The Robesonian., 1897-04-28
Greece And Turkey.

the last OF, theGreek. .empefOrS was I
Slain, the. thcrescent, '7,says mod
efn historia1e "supplanted the
cross in the city of Constantine;
and an infdel barbarian monarch
occupied the throne Of the first
Christian Roman Emperor For
over 300 years Greece submitted
to the oppressive rule of the Turk.
In 1921, leader appeared, ma
tive of Greece, Alexander Ypsl-
lanti, then general in the Rus
sian army. He began a revolt
that grew into war as fierce and
barbaric as perhaps the world ever
saw. Neither old nor young, male
or female, was spared on either
side. but as the struggle of ;. the
Greeks was found in a desire for
freedom, and was conducted with
unparalleled heroism against great |
odds, they won the sympathy of
Europe; and England, France and
Russia undertook to end the wal.
In this they succeeded, and. COM
PEELED the. Turks to recognize as
an independent nation, the Greece
of today, an area of less than 25,-
600 square miles, OF about the size
of West Virginia.
The present war started in Can
dia, or Crete, a small island south
of modern Greece, now ruled by
Turkey, but once a part of Greece.
Grecian in most respects, it has
been governed by the Turk, with
the same cruelty and injustice
that blights every land that comes
under the dominion of the Sultan.
The Cretans have revolted many
times before now, and in this latest
attempt to secure q measure of
independence or annexation to
Greece, had of course the sympa-
thy of the Grecians. No people
in the world are more aggressively
patriotic than the Greeks, and the
. news of an instruction in Crete
renewed the fires of hatred OF
: Turkish rule in every home in the
Hellenic peninsula. So far from
being neutral, the people of Greece
E demanded that their government
assist the Cretans and SO deter
mined was this demand that Kins
!, George was compelled to make a
e once show of hostility, and &C
e cept. the proffer of volunteers tha
e sprang to arms on every side, clam
+ oring to be led against their an
cient enemy. Thousands of then
e went to Crete to fight the Tur]
S and were backed by Greece.
IS Meantime the great powers
IL England, Russia, Italy, German
and France-affecting to be con
cerned only with preserving tn
peace Of Europe, threatened Greco
witha blockade of her erports unlcs
re she preserved an aspect of neutral
S. ity as regards the revolution. Blu
rs this was impossible; and no threa
at Eof the allied powers, nor blockad
~ ~ Of the ports of Greece, has accom-
IL phished its purpose. Open al
s, was not only given the Cretans o
s, the South, but bands Of organize
IS; though irregular Greek troops hav
VI invaded Turkey on the Nortl
re These had apparently the full,
h secret, approval of Greece and
IS, week ago Turkey declared that
Is the powers were not able to p,
10 =, a stop to these invasions, 81
he would regard them as declar
he tion of war on the part of Greco
ere and act accordingly. That 81
m m has declared war now, is rather
- her credit than otherwise the di
vas ference between troops and ire
ro- ulars was too small to take in
he account for long when Turkey W
ac- losing daily stragetic points
.ne ~; men calling themselves Gree
re- whether in the regular Greek arm
be or not.
Why have not the powers be
- aloof and let Greece annex Cret
We Why should they attempt to ke
her the Sultan's territory uudivide
so Mr.. Gladstone answered the fiji
: to question by saying that the powt
ere ere should keep hands off,, or aid
for. Greeks; and 'the second, that
ot such attempt should be made
nd, aided by England af 1ehst:1 ~
Of ?, a ostensible reason, however, W
~, the powers have. interfered, is,
th.4 preserve what they call the &C
heir cert of Europe; that is the acti
:ket together, keeping in sympathy a
in touch with each other to av,
ca, aas- misunderstanding. : The reas
nrv back of this is that, realizing Il
and Turkey cannot long hold togeth
cent each nation wishes 80 to mane
by vre as to be in position to 81
,ptxI ~ = go, e.