第38部分(第6/7 頁)

eye。　Evenin　outward　demeanour；　they　showed　a　stamp　of　majesty　that　made　thewarrior's　haughty　stride　look　vulgar；　if　not　absurd。　It　was　an　agewhen　what　we　call　talent　had　far　less　consideration　than　now；　butthe　massive　materials　which　produce　stability　and　dignity　of　charactera　great　deal　more。　The　people　possessed；　by　hereditary　right；　thequality　of　reverence；　which；　in　their　descendants；　if　it　survive　atall；　exists　in　smaller　proportion；　and　with　a　vastly　diminished　force；in　the　selection　and　estimate　of　public　men。　The　change　may　be　forgood　or　ill；　and　is　partly；　perhaps；　for　both。　In　that　old　day；　theEnglish　settler　on　these　rude　shores…　having　left　king；　nobles；　andall　degrees　of　awful　rank　behind；　while　still　the　faculty　andnecessity　of　reverence　were　strong　in　him…　bestowed　it　on　the　whitehair　and　venerable　brow　of　age；　on　long…tried　integrity；　on　solidwisdom　and　sad…coloured　experience；　on　endowments　of　that　grave　andweighty　order　which　gives　the　idea　of　permanence；　and　es　underthe　general　definition　of　respectability。　These　primitive　statesmen；therefore…　Bradstreet；　Endicott；　Dudley；　Bellingham；　and　theirpeers…　who　were　elevated　to　power　by　the　early　choice　of　thepeople；　seem　to　have　been　not　often　brilliant；　but　distinguished　bya　ponderous　sobriety；　rather　than　activity　of　intellect。　They　hadfortitude　and　self…reliance；　and；　in　time　of　difficulty　or　peril；stood　up　for　the　welfare　of　the　state　like　a　line　of　cliffs　againsta　tempestuous　tide。　The　traits　of　character　here　indicated　were　wellrepresented　in　the　square　cast　of　countenance　and　large　physicaldevelopment　of　the　new　colonial　magistrates。　So　far　as　a　demeanourof　natural　authority　was　concerned；　the　mother　country　need　not　havebeen　ashamed　to　see　these　foremost　men　of　an　actual　democracyadopted　into　the　Ho