Evening star., 1901-09-21
NEW PUBLICATIONS,

| THE PRIVATE LIFE OF THE SULTAN OF TUR-
KEY. By Georges Dorys. Translated by Ar
thur Hornbow Illustrated. New York: ID.
| Appleton & Co.
Abdul Hamid II is more or less Of a mys-
| terry to the Christian world. He lives in
| semi-secusion, puzzles the powers with his
| peculiar policies and defies the traditions
| of modern diplomacy with the effrontery of
| barbarian He is decidedly interesting
| parsonage. Georges Dorys, son of the late
| Prince of Samos who held various high
offices under Abdul Hamid, has undertaken
the dangerous task of presenting this mon
arch as he lives and moves, a task so diff
fcult, indeed, that 1t must necessarily be
accomplished at safe distance from the
range of the sultans long arm. Dorys is
now In Paris. in exile; his work is con-
demned by the Ottoman government, and
has even been placed under the ban Of
Sweden at the urgent instance of Turkey.
1t is highly Instructive, and although the
writer's enmity toward his royal master is
evident the portrait drawn may be ac-
cepted in the main as accurate. 1t conforms
to the universal conception of Abdul Ham,
id, as crafty, cruel superstitious mon
arch.
Abdul Hamid's main inspiration in life Is
to preserve himself from death. He fears
death to the point of mania. He surrounds
himself with the most eEtravagant bar
r1erS, carries several loaded reVolverS con-
stantly upon his person, suspects the slight
est inadvertent movement by another in
his presence, shoots down his victims when
the least flutter of diStrust crosses his
mind. He studies chemistry to learn about
explosives, and interdictS the sale even of
necessary drugs in Constantinople for fear
they may be compounded into internal
machines or mines. He keeps his relatives
who are in the line Of succession in
practical state of imprisonment and is
even accused of conniving at their excesses
to dull their minds and SO lessen the
chance Of successful conSpiracics against
him.
Yet Abdul Hamid is excessively vain of
his appearance before the world, end is
particular to his personal aspect when
meeting foreigners, assuming the manners
Of cavalier and the complexion OF an
actor when receiving tourists or diplomats.
He thus lives a double life, one of
tyranny before his slaves of the Yidiz
Palace, and his subjects in general and one
of cajolery and deception before the rest Of
the world. He has broken Eli the promises
of liberal government through which he
secured the throne in succession to his
brother, Mourad V, and strives continually
to tighten the lines of the despotism by
which today he governs Turkey with a
practically unfettered hand.
This portrait of the sultan is vivid In it's
outlines and affords intimate view of
the great assassin, as Gladstone styled
him. Dorys briefly Indicates the position
Of the reform element in Turkey,
which is strongly suppressed by the sultan,
whereby the monarch continually seeks to
weaken those forces by bribery and secret
murder. and seems despondent in regard to
the immediate prospects for his almost
bankrupt, tyrant-ridden land.
ASIA AND EUROPE; Studies, presenting the Con-
devoted to the subject Of the Relations between
ASH Asia and and Europe; 311By Meredith Townsend.
ton: Woodward Lothrop.
The author believes that the political fus-
ion of the two continents will never occur
despite the factors which continually tend to
attract Europe toward the effort. He seeks
to show the fundamental reasons why the
great east will resist the advances Of Eu-
rope. having their roots In racial differ
ences. In traditions as deep as time and in
modern political complications. AS to
America In Its relation to Asia, his at
titude is somewhat different. His words on
this point are Of special interest to readers
In this country. He says:
must add that, as will be perceived. I
nave said nothing Of the possible influence
OF America upon Asia. first, because 1t
does not enter into my subject and. Sec
ondly because I hardly care to speculate
on future as to which history can give
no light. may, however, just say here
that although America must by and by
greatly influence Asia, its influence will
hardly be favorable to conquest. 1t will
more probably be one of the many which
will make permanent conquest impossible.
When once the Nicaragua canal has been
cut the trade Of the United States with
farther Asia will be one of the greatest
the world has seen. and Asia will fill a
large space In American imaginations, al
ways influenced by the spectacle of the gi-
gantic. All manner Of traders will seek
her coasts, and all manner Of concession
aries will rifle the riches Of the interior.
All manner of missionaries will be attract
ed by her millions, and all manner of edu
eating agencies will make Asia their field
American will possibly become the most
popular Of white men with Asiatics, and
may be able to convey to them ideas more
acceptably than any other Nevertheless,
the American will not rule the Asiatic.
The fissure between the races is very wide.
and as yet has proved impossible. The
American can never like any one not of his
own color; he will never mix on footing
of equality with any other; and the China
man in San Francisco no more becomes an
American than the Chinaman in Calcutta
becomes Bengalee. Lastly, the American
has no interest In conquering Asia He does
not wish for territory already occupied by
masses of people; he has ample room for
settlement In his own hemisphere. and ne
does not believe sovereignty absolutely es-
sential to trade. 1t will be easier to ac-
quire influence in Asia by protecting her
from conquest than to begin conquering
and this, l think, will in the end be the
American line, as indeed in China it al
ready Is. For reasons of trade, for reasons
Of kindly regards and for reasons of jeal-
OuSy the attitude or America Will, l. I'M
agine, be one Of rather contemptuous
guardianship"
Mr.. Townsend's work Is a valuable addi-
tion to the thought of the west upon this
vast and important theme, made the more
consequential by theT events in China dur
ing the past twelve months. The study of
the far east is acquiring value never
before known, and the minds Of statesmen
and scholars Is more definitely turning in
that direction. . III
OF Episode in Tdn. the Ato tory
York: Mcclure Phillips Co. Washington:
Woodward LOthrOp.ya
Mr.. Anthony Hope Hawkins has evidently
decided that the romantic novel has had
its day. and that the novel Of society Is
due for another swing. AT all events he
has essayed in the latter line work
which is strikingly unlike those stories
with which his fame has been most closely
| connected In the past decade. He handles
his somewhat complex theme in confident
| manner. carrying his people through
| maze Of contradictory dispositions until he
lands everybody on the approved plane OF
| happy ending" His fundamental prop
osition Is unpleasantly suggestive of the
moral laxity Of the British nobility. The
story turns, in fact, upon an incident
oil of vorto r,iff ho