Omaha daily bee., 1897-03-20

been occupied by the French, has hitherto
been known chiefly as the scene of the tragic
death OF Mungo Park, In the beginning OF
the present century The city OF Boussa Is
less than 200 miles distant from Bida, the
Fulah stronghold, recently stormed by the
forces OF the Royal Niger company; and the
emirats OF which Boussa Is the capital is
claimed for Great Britain because II lies in
the "hinterland" Of the British colony of
Lagos, and also because the emir had placed
himself under the protectorate OF the Royal
Niger company by a treaty made on January
20, 1890 The French, on the other hand.
have also obtained a fine assortment OF
treaties from local chiefs In the country
south and west of the great bend OF the
Niger, and assert that, at any rate, they
have prior title to the country claimed
by the British by right of discovery and ex-
ploration. While 1t is probable that an
agreement will ultimately be arrived at be-
tween the French and the English for fair
division of the region In dispute, without
much regard for the rights OF the aboriginal
posseseors, the result may be attained only
after considerable diplomatic fencing and frlc-
ton between the governments at London and
Paris.
casual expedition little noticed any
where outside OF Africa has just taken
possession OF a large area in tha western
part OF The Soudan, and by way of punish
1ng certain offenses Of the ruling chief has
made his country part of the ever-grow-
ing empire of England. France will do we'll
ar she can prevent the practical control of
the entire Niger valley by Great Britain and
tho sitting OF French enterprise in that
quarter. AS for the eastern Soudan. II is
virtually admitted by the representatives
of the government in Parliament that the
British occupation OF the Nile valley VIII
be extended far beyond its present limits,
M tlat hAr t1il1 hn IN rptr al n
territory is once taken under the "protec-
tion" OF England. There seems little or no
reason to doubt that the plan of the British
ministry contemplates the establishment of
a chain of fortified stations all the way to
the head waters of the Nile and ultimately
across the rest of the continent to Cape
Colony. Great obstacles, chiefly in the form
OF European opposition, must be encoun-
tered, but that does not prove, by any means,
that the plan will not be undertaken In
earnest ii the tories remain long In power.
sss
The French yellow Book on Armenian
affairs. which has Just been published, con-
tnins correspondence which dates back as far
as April 1898. and comes down to the close
of 1896. In February, 1894, NJ Cambon, the
French ambassador at Constantinople, wrote
to his government that two years before a
prominent Turkish official said to him: "The
Armenian question does not exist but we
in the same letter that for more than year
Armenia had been the theater % grave events,
and that Turkey was about to reopen the
eastern question in Asia. The correspondent
also shows that while France, Russia and
England were in active correspondence re-
gardlng Turkish reforms, Italy and Austria
were seldom consulted, and Germany APP
peared to be Indifferent. The letters in the
Yellow Book lead to the conclusion that
France, England and Russia felt themselves
able to deal with the subject, and were under
the apprehension that IL the other three pow
ers were asked to join in the plan, it would
fail in one way or the other. All of which
goes to show that the concert OF the powers
was a farce.
The combination between the overstocked
holders Of shady Turkish securities in west
ern Europe and the autocrats of eastern
Europe seems for the present to be com
plete. Whether 1t shall prove strong enough
to throttle enlightened public sentiment re-
mains to be seen The Armenian horrors
created little excitement in nonpoliticai cir
cles outside of England; now the reactionists
and tories of Europe will have to reckon
with three nations instead OF one. The
Cretan question has not merely stirred the
nonconformist conscience in Great Britain
but it has created a popular ferment in
France while all Italy has been swept by a
blaze of sympathy for the H,allenes, and the
excitement in the peninsula surpasses any
thing that has been witnessed there since the
Italian war of liberation