The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1895-02-03
TALES TWICE TOLD
CONTINUED from First Page.)

, to distant prisons; money has been sent
/ from the palaceat Constantinople to re-
| to the Sassoun villages, and on top OF
all the efforts at concealment and delay
| nature has come in to help the Turk
| obliterate all traces of his work.
| IAN unusual fall Of snow has buried
| the villages and blotted out the roads.
Even the Caravan route to Persia and
| Russia are blocked with snow and the
| snow is still falling. From Sassoun on
| the black sea to this city the noun
| tains are masses Of unbroken white.
| VIII the commission investigate
| thoroughly in the snow up to the house
tops? Let him answer who knows the
| Turks best"
1t must be borne in mind that the
Armenian question in Armenia and the
Armenian question in England are two
different things. In England and
America it is mostly q, matter of re-
ligion and humanity, with an incident
al dash OF politics. In Armenia 1t is
almost wholly a matter of politics with
incidental religion
IF THEY WOULD ONLY TALK.
Before there can come an end to the
question the practical Christian of Eng
land and America must reconcile these
two conflicting conditions and admin
lister judgment upon them with a firm
hand. If the Arnenians themselves
would only tell the whole of their side
of the case instead Of carefully sup
pressing about three-fourthS, the sit
uation would be much more readily un-
derstood but unfortunately for all con-
cerned they choose to tell only a small
part of what they know and leave the
Christian sympathiZers TO dig the rest
out of the snow of the SaSsoUn noun
tainS.
.As the situation now stands one is
forced to believe that both Turk and
Armenian are in the wrong So far
as the Turk declares he is trying to
suppress a revolutionary movement he
is unquestionably in the right. Most
of the acts of the leaders of this move
ment are no less shocking than those Of
the Turks opposing it. No one can
blame the Turk for trying to suppress
revolutionary movements or for taking
prompt measures to maintain the in
tegrity of his empire, yet what must be
said of him when he orders the de-
struction of two dozen villages upon
the mere rumor that an uprising IS in
progress? Their is little doubt among
persons familiar with the facts at Con-
stantinople that these things actually
took place.
CASE OF POT AND KETTLE.
Eve have only to seek the counter
part of its cruelty among some of the
leaders of the revolutionary movement.
1t is a fact that certain of these Ar
menian conspirators arranged to muir
der the Rev. Edward Riggs and two
other American missionaries at Mar
SOvan and faSten the blame upon the
Turks inorder that the United States
might infiict summary punishment up
on the Turkish government, thereby
making possible Armenian independ-
ence. One will seach a long time in
the pages of history for more diaboli-
cal plot than that for the murder of the
missionaries. DR.. Riggs has unselfish-
ly given his life 20 the education of Ar
menian youth in the missionary schools
and has done more than any Armenian
tried toward making Armenians
worthy of autonomous government, yet
the revolutionary conSpirators appar-
emily gave the fact but littlethought.
In his hatred of Christianity and
his rage at revolutionary conspiracies,
the Turk believes and would like to
prove that the Armenian missionaries
are responsible for the revolutionary
movement.
MORE THAN HALF RIGHT.
GAS a matter of fact the Turk is much
more right than he has any idea of
The missionaries are responsible for the
>
way the Turk believes. They are re-
sponsiblef or having educated the raw
Armenian; for having made a man of
him and brought him to know that he |
has an immortal soul. The education |
and civiliZing influences of free Ameri-
ca have been brought to the wilds of !
and the younger Armenian is !!
to feel that he is man
and a MoSlem. slave. The mission !
aries are making men of theArmenians |
and they are responsible for the revolu- /
feelings. 1t is the story of !
Bulgaria over again.
1T should be borne in mind with this |
view of the situation that the mission !
aries OF Armenia do not try to make /
religious converts. They make no at /
tempt to change the Turkish religion. 4
They merely teach them. They would /
educate Turks as well but as the gov |
of Turkey will not permit it. /
The missionaries are doing a grand /
work in the interest of civilization and !
and for the Turks to say they |
are directly or indirectly inviting the |
to revolution is quite as ri !
diculOuS as the Ports assertion that !
the outrages in the Sassoun villages
were committed by the villagers them /
selves"