So that if democracy be a real form of
government, the sort of system in which all things are regulated by
decrees is clearly not even a democracy in the true sense of the word,
for decrees relate only to particulars.
These then are the different kinds of democracy.
V
Of oligarchies, too, there are different kinds: one where the
property qualification for office is such that the poor, although they
form the majority, have no share in the government, yet he who
acquires a qualification may obtain a share. Another sort is when
there is a qualification for office, but a high one, and the vacancies
in the governing body are fired by co-optation. If the election is
made out of all the qualified persons, a constitution of this kind
inclines to an aristocracy, if out of a privileged class, to an
oligarchy. Another sort of oligarchy is when the son succeeds the
father. There is a fourth form, likewise hereditary, in which the
magistrates are supreme and not the law. Among oligarchies this is
what tyranny is among monarchies, and the last-mentioned form of
democracy among democracies; and in fact this sort of oligarchy
receives the name of a dynasty (or rule of powerful families).
These are the different sorts of oligarchies and democracies. It
should, however, be remembered that in many states the constitution
which is established by law, although not democratic, owing to the
education and habits of the people may be administered democratically,
and conversely in other states the established constitution may
incline to democracy, but may be administered in an oligarchical
spirit.
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