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The　most　continuous　experience　has　been　unsuccessful　in　shaking　this　grave　delusion。　　Philosophers　and　historians　have　endeavoured　in　vain　to　prove　its　absurdity；　but　yet　they　have　had　no　difficulty　in　demonstrating　that　institutions　are　the　outcome　of　ideas；　sentiments；　and　customs；　and　that　ideas；　sentiments；　and　customs　are　not　to　be　recast　by　recasting　legislative　codes。　A　nation　does　not　choose　its　institutions　at　will　any　more　than　it　chooses　the　colour　of　its　hair　or　its　eyes。　　Institutions　and　governments　are　the　product　of　the　race。　　They　are　not　the　creators　of　an　epoch；　but　are　created　by　it。　　Peoples　are　not　governed　in　accordance　with　their　caprices　of　the　moment；　but　as　their　character　determines　that　they　shall　be　governed。　Centuries　are　required　to　form　a　political　system　and　centuries　needed　to　change　it。　　Institutions　have　no　intrinsic　virtue：　in　themselves　they　are　neither　good　nor　bad。　　Those　which　are　good　at　a　given　moment　for　a　given　people　may　be　harmful　in　the　extreme　for　another　nation。

Moreover；　it　is　in　no　way　in　the　power　of　a　people　to　really　change　its　institutions。　　Undoubtedly；　at　the　cost　of　violent　revolutions；　it　can　change　their　name；　but　in　their　essence　they　remain　unmodified。　　The　names　are　mere　futile　labels　with　which　an　historian　who　goes　to　the　bottom　of　things　need　scarcely　concern　himself。　　It　is　in　this　way；　for　instance；　that　England；＇9＇　the　most　democratic　country　in　the　world；　lives；　nevertheless；　under　a　monarchical　regime；　whereas　the　countries　in　which　the　most　oppressive　despotism　is　rampant　are　the　Spanish…American　Republics；　in　spite　of　their　republican　constitutions。　　The　destinies　of　peoples　are　determined　by　their　character　and　not　by　their　government。　　I　have　endeavoured　to　establish　this　view　in　my　previous　volume　by　setting　forth　categorical　examples。


＇9＇　The　most　advanced　republicans；　even　of　the　United　States；　recognise　this　fact。　　The　American　magazine；　The　Forum；　recently　gave　categorical　expression　to　the　opinion　in　terms　which　I　reproduce　here　from　the　Review　of　Reviews　for　December；　1894：

〃It　should　never　be　forgotten；　even　by　the　most　ardent　enemies　of　an　aristocracy；　that　England　is　to…day　the　most　democratic　country　of　the　universe；　the　country　in　which　the　rights　of　the　individual　are　most　respected；　and　in　which　the　individual　possesses　the　most　liberty。〃



To　lose　time　in　the　manufacture　of　cut…and…dried　constitutions　is；　in　consequence；　a　puerile　task；　the　useless　labour　of　an　ignorant　rhetorician。　　Necessity　and　time　undertake　the　charge　of　elaborating　constitutions　when　we　are　wise　enough　to　allow　these　two　factors　to　act。　　This　is　the　plan　the　Anglo…Saxons　have　adopted；　as　their　great　historian；　Macaulay；　teaches　us　in　a　passage　that　the　politicians　of　all　Latin　countries　ought　to　learn　by　heart。　　After　having　shown　all　the　good　that　can　be　accomplished　by　laws　which　appear　from　the　point　of　view　of　pure　reason　a　chaos　of　absurdities　and　contradictions；　he　compares　the　scores　of　constitutions　that　have　been　engulfed　in　the　convulsions　of　the　Latin　peoples　with　that　of　England；　and　points　out　that　the　latter　has　only　been　very　slowly　changed　part　by　part；　under　the　influence　of　immediate　necessities　and　never　of　speculative　reasoning。

〃To　think　nothing　of　symmetry　and　much　of　convenience；　never　to　remove　an　anomaly　merely　because　it　is　an　anomaly；　never　to　innovate　except　when　some　grievance　is　felt；　never　to　innovate　except　so　far　as　to　get　rid　of　the　grievance；　never　to　lay　down　any　proposition　of　wider　extent　than　the　particular　case　for　which　it　is　necessary　to　provide；　these　are　the　rules　which　have；　from　the　age　of　John　to　the　age　of　Victoria；　generally　guided　the　deliberations　of　our　two　hundred　and　fifty　Parliaments。〃

It　would　be　necessary　to　take　one　by　one　the　laws　and　institutions　of　each　people　to　show　to　what　extent　they　are　the　expression　of　the　needs　of　each　race　and　are　incapable；　for　that　reason；　of　being　violently　transformed。　　It　is　possible；　for；　instance；　to　indulge　in　philosophical　dissertations　on　the　advantages　and　disadvantages　of　centralisation；　but　when　we　see　a　people　composed　of　very　different　races　devote　a　thousand　years　of　efforts　to　attaining　to　this　centralisation；　when　we　observe　that　a　great　revolution；　having　for　object　the　destruction　of　all　the　institutions　of　the　past；　has　been　forced　to　respect　this　centralisation；　and　has　even　strengthened　it；　under　these　circumstances　we　should　admit　that　it　is　the　outcome　of　imperious　needs；　that　it　is　a　condition　of　the　existence　of　the　nation　in　question；　and　we　should　pity　the　poor　mental　range　of　politicians　who　talk　of　destroying　it。　　Could　they　by　chance　succeed　in　this　attempt；　their　success　would　at　once　be　the　signal　for　a　frightful　civil　war；＇10＇　which；　moreover；　would　immediately　bring　back　a　new　system　of　centralisation　much　more　oppressive　than　the　old。


