New Britain herald., 1915-05-11

a special letter from Persia, signed by the Assyrian committee. It is an appeal for aid for the war smitten Christians and contains description or the horrors of the Holy War in Turkey and Persia that, although little crude in it's English could only have been written by one who has gone through the terrors described. It is presented to Herald readers in full as follows
 The destruction of the Assyrian Christians of Persia and Turkey will go down in history as one of the blackest in the records of civilized mankind. Piece by piece une village alter another district by district, each m US turn have succumbed to the in evitable, suffering unheard of tortures for their Christian faith and by reason of their unwelcome remote geogra- phical position, among Kurds, Per- sian and Tartar Musulmen.
 k Urumia Den of Dogs
 The beautiful plain of Urumia in northwestern Persia by nature a gar den of paradise has been the den of raving dogs. mad for the r1esh of ,n- buried human bodies scattered broad east in the plain, which after the reign Of terror have beer buried by the kind hands of the American missionaries the only agents of mercy left to save the remnant of Christians from star Vation and massacre. One traveller fleeing for his life saw by moon light In the highways near a deserted Chris fl n yrvI Ilnrr |.
 and three women left there for over two weeks; the head of little child belng stuck in the mud and the body frozen on the surface. A few hours later travelling again in the garb of a musulman government servant sue- ceeded in appealing to the mercy of a Moslem woman, went in to warm Himself and horse, saw two Christian women and one grown girl waiting for tEeir fate. One was to be married to the servant of the serdar, another given to local Moslem and the third the mullah had said he was going to n arry himself.
 Kurds Traitors
 When the Kurds proved traitors to the Russian cause and with the wea- pons given them, turned on the Cos sacks and native Christians, the in- habitants of the large districts of Mergawar and Tergawar fled by night to Urumia ard left everything they could not take on their baaks behind, All the villages of these dis tricts and those of Urumia lying on the way to the city were plundered and burned. We witnessed the scene ourselves. after the Kurds wer. driven back by Russians and Chris. tlans from the very gates Of the city. ne things the Kurds could not take With them, they trampeled under foot. they destroyed everything and then burned the houses, barns haystacks and all All the refugees of these ana other districts poured into Orumla and were lodged in the var ious Villages Then the Christians of the diocese of the Metropolitan from Cachea in Kundistan came in almost naked after three, times being robbed on the way These also took refupa beautiful Urun1ia. All was well so iong as there was place of shelter for the refugees given by their bretbre,, ana so long as the small Russian forces were there to inspire conf,- oence The Christians were eiyen weapons by the Russians to defend tnelr various districts and viIlapes until help should come to them iron, the city It was here that the great drama began.
 The Russian forces in ITrup,;, oalmas and Tabriz for military req, sons were suddenly withdrawn, The hurds and Turks were already en- guinng the Christians from every quarter, and there was hardly any :: time 10 send word around to all dis tricts. f
 missionaries Stay
 some knew of the withdrawal and l old not move out, as there were nc ! horses, tdonkeys and carts to~mose With and they. realized what was the oanser! on the way through which the Hussians were to pass for seven days lo the Russian frontier. How could , the inhabitshts of one hundred Vii- lages With children and women pass on foot ir cold weather for seven 7 days? Taere was indecision, there was delay but there was no time to loose che Russian bishop left. an- . other nEtive. bishop stayed with his , people. One district left, another did not move and a third one did not | know and 30 could not move Would ! not the presence of American mission aries insure confidence and save the ! people? Yes, they stayed but only f. preserve the remnants from starva- tion and horrors ot massacre, wit messing a tragedy to remain stamped on their memory for generations to come.
 The Russian army left the first week in January, and still ahead of them some 10000 people fropn the dis tricts lying on their road mainly Nazzlu district of whose refugees hum dreds of children and old folks died 1 of exhaustion and exposure (we bur jed one child in the snow)
 Maideus as Wa,. pyixes