Box 19, Folder 11, Document 13

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Box 19, Folder 11, Document 13

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POE, on the "AMERICAN RE?JBLIC".

They started with the queerest idears conceivable; viz:
that all men are born free and equal - this in the very
teeth of GRADATION'S laws, so visably impressed upon all
things, both in the moral and physical univerae. Every
man voted, as they called it, until at length 1t was dis-
covered that what is everybody's business ie nobody's,
and that the ‘'Repubie’ ( so the absurd thing was called )
was without a sovernment at all.

It is relate@, however, that the first circumstance
which disturbed the self-complascency of the philosophers
who constructed this "Republic"was the startling discovery
that universay ‘sufferage’ gave oppertunity for fraudulent
schemes, by which any desired number of votea might at any
time be poled, withcut the slightest chance of prevention
or even detection, by any party which should be merely vil-
lianous enough not to be afraid of the fraud.

A little reflection on this discovery suffered to
render evident the consequences, which were, that rascality
must predominate - in a word - that Republican Government
could never become anything cther than a Ras ONE »

While the philosophers, however, were ged in blushe
ing at their own stupidity in not having foreseen these in-
evitabie evils and intent upon new theories, the matter was put
to an abrupt issue by a fellow bg the name of MOB, who took
every thing in his own hands and set up a despotiam in come
varison with which those of the fabulous ZEROS and HELIOFAGABA=
LISES wawsboth reapectable and delectable. This HOB, by the by,
a foreigner, is said the be the most odius of all men who ever
encumbered the earth. He was a giant in snsolent, rapatious, |
vhilthys; had the gall of a bulleck. the, bee of an hyena and (4e°¢"7
the brains of a peacock, He died at last by dint of this own
eWergics, which exhausted hin.

Fit "More remarkable still is that Poe
was practically the only American
writer of his age who foresaw some
of the inevitable weaknesses inherent
in the demosratic theory and boldly commented

pect) repemtthbanm., "In MELLONTA TAUTA’ - a con-

versation supposed to take place in A. D.
23848, Poe makes the above observation on
democrasy in the United States".

Harvey Allen, srthur,

PS. Are you willing to hazzard a dime that, with conditions
as is in thie Nation of ours.today where Mob is a feater-
ing sore at ever by pass and voting ‘en mass’ 4s an
4nnovation, glaring, and the ‘tail’ just about begins
to wag the dog, 1000 years will elapse ere Poe's prog-
nostication is a reality 7

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