THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG OR TURKEY AND ARMENIA DESCRIPTIVE, HISTORICAL, AND PICTURESQUE BY ANTRANIG AZHDERIAN y> NEW YORK THE MERSHON COMPANY PUBLISHERS .v>~7 X A X : .- Ai H r s s. : .oc. BalS-«Htt BSK^lsacvtess %?- S. J. Eelilet, .SLT. In compliance %*Tih current cop\Tioht la\%. LBS .\rdiival Pnxlucts produced this replacenieni \ i paf>er that meets the ... . ^ . - :andard Z39.4H-19M to repbce die irrepaniblv deterioraied originaL 1989 ^ XLo tbc /iBcniorg of mg borne across tbe sea ^bls first fruit of mg Boutbful pen (s ITenDerlg IfnscribeD. 1932728 PREFACE. The late Armenian tragedies have claimed a large share of the world's attention, and have occasioned the publication of a great deal of literature on the subject ; thanks to modern facilities of communication, which have brought mankind everywhere into such close re- lations that each now studies the other's condition and movements with more interest, and each has a mutual feeling for the other's welfare and destiny. Yet with all the information of the present situation of affairs in the Turkish Empire, there is still a manifest lack of knowledge of the land, its historical associations, the relations which its people sustain one to the other, and their character and home life. Travelers in foreign lands, no matter how keen in their observation, attain, as to the inner real life of the people, ideas very un- satisfactory, and what they say is ofttimes of little worth, not being the true condition of things. They have seen " through a glass darkly." I claim that seeing is not knowing. Often many things, after some time spent in careful observation and study, seem entirely different from our first impressions. To look at the window is a different thing from looking through the window. A great many travelers during their flying trips know things only as they appear to them, and often are deceived ; but a native looks not at the things, but through the things ; he takes them not as vi PREFACE. they appear, but as they are. The language, rehgious ceremonies, manners, and customs, the social and moral conditions, and the very atmosphere of the country itself are familiar to a native from his cradle. The mission of this book, therefore, is not simply to set forth the causes and the development of the late tragedies in Armenia ; but, from the standpoint of a native, one who is born and reared in the country, to portray, as accurately as possible, the varied phases of the social, religious, and political customs and institu- tions of the Armenians and the Turks ; and to give some account of their history, past and present, with an earnest desire to bring the life -of the country clearly before the minds of the American people, in the hope that a better understanding of my" fatherland by Americans may arouse intelligent and practical sym- pathy, and thus may reflect upon. that country some of those blessings which have distinguished America in the march of modern civilization. The Author. CONTENTS. PAGE Preface, . . . 3 Introduction, u The Land OF Haig — Armenia 13 The Children of Haig— the Armenians, . . . .35 Armenian Literature, 74 The Armenian Church, 109 The Evangelical Church, 129 Social and Home Life, 156 The Turks, 220 The Religion of the Turks— Mohammedanism, , . . 248 The Turkish Government, 284 The Eastern Question, 318 The Chronic Condition of Armenia, and the Causes of Her Tragedies, 353 The Turkish Campaign of Butchery 370 ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE Antranig Azhderian, the Author, . . . Frontispiece Mount Ararat 24 Ruins of Ancient Armenian Monasteries and Palaces, . 29 Remains of Armenian Antiquity, 33 Traditional Portrait of Haig, 37 Legendary Heroes of Armenia, 43 Kings of Ancient Armenia and the Conversion and Bap- tism OF King Tiridates, 49 Coat of Arms and Flags of Ancient Armenia, ... 57 John Ayvazovsk, the Armenian Painter, .... 67 H. E. Daud Pasha, Late Armenian Governor of Mount Lebanon, . . 71 Early Armenian Monasteries— Repositories of Learning, 83 The Scene of Armenian Poets' Fancy, 95 The Little Lake 100 Raphael Patkanian 105 Legendary Portrait of Vartan Mamigonian, . . .114 Monastery OF Etchmiadzin, 117 Rt. Rev. Migrditch Khirimian, the Armenian Catholicos, 121 Early Monasteries and Churches of Armenia, . . .127 Rev. Cyrus Hamlin, D. D., LL. D 137 Armenian Teachers 141 American Missionaries Translating the Bible at Constan- tinople, . . 145 Anatolia College, 147 President C. C. Tracy and Students of Anatolia College, 149 ix ILLUSTRATIONS. American Missionaries at Marsovan, An Armenian Family— Relatives of the Author, Armenian Children, A Characteristic Street Scene, Schoolgirls in Armenia Teachers and Pupils of an Armenian School, A Turkish School, . . . . An Advanced Moslem Teacher and His Pupils, The Bazaar Ue Doerkler-Alti in Constantinople A Turkish Lady of Rank A Moslem Slave Girl of the Harem, The Fair Women OF the Harem, Sultan's Harem on the Bosphorus, . A Turkish Young Lady An Armenian Merchant and Family in Marsovan An Armenian Family A Caravan On the Road in Turkey, A Turkish Plow and Plowman Some OF THE Sultans of Turkey Soldiers of the Old Military System— Janizaries, Mohammed H. within the Walls of Constantinople, Sultan Abdul-Hamid U., Sultan Abdul-Aziz Gate of Imperial Seraglio in Constantinople, Imperial Palace of Dolma-Baytche on the Bosphorus, Arch in Ruins in Asia Minor, Theater in Ruins, ; Mosques of the Moslem Founders, Brusa, The Mosque of Ahmet in Constantinople, The Moslem at Prayer in the Desert, Court of a Mosque, . The Mosque of Suleyman in Constantinople, A Dervish Beggar, Dancing Dervishes, ...... Turkey PAGE 153 157 157 159 163 167 174 177 181 185 188 191 191 195 199 202 207 213 218 225 229 233 237 239 241 243 245 245 251 255 261 265 271 277 277 ILLUSTRATIONS. xi PAGE Public Reading of the Sultan's Firman Regarding the Appointment of a Pasha, .287 A Vali and Suite 291 A Turkish Judge 295 A Modern Turkish General 301 A Turkish Landlord of the Highest Type, . . . .307 Firemen and Fire Engine in Turkey, 309 A Hot Bargain in the Horse Market 313 Santa Sophia in Constantinople, . 321 Constantinople and the Golden Horn, . . ■ . . . 327 Nicholas I., Emperor of Russia, 329 Lord Salisbury, Prime Minister of Great Britain, . . 349 Moslem Cutthroats in Armenia, 356 The City of Marsovan, • 359 A Group of Armenian Huntchagians .365 Seven Towers of Constantinople, 367 Moslem Robbers Dividing Spoils 373 The Ambassadors of the Great Powers at Constantinople, 383 The Late Rt. Hon. W. E. Gladstone, the Great English Friend of the Armenians, 385 An Armenian Massacre 389 The Costume of a Turkish Highwayman 391 Armenian Children, 401 INTRODUCTORY. * BV ' RT. REV. F. D. HUNTINGTON, LL. D., Bishop of the Diocese of Central New York. It is a pleasure for me to place my name among those of the friends of Mr. Antranig Azhderian in this country. With those who may have but a slight acquaintance with him there can be no occasion for any testimonial to his noble character, his accomplish- ments, his high aim, or his patriotic devotion to his native land and its institutions. The many tributes which Mr. Azhderian has in his possession are so explicit, so emphatic, so cordial, so laudatory in terms, and so disinterested in their motive, that I could, even apart from my personal acquaintance with him, feel no hesitation in giving him both con- fidence and unqualified commendation. These docu- ments are made weighty by the character and standing of men whose signatures they bear, including interna- tional officials, scholars, authorities in Oriental litera- ture, educators in this country, Christian missionaries, and ministers of the Gospel. They relate to different periods of Mr. Azhderian's life, his birth and superior breeding, his social position in the Orient, his habits and studies. They bear striking testimony to his un- xiv INTRODUCTORY. usual gifts as a public speaker, his judgment and taste, his command of languages, his eloquence in oratory. Any introduction bespeaking favorable attention in behalf of this work would be needless for those who may begin to read it. The qualities as to which the author has been most careful to make his treatise strong and secure in the face of criticism are accuracy, fairness, historical impartiality, and intelligent sym- pathy with the best institutions and movements of our time, in the Old World and the New. It would not be enough for a patriotic Armenian to revere the vener- able antiquities and sacred traditions of his people, or plead for justice and mercy toward them on the ground of what they have been and have done in the romantic past. He must, as a son of a robust and pure ances- try, desire to serve the highest civil and intellectual moral interests of his kindred and his nation, by send- ing back to them the fruits of his observation among the free, republicanj progressive communities of the West. It was this aspiration, and not an idle curiosity, that brought Mr. Azhderian as an independent trav- eler, young but not immature, to a close acquaintance with the colleges, political systems, industries, and re- ligion of the United States. The presentation of his purpose has naturally led him into wider fields than he at first contemplated entering. Such a survey, with its attendant argument and appeal, could not have been accomplished at any epoch since the Christian era so suitable as this, when the struggles and tragedies of suffering millions of his fellow-countrymen are uttering their cry to a singularly regardless and unhelpful Christendom. THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. THE LAND OF HAIG— ARMENIA. "It would be difficult to point out a more delightful, soul- inspiring, mysteriously fascinating country on the surface of the '' globe than Armenia. . . Whithersoever we turn our steps, to / the north, south, east, or west, the ground we tread is holy. It i^ is history — stratified." — E. H. B. Lanin, London, England. TRADITIONS OF ANTIQUITY. A RMENIA, now for the most part stibject to the '^*- Turkish Empire, is the fountain-head of antiquity. She is most ancient among the ancient — a land whose marvels excite the wonder of the beholder. Her shrines, rocks, rivers, valleys, and mountains — silent witnesses of prehistoric contentions and changing fortunes — are replete with memorials which date back . to the beginning of the life and growth of infant humanity. The murmuring of her soft breezes wafts to the listeninor ear the sweet strains which once rose from the terrestial paradise to mingle with the melodies of the celestial — a land where man first communed with his God ! In the earliest ages of the world, long before the nations and peoples of recorded history existed and flourished, the human race had its home in Armenia. Here was spoken a common language, here was the 14 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. origin of civil government and monotheistic religion, and from here, when the race grew and multiplied, the people spread over all Asia and Europe. The position of central Armenia, between the Caspian and Black seas, facilitated the immediate dispersion of the post-diluvian people. Some writers claim that the Hindu-Kush mountains were the oldest home and the distributing center. We contend that geographical position, Holy Writ, modern history, tradition, and scientific research unite in favoring Armenia as the primitive home from which the eastern and western Aryans originated. Mt. Ararat, where, according to the Scriptures, Noah's ark rested, is in the central province of Armenia, although there are some still who question whether the mountain of the flood, is the Ararat of Armenia, and who would locate the resting place of the ark in various other places, some at Mount Meiru of India, some in the Kurdish Moun- tains of central Asia. Our traditions as to Noah are exceedingly interest- ing. The name of the village at the entrance to the glen on the northeast foot of Mount Ararat is Arghuri, meaning "he planted the vine," and here Noah's vine- yard is still pointed out. In 1840 a catastrophe buried the oldest village and the vineyard ; but it is alleged that a vine stock planted by the patriarch's hand (Gen. iv. 2) still bears grapes. Not far from Arghuri, is Manard, "the mother lies here," referring to the burial place of Noah's wife. At a little distance is the city of Eravan, "visible," where the legend is that the saved remnant first beheld the dry land when the waters subsided. Nearby is the town of Nakckvan, THE LAND OF HAIG — ARMENIA. 1 5 "first habitation," indicating the primeval dwelling of men. The simple and credulous Christian of Armenia implicitly believes that these traditional spots are veritable relics of the diluvian period. Mount Ararat is known among us as Masszs, or " the mother of the world." It was also held by the ancient geographers that this was the center of the world. The Persian traditions in regard to this mountain are quite like those of the Armenian. They call it Kuhi-Nuh, "the mountain of Noah." Thus not only have we the evidence of the Bible, \y\K our traditions and the testimony of the oldest ge- ^raphers are in favor of our belief that Armenia was the center for the disper- sion of the human race. But we may even trace our country to still earlier biblical periods. It was a prevailing view among the ancient Latin and Greek interpreters of the Bible, that after the flood the human race, led by Noah, found a safe home in the very region which had been its cradle. Surely the Divine Wisdom had a lesson to teach erring man in restoring him to the same abode whence he was once banished. And how closely, again, does the topography of Eden, as given in the second chapter of Genesis, coincide with the natural characteristics of this region to-day! Notwithstand- ing some obvious mixture of error in these traditions, they doubtless have a basis in reality, and bear the marks of essential truth. Streams of tradition flowino- from a common source have been transmitted from generation to generation, and upon them some of the greatest^ events in the history of humanity have been l6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. inscribed as upon tlie solid rock. One person, such as Lamech the son of Methuselah, who lived from the days of Adam to those of Noah, would have been sufficient to communicate the story of antediluvian days to Eber, Isaac, and Levi, and from these patri- archs the story may easily have reached Moses liimself. May not the Armenians, then, who sprung from the most remote ancestry, rightfully suppose such a chain among their progenitors as would justify their histori- cal traditions, especially in view of the harmony of these traditions with the Bible? We find various views as to the location of the Garden of Eden. The latest and wildest theory is of its location at the North Pole, upon the assumption that in the lapse of ages the eartii has gradually cooled so that the first suitable place for man to live was in the Arctic zone. Armenia, however, has the earliest and most reasonable of all claims. Our land is a natural center. The Tigris, Euphrates, and other rivers of the Paradise of Eden still flow, and the identity of these streams alone should banish all doubt. The very odors of the forest are of singular fragrance. Here bloom indigenous plants of great variety and hue, which refuse to lend their beauty and fragrance to any foreign clime, Num.erous birds, too, of peculiar beauty adorn and enliven the enchanting landscapes. Robert Curzon gives us a list of over one hundred and seventy kinds of birds in an Armenian city, enumerating them by their particular names and families. He says : " I have no power to do them jus- tice. The number of various kinds of birds which breed on the great plain is so prodigious as to seom THE LAND OF HAIG — ARMENIA. 17 almost incredible to those who have not seen them, as I often have, covering tlie earth for miles and miles so completely that the color of the ground could not be seen." Do not all these natural and scenic character- istics, coupled with Bible documents and native tradi- tions, bear evidence of these primitive ages? Surely the Armenians are justified in their claim that the beautiful landscape which was twice selected by the Omnipotent as the cradle of the human race was in Armenia; that here was embowered the original Eden, and here the ark rested after the Deluge. Armenians are thus ever proud of their land of fragrant memories. But what comfort can we obtain from a home made desolate ? Paradise has been transformed into a habitation of fallen humanity, and her most enlightened descendants have long since removed to tlie remoter parts of the world. Some nations glory in their many achievements and in their monuments of antiquity. Rome, in her universal dominion, in her patriotism and statescraft ; Greece, in her precious legacy of art and letters ; Egypt, in her awe-inspiring ruins of ancient grandeur; Palestine, in her lofty sentiments of religious truths ; and the glory of Armenia is her prehistoric legends and the bloom of her sacred memories. But of what value is all this past greatness in itself? The Holy Land has aban- doned her Christ. The dust of time and modern traffic has covered the exquisite monuments of Greek culture. They lie buried in ruins, and slumber mute and silent in the eternal death whence there is no resurrection. All roads no longer lead to Rome. And the past is as dead in Armenia as elsewhere. It •l8 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. is the disposition of the nineteenth century to look for- ward to the glories of the future rather than backward to a glorious past. The soil enriched by the past must bear fruit in the present. And yet there must ever be an inspiration for the patriotic heart in lookmg back upon the glory of his fatherland ; and as 1 gaze upon the great green hills, blooming valleys, venerable mountains, luxuriant pastures, rippling waters, the banks of the Tigris and Euphrates, and the slope of Ararat, the scene thrills my heart with a deep pride for my native country. There our Armenian fathers bravely fought at the altar of civil and religious liberty ; there many noble sons, valiant soldiers of the Cross, stood firm for centuries against the sword and fire of avenging heathenism. Armenia, the mother of nations, the theater of human achievement and divine providence ! The genius of modern investigation has been devel- oped so far from Armenia that here is left to-day the richest and most profitable field that can reward scholarship in every department of human knowledge. The geologist lias yet to trace the changes that turned rivers from their courses and have created lakes where cities once stood. The botanist can here add to the world's knowledge of beautiful and useful plants. Here philology has an ample field for the acutest intel- lect. The antiquarian can delve amid the ruins of cities that were great when Egypt was young. Ere Babylon was built the men whose names these cities bore were fireside heroes in the most civilized regions of the globe. Dr. George Smith of the British Museum, after an THE LAND OF HAIG— ARMENIA. I9 extensive exploration in the valley of the Euphrates, gathered tons of tablets covered with inscriptions, which he translated into English and published, care- fully arranged and classified, in a large volume. He places in parallel columns the Bible text and the text of the tablets, showing their remarkable aereement, and proving that modern scientific research constantly corroborates the assertions of the Scriptures. I am proud to think that my native land has been, and will ever be, a growing witness to the veracity of the Mosaic record. Should the reader be disposed to doubt, let him read Smith's "Chaldean Accounts of Genesis " or, indeed, any of the modern works that treat of the recent researches about the Tigris and Euphrates — Layard's " Nineveh," or Bishop Newman's "Thrones and Palaces," or the " Records of the Past " published by the authorities of the British Museum. PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS. Armenia is an inland region of Western Asia, lying directly north of the Mesopotamian plain, between the Black and Caspian seas. Like all lands of prehistoric renown, it is a small country, being a little larger than the State of Pennsylvania. Its geographical bound- aries, though changed at different periods, became most extensive under the administration of our kings Aram and Tigranes II., when they reached to the Caucasus on the north, to Asia Minor on the west, to Mesopotamia on the south, and to the Caspian Sea and Media on the east. In the earliest periods our country was divided into Armenia Major and Armenia 20 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Minor. The former, known as Armenia Proper, was divided into fifteen provinces, the central being the district of Ararat. The Armenian highlands are the most elevated reorion of western Asia, consistino of a succession of rolling plateaus. The mean altitude is from 5000 to 7000 feet above the sea level, culminating in Mount Ararat, the loftiest peak in western Asia, which forms the center of the system, with an elevation of 17,210 feet above the level of the sea, or 10,210 feet above the Plain of Araxes. The surface of the country is broken by upheavals, and consists of a series of terraces, deep valleys, mountain masses, and bleak plateaus ; while here and tliere the dislocation of rocks and the irregu- larity of the strata afford convincing evidences of vol- canic eruption. From the Armenian plateau at the foot of Mount Ararat arise the sources of the rivers of western Asia — the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Aras or Araxes, the Cyrus (Kur), the Acampis, and the Halys. The first two, with deep and rapid waters, flow southeast into the Persian Gulf. The Acampis, supposed by some to be the Pison of the Bible, rising from the southwest of Erzrum and fed by various streamlets, sweeps with a strong and smooth current toward the Black Sea. The Araxes (perhaps the Gihon of the Bible) takes its rise about thirty miles south of Erzrum from the side of Bingol, or the " mountain of one thousand lakes," winds through fertile regions, and mingles with the Cyrus ; and then both, sweeping northward and again southward through the plain of Moghan, dis- charge eastward into the Caspian Sea by three mouths, THE LAND OF HAIG— ARMENIA. 21 being navigable up to the point of junction. The name of the river is supposed to commemorate Araxes, wliose son was drowned in the rapid waters. Xeno- phon, however, traces its derivation to Ar-Ax, or " hoiy water," its water being sacred to the sun. Thiis stream possessed different names at different periods, com- memorative of various events. The Halys, or the modern Kizil-Irmak, is the most westerly of the rivers. It springs from a verdant region at no great distance from the Euphrates, and flows with rapid vohime into the Black Sea. The volcanic soil of the country is of surpassing fertility, and yields abundant crops of wheat, barle)^ apricots, maize, tobacco, rice, and other minor products' Here are raised also the mulberry, cotton, grapes, and a dye called yellow-berry. Beautiful vmevards, smilina gardens, orchards, and groves abound in many parts o{ the country, especially in the valleys, where luxuriant vegetation gladdens the heart of the lover of nature. Melons, figs, granates, and trees of oak, pine, ash, walnut, apple, peach, and chestnut abound. Its natural wealth and resources are greater than those of any other province of Asia Minor. There are gold mines on the line of communication between E?zrum and Trebizond. The river Acampis, wliich " compasseth the whole land of Havilah where there is crold." runs through that section of the country now. The moun- tains abound in silver, copper, iron,' lead, antimony, sul- phur, and sulphates, especially in the west and amono- the hills of the Euphrates. The export minerals conf- prise salt from Lake Van, sulphur, iron, and alum. Ihere are stones of syenite, jasper, marble, granite, and 22 THE. TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. porphyry. Sandstone and limestone are the prevaiHng geological formations of the country, and out of these' have been quarried the materials for our royal palaces and ecclesiastical edifices. The climate is healthful, and varies according to alti- tude. The lonof winter, extendinor from October to May, is severe, while .the summers are short and pleasant. The air is pure and delicious and the sky clear and bright. Like all mountain regions, Armenia abounds in lakes. Among them Van, Sevan, and Ormi, or Ormuiah, are the most noteworthy. All these are saline but Sevan, which is called the " sweet lake," and reposes near the city of Erevan. Ormi lies in the southern part of the country, within the territory of the Shah. Lake Van, on the east of the city bearing its name, is by far the largest and most beautiful in all western Asia. Its triangular surface of 14,000 square miles, 5000 feet above the sea level, is in the very center of ancient Armenia in a rich and verdant valley surrounded by forest-clad mountains. Its romantic beauty, the sluggish surge of its deep blue waters, its associations so famed in history and fiction, have been the inspiration of many a poet. The petrified lakes of Armenia are particularly interesting, being the result of evaporation. During the warmest season of the year the water becomes crystallized like ice with deposits of salt about an inch thick, which the neighboring people gather in boats and carry away. Strangely enough, the crust does not appear in cold summers. Mineral springs, both cold and hot, abound. In my travels through the country I have seen many of them THE LAND OF HAIG — ARMENIA. 23 gushing from the ground with great force from between the strata of limestone. These hot springs are another evidence of the subterranean activity of the region. From all over the country people who suffer from any ailment repair to these waters, whose medicinal proper- ties are of great reputation. Sometimes the waters are conducted to city bathing houses or basins by means of pipes. ARARAT. As has been mentioned, Mount Ararat is the nucleus of the river and mountain systems, standing high and hoar midway between the Black and the Caspian seas. It is the center of the world. It is a mountain rich with events of undying significance to mankind. Around its base legends and traditions, true and fabii- lous, hold perpetual sway. To-day it is a mighty boundary stone of three great empires— the Turkish, Russian, and Persian. It has two summits, seven miles apart, the greater at the northwest extremity and the lesser toward the southeast. The snow-clad summit of the greater Ararat is wrapped in clouds during most of the day. These float away at nightfall and leave the snowy crown clear and distinct against the starry sky. A more rugged and awe-inspiring view is obtained from the northeast than from any other point. No one can do Ararat justice ; every turn crives a new picture. It beauty is unrivaled by any other mountain on earth. It is truly " the sublimest object in nature." Its snow-crowned peak, rising from the plain of Araxes, rears itself in solemn majesty above the sea of vapor into the regions of eternal winter, 24 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. perpetually covered with ice and snow, and ruling over the clouds and the storms. It is a picture of mingled sublimity and beauty, calm, cold, majestic. One is filled with awe as he watches the mellow radiance of the moon, the changing hues and shadows MOUNT ARARAT. of the venerable mountain, or hears the thundering sound of falling ice and rocks from its stupendous heights. The mass of snow on its summit, 14,000 feet above the sea, never dissolves, and is one of the phe- nomenal features of this mountain, exceedino- in quantity that of either the Alps or the Caucasus, as the former average 9000 feet, and the latter from THE LAND OF HAIG — ARMENIA. 25 io,cx)0 to 12,000 feet, in height. The people consider the ascent of Ararat a miracle. They regard the mountain with superstitious awe, and beheve that it still contains the relics of the ark, unchanged by time or decay, and that in order to insure their preservation a divine decree has made it inaccessible to mortal approach. The Tartars and the Turks of the neigh- borhood imagine its summit to be the abode of the ** devil " and of wild ghosts, and they fear to approach too near its top. Morier himself declares, " No one appears to have reached the summit of Ararat since the Flood." However, Dr. Friedrich Parrot of the Uni- versity of Dorpat, after several unsuccessful attempts, finally gained the summit in September, 1829. He is considered the first mortal since the Deluge who has ever ventured amid the ice and snow of the isolated peak. The name " Ararat" is of the remotest antiquity. It has been known for 3000 years. We find in the most ancient annals of the Mosaic record of creation the expression, "Upon the mountains of Ararat," Moses of Clorene, the father of our history, traces the origin of the word Ararat or Arardki to our Armenian patriarch, Ara or Arai, the beautiful, who lived eight- een centuries before Christ, At his fall, in a bloody conflict, tlie Armenian plain was called after him Arai- Arat, " the fall of Arai." Some others advance the theory that the word is composed of Ar and Ara/i — Ar (Sanskrit), the root of Aryan or "nobles," and Arah (classical Armenian), " plains" or " fields," hence meaning "the plains of the Aryans" or " nobles," The antiquity of the name Ararat antedates by a 26 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. few centuries even the time of Moses. " An ancient bilingual tablet makes Urdhu the equivalent of Tilla, of which the Accadian pronunciation is given as Tilla, the latter, as Sir H. Rawlinson long ago pointed out, being probably a Semitic loan word, and meaning the ' highlands.' Tilla, the equivalent of Urdhu, usually signifies the land of Accad or northwestern Babylonia, but since it is not glossed in this passage and stands, moreover, between Akharrue, or Palestine, and Kutu Kurdistan, it would seem that it is employed to mean Armenia. Urardhu, therefore, contracted into Urdhu, would have been the designation of the highlands of Armenia among the Babylonians as early as the six- teenth and seventeenth centuries b. c."* The term Ararat is used in ancient annals of sacred and secular history for the entire country of Armenia, and not for the mountain itself. Anciently even the inhabitants were known as the people of Ararat. It was not till late years that the name came to be limited to the mountain itself. This misunderstanding has led some to erroneous conclusions and superstitions. Nothine could be more absurd to a native of Armenia than the idea that the ark rested on the very top of Mount Ararat. A well-known American traveler, for instance, after describing the first impression of the mountain, goes on to say : " I could not help thinking what a hard time the mighty line of living things had when marching by twos, male and female, from those cold, bleak heights down into the plains below, after the great flood had subsided, and what a time good old Noah must have had to keep some of his warm- *" Cuneiform Inscriptions of Van," in "Journal R. A. S.," vol. xiv. p. 392. THE LAND OF HAIG — ARMENIA. 27 blooded pets from freezing on that lofty, sixteen-thou- sand-feet-high pinnacle." Many similar criticisms have been made concerning the ark on Mount Ararat, as though that historic craft had actually rested on its very peak. Such absurd ideas indicate a lack not only of knowledge, but of a proper and common-sense understanding of a simple biblical narrative. The geographical unit is the mountain range, and with the mountain ranges the study of geography should begin. From them a scientific nomenclature can most easily be constructed. How precise and clear is the statement of the Book of Genesis ! " The ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat'' — not upon Mount Ararat. There are scriptural references in 2 Kings xix. 2,1 ! Isaiah xxxvii. 38. In these parallel passages allusion is made to Adrammelech and Sharezer, who, having assassinated their father Sennacherib, "escaped into the land of Ararat." The prophet Jeremiah (in Jeremiah ii. 27), summoning the nations for the over- throw of Babylon, calls " together against her the king- doms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashchenaz." Thus sacred and secular writers concur in speaking of not only a mountain, but of a rajige, a land, a kingdom, an army, and a people of " Ararat." Does the critic suppose that the horses and mules of Ararat were reared on the icebergs of an isolated peak ? They were seen in the markets of Syria. Had they wings, that they could fly where a donkey could not climb ? An army of Araratians helped Cyrus in the over- throw of Babylon. Did they come on a toboggan slide from the resfions of everlastine snow ? Moses of Chorene's appellation, " Arred " or 28 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. "Ayrarad," coincides with the Armaniyn or Armenia of the Persian text, which is frequently employed in ancient historical documents, denoting that the name Ararat was identical with the whole country of Armenia. St. Jerome himself always identified Ararat with the plain of Araxes, where the mountain reposes. Again, the window of the ark is described in Genesis as being above ; so that when " on the first day of the tenth month the top of the mountains came forth," Noah would most naturally have been looking upward to see what was above the ark. Therefore, the extreme cone, the highest pinnacle of Ararat, was not the rest- ing place of the diluvian ark, but in all probability a much lower part of the Ararat range. ANCIENT CITIES. In Armenia are many once famous cities, unknown to Americans because the hand of time has shorn them of their former splendor and many of them are buried beneath the accumulations of centuries. The largest of these were situated on the fair banks of the Tigris, comparatively few on the Euphrates. Some cities had their streets paved with fragments of sculpture when Moses was with Piiaraoh on the throne of Egypt. Some of the walls, thirty or forty feet high, still remain, with solid foundations and towers rising at regular intervals with large arched gateways. Ani, the glittering city of gold and silver, was the imperial pride of Armenian sovereigns, whose pearly palaces shone with beauty in the dazzling glare of the sunlight. Its streets were clean and richly adorned RUINS OF ANCIENT ARMENIAN MONASTERIES AND PALACES, 30 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. with decorations of nature and art. This ideal city is to-day a heap of colossal ruins. The venerable city of Van, anciently the city of Semiramis, embowered on the eastern bank of the lake of that name, commanded a view of the wondrous citadel towering on a rugged rock with a natural amphitheater surrounding it and buried amid the loveliest vegetation and' vineyards. Its cuneiform inscriptions are famous in history, as they have revealed the secrets of the centuries to modern research. Professor A. H. Sayce of Oxford, England, in his Journal gives the translations of these venerable inscrip- tions along with other Armenian antiquities. Artaxata was once the capital of Armenia, where Kinor Tiridates received his crown from Rome. After seeking for years to stifle the incipient Church, he too bowed before the cross of Christ and, like Saul of Tarsus, became the ardent advocate of what he had once endeavored to overthrow. The holy city of Vagharshabad was built by King Erovant, but all its pomp and glory have faded away except the monastery of Etchmiadzin. This most ancient Episcopal seat of the Armenians still remains as a mighty bulwark, against which the heathen can- non of all ages have thundered in vain. This mother church of Ararat contains a number of holy relics, among them the head of the spear by which the side of the Saviour was wounded, and the hand of St, Gregory, the founder of the monastery, who laid the first stone in the year 302 — the hand that baptized King Tiridates, from whom he suffered unimaginable persecutions. The traditions in this Episcopal seat are also rich in THE LAND OF HAIG— ARMENIA. 31 apostolic legends. Of these none is more singular that the reputed correspondence of Christ with our King Abgar of Edessa. The story is that the mes- sengers of this sovereign, having some business transac- tion With the Roman nobility in Palestine, heard of the miracles of Jesus of Nazareth and on their return related them to their sovereign, who was convinced that either Jesus was "that Christ" or else that God had come to dwell on earth. As the king was suffer- ing from a serious disease, he sent a letter to Christ with a company of messengers imploring Him to repair to his court and graciously cure him. An artist was also sent, so that if the Lord should fail to come he might at least have His portrait. The painter' being at work one day endeavoring to fulfill the royal commission, was observed by the Saviour, who passed a handkerchief over His countenance and handed it to the artist with a perfect likeness of Himself upon it A reply to the King's letter was written by St Thomas, commending his faith in an unseen Christ and informing him that the Divine Master's mission was more urgent elsewhere than in Armenia, but that after His ascension disciples would be sent to enlighten the king's people and relieve him of his sufferings It has been stated that a papyrus has been discovered in an Egyptian tomb containing the reputed letter of our king. Erzrum, on the main line of communication between Persia and the Euxine, still survives as a populous military post and commercial e^itrepdt It reposes in a lovely district about one hundred miles southeast of Trebizond. The extent of its fortifications 32 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. was SO great in Erzrum that twenty-two thousand men were required to defend it. In 415 a. d. the city was fortified by Antolius and became a stronghold of the Roman Empire, its ancient name, Karin, being changed to Theodosiopolis, in honor of the emperor. During the Middle Ages, the city was an object of jealousy and contentions between the Moslems and the Greeks. By those who dwell in the vicinity the city is thought to be the very spot where the garden of Eden was located. They claim that for many a century the flowers of Paradise bloomed around the source of the Euphrates. Tradition says that Nature herself was so horrified at the sacrilegious conduct of a Persian king that she refused to produce those rare beauties any longer, and even changed the source of the river itself. Local accounts of Adam's fall show how a frail, sympathetic man will follow a woman into any kind of a trap. He did not eat of the fruit, they say, until he saw the fatal effect on lovely Eve. Then, concluding that the Creator would have compassion if He saw them both in the same sad plight and restore them to their former estate, he decided to follow her example ; reasoning thus, he indulged. We know the result ! Restoration did not occur in accordance with his logical reasoning. There was something wrong with the premises. Logic was not taught, except objectively, in his day. Who can blame Adam ? " The Lord cursed the serpent, and Eve and I were doomed between the two " was the sad re- frain. There are also Armavir, Ardashed, Kemak, and other cities, whose past associations are inspiring to an . rVAB^krv* REMAINS OF ARMI'.MAN ANTIQUITY. 34 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Armenian, although their present state is little more than the shadow of their former grandeur. The Babylonians and Assyrians have become, like their cities, only a name ; but though conquered and dispersed, with their once proud cities destroyed, the Armenians still remain, and we shall speak of their past and present in succeeding pages. THE CHILDREN OF HAIG— THE ARMENIANS. "The Armenians are the representatives of one of the oldest civilized Christian races, and, beyond all doubt, one of the most pacific, one of the most industrious, and one of the most intel- ligent races in the world." — Gladstone. "Their national character is a powerful one, and will exercise a marked influence in determining the future of the East." — Professor Henrv F. Tozer, Exeter College, Oxford, England. npHE beginning of our national history, like that of * all races of antiquity, is mingled with much of myth and legend. Our father, according to tradition, is To- garmah, the son of Gomer, who was the son of Japheth of the Scriptures (Genesis x. 3). Some of our his- torians allude to our country as Askhanzian, certainly derived from Askenaz, the brother of Togarmah and the son of Gomer. Our traditional history, according to the accounts of Chorene, our national historian, dates back twenty- three centuries before Christ, when Haig, the son of Togarmah, began his political career as our first ruler, from whom the appellations Haigian, our national name, and Hayasdan, our country's name, are derived. He was one of the many who were busily engaged on the Plains of Shinar in the construction of the Tower of Babel ; but the insatiable ambition of Belus, who sought supremacy, constrained Haig to flee from Babylon to the land of Ararat, where he proposed to 35 36 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. plant his own dominion in the vicinity of Lake Van, an enchanting' land of glen and valley, rivers and lakes. Belus, the sovereign of Assyria, sending messengers to Haig, commanded him to surrender his power and re- turn to his former subjection. This haughty demand, however, was promptly refused, and war was the con- sequence. Belus, at the head of a mighty army, marched to the land of Ararat, and Haig met him with his patriarchal force of numerous sons, grandsons, and servants. It was a crisis which decided the future of his posterity. There the first Armenian hero displayed his valor, and our legendary songs still sing his triumphant praise. He slew the Hainitic giant with his dart, and buried him on the spot where he fell, scattering his army in great confusion. Haig lived the long life of four hun- dred years with a flourishinor dominion, and established a pure monotheistic worship and a patriarchal govern- ment. The first dynasty bearing his name had a long genealogy of fifty-nine kings, with the capital at Armavir, to the north of Araxes. Here erew sacred forests, the rustle of whose leaves was held to be the voice of God whispering to men of welfare and peace. It must be remembered that these so-called "kings" were nothing but hereditary rulers who occupied the position of patriarchs. Haiof's son Armenacf was the next sovereion. Some suppose that Armenia derived her name from him. His reign is followed by a dim period in the annals of our country, which mention a succession of Armenian princes until Aram, the seventh in the dynasty of Haior, who came to his father's throne about two thou- TRADITION AI, lYiUTK Air OF IIAIG. 38 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. sand years before Christ. Aram was a king of un- usual military and executive attainments. Contem- porary with the biblical patriarchs, he so diffused his reputation in the neighboring provinces and countries, through his conquests and magnetic power, that foreign nations from his day to this have associated his name with our country and people in the appellation of Armenia and Armenian. In ancient accounts Tiglath-Pileser speaks of "the mountains of Aruma," while the inscriptions of Shal- maneser mention " The royal city of Arrame of the land of Unardhians." This " Aruma" of Tiglath-Pileser and "Arrame" of Shalmaneser coincide with the name "Aram" of the Armenian historians. Different spellings of the same name account for its varied transformations into foreign languages, while they both refer to the " Ar- ram " of the natives, the first referring to the country and the latter to the sovereign. The derivation Togar- mah is believed by some scholars to be from Toka, the Sanskrit for "race," and Artnah oi the classical Armenian. Thus Aram, Arama, Arrama, and Armah, though differently spelled by different people, are all derived from Aram, the name of the ruler and his prov- ince. Anciently the country was known as Aramenia, but it has been contracted into Armenia. Aram greatly extended the boundaries of his kingdom by conquering large portions of Media, Assyria, and the eastern part of Asia Minor. Nor did he neglect the internal improvements of his growing realm. Among the cities he built Mazaca, or the modern Caesarea in Cappadocia, is a living monument to his active energy. THE CHILDREN OF HAIG— THE ARMENIANS. 39 Ara, "the Beautiful," who sat upon his father's throne, embellishes the pages of Armenian history with romance not unlike that of Cleopatra. He must have possessed excellence of character along with his o-reat physical beauty, for the blending of these two alone forms the requisite of true beauty. And the embodi- ment of these two qualities seems to have been the ideal of the fair Assyrian queen Semiramis, who in her mfatuated frenzy saw in Ara the fairest of mortals However, Ara refused to be bound in marriage with an idolatrous ruler, who worshiped not the true God of his fathers. She resolved to win him, if not by will, at least by force of arms. She advanced upon the forces • of the youthful Armenian patriarch, but the clash of her conquering arms sounded his death knell, for her long coveted prize was first among the slain. ' As the stricken king was laid low at the queen's feet, she burst into a frenzy of grief. In vain were all endeavors of magic art to bring him back to life. The spot where he was buried in a cofifin of gold is still pointed out as Ara Seiti, i. e., " Ara is sacrificed." After her disappointing adventure in the land of Ara, the semi-mythical queen chose the vernal banks of Lake Van for her summer residence. On such an im- mense scale were the proportions of the building that Its construction required six hundred architects and one thousand two hundred workmen. She named the city after herself " Shamiramaguerd." In later years however, King Van of the Haigazian dynasty, havinc^ rebuilt the city, called it Van, which name it bears to the present day. With the death of Ara, our land was umible to op- 40 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. pose an effectual barrier to Assyrian progress and sadly dwindled into oblivion for a period of nearly three centuries, as a tributary province to this alien power. The rule of the Haigazian dynasty, though not altogether destroyed, was reduced to utter insig- nificance beneath the mighty hand of Assyria. The long sway of Semitic rule was not without its detri- mental results to our national character. It supplanted the pure monotheism of our fathers, and substituted in its stead the worship of Bel. With this religious change, the social aspects, race, and language, as a natural result, bore the indelible impress of As- syrianism. Our meager history of this period is engraved in cuneiform characters on monuments distributed throughout the region. The inscriptions of both Armenian and Assyrian kings are vainglorious and self-praising, a characteristic of the ancients. Neither were the deities forgotten in these inscriptions. Curses of the air- and sun-gods are commonly called down on him who should dare to mar these monu- mental records. However, some of the stones thus inscribed are now found in the walls of Christian churches with the continuity of their records broken. In some other cases they are still legible. Though religion, manners, and customs in the region of Ararat during this era were Assyrian, and though their inscriptions were cuneiform, still the Armenians had a language of their own in which they preserved their identity. After three hundred years of servitude Armenia once again -rose Phoenix-like from its ashes, under THE CHILDREN OF HAIG— THE ARMENIANS. 41 Barvir. who successfully raised the standard of rebellion against Sardanapalus. From this period our people enjoyed a line of independent rulers. Dikran the Mighty, or Tigranes I., 'was one of the most notable sovereigns of this dynasty. He was a man of great administrative capacity. He united firmness and courage with sound judment in all his deliberations and activities. His magnetic influence was not confined to his own country, but was felt far and wide throughout the East. As a friend and colleague of Cyrus, he aided him in the overthrow of Babylon (528 b. c), in fulfillment of prophecy (Jeremiah 11. 27). He instituted mighty reforms in public improvements, education, and morals. His country, whose boundaries were greatly extended under his military power and statecraft, enjoyed unparalleled prosperity in commerce. An extension of trade navigation on lakes and rivers was also intro- duced. His deeds of prowess and his vigor truly mad( his land a star among nations. Vahakn. who suc- ceeded his father Dikran, was so renowned for his physical strength and matchless daring that, after his death, his people, who were fast lapsing' into the heathenism of contemporary nations, worshiped his monument. Vahe. the last king of the Haigazian dynasty, in his efforts to aid Darius against the invasions of Alexander the Great, fell with the Persian king before the long spears, splendid discipline, and unquestioned bravery of the Macedonian phalanxes in 328 B. c. Having existed 1922 years, thus ended the first and the longest of tlie Armenian dynasties e 42 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. ARSACID DYNASTY. 