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by roving bands of Turkish soldiers, and in some cases they abandoned their children on the roads. One Russian general picked up several hundred in a single day between Philippopolis and Adrianople. Those who lived to arrive in Constantinople, died here by hundreds of pestilence. The whole number of these refugees was probably about half a million. Those who survived were cared for by the Turkish Government and by various charitable organizations. Up to the close of the Berlin Congress there was nothing better to be done.

Since that time their sufferings have been due to the lack of energy and decision on the part of the Turkish Government. There was some excuse for this so long as the Russians remained in Bulgaria; but long before their departure it was evident to every one that the best thing for these people and for the Turkish Government was to remove them to Asia Minor. Some feeble attempts were made to colonize them, but nearly all these failed through the utter stupidity or rascality of those who had charge of them. The Turkish Government now persists in compelling them to return to their former homes. More than a hundred thousand have been sent back. No one could have objected to this if their return had been properly managed. It has been horribly and wickedly mismanaged. All the important facts in the case, which are known to every one in Constantinople, have been deliberately ignored. The facts are these. Most of these refugees have no money and no means of getting it. Most of them have no houses or personal property of any kind left in Bulgaria. They have land, in many cases, but nothing else. During the war and the Russian occupation their houses or their personal property disappeared. In some cases it was a deliberate destruction to prevent return; but in most cases it was the natural result of war. In some cases the houses remain, but are occupied by Bulgarians whose houses these same Mohammedans wantonly destroyed, and these Bulgarians naturally object to leaving the houses now to go and camp in the fields. But whatever the cause of the present state of things, the fact remains. No sane man could think of sending these refugees back without first making some provision for their support for at least a year. But the Turkish Government has sent back a hundred thousand of them without any such provision whatever. These poor families have been put down at railway stations, or set upon the shore at Bourgas and Varna, without food or shelter, or any means of obtaining them, and without any previous understanding with the local authorities. The result has been that great numbers have died, and others have returned to Constantinople in much worse condition than when they left. It is to the credit of the Government and people of Roumelia and Bulgaria that some seventy thousand of them have been. taken care of and kept from starvation. It may be said that it was the duty of the Bulgarian Governments to support them. The Governments have recognized this duty and done what they could; but it is no easy matter to support a hundred thousand paupers and to settle their claims,

especially as the Governments of these provinces are but partially organized, and have neither money nor credit. The Government of Eastern Roumelia asked permission to raise a loan for this very purpose on the security of the tribute. The Turks agreed to it, and at the same time hypothecated the whole tribute to the bankers of Galata.

There are still a great number of these refugees in Constantinople, many of whom cannot return because they are known to have taken an active part in the massacres of 1876. The Turkish Government has given notice that it will do nothing for them after March 1. They give but little now, and the refugees are dying off very rapidly. What is to become of them? Those who are doing what they can for them, feel that they are worth saving. It is true that the men are generally lazy, stupid, and sometimes brutal; but the women are very active, industrious, and generally kind-hearted. There is much that is very attractive in them and in the children. The person in Constantinople who has done, and is still doing, more than any one else for these poor wretches, is Mrs. Arthur Hanson, the wife of the English banker, but as she has done this work out of pure benevolence rather than from political motives, she has been conspicuously omitted in the distribution of decorations which the Sultan has conferred upon several foreign ladies at the suggestion of the Ambassadors. If there are any persons in England who are still interested in the fate of these suffering refugees, there is no doubt that money sent to Mrs. Hanson would be judiciously expended. A committee has just been organized in Philippopolis to aid the refugees there, and the English Consul at that place would no doubt receive money for this committee.

Eastern Roumelia.

