining to vifit Polymeftor, faying, " that it is indecent for a woman to look a man " in the face." In the Eleclra of Sophocles, An- tigone is permitted by her mother Jocafta to take a view of the Argian army from a high tower : an old man who accompanies her, being alarmed at feeing fome females pafs that way, and afraid of cenfure, prays Antigone to retire ; " for," fays he, " women are prone to detraction ; and to " them the mereft trifle is a fruitful fubjecl of " converfation *," Spain is a country that fcarce yields to Greece in finenefs of climate \ and the morals of its people in the dark ages of Chriftiani- ty, were not more pure than thofe of Greece. By a law of the Viligoths in Spain, a furgeon was pro- hibited to take blood from a free woman, except in prefence of her hufband, or neareft relations.
By
* Women are not prone to detraction, unlefs when denied the comforts of fociety. The cenfure of Sophocles is proba- bly juft with refpecl: to his countrywomen, becaufe they were locked up. Old maids have the character with us of being prone to detraction ; but that holds not, unlefs they retire from fociety.
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 461
By the Salic law *, he who fqueezes the hand of a free woman fhall pay a fine of fifteen golden fhillings. In the fourteenth century, it was a rule in France, that no married woman ought to ad- mit a man to vifit her in abfence of her hufband. Female chaflity mud at that time have been ex- tremely feeble, when fo little truft was repofed in the fair fex.
To treat women in that manner, may poffibly be neceffary, where they are in requefl for no end but to gratify animal love. But, where they are intended for the more elevated purpofes of being friends and companions, as well as affectionate mothers, a very different treatment is proper. Locks and fpies will never anfwer ; for thefe tend to debafe their minds, to corrupt their morals, and to render them contemptible. By gradual open- ings in the more delicate fenfes, particularly in all the branches of the moral fenfe, chaftity, one of thefe branches, acquires a commanding influence over females ; and becomes their ruling principle. In that refined flate, women are trailed with their own conduct, and may fafely be t rafted : they make delicious companions, and uncorruptible friends ; and that fuch at prefent is generally their cafe in Britain, I am bold to affirm. Anne of Bri- tanny, wife to Charles VIII. and to Lewis XII. Kings of France, introduced the fafhion of ladies appearing publicly at court. This fathion was in-
Ffs troduced
* Tit. 22.
462 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B, I.
troduced much later in England : even down to the Revolution, women of rank never appeared in the ftreets without a mafk. In Scotland, the veil, or plaid, continued long in fafhion, with which every woman of rank was covered when fhe went abroad. That fafliion has not been laid aiide above forty years. In Italy, women were much longer confined than in France ; and in Spain, the indul- ging them with fome liberty is but creeping into fafhion. In Abyffinia, polygamy is prohibited ; and married women of fafliion have by cuftom obtained the privilege of vifiti'ng their friends, though not much with the good- will of many huf- bands.
It were to be wifhed, that a veil could be drawn over the following part of their hiflory. The growth of luxury and fenfuality, undermining eve- ry moral principle, renders both fexes equally dif- folute : wives in that cafe deferve to be again locked up ; but the time of fuch feverity is paft. In that cafe, indeed, it becomes indecent for the two fexes to bathe prom i feu oufly. Men in Rome, copying the Greeks, plunged together in the fame bath ; and in time men and women did the fame*. Hadrian prohibited that indecent cuftom. Mar- cus Antoninus renewed the prohibition ; and Alex- ander Severus, a fecond time : but to fo little pur- pofe, that even the primitive Chriflians made no
difficulty
* Plutarch, Life of Cato.
0K. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 463
i
difficulty to follow the cuftom : fuch appetite there is for being nudus cum nuda, when juftified by fa- Ihion. This cuftom withftood even the thunder of general councils ; and was not dropt till people became more decent.
In days of innocence, when chaftity is the ruling paffion of the female fex, we find great franknefs in external behaviour ; for women above fufpicion are little felicitous about appearances. At the fame period, and for the fame reafon, we find great loofenefs in writing ; witnefs the Queen of Na- varre's tales. In the capital of France, at prefent, chaftity, far from being practifed, is fcarce admit- ted to be a female virtue. But people^ who take much freedom in private, are extremely circum- fpect in public : no indecent expreffion nor infi- nuation is admitted, even into their plays or other writings. In England, the women are lefs cor- rupted than in France ; and for that reafon are not fo fcrupulous with refpect to decency in writing.
Hitherto of the female fex in temperate climes, where polygamy is prohibited. Very different is their condition in hot climes, which inflame ani- mal love in both fexes equally. In the hot re- gions of Afia, where polygamy is indulged, and wives are purchafed for gratifying the carnal ap- petite merely, it is vain to think of reftraining them otherwife than by locks and bars, after ha- ving once tailed enjoyment. Where polygamy is indulged, the body is the only object of jealoufy,
F f 3 not
464 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
X
not the mind, as there can be no mutual affe&ion between a man and his inftruments of fenfual plea- fure. And, if women be fo little virtuous as not to be fafely trufted with their own conduct, they ought to be locked up \ for there is no jufl medi- um between abfolute confinement and abfolute freedom. The Chinefe are fo jealous of their wives, as even to lock them up from their rela- tions ; and, fo great is their diffidence of the fe- male fex in general, that brothers and lifters are not permitted to converfe together. When wo- men go abroad, they are (hut up in a clofe fedan, into which no eye can penetrate. The intrigues carried on by the wives of the Chinefe Emperor, and the jealoufy that reigns among them, render them unhappy. But luckily, as women are little regarded where polygamy is indulged, their ambi- tion and intrigues give lefs difturbance to the go- vernment, than in the courts of European princes. The ladies of Hindoftan cover their heads with a gauze veil, even at home, which they lay not a- lide except in company of their neareft relations. A Hindoo buys his wife ; and the firft time he is permitted to fee her without a veil is after mar- riage, in his own houfe. In feveral hot countries, women are put under the guard of eunuchs, as an additional fecurity ; and black eunuchs are com- monly preferred for their uglinefs. But, as a wo- man, deprived of the fociety of men, is apt to be inflamed even with the appearance of a man, fome
jealous-
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 465
jealous nations, refining upon that circuraftance, employ old maids, termed duennas, for guarding their women. In the city of Moka, in Arabia Fe- lix, women of fafhion never appear on the ftreets in day-light ; but it is a proof of manners refined above thofe in neighbouring countries, that they are permitted to vifit one another in the evening* If they find men in their way, they draw afide to let them pals. A Fvench furgeon being called by one of the King of Yeman's chief officers, to cure a rheumatifm which had feized two of his wives, was permitted to handle the parts affected, but could not get a fight of their faces.
I proceed to examine more minutely the man- ners of women, as refulting from the degree of re- ilraint they are under in different countries. In the warm regions of Alia, where polygamy is in- dulged, the education of young women is extreme- ly loofe, being calculated for the fole end of ani- mal pleafure. They are accomplifhed in fuch graces and allurements as tend to inflame the fen- fual appetite : they are taught vocal and inftru- mental mufic, with various dances that cannot iland the tefl of decency : but no culture is be- ftowed on the mind, no moral inftru&ion, no im- provement of the rational faculties ; becaufe fuch education, which qualifies them for being virtuous companions to men of fenfe, would infpire them with abhorrence at the being made proftitutes. In a word, fo corrupted are they by vicious educa- tion,
466- MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. 1*
tion, as to be unfit objects of any deiire but what
1 /
is merely fenfual. The Afiatic ladies are not even trufled with the management of houfehold affairs, which would afford opportunities for infidelity. In Periia, fays Chardin, the ladies are not permit- ted, more than children, to choofe their own drefs : no lady, knows, in the morning, what gown fhe is to wear that day. The education of young wo- men in Hindoftan is lefs indecent. They are not taught mufic nor dancing, which are reckoned fit only for ladies of pleafure : they are taught all the graces of external behaviour ; particularly, to con- verfe with fpirit and elegance : they are taught al- fo to few, to embroider, and to drefs with tafte* Writing is negle&ed ; but they are taught to read, that they may have the confolation of ftudying the Alcoran j which they never open, nor would under- ftand if they did. Notwithstanding fuch care in educating Hindoftan ladies, their manners, by be- ing (hut up in a feraglio, become extremely loofe : the moft refined luxury of fenfe, joined with idle- nefsj or reading love-tales, ftill worfe than idlenefs, cannot fail to vitiate the minds of perfons deprived of liberty, and to prepare them for every fort of intemperance. The wives and concubines of gran- dees in Conftantinople are permitted fometimes to walk abroad for air and exercife. A foreigner {tumbling accidentally on a knot of them, about forty in number, attended with black eunuchs, was in the twinkling of an eye feized by a brilk girl,
with
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 467
with the reft at her heels : fhe accofted him with loofe amorous expreflions, attempting at the fame time to expofe his nakednefs. Neither threats nor intreaties availed him againft fuch vigorous afTail- ants ; nor could the vehemence of their curiolity be moderated, by reprefenting the fhame of a be- haviour fo grofsly immodeil. An old Janizary, (landing at a little diftance. was amazed : his Ma- hometan bafhfulnefs would not fuffer him to lay hands upon women ; but, with a Stentorian voice, he roared to the black eunuchs, that they were guardians of proftitutes, not of modeft women -? urging them to free the man from fuch harpies ;— All in vain*.
Very different are female manners in temperate climes, where polygamy is prohibited, and women are treated as rational beings. Thefe manners, however, depend in fome meafure on the nature of the government. As many hands are at once em- ployed in the different branches of republican go- vernment, and a ftill greater number by rotation ; the males, who have little time to fpare from pub- lic bufinefs, feel nothing of that languor and wea- rinefs, which to the idle make the moft frivolous amufemerits welcome. Married women live reti- red at home, managing family-affairs, as their huf- bands do thofe of the flate : whence it is, that fim- plicity of manners, is more the tone of a republic, than of any other government. Such were the
manners
* Obfervations on the religion, laws, &c. of the Turks.
468 MEN INDEPENDENT OF'sOClETY. [B. I.
manners of the female fex during the flourifhing periods of the Greek and Roman commonwealths ; and fuch are their manners in Switzerland and in Holland.