1 49 B. C.-428 A. D. This dynasty, beginning about a century and a half before Christ, fills by far the most eventful and brilliant centuries in the annals of Armenian history. Havinof emerg-ed from the hovering- mists and clouds of the Haigazian legends, here we are brought into closer proximity to the star of authentic history. Classical names of deathless renown shine out with brilliant radiance. It is during this dynasty that we look upon the Son of Man, the Saviour of the race, to whom our country and nation open their hearts and homes. It is a fact worthy of note that through a multitude of fortunes of war, conflicting armies, incur- sions, and national calamities far beyond those of former years, our fathers through faith in Christ have remained a national unit. It should not be supposed that during the interval between the Haigazian and Arsacid dynasties our people were in utter servitude, as they are to-day under Turkish despotism. Our country was simply in a state of ignominious vassalage under governors of the Macedonian Empire ; for we find in 317 b. c, after the death of Alexander, Armenia, under the leadership of Ardvates, struck a blow for freedom, and thus regained her independence. Upon his death, after thirty-three years of great prosperity, Ardvates left no competent successor to resist foreign aggressions. Thus Armenia submitted to the Seleucus of Syria, who reduced the country to a tributary state. For a hundred years in vain the Armenians revolted and struggled under the firm grasp of Syrian satraps. About 210 b. c. Antiochus the LEGENDARY HEROES OF ARMENIA. 44 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Great divided the country into Eastern and Western Armenia, or Armenia Major and Lesser Armenia — the former east of the river Euphrates and the latter west of it. Having thus divided the country he appointed a separate governor over each. But no sooner had Antiochus sustained a crushing defeat by the Romans than Artaxias proclaimed Armenia Major independent, and offered it as an asylum to Hannibal, the greatest strategist of all times, who had sworn to his father, when a boy of twelve years, " eternal enmity to Rome," and for forty years had kept the field against the imperial eagles. It must have required courage of the highest order in Artaxias to harbor the greatest enemy of Rome at his court. Lesser Armenia soon followed the example of the Greater and successfully revolted under Zadriades, whose descendants kept the throne for nearly a hundred years, until the time of Tigranes H., when it became a part of Armenia Major. Scarcely had Armenia Major been free half a cen- tury when the Parthian king, Mithridates I., having vanquished Syria, extended his mighty hand upon the Armenian affairs, and placed his brother, Valarsaces, on the throne. Under his rule the country flourished, laws were established, personal merit among his sub- jects was rewarded, and great cities were founded. His wise policy laid a good foundation for the great Arsacid family. In 94 b. c. Tigranes II. took the reins of the government with such firmness and ability that his eminence caused wonder and dread to all neiorhborinor nations. Possessed with martial couracre, he entered upon a career of mighty conquest. After uniting Lesser Armenia with Armenia Major, he made THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 45 himself master of Syria ; he brought to his subjec- tion many provinces of the Parthian Empire ; he conquered Media and annexed Mesopotamia. It was during his early sway that our country reached its meridian of power and popularity. It would, no doubt, have been destined to still brighter prospects had it not been for the unwise promptings of his father-in-law, Mithridates of Pontus, who led him into a disastrous conflict with the conquering legions of Pompey. Great Tigranes, under whose victorious tramp Eastern thrones had once shaken to their foundations, had to bow in humble submission and surrender to Rome, with pledges of allegiance and tribute-paying. In turn, a compromise was effected by the terms of which the provinces of Sophene and Gordyene were made into a separate kingdom for his son, while he himself was permitted to retain the remainder of his lost king- dom as a loyal Roman governor, in which capacity, with his martial ardor tamed by misery, he acted until the time of his death, 55 b. c, when another son, Artavasdes, taking the lead of the government, resolved to bring back to Armenia the brighter days of his father's early career. In his idea to successfully accomplish the cherished end, he denied obligation and governmental allegiance to Rome. Meanwhile. Rome and Parthia, in their contentions for Oriental empire, were alternately irresistible in the East. For Artavasdes neutrality with these powers was impos- sible ; hence his perfidy and independent policy of single-handed government was both imprudent and detrimental. The Armenians looked to Parthia as their ally, while the events of history prove that it 46 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. would have been wiser to follow the policy of Great Tigranes II. and remain loyal to Rome. In the subsequent conquest, Mark Antony, having seized Artavasdes, occupied the country, while the unfortu- nate Armenian prince was carried to Alexandria and there beheaded by Cleopatra in the year 30 b. c. In the same year of this event Artaxes II., the son of Mark Antony's victim, aided by Parthians, in a suc- cessful rebellion massacred all the Romans found in Armenia. This event was followed by a long period of anarchy, which is one of the darkest pages in our his- tory. Poor Armenia was between two millstones, Rome on the west and Parthia on the east. The latter was desperate in the throes of declining power, with Persia crowding hard for supremacy in the region of Ararat. These rival powers, in their bloody duel for the mastery of our country, wrought their worst upon our people. Both set their own rulers in our land, separately and alternately as the wave of their strength permitted them. Nor was our land free from broils within its own borders. Over one hundred and seventy of our nobles broke through the restraints of monarchy, set up claims to principalities, and many of them erected independent governments, each reigning supreme in his own district as a petty king. While liberty thus grappled with tyranny for existence, in their helplessness our people did not know where to turn. They had no friendly harbor in which to refit ; they rode out of one storm only to enter another more violent. In the midst of such foreign contentions and feudal anarchy, a strong and daring usurper, Erovant by name, with legal claims to the throne on the female line of sue- THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 47 cession, became a sort of king, 58 a. d., and kept in power until his overthrow by Ardashes, closer to the direct Arsacid line. In spite of Roman and Parthian inter- ference with his right to the throne, he earnestly en- deavored to better the condition of his people. About two centuries of comparative peace gleamed over our unhappy land. Before the next tragic adver- sities had clouded Armenia's ever-changing skies, the great and serene Prophet of Nazareth had been born, to build upon earth the eternal foundations of a new king- dom that was destined to tower above the ages, the only example in human history which has given itself all-conqueringly to the principle of divine love, teach- ing men universal fraternity under a spiritual kingdom of a common Father. What a sense of mingled pride and thankfulness fills the heart of an Armenian at the happy thought that his fathers were the first among all nations to welcome Christ's kingdom, and that their posterity would be the last to furnish martyrs for her sake ! As to the authority of our king Abgar's reputed cor- respondence with Christ, and his subsequent conversion to Christ's religion, we may not wholly subscribe ; for at this point history and fable, poetry and legend, hold eternal and indisputable carnival. Yet, as we advance from the possible twilight of tradition and fable to the broad daylight of history, we find our king Tiridates and his people receiving Christian baptism in 276 a. d., thirty-seven years before Constantine ventured to issue even the Edict of Toleration. Ever since that time our religious life has been linked with the Church of the Crucified, and our martyr-roll 48 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. has grown with every century ; for with the introduc. tion of Christianity among our people, there was added to poHtical ambition of contending pagan powers a fierce religious hatred, whose flames of persecution have not yet been extinguished. Let us return to our chronicle. Early in the second century a. d. under Trajan, and later under his suc- cessor Hadrian, our land was in a state of relative tranquillity, yet in the course of another century Armenia became once more the theater of almost unin- terrupted combat between Persia and Rome. The origin of the struggle was Arsacid's deposition from the Persian throne by the Sassanid Artaxerxes (Arde- shir). Our king Chosroes the Great, in due sense of justice took up arms in defense of Persia's cause, in retaining the Arsacids in power. In the subsequent struggle he maintained the contest with such an indomitable courage and success that the Sassanid usurper, utterly incapable of exertion in open battle, resorted to treacherous methods in inducing Anag, one of his emissaries, to secretly assassinate his valiant adversary. Anag, in the guise of a fugitive from the neighboring court, entered Armenia, was welcomed by our king to the royal city of Vagharshabad, where he stabbed Chosroes to the heart. His crime was punished by Heaven, for while on his flight from threatened ven- geance, he was drowned in the river Aras, and his entire family was at once butchered by the soldiery. Immedi- ately upon this event Artaxerxes entered Armenia and massacred all the members of Chosroes' family save an infant, Tiridates, who was secretly conveyed to the Roman court, where the child-prince was educated under KINGS OF ANCIENT ARMENIA AND THE CONVERSION AND BAPTISM OF KING TIRIDATES. 50 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the faithful guardianship of the emperors. He cer- tainly derived from supposed misfortunes, as Gibbon has said, "such advantages as he could never have obtained on the throne of Armenia — the early knowl- edge of adversity, of mankind, and of the Roman discipline." Valerian, in his struggle against Sapor, championing the cause of Armenia, sustained much loss to himself and accomplished nothing for his ally. Finally the emperor Diocletian, with better success, restored the throne to Tiridates, who was at full man- hood of nearly fifty years of age. In due recognition the new king made an alliance of loyalty to Rome, taking upon himself the obligation of Tigranes the Great, which was broken by Tigranes' son to the sad un- doing of Armenia for three hundred years. Upon his accession, he enjoyed the good will and the inestimable support of both nobles and populace. Surrounded with such favorable auspices, his military genius had full scope for action. He vanquished Assyria and drove away all foes from the borders of his land. As romantic as fiction is the reign of this able ruler. In the first acts of his reign he persecuted the Christians with fiery intolerance, verily believing, like Paul, that he was right in so doing. Gregory, the saint of Armenia, reared in the Christian faith from childhood, preached the gospel in his native land ; but the king imprisoned him for fifteen years in a pit. The light of truth could not be imprisoned, and, beginning with the king himself and the nobles, it soon won the hearts of nearly all the people. The eventful reign of Tiridates lasted nearly half a century. His brave stand against adversaries, THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 5 1 his heroic courage in battle, power of conviction, firm- ness of character, and keen sense of justice — all unite in making him one of the greatest and most beloved of our rulers. The true greatness of the father was not inherited by the son, Chosroes II., under whose incompetent, weak, and unprincipled administration calamities and dis- asters cursed our unhappy land and people. Provinces which the valor of his father had annexed to Armenia he failed to firmly retain. Nor is this all ; he himself, debauched and utterly void of religious sense, readily yielded to the polytheistic agitation of Persia in the persecution of his Christian subjects ; and thus breaking the double ties of policy and religion by which Armenia was bound to Rome, he went on the Persian side, and with a degrading humiliation he acceded to almost every ignominious demand of Sapor. Meanwhile Rome and Persia with redoubled vigor renewed their rival contentions, to the overthrow of the Armenian king and kingdom. While with melancholy interest we gaze upon the fair valleys and plains of Haig thus bathed in blood, with Armenia's sun fast sinking in thickest dark- ness, let it be remembered that the most efficient cause of such a threatening result was not altogether to be found in foreign despotisms, but in internal strifes and insubordination. Pagan Armenians, with a firm stand against incipient Christianity, united their arms with the Persian forces in ravaging their own country and fighting their own nation. Traitors were common, even among the princes. On the other hand, some Armenian nobles, without religious affinity either to Christ or Zoroaster, were clamoring for their own feudal 52 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. independence. Such shameful lack of unity on the part of the natives, I dare afifirm, was the chief cause of the disintegration and partition of their own fatherland. Upon the death of Sapor in 379 there was an entire change in the Persian policy toward Rome, and at the accession of Bahram IV. in 390 a. d., by a treaty Theodosius the Great ceded the eastern part, hence called Pers-Armenia, to Persia; while the western part was annexed to the Roman empire. Upon this final disruption of Armenia, to conciliate the people Arsaces IV., then the reigning king, was made a gov- ernor in the name of the Roman emperor ; while the Persian monarch appointed Chosroes, a descendant of another branch of the Arsacids, governor of the eastern part. At length, in 428 a. d., upon Bahram V.'s, substitution of Persian Ma7'zbaiis, i. e., governor, with Ardashes IV., the Arsacid sway of 580 years was brought to an end forever. Though the Persians were untiring in their efforts to subvert Christianity, their supremacy over Armenia was marked by san- guinary but unsuccessful attempts to overthrow its firmly established and all-conquering power. In the year 450 a. d. was the most notable of Armenia's contests for religious freedom against the fire-worshipers of Persia. It was led by Prince Vartan Mamioronian, the mig-htv defender of the faith. This battle was preceded by the massacre of our bishops and priests, whose very blood inspired the Armenians to almost superhuman deeds of valor on the battlefield. So crreat was the slauahter of the Persians that a compromise, granting our fathers religious liberty, was effected. The despotic monarchs THE CHILDREN OF HAIG— THE ARMENIANS. 53 of Persia kept a figurehead over our doomed country till the year 632, when Mohammedanism, which had begun to be a power in western Asia, was destined to send its first caliphs upon Armenia with fire and sword. For two hundred years emperors of Constan- tinople and Arab caliphs engaged in a long and fierce struggle for the mastery of our land, and with every rotation of fortune's wheel, as the Cross and the Crescent exchanged the coveted victory, our ill-starred land was bathed in blood. At- length, Moslem arms having proved victorious, the caliphate gained control of the entire province and governed it by prefects. Before entering upon the few events of the next dynasty — so little in autonomy and so brief in duration — let me further make a cursory mention of the exist- ing state of our people in the long interregnum. In Pers-Armenia, with the advent of Islam's conquests in the East, the Persians were brought to their lowest ebb ; notably since the decisive battle of Nehavend in 640-42, having sustained a crushing blow at the hands of Caliph Omar, they could no longer sustain the same extreme antipathy and dread with which our people had long regarded them. Yet such an ex- change of oppressors, from Zoroaster to Mohammed, should not be considered in the least an improvement ; they were both in origin and environment the natural product of the darkest ages of Asiatic barbarism, malicious, cruel, and savage. For our ancestors such a change of persecutors was of no more significance than that of an ill-fated soul's transfer from the paws of Satan into the clutches of the devil. Internally, I deplore beyond words to say that our people were not 54 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. yet at liberty from the chronic state of rivalry and dis- sensions. On one side the turbulent princes with their feudal anarchy, on the other the great mass of the populace in their constant strife and disunion, made confusion worse confounded. Here I take occasion to say that all through our history our hereditary and fundamental weakness has been, in spite of race tenacity evidenced in our loyalty to our faith, laneuasre, and home, a lack of coherence and a mutual jealousy, which, with much regret I say, have proved far more humiliating to Armenians than any external disaster. Turning to the Byzantine side, we find the fortunes of our people by far in a more encouraging state. Bound with ties of one common religious sentiment, though not always by common doctrinal belief and ceremonies, our fathers united their martial ardor with the Greeks aeainst the mutual enemy of their faith. That the Byzantines were anxious for such a union had been demonstrated almost at the start of the Saracen power in western Asia. When, in 638, the first Mohammedan invasion had threatened the Daron province, our people, in their weakened condition, of course could ill afford to make a stand against these fierce warriors of the desert, and so they were about to make a compromise with the Saracens, by the terms of which they were to enjoy the Christian religion unmolested. The Greek coreligionists, how^ever, greatly agitated, threatened arms against our people, as the penalty for affiliation with Islam on any terms. War was averted only by most solemn pledges of fidelity to and co-operation with the Greeks. In the THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 55 Byzantine Empire our ancestors were not only an indis- pensable factor in civil and military service, but they were truly for over two hundred years the foundation of the empire. During this long period the throne of Byzantine was not Hellenic but Armenian. It was Armenians who wielded the scepter and Armenians who led the army ; the princes, statesmen, generals, the very backbone of the Byzantine Empire, were Armenians. My assertions are corroborated by George Finlay, the famous author of " Greece under Foreign Domi- nations," who says : At the accession of Leo III. (717), the Hellenic race occu- pied a very subordinate position in the empire. The predominant influence in the political administration was in the hands of Asiatics, and particularly of Armenians, who filled the highest military commands. Of the numerous rebels who assumed the title of emperor, the greater part were Armenians. Artabasdos, who rebelled against his brother, Constantine V., was an Armenian. Alexios Mousel, strangled by order of Constantine VI., in the year 790; Bardan, called the Turk, who rebelled against Nicephorus I. ; Arsaber (Arshavir), the father-in-law of Leo v., convicted of treason in 808; and Thomas, who revolted against Michael II., were all Asiatics and most of them Armenians. Many of the Armenians in the Byzantine Empire belong to the oldest and most illustrious families in the Christian world; and their connection with the remains of Roman society at Constantinople, in which the pride of birth was cherished, was a proof that Asiatic influence had eclipsed Roman and Greek in the government of the empire. It is needless to point out herewith that even some of the houses of the Byzantine Empire were founded and ruled over in almost unbroken line by our an- cestors. 56 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. We must now turn to the fortunes of the third Armenian dynasty. PAGRADID DYNASTY. 743-IO79. In 743 A. D., a hundred years after the famous battle of Nehavend, in the midst of ephemeral dynasties, rag- ing wars, and dissensions in Armenia, we find a prince of an old and powerful family of Pagrad, by the name of Ashod, who, having gathered sufificient strength, had exercised controllino- influence over central and northern Armenia. As to the origin and extent of his power we cannot speak with any degree of accuracy. We know, however, from the evidence of history, that he founded the basis of a sufficiently strong dynasty, the independence of which was properly recognized in 88^ by the caliphs under the brave championship of Ashod I. In the regular line of succession : Ashod II., the " Iron " ; his brother and successor, Appas ; and Ashod III., the Merciful, were all competent and brave lead- ers, whose prowess drove the invaders of Armenia to a respectable distance and whose sagacity filled the land with fortified places. Opulence and martial glory and brighter days of former prosperity seemed to have re- turned under such exploits, which were above the level of their contemporaries, yet the chain of powerful rulers seems to break somewhere in the line of succession, for royal fathers seldom breed royal sons.. Such was the case of Simpad, the son of Ashod III., who possessed none of the brilliant qualities of his fathers ; in fact, he had a temper and disposition directly opposite to that of his fathers. He was incompetent, cruel, and corrupt ^^^fet&u COAT OF ARMS AND FLAGS OF ANCIENT ARMENIA. 58 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. in the extreme ; yet if exquisite taste of regal pomp and beauty should be considered a redeeming- feature in such a depraved character, he did possess it in a most extravagant measure. His royal capitol on the north of Mt. Ararat ; the city of Ani, with its palaces, castles, towers, and looi churches, whose ruins cope to-day with the antiquities of Babylon in their grandeur, bear adequate testimony to this trait of his character. Without attempting a detailed account of events of the short line of the Pagradids, we deem it sufficient to state that Byzantine folly and weakness, aided by inter- nal disruption of nobles, caused the eventual ruin of the dynasty. The name of Emperor Constantine Monomachos stands black in the history of the Eastern Empire. His utter worthlessness as a statesman and as a man of sense of responsibility, his debauched indulgence in selfish and short-sighted gratifications, did not simply cause Armenia's destruction, but opened Asia Minor to the Turks, which was the first step to Islam's subse- quent supremacy over the Christians of the East, and to the final overthrow of the Byzantine Empire in 1453. This is the sum and substance of the criminal impru- dence of his folly. The frontiers of Iberian, Armenian, and Syrian provinces were exempted from tributary taxation in consideration of maintainlno- forces in de- fense of the internal territories and in protection of the central government itself. Monomachos, discarding the wise policy in vogue, ordered the military opera- tions to cease, and that taxes be collected. Such an imbecile act at once threw the southeastern frontier wide open to the torrents of Moslem invaders. Nor is THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 59 this the whole account of his folly. With unquenchable greed of more taxes, he demanded from Cakig the sur- render of his kingdom, and upon his refusal the em- peror without scruple entered into an alliance with the Saracens, and, aided by some native traitors too, easily managed the surrender of Ani. The surrender of Ani, the last bulwark of our people, was Armenia's grave, the deadly Waterloo, and resulted in the subse- quent overthrow of our dynasty. For such an act, our ancestors justly looked upon the Greeks as oppressors, and in consequence of such a feeling the natural ties of religion which united them against the enemies of their common faith were dissolved, and our people would no longer co-operate with them or fight their battles. The Turks were ready. The frontier provinces, now unpro- tected, offered an easy entrance to Seljuk inroads, which in the course of time resulted in the final destruction of the Byzantine Empire itself. In the year 1079, amid overwhelming tragedies, the control of the territory passed to Constantinople. THE RHUPENIAN DYNASTY. I080-I393. The Byzantine Empire, under the sway of weak and unstable monarchs, was on the road to rapid decline before the conquering arms of the Moslem. Seljuks poured into Asia Minor like a mighty deluge, and reached as far as to Nicaea, only fifty miles from Con- stantinople. Meanwhile, Armenian settlements, in the form of semi-independent principalities, were scattered broadcast like isles in the midst of the tempest-tossed ocean of Mohammedanism. The dwindlinof successors 6o THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. of imperial Trajan could no longer exert any extended controlling influence upon the affairs of the Armenian people. Under such surroundings and circumstances, Rhupen, a relative of Cakig, the last king of the Pa- gradid house, with sufficient strength raised the stand- ard of independence in the mountains of northeastern Cilicia, and under the shadow of Taurus builded up a petty kingdom, known as Lesser Armenia, whose dominions duly extended over Cilicia and Cappadocia. This'little kincrdom, for close on three centuries of its existence, was for the most part in a state of compara- tive prosperity ; yet its tranquillity was not perpetuated, for when the Mameluke of Egypt passed through our country with fire and sword, the people, in the hope of protection, allied themselves with the Mongol hordes of Genghiz Khan. Such an alliance,- however, proved of no moment to the terrible fury of the conquering hosts of the Egyptian Sultan Schaban. who, with boundless vengeance, made an end once for all to the last ill- fated dynasty of our fathers (1375 a. d.). Rhupenians are conspicuous for their connection with the crusaders. It was through the aid of Constantine, Rhupen's son, that the Christians captured Antioch ; and again in later years we find Levon, who allied himself with Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in the third crusade and aided him in the capture of Iconium (1 190). Thus Rhupenians, with the kings of Cyprus, formed the last bulwark of Christianity in the East. Levon VI. (Ghevond VI.), the last of the line, was captured in 1375, in spite of a vigorous defense at Gafar, and banished into Egypt, where, after six years of cap- tivity, he was set free. Upon his liberation, having THE CHILDREN OF HAIG-^THE ARMENIANS. 6l spent years of extensive travel through Europe, he settled in Paris, until the time of his death in 1393, where he was buried by the high altar in the Chapel of 'St. Denis. The following inscription still exists upon his monument : Here Lies LEVON VI. The Noble Louisiniaii Prince The King of Armenia Who died 1393 a. D., Nov. 23d, in Paris. * The author counts it his good fortune when in Paris to have visited his tomb. What thoughts filled the mind, what feelings moved the heart of an Armenian youth,' as he stood in a strange land by the grave of the last king of his country ! Time and distance cannot affect the profound impression of that scene. It is said that his body, clad in robes of white, with a c^olden scepter placed within his hand and an opal crown upon his head, was carried to the tomb in regal pomp. Thus sadly does the unseemly show of death's procession mock at life's stern realities. With the disappearance of this last shadow of Armenian independence, our country has remained to this very day a land of many sorrows. Of all the alien dominations in the history of Armenia, none has been so unbearable to our unhappy people as the domination of the Mohammedan power, which still continues to curse homes and fatherland. We find about the year 1300 Tamerlane, the Napoleon of Asia, entered into Armenia and brought upon its people horrors of unspeakable carnage. Indeed, 62 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. wherever Tamerlane set his foot his conquests were marked with the wholesale massacre of the inhabitants and the utter desolation of their cities and villages. In the city of Van he threw the inhabitants from the walls of the castle, until the corpses almost reached to the height of the walls. At Sivas, ancient Sebaste, he buried over four hundred Armenians alive. These graves are known to this day as "black graves," which places of melancholy interest I have often visited. In 1 604 about forty thousand of the Armenians were forcibly transplanted into Persia, by Shah Abbas, who, after his contest with Ahmed I., had laid waste our unhappy country. No nation better illustrates the vicissitudes of history than does the Armenian. Her fortunes, like her country's boundary, have varied with every chang- ing generation. Assyrian, Persian, Macedonian, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Seljuk, Tartar, and Ottoman have all swept across our fair land with fire and sword, with a regularity of the motion of the heavenly bodies in their courses ; and yet what a marvelous vitality and strength Armenians must have possessed to have withstood the clash and combat of twenty centuries ; while contemporary nations have long since vanished and passed away. As we look upon Armenia's past mis- fortunes, and her culminating tragedies of to-day, shall we attribute such mutilation wholly to inherent weak- ness ? True, insubordination and jealousy have ever been our people's national sin, — indeed, our national curse, — for which we have paid very dearly. Yet it THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 63 cannot be said of us that we are craven in spirit or utterly supine. Our people have existed from the deathless and forgotten past to this very day, and this fact alone, when compared with the decline of our con- temporaries, is ample proof that had it not been for the characteristic vitality, courage, and heroism of its people, our race would have ceased to exist long cen- turies ago. Here it will be most fitting to briefly touch on Armenians of to-day and on their character- istics. The recent massacres, their development and causes, we have recorded at length in another chapter of this volume. Prior to these widespread Armenian massacres, the great mass of Americans, in their almost total igno- rance of Armenians, confused us with the Turks, in a manner not unlike to some of our ignorant people, who presumed the Americans were civilized sons of once uncivilized North American Indians. Quite frequently have I myself been introduced in my lectures to American audiences as " the young Chris- tian Turk with an unpronounceable name." What an undeserved encomium to the Turk ; who, ever loyal to the Saracen Prophet, never embraces Christian morals and ethics, and what an unwarranted disparagement to the "young man with an unpronounceable name," whose fathers have been Christians ever since there was Christianity. Nor is religion the only gulf that separates the Armenian from the Turk, but in race, in nationality, in language, in character, and aspect there is equally as wide and irreconcilable a separation, and as truly marked, as the separation of the American from the " Red Man in the West." Let us then briefly 64 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. consider the distino-uishine characteristics of these two antagonistic peoples. Let iis first take the race. Ethnologists treat of Aryans and Turanians' among the primitive human families, as to either their com- plexion or intelligence. Armenians, known as the "Anglo-Saxons of the East," are of pure Caucasian blood and belong to the progressive nations of the Western civilization, to the great Aryan family of races, while the Turks, with a mighty host of Asiatics, belong to the Turanian race and are of Mongolian blood. Thus they do not belong even to the next best of races, the Semitic, but are at the bottom of the race ladder. There is no social intercourse, nor is there any intermarriage between these unlike races ; for it has been the ruling trait in the Armenian national character througrhout all ae^es to remain as much isolated as possible from the Turanian and other elements of lower order; and, to be sure, it is largely due to this centuries-rooted separation that our conquered race has not been lost in the alien blood of the conqueror. In nationality, as has been indicated in the first pages of this chapter, the Armenians are the sons of Haig, and we are the aborigines of the region that lies under the shadow of Ararat, the birth- place of civilization, where we have lived for centuries immemorial, amid the hallowed recollections of Eden, and to-day, notwithstanding the wrecks of time, we still cry : " Might I choose from the world where my dwelling should be, I would say, Still thy ruins are Eden to me, My beloved Armenia! " THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS. 65 There is nothing in common, in the national memories of the Turk, with the Armenian, except the fact that, as a member of one of the most widely scattered nomadic tribes of central Asia, he has ' encamped in the land of our fathers, as an alien tyrant holding our people in bondage ; and, after the lapse of five centuries, he is to-day every inch the same alien tyrant, hostile, intolerant, and destructive. Among other nations, when a conquest has continued as long a time as Turkish conquests have in Armenia, both the conquerors and the conquered have managed to affiliate in a peaceful fellowship, and in most cases have become one people, with a common interest and government, but this has not been the case with the Turk. Turk he is, Turk he has remained, and Turk he will remain to the end. His religious and political interests are not the interests of the Armenian, any more than the interests of the Turk have been the interests of the Greek, the Bulgarian, and many other races whom he has conquered in their own lands. In the strictest sense, the Turkish Sultan is not the national sovereign of the Armenians, or even of Turkey itself ; for Turkey is made up of different peoples of diverse interests and aspirations. So let us clearly bear in mind that while we speak of the Armenian as being a Turkish subject, we should not associate ideas of national affiliation and fellowship, which we are usually accustomed to associate with other countries. That there is a great contrast in the character and aspect of these two peoples, so diverse in their charac- teristics of religion, race, and nationality, can easily be 66 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. understood. To Turkish dullness, depravity, and worthlessness, as a government and as an individual, we have, in the pages of this book, frequently referred on good authority, and from personal observation and well-authenticated facts. Consider a moment as you reflect upon the career of the Turks, and you will scarcely find a people on the face of the earth so hateful to all civilizing influences of the age as the Turks. They have come in contact with Europe, but have not been influenced by its civili- zation. Whatever the evolution of the times has done for other people, it has done nothing for the Turks. Branded with the stagnation of primitive times, they have contrived to abstain from the blessings of civiliza- tion. Science and philosophy are alien to the minds of even their high governmental and religious func- tionaries. Rev. J. F. Riggs, one of the American missionaries in Turkey, relates that the late Sir Henry Austin Layard, the English diplomatist and archaeol- ogist, toiled along with one of the Turkish pashas to interest him in astronomy. He gave glowing accounts of tlie sun, moon, and stars, and especially he described the comets, with their strange mystery. When he paused at last, the pasha said, " Well, you say that the comet comes near and then goes away again ? " " Yes, I said that," replied the veteran Englishman. " Very well," retorted the pasha, "let it go." Such a response from a Turkish governor, who represents the highest culture of his people, might well illustrate the scope of Turkish intelligence. As to Armenians, we have our own civilization and culture. If our civilization and culture are not as high JOHN AYVAZOVSK, THE ARMENIAN PAINTER, 68 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. as those of Western nations, we are a progressive people, at least, which is a marvelous quality to pos- sess in a land like Turkey, where stagnation reigns supreme. One need only become acquainted with the Armenian race to convince himself in regard to the superior place which our people occupy in the advance march of civilization. We have our own literature, rich with poets, historians, critics, translators, and scholars. Nor are the Armenians less conspicuous in the field of commercial and political activity. Indeed, in spite of the most gigantic obstacles thrown on the path of the progress and development of our race, the Armenians have, as a people, always occupied an advanced posi- tion in everything that requires energy, capacity, and intelligence. This is true not only of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, but in Russia and in India, and, indeed, wherever they may be found. Should my reader be disposed to think that the encomium I have paid to my race is overdrawn or too loud, let him read the followingr abstracts from men of the grreatest authority, who know our people, and whose names alone are sufficient guaranty for the disinterestedness and sincerity of their motives. While there is a host of them, I shall quote only from a few men. The historian Professor James Bryce says : They are a strong race, not only with vigorous nerves and sinews, physically active and energetic, but also with conspicuous brain po7ver. Thus they have held a very important place among the inhabitants of western Asia ever since the sixth century. If you look into the annals of the East Roman, or Byzantine, Empire, you will find that most of the men who rose to eminence in its THE CHILDREN OF HAIG— THE ARMENIANS. 69 service as generals or statesmen during the early Middle A^es Tfl T^'Tu'T "'""''■ ^" ""' '' '''' ''''' ^he establishment of the Turkish dominion in Europe. Many of the ablest men in the Turkish service have been Armenian by birth or extraction The same is true with regard to the Russian service. Among all those who dwe 1 m western Asia, they stand first, with a capacity for intellectual and moral progress, as well as with a natural tenacity of will and purpose, beyond that of all their neighbors not merely of Turks, Tartars. Kurds, and Persians, but also of Kussians. The famous author Emile De Laveleye says, in "The Balkan Peninsula": The Armenians are intelligent, laborious, economical, and excellent business men. They occupy official appointments in the administration of the Ottoman Empire, and in Constanti- nople they are the chief promoters of economical activity Their cmhzation is among the oldest in Asia. Their annals date from the earliest historic times. The late Rev. H. G. O. Dwight. D. D.. one of the pioneer missionaries of the American Board amon^ our people, reflects the observations of many years in these words : They [Armenians] have shown themselves to be superior to any other race in commercial tact and in mechanical skill The principal merchants are Armenians, and nearly all the ereat bankers of the government; and, whatever arts there are that require peculiar ingenuity and skill, they are almost sure to be in the hands of the Armenians. . . In one word, they are the Anglo-Saxons of the East. ^ Armenian progress has, owing to the unfortunate condition of the countr3^ made itself more felt abroad than at home. I might draw up a very long catalogue ot Armenians who have highly distinguished them- 70 IHE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. selves in various branches of arts and sciences, but a few only need here be mentioned: The painter John Ayvazovsk of the Council of the St. Petersburg Academy of Fine Arts, whose works adorn the imperial palaces of the Czar, the Sultan of Turkey, and other royal dignitaries ; Nubar Pasha, the ex-prime minister of the Egyptian government; while Dikran and Boghos Pashas are equally great in African states- manship. Among expert physicians in Turkey are Doctors Mateosian, Khorassanjian, Dobrashian, Var- tanian, etc., while among the greatest lawyers are Mosditchian and Tingnerian. Among musicians are Chonkhajian, Devletian, Surenian, and a young lady named Nartoss, who frequently presides at the piano before the Sultan. The Sultan's treasurer, Portukalian Pasha. The chief counselor in the foreign office at Constantinople, Harontiune Dadian Pasha. The Sul- tan's photographers, Abdullah brothers and Sebah. The Sultan's personal jeweler, Chiboukjian. H. E. Daud Pasha was the first "Christian" governor, who became, after the massacre of the Christians of Mt. Lebanon in i860, the governor-general of that region. The magnificent hospital at Smyrna is a monument to Startalian's benevolence. Many steamers which ply on the Mediterranian are owned by Balyivzian. The chess player Adamian, the Berlin mineralogist Azruni, the London archaeologist Hormuzd Rassam, the Zurich chemist Abelianz, and bankers and finan- ciers in almost every country prove that Armenia is more nearly abreast of the Western World than is perhaps generally suspected. The splendid Lazareff Institute at Moscow, with its twenty professors of H. E. DAUD PASHA, LATE ARMENIAN GOVERNOR OF MOUNT LEBANON. 