The Washington herald., 1921-07-10

broil the victors as they take OF
dispute.
might change her vote in all allied
conferences from the British to the
French side, thus shifting the con-
troll in the supreme council.
Since Greece has preserved In her
campaign, despite the fact that Mar
shall Foch has foretoid defeat, for
exactly the same reasons the Polish
offensive against Kiev failed two
years ago. the British have now TO
face the not less disturbing possi-
bilities o. Greek defeat. This means
that the Turks will come back to
the Scutari shore Of the Dardanelles
at least. 1t means that British con-
troll in Constantinople can only be
made secure by the use of consider
able numbers of troops, since the
Osmanli are bound to seek to re-
gain their capital and free their
sultan, whom they insist is now a
prisoner of the allied nations.
All For KemaI.
In this conflict the sultan, nom-
inally opposes to nationalistic ele-
ments, led by Kemal Pasha, who
has made his capital at Angors. But
everyone in Constantinople knows
that all Turkish sympathies are
with Kemal and a sweeping Turkish
victory would have instant echoes
in that city. There is. too. the Bot
shevist detail, for the Turks and the
Bolshevists have Joined hands and
i o.
Russian ammunition and artillery,
the booty of the Wrangel victory.
are being transported to the Turk
ish armies through all the Black Sea
ports.
A Greco-Turkish war. too, will
have repercussions all over the Mo-
hammedan world. II will mean in
slant and acute trouble for the
French in Syria, 1t will mean only
less immediate difficulty for the
British in Mesopotamia, while. given
present unrest in Egypt and in por-
tions of India, there may be unde-
sirahle echoes in both countries.
Indeed all British, French and
Italian colonies and protectorates
on the south side OF the Mediter-
sranean may easily be disturbed.
to Burmah may be menaced.
Only One Alternative.
Yet the single alternative is the
exercise of force to restrain the
Greeks and this means that it will
be necessary to yield to most, II not
all OF the more considerable Turk
ish demands. the very first Of which
will be the reoccupation in fact of
Constantinople with Adrianople, as
well. Not only will British control
in Constantinople be ended. but the
Turk will return filled with resent
ment for the part Britain has played
throughout all recent years. To use
force against the Greek friend
merely to arrive at such an end is
hardly an attractive prospect
AngIo-F French relations in the
Near East are, at the moment, COM
plicated by the decision of the Brit
ish to recognize the Emir Feisal as
the native sovereign of Mesopotamia.
Feisal is an old foe of France. At
the peace conference he was con-
stantly urged by the British to block
French aspirations in Syria When
France at last obtained the Syrian
mandate. Feisal went back to Da-
mascus and. at first the recipient Of
French subsidies, later organized re-
sistance to French occupation, which
led to fighting in which French
troops had the upper hand. and Gen.
Gouraud promptly sent Feisal into
exile. This exile proved to be Lon
don.
Means New Collision.
~ to
fiuence in Mesopotamia and thus on
the frontiers of French Syria can
only mean, in the long run a new
collision. Moreover, the French be-
lieve that Feisal will promptly Join
hands with Kemal in a campaign to
evict the French. British and ItaI-
ians, as well as the Greeks from all
the Mohammedan lands of the Near
East and North Africa as well. As
a consequence, French, bitterness
over British policy in the Near East
is, at the moment, almost unpre-
timent, If it is less vociferous, 1t Is
only a little less resentful.
There is a Bulgarian end to the
tangle. too. The Treaty of NeuilIy
deprived the Bulgarians of their
single Aegean port of Dedeagatch
and the strip of land along the west
bank of the Martha, which gave
them access to this port, including
the land near Adrianople, which was
ceded by the Sultan of Ferdinand
directly, as a reward for Bulgarian
entrance into the world war.
This punishment of Bulgaria was
strongly opposed by the United
States representa tives at Paris, who
insisted that 1t would lead to future
wars and worked substantial injus-
tice. On the whole Greek ethnic
claims would seem to be far better
than Bulgarian. except for relative
ly small areas between Adrianpple
and the Black Sea, but Bulgarian
aspirations are unmistakable.
Peace Treaty Failed.
Moreover. French and Italian sup
port for the Bulgarian claim to such
portions Of Thrace as are not hand
ed over to the Turk Is manifest
Thus one more possible complication
following a Turkish victory over
Greece might be an Intervention by
Bulgaria to regain her lost lands in
Thrace.
Whether such a Bulgarian move
would provoke Rumanian or Serbian
protest is debatable. In the old
Venizelos days Rumania, Greece.
and Serbia were united by treaty