There will be occafion afterward, to difplay an important revolution in:- manners, refulting from chivalry*. One branch of it mud be handled at prefent, that which concerns the intercourfe be- tween the fexes. The Crufades were what firft gave a turn to the fierce manners of our anceftors. The combatants, fighting more for glory than for revenge or intereft, became eminent for magnani- mity and heroifm. After fo active a life abroad, they could not bear idlenefs at home, efpecially when there was fuch a demand for their prowefs. Europe had never been worfe governed than at that period : difleniion and difcord were univerfal ; and every chieftain bore deadly feud againft his neigh- bours. Revenge was the ruling paffion, which was licentioufly indulged, without the leaft regard to juftice. The heroes who had lignalized themfelves abroad, endeavoured to acquire fame at home : they entered into bonds of chivalry, for redreffing wrongs, and protecting widows and orphans. An object fo noble and humane, tempered courage with mildnefs, and magnanimity with courtefy. The protection given to widows and orphans improved benevolence ; ajid female beauty, which makes the deepeft impreflion on the benevolent, came to be
the
^
* Boook 2. Sketch 6.
SK. 6.] TEMALE SEX. 469
the capital object of protection. Each knight took under his peculiar care the beauty that inflamed him the mod ; and each knight was difpofed to elevate the goddefs of his heart above all rival beauties. In his heated imagination, fhe was per- fection without frailty, a paragon of nature. Emu- lation for the fame of a beloved object has no bounds, becaufe there is nothing felfifh in 4t : me is exalted into a fort of divinity : the lover def- cends to be a humble votary. And mark, that de- votion to a vifible deity always flames the higheft. This connection, which reverfes the order of na- ture, by elevating women far above men, produced an artificial fort of gallantry, that was carried to extravagance : the language of devotion became that of love, and all was bombaft and unnatural. Chaftity, however, was a gainer by this mode of love : it became neceflarily the ruling principle, to be preferved in purity without fpot or blemifh ; poiTeffion diflblves the charm ; for, after furren- dering all to a lover, a female cannot hope to maintain her angelic character a moment. Duke. John de Bourbonnois, anno 1414, caufed it to be proclaimed, that he intended an expedition to Eng- land with lixteeri knights, in order to combat the like number of Engliih knights, for glorifying the beautiful angel he worfhipped. Inftances of this kind, without number, Hand upon record. Rene", ftyled King of Sicily and Jerufakm, obferves, in writing upon tournaments, that they are highly
ufeful
47O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
ufeful in furniming opportunities to young knights and efquires to difplay their prowefs before their miftrefTes. He adds, " that every ceremony re- " garding tournaments is contrived to honour the " ladies. It belongs to them to infpeft the arms " of the combatants, and to diflribute the re- " wards. A knight or efquire who defames any " one of them, is beat and bruifed till the injured " lady condefcend to intercede for him." Remove
/
a female out of her proper fphere, and it is eafy to convert her into a male. James IV. of Scotland, in all tournaments, profeffed himfelf knight to Anne Queen of France. She fummoned him to prove himfelf her true and valorous champion, by taking the field in her defence againfl Henry VIII. of England. And, according to the romantic gal- lantry of that age, the Queen's fummons was thought to have been James's chief motive for declaring war againft his brother-in-law. The famous Gallon de Foix, general of the French at the battle of Ravenna, rode from rank to rank, calling by name feveral officers, and even private men, recommending to them their country and their honour ; adding, " that he would fee what " they would perform for love of their miftrefles.' During the civil wars in France, when love and gallantry were carried to a high pitch, Monfieur de Chatillon, ready to engage in a battle, tied
i
round his arm a garter of Mademoifelle de Guerchi his miftrefs. De Liques and d'Etrees were both
fuitors
,SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 47!
fuitors to Mademoifelle de Fouquerolles for mar- riage. De Liques prevailed, and the marriage- day was fixed. But that very day, he was taken prifoner by his rival in a battle anno 1525. The lady wrote a letter to d'Etrees, demanding her hufband ; and d'Etrees inflantly fent him to her without even demanding a ranfom #.
In peaceable times, the fovereign power having acquired more authority, the neceility of private protection ceafed. But the accuftomed fpirit of gallantry did not ceafe. It could not, however, fubfift for ever againfl nature and common fenfe : it fubfided by degrees into mutual affability and politenefs, fuch as ought always to obtain between the fexes. But obferve, that, after a mod inti- mate connection, matters could not fall back to the former decency and referve. The intimate connection remained ; and a more fubflantial gal- lantry took place, not always innocent. This change of manners was firft vilible in monarchy. Monarchy employs but a few hands ; and thofe who are not occupied in public affairs, find leifure for gallantry and for defires that are eafily grati- fied.
* We are indebted to Brantom for what follows. In the time of Francis I. of France, a young woman, having a talk*, ative lover, ordered him to be dumb. His obedience for two long years made all the world believe that he was funk in melaii- choly. One day, in a numerous aflembly, the young woman, who was not known to be his miftrefs, undertook to cure him, did it with a fingle word, Speak.
47^ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. ffi. I.
tied. Women of rank, on the other hand, laid open to corruption by opulence and fuperficial education, are more ambitious to captivate the eye than the judgment ; and are fonder of lovers than of friends. Where a man and a woman thus pre- pared meet together, they foon grow particular : the man is idle, the woman frank ; and both equal- ly addicted to pleafure. Unlawful commerce be- tween the fexes becoming thus common, high gal- lantry vanifhes of courfe : the bombaft ftyle ap- pears ridiculous, and the fenfual appetite is grati- fied with very little ceremony. Nothing of love remains but the name ; and, as animal enjoyment without love is a very low pleafure, it foon finks into difguft when confined to one object. What is not found in one, is fondly expected in another ; and the imagination, roving from object to object, finds no gratification but in variety. An attach- ment to a woman of virtue or of talents, appears abfurd : true love is laughed out of countenance -y and men degenerate into brutes. Women, on the other hand, regarding nothing but fenfual enjoy- ment, become fo carelefs of their infants, as even, xvithout blufhing, to employ mercenary nurfes *.
In
* " Les femmes d'un certain etat en France trouvent qu'elles per dent trop a faire des enfans, et £ caufe de cela meme, la plupart vivent celibataires, dans le fein meme du manage. Mais fi i'envie de fe voir perpetuer dans une branche de de- fcendans, les porte a fe conformer aux vceux de Phymen ; la
population,
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 473
In Perfia, it is a common practice among women of fafhion to ufe drugs that caufe abortion ; becaufe after pregnancy is advanced, the huiband attaches himfelf to other women, it being held indecent to touch a woman who is pregnant. Such a courfe of life cannot fail to fink them into contempt : marriages are difTolved as foon as contracted ; and the ftate is fruftrated of that improvement in mo- rals and manners, which is the never-failing pro- duel of virtuous love. A ftate enriched by con- queft or commerce, declines gradually into luxury and fenfual pleafure : manners are corrupted, de- cency baniflied, andchaftity becomes a mere name.
What
population, dans cette claffe, n'en eft pas plus avancee, pars que leur delicatefle rend inutile leur propagation ; car, parmi les femmes du premier et fecond rang en France, combien y en a t il, qui nouriiTent leprs enfans ? II feroit facile de les compter. Ce devoir indifpenfable de mere, a cefie chez nous d'en ctre un." Les Interefls de la France, vol. i. p. 234. — [/« Engll/Jo thus : " The women of a certain rank in France find " that they lofe too much by child-bearing ; and, for that " reafon, even though married, live in a ftate of celibacy. " But population is not advanced, even by thofe who, from a " defire of feeing themiVlves perpetuated in their defcendanu, '* conform to the purpofe of marriage ; for their delicacy " counterbalances their fertility. How few of the firft and " fecond rank of women in France fuckle their children ? " It would be eafy to count the number. This indifpenfable " duty of a mother has now ceafed to be one with us-"] — As iuch woful neglect of education is the fruit of voluptuouf- nefs, we may take it for granted, that the fame obtains in eve> ry opulent and luxurious capitaL
474 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I,
What a fcene of rank and diffolute pleafure is ex- hibited in the courts of Alexander's fuccefibrs, and in thofe of the Roman emperors !
Gratitude to my female readers, if I mall be ho- noured with any, prompts me to conclude this Iketch with a fcene, that may afford them inftruc- tion, and cannot fail of being agreeable ; which is, the figure a woman is fitted for making in the matrimonial flate, where polygamy is excluded. Matrimony among favages, having no object but propagation and flavery, is a very humbling ftate for the female fex : but delicate organization, great fenfibility, lively imagination, with fweet- nefs of temper above all, qualify women for a more dignified fociety with men ; which is, to be their companions and bofom-friends. In the common courfe of European education, young women are trained to make an agreeable figure, and to behave with decency and propriety : very little culture is beftowed on the head ; and flill lefs on the heart, if it be not the art of hiding paffion. Such educa- tion is far from feconding the purpofe of nature, that of making women fit companions for men of fenfe. Due cultivation of the female mind would add greatly to the happinefs of the males, and ftill more to that of the females. Time runs on; and when youth and beauty vanifh, a fine lady, who never entertained a thought into which an ad- mirer did not enter, furrenders herfelf now to di.f- content and peevifhnefs. A woman, on the con- trary,
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 475
trary, who has merit, improved by virtuous and refined education, retains in her decline an influ- ence over the men, more flattering than even that of beauty : me is the delight of her friends, as for- merly of her admirers.
Admirable would be the effe&s of fuch refined education, contributing no lefs to public good than to private happinefs. A man, who at prefent muft degrade himfelf into a fop or a coxcomb in order to pleafe the women, would loon difcover, that their favour is not to be gained but by exerting every manly talent in public and in private life ; and the two fexes, initead of corrupting each other, would be rivals in the race of virtue. Mutual efteem would be to each afchool of urbanity ; and mutual delire of pleafing, would give fmoothnefs to their behaviour, delicacy to their fentiments, and tendernefs to their paflions.
Married women in particular, deftined by nature to take the lead in educating children, would no longer be the greateft obftrudtion to good educa- tion, by their ignorance, frivolity, and diforderly manners. Even upon the bread, infants are fuf- ceptible of impreffions * , and the mother hath
opportunities
* May not a habit of cheerfulnefs be produced in an infant, by being trained up among cheerful people ? An agreeable temper is held to be a prime qualification in a nurfe. Such is the connection between the mind and body, as that the features of the face are commonly moulded into an expreffion
of VOL. I. G g
476 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY, [B. I.
opportunities without end of inftilling into them good principles, before they are fit for a male tutor. Coriolanus, who made a capital figure in the Ro- man republic, never returned from war without meriting marks of diftinclion. Others behaved valiantly, in order to acquire glory : he behaved valiantly, in order to give pleafure to his mother. The delight me took in hearing him praifed, and her weeping for joy in his embraces, made him in his own opinion the happiefl perfon in the univerfe, Epaminondas accounted it his greater! felicity, that his father and mother were ftill alive to behold his conduct, and enjoy his victory at Leuclra. In a Latin dialogue about the caufes that corrupted the Roman eloquence, injudicioufly afcribed to Taci- tus, becaufe obviouily it is not his ftyle, the method of education in Rome, while it ilourifhed as a com- monwealth, is defcribed in a lively manner. I mall endeavour to give the fenfe in Englilh, becaufe it chiefly concerns the fair fex. " In that age, chil- " dren were fuckled, not in the hut of a mercenary " nurfe, but by the chafte mother who bore them. " Their education during nonage was in her hands ;
" and
of the internal difpofition ; and is it not natural to think, that an infant in the womb may be affected by the temper of its mother ? Its tender parts make it fufceptible of the flighted Smpreffions When a woman is breeding, flie ought to be doubly careful of her temper ; and, in particular, to indulge no ideas but what are cheerful, and no fentiments but what are kindly.
