The Sun.
London, England, 1841-11-12 00:00:00

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LONDON:
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 1841.

A t present there seems a contest in society
between the -Principles of free trade and re-
straint, disguised' under the name of protection,
which it will require a great deal of discussion to
settle. To refer to the general principles on which
ultimately this dispUte must be decided, restraint
and monopoly are both exemplied by the follow-
ing anecdote, taken from " Chambers' Informa-
tion for the :People," which resembles many si-
milar anecdotes :—" Mr. FERGUSON, of Wood-
_hill, met in Canada with a young Scotsman, who
had been a poacher in Scotland, but was now
settled and thriving well on a firm of 100 acres
M his new country. Mr. FERGUSON said to him,
' You will need neither certificate nor qualifica-
tion here; what do you principally shoot ?" Indeed,
sir,' said he; you'll believe me, I scarce ever
thinh about ;t, for here noebodg see& to hinder
u?.' A. herd of dear, only two days before, had
wandered past him while at the plough, yet
WALTER felt no inclination to 11111 fir his rifle,
though it stood loaded at home." The philoso-
phy of the whole lies iii the phrase, " there is
naebody here seeks to hinder us." The seekbin
by others to hinder him from shooting begot. the
desire to shoot., The more precaution they took
to prevent him shooting, the more stringent they
made the laws to attain that object, the Ligl►cr in
their estimation, and of course in his, became
the value of the privilege they reserved to them
selves, and the stronger became his desire to ex-
ercise it, or to shoot tor himself. When nobody
• took the trouble to li'mtler him, the desire died
away, and he could not he tempted by a chance
of the best sport to leave his occupation to go
The principle involved M this anecdote
whole of society, and it is pregnant
pervades the
with instruction •
Every monopoly, from that great original ino•
the monopoly of the wild
rtopoly of the soil to
birds that feed on it, has to be hedged round and
maintained by prohibitions and restrictions. The
more these are multiplied and sharpened, the
higher the general estimate of the value and im-
portance of the monopoly is raised. The more
extensive, too, they are—meeting men at every
turn, the more. 'continually the ideas of that
value and importance are forced on the mind,
and the more urgent they become as motives
for action. In many cases they become over-
whelming, and every huMan power is defied in
obedience. to them. it results therefrom that
no monopolies whatever should be created, and
no peculiar privileges should be granted an • d en-
fOrced, which are not strictly and demonstrably
necessary for the public advantage. Even the
monopoly of the soil—except, as Mr. Lacs::: says,
securing to each man who tills it as much land
as he improves, cultivates, and can use—is not de-
fensible. No idle whim of a class, no fancied
advantage to a nobleman, no caprice or desire of
superiority in the members of any sect, should
ever tempt the Legislature to bestow on them
monopolies or exclusive privileges, unless the
Legislature wisllPg to provoke those desires
which, in General, .
legislation is intended to re-
strain. A. priesthood, for example, iaendowed
to check enthusiasm ; bat endowment strengthens
it by worldly a - •
arter, and • the land becomes
ier„ e ambititins priests of various sects,
111'"3" *- by exciting religious enthusiasm,
and-pres
e a dominion over the minds
141. of -Allier men. Ti' -7" _ Ley are prompted by avarice
to take advautage of
the natural religious feel-

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