The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-04-28
CHANGE OF RULERS IS ACCOMPLISHED WITH
 SIMPLE CEREMONIES
Martial Law Is Relaxed In Constant- nople and the People Rejoice In the Great Change Wrought
 In Their Govern
 ment.

Constantinopie. April 27.-The reign of Abdul Hamid II ended today with his deposition and the accession of his broth CT, Mehemmed Resehad Effendi as Mehemmed V, a variation of Nah omet, it being considered inappropriate to as- sume the precise name of the prophet. Meh emmed V is the thirty-f sov- ereign of Turkey in male descent, of the house of Osman, the founder of the empire, and the twenty-ninth sul- tan since the conquest of Constanti- nople.
 The two houses of parliament meet ing as national assembly in the fore noon, approved the decree.of deposition which was read by the Sheik LII Is- lam, chief of tne ulemas, and supreme judge on ecclesiastical questions. The document recites that Abdul Hamid s acts were contrary to the sacred law and set forth a long list of crimes the whole making a terrible indict- nent. The assembly chose Mehemmed Reschad as Sultan and appointed com
 
 eign and his successor of its action. The firing of 101 guns announced to the waiting people that a new Sultan had been proclaimed.
 The ceremonies connected with the transfer of the power were simple. The newly chosen ruler came from his pal acc . Galata through the streets lined
  and took the oath at the war office. He tlen proceeded to the parliament and later went to the Delmabagesche palace, as head of the empire where for so many years he had practically y been a prisoner.
 Martial law was relaxed tonight and the people gave themselves over to cell ebIat'ng the victory of the Young Turks party and the end of Abdul Ham ids reign. Many buildings were il- luminated and thousands of rounds were fired by the soldiers. General good huplor prevailed everywhere. The ques- ton of the new cabinet has rot yet been settled, but 1t is thought that Ah- med Riza will be grand vizier. while some of his assistants will probably be Hilma Pasha, the former premier, as minister of the interior; Djav!d Bay, as minister of finance, and Rlfaat Pasha minister of foreign affairs.
 Abdul Hamid's Reign.
 For 33 years Abdul Hamid II, thirty fourth Sultan of the Ottoman empire has held the powers of Europe at aay and with consummate political skill he has maintained most of his empire in- tact from foreign encroach ments. To- day he was deposed as sovereign ( f Turkey by his own people, whose de- mand for constitutional government he thought he could circumvent.
 Last July the Sultan was compelled by the Young Turk party to grant a con- stitutioyl to the empire and several months later Turkey entered for the second time in her history upon an era of popular government. April 13 there broke out at Constantinople a military revolution against parliament and the cabinet This movement has been generally ascribed to the machinations of the Sultan The Young Turks answered this attempt upon popular representation and government by assembling the Third Army corps which was firm in it's support of their political aspirations outside Constantino- pie, and on the morning of April "A they entered the capital. In the fighting which followed about 1000 were killed or wound ed. The Young Turks were successful and immediately assumed complete con- trol of the city. The next step in the striking events that have followed each other with such rapidity was the deposit ton of the ruler of the empire.
 Abdul Hamd was born September 22 1S42.
 In spite of his long reign little is known of his personal character. His predeces- sors had been autocrats, but he is de- scribed as having brought on Turkey degree of despotism such the country had not experienced in many genera tons.
 He lived within the precincts of the iIn- perial palace of Yildiz, shut off from his subjects by triple line of walls, in mortal fear of his life.
 Armenian Massacres.
 The Armenian massacres in 1895 and 1896 were laid at the door of the Sultan but whether he directly fostered them or not is not known. Yet Abdul Hamid has performed some valuable services to his country in preventing the partition of his domains in Europe among the powers. He took the Turkish army, disorganized and useless, and made of it a strong fighting force He organized an educa- tional system, permitted a daily press in Constantinople and gave munificently to the Mussulman charities.
 Mehemmed Reschad Effendi, younger brother of Abdul Hamid, was born No vember 8, 1S44 and Is legally, and ac- cording to the Mussulman law the sue cessor to Abdul Hamid. Up to the grant ing of the constitution last July Me hemmed Reschad I1ffendi lived in prac- tical captivity in a palace on the shores of the Bosphorus. He was surrounded by household composed of creatures of the Sultan who spied upon his every action. He was not permitted to leave the extensive palace grounds without the permission of the Sultan Four years ago he was reported as dying from cancer of the throat but he recovered from his Illness and since the advent of popular government last year he has enjoyed degree of personal liberty hitherto un- known to him.