CHAPTER XXIII.RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE AND MISSIONARY WORK.

CHAPTER XXIII.RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE AND MISSIONARY WORK.Turkish Tolerance—High Disdain for Christians—American Mission Work—Roman Catholic Missionaries—Catholic Establishments—The Uniates—United Armenians—Mechitar—The Two Parties—Persecutions—European Interference—The Hassounists—The Hope for Armenia.

Turkish Tolerance—High Disdain for Christians—American Mission Work—Roman Catholic Missionaries—Catholic Establishments—The Uniates—United Armenians—Mechitar—The Two Parties—Persecutions—European Interference—The Hassounists—The Hope for Armenia.

From the time of the Ottoman conquest spiritual liberty has been allowed to all creeds in Turkey, and the external observances and ceremonies of religion have, in most places, been permitted by the Moslems, though in some even funeral ceremonies were often molested, and the use of church bells was forbidden. Certain rights and privileges were granted to each church, to which the Christians clung with great tenacity—as to a sacred banner, round which they would one day rally and march to freedom.

By the concessions granted to the vanquished by their conquerors, they were allowedto retain those churches that had escaped destruction or were not converted into mosques, and permitted to worship according to the dictates of their own consciences so long as the sound of their bell calling the infidels to prayer did not offend the ear of the faithful. The internal administration was not interfered with; each congregation was free to choose its own clergy, ornament the interior of its church as it saw fit, perform its pilgrimages and bury its dead, without interference from the authorities. These privileges, though looked upon as sacred by the poor, could not compensate in the sight of the rich and once powerful for social and material losses; thus many Christians renounced their faith and adopted that of their masters.

Time and succeeding events have softened down some of the outstanding wrongs; fanatical outbreaks and religious persecutions have become of less frequent occurrence; and the various Hattis proclaiming freedom of worship and religious equality to all Ottoman subjects before the law, are guarantees that no arbitrary action on the part of the government can interfere with the religious privileges of the Christians, or deprive them of their rights. Though this guarantee is a proof of the sincerity of the Porte in its efforts to give satisfaction to its Christian subjects, it cannot remove the evil or lessen its consequences, which remain in all their force of danger and uncertainty. Every movement of discontent in Turkey receives a strong impulse from that religious zeal which stimulates the Mohammedan to acts of fanatical barbarity, and the Christian to a superstitious belief in miraculous powers that will protect him in the hour of danger. Thus, in times of disturbance the timorous bulk of the population of a town or village will rush to the church for safety, there pouring out mingled prayers and tears to God and all the saints that the threatened danger may be averted. Rarely, it would seem, are such prayers heard, for the first place to which the excited Mussulman rushes is the church, and thither the brigand chief will lead his band, and perpetrate acts of the most revolting barbarity. The armed peasant, the undisciplined soldier, or the cruel and licentious Bashi-Bazouk will all attack the sacred edifice, break it open, and destroy or pollute all that falls into their hands. These are the ever-recurring evils that no Imperial law will be able to prevent, no measures eradicate, so long as the two rival creeds continue to exist face to face, and be used as the principal motives in the struggle, past and present, for supremacy on one side, freedom and independence on the other. The Mussulmans, under pressure, will grant every concession demanded of them, and to a great extent carry them out; but it would be utterly erroneous to suppose for a moment that under any pressure or in any degree of civilization, the Turk would be able to disabuse himself of the deeply-rooted disdain the most liberal-minded of his race feels for strangers to his creed and nation.

The experiences of all thoroughly acquainted with the character of the Ottoman tallies with mine on this point. I have seen the disdain felt by the Mohammedan towards the Christian portrayed on the faces of the most liberal, virtuous, and well-disposed, as well as on those of the most bigoted. A Christian, be he European or Asiatic, is an infidel in the Moslem’s sight. He will receive him graciously, converse with him in the most amicable manner, and at the same time mumble prayers for pardon for his sin in holding communication with an unbeliever.

The religious freedom enjoyed by the members of the Protestant and Roman Catholic churches is far more extensive than that enjoyed by the Eastern. Both, upheld by the powerful support of European powers, enjoy a liberty of action and license of speech rarely found in other countries. Both are aliens and owe their origin to the proselytizing efforts of the missionaries. The Church of Rome, being the older and more enterprising, naturally commands a much vaster field than the Protestant; she is supported by France and other Roman Catholic countries, who jealously watch over her rights and privileges. The Protestants are protected by England and America; their missionaries entered Turkey at a later date and gradually established themselves over the country. At first the extremely reserved attitude of the missionaries, their conscientious method of making converts, and the extreme severity of their regulations, gave them but a poor chance of success. Gradually, however, the esteem and regard of the people for them increased; stringent opposition, promoted by sectarian dissensions, died out, and mission stations, with numerous churches, some of considerable importance and promise, were established, especially in Armenia. The principal cause of the encouragement they met with was the wise policy, lately adopted, of promoting missionary work by education.

