3. The spirit of _conciliation_ and the spirit of _discipline_.--Political liberty, more than any other political principle, requires the spirit of concession. If each, indeed, fortifies himself in his own opinions, without ever making a concession, all having the right to do the same, it is evident that no common conclusion can be arrived at. The consequence of the _liberum veto_,[67] pushed to excess, is paralysis of power or anarchy. Nothing is done; and in politics, when nothing is done, all becomes disorganized, dissolved. It is, therefore, necessary that whilst preserving their independence, the representatives sent forth by the electors should endeavor to render government possible; they should not overstep the limits of their trust by confounding legislative power with executive power; they should try to harmonize with the other bodies of the State--in short, they ought each to sacrifice the necessary amount of their individual opinion to bring about a common opinion. In a free government it is no more a duty to belong to the _majority_ than to the _opposition_, since the opposition may, in its turn, become majority; but whether belonging to the one or to the other, the representative should subordinate his particular views to the common interest; otherwise the parties scatter, which, in the long run, can only be profitable to despotism. =105. Judicial power.--The magistracy and the bar.=--The judicial power is exercised by magistrates called _judges_: it is they who decide about quarrels between individuals: this is what is called _civil justice_; they also decide about the punishments inflicted on criminals who have made attempts upon a life or property; and this is _penal justice_. The duties of the magistrate are easily deduced from these obligations. 1. _Impartiality and neutrality._--The judge must necessarily remain _neutral_ among all parties; he should have no regard to persons, should render equal justice to the rich and to the poor, to the high and to the low. _Equality before the law_, which is one of the principles of our modern institutions, should not only be a principle in the abstract; it should also be a practical principle, and be brought before the eyes of the judges as one among the first of their obligations. 2. _Integrity and disinterestedness._--No less strict a duty for the judges, and which it is scarcely necessary to point out, is integrity. The magistrate should be free from all suspicion of venality. Under the old _régime_, as may be seen in Racine's comedy of _The Pleaders_, the judges were not always free from such suspicion. Of course, it is but a comedy; but such a comedy could no longer be written nowadays; it would no longer be understood; our morals are too much improved for that. The obligation should, nevertheless, be pointed out.