Chapter VII · (continued 3)

These things ought to serve as a lesson to our political rulers. They ought also to moderate the presumption of legislators, and teach them that their best measures are but temporary expedients, which it will be the business of a later and riper age to efface. It would be well if such considerations were to check the confidence, and silence the loquacity, of those superficial men, who, raised to temporary power, think themselves bound to guarantee certain institutions, and uphold certain opinions. They ought clearly to understand, that it does not lie within their function thus to anticipate the march of affairs, and provide for distant contingencies. In trifling matters, indeed, this may be done without danger; though, as the constant changes in the laws of every country abundantly prove, it is also done without benefit. But in reference to those large and fundamental measures which bear upon the destiny of a people, such anticipation is worse than useless,—it is highly injurious. In the present state of knowledge, politics, so far from being a science, is one of the most backward of all the arts; and the only safe course for the legislator is, to look upon his craft as consisting in the adaptation of temporary contrivances to temporary emergencies.[951] His business is to follow the age, and not at all to attempt to lead it. He should be satisfied with studying what is passing around him; and should modify his schemes, not according to the notions he has inherited from his fathers, but according to the actual exigencies of his own time. For he may rely upon it, that the movements of society have now become so rapid, that the wants of one generation are no measure of the wants of another; and that men, urged by a sense of their own progress, are growing weary of idle talk about the wisdom of their ancestors, and are fast discarding those trite and sleepy maxims which have hitherto imposed upon them, but by which they will not consent to be much longer troubled.

Footnotes:

END OF THE FIRST VOLUME.

LONDON: PRINTED BY SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE AND PARLIAMENT STREET

Transcriber's Note

The original spelling and minor inconsistencies in the spelling and formatting have been maintained.

Inconsistent hyphenation and accents are as in the original if not marked as a misprint.

The table below lists all corrections applied to the original text.

p. v: -5 → 4–5

p. vi: 154–156 → 152–156

p. xi: the authorship → the authorship.

p. xvii: his Life, written by Himself. → himself.

p. xix: edit. Meibomius. Amstel. → Amstel,

p. xxi: Diplomatie Erançaise → Française

p. xxi: London, 1818. 2 vols → vols.

p. xxviii: A Journey though → through

p. xxxvi: of 1569. London, 1840 → 1840.

p. xxxviii: Literature. London, 1849 → 1849.

p. xli: The Journals of. London → The Journals of London

p. xlii: Camd. Soc. 1848 4to → 1848. 4to.

p. 22: not always absolutely, → absolutely.

p. 40: vol. vi. p. 136. → 136,

p. 54: with the greater rapidity. → rapidity.’

p. 57: one and a half per cent. → cent

p. 60: Carus' Comparative Anatomy → Carus's

p. 64: when it is over-supplied → over-supplied.

p. 64: ‘Cabanis → '‘Cabanis’

p. 64: Burckhardt's Travels in Arabia → Arabia,

p. 64: Déscrition → Description

p. 64: Ulloa' → Ulloa's

p. 64: vol. i. pp. 379, 380, 460,; → 460;

p. 66: Phillip's on Scrofula → Phillips

p. 69: So too, in North America → So, too, in North America

p. 70: Theatre of the Indus → Hindus

p. 72: Craufurd's History → Crawfurd's History

p. 72: Journal of Geograph. Society, vol → vol.

p. 72: l'AmériqueMéridionale → l'Amérique Méridionale

p. 80: he be divested? → divested?’

p. 84: 170, 213; Bowditch → Bowdich

p. 94: throughout, the laying → 'throughout

p. 97: in nearly 9° north. → north.’

p. 97: p.113. → p. 113.

p. 103: vol. ii. p. 113, → vol. ii. p. 113;

p. 108: was 21°,on the → was 21°, on the

p. 109: of elevation. → elevation.’

p. 111: l.'Humboldt → l'Humboldt

p. 113: belonged to the people. → people.’

p. 119: natural progress → natural progress.

p. 122: Brit. Assoc. for 1850, p. 68; → p. 68);

p. 123: comme Science d' Observation → d'Observation

p. 126: they apprehend danger. → danger.’

p. 126: Garrows or Garrudus. → Garrudus.’

p. 130: vol. i. p. 41; → 41,

p. 130: Phillips on Scrofula, p. 255: → 255;

p. 133: Religiöse Bildung der Hindus, vol → vol.

p. 135: Asiatic Researches → Asiatic Researches.

