THE FAMILY INSTINCTS 209 



another side. Father No. 2 preaches the maxims of 

 the old school. His son argues against him. 

 " Fathers," says the latter, " are unjust ; they would 

 have their sons be as old as themselves ; they make 

 no allowance for the passions of youth. If I had a 

 son I would be indulgent to him ; he should be as 

 ready to confess his faults to me as I should be to 

 forgive them." Plautus also reflects the growing 

 relaxation of paternal authority. In the latter days 

 of the Empire nothing of the old severity of manners 

 remained. 



To a great extent the Christian communities of 

 Europe have solved the problem of domestic discip- 

 line de novo. They have long been drifting towards 

 a subversion of parental authority altogether, and, in 

 this country at least, the goal has almost been 

 reached. In France, thanks to the Code Napoleon, 

 parents still retain a show of authority ; but although 

 the dramatists and novelists treat the title of father 

 with a degree of respect unknown to the Anglo-Saxon 

 races, they do not hesitate, on occasion, to exhibit the 

 paternal relationship in a ludicrous light.^ The 

 change has been in progress since the time of 



1 See, for example, that admirable comedy by Augier aad 

 Saudeau, Le Gendre de Monsieur Poirier. 



