In  the  basins  of  the  Meuse  and  the  Scheldt,  occupy-
ing, clearing  and  enriching  that  soil  which  it  was
compelled  to  conquer  little  by  little  from  the  great
forests,  the  marshes  and  the  sea,  and  which  it  has
had  to  defend  without  ceasing  against  the  hostility
of  climate  and  the  covetousness  of  man,  a  true  nation,
first  joining  and  then  commingling  the  stream  of
Franks  with  that  of  the  ancient  Celts,  has  developed
itself  with  characteristics  both  continuous  and
organic,  and  interests  and  needs  altogether  peculiar
to  itself.
Such  is  the  geographical  explanation  of  this
Belgian  nation  which  thrusts  deeply  into  this  soil
its  ancient  and  historical  roots.
As  to  these  historical  roots,  the  general  public  is
far  from  knowing  what  they  are,  or  even  from  sus-
pecting their  existence.
Some  people  supposed,  in  their  simplicity,  that
Belgium  dated  from  1830  ;  they  were  not  unlike
those  who,  upon  the  word  of  Boileau,  imagined  that
French  literature  begins  with  Malherbe.
While  I  was  listening  to  our  lecturer  a  moment
ago,  I  called  to  mind  a  bitter  observation  of  J.-B.
CAUSES  OF  BELGIUM'S   RESISTANCE     171

Nothomb  in  his  admirable  work  An  Historical  and
Political  Essay  upon  the  Belgian  Revolution  of  1830.
"  For  two  and  a  half  centuries/'  he  writes,  "  foreigners
have  been  distorting  our  history,  and  the  original
documents  by  means  of  which  we  might  be  able
to  do  justice  to  the  memory  of  our  ancestors  remain
buried  in  the  archives  of  Governmental  departments.
The  history  of  Belgium  would  be,  if  it  were  truly
written,  a  long  labour  of  giving  credit  where  credit
is  due."

This  work  of  justification  we  have  seen  undertaken.
