hazelnutA Modest Proposal 原文

2021年1月20日发(作者：lotus)
A Modest Proposal
For Preventing the Children of Poor People
in Ireland, from Being a Burden on Their Parents
or Country, and for Making Them
Beneficial to the Publick
By Jonathan Swift
Edited and annotated by
Jack Lynch

Swift was Irish, and though he much preferred living in England, he resented British
policies toward the Irish. In a letter to Pope of 1729, he wrote,
two-thirds of whose revenues are spent out of it, and who are not permitted to trade with
the other third, and where the pride of the women will not suffer [allow] them to wear their
own manufactures even where they excel what come from abroad: This is the true state of
Ireland in a very few words.
in modern Ireland. The paragraph numbers have been added for this edition.

[1]
It is a melancholly Object to those, who walk through this great Town,
1

or travel in the
Country, when they see the
Streets
, the
Roads
, and
Cabbin-Doors
, crowded with
Beggars

of the female Sex, followed by three, four, or six Children,
all in Rags
, and importuning
every Passenger for an Alms. These
Mothers
instead of being able to work for their
honest livelyhood, are forced to employ all their time in Stroling, to beg Sustenance for
their
helpless Infants
, who, as they grow up either turn
Thieves
for want of work, or leave
their
dear native Country to fight for the Pretender in Spain
,
2

or sell themselves to the
Barbadoes
.
3

[2]
I think it is agreed by all Parties, that this prodigious number of Children, in the Arms,
or on the Backs, or at the
heels
of their
Mothers
, and frequently of their Fathers, is
in the
present deplorable state of the Kingdom
, a very great additional grievance; and therefore
whoever could find out a fair, cheap and easy method of making these Children sound
and useful Members of the common-wealth would deserve so well of the publick, as to
have his Statue set up for a preserver of the Nation.
[3]
But my Intention is very far from being confined to provide only for the Children of
professed beggars
, it is of a much greater extent, and shall take in the whole number of
Infants at a certain Age, who are born of Parents in effect as little able to support them, as
those who demand our Charity in the Streets.
[4]
As to my own part, having turned my thoughts for many Years, upon this important
Subject, and maturely weighed the several
Schemes of other Projectors
,
4

I have always
found them grossly mistaken in their computation. It is true a Child,
just dropt from it's
Dam
,
5

may be supported by her Milk, for a Solar year with little other Nourishment, at
most not above the Value of two Shillings, which the Mother may certainly get, or the
Value in
Scraps
, by her lawful Occupation of begging, and it is exactly at one year Old that
I propose to provide for them, in such a manner, as, instead of being a Charge upon their
Parents
, or the
Parish
,
6

or
wanting
7

Food and Raiment
for the rest of their Lives, they
shall, on the Contrary, contribute to the Feeding and partly to the Cloathing of many
Thousands.
[5]
There is likewise another great Advantage in my Scheme, that it will prevent those
voluntary Abortions
, and that horrid practice of
Women murdering their Bastard Children
,
alas! too frequent among us, Sacrificing the
poor innocent Babes
, I doubt,
8

more to avoid
the Expence, than the Shame, which would move Tears and Pity in the most Savage and
inhuman breast.
[6]
The number of Souls in this Kingdom being usually reckoned one Million and a half, Of
these I calculate there may be about two hundred thousand Couple whose Wives are
breeders, from which number I Substract thirty Thousand Couples, who are able to
maintain their own Children, although I apprehend
9

there cannot be so many, under
the
present distresses of the Kingdom
, but this being granted, there will remain an hundred
and seventy thousand Breeders. I again Subtract fifty Thousand for those Women who
miscarry, or whose Children dye by accident, or disease within the Year. There only
remain an hundred and twenty thousand Children of poor Parents annually born: The
question therefore is, How this number shall be reared, and provided for, which, as I have
already said, under the present Situation of Affairs, is utterly impossible by all the methods
hitherto proposed, for we can
neither employ them in Handicraft
, or
Agriculture
; we neither
build Houses, (I mean in the Country) nor cultivate Land:
10

they can very seldom pick up
a Livelyhood
by Stealing
until they arrive at six years Old, except where they are of
towardly parts,
11

although, I confess they learn the Rudiments much earlier; during which
time they can however be properly looked upon only as
Probationers
, as I have been
informed by a principal Gentleman in the County of
Cavan
, who protested to me, that he
never knew above one or two Instances under the Age of six, even in a part of the
Kingdom
so renowned for the quickest proficiency in that Art
.
[7]
I am assured by our Merchants, that a Boy or Girl, before twelve years Old, is no
saleable Commodity, and even when they come to this Age, they will not yield above three
Pounds, or three Pounds and half a Crown at most on the Exchange, which cannot turn to
Account either to the Parents or the Kingdom, the Charge of Nutriments and Rags having
been at least four times that Value.
[8]
I shall now therefore humbly propose my own thoughts, which I hope will not be lyable
to the least Objection.
[9]
I have been assured by a very knowing
American
of my acquaintance in
London
, that
a young healthy Child well Nursed is at a year Old, a most delicious, nourishing, and
wholesome Food, whether
Stewed
,
Roasted
,
Baked
, or
Boyled
, and I make no doubt that
it will equally serve in a
Fricasie
, or
Ragoust
.
12

