1921, November 29th, Tuesday.
The ink was barely dry on the hard-won Port Authority Agreement, signed amidst fanfare and thinly veiled resentments the previous day, but Sultan Murad VII knew that the true test lay not in the signing, but in the rigorous and faithful implementation of its terms. Tuesday, November twenty-ninth, would see the first furrows plowed in that rocky field, as Cavit Bey, his determined Minister of Finance, prepared to lead the Ottoman delegation into the inaugural meeting of the Joint Commission of Inquiry. The young Sultan understood that each clause of the agreement would become a new battleground.
Murad met with Cavit Bey in the early morning, before the minister departed for the tense session. "They have conceded to this Joint Commission under duress, Cavit Bey," Murad reminded him. "General Harington, through his man Colonel Hughes, will seek every opportunity to obstruct, to delay, to limit the scope of your audit. Monsieur Lacroix and Signor Valenti may appear more cooperative to protect their own national reputations, but their ultimate loyalty is not to us. Your task is to be relentless, to use the terms of the signed agreement as your shield and sword, and to draw upon the irrefutable evidence of the 'Ledger of Lies' whenever they attempt to prevaricate." "I am prepared for their tactics, Your Majesty," Cavit Bey responded, his eyes glinting with a steely resolve. "We have the truth on our side, and now, we have a formal, internationally acknowledged instrument to pursue it. They may try to bury specific records or create administrative hurdles, but with Esad Bey's intelligence on where the most damning evidence likely resides, and with the mandate for full access, we will unearth it."
The first meeting of the Joint Commission of Inquiry for the Port Authority convened late that morning in a grand, if somewhat dusty, chamber within the Ministry of Justice. The Ottoman team, led by Cavit Bey and supported by his sharpest auditors, the formidable legal scholar Minister Ahmed Şükrü Bey, and the calm diplomat Saffet Ziya Bey, faced their Allied counterparts. Colonel Hughes (British) looked even more thunderous than at the signing ceremony. Mr. Davies (British Treasury) appeared resigned but professional. Monsieur Lacroix (French) adopted an air of brisk efficiency, while Signor Valenti (Italian economist) was courteous and observant. The places for the now-recalled Allied officials, including Monsieur Dubois, were conspicuously empty.
Cavit Bey opened the proceedings by immediately tabling a formal request for unrestricted access to the Port Authority's complete financial records for the preceding three years, as well as all minutes of the Port Commission's internal meetings and contracts awarded during that period. He specified several departments and account codes that Esad Bey's initial intelligence (gleaned from Arif Efendi) had identified as particularly suspicious. Colonel Hughes predictably objected. "Minister Cavit," he declared, his voice resonating with barely suppressed anger, "this is an unwarranted fishing expedition! The agreement speaks of a 'review' of accounts for the past two years to address 'specific concerns.' Your demand for three years of all records, including internal minutes, is excessive and beyond the spirit of the accord. It suggests a desire to engage in a political witch-hunt rather than a professional audit." Mr. Davies added, more temperately, "There are also matters of commercial confidentiality and, indeed, Allied military security pertaining to certain Port operations that cannot simply be laid bare." Cavit Bey was unmoved. "Colonel, Mr. Davies, the agreement, which your High Commissioners signed yesterday, grants this Joint Commission full access to all records necessary to conduct its inquiry into financial irregularities and recommend restitution. The 'specific concerns' we have raised, based on preliminary evidence, strongly indicate that the pattern of misappropriation extends beyond two years. As for 'confidentiality' or 'security,' I am certain that provisions can be made for any genuinely sensitive military information to be redacted by joint agreement, but financial records pertaining to public revenues and expenditures cannot be hidden under such vague pretexts. The Ottoman people have a right to know how the resources of their primary port have been managed, or mismanaged." He then produced a new, carefully selected page from the "Ledger of Lies" – one showing clear discrepancies in declared customs duties versus actual cargo manifests for a period two and a half years prior, implicating a network that involved elements from all three Allied administrations in a scheme to defraud the Ottoman Treasury. "Perhaps this, gentlemen," Cavit said quietly, placing the damning document before them, "will illustrate why a comprehensive three-year audit is not merely desirable, but essential, if this Commission is to fulfill its mandate honestly." The effect was palpable. Hughes spluttered, but Monsieur Lacroix and Signor Valenti exchanged uneasy glances. They knew their governments wanted this scandal contained, and continued obstruction in the face of such evidence would only fuel the flames further in the international press. After a tense, whispered consultation amongst the Allied delegates, Monsieur Lacroix spoke. "Minister Cavit, while Colonel Hughes maintains reservations about the broad scope, perhaps as a gesture of goodwill and in the interest of expediting this inquiry, we can agree to begin with full access to all financial ledgers, contracts, and customs records for the past two years. Access to earlier records, and to sensitive internal minutes, can be discussed further by this Commission as specific needs are demonstrated by your initial findings." It was a partial concession, a delaying tactic on the third year and the minutes, but it granted Cavit Bey the immediate access he needed to begin his deep dive. He accepted it, for now. "Very well, Monsieur Lacroix. We will begin with the last two years. I expect full, unhindered access to those records to be facilitated by your respective administrations starting tomorrow morning." The first furrow had been plowed, and Cavit Bey was determined to drive the plow deep.
