e territorial
democracy has its most effective organization. Prior to the outbreak
of the rebellion the American people had asserted popular sovereignty,
but had never rendered an account to themselves in what sense the
people are or are not sovereign. They had never distinguished the
three sorts of democracy from one another, asked themselves which of
the three is the distinctively American democracy. For them, democracy
was democracy, and those who saw dangers ahead sought to avoid them
either by exaggerating one or the other of the two exclusive
tendencies, or else by restraining democracy itself through
restrictions on suffrage. The latter class began to distrust universal
suffrage, to lose faith in the people, and to dream of modifying the
American constitution so as to make it conform more nearly to the
English model. The war has proved that the were wrong, for nothing is
more certain than that the people have saved the national unity and
integrity almost in spite of their government. The General government
either was not disposed or was afraid to take a decided stand against
secession, till forced to do it by the people themselves. No wise
American can henceforth distrust American democracy. The people may be
trusted. So much is settled. But as the two extremes were equally
democratic, as the secessionists acted in the name of popular
sovereignty, and as the humanitarians were not unwilling to allow
separation, and would not and did not engage in the war against
secession for the sake of the Union and the integrity of the national
domain, the conviction becomes irresistible that it was not democracy
in the sense of either of the extremes that made the war and came out
of it victorious; and hence the real American democracy must differ
from them both, and is neither a personal nor a humanitarian, but a
territorial democracy. The true idea of American democracy thus comes
out, for the first time, freed from the two extreme democracies which
have been identified with it, and henceforth enters into the
understandings as well as the hearts of the people. The war has
enlightened patriotism, and what was sentiment or instinct becomes
reason--a well-defined, and clearly understood constitutional
conviction.

In the several States themselves there are many things to prevent the
socialistic tendency from becoming exclusive. In the States that
seceded socialism has never had a foothold, and will not gain it, f