The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-11-28

Tue OeinOCThblB party IN EUROPE Is as vet
hardly recognized. But it is instinctivelv
felt by the democrats themselves; and the
representative men of the democracies of
Italy and Spain, Garibaldi and CASTELAR,, Join
with the democrats of England in crying for
the retrieval of the fortunes of France For
the first time since the establishment of the
United States, the advancing tide of demo-
cracy has been turned, and the ebb has
begun. Such great impulses in human affairs
are not brought about by the wishes of men,
but by their blind instincts, which cause
revolutions that they are themselves unable
to measure. Luther had no plan of Refor-
nation in his head when he inveighed
against the traffic of Tetzel: nor did Mirabeau
lay out the scheme of the French Revolution
when he assumed the leadership of the Tiers
Etat. And we may be quite sure that the
rise in the world of so great power as Ger
many will produce an instructive imitation of
her system and methods on the part of those
who have been and are most democratically
inclined. Governments, against their will,
will be compelled to strengthen themselves;
and the great body of thinkers who, like Mr.
Carlyle, have carried their admiration of
strong government and their hatred of
anarchy perhaps even to excess, will no
longer be found to be hopelessly out of the
current of the age But, though all this is
inevitable, it is not useless to endeavor some
what to curb our instincts by the force of
reasonable desire; and it will not be out of
place to consider how far the wishes of men
can go along with the change that is being
accomplished. We refer as will be seen, to
the change simply in its aspect of On anti
democratic rev olution.
First, the good side of oficialism will be
brought out. We in England have an in
grained contempt for officials we rely upon
them, we submit to them, far less than any
l1nr Io~ 4l,o4.
they do is right, we are prone to assume that
it mnst be wrong. This is a mode of proce-
dure which defeats its own end. Criticism,
as an end in itself, is a poor thing; the
departments which are criticized feel the i'm
possibility of acting 80 that they shall be re-
spected by the body of the nation; moreover
as their condemnation is foregone con-
clusioD, they pay little respect to and gain
little light from their critics. A definite
moderate amount of blame, attached to def
mite acts, may do much good; indiscriminate
complaint ag6inst any branch of the public
service, unless it be the intention of the COM
planners to abolish altogether the subject of
their attack, must do harm. This is an error
from which the German temper is free, per-
haps even so far as to err on the other side.
Next, it is to be hoped that the disposition
to make fundamental changes in the institu-
tions of the country so prevalent of late
years, will be lessened. 1t is certainly a ma
tural instinct in a child to be perpetually
pulling up a flower to see how its roots are
growing. But men ought to have learnt
otherwise; and, of all things in the
world, political constitutions are least likely
to be benefited by the process. A GER
tain not immoderate trustfulness
in tie excellence of institutions whose ends
we have not fathomed, but which have ex-
listed during many generations, is no bad
thing. The legislation of the last few years
has been transcendental legislation. Far are
we from impugning its excellence; there is
time for the transcendental as there is a
time for everything under the sun. But not
forever ought we to be taking in hand great
and novel questions problems which go to
the bottom of all creation. If we do so, there
is danger of our neglecting duties of mere
commonplace necessity. Can it be alleged
that the wants of our poor laborers, the re-
lations of our Government with those
of foreign nations, or again with the
colonial Governments, the efficiency of
our army and navy, have been looked to as
accurately and successfully of late as they
would have been had no fundamental ques-
tions occupied the attention of statesmen |?
Self-preservation is the first law, and to main
tain itself in existence is a thing which is no
more accomplished without effort on the part
of State than on the part of an individual
Moreover, radical questions, inasmuch as they
are the easiest of all to have definite opinion
about, but the most difficult of all to decide
with a nice regard to truth, honor, and the
feelings of opposing parties, form the most
convenient pretext to cover partisanship,
hatred, passion, and slander. Our radical
friends will point their finger at this, as
most Philistinish sentiment; but it is true
nevertheless.
Another tendency, more prevalent a few
years back than now-the tendency to dimin-
ish, on principle, the functions of govern
ment in all directions whatsoever an Gps0
fdctO evil-will now probably receive fur
ther check. The proof by which the pro-
position implied in such a tendency was de-
monstrated was of the simplest imaginable
character. All government obviously per-
forms its functions by compulsion of those
governed compulsion is antagonistic to
freedom; and freedom is the very
root and primary principle and first good
of mans nature. Hence all government
is opposed to the very first principle of
mans nature. Is any further argument
necessary to show that it must be an
evil? This very simple piece of logic is the
sole moving cause of many projected reforms.
Those who employ it quite omit to notice
that every advance in civilization, and indeed
every benefit which man can gain for him.
self, demands quid pro quo. The very first
step in the formation of a society is the
appropriation of land to particular persons,
and the prevention of the use of it by others;
and all reasonable men acquiesce in not being
able to do precisely what they like with their
neighbor's fruit-trees and crops. Yet the
savage has in this respect more unrestricted
liberty; his use of the things around him is
more unhindered than is that of the civilized
/ foip m md in uvha