October 17, 1918 
LAND &? WATER 
13 
lie did hold the rank of second-Heutenant in the Turkish, pot find it ? But, unfortunately, the region in which they 
Army, is, militarily speaking, only a creature of mushroom would conduct their experiments is likely to be surrounded 
growth; and entirely ornamental. "Tell it not in Gath, but by neighbours who are watching them with critical and 
the initiative of all these exploits came-from an infidel ally covetous eves. We cannot afford to permit experiments in 
•of the Faithful. ' " Greater Arabia. Neither will it be fa'ir to the various peoples 
There is a grim desolate tract of country over which to other than Arab who dwell side by side with them over the 
operate, and things do not become any easier with the country, after 'being delivered from the Turks, to be handed 
ad\-ance to the north. True, the country when you get to over to a race which has yet to learn how to rule. 
A„ I ^ - It comes to this, 
then : that the 
Arab alliance sad- 
dles us with a new 
• and heavy respon- 
sibility. Having 
expelled the devil 
from the wasted 
body, it lies with 
t us so to reanimate 
the soul of.the new 
nation as to fore- 
stall the return of 
that devil, and 
others worse than 
he. Federation is 
the probable solu- 
tion ; but it must 
be a federation 
with a strong cen- 
tral authority t« 
control the work- 
ing and curb the 
jealousies of the 
different States. 
And there is the 
crux of the prob- 
lem. Hovr to find 
a man or body 
of men both pos- 
sessed of the 
requisite ability 
Amman begins to 
be more hospitable 
in character, and 
j^there are Arab 
tribes about who 
are not unsympa- 
thetic ; but, on the 
other hand, the 
cause of the Turk 
is 'espoused here- 
about b\- levies of 
Kurds, who have 
indeed been pur- 
posely for some 
time settled in this 
disaffected region 
on account of their 
loyalty. The Kurd 
is usually a tougher 
fighter than the 
Arab, and he has 
got to be reckoned 
with in any future 
redistribution of 
dominion. He 
must certainly be 
induced to with- 
draw from Greater 
Arabia when the 
Arab starts ruling 
it. 
Unfortunatelv. 
A GROUP OF DISTINGUISHED ARABS 
Emir Faical, General Dfaalar^ Dacha, and their Stall. 
the Arab character is not of the. type' from which genius and acceptable to the whole of the Arab world? All Arabs 
easily springs, nor has the art of government ever been have this thought in their mind. Distrust of us and distrust 
understood by them. They have always been either too of each other, and the consequent uncertainties of the future, 
high in their ideals or too keen in the pursuit of private is indeed what accounts for much of the inertia and hesitation 
interests to study it, and are still the same. As a people, 
they have many attractive qualities, but none of those that 
are usually possessed by leaders of men. there is the 
aristocratic type ; his 'dignity is splendid, his manners charm- 
ing, his tongue 
of silver. But 
these graces are 
not as they woul(J 
be in a European 
race, a throw-back 
to an ancestry of 
heroes. They 
merely illustrate 
the fact that this 
stately gentleman 
is one of the chosen 
of Allah. He is far 
too superior a per- 
son to dream of 
being troubled 
with the daily 
irksome stress 
of human affairs. 
Then there is the 
literary type:, the 
man who has read 
and is, more than 
anyone, conscious 
of the true great- 
ness of the Arab 
race, but for that 
very reason is 
more aloof than 
the other, and his 
education is for 
practical purposes 
useless. 
A TYPICAL ARABIAN SCENE 
The Camp in the Palm Groves at Akaba. 
of the revolt. The most enlightened men of the Arab race 
are only too well aware of this, and realise the danger. 
A sheik, in the course of an address to a body of troops 
under training, used the following words : 
O sons of Kah- 
ta'n, you must 
rise like one man 
without distinc- 
tion of religion or' 
belief, that you 
may in your 
joint efforts and 
brotherly unio» 
obtain the reali- 
sation of your 
high and noble 
aims. Do not let 
the difference of 
religion be a. 
stumbling block 
on the road that 
leads to your 
highest wishes. 
Before erery- 
thing we are 
Arabs. Children 
of Arabia, what- 
ever your rehgi- 
ous beliei may 
be, you are 
Arabs. Do not 
impair your 
cause. The .\rab 
revolt will fail 
unless you throw 
aside the ways of 
ignorance. 
Well, this g(joc! old 
sheik is aware of 
the now smouldering fires of fanaticism and mountains of 
The Arabs, in fact, present the pathetic picture ofl a prejudice that lie between the Arabs and their ambition, 
cultured race fallen, and yet trying to keep up appearances. Now doubts and questions are beginning to take shape 
Their substance lost, through tlie brutal domination to which and it is time they were dealt with. Not yet have 
thev have had to submit, they cling yet to the faded flower, we got anywhere near to the great heart of the nation. 
A few generations of freedom' will, no doubt, ^et this right ; And it is only when we have done so that we shall be able 
and if they could be left like a South American republic to to show to the Hun, in making the Arab our ally, that we 
worry out their own salvation, who can say that they would backed a better horse than he did. C. T. A. H. 