＇10＇　If　a　comparison　be　made　between　the　profound　religious　and　political　dissensions　which　separate　the　various　parties　in　France；　and　are　more　especially　the　result　of　social　questions；　and　the　separatist　tendencies　which　were　manifested　at　the　time　of　the　Revolution；　and　began　to　again　display　themselves　towards　the　close　of　the　Franco…German　war；　it　will　be　seen　that　the　different　races　represented　in　France　are　still　far　from　being　completely　blended。　　The　vigorous　centralisation　of　the　Revolution　and　the　creation　of　artificial　departments　destined　to　bring　about　the　fusion　of　the　ancient　provinces　was　certainly　its　most　useful　work。　　Were　it　possible　to　bring　about　the　decentralisation　which　is　to…day　preoccupying　minds　lacking　in　foresight；　the　achievement　would　promptly　have　for　consequence　the　most　sanguinary　disorders。　　To　overlook　this　fact　is　to　leave　out　of　account　the　entire　history　of　France。



The　conclusion　to　be　drawn　from　what　precedes　is；　that　it　is　not　in　institutions　that　the　means　is　to　be　sought　of　profoundly　influencing　the　genius　of　the　masses。　　When　we　see　certain　countries；　such　as　the　United　States；　reach　a　high　degree　of　prosperity　under　democratic　institutions；　while　others；　such　as　the　Spanish…American　Republics；　are　found　existing　in　a　pitiable　state　of　anarchy　under　absolutely　similar　institutions；　we　should　admit　that　these　institutions　are　as　foreign　to　the　greatness　of　the　one　as　to　the　decadence　of　the　others。　　Peoples　are　governed　by　their　character；　and　all　institutions　which　are　not　intimately　modelled　on　that　character　merely　represent　a　borrowed　garment；　a　transitory　disguise。　　No　doubt　sanguinary　wars　and　violent　revolutions　have　been　undertaken；　and　will　continue　to　be　undertaken；　to　impose　institutions　to　which　is　attributed；　as　to　the　relics　of　saints；　the　supernatural　power　of　creating　welfare。　It　may　be　said；　then；　in　one　sense；　that　institutions　react　on　the　mind　of　the　crowd　inasmuch　as　they　engender　such　upheavals。　But　in　reality　it　is　not　the　institutions　that　react　in　this　manner；　since　we　know　that；　whether　triumphant　or　vanquished；　they　possess　in　themselves　no　virtue。　　It　is　illusions　and　words　that　have　influenced　the　mind　of　the　crowd；　and　especially　words　words　which　are　as　powerful　as　they　are　chimerical；　and　whose　astonishing　sway　we　shall　shortly　demonstrate。


5。　INSTRUCTION　AND　EDUCATION


Foremost　among　the　dominant　ideas　of　the　present　epoch　is　to　be　found　the　notion　that　instruction　is　capable　of　considerably　changing　men；　and　has　for　its　unfailing　consequence　to　improve　them　and　even　to　make　them　equal。　　By　the　mere　fact　of　its　being　constantly　repeated；　this　assertion　has　ended　by　becoming　one　of　the　most　steadfast　democratic　dogmas。　　It　would　be　as　difficult　now　to　attack　it　as　it　would　have　been　formerly　to　have　attacked　the　dogmas　of　the　Church。

On　this　point；　however；　as　on　many　others；　democratic　ideas　are　in　profound　disagreement　with　the　results　of　psychology　and　experience。　　Many　eminent　philosophers；　among　them　Herbert　Spencer；　have　had　no　difficulty　in　showing　that　instruction　neither　renders　a　man　more　moral　nor　happier；　that　it　changes　neither　his　instincts　nor　his　hereditary　passions；　and　that　at　timesfor　this　to　happen　it　need　only　be　badly　directedit　is　much　more　pernicious　than　useful。　　Statisticians　have　brought　confirmation　of　these　views　by　telling　us　that　criminality　increases　with　the　generalisation　of　instruction；　or　at　any　rate　of　a　certain　kind　of　instruction；　and　that　the　worst　enemies　of　society；　the　anarchists；　are　recruited　among　the　prize…winners　of　schools；　while　in　a　recent　work　a　distinguished　magistrate；　M。　Adolphe　Guillot；　made　the　observation　that　at　present　3；000　educated　criminals　are　met　with　for　every　1；000　illiterate　delinquents；　and　that　in　fifty　years　the　criminal　percentage　of　the　population　has　passed　from　227　to　552　for　every　100；000　inhabitants；　an　increase　of　133　per　cent。　　He　has　also　noted　in　common　with　his　colleagues　that　criminality　is　particularly　on　the　increase　among　young　persons；　for　whom；　as　is　known；　gratuitous　and　obligatory　schooling　hasin　Francereplaced　apprenticeship。

It　is　not　assuredlyand　nobody　has　ever　maintained　this　proposition　that　well…directed　instruction　may　not　give　very　useful　practical　results；　if　not　in　the　sense　of　raising　the　standa