t they had made sufficient progress to
spring their mine. The journal came out with a proposal to call a
convention, to alter and improve the fundamental law. That law contained
a clause already pointing out the mode by which amendments were to be
made in the constitution; but this mode required the consent of the
governor, of the council, and finally, of the people. It was a slow,
deliberative process, too, one by which men had time to reflect on what
they were doing, and so far protected vested rights as to render it
certain that no very great revolution could be effected under its
shadow. Now, the disaffected aimed at revolution--at carrying out,
completely the game of "puss in the corner," and it became necessary to
set up some new principle by which they could circumvent the old
fundamental law.

This was very easily accomplished in the actual state of the public
mind; it was only to carry out the doctrine of the sway of the majority
to a practical result; and this was so cleverly done as actually to put
the balance of power in the hands of the minority. There is nothing new
in this, however, as any cool-headed man may see in this enlightened
republic of our own, daily examples in which the majority-principle
works purely for the aggrandizement of a minority clique. It makes very
little difference how men are ruled; they will be cheated; for, failing
of rogues at head-quarters to perform that office for them, they are
quite certain to set to work to devise some means of cheating
themselves. At the crater this last trouble was spared them, the
opposition performing that office in the following ingenious manner.

The whole colony was divided into parishes, which exercised in
themselves a few of the minor functions of government. They had a
limited legislative power, like the American town meetings. In these
parishes, laws were passed, to require the people to vote 'yes' or 'no,'
in order to ascertain whether there should, or should not be, a
convention to amend the constitution. About one-fourth of the electors
attended these primary meetings, and of the ten meetings which were
held, in six "yes" prevailed by average majorities of about two votes in
each parish. This was held to be demonstration of the wishes of the
majority of the people to have a convention, though most of those who
staid away did so because they believed the whole procedure not only
illegal, but dangerous. Your hungry demagogue, however, is not t