Daily union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1865-1866, 1866-01-04
Union and American.
The Policy and Demands Of the Radf-
Gals Centrasfed with the Teachings
of Hfssory-syiIa and Tisssi. Stevens
-Csesar and Summer.

The Policy and Demands Of the RaGi
Gals Centrasfed with the Teaching
of Hfssory-Syiia and Tisssf. Steven
-Csesar and Summer.
Special Correspondence Of the Chicago Times.l
NASHVILLE, TENN, Dec Is
Thad. Stevens has become the seli-consti
tuted muezzin of radicalism, whose task it j
to remind the faithful of their duty. Hi
cry is Come TO worship. There is no Go,
but radiealism, and Chase, Sumner and | ar
the prophets of God" Mr.. 5. is rather un
fortunate in abiding, in his late speech, t,
the colonization, by Rome, of the citizen
of Latium, and the confscation of their pro
perty. History teaches that it was this verl
policy, proposed by Mr.. Stevens, which
raised within the Roman nation such bite
enemies; that i was the adoption of the op
posite policy which enabled Rome, with sucl
remarkable success, to extend, and, at tn,
same time, strengthen her empire. Cicero
admires the profound wisdom of the frs
kings in admitting the conquered enemies t.
the number of the citizens. In his GRAFTON
for Balbus he says: Their example has
become an authority, and our ancestors have
never ceased granting the rights of citizens
to conquered enemies" Livy reports q
speech Of Camillus, which explains the pol
icy recommended by that great citizen, rela-
tive to the treatment of vanqHished Latium.
"Will YOU" he exclairs, addressing the
members of assembly, use the utmost rigor
of the rights Of victory? You are monsters
| TO destroy all Latium and TO make a vast
desert of it, after having often drawn from
it powerful succors. VIII you, on the con-
trary, after the example of your fathers, aug
ment the resources of Rome? Admit the
vanquished among the number of your clti-
zens it is fruitful means of increasing at
the same time your power and your glory"
What was the result when Philip III. of
Macedon was defeated by the Romans in his
war upon the Grecian and Asiatic allies of
Rome? In the language of modern his
torian, I'VE see, in the proclamation Of lib
erty to Greece, the value the Roman senate
then attached to moral influence, and to that
true popularity which the glory of having
freed a people gives Livy details the
events of the occasion thus:
The epoch of the celebration of the Isthmian
| games generally attracted great concOurse of
| spectators. But on this occasion an immense null
| tltude flocked thther from all parts in eXpeeta-
ton OF the future fate of Greece in general, and of
| each people in particular this was the only sub
! ject of thought and conversation. The Romans
take their place, and the herald, according to
| tom, advances into the middle of the arena,
| whence the games are announced, according to a
solemn form. The trumpet sounds; silence is pro-
claimed, and the herald pronounces these words /:
| The Roman senate, and the emperator, S. I.
| Quinetius cOnquerors ofPhilip and the Maeedon-
ians, rcestabhsh in the enjoyment OF their hber
ty, their laws and privileges the Corinthians, the
Phocians the Locrians, the island Of Eube, the
Magnetes. the Thessallans. the Perrhebi and the
Acheans of Phthiots." At this proclamation the
assembly overcome with excess of joy.
Scarcely any one could believe what he heard.
I.ol -C1C fa oh. 9th
still in the illusions of pleasant dream, to be
dissipated on awakening and. distruSting the
evidence of their ears, they asked their neigh5ors
If they were notdeceived The herald is recalled,
each man burning not only to hear but to see the
messenger of such good news he reads the decree
a second time. Then no longer able to doubt their
happiness they uttered cries of joy. and bestowed
on their lberator such loud and repeated applause
as to make It easy to see that of all good, liberty
is that which has most charm for the multitude"
Again, after the conquest of Macedonia
by Paulus Emilius, and of Illyria by l..
Anicius, Liyy tells us
It was decreed that liberty should be given to
the Macedonians and Illyrans, to prove to the
whole universe that in carrying their arms far
the object of the Romans was to deliver the en-
shaved people, not to enslaye the free people.
