The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1915-05-25
RIGA IS a CITY OF
{ NERCHAN INT PRINCES.

Similar IN Business Life TO New
York City and Hamburg
! CITY,
j tssre.4L 70 rssE +eLEsaAss,
/ WAsHiNGToN, May e5-Riga.
! The. most uisra.Wesfern town re the
whole Muscorite empire. city OF
merchant princes. of bursting ware
houses and miles of crowded docking.
I of vigorous TeuIonic architecture
and cosmopolitan ocganization, VIII VIII
a hurrving, tense business life fnat
/ finds its counterpart IN New YORK
land Hamburg. lies near the head OF
| east of Mitau, or Just back OF tne
Struggling Russo-German lines IN
THE Baltic provinces Riga is great
!; commercial city. It stands thiSe
famong Rrssia's seaports. and SECOND
among all the ports upon the Baitic
sea. where commercial cities nav nav
been growing and building Tor cen
:turies The city IS 3S3 miles soutn-
west OF PetroSrad. and is filed WIZ 5o
the shirt OF modern business II IS
q main gateway into vast Russian
hinterfands. and is. probably tne
most up-to-d date city to be found from
tVladivostok to Ltbau-
| So begins the National Geographic
Society's description of the
Russian port that has sprung . lnto
prominence with the most recent Ger
man campaign, whose dlrect1on
lies through the Baltic provinces.
The war primer continues:
| Sccond OnI! to PetsoGEad.
Riga Is second only to PetroEraa
in population and industry German
merchants of the thirteenth century
laid the foundations of its com
mercial renown. It was founded IN
1901. and many German coionsses
soop found their way to. the new c1ss,
attracted thither by the many con- ~
mercia1 privileges granted by It's
founder. Riga becomes a powerful.
Aorrishins member of the Hanseat1c
League. the great merchant trust o.
the Middle Axes With Hamburg.
Bremen. LueSeck. Stralsund and
scores of its fellow-panded cities.
fRisa grew in wealth and trade con
nections: boats from all parts OF the
world ran in and out>of its river har-
opnent of a German free city.
! Near the middle of the sixteenth
century. Riga passed into the power
| of the Eing OF Poland The mead
tong G,rstavus Adoiphus- OF sweden.
brought up in his course of conquest
with a shock before its walls IN l6ot.
and. only afser a long hard siege. vas
he able to take the city Riga passed
10 the control of the Russians IN
17Io and has since PLAYED an ino-
tportan. part IN the development OF
1.-THE mighty northern empire
Riga has the appearance Of Ger
man port The older part of the port
hooks like medieval German town.
white new Riga might be Bremen II
has none Of the hapPy-go-tucky sd
lvo-ic air about Il. and. so for the
tourist. it is disappo.sss1s seioe as
! the war. German was the language or
its business. and German was the
lidiom of its streets and homes OF
fetal. Riga was Russian. and, as Rlsa
lis the sea: Of the governor-general OF
| the Baltic provinces. this Official ese-
merit was of much significance
Very Modern City.
-Foc the most part Riga IS 2 very
modern city It's older buildings have
! been torn down to make way for
| structures more up-to-date. more
isui:od TO the prosperity of a business
city. It IS situated on the puena
river. Ten mites above the mouth o.
1.-THE Gulf of Riga. and it is bound 20
jrhe Baltic by canals. Riga mas
iprinces or finance and trade ana
tthey have lined many of its avenues
\ With m1OCeTH du0 RG-ASHSSs--
Ian example of the city's growth
may be mentioned that Riga erected
more than fifteen hundred new bust
+, ness and apartment buildings during
+. recent year and that most of Nese
buildings were equipped with ele-
ivators. open plumbing. vacuum clean
I ing. central refrigerating and steam
Iheatin% plants.
| "a strong and varied Industry has
grown up N the port city Machinery-
| railway cars. lumber. leather. tues.
glass. tobacco and other products are
| turned out in its numerous factories
The annual vafue OF the articles man
! ufacsured in Riga exceeds $4,000
900. AS an industrial center, Il has
been becoming more and more prom
/ inent year by year. and its future
seems to be one of an almost unlimtt-
ed promise
..The average value Of RiEa's ex-
iports is well over S35.o0o-0oo. It's
imports total about s30.000-e0o each
wear. The exports include cereals,
! fax. flaxssec. eggs. lumber and but
tier. Its chief imports arc machinery.
cotton. coal and groceries It has
thrift. well TO do population of more
than 100000"
"a "a q as