Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-07-09
Albania Danger Point.

i
turned out are all more or less pennless.
The young Turks have exhausted the re-
sources Of the treasury in equipping the
army and endeavoring to provide them
selves with a navy. Formidable insurrec-
tons have broken out in Arabia, where
the Turkish troops have just sustained
severe reverse, and In Albania, which at
the present moment Is the danger point
of the situation.
The new sultan Is but a fgurehead.
None Of the Turkish MINISTERS has
shown himself to be a man of energy
and initiative. and according to the latest
intelligence just at hand from CONSTANT
nople "a new revolution may break out at
any moment
The dispute with Greece is still unset
tied. The old Macedonian question Is
as bad as 1t was before the young Turks
| took power, and circumstances which
| Just preceded the great war of 1877 seem
to be reproducing themselves with hor-
rible exactitude on the frontier OF Monte
negro.
Montenegro, or Black Mountain. the
heroic little state which for centuries
maintained alone its savage Independence
among it's mountains, is at the present
moment crowded with refugees from the
Albanian heights, which the TURKISH gen.
| eral, Torghut Pasha. is endeaVoring 10
pacify in the usual Turkish fashion, by
carrying fire and sword through valleys
inhabited by Albanian mountaineers.
How Other War Began.
The war in 1877 began by an bnsurrec-
ton in Herzegovina and Bosnia, which
the Turks endeavored to suppress In the
same way. The insurgents. whose homes
were burned by Turkish troops.~ took
refuge in Montenegro whence their
piteous entreaties rang out through the
civilized world.
At that time the influx Of refugees was
at the north OF Montenegro. but this time
It In at the south The refugees then
were orthodox. Now the Albanian refu-
gees are Catholics. But with these ex-
ceptions the situations are exactly the
same Thousands of men, women and
children refugees. fleeing for their lives,
have found refuge in the barren and
bleak mountains of Montenegro resources
of which are taxed to the utmost to
keep them from absolute starvation.
! Public appeals to this country and else
where for subscriptions have been made
| in order TO feed these refugees. whose
sufferings have SO far attracted no at
tention save in the courts of Vienna and
/ ST. Petersburg.
Ties which bind Montenegro to Russia
are very close, but Russia. unfortunately,
/ at the present has not yet recovered from
1 the catastrophe of the japanese war.
i
| been treated In the usual Turkish fashion
| by polite protestations and professions Of
| submission at Constantinople, while the
| work of deviltry is carried on without
check in Albania.
Sultan Makes Promises.
The new sultan for the first time has
made his progress through his European
dominsons and has been profuse in his
Il nf rf
their lot. He has even promised a few
thousand pounds in order to alleviate the
distress occasioned by his troops. Ac-
cording to stories which reached this
country these promises. like all other
| Turkish promises, were merely 80 much
dust thrown in the eyes OF the tnfidel.
| While the Albanians were being deluded
by the promise of better treatment the
operations Of Torghut Pasha have been
carried on with remorseless severity.
There is no longer a Gladstone to fill
the civilized world with his vehement
protest against the Bulgarian horrors,
but there is no room to doubt that ma
terials for as terrible an indictment lie
ready to hand in the regions which are
now the scene of Turkish operations.
Albanians Fighting Men.
The Abanians, however, are not like
the Bulgarians. They are men Of a
fighting tribe. There are thousands
of them still armed who refuse to lay
down their arms. and Justify their re-
fusal on the ground that those troops
who did consent to hand over their
guns were subjected to even more
ruthless treatment than those who still
occupy the field.
The situation is SO serious that the
: Austrian government has been COM
PEELED to issue q pretty plain warnin g
! to the Turks that they are going too
far. but while diplomatfsts are pro-
testing the Turkish troops are con-
tinuing their deadly work. and 1t has
!: now become evident that the concert
. ed action of the powers may have to
, be taken IL the rival forces in the neigh
) borhood of Montenegro are not to pre-
c,pitate European convulsion. We
. are back again. in short, with an ag-
gravation. at the situation which ex-
listed in Macedonia on the eve OF the
! Young Turks revolut on. The powers
will have TO intervene. and intervene