The Rights of Infants is Spence's fullest statement of the position of women in his system, while the Preface and Appendix are the fullest statement of his differences with Thomas Paine, whose Agrarian Justice was published while the Rights of Infants was still being written. The main body of the text is a restatement of Spence's plan, but from the point of view of women with children. It emphasizes the right of all to an equal share in surplus product, regardless of sex or age — and then puts women in charge of its distribution.
The differences with Paine follow naturally from this starting point, and are echoed in today's debates over plans for a Basic Income. A simple subsidy to the rural poor - as proposed by Paine - without a change in land ownership would be no great improvement on outdoor relief or income support, would be used to prop up low wages, and would not bring any of the social benefits that would arise naturally in a society based on common ownership.