CHAPTER XXV.
THE ARMENIANS.
1855-1860.
There are times when the movements of armies are evidently made subservient, in divine Providence, to the progress of the Gospel; and the history of missions to the Oriental Churches would be imperfect without some notice of the Crimean war of 1854 and 1855. The historian of that war has shown, that it originated in the desire of Nicholas, Czar of Russia, to secure certain rights in the "holy places" at Jerusalem (in which he was opposed by the Roman Catholic government of France), and to obtain a formal recognition of himself as protector of the millions in Turkey professing the Greek religion.[1] But for the seasonable return to Constantinople of Lord Stratford de Redcliffe in 1853, there is reason to fear, that the extraordinary persistence of the Czar might have been successful, and that the protectorate would have been used to destroy the evangelical missions.[2]
[1] See volume first of Kinglake's Invasion of the Crimea. He describes very minutely how the English nation was drawn into the war; but it is not necessary to go into that subject here. The nation was doubtless much influenced by its desire to uphold the Turkish government in order to keep open its communication with India.
[2] Some idea of the spirit in which such a protectorate might have been exercised, may be obtained from two out of a number of kindred articles of the Russian Penal Law:
"Article 206. Whoever is found guilty of having induced others to secede from the Greek Orthodox Confession, and to join another Christian Church, will be condemned to the loss of the rights of his social position, to transportation to Tobolsk or Tomsk (Siberia), or to the punishment of the lash, and one or two years of imprisonment in the house of correction.
"Article 207. Whoever endeavors, by preaching or writing, to seduce members of the Orthodox Church to join any other Christian community, will be punished the first time, with the loss of some of his special rights, and imprisonment for one or two years in a house of correction; the second time, with imprisonment in a fortress from four to six years; the third time, with the loss of all his personal and social civil rights and status, and transportation for life to Tobolsk or Tomsk (Siberia), with imprisonment of one or two years." —New York Observer for August, 1871.
The author was in the interior of Asia Minor a short time while the Crimean war was in progress, and heard of reports among the people,—circulated, as was believed, by Russian agents,—that if Nicholas were victorious, he would secure the withdrawal from Turkey of Protestant missionaries. Exasperation caused by the failure of his negotiations with the Sultan, brought on the war; and the fall of Sebastopol was a more direct benefit to the missions, than it was to the nations that fought against it. But for the result then obtained, at vast expense of treasure and life, very different might have been the prospect of a successful republication of the Gospel in Bible lands.
The number of missionaries in the Armenian Mission in 1855, was twenty-six. One of these was an ordained physician, and there was a physician unordained. There were twenty-eight female assistant missionaries, three of whom were unmarried. Of the Armenian helpers, thirteen were pastors and preachers, and sixty-four were lay-helpers. The stations,—called such because missionaries resided at them,—were fourteen. Twelve of these were north of the Taurus, and two were south of that range.
Constantinople, Tocat, and Aintab had each a training-school for native preachers and helpers, and there was also a girls' boarding-school at Constantinople; and thirty-eight free schools were scattered over the field. Nine years after the organization of the first evangelical church, the number of churches was twenty-three. The church at Aintab was the largest, containing one hundred and forty-one members. Kessab, a long day's journey south of Antioch, where no missionary had ever resided, had a church of forty-one members. The first edifice for Christian worship in the Ottoman Empire, erected on a new site, was the stone church at Aintab. Prior to this, Christians had only been allowed to repair their old churches, and to rebuild on the old sites. The obtaining of this new indulgence was probably owing, in a measure, to the influence of the Crimean war. The dedication service, early in 1855, was attended by more than twelve hundred persons, and more than eleven hundred were present on the following Sabbath.
The printing reported for this year amounted to thirty-five thousand volumes, and nearly five millions of pages, in the Armenian, Armeno-Turkish, Greek, Greco-Turkish, and Hebrew-Spanish, but chiefly in Armenian. A religious periodical was issued every two months called the "Avedaper," or "Messenger." Dr. Dwight was editor of this, but the general supervision of the press, after the decease of Mr. Benjamin, devolved on Dr. Riggs.
Octavo and duodecimo editions of the Armenian Bible were going through the press, as was also an octavo Bible in Greco-Turkish. The New Testament had been issued in the ancient Armenian, in the Ararat dialect or Eastern Armenian, in the Ararat and Ancient Armenian in parallel columns, in the Greco-Turkish, and in the Armeno-Turkish. The Gospel of Matthew was issued in the Koordish language, and the Psalms in the Bulgarian. A demand for the Bible in the Turkish language came from almost every part of the empire.
The book depository was removed from Pera across the Golden Horn into the old city of Constantinople, and the Moslems made no objection. More than twenty boxes of books were sent to a single place in the interior within the space of a year and a half. At one time two boxes were ready for Diarbekir, one for Cesarea, one for Aintab, and another for Jerusalem.
