| IDITAROD PIONEER |
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“A LITTLE HAZY”
. The Juneau Empire, which objects to being called an organ,
says of Delegate Wickersham: Elis quotation of the full territorial
form of government’ part of the President’s message was applicable to
the situation—howbeit, he is : till, apparently, a little hazy as to the
meaning of the Democratic phrase, a haziness that the plain and simple
though forceful Democratic declaration quoted from Governor Strong s
message should have dispelled, and probably did dispel so far as con
cerned the real Progressive Democrats on the committee.”
The quotation from the message referred to is as follows:
Tln> powers conferred upon the to: ritoriul legi.-laiure by the organic act passed by
congress and approved August 24. 11-12 are extremely limited, and in view of the
growing importance of this territory, an '. its in lustriul and c. mnicrcial development both
of which give promise of great exi't. i ion in the future, the powers of the legislature
should he enlarged. This industrial m.d commercial expansion has already begun along
substantial and permanent lines, laru. ly because ot the wi-c and liberal policy which ihis
i'.dmini>tration has adopted toward t!..- territory; and the relief that this policy assures
from the hitherto almost intolerable c nlitious that harassed the territory and prevented
the novel, oment of its many natural rt sources. Mnska, therefore, should he given a full
territorial form of government equal .11 respects to that which is enjoyed by the other
territories , f the republic and under v l.ieh they rose to She dignity of statehood, t nt.er
enlarged powers tm'additional expo:.-. P- the federal govrnment would he c ntailed, and
matters which properly belong to the legislative functions of the local legislature coulo
be dealt with in a way suited to the needs and requirements of the territory.
Naturally, after perusing the “plain and simple though forceful Dem
ocratic declaration” one would expect to be enlightened as to the real
meaning of the phrase, a full territorial form of government. But
it must be confessed that a reading of the statement leaves one prob
ably as “hazy” on the subject as is Delegate Wickersham himself.
A POSSIBLE EFFECT OF WAR IN GERMANY
An article on war eventualities that has been widely read and quoted
^ from the pen of Charles R. Miller, editor-in-chief of the New York
Times, and has been commented upon as among the most inkuentia!
articles on war subjects that has been published since the outbreak of
hostilities. , , . ,
“Bankrupt in statesmanship, overmatched in arms, under tne moral
condemnation of the civilized world, says the aiticle, befriended
only by the Austrian and the Turk, two backward-looking and dying
nations, desperately battling against the hosts ol thiee gieat poweis,
to which help and reinforcements from states now neutral will cer
tainly come should the decision be long deferred, she pours out the
blood of her heroic subjects and wastes her diminishing substance in
a hopeless struggle that postpones but cannot alter the fatal decree.
The following in comment upon Mr. Miller s article is from the
American Review of Reviews:
This very doom, in the opinion » f the writer, mav become the deliverance of the
German people “if thev will betimes but seize and hold their own.” We are reminded
from the pages of history that with the fall of Napoleon came the real emancipation of
the French people, and that later the French republic arose after the imperialism of
Napoleon III. had been overthrown at Sedan. The writer leaves it to be inferred that
the only outcome of the present war must be the overthrow of German imperialism, but.
he asks, will the Germans blindly insist upon having their Waterloo, their Sedan, their
St. Helena too? “A million Germans have b.-en sacrificed, a million hon es are desolate.
Must other millions die and yet other millions mourn before the p< ph* of Germany ya:\C
in the court of reason and human h.oerty th.eir appeal fr- m the imperial and military
caste that rushes them to their ruin :"
The wretched incompetence of German diplomacy in the crisis of last July is clearly
set forth. It is declared that Germanv literally forced an alliance for this war between
England and Russia, two powers antagonistic in the past and having now no common
interest save the curbing of Germany. If German diplomacy was incompetent. German
imperialism was not less at fault in plunging the empire into war with three great nations
which were able to meet Germany with : >rces more than double her own.
The article does not go so far'as to charge incompetence against the German military
machine. “The German army was magnificent in its strength, its equipment.and in \ alor.
The simple truth i* that it was overmatched. It i< well known that the plan of the
general staff was to rush upon Paris, overwhelm France, and then turn on Russia. But
the rush upon Paris failed. “When the German invaders were driven back from the
Marne to the Aisne and the Belgian frontier Germany's ultimate defeat was registered
in the book of fate and heralded to the watching world.
Furthermore, this article declares, the world cannot and will not let Germany win.
