ADVERTISEMENT To the Present Edition.
Perhaps the Annals of History do not furnish a period, more appropriate for the dissemination of the political opinions of the Immortal Locke, than the present; when Sovereigns and Governmemts, are eagerly waiting, and readily embracing every opportu- nity to increase their Power; and when many of the Governed are equally impatient under the wholesome, as well as the more oppressive Laws of those that govern; to lay before both parties, the real origin of the power of the One, and for what purpose it was granted; and the just obedience due by the Other; when those purposes tend to the preservation, and good of society in general.
London, January, 1821- TWO TREATISES OF GOVERNMENT.
IN THE FORMER THE FALSE PRINCIPLES AND FOUNDATION OF SIR ROBERT FILMER AND HIS FOLLOWERS ARE DETECTED AND OVERTHROWN.
THE LATTER IS AN ESSAY CONCERNING THE TRUE ORIGINAL EXTENT AND END OF CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
PREFACE.
HEADER, thou hast here the beginning and end of a discourse concerning government; what fate has otherwise disposed of the papers that should have fdled up the middle, and were more than all the rest, it is not worth while to tell thee. These, which remain, I hope are sufficient to establish the throne of our great restorer, or present King William; to make good his title, in the consent of the people, which being the only one of all lawful governments, he has more fully and clearly, than any prince in Christendom; and to justify to the world the people of England, whose love of their just and natural rights, with their resolution to preserve them, saved the nation when it was on the very brink of slavery and ruin. If these papers have that evidence, I flatter myself is to be found in them, there will be no great miss of those which are lost, and my reader may be satisfied without them: for 1 imagine, I shall have Vlll Vlll neither the time, nor inclination to repeat my pains, and till np the wanting part of my answer, by tracing Sir Robert again, through all the windings and obscurities, which are to be met with in the several branches of his wonderful system. The king, and body of the nation, have since so thoroughly confuted his Hypothesis, that I suppose no body hereafter will have either the confidence to appear against our common safety, and be again an advocate for slavery; or the weakness to be deceived with contradictions dressed up in a popular stile, and well-turned periods: for if any one will be at the pains, himself, in those parts, which are here untouched, to strip Sir Robert's discourses of the flourish of doubtful expressions, and endeavour to reduce his words to direct, positive, intelligible propositions, and then compare them one with another, he will quickly be satisfied, there was never so much glib nonsense put together in well-sounding English. If he think it not worth while to examine his works all through, let him make an experiment in that part, where lie treats of usurpation; and lot him try, whether he can, with all his skill, make Sir Robert intelligible, and consistent with himself, or common sense. J should not speak so plainly of a gentlemen.
IX IX long since past answering, had not the pulpit, of late years, publicly owned his doctrine, and made it the current divinity of the times. It is necessary those men, who taking on them to be teachers, have so dangerously misled others, should be openly shewed of what authority this their Patriarch is, whom they have so blindly followed, so that they may either retract what upon so ill grounds they have vented, and cannot be maintained; or else justify those principles which they preached up for gospel; though they had no better an author than an English courtier: for [ should not have writ against Sir Robert, or taken the pains to shew his mistakes, inconsistencies, and want of (what he so much boasts of, and pretends wholly to build on) scripture- proofs, were there not men amongst us, who, by crying up his books, and espousing his doctrine, save me from the reproach of writing against a dead adversary. They have been so zealous in this point, that, if I have done him any wrong, 1 can- not hope they should spare me. I wish, where they had done the truth and the public wrong, they would be as ready to redress it, and allow its just weight to this reflection, viz. that there cannot be done a greater mischief to prince and people, than the propagating wrong notions X concerning government: that so at last all times might not have reason to complain of the drum ecclesiastic. If any one, concerned really for truth, undertake the confutation of my hypothesis, I promise him either to recant mistake, upon fair conviction; or to answer his difficulties. But he must remember two things.
First, That cavilling here and there, at some expression, or little incident of my discourse, is not an answer to my book.
Secondly, That I shall not take railing for arguments, nor think either of these worth my notice: Though 1 shall always look on my- self as bound to give satisfaction to any one who shall appear to be conscientiously scru- pulous in the point, and shall shew any just grounds for his scruples.
I have nothing more, but to advertise the reader, that Observations stands for Observa- tions on Hobbes, Milton, &c. and that a bare quotation of pages always mean Pages of his Patriarcha. Edit. 1680.
