The Nordics are the tall, fair-haired, blue-eyed, long-headed people of northern Europe, including Scandinavia, most of Great Britain, Holland and northern Germany. Mixed with other races they are found more or less in northeastern Ireland, Belgium, northern France, southern Germany, Switzerland, northern Italy, and even Spain. Some of the Nordic qualities which are especially important in business may be summed up as follows: (1) Curiosity, which someone has called " the mother of philosophy and science." Many people believe that this is why modern science is largely a product of northwestern Europe. Among the famous men of each country who are mentioned in the Encyclopedia Brittanica, Sweden, Norway, and Scotland have a pecu Early large number of scientists, England excels in inventors, and Germany in philosophers. (2) Nordics are less sociable than most races. This makes them reserved and stiff, and to that extent easy to do business with. But it also makes them willing to go far away and live by themselves. Hence, they make good colonists in new lands. Also if they go to foreign countries they are apt to stay by themselves and keep up their own methods of life and of business. That is one reason why the British communities in tropical countries are so great a force in business. (3) Again the Nordics are adventurous. This adds to their qualifications as colonists. It also causes them to be pioneers in business. Many other qualities such as self-reliance, readiness to assume responsibility, dependability, and persistence are commonly ascribed to the Nordics by their admirers. The remark of a colored soldier to his Nordic companion from Vermont illustrates something of the contrast between the two races: " When you Yankees has a trouble you sits down and thinks and thinks. When we has a trouble we sits down and goes to sleep." The Mediterranean race comprises the short, black-haired, dark eyed, long-headed people of Greece, south Italy, Portugal, much of France and Spain, and the western and more isolated parts of Great Britain and Ireland. The Mediterranean people are characteristically sociable and friendly. That may be one reason why the Italians have so many clubs, while the Irishman makes an excellent foreman. They are not so full of curiosity or so given to deep thought and self repression as are the Nordics. They are guided more by their feelings, and are on the whole more easily led and more excitable. These qual ities may help to explain why among the eminent men in the Encyclo pedia Britannica the French are especially strong in military leaders, the Irish in military and political leaders, and the Italians in art, while the Spaniards in proportion to the number of their great men are fairly strong in all these branches and in literature, but weak in history, science, philosophy, and religion. In fact, aside from the Irish, who are average,
every European country where the amount of Mediterranean blood is large is relatively weak in religious leaders, while Switzerland, Scotland, and Germany are religiously strong in the order named.
The Alpine race is intermediate between the Nordics and Mediter raneans both in geographical position and character. It includes primarily the stocky, brown-haired, hazel-eyed, broad-headed people of the central mountains of Europe especially in Austria, Switzerland, southern Germany, Czechoslovakia, and central France. With these are also often included the Slays of the Russian countries, Bulgaria, and Serbia. One of their chief characteristics is great steadiness. They lack the adventurous quality and the inventiveness of the Nordics and the artistic fervor of the Mediterraneans. But they are admirable in their capacity for sticking to details. This may be one reason why although Switzerland has not been the home of many great inventors it has had an extraordinary number of good scientists in proportion to its population. The Alpine race also seems to be even more ready than the Mediterranean to accept the leadership of a few dominant spirits. South Germany is largely Alpine while even in north ern Germany there is Alpine blood. Many people think that these qualities help to explain why the great mass of Germans submitted so absolutely to their leaders during the Great War. They not only believed all that was told them by their Nordic leaders, chiefly Prus sians, but obeyed unhesitatingly when told to do things that they disapproved. In business the same spirit is one reason why the Ger mans talk continually about the " System." When a system has been by a leader the rank and file follow it without question. This attitude prevents the ordinary man from going out and doing much for himself, but it helps Germany to organize all her energies for one particular purpose, and is a strong factor in Germany's business methods.
This brief sketch of the chief races which inhabit the United Stated shows that each race has certain qualities which are of the greatest value not only in business but to civilization. Nordics are in general the leaders, but by no means exclusively. One of the greatest needs of the United States and of the world is to find out just what qualities arc really the inheritance of different kinds of people, and then to take measures to increase the number of people who are born with those desirable qualities.