«
4«
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 477
" and it was her chief care to inftil into them every virtuous principle. In her prefence, a loofe word or an improper adion, were ftricHy pro- hibited. She fuperintended, not only their fe- " rious ftudies, but even their amufements ; which " were conducted with decency and moderation. *' In that manner the Gracchi, educated by Cor- " nelia their mother, and Auguftus, by Attia his *' mother, appeared in public with untainted " minds ; fond of glory, and prepared to make a " figure in the world." In the expedition of the illuftrious Bertrand du Guefclin againft Peter the Cruel, King of Caftile, the governor of a town, fummoned to give it up, made the following an- fwer : " That they might be conquered, but would " never tamely yield ; that their fathers had taught " them to prefer a glorious death before a diflio- " nourable life ; and that their mothers had not " only educated them in thefe fentiments, but were " ready to put in practice the leiTons they had in- " culcated." During the civil wars in France be- tween the Catholics and Proteftants, Bari, governor of Leucate, having fallen by furprife into the hands of the Catholics, wrote from prifon to his fpoufe Conftance Cei.elli not to furrender even though they fhould threaten to put him to death. The be- liegers brought him within her light ; and threaten- ed to maflacre him if Ihe did not inftantly open the gates. She offered for his ranfom her children and all fhe had in the world — but that the town
G g 2 belonged
47$ MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
belonged to the King, and was not at her difpofal. Would one think it poffible, that any woman ever did exift fo brutal as to put her hufband to death ? Yet this was done in cold blood. Let the moft profound politician fay, what more efficacious in- centive there can be to virtue anci manhood, than the behaviour of the Spartan matrqns, flocking to the temples, and thanking the gods that their huf- bands and fons had died glorioufly, fighting for their country. In the war between Lacedemon and Thebes, the Lacedemonians paving behaved ill, the married men, as Plutarch reports, were fp afhamed'of themfelves, that they duril not look their wives in the face. What a glorious prize is here exhibited, to be contended for by the female fex!
By fuch refined education, love would take on a new form, that which nature infpires, for making us happy, and for fpftening the diilrefTes of chance : it would fill delicioufly the whole foul with tender amity, and mutual confidence. The union of a worthy man with a frivolous wpman, can never, with all the advantages of fortune, be made com- fortable : how different the union of a virtuous pair, who have no aim but to make each other happy ! Between fuch a pair emulation is rever- fed, by an ardent defire in each tP be furpafled fyy the other.
Roufleau, in his treatife of Education, affirms, that convents are no better than fchools of coquet- ry* « -•
SK. 6.] FEMALE SEX. 479
ry ; and that among Proteftants, women make bet- ter wives and more tender mothers than among Ro- man Catholics ; for which, fays he, no reafon can be given but convent-education, which is univer- fal among the latter. He then goes on in the fol- lowing words : " Pour aimer la vie paiiible et do- " meftique il faut la conn6itre ; il faut en avoir " fenti les douceurs dds 1'enfance. Ce n'eft que " dans la maifon paternelle qu'on prend du gout " pour fa propre maifon, et toute femme que fa " mere n'a point elevee n'aimera point elever fes " enfans. Malheureufement il n'y a plus d'edu- " cation privee" dans les grandes villes. La fociete ' y eft fi generale et li melee qu'il ne refte plus " d'alile pour la retraite, et qu'on eft en publique " jufques chez foi. A force de vivre avec tout le " monde en n'a plus de famille, a peine connoit- " on fes parens y on les voit en etrangers, et la " fimplicite' des moeurs domeftiques s'eteint avec " la douce familiarite qui en faifoit le charme. " C'eft ainli qu'on fuce avec le lait le gout des " plaiiirs du iiecle et des maximes qu'on y voit " regner." Rouffeau, Emile.
Cultivation of the female mind, is not of great importance in a republic, where men pafs little of their time with women. Such cultivation, where polygamy is indulged, would to them be a deep misfortune, by opening their eyes to their mifer- able condition. But in an opulent monarchy, where polygamy is prohibited, female education is
Ggs of
480 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETT. [B. I.
of high importance ; not fingly with refpect to private happinefs, but with refpect to the fociety in general.
APPENDIX.
CONCERNING PROPAGATION OF ANIMALS, AND
CARE OF PROGENY.
/
I
/
THE natural hiflory of animals, with refpect to pairing and care of progeny, is fufceptible of more elucidation, than could regularly be introdu- ced into the (ketch itfelf, where it makes but a fingle argument. Loth to quit a fubject that emi- nently difplays the wifdom and benevolence of Providence, I embrace the prefent opportunity, however flight, to add what further occurs upon it. M. Buffon, in many large volumes, beflows fcarce a thought on that favourite fubjecl: ; and the neglect of our countrymen Ray and Derham is flill lefs excufable, coniidering that to difplay the conduct of Providence was their fole purpofe in writing natural hiflory.
The inflinct of pairing is beflowed on every fpe- cies of animals to which it is neceflary for rearing their young ; and on no other fpecies. All wild birds pair : but with a remarkable difference be- tween
. 6. APP.] ANIMALS. 481
tween fuch as place their neils on trees, and fuch as place them on the ground. The young of the former, being hatched blind and without feathers, require the nurling care of both parents till they be able to fly. The male feeds his mate on the lieft, and cheers her with a fong. As foon as the young are hatched, tinging yields to a more necef- fary occupation, that of providing food for a nu- merous hTue, a tafk that requires both parents.
Eagles and other birds of prey build on trees, or on other places difficult of accefs. They not only pair, but continue in pairs all the year ; and the fame pair procreate together, year after year.
\
This at lead is the cafe. of eagles : the male and female hunt together ; and during incubation the female is fed by the male. A greater number than a fingle pair never are feen in company.
Gregarious birds pair, in order probably to pre- vent difcord, in a fociety confined to a narrow fpace. This is the cafe particularly of pigeons and rooks. The male and female fit on the eggs alternately, and divide the care of feeding their young. During incubation, the male raven is al- ways at hand to defend the female againil birds of prey. No fooner does a kite appear than he gets above it, and ftrikes it down with his bill.
Partridges, plovers, pheafants, fea-fowl, groufe, and other kinds that place their nefts on the ground, have the inftincl of pairing ; but differ from fuch as build on trees in the following particular, that
G g 4 after
482 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
after the female is impregnated, fhe completes her talk without needing any help from the male. Re- tiring from him, me chufes a fafe place for her neft, where fhe can find plenty of worms and grafs- feed at hand. And her young, as foon as hatched, take foot and feek food for themfelves. The only remaining duty incumbent on the dam is, to lead them to proper places for food, and to call them together when danger impends. Some males, provoked at the defertion of their mates, break the eggs if they happen to find them. If a Turkey hen die during hatching, the cock takes her place in the neft \ and after the young are hatched, he tends them as a hen does. Not only fo, but when the female is engaged with a new brood, the cock takes care of the former brood, leads them about for food, and acts in every refpecl as the female did before. Eider-ducks pair like other birds that place their nefts on the ground ; and the female finiihes her neft with down plucked from her own breaft. If the neft be deftroyed for the down, which is remarkably warm and elaftic, Ihe makes another neft as before. If Ihe be robbed a fecond time, fhe makes a third neft ; but the male fur- nifhes the down. A lady of fpirit obferved, that the Eider-duck may give a lefTon to many a mar- ried woman, who is more difpofed to pluck her hufband than herfelf. The black game never pair : in fpring the cock on an eminence crows,
and
SK. 6. APP.] ANIMALS. 483
and claps his wings; and all the females within hearing inftantly refort to him *.
Pairing birds, excepting thofe of prey, flock to- gether in February, in order to chufe their mates. They foon difperfe ; and are not feen afterwards but in pairs.
Pairing is unknown to quadrupeds that feed on grafs. To fuch it would be ufelefs ; as the fe- male gives fuck to her young while me herfelf is feeding. If M. Buffon deferve credit, the roe- deer are an exception. They pair, though they feed on grafs, and have but one litter in a year.
Beafts of prey, fuch as lions, tigers, wolves, pair not. The female is left to fhift for herfelf and for her young ; which is a laborious talk, and fre- quently fo unfuccefsful as to fhorten life. Pairing is eiTential to birds of prey, becaufe incubation leaves the female no fufficient time to fearch for food. Pairing is not neceflary to beads of prey, becaufe their young can bear a long fait. Add another reafon, that they would multiply fo faft by pairing, as to prove troublefome ^neighbours to the human race.
Among animals that pair not, males fight def- perately about a female. Such a battle among horned cattle is finely defcribed by Lucretius.
Nor
* A hen that had hatched feveral broods of ducklings, car- TJ^ed her own chickens to the water, thruft them in by force, and refted not till they were all drowned. Such is the force of cuftom, even againft nature.
484 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. i.
is it unufual, that feven or eight lions wage bloody war for a fingle female.
The fame reafon that makes pairing necefiary for gregarious birds, obtains with refpecl to gre- garious quadrupeds ; thofe efpecially who llore up food for winter, and during that feafon live in common. Difcord among fuch, would be attend- ed with worfe confequences than even among lions or bulls, who are not confined to one place. The beavers, with refpecl: to pairing, referable birds that place their nefls on the ground. As foon as the young are produced, the males aban- don their ftock of food to their mates, and live at large ; but return frequently to viiit them, while they are fuckling their young.
Hedge-hogs pair, and feveral of the monkey kind. We are not well acquainted with the na- tural hiftory of thefe animals ; but it may be pre- fumed that the young require the nurling care of both parents.
Seals have a fingular economy. Polygamy feems to be a law of nature among them, as a male affo- ciates with feveral females. The fea-turtle has no occafion to pair, as the female concludes her talk with laying her eggs in the fand. The young are batched by the fun ; and immediately crawl to the fea.
In every other branch of animal economy con- cerning the continuance of the fpecies, the hand of Providence is equally confpicuous. The young of
pairing
SK. 6. APP.] ANIMALS. 485
pairing birds are produced in the fpring, when the weather begins to be comfortable ; and their early production makes them firm and vigorous before winter, to endure the hardfhips of that rigorous feafon. Such early production is in particular fa- vourable to eagles, and other birds of prey ; for in the fpring they have plenty of food, by the return ^>f birds of pafTage.
