The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-30
THE BAN OF THE TURK.
Working of the Theory That All i Private Initiative is Hostile.

NJ ET1Vate 1ulClaC1Ve IS doSClle.
 Wiu the Turk permanently suppress Initiative and enterprise by his simple ban. or will enterprise suppress the Turk and his theory? This is the question raised by the latest edict of the Turkish government, which for bids the use of typewriters in the Turkish Empire. This edict is one of q long series aimed at the .pestilent activity of men of business who seek to improve their methods. Typewrit- CTS have been in use in Turkey for twenty years or more. At first they came into the country through the 2aAnbEike innocence of the Custom house inspectors. No one knew what thev were. After it was found that they could print legibly as the ter rible printing press itself, an attempt was made to refuse them admission to Turkey, on the ground that they were a kind of printing press. and therefore each one must have a special permit of the SuEtan himself before being trn- ported. The foreign embassies went sponsors for the inability of the thing to print more than two or three copies at once. and that obstacle to using typewriters was removed. But now 1t has come out that q devilish ingenuity has found means to combine type writer. with hektograph, and has also discovered an institution called the znimeograpE. There is nothing now to hinder a man with typewriter from sending out advertisements by the hundred which the censor has not seen. Hence the typewriter must go. We must suffer the bangs of deciphering painfully drawn hieroglyphics when ever we receive orders from Turkish business men.
 This is an illustration of a state of affairs not really understood here. The idea of the Turk is that private in- stiative must necessarily be hostile to any weil-regulated government. An ofKlcial elucidation of the subject of this place and danger of private enter prise was not long ago published in the Turkish "Sabah" newspaper. It says: 'Tt Is proven that the affairs of men cannot be perfectly carried on by in dividual and separate initiative. It is, therefore. the beneficent will of God that the whole interests of the human race be committed to the hand of one man inspired directly from God"
 The declaration goes on to show that the man alluded to Is Sultan Abdul Hemid II. Under this principle. pro- scription of some of the main sinews and muscles of business enterprise has been enacted in Turkey. The theory IS that any communication between men that is not under the supervision of censors of propriety in language must threaten the prosperity of the @mpire.
 Telephones are forbidden in Turkey For this reason. Code telegrams may not be sent Open telegrams are held until the censors can decipher their meaning. If the meaning is not clear, the merchant who supposed his order for thousand Heavyweight" was all ready being filled in England is disil- lusioned by a summons to police head quarters for explanations which will release his telegram of two days be- fore. There used to be a city post in ConstantinopIe. Lest some one should say something to some one else by that means. 1t was suppressed. All com manifestations between merchant and customer have to be by private messen- ger
 There is now a burning question be- tween Turkey and the European pow CTS about the foreign postoffices. They are the only sure means by which for eigners living in Turkey can communi- cate with their home lands. Turkish ansistence on the suppression of these postoffices is based on the deire to have the police read the letters and suppress the newspapers of foreigners. The first result of the seizure by the Turkish police recently of mail bags from the foreign postofice clerks was the arrest of a number of men to whom letters had been addressed by persons abroad whose language the police dis annroyed