Such was the nature upon which, after the fall of the empire and the renovation of society, Christianity was to act.

But this nature, grounded as in former times upon slavery and war, would, by its own energy, have produced nothing but war and slavery.
"GRADUALLY the serfs obtained the privilege of being judged by the same standard as their masters...." When, how, and by what title did they obtain this privilege?
"GRADUALLY their duties were regulated." Whence came the regulations?
Who had the authority to introduce them?
"The master took a part of the labor of the serf,--three days, for instance,--and left the rest to him.

As for Sunday, that belonged to God." And what established Sunday, if not religion?
Whence I infer, that the same power which took it upon itself to suspend hostilities and to lighten the duties of the serf was also that which regulated the judiciary and created a sort of law for the slave.
But this law itself, on what did it bear ?--what was its principle ?--what was the philosophy of the councils and popes with reference to this matter?
The reply to all these questions, coming from me alone, would be distrusted.

The authority of M.Laboulaye shall give credence to my words.

This holy philosophy, to which the slaves were indebted for every thing, this invocation of the Gospel, was an anathema against property.
The proprietors of small freeholds, that is, the freemen of the middle class, had fallen, in consequence of the tyranny of the nobles, into a worse condition than that of the tenants and serfs.