The extensive body of Protestant missionaries now found in Turkey is almost entirely American. The meetings of the Board are held in Constantinople; it controls the administration of the different missions and directs the large American College at Bebek—the best foreign institute for education in the country.

When a community of Protestant converts numbers a few families it is given a church and school, and one of the principal men is elected as chief of the society. This person is presented officially to the authorities by one of the consuls of the protecting powers—generally the English; he is recognized as chief of his community, obtains a seat in the local court, and is intrusted with all the interests of his co-religionists. In difficult or complicated cases the missionaries themselves share the responsibilities of this chief, and through consular or ambassadorial agency generally settle all matters calling for redress and justice in a satisfactory manner.

The few English missionaries who are established in Turkey are intrusted with the fruitless task of endeavoring to convert the Jews.

The Roman Catholic missionaries, from the date of the separation of the Eastern and Western Churches, have ever been actively and diligently employed in making converts. Thus a great portion of the population of Syria, yielding to their influence, has become Roman Catholic, as have the Bosnians, a portion of the Albanians, some of the Greeks inhabiting the islands, the Armenians of Constantinople, and of later years a small portion of the Bulgarians. The action of the missionaries of late years has not, however, been so much directed towards making new converts as it has to consolidating and strengthening the tie binding the few scattered communities to the mother-church. This religious body recruits itself chiefly from France and Italy, and consists of priests, monks, and Sisters of Charity, belonging chiefly to the orders of St. Benois, the Jesuits, Lazarists, and St. Vincent de Paul. Their extensive establishments are situated in the Frank quarters of the towns, and consist of well-built and spacious churches, monasteries, schools, orphan asylums, and foundling hospitals. Pera and Galata contain a goodly number of these establishments, as do the principal towns of European and Asiatic Turkey. These missions are evidently well furnished with funds, for their establishments have everywhere a prosperous appearance, and are provided with every requisite for the purposes for which they are intended. The religious instruction given in them is, however, extremely illiberal, bigoted, and imparted on Jesuitical principles. Exclusiveness and intolerance towards other creeds are openly prescribed. “Point de salut hors de l’Eglise” is their doctrine. Considerable laxity is allowed in moral points so long as they do not interfere with the external duties of the community to the church. Should an individual belonging to another creed die among the community, the rite of burial will be refused to him by the Roman Catholic priests, but those of the Orthodox Church will often in that case consent to perform it. Even the marriage ceremony, unless performed in their churches, is considered by the more bigoted portion of the Roman Catholic clergy as not binding. This strange statement was made in my presence before a large gathering of persons belonging to different creeds, by the superior of a Lazarist establishment at A⸺. It was on the occasion of the marriage of two members of the Latin community of that town, when the service was terminated by the following short address to the married couple: “Twice happy are you to belong to the Holy Church of Rome and to be united in the sacred ties of matrimony within her bosom: for in the same manner as there is no hope after life for those who do not belong to her, so marriage is not binding out of her, but every woman who so gives herself is not a legal wife but a concubine!” In many cases the sacrament is refused to ladies united in marriage to persons belonging to other creeds.

The secular teaching given in the schools of these missions is limited, and, based on the same principles as the religion, is illiberal and narrow-minded. Much time is consecrated by the pupils to religious recitations, prayers, and penances of no possible profit to the children. Thus from an early age, imbued with narrow ideas and made to lose sight of the spirit of Christianity, the Roman Catholic communities, be they of European, Greek, or Armenian nationality, are the most bigoted, intolerant, and exclusive of all the Christian communities of the East.

The missionaries belonging to this Church are unsurpassed in the admirable manner in which their charitable establishments are arranged. The homes and asylums for the poor and orphan children are for the girls under the control of the Sisters of Charity, and for the boys under that of the priests and monks. These are well kept, and very orderly, the food is good and abundant, and the dress of the children solid and befitting their condition. Hospitals are attached to each establishment, where the sick are well cared for and destitute Europeans admitted irrespective of creed. The good Sisters of Charity take upon themselves the duty of watching over the patients night and day. A dispensary is included in each mission station, where medicines and medical advice are given gratuitously. The children reared in these establishments are placed in situations on leaving them; but I regret to be obliged to say that comparatively few of either sex are known to turn out honest and respectable.