72 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Oriental languages, is an imperishable monument to the enlightened generosity of an Armenian millionaire of the last century. In Russia there are quite a number of Armenian generals, some of whom have been the greatest in the Czar's army. Let me mention the names of a few of them : Count Yoris Melikoff ; Generals Lazareff, Tergukasoff, Lucasoff ; Kishmishian, the commander of Caucasus ; Hagop Alkhazian, Alexander Lalayian, Demedr Der Asadurian, Ishkhan Mannelian, Alexan- der Gorganian, Ishkhan Gocliaminassian, Aeakel Khantamirian, and others. In all the great cities of Russia the Armenians are conspicuous. University and college professors, judges, mayors, and high civil functionaries are to be found on every hand. Let me recall the names of a few only : Minister of Education, Count Hovhaunes Telyanian ; the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Asia, Gamazian ; Counselor of Education, Mugerditch Emin ; professor in the Royal University at Moscow, Nerses Nersesian, and De Shilantz in the medical college at Kharcof ; A. Madanian, mayor of Tiflis ; V. Keghamian, mayor of Erevan, and many others. Nor are the Armenians in Persia and India less con- spicuous. Chahanguir Khan, the Minister of Arts and superintendent of the Arsenal ; Nirza Melkoum Khan, the ex-ambassador of Persia at London ; Nazar Agha, the ambassador of Persia at Paris; General Sharl Bezirganian, the general superintendent of the tele- graph service. Go where you will. — Turkey, Russia, India, Persia. Egypt. Poland, Transylvania, Roumania, and throuehout central Asia, — and vou will find the THE CHILDREN OF HAIG — THE ARMENIANS, 73 Armenian holding a high, if not always a leading, posi- tion in trade and arts. In commercial affairs our people are large producers as well as middlemen and financiers. In Asia Minor and Persia the manufacture of carpets and rugs, so renowned throughout the world, is almost entirely in the hands of the Armenians; and, in addition, in Constantinople and every town of Asiatic Turkey our people form the professional class par excellence. I cannot close this chapter on the fortunes of my people without an appeal to that great cosmopolitan nation, the secret of whose marvelous unity is free- dom and intelligence, to aid in the enlightenment, encouragement, and consequent liberation of a people, kindred though remote, who, through the thick fogs of tyranny and gloom of oppression, have kept intact the love of liberty, the very font of manhood, together with those qualities that make good citizenship strength and sobriety. ARMENIAN LITERATURE. " The Armenian literature is rich and continuous, uninterrupted through all the Middle Ages. It has furnished philosophers, his- torians, theologians, and poets." — Professor Emile de Laveleye. pOLK-LORE, the mother of literature, with its ^ legends and simple rural songs, forms the fountain- head of every nation's purest thought and noblest sen- timent. Long, long ere letters were invented, the enrap- tured heart of the poet broke forth in song, the rhythm so complete that not a word could be changed without destroying the sense. Was it not so with blind Homer ? Armenia's heritage of song is her richest treasure, bequeathed by misty figures of the prehistoric past. So ancient are her melodies that they seem the breath of her body and the light of her soul. A country's scenery, its lofty mountains, green hills, and fertile valleys exert an influence upon the physical conditions and intellectual standards of its people that cannot be overestimated. Switzerland, with its grand uplifting heights, is famed for the inborn love of liberty cherished by its people. Burns, living close to nature's heart, sang sweetly and truly Scotland's charm ; and to-day his songs the world over with magic touch raise fond uplifting memories in many an exiled Scottish heart. Armenia, too, has her bards, whose songs are enriched by the natural scenery which first echoed their refrain. The native poet's passion for 74 ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 75 birds and flowers inspires his every line, while the varied perfumes of the fields breathe from many a stanza. From the sunny vales and hills, with memories around and the moldering generations beneath, the shepherd's strain floats out and fills the solitary places with the old tuneful names of Armenia's heroic race. How their sweet and mournful melodies lulled my boy- hood, and how the memory still thrills my exile heart ! There is a paucity of Armenian written literature prior to the Christian era. This is due in a large measure to St. Gregory's religious zeal, which really amounted to fanaticism ; for, in order to give the incipient Chris- tianity a clear headway, he caused a wholesale destruc- tion of everything pagan, — literature, monuments, and temples, — apparently without a moment's consideration of their inestimable worth to posterity. Thus the great illuminator of religion became the eliminator of Armenian literature. However, we have proof that the national enthusiasm for knowledge is not of modern inspiration. So proud a people will not willingly let their deeds of valor on hard-fought fields die unrecorded, and we find that the names of heroes and saees were household words at every family altar and fireside, and that cherished names and historical events, garnered in national song and story, were handed from generation to generation as sacred traditions for centuries, until the art of writing became common. Modern archaeologists have discovered and deciphered ancient cuneiform records which form a valuable acquisition to traditionary lore. Assyrian, Greek, and Hebrew records help to fill in the missing links in an almost unbroken chain, so that Armenian tradition may ^6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. be said to more nearly approach historical literature in nature and value than that of any other nation of the earth. The unwritten history of the masses is con- firmed in most essential points by the modern reading of the records of the few who were able to engrave the facts of history on the rocky face of the everlasting hills. Time has dealt kindly with these precious records, and the curious student may find a full account of their discovery in the annals of archaeology. Like the tombs of Egypt, the cradle of the human race is slowly but surely giving up the secrets of thousands of years. The earliest and most valued of our historical sources is the work of Agathangaegos, the private secretary of King Tiridates of Armenia, who flourished in the third century of the Christian era. The rarest manuscripts I have seen are found in the alcoves of Armenian monastic libraries. About two thousand of them are preserved at Etchmiazin, and twelve hundred in the convent of San Lazaro at Venice. The Royal Library at Paris, through the emissaries of Louis XI v., procured about two hundred, and there are several in the Bodleian Librnry and the British Museum. Many of these are the work of inferior or obscure writers, but all of them have a great value because of their antiquity and the painstaking care with which the laborious work of copying was done. In the fifth century, a period of marked intellectual activity, lived Moses of Chorene, known among his countrymen as Movses Khorentzi, by far the best- known and the most important source of Armenian history. Indeed he may be the called the Herodotus of the Armenian people. He treasured in his works ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 'J'J the traditional history, stories, and ballads of his time, parts of which were handed down orally with an accu- racy unusual in tradition. Western readers are familiar with the work of Bishop Ulfilas, who first gave literary form to the Gothic by devising an alphabet and translating the Bible. In this same fifth century St. Mesrob, an illustrious prelate of an Armenian monastery, rendered similar service to Armenia by modifying the- alphabet to its present form, and then translating the Bible into our language. St. Mesrob is sometimes called the inventor of the Armenian letters, but this is a greater honor than is his due. Prior to his introduction of the Armenian charac- ters the Greek alphabet was used by our nation. It appears that our patriarch Isaec the Great first under- took the translation of the Bible, but, inasmuch as the Persians had destroyed all the Greek manuscripts, he was obliged, with the aid of Mesrob, to make a translation from the Peshito, or Syriac version, and they actually completed their translation from this version. But Jonnes Ecceleusis and Josephus Palnensis, pupils of St. Mesrob, returning from the Ecclesiastical Council of Ephesus to which they were delegated, brought with them an accurate copy of the Greek Bible, the authentic text of which led Mesrob to abapdon his translation from the Peshito and to commence anew from the Greek. Hampered by his imperfect knowledge of Greek, he found it necessary to send his pupils to centers of Greek scholarship to acquire a thorough knowledge of that tongue. Upon their return the translation was accomplished, after almost a half century of persevering toil. So remarkable is this translation 78 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. in its accuracy and beauty of diction, so perfect in its classic style, that to this very day it is known as the "Queen of Versions." In the Old Testament this ver- sion closely adheres to the Septuagint, with the excep- tion of the book of Daniel, which follows the version of Theodotion ; while the version of the New Testament is faithful to the original Greek. In the sixth century, upon the occasion of an organic union between the Armenian and the Syrian churches, this version was revised and adapted to the Peshito ; yet the original has suffered much interpolated altera- tion, notably in the thirteenth century, when King Hethom of Armenia, an ardent Roman Catholic who afterward became a Franciscan monk, adapted the Armenian version to the Vulgate for the purpose of opening the way for the union of the Armenian and Roman churches. The translation of the Bible operated powerfully on our language and literature by giving a great impulse to literary and intellectual activity. The Grecian philosophy, which was held in profound admiration by our scholars, was called to the aid of our Christian theology. An eager crowd of Armenian students and writers flocked to the educational centers of the Orient and the Occident, and brought back home with them the best of learning for the cultivation of their own literature. To their translations we are indebted for tlie preservation of many valuable works partially or wholly lost in the original. Among these are: The Chronicle of Eusebius ; the Discourses of Philo ; homilies by St. Chrysostom, Severianus, Basil the Great, and Ephraim Syrus ; the epistles of Ignatius, ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 79 translated from the Syrian version ; the Catechesis of Cyril of Jerusalem ; several homilies by Chrysostom, etc. Of this period, the late Professor Philip Schaff of Union Theological Seminary says : In spite of the unfavorable state of political and social affairs in Armenia during this epoch, more than six hundred Greek and Syrian works were translated within the first forty years after the translation of the Bible; and as in many cases the original works have perished, while the translations have been preserved, the great importance of this whole literary activity is appar- ent. . . The period, however, was not characterized by transla- tions only. Several of the disciples of Mesrob and Sahak left original works. Esnik wrote four books against heretics, printed at Venice in 1826, and translated into French by Le Vailliant de Florival, Paris, 1853. A biography of Mesrob by Korium, homi- lies by Mambres, and various writings by the Philosopher David have been published; and the works of Moses of Chorene, pub- lished in Venice in 1842, and again in 1864, have acquired a wide celebrity; his history of Armenia has been translated into Latin, French, Italian, and Russian. From the seventh to the tenth century is the period of Armenia's most flourishing literature ; while the sixth century, which marked the separation of the Armenian from the Greek Church after the Council of Chalcedon, may well be called the dormant era of the Armenian literature, in view of the fact that all inter- course with Greek centers of learning was cut off by the Persians. From the seventh to the twelfth century many historical, theological, and biographical writers and writers of hymns flourished. The twelfth and the thirteenth centuries, in which Syriac influence pre- dominated, was a period of great literary activity. In 8o THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the twelfth, among leading writers Nerses Shinorhali stands foremost as a poet, whose hymns of deep spiritual intensity are still chanted in the Armenian churches. Nerses Lambronensis was also famous as a biblical scholar and orator. Michael Syrus the his- torian, whose work has been edited with a French translation by Langlois (Paris, 1864), was not less famous. The leading authors of the thirteenth century were Krikor Sgnevratzi, Kevork Sgnevratzi, Mukliitar Anetzi ; and Bishops Vanayan and Vartan, who wrote commentaries and historical works. Later the Armenians of the West gave to literature such names as Rivola (1633), Villote, La Croze, Osgan, and others, who were all eclipsed by St. Martin. In Russia and France the Armenians ranked among the best writers; while Justi, Neumann, and Perter- mann in Germany have made enviable reputations. For my readers the names of Armenian literary lights would be only a tedious catalogue of unpronounceable words ; to write something of their lives and activities would require volumes. It is sufficient, however, to note that, in spite of the political disasters which have signalized our history, the Armenians have always maintained a national literature of the highest order, and our language has at the same time been per- fected by modifications and changes in orthography, syntax, and style. As to its relation to other languages, there are conflicting opinions among scholars. By some it it held to be an oricrinal tongrue, so distinct from the rest in its fundamental character that it can- not be classed with any of the great families of lan- guages ; while by others it is classed with the Medo- ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 8r Persian family. To this latter classification, however, we cannot subscribe ; for the apparent similarity, we believe, is simply due to the adoption of a few words resulting from our country's conquest, while no funda- mental likeness can be shown. The prevalent belief now is that the Armenian belongs to tlie independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. It is an inflected language with four conjugations and twelve declensions. In syntax, particularly in the use of the participle, the classical Armenian bears a close resemblance to the ancient Greek, but it has no gram- matical eender or dual form, and its definite articles are suffixes of a single letter. As to accent the Ian- guage is deficient, there being no stated rules ; but it generally falls on the last syllable. The modern Armenian literature commences in the sixteenth century, as all other modern literature com- mences. Just as in religion the Reformation was the greatest movement in the sixteenth century, so was the Renaissance in the revival of letters. The action of European literature on Armenia commences in the first quarter of the present century. Distinction of the ancient and modern literature consists in that ancient Armenian is almost entirely composed of religious writings, both in verse and prose, wTiile the modern Armenian deals with secular themes, political, social, scientific, patriotic. Classical Armenian flourished in the Church, while the modern Armenian flourished out- side of the Church as well as in the Church. In the mediaeval ages monasteries were the repositories of learning as well as the bulwarks of religion. The monks were the only scholars down to the time of the 82 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. modern era, while in the modern Armenian literature it is the scholar who is the teacher as well as the priest who writes. Instead of monasteries schools of learning have sprung up, and when these schools do not give sufficient scope to the intellectual activities of the Armenians they are attracted by the Occidental col- leges and universities. Geographic locality has also influenced the Armenian language. All the climates under which the Armenians flourished have placed a peculiar stamp upon the lan- guage as well as the life, and thus the language of the Armenians in Turkey, in Russia, in Persia, in India, in France, and in the United States has its distinctively local characteristics. And the local governments in these countries have affected the Armenian thought to the degree of latitude and margin they have given to the expansion of human thought ; and thus in Russia, despotic as the government is, the Armenian intellect has found a greater scope of activity than in Turkey. In Russia novelists such as Raffi, and patriotic poets such as Batkanian and Nalbantian, and journalists such as Arzrooni, have flourished. In Turkey the Armenian language has not found as large a scope as in Russia, but even in the prevailing vexatious restrictions of the Turkish censorship of the press, the Armenian lan- guage has flourished to a marvelous degree. The Armenian language in India comes next to that of Russia and Turkey in importance ; but it will find its best expression, and Armenian intellect its greatest scope of activity, in France, England, and in the United States, owing to tlie kindly, genial, friendly, and liberal atmosphere that prevails. 'vwimrMmrMMtxTamm^.FmmMMRm .^r^KSlf^f T *3!f^'-r- EARLY ARMENIAN MONASTERIES — REPOSITORIES OF LEARNING. ^4 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. In the present century, the work of Armenian Romish monks of the convent of San Lazaro, Venice, may rank first, as it has given a great impetus to the development of the Hterature. This convent is a relic of mediaevalism modified by modern influence. From it have come original works and periodicals, many translations of standard books from European lan- guages, particularly from Italian, French, English, and German, together with valuable dictionaries and volumes of reference. This most renowned of monas- tic organizations was founded in 1701 by Mechitar de Petro, D. D., a former priest and a secretary of Arch- bishop Michael of the Armenian Church, who, while in the service of his motlier Church, was in secret a proselyte to Rome and a Jesuit. In 1700, while he was a pastor at Constantinople, strife arose between two rival patriarchs of the national' church, and the com- munity was divided into two parties. To Mechitar this was a signal opportunity to advocate submission to the Romish Church. Sucli an advocacy, however, brought upon him the fiery indignation of the Armenian Church. Indeed the storm of hostility so threatened to overwhelm him that the French ambassador's pro- tection was sought and readily afforded, whereupon Mechitar removed his mask and openly professed the Roman Catholic faith. The increasing animosity of the Armenians, however, drove him to Smyrna and from thence to Modon in Morea. In 1701 he had founded iq Constantinople a new religious movement with eleven members. At Modon the Venetian government granted him an estate upon which to build a convent of the new order, and he took possession ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 85 of it in 1703. War between the Turks and Venetians necessitated removal, and Mechitar, coming to Venice in 1 715, petitioned the Venetian senate for a safer site. In 1 71 7 they generously gave him the Island of San Lazaro, where a convent bearing Mechitar's name was duly erected and opened September 8, the birthday of the Virgin Mary. Mechitar, ever alert and ardent, never abandoned or lost sight of his inspiring aim, the education of his countrymen. Himself a born scholar, he did not lay aside his pen until death in 1749 took it from his hand. His works are largely theological and philosophical; but popular hymns, written while he was yet in the fold of the mother Church, are still sung and bear witness to his poetic skill and spiritual fervor. Establishing printing presses in the convent, he labored with untir- ing zeal to revive the high literary standard of Armenia's bygone days. After a lapse of almost two centuries, the Mechitar- ists still bear the indelible impress of their founder's devotion to letters; for, in accordance with its orlo-inal aim and mission, the place became not only a convent of monotonous ecclesiasticism, but an academy not unlike that of the French Immortals, venerable with years and rich in imperishable memories; for many rare spirits have imparted something of themselves to these sacred buildings, where they have dreamed and worked and waited, where they have endured and lost or won. Here, indeed, are places associated with poets and statesmanlike scholars, whose story is the best heritage of the intellect and literature of Armenia, for in them all the ethical and spiritual instincts of the 86 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. nation found representation. The convent is partic- ularly interesting to modern students and tourists, because it was there that Byron sojourned for a time, deeply interesting himself in Armenian literature and in the learned monks who were its expounders. The room, table, and chair wiiere he studied the Armenian lanouaee are shown to visitors at the convent. Aside from Byron, Victor Hugo, Lamartine, Henry W. Longfellow, and other conspicuous lights in the world of letters have been ardent admirers of our literature. Some of the "Oriental poems " of Victor Hugo are adaptations from Mugarditch Beshiktashlian's poems. Longfellow, too, has rendered a few Armenian poems into English verse. This remarkable establishment has been so distinguished for its eminent services in the cause of morality and learning that, in 1810, when a general order for the suppression of all monastic institutions in Venice was issued, San Lazaro alone was exempted from its sweeping effects. Another proof of the high estimation in which the monastery stands is in the fact that the Pope made it his custom to confer upon each new abbot of San Lazaro the title and dignity of archbishop, although the prelate thus honored had neither province nor subordinate clergy. We must not forget the Armenian missionaries, who have furnished scientific text-books and are increasing the number from time to time. An Armenian who can afford them may have as good a practical, library in his native language as the artisan or merchant could desire. Concerning this work I have spoken in the chapter on evangelical missions. ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 87 From these facts some interesting conclusions can be drawn. Through four-fifths of the Christian era Armenian literature has enjoyed a more perfect con- tinuity than that of any other Christian nation. When Europe was passing through the Dark Ages the Chris- tian Armenians of the Orient were enjoying a season of unparalleled intellectual activity and creating a litera- ture of no little value ; and the day may yet come when their purest songs and highest thoughts may be ranked among those classics which are not the possession of any one tongue or people, but have in them so much of man's heart and life that they are the legacy of the race. This may be seen in the poems quoted in this chapter. They are the productions of various writers and of different centuries, but their truth and beauty belong to no one age or clime ; for the catholicity of true sonof is theirs. Armenia's mountains, hills, and valleys, her birds and flowers, her kings and battles, her thwarted yearning for freedom, even the broken heartstrings of her stricken mothers, are woven into a bitter-sweet burst of song, amid whose gladsome strains sounds of woe are mingled, sunbeams and shadows, joy and pain. POEMS ON NATURE. Nature poetry finds in spring a strong incentive. Grim, slothful Winter lingers long, holdinggentle Spring in his icy grasp. Then she rises suddenly in her youth- ful strength, and snowflakes change to flowers with a suddenness that surprises the stranger. This quick transition, this annual resurrection, is the theme of 88 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. many a bard. Spring poetry is addressed to the stork, as harbinger of the season, who, when he comes to stay, brings summer with him. The ancients declare that spring was under the special care of the goddess Amahid. All the people joined in the feast of Varthavar, or " Rose Blossoms." In Christian times this has been supplanted by the three days' festival of the Transfiguration. The ancient name, the Feast of Rose Blossoms, indicates the love of the beautiful, which leads to the true and can have its origin only in the good. There is a religious halo about the very names of the Armenian flowers. The " Fountain's Blood " is a floral wonder. Was it the blood of righteous Abel that sprang from the ground as this crimson flower on a leafless stalk, calling to God in its blood-red simplicity for vengeance on the murderer? These beauties of the field and glen have called forth exquisite gems of thought which are treasured to this day. Summer — the short, sweet, seductive summer of Armenia — does not last long enough to produce eniitd. This brief, bright pageantry of blooming, fragrant flowers and ripening fruit comes quickly, does its work in haste ; and a chill, gloomy winter succeeds, sup- pressing autumn before it fairly has a chance to exist. How much these long winters, coupled with the utter seclusion of the Armenian homes far away from the centers of population, have had to do in developing the poetic instinct, we can well surmise. These patri- archal abodes are snow-bound from October until May ; and from such retreats, chiefly, has come the an- cient and modern literature of Armenia. With what ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 89 poetic fancy the return of spring is greeted may be seen in this Httle poem : Scarce are the clouds' black shadows -' Pierced by a gleam of light, Scarce have our fields grown dark again, Freed from the snowdrifts white, When you, with smiles all twinkling, Bud forth o'er hill and vale. O firstborn leaves of springtime, Hail to your beauty, hail! Not yet to our cold meadows Had come Spring's guest the swallow, Not yet the nightingale's sweet voice Had echoed from the hollow. When you, like Joy's bright angels. Came swift to hill and dale. Fresh-budded leaves of springtime. Hail to your beauty, hail! Your tender, verdant color, Thin stems, and graceful guise. How sweetly do they quench the thirst Of eager, longing eyes! Afflicted souls at sight of you Take comfort and grow gay. New-budded leaves of springtime. All hail to you to-day! Come, in the dark breast of our dales. To shine the hills between! Come, o'er our bare and shivering trees To cast a veil of green! Come, to give sad-faced Nature An aspect blithe and new! O earliest leaves of springtime, All hail, all hail to you! 90 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Come, to call up for newborn spring A dawn of roses fair ! Come, and invite the breezes light To play with your soft hair! Say to the fragrant blossoms, "Oh, haste! Men long for you!" Hail, earliest leaves of springtime, Young leaves so fresh and new! Come, come, O leaves, and with sweet wings Of hope from yonder sky Cover the sad earth of the graves Wherein our dear ones lie! Weave o'er the bones so dear to us A garland wet with dew, Ye wings of Hope's bright angels. Young leaves so fresh and new.* The life of Archbishop Khorene Nar-bey, author of the above, occupies a conspicuous place in the literary and clerical circles of our country. A direct descend- ant of the royal family of Lusignan, of the last dynasty of Armenian kings; educated at the convent of the Mech- itarists in Venice, yet early leaving the Roman for the Armenian Church ; a pupil of Lamartine and a friend of Victor Hugo ; he was poet, theologian, author, orator, linguist, and also a diplomat of rare skill. Endowed with so many attainments, he consecrated his powers to the welfare of his countrymen by carrying to a success- ful issue many a delicate diplomatic mission, notably during the Berlin Congress in 1878. His ardent patri- otism roused the Turkish government against him, and he died at Constantiiiople, poisoned, it is commonly be- lieved, by the Sultan. * Most of the poems that appear in this chapter are rendered into English verse by Miss Alice Stone Blackwell. ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 91 The birds of Armenia, like the flowers, are countless in number and variety. Her poets seldom write with- out embellishing their lines with reference to some of their fragrant or feathered friends of the field. The lament of the wandering Armenian in Totochian's song to the swallow will touch the heart of many a homesick exile : O swallow, gentle swallow, Thou lovely bird of spring! Say, whither art thou flying So swift on gleaming wing? Fly to my birthplace, Ashdarag, The spot I love the best; Beneath my father's roof-tree, O swallow, build thy nest. There dwells afar my father, A mournful man and gray, Who for his only son's return Waits vainly, day by day. If thou shouldst chance to see him, Greet him with love from me ; Bid him sit down and mourn with tears His son's sad destiny. . In poverty and loneliness, Tell him my days are passed; My life is only half a life, My tears are falling fast. To me, amid bright daylight, The sun is dark at noon; To my wet eyes at midnight Sleep comes not, late or soon. 92 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Tell him that, like a beauteous flower Smithy a cruel doom, Uprooted from my native soil, I wither ere my bloom. Fly on swift wing, dear swallow, Across the quickening earth. And seek in fair Armenia The village of my birth! In the following stanzas, rendered into English verse by the author, it appears that the partridge is a special favorite : With flowers of every hue Thy nest is covered over. Thy place is full of dew. Thou lovest the sweet odor. Little partridge, how Pretty, pretty thou! When the partridge leaves the tree, And chir])s its happy song. The world sings merrily. The heart forgets its wrong. Little partridge, how Pretty, pretty thou! By all the birds thou'rt blessed. And all thy featiiered tribe To thee who art the best Their songs of love ascribe. Little partridge, how Beautiful art thou! The crane is the harbinger of summer as the stork is of spring, and has received his share of poetic ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 03 tribute. To the Armenian under foreign skies the flight of the crane is always suggestive of home. His thoughts will recall the poets of his Oriental father- land. " Crane, whence comest thou ? Hast thou no news of my country?" Thanks to modern scientific research, news flies faster than the crane, and the Armenian in America is abreast with the times on the Armenian question, and has the news before the Armenian resident on the foothills of Ararat can possibly get it. The tender regard of Armenians for the birds of the air has its origin in the ancient superstition of the transmigration of souls. Among the ignorant it is still believed that the spirits of the departed visit the scenes of their youth in the form of birds. For this reason the denizens of the air are seldom disturbed by the Armenian peasants. Many of the poetical fancies in regard to them are born of the idea that they are the custodians of the spirits of departed friends. The limpid, laughing waters of Armenia's swift- descending streams, as they babble through the rocky channels or bound from shelving precipices in a musi- cal cascade, have shared the poet's fancy with the star-reflecting blue of the crystal lake. A delicate expression of the poetic charms of a mountain torrent watering fields and gardens in the lower valley is the following : Down from yon distant mountain The streamlet finds its way, And through the quiet village It flows in eddying play. 94 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. A dark youth left his doorway, And sought the water-side, And, laving there his hands and brow, ** O streamlet sweet! " he cried, ** Say from what mountain com'st thou?" "From yonder mountain cold Where snow on snow lies sleeping. The new snow on the old." " Unto what river, tell me. Fair streamlet, dost thou flow?" ** I flow unto that river Where clustering violets grow." "Sweet streamlet, to what vineyard. Say, dost thou take thy way?" "The vineyard where the vine-dresser Is at his work to-day." "What plant there wilt thou water?" " The plant upon whose roots The lambs feed, where the wind-flower blooms, And orchards bear sweet fruits." "What garden wilt thou visit, O water cool and fleet ? " " The garden where the nightingale Sings tenderly and sweet." " Into what fountain flowest thou? " " The fountain to whose brink Thy love comes down at morn and eve, And bends her face to drink. "There shall I meet the maiden Who is to be thy bride, And kiss her chin, and with her love My soul be satisfied." THE SCENE OF ARMENIAN POETS FANCY. 96 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. BALLAD POETRY. To ballad poetry the Armenian singer frequently turns. Many examples of this branch of the art are connected with the famous Lake Van, around which countless traditions have gathered. An excellent example of this class of poetry is given below : We sailed in the ship from Aghthamar. We directed our ship toward Avan; When we arrived before Vosdan We saw the dark sun of the dark day. Dull clouds covered the sky, Obscuring at once stars and moon; The winds blew fiercely, And took from my eyes land and home. Thundered the heaven, thundered the earth, The waters of the blue sea arose; On every side the heavens shot forth fire; Black terror invaded my heart. There is the sky, but the earth is not seen, There is the earth, but the sun is not seen, The waves come like mountains And open before me a deep abyss. O see, if thou lovest thy God, Have pity on me, forlorn and wretched; Take not from me my sweet sun. And betray me not to fiinty-hearted Death. Pity, O sea, O terrible sea! Give me not up to the cold winds: My tears implore thee And the thousand sorrows of my heart. . , ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 97 The savage sea has no pity! It hears not the plaintive voice of my broken heart; The blood freezes in my veins, Black night descends upon my eyes. . . Go tell to my mother To sit and weep for her darkened son; That Hovhannes was the prey of the sea, The sun of the young man is set! RELIGIOUS POEMS. This little poem of the Christ-child comes to us from St. Gregory of Narek, who lived in the tenth century : " The lips of the Christ-child are like two twin leaves; They let roses fall when he smiles tenderly. The tears of the Christ-child are pearls when he grieves; The eyes of the Christ-child are deep as the sea. Like pomegranate grains are the dimples he hath. And clustering lilies spring up in his path." There is a sad Armenian elegy on Adam's expul- sion from Paradise, in theme not unlike portions of Milton's •' Paradise Lost." But our poets have seldom wandered in this direction. Their themes are of the heart, varying, with the fortunes of the people, from a tone of joyful victory to that of subdued melancholy. Armenian literature is imbued with a profound faith in the final justice of God, whicli finds no parallel except in the literature of the Hebrew race. A literal transla- tion of the following stanza, though sadly marring its artistic effect, does not destroy the poetic thought and 9^ THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. religious hope which save from despair a bereaved mother grieving for her child : ** I gaze and weep, mother of my boy, I say alas! and woe is me! What will become of wretched me: I have seen my golden son dead! They seized that fragrant rose Of my breast, and my soul fainted away; They let that beautiful golden dove Fly away, and my heart was wounded. The falcon I!)eath seized My dear and sweet-voiced turtle dove and wounded me. They took my sweet-toned little lark And flew away through the skies! Before my eyes they sent the hail On my flowering green pomegranate, My rosy apple on the tree. Which gives fragrance among the leaves. They shook my flourishing beautiful almond tree And left me without fruit; Beating it, they threw it on the ground And trod it under foot into the earth of the grave. What will become of wretched me! Many sorrows surrounded me. O my God, receive the soul of my little one And place him at rest in Thy bright heaven." The simple pathos and exquisite conception of bird- and-flower analogies by the rural bards are touchingly illustrated in the above selection. LOVE POEMS. The Eastern nations are noted for the delicate senti- ment and profuse imagery of their love poems, and in this Armenia is not lacking. Some of her poets are worthy to be ranked with the singers of any nation. ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 99 One of these, Bedros Turian, resembles Robert Burns in some respects. Yet there are no contradictory traits in the character of the Armenian poet. Earth's vile passions never marred his pure love and noble aspirations after a higher life. He was the son of a blacksmith in Constantinople, and died of consumption in 1 87 1, at the early age of thirty-one. He left a num- ber of dramas and poems that enjoy a great popu- larity among my countrymen, though his fame came only after his death, when it was too late to give him the recognition he so vainly desired in life. Indeed, his life was full of adversity and sadness, and it appears that the very hardships which hastened his death gave power to his poetic genius in fathoming the depths of the tempest-tossed ocean of human tragedy. Poverty- stricken beyond endurance, helpless, friendless, and hopeless, sick and alone, disappointed in love, he touched the silvery strings of his lyre, bringing out soft, floating melodies full of sweet melancholy, misty sad- ness, and fainting loneliness. A few days before his death, amid the soft rustle of trees so like the gentle whispering of lovers, as his wandering steps lingered beside a little lake, his impassioned heart burst forth in this poetic strain : Why dost thou lie in hushed surprise, Thou little lonely mere? Did some fair woman wistfully Gaze in thy mirror clear? Or are thy waters calm and still Admiring- the blue sky, Where shining cloudlets, like thy foam, Are drifting softly by? lOO THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Sad little lake, let us be friends! I, too, am desolate; I, too, would fain, beneath the sky, In silence meditate. As many thoughts are in my mind As wavelets o'er thee roam; As many wounds are in my heart As thou hast flakes of foam. THE LITTLE LAKE. But if heaven's constellations all Should drop into thy breast. Thou still wouldst not be like my soul A flame-sea without rest. There, when the air and thou are calm, The clouds let fall no showers; The stars that rise there do not set, And fadeless are the flowers. ARMENIAN LITERATURE. lOI Thou art my queen, O little lake! For e'en when ripples thrill Thy surface, in thy quivering depths Thou hold'st me, trembling, still. Full many have rejected me: " What has he but his lyre? *' He trembles, and his face is pale; His life must soon expire! " None s.aid, * Poor child, why pines he thus? If he beloved should be, Haply he might not die, but live, Live and grow fair to see.' None sought the boy's sad heart to read, Nor in its depths to look. They would have found it was a fire, And not a printed book! Nay, ashes now! a memory! Grow stormy, little mere. For a despairing man has gazed Into thy waters clear! The following lament over his early death serves to bring out his intense patriotism : To thirst with sacred longings. And find the springs all dry, And in my flower to fade — not this The grief for which I sigh. Ere yet my cold, pale brow has been Warmed by an ardent kiss, To rest it on a couch of earth — My sorrow is not this. I02 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Ere I embrace a live bouquet Of beauty, smiles, and fire, The cold grave to embrace — not this Can bitter grief inspire. Ere a sweet, dreamless sleep has lulled My tempest-beaten brain. To slumber in a earthy bed — Ah, this is not my pain. My country is forlorn, a branch Withered on life's great tree; To die unknown, ere succoring her — This only grieveth me. The two following, by the same author, embody the thoughts of lovers the world over : & Were not the rose's hue like that which glows On her soft cheek, who would esteem the rose? Were not the tints of heaven like those that lie In her blue eyes, whose gaze would seek the sky? Were not the maiden innocent and fair. How would men learn to turn to God in prayer? " She was alone. I brought a gift — A rose, surpassing fair; And when she took it from my hand She blushed with pleasure there. " Compared with her, how poor and pale The red rose seemed to be! My gift was nothing to the kiss My lady gave to me." ARMENIAN LITERATURE. I03 But the dearest and most frequent theme of the Armenian poet is his country — her beauty and her woes, the bravery of her sons and their ceaseless struggle for freedom from tyranny. These ideas are found in all classes of poems, from the lullaby the mother sings soft and sweet to hush the babe, to the most stirring songs of liberty and the fiercest notes of war. These ideas are illustrated in the following poems. The first, entitled " We Are Brothers," is the work of Professor Mugurditch Beshiktashlian, a Roman Catholic Armenian who was born in 1829 and was educated at the famous Convent Mechitarist. He died in 1868, and on his gravestone were carved tlie last lines of this, his song : From glorious Nature's myriad tongues, Tiiough songs be breathed by lips of love, And though the maiden's fingers fair Across the thrilling harp-strings rove, Of all earth's sounds, there is no other So lovely as the name of brother. Clasp hands, for we are brothers dear, Of old by tempest rent apart; The dark designs of cruel Fate Shall fail, when heart is joined to heart. What sound, beneath the stars aflame, So lovely as a brother's name? And when our ancient Mother-land Beholds her children side by side. The dews of joyful tears shall heal Her heart's sad wounds, so deep and wide. What sound, beneath the stars aflame. So lovely as a brother's name? I04 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. We wept together in the past; Let us unite in harmony And blend again our tears, our joys; So shall our efforts fruitful be. What sound, beneath the stars aflame, So lovely as a brother's name? Together let us work and strive, Together sow, with toil and pain, The seed that shall, with harvest blest, Make bright Armenia's fields again. What sound, beneath the stars aflame, So. lovely as a brother's name? Another of the most brilliant lights in our modern literature is Raphael Patkanian. He is a poet beloved by the muses, and is known and admired by Armenians everywhere. His work is peculiar yet refined, melo- dious and tender ; and, again, loud and stormy, sparkling with artful rhymes and measures, and ever throwing a magical enchantment and melancholy sadness over existence. Many of his poems were written during the Turco-Russian war, when the Armenians in Russia cherished bright hopes for the deliverance of Armenia from the Turkish yoke. This poet was born in 1830 in southern Russia. While at the University of Moscow he assembled his Armenian fellow-students and organized a literary club among them. Patkanian died in 1892, after forty-two years of continuous activity as an educator, journalist, and author. The following poem, entitled " Cradle Song," is a specimen of his work : Nightingale, oh, leave our garden. Where soft dews the blossoms steep; With thy litanies melodious Come and sing my son to sleep! w f^- KArHAEI. TATKANIAN. I06 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Nay, he sleeps not for thy chanting, And his weeping hath not ceased. Come not, nightingale! My darling Does not wish to be a priest. O thou thievish, clever jackdaw, That in coin findest thy joy, With thy tales of gold and profit Come and soothe my wailing boy! Nay, thy chatter does not lull him, And his crying is not stayed. Come not, jackdaw! for my darling Will not choose the merchant's trade. Wild dove, leave the fields and pastures Where thou grievest all day long; Come and bring my boy sweet slumber With thy melancholy song! Still he weeps. Nay, come not hither. Plaintive songster, for I see That he loves not lamentations, And no mourner will he be. Leave thy chase, brave-hearted falcon! Haply he thy song would hear. And the boy lay hushed and slumbered, With the war-notes in his ear. We cannot more fittingly close this chapter than by quoting the jewel of our songs of liberty. Its author, Professor Michael Ghazarian Nalbandian, was born in Russian Armenia in 1830. After graduating from the University of St. Petersburg he led an active life as an educator, author, and editor. Being suspected by the Russian government, on account of his political opinions, he was imprisoned for three years and then exiled to the province of Sarakov, where he died, in ARMENIAN LITERATURE. 107 1866, of lung disease brought on by the rigors of prison life. In Russia it is forbidden to possess Nalbandian's portrait, yet pictures of him, with his poem on " Liberty," are circulated secretly among his country- men. When God, who is forever free, Breathed life into my earthly frame, — From that first day, by His free will When I a living soul became, — A babe upon my mother's breast. Ere power of speech was given to me, Even then I stretched my feeble arms Forth to embrace thee. Liberty! Wrapped round with many swaddling bands, All night I did not cease to weep. And in the cradle, restless still. My cries disturbed my mother's sleep. **0 mother!' in my heart I prayed, ** Unbind my arms and leave me free! " And even from that hour I vowed To love thee ever, Liberty! When first my faltering tongue was freed, And when my parents' hearts were stirred With thrilling joy, to hear their son Pronounce his first clear-spoken word, " Papa, Mamma," as children use, Were not the names first said by me; The first word on my childish lips Was thy great name, O Liberty! "Liberty!" answered from on high The sovereign voice of Destiny; "Wilt thou enroll thyself henceforth A soldier true of Liberty? I08 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. The path is thorny all the way, And many trials wait for thee; Too strait and narrow is this world For him who loveth Liberty." " Freedom! " I answered; " on my head Let fire descend and thunder burst; Let foes against my life conspire, Let all who hate thee do their worst: I will be true to thee till death; Yea, even upon the gallows tree The last breath of a death of shame Shall shout thy name, O Liberty! " THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. "The Armenians may justly claim to be the oldest Christian nation in the world." — H. B. Tristram, D. U., LL. D., F. R. S., Canon of Durham, England. PREHISTORIC RELIGION IN ARMENIA. ACCORDING to the testimony of the Scriptures, after the resting of the ark " upon the mountains of Ararat," Noah offered burnt offerings upon the altar. Since these mountains are in our central province, Armenia may be said to be the earliest home of divine worship, and from here the patriarchal monotheism was transmitted to Noah's descendants. In the patri- archal observance of religfion the father was the hieh priest of the family, officiating daily at the rude family altar. He was regarded with a peculiar reverence which we might well wish to see restored in many a modern home. The traditions of Asia Minor would seem to indicate that pure monotheism was the prehistoric religion of the Armenians, as it was the primitive religion of all other Aryans. We cannoi:, however, positively deter- mine the duration of that pure religion in Armenia. By degrees, through the influence of idolatrous neigh- bors, the people embraced polytheism of the Assyro- Babylonian type. Our cuneiform inscriptions give us many details of the names of the deities and the regu- lations for daily sacrifice. 109 no THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. With the Supremacy of the Medo-Persian Empire, there arose -in western Asia the duaHstic religion of Zoroaster, teaching that there are two supernatural beings — Ormazd,* the creator and preserver of all things good, and Ahriman, the source of evil and mischief. These rival gods, having in command good and evil spirits, were in perpetual strife. Fire, which was the personification of Ormazd's son, became the supreme object of worship. This was the religion of the Armenians from the latter part of the seventh century b. c. until the introduction of Christianity. INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY. The Armenian Church should be of interest to every Christian of every country, because of its associations with early Christianity. It should be a delight to trace down the centuries the fortunes and misfortunes of a church founded by the first disciples of our Saviour. Cast a glance at the condition of the Eastern World at the time of Christ's advent. When Zoroastrianism was multiplying its gods and at the same time multi- plying vice and immorality, when the ancient Baby- lonians were in eager endeavor to keep their old, dying Sabaism alive, when many branches of heathen- ism were contemplating the manufacture of some new and better gods, when even the sacred religion of the Jews had fallen into formalism ; in a word, when the dark and threatening clouds of strife and controversy had overcast the Oriental sky, and the people were blundering in the darkness of superstition and igno- * Ormazd of the Persians is the same as Armazt of the Armenians and Jupiter of the Greeks. THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. m ranee, then rose the Sun of Righteousness to illumine the whole world, bearing in its radiance that angelic benediction, " Peace on earth, good will toward men." The cherished tradition of the Armenian people is that during the reign of our King Abgar of Edessa, Bartholomew, one of the Twelve, and Thaddeus, one of the Seventy, went about preaching the gospel in Armenia. As a result of their faithful labors and the power of the new gospel they proclaimed, the king and the royal family were converted and baptized in the river Euphrates, and, following their example, the whole nation turned from idolatry to the true God. The conversion, however, proved transient, and a short time after the death of Abgar the nation relapsed into its former religion. It was reserved for St. Gregory, a prince of the Arshagoonian dynasty, a man mighty in the Lord, to turn the erring people back to Christian faith and worship. And with his life and work the history of the Armenian Church emerges from the mists of tradi- tion and comes out into the clear light of history. This learned man was sent by Tiridates (Durtad) to the Greek bishop Leontius of Caesarea for ordination ; and under the influence of his preaching the king himself embraced Christianity, and the people began once more to worship God, in spirit and in truth (302 A. D.). From this period to the present day the faith of Jesus Christ has been the faith of the Armenian people. Tiridates bestowed on his people the imperishable honor of being the first nation to have a Christian ruler. The baptism of this Armenian king and his court into the Christian Church antedates that of Con- 112 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. stantine ten years. Commonly the latter is referred to as the first Christian emperor, through paucity of information on Armenian history in the libraries of Europe and America. With Christianity came a quickening of the intel- lectual life of the people, and the century following was the golden age of Armenian literature. Schools were established in every part of the country, and as a crowning triumph the Bible was translated into the Armenian language in 410 a. d. Our bishops sat in all early councils of the one common Christian Church, catholic in spirit, liberal in doctrine and government. THE STRUGGLE IN THE FIFTH CENTURY. It was not without one final struggle that Zoroas- trianism gave place to the incipient Church. In the fifth century the time came once more when the Persian conquerors offered as an alternative religious sub- mission or annihilation by the sword. It was a most critical moment. They must wade through a carnage of death to religious freedom, or desert the pure reli- gion of their fathers. "Christian homes, or Christian graves," was the unanimous watchword that echoed from the Armenian ranks, " Her head was crowned with flowers, Her feet were bathed with spray. Hers were the lands of Eden, The cradle of our race. ** But then upon her borders, Shouted the Persian horde; * Fall down and worship fire, Or perish by the sword.' THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. II3 •'Then up sprang Armenia And raised her voice on high, And back to haughty Persia Rang loud the warlike cry: " ' I will not be a heathen, I will not be a slave; If I cannot have a Christian's home I'll find a Christian's grave.'" Men, women, children, all stood on the battleground in defense of their faith. One universal resolution prevailed : " From this belief no one can move us, neither angels nor men, neither fire nor sword, nor water, nor any tortures." In that vast throng of clergy and laity Prince Vartan Mamigonian, the valiant com- mander-in-chief of the Christian host, lifted his eloquent voice in a thrilling exhortation. "I entreat you, my brave companions," said he, " fear not the number of the heathen, withdraw not your necks from the terrible sword of a mortal man. That the Lord may give the victor)' into our hands, that we may annihilate their power and lift on high the standard of truth." In the morning, with the clash of arms, the army of the Persians was advancing. No time could be lost ; the decisive battle was soon on ! After partaking of the Holy Communion, the Armenians marched on with brave hearts and with these words on their lips : " May our death be like the death of the just, and may the shedding of our blood resemble the blood-shedding of the prophets ! May God look in mercy on our voluntary self-ofTering, and may he not deliver the Church into the hands of the heathen!" The battle raged furiously. Never fought men with greater LEGENDARY PORTRAIT OF VARTAN MAMIGOMAN. THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. I15 heroism. Thougli few in number, and though their noble commander was first among the slain, the courage of the determined heroes of the Cross increased until they shook the Persian throne to its foundation ; and the Persian monarch, retreating in confusion, sought compromise, granting religious liberty. This was the last of Zoroastrianism, and from this blow it never recovered. SEPARATION FROM THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. It was these persecutions which we have just de- scribed that prevented Armenia's representation in the fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon, at which Eutyches was condemned for his heresy relating to the person of Christ. Our Church reserved its decision, and was generally supposed to have indorsed the her- esy ; but this was by no means the case. Owing to the poverty of our languages in theological terms, we had at that time but one word for "nature" and "person"; consequently the declaration of the council that Christ possessed two natures in one person was unintelligible to the Armenian Church. They had no language in which to express it. In 451, therefore, this doctrine was formally annulled by our patriarch in full synod, an act which resulted in the separation of the Armenian from the Greek and Roman churches, Documentary evidence is not wanting to show that the Armenian Church was essentially orthodox at that time and has ever been so. Her indifference to theological discussion and her traditional reverence for antiquity, coupled with a rooted aversion to rationalism and skepticism, have preserved this Church from the con- Il6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. fusion in which theological controversy has involved all the Eastern churches. These facts are not generally recognized by European and American historians, who have too often relied on bigoted Latin and Greek sources for their information. It was the attitude of the Armenian Church in standings aloof from the indorsement of the Couiicil of Chalcedon which secured its independence and prevented it from being absorbed into the Greek and Roman hierarchies. RELATIONS TO ROME. For many centuries the Church suffered the meddle- some interference of the Pope at Rome, who tried to place it in subordination to the papal power. Many apostatized to Rome (notably since the Council of Florence, 1439 ^- ^O' pei'hpps in the hope of better protection from a stronger and more dominant organi- zation. The superior scliools of the Jesuits also undoubtedly attracted a large number from the national Church. Nor is this all. Much of the superstition of the Greek Church has crept in and has exerted a pernicious influence on the national religion, robbing it of its pristine purity and simplicity. In the twelfth century Merses Lambronasses, a celebrated Armenian orator, in a masterly speech, advocated the union of the two churches. The laity and clergy, however, unani- mously rejected the idea, feeling that it threatened their independence. Moreover, the doctrines and usages of the two churches differ widely in. many par- ticulars. In particular it should be observed that, while the Armenian Church claims to be orthodox, it does Il8 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. not claim to be the only orthodox church, and does not deny communion to the members of the Greek and Roman cliurches. The Armenian Church is liberal, while the Greek is exclusive in the extreme. Whether owning allegiance to Rome, a convert to the evangelical missions, or yet withrn the fold of the native Church, the Armenian Christian still esteems Etchmiadzin the most sacred shrine of national adora- tion. Most ancient of monastic foundations, and the patriarchal throne of Armenia throughout all Christian ages, there is no shrine so interwoven with Armenia's national memories. Here is the first St. Gregory's church, traditionally founded on a spot where Christ descended (as its name implies, etch meaning "descent," and miadzin "only-begotten"). Tiie Armenians believe that this famous shrine, at the foot of Mt. Ararat, stands on the site of the first Armenian church of Thaddeus the Apostle, which was erected a. d. 40. They also believe that Thaddeus was martyred . on a stone near by, and that his bones were sub- sequently removed and buried in the present build- ing, which was erected in a. d. 650. It is cuneiform in shape and of colossal size, and is made of blocks of hewn stone. Its erection consumed twenty years, and new parts have since been added at different times. Above the entrance are figures of the twelve Apostles and seven deacons in bas-relief, surrounded by angels and cherubim. Its interior is elaborately decorated with the ornaments usual in Armenian places of wor- ship and with inscriptions and many memorial tablets of ancient date. THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. II9 THE CATHOLICOS. The organization of the Armenian Church is rep- resentative. Of all the clerical ofificers of the Church the Catholicos ranks highest, the Catholicos at Etch- miadzin being supreme. The present Catholicos is Rt. Rev. Migrditch Khirimian. This great and venerable man of God, who sits to-day upon the patriarchal throne of St. Gregory the Illuminator, is held in the same esteem by the Armenians throughout the world as Gladstone by the English and the Christian world at large. He is universally known among our people 2iS Hairig — dear little father. Born at Van in 1820, and educated at the monasteries of Lim and Gdootz upon the islands of Lake Van, his early life was devoted to educational and literary pursuits. In 1854, having taken holy orders, he was appointed superior of Varak Monastery near Van, where he founded a school and set up a printing press — the first, and indeed the last, in that extensive domain. He established a monthly review, a library, and a museum. In i860, after having traveled in Caucasus two years, he was made a superior in the historic monastery of St. Garabed of Moush. There, too, his extraordinary talents found ample scope in making the sadly neglected and dark- ened interior of Armenia a center of light and culture. In 1868 he was consecrated bishop, and the following year he was elected Patriarch of Constantinople, to the enthusiastic satisfaction of the Armenians. From the very beginning of his activities, his stanch patriotism had made him persofia noii grata to the Turkish government. Soon after his installation, upon I20 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the first audience with the Sultan, he so ardently and boldly championed the cause of his oppressed flock that he had to resign his office in 1873. Although retiring from the patriarchate, he did not relinquish his patri- otism. In 1878, at the head of the Armenian deputa- tion, he pleaded the cause of his oppressed fellow-Chris- tians at the Berlin Congress ; and, as a result, the 6ist article, a clause looking to the amelioration of the exist- ing condition, was inserted. In the following year we find this saintly man in the district of Van, saving people of all creeds and races from a destructive famine. In 1885, ^vhile he was engaged in Armenia in educational work and other enterprises tending to the general wel- fare of his beloved countrymen, the Sultan became greatly alarmed at his influence and summoned him to Constantinople. While there repeated attempts upon his life were made by the Turkish government, and he was finally banished to Jerusalem, where he was shadowed by the government detectives. On May 17, 1892, to the entire satisfaction of the Armenians everywhere, the noble Hairig was unanimously elected as the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of all the Armenians ; and .