New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-31
To the Editor Of The Tribune.

To the Editor Of The Tribune.
Sir: Much has been said in your valuable
columns about the relations of the non-bel-
ligerent Balkan states to the present world
war. Will you kindly allow me, as steady
reader of your much esteemed paper, 70
make the following comments:
When the four Balkan nations went to
war against Turkey in 1912 it might have
seemed. as did seem to many, that the
alliance was first step toward the Balkan
confederation" but the well known diff
culties between Bulgaria on the one hand
and Greece and Serbia on the other upset
the plans. and the second Balkan war became
unavoidable. Leaving the past aside, 1t Is
obviously proved by all the correspondents
and writer's in the Balkans with the eXcep-
ton of Mr. Baoutcher, London Times"
correspondent at Sofia, and Professor Monroe,
who in his book Bulgaria and Her People"
does not mention even word in favor OF
Greece that it was the attack planned and
authorized by General Saboff on the night Of
June IS, 1918, that made the reign of terror
and crime in Macedonia inevitable, and which
ended in the discontinue of Gar Ferdinands
troops.
will call the attention of your readers
10 the situation as it exists 1t is pity
that Americans know so little about the
Balkan peninsula Bulgaria lacks the his
tory that Greece has, and her people have
organized a press campaign in Europe and
America in order to call to the attention Of
the public that Macedonia is exclusively in
habited by Bulgars. Greece has done but
little, for she let the intelligent people judge
about her rights in the country of Philip
and Alexander the Great. Memorandums,
documents, etc, have been planned by the
Bulgar komitatjis (irregulars) exarch-
lists (schismatic priests, sending to various
European capitals to prove that the
Macedonian cities are Bulgarian, but the
Greek institutions and various commercial
establishments spoke, and still speak, louder
than Bulgarian argument and prattle.
The press and public opinion to-day are the
most important factors in all nations; that is
the reason why the Bulgsrians are moving
heaven and earth through statements and
newspapers 10 poison public opinion and
public sentiment against the rising Greek
nation. They clamor for Kavala and its
environs, but what do they base their claims
on? They have absolutely no legitimate
rights to that district, for historic
graphically, ethnologieally and eeographi-
cally it belongs to Greece, but the Bull
garians held twice as much as they now
claim and it did not satisfy them, because
they became greedy for Sslonica and the
purely Greek town of Monastir. They did
dig the grave for their neighbors and fell in.
The world cannot forget the thirsty de-
sires of the Bulgarian Gar, who in De-
cember, 1912, was prepared with Byzantine
garbs and crowns TO sit in Constantinople
as Emperor Symeon of all the Balkans! But
the battle of Kilkish and Breneanlitcha, that
was won by the Greeks and the Serbs in
the last Balkan war, upset his ambitious
plans and he was obliged to stay in his
palace at Sofia hike defeated cock in a
poultry house.
II is a well known fact that Russia, with
the assistance Of Rumana freed the Bulgars
in 1878 without their taking arms against
their oppressor, and we have witnessed up
TO this day their ungratefulness toward their
benefactors. Serbians offered them remark
able assistance on the battlefelds of Thrace
and they did not appreciate it. Greek war
ships, however, enabled them to have an
outlet in the Egean Sea, end they bombarded
them off the town Of Kavala a few weeks
before the second Balkan war, while negotia-
tons were on the way for settlement
One may say that the Greeks also owe
their redemption to the great powers, and
answer that history speaks very loud for
| the Greek struggle Of independence which