travagant
surmise, while it would be equally reasonable to presume that for each
place occupied at least three others would be willing to fill it, so
that on this account we may make a total of twenty thousand. But there
are also the county offices. Besides the judicial positions, altogether
honorable, held by long terms of election and receiving liberal
compensation, there are in each county an average of fifteen other
officials, making in the State, in round numbers, one thousand. These,
again, may be multiplied by four: there are certainly three waiting
aspirants for each place. But ascend now to the State system, with its
several executive departments, the legislature, the charitable and penal
institutions and the appointments in the gift of the governor. Great and
small, these may reach one thousand (the Legislature alone, with its
officers and employes, accounts for over three hundred), and certainly
there are at least five persons looking toward each of the several
places.

Upon such an estimate, then, of the political activities of one State we
have such a showing as this:

Citizens politically active as to townships, 80,000
Citizens politically active as to cities and boroughs, 20,000
Citizens politically active as to counties, 4,000
Citizens politically active as to the State, 5,000
Making a total of 109,000

Some allowance should be made, no doubt, for persons whose inclinations
for position cover all the different fields--who may be said to be
watching several holes. But we have not considered how many citizens of
Pennsylvania are inclined to national positions--the Presidency, seats
in Congress or some of the numerous places in the general service of the
Federal government. These two classes, it is probable, would offset each
other.

Subtracting, however, the odd thousands from the total stated, we may
fix at one hundred thousand the number of citizens in the one State who,
by reason of occupying some position of public duty or of being inclined
to fill one, are actively interested in the subject of politics. This is
almost exactly one-seventh of the whole number of voters in the State:
it presents the fact that in every group of seven citizens there is one,
presumably of more than the average in capacity and intelligence, whose
mind is quick and sensitive to every question affecting political
organization. We are brought thus to the