-.pon Czar Alexander's sanction of the election he was ..aken from his exile to Etchmiad- zin, and there in the cathedral, with all the pomp and ritual of this ancieni Church, he was invested with the mantle of St. Gregory the Illuminator and Nerses the Great. The author, when in Constantinople in 1889, had the rare privilege of an extended interview with this highest dignitary of the Armenian church and people. He was conducted by the attending clergy of His RIGHT REV. MIGRDITCH KHIRIMIAN, THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICOS. 122 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Grace into the presence of a man bowed with years and honors, clothed in the usual black gown, with a strong and resolute face, a flowing beard, and a forehead indic- ative of clear and spontaneous thought. This person- age was none other than Khirimian Hairig, by whom the author was cordially received; and the memory of his pa- ternal advice and apostolic blessing will ever linger in his mind as a rare inspiration. When about to depart, the venerable man presented his young countryman with "The Pearl of the Kingdom of Heaven," "The Dis- course on the Cross," " Sirac and Samuel," and "The Family of Paradise," original autograph volumes of fervent Christian sentiments which are held as priceless additions to his library. The executive authority of the Catholicos may be compared to that of the Pope, as he has entire super- vision of the general interests and work of the Church throughout the world. His authority, however, is burdened with no dogma of infallibility. After being elected by all the archbishops, he must be confirmed by the Czar of Russia, who guarantees his protection and enforces his decrees. This custom had its origin in 1750, when in the face of persecution our Patriarch appealed to the Czar, and since then our Church has been in a partial sense sheltered by the Russian Church, though not in communion with it. This custom was re-enforced in 1828, when a large portion of Armenia was ceded to Russia, the site of Etchmiadzin itself be- coming a part of the Czar's dominions. THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. 123 ECCLESIASTICAL ORGANIZATION. There is also a Catholicos at Sis, in the ancient prov- ince of Cicilia, and one at Akhtamar, upon the island of Lake Van ; and two Patriarchs, one at Constantino- ple and one at Jerusalem. The Armenian Patriar- chate at Constantinople was first established in 1461 by Sultan Mohammed IL, who, having captured the city, invited Bishop Hovagnem of Brusa to the office. The function of the Patriarch at Constantinople is more of a political nature, representing the Armenian nation and Church to the authorities. Ecclesiastically, he holds the rank of a bishop, being chosen from a body of one hundred and forty members of the National Assembly, which sits at Constantinople; but his election must be confirmed by the Sultan of Turkey. Next in order are the archbishops and bishops, who are elected to their office by the entire nation and ordained by the Cathol- icos at Etchmiadzin. Formerly it was the custom to ordain these officers at Caesarea or Sis, but in the patriarchate of Nerses the Great, who lived 363 a. d., the present practice was inaugurated. After his ordination a bishop retires to a room in the church for a season of fasting and prayer. During this time he studies the ritual and forms of the Church, and at its conclusion is invested with the power of absolu- tion. The bishops are more highly educated than the priests, being elected from an order known as Yar- tabets, or doctors of theology. Indeed the Vartabets represent the highest culture of the nation, and to them it is indebted for most of its literature. The priest, or derder, is chosen by the people from 124 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. among themselves. As a rule he is a venerable man with a long beard. Celibacy is not compulsory, but a priest cannot rise higher than his order while his wife is living. He performs the marriage ceremony, adminis- ters baptism, officiates at funerals, takes charge of the morning services, and looks after the general spiritual w^elfare of the local church. He receives no salary, but depends on contributions for his support. The Armenian monks are of the order of St. Basil, and live after a much severer rule than those of the Greek Church. The Armenian Church is apostolic in its teachings, orthodox in its form, episcopal and liberal in its nature. In theology it is Augustinian, adopting, the Apostolic, the Nicene and the Athanasian creeds. Both in its doctrinal and ceremonial aspects it has more affinity now to the high Anglican Church than to any other branch of Christianity. It embraces the doctrine of tiie Trinity, and believes in the incarnated divinity of Christ, separated but blended in perfect harmony in an unapproachable life. It declares that the Holy Spirit is an essence emanating from God, and that it is the source of union between man and God. It believes in the adoration and mediation of saints, but not in the purgatorial penance, though prayer and entreaties are offered for the pardon of departed souls, Contrary to the Greek and Roman churches, it places the Bible in the hands of the people, believing in the potency of the inspired Word for the conviction and salvation of souls. The worship of the Church is litur- gical ; its liturgy, though ancient and extensive, is yet most beautiful in style and devout in religious senti- THE ARMENIAN CHURCH. I25 ment. Every morning at sunrise, and every evening at sunset, the people assemble in the churches, at which time the Scriptures are chanted or read, the sermon be- ing usually preached on Sundays. The ceremonies are always performed in the ancient or classical Armenian, and it is not uncommon for the people to go home before or even during the preaching, because of the lengthy liturgy. The sign of the cross is used at all services. The adoration of pictures of saints and of the cross is believed to be of special efficacy. There are seven sacraments — baptism, confirmation, the eucharist, penance, ordination, marriage, and ex- treme unction. The Armenian Church practices a triple immersion of infants, and teaches that by it origi- nal sin is washed away, while actual sin requires auricular confession and penance. Confirmation is ad- ministered immediately after baptism, the child being anointed with holy oil. The doctrine of transub- stantiation is regarded as extremely important, un- leavened bread dipped in wine being used in the sacrament. Penance consists in fasting, which occurs every Wednesday and Friday, and also in abstaining from eggs and meat of all kinds. Confession consti- tutes a necessary preparation for participation in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. Extreme unction is administered only to the ecclesiastics. There are also many sacred holidays, among which is Christmas, cele- brated on the 1 8th of January ; Epiphany on the 6th. Persecuted by the relentless Saracen, and by the still more murderous Mongol, Tartar, and Turk, Armenians have always held their ground patiently and heroically, 126 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. and songs of hallelujah they have sung above all strife and conflict. Not with internal controversies, but with the red blood of martyrdom, have they maintained their religion. The historian Gibbon has well said : " Under the rod of oppression the zeal of the Armenians is fer- vent and intrepid. They have often preferred the crown of martyrdom to the white turban of Mahomet." During the wild storm of massacres that swept over the Armenians from the valley of the Euphrates to the city of Byzantium, many of them had the choice of death or a denial of Christ ; and, infused with a fortitude from Heaven, they unhesitatingly chose death. " We cannot deny our Jesus," tliey said, and the Moslem bayonets pierced them to the heart. Indeed, the countless hosts that thus died the death of hero-martyrs, with the name of the Saviour on their lips, bear an eloquent testimony to the truth that even in this a^e of materialism and skepticism there are those who " have kept the faith." •^Tangible good has resulted from these long centu- ries of persecution ; and particularly has the present crisis drawn our people more closely together, and developed in the faithful an ironclad Christian charac- ter which successfully withstands the sensual allurements of Islamism. Thus the Armenian Church has served a double mission, not only teaching religion to the peo- ple, but acting as the conservator of the national spirit and unity. Patriotism and a common religion are two important uniting forces of a nation, and of the two religion has proved far more potent in its preserving power, for it is largely due to its influence that the Armenians, even under the Turkish yoke, still preserve EARLY MONASTERIES AND CHURCHES OF ARMENIA. 128 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. their national peculiarities, and are independent in spirit, if not in fact. That Church has for its corner-stone Christ Jesus, and rests on the firm foundation of the inspired revela- tion. Indeed, to the truth has been added some super- stition, and the religion once so full of spirit and devotion has somewhat lapsed into formalism ; and yet one cannot but admire the heroism with which our peo- ple have contended for their religion and Church. Ar- menia ever upholds her torch, which emits its gracious light. The voice of the Apostles, here heard so long ago, has never ceased to inspire our people, and the fire kindled in our souls has never sunk to ashes. In Armenia the Bible is and always has been in the hands of the people, and our customs and life are per- meated with its leavening principles. Thus the obsta- cles with which foreign missionaries usually have had to contend are not found here. Armenia is des- tined to a great awakening. Christian missions have flourished and increased here as in no other land. In conclusion we may well ask : Has the Western World at any time equaled Armenia in its religious loyalty? Does not Occidental Christendom, which to-day enjoys the peace, love, and cordial fellowship of Christianity, owe something to the Oriental pioneer who " fought to win tlie prize, and sailed through bloody seas " ? Let hands be clasped across the wide ocean that separates us ; and let Christendom hearken once more to the cry that comes in the night : " Come over and help us." THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. " Nearly everything which has been done for these ancient seats of Christianity by modern Christian nations has been done by American missionaries, whose schools and colleges, planted in various parts of western Asia, have rekindled the flame of knowl- edge, and stimulated the native Eastern churches to resume the intellectual activity which once distinguished them." — James Bryce. THE labor of evangelization among the Armenians has been in its nature fundamentally different from that of most other mission countries? No heathen idolatry was here with which to contend. No wooden gods and massive temples built by super- stition were to be torn down before Christianity could be introduced and a true God preached. The people already v/orshiped the God of the Christian ; the spiritual kingdom needed not a revolution so much as a reformation, and it is with complacency that Armenia can point to one of her own sons as the instigator and founder of the reform movement. We refer to a native priest living near Constantinople, who in the year 1760 put forth a manuscript copy of a book whose every page breathed the spirit of dissatisfaction with the existing state of religious life. Besides speaking in commendatory terms of the great reformer Martin Luther, it pointed out many errors into which the Church had gradually fallen, and urged that a reform of some sort was eminently necessary. 129 I30 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. This book, for some reason never printed, wielded a salutary influence in the minds of the people, espe- cially among the higher clergy, many of whom were inspired by it to more or less effective action. One of the indications of the spiritual lethargy of the times was the extreme rarity of Bibles ; and here we take occasion to say that no true and active Christian life is possible without some communion with that stimulus of the soul's higher existence, the Word of God. It was a most healthful sign when an urgent want began to be expressed for more copies of the sacred Book, and it was also a very encouraging expression of the pulse of Christendom when the British and Russian Bible societies, at about the same time, proffered their help in the field white unto harvest. As an outcome of the self-sacrificing interest of these two organiza- tions, in the years 1813, 1815, 1817, and 1823 about twenty thousand copies of the Sjcriptures were pub- lished in our language. The Armenians will ever gratefully remember this timely service. It was soon perceived, however, that much more good would be accomplished were the translations made in modern Armenian rather than in the ancient tongue. The latter the common people were not able to read, and most of the copies published fell, of necessity, into the hands of priests and monks. The modern Armenian is understood by educated and uneducated alike, and the Bible societies referred to did a very wise thing in putting forth another version adapted to the needs of both clergymen and laity, both poor and rich. The pioneer work in any mission country is the placing in the hands of its people the Word in their THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. I3I own language. It is the foundation for the future edifice, the sowing for the future harvest ; and the dis- tribution of the Scriptures, at this time was not without its significant fruit in later years, for it has not only produced a higher morality, not merely been the means of spiritual life, but it has also given impetus to mental activity. We now come to that which is most interesting to those who probably comprise the majority of the readers of this book — the work of the American Board of Foreign Missions. Missionary Levi Parsons met at Jerusalem, in 1821, several Armenians who, according to a custom still in vogue, were on a pil- grimage thither. Becoming interested in them, he proposed the establishment of a mission. They were all pleased with the idea and declared their country- men would be glad to have one established. The movement began in Constantinople, and thence gradually it extended to Smyrna, Brusa, Trebizond, Erzrum, Aintab, Marsovan, and so on throughout the Turkish Empire. Constantinople, a description of which will be found in a chapter devoted exclusively to that subject, has over eight hundred thousand inhabitants. The majority are Turks, but the Arme- nians are next in number, there being over two hun- dred thousand of our people. In 1831, when Rev. William Goodell, D. D., was called from Malta, where he engaged in missionary work, to this city, about one hundred thousand Armenians were there, offering a very attractive field for effort. This was in June, 1831; but scarcely had he established himself in Pera, one of the suburbs of the city, when a destructive fire 132 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. necessitated the removal of the mission to a town some few miles up the Bosphorus. Although thus meeting- with adversity, the original purpose of the mission was not allowed to suffer, and in the followinof year we again find Rev. William Goodell in Constanti- nople, this time accompanied by two more efficient workers, Revs. G. O. Dwight and William G. Schauffler, both Americans. These threv^ men of God were welcomed very cordially by the Patriarch, and suffered no inconvenience that could be prevented. It indeed seemed as though the mission were blessed of God. We will see later on how the Patriarch main- tained his first attitude. In our chapter on the Armenian Church we have described at length its services and forms of worship. It was the policy of the missionaries, from the inau- guration of their work, to leave severely alone the outer bulwarks of the Church, for this would only have instigated intense opposition from all quarters. It was thought best to transform first the spiritual, and that being changed, the outer manifestation in material forms and ceremonies would be done away with as a logical result. That this method was a success was soon seen, and the first fruits of labor were very encouraging. The first year Rev. Dr. Goodell, during a visit, was the means of converting two priests. It is interesting to note that six years afterward, when visiting the same place, sixteen were found who were believed to be earnest converts. In Brusa, too, where a mission had been established, the work was progressing finely. The first converts meant much for the cause, for they were THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. 1 33 two young teachers in influential positions, havino- under their tutorship many young people. But, despite all hopes, this tranquillity was not destined to continue long, and opposition very soon began to molest the workers. At Trebizond and at Erzrum, two mission stations of the American Board, outrages were con- tinually perpetrated. The Patriarch, heretofore so kindly disposed to all mission enterprises, fearing that the movement meant an encroachment upon the National Church, declared himself in word and deed against it. In the year 1837 patriarchal bulls were issued, threatening anathemas against all who should be found guilty of associatino- with missionaries or reading literature circulated by them. The Patriarch at Constantinople at that time was almost of papal power and influence. He ban- ished a number of Protestants from the capital, impris- oned many, and threatened to exile the missionaries, when the war between the Sultan and Mohammed Ali intervened, attracting the minds of the people to more serious problems. While we sadly lament this action of the Patriarch, we have no doubt as to his conscien- tiousness. He was, as he thought, protecting his people ; for since the State had fallen, the Church remained as the only bulwark of a distinctive nation- ality, and, if the past was to be taken into account, his fears were not ill-founded. Years before the Roman Church had materially weakened the Armenian Church by proselyting large numbers of her members. Was the present measure, then, injudicious ? We believe not. Let us consider, too, that conservatism is the dis- 134 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. tinctive characteristic of all Oriental Christians. Ritu- alism, in vogue for ages, becomes sacred. It cannot be denied that for centuries the conservative ritualism of the Armenian Church was a bulwark of defense ap^ainst Roman and Greek heresies. The severe animosity existing between the Eastern and Western churches is an apt illustration of the Armenian Church as well. During the siege of Constantinople by the Turks, the union of all Christians against Mohammed was desir- able, and to this end the papal legate was to confirm the reunion of Christendom at St. Sophia. Even at this critical moment the fiery protest rose, in unison with Patriarchal Gennadius, from all Grecian lips, "Give us the Sultan's turban rather than the Cardinal's hat." It is easy to imagine, if this was the feeling between cooriate churches, what the feelings aeainst a church which is altoQether foreign and stranee would be. Yet, aside from these considerations, the greatest cause of the Armenian Church's hostility to the evangelical movement was due to the Russian influ- ence, which was by far the dominant factor of the entire situation ; and it was, indeed under the influence of St. Petersburg alone that the Armenian Church became for a time a persecuting church. The nominally Christian Russia is the uncompromis- ing foe of religious liberty, and as such she used all meas- ures in her power to repress the incipient movement. The Russian minister at Constantinople was acting in a double capacity. When Rev. Dr. Cyrus Hamlin's Armenian teacher was about to be banished to Siberia for his affiliation with the evangelical movement, one of the pioneer American missionaries entered a pro- THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. I35 test. To this protest the Russian minister gave an emphatic answer in the following words, " I want you to understand that my master the Czar will never allow Protestantism to set foot in the Turkish Empire." In the recent agitation the Turkish crusade against the American missionaries was largely due to the pernicious influence of the despotic Czar. Things slowly came to a crisis ; the methods of persecution were many and diverse. Reports of the most absurd nature were circulated everywhere and believed, until the whole Church, with but few exceptions, changed its front to the offensive. Although in the year 1843 the Sultan, urged by the British minister. Sir Stratford Canning, and others, had ordered that no person in the empire should be persecuted for his religious opinions, anathemas and ex- communications were repeatedly issued and produced their dire effect upon the minds of the people. With excommunications came social degradation and dis- ofrace ; the accursed one was excluded from home and relatives, the bakers were forbidden to sell to him, and he was often confined in prison. The cruelties practiced upon the Christians in the three years following would take volumes to adequately relate. Many were the heroic souls, who, still inspired with zeal, remained steadfast through the storm of conflict. The culmination of it all was the formation in 1846 of the first Armenian Evangelical Church. However, before we enter into a detailed account of this movement, we propose to present a short account of a factor which all these years had exercised no little power as an auxiliary to the more strictly religious 136 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. work. Missionaries soon discovered that if the pre- senting of Christianity were accompanied by educa- tional work, much more tano-ible eood would be accomplished. Accordingly, from almost the very outset, schools were established at nearly every mission station ; thus the education of the intellect kept pace with the higher education of the heart. These are the handmaids of civilization. The school that probably had the most influence in this formative and unsettled epoch was that established at Constantinople in 1827. Indirectly the school had its origin in a farewell letter written by Jonas King, a manuscript copy of which was sent to some influ- ential Armenians in the capital. From this letter the conviction came that reformation was necessary, and the institution referred to was founded with an eminent and learned man, Peshtimaljian, at its head. We will not speak at length of the valuable services of this school of the mission ; suffice it to say that six years later fifteen of its graduates were ordained as priests, one of them, Der Kevork, being immediately placed at the head of another new school in the same city that had just been founded by the Armenians. Had it not been for tlie earnest work of the mission- aries, it is doubtful whether this school would have ever come into existence. The educational work increased in power and scope ; and in the following year, 1834, a high school was located at Pera. Its principal was a very consecrated young man by the name of Hohannes Sahakian, who a short time before had been a student at Constan- tinople. While there a New Testament had fallen -W' REV. CYRUS HAMLIN, D. D., LL. D. 138 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. into his hands, and as a residt he became an earnest Christian and gave some highly valuable assistance in the work of translation at the mission. His companion Senakerim, a teacher in the palace of the Patriarch, was converted about the same time, and also labored in a school for children at one of the stations. But even the schools received their share of the general persecution, and as a result of the interference of the vicar of the Armenian Patriarch, the High School at Pera was compelled to stop its work. How- ever, the result was not wholly evil, for another was immediately started at Hasskevy by a rich banker, with Sahakian as superintendent and Der Kevork as one of its teachers. Although this school, with an attendance of over six hundred, was recognized by the Armenian Synod and made a national institution, it was done away with the following year because of cer- tain threatenings made by a number of hostile bankers. The work at Smyrna was significant of a remarkable advance in a country where women were esteemed of little importance. Here a female seminary was opened and, owing to the urgent appeal of an influential citizen, not only repaid the former aid, but the mission soon became self-supporting. The influence of the school, with an attendance of about forty at the outset, cannot be estimated. Another important educational institution was the seminary at Bebek, a theological school", in which, besides a critical study of the Bible, were taught Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. As we mentioned before, it was not the object of the missionaries to attack the outworks of the National THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. 139 Church, nor to found a separate body. From the first they, along with the converted members, objected very seriously to being known by the designation " Prot- estants," or any other name that would appear as an indication of disunion. However, as persecution became more and more intense, it was apparent that something must be done; and when in 1846 an anath- ema was issued, formally excommunicating all who adhered to the new faith, nothing was left for the missionaries but to form a separate organization. Accordingly, in the following year a meeting was called at Constantinople, ai which the missionaries were present, and, after the reading of a covenant to which all assented, the first Evangelical Armenian Church became a reality, with a due recognition by the Turk- ish government as a separate religious community. What was intended to be only missionary work in the efforts of re-establishing a purer Christianity in an his- toric Christian church thus resulted in the organiza- tion of a separate religious institution. To whatever causes we may attribute this division, they will not alter the fact that it was a sad and disadvantageous occur- rence. This body, at first numbering forty souls, of which three were women, was presided over by one of the former students of the Peshtimaljian school, a man entirely worthy of the trust. The initiatory thus be- ino- taken, other churches were almost immediately organized in other parts of the country. In two years there was a very strong church at Aintab, which soon grew to a membership of two hundred and sixty-eight ; and others at Trebizond, Erzrum, and Marsovan, which were among the first missionary stations, and also at I40 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Nicomedia and Adabazar. Although the aggregate membership at this time was not over a thousand, it meant much as a beginning. We must not neglect to speak here of one of the leading benefactors of the new movement, Sir Stratford Canning, through whose untiring efforts concession after concession was made until the Protestant com- munity enjoyed almost the same measure of tolerance as the National Church. In the treaty of Paris, with the voluntary assent of the Sultan, these rights were incorporated and religious liberty was thus more fully insured. Free schools were organized to the number of thirty-eight, and the work progressed and widened in territory until it was found necessary to divide the field of labor into the four divisions of the present time — the Western Turkey Mission, embracing territorially as its stations Constanti- nople, Nicomedia, Brusa, Smyrna, Marsovan, Cajsarea Sivas, and Trebizond ; the Central Turkey Mission, lying to the south of the Taurus Mountains and to the west of the Euphrates valley, with Aintab and Marash as its principal stations; the Eastern Turkey Mission, including what lies between these two fields and the Persian and Russian borders, with its stations at Erzrum, Harput, Mardin, Bitlis, and Van ; and, lastly, the latest mission in European Turkey. Originally the Central Mission, which was organized in 1856, was known as the Southern Mission, while the Eastern and Western, organized in i860, were one, with the name of Northern Mission. As the work progressed it was a source of great satis- faction to see native preachers gradually taking places 142 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. as efficient pastors of the native congregations. They were rarely, if ever, compelled to call on the mission- aries for help, as nearly all the churches managed, by sacrifice on the part of both pastor and people, to be self-supporting from the beginning. Revivals became frequent and were the means of the conversion of many. In 1856 occurred a soul-stirring revival in Marsovan, my native city. The theological seminary at Bebek, not far from the capital, experienced a similar awakening, as also did Caesarea and numbers of smaller cities. Through the translations of Rev. Messrs. Riggs, Goodell, and Schauffler the work received a new impulse. The former, with the aid of an Armenian, put forth a translation of the Bible in Turko-Armenian, that is, the Turkish language written in Armenian. The latter performed a similar service for the ^Furks, his translations being in their own language, written in the sacred characters. Although these translations lent a wonderful impetus to the work, in 1874 it was deemed necessary to appoint a revision committee, who six years later put forth an excellent version, written in both the Armenian and Turkish letters. It would be useless in a short sketch of this kind to give a detailed account of the individual work of the missionaries, although we fain would do so. We must be satisfied with touching upon the more important events. We cannot pass, however, without some notice of associations and unions that came into being about this time as a result of the constantly increasing number of members of churches. THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. I43 Organization is necessary to systematic work, and in 1857 the churches at Nicomedia, Adabazar, and Bardi- zag, formed themselves into what was known as the Bithynian Association. A much larger and more important organization was the union of the Evangelical Armenian churches of Bithynia, now embracing twelve stations and churches. This was formed in 1864. The next year the Harput Evangelical Union came into existence — a union that did much in the promulgation of the Gospel among the Armenians living in the wild region of the Kurds, some little distance from Diarbekir. Othe>r potent organiza- tions were the Central and Cilician unions, formed at a later date. The results of these various associations were essentially good. Besides putting the churches in closer contact and sympathy with one another they learned to rely more upon themselves, and calls for aid from foreign countries became more and more infrequent. Nor must it be supposed that the work of evangeliza- tion was confined to the Evangelical Church alone, for many members of the old National Church, who were essentially Protestants, effected needed reforms. One of their measures was the publication of a new pra\ er book, which, though never used to any extent, created much interest and comment. No less encouraging was the fact that in the dissemination of the Scriptures, numbers of copies of the New Testament were dis- posed of to Mohammedans, which, though undoubt- edly bought for mere curiosity, could not fail to have some influence for good. Within late years, although the growth of the Church 144 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. has never been marvelous, its course cannot be said to have been entireK' without disturbing- influences. Calamity came in the shape of a dire famine, which prevailed in all Asia Minor during the years of 1874 and 1875. At this time thousands wandered about the streets of Marsovan and other cities, beeroino- bread from door to door. A large number died from famine, while some gratefully received aid from the missionaries at Csesarea and Marsovan. This kindness was not suffered to go unrewarded, for on account of it many opened their hearts to the words of the Gospel. We must especially speak in terms of praise of Rev. Mr. Farnsworth and Rev. C. C. Tracy, who did much to relieve the oreneral sufferino. Among institutions which are instrumental in the missionary work, the Bible House at Constantinople deserves special mention. Thousands of copies of the Scriptures are published here, in modern Armenian as well as in thirty other languages. They are quickly sold and read by people of various nationalities. Besides the Bible, this institution publishes books, tracts, and newspapers of a religious and educational character. While in Constantinople, it alwa)s afforded me great pleasure to visit this noble edifice and to enjoy the devotional services conducted there every Lord's Day. The progress and prosperity of educational work has been, and is, an inspiring fact. We have already alluded to its importance, and have mentioned some of the earliest schools. The Rev. Dr. Judson Smith, the secretary of the American Board, states that " Education has been a ^ CI H o 5 § M 2 146 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. marked feature of the work in these missions almost from the beginning, and nowhere else in the fields occupied by the board have we to-day so many institu- tions of a high grade so fully attended." For the great educator Rev. Dr. Cyrus Hamlin my country- men have a never-dying and the profoundest sense of gratitude. Aside from his educational enterprises, he has been in all his heroic exploits eminently successful. There are several higfher educational institutions at my home, Marsovan, among them being Anatolia College, where I studied. There is also a ladies' semi- nary and a theological seminary of no little repute. My former teachers, Rev. C. C. Tracy, D. D., and Rev. Geo. F. Herrick, D. D., an eminent Oriental scholar, are the founders and constant inspiration of Anatolia College. We have spoken of the theological school at Bebek ; others of a similar nature were founded soon afterward in Marash ; there is Central Turkey Female College, and at Scutari the Armenian College for Girls ; while Harput is the location of Euphrates College. Aintab, where missionary work has been exception- ally prosperous, is the site of the College of Central Turkey. But the institution of which Armenians may feel most proud is the well-known Robert College, named after its financial founder, Christopher R. Robert of New York City. This college, located first in Bebek and afterward on the heights of Roumeli Hissar, is one of the best institutions of the kind in the world, being well-equipped with excellent pro- fessors and enjoying the patronage of nearly every nationality. It was established in 1863, through the 148 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. influence of Rev. Dr. Cyrus Hamlin, an American who has since been its constant inspiration. Though not a missionary institution, yet the prosperity of Christian work among its students has equaled the highest expectations. Aside from these higher institutions, there are twenty-six high schools for boys ; nineteen boarding schools, or seminaries, for girls, with about two thou- sand students ; and three hundred and fifty common schools, containing more than sixteen thousand pupils. The young men are taking increasing interest in the Church, and a number of Young Men's Christian Associations have been organized. By no means the least blessing is the advancement of woman from her degradation to a plane of culture and refinement, chiefly owing to the liberality of the natives them- selves in the cause of female education. What a happy result, that the youth of both sexes share alike the opportunities of culture ! Prospects were never brighter. The number and rolls in the evangelical churches are larger than ever before, and the common-school system is one that promises great results in the advance of civilization. To this, the largest mission field of the American Board, 700 missionaries have been sent out at a cost exceeding the sum of $6,000,000. Its present prop- erty is worth $1,500,000; it has 176 missionaries now in the field, with 878 native trained ministers and assistants. The board has now 125 churches with about 13,000 members and 30,000 adherents, most of which number are Armenians. Indeed, for actual missionary work, our people have been selected as the THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. 149 first fruits of missionary effort because of their ready appreciation of the Bible as the Word of God ; and to this very day the work of evangehzation in tha country has been restricted to Armenians, Greeks, and PRESIDENT C. C. TRACY AND STUDENTS OF ANATOLIA COLLEGE. Others of ancient Christian churches, while the Turks and all other Mohammedan peoples have ever remained irresponsive and hostile to the light of the gospel. The missionaries from the very start discovered the impossibility of converting them to Christianity. 150 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Encouraged by their success among the Armenians and Greeks, the missionaries were ardently pursuing their work and laying plans for larger usefulness when the storm of Moslem hatred and fanaticism fell upon our land, devastating hamlet and town, city and province. In the afflicted provinces missionary work, as well as all business activity, was at a standstill ; and with gloomy apprehension for future labor the mis- sionaries stood at their posts and heroically continued their sacred work, hoping almost against hope for the return of peace and security. These noblest of America's sons and daughters acted in a double capacity : not only did they protect the Word, but at the same time, as a splendid illustration of true Chris- tianity, they reached out to succor the thousands of homeless and destitute Christians of our unhappy land. Herewith let me take occasion to express the everlasting thanks and the heart-felt gratitude of my countrymen for that noble company of Christians in the United States and England, whose hearts being touched by the terrible story of Armenia's woes, sent out material aid in the form of practical sympathy. Such relief has been administered to the best advan- tage through the American missionaries as well as through the agency of the American Red Cross Asso- ciation. The Red Cross organization, purely philan- thropic in its nature and purport, took the field with its efficient president, Miss Clara Barton, at the head of her corps of trained workers. That such a move- ment was not in accord with the Sultan's policy of Armenia's extermination was sufficiently apparent at the very outset. The Turkish government hampered THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. I5I and opposed it, and even went so far as to order the missionaries who were dispensing relief out of the country, with a threat that, should they fail to with- draw within three days, serious consequences would follow. Indeed, the European missionaries, in compli- ance with such demands, abandoned the relief work, while the American missionaries held their ground. Meanwhile this mandate of the Turkish government was so vigorously and firmly opposed by the Euro- pean powers that the Sultan was obliged promptly to change his attitude upon the subject, and even decided to send troops for the protection of the missionaries. Such an unlooked-for act of the Porte is indeed an en- tire corroboration of Mr. Gladstone's terse declaration, " The Turk o-ives heed to nothincr but an ultimatum." Nevertheless, in the recent general destruction of life and property, this momentous movement of long prestige, and so largely carried on among the Armenians, has sustained an almost crushing blow at the hands of the Turk. In the whirlwind of butchery and pillage nearly all the mission stations, from the valley of the Euphrates to the Mediterranean, have shared the general calamity of Moslem violence and destruction. True no American missionary has been killed, but many of them have suffered the loss of all their property, have seen their students, converts, and servants slain before their eyes, their flag insulted and trailed in the dust, and they themselves have been compelled to seek a place of shelter. In Harput alone eight of the twelve American buildings within the inclosure were looted and burned, the loss being esti- mated at one hundred thousand dollars. Many of the 152 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. occupants were killed, and the missionaries barely escaped with their lives. It must not be supposed that this was simpl)- the attack of a mob ; for Turkish mobs are not equipped with artillery. The Harput institution of missionaries was assailed by Turkish soldiers, who trained their field pieces upon the build- ings. Such deliberately planned official havoc is more inexcusable when we remember that the Sultan had given specific assurances to the United States that the lives and property of the missionaries should be pro- tected. As yet not a word of apolog}' nor a cent of indemnity has been exacted from the Turkish govern- ment. The truth of the matter is that of all the civi- lized nations the United States has proved the most inactive in protecting the natural rights of its citizens in the Ottoman Empire. On this point Dr. Grace N. Kimball, who has labored for the past few years as a missionary among the Armenian refugees, makes this assertion, " Even the American flag was powerless to shield us ; and had it not been for the protection of British consuls, we would have suffered the same fate as the Armenians." That the missionaries have vested rights, property guarantees of protection dating back to 1830, and a generation of work behind the present, no one will deny; yet it is sufficiently evi- dent that American citizens in Turkey have not been protected nor their wrongs redressed. In the midst of this violence and treachery the late American minister to Constantinople, Mr. Alexander Terrell of Texas, cut a pitiable and shocking figure. His diplomatic incompetence and ignorance of the Eastern situation on the one hand, and his 154 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. weak, faltering", and pusillanimous policy toward the Sultan on the other, made him a most unfit man for such a responsible post at such a critical time. Brave and true as I hold America to be, she should make her " Stars and Stripes " a protection to her people, her best people — the benefactors of my race and, indeed, of humanity. In such a crisis both principle and prudence demand a bold and unflinching course of action. That the Sultan has ever proved a persistent and cruel violator of all his treaty obligations should satisfy common sense that further promises would not be worth the breath that uttered them. He will not yield to reason or entreaty, but he has yielded and will yield to the argument of force. The only sort of argument for which the grim tyrant of the Bosphorus has any respect is that of ironclads and cannon. After the massacres of Syrian Christians by the Turks in i860, the French citizens having suffered, the French crovern- meiit dispatched a corps of ten thousand men to Syria ; and as a result redress was obtained at once. Sixty of the ringleaders were put to death, and the memory of such intervention has given security to S^ria and to French citizens ever since. Unless the United States rises above its present lukevvarmness and inefficiency in defending its citizens and their interests at the cannon's mouth, as the French did after the massacre in i860, further and worse outrapfes will be the result. For many years Algerian pirates preyed on the com- merce of Christian nations in the Mediterranean Sea, and the powers of Europe dared not to raise their arms against them, when in 181 5 this young America arose and dealt them such a blow that no more robbers could THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH. 1 55 be seen on the Mediterranean. Would that the old fire of heroism were rekindled to-day in the American breast ! I doubt not that, should the United States rise against the Turk, there would not be a nation in Europe but would welcome its intervention as the least dangerous solution of the Turkish question; for this country has no territory to acquire, no balance of power in Europe to break, no prestige to win. SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. "Home of my childhood! how affection clings And [lovers round thee with iier seraph wings! Dearer thy hills, though clad in aulunm brown, Than fairest summits which the cedars crown." — Oliver Wendell Holmes. AS I turn to this chapter the reiiienihrances of my ^ ^ Oriental home rise before me, hallowed and strengthened b}' time and absence. Over its shadows and sunshine are thrown gleams of mellow light that bear my lonely soul on the wings of emotion to the far-awa)' land that rocked my cradle. What days of sparkling mirth ! what days of saddening gloom \ Yet to my longing heart the sunshine and shadows of home are merged in a heavenly radiance. 