The news & observer., 1897-03-07
THE CROSS VS.. THE CRESCENT,
CHRISTIANITY VS.. MOHAMME-
DFNISM FREEDOM VS.. SIlAN-
DRY, GREEK VS.. TURK.
1GO7 Yerment Ayenue,

1907 Verment Avenue,
Washington. ID. c., Feb. 26.
To the Editor: The object of this let
ter is to ask the pastor Of your churches,
regardless Of creed to appropriate the
collections of Sunday morning, March
7tIh. to the cause of the Greeks now fight
ing because they believe what the Bible
teaches instead of the Koran! 1t is true
they desire political as well as religious
liberty. Nothing else could be expected
of a people who produced Homer, Heno-
phen. Herodotus, Themistocles, Socrates
Plato. Epaminondes, Leonidas, Peucles,
Alexander, &c, &c.
lit was my inestimabFe privilege to
spend nearly FIVE months IN Greece very
recently. / cannot describe the natural
! beauties of that classic land, every part
| of which Lord Byron says, is haunted
| holy ground" 1t is an inspiration to
| stand on one of the hills around the City
| of Patras and see the sunset behind the
olive groves of Missilonghi gliding at
once the picturesque islands of Ithaca,
of Cephalonia. of Zante of Leukas and
| the splendid mountain ranges of distant
Etolla. These islands rest, like beautiful
mossaics, on the placid bosom of the blue
| Ionian sea- Far off on one side towers
| Parnassus. On the other sidei ancient
| Erymanthos. Behind the city beyond
the romantic Graeco-Venitian castle, now
| almost ruin, are ranges of mountains
covered with vineyards and olive groves.
| The cities of Algion, Olympia and CO.
rinth are situated on plateaus almost as
| beautiful and even more suggestive of the
history that has made Greece the Mother
| Of Civilization.
| Athens lis worthy to be the Capital city
| of Hellas Last summer / saw the full
moon rise the violet crowned" Hymet-
| tus, while the water of Sala-and
Phaleron changed from asure to royal
purple under the magical influence of an
| Attic twilight. Standing among the
matchless columns of the Parthenon a few
| hours later, when the moon light soften
ed the ravages of war and time and res
tored some Of its pristine splendor. o
heard from the lips of the American min
lister. the Hon. Eben Alexander, a trib-
ute to the present King and Queen of
| Greece and a regret that the Turks had
ever been allowed to lombard and partly
demohsh the marble temples which crown
the Acrepolic!
II pul LUlS Is not WRIT l. ulNstilL 10 AIIlc.
/ saw one thousand widows and children,
refugees from Crete and Armenia, land
in Patras whittier they had been sent
from Athens because that city was full
to oyerlowing Every man and boy in
the families of these refugees had been
killed by the Turks. 1T was a homeless
and exiled band of women and babies,
absolutely dependent ON Grecian charity
because they and theirs would not be
come apostates. One handsome, rein
ed looking Greek woman from the Is
land of Crete, was wandering about the
streets of Athens, leading her blind son
Of about twelve, whose eyes had been
deliberately punched out by Turkish bay.
onets, so that he could never fight a.
gainst the Moslem crescent. Incidents
like the following, which happened while
| was there, are not without precedent
The Turks to the number Of twenty tC
one attacked a body of Cretans. After
bloody skirmish the Cretans retreated
in good order to their mountain fast
nesses. Two brothers were among the
Cretan officers. One was mortally wound
ed. When the order to retreat came
the unhurt brother tried to carry the
wounded one from the field The dying
man said: kiss me gOodby, and then
send pistol shot through my brain. II
is better to die by your hand at once
than to be tortured to death by the
Turks" With prayer on his lips as the
beloved head rested on his arm, the
brother knelt on the battle field and
obeyed the order.
/ cannot resist the impulse to plead
for these brave people to my own home
folks. Any contributions sent to me will
be Immediately forwarded to the rector
of the University of Athens with the
request that the sum shall be handed to
Queen Olga. | know that she visits the
hospitals nearly every day in person. She
rs one of the most attractive and one OF
theablest women ON a European throne
to-day. Although she was a Russian
grand duchess. she is very democratic.
likes Americans, and is naturally in
thorough sympathy with her adopted
country.
CARRIE JENKINS HARRIS