New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-09-17

the lines of communication Of the army We
are not barbarians. We do not take pleasure
in killing people without justifable cause.
The punishment we inflicted on the Armeni-
ans is justified and is in proportion to the
offence they committed. Much TO my regret,
during their deportation, owing TO the negli-
gence or cruelty Of few officials about l5,-
coo Armenians have been killed by rowing
bands. | have already appointed commits
sons Of inquiry to determine the guilt Of the
officials in question, who will receive ade-
quate punishment"
Voluminous reports received in this coun-
try from official and private German, native,
missionary and neutral sources reveal the
Turk version of the Armenian rebellion as
having been grossly exaggerated, and they
conclusiyely dsprove the Turk assertion as
to the extent of the penalty exacted for the
alleged disloyalty. The fact that the Turk
government has tried to suppress the true ex-
tent of the ravages the Armenians have been
subjected TO sufficiently proves that the case
the Turks are able to establish against the
Armenians justifes only the penalty Talaat
Bey confesses to have inflicted upon them
and no more.
A brief statement Of facts, extracted from
these reports, is as follows: Upon the entry
Of Turkey in the world war in November,
1914 about $4,000 Armenians enlisted in the
Turkish army. All the elements of the en-
pre assumed critical attitude against the
foolhardy venture of the Young Turks. There
was some Armenian propaganda and there
were many avowed advocates of the Allied
bofb ha
lens. But there was no organized or CON
certed Armenian movement, and there could
not have been any which the government
should have feared. In December, 1914, the
Turk campaign in the Caucasus met with
disaster which was eXtravaganty charged TO
the assistance given the Russians by the Ar
menian volunteers and regulars, so the re-
treating Turks mercilessly massacred the non
oombatant Armenians in those regions.
Gradually the Turk Armenian relations be-
came strained, and fear and suspicion ruled
everywhere. From January to March, 1915
the government executed. by hanging or tort
ure, fifty or more Armenians. some of whom
were apparently guilty, and imprisoned and
exied, upon truWped up charges, several
thousand notables and clergy. Meanwhile
the Turks searched Armenian homes, churches
and schools for firearms, and found some
rlHeS ana pistols, etc, mere ana tnere, WnlCh
were largely imported and openly sold to the
Moslem and non Moslem alike following the
accession of the Young Turks to power, with
whom the Armenian revolutionary committees
cooperated before and after the Turk revolu.
ton in 1908 These Armenian committees
were organized to seek relief from the Turk
ish msrule, for which purpose also the Young
Turk party was organized
Competent official opinion is that in March.
1915. the Young Turks, believing that the
Dardanelles expedition would fail pushed
ahead vigorously their plan of Armenian ex-
termination. having already prepared the
grounds upon which they would base the
justification for their conduct. In the latter
part Of March the Turks and Kurds massa.
cred the Armenans OF Shadach and neighbor-
ing villages northwest of Van. The Armeni-
ans of Van protested TO Dievdet Bey. the
military governor. against the atrocities of
Shadach. Djevdet Bey instead OF offering any
explanation for the Shadach massaeres now
demanded that all the Armenians who had
paid military exemption tax should enlist in
the army
The Armenans, in the light Of their in
formation and experience. declined TO com
ply with the governors order, and sought,
through the Armenian member OF the Turk
Parliament, to discuss an apparently unlaw-
full and unnecessary call 10 arms. which did
not embrace the Turks and the kurds. In