登陆注册
5589700000025

第25章 THE INDUSTRIAL SPIRIT(5)

'Unitarianism,'said shrewd old Erasmus Darwin,'is a feather-bed for a dying Christian.'But at present such men as Priestley and Price were only so far on the road to a thorough rationalism as to denounce the corruptions of Christianity,as they denounced abuses in politics,without anticipating a revolutionary change in church and state.Priestley,for example,combined 'materialism'and 'determinism'with Christianity and a belief in miracles,and controverted Horsley upon one side and Paine on the other.

II.THE AGRICULTURISTS

The general spirit represented by such movements was by no means confined to the commercial or manufacturing classes;and its most characteristic embodiment is to be found in the writings of a leading agriculturist.

Arthur Young,(5)born in 1741,was the son of a clergyman,who had also a small ancestral property at Bradfield,near Bury St.Edmunds.Accidents led to his becoming a farmer at an early age.He showed more zeal than discretion,and after trying three thousand experiments on his farm,he was glad to pay £100to another tenant to take his farm off his hands.This experience as a practical agriculturist,far from discouraging him,qualified him in his own opinion to speak with authority,and he became a devoted missionary of the gospel of agricultural improvement.The enthusiasm with which he admired more successful labourers in the cause,and the indignation with which he regards the sluggish and retrograde,are charming.His kindliness,his keen interest in the prosperity of all men,rich or poor,his ardent belief in progress,combined with his quickness of observation,give a charm to the writings which embody his experience.Tours in England and a temporary land-agency in Ireland supplied him with materials for books which made him known both in England and on the Continent.In 1779he returned to Bradfield,where he soon afterwards came into possession of his paternal estate,which became his permanent home.In 1784he tried to extend his propaganda by bringing out the Annals of Agriculture --a monthly publication,of which forty-five half-yearly volumes appeared.He had many able contributors and himself wrote many interesting articles,but the pecuniary results were mainly negative.

In 1791his circulation was only 350copies.(6)Meanwhile his acquaintance with the duc de Liancourt led to tours in France from 1788to 1790.His Travels in France,first published in 1792,has become a classic.In 1793Young was made secretary to the Board of Agriculture,of which I shall speak presently.

He became known in London society as well as in agricultural circles.He was a handsome and attractive man,a charming companion,and widely recognised as an agricultural authority.The empress of Russia sent him a snuff-box;'Farmer George'presented a merino ram;he was elected member of learned societies;he visited Burke at Beaconsfield,Pitt at Holmwood,and was a friend of Wilberforce and of Jeremy Bentham.

Young had many domestic troubles.His marriage was not congenial;the loss of a tenderly loved daughter in 1797permanently saddened him;he became blind,and in his later years sought comfort in religious meditation and in preaching to his poorer neighbours.He died 20th April 1820.He left behind him a gigantic history of agriculture,filling ten folio volumes of manu,which,though reduced to six by an enthusiastic disciple after his death,have never found their way to publication.

The Travels in France,Young's best book,owes one merit to the advice of a judicious friend,who remarked that the previous tours had suffered from the absence of the personal details which interest the common reader.

The insertion of these makes Young's account of his French tours one of the most charming as well as most instructive books of the kind.It gives the vivid impression made upon a keen and kindly observer in all their freshness.

He sensibly retained the expressions of opinion made at the time.'I may remark at present,'he says,(7)'that although I was totally mistaken in my prediction,yet,on a revision,I think I was right in it.'It was right,he means,upon the data then known to him,and he leaves the unfulfil led prediction as it was.The book is frequently cited in justification of the revolution,and it may be fairly urged that his authority is of the more weight,because he does not start from any sympathy with revolutionary principles.

Young was in Paris when the oath was taken at the tennis-court;and makes his reflections upon the beauty of the British Constitution,and the folly of visionary reforms,in a spirit which might have satisfied Burke.He was therefore not altogether inconsistent when,after the outrages,he condemned the revolution,however much the facts which he describes may tend to explain the inevitableness of the catastrophe.At any rate,his views are worth notice by the indications which they give of the mental attituDe of a typical English observer.

