“Yet I do not exhort you to live in a town; on the contrary, one of the examples which the good should give to others is that of a patriarchal, rural life, the earliest life of man, the most peaceful, the most natural, and the most attractive to the uncorrupted heart.  Happy is the land, my young friend, where one need not seek peace in the wilderness!  But where is that country?  A man of good will finds it hard to satisfy his inclinations in the midst of towns, where he can find few but frauds and rogues to work for.  The welcome given by the towns to those idlers who flock to them to seek their fortunes only completes the ruin of the country, when the country ought really to be repopulated at the cost of the towns.  All the men who withdraw from high society are useful just because of their withdrawal, since its vices are the result of its numbers.  They are also useful when they can bring with them into the desert places life, culture, and the love of their first condition.  I like to think what benefits Emile and Sophy, in their simple home, may spread about them, what a stimulus they may give to the country, how they may revive the zeal of the unlucky villagers.

“In fancy I see the population increasing, the land coming under cultivation, the earth clothed with fresh beauty.  Many workers and plenteous crops transform the labours of the fields into holidays; I see the young couple in the midst of the rustic sports which they have revived, and I hear the shouts of joy and the blessings of those about them.  Men say the golden age is a fable; it always will be for those whose feelings and taste are depraved.  People do not really regret the golden age, for they do nothing to restore it.  What is needed for its restoration?  One thing only, and that is an impossibility; we must love the golden age.

“Already it seems to be reviving around Sophy’s home; together you will only complete what her worthy parents have begun.  But, dear Emile, you must not let so pleasant a life give you a distaste for sterner duties, if every they are laid upon you; remember that the Romans sometimes left the plough to become consul.  If the prince or the state calls you to the service of your country, leave all to fulfil the honourable duties of a citizen in the post assigned to you.  If you find that duty onerous, there is a sure and honourable means of escaping from it; do your duty so honestly that it will not long be left in your hands.  Moreover, you need not fear the difficulties of such a test; while there are men of our own time, they will not summon you to serve the state.”

Why may I not paint the return of Emile to Sophy and the end of their love, or rather the beginning of their wedded love!  A love founded on esteem which will last with life itself, on virtues which will not fade with fading beauty, on fitness of character which gives a charm to intercourse, and prolongs to old age the delights of early love.  But all such details would be pleasing but not useful, and so far I have not permitted myself to give attractive details unless I thought they would be useful.  Shall I abandon this rule when my task is nearly ended?  No, I feel that my pen is weary.  Too feeble for such prolonged labours, I should abandon this if it were not so nearly completed; if it is not to be left imperfect it is time it were finished.