Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1877-04-28
THE EASTERN QUESTION.
Number ii.

The subject of the Eastern ques-
ton, in its special developments
since the down fall of Napoleon to
the Crimean war;, viii be the subject
of the present article.
II will be impossible to give an in
telligible account of them without
some general conceptions Of the
Turkish rule in Europe. 1t is
already been stated that this rule
was based on conquest, it may be
added that though it has now lasted
for nearer six than five centuries, it
has never changed its original char
acter Of a military occupation. Sub
lection and tribute are the sole pur-
poses of all that purports to be gov
eminent in European Turkey. We
are informed that an American gen
tleman who has recently returned
from that country, finds only one
word to describe the Ottoman race
i'm Europe. He calls them 'carpet-
baggers;" the term is likely, at least,
to be more ineligible to our read
ers than any other, FOR we are ac-
quainted with the species. A rul-
ing caste imposed upon the people
without their own consent, having
40 interest in the country or its pros
perity beyond the acquisition of
plumber, sustained in that pursuit by
military fOrcealOne, without sympa-
thy with the people-this descrip-
ton serves equally well to portray
the carpet-bagger in our Southern
States and the Osmanh in the terri
tory of the Greek empire. The diff
ferences between the predominant
and subject races are as sharp, their
mutual hatred as intense as they
were at the commencement of the
fourteenth century. In such state
Of society it is evident that violent
collisions must be of very frequent
occurrence, and that, if for any pur-
pose what we call an "OIdrGge HlHp'
should be found expedient, ample
material will always be found to
furnish grist for it. Such a mill
was i'm full blast al last summer,
Messrs. GOrtchal-off and Ignatieff
furnishing the material, and certain
English jOu. lals with the London
Telegraph a, their head working it
up into public opinion.
Another thing is evident under
this condition, and that is that,
whereas the suffering parties i'm these
collisions are generally the Chris
tians mot always SO however by any
means) intense sympathywill at in
tervals be excited throughout Chris
tian Europe with the subject race.
These collisions and the mode in
which the sympathy of the Euro
pean powers is elected by them
furnish the material for all the di-
pIomacy, the revolts, the wars and
the treaties which have formed the
tangled tissue of the Eastern que3-
ton for fifty years. Both Russia
and the other powers profess to be
acting in sympathy with the Turk
ish Christians, but neither party
with entire singleneSs; Russia glad
IN aVails herself of these Outrages
as an excuse for intervention in
Turkish affairs the other powers
express their sympathy also, but are
more anxious to check Russian in
PREVENTION by substituting joint ac-
ton Of all the powers than to sup
ply an efficient remedy to the evil
complained of. The Turkish gov
eminent sullenly submits to all this
interference, hating the intervening
powers, but always ready to appeal
to their protection against the still
more dreaded Russia.
These relative positions once I'M
derstOod, thesucceSsive phases Of the
Eastern question presented by the
Greek rebellion, the Egyptian rebel
lion and the Brimean war will APP
pear as simply the results of the
above motives acting in different
combinations.
The first trouble is the Greek re-
volt OF lSR5. 1t was ON the one
hand provoked by the unprincipled
outrages upon Christian Greeks on
the part Of NIahommedan officials,
ON the other it was HqueStionahlY
fomented (as all disturbances in the
Turkish empire for the last fifty
wears have been fOmcnted) by the in
trigueS of Greek emiSsarics. The
influence of the British government
was III this affair eXerted in favor of
the revolving provinces, and there
fore tended of course to the weak
ening of the Turkish government f;
hut even in this the English were
rather driven to this position than
deliberately occupied it; they dread
cd that if hcy held oil, Russia
would by Lerself bring about the
Independent of Greece, and 50 have
the sole management of the final
treaty of peace, and for fear of that,
England and France allied them
selves with Russia on the condition
that peace whenever agreed upon
should be upon terms consented to
by all three of the powers, whowere