CHAP. V.

In which an Inquiry is made, Whether it I would be an Advantage to public Liberty. that the Laws should be enacted by the Votes of the People at large.

UT, it will be faid, whatever may be

BUT,

the wisdom of the English Laws, how great foever their precautions may be, with regard to the fafety of the individual, the People, as they do not exprefsly enact them, cannot be looked upon as a free People. The Author of the Social Contract carries this opinion even farther: he afferts, that, though “the people of England think they are free, they are much mistaken; they are so only

during the election of Members of Par"liament: as foon as these are elected, the People are flaves-they are nothing." (a)

(a) See Mr. Rouffeau's Social Contract, chap. xv.

Before I anfwer this objection, I shall ob ferve, that the word Liberty is one of those which have been moft misunderstood or mif applied.

Thus, at Rome, where that clafs of Citizens who were really the Mafters of the State, were fenfible that a lawful regular authority, once trufted to a single Ruler, would put an end to their tyranny, they taught the People to believe, that, provided thofe who exercised a military power over them, and overwhelmed them with infults and mifery, went by the names of Confules, Dictatores, Patrici, Nobiles, in a word, by any other appellation than the horrid one of Rex, they were free; and that fuch a valuable fituation must be preserved at the price of every calamity.

In the fame manner, certain Writers of the prefent age, misled by their inconfiderate admiration of the Governments of ancient times, and perhaps alfo by their defire of presenting striking contrafts to what they call the degenerate manners of our modern times, have cried up the governments of Sparta and Rome, às the only ones fit for us to imitate. In

their opinions, the only proper employment of a free Citizen, is, to be either inceffantly affembled in the forum, or preparing for war.-To be valiant, inured to hardships, inflamed with an ardent love of one's Country, which is, after all, nothing more than an ardent défire of injuring all Mankind for the fake of the Society of which we are Members, and with an ardent love of glory, which is likewife nothing more than an ardent defire of committing flaughter in order to make afterwards a boast of it, have appeared to thofe writers to be the only focial qualifications worthy of our esteem, and of the encouragement of law-givers. (a) And while, in order to fupport fuch opinions, they have used a profufion of exaggerated expreffions without any distinct meaning, and perpetually repeated, but without defining them, the words daftardlinefs, corruption, greatness of foul, and virtue, they never once thought of telling us the only thing that was worth our knowing, which is, whether Men were happy under those

`(a) I have used the above expreffions in the same sense in which they were ufed in the ancient Commonwealths, and they ftill are by most of the Writers who describe their Governments.

Governments which they fo much exhorted us to imitate.

And while they thus mifapprehended the only rational defign of civil focieties, they miftook no lefs the true end of the particular institutions by which they were to be regulated. They were fatisfied when they faw the few who really governed every thing in the State, at times perform the illufory ceremony of affembling the body of the People, that they might appear to confult them and the mere giving of votes, under any disadvantage in the manner of giving them, and how much foever the law might be afterwards neglected that was thus pretended to have been made in common, has appeared to them to be Liberty.

But thofe Writers are in the right; a Man who contributes by his vote to the paffing of a law, has himself made the law

in

n obeying it, he obeys himself; he therefore is free. A play on words, and nothing more. 'more. The individual who has voted în a popular legislative Affembly, has not made the law that has paffed in it; he has

only contributed, or feemed to contribute, towards enacting it, for his thousandth, or even ten thousandth, fhare: he has had no opportunity of making his objections to the propofed law, or of canvaffing it, or of propofing restrictions to it; and he has only been allowed to express his affent or diffent. When a law paffes agreeably to his vote, it is not as a confequence of this his vote that his will happens to take place; it is because a number of other Men have accidentally thrown themselves on the fame fide with him :—when a law contrary to his intentions is enacted, he must nevertheless fubmit to it.

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This is not all; for though we should suppose, that to give a vote is the effential constituent of liberty, yet fuch liberty could only be faid to last for a fingle moment, after which it becomes neceffary to truft intirely to the discretion of other persons, that is, according to this doctrine, to be no longer free. It becomes neceffary, for inftance, for the Citizen who has given his vote, to rely on the honesty of those who collect the fuffrages: and more