Evening star., 1919-08-31
FUTURE WARS FEARED
IF u. S. TAKES TURKEY
lMr. Simonds Criticises. Trend In Paris and
Points Out Difficulties Likely if =. e
America Gets Empire.

- = ,...z
; the Turk. the largest single ethnis
group in Constantinople today is
Greek.
Greek Aspirations Conflict.
For nearly five centuries the Greeks
have looked forward to the restora-
tion of the Byzantine empire. Athens
the peninsula and the cities associ-
| ated with the glories of ciussicai
/ Greece remain for the foreigner. and.
particularly for Americans, the eX-
preston for the meaning Of Greece
so far s the map is concerned. But
| such a Greece would, in the naulre Of
i things. be condemned to the estate of
| small power. and IT is not asa
small power that the Greeks sec theirs
country for the future. In the days
| of its greatness, in the days of its
| relative decline, the Byzantine em-s
pire extended from the Balkans To
| the Taurus and the upper Euphrates.'
All the islands and mainland sur.
rounding the Aegean, the southwest
shores of the Black sea, Asia -Atsors
| itself. were part of this Greek.
| world, and this Byzantine empire was
| greater in area than modern France
or Germany. and, despite the multi.
plicity of races which dwelt in the
! various sections. the Greek language.
the Greek spirit. the Greek race. dom
| mated. -.
In the hundred years that. have.
passed since the first fragment of
Greece escaped from Turkish rule
enormous steps have been taken to-.
| ward the realization of the Greek
| hope of restoring the Byzantine EN-
pfre- In Europe Greek frontiers. have,
| been pushed northward to the limits
attained in ancient time. II the pres-s
ent treaty of Paris shall do anything
like justice northern Epirus viii be ,
added to the Hellenic kingdomo while
Salonika and all the lands between
the Rhodopians and the Aegeah Have
been regained save only for thatrero-a
| tesque corridor which American
policy seems now to be determfnad to-
interpose between the Greeks ,about
Adrianople and those in western
Thrace. ~ ~ >
Even more significant and importantr
is the recent acquisition of Greece by
Smyrna and all of the north weex ,
coast of Asia Minor and the Aegesr.
A considerable portion of the MAIN
land of Asia Minor thus passea back 5
into the Greek Morld Smyrna in
Asia. Adrianople in Europe. become
Hellenic. 80,
Observation-Disclosures Possible.
If America should refuse the man
1 date of ConstantinopIe it would still r
be possible to erect an international
state along the straits and the golden
horn, but there is not a statesmen in ?
Europe who would look upon such a Z
state as anything but field for In
trigue, meeting place of the rival .
ries OF the several great European /.
powers. a nursery for one more OF
those wars which, like the -feceh.
world conflict. have had their oEca. >
sion in the eastern question.
The spectacle of French and 1tatian
soldiers fighting in Fiume. the record =
Of almost innumerable coalitions be- :
tween various allied elements IN the
present war. the story of the Saleaika !
army and adventure. all these COM
bine to indicate how feeble and fu-
tile an experiment would be an ief-
fort to internationalize Constaatino-
pie.
In all human probability either I'M !
mediately or eventually. the failure of :
the United States to accept the man.
oatory of Constantinople would be
followed by the transfer of they, city :
and its adjoining territory to Greece.
The step would be logical and natural.
At least half the population in tire res /
gion affected is Hellenic. In all but
political control the populations have
been Greek since classical times 2
Moreover. possession by Greece would
carry no threat to Great Britain or
to France. while even Russia might ,
acquiesce ultimately. AS for Italy, .
her dream of creating a colonial en-
pire at the expense of the Creeks ana :
the Turks in defiance of the riGhtS-of
the peoples would collapse once
istrong Greece arose about the Aegean Z
Actually then the United States4 aa-s
represented in Paris. in deliberately
seeking for itself the mandatory for'ss
iConstantinople, is interposing a bar :
rier between a legitimate objective
and millions Of people. for while it is
still uncertain whether Congress-I&ill,-
permit the United States to undertake
10
Jour representatives in Paris are at,S
| work SO cha nging the boundaries in
Thrace as to erect obsta cles in the
Dathway Of the Greeks. on the wholly
l.lusionary pretext that the Bulga-
rians will precipitate a new Balkan
war if they are not permitted to hold :
a strip of Aegean seacoast. thus cut
ting Greek territories in half. Hold
/ ing to this argument. America n rep -
iresentatlveS have for time halted !.
the whole progress of negotiations
But the slightest reference to hfstoryc
shows that for 1.407 years the Bui-.s
garians have consistently and with
out interruption been provoking Bal-I
kan wars without regard to whether,
they did or did not hold sea frontage
on the Aegean. There never wasas
history Of people which runs with a
more steady stream of aggressione.s
lassaults upon their neighbors. unpro--
garians from the moment when the
advance guard of the tribe crossed
the Danube. -, .
Possession of Constantinople. .by thes
IGreeks would mean that Greece would
take her place Immediately among the >
more considerable of the second ,olass.-
powers OF the world. She would have
at once population of ten miliions.c &
while Greek influence might be ex-
ipected once more to repeat the hfs-
tory or remoter ages and penetratas
the construction Of strong Rumarfa ~
a unified southern Slavdom. togetaer..
| with the transfer of the straits to
| Greece. would be a long forward ste
| toward eliminating the eastern ques-h
ton from among the problems out of
which European and world cofifIictss
might arise.
1 q. s. overestimates Bulgars.
BY contrast the American assump.f
tion at Paris that the Bulgars- couiar
be placated does violence to adj the q
history OF this people. For 1900 years.
their ambition has been to dominate
the Balkans. Possession of Adrianople
and OF the Thracian coast of the Aesf
| gean as Tar as the Struma river as
sured them by the victories of 1912
did not prevent them from attacking
their allies treacherousiy in 1913 in
the hope of obtaining Salonikf anHn
Monastir. Still possessing the strip ON T
the Aegean. now proclaimed by.
American representatives in Parts asc
essential to persuade Bulgaria to ske eusl
the peace. did not prevent her from
attacking Serbiarin 1913 as fhA ~ ye pfa