Publisher's Synopsis
Of the many causes that conspired to bring about the lamentable failure of "selfgovernment" in ancient America the most general andcomprehensive was, of course, the impracticable nature of the system itself.In the light of modern culture, and instructed by history, we readily discernthe folly of those crude ideas upon which the ancient Americans based whatthey knew as "republican institutions," and maintained, as long asmaintenance was possible, with something of a religious fervor, evenwhen the results were visibly disastrous. To us of to-day it is clear that theword "self-government"involves a contradiction, forgovernment means control by something other than the thing to be...Ambrose Gwinnett Bierce was an American short story writer, journalist, poet, and Civil War veteran. Bierce's book The Devil's Dictionary was named as one of "The 100 Greatest Masterpieces of American Literature" by the American Revolution Bicentennial Administration.
