1th November.
Ir was on the 19th of May, 1798, that a French expedition with much secrecy, and after great preparation, left Toulon for the East. I's object then was not the evercion of an obstinate Sultan. There were higher aims in view, no less than supremacy not only in Kyypt, the first stepping stone, but in Syria, in India, and possibly beyond. By the first of July, Napolem, with 30,000 men, was before Alexandria. What followed is ancient history. We do not intend to dwell upon it, and have referred to these century-old achievements only to remark' that the natural French ambition to found a Great Eastern Empire has never been given up. We have been told a great deal about the progress made by Germany and Russia in the Turkish dominions, and very little as to what are the feelings of France in the matter. So fur as Russia is concerned, no patriotic Frenchman, as patriotism ix understood to-day, would think of raising his voice against the incursions of his country's one ally. But with Germany it is otherwise. No very great care will be taken to avoid treading on Teutonic corns. If they "re sensitive so much the worse for them. They should not intrude where they are not wanted.
Such apparently is roughly the position of affairs to-day. France has undeniable grievances against Turkey. This much has been officially recognised by Great Britain, Russia, Austria, and Germany as well. There seems to have been a real concert on that point. But the Sultan his had mach experience of concerts. How easily the instruments out of tune, how son the wood gets away from the metal, how very delicate the reeds are, no one knows better than he, and with his usual nonchalance he waits until the " identical note" with which he may have been favoured has gone from its unison through the slight throbbing of almost synchronous "beats to the horrid discords. of sharply conflicting tones. Already it seems that this is the case. So long as mere talk was the order of the day there was no need to be alarm, But with the departure of Admiral Caillard, his arrival at Mytilene, his seizure of the Customs, and the many other grounds for alertness the German Press is beginning to take a keen interest in the expedition. As we have more than once pointed out, Germany has of late years left no stone unturned to create a future for herself within the estate of the moribund Massutman, At no time could it have been agree~ able to her to see this growing promise of her success nipped in the bud. But at this present juncture any threat ofa set-back in that direction is particularly disheartening. Germany passing through a crisis in her history such as she has never had to face before. War, famine, pestilence has known; industrial stagnation and internecine quarrels arising from fends between farmer and ficror she now confronts for the first time. In her haste to be a world power commercial ly "s well as politically she has hurried forward a little too fast; and is suffering the natural consequences. It is particularly unfortunate therefore that anything should have occurred to threaten her interests ina market which she has assiduously nursed for years, and she is in no humour to take further rebuffs philosophically, Phlegmatic as he is by nature, the German aroused is capable of very strong language. Nobody knows that batter than ourselves who for two years have been half-grieved, half-amused over the all too earnest abuse born of Boer It was not likely tha France would pay mush attention to German feeling in the matter. She has international consent to her action She has not acted without sufficient reason. It is no trumped-up grievance that has brought force to the id of her diplomacy. Neither has France been in ah It is true that she has not prove so patent with the Sultan as we were with Mr. Krier, but there has been no undue haste to strike. The action of France has rather been that of a big, good-tempered youth, who is daily being stung by the insults and pinpricks of @ small boy's mordant tongue. The impudent youngster is collared at last. If he recognises that he has gone far enough, a very gentle shaking is all he gets; if not, there is nothing for it but to cuff him into better manners. The civi-ised world is practice ly agreed that this is the only correct course to pursue in this present instance.
We are not going so far as to say that German irritation is baseless. Far from it. It is well known that Frenchmen are looking more and more for investments abroad. During the first half of the present year tradesmen's accounts with the Bank of France fell from £44,000,000 to £19,000,000, and it is estimated that since the introduction of the new taxation no less a sum than £120,000,000 has gone from France for investment abroad. And that is not'all. There has been a reerudescence of trouble in Armenia. It is not knows as yet how it arose, how far it has ex ended, or what it is likely to lead to. Horrarsof eve kind are possible in Armenia, and some characteristic specimens are already hinted at. Bur one significant fact has come to light. The wretched Armenian Christians with the reco!luction of massacres only too recent, and the ful knowledge that they are absolutely in the power of a merciless enemy, are in sine di tricts adopting wholesale the orthodox doctrines of the Greek Church so' that they may have a claim to protection from Russia, This added to the unrest' on the European side of the Bosphorus makes the French expedition one for the world to watch. Smyrna has a population of about 200,000, and is historically most interesting. It has no manufactures to speak of, but its commercial importance is very great, since it is the centre from which caravans diverge with European goods for a great part of the peninsula of Asia Minor, and to which they return liden with the products of the East. It is connected too with some hundreds of miles of railway. Mitylene is about a hundred miles NW. of Smyrna. The island has only three ports of any importance. Kastron, Kaloni, and/ Molivo, and these it seems the French have seized with the hint that not until satisfactory concessions respecting schools, railways, and the like have been ratified wi i "For THe Buoop 1s THE Lire Wor'd-farsed Blood Mixture to cleanse the blood from all impurities from whatever'tause arising. For Scrofula Scurvy, Eczema, Bad Legs, Skin and Blood Diseases, Pimples, and Sores of all kinds, its effects are marvellous. Thousands of wonderful cures have been. effected by it. Sold everywhere at 2s. 9d. Beware of worthless imitations,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.