The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-12-21
FIBNDISH ATROCITIES.
A Boston Armenian Tells of
Turkish Cruelty to His
Countrymen = An Old
Mans Fate.

p.
BOSTON, Dec. i, 1s94.-Another de-
scription of the cruelty to which Ar
nenians are frequently subjected in their
efforts to escape from the Sultan's do
1ninions is related bYl Bodres Keljil, an
Armenian, twenty-five years old, who has
resided in Boston several years. He
says
Until 1889 I lived in my fathers home
in Harpoot Five years ago /, with my
two older brothers, started to come TO
America. We had draft on an Alex
andrian bank, our baggage and enough
money to reach Alexandria. TO get TO
Alexandria we had to go first journey
of $50 miles to the City OF Antab, then
take steamer. We Journeyed on
horseback to AntaD anu reached tnefe
in ten days.
'It is necessary to get passports in
Asia Minor even to so from one town
to another, and unless you are mer-
chant it IS very diflicnlt to get pass
port at Harpoot, but hoped to get them
at Antab by bribing the officials We
gave the officials at Antan as nucn
not sufficient to satisfy them and we
were arrested and thrown into prison.
After several days we We're taken out
and after being handcuffed, Were given
oven to the Zaptie (Soldiers) who We're
to escort US back to Harpoot.
Twelve Christian prisoners We're with
us They were Armenians and Bulgari-
ans who had been sentenced to serve
ali their lives in the copper mines near
Harpoot. The Zaptie were mounted on
were told we would have to walk back. a
terrible Journey ans | shall never forget
it, We walked about forty miles day;
The sun beat down upon as. the ground
was scorching, but we had TO march on.
GOADEp LIKE. CATTLE.
when we halted we were struck and
goaded with pointed sticks. In 1.-two
days our boots had been worn off, and
the hot ground being unbearablel we had
TO tear off our clothes and baadage our
feet After three days we came to city
and We're put in prison again to await
fresh soldiers.
AT the city of Nelagoog, on the banks
of the Euphrates River, we had to stay
four days. | think this prison was the
of it was the river and stone walls on
the other three. All prisoners We're put
in one great, dark hole, no distnctfon
being made between murderersl thieves
several old men who had been confined
here for many years, who had not been
outside the walls. The atmosphere was
terrible.
.Our baggage had been left behind at
Antab, and our money was stelen in
the prison while we were asleep. but
we kept our draft on the Alexandria
bank. AT last all bleeding, we came
near Harpoot. AT this place we had
friends. The officials were brihed to re-
lease us, ard we We're free again.
We We're still determined 10 come TO
America, so we obtained clothes and
money, and after we had recovered from
our wounds, started again. This time
we went around by the mountains, where
by bribing the officials we at last OBJ
tanned passports. We took q French
steamer to Alexandria, and after cash
ing our draft we sailed to New York
OLD MANS FEARFUL FATE.
Mr.. Keljik says he has recently re-
ceived letters. from Harpoot saying that
the prisons there are full Of Arnenians
from the surrounding villages, who are
unable to pay the heavy taxes levied.
The crops were also failure this year,
and the little grain which was gathered
in was burned by the Turks. The pun
ishment 10 delinquent tax payers is
often frightful.
He tells OF an old man unable to pay
his taxes, who was menaeled and fas
tened upon a raised platform with his
face turned toward fhe sun; his face
and arms were sneared with grease,
which attracted thousands of poisonous
bugs and flies. He was taken down the
next day, but died inside of a week.