I have written to Marash to inquire of Mr. Lee the circumstances under
which the missionaries sent their “address of thanks” to the military
commandant, and requesting that a copy of the same be forwarded to
me.
[Inclosure in No.
761.—Translation.]
Tevfik Pasha to
Mr. Terrell.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sublime
Porte,
December 30,
1895.
Mr. Envoy: I have received the note, No.
101, which your excellency was pleased to address to me on the 4th
of December, relating to the pillage of the American seminary and
boarding school at Marash and to the fire in the seminary.
The governor-general of the vilayet of Aleppo being questioned on
this subject, answers by telegraph that the above-mentioned seminary
and boarding school, which were already guarded by the mounted
gendarmerie, were, on the day of the disturbance, also protected by
troops in sufficient number.
As for the fire, which started in the interior or the school itself,
it was, thanks to the immediate measures adopted by the local
authorities, put out, after having destroyed only one wing of the
building and occasioned a loss which may be estimated at the very
most at 150 Turkish pounds.
On the 20th of November (old style) Capt. Abdul Kadir Effendi, who
was charged with the protection of the missionaries, on being
notified by them that a fire had just broken out in the seminary,
established the fact that [a constaté que] a certain quantity of
charcoal and hay piled up in the stable had been set on fire.
Happily, this attempt in like manner failed and caused no
damage.
As for the alleged pillage of the seminary and boarding school by
soldiers of the Imperial army, that is an entirely uncalled-for
calumny, and your excellency will be the first to acknowledge the
groundlessness of this allegation when you learn that the
missionaries themselves sent an address of thanks to the military
commandant for the aid and protection which had been afforded them
on the day of the fire by the Imperial troops. Their seminary and
school are still looked after by the gendarmerie.
An answer in the same sense as the preceding has already been given
by the Imperial authorities of the vilayet to the United States
consul in the capital of the province, who had sent a statement to
them, together with a letter on the subject from the commander of
the American war vessel which was then at Alexandretta.
Such being the facts in their true light, I feel sure that your
excellency, with your sentiments of equity and enlightened
appreciation, will bring them to the knowledge of your Government
for its full edification.
Receive, etc.,
