Richmond Palladium (Daily), Volume 44, Number 47, 4 January 1919 — Page 10

PAGE TWELVE

THE RICHMOND PALLADIUM AND SUN-TELEGRAM SATURDAY, JAN. 4, 1919.

FORMATION OF Continued From Page One. ' Carpathians, a country larger than any contemparary European nation, aare Russia. This Poland lor a brief time even touched the Black Sea. but early withdrew to the Middle Dniester and Denelper. This was the Poland for the First Partition in 1772, but Jt was not a Poland of Poles merely, on all tbw fringes of this vast country were alien subjects, Lithuanians, Whlto Russians and Romanians on the east and south, Germans on the west. Minority In Posen. By contrast with this Poland of history, there Is the Poland of fact. In the main but not quite the Poland of the last partition In 1795. This Is the true Poland of the Poles and includes the whole of Russian Poland, the western half of Austrian Oalicia and all or portions of the German provinces of Posen, West Prussia and Silesia. Actually the Poles are In a minority In all provinces save Posen, although constituting a majority in many subdivisions. In this area dwell some 20.000.000 of Poles. 11,000.000 In old Russian territory, 5,000.000 In Austrian and approximately four In German. Tor themselves the Poles claim all of this region, so far as It Is Polish, that Is except certain limited areas

can De

where the German and Slav

easily separated without inuring the j hope of reclaiming her landward con-

to Poland, then at least a million and a half of Germans between the Vistula and the Memel. with Konlgaberg as their capital, will be separated from the main mass of Germans to the westward, isolated politically and economically, . hemmed In by the Poles and Lithuanians and occupying a thin facade between the Baltic and the solid block of Poles to" the south. This was the situation when Frederick the

Great engineered the Urst partition of

Poland in 1772, to obtain land communication with his East Prussian territories. ' Would Lack Outlet. By contrast. If this Polish arm, with Danilg does not fall to the new Poland, there will be created a state with at least 25,000,000 of people within its frontier, highly industrialised, capable of indefinite economic expansion, but lacking any outlet upon the sea. Such a nation will be wholly at the mercy of the Germans occupying the narrow strip between the Baltic and the new Poland, and thus holding the lower watches of the Vistula, which Is to Poland what the Mississippi river was to the region between the Alleghanles and the Rockios before the era of railroads. It is quite plain that If Poland Is to be a strong independent nation, aconomlcally and politically, it must have an outlet upon the sea, it must have Danzig. It can only have this outlet by isolating East Prussia and Polish possession of Danilg and its restricted seacoast would be wholly insecure, Just as long as Prussia cherished the

larger solidarity of the new Polish

state. But In addition they lay claim . to outlying districts In which there is a strong Polish minorfly. Thus Polish and Lithuanian claims conflict in Grondo and Vilna; Ruthenian and Polish in Cholm and Eastern Galicia, where Lemberg. the capital, is a Polih city in a Ruthenian region. At Brest-Litovsk, the cession of Cholm to the Ruthenians, that is, to the Ukraine, led to violent Polish protest, while we have recently seen fighting for Lemberg. Again, the Poles claim large regions east of the Bug, as far as Minsk, in which the population is "White Russian, but has, so far as one can say, shown no opposition to Incorporation with the Poles. It is the dream of the Poles that the Lithuanians will seek a new federation with the Poles, such as existed in the past centuries when the great Jagellon family of Lithuania

supplied Poland with her kings. But the Geitnans undertook to prevent this by creating a separate Lithuanian state and the desire of the IJthuanians for independent existence seems unmistakable. Gallclan Difficult. Between the Ruthenians and the Poles, the struggle is even keener. The Cholm district can only be beKtowcd by Versailles since neither side will concede it to the other, although the claims of the Poles seem better founded in history and in geographical fact, for itY the Bug river which supplies the only natural frontier in this quarter. In eastern GanVia the decision is harder. lemberg is an old centre of Polish culture and population, but. the surrounding districts with a few notable exceptions are Ruthenian and the Ruthenian element dominates east of the San, beyond Przemysl, of consonantal memories. It also crosses the Carpathians and dips into Hungary, while It covers the northern half of Bukovina. claimed by Rumania, and now occupied by garrisons of the latter power. But despite certain heart burnings, there is no insuperable obstacle to an enduring settlement of the disputes between the Poles and the Ruthenians. nand any settlement insures a well defined Polish frontier on the east, while together Russian and Austrian districts certain to be Included in the Polish state will supply a Deputation i

