The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-03-24
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, TERRITORIAL CLAIMS Z
OF THE GREEKS. O..

To the EDITOR of The News setmltar:

.
To the Editor Of The News Scimltar:
! read your editorial In issue OF
March is Sorting EN- Out" and note
what you say about the difficulty OF
the peace conference in sorting out the
various peoples and especially the
Greeks.
presume you did not have In view
the official statistics OF the population
Of Greece, upon which they base their
claim at the peace conference, and peo-
PIE who do not know the real facts
might commit an injustice at the very
moment when the whole world fights
Tor justice and Democracy, For this
reason permit me to explain, In short,
the real facts;
The truth IL, that Premier Venizelos,
IN presenting the territorial claims OF
Greece to the peace conference, did
not ask all the Hellenic population to
be united with Greece, which IL $780,
900 souls, but only Thrace and the re-
ton of 1871 900, Asia Minor with 1884,
900, Do"decanesus with 102, 900, the
Island OF Cupus with 236, 900 and North
Eplrus Of l5l, 1000,
Those territories are historically and
ethnologically Greek The Greek pop
~ ~ NV Eholh AhlAipl ailh
North Epirus predominates, while
D~odecanusus, and the Island of Cypress
are populated only by Greeks.
1t IL a fact, that a great number
Of Greeks are scattered in different
countrics-tn North and South Ameri-
Russia, 400, 900; and in Armenia, Meso-
potamia, Syria and Palestine are to be
found a considerable Greek population.
Thus, Greece did not ask the peace
conference to G%reeianize the countries
where self expatriated Greeks have
chosen to live, but territories that orig
lnally have been Greek for thousands
Of years, They fought again and again
to save the then civilized world and
especially Europe, They fought against
Persians and other barbarous people,
but were finally overcome by the bar
barous and uncivilized Turks, who in
1853 captured Constantinople, the cap
ltol OF the Greek empire.
The Greeks kept their language and
their religion for five centuries under
the most adverse conditions. II has
been a stigma for the civilized people
Of Europe to allow the vicious Turks
for centuries to live In Europe, but
the Kaiser and his company have cared
only to use them for their purpose 70
dominate the world, never mind how
bad they were.
Greece fought for her liberty against
luIhtN tl HtNtItl hGNdSlbllS bII
especially from l62l-lS2S, for the whole
Of seven years when they freed u small
territory. She fought again in 1912 and
1913, and she fought In this last world
war, she is fighting now with the al.
lied armies In Russia against Bolsh.
eViki and she came to the peace con
ference with confidence that she haC
c~onscientiously fulfilled her duty and
II so, Is entitled 10 get the balance Of
her territory rightfully belonging L
her,
Greece does not want to leave hel
children under the barbarous Turks un.
protected, What the Greeks suffered
under Turkey was published in you
esteemed newspaper, by the late am
bassador Of the United States in Tur
key, Mr., Morgenthau, who was In Con
stantinople at the time and who pic
tured the atrocities as follows. 9TH,
martyrdom OF the Greeks comprises twt
periods. that antedating the war an
that which began at the early part o
1915. The first affected the Greek
living on the sea coast of Asia Minor
The second affected those living 4
/. Thraco and in the territories surround
ing the sea Of Marmora, the Darda
neils, the Bosporus, and the coast o
the Black sea. These latter, to tn
extent of several hundred thousanl
were sent to the interior Of Asia Min
; or, The Turks adopted almost identt
) cally the same procedure against III
Greeks as that which they had adoptei
against the Armenians, They bega
by Incorporating the Greks into tn
y ottoman army and then transferrin
them into labor b%attalions. using thel
to build roads in the Caucasus an
= other schemes OF action, These Gree
soldiers Just like the Armenians, die
by thousands from cold, hunger an
r other privatious. The same house [
house search for hidden weapons too
T place In the Greek village and tn
Greek men and women We're beate
and tortured lust as were their fello'
Armenians, The Greeks had to sui
init to the same forced reauisition.
which amounted In their case as in tn
case OF the Arnlenians, merely I
plundering on q wholesale scale.
THE Turks attempted to force III
a Greek subjects to become Mohammed
y ans; Greek girls, just like Armenia
| girls. were stolen and taken to Turk
ish harems, and Greek boys were kic
{ Aaped and placed in Moslem housC
holds, The Greeks, Just like the A,
menians, were accused Of ~disloyalty
c the ottoman government, - tt
Turks, as in the case OF the Armenian
ST. seized upon this as an excuse for
vIolent onslaught oil the whole rae
EVERYWHERE the Greeks were gathcrs
. in groups and under the so-called pr,
lection OF Turkish gendarmes, The
j. were transported. the larger part {
foot. INTO the Interior. Just how mar
7, were scattered in this fashion is n,
n definitely known, the estimates varyir
=" anywhere from 200, 900 up to Loco, zoe
c The deportations, which continued
1915 and 1917, were Of the most inhI
man character. Finally the desert,
t, Villages were set on fire, In order thu
- all traces OF Hellenism should disal
c pear.
II is on behalf Of that part of q
Greek race, which 10 stin under 4