Ch. iii. Of Systems of Equality, continued. 47 



law to be supported, and how are the violations- 

 of it to be punished ? Is the man who marries early 

 to be pointed at with the finger of scorn ? is he to 

 be whipped at the cart's tail? is he to be con- 

 fined for years in a prison ? is he to have his 

 children exposed ? Are not all direct punish- 

 ments for an offence of this kind shocking and un- 

 natural to the last degree 1 And yet, if it be ab- 

 solutely necessary, in order to prevent the most 

 overwhelming wretchedness, that there should be 

 some restraint on the tendency to early marriages, 

 when the resources of the country are only suffi- 

 cient to support a slow rate of increase, can the 

 most fertile imagination conceive one at once so 

 natural, so just, so consonant to the lavv^s of God 

 and to the best laws framed by the most enlight- 

 ened men, as that each individual should be re- 

 sponsible for the maintenance of his own children ; 

 that is, that he should be subjected to the natural 

 inconveniences and difficulties arising- from the 

 indulgence of his inclinations, and to no other 

 whatever ? 



That this natural check to early marriages 

 arising- from a view of the difficulty attending the 

 support of a large family operates very widely 

 throughout all classes of society in every civilized 

 state, and may be expected to be still more effec- 

 tive, as the lower classes of people continue to 

 improve in knowledge and prudence, cannot ad- 

 mit of the slightest doubt. But the operation of 

 this natural check depends exclusively upon the 

 existence of the laws of property, and succession ; 



