Evening journal., 1921-07-18
NEW nations
BALTIC COAST
ESthonia and Latonia Ex-
pected To Be Prosper
Gus Republics
RIVAL MEMBER OF
FIRST BIG TRUST

world attention has been focused
so closely upon storm centers of
Central and Southern Europe that
comparatively little has been heard
of the new nations carved from Rus
sia along the Baltic Sea-" says a
bulletin from the Washington, d. c.,
headquarters Of the National Geo
graphic Society.
But with the gradual resumption
Of commerce between Russia and the
outside world Esthonia and Latvia
will assume a more important as
pect, either as barriers or gateways
10 interior Russia
Much, too, has been written of
the expressions Of other subject
peoples. The Esthonians might well
claim to be the peers Of any national
sufferers since medieval times be-
cause they have been sore beset both
by Germans and Russians.
From the eighties Of the last CEN
tury until the world war period Es-
thonia bore the double yoke Of
Tsarist laws administered by German
officials. AS one writer claims
Heaven preserve us from Russian
law as interpreted by Germansl The
official may not take a Russian law
very seriously. but one can be sure
that the German officials will.
one must go far back into Es-
thonian history to trace the origin
Of this duplicate despotism. And to
the student Of human geography the
emergence to a sudden independence
Of a people so long submerged will
make an experiment worth watch
ing.
THE Esths are an aboriginal
people of northern Europe who once
terrorized the Baltic by piracy. and
later clashed often with Swedes and
Danes.
Tradition has it that the oldest
| flag of Europe, that Of Denmark,
dates from 1919 when the Danish
Waldemar II, who may be likened
to Alfred the Great, was conducting
a campaign to subdue Esthonia. A
great silver cross appeared against
a fiery background in the Heavens
as an omen. of success. This same
Waldemar, in the same year, found
ed the town of Reval, now capital
and seaport OF Esthonia.
Few nations can show so consist
ent a record OF conquest under the
| guise Of conversion as the Esthon-
! ians. The Danes came to baptize
them at the point of the sword; then
entered the knights Of the Sword,
coming in the role Of Crusaders and
! remaining for some six centuries as
overlords. During the long era of
/ German ascendancy the country be-
came thoroughly protestant.
within the past half century the
Russians undertook strenuous
method to gather the Esths into the
fold OF their Orthodox church. Lone
experience taught these people the
wisdom Of accepting conversion and
then returning to their folk. But
when they tried this expedient after
the visits of Russian priests they
found it a civil crime TO withdraw
from the Russian church after
having entered II. Moreover for a
Protestant clergyman TO marry a
man or woman who belonged TO the
Russian church was punishable by
imprisonment
The rugged endurance Of this
northern people. their vitality and
spirit. is sufficiently shown by their
bearing up under oppression that
was both religious and political, and
from the political standpoint both
Prussian and Russian. Perhaps their
Mongolia descent helps account for
that.
Before the World War Esthonia
was accounted one Of the most pro.
gressive regions. agrioulturally. in
Russia. Nature is scarcely kinder tC
the Esths than nations. They live ir
low. swampy country. nowhere a,
high above sea level as the base tc
top height OF the Washington monu.
ment. Their summers are hot; theii
winters cold.
The people have an especial Low,
for song, are Industrious and pro
gressive, and their struggle to gair
a livelihood from the soil rather
than a lack of enterprise accounts fol
the fact that some of their smaller
villages have been described as be
ing among the most nondescript ant
least lovely in all Europe.
1T should be noted that the fre,
Esthonia recognized by many Eu
ropean governments comprises NOR,
than the old Russian Esthonia. 4
part OF Livonia is included In tn,
, new State, while the southern par
Of Livonia, along with Courland