The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-11-03
The Nationali,ies Question in Europe.

The Nationalitios Question in Europe.
On no subject in modern times has there
been SO much sense and 80 much nonsense
spoken and written as on what, for the sake Of
distinctness, we may call the nationalities
question in Europe. This question, though
not exactly new, has been held 90 prominently
before the public mind of the world since 1852
that the presumption is that history will iden-
tify it with the name of Napoleon the Third
and with the Second French Empire. More than
any other it has been the European question
for the last sixteen years.
What, then, is this question Of nationalities?
Briefly, in its popular and governmental &C
ceptation, it amounts to this-that peoples
Identical in their origin and revealing charac-
teristics peculiar to race should be regarded
in the light Of q nation and entitled to a ma
tons privileges. This doctrine in its applica-
ton has begotten, not illogically, results the
| most diverse and apparently contradictory. It
has, for example, swept out Of existence all
the petty kingdoms and duchies of Italy, and,
with the single exception Of ths domains Of
the Pope, It has given the italian PENN
sula to the Italians. 1t has produced
similar fruit in Germany. For the first
time in many generations Germany, under the
lead Of Prussia, has become a unit in fact, not
in name merely. The unidcation in Germany
has not as yet become so complete as it is in
Italy; but the tendency towards complete unfit
cation is, If possible, more decided in the
former than in the latter. These are the most
| striking examples Of the success of this doc
trine. But the principle Is at work elsewhere.
1t Is firing the hearts Of every Slavic people in
the northeast Of Europe, and it is now all but
| universally believed that II Russia is not to
receive within her wide embrace the entire
Slavonic family new kingdom or empire
must spring up on the banks of the Danube.
| To the south of the Balkan range the principle
is equally active The Christians of that por-
ton of the Turkish empire, proud of their
| Grecian origin and impatient Of the DONNA
ton Of foreign race, long and labor and pray
for the reunion of their entire people and the
establishment Of State worthy of their num-
bers and their ancient renown. The principle
L
annexation Of Belgium "a well as encroach-
ments on the Rhine. It is not powerful, but it
is not wholly inactive in Spain and Portugal;
and II Is not improbable that It may reveal its
strength at no distant day by giving unity to
tho whole peninsula.
| IN all those cases the nationality principle
has led to the extinction Of petty governments
and to the agglomeration Of States. The
| result has been unifcation, and uni6cation,
if not forced. must be accepted as gain
to humanity. Uniication, however, is not
always the fruit of this principle. In
some quarters IL tears asunder with a
violence even more fierce than that with
which elsewhere it strives to unite. To the
government Of Queen Victoria it has proved
as great an inconvenience as IL has been found
convenience by Victor Emanuel of Italy and
William of Prussia. The Irish people, claim
! ing to be of different race to their neighbors
across the channel, insist on their rights as
nationality-which means, Of course, the es-
tablishment of on Irish kingdom or Of an Irish
| republic. II has worked and it Is still working
destruction In Austria. It has already rent
the empire Of the Hapsburgs in twain. Hun
gary, although she calls Francis Joseph King,
has practically severed herself from the empire.
What Hungary has won Galicia and Bohemia
seek to acquire. The result in Austria has
been, not unity and autonomy, but dualism; and
dualism threatens to become pluralism, which
means the Acknowledgement and destruction Of
the empire. The fruit of the nationality doc
trine has thus not been an unmixed good.
If it has been the occasion Of joy it has also
been the occasion Of sorrow. II it continues
to work as actively in the early future as it has
done in the Immediate past It win completely
transform the map Of Europe; but 1t win still
be question whether the Transformation will
be Q gain to civilization. Inasmuch as ma
tionalties are not all equally strong, there will
still be weak governments, and time win be
requisite to prove whether the weak will be
more gently dealt with by the strong under the
new condition Of things than they were under
the old.
Much as this doctrine has accomplished In
Europe, and much as it may yet accomplish, il
would not be difficult to show that 1t rests on
no solid foundation, that community of reli-
gion and language has more to do with the
desire for autonomy than identity Of race, and
that the nationality doctrine has been and
that it is likely to remain rather useful in
strument in the hands Of designing rulers than
source Of substantial good to the peoples. II
is well that Italians should have Italy. II Is
well tn, ,.. Germany should be unit. II is well
that Hungary and lr,',.,, md should be free. But
when we look to the exampr, It the United
States, where all nationalities, as aliooss an
religions, live and thrive together, we ars
tempted to ask the question whether there is
not, after all, very nearly as much nonsense as