The retired lives led by these active servants of Rome do not prevent their being very intimately connected with their respective communities or using their all-powerful influence for good or for evil in all family concerns. They are hardy, active, and most persevering; their personal wants are small and their mode of living modest and unassuming. But in spite of this they are worldly-wise, crafty, and unscrupulous as to the means they use in obtaining their ends. Their mode of action is based upon the principle that the end justifies the means; few, therefore, are the scruples that will arrest their action or the dangers and difficulties that will damp their courage or check their ardor in their work.

All the internal regulations and arrangements of the Catholic community are made without the Porte troubling itself much about them—indeed, to do the Turk justice, in his high contempt for things Christian, he keeps as much as possible out of the religiousdissensions of his subjects, and when by chance he does appear on the scene of action, by turns persecutor, protector, or peacemaker, he is generally prompted in the matter by one of the interested parties. An amusing incident witnessed by one of my friends at Jerusalem well illustrates this fact. This gentleman accompanied one of the peacemaking governors-general to the Holy City at the time the quarrel of the possession of the little door leading to the Sepulchre was at its highest. All the interested parties loaded the Pasha with acts of politeness and civility, which he received with great urbanity; but when the great question was delicately broached in the course of conversation, he at once turned round and exclaimed, Turkish fashion, “Oh, my soul! I pray do not open that door to me!”

There is little to be said about the Uniates, or Bulgarian Catholic converts in Turkey. The movement in its commencement, effects, and results may be compared to Midhat Pasha’s Constitution—a farce and imposition from beginning to end. Like the Constitution, the Uniate movement broke out in the midst of a hot fever of excitement and discontent; the first was created as a palliative for Turkish misrule, the second emanated from the mismanagement of a church. The disputes between the Greeks and Bulgarians on the church question was at its height when a certain number of Bulgarians, carried away by the hope of ameliorating the actual condition of things and ultimately obtaining their end, viz., the emancipation of the Bulgarian Church from the Greek, accepted the nominal supremacy of the Romish Church, and by a fictitious conversion became attached to it under the denomination of Uniates. Their number, at first small, would probably have remained so had it not been that some effective arguments and causes gave it a momentary impetus, bringing it under public notice. The sensational part of the incident was due to the exaggerated accounts given by the agents of the Propaganda and other societies of the future triumphs of Rome in this new field of action, and to the political advantage which the government of Napoleon III. tried to derive from it. Monsieur Bouré, the ambassador at that time in Turkey, greatly favored the movement, while some of the consular agents, overstepping their instructions, held out to the Bulgarian people the open support and protection of the French Government in favor of the anticipated converts: “C’est ici,” said one of those zealous agents, “C’est ici au consulat de France que la nation Bulgare doit dorénavant tourner son regard, porter ses plaintes et demander protection!”

The most telling argument with the Bulgarian peasant to abjure his faith was not the future benefit his soul would derive from the change nor the value of French influence and protection, but simply the prospect of freeing himself from all future Church impositions, and having his children educated at the schools of the Propaganda free of cost. These conditions were very enticing, and some thousands, yielding to the further influence of a few of their superiors who had declared themselves Uniates, blindly followed these as sheep following their shepherd in search of food. They knew nothing of the dogmatic side of the question, and cared not to inquire. The name of the Pope was substituted for that of the Patriarch of Constantinople; the ignorant Greek or Bulgarian priests were superseded by Polish preachers well versed in the Bulgarian tongue, whose sermons were composed with a view to impressing the people with a sense of the material rather than the spiritual benefits to be derived from their apostasy. The proselytizing centres were Adrianople, Monastir, and Salonika, where large establishments belonging to the Roman Catholic Societies undertook the work of conversion in a very zealous manner, and established branches in places of smaller importance in order to give more weight to the affair and increase the confidence of the Bulgarians in its stability. A Bulgarian monk, the best that could be got, was pounced upon by the Fathers and sent to Rome to be consecrated primate of the Uniates. This individual, unprepossessing in appearance and utterly ignorant and stupid, remained at Rome in order to receive the homage due to him as the future primate of the Uniates, and then returned to Bulgaria, where every effort was made by the agents of the Propaganda to give importance to the event and establish the authority of the new primate. The poor Bulgarian Uniates, closely watched and pressed on both sides by the Greeks and the Bulgarians, found it very hard to stand their ground. They began to show signs of laxity of zeal, and gradually dropped out of the newly-formed flock. This reaction took a very decided turn after the formation of the Bulgarian national church, when the convertsen blocreturned to it, leaving a few of the faithful to occupy the benches of the deserted churches, and some orphans and beggars to people the schools attached to them.

