lypi* 0" ^^^ advantages of roguery. 129 



i appears, that one half of our present profefsions 

 would be annihilated, and that of starving become a 

 trade in their stead. 



It is no wonder, then, to see the bulk of mankind 

 practising roguery, under so many different forms, 

 when we consider the long period in which honesty 

 has been attempted with so little succefs, that we are 

 made to believe, the world judges it repugnant to the 

 nature of mian to be strictly so : And that honesty 

 and. poverty, are now grown so nearly synonimous, 

 that an honest man is almost aftiamed of being rich. 

 If a scheme of universal roguery v/as to be received, 

 it would have the general tendency to bring all man- 

 kind nearly on a level ; the present set of rogues 

 would find it difficult to add any more to their finan- 

 ces, because they would have to deal with people 

 like themselves. Besides, when one rogue out- 

 witted another, no honest man could be said to 

 have received an injury, where none but rbgues 

 were concerned ; and those murmurs and complaints 

 about perfidy and mistrust, would drop into oblivion, 

 when every individual was pre-informed of his dan- 

 ger ; and, as the minds of men, are, for the most 

 part, turned towards this system already, the diffi- 

 culty of completing it will be but trifling. 



This scheme will probably be found fault with by 

 a few antique gentlemen of the present century, who 

 may fhcw some reluctapce in parting with their old 

 friend honesty ; but they will observfc the scheme 

 regards only this world, and as they will, in all pro- 

 bability, be but ffiort time in it, they need give 

 themselves very little trouble us to this particular. — > 



VOL. vii. R f 