In this work the mission was liberally aided by the American, and the British and Foreign Bible Societies, by the London Religious Tract Society, the American Tract Society, and more recently by the Turkish Missions Aid Society. Mr. Barker, agent of the British and Foreign Bible Society, and the Rev. C. N. Righter, of the American Bible Society (who died not long after at Diarbekir), did much to promote the work of Bible distribution in the countries around the Mediterranean and Black Seas; and the Constantinople Bible Society employed a French and English colporter among the soldiers of the allied powers. More Bibles and religious books went into the hands of Mohammedans from the depository of the mission during the years 1854 and 1855, than in all the previous years of its existence. Twenty thousand copies of the Bible were scattered through Turkey in that space of time.
The transfer of Dr. Riggs to the department of the Press made it necessary to suspend the Greek department in the Seminary at Bebek, and four of the six Greek pupils were sent to Dr. King at Athens.[1] Another became a teacher in Demirdesh, and another went to the United States to complete his professional studies.
[1] The author regrets being obliged to say, that these all disappointed the expectations of their benefactors.
Five Armenian students had been licensed to preach, and sent to Adrianople, Cesarea, Sivas, Diarbekir, and Kessab. Another, having the ministry in prospect, was a teacher in the new training-school at Tocat, under Mr. Van Lennep. A similar school existed at Aintab.
The accession of missionaries from 1855 to 1860 was as follows: In 1855, Orson P. Allen; in 1856, George A. Pollard, Tillman C. Trowbridge, and Misses Mary E. Tenney and Sarah E. West; in 1857, Crosby H. Wheeler, Charles F. Morse, Oliver W. Winchester, Jackson G. Coffing, George H. White, and Julius Y. Leonard; in 1858, Theodore Byington, George Washburn, and William Hutchinson; and Herman N. Barnum, who, being at Constantinople as a traveller, made an offer of his services, which was accepted in this year; in 1859, William W. Meriam, Joseph K. Greene, James F. Clarke, George F. Herrick, and Henry S. West, M. D., and Miss Myra A. Proctor; in 1860, Alvan B. Goodale, M. D., William F. Arms, Zenas Goss, William W. Livingston, and Lysander T. Burbank. Messrs. Washburn, Trowbridge, Pettibone, Barnum, Herrick, and Goss came to the mission unmarried; Mr. Washburn afterwards married a daughter of Dr. Hamlin, Mr. Barnum a daughter of Dr. Goodell, and Mr. Trowbridge a daughter of Dr. Riggs.
Mr. Everett, a devoted servant of Christ, was called to his rest on the 5th of March, 1856, after a sickness of a few days. His orphan children returned to the United States in charge of Miss Haynes, the sister of their mother. Messrs. Isaac G. Bliss and Edwin Goodell, in consequence of the failure of health, were released from their connection with the Board. The former afterwards recovered his health, and returned to Turkey as agent of the American Bible Society, in which capacity he has rendered very valuable service. Antioch and Aleppo were transferred from the Syrian to the Armenian Mission. At Erzroom the war drove away, not only the church-members, but most of those who were interested in the truth. Mr. Richardson removed to Arabkir to supply the place of Mr. Clark, who had been called to the seminary at Bebek; left without a teacher by the death of Mr. Everett and the temporary absence of Dr. Hamlin. At Marash, in consequence of the war and the proximity of the rough mountaineers of Zeitoon, the missionaries were at one time in no small danger.
The beheading of a young Armenian, who had rashly declared himself a Mohammedan, and then repented of his rashness, and the consequent successful efforts of Sir Stratford Canning, in procuring a pledge from the Sultan that no person should be persecuted in Turkey for his religious opinions, were described in the first volume.[1] This was in 1843 and 1844. Ten or eleven years later, there was another beheading at Adrianople for a like cause, and another at Aleppo; and the same high-minded statesman was again aroused to effort, not only for a more effectual abrogation of the death penalty itself, but to obtain for the Protestant Christians freedom from persecution, and for the Christians generally the privileges that were enjoyed by their fellow-subjects of the Moslem religion. The eighty folio pages of documents on the subject, which were presented to both Houses of Parliament in 1856, form an important and interesting chapter in the history of those times. The principal writers, in addition to Lord Stratford de Redcliffe and the Earl of Clarendon, were the Earl of Shaftesbury, Lord Cowley, Sir Culling Eardley Eardley, President of the Turkish Missions Aid Society, the Rev. Cuthbert G. Young, its Secretary, and Mehemet Fuad.
[1] Vol. i. p. 135.
As the result of all, a Hatti Humaïoun, or Imperial Firman, was issued by the Sultan in February, 1856. When read in public, the Sheik el Islam, the highest Moslem ecclesiastic, invoked the divine blessing on the Imperial Edict; but probably without an apprehension, either by himself or by his government, of the full significance of the instrument. By many of the Mohammedans it was regarded us opening the door for them to become Christians. Not a few of the Armenians and Greeks were displeased with it as favoring Protestantism; and this fact did not escape the sagacity of Mohammedans.
