The herald. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1905-1953, 1922-12-07

tPrspAred by the National Geographic So
ciety, Warrington d. CO.
Three towns Of Asia Minor, seldom
heard Of In ordinary times, have stood
out In the world news Of recent weeks
-Chanak, Mudania and Ismid. Mere
villages normally, each has had sud-
denly poured into II soldiers or celebrt-
ties, and has taken on. briefly at least.
Importance greater than that Of many
a metropolis.
Chanak, the strategic point on the
Asiatic side Of the DardanelleS, which
ened British ThermOpylae, illustrates
how translation may spoil romance.
The name means "potS"-scullery
ware. But though il has a hum-drum
name, Chanak-Or Tehanak-Kalessi-
and its neighborhOod have more than
once been the stage for acts which
have radically modelled the worlds his
tory and even the worlds literature.
Barely twenty miles to the south rose
Troy, to furnish inspiration alike to
Homer and his myriad of readers.
Within a stones throw Of Chanak.
Xerxes In $50 b. c. led his thousands
Of Persians across the Dardanelles on
q bridge of boats In the first formidable
expedition Of Asiatics into Europe
which history records. At the same
spot a century and a half later Alex
ander led his smaller but more highly
trained army into Asia on mis- trium-
phal conquest Of the world.
1t was from Chanak In 1858 that the
Turks crossed to their first foothold In
Europa crossing that gave Europe
a problem that has bred wars and
massacres and broken treaties for
more than five hundred years.
The Sea Of Marmora into which the
Dardanelles and the Bosporous widen
forms a barrier between Asia and Eu-
rope. The roads between the two con-
tinents lie across the two straits at
its ends. Constantinople at the mar
rowest point Of the Bosporous. is the
front door; Chanak, where the Darda-
nelles Is most CONSTRUCTED, Is the back
door. II Is natural enough, perhaps,
that almost all Of the historic inva-
sions Of Europe from the East should
have been by the back way. and that
there again today Great Britain should
have made an important stand.
Castle after castle, each fortified,
comes into view on both the Asiatic
and the European sides Of the Darda-
nelles as one steams from the
Aegean toward Constantinople. But
the narrows opposite Chanak are re-
served for the castles Of castles; the
castle of Asia on the right, the castle
Of Europe on the left. The Chanak
1870. not long after Constantinople fell
70 the Turks. Ever since Chanak has
been a place Of Importance. In recent
decades It has been the point Of admin
istration for all the Dardanelles de
fenses-the solar plexus Of the outer
straits. German artillery experts re-
sided there during the World war and
modernized the Notifications.
muodUia ootHetftif8 VI SCoPof@
While Chanak is q channel port
Mudania, scene Of the Near East mil
itary parley, is full-fledged seaport
on paper at least. 1t is, however, or
what is now the quiet little Sea OF
Marmora, though it was once the cen
trail body of water Of the civilized
world. Inconspicuous as 1t Is, Mu
DANA, scene Of the Near East peace
parley, was far from being unfrequent
ed before the World war began. Ir
those days its visitors went through
Mudania on the boat-and-rail trip from
Constantinople to Brusa. The Turks
probably chose Brusa's port for theil
conference with allied representatives
because Mudania is the nearest town
IN the neutral zone Of the Straits ter
ritory, to this their chief Asia Minor
city, which lies Just across the line
where the Turk rule Is absolute.
When the Marmora was vet an In
land Turkish sea the boat from Con
stantinople to Mudania was apt to b,
late and crowded, and many traveller,
complained Of petty exactions from
porters and customs officials. PETIT,
z annoyances, though, cannot who'll,
mar q trip across the Marmora. ant
the western traveller who views tn,
Asiatic coast line Of this placid lax,
for the first time has a sight Of rart
beauty and probably a surprise. Cape.
and islands, bays and forested shores
make the approach to almost any poin,
between Chanak and Ismid scene Of
beauty. And the mid-city Of the South
Marmora shore. MudanIa. Is no ex
eeption.