1 o )'ou, ni)' reader, I now extend an invitation to walk with me among the scenes of my boyhood. Our people are deeply interested in your bright coimtry and people, and I am stire in turn you would ^nd much to interest you in the manners and customs of our old and romantic land. Our culture and manners, perhaps not always of the highest, are always clean and respect- able ; our heroism, true ; our beliefs, sincere ; and our faults are not crimes, but delusions. Were our country and people free from the iron grasp of Turkish aliens, brighter homes and more speedy progress would be ours. And yet, strange as it may seem, the power of 156 AN ARMENIAN FAMILY — RELATIVES OF THE AllHOR, ARMENIAN CHILDREN. 158 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. tyranny, with all its stagnation and blight, has prac- tically exerted no influence in marring the holiness of family ties. It is certainly a lasting tribute to the character of the Armenians that, after five centuries of subjection, no social intercourse or intermarriage has been effected with the Turk. Let us journey, then, through the land of Asia Minor, where the homes of these two peoples, though standing side by side, nevertheless present the widest contrasts in their inner life. As the morninor liaht first touches the mountain tops, so our glimpses of home life begin with the higher classes. But whether high or low, all have to pass through the same filth)-, zigzag streets that run from everywhere to nowhere. So thronged are they with dogs, horses, donkeys, and sometimes with long trains of supercilious camels and buffalo arabas, that you have to challenge everything and elbow every being for the right of way. Above all, a lively time is expected with the famous Turkish dogs when they are contending for a bone. Fortunately, in the portions of the country where the Armenians and Europeans dwell they have somewhat disappeared from the streets. Those you meet are quite respectful to Mo- hammedan and Christian alike ; while the old breed would howl at a Christian, but remain quiet when a Turk passed by. Even the dogs are getting civilized, which is more than can be said of the bipeds of the slums. Of the defunct dogs we may say the redcoats were their assassins, and loaded walking-sticks, used in the night, the weapons. One English sea-rover vowed he A CHARACTERISTIC STREET SCENE, l6o THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. would kill a dog every night when returning to ship from his games. He kept his word and more, for when unlucky at cards he would dispatch two or three curs in ambling down the hill. Dogs became rapidly scarce on his route. At length he took to the narrow side streets, and one night a fellow friendly to dogs — of course a Turk — waylaid the Briton, and with some assistance sent him to his berth a battered specimen of humanity. Besides the dogs, it is characteristic of Turkish streets to be peopled here and there by a careless, lazy- lookinof set of vaofabonds sunningr themselves on the street corners. Next to tramps they are the most ab- solutely good-for-nothing nuisances on earth, without an excuse for their wandering existence except the fact that they were born. Their motto seems to be, " Grab and eat as much as you can, and whine." They do nothing but hang around anywhere and everywhere, all day and every day. Lucky for them if they can outdo some wandering dog in securing the most shaded corner where they may stretch their lazy bones in peace. Fruit-sellers, Turkish grinders, and hamnials, or porters, are also to be seen on every hand. It gives a strange effect to the street scene to see the houses and yards, like castles or picturesque fortifica- tions, surrounded by solid black walls, varying in height from ten to twenty-five feet, with a heavy gate before each house and an iron hammer suspended as a knocker from its center. Most of the residences are two-story houses, built of sun-dried brick around an open court- yard, and plastered within and without. There are few stone buildings and still fewer of wood. Most of the SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. l6l houses have a balcony overlooking a tangled garden, with window ledges abloom with flowers. The roofs are tiled, and the numerous small windows are closely latticed on the outside with a network of iron bars arranged in pairs. As a rule, the residences are very close together, with a space between them of not more than six feet, so that a distant view of the dwellings makes them appear as though erected in a block. Entering the gate, and passing through the yard, we come to the house. In the courtyard, and in the rear of the building, there are generally gardens, with lofty trees surrounding the house and overshadowing it with their green branches. Sparkling fountains play in the rich sunshine amid flower beds, exquisite in variety and hue ; while the air is perfumed with roses and made melodious by the song of the nightingale. These gar- den spots are found in profusion in my birthplace, the city of Marsovan, and may be seen with no less fre- quency in most of the cities and villages. Indeed, the whole land is one of bloom and blossom. As we enter the house we meet with a most cordial reception from the household, for hospitality and kindness to strangers are the first law in the Orient, and are a most pleasing and characteristic feature of Armenian society. The kind words and the eager display of hospitality, each vying with the other in supplying your wants, form a striking scene to an American. Indeed, our people are the most friendly of friends ; they enjoy life because they make other people enjoy it. Home is a philanthropic institution with them — so much so that some regret the introduc- tion of Western ideas in the founding of hospitals and l62 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. orphanages, since custom will not allow a stranger within the gates of an Armenian home to suffer from lack of food or shelter. He is given a seat at the table, and to sup with the master of the house means to lodge with him and to be furnished with slippers and night- robes. The guest is expected to entertain all callers with some account of himself, his country, its laws, reliorion, manners, and customs. Interchanoe of visits amongr neig-hbors and friends is the rule, for the people love to congregate and greatly enjoy meeting together to smoke and talk over their affairs. In Christian homes men and women meet in the reception room ; but generally ladies, gentlemen, and children form separate groups and' cliat on general topics, which vary according to the social position and intelligence of the company. In a Turkish house there are two apartments, the hai'emlik and selanilik — the former the ladies' reception room and the latter for gentlemen. Holidays and long winter evenings are usually de- voted to a pleasant and ancient pastime, which is indeed one of the happiest features of Oriental life. The master of the house opens the door of the house and welcomes the guest with numerous expressive gestures of whole-hearted hospitality. In the immediate en- trance of the house there is a place where the etiquette of the country requires you to remove your shoes and put on slippers before entering the inner apartments ; but hats, like the bonnets of American ladies, are not necessarily taken off. After exchanging graceful salu- tations, formal civilities, and inquiries after each other's health, the guest is ushered into a cheery court and 164 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. thence into a reception room, where coffee, the univer- sal beverage of the Levant, is served on a silver tray in tiny goblets like egg-cups. The square room which the company occupies is comfortably fitted and ar- ranged with a profusion of divans, embroidered cushions, and mattresses for sitting and reclining, and perhaps a few chairs. The floor is covered with rich Oriental rugs, while curtains and shawls of fine texture hang about the sides and across the ceiling. In the center of the room is placed a stove or a charcoal brazier. The room is lighted with bright lamps, the old-fashioned tallow candle or olive-oil wick havincr been lone aban- doned. The lady callers all cluster about the genial hostess, who sits by her babe singing, soft and low, the sweet, simple cradle song ; while the men may be en- gaged in a discussion of current events, though they often exchange remarks with tlie ladies. The little folks have a lively time by themselves in much the same kind of merry, innocent frolic that is the delight of American boys and girls. Oriental children, too, have their marbles, their skipping-rope, and little toy plows, into which cats and kittens are harnessed in play. Lit- tle girls with rosy faces are clustered with their dolls and kittens around the good old grandmother, who tells them riddles and amusing stories, while the white- bearded patriarch, bowed with years, begins to recount anecdotes of 'his bygone days. The remarks of the venerable man are always interesting, yet they reveal no progress in the lapse of time ; for the Oriental life and customs have been preserved with little change from a remote antiquity. The house servant is busied with such functions as arranging the shoes in pairs, that SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. l6$ the guests may easily find them when departing. After games and conversation, the company indulge in ciga- rettes, coffee, sweetmeats, and the bubbling narghileh, or flexible rosewater pipe, a smoking apparatus very similar to the hookah of Hindostan, which is always filled with Shiraz tobacco. Time wears pleasantly on, and the guests are sure to depart late, nearly always with the satisfaction of having had an enjoyable time. A cratherinor like the one described is a oreat time for story-telling. Many capital anecdotes are current among the people, and nearly all have a moral. Nasr- ed-din-Hodja, a teacher and notorious wag, who is the ideal hero or victim of many Munchausen-like tales, is supposed to live in Bagdad. Several stories concern- ing him are worth recording in English. For the translation of the following I am indebted to Hon. Samuel S, Cox, the late American Minister to Turkey : A belated beggar knocked at the Hodja's door. "What do you want?" he called down from an upper window. " Come down, good Hodja, and I will tell you," replied the mendicant. Having descended and opened the front door, the beggar asked for alms. "Come upstairs," said the Hodja, and the mendi- cant was taken to the top floor. " I am sorry, poor man," said the Hodja, " but I have no alms for you." "Why did you not tell me so at the door?" inquired the beggar angrily. l66 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. " Why did you not tell me what you wanted before I came down ?" retorted the Hodja. One day the Hodja was too lazy to preach his usual sermon at the mosque. He simply addressed himself to the congregation, saying : " Of course you know, O faithful Mussulmans, what I am going to say?" The congregation cried out with one voice: " No, Hodja, we do not know." " Then, if you do not know, I have nothing to say to you," replied the Hodja, and left the pulpit. Next time he again addressed his congregation, saying : "Know ye, O faithful Mussulmans, what I am going to say to you ? " Fearing that if, as on the previous time, they said " No." the Hodja would leave them again without a sermon, all cried : " Yes, Hodja, we do know." " Then, if you know what I am going to say," quietly remarked the Hodja, "of course, there is no need of my saying it," and he again stepped down from the pulpit, to the consternation of the congregation. A third time, the Hodja again put his question : " Know ye, O faithful Mussulmans, what I am going to preach to you ?" The congregation, determined not to be disappointed again, took counsel on the question. Accordingly some of them replied, " No, Hodja, we do not know," while others cried, " Yes, Hodja, we do know." "Very well, then," said the Hodja, "as there are ^^. l68 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. some of you who do know, and others who do not know what I am going- to say, let those who do know tell it to those who do not know," and quickly left the pulpit. " O Hodja ! when will the end of the world come ? " "Ask me sometliing difficult; that is quite easy to answer," is the calm reply. " When my wife dies it will be the end of half the world ; when I die it will be the end of the w4iole world." The Hodja borrows from a friend a large copper vessel in wdiich to do his washing. A few days after- ward the vessel is returned clean, washed and polished. Inside of it is another, but much smaller, copper vessel. "What is this, Hodja?" asks his friend, "I lend you one vessel and you bring me back two ! " " It is very curious," says the Hodja. " It appears that your vessel, while in my possession, must have given birth to a baby vessel. Of course both belong equally to you." "Oh, thank you, good Hodja," says the man, laugh- ing, and without more parley agrees to take back both vessels. Some time after this the Hodja again applies for the loan of the large vessel — " the mother vessel," as he describes it. The demand is readily granted. Be- fore leaving, the Hodja inquires for the health of the " baby vessel." He expresses pleasure at hearing that it is doing extremely well. A week, then a month, elapses, but no Hodja appears to return the borrowed vessel. The proprietor, at length losing patience, goes himself to obtain it. SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. 169 " Very sorry," says Hodja, "but your copper vessel is dead." " Dead, Hodja ! " cries the other in surprise ; " what do you mean ?" "Just what I say," replies the Hodja, "your vessel is dead." " Nonsense, Hodja !" says the man— irritated at the Hodja's quiet manner; "how can a copper vessel die?" " Read up your natural history, my good friend,' answers the imperturbable, puffing quietly at his long pipe, "and you will see that everything that gives birth to a child must inevitably succumb in due course to the fate of all mortals. You were willing enough to believe that your vessel had given birth to a 'baby vessel.' I do not see, therefore, why you should now doubt my word as to its being dead." One night, before retiring, the Hodja said to his wife : " If it rain to-morrow, I shall go to my field ; if it does not rain, I shall go to my vineyard." " Say ' If it please God,' Hodja," suggested his wife. " Whether it please God or not," replied the Hodja ; " I shall go to one or the other." " Hodja," said his wife, " say ' If it please God.' " " Nothing of the kind," said the Hodja ; " I shall go." Next day it was not raining, and the Hodja started to go to his vineyard. He did not go far, however, before he was stopped by the king's troopers, who com- pelled him to work all day in repairing the roads, and it was quite late at night when he was set free. By the time he had arrived at his house everyone was fast 170 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. asleep. His wife, putting her head out of the window, asked who it was. " Wife," repHed the Hodja, " if it please God, it is I." A friend calls on the Hodja to borrow his donkey. "Very sorry," says the Hodja, who does not want to lend the animal, "but the donkey is not here; 1 have let him out for the day." Unfortunately, just at that moment the donkey begins to bray loudly, thus giving the direct lie to the Hodja. " How is this, Hodja ?" says his friend. "You say tiie donkey is away, and here he is braying in the stable." The Hodja, nothing daunted, replies in a grave manner : " My dear sir, please do not demean yourself so low as to believe the donkey rather than myself — a fellow- man and a venerable Hodja with a long gray beard." The Hodja used to teach in the parish school. He had taught his pupils that whenever he happened to sneeze they should all stand up and, clapping their hands together, cry out, " God grant you long life, Hodja!" This the pupils regularly did whenever the Hodja sneezed. One day the bucket gets loose and falls into the well of the schoolhouse. As the pupils are afraid to go down into the well to fetch up the bucket, the Hodja undertakes the task. He accordingly strips, and tying a rope to his waist, asks his pupils to lower him SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. l?^ carefully into the well and pull him up again when he gives the sign .1. The Hodja goes down, and having caught the bucket, shouts to his pupils to pull him up again, but when they have drawn him nearly out of the well he suddenly sneezes. At this the pupils imme- diately let go the rope, begin to clap their hands to- gether, and shout down the well, " God grant you long life, Hodja!" In many Armenian homes pianos and organs are coming into use, but they are not as yet common. Our young men play the flute with exquisite expression. The old-fashioned bagpipe of the Orient is a peculiar instrument, the bag being of sheepskin, with a small mouthpiece, and the instrument being a combination of covvhorn and three reeds with holes in them. The dulcimer is of Oriental origin, and has to some extent taken the place occupied by the pianoforte in an Amer- ican home. The music of the Orient is characterized by a plaintivenesss quite charming to the ear, which is due to the frequent use of the minor keys. Now comes our dinner time ! Will you not come with us, my reader, for it gives us peculiar delight to have Occidentals accompany us to the table. I assure you our Armenian cuisine is suited to Western palates, and our people well understand that a man's stomach is an easy avenue to his heart. First hands are washed, and then all are seated around the table, with brightly polished brazen plates, neatly folded napkins, and spoons of boxwood and tortoise shell by the side of each. Soup comes first ; then p'lav, a dish resembling 172 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. porridge ; then meat, cooked in various Oriental styles, similar in general to those of France, but lambs are roasted whole in Homeric fashion ; then olives, cheese, and fruit. Lastly come Jialwah, or sweetmeats from Smyrna and Scio. After coffee-sipping and chibouk- puffing the ceremony of eating comes to a close. Wines of the rarest vintage are to be found on the table during all the courses. SUPERSTITIONS. Among the low and ignorant, where popular educa- tion is of a meager sort, superstition has full sway — es- pecially among the Turks. Many of their beliefs are amusing to strangers, though Orientals believe in these absurdities as firmly as they do in religion. For instance, they deem it a serious matter to be the vic- tim of an evil e)'e, though fortunately a remedy has been invented for every emergency. Garlic and a word from the Koran are antidotes for the evil eye. Dog bread is used as a charm, and blue beads on horses, donkeys, and buffaloes are charms against the malice of the envious ancl evil-eyed. That nothing must be wasted that can be used as food by dog or fish is a superstition tending to promote economy. You brino- bad luck by entering a house with the right foot. The darkness is peopled by creatures of dim, unspeakable shapes from the regions of hell. For astrological cal- culations some days are unlucky, and even the Sultan himself will postpone an interview if it falls on an unlucky day. Sometimes a long-forgotten and lost grave of a saint suddenly becomes a reputed center of SOCIAL ANL> HOME LIFE. 173 miracles. Someone will tell his neighbors that while crossin 214 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. full swing of social liberty, he would be shocked to death. At the side opposite the darkest chimney corner, where the grandmother is, sits the old kehyah, stretch- ing his feet out and smoking, with Mussulman gravity, his pipe, which is so extremely long that it extends from the corner to the center of the room. In the course of our conv^ersation the old man remarks concern- ing his residence that his great-great-great-great — that ''great" however, goes about half a mile — grandfather was born and died on the same spot where he now lives ; and that he is about seventy-five years of age, but never has been a dozen saats journey from his home. This is the case with many a Turkish peasant ; many, indeed, never set foot outside their farms. No progress is ever made in this pastoral life. Through his own inclination, and the policy of his rulers, the Turk has remained isolated through the ages from the blessings of civilization ; and neither European influence nor missionaries have managed to make any ingress to speak of. As we chat with our host our talk is interrupted by the lusty shouting and fighting of the young boys. Then he is obliged to go out and give them a scolding. Before his return he is called to another part of the house to quell a still louder tumult, for ten or fifteen dogs are having a lively concert of howling and bark- ing. On his return let us ask him why he doesn't kill those useless brutes and get rid of them once for all. He will answer, " It is a great sin against Allah, and a violation of our laws." So numerous are dogs, especially in the country, that when a Turk was once SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. 21$ asked the population of the village, he replied, " About one hundred and sixty dogs and one hundred and twenty people." When dinner-time comes, all the males of the house return from the field, wash their hands and faces, and sit cross-leered on the floor in a circle around the sufra, or low table. There are spoons, but no knives or forks. In the center is placed an immense bowl of hot soup. When ready for the fray, the kehyah gives them the signal to commence, and immediately all the spoons enter the bowl. The soup is followed with a dish of meat. Each rolls up his long, flowing sleeves, and with bare fingers and unbounded appetite sepa- rates the flesh from the bones. Then comes the unfail- ing accompaniment, jj'^^//?/r/, or coagulated buttermilk, a highly prized species of refreshment. After a suc- cession of dishes, the meal is ended with washing hands. The kehyaJi is the greatest scientific authority in the neighborhood, for the fact that he is the oldest dignitary of the village naturally makes him the authority on all questions of importance. One night the conversation of the family was interrupted by a bright flash of lightning, accompanied by heavy thunder. One of the children of the household asked the "grandfather" the cause of the bright light and the great noise ; then the wise old patriarch grasped his sweeping beard and, in a dignified tone, gave this explanation : " Up in the clouds," said he, "our prophet Moham- med and Christ went into business together, the profits to be divided equally. One night when Christ 2l6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. was deep asleep Mohammed stole all the profits and left the place. In the morning Christ discovered the treachery of Mohammed and pursued him in his golden chariot, and so the noise of the pursuer and the rum- ble of the chariots are what make the thunder. The lightning is the bullets of fire which Christ shot at his treacherous partner. At length poor Mohammed, finding escape in mid air impossible, suddenly plunged into a deep body of great water, where he was quickly followed by Christ, and the terrible force of their con- flict caused the waters to splash and pour down upon the earth, thus causing the rain." These stories are handed down from o-eneration to generation, and each " remarkable " son inherits the traditional knowledge of iiis great-great-grandfather. The odd part of it all is that he is absolutely sure of the accuracy of his knowledge, and has no ability to discriminate between reality and fiction, fact and fancy. The idea of the word science does not seem to have entered his head ; to talk to him of science is like talking to a blind man of colors. The primary step to any sort of attainment is the consciousness of deficiency and ignorance. He who does not know that he does not know will never know any more than the nothing he does know. How sad to see, in such an age of enlightenment, midnight darkness settled down upon so many people ! Now let us watch how the kehyah works in the field. He has no set time to commence his harvest ; he takes his time, as there is not much fear of rain during the harvest season. As soon as the stalks of the crops are yellow, or sufficiently matured, they are cut by hand SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. 2\'J with scythes and are stacked up in piles in the open field. In due season, the piles are all removed from the various quarters to the village threshing-floor in large arabahs, or carts, drawn by buffaloes and heifers. The threshing-floor is a hard and smooth circular piece of ground, from fifty to eighty feet in diameter, upon which the stalks are strewn. Then the threshinor machine, a sort of sled, with a woman or boy standing on it, is drawn around on the hard earthen floor by oxen. This threshing implement is made of a hard piece of wood, and set on the under side with sharp, flinty stones like Indian arrow-heads. It grinds the straw into fine chafl^, and sifts out the grrain. At the evening breeze, the threshed grain is thrown into the air with a light shovel, and thus the broken straw is blown on one side, leaving the wheat on the ground for the granaries. The chaff is also gathered and stored away for the purpose of feeding the cattle dur- ing the winter. The farmer's son does not migrate to towns in search of better employment, but stays where he is born, by his father's cattle, possessed only of what the cravings of nature require, and is immovable in his peasant in- stincts as well as in beliefs, ideas, and usages. For his dull and unenterprising character and his perpetual poverty, the Turkish government is to a large extent responsible. The system of levying a tithe of all prod- uce, and the additional custom dues for the exporta- tion of products from one province to another, leave no inducement to the outraged farmer to grow more than is required to keep soul and body together, and his family is thus reduced to the condition of a stolid 2l8 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. and unprogressive peasantry. Governmental exactions, wrung by dishonest officials from the hard-toiling farm- ers, are another evidence of Turkish degeneration and decay. Indeed, of all nations, the Turkish government is the last to realize the relation of town and farm ; A TURKISH PLOW AND PLOWMAN. that the physical health, vigor, and, indeed the progress- iveness of a people, in no little measure depend on the nutritive quality of its flour, meat, and vegetables, and that the better the farmer the better will be the quality of his produce, and the higher the prices from his customers in the city. When we add to this trait of stupidity the crude and primitive system of SOCIAL AND HOME LIFE. 219 agriculture, which we have elsewhere described, we can- not wonder that the name of the Turk has ever been a synonym of decay and poverty. In rural districts, such as the one described, the old patriarchal administrative system is still in vogue, where, within the crude and primitive log-house, by the hearth, sits the venerable kehyaJi, whose every word is law to those within. He is, as indicated, the agent for his community in all transactions with the government. In the consideration of important affairs of general in- terest he meets with the elders of neighboring ham- lets ; and, acting as a committee, they form the commune — a most striking illustration of the essential democ- racy of Oriental society with the patriarchal system intact. In the high regard for family rights it is superior to the Greek democracy. Under a fostering dominant power, no reason can be given why it should not continue to the end of time as it has continued from the beginning. In times of adversity it is a bulwark against anarchy and confusion. This system is a per- petual monument to the sanctity of God's first human institution — the family. Indeed, all law originates in the family relation. AIL attempts to supplant it by mili- tary despotism, communism, or celibate asceticism have been failures. The patriarchal system was the applica- tion of the family idea to the tribal relation. Recog- nition of the essential independence of tribes, subject to treaty obligations and payment of taxes, is the key to the permanence of Oriental institutions. This sys- tem, free from man's abuses, has never been improved upon, and never will be. THE TURKS. "Asia Minor is the recruiting ground of the Turk, and is still almost untouched by the invader." — Stanley Lane-Poole. THE early history of the Turks, if the accounts which we have of them can indeed be called his- tory, is a commingling of war, romance, wandering con- quests, and the glory of Eastern courts. For the poet, here are themes strang-e and untried. For the roman- cer, there is no dearth of fact as rich as fancy. The political economist here finds his theories in the frame- work of the material; and the historian, for his portion, contrary to the common parlance, comes last and least. The name and race at their birth are in the swaddling of mystery and myth. Near the central part of Asia, twenty-two centuries ago, we find a people spasmodi- cally nomadic, composed of several kindred tribes, indiscriminately known by the general term Turks. They are of the same origin as those nomadic tribes, the Mongols, Tartars, Calmucks, and Kirgheez. The Chinese, dwelling some distance to the eastward, designated them by the name Hiongnu or, more liter- all)', Tu-kin. Whether or no the modern " Turk " is a corruption of the Chinese appellation, we are unable to say. We do know, however, from evidences that exist even at the present day, that this people, warlike and aggressive, overran Asia, even venturing as far north as the Lena and as far west as the Black Sea. 220 THE TURKS. 221 The Chinese, who had long before held them in sub- jection, proved troublesome neighbors ; and for three centuries constant war was waged between the two powers. The natural outcome of this was that the nation was split into a northern and a southern empire. Among the rich mountains of the Altai were the lands of the northern tribes. They were not destined to remain there long, for the southern Turks, uniting with their former enemies, compelled them to" move westward. This was the first migration. These southern people, in turn, were forced by the Mongols and Tungusians to disperse. The second great movement is known as the sec- ond westward migration, and its offshoots may still be found in both Asia and Europe. As is the case with all movements truly great, the people who were destined to rule the Turkish Empire were humble in their beginnings. Looking back over the centuries, a little time after the two migra- tions mentioned, we find among the golden moun- tains of Altai a people slaves to the great Khan of the Geougen. This slavery, in the light of other events, must be considered not a misfortune but a blessing, for it proved a most excellent school for future conquest. Slavery is only a part of the early history of the race, but ignorance has ever char- acterized it. By employing these Turkish people in the manufacturing of arms the masters were achieving their own downfall, for the former became so skillful in their use that they soon severed their bonds, and established an empire under their spirited leader Bertezema. 222 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Much more than the allotted limits of this book would be required to portray, in its true glory, the grandeur of this early empire. We will simply state that this was an age of luxury and barbaric splendor, golden in fact and in figure. From the accounts of that early period, in which legend and history are mingled, we can obtain but a faint conception of pre- vailing conditions and manners. It is obvious, however, that there were no fixed habitations, but, as has been indicated, men preferred a nomadic life in valleys and mountains ; hunting and warlike exercises being their cherished occupations. This wandering life was so strongly developed into a national characteristic that even to-day we find the Turks chiefly engaged in pastoral and agricultural pursuits, while their neigh- bors, the Armenians, are largely devoted to commerce. The early home of the Turks, — Turkistan, — or cen- tral Asia, was known among the Persians as Turan, the " country of darkness" ; and the inhabitants as Tura- nians, " sons," or " people, of darkness." Their religion, prior to Mohammedanism, was made up of their ances- tral traditions and the doctrines of Zoroaster. They had their priests and worshiped fire, earth, and water. The laws and regulations were communicated to the masses by the chiefs of the tribes. In the middle of the seventh century, however, arose a force that was to have much to do in molding the destiny of more than one nation. The religion of Mohammed, coming out from the Arabian deserts, spread, through the zeal of his followers, with lightning rapidity, north, south, east, and west, until many Turkish tribes, converted from Zoroastrianism and kindred religions, accepted the THE TURKS. 223 Islam faith, which proved to be a great unifying power. In following the fortunes of the people we are con- sidering, it is well to notice the influence of this great movement upon their national ideas and policy. One of the immediate effects was that, instead of becoming peaceful, as might have been expected, the Turks coupled zeal for conquest with such religious fanati- cism that every war became a crusade. The Seljuks were the first Turkish tribe to gain a place in history. They emigrated to Khorassan, under the leadership of Seljuk, from whom they take their name. Here, in a Persian province, they founded an independent sovereignty. The able princes Togrul Bey, Alp Arslan, and Malek Shah extended their empire at the expense of the weak Saracen Caliphate and the shrunken Byzantine Empire. Nowhere in Asia was such a succession of able leaders ever known. The heroic age of the Seljukian Turks corresponds with the Norman age in England. Persia, Armenia, Syria, the greater part of Asia Minor, and the region from the Oxus to the Jaxartes were conquered by them. Their greatest prosperity was under Malek Shah (1072-92), who extended his empire from the Caspian to the Mediterranean, from Khorassan to the Bosphorus. Aside from conquest, agriculture was fos- tered ; public works, such as canals, constructed ; and learning was patronized. Their astronomers approxi- mated closely to the accuracy of the Gregorian calendar in reckoning time. In religious zeal they were the most intolerant of all the Turks, and provoked the Crusades. Upon the death of Malek Shah, his realm was divided by his sons into three small kingdoms. 224 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. which division, and the incompetence of the rulers, made easy the advance of the Mongol hordes under Zenghis Khan. This invasion, in turn, gave place to still another incursion by a tribe of Turks who were destined to found the Ottoman dynasty of the present day. The political career of the Ottoman Turks com- mences in the thirteenth century, when a band of fifty thousand nomads, driven out from central Asia by the Mongols, under the hereditary leadership of Suleyman Shah, penetrated via Persia into Armenia. One of the chiefs, Erthogrul by name, while wan- dering upon the plains of Cappadocia, aided Ala-ud- Din, the Seljuk Sultan, in his war against the Mongols. At the end of a successful contest, Erthoq^rul was re- warded by the grateful Sultan with small tracts of land in Byzantine provinces as a home for his people. This event gave prestige to the present line of sovereigns of the Turkish empire in western Asia, and serves as the connecting link between the legendary and verified history of this notable Turanian family. Erthogrul was yet alive when his son Othman, or Osman, the founder of the present dynasty, came forth in the annals of Turkish history, in fanciful vision sur- rounded with miraculous revelations and marvelous circumstances of birth. His sword is still worn by sovereigns at their coronation ; and from him the native surname Osmanli, and the European corruption Otto- man, have been derived. Modern Turks prefer and take pride in the term Osmanli or Ottoman, while the name "Turk" they consider a disparagement and an insult ; yet all Turks are not Ottomans. During the famous administration of Othman his Br PER. OF THE CHRISTIAN HERALD, NEW YOHk. SOME OF THE SULTANS OF TURKEY. 226 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. followers spread themselves on the Byzantine frontier, occupying the cities of Eski-Shehr and Kara-Hissar. The Seljuks, as fast as they were subdued, fused with the Ottomans. And so did great numbers of Christians, in the conquered states of Europe. As the two essential prerogatives of an Eastern sover- eign, Othman coined money and caused public prayers to be read in his own name (1301). He intro- duced the absolute ownership of land among his people. After a firm establishment of his power, Oth- man waged war against his old adversaries, the Mon- gol hordes, and drove them out of Kara-Hissar. It is alleged that he was of such a just and generous char- acter that the subjects of the East Roman emperor fled to his protection ; and it is commonly said that this wise and good man ruled after the former's death. Othman died in 1326, having a short time before fixed his capital at Brusa. Othman's younger son, Orchan, began his reign with such' unusual attainments of imperial wisdom and tact that he even surpassed his father's bright achievements. As the first act of his reign he made himself independent of the weak Seljuk Sultan, and then he mastered a considerable portion of Asia Minor; for the mutual jealousies, and the religious and political demoralization of the provinces of the em- pire, had made them easy victims to conquest. His reign marked the creation of a most vital military organ- ization, that of the standing army. This new system came a century before the reign of Charles VH. of France, who is considered by the European historians of the Middle Ages the originator of that policy. THE TURKS. 227 His celebrated guards were known by the name yeni-cheri, or janizaries, "new troops." Corps of spakis, or regular cavalry, were also organized. He married the daughter of the Emperor Cantacuzenus. As a potent advocate of science, art, and religion, he promoted the cause of public instruction, endowing the state with various educational and religious institu- tions, and was greatly esteemed by men of learning, who were admitted to his councils. His capital, Brusa, was made a center of light. Considering the age in which he lived, he should be placed among the most illustrious of Turkish sovereigns, as a competent leader, prompt executor, and wise legislator. During his ad- ministration the first invasion and settlement of the Turks in Europe took place, and the Crescent was planted across the Hellespont. Orchan died in 1359, and his second son, Murad, or Amurath, inherited both the crown and the military genius of his father. He strengthened his military corps, the janizaries, by recruiting it from youthful Christian captives, and dedicated them to the ser- vice of the court and army. The number and power of the janizaries were greatly augmented under succeeding sovereigns, and the greatest of Turkish conquests were achieved by them. Thus, the bone and sinew of the Ottoman troops — indeed, very often the greatest men of the Turkish Empire, while at the height of its splendor — were of Christian blood. While such a system of human tribute has served, in subsequent years, as one of the greatest sources of Ottoman strength, it was, on the other hand, an oppression most unbearable for Christian' parents, 228 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. from whose bosoms their infants were wrested and forced into the service of their. oppressors. All at- tempts of unfortunate Christian parents to elude such a domestic desolation were of no avail. This sys- tem once in vogue, it was destined to continue for more than three hundred years ; and lads thus sun- dered from the sacred bosom of parental affection reached the colossal number of five hundred thousand, according to Von Hammer's estimate. Under Murad's administration the Byzantine Empire was so stripped that there was nothing left but a few adjoining lands around Constantinople, and some out- lying possessions in Greece and Macedonia. In 1365 he captured Adrianople and made it his European cap- ital. His last famous contest, against the combined forces of Servia, Hungar)-, Bosnia, Wallachia, and Albania, was the famous battle of Kossova, in which the Sultan gained the victory with the sacrifice of his life. Bayazid, the Yildirim or " Thunderbolt," the son of Murad, was the first Ottoman ruler to assume the title of Sultan. He extended his conquests east and west. He besieged Constantinople for years, and the emperor was compelled to recognize his authority by paying an annual tribute. While Bayazid was engaged in the East, the King of Hungary, taking advantage of his absence, with a large army of European knights, be- sieged Nicopolis. The " Thunderbolt," arrived, how- ever, with his characteristic speed, and overwhelmed the besiegers, and, as a result of the contest, Bul- garia became a direct Ottoman province, while Wallachia became tributary. But Bayazid's brilliant 230 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. career of European conquest was not destined to last long, for, while he was under the very walls of Con- stantinople, he had to hasten back to meet the Mongol Tartars, who, under the leadership of wild Tam- erlane, the Napoleon of Asia, after causing serious de- struction in Armenia, had penetrated into the Ottoman Empire. Near Angora the two determined hosts stood face to face in a furious battle (1402), in which Bayazid met his fate ; his country was conquered ; and he himself was carried into captivity, where he died. The frightful defeat of Bayazid, and the consequent eleven years' interregnum, threatened the very existence of the Ottoman Empire ; yet, in the middle of the same century, it became more strong and compact than before. It is needless herein to follow the administration of successive sovereigns. The sword of Othman de- scended, in the regular line of succession, through many generations, in the grasp of conquering Sultans. The brightest victory of the Turks was the capture of Con- stantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. This imperial city of New Rome was the jewel that all the Sultans most coveted, yet the honor of its conquest was reserved for Mohammed II., a man of signal braver)^ who stormed the city and victoriously entered within its walls, in the year 1453. Early in the sixteenth century, through the conquest of Syria and Egypt, Sultan Selim the Inflexible received from the Sherif of Mecca the keys of the Kaaba, and Mohammed XII., last represent- ative of the Abbasside Caliphs, who reigned a purely spiritual prince at Cairo, had to surrender to Selim the right of succession to the Prophet and the distinctive THE TURKS. 23 1 ensigns of the caliphate — the standard, the sword, and the mantle of Mohammed. Selim was succeeded by Suleyman the Magnificent. The reign of this great Sultan (from 1520 to 1566), which was the longest of any of the Ottoman sovereigns', was the high-water mark of the Ottoman power. He threatened to subjugate all Christendom. City after city had heard the clash of the Mussulman's arms and had been compelled to bow before his onward march. Having dealt a crushing blow to a greater part of Hun- gary, to the great alarm of entire Europe, Suleyman had besieged Vienna itself. However, soon after, the planting of the red flag before the walls of the Austrian capital marked the western limit of the Ottoman advance, for the Turk did not take the city, and farther into Europe the Crescent never found its way. At this time the Turkish Empire was the mightiest power in the world. Its possessions included all the Asiatic, European, and African countries situated on the Mediterranean, except France, Italy, Spain, and Morocco ; all the Black Sea coasts and nearly all of the Red Sea; Hungary and all the kingdoms south of the lower Danube. Yet from this zenith of glory the em- pire began to decline, for here followed a line of weak and irresolute Sultans. The Ottoman navy, which was once the terror of the Mediterranean Sea, sustained a withering blow, in the latter part of the sixteenth cen- tury, from an allied fleet under Don John of Austria. In the succession of wars that followed with Austria, Ven- ice, Russia, and Poland, success and defeat were about equally divided on the field ; yet gradually the vitality of the nation was drained by continual carnage. Aus- 23^ THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. tria no longer lived in continual dread of Turkish Inva- sion, but took the offensive. European Turkey fast began to shrink in extent. Turkish power on the Dan- ube was destroyed ; and in 1699, by the treaty of peace of Carlowitz, Sultan Mustapha II. gave over almost all the Hungarian provinces to Austria, Azof to Russia, Moria and Dalmatia to Venice, and Podolia and Uka- raine to Poland. The causes of Turkey's decline are evident to those who are acquainted with the character of its later sovereigns. The Turkish saying that "the fish first stinks at the head " has been every whit true of the crowned heads of the Ottoman Empire since the death of Suleyman. With perhaps two exceptions, all the later Sultans were absolutely lacking in moral fiber. Shut up in the seraglio with their harem and favorites, they gave themselves up to the indulgence of their own follies and the gratification of their vicious appetites, utterly thoughtless concerning the welfare of their people and the prosperity of their country. As a matter of course, they neglected the discipline of the army and gradually abandoned the direct government of their empire. The Janizaries, the Ottoman right arm in war, lost all respect for their unworthy masters, and became the power behind the throne. They enthroned and de- throned the Sultans at their will. Military insubordi- nation and revolts — moreover, troubles and hostilities with the Christian states and provinces, by virtue of their superior advancement in wealth and civilization — as- sumed more and more alarming proportions. Once in a long while a wise ruler like Murad IV. arose and somewhat brightened the darkened political horizon of MOHAMMED II. WITHIN THE WALLS OF CONSTANTINOPLE. ( Frotn a painting.) 234 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the empire ; but, in the main, under incompetent sover- eigns, the Turkish government lapsed into a condition which went from bad to worse. As we have observed, all the Ottoman princes and Sultans down to Suley- man, with the exception of Bajazet II., were great rulers. True, they were most of them cruel and despotic, but they were resolute and brave ; they had integrity of purpose and strength of character; they marched at the head of their own armies ; they made use of oppres- sion only when it was needed to carry out their plans of conquest; they were stern, but did not altogether dis- regard common justice. The later Sultans were quite of another kind. They were a degenerate set in wliose veins ran no noble blood. Inebriate, imbecile, incapa- ble, slaves of sensuality, and types of cruelty, they turned backward from the course which was set for them by the aggressive Sultans of former days, and set to enjoying the fruit of the earlier conquests. Thus they became consumers rather than producers, living on the conquered countries without bestowing any practical benefit upon them. THE PRESENT SULTAN, ABDUL-HAMID II. In the reign of Abdul-Hamid II., the present Sultan, are combined, by nature and environment, the elements of decay which have characterized the later rulers of the Ottoman Empire. " I maybe the last of the Caliphs, but never a second Khedive," declared this accomplished slayer and t)'rant of mankind, when warned by the Russian ambassador, M. de Nelidoff, that the Sultan's obdurate course and THE TURKS. 