The Imperial Rescript, as translated from the French, is as follows:—
"Let it be done as herein set forth.
"To you, my Grand Vizier, Mehemed Emin Aali Pasha, decorated with my
Imperial Order of the Medjidiyé of the first class, and with the
Order of Personal Merit; may God grant to you greatness, and
increase your power!
"It has always been my most earnest desire to insure the happiness of all classes of the subjects whom divine Providence has placed under my imperial sceptre; and since my accession to the throne I have not ceased to direct all my efforts to the attainment of that end.
"Thanks to the Almighty, these unceasing efforts have already been productive of numerous useful results. From day to day the happiness of the nation and the wealth of my dominions go on augmenting.
"It being now my desire to renew and enlarge still more the new institutions, ordained with the view of establishing a state of things conformable with the dignity of my empire and the position which it occupies among civilized nations; and the rights of my empire having, by the fidelity and praiseworthy efforts of all my subjects, and by the kind and friendly assistance of the great powers, my noble Allies, received from abroad a confirmation which will be the commencement of a new era, it is my desire to augment its well-being and prosperity, to effect the happiness of all my subjects, who in my sight are all equal and equally dear to me, and who are united to each other by the cordial ties of patriotism, and to insure the means of daily increasing the prosperity of my empire. I have, therefore, resolved upon, and I order the execution of, the following measures.
"The guaranties promised on our part by the Hatti-Humaïoun of Gul-Hané, and in conformity with the Tanzimat, to all the subjects of my empire, without distinction of classes or of religion, for the security of their persons and property and the preservation of their honor, are to-day confirmed and consolidated; and efficacious measures shall be taken in order that they may have their full and entire effect.
"All the privileges and spiritual immunities granted by my ancestors ab antiquo, and at subsequent dates, to all Christian communities or other non-Mussulman persuasions established in my empire under my protection, shall be confirmed and maintained.
"Every Christian or other non-Mussulman community shall be bound, within a fixed period, and with the concurrence of a commission composed ad hoc of members of its own body, to proceed, with my high approbation and under the inspection of my Sublime Porte, to examine into its actual immunities and privileges, and to discuss and submit to my Sublime Porte the reforms required by the progress of civilization and of the age. The powers conceded to the Christian Patriarchs and Bishops by the Sultan Mahomet II. and his successors, shall be made to harmonize with the new position which my generous and beneficent intentions insure to these communities.
"The principle of nominating the Patriarchs for life, after the revision of the rules of election now in force, shall be exactly carried out, conformably to the tenor of their firmans of investiture.
"The Patriarchs, Metropolitans, Archbishops, Bishops and Rabbins shall take an oath on their entrance into office, according to a form agreed upon in common by my Sublime Porte and the spiritual heads of the different religious communities. The ecclesiastical dues, of whatever sort or nature they be, shall be abolished, and replaced by fixed revenues for the Patriarchs and heads of communities, and by the allocation of allowances and salaries equitably proportioned to the importance of the rank, and the dignity of the different members of the clergy.
"The property, real or personal, of the different Christian ecclesiastics shall remain intact; the temporal administration of the Christian or other non-Mussulman communities shall, however, be placed under the safeguard of an assembly to be chosen from among the members, both ecclesiastics and laymen, of the said communities.
"In the towns, small boroughs, and villages, where the whole population is of the same religion, no obstacle shall be offered to the repair, according to their original plan, of buildings set apart for religious worship, for schools, for hospitals and for cemeteries.
"The plans of these different buildings, in case of their new erection, must, after having been approved by the Patriarchs or heads of communities, be submitted to my Sublime Porte, which will approve of them by my imperial order, or make known its observation upon them within a certain time.
"Each sect, in localities where there are no other religious denominations, shall be free from every species of restraint as regards the public exercise of its religion.
"In the towns, small boroughs, and villages, where different sects are mingled together, each community inhabiting a distinct quarter shall, by conforming to the above-mentioned ordinances, have equal power to repair and improve its churches, its hospitals, its schools, and its cemeteries. When there is question of the erection of new buildings, the necessary authority must be asked for, through the medium of the Patriarchs and heads of communities, from my Sublime Porte, which will pronounce a sovereign decision according to that authority, except in the case of administrative obstacles. The intervention of the administrative authority in all measures of this nature will be entirely gratuitous. My Sublime Porte will take energetic measures to insure to each sect, whatever be the number of its adherents, entire freedom in the exercise of its religion.
"Every distinction or designation tending to make any class whatever of the subjects of my empire inferior to another class, on account of their religion, language, or race, shall be forever effaced from the administrative protocol. The laws shall be put in force against the use of any injurious or offensive term, either among private individuals or on the part of the authorities.
"As all forms of religion are and shall be freely professed in my dominions, no subject of my empire shall be hindered in the exercise of the religion that he professes, nor shall be in any way annoyed on this account. No one shall be compelled to change their religion.
