St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1860-08-23
The Syrian MaSSacreS.

| lHCSc norflDle CfuCltleS nave cXClteu
universal execration in Europe and
America, and will induce the public
to discuss the question whether it is
not one of the blunders of European
politics to support governments which
cannot support themselves. Italy and
Turkey, at the present time, furnish
interesting answers to this sugges-
tive query. We make the following
extracts from very able article in
the New York Evening Post, upon
the subject, "Who is Responsible for
the Syrian Massacrcs 50"
1t was remarked long ago by Glib
bon, and the remark has since been
repeated by Lamartinc, that the Turks
were never settled but only encamped
in Europe. A nomadic race of Asia,
with more than the usual savagcness
of nomads, they conquered one of the
most beautiful of the three peninsu
lars Of Europe, which they have ever
since held as conquest. They have
never been really Incorporated into
the European political system, al
though they may have been recog-
nized by the other nations, and by
some of them adopted and patronized.
The history of the Osmanli, ever
since they took possession of the Bos-
phorus, has been the history of alter
nate despotism and incapacity, of
paroxysms of bloody violence, fol.
lowed by long years of sluggishness,
of cruel conquests of unoflending
neighboring tribes, leading first to do
nestle turbulence, and then to domes,
tic exhaustion.
1t is this nation, so constituted, sc
prone to decline, SO efcts, that certain
European powers, with England in
the lead, have taken into their heads
to hold together. On some incxplica
BILE theory Of politics they consider
Turkey essential to the equilibrium OF
Europe, and they will not allow the
integrity of Europe to be mcnaccd
Long since it would have gone into
complete dissolution, or been the prey
of the more enterprising Russian, but
for this careful propping and nursing.
England, France and Austria, few
years ago, rather than see its soil in.
vaded, encountered all the miscrics
and hazards of the Crimcan war. Hun
dreds of thousands of men and mil
lions of money were wantonly sacri-
feed to uphold dccrcpit and worth
less empire, which, in its best condi-
ton, was cradle for cncroaching
savages, and in its lowest a nuisance.
Possessed of lands as fertile as any
on the globe, washed by fine seas, and
with magnificent central city, which
the drcamers of human perfcctibilty
have imagined would some day be
the capital of a whole redeemed hui
mainly, they have done little or moth
ing to develop its resources. With
boundless internal wealth, they have
allowed the growth of no extensive
industries, have adopted few of the
arts of Europe, have nowhere mitiga-
ted the rigors Of the local govern
ments, and at this day, after many
centuries of intercourse with civilized
men, the mountain and desert tribes
are as ferocious in their passions, and
as malignant in their religious zeal,
as they were when the meteor flag of
the prophet was carried by fire and
sword from Cdbul to the straits of
Cadiz.
Those appalling scenes in Syria,
therefore, which have lately been des-
cribed to us those conilagrations of
towns, converts and churches those
cold blOoded massacres of men, wo-
men and children those mcrci!ess ra-
pines and crimes not to be named ;
those thousands of corpscs left to
bleach upon the sand, and those TWEEN
ty thousand Christian fugitivcs wan
dering unfed and unclad among the
gorges of Lebanon, are the fruits of
that dog-in-the-mangcr policy which
England originated and France and
Austria were induced to sustain. 1t
has been policy of active, persistent
intriguing intervention, not, however,
to develop the resources of Turkey,
but to prolong a stagnant conservat-
ism.
A letter from Beyrout has the fol-
lowing:
"But the place of all others upon
which every ones eyes are turned is
Zahleh, the largest village, or rather
town, in Lebanon, containing popu-
lation of 10000 souls, all Christians.
Zahlch is situated about ten hours
journey from Beyrout, at the Eastern
foot of Lebanon, close to the entrance
to the plain of Celo-Syria. 1t is the
strong hold of the Christians in the
mountain. The place is now closely
invested by vast number of Druses,
both from Lebanon and from the Hau-
ran, of kurds from beyond Horus, of
wandering Arabs from the desert, and
of vagabond fanatic Moslems from
Damascus. A more blood-thirsty, ruff
fian-likc horde was, perhaps, never
gathered together in the world, and
if Zahleh falls into their hands, God
help the poor inhabitants. But, al
though the Consuls-General of Eng
land, France, Russia, Austria and
Prussia, have made repeated and uni
ted representations to the Pasha of
Beyrout during the past fortnight,
and have urged him again and again
to move troops to Zahleh, raise the
siege, and thus prevent the bloodshed
of thousands, not a thing would he do,
not step would he move, until yes
terday, when about two hundred men
with one gun were marched toward
Zahleh. God grant they be not too
late"
The apprehensions expressed in
the above letter have been realized.
Advices dated four days later state
that the Druses, reinforced by hordes
of plundering Kurds and Bedouins,
had attacked Zahleh. The town was
entirely burnt down and 1000 Chris
- h