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 Outline Contents

List of Abbreviations xiii

List of Figures, Tables, and Boxes xv
How to use this book xvii
How to use the Online Resources xviii

1 Introduction 1

Part I Defining Democracy and Dictatorship 11

2 Defining Democracy 15

3 Defining Autocracy 36

4 Dysfunctional Democracies and Hybrid Systems 52

5 The Consequences of Democracy and Authoritarian Regimes 70

Part II Political Dynamics of Autocracies 97

6 The Durability of Autocracy 101

7 Authoritarian Instability and Breakdown 122

8 Autocratic Transitions 142

Part III Drivers of Democracy 163

9 Cultural, Social, and Historical Drivers of Democracy 167

10 Economic Drivers of Democracy 188

11 Institutional Drivers of Democracy 210

12 International Drivers of Democracy 229

Part IV Contemporary Challenges to Democracy 253

13 The Rise of Populism and Its Impact on Democracy 255

14 Changing Patterns of Democratic Backsliding and Breakdown 273

15 Conclusion: The Future of Democracy 291

Glossary 303
References 313
Subject Index 353
Author Index 357
 Detailed Contents

List of Abbreviations xiii

List of Figures, Tables, and Boxes xv
How to use this book xvii
How to use the Online Resources xviii

1 Introduction 1
Threats to democracy 2
The bright spots 6
Overview of the book 7
Key definitions and caveats 9

Part I Defining Democracy and Dictatorship 11

2 Defining Democracy 15
Why define democracy 16
Conceptualizing democracy 17
Models of democracy 29
Conclusion 34
Key Questions 35
Further Reading 35

3 Defining Autocracy 36
Totalitarian regimes 37
Contemporary approaches to disaggregating autocracy 40
Blended regimes and changes over time 48
Conclusion 49
Key Questions 50
Further Reading 50

4 Dysfunctional Democracies and Hybrid Systems 52

Mapping the terrain 53
Defective democracies 55
Diminished dictatorship 57
The spread of hybrid regimes 62
Conclusion 67
Key Questions 68
Further Reading 69

5 The Consequences of Democracy and Authoritarian Regimes 70

Key themes 72
Regime type and conflict 74
x DE TAILED CONTENTS

Regime type and terrorism 78

Regime type and economic performance 81
Regime type and quality of life 86
Regime type and corruption 89
Regime type and repression 92
Conclusion 94
Key Questions 94
Further Reading 95

Part II Political Dynamics of Autocracies 97

6 The Durability of Autocracy 101

Authoritarian constituents and their role in stability 102
Authoritarian survival strategies 107
Other sources of authoritarian durability 114
Conclusion 120
Key Questions 121
Further Reading 121

7 Authoritarian Instability and Breakdown 122

What factors increase the risk of autocratic breakdown? 124
Elite divisions and defections 124
Youth bulge 129
Electoral fraud 132
Natural disasters 134
External factors 135
Conclusion 140
Key Questions 141
Further Reading 141

8 Autocratic Transitions 142

Pathways of authoritarian regime transitions 143
Top-down paths to regime breakdown 143
Bottom-up paths to regime breakdown 149
Trajectories of authoritarian regime change 155
Pathways of authoritarian leader transitions 156
Conclusion 159
Key Questions 160
Further Reading 160

Part III Drivers of Democracy 163

9 Cultural, Social, and Historical Drivers of Democracy 167

Cultural drivers of democracy 168
Social and historical drivers of democracy 177
Conclusion 185
 DE TAILED CONTENTS xi

Key Questions 186

Further Reading 187

10 Economic Drivers of Democracy 188

Economic development 189
Role of a middle class 193
Role of organized labour 195
Changes in beliefs and values 198
Economic inequality 199
Economic growth 203
Clientelism 204
Conclusion 207
Key Questions 208
Further Reading 209

11 Institutional Drivers of Democracy 210

Political parties 212
Electoral systems 217
System of government 220
Federal versus unitary states 222
Consociationalism 223
Political institutions and democratization: A double-edged sword 226
Conclusion 227
Key Questions 228
Further Reading 228

12 International Drivers of Democracy 229

Geopolitics and the international order 231
Diffusion, diffusion-proofing, and autocracy promotion 232
External imposition 240
Linkage and leverage 243
Foreign aid 245
International organizations 249
Conclusion 251
Key Questions 252
Further Reading 252

Part IV Contemporary Challenges to Democracy 253

13 The Rise of Populism and Its Impact on Democracy 255

What is populism? 256
Populist ideology 257
Populist leaders 261
Populist supporters 263
Populism and democracy 265
The drivers of populism 267
xii DE TAILED CONTENTS

Conclusion 271
Key Questions 271
Further Reading 272

14 Changing Patterns of Democratic Backsliding and Breakdown 273

Democratic backsliding and breakdown 274
The rise of authoritarianization 275
Signposts of the slow dismantling of democracy 277
Case studies on authoritarianization 281
Russia 282
Turkey 285
Implications of authoritarianization 288
Conclusion 289
Key Questions 290
Further Reading 290

15 Conclusion: The Future of Democracy 291

The future of democracy 292
Implications of an authoritarian resurgence for the global order 297
Key themes of the book 300

Glossary 303
References 313
Subject Index 353
Author Index 357
 List of Abbreviations
AD Acción Democrática (Venezuela)
AI Artificial intelligence
AKP Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi (Turkey)
ASEAN Association of Southeast Asian Nations
AU African Union
Brexit British exit (from the EU)
CCP Chinese Communist Party
CIS Commonwealth of Independent States
COPEI Comité de Organización Política Electoral Independiente (Venezuela)
DPP Democratic Progressive Party (Taiwan)
EPRDF Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front
EU European Union
FSB Federal Security Service (Russia)
FSLN Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (Nicaragua)
GDP Gross domestic product
ICT Information communication technology
ILO International Labour Organization
IMF International Monetary Fund
IPA-CIS Inter-parliamentary Assembly of the Commonwealth of Independent States
KANU Kenya African National Union
KMT Koumintang of China (Taiwan)
LDP Liberal Democratic Party (Japan)
MB Muslim Brotherhood
NCA National Constituent Assembly (Tunisia)
NGO Non-governmental Organization
NPC National People’s Congress (China)
OAS Organization of American States
OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
OSCE Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
PAN Partido Acción Nacional (Mexico)
PAP People’s Action Party (Singapore)
PARM Partido Auténtico de la Revolución Mexicana
PCC Partido Comunista de Cuba (Cuba)
PDP People’s Democratic Party (Nigeria)
xiv LIS T OF ABBRE VIATIONS

PFCRN Partido del Frente Cardenista de Reconstrucción Nacional (Mexico)

