Crittenden press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1879-1907, 1906-01-18
BN
ETLA THURMAN
- - - y
HOW GOVERNMENTS RISE,
FLOURISH AND FALL.

II decreased To two. and finally th
whole was o,cr,hadovcd boy the gro"
, in power of Rome.
, That vast Persian empire whicl
Alexander himself had conquered
had once been great and va, now fall.
in. to pieces. Persia captured Ba
b,lon and her people detcriorated
with captured wealth. Too idle and
pleasure loving to enter the battle
field. they entrusted their country ,
safety to hired soldier, Persian, had
no real patriotism. there wa, NO Per
sian Cincinnatu,, no Regulu,. The
word Of the king was law. and had
he from certain fancy killed msu =
son, the father would have compli-
mcutcd him on his good mark-mau-
ship. These were the causes of Per
sia downfall for no nation can live
where freedom aud individual thought
arc denied
But even IN the West. where free
dom j., the birthright Of every man,
nations rose, fouri,hed and dccaycd.
Carthage was once the mi,trcs, Of the
Mediterranean. and the city which
ri,aled Rome in it, greatness. But.
she fell because of her wars. internal
strife and vast but separated terri
tory.
Rome grew from little marke
town on the Tibcr. extending her
power over one native tribe and then
another Her government, at first
monarchy. united her people and pre-
pared the way for strong republic
under this rule her tcrritor, was ex-
tended over Greece. Gaul and Garth
age. and the conquered people COM
ing into the city. trouble began for
the government These people were
denied the right of citizenship and
the fact the slaves were often the ,u
Perior of their masters rendered the
situation still worse.
Among the Roman, thcm,el,c,
party strife sprang up From the
founding of the city Patricians and
Plebian> had divided Rome among
themselves The time, were full of
such scenes a, the murder of Tiberiu,
Gracious, the civil war, Of Sulla aud
Mariu>. and the contest, of Caesar
and Pompey.
Rome was at her greatest power
just after the Punic wars. when Car
thage had been destroyed. But the
riches which later conquest, brought
into the city, the growing idleness
and cruel enjoyment OF gladiatorial
combats and party strife marked the
downfall of the republic Patriot
ism and honor scanned dead. and vice
and corruption had seized the city.
until Julius Caesar took into hi,
hands the reins of government.
He ended party strife By destroy
lug the parties themselves, and es-
tablished government mouarchical
IN reality but republican in form.
Under the later emperors Rome sank
still deeper into vice, and the life
stories Of some of her rulers of this
time are the darkest that history con
tains.
Rome fell when her territories
reached the fartherest bounds. Her
population was greater than ever be-
fore and the conquered people en-
joyed more rights. The Pagan reli-
gion had given way to the softening
influence of Christianity. But the
weakness lay in the Romans them
selves. Barbarians were press
ing upon all the States boundaries.
and hostile tribes within its own lin
its reyolted at the same time. The
Picts broke down the wall of Anto-
minus and recaptured the Isle Of Bri-
tain The Vandals oyerran Spain
and captured Carthage, thus setting
up a government in Africa. The
Cloths were already rayaging Italy.
The government of Rome was divid
ed and few years later the Western
empire fell
Are we to believe these nations
merely lived and passed AWAY with.