New-York tribune., 1922-11-05
BY Harold E. Scarborough
LONDON. November !

sSOSaDoNs Nov6lpeF i.
- Yp TO month or so ago people
In London were asking, "Can
we afford 60 stay In Mesopo-
tamta and Palestine Z" The
arswer seemed almost unanimously In
the negative. Now, however, few
people are beginning to wonder, "Can
we afford 60 get out r'
There 10 nothing like general re-
versal Of sentiment apparent yet; but
there Ia no doubt that the reappear-
anes Of Turkey on the world stage as
an active entity has set many imperi-
aily-natnded Britons to arguing that
Mesopotamia and Palestine must be re-
tssned rs buffers between India and
the seat Of Moslem power.
"If Anatolia," they ask, 'why not
Palestine aad Mesopotamia? p
They mean. of course, that IL the
Kemalist Turks hsve reeonquered the
rfovtnce of Anatolia, why should they
not, IL the British garrisons were with
drawn, overrun the more southern
portions of Asia Minor as well7
Sir Arnold r. Wilson, formerly act
ing Civilian Commissioner In Mesopo-
tamia, In the current "Asiatic Review, !"
after recapitu!asing the arguments for
withdrawing from Mesoposamla (or
Iraq. II due Difference is to be paid to
Mr.. Winston Churchili's sensibilities)
states the case In favor Of Britain's
keeping ita hold on that region.
Reasons Given for Getting
Out Of Mesopotamia Mandate
The reasons advanced for abandoning
the Mesopotamian mandate are, briefly,
that the British taxpayer cannot afford
ths expenditure to which the mandate
commits him; and that. anyhow, the
people Of that region do not want
British supervision.
Withdraw" says Sir Arnold In eS-
feet. "and the Turk comes back"
IL is not probable, he believes, that
che present Arab government, consist
Ing Of King fe,sal and Grand Coun-
ell, would long withstand the with
drawal Of British assistance; nor does
he think that any stable central gov
ernment could be independently set up
at Bagdad.
"At first." he says, "a number of un-
stable organizations would be evolved,
with centers perhaps at Basrah, Bag
dad and Mosul, with varying boun-
daries and mutually hostile, but not
really under the control Of any single
chief or organized council. Like Ish-
inael. his prototype, the desert Arab
would remain always with his hand
against every man: the Kurds would
obey none and plunder all.
Commerce, the lifeblood Of the East
not less than of the West, would lam
guish still further, and the people who
within ten years have spurned the
Turks and acclaimed the English, whom
In turn they have been induced by a
political gang to spurn in favor of an
Arab government, of whom it seems
they are now firing, would demand, in
the absence of any practical alterna-
tive, the return of the Turk.
"And the Turks would return, for
they have traditional ability to rule
alien races of their own faith"
This writer sees no alternative to
such contingency. He rejects the
suggestion that should Feisal either
leave or be forced to leave, Mesopo-
tamia could be governed by high COM
missioner and council, and he does not
think that there Is any one man who
could unite the diverse elements Of the
country.
"The return Of the Turk" then de,
clares Sir Arnold. would probably
synchroiaize roughly with his return tc