Another characteristic of all plain countries, and therefore of the Ukraine, is great homogeneity. It produces a great uniformity of living conditions, and gives the Ukraine great unity of language, customs and standard of living. The types of buildings, national costume, etc., so varied in the small area of Germany, extend over hundreds of thousands of square miles in the Ukraine, with only minor changes. The uniform lowland character of the Ukraine favored, to a certain degree, the constant preservation of the old customs and the gradual development of culture. The lack of natural differences within the country has brought with it the lack of differences among the inhabitants, and it is well known that such differences enrich the ability and the character of the entire nation considerably. Hence, the lack of those necessary conditions of development and progress has always had a profound influence in the Ukraine, while we meet such favorable conditions at every step in the small areas of Central Europe, with their smaller supply of natural wealth. Melancholy and indifference, these typical marks of the lowland peoples, have always been characteristic of the Ukrainians also. And these types are not favorable to the development of culture. Only the present time of easy communications are capable of weakening the bad influence of the uniformity of surface of the Ukraine to any marked degree.
Yet, not all the typical characteristics of a lowland country are common to the Ukrainians. Above all, they lack, and always have lacked, the capacity for the development of great political strength, the capacity for centralization; in a word, the capacity for state organizing. This characteristic of the lowland peoples, which is very strongly developed among the Russians, more weakly in the Poles, has always been very poorly bred in the Ukrainians. The Ukrainians have possessed the tendency, peculiar to all lowland peoples, to level its aspirations, to divert them to one side, but never to the subordination of their individuality to the interests of the state. Only when the general equality of all citizens of the state opens to every man ah equal field for the activity of his personal ego, have the Ukrainians been able to do the state-idea justice and to embody it very finely. They have given the best proof of this in the Zaporog Cossack organization. This fact gives us the only hope that the Ukrainians may yet become an organized nation in modern times. The present manner of national life is what the Ukrainians wished to have centuries ago — much too early, of course.
In view of the great uniformity, every rise of land is significant. Slight elevations, chains of hills, river valleys, even swamps and forests appear in the Ukraine as important boundaries, lines of defence, foundations for cities and castles, fortified places, lookout stations, etc. Even the many barrows (mohili, kurhani) have played an important part in the history of the Ukraine.
The anthropogeographical significance of the Ukrainian mountains is in general slight, altho we find all the typical influences of the mountains in the mountain tribes of the Ukrainians. Great physical endurance, coupled with a feeling for liberty and independence, great personal courage, great love of country, etc., have always distinguished the Ukrainian mountain dwellers.
The Ukrainian Carpathians are, to this day, one of the most thinly settled regions of the Ukraine, chiefly for the reason that it was always a passive region, which was not considered in political life. Great historical movements
hardly ever touched the Carpathians. For many centuries they remained almost devoid of human life. Hence, the Carpathians played hardly any part as a border defence of the Ukrainian state organizations. Mountain chains usually are of very great importance as a defence for individual tribes or entire races. The Carpathians, with their great ease of passage, especially in the Ukrainian part, have been of no significance in this respect. They did provide effective protection for the Walachian shepherds thru many centuries. These shepherds led a nomad life with their flocks on the Carpathian pastures, and left proof of their presence in numerous names of mountains, rivers and villages. The Carpathians also provided shelter for the numerous Ukrainian fugitives who fled from oppressive serfdom and formed bands of half-political freebooters, friends of the lowly, and warriors against the lords (oprishki). The brigandage peculiar to all mountain regions flourished also in the Carpathians. But no state originated in the Carpathians. The Alps were the foundation of Switzerland, and played a part in the formation of the Austrian state. The Carpathians have given the Ukraine nothing, apart from occasional passing shelter.