Spread of English-Speaking Peoples 21 



Nevertheless, when, in the sixteenth century, the 

 European peoples began to extend their dominions 

 beyond Europe, England had grown to differ pro- 

 foundly from the Germanic countries of the main- 

 land. A very large Celtic element had been intro- 

 duced into the English blood, and, in addition, there 

 had been a considerable Scandinavian admixture. 

 More important still were the radical changes 

 brought by the Norman conquest ; chief among them 

 the transformation of the old English tongue into 

 the magnificent language which is now the common 

 inheritance of so many widespread peoples. Eng- 

 land's insular position, moreover, permitted it to 

 work out its own fate comparatively unhampered 

 by the presence of outside powers; so that it devel- 

 oped a type of nationality totally distinct from the 

 types of the European mainland. 



And this is not foreign to American history. 

 The vast movement by which this continent was 

 conquered and peopled can not be rightly understood 

 if considered solely by itself. It was the crowning 

 and greatest achievement of a series of mighty 

 movements, and it must be taken in connection with 

 them. Its true significance will be lost unless we 

 grasp, however roughly, the past race-history of the 

 nations who took part therein. 



When, with the voyages of Columbus and his 

 successors, the great period of extra-European col- 

 onization began, various nations strove to share in 

 the work. Most of them had to plant their colonies 

 in lands across the sea; Russia alone was by her 



