The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1920-09-25
Easy Graft in Turkey
Foreign Business Men Enjoy
Period of Prosperity in Con-
stantinOple

Contsantinople, Sept. 22.-Foreign-
ers, or so-called foreigners, are en-
joying great commercial prosperity i'm
Turkish cities, especially i'm Constan-
tinople Turkish officials have ibeen
| easily corrupted. Business men who
were not too scrupulous in their
! methods have found Turkey a prof
| table Held. .. ..t.
In spite OF all the propaganda which
has been circulated about the appro-
priation of Christian property by
Mohammedans, the stubborn fact re-
| r'1ains that Greeks and Armenians
own, a disproportionate part of the
best business PROPERTY on the promi
nent streets in Constantinople and
many of them have been more sue
cessful at war profiteering than Turks.
The leading hotel of Constantinople
is owned by a Greek who made a
great fortune selling supplies to the
German army. He has invested his
money i'm hotels in various parts of
Europe. The Constantinople hotel
cost himl%$35,000 a year ago In
single year the hotel has paid for it.
self, He charges SIS day for small
single room without bath and the
cost of meals is in proportion. The
only other hotel run on European lines
is owned by an Armenian, and his
prices are equally high.
Turkish officials are not permit
ted TO regulate prices. The Germans
did 1t when they were in control of
Constantinople. But The entente high
commissions make little attempt to
check profteering because such ef-
forts only intensity the friction which
exists between the various missions.
Constantinople is really group of
religious principalities. which are
more political than religious. and
acknowledge the authority of no gov
ernment. The Greeks are under their
patriarch. the various religious faiths
of the Armenians have their patri-
archs, and the Jews have a grand rab-
,bi. All these races hate each iother
nearly as much, apparently, as they
do the Turks. Westerners are unable
to comprehend the hatred In which
the rival nationalities of the Lewant
have stewed for centuries. Entente
high commissioners pow have some
appreciation of the task Turkish Of
ficials had In trying to administer
such mixed populations.
Every nationality has to have it's
own churches, its own schools. or
phanages and hospitals. Even small
children OF different nationalities
cannot be put together without serious
friction. American relief workers
who have been trying to assist refu-
gees of all races. regardless of re-
ligion, find the task almost dmpossible.
Armenians complain If Turks are fed.
Greeks allege favoritism to Armenians
and the relief committees of the va
rious races and religious heads take
up the walls OF individuals and waste
the time of relief administrators in
considering petty quarrels. E..f
Broadly speaking, foreign relief
workers have little to say for the
adults of any race i'm Turkey, but pin
their faith to the children and urge
child welfare work and education as
the most hopeful fields in this land of
hate. Foreign relief workers who
came to Turkey expecting to find
gentle Christian minorities had q rude
awakening. The Greek and Armenian 8
bandits and outlaws are just as wild
as the Mohammedan bands. Relief
workers have learned that christian"
means a man who Is not Moslem. Tt
Is political term, and does not nee
ossarily imply that the man so desig-
mated practices the ten command
ments
-