The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1920-12-11
PEARL OF BALTIC
WRECKED BY VAR
Once Proud City and Russia's Second
Port Is Sad Monument to De-
struction Wrought in
Six Years.

Riga, Latvia, Dec. ll.--Riga, which
was known before the war as the pear
of the Baltic and ranked as Russia
second port, is one of the saddest mon,
uments to the destruction wrought by
six years of ceaseless fighting, much
of which took place on the soil of the
new republic Of Latyia, erected on the
ruins of the old Russian governments
of Livonia and Courland.
Half million persons lived in Riga
before the war and over 400 large fac
tories kept it busy and prosperous
habitants and less than score of fac
tories are operating. The empty shells
of various industries stand awaiting
the return of machinery which the Rus
sian shipped eastward before the Ger
man advance. Lenine and Trotzky have
promised to return all the machinery
which belonged to Russian subjects.
But many of the factories were owned
by foreign capitalists and consequent
~ cannot hope to recover their plants.
Great rubber plants, carshops, wood
working shops and saw mills stand idle
awaiting capital to buy machinery. The
river Dvina and various lakes and in
lets lying about the city are filed with
logs But there are no mills to convert
them into timber, no ships to carry
them into foreign markets. The docks
are idle. Few trains operate and those
are fired with wood.
OF the 100000 persons in the new
republic, nearly all are dependent up
on agriculture for living. The crops
were failure this year and conse-
quently the outlook Is blue for the new
government headed by Ulmanis, the
Authenticated minister.president.
But the Let's have learned the joy of
freedom in their few months of indie
pendence. They fought bravely against
the bolsheviki and later against the
Baltic barons who tried to enslave
them under General Bermondt And
they are courageously building up a
national life and national conscious
ness in the face of terrible odds.
Unlike most parts of Russia, Latvia
was a country where education was
general and only small proportion Of
its population was unable TO read and
write. II had been well in the line of
European culture. Its ports of Riga,
Libau and Windau had always at
tracted many foreign traders The
country had been so attractive to Ger
h.,- he Il
ture was firmly embedded in the lead
ing cities. Riga is more German than
Russian in its appearance. Its broad
streets, magnificent, well-kept parks
and dignified public buildings give it
the air of a German city. Its numer-
GUS Lutheran churches are similar to
those found in any of the Hanseatic
league cities. It's university is organ
lied along German lines. But the great
majority of its people have no sympa-
thy with Germany's effort to continue
its influence in Latvia through the
German barons, whose estates have
been confscated.
The opera in Riga includes all the
standard German, French and Italian
operas in the Lettish language. Its
schools teach Lettish. The state theatre
gives plays in Lettish. chiefly transla-
tion of the great English, Scandinavia
an and German masters. One Of the
new plays recently produced in Riga
was written by Lett about the life Of
Weesters, Lettish knight Of the l4th
century who attempted TO resist the
German domination of Lettland. II is
bitter in its denunciation Of German
and has been well received
by public which seems thoroughly de-
termined to maintain its independence
ut any cost.