All the nations of Europe knowing Germany now as they did not know her before, be
lieve that under German domination peace and security would vanish from the earth, ido
if a deadlock is reached in the coniiict and ir seems Gear that England I ranee and
Russia cannot overcome Germany, they will be joined by Italy, Holland. Switzerland. Den
mark, the Greeks, and the men of the Balkans “For their own peace and^ safety the
nations must demolish the towering structure of militarism in the center of Europe that
has become the world’s danger-spot, its greatest menace.”
So this writer argues that the oi ly possible end of the war is through the defeat of
Germany and why. he asks, should the German people make further sacrifice of blood
•o save the pride and shoulder-straps of German officialdom? “It means a million more
battlefield graves. It means frightul additions to the bill of costs and to the harshiKVs
of the terms. Since the more dreadful ending is in {'lain view, why not force the better
ending now ” . .
Americans of German birth or German descent may have a duty to perform -n inu
matter. Seeing and feeling the truth about the present position of Germany, it would
be unfraternal and cruel for German-Americans further to keep the truth from thcSr
brothers in the fatherland who are not now permitted to know the whole truth. “The
sword must go, the scabbard, too, and the shining armor. It the Germans here have at
all the ear of the Germans there, can they not tell them so?”
When the returns from the last election were announced, and it was
found that Delegate James Wickersham had been re-elected to con
gress by an overwhelming majority, the opposition newspapers and
politicians “fell over themselves” in their haste to announce that they
would drop partisanship and work with the delegate for Alaska s good.
Some of them even went to the extent of sending personal telegrams
assuring him of their support. A careful reading of these newspapers
since the election, however, fails to disclose anything that savors of
co-operation. On the contrary, the same old policy of opposition to
anything that the delegate interests himself in is apparent, and the
policy of belittling his efforts in behalf of the territory are as much in
evidence as before. It is a pity. If ever there was need of harmony
among all classes of Alaskans it is at the present time, when important
and far-reaching plans are under way for Alaska’s development. The
territory will need the services of faithful and cool-headed servants
Now is the opportunity to show a real public spirit by dropping petty
squabbles and getting into the harness for the public good. The man
or newspaper indulging in partisan quarrels at the present crucial time
is not working for the best interests of the territory and its people.
Nowadays it seems that it is necessary, in order to secure the interest
of young women in domestic pursuits, to offer inducements, such as
was the custom of the old-time patent-medicine faker when he dis
pensed a premium with each bottle of nostrum sold. A recently
published article tells the young women who are unfortunate enough to
be possessed of a waist line that is both thick and short to betake them
selves to the kitchen and seize upon the faithful broom, as “it has just
been discovered that sweeping will reduce a full waist and give it
length.” It will also “make one as straight as a pine tree—than which
nothing is straighter—and develop the chest and arms.” It is quite
likely that if this line of argument is followed up by the beauty doctors
pulchritude will become unfashionable among the members of the
gentler sex.
In this issue The Pioneer produces a somewhat remarkable article
from the pen of Archdeacon Stuck. Written on the trail, far removed
from libraries and works of reference, it is a noteworthy production of
a scholarly mind. The wonderful history of the city of Constantinople
is a theme that will inspire many wipers, and Archdeacon Stuck s con
tribution will be regarded as a valuable addition to the literature of
the day.
ftflNmNTTIinPTF- A SKETCH 5LP H1ST0RY
till ill P I Ull I 111 III juJU i By Archdeacon Stuck
L m EEPLY stirred by the news received at Iditarod of the imminent fall of Constantinople, the writer has since reviewed
g in his mind, while traveling along the trail, the astonishing history of that city, and sends this sketch to the editor
BL&nM of The Iditarod Pioneer because he thinks it may be of interest to some of his readers who will not be able, for a
long time, to receive fuller and more authoritative accounts. Written from memory (a memory, however, fresh
from a partial re-reading of Gibbon in the early winter), it may contain inaccuracies, as it will surely contain omissions, but
it will be found correct in the main. The task has been to compass the history of sixteen centuries into a newspaper ar
ticle.