"The nomination and choice of all functionaries and other employés of my empire being wholly dependent upon my sovereign will, all the subjects of my empire, without distinction of nationality, shall be admissible to public employments, and qualified to fill them according to their capacity and merit, and conformably with rules to be generally applied.
"All the subjects of my empire, without distinction, shall be received into the civil and military schools of the government, if they otherwise satisfy the conditions as to age and examination which are specified in the organic regulations of the said schools. Moreover, every community is authorized to establish public schools of science, art, and industry. Only the method of instruction and the choice of professors in schools of this class shall be under the control of a mixed council of public instruction, the members of which shall be named by my sovereign command.
"All commercial, correctional, and criminal suits between Mussulmans and Christian or other non-Mussulman subjects, or between Christians or other non-Mussulmans of different sects, shall be referred to mixed tribunals.
"The proceedings of these tribunals shall be public; the parties shall be confronted, and shall produce their witnesses, whose testimony shall be received, without distinction, upon an oath taken according to the religious law of each sect.
"Suits relating to civil affairs shall continue to be publicly tried, according to the laws and regulations before the mixed provincial councils, in the presence of the governor and judge of the place. Special civil proceedings, such as those relating to successions or others of that kind, between subjects of the same Christian or other non-Mussulman faith, may, at the request of the parties, be sent before the councils of the Patriarchs or of the communities.
"Penal, correctional, and commercial laws, and rules of procedure for the mixed tribunals, shall be drawn up as soon as possible, and formed into a code. Translations of them shall be published in all the languages current in the empire.
"Proceedings shall be taken with as little delay as possible, for the reform of the penitentiary system as applied to houses of detention, punishment, or correction, and other establishments of like nature, so as to reconcile the rights of humanity with those of justice. Corporal punishment shall not be administered, even in the prisons, except in conformity with the disciplinary regulations established by my Sublime Porte; and everything that resembles torture shall be entirely abolished.
"Infractions of the law in this particular shall be severely repressed, and shall besides entail, as of right, the punishment, in conformity with the civil code, of the authorities who may order, and of the agents who may commit them.
"The organization of the police in the capital, in the provincial towns, and in the rural districts, shall be revised in such a manner as to give to all the peaceable subjects of my empire the strongest guaranties for the safety both of their persons and property.
"The equality of taxes entailing equality of burdens, as equality of duties entails that of rights, Christian subjects, and those of other non-Mussulman sects, as it has been already decided, shall, as well as Mussulmans, be subject to the obligations of the Law of Recruitment. The principle of obtaining substitutes, or of purchasing exemption, shall be admitted. A complete law shall be published, with as little delay as possible, respecting the admission into and service in the army of Christian and other non-Mussulman subjects.
"Proceedings shall be taken for a reform in the constitution of the provincial and communal councils, in order to insure fairness in the choice of the deputies of the Mussulman, Christian, and other communities, and freedom of voting in the councils. My Sublime Porte will take into consideration the adoption of the most effectual means for ascertaining exactly and for controlling the result of the deliberations of the decisions arrived at.
"As the laws regulating the purchase, sale, and disposal of real property are common to all the subjects of my empire, it shall be lawful for foreigners to possess landed property in my dominions, conforming themselves to the laws and police regulations, and bearing the same charges as the native inhabitants, and after arrangements have been come to with foreign powers.
"The taxes are to be levied under the same denomination from all the subjects of my empire, without distinction of class or of religion. The most prompt and energetic means for remedying the abuses in collecting the taxes, and especially the tithes, shall be considered. The system of direct collection shall gradually, and as soon as possible, be substituted for the plan of farming, in all the branches of the revenues of the State. As long as the present system remains in force, all agents of the government and all members of the medjlis shall be forbidden, under the severest penalties, to become lessees of any farming contracts which are announced for public competition, or to have any beneficial interest in carrying them out. The local taxes shall, as far as possible, be so imposed as not to affect the sources of production, or to hinder the progress of internal commerce.
"Works of public utility shall receive a suitable endowment, part of which shall be raised from private and special taxes, levied in the provinces which shall have the benefit of the advantages arising from the establishment of ways of communication by land and sea.
"A special law having been already passed, which declares that the budget of the revenue and expenditure of the state shall be drawn up and made known every year, the said law shall be most scrupulously observed. Proceedings shall be taken for revising the emoluments attached to each office.
"The heads of each community and a delegate, designated by my Sublime Porte, shall be summoned to take part in the deliberations of the Supreme Council of Justice on all occasions which might interest the generality of the subjects of my empire. They shall be summoned specially for this purpose by my Grand Vizier. The delegates shall hold office for one year; they shall be sworn on entering upon their duties. All the members of the council, at the ordinary and extraordinary meetings, shall freely give their opinions and their votes, and no one shall ever annoy them on this account.
"The laws against corruption, extortion, or malversation, shall apply, according to the legal forms, to all the subjects of my empire, whatever may be their class and the nature of their duties.
