EXODUS OF TWO MILLION

Evening Star, Issue 18785, 8 November 1924, Page 2

EXODUS OF TWO MILLION

RUSSIANS WHO FLED,

Dr Charles Sa.rolea lias an amazing story to toll in the ‘ Contemporary Review ’ of the two million Russians who fled from their land in the war, and who are now scattered 1 over Europe, lie says .they are not lost to Russia, but “they arc the reserves of the coming generation.” “There have been many dispersions in the world’s history,” says Dr Sarolea, “ but none has been on the same gigantic scale‘as the present Russian Diaspora, which includes men of all parties. The majority are probably Liberals and Conservatives, but large numbers belong to the Socialist parties, which have been persecuted by tho Bolshevists even more cruelly than tho Liberals or Conservatives. That emigration is also recruited from all social classes. The aristocracy, tho middle classes, and the professional classes may outnumber the workers, but the Russian working man is largely represented, aSqt only is the Russian emigration larger than any other historical emigration, but the range and area of its dispersion is also much wider than any previous historical catastrophe. The refugees flying before the terror of Bolshevism originally stampeded in every direction, and they are now established in every country'. The first, question which occurs is how do all those poor people manage to live. The immigrants arrived in tho various European countries at the very worst possible moment. Almost every nation was in the throes of an economic crisis. Lange numbers of the Russian aristocracy had money invested outside Russia before the war. Others had saved some remnant of the family fortune,, and managed to live on the produce of the sale of their family heirlooms. An occasional visit to the countless Jewish shops in Riga, Vilna, and Warsaw gives one an idea of the enormous extent of that trade in family heirlooms. Last year you could pick up for £lO pieces of antique furniture worth £SOO. “What will be the ultimate cdecds of this vast Russian migration on Europe? It is a universal law of history that the

part which is played by refugees is entirely out of proportion to their numbers. Emigrants invariably tend to fertilise the genius of other nations, and aro a very notable factor in human progress. Germany expects to find ample compensation in Russia. The new Russia will need technical and commercial experts with a knowledge of the Russian language. Thousands of Germans are therefore learning the language and preparing to play their part. Tho German Government hopes that those commercial travellers and scientific experts will be the missionaries of a future Germau-Russiau political alliance. To-day Berlin is a, Russian colony. Who knows but that to-morrow the whole of Russia may not become a German colony, and' may not provide an outlet for the teeming and superfluous millions of tho Fatherland? These German hopes, however, may be sadly disappointed if and when it is brought home to the Russian people that Bolshevism has been largely a German conspiracy, (hat Hie Bolshevist leaders have been deliberately smuggled into Russia under Gorman protection, and that therefore Germany is indirectly responsible for the Russian catastrophe. “ If the effect of the Russian emigration on Europe lias been so far comparatively superficial, the effect of Europe on, Russian emigrants lias, on the contrary, been enormous. Before the war Russian refugees were either , revolutionary anarchists or idle aristocratic absentees. The present emigres, instead of being idlers, are strenuous workers. Instead of bciim revolutionists they are bitter anti-revolm tionisis. Future Russia, will, above all, need two classes of men, political leaders and political expert©, engineers, lawyers, doctors, and teachers. The present Russian emigration will provide both. The refugees are learning the art of politics iu the only school where it can be learned —the school of freedom. On the other hand, they have been learning the applied sciences in the technical schools and universities of the Continent.”