428 PAR 
And real care in vain, and native love, 
In the true parent's panting bread had drove. Prior. 
As public parent of the date, 
My judice, and thy crime, requires thy fate. Dryden. 
The Duties of Parents to legitimate children con- 
fid in three particulars; their maintenance, their protec¬ 
tion, and their education. 
i. The duty of parents to provide for the maintenance 
of their children, is a principle of natural law ; an obli¬ 
gation, fays PuffendorfF, laid on them not only by na¬ 
ture herfelf, but by their own proper aft, in bringing 
them into the world ; for they would be in the highed 
manner injurious to their ilfue, if they only gave their 
children life, that they might afterwards fee them perifh. 
By begetting them, therefore, they have entered into a 
voluntary obligation, to endeavour, as far as in them 
lies, that the life which they have bedowed fliall be fup- 
ported and preferved. And thus the children will have 
a perfeft right of receiving maintenance from their pa¬ 
rents. And the prefident Montefquieu has a veryjud 
obfervation upon this head, that the edablifhment of 
marriage, in all civilized dates, is built on this natural 
obligation of the father to provide for his children ; for 
that afcertains and makes known the perion who is bound 
to fulfil this obligation ; whereas, in promifcuous and 
illicit conjunftions, the father is unknown ; and the mo¬ 
ther finds a thoufand obdacles in her way ; diame, remorfe, 
the condraint of her fex, and the rigour of laws, that 
difle her inclinations to perform this duty ; and befides, 
die generally wants ability. 
The municipal laws of all well-regulated dates have 
taken care to enforce this duty; though Providence has 
done it more effeftually than any laws, by implanting 
in the bread of every parent that natural rogyn, or in- 
fuperable degree of affeftion, which not even the defor¬ 
mity of perion or mind, not even the wickednefs, ingra¬ 
titude, and rebellion, of children, can totally fupprefs or 
extinguifh. 
The civil law obliges the parent to provide maintenance 
for his child ; and, if he refufe, judex de ea re cognofcet. 
Nay, it carries this matter fo far, that it will not fuffer a 
parent, at his death, totally to difinherit his child, with¬ 
out exprefsly giving his reafon for fo doing ; and there 
are fourteen fuch reafons reckoned up, which mayjudify 
fuch difinherifon. If the parent alleged no reafon, or a 
bad or a falfe one, the child might fet the will afide, 
tanquam teftamentum inofftciofum, as a tedament contrary 
to the natural duty of the parent. 
It is alfo a principle of law, that there is an obligation 
on every man to provide for thofe defcended from his 
loins ; and the manner in which this obligation fliall be 
performed, is thus pointed out. The father and mother, 
grandfather and grandmother, of poor impotent perfons, 
fliall maintain them at their own charges, if of fufficient 
ability, according as the quarter-feflions fliall direft; and, 
if a parent runs away, and leaves his children, the church¬ 
wardens and overfeers of the parifli fliall feize his rents, 
goods, and chattels, and difpofe of them towards their 
relief. By the interpretations which the courts of law 
have made upon thefe datutes, if a mother or grandmo¬ 
ther marries again, and was before fuch fecond marriage 
of fufficient ability to keep the child, the hufband fliall 
be charged to maintain it; for this, being a debt of her’s 
when Angle, dial!, like others, extend to charge the 
hufband. But, at her death, the relation being dilfolved, 
the liufband is under no farther obligation. 
No perfon is bound to provide a maintenance for his 
iflue, unlefs where the children are impotent and unable 
to work, either through infancy, difeafe, or accident; and 
then is only obliged to find them with necejfaries, the pe¬ 
nalty on refufal being no more than 20s. a month. For 
the policy of our laws, which are ever watchful to pro¬ 
mote indudry, did not mean to compel a father to main¬ 
tain his idle and lazy children in eafe and indolence j but 
ENT. 
thought itunjud to oblige the parent, againd his will, to 
provide them with fuperfluities, and other indulgences 
of fortune ; imagining they might trud to the impulfe of 
nature, if the children were deferving of fuch favours. 
