The record-union., 1895-11-11
C0NSTANTIN0PLE RIOTS.
THE PORTE'S ACCOUNT OF THE
RECENT TROUBLE.
Responsibility for Their Occurrence
Charged to Acts OF the Arme.
mans Themselves.

w NASf1lNGIO4N, NOV Ib.-IHe 1uIK-
ish Legation has received from the
Porte an account of the recent Ar
menian riots at Constantinople. 1t is
in part as follows:
"Of the different projects that the
Armenian Revolutionary Committee
contemplated, that OF creating disturb
ances in the Capital of the empire, is
not the least audacious. 1t was by
causing the Sublime Porte to be at
tackled by a few thousand individuals
that the movement was to commence.
The police were informed in time, and
naturally solicited the good Offices of
the Armenian patriarch to prevent the
outbreak. The patriarch contented
himself by declining all responsibility.
Thus the preventive means having
failed the police were obliged to take
all sorts of measures, in view of the
events which We're expected to take
place Monday, September 30th.
"On the day aforc mentioned the
leaders of the revolutionary party, at
tended by their followers to the number
of some ten thousand, assembled in the
Armenian patriarchal basilica. At
the completion of the religious cere-
monies the patriarch who attended the
function, went to the patriarchal resi-
dence, attended by several of the
CiGISy anu lOlIOWeQ Dy the UuIIlLuQe
which had assembled in the church A
young girl who stood near the patri-
arch gave the signal for the breaking
out of the mob, by making a seditious
speech. The bells of the church We're
rung with unaccustOmed violence, and
shots were heard.
AT these signals the mob proceeded
to advance their number being con-
stantly augmented along the line of
J L.,
tered them commanded in vain that
they should disperse and cause their
pretended petition to be properly pre-
scented and submitted by delegates
whom they might select from their own
number They paid no heed to these re-
mcnstrances, and displayed their
pCignards and reYOlVers with which
they were armed, and with the cry of
'Hurrah for Armenian finally reached
the Nouri Osmani quarters and those Of
the Tavouk Bazar, where they fired on
the police who commanded them to dis
perSe. The police acted in moderation.
according to their orders, and endeav-
ored to disperse the mob and arrest the
ringleaders. The mob attacked ire
spectively the police and inoffensiye pc
destrians, crying loudly that they did so
TO the Mussulmans that the day of their
destruction had at last dawned. One
dead and several wounded among the
police and private individuals were
the victims of these nladmen.
'The police finally succeeded in dis
persing them, and making a number Of
arrests. The leaders, however, managed
to assemble again in the patriarchial,
and were rcjoined by a number of their
followers They continued the insurrec-
ton, insulting the Mussulmans of the
neighboring quarters and firing pistol
shots. Shots We're fired from the Arme-
man patriarchial places and from a
dozen houses inhabited by Armenians
In view of obstinacy of the rioters,
the Prefect of Police waited in person
the following day on the Armenian Pa
| triarch at the patriarchial residence. The
| Prelate, however, declined to receive
! him, giving as an excuse a pretended
| illness, and sent to receive him two
members of the Council. But, unfortu-
nately, the ends of the Prefect, which
! consisted in obtaining the dispersion OF
the rioters through the cOunsels of the
| Patriarch were not obtained, notWith-
| standing a second visit during the sue
| ceeding night and tho formal promises
| held out by the command of the author
| tiles not to act severely toward those
who had been the victims of their faith.
| The Patriarch, while pretending to aa-
wise the leaders of the movement to a
prompt disbandoning, again insisted on
| the entire impotency of his cOunsels.
| IF one wishes additional proof of the
mutinous designs of the rioters, and of
the encouraging attitude of the ecclesi-
asticaI authorities, he has but to call
attention to the testimony of a certain
| Agop. member of the Hintchaugista'
| Committee, and who, being arrested.
admitted that the revolutionary COM
nlittee had determined to create
trouble at Constantinople by attacking
the Mussulman headquarters and kill
! ing all the Mussulmans they en-
countered The Armenians in the seyv-
ice of the Imperial Government were to
be the first victims.
THE Patriarch does nothing but
| cause to be circulated long lists OF
deaths, entirely fantastic and imagin-
airy, desiring thereby, for the greater
advancement OF his cause, to make it
appear that the number of deaths has
been much greater than that establish
ed by the official inquests."