This is a strong statement, and Rodó justifies it by clarifying that because democratic societies give power to the masses, whom he deems less capable of making good decisions; but he is not against democracy but rather shows many ways in which its weak points can be strengthened, pointing for instance at the importance of the most capable educating the rest of society to pull the average upwards instead of letting the trend be the opposite.
This is a strong statement, and Rodó justifies it by clarifying that because democratic societies give power to the masses, whom he deems less capable of making good decisions; but he is not against democracy but rather shows many ways in which its weak points can be strengthened, pointing for instance at the importance of the most capable educating the rest of society to pull the average upwards instead of letting the trend be the opposite.