The Merry Past 



fence itself round with its own votaries, each species 

 of man's vicious nature forming so many repubUcs in 

 the body corporate. And this, in sober fact, is all 

 that the law has hitherto done for society, in regard 

 to its moral effect. When the streets of London are 

 cleared, and all the houses of entertainment are 

 closed upon a Sabbath day, where do our Solons 

 imagine the people will be ? Do they think they will 

 be at prayers or asleep ? There are few members of 

 the legislature who attach much importance to the 

 study of human nature ; each member, therefore, 

 like an unskilful surgeon, applies a healing plaster to 

 the sore which comes under his own notice, without 

 enquiring into the general state of the patient's 

 constitution. 



A great cause for the multiplication of laws is 

 without doubt the fact that in one v/ay or another 

 such an increase is popular with lawyers, a class which 

 in reality rules the country. Nothing can be done 

 without these men, a large number of whom always 

 sit in the House of Commons. 



Modern government all over Europe is largely in 

 the hands of those connected with the profession of 

 the law, and though formerly some protests were 

 made against such a state of affairs, it has now come 

 to be regarded as an almost inevitable consequence 

 of the modern parliamentary system. In England 

 also lawyers have in some degree lived down the 

 dubious reputation which caused so many of the 

 smaller fry of the profession to be held in detestation 

 by a large section of the population. It was the 



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