PML-N Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz
PoR Party of Regions (Ukraine)
PPP Pakistan People’s Party
PR Proportional representation
PRD Partido de la Revolución Democrática (Mexico)
PRI Partido Revolucionario Institucional (Mexico)
ROC Republic of China (Taiwan)
SCO Shanghai Cooperation Organization
UAE United Arab Emirates
UCDP Uppsala Conflict Data Program
UMNO United Malays National Organisation (Malaysia)
UN United Nations
UNHCR UN High Commissioner for Refugees
UR United Russia
USAID United States Agency for International Development
USSR Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
ZANU-PF Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front
 List of Figures, Tables, and Boxes
Figure 4.1: Classifying regimes 54
Figure 7.1: Autocracies with highest percentage of population under 18 129
Figure 7.2: Autocracies with the highest youth unemployment in the
world (15–24) 131
Figure 7.3: Examples of cases of electoral fraud that have led to authoritarian
breakdown 133
Figure 10.1: Per capita income levels (PPP) and political system type, as of 2017 190
Figure 10.2: Middle class in the world 194
Figure 10.3: Most democratic countries in the world, GINI index and per
capita incomes (nominal) 202
Figure 10.4: Economic inequality and political system type 202
Table 8.1: Regime trajectories following selected forms of authoritarian
leader transitions: 1946–2012 157
Table 9.1: Women in national parliaments 175
Table 9.2: 25 best countries for women in national parliaments 176
Table 9.3: 25 worst countries for women in national parliaments 176
Table 14.1: How democracies fail 275
Box 2.1: Dahl’s polyarchies 018
Box 2.2: Liberalism and its relationship to democracy 021
Box 2.3: Authoritarian regimes seek to mimic democratic attributes 028
Box 3.1: Personality cults 039
Box 3.2: Indicators of personalist dictatorship 043
Box 4.1: Pseudo-opposition 059
Box 4.2: Hybrid systems in Singapore and Malaysia 061
Box 5.1: Shining light on kleptocracy 090
Box 6.1: The security services and authoritarian durability 103
Box 6.2: Authoritarian tactics 105
Box 7.1: Autocratic breakdown in Mexico: The fall of the PRI 128
Box 8.1: Coup proofing 146
Box 8.2: Pacted transitions 149
xvi LIS T OF FIGURES, TABLES, AND BOXES

Box 8.3: Case study: Burkina Faso 151

Box 8.4: State failure 153
Box 8.5: Risk factors for civil war 154
Box 8.6: Death of a dictator in office 158
Box 9.1: Religious organizations and democratization 170
Box 9.2: Women and democracy 174
Box 9.3: Civic versus exclusionary nationalism 179
Box 10.1: Case studies: South Korea and Taiwan 196
Box 10.2: Case study: Clientelism and corruption in Nigeria 205
Box 11.1: ‘Great man’ theory and democracy 212
Box 11.2: Realignment versus de-alignment 216
Box 11.3: Federalism in Iraq 223
Box 11.4: Constitutional design: The case of Tunisia 225
Box 12.1: The rise of election monitoring and authoritarian efforts to mimic it 235
Box 12.2: Changing international norms and the spread of autocracy 238
Box 12.3: The sequencing debate 248
Box 13.1: Populism as a ‘thin ideology’ 257
Box 13.2: Populism in Latin America 259
Box 13.3: Who are the right-wing populist parties in Europe? 260
Box 14.1: Term limit extensions 280
Box 15.1: Does social media facilitate or undermine democracy? 296
 How to use this book

Democracies and Authoritarian Regimes is the only introduction to cover the full
spectrum of political systems, from democracy to dictatorship and the growing
­number of systems that fall between, equipping readers to think critically about
democracy’s future trajectory.

This book features a number of engaging learning features to help you navigate the
text and contextualize and reinforce your understanding:

THE DUR ABILIT y OF AUTOCR AC y 105

Boxes
Box 6.2: Authoritarian tactics

The absence of a viable alternative to the incumbent regime is a key source of authoritarian In-chapter boxes feature a diverse range of case studies,
durability. If elites and citizens cannot envision a future under different leadership, they have little
choice but to acquiesce to the current regime. Autocrats frequently use the following tactics to
pre-emptively weaken challengers from the elite, opposition, and public to prevent the emer-
helping you to apply key concepts in the context of
gence of an alternative and maintain their control:
contemporary cases, including hybrid regimes such as
Divide and rule
252 DEMOCR ACIES AND AUTHORITARIAN REGIMES
Authoritarian regimes seek to use fissures within society—including inter-ethnic or geographic
Malaysia, the impact of corruption in Nigeria, and the
divisions—to create opposing factions they play off one another. Such ‘divide and rule’ strate-
gies make it difficult for opponents to coordinate, which prevents the emergence of a unified or personalization of power in the Chinese Communist
in the West
cohesive are altering
challenge the international
to the regime. Many leaders, suchscene. In today’s
as Libya’ s Muammar geopolitical
Qaddafi andenvironment,
Kenya’s the
toolsKenyatta
Jomo and mechanisms
and Daniel Arapthat
Moilong favoured
pitted democracy
tribal groups against oneare nowtofunctioning
another Party. They also highlight key terms to ensure relevant
maintain theirin reverse:
diffusion
power (Black,is2000;
working in ways
Fox, 1996). that reinforce
In addition autocracy,
to exacerbating China
existing and
fissures, Putin’s model
authoritarian lead- of autoc-
ers alsoare
racy seekinspiring
to manufacture them. Asnew
emulation, we discuss
norms later
arein creating
this chapter, autocrats enable
conditions moresomeconducive toterminology and research is translated in a clear,
opposition groups to participate in elections while banning others from participation. Because
authoritarianism, and autocracies are establishing linkages that dilute Western leverage.
members of the opposition cannot be certain who receives support from the regime, this divide
andAsrulewe discussed
strategy createsin this chapter,
suspicion authoritarians
and distrust have adapted
among the opposition to changes
and prevents
engaging format.
in their external
their forma-
environment.
tion Democracies, therefore, cannot afford to be complacent. To remain dominant,
of a unified front.
they must engage in the same process of learning and adaptation as their autocratic peers.
Elite rotation AuthoritAriAn ins tAbilit y And bre Akdown 141
Authoritarian leaders may also regularly shuffle high-level government officials to ensure that
no one individual is able to establish a personal following or base of support (Migdal, 1988).
Key Questions Key Questions
Key Questions
This practice also enables leaders to breed loyalty among their inner circle. By creating a system
characterized by uncertainty and vulnerability, public officials come to realize they depend on
1. are
How do autocracies collaborate? Provide andexamples from ofcurrent events.
and indebted to the leader for their selection maintenance power. This
1. Why is the difference between ‘authoritarian breakdown’ and ‘democratization’ significant?
was a favoured
tactic of Zaire’s Mobutu. A New york Times correspondent wrote in 1988, ‘Every six months or so,
Each chapter features a set of carefully devised questions
2. Levitsky and Way argued that Western efforts to establish linkages with other countries could
2.Mr.How
Mobutudoesshuffles
economic crisis affect
the Cabinet, an authoritarian
with some regime’s
ministers moving risk of
up, others putbreakdown?
on the street and a
encourage and sustain democracy. Why do such linkages work? What is the potential for this
few put in jail on graft or nepotism charges . . . the shuffling makes it hard for anyone to become to help you assess your comprehension of core concepts
dynamic
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consider
rotation, in developing
which simultaneously your response?
fuels the hopes of those Zairians anxiously waiting just outside
democracies to support human rights and democracy?
the portals of power’ (2004, p. 168).
4. What were the most significant causes of the Arab Spring? Which other regimes or regions
4. How might Russia and China undermine democracy? Even if they do not intend to export
are most based
Promoting vulnerableloyalty,
to a wave of protests? Why?
their models on weeding
of authoritarianism, out
whatcompetence
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5.Authoritarian leaders
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may sideline their most capable advisors to prevent
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(2011) underscore in ‘while
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for to indi-
Further Reading
threatening to the regime. In the personalist dictatorship under Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican

