Democracy and liberty

Front matter

Class

Book, ♦ b 4

do psj 2.

CHAPTER I English Representative Government in the Eighteenth Century

Objects to be attained 2

Taxation and representation 2

Power of landed property .... o. 3

And of the commercial classes . . , . . 3

Aristocratic influence . 3

Diversities in the size of constituencies and qualification

of electors ........ 5

The small boroughs .5

Dislike to organic change 7

Merits of English government . . . . . 8 The founders of the American Republic aimed at the

same ends 9

Judge Story on the suffrage 10

Rousseau's conception of government essentially different 12

Review of the French constitutions, 1789-1830 ■ . 12

Ascendency of the middle class in France, 1830-1848 15

English Reform Bill of 1832— Its causes ... 15

Fears it excited not justified by the event ... 20

Place of the middle class in English government . 21

The period from 1832 to 1867 21

Votes not always a true test of opinion • . . 21

_ Motives that govern the more ignorant voters . . 23

- Dangers of too great degradation of the suffrage . 25 vm

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

Growth of Rousseau's doctrine in England — The Irish representation .......

University representation . . .

The new form of sycophancy

Attacks on plural voting ......

Equal electoral districts

Taxation passing wholly under the control of numbers Successful parliaments mainly elected on a high suffrage

Instability of democracies

When they are least dangerous

French Democracy

Favourable circumstances under which it has been tried

Manhood suffrage in 18-i8

Eestricted in 1850

Coup d'Etat

Re-established by Louis Napoleon— The

and the plebiscite

Universal suffrage under the Second Empire Last days of the Empire ....

Democracy and the Franco-German War

The Tliird Republic

Weakness of the President

Decline of political ideals .

Ministerial instability

The permanent service

The Republic and liberty

French Finance, 18U-1870

French Finance during the Republic

Forms of corruption and extravagance

Good credit of France .

Financial dangers . . . .

Scherer on French political life

Lowered political tone ....

American Democracy

Characteristics of the American Constitution

Its framers dreaded democracy .

Advantageous circumstances of America

Growth of democratic influence in the Presidential eleC'

tions

Elections for tlie Senate — Cliaracteristics of that body . The lowering of tlie suffrage .....

27 28 30 30 31 32 33 34 35

35 36 37

68 69 70

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME IX

Elected judges ......

The ' Molly Maguires '

Corruption of the judicature

Growth of the spoils system . . . .

Political assessments on office-holders .

Connection of the spoils system with democracy

American party warfare ....

Attempts to restrict the spoils system

The ballot in America .....

Lax naturalisation

The Know-Nothing party ....

The Irish rote . . , .

Enfranchisement of negroes .....

Corruption in New York

Municipal corruption general in the great cities

PAGE

73 74

3Ieasures of Reform

Judges made more independent . . . . . 101

Power of local legislatures limited . . . . 102

Increased authority of the mayors . . , . 105

Mr. Bryce on American corruption ... 107

American acquiescence in corruption . . 113

The best life apart from politics • . . . .114

Summary by Mr. Bryce 115

Protective strength of the Constitution . . . .116

American optimism ....... 118

Influence of the separation of Church and State on political morals . . . . . . . .118

Public spirit during the War of Secession . . 119

And after its conclusion ...... 120

Excellence of general legislation in the United States 121

Tocqueville's judgments — Changes since he wrote . .122 Corruption in railroad management . . . 125

Abolition of slavery — Its influence on foreign policy . 126 Intellectual side of American civilisation . . . 127

Democracy not favourable to tlie higlier intellectual life 131

The prospects of the Republic 132

Protection 133

The Pension List 134

Lessons to be drawn from American experience . . 136

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

Chapter II Page

Majorities required in different nations for constitutional

changes 137

Attempt to introduce the two-thirds majority system in

New South Wales . 138

Small stress placed in England on legislative machinery 138

The English belief in government by gentlemen . . 140 Declining efficiency of parliamentary government

throughout Europe 142

England has not escaped the evil .... 144 Increasing power and pretensions of the House of Commons . 145

The Parish Councils Bill of 1894 .... 146

Excess of parliamentary speaking -Its causes . . 146

Its effects on public business ..... 149

Growth of the caucus fatal to the independence of the

House of Commons ... .... 149

The relation of the House to Government — Disintegration of parties ...... . , 150