Though the time of geflation varies confiderably in the different quadrupeds that feed on grafs, yet the female is regularly delivered early in fummer, when grafs is in plenty. The mare admits the ftal- lion in fummer, carries eleven months, and is deli- vered the beginning of May. The cow differs little. A fheep and a goat take the male in No- vember, carry five months, and produce when grafs begins to fpring. Thefe animals love fhort grafs, upon which a mare or a cow would ftarve. The obfervation holds in climates fo temperate as to encourage grafs in the fpring, and to preferve it in verdure all the fummer. I am informed that in Italy, fheep copulate from June to July : the fe- male goes twenty weeks, and is delivered in No- vember or December, preeifely at the time when grafs there is in the greateft plenty. In April the grafs is burnt up ; and fheep have nothing but fhrubs to browfe on. This appears to me a fignal inftance of providential care *. The rutting-fea-
fon
* I have it upon good authority, that ewes pafturmg in a hilly country choofe early forae fnug fpot, where they may drop
their'
4§6 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. f,
fon of the red-deer is the end of September, and beginning of Odlober : it continues for three weeks ; during which time, the male runs from female to female without intermiflion. The female brings forth in May, or beginning of June ; and the fe- male of the fallow-deer brings forth at the fame time. The fhe-afs takes the male the beginning of fummer ; but me bears twelve months, which fixes her delivery to fummer. Wolves and foxes copulate in December : the female carries five months, and brings forth in April, when animal food is as plentiful as at any other feafon ; and the fhe-lion brings forth about the fame time. Of this early birth there is one evident advantage, hinted above : the young have time to grow fo firm as eafily to bear the inclemencies of winter.
Were one to guefs what probably would be the time of rutting, fummer would be named, efpe- cially in a cold climate. And yet to quadrupeds who carry but four or five months, that economy would throw the time of delivery to an improper feafon, for warmth, as well as for food. Wifely is it ordered, that the delivery fhould conft^ntly be at the bed feafon for both.
Gregarious quadrupeds that ftore up food for winter, differ from all other quadrupeds with re-
fpeft
their young with fafety. And hence the rifle of removing a flock to a new field immediately before delivery ; many lambs perifn by being dropped in improper places,
SK. 6. APP.] ANIMALS. 487
fpecl to the time of delivery. Beavers copulate about the end of autumn, and bring forth in Ja- nuary, when their granary is full. The fame eco- nomy probably obtains among all other quadrupeds of the fame kind.
One rule takes place among all brute-animals, without a lingl.e exception, That the female never is burdened with two litters at the fame time/ The time of geftation is fo unerringly calculated by nature, that the young brood can provide for themfelves before another brood comes on. Even a hare is not an exception, though many litters are produced in a year. The female carries thirty or thirty-one days \ but me fuckles her young on- ly twenty days, after which they provide for them- felves, and leaye her free to a new litter.
The care of animals to preferve their young from harm is a beautiful initance of Providence. When a hind hears the hounds, me puts herfelf in the way of being hunted, and leads them from her fawn. The lapwing is no lefs ingenious : if a per- fon approach, fhe flies about, retiring always from her neft. A partridge is extremely artful : me hops away, hanging a wing as if broken : lingers fill the perfon approach, and hops again *. A hen,
timid
* The following incident hardly deferves to be mentioned, it is fo common, but that the tear is fcarce dry which the fight wrung from me. A man mowing a field for hay, pafled over a partridge fitting on her eggs. Turning about to cut down
488 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
timid by nature, is bold as a lion in defence of her young : fhe darts upon every creature that threat- ens danger. The roebuck defends its young with refolution and courage. So doth a ram ; and fo do many other quadrupeds.
Let me add a few words about the nature of in- ftinct in animals. Inftinct is an impulfe of nature to perform neceflary acts where reafon is deficient. The actions of brute animals are generally direct- ed by inftinct ; but, as in man, the rational prin- ciple is more vigorous, he is trufted to the conduct of that principle, and is not left to be directed by inilinct, except in fingular cafes where reafon can- not be of ufe. The inftincts of animals are finely adjuiled to the other branches of their conftitution. An ox, which chews the cud, fwallows greedily, and grinds after at leifure. A horfe, which does not chew the cud, grinds carefully in eating. Mon- fieur Buffon admits, that, by inilinct, birds of paf- fage change their habitation ; and yet, fo crude are his notions of inftinct, as to aflign caufes for the change, which require both reflection and fore- light far above the glimmering reafon they are endued with. Quails, fays he, during fummer, are always travelling north, becaufe they are a- fraid of heat ; or, perhaps, to leave a country
where
a tult that had been left, he unhappily brought up the par- tridge on the point of his fey the. Such affe&ion there is even for a brood not yet brought to light.
SK. 6. APP.] ANIMALS. 489
where the harveft is over, for another where it is later. This would be a degree of knowledge de- nied even to man, unlefs from experience. Ari- ftotle, with as little accuracy, maintains, that it is from a thorough knowledge of the feafons that birds of paflage change their habitation twice a- year. It is, I admit, the final caufe of their mi- gration ; but undoubtedly blind inftinct is the ef- ficient caufe. The magpie, he obferves, covers its neft, leaving only a hole in the fide to get in and out at ; well knowing that many birds of prey are fond of its eggs. Yet the fame BufFon obferving, that, when a fparrow builds under a roof, it gives no cover to its neft, covering it only when it builds on a tree ; and that a beaver, which erects a ftrong dam-dike to keep a running water always at the fame height, never thinks of fuch an operation when it fettles on the brink of a lake which va- ries little in height ; maintains thefe variations to be the perfection of inftinct. Is it not apparent that reafon is necefiary to make a being to vary its conduct: according to circumftances ; and that what is obferved of the fparrow and beaver is evidence of no flight degree of reflection ? Inftinct, on the contrary, is a blind impulfe of nature, which prompts always the fame uniform courfe, without regard to variation of circumftances.
It is obferved by an ingenious writer*, that na- ture fports in the colour of domeftic animals, in
order
f Pennant.
490 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I. APF.
order that men may the more readily diftinguifh their own. It is not eafy to fay why colour is more varied in fuch animals, than in thofe which remain in the ftate of nature : I can only fay> that the caufe affigned is not fatisfadory. One is fel- dom at a lofs to diflinguim one animal from ano- ther ; and Providence never interpofes to vary the ordinary courfe of nature, for an end fo little ne- ceflary as to make the diftindlion ftill more ob- vious. I add, that it does not appear, in any in- ftance, the intention of Providence, to encourage inattention and indolence.
The foregoing particulars are offered to the pub- lic as hints merely : may it not be hoped, that they will excite curiolity in thofe who relifli natural hiftory ? The field is rich, though little cultiva- ted ; and I know no other branch of natural hif- tory that opens finer views into the conduct of Pro- vidence.
SKETCH
SK. 7.] LUXURY, 491
SKETCH VII.
PROGRESS AND EFFECTS OF LUXURY.
t
THE wifdam of Providence is in no inftance more confpicuous than in adjufting the con- ftitution of man to his external circumftances. Food is extremely precarious in the hunter-ftate ; fometimes fuperabounding with little fatigue, fome- times failing after great fatigue. A favage, like other animals of prey, has a ftomach adjufted to that variety : he can bear a long fad ; and gorges voraciouily when he has plenty, without being the worfe for it. Whence it is, that barbarians, who have fcarce any fenfe of decency, are great and grofs feeders *. The Kamlkatkans love fat ; and a man entertains his guefts, by cramming into
their
* In the Iliad of Homer, book ix. Agamemnon calls a council at night in his tent. Before entering on bufmefs, they go to fupper, (line 122). An embafly to Achilles is refolved on. The ambafladors again fup with Achilles on pork grif- kins, (line 271). Achilles rejecls Agamemnon's offer; and the fame night Ulyfles and Diomed fet out on their expedition to the Trojan camp : returning before day, they had a third fupper.
VOL, I. H h
492 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
their mouths fat flices of a feal, or a whale, cut- ting off with his knife what hangs out. Barba- rians are equally addicted to drunkennefs ; and pe- culiarly fond of fpiritous liquors. Drinking was a fafhionable vice in Greece, when Menander, Phi- lemon, and Diphilus, wrote, if we can rely on the tranflations or imitations of their plays by Plautus and Terence. Cyrus preparing to attack his bro- ther Artaxerxes, King of Perfia, publifhed a ma«< Hi&fto, that he was more worthy of the throne than his brother, becaufe he could fwallow more wine. Diodorus Siculus reports, that, in his time, the Gauls, like other barbarians, were much ad- dicted to drinking. The ancient Scandinavians, who, like other favages, were intemperate in eat- ing and drinking, fwallowed large cups to their gods, and to fuch of their countrymen as had fallen bravely in battle. We learn from the 25th fable of the Edda, which was their facred book, that to hold much liquor, was reputed a heroic virtue. Contarini, the Venetian ambaffador, who wrote an* no 1473, fays, that the Ruffians were abandoned to drunkennefs ; and that the whole race would have been extirpated, had not ftrong liquors been dif- charged by the fovereign.
A habit of fafting long, acquired as above, in the hunter-ftate, made meals in the fhepherd ilate lefs frequent than at prefent, though food was at hand. Anciently people fed but once a-day, a fa- fhion that continued even after luxury was indul- ged
S.K. 7.] LUXURY. 493
ged in other refpech. In the war of Xerxes againft Greece, it was pleafantly faid of the Abderites, who were burdened with providing for the King's ta^le, that they ought to thank the gods for not inclining Xerxes to eat twice a-day. Plato held the Sici- lians to be gluttons, for having two meals every- day. Arian * obferves, that the Tyrrhenians had the fame bad habit. In the reign of Henry VL the people of England fed but twice a-day. Hec^ tor Boyes, in his Hiftory of Scotland, exclaiming againft the growing luxury of his contemporaries, fays, that fome perfons were fo gluttonous, as to have three meals every day.
