August 3, 1908.]
the offenders were rebels, and the French Colouial Authorities are accused of display- ing "a conspicuous lack of friendliness in permitting the organisation by the revolu tionary party in French territory of raiding bodies of Chinese who from French territory seized on December 4th last Nam- Kuan, and in April, the frontier village of Laokay and in according these rebels against a friendly neighbour rights as belligerents." This will, of course, be contested. At the present time the French Authorities have under arrest Some hundreds of "reformers" whom they have captured near the frontier and deprived of their arms and ammunition. The ingenious argument has been employed by the Peking paper already alluded to that even if the affrays on the froutier were due to an error of judgment on the part of the Chinese regular forces, "the French have only themselves to blame for what can only be looked upon as fool- hardy recklessness in sending into a disturbed district a small body of troops to reconnoitre, or in other words, on a quest of inquisitiveness, to ascertain how the rebels were getting on against the Imperial Troops. Their action, the paper went on to say, rendered them very liable to be mistaken for allies of the rebels or even for a body of these men disguised, "and they certainly neglected the obviously necessary duty of advising the Chinese authorities of their intention of being in the neighbour. bood," There is quite possibly a good deal of truth in the statement that rebels did go over in great
numbers from Tongking, and it is not unlikely that arms and ammunition reached them from Freuch territory. That many rebels fled thither when the Imperial troops proved victorious there is no denying, as the French authorities have arrested large numbers of them. It is understood that France has consented to China's demand for an inquiry into the matter, with a view to ascertaining the truth of the statements contained in the French case for reparation. As the Chinese Government has declared its readiness to make full reparation where they are proved at fault, some satisfactory basis of settle ment will doubtless in due course be reached.
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Meanwhile it is worth noticing that the claim for a concession to France to build a railway from Taiyuenfu, the capital of Shansi province, to Singan-fu, the capital of Shensi province, which the Chinese Government has published as forming one of the French demands in connection with the frontier troubles, is denied by the Temps as having any connec- tion with these episodes. This demand, the Temps states, belongs to a group of railway affairs which are the object of pourparlers between Germany, Belgium, and France with the Cbines Government. The evident object of this extension is to give convenient access to the rich province of Szechuen, and the outcome of these pourparlers will there- fore be awaited with considerable interest. One result of the demands formulated by France will doubtless be the more effective policing of the Tongking frontier ou both sides, for the blame for the trouble cannot be laid entirely on the shoulders of China.
The Chief Justice (Sir Francis Piggott) has lost several articles of jewellry from his residence at The Eyrie, The Peak, and the circumstances suggest theft, probably by one or other of the servants, His Lordship reports to the police that between the 27th and 28th inst, there has been taken from a leather pocket book along with several other articles, a gold scarf pin set with four pearls, and a gold safety pin.
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
78
A CONSTITUTION FOR TURKEY. | doubt but that the constitution should be
(Daily Press, July 28th.) Turkey has been granted a constitution! What simple language, how few words, to tell such a thrilling story in the history of a nation! To those who can appreciate its significance the message which flashed across the wires on Sunday, and which appeared in its simple form in our issue of yesterday is one of great import. It means that Turkey, whose decline has been very rapid during the past century, has made an effort to arrest that decay ani to walk with other nations in the paths of progress.
The news comes indeed as a surprise. We knew of the existence of the Young Turkey Party which stool for reform and which has been more or less active according to opportunity. We knew also of the disaffection which prevailed iu Mace lonis, and Albania, we knew, was seething with unrest against Turkish oppression. But we were hardly prepared for the rapidity with which events bave marched during the last few days, and the successful coup which has achieved the proclamation of a constitution for the Ottoman Empire. Reading recent telegrams together, the reported attempt to dethrone the Sultan, the activity of the Young Turkey Party and their support of the rebels, capped by the revolt of the troops seat to quell the insurrection, we see what a stormy time the Sultan has passed through and the natural deduction is that Abdul Hamid, realising the forces arrayed against him, bowed to the inevitable and consented to the popular demand for a constitution. So far as we can gather this means the displacement of the Porte, which was little more than an aristocratic oligarchy, by a Parliament, and a system of representative government institute in place of autocratic rule. It also spells freed im for the people and freed m for the Press, results pregnant with hope for the advance of a country which bas become the most backward in Europe.
