Enforced Fraternity Destroys Liberty
Mr. de Lamartine once wrote to me thusly: "Your doctrine is only
the half of my program. You have stopped at liberty; I go on to
fraternity." I answered him: "The second half of your program will
destroy the first."
In fact, it is impossible for me to separate the word fraternity
from the word voluntary. I cannot possibly understand how fraternity
can be legally enforced without liberty being legally destroyed, and
thus justice being legally trampled underfoot.
Legal plunder has two roots: One of them, as I have said before,
is in human greed; the other is in false philanthropy.
At this point, I think that I should explain exactly what I mean
by the word plunder.*
*Translator's note: The French word used by Mr. Bastiat is
spoliation.