"Steps shall be taken for the formation of banks and other similar institutions, so as to effect a reform in the monetary and financial system, as well as to create funds to be employed in augmenting the sources of the material wealth of my empire.
"Steps shall also be taken for the formation of roads and canals to increase the facilities of communication and increase the sources of the wealth of the country. Everything that can impede commerce or agriculture shall be abolished. To accomplish these objects, means shall be sought to profit by the science, the art, and the funds of Europe, and thus gradually to execute them.
"Such being my wishes and my commands, you, who are my Grand Vizier, will, according to custom, cause this Imperial Firman to be published in my capital, and in all parts of my empire; and you will watch attentively and take all the necessary measures that all the orders which it contains be henceforth carried out with the most rigorous punctuality."
Lord Stratford, in replying to a congratulatory address from the missionaries, declared his agreement with them in the opinion, that something great had been gained; though he believed the principles involved would require persevering efforts to carry them into practice. He said that he was himself but an humble instrument in the hands of divine Providence, and that he had never felt the hand of God so sensibly in any other measure he had carried through, as in this, which, after he had given it up for lost, had succeeded all at once, in a way that filled him with astonishment.[1]
[1] That the Hatti Humaïoun was really intended to include the death penalty, is made exceedingly probable by the official correspondence which preceded it, and which was in fact its procuring cause. Only a few brief extracts can be given in this note.
Referring to the punishment of death as applied to apostates from Islamism, the Earl of Clarendon, English Minister of Foreign Affairs, writes thus to Lord Stratford de Redcliffe: "As the Turkish empire is, by treaty stipulations, to be declared part and parcel of the European system, it is quite impossible for the powers of Europe to acquiesce in the continuance in Turkey of a law, and a practice, which is a standing insult to every other nation in Europe."
Again, on the 17th of September, 1853, the Earl of Clarendon writes thus to Lord Stratford: "Her Majesty's Government distinctly demands that no punishment whatever shall attach to the Mohammedan who becomes a Christian, whether originally a Mohammedan, or originally a Christian, any more than any punishment attaches to a Christian who embraces Mohammedanism. In all such cases the movements of human conscience must be left free, and the temporal arm must not interfere to coerce the spiritual decision."
Referring to the Imperial Rescript, February 12, 1856, Lord
Stratford says, writing to the Earl:—
"If no one is to be molested on account of the religion he professes, and no one to be punished as a renegade, whatever form of faith he denies, I do not see what room there can possibly be for any practical persecutions in future within the limits of the Sultan's empire." See Correspondence respecting Christian Privileges in Turkey, in Parliamentary Papers for 1856, pp. 15, 24, 25, 33, 55, 60, 66, 67, 77-80.
The plenipotentiaries of Great Britain, Austria, France, Russia, Sardinia, and Turkey, assembled in February, 1856, at the close of the Crimean war, to negotiate what is known as the Treaty of Paris. It is evident from the Protocols of their Conference, that, having the Earl of Clarendon and Lord Cowley among them, they were intent on giving weight and perpetuity to this firman of the Sultan, by a formal recognition of it in the treaty. This was done in article ninth, after much deliberation, and with the full concurrence of all the plenipotentiaries, including the representative of the Sultan.[1]
[1] "NINTH ARTICLE. His Imperial Majesty the Sultan, having, in his constant solicitude for the welfare of his subjects, issued a firman, which, while, ameliorating their condition without distinction of religion or race, records his generous intentions towards the Christian population of his empire, and wishing to give a further proof of his sentiments in that respect, has resolved to communicate to the Contracting Parties the said firman, emanating spontaneously from his sovereign will.
"The Contracting Powers recognize the high value of this communication. It is clearly understood, that it cannot, in any case, give to said Powers the right to interfere, either collectively or separately, in the relations of his Majesty, the Sultan, with his subjects, nor in the internal administration of his Empire." See Treaty of Paris, March 30, 1856, in Parliamentary State Papers, vol. lxi. p. 20. Also, appended, Protocols of Conferences, pp. 8, 13, 51, 57, 58.
The Hatti Humaïoun of 1855 was much more than a confirmation of the Imperial Firman of 1850, nor was it a dead letter. A year afterwards Dr. Jewett, while admitting that it was inefficient in certain respects, declared it to have been in an important sense, a quickening spirit. "Never," he says, "within the same space of time, has there been as much religious discussion with the Mussulmans as since the issue of the late firman, and never before, I think, has there been such a spirit of religious inquiry among Mohammedans, and readiness to discuss the merits of the Christian religion, as has been evident during the past year. It has awakened hope of a good day even for the Moslems." A few years later, Dr. Goodell, speaking of it says: "To the Protestant communities here, and to all who live godly in Christ Jesus, this Hatti Humaïoun is a boon of priceless value. Heretofore its principal use was to secure us from the molestation of these corrupt churches, but we have now begun to test its importance with reference to the Mohammedans themselves. Only a few years since, the headless bodies of apostates from the Mohammedan faith might be seen lying in the streets of the great city. But now such apostates may be seen at all hours of the day walking these same streets without any apparent danger, urging the claims of Christianity even in the very courts of the royal mosques, and teaching and preaching in the chapel, in the private circle, and sometimes even in the palaces of the great, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. And all this wonderful security is, under God, owing entirely to the Hatti Humaïoun." He adds, "It is said that the Turkish government is sometimes guilty of violating some of the great principles of that document. And who that knows anything of human nature, or of the history of our race, ever supposed they would not be guilty of it? To suppose the contrary would be to suppose the Turk advanced very much farther towards perfection than any other nation on the face of the earth."
