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 (260_l_.) 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:--