Diamond, L. 2008. The Spirit of Democracy: The Struggle to Build Free Societies throughout the Reading lists support you to broaden your understanding
Further ReadingSteven Greenhouse, New York Times, 24 May 1988.
World. Macmillan. 3

The Sprit of Democracy explains why democracy advances and how this process takes place. The of key academic literature and pursue areas of further
book argues
Huntington, that
S.P., many
2006. authoritarian
Political Order inregimes like Iran
Changing or China
Societies. Yalecould democratize
University Press. eventually but
the book
Political also central
Order’s highlights some
thesis of the
is that challenges
contrary to building
to previous democracy
works, economicin growth
the world andtoday, and
devel- research interest.
why there
opment doeshas
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may previously
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effect. Venezuela.
that
are seeing
Knack, their ‘Does
S., 2004. institutions decaying
Foreign may face
Aid Promote growing instability
Democracy?’ during
International periods
Studies of change
Quarterly, 48(1),
and
pp.reform.
251–66.
As the article
Magaloni, indicates,
B., 2006. theAutocracy:
Voting for question of whether or
Hegemonic notSurvival
Party foreign aid
andpromotes
Its Demisedemocracy
in Mexico. is
explored. University
Cambridge The articlePress.
argues that there is no evidence that foreign aid does contribute to
democracy.
Voting for Autocracy explains how the PRI regime in Mexico was able to hold elections con-
tinuously B.,
Wejnert, during
2014.its eight decades
Diffusion in power
of Democracy: Theand still
Past and maintain
Future ofitself in power.
Global The book
Democracy. also
Cambridge
explains the factors
University Press. that impacted the PRI’s eventually fall in 2000.
Diffusion G.,
O’Donnell, of Democracy
Schmitter, explores theWhitehead,
P.C., and causes of democratic
L., 1986.diffusion
Transitionsand from
argues that networks
Authoritarian
between
Rule: democratic
Southern states1).
Europe (Vol. and authoritarian
JHU Press. regimes are more important to democratization
than
This foreign
edited aid. offers interesting case studies on how authoritarian regimes in Italy,
volume
Greece, Spain, Turkey, and Portugal transitioned from authoritarian rule. The book also offers
what prospects each case had to democratize.
Tucker, J. A. (2007). ‘Enough! Electoral Fraud, Collective Action Problems, and Post-communist
Colored Revolutions’. Perspectives on Politics, 5(03), 535–51.
This article focuses on the post-communist Colour Revolutions and demonstrates how elec-
toral fraud can serve as a trigger to mobilize opponents of authoritarian regimes to action.
 How to use the Online Resources

www.oup.com/he/kendall-taylor

This text is supported by a range of online resources to encourage deeper

­engagement with the most current developments in the subject matter. These
resources are free of charge and provide opportunities to consolidate understanding
and further develop skills of critical analysis.

For students
Updates to supplement the text ensuring you are fully informed of the latest developments in
the field.

For lecturers
Assignments to use in class help to reinforce key concepts and facilitate the development of
key skills of critical analysis and argumentation.
 1
Introduction

Threats to democracy 2 Overview of the book 7

The bright spots 6 Key definitions and caveats 9

Democracy is in crisis. By most accounts, this is the most trying period democracy has
faced since the 1930s when fascism spread over much of Europe. Even the most opti-
mistic observers posit that democracy will decline unless rich countries address vexing
challenges such as inequality, cultural and demographic shifts, and technological change.
Pessimists fear we have already crossed a critical threshold and that the democratic
dominance we have grown accustomed to has ended (Rose, 2018). A 2019 report by
Freedom House underscored the gravity of the crisis. The democracy watchdog docu-
mented that global political rights and civil liberties have declined for thirteen consecu-
tive years—the longest downward slide since the organization began measuring these
trends over forty years ago.
Some of the decline in political and civil liberties has occurred in the usual authori-
tarian suspects such as China and Russia. Both Chinese President Xi Jinping and
Russian President Vladimir Putin have increased repression to retain control. Their
efforts to export their authoritarian tactics and models to sympathetic leaders have
also contributed to a broader ‘authoritarian hardening’ as several autocrats have tight-
ened control. But perhaps more importantly, the observed erosion in political and civil
liberties has increasingly taken place outside of the usual suspects, including in many
long-established democracies. In the last five years there has been a remarkable decline
in respect for democratic norms and practices in Hungary, Poland, and the Philippines.
The backsliding has been so severe in Turkey—a long-time model of a successful secu-
lar democracy in the Middle East—that we can no longer call it a democracy. In short,
there is a real risk that the democratic gains that have occurred since the end of the
Cold War will be rolled back, paving the way for a widespread resurgence of autocracy
across the globe.
How did we get here? After all, for the last twenty-five years, momentum had been
squarely on democracy’s side. In 1991, there were sixty-five democracies in power
(Geddes, Wright, and Frantz, 2018). By 2014, this number climbed to ninety-four, such
that democracies governed a majority of the world’s countries. The end of the Cold War
and the triumph of democracy set in motion a number of changes to the international
2 DEMOCR ACIES AND AUTHORITARIAN REGIMES

environment that allowed democracy to spread and put authoritarian governments

on the defensive. Authoritarian regimes were caught off-guard and their numbers rap-
idly declined. With communism discredited, a broad swath of countries scrambled to
adopt—at least cosmetically—the trappings of democratic rule. Democracy, it seemed,
had secured its status as the world’s preferred form of governance.

Threats to democracy

Today, we face a different reality. Although the number of democracies in the world
remains at or near historic highs, there are a number of important trends accelerat-
ing beneath the surface that threaten to reverse democracy’s progress. In particular,
democracies are facing mounting challenges from within; autocracies are evolving and
adapting their survival strategies in ways that make them a more formidable challenge
to democracy; and international developments, including the growing assertiveness of
influential countries such as China and Russia, are creating conditions conducive to the
spread of autocracy.
These dynamics provide the backdrop, or the broader context in which this book
is situated. We will delve more deeply into many of these issues throughout this text-
book, including through discussions of the contemporary challenges facing d ­ emocracy
(Part IV) and changes in the survival strategies of today’s authoritarian regimes
(Part III). More generally, however, we intend our discussion of the challenges facing
democracy in the next section to set the stage for the chapters that follow. Each of the
following chapters will go on to provide a different lens through which to examine these
challenges. The goal of this book is to provide readers with the foundational research
and cutting-edge insights that deepen their understanding of the challenges facing
democracy and what we can do to respond.