This province has profited more than any other part of the Empire from the intervention of England in regard to reforms in Asia Minor, although this was probably a result which was not contemplated by the British Ministry. Up to that time it had been the policy of the Turkish Government to foment disturbances in Eastern Roumelia and create a situation which would give them an excuse for entering the province with their troops. The condition of things had become very critical, but their hostility towards England, and their desire to conciliate Russia led them to adopt the opposite policy of cultivating friendly relations with the Bulgarians. Prince Vorgorides came to Constantinople, was received with the highest honours, decorated with the Osmanié, and sent back with the assurance that the Turkish Government would not interfere in any way in the affairs of Eastern Roumelia, but would do all in its power to promote peace. The result of this change of policy has been what was predicted in the CONTEMPORARY four months ago. All agitation has ceased, and the Bulgarians are now as anxious to reduce their expenses by reducing their military forces as they were then to increase it. Nothing more is heard of

the persecution of Turks returning to their homes, and the Gymnastic Societies have been given up without any hesitation. It was not ambition, but fear, which kept up the agitation so long in Eastern Roumelia.

The elections for the Provincial Assembly, which took place some months since, passed off in a most quiet and orderly manner, although the Greeks attempted to show that they were unfairly treated by the Bulgarians and sent a protest to the Porte. Their plea is so naïve that it is worth quoting, especially as they claim that they represent all the intelligence and political skill in the country, while the Bulgarians are ignorant barbarians:

"No language is strong enough to convey an idea of the rascality that has been employed to turn the elections to the exclusive advantage of the Bulgarians. Whenever the Turks could not be coaxed or deceived into voting for 'Bulgarian candidates they were coerced. At Tartar-bazarjik they were induced to believe that each community would have one member, and the deluded Turks therefore divided their votes amongst sixteen Turkish candidates, so that their numerical majority was split into so many minorities. In the district of Ruptchusi, where the Turks outnumber the Bulgarians most signally, the former were told that the election lists which were being made out were for the conscription, and men of thirty put themselves down as under age, and thus lost their votes," &c. If these stories are true, it certainly would appear that the "barbarians must have known by instinct how a contested election is managed in more civilized countries. It is true that most of the members chosen by the people were Bulgarians, but Prince Vorgorides had the right to name a certain number of members, and he very properly chose them from other nationalities, so that all are fairly represented.

دو

There is every reason to be satisfied with the work of the Assembly. They have moved slowly, which is not surprising, as they had everything to learn; but they have conducted their affairs with dignity and have given their attention to practical questions. The deputies are almost all in favour of reducing the exorbitant salaries fixed by the Russians by from 25 to 50 per cent. They are also in favour of reducing the militia from 9000 to 4000 men, and of introducing a stricter economy into all branches of the Administration. Nothing could be more encouraging in this new country than this spirit of peace and thrift.

The Orthodox Bulgarian deputies have also taken a very important step towards the reform of the Church. At present the common clergy are uneducated, and eke out a precarious existence from fees for religious services, many of which are superstitious ceremonies kept up for the sole purpose of gaining money. It has been decided that henceforth all the priests shall receive a fixed salary to be raised by taxation. These taxes will be assessed in the same way and on the same basis as other taxes-persons of other religious denominations alone being exempt. A theological school is also to be established at Philippopolis for the education of the clergy. The importance of these measures can only be appreciated by those who are personally familiar with the

present degraded condition of the parish priests. They have now no influence in the government of the Church, and comparatively little over the people, although some of them are very good men.

The Bishop of Gibraltar visited the Bulgarian Exarch at Philippopolis a few weeks since and was received with the highest honours as well as with the most hearty cordiality. As the British Consul there is notoriously anti-Bulgarian in all his sympathies, and was apparently selected for this reason, something has undoubtedly been gained by this visit. The people have been made to understand that as Christians they have the sympathy of the English Church, whatever may be the policy of the British Ministry.

The Principality of Bulgaria.

