New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-08-09
CRFT4N pRORLEHS.

Although the recent reports Of wholesale mas
sacres at Heraklion appear to have been I'M
founded or at least much exaggerated, there Is
reason to fear that some shocking atrocities Will
be committed before the present troubles IN
Crete are ended. In no country in the world
does more implacabe enmity exist between
two factions of the population than between
the Christians and the Mahometans Of Crete.
This is, no doubt, due chiefly to the fact that
they are both of the same race and blood. 1t is
a mistake to speak Of the Turkish population
of that island There is none. There are many
MahOmetans, forming, perhaps One-fOurth Of
the whole population. But they are Greeks, Of
lust as pure blood as their Christian neghbors,
being the descendants Of those Greeks who EN-
braced Mahometanism at the time Of the Arab
an conquest They hate the Christian Cretans
with the proverbia zeal Of conversion perverts
and much more bitterly than Turks would do;
and the Christians, on the other hand, hate them
with exceeding hatred because Of their-Or their
fathers'-apOstasy When the two factions come
to open war, therefore, we may expect no quar-
ter to be shown on either side
The Cretan Legislature has dispersed without
effectng anything Of profit. The Christian
Deputies have made certain demands, and the
Mahometan Deputies have replied thereto, and
there seems no hope of agreement between them.
The demands Of the Christians are certainly
not unreasonable. They do not ask for indie
pendence or for annexation to Greece but are
content to remain under the Sultan They ask
that their Governor C General be Christian, ap-
pointed for term of five years by the Sultan
with the approval Of the Powers, and that he
have the supreme military as well as civil COM
tbo iptu IF oil 1ipo+
officers not elected by the people excepting the
Vice-GovernOr, who is to be appointed by the
Sultan and is to be a Mahometan; that Chris
tans and Mahometans have representation In
all branches, Of the Government In proportion
to their numbers In the population; that a ma
jority of the Legislature shall be sufficient to
carry vote, instead Of twO-thrds as at present;
that there shall be purely native gendarmerie,
with foreign officers only until natives can be
fitted TO command; that the censorship OF the
press shall be abolished, and that various other
legislative nd administrative reforms shall be
effected
Against these things the Mahometan Deputies
vigorously protest. To give the Governor Cen
eral more power would they say derogate from
the imperial authority of the Sultan To require
him to be a Christian would be to set up an
odious religious test and to disqualify all Ma
hometans on religious grounds. Christian
Governor would be civilian. and therefore I'M
fit for the military command To give the two
creeds representation in Office In proportion to
their numbers would he to give to one Of them
too great a preponderance OF power, which would
lead TO oppression of the other. The two-thirds
vote require nen must similarly be retained for
the protection of the minority. native gen.
darmerie Is impracticable, for the natives are
not 1T for such service. And in like manner they
object to nearly all the demands Of the Chris