The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-04-03
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORMATION BUREAU
FREDERIC J. HASKiN Director.
Washington, D. c.
PRUSSIA AND TURKEY.

RtOSSlA AND
The German Government and Certain
Elements in Turkey Attempt to
Build Up Post-Bellum Alliance.
Washington, d. c. April 1.-The
official paper in Berlin which deals
with Turkish matters. Leading articles
are contributed by Ottoman writer's.
! This news has just reached mere in a
roundabout way. via Constantinople
and London.
With it ceme other details showing
that the Germans and a certain ele-
ment among the Turks are making
strong attempt to build up an alliance
between Prussia and Turkey which
shall endure after the war, and give
Germany an economic and cultural as
we'll as a military hold on the road to
the near east. 1t is evident from the
same reports that these proponents OF
Prusso -Turanian entente cordiale
are not having the smoothest sailing.
Several things block the way of the
sort of an alliance the PrusSian mill
| tary class would like to see esta bllshed.
There is a great deal of popular dis
| like among the common people and
| soldiery of Turkey for the Prussian
| officer, who antagoniZed pubic senti-
ment by his domineering Swagger in
| the early days of the war. The soft
pedal has been put on such conduct
| by orders from above, but the effect
| remains.
| The second obstacle to the domina-
| ton of Turkey by Prussia is one that
will come a surprise to those who
| have regarded Turkey as the Sick
| Man of Europe" 1t is a movement
I KNOWN as 'pan-Turanianism" or the
| "pan-Turanian movement" This
| political current started about six
| years ago, and took on added strength
| and vigor with the war. Pan-Turan-
| ianism is analogous to pan-German-
| ism; it is an imperialistic movement,
| aimed at a spread of Turkish DONNA
| ton porthward and eastward. AS
| such, it is repugnant to all the ideals
! for which the allies are fighting. On
the other hand. it is not entirely OBJ
| noxious to allied diplomacy, because it
| shows an independent spirit toward
| Prussia. 1t is a movement for
turkey ueber allies" including the
| kaiser.
! A third obstacle in the way of Prus
sian domination of Turkey is the lack
of sympathy between the German and
Sthe Turkish peoples. The religious
question enters here, and also lack
of a common viewpoint The gap be-
] tween the peoples is recognized by
| those who seek to bring them togetn
er. AS usual, Germany is making use
of the press, both German and Turk
ish, in an attempt to bridge the gap.
number of prominent Turkish
/
| Berlin, where they were feted and
banqueted with a lavish disregard of
| food shortages The addresses made
to these publicists show a realization
of the barriers to a popular alliance
A leading Turkish paper, reporting
the session, remarks. 1T is true that
we Turks and Germans) were not
| strangers to each other, but the friend
ship lacked cordially, such as exists,
for instance, between Austria Hun
of the Turkish-German alliance there
fore recognized at once that their duty
| was to make the two people better
acquainted Turks regard the friend
| certain amount of suspicion, not I'M
natural in view of the German policy
in Russia and Belgium.
There is even a tendency among the
Turkish people to regard the Prus-
slams as not absolutely unselfish,
strange that may seem to a world
which has watched Teutonic altruism
in full blast for three and a half
| thus admonished by another leading
Turkish journal: 1T is true" says this
| paper, that we have admired the mill
| itary, technical, and scientific achieve
ments of the Germans, but we should
have realized that the Germans are
not only following their own interests,
but that they are honest and sincere
people How can anyone doubt that
the Germans are honest and sincere,
after their conduct at Brest-Litovsk ?
The main lines of the campaign to
cement an alliance between Ottoman
and Prussian are clear. Germany
will use her old weapons of falsehood
and d dominated press. Her junker
officers in Turkey will be ordered to
sing small for time and refrain from
pushing Turks off the sidewalk.
/ In the Pan-Turanian movement,
Germany has difficult problem to
Ideal with, if she expects to dominate
Turkey. She has been playing with
fire. 50 to speak, by supporting it up
to certain point, for it is directed
largely against Russia and England.
| Prussian policy must be to let this
movement get strong, but not too
strong. IF IT increases past a certain
point, it will become a rival to Prus-
sia's contemplated domination of
Ottoman lands.
| Pan-Tura nianiSm is partly religious
} and racial. Its ultimate ambition is to
i unite III a single Mohammedan state
, tie Russian provinces of the Caucasus
and TranS-CaucaSia,F as well as parts
of Russian. Central Asia and ST.
: IBERIA: the Turkish-speaki king part of
Afgha nistan and Persia. Kazan, and
. every other land inhabited by peoples
of Tu-anian origin.
two congresses of Russian Moham-
$ medans have already been held. The
{ last took place recently in the city
of kazan. A German correspondent
VINO attended summed up the ambi-
tons of the delegates by saying that
Islamic Russia wanted to follow a
rogram similar to that of the
Ukraine. Every attempt was made
to stir up religious hatred in the
breasts of the Mohammedans Tales
4 of horrors and bruaiities alleged to
= have been practiced upon Russian
Mohammedans by Russian Christians
aSSlduOuSlV
e charged. in sum, that the Russia ms
4 had stolen land from the Khirghiz
Y with the sanction of the Revolution
airy government, that Khirghiz had
been massacred in Saisan, that 10000
unarmed Khirghiz of both sexes, and