NEWS OF THE WEEK.
WE face the possibility that within a few hours of these lines being written a state of war may exist between Italy and Turkey. It is a bitter disappointment that at the moment when France and Germany appeared to be approach- ing a settlement of their long dispute a new and more acute crisis should unexpectedly be imposed upon Europe. The grievances of Italy in Tripoli are by no means new, but the coincidence that redress should be violently demanded within twenty-four hours just as the Morocco negotiations were coming to an end is too remarkable for us to refrain from attributing Italian action to a determination to have her share in the rearranging of European power in Africa. As we have said elsewhere, if Austria-Hungary had not annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Germany had not sent her ships to Agadir, Italy would not have presented her ultimatum to Turkey. For Germany, whose actions thus come home to roost, the situation is extremely embarrassing. If she does nothing to trip up her ally—Italy—she will forfeit her curious title to be considered the only friend of Turkey and the pro- tector of the Mohammedan world. We imagine that she will not and cannot suppress the enthusiasm of her ally—at all events for the present. The reactions of a war between Turkey and Italy would be so numerous that it is quite impossible to foresee what might happen later.
