MODERN ROUMANIA

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 52, Issue 3750, 1 May 1936, Page 10

MODERN ROUMANIA

IMPORTANCE OB 1 OIL EXPORTS. A VISITOR’S IMPRESSIONS. (By G.H.W.) With the threatened Imposition of oil sanctions, Roumania, as the world’s largest exporter of petroleum products outside America, has emerged from an atmosphere of court intrigues and scandal and is now playing a different and more dignified role in the arena of international politics. Roumania, situated on the west of the Black Sea, occupies the unique position of having six different nations on her frontiers—Russia, Poland and Czecho-Slovakia on the north, Hungary on the west, and Yugoslavia and Bulgaria bn the south. Due to powerful British oil interests in Roumania, she became one of the Allies in the late war, and in the reshuffle of the frontiers acquired the rich wheat growing province of Bessarabia from Russia and considerable territory from Hungary and Bulgaria, incidentally increasing her population from 8,000,000 to 18,000,000. Disembarking at Constanza, which is a prosperous port with modern shops, fine homes, excellent restaurants and a large and imposing casino, one travels west by the fast State owned train two hundred miles to Bucharest, the capital. The country is high and similar to our Western district in appearance. There are no fences or hedges between the holdings, and except portions reserved for grazing the whole of the land from the Black Sea to the Carpathians—over 300 miles—is intensely cultivated with maize, the staple food of the majority of the people, 80 per cent of whom are on the land. The absence of fences is overcome by utilising the old women to watch the stock. It is a common sight to see them sitting on a stool in a field doing embroidery work and at the same time holding a rope to which is attached a couple of cows, or perhaps guarding a flock of a dozen geese, which answer to her call.

On the run to Bucharest one obtains the first glimpse of the Danube, which, is contrary to popular conception, not blue but consists of a wide, muddy looking stream, lazily winding its way into the Black Sea. Thfe economic advantage of the Danube to Roumania is incalculable, as practically 70 per cent of her products are transported to Central Europe by river. It is interesting to watch the small tubs with four or five lighters*, loaded up to a thousand tons each with timber, oil and other products, behind them, slowly moving along the river.

Bucharest, the capital, has a population of 800,000, and is a fine, modern city, with an efficient transport system of electric trams, buses and taxis, and Russians, with their long velvet corduroy coats and astrakhan hats, look very picturesque driving their open “victorias,” which can be hired at 10s a day. Notwithstanding the fact that Roumania is an oil producing country, 90 per cent of road transport is still done by horse or oxendrawn vehicles.

The city men of Bucharest are next to the Londoner in beinfe the world’s best dressed men. They turn out complete with spats, stick and gloves, and if an ex-officer, will don an eyeglass. The peasant’s dress consists of white smock and tight trousers, complete with an embroidered waistcoat and canoe-like shoes, curled up at the toes. His headgear is anything from an old felt to an astrakhan in- the chimney pot design. The Bucharest women, who are mostly brunettes with a Roman cast of feature, are noted throughout Europe for their vivacious beauty. Their olive skins emphasise the whiteness of their wonderful teeth and flashing eyes. The pink and white Complexion of the English girl is unknown in the Balkans.

Peasants in the fields or working on city buildings work from 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. for six days a week, while the city man' lays down his pen at 1.30 p.m. for the day. After a good luncheon he indulges in a siesta. His next appearance is about 7 p.m., when, thoroughly revived and looking like a fashion plate, he joins the grand parade in the Calea Victoria, Bucharest’s main shopping avenue. This parade, which takes the form of exercise, as sport is practically unknown there, continues until about 9.30 p.m., when they adjourn to their favourite restaurants and dine and listen to the excellent music of the Gipsy or Hungarian orchestras until the early hours of the morning. Many of these cafes are in the open, and one can sit and dine and see the crowd go past.

King Carlos likes his officers looking ultra smart, and selects fine, handsome men, whose bright uniconsist of a white doeskin coat with vieux rose belt and cap to match. Their sky blue trousers and black enamel boots complete their outfit and give them a debonair appearance. These officers must wear their uniforms on all occasions, and one might easily pass forty of them In the one block on the Calea Victoria. The play ground of Bucharest is Sinai, situated 70 miles to the west, in the beautiful Carpathian mountains. King Carlos has a palace there set in beautiful park lands. There are

many fine homes dotted on the hillside and several large ultra-modern hotels. On the week-end it has many visitors—Sunday is generally'devoted to motor faces and hill-climbing contests. In the evening the Casino, Which is operated by the State, is the magnet for the crowd. It cost over a quarter of a million, and is a modern white sandstone building set in a charming flootlit garden.

Stepping from the richly furnished loges into the main hall one at once senses the tense atmosphere of excitement from the 2000 persons who are trying to forecast the roll of the roulette ball, or testing their judgment at the bacarrat table. Every one of the thirty tables is crowded with players and onlookers, and at some of the baccarat tables the minimum for cards was 1000 lei (equal to 40s sterling).

Practically everyone was in evening dress, and the Roumanian women looked exquisite in their perfectfitting Parisian gowns. Many of them wore feather boas in pastel shades that lent a pleasing contrast to their gowns and blended with their suntan complexion. In the annex was a cabaret with a wonderful Hungarian orchestra. Nubian waiters, wearing their familiar red fez, moved silently from table to table serving Turkish coftee. All drinks are obtainable until closing time at 4.30 a.m. Bucharest is a paradise for the press man, as there are 14 daily papers—ll of which represent; VMions political parties. Roumania is rich in wheat and maize, hides, timber and wine, and in addition has an annual production of 1,950,000,000 gallons of petroleum products—the Italians alone taking almost as much as Australia’s total consumption. Central Europe receives most of her requirements by river tankers operating on the Danube. Notwithstanding her natural wealth, Roumania is in a bad way financially, due to unstable administration. Things are done there that would make even a New York Tammany Hall politician blush. The lei—the national currency—is pegged at 500 to the pound, but on the "Black Bourse” is worth only 900 to the pound, and in consequence there are severe penalties inflicted on anyone entering or leaving Roumania with more than 3000 lei (equal to £6). Fearing inflation, everyone with money to invest is putting it into city buildings, and at present whole sections of streets are being pulled down and replaced with modern buildings. Building costs are low, as there is ample cheap Gipsy and Hungarian labour available. Women here, as in other Balkan States, do most of the labouring work, and receive 400 lei a week (16s). My business brought me into contact with leading Roumanian politicians and business men, and their unanimous desire was to support the League of Nations in maintaining the present status quo in Europe. The general opinion is that a European war would result in a revolt of the peasants of Roumania and Poland in favour of joining Russia in the hope of obtaining possession of the land.