The evening times., 1900-04-26
OUR QUARREL WITH TURKEY.
The Experience of the Hon 8 e. W.
benjamin.

our Government and the Ottou N Empire.
The Times has shown one pr Sc of the
Turkish claim to lenieney Of judgment on
our part by calling attention TO the condi-
tion of affairs in SuIu. Another phase of
1t may be found in the extremely difficult
race problem which the Sultan has 10
contend with in keeping his conglomerate
Empire in order and in the relation which
the American missionaries hold to this
complicated system. the most difficult that
ever confronted any monarch past or pres
ent. All these dozen or more distinct
peoples were conquered by the Turks, and
whether scattered over, their dominions or
confiue'l chiefly to certain provinces. form
integra: parts of the Empire instead Of
being colonies having separate and special
systems Of government. Religion. the
most powerful motor fer good or evil for
two thousand years past. has kept these
peoples from coalescing with each other
or with the Turks Thus they all remain
distinct, abhorring each other and abhOr-
ring the Turk. their master. who has yet
treated them better than they would treat
each other IL they had the power TO put
their fanatieal feuds into force. Any IN
preJudieed resident OF Turkey is perfectly
well aware OF che truth OF this statement
Although the Turk won the leadership
over these people by the sword his right
10 DE- so was as unQuestiOned as that OF
every other nation to aggrandize itself by
military power. That is the way all na-
uons and empires have been built up since
the foundation Of the world, and viii con-
tinue so for some ages 10 come England,
france Germany. Russia the United
states, have grown great by war and ag-
greSsion and viii continue TO do so until
the ruler Of destiny wills another law of
national growth. Hence no blame attaches
70 Turkey for subIecting these peoples. nor
is she IN the wrong when she uses her ut
most 10 preserve her Empire intact II
is the law OF national existence. While
the Turkish Government was in full vigOr
IL had no difficulty in preserving peace
among these subject peoples. And from
the first they enjoyed privileges unknown
to the most enlightened nations OF Chris
tendon until this century. Our limits
forbid further discussion Of this important
fact here But as the Turks grew Eeaker
and the Europeans stronger. and as the
latter learned the secret OF badgeriny the
Turk by acting in concert and interfering
in the affairs OF the Grand Porte on the
preteXt of protecting the Christians in
Turkey, the latter became turbulent and
insurbordinate and the difficulty OF keep
ing the-' in Ssder became more and more
arduous for the Sultans Whatever was
done in that direction by the Ottoman
watched by the Christian powers. some
OF whom, il is well known. instigated dis
orders through secret agents and dark in
trigues, hoping TO reap advantages for
themselves thereby. The hypocrisy OF na-
tions is one OF the most stupendOus phe-
nomena Of modern civilization.
This condition Of affairs would have
driven an archaugel to despair. Judge
then. what must be the effect on he
nj no I'll he ,F Trs-
key. Judge also what must be his opinion
OF Christendom when he sees the hypOc-
ricy, duplicity, and rapacity OF the pow
ers and their readiness 10 enforce demands
from the weak which they shrink frcm
attempting with the strong II the present
embroglio about the property Of the Ameri-
can missionaries were with Russia instead
Of with Turkey. would our Government be
so insistent about a claim that is Ques-
uonable al best2 ! think not And here
comes In the question Of the moral right
or expediency Of insisting upon our cisirn
for damages suffered BY the American mis-
sionaries during the Armenian massacres.
What are the facts? OF course Sultan
Abdul Hamid has been reeklessly cen
demned by English and American public
opinion as the arch-demon who ordered
those atrocities Russia. who is thorough
ly informed OF what goes on in Turkey.
knows better The charge has never been
proved and cannot be sustained. But what
is more cOrrecr is that the Moslems were
exasperated 10 the last degree by the
growing discomfort aroused BY the agita-
tors Of the Armenian secret society. which
eliminated in the dFeaiful scenes at Con-
stantinople. and probably by agents OF for
eign powers While the maSsacres cannot
be too greatly deplOred. il must be I'd
mItted that there Eas great pallia-
tion for the evaporation of the Turks
And IL must also be distinctly noted here
that notwithstanding this fury OF the
Turks which led 70 the destruction OF some
American property not a missionary was
killed or even lost a hair Of his head.
And yet the missionaries were Indirectly
one cause Of the disSontent OF the Ar
meniansi With all due respect for tie
noble character of many of the mission
aries. with profound respect for the lofti-
ness Of their motives. we must vet assert
that they are agitatOrs- Their entrance into
a country. whatever be their sect, wLe- her
Christian or Mohammedan, Catholic or
Protestant, means the ultimate subversion
OF the existing order Of things, including
the overthrow of the political system II
the government is theocratic That is
what the missionaries are there for or
whence the reason for their advance into a
foreign land? OF course most missionaries
are peaceable, with few violently sg-
any such motives. Yet such must BE- tie
inevitable results if their efforts reach
their logical end. And thus not few OF
the Armenians or Bulgarians. who had
come under the influence OF the Anleri an
missionaries in Turkey. became infected
With Western ideas OF liberty and deveI-
oped into agitators whose aim was nothing
less than the overthrow of the Turkish
Empire Some of these men materially
aided in the rending OF the Balkan prov
inces from the Turkish dominion. | am
not denying fhe right Of any indiyiiUal or
people to seek independence VIXEN there Is
a reasonable prospect of success: but this
does not abolish the rights of the ruler
as well Hence the Sultan has rights no
less than his subjects. Now. in spite of
the fact that the missionaries are agita-
tors threatening the foundations of her
power, Turkey has for seventy years ex
tended her hospitality and pNotection to
the American missionaries. In a country
often turbulent, for reasons stated sbove
our missionaries have lived as safely ne~-
maps more safely. than in our own coun
Try In seventy years. out of many hun
dred missionaries and their children. only
two have lost their lives BY violence and
that at the hands OF robbers, as might have
happened in any country. And the uroper-
" OF these missionaries has been a. safe
ana as unmOlested. with the one excentiov,
for which we are now demanding dam
ages. as IL il had been in tbe Unira5
States In view of these facts. is IL nor
a rather small, pttiful, pettifogging kind
OF business for our Government TO be buI-
lying the Sultan into indenuifving tba
missionaries for these losses. the o,,Ix
ones in seventy years?
In the second place is it not far more con-