Ismet Pasha often worked all night with his hench-men, Colonel Tewfik and Hikmet Kiamil, a grandson of Kiamil Pasha, who has inherited his grandfather’s political talents. They felt that the slightest failure to meet the immense demands made on the delegation would stamp them as an inferior race, and they determined it should not be. It was actually after one of their most arduous sittings, up to three o’clock in the morning, that I obtained from Ismet Pasha the comprehensive exposition of his point of view, that I have put together in the following pages. Ismet Pasha, like Mr. Edison, is deaf; and possibly feels with that great inventor that, “though it is uncomfortable when people insist on making a spitoon of your ear, for the rest _it is all advantage_.” For example, at dinner one can “get on with one’s thinking,” instead of listening to the conversation. Ismet Pasha only “hears what he wants to hear,” often a great advantage in diplomacy. As to being content with the “working of the Conference,” he said, “we are doing all in our power to make peace, but it is difficult for one nation against all the other powers. Willingly or unwillingly, they cannot see what our National Pact means to us; and that, as a proud people, we cannot accept terms of peace which they would not think of offering the Greeks and Bulgars. It is said that the Great Powers must conciliate public opinion which hates and distrusts us as ‘barbarians,’ but we feel certain that the Powers could deal with ‘public opinion’ if they so desired, and convince the whole world that we are now working by civilised methods to become a free and independent nation. Instead of facing the vital question of a ‘right to exist’ as a State, we feel that much time has been wasted over details that do not need any discussion. It is known, for example, that we are offering, what we have always offered, _equal_ rights to Moslems and Christians; yet we are asked to establish _in_equality by exempting Christians from military service. “If ever the Powers consent to accept our point of view, it is considered a great concession, and when we point out that our _whole_ demands have been reduced by us to the lowest minimum, they laugh; imagining it is a ‘concession’ to give us back _one room_ in our own house. “For three years, Turkey has given proof that none can dispute of her organising capacity, her great vitality, and her deep longing to regenerate her country. We came here hoping and believing that the plenipotentiaries would bear this in mind. They do not. They beg us to ‘trust’ them; but they treat us with the same caution, the same _dis_trust, as they have always shown towards the old ‘decayed’ Turkey, towards which, maybe, there _used to be_ some slight justification. Such an attitude cannot produce satisfactory progress.” “What are the chief obstacles to Peace?” “Mosul—Finance—Judicial Capitulations—Reparations.