Cli. xiii. Pr'uicipk's 0)1 t Jits Subject. 419 



gence with that, which many individuals are able 

 to attain by habit and reflection.* It is evident 

 that this given degree of industry possessed by 

 the whole species, if not combined with another 

 virtue of which he takes no notice, would totally 

 fail of rescuing society from want and misery, and 

 would scarcely remove a single moral or physical 

 evil of all those to which he alludes. 



I am aware of an objection, which will, with 

 great appearance of justice, be urged against 

 the general scope of these reasonings. It will be 

 said that to argue thus is at once to object to 

 every mode of assisting the poor, as it is impos- 

 sible, in the nature of things, to assist people in- 

 dividually, without altering their relative situation 

 in society, and proportionally depressing others; 

 and that as those who have families are the persons 

 naturally most subject to distress, and as we are 

 certainly not called upon to assist those who do 

 not want our aid, we must necessarily, if we act 

 at all, relieve those who have children, and thus 

 encourage marriage and population. 



I have already observed, however, and I here 

 repeat it again, that the general principles on 

 these subjects ought not to be pushed too far, 

 though they should always be kept in view ; and 

 that many cases may occur, in which the good 

 resulting from the relief of the present distress 

 may more than overbalance the evil to be appre- 

 hended from the remote consequence. 



♦ Diitlogucs on NuUiral Religion, part xi p. 212. 

 EE 2 