Democracy’s internal challenges

The first of these trends—the growing threat to democracy from within—significantly
raises the risk of a global democratic retreat. Until recently, we could safely assume that
Western societies would be governed by moderate political parties and remain commit-
ted to liberal democratic values, open economies, and multilateral cooperation (Norris,
2017). We also assumed that respect for the core principles of free and fair elections,
rule of law, human rights, and civil liberties were secure in a large and growing number
of countries. And yet events such as Brexit, the election of Donald Trump, and the rise
of right-wing populist parties across Europe signal that these assumptions are no longer
valid. Instead, factors such globalization, migration, rising inequality, and stagnating
living standards for broad swaths of citizens in Western democracies have led many to
believe that the political establishment no longer works. These factors have also con-
tributed to a loss in citizens’ perceived security (Hacker, 2006; Beck, 1999; Giddens,
1990). Research suggests that when individuals feel threatened or insecure, they are
 Introduction 3

more likely to support strong, decisive leaders they perceive as able to hold back the
forces of change and protect them from what they see as dangerous outsiders that jeop-
ardize their jobs and benefits (Inglehart and Norris, 2016).
The rise in the number of citizens that are discontent with inequality, stagnating liv-
ing standards, and changing values is fuelling the political polarization so apparent in
Western democracies today. Information technologies and social media amplify these
divisions. While many authoritarian regimes are harnessing social media to tighten their
control, these same technologies are fraying the social bonds of democratic soci­eties.
The digital technologies that promise to connect people and enable a free exchange of
ideas are increasingly being used by populists and other extreme voices to amplify their
messages. These dynamics have contributed to a decline in popular support for the
political centre and fragmented politics across Europe. Such political polarization and
fragmentation is contributing to gridlock that threatens to undermine people’s support
for democratic rule. The dysfunction that polarization and fragmentation breed also
invigorate Russian and Chinese narratives that democracy does not deliver.
These trends in Western democracies are creating fertile ground for the rise of
­ opulism. Once in power, many populist parties pursue policies that slowly erode
p
democracy from within. Today’s populist leaders have learned from earlier strongmen
such as Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip
Erdoğan, who incrementally undermined democracy. Such leaders assume power
through relatively free and fair elections and subsequently leverage societal dissatisfac-
tion to gradually undercut institutional constraints on their rule, sideline opponents,
and weaken civil society. Despite coming to power in different historical and cultural
contexts, their approach is the same: they stack key political institutions with loyal-
ists and allies (particularly in the judicial and security sectors) and muzzle the media
through legislation and censorship. Their slow and piecemeal approach makes it dif-
ficult to pinpoint when the collapse of democracy actually happens (Bermeo, 2016;
Kendall-Taylor and Frantz, 2016).
The gradual erosion of democratic rules and norms at the hands of democratically-
elected incumbents, what scholars refer to as ‘authoritarianization’ (Geddes, Wright,
and Frantz, 2018), constitutes a major change in the ways that democratic governments
have traditionally collapsed. Until recently, coups have been the biggest threat to democ-
racy (Kendall-Taylor and Frantz, 2016). From 1946 to 1999, 64 per cent of democracies
collapsed via coups. In the last decade, however, authoritarianizations have been on
the rise. They now comprise 40 per cent of all democratic failures and equal coups in
frequency. If current trends persist, authoritarianizations will soon become the most
common route to autocracy.

The evolution of autocracy

The change in the way that today’s aspiring autocrats are dismantling democracy is a
poignant example of the way that authoritarianism is evolving. Instead of seizing power
overtly and via force, which risks inciting domestic and international condemnation,
4 DEMOCR ACIES AND AUTHORITARIAN REGIMES

today’s aspiring autocrats have learned that incremental power grabs are far more dif-
ficult to oppose. Because they are slow and subtle, there is no single action that generates
a massive backlash. And in those instances where opponents do sound the alarm bell
that democracy is under threat, populist leaders can easily frame them as unpatriotic
provocateurs who solely seek to stir trouble.
But it is not just the tactics that autocrats use to seize power that have evolved.
Autocracies are also adapting their survival strategies in ways that make them a more
formidable challenge to democracy. In the face of what seemed to be an inevitable
extinction in the 1990s and early 2000s, dictators changed their strategies and grew
more resilient. As an indicator of this, research shows that today’s authoritarian
regimes are more long-lasting than their predecessors. From 1946 to 1989, the typical
autocracy lasted fourteen years in power. This number has nearly doubled since the
end of the Cold War to an average of twenty years. As authoritarian regimes become
more durable and savvier, global democracy is likely to suffer (Kendall-Taylor and
Frantz, 2015).
One of the most notable changes in contemporary authoritarian regimes is the extent
to which they have learned to mimic democracy. Since the end of the Cold War, there
has been a substantial rise in the number of countries that combine democratic charac-
teristics with authoritarian tendencies. These ‘hybrid’ regimes—the broad label used to
describe countries that mix democratic and authoritarian elements—have proliferated
to such an extent that scholars contend they are now ‘the modal type of political regime
in the developing world’ (Schedler, 2006, p. 3; Brownlee, 2007). Hybrid systems adjust
their survival tactics and pursue a softer, subtler form of authoritarian rule. Whereas
autocracies of the past relied heavily on overtly repressive methods of control and were
more likely to ban political activities, censor opponents, and limit public demonstra-
tions of dissent to maintain power, today’s autocrats often embrace seemingly demo-
cratic institutions and rule of law, but manipulate these institutions to serve their own
self-interests.
Authoritarian regimes have similarly adapted to manage the threats initially
posed by social media. In the early 2000s, there was widespread optimism that
social media would serve as a great democratizing force. Such optimism was most
pronounced in the early days of the Arab Spring, as political activists harnessed
social media in their efforts to topple four long-lasting dictators in Tunisia, Egypt,
Libya, and Yemen. Over time, however, authoritarian regimes have co-opted these
technologies to deepen their grip internally, curb basic human rights, spread illib-
eral practices beyond their borders, and undermine public trust in open societies.
New advances in facial recognition and artificial intelligence will only intensify
and accelerate these practices. China, for example, is developing new methods of
political control, including mass surveillance and a data-driven ‘social credit’ sys-
tem. These dystopian approaches raise serious concerns, including their potential
to spread to other parts of the developing world. In sum, since the end of the Cold
War, dictators have evolved to withstand and even flourish amid a changing global
landscape.
 Introduction 5

International developments
In addition to changes taking place within democracies and authoritarian regimes, there
have also been changes in the international environment that are conducive to the spread
of autocracy. As Western democracies are increasingly distracted with their own domestic
challenges, authoritarian regimes—especially Russia and China—have grown more asser-
tive on the global stage. Russia and China are convinced of the threat of Western-backed
revolutions and have responded by adapting their survival tactics and exporting their
best practices for guarding against the ‘threat’ of engagement with the democratic West.
Russian and Chinese efforts to counter democracy promotion are not new. But they have
changed in scope and intensity. Since 2014, Russia in particular has gone on the offensive
with its efforts to undermine Western democracies. Because Moscow and Beijing gauge
their power in relation to the United States, they view weakening Western democracy as a
means of enhancing their own standing (Kendall-Taylor and Shullman, 2018).
Shifts in geopolitical power are increasing the potency of Russian and Chinese actions.
China’s rise and Russia’s assertiveness provide other leaders with examples of viable alter-
natives to the West and alter perceptions about what constitutes a legitimate regime. For
the past few decades, China in particular has sought to portray itself as a compelling
alternative to democracy. According to the World Bank, China’s GDP growth has aver-
aged nearly 10 per cent a year—the fastest sustained expansion by a major economy in
history—and has lifted more than 800 million people out of poverty. Many now view
China as demonstrating that the road to prosperity no longer needs to run through liberal
democracy. Even without a deliberate strategy to export his model of governance, Putin
has also offered one that others seek to emulate. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán
and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, for example, seem to admire Putin’s strong-
man tactics and have adopted elements of his repertoire to enhance their control.
Beyond demonstration effects, a shift in the balance of economic and military power
away from the democratic West is increasing the potency of the threat that countries
such as Russia and China pose to democracy. For decades, established democracies
such as the United Kingdom and the United States made up the bulk of global GDP. But
now, for the first time in over a hundred years, democracies’ share of global GDP has
fallen below half (Mounk and Foa, 2018). According to forecasts by the International
Monetary Fund (IMF), it will slump to a third within the next decade. Moreover, U.S.
President Trump is scaling back U.S. global leadership and disrupting the cohesion of
the democratic alliance system.
These geopolitical changes amplify the effects of long-standing Russian and Chinese
actions by enabling these countries to engage with a broader spectrum of states. China’s
rising power and Russia’s assertiveness allow them to increase political, economic, and
military ties with many states at once—as the United States did in the aftermath of
the Cold War—creating greater opportunities to encourage authoritarian tendencies.
But even beyond buttressing like-minded autocrats, Russia’s and China’s international
activism may also work to weaken democracies. Research shows that extensive linkages
with the West (through aid, trade, and social networks) encouraged democracy and its
6 DEMOCR ACIES AND AUTHORITARIAN REGIMES

