Page:Islam, Turkey, and Armenia, and How They Happened.djvu/53



1. Ulemah, the Theological Party. This is the most influential, the most fanatic, and the most dangerous element of the Mohametan world. Nurtured with the destructive spirit of the Koran, they are always ready and eager to indulge in a holy war and renew the formidable expeditions of Islam. Having the Sheikh al Islam (the religious head of Islam) as their leader, and the host of Softas, or Mollahs (the theological students), as their expert agents, and the civil and military parties as their helpers, and the whole Mohametan world as their followers, they plan and practice according to the interests of Islam. If the said head of Islam, being backed by his party, gives his legal decree for the dethronement of a sultan, the community cannot disregard it. That is why during these frequent changes of ministry and secret butchcries in the palace of the Sultan, the Sheikh al Islam is comparatively safe, and the coward Sultan favors the Softas and Mollahs, the chief actors in the late massacre at Constantinople, with presents, decorations and congratulations. On the day of Queen Victoria's jubilee celebration several cannons were discharged over the Bosphorus; when the Softas heard the first discharge they at once poured out into the streets holding their