In Ys, the Council is not elected. Each Councillor is an ex officio representative of a particular interest group. The single "Labour Councillor," Nagon Demari, has organized a longshoreman's guild. I am not sure whether he represents Labour in general and has organized the longshoremen in particular or whether he has organized a guild and is therefore Labour Councillor.
Is it inevitable that such a character play a villainous role? Nagon tries to force the carters into his guild and eventually has someone killed. Expelled from Ys by Gratillonius, he joins with Roman officials conspiring against Gratillonius and makes these intersting observations:
"'Of course I want that brotherfucker dead. Of course I've thought about how to do it...
"'Bring [Ys] to Christ. Right. I'm taking Christian instruction, sir.'"
-Poul and Karen Anderson, Dahut, Chapter V, section 1, p. 107.
After Nagon's departure, Gratillonius wants the Nine to help with reconstructing the guild - but any guild must be independent of the rulers of Ys.
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
I thought the Suffetes of Ys were chosen by their clans or interest groups. Which makes that a kind of election. And Ys was a rather small city, after all, so it might not matter that much if they did not have formal elections.
And Gratillonius DID tolerate Nagon up to a point. It was when he went too far and started killing inconvenient persons that the King brought him to trial and eventual banishment from Ys. And SOME labor organizers, both here in the US and the UK go too far and become corrupt and violent.
Sean
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