We come now to the times referred to by
Mr.. Stevens, the days qf SylG, a period in
: Roman history the example of which is
rather to be Stunned than followed The
imperial historian of France gives a graphi' <
sketch of the conduct and measures of til
hnman monster. He says:
sylla had seruped At nothing in his way to pow,
er; the corruptlgI armies, the pillege OF towns.
the massacre Gf +d. jitants, a.sd the extermina-
Jon of his CT ;laies; did he show any
more scruples maintaining himself in it.
He inaugurated his return to the Senate by the
slaughter of z, 900 Samnites who had surrendered.
A considerable number of inhabitants of Italy
were deprived of the right of the city, which had
been granted them after the war Of the allies; he
fAUeaed ae'o punishment, that of prescription.
Although his triumph had been reaction against
the popular party, he treated as prisoners of war
the children Of the noblest and most respectable
families: and, by mOnstrOus innovation, seven
the women suffered the same lot Lists of pro-
scrptiOn. placarded on the forum. with the names
of the intended victims, threw terror into fami-
lies: to laugh or cry on looking at these was a
crime. Pretorlus was slaughtered for having
tainted at the sight of the punishment inflicted ON
the prsetor, NJ. Marius; to denounee the hiding
place of the proscripts, or put them to DEATH
formed n title to rec0mpenses paid from the pub
lie treasury, amounting in some cases TO 1900
drachmas about $500 head"
It is policy such as that pursued by the
Dictator Sylla, that Mr.. Stephens would
have the United States Congress pursue. If
he will be taught by the examples drawn
from history, he will learn that moderation
is always the best adviser. 1t is suggested
to Mr. S. and his followers that instead of
following Sylla, it would be wiser to pursue
the policy adopted to recover from the sys-
TEN of the great dictator. We are told
"Ihc measure tchich most helped 10 heal the
rounds of the republic tOas the amnesty proposed
By the Tribune Plotius IN faUor Of oil those rho
had taken part in the Girl luar."
We have in one of Caesars speeches his
views of the proper method of treatment for
those conquered in civil war:
"Conseript Fathers all who deliberate upon
doubtful matters ought to be uninhuenced by
hatred. affection. anger or pity When we are an
mated by these sentiments ii Is hard to unravel
truth. No one has ever been able to serve at once
his passions and his interests. Free your reason
from that which beclouds it. and you will be strong.
If passion invade your mind and rules 1t, you viii
be without strength. Now IS the occasion, Con-
script Fathers, to recall to mind how many kings
and peoples carried away by rage or pity, have |
taken fatal resolutions; but l prefer reminding |
you how our ancestors gnsYayed oy preJndlsee'
nian wa against King Perseus, the republic OF
Rhodes. in its power and pride. although 1t owed
nTdISd dioyoI and hostile to u.s. but on de ter
minatiOn of the war, when the fate Of the Rho
dams was brought under elaboration, our ances-
tors left them UNPUBLISHED in order that no one
should ascribe the Of the war to their riches
rather than their wrongs.
If even the greater criminals are too severely
dealt WITH the Nervousness of their Otenw Is lost
in the severity of their sentence
The autnOr OF SalaIIlei, speaking vi the
destruction of Jerusalem by Titus, says:
" The destruction of the. conquered was
against the first principles of Roman polity."
When Tarquin, the Proud, was asked. what
was the best mode of governing city, he
replied only by beating down with his staff
ali the tallest peoples in his garden. Even
moresvindictive is the course Mr.. Stevens
would have the United States government |
pursue towards the South. The question
presents itself: VIII the republicans pursue
towards the conquered the policy adopted
by the bloody and unrelenting Sylla, and !
advocated by Mr.. Stevens, or will they fol-
low the course admired By Cicero, recon-
mended by Camillns, advocated by Cesar,
and approved by ali history? By them and
by them alone can be accomplished speedy, |
peaceable and efectual solution of the diff
liculties which surround us. They have
the power and upon them must rest the re-
spopsibility of veal or woe.
From the New York Journal of Commerce.