Omaha daily bee., 1920-01-24
Disposing of the Sultan
From the New York Times.

London and Paris are talking OF the I'M
nlinent decision of the fate OF Constantinople
sents long argument, which quite possibly rep.
resents the views of an influential group OF
professional diplomats, for the retention of the
sultan on the Golden Horn-the sultan with all
his trappings and authority, political and spirit
ual but under control by some outside power,
The London Daily Chronicle, on the other hand,
seems confident that "the sultan as caliph or SUI
preme head of the Mohammedan faith, will be
left in Constantinople, while his government is
transferred to the other side of the strait and
all his temporal influence with it. Every care
will be taken not to lessen the dignity OF the
sultan or to detract from his religious au-
thority."
Here is sef-evident absurdity. This ten
derness for the sultan is ostensibly, and TO- a
large degree actually, due to fear of what the
Moslem French subjects in Africa and Moslem
British subjects in India and elsewhere may
think. If an Ottoman government is set up IN
Brusa, nominay headed by an absentee sultan
who lives in Constantinople under the political
jurisdiction of some other power or group OF
powers, the sultan's dignity in the eyes OF
Orentals will be materially lessened. and the
diminution cannot be covered up by showers OF
scented phrases. SO far as this purpose is con-
cerned it would be better attained if the sultan,
in his bodily person and his spiritual capacity,
should retire into Asia with his government.
The proposed solution would solve nothing,
but would bring some new troubles with it. If
the sultan and his holy men stayed in Con-
Stantnope while his government went to Brusa
or Konieh, there would at once be set up a
double current of intrigue. one set of forces
trying to send the sultan and the holy men into
Asia, the other to bring the government back
to Constantinople.
The Temps, representing a point of view
always in possession of all the detailed facts of
political situation, however much they may be
blind to some OF the movements behind the
scenes. quite accurately calls this "a fanciful So
luton" adding that "the sultan possesses his
religious power only because of his political
power" This is entirely true, and should miti-
gate some of the expected Moslem protests. A
great part of the sutans territory has been torn
away by the revolt of the Arabs, the original
Moslems, whose respect for race which seized
the caliphate by force has not been notably evil
dent of late The final overthrow of the sui
tan's armies was brought about largely by Mo-
hammedan troops from India; in the Russian
armies which defeated the Turks in Armenia
there were many Mohammedans who did their
best to help the Christian czar take away terri
tory from the Mosem calph 1t is hard to
loss of Turkish territory wanted by England. or
France. or Russia. and raise their protest only
when it is a question of a city in which each
power is afraid some other power may get the
upper hand.
The Temps frankly wants the sultan left in
Constantlnople political authority and all. But
it offers some curious reasons. Frances "trad-
tional friendship toward Islam," which does not
necessarily imply friendship toward the Turk, is
one: the fact that "the official language of the
Turkish government is French" is another. The
substitution of French for Italian as the dplo-
matte idiom of Constantnope corresponded
with similar change in political influence, so
the argument is not so purely belletristic as it
seems; nevertheless, one may have the highest
admiration for the French language without
admitting that its supremacy in Constantinople
is worth continuation of political corruption
and oppression of progressive and Christian
races which the retention of the sultan's power
would make certain.
If the sultan is moved away from Con-
stantinople. says the Temps it will mean the
loss of "the only military forces to be found on
the spot for defending the strait should need
aFise." The dead who lie at Gallipoli could give
the answer to that; but the Temps hopefully re-
minds US that Germany knew how to control
the Turks so as to remain mistress of the OAR
danelles, the inference being that France could
do as well. Certainly the French would not
acquiesce in periodic massacres of Christian
populations as the price of their influence. The
strait, the Temps asserts must be defended
against coup de main Of the Bulgarians or the
offensive action of the Turks themselves" so
leave the Turks there or else they may come
back and recapture the city by force.
But in the next paragraph comes out the
real argument. The allies would protect the
strait, if the sultan were thrown out, but would
protect it by sea; and "all the allies are not
equally strong on the sea" In other words the
French foreign office thinks that with the sui
tan put out an internationalizcd Constantinople
would be controlled bv Great Britain There
fore keep the sultan in, no matter how much
corruption and crime, how great political diff
fculties for France herself in the future, his
retention might mean
- The Turk has been in the strait for four and
half centuries; and in all that time the coun-
wa. when he arrived. The Turk ha. always
and everywhere stopped the clock Of progress;
and he has dom it by the repression Of progress
sive nations which would have gone forward if
left to themselves. There could be no greater
crime against civilization than to leave the sui
tan on the Golden Horn. 49,