Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 17.djvu/385

RUMANIA. east. In the extreme west the kingdom touches Servia, the Danube forming the boundary. Rumania extends from latitude 43° 40′ to 48° 15′ N. Area, 50.840 square miles, Rumania being the largest Balkan State except Turkey.

. The surface features comprise the mountain barrier in the west; the mountain forelands and foothills extending into the country for 30 to 40 miles from the Carpathian ranges; the two low plains spreading away everywhere to the east and south of the mountain region; and the higher lands of the Dobrudja, the region between the Danube and the Black Sea. The Dobrudja has low coasts, but its interior is a steppe-like plateau. The great walls of the Carpathians and the Transylvanian Alps, the latter rising over 8000 feet in several places, slope down to the Rumanian plains in finely wooded declivities, divided by the valleys of many rivers. The Moldavian plain, occupying the eastern part of the country, descends to the south and is deeply trenched by many tributaries of the Danube, the principal being the Sereth. The WallachainWallachian [sic] plain occupies the entire south, has a general southeasterly incline, and is traversed by the Aluta, Arjesh, Yalomitsa, and other affluents of the Danube. The Moldo-Wallachian plain is physically a part of the great plain of South Russia. The Danube is the great highway of the kingdom. Before it reaches the delta it divides into many branches, and courses over a flat, marshy, alluvial plain, rather difficult of access.

. Though in the same latitude as Northern Italy, the land has far greater climatic extremes. Its bitterly cold winters are due to its being exposed to the winds from the Russian steppes; the winds from the Mediterranean subject it to subtropical summer heat. The mercury sometimes rises to above 100° F. in the shade, and at times sinks below —20°. The Danube is usually ice-bound about three months. The annual rainfall ranges from 15 to 20 inches and is unequally distributed. The soils, particularly the black earth of the plains, make Rumania one of the most fertile countries of Europe.

Three zones of vegetation are distinguished: the high Alpine zone in the mountains, the forest zone of the lower mountain slopes and foothills, and the steppe zone of the prairie regions. The mountains are clothed with nines, larches, firs, dwarf junipers, and birches. Firs are the prevailing trees among the foothills. Varieties of oak grow on the plains, beeches, chestnuts. and maples being also planted. The black alder grows on the marshes. The mountains present great stretches of woodlands, but large forest tracts are now rarely met on the plains and a great part of the Dobrudja is treeless. The fauna resembles that of Russia (q.v.).

. The Carpathians and the Transylvanian Alps consist mainly of crystalline schists with extensive intrusions of Jurassic and chalk beds. Earthquakes, originating among the mountains, seem to show that the process of mountain formation is still in progress. The two great low plains are covered with the black loess of South Russia, with large admixtures of pebbles and clay in the southern plain of Wallachia. This region is traversed by Eocene formations, and by strongly folded Miocene strata, which often contain salt and petroleum. The plain of Moldavia, on the other hand, consists of late Tertiary formations. The mineral wealth is very great. Gold, silver, iron, lead, quicksilver, copper, manganese, coal, building materials, petroleum, and salt are all found, but only the last three are worked to any great extent. Gold, in particles and scales, is found in some of the rivers. Recent discoveries show quicksilver in large quantities in Wallachia. Marble of excellent quality, and clays and sands suitable for porcelain and glass wares, are abundant. The salt deposits cover an enormous area in Moldavia and Wallachia, and as many of the beds have a thickness of 740 feet or more, Rumania could supply Europe for centuries. The salt industry has been a State monopoly since 1862, The output in 1900 was 104,604 tons, nearly all being exported. The oil-bearing region is very extensive and is beginning to be exploited by foreign capitalists. The product of petroleum in 1900 was 221,387 tons. All the metals are little mined, for lack of Rumanian capital and transportation facilities.

. Seventy per cent. of the people are engaged in agriculture. Rumania is one of the three large granaries of Europe. But agriculture is still very backward; the peasantry, serfs until recently, have made progress slowly, and methods and implements are still primitive, though modern farm machinery is being largely introduced on the estates. Nearly half of the whole surface is under cultivation. Tillage and stock-breeding outweigh all other resources to a greater extent than in most European States. The land is particularly well adapted for cereals. Wheat and maize are the chief crops. The area under wheat in 1900 was nearly 6000 square miles. The area under maize is a fourth greater. The acreage of barley, oats, and rye together is about half of that of maize. Maize, the chief crop, yielded 116,937,205 bushels in 1901. It is the staple food of the peasantry, and with wheat and barley comprises the bulk of the exports. Tobacco is a State monopoly cultivated wholly under Crown management. In 1901, 10,666 acres were under the crop. Both soil and climate are adapted for the vine, which grows chiefly among the foothills of the mountains overlooking the plains. The vineyards embraced, in 1901, 330,048 acres. Cotnar and Odobesci—dessert wines—vie with the famous vintages of Hungary. Prunes are important in the foreign trade. The kingdom had, in 1900, 864,746 horses, 2,589,000 cattle, 5,644,210 sheep, and 1,709,909 swine. Stock-raising is carried on with little skill or method. There are few stables, and most of the animals are exposed without shelter to the rigorous winter. The exports of hog products to Austria-Hungary and Russia is important. Sheep-breeding is carried on everywhere for mutton, cheese (which is in great demand), and wool, but is declining, especially in the hill districts. The rearing of silkworms, once an important house industry, is reviving under Government patronage. Rumanian streams are well supplied with fish.

. The house industries supply the peasants with most of their personal needs. Foreign capital is being attracted and industrial development is making considerable progress. Several hundreds of flouring mills turn much of the wheat into flour, which is exported even to England; in 1901 the sugar factories had an output of 25,350 tons, XVII—23.