p. 137: Speculationen über Zahlen → ‘Speculationen

p. 143: Müller's Hist → Müller's Hist.

p. 147: Stephen's Central America → Stephens's

p. 148: Béclard. → Béclard,

p. 150: The views of Liebeg → Liebig

p. 158: can be raised → can be raised.

p. 158: Locke's Works, vol. i, → vol. i.

p. 164: generalized solely from from the → solely from the

p. 167: ich mir noch and ere → andere

p. 170: Asiatic Researches, vol. iii, → vol. iii.

p. 171: promises the metphysicians → metaphysicians

p. 177: Geoffroy Saint Hilaire → Saint-Hilaire

p. 177: Hist. de la Médecine, vol. i. p. 380; → p. 380,

p. 183: vol. ii. p. 304 → 304.

p. 193: Ideen zur Gesckichte → Ideen zur Geschichte

p. 197: l'intelligence, la seule q'uon → qu'on

p. 205: and a dagger → dagger.

p. 207: sur ce sujet. → sujet.’

p. 208: became clearly recognied → recognized

p. 211: balancing of trade. → trade.’

p. 212: Mill's History of India, vol → vol.

p. 215: pp. 834, 905 → 905,

p. 249: Nichol's Literary Illustrations → Nichols's,

p. 256: le plus éclairé. → éclairé.’

p. 267: Geschichte der Philosophie, vol. ii, → vol. ii.

p. 293: vol. iii. pp. 383. → 383,

p. 294: Œuvresde → Œuvres de

p. 295: Poetry, 1840 → 1840,

p. 302: have for upwards of 2000 years → 2,000 years

p. 302: extending back 3000 years → 3,000 years

p. 304: from Madagascar to within 2000 miles → 2,000 miles

p. 304: in Polynesia Proper → proper

p. 310: Troyens, par Pàris → Paris

p. 314: vol. ii. p. 389 → 389.

p. 315: prædicatorem,’ p. 360 → 360.

p. 325: progress was unmistakeable → unmistakable

p. 330: of mathematics at Tubingen → Tübingen

p. 332: Biog. Univ. → Biog. Univ.,

p. 342: ‘Quodque in illis → Quodque in illis

p. 358: pp. 572, 577 → 577.

p. 375: Richardson's Travels in the Sahara, vol. i. p 11 → p. 11

p. 378: Cudworth's Intellect → Intellect.

p. 379: affected by uncontrolable → uncontrollable

p. 389: In another place, vol → vol.

p. 392: Chalmers' Biographical → Chalmers's

p. 393: Chalmers' Biog. → Chalmers's Biog.

p. 397: vol. ii. pp. 52. → 52,

p. 404: September 1688 (Ellis → Ellis,

p. 409: Parl. Hist. vol. v → vol. v.

p. 411: vol. ii. pp. 640. → p. 640.

p. 412: 72 Calamy → 172 Calamy

p. 423: Southey's Wesley, pp → pp.

p. 425: Whateley's Dangers → Whately's

p. 426: Hist.of Moral → Hist. of Moral

p. 429: eighteenth century. Proviously → Previously

p. 434: vol. ii. p. 29), it become → became

p. 437: with plenty of ‘parentheses’! → ‘parentheses!’

p. 442: such efforts to instil → instill

p. 445: Mahon's Hist. of England, vol. v → vol. v.

p. 447: So too Lord Campbell → So, too, Lord Campbell

p. 449: rectitude of their hearts. → hearts.’

p. 451: Dutens' Mémoires → Dutens's

p. 453: So too Sheridan → So, too, Sheridan

p. 465: the very sound of them. → them.’

p. 467: vol. i. pp. 43. → 43,

p. 468: Buckingham's Mem. of George III. 1853. → 1853,

p. 474: the united sovereigns → ‘the united sovereigns

p. 475: a long war. → war.’

p. 477: Bisset's Life of Burke, vol → vol.

p. 480: ‘Without stopping to relate → Without stopping to relate

p. 481: vol. i. p. 352, → vol. i. p. 352;

p. 481: says 139,171,876l → 139,171,876l.

p. 487: Stephen's Mem. of → Stephens's

p. 493: immediately assented, p. 385–387. → pp. 385–387.

p. 494: Stephens's Mem. of Tooke, vol → vol.

p. 494: Compare Fox's statment → statement

p. 494: to erect every man,not → man, not

p. 494: Mem. of Horne Tooke → Mem. of Horne Tooke,

p. 496: See also vol. xxxv. p. 609, 610. → pp. 609, 610.