But I fear--In short, I have been told that political strife was a necessary result of human nature." "Human nature!" cried the old boy, impetuously; "what human nature?
The human nature of paupers, of slaves, of slave-holders, or the human nature of wealthy freemen?
Which?
Come, tell me that!" "Well," said I, "I suppose there would be a difference according to circumstances in people's action about these matters." "I should think so, indeed," said he.

"At all events, experience shows that it is so.

Amongst us, our differences concern matters of business, and passing events as to them, and could not divide men permanently.

As a rule, the immediate outcome shows which opinion on a given subject is the right one; it is a matter of fact, not of speculation.

For instance, it is clearly not easy to knock up a political party on the question as to whether haymaking in such and such a country-side shall begin this week or next, when all men agree that it must at latest begin the week after next, and when any man can go down into the fields himself and see whether the seeds are ripe enough for the cutting." Said I: "And you settle these differences, great and small, by the will of the majority, I suppose ?" "Certainly," said he; "how else could we settle them?
You see in matters which are merely personal which do not affect the welfare of the community--how a man shall dress, what he shall eat and drink, what he shall write and read, and so forth--there can be no difference of opinion, and everybody does as he pleases.