ABSTRACT
It is better to prevent crimes than to punish them. This is the principal end of all good legislation, which is the art of bringing to men to the greatest happiness, or as they say, the least unhappiness possible according to the calculations of all the good things and all the bad things in life. For one motive that pushes men to commit a real crime, there will be a thousand that pushes him to perform those indifferent acts which are called crimes by bad laws. And if the probability of crimes is proportionate to the number of motives, to amplify the sphere of crimes is to increase the probability of committing them. The majority of laws are nothing but privileges, a gift of all to the comfort of a few. Fear of laws is beneficial, but men's fear of each other is fatal and productive of crimes.
