goo Mijcellanea Curio fa. 



A fecond Obfervation I make upon the (aid 

 Table, is that the Growth and Increale of Man- 

 kind is not fo much dinted by any thing in the 

 Nature of the Species^ as it is from the cautious 

 difficulty rauft People make to adventure on the 

 Stare of Marriage, from the Profpe6fc of the 

 Trouble and Charge of providing for a Family. 

 Nor are the poorer (brt of People herein to be 

 blamed, fmce their difficulty of fubfifting is 

 qccafion'd by the unequal Diftribution of Pof- 

 fefllons, all being necenarily fed from the Earth, 

 of which yet fo few are Matters . So that be* 

 fides themfelves and Families, they are yet to 

 work for thofe who own the Ground that feeds 

 them : And of fuch does by very much the 

 greater part of Mankind confift j Qtherwife it 

 is plain, that there might well be four times as 

 many Births as we now find. For by Compu- 

 tation from the Table* I find that there are near- 

 ly 1 5000 Perfbns above 16, and under 45% of 

 which at leafl: 70 oq are Women capable to bear 

 Children. Of thefe notwithstanding there are 

 but 1x38 born yearly, which is but little more 

 than a fixth part * So that about one in fix of 

 thefe Women do breed yearly ; whereas were 

 they all married, it would not appear ftrange 

 or unlikely, that four of fix fliould bring a Child 

 every Year. The Political Confequences here- 

 of I fhall not infifl: on ; only the Strength and 

 Glory of a King being in the multitude of his 

 Subjects, I mail only hint, that above air things, 

 Celibacy ought to be difcouraged, as, by ex- 

 traordinary Taxing and Military Service : And 

 thofe who have numerous Families of Children 

 to be countenanced and eacouraged by fuch 

 Laws as the Jus trium Liberorum among the Jfy- 



ma ns< 



