Semi-weekly Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1897-1901, 1901-10-04


fully even up to Teheran," was the
Paris Temps way year ago last req
ruary of describing the way Russia naa
imnroved the opportunity opened by
Rritsin,s trouble to throw her influence
mt Of Persia. as a result of Russia $
relentless and historic purpose 10
throw her power against the very
borders of India and become the power
of unouestioned dominance throughout
Asia. She has already made good
nroyress towards control of the "bu1-
fer state" for India, Afshanistan, and
when she secures that and Persia, In.
dia lies entirely open to her on the
north vest side, while her successful
grab out of the Chinese mess OF Man
churia, with an open seaport the year
round and with nearly complete rail-
road communication by the trans'Sl-
ber,an road with st Petersburg, adds
immensely to her power to do any
thing she pleases IN Asia.
It is within bounds to say that these
events in their ultimate meaning are
equivalent to the undoing OF a century
of highlands work in the East Until
by momental folly and crime, England
had fettered her powers by the South
African war, her rivals had been unable
to gain any decisive advantage over her
in Western Asia. But as soon as they
found her fully occupied elsewhere,
Russia took financial control of Persia,
hitherto held by London capitalists, by
making the loan of January. l9OO,secured
by the customs of the chief ports OF the
Persian gulf, aud stipulating that
Persia should redeem all former obli
cations, including the British loan oil
1892, and that she should contract nc
more foreign loans without Russia
consent. This meant the end of Brit
ish influence at Teheran, and Russian
dominance in its place; it was accom-
papied by concessions to gridiron Nortf
Persia with railroads, and doubtless II
will end in the granting to the Car o.
seaport on the gulf, where Britain ha'
already regarded it as vital to MAINTAIN
complete naval ascendancy to protec
her Indian empire.
AT the same time, Germany has beer
doing much the same at the Turkish
end: and the climax was reached in th'
Kaiser's visit and hobnobbing with tn
Sultan last year, following the mora
support given in the Armenian trouble
and in the war with Greece. German
control of railroad systems has becom
almost complete; she controls, as tn
III S consul at Siyas says, TN
two great distributing points, Con
stautinople and Smyrna, and through tn
great valley of the Euphates to Bag
dad and leading thence by the Tigris t.
the Persian gulf, which thus becomes
tidewater terminal for practically
through line to Germany.
The trouble between Turkey am
England at Kowyet, of which the dis
patches of the past few days tell, reF
resepts. therefore. Britain's last des
perate effort to hold some remnant
her prestige and power in the Persia
gulf. Kowyet is near the northern EN-
fof the gulf on the Arabian side and III
der the nominal jurisdiction of Turkey
against which Arabs are always rebel
lious. Nowhere is kowyet recognize
as an independent state, but it suit
British purposes and needs just row {
treat it as such. and very likely he
purpose is not merely to keep It ava
from Russian or German hands, but t
make it terminal for railroad of he
own across Arabia from Egypt. Brltai
denies any purpose to establish prt
tectorate there and in the usual parlanc
professes an amicable understandin
I with Turkey; but the fact is that "he
the Sultan sent a BODY of troops to Ell
force obedience on the Sheikh OF howyt
Ithev found the place under the BIRTHS
warships who kept the troops from lane
ing. But it means to the Sultan nothin
! less thanthat England is fomenting r.
bellion among his subjects, and it cannt
fail to make more hopeless any future RI
! srmption of the old British influence
! Coustantinople.
: 1t is all human experience thf
r mightiest results from little things flow
and this war against the Africkander n
f publics that seemed so trifling when b'
: gun, has wrought far towards the rul
, OF the greatest empire the world eve
saw. Without friend anywhere in tn
, world, with her old points of advantag
{ one after another being taken away D
| her rivals, with slumbering hatre
r everywhere among her subject people
Eneland's situation is fast becomin
critical Her only hope, in fact. is I
crush out the Beers. and this she cal
, mt do until the last man is dead.
Gen Wesley Merritt's misleadin