Italian-Turko War

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 91, 7 October 1911, Page 5

Italian-Turko War

OVERWHELMING TRIPOLI. SIXTV TRANSPORTS READY. By Cable—Press Association—Copyright. Rome, October.s. Sixty transports are ready to depart with four army corps. The authorities intend to subdue the country rapidly with an overwhelming force. Admiral Taravelli reports that Tripoli has not capitulated. The Turks abandoned the sea forts and retired to the town fortifications, which probably will be bombarded to-dav.

ITALIAN FLEET OFF TRIPOLI. THE FORTS DESERTED. TURKISH DESTROYERS ACTIVE. Received 6, 10.5 p.m. Rome, October C. It is semi officially reported that when the Sultaines and Nansidieh forts ceased firing, two Italian officers landed and found the forts deserted. The Turks had removed the breechblocks from the guns. Three dead Turks were discovered.

The Italian flag was hoisted on the Sultaines fort at noon on Thursday.

Other Tripoli telegrams state that apparently the majority of the Turks fled to the hills at the end of the first day's bombardment. The remainder did not interfere with the landing parties, which numbered five.

When the lighthouse collapsed ViceAdmiral Taravelli realised his mistake and ordered a reconnaissance party of fifty ashore. They erected a wooden etmcture.

Turkish destroyers are nightly attempting to approach the fleet, but the Italian torpedoers and destroyers always detect them and give chase, but hitherto fruitlessly.

A FORT THAT TOOK SOME SILENCINC. ITALIANS PLAYING A CAUTIOUS GAME. LOOKING FOR THE TURKISH FLEET. AEROPLANES DESPATCHED TO SEAT WAR. ENTHUSIASM IN ITALY. Received 6, 11.25 p.m. Rome, October C. The so-called English fort to the left of the harbor resisted the longest, being provided with longer range guns. The ramparts' had been strengthened by •sand bags, and the Italian shells had little effect upon them. The large Italian guns were required to silence the fort. Popular enthusiasm is increasing daily. It is> expected it will reach its apex when the King farewells his troops at Xaple-. The lung preliminary bombardment was due to a de-ire to save lives and property as far as possible. Many criticise the delay on the ground that the pseudo bumanitarianLsm may eventually cause greater losses than immediate action. The authorities have decided, when a safe landing is secured, the squadron shall send two thousand men ashore with light artillery, under the protection of the long range guns of the battleKhips. It is impossible to land more, as there must be sufficient men aboard to repel an attack at sea.

In order to prevent an attempt. Admiral Auby. with four battleships of the Yittorioema and Xuele class, two cruisers of the Pisa class, and the cruiser Sanmartn. is searching for the Turkish fleet, which the Admiral supposes is concealed in the Aegean Sea.

The Duke of Abruzzi continues to police the Adriatic and lonian waters.

Eight monoplanes and two biplanes have lieen despatched to Tripoli under Captain I'ragza. the winner of the Bo-logna-Yonice race. Xine officers and pilots accompany him.

BP.ITAIVS ATTITUDE. CEP.MAX COKBESI'OXDEXTS' STATEMEXTS. P.eceived 7. 1 a.m. Berlin. October fi. Constantinople f..rr.-poiidents. on the authority of a promim-nt Turkish statesman, say that while Germany recommends Turkey to take the ultimatum as a basis of peace. Britain proposes that Tripoli -hould Ix-come a privileged vilayet under Turco-Italian administration, preserving the Sultan's suzerainty. It is also alleged by the correspondents. that British diplomacy is sub rosa urging Turkey to vigorous resistance. If Italy to meet Turkey, Britain will intervene sharply.

HOMRARDMEXT OF OTHER TOWN'S. TURKS OFFER VALIANT RESISTANCE. Received 7, I a.m. Constantinople. October (1. The bombardment of Benghazi and Berna lias begun. The Turks arc offering valiant resistance. Firing has been heard in the Gulf of faros, nortli of the Dardanelles. Italian searchlight- have been seen at Mitvlene.

fIREEK RESERVES CALLED OUT. OYVIXC TO TURKISH CONTEXTRATIOX. Received 7. 1 a.m. Athens. October (I. Eleven classes of re-mes have been called out for duty on the Turkish frontier, owing to fiiith-r Turkish concentration at Corfu. A telegram states that the Italian ultimatum regarding Preveza Ims been withdrawn.

ALLEGED BREACH OF NEUTRALITY.

Cairo, October a. Italy has protested to the governor of the Suez Canal against the continued presence at Port Said of the Turkish transport Kaiser, which Italy claims is a breach of the neutrality of the canal. TURKISH FLEET SAFE. Constantinople, October i). The fleet has arrived in the Bosporus.