A correspondence arose, about this time, in the old Armenian Church, between those who inclined towards the Papal Church and those who were opposed, and it was gratifying to see that the principal Armenian newspaper, published under the sanction of the Patriarch, drew its arguments almost wholly from the Scriptures, scarcely anything being said of the Councils, or of the Fathers.
The out-stations of Nicomedia, Adabazar, Rodosto, Baghchejuk, and Broosa were prosperous. A Protestant Greek community at Demirdesh stood firm under persecution, though without a spiritual guide. The Pasha did little for their protection, but divine Providence had other instruments for their deliverance. The French Vice Consul, having to feed immense herds of cattle for the French army, selected the principal Greek Protestant of the place as the most competent overseer, and empowered him to employ the needful agents. This brought to his feet some who had beaten him and even threatened him with death. He freely employed them and paid them honestly, thus returning good for evil.
The training-school at Tocat was composed of pious young men who made considerable progress in their studies. A footing was gained at Tarsus and Bitias, south of the Taurus range, and a native pastor was ordained at Kessab. Here was a Protestant community of more than four hundred.
At Aintab and in its neighboring villages, after only nine years of labor, there were twelve stated religious services, nearly half of them conducted by native preachers, two thousand Protestants, old and young, two hundred and sixty-eight church-members, a large congregation on the Sabbath, three promising young men in the pastoral office, and two more prepared for that office. The year 1856 was one of unbroken prosperity in all temporal concerns at Aintab. The influence of this prosperity, however, had its usual effect in developing a love of the world, and a feeling of self-consequence, resulting in some perplexities within the church. Such results are known in much older communities, and ought to be expected in the early religious life of such a people. Between the pastor Kara Krikor and his people there was all that could be expected of mutual confidence and harmony, and his monthly salary was paid with a promptness unusual in such cases.
The death of Mrs. Schneider on the 29th of September was a great loss to the mission. This excellent woman had an earnest desire for the salvation of every one she met, and old and young listened with pleasure to her instructions. It became known, soon after her decease, that three or four small companies of native sisters had begun of their own accord to hold meetings in various quarters. The progress among the women of Aintab had been great. When the first missionary arrived, only one woman was known who was able to read. It was now ascertained that nearly three hundred could read the New Testament.
The boarding-school pupils at Constantinople received a pupil this year from each of the following places—Trebizond, Diarbekir, Rodosto, Haskeuy, Scutari, and Baghchejuk. The chief difficulty in teaching was the want of suitable text-books in the modern language. In addition to the usual studies, the pupils were allowed an opportunity to acquaint themselves with domestic duties, and they did it in most cases with hearty good-will. Dr. Goodell exercised a fatherly care over the institution.
During most of the year Mr. Clark had charge of the Seminary at Bebek. The prescribed course of study embraced four years in the scholastic department and three in the theological, and was designed to secure to the pupils a systematic training. The qualifications required for entering, raised the character of the common schools connected with the mission. During vacations the students were required to support themselves. The average number was forty-five, and it was necessary to reject no less than sixty applicants, mainly from inability to support them. Among them were Bulgarians, Albanians, Wallachians, and Servians. Seven students were in the theological department, and three others went through a part of the course, one of whom was a Turk, and another a Greek. Dr. Hamlin gave instruction in this department after his return, assisted by Dr. Schauffler in Turkish. Nine of the students in the seminary were church-members, and others gave evidence of piety.
The growth of the Armenian Mission, along with its great extent, of territory, required a division for the more convenient administration of its affairs. Hence a Southern Armenian Mission was organized in November, 1856, having the Taurus for its boundary on the north, and embracing the stations of Aintab, Marash, Antioch, Aleppo, and Oorfa. Its printing was to be done at Constantinople. The members of this mission were Messrs. Schneider, Pratt, Beebee, Perkins, Morgan, Nutting, Cotting, and White. The field of the Northern Mission extended from the Balkans in European Turkey to the eastern waters of the Euphrates.
