were sufficient to develop a similar one at home for the sake of defense. A structure for defense, however, is also available for the purpose of offense, and reasons for extending the empire never being scarce, England entered upon an era of aggressive warfare in various parts of the world. This, what Mr. Spencer calls a revival of the predatory spirit, was naturally accompanied by a return toward the militant type in the institutions generally—that is to say, "the extension of centralized administration and of compulsory regulation."
If Mr. Spencer were now to rewrite the Principles of Sociology, there can be no doubt that he would find in the United States an illustration scarcely less striking. Most of what he tells us of the changes in England is a matter of history here. That the immediate result of the late war of rebellion was a tendency of the military officialism to take the place of civil officialism no one will deny; and though it may, perhaps, not be said that we have military heads of all the various departments, still, the disposition to fill all administrative offices with military chieftains, so strong immediately after the war, was in the same line—the result being "a style of administration which asserts authority more and regards individual claims less." At the same time, the revival of the predatory spirit in regard to external affairs has been clearly discernible here too; for although the sin of aggressive warfare on weaker or barbarous nations can not be laid at the door of our Government, the constant cry for coast defenses and for the strengthening and increasing of army and navy are clear indications of the same spirit. But what chiefly must strike us as familiar facts are these: The spirit of sanitary dictation and the usurpation of exclusive privileges by certain professions (prominent among them the medical); poor-law, and we may add tramp-law, administration in various parts of the Union; the demand for municipal distribution of water, gas, and coal, as well as for governmental ownership of railroads and telegraphs; the ever-increasing influence of "a coercive philanthropy" invoking state power to improve people's conduct, etc.; in short, the strong impetus imparted to the socialistic tendency of modern times is nothing but that same military spirit clamoring for the right of the state, or the commonwealth if you please, to regulate the private affairs of the citizen in every department of life.
That this tendency is a real one, with roots deep down in the economic conditions of the masses, it would be useless to deny. Whether it as such is a healthful one, to be hailed with delight and encouraged, is another question—a question that does not come within the scope of this article; but as far as it is animated with the spirit of militarism it may well cause us alarm and misgivings. What shall we say, for example, of the movement, now
