h at the close of the
second Balkan war. They expected this fear of Bulgarian revenge to
bring the Roumanians to the rescue.

You have read how Roumania wished for certain lands in Russia as well
as in Hungary that are inhabited by her own people. For a long time
the government at Bukharest hesitated, fearing to plunge into the war
before the time was ripe, and dreading the danger of choosing the
wrong side.

The key to the situation was Russia. If Roumania were to go to war she
would have to count strongly on the help of her great neighbor to the
north.

Meanwhile, strange things were happening in Russia. You will remember
that there are two million Germans living in that part of the Russian
domain which borders the Baltic Sea. (The states of Livonia and
Courland were ruled in the olden times by the "Teutonic knights.")
These Germans are much better educated, on the whole, than the
Russians; they are descendants of old feudal warriors and as such are
men of force and influence in the Russian government. It was a common
thing to find German names, like Witte, Von Plehve, Rennenkampf, and
Stoessel among the list of high officials and generals in Russia. In
this way there were a great many people prominent in the Russian
government, who secretly hoped that Germany would win the war and were
actively plotting with this in view. "There is a secret wire from the
czar's palace to Berlin," said one of the most patriotic Russian
generals, explaining why he refused to give out his plans in advance.
Graft and bad management, as well as treachery, were all through the
nation. Train-loads of ammunition intended for the Russian army were
left piled up on the wharves at the northern ports. Guns sent by
England were lost in the Ural mountains. Food that was badly needed by
the men at the front was hoarded by government officials in order to
raise prices for their friends who were growing rich through
"cornering" food supplies.[9]

[9] When a group of men buy a sufficient amount of any one article so as
to keep it from being sold in great quantities and make it appear that
there is not enough to go around, they are said to "corner" the
market. Three or four men in America at various times have been able
to corner the wheat market or the corn market or the market for
cotton.

The czar of Russia truly desired his country to win the war. On the
other hand his wife was a cousin of the Kaiser, a German princess
whose brothers were f