212 Economic Theory: An Introductionto provide the poor with unearned money would actually
increase their misery. First, Mai thus claimed that to give the poor
enough money on which to exist would result in increased
procreation. He reasoned that the poor, without work, with
nothing to do, idle, but with enough to eat, thanks to the state—
would do the only thing they could to bring them some measure
of pleasure. The result is an increase in the number of children
in their family, thus an increase in their misery. Second, the
distribution of money to the poor to see to their basic wants
simply increases the amount of money which is available to
purchase the limited amount of food. What in fact would happen
is that the price of the food would go up in a direct proportion to
the amount of money added to the supply to purchase it. Thus,
the scarcity would remain essentially the same.
As a Christian minister, Malthus was not taking a cold
unconcerned position on the plight of the poor. What he was
doing was making a case for the argument that doling out money
to the poor was not benefiting them, but in fact making their lives
more miserable, and more miserable in greater numbers. He felt
his philosophy would not end the suffering of the poor, but
simply minimize it by limiting the number of people who would
have to bear the suffering.
Malthus suggested a method for gradually abolishing the poor
laws and alleviating the suffering of the poor. His proposal was
for the government to get out of the business of trying to legislate
help for the poor. He suggested that the government end the poor
laws by setting a future date, after which, any child who was bom
would be ineligible for assistance. In conjunction with this
governmental lack of involvement, Malthus foresaw a greater
involvement of the clergy, who would be given the task to teach
the value of moral restraint. Given fair warning, people would
know that if they had children they could not afford to feed, they
would pay a terrible price for their lack of judgment.
Malthus contends that after his plan is implemented there will
be nothing left for the government to legislate in this regard—
“nature will govern and punish for us.” Those who choose to
marry and consequently have children will live well or poorly
based on their ability to support those children they bring into the
world. To marry in poverty is obviously immoral and if children
are bom into this condition the punishment is want. Natural