E MBARRASSIN'G G ER.MAN"Y. Berlin, October 5. The Anglophobe press accepts the Daily Graphic's statement that Sir Edward Grey was aware in August that Italy was advancing claims to Tripoli. The Post declares that England and France consented in order to embarrass Germany with Italy and Turkey.

A CINDERELLA STATE. TURKEY'S ATTEMPTS TO BORROW. A LESSON IN EUROPEAN DIPLOMACY. When the Young Turks came into power there was not a sixpence in the Treasury. To restore order, to secure the country from external dangers, and to find means for developing the resources of the country, money was a pressing necessity. Recourse, therefore (states Sir Adam Block in his annual report of the Turkish finances) had naturally to be made to borrowing. When everything had to be created afresh, and before the results of better administration could be felt, it was impossible for Turkey to become self-supporting. Better administration and the development of the resources of the country so as to establish an equilibrium in the Budget were results which could not be realised without money. The European money markets fully understood the situation, and money was at first found without difficulty.

Last year Turkey set out to borrow something in the neighborhood of ten millions sterling. j n - order to put her army and fleet on a better footing . She first approached France, the source from which most of the Turkish loans in the past has been obtained. France, however, made a single stipulation which proved so serious a hindrance to the negotiations that they ultimately fell through. Thi*! proviso was that a French ollicial should be appointed to share in advising the Porte in financial affairs. Young Turkev had placed a higher rating than this'on its financial standing among the nations, and declined. Djavid Hey, the Turkish Minister for Finance at the time, then turned to Germany for aid. The Austro-Cerman banks offered, instead of a real loan, an / advance of £0.000,000 at (i per cent, for |ii term of six months only—a term so short that Turkey must of necessity secure another loan, which in the end would cost her far more than an oriI ginal long-term loan from France, the interest on which would have becn'onlv 4 per cent.

Djavid Bey soon found himself negotiating with financial institutions not of the highest class. Unsuccessful with these, he fell back on Sir Ernest Cassel and the National Bank; but the British Government stepped in and vetoed the promised loan by that institution. Nothing remained but to accept the assistance promised him bv sonic German financial institutions, the net result boiii" that in lieu of lI.OIMi.OO'I Turkish pounds (a Turkish pound is worth about ISs). which Young Turkey would have received from the Ottoman Bank, she received from her German friends onlv 3.351.000 Turkish poumls-a severe enough lesson at the bands of French diplomacy even for the self-confident new regime at Constantinople. The Spectator, in a recent article on Turkish finance, said:

"That the expenditure of the Youn* Turk (iovenmient is out of proportion to the resources of the country is admitted by all competent observers. But oV en so. there are. of course, degrees of disproportion; ami there are financial mistakes which can he remedied just as there are financial mistakes which cannot. Three weeks ago. in discussiii" the political situation in Turkey, we mooted from an articles in a French review which made a very gloomy survey of Turkish finance. The writer spoke of the habit of contracting loans which bad grown like the drug habit. The Government, he declared, renders no adequate accounts : no one can say exactly how the recent loans have been expended and the same thing is true of the indemnity paid by Austria-Hungary after Bosnia and Herzegovina were annexed and of the large sum of money said to have been discovered at Yildiz Kiosk. "We have ourselves for some time mistrusted the excessive expenditure on the Army and Navy. Sir Adam Block does not deny that this expenditure is unjustifiable. After retailing the cost o\' the Army and Xavv. he says: "'I fear that .•very friend'of Turkey must, feel disappointed with these (Hires as the expenditure is excessive under existing financial condition.. The military and naval expenses represent X) per cent. „f (!„• ~„.,! expenditure, and it the extraordinary expenditure is taken '"•'> •''••'•oiim the proportion i. s 3:, „„. eent. Leaving the Groat Powers aside, the expend:!nre in ((recce in lmjn. IH f Jlr as lam able to get the figures, f or the army and navy combined, was -'1 per eent.: in Bulgaria it was -_>;{ per cent • in Soma 2ii per cent.: and in Koumanin 1.) per cent.

"He find-:, however, exm-es for this - ount:1 he general feeling in Turkev was that, J"' moment was criti,,,l. an,]'it was hc-iM-vcrt tli.it with tin, outlay the count,-,-won., be -ecureand th Covcrnment better able to p-ncecd with t he ~eaeef„l ,],.. v«.1..,.ii„.nt of its resources. Although not product.vc expenditure properlv so'■Bl1"'1 - "»'■!«'•>• mi.r naval expenditure may some,inns he considered as i ll(i i s - "ho l,ke .nmlar Ministers i„ other •'"-mines, was | lin , lilS v (]|o (I( , n)ai|(|s "arand Mamie. l m ,l to „ iv(l •.,