Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-13

small seaport at the head of the Gulf OF
Akaba, In the Red sea. by
The Tabah Turkish troops England has
Trouble. presented a note to Turkey
demanding withdrawal and
has followed the note by fleet which is
now en- route to the Mediterranean and Red
seas The incident recalls the conflict of au-
thority between Turkey and Egypt in the
Sinai peninsula on the Sth of April, 1882.
on the occasion of the firman of investure
addressed by the sultan to Abbas Hiirni-
Pasha on his accession to the khedivat.
interest in the ever-present Egyptian
question Is thus renewed. augmented by the
publication of the annual report OF Lord
Cronier. the British agent and consul gem
eral to Egypt, who suggests the abrogatien
of the capitulations, a drastic measure
which cannot fail to excite the attention
and possibly the active opposition of Tur-
key and the powers interested.
The world will be startled at this proposed
change of Egypt's relations, professedly
guarded In bona fide trust by England The
capitulations, time honored Institution,
which first accorded privileges of protection
and exterrftoriality to the Christian strang
er within the gates of the moslem. has come
In time to be considered instrument of
protection of the oriental against occidental
aspirations The abrogation OF the capitu-
lations in Egypt, in word, means purely
and simply the absorption of Egypt by Eng
land. The absorption of Egypt Is hlppantly
conceded as very natural conclusion of a
British occupation of that country by cor
respondents who have neither the time nor
the disposition to study the reasons why
such consummation is practically improb-
able IL not impossible.
In the first place the signatory powers to
the treaty which created Egypt a hereditary
vice regency of Turkey are bound by sol
emn pledge to maintain the integrity and
autonomy of Egypt, and this obligation Is
subscribed to by the sultan by and with the
consent of each of the powers. of which
England is one, and Germany, Austria, Rus
STA and France the others. The Anglo
French agreement of 1905 does not modify
the relations of France toward the capitula-
tions but whatever change may have since
been effected in her friendly entente with
England, such entente cannot affect the
situation of the interested powers, and GER
tainly not that of Germany, who is openly
charged with being behind Turkey in ques-
lions relating to her suzerainty over Egypt.
x
Besides the test of the firmans which de-
rive their authority from the treaties which
hold Egypt and her prov
1nVas1ons inces to be inviolable, the
Tnefsect;ve readers attention might
be invited with interest to
inc TACT InaI the lnNaSIOnS OF EgypL lfOm
Menes to Mahomet have failed to fix them
selves permanently in Egypt, but have left
almost intact the original occupant the
Egyptian fellah Of today being the mani
fest representative of the ancient Egyptian.
A distinguished English statesman, Sir
Charles Dixie who Understands the Egyp-
tan question because of long association,
has said:
Egypt is a country of transit. She is to
certain point the common property Of the
world. She may be defined as an interna-
tional highway indispensable to the COM
merce of all nations"
The capitulatton are usually attributed
to the treaty between France and Solomon
the Magnificent in 1895. For fact they
date from the reign of the prophet Mahomet
as shown by a document (by some ad-
judged apocryphaD which was published in
Arabic and Latin at Paris in 1880 under the
title 'Testamentum ct pactiones initae inter
Mahomeddum ct Christianae f1dei cultores"
The treaty begins: ''Mohammed, messenger
of God sent to teach men and declare to them
his Divine mission, has written the follow
ing things, to wit: That the matter of the
Christian religion enanated from God can
remain free In all parts of the east and
the west. By this my covenant, which
wish to be executed as religiously as. the
Prophet sent of God, 1 promise to protect
their magistrates in my province with my
foot and horse, with my auxiliaries and
with the believers that follow me- / prom
ise to exempt them from all violence and
sexation and to take them under my pro-
lection. I promise to exempt them from
all burdens, so that they shall not be held
to pay but that which they please without
any harm of punishment inflicted upon
them for so doing"
The capitulations of the Pisan republic
with Saladin, Sultan of Egypt, were dated
September 25, 1173; the capitulatons of the
Republic of Florence with the Sultan of
Egypt, 1888; the English capitulations,
1873, the French capitulations, 1885 and
1910; the Ottoman regulations concerning
foreign consulates IN Turkey, August 9,
1888 the circular note Of the sublime
porte to foreign legations concerning Gus
TOMS immunties of ministers and consuls
January u, 1885, the proclamation of the
President of the United States and text
of the law and protocol concerning right
of foreigners to own real estate in Turkey,
August Il, 1874.
Lord Cromer suggests In his report that
the capltulations be replaced by an addi-
tonal legislative council
Cromer's to be composed wholly
p,o,,osi4;ons of subjects of the powers
signatory of the consti-
tuition of the mixed tribunals. Leg
islatlon passed by a majority of this
council and promulgated by the Egyp-
tan government, with the assent of the
British government, will bind all foreign
ers resident in Egypt; the British and
Egyptian governments will formally agree
that every favor accorded British subjects
will likewise be extended to subjects of
other powers; the proposed council to
sist of twenty-five to thirty members, a mi
nority proportion to be named by the
Egyptian government with a limited num-
her of officials (foreigners), who may be
named members of the council; local inter
ests and not nationality to form the basis
OF representation. but the maximum num-
Der Of elected members who may be of any
single nationality Is to be fixed by treaty;
the Suez canal convention and the khedival
decree of November 2S, 1904, not to be
within the jurisdiction OF the council; the