You do realise this was all back before telegraph and airplanes, right?

The reason mayors helm more wight back then was 'cause it was a a bitch to take things to higher levels. Plus, mob mentality and everything. Plus, the process of being handed to the next guy up? It's called bureaucracy and people aren't too fond of it. And asking people to calm down is usually what others do to avoid getting sued 'cause of something they did (usually wrong) Since the guy in question might have connections on a local level (he might be that plantation owner who owns everything and everyone), they'd have to take it up another level. 'Course now EVERYONE is in someone's pocket one way or another (even if we don't know it), the process has just become crap in general.

Oh, and don't give me that "it's never been truly tried" crap. They said the same thing about Leninist Russia too.