The Turgot Collection

Endowments

Turgot, in his article on “Endowments” for the famous French Encyclopedia of Diderot and D’Alembert, strongly opposes a certain type of private foundation, one that establishes a perpetual endowment devoted to some purpose, e.g., a home for women who repent a dissolute life. He suggests that no one has the wisdom to anticipate the consequences of a policy for the remote future. Even if one considers less remote times, foundations often have unanticipated effects. A foundation to relieve poverty will increase the number of poor people, because it will reduce the incentive for people to work. “To enable a large number of men to live gratuitously is to subsidize idleness and all the disorders which are its consequences; it is to render the condition of the ne’er-do-well preferable to that of the honest working-man.” Further, even if the purpose of the foundation is a good one, later administrators will, lacking the zeal of the founder, act in a way that leads to poor results. Even foundations that are well run and have good purposes eventually lose their usefulness. Instead, social problems should be solved by individuals acting to promote their own interests. Emergencies should be dealt with by voluntary subscription. Corporations can properly be suppressed, because only individuals have rights.