a clear break from the European tradition. Though Anglo-Saxon in language and origin, they may now be regarded as 'American' as distinct from 'English' in type. This form of civilisation may roughly be designated 'Anglo-American'. Into the midst of this United States' equation, there has been taken one vast insoluble quantity,—the Negro, with his vigorous powers of reproduction. Unless amalgamation takes place, this factor will be an increasing hindrance to national unification; for the negro population will spread more rapidly than that of the white who is American-born.
The civilisation which pervades the centre and south, may be termed 'Latin-American' as distinct from that of the United States. It draws its origin from the Roman Catholic countries of Spain and Portugal on the one hand, and from the indigenons peoples who survived the cruelties of European conquest on the other. The racial problem in this area has been partly solved by inter-mixture, and though the climatic conditions are in most parts a bar to rapid and vigorous progress, yet a considerable advance has been made. Educational and other reforms have been recently brought about and the future is not without hope. The opening of the Panama Canal will increase communication and trade facilities, and this will help to bring these countries into closer contact with the modern world. It is possible also that there may come, with the advance of education, a further liberalising of religion.
The reflex action of the East upon America will increase in power and intensity in future years. There is here the possibility of serious conflicts of interests and clashings of ideals. The West that meets the East on this side of the world, will be the young and eager West of the forward march of the United States and Canada, not the older and more settled West that Asia already knows from European contact. No one can yet predict what consequences this may have upon the history of the world. One thing, however, may be predicted with some certainty. China and Japan will not be the only powers in Asia to feel this impact. Its effects will be felt in India also; and India by her thought, and culture, if not in more material ways, will have her own contribution to give to this new world problem.
THE SKELETON
A Short Story.
(From the Bengali of Ravindra Nath Tagore).
A whole human skeleton used to hang against the wall of the room adjacent to the one in which we slept as boys. The bones, shaken by the wind, used to produce a rattling noise at night. In the day time we boys had to handle the bones. In those days we used to study Meghnadbadh[1] under a pandit and a student of the Cambell Medical School gave us lessons in Anatomy. Our parents had the ambition of turning us into masters of various branches of knowledge all at once. It is needless to tell our friends how far that ambition has been realised:—and as regards strangers, we prefer to maintain a discreet silence.
Years have passed since. In the meantime, the skeleton from the room and the knowledge of Anatomy from our brains have disappeared and any search for their present whereabouts would be entirely infructuous.
Owing to a sudden household emergency a few days ago, I had to pass a night in that room. I could not sleep in this unaccustomed place and lay tossing about, for a long time during which the neighbouring church-clock finished striking all the longish hours of the evening, one after another. In a corner of the room, the flame of the lamp after gasping for about five minutes, went
- ↑ Meghnadbadh—the best epic poem in modern Bengal.
