Page:Islam, Turkey, and Armenia, and How They Happened.djvu/202

196 co-thinkers, who called themselves "Hunchag" (sounding instrument), and were ranked by some empty-minded or malicious writers with Anarchists and Nihilists, could have been easily arrested and controlled if the Turkish government had any intention of doing so. Besides, Hunchag's creed and course was not encouraged or approved by the Armenians themselves. There was among the Armenians a common suspicion that either Russia had intentionally prepared and sent them in order to arouse disturbances and create a chance to carry her selfish purpose, or that these persons were only hired agents of the Turkish Government to excite the Moslem population. Learning these things, how could the Armenians show sympathy for such a movement? Suppose that these few Russian Armenians were conspirators and murderers, could this justify the government for the universal massacres of the thousands of innocent Armenians, men, women and children? Who could justify the Spanish Government had she undertaken to plunder and massacre all the Italians in Spain for the murder of Canovas by an Italian anarchist? Who could blame Americans that John Wilkes Booth shot President Lincoln? Another fact is, that the greatest devastation and slaughter has been made in places where the Armenian people had no information of or sympathy with the Hunchag movement, and were most submissive to the local government. Besides, these endless atrocities and the plan of massacres were at work long before the existence of Hunchag. Socialism,