第5章

Any general character，from the best to the worst，from the most ignorant to the most enlightened，may be given to any community，even to the world at large，by the application of proper means；

which means are to a great extent at the command and under the control of those who have influence in the affairs of men.

According to the last returns under the Population Act，the poor and working classes of Great Britain and Ireland have been found to exceed fifteen millions of persons，or nearly three-fourths of the population of the British Islands.

The characters of these persons are now permitted to be very generally formed without proper guidance or direction，and，in many cases，under circumstances which directly impel them to a course of extreme vice and misery；thus rendering them the worst and most dangerous subjects in the empire；while the far greater part of the remainder of the community are educated upon the most mistaken principles of human nature，such，indeed，as cannot fail to produce a general conduct throughout society，totally unworthy of the character of rational beings.

The first thus unhappily situated are the poor and the uneducated profligate among the working classes，who are now trained to commit crimes，for the commission of which they are afterwards punished.

The second is the remaining mass of the population，who are now instructed to believe，or at least to acknowledge，that certain principles are unerringly true，and to act as though they were grossly false；thus filling the world with folly and inconsistency，and making society，throughout all its ramifications，a scene of insincerity and counteraction.

In this state the world has continued to the present time；

its evils have been and are continually increasing；they cry aloud for efficient corrective measures，which if we longer delay，general disorder must ensue.

But，'say those who have not deeply investigated the subject，'attempts to apply remedies have been often made，yet all of them have failed.The evil is now of a magnitude not to be controlled；the torrent is already too strong to be stemmed；and we can only wait with fear or calm resignation to see it carry destruction in its course，by confounding all distinctions of right and wrong.'

Such is the language now held，and such are the general feelings on this most important subject.

These，however，if longer suffered to continue，must lead to the most lamentable consequences.Rather than pursue such a course，the character of legislators would be infinitely raised，if，forgetting the petty and humiliating contentions of sects and parties，they would thoroughly investigate the subject，and endeavour to arrest and overcome these mighty evils.

The chief object of these Essays is to assist and forward investigations of such vital importance to the well-being of this country，and of society in general.

The view of the subject which is about to be given has arisen from extensive experience for upwards of twenty years，during which period its truth and importance have been proved by multiplied experiments.That the writer may not be charged with precipitation or presumption，he has had the principle and its consequences examined，scrutinized，and fully canvassed，by some of the most learned，intelligent，and competent characters of the present day：who，on every principle of duty as well as of interest，if they had discovered error in either，would have exposed it -but who，on the contrary，have fairly acknowledged their incontrovertible truth and practical importance.

Assured，therefore，that his principles are true，he proceeds with confidence，and courts the most ample and free discussion of the subject；courts it for the sake of humanity -for the sake of his fellow creatures millions of whom experience sufferings which，were they to be unfolded，would compel those who govern the world to exclaim -'Can these things exist and we have no knowledge of them？'but they do exist and even the heart-rending statements which are made known to the public during the discussions upon negro-slavery，do not exhibit more afflicting scenes than those which，in various parts of the world，daily arise from the injustice of society towards itself；from the inattention of mankind to the circumstances which incessantly surround them；and from the want of a correct knowledge of human nature in those who govern and control the affairs of men.

If these circumstances did not exist to an extent almost incredible，it would be unnecessary now to contend for a principle regarding Man，which scarcely requires more than to be fairly stated to make it self-evident.

This principle is，that 'Any general character，from the best to the worst，from the most ignorant to the most enlightened，may be given to any community，even to the world at large，by the application of proper means，'which means are to a great extent at the command and under the control of those who have influence in the affairs of men，'

The principle as now stated is a broad one，and，if it should be found to be true，cannot fail to five a new character to legislative proceedings，and such a character as will be most favourable to the well-being of society.

That this principle is true to the utmost limit of the terms，is evident from the experience of all past ages，and from every existing fact.