Luxury, undoubtedly, and love of fociety, tend- ed to increafe the number of meals beyond what nature requires. On the other hand, there is a caufe that kept down the number for fome time, which is, the introduction of machines. Bodily ftrength is effential to a favage, being his only in- ftrument ; and with it he performs wonders. Ma- chines have rendered bodily ftrength of little im- portance ; and, as men labour lefs than originally, they eat lefs in proportion f. Liften to Hollin- fhed, the Englifh hiftorian, upon that article : " Heretofore, 'there hath been much more time
H h 2 " fpent
* Lib. iv. cap, 16.
f Before fire-arms were known, people gloried in addrefs and bodily ftrength, and commonly fought hand to hand. But violent exercifes, becoming lefs and lefs neceflary, went infen- fibly out of fafhion.
it it
494 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. i,
" fpent in eating and drinking, than commonly is in thefe days ; for whereas, of old, we had break - fafts in the forenoon, beverages or nunchions after " dinner, and thereto rear-fuppers when it was " time to go to reft ; now thefe odd repafts, thank- " ed be God, are very well left, and each one con- " tenteth himfelf with dinner and fupper only." Thus, before cookery and luxury crept in, a mo- derate ftomach, occafioned by the abridging bo- dily labour, made eating lefs frequent than for- merly. But the motion did not long continue re- trograde : good cookery, and the pleafure of eating in company, turned the tide ; and people now eat lefs at a time, but more frequently.
Feafts in former times were carried beyond all bounds. William of Malmftjury, who wrote in the days of Henry II. fays, " That the EngliQi were " univerfally addided to drunkennefs, continuing " over their cups day and night, keeping open " houfe, and fpending the income of their eftates " in riotous feafts, where eating and drinking " were carried to excefs, without any elegance." People who live in a corner imagine that every thing is peculiar to themfelves : what Malmlbury fays of the Englifh is common to all nations, in advancing from the felfifhnefs of favages to a relifh for fociety, but who have not yet learned to bridle their appetites. Giraldus Cambrenfis, fpeaking of the Monks of Saint Swithin, fays, that they threw themfelves proftrate at the feet of King Henry II.
and
f
SK.7.] LUXURY. 495
and with many tears complained, that the Bifhop, who was their abbot, had withdrawn from them three of their ufual number of dimes. Henry, ha- ving made them acknowledge that there ftill re- mained ten dimes, faid, that he himfelf was con- tented with three, and recommended to the Bifhop to reduce them to that number. Leland* men- tions a feaft given by the Archbifhop of York, at his inflallation, in the reign of Edward IV. The following is a fpecimen : 300 quarters of wheat, 300 tons of ale, 100 tons of wine, 1000 fheep, 104 oxen, 304 calves, 304 fvvine, 2000 geefe, 1000 ca- pons, 2000 pigs, 400 fwans, 104 peacocks, 1500 hot venifon pafties, 4000 cold, 5000 cuflards, hot and cold. Such entertainments are a pidlure of manners. At that early period, there was not dif- covered in fociety any pleafure but that of crowd- ing together in hunting and feafting. The deli- cate pleafures of converfation, in communicating opinions, fentiments, and delires, were to them un- known. There appeared, however, even at that early period, a faint dawn of the fine arts. In fuch feafts as are mentioned above, a curious de- fert was fometimes exhibited, termed futteltie, viz. pafte moulded into the lhape of animals. On a faint's day, angels, prophets, and patriarchs, were fet upon the table in plenty. A feaft given by Trivultius to Lewis XII. of France, in the city of Milan, makes a figure in Italian hiftory. No fewer
H h 3 than
* Colleftanea.
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
than 1200 ladies were invited ; and the Cardinals of Narbon and St Severin, with many other pre- lates, were among the dancers. After dancing, followed the feaft, to regulate which there were no fewer employed than 160 mafter-houfeholds. Twelve hundred officers, in an uniform of velvet, or fatin, carried the victuals, and ferved. at the iideboard. Every table, without diftinclion, was ferved with filver- plate, engraved with the arms of the landlord ; and beiide a prodigious number of Italian lords, the whole court, and all the houfe- hold of the King, were feafted. The bill of fare of an entertainment given by Sir Watkin Williams Wynn to a company of 1500 perfons, on his co- ining of age, is a fample of ancient Englifh hofpi- tality, which appears to have nothing in view but crowding and cramming merely. The following paffage is from Hollinftied : " That the length and " fumptuoufnefs of feafts formerly in ufe, are not V totally left off in England, notwithftanding that " it proveth very beneficial to the phyiicians, who " moft abound where moft excefs and mifgovern- " ment of our bodies do appear." He adds, that claret, and other French wines, were defpifed, and ftrong wines only in requeft. The beft, he fays? were to be found in monafteries : for " that the f* merchant would have thought his foul would go " ftraightway to the devil, if he mould ferve " monks with other than the beft." Our forefa- thers relilhed ftrong wine, for the fame reafon that
their
SK, 7.] LUXURY. 497
their forefathers relifhed brandy. In Scotland, fumptuous entertainments were common at mar- riages, baptifms, and burials. In the reign of Charles II. a ftatute was thought necefiary to con» fine them within moderate bounds.
Of old, there was much eating with little varie- ty : at prefent, there is great variety, with more moderation. From a houfehold-book of the Earl of Northumberland, in the reign of Henry VIII. it appears that his family, during winter, fed moft- ly on fait meat, and fait fifh ; and with that view there was an appointment of 160 gallons of muf-
j
tard. On flefh-days, through the year, breakfaft for my Lord and Lady was a loaf of bread, two man- chets a quart of beer, a quart of wine, half a chine of mutton, or a chine of beef boiled : on meagre days, a loaf of bread, two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, a dim of butter, a piece of fait fifti, or a difh of buttered eggs : during Lent, a loaf of bread, two manchets, a quart of beer, a quart of wine, two pieces of fait fifh, fix baconed herring, four white herring, or a difh of fproits. There was as little variety in the other meals, ex- cept on feftival days. That way of living was at the time high luxury : a lady's waiting-woman, at prefent, would never have done with grumbling at fuch a table. We learn from the fame book, that the Earl had but two cooks for dreffing vic- tuals to more than two hundred domeflics. In thofe days, hen, chicken, capon, pigeon, plover,
H h 4 partridge,
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
partridge, were reckoned fuch delicacies, as to be prohibited, except at my Lord's table *.
But luxury is always creeping on, and delicacies become more familiar. Hollinfhed obferves, that white meats, milk, butter, and cheefe, formerly the chief food of his countrymen, were in his time de- graded to be the food of the lower fort ; and that the wealthy fed upon flefh and filh. By a roll of the King of Scotland's houfehold expence, anno 1378, we find, that the art of gelding cattle was known. The role is in Latin, and gelt hogs are termed porcelli eunuchl. Mention is alfo made of chickens, which were not common on Englifh tables at that time. Olive oil is alfo mentioned.
In this progrefs, cooks, we may believe, came to make a figure. Hollinfhed obferves, that the no- bility, rejecting their own cookery, employed as cooks mufical-headed Frenchmen and ilrangers, as he terms them. He fays, that even merchants, when they gave a feaft, rejected butcher's meat as unworthy of their tables ; having jellies of all co- lours, and in all figures, reprefenting flowers, trees, beads, fifti, fowl, and fruit. Henry Wardlaw, Archbifhop of St Andrews, obferving the refine- ments in cookery introduced by James I. of Scot- land, who had been eighteen years a prifoner in England, exclaimed againft the abufe in a parlia- ment held at Perth 1433 : he obtained a law, re-
ftraining
* * Houfchold-book above mentioned.
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 499
{training fuperfluous diet ; and prohibiting the ufe of baked meat to any under the degree of gentlemen, and permitting it to gentlemen on feftival-days on- ly ; which baked meat, fays the bifhop, was never before feen in Scotland. The peafants in Sicily regale themfelves with ice during fummer. They fay, that fcarcity of fnow would be more grievous to them than fcarcity of corn or of wine. Such progrefs has luxury made, even among the popu- lace. People of fafhion in London and in Paris, who employ their whole thoughts on luxurious li- ving, would be furprifed to be told, that they are Hill deficient in that art. In order to advance luxury of the table to the acme of perfection, there ought to be a cook for every dim, as in ancient Egypt there was a phyfician for every difeafe.
Barbarous nations, being great eaters, are fond of large joints of meats ; and love of mow retains great joints in fafhion, even after meals become more moderate : a wild boar was roafled whole for a fiipper-dim to Anthony and Cleopatra ; and fluf- fed with poultry and wild-fowl, it was a favourite difh at Rome, termed the Trojan boar, in allufion to the Trojan horfe. The hofpitality of the An- glo-Saxons was fometimes exerted in roafting an ox whole. Great joints are left off gradually, .as people become more and more delicate in eating. In France, great joints are lefs in ufe than former- ly ; and in England, the enormous furloin, for- merly the pride of the nation, is now in polite fa-
milies
it it
5OO MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
milies banifhed to the fide-board. In China, where manners are carried to a high degree of re- finement, dimes are compofed entirely of minced meat*.
In early times, people \Vere no lefs plain in their houfes than in their food. Toward the end of the fixteenth century, when Hollinfhed wrote, the people of England were beginning to build with brick and Hone. Formerly houfes were made of timber polls, wattled together and plaftered with clay to keep out the cold : the roof was draw, fedge, or reed. It was an obfervation of a Spa- niard in Queen Mary's days, " Thefe Englimhave their houfes of flicks and dirt, but they fare as well as the King.'5 Hollinfhed mentioning mul- titudes of chimneys lately erected, obferves, upon the authority of fome old men, that in their young^ er days there were not above two or three, iffo many, in moft uplandifh towns of the realm, reji- gious houfes and manor-places of their lords cx- cepted ; but that each made his fire againlt a rere-
doffe
* The fize of an animal may be abridged by fpare diet ; but its ftrength and vigour are not abridged in proportion. Our Highlanders live very poorly ; and yet are a hardy race. The horfes bred in that mountainous country are of a dimi- nutive fize ; but no other horfes can bear fo much fatigue. Camels in the defarts of Arabia are trained to long abftinence. They are loaded more and more as they grow up ; and their food is diminiiaed in proportion. Plenty of fucculent food raifes an animal to its greateft fize j but its folids are foft and flexible in proportion to its fize.
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 501
dofle in the hall, where he dined, and drefled his meat. From Lord Northumberland's houfehold- book, it would feem that grates were unknown at that time, and that they burnt their coal upon the hearth : a certain fum is allotted for purchafing wood ; becaufe, fays the book, coals will not burn without it. There is alfo a certain fum allotted for purchafing charcoal, that the frrioke of the fea- coal might hot hurt the arras. In the fourteenth century, the houfes of private perfons in Paris, as well as in London, were of wood. Morrifon, who wrote in the beginning of the lad century, fays, that at London the houfes of the citizens were ve- ry narrow in the ftreet- front, five or iix ilories high, commonly of wood and clay with plafter. The ilreets of Paris, not being paved, were cover- ed with mud \ and yet for a woman to travel thefe ftreets in a cart, was held an article of luxury, and as fuch prohibited by Philip the Fair. Paris is enlarged two-thirds fince the death of Henry IV. though at that time it was perhaps no lefs popu- lous than at prefent.
