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

Similar in Business Life 10 New
| York City and Hamburg
City
<..xe.AL 70 rs.s 4eGxerAs.,
WASHINGTON, May 29--RIga.
| the most uisra-western Town Tue
twhofe Muscoyite empire city OF
merchant princes. of bursting ware
houses and miles OF crowded oochIns,
of vigorous Teutonic atchltectcIe
and cosmopolitan organization, VIII
I a hurrving, tense business life tnat
/ finds its counterpart IN New YORK
land Hamburg. lies near the head OF
the gulf of Riga. a few mics nortn-
| east of Mitau, or Just back OF tn ne
struggling Russo-German lines N
the Baltic provinces. Riga IS a greaI
commercial city II stands 1h4ra
! among Rrssia's seaports. and second
among all the ports upon the Ba1tlc
I sea. where commercial cities nave
been growing and building for cen
Sturies. The city IS 1858 miles soutn-
west OF Petrograd. and IS filed VIII
the spirit OF modern business y
main gateway into vast RUSSIAN ian
ainterfands. and is. probably. ne
most up-to-date city to be found from
sEladivostck to Ltbau-
So begins the National Geographic
Soc,ety's description OF the srea1
Russian port that has sprung INTO
prominence with the most recent Ger
man campaign, whose direction
lies through the Baltic provinces
The war primer continues
Sccond onIY TO PetFoerad
| Riga Is second only to PetroErae
merchants of the thirteenth century
laid the foundations of its com
merciat renown It was founded IN
1901. and many German colontsIs
soon found their way TO the new CITY,
attracted thither by the many con-
mercia1 privileges granted by us
founder Riga becomes powerfui.
forrishins member of the Hanseatlc
League. the great merchant trust o.
the Middle Aces. With Hamburg.
Bremen. LueSeck. Stralsund and
scores of its fellow-nanded cities.
Riga grew in wealth and trade con
nections: boats from all parts of the
world ran II: and out~of its river bar
Dor. and it enjoyed the proud devef-
opment of q German free city
Near the middle of the sixteentr
of The King OF Poland The head
long Glrstavus Adoi2hus. OF sweden.
brought up in his course Of conquest
with a shock before its walls in 1901.
and. only AFTER long hard siege, vas
he able to take the city. Riga passed
10 the control Of the Russians IN
$40. and has since played an I'M
portan: part in the Development on
the mighty northern empire
Riga has the appearance of a Ger
man port The older part of the port
looks like medieval German town.
White new Riga might be Bremen. It
has none of the happy-go-lucky Sla-
yonic air about Il. and. so for the
tourist. it is disappoiasinS Before
the war. German was the language or
its business. and German was the
ficial Riga was Russian. and. as Riga
IS the seat OF the CHRONOLOGICAL OF
the Baltic provinces this official e4e-
merit was of much significance
Very Modern City
For the most part Riga is very
modern city Its older buildings have
been torn down to make way tor
structures more up-to-cate- more
suited to the prosperity of a business
city. It Is situated on the Duena
river. ten miles above the mouth o.
rne Gulf Of Riga. and it is bound 20
the Baltic by canals. RiSa mas
princes OF finance and trade. ana
they have lined many of its a-enues
with modern villas and palaces. A5
an example OF the city 5 EIoWtu. :
may be mentioned tina. Riga erected
more than fifteen hundred new bus'-
ness and apartment buildings during
!. recent year and that most Of tSese
buildings were equipped with ele-
vatofs. open plumbing. vacuum clean
ing. central refriEerating and steam
heaun% plants.
a strong and varied industry has
grown up N the port city. MACHINERY.
railway cars lumber. leather. tiles.
glass. tobacco and other products are
turned oct IN its numerous factories
The annual value of the articles man
/. featured in Riga exceeds $4,000
oaG 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 unilmtt-
ed promise
..The average value of RiEa's ex-
ports is well over 35.o0o-o0o. It's
imports total about 100000 each
year. The exports include cereals,
fax. Asxssed. eggs. lumber and but
tier. Its chief imports are machinery.
cotton. coal and groceries. It has a
thrift well to do population OF more
tnan 100000"
"a 49, as