The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1879-07-17
CESARISM.
The Man on Horseback" in the Uni
ted States.
[From the 1nternational Review

-
It was Caleb Cushing who first used
this now familiar phrase. It is brief
and pithy expression Of the prevailing
theory that free institutions, by a law of
their being, lead to despotism; with the
added suggestion that the republic of
the United States is already very near
that end. More than this, it points at
one particular form of despotism-
Cmsarism.- the inevitable fate of
this nation.
Into the merits Of the theory itself it
is not worth while to enter, further than
to remark that the Swiss republic has
been in the prosperous enjoyment of
free institutions for over 800 years, and
shows no signs as yet Of falling under
despotic rule. Switzerland is, however,
a very small republic, and the United
States very large one; and it has al
ways been remarked that the difficult
ties of free government increase inn
mensely with the increased size of the
nation. At any rate, there are examples
enough of republics, large and small,
ending in despotism.
Another point to be observed is that,
when we come to scrutinize more close
ly, we find, after all, only one clear ex-
ample in history which corresponds to
the anticipated American @man on
horseback" Cromwell and Napoleon, ia
vorite illustrations, took republics which
had hardly entered upon their exist
enoe, before they had in any degree de-
veloped republican temper and habits,
and restored the former government
to which the people were already used,
and which was still fresh in their memo
ries. So with the failure of the South
American republics. They started with
no traditions or habits Of republican in
stitutions. The republics of ancient
Greece were overthrown by external
force. The tyrannies of early Greece
come nearer to the required type; but
they superseded narrow and oppressive
oGgarchies, in the interest, not of the
lower classes as such, but of the fresh
democratic and industrial life of the
age.
Caesar himself is the only conspicu-
ous example of the C@sarism which is
expected to befall this republic. It
would require an elaborate comparison
of institutions and circumstances to
warrant any conclusion as to whether
we are or are not prepared for the de-
served fate of the great Roman repub-
lie. There is, however, one point to
which attention may well be directed.
The Romans had the utmost adherence
for the name of King; they, neverthe-
less, conferred the royal authority, all
| most undiminished, upon the Chief
Magistrate of the republic. So
did the trainers of our constitu-
ton, for the matter of that, take the
English Kingship as the model for the
Presidential office; and, in both cases,
the royal authority of the republican
magistrates was more or less attenuated,
in the course of time, by the progress
of events. But there is this difference
With us the externals of royalty were
more speedily got rid Of. 1t is hardly
an exaggeration to speak of the Re
publican Court" of Washington and
Adams; but Jefferson cast away all the
circumstance of Office and introduced 9
studied simplicity of style, which has
since sometimes been carried to down
right vulgarity.
The Roman Consul, on the other
| hand, was always King. He wore the
royal purple, and was attended by the
royal body guard. There was in Rome
nothing of the servility of Eastern mon
arches; but the observance of the for
malities due to sovereign authority
were never forgotten, even in the times
of widest radicalism. The Roman
Consul walking in state from his house
to the Senate, clad in royal robes, pre-
ceded by lictors to clear his passage, and
attended by throng Of noblemen and
citizens of lower rank-this picture
hardly needs to be altered in any detail
to adapt it to the Emperors of the early
empire.
/ For in truth it is just in these exter.
nails that the essence of monarchy CON
sists; that is to say, of the decent con
stitutional monarchy of the present day
AS Mr.. Bagehot has very well shown, il
is upon the underlined influences thai
surround the person of monarch thai
the success of constitutional monarchy
must mainly depend. And these are
not things that can be created.
But the @man on horseback" has NJ
need of these. Very true. If Cesar
ism is ever set up on the ruins OF tn
American constitution, its court and it
state will not be those of Queen Victo
ria, but of "King" Stephano; our Au
gustus will not be surrounded b,
Agrippas and Maecenases, Messalas ant
Pollios-it will be Boss Shepherds ant
Belknaps, Babcocks and Ben Buffers
or, at best, Chambers and Mortons, VIII,
!. will compose the new court. We hay'
no material for any other monarch,
than ouch.
When Americans of the upper clas
, fall to lamenting the degeneracy of tn
republic, as they sometimes do, and t.
wishing for some form of princely rule
one cannot help applying to them tn
words that Cicero addressed to on
class of Catiline's partisans: "Q,Iod s
jam i'd Qalod ca1pjas'st adept, 7aaIffa Ill
Sc co1asttles ac dictatores aaGt etian
reyes secra1at futawos? Non Uide7l
5 i'd Sc catpere, qaIod 81 adept si11t, fil
gitiUo [defaulter] dlicati aaIt gladiator
[swashbuckler] concedi sit 7aecesse /?
No "swallow-tails," and none of "ther
4 literary fellers need apply.
When Caesar, Cromwell, and Napt
8 leon established monarchies in the plac
: of republics they took to themselves a
authority which was at bottom only th
Y type of authority that existed befor
g somewhat transformed in its outwar
characteristics. The "man on hors'
back" in the United States will do notl
8 ng of the sort. He will set up b
e intrigue and violence rule which wi
s have absolutely nothing in commo
n with the Government organized by OF
1 fathers, which will be vulgar throue
o and through-steeped in corruption
n political and social.
" We must look somewhere else, the
d than to the "man on horseback" for Il
e form of despotism which is likely,
o any, to triumph over our republican i
"a Il H..