of above 17.000,000 in a very 'large

measure Polish. Such frontier draw

ing as must take place, will moreover, offer no eccentric projections. Really considerable natural frontier between the races it is impossible to find, save

nt the (arpathinns and for u certain

distance along the Bup. since this region la a portion of the great plain.

hut rrughly speaking, Poland will hold the vast valley of the Vistula, the cradle of the- race. German Question. It is on the German side that the main difficulties occur. To begin at the south, the upper third of the Prussian province of Silesia, which had been Prussian since the days when Frederick the Great, stole it from Maria Theresa and started the German system of larceny on the grand style, is purely Polish in its population. This is the region, too, of great mineral and industrial development. If Germany loses It. as she is now bound to lose her other great region of Alsace--orraine she will be deprived of the greater part of the material out of which she erected her great economic edifice in the last half century. Yet, if the frontiers are drawn here on race divisions, aside from a small dispute between the Czechs and the Poles In the Teschen region, there will be no more than justice done the Poles, and he question of making the new frontiers involves no great puzzles. As one proceeds northward, however, real difficulties are encountered, those of Posen and of the Danzig ex-j tension. Westward from the solid j mass of Polish speaking peoples there j extends about and beyond the Prus-I

sian city -of Posen to the der and the Wartha. at a point hardly a hundred miles from Berlin a great wedge of Polinh speaking people. This wedge is shaped rather like an irregular triangle with Its point toward Berlin. In this region, coraprenhended in the Prussian province of Posen not only is the population overwhelmingly Polish, but here the general level of education and of race consciousness is perhaps higher than In any other Polish section. Here, too. fighting Prussian brutality, the Poles have for more than half a century made a gallant struggle, crowned with large success. Posen Forms Question. But if Posen passes to Poland, as it must, on any basis of self-determination, then a great wedge is driven be

tween the Prussians to the north and south of Posen. But this is even less an obstacvle than that supplied by the Polish situation in East and West Prussia. Here, on the west bank of the Vistula river, a relatively narrow arm of Polish speaking districts extends straight to the Baltic, west of Dan xia with some fifty miles of sea front north of the Gulf of DanzigDanzig ltsel, once a purely Polish town has ben Germanized In recent decades, but still contains a Polish minority. If this Polish arm Is to be allotted

nection witi East Prussia.

Wo have here, then, one of the most difficult of all problems. The basis of self determination does not suffice, because if you followed race boundaries merely, Poland would reach the Baltic and the separation of the Prussians would be achieved, but Danzig would remain Prussian and Poland would have no seaport, for the shore of the Polish strip on the Baltic is sandy and inhospitable Therefore, it is plain that Danzig must return to Poland, that tho whole of the Polish speaking west bank of the Vistula must be included in the new Polish state. It is equally plain that Posen must be restored to Poland ; it was not safely Included In Prussia until the Congress of Vienna which partitioned Napoleon's Grand Duchy of Warsaw, the surviving remnant of the Polish kingdom, nor Is It less necessary that Poland should have Polish Silesia.

