The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-02-18
Poland Has Had Distressing and
Depressing History, But stu
Retains Her National
characteristics.
ENTITLED TO SYMPATHY
Entire Eastern War Theatre 10 on
VI Polish Soil and Cities and Vii
lagos Are Being Made
War Offerings.

WASHINGTON, ID. C., Feb To-
American sympathy can be given
without reserve to "partitioned Pol-
and" the magnificent, much-promising
empire of yesterday, the keen suffer-
ing battlefield Of today, whose farms
and industry, villages and cities are
being made war-offer!ngs and whose
people are fighting one another under
three different flags; for Poland is the
least concerned sacrifice in the Euro
pean struggle Polish lands comprise
almost the entire eastern war-theater.
This people, their chequered, turbulent
history, their proud boasts and dearest
hopes, and their peculiar characteri5-
tics are carefully explained to Amerl-
cans in a historic-geographical study
made for the National Geographic So
ciety by William Joseph Showalter.
Mr.. Showalter says of the brilliant
middle-European kingdom Of yester-
day:
In size she outranked nearly every
nation of the continent. Even now
Russia alone of the European nations
is larger than Poland was at her
greatest. In population she stood at
the forefront of Europe; only Russia
and Germany today have greater pop
ulations than are to be founG in the
lands that once were Poland; for un-
partitioned Poland had an area OF
$4,000 square miles, and the lands
that once lay within her boundaries
now support a population of fifty mil
lion. In area she was as large as the
German empire, Switzerland, Belgium,
Holland and Denmark together; ana
within that were her borders that
dwells present population larger
than those of France, Belgium and
Holland combined
Though III years have gone by
since the final partition of Poland
among Russia, Austria and Germany,
and though the conquerors have made
the most vigorous efforts to assimilate
the Polish people, the Pole today, if
anyway changed. is more intensely ma
tional. Mr.. Showalter points out. more
passionately devoted to an ideal Of a
re-established Poland than ever be-
fore. The Pole has fervent love for
all things Polish, this writer con-
tinues:
He willstell you that their cooking
is better than that of Paris: that their
scenery is more beautiful than that
of any, other country; that their lam
from human lips: that there is no
dance in the world to be compared
with the mazurka: that the most beau
tiful women on the face of the cart,
and the bravest men who ever Nveo
are to be found among them; that the
Poles are cheerful, hospitable, cas-
lily pleased, and an imaginative race;
and that yet, in spite of and notwith-
standing all this, they are the most
unhappy people and theirs the most
hapless nation in history
Poland was three times partitfoned.
The final apportionment was made at
the congress of Vienna in 1915, which
left to Russia 220,500, Prussia, $4,000,
and Austria $4,000 square miles. Aft
er this distribution, the conquerors
sought to blot out all memories of the
kingdom, Poland, and Mr.. Showalter
|enumerates among the repressivc
measures employed to this end those
forbiding the use Of the Polish Ian
guage, the use Of the national dress
even at carnivals-the singing OF ma
tional songs and the displaying OF ma
tional coats-of-arms.
The Poles lost their place among
the family of nations because they
were the victims OF an unrestrained
individualism Yet, where the Poles
are willing to surrender some part of
their individualism In the service of
an IDEAS in the case In the United
States,-they make the best OF citi-
zens. America is a decided gamer by
the host OF Poles who nave Eought her
shores, is the conclusion OF the writer.