said that the seventeenth century saw Versailles; the eighteenth century
saw the Earth; and the nineteenth century saw Humanity. Then the very
pertinent question is asked, "Which century will see Life?" We who love
our country and our form of government fondly hope that we may be the
first to see Life, and, if this privilege falls to our lot, we must come
to see life through the medium of democracy.

=The vitalized school a democracy.=--Life seems to be an abstract
something to many people, but it must become concrete before they can
really see it as it is. Democracy is a means, therefore, of transforming
abstract life into concrete life, and so we are to come into a fuller
comprehension of life through the gateway of democracy. The vitalized
school is a laboratory of life and, at the same time, it is the most
nearly perfect exemplification of democracy. The nearer its approach to
perfection in exemplifying the spirit and workings of a democracy, the
larger service it renders society. If the outflow from the school into
society is a high quality of democracy, the general tone of society will
be improved. If society deteriorates, the school may not be wholly at
fault, but it evidently is unable to supply to society reënforcement in
such quantity and of such quality as will keep the level up to normal.

=Responsibility of the individual.=--In society each individual raises
or lowers the level of democracy according to what he is and does. The
idler fails to make any contributions to the well-being of society and
thus lowers the average of citizenship. The trifler and dawdler lower
the level of democracy by reason of their inefficiency. They may
exercise their right to vote but fail to exercise their right to act the
part of efficient citizens. If all citizens emulated their example,
democracy would become inane and devitalized. Tramps, burglars,
feeble-minded persons, and inebriates lower the level of democracy