The Progress of the World. 499 



not been due in the ^first instance to any real and living ideals. There is in 

 compulsory service, or to the merits of the great, rich, and comfortable peoples 

 French as against German guns, or too little of that sentiment which in- 

 anything else save the fact that the spired the people of the Balkans, and 

 entire population of the different States which was well expressed in the words 

 was actuated and illuminated by an of the young Servian student going to 

 intense realisation of national and racial battle when he said : " We undertook 

 ideas, and filled with an intense and this war with the firm determination 

 burning determination to realise tradi- ' to be or not to be ! ' " Turkey may 

 tional and cherished ideals. Had there cease to be a European Power ; Euro- 

 not been a Bulgarian, Servian, and pean Turkey may be divided in one way 

 Christian population in the Turkish or another ; the Great Powers may 

 provinces who had suffered for years endeavour to intervene, they may even 

 under oppression, and who in suffering succeed ; but it has been proved beyond 

 had brought home those sufferings to all question, and for all time, that small 

 their co-nationals living in liberty only peoples with great ideals are able to 

 a few scores of miles away across an accomplish greater things than great 

 artificial frontier, there would have been peoples with small or no ideals, 

 no such series of sweeping victories as That bugbear of Euro- 

 has electrified the world during the last ^j^^ Partition of P^^^ Chancelleries for 

 few weeks. " All that we are is a result Turkey. generations, the division 

 of what we have thought," and the of the European pos- 

 nations of the Balkan League to-day sessions in Turkey, is about to take 

 have thought of great things. Great place without any of the world con- 

 generals and statesmen do not spring up vulsions which were so confidently 

 haphazard, they are the culminating predicted by all and sundry. The 

 point of genius, nurtured and made Balkan League, secure in its great 

 fruitful by an atmosphere of national success, is going to proceed to re- 

 idealism and national determination, arrange the geography of South-Eastern 

 It is thus that Japan produced great Europe without any disputes, without 

 generals, and that Bulgaria and Servia any conferences, and without any inter- 

 have found in their time of need not ference. The word of the moment is 

 only Gueshoff and Pachitch, but also " Hands Off." The Powers let the 

 those generals who have led their Balkan League go to war, they cannot 

 victorious armies ever forward, almost help themselves from letting the Balkan 

 without check. Ideals make even poor League make peace. Happily the divi- 

 nations great, prosperity and riches in sion of Turkey is all cut and dried, 

 too many cases seem to make for the spheres of interest are defined, 

 losing of every ideal. A prominent and, although success beyond antici- 

 Japanese statesman, when revisiting pation may mean something more to 

 Europe after an absence of some ten divide, there is no reason to believe 

 years, summed up his impressions by in any serious possibility of trouble, 

 observing that he was most struck in The divisions will follow ethnographical 

 all the great nations by the absence of lines, and as far as possible the new 



