The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1869-07-09
THE CLOSE OF ACT FIRST.

Crete the brave peasantry have, sadly
but not despairingly, folded and hidden
away the flag of the Cross, so we sor-
rowfully ftIrl, but do not strike, the
Cretan flag on this side of the Atlantic.
The time of the appearance of our
next number is uncertain.
AS surely as human progress is dss-
tined TO go on: as surely as Christian
ity is to triumph over Mahommedan-
ism-so surely viii the Cretans again
unfilrl their flag to the breeze, and again
do battle for their religion and political
freedom and if there be breath enough
left in us, hearty cheer for them shall
be heard in America.
We have often assured our readers
that the Turks could never subdue the
mountain regions of Crete; and they
have not done so.
The struggle would have gone on in
definitely, but for the direct and scam
dalous interference of the Christian
deSpotisms. of Europe. European di-
plomacy, not Turkish power; the pen,
not the cimetar-has put temporary
stop to the bloody strife.
1t has been carried on for three years,
at an immense cost of blood and treas
ure to Turkey. Ii suited at least one of
the Great Powers that she should de-
plete and exhaust herself.
The campaign of this spring would
have opened with better prospects for
the Cretans, and with gloomier ones
for the Turks, than that of rs. Turkey
was at the end of her wits and her re-
sources. She was fastbleeding to death,
and bringing herself into popular obi
UNI! while the Cretans, still holding
their mountains, were rapidly winning
the moral support of the world.
The long continuance of this atteni4t
of a heather power to re-enslaVe a
Christian people by barbarous mode
of warfare was exciting an indignation
throughout Christendom, W hich threat
encd the interests of the despotisms
thereof and they decreed that it must
stop. They resolved, moreover, that
these pestilent uprisings of oppressed
nationalities in Eastern Europe must be
| discouraged, inasmuch as they threat
! ened the status IN quo.
| The Turks, therefore, were allowed,
| in sight of the fleets of England, France,
| Italy, Austria, and Russia, to blockade
/ the neutral ports through which the
| Cretans obtained their supplies. This
! settled the matter. The Turks had so
utterly devastated all the open country
in Crete, that it could not produce
enough to keep men alive. The Gre
| tans had counted upon the neutral ports
of Syria and Cerigo being kept open,
and knew they could run in their sup.
plies of bread and bullets from thence
| in spite of all the cruisers that Turkey
could keep afioat. Had they not good
right SO to count? Those ports were
to them what Liverpool and St. Thorn.
| as were to our slave-holding rebels
| Suppose we had blockaded st. Thomas
what a diplomatic pothe9, wha
threats, what violence, would have fol
/ lowedi not from England and Den.
mark alone, but from an alliance Of
despotisms. The rebels fighting fol
slavery and against republicanism
were upholding ne interests OF despot
ism therefore the sacred shield of neu
trality must protect them. The Cretan
were fighting for freedom against ty
rants, and against the interests of des
potism; therefore the shield of neutral
ity must be withdrawn. Let the Turk
blockade the neutral ports of Greece
and starve them into submission! TIL
Greeks are poor and feeble, and canno
resist
This is the gist of the matter. His
tory will reveal the diplomatic jug
glery by which Turkey has been aides
to put down the Cretan Instruction.
1t will reveal. also, the scandalou
part which our Government played il
| Tic IIldlIef.
The whole moral weight of fire.
America was thrown into the scale up
on the side of despotism. Mr.. Seward
policy was to favor Turkey, and sup
press all movements tending to devel
OPP the independence of the Christian
nationalities which she holds by tn
sword in subsection. Not only did h
refuse permission to our gallant com
modores TO allow our ships of war Il
join those of other nations in savin;
women and children pursued to tn
shores of Crete by the Turks; but b.
various diplomatic measures, he dam
aged the Cretan cause.
The baleful effects of bis foreign pol
icy will, for some time to come, pre-
vent the cause of republicanism iron
receiving the moral support whicl
. it ought to receive from knowledg
of the hearty sympathy of our grea
people. But we trust that the darl
shadow may soon pass away. Let u
increasingly labor to that end; and err
another decade shall pass, the Crescen
shall trail in the dust, and the standar
of the Cross wave in every breeze tina
blows across the fair but now desolate'
Island of Crete. '"There is a God i
heaven, and there must be Justice o.
the earth," however tyrants may joi
hands to prolong the reign of oppres
sion.-Ihe Cretdn for June.