ITALY AND TURKEY.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume I, Issue 247, 5 October 1911, Page 5

ITALY AND TURKEY.

THE BOMBARDMENT OF TRIPOLI. ITALIAN FLAG HOISTED. [PRESS ASSOCIATION COPVP.miIT.I Rome, Oct. 4. Vice-Admiral Faruelli reports that in reply to his summons to surrender the Turkish commander asked for a respite. Admiral Faruelli conceded until noon yesterday. Other telegrams state that the Turkish commander asked for time to communicate with Constantinople, but Italy refused. The commander thereupon refused to surrender. The newspaper “Tribune” in a special edition reports that the cruisers bombarded the Tripoli forts and the Vali's castle and the highest points of the city. Afterwards a landing was effected and the Italian flag hoisted on shore. Received 5, 10.40 a.m.) It is officially stated that the batteries at Tripoli ineffectually replied to the bombardment which is being resumed to-day. The houses are spared. Only the lighthouse and one battery have been demolished.

TIIE APPEAL FOR INTERVENTION.

BRITAIN’S REPLY. Constantinople, Oct. 4. There has been a remarkable revulsion of feeling in military cii < 1<- s in favour of Great Britain. Sir Edward Grey’s reply to the Porte’s appeal regrets that intervention at present would be inopportune. but states that he! will take the first favourable opportunity of doing so. This has produced a good effect with the Porte. NEUTRAL STATES. The Balkan States have declared a strict neutrality.

FIRST BATCH OF PRISONERS

A message from Taranto (Italy) states that much excitement was caused by the disembarkment of Turkish prisoners from the transport Sabah, including a general and several officers of high rank. The prisoners were in sorry condition owing to bad weather. The officers were lodged in the eastle and the soldiers in the barracks. REJOINING THE COLOURS. London, Oct. 4. Several batches of Italian reservists have quitted London to rejoin the colours. NAVAL OPERATIONS.

Constantinople, Oct. 4.

The Italian warships sank two motor boats at Hadaida and pursued the destroyer Peik-i-Shevket which escaped. Another Italian cruiser was sighted off Dede Aghatch, near the Dardanelles. PREVEZA THREATENED. Corfu, Oct. 4. The Duke of Abruzzi in an ultimatum to the Vali of Preveza states that unless he delivered the warships taking refuge in the harbour, the town would be bombarded. ITALIAN COLONY TO BE INVADED. Vienna, Oct. 4. “Die Zeit” states that the Porte has ordered the expeditionary corps operating in Yemen to occupy the Italian colony of Eritrea. The corps will be supported by a Turkish flotilla in the Red Sea where the Italian merchant ships are already threatened and forced to return to Massowah. ITALIAN STEAMER CHASED. ESCAPE SUNDER COVER OF DARKNESS. (Received 5, 11.5 a.m.) Rome, Oct. 4. The sinking of the Derna is denied.

Five Turkish torpedoers chased the Italian steamer Molfetta while crossing from Drazzo to Bari. lhe steamer extinguished her lights and aided by stormy weather escaped. The British steamer Sheffield was captured at Preveza. but was released after the Turkish war material was removed. AVAR INSURANCE RATES. BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND LONDON. (Received 5, 8.55 a.m.)

Sydney, Oct. 5

The Underwriters have received a cable notifying the following war risk rates between Australia and the United Kingdom Neutral vessels, steamers, outwards via Suez, J- per centum ; via Cape. l-16th per cent : Homewards, via Suez, j polecat ; via Cape. 1 per cent ; sailers. I per cent. WAR CORRESPONDENTS QUARANTINED. (Received 5. 8.5 a.m.) Malta, Oct. 4. A number of Italian, I'rench ami English, war correspondents have been quarantined owing to cholera in Italy. MUS.SULMEN PROTEST AGAINST ITALY. (Receiver! 5. K».20 a.i11.) Capetown, Oct. 4. Meetings of Mussidmen at Durban and Johannesburg protested against Itah’s action. TURKISH TRANSPORTS ( APTURED. (Received 5, 10.40 a.m.) Corfu. Oct. 4. Two Turkish transports near Pre \eza captured a steamer Hying the British llag. They had 17n soldiers, ■and six guns aboard.

EVENTS TN TURKEY. Constantinople, Oct. 4. The Porte has closed all Italian shops and appropriated the Italian hospital. The Cabinet, had a third all night sitting. Hilmi and Nazim Pasha declined office. The Minister of Marine states that lie resigned because the fleet disobeyed orders. Dr. Karl Kumm, the African explorer, at pi esent in Sydney, has pencil aied right into the heart of Tripoli, and ::i Friday last, he gave some inti T'ert ing information about the province. The population in the time of Constantine was over IO millicns. To-day it is less than half a million. The chief centres are. Tripcli, Bongazi. and Murzurck. The town c-f Triptli has about 25,000 inhabitants. Tripoli is, and always has been a Turkish province. There are more Italians than any other Europeans. and the trade of the province is in their hands. It; is even report cd that, many of the arms smuggled into Central Africa to held the Sinussi movement came through the agency of the Italians. A good part of the town of Tripoli is owned by Italians. For the last. 1 0 years the Europeans icsident at Tripoli have expected that sooner or later Italy would take control of the affairs of the country. Europeans can’t stand idly by and see a onee-fruitful country .revert, to a desert land. When land is not. cultivated in Northern Africa the desert encroaches, and large districts once fruitful, and supporting a large population are now covered with the sands of the Sahara. There is no reason why much of this land should not be reclaimed. Italy could do in Tripoli what the French have dene in Southern Tunis and Algiers by the aid of artesian wells. The only likely rival to Italy in Tripoli is France and as France has her hands full in Morocco Italy finds herself free to attempt the occupation of the province. If hostilities result there will he some severe fighting for the natives of the interior are exceptionally fanatical Moslems. Under Turkish rule everything is stagnation in Tripoli. The part is just an oasis in the Sahara.. The sand dunes have worked their way right up to the environs of the port, itself. There is.no harbour there but one could very easily be const,meted. The rainfall is quite sufficient to make it a flourishing province. Two days’ journey from Tripoli are the Grurinn Mountains which for centurh scontained a number of great cities. In the valleys and slopes of the mountains, arc still forests of olive trees 2<W years old. One exceedingly interesting feature is the existence of trcglodite villages. Owing to the constant fights between the Arabs, and Turks, the dwellers inland found living on the earth too dangerous and so they have excavated underground villages. Riding along the travellei' c.mics time after time places that look as if inhabited by mangnified moles. These ore the villages of the Kabyl people. The cnt-ry.nees to the ‘houses’ are square open holes, 3(1 to 4(» feet deep, at the bottom of which are wntciholes 10 feet deep. S ane slanting passages are cut into tht‘ clay, and descending one of these the traveller comes to a heavily barred iron gate, passing th io. ugh which another deep 1‘ le is encountered, flanked by narrow paths which lead to tin' living lyoms and stores and kitchen;; of tb.e troglodit< s.