New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-09-17
A CATALOGUE OF a0RRoRs.

CATA&V88OA
Preliminary Report IL Mr.. Schuyler o.
tho Bulgarian Atrocities.
Tho following is from the London Daily
Ne.os of August @:
CoNsrANr1NoPLE, August q, 1876
The following 10 the preliminary report of
| Mr.. Schuyler. the American consul general,
| to the Hon. Horace Maynard. the American
| Schuyler is still IN the rsvaged district, and
| is doing his work thoroughly. Mr.. Barring
| returned yesterday to the capital. Mr..
| Schuyler left ConstautinOple at the same
| time as Mr.. Barring l venture to predict
that his final report will give q greater
| number Of burned villages, Of murdered
inhsbitants, of violated women and
children, than I have submitted to your
readers. As have said psrsistentiy
have underestimated the deviltry which
Europe has allowed to 60 on for the last
| two months Every Englishman, permit me
| to add, must feel grateful to tho American
minister and consul general for the service
| they are rendering to humanity in pursuing,
| in fearless and independent fashion and
solely in the interests of humanity, this
terrible investigation:
PHuLPPOPOLIs, Aug ust 10, 1876.
\
massacres committed by tho Turks in Bull
garia, have the homer to inform you that
I have visited the towns of Adriauople,
Phillippopolis and Tartary. Bassrdiik. and
the villsges of enimako. Kani Keni.
Kritshma. Perustitsa, Peshters. Radulovo,
Batak, k.laglari, Pansgurishta (O'lnk-
kui), KoprshIilsa (Avrat-Aan) ana Kills
sur. (P-rsiden or D-rvent), in the di,ricts
OF Phi iippopolis and Bazardjik.
From what l have personally seen and
from the Inquiries have made and the in
formation have ascertained the following
facts:
During the last winter and spring. agents
of the Bulgarian committee At Bucharest
made an agitation at Bulgaria for an insur-
rection sgainst the Turkish government,
aud met with considerable encouragement
among the younger part of the population.
Owing to the betrayal of the plot the insur-
roction broke out premsturely on the first
and second Of May in the villages Of Kills
sura. Koprishtitss. Panagurishta, Novo
Sco, Bellova. and, perhaps, one or two
others: There was great alarm, and even
. panic at Tartar Baz Ardjik and Philip
popolis; numerous telegrams were sent to
the Porte for regular troops, which
after some delay we're refused. The
boys of Philippop0lis and Adrisnople prac-
tlcally seized on the government, and
armed the Muesulman inhabitants of the
towns and Of the country, arms being sent
for that purpose from Adrisnople and Con
stsntinople. These armed Mussulmans,
called irregular troops or Basin Bazouks,
were then, together with the few regular
troops at hand, sent into campaign against |
the Bulgarian villagers, for the purpose of |
putting down the resurrection and of dis |
arminE the Christian population. But few
Circsssians seem to have been employed at |
this time. Their settlements are east Of |
Adrianople. 1t was . levee en- maese OF |
the Mussulman villages against their Christ
ian neighb0rs.
The insurgent villages made little or no |
resistance. In many instance they sur
their arms upon the first demand.
Nearly ell tbs villages which we're attacked |
by the Bashi BazOuks were burned and |
plllaged, a. were also all those which had |
been abandoned by the terrified inhabit-
ants. The Inhabitants of some villages
were massacred after exhibitions of the
most fer0cious cruelty, and the violation
not only of women and girls, but even of
persons of the other sex. These crimes
we're committed by the regular troops as
we'll a. by the BAehi Bsz ouks.
The number of villages which were
burned in whole or in part in the districts
If Pnilippopolis, ROptchus, and Tstar-
is at least sixty five. "a llst of
villages with number of houses burned In |
ZACH is given.) Particular attention was
Iiven by the troops to the churches and
chools. which in some cases we're destroyed
With petroleum and gunpowder. The affairs
we're overturned, the pictures painted on |
he walls scr 'tched and pierced and the
loly places defled and decorated.
Besides the villages, four monasteries
we're burned-St. TeOdOr, near Perustitss; |
he Psnsgia and the B-zsrsbrinitsa. near
kretshma, and St. Nicolas, near Kaloy,-
OvO.
The Turks allege that many of these vii
ages were burned by the insurgents for
he purpose of compelling the Bulgarian
Inhabitants to join them. am unable to
nd that such was the case in more than
w0 or three instances, and even here the |
roof is very weak. At Bellova the insur-
ents burned the railway station, in Y hich |
ONE Zaptiehs had taken refuge.
1t is very difficult to estlm ate the number
Bulgarians who we're H led dnring the
Nv days that the disturbances lasted, but l
% inclined to 1000 as the lowest for the
istricts have put named.
The manner in which the troops did their
ork will be seen from Q few details gather.
l on the spot from persons who escaped
ON the massacre.
Beru-itss, town of 400 houses and be- :
veen 5000 and 1000 inhabitants, took no &C. !
ve part in the instruction. Becoming !.
armed ct the attitude of the Turks In the | :
,ighboIing villages, the inhabitants sent ! :
'putati0n to Az'z PAchs, the Mutesssrif OF
tor regular troops to defend .
EN-. He returned them q written message =
at he had no troops to send, and that : 8
ey must defend themselves. When the =
Ishi Bazouks appeared before the town =
ey therefore refused to surrender, en- l
,nched themselves in church, retreating y
ally to another, and held out for u
Q days, until they saw the regular troops =
der Rashid Pasha, when the remainder | =
We themselves up. Many of tho inhabi- IL
'ts escaped at the beginning of the stIug.
}, but many we're shot down. The church
s bombarded, and about 1000 in all were
led, many of them women and children.
rned. not single house being now stand
). Many women were violated. The r
" of the church, the churchyard, and le
ny of the gardens were dug up after nj
I'd in search for hidden treasures. The q
shi Baz0uks here we're commanded by h,
med-Aga, of Tamrysh, who was subse. ii,
antly rewarded with . silver medal. 4,
kiissurs was nearly twice the size of r
rustitsa, and propOrtiOnately richer, az Q
ny of the Inhabitants were engaged in p,
manufacture of altar of roses, and i.
ny were merchants travelling through nf
country. The insurrectionary move. ps
Mt began here on the second of May, but an
vas not until the twelfth that the Bashi De
zOuks, under the command of Tussum
=, Of KarlOvo, attacked the place. A few tn
t. were fred, when the villagers surreu- la
ed and fed to Koprishtista and to the Mt
untains. More than $50 Bulgarians we're al,
ed, chiefly women and children. Tho I'm
ks claim that fourteen Mussulmans lin an
t gypsies) were killed before and during
fight. As soon as the Basha Bszouks at
cred the town they pillsged it and an
ned it. Among other things $50 copper do
10, used IN making altar OF roses, were of
REQ oWav to the Turkish villages. Sub. | I'M