at the object of constitutions is not to confirm the
predominance of any interest, but to prevent it; to preserve with equal
care the independence of labour and the security of property; to make
the rich safe against envy, and the poor against oppression, marks the
highest level attained by the statesmanship of Greece. It hardly
survived the great patriot who conceived it; and all history has been
occupied with the endeavour to upset the balance of power by giving the
advantage to money, land, or numbers. A generation followed that has
never been equalled in talent--a generation of men whose works, in
poetry and eloquence, are still the envy of the world, and in history,
philosophy, and politics remain unsurpassed. But it produced no
successor to Pericles, and no man was able to wield the sceptre that
fell from his hand.

It was a momentous step in the progress of nations when the principle
that every interest should have the right and the means of asserting
itself was adopted by the Athenian Constitution. But for those who were
beaten in the vote there was no redress. The law did not check the
triumph of majorities or rescue the minority from the dire penalty of
having been outnumbered. When the overwhelming influence of Pericles was
removed, the conflict between classes raged without restraint, and the
slaughter that befell the higher ranks in the Peloponnesian war gave an
irresistible preponderance to the lower. The restless and inquiring
spirit of the Athenians was prompt to unfold the reason of every
institution and the consequences of every principle, and their
Constitution ran its course from infancy to decrepitude with unexampled
speed.

Two men's lives span the interval from the first admission of popular
influence, under Solon, to the downfall of the State. Their history
furnishes the classic example of the peril of Democracy under conditions
singularly favourable. For the Athenians were not only brave and
patriotic and capable of generous sacrifice, but they were the most
religious of the Greeks. They venerated the Constitution which had given
them prosperity, and equality, and freedom, and never questioned the
fundamental laws which regulated the enormous power of the Assembly.
They tolerated considerable variety of opinion and great licence of
speech; and their humanity towards their slaves roused the indignation
even of the most intelligent partisan of aristocracy. Thus they became
the only people of ant