Persia: The Awakening East 



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royal tribe), clergy, nobles, merchants, 

 and tradesmen. These representatives 

 will be elected by their peers. The na- 

 tional council shall deliberate on all im- 

 portant affairs of state, and shall have 

 the power and right to express its views 

 with freedom and full confidence 'in re- 

 gard to all reforms which may be neces- 

 sary to the welfare of the country. The 

 result of the deliberations of the council 

 shall be submitted through the inter- 

 mediary of the First Minister of State to 

 the Shah for His Majesty's signature, 

 and shall then be carried into effect. The 

 rules of procedure of the national coun- 

 cil shall be drawn up with the approval 

 of the members and shall receive the 

 Shah's signature. The council, after de- 

 termining its rules of procedure, shall 

 then begin to give effect to the sacred 

 laws of Islam and to introduce the nec- 

 essary reforms." 



Thus was accomplished, by an almost 

 bloodless revolution, the same laudable 

 ends that ended in disastrous failure, 

 after months of rapine and outrage, just 

 across the border in "civilized" and 

 "Christian" Russia ! Certainly an en- 

 couraging and instructive sign of the 

 march of events in the "awakening 

 East." 



The first Persian national convention 

 was made up of delegates from all over 

 Persia, but most came from the northern 

 provinces, where constant contact with 

 the restless population of the Caucasus 

 had familiarized the people with the 

 principles of liberty and popular govern- 

 ment. While not elected bv popular suf- 

 frage, this body undoubtedly reoresented 

 the will of the more enlightened and pro- 

 gressive inhabitants of the country, espe- 

 cially in the great centers of population, 

 Tabriz, Teheran, and Ispahan. 



RESULTS OF THE PARLIAMENT 



Taking into account the extraordinary 

 circumstances that made the first na- 

 tional assembly a possibility, and the 

 apathy of by far the greater number of 



the Shah's subjects where their personal 

 liberties are concerned, the work accom- 

 plished by the Persian Parliament after 

 a little more than a year of existence is 

 noteworthy and promising. As in past 

 years, the financial condition of the king- 

 dom leaves much to be desired. 



The Shah's entourage have succeeded 

 in shifting to the shoulders of the 

 people's representatives the constantly 

 recurring question of how to raise rev- 

 enue with every natural resource long 

 since hypothecated in favor of foreign 

 creditors. It must be remembered, how- 

 ever, that Persia's unfortunate financial 

 situation is largely the result of the fol- 

 lies and extravagances of a previous 

 regime, and the present misfortunes that 

 threaten the credit of the country have 

 their root in reckless borrowing and im- 

 providence, lasting over a period of 

 twenty years or more. 



Hopeful signs of internal improve- 

 ment are noticeable all over Persia, espe- 

 cially in the northern provinces, where 

 the towns and villages have taken steps 

 to form local municipal assemblies mod- 

 eled on European lines. Attempts are 

 being made in many provinces to inaug- 

 urate a fair system of taxation, and the 

 people are beginning to realize that the 

 passing of the iniquitous system of tax 

 "farming" means the beginning of a new 

 era of prosperity for the poor as well as 

 the rich. 



Among other signs of the awakening 

 interest of Persian people in the affairs 

 of their country is the sudden and re- 

 markable growth of the Persian press. 

 In place of the old "Moniteur Official," 

 Teheran can now boast of no less than 

 four daily and thirty weekly papers. 

 Most of these are rabidly progressive in 

 their tone, nor can their influence be said 

 to be wholly beneficial to the cause they 

 support. Nevertheless it is a promising 

 sign that the absolute apathy toward 

 public affairs which was a characteristic 

 trait only a few years aq-o is giving place 

 to a new sense of social responsibility. 



