number of men in
the world, hath by nature a power, not only to preserve his property,
that is, his life, liberty and estate, against the injuries and attempts
of other men; but to judge of, and punish the breaches of that law in
others, as he is persuaded the offence deserves, even with death itself,
in crimes where the heinousness of the fact, in his opinion, requires
it. But because no political society can be, nor subsist, without having
in itself the power to preserve the property, and in order thereunto,
punish the offences of all those of that society; there, and there only
is political society, where every one of the members hath quitted this
natural power, resigned it up into the hands of the community in all
cases that exclude him not from appealing for protection to the law
established by it. And thus all private judgment of every particular
member being excluded, the community comes to be umpire, by settled
standing rules, indifferent, and the same to all parties; and by men
having authority from the community, for the execution of those rules,
decides all the differences that may happen between any members of that
society concerning any matter of right; and punishes those offences
which any member hath committed against the society, with such penalties
as the law has established: whereby it is easy to discern, who are, and
who are not, in political society together. Those who are united into
one body, and have a common established law and judicature to appeal to,
with authority to decide controversies between them, and punish
offenders, are in civil society one with another: but those who have no
such common appeal, I mean on earth, are still in the state of nature,
each being, where there is no other, judge for himself, and executioner;
which is, as I have before shewed it, the perfect state of nature.

Sect. 88. And thus the common-wealth comes by a power to set down what
punishment shall belong to the several transgressions which they think
worthy of it, committed amongst the members of that society, (which is
the power of making laws) as well as it has the power to punish any
injury done unto any of its members, by any one that is not of it,
(which is the power of war and peace;) and all this for the preservation
of the property of all the members of that society, as far as is
possible. But though every man who has entered into civil society, and
is become a member of any commonwealth, has thereby quitte