Results of the group system ..... 151

Increase of log-rolling 153

And of the appetite for organic change . . . 153

Both parties have contributed to this .... 154

Conservatism in English Radicalism .... 155

Growth of class bribery ...... 155

Rendered easy by our system of taxation . . . 156 Sir Cornewall Lewis on the best taxation — Indirect

taxation 157

Remissions of direct taxation sometimes the most beneficial 158

Exaggeration of Free Trade — The corn registration duty

— The London coal dues ...... 159

The abolition of the income tax made an election cry in

1874 -History of this election 160

Appeals to class cupidity by the Irish Land League . 167

Its success has strengthened the tendency to class bribery 167

Irish Land Question

Peculiar difficulties to be dealt with in Trohmd . . 167

Tenants' improvements 168

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME XI

PAGE

Sharman Crawford's proposals 169

The Devon Commission 169

Abortive attempts to protect improvements . . .171

Land Act of 1860 171

And of 1870 — Its merits and demerits . . . .172

Paucity of leases and tenants' improvements— How viewed in Ireland . . . . . . .177

Rents in Ireland before 1870 not generally extortionate 178 But such rents did exist, and most tenancies Avere precarious .......... 180

The Act of 1881 182

Absolute ownership of land under the Incumbered Estates Act 182

Circumstances under which this Act had been carried^

Its nature 182

It guaranteed complete ownership under a parliamentary

title 184

Confiscation of Landlord Rights hy the Act of 1881. The

purchased improvements ...... 185

Fixity of tenure given to the present tenant . . 185 Which could not honestly be done Avithout compensating

Inseparable rights of OAvnership destroyed . . 187

The NeAv Land Court and its proceedings . . . 188

' Judicial decisions ' 190

Rights of the Legislature over landed property —Mill . 191

Dishonest character of Irish land legislation . . 192

The defence of the Act of 1881 193

Misconception of its effects 19-4

The language of Mr. Gladstone ..... 195 The Act failed to pacify Ireland —Effects of the Home Rule agitation . . . . . . .197

Tlie Land Act of 1887 198

Tendency of subversive principles in legislation to groAv 200 Landlord claim for compensation ..... 201 Effects of the land legislation on Irish capital and contracts 202

On the ultimate position of tenants .... 203

Moral effects of this legislation ..... 204

The Evicted Tenants Bill ...... 206

XU CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

PAGE

The worst form of robbery, legal robbery . . . 209

Dangers of the Irish precedent 210

Mr. George's comparison of Irish and American landlordism ... 210

Where should State intervention stop ? . . , 212

Other Attacks on ProiyeHy

Theories of Mr. George ...... 212

Mill's doctrine of the ' unearned increment ' . 213

English land no longer the source of English food . 216

Attacks on national debts 216

On mining royalties ....... 218

On literary property 218

Nationalisation of railroads, &c. . . . . = 220 Cautions in dealing with such questions— Is dem.ocracy

suited to the task? 222

The worship of majorities . . . . . . 223

Old and New Jesuitism ...... 224

Influence of philosophical speculation on politics . . 225 Character in pul)lic life — How far democratic election

The Home Rule alliance — Compared with the coalition

of Nortli and Fox 228

Effects of the lowering of the suffrage on political morality ......... 229

And of the increased hurry of modern life . . . 230

Personal and class interests in politics . . . 230

Inadequate sense of the criminality of political misdeeds 231

The etliics of party 233

Nonconformist ministers and Mr. Parnell . . . 236 Relative importance of private and public morals in

politics 237

Growth of the professional politician .... 238

Democratic local government — Its good and evil . . 238

Place of wealth in modern politics .... 240

Measures that must strengthen the professional politician 241

High standard of political integrity in Great Britain . 242

Probity of the permanent service .... 243

Better side of the House of Commons .... 243

Competitive examinations — Tlieir drawl)acks . . 243

Their great use in restraining corru})tion . . . 246

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME Xlll

PAGE

The character of a nation not always shown by its public

life . 246

Evidence that English character has not declined— Its

moral and philanthropic side . . . . . 2-i7

Its robuster qualities ....... 2i^Q

The governing capacity — Egypt and India . . . 24:9

Dangers to India in democratic government . . 250

High character of English municipal government . , 252

Political influence of the provincial towns . . 252

Influence of the telegraph on politics — Provincial press . 253

Modern England not barren in great men , . . 254

CHAPTER III Democracy an inevitable fact ..... 256

Is not uniformly favourable to liberty . . . 256

Illustrations from Roman and French history , . 256

Equality naturally hostile to liberty .... 256

Love of democracy for authoritative regulation . . 257 Effects of the increase of State power — Taxation and

