Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1918-01-08
DUG THEIR OWN GRAVES
Marched Into the Wilderness, Made to
DIf Their Graves and Then
KilledEFOr Economy's Sake. Axes
Were Used.


The sum of $5,5O0 is the amount
that Marathon county stands pledged
to Iaise.. for. the relief of the starv-
ing Armenians and SyriansT and 10
raise N'lich the memberseof Marathon
Lodge, No. las. knights of Pythias,
have volunteered to take charge. of the
campaign. They will act in the ca
paclty OF committee and expect the
cooperation of all the church socie-
ties and other orders.
II the people Of this city and coun-
ty could bring their minds to that
condition where they could even faint
ly realize the sufferings being under
gone by these unfortunate people,
Marathon county's full quota would
be forthcoming in day. No man, no
woman, no child could be found who
would not willingly and gladly con-
tribute. We cannot even approx
mately visualize the awful sufferiugs
OF these poor people, human beings
like ourselves, peopTe who up to 1915
were fairly prosperous, who had their
homes and places of business, the fam
lilies of merchants and professional
men, of artisans and farmers.
Authentic accounts Of the Ar
menian and Syrian outrages from in
disputable sources describe a misery
and brutality without a parallel in the
worlds history. Whole cities have
been depopulated. The men have been
rounded up and marched Off In one
instance these men were marched for
days and then set to work to dig a
deep trench. After it was dug the
whole 1900 were ordered into the
trench and murdered. A few were
shot, but to save expense most of
them were killed with axes.
The younger women and girls were
then marched out into the wilderness
and subjected to all kinds of brutal
tiles. They were deprived of their
clothing, fed barely enough to sus-
tain life, not allowed to even drink
from the streams through which they
were marched. The weak who Jagged
behind were beaten until they fell I'M
conscious by the wayside. Many COM
mitted suicide by jumping into rivers.
Some saved themselves by renouncing
Christianity and were carried off to
the h2rems of those who had killed
their husbands, fathers and children.
Hundreds of thousands of orphaned
children, less than twelve years of age
were driven out into the wilderness
and are there today, subsisting as best
they can on grass, carrion and any
thing edible upon which they can lay
their hands Remember these are lit
tie children. They are without cloth
ing, without shelter, without food, and
they are dying daily by the thousands
1t is estimated that one life can
be sustained for S. per month. II
will require millions to save these
people from starvation. This money
must be forthcoming at once. A de-
lay of day means needless deaths
No where else in this world can help
come from except America, and we
can do it if we will. Surely for this
cause, to aid in the preservation of a
million human beings, $500 is not
too much for our share.
If We saw a child starving on the
street today in our own city, we would |
not pass it by. We would put forth
every effort to save it, spend our
last dollar. These other little chill
dren have a claim upon US, a claim |
no humane man will deny.
Give to this cause Give generous
ly. Make sacrifices to give. Deny |
yourself a 10-cent cigar day. By |
so doing you will prolong a human |
life day. Deny yourself that over
coat you have in view, or that set of |
furs, that new dress, or that other |
thing without which you can get along
and give tae money to this cause.
Your shabby overcoat will become a
mantis OF honor, your old dress the |
VestmeniA OF glory worn in the cause |
of humanity.
Do not wait for a solicitor to call |
upon you. Sit down now, right now |
and make out check for as liberal |
an amount as you can spare, and mail |
it to ]. n. Manson, treasurer.