The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-12-12

How 10 make the DeSt peace Is now the
problem in Constantinople-how to come
with the least loss out of the calamitous war
into which Turkey went in the delusion
that England was with her and would help
her. Peace negotiations have, it is well
known, been on foot for many weeks, and
the Sublime Porte has seen with more or
less distinctness that it must come to terms
with its powerful enemy, and even that the
terms would be the harder the more the day
| of settlement was deferred. 1t understood
we'll enough, for instance, that it could make
somewhat better peace while Plevna
held out than after its capture. But
governments constituted on the theory Of
a supreme personality but operated on a
practice that makes it doubtful which par
ticular personality in the palace or the
State is the supreme one are, of all govern
ments, the ones least capable Of acting reso-
lutely on an intelligent political judgment.
They cannot provide against fire; but
they can run ont OF doors when the house is
in flames. Because of the paralyzed will of
the supreme power in the State the au-
thorities in Constantinople dawdled with
the last chance to make peace that
left any reason why the stronger Power
should qualify its imperious demands But
it was not only the divided will in the
palace that lost that opportunity, it was
through the constant exercise of the sinister
influence of England in the Ottoman cap
ital which stimulated the rejection of the
Russian terms because they were inimical
to English interests. Thus England by its
rejection Of the Berlin note encouraged
Turkey to make war, and has now by it's
influence at Constantinople deprived her of
the last chance to make a peace that would
not leave her in the hands Of the conqueror
But the Porte is now in the presence Of
an imminent danger with which it cannot
trife. It's power of resistance is exhausted.
Crushed in Armenia at the Aladja-Dagh, the
Deve Begun and at Kars; defeated in Bull
garia in it's repeated attempts to make all
impression on the lines of the invader,
foiled on the LON and in the savage fighting
at the Shipka Pass, and now overwhelmed
by the absolute loss of its best army,
it is without any effective means what
ever of arresting the march upon its
capital of seasoned, well supplied and
irresistible army of three hundred
thousand men. In this stage Of all wars
all governments make peace, whether they
be governments which comprehend that the
object Of war is to accomplish some national
purpose or whether they be those animated
by barbarian ferocity and only disposed to
stop at the point beyond which is annihila-
ton. Turkey is at that point now. If it
makes peace at once it will have to yield in
Europe the independence Of Roumania,
Servia and Montenegro and accept a Russian
protectorate over all the Christian popula-
tions in Bulgaria, Roumelia and the Gre
clan provinces, while in Asia it must yield
as much Of Armenia as will in
clude Kars, Batoum and Erzeroum,
and it must concede the right of Russian
| men-of-war to pass the Dardane Giles, and must
further surrender its navy. Against the
proposition to transfer it's navy to England
Russia would now have the same right to
protest in virtue of which any interested
party may object to o bankrupt putting his
estate out Of his hands
These are hard terms; but "woe to the
conquered" is the condition of all war.
They are not the hardest that may be pre-
sented, MS the Porte will find if it forces the
Russian march over the Balkan. That
march is not only theoretically practicable
as winter operation, but it has been made.
There has never been but one doubt on the
feasibility of the Russian plan of a
march from tie Danube to Adrianople
with the left flank covered in Bulgaria by
danger of passing Shumla in any circum-
stances was the basis of that doubt but, rs
the foolhardy Suleiman Pacha issuing from
that stronghold failed to make any impress
sion on the Russian lines while Plevna held
out, it is equivalent to demonstration that
neither he nor another can make such i'm
preston in less favorable circumstances.
With two hundred thousand Russians in
Roumelia the peace that would be made
would be equivalent to the oblit-
Grafton of the Ottoman Empire from
Europe. Formally that Empire would be
left there in order not to provoke just now
troublesome solution Of the problem of
the fate of Constantinople but it would be,
in fact, just what the Empire of the West
was in the early history of Europe, a mere
shadow covering, but scarcely hiding the
hand of great northern Power. Turkey
can hardly be tempted to dare the possibili-
ties of so gloomy future. Ifshe is tempted
it will be by British influence England
has been in oil these events the evil genius
of the Ottoman Power, and Turkey has been
turned from her true course only that she
might be used to further English policy
with regard to the East. Perhaps even in
London they may now see the case clearly
enough to understand that if they persist in
their game there will eventually be no Sui
tan at Constantinople to be played upon to
that tune