New Britain herald., 1918-10-11
DRIVING THE TURK
BACK TO HIS DEN
Allenby's Victories Reclaim Land
Enriched by Beauties Of Centuries

NJ -
Washington, D c., Oct. 1.-The :,
magnificent victories of the British |
forces under General AllenIby in the |!
Holy Land gives timely interest to a
war geography bulletin issued by
the National Geographic Society. The
bulletin which is based on a COM
munication to the Society from Will
liam H. Hall, says:
"FWhere Turkey joins Egypt is Pal
estine. Not a spot of earth in all the
world bears such memories for so
many and such a variety of peoples as
the rugged mountain slopes, narrow
valleys, and half desert wastes of
Judea and Galilee. Beersheba, He
bron, Bethlehem, Nazarath, Jerusalem
the mere mention Of these names
tells the story of Abraham and Moses
and David, of the phophets Of Israel
and of the Son of Man.
Kings and priests and people come
from the north and the south, from
the east and the west, and bring the
glory Of the nations to do homage to
the memories that cluster about these
sacred shrines.
I'm Syria was the one green spot
of Turkey-the Lebanon Mountains.
In 1860, because of massacreS, the Eu-
ropean Powers insisted that these
mountains be made autonomous. And
since that date this little district has
been living demonstration of what
good government will produce and of
what the people of the land are ca
pable of becoming.
Tho steep mountain sides have
been terraced to a height of 1000 feet
and planted to olives figs and vines
Taxes have been low. safety to person
and property secured good roads built
and kept in repair. The people have
constructed more comfortable homes
and have sent their sons to schools
and colleges.
The story of the achievements of
the Lebanon and its sons during these
sixty years of autonomy would be a
thrilling narrative in itself. Now that
autocracy has been taken away, the
Lebanon is PROSTATE. in famine.
Practically the whole Turkish En-
pre is of the same surface consisting
of high mountain ranges along the
sea- coast , with elevated plain and
plateau in the interior. These inner
planes are generally fertile, being con-
stantly renewed by soil washed from
the surrounding mountains. Where
rain is sufficient, or where water can
be obtained for irrigation, they pro-
duce fine crops Of grain.
'In ancient times the mountains
were everyW where covered with forests.
The cedars Of Lebanon not only fur
nished timber fof the building of Solo
mons Temple in Jerusalem, but the
kings of Egypt annually f1oated large
RATS of logs from the Syrian coast to
supply the demands of the cities of
| the Nile. This constant demand from
foreign lands together with the lack
of any system of re-forestation. has
practically denuded the mountains of
the whole land.
"Once more to cover the mountains
and hills with pine and cedar and
oak would be a simple task if it were
carried on systematically. The chief
enemy today of de-foreStation by ma
ture is the herds of goats, which every
spring roam over the whole country
and devour every green thing The
little Seeding trees suffer especially.
Inc pOpuldClOn OIL In0 ottoman
Empire, not including Arabia, is about
100000 or was before the war. In
giving statistics on any subject re-
garding Turkey one. speaks in approx
mate terms, for only estimates can be
given, as no thorough census is taken
or other statistics Systematically
gathered. Among the various races
this total is distributed as follows:
Turks, 100000; Syrians and Arabs,
100000! Kurds, 100000; Armeni-
ans, 2,O00,0 900; Greeks, 100000;
Jews, 500 900; other races 100000.
"All these peoples can trace their
history back to the period when fable
and legend blend with the beginnings
of historic facts. And ALL except the
Turks, have inhabited, from time i'm
memorial, the districts in which they
. are now found.
These races represent the three
great moDotheistic religions, which
have also originated within the bound
aries of the Turkish Empire. About
tWO-thirds of the entire population are
Mohammedan, but of different sects.
The Christians, also, are divided into
many sects representing nearly all the
great divisions of the church.
The Christian races are the most
progressive part of the population:
! they have been most responsive to
! education and have made come prog
ress in establishing schools of their
own The Turks are the most back
ward of all: yet under proper en-
couragement and facilities they are
capable Of good progress. In COM
petition with Greeks, Armenians and
Syrians, however, they invariably fall
behind.
1T should be noted that Of 4S
Grand Viziers who have risen in
| prominence within the past four GEN.
! IL I, Liza H.