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It is well to remember that this is not the first time a constitution has been granted. In November 1876 a decree was issue hy the present Sultan, ABDUL HAMED II, shortly after he came to the throne calling a constitution into being, but the political disturbances which followed induced him to withdraw it. Prior to that several forms
of constitution had been drawn up by successive Governments, but those project- of reform seemed impossible in the existing condition of the Ottoman Empire, and the state of the country went from bid to worse. Some of us remember the storm of indiguation which coursed through Europe at the period of the Bul- garian atrocities, and other evidences of misrule since have not been lacking. Indeed the horrors committed have earned for the Ottoman the name
" of the unspeakable Turk," and not many years ago when the Armenian atrocities were driving Christians in Great Britain into a frenzy," the Sultan was denounced in unmeasured terms from many pulpits. Still the sick man of Europe" lives, largely due, of course, to the non-interference of the European Concert and to the jealousy of the various Powers, and it would appear as if he had now entered on a new lease of life.
The present reforms in Turkey are associated with the name of MIDHAT PASHA the head of the Young Turkey Party. It was he who inspired the constitution of 1876, and now after thirty years he sees it established or about to be established again. Han I his followers are very much eman, cipated from Moammedan preju lices, both religious and legal, and there can be little
were
fairly liberal one, though, according to s writer on Turkish happenings in 1876, the reformers were inclined to concentrate all power in Constantinople, the effect of which would be to make the Government. more bureaucratic than ever. It was argued at that time that the effect of the policy of centralisation would involve the destruc'ion of the system of local government whi h was appreciated throughout the Empire and that the proposals of the Reformers not likely to give the resulta
them. much has happened since then, and both
hoped for
However,
parties are likely to profit from their experience. But the situation is not without difficulty, The m tlay and heterogeneous elements in the Empire have not been reduced to one ethnical body, and the racial feuds which distract the country, especially in Aua:olia, may continue under the new régime. Then there is always the possibility that the Sultau having had the concession extorted from him may withdraw it when he feels strong enough to do so, and the last state of Turkey would be worse than the first. Yet it may reasonably be inferred that the increased strength of the Reform Party will prevent that contingency arising a second time,
As we pointed out in a leading article a few weeks ago referring to the failure of the Persian constitution, "two accompaniments are absolutely necessary for the success of Parliamentary rule it needs the intelligent understanding of both sovereign and people." Is the new constitution for Turkey framed under such conditions? Will the Sultan loyal. ly abide by his own decree and are the people prepared for such changes? The national spirit, we know, has ben fostered by the Young Turkey Party. The young
urk of the present day eagerly pursue every kind of study that point to p liti al aud liberal ideas, and the stream of Western knowledge, tuough hamp red by Asiatic des- potism, nas poured into the country. That surely bespeaks a readiness for a constitu- tional régime which capuot be denied. The Turks, because of the sisms amongst them, have not been able to resist the tyrauny of their masters but they have, nevertheless, come un ler the induence of other countries and are sensible of the iberal tendencies of the times. They are undoubtedly able to appreciate Parliament- ary rule, and if the Sultan, who doubtless insists on
his positin 25 2 theocratic autocrat, would follow the example not of the Tsar of Russia in his attitude to the Duma but of the enlightened Emperor of Japan he would help to restore his country to the influence and the power which it formerly enjoyed and still remain the Palishah of all true Moslems.
THE TYPHOON.
(Daily Press, 29th July.) Though yesterday's typhoon will probably appear in meteorological records as consi- derably worse than the one which makes the 18th September 1906, for ever memorable in the annals of the Colony, it fortunately has not wrought a tenth of the destruction that its predecessor did in about one fourth of the time. The velocity of the storm was greater and its duration longer. That it did not inflict on the Clony anything like as much damige as its predecessor is due solely to the fact that the Observatory on this occasion gave the community timely warning of its approach and so enabled adequate precautions to be taken. What loss of life the typhoon has caused it is early yet to estimate, but it is believed to be
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