The Bee-Hive. — 1876-05-13 (London, England)

THE BEE-HIVE.  THE KORAN AND ITS RESULTS.  Polemical disturbances have occurred at Salonica which stirred into activity the Grand Vizier, if they have not disturbed the sensuous somnolency of the Sultan his master. A', young Bulgarian girl of Christian parentage embraced the creed of the Koran. Coming by rail to Salonica, she was being conducted to . the Governor'eresidence, when a considerable number of persons, said to have been assembled by the Consul of the United States, made a, rush at her, tearing off her *oil and mantle, and carrying her to the dwelling of a Christian, to the great anger of the Turks who stood by. The occurrence being noised abroad, a crowd of Mussulmans collected in the mosque, demanding of the Governor that the girl should be recaptured and brought thither. Re, being informed, as seems to have been represented to the Turkish Ambassador in London, that the Consuls of Germany and France had entered the mosque, proceeded thither to induce them to leave, and to calm the people, but his efforts were useless. As the girl did not arrive, the populace wrenched the bars from the grating, and fell upon the Consuls. The Governor was unable to protect them, and they fell under the blows of their assailants. Afterwards troops arrived and dispersed the rioters. Sentinels were placed in front of the Consulates and other dwellings, and Proceedings had commenced by the arrest of guilty parties. The Sublime Porte has resolved to chastise them promptly, and two Commissioners, with full powers, left for Salonica, accomPonied by delegates from the Embassies of Germany and France. Of the two assassinated Consuls, one, the German, was Henry Abbott, a British subject, highly prized by the German Government. The girl had been' forcibly abducted from her parental hefae. The decided effect of this outrage is already felt at Berlin, the scene f o pending negociations on the Eastern question., Salonica has eighty thousand inhabitants. The Jews number fifteen or seventeen thousand. Though conquered by the Turks in 1430, Salonica, has always cherished its reputation as the city Where Paul preached, and took an early part in the Greek schism Which shook off the authority of Rome. What has now happened shows two things, the sanguinary fanaticism of the Turks, and the Utter weakness of the Turkish Government. However, large Promises have been made to Germany and France, and two Turkisk shiPs of war have been sent to Salonica. The French Government have also sent throe vessels, and the Italian two. It is evident, Under all the circumstances, that Turkey may lose all, while Austria can gain nothing by this irrepressible outbreak of Mussulman fanaticism. Meanwhile, Mr. Edward A. Freeman steps in, and, as an eye and car-witness in October last, thus shows the hopelessness of Illere diplomacy, whoever wins the game at the political chessbcard, in a case like that between the Greeks and Turks of Salonica, or between the Christians of Herzegovina and their ahometan masters. "For them," he says, "I plead, as fighting or all that is dear to the heart of man against the foulest tyranny earth. England has been ready enough with sympathy and id 1) iv for men who have risen in other lands against oppression, "1401, compared with the oppression of the Turk, might be called Justice and freedom. I ask for the same sympathy for the victims tyranny in Herzegovina and Crete which was freely given to ithe victims of a far less tyranny in Lombardy and Sicily. Engtalfd gave freely to the sufferers in the great war between Geri:a:lllY and France, a war waged by civilized armies according to laws of civilized warfare. Surely the claim is tenfold on be„half of the sufferers in a, war in which men are fighting for their homes and for their altars against a barbarian enemy." No sufficiently clear account of the lamentable occurrence has yet reached us. It appears that the two murdered Consuls c'Pescd themselves to danger from an impression that their colleague and friend, the American Consul, was in peril. In the ,inquiry Germany will be represented by her chief Consul, France, bY her principal interpreter, and England, by our Consul at Salonica, Mr. Blunt, of whom, however, it is bruited among the uglish at Constantinople, that he refused to recognise the oeoasion for interference and withheld his co-operation from his  unfortunate colleagues. There is a general assembly of ships at Salonica, and in Berlin, Austria is held, morally responsible for what has happened, because her policy has tended to encourage the anti-Christian fury of the Turks. Count Andrassy had not reached Berlin on Tuesday, and from the Eastern frontier, we hear that his Government has resumed the extension of support to the Ilerzegovinian refugees in Dalmatia.