The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1847-02-22

We give below an interesting letter in relation t
The questions which have arisen between the Amer
lcan missionaries and the Turkish authorities. |
will well repay perusal
TO THE EDITOR OF THE UNION.
CoNsTANTTNoPLE, Nov 81, 1916.
My DEAR SIR do not know whether YOU have upoI
your list OF foreign exchanges the Augsburg Gazette,
Il you have, whether, amidst the exciting of fight
ing IN hleXico and famine in Ireland, you have opened
OF late Allow me- therefore, 10 call your attention tc
The enclosed extract from late number of IL
From The Augsburg Gazette, tAlgemeine Zeiung) No
! &5. October 22, 1876.
"CoNsTANTINop!E, Oct Brother Jonathan, who is al
present obviously In the age OF trcsh boyhood (ege
lahe) Or as he may prefer to hear called, his age OF
heolsm, shows his teeth TO every who looks at him
Also but Just lately Mr. Carr the American ambassa-
dor here, had asked satisfaction for assault of mob
made at Ezeroum upon the house Of an American mis-
sonary there. As the Porte did Immediately yield
the point he tIr O. seemed disposed TO settle the mat
ter Oft hand and threatened at once with American guns
the Porte should not Immediately submit and yield the
point The consequence that the Porte, who, although
very fond of the thunder ofheavyaery has particular
desire to hear the American ball whistle the
Bosphorus, and that, too for the salvation of the
raahs' souls bodies-that the Porte say, reached
forth the hand OF peace and ordered the patriarch pay
the t2oO which the missionary Or Smith, had demanded
as an lndemnlflcaton Ten twelve OF the ringeaders
are also to be thrown into chains, as the troops
stationed at Erzeroum shall have been changed because
the present garrison SAID to sympathze with the rebel
llous Armenians," &c.
who told me 1t was the second instance of gross misep-
resentatlon made in regard him in the same Journal
and he presumed by the Constantnople correspon
dent; that the Augsburg Gazette the leading Journal
OF Germany, but It's correspondent here well known in
the East for his folly and fasehood An extract which
clip from the journal de Constantinoplen of the Dist
September will throw some light on the matter 1t is
as follows:
From the Journal of Constantinope.
sin our paper OF the LIST of September said that
subsequently to the case of religious proseytsm which
had taken place at Erzeroum on the part of the Amer
can missionaries Mr Brown, secretary and Interpreter of
the legation of the United States the Sublime Porte
had started for that city with the purpose of entering
upon an investigation and coming to some understanding
with Al pacha who is at present officially at that
place. In order to ascertain exactly the facts which have
led to the disorders we have already noticed.
The missionaries residing at Constantinople have since
addressed to his eXcelency Rechd Pacha, the minister
OF foreign affairs document, in which, after indicating
their brethren of EZeroum from the imputaons cast
upon them they add in relation to the facts which have
caused exchange of notes between the Sublime Porte
and the American mission, that no improper means of
proselytsm have been resored to- and that the CONVEX
sion OF the a Ameans has taken place spontaneously
on to state that the missionaries belong to no
single church, that they do not all of them adopt
the same rites OF the Protestant worship and that they
with the single purpose of establishing gatuous schools
dfusl1g instruction among the lower classes and ncul
ins uic PiiiTPeo pi souhu horaiy, unuer lhe pro-
lection OF the Turkish government, whose laws they
spect, they are bound to do
although the assertions of this memorial are not en-
their religious propagandism we glad TO believe that
they are we-founded and that the government of his
imperial majesty WILL in the examination which is pro-
posed find them to be true In the matter of religious
prose ysm, whenever opposition is made TO the laws
of the country, it cannot be difficult prove such be
the fact IN such manner to leave doubt upon the
subject"
The following, cut from the Courier de Constantine
pe of the Goth September, states truly the of our
minister's complaint to the sublime Porte and of his send
ing the dagoman of his legation to the scene of out
rage:
From the Courier of Constantinope.
ERzERoUM, September O.
"The inquiry relative to the American missionaries is
proceeding actively, and is expected that the agltators
will be punished The Porte desires liberty Of con-
science for all the subjects OF the empire and will toll
crate reprehensble act committed in violation of the
law OF nations under specous preext The facts are
as follows:
1.-Two American missionaries, for time resident
al Erzeroum, with purpose entirely phlanhropc have
found occasion to take communions with the Armenians
On this ground these Amenians have been excommuni-
Gated by their spiritual directors and designated by the
name of Professionals, title to which the ignorance oil
the people here attaches an odious Specification Among
the number OF the persons communicated for having
equented the meetings of the missionaries, priest
This priest learning that his superiors, not content
with having accommodated him, seeking |
to Danish him to Etch-M azzim, sought ref
uge in the house OF one OF his friends, ply |
scian. The Armenians discovering the place of his |
retreat gathered before il in numbers forced the doors
broke the windows destroyed the furniture, books, and
medicines and finally carried away their victim, after
having wounded two of the domestcs who offered some
resistance Fortunately the of the house alb
sent
"Can the Porte, in the administration of justice, prop
ery leave such act unpunlshed? However IT may de-
eide IN thus BUSINESS the question arises what Will be-
come of the Armenians implicated with the missionaries?
rue that the Porte does moi prevent its rayas sub
Jey pm passing from one communion to another. But
the culty the OF the Armenans this: each
should have its legal congregation, and there
is legal congregation in the Ottoman empire for the
Protestant communion, because there have been
there any Protestant rayas The Armenian congregations
Ak
ship with the missionaries, commits act at once ,ro
uie
regular congregation"
places 1t beyond doub-was that the American citizen
esldlng at ErZeroum, whose house was mobbed wrote
o our MINISTER stated the facts and claimed reparaton
md projections that the minister Immediately made com
,lalnt to the Sublime Porte, informed if of his nten-
ION to despatch the dagoman of the legation to nves
;ate the matter on the spot, and asked the Sublime
'orte to associate with him respectable Turk I
sh officer that the report of facts might be emit ,
led to the confidence of both the Porte and himself
The Sublime Porte promptly acceded TO the proprety of
he course proposed; appointed one of Its most enligh
ned officers as the associate of the American dragoman
he investigation made The Armenian subjects of
he Porte who had been engaged in the mob were pointed
ut by their fellow subj ecs and co-religionsts The
mount of the loss sustained by the American citizen
greed by them TO be paid TO him, and the proportion of
nat amount TO he paid by each of the guilty fixed f
y the Armenian community itself The Armenian com h
lunlty tself also pointed out to the Turkish governor
the town. those OF the mob whom they thought should
imprisoned IN irons. The Turkish authorities deport s
themselves with perfect proprety, and faithfully dis
harged all the duties they owed to the friendly relations
etween the two countries The peace and personal safe
OF the Americans having thus far been secured mob n