The mountain Democrat., 1863-05-02
sssIsty ana civlll1ataon.

1
ton Of man, and all parts Of Q civilized
community upon each other, Greats thst
great chain Of connection which holds Il
together. The laOdhOider, the farmer,
the Manufacture, the merchant, the
tradosman, and every occupation, pros
peFs by the aid which one receives frOm
the other, and from the whole. Common
interests regulate their concerns, and form
their law; and the laws which common
usage Ordains have greater inHuencs
than the laws Of government In hne,
society performs for itself everything
which Is ascribed to government.
To understand the nature and quantity
Of government proper for man it is neces-
14sIy 80 @ssussS ..- I.4r .ss<>4N ->>s - -
ture created him for social life, she fitted
him for the station she intended. In all
cases she made his natural wants greater
than his individual powers No one man
is capable, without the aid Of society, OF
supplying his own wants; and those
wants, acting upon every individual, im-
| pei the whole Of them into society ss nat
urally as gravitatiOn acts to . centre.
But she goes further. She has not on.
ly forced man into society, by diversity
of wants. which the reciprocal aid Of
each other can supply, but she has i'm
planted in him . system of social affcc-
tons, which, though not necessary to his
existence, arc essential to his happiness.
There is no period In life when this love
Of society ceases to act. II begins and
ends with our being.
IL we examine with attention, into the
composition and constitution of man, the
diversity Of talents in different men for
reciprocally accommodating the wants Of
each other, his propensity to society, and
consequently to preserve the advantages
resulting from it, We shall easily discover
that q greater part of what is called gov
crnment is mere imposition.
Government is no farther necessary
than to supply the few cases to which So
ciety and civilization are not conveniently
competent; and instances are not want
ing to show that every thing which gov.
ernment can usefully add thereto, has
been performed by the common consent
of society, without government.
For upwards Of two years from the
commencement Of the American war, and
to longer period in several Of the Amer.
ican States, there were no established
forms Of government. The old govern.
ment had been abolished, and the coun-
try was TOO much occupied in defense to
employ its attention in establishing new
Governments; yet during this inteTva
order and harmony were preserved u
inviolate IS In any country in Europe
There is q natural aptness in men anC
more SO in society, because it embraces
greater variety Of abilities and resources
to accommodate itself to whatever situa
ton it is in. The instant formal govern
ment is abolished society begins to act
q general association takes place and com
mon interest produces common security
So far is it from being true, that thu
abolition Of any form Of government II
the dissolution Of society, that it acts BY
q contrary impulse, and brings the latteI
closer together. All that part Of its or
ganizatiOn which it had committed to iti
government, devolves upon ITSELF and
acts through its medium. When men,
as well from natural instinct as from re-
ciprocal benefits, have habituated them
selves to social and civilized life, there is
always enough of its principles in prac'
tice to carry them through any dangers
they may find necessary or convenient tc
make in their government. In short
man is 80 naturally creature Of society
that it is almost impossible to put him
out Of it.
Formal governments make but small
part of civilized life; and when even the
best that human wisdom can devise is
established, it is thing more in idea and
in name than ia fact. It is in the greaI
and fundamental principles Of society and
civilization-to the common usage uni.
versally assented to, and mutually and
reciprocally maintained-tO the unceas
ing circulation of interest, which, passing
through it's million of channels, invigO
rates the whole mass of civilized man-it
is to these things, infinitely more than tc
anything which even the best regulated
government can perform, that the safety
and prosperity Of the individual and o.
the whole depend.
The more perfect civilization is, th'
less occasion has it for government, be
cause the more does it regulate its owr
affairs and govern itself; but so contrary
is the practice Of old governments to th'
reason Of the case that the expenses o
them increase in the proportion they
ought to diminish. It is but few genera
laws that civilized life requires, and thos'
Of such common usefulness that whether
they are enforced by the forms of gov
ernment or not, the effect will be nearly
the same. If we consider what the prin
ciples are that 6rst cOndense men int
society, and what the motives that regu
late their conduct afterwards, We shal
find, by the time we arrive at what j
called government, that nearly the who'll
Of the business is performed by the nat
ural operation Of the parts upon eacl
other.
Man, with respect to all those matters
is more . creature Of consistency than b
is aware, or than governments woul'
wish him to believe. All the great law
of society are laws of nature. Those Q
trade and commerce, whether with re
spect to the intercourse of nations o
individuals, are laws of mutual and re
| ciprocal interest. They are followed an
obeyed, because it is the interest Of th
| pdIStCo OU " W. ohW HVS VI" S~SO0"s
any formal laws their governments ma.
impose or interpose.
But how often is the natural prOpensit.
to society disturbed OF destroyed by th
operations of government When tn
latter, instead Of being ingrateful on th
principles Of the former, assumes to exls
for itself, and acts by partiAlities Of favO
and oppression, il becomes the cause Z
the mischief it ought 70 prevent.-ThOn
az Paine.
NosLE souls with difficulty reach th
J comprehension Of evil and inkrxtitude