tablishers, for instance,--will they meet your
outspoken churchmen, who stand up for the old faith in the constitution,
on an open platform; and discuss the question of a national church on a
common footing, where both its opponents and its supporters can be
heard?
Will your would--be--republican, foregathering at some Hole-in-the-Wall
meeting, allow a conservative speaker to say a word in opposition to his
progressive puerilities? Your teetotal-alliancer, in a quorum of water-
drinkers, will he _let_ a licensed victualler utter a protest against
his scheme for universal abstinence?
No.
Each and all of these several cliques are, in common with all cliques,
narrow-minded and intolerant. They prefer being kings of their
respective small companies and enjoying the mutual admiration of a
packed assembly, to coming out boldly like men and letting the pros and
cons of their schemes be ventilated in free discussion at genuine
meetings, composed of diverse elements.--Do you want any further proof?
I confess, I don't like republics or republicans. Once upon a time,
before seeing how they worked, I undoubtedly had a leaning towards the
"liberalism," as I thought it, of this school; but a thorough exposure
of the "institution" and the character of its partisans in America and
in France have completely opened my eyes to their real nature.
Were I asked, now, to define a republic, I should say that it was a
general scramble for power and perquisites, by a lot of ragged rascals
with empty pockets, who have everything to gain by success, and nothing
to lose by failure.--A sort of "rough and tumble" fight, in which those
with the easiest consciences, the loudest tongues and the wildest
promises, come to the fore, letting "the devil take the hindmost!"
It is a so-called commonwealth, wherein the welfare of the mass is
subordinated to party spirit; and in which each aspirant for place and
power, well knowing that his chief ambition is to "feather his own nest"
without any afterthought of patriotism, kicks down his struggling
brother--likewise on the lookout for the loaves and fishes of office--
ostracising him, if he doesn't put up with the treatment quietly!
I may be wrong, certainly, and I'm open to argument on the point, but I
like our old system best. I infinitely prefer a gentleman with a
reputation, to a snob with none; and a clean shirt to a dirty one! and
if you allow that I possess the right of selecting my futu
|