The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-01-02
They were mostly women an

children, he says.
"Hamman." the writer continues,
lis a small village where are kept
1000 Armenians. Every day the same
scene Of hunger and horrors. The
men are taken as workmen, roadmen,
and diggers In this place l met some
families who still have some money,
and who manage to live without SO
much misery, but the majority lie Oh
the bare ground, without shelter. ana
feed on watermelons, the most unfor-
tunate Of them satisfying themselves
with gnawing the skins thrown away
by the others. The mortality IS very
high, especially among the children.
"Rekka is a fairly important town,
situated on the left bank Of the Eu-
pirates. Here 5000 to 5000 Arme-
mans, mostly women and children, are
distributed in the different quarters
of the town, and live in groups of
from so to 60 in< houses which the
kindness of the governor has procured
for the poorest. Although the Arme-
mans of sRekka are treated better
than at other places, their misery is
terrible. Flour is very irregularly
distributed to them by the. authori-
ties, and in insufficient quantities.
Every day you see women and chill
dren in front of bakeries begging for
flour and asking charity in the streets.
ION the right border Of the Eu-
pirates, opposite Rekka, are found
nearly 1000 famished Armenians, liv-
ing under tents and guarded by SOL
diners. They wait to be transferred
to other, parts of the country, doubt
less to fill the gaps made by deaths in
other encampments.
"Zierra is north of Rekka. Nearly
300 Armenians are encamped there.
Zierrat is altogether desert. Groups
of men and children are seen wan
dering on the border of the river,
locking for herbs to relieve their hum
ger. Others fall dead from exhaus-
ton under the Implying eyes Of their
guards, whose chief, barbarous per-
son, in the full sense of the word, for
bids anybody to pass the limits of the
encampment without special author
ization under penalty of bastinade.
'Sebga is a small village where a
group of ESQ to 300 Armenians live
as miserably and as famished as in
other places.
"Der-i-Zor is the headquarters of
the Independent Governorship (mute-
sarifate) of the same name. Some
months ago 1000 Armenians were
installed in encampments on the out
skirts of the city under the protec-
ton of the Governor, Ali SQUAD Bey.
A certain number Of them had even
begun a small commerce and were
feeling happy to remain there. The
comparative favor that the Armen-
ians were enjoying at Der-i-Zor was
denounced, and reported to higher
authorities"
Ali SQUAD Bey, the writer says, was
transferred to Bagdad and replaced
by Zekki Bey, who was notorious for
inhuman acts and barbarism. The
Armenians. he says, then were sent
to places along the Chabour, the most
desert-like region of the country
where it was impossible to find any
thing for their subsistence. A grsa:
number are dead, the writer says,
and the rest will soon follow them
Concluding his story, the "Eyewit-
ness says:
L believe there are some $1,000
Armenians scattered about all along
the Euphrates between Meskene and
Der-i-Zor, passing through Rekka. AS
have already said, these unfortunate
people, abandoned, ill-treated by the
authorities, are gradually dying Of
starvation Winter is approaching;
cold and dampness will add their vic
Tins to that of famine. They can
always find something to eat. all
though very dear, if they have the
money to pay for it. If these funds