CONTENTS OF BOOK I.
Chapter. Page.
II. Of Paternal and Regal Power 5 III. Of Adam's Title to Sovereignty by Creation. • 15 IV. Of Adam's Title to Sovereignty by Donation, Gen. i. 28. 23 V. Of Adam's Title to Sovereignty by the Subjection of Eve 48 VI. Of Adam's Title to Sovereignty by Fatherhood. 55 VII. Of Fatherhood and Property, con- sidered together as Fountains of Sovereignty. 83 VIII. Of the Conveyance of Adam's So- vereign Monarchical Power 90 IX. Of Monarchy, by Inheritance from X. Of the Heir to Adam's Monar- chical Power.. H6 XI. Who Heir?. U9 CONTENTS OF BOOK II.
Chapter.
Page.
I.
The Introduction II.
Of the State of Nature III.
Of the State of War IV.
Of Slavery V.
Of Property VI.
Of Paternal Power VII.
Of Political or Civil Society VIII.
Of the Beginning of Political Societies.. 20.0 IX. Of the Ends of Political Society and Government. 294 X. Of the forms of a Commonwealth 300 XI. Of the Extent of the Legislative XII. Of the Legislative, Executive, and Federative Power of the Commonwealth. 313 XIII. Of the Subordination of the Powers of the Commonwealth 310 XIV. Of Prerogative. 327 XV. Of Paternal, Political and Despotical Power, considered together 330 XVI. Of Conquest. 340 XVII. Of Usurpation. 358 XVIII. Of Tyranny 360 XIX. Of the Dissolution of Govern- OF GOVERNMENT.
BOOK I.
CHAPTER I.
§. 1. Slavery is so vile and miserable an estate of man, and so directly opposite to the generous temper and courage of our nation; that it is hardly to be conceived, that an Eng- lishman, much less a gentleman, should plead for it. And truly I should have taken Sir Robert Filmers Patriarcha, as any other trea- tise, which would persuade all men, that they are slaves, and ought to be so, for such another exercise of wit, as was his who writ the en- comium of Nero; rather than for a serious discourse meant in earnest, had not the gravity of the title and epistle, the picture in the front of the book, and the applause that followed it, required me to believe, that the author and publisher were both in earnest. I therefore took it into my hands with all the expectation, and read it through with all the attention due to a treatise that made such a noise at its coming abroad, and cannot but confess myself mightily surprised that in a book, which v, is 2 OF GOVERNMENT.
2 OF GOVERNMENT.
to provide chains for all mankind, I should find nothing but a rope of sand, useful perhaps to such, whose skill and business it is to raise a dust, and would blind the people, the better to mislead them; but in truth not of any force to draw those into bondage who have their eyes open, and so much sense about them as to consider, that chains are but an ill wearing, how much care soever hath been taken to file and polish them.
§. 2. If any one think I take too much liberty in speaking so freely of a man, who is the great champion of absolute power, and the idol of those who worship it; I beseech him to make this small allowance for once, to one, who, even after the reading of Sir Robert's book, cannot but think himself, as the laws allowr him, a freeman: and I know no fault it is to do so, unless any one better skilled in the fate of it, than I, should have it revealed to him, that this treatise, which has lain dormant so long, was, when it appeared in the world, to carry, by strength of its arguments, all liberty out of it; and that thenceforth our author's short model was to be the pattern in the mount, and the perfect standard of politics for the future. His system lies in a little compass, it is no more but this, That all government is absolute monarchy. And the ground he builds on, is this, That no man is born free.
%. 3. In this last age a generation of men has OF GOVERNMENT. 3 sprung up amongst us, that would flatter princes with an opinion, that they have a divine right to absolute power, let the laws by which they are constituted, and are to govern, and the conditions under which they enter upon their authority, be what they will, and their engagements to observe them never so well ratified by solemn oaths and promises. To make way for this doctrine, they have denied mankind a right to natural freedom; whereby they have not only, as much as in them lies, exposed all subjects to the utmost misery of tyranny and oppression, but have also unset- tled the titles, and shaken the thrones of princes: (for they too by these men's system, except only one, are all born slaves, and by divine right are subjects to Adams right heir;) as if they had designed to make war upon all government, and subvert the very foundation of human society, to serve their present turn.
