The times., 1901-05-18
Revised Democrncy.

lne democratic 1QediS OF previous gen
erations The disposition to question
what were once regarded as the essen-
tial principles of American government
is general, and it is becoming a matter
of some doubt where this questioning
will eventually lead. 1t is we'll to re-
member, however, that a strong move
! ment in ore direction, particularly if it
be against the accumulated force of
tradition, is likely to be followed by a
reccil in the other direction, and after
! the old tradition has been given a new
! trial and been found inadequate, there
viii probably be another wave of prog
ress, and so on. There is no great pop
( ular movement that has not left its un-
mistakable mark upon the life of the
| race. The Puritan revolt in England,
| engendered by the extraordinary abuse
of the divine right of kings INDUCED
in by the Stuarts, came before the
world was ready for it. 1t was like
fruit produced in a forcing house, a
thing brought forth prematurely by alb
normal conditions. The Restoration
swept over the country with a force
which made it seem that everything
thai Cromwell fought for was lost. But,
after all, the Englishman of today is
pei APPS more the work of Cromwell
than Of any other one man. The reac-
ton toward anti-democratic principles
has not been nearly so violent in this
country as it was in France after the
Revolution, for various reasons, one of
which is that the people were trained
already to accept democracy, and all
the conditions of a new country favored
it, With the centralizing and special
ization OF industries, the enlargement of
markets, the Importation of large num-
bers of ignorant aborers in addition to
the intelligent immigrants who are the
best citizen material there has come
TO be that difference among the masses
of the people which is the excuse of
aristocracy; and with the inclination OF
wealthy Americans to spend much time
abroad comes a disposition in them to
try on the mental dress of other coun-
tries as we have tried on their fash
ions. One Of the expatriated Americans
who has been studying American condi-
tions in what he fondly believes is an
unprejudiced attitude is Mr.. Poultney
Bigelow. and in recent book he says:
1T is hard for me to understand the justice
Of permitting the who has nothing to vote
away the earnings OF the who has. /
should soon invite the l0ngshoremen 10 elect
our naval officers; or select the presidents G
our colleges from unsuccessful freshmen
Now, that is precisely the monarchi-
cal argument translated into terms of
a commercial civilization. The divine
right of kings rested on the assumption
that since the king had all the respon-
sibility he ought 10 have all the power
Constitutional monarchy has taken
both away from him, recognizing the
fact that it is not very good for one
man, with nothing better than inheri-
ted rank to recommend him, TO be
trusted with either absolute responsible
ity or absolute power. 1t takes a Ma
poleon or a Bismarck to stand the re-
sponsibility and use the power; and
their qualities do not descend in the di-
rect lire.
The basis Of manhood suffrage is that
1t is unjust TO permit the one man who
has nothing but money TO vote away
the rights Of the thousand or more men
who have no money. The old-fashioned
democracy rested on the supposition
that a man, apart from what lie had,
was worth considering. Mr. Bigelow
evidently thinks one mans money of
more account than the rights of any
number of moneyless men. Even with
his vote the wage Garner cannot al
ways protect himself against the ag-
| gressions of thoroughly unscrupulous
capital; without his vote he would be
deprived of his one means of protection
and might eventually be forced, like his
predecessors in similar case, TO take to
violence. Before the French Revolution
the aristocracy, who had everything,
mercilessly taxed the peasants. who
had nothing; the peasants had no vote
and no means Of redress and they final
ly demanded payment for their debts in
| blood. 1t is considerably better when
one comes to think Of it, for the capital
list to be able to make no more money
than the combined opinion of his fell
low-men viii allow him to make, than
for him 10 make all the money he likes.
at the expense of their rights OF
course. capital is not always unscrupu-
lous, but there is danger in allowing
any man wholly unchecked power
Take, for example, the canned meat in
dustry It pays in the long run. for
one manufacturer to sell good beef, put
up in well-m2de cans. which may be
eaten without the slightest danger to
the consumers health. He Will. Of
course, have to charge a price large
enough to cover the extra trouble Of
making frst-class goods; but the con-
sumner can afford to pay this, because
every can will be worth the money
Another manufacturer puts up inferior
beef. in badly made cans, which look
Just like the others, but the contents of
which are, in perhaps one or two cases
out of three, not fit to eat Sometimes
the defect is not perceptible to the taste,
and results only in Illness or general
impairment of health. The dishonest
manufacturer underseis his competitor,
and forces him out of the market I'm
der modern commercial conditions, this
may be done so quickly that the people
will not be able TO discover the fraud
practiced on them till the honest manu-
faeturer has been ruIued. a law en-