第516章

I.

Government by gangs in times of anarchy. - Case where anarchy is recent and suddenly brought on. -- The band that succeeds the fallen government and its administrative tools.

The worst feature of anarchy is not so much the absence of the overthrown government as the rise of new governments of an inferior grade. In every state which breaks up， new groups will form to conquer and become sovereign： it was so in Gaul on the fall of the Roman empire， also under the latest of Charlemagne's successors； the same state of things exists now (1875) in Rumania and in Mexico.

Adventurers， gangsters， corrupted or downgraded men， social outcasts， men overwhelmed with debts and lost to honor， vagabonds， deserters， dissolute troopers， born enemies of work， of subordination， and of the law， unite to break the worm-eaten barriers which still surround the sheep-like masses； and as they are unscrupulous， they slaughter on all occasions. On this foundation their authority rests； each in turn reigns in its own area， and their government， in keeping with its brutal masters， consists in robbery and murder； nothing else can be looked for from barbarians and brigands.

But never are they so dangerous as when， in a great State recently fallen， a sudden revolution places the central power in their hands；for they then regard themselves as the legitimate inheritors of the shattered government， and， under this title， they undertake to manage the commonwealth. Now in times of anarchy the ruling power does not proceed from above， but from below； and the chiefs， therefore， who would remain such， are obliged to follow the blind impulsion of their flock.[1] Hence the important and dominant personage， the one whose ideas prevail， the veritable successor of Richelieu and of Louis XIV.

is here the subordinate Jacobin， the pillar of the club， the maker of motions， the street rioter， Panis Sergent， Hébert， Varlet， Henriot， Maillard， Fournier， Lazowski， or， still lower in the scale， the Marseilles "rough，" the Faubourg gunner， the drinking market-porter who elaborates his political conceptions in the interval between his hiccups.[2] -- For information he has the rumors circulating in the streets which tell of a traitor to each house， and for confirmed knowledge the club slogans inciting him to rule over the vast machine.

A machinery so vast and complicated， a whole assembly of entangled services ramifying in innumerable offices， with so much apparatus of special import， so delicate as to require constant adaptation to changing circumstances， diplomacy， finances， justice， army administration -- all this surpasses his limited comprehension； a bottle cannot be made to contain the bulk of a hogshead.[3] In his narrow brain， perverted and turned topsy-turvy by the disproportionate notions put into it， only one idea suited to his gross instincts and aptitudes finds a place there， and that is the desire to kill his enemies； and these are also the State's enemies， however open or concealed， present or future， probable or even possible. He carries this savagery and bewilderment into politics， and hence the evil arising from his government. Simply a brigand， he would have murdered only to rob， and his murders would have been restricted. As representing the State， he undertakes wholesale massacres， of which he has the means ready at hand. -- For he has not yet had time enough to take apart the old administrative implements； at all events the minor wheels， gendarmes， jailers， employees， book-keepers， and accountants， are always in their places and under control. There can be no resistance on the part of those arrested； accustomed to the protection of the laws and to peaceable ways and times， they have never relied on defending themselves nor ever could imagine that any one could be so summarily slain. As to the mass， rendered incapable of any effort of its own by ancient centralization， it remains inert and passive and lets things go their own way. -- Hence， during many long， successive days， without being hurried or impeded， with official papers quite correct and accounts in perfect order， a massacre can be carried out with the same impunity and as methodically as cleaning the streets or clubbing stray dogs.[4]

II.

The development of the ideas of killings in the mass of the party. --The morning after August 10. -- The tribunal of August 17. -- The funereal fête of August 27. -- The prison plot.

Let us trace the progress of the homicidal idea in the mass of the party. It lies at the very bottom of the revolutionary creed. Collot d'Herbois， two months after this， aptly says in the Jacobin tribune：

"The second of September is the great article in the credo of our freedom."[5] It is peculiar to the Jacobin to consider himself as a legitimate sovereign， and to treat his adversaries not as belligerents， but as criminals. They are guilty of lèse- nation； they are outlaws， fit to be killed at all times and places， and deserve extinction， even when no longer able or in a condition do any harm. --Consequently， on the 10th of August the Swiss Guards， who do not fire a gun and who surrender， the wounded lying on the ground， their surgeons， the palace domestics， are killed； and worse still， persons like M. de Clermont-Tonnerre who pass quietly along the street. All this is now called in official phraseology the justice of the people.