235 the condition of the Turkish Empire had placed the throne and the caliphate in imminent peril. Abdul- Hamid is, indeed, the least of the Caliphs, and doubt- less would have been the last of them, with the sec- ond- or third-rate power of a Khedive, had it not been for the mutual jealousies of the Powers, who had thought better to maintain a "Sick Man," or even a dead man, on the Bosphorus, rather than to allow a live man to take his place whose position might prove too lively for their keenest rivalry. Born in 1842, Abdul-Hamid II. came to the Ottoman throne August 31, 1876. Tragic were the circumstances under which he was made Sultan. These very trage- dies had much to do with shaping his present policy. His uncle, Abdul-Aziz, was deposed and murdered. To add to this complication, some of the ablest minis- ters of the state were assassinated by Hassan Bey in revenge for their treachery to the late Sultan. War clouds were gathering black and heavy. Servia and Montenegro had gone to war; Russians were flocking to the Servian camp; Constantinople was seething with revolutionary excitement. Sultan Murad, after three months of reign, was deposed and imprisoned. Then came Abdul-Hamid, with fear and trembling, to the perilous dignity of the tottering throne. It was the contention between the Old Turkey Party and the Young Turkey Party for supremacy in the affairs of the state that had sealed the fate of his two prede- cessors. The progressive Young Turkey Party had stood for a new order of things and for the regenera- tion of the Ottoman Empire, while the Old Turkey Party, ever hostile to all new ideas, stood for stagnation. 236 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. This party held in abhorrence the very name of pro- gressive institutions, as inventions oi giaours, for whom tliey had a whole-souled hatred. Abdul-Hamid had to identify himself with one of the two parties. For a while his brain became a sort of political insane asylum without any keeper. Then he asserted the supreme power of Islam, according- to the Old 'I\irkey Party, the results of which during- his twenty-one years of reign have borne their legitimate fruits. The expectations and hopes of the Young Turkey Party were shattered, and the establishment of a constitutional o-overnment and parliament done away with. In one way or an- other, beginning with able Midhat Pasha, the chief ex- pounder of the constitutional government, the Sultan rid himself of all advisers whose ideas were opposed to the notions of unrelenting bigots and the flattering set of favorites of the Old Turkey party with whom Abdul- Hamid had surrounded himself. To-day, with all his powers of autocratic and theo- cratic absolutism, it is not Abdul-Hamid who rules, but his nondescript palace party, made up of chamberlains, private secretaries, iiiollaJis, etc., in whose hands Abdul- Hamid is a mere puppet living in a malarious atmos- phere of corruption. This palace party, aside from making confusion in the foreign relations of the empire, has increased its influence in internal abuses, and they are responsible for the corruption, in the form of venality and perfidy, which has infected all ranks of offi- cial society throughout the empire. Aspirants for political offices and recognition eagerly seek the favor of these gentlemen of the royal household, and, in most cases, they literally sell favors to the highest bidder, ut- SULTAN ABDUL-HAMID II, 238 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. terly regardless of qualification. It is hard to reach the Sultan without their connivance. Under such con- ditions bribery flourishes, while the insolent hangers-on at Yildiz, whose main object in existence is self- advancement, speedily grow rich at the expense of the empire. Abdul-Hamid himself, like his father, Abdul-Medjid, is a great royal spendthrift, squandering untold treas- ures, careless of the needs and interests of an empire so long as his own pleasures are gratified. The number of his domestics is said to be six thousand, and is made up of imperial sword- and cup-bearers, mutes, dwarfs, or court jesters, eunuchs, pashas, beys, slaves, astrologers, sultanas, kadines, Circassian and Georgian odalisques, dancing women, etc. To cover the annual expenses of such a large household and table twelve million dollars is required. That the Turkish Empire is bank- rupt is a matter of course, and it simply exists by the mercenary sufferance of powerful creditors and by the perplexed nature of European politics. I have a very vivid recollection of my first view of the Sultan. It was an unusually cool and pleasant day in midsummer of 1889, when I started to witness the imperial pageant of Selemlik — the Sultan's going to prayers. Upon my arrival near the Yildiz Kiosk, I found, that almost every available inch of space between the mosque and the palace was filled with Turkish sol- diers and with people of every nation. Happily, I chanced to find a base- and ragged-looking Jew, who had come early and secured a high and commanding posi- tion above the heads of the soldiers. Nothing but the jingle of coins would induce him to give up his place. SULTAN ABDUL-AZIZ. 240 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. With a few paras, and less parley, I succeeded in ex- changing places with him. He thought he had the best of the bargain, but I would not have given up the place for five times the amount I paid him. The new Mosque of Hamadieh, in which the present Sultan worships, is some eighty or one hundred yards from the palace, the Yildiz Kiosk. He rides to it, however, every Friday noon, in an elegant barouche, with all the pomp of elaborate ritual and imposing ceremony. From the palace to the mosque the streets are lined on either side, four ranks deep, with brightly uniformed regiments of gorgeous soldiers, representing every part of the dominion in their picturesque and varied uniforms and with their regimental banners. The roadway on which the Sultan js to drive is carpeted a half-inch deep with fine, clean sand. Pashas and beys, foreign ambassadors and diplomats, ministers and high dignitaries of state are all on hand in full regalia, with o-litterin"- uniforms and a profusion of gold lace and decorative orders, while magnificently mounted squadrons of lancers and cavalry are marching to position. About 1.30 p. m. all eyes are eagerly directed toward the Yildiz Palace, as it is time for the Sultan to appear. Then, high above the heads of the mighty throng, rings out from the slender minaret of Hamadieh the impressive voice of the green-turbaned vniczzin. Presently the iron gates of the palace open, and the Sultan emerges from his seclusion in an open carriage drawn by Arabian steeds, and dashes down the little slope that leads from the palace to the mosque. At sight of the Sultan the soldiers "present arms " and with one voice shout aloud three times, like the booming of a cannon : ''Padisha- 242 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. him chok yaslia!'' which means, "Long live my Sul- tan!" Then regimental bands burst out in martial music. Before the appearance of the Sultan's carriage, a few veiled women of his harem, young sons, and male relatives proceed to the courtyard of the mosque. In marked contrast to the gorgeous attire of the imperial princes and other high dignitaries, Abdul- Hamid is very plainly dressed in a black suit and a red fez. Nor is the contrast less marked between him and Osman Pasha, the hero of Plevna, a brave figure of hardy and robust manhood, who sits opposite the thin and pale Sultan in the royal carriage. After half an hour at prayer Abdul- Hamid reappears in an open landau. He takes the reins of the horses in his own hands, and drives back up the hill to the palace, while many courtiers follow on foot, to come to his aid if needed. Cheers and music, pomp and show follow him to the gates of his palace. This is one of the most gorgeous royal events of fre- quent occurrence in all the world. The Caliph of two hundred million Mohammedans, and the sovereign of thirty million subjects, attended not only by his own household, but by the brightly costumed ambassadors and consuls of all nations, appears to the public. Official horse-tails, which have led the way to victory or defeat on a thousand battle fields ; jewel-hilted swords, sashes, turbans, and fezes, worn by the males in line, even to the little boys on Arabian steeds, lend the charm of novelty to a pageant which, for mere magnificence, is seldom equaled under the sun. Abdul-Hamid is a small man, with a pale face and weak figure. He is aptly called "the Sick Man," for not only is his country "sick," in the sense of ruin 244 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. and decay, but the Sultan is really the most sickly- looking sovereign in Europe. It is said that he is always cross and continually in a rage. No wonder, since he has so many wives to take care of ; for the num- ber of his harem runs up into the hundreds. His char- acter may best be judged by his acts, and certainly he has performed no good acts worthy of notice. Mr. Gladstone speaks of him as " God's curse to mankind " ; while the Turkish journals of Constantinople, on his last birthday, January 19, with many flourishes of Oriental adulation, made it an occasion of raptured outbursts praising the goodness and beneficence of Allah for making the earth a present of such a sublime being as his Majesty the Sultan Abdul-Hamid II. "To-day the eyes of the good believers are blinded by the effect of this dazzlinor ligrht of Islam, and their hearts over- flow with happiness," says Sabach — regardless of Chris- tian hearts that overflow with bitterness ; and, indeed, many Islam hearts, too, who have experienced the effect of their master's unspeakable tyranny. The Sultan's glittering palace on the Bosphorus is replete with associations of tragical events. From this abode ofo forth edicts which involve the massacre of many thousand Christians. Nevertheless, this titled criminal, whose career of bloodthirsty atrocity sur- passes that of Nero himself, is not without his punish- ment. Indeed, the life of a bootblack is happier than his. In constant dread of his life, he lives a prisoner within the walls of his palace. His walks and drives never extend beyond the park of the Yildiz, which is vigilantly guarded, even in broad daylight, with more care than any American penitentiary. His sleep- ARCH IN RUINS IN ASIA MINOR. THEATER IN RUINS. 246 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. ing apartment is watched over at night with more cir- cumspection than the criminal cell of an ill-fated con- vict. When the Armenian atrocities were at their height, his uneasiness — indeed, his insanity — drove him to such unheard-of precautions as to cliange his body- guard every two hours. He would trust no one, even in the palace ; and woe to anyone who might fall under his suspicion ! One of his grand viziers narrowly es- caped, and fled to British protection. The ghosts of one hundred thousand Armenians seem to haunt him, even in his most secluded chambers. I can never forget my first impression of him, when he drove back to the Yildiz Kiosk from the Mosque of Hamadieh. His black character was as indelibly stamped on his countenance as a seal on a governmental document. What a scared and hunted look on his thin face ! and what a twinkle of treacherous cunning and cruelty in his deep-set black eyes ! He is a "sick man," and his contagious disease has so spread throughout the length and breadth of his unhappy empire that it will not be very long before the European doctors will pronounce her " dead," and proceed to the burial ceremony. The sluggish Turk, with his iron feet of destruction, treads on ground under which sleep, mute and silent, the Roman and Greek sires and sages of civilization. With a creed of bloody conquest and ruin, he has always marked his incursions by the destruction of everything and the building of nothing. Truly, as we gaze upon the dilapidated desolation of Ambition's airy halls, we find the saying true that " Wherever the Sul- tan's horses' hoofs tread, there the grass never grows THE TURKS. 247 again." The glory of twenty nations, the seats of great military chieftains and empires, thriving commercial cities, palaces of fame and wealth, speak to the traveler in Asia Minor from their voiceless desolation of fiery hearts and gallant spirits that are no more. No longer do the skies of Ionia smile on the brilliant array of poets who sang beneath her azure arch. Over the graves of Homeric heroes roam sheep and oxen. The land of deathless sages has been plunged into thickest night of desolation and woe. The misrule of five centuries has not only erased the vestiges of the former inhabi- tants, but has also enslaved the existing population in impenetrable superstition and ignorance, and cradled them in a blind and most debasing fanaticism. The brutal tyranny and passion of the Turk have grown more deadly with every year that they have been tol- erated, until now, in our own day of boasted civiliza- tion, the smoke from his smoldering embers of crime arises in columns, to mar the holiness of God's earth. Oh, that the trumpet blast of the nineteenth cen- tury would awaken the slumbering soul of Christen- dom, and raise up a champion of freedom ! Would that this land of enlightenment might reflect a ray of light across the waters, where superstition and tyranny have for ages cast a gloom over the otherwise bright and peaceful world ! THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS— MOHAM- MEDANISM. "There is no God but God, and Mohammed is His prophet." — The Mohammedan Catechism. '"PHERE is no other people in the world whose re. ^ ligion forms such an important element in tlieir national life as Mohammedanism forms in the national life of the Turkish people. So closely interwoven are the religion and the state that for a Turk to deny Moham- medanism is to renounce all claims to his nationality, and for a foreigner to become a Moslem is to become a Turk. To understand, therefore, in any degree the Turk and his country, a study of his religion is abso- lutely essential. The study of Mohammedanism, moreov^er, will cast light upon otherwise inexplicable aspects of Oriental government. The standpoint of its principles is the only one from which to survey the peculiar condition of the Turkish and kindred peoples, who are just now arresting the attention of the civilized world. Moreover, a view of this religion will be found ex- ceedingly salutary in its broadening tendency, and also serve to clarify our ideas, as well as add to our appreci- ation, of the supreme features of Christianity. For this purpose, a survey of Moliammedanism has many advantages, because it has so much in common with Christianity, and because differences, apparently so 248 THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 249 slight, have resulted in so great a contrast in the spir- itual power of the two religions. Naturally, a person's religious belief and loyalty are determined by birth, environment, and education. We embrace the religion of our fathers, and with it a cer- tain amount of bigotry, inherited and acquired. When such a truth is put to us in the nature of a specific charge, we, of course, deny it ; but a careful examina- tion attests its verity. We are more or less partial, narrow, biased, in our religious ideas, and are quick to condemn another system because it does not readily adapt itself to our accustomed cast of thought. Let us, then, place ourselves under Oriental skies, and for the time become right loyal Moslems, asking our- selves why these infidels and philosophers brand us heretics, and assign to our religion an inferior place. There is much misunderstandiiiof amone Christians, and the world in general, regarding the Mohammedan faith and worship. Especially among the Christians, ideas of Mohammedanism are inexcusably vague, and are consequently obstacles in the way to a correct under- standing of a religious force that has had no little part in the history of the world. If the follower of Christ will study the Koran ear- nestly, he will not fail to find many features that strik- ingly resemble the leading texts of his own faith. In- deed, he will be surprised to find that the religion which he formerly supposed to be the offspring of heathenism, abounding in superstition and folly, is pregnant with truths that have been inculcated into his own heart and life since childhood. And it is not difficult to discover a reason for the 250 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. similarity. That Mohammedanism should resemble Christianity, and that the Koran should compare closely with the Bible, is only a natural outcome of the train- ing of the great Prophet. From his earliest years he was taught the Old and New Testaments, and regarded them with a love and respect which he did not withdraw in his old age, for to the last he spoke of the Bible as the word of God. Besides the direct influence of the Hoh' Scriptures, the surroundings of his household were essentially Chris- tian in character. His favorite wife embraced the teachings of Christ; one of his other wives was a Jewess, and most of his highly esteemed counselors were of the Christian persuasion. All this could not fail to exert a powerful influence, and Mohammed man- ifested it in all his writings, paying homage to Christ to the last, and looking upon Him as the greatest of prophets. The question naturally arises, "If this is true, why did Mohammed seek to establish a new religion ?" He did not claim to be more than a man. Although his followers ascribe miracles to him, he did not claim to perform them, and even went so far as to denounce them. He fought not against the Bible, not against Christianity in its purity. He did, however, zealously attack Christianity as corruptK' practiced by tlie people of his time. Moreover, he denied the divinity of Jesus Christ, and violently opposed the apotheosis of the Virgin Mary, whom the popular conception really re- garded as a goddess. In opposition to this, he advo- cated the absolute unity of the Deity, considering these other beliefs as impious and unworthy a Supreme Being. 252 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. And, in the light of history, it cannot be doubted that in his position Mohammed manifested an elevated re- ligious nature and a purified vision. This idea of God's unity was an advance upon the crude conception of the time, as it was a reaction from the prevailing polythe- istic nations. Had this been all, Mohammed, so far as regards his conception of God, might still be honored as a Christian reformer instead of a prophet of a new order. But this was not all. With this idea of the unity of God was joined that of His supremacy, and that the most absolute. Fatherhood was foreign to any of His attributes. Above all, infinite, omnipotent, He was the very impersonation of Eternal Force. In- deed, some one has aptly described the Moslem religion as "a pantheism of will." In some of his aspects we are reminded of the God of Judaism; but even in Judaism we find a very important attribute which is absent from Islam's Allah, namely, that of justice. Islam's God is not a just God so much as He is an all- powerful God. He is the universal Sovereign, and obedience is the prime duty of his subjects every- where. Notwithstanding the oneness and supremacy of the God of Mohammedanism, there are other spirits, or angel-powers, which hold a subordinate place, and yet are essential to an understanding of the religion. Of these Satan, or Eblis, is not the least important, al- though not occupying a more conspicuous place than the Satan of Christianity. Gabriel and Michael are mentioned often in the Koran : they are the angels of power. Death is personified in the grim Azrael. And Israfel, " whose heart-strings are a lute," whose legend THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 253 furnished Poe material for the beautiful lyric of that name, is the Angel of Resurrection. "In Heaven a spirit doth dwell, Whose heart-strings are a lute; None sing so wildly well, As the angel Israfel, And the giddy stars (so legends tell), Ceasing their hymns, attend the spell Of his voice, all mute." God brings himself into relation with his subjects in a number of different ways, sometimes throuoh inspired prophets, and sometimes through sacred writings. Mo- hammed and his followers believed that he himself was to be the legitimate and final successor of Adam, Noah, Moses, Jesus, and other men, who were considered es- pecial ambassadors, chosen by the Almighty. The Pentateuch was not discarded, and the Psalms and Gospels were accepted as sacred books. But taking- precedence of all these is the Koran, said to be the personal product of the inspired Mohammed, in which he embodied his creed for iiis followers. It would be entirely foreign to the purpose of this sketch to make an exhaustive survey of even the prominent tenets of this, to the Moslem, book of all books. The curious as well as the accurate student we refer to the Koran itself, which, in a number of English translations, is interesting to read and profit- able to study. One of the prominent doctrines of the Koran is that of predestination, which is presented in its most abso- lute form. God has foreordained some to an eternal happiness in Paradise ; others are foredoomed to the 254 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. everlastinor torment of hell, and naught can intervene between the purpose of the Supreme Being and its eternal execution. The practical morality of the precepts of the Koran will not be questioned. Intoxicating drinks of all kinds are prohibited the true believer, and in the Orient the difference between precept and practice is not so very great. We also find gambling deprecated as a sin and proscribed by punishment. Mohammedanism, more than any o'ther religion, has gained its proselytes by force of arms. It is only in keeping with the prevailing ideas of that religion that the true believer should hate infidels and discharge the God-like duty of making war upon them, even if connected by ties of consanguinity. To the Moslem, then, warfare is a religious duty and every crusade an aggression on behalf of Him to whom all men owe life and allegiance. To this principle may be ascribed the motives that impelled Mohammedans throughout their long career of bloody conquest. It was a natural out- come of what they conceived as a religious duty. Travelers in European and Asiatic Turkey have noted with admiration the devotional spirit of the faithful in their ceremonies and in the observance of feasts and religious holidays. Our Friday is the Sab- bath of Islam, when sermons are preached and prayers offered in all places of worship. On this day every Mohammedan is compelled to repair to the mosque and take part in the devout worship of Allah. Do not make the mistake of thinking that this is done merely as a stern, sterile duty ; rather is it thought a privilege, and, as we have intimated, the humble spirit of devo- 256 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. tion is Striking. A visit to one of these mosques on a quiet Friday noon would be an eloquent homily on the true spirit with which to approach the Almighty — a spirit so often sadly lacking in the Christian people. I have intimated the importance of the idea of God as influencing and molding a nation's religion. Look- ing back over history, we cannot but be impressed by the fact that culture and religion have ever exerted a reciprocal influence on each other. The peculiar con- ception which a people may hold of God determines not only its religion but its civilization. Looking at Mohammedanism from this point of view, what is the character of the civilization we should naturally expect as a result? What is the civilizing potency of Moham- medanism ? We have seen that the Moslem God is an imperson- ation of arbitrary zvill ; that he is synonymous with cold, loveless, authoritative supremacy ; that the first, last, and only duty of his subjects is slavish obedience; in a word, that the idea of liberty, in any true sense, is practically excluded. Now, what is the first requisite of high civilization ? Is it not a consciousness of per- sonal independence, of liberty ? This principle has been at the basis of all great developments of individ- ual genius. Without it, in one form or other, no na- tion has ever really flourished and come to a high state of culture. The first point, then, that we observe is the utter ab- sence of the principle of liberty in the Mohammedan religion. If we look at the Islam conception of God from a moral standpoint, we find its effects just as baneful. THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 257 The believer does right because Allah commands it, and because it is his to obey. This is placing moral obligation on a low basis — on no higher ground than the divine will. The doctrine of predestination, also, which is really a corollary of a pantheistic will, does away in a measure with man's free moral agency, and divests him of that attribute which, of all others, con- tributes to his nobility. Let it be remembered that a correct conception of duty and an appreciation of man's eternal responsibility are necessary to any advance- ment in morals, and that the character of a nation's morality is ever a reliable index to the worth and per- manence of its civilization. And it must be conceded that the Mohammedan conception is not entirely bar- ren of good. The recognition of God's supremacy ex- ercises a salutary constraint on those who perhaps would abstain from wrong from no higher motive. Its influ- ence on the savage mind must not be condemned as evil, although there is surely little room for the devel- opment of the moral nature. The idea of the unity of the Godhead also precludes idolatry, and this is no small step toward the higher and truer life. Again, it will be conceded that a religion approaches perfection in so far as it proves itself adequate to man's complete nature. In its broadest sense, it exists for the elevation of the soul in all its functions, and a religion which suppresses any of these betrays its inadequacy, its weakness, and its imperfection. If it satisfy the reason to the exclusion of the heart ; if it minister to the higher emotions, with no deference to rational de- mands ; in short, if it is not as broad as man's nature and as high as man's loftiest aspirations, tlien that re- 258 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. ligion is unworthy of humanity. Arraigned before such a tribunal, the unworthiness of Mohammedanism be- comes apparent. It does not teach the law of love as the basis of morality ; it does not believe in the father- hood of God or in the brotherhood of man. Love, which is the leaven of all human relations, is practically eliminated; and Mohammedanism, thus failing to call forth so essential a part of man's nature, must be con- demned. "^ Christianity pleads : " God is love ; trust Him." Mo- hammedanism commands: " God is 2£///// obey Him." Mohammedanism is sterile, barren, and irksome in its principle ; Christianity is fruitful and permeating — a yoke that is easy, a burden that is light. The Christian God is in us and with us, and it is the delight of His children to breathe out their souls in prayer to Him. And here we are brought face to face with a strange fact. It is difficult to see what place prayer can possi- bly have in the Mohammedan theology, and yet we have previously spoken of the humble devotion of the faithful. However, we shall understand this perfectly when we remember that even prayer springs from obe- dience to Allah, and the devotion that has been so ex- tolled, like most of the liturgy, is a mere formalism arising from no love for, or higher yearnings after, an infinite Father. The effect of all these detrimental influences may, I think, be found manifested in the character of the indi- vidual Moslem. The despotic principle, which holds so prominent a position in Islam, seems to have infected society and government as well, for nowhere is tyranny more cruel and arbitrary than in the Mohammedan THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 259 countries. The religious slave becomes the political slave also. Mohammedanism was born in the Orient, was the product of Oriental ideas, and has never ventured be- yond the Orient in permanent conquest. Yet the part it has played in history cannot but give rise to the double question : " Is Mohammedanism of divine origin ? Has its influence, on the whole, been for good or for evil ?" These are not idle questions, and upon their answers hang solutions to many more important problems. If not to the supernatural, to what or whom can we ascribe its rapid inception and growth, its miraculous unifying power as exerted over a thousand warring Arab tribes ? To what can we ascribe its do- minion over two hundred millions of souls ? There is no one who will say that its influence has been entirely on the side of evil, or that it has not been a factor in the onward march of the race ; but I think it can be just as certainly asserted that its mission for good is at an end. For, while Christianity admits of almost infi- nite progress, Mohammedanism raises the devotees to a certain stage, and leaves them there, and is impotent to lift them higher. For, this reason, the future of Islam is limited. The race has reached that stage in its devel- opment when it can cast aside the useless shell of former growth and build " more stately mansions " for the soul. It may be interesting to add to these general obser- vations upon the underlying principles of Moham- medanism some description of a few of the peculiar ceremonies, beliefs, and religious practices which char- acterize the outward aspect of Islam. Mohammedanism is essentially a relioion of form ; 26o THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. hence the disciple of Islam does not thank God for past blessings or implore his protection for the future, though he rehearses his prayers ostentatiously five times a day. Islamism means submission ; hence the efificacy of the service is in the number of times the neinaz, or prayer, is said. Before worship a prepara- tory service of ablest, or ablution with cold water, is ob- ligatory. If this were not done in strict conformity with the established usage the subsequent prayers would be of no avail. In the courtyard of every mosque a large basin of water is provided, and the faithful, standing straight, and facing due north or south, advance in order to it, and say Bismillak, meaning, "It is in God's name I do this." The hands are washed to the wrist; the mouth and nose three times; then, begin- ning at the toes, the feet are washed to the ankles, after which the right hand is dipped gently into water and a part of the head is wet. The arms are washed to the elbows, beginning at the finger tips. Then the rest of the head is wet, the water being dipped up by the right hand. The inside of the ears must also be washed with the index finger of either hand, and the back of the ears with the thumb. So extremely exact- ing is this ritual that the slightest digression or omis- sion necessitates an entire repetition. Practice makes them expert, however, and they learn to do it quickly and correctly according to requirements. The cere- mony is repeated three times. Exemption is allowed where no water can be obtained, but the form must be gone through by touching the hands to dry earth, in- stead of dipping them into water. 262 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. The time for prayers is regulated by the sun. Morn- ing prayer is said between dawn and sunrise. It is due to this requirement that, Mohammedans are early risers. Noonday prayer is said just as the sun is passing the meridian, and afternoon prayer at any time between four and five o'clock. The fourth prayer comes at sun- set, and the last prayer of the day before retiring. The ritual for prayer is not optional but imperative, and its requirements of formality are as rigid as those for ablution. At almost every quarter of a mile in a Mohamme- dan city are built the mosques — solid, substantial build- ings whose minarets are the most beautiful spires that pierce the Levantine skies, symmetrical, lofty, and ma- jestic. They contain neither pealing chimes nor tolling bells, but five times daily from the top of these are heard the muezzin's ezan, or call to prayer, in deep, long-drawn tones, in the strange and impressive Arabic tongue : " God is almighty ! Mohammed is his apostle ! Prayer is better than sleep ! Hasten to worship ! Hasten to prosperity!" The sacred voice rings from every minaret, until the sound goes around tlie Islam world, girding it with these never-ceasing vibrations, keeping it awake and at worship. The voice resounds in the highest pitch when it chants, with the threefold iteration, Laha-il-Allah ! —"There is no God but God." At this call all the faithful Moslems leave their enoragrements at once and hasten to worship, no matter how inclement the weather or how pressing their business. Their regular attend- ance and punctuality are bewildering to the Christian THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 263 world. Would that we, who, by the Lord's resurrec- tion from the dead, have the highest incentive to the sacred observance of the First Day of the week, might take example from Mohammedan zeal! If a Mohammedan is late, he may at any time join with the congregation in the service, but the blessing to be obtained is deemed far inferior to what would have resulted had he been on time. Tradition says that a follower excused himself to the Prophet on the ground of saving lijs friend from drowning, at the time of devotions, and hoped tliat he would be blessed for the kindly act as well as those who were early at prayer. The stern Prophet would not accept the apology. " Though you had camels enough to fill the road from Mecca to Medina, all loaded with jewels, and should give the cargo to the poor, the blessings would not equal those of promptness at prayer. Should )'ou commit the whole Koran to memory and repeat it twice every night, the blessings received would not equal those of beginning neinaz witli the imam (priest). Should you kiH all the enemies* of Islam, the great rewards would not compare with those of him who is prompt at the beginning of prayer. If by a word the heavens and earth could become paper, the sea be turned into ink, and all angels stand as scribes, yet they would be unable to write all the bless- ings you may enjoy for beginning prayers with the imamy The Mohammedans are deeply conscious of all these warnings of their Prophet, and, though not "in spirit and truth," yet they worship according to their forms most faithfully. The interior of the mosque is considered most holy ; 264 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. consequently, all the people take off their shoes as they step within the shrine, and go through a series of pious movements. The religion of " the Prophet," keenly- hostile to pagan idolatry, forbids pictures, images, or any other representation of the human form in their houses of worship. On the walls, however, are many inscriptions from the Koran, with censers of burning oil suspended from the dome. The floor is beautified with the richest rugs of Ori- ental art, upon which the suppliants prostrate them- selves in their devotions, with twenty-six postures, each following the movement of the imavi, rising and bowing simultaneously with almost military precision. While at prayer, certain acts, such as looking around, striking at a fly to kill it, raising a foot from the floor, scratching more than three times in one place on the body, laughing loud enough to be heard, must be re- frained from, as they would destroy the efficacy of the devotions. The imaniy who performs the devotional ceremonies, preaches no sermon, but at noon of each day he reads two chapters from the Koran, and then descends to mingle with the many worshipers, placing himself on a level with the common people. On Friday, however, the holy day of the Mohammedans, the devotions are conducted wMth unusual pomp and ceremony ; the Koran is recited, prayers are said, and generally a sermon preached. The lanofuag-e of the Mohammedans in Asia Minor is Turkish, but the Koran is written in the Meccan dialect of the Arabic, an unintelligible tongue to the masses, and only understood by a few of the best edu- 266 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. cated. Yet their tradition teaches that merely to hear the sacred book read has a miraculous effect, bene- ficial to soul and body ; and so they are made content with the empty sound of meaningless words. Here let me take occasion to add a word as to the origin and extent of the influence of the Koran. The Koran, the groundwork of Islam, is divided into one hundred and fourteen suras, or chapters, originally written on " bits of stone, leather, thigh bones," and all sorts of material. After the death of Mohammed these scattered materials were collected, and, supple- mented by the Arab's retentive memory, they were put together regardless of time or subject, one chapter following another without even chronological sequence. Thus, while the teachings of the Koran are sufficiently plain, yet this manifest lack of logical order renders it of all books the least intellif^ible. But the Koran is not the whole of Islamism. There are traditions which are as powerful as, and even more respected than, the Koran itself. When there is nothing in the Koran to meet an issue, the Moslem would draw upon the oral laws of the Prophet on the basis of what Mohammed said, what he did, what he did not say, or what he allowed others to say unrebuked. In the six- teenth century Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent codi- fied the Moslem law in a volume of fifty-five books, which included, together with all the practices of wor- ship, the laws — moral, civil, political, judiciary, mili- tary, and agrarian. The Moslem's belief in a paradise beyond the grave is all that could be desired. The prayers that he has said will light up his grave as a lamp; no sin will THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 267 remain to be imputed to him at the resurrection ; angel wings will bear him aloft, and even should some sin remain through careless praying he still has a chance of escape, though he does not believe in purgatory. If he has children, their innocence will admit him ; and their g'rief at leavinor their father behind will take him through the gates, Peter or no Peter! In eternity, the momentary pleasures of time are to be extended a thousand years, and once in Paradise he has but to express his wishes and they are immediately granted. His food is served on a golden plate, and the bones of the bird that has been devoured will again assume full plumage and fly away to sing as of yore in the leafy bowers. Wine, which is denied to the faithful here, will be abundant there, but will not intoxicate. The humblest in rank will have seventy-two virgins of immortal youth and angelic beauty to attend him. In brief, an ideal temporal paradise, based on the pleas- ures of earth, is to be magnified a tiiousand-fold beyond the utmost limit of even an Oriental imagina- tion to depict. Such is their Elysium. If the Moiiammedan description of heaven abounds somewhat in sensual imagery, we should remember that it makes no essential difference how we describe the land of the hereafter, if only we make that descrip- tion conform to our ideas of true and pure happiness, as all conceptions employing the material as symbols of the spiritual must necessarily fall short of the true glory of heaven. Whether we make it a city with walls of jasper and streets of gold, echoing to the joy of happy hearts, or see with tranquil vision an infinite paradise clothed with wonder and peopled with crea- 268 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. tions of eternal love — neither is heaven : both are faulty metaphors, halting figures, imperfect symbols. If the rewards of fidelity are ideal according to sensual standards of pleasure, the punishments of the doomed are cruel to the other extreme, surpassing in horror Dante's best description of the Plutonic realm. The graves of this class are beds of hot coals, where the bones are piled one upon the other for want of room, and fused at white heat, without loss of the sense of feeling ; while thirst and hunger, with scourg- ings, will add the spice of variety to this roasting process, until the resurrection, when Satan will assume control and do as he likes with them for evermore. Here it seems evident that Mohammed's political and religious ideas were not without reciprocal influ- ence. He did not believe even in a hell-democracy ; the Jew-hell would not do for the Christian, and so he straightway orders a separate pit for him. Still, it can hardly be doubted that this arrangement is pre-emi- nently satisfactory to all concerned. Communism would be a failure even in the nether world. When the Koran proceeds in another place to speak of an intermediate state after death and a final resurrection and judgment, we are struck with an apparent, and only an apparent, inconsistency. Gabriel is represented at the soul's judgment holding scales in his hand ; on one side bad, and on the other good, actions are bal- anced against each other, and the incline of this scale becomes the forecast of the soul's destiny. The following brief description of Mohammed's traditional journey to Paradise may fittingly illustrate some of the singular ideas of Islam : THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 269 The angel Gabriel appeared to Mohammed with an Alborak, a strange animal, a cross between an ass and a mule. This long-eared brute began to talk, demand- ing some concession from the new Prophet. Having promised the creature a golden stall in heaven, Mohammed was permitted to mount. In the twin- kling of an eye he arrived at Jerusalem, where, after a pleasant interview with the patriarchs and prophets of all ages, he ascended with Gabriel upon a ladder extending from the "City of David" to the "City of God." As he arrived at the portals of heaven he saw this large inscription on one side, " There is no God but God," and, on the other, " Mohammed is His apostle.'' The heavenly host being informed that Mohammed had come, at once the pearly gates were thrown wide open ; and upon entering he was quickly embraced by Father Adam, who was happy to meet his most illus- trious son. From this heaven the stars, which he described as being hollow silver balls, were suspended by golden chains. What would become of faith in Mohammed's visions if modern science were intro- duced among; his followers ! Quickly Mohammed was taken from the first to the second heaven, — a journey of five hundred years, — where he met the Angel of the Cocks, who was so tall as to reach from the first to the second heaven. Nearly every morning this big rooster joins God in singing a song that fills the entire universe with its melodious strains. Every being on earth hears them but man. In this heaven he met Noah, who was the presiding dignitary, and he was tendered a most 270 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. cordial reception as he passed through the golden streets. In the third heaven he describes the angels as being very large. One of the most gigantic required seventy thousand days' journey between the eyes ! Here, too, he found the same inscription as in the first and second heaven. After a short interview with Moses in the fourth, or emerald, heaven, he was taken to the fifth to meet Joseph ; then to the sixth heaven, of carbuncle, where he beheld John the Baptist. Radiant with light and ruled over by Jesus was the seventh heaven, in which Ik; was attended by a vast multitude of joyous inhabitants and innumerable angels of dazzling beauty, each one of whom possessed seventy thousand heads, with seventy thousand mouths to each head, and seventy thousand tongues to each mouth — all singing and singing, day and night, unceasingly. Here the Prophet, with glorious pomp, was presented to God, whose face was concealed by seventy thousand veils. Here, too, on the sides of the divine throne, Moliammed beheld the inscription, "There is no God but God," and, on the other, " Mohammed is His apostle." God, after saluting Mohammed, commissioned him to return to earth with full authority. All this the faithful most firmly believe. Charity is prescribed by the Koran for the faithful in two forms — voluntary and compulsory. The latter amounts to the fortieth part of his possessions, but it is only imposed when the property aggregates a certain sum. Voluntary charity is usually dispensed at the time of the feast following the annual fast. The pilgrimage to Mecca, as a pious duty, is believed 2/2 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. to secure certain inestimable privileges for all who can possibly make the trip. Nothing could test faith more than this long and tiresome journey. All the world has heard of the vast concourse there annually assembled from all parts of Asia, Africa, and Europe. At that time every highway leading to the sacred Kaaba is a field hospital of the sick and dying, and in the general lack of physicians and nurses, when cholera prevails, as it usually does, Mecca becomes the disseminating point for the plague. Honors are bestowed on the survivors of the hazardous ordeal of this journey, and they are addressed by the title Jiadji. Among the Armenians, the same title is applied to those Christians who have visited Jerusalem. These Christian hadjis usually have a small cross tattooed on the hand to indicate the fact that they have made the pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulcher. Mohammed has declared that he will not intercede in heaven for unmarried men. So marry you must, or take your chances ! Remember Mohammed, old bachelors and old maids, or you will be miserable in this world and in the world to come ! The Prophet would have them bring up large families, that his followers may outnumber all others in Paradise. The widows actually pray, " Let me be married before I die, that I may not be ashamed when I meet Allah ! " Allah will reward the parents of children, those who pay the debts of another, and the soldiers in holy wars. Like other religious institutions, Mohammedanism has its holidays, feast and fast days. The most impor- THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS, 273 tant of these is the holy month of Ramazan, a month of fast and penitence. The fast cannot begin until the new moon has been seen. In cloudy weather messen- gers are sent to the peaks of mountains, and, they hav- ing ascertained the appearance of the moon, the Sultan telegraphs to all parts of the empire for the fast to begin, and local announcement is made by the firino- of cannon at sunrise. From the rising to the setting of the sun. for the entire month, no food or drink may pass the lips, not even tobacco. Indeed, some go to such undue rigor as even to abstain from conversation for fear of taking too much air into their mouths, and thus breaking their fast, in which case they would have to keep the sixty subsequent days. Even the touch of a Christian is avoided during Rainazaii. As every physical enjoyment is proscribed but sleep, devotees sleep nearly all day, except when at worship. "God bless the man who first invented sleep." Those wandering in the streets are like mad- men, so that Christians do well to keep out of their way. The asking of questions by " infidel dogs " is promptly rebuked. The law is paralyzed, the fact that they have all been fasting being a sufficient excuse for all sorts of wicked performances. Business is at a standstill, and fanaticism has full sway. At home, on every day of Ramazan, toward even- ing, with food prepared, all await the signal cannon. At sunset the minarets are illuminated, the cannon is fired, and, at the nmezzins call from the slender spires, the fasting is suddenly changed into feasting. Night is virtually turned into day. There is a hasty scramble for something to eat, and excessive eating, dancing, 274 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. and singing continue until late in the night. This fast and feast are held in honor of the time when Mohammed claimed that God revealed the Koran to him by His archangel. Moslems believe that Abraham, Moses, and Jesus also received divine revelations during this month. Some traditions attribute this celebration to another event. One day when Mohammed was wandering in the desert one of his camels fled. Poor Mohammed pursued all day, without eating or drinking, and captured it about sunset. Mohammedans are not ceitain which day of the month this occurred, so in order to make sure they celebrate the whole month. The green-turbaned Turks are the descendants of the prophet Mohammed, through his daughter Fatima, who married Ali, the faithful disciple. They are known as Emirs, and enjoy religious and political preference. Having a chief of their own, who is a sovereign among them, even to the infliction of punishment, they form a religions institution