The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-12-01
TURKISH ATROCITIES
DIR. G. THOUMAIN'S ACCOUNT OF THE
TORTURE OF ARMENIANS.
Daily Horrors On the Plains of MOOsh
-GOvernOr-General Bahri Pasha
the Arch Enemy of Christians.

chapter in the story of the Armenian atroc-
tties which the Associated Press Is able to
furnish exclusively to its newspapers:
DR.. G.. Thoumain, who was one of the Ar
menian physicians at Herrick College, Mar
zovan, Asia Minor, and who was sentenced
to death and forced to undergo terrible,
disgusting t~ortures. being finally released
through the Intervention of Great Britain,
in July, 1893, furnished the Associated Press
to-day with the latest detail of the Turk
ish outrages, which have just come into his
possession. DR.. Thoumain writes: ut was
necessary hat the blood of thousands
should be shed in order to bring the Ar
menian question to the fore, but it is al
most impossible to get full details, the
guilty Turk preventing every possible es-
cape of news. However. have
learned the following: The chief Of
police of Moosh, which is the headquarters
of the Sassoun district, went with a num-
Der of gendarmes to the village of Thurig
and nailed the head man and some others
head downward to posts, heat them and
drenched them alternately with hot and
cold water. The chief of police then at
tempted to dishonor the wife of one of
his victims, and the unfortunate woman,
seizing a knife. plunged it into the chief
W pOllCC . Oidt tAlC 6Cu0dli llCS
made a general attack upon the peasants.
A stubborn struggle resulted, in which
many of the peasants were wounded, and
thirty of them were taken to prison at
Moosh. The whole village of Thurig was
charged with sedition, and the gendarmes,
naturally, were not reprimanded, as they
were only carrying out the orders of their
superiors.
1.-The Armenian villages on the plains of
Moosh and Bitlis, in the vicinity of Sas-
SCUM and Van, were fired and their streets
made to run with blood. From Marnig
over one hundred oxen and one thousand
sheep were driven off, and the same oc-
Cured at Collosig and Havaborig."
''The villages of Kozloo and Sheik-
Aghoeb have been sacked by Turks and
two young girls made c~aptives. At another
village a miller was burned alive. A Panza
sheik and three Armenians were murdered.
This is only a daily tale Of the horrors in
the villages on the plains Of Moosh. If
these authentic details come from the viii
lagos on the open plains. what mast the
truth be in distant places in the mountains
of Sassoun.
In September, Kurds appeared in the vii
lage of Baghezig ostensibly for the purpose
of supplies, eating, drinking and carousing
all day. They plundered the village, robbed
the church of its costly vessels and rode
away. On the day following the band of
Kurds raided the village of Faroagh and
stole fifty head of cattle and a herd of
sheep belonging to the celebrated monas-
terry of varaka. In the village of Daghver-
an, two youths were openly butchered by
Kurds before the eyes of their helpless
relatives.
81 could give pages and pages of such
horrors done to my people. None of these
wrongs have been redressd nor will they
be so long as Bahri Pasha, himself a
Kurd, remains Governor-general of Van.
He is the greatest enemy Of the Armenian
race. When the Porte tried to hinder the
Armenians from emigrating to Russia and
Persia this ferocious fanatic explained that
the Porte could get rid of the Christians,
and at the same time get their land.
.Since October. 1888, 179 families have en-
| igrated from Aghpac to Persia. Recently
Bahri Pasha made a tour of that district
| and confscated all the property Of absent
| Armenians, including those who had gone
| away on business. Those who returned
were thrown into prison. In order to sup
| port Bahri Pasha's discriminating policy a
| number Of Kurdish boys who had been
| imprisoned for misdeeds were sent in the
OdSSOuu oictiiStS W IA - VIZ indfhcu
their prison sheets with the word 'es-
| capped Unless the powers act promptly
| there will be a record Of successive hideous
| outrages."
The Pope Interested.
ROME. Nov. 3o.-The Pope has received
! an account of the Armenian atrocities and
is taking steps to obtain further details.
His Holiness has also received urgent ap-
peals from Armenians in several places
asking him to use his good Office in their
behalf with the Sultan. Appeals to the Vat
| lean. In addition. have been made from
England under the belief that none OF the
powers is willing to assume the RESPONSE
bifty of opening nsgotlatons with the 9TH
in the belief that it Is impossible for tie
| Pope to remain Indifferent to the suffer-