THE TURK.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 179, 27 January 1912, Page 9

THE TURK.

(By an English Resident in the London Graphic). 4 •The position of ' a newspaper correspondent in Turkey, particularly one consistently brought into contact with official circles, pre-eminently demands a man' with a sense of humor. It demands also |a more or less lengthy re- - sidence in the country, a thorough study of the Turkish, caracter, a facility for analysis, and an aptitude for sorting out the, truth from the untruth, plus an ability to swallow the most obvious falsehoods with an air of credulity, coupled with immeasurable tact. The Turk is very susceptible to flattery. That is why German diplomacy has so consistently scored off England in recent years. The Kaiser flattered Abdul Hamid, and there was nothing too good for him. He was dubbed the protector of Islam, presented with the Bagdad railway concession, and on his visit to the Royal carpet factory every piece he admired became automatically: his property. After the proclamation of the Constitution the scene was changed. It was all for England. The arrival of the British Ambassador at Constantinople was greeted by a demonstration the enthusiasm of which finds no parallel in histry. But again flattery and diplomacy triumphed, and in a tfery feW months Germany was entrenched more strongly than .she had even been,under the ancient'regime. English straight talking is not under-' stood by the Turks. Their language ex- „ : eels, that of the French 'as a larigiie .de politiesse. t , Their habits and customs < alike are HONEYCOMBED WITH SUPERFICIAL ETIQUETTE. , which puts the insincere manner of the German to shame. The Turk makes ypu ( .feel thft.t, he. js the kindest, most ' considerate fellow in' the world. He tells you how he'admires England! loves the English, what a privilege it is for, them: to have .an Englishman living among them who cafl aefe them as they : really are, and give the lie direct to all these misleading stories of the'"TeV» rible Turk" circulated by malicious individuals who write in dingy offices in Fleet street, or - rush into print after a hurried Visit to Constantinople and Salonica. You know that he will probably say exactly the same thing to his next German visitor, but in the , exuberance of the moment' his' Apparent sincerity enables you to forge t' this. And in his turn, the Turk.expects to be flattered by you, He is quite convinced in hii own mind that fieis.a cellent individual, but itencourages him wonderfully to hear you say so! ' There is still laoking that quality, which the Americans . call "horse \ sense," an, obvious inability to look-'', ahead', and| the old Kismit fatalism':' which, however admirable m the interior of Asia Minor, is a disadvantage in the governor of a cdnstitutional country. , No better instance of the lack of perception can be given than the situation in which the nation finds itself at present. For months there had been an open agitation in Italy for the annexation of Tripoli, and the weakest of | Turkish diplomats should have realised I that after Bosnia, Herzegovina and Crete, the position of Tripoli was indeed | precarious.' But so far from taking the matter seriously, demanding explana-. tions from Italy, and requesting the , intervention of the Powers while there was yet time, the Cabinet blundered along in seeming ignorance until they were .. ■ .

STARTLED OUT OF THEIR SLUMBER , by the Italian ultimatum. While European statesmen looked ahead their fifty; and one hundred years, Turkey's politicians rest content with the affairs of to-day. They say, in effect, with Persia's old Moslem poet, Omar Khayyam# Unborn to-morrow and dead yesterday: —why fret about them if to-day be sweet? ■

The man I like best is the pure, uncontaminated Turk who has never seen Europe. He is wonderfully hospitable, amazingly kind, essentially a man of peace, and a fervent religionist. He is a Moslem, has been reared in Moslemism, and belie/ves in his religion.* He worships God. Five time a day he bows to his Maker. He is honest and straightforward in his business dealings, and his word is his bond. I do not suggest that every Turk possesses all these qualities which I have attributed to the race, nor am I painting liim in too rosy a color. I have made many voyages into the interior of Macedonia and Asia Minor; I have entered Turkish villages high up oft the snow, stockaded against the bears, where the inhabitants have never seen a European before, and my trust in the kindness and hospitality of these men has never failed me. To the old traveller in Turkey it is a joy, after a hard day in the saddle up and down the slippery mountain passes, to spy the glittering minaret which denotes a Mussulman village. He knows that, no matter at what hour he may reach that haven, he has only to knock at the Bey's door, that he will be welcomed, his horse tended and fed, the best available meal prepared for him, and a clean mattress on a clean floor placed at his disposal. The greatest infeult that the grateful one can offer his host is to suggest payment. The

BACKSHEESH IS FOR THE SERVANTS who have waited on him 1 and washedi his hands. It is always unpleasant for the Christian to have to admit that these Utopian conditions do not exist in the Christian villages of Macedonia, where incivility, dirt and extortion invaribaly await the traveller. Nothing could have been more correct and' more admirable than the conduct of the Turks during the outbreak of hostilities with Italy. Indeed, it can be affirmed, without fear of contradiction, that no other people would have shown such consideration towards an enemy guilty of such an outrage against all tliat tho nation holds dear. At Salonica the lowering of the Consular arms and the felling of the flagstaff took place in perfect order, and the epithets hurled at the Italian nation proceeded for the most part out of the mouth of Jews, and not the Mussulmans. The officers sent to take posae* sion of the Italian hospital called the sisters together, apologised for their presence, explained the object of their visit, and assured them that they would not be molested, and that they were at perfect liberty to continue their medical : and religious ministrations. Italian subjects follow their customary vocations without let or hindrance and go hither and thither in perfect security, not a voice being raised against them. Whatever we may think of the political adventurers who push themselves into responsible positions, of the inefficiency of the interior governors totally incapable of safe or impartial government, or of the occasional brutality of an uneducated corporal of gendarmes, we must admit that the Turk has many sterling qualities. He is lazy, but kind; uneducated, but hosDita'ble: a. bad governor, but a docile citizen ~ ,