The Progress of the World. 



435 



I'he Italian (iovernnienl has hardly 

 The Excuse deigned to ofFer any excuse for the 

 the War. ^^'i'' which it is .vaging in Turkey 



hoyond the frank declaration that 

 it wants Tripoli and means to take it. The Turks, 

 the Italians complained, put ob.stacles in the way of 

 Italian financial adventurers in Tripoli, fearing that 

 Ihey might be the pioneers of military invaders. The 

 fear has been abundantly justified by events. The 

 Turks were also accused of creating a bad atmosphere, 

 that is to say, a public opinion hostile to Italy, in 

 Tripoli, ^^'ith the utmost ill-will in the world the 

 'I'urks could not have created anything like suih a 

 bad atmosphere for Italians in Tripoli as the Italian 

 C'lovcrnment has now created for Italy throughout the 

 whole civilisedworld. The above affair stands self-con- 

 fessed as a put-up job between the clerically financed 

 Hanca di Romaand the Italian (jovernment for jumping 

 the country. Naboth's vineyanl lay mighty conveni- 

 ently near .Miab's estate, and the clerical hank ] laved 

 the part of Jezebel to perfection. I!ul when the lime 

 comes for the stoning of Naboth that worthy old 

 gentleman often puts up a fight which astonishes his 

 enemies not a little. The Italian tleet, with its long 

 range heavy guns, had no difficulty in pounding the 

 anti()uated fortifications of the 'i'ripolitan littoral 

 without even coming within range of the Turki.sh 

 cannon. Hut when they landed and came face to 

 face with the natives of the country which they were 

 trying to steal that was another story altogether. 



The Great Powers of Europe, in- 

 Maklne ttie Way . , r i • .u r .1 



of stead ol niakmg the way ol the 



the Transgressor transgressor hard, appear to have 

 .set themselves to make it smooth. 

 None of the sigpalories of the Hague Convention, 

 forty-three in all, performe-l the task which they had 

 solenmly declared to be their duty at both the con- 

 ferences of the Hague. Italy was left free to sin, 

 apparently with impunity : no warning voice reached 

 her from any ([uarier that whatever she might try to 

 do in Tripoli, she would not he allowed to dispose of 

 a single inch of Ottoman territory without the 

 consent of all the other signatories of the Treaties 

 of Paris and Berlin being had and obtained. Not 

 a single reminder reached the Italian Govern- 

 ment from any of the Governments of the world 

 as to the existence of the Hague Conventions^ 

 and of the duly of utilising one or other of the 

 various methods by Ihem suggested for avoiding war. 

 Italy became swell-headed. She hardened her heart, 

 stifret\ed her neck, and haughtily refused to listen to 

 any terms but those of the unconditional surrender and 



[Uv permisswn of the ptopuftt'rs 0/ " PitticU." 



The Psychological Moment. 



Dame EuRor.\ (of tlie Hague .\cadtniy for Voim" Gentle- 

 men) : " I thoroughly disapprove of tliis, and as suoii as ever 

 it's over I shall interfere to put a slop to it." 



absolute annexation of Tripoli and Cyrenaica. ^^■| en 

 the Turks appealed three times in success! 'ii for 

 mediation, the mediating Powers had no consul iti<n 

 to ofl^er except to inform them that peace wa. oily 

 possible by surrendering their sovereiijuty. It was the 

 aui.iicauou ol the huropean concert, the formal 

 acceptance by the Powers of the tearing up of treaties 

 and the final repudiation by " force truculent and 

 unabashed," once more to quote Lord Morley's phrase 

 of the moral judgments of the world. 



Fortunately Ihe Italians did not 



The Resistance f^d ihe inhabitants of Tripoli so 



Turks and Arabs, complacent as the Foreign OlTices 



of luirope. Even when they 

 bombarded them at long range the Turks kept up a 

 heroic resistance, blazing away with their antiquated 

 guns from behind their worthless earthworks, while 

 the 10-inch shells of ihe naval guns burst like thunder- 

 bolts in their midst. It was a combat between 

 pop-guns and rifles, but the jiop-guns went on 

 popping until the poor pop-gunners were killed. 



