1871.] Thoughts Suggested by Patent Rights. 505 



ness arises from our sentiments even in the lower ranks of 

 civilisation ; but in the higher ranks, where the external 

 is cared for, the whole burden of man's life must lean 

 on his sentiments only. We know that some men will give 

 us various meanings of the word sentiment, but taking the 

 meaning so abundantly given to it, we are justified in 

 the assertion. 



It is not the belief of all persons, but we think most will 

 agree, that man is entitled to push forward his rights into 

 the external domain of nature to the utmost of his power : 

 when nature objects he is easily repulsed. 



We know nothing to limit him but his capacity. Re- 

 garding his rights over other men, we should probably have 

 said the same thing had we lived in the time when to 

 conquer nations and to keep slaves was to be thought 

 great ; but we now learn from history that the rights of a 

 man are limited by the rights of his fellow men, whether it 

 be in a hand-to-hand struggle, or in the region of thought 

 and feeling only. After leaping over several syllogisms we 

 may from these data decide that patents, like every other 

 desire of man, must be bounded by the desires of other men, 

 and that justice in granting them must be tempered with 

 mercy for the weakness of the individual struggling for 

 self against a nation. To save time let our readers conned! 

 for themselves more fully these fragments of thought. 



There are men who prefer the purely utilitarian view 

 combined with the national, calculating the results in 

 wealth obtained for the nation as a whole. They look at 

 the statistics of trade and the revenue derived from income 

 tax, and draw conclusions which seem hard to contradict. 

 This view overrules at present, but we have surely learnt 

 that great wealth in a nation may co-exist with great 

 misery, and great appearance of power with great weakness. 

 The true prosperity of a nation must consist in the progress 

 and happiness of the individuals. It is very difficult for us 

 of late to avoid centralisation. We think over all the 

 country on the same subject every day ; and when great 

 undertakings are demanded we rush to co-operate, and the 

 work becomes to a certain extent national, however 

 nominally private. By this means we have been able to do 

 great works, and the railway and steamboat systems are 

 wonderful examples, whilst co-operative societies are 

 forming to protect the individual in the smaller details 

 of life. We must rejoice to see the work done. So 

 thoroughly do we seem satisfied with it, that we seek 

 to train the minds of men in the same wholesale way; 