Thus began and ended an affair which was nothing but a joke to those who were on the spot and behind the scenes; while the Catholic world, judging from all the wild tales of the press on the subject, seemed to lose their reason over it to the extent of exciting the curiosity of some governments and greatly alarming others, until the thing died out, to make room for more important matters.

However successful the work of conversion may be in the East when it is carried on (as with the Romish Church) with the object of entirely denationalizing a community and absorbing it into the proselytizing church, it will prove a failure in the long run. In the case of the United or Catholic Armenians, one sees another instance of the tendency of all the subject races of the Porte whenever a question of religion or political liberty is raised; it is to the West that one and all look for the settlement of these questions, for support, and for protection. European interference has been systematically imposed upon the Porte, and has obtained ascendancy over it in proportion as the Turk has become weak and incapable of resistance.

The Armenian nation seems to have remained united and at peace with the Church of its adoption until the year 1587, when Pope Sixtus sent the Bishop of Sidon as ambassador to the Armenian Melkhites, Jacobites, and Chaldean communities, to recover them from their heresy and establish papal authority over them; but the utmost the legate obtained at the time was the consent of the Armenian Patriarch of Cilicia to sign a confession of the Catholic faith according to the statutes of the Council of Florence. In the meanwhile numerous missionaries belonging to the order of the Jesuits and others had settled in the country with the object of carrying on the work of conversion. It was one of these, a Jesuit, who, a century later, converted Mechitar, the illustrious founder of the United Armenian community, which now numbers over 40,000 souls. Mechitar united in his person the qualities of the theologian, the scholar, and the patriot. Yielding to persuasion, he adopted the Catholic creed and directed all his energies to propagating it among his countrymen. His ideas were, however, those of an enlightened man who wished to combine conversion with mental development and liberal ideas based upon the sound foundation of separating the civil from the religious rights, founding a Church, Catholic in faith, but Armenian in nationality, with a constitution free from the direct control and interference of the See of Rome. It is impossible to say how far the project of the intrepid convert was feasible; his enterprise met with very decided opposition from the head of the propaganda, whose efforts were directed with fanatical tenacity and ardor towards denationalizing and Latinizing the new converts. Thus the community in its very origin found itself divided into two branches—the liberal, professing the views of Mechitar, proud of the name of Armenian, and desirous of promoting the interests of their fatherland; and the Ultramontanes, bigoted and holding Rome as the sole pivot on which their social, moral, and religious existence turned. These divisions soon caused dissensions, and Mechitar, finding the opposition of the Fathers too strong for him in his native land, left it and went to Constantinople, where he hoped to find more liberty and a more extended field for action. Here, also, bitter disappointment awaited him, for he found the pressure of the European Fathers put upon the new Church; mild persuasion and exhortation were set aside and an earnest policy of intolerance and exclusiveness was preached to the new community, forbidding its members to enter the churches of their fathers, which were represented as “sanctuaries of the devil,” holding its liturgy up to execration, and refusing absolution to those unwilling to submit to these severe doctrines. This system of intolerance succeeded so well with the retrograde party as to widen the breach already separating it from the liberal, and sowed at the same time the seeds of that mortal hatred between the United and the Gregorian Armenians that has more than once well-nigh caused their common destruction. At this stage, while party dissensions rendered union among the Armenian Catholics impossible, the work of proselytism marched on, until the Gregorians, alarmed at its rapid progress, rose in a body, and by means of hypocrisy and intrigue, headed by their uncompromising patriarch Ephraim, obtained a firman from the Porte ordering the banishment of all the Armenian Catholics from Constantinople. Thus the sparks of persecution kindled by this patriarch soon spread into a general conflagration under his successor Avidic, who, gaining the ear and support of the Grand Mufti Feizallah, obtained decree after decree for the persecution, confiscation, and expatriation of all their opponents in the empire, including the Fathers. The blow was too strong, and the sensation it created too great, for it to be passed over by the Western powers belonging to the same Church. A French ambassador consequently raised his voice so loudly and effectively at the Porte as to have the obnoxious patriarch expelled and exiled to Chios; the ill-fated dignitary, however, was not allowed to expiate his evil-doing in peace and solitude, but, waylaid, it is believed, by some equally unchristian Jesuit Fathers, he was kidnapped and taken to the Isle of St. Margaret, where he died the death of a martyr.

