A School History of the Great War | Page 7

square miles (less than the area of the state of Maryland), and a
population of 1,890,000, which was almost altogether resident in the
two cities of Constantinople and Adrianople.
RUSSIA.--In 1914 Russia was an empire occupying one seventh of the
land area of the world and inhabited by about 180,000,000 people.
During the nineteenth century the country was ruled by absolute
monarchs called czars, under whom political and social conditions were
corrupt and oppressive. However, some progress was made during the
century. Serfdom or slavery was abolished from 1861 to 1866;
restraints upon newspapers, publishers, and schools were partly
withdrawn. Natural resources were developed, factories established,
and railroads built. But these measures only served to whet the appetite
of the people for more liberal government. The activities of
revolutionists and reformers were met by most severe measures on the
part of the government. Thousands were transported to Siberia and
many were executed. Even as late as 1903 five thousand persons were
imprisoned, exiled, or executed for political activity against the Czar's
government. An attempt of the people to force a representative
government upon the Czar failed after a seeming success in 1905-1906;
for the Duma, or legislative assembly, then created was given little
power.
Russia has not been fortunate in her relations with the neighboring
states. Her great ambition, the occupation of Constantinople, was
repeatedly balked by other countries. In an attempt to obtain an ice-free
harbor on the Pacific, Russia brought on the Russo-Japanese War of
1904-1905, in which she was disastrously defeated. In another direction
Russia was more successful. She posed as the protector of the Slavic
provinces under Turkish rule and saw the day when nearly all of them

were free.
Russia is a country of vast territory, enormous population, and
unbounded natural resources. But before the war it had no experience
in self-government. Its land and mineral resources were not used for
national purposes. A small governing class, with the Czar at the head,
controlled its tremendous powers and wealth. Naturally, when an
insurrection is successful against such a government, the people lose all
self-control and go to great extremes. Liberty and self-government
succeed only when all the people are willing to abide by the laws made
by the majority. May this time soon come for Russia!
SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.--1. Look up facts concerning
Napoleon Bonaparte, Gladstone, Bismarck, Cavour, Garibaldi, Victor
Emmanuel I. 2. On outline maps of the world show the principal
colonial possessions of Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Belgium,
and Holland. 3. Show on an outline map of Europe the location of
peoples that had not attained to national independence before 1914. 4.
Compare the size and population of the European countries with your
own state in the American Union. 5. How far did the people in
European countries possess a share in their government in 1914? 6.
Look up in detail the government of Germany.
REFERENCES.--For facts such as those mentioned above see the
World Almanac, the _Statesman's Yearbook_, and any good
encyclopedia. For Germany, see Hazen, The Government of Germany,
published by the Committee on Public Information, Washington,
D.C.[1] Reference may also be made to Harding's New Medieval and
Modern History or to other histories of Europe.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Hereafter the publications of the Committee on Public Information
are indicated as follows: (C.P.I.).
CHAPTER II
WHY GERMANY WANTED WAR

It would be impossible to make a list of all the causes which led
Germany from time to time to take such action as would tend to force
war on one or another of the nations of Europe. For besides questions
of national honor or of national rights there were the writings of
German philosophers, historians, and scientists, a great majority of
whom maintained that war was a necessity if men were to continue to
live in large groups or societies. These writers were chiefly Prussian,
but Prussia, including more than half of Germany, dominated the rest
of the empire through the organization of its government. The
following paragraphs present what seem to be the chief reasons why
Germany, and especially Prussia, wanted war.
WAR AS A PROFITABLE BUSINESS.--According to those German
writers there are two results from a successful war. First, the victors
take more or less territory from the vanquished; second, the victors may
demand a large sum of money, called an indemnity, from the defeated
people, who thus have to pay their conquerors for having taken the
trouble to defeat them.
In both of these instances the result is advantageous to the winner of
the war, and particularly to the governing class of that nation. Through
the taxes from the new territory more money flows into the national
treasury, and a great many new officials must be appointed. These, of
course, for many years are appointed by the rulers of the