eurasia(优雷夏)-第15章
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dominating influence in human affairs and to give a fresh impetus to
human progress。 Of the great men that we class with him are the following：
Confucius； Buddha ； Julius Caesar； Oliver Cromwell； Abraham Lincoln。
The first thing he did when he became Emperor was to summon sixty of
the most liberal minded men and women in the empire to the palace to
draw up under his supervision a political； civil and penal code； which with
slight modification is in force at the present time； and he called all the
newspaper editors into conference and asked them to assist him in
promoting the welfare of the people and then he issued a decree granting
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EURASIA
liberty of speech and of the press throughout Eurasia； which he announced
as the name of the Empire in future； and the reason that he gave for it was
that his people were composed of a great many nationalities and by
dividing the empire into districts and numbering them in arithmetical order
he abolished the old political divisions and he also decreed that the present
language we speak should be the official language of the empire for the
ancient language of the ruling class had created a bitter feeling amongst
great numbers of the people and besides the present had become the
commercial language of the world。
〃He reorganized the Cabinet into fourteen departments and held the
Minister at the head of each department responsible。 He converted the
Army and Navy （who were eating up the hard…earned wages of the
working men and women of our land in idleness and dissipation）； into a
great industrial army and assigned them to work under the different
departments as they were required； weeding out the worthless and
reducing to the ranks all officers that conducted themselves in a manner
unbecoming a gentleman and by election of officers giving every soldier
equal opportunity to rise to the highest rank。 This great measure
eliminated the aristocracy in the Army and made the Emperor the idol of
the soldiers； so that from that time forward every effort of the aristocracy
to oppose the Emperor in giving to the country a Government by the
people was futile for the Army supported him with a force that was
irresistible。 He ordered the districts laid out according to latitude and
longitude； making due allowance for population； the smallest district being
one degree of latitude in breadth and two degrees of longitude in length；
and the largest （which were situated in the frozen regions of the Arctic or
in the great desert） five degrees of latitude in breadth and ten degrees of
longitude in length； and when they were surveyed he ordered that the land
should be assessed without improvements at its full value； and the owner
had to swear that he would sell to the Government the land at its assessed
valuation。
〃The aristocracy almost to a man swore to a low valuation； so when
five years had passed the Emperor issued a decree appropriating to
Government use all land over and above six hundred and forty acres held
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by private owners and paying for it one…fifth of the total assessment for the
previous five years with twenty per cent。 added for improvements； the
aristocracy had to accept it and their power was broken forever； for the
Emperor leased the land to the cultivators of the soil at the rate of four per
cent。 per annum of the price that the Government paid for the land；
dividing the land into small farms and giving the renter the right of
purchase at any time。
〃The aristocracy and the Church have been in every country the
enemies of liberty and human progress。 The Emperor saw the evil effects
of the liquor traffic and to abate the evil he abolished the manufacture and
sale of liquors by individuals and placed their manufacture and sale in the
care of the Department of Manufactures and year by year he added
tobacco； drugs and chemicals； sugar； salt； tea； coffee； coal oil； stone coal；
charcoal and all the metals； and placed the coinage and currency of the
Empire under the control of the Department of Finance known throughout
the world as the Bank of Eurasia。 He established our present system of
education and forbade the teaching of religious dogmas in the public
schools； and when every district in the Empire was surveyed and the
people thereof enjoyed a District Government by electing their Governors；
Judges and other public officials and the Government owned and operated
all public utilities； he decided that the time had arrived for a Government
of the people； for the people and by the people and called a general
election to elect members of Parliament and to submit to the people the
political； civil and penal code of the Empire。 The people by an
overwhelming vote ratified the code and endorsed the Government。 Four
years afterward the Emperor called a general election to choose his
successor and retired to private life； beloved by his people。
〃Your people had a President who gained worldwide fame not only by
the vigorous way that he wielded the Big Stick； but also through his
undaunted courage and inflexible honesty。 Place him again in the
Presidential chair and he will open the way for a government of the people；
for the people and by the people。〃
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