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C.
3.
Of Preventive Institutions.
"of you and what you will be able to perform, if you understand
"your business art in the degree in which you we expect you might
"and should ought to understand it, is to teach us how to prevent
"these propensities from ever being formed — The business is to
"crop nip them in the bud, not to let them stay till they have
"born fruit — Do this or You do nothing." — Such is the task
which the well-meant but inconsiderate zeal of philanthropists
would impose upon the reforming legislator.
In point of fact however Nature, I fear, is not so
rich in her resources nor so lavish in her favours as these
sanguine philanthropists seem to imagine. If so, since the
keeping ourselves bent upon grasping at what is beyond
our reach serves only to make us neglect what is before
our eyes, it may be of use if men can be taught to repress
these hankerings after unattainable perfection: they
may then be induced to confine their views and expectations
to the adoption and improvement of such
plain and homely expedients as the nature of men and
things furnishes for the approaching as near as may be
to the accomplishment of such commendable views.
They may learn to be
more indulgent in their
judgements of they pass on the conduct
of those who act at
the helm of state.
Next to the gratifying a wish is the satisfying a
man, when such is happens to be the case, that the gratification of it is
impracticable
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Identifier: | JB/087/012/003 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 87.
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087 |
indirect legislation |
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012 |
of preventive institutions |
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003 |
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copy/fair copy sheet |
4 |
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recto |
f1 / f2 / f3 / f4 |
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[[watermarks::[gr with crown] propatria [britannia with lion motif]]] |
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27537 |
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