The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1903-09-22
The BALKAN TROUBLES
An officials Views Of the Up
rising In Macedonia.
he BLAMEs BULGARIA FOR IT,

Present Movement Is said 20 De the
Outcome OF a Wen Concoeted Bal
garian Plan to Annex Macedonia.
That Country's Side Of the Question.
An official Of one OF the countries
directly interested in the Balkan trou
bles was asked the other day at Wash
ington regarding the situation and the
causes of the disorders in Macedonia
For political and diplomatic reasons
this official consented to talk only on
,he condition that his name should not
be connected with the interview, says
the New York Tribune. He said:
/ The Macedonian question is very i'm.
perfectly understood In this country
/ Most persons believe that the fight now
going on in Macedonia Is only one Of
the periodical risings Of the Christian
inhabitants Of a province OF the Otto
man empire against Turkish misrule,
seeking reform or autonomy or com
plete independence.
1t is nothing Of the kind The pres
ent movement is the elimination Of
well concocted plan of the Buigarians,
started many years back, to absorb
Macedonia and to annex that country
TO Bulgaria, and the so called Mace
donian committee, composed exclusive
~ Of Bulgarians and Bulgaro-Mace
domains, Is the chief exponent of that
political movement. There Is not
single Macedonian Greek ia that COM
mittee, although they form the major
ity Of the population Of Macedonia
To understand thoroughly this cues
| ton we must take into consideration
/ the different nationalities Of Macedonia
land the political aspirations Of the
powers interested in that country.
Macedonia is today the last powerful
support of the Turkish domination in
Europe, and the sultan win not relin-
quish 1t without vigorous resistance.
To Austria Hungary Macedonia is the
4 nearest object Of her views in her
oriental policy, which tends always to-
ward the Hgean sea. Russia consid-
ers herself bound to defend her Slave
MAN interests with her especial inter.
ests ia her monastic establishments in
Mount Athos Roumania, having dis
covered in the tribe of the Koutgo-
/ Ealaks brother race, considers that
she has word to say in all political,
/ ecclesiastical and national affairs Of
/ Macedonia Seryia and Montenegro
have put forward certain pretensions
In the northern districts, which pos
sess some sprinkling Of seryo-Slavs.
Bulgaria. to which the treaty Of San
Stefano had allotted the largest part
Of Macedonia. hopes to obtain, bg the
annexation Of that province, supremacy
In the Balkan peninsula. The Albani-
ans, by their resolutions passed Ii
their national assembly held at Ipek in
1899, showed themselves the defenders
DC the integrity of Macedonia, and
finally Greece, Notwithstanding the I'M
fortunate war Of 1897, cannot forget
that for 1000 years Macedonia has re-
NAMED an autonomous Greek state o.
| an important fraction Of the different
4 Hellenic empires, and also, even under
the Ottoman government Hellenism
was the first element Of civilization Of
that state
Thus, besides Turkey, which now ex-
ereises an effective sovereignty on Mac
edonia, there are eight pretenders who
believe that they have rights either on
portions or on the whole of it, The di-
vergence of these aspirations and the
mutual rivalry of the said pretenders
are the chief assurances to the sultan
of the confirmation Of his authority in
that province, at least for some time TO
come.
But among all these small national
files the Bulgarians have been the most
active for the last twenty years. The
SO called Macedonian committees have
existed ever since, but have been par
ticularly active since the Greco Turkish
war Of 1897, and by their continual
agitation hoped to force the great pow
ers to intervene and establish Mace
DOMAIN autonomy for the profit of the
Bulgarian element
sThe population of Macedonia is
roughly estimated at about 100000
The two principal vilayets are those Of
Monastir and Salonika, and their last
census was: Greeks, 65S,000; Mussul-
mans, 10000; Bulgarians, $4,000; Ser
vians. $4,000; Roumanians, 10000;
Jews, $4,000.
1t will be seen from this that the
Greek element is nearly double the Bull
garian, but even this does not repre-
sent the actual state OF things. The
trade Of the country is chiefly in the
hands Of the Greeks, the Bulgarians
being mostly agrieulturists and cattle
raisers. In the yilayet Of Salonika the
Jews are a very important element and
in the city Of salonika there are many
wealthy Jews in the banking business
and the foreign trade
If we come to the question Of the
schools the discrepancy between the
Greek and the Bulgarian schools is still
more striking. 1t is well known fact
that the money for the maintenance of
the Bulgarian schools in Macedonia
comes chiefly from Sofia while the
Greek schools are maintained exclusive
IL by the Macedonian Greeks, the
Greek government never having. given
one cent for the schools Of Macedonia.
a rich Bulgarian called Geld maintains
! : t..a1 a. ca1onflsa at his osyn az