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 INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY. XVI

PART III. GENERAL STRUCTURE OF SOCIETY

CHAPTER VII. THE SOCIAL FRONTIERS (CONTINUED)

SECTION VII. GAUL AND GERMANY THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH

G. DE GREEF Rector of the Nouvelle Universite, Brussels, Belgium

In his Atlas of Historical Geography M. F. Schrader says :

The limits of Italy often changed in antiquity We see that the

Romans never regarded the Alps as the natural and necessary frontier of Italy. In their eyes the Alps were only the geographical boundary of that country; the political limits were always traced either to the south or to the north of the range.

This observation is perfectly correct, although vague; after all that we have already pointed out, it would have been more exact if the author had concluded that there are no natural frontiers, but only social frontiers; then only are explained the continuous changes of frontiers, not only of ancient Italy, but of the Italy of the Middle Ages and of modern times as well, and even of those of all other societies, whether political or not.

In order to protect Italy and communicate with Spain, it was necessary to conquer Gaul. Likewise in order to make sure of Gaul, it would have been necessary to advance beyond the Rhine into Germany. There was, moreover, a further necessity imposed upon society, which was to procure through conquest the possi- bility of the continuous economic exploitation of the population of new territories. It was not exactly commercial outlets which Rome sought to create as do modern states, but rather to draw upon the labor and wealth of other peoples. The rigid law of property which she had established for the interior extended in a vaster form, through her domination, to the exterior.

We have here, however, to concern ourselves only with the

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