this, there have always been crimes that were not of the
class that implied moral wrong. The acts of the revolutionist who saw,
or thought he saw, visions of something better; the man who is inspired
by the love of his fellow-man and who has no personal ends to gain; the
man who in his devotion to an idea or a person risks his life or liberty
or property or reputation, has never been classed with those who violate
the law for selfish ends. The line of revolutionists, from the beginning
of organized government down to the birth of the United States and even
to the present time, furnishes ample proof of this. And still the
unsuccessful revolutionist meets with the severest penalties. To him
failure generally means death. Men who are fired with zeal for all new
causes are forever running foul of the law. Social organization, like
biological organization, is conservative. All things that live are
imbued with the will to live and they take all means in their power to
go on living. The philosopher can neither quarrel with the idealist who
makes the sacrifice nor the organization that preserves itself while it
can; he only recognizes what is true.

Men have always been obliged to fight to preserve liberty. Constitutions
and laws do not safeguard liberty. It can be preserved only by a
tolerant people, and this means eternal conflict. Emerson said that the
good citizen must not be over-obedient to law. Freedom is always
trampled on in times of stress. The United States suffered serious
encroachments on liberty during the Civil War. During the last war,
these encroachments were greater than any American could have possibly
dreamed; and so far there seems little immediate chance for change.
Still the philosopher does not complain. He sees human passion for what
it is, a great emotion that holds men in its grasp, a feeling that
nothing can stand against. Opposition is destroyed by force, and often
blind, cruel, unreasoning force. Sometimes even worse, this force is
created for selfish ends. There are always those who will use the
strongest and highest emotions of men to serve their private, sordid
ends. Changing social systems, new political ideas, the labor cause, all
movements for religious, social or political change have their zealots;
they are met by the force of convention and conservatism ready to defend
itself, and the clash is inevitable. It is easy to distinguish this sort
of action from the things done by those who are k