Arles for the supervision of interests which
concerned themselves, they disregarded the mandate. A central despotism
maintained Roman unity; and, whenever its iron arm should by any means
become weakened, the empire must fall into fragments.

The dissolution of the Roman Empire in the West was the end of one
cycle; thence began another--that in which we now are, and which should
be of absorbing interest to us. A state of affairs quite unlike anything
known before was then inaugurated. Hundreds of years have been required
to develop results so as to enable the human mind to divine at all
definitely the law of its movement; and hundreds more may be required to
develop the full fruition of what was then so inauspiciously begun.

As we are all aware, the Roman Empire of the West was overrun by hordes
of barbarians from the North, who annihilated a great portion of the old
population, and changed the character of society. But Rome did not die
without bequeathing a legacy to be enjoyed by the descendants at least
of those by whose hands she had fallen. There was still some remembrance
of what Rome was. Guizot says that 'the two elements which passed from
the Roman civilization into ours were, first, the system of municipal
corporations--its habits, its regulations, its principle of liberty, a
general civil legislation common to all; secondly, the idea of absolute
power--the principle of order and the principle of servitude.' These
elements, though almost latent for a time, were destined to make up and
play a conspicuous part in the war of diversified interests and the
adjustment of political relations, hundreds of years afterward.

Another element of society at the time of the Fall, was the Church. The
barbarians conquered the empire, but the Church conquered them; without
gaining much, however, to show for her victory; for, while the
barbarians embraced Christianity, they reduced it to barbarism, and were
much the same rude, cruel people, after their conversion, that they were
before. The Church, however, in its origin and growth, illustrates the
law under consideration, in the gradual development of the distinct
specialities of organization; and we are now regarding it at a time when
it was one element among others, and destined with them, by the
interaction of their various forces, to evolve a still higher unity.

Another element in society, at this time, was that which was brought by
the conquerors from their native wil