Part 23

[Footnote 222: Robertson, _op. cit._ i. 47 _sq._ Millar, _op. cit._ p. 276 _sqq._]

[Footnote 223: Decrusy, Isambert, and Jourdan, _Recueil général des anciennes lois françaises_, iii. 102 _sqq._]

[Footnote 224: Muratori, _op. cit._ i. 234 _sq._ _Idem_, _Rerum Italicarum scriptores_, xviii. 268, 292.]

[Footnote 225: Biot, _op. cit._ p. 318 _sqq._ Saco, _Historia de la esclavitud_, iii. 241 _sqq._]

[Footnote 226: Ward, _Enquiry into the Foundation and History of the Law of Nations in Europe_, i. 298 _sq._ Babington, _op. cit._ p. 147. Ayala, _De jure et officiis bellicis_, i. 5. 19. In the sixteenth century the statutes of some Italian towns make mention of the sale of slaves, who probably were Turkish captives (Nys, _Le droit de la guerre et les précurseurs de Grotius_, p. 140).]

This transformation has been traced to the diminished supply of slaves, which made it the interest of each family to preserve indefinitely its own hereditary slaves, and to keep up their number by the method of propagation. The existence and physical well-being of the slave became consequently an object of greater value to his master, and the latter found it most profitable to attach his slaves to certain pieces of land.[227] Moreover, the cultivation of the ground required that the slaves should have a fixed residence in different parts of the master's estate, and when a slave had thus been for a long time engaged in a particular farm, he was so much the better qualified to continue in the management of it for the future. By degrees he therefore came to be regarded as belonging to the stock upon the ground, and was disposed of as a part of the estate which he had been accustomed to cultivate.[228]

[Footnote 227: Storch, _Cours d'économie politique_, iv. 260. Ingram, _op. cit._ p. 72.]

[Footnote 228: Millar, _op. cit._ p. 263 _sqq._]

But serfdom itself was merely a transitory condition destined to lead up to a state of entire liberty. As the proprietor of a large estate could not oversee the behaviour of his villeins, scattered over a wide area of land, the only means of exciting their industry would be to offer them a reward for the work which they performed. Thus, besides the ordinary maintenance allotted {702} to them, they frequently obtained a part of the profits, and became capable of having separate property.[229] In many cases this no doubt enabled the serf to purchase his liberty out of his earnings;[230] whilst in others the master would have an interest in allowing him to pay a fixed rent and to retain the surplus for himself. The landlord was then freed from the hazard of accidental losses, and obtained not only a certain, but frequently an additional, revenue from his land, owing to the greater exertions of cultivators who worked for their own benefit;[231] and at the same time the personal subjection of the peasants naturally came to an end, as it was of no consequence to the landlord how they conducted themselves provided that they punctually paid the rents. Nor was there any reason to insist that they should remain in the farm longer than they pleased; for the profits it afforded made them commonly not more willing to leave it than the proprietor was to put them away.[232] Another factor which led to the disappearance of serfdom was the encouragement which Sovereigns, always jealous of the great lords, gave to the villeins to encroach upon their authority.[233] We have convincing proof that in England, before the end of Edward III.'s reign, the villeins found themselves sufficiently powerful to protect one another, and to withhold their ancient and accustomed services from their lord.[234] In Germany, again, the landlords sometimes furnished their villeins with arms to defend the cause of their master, and this undoubtedly tended to their enfranchisement, as persons who are taught to use and allowed to possess weapons will soon make {703} themselves respected.[235] A great number of villeins also shook off the fetters of their servitude by fleeing for refuge to some chartered town,[236] where they became free at once,[237] or, more commonly, after a certain stipulated period--a year and a day,[238] or more;[239] and it seems, besides, that the rapid disappearance of serfdom in the prospering free towns indirectly, by way of example, promoted the enfranchisement of rural serfs.[240] There are, further, instances of lords liberating their villeins at the intercession of their spiritual confessors, the clergy availing themselves of every opportunity to lessen the formidable power of their great rivals, the temporal nobility.[241] But the influence which the Church exercised in favour of the enfranchisement of serfs was even less than her share in the abolition of slavery proper.[242] She represented serfdom as a divine institution,[243] as a school of humility, as a road to future glory.[244] She was herself the greatest {704} serf-holder;[245] and so strenuously did she persist in retaining her villeins, that after Voltaire had raised his powerful outcry in favour of liberty and Louis XVI. himself had been induced to abolish "the right of servitude" in consideration of "the love of humanity," the Church still refused to emancipate her serfs.[246] But whilst the cause of freedom owes little to the Christian Church, it owes so much the more to the feelings of humanity and justice in some of her opponents.

[Footnote 229: Millar, _op. cit._ p. 264. Simonde de Sismondi, _Histoire des républiques italiennes du moyen âge_, xvi. 365 _sq._ Guérard, _Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres_, i. p. xli. Dunham, _History of the Germanic Empire_, i. 230.]

[Footnote 230: See Vinogradoff, _Villainage in England_, p. 87; Pollock and Maitland, _History of English Law before the Time of Edward I._ i. 36, 427.]

[Footnote 231: Adam Smith, _Wealth of Nations_, p. 173. Millar, _op. cit._ p. 267 _sqq._ Mill, _Principles of Political Economy_, i. 309, 311. Dunham, _op. cit._ i. 228 _sq._ On the inefficiency of slave labour, see also Storch, _op. cit._ iv. 275 _sqq._]

[Footnote 232: Millar, _op. cit._ p. 269 _sq._]

[Footnote 233: Adam Smith, _Wealth of Nations_, p. 173.]

[Footnote 234: Eden, _State of the Poor_, i. 30.]

[Footnote 235: Dunham, _op. cit._ i. 229.]

[Footnote 236: Guibertus de Novigento, 'De vita sua,' in Bouquet, _Rerum Gallicarum et Franciarum scriptores_, xii. 257. 'Fragmentum historicum vitam Ludovici VII. summatim complectens,' _ibid._ xii. 286. Beaumanoir, _op. cit._ xlv. 36, vol. ii. 237. Eden, _op. cit._ i. 30. Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 531 _sq._ Saco, _op. cit._ iii. 252.]

[Footnote 237: Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 532.]

[Footnote 238: Glanville, _Tractates de Legibus et Consuetudinibus Regni Angliæ_, v. 5. Bracton, _De Legibus et Consuetudinibus Angliæ_, fol. 198 b, vol. iii. 292 _sq._ Beaumanoir, _op. cit._ xlv. 36, vol. ii. 237. Pollock and Maitland, _op. cit._ i. 429, 648 _sq._ Grimm, _Deutsche Rechtsalterthümer_, p. 337 _sq._ Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 532.]

[Footnote 239: Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 532.]

[Footnote 240: _Ibid._ vii. 533 _sq._]

[Footnote 241: Thomas Smith, _Common-wealth of England_, p. 250. Eden, _op. cit._ i. 10. Sugenheim, _Geschichte der Aufhebung der Leibeigenschaft und Hörigkeit in Europa_, p. 109.]

[Footnote 242: _Cf._ Rivière, _op. cit._ p. 511. Babington says (_op. cit._ p. 148 _sq._) that in the five-hundred pages of Wilkins' _Concilia_, which comprise the ecclesiastical documents of the British churches in the thirteenth century, we only find the following regulations concerning the unfree population:--that neither freemen nor villeins are to be impeded in making their wills when death approaches; that monks are not to alienate their less useful slaves (_famulos_); that Jews are not allowed to possess Christian slaves.--It was said that "he puts a disgrace on God who raises a villein above his station" (_ibid._ p. 150).]

[Footnote 243: Adalbero, _Carmen ad Rotbertum regem Francorum_, 291, 292, 297 _sqq._ (Bouquet, _op. cit._ x. 70):--"Thesaurus, vestis, cunctis sunt pascua servi. Nam valet ingenuus sine servis vivere nullus. . . . Triplex ergo Dei domus est, quæ creditur una. Nunc orant alii; pugnant; aliique laborant: Quæ tria sunt simul, et scissuram non patiuntur." St. Bonaventura, quoted by Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 522:--"Non solum secundum humanam institutionem, sed etiam secundum divinam dispensationem, inter Christianos sunt domini et servi."]

[Footnote 244: Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 523.]

[Footnote 245: Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 524.]

[Footnote 246: Hettner, _Geschichte der französischen Literatur im achtzehnten Jahrhundert_, p. 169. Babington, _op. cit._ p. 108. Sugenheim, _op. cit._ p. 156 _sqq._ Laurent, _op. cit._ vii. 537 _sq._]

* * * * *

Not long after serfdom had begun to disappear in the most advanced communities of Christendom a new kind of slavery was established in the colonies of European states. It grew up under circumstances particularly favourable to the employment of slaves. Whether slave labour or free labour is more profitable to the employer depends on the wages of the free labourer, and these again depend on the numbers of the labouring population compared with the capital and the land. In the rich and underpeopled soil of the West Indies and in the Southern States of America the balance of the profits between free and slave labour was on the side of slavery. Hence slavery was introduced there, and flourished, and could be abolished only with the greatest difficulty.[247]

[Footnote 247: Mill, _Principles of of Political Economy_, i. 311.]

From a moral point of view negro slavery is interesting chiefly because it existed in the midst of a highly developed Christian civilisation, and nevertheless, at least in the British colonies and the United States, was the most brutal form of slavery ever known. It may be worth while to consider more closely some points of the legislation relating to it.

