New-York tribune., 1901-01-06
CIVIL HISTORY OF THE WORLD.
TWO WORDS cONsT77U71ONALIsM AND NATIONALLsN
BEST EPITOMIZE IT.

egnment In the last third Of the century. Swift
zerlan6, too, always democratic made from tlple
70 time material advances into. still greater lib
erality, and Austria and Hungary, the citdoeis
OF conservatism, put themselves IN llhe WIth
constitutional, parliamentary and popular ifis'i-
tutions
Within a decade after the colossal changes In
France and Germany. another great alteraa9qh
In the map of Europe was effected, In the soutn-
eastern corner. The early success OF greece III
throwing off the Ottoman yoke ana the occa-
sional raids of Russia into Turkish Territory IN
spired the non-Turkish peoples of the Balkan
Peninsula with the desire for free nationai inde-
pendsnce. Various successive steps In that 81
rection eliminated in the great conlcts OF lctt-
rs. which resulted in the parutionlng or tne
bulk of the Turkish Empire in Europe Inc
principallty OF Montenegro was ehiarseo anu an.
made independent Servia became a minor out
sovereign kingdom The Danublan provinces
Of Wallachia and Moldavia were raised from the
rank Of dependent principality to that OF the
Independent kingdom Of Rumania' now ranking
almost among the great Powers. Ine buigars
of Bulgaria and Eastern Rumelia had their ma
tional aspirations gratiied by erection into an
autonomous and all but independent prlnclpal-
ity. and. finally. Bosnia and Herzegovina were
practically added to the heterogeneous conserles
of tribes and nations and fragments OF forgotten
peoples which compose the Austrian Empire.
The closing years OF tae centufE saw 1as+ i,e ine
vested With a liberal constitution and made sub
stantialy an autonomous nation.
EUROPE is coNsT1TUTIoNALIzEp.
Thus. while in 1901 there was scarcely one free
constitutional nation in the whole continent Of
Europe the close of 1900 saw practically every
land west of the Baltic. the Vistula and the
Pruth enjoying that status There are, it is true,
Italia Irredenta and Rumania Trredenta. and
some ungratihed national aspirations IN 30
hemia and Croatia. an Irish faction would undo
the union Of a century sgo and Albania, Mace
6onia and Thrace are still subject to the Otto
horde. But these are insignificant details
Europe has as a whole. in these hundred years
become nationalized and constitutionalized west
of the Baltic. the Vstula and the Pruth. East
-1so-1 n sff0Va HNTE
Of the nineteenth century has been impotent.
Alexander Of the Holy Alliance was no more
resoutely opposed to constitutions and no more
regardless Of national aspirations than Nicholas
of the Peace Congress The opening years Of
the century saw Russia's SEIZURE Of Finland and
confirmation OF her grip on Poland The mid
century saw her eXtinguish the last remnant OF
Polish nationality The end of the century saw
her arbitrarily annulling the Finnish cohstitu-
tion and destroying all that was left Of Finnish
nationality. Republican or Cossack." said
Bcnaparte: or he is said to have said it. Re-
publican and Cossack is the fu!filment Of the
prophecy. West of the Baltic the Vistula and
the Pruth are nations with constitutions. East
Of that line is Car.
COLONIES GROW TO NATIONS.
Elsewhere in the world national forces have
been enhanced and constitutional influences
tended. Through alternations of anarchy and
empire Mexico has become great republic. The
benevolent constitutional empire of Brazil
has likewise been democrat caIly transformed.
America and some wastes Of untracked wilder
ness have been erected into a nation as great as
the United States was century ago. Australia.
little known save TO explorers in 1901 has entered
1901 an autonomous nation under a constitution
largely copied from own. South Africa was
century ago all but unknown land, save
within gunshot OF Simon's Bay, while to-day IL
is cluster Of populous and wealthy States, soon
10 be united in national dignity. Perhaps most
striking Of all has been the marvellous develop
ment of Japan. which began the century an un-
known hermit land, which in midcentury re-
!uctantly opened its doors and revealed itself far
more archaic than our legends OF the Middle
Ages. and which closes the century In the fore
front Of modern civilization constitutional
ism and popular sovereignty. It has compressed
into century that which 70 the rest Of the
world required millennium.
Such in brief outline has been the story of
the world in the nineteenth century. The vast
bulk or the civilized part of the human race has
been divided into nations, according not 20 the
seiflsh and arbitrary caprice Of despots but 10
the natural classthcations and predictions OF
the people, and these nations have been en-
nowed with constitutional governments. In such
achievements. such progress and such beneh-
cence to the civil welfare Of mankind the nine
teenth century stands alone, unique and unap-
pFoachabIe In that respect il is to be compared
las has well been said OF IL in other respects
not with any one other century. but with the
sum OF all centuries Of the Christian era IL not
time. w FIETCHFR JOrJNSOT