The Progress of the World. 497 



struggle, a death grapple between Young Turks chastised with scorpions 



Cross and Crescent, that there is a where Abdul Hamid had beaten with 



danger of the real issue being for- rods, and the lot of the unfortunate 



gotten. There is no real question raya became intolerable. Especially 



of religious hatred spurring on the was this so in those parts of Turkey 



nations to war. Religion only enters where the Servians and Bulgarians un- 



into play because Turkey is a religious mistakably predominate. In ]\Iace- 



State, in which, therefore, the true donia, where the population has no real 



believers must always dominate, and racial colour, but chameleon-like has 



the unbeliever be oppressed. But the had the habit of changing its colour, 



individual peasants, Turk or Christian, things pressed perhaps less hardly, but 



have lived side by side much more yet hard enough. Refugees poured into 



happily than many of the differing the neighbouring free States peopled by 



sects or divisions amongst the their brothers, and gradually the popu- 



Christians. Indeed, in the past it is lations of the Balkan States became 



possible that almost as many Christians wrought up to a point beyond which it 



have been killed by Christians as ever was impossible to keep the peace, 



by Turks. A possible exception must Besides which, these young and vigorous 



be made in the districts inhabited races saw in the liberation of their 



by savage Mohammedan Alban- enslaved and oppressed brethren a real 



ians, who rather killed and robbed opportunity for legitimate national 



Christians than Turks because the expansion. To have neglected to seize 



latter were armed and the others their opportunity would have been to 



defenceless. In the past the endeavour see a partition of Turkey by the great 



to earmark as Bulgarian, Greek or interested Powers, and their future 



Servian certain ethnographical divisions pushed back indefinitely. We do not 



of Macedonia, and in especial certain hesitate to say that under the new 



towns, has led to the formation of bands conditions the lot of the inhabitant, 



of the various nationalities who strove be he Bulgar, Serb or Turk, will be far 



to convince the population that they happier. Meanwhile the cause of 



were of one particular nationality or democratic government and institutions 



another. The easiest method of dis- has gained a far more notably valuable 



tinguishing the races in Macedonia was victory over reactionaryism than ever 



by their special brand of Greek Ortho- was achieved by the granting of a 



doxy, and so many were slain in a paper constitution, 



desire to coerce them to change their For many years already 



brand. But above all this there was The Balkan League those amongst the ad- 



a very continuing and real lack of signmcance. visers of the various 



organised justice or administration. Balkan States who had 



Under Abdul Hamid it was proverbial, the furthest and clearest sight have 



but with the Constitution things went been urging the imperative necessity 



from bad to worse instead of achieving of some close and binding understand- 



the miraculous change which seemed ing between the various States. There 



to be believed in Western Europe. The have been moments in the past when 



