Evening star., 1924-11-16

League Of War Veterans OF which
General Garibaldi Association is an
offshoot. incline to side with the gen
eral and there seems a probability
that the incident will result in
strengthening Of the opposition by
the members of the league. Obvious
ly such AN accession would he even
more important morally than uuner-
ously. Duke Mussolini's difficulties
are multiplying upon him.
q :: ::
The Khalffate. etc.-I noticed
last week report that Ibn Sa-ud,
Emir of Nejd, with his Wahhabite
army, was on the way toward
Jiddas the port Of Mecca on the Red
Sea, whittier the discounted Ali, King
Of the Hejaz, had retired. 1t now
appears that All has been strongly
reinforced (whence. one should like
to know has sailed forth from Jidda
to meet Thn Sa- I'd, and hopes to turn
the tables on him.
This whole business Is obscurely
and antastically connected with the
khalifate question. Another aspira Mt
10 the Fhalifate has emerged: to wit.
Sidi Ahmed, FL Sheriff. Sidi G.e.
| Lord) Ahmed was Grand Sunussi or
head OF the Senussite fraternity OF
North Africa from 1902 to 1918. In
Its capacity he resisted (unsuccess-
fully the French advance In central
Sudan, he assisted the Turks in their
Lyb ban War with Italy, and in the
World War, with Turkish and Ger
man help, he gave a lot Of trouble
to the Italians in Libya and to the
British in western Egypt. But his
invasion OF western Egypt was re-
pulsed, and in 1917 he was decisively
defeated by the British at the famous
| Oasis OF Silva (Jupiter Ammon).
This defeat destroyed his prestige
with the Senussite order. and in 1918
he was conveyed by a German sub
| marine from a Tripolitan port to
Constantinople. In 1920 he Joined
Mustapha Kemal and he is said to
have done excellent service in the
Anatolian war and to have won the
admiration and intimate friendship of
| the Ghaxi. He still, I believe, claims
to be the Sheikh Senussi or Grand
Senussi, but actually he has been
superseded in that office by his cousin,
| Sidi Mohammed Ell Idris, who with
the title Of Emir bestowed by the
Italians) has formally accepted Ital-
| ian sovereignty over the Senussite
domain, which is defined in the in
strument OF agreement with the ,Ro-
man government as bounded on the
north by Cyrenaica, on the south by
| the Goth degree Of north latitude, by
Egypt on the east and by Fezzan on
| the west. One of the most sparsely
populated areas on the planet, but
| containing the charming chain of
| GA ses, from Jarabub to the borders of
Negroid Wadat (now a French pos
| SESSION.. Thus the political power Of
! tho: Senussia is seen to be narrowly
| circumscribed AS a matter Of fact,
| it: is doubtful IL the founder of the
| order (who died about 1850 enter
| tanned extensive political ambitions.
| Apparently his main aims were in
about equal degrees religious and
| commercial. He proposed to estab-
| lish and strictly maintain the Ko-
| ranic law over tho eastern Sahara
| and to keep aflame the religious zeal
| Of his followers by encouraging mis-
sionary work; he aimed to make the
! caravan routes safe and to develop
| the oases and the caravan trade to
! the utmost.
| 1t may reasonably be said that the
Senussite fraternity is the most i'm
| portant of tho reforming orders of
| Islam-more important even than
| that Of the Wahhabis, from which it
| partly derives. 1ts puritanism II Of
a less ferocious kind than that of
Wahha bis; its constructive work by