But very marked differences occur within the Temperate Zone itself—the result of differences of climate and configuration. Central Asia, for example—indeed, the whole of Asia north of the line of the Caucasus, the Himalaya, and the Chinese Wall—consists of barren steppes, which now, as much as six centuries ago, are the home of barbarism and rapine. And why is this? Because its inland deserts are far removed from the influences of the sea; because lofty mountains give most of its land a northern aspect; because its rivers flow either into salt lakes with no outlet, or into a frozen ocean which completely shuts out commerce.
然而，由于气候和结构的多样化，温带地区自身便存在显著的差异。例如，中亚地区——其实是高加索山脉、喜马拉雅山脉和中国长城以北的整个亚洲地区——都是由贫瘠的大草原构成，而如今那里和六个世纪之前没什么变化，依然充满了野蛮和掠夺。是什么原因造成的呢？因为其内陆沙漠受海洋影响较少；因为巍峨的山脉使其大部分土地呈北向；因为其河流要么汇入了没有出口的盐湖，要么流入了完全不通商业的冰冻海洋。
Look at Europe on the other hand. It is of all the continents the one which is most thoroughly broken up by inroads of the sea. Asia is four and a half times as large as Europe in superficial area; yet Europe has a coast-line five times as great as that of Asia. Excepting only the plains of Russia, no part of Europe is more than three hundred miles distant from the sea; while the number and the distribution of its navigable rivers bring the ocean within easy reach even of its remotest parts.
另外，我们再来看欧洲。在所有的大陆当中，欧洲大陆是受海洋侵蚀最严重的大陆。从表面来看，亚洲的面积是欧洲的4.5倍，然而，欧洲海岸线的长度却是亚洲海岸线长度的5倍。除了俄罗斯平原，欧洲的每寸土地离大海的距离都在三百英里以内，而其通航河流的数量和分布则使得即使最远的地区都能和海洋触手可及。
And what are the consequences of this? A glance at the map of Europe will tell us. It is evidently the continent most thickly covered with cities and towns; and with high-roads, canals, and railways, weaving the towns into a living and everbusy net-work. There civilization has struck its roots deepest, and stretched its branches widest. There the arts and sciences have reached their highest development. There the great mechanical inventions which have knit the world into one vast inter-dependent society, have had their birth; and commerce, manufactures, and agriculture have been brought to the greatest perfection.
那么，结果是什么呢？我们从欧洲的地图中来找答案。从地图上看，欧洲大陆显然是城镇最密集的地区，高速公路、运河和铁路将所有的城镇编织成一张充满活力且联络不断的大网；在那里，文明的扎根最深，分支也最广；在那里，艺术和科学达到了最高水平的发展；在那里，诞生了能将世界连接成一个巨大并相互依存的社会的伟大机械；在那里，商业、制造业和农业的发展已经登峰造极。
Europe has laid the whole world under contribution for the supply of her physical wants.
欧洲为满足全世界的物质需求作出了贡献。
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