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The Daily News MONDAY, OCTOBER 12. THE SITUATION IN THE BALKANS.

''The Empire is ai peace," cried Napoleon 111. ill 1870. Scarcely were the wor.ls I out of his mouth when the Empire was plunged in a war that in a very few I months made him an exile from Lis country and put an end to the .Napoleonic dynasty for ever. (In the llil.il September it was announced that King Edward had sent to the Sultan a congratulatory message on the lirst anniversary since the promulgation of the new constitution, anil {jiving expression to the hope of a '' peaeeiui and prosperous future." The day following Prince Buelow, in welcoming to licrlin the. U«er-!l'iiriiiimcnUu'y Union Co-i----gress, talked largely of "love and l peace/' whilst liritUh .statesmen were doing much the .same kind of thing. On | the next day, the 18th. came the seizure ] of the Orient, railway, and immediately the political heavens were covered wrii | tile black shadow of approaching war. ! it secnis a curious late that no .-.ooner I do emperors, kings, and statesmen o"Igin to gush about "love and peace" that their words should be interrupted i>y

I the din of coming battle. I At the conclusion of the last great ' } war between Russia and Turkey the | forces of the former I'ower attained as | far south at Adrianoplc. The minarets J of Constantinople were almost -within |5 sight of Russia's victorious arms, when | her progress was stayed by the inter- | veuliuu of the Western Powers. The 9 Treaty of lieriin, which resulted, gave | to Austria the civil administration of § the Turkish provinces of Bosnia and I Herzegovina, so that that Power, which w had not .suffered a loss to the value of a 3 sixpence in the great struggle, came 0 out the chief, if not the only gainer. 3 Thirty years have passed; what might 5 well have been foreseen in the hegin|g nmg is now revealing itself—Austria 1 desires possession of tile provinces ab- || solutely. No doubt, having administerI cd the affairs of the provinces for such S a lengthened period, Austria has conic I to regard tliein as part of her Empire, H and the desire that they should be so 9 in fact is perhaps not unnatural. At S alt events, it seems pretty clear that H she is making a move in the direction H of adding them definitely to her Empi - e. 3a A crisis has been precipitated, and ai j J this moment the Powers of Europe are | 1 watching each other and seeking 'o j S gather an insight into the real meaning | a of every movement that is made Sus- | 1 picioii lilLs the air, and all sorts of II theories are being propounded, many , ( M which are, no doubt, extravagant and Bj ridiculous.

When a Government ha* made up it mind to force a war it is an easy null tcr to pick a cause of quarrel—to liii a plausible excuse. Tims, in 1870, l'nit sia, foreseeing in the disorganisation and consequent weakness oi France a opportunity for acquisition, when sii deemed her strength Was adequate fo the enterprise, had 110 difficulty in out raging the "amour .propre" of th French people and laying the respond liility for consequences 011 the repres'.'ii tative in Berlin of that nation. 111 al most precisely the same way, the Bui g'arian Government alleges that Hi Porte slighted 11. Gueshofl', the Bui gai'ian agent, be not issuing to him t'i same invitation to attend some tunc tion which had lieeu given to other di;i lomats. So far as cablegrams sho> this is tlie pretext upon which Buigarii seized a portion of the protits hithert .paid to Turkey. It has been known l Kurope that for some time Bulgaria ha been busy making preparations tha were at least suspicious. For instau.-t it had even been cabled out to Hies colonies, as perhaps a subject not witl: out interest to tlu'iu, tint, she wils en gaged in making large purchases of n mounts, lioughly speaking, the arm of Turkey numbers about one million 0 men, anil the Turk lias many times forded the world abundance of evideiin that he knows how to light. The arm; of Bulgaria is only about tiveuty-liv years old, and it numbers about lial the lighting men of Turkey. 111 th face of this view of the relativ 1 strength, it may be a>ked how it come that »a Power .so comparatively weal ; should be found challenging to war : I Power so much her superior* Is then [ no instigator behind? Has Bulgaria ( received 110 assurances of co-operation ! and assislaauce before she decided to I repudiate her nominal allegiance fo the i I'orte? Austria is mustering her forces. ; Why'; What has Austria to do with i any trumpery disagreement about a i portion of a railway between Bulgaria i and Turkey?

Austria can. of conr.se, rely upon 'he support of Uermany. It is all very well U> vociferate "love and peace.'' but ihe "mailed list" is bound ny the terms M the Triple Alliuacc. aud must come down when called upon; so tliat if any pledge has . been given by Austria to Bulgaria that pledge carries with it * l ie assurance of .support also from tiermany and Italy. On behalf of Britain Sir Edward Croy Ims spoken, and spoken as lie might be expected to speak. The right of any nation to alter an international treaty is denied. Only the parties who subscribed to the treaty have a right to alter it. But when three great nations have bound themselves in alliance. offensive and defensive; and one of them decides to pU\ the robber, aud incites another—not one of the three contracting parties—to also play the robber, right and justice and every other consideration go to Ihe winds. »«ir Edward firey has bound England to a policy in the words: — "Turkey ought quickly to be assured that in any revision of Ihe Treaty «*f Berlin, freeing nther Towers and States jrom particular obligations. Turkey's interests and -status will receive full consideration and he adequately safeguarded. We shall use our inlluenee to that end." As was to he expected, England stands for justice.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19081012.2.4

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 247, 12 October 1908, Page 2

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,031

The Daily News MONDAY, OCTOBER 12. THE SITUATION IN THE BALKANS. Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 247, 12 October 1908, Page 2

The Daily News MONDAY, OCTOBER 12. THE SITUATION IN THE BALKANS. Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 247, 12 October 1908, Page 2

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