# Democratic Ideals and Reality: A Study in the Politics of Reconstruction/Chapter 9

A
NOTE ON AN INCIDENT AT THE QUAI D'ORSAY
The representatives of the Allied Nations were assembled in the second plenary session of their Conference at Paris. A resolution was before them to appoint committees for the purpose of reporting on the proposed League of Nations and other matters. The constitution of the committees, giving two members to each of the five Great Powers (U.S.A., British Empire, France, Italy, Japan), and five members to the Smaller Powers collectively, had been settled by the Council of Ten, representing only the Great Powers, and this constitution was now brought up at the plenary session for endorsement. There was not unnaturally discontentment among the Smaller Powers. Sir Robert Borden, on behalf of Canada, asked by whom and on what authority the constitution of the committees had been decided; the question should have been submitted to the Conference. The delegates of Belgium, Brazil, Serbia, Greece, Portugal, Czecho-Slovakia, Rumania, Siam, and China rose in turn to claim special representation for their several countries. Then M. Clemenceau interposed from his presidential chair, where he sat between Mr. Wilson and Mr. Lloyd George. He pointed out that at the cessation of hostilities, the Great Powers had twelve million men on the field of battle; that they might have decided the future of the World on their own initiative; but that, inspired by the new ideals, they had invited the Smaller Powers to co-operate with them. The resolution was passed, nemine contradicente, without alteration.
Thus the rule of the world still rests upon force, notwithstanding the juridical assumption of equality between sovereign States, whether great or small. The theme of this book, that we must base our proposed League on Realities, if we would have it last, holds good. Let it be remarked, moreover, that ​ the number of the Great Powers—five— s precisely the total of the pre-war Dual Alliance (Triple only with Italy) and Triple Entente, whose hostility caused the War. It follows that we shall be able to maintain our League as long as the five Powers now allied, continue to agree. Their number is not sufficient to prevent a bid for predominance on the part of one or two of them. No doubt a new Germany and a new Russia will some day increase them to seven. Perhaps the Smaller Powers, taking note of the naked fact which was exposed by this incident, will set about federating among themselves. A Scandinavian group, a group of the Middle Tier of East Europe (Poland to Jugo-Slavia), and a Spanish South American group (if not also including Brazil) may all, perhaps, be attainable. In any case the League should do service in bringing the opinion of mankind to bear for the just revision of obsolescent treaties before they become unbearable misfits. But let us be rid of cant: Democracy must reckon with Reality.
B
ANALYSIS
BEING THE HEADS OF ARGUMENT IN THIS BOOK, WITH CHAPTER AND PAGE REFERENCES
I.—The Future and peace, 1; Causes of past wars, 2; Growth of opposing interests, 3; Danger of merely juridical conceptions of the League of Nations, 4; The possibility of a World-Tyranny, 5; The problem stated, 5.
II.—Democratic Idealism, its successive tragedies, 6, and its relation to Reality, 9; The Economic Reality of the 'Going Concern,' 10; The organisers of Going Concerns, 13; The emergence of organisers from Revolution, 14; The organiser and social discipline, 16; The great Organiser is the great Realist, 18; Democratic prejudice against Experts, 19; The organiser thinks strategically, 20; His 'ways and means' mind, 21; Napoleon, 21; Bismarck, 21; The strategical mentality of Prussia, 24; 'Kultur' and strategy, 24; The German war map, 26; Strategical thought in Economics, 29; But Democracy thinks ethically, 31; 'No annexations, no indemnities,' 33; ​Refuses to think strategically unless compelled to do so for defence, 35; Must fail unless it reckons with both geographical and economic Reality, 36.
III.—The Unity of the Ocean, the first geographical Reality, 38; The consequences not yet fully accepted, 40; Therefore necessary to take a historical view, 41; Contending river-powers in Egypt, 43; The Nile 'closed' by land-power, 44; Contending sea-powers in the Mediterranean, 44; The Mediterranean 'closed' by land-power, 54; The Latin Peninsula as a sea-base, 55; The encompassing of the World-Promontory by sea-power from the Latin peninsular base, 67; Division within the Latin European Peninsula, 69; Hence the opportunity for sea-power from the lesser but insular sea-base of Britain, 70; Of sea-bases in general, 76; Of sea-power in the Great War, 77; The World-Island, 81; The ultimate base of sea-power, 91/
IV.—The World-Island seen from within, 93; The Heartland physically defined, 96; The other Natural Regions, 98; The Arabian Centreland, 112; The mobile riders and the plough-men, 118; The Arab bid for World Empire, 119; The Steppes-belt, 122; The Tartar invasions and their consequences, 125; The Tibetan Heights and the N.W. entries to China and India, 129; The open access from the Heartland to Arabia and to Europe, 134; The Heartland strategically defined, 135; The Black Sea basin included, 136; The Baltic basin included, 140; The Heartland as real a physical fact as the World-Island, 143; The ultimate citadel of land-power, 143.
V.—The Cossack advance over the Heartland, 147; The Russian Homeland, sharply delimited, 148; The real Europe, 153; Divided into East and West Europe, 154; History of the relations of East and West Europe, 155; Their fundamental opposition, 160; Their essential difference, 161; German and Slav in East Europe, 162; Trafalgar seemed to split the stream of history into two for a century, 170; Britain and the Not-Europe, 171; But East Europe is really within the Heartland, and there were no two streams, 176; British and French policy agreed in the Nineteenth Century, 177; The Great War caused by German attempt to control East Europe and the Heartland, 178; The Economic Reality of organised man-power—the Going Concern, 179; Political Economy and National Economy, 180; The great Economic change of 1878, 181; The German policy was to stimulate growth of man-power and then use it ​to occupy the Heartland, 182; But Laissez-faire also a policy of Empire, 186; Clash of the two policies, 188; Inevitable from the fact that they were two Going Concerns, 189.
VI.—We have won the War, but were nearly defeated, 191; Had Germany won, if only on land, you would have had to reckon with a Heartland Empire, 193; The Heartland the persistent Geographical threat to World liberty, 194; How came Germany to make the mistake of offensive on West front, 198; Hamburg and the man-power policy, 199; We must now divide up East Europe and the Heartland, 200; It must be a division into three not two State-systems, 204; The peoples of the Middle Tier, 206; Feasibility of League of Nations, if this done, 215; But there must be no predominant partner, 217; Yet you will have to reckon with Going Concerns, 218; A reasonable equality of power needed among a considerable number of members of your League, 221; Of certain strategical positions of World importance, 223; The Going Concern in the future, and the unequal growth of Nations, 228; The ideal is the Independent Nation of balanced economic development, 228; Tragedies of the Going Concern, 231; The policy of truly free nations which makes for Peace, 234.
VII.—Whether men and women will be more free in such free Nations, 236; The need of basing organisation within the Nation on localities, 238; The alternative organisation is based on nation-wide classes and interests, 239; This leads inevitably to international war of classes, 239; Therefore the ideal is balanced provinces within balanced nations, 241; Such organisation gives greatest opportunity to greatest number of men, 242; Cause of Nationality movement, 245; Opposed to undue centralisation, 247; Fraternal nations must be balanced economically, and formed of fraternal provinces. 253; Fraternity, if it is to last, depends on controlling the development of Going Concerns, 261.
VIII.—The recent General Election, its meaning in a World setting, 263; Of the saving virtue of Neighbourliness, 266.