The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-09-19
BALTIC PROVINCE
OF ESTHONIA Is
SECOND BELGIUM
DIPLOMAT SAYS
Position Is Intolerable and
Arbitrary Rule Is
the Order
- Anr,,nt 9f--(Correspon

London. August 31-(Correspon-
dance Of The Associated Press.)-
Esthonia, the former Baltic prov
ince OF Russia now dominated ny
the Germans, is another Belgium
asserts Prof. Antonious Pup, an hs-
thonian diplomatic representative "a
this country. Esthonians, he oe-
clare. are maintaining resolute
gtrupgle against pan Germanic plans
To mite Egthonia with Germany ana
standing firm In defense of Esthon-
ian independence. ..,
Summarizing information from
what he described as his unhappy
country" Professor Pup said:
THE POSITION in Esttonia Is lnt3l-
erable. Arbitrary rule Is the orotr
of the day. Press of all The Bsthon-,
ian narties has been crushed. All
poI;tical life is suppressed, all meet
ines forbidden. Many OF the poll
t,cians and ordinary citiIHIs are ar
rested and shot The German baroho
and the pan Germanists arc tullng
the country.
Democratic self government mas
been Dissolved. In place of 1t new
German bodies are created. German
LANGUAGE Is the official one. It Is
COMPULSORY introduced in schools.
Russian Ia absolutely forbidden, as
also correspondence in Esthonlan.
M the town council those to which
the majority before the revolution
was German have been restored. IN
Reva1 a. German town council ana
MAYOR have been nominated, ana
thew sent an unauthorized telegram
TO Berlin in the name of the popu-
Iation.
THE Esthonian troops have been
broken I'D. The post does not work
every sort of passenger traffic has
heen curtailed. There are no law
courts. Crime is increasing, espe-
ciallv on account Of the general lack
OF work. The German barons nave
received the monopoly OF JudIcature
and censorship. The factories are
shut All private enterprise Is par
alyzed. The banks refuse to MAKE axe
payments. having no money. In the
Y1Iral districts the authorities VINO
were in the office before the revolu-
ton have been restored.
Great Shortage OF Food.
people out Of work turn their
Fteps to the countryside, where, now
ever. 1t Is impossible to get lana,
because the landowners are waiting
for the Germans TO buy up Iand at
a high price for colontzing. Supplies
NJ provisions, scanty as they are, are
randy growing less. There are no
imports; need Is growing from Day
to day. acquisitions are very harsh.
in Reval there have been instances
of school children being carried
home unconscious through hunger
The Esthonian educated peoples are
also out of work. because all the
places are filled with Germans. All
classes of the population are in abb
solute dependency
"The Germans treat the Esthon-
Ians as enemies in conquered land
while really they are in the country
only as the policing force
What will the Imperial Chancellor
Hertling say to this? What will the
reichstag say? Where is the right
of the Esthonian people to self-de-
termination, which was guaranteed
by the peace treaty? The Esthon-
ians ask in vain"
The North German Gazette recent
" announced that supplementary
agreements to the Brest- Litovsk
peace treaty signed at Berlin, Aug
ust q. contain a solution which as
sures the Baltic. states independ-
enCe.