§. 4. However we must believe them upon their own bare words, when they tell us, we are all born slaves, and we must continue so, there is no remedy for it; life and thraldom we entered into together, and can never be quit of the one, till we part with the other. Scripture or reason I am sure do not any where say so, notwithstanding the noise of divine right, as if divine authority hath subjected us to the unlimited will of another. An admi- rable state of mankind, and that which they have not had wit enough to find out till this 4 OF GOVERNMENT.
latter age. For, however Sir Robert Filmet seems to condemn the novelty of the contrary opinion, Pair. p. 3. yet 1 believe it will be hard for him to find any other age, or country of the world, but this, which has asserted mo- narchy to be jure divino. And he confesses, Patr. p. 4. That Heyivard, Blackwood, Bar- clay, and others, that have bravely vindicated the right of Icings in most points, never thought of this, but with one consent admitted the natural liberty and equality of mankind.
§. 5. By whom this doctrine came at first to be broached, and brought in fashion amongst us, and what sad effects it gave rise to, I leave to historians to relate, or to the memory of those, who were contemporaries with Sibthorp and Mantuering, to recollect. My business at present is only to consider what Sir Robert Filmer, who is allowed to have carried this argument farthest, and is supposed to have brought it to perfection, has said in it; for him every one, who. would be as fashionable as French was at court, has learned, and runs away with this short system of politics, viz. Men are not born free, and therefore could never have the liberty to choose either governors, or forms of government. Princes have their power absolute, and by divine right; for slaves could never have a right to compact or consent. Adam was an absolute monarch, and so arc all princes ever since.
OF GOVERNMENT. O CHAPTER II Of Paternal and Regal Power.
§. (>. Sir Robert Filmers great position is, that men are not naturally free. This is the; foundation on which his absolute monarchy stands, and from which it erects itself to such an height, that its power is above every power, caput inter nubila, so high above all earthly and human things, that thought can scarce reach it; that promises and oaths, which tie the infinite Deity, cannot confine it. But if this foundation fails, all his fabric falls with it, and governments must be left again to the old way of being made by contrivance, and (he consent of men ('A»'fyw7nV>/ Kriair) making use of their reason to unite together into society. To prove this grand position of his, he tells us, p. 12. Men are horn in subjection to their parents, and therefore eannot be free. And this authority of parents he calls royal authority, p. 12, 14. Fatherly authority, right of fatherhood, p. 12, 20. One Mould have thought he would, in the beginning of such a work as this, on which was to depend the authority of princes, and the obedience of subjects, have told us expressly, what that fatherly authority is, have defined it, though not limited it, because in some other treatises of his he tells us, it is unlimited and unlimit- 6 OF GOVERNMENT.
able*; he should at least have given us such an account of it, that we might have had an entire notion of this fatherhood, or fatherly au- thority, whenever it came in our way in his writings: this I expected to have found in the first chapter of his Patriarcha. But instead thereof, having, 1. en passant, made his obey- sance to the arcana imperii, p. 5. 2. made his compliment to the rights and liberties of this or any other nation, p. 6. which he is going pre- sently to null and destroy; and, 3. made his leg to those learned men, who did not see so far into the matter as himself, p. 7. he comes to fall on Bellarmine, p. 8. and, by a victory over him, establishes his fatherly authority beyond any question. Bellarmine being routed by his own confession, p. 11. the day is clear got, and there is no more need of any forces: for having done that, I observe not that he states the question, or rallies up any arguments to make good his opinion, but rather tells us the story, as he thinks fit, of this strange kind of domineering phantom, called the father- hood, which whoever could catch, presently got empire, and unlimited absolute power. He assures us how this fatherhood began in Adamf * In grants and gifts that have their original from God or nature, as the power of the father hath, no inferior power of man can limit, nor make any law of prescription against them. Observations, 158.
The scripture teaches, that supreme power was originally in the father, without any limitation. Observations, 245.
OF GOVERNMENT.
continued its course, and kept the world in order all the time of the patriarchs till the flood, got out of the ark with Noah and his sons, made and supported all the kings of the earth till the captivity of the Israelites in Egypt, and then the poor fatherhood was under hatches, till God, by giving the Israelites kings, re-esta- blished the ancient and prime right of the lineal succession in paternal government. This is his business from p. 12, to p. 19. And then obvia- ting an objection, and clearing a difficulty or two, with one half reason, p. 23. to confirm the natural right of regal power, he ends the first chapter. I hope it is no injury to call an half quotation an half reason; for God says, Honour thy father and mother; but our author contents himself with half, leaves out thy mo- ther quite, as little serviceable to his purpose. But of that more in another place.
