Year: 1873

TIE LATEST POLITICAL BUGBEA1.


That propensity in the human mind tc


borrow trouble and meddle with othel


peoples business, affords to the reading


public many very silly paragraphs. Ir


reference to those who are ever on the


lookout for some insupportable calamity,


we are glad to note :. the present time


that they are wasting their energies and


much fine writing to prove that some


thing which they denominate ''Cesarism


has been engrafted upon the growth o.


American politics. OF course. the whole


American public, the forty millions Of


people who compose this nation, have


nothing to say in the matter. Any am


bilious man of reasonably fair abilities.


has but to proclaim his desire to become


permanent emperor with the right to


transmit the crown and sceptre to his de-


scendants, to be lifted incontinent!y upon


gilded throne OF royal state, while all


around him would stand consenting, nay,


an admiring world. The New York Herald


having grown a little tired OF aping the airs


Of a petty sovereignty, only to be laughed


at, sending out its commissioners in the


hope probably that some of them will
! get shot, and thus furnish an occasion for


an extra or something to harp upon until


tha. grows threadbare, is in the market
| trying to borrow trouble without even


owning single thing to offer as collateral


security. The Milesian journeyman who


write for that Journal, not only assume


that the American people are ready for
this yoke, but that Grant entertains wicked
designs in that direction. We do not
blame the Herald especially, nor the New
Orleans Times that copies and seems to
accept the HerdIds ideas; for the former
has the excuse of all foreigners that it
seems next to impossible for them to en-
tirely understand the American character,
and our own contemporary is very easily
gulled by any statement, however improb-
able. that threatens to subvert our
free form of government. Neither
national nor State affairs have been man
aged il exact accordance with the views
of these rather superficial journals. and
hence they are prepared for any calamity.
Both Congress and the President have
frequently displayed the termerity to act
in opposition to the advice of the Herald,
and it has been ready to chronicle a
catastrophe ever since. Louisiana also has
behaved very badly toward the Times.
rarely if ever paying much attention to
what it says OK does. ard following
the advice Of wiser counseiors.


The Herald, therefore. raises the alarm
of "Cnsarism.' without being very exact
Or precise in its definition of the new and
terrible danger that threatens the people
The foundation upon which all this rests
is the unimportant fact that General
Grant has not published an affidavit that
he will not. in any event run a third time
for the Presidency. In case he or his
friends We're to attempt a third trial, it
would present in the judgment Of the
Herald, the Times and other superficial
organs Of anything 70 beat Eepub.
licanism' a clear case of "Ce5arism" an
undoub.ed proof that the American peo.
pie had been put up at auction by one
man who had bid them ir tor his own
account.


Doubtless those who thus insist on
drawing all their parallels from ancient
Rome have looked deeply into the matter.
and find nearly the same political condi-
tons existing here now that prevailed in
Rome during the century preceding the |
Christian era. That would be to place !
this nation in the situation of the Seven
Killed commonwealth people enriched |
by the spoils OF neighboring tribes. and
whose public sense of probity. never very
high. finally desenerated SO much that it
affected the dealings between citizens.
But it was not the ambition of one man |
that gave Rome an emperor. nor was the |
crown conferred upon the man who is
generally regarded az the founder of |
Casarism. Previous to the coronation of |
Augustus the rulers had been known |
by various titles. but the usual ap-
pellation was consul, OF which there
were two. elected on the same
day and for one year. 1t was not
at all uncommon to re-elect these consuls |
from time to time. and very popular and
able man like Pau!us E.milius. Scipio
Atricanus. Lucullus. Svila, Pompey o.
julius Caesar, found no difficulty il ob-
tanning the consulate as long as he
pleased. But no one pretends that the
subsequent decadence into imperialism
was caused, promoted. or even suggested
by the habit o; re-electing popular con-
suls. General Grant might be reelected
to the Presidency half a dozen times. if
be and the American people chose to have
i SO, without rendering him liable to the
suspicion of aiming to be al emperor or +
The American people aneaable to the
charge of radically changing their form Of
government.


We do not even believe the constant
reference in the Democratic newspapers
Will be sufficient to talk our people into
giving up the control Of their political
lAairs. Nor can they be diverted from
!, A. la |