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The feudal aristocracy was not the only class that was ruined by

the bourgeoisie, not the only class whose conditions of existence

pined and perished in the atmosphere of modern bourgeois society.

The mediaeval burgesses and the small peasant proprietors were

the precursors of the modern bourgeoisie. In those countries

which are but little developed, industrially and commercially,

these two classes still vegetate side by side with the rising

bourgeoisie.