Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-09-12
PLIGHT OF ARMEN|ANs
DEF|ES DESCRIPTION
Their Misery Now at Greatest and
Massacres Are of Daily
Occurrence.
COUNTRY sTREwN WITH DEAD
Plan Of Turks to AnnihiIate Whole
Nation, and Unless Help Comes
Quickly 1t Will BE Accomplished.
Prisons Are Overlooking.

Especial Cable to The Times Dispatch.
LONDON. September IA letter
written by a man in Constantinople to
Aneurin williams, a member OF Pariia
, ment. describes the terrible plight of
the Armenians. who. arc dying by thous-
| ands The following are extracts:
The misery OF our people is now at
its greatest. With the exception Of
rumors about the condition OF the Ar
menians OF Erzeroum. we had only
heard Of the deportation OF the in
habitants OF some Of the towns and viii
lages of Cilicia, but we now know
with certainty. from a reliable source,
that the Armenians have been deportcd
IN body from all towns and villages
In Cilicia to the desert regions south
OF Alep.
The refugees will have to traverse
on foot distances requiring marches of
from one to two Cor even morc) months
before they can arrive at tho remote
point OF the desert assigned to them
as their dwelling place, which is bound
TO become their tomb. We learn, be-
sides, that the roads and the Euphrat ties
arc strewn with corpses Of the cxiles-
and those who survive arc doomed to
certain death. since they will ind
neither houses. work nor food in the
desert.
1t Is a plan to eHterminatc 're whole
Armenian people. quite quietly 1t Is
another kind OF massacre, one of a
NOR, terrible nature. DO not forget
tha: all men of from twenty to forty
fve years Of age are ut the front Those
OF from for'y-ffvo to sixty work for the
military transports. AS to those who
have paid the regulation tax for cx-
emption from military service, they
have either been exiled or imprisoned
under some pretext or another. Hence
there remains only the aged and women
and children to exile. These unfortu-
nate people have to pass through dis
Srlcts which were reputed dangerous
even in times Of peace and where there
was great risk Of being robbed.
Court martial operates everywhere
without cessation. Twelve Armcnians
were hanged at Caesarca on the charge
Of having obcyed instructions which
they had received from meeting Sc
cretly held at Bucharest by the Tro-
chalk anil Hcnchek Societies In addi-
ton to this hanging. thirty-two persons
were condemned at Cacsarea to penal
ties varying from ten to fifteen years
OF penal servitudc. These are for tho
most part law abiding merchants.
ION tho other hand. many have fallen
from blows from clubs Thirteen Ar
menians were killed on their way from
Chabine Karahissa to Sivas The
priests Of the village of Kurk, with
their five compa Mons, suffered the same
fate on the road OF Sou Chchrk -Sivas,
although they had their hands bound
Not n house has been left without
search, nor have the bishops houses,
the churches. and the schools Hun
dreds Of women. young girls and even
children are in the prisons. The
churches and converts have been pill
LACED. defilcd and destroyed.
we now live isolate as II in fort
ress, with no means or communication
either by post or telegraph. The VIII
lagos around Van and Bits have been
pillaged. and their inhabitants put to
the sword. AT the beginning OF this
month all the inhabitants of IIara-
Hissar were pitilessly massacrcd. with
the exception OF few children. who
are said to have escaped miraculously
IF Armcnians who are in other coun-
tries do not succeed in arousinS tho
sympathy OF neutral states in our fate
there will remain few months hence
but very small number of Armenians
out OF total of 100000. Tho OK
tinction OF our people will thus become
inevitable"