not departing from Mandeville but was echoing
him even as to language. Helvetius said that motives of personal
temporal interest sufficed for the formation of a good society,
provided they were "manies avec adresse par un legislateur habile."[23]

[22] John Plamenatz, _The British Utilitarians_, Oxford and New
York, 1949, pp. 48-49.

[23] Helvetius, _De l'esprit_, Discours II. Ch. XXIV. In the
French version of _The Fable of the Bees_, the phrasing is almost
identical: See _La fable des abeilles_, Paris, 1750, e.g. II.
261: "menages avec dexterite par d'habiles politiques." When the
Sorbonne, in 1759, condemned _De l'esprit_, it cited _The Fable
of the Bees_ as among the works which could have inspired it. (F.
Gregoire. _Bernard De Mandeville_, Nancy, 1947, p. 206).

Kaye, in his "The Influence of Bernard Mandeville," (_loc. cit._,
p. 102), says that _De l'esprit_ "Is in many ways simply a French
paraphrase of _The Fable_." In his edition of _The Fable of the
Bees_, however, he says, "I think we may conclude no more than
that Helvetius had probably read _The Fable_." (_Fable of the
Bees_, I. CXLV, Note). Kaye systematically fails to notice the
significance of Mandeville's emphasis on the role of the "skilful
Politician."

Here also there is a close link between Mandeville, Bayle, and the
Jansenists, especially Nicole and Domat. All of them adopted a
Hobbesian view of human nature. All of them followed Hobbes in
believing that the discipline imposed by positive law and enforced by
government was essential if a prosperous and flourishing society was to
be derived from communities of individuals vigorously pursuing their
self-regarding interests. Mandeville's originality was in pretending
that in the interest of true morality he preferred that the individual
pursuit of prosperity be abandoned even at the cost of social disaster.

A

LETTER

TO

DION,

Occasion'd by his Book

CALL'D

ALCIPHRON,

OR

The MINUTE PHILOSOPHER.

_By the Author of the_ FABLE _of the_ BEES.

_LONDON:_

Printed and Sold by J. ROBERTS in _Warwick-Lane_.
M.DCC.XXXII.

_SIR_,

I have read your Two Volumes of _Alciphron_, or, The _Minute
Philosopher_ with Attention. As far as I am a Judge, the Language is
very good, the Diction correct, and the Style and whole Manner of
Writing are both polite and entert