wisdom, was suffering from
evils, not indeed the same as those which in his judgment afflicted
America, but equally serious. They bade him remember that moral
progress is not continuous, but subject to ebbs of reaction, and that
America is a country of which one should never despair, because in it
evils have often before worked out their cure. He did regretfully own,
after his latest visits to Europe, that England had sadly declined
from the England of his earlier days, and he admitted that the clouds
under which his own path had latterly lain might after a time be
scattered by a burst of sunshine; but his hopes for the near future of
America were not brightened by these reflections. Sometimes he seemed
to feel--though of his own work he never spoke--as though he had
laboured in vain for forty years.

If he so thought, he did his work far less than justice. It had told
powerfully upon the United States, and that in more than one way.
Though the circulation of the _Nation_ was never large, it was read by
the two classes which in America have most to do with forming
political and economic opinion--I mean editors and University
teachers. (The Universities and Colleges, be it remembered, are far
more numerous, relatively to the population, in America than in
England, and a more important factor in the thought of the country.)
From the editors and the professors Mr. Godkin's views filtered down
into the educated class generally, and affected its opinion. He
instructed and stimulated the men who instructed and stimulated the
rest of the people. To those young men in particular who thought about
public affairs and were preparing themselves to serve their country,
his articles were an inspiration. The great hope for American
democracy to-day lies in the growing zeal and the ripened intelligence
with which the generation now come to manhood has begun to throw
itself into public work. Many influences have contributed to this
result, and Mr. Godkin's has been among the most potent.

Nor was his example less beneficial to the profession of journalism.
There has always been a profusion of talent in the American press,
talent more alert and versatile than is to be found in the press of
any European country. But in 1865 there were three things which the
United States lacked. Literary criticism did not maintain a high
standard, nor duly distinguish thorough from flashy or superficial
performances. Party spirit was so strong and so pe