In America, as elsewhere, the state of slavery was hereditary. The child of a female slave was itself a slave and belonged to the owner of its mother even if its father was a freeman, whereas the child of a free woman was {705} free even if its father was a slave.[248] When the slave-trade was prohibited, heredity remained the only legitimate source of slavery; but even then a freeborn negro was far from safe. In the British colonies and in all the Slave States except one, every negro was presumed to be a slave until he could prove the reverse.[249] A man who, within the limits of a slave-holding State, could exhibit a person of African extraction in his custody was exempted from all necessity of making proof how he had obtained him or by what authority he claimed him as a slave. Nay more, through the direct action of Congress it became law that persons known to be free should be sold as slaves in order to cover the costs of imprisonment which they had suffered on account of the false suspicion that they were runaway slaves. This law was repeatedly put into effect. "How many crowned despots," says Professor von Hoist, "can be mentioned in the history of the old world who have done things which compare in accursedness with this law to which the democratic republic gave birth?"[250]

[Footnote 248: Stroud, _Laws relating to Slavery in the United States of America_, p. 16 _sqq._ Cobb, _Inquiry into the Law of Negro Slavery in the United States of America_, p. 68. Stephen, _Slavery of the British West India Colonies_, i. 122. _Code Noir_, Édit du mois de Mars 1685, art. 13, p. 35 _sq._; Édit donné au mois de Mars 1724, art. 10, p. 288 _sq._ In Maryland, according to an early enactment, which obtained till the year 1699 or 1700, all the children born of a slave were slaves "as their fathers were" (Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 14 _sqq._). In Cuba the nobler parent determined the rank of the offspring (Newman, _Anglo-Saxon Abolition of Negro Slavery_, p. 17).]

[Footnote 249: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 369 _sq._ Stroud, _op. cit._ pp. 125, 126, 130. Cobb, _op. cit._ p. 67. Wheeler, _Treatise on the Law of Slavery_, p. 5.]

[Footnote 250: von Holst, _Constitutional and Political History of the United States_, i. 305.]

Slaves were defined as "chattels personal in the hands of their respective owners or possessors, and their executors, administrators, and assigns, to all intents and purposes whatsoever."[251] In the British colonies and the American Slave States they were at all times liable to be sold or otherwise alienated at the will of their masters, as absolutely as cattle, or any other personal effects. They were {706} also liable to be sold by process of law for satisfaction of the debts of a living, or the debts or bequests of a deceased master, at the suit of creditors or legatees. They were transmitted by inheritance or by will to heirs at law or to legatees, and in the distribution of estates they were distributed like other property.[252] No regard was paid to family ties. Except in Louisiana, where children under ten years of age could not be sold separately from their mothers,[253] no law existed to prevent the violent separation of parents from their children or from each other.[254] And what the law did not prevent, the slave-owners did not omit doing; thus Virginia was known as a breeding place out of which the members of one household were sold into every part of the country.[255] All this, however, holds true of the British colonies and Slave States only. In the Spanish, Portuguese, and French colonies plantation slaves were real estate, attached to the soil they cultivated. They partook therewith of all the restraints upon voluntary alienation to which the possessor of the land was there liable, and they could not be seized or sold by creditors, for satisfaction of the debts of the owner.[256] As regards the sale of members of the same family the Code Noir expressly says, "Ne pourront être saisis et vendus séparément, le mari et la femme, et leurs enfans impubéres, s'ils sont tous sous la puissance du même Maître."[257] A slave could make no contract; he could not even contract marriage, in the juridical sense of the word. The association which took place among slaves and was called marriage was virtually the same as the Roman _contubernium_, a relation which had no sanctity and to which no civil rights were attached.[258] The master could whenever {707} he liked separate the "husband" and "wife"; he could, if he pleased, commit "adultery" with the "wife," and was the absolute owner of all the children born by her. A slave had "no more legal authority over his child than a cow has over her calf." On the other hand, the common rules of sexual morality were not enforced on the slaves. They were not admonished for incontinence, nor punished for adultery, nor prosecuted for bigamy. Incontinence was rather thought a matter of course in the slave. We are told that even in Puritan New England female slaves in ministers' and magistrates' families bore children, black or yellow, without marriage, that no one inquired who their fathers were, and that nothing more was thought of it than of the breeding of sheep or swine. And concerning the "slave-quarters" connected with the plantations the universal testimony was that the sexes were there "herded together promiscuously, like beasts."[259]

[Footnote 251: Brevard, _Digest of the Public Statute Law of South-Carolina_, p. 229. Prince, _Digest of the Laws of Georgia_, p. 777. In the French _Code Noir_ (Édit du mois de Mars 1685, art. 44, p. 49; Édit donné au mois de Mars 1724, art. 40, p. 305) slaves are declared to be "meubles."]

[Footnote 252: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 62. Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 84. Goodell, _American Slave Code in Theory and Practice_, p. 63 _sqq._]

[Footnote 253: Peirce, Taylor, and King, _Consolidation and Revision of the Statutes of the State_ [_Louisiana_], pp. 523, 550 _sq._]

[Footnote 254: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 62 _sq._ Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 82.]

[Footnote 255: Pearson, _National Life and Character_, p. 210.]

[Footnote 256: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 69.]

[Footnote 257: _Code Noir_, Édit du mois de Mars 1685, art. 47, p. 51; Édit donné au mois de Mars 1724, art. 43, p. 306.]

[Footnote 258: Cobb, _op. cit._ p. 240 _sqq._ Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 99. Goodell, _American Slave Code_, p. 105 _sqq._ Wheeler, _op. cit._ p. 199. According to the Civil Code of Louisiana, "slaves cannot marry without the consent of their masters, and their marriages do not produce any of the civil effects which result from such contract" (Morgan, _Civil Code of Louisiana_, art. 182, p. 29).]

[Footnote 259: Goodell, _American Slave Code_, p. 111. In 1835 the query was presented to a Baptist Association of ministers, "whether, in case of involuntary separation of such a character as to preclude all future intercourse, the parties may be allowed to marry again?" The answer was, "that such separation among persons situated as our slaves are, is civilly a separation by death, and they believe that, in the sight of God, it would be so viewed. To forbid second marriages in such cases would be to expose the parties not only to greater hardships and stronger temptations, but to church censure for acting _in obedience to their masters_." Incidentally here the fact leaks out that slave cohabitation is enforced by the authority of the masters for the increase of their human chattels (Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, p. 185).]

Yet though slaves were regarded as chattels, the master could not do with his slave exactly what he pleased. We have noticed that the life of the slave was in some degree, though very insufficiently, protected by law,[260] and that a master who mutilated his slave was subject to a slight penalty.[261] The law also took care to prohibit the master from doing things which were considered injurious to the community or the State. There was a great fear of teaching negroes to read and write. William Knox, in a tract addressed to "the venerable Society for propagation {708} of the Gospel in foreign parts" in the year 1768, remarks that "instruction renders them less fit or less willing to labour," and that, if they were universally taught to read, there would undoubtedly be a general insurrection of the negroes leading to the massacre of their owners.[262] A similar fear underlies the laws on the subject which we meet with in the codes of some of the Slave States. According to the Negro Act of 1740 for South Carolina, any person who instructed a slave in writing was subject to a fine of one hundred pounds;[263] but this enactment was later on considered too liberal. A law of 1834 placed under the ban all efforts to teach the coloured race either reading or writing, and the punishment was no longer a pecuniary fine only, but, besides, imprisonment for six months or a shorter time or, if the offender was a free person of colour, whipping not exceeding fifty lashes.[264] In Georgia a law of 1770, which prohibited the instruction of slaves in reading and writing, was in 1833 followed by an act which extended the prohibition to free persons of colour.[265] In Louisiana the teaching of slaves was punished with imprisonment for not less than one month nor more than twelve months.[266] North Carolina allowed slaves to be made acquainted with arithmetical calculations, but sternly interdicted instruction in reading and writing;[267] whilst Alabama warred with the rudiments of reading, forbidding any coloured persons, bond or free, to be taught not only reading and writing, but spelling.[268] In all these States the prohibitions referred to the master of the slave as well as to other persons. In Virginia, on the other hand, the master might teach his slave whatever he liked, but others might not.[269]

[Footnote 260: _Supra_, p. 428 _sq._]

[Footnote 261: _Supra_, p. 517.]

[Footnote 262: Knox, _Three Tracts respecting the Conversion and Instruction of the Free Indians and Negroe Slaves in the Colonies_, p. 15 _sq._]

[Footnote 263: Brevard, _op. cit._ ii. 243.]

[Footnote 264: McCord, _Statutes at large of South Carolina_, vii. 468.]

[Footnote 265: Prince, _op. cit._ pp. 785, 658.]

[Footnote 266: Peirce, Taylor, and King, _op. cit._ p. 552.]

[Footnote 267: _Revised Statutes of North Carolina passed by the General Assembly at the Session of_ 1836-7, xxxiv. 74, cxi. 27, vol. i. 209, 578.]

[Footnote 268: Clay, _Digest of the Laws of Alabama_, p. 543.]

[Footnote 269: _Code of Virginia_, cxcviii. 31 _sq._ Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 142.]