The "Turkish Missions Aid Society" was formed in England in 1854; "not to originate a new mission, but to aid the existing evangelical missions in the Turkish empire, especially American." The funds contributed to the American missions were given expressly for a Native Agency; and important aid has thus been rendered down to the present time. The funds of the Society having suffered diminution in 1857, Dr. Dwight was invited to visit England. He arrived in March of the following year, and visited the principal cities, in company with the Secretary. "I was everywhere received," says Dr. Dwight, "with the most overflowing kindness, and my simple story was listened to with the most intense interest. Clergymen and laymen of all evangelical denominations were usually present at the meetings, which were held on week days, and I saw nowhere anything like a sectarian spirit, but uniformly the very reverse. Ministers of the Church of England, as well as others, publicly advocated the plan of aiding the American Mission in Turkey, rather than sending forth a mission of their own." Valuable as the coöperation of this Society has been in the bestowment of funds, its moral influence in Turkey, as a visible illustration of fraternal feeling among Protestant Christians of various names and countries has been of far greater value.[1]
[1] The aid afforded by the Turkish Missions Aid Society to the missions of the Board in Western Asia, has averaged about ten thousand dollars a year.
An account was given, in a former chapter, of the conversion, in 1842, of a "Papal Armenian.[1] His name was Bedros Kamaghielyan, and his death occurred in 1857, fifteen years afterward. His conversion was remarkable, and so was his subsequent life. He was for some years an efficient helper at Salonica among the Jews, and ever after that, he was a successful assistant of Dr. Dwight in Constantinople. Eminently wise to win souls to Christ, it is believed that many, among the different races in Turkey, will rise up and call him blessed. The first Turkish convert who became a preacher, received his first impressions from Bedros at Salonica. Years later, the missionaries learned that the origin of an interesting work of grace among the Greeks of Cassandra, in that region, was traceable to him. Though suffering from bodily infirmity in the later years of his life, his labors were unceasing for the salvation of souls, and for the edification of the church. He was noted for his humility and self-denial, and his piety was a steady glow of light. His views of the gospel method of salvation were clear, and his manner of presenting it exceedingly happy. He was eminently a peacemaker in the church, and his good sense was in constant demand in the settlement of difficulties. As a deacon in the Yeni Kapoo church he was constantly looking after the sick and infirm, visiting families in the Protestant community, and instructing their women in the doctrines and duties of Christianity. When attacked by his last sickness, Bedros very soon received the impression that it would be fatal. Once, in great bodily suffering, he exclaimed, "O, what a Saviour is my Saviour! He scatters all my darkness, and gives me peace." At another time, he wished the missionaries might all be called to his bedside, that he might declare to them his great joy, and what things the Lord was doing for his soul. A Mohammedan of some distinction, who had often had religious conversations with Bedros, called upon him without knowing of his sickness. The sick man, though in extreme bodily weakness, spoke very faithfully to his visitor, and told him of his joy in view of death, and his hope of going to be forever with the Lord Jesus Christ, and added: "This is the only way of peace and salvation, and Christ is the only Saviour of sinners for you, and for me, and for all the world." The eyes of the Turk filled with tears. He had never seen a Christian die before; and to hear a man talk with so much gladness of his departure from the world overcame him, and he hurried from the room. An aged Moslem called, who had known Bedros, and gave some evidence of being a Christian. Going to his bedside, his eyes streaming with tears, he embraced and kissed him in the most affectionate manner. Dr. Dwight closes his statement with the following testimony: "Thus has passed away one of the choicest spirits this world ever saw. I feel that I have many lessons to learn from his quiet, humble, and most useful life; and I trust that his death may be greatly blessed to all the missionaries, and to all the people."
[1] Chapter ix. p. 130. See, also, Missionary Herald, 1857, pp. 387-390.
The second Mrs. Hamlin died suddenly, on the 6th of November, 1857. Though not permitted to give her dying testimony, the record of her life was that of a meek, lowly, and quiet spirit; diligent, faithful, and affectionate in every duty.[1]
[1] See Memoir, The Missionary Sisters, written by Mrs. Benjamin.
The region, of which Arabkir is the centre, was now rising in importance. The territory dependent on this station for instruction extended from northeast and southwest, along the western bank of the Euphrates, one hundred and seventy-five miles, with a population of one hundred thousand; about equally divided between Armenians and Mussulmans, with few Greeks, no Roman Catholics, and no Jews. A large number of the Mussulmans were known as Kuzzelbashes. The field was first occupied in 1853, and churches had been organized in three cities and two villages, all of which enjoyed the stated preaching of the Word.
Sivas, west of Arabkir, and Tocat on the northwest, were missionary centres of populous fields, extensively accessible; the former containing a population of more than a hundred thousand, and the latter of nearly half a million,—Armenians, Turks, Kuzzelbashes, Koords, and Greeks.
