The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-12-04

Affected by the War.
The ravages and terrors of the great COM
fiict now scourging Europe-for European 1t
Is and must be, In its widening consequences,
at ieast-suggest interesting and important
speculations regarding the probable effect that
the pending crisis will ultimately exert over
the ebb and flow of population. The German
papers on both sides Of the ocean are taking
up this subject, we perceive, and some of their
views regarding it are curious enough to invite
special reference. Oae opinion hclines to the
belief that this war will but increase the keen
desire Of the vast mass Of European toilers
to emgrate hereafter to lands where their
blood, labor and substance will no longer be
taxed SO enormously as they now are, and
must hereafter be, to carry out the ambi-
tious schemes Of rulers who make the
Earth their chessboard, and shape their dice
from human bones. Another opinion is that
the acquired glory of Germany, her censoli-
dated union and the grand destiny that seems
to await her, will, so far as that great country
Is concerned, attract thousands back to her
bosom who, in bygone years, had wandered
forth impelled by romantic lonsings for ad-
venture in new lands of whose luxuriant
beauty they had wonderingly heard at bone;
driven by the augusta res domi that chilled
their shelter and diminished their bread in the
fathers house, or urged by. the not unnatur al
yearning, even when absolute penury did not
Cypress them there, to win land and gold
where both could be obtained on easier con-
ditions than the Old World offered. To
America particularly thousands were at
tracted by real preference for free institu
tions and republican forms. But within the
last six months hosts of these have felt the
old pride end love for the land
of their birth revived by the stirring
news that each day has brought them. and
they would gladly returnscould they shape cir
cumstances to that end. That very many arc
now doing 80, and that others will do SO for
some time to come, cannot be doubted. II
remains for u.s. then, to consider how far this
reflex current will extend, and what its
influence in Europe will become.
The English, Irish and Scandinavian ele-
ments having little other convenient outlet
elsewhere will continue to flow hitherward.
and the returning French and Italians are
necessarily so few in number, from SO small an
aggregate with us, that we need hardly count
them. The German current, then, is the one
that chiefly challenges examination II is esti-
mated that Germany has, in killed and practi-
cally disabled for life, lost two hundred thou
sand of the very flower of her energetic, active
skilful artisans, along with large proportion
OF educated men engaged in various pursuits
of higher order-engineers, merchants, con-
structors, builders, agricultural overseers,
professionals, &C., &C., &c. AS the war con-
tinues with heavy fighting now, and more
anticipated, the general total of this species Of
depletion may be reasonably estimated at
three hundred thousand. Here is gap to be
filled, and by individuals of comparatively
superior class. Should the replacing quantity
flow. back from America something would have
to make up for it here, and that necessity
would draw in other outside quantities. But
we can hardly anticipate such revulsion
The vacancies in Germany would be filed
from other parts Of the Continent and, most
naturally, from coterminous countries. The
German speaking provinces of Austria and
Russia would be the nearer sources of supply.
History testifies with perfect distinctness
how. hitherto, these comparatively limited
causes have in little while set in motion vast
bodies and, at last, whole races of men. The
natural tendency of the human streamis from
the East toward the West and from the North
toward the South. Fresh and more fer
tile lands, more genial climates, mere
beautiful scenery were the first attrac-
tons, and then the charms Of settled
civilization magnetzed remote and say
age tribes and drew them toward the
threshold of light. Thus Asia came to pre-
cipitate itself upon Europe and in the long
lapse Of time Europe rushed in upon America.
Ever farther and farther westward the tide Of
empire has rolled until it has reached the
limits Of our Continent in one direction, and
now begins to overrun and spread on either
hand. As it advanced wars and devasta-
tons behind it made gaps in the rear that
had to be filled by fresh influx from the
general reservoir; as the Huns and Visigoths
swept down upon the Roman empire the
Seythian hordes pressed in behind them,
and thus, stage ny stage, the whole Orient
received an onward impulse in its farthest
recesses; as the Spaniards, English, Dutch
and French, in later ages, began to press
into the New World the races from beyond
the Danube and the Vistula advanced toward
the Rhine. We now suddenly find them, by the
tremendous weight of their vast Numbers
and close discipline, sweeping across that
boundary with resistless Juror and
overrunning all the region known as
France, but which, a year ago, might
well have been termed the Napoleonic Rome.