New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-01-24

Il
law about sex. race or citizenship, ana during
thirtv-onc wears women, negroes and aliens, were
free to vote That all these did vote is proved pA
family traditions in part, but conclislVcY ~
the passage of law in S07 restricting the iran
chise to free white males, and declaring III 'ne
| preamble that this limitation was made DecauSc
womei1. negroes and aliens had been allowed 10
vote Elsewhere property qualifications were en-
acted and at times "A mans right to vote depchueu
| upon his religious opinions. Thus III Soulh O"i
DINA the free white man must beIeNe III III,
existence of God in a future state oil fe"ar"
land punishment aud have freehold Of hity aci >
Of land" a queer mixture this OF pie'y anu
p,lf, Sometimes il was money, sometimes manu.
which the citizen must have; and tins was hot al,
Between the right to vote and the right 10 hui"
office there was wide distinction Says froieseor
McNlaster:
Thousands of men who, on election uaE
came to the polls. were ny Jaw Nrsa po ds thcir
deharrrd from ever, in the whole course oil thei,
lives holding the Office of Sherlfi, or 'ahiliE
on the bench, or becoming menlner Oh .iic - -
slature, or reaching the hgh piacc oI WV f,,,
| a State No atheists, no freethnkefs' no 49," 80
| M Roman Catholics no man, in short. VINO wa.
not believer in some form OF We ~. nr
faith, could ever be Governor ( OF ANY
ricb Christian might b. the Executive OF hao'"
chusetts or Maryland. Elsewhere ne ni'ls' ~ ~ ,he
Trinitaran and believer III 'he iiSp io j.; tho
Scrintur,s or a Protestant. and nclleNtr III Wv,
divipe authority of the Bible. or acknow 'u|c oi'c
| God believe in heaven and III nell anu ~ ~ CO.
| 10 declare openly that every woIu III VI, ;I
monts both Old and New, was dlVlneS llnPi' ~
NJ c,ntcut with restrictions such as these, NV
constitutions Of many States went iui MI. mo
required that the Governor should nU Wv estate of
| Mons but rich In he must nave an cst"''
o I,rndre6 in another of five hundred: III an,
other of five thousand in another OF ten 1,rn
nonnds: in vet others he must OWL ,onG
| Co. hmm
| For n seat in either branch of the STATE iTshi'V
ure qualifications were of the same Kii"'
A. first these restrictions were submitted 10
,,;thout nro,est but the lcavcn of the ReVoin'lo"
was If work, and bit by bit they were qule'iN
| romovcd As the democratic spirit spread u
naturally tended to extremes, moreover anu '""'
| il was that during Jehersons admlhih'rd''" ~
much feeling developed against the lhuepeh"'"U'
| Of the judiciary and so many assaults Weie u W.
| unon il Jefferson himself was the chci ass'ii'''
| Of the United States Supreme court, an" us
| hatred of that institution, which stood pe."c."
| ti,, ond tho dcspotic rule he aimed at, no DOUBT
| greatly encouraged the attacks that "eIc ""''
unor tbc State and local judiciary in this period.
| But jefferson found more than his match III Ol'i
.Iustice Marshall. who returned him defiance 1or
| doaorco and the humiliatng failure Of the Chase
| iuncochmcnt completed his discontinue. III"
| nrnciple contendcd for by the opponents OF per
| ,nancnt Judiciary has long since been abandoned
| bv ALL sane and serious thinkers, and the people,
save in moments Of epidemic excitement, such ~
the Granger movement, realize that Judicloi nue.
pendcnce is the best guarantee for Judicial meg
rty. But in JcfIcrsons time a large party helh
that uuick rotation in Office was the Only way 10
preservc the purity of the bench. and they male
a desperate effort TO dcmOcratizc the courts ait"r
the manner of the French Revolution The his
toran has examined this subject with great care
and has described what happened quite fully.
Another important and little remembered topic
which Professor McMas,er has exploited is that of
the distribution of the public lands, the immigra-
ton to the West which WIS the means Of that dis
tribution and the question Of transportation.
which in the first part OF the century was vital
| but nevertheless almost wholly neglected IL Is
| indeed difficult to bring back even in imagination
| that period of sluggish and difficult transporta-
| ton Somewhat Of the general indifference To
| internal improvements must doubtless, be attrb-
| uted TO the current OF events which for time
| fixed attention upon the ocean rs the cardinal
money breeder, and drew surplus capital into ship
| building and freightage But there still
| large element which had but on indirect and sec
Ondary interest in foreign adventures, and il seems
strange that this agricultural element did not
exhibit more energy in the making Of roads and
The cost Of freight in those days was such as 10
| render the profitable movement of wheat impossi-
! bic beyond one hundred and fifty miles even in
| the Atlantic States That fact is enough 10 con-
vey an idea Of what transportation was before the
| turnpike and before the railroad and the canal.
Steam indeed was not far of. The first expert
ments had been made by Fulton, who had offered
| his invention TO Napoleon. The first lramway,
too, had been constructed. and was being worked
successfully. Professor McMaster has brought to-
gcther quantity Of illustrations Of the economic
| conditions Of the decade under discussion. There
were then plenty Of strikes among me
| chancs; but tl.ey were commonly dealt with as
conspracies, and so punished though sometimes
the officials called upon TO act were greatly en-
barrcsscd by the inevitable bearing Of their judg-
ments upon their prospects for reelection After
| the destruction Of the Bank Of the United States
! great numbers Of small banks started up, and for
| a time did prosperous business, which was
| destined 10 be ovcrdone and 10 bring about crave
! trouble for the country. After The Embargo and
| during the years Immediately preceding the war,
public opinion, as it stifcncd against England,
| drew more and more toward a policy Of home
manufacturers. In aid Of such policy some cx-
travagant propositions were made, but the main
| result was the establishment Of protection to
native industry. II was once gravely proposed in
Congress that IT the opening Of the ensuing session
every member should appear dressed in clothing
entirely Of home manufacture. That however
was felt TO be going too far, and the resolution
was promptly tabled.
| The present volume closes with the beginning
of the with England and the surrender Of
| Detroit by Hull. Even now there remains much
| of the early history Of the American peopc
which is sought in vain in any history, unless
we except the present work; and it may
well be that Professor McNIastcr will sup
ply these Deficiencies in his succeeding volumes.
or his account Of the political history Of the time
we have said little, prcfcrring to dwell upon those
| portions Of his book which differ essentially from
other historians But il is right 70 state that his