medde　Jaubert；　Reinaud；　and　Burnouf。
  〃The　committee；〃　said　the　report　presented　at　the　annual　meeting　of　the　five　academies　on　Thursday；　May　2；　1839；　〃has　paid　especial　attention　to　manuscripts　No。　1　and　No。　4。　　Still；　it　does　not　feel　able　to　grant　the　prize　to　either　of　these　works；　because　they　do　not　appear　to　be　sufficiently　elaborated。　　The　committee；　which　finds　in　No。　4　some　ingenious　analyses；　particularly　in　regard　to　the　mechanism　of　the　Hebrew　language；　regrets　that　the　author　has　resorted　to　hazardous　conjectures；　and　has　sometimes　forgotten　the　special　recommendation　of　the　committee　to　pursue　the　experimental　and　comparative　method。〃
  Proudhon　remembered　this。　　He　attended　the　lectures　of　Eugene　Burnouf；　and；　as　soon　as　he　became　acquainted　with　the　labors　and　discoveries　of　Bopp　and　his　successors；　he　definitively　abandoned　an　hypothesis　which　had　been　condemned　by　the　Academy　of　Inscriptions　and　Belles…lettres。　　He　then　sold；　for　the　value　of　the　paper；　the　remaining　copies　of　the　〃Essay〃　published　by　him　in　1837。　　In　1850；　they　were　still　lying　in　a　grocer's　back…shop。
  A　neighboring　publisher　then　placed　the　edition　on　the　market；　with　the　attractive　name　of　Proudhon　upon　it。　　A　lawsuit　ensued；　in　which　the　author　was　beaten。　　His　enemies；　and　at　that　time　there　were　many　of　them；　would　have　been　glad　to　have　proved　him　a　renegade　and　a　recanter。　　Proudhon；　in　his　work　on　〃Justice；〃　gives　some　interesting　details　of　this　lawsuit。
  In　possession　of　the　Suard　pension；　Proudhon　took　part　in　the　contest　proposed　by　the　Academy　of　Besancon　on　the　question　of　the　utility　of　the　celebration　of　Sunday。　　His　memoir　obtained　honorable　mention；　together　with　a　medal　which　was　awarded　him；　in　open　session；　on　the　24th　of　August；　1839。　　The　reporter　of　the　committee；　the　Abbe　Doney；　since　made　Bishop　of　Montauban；　called　attention　to　the　unquestionable　superiority　of　his　talent。
  〃But；〃　says　Sainte　Beuve；　〃he　reproached　him　with　having　adopted　dangerous　theories；　and　with　having　touched　upon　questions　of　practical　politics　and　social　organization；　where　upright　intentions　and　zeal　for　the　public　welfare　cannot　justify　rash　solutions。〃
  Was　it　policy；　we　mean　prudence；　which　induced　Proudhon　to　screen　his　ideas　of　equality　behind　the　Mosaic　law？　　Sainte　Beuve；　like　many　others；　seems　to　think　so。　　But　we　remember　perfectly　well　that；　having　asked　Proudhon；　in　August；　1848；　if　he　did　not　consider　himself　indebted　in　some　respects　to　his　fellow…　countryman；　Charles　Fourier；　we　received　from　him　the　following　reply：　　〃I　have　certainly　read　Fourier；　and　have　spoken　of　him　more　than　once　in　my　works；　but；　upon　the　whole；　I　do　not　think　that　I　owe　anything　to　him。　　My　real　masters；　those　who　have　caused　fertile　ideas　to　spring　up　in　my　mind；　are　three　in　number：　first；　the　Bible；　next；　Adam　Smith；　and　last；　Hegel。
  Freely　confessed　in　the　〃Celebration　of　Sunday；〃　the　influence　of　the　Bible　on　Proudhon　is　no　less　manifest　in　his　first　memoir　on　property。　　Proudhon　undoubtedly　brought　to　this　work　many　ideas　of　his　own；　but　is　not　the　very　foundation　of　ancient　Jewish　law　to　be　found　in　its　condemnation　of　usurious　interest　and　its　denial　of　the　right　of　personal　appropriation　of　land？
  The　first　memoir　on　property　appeared　in　1840；　under　the　title；　〃What　is　Property？　or　an　Inquiry　into　the　Principle　of　Right　and　of　Government。〃　　Proudhon　dedicated　it；　in　a　letter　which　served　as　the　preface；　to　the　Academy　of　Besancon。　　The　latter；　finding　itself　brought　to　trial　by　its　pensioner；　took　the　affair　to　heart；　and　evoked　it；　says　Sainte　Beuve；　with　all　possible　haste。
  The　pension　narrowly　escaped　being　immediately　withdrawn　from　the　bold　defender　of　the　principle　of　equality　of　conditions。　　M。　Vivien；　then　Minister　of　Justice；　who　was　earnestly　solicited　to　prosecute　the　author；　wished　first　to　obtain　the　opinion　of　the　economist；　Blanqui；　a　member　of　the　Academy　of　Moral　and　Political　Sciences。　　Proudhon　having　presented　to　this　academy　a　copy　of　his　book；　M。　Blanqui　was　appointed　to　review　it。　　This　review；　though　it　opposed　Proudhon's　views；　shielded　him。　　Treated　as　a　savant　by　M。　Blanqui；　the　author　was　not　prosecuted。　　He　was　always　grateful　to　MM。　Blanqui　and　Vivien　for　their　handsome　conduct　in　the　matter。
  M。　Blanqui's　review；　which　was　partially　reproduced　by　〃Le　Moniteur；〃　on　the　7th　of　September；　1840；　naturally　led　Proudhon　to　address　to　him；　in　the　form　of　a　letter；　his　second　memoir　on　property；　which　appeared　in　April；　1841。　　Proudhon　had　endeavored；　in　his　first　memoir；　to　demonstrate　that　the　pursuit　of　equality　of　conditions　is　the　true　principle　of　right　and　of　government。　　In　the　〃Letter　to　M。　Blanqui；〃　he　passes　in　review　the　numerous　and　varied　methods　by　which　this　principle　gradually　becomes　realized　in　all　societies；　especially　in　modern　society。
