The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1866-03-24
Will Our Government be able to
Support a Majority?
WINCHESTER, March 16, 1866.

support Il MHJOrlty!
WINCHESTER, March l6, 1866.
HOME JOURNAL Some years before
the war | read a letter of Lord Macau-
lay, on tie Government of tie United
States, which then attracted my atten-
ton. The letter has again fallen into
my hands since the war and | have a.
gain read it with increased interest,
and although it has once appeared in
your columns l think it would repay
your readers to reperuse it,
/ do not propose endorsing the opin-
ions expressed in the letter, nor dis
senting therefrom-but | offer it as n
sort Of commentary on the Situation.
To HENRY S. RANDALL, ESQ, &c. &c.
HOLLY LODGE, HenSington, Lonaoml
May 23d, 1857.
DEAR SR:-
You are surprised to learn that | have
not II high opinion of Mr.. jefferson, and ]
am little surprised mt your surprise. |
am certain that ne cvcr wrote Il line, and
that never, in Parliament. in CONVERSE
tion. or even on the hustngs,-a place
where IL is the fashion to court the popu-
lace uttered II word indicating an opin-
ion that the supreme authority in Il State
ought to be entrusted To the majority Of
citizens told by the head; in other words,
to the poorest and most ignorant part
society. | have long been convince.
that institutions purely democratic must,
sooncror later, destroy liberty, or civiliza-
ton. or both.
In Europe, where the population is
dense. the effect of such institutions would
he instantaneous. What happened lately
in France is IN example. In 1913 u pure
, democracy was established there. During
| Il short time there was reason to expect
a general spoiiation, Il national bankrupt
cy, Il new partition ofthc soil, Il maximum
of prices. Il runous load of taxation laid
on the rich for the purpose OF supportin"
the poor in idlencSs. Sucha system would,
in twenty years, have made France as poor
and barbarols H. the France of the Carlo
Nli.Sli lilll~. liupIlIN wv w 40 tN'
ted !; and now there is dcspotism, Il silent
tribune, and enslavcd press. Liberty is
gone; but civilization Is saved. ! have
not the smallest doubt that, If we had Il
purely democratic government here the
effect would be the same. Either the poor
would plumber the rich, and civilization
would perish or order and property would
be saved by 4 strong military government.
| and liberty would perish.
You may think that your country enjoys
an exemption from these evils. ] will
| frankly own to you that ! am of a very
different opinion. Your fate believe to
he certain, though it is deferred by apliys-
ical cause. As long as yon have II bound
less extent of fertile and unoccupied land,
your laborng population will be far more
ar ease than the laboring population of the
old world and. while that is the case, the
Jellrrsonian policy may continue to exist
without causing any fatal calamity. But
the time will come when New England
will be as thickly pcopled as Old England
Wages will be rs low, and will lluctuate rs
much with you as with us. You will have
your Manchcstcrs and Birminghams; and,
in those Manchestcrs and Birminghams.
hundreds of thousands of artisans will AS
suredly be sometimes out of work. Then
yum iiiStilVt'iiS " III Wv i'th' ~ '''"N'" w.
the test. Distress everywhere makes the
labourcr mutimous and diScontcnted, and
inclincs him to listen with eagerness tn
awtators who tell him that it Is monstrOuS
iniQuity that one man should have Il mill
ion while another cannot get full meal
I'm bad years there is plenty of grumblinS
here and sometimes Il little ri0tlng. Blu
it matters little. For here the sufferers
are rot the rulers. The supreme power i
in the hands ofa class, numerous indeed
but select, OF an educated claSS, OF cl;ts'
: which is, and knows itsclfto be, deeply IN.
. tcrcsted in the security OF property ant
the maintenance of order. Accordingly
the malcontcnts are firmly, yet gently. re-
strained The bad time is got over with
, out robbing the wealthy to relieve the III
digcnt. The springs of national prospcri-
, ty soon begin to flow again; work Is plen
tilul wages rise and all is stranquility ant
} cherialncss. | have seen England pas
g three or four times through such critica
seasons us ! have described. Through
; such seasons the United States will have +
7 pas.. in the course of the next century.
= not of this. How will you pass throus
thrmy | heartily wish YOU y good deliver
!, ancr. Rut nv reason and nv wishes ar
II ,t war: and Icannot help forcboding til
5 w,rst If is a,,itr plain that YOUR govern
h ment % will never be able to retain liscor
tented majority. For with Won the majo
;tv Is the ,rovrrnnent. and has the ric
who arc always a minority absolutely at /
: mercy. The tlay will come when, in I'll
i State of New York, a multitude of peopl
h nonc of whom has had more than half
hrn,L f,st or exnrct IN have more than ha
dinner viii choose a legislature. l.
0 nossihlr to doubt what sort of Ierislatu
l. w;ll ne chosen Onone side is a sfatesm;