elligent seek out the
intelligent; the pious, those who reverence God. But suppose the
intellectual and the religious to cut themselves off by some broad,
visible distinction from the rest of society, to form a clan of their
own, to refuse admission into their houses to people of inferior
knowledge and virtue, and to diminish as far as possible the occasions
of intercourse with them; would not society rise up, as one man,
against this arrogant exclusiveness? And if intelligence and piety may
not be the foundations of a caste, on what ground shall they, who have
no distinction but wealth, superior costume, richer equipages, finer
houses, draw lines around themselves and constitute themselves a higher
class? That some should be richer than others is natural and is
necessary, and could only be prevented by gross violations of right.
Leave men to the free use of their powers, and some will accumulate
more than their neighbors. But to be prosperous is not to be superior;
and should form no barrier between men. Wealth ought not to secure to
the prosperous the slightest consideration. The only distinctions
which should be recognized are those of the soul, of strong principle,
of incorruptible integrity, of usefulness, of cultivated intellect, of
fidelity in seeking for truth. A man in proportion as he has these
claims, should be honored and welcomed everywhere. I see not why such
a man, however coarsely if neatly dressed, should not be a respected
guest in the most splendid mansions, and at the most brilliant
meetings. A man is worth infinitely more than the saloons, and the
costumes, and the show of the universe. He was made to tread all these
beneath his feet. What an insult to humanity is the present deference
to dress and upholstery, as if silk-worms, and looms, and scissors, and
needles could produce something nobler than a man! Every good man
should protest against a caste founded on outward prosperity, because
it exalts the outward above the inward, the material above the
spiritual; because it springs from and cherishes a contemptible pride
in superficial and transitory distinctions: because it alienates man
from his brother, breaks the tie of common humanity, and breeds
jealousy, scorn, and mutual ill-will. Can this be needed to social
order?

It is true, that in countries where the mass of the people are ignorant
and servile, the existence of a higher and a worshipped rank tends to
keep them from outrage