Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-25
CZAR'S CAPITAL ROSE
ON NEVA'S WASTES
BY PETERS ORDERS
Autocrat's Aladdin Spell
Crowned Unfavorable Site
With Mighty and Beauti-
full City Named in His
Honor.

In the centre of the Admiralty Square
within the shadow Of the Kazan Cathe-
drai, stands the equestrian statue of Peter
the Great, founder of St Petersburg. the
City Of Czars." Pcrched upon huge
granite rock weighing 300 tons stands
the gorgeous monument to Peter, survey
ing the dream he conceived, and whose
name Car Nicholas has changed from
'sankt Petersburg" as the Russians can
II, 10 Petrograd, in his effort to purge the
city from its Teutonic appellation.
Only century and a half ago, says the
New York sun. that little peninsula
where now stands one of the wonder cities
OF the world was nothing more than a
dreary, marshy waste, surrounded BY
thickets and forests and inhabited by
few lonely Finnish fishermen. On one
OF the islands encirc!ed by the pellucid
Neva, commanding the entrance of Lake
LaSoda, the Swedes maintained a strong
fortress, the possession of which was un-
availingly contested by the Russians
Peter the Great, realizing the advantages
OF the Swedish position. waged a relent-
less war for the possession Of these little
Islands. In 1902, after the capture of
Neysschants. the Swedes were driven
from the fortress. and, even before peace
was established, Peter gave orders for
the erection of the city which he named
after his patron saint, st. Peter.
NAMED FOR PATRON SAINT.
The building and maintenance of St.
Petersburg marks continuous struggle
and conquest OF nature The soil is a
marsh so deep and spongy that a solid
foundation in many places can only be
attained by a subterranean scaNoldng
OF piles. The highest spot of the city is
not more than 10 feet above the sea level.
The weather is severe and is marked By
bitter frosts In winter and scourging heat
In summer For six months each year,
from October till May, the Neva is frozen
solidly. and is as impenetrable as the
Chinese wall All traffic stops then till
nature releases the port from it's frozen
grip,
An old legend has II that after Peter
the Great chose the site of Petrograd he
noticed heavy ring above the trunk of
tree, He turned to one of the Finnish
fishermen who stood near, asking him to
explain the meaning Of it,
That" remarked the fisherman naively.
rs the spot 10 which the foods of the
Neva reached last spring"
You're mad" shouted Peter You're
mad 1t can't be! II is impossible! :"
II was not long though. before he was
convinced Of the truth OF the fsherman's
the city had begun the western winds
drove the water from the Gulf OF Finland
down 10 the Neva, making a funnel OF il,
flooding the nucleus Of his dream. AL
though a century and half has passed.
nature has not changed her course.
In me the foods were so severe that
Peter the Great nearly lost his life Thou
sands OF people died in the course Of II,
and the whole city was nearly destroyed
Peter, however. was undismayed by the
misfortune, and in i7l4 he gave strict or
ders TO proceed with the work, Uotwith-
standing the complaints OF the inhabit-
ants Every building had 10 be CON
structed in a particular manner suited 10
the dignity OF a capital city, and ST. Pc
tersburg was proclaimed the capital Of
Russia. Historians claim that 100, 600 peo-
pie died in the first six months after the
work had begun.
PETERS MARVELLOUS ACHIEVEMENT
Peter the Great, with whose reign the
spirit OF western Europe was introduced
In Russia, had a definite object In the con-
struction Of ST. Petersburg His travels
and studies abroad revealed to him the
lack Of culture in his own country. Rus
STA was still under the influence of the ar
barrie MongOls. II had no navy. IL had
no public newspapers. In fact, II lacked
everything pertaining 10 culture. Not only
the peasants, but even the nOblemen were
nothing more than barbarians. To Peter
the Great the construction of the city
meant window TO Europe" through
which the rays Of the Germanic culture
might penetrate the unciyilized Russia
But he was not satisfied with a mere
window. As soon as the city assumed
definite proportions he began to institute
many reforms in the lives Of the people
calculated 10 shake II from its Mongo-
lian habits. He was the FIRST TO publish
a newspaper for the general public The
St Petersburg Gazette.
Unlike the present Car, he was a man
OF wonderful ability and marvellous intel.
lset