consolidation after the Cold War (Levitsky and Way, 2005). Although neither Russia nor
China seek to export their authoritarian models, their growing ties now raise the risk of
a growing global tide of authoritarianism.
These trends highlight some of the critical challenges we face today in preserving the
democratic gains that have accrued since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Today, democra-
cies are facing internal threats that are shaking the very foundations of these systems.
Autocracies are adapting and evolving their tactics in ways that make them a more for-
midable threat to democracy. And international developments, including the growing
assertiveness of influential countries like China and Russia, are trending in ways that
are increasingly conducive to the spread of autocracy.

The bright spots

Although these developments make it easy to grow pessimistic about democracy’s

future, it is important not to lose sight of the relative bright spots.1 In Southeast Asia,
for example, Timor Leste held free and fair elections in 2017 that saw a clean transfer of
power, helping strengthen democracy in one of the world’s newest countries. Likewise,
the election of Lenín Moreno in Ecuador in 2017 moved that country away from the
brink of authoritarianism following the democratic backsliding that occurred during
Rafael Correa’s decade in power. In Africa, as well, we have seen democratic openings
in a number of places, such as Burkina Faso following the ouster of long-time leader
Blaise Compaoré in 2014 and the Gambia, where strongman Yahya Jammeh was forced
to resign in 2016 after more than two decades in power.
Just as important, we cannot lose sight of the fact that democratic decline is not inevi-
table. Western democracies have proved remarkably resilient over time. They have faced
challenges before, and they have found ways to renew themselves to surmount them. That
is the task before us. We are living in time of rapid change and change can be uncom-
fortable. We are learning that the ideologies, policies, and even the institutions that fit
Western democratic societies a generation ago are steadily becoming less applicable to the
problems they face today. History suggests that it will be the democracies—and not the
far more rigid authoritarian structures—that will be able to harness change into advance-
ment and achievement. Yes, authoritarian regimes are evolving and adapting. But it is
unlikely in the long term that these political systems will have the flexibility to change to
the extent that today’s challenges will require. Because they are flexible and more capable
of learning, democracies will always have the upper hand in the long term. Walter Russell
Mead (2018) wrote that, ‘there is resiliency and flexibility in the creative disorder of a free
society’.2 Democracies now need to develop new ideas, new paradigms, new approaches—
and the leadership to execute them—to maintain their competitive edge.
With these points and backdrop in mind, we know provide an overview of the book
and how it will unfold.
1
For more information on these cases, see ‘Freedom in the World 2018: Democracy in Crisis’, Freedom House,
2018, https://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/freedom-world-2018 (accessed 13 February 2019).
2
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2018-04-16/big-shift (accessed 29 May 2019).
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
aunt Kindly has come to town again.
Fanny. Stop a minute, Laura; I am going shopping, and I want to
know where your mother bought that lovely French cambric. I mean
to tease my mother for one just like it.
Laura. Mother did not buy it; she would not think of getting me
anything so expensive. Aunt Kindly sent it to me.
Fanny. Oh ho! a present, was it? I never thought of that. I wonder
what put it into her head.
Laura. I believe she was pleased because, when mother was
fitting out two poor boys to go to sea, I did some plain sewing for
them. Your mother helped too, Susan.
Susan. Why, that was before the vacation, and you never missed
school a single day: how could you find time then?
Laura. I used to go at it before breakfast, and at every odd
moment; sometimes I could sew quarter of an hour while I was
waiting for something or somebody, and even that helped on the
work. I think that is a great advantage we girls have over boys.
Mother says the needle darns up idle minutes, that are like holes in
our time. Good-by; you creep so like snails, I should think you would
fall asleep. (Exit.)
Susan. Well, Laura always looks so lively! but I would not lead
such a life for anything.
Fanny. I begin to think I would, Susan! she really makes me
ashamed of myself; and I should think you would be so too, when
you know your mother is always grieving at your laziness. I have
heard her tell my mother twenty times that your indolence makes
your life a burden to you, and that she is mortified when she thinks
what kind of woman you will make.
Susan. It is better to be idle than to be always talking about
people, Fanny! (Pouting.)
Fanny. You are incurable, I do believe; but I am not, and I am
going home this minute to find some work, and mind my own affairs.
 Susan. Why, I thought we were going shopping!
Fanny. But I am not in want of anything; I was only going to kill
time and pick up some news. I will try the experiment, at any rate; I
will lead Laura’s life a couple of days and see how I like it. I really
think the time will not hang so heavy on my hands, and my tongue
will not get me into so many difficulties. Good-by, Susan.
Susan. Good-by. Oh dear! I wonder what I shall do with myself
now!

“In this country,” says an English editor, “it is considered the

height of folly for a man to get drunk and lie across a railroad with
the idea of obtaining repose.” The same opinion obtains to a
considerable extent in America.
 Antiquities of Egypt.

