THE UNANIMITY OF MULTITUDES 185 



the capacities of these men only. It represents Book n 

 the capacities, the character, and very probably 

 the personal designs of the exceptional man who 

 supplied that common mould to which the unanimity 

 of the other men's opinions is due ; and the one 

 opinion which thus comes to be held by all of them 

 will not be precisely the opinion that was originally 

 held by any. The original opinion of each will 

 have undergone some modification. It will have 

 been softened, emphasised, developed, or other 

 elements will have been added to it, which would 

 never have entered the mind of the ordinary man 

 naturally, and which even when admitted he does 



but imperfectly understand. Thus whilst a political Thus what 



, i i i 111 seems to be the 



opinion expressed, or a political demand made, by a opinion of the 



body of ordinary men thus absolutely unanimous generally de- 

 seems at first sight a genuine expression of the will ^SaamSt'^ 

 and the capacities of the many, it always in part, few - 

 and it very often mainly represents capacities and 

 purposes belonging to one man alone, the many being 

 practically little more than a phonograph, which 

 repeats his words to the world through an enormous 

 resonator. 



Let us take, for instance, the two questions of The many, for 

 Free Trade and Bimetallism. If any British Govern- ne ver have had 



.1 r .' ' i. any opinions 



ment were to revert to the system of protection, it on Fre e Trade 



cannot be doubted that throughout the country there ^ 

 would be meetings and demonstrations, at which had not 



... worked on 



every throat would be unanimous in shouting con- them. 

 demnation of their conduct. America has witnessed 

 a precisely similar outburst in favour of a proposal 



