PROP. LIII.

To deduce practical Rules concerning the Commerce between the Sexes.

THAT benevolence, love, esteem, and the other fympathetic affections, give the chief value, and highest perfection, to the fenfible pleasures between the fexes, is fufficiently evident to serious and confiderate perfons. It appears alfo, that these pleasures were intended by Providence, as a principal means, whereby we might be enabled to transfer our affection and concern from ourselves to others, and learn first in the fingle inftance of the beloved perfon, afterwards in thofe of the common offspring, to fympathize in the pleasures and pains of our neighbours, and to love them as ourselves. It follows therefore, that if this great fource of benevolence be corrupted, or perverted to other purposes, the focial affections thereon depending will be perverted likewise, and degenerate into felfishness or malevolence. Let us inquire in what manner the ftrong inclinations of the fexes to each other may be best conducted, fo as most to contribute to public and private happiness, so as to obtain the maximum of it, both from this quarter, and from the other parts of our nature, which are neceffarily connected with it.

First, then, It is evident, that unrestrained promiscuous concubinage would produce the greatest evils, public and private. By being unreftrained, it would destroy the health and the propagation of mankind; by being promifcuous, it would become ineffectual to promote love, and the tender affections, either between the perfons themselves, or towards their offspring, and alfo raise endless jealoufies and quarrels amongst

mankind. There has never perhaps been any nation in the world, where this entire licentioufnefs has been allowed; the mischiefs which evidently follow from all great degrees of it, having always laid mankind under some restraints, and produced fome imperfect regulations at leaft, and fome approaches towards marriage. However, the mifery and defolation of the barbarous nations of Africa and America, in whom the violence of paffion, and the degeneracy of nature, have almoft obliterated the faint traces of the patriarchal religion; and the many evils, public and private, which attend all unlawful commerce between the fexes in the more civilized countries; are abundantly fufficient to evince what is affirmed. The fhameful, loathfome, and often fatal difeafe, which peculiarly attends the vice of lewdnefs, may be confidered as a moft unquestionable evidence of the divine will. This disease, with all its confequences, would foon ceafe amongst mankind, could they be brought under the restraints of lawful marriage; but muft ever continue, whilft licentioufnefs continues. And it is perhaps to this disease that we owe the prefent tolerable ftate of things. It may be, that, without this check, the licentioufnefs, which has always been obferved to follow improvements in arts and politeness, and to attend upon bodies politic in their declenfion, and which the corruption of the Chriftian religion in fome, and the difbelief of it in others, have, in a manner, authorized, would have brought on utter diffolutenefs in this western part of the world, fuch as would have been inconfiftent with 'the very exiftence of regular government. Nay, it may be, that this will ftill be the cafe, and that we are haftening to our period, through the great wickedness of the world in this refpect particularly, though our lives, as a body politic, be fomewhat prolonged, by this correction.

Secondly, Promifcuous concubinage being thus evidently excluded, it comes next to be inquired, whether the gofpel rule of confining one man to one woman during life, except in the cafe of the woman's adultery, be calculated to produce the greatest poffible good, public and private. And here we must own ourselves utterly unable to form any exact judgment. It is impoffible to determine by any computation, which of all the ways, in which marriage has been or may be regulated, is moft conducive to happiness upon the whole; this would be too wide a field, and where alfo we could have no fixed points to guide us; just as, in the matter of civil government, it is impoffible for us to determine, what particular form, imonarchy, ariftocracy, &c. or what mixture of these, is most accommodated to human nature, and these circumftances of things. Here therefore we feem particularly to want a revelation to direct us; and therefore are under a particular obligation to abide by its award. Now revealed religion commands us, in the cafe of government, to obey those powers that are actually established, of whatever kind they be, leaving that to the children of this world to difpute; and in refpect of marriage, gives a permiffion to enter into this ftate to those who find it requifite, and also a farther permiffion to divorce an adultrefs, and marry another woman; but at the fame time enjoins the ftrictest purity in our thoughts, words, and actions; and that not only in all fuch as refpect other perfons befides the husband and wife, but in every thing that has a tendency to heighten carnal defire. Now, though it does not appear, that mankind ever did or ever would make fo ftrict a rule for themselves; yet this rule, when made, approves itfelf to our judgments. The strictest purity and watchfulness over ourselves are neceffary, in order to make marriage of any kind

(which we fee by the laft article to be itself neceffary) happy, and productive of private pleasure and comfort, and of public good, by the united labours of the married pair for themfelves, their offspring, and their relatives. In the present imperfect state of things, the forbidding to divorce an adultress might feem a harsh commandment, above the frailty of our natures, as requiring the most entire love and affection, where there are returns of the greatest contempt and averfion, and the greatest violation of what are called juft rights and properties. Now, though the gofpel requires perfection of us ultimately, i. e. the most entire love in return for the most bitter hatred, and an abfolute difregard of all property both for ourselves, and for those whom we make our fubftitutes after death; yet it makes allowance for human frailty in this eminent inftance; leaving it, however, to every man, who is arrived at a fufficient degree of perfection, to walk thereby.

That a greater liberty of divorcing would be less fuited to produce good, public and private, upon the whole, appears probable, because no definite rule could be given in respect of other offences, they all admitting of various degrees; and because the profpect of divorcing, or being divorced, would often increase breaches, at the fame time that frequent divorces would have the worst consequences in respect of children, and even approach to promifcuous concubinage; whereas the indiffolubility of the marriage bond, with the affection to the common offspring, often produce in both parties the christian virtues of forbearance, and forgivenefs to each other. It is not at all improbable, that wicked cafuifts, who have explained away fo many exprefs gospel precepts, would, by the influence of princes and great men, have rendered marriage almoft of no effect, by increafing the liberty of divorcing.

Thirdly, The great finfulness of adultery, fornication, and impurity of every kind, appears not only from the manifeft and great evils and miseries of various forts attending them, the fhame, intemperance, jealoufies, murders, &c. and from the ftrictnefs of the gospel precepts, and the practices of the first Chriftians in this refpect; but also because the great fin of idolatry is reprefented by adultery and fornication in the prophetic writings; and because the moft heavy judgments are denounced against these laft fins in those writings, when understood both in figurative and literal fenfes. And indeed, as the idolatrous rites of the heathens were generally accompanied with abominable lewdnefs, fo, thefe vicious pleasures may be confidered as one of the groffeft kinds of idolatry, as withdrawing our affections from the true object, and fixing them on a mere animal pleasure, on one from the first and lowest class, and as worshipping the heathen deities of Bacchus and Venus. It is true indeed, that the pursuits of this kind are feldom from the alone view of bodily plea fure, the very nature of our bodies not fuffering this, fince the law of the body muft transfer bodily pleafures upon foreign objects, fo as to form intellectual pleasures. But then the intellectual pleasure accompanying thefe purfuits is always a vicious one, ge. nerally that of a vain mifchievous ambition, which occafions the greatest confufion, havock, and distress, in families, and indeed in the whole race of mankind.

Fourthly, It follows from the shame attending thefe pleafures, the organs, their fun&tions, &c. in all ages and nations, the account of the origin of this shame in the third chapter of Genefis, the directions concerning the uncleannefs of men and women given in the Jewish law, the rite of circumcifion, the pains of child-birth, with the account of their origin in the third chapter of Genefis, the ftrictness required