People were equally plain in their houfehold- furniture. While money was fcarce, fervants got land inftead of wages. An old tenure in England, binds the vaflal to find ftraw for the King's bed, and hay for his horfe. From Lord Northumber- larxl's houfehold-book, mentioned above, it ap- pears, that the linen allowed for a whole year Amounted to no more but feventy ells ; of which
there
MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
there were to be eight table-cloths (no napkins) for his Lordfhip's table, and two towels for wafh- ing his face and hands. Pewter veflels were pro- hibited to be hired, except on Chriflmas, Eafter, §t George's day, and Whitfunday. Hollinfhed mentions his converfing with old men, who re- marked many alterations in England within their remembrance ; that their fathers, and they them- felves formerly, had nothing to ileep on but a ftraw pallet, with a log of wood for a pillow ; a pillow, faid they, being thought meet only for a woman in childbed ; and that if a man in feven years af- ter marriage could purchafe a flock-bed, and a fack of chaff to reft his head upon, he thought himfelf as well lodged as the lord of the town ; who peradventure lay feldom on a bed entirely of feathers. Another thing they remarked, was change of houfehold- veflels from timber plates in- to pewter, and from wooden fpoons into tin or .iilver.
Nor were they lefs plain in their drefs. By an act of Parliament in Scotland, anno 1429, none were permitted to wear filk or coftly furs, but knights and lords of 200 merks yearly rent. But luxury in drefs advanced fo faft, that, by another act, anno 1457, the fame drefs was permitted to aldermen, bailies, and other good worthy men within burgh. And by a third act, anno 1471, it was permitted to gentlemen of L. 100 yearly rent. By a. fumptuary law in Scotland, anno 1621, cloth
of
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 503
of gold and filver, gold and filver lace, velvet, fatin, and other (ilk fluffs, were prohibited except to noblemen, their wives and children, to lords of parliament, prelates, privy councillors, lords of manors, judges, magiftrates of towns, and to thofe who have 6000 merks of yearly rent. Such dif- tin&ions, with refped: to land efpecially, are invi- dious ; nor can they ever be kept up. James, the firfl Britifh monarch, was, during infancy, com- mitted to the Dowager-Countefs of Mar, who had been educated in France. The King being feized with a cholic in the night-time, his houfehold fer- vants flew to his bed-chamber, men and women, naked as they were born ; the Countefs only had a fmock.
During the reign of Edward III., the imports into England were not the feventh part of the ex- ports. Our exports at that time were not the fe- venth part of our prefent exports ; and yet our luxury is fuch, that, with all our political regula- tions, it is with difficulty that the balance of trade is preferved in our favour.
Men, in different ages, differ widely in their notions of luxury : every new object of fenfual gratification, and every indulgence beyond what is ufual, are commonly termed luxury ; and ceafe to be luxury when they turn habitual. Thus eve- ry hiflorian, ancient and modern, while he in- veighs againft the luxury of his own times, won- ders at former hiftoriaqs for charaderifmg as luxu-
ry
t( ft
504 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
ry what he confiders as conveniences merely, or rational improvements. Hear the Roman hifto- rian, talking of the war that his countrymen car- ried on fuccefsfully againft Antiochus King of Syria : " Luxuriae, enim peregrinae origo ab ex- " ercitu Afiatico inveda urbem eft. li primum " lectos aeratos, veftem ftragulam pretiofam, pla- gulas et alia textilia, et quae turn magnificas fu- pelleclilis habebantur, monopodia et abacos Ro- " mam advexerunt. Tune pfaltriae, fambufiftriae- " que, et convivalia ludionum oblectamenta addi- " ta epulis : epulae quoque ipfae et cura et fumptu *' majore adparari cceptae : turn coquus, viliffi- " mum antiquis mancipium aeftimatione et ufu, " in pretio efle : et, quod minifterium fuerat, ars *' haberi caepta. Vix tamen ilia, quae turn con- " fpiciebantur, femina erant futurae luxuriae *."
Houfehold-
* '* For the Afiatic foldiers firft introduced into Rome the *' foreign luxury. They firft brought with them beds orna- " mented with brazen fculptures, painted coverings, curtains " and tapeftry, and what were then efteemed magnificent fur- *' niture, fide-boards, and tables with one foot. Then to the *' luxury of our feafts were added fmging girls, female play- " ers on the lute, and morris-dancers : greater care and ex- " pence were beftowed upon our entertainments : the cook, " whom our forefathers reckoned the meaneft {lave, became " now in high efteem and requeft ; and what was formerly a ** fervile employment, was now exalted into a fcience. All " thefe, however, fcarcely deferve to be reckoned the feeds or *' buds of the luxury of after times." — -Tit. Liv. lib. xxxir cap. 6.
§£. 7*] LUXURY.
Houfehold-furniture at Rome muft at that pe- riod have been wonderfully plain, when a carpet and a one-footed table were reckoned articles of luxury. When the gelding of bulls and rams was firft praclifed, it was probably confidered as abo- minable luxury. Galvanus Fiamma, who in the fourteenth century wrote a hiftory of Milan, his
native country, complains, that in his time plain li-
•
ving had given way to luxury and extravagance. He regrets the times of Frederic Barbarofla and Frederic II. when the inhabitants of Milan, a great capital, had but three flefh meals in a week, when wine was a rarity, when the better fort made ufe
of dried wood for candles, and when their fhirts
1
were of ferge, linen being confined to perfons of the higheft rank. " Matters,"1 fays he, " are won- " derfully changed : linen is a common wear : the " women drefs in filk, ornamented frequently with " gold and filver ; and they wear gold pendants " at their ears." A hiftorian of the prefent times would laugh at Fiamma, for ftating as articles of luxury what are no more but decent for a tradefr man and his wife. John Muflb, a native of Lorn- bardy, who alfo wrote in the fourteenth century, declaims againft the luxury of his cotemporaries, particularly againft that of the citizens of Placen- tia his countrymen. " Luxury of the table," fays
he, " of drefs, of houfes and houfehold- furniture,
' . " • ~
" in Placentia, began to creep in after the year 1300. Houfes have at prefent halls, rooms with
chimneys,
4. SWW. X-LVL41V- J lit* Y \- tAU t'LV-A-^ZAU aAM.Ai.u
it
506 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. B. I,
" chimneys, porticos, wells, gardens, and many " other conveniencies, unknown to our anceftors. " A houfe that has now many chimneys, had if none in the laft age. The fire was placed in the *' middle of the houfe, without any vent for the " fmoke but the tiles : all the family fat round it, " and the victuals were drefled there. The ex- " pence of houfehold-furniture is ten times great- " er than it was fixty years ago. The tafte for " fuch ex pence comes to us from France, from " Flanders, and from Spain. Eating tables, for- " merly but twelve inches long, are now grown " to eighteen. They have table-cloths, with cups, " fpoons, and forks, of filver, and large knives. " Beds have filk coverings and curtains. They " have got candles of tallow or wax in candle- " fticks of iron or copper. Almoft every where " there are two fires, one for the chamber, and one " for the kitchen. Confections have come greatly " in ufe, and fenfuality regards no expence.11 Hollinfhed exclaims againft the luxury and effe- minacy that prevailed in his time. " In times " pad," fa^s he, " men were contented to dwell " in houfes builded of fallow, willow, plumtree, " or elm ; fo that the ufe of oak was dedicated to " churches, religious houfes, princes palaces, noble- " mens lodgings, and navigation. But now, thefe " are rejected, and nothing but oak any whit re- * garded. And yet fee the change ; for when our " houfes were builded of willow, then had we
" oaken
u it
ft n
ft it
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 507
" oaken men ; but now that our houfes are made " of oak, our men are not only become willow, but many, through Perfian delicacy crept in among us, altogether of ftraw, which is a fore altera- " tion. In thofe days, the courage of the owner was a fufficient defence to keep the houfe in fafety ; but now, the aflurance of the timber, " double doors, locks and bolts, muft defend the man from robbing. Now, have we many chim- neys, and our tenderlings complain of rheums, " catarrhs, and pofes. Then, had we none but " rere- dofies, and our heads did never ake. For " as the fmoke in thofe days was fuppofed to be a " fufficient hardening for the timber of the houfe ; fo it was reputed a far better medicine to keep, the goodman and his family from the quack or pofe, wherewith very few were then acquaint- " ed." Not many more than fifty years ago, French wine, in Edinburgh taverns, was prefented to the gueils in a fmall tin veflel, meafuring about an Englifh pint. A fingle drinking glafs ferved a company the whole evening ; and the firil perfons who infilled for a clean glafs with every new pint, were accufed of luxury. A knot of Highlanders benighted, wrapped themfelves up in their plaids, and lay down in the fnow to fleep. A young gen- tleman making up a ball of fnow, ufed it for a pillow. His father #, finking away the ball with VOL. I. I i his
* Sir Evan Cameron.
it ft tt
508 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
his foot, " What, Sir,"' fays he, " are you turning " effeminate ?' Crantz, defcribing the kingdom of Norway and the manners of the people, has the following reflection : " Robuftiffimos educat viros, " qui, nulla frugum luxuria moliti, faepius impug- " nant alios quam impugnantur* ." In the moun- tainous ifland of Rum, one of the Weilern Iflands of Scotland, the corn produced ferves the inhabitants but a few months in winter. The reft of the year they live on flefh, fim, and milk ; and yet are healthy and long-lived. In the year 1768, a man died there aged 103, who was 50 years old before he ever tailed bread. This old man frequently ha- rangued upon the plain fare of former times ; find- ing fault with his neighbours for indulging in bread, and upbraiding them for toiling like Haves to produce fuch an unneceflary article of luxury. The inhabitants of Canada, before they were known to Europeans, were but thinly clothed in a bitter cold climate. They had no covering but a fingle Ikin, girded about them with a belt of lea- ther. The coarfe woollen cloth which they were taught to wear by the French, raifed bitter lamen- tations in their old men for increafe of luxury and decline of manners.
Thus, every one exclaims againft the luxury of the prefent times, judging more favourably of the
paft ;
* et It produces a moft robuft race of men, who are ener- *? vated by no luxury of food, and are more prone to atuck ?' and harafs their neighbours, than fubjeded to their at-
: , . *•* ,.,....'•• t :• •
$ tacks."
