16. Rule and measure the offices of humanity. How happy would mankind be, were these amiable precepts of nature every where obferved! Nations would communicate to each other their products and their knowledge; a profound peace would prevail all over the earth, and enrich it with its invaluable fruits; industry, the sciences, and the arts, would be employed in promoting our happiness, no less than in relieving our wants; violent methods of deciding contests would be no more heard of all differences would be terminated by moderation, juftice, and equity; the world would have the appearance of a large republic; men would live every-where like brothers, and each individual be a citizen of the universe. That this idea should be but a delightful dream! yet it flows from the nature and effence of man. But diforderly paflions, and private and miftaken intereft, will forever prevent its being realifed. Let us then confider what limitations the prefent ftate of men, and the ordinary maxims and conduct of nations, may render neceffary in the practice of thefe precepts of nature, which are in themfelves fo noble and excellent. The law of nature cannot condemn the good to become the dupes and prey of the wicked, and the victims of their injustice and ingratitude. Melancholy experience fhews that moft nations aim only to ftrengthen and enrich themfelves at the expenfe of others,-to domineer over them, and even, if an opportunity offers, to opprefs and bring them under the yoke. Prudence does not allow us to ftrengthen an enemy, or one in whom we discover a defire of plundering and oppreffing us; and the care of our own fafety forbids it. We have seen (§ 3, &c.) that a nation does not owe her affistance and the offices of humanity to other nations, except fo far as the grant of them is reconcilable with her duties to herself. Hence it evidently follows, that, though the univerfal love of mankind obliges us to grant at all times, and to all, even to our enemies, thofe offices which can only tend to render them more moderate and virtuous, because no inconvenience is to be apprehended from granting them,-we are not obliged to give them fuch fuccours as probably may become destructive to ourfelves. Thus, 1. the exceeding importance of trade not only to the wants and conveniences of life, but likewife to the ftrength of a state, and furnishing it with the means of defending itself against its enemies,—and the insatiable Here again let us call in the authority of Cicero to our fupport. "All mankind (fays that excellent philofopher) fhould lay it down as their constant rule of action, that individual and general advantage should be the fame; for if each man ftrives to grafp every advantage for himfelf, all the ties of human fociety will be broken And if nature ordains that man fhould feel interested in the welfare of his fellow-man, whoever he be, and for the fingle reafon that he is a man,-it neceffarily follows, that, according to the intentions of nature, all mankind must have one common intereft -Ergo unum debet effe omnibus propofitum, ut eadem fit utilitas uniufcujufque et univerforum: quam fi ad fe quifque rapiat, diffolvetur omnis humana confociatio. Atque fi ctiam hoc natura præfcribit, ut homo homini, quicunque fit, ob eam ipfam caufam, quod is homo fit, confultum velit, neceffe eft, fecundum candem naturam, omnium utilitatem effe communem. De Offic. lib. iii. cap. vi. avidity avidity of those nations which feek wholly and exclusively to engrofs it, thus, I fay, thefe circumftances authorise a nation. poffeffed of a branch of trade, or the fecret of fome important manufacture or fabric, to referve to herself thofe fources of wealth, and, instead of communicating them to foreign nations, to take measures against it. But where the neceffaries or conve niences of life are in queftion, the nation ought to fell them to others at a reasonable price, and not convert her monopoly into a system of odious extortion. To commerce England chiefly owes her greatness, her power, and her fafety: who then will prefume to blame her for endeavouring, by every fair and just method, to retain the feveral branches of it in her own hand? 2. As to things directly and more particularly useful for war, a nation is under no obligation to fell them to others, of whom it has the smallest fufpicion; and prudence even declares against it. Thus, by the Roman laws, people were very justly prohibited to inftruct the barbarous nations in building gallies. Thus, in England laws have been enacted, to prevent the best method of hip-building from being carried out of the kingdom. This caution is to be carried farther, with refpect to nations more juftly fufpected. Thus, when the Turks were fuccefsfully purfuing their victorious career, and rapidly advancing to the zenith of power, all christian nations ought, independent of every bigotted confideration, to have confidered them as enemies; even the most