Norwich bulletin., 1914-09-03
IN.Two HUNDRED YEARS.
Was Once Larger Than Any Other
 European Country Except Russia.
(special to The Bulletin) :.

Especial to The Bulletin).
 Washington, D. C., Sept. 2-The Poland of 1715 was larger than any other European country, with the ex- liticaI entity, says the National GeoE graphic Society, at Washington, ID. G. in a statement issued today Two centuries ago it's domain reached from the Baltic to the Carpathians, and stretched from east to west for dis tance of approximately 500 miles.
 The first partition or Poland came in 1772, when Prussia and Austria, alarmed by the progress of Russia in Poland. suggested, as means or main taining the equilibrium of Europe, that all three powers readjust their terri tories at the expense. of Poland" reads the Society's bulletin. Poland lay ut terly helpless. She lost about one fifth of her population and one-fourth of her territory. The second partition, in 17sS, reduced Poland to one-third of her original dimensions. with a popu. lation of about $500, 900. A third treaty of partition was signed in 1796- The Congress of Vienna, in 1915. divided Poland between Prussia, Austria. and Russia. with the exception of Cracow, which was erected into a republic em- bedded in Galicia. Posen and Gnesen, with a population of S10,000, were left to Prussia. Austria remained in pos session of Galicia, with it's 1500 ,000
 
 enian Palatinates continued to be in- | corporated with Russia The remnant was constituted as the so-called Con- gross Kingdom, under the Emperor of | Russia as the king of Poland.
 | Tn the same year, Tsar Alexander l | granted the new kingdoms conStitu- I.tion, which declared it to be united to Russia, in the person of the tsar, as | a separate political entity. Poland re- | tained it's flag and national army. In | f0I1o fIo. fhr.ao T. s,F a French revolution, a military revolt took place in Warsaw. This war lasted | for ten months. and at its conclusion
 the Congress Kingdom was reduced to | the position of a Russian province. The last remaining remnant of Poland s separate political existence was Cra-
 cow. and it was finally occupied by Austria in 1S46. The last attempt of
 the Poles to achieve independence was
 in 1863. It was marked by no real
 battle and the uprising. was soon re- pressed. The national history of Po-
 land closes with this attempt at free
 dom. In 1868, by ukase of the Elm
 peror of Russia, the government was
 absolutely incorporated with that oi
 Russia, and the use of the Polish
 language in public places and for public purposes was prohibited.
 Russian Poland contains the frs
 line of defense of the Russian Empire
 on it's western frontier. The marshy II lowlandS, covered with forests on -tht lswestern banks of the Vistula, offer { natural defense against an army ad
 -vancing from the west, and they ar, strengthened by a number of fortres ses on that river The center of thes, latter is Warsaw
 "The Poles are rather of medium istature and well built Those in tn, south are dark and in the north ar, inclined to be fair. While well en dowed by nature they are today no
 remarkable in that energy which char lacterizes the northern races of Europe and in sense of unity which has beer the strength of their present rulers and the reason is obvious. For sev
 eral years past the German element hai been naturally increasing both in mum Der and influence in Russian Poland
 From remote antiquity Poland has beer l | celebrated for the production and ex port of grain. Since 1875 there hal
 been asremarkable development of man l ufacturing enterprise. The railroad
 of Russian Poland have an aggragat
 length of 1900 miles. D '"The entire administration of tn
 province is under the governor -gener r al residing at Warsaw. After the in
 surrection of 1863 all towns with les
 than 1000 inhabitants were deprive of their municipal rights. The electiv municipal councils were practicail abolished, and Russian officers nomin : ated in their place. The prevalent re ligion is Roman Catholic"