M
When Constantine the Great, a convert
to Christianity, had triumphed over all Ins
enemies ami had become supreme in the
Homan empire, he found his capital city
siiil. m tin* mam, pagan, and so completely
ideutilled with me old worship in Its Ins
lory, its temples and all the lusti'.ni.ons of
il- society, that I*' resolved to forsake
Home and found a new capital that should
He wholly chri.-tiun. impelled by tins and
oilier motives, in 1>. :cp) In* transferred
the seat of empire to the wmall Greek city
of Hyantium. on the coniines of Kurope and
Asia, changed Its name to Constantinople,
the city of Constantine, and enriched it with
splendid churches ami nubile buildings of
all kinds. Constantinople thus became the
llrst chri.-tiau city in the world; it is one
of the trollies of history that for the past
live centuries it lias been the only non
christian city of Kurupe.
What difference it might have made to
the history of the world had Home remained
the capital of the Homan empire is one of
those matters it Is easy, but pule im
oroltrable. to speculate upon; but il may
e< nlldently be -aid that ir the transfer of
ihc seal of government to the Kast hastened
the decline, it did at the same time greatly
prolong the actual existence oT the empire.
<:.n<tantinople has a natural position of
strength and command unrivaled amongst
the nations of the world. Kasilv defensible
against attack, il is the gateway between
two continents, tin* tauter of converging
routes of trade; it controls access io
wafers, still rich in trallle, that for a thou
sand years were the great basin <-r the
world's commerce.
Here Constantine's throne was erected;
here, under his successors, tile empire took
an oriental east that separated it more and
more from us Western provinces. The
boundless adulation and servility of tin1
Persian court became the model for the
court of the Caesars, luxury and softness
■He into what remained of the Roman stam
ina. and the whole long story of the Con
stantiuopoliran dominion is a story »>f grad
ual decay, or steady loss of lerritory and
power, of intellectual stagnation; and at
the same time of boundless pride and van
ity that shut its eyes r » facts and reveled
in riches and voluptuous enjoyment. That
>tory ha-, however, some of the ino.-t sur
prising incidents, some of the most aston
ishing contrasts, sonic of the most roman
ce and tragic passages that tin* annals or
mankind have preserved.
Justinian’s Part in Her Story
In the ilfih century the barbarians swept
ii\'iT central. .-outhein ami \WMern Europe,
and while the eiuperors. for the most part,
sat se- ure and "upinc behind their forti
fications, the empire lost its European and
African province.** one by one. In the >i.\tli
century there r une a temporary re\ival of
the imperial glory under Justinian, w lose
great general, Ueii-arius, reconquered Af
ri-a, Sicily and Italy. Justinian rebuilt
Constantine's great cimrch of st. Sophia,
de>i ro.vcd by tire, and lavished upon il
such marbles, j> •rpiiynes and jasper**, >ucii
wealth of gold and .-liver and jewels, .-1h• h
splendors « r mosaics, that it became the
richest and ov-ihest cliurch of the w< rid.
His name is best remembered by his codi
fication ol tin Homan law. and the Insti
tuti s of Justinian are still studied by law
yers who receive a liberal education.
The Moslem Uprising
In the seventh century there dawned
upon the \v<-rld the great and terrible up
rising i f the .Mohammedan power, which
threatened for a long while to subdue all
mankind to the sword-propagated religion
Of the \rabbin prophet. Egypt, Syria and
Per?ia were overswept. till North Africa
was conquered, one hy one the Eastern
provinces of the empire fell, even Spain
became subj* (,t to Mohammedan rule, and
rally the valor or Hilaries Martel on the
bat!lelleld of Tours, in France, put a cheek
to its advance and saied Christendom. The
Hello had rec nquered lialy and the Hon
stantinopolltnn empire was left witli little
more than the territory Immediate!.! sur
rounding the city. Then began that light
for the city itself by the Mohammedan
rulers that stretched over seven centuries
before it was finally sure, ssful.
HonstanFnople was indeed besieged
-cores of times, now by the barbarians of
the North, now by the Mohammedans, but
the Greeks had discovered a weapon of
defence that their enemies were unable To
cope with. It was a liquid compound of
which naphtha was probably the chief in
gredient. and. ignited and projected
through tubes upon the wooden ships or
the w. oden b< >iegimr engim s of the as
sailants. ii set fire f.» them and consumed
them for it r mid net be put out. Projected
upon tn-ops assailing the walls in those
days of hand-to-hand ronflmts. if was a
terrible and dreaded auvnt of destruction,
such was the famous ‘‘Greek lire." and its
i carefully-guarded secret preserved t!:>* city
I again and again.
Intrigue, Conspiracy and Murder
Meanwhile tin1 imperial throne was re
peatedly the prize 'T conspiracy and re
volt. and Its succession was stained with
* lie grossest deeds of perfidy and cruelty.
