Welsh Journals

THE WELSH OUTLOOK The Editor does not necessarily identify himself with the opinions of contributors to The Welsh Outlook. Editorial responsibility is limited to the views'* expressed fin the Notes of the Month," and in the unsigned article immediately following. NOTES OF THE MONTH The Fate of A horrible scandal is threatened Ever Constantinople, since the days when Mr. Gladstone thundered against the Bulgarian atrocities, the policy of the^ Liberal party has been the expulsion of the Turk from Europe, bag and baggage. Now we are told that the Government intends not only that the Sultan shall remain at Con- stantinople, but that he shall continue to misgovern a portion of Asia, including part of Armenia and classical Cilicia. And the Ottoman Turk has in no way mended his manners nor his morals. This month some hundreds of Armenians have been butchered by these wretches, the climax to the hideous series of massacres that have dis- graced the Ottoman rule during the war years. And what is the excuse ? It is said that Indian Mahommedans regard the Sultan as their spiritual chief, and will not tolerate his removal from Constantinople. Who swallows this ? An elementary knowledge of Mahommedan religion would show that the Khaliff must be of the race of Mahommed, and must be elected by the faithful, claims which the Sultan does not possess. That some cute persons in London and Paris, who have financial reasons for keeping the Sultan in Constantinople, may have stirred up a bogus agitation in India is possible that they may have humbugged persons in authority in this country to think that such an agitation exists is probable. But, supposing the argument to be valid, what does it come to ? Christians in the near East are to be massacred in thousands and the murderers are to be left in a position to continue their crimes, because Indian Mahommedans so desire. We are all for Indian self-determination in India, but we are net prepared even at Mr. Montague's dictation to make Europe a province of India, or to subject Christianity to Islam. Apart also from the question of right and wrong, to leave the Otto- man Turk in possession of Constantinople is to lay the MARCH, 1920 seeds of another war, for Eastern Christendom will never tolerate such an abomination. In the old days, the Welsh Free Churches rallied splendidly in the cause of Armenia. Let them speak firmly again to-day, and back up the splendid protest against this cruel wickedness. It is monstrous that their righteous desire should count for less than those of Jewish financiers. A few strong resolutions from Nonconformist leaders would move the Premier, and save the honour of our Christianity. The Adriatic Every honest Nationalist must welcome Settlement. President Wilson's note on the Jan- uary Compromise" over the Adriatic Settlement. It will be remembered that on December 9th the British, French and American representatives at the Peace Conference addressed a note to the Italian Govern- ment in which it was proposed that Fiume should be placed under the control of the League of Nations, and the Italian demand for the acquisition of undoubted Slav territory in Istria, populated by nearly half a million Slavs, was discountenanced. But the country-which was once Mazzini's-refused to accept the decent solution and evidently got its Chauvinistic way, with the result that in January the Allied representatives-without consultation with America-attempted to force the Italian solution on the Yugo Slavs and threatened them, in the event of recalcitrance, with the enforcement of the Secret treaty of 1915, which would give Italy most of Dalmatia and the Dalmatian islands. Now that he is clear of the subtly dishonest legalist atmosphere of Paris, the President is once more able to apply the first principles of the Fourteen Points to proposed solutions, and his protest, coupled, as is rumoured, with the threat of the complete withdrawal of America from the general European settlement, may remind other statesmen of the existence of moral principles.