Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1915-08-14
ARNENIANS ROUT
TURKS FROM THE
VILAYET Of VAN
Six Hundred Years of Moslem
Rule Brought to End by Re-
volt Following Refusal to
Furnish Recruits,

Associated Press Correspondence
Van turkish Armenia June Is
Tbs eo0-vear reign of the Turk has
IAN brought To an end, for the pres
.rt al least. i'm both the town and the
,-lsVet of Van. Ii is no longer strict
u correct To date this correspondence
canning from Turkish Armenia
mo same time it is question
whether Van may vet be considered
Isl ndependent state or whether u
win he annexed by Russia. toun-
d3tion of Armenian autonomy has
Noon laid. however by the naming OF
.,a of the Armenian leaders, Aram,
,gbo was former supervisor OF
seh0ols as civil governor and the es-
adjustment of q provisional admin
The vilayet of avn has an area Of
about 15,000 square miles vain u
uopulation of several hundred thous-
and The story of the revolt by
which Turkey has lost control OF TINS
ancient region, has not hitherto heeh
toi1 with much fullness. In the
,,jdst of the racial war. with its in
1urerable massacres and scattered
disorders. it was impossible to gather
n COMMUNICATIVE view of the situation
ana oven now the story of the hurgh-
ers' fight for freedom must be DIS
rounted by the possibility OF the
Turks' return-although that is re-
Eardcd as remote
Ancient Feud Lack Of Revolt.
The origin Of the revolt of course.
ia found in the hereditary dlscord
l,etween the races and religions Of
Yam but the uprising of the Turkish
povernor general Of the vilaNet OF
Van I'm demanding Armenian recruits
to the Turkish cause and in the Sc
we're measures he took when these re-
cruits were not forthcoming
During the Turkish mobilization,
the Armenians were singled out to DO
mental work,a were not Wen led.
Disarmed they were exposed to me
fnrv of their hereditary enemies, the
Turks and Kurds, and an uprising pe-
came inevitable although II was
eought neither by the revolutionary
leaders nor by prudent Turks. Even
Jevdett Bey, who is a brother-ln-laW
az Fnver Pash. the minister of war
seemed at first disposed to peace. lie
consulted the Armenian leaders ire
uently and they trusted his professor
sincerity, but when he returned from
the Turkish front, facing the Russians
at Sarai early in the spring, ne suu
denly demanded three thousand ad-
diuonal Armenian recruits inc
men we're promised, but perhaps not
sincerely
Trouble first arose between the
sturdy Armenian mountaineers OF
Shadaeh and their Kurdish neighbors.
JeVdet Bey then said that if the AT
meuiaps of van stirred he would
make an end of the race throughout
the empire There was shortly war
between Armenian and kurdish VII
layers IN all parts of Turkish Arme-
MIA. mutual pillage and massacre.
though the Armenians then suffered
incomparatively more than the
Kurds The Armenian leaders coun-
selcd patience and submission ana
Jevdett Bey persuaded lshkah ana
three other reVoluuonists 10 under
take a peace mission to Shadakh' On
the way they were treacherously
murdered, by order of Jevdeu hey
as the Armenlans assert.
Armcnians Denied Recruits
ON April 1G, Jeydett summoned
Vremyan, another Armenian ieauet,
for conference and bundled him OH
10 Constantinople. Aram barely es-
caped seizure. The Armenians now
aware of Jevdetts hostile intentions
declared their inability to supply 5',I
GOO recruits, but offered 400 ana
gradual payment of exemption
charges for the remainder.
Or. c. D. USHER and p. A. Var
row of the American mission accept
ed the futile office of intercerrors
Icvdett was obdurate; he would put
down rebellion at all costs, first at
Shadakh and then at Van. lie tried
10 force the missionaries to accept al
Turkish garrison OF fifty soldiers or
10 give him q written release from re-
sponsibiity for their safety TheyI
managed the ticklish problem clever
ly; when they gave their final answer
that the guard might be sent, though
il would precipitate war, the Armen-
ians had so far organized their forces
that the road from the Turkish camp
to- the mission was cut off
Hostihties began April 20 at dawn,
Rifle and cannon fire was opened
from five strong positions on the ola
town or business center and on theI
Armenian residence quarter, called
the Gardens, as evely house Is parity
surrounded by vineyards and orch
ards. BY evening houses were atlre
i'm all directions. Fifteen Armenian
rIflemen. reinforced at times by J.,