Many a time a seditious g-enerel, having
ci -mipted the mercenary gainrds. seized
»he nerson of the emperor and put him to
death, or imprisoned him and put out his
eyes, and seated himself on the throne,
while a servile people applauded a new
master. One such conspirator, nrresti d
before his conspiraev was rine. loaded with
chains and condemned To death, was re
leased hv the gaiards the niJrht before he
was to be executed; the emperor was as
sassinated while at his prayers in the
< Impel. the erstwhile prisoner was ac
claimed emperor in his stead, and because
rhe matter was the safer the sooner sped
and no blacksmith was immediately at
hand, he was placed on the throne, invested
with the purple and crowned with the im
perial diadem while yet the chains were
on his hands and feet.
At the beginning- of the eleventh cen
tury the Christian church, long showing
signs of cleavage on the lines that divided
Greek from I.atin, split into two hostile
parts, under the patriarch of Constant!
! nople and the pope of Horne respectively.
A controversy about tin* use. of images,
known as the Iconoclastic controversy,
roust'd the utmost passions of the popu
lace, and frequently deluged Constantinople
with blood and swept it with tire. Hut
the scililit ns and vicious populace did not
need theological controversy to c-olte
them; the disputes of the blue and green
factions of the amphithrter wrec suffi
cient to p-ovoke indiscriminate slaughter
ami to kindle destructive conflagrations.
The Crusades
The spread or the Mohammedan power
in the Last received it- first severe check
in a movement that the political econo
mists or today universally condemn, but
that those who care for the romam of
history cannot regret. The original Mo
hammedan conquerors of Syria ami Pales
tine. who had allowed Christian pilgrims
free access to the holy pla associated
with the life and death or Our Lord, w -re
themselves conquered by a far fiercer and
more fanatical horde of Mohammedans
known as the Seljnk Turks, who plundered
and murdered Christians and desecrated
Uieir shrines. By this time the barbarian
tribes which had overrun Europe bad long
been converted to Christianity and bad set
tled down to an enduring basis of national
life wlii'di was already producing the
realms of modern Europe, and the sufTor
ipc-s ( r the pilgrims and the arrogance
and insolence «»r the infidels, proclaimed
•ill over Europe hv the eloquence of Peter
tin- Hermit, aroused the fiery indignation
of Christendom and set on foot the groat
enterprise or the Crusades. The mail-clad
chivalry «»r Eurone. by sea and land, in
wave a Per wave, invaded the burning sands
i f Syria, and against enormous odd
pressed its irresistible way to the Holy
I and and established, and for a century
maintained, the Latin kingdom of Jeru
This weakening of the Mohammedan
1 mwer. not intended for the succor of Con
sTa.ntinojde. vet did probably delay the fall
, t the city Tor three centuries, and when
-,f i;|»f Hie Christians were e-iteiied from
n -Ii-a’em and Syria, the Knights Templar
and the Knights -d’ St. John fortified tbern
i . ,-h, - ib’sr a* Rhodes and then at Malta.
• nd continued to distract and annoy the
Turkish armaments. ^ ,
Put the strange vicissitudes or the Cl v >
i ’usforv were again to be illustrated. _ fhe
v<-ry rnisades winch ovhausmd the Tirk
;sii st.-.-mrth and drew the Turkish armies
w.-iv fr >ni ('< nsrantirmnle brought about a
! tein’p >-a'-v subversion and subjugation or
! the Crock empire.
Captured and Looted
Tilt' rmi'-th crusade, an enterprise or the
r,.(.m il and Venetians under the count or
Flanders and Pandnlo. doR-e of Venire, was
| diverted froiii Hie Holv land to an attack
upon Constantinople iis.-ir hy the anpea -
■ r Hie s,,n Of Hie Emperor Isaac, who had
horn dethroned, blinded and imprisoned hv
Ills brother \levin*. Constantinople was
attacked liv '..a and land. Alexius tied and
Knar was ’ restored to power: but shortly
thereafter while yet the Latins we I..