Beyond the Balkans the political situation is anything but satisfactory. A National Assembly was chosen by the people under the new Constitution and dissolved by the Prince before it had transacted any business. This is an unhappy beginning for prince and people, and it may lead to very serious results. Before entering upon the immediate causes of this unexpected termination of the session, it should be said that it is due in great measure to the influence of the European Consuls at Sofia. It is a singular fact that all the Great Powers, with the exception of England, but including Republican France, look upon the Bulgarian Constitution with disfavour as too liberal for the people. They would be very glad to see it overthrown, and would sustain the Prince in a coup d'état. It was very unfortunate that Lord Salisbury should have recalled Mr. Palgrave from his post at the critical moment when his influence might have prevented this catastrophe. Both prince and people are utterly inexperienced in the art of government, and they naturally look to others for counsel. As to the two political parties, Conservative and Liberal, they both appear to have made very serious mistakes, which have been the immediate cause of the present situation. These parties originated in the Constitutional Assembly at Tirnova, when a Liberal majority introduced important modifications into the draft of a Constitution which had been prepared in Russia. These related chiefly to religious liberty, freedom of the press, free discussion in public assemblies, &c. The Constitution was adopted as thus amended, and the Prince took oath to support it. As he had to form a Ministry before a Parliament could be assembled, he very naturally selected the Ministers from both parties; but unfortunately the Liberals whom he nominated declined to serve in the same Ministry with the Conservatives who were nominated. It was a blunder on their part, and it resulted in the formation of a Ministry composed exclusively of Conservatives and including several men who were obnoxious to the people. The Minister of War was a Russian, the Minister of Education a Roumanian, who did not speak Bulgarian, and others had been educated.

in Russia. This Conservative Ministry undertook to control the elections in the same way in which elections are managed by the Minister of the Interior in France, while the Liberals took all possible advantage of free speech and a free press to excite the people and vilify their opponents. The result of the elections was the return of an Assembly almost unanimously Liberal. In reply to the Address from the Prince the Assembly charged the existing Ministry with unconstitutional action and demanded their dismissal. The Ministry resigned, and a leading Liberal was invited to form a new one, but was required to include in it the present Minister of War and MM. Grekoff and Natchovitch, Conservatives. These men were personally disagreeable to the Liberal leaders, and the demand of the Prince was refused. He then dissolved the Assembly and appointed an ad interim Ministry consisting of these men and the Bishop of Tirnova. Before separating, the Liberal members drew up a protest and an appeal to the people, which was signed by ninety-two out of the one hundred and sixteen members of the Assembly. It is certainly an anomaly in the present age to have a Bishop for Prime Minister, especially in a country with so liberal a Constitution as Bulgaria has; but, personally, the Bishop of Tirnova is not a bad man for the position. The Liberals claim that the Prince insists upon a revision of the Constitution, and that he made it impossible for them to form a Ministry because they would not consent to this. They undoubtedly have a very large majority in the country, and will return to the new Assembly the same men who constituted the one which was dissolved. What will the Prince do then? He can hardly attempt a coup d'état unless he is supported by Austrian troops, and these could not enter Bulgaria without the unanimous consent of the European Powers. His own army would not support him, even if his Russian Minister of War were to replace all the Bulgarian officers by Russians. He can hardly abdicate: it would be a sad confession of incompetence. There is really but one sensible thing for him to do, and he ought to have done that two months ago. He must make the best of the situation, and let the Liberals have their own way. If they rule wisely and in a truly liberal spirit, he will be satisfied. If they do not, the people will turn them out summarily, for there is really no organized party in the country, and the Bulgarians are a sober and practical race, far more interested in having a good Government with reasonable taxes than in supporting any party or any abstract principles. The whole strength of the Liberals now comes from their claim to be the Constitutional party. The Treaty of Berlin gave the Bulgarians the right to make their own Constitution. They made one which pleased the great majority of the people, and they are ready to defend it. What right have the Consuls at Sofia to use their influence to induce the Prince to overthrow it? Let it at least have a fair trial. The Prince is about to visit Russia, and it is to be hoped that he will be

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