Show i I THE TUE FRANCO TURKISH GAME OF OP BLUFF DO not know of ot course what may bo Lo tho condition of ot affairs I between Turkey and Franco France when ehon this letter totter appears In print hut but Just at Rt present It Is III to laugh lau h UK hll tho French say nay with the tha laugh on or 01 the eldo of Johnny Crapaud I In very truth the French have Nava taken On a 0 leaf leat out of the tho Sick Stans diplo diplomatic matte matic ado vado mecUm and tr are hugging over tho the outcome of at their coup In Jn Sine fine Rear Admiral called ou out f of t Toulon on sealed orders with a n squadron composed i of ot great battleships and crullers crul er car care carrying an aggregate crew of more moro than 2000 men landing patrols etc eto with the I Ie Leant Vint as a his hili destination Whether er ho h promptly reached that destination or not was something aside from the thereal real ical purport of at the expedition which was merely m rely to shako up tho the sultan by bya a naval lIa demonstration under tinder hl his very ely nose se to speak How beautifully the scheme worked Is already known and tho the chagrin of ot tho the sultan when his hili en cm emIts emirs Irs b heat him at nt his hia own on favorite game sume of oR o bluff blure must have been Intense We need n ll only to appeal to history to learn the trend tren of ot tho the sultans miscalled ml diplomacy when ho ante wanta w to cave hU his hide nod life his argent at the same timeline time Hie line peculiar strength lies Hei II ns as n we the all ail know lenow In being able to play a n seesaw game with nil all tho the powers holding hold In I them off ott ns liS ha ho does docs by working upon their mutual distrust The Tho Inevitable end of ot Turkey already a II pariah among the powers IB Is of at course expulsion n from Crom CromI Europe I and nud perhaps extinction as a n na 1 lion Hut But Just when that end will come comeno comeno comeno no man ventures venture to predict prell let All tho the signatories save cave perhaps one to the tho thoc concert c bY which the tho Sick Man Ian lo to held In his present position as a mis mischief chief maker are desirous of having him kicked out But who will do tho the kickIng kick Ing It Is s tho the premier coup that all feat but once that has hns been adminis Adminta administered then good goodby by 11 Sultan humid II the tha arch mischief maker of ot Europe I and the prevaricating of ot Asia Minor It Is le needless to discuss the actuating reasons for tor nil all the display of at forbear forbearance ance once e by the tho great European l powers toe to toward toward ward their cringing yet Insolent Mo Mohammedan Mohammedan neighbor on the tho banks hanks of ot the for tor they have havo been nar narrated narrated rated and discussed lo Io these hese t many years yearn Not only every vcr nation In Eu Europe I u rope but one might well say every civilized nation In the world has had hall a Ii grievance against Turkey The grievance ance Meo of the United States Slates was HO ao recent as to bo ho universally known but aside from that In common with every overy re Ie respectable respectable nation In the world It has a grievance of ot long standing agaInst Tur Turey Turley lcy ley ey for merely continuing to exist But let that pass Tho The claim of at Ab duls admirers that he ho I Is one of tho the worlds greatest diplomatists merely because he be tho the arts arte of ot mendacity and procrastination with effect has been exploded and to Johnny Crapaud belongs the credit of having punctured that Iridescent bubble and brought It to a 1 collapse It U is to laugh the tho Frenchmen say ay and RIm flea blen bien quI rim le Is dernier they have most to laugh ugh at who laugh last I venture to quote this In Ir tho original because I hear It no so often In la this city In the cafes c te on the tha boule fact everywhere tv Still the Wily Abdul may yot yet have havo something up his sleeve and amI It Is with a e quasi apprehensive lve shiver that the tha French not BI as they should all against Turkey us UI n common enemy and an nn affront to td te twentieth century e but bitt ac no according cording to their th fancied Interests them thora II It no doubt in tho the world what tho the out e ea r y gam C 1 aJ r rI Admiral r I j III r N p p uI I I V III li Y t i i I 9 I k III IIII I 1 I 11 I I I II I Iw I 9 I I Ili lt id idyl I i f I Q t rP i I I 1 I t I I II I i Iu Ili IS k kI t 1 1 I l I tl I I I q L 1 U 1 1 ll t 1 1 1 I ll I S I 1 l me ill II I II rt i i t 1 1 I U a I I rut r u un I 14 r pI laU t d I P I I I I I I li I i iI ii i y t I 1 t i k sometime l nun men wonder whether their with wi II l tho the great rent white czar Is Isio Iso io so o cordial and compi divisive after aHer nil all They Thoy know that the Turkish customs are aio practically controlled by loy agents agent of ot tl Ube Czar who has never neer yet received all the tho vast vas Indemnities duo due him They The know Imol that hint lI nt by sending Bending u 1 fleet to seize 1110 1 a n customs custom district and reimburse them themselves themselves selves ele for or that alleged to be due the French company for tor tho tic build building buildIng ing of ot the Constantinople quays and tho the class casus belli beth In the tho present claim they the may muy affront the sultans quondam friend and perhaps present actual ally nil Acuto as they are arc the tho Frenchmen I somehow have hac a n dispiriting suspicion that they hoy are no match for tor Muscovite and Mohammedan diplomacy combined Either r alone Is I bad enough but together er they arc are appalling Let Jet us steer clear of speculation how however bo however ever and confine connul ourselves to facts Without taking Into Inlo account the tho ka kalel lel combinations c that might re reo result suit sult among tho the powers