[10]
I do therefore humbly offer it to
publick consideration
, that of the hundred and twenty
thousand Children, already computed, twenty thousand may be reserved for Breed,
whereof only one fourth part to be Males, which is more than we allow to
Sheep
,
black
Cattle
, or
Swine
, and my reason is, that these Children are seldom the Fruits of Marriage,
a Circumstance not much regarded by our Savages
, therefore,
one Male
will be sufficient
to serve
four Females
. That the remaining hundred thousand may at a year Old be offered
in Sale to the
persons of Quality
,
13

and
Fortune
, through the Kingdom, always advising
the Mother to let them Suck plentifully in the last Month, so as to render them Plump, and
Fat for a good Table. A Child will make two Dishes at an Entertainment for Friends, and
when the Family dines alone, the fore or hind Quarter will make a reasonable Dish, and
seasoned with a little Pepper or Salt will be very good Boiled on the fourth Day, especially
in
Winter
.
[11]
I have reckoned upon a Medium, that a Child just born will weigh 12 pounds, and in a
solar Year if tollerably nursed encreaseth to 28 Pounds.
[12]
I grant this food will be somewhat dear,
14

and therefore very
proper for
Landlords
,
15

who, as they have already devoured most of the Parents, seem to have the
best Title to the Children.
[13]
Infant's flesh will be in Season throughout the Year, but more plentiful in
March
, and a
little before and after; for we are told by a grave Author
16

an eminent
French
physitian,
that
Fish being a prolifick Dyet
, there are more Children born in
Roman Catholick
Countries
about nine Months after
Lent
, than at any other Season, therefore reckoning a
Year after
Lent
, the Markets will be more glutted than usual, because the Number of
Popish Infants
, is at least three to one in this Kingdom, and therefore it will have one other
Collateral advantage by lessening the Number of
Papists
among us.
[14]
I have already computed the Charge of nursing a Beggars Child (in which list I reckon
all
Cottagers
,
Labourers
, and four fifths of the
Farmers
) to be about two Shillings
per
Annum
, Rags included; and I believe no Gentleman would repine to give Ten Shillings for
the
Carcass of a good fat Child
, which, as I have said will make four Dishes of excellent
Nutritive Meat, when he hath only some particular friend, or his own Family to Dine with
him. Thus the Squire will learn to be a good Landlord, and grow popular among his
Tenants, the Mother will have Eight Shillings neat profit, and be fit for Work till she
produceth another Child.
[15]
Those who are more thrifty (
as I must confess the Times require
) may flay the
Carcass; the Skin of which, Artificially
17

dressed, will make admirable
Gloves for Ladies
,
and
Summer Boots for fine Gentlemen
.
[16]
As to our City of
Dublin
, Shambles
18

may be appointed for this purpose, in the most
convenient parts of it, and Butchers we may be assured will not be wanting, although I
rather recommend buying the Children alive, and dressing them hot from the Knife, as we
do
roasting Pigs
.
[17]
A very worthy Person, a
true Lover of his Country
, and whose Virtues I highly esteem,
was lately pleased, in discoursing on this matter, to offer a refinement upon my Scheme.
He said, that many Gentlemen of this Kingdom, having of late destroyed their Deer, he
conceived that the want of Venison might be well supplyed by the Bodies of young Lads
and Maidens, not exceeding fourteen Years of Age, nor under twelve; so great a Number
of both Sexes in every County being now ready to Starve, for want of Work and Service:
And these to be disposed of by their Parents if alive, or otherwise by their nearest
Relations. But with due deference to so excellent a friend, and so deserving a Patriot, I
cannot be altogether in his Sentiments, for as to the Males, my
American
acquaintance
assured me from frequent Experience, that their flesh was generally Tough and Lean, like
that of our School-boys, by continual exercise, and their Taste disagreeable, and to Fatten
them would not answer the Charge. Then as to the Females, it would, I think, with humble
Submission,
be a loss to the Publick
, because they soon would become Breeders
themselves: And besides it is not improbable that some scrupulous People might be apt to
Censure such a Practice, (although indeed very unjustly) as a little bordering upon Cruelty,
which, I confess, hath always been with me the strongest objection against any Project,
how well soever intended.
[18]
But in order to justify my friend, he confessed, that this expedient was put into his
head by the famous
Sallmanaazor
,
19

a Native of the Island
Formosa
, who came from
thence to
London
, above twenty Years ago, and in Conversation told my friend, that in his
Country when any young Person happened to be put to Death, the Executioner sold the
Carcass to
Persons of Quality
, as a prime Dainty, and that, in his Time, the Body of a
plump Girl of fifteen, who was crucifyed for an attempt to Poison the Emperor, was sold to
his Imperial
Majesty's prime Minister of State
, and other great
Mandarins
20

of the Court,
in Joints from the Gibbet
,
21

at four hundred Crowns. Neither indeed can I deny, that if the
same use were made of several plump young Girls in this Town, who, without one single
Groat
22

to their Fortunes, cannot stir abroad without a Chair,
23

and appear at a
Play-House
, and
Assemblies
in Foreign fineries, which they never will Pay for; the
Kingdom would not be the worse.