liberty 258

Other dangers to liberty ...... 259

Party system hastened the transformation . . . 260

Some Suggested Remedies

Change in the Irish representation 261

Class representation — Its history and decline . . 264

Representation of minorities ...... 266

^ An educational franchise ...... 272

Mill's suggestions for mitigating dangers of universal suffrage .......... 273

Repudiated by modern Radicalism— The ' fancy ' franchises 276

The Swiss Referendum — Its history and influence . . 277

Its recent adoption in the United States . . . 280

Attempt to introduce it into Belgium .... 285

Arguments for and against it 286

Belief that a low suffrage is naturally conservative . 293

Extension of the power of committees . . . 294

The American committee system ..... 295

XIV CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

PAGE

The French system 297

English parliamentary committees — Devolution . .297 Proposal that Governments should only resign on a vote

of want of confidence ...... 299

Arguments against it 299

Probability that democratic Parliaments will sink in

power 300

Democratic local government — Success of English local

government 301

Largely due to property qualifications . . . 302 Almost all of them now abolished — Act of 1894 . . 303 This is the more serious on account of the great increase in taxation 303

The local debt 304

Increase of State Taxation in Europe— Its Causes

Military expenditure — Standing armies . . . 305 Buckle's prediction of the decline of wars . . . 307 The commercial spirit now favours territorial aggrandisement 308

Growing popularity of universal military service . . 309

Arguments in its defence ...... 309

Importance of the question to the English race . = 312

Arguments against it . . . . . ■ • 312

Conscription and universal suffrage connected . .315 But the military system may come into collision with the

parliamentary system 316

National education — Its social and political effects . 317 Primary education assuming the character of secondary

Sanitary reform 323

Reformatories and prison reform .... 327 Increased taxation due to increased State regulation —

Herbert Spencer's views 328

Necessity for some extension of State control . . 329

Advantages of State action in some fields . . . 330 Government credit — Enterprises remunerative to the

State 331

Unremuuerative forms of literature and art . . . 332

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME XV

PAGE

Subsidies to the theatre ...... 333

Dangers of State regulation and subsidies . . . 333 Change in the character of democracy since Joseph

Hume 335

Motives that have led to State aggrandisement . . 335

Mr. Goschen on its extent 335

Attempts to push it still further — The Manchester school

repudiated 337

Tendency to throw all taxation on one class . . 337 Tocqueville and Young on English taxes in the eighteenth century 337

Progressive taxes of Pitt 338

Abolition of taxes on the necessaries of life . . . 339

Bentham, Mill, and Montesquieu on exempted incomes 339

Lord Derby's description of English taxation . . 340 Taxation mainly on the rich and chiefly for the benefit

of the poor 340

Adam Smith on the rules for taxation . . . 341

Thiers on the same subject ...... 341

Advantages of taxation of luxuries .... 343

Growing popularity of graduated taxation — Its early

history 343

Taxation in Switzerland ...... 344

In the Netherlands, New Zealand, France, and the United

States 345

Arguments against graduated taxation . . . 346

Probability that it will increase ..... 349

Its effect on the disposition of landed property . . 349

On the position and habits of the upper classes . . 350

On personal property 354

Wealth dissociated from duties . . . . . 355

Democracy not indifferent to wealth .... 359

Chapter IV Aristocracies And Upper Chambers

Dangers of government by a single Chamber . . 361

Countries where it exists 363

Lessons derived from the Commonwealth . . . 364

XVI CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

PAGE

From the United States ...... 364

From France ..... o = . . 364

Early History of the House of Lords

Effects of the Reformation and the Rebellion . . 365

Of the Revolution of 1688 ...... 365

Importance of the small boroughs in sustaining its influence . ........ 366

The Peerage Bill of Stanhope ..... 366

The Scotch Union ....... 367

The Resolution of 1711 . 367

Creations of George III. — The Irish Union . . 368

Position of the spiritual peers ..... 369

The House of Lords under George III. not unpopular 370

Power of personal interest on its members before 1832 . 371

Their influence in the House of Commons . . 373

Attitude of the peers towards the Reform Bill of 1832 . 373

Change in their position effected by the Bill . . 374 Importance of the House of Lords in making legislation

harmonise with the popular will 374

In diminishing the too great influence of party in legislation ......... 375

In protecting minorities 376

Its ecclesiastical policy 376

Its general moderation 378

Attacks on the Lords after the Reform Bill of 1832 . 378

The Hereditary Element

Advantages of special education for politics . . . 379 Influences that maintain the character of the British

aristocracy ... ..... 380

Their energy and power of adaptation .... 386

Large amount of ability among them . . . 386

Advantages the nation derives from an aristocracy . 387

Representative character of the House of Lords . 389 Popularity of the aristocracy in England , . .391

