When we speak of "a government"
or "the government," we often mean the group of persons thus set
apart for carrying on the work of government. Thus, by "the Gladstone
government" we mean Mr. Gladstone, with his colleagues in the cabinet
and his Liberal majority in the House of Commons; and by "the Lincoln
government," properly speaking, was meant President Lincoln, with the
Republican majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives.
[Sidenote: Whatever else it may be, "the government" is the power which
taxes]
"The government" has always many things to do, and there are many
different lights in which we might regard it. But for the present
there is one thing which we need especially to keep in mind. "The
government" is the power which can rightfully take away a part of your
property, in the shape of taxes, to be used for public purposes. A
government is not worthy of the name, and cannot long be kept in
existence, unless it can raise money by taxation, and use force, if
necessary, in collecting its taxes. The only general government of the
United States during the Revolutionary War, and for six years after
its close, was the Continental Congress, which had no authority to
raise money by taxation.
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