Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-05-13
FINLAND HOPES
FOR FREEDOM AS
RESULT Of WAR

i LONDON, May 12-"Kultur." That,
so Jan Jansen declared, is what Find
land hopes to win from this war.
But Jansen, let it be added hastily,
was talking in Finnish and he didn't
mean the thing which German Kulter
has come to mean to everybody except
the Germans. The boss of the Russian
branch bank, in which Jansen is a
clerk, and the banks English inter-
prefer explained what it meant.
Finland wants Finnish school houses
with Finland's flag floating above
them-filled with Finnish children
learning their own language, literature
and history. The Finnish people want
the right to pursue their own way un-
molested. They are ready to believe
| that the war not only will give them
! the right, but that, through the Rus
sian revolution, it has already done So
! Full freedom from Russian rule is
not expecter; but self-government in
all affairs that solely concern Fin
land is part of the peoples demand.
They wish to manage their business
affairs, to continue the development of
their country, their road and harbor
building, for the benefit of themselves.
Above all they want their nationality
preserved.
Any American city or community
that has it's Finnish colony will under
stand this for in every such commun-
ity the center of the peoples life is
Finnish Hall, an institution devoted to
culture rather than hilarity. Finnish
! Halls keep the native language alive
as far as possible, even in America. 1t
is easy to understand the implacable
attitude of the Firms at home toward
Russian efforts to stamp out their
mother tongue.
Finland's complaint against Russia,
now happily dissolving, was only a
dozen years old, said Mr.. Jansen. 1t
dated from that extra-reactionary
regime which following, and appar-
emily regretting, the Cars concessions
to the people in 1905, sought to upset
ell the benefits granted Finland Since
that time, Jansen declared, Russian
governors sent to govern Finland have
devoted themselves largely to the
difficult task of stamping out the iden-
tlty of the Firms as separate people.
won Seyn concentrated on the job of
making Russian moujiks out of the
Finns," he said.
THE Firms are a peaceful, patient
people. 1t is hard to see what the old
regime feared from them. Possibly it
was simply a way of extorting more
money; thirty million marks has been
taken annually in taxes for the Imper-
ial government in recent years, part of
this being spent in the maintenance of
Russian officials and troops in Fin
land"
Finland, if all goes well with the war
from this time forth, stands to gain
a great deal at comparatively small
sacrifice. 1t will have its autonomy
assured without ever having put SOL
der in the field.
But the Firms. have felt bitter, new
ertheless. The men have not been
slaughtered, the women and children
have not been brutally mistreated.
Only their language, their literature
ard their cherished institutions have
been put to the sword. The murder
has not been complete. however, and
probably never would have been. The
Firms accepting such suppression out
wardly probably would have continued
secretly their loyalty to their own
for many generations to come, had not
the revolution interviewed to make sec
recy unnecessary.