COMPOUND POLITICAL HEADS. 387 



the American Republic have similarly shown us this tendency 

 towards resumption of the primitive form of political organi 

 zation, when a decayed or otherwise incapable government 

 collapses. Obscured by complicating circumstances and 

 special incidents as these transformations were, we may 

 recognize in them the play of the same general causes. 



488. In the last chapter we saw that, as conditions deter 

 mine, the first element of the tri-une political structure may 

 be differentiated from the second in various degrees : begin 

 ning with the warrior-chief, slightly predominant over other 

 warriors, and ending with the divine and absolute king 

 widely distinguished from the select few next to him. By 

 the foregoing examples we are shown that the second element 

 is, as conditions determine, variously differentiated from the 

 third : being at the one extreme qualitatively distinguished 

 in a high degree and divided from it by an impassable barrier, 

 and at the other extreme almost merged into it. 



Here we are introduced to the truth next to be dealt with ; 

 that not only do conditions determine the various forms which 

 compound heads assume, but that conditions determine the 

 various changes they undergo. There are two leading kinds 

 of such changes those through which the compound head 

 passes towards a less popular form, and those through which 

 it passes towards a more popular form. We will glance at 

 them in this order. 



Progressive narrowing of the compound head is one of the 

 concomitants of continued military activity. Setting out 

 with the case of Sparta, the constitution of which in its early 

 form differed but little from that which the Iliad shows 

 us existed among the Homeric Greeks, we first see the 

 tendency towards concentration of power, in the regula 

 tion, made a century after Lykurgus, that &quot; in case the people 

 decided crookedly, the senate with the kings should reverse 

 their decisions ;&quot; and then we see that later, in consequence 

 of the gravitation of property into fewer hands, &quot; the number 



