From the midst of these clashings and contradictions, continually recurring, a minister, possessed of a reflecting mind, is incessantly called back to the idea of imperfection; he will, undoubtedly, be sorry, when he sees the great disproportion which exists between his duty and his powers; and he will sometimes grieve and be discouraged, at perceiving the obstacles he must surmount, and the difficulties he must overcome: he raises, with labour and care, banks on the strand, the waters swell, their course becomes more rapid, and the first precautions rendered insufficient, oblige him to have recourse to new works, which, thrown down in their turn, hurry on a continued succession of fruitless toil and useless attempts. What then would be the consequence, if once the salutary chain of religious sentiments were broken? What would be the event, if the action of that powerful spring were ever entirely destroyed? You would soon see every part of the social structure tremble from its foundation, and the hand of government unable to sustain the vast and tottering edifice. The sovereign, and the laws which are the interpreters of his wisdom, should have two grand objects, the maintenance of public order, and the increase of private happiness. But to accomplish both, the aid of religion is absolutely necessary. The sovereign cannot influence the happiness of individuals, but by a general solicitude; because the sentiments which spring from the different characters of men, or merely from the circumstances of their respective situations, are independent of him. Neither can he ensure the preservation of public order, but by rules and institutions, which are only applicable to actions, and to those actions positively proved. It is necessary also that the laws should extend their influence to society in a uniform manner; they should always have a tendency to diminish the number of distinctions, shades, and modifications, that are to be found in the actions of men; in short, to prevent those abuses inseparably attendant on arbitrary decisions.