Yet, as nothing is fo apt to Aide the calls of nature as re¬ 
ligious bigotry, it is enafted, that if any popifli parent 
fliall refufe to allow his protedant child a fitting mainte¬ 
nance, with a view to compel him to change his religion, 
the lord chancellor fliall, by order of court, condrain him 
to do what is jud and reafonable. But this did not ex¬ 
tend to perfons of another religion of no lefs bitternefs 
and bigotry than the popifli; and therefore, in the very 
next year, we find an indance of a Jew of immenfe riches,- 
whofe only daughter having embraced Chridianity, he 
turned her out of doors ; and, on her application for re¬ 
lief, it was held flie was entitled to none. But this gave 
occafion to another datute, which ordains, that if Jewifh 
parents refufe to allow their protedant children a fitting 
maintenance, fuitable to the fortune of the parent, the 
lord chancellor, on complaint, may make fuch order therein 
as he fliall fee proper. 
Our law has made no provifion to prevent the difinhe- 
riting of children by will ; leaving every man’s property 
in his own difpofal, upon a principle of liberty in this 
as well as every other aftion ; though perhaps it had not 
been amifs if the parent had been bound to leave them at 
the lead a neceflary fubfiltence. Indeed, among perfons 
of any rank or fortune, a competence is generally provi¬ 
ded for younger children, and the bulk of the eflate fet¬ 
tled upon the elded, by the marriage-articles. Heirs alfo, 
and children, are favourites of our courts of judice, and 
cannot be difinherited by any dubious or ambiguous 
words; there being required the utmod certainty of the 
teflator’s intentions to take away the right of an heir. 
2. From the duty of maintenance we may ealily pafs 
to that of protection; which is alfo a natural duty, but 
rather permitted than'enjoined by any municipal laws; 
nature, in this refpeft, working fo drongly as to need ra¬ 
ther a check than a fpur. A parent may, by outlaws, 
maintain and uphold his children in their law-fuits, with¬ 
out being guilty of the legal crime of maintaining quar¬ 
rels. A parent may alfo judify an aflault and battery in 
defence of the perfons of his children ; nay, where a man’s 
fon was beaten by another boy, and the father went near 
a mile to find him, and there revenged his fon’s quarrel 
by beating the other boy, of which beating he afterwards 
unfortunately died ; it was not held to be murder, but 
manflaughter merely. Such indulgencedoes the law fhow 
to the frailty of human nature, and the workings of pa¬ 
rental affeftion. 
3. The lad duty of parents to their children is that of 
giving them an education fuitable to their flarion in life : 
a duty pointed out by reafon, and of far the greated im¬ 
portance of any. For, as PuffendorA' very well obferves, 
it is not eafy to imagine or allow, that a parent has con¬ 
ferred any confiderable benefit upon his child by bringing 
him into the world, if he afterwards entirely neglefts 
his culture and education, and fuffers him to grow up 
like a mere bead, to lead a life ufelefs to others and fhame- 
ful to himfelf. Yet the municipal laws of mod countries 
feem to be defeftive in this point, by not conffraining 
the parent to bedow a proper education upon his chil¬ 
dren. Our laws, though their defefts in this particular 
cannot be denied, have in one indance made a wife pro¬ 
vifion for breeding up the riling generation; fince the 
poor and laborious part of the community, when pad the 
age of nurture, are taken out of the hands of their pa¬ 
rents, by the datutes for apprenticing poor children ; and 
are placed out by the public in fuch a manner as may 
render their abilities, in their feveral flations, of the 
greated .advantage to the commonwealth. (See the ar¬ 
ticle Apprentice.) The rich indeed are left at their 
own option, whether they will breed up their children 
to be ornaments or difgraces to their family. Yet in 
one cafe, that of religion, they are under peculiar reflric- 
1 tionsj 
