Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 10.djvu/57

LEFT TURKEY 39 TURKEY atic TurTcey there is a large Turkish ele- ment with about 4,000,000 Arabs, besides Greeks, Syrians, Kurds, Circassians, Ar- menians, Jews, and other races. The chief towns remaining- under Turkish rule and their populations, are as fol- lows: Constantinople, 1,000,000; Brus- sa, 110,000; Kerbela, 65,000; Sivas, 65,000; Trebizond, 55,000. Production and Industry. — Agriculture is carried on according to the most primi- tive methods in nearly all parts of the •mpire, although the soil, for the most part, is extremely fertile. The chief products are tobacco, cereals, cotton, figs, nuts, almonds, grapes, olives, and other varieties of fruit. There are in Asiatic Turkey about 17,000,000 acres under cultivation. The principal tobacco dis- tricts are Samsun, Bafra, and Char- chambe. The production in 1917 was valued at 650,363 Turkish pounds. The cotton output is about 200,000 bales an- nually. About 21,000,000 acres of land are under forest. Commerce. — The latest figures avail- able are for 1916 and 1917. In that year the imports were valued at 22,105,304 Turkish pounds, and the exports at 34,- 058,581 Turkish pounds. As Turkey was at that time under the practical rule of Germany, by far the largest portion of her exports were to that country. The imports were received chiefly from Ger- many and Austria-Hungary. England, prior to the war, had the largest pro- portion of trade. Industrial and com- mercial conditions during 1919 were nor- mal and were marked by high prices, large production, and speculation. Dur- ing that year nearly one half the trade of Constantinople was with Russia, and the remainder was with the Balkan states and with other parts of Turkey. The chief imports were cotton, wool, linen and silk textiles, ready-made cloth- ing, leather goods, and food of all kinds. The chief exports were tobacco, wool and mohair, rugs and carpets, olive oil, castor beans, and nuts. Mineral Production. — The Turkish provinces of Asia are rich in minerals, which, however, have been little worked. There are deposits of silver, manganese, zinc, antimony, borax, asphalt, coal, petroleum, and salt. Transportation. — Prior to the World War there were in European Turkey 1,046 miles of railway, and in Asiatic Turkey, 2,865. The Bagdad railway had been extended into Cilicia. The total railway mileage in 1916 was 3,720. There are about 30,000 miles of telegraph line. Finance.— The total revenue in 1918- 1919 was 33,965,698 Turkish pounds, and the expenditure was 51,762,761 Turkish pounds. By the Treaty of Peace with Turkey, it was provided that Turkish finances shall be controlled by a Finance Commission composed of representatives from Great Britain, France, and Italy. The total debt of Turkey on Aug. 31, 1919, was 465,673,338 Turkish pounds. Army. — In August, 1914, the army consisted of 39 divisions, with a strength of about 150,000 men. During the war it was expanded to 70 divisions, and at the time of the armistice, nearly 2,700,000 men had been recruited. The strength during the war was approximately 650,000. By the Treaty of Peace, Tur- key lost possession of all her fortresses in Europe and Asia. The defenses of the Dardanelles and Bosporus were demol- ished, and Great Britain, France, and Italy reserved the right to maintain naval, military, and air forces in the Straits. The armed forces were reduced to a maximum of 50,000 men, and com- pulsory service was abolished. Navy. — By the terms of the Treaty of Peace, the Turkish navy was abolished, except for certain vessels retained for police and fishery duties. There are few vessels of real value. Religion and Education. — The estab- lished state religion is Mohammedan. The Sultan is the supreme head. The chief ecclesiastical official is the Sheikh- ul-Islam. His duties are judicial and legal, rather than spiritual. In Asiatic Turkey the Mohammedans form the great majority of the population. Elemen- tary education is nominally compulsory for all children of both sexes. The state school is under the direct control of the Minister of Public Instruction. Schools of various kinds in the empire number about 40,000 and contain about 1,500,000 pupils. There are training schools for teachers, but the general level of effi- ciency in the schools is low. There are a large number of foreign schools con- ducted by French, English, and Ameri- can missionaries. The University of Constantinople was reorganized in 1918. There are a number of state schools, in- cluding the Imperial Art School and a theological seminary. Government. — Turkey, prior to the World War, was nominally a constitu- tional monarchy, but in reality was an absolute monarchy. The formal consti- tution was adopted in 1876, which pro- vided for a Parliament and other fea- tures of constitutional government. Under Abdul- Hamid II., however, this constitution became a dead letter. In 1908, the prevailing discontent, especially in the army, compelled the Sultan to issue an Imperial decree for a convoca-