Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-22
BY FRANK H. sIMONDS.


Copyright, 1918, New York Tribune. Incl
UNTIL the Bulgarian defeat
served as the first sign Of the
crumbling of the whole edi-
flee built by German arms
there stretched across Europe,
from the Baltic to the Black and
Aegean seas. a great mass of terri
tory, dominated by German arms.
constituting single unit. and con-
sisting of the territories of Germany,
Austria Hungary, Bulgaria and Tur-
key, together with the conquered
lands of the Serbs and the Rumanians.
In this territory some 100000 Ger
mans, 10000, 900 Magyars and 100000
Bulgars and Turks were the masters;
40 600, 900 of subject races, including
at least "a, 900, 900 Slav-Poles, Czecho-
slavs and Jugo-S1avs and Ruthenians.
Four million Latins, Rumanians and
Italians were also included in this
list of the 'einferior races"
1t was the dream of nations in
arms against Germany to liberate
these subject races, to erect in the
place of the Hungarian mon
archy not one, but several states,
which should have racial unity and be
capable of interposing an effective
and permanent barrier to German ex-
pansion to the near east.
Four Nations Reform.
What was not clearly perceived
anywhere before the end of the war
was the rapidity with which these
national reunions would take place
once the cement of German military
power was removed. Therefore, what
has taken place in the past two
months has surprised the world and
supplied one of the most marvellous
spectacles of nation building and map
making in all European history. Since
the Austrian collapse we have seen
greater Rumania become a solid and
ACCOMPLISHED fact. Jugo-Slavia spring
into life and the Czecho-Slovak state
take its place among the free ma
tions of the world. In the same
period. but with less definiteness
Poland has been rising from her ruins.
Rumania's Rejuvenation.
The fall of Austria was followed
promptly by the realization of all the
Rumanian ambitions. In August.
1914, Rumania was state of $4,000
square miles, holding population Of
100000. On all sides. save the south
and southeast, where its political and
ethnographic frontiers were identical.
Rumania was surrounded by Aus
trian, Hungarian and Russian terri
tory inhabited by Rumanians. In
1917 Rumania entered the war on the
allied side, seeking to iberate not
less than six million brother Latins
living in Bessarabia, BukoVlna, Tran
sylvania and the Banat.
This policy of national instinct, as
celebrated Rumanian patriot defined
it. led to immediate disaster. and Ru
mania was conquered and crushed;
she lost political and economic indie
seized a portion of her territory, and
the sole consolation for the Ruma-
mans was the partial union with their
country of Russian Bessarabia. a
union favored by the Germans solely
to give them control Of this Russian
proyince under the color of a Ruma-
MAN occupation.
But since Austria fell Rumania has
swiftly and almost completely real
lied her program of 1917. First OF
all, the union of Bessarabia with Rus
STA was made complete. Next. Runla-
MAN troops occupied the old Ruma-
nian lands taken by Bulgaria and
Austria Hungary. Thereafter the Blu
kovina was seized and the local as
sembly of Pennsylvania proclaimed
the union of the province with Ru-
mania BY these several acts there
were added $4,000 square miles and
600. 900 people to the Temesvar of
1914. AS it now stands, the new
Greater Rumania has an area Of near
lv sc. 900 square miles and popula-
ton of 1S,500.000. Rumania has thus
become a nation with an area equal to
that of the mainland of Italy and
holding a population greater than
than of Italy a century ago.
various adjoining Hungarian districts
the population is largely Rumanian.
and Rumanian patriots hope to OBJ
tain at Versailles Endorsement of their
claims upon most if not all, of the
Banat of Temesvar. a small portion
of which should rfghtfully go to the
new Jugo-Slavia. Ny impression is
that there is no conflict between the
Slays and the Rumanians over the
Banat, their respective spheres hav-
ing been agreed upon. but there is
the violent opposition of the Hun
Rarians, who have held Temesvar for
several centuries. and rest their claim
upon possession, not upon self-deter-
mination.
Under our eyes. then. and in less
than two months. there has taken
place the unification of 4 race occu-
plying territory equal to that of the
mainland of Italy: land fertile and
rich in oil and coal. This nation,
with natural frontiers. a compact