414 THE REIGN OF LAW. 



through Reason and Conscience, the elementary- 

 forces of Human Character. Of the constancy and 

 " invariability " of these no doubt or denial is in- 

 volved. Rather the reverse. It is upon instinctive 

 trust in that constancy that all social and political 

 Contrivance rests. And so we need not be sur- 

 prised to find that through the organised efforts of 

 communities of men, the evils which arise by way 

 of natural consequence out of the helplessness and 

 thoughtlessness of the individual Will, are evils 

 which to a large extent can be met and overcome. 

 But though all this is true, universally, of the 

 principle of Combination, it is very far from being 

 true, universally, of the particular purposes to which 

 Combination is applied. All the sources of error 

 which have so long perverted Legislation, are 

 equally powerful in perverting the aims, and in mis- 

 directing the efforts of Voluntary Association. If 

 the upper classes, with all the advantages of leisure, 

 and of culture, and of learning, have been so un- 

 able, as we have seen them to be, to measure the 

 effect of the laws they made, how much more must 

 we expect errors and misconceptions of the most 

 grievous kind to beset the action of those who, — 



