Humanity Against Cruelty to Animals in Historical Literature, Timeline of Animal Rights History

Animal Rights History »» John Hildrop

This "examination" of Father Bougeant's "Philosophical Amusement upon the Language of Beasts" (1740), in which it is ironically contended that the souls of animals are imprisoned devils, is an argument in favour of animal immortality, in the form of two letters addressed to a lady. (Henry Salt, Animals' Rights, "Bibliography on the Rights of Animals")

1742 | Free Thoughts Upon the Brute Creation

Do but examine your own compassionate Heart, and tell me, Do you not think it a Breach of natural Justice wantonly and without Necessity to torment, much more to take away the Life of any Creature, except for the Preservation and Happiness of your own Being; which, in our present State of Enmity and Discord, is sometimes unavoidable? I know you do: And can you think that infinite Mercy, who made them to be happy, could, in the primary Intention of their Nature, resolve to deprive them of that Happiness (or at least a Possibilty of recovering it again) by an utter Exinction of their Being ?—But I expect you will tell me, as many grave Authors of great Learning and little Understanding have done before you, that there is not even the Appearance of Injustice or Cruelty in this Procedure ; that if the Brutes themselves had Power to speak, to complain, to appeal to a Court of Justice, and plead their own Cause, they could have no just Reason for Complaint: This you may say, but I know you too well to believe you think so; but it is an Objection thrown in your Way by some serious Writers upon this Subject; they tell you that their Existence was given them upon this very Condition, that it should be temporary and short, that after they had fluttered, or crept, or swam, or walked about their respective Elements for a little Season, they should be swept away by the Hand of Violence, or the Course of Nature, into an entire Extinction of Being, to make room for their Successors in the same Circle of Vanity and Corruption. But, pray, who told them so? Where did they learn this Philosophy? Does either Reason or Revelation give the least Countenance to such a bold Assertion? So far from it, that it seems a direct Contradiction to both. (John Hildrop, Free Thoughts Upon the Brute Creation [1742])

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1742 | John Hildrop, Free Thoughts Upon the Brute-Creation or, An Examination of Father Bougeant's Philosophical Amusement [First Edition: London, 1742] in Vol 1 of The Miscelleaneous Works of John Hildrop (London, 1754; Digitized by Google, 2006).

1892 | Henry Salt, Animals' Rights Considered in Relation to Social Progress, with a Bibliographical Appendix [First Edition: London & New York, 1892] (London & New York, 1894; Online at Animal Rights History, 2003).