"Solargeapart，"answersMontesinos，"thattheinterestamounted，duringtheprosperoustimesofagriculture，toasmuchastherentalofallthelandinGreatBritain;andatpresenttotherentalofalllands，allhouses，andallotherfixedpropertyputtogether。"
TheGhostandLaureateagreethatitisverydesirablethatthereshouldbesosecureandadvantageousadepositforwealthasthefundsafford。SirThomasthenproceeds:
"Anotherandfarmoremomentousbenefitmustnotbeoverlooked;
theexpenditureofanannualinterest，equalling，asyouhavestated，thepresentrentalofallfixedproperty。"
"Thatexpenditure，"quothMontesinos，"givesemploymenttohalftheindustryinthekingdom，andfeedshalfthemouths。Take，indeed，theweightofthenationaldebtfromthisgreatandcomplicatedsocialmachine，andthewheelsmuststop。"
FromthispassageweshouldhavebeeninclinedtothinkthatMr。
Southeysupposesthedividendstobeafreegiftperiodicallysentdownfromheaventothefundholders，asquailsandmannaweresenttotheIsraelites;wereitnotthathehasvouchsafed，inthefollowingquestionandanswer，togivethepublicsomeinformationwhich，webelieve，wasverylittleneeded。
"Whencecomestheinterest？"saysSirThomas。
"Itisraised，"answersMontesinos，"bytaxation。"
Now，hasMr。Southeyeverconsideredwhatwouldbedonewiththissumifitwerenotpaidasinteresttothenationalcreditor？Ifhewouldthinkoverthismatterforashorttime，wesuspectthatthe"momentousbenefit"ofwhichhetalkswouldappeartohimtoshrinkstrangelyinamount。Afundholder，wewillsuppose，spendsdividendsamountingtofivehundredpoundsayear;andhistennearestneighbourspayfiftypoundseachtothetax—gatherer，forthepurposeofdischargingtheinterestofthenationaldebt。Ifthedebtwerewipedout，ameasure，beitunderstood，whichwebynomeansrecommend，thefundholderwouldceasetospendhisfivehundredpoundsayear。Hewouldnolongergiveemploymenttoindustry，orputfoodintothemouthsoflabourers。ThisMr。
Southeythinksafearfulevil。Butistherenomitigatingcircumstance？Eachofthetenneighboursofourfundholderhasfiftypoundsayearmorethanformerly。Eachofthemwill，asitseemstoourfeebleunderstandings，employmoreindustryandfeedmoremouthsthanformerly。Thesumisexactlythesame。Itisindifferenthands。ButonwhatgroundsdoesMr。Southeycalluponustobelievethatitisinthehandsofmenwhowillspenditlessliberallyorlessjudiciously？Heseemstothinkthatnobodybutafundholdercanemploythepoor;that，ifataxisremitted，thosewhoformerlyusedtopayitproceedimmediatelytodigholesintheearth，andtoburythesumwhichtheGovernmenthadbeenaccustomedtotake;thatnomoneycansetindustryinmotiontillsuchmoneyhasbeentakenbythetax—gathereroutofoneman’spocketandputintoanotherman’spocket。WereallywishthatMr。Southeywouldtrytoprovethisprinciple，whichisindeedthefoundationofhiswholetheoryoffinance:forwethinkitrighttohinttohimthatourhard—heartedandunimaginativegenerationwillexpectsomemoresatisfactoryreasonthantheonlyonewithwhichhehasyetfavouredit，namely，asimilitudetouchingevaporationanddew。
Boththetheoryandtheillustration，indeed，areoldfriendsofours。Ineveryseasonofdistresswhichwecanremember，Mr。
Southeyhasbeenproclaimingthatitisnotfromeconomy，butfromincreasedtaxation，thatthecountrymustexpectrelief;andhestill，wefind，placestheundoubtingfaithofapoliticalDiafoirus，inhis"Resaignare，repurgare，etreclysterizare。"
"Apeople，"hetellsus，"maybetoorich，butagovernmentcannotbeso。"
"Astate，"sayshe，"cannothavemorewealthatitscommandthanmaybeemployedforthegeneralgood，aliberalexpenditureinnationalworksbeingoneofthesurestmeansofpromotingnationalprosperity;andthebenefitbeingstillmoreobvious，ofanexpendituredirectedtothepurposesofnationalimprovement。