Egypt is situated in the northeastern part of Africa, and very near

to Asia. The descendants of Noah first settled in the valley of the
river Euphrates, and thence they spread over the land in all
directions. Egypt is about five hundred miles westward of this valley,
and being a very fruitful country, was speedily filled with inhabitants.
These soon began to build cities, and in the space of a few centuries
after the flood, Egypt was the seat of a great and powerful empire.
The people increased with astonishing rapidity; a knowledge of
various arts was diffused among them, schools of learning were
established, men of profound science flourished, and the kings and
princes built vast cities, made artificial lakes, constructed canals,
caused vast chambers as depositories of the dead to be cut out of
the solid rock, raised mighty pyramids which still defy the tooth of
time, and carried on other great and mighty works.
Thus it was that while America was unknown; while nearly all
Africa, nearly all Europe, and more than half of Asia, were
uninhabited, except by wild beasts; and while most of the people and
nations on the globe were rude and uncivilized, the empire of Egypt
contained many millions of people who were far advanced in
civilization. Thus at the earliest period Egypt took the lead in
knowledge and science, and therefore it is called the cradle of
learning. Here it was that Homer and other celebrated Greek
scholars, almost 3000 years ago, went to school, as young men go
to Cambridge and New Haven to acquire learning now-a-days. Here
it was that Moses, almost 3400 years ago, was educated, by
direction of Pharaoh’s daughter, in a very superior manner, thus
qualifying him, with the aid of Divine Providence, for the wonderful
task of leading the Jewish nation for forty years through the
wilderness of Arabia.
 The history of the Jewish nation, as told in the Bible, gives us a
good deal of information about Egypt in those early days, for the
Jews were held in bondage there, and after they escaped, they
settled in Palestine, a distance of only about 250 miles from Egypt.
There was much intercourse therefore between the two nations, and
the history of one naturally runs into that of the other.
But besides this knowledge of the history of Egypt afforded by the
Bible, much other information is given by the ancient Greek and
Roman historians; in addition to all this, the remains of ancient cities
scattered along the banks of the Nile,—a famous river that runs
through Egypt,—assure us that the half has hardly been told us.
Notwithstanding the wonderful accounts of the splendor and
populousness of ancient Egypt, handed down by antiquity, the
existing monuments prove that these accounts fall short of the truth.
And these remains are not only interesting as proving this, but also
because they illustrate history, and throw much light upon the
manners and customs of the ancient Egyptians.
Among the famous ruins of Luxor, which are found on the borders
of the Nile, and which excite the wonder of every beholder by their
splendor and magnificence, are the ornaments of buildings, which
consist of carvings in marble, portraying various scenes, some
relating to history and some to domestic life. Many of these
sculptures exhibit men fighting, and therefore show how they carried
on war 3500 years ago; there are carvings of men hunting, which
show how they pursued the chase in those times. There are
representations which show what kind of carts and carriages the
people had; how they harnessed their horses and cattle; what kind of
weapons they used in war; and many other things are shown by
these remains of antiquity.
But recent discoveries have developed still more curious and
interesting things. Vast chambers or rooms have been discovered,
cut in the rock beneath the ground, where it seems the people used
to live. On the walls of these chambers are paintings, which still
preserve their colors and outlines so perfectly as to be easily
understood. Here the traveller is able to study the manners and
customs of ancient Egypt: here he finds pictures telling how the
people dressed; how they cooked their food; what sort of furniture
they had; how they amused themselves; in short, how they lived, in
almost every respect. And what is curious to remark is this,—that
many articles which have been invented in modern times, appear to
have been in use among these Egyptians at least three thousand
years ago. This subject is full of interest, for by the monuments and
paintings of Egypt we have, as it were, discovered a wonderful book,
that tells us a story which has been more than half hidden for about
thirty centuries.

The Giraffe brought as tribute to Pharaoh.

But there is no aspect in which these modern discoveries seem
so interesting, as in regard to the light they throw upon numerous
passages in the Bible. I will mention a few instances; the following is
one. Among the animals mentioned as illustrative of the wisdom and
power of Providence, is one called in Hebrew the Reem, a word
which literally signifies “the tall animal.” It is thus described in
scripture: “Will the reem be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy
crib? Canst thou bind the reem with his band in the furrow? or will he
harrow the valleys after thee? Wilt thou trust him because his
strength is great? or wilt thou leave thy labor to him? Wilt thou
believe him, that he will bring home thy seed and gather it into thy
barn?” (Job xxxix. 9-12.) Our translators have rendered the word
reem, unicorn, which is absurd. Some commentators assert that it is
the rhinoceros, or the buffalo, because the cognate Arabic word is
sometimes applied to a species of gazelle, and the Arabs frequently
speak of oxen and stags as one species. But neither the rhinoceros
nor the buffalo can be called a tall animal, and the analogy between
them and any species of gazelle with which we are acquainted,
would be very difficult to demonstrate. But we find upon the
monuments an animal fulfilling all the conditions of the description,
and that is the giraffe, which is represented several times among the
articles of tribute brought to the Pharaohs from the interior of Africa.
The preceding sketch represents one of these carvings.
A most interesting proof of the accuracy and fidelity of the Bible
narration is furnished by the following considerations. The artists of
Egypt, in the specimens which they have left behind, delineated
minutely every circumstance connected with their national habits and
observances from the cradle to the grave; representing with equal
fidelity the usages of the palace and the cottage,—the king
surrounded by the pomp of state, and the peasant employed in the
humblest labors of the field. In the very first mention of Egypt, we
shall find the scriptural narrative singularly illustrated and confirmed
by the monuments.
“And there was a famine in the land (of Canaan,) and Abram went
down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was grievous in the
land. And it came to pass, when he was come near to enter into
Egypt, that he said unto Sarai his wife, Behold now, I know that thou
art a fair woman to look upon; therefore it shall come to pass when
the Egyptians shall see thee, that they shall say, This is his wife; and
they will kill me, but they will save thee alive. Say, I pray thee, thou
art my sister, that it may be well with me for thy sake; and my soul
shall live because of thee. And it came to pass, that when Abram
was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was
very fair. The princes also of Pharaoh’s house saw her, and
commended her before Pharaoh, and the woman was taken into
Pharaoh’s house.” (Gen. xii. 10-15.)

Now let it be remembered that at present the custom for the

Egyptian women, as well as those of other eastern countries, is to
veil their faces somewhat in the manner here represented. Why then
should Abram have been so anxious because the princes of
Pharaoh’s house saw his wife Sarai? How indeed could they see her
face, and discover that she was handsome, if she had been veiled
according to the custom of the country now? The question is
answered by the monuments, for here is a representation of the
manner in which a woman was dressed in Egypt in ancient times.
 It seems therefore that they exposed their faces; and thus the
scripture story is shown to be agreeable to the manners and
customs of the country at the date to which the story refers. It is
impossible to bring a more striking and conclusive proof of the
antiquity and minute accuracy of the Bible record than this.
The period at which the custom of veiling the faces of women was
introduced into Egypt, was probably about 500 years before Christ,
when Cambyses, king of Persia, conquered that country. It was but
natural that the conquered country should adopt the fashions of the
conquering one, particularly as at this period Persia was an empire
of great wealth and power, and likely not only to give laws in respect
to government, but in respect to manners also. The probability,
therefore, that the Bible record was made previous to this event,
even had we not other testimony, is very strong, from the fact that it
relates, in the story of Abraham and his wife, a tale which implies a
fashion which probably never existed in Egypt after the conquests of
Cambyses. How wonderful it is, that these mute monuments, after
slumbering in silence for ages, should now be able to add their
indubitable testimony to the truth of that book, which we hold to be
the Word of God!
 A Drunkard’s Home.

