Old Virginia and her neighbours

42 OLD VIRGINIA AND HER NEIGHBOURS.2. That in New England the local magistrateswere almost always, with the exception of justices,chosen by the people ; while in Virginia, thoughsome of them were nominally appointed by thegovernor, yet in practice they generally contrivedtoappoint themselves, — in other words, the localboards practically filled their own vacancies andwere self-perpetuating.These differences are striking and profound.There can be no doubt that, as Thomas Jeffersonclearly saw, in the long run the interests of politicalliberty are much safer under the New EnglandJefferson'ssystcm than under the Virginia system,to^ship^ Jefferson said ": Those wards, calledgovernment,towuships in Ncw England, are the vitalprinciple of their governments, and have provedthemselves the wisest invention ever devised bythe wit of man for the perfect exercise of self-government,and for its preservation.^ . . . As Cato,then, concludedevery speech with the words Carthagodelenda est, so do I every opinion with theinjunction :We must, however, avoid the mistake of making'Divide the counties into wards ! '" ^too much of this contrast. As already hinted, inthose ruralsocieties where people generally knewone another, its effects were not so far-reaching asthey would be in the more complicated society ofto-day. Even though Virginia had not the towniiComt- meeting, "it had its familiar court-day,"^^^"which " was a holiday for all the countryside,especially in the fall and spring. From all^ Jefferson's Works, vii. 13.2 Id. vi. 544.