The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1920-11-25
TELLS OF SUFFERING
AMONG ARMENIANS
MRS. RICHARDSON PICTURES
AWFUL CONDITIONS IN THE
NEAR EAST

More Lnan any OlHeI pOuy u Wv
men. the Federated Club women OF
America have the world visions" said
!: Mrs. E. A. Richardson, of Forsyth,
state chairman of the Near East Re
lief work, addressing the convention
of club women at the Presbyterian
church last Saturday afternoon.
"They see not only the need of and
our obligations to the much persecut-
ed peoples of the Near East, but the
heart of a great people crushed by
their lost faith in the one disinterest-
ed nation fighting in the greatest war
of the ages; and, after a woman's
way, have said, This great heart
must be healed"
In clear forceful language that
gripped the hearts of her hearers,
Mrs. Richardson pictured the condi-
tions in Armenia today, where the
Armenians, prosecuted by the Turks
more vindictively, if possible, than
before the war, must face starvation
in a few weeks if not relieved by aid
from America. Girls, scarcely more
than children, are stolen from their
homes and from boarding schools and
sold on the auction block, 200 at a
time. for $500 apiece, sold into har-
ems where they are forced to bear
children to be educated as mohamme-
dams. Little children, 7 or s years
of age are stolen from their parents
and taken to the mountains to die of
starvation.
Refutes MisaPpropriation Charges
Refuting the charge that funds
collected in this country were misap-
propriated, Mrs. Richardson said that
that story had been started as one of
the results of the discharge or
warehouse employees, who has stolen
supplies and sold them to influential
Turks. America has 538 Near East
relief workers, the salaries of whom
are all paid by wealthy people in the
U. S. so that all the money collected
for relief work is used for that pur-
pose and not to pay the cost OF ad-
ministering the relief. After the dis
charge of the employees caught steal
ing, not only were slanderous stories
circulated in the United States, but
excuses of every sort found by the
Turkish officials for blocking and
hampering the work Of relief. Sew
eral workers were imprisoned on n
charge or another. With America
out of the League of Nations, the at
titude of the Turks is even more ar
rogant than formerly, and conditions
are so bad that a few days ago word
was received in this country for a
number of relief workers, who were
about to start for the East to aug
ment the forces already there, to re-
main in America until the situation
cleared up.
Facing Starvation
In many places all property has
been RACED to the ground, schools,
homes, everything. The Armenians
are ambitious, Woodworking and not
ed for their thrifty habits, and where
they have had an opportunity to live
/ unmolested the results have been
wonderful. But the majority of the
people are still exiles from their
homes. 1t is not safe for them to re-
turn to business or to the tilling of
the soil. In some places a few imp
lements were gathered together and
a little crop put in this last summer.
Thus, sufficient food was produced
to last until after Christmas, but
when that food is gone half of the
people must die if America does not
come to the rescue.
Sacrificed 1000 in War
When the war begun, the Armen-
ians associated themselves with the
Allies and 100000 of the very finest
of their youths went to war at once.
They went not expecting safe cleri-
cal positions, or work that might keep
them far from the firing line; they
went knowing that the majority of
them would never see their homes or
relatives again; but they went will
lingly, gladly, feeling that their sac
rifce would help free their people
from the terrible prosecutions which
had been their lot for so many gen
erations. Over 900 persisted in the
first battle. Nothing during the war
equalled their work for bravery of a
solid body Of soldiers. They were
especially commended by Great Brit
tan and Russia and Great Britain
promised definitely that at the close
of the war the Armenian nations
should be freed politically from Mo