Chapter VI: Part I: The Agrarian Defeat--1783-1787

I. Agrarianism and Capitalism

I. Background of Ideas--English and French contributions. The
struggle between political realists and humanitarian liberals.
Influence of English middle class. Puritan ethics of work and
capitalism. Attitude towards current liberalisms--the state.
Influence of Harrington, Locke, Adam Smith. The new individualism.
Rousseau and French humanitarianism--decentralization and the
paternalistic state. Reasons why English influence prevailed 267

II. The Political Situation: Party alignments. Weakness of
agrarians. The composite group of Federalists. Odium attaching
to democracy--confused with Populism. Shays’s Rebellion.
Reaction from natural rights to economic realism. The return to
seventeenth-century republicanism 273

II. The Great Debate--Inadequate theory of republicanism. Earlier
English liberalism undemocratic. Democratic theory undeveloped.
First debate: republicanism and the majority rule--Madison’s view;
the Whig doctrine of property rule. Second debate: opposition
to checks on majority will. _The Federalist_--its repute, the
augmented state, theory of faction, economic basis of government.
_Letters_ of R. H. Lee--analysis of economic conditions, the
Constitution undemocratic. Emergence of parties 279

III. Political Thinkers--The English Group

I. Alexander Hamilton--The Leviathan State: Representative of
conservative interests. A master of finance, administrator rather
than thinker. Inadequate intellectual equipment. A political
realist: men are swayed by self-interest; the rule of the strong.
Undemocratic. The doctrine of _vox justiciae_. His plan of
government--the fallacy of his argument. As a statesman: necessity
of allying the wealthy with government: position on funding,
taxation, the tariff, the industrial revolution. Statesman of the
rising capitalism 292

II. John Adams--Realist: Compared with Dr. Johnson--apostle of
common sense. Shift from earlier position. Intellectual qualities.
His early constitutionalism--a federated British empire. _A
Defense of the Constitution of Government_, and _Discourses on
Davila_. Opposition aroused by latter. His political philosophy:
theory of human nature, doctrine of rivalry, the class struggle,
natural aristocracy. Foolishness of French doctrines of equality
and fraternity. Faction the weakness of democracy--the end anarchy
or absolutism. The fact of property rule. Hence need for system
of checks and balances. Sources of his philosophy--Harrington.
Hostility to Hamilton. A notable political thinker 307