Dirva = Field. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1915-current, 1943-04-02
LlTHUANIA = TO-DAY = YESTERDAY
TOMORROW

half years of it's independent life,
it has shown a remarkable progress
in all the branches of it's state
hood. The four million of its pop
ulaton, occupying $4,000 square
miles of territory, proved what the
united and determined effort of
nation can accomplish. At the time
of foreign invasion of 1910, Lith-
uania has $500 primary schools and
about $50 secondary schools, two
universities, Academy of Fine Arts,
two Academies of Music, Agricul-
tural Academy Military Academy
and several trade and commercial
schools. 1t had over 100 periodic
ais, and publication of various books
had reached into thousands. Lith-
uania had developed the very good
seaport of Klaipeda (or MemeD,
had fairly good merchant marine
fleet and the nucleus of navy.
The port of Klaipeda and surroun-
ding territory was wrested out Of
her by the Nazis in 1889. How
ever, Lithuania was not dismay-
ed, it still had the summer resort
of Palanga on the Baltic coast and
a fishermen's village, sventoji,
nearby. The people Immediately
undertook to convert that fisher
mems village into port. Besides
the usual workers, the students,
various government officials, bus
inessmen and others volunteered,
during their week end, vacations
and holidays, to work on that prof.
ect, In one year much progress
was made toward the construction
of new port for the country to
replace the port of Klaipeda, seized
from her by Hitler.
The Republic of Lithuania was
not a new creation after the first
world war. 1t was only a rebirth
of an old and proud, and once pow
erful state in Europe. According
to the recognized authorities, the
people of Lithuania are consider
ed to be the aborigines of the ter
ritory they occupy = there being
no trace in the annals of the his
tory of any other people having
previously lived there. They are
neither Slavs nor Teutons. To-
gether with Latvians they form a
separate branch of the Indo-Europ-
can race. Their language is en-
tirely different from that of their
neighbors. Well known philolo-
gists regard it as being one of the
oldest living languages, and that
it is closely related 70 the ancient
Sanscrit language.
They formed a centralized state
early in the 18th century, under
the rule Of a Grand Duke. The
Lithuanians, together with White
Russians, have rendered a singular
services to the world in saving the
western civilization by crushing
the Asiatic Tartar horde invasion
of Europe. In 1410, the Lithuanian
armies under the leadership of theil
own Grand Duke Vytautas the
Great, jointly with the Polish ar.
mics under the leadership of King
Jagello of Poland, inflicted a NOR
tai blow on the Teutonic Order o1
the Knights of the Cross in the
battle of Tannenberg or Gruenwald
thereby saving Europe from Ger
man enslavement at that time.
In spite of pitiful situation ii
Lithuania today, the people are not
desparing. They are ingenuously
resisting the oppressors and grad
ually reducing their number ir
their own way. They are carrying
on their guerrilla activities, disre
garding frequent exemplary" ex
ecutions imposed by the invaders
Some of the incidents of theil
guerrilla war with the invader:
were recently dramatized on al
American radio program. The Feb
ruary issue of the Readers Digest
has a brief account under the title
of "The Song of the Nightingale"
depicting one of such incidents.
The Lithuanian people will agai,