The Porte, in its desire to right the wronged, felt ill-requited by this act. The abduction of the Patriarch, together with other grievances, magnified by the Gregorians, increased its discontent, and, casting its mask of reconciliation aside, it became the open and direct persecutor of the suspected community. The Jesuits’ house at Galata was put under surveillance, the Armenian printing establishment was closed, and proselytism was forbidden on pain of exile. A Hatti ordered the arrest of all the Armenian adherents of the Romish Church. What remained of the community continued in hiding, awaiting a favorable time for its reappearance. Mechitar himself, suspected, distrusted, and disliked by all parties save his own, fled from Constantinople, and, after many vicissitudes and an unsuccessful attempt to found a monastery at Medon, finally succeeded in doing so in the Isle of St. Lazarus, granted to him by the republic of Venice. The monastery he there founded was of the order of St. Benedict, and was later on approved of by a bull of Clement XI. In this quiet refuge the learned monk established his order, which took the name of Mechitarists after him, andhas become the college, not of orthodox catholicism, as understood and practised by the Latinized converts, but of learning, patriotism, and liberal views and ideas in religious matters. Scarcely had the United Armenians recovered from the shock of this persecution than they were again, in 1759, subjected to a fresh one set on foot as before by the Gregorians, who forced upon them religious forms repulsive to them, backed by the active support of the Porte. But the most critical moment for the very existence of the community, including a considerable proportion of Franks, was the time of the battle of Navarino. All the ill-humor and exasperation of the Turks fell upon the unfortunate Armenian Catholics, who, represented to the credulous Turks as traitors and spies of the Franks, were treated accordingly, and persecution and exile, ruin and death, were once more their lot. The principal actors in this last were an obscure sheikh who had a tekké at Stamboul, and who by some freak of fortune had risen to the rank of Kadi Asker, becoming far famed as Khalet Effendi, and an individual who was pipe-bearer in the Duz-Oglou family, one of the wealthiest of the United Armenian families.

The Porte declared that it recognized only one Armenian nation and one Armenian religion, and invited all schismatics to abjure their apostasy and return to the bosom of their own church and nation, on which conditions they could alone be pardoned. This was the climax of the evils and sufferings of the United Armenians. The Governments of Western Europe, indignant at this rigorous treatment and the miseries it brought upon an unfortunate community, took up its cause, and after a prolonged dispute between the French Government and the Porte, the determined conduct of the representative of the former power triumphed over the intrigues of the Gregorian Armenians and the ill-will and cruelty of the Porte; the exiles were recalled, their property restored, and they were recognized as a separate community under a patriarch of their own. We need not follow all the difficulties and complications that had to be overcome before these salutary results could be obtained. Since that epoch this community was formed into a separate body, and owing its welfare, security, and subsequent prosperity to the protection of France has enjoyed in peace the same rights and privileges as the Gregorians. These privileges were further granted by the Porte under the same pressure to the other Catholic communities. The grant of these concessions constituted France the moral supporter and religious protector of all the Catholics of the East, and for some years French influence in favor of the Catholic rayahs was supreme at the Porte.

In 1831 the community began once more to consolidate itself by the scattered members returning to their homes and re-assuming the ordinary business of life. Much had been done in their favor, but much remained to be done by the community itself. The first step was to frame a general assembly, composed of representatives of the various classes of the community by whom the national interests were discussed and debated upon with much freedom. The result was the election of a president who was confirmed by the Porte, and invested with temporal authority alone. The spiritual power was conferred on a primate appointed by the Pope. This measure was adopted in the hope of preventing one authority from encroaching upon the other; the patriarch’s seal was divided into three parts, which were intrusted respectively to the patriarch, the primate, and the president of the council. Other measures were also adopted which established the interests and influence of the Church on a solid basis, increased the privileges of the community at large, and greatly heightened its prestige. But dissensions and jealousies crept in, destroyed the passing dignity of the Church, and brought it to the low level of its adherents, making it a centre of bigotry and intolerance on one side and of struggling efforts for enlightenment and emancipation on the other.

Mechitar’s views and principles are held in increasing veneration by the liberal and progressive Armenians, who believe that the future prosperity of their country is dependent on them. Imbued with these ideas, it is not astonishing to find that this party and that of the Propaganda and Latinized Armenians are in a state of continual contention, undermining the peace and prospects of the community.

