Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1920-01-02
A Greek Korytza
From the Christian Science Monitor.

The memorandum which has just been ad
dressed to the peace conference in Paris by ING
Pan-Epirotic union in America, setting tortf
the Greek character of korytza in northern
Epirus, is deserving, especially at the Presetn'
moment of very careful attention. Whist the
immediate purpose of the memorandum IS to
reply to certain allegations made by the Pan,
Albanian federation in America, the general
effect of the very carefully compiled and very
scrupulousy attested information it contains
must be to strengthen the claims of Greece to
this undeniably Greek territory, in the opinion
of all who will give any thought to the subject
The Greek claim to Korytza is, of course, ex-
traordnarly simple and direct. For although
the population of the sanjak is almost equally
divided between the Orthodox Greek and the
Mohammedan Albanian, there is quite de-
cided majority of Orthodox Greeks; whilst in
matter of culture, there is no comparison be.
tween the two races. The town Of Korytza
itself is an ancient seat of Greek culture, and TO-
day practically all the educational work carried
on in the sanjak is the result of Greek effort. Of
the u schools in korytza, II are Greek and
only one Albanian, this one depending for. its
support upon the efforts of American mission
aries.
Now, as the memorandum very justly points
out, wherever Christians and Mohammedans are
intermixed in almost equal numbers and the
peace conference has been called upon to decide
which should have the right of governing the
other it has always shown itself in favor of
placing the Moslems under the government OF
Christians, rather than placing the Christians
under Moslem rule. This being so, it would
seem as if there ought to be no hesitancy on
the part of the powers in assigning Korytza to
Greece. And indeed, there is no hesitancy on
the part Of any of them, save of the United
States. But the United States delegates to the
conference, influenced quite frankly, by the
American missionaries in Albania have hitherto
been in favor of assigning the san ak to Albania
hos y1rbir
anyone acquainted with the history of the coun-
try is quite untenable The northern Epirote,
insists the advocate of an Albanian Korytza, is
not Greek but an Albanian. He speaks an
Albanian patois in his home, and the fact that
he declares himself Greek is due entirely to
Greek propaganda and Greek pressure.
To those who have travelled through north
ern Epirus, especially Korytza, such contentious
are, of course little short OF absurd. Nowhere,
perhaps, in all the far-fung Hellenic lands is a
more simple and whoe-hearted devotion to
Greece to be found than in northern Epirus.
The first thing, indeed, that the Epirote thinks
about or has thought about for years, when he
has made fortune" either at home or abroad,
is to do something for the glory of Greece.
Athens and other Greek cities have many build
ings which testify to the patriotism of the Greek
Epirote. The memorandum sets forth much
Illuminating evidence on these points, showing
the overwhelming Hellenic sentiment of Epirus.
And none of this evidence is, perhaps, more
forcible than the simple statement of Mr.. c. S.
Butler, a correspondent of the Manchester
Guardian, the we'll known liberal paper in Eng
land, who was in Korytza at the time of the
Greek occupation, in the early days of the war.
After describing the palpable joy with which
hundreds of women and children paraded be-
fore the Greek crown prince, cheering and
waving little Greek flags" Mr.. Butler notes the
fact that foremost amongst them was his
hostess, who habitua1ly speaks Albanian in her
own home" 81 find it hard to believe" he adds,
that these 1000 women, all of whom were re-
spectacle midde-class matrons, were secretly
pning for the delights of Albanian rule, and
were driven to this demonstration at the point
of the Greek bayonet. Indeed, | can testify
that it almost required bayonet to persuade
them to dispense after the celebration"