The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-12-14
PANIC AT STAMB0UL
1T WAS CAUSED BY A PRIVATE
QUARREL BETWEEN TWO
ARMENIANS.
PLANS Fer SENDING THEM RELIEF

The People Were Unable TO Learn the
Real Tause of the Disturbance and
Fled to Their Houses Believing That
Another Massacre Was in Pr0gress--
Serious Outbreaks Threatened at
Galata and Pera--RelIef work of
the Red Cross Society.
CONSTANTINOPLE, Dee. 12.-Via
| Sofia, Dec. 13.-There was a distur-
| bance at Stamboul to-day and it
| caused the spread of rumors so alarm
| ing that Galata and Pera were soon in
state of panic. and serious outbreaks
were threatened. This in view Of the
| passage through the Dardanelles of
the British gunbOat Dryad and the
| Italian gunboat Archimede, the extra
guardships for the British and Italian
| embassies, formed the basis for the re-
port that the rioting predicted by the
| Yildiz Kiosk, courtiers, had actually
| commenced but happily the trouble
was not of serious nature, although
| the Armenians, as usual, are accused
| of having attempted to bring about an
uprising of the populace
| The panic this morning, however,
l y
and is striking evidence of the nervous
ness and apprehension which prevail
| here as one of the results of the long
| drawn out negotiations between the
| powers and the Sultan regarding the
| suppression of the outbreaks inAsiatic
| Turkey and the admittance of the eX-
| ira guardships into the Bosphorus.
| The least note of alarm now sutfices
1 Il L Il
| proof was needed that the powers are
| right in their insistance upon having
| additional protection for the foreign
| population of Constantinople and its
! vicinity il Was furnished by the occur
| rcnces OF to-day. Simmered down to
| bare facts. the cause of the panic was,
| on tbe face of it, a fierce quarrel be-
| tween two Armenians in the Stamboul
| quarter during which they came to
| blows. Finally, one of the Armenians
| drew revolver and fired at his oppo-
nent The shot was the signal for an
uproar. q stampede of the spectators
and eventually panic which spread
| far and wide, from one end of the city
to tho other, from one quarter to an
other. until matters began to look
very Scrions indeed.
The Arnenians and other Christians
Were terrified nv the shouting and
| yelling. the rushing here and there
of exciting crowds naturally imagined
that fresh massacre had commenced.
They hurriedly closed their shops and
houses. barricaded the doors and win
dows, concealed their most valuable
belongings in various ways and made
all the preparations possible for de-
fense.
Crowds of people, male and female,
old and young, were seized with terror
which grew in strength as time wore
on and the confusion increased. Peo-
pie fled hither and thither aimlessly.
| helplessiy, apparently unaware OF
what they were doing, not knowing
what had actually happened, but with
| the general impression that massa.
| ere was in progress somewhere.
From Stamboul the wave of terror
| swept to Galata and Pera carried on
ward by the panic-stricken fugitives
from the first named quarter, who were
| evidently under the impression that
| they were fleeing for their lives. The
| inhabitants of Galata quickly caught
| the fever of alarm and in turn shut
| their stores and houses and Joined i'm
| the scene of confusion. an Example
which was promptly followed by the
| people of the Pera quarter.
Seeing people fleeing through the
streets in terror caused others to do
| the same until the air was filed with
| excited cries and the noise of a rush
| ing multitude. Those who did not Join
in the stampede barricaded themselves
| within their houses and prepared to
see their most horrible fears realized.
Evidently the police regained their
| presence of mind and, desirouS of put
| ting an end 10 the panic, they circu-
| lated the report that the stampede
| from the Stamboul quarter was occa-
| stoned by the escape of a lion from a
| managerie and that the animal having
| been killed there was no occasion for
| any further alarm. This report, as
| good as any other under the circum-
stances, spread quickly and tho dis
| turbance began TO subside. Finally the
gendarmes circulated among the peo-
| Pile and explained to them the real
| state of affairs which has caused the
majority to return to their occupation
| somewhat disgusted at having been so
needlessly frightened.
THE WORK OF RELIEF
WASHINGTON, Dec 13.-The Amer
lean Red Cross Society has decided to
accept the duty of distributing the re-
lief funds for the Armenian sufferers