Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-03-09
BRYCE ASKS FUNDS
FOR WAR MARTYRS
WHO ARE STARVING


can Committee for Armenian and
Syrian Relief. which is trying TO Sc
cure funds TO save from death the
more than a million Armenians ana
Syrians who are now starving or on
the verge of starvation on account or
Turkish oppression. today gave out
the following cable message from Wis
count Bryce. former British Ambas-
sador TO Washington;
BY viscount Bryce.
London-ln the history of the early
Christian church there are no figures
SO glorious. none which have contin-
ued to be so much honored by the
church all through its later days as
those OF the martyrs, men and wo-
men who from the time OF Nero down to
that OF Diocletian. sealed with their
blood the testimony to their faith.
withstanding every lure and every
threat, in order to preserve their 10y
atty to their Lord and Master. Christ.
In our own times we have seen this
example of fidelity repeated in the
Turkish Empire and it is strange that
the Christians Of Europe and Amer
lea should not have been more moved
by the examples OF courage and hero
ic devotion which the Armenian
Christians have given.
or the seven or eight hundred thoa.
sand OF Armenians who have perish
ed in the recent messacres, many
thousands have died as martyrs by
which mean they have died for their
Christian faith, when they could have
saved their lives by renouncing it.
This has perhaps not been realized
even by those who in Europe or
America have read OF and been he.
rified by the wholesale slaughter and
hideous cruelties by which half OF an
ancient nation has been exterminated
They can hardly understand now
there should be religious persecution
in our time. so let me try to explain
the facts.
II was not religious fanaticism that
led the present rulers Of Turkey to
seek to root out Christianity SO far
from being fanatics most OF these men
though nominally Mohammedans.
have no religion whatever. Their
aim was political They wanted to
make the whole Turkish Empire Mo.
hammedan in order to make 1t uni.
form, with only one creed and no dit
ferences between one class OF subjects
and another
They saw that the Christian part
OF the population, suffering under con.
slant expressions and cruelties. con
/ tinued to turn its eyes westward and
hope for some redress from the Chris.
tan nations; so they determined to
eliminate Christianity altogether.
4 During these recent massacres.
whenever any Christian would turn
Mohammedan, his life was spared, II
was only as a Christian that he was
killed. Many Christian child was
torn from its parents to be brought
up as a Mussulman.
Thousands OF Armenian Christian
girls We're sold In the market or dis
tributed among Turkish officers to be
imprisoned for life in Turkish Har.
ems and there forced into MOhamme.
danism.
( But many more thousands Of Ar
menians, women as well as men,
were offered their choice between
Christ and Mohammed, and when they
refused Mohammed were shot or
drowned forthwith For days and
days together the bodies of Christian
women who had thus persisted were
seen floating down the Euphrates.
Surely the remains Of this suffering
nation could make no stronger appeal
for pity and help to the Christians Of
America than they make through
these martyr deaths. Only remnant
is now left to whom charity can be
extended. 1t is still sorely afflicted
remnant. Some in territory occupied
by the Russian army, tho safe from
their ferocious enemies, are in sad
need of help to rebuild their homes
and cultivate once more their ravaged
fields. #
The condition of others is even
worse They are barely supporting
life in the deserts OF Northern Syria.
where their oppressors watch their
sufferings under hunger and disease
and refuse to alleviate their agonies.
There is still, however. chance for
relief from without to reach them
and their friends in Europe hope that
generous charity OF America, much as
II has already done, will respond once
more to the appeal made to 1t to send
aid to these helpless survivors OF an
ancient Christian people.
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