The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1915-09-04
RICH IN RESOURCES
Russia Faces Indefinite Future Of
Warfare U%ndiSmayed.
1.-THE Most Powerful Country of the
Future" Was Just Finding Itself
When War Broke Out
Wealth Untouched.

Washington, D. C.-With the great
est wholesale destruction of treas
ure in all history taking place, with
Wainwright economic losses piling up
in such stupendous aggregates as no
panic ever caused, the question as to
how long each of the belligerents can
stand the fearful strain upon it's re-
sources is becoming as important and
fully as interesting as are any of
those more stirring questions grow
ing out of the purely military phase of
the world-war. In a bulletin Just is
sued, the National Geographic society
sketches the pre-war economic condi-
ton of Russia, which, having expend-
ed $780, 900, 900, having lost hundreds
of millions of dollars in foreign trade,
and cities and provinces worth hun-
dreds of millions more, is facing an
indefinite future of warfare undis-
mayed, confident. The bulletin reads:
Commercial and industrial revolu-
ton were stirring in Russia before the
war; the work of opening it's magni'i-
cent domain vas being rapidly carried
forward; plans for developing it's al
most unlimited resources we're in
process of confident organization;
modern cities were springing up like
mushrooms in rich Siberia; textile,
metal and other industries were lay
ing firm foundations, and foreign trade
had been brought up to about $780,
000, 900. What has been called the
most nnmnrf,1l oAT,ntrxY In &ho F,,t,,roI
was finding itself, and was preparing
to enter upon the centuries of expan-
sion that it will need to exhaust the
possibilities of it's boundless natural
wealth.
About two and one-half times
larger than the United States. with
al area of $3.50, 900 square miles and
a population of 10000, 900. which is
increasing at the rate of 5000, 900 a
year. Russia's natural resources re-
semble those of this country, and are
proportionate. 1t has nearly 800, 0O0,-
900 acres of forest-compared with
the 544, 100000 acres of the United
States-much of which, even now, IS
carefully administered, and which, one
day, will be the worlds first source of
timber. 1t has 250,000, 900 acres of
land under cultivation. while this
country has a cultivated area Of
about twice as great; but Russia can
expand her farm lands twenty-fold and
still leave virgin land to the future.
1t can become the granary and the
stock farm of the world.
"Scarcelv two scOra vaare hava
passed since Russia began with seri-
GUS purpose the task of her internal
development. Progress, during the
first thirty years of this period was
h~esitant. In the last decade, however,
it has doubled it's foreign trade, of
which Sc per cent is exports; still
this foreign commerce is less than half
that of the United States. But Rus.
STA before the war had scarcely be
gun to gather steam for the prose
cution of her tasks. There remain
hundreds of millions of acres of fat
lands to be brought under the pillow;
tens of thousands of factory plants to
build; rich mines to be opened; great
railway and canal systems to be
built; millions of home-builders to be
moved into Siberia. the silver East
of the cars empire, and many mil
lions of i~lliterates to be educated &c
a higher standard of life and eff
cheney.
Russia is a vast storehouse of raw
materials, and must for many years
remain a purchaser of machinery ahC
manufactured goods in increasing
quantities. Yet the mills OF Russia
consume $130.OO0 900 worth of raw cot
ton annually. and Russian iron AM
steel rails have already found thei
way into competition Mn the markets
of the world. Germany bought NOR,
from Russia than any other thre'
countries, and sold to the Russian
about half of all their imports. Thes
two empires did p tremendous, thriy
ing business with one another befor
the war, and a great stream Of Gel
man capital flowed into the northerl