{709} There is yet another point in which the master's power was restricted in a most unusual way: in many cases he was not allowed to liberate his slave, or formidable obstacles were put in the way of manumission. Thus, in North Carolina a slave could formerly not be enfranchised except for meritorious services;[270] but this enactment was altered by the Revised Statutes of 1836-1837, according to which any emancipation granted to any slave "shall be upon the express condition, that he, she or they will leave the State, within ninety days from the granting thereof, and never will return within the State afterwards."[271] The Civil Code of Louisiana required that a slave, to be emancipated, should have attained the age of thirty years and behaved well at least for four years preceding the emancipation, unless, indeed, the slave had saved the life of his master or of one of his children, in which case he might be set free at any age;[272] and, according to a statute of 1852, the emancipated slave should be sent out of the United States within twelve months after his emancipation.[273] In several other States manumission was likewise hampered by various regulations;[274] and throughout the British West Indies there were restraints on manumission prior to the Emancipation Act.[275] By an act passed in Saint Christopher in the year 1802, a tax of £1,000 was imposed on the manumission of any slave who was not a native of, or had not resided for two years within, the island, whilst natives or residents might be enfranchised at half that price. But the authors of this act went further still. They considered that a master, though unwilling to pay £500 or £1,000 for the legal enfranchisement of a slave, might, during his own life, make him or her practically free by not exercising his own rights as master. Hence {710} they enacted "that if any proprietor of a slave should, by any contract in writing or otherwise, dispense with the slave's service, or should be proved before a justice of peace not to have exercised any right of ownership over such slave, and maintained him or her at his own expense, within a month, the slave should be publicly sold at vendue by the provost marshall; and should become the property of the purchaser, and the purchase-money should be paid into the colonial treasury."[276] In St. Vincents one hundred pounds sterling was required to be paid into the treasury for each slave sought to be manumitted,[277] whilst in Barbados a person minded to manumit a slave should pay £50 to the churchwarden of the parish in which he resided.[278] Very different were the Spanish laws on the subject of manumission. According to a law of 1528 a negro slave who had served a certain length of time was entitled to his liberty upon the payment of a certain sum, not less than twenty marks of gold, the exact amount to be settled by the royal authorities.[279] In 1540 a law was issued to the effect that "if any negro, or negress, or any other persons reputed slaves, should publicly demand their liberty, they should be heard, and justice be done to them, and care be taken that they should not on that account be maltreated by their masters."[280] Nay, a slave who wished to change his master and could prevail on any other person to buy him by appraisement, could demand and compel such a transfer,[281] and a master who treated his slaves inhumanly could be by the judge deprived of them.[282] In most of the British colonies and American Slave States, on the other hand, the slave had no legal right to obtain a change of master when cruel treatment made it necessary for his relief or preservation.[283] {711} The exceptions to this rule[284] were few and of little practical value.

[Footnote 270: Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 233.]

[Footnote 271: _Revised Statutes of North Carolina_, cxi. 58, vol. i. 585.]

[Footnote 272: Morgan, _Civil Code of Louisiana_, art. 185 _sq._, p. 30 _sqq._]

[Footnote 273: _Ibid._ Stat. 18th March, 1852, §1, p. 29.]

[Footnote 274: Brevard, _op. cit._ ii. 255 _sq._ (South Carolina). Prince, _op. cit._ p. 787 (Georgia). Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 231 (Alabama). Alden and van Hoesen, _Digest of the Laws of Mississippi_, p. 761. Haywood and Cobbs, _Statute Laws of the State of Tennessee_, i. 327 _sq._]

[Footnote 275: Cobb, _op. cit._ p. 282.]

[Footnote 276: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 401 _sq._]

[Footnote 277: Cobb, _op. cit._ p. 282 _sq._]

[Footnote 278: Moore, _Public Acts passed by the Legislature of Barbados_, p. 224 _sq._]

[Footnote 279: Helps, _Spanish Conquest in America_, iv. 373.]

[Footnote 280: _Recopilacion de leyes de los reinos de las Indias_, vii. 5. 8, vol. ii. 321.]

[Footnote 281: Barre Saint Venant, quoted by Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 119 _sq._]

[Footnote 282: Edwards, _History of the British West Indies_, iv. 451.]

[Footnote 283: Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 106. Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 93.]

[Footnote 284: Morgan, _Civil Code of Louisiana_, art. 192, p. 33. Morehead and Brown, _Digest of the Statute Laws of Kentucky_, ii. 1481. Edwards, _op. cit._ ii. 192 (Jamaica). Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 106 (some other British colonies). In the French islands a negro who had been cruelly treated, contrary to royal ordinances, was forfeited to the crown, and acquired, if not freedom, at least deliverance from a tyrannical master (_Code Noir_, Édit du mois de Mars 1685, art. 42, p. 48 _sq._; Édit donné au mois de Mars 1724, art. 38, p. 303 _sq._); but the Court which adjudged the offence might also decree the sufferer to be manumitted (Stephen, _op. cit._ i. 119).]

This system of slavery, which at least in the British colonies and the Slave States surpassed in cruelty the slavery of any pagan country ancient or modern, was not only recognised by Christian governments, but was supported by the large bulk of the clergy, Catholic[285] and Protestant alike. In the beginning of the abolitionist movement the Churches acknowledged slavery to be a great evil, but with the making of this acknowledgment they believed that they had done their share, and denied that there was any obligation on them, or even that they had any right, to proceed against the slave-holders. But things did not stop here. The lamentations of resignation were gradually changed into excuses, and the excuses into justifications.[286] The Bible, it was said, contains no prohibition of slavery; on the contrary, slavery is recognised both in the Old and New Testaments. Abraham, the father of the faithful and the friend of God, had slaves; the Hebrews were directed to make slaves of the surrounding nations; St. Paul and St. Peter approved of the {712} relation of master and slave when they gave admonitions to both as to their reciprocal behaviour; the Saviour Himself said nothing in condemnation of slavery, although it existed in great aggravation while He was upon earth. If slavery were sinful, would it have been too much to expect that the Almighty had directed at least one little word against it in the last revelation of His will?[287] Nay, God not only permitted slavery, but absolutely provided for its perpetuity;[288] it is the very legislation of Heaven itself;[289] it is an institution which it is a religious duty to maintain,[290] and which cannot be abolished, because "God is pledged to sustain it."[291] According to some, slavery was founded on the judgment of God on a damned race, the descendants of Ham; according to others, it was only in this way that the African could be raised to a participation in the blessings of Christianity and civilisation.[292] With the name of "abolitionist" was thus associated the idea of infidelity, and the emancipation movement was branded as an attempt to spread the evils of scepticism through the land.[293] According to Governor Macduffie, of South Carolina, no human institution is more manifestly consistent with the will of God than slavery, and every community ought to punish the interference of abolitionists with death, without the benefit of clergy, "regarding the authors of it as enemies of the human race."[294] It is true that religious arguments were also adduced in favour of abolition. To hold men in bondage was said to be utterly inconsistent with the inalienable rights which the Creator had granted mankind, and still more obviously {713} at variance with the dictates of Christian love.[295] Many clergymen also joined the abolitionists. But it seems that in the middle of the nineteenth century the Quakers and the United Brethren were the only religious bodies that regarded slave-holding and slave-dealing as ecclesiastical offences.[296] The American Churches were justly said to be "the bulwarks of American slavery."[297]

[Footnote 285: The attempts to represent the Roman Catholic clergy as ardent abolitionists (Cochin, _L'abolition de l'esclavage_, ii. 443; de Locqueneuille, _L'esclavage, ses promoteurs et ses adversaires_, p. 193) are certainly not justified by facts. Among the Catholics of the United States there were some advocates of emancipation, but their number was not large (Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, 195 _sq._; Parker, _Collected Works_, vi. 127 _sq._). Dr. England, the Catholic bishop of Charleston, South Carolina, undertook in public to prove that the Catholic Church had always been the uncompromising friend of slave-holding (Parker, _op. cit._ v. 57). In Brazil it was common for clergymen not only to possess slaves, but to buy and sell them with as little scruple as other merchandises (da Fonseca, _A esravidão, o clero e o abolicionismo_, pp. 28, 33). Bishop Bouvier wrote (_op. cit._ p. 568):--"Servi autem dominis suis obedire, sortem suam patienter tolerare et officia sibi imposita fideliter exsequi debent, quoadusque libertas ipsis concedatur. Meminerint præsentem vitam esse momentaneam, futuram vero æternam."]

[Footnote 286: von Holst, _op. cit._ ii. 231 _sqq._]

[Footnote 287: Barnes, _The Church and Slavery_, p. 15. Birney, _Letter to the Churches_, p. 3 _sq._ Bledsoe, _Essay on Liberty and Slavery_, p. 138 _sqq._ Gerrit Smith, _Letter to Rev. James Smylie_, p. 3. Cobb, _op. cit._ p. 54 _sqq._ Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, pp. 154-156, 167, 176, 181, 184, 186, &c. Parker, _Collected Works_, v. 157.]

[Footnote 288: Thornton, quoted by Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, p. 147. Fisk, quoted _ibid._ p. 147.]

[Footnote 289: Bledsoe, _op. cit._ p. 138.]

[Footnote 290: Smylie, quoted by Gerrit Smith, _op. cit._ p. 3.]

[Footnote 291: Quoted by Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, p. 347.]

[Footnote 292: Barnes, _op. cit._ p. 16.]

[Footnote 293: _Ibid._ p. 18. Newman, _Anglo-Saxon Abolition of Negro Slavery_, p. 56. Bledsoe, _op. cit._ p. 223.]

[Footnote 294: Newman, _op. cit._ p. 53. von Holst, _op. cit._ ii. 118, n. 1.]

[Footnote 295: Gurney, _Views and Practices of the Society of Friends_, p. 390. 'Anti-Slavery Declaration of 1833,' quoted by Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, p. 398. Birney, _Second Letter_, p. 1.]