  In　1842；　a　third　memoir　appeared；　entitled；　〃A　Notice　to　Proprietors；　or　a　Letter　to　M。　Victor　Considerant；　Editor　of　‘La　Phalange；'　in　Reply　to　a　Defence　of　Property。〃　　Here　the　influence　of　Adam　Smith　manifested　itself；　and　was　frankly　admitted。　　Did　not　Adam　Smith　find；　in　the　principle　of　equality；　the　first　of　all　the　laws　which　govern　wages？　　There　are　other　laws；　undoubtedly；　but　Proudhon　considers　them　all　as　springing　from　the　principle　of　property；　as　he　defined　it　in　his　first　memoir。　　Thus；　in　humanity；　there　are　two　principles；one　which　leads　us　to　equality；　another　which　separates　us　from　it。　　By　the　former；　we　treat　each　other　as　associates；　by　the　latter；　as　strangers；　not　to　say　enemies。　　This　distinction；　which　is　constantly　met　with　throughout　the　three　memoirs；　contained　already；　in　germ；　the　idea　which　gave　birth　to　the　〃System　of　Economical　Contradictions；〃　which　appeared　in　1846；　the　idea　of　antinomy　or　contre…loi。
  The　〃Notice　to　Proprietors〃　was　seized　by　the　magistrates　of　Besancon；　and　Proudhon　was　summoned　to　appear　before　the　assizes　of　Doubs　within　a　week。　　He　read　his　written　defence　to　the　jurors　in　person；　and　was　acquitted。　　The　jury；　like　M。　Blanqui；　viewed　him　only　as　a　philosopher；　an　inquirer；　a　savant。
  In　1843；　Proudhon　published　the　〃Creation　of　Order　in　Humanity；〃　a　large　volume；　which　does　not　deal　exclusively　with　questions　of　social　economy。　　Religion；　philosophy；　method；　certainty；　logic；　and　dialectics　are　treated　at　considerable　length。
  Released　from　his　printing…office　on　the　1st　of　March　of　the　same　year；　Proudhon　had　to　look　for　a　chance　to　earn　his　living。　　Messrs。　Gauthier　Bros。；　carriers　by　water　between　Mulhouse　and　Lyons；　the　eldest　of　whom　was　Proudhon's　companion　in　childhood；　conceived　the　happy　thought　of　employing　him；　of　utilizing　his　ability　in　their　business；　and　in　settling　the　numerous　points　of　difficulty　which　daily　arose。　　Besides　the　large　number　of　accounts　which　his　new　duties　required　him　to　make　out；　and　which　retarded　the　publication　of　the　〃System　of　Economical　Contradictions；〃　until　October；　1846；　we　ought　to　mention　a　work；　which；　before　it　appeared　in　pamphlet　form；　was　published　in　the　〃Revue　des　Economistes；〃〃Competition　between　Railroads　and　Navigable　Ways。〃
  〃Le　Miserere；　or　the　Repentance　of　a　King；〃　which　he　published　in　March；　1845；　in　the　〃Revue　Independante；〃　during　that　Lenten　season　when　Lacordaire　was　preaching　in　Lyons；　proves　that；　though　devoting　himself　with　ardor　to　the　study　of　economical　problems；　Proudhon　had　not　lost　his　interest　in　questions　of　religious　history。　　Among　his　writings　on　these　questions；　which　he　was　unfortunately　obliged　to　leave　unfinished；　we　may　mention　a　nearly　completed　history　of　the　early　Christian　heresies；　and　of　the　struggle　of　Christianity　against　Caesarism。
  We　have　said　that；　in　1848；　Proudhon　recognized　three　masters。　　Having　no　knowledge　of　the　German　language；　he　could　not　have　read　the　works　of　Hegel；　which　at　that　time　had　not　been　translated　into　French。　　It　was　Charles　Grun；　a　German；　who　had　come　to　France　to　study　the　various　philosophical　and　socialistic　systems；　who　gave　him　the　substance　of　the　Hegelian　ideas。　　During　the　winter　of　1844…45；　Charles　Grun　had　some　long　conversations　with　Proudhon；　which　determined；　very　decisively；　not　the　ideas；　which　belonged　exclusively　to　the　bisontin　thinker；　but　the　form　of　the　important　work　on　which　he　labored　after　1843；　and　which　was　published　in　1846　by　Guillaumin。
  Hegel's　great　idea；　which　Proudhon　appropriated；　and　which　he　demonstrates　with　wonderful　ability　in　the　〃System　of　Economical　Contradictions；〃　is　as　follows：　　Antinomy；　that　is；　the　existence　of　two　laws　or　tendencies　which　are　opposed　to　each　other；　is　possible；　not　only　with　two　different　things；　but　with　one　and　the　same　thing。　　Considered　in　their　thesis；　that　is；　in　the　law　or　tendency　which　created　them；　all　the　economical　categories　are　rational；competition；　monopoly；　the　balance　of　trade；　and　property；　as　well　as　the　division　of　labor；　machinery；　taxation；　and　credit。　　But；　like　communism　and　population；　all　these　categories　are　antinomical；　all　are　opposed；　not　only　to　each　other；　but　to　themselves。　　All　is　opposition；　and　disorder　is　born　of　this　system　of　opposition。　　Hence；　the　sub…title　of　the　work；〃Philosophy　of　Misery。〃　　No　category　can　be　suppressed；　the　opposition；　antin