Evening star., 1922-11-04
Tired and Had Expected to
Z Abdicate, But Now
: Changes His Mind.
FIGHTING LOSING BATTLE,
AS HE is SHORN OF POWER
Cabinet Gives Up Negotiations
With Allies-Russians Mass
Troops on Anatolian Border.


CONSTANTINOPLE. November A.
81 am tired and for a long time nave
contemplated making room for my
successor" declared the sultan to his
cabinet at the meeting called hastily
yesterday after news of the decision
of the Angora assembly to absolVe
him of power, but recent events
. have caused me to change my mind.
j am convinced that the bulk of the
nation is deeply attached to the SOW
ereign and is only temporarily led
astray by hasdful of adventures.
For these reasons / have decided
not to desert the nation. hut to re-
main on the throne. The act of the
nationalist assembly has opened
question which does not affect me
personally so much as IT affects the
whole Mussulman world. of which
am the recognized chief. The ques-
tion of the caliphate and the sultan
ate are closely connected and are de-
termined by the strict laws of the
Mussulman religion. These rules
cannot be changed by a few hundred
members of the nationalist assembly
who are not authorized to represent
the millions Of Mussulmans.
Not to Send Delegates.
The cabinet met in the course of
the afternoon and sent telegram to
the nationalist assembly announcing
that 1t had decided not to send dele
gates to the peace conference, but
would continue in power until the
assembly should be able to take over
the civil administration. 1t is not
likely that the nationalists will be
in a position to do so until the allies
withdraw from Constantinople. and
the latest events indicate that the
powers are unwilling to evacuate the
city. -
Though the nationalists have been
eager to occupy Constantinople at
the earliest moment possible, it has
been decided by the Angora assembly
to establish the capital in the interior
of Anatolia and that Constantinople
is to remain only as the seat of the
caliph. Brussa, Konia, Eski-Shehr
and Angora have been mentioned in
this connection and the deputies from
these places are fighting to have their
native town made the permanent
capital. The members of the cabinet
and the majority of the assembly are
inclined to favor Eski-Shehr on ac-
count of its central position and the
fact that it Is a railway junction, all
the lines from the west passing
through 1t.
Guns Boom End OF Sultanate.
AT $50 pm. on Wednesday guns
were fired all over Anatolia announc-
ing that the sultanate had been abol-
ished and that the most worthy
member of the present dynasty re-
mains caliph. but the present sultan
man world and the national assembly.
ceases to rule Turkey and the Mussul-
mans"
The proclamation was received IN
Anatolia with outbursts of popular
Joy, 1t has been decided that in the
ber shall be considered national
holidays. The main motive which
prompted the nationalist leaders to
take this drastic decision in spite OF
the strong opposition of many mem
bers of parliament was mainly po-
litical. The nationalists fear that the
allies. in view of the fact that the
sultan is the supreme authority in
Turkey and that the nationalist as
sembly has not yet been recognized.
may raise the question whether
peace treaty signed by the national
ist delegates unaccompanied by rep
resentatives of the Constantinople
government will have any value.
Protest Over Allied Action.
1t is argued that the Mudania con-
ference did not recognize juridically
the nationalist assembly and that the
convention signed was of a military
character between military leaders
and not by diplomatic representa-
tives In order to emphasize the fact
until dismissed by the sultan is the
sole legal body the allies invited the
sultan's ministers to the Lausanne
conference. This aroused a storm of
protest in the nationalist assembly
and to end once for all an obscure
situation it was decided to proclaim
that the "sultante Is abolished in
Turkey and henceforth Is only thing
Of the past"
Mustapha Kemal Pasha met much
opposition in parliament, especially
from the moderate party. which fears
military dictatorship.
Both commissions replied in ac-
cordanec with Kemal Pasha's wishes.
namely that Turkey must be ruled in
accordance with the desires of the
people, which in this instance was
for government by an elective body.
and that the sultan should be de-
clared guilty of treason to the Mus
sulman world. furthermore. the legal
commission declared that as the
Turkish nation Will support the cali
phate the caliph should be elected by
the nationalist assembly.
Soviet Forces ON Border.
NJ. Aralov, the soviet representative
at Angora. has notified the national-
ist government that the denunciation
Of the treaty of alliance signed last
wear will go into effect at midnight
Of November 80. He added that in
case hostilities between the Turks
and allies were resumed. Russia
would remain strictly neutral.
This statement Is contradicted by
the massing Of large Russian forces
on the eastern frontier Of Anatolia.
Though reports that the Russians
have already advanced into Turkish
territory are premature, the writer
learns from reliable sources that
Ave new Russian divisions have ar
rived in Armenia and the Caucasus
from the Ukraine and Odessa.
When asked for an explanation Of
the concentration the bolshevist au-
thorities replied that the Caucasus
was better supplied with food than
was the Ukraine and that the troops
were brought there to go into winter
quarters. My informant says that at
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