The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-10-15

the other COntend1ng states WIS OHCo
subject to Turkey, became wholly IN
dependent in 1908. Out OF four mil
lion population, three and a half mil
lion are Christian, and only half a
million are Moslem, although the Dor
ders Of Bulgaria and Turkey march
for a long distance. The
Greek church is the state religion.
Prince Ferdinand himself is a Roman
Catholic, but his heirs and successors
must be members Of the Greek
church, which is governed by a synod
Of bishops and an exarch. Moslems
are exempted from the army in Bull
garia.
A somewhat analogous condition
exists in Greece, which has a two ana
a half million population, almost
wholly Christian. King George is a
member Of the Lutheran church, but
his successor must be long to the
Greek Orthodox faith.
Montenegro has been free from
Turkish rule longer thar either
Greece or Bulgaria, and Of its quar-
ter million inhabitants more than two
hundred thousand are Orthodox
Greeks, while ten thousand are Ko-
man Catholics m fourteen thousand
Moslems.
Servia, which separated from Tur-
Key III I1dS wv IL q a I'LL
lion inhabitants, practically all Of
whom are OF the Greek Orthodox
church governed by a synod Of bish-
ops.
Turkey, on the other hand. makes
the koran her supreme law and holds
together her much divided empire only
because the Sultan is also caliph Of
the faithful. Nominal religious free
dom is granted to the nine great nom
Islamic creeds that la their home
in the Turkish Empire.
When Moslem Rules Christian.
Dreams are powerful, and this
dream of q restored Christian en-
pire is reinforced by a steady flow Of
irritating reports Of oppression Of
Christians by the Moslems. The
Greeks in particular have scattered
all ove the Levant They are the
merchants, the shop-keepers, the sail
ors, the enterprising business men, Of
the Levant. Their outreaching brings
them into frequent contact with Mos
lem OfficialdOm and with Mosiem
neighbors.
Thus the Moslem often gets into his
power the individual Christian: he
dlscriminates against him in business,
and if he can't match him. he can
massacre him. The sword Of the
Prophet is the favorite argument Of
Islam. This explains the condition
Of anarchy which obtains IN Mace
donia and Albania, where the popu-
lation is predominantly Christian, but
ruled by Moslems. The government
has disarmed all the Christians, but
it has left the Moslems armed. The
stories that come out Of European
Turkey almost every day are scarcely
~believable in this age, SO bloody and
brutal and ruthless are the deeds they
record. The monotony Of it all a
kept this constant succession Of out
RACES from becoming news and reach
ing Europe and America. But the
Greek clergy have made sure that
their co-religionists learn the melting
news. This is the real explanation OF
why, taking advantage Of Turkeys
hour Of internal distress and foreign
war. the Macedonians have lifted
anew the cry that Paul heard in a
dream, and the Balkan Christian
powers have lifted their voice for war.
What the Outcome VIII Be.
Let no one think this wholly q pious
performance There is politics in it,
of course; politics and religion are In
s%eparable in the Near East. Whether
territory or not remains to be seen.
SAC "AAA An CoA
tention that the reforms In Macedo-
MIA shall be guaranteed by the Great
Powers, ever as was done in the Leb-
anon after Moslem outrages. The
Christians in the East point to the
Lebanon district in Syria, a region
made widely familiar because Of. the
common pilgrimages to this scene OF
Bible history. and they say that ever
as Lebanon has won to safety an6
prosperity under a Christian governor
supported by the Powers, so Mace
donia will come to her own only when
the hand of Turkey is lifted from her
Certainly the instance Of Lebanon i:
a good Illustration. Within the Dor
ders Of Lebanon the houses are large
the farms are fertile, the roads are
reasonably good, and prosperity and
peace are everywhere apparent. Di
rectly outside the Lebanon the pow
erty and squalor which characterize
Turkey generally may be found.
Pan Slayism a Factor.
THo ~olS-1one - q hN polI-o,