[Footnote 296: Parker, _op. cit._ v. 56.]

[Footnote 297: von Holst, _op. cit._ ii. 230.]

Nobody would suppose that this attitude towards slavery was due to religious zeal. It was one of those cases, only too frequent in the history of morals, in which religion is called in to lend its sanction to a social institution agreeable to the leaders of religious opinion. Many clergymen and missionaries were themselves slave-holders,[298] the chapel funds largely rested on slave property,[299] and the ministers naturally desired to be on friendly terms with the more important members of their respective congregations, who were commonly owners of slaves. Adam Smith observes that the resolution of the Quakers in Pennsylvania to set at liberty all their slaves, was due to the fact that the principal produce there was corn, the raising of which cannot afford the expense of slave cultivation; had the slaves "made any considerable part of their property, such a resolution could never have been agreed to."[300]

[Footnote 298: Barnes, _op. cit._ p. 13. Goodell, _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, pp. 151, 186 _sq._]

[Footnote 299: Newman, _op. cit._ p. 53.]

[Footnote 300: Adam Smith, _Wealth of Nations_, p. 172.]

To explain the establishment of colonial slavery, the difficulties in the way of its abolition, and the laws relating to it, it is necessary to consider not only economic conditions and the motive of self-interest, but, as a factor of equal importance, the want of sympathy for, or positive antipathy to, the coloured race. The negro was looked upon almost as an animal, according to some he was a being without a soul.[301] Even when free he was a pariah, subject to special laws and regulations. In the Code of {714} Louisiana it is said:--"Free people of colour ought never to insult or strike white people, nor presume to conceive themselves equal to the whites; but, on the contrary, they ought to yield to them on every occasion, and never speak or answer them but with respect, under the penalty of imprisonment, according to the nature of the offence."[302] The Code Noir prohibited white men and women from marrying negroes, "à peine de punition et d'amende arbitraire";[303] and in the Revised Statutes of North Carolina we read:--"If any white man or woman, being free, shall intermarry with an Indian, negro, mustee or mulatto man or woman, or any person of mixed blood to the third generation, bond or free, he shall, by judgment of the county court, forfeit and pay the sum of one hundred dollars to the use of the county."[304] In Mississippi a free negro or mulatto was legally punished with thirty-nine lashes if he exercised the functions of a minister of the Gospel.[305] Coloured men in the North were excluded from colleges and high schools, from theological seminaries and from respectable churches, as also from the town hall, the ballot, and the cemetery where white people were interred.[306] The Anglo-Saxon aversion to the black race is thus expressed by an English writer:--"We hate slavery, but we hate the negroes still more."[307] Among the Spaniards and Portuguese racial antipathies were not so strong, and their slaves were consequently better treated.[308]

[Footnote 301: von Holst, _op. cit._ i. 279. Malloch, 'How the Church dealt with Slavery,' in _The Month_, xxvii. 454.]

[Footnote 302: Quoted by Stroud, _op. cit._ p. 157.]

[Footnote 303: _Code Noir_, Édit donné au mois de Mars 1724, art. 6, p. 286.]

[Footnote 304: _Revised Statutes of North Carolina_, lxxi. 5, vol. i. 386 _sq._]

[Footnote 305: Alden and van Hoesen, _op. cit._ p. 771.]

[Footnote 306: Parker, _op. cit._ v. 58. Goodell _Slavery and Anti-Slavery_, p. 200.]

[Footnote 307: Seward, quoted by Newman, _Abolition of Negro Slavery_, p. 54.]

[Footnote 308: Couty, _L'esclavage au Brésil_, p. 8 _sqq_.]

Thus we notice in the opinions regarding slavery throughout the same distinction as in the judgments on other matters of moral concern. A person is, as a rule, allowed to enslave or to keep as slaves only persons belonging to a different community or a different race from his own, or their descendants. To deprive anybody of his liberty is to inflict an injury on him, and is regarded as {715} wrong whenever the act gives rise to sympathetic resentment, whereas nothing is thought of it where no sympathy is felt for its victim. Thus, whilst slavery grows up only under economic conditions favourable to slave labour, it is always limited by feelings of an altruistic character, and where these feelings are sufficiently broad and powerful it is not tolerated at all. The same factor also influences the condition of the slaves where slavery exists. We have seen that native slaves are better treated than foreign ones and slaves born in the household better than those who have been captured or purchased. The advancement of a nation, again, is frequently attended with greater severity in the treatment of the slaves, because, whilst the simplicity of early ages admits of little distinction between the master and his servants in their employments and manner of living, the introduction of wealth and luxury gradually destroys the equality. Besides, the number of slaves maintained in a wealthy nation makes them formidable both to their owners and to the State, hence it is necessary that they should be strictly watched and kept in the utmost subjection.[309]

[Footnote 309: Millar, _op. cit._ p. 256 _sqq._]

The condition of slaves is in various respects influenced by the selfish considerations of their masters. Stuart Mill observes:--"When, as among the ancients, the slave-market could only be supplied by captives either taken in war, or kidnapped from thinly scattered tribes on the remote confines of the human world, it was generally more profitable to keep up the number by breeding, which necessitates a far better treatment of them, and for this reason, joined with several others, the condition of slaves . . . was probably much less bad in the ancient world, than in the colonies of modern nations."[310] Among the Bedouins, says Burckhardt, "the slaves are treated with kindness, and seldom beaten, as severity might induce them to run away."[311] Superstition may also help to {716} improve the lot of the slave. In West Africa "the authority which a master exercises over a slave is very much modified by his constitutional dread of witchcraft. If he treats his slave unkindly, or inflicts unmerited punishment upon him, he exposes himself to all the machinations of witchcraft which that slave may be able to command."[312] It is said in the Proverbs, "Accuse not a servant unto his master, lest he curse thee, and thou be found guilty."[313] The same danger threatens the cruel master. We read in the Apostolic Constitutions, "Thy man-servant or thy maid-servant who trust in the same God, thou shalt not command with bitterness of spirit; lest they groan against thee, and wrath be upon thee from God."[314]

[Footnote 310: Mill, _Principles of Political Economy_, i. 307. _Cf._ _supra_, p. 701.]

[Footnote 311: Burckhardt, _Bedouins and Wahábys_, p. 103.]

[Footnote 312: Wilson, _Western Africa_, p. 271. See also _ibid._ p. 179; Cruickshank, _Eighteen Years on the Gold Coast_, ii. 180 _sqq._; Du Chaillu, _Explorations and Adventures in Equatorial Africa_, p. 331; Landtman, _Origin of Priesthood_, p. 198, n. 2.]

[Footnote 313: _Proverbs_, xxx. 10.]

[Footnote 314: _Constitutiones Apostolicæ_, vii. 13.]

END OF VOL. I

* * * * *

_Printed by_ LOWE & BRYDONE (PRINTERS) LTD., _London, N.W. 1._

* * * * *

THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE MORAL IDEAS

[Macmillan icon]

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED LONDON . BOMBAY . CALCUTTA MELBOURNE

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY NEW YORK . BOSTON . CHICAGO DALLAS . SAN FRANCISCO

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD. TORONTO

THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT

OF THE

MORAL IDEAS

BY

EDWARD WESTERMARCK

_Ph.D., LL.D._ (_Aberdeen_)

MARTIN WHITE PROFESSOR OF SOCIOLOGY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON PROFESSOR OF MORAL PHILOSOPHY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FINLAND, HELSINFORS AUTHOR OF "THE HISTORY OF HUMAN MARRIAGE," "MARRIAGE CEREMONIES IN MOROCCO," ETC

IN TWO VOLUMES

VOL. II

_SECOND EDITION_

MACMILLAN AND CO., LIMITED ST. MARTIN'S STREET, LONDON

1917

_COPYRIGHT_

_First Edition_, 1908 _Second Edition_, 1917

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION OF VOL. II

WHILE the text of the first edition has been left almost unchanged, some notes have been added at the end of it.

E. W.

LONDON,

_September_, 1916.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER XXVIII

THE RIGHT OF PROPERTY

The meaning of the term "property," p. 1.--Savages accused of thievishness, p. 2.--Theft condemned by savages, pp. 2-13.--The condemnation of theft influenced by the value of the goods stolen, pp. 13-15.--The stealing of objects of a certain kind punished with particular severity, p. 14.--The appropriation of a small quantity of food not punished at all, p. 14 _sq._--Exceptions to the rule that the punishment of theft is influenced by the worth or nature of the appropriated property, p. 15.--The degree of criminality attached to theft influenced by the place where it is committed, p. 15 _sq._--A theft committed by night punished more heavily than one committed by day, p. 16.--Distinction made between ordinary theft and robbery, p. 16 _sq._--Distinction made between manifest and non-manifest theft, p. 17.--Successful thieves not disapproved of but rather admired, pp. 17-19.--The moral valuation of theft influenced by the social position of the thief and of the person robbed, p. 19 _sq._--Varies according as the victim is a tribesman or fellow-countryman or a stranger, pp. 20-25.--The treatment of ship-wrecked people in Europe, p. 25.--The destruction of property held legitimate in warfare, p. 25 _sq._--The seizure of private property in war, p. 26 _sq._--Military contributions and requisitions levied upon the inhabitants of the hostile territory, p. 27.--Proprietary incapacities of children, p. 27 _sq._--Of women, pp. 28-31.--Of slaves, pp. 31-33.--The theory that nobody but the chief or king has proprietary rights, p. 33.