Young in his vivacious way struck out some of the phrases which became proverbial with later economists.'Give a man the secure possession of a bleak rock and he will turn it into a garden.Give him a nine years'lease of a garden,and he will convert it into a desert.'(8)'The magic of PROPERTYturns sand to gold.'(9)He is delighted with the comfort of the small proprietors near Pau,which reminds him of English districts still inhabited by small yeomen.(10)Passing to a less fortunate region,he explains that the prince de Souvise has a vast property there.The property of a grand 'seigneur'is sure to be a desert.(11)The signs which indicate such properties are 'wastes,landes,deserts,fern,ling.'The neighbourhood of the great residences is well peopled --'with deer,wild boars,and wolves.''Oh,'he exclaims,'if I was the legislator of France for a day,I would make such great lords skip again!''Why,'he asked,'were the people miserable in lower Savoy?'

同类推荐
  • 六十种曲琵琶记

    六十种曲琵琶记

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 希澹园诗集

    希澹园诗集

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 明代散文阅读参考书目

    明代散文阅读参考书目

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 停琴余牍

    停琴余牍

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
  • 爱清子至命篇

    爱清子至命篇

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。汇聚授权电子版权。
热门推荐
  • 吸引力法则(畅销精读本)

    吸引力法则(畅销精读本)

    吸引力法则是指当一个人的思想专注在某一领域的时候,跟这个领域相关的人、事、物就会被他吸引而来:你也许将会拥有你心里想得最多的事物,你的生活也将变成你心里最经常想象的样子。吸引力法则是宇宙中最根本、最有力量的法则。只有掌握吸引力法则,你才能为自己的生命吸引到健康、财富和幸福等美好事物。本书旨在帮助你认识吸引力法则,引导你正确使用吸引力法则,从而彻底改变你的生活与工作状态,让你过上梦想中的生活。借助吸引力法则,你可以改变自己的思维方式,获得心灵的平和,发掘自身潜力,最终拥有你所渴望的事物,达成你的愿望,成就你的美好。
  • 萌淑女驾到之人鱼的信奉(小小姐贺岁系列)

    萌淑女驾到之人鱼的信奉(小小姐贺岁系列)

    有多少人知道,自古及今,世界各地的英雄、侠客、忍者等传奇人物的 真正身份其实是拥有异能力的非凡人类,甚至是嬉戏人间的非人类?在这座名为知更城的古老海滨城市里,新世纪吸血鬼卡修选择了史上最 另类的“主食”——由他亲手培育出来的淑女的荷尔蒙气息。“三无少女”绯虹以及“假小子”星辰成为被培育对象,但她们非常不配合,因为她们出 生在异能世家,是知更城夜间守护者“夜鸥”的继承人,打心底认为自己与淑女无缘。这让淑女养成计划陷进了停滞不前的境况中,直到一名来自大海 的少年蓝夕打破僵局。蓝夕向绯虹讨要一颗在她上次溺水被救时所带走的深海明珠,他需要这颗明珠才能返回深海,但绯虹对此毫无记忆。
  • 画心(大结局)

    画心(大结局)

    无限好书尽在阅文。
  • 中外名人传记大全集(优秀青少年最想知道)

    中外名人传记大全集(优秀青少年最想知道)

    在源远流长、辉煌灿烂的世界历史岁月中,涌现出成千上万富有创造性和进取精神的名人,留下了一串串不可磨灭的历史印迹。名人以深邃的思想,放射出绮丽的光芒,启迪着人们的心智,照耀着人类的内心世界;名人以卓越的军政才能,主宰着世界的风云,改变着历史的格局,影响着人类的进程;名人以精深的智慧,创造了难以计数的科学发明,推动着人类的文明之轮飞速前进;名人以敏捷的才思,将深沉的情感注入笔端,写下了打动人心的名篇佳作,传诵至今。
  • 小发明