Harpoot lies cast of Arabkir, on the other side of the Euphrates. Mr. Dunmore commenced this station in 1855, and was alone in this city of twenty-five thousand inhabitants; the failure of his wife's health having obliged her to return to the United States. He had been usefully employed here nearly three years,—the last with Messrs. Wheeler and Allen,—when, having a taste for exploration and pioneer labors, he was transferred, in 1858, to Erzroom, with special reference to the region south of that city; and Messrs. Wheeler and Allen were joined at Harpoot, in 1859, by Mr. H. N. Barnum. The city is the centre of a population of about one hundred thousand, and stands on a lofty hill, looking to the distant range of the Taurus on the south, and scores of villages on the intervening plain. Northward, across the eastern branch of the Euphrates, is the still loftier range of the Anti-Taurus; while the distant horizon to the east and west is shut in by mountains. Arabkir was occupied for several years by Messrs. Clark, Pollard, and Richardson, but in 1865 was included in the Harpoot field.[1]
[1] Mr. Wheeler's Ten Years on the Euphrates.
Geghi is about ninety miles from Harpoot, in the direction of Erzroom. It was visited by Mr. Peabody and Mr. Bliss in 1848 and 1851. Mr. Peabody found the Vartabed of the place and ten of the people deeply interested in reading the Scriptures. Mr. Wheeler visited Geghi in the summer of 1858 and found the truth much opposed, but taking a firm hold among the sixteen hundred Armenians of the place. He was touched by their earnest entreaties to remain with them a few mouths; or if that might not be, that he would leave his native helper till some one else could come among them. As with the Apostle Paul at Troas, the eagerness of the people to hear led him to protract his labors on one occasion, till an hour and a half past midnight, and on another till the breaking day.
The year 1859 was signalized by a revival in the Bebek Seminary. At its commencement, nearly half the students were regarded as hopefully pious, and these all seemed at once to have new views of spiritual things. The Holy Spirit not only revived the graces of such, but put forth a converting power. Within a few weeks nearly all the students gave credible evidence of piety. There were several cases, also, of hopeful conversion in the girls' boarding school; and similar awakenings were reported at Marsovan, Yozgat, Baghchejuk, Broosa, and Marash. At the last place thirty-seven were added to the church at one time, making eighty-six by profession since the beginning of 1858.
Mr. Parsons had received frequent complaints from the brethren of Nicomedia, that their girls had not been properly cared for by the teacher, and from the teacher that the brethren were intermeddling. He answered by withdrawing all aid until they could agree among themselves. The effect was immediate. They began to pay a tuition fee, and made special efforts to render the school attractive. The number of pupils was increased to seventy-eight, and the school ceased any longer to need aid.
A fire destroyed the mission premises at Tocat in 1859. The flames were so rapid as not only to consume the buildings, but the clothing and bedding of the pupils, the books and apparatus of the school, a portion of the furniture of Messrs. Pettibone and Winchester, who had been recently placed at the head of the school, and all the effects of Mr. Van Lennep, including a large and valuable library, and a manuscript Armenian translation of a commentary on the Bible, made, and to have been printed, at the expense of the Prince of Schönberg. In view of this calamity, it was deemed expedient to close the training-school. A similar one was opened in the fall of the same year, at Harpoot. Mr. Clark returning to the United States, Dr. Hamlin renewed his connection with the Bebek Seminary.
Mr. Dunmore, after describing a tour he had made of twelve hundred miles from Erzroom to Oroomiah in Persia, and from thence, on his return, through Russian Armenia, gives the following summary of his missionary travels: "I have travelled on horseback over six thousand miles in Turkey, and one thousand in Persia and Russia, between two and three hundred on goat skins upon the Tigris, and over fifteen hundred by steamer, without sickness by the way, without accident, or the loss of an article of value. And I have never taken a guard when travelling alone, for protection from robbers. Surely we may safely trust Him who says: 'Believe in God, believe also in me.'"[1]
[1] Missionary Herald for 1859, pp. 306-313.
The missionaries at Cesarea were much encouraged by the progress of the work there. Mr. Leonard thus writes: "The church, though constantly dismissing members to other churches, still maintains its numbers by fresh accessions from without, and is at the same time evidently advancing in consistent, intelligent Christian character. Here are some noble exemplars of faith and piety, who search the Scriptures daily, and adorn their doctrines by a godly life. I have often wished I might introduce some of our American friends into our teachers' meetings on a Sabbath afternoon, or to the Sabbath-school at the intermission of public worship, where nearly the whole congregation remains, exhibiting a zeal and aptness in the discussion of religious truths scarcely surpassed in the most favored churches in New England. The weekly woman's prayer-meeting is sometimes left entirely in the hands of the native sisters, and any one of half a dozen is always ready without embarrassment to take the lead, discoursing very appropriately from her Turkish Testament. This, I am told, is a rare thing in Turkey, where woman has been so long held in ignorance and degradation."
The reader will remember the Patriarch Matteos, and his degradation in 1849. After ten years passed in retirement, he was elected Catholikos of all the Armenians, and removed to Echmiadzin. His election to such a post at this time was significant, but the probability of his being able then to hinder the reformation did not create serious apprehension.
Mrs. Beebee died peacefully at Marash, on the 28th of October, 1858, after protracted sufferings, and her husband returned some months after to the United States with broken health, and was released from his connection with the Board.