diftant of those nations, though not engaged in any conteft with them, would have been juftifiable in breaking off all commerce with a people who made it their profeflion to fubdue by force of arms all who would not acknowledge the authority of their prophet. limitation Let us farther obferve, with regard to the prince in particular, §17 that he ought not, in affairs of this nature, to obey without re- Particular ferve all the fuggeftions of a noble and generous heart impelling with regard him to facrifice his own interefts to the advantage of others or to the to motives of generosity; because it is not his private intereft prince. that is in queftion, but that of the ftate,-that of the nation who has committed herself to his care. Cicero fays that a great and elevated foul despises pleasures, wealth, life itfelf, and makes no account of them, when the common utility lies at stake *. He is right, and such fentiments are to be admired in a private perfon; but generofity is not to be exerted at the expense of others. The head or conductor of a nation ought not to practife that virtue in public affairs without great circumfpection, nor to a greater extent than will redound to the glory and real advantage of the ftate. As to the common good of human fociety, he ought to pay the fame attention to it, as the nation he reprefents would be obliged to pay, were the government of her affairs in her own hand. § 18. But though the duties of a nation towards herself set bounds No nation to the obligation of performing the offices of humanity, they ought to * De Offic. lib. iii. cap. v. cannot injure others. § 19. Offences. cannot in the least affect the prohibition of doing any harm to However, it will be easily conceived that negligence in fulfilling the common duties of humanity, and even the refufal of thefe duties or offices, is not an injury. To neglect or refuse contributing to the perfection of a nation, is not impairing that perfection. It must be further observed, that when we are making use of our right, when we are doing what we owe to ourselves or to others, if, from this action of ours, any prejudice results to the perfection of another, any detriment to his exterior condition, -we are not guilty of an injury: we are doing what is lawful, or even what we ought to do. The damage which accrues to the other, is no part of our intention: it is merely an accident, the imputability of which must be determined by the particular circumstances. For inftance, in case of a lawful defence, the harm we do to the aggreffor is not the object we aim at:-we act only with a view to our own fafety: we make use of our right; and the aggreffor alone is chargeable with the mischief which he brings on himself. Nothing is more oppofite to the duties of humanity, nor more contrary to that fociety which fhould be cultivated by nations, than offences, or actions which give a just displeasure to others: every nation therefore fhould carefully avoid giving any other nation real offence: I fay, real; for, fhould others take offence at our behaviour when we are only ufing our rights or fulfilling our duties, the fault lies with them, not with us. Offences ex Lézer (profeffedly borrowed from the Latin lado) is the term used by the author, who, in order the better to explain his meaning, proceeds to inform us, that "muire (to hurt), offenfer (to offend), faire tort (to wrong), porter dommage (to "caufe detriment), porter prejudice (to prejudice), bleffer (to wound or hurt), "are not of precifely the fame import," and that by the word lézer (which is here rendered injure) he means, " in general, caufing imperfection in the injured "party, or in his condition, rendering his perfon or his condition lefs perfeét." cite fuch afperity and rancour between nations, that we should avoid giving any room even for ill-grounded picques, when it can be done without any inconveniency, or failure in our duty. It is faid that certain medals and dull jefts irritated Lewis XIV. against the United Provinces, to fuch a degree, as to induce him, in 1672, to undertake the deftruction of that republic. Bad custom The maxims laid down in this chapter,-those facred precepts $ 20. of nature, were for a long time unknown to nations. The an- of the an cients had no notion of any duty they owed to nations with cients. whom they were not united by treaties of friendfhip*. The Jews efpecially placed a great part of their zeal in hating all nations; and, as a natural confequence, they were detefted and despised by them in turn. At length the voice of nature came to be heard among civilifed nations; they perceived that all men are brethren +. When will the happy time come that they shall behave as fuch? CHAP. II. Of the Mutual Commerce between Nations. mutual $ 21. LL men ought to find on earth the things they stand in General obneed of. In the primitive state of communion, they took ligation of men them wherever they