other rulers or imprisoned in other lands. Why have
the Serbians achieved freedom and the Montenegrins
preserved it? Still more important -- What is the legacy
of Serbian history? Does it offer hope for the future
and pronounce that the modern Serbian nation is qualified
to head a federation? History should throw flashes of
light on all these problems even if it does not solve
them.

The racial distribution of the Southern Slavs has
remained fairly constant since the twelfth century.
Conquerors have overrun all the Southern Slav lands,
have mingled their blood with the natives, and set up
their altars or their governments in their territories.
But though at certain points races have absorbed or
overwhelmed the Slavs, the main bulk of the population
has remained uniform in race though not in religion.
The five great divisions of the Jugo-Slav race are the
Serbo-Croats of Croatia, the Serbs of Dalmatia, the
Bosnians, Montenegrins, and the Serbians of Serbia
proper. ¹ All these races are enclosed within an area
which runs from the Tyrolese Alps on the west to the
Balkans on the east, and from the Adriatic coast on the
south to the Drave and Danube on the north. This
district forms a solid block of Jugo-Slav territory, which
includes five great rivers and five important mountain
ranges. These natural features have profoundly affected
history. Man is at the mercy of geography until he
can take liberties with nature. Therefore, until he could
tunnel mountains, dry up marshes, and render rivers
navigable, the unity of the Jugo-Slav race was an im-
practicable dream. A glance at the map will show that
the geographical unity of these lands has only become
possible within recent years.

To-day even natural barriers cannot destroy sympathy

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