THE MIGRATION OF POPULATIONS 85
spirit. For example, an aggressive nation will often
persuade itself—really or apparently—that its domination
 over others, even by armed threats or by war,
will advance the culture of the subjugated peoples.
It will perhaps do this even while arguing that all
relations between nations are necessarily a-moral, and
that “force” is that which must and which ought to
decide all issues.
Again, a supposed democratic people, occupying a
relatively empty country, may often violently oppose
the immigration of peoples who are prepared to work
harder, and to live more thriftily and humbly. Such
an attitude may also attempt to mask itself by a profession
 of patriotism. In reality attitudes such as
these need to be dissected for motives; they are not
always what they seem to be on the surface; and, too,
they may ultimately lead to unexpected issues, which
are likely to fall not always upon those that develop
them, but upon their unfortunate descendants.
To some extent, it may be, Man is involved in
conflict, partly through the niggardliness of Nature.
Whenever it is realised that the ultimate issue, as
between two communities, is necessarily the downfall
of one or of the other, doubtless the issue will depend
upon intelligently directed force. Possibly the prevailing
 system of civilisation involves this: but this
civilisation has been indicted in Sir Rabindranath
Tagore’s Nationalism (Macmillan, 1918). Without
committing oneself in any way unreservedly to Tagore’s
point of view, he has undoubtedly recognised some of
the limitations of western civilisation, and the penalties
that have been paid, and doubtless will yet be paid,
for its defects. These defects operate to increase the
difficulty of migration adjustments.
{t is proper to observe, at the same time, that but
for the influence of western civilisation upon India, it
would have been impossible for her to have maintained