HKB
which he had ever claimed--that of his country's love. The majority then reprobated the line of policy which he adopted and which has since been unanimously approved by the nation.[179]
If the constitution and the favor of the public had not intrusted the direction of the foreign affairs of the country to Washington, it is certain that the American nation would at that time have taken the very measures which it now condemns.
Almost all the nations which have exercised a powerful influence upon the destinies of the world, by conceiving, following up, and executing vast designs--from the Romans to the English--have been governed by aristocratic institutions. Nor will this be a subject of wonder when we recollect that nothing in the world has so absolute a fixity of purpose as an aristocracy. The mass of the people may be led astray by ignorance or passion; the mind of a king may be biased, and his perseverance in his designs may be shaken--beside which a king is not immortal; but an aristocratic body is too numerous to be led astray by the blandishments of intrigue, and yet not numerous enough to yield readily to the intoxicating influence of unreflecting passion: it has the energy of a firm and enlightened individual, added to the power which it derives from its perpetuity.
Notes:
[164] I here use the word magistrates in the widest sense in which it can be taken; I apply it to all the officers to whom the execution of the laws is intrusted.
[165] See the act 27th February, 1813, General Collection of the Laws of Massachusetts, vol. ii., p. 331. It should be added that the Jurors are afterward drawn from these lists by lot.
[166] See the act of 28th February, 1787, General Collection of the Laws of Massachusetts, vol. i., p. 302.
[167] It is needless to observe, that I speak here of the democratic form of government as applied to a people, not merely to a tribe.
[168] The word poor is used here, and throughout the remainder of this chapter, in a relative and not in an absolute sense. Poor men in America would often appear rich in comparison with the poor of Europe but they may with propriety be styled poor in comparison with their more affluent countrymen.
[169] The easy circumstances in which secondary functionaries are placed in the United States, result also from another cause, which is independent of the general tendencies of democracy: every kind of private business is very lucrative, and the state would not be served at all if it did not pay its servants. The country is in the position of a commercial undertaking, which is obliged to sustain an expensive competition, notwithstanding its taste for economy.
[170] The state of Ohio, which contains a million of inhabitants, gives its governor a salary of only $1,200 (260l.) a year.
[171] To render this assertion perfectly evident, it will suffice to examine the scale of salaries of the agents of the federal government. I have added the salaries attached to the corresponding officers in France, to complete the comparison:--
UNITED STATES. FRANCE. Treasury Department. Ministere des Finances Messenger . . . $ 700 150l. Huissier, 3,500 fr. . . 60l. Clerk with lowest salary Clerk with lowest salary, . . . 1,000 217 1,000 to 1,300 fr. . 40 to 72 Clerk with highest Clerk with highest salary salary. . 1,600 347 3,200 to 3,600 fr. . 128 to 144 Chief clerk . 2,000 434 Secretaire-general, 20,000 fr. 800 Secretary of state . 6,000 1,300 The minister, 80,000 fr. . 3,200 The President . . 25,000 5,400 The king, 12,000,000 fr. 480,000