Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-07-02


situations but as two aspects of one Real
ism, which placed the general above the
individual, determined the structure and
the thinking Of society.
\ change came NOminalism had birth,
--nominalism, that exalted the lndiyid-
ual Abelard taught, and Willqm OF
OCeham and ROSCelinuS Their doctrine
grew, The Renaissance and Reformation
were the result. 1t is perhaps the deepest
characterization possible Of these mighty
movements, to call them nominaism
working ont into social formations and
political and ecclesiastical theOrlzing.
The pendulum was swinging toward the
individualstlc extreme. Toward but not
to; fUt the extreme was not reached Tor
a century and more.
BIT if read sigus Alright the last 100
years and pre-eminently the last %, have
been Witnessing Il reaction. The pendulum
swings back. In our time lndlyidualism
* less ANA less potent and ObtruSlNe, social
solidarity more aud more. Is 1t not 50
Notice that one who has been party
man and now thinks tit to act indepcnd-
I entity is called a traitor, Hs II he had sought
the life of his country. Those SO called
traitors mostly regard it taunt tor pult.
icai effect. In part it Is IN part ii is far
d eper. Men call purity schlsmatics
traitors often because they have become
80 accustomed to consider the Will Of
the many, of the body, sacred, that they
have actually lost the power TO think OF
the independent voter as exercising d
moral right.
And, in fact they do thus but fall
under slightly worse form of the al
most universal error which turks in the
reverence that maiOrities enjoy III actual
I legislation. The conception OF the pracu-
cal utility of deciding matters 10y major
/ lty vote, has gradually changed INTO the
very different and very perVerse con
ception of the majorty's absolute right,
called by Herbert spencer THE great
political fetch Of this century. We
all know majomtles may DO wrong.
but when we are In the majority we
never act as if maiouties could do wrong.
viii You notice, further, the growth OF
great nations In glaucng over the new
est political territory one cannot but be
struck at the extent to which nearly every
one of the principal modern nations has
enlarged its domains and increased its cen
trail power In some, one phenomenon Is
the more impressive, in others the other.
In our own history both have been most
marked Territory has increased SlN-fold
# not ten-fOld since our present constltu-
ton was framed, and at length aftera long
development and bloody war we have
come to be Nerltably a single nation.
/ In ENGLAND we witness the same ten
dency. Colonial domain has broadeLed /;
/ Canada has been brought under Il single
government; Il Lively agitation Is on foot
tor imperial federation. France loses ter
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up by new cohqueSts or seizures beyond
sea. Germany 100 enters upon colonial
poIlcy, ana what Is more Significant Peg
seSSeS an eIilCIeHt central EONeIuIieHI me
Irol IN hci history. liHlV i one Ior ihe
hrst time since Juotlhlan. hilsSR reaches
to grasp West Asia IN larger and larger
handfuls. Greece Will advance her bOrd-
crs north"ard or hSht ana Whiie the
SICK man OF Europe grows weaker 10y de
grees, Servla ana bulgaria ana behind
them Austria and Russia prepare to rush
Tor the lands he VIII Nacate
1t Is the very same over IN I he ecclesias-
tcal realm believe mere Is not ma
uonal ecclesiastical establishment on earth
WhiCh mas not strengthened IT. position IN
the last quarter century. Ihat they have
done 1t in Germany. none can doubt. Dis
seniors tried to shake the MIX OF scot
land few years ago, there where dissent
Is SO formidable, and they found 1t solid
rs Gtbralter The church of England will
be ulsestabllshed before that OF scotland. 1t
VIII not he done; however, because me
ChuTch OF huglaHu mas grown weaker, hul