New-York tribune., 1919-01-13
Greece and kon7e
Again

TUNhE cams OF Greece to Northern
Eplrus, Asia Minor and the Islands
OF me <Ege4n, as opposed to those
: OF italy IA the same reglons, were pre-
sented recently in an address in Phadel-
pnla by Dr. John y. AletaXa, former Gov
ernor OF Saionlca and friend of Premier
venizelos. lnese lands, Dr.. Metaxa said,
nave been aMotted to lta.y by secret
Greatly of the powers. but ne presents as
1oIIows the rights Of Greece:
in the eight political divisions of North
ern Eprus, winch the most important
are Corytsa,. Argyrocastro and DelvinO,
there are to-day 100000 Greeks and 227
Greek scn0os. Notwithstanding this, Eu-
rope, by the so-called decision of Florence.
no.ltied Greece as late as III 1914 to abAnaon
ali these children of hers, because the
4tal4an government wished that ali these
thriving Greek Communities should be IN
cOrpol4ted iAto al 4Dort.ve state, devoid of
culture and amos w4ohout language
y Dan.a! Needless 90 s4y, ~ under
slovo th-- lal4 Stale oil 81 oa3la should
eN.st d. ll.--ctolate oI ita.y. But
.-noA, aAa .ne lta-laAs themselves ~dmit,
mat tAel4 .le no ltal4ans 10 be louAd
~ AortAoln Epaus, or, fol t"at matter, in
me wnole OF 4-ly~nla.
This is Of no Importance, we are told
Europe has so ciaea!
"At cIitica moment an event of i'm
mense importance occurred: the great Re-
public Of ibe United States entered the
world wax and declared, through It's resi-
dent, that il tie great struggle for hu-
man Liberties purity of purpose should be
paramount and that no egotstical princi-
pies should claim PRECEDENCE
"On the strength Of this declaration the
Northern EDrotes from Himara to Corytsa,
from Tepeieni to Delvino await with con-
fidence the decision Of the peace confer
ence. Their fate, am Convinced, is in
good hands
"But Northern Epirus is only a part, and
very small part OF those territories in
which Greeks have lived fer four centuries
at the mercy Of brutal oppressors, bereft
OF the mosc cherished of all possessions
their freedom-and condemned to an ex-
istence of humiliation and slavery. IN
Thlace, along the littoral alone. including
Demotka Soulii ana Agathoupolis (ately
reported to have been burned 10 the ground
oy the Bulgariansl, there are S4 00e Greeks,
as against q 900 Bulgars. Around the Sea
Of Marmora, into which the Allied fleet
made its triumphai entry after the uncon-
ditional surrender Of the Turks there are,
pn the northern littoral, 177,00O Greeks, as
against $4,000 Turks. and 175,oOO Greeks, rs
against 10000 Turks, on the southern.
The Dodecanesus, the twelve islands OF
the Agean, are inhabited almost entirely
by Greeks. yet, notwithstanding this fact
and the principles enunciated by President
Wilson, these islands are still under the
military occupation of Italy, ostons bly, in
consequence of a clause Of the Itao- Turkish
treaty of Lausanne clause which, how
ever | must add, mas since been fully
executed
"In Asia Minor, imagine line drawn
southwark from the city of Panormos. on
the Propontis, to the city of Malsri, oppo-
site the island Of Rhodes. West OF this
line down to the sea the character Of the
country is entirely Greek. as Greek as the
provinces of the free kingdom OF Greece
Language. culture, civilization, customs.
habits--cverythng is Greek
"But if Epirus, Thrace and Western Asia
Minor are Greek. Constantinope is the
glowing centre of Hellenism There are
$4,000 Greeks in the viayet of CONSTANT
nople, and the soul of the city is Greek.
"liow could it be otherwise. gentlemen
Byzantium, or Constantinople as it was
subsequently named, was Greek even long
before the Christian era
Now, ask will the day of liberation.
patiently awaited from generation to gen
Grafton throughout the centuries, at las.
dawn for these three million wronged hu-
man beings Or Will secret treaties be
allowed to sully the purity of purpose pro-
claimed by President Wilson and to stuitify
the efforts of the men who but recently
fought and saved dcmocracy.'