The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-08-19
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
 INTEREST in the German Russian
 campaign is centered upon the Rus
 sian fortress of Brest I4tovsk. the point dappu on the Bug, one of the strongest fortresses in Europe, the cen- tra point in the Muscovite's European defense and offense. and one of the most important depots for and distributing points of military supplies near the west ern frontiers. Brest Litovsk, rated by military critics as a much more impor- tant strategic point than Warsaw, around which, according to recent dispatches, the armies of Russia are to be regrouped for the defense of the empire, is described in a geological sketch issued today by the National Geographical society;
 "Brest Ltovsk, powerfully fortified Russian stronghold. is one of the oldest important forces in northern Europe, and it's history has been changeful and stir ing one. It Is first mentioned on the oc- casion of it's capture by Boleslav the Brave of Poland in 1920. Next Casimir the Just of Poland built a tight castle here, in country where the outposts of several nations met. Princes of Galicia, volhynia, Lithuania, grand masters of the Teutonic knights, Tartar chieftains and kings of Poland held and stormed the city in turns. and from its Notifications ravaged the region around.
 "Tartars swept over the place like a plague in 1241. moving most of the town into it's muddy river. The Teutonic knights devastated it's suburbs in 1S79 and Mengly Gryrey, Kahn of the Crimea, burned the city with conscientious atten- tion to detail his visitation coming in the latter part of the fifteenth century. Polish Diets were held here. It was out of the deliberations of council of bishops from western Russia. held at Brest in 1549, that the Unat rite was born. The Swedes gave the city its last thorough pillaging in 17O6. At the second partition of Po- land it was incorporated in Russia, and patience, technique and money have been lavished upon it by the great northern empire to make it as near impregna ble as possible
 "Brest Ltovsk is situated at the junc- ton of the navigable Rivers Bug and Mukhovets, and at the point oof conflu- ence stands the city fortress. It lies upon the right bank of the Bug, here sharply cut. where the river turns from north to northeast. Railways from Odessa, Kiev, Moscow, Warsaw, Wilma and East Prussia intersect here Further, it lies upon the inland waterway from the Baltic to the Black sea, the course of which is connected up by canal behind Brest, be- tween the upper Mukhovets river and the Pripet river. Thus, the city is served by a well-nigh perfect system of communica- tions, reaching to the north, the east the. south and to points in the interior be- tween, and expanding again from Brest toward the northwest, the west and the southwest.
 "Brest lies in the government of Grod no. It has a population of about 43.- GOO, more than half of which is Jewish. The synagogue at Brest. during the six teenth century, was regarded as the first in Europe. Probably due to its large Jew ish population, Brest Litovsk has never developed an industry. but rather a thriv- ing commerce. Grains hides, soap, wheat and timber are the staples of its trade. The lumber in which it deals was fioated in great rafts down the Danzig before the war Flax and hemp are ex- tensively grown in the country around, and. also, for important articles of it's trade.
 s"The older Notifications lie about one mile east of Brest and have circYnfer- ence of four miles, The field works have beep kept up-to-date. and everything pos sible has been done by Russia to make