Butapeoplemaybetoorich。"
Wefullyadmitthatastatecannothaveatitscommandmorewealththanmaybeemployedforthegeneralgood。Butneithercanindividuals，orbodiesofindividuals，haveattheircommandmorewealththanmaybeemployedforthegeneralgood。Iftherebenolimittothesumwhichmaybeusefullylaidoutinpublicworksandnationalimprovement，thenwealth，whetherinthehandsofprivatemenoroftheGovernment，mayalways，ifthepossessorschoosetospenditusefully，beusefullyspent。Theonlyground，therefore，onwhichMr。Southeycanpossiblymaintainthatagovernmentcannotbetoorich，butthatapeoplemaybetoorich，mustbethis，thatgovernmentsaremorelikelytospendtheirmoneyongoodobjectsthanprivateindividuals。
Butwhatisusefulexpenditure？"Aliberalexpenditureinnationalworks，"saysMr。Southey，"isoneofthesurestmeansforpromotingnationalprosperity。"Whatdoeshemeanbynationalprosperity？DoeshemeanthewealthoftheState？Ifso，hisreasoningrunsthus:Themorewealthastatehasthebetter;forthemorewealthastatehasthemorewealthitwillhave。Thisissurelysomethinglikethatfallacy，whichisungallantlytermedalady’sreason。Ifbynationalprosperityhemeansthewealthofthepeople，ofhowgrossacontradictionisMr。Southeyguilty。A
people，hetellsus，maybetoorich:agovernmentcannot:foragovernmentcanemployitsrichesinmakingthepeoplericher。Thewealthofthepeopleistobetakenfromthem，becausetheyhavetoomuch，andlaidoutinworks，whichwillyieldthemmore。
WearereallyatalosstodeterminewhetherMr。Southey’sreasonforrecommendinglargetaxationisthatitwillmakethepeoplerich，orthatitwillmakethempoor。Butwearesurethat，ifhisobjectistomakethemrich，hetakesthewrongcourse。Therearetwoorthreeprinciplesrespectingpublicworks，which，asanexperienceofvastextentproves，maybetrustedinalmosteverycase。
Itscarcelyeverhappensthatanyprivatemanorbodyofmenwillinvestpropertyinacanal，atunnel，orabridge，butfromanexpectationthattheoutlaywillbeprofitabletothem。Noworkofthissortcanbeprofitabletoprivatespeculators，unlessthepublicbewillingtopayfortheuseofit。Thepublicwillnotpayoftheirownaccordforwhatyieldsnoprofitorconveniencetothem。Thereisthusadirectandobviousconnectionbetweenthemotivewhichinducesindividualstoundertakesuchawork，andtheutilityofthework。
Canwefindanysuchconnectioninthecaseofapublicworkexecutedbyagovernment？Ifitisuseful，aretheindividualswhorulethecountryricher？Ifitisuseless，aretheypoorer？A
publicmanmaybesolicitousforhiscredit。Butisnothelikelytogainmorecreditbyanuselessdisplayofostentatiousarchitectureinagreattownthanbythebestroadorthebestcanalinsomeremoteprovince？Thefameofpublicworksisamuchlesscertaintestoftheirutilitythantheamountoftollcollectedatthem。Inacorruptage，therewillbedirectembezzlement。Inthepurestage，therewillbeabundanceofjobbing。Neverwerethestatesmenofanycountrymoresensitivetopublicopinion，andmorespotlessinpecuniarytransactions，thanthosewhohaveoflategovernedEngland。YetwehaveonlytolookatthebuildingsrecentlyerectedinLondonforaproofofourrule。Inabadage，thefateofthepublicistoberobbedoutright。Inagoodage，itismerelytohavethedearestandtheworstofeverything。
BuildingsforStatepurposestheStatemusterect。Andherewethinkthat，ingeneral，theStateoughttostop。Wefirmlybelievethatfivehundredthousandpoundssubscribedbyindividualsforrail—roadsorcanalswouldproducemoreadvantagetothepublicthanfivemillionsvotedbyParliamentforthesamepurpose。Therearecertainoldsawsaboutthemaster’seyeandabouteverybody’sbusiness，inwhichweplaceverygreatfaith。
