Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-10-08
The TROUBLES OF TURKEY.

/ At the moment Gar Nicholas announces
his intention to invite the foreign powers
T. to second peace confer
Ine WoridAs ence at The Hague the oc-
Troubles. casion seems opportune to
take an inventory of the
worlds troubles. Turkeys troubles II
| should be added. being more weighty than
| all the others.
First. in Latin America there is Venezuela.
to which refractory state both the United
States and France are contemplating pres
| emily concerted visit; in Cuba there are
indications of unrest. In the orient the
Russo-Japanese war, concluded by the peace
at Portsmouth. has been followed by the
boycott by China of American commerce.
the gravity Of which Mr.. Secretary Taft
recognizes and would placate China IS
wounded feelings over the exclusion act.
The trouble between Sweden and Norway
has been settled by amicable separation.
ana Norway now is looking for king The
question OF Morocco has entered a peaceful
non-expiosive until after the International
conferences at Algesiras. Hungary Is in
serious conflict with Austria. In the eau
casus Mosiem Tartars have proclaimed holy
| war against Armentans along the Perso-
RUSSIAN frontier. Turkey Is the center OF
q veritable circle of fire. Bulgaria is full of
strife. Roumania Is In open rupture with
Greece. Servfa has addressed an ultimatum
70 the porte on the subject Of violation Of
| her frontier by Albanian and Turkish
troops Macedonia is overrun by Greek
| bands. and the powers have presented a
| collective note to the porte announcing that
an international financial commission will
assemble at Salonica on the LIST October to
regulate the finances of the country. In the
Yemen the Arab revolt against Turkey is
reported as under control. In Turkey prop
l er bomb Is thrown In hn Will
the object of killing the sultan. The muir
der OF Turkish-Armenian banker by an
American-Armenian anarchist and a de-
mand by the United States that Turkey sur
render him for trial by American tribunals
The concession by Turkey to Germany of a
| naval station In the Island of Thasos, and
OF concession OF gold mines in same island
| to German company.
xx
Our diplomatic relations with Turkey. after
various attempts. began In 1890 by a treaty
p,x OF commerce, signed on
May Z, of that year. The
With Turkey. privileges of exterritor-
iality were conceded In
that treaty and confirmed by the treaty of
February % 1862. A special convention for
extradition of criminals was concluded Au-
gust II. 1874.
On March r. 1888 the grand yiz,r gave
notice to Gen. Lew Wallace, then United
States minister, of the desire of Turkey to
terminate the treaty one year from that
date Since June 8. 1884. the Ottoman gov
eminent has treated the convention of 1862
as null and void The Supreme Court. how
ever, held that by a prior treaty the
Ottoman empire conceded to the United
states the same privileges and rights as to
exterritorial Jurisdiction enjoyed by other
Christian nations
This decision would seem for fact ar
bitrary because Turkey. doubtless. pleads
March IL, 1883, abrogates the treaty of 1890
IL Is true President Cleveland, in his first
annual message, referring thereto said:
While there is question to the suffi-
commercial rights of our citizens in Turkey
come under the favored nation guarantee
OF the prior treaty of 1880. and as equal
| treatment Is admitted by the porte no in
convenience can result to the revision of the
ottoman tariff. in which the treaty powers
| have been invited to join"
The denunciation Of the treaty involved
the abrogation of the privilege of exterrf-
toriality and technically the Ottoman gov
eminent was correct, although 1t recognized
the favored nation clause.
The morning after the recent ATTEMPTED
assassination Of the sultan at Yildfz- Kiosk.
certain Vartanian, Armenian assassinat-
ed one Apik Effendi Oundjan, a rich Ar
menians banker, condemned to death by an
armenian revolutionary committee to which
Apik had refused to contribute money
Vartanfan, who claimed to be a naturalized
American, was chosen to execute the will of
the committee-revolutiona in
plain language. was simply a band of vul-
gar assassins. That the United States should
permit itself to establish a precedent in
the case of this peculiar American is sin
guar In any case, now that Turkey has
yielded up the culprit. and his guilt abb
solutely established, the United States gov
eminent should hasten to return the body
OF Vartanian to the custody of the Otto
man government. with thanks. and the ex-
preston of hope that the bandit be ex-
ecuted in the streets of Constantinople as a
public example to his class.
The Greco-Roumanian rupture Ia an ac-
complished fact. The origin of the misun-
Outstanding which is
1reco-houman1an not new, for there was
rupture similar one in 1880.
seems tragic, but the
Greeks have inherited a disposition for the
drama. and they must not be taken too
seriously
In the month of May NJ EN- Lahoyary,
Roumanian minister, succeeded in having
the porte recognize the Roumanian nation
atty, until then COMPOUNDED with the Greek.
The Roumanians complained that they were
imposed upon by the oecumenical patriarchat
at Constantinople. which they allege was
nothing less than pan-Hellenic agency
whose policy was to confuse all Greek inter-
ests, religious obligations and political am
billions, preventing Roumanians from pray
ing In their language, deprivihg them of
churches. schools and cemeteries The
patriarchat replied that the reclamations
were unjustifed; that there were no Rou-
manians in Macedonia, only Koutzo-Vala-
ques. Receiving no satisfaction from the
patriarchat.- M. Lahovary broke off all re-
lations with 1t and appealed to the porte
from whom he obtained the desired recogni-
tion
The triumph secured to the Koutzo-vala-
ques communities legal and independent
existence and assured to them In Macedo-
MIA religious. legal and political equality
with other races. The Greeks in Macedonia
and Greece were furious The Greek patri-
arch aggravated the situation and very
soon Koutzo-v alaques and Greek priests
and people met with fisticuffs and drawn
battle, adding thus to the troubles which
afflicted Macedonia The Greek press took
up the question, the Roumanian replied;
Greek Journalists were expelled from
Bucharest. Finally the charge d'affaires OF
Roumania presented formal protestation
in which the Greek government saw an In
acceptable menace, and hence the rupture
and the withdrawal of representatives from