Thus constituted with only Polish speaakiug regions Included, Poland would become a nation of at least 25,000,000 people, far larger in area than modern Italy. Were it conceivable that the various disputes between other races, notably with the Lithuanians and the Ruthenians were settled by the Inclusion of large areas of territory once Polish, but inhabited by other races now In part, at least, then the new Poland would have an area as great as that of France and no less than 30,000,000 of people. Causes for New War. But this really great state would still have on the sea only a frontage of some fifty miles, with Danzig as its pole port, and between the Vistula and the Memel, a narrow strip inhabited by Prussian Germans, with German sympathies, would separate the Poles from the sea. Here would be

the inescapable cause for new wars, for rivalries and for ambitions. It seems to me that or this situation there can be but one solution. Not to include the whole seacoast from the Polish strip to the Memel in the New Poland, would be to hold out new . temptations for another PoIiBh partition. This particular problem will be ion? debated, the claims of the Germans and of the Slavs are both imposing. All depends upon whether it be the purpose at Versailles to follow abstract ' principles rigorously, or to erect living and enduring nations.

with all proper regard for conflicting claims which do not stand in the way of this larger project. Whether tho future of 20,000,000 of Poles, whose race for two centuries has been the

victim of the enasest wmnes it in

count, or that of 1,500.000 Germans, themselves invaders in the far off times; this must be the real question. Aside from the problem of the Prussians, however, the Polish Question is

relatively simple. A new nation is go

ing to rise on the ruins of the old

with a population as great as that of

France a century ago, and will exceed that of reunited Italy. What the final frontiers of this new state to the eastward will be, no man can accurately forecast. But on all other sides the frontiers of language and the principles of self determination suppiv reasonably safe guides. Poland to be Bulwark. With this new state the population will be overwhelmingly Polish, the possibilities of economic expansion, with the inclusion of the mineral districts of Silesia and the restoration of the old manufacturing centres of Lodz and Warsaw, are definite. Poland. Russian Poland was the factory of Russia before the war, the new Poland may easily possess itself of the Russian market to the exclusion of the

German, who dreamed to dominate

stricken' Slavdom, at the end of tue present war and expressed their purpose at Brest Litovsk. , All Is. however, conditioned upon the erection of a real Polish state. Compromises which sacrifice the future will easily spoil the whole and leave Poland once more a prey to the cupidity of surrounding nations. A strong Poland will be a guarantee of the exclusion of Germany from . Russia, It will be a bulwark behind which Rus

sia can rise again and It will remove from German, control the last of the subject nationalities and provinces, for the possession of which Prussia and Germany have dragged Europe through two centuries of war. The destruction of Poland was one of the most sordid .crimes in all history. For it there was no other defense than that of the German doctrine of force. Poland was weak and shaken by Internal dissension. Frederick the Great, desiring to Join East Prussia to his kingdom by land routes and hoping to avoid new attacks from his old enemies by luring them into a project to despoil a neighbor, planned the first partition. Held In 8lavery. At .the Congress of Vienna,, Alexander of Russia long nourished the noblo Idea of restoring Poland under Russian protection. While , the held to slan protection. While he held to when he surrendered it, Poland was lost although all the sovereigns at Vienna signed a . solemn compact agreeing to preserve Polish liberties within their own domains. Even this last shred of liberty, Poland lost before long and then passed into the hideous slavery which endures up the hour when Germany surrendered. In the last war, now ending, Russian Poles fought against German and Austrian Poles. Russian and Austrian Polish regions were swept again and again by destructive Invasion. Today, in some fashion, Poland is emerging. Russian and Austrian Polish districts ' have already, united, there is a provisional government in the old capital of Warsaw and Cracow is once more Polish. Only the other

day Polish troops entered Danzig and Poland, and the Polish element is rap

idly obtaining control in upper Silesia

The great task is virtually accomnlishprt ft remains for the western

powers to fix the frontiers, with a full !

appreciation of the needs of the new

state, which is thus created and there

after to assure to it protection in the future until the dangerout days of be

ginning are over.

That the first years will be danger

ous must be recognized. A new and strong Poland will deprive Germany of not less than 6,000,000 of people,

two-thirds of them Poles, to be sure, It

will take from Germany an area three

or four times as great as Alsace-Lor

ralne with mineral wealth at least as great. It will Inflict a wound which Germany will long resent, although it

will be In fact, merely a belated act of

justice returning to the Poles their ancient heritage stolen from them by

Houenzouern mignc a century ana a i

half ago and held from them by brutal

tyranny ever since. America Shows Sympathy.

