Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 283, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 December 1914 — Sàloniki A Dying City [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Sàloniki A Dying City

LORD Disraeli put It justly when he said that war does not solve, but complicates, writes a correi spondent of the Chicago News from Bulgaria. This truth was very clearly demonstrated in the Balkans in the last two bloody years. The Christian states were against the Turk In order to solve by force df arms the long mooted eastern question. The result of the struggle in this peninsula is well known to the world. The Macedonian question, which was the real eastern question, was not solved, but out of it sprang, in addition: to it, an Aegean question, an Epirus question, a Thracian question, a Dobroudjan question, and last, bat not least, the question of Saloniki. I need not touch upon the subject of the desolation and depopulation of the affected districts, which today have the appearance of a veritable wilderness. The recent Balkan wars coßt the Balkan states $1,000,000,000 in money and a million lives, counting the thousands of victims of racial persecution that died and are dying from exposure and famine. In Bulgaria more than 350,000 refugees sought shelter from Macedonia, Thrace and Dobroudja. Flight of Moslems.

Then followed the flight of the Turkish population from Macedonia and Novi-Pajaar district. In one week some 10,000 Moslems passed through Sofia station on their way to Asia. All were natives of NoviPajaar. The Turkish government retaliated and during the last several months the Christians have been forced to flee from Thrace and Asia

Minor. This affected chiefly the Greek element. Mr. Venizelos.'in protesting to the porte, declared that in Saloniki alone 5,000 Greek refugees arrived daily for some time after Easter. t Had the Balkan states foreseen the terrible calamities that befell them as a result of their war with the Turk, I am sure they would have never undertaken it ; It is nearly a year since the last war was over; still life in Macedonia, Epirus and Thrace is unbearable, the people are on the ¥erge of starvation, the cities are decaying and commerce is dead. Adrianople, Monastir, Uskub and Saloniki, not to speak of the interior, are merely shadows of their former state. I Saloniki, the capital of Macedonia, has been declared by all to be dying fast. When it is remembered that in the days of the Apostle Paul Saloniki was a very prosperous city numbering some three hundred thousand inhabitants, and that in Turkish times, too, it was second only to Constantinople fn importance, one Is at a loss to account for its stagnation and dilapidation today. Many believed that the port in the hands of a modern state would fare far better than under the Turks. Decay of Saloniki. The reasons for the decay of Baloniki &re obvious to those who are versed in the history and conditions of the Balkans. During Turkish times Saloniki was a flourishing port because it served as a distributing port. It supplied with goods, not only Macedonia, but also Epirus, Albania, Thrace and even northeastern Bulgaria and southern Servla, Saloniki goods were sold even in Sofia and Belgrade. That was made possible because of the low tariff that existed between Turkey and those states.

But Macedonia alone would have been sufficient to feed its capital. That is why it is said that Macedonia could not exist without Saloniki and vice versa. Today, however, Macedonia is divided between Greece, Servia and Bulgaria, Greece having the smallest part of it. Hence Saloniki has no border land of any account.

That being the case, not only has the commerce in and about Saloniki been hampered, but the adjoining states, Servia and Austria in particular, have found it necessary to demand a free outlet at that port. Meeting after meeting has been held and urgent requests have been made by the citizens of Saloniki to the Athenian government to find some way of preventing the commercial death of the city, but thus far in vain. The sugar and flour industry, the shoe factories and nearly the entire manufacturing system have been almost • destroyed. Business transactions are tardy and insecure and the exports and imports for the year will not amount to one-fourth the of former years. Two weeks ago another mass meeting took place in the city which was attended by leading Greek merchants as well as others. It was urged in a resolution that the city be made a free commercial town. Hard Problem for Greece.

Under these circumstances one can understand why Greece granted Servia a free zone in that port. As soon, however, as the news of that concession was made public Austria demanded the same right. But should

Austria be permitted to have free access Saloniki it will be equivalent to making the city another Hamburg. Hence the question of Saloniki is now puzzling Greece. Greece is placed in a difficult dilemma. She must choose between a dead Saloniki, thereby depriving thousands of her citizens of their daily bread, or yield to the demands of Servia and Austria and subsequently of all interested nations to make it an international emporium.

GENERAL VIEW OF SALONIKI