strogoth or Visigoth, the
Vandal, the Burgundian, the Frank, stood apart from the subjugated Roman
population, as an armed or territorial aristocracy. They maintain, in
great part at least, their laws, their language, their habits, their
character; in religion alone they are blended into one society, constitute
one church, worship at the same altar, and render allegiance to the same
hierarchy. This is the single bond of their common humanity."

The German races also established everywhere the feudal system, that
curious institution, which has been the subject of so much discussion, and
has perplexed the readers of history by its incongruities. These
perplexities, however, may perhaps be relieved if we see that the
essential character of this institution was this, that it was an army
permanently quartered on a subject people. This definition contains the
explanation of the whole system. The Germans had overrun and conquered the
Roman Empire. They intended to possess and retain it. But being much fewer
in numbers than the conquered people, how could they do this? Suppose that
when the Confederate States had been conquered by the Union Army it had
been determined to hold them permanently as a conquered territory. It
could be done thus. First, the original inhabitants must be disarmed and
put under stringent laws, like that of the curfew, etc. Then to every
private soldier in the Union Army a farm, say of fifty acres, would be
assigned, on condition that whenever summoned by the captain of his
company he would present himself armed to do military duty. In like manner
the captain would receive, say a hundred acres, on condition of appearing
with his company when summoned by his colonel. Then the colonel would
receive five hundred acres, on condition of appearing with his regiment
when summoned by the general. The general (_dux_, duke) must appear with
his brigade when summoned by the commander-in-chief (_imperator_,
emperor), and he would hold perhaps a thousand acres on this condition.
All this land, thus held on condition of military service, would be held
in fee, and would exemplify the actual foundation of the whole feudal
system, which was simply an arrangement by which a conquering army could
hold down the conquered nation.

Of course, such a system as this was one of tyranny and cruelty, and
during several centuries it was tempered and softened only by the
mediatorial influence of the Christian Church. This was the on