President Wilson has -already offic

ially expressed America's sympathy

with the Poles. Polish liberation is

one of the soundest of the fourteen

points. The western nations have giv

en European sanction to follsh aspirations, while Polish troops fighting

on the allied side in France and else

where have contributed materially to the common victory, thus renewing

the old association when Poland gave

France a Marshal and Napolec i thou

sands of his best troops. We in

America have to remember Koscius

ko and not a few other Poles who

fought for us in our own struggle for

liberty. In all-history there has never been a finer example or poetic justice than the resurrection of Poland. Supplies of her three old oppressors, Austria has disappeared, Russia has gone to chaos and ruin, Prussia is at the mercy of the great western powers. Beaten, mutilated, destroyed in all save spirit by a century and a half of agony, Poland Is rising again, as Bel-

gulm and Serbia have risen from a bondage far more recent and shortlived. Thus is being vindicated again the vitality of national consciousness, the immortality of races. Before America began its independent history at Concord and Lexington in 1775 the fall of Poland was in sight and the spoliation had been opened by the partition of 1772. Yet if America has become a world power, Poland has lived, and by virtue of this fact, is now rising to her old estate as one of the free nations of Europe. In addition of the Polish problem, the Congress of Versailles will have to decide both as to Finland and the Baltic Provinces! As to Finland the decision will be easy; through all the Russian period, lasting for just over a century, Finland preserved its character and a semblance of autonomy. With the collapse of Russia the Finns, aided by the Germans, sought to achieve independence. Under German influence a sovereign was chosen

from Germany and Finland seemed destined to become one more of the outlying dependencies of Germany.

- "With the fall of Germany. Finland will regain complete Independence. That It will return to its old Swedish association is utterly Improbable, rather we are likely to see one more Independent nation, larger In area than the British Isles, with a population In excess of three millions, emerge from the shadow of Russian slavery and take Us place among the Baltic states. South of the Gulf of Finland and along the shores of the Baltic still another complication must be faced and solved. In the three Baltic provinces of Russia, Livonia, Esthonla and the Kurland acquired by Peter the Great In 1721, and In several Ruesian governments east of the "Niemen are some six millions of people. Estonians, Letts, Luthuanians and Germans, with Polish and Russian infusions, who, under German direction, when

Oermany was - victorious,' were to be erected Into a nation in which the German minority was to exercise dominant Influence. Of the' several groups " of people making up the population of this region the 'Lithuanians are most numerous, counting more than 3,500,000; the Letts, who are Slavonic, and the Esthonlans.-who are Finns, each exceed a million, while the Germans do not number more than 100,000. ,Yet Riga, the largest city, is an old center of German culture, with a very barked German character." Indeed this whole shore has something of the same alien quality as the Adriatic coast. In the north the culture and the tone is German, as in the south it Is Italian, but in both cases the population of the Hinterlands is Slav. ; Long before the present war the

Slavs of the Baltic provinces revolted and sought to escape the Ruesian rule, Itself no more than a consent to the systematic plundering of the country by that German nobility, which maintained its influences through the aid of the Russian court,' always Teutonic in sympathy. Since Russia fell Germany has had her hour, seeking to

rule through the same agent who had whole Baltic littoral from the Niemon

1 -i. is simple and the frontiers of raci n1 ronmnhv are ouv in lmw. . But

to the south, where Pole and Lithu, anlan - claims conflict, it is otherwise, Yet if the Polish dream of a reunion, of Poland and Lithuania fails, then one may expect to see the Llthuan ian, Lett and Esthonlan districts

united in a single state, occupying tho

transferred their, allegiance to Berlin. Now with Russia and Germany both fallen, the provincial authorities are seeking to - prevent the invasion of

Bolshevism and have already invoked the aid of an Allied fleet. It seems to be the common expectation that a new state will be framed out of these Baltic provinces, with the addition of certain Russian lands to the southward: As to Esthonla. Livonia and the Kurland, the problem

to the Gulf of Finland, with Riga as

its capital.

