When they are good enough the laws
will not be wanted. For the man fully developed and fully moral
will know what he is doing when he goes into a marriage contract.
His stability of character will insure permanency. There will be
no need of laws.
At one time the English laws regulated the conditions under which
a man might beat his wife. "The stick," said the law, "must not
be thicker than the husband's thumb."
Some Englishmen have very thick thumbs, and the law was doubtless
hard on some thin, worn-out women.
But that law is no longer needed.
Men have outgrown the need of regulations in wife-beating. In
time they will outgrow the need of laws regarding infidelity and
lack of self-respect.
MAN'S WILLINGNESS TO WORK
What a fortunate thing it is that men want to work and like to
live! Suppose for a moment that the out-of-work, hungry, unlucky
creatures, numbering one hundred thousand in New York City,
should suddenly change their character.
It is a harmless supposition, as it implies that a great body of
good, though unlucky, men should be suddenly metamorphosed. But
suppose, for instance, that one hundred thousand men should have
a meeting and say:
"The State provides food, lodging and good care for every thief.
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