It was a clear morning in April. The ground, bushes, and fences

sparkled with their frosty covering. The bare hills and leafless trees
looked as if they could not long remain bare and leafless beneath a
sky so bright. A robin here and there ventured a short and sweet
note, and earth and sky seemed to rejoice in the scene. The path
that led to the village school was trod by happy children, whose
glowing cheeks and merry voices testified that they partook of the
general gladness.
In the same path, at a distance from a group of neatly-dressed
and smiling children, was a little girl, whose pale, soiled face,
tattered dress, and bare feet, bespoke her the child of poverty and
vice. She looked upon the laughing band before her with a wistful
countenance, and hiding behind her shawl the small tin pail she
carried, lingered by the fence till the children were out of sight, and
then, turning into another road, proceeded to perform her usual
errand to a grocery called the Yellow Shop. The bright, calm morning
had no charm for her. Her little heart felt none of the lightness and
gayety the hearts of children feel when nature is beautiful around
them. She could not laugh as they laughed; and as the sound of their
merry voices seemed still to linger on her ear, she wondered that she
could not be as happy as they.
And then she thought of the dreariness and poverty of her home,
of the cruelty of her father, of the neglect and unkindness of her
mother, of the misery of the long, cold winter through which she had
just passed, of the hunger which her little brothers and herself often
felt; she thought of the neat appearance of the children she had just
seen, and then looked upon her own dress, torn and dirty as it was,
till the tears filled her eyes, and her heart became sadder than ever.
 Mary, for that was the name of the girl, possessed a degree of
intelligence above what her years seemed to warrant; she knew
what made those happy children so different from herself. She well
knew that they would spend that day in school, learning something
useful, while she would spend it in idleness at home, or in trying to
quiet the hungry baby, and please the other children, while her
mother was picking cranberries in the meadow. Mary knew she was
that very morning to carry home something that would make her
mother cross and wholly unmindful of her destitute children.
When she had reached the spirit shop, its keeper was not there,
but his son, a bright, intelligent boy of thirteen, stood behind the
counter, playing with his little sister. Mary asked for the rum with a
faltering voice, and as she offered the jug, our young tradesman,
looking upon her with mingled contempt and pity, said, “What does
your mother drink rum for?” Mary felt ashamed, and looked so sad
that the boy was sorry for what he had said. He gave her the liquor,
and tied up the scanty allowance of meal; and Mary, with a heavy
heart and hasty step, proceeded upon her way.
When she reached her dwelling—and who needs a description of
a drunkard’s dwelling?—her mother met her at the door, and hastily
snatching the jug from her hand, drank off its burning contents. She
then took the meal to prepare breakfast, and Mary was sent to
gather some sticks to kindle the flame. The dough was then placed
before the smoky, scanty fire, and the impatient children hovered
round to watch its progress. Long, however, before it was sufficiently
baked, they snatched it piece by piece away, till nothing but the
empty tin remained.
The little boys, with their hunger scarcely satisfied, then left the
house, to loiter, as usual, in the streets, while Mary, as she saw her
mother become every moment more incapable of attending to the
wants of her infant, took the poor little creature in her arms, and in
trying to soothe its sufferings half forgot her own. She had just
succeeded in lulling the baby, when her father entered. He had been
in the meadow, picking the cranberries which had been preserved
during the winter under the snow, and which could now be sold for a
few cents a quart. Though once a strong and active man, so
degraded had he become, that few persons were willing to employ
him, and he resorted to picking cranberries as the only means left
him of obtaining what his appetite so imperiously demanded.
On entering the room, and seeing the state his wife was in, he
uttered a loud curse, and at the same time bade Mary leave the
crying child and put on her bonnet, and hasten to the village to sell
the cranberries, and call at the Yellow Shop on her return.
Mary put on her bonnet, and with a trembling heart commenced
her walk. On her way, she met her brothers, and stopped to tell them
that, as their father was then at home, they had better keep away
from the house till her return. She then called from door to door; but
at every place her timid inquiry, “Do you want any cranberries here?”
met the same chilling answer, “No.”
At length, wearied out, and fearful that she could not dispose of
them at all, she sat down by the road-side and wept bitterly. But the
sun had long past his meridian, and was gradually lowering in the
western sky. She must go home, and what would her father say if
she returned with the cranberries unsold? This she could not do; and
she determined to try to exchange them at the shop for the spirit her
father wanted.
After waiting some time at the counter, till the wants of several
wretched beings were supplied, she told her errand, and after much
hesitation on the part of the shop-keeper, and much entreaty on her
own, the cranberries were exchanged for rum. Mary then rapidly
retraced her steps homeward, and with a beating heart entered the
cottage.
Her father was not there, but her mother was, and upon inquiring
where Mary had been, insisted on having the spirit. Mary refused as
long as she dared, for she knew how terrible the anger of her father
would be, if he found the quantity of rum diminished. But the mother,
regardless of everything but the gratification of her appetite, seized
the jug and drank a large part of its contents.
It was scarcely swallowed before her husband entered; and,
enraged at seeing the spirit so much lessened, he reproached Mary
first, and then his wife, in the most bitter terms. The provoking replies
of the latter excited his rage almost beyond control; and Mary,
fearing for the safety of herself and her brothers, crept with them into
an empty closet, where, with their arms round each other, they
remained, almost breathless with alarm, trembling at their father’s
loud threats and their mother’s fearful screams.
At length the discord was hushed, and all was silent except the
low groans of the suffering wife, and the cries of the helpless babe.
The children then crept from their hiding-place to seek for some
food, before they laid themselves down upon their wretched bed to
forget their fears for a while in sleep. But in vain did they look for a
crust of bread or a cold potato. Mary could find nothing but the
remainder of the meal she had procured in the morning, but it was
too late to attempt baking another cake. The fire was all out upon the
hearth, and it was too dark to go in search of wood. So the hungry
children, with their wants unsupplied, were obliged to lay themselves
down to sleep.
In the village in which Mary’s parents lived, the wretched condition
of the family had often attracted attention; but the case of the parents
seemed so hopeless, that little exertion was made to persuade them
to abandon their ruinous habits, till Mr. Hall, an energetic agent of the
temperance cause, visited the place. The husband and wife were
then induced to attend the temperance meeting and listen to his
address. Whispers and significant looks passed between the
acquaintances when Thomas and his wife entered the church, and
scarcely one among the number thought they could be at all
benefited by what they might hear. But they did not see Thomas’
heart, or know what a wretched being he felt himself to be. Through
necessity, neither he nor his wife had now tasted spirit for several
days, as their means of obtaining it had failed. The cranberries were
all gathered from the meadow, and persons of their character could
not obtain employment. Thus situated, Thomas knew he must take a
different course, or himself and family would be sent to the work-
house. It was on account of these circumstances that he this evening
consented with his wife to attend the meeting.
 When the speaker commenced, Thomas, feeling himself uneasy,
wished himself away. But by degrees he became more and more
interested, until his eye fixed upon the speaker, and the tear, rolling
down his bloated face, proved the depth of his feeling. He heard his
own case so well described, the remedy so plainly pointed out, so
affectionately urged, that new light seemed to break upon his mind,
and he inwardly exclaimed, “I can do it—I will do it, if I die in the
attempt;” and at the close of the service, going boldly up to a group
of temperance men, he requested that his name and the name of his
wife might be added to the temperance list. A murmur of approbation
followed his request, and hand after hand was presented for a shake
of congratulation. Nancy pulled her husband’s coat as she heard her
name mentioned, and said, faintly, “Not mine, not mine, Thomas.”
But the words were unheard or disregarded, and he bent steadily
over the shoulder of the secretary, till he actually saw the names of
Thomas and Nancy Millman among the names of those who pledged
themselves to abstain from all use of ardent spirits.
As he turned to leave the church, William Stevens, a sober,
industrious man, a friend of Thomas in his better days, but who had
long abandoned the society of a drunkard, took him by the hand, and
after expressing his satisfaction at the course he had pursued,
invited him to call at his house on his way home. After some
hesitation, Thomas and Nancy consented; the latter being
exceedingly pleased at being invited again to call on Hannah
Stevens.
As William opened the door, Hannah rose from her seat by the
cradle, and glanced first at her husband, and then at his
companions, with a look of astonishment and inquiry, which yielded,
however, to one of kind welcome and glad surprise, when her
husband said, “I have brought you some friends, Hannah.” “Yes,”
said Thomas, “and may we henceforth merit the title.” Nancy hung
down her head, as if ashamed of the thoughts that were passing
through her mind. Hannah, noticing her appearance, feared she did
not sympathize much in her husband’s feelings. “I must encourage
the poor woman,” thought she, “or her husband will be undone. If
Nancy does not encourage him by her example, all will be lost.”
 The company then seated themselves round the cheerful fire, and
while Thomas and William were engaged in conversation, Hannah
threw aside the quilt to let Nancy see the baby. It was just the age of
her own, but oh! how different. The rosy, healthy little creature before
her, in its clean nightgown, sleeping so soundly, recalled to her mind
her own pale, sickly, neglected child at home, in its ragged, dirty
dress, so seldom changed, and tears started into her eyes at the
recollection. Hannah saw the effect produced upon her feelings, and
wishing to increase it still more, asked her to walk into her bed-room
to see her other children. Hannah was a kind, careful mother, and
knowing the strength of a mother’s love, she wished to make use of
this strong principle to recall the wretched wanderer before her to a
sense of duty.
Nor was she disappointed at the success of her experiment.
Nancy was evidently affected at a view of the neat, comfortable
appearance of her neighbor’s house, and Hannah seized this
opportunity to point out to her her dreadful neglect of duty. It was a
kind, but a faithful reproof, calculated to awaken in her bosom every
feeling of a mother that yet remained. Nancy did not leave the room
until she had promised, by her own example, to encourage her
husband to return to the uniform practice of sobriety. Thomas and his
wife then took leave of their kind neighbors.
We will leave this happy fireside, and accompany Thomas and
Nancy to their desolate home. As they approached the house, the
faint cries of the neglected baby first struck the parents’ ears. Poor
Mary was endeavoring, as usual, to quiet the little sufferer. There
was no fire upon the hearth, and no light upon the table, but the
moonbeams through the changing clouds were sufficient to reveal
the gloom and wretchedness of the drunkards’ home. Thomas and
Nancy could not but perceive the contrast between the home they
had just left and their own. It was a contrast most sad and
humiliating.
Early the next morning, the first person the family saw coming
down the lane was little William Stevens. He had in his hand a
basket of potatoes, which his father had sent to Thomas Millman,
with a request that he would call at his work-shop after he had eaten
his breakfast. This unexpected present gave much joy to this
destitute family, and Mary, with her little brothers, will not soon forget
how acceptable were their roast potatoes that morning, though eaten
without butter or salt.
Thomas called, as he was requested, at William Stevens’ work-
shop, and found there a job which would employ him for a day or
two. It was joyfully and speedily undertaken, and after an industrious
day’s work, he received, at the close, a part of his wages to lay out in
food for his family. Thomas had little to struggle with this day, and on
the whole, it passed by easily and pleasantly. Not so with poor
Nancy. Having less to employ her mind than her husband, she was
sorely tempted, more than once, to send Mary to the Yellow Shop to
exchange what remained of her kind neighbor’s gift for rum. But the
thought of Hannah’s kindness, and her own promise, so solemnly
made, restrained her.
At last, the day wore by, and it was time for Thomas to return. As
soon as the children saw him enter the lane, they ran, as was their
custom, to their hiding-place; for, knowing nothing of what had
recently transpired, they expected to find him intoxicated, as usual.
“Can that be father?” whispered they to each other as they heard
a steady step and a calm voice. The youngest boy peeped out his
head to see.
“Come here, my poor boy,” said Thomas, kindly; “you needn’t be
afraid; I am not drunk.” “Oh, he isn’t drunk! he isn’t drunk!” said
Jemmy, clapping his hands in great joy; “come out, children, father
won’t hurt us.” Half faithless, half believing, the children left their
hiding-place and came around their father.
“Mother hasn’t sent you for any rum to-day, has she, Mary?” “No,
father; I hope I shall never go to that shop again.” “You never shall,
to buy rum, Mary, I promise you. Do you believe me?” Mary looked
as if she did not quite believe, but she said nothing.

