xviTi H. SPENCER ON THE LAND QUESTION 341 



the benefits and the evils of his own nature and consequent 

 conduct : neither being prevented from having whatever 

 good his actions normally bring to him, nor allowed to 

 shoulder off on to other persons whatever ill is brought to 

 him by his actions." This law is appealed to again and 

 again throughout the book, as being a decisive test of the 

 right or wrong, the usefulness or the hurtfulness of 

 certain social or governmental agencies. It is generally 

 given under a shorter form of words, such as — " Each adult 

 shall receive the results of his own nature and consequent 

 actions" — or still more briefly — " Each shall receive the 

 benefits and evils due to his own nature and conduct." 

 This is the fundamental principle of social development 

 according to the Spencerian philosophy ; and from it is 

 derived the formula of Justice — " Every man is free to do 

 that which he wills, provided he infringes not the equal 

 freedom of any other man," or briefly " The liberty of each 

 limited only by the like liberty of all." 



From these principles Mr. Spencer deduces many 

 important results as to personal and social rights — among 

 others the right of property, the right of free industry, and 

 the right of gift and bequest. Under this latter heading 

 he makes an important qualification, as follows : — " One 

 who holds land subject to that supreme ownership of the 

 Community which both ethics and law assert, cannot 

 rightly have such power of willing the application of it as 

 involves permanent alienation from the community."^ 

 With this rather vague statement he leaves the subject, 

 and afterwards affirms those extraordinary propositions I 

 have already quoted as to the permanence of private 

 property in land, and the extinguishment of the people's 

 right through payment of two centuries of poor-rates ! 



But if we logically follow out the Spencerian principles 

 we shall find that the right of bequest has far more 

 extensive limitations than the author gives it, limitations 

 which render it easy for the State, that is the people, 

 equitably to regain possession of their own land. For, if 

 the law that — " each shall receive the good or evil results 

 of his own nature and actions " be a true guide to social 

 ^ Justice, p. 124. 



