The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1914-08-06

DclOiS HdSS anu TellSlOuS men huSW
friend from foe by the language test.
More than half of all the wars of Eu-
rope have been fought by parties mu-
tually unintelligible.
Broadly speaking, all European lam
guages belong to the Aryan group.
The most important exception is the
Magyar, a dialect of the same Ian
guage spoken by Turks and Firms.
How Divided by Language.
OF the Aryan tongues there are three
great general divisions in Europe-Ro-
nance, Teutonic, Slavic. We are in
terested only in the latter two. And
of the Teutoric German is spoken by
$4,000, 900, of which 10, 000, 900 are in
Austria and 1000, 900 in Hungary.
There are 400 0 0 900 Slavs In Eu-
rope.
From this it appears that the pres
ent political boundaries are not coter.
minous with linguistic groups.
Right here in this fact we have the
seeds of present and future trouble
and a clue to the causes Of most of
the wars in eastern Europe through
1000 years.
Siav Situation in Europe.
To get before US the full signiti-
canoe of the fact suggested by the
map let us consider the linguistic com
plexion of these countries.
Russia is a veritable ~hodgepodge of
tongues, but of her Slav population
alone we have at least two distinct
elements today bitterly opposed to
each other with the possibility, if not
the probability, Of a third, which will
seek recognition.
AS against Russians proper there
are over 10000, 900 Poles, and of the
remaining Slavs there are 5000, 900
R~uthenians, or Little or White Rus
slams, as they are sometimes called.
OF the general Polish situation | shall
speak later.
In Germany there are over 100000
Slavs, chiefly Polish.
Of Austria's 3O,000,000 population
only about a third is German, the re-
mainder being Slav, of which there are
over 5000, 900 Czechs or Bohemians,
5000, 600 Poles, 3,500,O 900 R%uthenians,
and a million and a quarter Slovenes.
Many Tongues in Hungary.
Hungary is even more diversified
in tongue. The Magyar element
10000, 000) is equaled by the non
Magyar made up roughly of 100000
Germans, 1000, 600 Slovaks, one-half
a Million Ruthenes, 5000, coo Serbo.
Creates, all of the Slavonic tongue,
and about 5000, 900 Roumanians who
do not speak Slav at all, but a Ro-
nance language.
We need not here consider the lin
guistic affinities of the Balkan states.
1t is enough to say that Servia is pure
ly Servian and Slav, Bulgaria is Bull
gar and Slav Though the basis of
blood of Bulgars is, like that of the
Magyar, Asiatic).
The population of Montenegro, about
half a million, are Slavs of the Ser
Wan branch. Roumanians are of
mixed origin, but the Roumanian
tongue is SpOhcu ny lS,VVO,oVo Fcopic,
of which five and a half million are
in Roumania COZ per cent Of its total
p%opulation), the remaining millions
are found in the Dual Monarchy. Ser
via, Bulgaria and Russia.
People Develop Languages.
Millions of people today speak Pol
ish whose ancestors a few generations
ago weren't conscious Of the fact that
they spoke any language at all. To
day there is a Slavonic literature:
80 years ago no one even thought of
such a thing. The millions of Bohe-
mians had become almost entirely Ger
mans, and never before have they
been so thoroughly Slavonic as today.
Bohemian hostility to Germany has
been called a passion. 1t was not so
very long ago that the language of
the Hungarian parliament was Latin;
Magyar was held fit only for peasant
talk. Today the bitterness between