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Show 12 slavery idea an American fact. So even now all these three operations must needs go on. Much elementary work still requires to be done, producing the Sentiment and the Idea, before the nation is ready for the Act. Now look at the special forces which are engaged in this enterprise. I divide them into two great Parties. The first party consists of the Political Reformers,- men who wish to act by political machinery, and are in government offices, legislative, judicial, and executive. The second party is the Non-political Reformers, who are not, and do not wish to be, in government offices, legislative, judicial, or executive. Look a moment at the General Functions of each party, and then at the Particular Parties themselves,- at the Business, and then at the Business-men. The Business of the political man, legislative, judicial, and executive, is confined to the third part of the antislavery work; namely, to Organizing the idea, and making the antislavery thought a thing. The Political Reformer, as such, is not expected to kindle the Sentiment or create the Idea, only to take what he finds ready, and put it into form. The political Legislative is to make laws and institutions which organize the idea. The political Judiciary is to expound the laws, and is limited thereby. The political Executive is to administer the institution, and is limited to that: he cannot go beyond it. So the Judiciary and the Executive are limited by the laws and institutions. The Legislature is chosen by the people to represent the people ; that is, it is chosen to represent and to organize the ideas, and to express the sentiments, of the people, not to organize sentiments which are in advance of the people or which are behind the people. The political legislator is restricted by the ideas of the people : if he wants what they do not 13 want, then they do not want him. If Senator Wilson had a million of men and women in Massachusetts who entertained the sentiments and ideas of Mr. Garrison, why, he would represent the sentiments and ideas of Mr. Garris~ n, would express them in Congress, and would go to work to organize those ideas. In hoisting the anchor of a ship, two sets of men are at work, two machines. One, I think, is called the windlass. Many powerful men put their levers to that, and hoist the anchor up out from the deep. Behind them is the capstan, whose business it is to haul in the rope. Now, the function of the non-political reformer is to hoist the anchor up from the bottom : he is the windlass. But the business of Chase, Hale, Sumner, and Wilson, and other political reformers, is to haul in the slack, and see that what the windlass has raised up is held on to, and that the anchor does not drop back again to the bottom. The men at the windlass need not call out to the men at the capstan, " I-Iaul in more slack!" when there is no more to haul in. This is the misfortune of the position of the n1en at the capstan,- they cannot turn any faster than the windlass gives them slack rope to wind up. That ought to be remembered. Every political man, before he takes his post, ought to understand that; and the non-political men, when they criticize him never so sharply, ought to remember that the men at the capstan cannot turn any faster than the men at the windlass. If the politician is to keep in office, he must accommodate himself to the ideas of the people; for the people are sovereign, and reign, while the politicians only govern with delegated power, but do not reign : they are agents, trustees, holding by a special power of attorney, which authorizes them to do certain things, for doing which they are responsible to the people. In order to carry his point, the politician must have a majority on his side: he cannot wait |