The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-07-18
THE TENDENCY OF DEMOCRACY.

friends.
THE TENDENCY OF DEMOCRACY,
In the Round Table for June 8, we find very
well-considered article on this subject, which
so entirely accords with our own sentiment,
and with the views we have often presented in
these columns, that we are tempted to give our
readers the benefit of its leading points. The
letter recently published in Cincinnati jour-
nal, and widely copied everywhere, concern
ing Mr.. BENJAMIN F. WADE, furnishes the
Round Table with text Allusion has alrea-
dy been made in our paper to this letter, and
our readers may perhaps remember it when we
tell them that this is the same biographical let
ter, which acquaints the public with the very
impo, .nt fact that WADE cannot eat any but,
ter; it does not agree with him; and that Mas
by and "Mother Goose" furnish the means
wherewith he beguiles his literary leisure. The
Round Table says; "The letter, by reason Of
its apparent vacuity of conception and imperti-
nent profusion of detail, is well adapted for
popular perusal and acceptance, while in its
character of opening wedge, it has been read
with interest by some to whom its obvious in
tention was distasteful. This intention is as
follows: "To set forth that the Hon. BENJA-
MIN F. WADE is remarkably coarse minded
and vulgar sort of person, whose early pur-
suit were of very humble and sordid descrip-
tion; and that in virtue of this felicitous COM
bination of experience and personal attributes,
the Hon. BENJAMIN F. WADE is admirably
adapted to be the next President of the United
States"
1t has been the boast of our race that, under
the institutions it has gradually matured, men
could climb to distinction in despite of early
disabling circumstances of birth, breeding or
property; and the boast has been q just one.
In England cobbler's son may rise to the
wool-sack just as with us rail-splitter may
become President With us the ascent is
easiest, and in SO far as it bestows merit upon
those who deserve it, we heartily approve this
change. We have nothing to say against rail
splitters or tailors clambering to the top of the
political edifce, if they have the pluck and
talent to get there; but we have serious OBJ
lection, says our censor, to seeing men made
candidates for high Office, not in spite Of, but
because they have been rail-splitters and
tailors. There is nothing necessarily degrad-
ing about splitting rails, or making breeches,
or small shop-keeping, or even about cleaning
out sewers. All thesethings have to be done
by somebody: and that ruan should have
done one or all of them, and afterwards achiev-
ed the highest political rank in his country is,
from some points Of view, an excellent thing.
But that men should be exalted and praised
merely because they have dug bitches, cleaned
sewers, or peddled matches, seems to US, in our
ignorance, very silly and contemplate thing,
and one which is sure, in the long run, to de-
stroy that democracy which it now appears to
nourish and ostentatiously aims to propitiate
We must observe that the whole pith and force
of this cherished popular antithesis-making,
for example, tinker into President-must
lie in the vastness of the chasm, which sepa-
rates our social position from the other. Now,
if we were to continue, as habit, to make
Presidents Of tinkers, what becomes of the
antithesis, and where is the chasm? 1t
is clear that there mrst be limit somewhere
to this preposterous worship Of the grovelling
and low, which is the fanaticism Of democracy.
If we conceive Of o society in which all who
are not already ignorant and vulgar pretend
to be so for the sake of getting on or succeed
ing in life we arrive at the ultimate ideal
which such fanatioism brings about. We also
discover that such State Of things must be
in manner self-destructive. Competition, in
such o case, must work contrariwise to its
u:.,al course, since it would destroy trade.
The lowest depths would soon be reached, and,
after enjoying the improving sway of sue
cession of rulers whose elevation had arisen
from their demonstrated pursuit in previous
life of the most sordid and paltry avocatiOns
that could possibly be practised, the entire
community, by natural gravity, would sink
to level whereupon such distinctions would
become imperceptible. History furnishes
some tolerable examples of the results of q
career like this and our great republic
is in fair way to supply in time stupen-
dous analogue
There can be little doubt that the monotone
to which democracy inevitably tends, must as
inevitably become the corrective of democracy
at prognosticable periods. Variety is indeed
the spice of life, and, although all men may be
born free and equal in theory, it is yet certain
that the chances for inequality in practice af-
ford the keenest zest to most mems lives. The
self-worship of a mob, which finds expression
in hailing as leader the type of its own lowest
qualities, will turn to different sort of hero
worship, when the perfection Of uniformity has
removed the possibility of distinctiveness. In
time, the at present irresistible facinations of
having chopped logs, kept country "store, T"
driven team, or going about in shirt-sleeves,
of cursing and chewing freely, Of telling dirty
stories, of not knowing how to behave like a
gentleman in drawing or ballroom, of hav-
ing darned little boys trousers, and all the
other endearing experiences which, as we have
seen, 20 so far towards making American
statesmen, will lose their seductive charm and
can be depended upon no more. The demoora-
cy which relies on these weapons, can only e1-
ist with at least the traditions of aristocracy,
and in their complete absence it must perish.
1t feeds in this country to-day upon the rem
nants of feudalism, the rags and tatters of
privilege and class distinction which come Of
our English blood and English law. But de-
mocracy cannot, like the chameleon, make the
meat it feeds upon. The glory Of resisting op-
preston, the virtue Of conquering weakness,
the heroism of mortifying desire, can only ex-