Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1910-06-09

ence Of distinguished men and stu
dents Of Oxford university. Theodore
Roosevelt on June z delivered the
Romanes lecture, HIS subject being
Biological Analogies in History" The
lecture had been scheduled for delivery
on May Is. but of course was post
poned on account of King Edward g
demise. II was given in the Sheldon.
Ian theater and Lord Curzon, as chan.
cellor OF the university. presided and
introduced the lecturer.
In seeking to penetrate the causes
OF the mysteries that surround not
only mankind but all life, both in the
present and the past. said Mr.. Roose-
welt, We see strange analogies in the
phenomena OF life and death, OF birth
growth and change, between those
physical groups of animal life which
We designate as species. forms, races
and the highly complex and composite
entities which rise before our minds
when We speak OF nations and civil
lizations. II IL this study, he assert
ed. that has given science its present
day prominence, and the historian of
mankind must work in the scientific
spirit and use the treasure-houses OF
science.
To illustrate. the lecturer took sew
eral instances OF the development Of
new species and the extinction of spe-
cies In the history Of mammalian life,
showing that In some cases the causes
can be traced with considerable accu-
racy. and in other cases we cannot so
much az hazard a guess as to why .
given change occurred.
AnalooIss In Human History.
Continuing, Mr.. Roosevelt said in
part:
Now. as to all of these phenomena In the
evolution OF species. there are, II no,
homologies, at least certain snalogi~. in
tho history OF human socieT in the
history OF the rise to prou nence OF the
development and change. of the tenn
porary domino :. and death or trans
formation OF the groups OF varying kind
which -JIm races or nations.
= IN biology. so In human history, q
lew form may result from the SPECIALIZE
tion of a ong-existing and hitherto very
slowly-changing generalized or non
specialized form; as. for instance. when
a barbaric race from variety OF causes
suddenly develops a more complex cult
walton and civilization That is what oc-
CURED, for instance, in western Europe
during the centuries of the Teutonic and
later the Scandinavian ethnic overfiows
from the north. All the modern countries
OF western Europe are descended from the
states created by these northern invaders.
When first created they could be called
new" or young" states in the sense
that part or all OF the people composing
hnra
hitherto had not been civilized at all, and
that therefore for the first time entered
on the career OF civilized communities.
In the southern part OF western Europe
the new states thus formed consisted In
bulk OF the inhabitants already in the land
under the Roman empire: and II was
here that the new Kingdoms first took
shape. Through a reflex action their
influence then extended back into the cold |
forests from which the invaders had come,
and Germany and Scandinavia witnessed |
the rise Of communities with essentially |
the same civilization as their southern |
nelghbors; though in those communities,
unlike the southern communities. there |
was no infusion OF new blood. and In each |
'ase the new civilized nation which gradu-
ally developed was composed entirely Of |
members OF the same race which in the |
same region had for ages lived the life of
! slowly changing barbarism. The same
was true of the Slavs and the Slavonized
Firms OF eastern Europe. when an infil-
ration OF Scandinavian leaders from the
lorth and infiltration OF Byzantine
culture from the south Joined to produce
he changes which have gradually, out OF
he little Slav communities of the forest
md the steppe. formed the mighty Russian
umpire OF today.
New" and "Youna" Nations.
Again. the new form may represent
merely a splitting of from a long-e.tab-
ished. highly developed and specialized
iation. In this case the nation Is usually
poken OF as young" and is correctly |
poken OF as new" ~ation; but the 1
ERIN should always be used with a clear
ense OF the difference between what 4.
described In such case, and what 4. de-
cribed by the same term in speaking OF
civilized nation just developed from a
srbarism. Carthage and Syracuse were
ew cities compared with Tyre and Cor
nth; but The Greek or Phoenician race was
. every sense OF the word as old In the |
ew city as in the old city So. nowadays
'ictoria or Manitoba Is a new community
with England or Scotland. but |
he ancestral type OF civilization and cuI-
ure Is as old In one case as In the other
OF course do not mean for a moment |
hat great changes are not produced NV |
he mere fact that the old civilized race
J suddenly placed in surroundings where
mas again to go through the work Of |
aiming the Wilderness a work finished
lany centuries before in the original
ONE OF the race: / merely mean that
ne ancestral history is the same in each |
hse. We can rightly use the phrase "a
ew people in speaking OF Canadians
: Australians, Americans or Afrika nders
mt We use II in an entirely different
ense from that In which we use n when |
peaking Of such communities as those
FUNDED by the mortimer and their de-
during that period OF astonisb-
~ growth which saw the descendants ~
Re Morse sea-thieves conquer and trans I
'rm Normandy, Sicily. and the British !
lands: we use IL I'm an entirely different
'nse from that In which we use II when |
'eaking OF the new states that grew I'm I
round Warsaw. klef Novgorod and 8
oscow. as the wild savages OF tho ;
eppes and the marshy forests struggled /
altingly and stumblingly upward 10 T
scome builders OF cities and TO form a
able governments. rhe Kingdoms OF
harlemagne and Alfred were new" c
impaired with the empire on the Ros $
iorus; they were also in every way dif- c
rent; their lines OF ancestral descent had
'thing In common with those OF the Il
'iyglot realm which paid tribute 10 IN. =
aesars OF Byzantium: their social nroh- n
ms and aftertime history were totally i
nerent. This is not true OF those s'neu" ii
'uons which spring direct from old ma 8