Year: 1878

evacuate all the points she agreed 10 eVacu-
ate when she signed that instrument and
in all other ways to keep faith with her al
lies and neighbors. So she has said In
response to an official inquiry made at the
instance Of the British government-an in
tquiry which, in order that it might not
have an offensive character, must have been
put in a form which assumed that ther
were some circumstances which could JUS
tify an honorable government in refusing
to comply with certain requirements OF the
treaty England sees and knows that there
are such circumstances, and seized the oc-
casion of the much reported declaration
made by Prince Labanoff- that Russia would
not evacuate the country in the time
specifed-in order to put this inquiry and
thereby make a record as early as possible
of Russia's purpose to take advantage OF the
circumstances that impede the fulflment OF
the terms of the treaty.


But England's inquiry has not furnished
her with great deal of information; for
the answer given does not imply that
Russia is not fully alive to events In the
country south of the Balkans-does not
imply that she intends to give away her case
there through any superstitious fidelity to
her part of treaty that every body else can
violate; but simply implies that she refuses
to go into the consideration of this case at
the present time, and more particularly
that she refuses to discuss with England
separately any events in violation OF q
treaty to which all the Powers of Europe
were parties. She refuses to give any
ground whatever to England's assumption
of right to know what Russia proposes to
do in Turkey. She therefore answers an
impertinent and insolent inquiry as to
what she means to do by referring the inter-
locutor to the treaty where the obligations
imposed upon her are written.


Some time since-two months at least
the opportunity was given to England to
consider this topic of what Russia might
do or propose to do, but it seems not to
have been thought of much consequence in
London at that time. But it was then
already patent to those who watched intel
ligently the progress Of events in the Bal
kan country that the topic OF supreme in



would do in respect to her obligations un-
der the treaty and when the German Chan
cellor invited England, in common with all
the other Powers, to send representatives to
yet another conference, to determine the
mooted points, England's demonstrations OF
Indifference, if not contempt tor the project,
stopped it. 1t would have been very awk-
- .,I
proposition, since Earl Beaconsfeld
yet lived in the glory of his achieve
ments at Berlin; and to be called
upon to appoint some one to go to that city
SO soon, in order to patch up and keep in
order that grand diplomatic masterpiece
that it was supposed he had made there, and
to act on the call, would have looked lit
tie ridiculous. There was yet another rea-
son for not taking any serious notice of the
| Chancellor's project. 1t did not call upon
England or any one else to consider the ne
cessity of compelling Russia to act up to
the treaty. Had the call been put in that form
England would have responded promptly
and energetically, for she knows Russia to
be On old offender. But it called upon the
Powers to constrain Turkey. England knows
that Turkey has already been constrained
too much. She would not cooperate, there
fore. In that refusal she practically gave
| her consent 10 the repeal Of the treaty
since if Turkey is not bound by it, who is !?
| We thought at the time, and SO said, that
the invitation then made to England was
trap prepared for her by the astute German
| Chancellor--a contrivance to lead her to
commit herself by notorious diplomatic
proceedings to declaration or an inaction
in regard to Turkey that would cover the
case of Russia, since, so far as the point of
moral obligation to the treaty operates, they
are in precisely the same position. France
and Germany, for instance, agreed respect
lively to do certain things by the treaty
which ended the war Of 1901. Ger
many was to withdraw her armies in o
| specified time, and France to pay her in
IDENTITIES in certain time. But ifFrance
had defaulted in the payments can any
sane creature suppose that Germany would
have continued the evacuation? Or would
any diplomatist have held that the force
Of the obligation was not suspended
or lost even if Germany chose to take
the utmost advantage OF the default? !? There
is no essential difference in what has oc-
Cured between Russia and Turkey. Tur-
key has simply planted herself in position
of defiance of the treaty as to certain of its
important stipulations, and England has
comforted and encouraged her, while Rus
sia has looked on with the consciousness
that oil England needed while in her pres
ent hands was rope enough. AS to the pro-
visions with regard to Greece, as to the de-
NAL Of the right Of any Power to make sep
arate treaties with the Sultan, as to the gov
| ernment OF the Christian countries left in