In the event ofa of ot ofa a II war between Franco Franca and Turkey Turk when said Mid powers align themselves uv U nt 17 l I r o i f i ir French rech r relic n h IB Uti I es I up 6 ill IS f v i i i I I 1 F como come would be Notwithstanding the thA tact fott that every evry man In h the Turkish army Is a II desperate fighter lighter and that In Inthe the tho event vent of at war nr Turkey TUrley could place men In the lk field tier present army arm on a Q peace pence footing fooling being about lt Is IA plain that Franco France would In Inthe Inthe inthe the end conquer In a run for tor the tho light fight would bo ho o largely on the tM sea Has Ices It ever occurred to you Amen Ameri Americans cans that only three years yeats ago France was acknowledged by naval authorities to be supreme In the Mediterranean with a n lighting fighting strength there much greater than that of ot Great Britain Brito In and ami that It now ranks only second to the latter nation as a Il naval power Yet this tubs Is eo so and what Is more mor tho time i French are are well aware of ot the tho fact tact that combined with Russia Russin and Germany which rank respectively third and J A u United States standing fourth they the would have a tonnage and ar armament armament equal to Great Great Besides tho the great reat battleships Gnu Gau lotu Iola and Charlemagne which steamed sand nard Du Chayla and Galilee But nut these thello are arc surpassed by many others such Ruch for tor example ns as tho the armored cruls cruiser r with displacement of ot nearly tons ton speed of 21 knots and for a 1 M r M 11 I t ti It I t r 11 II F T Irke c st i out of ot Toulon under Rear near Admiral Call lard larl the tho other day were armored cruis cruls cruisers ers era like the Admiral and La Latouche Latouche touche louche ho cruisers Gas Cas UC d Ch II tl armament The great grent battleship battle ship 1 Is looked upon as ns one of ot ottIle the tIle finest war vessels afloat and that monster the Charles a first nl 1 F class battleship of ot tons li Is nearly OO feet reet In III length with an armor belt from rein 10 to 17 1 Inches In thickness These are aro not the only giants tho the French pos pas possess seas sess for tor they Have launched several cruisers and battleships every year for forthe tho the past decade d calle Ai As for Cor the smaller fry fr such as u ny torpedo boats and destroy Era fra rs they have havo turned them out by the dozen Trance France tins has at least forty battle hottle battleships ships slips built and building besides as many more armored and second class Cl S us say sa and unarmored or In all alii while Turkey at her best cannot sum summon summon summon mon to her old aid more than twenty iron ironclads ironclads obsolete and rusty rusl from neglect and am perhaps two dozen torpedo boats which no 10 Turk furk daro dare handle from tear rear of ot going to the tho bottom Altogether Turkey can enn show allow only vessels of ot nil all cla classes cn mostly out ot of date and can muster but bul 1500 1600 sailors Her total steam and sail amounts to only On GIO O tons while France l rance has more than no JO vessels of at nit nil classes with a II tonnage of ot above OO The coast of at Franco France fairly swarms with cruisers armored and unarmored torpedo torpe o boats bonts and sub Aub submarines submarines marines and arid Is defended by forts of ot great rent strength while tho the coast const of ot Tur Turkey key hey Ite In and In Asia along the tho Dardanelles and antI the even een Is absolutely unprotected ns os a modern na no naval val vol expert export would view It ItIn ItIn itIn In a n comparison of ot land l nd forces tarces even though the French army on a n peace pence footing Is and moro more than on a n war basis the tho Turkish army arm with Its million or so on a n war footing tooting would not bo 10 perhaps at such a II vantage vanta on account of ot the distance that Franco France I would have hn ve to transport tra hermen her hermen II men supplies and munitions The last war with Greece Grecco proved the Turks Turku no cowards their enemies run running running I ning before their onslaughts like flocks docks of ot sheep so 10 the Trench French would probably have no advantage nd over ocr their opponents on tho score of ot bravery But ut tho the war should It como come to pass will not be fought on land but mainly on the sea or at nt least from the thc decks of ot cruls rs ra and un battleships As the bulk of at the Turkish navy hUll has paper walls wails or orIn orIn orIn In other words cords does doe not actually exist exl t thorn there Is little doubt us liS to the tho outcome of ot the hc first encounter between the re respective e warships And when once time the I s MIl and time the are cleared antI and Constantinople lies unde undefended undefended fended before tho the advancing fleets neels her ber only anI salvation will be that Invisible hand which will be bo stretched forth by bythe bythe bythe the concert to arrest the time progress of ot the tho victor Sentiment will save sae Constantinople Con Constantinople from fro III tho the French en turo tune they ever penetrate BO so faras It saved It from the guns In 1ST ms It matters not that sentiment isone Is Isone Isone one of Jealously and commercialism sordid and unworthy It will prevail le 11 II and the tho Turk will be bo allowed another respite before being commanded to pack up his things and leave I It seems however to bo Imo the prevail prevailing prevailIng ing belief bellet that France will be allow allowe ej a afree 1 afree I free tree hand mand up UI to a certain point When she ISho reaches the danger line lino she will be compelled to halt even though behind her stand the tho czar and his b Is le Ie legions lee 1 glons gions JAMES JA IES WELLMAN JOHNSON Paris C i J n a |