happened to meet with them, if another nations to had not before appropriated them to his own use. The intro- carry on duction of dominion and property could not deprive men of fo commerce. effential a right, and confequently it cannot take place without leaving them, in general, fome mean of procuring what is useful or neceffary to them. This mean is commerce: by it every man may itill fupply his wants. Things being now become property, there is no obtaining them without the owner's confent; nor are they ufually to be had for nothing; but they may be bought, or exchanged for other things of equal value. Men are therefore under an obligation to carry on that commerce with each other, if they wish not to deviate from the views of nature; and this obligation extends also to whole nations or states (Prelim. § 5). It is feldom that nature is seen in one place to produce every thing neceffary for the use of man: one country abounds in corn, another in pastures and cattle, a third in timber and metals, &c. If all thofe countries trade together, as is agreeable to human nature, no one of them will be without fuch things as are useful *To the example of the Romans may be added that of the English in former days,-fi: ce, on the occasion of a navigator being accused of having committed fome depredat ons on the natives of India, "this act of injuftice" (according to Grotius)" was not without advocates, who maintained, that, by the ancient laws of England, crimes committed against foreign nations, with whom there existed no public treaty of alliance, were not punishable in that kingdom." HIST. of the Diyarbances in the Low Countries, Book xvi, † See (51) a fine paffage of Cicero. and $22. They fhould fa and neceffary; and the views of nature, our common mother, will be fulfilled. Further, one country is fitter for fome kind of products than another, as, for instance, fitter for the vine than for tillage. If trade and barter take place, every nation, on the certainty of procuring what it wants, will employ its land and its industry in the most advantageous manner; and mankind in general prove gainers by it. Such are the foundations of the general obligation incumbent on nations reciprocally to cultivate commerce. Every nation ought, therefore, not only to countenance trade, as far as it reasonably can, but even to protect and favour it. vour trade. The care of the public roads,-the fafety of travellers,-the establishment of ports, of places of fale, of well-regulated fairs, -all contribute to this end. And where thefe are attended with expenfe, the nation, as we have already obferved (Book I. § 103), may, by tolls and other duties equitably proportioned, indemnify itself for its difburfements. trade. § 23. Freedom being very favourable to commerce, it is implied in Freedom of the duties of nations, that they fhould fupport it as far as poffible, instead of cramping it by unneceffary burdens or restrictions. Wherefore thofe private privileges and tolls, which obtain in many places, and prefs fo heavily on commerce, are defervedly to be reprobated, unless founded on very important reasons arifing from the public good. 24. Right of trading, belonging to nations. $25. Each nation commerce on her own part. Every nation, in virtue of her natural liberty, has a right to trade with those who are willing to correfpond with fuch intentions; and to moleft her in the exercife of her right is doing her an injury. The Portuguese, at the time of their great power in the East Indies, were for excluding all other European nations from any commerce with the Indians: but fuch a pretension, no lefs iniquitous than chimerical, was treated with contempt; and the other nations agreed to confider any acts of violence in fupport of it, as juft grounds for making war against the Portuguefe. This common right of all nations is, at prefent, generally acknowledged under the appellation of freedom of trade. But although it be in general the duty of a nation to carry on is fole judge commerce with others, and though each nation has a right to trade of the pro- with those countries that are willing to encourage her,―on the priety of other hand, a nation ought to decline a commerce which is difadvantageous or dangerous (Book I. § 98); and fince, in cafe of collifion, her duties to herfelf are paramount to her duties to others, the has a full and clear right to regulate her conduct, in this refpect, by the confideration of what her advantage or fafety requires. We have already feen (Book I. § 92) that each nation is, on her own part, the fole judge, whether or not it be convenient for her to cultivate fuch or fuch branch of commerce: fhe may therefore either embrace or reject any commercial proposals from foreign nations, without affording them any juft grounds to accufe her of injuftice, or to demand a reafon for fuch refufal, much lefs to make use of compulfion. She is free in the administration of |