Thereis，wehavesaid，noconsistencyinMr。Southey’spoliticalsystem。Butiftherebeinhispoliticalsystemanyleadingprinciple，anyoneerrorwhichdivergesmorewidelyandvariouslythananyother，itisthatofwhichhistheoryaboutnationalworksisaramification。Heconceivesthatthebusinessofthemagistrateis，notmerelytoseethatthepersonsandpropertyofthepeoplearesecurefromattack，butthatheoughttobeajack—of—all—trades，architect，engineer，schoolmaster，merchant，theologian，aLadyBountifulineveryparish，aPaulPryineveryhouse，spying，eaves—dropping，relieving，admonishing，spendingourmoneyforus，andchoosingouropinionsforus。Hisprincipleis，ifweunderstanditrightly，thatnomancandoanythingsowellforhimselfashisrulers，betheywhotheymay，candoitforhim，andthatagovernmentapproachesnearerandnearertoperfection，inproportionasitinterferesmoreandmorewiththehabitsandnotionsofindividuals。
Heseemstobefullyconvincedthatitisinthepowerofgovernmenttorelieveallthedistressesunderwhichthelowerorderslabour。Nay，heconsidersdoubtonthissubjectasimpious。Wecannotrefrainfromquotinghisargumentonthissubject。Itisaperfectjeweloflogic:
"’Manythousandsinyourmetropolis，’saysSirThomasMore，’riseeverymorningwithoutknowinghowtheyaretosubsistduringtheday;asmanyofthem，wheretheyaretolaytheirheadsatnight。
Allmen，eventheviciousthemselves，knowthatwickednessleadstomisery:butmany，evenamongthegoodandthewise，haveyettolearnthatmiseryisalmostasoftenthecauseofwickedness。’
"’Therearemany，’saysMontesinos，’whoknowthis，butbelievethatitisnotinthepowerofhumaninstitutionstopreventthismisery。Theyseetheeffect，butregardthecausesasinseparablefromtheconditionofhumannature。’
"’AssurelyasGodisgood，’repliesSirThomas，’sosurelythereisnosuchthingasnecessaryevil。For，bythereligiousmind，sickness，andpain，anddeath，arenottobeaccountedevils。’"
Nowifsickness，pain，anddeath，arenotevils，wecannotunderstandwhyitshouldbeanevilthatthousandsshouldrisewithoutknowinghowtheyaretosubsist。Theonlyevilofhungeristhatitproducesfirstpain，thensickness，andfinallydeath。
Ifitdidnotproducethese，itwouldbenocalamity。Ifthesearenotevils，itisnocalamity。Wewillproposeaveryplaindilemma:eitherphysicalpainisanevil，oritisnotanevil。
Ifitisanevil，thenthereisnecessaryevilintheuniverse:
ifitisnot，whyshouldthepoorbedeliveredfromit？
Mr。Southeyentertainsasexaggeratedanotionofthewisdomofgovernmentsasoftheirpower。Hespeakswiththegreatestdisgustoftherespectnowpaidtopublicopinion。Thatopinionis，accordingtohim，tobedistrustedanddreaded;itsusurpationoughttobevigorouslyresisted;andthepracticeofyieldingtoitislikelytoruinthecountry。Tomaintainpoliceis，accordingtohim，onlyoneoftheendsofgovernment。Thedutiesofarulerarepatriarchalandpaternal。Heoughttoconsiderthemoraldisciplineofthepeopleashisfirstobject，toestablishareligion，totrainthewholecommunityinthatreligion，andtoconsideralldissentersashisownenemies。
"’Nothing，’saysSirThomas，’ismorecertain，thanthatreligionisthebasisuponwhichcivilgovernmentrests;thatfromreligionpowerderivesitsauthority，lawstheirefficacy，andboththeirzealandsanction;anditisnecessarythatthisreligionbeestablishedasforthesecurityofthestate，andforthewelfareofthepeople，whowouldotherwisebemovedtoandfrowitheverywindofdoctrine。Astateissecureinproportionasthepeopleareattachedtoitsinstitutions;itis，therefore，thefirstandplainestruleofsoundpolicy，thatthepeoplebetrainedupinthewaytheyshouldgo。Thestatethatneglectsthispreparesitsowndestruction;andtheywhotraintheminanyotherwayareunderminingit。Nothinginabstractsciencecanbemorecertainthanthesepositionsare。’
"’Allofwhich，’answersMontesinos，’areneverthelessdeniedbyourprofessorsoftheartsBabblativeandScribblative:someintheaudacityofevildesigns，andothersinthegloriousassuranceofimpenetrableignorance。’