CHAPTER XXIX

THE RIGHT OF PROPERTY (_concluded_)

Acquisition of property by occupation, pp. 35-39.--By keeping possession of a thing, pp. 39-41.--By labour, pp. 41-43.--By a transfer of property by its owner, p. 43.--By inheritance, pp. 44-49.--By the fact that ownership in a thing directly follows from ownership in another thing, p. 49 _sq._--By the custom which prescribes community of goods, p. 50.--The origin of proprietary rights and of the various modes of acquisition, pp. 51-57. --Explanation of the incapacity of children, wives, and slaves to acquire property, p. 57.--Why the moral judgments vary with regard to different acts of theft, pp. 57-59.--Theft {viii} supposed to be avenged by supernatural powers, pp. 59-69.--The removing of landmarks regarded as sacrilegious, p. 60 _sq._ --Cursing as a method of punishing thieves or compelling them to restore what they have stolen, p. 62 _sq._--Cursing as a means of preventing theft, pp. 63-67.--Spirits or gods invoked in curses referring to theft, p. 66 _sq._--Why gods take notice of offences against property, pp. 67-69.--The belief that thieves will be punished after death, p. 69.--The opposition against the established principles of ownership, pp. 69-71.

CHAPTER XXX

THE REGARD FOR TRUTH AND GOOD FAITH

Definition of lying, p. 72.--Of good faith, _ibid._--The regard for truth and good faith among uncivilised races, pp. 72-88. --Foreigners visiting a savage tribe apt to underrate its veracity, pp. 86-88.--The regard for truth varies according as the person concerned is a foreigner or a tribesman, p. 87 _sq._--The regard for truth and good faith among the Chinese, p. 88 _sq._--Among the Japanese, Burmese, and Siamese, p. 89. --Among the Hindus, pp. 89-92.--In Buddhism, p. 92.--Among the ancient Persians, p. 93 _sq._--Among Muhammedan peoples, p. 94. --In ancient Greece, pp. 94-96.--In ancient Rome, p. 96.--Among the ancient Scandinavians, p. 96 _sq._--Among the ancient Irish, p. 97.--Among the ancient Hebrews, pp. 97-99.--In Christianity, pp. 99-101.--In the code of Chivalry, p. 101 _sq._--In the Middle Ages and later, p. 102 _sq._--In modern Europe, pp. 103-106.--The views of philosophers, _ibid._--Deceit in the relations between different states, in peace and war, pp. 106-108.

CHAPTER XXXI

THE REGARD FOR TRUTH AND GOOD FAITH (_concluded_)

Explanation of the moral ideas concerning truthfulness and good faith, pp. 109-131.--When detected a deception implies a conflict between two irreconcilable ideas, which causes pain, p. 109.--Men like to know the truth, p. 109 _sq._--The importance of knowing the truth, p. 110.--Deception humiliating, _ibid._--A lie or breach of faith held more condemnable in proportion to the magnitude of the harm caused by it, _ibid._--The importance of truthfulness and fidelity even in apparently trifling cases, p. 110 _sq._--Deceit held permissible or obligatory when promoting the true interest of the person subject to it, p. 111.--The moral valuation of an act of falsehood influenced by its motive, p. 111 _sq._--The opinion that no motive can justify an act of falsehood, p. 112.--Why falsehood is held permissible, or praiseworthy, or obligatory, when directed against a stranger, _ibid._--Deceit condemned as cowardly, p. 113.--A clever lie admired or approved of, p. 114.--The duties of sincerity and good faith to some extent founded on prudential considerations, pp. 114-124.--Lying attended with supernatural danger, _ibid._--A mystic efficacy ascribed to the untrue word, pp. 116-118.--The efficacy of oaths and the methods of charging them with supernatural energy, pp. 118-122.--Oaths containing appeals to supernatural beings, pp. 120-122.--By being frequently appealed to in oaths a god may come to be looked upon as a guardian of veracity and good faith, p. 123.--The influence of oath-taking upon veracity, p. 123 _sq._--The influence of education upon the regard for truth, p. 124.--The influence {ix} of habit upon the regard for truth, p. 125.--Natural to speak the truth, p. 125 _sq._--Intercourse with strangers destructive to savage veracity, pp. 126-129.--Social incoherence apt to lead to deceitful habits, p. 129.--Social differentiation a cause of deception, p. 129 _sq._--Oppression an inducement to falsehood, p. 130 _sq._--The duty of informing other persons of the truth, p. 131.--The regard for knowledge, pp. 131-136.

CHAPTER XXXII

THE RESPECT FOR OTHER MEN'S HONOUR AND SELF-REGARDING PRIDE--POLITENESS

Definition of "honour," p. 137.--The feeling of self-regarding pride in animals, p. 137 _sq._--In savages, pp. 138-140.--The moral disapproval of insults, pp. 140-142.--The condemnation of an insult influenced by the _status_ of, or the relations between, the parties concerned, p. 142 _sq._--Pride disapproved of and humility praised as a virtue or enjoined as a duty, p. 144 _sq._--Humility an object of censure, p. 145 _sq._--Deviation from what is usual arouses a suspicion of arrogance, p. 146. --Politeness a duty rather than a virtue, _ibid._--Many savages conspicuous for their civility, p. 146 _sq._--Politeness a characteristic of all the great nations of the East, p. 147 _sq._--The courtesies of Chivalry, p. 148.--The demands of politeness refer to all sorts of social intercourse and vary indefinitely in detail, p. 148 _sq._--Salutations, pp. 149-151. --The rule of politeness most exacting in relation to superiors, p. 151 _sq._--Politeness shown by men to women, p. 152. --Politeness shown to strangers, _ibid._

CHAPTER XXXIII

REGARD FOR OTHER PERSONS' HAPPINESS IN GENERAL--GRATITUDE--PATRIOTISM AND COSMOPOLITANISM

The regard for other persons' happiness in general, p. 153 _sq._--The moral ideas concerning conduct which affects other persons' welfare influenced by the relationship between the parties, pp. 154-166.--The feeling of gratitude said to be lacking in many uncivilised races, pp. 155-157.--Criticism of statements to this effect, pp. 157-161.--Savages described as grateful for benefits bestowed on them, pp. 161-165.--Gratitude represented as an object of praise or its absence as an object of disapproval, p. 165 _sq._--Why ungratefulness is disapproved of, p. 166.--The patriotic sentiment defined, p. 167.--Though hardly to be found among the lower savages, it seems to be far from unknown among uncultured peoples of a higher type, p. 167 _sq._--Many of the elements out of which patriotism proper has grown clearly distinguishable among savages, even the lowest, pp. 168-172.--National conceit, pp. 170-174.--The relation between the national feeling and the religious feeling, p. 174 _sq._--The patriotism of ancient Greece and Rome, p. 175 _sq._--The moral valuation of patriotism, p. 176.--Duties to mankind at large, pp. 176-179.--The ideal of patriotism rejected by Greek and Roman philosophers, p. 177 _sq._--By Christianity, p. 178 _sq._--The lack of patriotism and national feeling during the Middle Ages, pp. 179-181.--The development of the national feeling in England, p. 181 _sq._--In France, p. 182.--The cosmopolitanism of the eighteenth century, p. 182 _sq._--European patriotism after the French revolution, p. 183 _sq._--The theory cf nationalism, p. 184.--The cosmopolitan spirit, p. 184 _sq._

{x} CHAPTER XXXIV

THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE ALTRUISTIC SENTIMENT

Maternal affection, pp. 186-189.--Prof. Espinas's theory, p. 186 _sq._--Prof. Bain's theory, p. 187 _sq._--Mr. Spencer's theory, p. 188.--Distinction between maternal love and the mere love of the helpless, p. 188 _sq._--The paternal instinct, p. 189 _sq._--Conjugal attachment, pp. 190-192.--The duration of conjugal attachment, p. 192 _sq._--The duration of parental affection, p. 193.--Filial affection, p. 194.--Man originally, as it seems, not a gregarious animal, p. 195 _sq._--How he became gregarious, p. 196 _sq._--The gregarious instinct, p. 197. --Social affection, p. 197 _sq._--The evolution of social aggregates influenced by economic conditions, pp. 198-201.--The social aggregates of savages who know neither cattle-rearing nor agriculture, pp. 198-200.--Of pastoral peoples, p. 201.--Of peoples subsisting on agriculture, _ibid._--Social units based on marriage or a common descent, p. 201 _sq._--The social force in kinship, pp. 202-204.--Mr. Hartland's theory, pp. 204-206.--The blood-covenant, pp. 206-209.--The social influence of a common cult among savages, pp. 209-213.--The "four generations" of the Chinese, p. 213.--Traces of a clan organisation in China, p. 213 _sq._--The joint family among so-called Aryan peoples, pp. 214-216.--Village communities, clans, phratries, and tribes among these peoples, pp. 216-220.--The prevalence of the paternal system of descent among the peoples of archaic culture, p. 220.--Associations of tribes among uncivilised races, p. 220 _sq._--Civilisation only thrives in states, p. 221 _sq._--The origin of states p. 222.--The influence of the State upon the smaller units of which it is composed, p. 222 _sq._--The State and the notion of a common descent, pp. 223-225.--The archaic State not only a political but a religious community, p. 225 _sq._--The national importance of a common religion, p. 226.--The influence of social development upon the altruistic sentiment, p. 226 _sq._--The altruistic sentiment has not necessarily reference only to individuals belonging to the same social unit, p. 227 _sq._--The expansion of altruism in mankind, p. 228.

