Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-16
ALBANIA AN AUTONOMOUS STATE?

Scanderbeg is sacred II represents the |
national spirit and means resistance to
foreign oppression. When Scanderbeg !
died. in 1467, the Turks obtained the sur |
render Of the Albanians. who accepted
the sovereignty but not the yoke of the |
tyrant
In order to escape the latter wave |
of Albanian emgrantS flowed to southern |
Italy. where their descendants are easily |
recognized as of Albanian origin Man, |
of these have risen to distinction in the 1
history or contemporary Italy, such. for
example. as francesca Crispi who was
the grandson of an Albanian refugee.
In the war for Greek independence
| Albanian heroes rendered distinguished
service-among these Mar
Heroic co Bozarris. formerly off,
C,.r~., Ger of an Albanian regi-
ment under Napoleon; Ali
| Pasha Of Ianina, Mahmoud Pasha of
Scutari, COndowreotis. Kolocotrons.
In June $780, Mehemet Reschiel Pasha
invited the Tosques of Albania to a con-
ference at Monastis. and traitorously
| massacred them. 1t was the signal for
| the series of instructions which. down
| to the period of the war in the Crmea,
| agitated all Albania.
Aloanlans have rendered great service
to the sultans of STEAMBOAT. They gov
erned the empire in the seventeenth CEN
FURY. and under Ali of Tibelen they at
| tempted to found a Turko- Albanian state
| In Epfrus. Under Mahmoud they crushed
| the Greek revolt Under Mohammed All
| they galvanized Egypt and almost sue
ceeded in acquiring the throne of the
| khalifs
| Abdul amid took special care Of the
| Albanlans and granted them many ia
vors and special privileges. He was
guarded by an Albanian guard. whose
| presence at the palace assured to them
| and their friends all sorts of impurities.
| lney PAID no taxes and rendered no
regular military service. When the trou-
| bles in Macedonia burst forth they be-
| came the natural auxiliaries of Yildiz.
| When Hilmi Pasha inaugurated In the
Macedonian vilayets the reforms demand
ed Of Yildiz by Europe an order came
TO except from European control the
regions Inhabited by Arnautes While
Servians. Bugarians. Turco-Greeks and
Wa!lachians fight among themselves with
unspeakable rage the Albanian goes for
| ward, and has already reached the plains
or Fardar. Old Servia formerly peopled
| by Serfs, is Albanian Okrida. which
was the seat of Bulgarian empire. is
Albanian. If the late Hamidian regime
had lasted few years longer the greater
part OF Macedonia would have become
Albanian
Aibanians number all told. 1900. 900
souls. OF these. 1.l15.OO0 reside In AL
bania proper: 10000 in
Nearly Two Greece. $1,000 in Monte
M;ll;on. negro. and the rest, 80
| OOO. we must assume,
live Professionally in Italy and the
United States
| The Albanian is apparently Mussulman.
| but. illiterate. he is not strictly good
| hyycc limo f1~ H.;
religion. indeed. is contradictory and a
! singular mixture of Islamism and Chris
tianity: he reveres st. George and St
| Nicholas. but If the mollah or fiki does
not happen to know the words to cure his
sick child he does not hesitate to take
| 1t to the nearest priest or monk. He
| adopts Christian names and wears Mos
lem medals with the cross. Nearly all
very curious sect known as Bektachis,
very tolerant Mussulmans
Albania has produced. as we have re-
marked. great generals and statesmen,
but has never created q single saint,
either Mussulman or Christian.
From 1873 to 1880 Albania was united
| In order to defend herself against Eu-
rope. If necessary. The Montenegrins, il
Russo Turkish war. The treaty Of San
StephanO. in order to recompense the
| service. gave over to Montenegro a terri
tory occupied by Albanians. Mohammed
when the Montenegrins demanded that the
Turks comply with the expressed condi-
tons of the treaty of Berlin. The AL
| banans replied to the porte, when sum-
moned to vacate. that henceforth they
deemed themselves released from all obli-
cations to the Ottoman government, and
| that they would defend themselves in
their own lands with the sole object of
| obtaining independence. The situation
became more and more complicated.
Gladstone was for armed intervention;
Lord Fitzmaurice. in the conference at
Constantinope. demanded that Europe
should recognize a half autonomy for
Albania. In that embarrassing situation
the conference at Berlin decided that Mon
tenegro. in place of the territories which
the porte did not wish or could not give,
should receive the maritime district of
Dulcigno. Thereupon armed Albanians
proceeded to occupy Dulcigno. and thus
placed Europe once again in the presence
of the same alternative-either a rdicu-
lous capitulation in the face of Turkey
and Albania. or an armed intervention
with all the complications which might
| result.
England proposed the occupation of
the port Of Smyrna. The sultan took the
hint and yielded (Octo-
Europe Der 9. lsso, Turkey oc-
rL.hl cupied Dulcig and
handed II over to the
Montenegrins November 20, 1880. Thus
during two years these tenacious and au-
dacious Albanians held all Europe in
check. and finally imposed upon her an
important modification of the text of the
treaty selemnly adopted by the congress
Of Berlin.
During this crisis the Albanans dis
covered the value of unity. Albania is
divided in religion, part Mussulman, part
Nhrrc ftnrr hrrf h,xr
Indifferent to any faith. proclamation
addressed them hY the MallachiaaS ix,