The San Francisco call., 1896-01-24
Amounts to Reduction of the
Ottoman Empire to a
VaSSal State.
RATIFICATIONs EXCHANGED
Meanwhile the Porte Declines to Ad
nit Aid for Armenians Sent
From This Country.

LONDON, ENG, Jan. pa dispatch
from Constantinople 10 the Pail Mail
Gazette says:
An offensive and defensive alliance has
been concluded between Russia and Tur-
key. The basis of the treaty is on the
Unkiar- -Skelessi agreement. The treaty
has been signed here and ratification has
been exchanged at st. Petersburg between
Aarei Pasha and the Czar.
NJ. Cam bon, French ambassador to
Turkey. had an audience with the Sultan
On January 21, which lasted two hours
This tends to show that France is in all
probability member OF the new alliance.
The Gazette's correspondent is believed
to be inside of the British embassy. The
Unklar-Skelessi agreement dates back to
1888 and amounts to a reduction OF Turkey
TO the position of vassal state. The
treaty bound the Russian and Turkish
Governments TO mutually assist one an
other to resist foreign aggression and to
help each other in case of international
dangers. Turkey was at the time of the
conclusion of the agreement in state of
collapse.
Russia valves the matter of assistance
promised by Turkey and receives instead
permission in the event of Russia's being
al war to close the Dardanelles to warships
of all nations. The Western powers refused
to recognize the treaty. which was soon
tacitly abandoned. The Pail Mall Gazette
guarantees the reliability of the sources of
information of its representative at Con-
stantiuople.
The Standard publishes dispatch from
ConStantinople under the date of January
IL rT,.-
assembled at meeting Tuesday evening,
the alleged occasion of which was the re-
ceipt by the Porte of telegram from
Shakir Pasha, the imperial Commissioner
appointed to carry out the reforms In
Armenia, reporting that the Armenians
are reduced to the last extremity and are
being decimated by hunger and cold and
are committing revolutionary acts out of
sheer despair.
It is reported that the Sultan's favorite
izzet has been directed to formulate re-
ply to the letter written to the Sultan by
Queen Victoria.
The Porte has given out the information
that two Armenians, believed to be mem
bers of the Armenian revolutionary com
mittee, have murdered the Armenian
Bishop of Boghes.
The correspondent of The United Press
at ConstantinopIe under date of January
% writes as follows:
The United Press is given to understand
that United States Minister Terrell has
not received the assent of the Porte to his
pressing demands for the admission of the
American Red Cross Society into Asia
Minor for the purpose of distributing re-
lief to the suffering Armenians. The
European embassies in Constantinople
have not recommended the work of the
Red Cross Society and the British en-
bassy finding that Russia objected to the
society undertaking the work Of relief
withdrew its encouragement, in order to
preserve the entente OF the powers, it was
alleged.
A telegram received here to-day from
Aintab says that che foreign Consuls, who
were delegated to mediate between the
Turks who are besieging Zeitoun and the
Armenians who are holding the town, have
arrived at Aintab. Some OF them had all
their baggage stolen en- route.
a letter received here from Marash saws
that the Turks have been severely beaten
and repulsed. Near the Hot Springs the
commanding officer of the Turkish soldiers
placed the regular men in the front ranks
and the reserves next. AS they were
marching against the Armenians terrific
explosion occurred and many of the
soldiers were blown to atoms. It is
probable that dynamite was used. The
Turks say that flames suddenly burst from
the earth.
Other accounts confirm the surmise that
dynamite was used against the Turks
They were caught in a defile, and large
number of them were killed. The Turks
afterward succeeded in capturing the
barracks and cut off the water supply from
the Armenians.