heretics-第42章

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but　their　energies　and　atmospheres　run　distinct　and　parallel；



and　consequently　do　not　clash。　　Scotland　continues　to　be　educated



and　Calvinistic；　England　continues　to　be　uneducated　and　happy。



But　owing　to　certain　other　Moral　and　certain　other　political　causes；



two　nations　may　be　so　united　as　only　to　hamper　each　other；



their　lines　do　clash　and　do　not　run　parallel。　　Thus；　for　instance；



England　and　Ireland　are　so　united　that　the　Irish　can



sometimes　rule　England；　but　can　never　rule　Ireland。



The　educational　systems；　including　the　last　Education　Act；　are　here；



as　in　the　case　of　Scotland；　a　very　good　test　of　the　matter。



The　overwhelming　majority　of　Irishmen　believe　in　a　strict　Catholicism；



the　overwhelming　majority　of　Englishmen　believe　in　a　vague　Protestantism。



The　Irish　party　in　the　Parliament　of　Union　is　just　large　enough　to　prevent



the　English　education　being　indefinitely　Protestant；　and　just　small



enough　to　prevent　the　Irish　education　being　definitely　Catholic。



Here　we　have　a　state　of　things　which　no　man　in　his　senses　would



ever　dream　of　wishing　to　continue　if　he　had　not　been　bewitched



by　the　sentimentalism　of　the　mere　word　〃union。〃







This　example　of　union；　however；　is　not　the　example　which　I　propose



to　take　of　the　ingrained　futility　and　deception　underlying



all　the　assumptions　of　the　modern　practical　politician。



I　wish　to　speak　especially　of　another　and　much　more　general　delusion。



It　pervades　the　minds　and　speeches　of　all　the　practical　men　of　all　parties；



and　it　is　a　childish　blunder　built　upon　a　single　false　metaphor。



I　refer　to　the　universal　modern　talk　about　young　nations　and　new　nations；



about　America　being　young；　about　New　Zealand　being　new。　　The　whole　thing



is　a　trick　of　words。　　America　is　not　young；　New　Zealand　is　not　new。



It　is　a　very　discussable　question　whether　they　are　not　both　much



older　than　England　or　Ireland。







Of　course　we　may　use　the　metaphor　of　youth　about　America　or



the　colonies；　if　we　use　it　strictly　as　implying　only　a　recent　origin。



But　if　we　use　it　（as　we　do　use　it）　as　implying　vigour；　or　vivacity；



or　crudity；　or　inexperience；　or　hope；　or　a　long　life　before　them



or　any　of　the　romantic　attributes　of　youth；　then　it　is　surely



as　clear　as　daylight　that　we　are　duped　by　a　stale　figure　of　speech。



We　can　easily　see　the　matter　clearly　by　applying　it　to　any　other



institution　parallel　to　the　institution　of　an　independent　nationality。



If　a　club　called　〃The　Milk　and　Soda　League〃　（let　us　say）



was　set　up　yesterday；　as　I　have　no　doubt　it　was；　then；　of　course；



〃The　Milk　and　Soda　League〃　is　a　young　club　in　the　sense　that　it



was　set　up　yesterday；　but　in　no　other　sense。　　It　may　consist



entirely　of　moribund　old　gentlemen。　　It　may　be　moribund　itself。



We　may　call　it　a　young　club；　in　the　light　of　the　fact　that　it　was



founded　yesterday。　　We　may　also　call　it　a　very　old　club　in　the　light



of　the　fact　that　it　will　most　probably　go　bankrupt　to…morrow。



All　this　appears　very　obvious　when　we　put　it　in　this　form。



Any　one　who　adopted　the　young…community　delusion　with　regard



to　a　bank　or　a　butcher's　shop　would　be　sent　to　an　asylum。



But　the　whole　modern　political　notion　that　America　and　the　colonies



must　be　very　vigorous　because　they　are　very　new；　rests　upon　no



better　foundation。　　That　America　was　founded　long　after　England



does　not　make　it　even　in　the　faintest　degree　more　probable



that　America　will　not　perish　a　long　time　before　England。



That　England　existed　before　her　colonies　does　not　make　it　any　the　less



likely　that　she　will　exist　after　her　colonies。　　And　when　we　look　at



the　actual　history　of　the　world；　we　find　that　great　European　nations



almost　invariably　have　survived　the　vitality　of　their　colonies。



When　we　look　at　the　actual　history　of　the　world；　we　find；　that　if