CHAPTER XXXV

SUICIDE

Suicide and civilisation, p. 229.--Suicide said to be unknown among several uncivilised races, p. 229 _sq._--The prevalence of suicide among savages and barbarians, pp. 230-232.--The causes of suicide among savages, pp 232-235.--The moral valuation of suicide among savages, pp. 235-241.--The fate of self-murderers after death, pp. 235-239.--The treatment of the bodies of suicides among uncivilised races, pp. 238-240.--The opinions as to suicide in China, pp. 241-243.--In Japan, p. 243 _sq._--Among the Hindus, pp. 244-246.--Among Buddhists, p. 246.--Among the Hebrews, p. 246 _sq._--Among Muhammedans, p. 247.--In ancient Greece, pp. 247-249.--Among classical philosophers, pp. 248-250.--In ancient Rome, p. 250 _sq._--Among the Christians, pp. 251-254.--Why suicide was condemned by the Church, pp. 252-254.--The secular legislation influenced by the doctrine of the Church, p. 254.--The treatment of suicides' bodies in Europe, pp. 254-257.--More humane feelings towards suicides in the Middle Ages, p. 257 _sq._--Attacks upon the views of the Church and upon the laws of the State concerning suicide, pp. 258-260.--Modern philosophers' arguments against suicide, {xi} p. 260 _sq._--The legislation on the subject changed, p. 261.--Explanation of the moral ideas concerning suicide, pp. 261-263.--Criticism of Prof. Durkheim's opinion as to the moral valuation of suicide in the future, p. 263 _sq._

CHAPTER XXXVI

SELF-REGARDING DUTIES AND VIRTUES--INDUSTRY--REST

General statements referring to the nature and origin of self-regarding duties and virtues, pp. 265-268.--Man naturally inclined to idleness, pp. 268-271.--Among savages either necessity or compulsion almost the sole inducement to industry, _ibid._--Savages who enjoin work as a duty or regard industry as a virtue, p. 271 _sq._--Industrial activity looked down upon as disreputable for a free man, p. 272 _sq._--Contempt for trade, p. 274. Progress in civilisation implies an increase of industry and leads to condemnation of idleness, _ibid._--Idleness prohibited by law in ancient Peru p. 274 _sq._--Industry enjoined in ancient Persia, p. 275 _sq._--In ancient Egypt, p. 276.--In ancient Greece, p. 276 _sq._--Greek views on agriculture, p. 277.--On trade and handicrafts, p. 278 _sq._--Roman views on labour, p. 279 _sq._--The Christian doctrine on the subject, pp. 280-282. --Not applicable to laymen, p. 282.--Modern views on labour, p. 282 _sq._--Rest regarded as a duty, p. 283.--Work suspended after a death, p. 283 _sq._--On certain other occasions, especially in connection with changes in the moon, pp. 284-286. --Tabooed days among the peoples of Semitic stock, pp. 286-288. --The Jewish Sabbath, p. 286 _sq._--The seventh day among the Assyrians and Babylonians, p. 287 _sq._--The Christian Sunday, p. 288 _sq._

CHAPTER XXXVII

RESTRICTIONS IN DIET

The gluttony of savages and their views on it, p. 290 _sq._--At higher stages of culture intemperance often subject to censure, p. 291.--Views on pleasures of the table, p. 291 _sq._--Fasting as a means of having supernatural converse or acquiring supernatural powers, p. 292 _sq._--Abstinence from food before or in connection with the performance of a magical or religious ceremony, pp. 293-298.--Fasting prevents pollution, pp. 294-296. --Sacrificial victims should be clean, and may therefore have to fast, p. 295 _sq._--Fasting before the performance of a sacrifice may be due to the idea that it is dangerous or improper for the worshipper to partake of food before the god has had his share, pp 296-298.--Fasting after a death, pp. 298-308.--Observed only in the daytime, p. 299 _sq._--Abstinence from certain victuals only, pp. 300-302.--Various attempts to explain the custom of fasting after a death, p. 302 _sq._--Mourners fast for fear of being polluted by the food, pp. 303-306.--Or because they, by eating a piece of food, might pollute all victuals belonging to the same species, p. 306 _sq._--Or because they are supposed to be in a delicate condition imposing upon them restrictions in their diet, p. 307 _sq._--Or because grief is accompanied by a loss of appetite, p. 308.--The Lent fast, p. 308 _sq._--Fasts connected with astronomical changes, pp. 309-315. --Among the Jews, pp. 310-312.--Among the Harranians and Manichæans, p. 312 _sq._--The Muhammedan {xii} fast of Rama[d.]ân, pp. 313-315.--Fasting as a form of penance, pp. 315-318.--As a survival of an expiatory sacrifice, pp. 316-318. --Fasting and almsgiving, _ibid._--Fasting "the beginning of chastity," p. 318.

CHAPTER XXXVIII

RESTRICTIONS IN DIET (_concluded_)

Certain kinds of food forbidden to certain classes of persons, pp. 319-324.--To young persons, p. 319 _sq._--To women, p. 320 _sq._--To men, p. 321 _sq._--To priests or magicians, p. 322. --Restrictions in diet connected with totemism, p. 323 _sq._ --Abstinence from animals which excite disgust by their appearance, p. 324 _sq._--From reptiles, p. 324.--From fish, p. 324 _sq._--From fowl, p. 325.--From eggs, p. 325 _sq._--From milk, _ibid._--From animals which are regarded with disgust on account of their filthy habits or the nasty food on which they live, pp. 326-328.--From pork, _ibid._--From foreign animals, p. 327.--From animals which are supposed to be metamorphosed ancestors or which resemble men, p. 328 _sq._--From animals which excite sympathy, pp. 329-331.--From beef, p. 330 _sq._--Restrictions in diet due to the disinclination to kill certain animals for food or, generally, to reduce the supply of a certain kind of victuals, pp. 330-332.--Abstinence from domestic animals which are regarded as sacred, p. 331 _sq._--From food which is believed to injure him who partakes of it, pp. 332-334.--The sources to which the general avoidance of certain kinds of food may be traced, p. 334 _sq._--The moral disapproval of eating certain kinds of food, p. 335. The moral prohibition sanctioned by religion, _ibid._--Vegetarianism, pp. 335-338.--Among many peoples drunkenness so common that it can hardly be looked upon as a vice, pp. 338-341.--Sobriety or total abstinence from intoxicating liquors insisted upon by Eastern religions, p. 341 _sq._--Explanation of the moral ideas concerning drunkenness and the use of alcoholic drink, pp. 342-345.--Wine or spirituous liquor inspires mysterious fear, p. 344 _sq._--The Muhammedan prohibition of wine, p. 345.

CHAPTER XXXIX

CLEANLINESS AND UNCLEANLINESS--ASCETICISM IN GENERAL

Man naturally feeling some aversion to filth, p. 346.--Savages who are praised for their cleanliness, pp. 346-348.--Savages who are clean in certain respects but dirty in others, p. 348. --Savages who are described as generally filthy in their habits, p. 348 _sq._--Various circumstances which may account for the prevalence of cleanly or dirty habits among a certain people, pp. 349-351.--The moral valuation of cleanliness, p. 351 _sq._--Cleanliness practised and enjoined from religious or superstitious motives, pp. 352-354.--In other instances religious or superstitious beliefs have led to uncleanliness, pp. 354-356. --Uncleanliness as a form of asceticism, p. 355 _sq._--Ascetic practices, p. 356 _sq._--The idea underlying religious asceticism derived from several different sources, pp. 357-363.--Certain ascetic practices originally performed for another purpose, p. 358 _sq._--An ascetic practice may be the survival of an earlier sacrifice, p. 359.--Ascetic practices due to the idea of expiation, pp. 359-361.--Self-mortification intended to excite divine compassion, p. 361.--Suffering voluntarily endured with a view to preventing the commission of sin, pp. 361-363.--The gratification of earthly desires deemed sinful or disapproved of, _ibid._

{xiii} CHAPTER XL

MARRIAGE

Definition of the term "marriage," p. 364.--The horror of incest well-nigh universal in the human race, pp. 364-366.--The prohibited degrees as a rule more numerous among peoples unaffected by modern civilisation than in more advanced communities, p. 366.--The violation of the prohibitory rules regarded by savages as a most heinous crime, p. 366 _sq._--The horror of incest among nations that have passed beyond savagery and barbarism, p. 367 _sq._--Attempt to explain the prohibition of marriage between near kin, pp. 368-371.--Refutation of various objections raised against the author's theory, pp. 371-378.-- Incestuous unions stigmatised by religion, p. 375 _sq._--Endogamous rules of various kinds, pp. 378-382.--Marriage by capture, p. 382. --Marriage by purchase, pp. 382-384.--The disappearance of marriage by purchase, p. 384 _sq._--The morning gift, p. 385.--The marriage portion, p. 385 _sq._--The form of marriage influenced by the numerical proportion between the sexes, p. 387 _sq._--Polyandry, p. 387.--Group marriage of the Toda type, _ibid._--The causes of polygyny, pp. 387-389.--Of monogamy, p. 389. Polygyny less prevalent at the lowest stages of civilisation than at somewhat higher stages, pp. 389-391.--Civilisation in its higher forms leads to monogamy, p. 391.--The moral valuation of the various forms of marriage, p. 392.--The assumed prevalence of group marriage in Australia, pp. 392-396.--The duration of marriage and the laws of divorce, pp. 396-398.

