Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-10-14
THE ANGLO RUSSIAN CONVENTION.

tOAOW1ng the announcement OF the mar
riage Of the Grand Duke Michael Of Russia,
brother of the GEAR, to
Marriage and Princess Patricia, niece of
Diplomacy. the King Of England, al
though denied In some
quarters. there comes the news of diplo-
matte negotiations between st. Petersburg
and London. which. in the form Of a con-
vention. is about to be signed by Nicholas
II and Edward VII.
Although England and Russia are secular
rivals. 1t should be recalled that there Is a
tie of family relationship between these two
powers, whose politics until now have been
divided by an abyss assumed to be i'm
passable. The Emperor Nicholas, by his
marriage with the granddaughter of Queen
Victoria, the Princess Alice Of Hesse Darn
stadt became the nephew OF Edward VII;
besides his mother is the sister of Queen
Alexandra of England, and his aunt. the
Grand Duchess Marie, daughter of Gar
alexander II. married the Duke of Edin-
burgh, brother Of King Edward.
1t has been said that there are no mira
cies in politics. but the rapprochement of
England and Russia is strong refutation
Of the assertion.
The correspondent of the London TeIe-
graph makes the announcement. which ap-
pears to be authorized, that the principal
questions treated in the new convention re-
fer to the orient. THAT which referred to
India was commercial; that to Tibet was
cause when either of the governments dis
patched Buddhist bonze or semitic ex-
p,orer the rival interpreted the act as pre-
imfnary to annexation
The principal point of the convention, says
the correspondent, submitted for the sigma
ture of the czar Is non-intervention in the
affairs Of Tibet. Great Britain undertakes
not to use for her benefit any advantage
r;oI, r1tSp1,k hor
tary expedition to Tibet. The protege Of
Russia, the Dasai-Lama, formerly powerful,
will now be left to his own resources.
r X
The question Of Persia is difficult and the
principle OF non-intervention cannot be ap-
piled because Of the real
The Persian and indisputable interests in
Problem. that country Of both Eng
land and Russia. This be-
ing So" adds the correspondent, ''the only
solution is the adoption OF the regime Of
spheres. Russian influence extends north
of the Iran, and that of Great Britain in the
south. The next Persian loan will be ar
ranged conformity by England and Russia.
When these questions have been finally set
tied 1t will be found that Russian war YES
sells will no longer be excluded from the
Dardanelles." The negotiations have been
conducted by Sir Arthur Nicholson, British
ambassador at st. Petersburg, and Nj. Isvol-
sky, minister of foreign affairs, both acting
in accord with the wishes of the car
The Immediate reason for the Anglo
Russian rapproachement may be found,
although the Telegraph does not say so, in
the fact that Germany has entered the
field and is contesting British influence In
Persia. The recent establishment or
German bank in Teheran, aside from the
Turko-German railway operations In the
south. constitute a direct menace to British
;~,$~ IN, nr,I in Ind
The finances of Persia, so far as can be
ascertained, are not in a very satisfactory
condition and the entry of Germany at
this moment as competitor for spheres
is the more significant in that 1t Is based
upon the support she will receive from
Constantinople. In May, 1892, the British
government concluded with the Imperial
Bank of Persia a contract for the issue
of a loan Of E500, 900, the product of which
should serve for the payment of an In
demnity to the Tobacco Reggie Company Of
Persia. The loan guaranteed by the Gus
toms receipts Of southern Persia and the
Persian gulf were repayable in eighty half
yearly installments, together with 9 per
cent interest. Yearly installments and in
terest were paid until the redemption of the
loan in 1900.
In January, 1900 the Russian imperial
government permitted the Russian Banque
des Prets of Persia to take up loan to
be issued by the Persian government to
the amount of ~, 100000 roubles under the
loan of the year 1900. The payment of in
terest and the redemption OF the loan in
the course Of seventy-five years is guar
anteed by all the Persian customs receipts,
with the exception Of the revenues Of the
custom houses Of the province Of Ears and
the parts of the Persian gulf. The Persian
government undertook to redeem all its
foreign obligations out of the proceeds Of
this loan and not to conclude, without the
consent of the bank, any foreign loan
before the liquidation of the five per cent
gold loan. The Persian government also
leaves it at the discretion Of the bank
to place on the market, If 1t considers nee
essary, bonds of the Persian loan to the
extent Of the baiance of the debt owing
to the bank, these bonds In such case
to enjoy the full guarantee of the Russian
imperial government. The English 1889
loan was redeemed in 1900. In March, 1902
the Russian bank agreed to grant a further
loan Of about 100000 roubles on the
same conditions as those Of the first and
the whole amount was paid by the end
of the year.
An Anglo-Russian entente implies, 1t goes
without saying, the abandonment Of all
ambitions looking to Rus
Germany's sian succession in India. The
DESIGNS, results OF the war with
Japan and the apparent
anarchical conditions in Russia render this
conclusian. not choice, but a necessity
Germany has been candidate at the same
time for the hand of Russia and of Eng
land and has endeavored to drive the lat
ter into her meshes almost by brute force
holding as a menace her army and popu-
lation of s.. 600, OOO The London Times
of recent date contains an interesting arti-
Gle on the Machiavellian overtures made by
Prince Bulow in a recently reported in
terview. 1t says:
1.-THE crux of the matter lies in the con-
tention stated, in almost menacing form.
that England must choose between two al
ternatives. that Of adopting toward Ger
many the policy which might easily be dis
astrous Of an Ansio-French counterpoise.
or of extending the circle Of Its friendships
to include Germany. The entente
between France and England represents the
first occasion on which a third power has