perpetuating the spirit of Islamism, as the janizaries in their day kept up the militar)' spirit of the empire. Besides these, there are several other peculiar Mohammedan orders. We shall first describe the Dervishes. The Dervish is an historic figure, with many orders, the first one having been founded thirty- seven years after the death of Mohammed. There are different classes, itinerant and local, asceticism being the most distinctive feature of almost all the different orders. As a religious body they are held in great veneration by the Moslem public everywhere, and their THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 2/5 influence in stimulating- the religious fanaticism of the Islam troops in times of war is considerable. By far the lowest in the order of Dervishes is the religious beggar. On many occasions, always to the satisfaction of my intense curiosity, I have visited the haunts of these degraded creatures. With the maxim, " Poverty is my glory," they live a hermit life, some- what after the fashion of their Prophet, or, indeed, more like the Grecian philosopher Diogenes, with no care in life but to find a place to sleep and something to eat. Their abodes, in deserted quarters of the city, or in mountain caves, are destitute of furniture, and those of the most rigid devotees have not even bedding or a cushion. In personal appearance they are the most hideous-looking beings in the world. They wear sheepskins, and have their whiskers and hair hanging down over their faces and shoulders. They ahnost always carry sharp hatchets in their hands for protec- tion, and go begging in the bazaars, and praying in the streets in Arabic. Cut off from all family associations, their lives are entirely sanctified to their so-called mo- nastic institution. Mevlevi, or Dancing Dervishes, are very graceful, and entirely different from those above described, in manner, dress, and principles, and are more human in personal appearance, though at times quite frantic in action. They are generally found in octagon-shaped tekieJis, or chapels, with polished floors, and wear close-fitting suits, with loose petticoats, and conical hats of grey felt. After the Koran is expounded, the usual nemaz recited, and kisses exchanored, the erace- ful spinning begins under the leadership of Semar Zan, 2/6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. director of the performance. Arms are crossed on the breast, with hands on the shoulders. Slowly at first, then faster as they warm up, the arms and skirts are extended, and, to the stran^je tune of the flute music, they move around and pass one another, but never touch. With brains crazed by the delirious dance, steadily the spell increases until the climax is reached, when it decreases to the finish ; about one hour being the time for a single dance. Not less curiously interesting are the rifai, or Howl- ing Dervishes — demons of religious fanaticism, who, in a shell of a building decorated with spikes, chains, dag- gers, and like implements of torture, excite themselves, and, swinging backward and forward in circles, repeat all the names of God, accompanied with the awful cry of La-il-la-il ! Hoo-yaJi-Hoii ! Beads of perspiration form on the face, which is distorted as if by mental anguish. Foaming at the mouth like madmen, they proceed, with the fearful energy of deep fervor and rapture, to cut themselves with knives, swallow swords and fire, pierce their ears, burn their bodies, until, all the physical powers overcome, they swoon and fall bleeding to the floor. Two elder devotees will calmly approach the skeik, vvitli whisperings of sacred words, and have a skewer thrust through the cheek. You may examine and see that there is no legerdemain. Islam is not lacking in sects. Indeed, they are in- numerable, with infinite shades between them. But there are two great divisions, known in the Moslem world as Sunnites and Shiites. Siinnites, by far the greater in numbers, follow the first three Caliphs after Mohammed ; while the Shiites, chiefly confined to A DERVISH BEGGAR. DANCING DEKVISIIF.S. 2/8 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Persia, regard these as illegitimate, and commence with the caliphate of Ali, Mohammed's nephew. This sect represents the climax of Mohammedan fanaticism. While in Constantinople in 1889, during the month of Ramazan, I was permitted one night to witness the horrible relioious celebration of this sect — an awful night, never to be forgotten ! With the purpose of obtaining merit and forgiveness, for admittance to Paradise without examination, the Persian devotees appeared in a procession at night, clothed in robes of white and armed with swords, iron chains, and other weapons of torture. Long before the spectacle was sighted in the distance, the streets were surging with thousands of clamorous men and women of every nationality and type, in eager anticipation of the death- foreboding pageant soon to come. Then, from a huge building, with unearthly tumult, and amid a profusion of lights, the devotees burst out into the streets in the midst of the man)' spectators, and moved, step by step, in a circle, amid wild, roaring wails of " Hassan ! Hussein ! Hassan ! Hussein-Shah ! " They inflict ferocious wounds upon their bodies, some mutilating themselves with clubs and iron chains, many gashing their heads and throats with knives. It is the most horrible spectacle ever presented by a group of savage mortals, the body losing all semblance of humanity and assuming the aspect of a hideous monster. Hassan and Hussein, murdered twelve cen- turies ago, arise that night, and claim the active sympathy of their followers, with fresh blood. Ears, eyes, hands, arms, head, throat, and abdomen are not considered too dear to be sacrificed in this demon-like THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 279 exhibition of religious frenzy. As the blood pours out in streams, sobbing cries of " Hassan ! " and " Hus- sein !" go on in varying tones and inflame the entire assembly. My very soul shuddered and recoiled with horror as I gazed upon faces bathed with the blood and sweat of extreme torture. Many keep step more and more vio- lently with the wild performance, until, overcome by exhaustion, they lie gasping for breath, some never again to stagger to their feet. Some women, moved bythe agony of the scene, fainted away. Who could look on such a scene unmoved ? Before this awful sight we close our eyes, and the hardest heart turns sick and faint, while in anguish of despair the soul cries out, "O God, is Thy light powerless to penetrate the midnight that hangs pall- like over benighted people of Thine own creation?" And, peering through the darkness, Hope sees the glimmering of a star, the morning star, bespeaking a larger light, before whose powerful rays this awful niofht of iofnorance shall flee forever. Beholding this Mohammedan paroxysm of self- torture, the oft-repeated question echoed in my ear with more emphasis than ever, " Why art thou a Christian ?" and my soul answered: " Because God is love. His religion is a religion of love, a religion of peace. No more sacrifice, for Christ suffered for all our transgressions, and we are free from all penalty. We are not required to commemorate His blood with ours, but to follow the path of eternal life and happiness which He has opened for us through His own death. He died for us ; we live for Him." 28o THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. As regards the theoretical and doctrinal aspects of Islam, a cursory observer finds much that is to be commended ; yet the careful student of its true spiritual influence, particularly in the light of tlie present situ- ation in Armenia, finds much that is to be condemned. This may best be seen by a comparison with the Christian doctrines and practices. Of all the religions of the world, Christianity and Mohammedanism are the only two missionary and aggressive faiths, for they both seek to make converts ; but their methods are as diverse as the characters and ideas of their founders. The one does it by the cross and love, the other by hatred and the sword ; one by assimilation, the other by subjugation. The theme of Christendom is mercy, loving-kindness, and charity ; that of Islam, blind sub- mission enforced by tyranny. The article of faith or the official prayer of Islam, which is used throughout Turkey, and daily repeated in the Azhar University, at Cairo, by ten thousand Mohammedan students from all lands, is the following : O Lord of all Creatures! O Allah! Destroy the infidels and polytheists, thine enemies, the enemies of the religion! O Allah! Make their children orphans, and defile their abodes! Cause their feet to slip; give them and their families, their households and their women, their children and their relations by marriage, their brothers and their friends, their possessions and their race, their wealth and their lands, as booty to the Moslems, O Lord of all Creatures! Can a Mussulman, with consistent loyalty to such religious principles, tolerate those of unlike faith ? The massacre of Christians or all others of unlike faith is not only an obligation, a patriotic duty, but the only THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 28l mode of religious revival with him. The memory of devastating wars waged by Mohammed ; the atrocious cruelties perpetrated by his followers upon those of unlike faith ; the fact that polygamy exists and was sanctioned by the Prophet himself — all conspire to breed an antipathy within us that is not wholly unjustifiable. The commands of the Koran in regard to methods of warfare do not warrant any admonitions deprecating cruelty in any form ; in fact, with the watchword, " The sword is the key to heaven and hell," its soldiers have ever been the concrete expres- sion of fiendish brutality. From the time of Mohammed's triumphant march from Medina to Mecca, at the head of an army ten thousand strong, through the years when the "sand of the desert, converted into explosive powder, blazed heaven-high from Delhi to Granada," to this very day, when his Turkish devotees, with uplifted scimitar, transform the homes of peaceable Christians, from the Euphrates to the Bosphorus, into a wilderness of blood and fire, the career of Islam has been one con- tinuous and desolating tidal wave of bloodshed, out- rage, and rapine in the name of Allah and the Prophet. True, it cannot be said that Christendom has been more humane in her warfare and religious persecutions in the past ; but it must be remembered that the Christendom of to-day is not the Christendom of the. past, while the Islamism of to-day is the Islamism of the past. The evolution of centuries has widened the religious as well as the intellectual horizon of Christians into clearer and more charitable ideas of 282 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the true interpretation of Christ's teachin<^s of peace and universal brotherhood. Christians have reformed, for the principles of their religion ever teach them to reform; while the Moslems have not, and, in truth, they cannot reform, for the principles of their religion forbid reformation. That the Turks, like all Mussulmans, are sincerely devout in making their religion an essential part of their daily life cannot be refuted, yet it appears that this very-overdevotion to a deluded and tyrannical faith makes them the most relentless of religious persecutors. But one need not go to the Dark Ages of the past to hiM\ a parallel for tlie incorrigible Moslem Turk's astounding inhumanity, I suggest the present deplorable condition of my native land, Armenia, where all the sacred relations of father, mother, wife, and child are trampled beneath his brutal feet, and one hundred thousand of m\' countrymen have suffered the most agonizing deaths by fire and sword. Nor is the Armenian crisis the only record of the Turk's religious fanaticism in the present century. In 1822 Greek Christians, to the number of fifty thou- sand, were put to the sword in the island of Scio. In 1850 Nestorians were butchered with such barbarity that the mountains and plains were covered with "the scattered bones, bleached skulls, long locks of hair plucked from the women's heads, and torn portions of the garments they had worn."'-' In i860 Syrian Chris- tians were killed, and Lebanon and Damascus "ran with human gore, in which men waded ankle d^ep " ; f * See Layard's " Nineveh." f See Van Lennep's " Bible Lands ; Their Modern Customs and Manners." THE RELIGION OF THE TURKS. 283 and twenty-one years ago fifteen thousand Bulgarians were massacred in cold blood within a few days. As we pursue the career of such a heartless religion, so infernally atrocious in theory and practice, our pained hearts cannot help but exclaim, " How long» O Lord, how long!" May we not confidently cherish the hope that the shining cross of the humble Nazarene, that has conqueringly risen above the powers of dark- ness and tyranny, shall sooner or later, as its final achievement, triumph over the blood-red crescent of Mohammed ? THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. *'The Sultan's Empire is being rapidly brought to destruction; corruption has reached a pitch that it has never before attained. The service of the state is starved while untold millions are being poured into the palaces; and the provinces are being ruined by the uncontrolled exactions of the governors, who purchase their appointments at the palaces; and nothing can save the country but a complete change of system." — Midhat Pasha, ex-Prime Minister of the Ottoman Empire. Ln^E most political institutions, the Turkish govern- ment of to-day has been the product of a gradual development ; arrested and contorted as it may have been at certain eras of its growth, I n order that we may gain even a superficial idea of the government of Turkey, it will be wise for us to go back some centuries and imagine the condition of those days when it first exer- cised its simplest functions. We find the Turks in the midst of a mighty career of conquest. The people, of Asia Minor and of eastern Europe are gradually being forced to acknowledge the sovereignty of advancing armies, whose right there is little heart or means to contest. To attaiji such a sovereignty, and to retain it, are two different problems, of which the latter is by far the more complex and the less likely to be solved ; especially when the conquered are comprised of het- erogeneous nationalities, with ideas entirely different in matterspertaining to religion and the state. This prob- 284 THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 285 lem the great Alexander attempted on a much larger scale, and failed — because he was mortal ; and this prob- lem the conquering Turks were compelled to face, and they solved it — in their way. The government of this time was necessarily nomadic and, therefore, military in its nature. Accordingly, it was imperative to its strength and effectiveness that power should be centralized as much as possible, and this was accomplished by the inception of a sort of feudal system. Under this system the titles of the territory, as fast as it was conquered, were distributed among the most worthy of the soldiers, who, in turn, were placed under obligation to furnish a certain quota of armed men for the service of the state. It is almost needless to add that a grant of this kind was esteemed a prize and was the effective means of stimulating many to noble deeds and valiant sacrifice. The smallest variety of fief or grant was the iimar, comprising from three hundred to five hundred acres. In times of war the "cavalier," or owner of a Itmar, was bound to supply one armed horseman for every three thousand aspres of its revenue. Grants of five hundred acres and upward were called ziamets, and the very largest fief was the beylik. That this system might be the more effectual, these lands were assigned to districts, each containing a certain number of grants. Over such a district was appointed an ofificer with the dignified insignia of a horse's tail. Yet the office of Sa7idjak-Bey was no mean one, and he had some thousands of cavalry placed at his com- mand. Though unaccompanied by many of the civi- lized results with which the feudal system was followed 286 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. in Other portions of Europe, this same system was admirably suited to the exigencies of the times. It afforded the head of the nation ample means for quelling- insurrections, and, indeed, insured a loyalty such as no other plan we are able to conceive of could. We have been considering the government simply in its policy, with no regard to its composition and inner principles; and, in approaching this latter phase, we will anticipate, from what has been said, that its functions were largely discharged by men of military ability. Indeed, should we peruse the Insti- tutes of Mohammed II., we should find the government of those days explained in a military metaphor — that of a tent and the four columns which were its support. And I think it best, because of the quaint simplicity of the figure, to adopt it in this short sketch, which is likely enough to suffer for want of perspicuity. This figure may be made to "stand on all fours" without in the least destroying its usefulness. The first pillar, then, supporting the fabric of the state, was represented by the viziers, or "bearers of burdens." At the time of Mohammed II. these were four in number. The Grand Vizier, who was a sort of minister of state and an executive ofificer, was, next to the Sultan, the highest personage in the empire. To him was intrusted the imperial seal, and his was the privi- lege of presiding over the "Divan," or Council of the Realm, in the absence of the Sultan. Perhaps the highest function he enjoyed was the convoking of this council in his own tent whenever he deemed it neces- sary. The second pillar was represented by two mili- tary judges called cadiaskers, who, with their subordi- 288 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. nates, constituted the legal order of the empire. The authority of one was confined to Europe, that of the other to Asia. Immediately beneath them in rank were the tutor to the royal princes and officers called nmfte. The duty of these imifte was to expound the sacred law, and their persons were considered so sacred that not even the Sultan was permitted to put them to death. Yet this restriction was of no value, as the Sultan could depose them from their positions at his pleasure, and then execute them as he could any other subject. In this legal order was also included the Judge of Constantinople, whose office was created somewhat later than the others we have mentioned. The third pillar, a golden one, yet strong and indispensable, was the deftarders, officers of the exchequer ; and last came the secretaries of state, or nischaiidycs, with whom the figure is complete. The "Sublime Porte," which has long designated to the world the Turkish government, is an expression whose origin is also intimately connected with the idea of the tent from whose lofty gate, or, in Italian, La Porta Sublima, the rulers of old gave forth their decrees. Of course, at the head of all the political frame- work we have delineated, reigned supreme that arbi- trary monarch, the Sultan. We have said that the Turkish government is a growth. Perhaps we should have stated it more accu- rately had we said that it is a modification, for, with some few changes and complications, the government of to-day is in principle the same as that of three or four centuries ago ; so that, understanding the latter, it will be comparatively easy correctly to comprehend the THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 289 present system. And first, there has been some change in the pohtical divisions of the empire. In the six- teenth century the sanjaks, or groups of grants, which we have described, were made into still larger districts, called eiatels. The tendency toward centralization, which was before a desirable thing, soon became an ob- stacle to effective administration, and the central gov- ernment was not long in discovering that farther divi- sion of labor was eminently necessary. Various alterations were made in the system at different times, but with little result until 1864, when these eiatels be- came separate governmental" centers, designated by a new name, vilayet. The vilayet is to-day what might be called the political unit of the empire, and possesses some degree of independence, although directly tribu- tary to the laws of the whole country. The head offi- cers are the vali and his assistant vmari^i, both appointed by the Sultan, to whom they are directly re- sponsible. Of course, these dignitaries are aided by their secretaries, who direct the work of the several de- partments over which they are placed by imperial nom- ination. The governors of the sanjaks, the subdivisions of the vilayets, although appointed by the Sultan, are con- sidered as representatives of the vali, from whom they receive their instructions. The next subdivision is the kaza, or district, whose governor is in turn ac- countable to the head officer of the sanjak. Again, the kaza is divided into nakiehs, or subdistricts, com- prising houses to the number of two hundred. The inhabitants of these nakiehs have the usual privilege of electing their own vmdir and miiavin, subject, how- 290 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. ever, to the confirmation of the vali of the district. The election is not free from religious considerations, and the religious complexion of the majority determines the fate of the nominee. The very last division, the minimum visible, as it might appropriately be called, is that presided over by the head man of single villages, the codja bashi, or . kchyah, as he is vari- ousl)' called. His powers are very limited, and he is almost entirely an instrument of the vuidir. Yet it is a rule of local self-government that the people must hand their taxes over to a representative from their own number rather than to a collector directly from the Sublime Porte. In all these instances the directing officer is aided in his administration by appropriate aids and by an Administrative Council, a permanent organi- zation. We may the better comprehend the position of all these officers if, on the basis of the feudal system, we conceive of each as holding a "fief of responsibil- ity," for which he is directly accountable to the one next higher in rank. The vali has direct control over sub-governors and all the employees of the vilayet. Invested with such a power, should his tendencies be for corruption and evil, as they generally are, he has the best opportunity and the most unlimited power to gratify them, for he has the entire official body of the vilayet under his control ; and if a sub-governor has the courage to op- pose him, it is so much the worse for the sub-governor. Nor is this the entire extent of the valis jurisdiction and influence. He has the general oversight and man- agement of all the taxes and revenues, and is also the commander of the military forces of the vilayet. And f?^f! 292 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. with such unlimited- authority, he can generally influ- ence the courts of justice as he chooses. The supreme head of the empire, the Sultan, who moves the machinery of the administration as the vice regent of God upon earth and as the Caliph, or suc- cessor of Mohammed, has an authority unknown else- where in the world. To recount his powers would be a hopeless task. He is omnipotent, and all things pro- ceed from and revert directly or indirectly to his sover- eign will. His word is absolute for life or death. A few restraints have been forced upon him from time to time, but even these are more fictitious than real. The people at large have no choice as to their ruler, for the office is hereditary, and the succession belongs to the oldest male relative, not to the eldest son, as might naturally be presumed. The executive and legislative authority, under the supreme direction of the Sultan, is exercised by two dignitaries, the Grand Vizier, who is the head of the temporal government, and the Sheik- ul-Islam, the head of the church. The Grand Vizier, one of the oldest pillars of state, has lost none of his power, and is accountable to no one save the Sultan, by whom he is appointed and in whose name he acts. It is still his privilege to preside at the Medjliss-i-Hass, or Privy Council, in the Sultan's absence, and wherever he is there is the Sublime Porte. We shall understand somewhat his significance if we remember that it is he who nominates to almost all the important offices. To this function is added that of commander-in-chief of the army, which, however, he is not obliged to exercise in person. The salary of the Grand Vizier amounts to about fifty thousand dollars a year. THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 293 The different departments of Medjliss-i-Hass, con- stituting what is known as the Sublime Porte, consists of the following ministers: i, the Grand Vizier; 2, the Sheik-ul-Islam ; 3, the Minister of the Interior; 4, the Minister of War ; 5, the Minister of Evkaf, or Worship ; 6, the Minister of Public Instruction ; 7, the Minister of Public Works; 8, the President of the Council of State ; g, the Minister of Foreign Affairs; 10, the Minister of Finance; 11, the Minister of Marine; 12, the Minister of Justice ; 13, the Minister of the Civil List. This Medjliss-i-Hass has weekly meet- ings, when matters of public moment are presented and considered. It also serves as a sort of advisory Cabinet. It was in 1453 that the unique office of Sheik-ul-Islam was created. No other nation employs a similar functionary, because the law^s of no other nation are in such a peculiar manner related to the sacred waitings. While not really a spiritual head, it becomes one of his duties to interpret the Koran as applied to matters of a legal character, and to preside over Ulema, a body comprising the clergy and chief functionaries of the law. In rank this dignitary is not below the Grand Vizier, and he likewise is appointed by the Sultan with the nominal concurrence of the Ulema, receiving the same salary as the former officer. The power of the Sheik-ul-Islam is manifold. Besides acting as counsel to the Sultan, he is at the head of all the law courts of the empire, and his sanction, or fetva, is necessary to render a verdict valid. Even the Sultan's decrees are subject to his sanction ; yet this is merely a matter of form, for, should a fetva be refused him, the Sultan 294 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. could use — or abuse — his appointing power, and gain the sanction desired from a more docile servant. So far as my observation has extended, I have found that people in general have very erroneous ideas regarding the administration of justice in Turkey. I think that a personal acquaintance with Turkish courts would clearly show that if anything pertaining to the Turkish government is worthy of sweeping denuncia- tion, it surely is the so-called Department of Justice. There is really no semblance of justice in Turkish courts in general. The old-time courts of the cadis, like backwoods courts of America, had substitnted their own ideas of justice for established law. They would, for instance, render judgment against the defendant and send him to jail for not paying promptly, and send the plaintiff there, too, for making a fuss about so small a matter, while the witness would get a few days behind the bars for not minding his own business. The modern Turkish courts, however, were forced to adopt a system of laws based upon the Code Napoleon. At the time it was thought a decided improvement ; but the Moslem system of laws thus coming into a close relation with the European system, as represented by the Code Napoleon, has resulted in nothing more than that the Turk has put on the robes of civilized nations, only to cover his barbaric inner nature. It is not new laws that are most needed in Turkey. The existing laws, in all the departments of administra- tion, are good enough for the Turks ; but what is vitally indispensable to good government is the honest appli- cation of the-existing laws. A TURKISH JUDGE. 296 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. In every vilayet, as well as in every liva (or sanjak) and caza, we find two different courts of justice. One is the Superior Court, or " Court Sheri," whose head — always a Mussulman — is appointed by the Sultan. The Courts Sheri correspond somewhat to American Courts of Equity, and they expound the sacred law of the Koran, appealing to it for a decision in those complexi- ties where the law of the count/y is inadequate. Cases relating to real property fall rightly under their juris- diction. The judgments of these courts are ex- amined and amended by a mollah residing at the governing centers. The High Court of Appeals is divided into two chambers, one for Asia and one for Europe, and at the heads of these we recognize the cadiaskers, or the military judges who constitute the second pillar of state in our figure of the royal tent. Wliile these Courts Sheri are not the only courts in Turkey, yet the Koran is the only law in the legislation of the country, and it is appealed to as absolute au- thority in all instances. Not only is this true, but there is another set of courts, which, although inferior in rank, are wide enough in their jurisdiction, and vested with enough of power, to be described some- what in detail. While in theory to the people prop- erly belongs the privilege of electing judges to these common courts, yet none but Mussulmans are held eligible to the office. Besides a jurisdiction over criminal cases, these tribunals try cases between the two orreat relipfious sects — between Mussulman and Christian. Like the Sheri, these courts are located at each vilayet, liva, and caza, each considering appeals from the next lower in rank. The tribunal at the THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 297 vilayet tries the higher cases, involving such sentences as capital punishment and exile ; but sentences of death are subject to the imperial sanction. At the vilayet is also a Court of Appeals, whose members come from the inferior courts, and who are supposed to be elected by the inhabitants, although in practice their choice has little influence. The lesser courts of the sub-districts — the livas and cazas — try the less important suits. Lowest, and of least rank of all, are the. minor justices of the peace, found at each village, whose jurisdiction is confined to cases the most petty. At the capital is the Supreme Court of Justice, which considers appeals from all over the empire, even including the Tribunal of Commerce, and whose decision is final, except in sentence of death, which can always be appealed to him on whose special will rest the lives of all his subjects. " In acknowledg- ment," says Creasy, "of his absolute power of life and death, the title of Hunkiar, the ' Manslayer,' is the one most commonly used by the subjects of the Sultan in speaking of their sovereign." Whatever may be said of the administration of justice in Turkey, it is patent to all that here, at least, is a system good enough in theory, but purely despotic in practice, whether it be the worst conceivable or no. And I think it may be asserted with truth that, in spite of the many so-called reforms, justice is hardly ever meted out with any degree of equity. As has been indicated, the laws of the land are not based strictly upon the Code Napoleon, but upon the Koran, and these institutes are made to conform to it. Under such a legal system a Christian has no rights whatever. 298 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. He can obtain no justice, and has no redress against wrongs that are done him, for even his testimony is not available in Turkish courts of law. As has been stated, it is always the Moslem who sits on the bench ; and as he, under the precepts of Moslem law, will not accept the evidence of a Christian against a fellow-Moslem, even though accused of the foulest crimes, how can a Christian hope for justice? It is absurd, let me repeat, to point out to the decrees of the Hatti-Humayoum placing the Christian witness on equality with those of the Mohammedans, for these decrees were never fully executed, and, in fact, they will always remain a dead letter as long as the Turk remains a Mohammedan. I can speak from personal and intimate acquaintance with Turkish courts of "justice." There are scarcely any of them that would not adhere to the old Moslem law rather than the Code Napoleon, when the con- troversy is based on an issue as affecting Moham- medans and Christians. When, however, the conten- tion is of a Moslem against a Moslem, or a Christian against a Christian, then, as a rule, nothing but the largest bakshish, or bribe, can give weight to the balance of Turkish justice. I have dwelt, in the preceding pages of this chapter, on the administrative phases of the Turkish govern- ment, and I wish to add a cursory outline of the area, population, and military system of the Ottoman government, and also of agriculture and taxation. The total area of the immediate possessions of Tur- key, not including the States nominally subject, is esti- mated at 1,147,578 square miles, and its total population THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 299 at about 27,688,000. Of this number, in Asia it has 687,640 square miles, with a population of 21,608,000; in Africa, 398,738 miles, and a population of 1,300,000; and in Europe, 61,200 miles, and a population of 4,780,000. Nominal possessions of the Ottoman Empire, includ- ing the Balkan States, Egypt, and Samos, have a total area of 461,662 square miles, with a total population of about 1 1,542,131. THE ARMY AND NAVY. The power of the Turkish army is great, by reason of its fanaticism and its being organized by German offi- cers. In its present organization it is divided into three main divisions, namely : i, the niza?n, or the regular army ; 2, the I'ddif, or the army of reserve ; and, 3, the mu7tiajiz, or the territorial army. All Mohammedans over twenty years of age are liable to military service, and this liability continues for twenty years — six years in the regular army, eight years in the reserve army, and six years in the territorial army. All the military forces of the Turkish government are distributed in army corps, with seven headquarters in principal centers of the empire. The effective com- batant service of the Turkish army, according to the " Statesman's Year Book," is 700,620 men. Of this, the infantry has 648 battalions, with 583,200 men ; the cav- alry, 202 squadrons, with 53,300 men ; the artillery, 1356 guns, with 54,720 men ; and the engineers have 39 companies, with 7400 men. The Turkish navy is in a sadly neglected condition. Only three ships can now be counted of any fighting 300 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. value, while the rest of the Turkish ships are of no worth whatever. The Ottoman naval organiza- tion is practically the same as that of the land forces. The time of service in the navy is twelve years — five in active service, three in the reserve, and four in the r^dify or army of reserve. Any candid, impartial observer of the Turkish Government will'hnd that the official corruption in all the departments of administration has kept out of gear its political machinery. So incurably dishonest is the whole system that nothing can be done without a bribe. It is seldom that men of requisite qualifications are in- trusted with high governmental and municipal offices ; but the person who secures an appointment is the one who has the skill to acquire influence in the palace at Constantinople. If there is anything in the United States that somewhat resembles the Turkish govern- ment it is the New York Tammany Hall at its worst. True, there have been a few honorable and hiofh-minded officials, who conducted the affairs of the state with some measure of efficiency ; but the general demoraliza- tion, with the basest forms of venality on one hand and cruelty and misgoverninent on the other, has become so widely spread that it would be really difficult to overestimate the utter rottenness of many branches of the administration. As in all other governments, and perhaps to a greater degree, there is to be found much of dross and much that cannot be looked upon with complacency by right-minded men. Much of excellent theory is trans- formed into most corrupt practice. Good government can come only through good administration. True, a A MODERN TURKISH GENERAL. 302 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. bad law may seriously hamper the best administration, yet a good law is of no value whatever unless well ad- ministered. A thorough cleansing of the administra- tion, with many important modifications of abusable privileges, would do much for civilization in Turkey. AGRICULTURE AND TAXATION. At the conquest of the country now known as Turkey four main dispositions were made of the land, namely: first, mii'i, or Crown lands ; second, vacoiif, or pious foundations ; third, mulikaneh, or Crown grants ; and, fourth, nmek, or freehold prop- erty. The first portion, the Crown lands, con- stituted the private property of the empire ; the second was set aside as the exclusive property of the Church ; the third division of landed property was granted to the old feudal soldiers in recompense for military service ; while the last tenure, the freehold property, does not exist to a great extent. By con- forming to certain conditions imposed by the govern- ment, the unoccupied or waste lands included under the first division may become private property. Any- one may thus obtain a title to a farm by appropriating as many acres as he can well cultivate, providing he pays the specified tax for a period of twenty years. As a result of this opportunity afforded by the gov- ernment, many villages, composed almost wholly of these minor farmers, have gradually come into being. It was not until the year 1867 that subject peoples were granted the right of holding real property in their own name. To-day numbers of large farms THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 303 represent investments of foreign capital, and almost all the farms of the empire have non-resident owners. The transfer of title to land is a simple matter. Both parties to a transfer proceed to the government house of a district, and there, in the presence of wit- nesses, make the sale valid. The purchaser pays at once the price agreed and receives a certificate which entitles him to private ownership ; later he obtains from the capital the title-deed to his property. But while the transfer of land is apparently so simple, yet many complexities attend its formalities in the execution of property titles, and these very complexities have been deliberately instituted by the Turkish government for the express purpose of plun- dering the Christian property-owners. The vacouf, or Church lands, are not exempt from being a source of a great deal of trouble. As has been briefly stated, the vacouf is a parcel of land with or without buildings on it ; its doininiuvi plenum does not belong to the occupant, but he simply has the use of it. The fact that this form of tenure insures free- dom from many oppressive measures of the govern- ment and fraudulent tendencies of grasping ofificials induces a great many people to make over their property to pious institutions, such as a mosque, with the condition of using the property during their life- time. In time this method became so firmly estab- lished that to-day the whole of Constantinople is vacouf property. Reclus estimates that one-third of the total amount of property in European Turkey is vacouf property. As to how laws and regulations have been alto- 304 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. gether disregarded by the Turkisli government; and people have been driven from tlieir homes, and their property seized by the officials of the state, I will not here attempt to speak. It would, indeed, open a new chapter of endless wrongs. We will now consider the mode of managing a large cultivated estate. The landed proprietor himself does not usually attend to the farm, but employs an agent, generally a native, to personally superintend the busi- ness ; and thus the owner is often the victim of dis- honesty on the part of his agent, who has not much fear of discovery. Besides the agent there are numer- ous farm laborers, who are sometimes paid in stipu- lated wages and sometimes by a share in the year's produce. The superintendent has also his "staff" of cowherds, oxherds, and similar necessary helpers. By this method, in force on the bcylik, or *' home farm," as it is called, the profits above wages and other expenses revert directly to the landed proprietor. But the bcylik does not include all of the estate, for a large part of it is let out to tenants who usually work on the metayer system — a system so universally in vogue that it will be well to explain it. The tenant is usually a Christian. Besides a small plot for his own private use, he is furnished by his landlord with seed, and sometimes with a house and barn. At the end of the year each receives half of of what produce remains after paying the usual "tithe," or tax. It cannot be said that this system is one of absolute equity, for if there is any loss to be borne, it largely falls upon the landlord. If the crops are poor, it is he who suffers most ; and his tenant is usually THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 305 indebted to him ; for when compelled to borrow, the tenant borrows from his landlord at twelve per cent, rather than from professional money-lenders, whose rate is two or three times higher. On the other hand, the tenant's lot is not so happy as mJght be thought on consitU^ing his absolute freedom from risk. It is just this lack of responsibility which, by thwarting any spirit of enterprise, is his chief curse. He is sure of support at the hands of the proprietor, and is not very eager to over-exerl himself for the highest cultivation of the estate. He also suffers the inconvenience of being compelled to give his time to the service of the government in an)/ emergency when it may be called for. As has been said, the tenant is usuall)' a Chris- tian, and, if he be orthodox and observe the exces- sively numerous days of religious fast and prayer, he will not work nearly all the year. It will be seen that, in the face of these obstacles, method is utterK' impos- sible, and until there is a reform of some kind j)rogress is not to be hoped for. When properly conducted sheep-farming is a profit- able industry, the onl\' drawback being that the art of breeding is not understood so as to insure the best re- sults. Almost every landed proprietor has grazings which he rents out to flock-masters. In the letting out of these sheep lands is found one instance where the owner runs little or no risk, as at least one-half of the rent is always required in advance, and for the other half the flock itself is c'mple security. Then, too. de- spite severe competition, the rents are generally high. In winter the sheep are taken up the mountain slopes to graze, and when the warmer days of summer come 306 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. they are again led to pasture in the plains. This sum- mer pasturing extends from the beginning of May to October, and is the more profitable kind. Turkey has sometimes been suggested as a good place for the more scientific cultivation of sheep. It is certainly true that, witli more careful breeding, much more could be realized from this source than is the case at the present time. The soil of Asia Minor is so re- markably rich and fertile that everything grows in great luxuriance, even with little cultivation ; although it might seem that the fertile qualities of the soil would quickly be exhausted, as it receives no manure save from the summer grazing of the sheep. In some localities crops are sown every year, and in others during alternate years. Grains, such as wheat, barle\', and oats, are raised. The farmers begfin to sow in autumn, although some do not finish until January, and the reaping is done in the month of June. Owing to the nature of the climate, spring crops are usually a failure, but about May or April a great staple of the empire, tobacco, together with maize and other like products, is sown. These are harvested during August and September. Tobacco cultivation has at- tained a high degree of perfection, and the product brings a good price. Of course, there are extensive vineyards scattered almost everywhere in Asia Minor, and from certain localities of it comes some of the best wine in the world. Nor should we fail to mention the making of silk, which is no mean industry of the empire. Good farming has been greatly retarded by the very crude methods of cultivation everywhere to be A TURKISH LANDLORD OF THE HIGHLST TYPE. 308 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. found ; and it is the deliberate policy of the govern- ment to continue this state of affairs. Threshino- ma- chines are practically unused, and, consequently, this part of harvesting becomes a very laborious as well as wasteful process. There are several modes of threshing. Sometimes the grain in the ear is scattered on the barn floor and horses are made to gallop over it. In other localities the process is more elaborate, and a sled with a flinted bottom is used, upon which is often placed a young girl, who balances herself as she is drawn by horses round and round tlie threshing-floor, amid the admirinof plaudits of the beholders. The women, too, are com- pelled to do their share, and in the threshing season usually commence work with the men. at three o'clock in the morning. There seems to be a decided aversion to farm machinery of every kind. For instance, the plow which is most extensively in use is little more than a stick. It is true, the earth has only to be tickled to "laugh in a harvest," but the laugh might be a little more hearty were more modern plows introduced and used. When the material civilization of the West shall pene- trate Oriental crudeness, bringing its tools and machines and means of transportation ; when human ingenuity shall join hands with nature, there will not be found in all the world better farming countries than European and Asiatic Turkey. The tax on agriculture is very onerous. The tithe system is in vogue, and it has always varied in amount on all produce. The tax is levied by a person known as the multeyim, who purchases from the government 3IO THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. the privilege of taxing- a certain territory. The pur- chase price constitutes the revenue of the government from this source, and the profits of the collector are measured by the amount he is able to extort from the people in excess of that sum. Thus the motive of the collector is self-interest rather than public service. One redeeming feature, however, which prevents worse corruption, is the fact that the officers of the state are never allowed to bid for tithes. Some of the measures of this taxation are extremely harsh. For instance, the farmers are obliged to keep their produce until the collector comes to take his por- tion, and thereby loss is often suffered. But the great- est evil is in the methods of assessment. The collector, by virtue of the government's sanction, resorts to un- restricted acts of violence and oppression, in his greedy efforts to secure excessive profits. At the time of the collection of taxes, accompanied by the zabtich, or police (in spite of the law that collection of taxes is to be wholly separated from the work of the police), in many cases he actually takes the last cent from the poor farmer. I have known )ears when the crops failed ; nevertheless, the assessor was sure to appear with the police and seize the cattle of the unfortunate farmer. At times, in my native city Marsovan, the yield of grapes was so far overestimated, as they hung on the vines, that when the vineyards were put into the tender hands of the tax-buyer twenty-five or thirty per cent, of the actual product was demanded from the pro- ducer. Taking into due consideration such execution of laws with actual conditions, we need not wonder at the unenterprising character and the perpetual poverty THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 311 of the peasantry. It is needless to say that it would improve the condition of things were the government to collect this tax directly, for, however exorbitant its taxation might be, the heaviest burden of legal exac- tion is light when compared with the extortion prac- ticed by the mMlteyims. Corresponding somewhat to the ashr, or tithe, on arable land, is what is termed the sayme, a tax on sheep, goats, and, sometimes, cattle. Before 1858 this was collected in kind, but since that time one-tenth of the money value, according to appraisement, had been taken by the government. Similar to the property tax in this country is the verghi, which to-day assumes two forms, a tax on income and a tax on property. This is systematic and based upon a fixed principle. The assessment of the income tax is made in public meetings, at which all concerned are permitted to be present, and it differs with the professions and trades, and depends also on the reputed wealth of the individual. In general, how- ever, it is three per cent, on all gross income from in- vested capital or from any other source. There are a few who are exempt, such as parish doctors, religious orders, and schoolmasters. The tax on real property mentioned above is placed at four dollars a year per one thousand dollars on the estimated value of all lands and houses, whether subject to tithes or not. The value of such property is calculated at five times its produce, or twenty times its assumed rent, and, with the tithe, this is most oppressive. It may be added that those who receive rent from tenants are required to hand over 312 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. four per cent, per annum, tithe-paying land alone excepted. Although the Hatti-Sherif of 1839 and the Hatti- Humayoum of 1856 were to admit Christians into the Ottoman army, the law has never been fully enforced. Save a couple of regiments of mixed Cossacks, there are hardly any non-Mussulmans engaged in the service. The exemption from military duty, however, is not to be obtained for nothing, and a tax, commonly termed the bedel, is laid upon all non-Mohammedans not in the army. This tax in itself is not unfair, considering that a Mohammedan has to pay more for the exemp- tion than does a Christian, but, in common with other taxes, the method of assessment deserves our condem- nation. I have known poor Armenian neighbors, with large families, who, upon their absolute inability to meet the government's demands, were thrown into prison, after being subjected to the most brutal indig- nities, thus leaving their families in a state of hunorer and despair. They were not to be released until the government's demands were duly met. I vividly recall instances when the philanthropic spirit of my father was so moved by the miseries of unhappy victims of Turkish outrage that he hastened to pay their taxes, and thus secured their deliverance from Turkish dun- geons. This most harassing and oppressive form of taxation has long been the cause of infinite trouble, aggravated by the rai)acity witli which it was enforced. Although in the regulations of 1876 freedom from taxation was promised to children and old men, yet, like all good promises of the Turk, this too has remained a 1, > a' W a- X X, C 314 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. dead letter, and a full tax has been exacted from males of all ages. The injustice of such a law is unquestioned, yet Armenians would have small cause for complaint were this the only oppressive feature in the system of Turkish taxation. Some reforms have been instituted of late years which have somewhat enhanced the prosperity of the Turk. For instance, the eight per cent, tax formerly imposed upon goods passing from one Turkish port to another has happily been abolished, and an excise of one per cent, placed in its stead. The indiscriminate tariff on imports of eight per cent, ad valoi'-em is certainly not in accord with any principle of political economy, for it is often the weapon of exaction and of favoritism, in estimatingr the value of imports. The tax on exports of native prod- uce is placed at one per cent, if sent abroad, but eight per cent, if sent from one part of the empire to an- other. A tax of considerable importance is that levied on tobacco, and, as it is collected by the agent of a foreign company, it is, perhaps, the most frequently evaded. Owing to the severe penalt)' inflicted upon anyone dis- covered in the smuggling business, many ingenious methods are employed to elude detection. I have known of cases where tobacco, carefully covered with wool, was concealed in a bag and, as usual, carried on the back. Nor is this the only way in which the wool is pulled over the authorities' eyes. As we have previously stated, the tail of the Oriental sheep is quite large, and some persons, diverting this appendage from the pur- pose by nature designed, use it to hide a tale more THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 315 wonderful still. I was surprised one midnight to see a man passing stealthily through the town, not on the street but from roof to roof, with what appeared to be a bag upon his back. As it turned out afterward, the bag was filled with tobacco, which he was trying to smuggle to his home in this unusual and perilous manner. Various attempts have been made to develop the rich natural resources of the empire and establish manufac- tories, especially in the country, labor being so abun- dant and cheap. At one time a new era seemed to dawn, and thousands of natives were employed in fac- tories. English and French influence, however, inau- gurated the policy of free trade. Their goods were imported at a tariff of six or eight per cent, ad valorein. As a natural consequence the Turkish factories were closed, and workingmen and their families were reduced to abject poverty. The famous Bruse towels were im- itated, and sold much cheaper, driving out the native goods, which, though costing more, would last five times as long. Combs, cutlery, and silks came from Sheffield, Manchester, and Lyons. The fine silky fleece of the Angora goat is sold much cheaper to the English manufacturer than to the native artisan, and comes back enhanced in value from fifty- to a hun- dred-fold. It is safe to say that of the wealth produced by a native goat, forty-nine dollars out of every fifty go into the pockets of foreigners. America may well learn a lesson from the Angora goat, and continue to resist a free-trade system that has closed the factories, destroyed the revenue, and produced beggary in the Ottoman Empire. 