Omaha daily bee., 1898-12-23
WORLD POWER OF The FUTURE
Russia Solves the Problem Of Disposing Of
Surplus Population.
TRANSSIBERIAN RAILWAY SYSTEM DONE
John w. Bookwalter Says Cars Em-
pire Will Seek Alliance for Com
quest of Asia and It's Friend
ship Is Needed.

months journey through Russia, told the
correspondent Of the Associated Press in an
interview that he enjoyed unusual facilities
for observing what Is going on in that coun-
try. He travelled 1900 miles to the ter
minus OF the Trans Siberian railway, to the
end OF the line reaching the frontier Of Az
ehanistan and to the end Of the one pene-
trating China through Manchuria. All these
are now practically completed.
Mr.. Bookwalter was allowed to 60 every
where, to see everything and to take hun
dreds Of photographs thanks to special per-
mits issued to him by the minister of the
interior on the application Of the United
States ambassador at st. Petersburg. Dur
Ing his Journey he conversed with the gov
ernors of provinces and with military and
civil officials of all ranks.
Everywhere I found" Mr.. Bookwalter
said 1.-The kindest and most friendly feeling
toward America and Americans and heard
many expressions Of satisfaction over Amer
ica's success in our war with Spain. TO
this there was not a single exception. Wher
ever l went everything was thrown open 20
me simply because l was an American.
Americas best open door to central
Asia and China is through Russia Already
all the locomotives and rolling stock on the
railways are Of American manufacture
Central Asia will, in the near future, be the
greatest market In the world for manurac-
lures Of all kinds and our obtaining the
virtual monopoly Of this market only de-
pends on our retaining the friendship Rus
sia now has for u.s. A great surprise to the
world is In preparation In that part of the
earth and it will come, believe, very soon.
Russia VIII Seek Alliance.
world will see Russia, England and China
| combining for the partition of Asia. The
very force Of circumstances will bring this
about England and Russia will never be
able to agree on a partition of China be-
tween themselves. Still less will they al
low the other powers to share with them
in the spoils OF that empire They will be
forced to defend China, which alone Is
helpless against the rest of the world and
share with it the dominion of Asia.
1.-THE alliance of England, Russia and
China, Of two-thirds of the human race,
will be such an alliance as history has
never yet seen. 1t will be one that will
give peace to the world for centuries. All
its interests will make for peace and It will
be able to dictate terms to the rest of the
world
America has very little to gain by an
open door in China. That country Is an
industrial one, and Whatever We may now
be able to sell to tho Ch inese they VIII
soo1 be able to make for Themselves. One
day-and that day is near at hand--what-
ever China buys from the rest OF the world,
will reach 1t through Russia and Central
Asia.
Russia, In the last thirty years, has
done more to open the doors Of China than
England and all the rest OF the world has
done in nifty years. No one, unless he has
seen 1t with his own eyes, can have the
faintest conception Of what Russia has done
and Is still doing In central Asia.
II have travelled over 1900 miles of rail-
way which that country has built from the
Caspian sea to Tashkend, in Turkestan,
over a branch Of this line which runs to
the northern frontier OF India, over an
other branch which goes from Merry to the
border OF Afghanistan. This last branch
was not completed when was there, but it
will be open to traffic next week. There are
also Russian lines along the Persian from
tier and penetrating into that country
either completed or rapidly approaching
completion. All the work on these lines
has been done by soldiers, who, In this
way. are not in Russia as elsewhere, nom
producers.
Gigantic Engineering Task.
"All this tremendous Asatic railway sys-
tenn is owned and operated by the govern
ment. All the lines are admirably built and
splendidly equipped. Why, saw a bridge
across the Amudaria In central ASIA at q
point where the river is three miles wide,
that cost 2O,00O,O0O roubles and is the great
est piece OF engineering work ever accom-
plished. There is nothing like It anywhere
else In the world, the celebrated Firth
bridge, near Edinburgh, not excepted
Wherever l went l saw cities and towns
springng up, such as Askobad in Turko-
mania, for example, which already has 2J-
900 inhabitants Near Merv the czar is
building magnificent palace. New Box
hara, twelve miles from old Bokhara, has
102, 900 inhabitants.
"The Russian policy In central Asia is not
to bring the new and the old into too close
contrast and SO it builds the railway sta
tions few miles away from the old centers
of population, thus forming new and en-
tirely modern centers
where do the people come from to in
habit these towns? Why, from European
Russia. The government Is turning its
surplus European population into central
Asia just as the United States turned its
surplus population OF it's Atlantic States
into the great western territories What
have just seen in central Asia is almost
an exact reproduction of what witnessed
years ago in Illinois, Indiana and Mis-
souri,, when the emigrants from the east
were pouring into the west. No human
power can stay the onward march Of the
Slav through Russia, which will be the
feature OF the twentieth century, Just as
the march Of the Anglo Saxon through
America has been the feature Of the nine
teenth.
Already, thanks to the railways, Russia
can at any time. pour its armies across
the frontiers OF India by the same routes
that Alexander. Tamerlane and Kubla
Khan marched to the conquest OF eastern
Russia. Russia today has 25OOO,OOO re-
serves, all OF whom have served in the
army from three to five years. One-fifth
OF the population has been drilled and dis
ciplined to military work.
"The United States will be committing
woeful mistake IL 1t fails to retain the
friendship OF this great world-power OF the
future"
Two More Gold bearing Creeks.
VICTORIA, Dec. 22.-The Rosalia, which
has arrived here from Skagway. reports the
wreck OF sloop which left Wrangel two
aka fnr SGaU VIII