The Sun.
London, England, 1822-01-24 00:00:00

Par G. POLIDORI.

tilo()1d by R. Hunter, St. Paul's Chutch-yard ; and at the Ai
'6l No. 3y, Great Pulteney-street, Guldeu-square.

Where may he had,
Dot (?., RENZO, an Italian Novel (pricesewed).; a
'slcal Translation of Milton's Cowls, Lycidas, Allegro and
411seroso, and of the Lament of Tasso, by Lord Byron, with
" answer by Leonora.

hiThis Day were published,
• One neat Pocket Volume, with Seven Portraits and Vig-
nette Title, (is. board.,
LETTERS of JUNIUS. With Preliminary
Dissertations and Copious Notes,
By Arricus SECUNDUS.
b. in this New Edition of the Letters of .lunins,
bean üb-
sshers -have had in view, not only to free these iful
tteeimens of English Composition from every obscurity winch
e Passing -nature of the events discussed in them may have
°.,CFAsioned, but to render the work, as it now appears, ,an
oleresting. illustration of an important portion of British
"Istory.
It
iith tis view, the Leters hare een introuced the
W1?will g Preliminary Dissetrtations: b
—A generald by
View of he
t_abtical Historyf Britain, from the Acc4sion of 6e.orge
.3s; the Publication of the. Letters of Junius—General Review,
the Letters—On the Style of Junins—On the Temper in
neh. the Letters are written—On the Political Principles
oei
irt the Letters—and on the .;ontioversy respecting
r Author.
elißeside these Dissertations, which seemed necessary for
of abling the reader to enter with advantage on the pernsal,
t_x. the • Letters, cOplou4 Notes have been .appended to the
et ; so that., it is presumed, there' is no allusion in the.
course(.4 the work, either to persons or to historical trans-
-,,,,,' !an e"Plairttion of which will not he found in the
Pr.,%)Pver pace.•
hy G. awl IV, 13. Whittaker, Lendou ; -and 011-
vtl and Boyd, Edinburgh.

FOR TUE SUN.

Mk: S:ALT HUS SCHOOL of POLITICAL ECONOM Y.

(LE'rrrat.
" The more closely we look"into the Essay on Population,
" the greater reason shall we find to be convinced, that It ex.-
hibits a theory of the-most airy and unsubstantial nature that
" was ever obtruded on the pablic.'"—iGodwin, on Popula-

tion , p. 474.)

MR.. EDITOR-Although I have taken as the
motto to this Essay, a passage from Mr. God-
win's attswer to Mr. Malthus, I hasten to ap-
prize you, that it is not my purpose to found my
opposition fo some of the doctrines of this last
mentioned author upon the statements adduced
by his opponent, in refutation of the alleged
power of the human species to" double its num-
bers in a short period of time. I shall leave un-
tc.iiehed the argument as to the rate at which po-
pulation hai actually increased, in various places,
and at sundry times, being very willing to con-
cede to Mr. Malthus, that a community may, by
procreation alone, be doubled even in a shorter
:period of time tha❑ twenty-five years. The doc-
trine as to the ratio at which the means of sub-

sistence can be increased, is more debateable.—

I confess that Mr. Malthus has by no means suc-
ceeded in convincing me, that until the whole
surface of the earth shall have been brought into

cultivation, the means of subsistence may not be
rendered fully commensurate with the increase
in the numbers of mankind ; because I conceive
that such an idea stands directly opposed to the

known power of man, in the rudest state of -so-
ciety, to procure a sufficiency of food for his sus-
tenance. But I shall not stop at present to as-

certain at what stage of the increase of popula-
tion, and under what precise circumstances, the
difficulty of procuring a sufficient quantity of
wholesome nutriment would begin to press upon
us. The great practical question is simply
—Whether the tendency of population to in-
crease, is capable of being checked by a cause
less painful than actual want, and its attendant
evil ; or whether the power of increase is neces-
sarily paramount to all opposition, and must for
ever thrust the circumferent parts of society
against the grindstone of misery.
The doctrine contained in the last member of

the foregoing sentence, is generally understood
to _be inculcated in the celebrated Essay on
Population, a work which has probably had a
more powerful influence upon the opinions of the
higher orders of society, and even of the Legis-
lature, than any work that has been published
during the present century. The doctrine in
question has been so frequently charged upon
Mr. Malthus by his adversaries in general, and
by Mr. Godwin in partictilar, that even many
persons who profess to philosophize- on the prin-
ciples of this new master in the school of politi-
cal science, reason as though it were a fixed and
irreversible law of nature that children's heads
should for ever be presented to the awful grind-
stone, which, eternally revolving on its horrid
axle, defines the limits of population.
Until I read and studied Mr. Malthus for my-
self, I was carried away with this same notion,
and really felt a great aversion to his very name.
I now, however, hold myself to he upon excel-
lent terms with this gentleman, whose philan-
thropy I rate very high ; and from whose Essay
I could, if it were consistent with the object
have in view, select a great number of passages
which breathe a spirit of patriotism and benevo-
lence that could not be exceeded, even by Mr.
Godwin.

Sir, although Mr. Malthus certainly does a
firm that population is capaNe of being doubled
by procreation within a very short space of time,
he by no means asserts that this power of in-
crease is not to he restrained otherwise than by
the operation of vice and misery.. But he does
appear to think, that the tendency towards an
increase is so strong, as to render it imperative
upon statesmen to press the grindstone of misery
somewhat closer than our present institutions
would allow, in order that by contracting the
sphere of its action, the -number of human vic-
tims may be eventually diminished. Mr. Godwin
says that Mr. Malthus would starve the present
generation that he may kill the next. Ido not
think this correctly represents Mr. Malthus's
system. I apprehend Mr. Malthus as saying, in
effect :—" I have shewn you the natural ten-
dency of population to increase beyond the
means of subsistence. This awful law of nature'
is a far more prolific source of human misery than
all the tyrannies and oppressions, or even than the
wars which mar the comfort and peace of so-
ciety; and yet you are endeavouring, by your
charities, and plane for improving the condition
of the labouring classes, and above all, by a te-
nacious fondness for the antiquated system of
your poor laws, to push the grindstone beyond
its proper distance ; depend upon it, that grind it
will till doom's-day, and that by thus artificially
removing it from the certre you, in effect, force
it to act upon a wider circle_; if you are wise,
therefore, you will let it come :fp flush to its na-
tural place, and thus contract the sphere of its
operation ; • in order that having it fairly and
constantly in view, society may be terrified from
approaching it."
Dr. Johnson once observed, that " when a
man voluntarily engages in an important contro-
versy, he is tondo all he can to lessen his antag-
onist, because authority, from personal respect,
has much weight with most people, and often
mare than reasoning." Much as 1 love the cha-
racter, admire the talents, and generally approve
of the sentiments of that great and good man, 1
have no inclination to follow the-course prescrib-
ed in the above cited precept. I will not inten-