The beginning of their history finds the Esthonians pirates of the Baltic. Danish kings found it hard to subdue them and after two centuries of struggle sold the Danish crown’s rights to the Knights of the Sword in 1346. From this time on German influence was to become paramount in the province. The condition of Esthonians in relation to their Teutonic masters was that of serfs. By the terms of the treaty of Nystad in 1721 Esthonia was ceded to Peter the Great by the Swedes, who then exercised control of the land. Since then it has remained a Russian province. Lutheranism, the religion of its people, however, has been the foundation of much sympathy for German institutions throughout the province. To combat this feeling, as well as to eradicate national aspirations, Russian authorities have resorted to those harsh and repressive measures which both church and government have often enforced throughout the Czar’s country. The Esthonians are noted for their practical turn of mind. A favorite pastime among them consists of conversing in verse. They cling tenaciously to their language, the study of which is actively maintained throughout the land. Two main dialects are in use. A northern form, known as the Reval Esthonian, is recognized as the literary language. Writers have succeeded in maintaining its perfection and beauty. Through their efforts literature that instills vigor into the national consciousness has sprung into being around the legends and folk-tales of the region. With the exception of the Finns all the peoples of northwestern Russia are being gradually absorbed by the Slavic mass. The Slav’s ability to fuse with alien peoples is a conspicuous historical fact. In the Baltic provinces he seldom holds aloof as does his German rival. A growing spirit of liberalism in Russia, and the gradual loss of influence of the German nobility, ever ready to stir the opposition of Baltic peoples against Russian institutions, are two factors which have promoted the consolidation of Russian power in its northwesternmost territory. The Slav’s achievement in Baltic regions, during the past three centuries, has consisted in steadily replacing the Teutonic stratum by a layer of his own kinsmen. Swedes and Germans have either fallen back or become lost in the midst of Slavic populations. The movement can hardly be called a migration, but it is a westerly expansion of most persistent and irresistible character although never aggressively manifested. As a consequence Russia’s northwestern boundary with a reconstituted Poland may be foreseen. TABLE I POPULATION BY GOVERNMENTS IN FINLAND ACCORDING TO LANGUAGE, 1910[94]