expends itself in the production of language, art or religion; frequently it shows itself too feeble to bring even these to any degree of perfection. The highest talent for political organization has been exhibited by the Aryan nations, and by these unequally. Those of them remaining in the Asiatic home have created no real states; and the European branches manifest great differences of capacity in this respect. The Celt, for instance, has shown almost none, the Greek but little, while the Teuton really dominates the world by his superior political genius. It is therefore not to be assumed that every nation must become a state. The political subjection or attachment of the unpolitical nations to those possessing political endowment appears, if we may judge from history, to be as truly a part of the course of the world's civilization as is the national organization of states. I do not think that Asia and Africa can ever receive political organization in any other way. Of course, in such a state of things, the dominant nation should spare, as far as possible, the language, literature, art, religion and innocent customs of the subject nation; but in law and politics it is referred wholly to its own consciousness of justice and expedience. Lastly, a nation may be divided into two or more states on account of territorial separation, as, for example, the English and the North American, the Spanish-Portuguese and the South American, and one of the results of this division will be the development of new and distinct national traits. From these reflections, I trust that it will be manifest to the mind of every reader how very important it is to distinguish clearly the nation, both in word and idea, from the state; preserving to the former its ethnic signification, and using the latter exclusively as a term of law and politics. 1 Bluntschli, Altasiatische Weltideen. CHAPTER II. THE PRESENT GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF NATIONS AND NATIONALITIES. When I MAKE the distinction indicated in the heading of the chap. ter between the distribution of nations and of nationalities in order to emphasize a very important difference. I speak of the distribution of nations, I refer to populations of different nationality occupying separate territories. When, on the other hand, I speak of the distribution of nationalities, I have in mind populations of different nationality scattered over the same territory. The political results of these two kinds of distribution are very different; and our political science will suffer confusion of thought unless we keep this distinction clearly in mind. I will not treat this topic universally, but only in its application to the states of Europe and to the United States; because, as I have before remarked, only Europe and North America have succeeded in developing such political organizations as furnish the material for scientific treatment, and though the subject be not one directly of political science, yet it is entirely in its relation to political science that it has interest for us. I. If we regard exclusively the reasons of physical geography, we ought to find nine national unities upon the territory to which we give the name of Europe. I do not speak of the "continent" of Europe, because Europe is really the great northwestern peninsula of the continent of Asia, and because I wish to include in the territory of Europe the Brit ish Islands. These geographical unities are none of them perfect, and they vary greatly in distinctness of boundary and in superficial extent. As the first and most perfect of these, I would designate the southwestern peninsula: bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the east; by the same, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Atlantic Ocean on the south; by the Atlantic Ocean on the west, and by the Bay of Biscay and the Pyrenees on the north; lying, we may roughly say, between longitudes 2o east and 9° west, and between latitudes 36° and 44° north; forming thus very nearly a square, and having a superficial area of about 230,000 square miles.1 As second, and next in the perfection of natural boundaries, I would put the islands lying between the North Sea, the English Channel, and the Atlantic Ocean; filling up about two-thirds of the surface between longitudes 2° east and 10° west, and latitudes 50° and 59° north, and having a superficial area of 120,832 square miles.2 The chief defect in the unity. of this territory is the separation of the large western island from the others by a body of water from ten to sixty miles in breadth, not a very serious break in itself considered, but one which, connected with other unfavorable conditions, is sufficient to throw many impediments in the way of an uniform and easy political development. Third, and next in the order of distinct natural boundary, I would place the territory lying between the Mediterranean Sea and the Pyrenees on the south, the Atlantic Ocean on the east, the English Channel and the North Sea on the north, and the Maritime and Cottian Vosges and the Ardennes on the east. is comprehended between longitudes 6o Alps, the Jura, the Roughly speaking, it east and 2° west, and 1 Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. XXII, Plate 6; Statesman's Yearbook, 1889, pp. 395 and 477. 2 Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. VIII, Plate 9; Statesman's Yearbook, 1889, p. 253. between latitudes 44° and 51° north, and has an area of about 220,000 square miles.1 The chief defect in this boundary is on the northeast, where, from the present city of Liége to the North Sea, there is no physical separation of the territory east and west, unless we take the course of the river Meuse. I believe that the geographers, the historians and the political scientists are now about agreed upon the proposition that rivers are not, as a rule, to be regarded as proper boundaries of geographic unities. They are the diameters and radii of such unities rather than the circumference. We must therefore consider the line from Liége to the North Sea whether following the line of longitude, or that of the shortest distance, or the curvatures of the Meuse -to be artificial. It is the open gateway between the lands of the south shore of the North Sea and the Baltic and those of the English Channel far to the south and west. Fourth, following still the order of geographic perfection, I would reckon the middle peninsula: bounded on the north, northeast and northwest, by the Alps; and on the east, south and west, by the branches of the Mediterranean. It lies obliquely across longitudes 7° and 18° east, and latitudes 37° and 47° north, and measures in square miles about 116,000.2 The principal defects in this territory as a geographic unity are, first, its great length as compared with its mean breadth, - it is more than seven hundred miles long, with an average width of about one hundred miles, second, the fact that the shoulder of the peninsula is almost cut from the arm by a range of mountains, the Apennines, having a mean elevation of about five thousand feet; and, third, the fact that the whole length of the peninsula is separated into a distinct east and west side by this same mountain range. These are 1 Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. VIII, Plate 9; Statesman's Yearbook, 1889, PP. 43 and 86. 2 Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. VIII, Plate 9; Statesman's Yearbook, 1889, pp. 356 and 521. serious defects. They have always exercised, and do still exercise, unfavorable influences upon the national development of the population inhabiting this, in many respects, highly favored land. Fifth, and next in the order of completeness in demarcation, I would place the eastern peninsula. It has a marine boundary on all sides except the north. On the north the line of the Balkans, running almost parallel with the latitude, furnishes a natural separation for about four-fifths of the distance from east to west. At the latter point it is lost in the transverse coast ranges. On the east, also, the narrowness of the straits separating it from Asia Minor is a great defect. The great topographical irregularity of this territory makes it impossible to fix upon any one or upon a few geographic centres. Its contour and formation are favorable to the development of numerous petty differences in nationality It is very difficult to fix its longitudinal and latitudinal position in general terms. We may help ourselves a little in the fixing of our conceptions by the general statement that it lies between 19° and 27° east longitude, and 37° and 42° north latitude.1 It has a superficial area of about 100,000 square miles.2 Sixth. The great northern peninsula has geographic isolation, if not geographic unity. Its boundary is one of nature upon all sides, except across its neck. Here an artificial line must be taken. It lies obliquely across the longitudes 5° and 25° east, and the latitudes 55° and 70° north. Its superficial area is about 300,000 square miles. It has no geographic centre. A long mountain range on the west coast, descending gradually into a long strip of low land on the east coast, is its general topographic feature. 1 Encyclopædia Britannica, Vol. VIII, Plate 9. |