there　is　a　thing　that　is　born　old　and　dies　young；　it　is　a　colony。



The　Greek　colonies　went　to　pieces　long　before　the　Greek　civilization。



The　Spanish　colonies　have　gone　to　pieces　long　before　the　nation　of　Spain



nor　does　there　seem　to　be　any　reason　to　doubt　the　possibility　or　even



the　probability　of　the　conclusion　that　the　colonial　civilization；



which　owes　its　origin　to　England；　will　be　much　briefer　and　much　less



vigorous　than　the　civilization　of　England　itself。　　The　English　nation



will　still　be　going　the　way　of　all　European　nations　when　the　Anglo…Saxon



race　has　gone　the　way　of　all　fads。　　Now；　of　course；　the　interesting



question　is；　have　we；　in　the　case　of　America　and　the　colonies；



any　real　evidence　of　a　moral　and　intellectual　youth　as　opposed



to　the　indisputable　triviality　of　a　merely　chronological　youth？



Consciously　or　unconsciously；　we　know　that　we　have　no　such　evidence；



and　consciously　or　unconsciously；　therefore；　we　proceed　to　make　it　up。



Of　this　pure　and　placid　invention；　a　good　example；　for　instance；



can　be　found　in　a　recent　poem　of　Mr。　Rudyard　Kipling's。　Speaking　of



the　English　people　and　the　South　African　War　Mr。　Kipling　says　that



〃we　fawned　on　the　younger　nations　for　the　men　that　could　shoot　and　ride。〃



Some　people　considered　this　sentence　insulting。　　All　that　I　am



concerned　with　at　present　is　the　evident　fact　that　it　is　not　true。



The　colonies　provided　very　useful　volunteer　troops；　but　they　did　not



provide　the　best　troops；　nor　achieve　the　most　successful　exploits。



The　best　work　in　the　war　on　the　English　side　was　done；



as　might　have　been　expected；　by　the　best　English　regiments。



The　men　who　could　shoot　and　ride　were　not　the　enthusiastic　corn



merchants　from　Melbourne；　any　more　than　they　were　the　enthusiastic



clerks　from　Cheapside。　　The　men　who　could　shoot　and　ride　were



the　men　who　had　been　taught　to　shoot　and　ride　in　the　discipline



of　the　standing　army　of　a　great　European　power。　　Of　course；



the　colonials　are　as　brave　and　athletic　as　any　other　average　white　men。



Of　course；　they　acquitted　themselves　with　reasonable　credit。



All　I　have　here　to　indicate　is　that；　for　the　purposes　of　this　theory



of　the　new　nation；　it　is　necessary　to　maintain　that　the　colonial



forces　were　more　useful　or　more　heroic　than　the　gunners　at　Colenso



or　the　Fighting　Fifth。　　And　of　this　contention　there　is　not；



and　never　has　been；　one　stick　or　straw　of　evidence。







A　similar　attempt　is　made；　and　with　even　less　success；　to　represent　the



literature　of　the　colonies　as　something　fresh　and　vigorous　and　important。



The　imperialist　magazines　are　constantly　springing　upon　us　some



genius　from　Queensland　or　Canada；　through　whom　we　are　expected



to　smell　the　odours　of　the　bush　or　the　prairie。　　As　a　matter　of　fact；



any　one　who　is　even　slightly　interested　in　literature　as　such　（and　I；



for　one；　confess　that　I　am　only　slightly　interested　in　literature



as　such）；　will　freely　admit　that　the　stories　of　these　geniuses　smell



of　nothing　but　printer's　ink；　and　that　not　of　first…rate　quality。



By　a　great　effort　of　Imperial　imagination　the　generous



English　people　reads　into　these　works　a　force　and　a　novelty。



But　the　force　and　the　novelty　are　not　in　the　new　writers；



the　force　and　the　novelty　are　in　the　ancient　heart　of　the　English。



Anybody　who　studies　them　impartially　will　know　that　the　first…rate



writers　of　the　colonies　are　not　even　particularly　novel　in　their



note　and　atmosphere；　are　not　only　not　producing　a　new　kind



of　good　literature；　but　are　not　even　in　any　particular　sense



producing　a　new　kind　of　bad　literature。　　The　first…rate　writers



of　the　new　countries　are　really　almost　exactly　like　the　second…rate



writers　of　the　old　countries。　　Of　course　they　do　feel　the　mystery



of　the　wilderness；　the　mystery　of　the　bush；　for　all　simple　and　hones