Los Angeles herald., 1909-04-23
YOUNG TURKS
WIN VICTORY
OVER SULTAN
RULER OF TURKEY OFFERS TO
YIELD POWER
ABDUL HAMID WILL REMAIN AS
SOVEREIGN
Affairs of Government to Be Placed
In Hands of Ministers, Who Shall
Be Responsible to Par
lament
GBy Associated Press. ]

0tONSTANTINOPL April 22.-The
Young Turks have won another
~ victory over Sultan Abdul Hamtd,
but whether the sultan will remain as
sovereign is yet to be decided, although
he has offered to place the affairs of
government entirely in the hands of
ministers responsible to parliament.
The sultan also agrees to replace the
Constantinople garrison with troops
from the corps that has been investing
the city for four days.
The chamber of deputies and some
of the senators met today at San
Stefano and are now discussing the
question of deposing the sultan.
The concentration of the investing
army is complete, and doubtless the
next twenty-four hours will decide the
fate of the sultan, who remains pas
sively at his palace, awaiting the issue
The public will scarcely be aware of
the change, and it is certain it will be
accomplished without violence
For the present there need be little
fear of bloodshed within the city, but
there is much to be feared from the
riots and massacres that now aow
sweeping over the districts under Turk
iSh domination.
Priests Leave City
Fewer priests are seen on the streets.
Many of them have left the city for
Asia, threatening to arouse the coun-
try and return with the faithful to
rescue the grand Caliph and save re-
ligion from the unbelievers.
Newspaper extras tonight announced
that the crisis was past, and this
caused general relief. Politics was
discussed freely in the cafes, but the
sultan was rarely mentioned
The reckless talk of a few nights
ago about the sovereign was not heard.
A correspondent drove to the Yildiz
Kiosk, which so far as could be seen
from the approaches, appeared to be
unoccupied. Not a sentinel or soldier
was in sight, even at the main gates
The fleet sailed this afternoon for the
Mediterranean, ostensibly for maneu-
vers, but really as a guarantee that the
investing army would not be opposed.
The sultan, or those acting in his be-
half has supplied the constitutionalists
with a list of the principal members of
the palace group, who brought about
the events of the past week. 1t Is
understood there are to be no reprisals,
except in the case of the palace officials
| implicated.
Cabinet Resigns
The members of the cabinet today
offered their designations to the grand
vizier but he declined to accept them.
He said he felt that the ministers
ought to remain in office, rather than
leave the country without a govern
ment All consented to remain. AS
matter of fact, the cabinet is practi-
cally a Young Turk cabinet, because
the ministers who were appointed since
April 13 are in no way disposed to do
anything in opposition to the wishes
of the committee of union and prog
resS.
The Constantinople newspapers that
follow liberal policies are writing in
the most open manner of the desira-
bility of submitting the competence of
the sultan to rule to an ecclesiastical
high court, with the ultimate object of
deposing him in accordance with reg
ular forms.
1t seems that the Sheik VI Islam and
several staff officers visited the vari-
Gus barracks today to administer to the
men the oath that they would obey
their officers and abstain from politics.
Many of the men declined to take the
oath unless the officers swore implicit
obedience to the sultan. Their refusal
was due to the reports spread among
them by reactionaries that the Salon
ikian army did not exceed 5000, and that
it had been bribed by the Christians to
depose the sultan.
On learning the attitude of the garri-
son, HAHN Pasha dispatched officers to
meet General Schefket at San Stefano.
to discuss the situation and, it is re-
ported, additional troops with siege
train have been ordered up from Sa-
loniki.