ave prevented the exercise of justice and of
political equality.

The liberty that has been gained is an expensive luxury. It has cost
those who have tried to gain it the treasures of accumulated wealth and
the flower of youth. When it has once been gained, the social forces
have rendered the popular will non-expressive of the best government.
Popular government, although ideally correct, is difficult to
approximate, and frequently when obtained in name is far from real
attainment. After long oppression and subservience to monarchy or
aristocracy, when the people, suddenly gaining power through great
expense of treasure and blood, assume self-government, they find to
their distress that they are incapable of it when {329} struggling
against unfavorable conditions. The result is a mismanaged government
and an extra expense to the people. There has been through many
centuries a continual struggle for popular government. The end of each
conflict has seen something gained, yet the final solution of the
problem has not been reached. Nevertheless, imperfect as government by
the people may be, it is, in the long run, the safest and best, and it
undoubtedly will triumph in the end. The democratic government of
great nations is the most difficult of all forms to maintain, and it is
only through the increased wisdom of the people that its final success
may be achieved. The great problem now confronting it arises from
purely economic considerations.

_The Feudal Lord and the Towns_.--Feudalism made its stronghold in
country life. The baronial castle was built away from cities and
towns--in a locality favorable for defense. This increased the
importance of country life to a great extent, and placed the feudal
lord in command of large tracts of territory. Many of the cities and
towns were for a time accorded the municipal privileges that had been
granted them under Roman rule; but in time these wore away, and the
towns, with a few exceptions, became included in large feudal tracts,
and were held, with other territory, as feudatories. In Italy, where
feudalism was less powerful, the greater barons were obliged to build
their castles in the towns, or, indeed, to unite with the towns in
government. But in France and Germany, and even to a certain extent in
England, the feudal lord kept aloof from the town.

There was, consequently, no sympathy existing between the feudal lord
and the people of the cities. It was his p