The Dominion WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1916. PROSPECTS IN GREECE.

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2935, 22 November 1916, Page 6

The Dominion WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 1916. PROSPECTS IN GREECE.

iMifc events in Greece hold out a cer/cain promise that the Allies are (ibout to adopt, somewhat belatedly, llho firm policy which at an earlier stage might have had the effect of changing the aspect of. the Balkan campaign materially for the better. The decision to expel the German, Austrian, Bulgaria, and Turkish Ministers at .Alliens is a definite Step towards suppressing and ending the treacherous intrigues and i conspiracies which Constantine, his wart, and his alien associates have uitherto been allowed to foment almost at will. In deciding to seize some portion of the war material held by the Athens clique, the Allies arc taking action with which no i other fault can be found than that iX does not go.far enough.' Ample justification exists for depriving Constantine of the means to equip a single soldier. However, the Allies are- now taking some fairly purpose-ful-stops towards the policy which circumstances in Greece demand. It is to be hoped that they will not Stop short of measures which will make Constantine and those of his subjects who with him are false to their own country, and treacherous foes to the Entente, impotent to work any further harm. The developments of the Allied policy, in Greece which have been noted gain, of course, double significance from the extent to which the capture of Monastir has opened and improved the military outlook in Macedonia. A reasonably good prospect now appears that the Allies will be able, now or somewhat later, to. develop an offensive campaign in and beyond Macedonia which will exert an important influence upon the larger issues of the war,, and. that meanwhile that part of Greece which is treacherous and hostile will be held in firm control. To entertain the larger hope of an early reunion of the Greek people under a constitutional Government and their effective military co-operation with the Entente would very possibly bo to invite disappointment. Honour mustbe paid to that undaunted and far-sighted patriot, M. Venizelos, and the adherents'who are striving under his guidance to achieve the liberation and rehabilitation of their country. But in the light of ovents a great part of th<-, Greek people stand condemned as utterly unworthy of the great leader who has made such gallant efforts to save them from themselves and from Im ? s - who has led them B0 doseto the brink of ruin. Constantine is a double-dyed traitor. In the interests of nations which aim at obliterating the independence of the Balkan States, he has laid- a wide province oik his country open to invasion and rapine, and done his utmost to betray, the Powers to whom Greece owes its national existence, iiut it is clear enough that if Cosstantine's policy had been unpalatable to the mass of his subjects his career as a traitor would have been unci. 1 hat he has been given so much rope not only lays the Entente rowers open to the reproach of having pursued a feeble and inept policy m dealing with an unscrupulous and treacherous enemy, but supplies convincing proof that Constantine s policy has the sympathetic approval of at anyrate a great proportion of his subjects. What that policy is in its full dimensions was; succinctly set forth about six weeks ago by the Athens correspondent of the Morning Post. inere can no longer be any doubt," ho wrote, "that King Constantine early in the war bound himself by a secret agreement with Germany to maintain neutrality until the moment_ when he could safely throw olt the mask and draw the sword against the Entente Powers." This correspondent, like some other authorities, maintains that Ctojbtantine embarked upon this course in defiance of the will of his people, but the irresistible evidence of events makes the contention untenable. Had the contention Been sound, M. Venizelos would by this time have been dictating the policy of Greece instead of heading a revolution which is visibly hanging fire so far as the essential aim of its promoters—the restoration of constitutional government in Greeceis concerned. All sorts of efforts have- been made to find and invent excuses for the Greek people, just as efforts were made to justify Constantine long after he had enunciated and acted upon the strango-

doctrine that a country pledged to assist an ally against one enemy was "&ot bound to assist it against that enemy and others. But in one case as in the other excuses ring hollow. The only convincing explanation of the fashion in which the Greeks have tolerated the anti-national policy of thai* monarch is that a majority of them believed with him that Germany would win the war and shaped their sympathies accordingly. We are justified in believing that if the Greeks as a nation ever make common cause with the Allies it will be as fair-weather friends, convertedBy a conviction that the party with whom their sympathies he has no prospects. A lying Press campaign and other activities of German agents have, of .course, done a great deal to keep the pro-German spirit alive in Greece, and it must be confessed that military and diplomatic blunders on tho part of the Entente nave contributed to the same end. But the natural bent and inclination of the mass of the Greek people does not seem to be any more in doubt than the treachery of their King. The measures which are now being taken by the Allies in Greece are mainly welcome as indicating that they propose at length to deprive King Constantine ' of the means of pursuing the campaign against them in which he has only stopped short of military attack. This alone, if done effectively, should give General Saeeail the free hand he has so long been denied. Possibly the action of the Allies may have the incidental effect of stimulating the revolutionary sentiment in Greece, and creating an irresistible demand for intervention. But it is questionable whether, in the circumstances, such aid would be worth having.