High-resolution, full color images available online
Search, browse, read, and print yearbook pages
View college, high school, and military yearbooks
Browse our digital annual library spanning centuries
Support the schools in our program by subscribing
Privacy, as we do not track users or sell information
Page 11 text:
“
CHAPTER ONE Law and Government VICTORY OF SAMOTHRACE The Victory of Somothrace is one of the most sublime expressions of movement left to us by antique art. The irresistible energy, the vic- torious swing of the body, and the muscular strength and triumphant grace seem to animate the marble. The Winged Victory was carved to commemorate a naval victory of the Greeks over the Kgyptians in the fourth century B. C. The tlgure originally stood on the prow of a galley, blowing a trumpet. The statue now stands in the Louvre at Paris. ROM time immemorial, the spirit of man, born free, has everywhere been in chains. Through these social institutions, as wc call them, are conserved to future gener- ations the contributions of bygone ages; without them, social life would be disintegrated and unstable. Social order is a sacred right which serves as a basis for all others. This social order is maintained by laws, the arbitary rules established by governments. Again, law is “that portion of the established thought and habit which has gained distinct and formal recognition in the shape of uniform rules backed by the authority and power of government.” And government itself is, in its widest sense, the ruling power in a polit- ical society. It rests on the fundamental idea of control and obedience; it implies author- ity and a submission to that authority. So far as we know, government, with its attendant laws of one form or another, has existed from the first population of the world. We are told in legendary tales that Spar- ta’s government was devised by Lycurgas; that Moses, Numa, and Alfred the Great in like manner shaped the government of their respective nations. But from time to time through- out history’s pages, we find men, who, dissatisfied with mere legend, have attempted to find a metaphysical basis for the right to establish governments and enact statutes. First was the theological view, that power has been divinely delegated to the State. Next, the Church, objecting, set itself up as the only divinely ordained institution, and I‘age Seven
”
Page 12 text:
“
therefore as superior to the State. Dante tried to coordinate the views; Macchiavelli insisted upon complete severence of State and Church. Spinoza said might makes right; not until 1918 was the world convinced of the falsity of this notion. The Analycists ascribed to the words of the legal statutes themselves a certain inherent right to rule—a certain “legal fibre.” Rousseau’s Social- Contract theory, of French Revolutionary times regarded the individual as the possessor of cer- tain inalienable rights which can be surrendered only upon the guaranty of other beneficial duties to be performed by the State. Today, we believe that the basis of sovereignty rests not upon any artificial compact, but upon the solidarity which characterizes the common consciousness of men. “This forms a natural foundation, and its expres- sion in sovereign law is a natural manifestation.” Twenty-two centuries ago, the first great political scientist, Aristotle, classifed the forms of government by the numerical relation between those in power and their constituency. The gov- ernment may be a monarchy, governed by one; an aristocracy governed by a very few in proportion to the whole population; or a democracy, governed by many. In general, t his classifiction still holds good today. Aristotle further divided governments according to an ethical concept, asking the question, does the governing power seek to its own advantage, or to the advantage of the whole people? The answer to this question gives us not three, but six varieties of govern- ment, for each perfect form has a corresponding depraved form. The good government of one (Monarchy) is contrasted with the depraved form (Ty- ranny) ; The good government of a few (Aristocracy) is contrasted with the depraved form (Oligarchy) ; The good government of many (Democracy) is contrasted with the depraved form (Anarchy). Human frailties have permitted the establishment of a veritable law concerning the recurrent cycle of changes through which a normal government passes. First, it is Mon- archy, under a single strong man with sovereign power. Handed down to his children, it in time degenerates to Tyranny, as they forget his wise precepts. At some Runnymede, revolt occurs, and a princely few, public-spirited in their aims, set up an Aristrocracy. This early justness in an Aristrocracy always declines in the years of its dotage into selfish Olig- archy. Oligarchy, fatal to civil liberty, goads the people to revolution, with a Democracy as its almost inevitable result. Even Democracy has its old age of degeneracy—an old age in which it loses its early respect for law,and its first amiability of mutual concession. License and Anarchy break out, and only a Caesar can bring it back to reason and order. Thus the cycle is completed, and the state is once more back at the job of cutting its legis- lative teeth. Our brief study here can only mention the problem that is perhaps the most fascinating of all: what shall be the sphere of government? To what limits shall the government’s powers extend? Vast Eight
Are you trying to find old school friends, old classmates, fellow servicemen or shipmates? Do you want to see past girlfriends or boyfriends? Relive homecoming, prom, graduation, and other moments on campus captured in yearbook pictures. Revisit your fraternity or sorority and see familiar places. See members of old school clubs and relive old times. Start your search today!
Looking for old family members and relatives? Do you want to find pictures of parents or grandparents when they were in school? Want to find out what hairstyle was popular in the 1920s? E-Yearbook.com has a wealth of genealogy information spanning over a century for many schools with full text search. Use our online Genealogy Resource to uncover history quickly!
Are you planning a reunion and need assistance? E-Yearbook.com can help you with scanning and providing access to yearbook images for promotional materials and activities. We can provide you with an electronic version of your yearbook that can assist you with reunion planning. E-Yearbook.com will also publish the yearbook images online for people to share and enjoy.
