New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) MONDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1877.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5156, 1 October 1877, Page 2

New Zealand Times (PUBLISHED DAILY.) MONDAY, OCTOBER 1, 1877.

The war news which reached here on Saturday evening, and which’ was published by us in an Extra, is of a decidedly negative character, and 1 in this respect the telegram is only like many of its predecessors. It is now telegraphed that the fighting at Biela was not of great magnitude, and that it was confined to an attack by the Turks upon two entrenched positions commanding the main road to Biela, in which the Ottomans got the worse of the encounter. Previous teleorams informed us ■ that the Russians were compelled to abandon their positions, that they lost some 12,000 men, including 2000 taken prisoners, and as nothing was said about their massacre, a ray of humanity appeared for the first time to be thrown on this fearful struggle. Hitherto the Mussulmans, in keeping with the customs of Asiatic warfare, have taken no prisoners. In connection with Turkish excesses, the telegram informs us that the Austrian Ambassador at Constantinople had a “positive” interview with the Sultan, and remonstrated against the continued atrocities. Such protests seem not to have the slightest effect upon Turkey. England and Germany previously protested, but to no purpose. The Turk, though he has adopted the western style of warfare as far as discipline and engines of destruction are concerned, has little perception of the amenities which soften the warfare of ci vilised nations. Individually the Mussulman is not naturally cruel. In times of peace travellers say he is as superior to the Russian as the latter is to the North American Indian, perhaps the most cruel specimen of degraded humanity on the face of the earth. Mahommedanism has been called the religion of the sword. Be that as it may, that religion is not responsible for the wholesale slaughter which takes place in times of war amongst all the nations of Asia, whether Mahommedan or non-Mahommedan. The Turk in killing prisoners is less influenced by his religion than by the customs and traditions of his own and kindred'races. It is not for a moment suggested that such things should be permitted. If the Turk hopes to maintain his position in Europe he must conform to the usages of its people ; and, moreover, he should be compelled to do so. However, it is no use arguing with a man who has got a sword at his throat; it is the wrong time to convince him. Austria’s words will be thrown away as long as a Russian remains oh Turkish soil.. Moral suasion fails with the most highly civilised nations; to the semi-civilised it is incomprehensible nonsense. If the Austrian Minister had intimated to the Porte that if the massacres continued a couple of hundred thousand Austrians would cross the Danube as the ally of the hereditary foe, the Russian, Turkey would have fully understood the force of the appeal, and'would at any rate have made a real attempt to mend matters. The Austrian Ambassador hinted at mediation, and stated that Germany would not be indifferent to Russia’s humiliation. The Sublime Porte will take that for what it is worth in view of the meetings at. Ischl and Salzburg, where, it was recently stated, a perfect understanding was arrived at between the great autocrats of Germany, Austria, and Russia. When Russia submitted the Eastern difficulty to the arbitration of the sword, it was thought that it would soon be solved; but the difficulty appears to be as far from solution as ever. Though the Turk may not be desirable at Constantinople, it is felt by the Great Powers that the Russian is less so. It is therefore strange that very little attention has been paid to the placing of another Power on the Dardanelles. The establishment of a Greek Empire would apparently be the most natural solution; but there must bo in the opinion of the Great Powers an insuperable objection to this, for very little attention appears to have been given to this aspect of tho question. England’s interest in the' Eastern question is undoubtedly the interest of the civilised world, and as those qualified to speak toll us that the Greeks are very friendly to England, it might reasonably bo supposed than the revival of the Greek Empire would

be the best way out of the difficulty. But then, oa>the other hand, it issaid that the Greek; would only be a puppet in the hands of the Russian/ ‘ If the lafteryiew be correct, greater evil :is to be-."dreaded than even the misgoverrimeqt of Turkey in,Europe, i Whi^he.ver : present coniestjfit is tolerably ‘ceftain'that neither Turkey nor Russia will be allowed to settle matters definitely,, It is.a ,questidVW'whichfolinnot 'bF’lefo for settlement to any one Power. ( Turning - again to - the ; events of the' campaign, the telegram states that- Sulieman - Pasha ’.has again unsuccessfully attacked the Sohipka Pass, and that twenty thousand Turks have been sacrificed in the attempts to take this apparently impregnable position. The news as to when the loss of these twenty thousand took place is not very clear ; but the most reasonable inference is, that this number includes the losses in the attacks in August and those which were commenced on Friday week.