SK. 7.] XUXURY. ' 509
pail ; as if what is luxury at prefent, would ceafe to be luxury when it becomes cuftomary. What is the foundation of a fentiment fo univerfal ? In point of dignity, corporeal pleafures are the loweft of all that belong to our nature ; and for that rea- fon perfons of delicacy difiemble the pleafure they have in eating and drinking #. When corporeal pleafure is indulged to excefs, it is not only low, but mean. But as, in judging of things that ad- mit of degrees, comparifon is the ordinary ftand- ard ; every refinement in corporeal pleafure be- yond what is cuftomary, is held to be a blameable excefs, below the dignity of human nature. For that reafon, every improvement in living is pro- nounced to be luxury while recent, and drops that character when it comes into common ufe. For the fame reafon, what is moderation in the capital, is efteemed luxury in a country -town. Doth lu- xury then depend entirely on comparifon ? is there no other foundation for diftinguifhing moderation from excefs ? This will hardly be maintained.
This fubject is rendered obfcure by giving dif- ferent meanings to the term luxury. A French writer holds every fort of food to be luxury but raw fleih and acorns, which were the original food of favages ; and every fort of covering to be lu- xury but fkins, which were their original cloath- ing. According to that definition, the plough, .the fpade, the loom, are all of them initruments of
I i 2 luxury ;
* Elements of Criticifm, vol. i. p. 356. edit. 5.
5IO MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I,
luxury ; in which view, he juftly extols luxury to the ikies. We are born naked, becaufe we can clothe ourfelves ; and artificial cloathing is to man as much in the order of nature, as hair or feathers are to other animals. But whatever accords to the common nature of man, is right ; and for that reafon cannot in a proper fenfe be termed luxury, Shoes are a refinement from walking barefoot ; and Voltaire, taking this refinement to be luxury, laughs at thofe who declaim againft luxury. Let every man enjoy the privilege of giving his own meaning to words : but when a man deviates fo far from their ufual meaning, the neglect to define them is inexcufable. In common language and in common apprehenfion, luxury always implies a faulty excefs ; and upon that account, is condemn- ed by all writers, fucji only excepted as affect to be fingular.
Faulty excefs is clearly one branch of the defi- nition of luxury. Another is, that the excefs mu ft be habitual': a fingle act of intemperance, how- ever faulty, is not denominated luxury : reitera- tion muft be fo frequent, as to become a confirmed habit.
Nor are thefe particulars all that enter into the definition pf luxury. There are many pleafures, however intemperate or habitual, that are not branded with that odious name. Mental pleafure, fuch as arifes from fentiment or reafoning, falls rigt within the verge of luxury, to whatever ex- cefs
BK« 7.] LUXURY.
cefs indulged. Jf to relieve merit in diftrefs be luxury, it is only fo in a metaphorical fenfe : nor is it deemed luxury in a damfel of fifteen to perufe love-novels from morning till evening. Luxury ig confined to the external fenfes : nor does it belong to every one of thefe : the fine arts have no rela- tion to luxury. A man is not even faid to be lu- xurious, merely for indulging in drefs, or in fine furniture. Hollinfhed inveighs againfl drinking- glafles as an article of luxury. At that rate, a houfe adorned with fine pi&ures or ftatues, would be an imputation on the proprietpr. Thus, paffing in review every pleafure of external fenfc, we find, that in proper language the term luxury is not ap- plicable to any pleafure of the eye or ear. That term is confined to the pleafures of taile, touch, and fmell, which appear as exifting at the organ of fenfe, and upon that account are held to be merely corporeal *.
Having thus circumfcribed our fubjecT; within its proper bounds, the important point that re- mains to be afcertained is, Whether we have any rule for determining what excefs in corporeal plea- fure may juftly be denominated faulty. About that point we are at no lofs. Though our prefent life be a flate of trial, yet our Maker has kindly indulged us in every pleafure that is not hurtful to the mind nor to the body ; and therefore no excefs but what is hurtful falls under the cenfure
* See Elements of Criticifm, Intro duttion.
512 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
of being luxurious : it is faulty, as a tranfgreffion of felf-duty ; and, as fuch, is condemned by the moral fenfe. The moft violent declaimer againft luxury will not affirm, that bread is luxury, or a fnow-ball ufed for a pillow : thefe are innocent, becaufe they do no harm. As little will it be af- firmed, that d welling -houfes, more capacious than thofe originally built, ought to be condemned as luxury ; feeing they contribute to cheerfulnefs as w^ll as to health. The plague, fome centuries ago, made frequent vilits to London, promoted by air ftagnating in narrow flreets and- fmall houfes. From the great fire anno 1666, when the houfes and ftreets were enlarged, the plague has not once been in London.
Man confifts of foul and body, fo intimately connected, that the one cannot be at eafe while the other fufFers. In order to have mens fana in corpore fano, it is neceflkry to ftudy the health of both : bodily health fupports the mind ; and no- thing tends more than cheerfulnefs to fupport the body, even under a difeafe. To preferve this complicated machine in order, certain exercifes are proper for the body, and certain for the mind ; which ought never to incroach the one on the other. Much motion and bodily exercife tend to make us robuft ; but, in the mean time, the mind is flarved : much reading and reflection fortify the mind but in the mean time, the body is flarved* Nor is this all : excefs. in either is deftruclive to
both;
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 513
both ; for exercife too violent, whether of mind or body, wears the machine. Indolence, on the other hand, relaxes the machine, and renders it weak or ufelefs. Bodily indolence breeds the gout, the gravel, and many other difeafes : nor is mental indolence lefs pernicious, for it breeds peevifhnefs and pulillanimity. Thus health, both of mind and body, is beft preferved by moderate exercife. And hence a general propolition, That every indulgence in corporeal pleafure, which fa- vours either too violent or too languid exercife, whether of mind or body, is hurtful, and corife- quently is luxury in its proper fenfe* It is fcarce neceifary to be added, that every fuch indulgence is condemned by the moral fenfe; of which eve- ry man can bear teftimony from what he himfelf feels-.
Too great indulgence in corporeal pleafure fel- dom prompts violent exercife ; but inftances are without number, of its relaxing even that mode- rate degree of exercife which is healthful both to mind and body. This, in particular, is the cafe of too great indulgence in eating or drinking: fuch indulgence, creating a habitual appetite for more than nature requires, loads the ftomach, de- preffes the fpirits ; and brings on a habit of lift- lefnefs and inactivity, which renders men cowardly and effeminate #. And what does the epicure gain
I i 4 h7
* Luxury and felfifhnefs render men cowards. People who are attached to riches or to fenfual pleafure, cannot think,
without
514 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I*
by fuch excefs ? In a grand palace, the mafter oc- cupies not a greater fpace than his meaneft do- meftic ; and brings to his moft fumptuous feaft perhaps lefs appetite than any of his guefts. Sa- tiety withal makes him lofe the relifh even of ra- rities, which afford to others a poignant pleafure. Liften to a fp rightly writer handling this fubjecl:. " Le peuple ne s'ennuie guerre, fa vie eft active ; " li fes amufemens ne font pas varies, ils font " rares ; beaucoup de jours de fatigue lui font gou- " ter avec delices quelques jours de fetes. Une " alternative de longs travaux et de courts loilirs " tient lieu d'affaifonement aux plaiiirs de fon " etat. Pour les riches, leur grand fleau c'eft " 1'ennui : au fein de tant d'amufemens raffem- " bles a grands fraix, au milieu de tant de gens " concourans a leur plaire, 1'ennui les confume et " les tue ; ils paffent leur vie a le fuir et a en " etre atteints ; ils font accables de fon poids in- " fupportable : les femmes, fur-tout, qui ne " favent plus s'occuper, ni s'amufer, en font de- " vore"es fous le nom de vapeurs." Roitffeau, Emile. What enjoyment, then, have the opulent above others ? Let them beftow their riches in making others happy : benevolence will double their own happinefs ; firft, in the direct ad of do- ing
without horror, of abandoning them. A virtuous man con- fiders himfelf as placed here in order to obey the will of his Maker : he performs his duty, and is ready to quit his poft upon the firft fummons.
SK. 7.] LUXURY. 515
ing good ; and next, in reflecting upon the good they have done, the moft delicate of all feafts.
Had the Englifh continued Pagans, they would have invented a new deity to prelide over cookery. I fay it with regret, but muft fay it, that a luxu- rious table, covered with every dainty, feems to be their favourite idol. A minilter of ftate never withftands a feaft ; and the link that unites thofe in oppolition, is the cramming one another *. I mall not be furprifed to hear, that the cramming a miflrefs has become the moft fafhionable mode of courtfhip. Luxury in eating is not unknown in their univerfities ; the only branch of education that feldom proves abortive. It has not efcaped obfer- vation, that between the 1740 and 1770, no fewer than fix Mayors of London died in office, a great- er number than in the preceding 500 years : fuch havoc doth luxury in eating make among the fons of Albion -j*. How different the manners of their forefathers ! Bonduca their Queen, ready to en- gage the Romans in a pitched battle, encouraged her army with a pathetic fpeech, urging in par- ticular
* This was compofed in the year 1770.
f Suicide is not influenced by foggy air ; for it is not more frequent in the fens of Lincoln or EfTex, than in other parts of England. A habit of daily excefs in eating and drinking, with intervals of downy eafe, relax every mental fpring. The man flags in his fpirits, becomes languid and low : nothing moves him : every connection with the world is diflblved : a tedium vita enfues ; and then
5l6 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
\
ticular the following confideration : " The great " advantage we have over them is, that they can- " not, like us, bear hunger, thirft, heat, nor cold. " They muft have fine bread, wine, and warm " houfes : every herb and root fatisfies our hun- " ger ; water fupplies the want of wine ; and *' every tree is to us a warm houfe (a) *.'*
If it fhould be afferted, that no excefs in eating or drinking is better entitled to be termed luxury, than the univerfal ufe of fermented liquors, re- jecting water entirely ; the propoiition would be ridiculed, as proceeding from fome low-fpirited afcetic. Water, it will be faid, is indeed the ori- ginal drink of animals, and a wholefome drink it is. But why deny to the ingenuity of man im- provements in nourifhment, as well as in habita- tion and clothing ? I grant there can be no rea- fonable obje&ion to fermented liquors, ufed as a delicacy, by people of eafy fortune. But what I condemn, is their being the fole drink of all ranks, not even excepting thofe who live on charity. Confider the quality of animal and vegetable food that can be produced on land employed entirely in railing vines, barley, and other materials of fer- mented
(a) Dion Caflius.
* Providence has provided the gout as a beacon on the rock of luxury to warn againft it. But in vain : during dif- trefs, vows of temperance are made : during the intervals, thefe vows are forgot Luxury has gained too much ground in this iiland, to be retrained by admonition*
SK. 7.] LUXURY. ' 517
mented liquors. The exiftence of many thou- fands is annually prevented by that fpecies of luxury.
