1000000031

1\1 O R A L

PHI L O S O P H Y.

293-

various

rebtioos, and main:áins the

order aod

fubordi.

aation

eaeh part tQ the wholeo Without it, focie:ty

would beeome a den of lhie,es and bandini, hoting and

hated,

devouriog

and devoured,

one another

ao' of. parti, ular feél, p.r'y, or na'.ion, bUl all in ge–

nerál wi,hoUl díflinaioo, aod wi,houl aoy of lhe Jiule

partÍ.li

,io. of fdf·love

Social

DulÍa

Ihe

COMMERCIAL

Kind.

TH' Dex' order of eonneélions are ,hofe whieh .rife

from ,he wao" and weaknef. of mankiod. and from lhe

",¡rious circuAlllances in which the;r different úruation!

place thcm. Thefe we may caH

com1lJtr(Ía/

comuflionJ .•

and Ihe duties whieh refuh from lhem

<ommereial du·

lill,

as juflice, .f.ir.dealing, liDeerity, fidelity

eom·

"aél., and the like.

. Thougb nature i. perf,él in aJl her works, yet fhe hu

obferoed a manifeCt and eminent dinioélion among them.

To all fl\.eh a.

Ji.

beyond ,he reaeh of human

/kili

and

power, aod are properJy of her own department, fhe has

giv.eo

.the 6oilhiog hand . Thefe man may

~efign

,fter

and imirate; b\lt he can nehber rival them. nor add

tbeir .beamy or perfeélion : fueh are the form. and

Chuélure of vegetabIes, animals, .and many o( their pro·

duélions. There are othero of her works which fhe ha.

of defign left uofinifhed.

&!I

ir wcre, in arder to cxcrcifc

Ih. ingeouilY and pow.r of man o She has prefented

him a rieh pro(u'on of materials of'eoery kind for hi.

<on...ieoey and ufe; bu, ,hey are rude and. unpolifhed,

or nor to be

COrDe

at Wltbout art and labo\l r. Thefe

there(ore he

m.fl

apply, In order

t.o

adapt lbem to hi,

u(e, and to enjoy them in perleélioD. Tbu. nature ha.

git'cn him an

iD60ite

variety of herbs,

graio, {offils,

mi–

aerals, wood, water, eanh, aod

thoufand other

crude

mllerial. tO fupply hi. numerou. wants. But he muQ

fów,

plant, dig,

refiDe,

polifh, build, aDd, in

(hort,

m':.~

Dufaélure the various 'Produce of nature. in crder. to ob·

taio

even

the

necelfarioo,

and

much more the convenien–

cica

'and degancies of Jife. T hefe,

then, are the

price

bis I,bour and indullry; and, without that.

natun:

wiIJ

feJl him no.hing. But

as tbe

wants of

m¡nkind afe ma–

"y,

and .he Gngle flrenglb of individu. ls

(m.II

, they

eould bardly 6nd ,he neec/rarie., aod mueh le(s ,he eon–

yeDieocies of life.

without

unitiag their

ingenu.ityand

fireogth

in aequiring thefe. and without a mutual ¡nter–

courfe of good oflie:s. Some men are better formed for

fome kinds o( ingenuilY and labour, and others' for o,her

Itiod.; aná different foila and clima". are enriehed

wi.th

differcn' produ.!liori. ; fo lhat meo. by rxehanging the pro·

duce 'of lheir refpeélive bbours, and (upplying

,h~

..aots

¡,f

one country with the fgperfluities of another, do,

in <frea, dimioifh the labou", of eaeh , and ine.reafe

the abund.oee o'f all. Thi. i. Ihe (oundation of all

commeree,

exchange of commodities aod goods one

with another; in crder to facilitate which, meo have

cootrived diffcrent fpecics of

COiD

mODey.

a com–

mon nand"d by ..hieh

eClima'e Ihe eomparative va·

lues

of. their

rerptll.ive

goodso But, to r'ender

eommtrtt

(ure . nd e/Feélual, jofiiee, (air·dealiog. fincerilY, and 6·

deli,y 'o eompaél. are ab(olu,e1y oeedrar,)'.

