Now, as has always been the case, there are certain things which, from their very nature, cannot be left to each individual to do, or not to do, as he may choose, or to do in his own way.  First of all, there is the necessity of some means by which the weak may be protected from the strong.  The individual must be protected in his life and liberty, and there must be some guarantee to him, that if he is industrious the enjoyment of the product of his labor will be secured to him.  Human nature being imperfect, disputes and injustice are sure to arise.  Hence comes the necessity of some power above the citizens and able to command their obedience, some power that can administer justice according to the rights and not according to the strength of individuals.

To thus control the actions of individuals, this power above the citizens, this government, must possess functions of three kinds.  First, legislative power, or power to declare the rules of conduct to which the citizen must conform; second, judicial power, or power to interpret and declare the true meaning of these rules, and to apply them to the particular cases that may arise; and third, the executive power, or power to carry into execution these laws, and to enforce the obedience of the citizens.

To the student nothing could be more interesting and instructive, than to trace how, as tribes and nations have progressed in civilization, government has advanced in its development.  How, as men have progressed, first from the condition of savage hunters to the roving feeders of flocks, then to tillers of the soil with fixed places of abode, and finally to builders of cities teeming with trade, commerce and manufactures; how as men have thus improved in civilization and material well-being, their mutual duties and common interests have become more and more important and numerous, and government as controlling these interests and duties, has developed in form and improved in structure until it has become an all-powerful, complex machine, controlling in many ways the actions, and even the lives of its citizens.

For thousands of years, governments have been developing and changing in form and functions, and a very large part of the history of the nations of the globe is identified with the history of the development and changes of their governments.  As new conditions and needs have arisen, governments have adapted themselves to them.  In some cases this has been done peacefully, as in England, and in others violently, by revolutionary means, as in France.  In some cases functions previously exercised have been relinquished, in others, new powers have been assumed; but in the majority of cases, the change has been merely in the manner of exercising this or that power.