The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1917-03-29
BY A slMoNps,
pnYriaht-f9f7. Tribuna Asa.

i New xOEk, MAxCA xSs-xn0 tA0A -
Ragdad il a Of the most interesting
Incidents In the whole war. Ono may
exaggerate the important military e4-
feet and the ultimate political conse-
Quence, u not h possible results Tor
it may be h first. step in 9 new orient
OF Islam, the return OF Arabian su-
premacy and the relegation OF the Os-
manli Turk to a place outside h walls
Of the Mohammedan world. By taking
Bagdad, the British have amply and
with reasonable promprttude retrieved
the prestige lost in the whole near east
by the surrender at Kut-El-Amara a
year ago. This surrender, coupled with
the failure at Gallipoli, seriously, IL
only momentartly, endangered British
prestige from Egypt to Siam. It was
the i OF failure that could not be
permitted to stand and its effect east
Of Suez could only be compared to that
OF the Rumanfan collapse in Europe.
Russ Wait On British.
A year ago when he Russians had
taken Erzerum n were pressing west
through Armenia and southwest
through Persia, there was a moment
when it seemed possible that the three
fold allied thrust of the allies might
fuse into a single drive across the upper
waters Of the Euphrates, and the Tigris
and that the Turk would be pushed out
Of Mesopotamia and threatened, IL not
attacked in Syria. The British failure
ended this possibility.
After taking Erzingan and Trebizond,
Russian operations came to q dead halt
n presently the Turks began to adj
vance in Persia Now the Russians are
again reported to be moving west out
of HaInadan in Persia, n the. posi-
ton of the Turks facing them will be-
come exceedingly difficult as British
pursuit from Bagdad reaches their
communications.
May Take Jerusalem.
So much for the immediate military
effect Granted that the British army
Is capable of further effort, after it's
recent exhausting campaign, it seems
probable that the Turks will be driven
as far Is Mosul. along a section of the
Bagdad railroad which has been COM
pleted. At Mosul, the British will be
able to join hands with the Russians,
advancing from Lake an. A resump-i
ton of the Russian advance from
Erzerum westward upon Diabekr and
Kharput is also conceivable. Such a
campaign would inevitably compel a
Turkish retirement out of most OF
Syria, n this retirement may be ap-
preciable FASTENED by the pressure now
being exerted by a British army COM
ing out of Egypt and already reported
at the gates of Jerusalem.
But underlying the military Is the
political meaning OF the new turn in the
war. II you draw a line from the Gulf
VI 1A1SAbIIuICISd Oh the M eOlCGrTanean.
straight east to the Tigris river, you
will, roughly speaking, indicate the
northern frontier of the Arab. Mo-
hammedans like the Turks, the Arabs
have reconciled themselves to the
supremacy of the Osmanli; the tradi-
ions OF the great lays of the prophet
and his successors who carried the
green banner from Bagdad to the Loire
have survived and the decline Of Islam
In the world remains for the Arab a
consequence of Turkish supremacy. For
many years there has been a growing
restlessness among the Arabs. Syria,
which is Arab by population, was on
the verge of 2 revolt when the Young
Turks overthrow Abdul Hamid, and it
was long the Syrian dream to create
an autonomous Syria. Away to the
south. about Mecca, there have beer in
Arab revolts and now the
last OF these has driven the Turk out
OF the molly city and thus deprived him
OF the possession of the center of Islam,
which was one of his chief claims to
power.
The failure Of the Turkish expedition
AGAINST Egypt the fall Of Bagdad, the
INVASION of Palestine, are the circum-
Stances which mus combine to shake
turkish power. Add to this the great
MISERY a suffering the var has
nrougnt to Syria and to Mesopotamia,
:. unpopularity of the German,
and 1T is plain that there is in sight
sufficient basis for a revolt Of the
Whole Arab population, from the Anna,
nus mountains to the Yemen, and from
the Mediterranean to the Tigris. Nc
one will forecast the immediate ont.
preak OF such a storm, but it's comine
must now be regarded as one Of the
nnoSe propabl consequences Of the fall
of Bagdad.
The alliance between the Turks and
Germans was designed by the Germans
TO serve a. the first step in the as.
Seruon OF German supremacy in Islam
Long before the var the kaiser hat
gon 70 The near east n had sough'
70 pu1ld up a legend of Germanisl
power ana his greatness in the Who'll,
Turkish world. 1t was generally &C,
cepted IN Islam that the kaiser was
Mohammedan. This alliance was tt
permit the Germans, ono the Bagdat
raliroad was completed, to go soutl
ana cas-; south to Egypt and east t
the arrival Of the Bagdad railroad a
Suez and at the Persian gulf, this rail
Toad 70 be linked Up ultimately witt
the railroads in Egypt and in India.
When Turkey entered the WAY,
war was proclaimed against tn
infldel. and the Germans planned t
harness the fanticism of the Moha1n
n'edan to h world plans OF the leu
ton and conquer British and Russia.
territory by Turkish armies, traine,
oAa CHUiPPS0 ny NSkIldIlS. ISO
did the German scheme pause a
Egypt: it dreamed a further extensio
along the African shores Of the Medi
terranean and contemplated repeatin
the triumph OF the Arab successors 9
the prophet who carried Islam from tn
Arabian desert to the shores Of tn
Atlantic facing Gibraltar.
Allies Plan Counter Stroke.
To expel the Turk from Islam, b
separating hin from Mecca, to restor
the Arab to the place he once occupied
TO confine the Turk to Asia Minor, b
erecting a French protectorate j
Syria, q Russian province in Armeni
n q British colony in Mesopotami;
with an extension of Egyptian terri
tory to Palestine or the creation of a
independent holy land. these ave bee
the conceptions OF the allies. This ha
been their answer to the German sue
cess In capturing the Turk and Thu
the machinery of Islam.
II AW~ L. 81 A