The San Francisco call., 1895-10-20
thing; but, unfortunately, the Eastern


question remains as much open as ever.
Neither the Armenian committee on one
side, which has been running this whole
Government, with plenty OF money at its
comand and a sort of walking-delegate au-
thority to close up the Armenian shops
and coerce the entire Armenian commu-
nifty to do its bidding, nor the Mohamme-
dan governing clique on the other side, has
any intention of abandoning its activity or
of laying down its arms because the Sui
tan signed one paper more or less. All the
elements of the trouble which convulsed
Stamboul and Trebizond a week ago re-
main unaffected. Every London newspa-
per man in Constantinople predicts that
there is to be revolution in Turkey.
There is as great and threatening an un-
certainty in the external relations of Tur
key as exists within. The British feet at
Lemnos has been augmented during the
week by the Camperdown, instead of hav-
ing been diminished. In the meantime
Russia's Black Sea fleet, instead of going
into winter quarters at Sebastopol as in
other years, early in October, has been
hastily provisioned at Odessa and brought
southwark to some unknown point near
the mouth of the Bosphorus. Both these
movements were antecedent to the So
called settlement and might have been
explained as intended for the purpose of
soaring the Sultan, if it had not turned
out that he himself practically dictated
the terms of the settlement and was not
scared at all.
AS it is these two fleets are instinctively
thought of in their relation to each other
rather than to the Sultan. That there is
direct danger OF England and Russia be-
coming EN- broiled in Turkish waters is not
suggested, but it is apparent that they
have finished with the farce of pretending
to act in concert and at last stand free to
observe the Turkish confusion and anarchy
each on it's own account and in its own in
terest. This is situation which cannot
but be fertile in sensational rumors and
alarms so long as the fleets remain where
they are. When the French Chamber of
Deputies meet next week it is universally
understood that the Egyptian question
will be at once brought up, and with fresh,
urgent Importance. What the French pro-
pose to demand is not clear, but it has
been accepted by every one all summer
that at the October Parliamentary session
they were to formulate definite policy of
some sort.
This question may be debated with a
large spectacular effect between Paris and
London, but the usual fight will be waged at
Constantinople, where English diplomacy
on one side will be frankly pitted against
Russo-French influence on the other side.
There is another reason why these two
fleets, with possibly the French Mediter-
ranean squadron as well, will occupy
mems thoughts good deal for the next
month or two.
All these disturbing things are really
subordinate IN point of actual weight to
what is going on in the far East. Not
even the episode OF Bulgaria's crumpling
in the Russian grasp, which will probably
be seen before Christmas, will be of an in
ternational Importance equal TO the events
which are working themselves out in
obscurity on the other side of the globe.
An old Newcastle engine-builder friend
of mine, who yesterday signed contract
with the Japanese for a $150,000 job. tells
me curious things about the way the
Japanese are laying out the money that
they expect to get from China. They have
two big battle-ships on the stocks here,
ordered before the war and now nearly
ments with British builders for three more
of the same size, also eleven armored
cruisers and some torpedo cruisers. All
are to be hurried forward with the utmost
dispatch. Meanv lille Chinese commits
sion of eight eA i,erts and officials here in
Europe is charged with the task of ex-
amining the various shipyards and marine
models, and of recommending where orders
for a new Chinese navy may be placed to
the best advantage.
The Japanese have money and are pay
ing one-third down at the signing of the
contract, one-third when the engines are
put in and the final third at the launching
and delivery, but no one will trust the Chi
nese at all, and they must pay in full be-
fore the work is begun. The japanese
make no bones in saying among ship
builders that they are going to whip Rus
sia off the Pacific.
From other sources l hear that great
nervousness exists lest the disorders in
Korea precipitate Russo-Japanese COLI
sion prematurely. In this whole business
England is deeply involved, and it is there
and on the Mekong that skilled students
like Sir Charles Dilke believe that England
stands the greatest chance of active trouble
The American embassy has been in
vested the whole week with cordons of
newspaper men anxious to find out about
Venezuela but the smiling secretaries have
blandly resisted all attempts to get word
of news. This is all the more successful
! since they have no news themselves. What
it all amounts to, [ am told by politicians,
is that Chamberlain desires to attract at
tention to himself as the hero who can
Continued on, Second Pno,