WAS nKSTLKSS AT NIGHT Sufferers from kidney trouble experience backache, rheumatic pain, aches in joints and muscles and other torturous afflictions. K. W. Kitt. R. F. D. 2. Box 9. Snorters. Ala.: writes: "I. used Foley. Kidney Pills as I was so restless over night with pains In my hack and side. They did me Kood and I truthfully say Foley Kidney Pills Is the medicine for kidney trouble." For nole by A. OS. 'I.,uken & Co. Adv.

Don't Let Your Battery Freeze While your car is stored for the winter. STORE YOUR BATTERY HERE Call us at 2826 and we will get your battery. .We store all makes of batteries. Ask us about winter storage.

Richmond Electric Co. 1105 Main Street. "The Battery Shop"

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Sale Begins MONDAY Jan.. 6th

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Sale Begins MONDAY Jan. 6th

BIG JANUARY CASH CLEARANCE SALE

good tu

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INVEST IN HOME COMFORTS

The Time When a Furniture Sale Means Most

B1

Right at the. time when furniture prices are having the biggest increase in history, we are offering the families of our city an opportunity to protect themselves against further advances. Our big January Sale will be the greatest ever held, for such bargains may never be seen again.

Cash 1 Clearance j

From kitchen chairs to living room furniture from smoking stands to cedar chests everything will be offered at prices beyond comparison. We must make big sacrifices in order to clear our floors for new shipments. And our loss is your gain. Selection will be largest for those who come early.

Cedar Chest

$18.75

Queen Anne Period Suite

Big Bargain Opportunity

$39.75

Bed Divan

REGULAR PRICE $178.00 YOU SAVE $36.00

Our wide display of cedar chests in all sizes and designs, and at every price, enables you to secure just the one you wish with the least inconvenience. Many great values. WORTH $23.50

To offer furniture of this character at so low a price is a final proof of the values which are now being, offered. These four pieces are finished in your choice of mahogany or American walnut. All compartments are of special dust proof construction.

Beside giving you the convenience of an extra bed for the night, this davenport will make a most pleasing addition to your living room. An extraordinary value. WORTH $49.75

Carpet Sweeper

$1.98

Queen Anne Dining Suite

Big Price Reduction

REGULAR PRICE $190.00 YOU SAVE $41.00

Every housewife needs a carpet sweeper and here is a chance to secure one at an exceptionally low price. Guaranteed to give the best of service. Great value. REGULAR $3.00 VALUE

$28.00 "S 41 ' '

Complete nine piece dining room suite consisting of buffet, china cabinet, 48-inch extension table, arm chair and five dining chairs. Splendidly finished in your choice of American walnut or mahogany. A stunning bargain value.

One of our best Wood beds, attractively and durably finished in ivory, and modeled after .the Queen Anne period. A bed of this character will give remarkable service. WORTH $35.00

Dressing Table

$37.50

Exquisite Combination

Three Piece Parlor Suite

Period Dresser

jJILJlLl

n

REGULAR PRICE $158.00 YOU SAVE $31.60

$35.75

PCS

A dressing table Is an indispensable part of the perfect bedroom. The one here shown is a popular Colonial period design, with three section vanity mirror WORTH $47.00

There is no combination more striking than a living room suite' of mahogany and cane. Beautifully upholstered in daintily figured velvet, and embodying the grace of the Queen Anne Period in every detail, this suite is indeed a' peer. Complete with bolster.

Finished In your choice of oak or mahogany. A reproduction of the Queen Anne period. This dresser is equipped with roomy dust proof compartments. Large mirror. WORTH $45.00

Our January Cash Clearance Monday, Jan. 6th Select for later Delivery

mm Site

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Soldier and Sailor Boys Outfit Your new home at January Clearance Prices