The New York herald., 1869-11-15

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progress Of tho present age, that the dynasties
of the nations of Europe have lost to somo
extent their hereditary character, and have
become, directly or indirectly, elective. This
is remarkable concession to tho democratic
principle Of government by the people, and
shows how rapidly the feudal ideas Of the
world are passing away. 1t shows, too, now
powerfully the successful working of republi-
can self-government in America is acting upon
the thoughts and political institutions Of
Europe. In no country has the pure prin-
ciple Of democracy--that the wisest and best
shall be chosen to govern-been carried out
yet. We have come nearer to it in the
United States than the people Of any other
country. In the early and purer times Of
the republic, when Washington, Adams and
Jefferson were chosen President, the people
did recognize and carry out this principle, or
did even in later times, and now they have
not forgotten 1t. That, in fact, is the theory
of the government, though party caucuses,
conventions and leading men have made the
election of our rulers subject, in great
measure to political management and bar
gains. Still the appeal in the end is to the
voice Of the people, and man is never chosen
President who is obnoxious to the majority.
Although the elective principle in government
has not reached this point in Europe it is
gaining ground, and monarchs even begin to
submit their claims to the national plebiscite.
The idea or monarchcal dogma of govern
| IxyI Ixno rsoht snc tod
upon until tho feudal ages and until the Pope
of Rome gave the sanction and support of the
| Church to the dogma. 1t Is true the right of
monarchical inheritance had been admitted in
some countries, and in others had been
accepted as the most convenient mode Of dis
| posing of the long boforo tho ieudai
ages, or even before the commencement of the
Christian era. But generally the right to
imperial or kingly power was that of the
strongest. Right and might went together.
Yet the elective principle was not entirely
ignored, though in practice it had little force
for even the Roman emperors for long time
went through some form of election, either by
| the soldiers or certain class of the commu-
nifty After Charlemagne had made himself
master of the Empire of the West, extending
| from the Baltic to the Mediterranean and from
the Atlantic to the Sarre, the Thesis and the
Oder, and was crowned by Pope Leo ILL., in
st. Peters church on Christmas day of the
eight hundredth year of the Christian era, the
foundation was laid for the divine right of
kings under the sanction and support of the
Church. From the time of this great emperor,
| too, the feudal system arose and became the
ally and support of anointed monarchy. This
was the nature of government over the nations
of Europe for nearly a thousand years. That
period has been called the Dark Ages, and dark
enough they were, for the people were only the
| slaves of their rulers. The first really great
shock this system of government received was
when Cromwell and his Parliament cut off the
anointed head of Charles the First of England.
| But feudalism and the divine rights of kings
received their deathblow at the latter end of
the eighteenth century, through the establish
ment of the American republic and the French
revolution. These mighty events under
mined the system that had existed thousand
years and upheaved society from its very
| foundation.
| However, a reaction came in Europe. An
other Charlemagne arose-Napoleon Bona
| parte-who had the ambition to establish again
the Empire OF the West Charlemagne was Ma
poleons prototype. The aim of both was alike
and both used the military power to accom-
plish their object. There is this difference,
however one was born to kingdom and the
other was the offspring of revolution. Ma
poleon recognized his position as the offspring
of revolution, and while he carved out his
| own astonishing success and future with the
sword he always claimed to be the choice of
the people and the enemy of the old dynasties
and feudal system. We all know how futile
were the attempts of the Holy Alliance to undo
the work Of the great French revolution and
to restore the divine right of kings after
Napoleon fell. The monarchs and statesmen of
that day did not comprehend the mighty pro-
| gress the world had made in quarter of a
century They did not understand that it had
made greater progress in that brief period than
during thousand years before
The French revolution of 1913 was another
vast stride toward popular and republican gov
ernment Louis Napoleon appealed to the vote
of the French people when he was candi-
date for their ruler. Ofcourse he relied greatly
upon the prestige Of his name and the affec-
| tionate remembrance of his uncle by the
French, but he proclaimed the right of the
people to choose their ruler. Though he made
the coup dftat and himself Emperor after
wards, and has since endeavored to establish
personal government after the manner of the
old divine right monarchs, he has In words
and theory continued to recognize The right
of the people to govern and to choose their
rulers While he is most anxious, no doubt, to