Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1919-04-29
THE STORY OF SPARTACUS
Story Of Roman History Finding a
Modern Counterpart
OPPRESSION Cause OF AN UPRISING

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OPPRESSION Cause OF AN UPRISING
Man Who Had Been Slave, Attracted
Other Slaves, Led Them Successfully
k; in Battle and Seriously Threatened
the Existence of Mighty Empire.
L"Ye call me chief; and we do well to
call me chief" That opening line OF
the famous school-boy Grafton OF
"Spartacus to the Gladiators' is prob
ably all that most of US remembered
about the doughty Thracian leader of
the revolt Of Roman slaves when the
word "Sparticide," applied to the up
rising in Berlin, awoke old echoes in
our minds. In taking the name of
their party from that Of the ex-gladi-
ator, the German Bolsheviki suggest
an interesting analogy between their
own movement and the desperate ven
ture that nearly overwhelmed Italy in
the century before Christ. Incidental
ly, the members of the ultra-radical
revolutionary party Of Berlin are said
to call themselves "Spartacusleute," +"
that is, ,"Spartacus folk; and If we
continue to call them "Sparticides," we
should give the word it's full four syl-
labies in order to indicate it's true
idea, "Sons Of Spartacus." The GUS
toInary three syllable pronunciation
implies "slavers of .spartacus."
A writer in Everyman (London) di-
rects our attention to both the resem-
blance and contrasts between the mod
ern. and. the ancient revolt. At first
glance, he says:
IT. may seem strange that party
which draws its strength from the ur-
ban proletariat should have linked Its
cause with the memory Of man who
was neither democrat nor demagogue,
who made no appeal to the city mob,
whe had no friends in the walled
town, but who from first to last was
the flaming torch Of the countryside,
the leader Of the classical Jacquerie in
a war against the country house. Yet
a closer examination Of the age Of
Spartacus and the character Of his at
tempt reveal the fact that between his
times and our own there was a nearer
resemblance than Is altogether pleas
ant to contemplate, and that, like the
modern Bolshevik, Spartacus was
terrible and useless protest against the
capitalism Of his time.
II an aristocratic government was
the blessing that some of our reaction
aries imagine, the Roman world In the
seventies Of the pre- Christian era pos
sessed that priceless boon. The long
struggle between the popular party and
tho &aristocracy had for the moment
been ended, thanks to the sword of
Sulla, by the victory Of the mobiles.
T1e setlate had recovered its ancient
|p6wefs, ard had been endowed with
prerogatives that it had never welded
before. The position, If a modern par
allel may be allowed, resembled what
would be the case of England if, after
a civil war, the parliament act had
been repealed, If the house of lords
had obtained the right to originate
money bills, and If all the privileges of
the trade-unions had been swept away
by statute. Moreover, confiscation and
conscription had broken the strength
Of the democratic party, while the vet
Grams of Sulla's army had been plant
ed widely throughout Italy on the con-
fiscated lands, a sure garrison, it might
have been thought, for the victorious
aristocrats. But a paper constitution,
even when imposed by the sword, can
not alter hard facts. The Roman aris-
tocracy, If not destitute Of some great
figures, was a selfish and degenerate
body. The conquest of half the world
by the Roman republic had brought to
Rome's oligarchs untold wealth, and
this wealth had been their ruin. At
once extravagant and grasping, they
ruined the provinces by extortion and
Italy by exploitation. 1t is with their
crimes in Italy that we are at present
concerned.
The system of slavery had always
been the bane Of ancient common
wealths, and even in the palmy days
of the Roman republic servile revolts
had distracted the state. There had
been two terrible risings Of the Sicilian
slaves. But under the ruling capitalist
system the horrors Of slavery were in
creasing. The slaves had always eX-
listed in Italy, but in general he mad
been the slave Of the small freeholder,
a man of the same race as his master,
and he had sold himself into slavery,
because he held slavery less terrible
thing than poverty. But the ranks OF
the slave class were increased by thou
sands Of foreign barbarians who had
been captured in war or sold oy pl-
rates to slave merchants. These for
eign slaves were scattered over Italy
on the great grazing estates or the
senatorial families, and were worked
in gangs under brutal overseers, whose
one aim was to exploit alike slave and
soil. To seize on grazing lands to
which their masters had no right was
a frequent habit with the overseers.
In order to effect this, the slaves were
armed, and battles were fought and
much blood shed. IN vain the law
struggled with these outrages. The
problem of the employers liability
caused as much trouble to Roman as 1t
causes to English courts Of justice.
The ruling classes, however, did
nothing to strengthen the constitution
bS orderly government and the estab-
lishment on the land Of the small man.
The service regime was brutal and the
evil passions Of all classes were in
creased by the horrors Of the gladiato-
rial games. The unhappy wretches
who were trained to butcher them