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Jethro Brown, The Underlying Principles of Modern Legislation, 1912

Jethro Brown was a pioneer of taking an academic approach to political thought in Australia. Born in the rural township of Mintaro north of Adelaide, Brown had a remarkable career which saw him teach law at the University of Tasmania, University College London, the University College of Wales, and finally Adelaide University. Brown was an advocate of ‘new’ or ‘social liberal’ thought associated with T.H. Green, which argued for the benevolent role of the state led by enlightened and intelligent leadership. While he was inspired by humanitarian impulses, Brown was in many respects an elitist, rejecting the use of referenda as ‘popular despotism’, and pursuing a ‘reconstructed doctrine of individual rights’ where ‘the common good takes the place of consent as the justification for the exercise of authority’. In this paternalistic formulation both individual liberty and even elements of democracy would be constrained in the pursuit of utilitarian goals.

Underlying Principles was the third of four major works Brown would produce. Menzies’s copy was inscribed ‘1917’, with some underlining in grey pencil which suggests a vivid engagement with the subject matter. While it is difficult to determine how great of an influence the book had on Menzies, Brown’s works, which were highly successful and often received multiple editions, provide an example of the powerful belief in an interventionist state that captivated intellectual circles as Menzies the young barrister first became interested in political life. Judith Brett has argued that Menzies was heavily influenced by a Deakinite ‘new liberal’ tradition of Victorian politics which accepted a significant role for the state. While Menzies certainly rejected laissez-faire, the book helps to contextualise his views, and while his views in the abstract may look fairly interventionist, in the context of Brown’s work he can be seen to be advocating greater individualism and liberty.