Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1918-12-18
HOW "~SPARTACIDES"
GOT THEIR NAME
(From the New York rimes.,.

According to reports coming over
from Berlin, Germany, like the true
sentimentalist she has always been,
has decided to take her defeat in
a style worthy of the ancient Romans,
Not the least theatrical in the play Of
events there is the rise of a Bolshevist
party under the leadership of Karl
Liebknecht. Not satisfied with the
ultra-modern name of Bolsheviki, this
leader has gon back into the archives
or Rome and has emerged with a
treasure of a name for his followers,
the Spartacus group, or the SPARTA
cldes. as they are now commonly
called.
In a dispatch last week it was stat
ed that L%iebknecht, exponent of anti
milttarism. addressed the populace OF.
Berlin. calling them to rally torhis
side, from a truck protected by good,
militaristic machine guns. So, per-
haps.a he imagines the Roman slave
stood, surrounded by the weapons of
warfare of his W time and fashion.
for the famous address, beloved. of all
schoolboys, which has been put into
his mouth.
Eye call me chief; and We do we'll
to call him chief who. for twelve long
years. has met upon the arena every
shape of man or beast the broad en-
,, pire Of Rome could furnish, and who
never yet lowered his arm. If there
be n among you h can say that
ever, the public fight or private
brawl. my actions did belle my tongue
let him stand forth and a it. If
there be three in all your
can face me on the bloody sands, let
them come on. And yet, l was not
always thus-a hired, butcher. a saw
rage chief OF still more savage. men!''
With equal truth and equal JUS
tlce might the leader of the S%parata-
Gus group in Germany say that he
was not always thus. The ancient
S~partacus goes on to tell how he had
been a peaceful shepherd in the val
legs of Thrace when the Romans
came to Greece and captured him,
making him one Of the slave gladia-
tors of the dissolute metropolis. AS
1t is known in history, he called the
eighty other g]adiators of the School
of Capua to his side and started one
of the most fearsome revolutions in
Rome, which lasted from 70 B. C. to
II B. c.
At that time Rome was in a state
OF moral disintegration, which allow
led Of luxurious living and wild dissi-
pations on the n hand and keen
suffering from famine and autocratic
oppression on the other. The corn
laws providing for the gratuitous
feeding of the starving pr~oletariat in
Rome had to be continually changed
to meet the demands of the people.
The armies of the state we're absent
on foreign service. All these things
made h moment ripe for the upris-
ing Of Spartacus. Before very long
he had gathered a vast army recruit
ed from the ranks of suffering
Tracians. Gauls and Germans. The
armies Of Rome met with defeat aft
er defeat at their hands, and for a
time 1t looked as though the tables
of Rome were being turned in a man
ner vastly distasteful to the ruling
classes. But, as it is true in most
rapidly rising militant movements,
there was dissension in the ranks Of
the victorious slaves and the army
divided in two, some going to the side
of n Crixus, a rival leader, the rest
standing firm by spartacus. All the
members of the ranks were, however,
agreed on n point. that to the vic
torious army belonged the spoils Of
their conquests: AS a result. much
against the wishes Of Spartacus, the
soldiers, drunk with power>~ pillaged,
raped, and %plundered the country in
their aforetime oppressors. In the
of the organized Roman armies de-
feated them and made a horrible ex-
ample of them by c%rucifying 5000
rebel soldiers on the Appian Way.
Spartacus died like a true soldier.
with his sword in his hand.
The story marks one OF the blood
lest pages in Roman history, and in
| Berlin they are finding other Roman
! ro~a11o1~ Ser. #a-.'. .|...H A#..H -h-"-f