§. 34. God gave the world to men in common; but fince he gave it them for their benefit, and the greatest conveniencies of life they were capable to draw from it, it cannot be fuppofed he meant it should always remain common and uncultivated. He gave it to the use of the industrious and rational, (and labour was to be his title to it ;) not to the fancy or covetoufness of the quarrelfome and contentious. He that had as good left for his improvement, as was already taken up, needed not complain, ought not to meddle with what was already improved by another's labour: if he did, it is plain he defired the benefit of another's pains, which he had no right to, and not the ground which God had given him in common with others to labour on, and whereof there was as good left, as that already poffeffed, and more than he knew what to do with, or his industry could reach to.

§. 35. It is true, in land that is common in England, or any other country, where there is plenty of people under government, who have money and commerce, no one can inclofe or appropriate any part, without the confent of all his fellow-commoners; because this is left common by compact, i. e. by the law of the land, which is not to be violated, And though it be common, in respect of fome men, it is not fo to all mankind; but is the joint property of this country, or this parish.

That

parith. Befides, the remainder, after fuch inclosure, would not be as good to the reft of the commoners, as the whole was when they could all make use of the whole; whereas in the beginning and first peopling of the great common of the world, it was quite otherwife. The law man was under, was rather for appropriating. God commanded, and his wants forced him to labour. was his property which could not be taken from him where-ever he had fixed it. And hence fubduing or cultivating the earth, and having dominion, we fee are joined together. The one gave title to the other. So that God, by commanding to fubdue, gave authority fo far to appropriate; and the condition of human life, which requires labour and materials to work on, neceffarily introduces private poffeffions.

§. 36. The measure of property nature has well fet by the extent of men's labour and the conveniencies of life: no man's labour could fubdue, or appropriate all; nor could his enjoyment confume more than a small part; fo that it was impoffible for any man, this way, to intrench upon the right of another, or acquire to himself a property, to the prejudice of his neighbour, who would still have room for as good, and as large a poffeffion (after the other had taken out his) as before it was appropriated. This meafure did confine every man's poffeffion to a very moderate proportion,

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portion, and fuch as he might appropriate to himself, without injury to any body, in the first ages of the world, when men were more in danger to be loft, by wandering from their company, in the then vaft wilderness. of the earth, than to be straitened for want of room to plant in. And the fame measure may be allowed still without prejudice to any body, as full as the world feems: for fuppofing a man, or family, in the state they were at firft peopling of the world by the children of Adam, or Noah; let him plant in fome in-land, vacant places of America, we fhall find that the poffeffions he could make himself, upon the measures we have given, would not be very large, nor, even to this day, prejudice the reft of mankind, or give them reason to complain, or think themfelves injured by this man's incroachment, though the race of men have now spread themselves to all the corners of the world, and do infinitely exceed the small number was at the beginning. Nay, the extent of ground is of fo little value, without labour, that I have heard it affirmed, that in Spain itself a man may be permitted to plough, fow and reap, without being difturbed, upon land he has no other title to, but only his making use of it. But, on the contrary, the inhabitants think themfelves beholden to him, who, by his industry on neglected, and confequently wafte land, has increased the

ftock

flock of corn, which they wanted. But be this as it will, which I lay no ftrefs on; this I dare boldly affirm, that the fame rule of propriety, (viz.) that every man should have as much as he could make ufe of, would hold ftill in the world, without ftraitening any body; fince there is land enough in the world to fuffice double the inhabitants, had not the invention of money, and the tacit agreement of men to put a value on it, introduced (by confent) larger poffeffions, and a right to them; which, how it has done, I shall by and by fhew more at large.

§. 37. This is certain, that in the beginning, before the defire of having more than man needed had altered the intrinfic value of things, which depends only on their usefulness to the life of man; or had agreed, that a little piece of yellow metal, which would keep without wafting or decay, fhould be worth a great piece of flesh, or a whole heap of corn; though men had a right to appropriate, by their labour, each one to himself, as much of the things of nature, as he could ufe yet this could not be much, nor to the prejudice of others, where the fame plenty was ftill left to thofe who would use the fame induftry. To which let me add, that he who appropriates land to himself by his labour, does not leffen, but increase the common stock of mankind: for the provifions ferving to the support of human life, proе duced

duced by one acre of inclofed and cultivated land, are (to fpeak much within compafs) ten times more than those which are yielded by an acre of land of an equal richnefs lying wafte in common. And therefore that inclofes land, and has a greater plenty

he

of the conveniencies of life from ten lowed a tenacres, than he could have from an hundred left to A DICING OF SVI

nature, may truly be faid to give ninety acres to mankind: for his labour now fupplies him with provifions out of ten acres, which were but the product of an hundred lying in common. I have here rated the improved land very low, in making its product but as ten to one, when it is much nearer an hundred to one: for I afk, whether in the wild woods and uncultivated waste of America, left to nature, without any improvement, tillage or husbandry, a thousand acres yield the needy and wretched inhabitants as many conveniencies of life, as ten acres of equally fertile land do in Devonshire, where they are well cultivated?

Before the appropriation of land, he who gathered as much of the wild fruit, killed, caught, or tamed, as many of the beafts, as he could; he that fo imployed his pains about any of the fpontaneous products of nature, as any way to alter them from the ftate which nature put them in, by placing any of his labour on them, did thereby acquire a propriety in them: but if they perished,