Its good and evil sides ...... 392

Aristocracy and plutocracy ...... 392

Debility and apathy of the House of Lords . . 398

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME XVII

Causes of its Debility

The small quorum— Proxies 399

- Discouraging influences in the House . . . 400 Jealousy of the House of Commons of Bills originating

in the Lords 402

Financial impotence of the Lords .... 402

Sole right of the Commons to originate Money Bills . 403 The Lords deprived of their old right of amending

them 403

Difficulty of maintaining this rule — Its relaxation . 404

The right of rejecting Money Bills .... 406

Repeal of the paper duties in 1860 . . . . 407 The different provisions of the Budget combined in one

Bill 413

Connection of taxation and representation . . 414

PoAvers of foreign Senates over finance .... 415 Dangers of the concentration of all financial power in

one House — Its mitigations in England . . . 415

The House of Lords cannot overthrow Ministers . . 416

Its Judicial Functions

Its origin and abuses ....

Attempts to make lawyers life peers The peerage of Lord Wensleydale (1856) Later attempts to create life peers . Lord Selborne's Court of Appeal (1873) Lord Cairns's new Appellate Court in

Lords

Success of this measure ....

Its modification in 1887 the House of

417 419 419 422 423

423 424 424

Excessive and increasing number of new peerages . 425

Elements from which they are drawn . . . 426

Imperfect recognition of non-political eminence . . 428

One-sided political influence in the House of Lords . 430

This fact a recent one — Its causes 432

Parliamentary history, 1892-1895 . . , , 432

The crusade against the Lords 433

The election of 1895, and its lessons .... 436

XVlll

CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

The importance of a reform of the House of Lords not diminished .......

Foreign Upper Houses

The Eoman Senate . . . .

The Senate of the United States .

The French Senate . . . .

The German Bundesrath Upper Houses in Prussia and Austria

In Italy

In Spain and Switzerland .

In the Netherlands

In Belgium

Colonial Constitutions

Their general character

The Canadian Senate

The Newfoundland Constitution

African colonial Governments — The island colonies

Upper Chambers in Australia and New Zealand

Proposals for reforming the House of Lords

Advantages of retaining a limited hereditary element .

Life peers

Proposals for a larger introduction of the representative

principle

The limitation of the veto

Right of ministers to sit in both Houses

Advantages and disadvantages of carrying unfinished

legislation into a second session

This should at least be done in the case of amendments

in the Lords

456 456 457 457

459 462

462 464 466

Chapter V Nationalities

Changes in the basis of international politics , . . 471 The rights of nationalities in the French Revolution , 472

Completely ignored after the fall of Napoleon , . 472

COj^TENTS of the first volume XIX

PAGE

Signs of revival before 1830 — French Revolution of that

year 473

Italian writers on nationality 474

Nationality not necessarily a democratic idea . . 476

Ambiguities about the elements that constitute it . 476

Good and evil sides of the doctrine of nationalities . 479

Not applicable to uncivilized nations .... 480

Plebiscites frequently deceptive .... 480

Dangers of pushing the nationality doctrine to its full consequences . . . . . . . .481

America a Test Case

Its annexations ........ 483

The secession of the South ...... 484

Analysis of English opinion on the War of Secession . 485

The Northern case for repressing the revolt . . . 489 Nearly all European predictions about the war proved

false . 490

The Italian Question

Impulse it gave to the doctrine of nationalities . . 490

Invasions of Naples and Rome 491

The Peace of Villafranca and the Roman question . 492

The Italian policy of England 493

Lord J. Russell's estimate of the plebiscites . . . 494

Success of the English policy 495

Policy of Napoleon III. 496

And of England 497

The unity of Italy dearly purchased . . . .498

The unity of Germany — The agglomeration of race elements .500

Conflicting tendencies towards agglomeration and towards local unities 501

Increased value attached to national languages . .501

The military system accentuates national differences . 502 Difficulties of reconciling local aspirations with imperial

interests 502

Influences that are weakening the nationalist spirit . 504

XX CONTENTS OF THE FIRST VOLUME

PAGB