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INDIRECT LEGISLATION. Instance—Gin-Drinking. [BR][5]
1
Gin is a liquor, that which when drunk to excess [intoxicates
at the time: and by frequent intoxication
enervates and at length] destroys the constitution.
To some men Intoxication, to some men while it lasts, is pleasing.
Time was when it was cheap in England—
It was drunk to excess, and misery and much wretchedness and visible depopulation
were the consequence. The Legislature
saw this wretchedness and lamented it—
What was What said they is the cause? the Excessive liquor drinking of this
liquor—How was it to be remedied? What then would be the remedy? by willing will
that the liquor should no longer be so drunken.
Here then was found the primary will [formed [in this behalf]
Here was found the declaratory part form the substantive of a Law forbidding
it—Drink not this liquor to excess.
What was
But send this precept precept abroad into the world, among the people was
it likely to be obey'd? No, certainly Men were too wedded to the habit to be driven from it by a word—Adressed to an unfeeling of what should with respect to the person to whom it is adressed populace, [with propensities thus strong to cope with] may not combat by propensities thus powerful, a naked Direction, would be but an object of derision—To do any thing, it must be compleated into a Law —. It with this part
of it only would be and imperfect
it must sanctional be furnished with a sanction — with a sanction: denouncing Punishment Now then with what sort of
sanction? [how to be applied?] to whom taken
adressed? To the person whose act it is that
it is purposed to prevent? That would be in vain.
3
When the Indirect plan of Legislation is adopted
that is when the sanction secondary will employ'd brought together other than one is not that
which can is be advised to him whose conduct
is in the scope of the directing primary will sent to regulate.
The primary will remains in fetters It governs the measures of the Legislator: that is it assigns the of the several auxiliary wills that are to be brought forth to supply the place of which the secondary will would regularly have occupied; but it is not,
at least it is not necessarily, promulgated to
the people.
[Now then to whom else?]
The Legislature must betake itself to another The attack must be made upon some other quarter.
This poison, when once it gets to his a
man's throat, there is no help for it—down, if
he pleases, it must go—But whence does he get it comes
it to him? Is it elaborated by his own organs, like
a milk? or does it drop from heaven, like
the rain? No—heaven is too gracious, to be thus
bountiful—Thus then, argues with himself the Legislator:
gets it from some one else.
He gets it from the publican—And how? By paying for it And whence
the Publican? from the Distiller—and how? In
the same manner. And how
the Distiller? He makes it — And how gets he
it from the Publican?—by paying for it and
for the Publican from the Distiller? In the same
2
For Punishment to be applied, somebody
must know that the act which is to be punished has
been committed done—The Judge must know it—
But Who shall know whether he a man has drunken drunk to excess?
Who shall know unless he pleases, whether
he has drunk at all? What is excess? is it
the same to this man, as to that man, & to a
3d? It is Certainly not—. Who then shall say what
it is to each man?
To provide a sanction —a Punishment thus adressed would therefore
be to no purpose —because the Punishment
never could be inflicted:—and if never inflicted
(since it would be perpetually incurred) the offence never being to be known to have been incurred, would be known
never to be inflicted: & if known never to be inflicted
it would be as nothing. This sanctional part
therefore [of the Law in supposition] would do nothing
for the directory: and the directory part of
itself would do nothing—It would be the same and For the same reasons
with any other sanctional which like this should
be adressed to the Offender — the Offend If therefore he is
at all to be influenced by the Law it must be
by means of a Sanction adressed to some one else.
4
manner With what then pay they for it? with
Thus did the Legislature betake themselves to
play off the political sanction against this
destructive shameful habit custom—Hogarth meantime with admirable
spirit and ingenuity plead off the Moral:
Doctrines Here and there perhaps a Divine, the Religious:
And it is to be feared with less success than either.
Howsoever it was, or whether it was that some
Phineas pray'd, God however was propitious,
and the plague staid ceased.
money—Now then to pay for it the consumer has a certain quantity
of this money to pay for it with— Certainly
& no more—no more—. And for this certain quantity
of money the publican is in use to good sell
him a certain quantity of Gin—Just so.
If then for this quantity of Gin money the Publican
should refuse to give sell more than half the
quantity of Gin refuse to sell it him but for that having the price for which he used to sell him the whole? would the consumer any
longer get the whole? No, it should seem but half. And could he sell more than this half-quantity for the price in question should the Distiller
And if should the Distiller refuse to sell the half
quantity to the Publican, but at the price he
before used to take pay for the whole.
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