eaniped ale 'H Hie rity, both Isaac ami Ids
Son were dethroned and murdered by an
usurner Wain the cltv was enrompassi>d
In son and land, and this time the sierre
was pressed to a eoneluslon and the city
was taken by storm In 120-1. Constantl
iii nle was looted, and it was on this orc.a
si. n that the wonderful bronre horses that
adorn the portals of St. Mark's at Ventre
were carried away from the Eastern ''.'ill
icit. to which c- pstantine had brouirht them
fri in Rome. Baldwin, count of Flanders,
was pr< claimed emperor -T the Fir1, and
for something more than flft1' years a sne
oession or lain emperors ruled over f'ei
siantlnople. Tile fa’e or Baldwin. Ihe Best
of them, fives another e'-ainp’e of the
caprice. Lr r- crime with which the he iry
or the eiiy abounds. On an exnedilion
acainst the -avaee Tiiilcars. who had an
•> .vo,| the riarr oiHskivts of 'ho . re
Baldwin was made nr-lso'i-T. The wi' - - r
Mio kirur r-f tlu- Bulcars. ir is said. Toll in
love with Hie handsome Frank, and when
he recoiled her advances =he denounced
h-oi r-iis..|v her iiosh.and. who cm ..it
his hands and feet and Puns- out his bleed
:ir trunk anioiiRsf the ca'-easses ,.r doirs and
ivo-sos ti is .-lid ho tmeathed for Th”ee
days before Hie vultures devoured his body.
Gresk Dynasty Re-established
When thp (treelis. nnrtPr Mirlnpi pale
h-cus. It id regained possession of the city
and re-fsfabli-h.'tl a Greek dynastv. the
empire, torn and distracted, entered upon
a p.o jr d < r civil war which hastened its
decline, indeed, the wonderful thing about
this ejty and its dominion is that it re
listed so lone the onslaught of its enemies,
d'-spite the sloth and effeminacy of the peo
ple and thin inn:-able factiousness.
\ new race of Turks, railed the Ottoman
Turks, swarmed out of the fastnesses of
eenlral \sia arid were carried on a new tide
or roundest all over the F.ast. Pouring
across the narrow water, they subdued and
oeciinied the provinces bevood fh<» city, and
osran^inonle f- ond itself not only de
prived of its outlying possessions—-that was
no new thing—hut f'*r tin* nrc* time
hemmed in on every side bv the Moham
medan arms. Under the famous Sultan
FOOTWEAR "HOSPITAL
FLAT CITY
Now is the time to get your boots and
shoes repaired—just before the busy sea
son begins. You’ll save time and money by
having voiir repair work done now.
GOOD WORK REASONABLE PRICES
C. C. CLIMER, FLAT CITY
IN THE TRENCHES
They’ve huddled in their narro wpits, ’mid sleet and ice and snow, and now and
then a bullet hits and lays a soldier low. Numbed by the north Wind’s icy breath,
and beaten by the blast, they dodge such messengers of death as may
be whizzing past. And thus a million useful guys are uselessly em
ployed; such work as theirs is most unwise, of common sense devoid. What boots
it if the soldiers shoot until they’re tired of gore, and put a crimp in some galoot
they never saw before. Ah, better far on frosty morn, to hitch a span of mules, and
in the field go shucking corn with modern husking tools. I’d rather have a husking
peg than have a sword or lance, and rob a stranger of his life or wound him in the
pants. I’d rather bring home from the field a load of golden ears than pack around
a silly shield, and prod folks up with spears. I’d rather take a monkey wrench and
fix a sulky plow than be a hero in a trench, a helmet on my brow. I do not -eer
at soldiers brave who suffer in the field, who follow where their banners wave, and
warlike weapons wield; I have no cheap, insulting flings the blood-stained soldiers
for; I merely josh the tinhorn kings who sent them forth to war.—Walt Mason.
__ I I
Ilajzzot rl scorned that the hour had struck,
that the imperial city must rail, like a ripe
plum, whenever the city was shaken. For
years tin* emperors had paid an annual hu
miliating tribute <>r a thousand talents or
gold, a thousand talents oF silver, a thou
sand silken robes, a thousand horses and
a thousand virgins as the price of tem
porary preservation. Vet there came a
respite ol‘ liny years; once again through
events with which the Greeks had clothing
to do.
The Terrible Tartars
For, again In the far Fast, in the yet Far
ther Fust, arose a new movement. Re
motely entrenched amidst the mountain
Fastnesses near the coniines of Ghina were
those tierce Tartar tribes rrom whose nml
tudinous uprising grew the Mogul power.
Genghis Khan, Kubla Khan and Tamerlane
are three terrible names in history. Wie n
one reads that the slaughter attending the
present war In F.uropc m the greatest the
world has ever known, it is evident that the
writer has forgotten the frightful scourge
of destruction which these three Tartar
conquerors Yielded five centuries ago—
besides much else.
