THE H.B. TRIBUNE. FRIDAY, AUGUST 6, 1915. WARSAW. "THE CITY OF SORROWS.”

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume IV, Issue 428, 6 August 1915, Page 4

THE H.B. TRIBUNE. FRIDAY, AUGUST 6, 1915. WARSAW. "THE CITY OF SORROWS.”

••Warsaw’ takt.n’’ is Hie brief anmium/emem. that greets us over the wires this morning ami. although it comes from Berlin, there is miforluuhlely no reason hi doubt th.ii it. is the bare slat emeu of an accomplished fact which will be confirmed • from Petrograd. probably during the I day. Although uc have been well ' prepared for the event.’ we have. in a measure, been induced by some over-sanguine v, l iters to hope against hope that, the ealamh y might be averted. For calamity it undonbcdly is, ah hough, we trust. J mil. Tram a piire.y military point ef I ' X-w . Bui. with the inciiiorv of I Brussels ami Belgium so fresh m 'uiir minds, there can Im I>r>t. one reason for hoping Hi.’.l Warsaw and Poland, now in fairly secure. if linijMirarv. occupation of the enemy, may net oe snb|eeled Io Ihe sanm rigorous 1 reaimeiil as has been nieled mu Io the hllle western E Kiltgli.ihl. I lie one hope hrs m the Jp< issihi iit \ ihal (iermaiiv mav slili iciil cri atn some nuimii ihal. bv fair premises from herseh ami bv vepre smiting 'die f:ituit\ of trusting io I Russian pledges, for beltiwmcnl, she Imai vet v. in Poland from a Imgrim-e Ho Russia. ’I lioitg'n ilie loss of War (saw may not '><■ of vital strategic Isigniliiiulce so tar as the ultimate re,ll II «d v.iir is coneecricd. it mu /(■id . furnishes the i ery spectacular jvieiorv for which the enriiiy was t striving, lint it also carries I hi' imi mediate implication itmt the Grrman lorees on the Xarcvv -wlionee we have been rucom.lv told the chief menace to ilie Russian position comes haw so far made good their advance ‘.,1ml an\ iiirlhcr resist;ance. siich as might save Warsaw, was im’.>radicable. The ligliiing tlierc. as 1 elsewhere m the eastern theatre, wi.l I now assuredly resolve iisell’ into the I rearguar<j actions that, are <‘sseuti:if Ito I lie protection oi Russia’s repeating armies, amt iml uni il wo shear oi them having reached inl ici (heir m-w line of defence shall we be entirely relieved of anxiety with r<--gaid Io l ie- pi ssibilil v of a considerable seel ion lieilig caught between ihe claws of Ihe tierman pmcers, now <-mleavonring in c’ose in. on. i’hem. from north ami seiith. In anv ••vmit., Ilie fail <>f W irsaw. a« a eplmination of the great Austro'('■Ciimin et’fori lha; has already hb-iyeii our All.v hack from Westeri: | ( lahcia,. ami the ('arpal hiaps over a it I<' Cell. in some seel Tons, of close on ■wo hmidred miles, eanm>t but have I’ls effvH. on the umleeided Balkan jStaies, and more especially in 1:11 ciigt liciitng Bulgaria, app'trenc.y

