MISPLACED ENTHUSIASM

In attempting a complete transmutation of the Turkish nation and the Turkish character, the government of Mustapha Kenral has seized almost too large a mouthful. The closing of certain foreign schools in and about Constantinople, at least, is a step of questionable political wisdom, even though warranted by principles of abstract justice.

Having been ordered to remove all religious emblems from their buildings by the Moslem authorities, the directors of French and Italian schools removed everything but the cross, which, in the circumstances, was the one bit of advertising likely to give offense; for this, they were immediately closed, and protest was made by their respective governments. The National Assembly was undoubtedly quite within its rights in refusing to allow foreign schools of a different faith to make converts of its citizens; but with such summary action, it is almost inevitable that the gain in internal religious morale will be more than offset by a subsequent coldness of diplomatic relations.

Religion is a dangerous thing for any government to handle without deliency. In the present instance, besides risking a serious affront to all Christian nations operating non-sectarian schools within Turkish boundaries, the Assembly has been particularly careless of the toes of the French, whose prestige in the Near East has been great. When it is considered that the success of the Kemalist regime depends to a large extent upon the cooperation of other nations, particularly that of France, the expediency of this most recent display of religious enthusiasm is doubtful in the extreme.