The Tomahawk., 1918-10-17

Corner Of the lnl<
THE Thurman coast, which Ger
many, with the aid OF FIN
land. has been trying to selze'
"a a mart of Russian Lapland,
being the coast Of what Is known 10
the Kola peninsula. ,..@- 'rs. -. -
The origin of the name Thurman
Is doubtful, but it is probable tnae
IL II a corruption of Norman q. e.
Norwegian) the district being ad3a'
cent to Norway. The Russian custom
n to change the capital N of Dor.
rowed word into M, so that NORMAN
would naturally become In RUSSIAN
"Morman" or Thurman" The NUT
man coast is of immense importance
to Russia, since it contains an e1cel.
lent harbor which is free from Ice all
the wear round-the deep inlet usually
called the Gulf of Kola, but now ire
ouently termed the Gulf of Thurman:
The, region has definitely belonged
to Russia for some five centuries
and It is extraordinary that no at
tempt was long made to utilize II ZOE
commercial purposes. It was' OF course.
very remote from the then center OF
Russia at Moscow, and the difficulties
of communication in a virgin country
even now devoid of roads. probably
deferred poverty-stricken and slowly
progressing Russia from opening .
route to It. It also lay close to the
Swedish frontier <the Swedish empire
included Finland up to 1907, and the
district was frequently raided BY
Swedish brigands and guerrillas. In
1888 the missionary Metrofan (st. Try
phon) founded the famous monas-
terry Petchenga; but in 1880. seven
years after his death, this outpost OF
civilization : was sacked by the
Swedes and its occupants massacred
to the accompaniment of flendish tor
lures. The anarchy Of Russia during
the early seventeenth century prevent
ed colonizing efforts. For centuries
Russia was content with Archangel,
icebound for half the year, a. her
single outlet to the north; and In the
nineteenth century large sums were
expended upon the improvement OF
that unsatisfactory port, while the Ice
free Mufman coast was neglected.
Thurman Railway TO Alexandrovsk.
This state Of. things listed until
the beginning Of the twentieth century,
when q naval station was tardily In
stalled at Ekaterina harbor, bay at
the mouth of the Gulf Of Kola. A rail-
way to connect this single ice-free
Russian port with Petrograd was pro-
jected, but, in the usual dilatory Rus
sian fashion. remained a project until
the early part of 1915. Then the
closing Of the entrances to the Baltic
and the Black sea, and the consequent
isolation Of Russia, awakened the al
Hes to the necessity Of utilizing the
port, and with feverish energy the rail-
way was pushed forward across the
100 miles Of wild and desolate coun-
try-forest, lake, mountain, and snowy
steppe- (which lie between Petrograd
and Kola. Thousands Of workmen
were levied to construct It, and In
little more than a year communication
was established. But the mortality
among the workmen was enormous, as
was unhappily too frequently the case
with the gigantic engineering feats
which excited our admiration In
Russia. 49,. ,--s-.
The railway runs through Kola, at
the head Of the gulf, and terminates
at Romanov or Murmanslk, some dis
lance further on. This place was in
1914 small fishing hamlet, but has
BY now grown into place Of some
1000 Inhabitants. In the present cha.
otic state Of Russian administration
It IS governed BY seven distinct coun-
els or boards, Of which the principal
one, the regional council, exercises
general supervision over the town and
the province. This council Is stated
az being friendly In feeling towards
the allies. The place II, indeed, prac.
ideally dependent for food and other
necessaries upon supplies furnished
b. the allies By sea; and this Vital
fact doubtless influences the govern.
Ing body.
Life In this outpost II curiously n.
tincial. There are no shops or ho'
tells: the councils distribute food and
assign lodgings TO new arrivals The
cost OF living II low, bot houseroo0
e scarcely obtainable. Wages are
enormously high-1.O00 rubles q month
for locomotive drivers, 60 for ord
nary Wofkmen, SIS for dock laboC9A