El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-02-06
R0IHiNIi BAGS
RUSSIAN MARCH
To THE SOUTH
Small Country With Sur
prising Resources May
Enter Great Struggle.
HAS WAR SPIRIT
OF ANCIENT ROME

Wv TASHINGTON, D. c., Feb. g.
Nv Roumania, one Of those outly-
ing European countries Of un-
certain military intent these days,
whose entrance into the great war Is
being freely predicted and who would
Lring INFO the struggle an army and re p
sources Of much greater significance
than is commonly understood. is por-
trrayed in a study for the National
Geographic society. prepared by Fred
crick Moore in which considerable ms
toric and economic light is thrown up
on the motives behind this little KING
dom's foreign policies.
Lies in Russia's Path.
Roumania, the writer shows, has no
strong ties of international friendship.
II lies directly across the path OF RUS
sian progress southwark, and, more
over, has consistently refused 10 COM
init itself to the protection of the Rus
sian influence 1t remained aloot from
the Balkan alliance which pushed the
Turk further back toward his Asiatic
source. While Mr.. Moore explains since
the days of the RussO-GurEish war OF
1877 when Roumanians crossed the
Danube and aided the Russians IN drlV-
ing the Turks out Of the province OF
Bulgaria. there has been peace, there
has not been mucn good 1eeung De
tween the RoumanianS and the Bul8a-
rians. And recently even this thln
peace was broken.
Long stretch of Mutual BORDER
These countries have a long stretch
Of mutual border They are both filled
with a spirit OF intense nationalism-a
spirit general in the Balkans, newly
awakened and newly become ambitious
II so follows that each land is as suspi-
cious as it is Jealous Of the other More
over Mr.. Moore points out, general
fever for territorial expansion mas
burned wildly through the Balkan
countries, and Roumania has contract
ed the fever along with her neighDors-
Isolated With It's Ambitions.
So it happens that ROumania is iso-
lated with its ambitions, the more iso-
lated the writer explains. as its people
do not feel themselves TO be of common
blood with their fellow peoples on the
peninsula, but love to think Of them
selves as heritors Of pure Latin blood
and Of the glorious traditions Of old
Rome
The Roumanians are the children Of
the Romans who conquered the ancient
Dacians, intermarried with them' ana
gave them the Latin language, which
has continued, with few variations, TO
this day So the Roumanians have no
place in the light bonds Of Pan-Slavism
which maintain degree Of cousinly
sympathy between Russia ana the
Balkan Slavs.
Bulgaria NVatchfUI.
Bulgaria has memories Of its prov
ince, Silistria, newly lost TO Roumania
TO keen its enmity alive and watchful.
When Bulgaria fell out with her former
allies, Servia and Greece, at the con-
efusfon of the war with the Ottoman,
Roumania added her armies to the
scales, and, at little cost in blood and
money. was able to demand the. rich
province for her own. The friendship
between ROumania and Greecezhas new
er been warm while, 10 make its dip
lomatic position still less one to be
easily forseen in the present question,
its king is a member of a princely Ger
man family, HOhensollern-S iGmarigeu.