l that her treasury be
controlled until the war indemnity should be paid, finally aroused
England to action.

It was further proposed, if you remember, that the Turkish troops were
not to be withdrawn from Thessaly until the last pound had been paid; it
was also suggested that a regiment or two at a time should leave, as the
debt was paid off, but that Thessaly should be held by the Turks as a
guarantee that Greece would pay.

The other Powers, apparently forgetting that they had sent ultimatums to
Turkey on this subject, finally agreed that the Turkish troops should
stay; but England refused point-blank to listen to any such scheme.

Lord Salisbury, the English Prime Minister, said that whether the war
indemnity be paid or not, the Turkish troops must at once leave
Thessaly. He declared firmly that he would permit no other settlement of
the question, and that rather than allow the Turks to remain longer on
Greek soil, England would break up the concert of the Powers, and take
the consequences.

These were very brave words, and highly pleasing to the national pride
and spirit of England, but the other Powers were indignant that England
should take such a stand. They pretended to forget the angry despatches
which they had sent on this very same subject, and the times they had
refused to carry on further negotiations unless the Sultan consented to
withdraw from Thessaly, and appeared to think that it was the duty of
England to agree with them, no matter how often they changed their
minds.

England alone seemed clearly to see that the consent of the Powers to
this infamous scheme was only the result of the Sultan's wearisome
delays, which after fourteen weeks of unprofitable haggling and
bargaining have made the ambassadors anxious to get the matter settled
one way or another, and be rid of the Sultan and his diplomacy.

England stated her reasons for refusing to agree with the other Powers.
She said that the war indemnity demanded by Turkey was so large that
Greece could never pay it, and that the Turkish occupation of Thessaly
until the debt was settled really meant that Thessaly was to be ceded to
Turkey.

As we have said, the English were very pleased over the stand Lord
Salisbury had taken. It seemed to have been done just at the right
moment, when the Powers, weary of the delay and anxious to have the
Turkish army disbanded, would be ready to threaten Turkey with war if
she did not immediately obey them.