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Show RUSSIA'S F000 FOR Ti CANNON Every man lost to France represents a permanent shrinkage shrink-age of her population. The birth irate of France is so low that her population is practically stationary. A good deal the same thing is true of Groat Britain and Ireland. I The i opulation of Germany : is growing, but the birthrate is slowing down. The rulers of Germany with true German far sightodness havo been calling attention to the fact that the people are not so prolific as formerly for-merly But for all that, the German birthrate will slowly repair the losses of the war. But Russia need care not a snap of her finger for her supply sup-ply of food for powder. In the conversation with Sir Edward Grey on the eve of the outbreak out-break of the war, the German nmbassador is said to have observed ob-served that Germany must go through Belgium, since it was the only open road to the heart of France and Germany hnd to have an open road as her safety safe-ty lay in striking ouick blows while Russia's was to be found in her exhaustless supplies of men. , He was right. Belgium proved prov-ed no open road ; and now Ger-I Ger-I many is facing the exhaustless j supplies of men. j In (lie want 18 years tho pop-1 pop-1 illation of Itussia hai increased i bv tho enormous number of 70,-000 70,-000 000 people. It is increasing at the rate of from 2 1-2 to 3 per cent a year. In other words, some 2.500,-1 000 young men reach the age; for military service every year.' Unless the war destroys soldi-! ers at the rate of more than 200,000 a month Russia's In-1 crease of population in young I men of military ago will more! than compensate for the losses, in the trenches and assaults on1 the German Austrian frontier!, In all probability Russia hasi more men between the ages of 18 and 40 today than she had at the beginning of the war. I If this teeming population can be ekpt fired with military i enthusiasm what does the Russian Rus-sian government enre for the loss of 1,000,000 or 2,000,000 or 5,000,000 men? It is of no con-! sequence from the statists' iewpoint. There are plenty more where they came from. If it were not for the death rate among the infants of Rub-.cia Rub-.cia tho increase would be far greater. Infant mortality among the poor and ignorant is almost directly in proportion to the size of the fnmilies. It is a question ques-tion of nutrition and care. Numbers under Russian conditions condi-tions restrict food, lower the quality of food, nnd mnko the i conditions bad for the care of babies. Now that tho surplus of population pop-ulation is drawn off to the war, the numbers at home will be lessened. The evils caused by 1 the loss of the labor of a few millions of the young and i strong are reported to be more than compensated for by the superior efficiency of those who I are left on account of the closing clos-ing of tho vodka shops. The birthrate may fall slightly on account of the war, but tho deathrate among the infants may also slacken up. If so Russia Rus-sia will gain population every day of the war. i What does the czar care, if the number of "my moujiks" be, not decerased ?- Herbert Quick |