Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1915-08-21
GERMANS HAVE
DIFFICULT TASK
Path to Petrograd Lies Through
Poor Swampy
Country.

Washington, Aug. """".-Duenaburg
Cor Dvinsk), the principal gate guard
ing the road from the southwest to
Petrograd and the key to the de.
Tense of the great Dvina river,
through which the Germans are ap-
parently aiming at interior Russia
and all the line of military and in
dustrial bases in the west, is de
scribed b. the National Geographic
society in today's way primer as fol-
lows:
~. : Front Door.
"Duenaburg. on the northeastern
bank of the broad Dvina, is the heav-
lily fortified front door to Great Rus
STA, that division Of Russia which
stands in the same relationship to
the empire that Prussia holds to Ger
many. 1t is situated where the Dvina
makes a sharp angle toward the west
midway on the rivers cours from
Vitebsk through marsh and lake land
to the opulent commercial and indus
trial city of Riga, upon the Gulf Of
Riga. Tie line between Riga and
Duena5urg is 40 miles long. BY
way of the river, it is considerably
longer. The line from. Dlenaburg.
east-southeast, to Vitebsk is 1852
miles. This line roughly divides
Great Russia from White Russia.
White Russia Backward.
"White Russia, to the south of the
Ducnaburg line, is probably the poor
est, most backward part of European
Russia. While some 100000 acres
of swamp lands have been drained
within its water-soggy surface, its
general aspect is still largely that of
marsh, swamp, lake and spongy
meadow and forest land. in general,
the peasants Of White Russia are
very poor, and have a sever strug
gle to wage for their existence. One
writer says that the memory which
he held most characteristic OF this
land was the picture of a weather
SCARED, g~ray-leadcd peasant stand
ing waist deep in the chill waters OF
the marsh cutting sedge.y This pow
erty-blighted country, where no great
commercial, industrial or cultura
center is to be found, is that which
now lies before the German armies
Beyond the Great Russian front doo1
at Duenaburg lies the richer indus
trial and agricultural country Of thu
central empire, while west from Lem
berg and Kholm lie the rich agricul
tural lands of Little Russia, or tn
Ukraine, and the great city of Kief
OF First Glass.
"Duenaburg is a fortress OF tn
first class. 1t is also a fortress will
traditions, for here in July, 1872, Ma
poleon's headlong troops, under tn
command of Oudinot, hurled them
selves again and again in vail
against the strongly defended bridge
head. 1t was not until some week
later that the town was captured b.
the French under Macdonald. Tn
city was originally founded as a fol
tregs in 1878. by the Livonial
Knights Of the Sword. 1t was NOR
gagged by one of the grand master
Of the order to the king Of Poland
was overwhelmed by the legions Q
Ivan the Terrible of Russia; retakeI
by Poland in 1889: held alternatel
by the Swedes and Russians durin'
the Seventeenth century, n final
incorporated in the Muscovite realm
in 1872.
1.-THE city is situated at the intel
section of two main railway line
and a very important branch. Thes
are the Warsaw-Vilna PetrOgrad line
the Vitebsk-S m0lensk line, an
the branch to the fortified Balti
port Of Libau. the only port that Rus
STA possessed before the wal who's
roadstead was always open. Tn
main features Of the city are its for
ifcations. It has a population Q
about $4,000, about one,half Of whic
is Jewish. Its industries incl,ld
sawmills, flour mills, brick kilns