Whatever is acquired by single combat is acquired with Right. For when human judgment fails, either because it is wrapped in the darkness of ignorance or because it has not the aid of a judge, then, lest judgment should remain forsaken, recourse must be had to Him who so loved her that, by the shedding of His own blood, He met her full demands in death. Hence the Psalm: “The righteous Lord loveth righteousness.” This end is accomplished when, with the free consent of the participants, in love and not in hatred of justice, the judgment of God is sought through a mutual trial of bodily and spiritual strength. Because it was first used in single combat of man to man, this trial of strength we call the duel.

Nationalism is a dynamic force that can rise and fall in the lifetime of the same nation. It is only where the vitality of a nation has not been extinguished that a variety of factors provide the healing impetus for the rise of national consciousness. The prerequisites for this are either the demand for more ideal common values, a hardened inner hunger for common creation, or external pressures, a common threat and concern, even a common shame and humiliation.
In terms of these prerequisites, our present and our past differ considerably. External pressures and common humiliation, common distress and common concerns have long been important factors for cohesion and for the fostering of national spirit. Land reform, local self-government, social sciences, native-language schooling, these were the main common aspirations of a minority nation without independence, a nationality (natsionaliteet. Such were the demands borne by its more or less organised sections and their leaders. They had great merit in leading the people's struggle for self-determination and achieving national independence.