EDITOR'S TABLE. 



411 



and be repudiated, and it might be thus 

 transformed, but transformation itself 

 implies the living on of the essential 

 thing in modified shape. Nor can we 

 say that that which has been eliminat- 

 ed and has passed away is simply the 

 superstition, while the surviving ele- 

 ment is some truth of reason which 

 was disguised under the old expression. 

 Under a less gross and palpable form 

 the superstition itself continues, and 

 for the divine infallibility of the king 

 wo have a superstitious belief in the 

 practical infallibility of Congress and 

 the political majority. " The king may 

 do all things by divine right, and we 

 are bound to obey," was the old for- 

 mula ; " the political majority may do 

 all things in its sovereign pleasure, and 

 everybody is bound to obey," is the de- 

 rived formula of the present time. 



The supernatural element in the case 

 is undoubtedly gone, but the blind and 

 unreasoning faith which is the essence 

 of superstition is the survival which is 

 still to be dealt with. What is the 

 ground of the authority of government ? 

 In what does its sovereignty consist ? 

 Is it supreme and unlimited, or is it 

 subject to restriction ? And, if so, what 

 are the principles of limitation ? What 

 may government do and what may it 

 not do ? What is the fundamental right 

 and wrong of government action to 

 which all legislation is bound to con- 

 form on imperative ethical grounds? 

 These are questions that are forced up- 

 on the age with a steadily increasing 

 urgency, and the answers to which are 

 of transcendent importance to the fu- 

 ture progress of society. 



These questions are besides of espe- 

 cial and critical moment in this country, 

 where the whole community is launched 

 upon the turbulent sea of politics, and 

 there is the highest possible need of 

 distinct and trustworthy politico-ethical 

 guidance. That the subject receives lit- 

 tle serious attention on the part of our 

 ignorant and self-seeking politicians, oc- 

 cupied with their paltry schemes of par- 



tisan rivalry, matters little except to 

 impose graver obligations upon serious- 

 minded people. The degradation of 

 popular government in this country 

 to the basest ends of demagogism, the 

 tendency to rule out all questions of 

 principle as disturbing elements in the 

 great game of partisan success, the sur- 

 render of Legislatures to the promotion 

 of sordid class interests, and the uni- 

 versal negelect of the true objects of 

 government, while its illegitimate ob- 

 jects are everywhere vehemently pur- 

 sued — all this is sufficiently notorious, 

 and it marks out the definite work of 

 our political reformers in the future. 

 The present state of things is not a 

 finality, and there is no justification for 

 despair of salutary political progress. 

 The passage from superstition to reason 

 is slow and unsteady, but it is inevita- 

 ble. Government is not to be run for- 

 ever on fallacies and by political quacks. 

 We are in a time of transition, which 

 is always painful and discouraging, but 

 tendencies are at work, and are slowly 

 acquiring strength, which are certain to 

 make headway against the errors and 

 vices of the prevailing political system. 

 It is of course very easy to be over- 

 sanguine, and to form delusive expec- 

 tations of good to be attained, and there 

 is especial danger of this in politics, 

 where it is expected by changing a vote 

 or passing a law to get great results in 

 a short time. But political renovation 

 can come by no such superficial means ; 

 we must have a revolution of ideas, re- 

 sulting in sounder views of the nature, 

 authority, and scope of government; 

 and that this will come in its proper 

 time, and give rise to a new departure 

 in politics, is no more to be doubted 

 than we can doubt the continued ac- 

 tivity of the human mind, the further 

 growth of scientific thought, or the 

 many improvements and ameliorations 

 that have been already accomplished. 



Meantime, the work to be done is 

 simply to diffuse among the more in- 

 telligent classes of the community those 