On the domestic front, Cavit Bey's other initiatives were also gathering momentum. Armed with Murad's Hatt-ı Hümayun, his ministry had formally issued summonses to three prominent merchants, all previously untouchable due to their wealth and alleged foreign connections, who were suspected of massive wartime profiteering and concealing assets from the Imperial Treasury. Rumors of their impending interrogations sent shivers of apprehension through the city's corrupt elite. One of the merchants, a notorious speculator named Artinoglou, reportedly attempted to flee Constantinople on a neutral cargo ship bound for Marseilles. However, Esad Bey's vigilant operatives, tipped off by an informant within Artinoglou's household, apprehended him discreetly at the docks as he was about to board. He was now in a secure government detention facility, his considerable assets temporarily frozen pending investigation. This arrest was a powerful signal that the old rules no longer applied.
Ferik Fevzi Pasha, Minister of War, reported to Murad on the progress at Davutpaşa Barracks. "Your Majesty, the initial survey is complete. The core structures are sound, though extensive refurbishment will be needed. The City Prefect, under your directive, has begun the process of relocating the squatters and clearing the illicit businesses. There have been some minor protests, orchestrated by individuals with vested interests in maintaining the previous lawlessness, but these have been handled with firmness and fairness by the gendarmerie, with my Hassa Ordusu providing a discreet but visible backup. Engineers from the Ministry of Public Works are preparing estimates for the repairs. I believe we can have the first battalions of the Hassa Ordusu quartered there within three months, if funds are steadily available." Murad approved Fevzi's request for an advance from the recent Port revenues to begin the most urgent refurbishment work. He also agreed to Fevzi's suggestion for a formal inspection of the Hassa Ordusu's current training camp in the Belgrade Forest in a week or two. "Let the men see their Sultan takes a direct interest in their progress," Murad said. "Their morale is a weapon in itself."
Kolağası Esad Bey's Imperial Guard Intelligence Directorate was also rapidly evolving from a concept into a functioning, if still small, entity. "Your Majesty," Esad reported in their evening briefing, "the three ex-Teşkilat-ı Mahsusa operatives I recruited are proving their worth. They have established a secure observation post overlooking the primary Allied military barracks in the Pera district, and another near a known meeting place for Damat Ferid Pasha's remaining loyalists. Their initial reports are… enlightening." He detailed how his new informant within the British Military Administration's transport section had provided information about an unusual upcoming nighttime movement of several unmarked military lorries towards a depot previously believed to be empty. "We do not yet know the purpose, Your Majesty, but we will monitor it closely. It could be a routine logistical transfer, or it could be something more… clandestine." Esad also expressed renewed concern for the safety of Arif Efendi, the Port Authority informant. "The Allies are now convinced the leak came from within the ledgers office, Your Majesty. Arif's name is undoubtedly high on their list of suspects. While he and his family are secure for now, the pressure to find him, and the reward for his capture, will only increase. We may need to consider more permanent arrangements for his safety, perhaps even facilitating his discreet departure from Ottoman territory altogether once the Joint Commission of Inquiry has made significant progress with the documents he provided." "His safety is our sacred duty, Esad Bey," Murad affirmed. "Spare no effort, no expense. If he needs to be resettled abroad with a new identity and sufficient funds to live comfortably, it shall be done. He has served this Empire at great personal risk."
As Tuesday drew to a close, Murad felt the immense, grinding effort of nation-building. The Port Authority agreement was a victory, but its implementation would be a daily battle. The fight against internal corruption was yielding results, but also creating powerful new enemies. The Hassa Ordusu was growing, but its needs were vast. His new intelligence service was taking its first steps, but the threats it faced were legion. And always, in the background, was the silent, anxious wait for news from Ankara. The second message was well on its way, but what response would it elicit? Could those fragile threads of hope truly bridge the chasm of bitterness and mistrust? Murad knew he was plowing the first furrows in a field that had lain fallow for far too long, a field sown with stones and thorns. The harvest, if it ever came, was distant and uncertain. But the work had begun, driven by his iron will and the dedication of the loyal men he was gathering around him. There was no turning back from this path.