Tamerlane is one of the most striking
figures in the history of tie* world. 11“
carried his victorious arms all over West
ern Asia. Persia, India. Tartary. Russia
were devastated and subdued by him. and
many an ancient center of population that
is a wilderness today has never recovered
from his destructive descent. The gor
gei "Mogul empire of India, which lasted
until tin* 'British' eonouest. and a gli st of
which reappeared during the Indian mutiny,
was set up by his descendants (>n the Ruin
dation of i 1 is Indian concpi st. \t last Tam
erlane's armies encountered the forces or
Pnia/et In the battle of Angora Bajazct
was 11 tterlv defeated and taken prisoner,
and the haughty sultan was dragged
through A-i'i In an Iron cage like a wild
p(»ast. exposed to the derision and Insult of
thesi*’ win* had cringed before him. The
iron cage f Baja'/et was long a ravorite
instance with moralists of the transitoriness
of human greatness.
1 •,.>■ two mo'-o generations of Turkish
sultans Constantinople was able to main
tain a precarious evistonfe. \mimntti -11 *
ri'cded Miie-aih. and the Turks recuperated
and n»n-' 'idated their powers. Then came
At'.tiammed n.. the Conqueror, and with
him the end.
Memorable Siege and Capture
The last siege <»r Constantinople is one
of the world's famous sieges. The recent
discovery of gunpowder in Ktirope might,
had it been preserved .■ ~ • ret as the Creek
Pre was. have proved a defense against
the Turk, hut some treacherous Gen-tan or
Venetian merrhants sold it to the sultan,
and lie constructed two brass cannon
larger than any that had yet been mule,
that threw -tone projectiles weighing sev
eral him i e.l pi t.uds, Thl' was the flrsT
thee that cannon were used in a si- v*‘. and
t h. v we’c employed side by side With the
oM catapults and battering ranis in re
ducing tite walls of Constantinople. The
I:»<t .mperor. bearin': the name and sharing
the h.-r. je spirit of the j«rsf did all m
huin,.n power to defend his city, hut the
inhabitants refused him their wealth with
which mercenary tr<- ns might have been
engaged. and hoarded if. only that it might
swell the spop ».f the Mohammedans. F.ven
as it was. ;n vigorous was the defense of
Constantine and his few thousands of sol
dier's, that the siege was .'it the point of
being abandoned when someone suggested
to Mohammed art expedient by which the
eitv might be attacked <*n two sides at
,.iire- and the rairtons feat or dragging the
Turk’sit vessels ten mil s overhand and
laenehin- them < n ’he opposite water gave
the jNS'iihno an ad'anfag" they were tin
',p|,. to over"op>e. Tile walls wr« hre«ieh-d
MO l st irn-'d. ’he Fmner " -nstan’in,- was
killed with most of the Greek soldiers. a-’d
r. ns’ in’i".-nle was cantim- d by the Turks
it' ’h'* it'efni«r:'l)h' rear 1i"’C
•pi'-i r u iuo -riant as the dm.- - f
I n . d ‘V'lO'l rf the ’’ tig-'ingf,rieg and lnre>
,» V-ISO-I'O r-ni'iipn; If is mtP' "'hint
t,. i ■ c pi, prinph' b'f t if
.,. r., as ri he-divning date
t rP'l’og date. for. strange t • say
fh,. fall of »'• m : ~r , t •' it * t •: • • started (,ne <r
the m st rar.-.-aehin - movements ’hat has
i■ ver stimulated the mind of mankind. Con
stantinople was far more influential in her
l— and ( aj : ire tl an she had bet n for
centuries of ht r proud, decadent inde
pendence.
Its Story Bristles With Great Names
Hut before touching upon tin* movement
that began with the Fall of ■ '.oiisiantiiioplc.
!"t us giaiu-e at tile subsequent history of
the citv it -elf. Mohammed ]l. did but use
his eojiq ii • t C>r the city as a vantage
ground for further conquest. and for a
while it se**used as though all Eastern and
Southern Europe would be overcome. Two
r« mantle names rise up amidst a story that
bristles with great names, as chief checks
and hindrances to the spread <T the Mo
iianiniedan power—John llunyadi. the Hun
garian patriot, and Scandcrhcg, the hero of
Mhania. HiiRvadi’s name is better known
todav in connection with a medicinal water
much ibeil m Europe than with th defense
(,r r.elg ado. but in those days Hiitivadi
and Heigrade were acclaimed ns the bul
warks of Christendom against the infidel,
^'•anderlieg, captured in vouth and trained
as a Mohammedan, in mature age put him
self at the head of the resistance of his
native country, and is said to have killed
:pnoo Turks with Ins mv nhand.
