Footnotes
[[16]]
If the object is to give the State consistency, bring the two
extremes as near to each other as possible; allow neither rich men nor
beggars. These two estates, which are naturally inseparable, are equally
fatal to the common good; from the one come the friends of tyranny, and
from the other tyrants. It is always between them that public liberty is
put up to auction; the one buys, and the other sells.
[[17]]
"Any branch of foreign commerce," says M. d'Argenson, "creates on
the whole only apparent advantage for the kingdom in general; it may
enrich some individuals, or even some towns; but the nation as a whole
gains nothing by it, and the people is no better off."