    小发明

    文章讲述了方便垃圾桶、蛇皮袋撑扶器、多功能反转晾鞋架、深孔伸缩取物器、能取出自来水管内接断裂物的扳手等内容。
  • 以声为眼

    以声为眼

    【严家二小姐深夜与人在街上拥吻,男方疑似当红天王沈辞!】深夜,一条话题迅速窜上热搜,刚开始点进去的网友也是抱着手残的心情点进去的,当看到编配的照片时,都差点把眼珠给瞪出来,他们看到什么了?!隔着屏幕都能感受到严二小姐的甜蜜同时还有那股恋爱的酸臭味,可惜就是看不清男方的脸,但看身材确实有些像沈辞。还没等这场风暴持续多久又是一条爆炸新闻出来:【秦家大少秦暮衍深夜晒结婚证,女方为严家二小姐!】这回的新闻就不是疑似了,直接一张结婚证摆那,铁证如山,毫无ps痕迹。都城某件私人别墅中,严笙看着高高挂起的热搜对身后的男人又是好气又是好笑。
  • 羊皮卷大全集:一生必读的励志经典(超值金版)

    羊皮卷大全集:一生必读的励志经典(超值金版)

    本书收录了常见《羊皮卷》范本的经典,同时融入了最新的励志好书,17部世界级成功宝典以各自的主题让《羊皮卷大全集:一生必读的励志经典(超值金版)》处处闪耀着人类智慧的光芒,并照耀着生命的前程。相传两千多年前,一个贫苦青年海菲在神的指引下,得到秘密流传下来的经商致富秘籍,最终成为了富甲一方的人。这些秘籍书写在羊皮卷上,因此被称为“羊皮卷”。但令人惋惜的是,自海菲之后,再也没有人看到过这些神秘的羊皮卷。虽然那些神秘的羊皮卷已经随着时间的流逝而消失在历史的车轮下,但是富有羊皮卷意义的书籍却从未消失过。
  • 犯罪心理学·第二季(国外卷)

    犯罪心理学·第二季(国外卷)

    《犯罪心理学:第二季(国外卷)》这本书以通俗的语言和生动的案例,给读者介绍了犯罪心理学的知识。《犯罪心理学:第二季(国外卷)》所选的都是震全的最有代表性的大案要案,诸如绿河连环人案、“棋盘手”皮丘什金、韩国食人魔柳永哲、“黑色大丽花”惨案、“辛普森妻案”等。
  • 矿珀

    矿珀

    我钻进去了。迅即,我的屁股被狠狠踹上一脚。这一脚来得太猛烈,我的头我的脖子被撅得咯啪一声。我浑身一丁点力气都没有了。觉得有人在迅速地顶住我掩埋我。一会儿井壁成形了。我呼出了最后一口气。于是,成形的井壁上落下一个细小的沙眼儿。你们不知道现在的我有多么舒服。我体验到了从未有过的轻松和快乐。我听到了天籁之音,我看见了大海扬波,红日正喷薄欲出,阴霾在片片坠落。多么好啊!没有痛苦,没有贪婪,没有争夺。也许,在亿万年之后,如果人类能够繁衍到那个时候,人们会发现:在远离梦阳的三千里之外,在紫云岭雁鸣谷大井深处,那儿,有一枚晶莹剔透的矿珀。
  • 万能管家吉夫斯

    万能管家吉夫斯

    笑足一个世纪的文学经典,英式幽默的黄金标准!本书改编英剧《万能管家》口碑爆表,经典形象深入人心!作者伍德豪斯是20世纪伟大的幽默作家,也是英式幽默的代表人物。因其文学贡献,被授予大英帝国勋章!这是一对活宝的故事:养尊处优的少爷伍斯特,运气却差到极点,总会被凶悍的姑妈、花心的哥们儿以及烦人的堂弟搅入一系列麻烦中。处变不惊的管家吉夫斯,睿智冷静又深藏不露,总能在伍斯特落难之际及时出手相救,求得皆大欢喜的完美结局。平静而恬淡的生活里,伍斯特与吉夫斯,一主一仆间,一幕幕令人捧腹的喜剧正不断上演。