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Show EUROPEAN WAR. The prospect of war over the proclamation of Bulgaria's independence seems rather remote at this time, though there is no telling just when the condition will be reversed and the prospect of peace become a remote possibility. Politically, morally and religiously the Turks have long been regarded by the other powers of Europe as an inferior and deficient race of people, and as a nation to be cut up and parceled out among themselves if they only could agree on the apportionment. Russia would like to have a seaport on the Mediterranean, her southern outlet on the Black sea being impeded with difficulties in the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles Darda-nelles which prevent that free passage to the open sea which she would like. Therefore Russia has looked with longing eyes on the possessions of the Turkish empire and wished she had a piece which would make her southern ports seaports in fact. It is plain there is an inner circle working among the powers of Europe which has for its definite defi-nite and permanent object the division and the spoliation of the Turkish empire, only it must be done in a large and benevolent way, without any of the discreditable things which sometimes accompany the partition of territory among the mighty. Bulgaria's Bul-garia's declaration of independence is not the sole cause of the trouble; indeed that may be considered consid-ered as merely an incident. She probably had the backing of some of the signatories of the Treaty of Berlin, as she probably had the consent of the same powers when she seized Eastern Rumelia some twenty-odd years ago. In the situatiou in southern Europe there is plainly the intention to finally cut up the Turkish empire, and all the powers of Europe want is to sec a "fair" division of the territory. The New Vork Tribune says the revolution in Turkey was hailed by most of the world with profound pro-found and sincere gratification. It was placed upon what appeared to be a secure basis, assuring to all peoples in the empire a free and enlightened government gov-ernment and to the empire itself rehabilitation among the powers of the world. It was welcomed, we say, by most of the world. But there were those who regarded it with dismay and with malicious opposition. op-position. They were those who had been sordidly profiting from Turkey's weakness and degradation and who looked for further profit in her future decline de-cline and ultimate collapse. Bulgaria saw in a reformed re-formed and rehabilitated Turkey a menace to her scheme of grabbing Macedonia, and Austria-Hungary saw in it an end of her title to occupancy of Bosnia and Herzegovina. What then? Why, to jump in and do the grabbing before Turkey in her renascence became too strong for them, and at the same time deal her rising rehabilitation a fatal blow. The powers arrayed against Turkey may be so many and so strong that she will not venture to resist, re-sist, and the dread of a general European cataclysm cata-clysm may restrain from interference those powers pow-ers which are not parties to the deed and which righteously disapprove it. But if it does prevail and seems to succeed, we shall be surprised if on the whole it does not cause those who are responsible for it loss rather than gain. It will not be an auspicious aus-picious page of history on which it is recorded that the Moslem Turks sought to do justice and righteousness and to enter paths of enlightened progress, and instead of being encouraged and aided aid-ed were opposed and thrust back again into darkness dark-ness and oppression by a league of Christian powers. ' |