In each of the Latin-American countries there is a system of scholarships which serves as a practical means of promoting interest in education. This system provides for support ing abroad for a certain length of time such students and graduates as have won honors, who are sent to Europe and in some cases to the United States, to perfect their education and bring home the latest and most approved methods. Since the present war began students come to the United States who formerly would have gone to Europe to take a post-graduate course in some science or profession. Others are in this country studying and investigating school methods and appliances. At present there are over 1,300 such students on the United States.
With better means of communication and a desire to expand their trade with Latin America, United States merchants and travelers are visiting intelligently the Latin-American countries, and men of science and learning have, during the last few years, turned their eyes toward that continent, bringing to light the wonders of past ages buried by the sands of Time, and doing justice •to a civilization then little known, and only by a few. No better proof of the fact that Latin-American civilization is worthy of note could be had than the desire to exchange professors and students between certain universities of the United States and those of the leading South Ameri can countries, as well as the acquisition, gen erally by purchase, of important private li braries of Latin America, containing invaluable works dealing with the history, progress and higher development of those countries.
Latin Americans have done much toward the progress of the world both intellectually and materially. Civilization may be divided into two great branches from which others spring: development of the intellectual forces of mankind and development of the material resources for the benefit of society. Under the first head—as has been shown in the pre ceding paragraphs — there are found educa tional institutions to train and perfect the mind, which have existed in Latin America for centuries, and the result of this training has been great jurists, historians, orators, physicians, painters, Aculptors, poets, musi cians, playwrights and others too numerous to mention when dealing with 20 countries, but whose works might fill a great library. A passing mention has already been made of the standing of Latin-American writers. There are painters and sculptors of renown, whose works have been admired, rewarded and commended in the leading art centres of the world. In all these countries there are art schools from which the students go preferably to Italy or France, most frequently pensioned by the gov ernment, to perfect themselves. There are musicians wedded to their art and a credit to their country and themselves; and composers.
singers and players educated in their own con servatories or schools. There are theatres and opera-houses not surpassed by any others in the United States or Europe, and the govern ments of many, if not all, of the Latin-Ameri can countries contribute to the musical educa tion of the people by subsidizing opera troupes every season or so, paying large sums to ob tain the best singers. Many a celebrity who has come to New York has commenced his career in Latin America.
There is another phase of Latin-American civilization showing in an unquestionable man ner a natural tendency toward the establish ment of higher ideals— those ideals that are to-day being proclaimed by men of good will of all nations. I refer to arbitration, recourse to which is the highest form of culture among peoples. Arbitration is not new with the Latin American peoples. It is one of the basic prin ciples of their social structure, since it rests on the civil law of Rome, which provides for arbitration as one of the ordinary and usual means of settling differences between man and man. The principle of world arbitration was first proclaimed by Gen. Simon Bolivar, who was the originator of the idea of holding the first Congress of Nations of America at Panama in 1826, for the purpose, among others, of adopting arbitration as a principle of Amer ican — that is to say, Pan-American — policy.
In recent years Latin America has had re course to arbitration and direct negotiations partaking often of the nature of arbitration, more frequently than all the rest of the world. Latin-American wars have been civil wars for a political principle, and these mainly in coun tries where the military element predominates. They have never engaged in wars of conquest. In their international difficulties arbitration has always been the keynote of negotiations. It is a remarkable fact that in the history of the Latin-American republics, since they became independent from the mother country over 100 years ago, they have had among themselves only two international wars, and these could indeed be classed as national, since they were fought among members of their own family of nations. But these wars were not fought for territorial expansion, nor in the spirit of conquest, although territory may have been gained as an indemnity. These are the Para guayan war against Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, 1865-70, and the war of Chile against Bolivia and Peru, 1879-84. On the other hand, who looking at the map of Europe before this war, would recognize it as the same Europe of half a century ago? With one or two exceptions— the Iberian and Scandinavian peninsulas and the British Isles — there is not a -single country that has not been remade at the cost of numberless lives.