The United States need not depart from its long-established foreign policy, but is bound to protect its own honor and the lives and property of its citizens.
Josiah Strong.
New York, March 1, 1895.
CONTENTS.
| CHAPTER | PAGE | |
|---|---|---|
| I.— | A CHAPTER OF HORRORS | [1] |
| Certified Evidence of the Armenian Massacre, Preceded by an Endorsement of the Evidence, with Signatures in Fac-simile, and an Explanatory Note. | ||
| II.— | GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT EASTERN TURKEY | [43] |
| The Physical Aspects, Inhabitants, and Administration of the Country. | ||
| III.— | THE CHRONIC CONDITION OF ARMENIA AND KURDISTAN | [54] |
| Specific and Detailed Instances of Kurdish Plunder and Oppression.—The Turkish System of Taxation and its Abuses.—Why these Facts are so little Known.—What can be Done to Improve the Situation. | ||
| IV.— | OTTOMAN PROMISES AND THEIR FULFILMENT | [70] |
| The Treaty of Adrianople, 1829.—The Hatti Sherif, 1839.—Pledge of 1844.—Protestant Charter, 1850.—Hatti Humayoun, 1856.—Anglo-Turkish Convention, 1878.—Treaty of Berlin, 1878. | ||
| V.— | THE OUTCOME OF THE TREATY OF BERLIN | [76] |
| British Naval Demonstration, 1879.—The Identical Note of the Powers, 1880, and the Turkish Reply.—The Collective Note of the Powers, and the Aggressive Response of the Sublime Porte.—The Circular of Great Britain, 1881, its Cool Reception by the Powers, and the Indefinite Postponement of Turkish Reforms.—The Effect of the Berlin Treaty in Arousing Armenian Aspirations and Increasing Turkish Oppression.—Armenian Revolution a Nightmare of the Turks.—The Real Armenian Position.—The Only Treatment for the “Sick Man” a Surgical One. | ||
| VI.— | THE SULTAN AND THE SUBLIME PORTE | [87] |
| The Demands of his Office as Sultan-Calif.—Justice to Christian and Moslem both Impossible.—Status of non-Mohammedans.—The Palace and the Porte.—A House Divided against Itself. | ||
| VII.— | PREVIOUS ACTS OF THE TURKISH TRAGEDY | [95] |
| The Massacres of Greeks, 1822; Nestorians, 1850; Syrians, 1860; Cretans, 1867; Bulgarians, 1876; Yezidis, 1892; Armenians, 1894. | ||
| VIII.— | ISLAM AS A FACTOR OF THE PROBLEM | [110] |
| A Politico-Religious System.—Indissoluble and Incapable of Modification.—The Military, Civil, and Legal Rights of non-Mohammedans.—Freeman’s Conclusion. | ||
| IX.— | GLADSTONE ON THE ARMENIAN MASSACRE AND ON TURKISH MISRULE | [121] |
| X.— | WHO ARE THE ARMENIANS? | [131] |
| Their Origin, History, Church, Language, Literature, and General Characteristics. | ||
| XI.— | AMERICANS IN TURKEY, THEIR WORK AND INFLUENCE | [147] |
| Their Attitude and Recognized Position.—Statistics of the Direct Results of their Efforts.—Their Indirect Influence on All Classes.—The Present Threatening Attitude of the Turkish Government. | ||
| Appendix | A.—A BIT OF AMERICAN DIPLOMACY | [157] |
| B.—ESTABLISHMENT OF U. S. CONSULATES IN EASTERN TURKEY | [163] | |
| C.—DR. CYRUS HAMLIN’S EXPLANATION | [167] | |
| D.—THE CENSORSHIP OF THE PRESS | [169] | |
| E.—BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE SUBJECT | [171] | |
| General Index | [175] |
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
| PAGE | |
|---|---|
| KURDISH SHEIKHS | [Frontispiece] |
| FAC-SIMILE OF SIGNATURES | [2] and [4] |
| VICTIMS OF TURKISH TAXATION | [10] |
| REVIEW OF KURDISH CAVALRY | [19] |
| NAREG: ANCIENT CHURCH AND MODERN HOVELS | [29] |
| ARMENIAN GIRLS OF VAN | [39] |
| A KURD OF THE OLD TYPE | [47] |
| RUINED KURDISH CASTLE AT KHOSHAB | [50] |
| MINAS TCHÉRAZ | [80] |
| ZEIBEK “IRREGULAR” | [83] |
| TURKISH SOLDIER, “REGULAR” | [85] |
| H. I. M. SULTAN ABD-UL-HAMID KHAN | [91] |
| HIGHWAY IN ARMENIA | [105] |
| ARMENIAN REBELS WHO WOULD NOT PAY TAXES | [120] |
| KURDISH HAMIDIÉH SOLDIERS, EXECUTING THE “SWORD DANCE” | [127] |
| ANCIENT ARMENIAN TOMBSTONE | [135] |
| THE CATHOLICOS OF ETCHMIADZIN | [139] |
| THE SUBORDINATE CATHOLICOS OF AGHTAMAR | [141] |
| THE ISLAND MONASTERY OF AGHTAMAR | [145] |
| ARMENIAN FAMILY OF BITLIS | [152] |
PREFACE.
The writer has, from his birth, been a student of the Eastern Question, but makes no claim to having mastered it. What he has learned of the phases of that question here treated has been by absorption, observation, travel, residence, and investigation, in the land itself, and by study and reading in regard to it. The very short time allowed in the preparation of this humble contribution to the subject has necessitated a hasty and partial treatment at the expense of literary form. Some of the material of the second and third chapters and most of the illustrations in this book are reproduced from an article by the author in the American Review of Reviews for January, 1895, by the kind permission of the editor, Dr. Albert Shaw. No pains have been spared to insure accuracy. References to authorities have been given as far as possible, but in regard to much information from most reliable sources names must be withheld. It is a very significant feature of the situation in Turkey, that people who are thousands of miles away from her, and who may never set foot there again, do not dare to publicly state the facts, lest vengeance may be taken on their families and friends, still within reach of Turkish violence and intrigue. If His Imperial Majesty, the Sultan, but knew the real facts of the atrocious massacre of last year, and realized the disgrace attaching to the Turkish name on account of the unspeakably brutal deeds of his Turkish and Kurdish soldiers, officers included, we cannot but hope that some punishment would be visited upon them, experience to the contrary. He certainly should welcome the revelations of this book, and do all in his power to protect any who may aid him in bringing the facts to light and securing a better state of affairs. God help him, and save all his subjects, Turk, Arab, and Kurd, Christian, Jew, and Pagan, from the curse of a system of government not only “sick,” but dead and rotting!
I preach no crusade; none is needed. But it is high time for the conscience of Europe and America to assert itself—not simply the “non-Conformist conscience,” but the Established, the Orthodox, the Catholic, the Agnostic, and the Infidel conscience, in fact the human conscience—against this crime upon humanity. If this conscience is once aroused, I care not what parties are in power, or how the game stands on the diplomatic chessboard, the Eastern Question will be settled, instead of forever threatening the peace of Europe, and one more blot will be wiped out from the annals of the world.