3l6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. In spite of its exorbitant tax system the Turkish government has, in the last half century, been accumu- latino; laroe debts, and its direct borrowinijs form no little portion of the general budget. In 1889 the reve- nue was ninety million dollars, while the expenditures were about one hundred and twenty-five million dollars. The entire system of Turkish finance is sorely in need of scientific readjustment. The antiquated " farm- ing-out " system should be replaced by a system of di- rect assessment and levy by officials of the government. The rapacity and greed of the tax-farmer being elim- inated, the people would cheerfully contribute to the support of the government. And with the growth of a healthy public sentiment, through gradual modifica- tions, there might be evolved from the present disorder and confusion a general scheme of taxation along pro- gressive and scientific lines. In regard to the indus- trial incidents of tlie public finance, manufacture seems to require a discriminating protective tariff, and agri- culture seems to require larger expenditures in the line of public roads and other facilities for transportation. A reliable index to the prosperity of any country is to be found in its system of taxation. Whether such taxes are proportionately divided ; whether the poor are oppressed, and the rich escape from their rightful share in the public burden of expense, are questions the answers to which, to a large extent, determine the char- acter of the nation. The proper administration and regulation of public taxation have been a serious and unsolved problem in all ages. A wise administration of taxes has raised empires to the pinnacle of world-wide glory. A too-sweeping tax adjudication has led many THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT. 317 a nation to irretrievable downfall. Taxation is the tyrant's mightiest tool. Rightly conducted, it serves as the people's greatest blessing. One thing is certain : no matter how different the ways in which taxes are levied, they are essential to national growth, and even national existence. THE EASTERN QUESTION. " A sick man — a very sick man. It would be a great misfortune if one of these days he should slip away from us before the nec- essary arrangements have been made." — Nicholas I, TT is a rash claim for any man to make that he has ^ mastered the Eastern Question. So complicated are its issues that it is hard to define, still harder to com- prehend, it. In my conversation with a professor of modern history in one of the leading American univer- sities, who is regarded as a specialist on this subject, he asserted with emphasis, " I do not understand the question, and nobody else does." It is a many-sided question, of which the future of Turkey is only a part ; and it leads out into such a labyrinth of political entan- glements that, unless a person takes a single point of view, to the utter disregard and exclusion of all side issues, he will never find his way out of it. For centuries the Eastern Question has been the most engrossing problem that European statesmanship has had to solve, and centuries may yet pass before it will be finally settled. While the question has chiefly interested Russia, Turkey, and England, it is closely studied and watched, with the deepest concern, by all nations of the Continent. Back of all the diplomatic maneuvering, the one great aim of the Powers is to have, each and all, an outlet upon the Mediterranean, 318 THE EASTERN QUESTION. 319 and, with this ultimate object in view, to join in the division and get the largest possible slice of Turkey. So long as a practical method of accomplishing this end is lacking, by reason of their common greed and mutual jealousies, just so long will the Eastern Ques- tion continue to exist. Calm and peaceful as it may sometimes appear on the surface, there are elements be- neath that only await the touch of the fuse to evoke an eruption that will cause the political world to tremble. In the preceding chapter we have pointed out that with the Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent (1520-66), the Turkish Empire had reached the zenith of its power and glory. He had led the nation into the grandest epoch of its history. He was undisputed master of the Mediterranean, and woe betide the ship flying a hostile flag upon its placid bosom ! But there came a change. Unlike his brave father, who had marched at the head of the army and died at the age of seventy-six amid smoking ruins and captured cities, Selim shrank from leading his army in person, and gave himself to the excessive indulgence of vicious appetites. His example was followed, with rare exceptions, by the Sultans who succeeded him. Their folly and cor- ruption would have put an end to their rule long ago had it not been for the mutual jealousy of the Powers of Europe. In the reign of Selim II. occurred the first conflict between the Turks and Russians. He decided to connect the Caspian and Black seas by uniting the rivers Don and Volga by a canal, by means of which a Turkish fleet could be sent into the Caspian. This had always been a plan that Russia most desired 320 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. to carry out herself. When, therefore, SeHm dispatched five thousand laborers and eighty thousand soldiers to consummate the cherished plan, he met with opposition from the Russians. The Turkish soldiers attacked the town of Astrakhan, the possession oi which was neces- sary to construct tlie canal, but were repulsed and driven back. At this time the Russians, while patriotic and a(,^L;ressive, occupied only a limited portion of southern Europe, and were but little known. Their antipathy to the Turks dates from their heroic defense before the walls of Astrakhan. For one hundred years the Ottoman Empire had stood alone in power and might. Its armies had pene- trated victoriously into the heart of Europe and had advanced to within two score miles of Vienna. From that city the Roman emperor fled before them, and the mighty Cathedral of St. Stephen barely escaped the fate of St. Sophia at Byzantium, in becoming a mosque of Allah and the Prophet. But soon the bright splendor of the Star and Crescent was obscured. In 1 57 1 the ships of the Christian Powers, under the command of Don John of Austria, encountered the Turks outside of the Gulf of Lepanto, and in the furious conflict that ensued the Ottoman fleet was almost annihilated. Such a result proved of great moral value to Christians. They learned that the Ottoman navy was no longer invincible on the seas. Defeat after defeat, instead of the usual victories, fol- lowed the Turkish armies in quick succession, and but for the aid of the Poles the result would have been the utter destruction of the Ottoman Power. Turkey, however, continued to decline, and though she made 322 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. an occasional re-conquest, it was not of sufficient importance to turn the tide of her ill fortune. In the year 1664 the Turkish army was completely routed in a war with the Germans, and twenty years later another bloody defeat was suffered at the hands of the Austrians. Turkey was urged into a war with Russia by Charles XII. of Sweden, who had taken refuge in the Sultan's empire after the disaster of Pultowa. The contest nearly resulted in the crushing defeat of the Russians, who were deserted by the Moldavians, upon whose aid they had in a large degree depended. In 171 1 the Grand Vizier Baltiji Mohammed marched into Moldavia against the forces of the Czar, and on the right bank of the Pruth he completely blockaded the army of Peter the Great. Here the Vizier had his tireless foe entrapped in a precarious position, and finally compelled him to sur- render. But his stupidity, and the adroit tactics of the Czarina, allowed Peter the Great to escape on the easiest terms. In 1736, with the capture of the fortress of Azof, and other important strongholds, the attitude of the Russians chanired to the ag-g-ressive, and in their sub- sequent career of ceaseless warfare they proved to be a far more formidable adversary to the Turks than the Austrians. Austria now entered into an alhance with Russia to secure the ruin of Turkey and divide the spoils between them. The discovery of this scheme led the Turks to a war, in which the Austrians were defeated and driven across the Danube, while the Russians victoriously penetrated into the ver)' heart of Moldavia. Again, in 1769, the Russians invaded THE EASTERN QUESTION. 323 Moldavia, captured the fortress of Choozin, and, in the following year, conquered Moldavia and Wallachia, and blockaded and set on fire the Turkish fleet off Chios. The notable treaty of Kutchouk-Kainardji, made in July, 1774, closed the war. It provided for the absolute independence of the Tartar territory on the Crimea, with Kuban and the surrounding districts, and it further stipulated that under no pretext should either country meddle in their affairs. Scarcely had the treaty been signed when Russia broke the terms by taking possession of the Crimea and the entire country east of the Caspian Sea, and compelled the Sultan, in 1784, to acquiesce in this action. It was, however, Catherine's fixed plan to drive the Turkish Power out of Europe and restore the Greek kingdom, by placing her grandson on the throne of Constanti- nople. Aware of the scheme, three years later the Sultan resumed hostilities against his Russian foe. A year later Joseph II. of Austria heartily entered into Russia's plan for the conquest and final dismemberment of the Ottoman Empire. Again Austria was defeated, and this time was compelled to sign a treaty at Sisto- via, in 1791. The Russians, however, were too powerful for Turkey. They overran its northern provinces, and dealt a crushing blow to the Turkish fleet. The Otto- man Empire was apparently about to fall, and its very foundations seemed sliaken by the victorious tramp of the mighty Russian Bear. All Europe now became alarmed. Pitt formed the Triple Alliance, made up of England, Prussia, and Holland, for the preservation of the European balance of power and the muzzling of the Russian Bear. Notwithstanding such a serious ob- 324 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. stacle, Catherine determined to continue her warfare against the Turks until the completion of her cherished designs. To best accomplish this, Russia and Austria again effected an alliance, and the combined armies proceeded against the common adversary. The result was disastrous to Turkey, which was not only com- pelled to pay a heavy indemnity, but ceded Bucharest, Bender, Akerman, Ismail, and the Crimea and Kuban to the Russians, while Belgrade was given to Austria. The treaty of peace with Russia was signed at Jassey in January, 1792. The Dneister was made the frontier boundary between the two empires. The treaty also recognized the protectorate of Russia over Tiflis. Had it not been for tiie strong influence of the Triple Alli- ance, Catherine would have captured Constantinople itself. Indeed, so intense was the feelinof of Pitt against the predominant and grasping policy of Russia that he united with Prussia for war against Catherine, and nothing but the strong public opinion against him rendered it impossible for the English minister to carry out his plan. The far-sighted policy adopted by Peter the Great, the greatest Russian ruler up to his day, was one of acquisition. Constantinople and its straits were his dream, just as Jerusalem was that of the Crusaders. He knew that the Black Sea was the only coast available for the military and commercial enterprises of his people ; and it was but natural that he should take a deep interest in the question of the Straits, the outlet of that body of water which involved the maritime portion of his domain. The position of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, and their strategic importance, are doubt- THE EASTERN QUESTION. 325 less well known to every one of my readers. The only countries bordering on the Black Sea are Russia and Turkey. But for the narrow channel called the Bosphorus, which connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmora, the sea would be to Russia simply a great land-locked lake. The Bosphorus is seventeen miles long and at places only a half mile wide, yet it is so deep that it enables the largest ship to anchor close to its shores. Entrance from this to the Mediterranean Sea is made possible by the Straits of Dardanelles, narrow and deep like the Bosphorus, and forty miles long. Close these straits, and Russia becomes an inland region, and its ships in the Black Sea are virtually land-locked. Fortify these straits, and Constantinople is invulnerable from the sea. A treaty signed in 1807 between Great Britain and Turkey confirmed a right which the Sultan has always claimed, i. e., to exclude foreign war vessels from both straits. However, by a second clause that was inserted in the treaty of Hunkiar-Iskelessi, July 8, 1833, Turkey and Russia effected an offensive and defensive alliance, by which the latter government was granted the right to sail its war vessels through the straits, while the Sultan was bound to keep the Dardanelles closed to all war ships of other powers, thereby shutting out the enemies of Russia from the Black Sea, but leaving Russia's own vessels free passage through the straits. The stipulations of this treaty, to the consternation of the English, made the influence of Russia almost supreme in Turkey, and in turn made the Sultan virtually a vassal of the great Czar. The jealousy of the Powers, particularly of England, became very intense over the 326 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. advantage gained by their political rival. At length England, at the head of five great Powers, efYected a treaty in 1841 by which no foreign fleet should enter the straits in time of peace, and in time of war it should be the Sultan's right to allow the war vessels of friendly nations to pass into the Sea of Marmora for the purpose of co-operation with and protection of the Porte. Thus the navy of Russia was shut up in the Black Sea, which has virtually always been the case. To change this, and give his country an unhampered commercial and military outlet through the straits, Peter the Great had bent all his energies. In his alleged will, which was published for the people, and accepted as genuine, — though now its authorship may be questioned, — he is quoted as having said : Raise war continually — at one time against Turkey, at another against Persia; make dock-yards on the Black Sea; by degrees make yourselves masters of the Sea as well as of the Baltic; hasten the decay of Persia, and penetrate to the Persian Gulf; establish, if possible, the ancient commerce of the East by way of Syria, and push on to the Indies, which are the entrepot of the world. Once there, you need not fear the gold of England. So thoroughly did this supposed will of Peter the Great represent the attitude of Russia that the people believed it their duty to follow its commands, as they are doing with great patience and zeal. England, of all the Powers, has been most jealous of the encroach- ments of Russia in the East. Her ofificers and emis- saries continually report that evidences of Russian intrigue in central Asia are apparent ; and it is known that the policy of England, even in Afghanistan, was 328 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. directed and influenced by the representations of the Czar. Emperor Nicholas had made up his mind that the Ottoman Empire should be speedily extinguished. In order to put his plans into a definite course of action, he visited England in person, in 1844, ^^^^ there plainly outlined his design, and exchanged views with the British diplomats as to the final dismemberment of Turkey, His conversation at the time gave the impression that his loftiest ambition was to consum- mate a friendly alliance with the British government, as a prelude to dividing the spoils upon the collapse of Turkey, which he believed was impending. In con- versation with the Duke of Wellington and Lord Aberdeen, then Foreign Secretary, he spoke with astonishing frankness regarding his views on Turkey, its prospects, and what would probably take place if it were dismembered. When he returned to Russia he caused a memorandum to be drawn up, which he believed embodied the views held alike by himself and Wellinofton and Aberdeen. It stated that England and Russia were alike in the belief that their common interests were conserved by the maintenance of the Turkish Empire in its existing independence and existing territorial extent. That while they both had a common and equal interest in guarding its safety, yet while Turkey continued to violate its treaty obliga- tions, it was impossible to maintain its integrity. Nor did he speak with uncertain tone when he described the conduct of the Porte. He stated that Turkey relied upon the jealousies of the Powers to secure its immunity in breaking treaties ; it believed that if it did NICHOLAS I., EMPEROR OF RUSSIA. 330 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. not keep its engagements with any nation, others would protect it from chastisement. Continuing the memo- randum, he said : As soon as the Porte shall perceive that it is not supported by other cabinets it will give way, and the differences which have arisen will be arranged in a conciliatory manner, without any conflict resulting from them. It further contained a clause that dwelt upon the immediate necessity of the Porte's improving the condi- tion of its Christian subjects. It was asserted that on such conditions Russia and England could but desire the preservation of the Ottoman Empire. In the event, however, of the unforeseen disaster, it was, according to the memorandum, desirable that Russia and England should arrive at an understanding as to the course of action to be taken by them. When the copy of the memorandum reached Eng- land it was quietly filed away in the Foreign Office, and was not made public till at a later time, when the Russian press maintained that the British government had for a considerable period of time known the views of Russia regarding Turkey. Up to the time of its publication the Czar had assumed that England con- sented to his plan, following the theory that " silence gives consent." On the evening of January g, 1853, '" ^ confidential talk at St. Petersburg, with the British Ambassador, Sir G. Hamilton Seymour, Nicholas withheld nothing, expressing himself in the most positive manner re- garding the future of Turkey and the arrangements it might be necessary for Russia and England to make. It was then that he gave expression to the phrase that is THE EASTERN QUESTION. 33 1 now famous, and has contributed an appellation that will probably attach to the Ottoman Empire as long as it exists — " The sick man we have on our hands." In subsequent conversations with Sir Hamilton Sey- mour, he spoke of the guard which treaties gave him the right to keep over the several millions of Greek Christians in Turkey, and said he would not permit a permanent occupation of Constantinople by Russia ; nor would he agree to its being held by any other great Power. He said he was opposed to the reconstruction of Greece into a Byzantine empire, and he was even opposed to the subdivision of Turkey into small repub- lics. He asserted his attitude positively, that the ex- istence of Turkey in Europe should cease, and nothing should be allowed to take its place, not even Russia. Servia and Bulgaria might become independent states under his protection. England might take possession of Egypt and Candia ; but what he desired was that Russia and England should come to an agreement after which he would be totally indifferent as to what other Powers might say or do. Despite Nicholas' outspoken manner and apparent good will toward the English government, the British looked upon him as a shrewd schemer and plunderer, and the Czar in turn thought England a faithless ac- . complice. England replied to his overtures that she did not regard it as customary to prepare for the disin- tegration of a friendly Power, and that she had no wish to take possession of any part of the Ottoman Empire. Seeing that there was no hope of the English joining him in his project, the Czar retreated somewhat from his advanced position, and would probably have en- 332 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. deavored to maintain a neutral attitude in relation to the future of Turkey. However, the antipathy of the Russians toward the Turks was so intense, on account of the persecutions of their co-religionists, that it com- pelled the emperor to renew hostilities, if he desired to retain the support of his subjects. A cause for war was not far to seek. It was to be based upon the contentions of the Greek and Latin churches over the holy places in Palestine. The Latin Church, under the protection of the French govern- ment, had, during the reign of Francis L, been given the right of protection in a firman, granted as early as 1564, by Suleyman the Magnificent. Later, in 1620, another yfrw^;^ has the following : The Franks, ancient exclusive possessors of the Great Church of Bethlehem and the Church of the Tomb of the Virgin, have, of their full accord, granted to each of the other Christian com- munions sanctuaries in the Superior Church; but the inferior por- tion, the place wherein Jesus Christ was born (may salvation rest with Him!), is the sanctuary of the Frankish monks; no other nation has any right therein, and it is forbidden to each and every nation to usurp hereafter the said place. . . We order that no individual, Armenians or other, be permitted to say Mass in the place where Jesus Christ was born, a place situate underneath the Church of Bethlehem, no more than in the cupola, which is called the Tomb of the Holy Virgin; nor, finally, in the sanctua- ries, which, from the old time, belonged to the Frankish monks. Thus, since the time of the Crusades, the French had the general primacy in the holy places. Later, however, through a religious propaganda of Russia, the Greek Church was granted the same privilege under the protection of the Czar. Each succeeding Sultan gave these capitulations indiscriminately, totally disre- THE EASTERN QUESTION. 333 garding what his predecessors had done ; and, as each church claimed the general care and primacy over the holy places, there was a constant quarrel, each church being naturally supported by its protecting nation. About this time Napoleon III. installed himself as Emperor of France, and he was anxious to distract his subjects' attention from the disturbed condition of home politics by a brilliant foreign policy. He cared no more for the incessant claims of the Latin monks in the Holy Land than he cared about the ex- istence of Turkey, excepting as they might be turned into political capital. He suddenly became peremptory in his claims that the demands of the monks should be granted. It was his chance to inaugurate the new for- eign policy. His action, beyond a doubt, precipitated the Crimean war which followed. It would, however, have occurred just the same had France done nothino-. In the negotiations of Russia with the Sultan, just preceding the Crimean War, she claims the exclusive protectorate of all the Eastern Christians in the Otto- man Empire. An acknowledgment of this right was the lever by which the Czar sought to compass the fall of the Ottoman Empire. Russia based its contentions upon the seventh clause in the treaty of Kutchouk-Kainardji, made in 1774, between the two governments. At the time when the clause was incorporated it v/as apparently of no marked significance. However, it was destined to shake the very existence of the Ottoman Empire. The clause declared that The Porte promises to protect constantly the Christian religion and its churches; and also to allow the minister of the 334 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Imperial Court of Russia to make on all occasions representations as well in favor of the new church in Constantinople, as in favor of those who officiate therein, promising to take such representa- tions into due consideration as being made by a confidential functionary of a neighboring and sincerely friendly Power. The church in Constantinople referred to was the one which the fourteenth article of the same treaty gave Russia the right to build in the Galata quarter of Con- stantinople, in addition to the chapel erected at the house of the minister. Referring to these, the treaty said : They shall be always under the protection of the ministers of the Russian Empire, and shielded from all obstruction and damage. While the specific right of intervention was clearly attached only to a single church at Constantinople and its ministers, out of the clause Russia claimed the right of protectorate over all the Christians of the Greek Church in the Ottoman Empire. Of all the eminent European statesmen, Mr, Glad- stone alone accepted the Russian interpretation of the seventh clause. Lord John Russell, in a letter to Sir Hamilton Seymour, recognized the clause as binding, tlioiigh it is believed thoughtlessly and without realizing the importance that would be attached to his words. The Czar had sent to Constantinople to represent him in the negotiations for the settlement of the dis- pute about the holy places Prince Menschikoff. This man was a typical oldtime tyrant, with the fighting propensity of a bulldog ; haughty and arrogant, inso- lent and harsh, he was apparently selected with a view THE EASTERN QUESTION. 335 to prevent an amicable settlement. On the same day that the decree settling the dispute appeared, the prince, who had been empowered to settle or unsettle the matter, suddenly forsook the question of the holy places and sought another pretext for a quarrel by introducing a new issue. He demanded that the pror tection of the eleven million Greek subjects of the Porte be vested at once, and completely, in the emperor of Russia. His demands were imperious, and his language to the Sultan and Grand Vizier was per- emptory ; and he so insulted the Minister of Foreign Affairs that that official resio^ned. In neeotiatino- for a treaty between Russia and Turkey, he requested the Turkish ministers to pledge themselves not to reveal to the French or English ambassadors the nature of the documents. This the ministers refused to do. In May, 1853, the Sultan, backed by the English and French Powers, formally declined to recognize Russia's demand for a protectorate of the Greek Christians. Immediately the imperial arms were lowered from the Russian embassy, and Menschikoff, in sinuilatetl anger, withdrew from Constantinople, giving the Sultan to understand that he would wait a week at Odessa, and if within that time a note of concession to the Czar's demands was not forthcoming, a rupture with Russia might take place. The Czar acquiesced in the acts of Menschikoff, and, as no note came, the war began. Russia was prepared for the contest, for it was expected. Troops had been massed upon the Turkish frontier. The Danubian principalities were occupied by the Czar, who claimed that this was done to secure guaranty that the concessions due his ^^^^!ri^\ ^^^P'x ^ -!# 1 "" ''"' ^"' ^'"^^'==- The situation doTf ,^^ f alarming, so that the Armenians were doubtful of their safety in spite of the repeated assur- 398 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. ances of the Turkish officials that no Kurd would be allowed to enter the city. Soon from the city the plain presented a sad view of desolation and ruin. By day bands of Kurds rode fiercely from village to village, brandishing their weapons and in many instances shooting down Armenians in cold blood. At night the sky was illuminated by burning villages, and the glow of red that hung upon the horizon seemed a portent of the redder blood that was to flow in the streets of Harput. It was not safe for any Armenian to leave the city, which was virtually in a state of siege. The cordon of fiendish savages was drawing nearer the city. On Sunday, November lo, the worst element among the Turks in the city began a noisy demonstration, and it was plain that the crisis was not far off. The next day a village on the plain, only a short distance from the city, was attacked. After two hundred had been murdered, and as many wounded, the savages advanced to a position near an old fortress in the eastern part of the city. Turks from the city met them, and the impression was given that a council was being held. Apparently the invaders were forbidden to attack the markets, from which it was known that all the mer- chandise had been removed. The deception was carried still further by a sham battle, which made it appear that the soldiers had resisted the invasion of the city. The firing had not continued long before a signal cannon was fired, and instantly the raiders began their work of murder and pillage all over the city. Amid flame and smoke, shout and groan, and saber strokes and death-shots falling thick and fast as lightnings THE TURKISH CAMPAIGN OF BUTCHERY. 399 from the mountain cloud, the refugees sought safety at the school and mission-buildings and churches. The soldiers protected the Kurds, and the Turkish military forces did not make the slightest move to repel them, but stood by and saw American property destroyed and plundered and American citizens fired upon with- out lifting a finger to prevent. It was not incendiarism but official destruction. Nearly one hundred houses in the vicinity of the educational and missionary build- ings were burned, and then those buildings began to burn. It was evident that the plan of the marauders was to destroy these, so that the Americans and refugees would have no shelter. The missionaries, with their several hundred people, were driven from one place to another by the fire and the whistling of bullets. The savage horde shot down and tortured to death those who would not abjure their Christian faith. Quite a number of Armenians fled to a church in the vain hope that its sacred walls would furnish a shelter against those who were raving for Christian blood ; but the doors were soon battered in with heavy axes' and as their Moslem captors appeared, with raised daggers, the shrieks and cries of the helpless women and children rose louder and louder. Their captors dragged them out of the church one at a time, and, upon their firm refusal to accept Mohammed,' they were killed with horrible tortures. The Protestant pastor of the church was the first victim, and as he was dragged out he exhorted the others to die like himself — a Christian martyr. In the cities of Arabkir and Malitia the Armenians offered resistance to the ravishers, but only succeeded in 400 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Stirring the Turks to greater deeds of violence. They suffered terribly, while the Turks lost only a few of their numbers. At Malitia five thousand Christians were murdered, and at Arabkir two thousand, while it is estimated that not more than four hundred Turks were killed. A reliable estimate of the number of Christians killed in this region in one month alone, commencing with the latter part of October, 1895, is 12,710. The houses destroyed numbered 5064. The total number killed in the vilayet oi Harput is estimated at 40,000, including those who perished from hunger and cold; wounded, 8000; houses burned, 28,789; forcibly converted to Islam, 51,180; raped, 5530; married by force to Turks, 1530. It is needless to enter here into a detailed account of all the massacres. The wave of carnage that swept over the empire, from Trebizond, southward into the valley of the Euphrates, westward to Mar- sovan and Csesaria, and out to the Mediterranean Sea, and even Constantinople itself, carried in its over- whelming tides death and destruction. Sword, fire, famine, and pestilence have accomplished the infernal design of the oppressors. Thousands of Armenian women were violently carried off to the harems of their persecutors, while many men of the productive classes are doomed to languish in Turkish dungeons, arrested on unexplained charges and given no oppor- tunity to vindicate themselves. Their property was stolen or destroyed, and in many instances their lands and title deeds were forcibly seized by the officers of the government. In the face of the misery which THE TURKISH CAMPAIGN OF BUTCHERY. 401 befell unfortunate Armenia, one can easily imag- ine the harrowing prospect of the winter season in that cold region, when many thousands of innocent ARMENIAN CHILDREN. orphans and widows, stripped of everythincr which makes life comfortable, were turned over to exposure and famine. Nowhere have childhood and motherhood seen darker days than in Armenia. As to the nature of the massacres, it is obvious that 462 THt: TURK AND THE LAND OF HAlG. they primarily started on political issues, but soon the religious element overpowered the political. Indeed, it became the leading issue among Moslems whether Christians should longer be tolerated in a land where the Caliph of Mohammed has the sway of the govern- ment. It was on this very principle that the Sultan ordered a general massacre soon after he had promised the Powers to accept the proposed reforms giving Christians within the six vilayets rights that depended on their number. The massacres have been chiefly confined to these vilayets, the object being so to reduce the number of Christians as to give them no possible claim to any influence. The work of exter- mination — pillage, rapine, and murder — proceeded systematically. The Turkish Question as it now stands is distinctly religious, and stands above humanitarian and political considerations. " Mohammed or the sword " has been the cry in all the scenes of the massacres, yet the Armenians have asserted the same firmness in their adherence to Christianity as they had through the vicissitudes of long centuries. The Rev. Dr. Cyrus Hamlin, who above all living Americans has made himself master of the facts, by long years of toil and achievement in the Ottoman Empire, corroborates my assertion at this point when he says : But there is one noble trait that has come out in this terrible persecution which lias astonished the world and has enraged the bloody persecutors. It is the firm refusal of men and women — of young men as well as of old — to save life by professing Islam. The confession is very brief. Only say: "There is but one God and Mohammed is THE TURKISH CAMPAIGN OF BUTCHERY. 4O3 his Prophet," and wear the Moslem turban, and your life is spared. The eighty to one hundred thousand who have perished might have saved their lives by this confession, and by then adopting the Moslem dress and worship and trampling upon the Cross. They have died the death of martyrs. Many have saved their lives by this confession, it is true, but most of these acknowledge their present extreme wretchedness, and some have been killed for showing this keen regret. There is now an immense number of sufferers scattered through all the regions where massacres have occurred, who have lost fathers, brothers, property, dwellings, and who are simply fight- ing for life. Many thousands of them will perish of cold and famine next winter. Their number is estimated at from three to four hundred thousand. They suffer for clothing, for food, and for shelter. As all their tools have been destroyed or stolen, their miserable " dug-outs" resemble the lairs of wild beasts. And yet all this they endure rather than deny the faith. They suffer *' scourgings and cruel mockings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonments — they wander about in sheepskins and goat- skins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented." — Heb. xi. 36, etc. All these can escape their misery by professing Islam. They, as well as the thousands slain, are martyrs of Jesus. They may be much less enlightened in Christian doctrine than we, but they have a faith that enables them to "resist unto blood." I'hey suffer ti^e most cruel torture and death rather than say Mohammed is Lord and not Jesus of Nazareth.* The failure of Christendom to protect its co-re- ligionists has proved a great moral disaster, for not only have the Christian victims lost faith in the sincerity of tlie great nations who profess Christ, but the Moslem world has taken it as an acknowledgment that Christianity is inferior to Mohammedanism. * From an article entitled " Tiie Lesson of Armenia," in the Presbyterian, for November 4, 1896. 404 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Christians do not believe in the propagation of their faith b}^ force of arms as do Moslems. But Christians have the rigrht to insist that the powers of their government should be used for the protection of those who hold the Christian faith. But the Armenian appeals to ChrisLendoni for pro- tection and freedom are not simply based on their religious affiliation and unity of creed ; for the Mohammedan Turks have just as nuicli right to rule over the Christian population in Armenia as the Chris- tian English have to rule over the Mohammedan population in India. But when our people are singled out on account of their relio^ion and robbed and tortured and killed, there we find a leL;itimate ground on which to call for interference on the ground of common humanity. Cold indeed must be the heart that is not touched by the story of the atrocious deeds of the Turk. The tales of the dead are sad, those of the living more sad. Thousands of them have been deported, and those who remain are terrorized into silence. But the histor)- of those awful da\s. when the tides of massacre, dust, and rapine raged throughout the cities and plains of our unhappy land, has been ineffaceabl)' written, and the blood of her hundred thousand martyrs still cries aloud from earth to heaven. The thought of home and native land fills ni)' heart with mingled feelings of gloom and rage. Many a youthful friend and schoolmate with whom I had spent the happiest days of my life in walks and talks and sports under the arching trees of my father's vineyard — many a bright boy of marked future possibilities with whom THE TURKISH CAMPAIGN OF BUTCHERY. 405 I had dreamed by the babbhno- brooks the dream of youth — lies to-day in an unknown grave. WHAT IS TO BE DONE ? There seems to me only one possible course of action for my people to take, especially for the yountr, and that is to seek in other lands and among- liberty- loving people new homes and new hopes of enterprise ; to seek some land where they can work and receive the benefits of their toll, where they can worship Him who has granted them freedom of conscience ; a place where they can own themselves, where honest thouo-ht and labor make vantage ground from which their posterity may climb to nobler heights. This newest Land of the Free, which, from the early advent of its Pilgrim Fathers, has been an asylum for the oppressed and persecuted from every clime — why may it not open its hospitable doors and extend its welcome to the oldest remnant of early Christianity to share the heritage of freedom within its borders? Utterly hope- less and helpless in the midst of everlasting oppres- sion, the young Armenian looks to America as his ideal Utopia. No doubt there are many, particularly those advanced in years, who would cling to their fatherland, no matter how dark the adversity. Yet there are many, particularly the younger element of the Armenians, who, though with much regret, are being led to desert their homes and firesides. Quite a number of Armenians have already come hither, and still larger numbers of them will come if they are encouraged with employment and practical 4o6 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. sympathy. Of course it is not an easy matter for the Armenians to cret out of the country that has cursed them.- The refugees are restrained by the vigilant Turkish authorities, wlio, like Pharaoh's hosts in deal- ing with Israel, would rather slay them than to permit them to go. Only recently two of my younger brothers came to this countr}'. The first to arrive here was shot at while in the old country, and doubtless would have been killed had he not been careful and speedy in his flight. He was actually smuggled over to this country. He was living at the time in Samsun, one of the ports of the Black Sea. After much planning and trial he manaired to evade the viorilance of the Turkish officers, and boarded one of the European steamers, where the captain kept him over a week rn the hold of the ship, until the steamer finally left Turkish waters. This instance serves to show why more Armenians do not leave Turkey. My brother's case was a very easy one. He did not have to contend with difficulties to secure a passport, an almost insur- mountable difficulty to the average refugee. Cannot the United States government effect an understanding with Turkey by which Armenian emigrants to Ameri- can shores may have a safe-conduct through the Sultan's domain ? There are now upward of ten thousand Armenians in this country — all good citizens and peaceable, sober, and orderly members of society. There are among them even professors and teachers in American schools and colleges, as well as ministers of the gospel. I have watched the career of many an Armenian refugee THE TURKISH CAMPAIGN OF BUTCHERY. 407 within the past two or three years, and I can truth- fully say that their industry and behavior have been for the most part a credit to the race. Once in a land of freedom, they have, in grateful acknowledg- ment, made it their duty to advance the interest's of the country to the best of their knowledge. Being of a kindred race and religion, they readily conform to the institutions and ideas of their new habitation. To say that the Armenians are a law-abiding people is a trite assertion. Scarcely ever have the criminal courts had any dealings with our people. Several years before the massacre I began in my public lectures to firmly advocate Armenian emigra. tion and colonization in the United States. I knew the sufferings and outrages to whicli my people were subjected in the Old World, and I could predict for them a better existence in the New^ I wms led to this conviction not only by my high esteem and love for the American people, but by the happy and, for the most part, contented disposition of my countrymen who were scattered around me. Particular!)- when the recent massacre in Turke)- came on I felt most keenly for the flower of Armenian manhood and womanhood who perished there, and who might have been saved here for higher usefulness. In the preceding pages .1 have endeavored to present the history and portray as accurately as possible the conditions of my beloved race. As I pen these last few words my mind instinctively turns to my countrymen, zealous in the faith, constant to the right— the type of a fearless, honorable race. 408 THE TURK AND THE LAND OF HAIG. Providence has so ordained that the people of the earth should be divided into nations, the governments and laws of which are as diverse as the ideas peculiar to their originators. We may be united in civilization and common sympathies, but the patriot is ever proud of and partial to the land which has given him birth. Christianity is broader than any constitution, more effective than the most wise laws of men. Its kinor. o dom is confined to no territory and has no limitations to its power. We are all patriots of that kingdom, and it is not only loyalty to my country but loyalty to the broader, more glorious kingdom, that prompts me to turn my purposes and energy to her welfare. The light of morning already tints the eastern sky, but the mists still risine from man's icrnorance and superstition obscure the rays and hide the sun. When, rising over hill and valley with its glorious splen- dor, God's own light shines in the zenith of the heavens, the obscuring mists all cleared away, then, and not till then, will the soul of man be fully illumined and his destin}' made clear. THE END. ^- UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. Bwn. HKO910 pB08 1991 ^»K AUG 1 "^ "i^flp APR 1 8 1997 lUr y 57«/l^