The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-01-02
OUTRAGED AND BUTCHERED
H0RRIBLE CRIMES PERPETRATED
 ON THE ARDLENIANS.

Women and Girls Confined in Church and
 There Violated by Soldiers After Which
 They Were Murdered-B Blood Flowed in
 Streams From the Church Door.
 Boston, Jan. 1.-Letters have been re- ceived by well known parties in this city from reliable sources in Turkey giving still further testimony regarding the outrages in eastern Turkey. The following letter comes from city not a great distance from the scene of the outrages. The writer of the letter is a man in whom the highest confidence can be placed, who has spent more than a third of century in that region, and knows the country and people per fectly. This testimony Is from source which is entirely independent of any which has been given before. Later accounts increase, If possible, the hor- TOTS of what has taken place.
 The letter just received is as follows; The Armenians, oppressed by Kourds and Turks, said they could not pay taxes to both Kourds and government. Plundered and oppressed by the Kourds they resisted them; there were some killed. Then false reports were sent to Constantinople that the Armenlans were in arms, in rebellion. Orders were sent to the Mushir at Erzingan to exter- minate them, root and branch The order read before the army, collected in haste from all the chief cities in eastern Turkey. was:
 | "Whosoever spares man, woman and child is disloyal"
 | The region was surrounded by soldiers of the army, and 10000 Kourds also are | said to have been massed there. Then they advanced upon the center, driving in the people like a flock of sheep, and continued thus to advance for days. No quarter was given no mercy shown. Men. women and children were shot | down or butchered like sheep. Prob ably when they were set upon in this way sorne tried to save their lives and resisted in self defense, and who could. fled In all directions, but the majority were slain, The most probable estimate is 15,000 killed, thirty-five villages plum dered, ra2ed and burned. Women were outraged and then butchered A priest was taken to the roof of his church and hacked to pieces, and set on fire A large number of women and girls collected in a church were kept for days. violated by the brutal soldiers and then murdered II is said that the number was so large that the blood flowed out | of the church door. The soldiers con- tended over a beautiful girl they want ed to preserve her, but she, too, was Fkilled. Every effort is being made and will be made to falsify the facts and pull the wool over the eyes of European l governments. But the bloody tale will | finally be known the most horrible, it seems to me, that the nineteenth cen tury has ever known.
 As a confirmation Of the report, the other day several hundred soldiers were returning from the seat of war and at a village near us one was heard to say that he alone with his own hands had killed thirty pregnant wo- men, Some who seem to have some shame for their atrocious deeds say: What could we do. we were under orders?"
 In consequence of the meetings of Armenians in Boston held in Friend ship hall last Sunday evening the fol- lowing cable was sent to-das-:
 'Hon. w. F. Gladstone, London: The Armenians of Boston thank you for your | sympathy and aid"
 The Armenians of this city feel that the diplomats of Europe will never take interest in the affairs of their country men until 1t is shown that every act in their favor is keenly appreciated, and they take this means of expressing their sincere gratitude for the stand taken by Gladstone In his speech last week