Page:John Adams - A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America Vol. I. (1787).djvu/180

142 or principality, aritocracy, and democracy; and that thoe who intend to erect a new tate, mut have recoure to ome one of thee which he likes bet. Others, and with more judgment, as many think, ay there are ix orts; three of which are very bad, and the other three good in themelves, but liable to be o corrupted that they may become the wort. The three good forts have been jut now mentioned: the other three proceed from thee; and every one of them bears uch a reemblance to that on which it repectively depends, that the tranition from one to the other is hort and eay; for monarchy often degenerates into tyranny, aritocracy into oligarchy, and democracy into licentious anarchy and confuion: o that whoever ets up any one of the former three orts of government, may aure himelf it will not be of any long duration; for no precaution will be ufficient to prevent its falling into the other that is analogous to it, on account of the affinity which there eems to be in this cae betwixt virtue and vice, perfection and imperfection.

This variety of governments among mankind appears to have been the effect of chance: for in the beginning of the world, the inhabitants being few, they ometimes lived eparate from each other, like beats; but afterwards, as they multiplied, they began to unite for their mutual defence, and put themelves under the protection of uch as were mot eminent amongt them for courage and trength, whom they engaged to obey and acknowledge as their chiefs. Hence aroe the ditinction betwixt honet and dihonet, jut and unjut for when any one injured his benefactor, his ingratitude excited a ort of fellow-feeling and indignation in others, as well as kindnes and repect for thoe that behaved differently, and, as they conidered that they might ome time or other, perhaps, be treated