CHAPTER XLI

CELIBACY

Marriage considered indispensable among savage and barbarous races of men, p. 399.--Celibacy a great exception and marriage regarded as a duty among peoples of archaic culture, pp. 399-403. --Why celibacy is disapproved of, p. 403 _sq._--Modern views on celibacy, p. 404 _sq._--Celibacy of persons whose function it is to perform religious or magical rites, pp. 405-412.--Marriage looked down upon by the Essenes, p. 410.--By the Christians, pp. 410-412.--Religious celibacy due to the idea that the priestess is married to the god whom she is serving, pp. 412-414.--Goddesses jealous of the chastity of their priests, p. 414.--Religious celibacy connected with the idea that sexual intercourse is defiling, pp. 414-420.--Holiness easily destroyed by pollution, pp. 417-419.--Causes of religious celibacy among the Christians, p. 420 _sq._--Religious celibacy enjoined or commended as a means of self-mortification, p. 421.

CHAPTER XLII

FREE LOVE--ADULTERY

Uncivilised peoples among whom both sexes enjoy perfect freedom previous to marriage, pp. 422-424.--Among whom unchastity before marriage is looked upon as a disgrace or a crime for a woman, p. 424.--The wantonness of savages in several cases due to foreign influence, _ibid._--In many tribes the free intercourse which prevails between unmarried people not of a promiscuous nature, p. 424 _sq._--Uncivilised peoples among {xiv} whom the man who seduces a girl is subject to punishment or censure, pp. 425-427. --Moral opinions as to sexual intercourse between unmarried people among the Chinese, p. 427.--Among the ancient Hebrews, p. 427 _sq._ --Among Muhammedan peoples, p. 428.--Among the Hindus, _ibid._--In Zoroastrianism, _ibid._--Among the ancient Teutons, p. 429.--In ancient Greece and Rome, pp. 429-431.--In Christianity, p. 431 _sq._ --During the Middle Ages, p. 432 _sq._--After the Reformation, p. 433.--In present Europe, p. 433 _sq._--Explanation of the moral ideas concerning sexual intercourse between unmarried people, pp. 434-443.--Prostitution, pp. 441-443.--Religious prostitution, connected with religious celibacy, p. 443 _sq._--Of the Babylonian type, pp. 444-446.--Moral opinions as to the seduction of a married woman, pp. 447-450.--As to unfaithfulness in a wife, p. 450 _sq._ --As to the remarriages of widows, _ibid._--As to unfaithfulness in a husband, pp. 451-455.

CHAPTER XLIII

HOMOSEXUAL LOVE

Homosexual practices among the lower animals, p. 456.--Among various races of men, pp. 456-464.--Between women, p. 464 _sq._--The causes of homosexual practices, pp. 465-471.--Congenital sexual inversion, p. 465 _sq._--Absence of the other sex or lack of accessible women, p. 466 _sq._--Acquired inversion, pp. 467-470.--Homosexuality in ancient Greece partly due to the methods of training the youth, p. 469 _sq._--Partly due to the great gulf which mentally separated the sexes, p. 470 _sq._--Causes of pederasty in China and Morocco, p. 471.--Moral ideas concerning homosexual practices, pp. 471-489.--Among uncivilised peoples, pp. 471-475.--Among the ancient Peruvians, p. 473 _sq._--Among the ancient Mexicans, Mayas, and Chibchas, p. 474.--Among Muhammedans, p. 475 _sq._--Among the Hindus, p. 476.--In China, p. 476 _sq._--In Japan, p. 477.--Among the ancient Scandinavians, p. 477 _sq._--In ancient Greece, p. 478 _sq._--In Zoroastrianism, p. 479 _sq._--Among the ancient Hebrews, p. 480.--In early Christianity, p. 480 _sq._--In Pagan Rome, _ibid._--In Christian Rome, p. 481.--European legislation regarding homosexual practices during the Middle Ages and later, p. 481 _sq._--Modern legislation on the subject, p. 482 _sq._--Moral ideas concerning it in present Europe, p. 483.--Why homosexual practices are frequently subject to censure, p. 483 _sq._--Criticism of Dr. Havelock Ellis's suggestion as to the popular attitude towards homosexuality, pp. 484-486.--The excessive sinfulness attached to homosexual practices by Zoroastrianism, Hebrewism, and Christianity, due to the fact that such practices were intimately associated with unbelief, idolatry, or heresy, pp. 486-489.

CHAPTER XLIV

REGARD FOR THE LOWER ANIMALS

Animals treated with deference for superstitious reasons, pp. 490-493.--Butchers regarded as unclean, p. 493.--Many peoples averse from killing their cattle from economic motives, p. 493 _sq._--Domestic animals treated kindly by savages out of sympathy, pp. 494-496.--Savages who are said to be lacking in sympathy for the brute creation, {xv} p. 496.--Moral valuation of men's conduct towards the lower animals among savages, p. 496 _sq._--In Brahmanism, p. 497.--In Buddhism, pp. 497, 498, 500.--In Jainism, p. 498 _sq._--In Taouism, p. 499.--In China, p. 499 _sq._--In Japan, p. 500.--In Zoroastrianism, p. 501 _sq._ --In Muhammedanism, p. 502 _sq._--In ancient Greece and Rome, pp. 503-505.--In Hebrewism, p. 505 _sq._--In Christianity, pp. 506-508.--The views of modern philosophers, p. 508.--Of legislators, p. 508 _sq._--Indifference to animal suffering a characteristic of public opinion in European countries up to quite modern times, p. 509 _sq._--Laws against cruelty to animals, p. 510.--Humane feelings towards animals in Europe, pp. 510-512.--The crusade against vivisection, pp. 512-514.--Explanation of the increasing sympathy with animal suffering in Europe, p. 512 _sq._--The influence of human thoughtlessness upon the treatment of the lower animals and upon the moral ideas relating to it, pp. 512-514.

CHAPTER XLV

REGARD FOR THE DEAD

The belief in a future life, p. 515 _sq._--Notions as regards the disembodied soul, p. 516.--The dead considered to have rights very similar to those they had whilst alive, pp. 516-520.--The soul must not be killed or injured, p. 516 _sq._--Its living friends must positively contribute to its comfort and subsistence, p. 517 _sq._--The right of ownership does not cease with death, p. 518 _sq._--Robbery or violation committed at a tomb severely condemned, _ibid._--Respect must be shown for the honour and self-regarding pride of the dead, p. 519.--The dead demand obedience, p. 519 _sq._--The sacredness attached to a will, p. 519.--The rigidity of ancestral custom, p. 519 _sq._--Duties to the dead that arise from the fact of death itself, pp. 520-524.--The funeral, the rites connected with it, and the mourning customs, largely regarded as duties to the dead, _ibid._--The duties to the dead influenced by the relationship between the parties, p. 524 _sq._--By the age and sex of the departed, pp. 525-527.--By class distinctions, p. 527.--By moral distinctions, p. 527 _sq._--The causes from which the duties to the dead have sprung, pp 528-549.--These duties partly based on sympathetic resentment, p. 528.--The dead regarded as guardians of their descendants, p. 529 _sq._--But the ancestral guardian spirit does not bestow his favours for nothing, p. 530 _sq._--The dead more commonly regarded as enemies than friends, pp. 531-534. --Explanation of the belief in the irritable or malevolent character of the dead, p. 534 _sq._--The fear of death and the fear of the dead, pp. 535-538.--The conduct of the survivors influenced by their beliefs regarding the character, activity, and polluting influence of the dead, pp. 538-546.--The origin of funeral and mourning customs, pp. 541-547.--Why practices connected with death which originally sprang from self-regarding motives have come to be enjoined as duties, p. 547 _sq._--Why the duties to the dead are rarely extended to strangers, p. 548 _sq._--Explanation of the differences in the treatment of the dead which depend upon age, sex, social position, and moral distinctions, p. 549.--The duties to the departed become less stringent as time goes on, p. 549 _sq._--The duties to the dead affected by progress in intellectual culture, pp. 550-552.--The funeral sacrifice continued as a mark of respect or affection, p. 550.--Offerings made to the dead become alms given to the poor, pp. 550-552.

{xvi} CHAPTER XLVI

CANNIBALISM

The prevalence of cannibalism, p. 553.--Various forms of it, p. 554.--Cannibalism due to scarcity or lack of animal food, p. 555.--To _gourmandise_ pp. 555-557.--To revenge, pp. 557-559. --The practice of eating criminals, p. 558 _sq._--Cannibalism a method of making a dangerous individual harmless after death, p. 559 _sq._--Due to the idea that the cannibal, by eating the supposed seat of a certain quality in a person, incorporates it with his own system, pp. 560-562.--Cannibalism in connection with human sacrifice, p. 562 _sq._--The eating of man-gods, p. 563 _sq._--Other instances in which a supernatural or medicinal effect is ascribed to human flesh or blood, pp. 564-566.--Cannibalism as a covenant rite, p. 566 _sq._--Special reasons given for the practice of eating relatives or friends, pp. 567-569.--The cannibalism of modern savages represented as the survival of an ancient practice which was once universal in the human race, p. 569 _sq._--Criticism of this theory pp. 570-580.--Savages who feel the greatest dislike of cannibalism, p. 570 _sq._--Cannibals often anxious to deny that they are addicted to this practice, p. 572.--The rapid extinction of it among certain savages p. 572 _sq._--Even among peoples very notorious for cannibalism there are individuals who abhor it, p. 573.--The aversion to cannibalism may be due to sympathy for the dead, p. 574.--In the first instance it is probably an instinctive feeling akin to those feelings which regulate the diet of the various animal species, _ibid._--The eating of human flesh regarded with superstitious dread, pp. 574-576.--The feeling of reluctance may be overcome by other motives and may be succeeded by a taste for human flesh, p. 577 _sq._--Early man probably not addicted to cannibalism, pp. 578-580.--Cannibalism much less prevalent among the lowest savages than among races somewhat more advanced in culture, p. 578 _sq._--Among some savages cannibalism known to be of modern origin or to have spread in recent times, p. 579 _sq._--The moral valuation of cannibalism, p. 580 _sq._

