The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-12-21
UNDER THE SULTAN'S RULE
REV CYRUS HAMLIN REPLIES TO
 MUSTAPHA BEY'S CHANGES.
A Record of Crime and Infamy Unprece- dented in the Christian Era-How Thou sands and Thousands of Armenians Have Been Murdered--Why the Missionaries Have Been Villified.

Have Been Villified.
 Boston, Dec. 2O.-In reply to certain charges against himself and other for mer and present missionaries of the American Board, made by Mustapha Bey to the state department at Wash ington, according to recent press dis patches, the Rev Cyrus Hamlin D. D., of Lexington, affirms that all the charges brought against him and the other missionaries are absolutely false. Whatever proof Mustapha Bey may have presented to the state department, he says, is manufactured by Turkish methods which will not bear examina- ton. The testimony of Armenians giv- en under torture is not admissible.
 In Turkey forged letters have been presented, but in every case the com parison, if allowed, with the writings Of the accused has at once revealed their forgery. With regard to the Nun chagists pr. Hamlin says that no word of his has ever been uttered or written which was not in earnest and unquali- fled condemnation. And the missiona- ries, now so unjustly accused, he says, always have been against them, for which they have been threatened by them with assassination.
 But the Turkish government is in very tight place. The sultan is deter mined to eXterminate the Arrenians, or convert them to Mohammedanism He has been steadily at it for years.
 Some 7OOO0 or SO,OOO men have been massacred. peaceful, unarmed men; their houses footed and destroyed, and the women and children left to perish or become Moslems. This unparalleled drama of slaughter and suffering is at traCting too much attention and sym pathy among the nations.
 The first plan of stoutly denying the truth of reports has to be given up. The evidence is multiform and everwhelm- ing. The present plan is to lay the blame upon others. The sultan's party cannot accuse the Russians, or French men. or Italians, or Englishmen Their governments protect them. This has been recently tried upon MT. McCullum and the English ambassador compelled the grand vizer the withdraw the charge and sent an ironclad to Alexan- dretta to see to it.
 But any charge can be made against Americans; any amount of property can be safely destroyed any indignity perpetrated with safety. Our govern ment has given us over to Sultan Ham i'd as the Lord gave Job to satan. He is in thy hand-only spare his life. No evidence has been brought against either of the three missionaries men toned by Mustapha Bey to the state epartment-DWight Washburn, Ham, lin.
 They are absolutely not guilty, and they challenge proof. Whatever there is is a mass of falsehood and the docu- mentary evidence is such as the Turk ish government can pile up so long as it's finances can pay the clerks for writing and the authors for giving. Let Mustapha Bey choose which horn of the following dilemma he will hang upon.
 Either the Turkish government and people are the greatest towards and poltroons in the world, says Dr. Ham lin, or the greatest liars There is no question of feeling here. Everyone ad- mits, with regard to the two parties concerned, that the ATmenians number 2, 800, 900 of unarmed people, who were never allowed to have arms, and a few, possibly 200, Russian Munchags, unmis- takably assissins.
 On the other side are 24,000,000 Mos- lems. the men accustomed to bear arms, and terrible fighters, with the Caliph @lx ,nf hnt nt hni ip head, and a trained army of say, 250,- 900 of the bravest soldiers in the world.
 The sultan's will is law to the army and the people. Now the sultan, Ab- dul Hamd, either could suppress all their disorders at the beginning, or he could not If he could not, he and his subjects are the greatest towards and poltroons that ever had existence on the earth. If he could suppress them, which is evident, then his course for the past few years is one of false hood, dishonesty and dishonor. He wanted to extermina te the Armenians, but the odium of it is arousing the pub lie sentiment of Christian nations, and it may endanger his throne. He now resorts to the mean subterfuge of &C., cusing the innocent, although the ac cusation itself exposes him to ridicule.
 These awful Munchags-these terri ble Armenians are the sole cause. He has been two and a half years suffer- ing the result. It amounts to this: it takes two and a half years for ten armed MoslemS to suppress one un- armed Armenian and the thousandth part of one Hunchagist. In order to cover up this absurdity he falls upon the American missionaries, chiefly mis- sionaries of the American board. They have no defender. Their government has given them over to everything but death and the sultan may accuse them of the absurdeSt crimes with inn punity.
 The world has known them. They have been seventy-five years in the empire. Their work Is an open one. It is to help their fellow Christians, the Armenians. Their schools, their books, their teachings are open to all the world. They have been loyal to the Turkish government. I have before me Sir Philip Currie, of MT. Fenton Brit ish consul st Harpoot; of Major Will Hams, English consul at Van; and of pr. Hubbell and MT. Wistar of the Red Cross men sent by Clara, Barton to the sufferers. They all have given to the American board the warmest testi- mopy of their admiration of those