The difference between different portions of mankind in the relative
strength of these two dispositions is one of the most important
elements in their history. There are nations in whom the passion for
governing others is so much stronger than the desire of personal
independence, that for the mere shadow of the one they are found ready
to sacrifice the whole of the other. Each one of their number is
willing, like the private soldier in an army, to abdicate his personal
freedom of action into the hands of his general, provided the army
is triumphant and victorious, and he is able to flatter himself that
he is one of a conquering host, though the notion that he has
himself any share in the domination exercised over the conquered is an
illusion. A government strictly limited in its powers and
attributions, required to hold its hands from over-meddling, and to
let most things go on without its assuming the part of guardian or
director, is not to the taste of such a people. In their eyes the
possessors of authority can hardly take too much upon themselves,
provided the authority itself is open to general competition. An
average individual among them prefers the chance, however distant or
improbable, of wielding some share of power over his fellow
citizens, above the certainty, to himself and others, of having no
unnecessary power exercised over them.
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