The indulging in down-beds, foft pillows, and eafy feats, is a fpecies of luxury ; becaufe it tends to enervate the body, and to render it unfit for fa- tigue. Some London ladies employ an operator for pairing their nails. Two young women of high quality, who were lifters, employed a fervant with foft hands to raife them gently out of bed in a morning. Nothing lefs than all-powerful vanity can make fuch perfons fubmit to the fatigues of a toilet : how can they ever think of fubmitting to the horrid pangs of child-bearing ! In the hot cli- mates of Afia, people of rank are rubbed and chaf- fed twice a-day ; which, befide being pleafant, is necelfary for health, by moving the blood in a hot country, where lloth and indolence prevail. The Greeks and Romans were curried, bathed, and oil- ed, daily ; though they had not the fame excufe for that practice : it was luxury in them, though not in the Aliatics.
Nations, where luxury is unknown, are troubled with few difeafes, and have few phyficians by pro* feffion. In the early ages of Rome, women and (laves were the only phyficians, becaufe vegetables were the chief food of the people ; who befide were conftantly employed in war or in hulbanciry. When luxury prevailed among the Romans, their
difeafes
5l8 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
difeafes multiplied, and phylic became a liberal profeffion.
With refpect to exercife, the various machines that have been invented for executing every fort of work, render bodily flrength of lefs importance than formerly. This change is favourable to men- tal operations, without hurting bodily health. The travelling on horfeback, though a lefs vigorous exertion of ftrength than walking, is not luxury, becaufe it is a healthful exercife. I dare not fay fo much for wheel-carriages : a fpring-coach, rol- ling along a fmooth road, gives no exercife ; or fo little, as to be preventive of no difeafe : it tends to enervate the body, and, in fome meafure, alfo the mind. The increafe of wheel-carriages within a century is a pregnant proof of the growth of luxurious indolence. During the reign of James I. the Englifh judges rode to Weftminfter on horfe- back, and probably did fo for many years after his death. Charles I. iflued a proclamation, prohibit- ing hackney-coaches to be ufed in London, except by thofe who travel at leaft three miles out of town* At the Reiteration, Charles II. made his public entry into London on horfeback, between his two brothers, Dukes of York and Gloucefler. We have Rufhworth for our voucher, that in London, not above a hundred years ago, there were but twenty hackney-coaches ; which did not ply on the flreets, but were kept at home till called for. He adds,
that
SK. 7,] LUXURY. 519
that the King and council publifhed a proclama- tion againft them, becaufe they raifed the price of provender upon the King, nobility, and gentry. At prefent, 1000 hackney-coaches ply on the ilreets of London ; befide a great number of ftage-coaches for travelling from London to all parts of the king- dom. The firil coach with glaffes in France was brought from BrufTels to Paris, anno 1660, by the Prince of Conde. Sedan-chairs were not known in England before the year 1634. Cookery and coaches have reduced the military fpirit of the Englifh nobility and gentry to a languid Hate : the former, by overloading the body, has infected them with difpiriting ailments ; the latter, by foftering eafe and indolence, have banifhed labour, the only antidote to fuch ailments*. Too great indulgence in the fine arts confumes part of the time that ought to be employed on the important duties of life : but the fine arts, even when too much indul- ged, produce one good effe.cl:, which is, to foften land humanize our manners : nor do they harm the body, if they relax not that degree of exercife. which is necefTary for fupporting it in health and
vigour,
The
' , ' '
* " J'ai toujours vu ceux qui voyageoient dans de bonnes voi- tures bien douces, reveurs, triftes, grondans ou fouffrans ; et les pietons toujours gais, legers, et contens de tout. Com- bien le cceur rit quand on approche du gite ! Combien un re- pas groffier paroit favcureux ! avec quel plaifir on fe repofe a table ! Quel bon fommeil on fait dans un mauvais lit !" Roufleau, Emi/e.
52O MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [B. I.
The enervating effects of luxury upon the body, are, above all, remarkable in war. The officers of Alexander's army were foon tainted with Afiatic manners. Moft of them, after bathing, had fer- vants for rubbing them, and, inftead of plain oil, ufed precious ointments. Leonatus, in particular, commiflioned from Egypt the powder he ufed when he wreftled, which loaded feveral camels. Alexander reproved them mildly : " I wonder that " men who have undergone fuch fatigues in war, " are not taught by experience, that labour pro- " duces fweeter and founder fleep than indolence. " To be voluptuous, is an abject and flavifh ftate. " How can a man take care of his horfe, or keep " his armour bright, who difdains to employ his " own hands upon what is deareft to him, his own "body*?"
With refpect to the mind in particular, manifold are the pernicious effects of luxury. Corporeal pleafures are all of them felfifh ; and, when much indulged, tend to make felfiftmefs the leading prin- ciple. Voluptuoufnefs accordingly, relaxing every fympathetic affe<3tion, brings on a beaftly felfifh- nefs, which leaves nothing of man but the external figure. Luxury, beiide, renders the mind fo effe- minate, as to be fubdued by every diftrefs : the flighted pain, whether of mind or body, is a real evil : and any higher degree becomes a torture.
The
* Plutarch.
SK. 7.] LUXURY.
The French are far gone in that difeafe. Pi&ures of deep diftiefs, which attract Englifh fpeclators, are to the French unfupportable : their averfion to pain overcomes the attractive power of fympathy, and debars from the ftage every diftrefs that makes a deep impreffion. The Britifh are gradually fink- ing into the fame weaknefs : Venice Preferred col- ledls not fuch numbers as it did originally ; and would fcarce be endured, were not our fympathy blunted by familiarity : a new play in a fimilar tone would not take. The gradual decay of man- hood in Britain, appears from their funeral rites. Formerly the deceafed were attended to the grave by relations and friends of both fexes ; and the day of their death w as prefer ved -in remembrance, with folemn lamentation, as the day of their birth was with exhilarating cups. In England, a man was firft relieved from attending his deceafed wife to the grave ; and afterward from attending his de- ceafed children ; and now fuch effeminacy of mind prevails there, that, upon the laft groan, the de- ceafed, abandoned by every relation, is delivered to an undertaker by profeffion, who is left at lei-
SJ^
fure to mimic the funeral rites. In Scotland, fuch refinement has not yet taken place: a man is in- deed excufed from attending his wife to the grave ; but he performs that duty in perfon to every other relation, his children not excepted. I am told,
that
522 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fi. I.
that people of high fafhion in England begin to leave the care of their fick relations to hired nurfes ; and think they do their duty in making fhort vifits from time to time.
Hitherto I have confidered luxury with refpect to thofe only who are infected with it ; and, did its poifon fpread no wider, the cafe perhaps would be the lefs deplorable. But unhappily, where luxury prevails, the innocent fuffer with the guilty. A man of economy, whether a mer- chant, or a manufacturer, lays up a flock for his children, and adds ufeful members to the flate. A man, on the contrary, who lives above his fortune, or his profits, accufloms his chil- dren to luxury, and abandons them to poverty when he dies. Luxury, at the fame time, is a great enemy to population : it enhances the cxpence of living, and confines many to the bache- lor-flate. Luxury of the table, in particular, is re- markable for that effect : "L'homme riche met toute " fa gloire a confommer, toute fa grandeur a per- " dre, en un jour a fa table, plus de biens qu'il " n'en faudroit pour faire fubfifter plufieurs fa- " milles. II abufe egalement et des animaux et des " homines : dont le refle demeure affame, languit " dans la mifere, et ne travaille que pour fatisfaire " a Pappetit immodere, et a la vanite encore plus <f infatiable, de cet homme ; qui detruifant les
" autres
SK. 7.] tUXURY. 523
" autres par la difette, fe detruit lui-meme par les " exces *."
To confider luxury in a political view, no re- finement of drefs, of the table, of equipage, of ha- bitation, is luxury in thofe who can afford the ex- pence ; and the public gains by the encouragement that is given to arts, manufactures, and commerce- But a mode of living above a man's annual income, weakens the ftate, by reducing to poverty, not only the fquanderers themfelves, but many innocent and induftrious perfons connected with them. Lu- xury is, above all, pernicious in a commercial ftate. A perfon of moderation is fatisfied with fmall profits : not fo the luxurious, who defpife every branch of trade but what returns great pro- fits : other branches are engrofled by foreigners who are more frugal. The merchants of Amfter- dam, and even of London, within a century, lived with more economy than their clerks do at prefent. Their count ry-houies and gardens make not the greateft articles of their expence. At firft, a mer- chant
* " The fole glory of the rich man is, to confume and de- " ftroy ; and his grandeur confifts, in lavifhing in one day " upon the expence of his table what would procure fubfift- " ence for many families. He abufes equally animals and " hi- fellow-creatures ; a great part of whom, a prey to fa- " mine, and languifhing in mifery, labour and toil to fatisfy *' his immoderate defires, and infatiable vanity ; who, deftroy- " ing others by want, deilroys himfelf by excefs." — JBuJfon.
Vot. L Kk
524 MEN INDEPENDENT OF SOCIETY. [fl. I.
chant retires to his country-houfe on Sundays only and holidays : but beginning to relifh indolent re- tirement, bufinefs grows irkfome, he trufts all to his clerks, lofes the thread of his affairs, fees no longer with his own eyes, and is now in the high way to perdition. Every crofs accident makes him totter : and in labouring circumftances, he is tempted to venture all in hopes of re-eftablifhment. He falls at laft to downright gaming , which, fetting confcience afide, is a prudent meafure : he riiks only the money of his creditors, for he himfelf has nothing to lofe : it is now with him, Ccefar aut nihil*. Such a man never falls without involving many in his ruin.
The bad effects of luxury above difplayed, are not the whole, nor indeed the moft deftruclive. In
7
all times luxury has been the ruin of every ilate where it prevailed. Nations originally are poor and virtuous. They advance to induitry, com- merce, and perhaps to conqueli and empire. But this ilate is never permanent : great opulence opens a wide door to indolence, fenfuality, corruption, v proftitution, perdition. But that more important branch of the fubjedt is refer ved to particular {ketches, where it will make a better figure.
In the favage flate, man is almoft all body, with a very fmall proportion of mind. In the maturity of civil fociety, he is complete both in mind and
body.
* *' Cxfar or nothing."
SK. 7.]
LUXURY.
body. In a Hate of degeneracy by luxury and luptuoufnefs, he has neither mind nor body *.
* In ancient Egypt, execution again ft the perfon of a debtor was prohibited. Such a law could not obtain, but among a temperate people, where bankruptcy happens by misfortune, and feldom by luxury or extravagance. In Switzerland, not only a bankrupt but even his fons are excluded from public office till all the family debts be paid.
END OF VOLUME FIRST,
0
JAN i
C3 Kanes, Henry Home 25 Sketches
K3
1807
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