In 1846, Father Minassian, a Mechitarist monk, proposed the establishment of a society for the reconciliation of the two divisions of the nation with the view of the furthering education and ultimate political emancipation of the Armenians. The Conservative party, with the patriarch at its head, rejected his plan, which, warmly taken up by the Liberal (or as it is now called Anti-Hassounist) party led to fresh disputes and dissensions, keeping this community for years in a continual state of religious agitation and setting families at variance. The Anti-Hassounist party comprises some of the most wealthy and influential families, while the Hassounists, on the other hand, boast of the influence of their patriarch, the approval and protection of Rome, and the assistance and co-operation of the Propaganda; accordingly, of late years, both parties have sallied forth from their former reserved attitude and offered to the world of Constantinople the spectacle of a pitched battle—one side armed with all the power that spiritual help can afford, the other bracing itself with the force of argument and the protection and favor of the Porte.

Hassoun and his party accepted the doctrine of the Infallibility of the Pope, and committed their spiritual welfare and worldly concerns into the keeping of the mother Church, trusting to her maternal care for unlimited patronage. The Anti-Hassounists, led by Kupelian, rebelled against this despotic arrangement, denied the Infallibility and the right of the Church of Rome to interfere in the social and religious organization of the community; they actually went so far as to break out into open rebellion, and, supported and protected by Hossein Aoni Pasha and some of his colleagues, denied the authority of the patriarch, drove his adherents out of the schools, closed the churches, and sent away the priests under his control, finally effecting the schism which lies under Papal excommunication, but prospers nevertheless, and must ultimately, as the nation advances, triumph over opposition and attain equality, independent of the powerful and absorbing influence of the Church of Rome.

The spiritual authority of this new sect is in the keeping of a patriarch whose election by the community is confirmed by the Porte. He enjoys the same rights and privileges as the patriarchs of the other communities. The patriarch of the United Armenians receives a stipend of 5000 piastres per month, exclusive of the salaries of the officers of his chancery. The expenses of thebairat, amounting to 500 piastres, are defrayed by the community and furnished by a proportionate tax levied by the National Council. The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy consists of the Patriarchs of Cilicia, the Primate of Constantinople, the bishops, and the monastic and secular clergy. The principal see is solely supported by funds provided by the Propaganda of Rome and the “œuvres des missions.”

The priests are divided intoVartabieds, or doctors, andderders, or ordinary priests. Some of the former may be found at the head of small churches, aided by derders or acolytes. They occupy a modest position in rich families, where they are employed as religious instructors of youth and general counsellors of the family. As a class, however, their voice in the Church is overruled by that of the clergy of the Propaganda. The Vartabieds carry a crosier; no regular stipend is allotted to them, but they derive their support from church fees. The regular clergy consists of Mechitarist and Antonine monks, who have colleges at Venice, Constantinople, and Mount Lebanon.

The national council of the United Armenians is composed of twelve lay members called Bairatlis; their election is confirmed by the Porte. They are unpaid, and their period of office is limited to two years, six retiring and six resuming office annually. This council works in conjunction with the Patriarch; it regulates all matters concerning the civil and financial affairs of the community; it is the arbitrator and judge of all disputes among the United Armenians. This community at Constantinople alone numbers about 20,000 souls, forming seven parishes in different parts of the city.

In Pera, annexed to the church of St. John Chrysostom, they possess an infirmary for the poor and a lunatic asylum; each parish has a primary school, and some institutes for female education exists. One of these, founded in 1850 by the family of Duz-Oglou, is conducted by a French lady and placed under French control; the instruction afforded is in the French and Armenian languages.

The unfortunate duality ever present in the Church makes itself felt in the educational department as well, and greatly impedes its progress. The Mechitarist Fathers of St. Lazarus include in the religious and literary instruction given in their schools the records of past Armenian glory, inculcate a love of country, teach its language, and render its illustrious authors familiar to the rising generation; the current language in their institution is the Armenian. The opposition abuse and ridicule all that is Armenian, and replace the native language by Latin and Italian, or French; their principle is, “Let nationality perish rather than doctrine, the holy pulpit was never established to teach patriotism, but gospel truth.” The tutelar saints of the Armenians, treated with the same disrespect, are replaced by saints from the Roman calendar.