Hut it was John Sobieski. the heroic
king of Poland, a man to whom Europe
owes as great a debt as she ever owed to
one man. who gave the decisive cheek and
overthrow to the Mohammedan arms, when
h“ defeated tlmin under the very walls of
Vienna *n 1^73. and rolled hack forever
their advancing power.
Its Power and Influence Decay
From that date the story of the Turkish
empire is a story of steady decline. In the
Russian wars >f Catherine the Great and
her successors began a parting with terri
tory that has gone on ever since. In the
first decades (>r the Nineteenth century the
Greeks of the old Hellenic regions re
volted, and in that conflict, with which the
name of Ford Byron is forever associated,
won their independence: an independence
which was finally established when the
British and French fleets destroyed the
Turkish Beet at the battle of Navarino in
1 8 2 7.
For fifty years thereafter Turkey man
aged to avoid great loss or territory by
playing upon the jealousies of the European
powers; England and Franee perversely
fought her battle with Russia in the Crimea.
But in 1878 Russia, defeated her and would
have conquered her altogether had not
England halted the Russian troops at the
gates of Constantinople. Wallachla and
Moldavia were taken from her and erected
into the kingdom of Roumania: Bosnia and
Herzegovina were given over to the suzer
ainty and tutelage of Austria, a suzerainty
that was turned into sovereignty at a
favorable diplomatic moment two or threp
years ago. Ml her African possessions she
has lost—Algiers and Tunis to France.
Egvnt to England. Tripoli to Ttaly. Two
years ago the Balkan principalities armed
against her and wrested from her all but
a narrow strip around the eitv of Constanti
nople; so strikingly does history repeat {
itceir And when these words :i"e writing i
the allied fleets of France and England are
thundering at the forts of the Rosnhorous
and a Russian expedition is awaiting the
moment for the capture of the city.
Her Gift to Learning
Tt was said that the capture of Constan
tinople in 1 was the beginning or one
nr the mocf jnOuentlal movements that ever
clayed the mind of man. The Greeks fled
f"Afn Constantinople with the manusrrints
of a Helen t writers, Tong foro-nttep qnd un
known in Europe. Herodotus, the father of
history; Homer, the rather or poetry; Plato
and Socrates and Aristotle, the first, and
some think the last, of the. great philoso
phers—these manuscripts, the only spoil
that was disdained by the conquerors, were
eagerly competed for by the courts of Italy
and the West. The study of Greek was j
Thai
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I revived; the “new learning” began at every
European university. Through the punt
ins'- pres-, which Hud Just Ivon invented,
these maiiu.-eripts wore multiplied by thou
sands. and I" re tiieo- study and Mu* -:ud.\
>>r ancient Greek art which r'mdr study pro
voked, sprung- file “n< w birth.” th- Henai*
sance. Most important of aii, they brought
with them the Gospels in the original
tongues, and hard on Hie heels ot tin*
Renaissance, came - the Reforinatmn. Many
things conspired to make the Pifteenth cen
lury the most wonderful of centuries:
Viei'd do Gama doubled the Gape of Good
Hope. Columbus discovered Uue- ica. almo-f
at a blow the old geocentric philos«»ph:«-s
were obsolete, a widening beyond belief of
the horizon <>r men’s minds was made, nut
the diffusion amongst the eager scholars of
the We-t of the learning locked up imp- ..
di:etiveiy in the libraries of Constantinople
was one of its chief and most fruitful
events.
A Theme for the Poet
And n 1 w. who shall say that the posses
sion of Constantinople by the Russians, f
i whom in all probability it will he yielded,
will not bring about, amongst Hie ‘-warming
inarticulate millions or flic Slavic race, a
stimulation, an awakening, not unfit to he
compared with the Renat-sance? How it
rni: -r Touch the imagination and stir the
slumbering gennis of one of the world’*
greatest ethnic families! What a Theme it
will he for lvi-ic and epic noetrv. what «ul«
ierts for artistic e\p>----i .n it will afT>rd'
r >r it will not be merely a great conquest.
no»* merely the realization of a national am
bition cherished ever since the tin..
i Peter the Great; Hie talk -'if -free
1)0:] “wintering rlace-** is tnviH.
