A MAKER OF HISTORY.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1864, 25 September 1913, Page 6

A MAKER OF HISTORY.

Cecil Rhodes was evidently a strong believer in the " great man " theory of history, if we are to_ judge by the brief summary of. his biography, written by his confidential secretary, which appeared in our cable columns yesterday. The writer tells ub that Cecil Rhodes was haunted by the shades of Caesar, Napoleon, and Clive, and Miat ho thought he was like the IWiPEnoR Hadrian. There is no doubt a great deal to be said in favour of the view that history largely consists in tho thoughts and actions of great mon who aro often opoken of na the

makers of history. Cecil Rhodes himself was one of these, for the story of his life is to a very large extent thc_ story of the extension and consolidation of British rule in South Africa. Are not certain periods in the history of Rome, France, and India almost entirely covcrcd by the biographies of Caesar, Napoleon, and Clive? It is true that the "great man" idea of history is not an entirely satisfactory one, for it overshadows tho social life of the people as a whole—their manners and customs, the growth of civil and religious liberty, the spread of enlightenment, the distribution of wealth, and a hundred other things that are of fundamental importance in tho annals of every nation, though they may not make such interesting reading as what we call the great events of history. Tho clash of arms, tho meteoric careers of kings and statesmen, and the doings of supermen in other spheres of activity naturally strike tho imagination more forcibly than the slow evolution of tho social life, intellectual ideas, and political institutions of a nation. Yet from any point of view biography must always bo an important element in the history of a people, for it gives an insight into the inner life of tho men and women who do_ great things. Some people may think that the biographer of Cecil _ RnoDEg has overstepped the mark in putting on record the fact that "ho would cut great hunks of meat off a joint," and that "he liked champagne in a tumbler "; but a touch of this kind often giveß a better idea of certain aspects of a man's character than a whole chapter of detailed description of a more general kind. It is also interesting to know that he studied tho Meditations of Marcus Awrelius. the philosopher on the throne, who, wo aro toid, had no desire to become Emperor, but accepted the position from a sense of duty, and though he preferred tho peaceful life of the study, he spent hia days in commanding armies and making laws. A strong, impulsive man himself, it is easy to see why the South African nationmaker had a fellow feeling for the Emperor Hadrian, who was a strong ruler and a_ strict disciplinarian, though in his later life he often lost control of himself and was subject to outbursts of violence and brutality. Still ho was a great administrator in many respects, and greatness in almost every form always ap-' pealed to Cecil Rhodes.