Page:Joseph Story, Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States (1st ed, 1833, vol II).djvu/76

 68 his acts and opinions, and produce a sympathy between him and his constituents. If, when he is once elected, he holds his place for life, or during good behaviour, or for a long period of years, it is obvious, that there will be little effective control exercised upon him; and he will soon learn to disregard the wishes, the interests, and even the rights of his constituents, whenever they interfere with his own selfish pursuits and objects. When appointed, he may not, indeed, consider himself, as exclusively their representative, bound by their opinions, and devoted to their peculiar local interests, although they may be wholly inconsistent with the good of the Union. He ought rather to deem himself a representative of the nation, and bound to provide for the general welfare, and to consult for the general safety. But still, in a just sense, he ought to feel his responsibility to them, and to act for them in common with the rest of the people; and to deem himself, in an emphatic manner, their defender, and their friend.

§ 587. Frequent elections are unquestionably the soundest, if not the sole policy, by which this