A wide ranging and interesting series of essays, in the 'old man yelling at clouds' sense. Few commonplaces escape his wrath, or at least scorn.

It got much worse, James. Mencken liked it, which guarantees it to be annoying while perhaps semantically correct. ( )

Cooper returned to America in 1838 after spending seven years in Europe. He thus became aware of changes that were occurring in government, in politics, and in society that conflicted with his concepts of the ideas that made America great. He sets out in this series of essays many of these ideas. As he said in his introduction, he wrote “…more in the spirit of censure than of praise, for its aim is correction…”

Unfortunately, he made his remarks in 44 topical, short essays; the quality and value of which is a very mixed bag. In some areas he is very much aligned with what I see as the values of American exceptionalism, in others he goes considerably astray. He comes out, for example, in favor of strongly limiting the franchise in town and local elections. Cooper also expected the eventual end of slavery, but predicted the enduring hatred between races would result in a war of extermination. He holds the idea that political parties are needed for liberty to be “mistaken opinion” and inherited from Europe. He cannot see what good parties can be, but “it is easy to see that they may effect much harm.” He condemns the overreach of not only parties, but of opinion; and treats “They say” as the worst value advanced by demagogues. Cooper holds that thinking men should always ask who 'they' are, and what authority do they have to say.

Cooper’s concern with some recent changes is most clearly stated when he remarks (in bold), the every man should have a brass plaque engraved on his head to the effect “That, in a democracy, the public has no power that is not expressly conceded by the institutions, and that this power, moreover, is only to be used under the forms prescribed by the constitution. All beyond this is oppression, when it takes the character of acts, and not infrequently when it is confined to opinion.”

On the nature of rumor and public opinion, Cooper adds that "Whenever the government of the United States shall break up, it will probably be in consequence of a false direction having been given to public opinion.”

Overall, I can only recommend this to real fans of Cooper and those seeking a look into the changes occurring during the Jacksonian era. ( )

Legal Classics Libraery Reprint of the 1838 Edition