The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1875-10-07
ORIENTAL LAYISHNESS.

ORIENTAL LAYISHNESS.
The Financial Condition of Turkey-A
Bankrupt Nation-How Money is Thrown
Away-The Sultan Manages to Exc Out
an Existence on Pitiful Ten Millions a
Year.
Quite sensation has been produced
in Europe, especially at money centers
where Turkish bonds and stocks are ne
gotiated, by an expose of the desperate
financial condition of the Ottoman en-
pire, and the enormous, reckless extrava-
gance and corruption of its rulers. The
work is entitled, "The Decline of Tur-
key, Financially and Politically, by J.
Lewis Farley, author of Modern Tur-
key ETC. London, 1875" A CORE
spondent of tine Boston Advertiser,
writing from Constantinople, says of the
book:
The facts herein presented are most
astounding, and surely denote that
financial collapse of this government is
inevitable and imminent. Mr.. Farley
was for eighteen years resident of
Turkey; was in the employ of its gov
ernment six years as Consul to England,
has had access to official documents, and
may, therefore, be presumed to know
whereof he affirms. He gives the details
of his statements, from which I sum-
marize the following abstract, giving the
amounts in dollars instead of pounds
sterling:
Funded debt of Turkey, 81, 1,O12, IT,
100.
That is, ten thousand million dollars
and some over-nearly equal to one-haf
the debt of the United States.
The whole revenues are ninety mill
ions per annum; and the expenditures
fully as much, usually more.
The interest on the debt, amounting
to seventy-five millions, has, therefore,
to be met by new loans; so, also, the
excess of expenditures, which some years
is very large, and the bonds are sold in
Europe for what they will bring. As
these bonds have rapidly accumulated
within few years, tine depreciation has
been still more rapid.
The last loan, in 1874, for two hun
dred millions, was sold for ninety mill
ions, that is, at .ffty.fve per cent. dis
count! The amount obtained, however,
tided the government over last year, and
has so far this year, but is said to be
about run out. The question now is,
can a new loan be negotiated at any price
after this exhibit
Nor is this all. The most discourag-
ing features remain to be told. Let
Americans of republican simplicity pom
der these figures, suggestive as they are
of Oriental magnificence on the one hand
and grinding poverty on the other:
Annual salary of Grand Sultan gold. sl0 600 600
Annual salary of Grand vizier. gold 80. 10000
Annual salary of Minist of Finance,
ANNUAL s salary Of the Minister of Public ~
Works, gold. -. 55,OO0
1t will be observed the salary of the
Grand Vizier is three-fold that of the
President of the United States. But the
greatest wonder is how any one man can
contrive TO spend ten millions year and
/ survive it long. A few facts may assist
dull apprehension: "The daily dinner
of tile Sultan-he always dimes alone
consists of ninety-four dishes; and ten
other meals are prepared in case he
should fancy to partake of them. He
has eight hundred horses, seven hundred
wives guarded by three hundred and
fifty euuuchs. For this enormous
household forty thousand oxen are yearly
slaughtered; and the purveyors are re-
quired to furnish daily two hundred
sheep, one hundred lambs or goats, ten
calves, two hundred hens, two hundred
pairs pullets, one hundred pairs pigeons,
and fifty green geese. All along the
shores of the Bosphorus vast palaces and
elaborate kiosks (summer palaces) occur
~ 81 l,43la H., l.
apart, many of them furnished in most
costly style" OF Turkish statesmen Mr..
Farley says: "Their first thought is to
amass money, and corruption is the rule
from the highest to the lowest. Their
creed is /: The country is going hope
lessly to the dogs; let us take care
of ourselves 1t is well known that
none of them hold Turkish stock. The
financial position of the country is utter
" hopeless. The maladministration of
the past three years has disguised the
friends of Turkey in England, and no
English government could now venture
to increase our public burdens by an at
tempt to keep the Turks in CONSTANT
nople. The sway of Turkey in Europe
is therefore doomed"
Not to be too sanguine, however, of
such consummation devoutly to be
wished, 1 would say the Turk shows no
signs of packing his trunk with view OF
vacating, but, on the other hand, gives
unmistakable evidence of an intention to
stop awhile longer. He is rebuilding all
the forts at the mouth of the Bosphorus
on the Black sea, and remounting them
with guns of heavier calibre he is con-
stantly having new iron-clads built in
England with latest improvements, and a
large fleet of them cover the Bosphorus
near the Horn. He also is having an or
der for GOO, 600 breech-loaders filed by
the Providence Tool Company in Rhode
Island, at an expense of ten million dol
lars. In short, however slow to advance
in most things, he seems fully deter
mined to keep well abreast of the times
in all that pertains to modern warfare.
To repudiate even is not to vacate, nor
could it be really considered casus
belli. But it would be very likely to
lead to new complications. As the
French say, Who lives will see."
To show the lavish manner in which
money is squandered in this country, ]
will give one item not alluded to by
Mr.. Farley. It is customary to celebrate
the Sultan's birthday by grand il
Elimination of the Bosphorus. This fete
was observed this year with unusual
magnifcence. A party of us Americans
chartered steamer, and we were trans
ported fifteen miles through fairy-land
indeed. The landscape on either hand
was lit up and made radiant by millions
of lamps, not only from all the houses.
but special structures of every conceiva
BILE design-mosques, minarets, arches,
temples, etc. High up on the banks the
gardens and parks we're lit up so as to
show distinctly the walks and fowery
partcrres crowning the submits were
luminous crescents of immense size
looking like new moons just rising
Olive oil was used to give golden hu.
to the lights, and those were SO arranged
as to present surface all aglow. TIL,
whole air was filed with golden rain, ,ant
brilliants of every hue descending from
bomb and mortar rockets discharged
| $1,000 % ~ar,,lo, ,,,Io