290 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



also solidaire with each other. A criticism of Rodbertus is a task 

 which I reserve for another occasion, but, as germane to my pres- 

 ent subject, I ask attention to the following proposition, as illus- 

 trating the sort of dogma which shows the need of re-analyzing 

 liberty : " Moral freedom is conditioned on historical necessity." 

 Some of our contemporaries take that sort of proposition as the 

 profoundest wisdom. To me it is oracular in more senses than 

 one.* 



2. From a large collection of similar cases I select the follow- 

 ing : " Life appears to the Manchester party to run its course under 

 the form of a parliamentary debate, and not otherwise. An asser- 

 tion is followed by an objection, this by a rejoinder, and so on. 

 The decision of the majority is final." The view here stigmatized 

 is held by all those who believe in government by deliberation. 

 " The great affair in this world is, not to convince a man's intelli- 

 gence, or to increase his knowledge, but it is at least equally im- 

 portant to lead his will and to conquer it." f The writer goes on 

 to argue that, if men are allowed to act freely, they will not act 

 by deliberation, but selfishly. There he leaves the matter, appar- 

 ently believing that he has routed the " Manchester Schule," and 

 established something of philosophical or practical importance. 

 He must, of course, assume that himself and his friends are to de- 

 cide when others and their friends are acting selfishly, and ought 

 to have their wills conquered. 



3. To take another citation from a popular writer : " Not one 

 liberal principle but is admirable in the abstract ; yet not one lib- 

 eral measure that has not worked terrible mischief in our time. 

 The liberty of thought, for instance ; who dare gainsay it ? Yet 

 it has proved destructive of the principle of religion, without 

 which there is less cohesion among men than among a herd of 

 swine. The liberty of settlement and circulation has given rise 

 to the pestilence of large towns, in which men congregate and live 

 together on terms worse than a pack of wolves. The liberty of 

 industry has reduced four fifths of the population to a state of 

 serfdom more cruel than negro slavery, while more than half of 

 the remaining population is engaged in a perpetual struggle, more 

 savage than the intermittent warfare of cannibals. Free trade 

 among nations has ruined, first individually, then industrially, 

 then financially, and finally politically, prosperous countries, such 

 as Turkey, while in England it has destroyed, not only agricult- 

 ure, but all those sterling qualities which formerly characterized 

 British industry and trade. . . . Parallel to the deception experi- 

 enced by the modern world through the progress of industry, 

 aided by discovery and invention, have come down on this genera- 



* 8 Hildebrand's " Jahrbiicher," 420, note. 



f Von Eichen in " Preuss. Jahrbiicher," IS18, p. 382. 



