Omaha daily bee., 1895-05-27
ARE DETERMINED TO REVOLT
Armenians 1ndustriously at Work Snug
Cling in Arms.
SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS THE DRAWBACK
In the Eastern Section Food Is So Scarce
1t is Dimcult to Obtain Even by
Those who Have tho Money
to Pay for 1t.


KARS, Russia, April 2O.-(From the Special
Correspondent of the Associated Press in
menia)-During the past three weeks had
unusual opportunities for obtaining additional
confirmation Of the facts contained in my
nouncement Of the pending uprising of the
Armenians in Turkey next Monday. I have
Travelled many miles up and down and across
the border in search OF certain facts and as
a result / have had the satisfaction of actually
seeing and handling some of the rifles now
being smugged across the Turkish frontier
by the agents of the revolutionary party.
Moreover, the plans Of the party have been
fully explained to me by some OF the most
active and intelligent of the leaders Of the
eastern wing Of the movement and l am
entirely satisfied that unless unforeseen
circumstances arise, the uprising will take
place announced. The exact date for the
uprising has not yet been fixed, owing, for
the most part to the fact that the extreme
section of the party Is not yet ready for active
operations.
Whether or not the central section will wait
for the eastern section longer than the month
of May / do not know, nor has the matter
actually been decided. l am asked to believe
that the eastern wing cannot be ready for
hostilities in May, and possibly not before the
LIST of July. The eastern wing has been hav
ing hard time Of 1t, owing to circumstances
over which the leaders have control. In
the first place the mountain passes leading to
Van have been blocked with snow for months
so that only special messengers, following
the regular routes of travel could
e impossible to forward guns and ammunition
from Russia and Persia to the district about
Lake Van. There are guns now on the border
awaiting transportation into Armenia.
BORDERING ON STARVATION.
In the second place the Armenians in the
eastern end of Turkey are in a condition
bordering starvation. 1t is obvious that
people in this condition cannot fight. On this
point leading executive OF the revolutionary
party said to me three days ago:
IF men have nothing in their stomachs
what will they do? We must first feed them
before we can expect them to fight. When
we get food enough on hand to last them two
months then we shall show the world how
Armenians can fight"
1t is this question Of food that the revou-
tonary leaders will find most difficult of solu-
tion. The problem OF smuggling guns into
Armenia will be solved with the coming
spring, which is now just beginning to be felt
in the lower valleys. 1t is plain that il no
food is to be had people cannot be fed, no
matter how much money they have, and 1t is
fact that in the eastern part Of Armenia
food is so scarce that the well-to-do and rich
people have no more food than they actually
need.
Few crops were grown last summer owing
to the fact that many Of the farmers and
cutivators were thrown into prison by the
Turks under charges of revolutionary con-
spiracy. Then the cattle were stolen by
the Kurds and what the poor people had
left in the way of provisions property
was seized by the government officials for
taxes. There will be no crops planted in
eastern Armenia this spring, for the coun-
try everywhere is suffering from reign of
terror.
EXPECT ANOTHER MASSACRE.
The presence of the commission Of in
quiry of the Christian powers of Europe
at Moosh has had absolutely no effect on
the conduct of either the Turks or Kurds
In eastern Turkey. l am Just in receipt OF
trustworthy advices from a on-Armenan
source at Van to the effect that a massacre
is looked for at any moment. 1t is fact
which the British government car verify by
consulting the report OF Mr. Patton, an otll-
cial of the British consulate at Tobraiz
Persia, that in several cases the Turkish
officials in the devastated district of Armenia
tried hard to save the Armenians from
death and their property from destruction
but when they protested against the mur
derous raids of the troops the officer read tC
them the orders OF the sultan, and so moth
ing could be done.
Mr. Patton has lately returned to Tobraii
from an investigating tour among the Ar
menian refugees along the border between
Persia and Turkey. He found plenty o
refugees from the Lake Van and Moosh dis
tricts. but not one from Sassoun. There are
~, no Sassoun survivors in Ouramia. Salinas
In Persia, and so very few in Russia tina
they are most difficult to find. This alb
sence of Sassouns among so many refugees
from other districts of eastern Armenia sug
gests the dreadful possibility that few o
these people escaped the massacre The in
vestigation of Mr.. Patton along the Persiai
border has confirmed in a general way tn
facts which | have incidentally obtained
during the past eight weeks. The events
the massacre were so horrible that evel
the chronic exaggeration of the Armenian
mind fails to add anything to them.
INVOLUNTARY CANNIBALS.
Mr.. Patton was accompanied on this tour o
investigation by DR.. Wright, an American
missionary, stationed at Salinas Their
gentlemen took testimony to the effect tina
when the Turkish soldiers and Kurds ap
peared at a certain vllaGe-they killed som
of the villagers who dared TO protest agains
their outrages and many of the dead wer
cut up and thrown into kettle and boile
like so much beef. The boiled pieces wer
then given to the villagers for food Tn
wretched creatures were compelled TO ca
their friends to the last mouthful In an
other village party of Kurds found chill
aslsep in a cradle. They overturned tn
cradle and smothered the child Then the
dssected the body and roasted pieces OF
before the fire. As a climax they compelle
the members Of the family, including tn
child's mother to eat the roasted pieces. Th
refugees who tell these stories are, for th
most part ready to return to Armenia
wreak vengeance on their prosecutors as 500
as they are supplied with ammunition an
food by the revolutionary party, and as a
ready stated the only thing lacking Is fooC
The weapons l have seen are known
Russia MS soldatske guns that is the gun
issued to the regular army OF Russia, tn
gun is the Boordan rifle, a simple, eficier
weapon particularly well suited to roug
usage One Of the bittcTest things the Al
menian revolutionary leaders have to rehe,
upon is the fact many Armenans act
spies for the Turkish government. 1t
melancholy state Of things, freely admitte
by the Armenians themselves, that hundred
of Armenians can always be found TO Sc
: out their country and their friends and for
purse Of silver. The leaders whom | hay
met are apparently sincere and trustworth!
II should be explained, in connection wit
this movement, that there are three revolt
tonary parties, but until l have tangib
proof OF the existence Of them | shall COZ
tinue TO speak of the revulu;ionsts as thoug
there were only one party. The headquartel
ofthe revolutionary party are in London an
Il is from London that the head leader issue
his orders to his executive leaders in Russ
Persia and Turkey.
1t is my duty to give word Of wHrnin
fo ha nd rtn1l fu prit