Fort Mill times. [volume] (Fort Mill, S.C.) 1892-current, 1922-05-04
TURKS REGAIN THRAcE.
scourge of Mankind Again Given
Foothvld in Europe.


tion Of eastern Thrace, as fore
cast in recent dispatches, to BE-
added to Constantinople, at pres.
cnt the only European territory
remaining to Turkey, recalls how
Thrace has been constantly the
shuttlecock to that city's battle
dore, whether it's name were By
zantium, Constantinople or STAN
boul, y says bulletin by the Ma
tlonai Geographic society.
"Thrace has expanded and
contracted down the ages as a
desert pool does in RAINY and
dry seasons. TO the ancien;
Greeks it was a huge area-'t!it
home of the North Wnd'-com-
prising all of the eastern half of
the Turkey of pre-Balkan wa
days and practically the whole
OF Bulgaria as well. 70 the Ro-
mans OF the west it was only the
portion south of the Balkans. ami
to the Byzantines it was once as
extensive as Greece and later a
small, intimate region stretching
westward from the capital.
1.-The Turks may well take
heart at regaining control of
eastern Thrace, for the replacing
OF this region Under their control
cannot fail to recall the happen
ings OF nearly 600 years ago. The
first Turks to live OH the Euro
pean side of the straits were
brought over by one of the dcca.
dent rulers OF the Eastern EN-
pire before 1850 as mercenar,
soldiers to fight against his Bul-
garian and Serbian enemies lii
Ihrace. These Asiatics, through
their military operations. became
thoroughly 1amiildr with Iharce
and even Ma, edonia. In order
that he might have his hired SOL
diers close at hand, Emperor
John vi committed the final fol
ly of bringing their families over
and establishing a military col
ony in 'Thrace. They never rr-
turned to Asia.
Eastern Thrace-the same re-
.gion which it is now proposed TO
return to Turkey-was the inch
which in the next few hundred
years Turks built into the ell
OF their great European empire.
at one time extending over the
whole Balkan peninsula and al
most to the gates of Vienna.
Queeerly enough, however, the
Turkish empire in Europe grew
to embrace all Thrace and Bul-
garia before it absored Constan-
tinople. For more than a centu.
py the Byzantine empire was little
more than the city of CONSTANT
nople, but it hung OH with it's im-
perial luxury chiefly because of
its prestige while the Turkish
mushroom grew about it. Dur,
ing this period Adrianople in
Thrace was the Turkish capital.
Finally the impetuous Moham-
med III became sultan and deter
mined to put an end to the fic-
ton of the Byzantine empire. He
captured Constantinople in 1853.
"Thrace as the term has been
interpreted since the World war,
is like deformed pear with two
stem ends. The central
bulge lies north Of the roots of
the Gallipoli peninsula. The east
crn narrow end lies between the
black sea and the Sea of Mar
mora; the western end is s1ueez-
ed between the Aegean sen and
the Bulgarian border, wnicl dips
far southward there. The Treaty
of .Sevres, which attempted TO
dispose of thc Turkish empire
gave Greece all OF Thrace except
q little section across the eastern
stem, including Constantinoplc
and its immediate environs.
Greece was thus to own the
whole European coast of the Sea
OF Marmora and coast line of
SO miles on the, Black sea.
Under the proposed change
the European frontier of Turkey
would run not across the narrow
peninsula near Constantinople,
but some Is miles farther west,
just eastward Of the deep cen.