Thegreaterpartofthetwovolumesbeforeusismerelyanamplificationoftheseparagraphs。WhatdoesMr。Southeymeanbysayingthatreligionisdemonstrablythebasisofcivilgovernment？Hecannotsurelymeanthatmenhavenomotivesexceptthosederivedfromreligionforestablishingandsupportingcivilgovernment，thatnotemporaladvantageisderivedfromcivilgovernment，thatmenwouldexperiencenotemporalinconveniencefromlivinginastateofanarchy？Ifheallows，aswethinkhemustallow，thatitisforthegoodofmankindinthisworldtohavecivilgovernment，andthatthegreatmajorityofmankindhavealwaysthoughtitfortheirgoodinthisworldtohavecivilgovernment，wethenhaveabasisforgovernmentquitedistinctfromreligion。ItistruethattheChristianreligionsanctionsgovernment，asitsanctionseverythingwhichpromotesthehappinessandvirtueofourspecies。Butweareatalosstoconceiveinwhatsensereligioncanbesaidtobethebasisofgovernment，inwhichreligionisnotalsothebasisofthepracticesofeating，drinking，andlightingfiresincoldweather。Nothinginhistoryismorecertainthanthatgovernmenthasexisted，hasreceivedsomeobedience，andhasgivensomeprotection，intimesinwhichitderivednosupportfromreligion，intimesinwhichtherewasnoreligionthatinfluencedtheheartsandlivesofmen。ItwasnotfromdreadofTartarus，orfrombeliefintheElysianfields，thatanAthenianwishedtohavesomeinstitutionswhichmightkeepOrestesfromfilchinghiscloak，orMidiasfrombreakinghishead。"Itisfromreligion，"
saysMr。Southey，"thatpowerderivesitsauthority，andlawstheirefficacy。"FromwhatreligiondoesourpowerovertheHindoosderiveitsauthority，orthelawinvirtueofwhichwehangBrahminsitsefficacy？Forthousandsofyearscivilgovernmenthasexistedinalmosteverycorneroftheworld，inagesofpriestcraft，inagesoffanaticism，inagesofEpicureanindifference，inagesofenlightenedpiety。Howeverpureorimpurethefaithofthepeoplemightbe，whethertheyadoredabeneficentoramalignantpower，whethertheythoughtthesoulmortalorimmortal，theyhave，assoonastheyceasedtobeabsolutesavages，foundouttheirneedofcivilgovernment，andinstituteditaccordingly。Itisasuniversalasthepracticeofcookery。Yet，itisascertain，saysMr。Southey，asanythinginabstractscience，thatgovernmentisfoundedonreligion。WeshouldliketoknowwhatnotionMr。Southeyhasofthedemonstrationsofabstractscience。Averyvagueone，wesuspect。
Theproofproceeds。Asreligionisthebasisofgovernment，andastheStateissecureinproportionasthepeopleareattachedtopublicinstitutions，itistherefore，saysMr。Southey，thefirstruleofpolicy，thatthegovernmentshouldtrainthepeopleinthewayinwhichtheyshouldgo;anditisplainthatthosewhotraintheminanyotherwayareunderminingtheState。
Nowitdoesnotappeartoustobethefirstobjectthatpeopleshouldalwaysbelieveintheestablishedreligionandbeattachedtotheestablishedgovernment。Areligionmaybefalse。A
governmentmaybeoppressive。Andwhateversupportgovernmentgivestofalsereligions，orreligiontooppressivegovernments，weconsiderasaclearevil。
Themaxim，thatgovernmentsoughttotrainthepeopleinthewayinwhichtheyshouldgo，soundswell。Butisthereanyreasonforbelievingthatagovernmentismorelikelytoleadthepeopleintherightwaythanthepeopletofallintotherightwayofthemselves？Havetherenotbeengovernmentswhichwereblindleadersoftheblind？Aretherenotstillsuchgovernments？Canitbelaiddownasageneralrulethatthemovementofpoliticalandreligioustruthisratherdownwardsfromthegovernmenttothepeoplethanupwardsfromthepeopletothegovernment？Thesearequestionswhichitisofimportancetohaveclearlyresolved。
Mr。Southeydeclaimsagainstpublicopinion，whichis...完整阅读请扫描二维码下载丁香书院APP免费看：