SEARCH
0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Prev | Current Page 293 | Next

Taine, Hippolyte, 1828-1893

"The French Revolution - Volume 1"


"As they have[21] hitherto felt severely the authority exercised
over them in the name of their princes, every limitation of that
authority seems to them desirable. Never having felt the evils of
too weak an executive, the disorders to be apprehended from anarchy
make as yet no impression" -- "They want an American
Constitution,[22] but with a King instead of a President, without
reflecting they have no American citizens to support that
Constitution. . . If they have the good sense to give the nobles,
as nobles, some portion of the national power, this free
constitution will probably last, But otherwise it will degenerate
either into a pure monarchy, or a vast republic, or a democracy.
Will the latter last? I doubt it. I am sure that it will not,
unless the whole nation is changed."
A little later, when they renounce a parliamentary monarchy to put
in its place "a royal democracy," it is at once explained to them
that such an institution applied to France can produce nothing but
anarchy, and finally end in despotism.


Pages:
281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305