A year has passed by since the period when our history

commenced. It is a fine morning in April, as it then was. The children
of the village are pursuing their way to school as pleasantly as they
then were. But where is the little girl, with soiled face, tattered dress,
and bare feet, that then attracted our attention? Look for one of the
happiest girls among that gay, laughing group, and you will find her.
Her dirty, tattered garments are exchanged for neat and comely
ones; her bare feet are covered with tidy shoes and stockings, and in
her hand she carries, not a tin pail, but a basket containing her
school-books and work. The scenes through which this day will carry
her will be very different from those through which she passed a year
ago.
A great and blessed change has indeed come over this once
wretched family. They have left the miserable habitation which was
once theirs, and are now living upon a small but excellent farm,
whose owner is not afraid to rent it to so sober and industrious
people as Thomas and Nancy have become. Within the year,
Thomas has been able to purchase comfortable clothing for his
family, decent furniture for his house, and has besides partly paid for
two yokes of oxen and four cows.
Look at Thomas at work in his field, and managing his little farm,
thriving at home and respected abroad, and say what would tempt
him to come again under the influence of his former ruinous habits?
Look at Nancy, too, superintending her dairy and supplying the
wants of her family—does she wish for a return of those days when
she was the intemperate mother of hungry, neglected children? But
are there not hundreds of mothers who are at this time what she
once was? and can they not, will they not, be induced to become
what she now is?
 The Boastful Ass.

I can hardly tell the reason, but the fact seems to be, that the ass,
an honest and somewhat stupid animal, seems to have given rise to
more fables than any other beast, except the fox. I have already told
some fables in which this long-eared personage is made to utter a
great many wise things. I am now going to tell another fable, in which
the creature is represented as talking rather foolishly.
A man was once going along the road with an ass, whom he
treated somewhat roughly, upon which the beast first whisked his
long tail, and then groaned, and finally spoke outright. “It seems to
me, sir,” said the honest creature, “that you use me very ill,
particularly as I belong to a race of great antiquity, and one that has
been honored above all four-footed beasts!”
“Why, how’s that?” said the man.
“How’s that? indeed!” said the ass. “If you had read the Bible as
much as you should, you would remember that it was one of my
ancestors which conversed with a prophet, and stood in the
presence of an angel on a certain occasion. This is an honor which
belongs exclusively to the ass family, of which I am one, and
therefore it seems meet that you should treat me with proper
respect.”
“Well done!” said the countryman; “well done! poor brute. This is
ever the way. It seems to be with asses as with men: when one has
no merit of his own, he always boasts the dignity of his family, or the
virtues of his ancestors. For my part, I know of nothing that sinks a
beast or a man lower, than to see him attempt to cover up his own
vices, or weakness, or folly, by showing off the dignity of his
pedigree, or the respectability of his connections.” Then, giving the
ass a somewhat contemptuous kick, the man passed on.
 Travelling Beehives.—In Switzerland, the traveller often sees a
man trudging up the mountains with a hive of bees on his back. The
people move the bees, because they know how good change of
place is for them. This, too, is done almost everywhere in Scotland.
In France, they put their hives into a boat, some hundreds together,
which floats down the stream by night, and stops by day. The bees
go out in the morning, return in the evening, and when they are all at
home, and quiet, the boat floats on.
 Architecture of Birds.

There is no topic in Natural History more curious than the

architecture of birds. In the building of nests many species are
exceedingly ingenious. The humming-bird constructs its nest of
thefinest silky down, or of cotton, or of the fibres of the flag-top that
the boys call cat-tail, or of some other similar material. Within, it is
lined in the most delicate manner with downy substances. The
outside is covered with moss, usually of the color of the bough or
twig to which the nest is attached, and giving it simply the
appearance of an excrescence. The delicacy and ingenuity of
workmanship in this case, as well as the skill displayed in the whole
management of the affair, could hardly be excelled by human art.