Better Gutenberg
Free, beautifully formatted public-domain ebooks

The Philosophical Dictionary

by Voltaire

24 of 111 · Contents · Download EPUB

Civil Laws

Extract from Some Notes found among a Lawyer’s Papers, which maybe merit Examination.

Let the punishments of criminals be useful. A hanged man is good for nothing, and a man condemned to public works still serves the country, and is a living lesson.


Let all laws be clear, uniform and precise: to interpret laws is almost always to corrupt them.


Let nothing be infamous save vice.


Let taxes be always proportional.


Let the law never be contradictory to custom: for if the custom be good, the law is worthless.

← Back to The Philosophical Dictionary

Scroll to Top