New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-07-16

married lady of the ancient Greek nobility He
has had fair degree of experience of public life as
Secretary of Legation as Ambassador and as Under
Secretary of Foreign Affairs He is affable and un-
assuming, and has the reputation of possessing q
peculiar Greek shrewdness and fertility of device,
which would have made bis fortune as diplomat
fifty years ago. He has no very marked individual
ity, like nearly all those who have long held very
subordinate official positions in Turkey Thus
his politics are hardly known. The rank of Viner
was conferred upon Caratheodori Pasha on the day
of his appointment to the Congress. There are now
Ito Vizers of Turkey. of whom five are Christians.
The new honors of Caratheodori cannot rest easily
upon one translated in night from the position Of
underling at the Porte TO an Office where he must
meet Bismarck, Andrassy and Gortschakoff as their
peer, If he can. The family of the new Pasha are
anxious about him, for they fear he will be made
scapegoat so he has accomplished the deglu-
tition Of the bitter medicine Congress has for the
Turkish sick man. The Bulganans, on the other
hand fear that he has been sent to Berlin to ngra-
tate himself with the Powers, and that he is to DO
made the first Governor of Roumela.
The Porte has once more declared its purpose to
reform in earnest. Like q drunkard's penitence,
that of Turkey IS favored with maudlin tears
the past. The question now is whether Europe will
be drawn into any settlement of the Eastern ques-
reform in Turkey, with the Turks independent Of
control. This is what they hope to gain by the PEN
itentia tear at this juncture. All the difficulties in
the way of solution of the Eastern question urge
the Congress toward some such settlement. But
the answer to such a proposition is found in the
conversation of the Turks every hand. They
regard the present emergency Of those terri
bic Affections through which the servants Of God
are called to pass, and they await the suspicious
rIon
ing them. The rule among officials, and among all
men, is to make illegal gains. Barely enough pa
triOts OF honest men can be found for the excep-
tons which prove the rule Even the present tT1bu-
latlOns not sufficient to obtain selfdenyng, pat
rlotIc services of Turkish officials. well-infOrmed
resident of North MesopOtamia said the other day
that he, at least, had given up hope. The J." Sick
Man" is no longer merely sick. The sooner the de-
caylng carcass is under the sod the better.
The Geghi affair is an example of the degree Of
justice that may be hoped from Turks even when
bent on reform. Geghi is in the mountains south
west of Erzerum. and has long borne the repu-
taton of being the worst governed district in Asia
Minor. The Governor Ismail Bey, has profted by
war time to rob both the people and the Govern
ment, dividing the proceeds with three other Tr-
ksh Beys Of the district. The people have been re-
duced to the verge of starvation. Some have ac-
tually died from famine largely induced by illegal
seizures of the crops of the farmers for the army"
This state of affairs came to the Of Mr. Layard.
He induced the Turks to send commission to ex-
anime into the complaints. 0sman Efendi. chief
investigator, arrived on the spot and APP
pointed 1ahir BeY, the post commandment TO
preside over the examining board Tahir Bey at
once began 10 say savage things about the Gov
ernOr, who should be suspended, should be punished
and so forth. Then the people began to come in to
press complaints before the board. After some
hesitation one Hail Suleiman Agha also came in.
To him both MOslems and Christians looked up aa
a defender OF the poor lie bad proof that the
the taxes of last year But the moment Hail
Suleman Agha was fairly in town the military
commander had him arrested and sent him under
guard of fifty men TO the army headquarters at
Erzengan, reporting him as u disturber Of the
peace. Word was then sent through the town
that the Governor had his eye on other
military was to act under his orders.
That night the villagers who had suits against Is
mail Bey fled in a Wild panic, and the Examining
Board had no complaints to examine. The secret Of
the whole performance was that lsmail Fey and
his cOufederates had bTibed Tahir Bey CONF andant
of the post The Commissioner sent on by the Porte
will be either bought up by the ring OF he will
be mystifed by the absence of complaints Here
two notable points for the consideration OF any
ton which leaves Asia Minor to the benevolent
care of a reform government at the Porte 1. The
Porte, though peDitent, has not yet conscience
that would prompt investigation into notorious
evil like the Administration of Geghi. 1t the
remonstrance of Mr. Layard that induced the inyes-
tigation 2. The Porte is unable TO enforce an IN
vestigation in distant province. Its invitation
to the people TO testify is nuted by the action OF
its own military.
The reforming power of the Porte is, in fact.
limited to the printing of schemes in COnstantinOple
which nobody will read in the provinces. 1t has
Just proclaimed its intention of establishing manu-
factories railroads. agricultural banks, and the like.
But it does not dream of the necessity of establish
ing courts of Justice. Yet without these all its fac
tories railroads and banks must be mere expensive
toys which the people will hate as devOurers Of
their substance, and which can only exist by means
of Government subsidies.