Man, in a rude state, where his condition
seemed to be normal, rather than the result of a process of mental and
moral degeneracy, has often possessed a large share of independence; but
this should by no means be confounded with what in America is called
liberty. The independence of the savage, or nomad, is manifested in the
absence of law; but the liberty of an American citizen is the power to
do whatever may be beneficial to himself, and not injurious to his
neighbor nor to the state. The first leaves self-protection and
self-regulation to the individual, while the latter restrains the
aggressive tendencies of all for the security of each. The first is
natural equality without law; the second is natural equality before the
law. With the first, might makes right; with the latter, right makes
might. With the first, the power of the law, or of the will of an
individual or clan, is in the rigor and success of execution; with the
latter, the power of the law is in the justice of its demand. We, as a
people, have passed the savage and nomadic state, and can return to it
only after a long and melancholy process of decay and change, out of
which ultimately might come a new and savage race of men. This, then, is
not our immediate, even if it be a possible danger. But we are to guard
against intellectual, political, and moral degeneracy. We are, through
family, religious, and public education, to take security of the
childhood and youth of the land for the preservation of the institutions
we have, and for the growth, greatness, and justice, of the republic.
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