The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1903-10-15

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only have taken place when the clan or
tribe commenced to make slaves of the
vanquished, instead of exterminating
them all. There was no time for the
something had to be done with the
slaves, and as they could not be relied
upon in battle, they were utilized to till
the soil. In this way it came about
that each successful clan established
for itself some tribal seat, some loca-
tion in natural stronghold, surround
ed by fertile fields in which a village
could be established and the ground
titled without too great danger from
enemies. Thus the nucleus of home
life was established. And as commun-
al life become habitual, some sort Of
tribal government, other than the des-
potic rule of the strongest, was neces-
sary. So the germ of the patriarchal
system was evolved.
With village life came decided ad
vance towards altruism. It necessi-
tated that all should give and take in
spirit of good will. A tribesman, no
matter how powerful he might be in
battle, had to curb his selfish desires in
the village when they conflicted with
the desires of the rest of the COM
munity.
The essential factor of progress is
discipline, either military or social, and
this was supplied to the early races of
men by warfare. The tribe with the
best disciplined warriors, the one in
which individuality was preserved and
yet whose combined forces fought, if
need be, like one man, was certain to
conquer the more loosely disciplined
enemy; and SO through this process of
natural selection the cause of civiliZae
tion has been steadily advanced. Men
who would obey their leaders in the
field would be most likely to yield obed-
ience to the communal authorities and
to curb their egoism in the village.
It was through warfare also that the
primitive clan was enabled to come in
contact with other more or less distant
clans, and as the most advanced people
were usually the ultimate victors, it
followed that the conquered were
forced to assimulate the customs and
habits of the conquerors and thus un-
Willingly advance toward the goal OF
civilization. This was true in a marked
degree when the conquerors assimilated
the conquered and accepted them as
new members of the tribe or nation
Rome furnishes a striking illustration
of this. AS the conquered barbarians
were subdued and brought under the
Roman yoke, they were gradually &C.
cepted as Roman citizens and derived
the benefits of the Roman civilization
Even at4his late date, the working
of this tumultous leaven, war, is not
iceable. The revivifying influence Of
the Spanish-American war upon Spair
herself can scarcely be estimated, while
Porto Rico and the Philippines will
unquestionably profit 10y it in the fu
} ture. We all know how it infused new
} life and spirit into this country. And
| to cite another case, l venture to pre-
: dict that the Transvaal states will
, make greater progress in ten years un
der English rule than they did un
J der the Beers during the entire exist
ence of the republics. Much might b.
said on this subject, but space prevent
my boring The MIRRORS readers will
: elaborate details regarding the benefit
> warfare has conferred on the human
t race. Enough has been said, even il
this sketehy paper, to show that it ha
been, and sometimes stills, factor il
3 human progress.
: AS we have seen, the great character
3 istic of civilization is the progress from
| egoism to altruism-to the partial real
' ization of the truth that the interest
Q of all mankind are one and the same
: That we have reached the stage wher
f we can even -dimly appreciate this,
: due to commercial energy more tha
;. to any other cause. Through the pas
q sionate desire to trade here, there an
: everywhere, the most isolated portion
of the globe have been brought in cor
{ tact with the centers, and because of i
: war, having very largely served il
o predestined purpose, is slowly but SURE
s ly dying outifor good and all.
Stephenson and Fulton undoubtedl
d did more 10 enable men to prOgres