‘And made them cease to think of themselves as members of this state or that, but rather as Americans.’ ‘Assuredly.’ ‘But if the North had failed to impose unity, not the Southern States only but in all probability the Northern ones also would have been virtually independent of each other, and only joined to one another in some kind of League such as we Greeks are used to. North America would have resembled South America, but I think there would have been even more complete peace among the North American States than among those of South America.’ ‘Certainly,’ Agathon said, ‘they live with the Canadians in great and striking amity. But they do not believe their condition would have been one to envy.’ ‘No,’ I said, ‘probably all sorts of other misfortunes would have visited them. But they cannot really expect anything else, it being the nature of barbarians to incur disasters. We, however, are considering their actual ills to-day. Can they deny that they would have been saved from that glorification of strength which is a fatal temptation to great and powerful peoples, and never more than when they are unchecked by the presence of strong neighbours?’ ‘They cannot deny it, Socrates,’ said Agathon. ‘As it is, must we not say the size of their political unit has done great harm to the American soul? For every number that is sufficiently large is to them a magical number, and the Americans come easily to believe that everything they think or do must be right because there are so many of them thinking or doing it. And most of all do they tend to think that they cannot have anything to learn from foreign nations because America is bigger.’ ‘Are there really far more Americans than other people?’ asked Phaelon. ‘No,’ I said, ‘there are, in fact, far more Chinamen than there are Americans――but they say that there is another test of superiority besides size.’ ‘And what is that?’ asked Phaelon. ‘Speed.’ ‘How?’ ‘The speed,’ I explained, ‘with which the size is attained. And they say they are greatly superior to the Chinese in speed of development, and this claim I believe to be true.’ Lysis nodded his head slowly from side to side and said: ‘Indeed, Socrates, the ills affecting the Americans seem to be many and heavy.’ ‘But worse,’ I said, ‘is to come, unless they will change altogether and abandon their pride and listen meekly to the philosophers.’ ‘How, Socrates?’