Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1893-05-24
AN ARMENIAN REVOLT.
me People Are Clamoring for Re-
construction.
Priests Declare That the Day of Deliv-
erenco from Moslem Rule Is
at Hand-A Proud hut
Broken Race.

Mr. Edmond Lecointe, who has re-
Gently returned from Persian Armenia,
tells IN Nouvelles Geographiques of
remarkable movement in that country
IN behalf of the political independence
OF the Armenians. Armenia is well
known as the Poland of Asia. The
country, once a powerful kingdom, is
now divided between Russia, Turkey
and Persia, and the Armenians have no
eNstenee as distinct nation. Mr..
Lecointe says that many of them believe
their nationa lily will soon be restored
and this idea is particularly popular in
Persian Armenia, where, strange to
say, preparations are being openly
made for the event.
The Town of Urmia is the head CEN
ter of the revolutionary feeling. A
committee is supported there which is
planning for the reconstruction of indie
pendent Armenia. This committee is
known as the Societe Bibliophile. 1t is
not surprising that ii has French
name, when we remember that French
Is the onl y foreign language that is cul-
tlvated in Persia, and that not few
subjects of the shah speak it with ele-
gance.
The Armenians in Persia of recent
years have had considerable reinforce
ments from their Russian and Turkish
brethren who have gone to Persia to
live to escape the exactions to which
they are subjected in their own coun-
try. 1t is among these immigrants that
many of the most active promoters of
instruction are found. They travel
openly from village to village preaching
crusade against Mohammedans,
whether they be Turks or Persians.
They advise every adult to procure guns
and to prepare for the coming uprising.
The priests in the churches of Urmia
declare that the day of deliverance is
approaching and that every Armenian
should be willing to sacrifice his prop
erty and lay down his life, if need be,
for the national cause. Accommodations
of firearms have already been made,
and every week many Armenians arrive
at Tabriz to buy guns, pistols and
knives.
There is one great difficulty, how
tNNi, III tIc way VI Vic Reconstruction
of the ancient kingdom of Armenia.
The people are themselves divided into
factions. There is no people in the
world who have become more disunited
by internal feuds than the Armenians.
They, therefore, do not have the advan-
tage of single leader of authority.
They yield obedience 10 rival commit
tees which are promoting interests that
have nothing in common so far as the
whole country is concerned except the
one issue of the final reconstruction of
the kingdom. Split up into factions,
as the Apmenians are, Turkey and Per-
ia do not seem to think 1t worth while
to take measures to suppress the plot
ting that is going on. A day for the
general rising was fixed for May Is last
but the event was postponed.
Persian Armenia is the northwestern
part of Persia, adjoining the Armenian
possessions of Turkey and Russia. 1t is
an elevated country, with cool eli
mate, fertile soil, abundance of game,
and numerous gardens and fields whose
products are renowned in Persia. It's
chief town, Urmia, near the big lake of
the same name, contains about forty
five thousand inhabitants. Most of the
population are Chaldean or Armenian,
though there are a good many Kurds
and some Persians and Turks. The Ar
menian population numbers about
seventy thousand in this district and n
fnw thousand are scattered over the rest
of Persia. 1t is a prolific and a hand
some race, but the people are not very
well liked by their neighbors on ac-
count of their arrogance and faithlesS-
ness. They do not seem to think it at
all diShonorable to break their word.
The Persian Armenians, Mr.. Lecointe
says. are the happiest subjects of the
shah lie gives them absolute liberty
in religious matters, and compels the
Mohammedans to treat their priests
and churches with respect. They are
exempt from military service and their
taxes are comparatively light, in which
respect they offer II striking contrast to
the misery of their neighbors, the
Turkish Armenians. For one cause or
another the Russian Armenians seem to
be rapidly dying out