第45章
And, I further say, if so much Land were continually added, and so well improv'd as to keep these Points (viz. the Wages of the labouring Man, and Price of Necessaries for the Support of a Family) together, Trade could never stand in need of any other Care or Concern of any government, let the Subjects carry it on in whatever Way or Manner they possibly could.(38*) For if the Trade were so gainful, as to increase the Cash amongst the People, in greater Proportion than the People increase, the Prices of Things would only become higher in such Proportion. And if the Cash decreased (which, by the way, I believe would be impossible) as then more of the People must fall into Tillage, etc. from a Want of Business, which is the necessary Consequence of a much greater Importation of Foreign, than Exportation of our own Commodities; so employing the People this Way, would bring down the Prices of Things to the cash amongst them (i.e. to their proper value), and would soon, by making their Produce and Goods so much cheaper, enable them to export more of their own, and import less foreign Goods, and thereby recover their foreign and maritime Trade.
Thus the Flux and Reflux of Trade, which we hence see is all govern'd by Money, or, in other Words, by the Prices Goods of all Kinds bear in each Nation, with respect to the Prices of the same Kinds of Goods in each other Nation, would infallibly furnish as much Employment and Happiness, as the State of Mankind is capable of. And thus would Government answer up to the Felicity, Mankind wisely sought by uniting themselves into such Bodies and Societies. Nor could this possibly fail of making Mankind thus happy, unless the Defect be in the Constitution of the World it self to answer the End. And I think none, that have any just Sentiments of the Perfections of the Deity, will ever suppose that.
O happy Time! when shall it once be, that Princes and great Men of the World will let Mankind thus naturally employ, and make themselves happy! And thus suffering them to support themselves, remove much of the Misery of the World, and together introduce Knowledge, and Prudence, and Virtue in much larger Degrees than at present! For Ignorance and Vice are almost inseparably connected with Poverty and Want. The Destruction of the Poor is their Poverty.
FinisNOTES:
1. William Nichols, D.D. in his Conference with a Theist, Page 64. says, To consider farther, how mightily this Nation of ours hath increased within a Century or two; notwithstanding the many civil and external Wars, and those vast Drains of People that have been made into our Plantations since the Discovery of America: How the City of London hath doubled itself within these forty Years, notwithstanding the last great Plague, and how the Country hath increased, though not in the like, yet in a considerable Proportion, etc.
2. I take this from Dr Nichols.
3. This is a certain Rule to know when the Ballance of Trade is for or against us with any Nation.
4. Timber hath been pretty reasonable these 2 or 3 Years past, which I suppose to be entirely owing to an extraordinary Destruction of it, the Gentlemen cutting it down in greater Quantities than usual, because the Farmers in general have not been able to pay their Rents as formerly.
5. By the Bills of Mortality of the Year 1730, which by the preceding and succeeding Years appears to be a moderate Year, there died in London and Westminister and the Suburbs thereof, under 2 Years old: 10368 persons; the medium which age is 1 year makes amongst them 10368 years.
By the Number of Deaths 26761, divide the Years they lived 623713, and 23 Years and about 1/3, according to the Bill of Mortality, appears to be the Par Term of human Life; multiply the Deaths by this Term, shews the Number of People living in the Bills of Mortality to be about 624,423 Persons; and if we suppose the Houses one with another to contain 10 Souls, then the Number of Houses inhabited will be 62,442. Now the London Evening Post of January 2, 1732-3, says upwards of 8000 Houses, according to Account lately taken are empty in London, Westminister, and Places with the Bills of Mortality; most of which, let at an Average at about 20 l. per Annum; at which Rate there is upwards of 160,000 l. Rent yearly lost in the Bills of Mortality, more than a ninth Part of the whole Building being empty. By this Bill of Mortality it also appears, that more than half the human Race die under 10 Years of Age; and if we consider the Number of young Persons, under and over this age, who live to supply the Places of those that die, in all the Stages of LIfe above this Term, there can be no doubt that Children make about half the Business of the World as I have asserted. And tho' it appears by this Bill of Mortality that the Term of Life, on the Par, is about 49Years, excluding all those that die at 20 Years and under, yet Ican't imagine the Term Men have to raise and provide for Families in the Marriage State doth much exceed 20 years, since it's pretty certain Marriages in general commence a few Years at least later than the Age of 20 years, and are undoubtedly generally dissolved by the Death of one of the Parties before they both reach the Term of 49 Years.
6. I am not unsensible that Mr Derham in his Pysico-Theology shews that the Deaths in London as in most great Cities are greater than the Births, whence an Objection may seem to arise to the Increase abovementioned, which I think is of no Weight, because if a Nation will absolutely double themselves in about 360 Years, notwithstanding Wars and Plagues, Cities must do so too; nay it's plain by what Dr Nichols says, London increased at so much greater Rate as to Double itself in 40 Years, notwithstanding the last great Plague which happened in that Period.