Ju{lice, or fair dealing, or, in other words, a difpo–

fition

treaLothcrs

we would be treatcd

theDl , is

a virtuc of the

tira

ímportance, and

inrepa

ra.bl

frorp the

.irtuo'Js c!u rzftero

¡s

th~

cem:nt of focicty! or th:u:

'pervadilJ1! fpid: whicb conncéis

members, ínfpircs iu

Sincerity

or veracity in

our words aod

¡élion. "

ano

otber "irtue: or duty

of great

importance to fociety,

be–

ing

one of

\he

great baods of

mutual

intercourre,

and

the foundation

mutual trullo

Without

it. fociety

would be the dominioo of miflrufl, jealoufy and fraud,

and eoo,erf.lioo a trafliek oflies Rod díffimul'lion .

i.–

eludes in ir a conformity of our words with our

{end.

ments, a eorre(poodeDee belWeeQ our aélíon. and difpofi–

tion.,

llria

regard

to truth,

and an

irrecoocileal>le

ab–

horrenee of falfthood. I't doe. not in<leed requjre lhu

we expofe our f••timen" indifereetly, or lell .11 ,he

truth in .every

care

but certainly

'does

Dot

and caonoe

admit

the leatl

riolation of

trulh, or

contradittion to

our

feolimenlS .. For if 'hefe bound. are oDee-palfed, DO pof.

lible limit can be affigned \Vblfe the violaliOD fhall flop

ánd no prelenee of

priv.te

or publie good can pollibly

counterbalanee ,he ill eOD(eqU<Dee, of fueh a ,iolatioD.

Fidelily to promife., ,eompaéls and engagment', is like–

wife a duty of fueh importaoee 'o· ,he (eeuri,y of eom·

merce and

interchange

of benevolence among mankind.

,hat foeiety would (oon grow iotolerable ",itho", ,he flriét

obfervanee of it. Hobbes, and olhers who follow ,he famo

<rack, ha.e taken a \Vorder(ul deal of paio. to puzzlelhi.

fubjeél, aod to make .11 the .inue. of lhi, fort m,erely

artificial,

aDd

not

obligatory, antecedent

human

eoov~ntions.

No doubt, eompaéls fuppofe people who

make them,

~nd

promifes fUPPOfe per(on. to whom .

lhey are made

and lherefore both (uppofe fome foeie–

more or lefs between thofe who toter

ioto

thefe ml:l–

tual

engagemeots. But is

Dot a compaél

promife

bindiog, tilJ men have agreed th.. lhey fhall be binding?

Or are they only

bindin~

beeaufe il i. our iOlereU

bnund by Ihem, or

fultill them ? D o no. we highly ap·

prove lhe man wbo

(cfill~

lhen" even ,hough they fhould

prove

to be agaioll his ¡nterell? Aod do not \Ve cODdemn

hím as a

knave,

who

violates

them on that account? A

promife;s a voJuntary deelaratíon, by

werds.

or byoan altion

equally figoi6eaol, 'of our re(ohition to do fometl>ing in be–

half

aootber, or for his fer"ice. WhCD a

I?romire

made, ,he perfon \Vho mak.. il is by all fuppofed under an

obligation to

perform

it;

afld he to whom

is made may

demand Ihe performance as hi, right. That perccptioo

cir

obligadon

a fimple

idea, and

is on

the

{ame

footing

u .

our o,her moral péreeplion., whieh· m.y be deferibed by

¡"tlances, but

canoot

be defincd. Whether \Ve have a

per• .

ceprion o( (ueh .obligarion q. ite diHind [rom lhe interen,

ei,her public or priva'e, _lha, may aecompany lhe [uI61-

ment ofit,

mull be re(crred

the

confcience

every in–

dividual. Aod, whelher the mere feo(e of lhat obligalion,

.pan

(rom its

cOQcomitants,

is not a fufficient inducernent

or motive

keep ooc's

promifc,

withou~

hning recourre

any fel 6fh principal of our narure, mufl be Iik.wife

appcalcd

lhe eonfcienee of evcry honefl manoFair

d~,l.

ing

and

6delity to

comra(ts

'qui.re

(hat

take'

, dv¡nuge

of the ignonnt.:c

p"ffion. or incap::tcity of

(ro

thtrs:, from

whatcvcr canfe: lhat inca pacity

arifes

;-thal

\Ve be txplieíl and e,ndiJ in m,king bar&ain., ju:t anel

failh ful