In character and disposition the United Armenians are peaceable, regular in their habits, industrious, and fond of amassing wealth; parsimonious and even miserly in their ideas, the love of ostentation and good-feeding has yet a powerful effect upon their purse-strings. They are, however, considerably in advance of the Gregorian Armenians. The youth of the better classes are for the most part conversant with European languages and the external forms of good society, affect European manners, and profess liberal views. Owing to the higher educational privileges they enjoy, they have made more progress in the arts and professions than the Gregorian Armenians. The school of Mechitar has produced scholars of considerable merit, but the vocation they seem specially made for is that of banking. In all careers their success has been signal. There was a time when the increasing wealth and prosperity of the United Armenians was the cause of much envy and jealousy, when no European banking houses existed in Turkey, and the financial affairs of the Ottomans were left entirely in the hands of the Armenian bankers, who directed the mint and regulated the finances of the government and of the Pashas. On the change of system, the ruin of the State as well as that of most of these families, once so wealthy, became inevitable. Should Armenia, however, eventually become a principality, should the Mechitarist school triumph over sectarian susceptibilities, and an understanding be arrived at leading to a national union between the United and the Gregorian Armenians, a considerable number of wealthy, intelligent, and earnest men, fitto be placed at the head of a nation, and able to control it with wisdom, prudence, and moderation, will not be wanting in both branches of this widely scattered nation. The critical moment in the destinies of this country has, I believe, arrived. The Armenians, detesting the Ottoman rule, are ready to cast themselves into the arms of any power that will offer them protection and guarantee their future emancipation. The turning-point reached, Russia or England will have to face them and listen to their claims. If their cause is taken up in good time they will be saved; and the name and prestige of England, already pretty widely spread in Armenia, will become all-powerful.

THE END.

FOOTNOTES[1]Leromenossignifiessoiled, which among the Greeks is the highest title of a brigand bravo, evinced in the filth of his long-worn and unwashedfustanella.[2]“Brigand Albanian!” “Bath-boy!”[3]“Very well, we shall see, it may be done.”[4]Turkish ethnology divides the human race into seventy-seven and a half nations, the Jews representing the half, and the gypsies being entirely excluded. This is clearly an improvement upon Mohammed’s estimate of the number of different sects in Islam, etc.[5]In August, 1875, the law of inheritance on vakouf lands was modified and improved.[6]Boghcha, bundle.[7]Leyen, basin.[8]Ibrik, jug.[9]Pastes for soup and pilaf.[10]Molasses made from grapes.[11]Preserves made with molasses from fresh or dried fruits.[12]Starch made from wheat, much used for making sweets.[13]“How do you do?”[14]“Valley-lord,” or feudal chief.[15]Generally a European, who often attains to high rank and fortune.[16]In polite language, “child of unknown paternity.”[17]A few years ago the mother of Sultan Abdul-Aziz, desirous of further reducing this number, brought forward an old palace regulation, that every seraglio woman foundenceinteshould be subjected to the operation of artificial abortion, with the exception of the first four wives.[18]Under-superintendent of the harem.[19]Should the father be unacquainted with the form of prayer, an Imam is called in, who reads the prayer over the infant, outside the door.[20]Old women, whose mission it is to be the bearer of invitations to all ceremonies.[21]Wonderful! Let it be long-lived and happy![22]The Italian expression “Multi Saluti” is the nearest approach to a correct interpretation of this word.[23]“Baron” signifies Mr.[24]Wonderful![25]Giving rise to the Greek saying of “καμαρώνει σά νύμφἤ.”[26]The best man and head bridesmaid, whose duty it is subsequently to be the godfather and godmother of the children:seep. 40.[27]The following is a translation of this distich:—“O Maldever! O Stardever! why do you wait outside?Dismount thy steed and enter thy husband’s house, O bride!”[28]These crosses are of three classes, and range in value from 100 to 500 piastres—14s.to 3l.10s.[29]Blind or lame, is he or she acceptable?[30]Sourah lvii. v. 19.[31]Sourah xxxv. v. 44.[32]Sourah ii. v. 275.[33]The evil being is supposed to be of immense size, his upper lip touching heaven, and his lower earth; and he holds in his hand a huge iron cudgel.[34]In some inland towns the relations continue to chant the Myriologia all the way to the church, and afterwards to the burial-ground.[35]H⸺ Bey, on visiting London, finding to his surprise that “sinking underground” entered into the routine of every-day life, on returning home, said to his mother, “Hanoum yerin dibineh batunméh? Ben batum da chiktum.” (“Have you ever sunk underground? I have done so, and risen again.”)[36]This is referred to in the first verse of a popular song:Φεγγαράκι μοῦ λαμπρόΦέγγι μοῦ νὰ προπατῶΝὰ πεγαίνω’ς τὸ σχολεῖοΝὰ μαθαίνω γράμματαΤοῦ θεοῦ τὰ πράγματα[37]Those who wish to have some idea of Bulgarian poetry will find an interesting account of it in a work on Slav poetry by Madame Dora d’Istria.[38]Δεῦτέ λάβετε φῶς ἐκ τοῦ ἀνεσπέρου φωτὸς καὶ δοξάσατε Χριστὸν τὸν ἀναστάντα ἐκ νεκρῶν.