The wli.'h' ejyiii/aftop or pns-ui i* built
up o a pv/.antine fonndati n- her chijr-b
. and what a g’orfous fr'nnrmh
j jt v. 'I fop Greek Ch»*Utlanf»v. of which
the Bus-inn nation is the chief exponent.
! n line,-. rr'i'D the veperab'e ni'c f * t
I s.-.T>hi:, h*' •dr’.o ?i rhr^tian temrde' H "
rt is Bvzantlne--me does not have r * go
to Moscow to realize that; in every nativ*
cabin of the upper K'nsk •i.-wm ’ive--. hep*
in \ia=ka. where adherents f the Ru--:an
ebiirch are to be found, mav he seen t id.av
fhe fiat, sfifr conventional figures ..f saints
and martyrs so p-presonrativo of Byzantine
art. in the acmiisitfon of Constantinople
Rns-'a will neonire the scat and - uircc and
; -enunarv of all the spiritual and intellectual
nlluep.-es that have moulded her destinies,
jit is inmo^sihi,. that Hie -Slavic race -hall
; not he moved to its depths by this thing;
; ip.nossihle that the Rpssjan cmni'-e. in its
I whole structure and attitude, shall not he
| profoundly influenced bv it. Bu--i « mistress
of Constantin1-pie can never again m- r dv
1 he Riis-ia of ^t. Petersburg, of Moscow -
of Siberia: The long-predicted dominance
of the Slavs may not he merely hastened,
it may he ushered in by it. Truly we live
in stirring times.
DIVIDING UP TURKEY
AN IMPORTANT QUESTION
LONDON. Feb. 10. "Who is pomp to
have Palestine when the war is over?" i>
one of the questions which is already be
ginning to worry the Allied Association of
i New Map Makers, and the responsive query.
; “Shall it be the United States?" is receiv
ing more consideration than at first thought
might seem possible. Whatever happens
to Germany and Austria, the allies deter
I mined that Turkey should be pushed com
pletely of! the map of Europe, and off the
| greater part of Asia Minor, and there will
be a rare old scramble for “leg portions"
when the Ottoman bird is carved. Certain
! portions of the turkey already have been
hooked. England has annexed Egypt and j
Cyprus and will almost certainly insist on
retaining that part of the Persian gulf and 1
Euphrates valley captured by the Anglo
Indian troops. Arabia won't be much use
*■o anybody, as its inhabitants are a bit too
lively for Christian government, and any
way, England could not afford to have any
other nation planted along the route to
India. Russia will grab most of Asia Minor
and northern Persia, and there only remains
Syria and the Holy l.and.
BUSY
Peals of laughter came from the presi
dent’s room as the secretary stepped out.
“Mr. Green i,s too busy to see you at
present,” said the secretary, politely.
“I’m sorry,” said the man who called on
business. “Will you go back and tell Mr.
Green that I’ve got two stories just as
good as the one he’s heard, if he’ll let me
in to tell them?”—Detroit Free Press.
When you come in from the creeks, stop
in the Crosby and have a Twentieth Cen- j
tury Turkish Bath before going to the i
Pioneers’ ball.
THE CROSBY MASSAGE AND BATH
PARLORS • ;
The Home of the Twentieth Century Turk ‘
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! DISCOVERY OTTER Harry Donnelley
DR. ENCORE,
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Gold St.. Oppos.te Postaffics, Flat City
Eye-Glass Fitting Telephone
DR. H. E. AUR5NGER,
Physician and Surpn
Office: Gold St. Flat City, Alaska
; Consultation Hours in Forenoons and by
Appointment
E. M. STANTON,
Attorney at Lav,/
' Office: Corner Willow and Second St*.
Iditarod Pioneer Building
W. F. HARRISON,
Attorney at Law
IDITAROD, ALASKA
Room 12, Regina Hotel
CM AS. E. TAYLOR,
Attorney at Law
BANK BLOCK
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THE HUMBLE TOILER
“You must put your shoulder to the
wheel in this campaign,” said the alert
manager.
“I understand that,” said the obscure but
willing worker. “But you want to let mo
know when you’re going to change your
mind about going ahead. The last time
I put my shoulder to the wheel the band
wagon suddenly backed up and ran over
me."—Washington Star.
Job Printing at Pioneer office.