§. 7. I do not think our author so little skilled in the way of writing discourses of this nature, nor so careless of the point in hand, that he by oversight commits the fault, that he himself, in his Anarchy of a mixed Monarchy, p. 239. ob- jects to Mr. Hunton in these words: Where first I charge the author, that he hath not given us any definition, or description of Monarchy in general; for by the rules of method he should have first defined. And by the like rule of me- thod Sir Robert should have told us, what his fatherhood or fatherly authority is, before he had told us, in whom it was to be found, and 8 OF GOVERNMENT.
8 OF GOVERNMENT.
talked so much of it. But perhaps Sir Robert found, that this fatherly authority, this power of fathers, and of kings, for he makes them both the same, p. 24. would make a very odd and frightful figure, and very disagreeing with what either children imagine of their parents, or subjects of their kings, if he should have given us the whole draught together in that gigantic form, he had painted it in his own fancy; and therefore, like a wary physician, when he would have his patient swallow some harsh or corrosive liquor, he mingles it with a large quantity of that which may dilute it; that the scattered parts may go down with less feeling, and cause less aversion.
§. 8. Let us then endeavour to find what account he gives us of this fatherly authority, as it lies scattered in the several parts of his writings. And first, as it was vested in Adam, he says, Not only Adam, but the succeeding patriarchs, had, by right of fatherhood, royal authority orcr their children, p. 1*2. This lord- ship which Adam by command had orcr the whole uorld, and by right descending from him the patriarchs did enjoy, was as large and ample as the absolute dominion of any monarch, which hath been since the creation, p. 13. Dominion of life and death, making war, and concluding peace, p. 13. Adam and the patriarchs had absolute power of life and death, p. 35. Kings, in the right of parents, succeed to the exercise of supreme jurisdiction, p. 19. As kingly power OF GOVERNMENT. 0 is by the law of God, so it hulk no inferior fate to limit it; Adam was lord of all, p. 40. The father of a family governs by no other lair, than by his own will, p. 78. The superiority of princes is above laws, p. 79. The unlimited jurisdiction of kings is so amply described by Samuel, p. 80. Kings are above the laws, p. 03. And to this purpose see a great deal more which our author delivers in JBodins words: It is certain, that all laws, privileges, and grants of princes, have no force, but during their life; if they be not ratified by the express consent, or by sufferance of the prince following, especially privileges, Observations, p. 279. The reason, why laws have been also made by kings,was this; when kings were either busied with tears, or dis- tracted with public cares, so that every private man could not have access to their pjersons, to learn their wills and pleasure, then were laws of necessity invented, that so every particular sub- ject might find his prince s pleasure dccyphcrcd unto him in the tables of his lairs, p. 02. In a monarchy, the king must by necessity be above the laws, p. 100. A perfect kingdom is that, wherein the king rules all things according to his own will, p. 100. Neither common nor statute laics are, or can be, any diminution of that general power, which kings have over their people by right of fatherhood, p. 115. Adam was the father, king, and lord over his family; a son, a subject, and a servant or slave, were one and the same thing at first. The father had 10 OF GOVERNMENT.
power io dispose or sell his children or servants; whence ive find, that the first reckoning up of goods in scripture, the man-servant and the maid- servant, are numbered among the possessio?is and substance of the owner, as other goods were, Observations Pref. God also hath given to the father a right or liberty, to alien his power over his children to any other; whence we find the sale and gift of children to have been much in use in the beginning of the ivorld, when men had their servants for a possession and an inheritance, as well as other goods; whereupon we find the power of castrating and making eunuchs much in use in old times, Observations, p. 155. Lata is nothing else but the will of him that hath the power of the supreme father, Observations, p. 223. It teas God's ordinance that the supre- macy should be unlimited in Adam, and as large as all the acts of his will; and as in him so in all others that have supreme power, Observa- tions, p. 245.
§. 9. I have been fain to trouble my reader with these several quotations in our author's own words, that in them might be seen his own description of his fatherly authority, as it lies scattered up and down in his writings, which he supposes was first vested in Adam, and by right belongs to all princes ever since. This fatherly authority then, or right of fatherhood, in our author's sense, is a divine unalterable right of sovereignty, whereby a father or a prince halh an absolute, arbitrary, unlimited.
