The New York herald., 1922-09-27
Why the Turk Is So Firm.

One of the things in the Near East
situation that are surprising to those
who have followed the maneuvers Of
the Turk in the last fifty years is
the assurance with which to-day he is
making his stand at the Dardanelles.
He has not varied jot in his de-
mands from the day he sent his re-
fusal to acquiesce in the revised
Sevres treaty. Instead of receding
from his position, in accordance with
the insistence of Great Britain. he
is crowding each day in greater num-
bers detiantly into the neutral zone.
This is not the shifting policy OF
the Sultan and the Young Turks
They stood firmly only until Europe
put pressure upon them; then they
waited for fate and division among
their enemies to save them.
What is the reason for this show
of assurance? In the first place, he
has now, as he has always had, q
divided western Europe to deal with.
In France he has friend; perhaps
also in Italy and the Balkan States
He is opposed by Great Britain, but
Great Britain cautious in the face
OF strong Moslem population in
India. Egypt and the Sudan. In the
past he faced two other strong and
avowed enemies, Austria, who never
forgave him his efforts to capture
Vienna and annex Hapsburg ter
ritory, and Russia, who always sought
to rid Europe of his presence. These
Two neighbors with their fleets and
tleir immense armies only awaited
a chance to swamp him with the
superiority of their forces. Imperial
Austria is no more. Russia to-day is
more an ally than an enemy.
But this is not the only change
that has come in the situation. Lord
SALISBURY is credited with saying at
the Congress of Vienna that IL the
Turk only knew IL he would be richer
il he gave away half Of his empire.
The Turk gave away nothing, but
allied Europe, performed on his
Asiatic domain an operation which
reduced its size by at least a half.
1t Topped off Hejaz and the Yemen,
or all of Arabia except the desert,
and in addition Mesopotamia and
Kurdistan.
For twenty-five years Constanti-
nople waged war on the Arab tribes
OF the Yemen. Ii was useless to
send Arabian detachments against
their brother tribesmen, and service
in this land was so hated that it was
necessary to send troops from other
parts or Turkey under sealed orders.
The Turks never won the Yemen
either by diplomacy or by military
force and Constantinople received no
tribute from the country beyond what
IL could extort from the coast
towns.
Hejaz. the seat of the great shrines
OF Islam, never recognized the au-
thority Of the Porte and eagerly
seized the opportunity the world war
rave to break OF its allegiance to
Turkey. Kurdistan was almost con-
stantly in rebellion against CONSTANT
nople and IL bled the Government OF
both men and gold. Mesopotamia,
with Bagdad as IT'S capital. was the
seat of Arab discomfort and gave the
Turkish Government more trouble in
its attempts to rule it than IL is to-
day giving Great Britain. In other
words. about all allied Europe left to
the Turk was Anatolia. But by so
doing il left him what he most needed
and took from him what he could
best spare.
Anatolia was the distinctly Turkish
part Of the old Ottoman Empire 1t
was the Turks first stopping place
in his westward emigration. From
here came the troops upon whom the
Sultans could depend, the men whom
they brought into Europe TO defend
them in a crisis. They we're the un-