Evening star., 1947-08-31

struggling Tor survival against fleaV
ing q grim battle for life agains
the deliberate policies Of thu
Kremlin.
1t is the obvious policy Of tht
Kremlin to eliminate the, freedom
loving Balts altogether.$ In the
process, three nations still recog-
nized as independent by the United
States and other countries are, as
nations, being annihilated by Soviet
Russia, while the United Nations
looks the other way.
Long Overshadowed
From the earliest times the men,
ace of Muscovy has ove-shadoweo
the life of the Baltic peoples.
Yet it was only in 1921, by the
Treaty of Nystad, that Russia, in
cidentally, with Poland's help, sue.
ceeded in annexing from Sweden
the Latvian Province Of Livonia
which constitutes about one-third OF
modern Latvia and Estonia. Fol-
many years prior to that date, these
provinces had enjoyed the protec-
ton of the Swedish crown, espe-
cially against that inner enemy, that
very small but very powerful minor
ity, the German landed nobility
Small wonder, then, to see those
same Teutonic Baltic barons betray-
ing their Swedish liege lord tc
Russias Gear, in exchange for the
guarantee of their self-arrogated
privileges, which had been largely
curhed and curtailed by Charles X1
and Charles XII Of Sweden.
Small wonder, too, that the prom
nent historian Carl Won Schirren, O
German Baltic noble himself, saw
At to burn his own definitive
magnum opus in manuscript form
arriving at the conclusion that "the
Baltic squirearchy bears more guilt
than glory"
Farmers Oppressed
Estonia and Latvian Livonia oi
the 18th century groaned under the
double burden of the rule of Russian
gendarmes and the few German
squires. That period of woe was
introduced by the decree passed by
the Livonian oligarchic Diet of the
German landed mobiles, beginning
with the ominous words: Runaway
farmers shall have their noses and
ears cut off," However, the Latvian
farmers not only dared to run away
from their oppressors but fought
back as proven by the numerous in
surrections of the 18th century in
Livonia. They were quelled by over
whelming Russian arms.
AS for the other parts Of Latvia
their fate was soon to be very
similar. Latgale, an autonomous
province of Poland, known as the
Principality of the Polish Inflantes,
in 1773 was annexed by Russia fol-
lowing the first partitioning of the
internationally isolated Poland. In
1875, when Poland was partitioned
for the third time. the independent
Latvian duchy of CORTLAND, the
core of modern Latvia, together
with the greatest portion Of the
autonomous grand duchy Of Lithu-
ania, likewise fell to Russia. 1t Is
well known, of course, that Russia
Prussia and Austria at that time
took advantage of the fact that
revolutionary France and England
were among themselves at war and
were thus unable to intervene fol
the benefit of the Poles, Lithuanians
and Latvians.
And it cannot be forgotten that
at that time Pitt could openly de-
clare before Parliament that Eng
land needed the help Of Russia
against revoluntary France. Hence
the attack of the Whie> against
the partitioning aggressors-Rus-
sia, Prussia and Austria-were o1
no avail.
Holy Alliance
Then, at the beginning Of the 10th
century, came the Holy Alliance
of the then big Three"-Russia
Prussia and Austria-and stabilized
lawlessness in Eastern Europe.
It is certainly one of the strongest
paradoxes of history, the bizarre
symhosis In the Baltic provinces
between the Czarist military domi-
nation and the administration o1
the German nonnumerous landed
nobility. For the phenomenon wax
not restricted to the Baltic region
The scions of the German Bali
mobiles focked to the court of st
Petersburg where they were received
with enthusiasm by the Czars, them
selves being of German princely
extraction. For some 200 years the
Czarist court, administration ane
armed forces were practically domi'
mated by these arrogant Teutons
whose aim seems to have been
whether deliberately or not, a sys'
tematic prevention Of Russia's prog
ress, both cultural and economic
Moreover, they did nothing to pre-
vent the German Russian War O
1914, in which retrograde Czaris
empire was defeated by q numeri'
cally far inferior Germany, who's
intelligence service added humilia
ton to defeat by assisting in th'
encroachment in Russia of the Boil
ShevikS.
What Might Have Been
Had it not been for the fina
victory of the Allied Democracies, IL
the last count effectuated by th'
military might Of the United States
who shall say but a BolShevizet
Russia in 1918 might have becom
the satellite of Prussianized Ger
many? Finland, the three centra
Baltic States, Poland, the Ukraine
al &t,~ nf13nr ant1yaf rie