A^oiiiiiiatioiis in Coliniial Nczv J ^ork 2 7 i

the effort of the masses to pull down authority from the top and place it on the ground — an instrument by which they try to get vital control of the business of governing. One thing which aided them in this effort — which was in truth partially the result of it, but which in turn reacted upon it and powerfully confirmed it — was the establishment of newspapers, the extension of printing generally, and the consequent struggle for freedom of speech and the press.' In the face o this growing democratic spirit, the very essence of whi.,h is individual nitiative, the great families found their influence growing weaker, found it less possible to hold a following by mere force of personality. As men came more and more to have opin- ions of their own and to express them through the newspapers and broadsides, or at least imbibed such opinion as others were thus ex- pressing, the leaders found it increasingly necessary to win over their " Interests " to every measure and every ticket, by force of reason, or what passed for reason, rather than by force of person- ality. This is simply saying that when men learn that they may have opinions on political questions with reasons for them, some broadly generalized theory of political right, or governmental policy, or social change, instead of some powerful personality, will claim their allegiance. This was happening in New York durmg the middle and last half of the eighteenth century, and the change was followed there as everywhere by the disintegration of old follow- ings, the increase of factions, general political heterodoxy. The old leaders therefore found themselves increasingly under the ne- cessity of extending their influence and harmonizing thought and action, not merely over the field of a narrow oligarchic aristocracy, each member of which was sure of his own following, but over the whole field of those who were politically interested. Marriage al- liances, which had been the means for effecting the informal personal organization of the aristocratic period, were no longer efficient or practicable ; one could not marry the whole world, and, besides, marriage was a personal bond only ; marrying into a man's family did not mean marrying into his principles, much less the principles of all of the members of that family. The thing that had to be done therefore was this : this growing anarchy of opinion, of individual initiation, had to be harmonized, organized, centralized in a formal and public manner on the basis of principle, instead of, as formerly, > Printing was first introduced into New York in 1693 by William Bradford. He also established the first newspaper in New York, the A^tiv York Gazette, which dales from the fal of 1725. Of more importance in this connection was the establishment of Zenger's New York Journal, in 1733, as the avowed organ of the popular party. Popu- lar sentiments were freely expressed in this somewhat rabid sheet, and in numerous broadsides which Zenger made a business of printing and circulating.