Evening Republican, Volume 19, Number 224, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 September 1915 — TURKS MAY LOSE GRIP ON PALESTINE [ARTICLE]

TURKS MAY LOSE GRIP ON PALESTINE

Creation of Chrietlan State With Neutrality Guaranteed by Powers Advocated. JEWISH IMMIGRATION 18 SMALL If Project Goes Through, Hebrews Will Not Be Excluded, However. London. —“A land flowing with milk and honey”—thus waa Palestine once, but today it is largely a waste. Will the present world struggle result in the new birth of the little country where the Savior lived? A movement has started here to oust the Turks from the holy places —Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Lebanon and the Mount of Olives, when the Mohammedan masters and their German allies shall have been soundly beaten.

This new state will not be Jewish but will have plenty of room for all the Jews who wish to settle here. It will be tolerant toward all religions. The country came under Turkish dominion in 1616, after the war between the Ottoman Sultan and the Egyptian Mamelukes, and thereafter for over 300 years the history of Palestine has been a record of sanguinary quarrels between the landed sheikhs, and of the oppression df the peasantry by them and by Turkish officials. It was not until 1840 that the arbitrary power of the sheikhs was curbed. The Turks then began to strengthen their hold, and though much has been done for the betterment of the country, the blight of Ottoman Government has" continued to oppress it.

Two alternative policies present themselves in this urgent problem. The German Emperor has taken a great interest in Palestine and his rather theatrical visit to the Holy Land in 1908, has contributed to the extension of German activity in the country. There is the proposal of the Zionists, expressed -by Herzy, who came to this country in the year of the Kaiser’s visit to Palestine, that a Jewish state shall be established in that land. There is also the proposal now put forward, that the country shall now be developed into a -Christian state, guaranteed, perhaps, in its national neutrality by the powers.

The Zionist movement, which drew much of its strength from the persecutions of the Anti-Semites, and has been inspired by race consciousness and the idea of a spiritual mission, led to a deep interest among the Jews in the affairs of the Holy Land. Practically the movement took the form of improving the situation of the local Jews, but it embodied also the purpose of re-establishing the Jewish nation in the country. Lord Palmerston became interested in the plan, and Lord Beaconsfield and Lord Salisbury supported Laurence Oliphant in his negotiations with the Porte for a concession, which migh't pave the way to the establishment of such a State, which was regarded as promising a further strengthening of the British route to India.

But the much advertised Zioalst movement has not resulted in any great and continuous stream of Jewish migration into the country. It is proposed, therefore, to work toward the creation of a Christian State In Palestine, as was formerly projected, or as an autonomous state, guaranteed in its permanent neutrality by the powers. Such a poltical organization woud by no means exclude Jews from the country, for it would need to be, above all things, tolerant Toleration, it must be admitted, has not been the rule in the Holy Laud. An end must be put to the quarrels between various orders of the Greek and Latin churches, which have not been crediffible to the spirit which it desirable to elevate. There have been old-standing causes of dispute at work, the Russians supporting the Greek monks and the Turks looking a little tolerantly toward the Latins under French inspirations. Should Greeks or Latins -enjoy most consideration? Which of them should enter earliest in the day into the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, or should have possession of the great Church of Bethlehem? There was a disturbance In November, 1901, which from a dispute as to the right to sweep pertain stairs at the Holy Sepulchre Church, after which the t .ntin communities were assigned to the protection of their national Consuls. Such abuses have arisen from the want of proper understanding between the powers, And of any means of settling disputed points. A Christian state established in Palestine would be in a stronger position. Perhaps preferable to the old idea of British control, would be a guaranteed neutral state, all the great powers having representatives ft the seat of government Permanent neutrality should be guaranteed, and order might be kept by the Institution of gendarmerie, with officers specially selected by the Powers. Under a system of this nature all of the holy places would be very sealously guarded and would never be subpect to desecrations, either by petty quarrels or the intrusion of tramways or any other like visible expression of the activities and advancement of modern life. There would soon follow a marvelous development of a very rich country which baa suffered very long from neglect, and yet abounds in many natural resources atm untouched. .