Not that half only, individualism, which
isolates. There is another half, which is adhesiveness or love,
that fuses, ties and aggregates, making the races comrades, and
fraternizing all. Both are to be vitalized by religion, (sole
worthiest elevator of man or State,) breathing into the proud,
material tissues, the breath of life. For I say at the core of
democracy, finally, is the religious element. All the religions,
old and new, are there. Nor may the scheme step forth, clothed in
resplendent beauty and command, till these, bearing the best, the
latest fruit, the spiritual, shall fully appear.
A portion of our pages we might indite with reference toward Europe,
especially the British part of it, more than our own land, perhaps not
absolutely needed for the home reader. But the whole question hangs
together, and fastens and links all peoples. The liberalist of to-day
has this advantage over antique or mediaeval times, that his doctrine
seeks not only to individualize but to universalize. The great word
Solidarity has arisen. Of all dangers to a nation, as things exist in
our day, there can be no greater one than having certain portions of
the people set off from the rest by a line drawn--they not privileged
as others, but degraded, humiliated, made of no account. Much quackery
teems, of course, even on democracy's side, yet does not really affect
the orbic quality of the matter. To work in, if we may so term it,
and justify God, his divine aggregate, the People, (or, the veritable
horn'd and sharp-tail'd Devil, _his_ aggregate, if there be who
convulsively insist upon it)--this, I say, is what democracy is for;
and this is what our America means, and is doing--may I not say, has
done? If not, she means nothing more, and does nothing more, than
any other land.
Pages:
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365
366
367
368
369