rim keystone of any possible Liminm there, in Ihe pi <Jennan :n<-linations she has recently manifested. The (leni'iin rapture of War!sa\v may not alter the ultimate end ol the war, but it most certainly promises to seriously postpone its achievement. I>y the Allies. and affords <mr enemies good ground, for the pi'csenl, to indulge in flic exultant. rejoicings of which we shall Imar In t |n t > course. V. <■ can only lujpo that the price of present, vicUory will be ;; more complete ' ventu'.il subjection to the will of the Allies when once, their preparations are complete anti their full resources propet y marshalled for coordinated action. The time for this should surely not be far off now. This is not the iirst time by many I hat Warsaw Inis been in the hands of rm invader. Its history as a capital runs back over some three and a-lialf emit uiics. for it was in 15.50 that Sigismund Augustus declared it the pclitic-ll centre of I nitetl Poland and Lithuania. and from 1.">72 onward- the elect lull of the Kings of Poland took place on lite field <>f Woia mt the western outskirts of lite city. If was about a cem.uiy later that, it fell into the bauds of the Swedes under Cha: les X.. who however, held it. for little more than a year. the Poles retaking it, only to lose it .again after a very short occupation. recovering it icv entuplly on the declaration of peace 'at. the colic’llsion of the war. Close on half a century of comparative peace did much to ('liable the expansion and beautification of the city, but al- the beginning of the eighteenth century Charles XI I. of Sweden, in the eoursc of his long victorious career, cap! tired it after it had gone through much .suffering and (le v ast at io-i i. A year later a. coalition of European Powers forced hint to submit to the .-übscript ion of a peace v hicli i'ilr(' again set- V tr saw free. Little more Ilian another ba If-cciil ury had passed before Warsaw was again in the hands of an enemy. but on this occasion it was llie i ictim of intrigue on llie part of Itus ia. who released it only upon the eessioii of a large portion of Polish l( rrilory ami the election nt a King pract ica.ly nommate<l by her. Some thirty years later, in 1791, Russia took it again, ami a year later a further partition ol Poland, ga \ e Wai.saw to Bliie-ia. A little over a decade saw it. in I M Hi. iii tli<- oecupation cl Xapolecii s legions, and after the peace 111 I Hsit HI ISO 7 it liecime llie capital ol 1 lie iiulepe.mlciit Duchy ol Warsaw. Within Iv.n yea’:; .however, it was seized by Austria, who held it lor a fow, weeks only. being forced Io abandon it and re-acknow ledge its independence. Then came Xa. poleoii’s march on Moscow, iliniiig wllicii his troops took posscssie.H of the town. Ill’s disastrous ref real through ill'' snows eiiablcd th' - I”I'’ 1 '’ suing' l{(issi-.|ns io again secure pus session of the city, anti since 1 hen ii has been under Russian iu ! c a rule that, it has In be admitted. Im'- been (liavactei'ised by- iinuli lyrairn.' aml pct M ention.

.In 1> Warsaw >< as the centre ol a great, but, unsuccessful, revolutionary movement, dining which the insurgent s got possession of t-lic town. The .Russians. however, .pielched the itistil'rc-ctioti within a year, ami the recapture <n‘ 'Aai-uiw, with terrible bloodshed, was followed by many immediate tlepcrtat ions, cxeeiitiens and confiscations, anti by a long period of severe military rule. 1562 saw the Pules again showing symptoms of revolt, and after less tliau a year, uiarkcd by savage and

sanguin.U'y ciiorls al repression, I Hey w ere in opc.n ichel ion, I’hi -. Poland’s lasi, effort Io regain imle pendente, is. strangely < i m:ugh. tri.bu.ted i.y hisi <iri;i;i.- io the more Immam* pi-hey of the then t'zar, A’h-.\t‘iider lE. v.ho permittid many repal; ialions ami gr*-ath lighiem-il the burden of !i 11 s' its > i lionnmii ion. This relaxation of Russian oppression appealed. liuwever. to the Poles merely as an opportunity fo.’ organising rebellion, which emled in final suppression am] a reversion in the old nmthmis of mitiuniil b-pi'es-sicti. ’I Im ash< l .'--. <;f revolt letve cihitmued !■> simuihjer. ami even us latciy as- ten years ago there was

some kind oi Tcvolttitonary tiiovtmenl. waieb. Imwover, did not attain

any greater magnifmlc Hunt popular rioting, nil bmp;!', prodm-iive of much i lawless liitimlslied. Although the present. Czar bad introduced a more humane policy, and had done mm-ii fr> ameliorate the condition of I lie Poles and to secure (Imtr good will, it can Weil bt> iniilerstoml that Gciimin.y was not altcgclher wiiiiout reasons for Imping l imt the aid break of war might again find the Russian Poles eager to seize a ch.atit’e of asserting I hemselves, nt‘<l ihal Russia, on the oth' - *,’ iiaml. was not witlmu' api'i’e’nensioiis as io tug loyalty of tin' Poles, apprelieiisiens which considerably influenced her scheme <d' military dispnsii i.ur j . ‘iowever, tiie Czar's pi'tmipi promise of autonomy se-uiis to have disarmed old .•iiumosities and, so far as we have been allow <’il to know, t her? ’nave been indications of mii hii'g l>ul ■ ’'■liable loyally to hi" enlist}. 11 will thus he seen from ilie brief epitome given cf Wa.i saw’s history th.it il has well earned the I if !<• of the “Cily ef Snr rows,’’ which 11 is I<>ri a i is ha',o bestowed upon it, and c-VetliS inti sadly point in ilie prospect of the immbcr of her sorrows being augiitentcd. iu(!“ss l.'ne euiisiderat ions suggested early in tiiis aiticle may wi'.igi' Wilb the presold liqitors. lie ea mmly 'linpt'. ami pray. I’liil siri’.e t< y V ;irs;'w s early redemption ai!'! a httppii r hisii.ry for the future.