The San Francisco call., 1896-05-06

! tion currents of social habit, which soon gen.
crate all the forces and traditions of royalty.
But Tor lot OF people to recognize the indi-
tda Uidnai liberty and right OF j9dgment in each
the majority is not simple thing. It shows
high social development.
1t shows enlargement of consciousness from
its first field, the SELF toward its natural goal
society.
A highly developed social consciousness
is required before the people knows itself.
Here let me speak of q current misapprehen-
sion of the real basis of democracy-a mean
and false idea, ye; commonly held. Many
speak OF our acceptance of the judgment of
the majority as if It were simple, because the
majority could conquer the minority in
fighting.
That lies back of the ballot and bullet idea.
But ii is not the real reason at all; not the
underlying principle-that principle for which
our brave, wise 1ar-seeing ancestors struggled
so gloriously.
1t is not the secret of healthful power in the
Grecisn republics. nor the Roman republic,
nor the Venetian republic nor the Swiss re-
public, nor any that has ever held.
Minorities have never yet feared to fight
majorities, and have frequently conquered
enough. Not to bend to the will of the ma
jority is recognition of numerical justice.
If three want TO play whist and one to play
would make him play whist. They might in
deed, politely play his game if he stood out for
it hard enough, but because he would be pig
and fool to spoil three pleasures for one He
sees their right in the matter.
That is the principle OF democracy-mutua
recognition OF each others rights-not power,
but right. have said that democracy means
peace.
Look little at history and a little at tn
true this is. The conditions which accompany
war require swift a concurrent action
among the members of the warning society
that there is no time for consensus of opiri-
ion TO be reached-democracy is slow
Each officer is king of those below him
must be by the necessity of his profession. A
company of soldiers cannot stop to take q vote
as to whether they shall advance or retreat.
Government they must have. War in its COM
pelling union and united action compels gov
ernment, but that government is limited
within itself to pure despotism. Wise it may
be, kind it may be, but despotic 1t must be by
the underlying law-the good of all. The good
| OF q community, in q state of war, demands
| despotism.
The semi-civilized people of to-day recognize
| this. We maintain our military despotisms 10
hight with; under the control Of the democracy
we do business with this despotism.
1t is meek enough and discontented enough
In time of peace, but in times OF war 1t grows
| strong and proud, and in all history the sue
cessful general has finally become king.
king is good thing to fight with-a fierce,
brave thing-and one to live and die for.
But with peace and prosperity the people
grow strong-rebellious, if you will, The king
usually succumbs to the vices of inaction.
What can he do?
And as the people grow stronger and wiser
and more individual they increasingly resent
the absolute power above them, and it either
weakens peacefully away, as in England !;
maintains itself by forcing war, as in many
| other monarchies or precipitates its overthrow
/ by an arbitrary enforcing of power no longer
| based on natural need.
The ballot does not need the bullet behind
it, but the king does. king without an
| ditlon supports him. No individual passions
however magnifed by place and power, can
maintain form OF social life after the time
has come for its slow supplanting or swift ex-
tinction.
1t is society which grows and develops its
ever changing FORMS The individuals COM
posing society must act under its laws. The
hunter and fighter needed only the leader
and he was transient and exchangeable.
The keeper of sheep and cows needed the
chief-the father-to adjudicate as we'll as
| lead, TO decide claims hitherto unknown
| Then his headship descended in order of age
the law of primogeniture began.
Agriculture, with its new enlargement OF in
dividualism, its new output of wealth, its new
sense OF permanent possession, made possible
the large self-feeding kingdom-and the king
dom came.
But with the growth of individual creation
when human n labor began to blossom into art
and Dear rich fruit in manufacture, when the
individual soul found endless avenues OF
growth in these new forms of human express
sion and yet, with that towering individual.
ism, learned the absolute interdependence oi
THESE arts and crafts-then man first knew
himseif-in knowing his brother. Then the
people came to power. app can hunt, app car
keep sheep, ''p' can in some sort dig in the
ground and eat its fruit; but only "we'' car
raise hand and brain TO their full scope of ex
quisite power and skill in working for each
other.
1t all follows as surely and inevitably as tbs
cnicKen comes from the egg. Tie shepherd