CHAPTER XLVII

THE BELIEF IN SUPERNATURAL BEINGS

Distinction between "natural" and "supernatural" phenomena, p. 582 _sq._--Supernatural mechanical energy, p. 583 _sq._--Supernatural qualities attributed to the mental constitution of animate beings, especially to their will, p. 584.--The difference between religion and magic, _ibid._--The meaning of the word _religio_, pp. 584-586.--That mystery is the essential characteristic of supernatural beings is testified by language, p. 586 _sq._--This testimony corroborated by facts referring to the nature of such objects or individuals as are most commonly worshipped, pp. 587-593.--Startling events ascribed to the activity of invisible supernatural agents, p. 593 _sq._--The origin of animism, p. 594 _sq._--A mind presupposes a body, p. 595 _sq._--The animist who endows an inanimate object with a soul regards the visible thing itself as its body, p. 596 _sq._--The origin of anthropomorphism, p. 597 _sq._--The difference between men and gods, p. 599. --Materiality at last considered a quality not becoming to a god, pp. 599-601.

{xvii} CHAPTER XLVIII

DUTIES TO GODS

Definition of the term "god," p. 602.--Gods have the rights to life and bodily integrity, pp. 602-604.--Not necessarily considered immortal, p. 602 _sq._--The killing of totemic animals, p. 603 _sq._--Divine animals killed as a religious or magical ceremony, pp. 604-606.--The killing of man-gods or divine kings, pp. 606-610.--The right to bodily integrity granted to gods occasionally suspended, p. 610.--Supernatural beings believed to be subject to human needs, p. 610 _sq._--To require offerings, p. 611 _sq._--Sacrificial gifts offered to supernatural beings with a view to averting evils, pp. 612-614. --With a view to securing positive benefits, pp. 614-616. --Thank-offerings, p. 615 _sq._--Sacrificial victims intended to serve as substitutes for other individuals, whose lives are in danger, pp. 616-618.--Occasionally regarded as messengers, p. 618.--Sacrifices offered for the purpose of transferring curses, pp. 618-624.--The covenant sacrifice, pp. 622-624.--The sacrificial victim or offered article a vehicle for transferring benign virtue to him who offered it or to other persons, p. 624 _sq._--Sacrifice becomes a symbol of humility and reverence, p. 625 _sq._--Sacrifice as a duty, p. 626.--Supernatural beings possess property, and this must not be interfered with, p. 626 _sq._--Sacred objects must not be appropriated for ordinary purposes, p. 627 _sq._--The right of sanctuary, pp. 628-638.--Its prevalence, pp. 628-634.--Explanation of this right, pp. 634-638.

CHAPTER XLIX

DUTIES TO GODS (_concluded_)

Supernatural beings sensitive to insults and disrespect, p. 639 _sq._--Irreverence to gods punished by men, _ibid._--The names of supernatural beings tabooed, pp. 640-643.--Explanation of these taboos, p. 642 _sq._--Atheism, p. 643 _sq._--Unbelief, pp. 644-646.--Heresy, p. 646 _sq._--Polytheism by nature tolerant, pp. 647-649.--The difference in toleration between monotheistic and polytheistic religions shows itself in their different attitudes towards witchcraft, pp. 649-652.--The highest stage of religion free from intolerance, p. 652 _sq._--Prayer a tribute to the self-regarding pride of the god to whom it is addressed, pp. 653-655.--Prayers connected with offerings, p. 655 _sq._--Magic efficacy ascribed to prayer, pp. 656-659.--Gods demand obedience, p. 659.--The influence of this demand upon the history of morals, p. 659 _sq._--Explanation of the obligatory character attached to men's conduct towards their gods, pp. 660-662.

CHAPTER L

GODS AS GUARDIANS OF MORALITY

The supernatural beings of savage belief frequently described as utterly indifferent to all questions of worldly morality, pp. 663-665.--The gods of many savages mostly intent on doing harm to mankind, pp. 665-667.--Adoration of supernatural beings which are considered at least occasionally beneficent also very prevalent among uncivilised peoples, {xviii} pp. 667-669.--Their benevolence, however, does not prove that they take an active interest in morality at large, p. 669.--Instances in which savage gods are supposed to punish the transgression of rules relating to worldly morality, pp. 669-687.--Savages represented as believing in the existence of a supreme being who is a moral law-giver or judge, pp. 670-687.--The prevalence of such a belief in Australia, pp. 670-675.--In Polynesia and Melanesia, p. 675.--In the Malay Archipelago, p. 675 _sq._--In the Andaman Islands, p. 676.--Among the Karens of Burma, p. 677.--In India, p. 677 _sq._--Among the Ainu of Japan, p. 678.--Among the Samoyedes, _ibid._--Among the Greenlanders, _ibid._--Among the North American Indians, pp. 679-681.--Among the South American Indians, p. 681 _sq._--In Africa, pp. 682-685.--Explanation of this belief, pp. 685-687.--The supreme beings of savages invoked in curses or oaths, p. 686 _sq._--The oath and ordeal do not involve a belief in the gods as vindicators of truth and justice, pp. 687-690.--The ordeal essentially a magical ceremony, _ibid._--Ordeals which have a different origin, p. 690.--The belief in a moral retribution after death among savages, pp. 690-695.--The sources to which it may be traced, pp. 691-695. --The influence of religion upon the moral consciousness of savages, p. 695 _sq._

CHAPTER LI

GODS AS GUARDIANS OF MORALITY (_continued_)

The attitude of religion towards matters of worldly morality in ancient Mexico, p. 697 _sq._--In ancient Peru, p. 698.--In ancient Egypt, pp. 698-701.--In ancient Chaldea, pp. 701-704.--In Zoroastrianism, pp. 704-706.--Among the Vedic people, pp. 706-709.--In post-Vedic times in India, pp. 709-711.--In Buddhism, p. 711 _sq._--In China, p. 712 _sq._--In ancient Greece, pp. 713-716.--In ancient Rome, p. 716 _sq._--Among the Hebrews, p. 717 _sq._--Christian doctrines of salvation and the future life, pp. 718-725.--The attitude of Muhammedanism towards matters of worldly morality and its doctrine of the future life, pp. 725-727.

CHAPTER LII

GODS AS GUARDIANS OF MORALITY (_concluded_)

Explanation of the malevolence of savage gods, p. 728 _sq._--Of the growing tendency to attribute more amiable qualities to the gods, pp. 729-731.--Men selecting their gods, p. 729 _sq._--The good qualities of gods magnified by their worshippers, p. 730 _sq._--How various departments of social morality have come to be placed under the supervision of gods, p. 731 _sq._--How the guardianship of gods has been extended to the whole sphere of justice, p. 732.--How gods have become guardians of morality at large, p. 733 _sq._--The influence of the religious sanction of morality, p. 734 _sq._--Religious devotion frequently accompanied by great laxity of morals, pp. 735-737.--Greater importance attached to ceremonies or the niceties of belief than to good behaviour towards fellow men, p. 736 _sq._--The religious sanction of moral rules often leads to an external observance of these rules from purely selfish motives, p. 737.--The moral influence of Christianity, _ibid._

{xix} CHAPTER LIII

CONCLUSION

Recapitulation of the theory of the moral consciousness set forth in vol. I., pp. 738-741.--This theory supported by the fact that not only moral emotions but non-moral retributive emotions are felt with reference to phenomena exactly similar in their general nature to those on which moral judgments are passed, p. 741.--As also by the circumstance that the very acts, forbearances, and omissions which are condemned as wrong are also apt to call forth anger and revenge, and that the acts and forbearances which are praised as morally good are apt to call forth gratitude, p. 741 _sq._--The variations of the moral ideas partly due to different external conditions, p. 742.--But chiefly to psychical causes, pp. 742-746.--The duties to neighbours have gradually become more expansive owing to the expansion of the altruistic sentiment, p. 743 _sq._--The influence of reflection upon moral judgments has been increasing, p. 744 _sq._--The influence of sentimental antipathies and likings has been decreasing, _ibid._--The influence which the belief in supernatural forces or beings or in a future state has exercised upon the moral ideas of mankind, p. 745 _sq._--Remarks as to the future development of the moral ideas, p. 746.

ADDITIONAL NOTES . . . pp. 747-754

AUTHORITIES QUOTED . . pp. 755-835

SUBJECT INDEX . . . . pp. 837-865

THE ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE MORAL IDEAS

CHAPTER XXVIII

THE RIGHT OF PROPERTY

THE right of property implies that a certain person or certain persons are recognised as having a right to the exclusive disposal of a certain thing. The owner is not necessarily allowed to do with his property whatever he likes; but whether absolute or limited, his right to disposal is not shared by anybody else, save under very exceptional circumstances, as in the case of "compulsion by necessity."[1] Property in a thing thus means not only that the owner of it is allowed, at least within certain limits, to use or deal with it at his discretion, but also that other persons are forbidden to prevent him from using or dealing with it in any manner he is entitled to.

[Footnote 1: _Supra_, i. 285 _sqq._]