The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-11-28
London Daily Mail.


Philippolis-It is impossible for the
most cold-blooded human being, a
Turk excepted, to visit the unhappy
vilayet of Ad1ianople now and remain
calm. Somewhat hardened as am
by the horrors of Monastir, my blood Is
still boiling from the accounts Of
Turkish cruelty in Adrianople.
I managed to reach Kirk Kilisse,
which is IS kilOmeters from Adrian
ople, and spent day and a half IN
that pretty town, to the great annoy
ance of the authorities. Longer I
could not stay; even as it was, an at
tempt was made to force me to leave
at once. but sick horse proved an
unsurmOuntable obstacle. Originally
intended to go to Tirnovo, thru the
heart of the devastated country, but in
impossible. The evening before I left
I was arrested by soldiers while stroll
ing on the fringe Of the town, and kept
an hour standing in the road, threat
ened by a soldier with his rifle when
ever moved. But it Is not Of these
things that wish to write.
Before commencing my list Of
atrocities. however. wish to state en-
phatical1y that as in every case my
informants were Greeks or Turks of a
more humane character, there can be
no question Of biased stories, and that
1.-The balance of criminality'' no more
exists in this unhappy vilayet than 1t
did at Monastir. Even the rabid Bull
garphobes could quote no instance Of
wanton cruelty on the part of the
Comitajis, nor the name Of a single
village, Turkish not excepted, burnt
by the bands. If do not always
in every case, it is for obvious reasons;
but I hold the proofs in many cases in
my possession.
From a Turkish Prison.
To commence with, will take a few
extracts from a letter Of Comitaji
now imprisoned at Adrianople. I read
the original myself dirty scrap of
paper folded into the smallest possible
shape, and srnuggled in a plate Of food
remnants out Of the prison. It is
dated 18th Sept, old style (29th new
style):
1.-THE military tribunal has been
abolished, and a new one has beer
instituted in it's place. It passes SEN
fences in secret, and there are no wit
nesses. So far it has condemned
thirty-six persons, sixteen of them tt
fifteen years deportation and the re.
manning twenty to death, or to 101
years hard labor. No good can be
expected from a thoroly fanatical trib
unal whose motto Is 'Ghiaoura liza
etmek sebapter' cit is good worl
to Cypress the unbelievers')
After sentence the prisoners ar
shut up in dark cells without win
dows, into which they are packed like
sardines. From these holes they arr
| taken for ten minutes in the fresf
air once in twenty-four hours. Man.
are already Frustrated from torture
undergone and from the filth and mis-
cry, and are left without medical as
sistance. The writer of these line
was Ill and taken before the doctor
Socrot Efendt.
| What is your nationality
| Bulgarian.
"'Poison, poison for you, the Sui
tan's enemy. Okso!' ('Get outl' il
Greek).
| "Such was the medical help OBJ
tanned. It is a pitiful sight. If YOU
could see the poor skeletons Of peasants
starving, naked, sitting the whole day
with eyes fixed and heads bowed OF
their breasts; how quietly their live!
are passing away! The long, wear!
day passes only to be succeeded b!
than the Turkish torture. o, Cod
why dost not Thou look down upo1
the 'raya' (Turkish name for Chris
tian subject and sheep alike) to see t,
what condition he has been reduced
But let them torture us. Brutal Tur
key may kill us, but the oppressed
slave will not be annihilated by tn
killing. Of few hundreds. We ar
soon to be deported to distant land
to living tombs such as st. Jeal
d'Acre, Podroum and Diarbekir. Blu
we do not fear; from the day we con
secreated our lives to the holy cause
from the day on which we kissed TIL
holy revolver and the twice holy dag
ger (the ceremony on joining the in
surrection party, we have ever beel
ready to die for this cause"
Then follows the list Of the thirty
six condemned men, with details.
Carloads of Victims.
Some weeks ago wrote of the hor
rors of the Turkish prison at Monasti1
as told me by a victim, where Him
1 Pasha assured me that the prisoner
E"were very comfortable!''
/ There was certain Christian pc
lliceman, Greek, and also one of tn
victims of the reforms which force
certain percentage of unhappy Chris
tians to serve with brutal Mohamme