Repartition of Europe.

Hokitika Guardian, 19 August 1921, Page 4

Repartition of Europe.

C ZECH OSLAVIA. Of the new nations which have arisen from the ruins of the Austria-Hun-garian Empire one is the Republic of Czechoslovakia. From east to west it measures 600 miles, and from north to south 170 miles in its widest part. It embraces the whole of Bohemia and .Moravia and the greater part of Silesia, all of which were formerly Austrian; also Slovakia and Ruthenia, which were formerly Hungarian. A very small portion of German Upper Silesia is also included. The republic is surrounded by live nations —on the west and north- j west by Germany, on the north-east by j Poland, and on the south by Rumania, | Hungary, and Austria. i The Czechoslovaks declared their in-i dependence on October 28. .1918, and' were immediately recognised by the allies. Germany recognised and ceded to the republic a very small portion i-

Upper Silesia, also guaranteeing the Czechoslovaks the free use of the port of Hamburg, on the Ninth Sea. am Stettin on the Baltic, bv the signing ol the Treaty of Versailles on June 2-' 191 L. Austria, by the Treaty of St Germain, signed on September 10, 1919. and Hungary, by the Treaty ot Trianon, signed on June J, 1920, recognised their independence and surrounded all claims to the territory which comprised the republic. Undoubtedly the- C’zoeho-Shn aks were fortunate in having only one territry dispute on their hands—that of Tosehcii which formed part of Austrian Silesia. :tnd was also claimed by Poland. Both republics agreed to decide the question of ownership by plebiscite, but owing to the unsettled state of (he district the holding of a plebiscite was practically impossible. The plan was therefore abandoned, and the district divided by mutual arrangement. Czechoslovakia secured the western portion, which contains most of the coal mines; the eastern portion, which is as y> undeveloped, wont to Poland. The main elements of the populat' iiro the Zze-chs (Bohemians). Moravians and Slovaks, who were drawn together by the fact of their being fellow-suffer-ers under the oppressive Austro-Hungar-ian rcoriine. There are also considerable liumliers of Gormans, Magyars (Hungarians), and Ruthenes. The western and industrial portion is thickly populated and in it the people are educated. but towards the east the population thins out and the people become illiterate, until in Ruthenia they are most primitive. To do justice to the Slovaks it should be mentioned that the uneducated state of the people i due to the fact that teaching in their language was forbidden, they having to choose between being taught Magyar and remaining untaught. They chose the latter with the purpose of retaining their nationality. Under the new Government, however, conditions tt ill undoubtedly improve. It is worthy of mention that many towns, rivers etc, which have been known by their German names are now changed to their original Czecho-Slovak names. The following are the Czecho-Slovak names for the towns- Prague ITaln Pilseiv—Pigen ; Brtinn Brno; Pressburg- Bratislava. Of the rivers: Elbe Labe; Moldau Vitava; MaHt—Morava,