The Daily Morning Journal And Courier

LETTERS FROM ARMENIA.
One From an American Missionary and One From a Native Bible Woman-The Atrocities Graphically Described From Personal Experience.
The following interesting letters have recently been received by persons in this city, and relate personal experiences in the horrible atrocities perpetrated. The most interesting extracts from the letters follow, the first one being from an American missionary in Harpoot and the other a translation of a letter written by one of the Bible women of Harpoot. At the request of the recipients of the letters the names of themselves and the senders are withheld:

Harpoot, Turkey, Dec. 4, 1895,-Reports from the outstations come in very slowly. From the places south of the mountains we only hear the general news of plunder, fire and massacre with no further particulars, except that no place has escaped. Of Arabkir, too, we only hear that the struggle was fearful, and that but sixty Christian houses remain, but we believe this last to be greatly exaggerated. Egin at last accounts was safe, having bought her redemption with 1725 liras (a Turkish lira equals $4.40).

We are thankful to hear from Malatia that the pastor and his assistant, together with the Bible women and teacher of the girls' school, are safe, although 5,000 Christians and 500 Turks perished in the four days' struggle.

Of the villages on our plain every day we hear new and dreadful news.

In Oozoonoba, when the attack was first made, ten men were taken out of the village and offered Islam, or the sword. On this one of the good Protestant sisters took her children and said, "It is evident what we are coming to: let us go to the river." Others joined her, and over fifty threw themselves into the Euphrates to escape from the cruel enemy.

In Schone, a few days after the village had been plundered, they returned again and gathered all the men in the church and then brought them out one by one and asked them to renounce their faith. All who would not accept were killed, among them the good pastor, after he had been tortured. Afterwards those who accepted Islam were compelled to tie ropes to the feet of the slain and drag them out of the village. One of our dear, good Bible women has written the story of Haboosi, and I enclose a copy of her letter.

In Hoh all who would not change their faith were killed. Afterwards between fifty and sixty of them were led out of the village and made to kneel. Then the Turks said, "We know that you have not become Mohammedans in heart," and cut off their heads.

In Ladum, where there are no Protestants, it is estimated that 150 were killed and 100 wounded. One of the leading Turks of the village married two young Armenian women to his son, and gave two others to an Armenian who had become a Mohammedan. Three of these women have husbands in America. Many, many women and girls have been carried off by the Koords and Turks, among them some of our own dear girls.

These are only samples of what we hear.

"Thousands will die this winter of starvation and exposure. In some of the villages the people are gathering the dry grape leaves for food, and others are pulling up the wheat which was sown this fall, and are eating that."

"Judge Tirrell seems to be exerting himself for us, and at present we seem safe and well protected. But we do not venture out of our quarters of the city yet."

The letter states that besides several of the mission buildings at Harpoot, the Gregorian church and school also were burned.

Harpoot, Nov. 28, 1895.-Glory to God, I am alive, but filled with trouble. Before this I wrote to you with joy about my work, but to-day I come to you bringing bad tidings about our whole plain and this city, of which you have already heard.

You know that it is autumn and all the villagers are very busy in out-door work until December 1, when such work ceases and they are at work in their homes. November 7, Thursday, at the hour of nine, the Turks and Koords attacked the town of Schone, an hour from our village, and the next day at the same hour they attacked our village, Haboosi, and they began to massacre, plunder and burn. We, without making any resistance, left Haboosi, intending to flee to a neighboring Kurdish village, thinking that perhaps they would pity us in our misery and not kill us. But alas! we had hardly left our village when our Turkish neighbors in great numbers with naked swords fell upon us and began to kill us as a butcher slays the lambs and kids, or as the reaper cuts down the grain. On the plain were many dead bodies, and the cries of children, girls and women filled the air. The husband left his wife, the child its mother, the father his son, and looking at his own safety fled hither and thither.

Those who remained in the village trusted for safety in the church, thinking this was strong and the Turks could not enter. But what an awful sight! The Turks, seeing that they could not force the door set the church on fire. The crowd inside, seeing that they could not get out, threw themselves from the lofty roof to the ground. A mother who had gone to the church for safety with her four children threw her children down from the roof first that they might be freed from the agony of burning, and afterwards leaped down herself. Another woman whose child was a month old and was wrapped in swaddling clothes, first threw down the child and then herself. But by the care of our Heavenly Father most of these were saved. Those who remained in the church were burned to death. Only a few houses remained in the village. My house also was reduced to ashes. We cannot now estimate the number of the slain. I know of forty-eight, those whose death I saw or heard of on good authority. This is not the full number: there are many whose death we are yet to hear; for the people are scattered here and there.

Those who fled from the village the neighboring Koords killed; but those who remained alive were plundered and others they stripped naked, as was nearly my case. Only one shirt remained upon me. I was in this condition eleven days, hiding in the huts made for straw, day and night, wandering till I reached Harpoot, where a benevolent woman gave me some clothes to wear.

When I was on the plain I desired to find some grass to eat, but that was not to be found, for it was like winter. Many have not a hut to dwell in that they may be sheltered from the cold, and added to all these troubles they are threatened with the sword. Eleven days have passed, but the same fear remains.

These things that I have told you are no exaggeration; neither are they the whole story. They are but a small portion of the truth. Should I attempt to tell the whole truth words would fail me.