FOOTNOTES

[1]Leromenossignifiessoiled, which among the Greeks is the highest title of a brigand bravo, evinced in the filth of his long-worn and unwashedfustanella.

[2]“Brigand Albanian!” “Bath-boy!”

[3]“Very well, we shall see, it may be done.”

[4]Turkish ethnology divides the human race into seventy-seven and a half nations, the Jews representing the half, and the gypsies being entirely excluded. This is clearly an improvement upon Mohammed’s estimate of the number of different sects in Islam, etc.

[5]In August, 1875, the law of inheritance on vakouf lands was modified and improved.

[6]Boghcha, bundle.

[7]Leyen, basin.

[8]Ibrik, jug.

[9]Pastes for soup and pilaf.

[10]Molasses made from grapes.

[11]Preserves made with molasses from fresh or dried fruits.

[12]Starch made from wheat, much used for making sweets.

[13]“How do you do?”

[14]“Valley-lord,” or feudal chief.

[15]Generally a European, who often attains to high rank and fortune.

[16]In polite language, “child of unknown paternity.”

[17]A few years ago the mother of Sultan Abdul-Aziz, desirous of further reducing this number, brought forward an old palace regulation, that every seraglio woman foundenceinteshould be subjected to the operation of artificial abortion, with the exception of the first four wives.

[18]Under-superintendent of the harem.

[19]Should the father be unacquainted with the form of prayer, an Imam is called in, who reads the prayer over the infant, outside the door.

[20]Old women, whose mission it is to be the bearer of invitations to all ceremonies.

[21]Wonderful! Let it be long-lived and happy!

[22]The Italian expression “Multi Saluti” is the nearest approach to a correct interpretation of this word.

[23]“Baron” signifies Mr.

[24]Wonderful!

[25]Giving rise to the Greek saying of “καμαρώνει σά νύμφἤ.”

[26]The best man and head bridesmaid, whose duty it is subsequently to be the godfather and godmother of the children:seep. 40.

[27]The following is a translation of this distich:—“O Maldever! O Stardever! why do you wait outside?Dismount thy steed and enter thy husband’s house, O bride!”

[27]The following is a translation of this distich:—

“O Maldever! O Stardever! why do you wait outside?Dismount thy steed and enter thy husband’s house, O bride!”

“O Maldever! O Stardever! why do you wait outside?

Dismount thy steed and enter thy husband’s house, O bride!”

[28]These crosses are of three classes, and range in value from 100 to 500 piastres—14s.to 3l.10s.

[29]Blind or lame, is he or she acceptable?

[30]Sourah lvii. v. 19.

[31]Sourah xxxv. v. 44.

[32]Sourah ii. v. 275.

[33]The evil being is supposed to be of immense size, his upper lip touching heaven, and his lower earth; and he holds in his hand a huge iron cudgel.

[34]In some inland towns the relations continue to chant the Myriologia all the way to the church, and afterwards to the burial-ground.

[35]H⸺ Bey, on visiting London, finding to his surprise that “sinking underground” entered into the routine of every-day life, on returning home, said to his mother, “Hanoum yerin dibineh batunméh? Ben batum da chiktum.” (“Have you ever sunk underground? I have done so, and risen again.”)

[36]This is referred to in the first verse of a popular song:Φεγγαράκι μοῦ λαμπρόΦέγγι μοῦ νὰ προπατῶΝὰ πεγαίνω’ς τὸ σχολεῖοΝὰ μαθαίνω γράμματαΤοῦ θεοῦ τὰ πράγματα

[36]This is referred to in the first verse of a popular song:

Φεγγαράκι μοῦ λαμπρόΦέγγι μοῦ νὰ προπατῶΝὰ πεγαίνω’ς τὸ σχολεῖοΝὰ μαθαίνω γράμματαΤοῦ θεοῦ τὰ πράγματα

Φεγγαράκι μοῦ λαμπρό

Φέγγι μοῦ νὰ προπατῶ

Νὰ πεγαίνω’ς τὸ σχολεῖο

Νὰ μαθαίνω γράμματα

Τοῦ θεοῦ τὰ πράγματα

[37]Those who wish to have some idea of Bulgarian poetry will find an interesting account of it in a work on Slav poetry by Madame Dora d’Istria.

[38]Δεῦτέ λάβετε φῶς ἐκ τοῦ ἀνεσπέρου φωτὸς καὶ δοξάσατε Χριστὸν τὸν ἀναστάντα ἐκ νεκρῶν.

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