OF GOVERNMENT. J 1 and unlhnitable power over the lives, liberties, and estates of his children and subjects; so that he may take or alienate their estates, sell, castrate, or use their persons as he pleases, they being all his slaves, and he lord or proprietor of every thing, and his unbounded will their law. §. 10. Our author having placed such a mighty power in Adam, and upon that sup- position founded all government, and all power of princes, it is reasonable to expect, that he should have proved this with arguments clear and evident, suitable to the weightiness of the cause; that since men had nothing else left them, they might in slavery have such undeni- able proofs of its necessity, that their con- sciences might be convinced, and oblige them to submit peaceably to that absolute dominion, which their governors had a right to exercise over them. Without this, what good could our author do, or pretend to do, by erecting such an unlimited power, but flatter the natural vanity and ambition of men, too apt of itself to grow and encrease with the possession of any power? and by persuading those, who, by the consent of their fellow-men, are advanced to great, but limited degrees of it, that by that part which is given them, they have a right to all, that was not so; and therefore may do what they please, because they have authority to do more than others, and so tempt them to do what is neither for their own, nor the 12 OF GOVERNMENT.
good of those under their care; whereby great mischiefs cannot but follow.
§. 11. The sovereignty of Adam, being that on which, as a sure basis, our author builds his mighty absolute monarchy, I expected, that in his Patriarcha, this his main supposition would have been proved, and established with all that evidence of arguments, that such a fundamental tenet required; and that this, on which the great stress of the business depends, would have been made out with reasons sufti- cient to justify the confidence with which it was assumed. But in all that treatise, I could find very little tending that way; the thing i> there so taken for granted, without proof, that I could scarce believe myself, when, upon at- tentive reading thai treatise, I found there so mighty a structure raised upon the bare sup- position of this foundation: for it is scarce credible, that in a discourse, where he pretends to confute the erroneous principle of man's natural freedom, he should do it by;i bare supposition of Adam's authority, without offer- ing any proof for that authority. Indeed he confidently saj s, that Adam had royal authority, p. 12, and 13. absolute lordship and dominion °f Hfo filld death, p. 13. an universal monarchy, p. 33. absolute power of life and death, p. 35. He is very frequent in such assertions; but, what is strange, in all his whole Patriarcha 1 find not one pretence of a reason to establish OF GOVERNMENT. 13 this his great foundation of government; noi an) thing that looks like an argument, but these words: To con/um this natural right of regal power, tee find in the Decalogue, that the law which enjoins obedience to kings, is delivered in the terms, Honour thy father, as if all power were originally in the father. And why nia\ I not add as well, that in the Decalogue, the law that enjoins obedience to queens, is de- livered in the terms of Honour thy mother, as if all power were originally in the mother 1 The argument, as Sir Robert puts it, will hold as well for one as the other: but of this, more in its due place.
§. 12. All that I take notice of here, is, that this is all our author says in his first, or any oi the following chapters, to prove the absolute power of Adam, which is his great principle: and yet, as if he had there settled it upon sure demonstration, he begins his second chapter with these words, 13y conferring these proofs and reasons, drawn from the autho) ity of the scripture. Where those proofs and reasons for Adam's sovereignty are, bating that of Honour thy father, above mentioned, I confess, I cannot find; unless what he says, p. 11. In these words we have an evident confession, viz. of Bellarmine, that creation made man prince of his posterity, must be taken for proofs and reasons drawn from scripture, or for any sort of proof at all: though from thence by a new way < f inference, in the words immedia",_ 14 OF GOVERNMENT.
following, he concludes, the royal authority of Adam sufficiently settled in him.
§. 13. If he has in that chapter, or anywhere in the whole treatise, given any other proofs of Adams royal authority, other than by often repeating it, which among some men, goes for argument, I desire any body for him to shew me the place and page, that I may be convinced of my mistake, and acknowledge my oversight. If no such arguments are to be found, I beseech those men, who have so much cried up this book, to consider, whether they do not give the world cause to suspect, that it is not the force of reason and argument, that makes them for absolute monarchy, but some other by interest, and therefore are resolved to applaud any au- thor, that writes in favour of this doctrine, whether he support it with reason or no. But I hope they do not expect, that rational and indifferent men should be brought over to their opinion, because this their great doctor of it, in a discourse made on purpose, to set up the absolute monarchical power of Adam, in oppo- sition to the natural freedom of mankind, has said so little to prove it, from whence it is rather naturally to be concluded, that there is little to be said.