The Jasper news. [volume] (Jasper, Missouri) 1898-1924, 1920-01-22
MORGENTHAU PLEADS
FOR HELPING HAND
IN THE NEAR EAST
Former Ambassador to Turkey
Says America Should Not Let
Armenian Allies Starve.
BY HENRY MoReENTHAu,
Former Ambassador to Turkey and
Leader In Near East Relief.

Leader In Near East Relief.
II they were good enough to fight
and die for us when we needed their
help so sorely, they are good enough
now to share some meager little
crumbs from our plenty when they
have nothing, when hundreds Of thou
sands of them are homeless, unciad,
foodless and threatened with exterml-
nation by their enemies and our own.
Not far from n million Christians
have been murdered by their Turkish
oppressOrs. Hungry, terror stricken
hundreds of thousands Of refugees
now look to the United States for sue
cor.
Have Trust III America.
We cannot re:usC Next To fheli
faith in God is their trust IN ,hc lis.
Interested good will and generosity OF
the American people. They look to us
us the human agency To c,;Ir!cate
them from the frigh,ful situation in
which they have been LETT IFS Il conse-
| quence of the war.
If we should fail 10 aid them. stnrva-
| tion and the winters cold would go far
to completing the worl; done by the
unspeakable Turk.
have not seen with my own eyes
the misery I'm which the Armennns
| now exist. / have been spared that.
| But the repOrts which have been
| brought In by agents Of the Near East
Relief and by representatives of the
| Peace Conference paint Il picture NJ
wretchednpsS mconceivnhle to those
who have not II first Land impression
Of the savaGpry Of the Mussulman.
Exiled From Homes.
Since the beginning of the war the
Turkish Armenians have been largely
| refugees from their homes. A simple
agricultural people, they have been
exlles from their farms, deprived OF
all opportunity TO support themselves
| Year by year their sufferings have in
creased. Now, a year after fighting
has ceased, they are still living the
life of nomads, able to continue to
keep alive only by virtue of American
1 philanthropy. -
These homeless people-"filthy inn
dels" to the Turk-were good enough
/
half while the war was still in the
balance. Massacres of a half century
had not so broken their spirit that
they dared not fight for right and for
| democracy when justice was the issue.
| We accepted their aid then. Surely
we shall not pass them by without
compassion now.
The day has passed when any self
| respecting man darcs permit absorb
| tion in his own personal affairs to ex-
clude consideration of his neighbours
well being. No honorable man can
knowingly allow his nelghbor to hun
ger or to go unclothed. The Christian
peoples Of the Near East are our
neighbors. The money needed to re-
lieve them can be spared without
causing any man, woman or child in
the United States to suffer. o..
Must Not Rest on Past.
in other years of our own free will
we sent missionaries to Turkey. Our
schools and colleges and hospitals
have played a wonderful role in hu-
| manizing that dark spot in the world.
Our ideas, our educational resources,
our material equipment, have been
leaven in the Near East Because we
have done well in times past we have
this great opportunity for the present
The Armenlans, have been treated as
perhaps no people in history have been
treated because they are the spiritual
brothers of western races.
VIII America help them? There
can be but one answer. Their neces-
sity is dire, but our power is great.
| we nre wealthy. We are a member OF
the family of nations. Our brothers
call us. Food, clothes, money, are i'm
mediately wanted. If ever unmerited
suffering called for succor the PHI ght
OF the Armenians should be needed
| now. A few months more and it may
be relief will be too late for those
myrlads whom only we can save. We
~ r.