[30] A friend of mine, a Turkish Armenian well acquainted with local
conditions, told me that £50,000,000 would be a conservative estimate of
the material loss of the 1,200,000 massacred, deported, enslaved, but in
all cases despoiled, Armenians.
[31] M. J. de Morgan says in an article in _La Revue de Paris_ (May 1,
1916): "Les Arméniens sont des Orientaux par leur habitat seulement,
mais des Européens par leurs origins, leur parler, leur religion, leurs
moeurs et leurs aptitudes."
[32] The _Retch_, the organ of the Constitutional Democrats in Russia,
has published the following in its issue of July 28, 1916 (O.S.)--
"The scheme of settling Russian emigrants in the occupied parts of
Turkish Armenia, recently discussed in the Duma, is being energetically
carried out. This matter has been the subject of a lively discussion
between the Emigration and Military authorities. Investigations are in
progress, not only in the districts near the frontier, but also further
afield, the fertile Mush valley being the object of special attention.
Agricultural battalions have been in course of organization since last
autumn and already number 5000 men. More will be found presently.
_Armenians and Georgians are excluded._ The task of these young arms is
to cultivate the fields on which investigations have been carried out,
under the supervision of agricultural experts, in order to facilitate
the provisioning of the army. The question of emigrating the families of
these men is also under consideration.
"Side by side with this scheme there exists another scheme of settling
Cossacks in Turkish Armenia, on similar lines to what has already been
done in Northern Caucasus with good results. _Those who have conceived
these schemes have in view the creation of a sufficiently broad zone
inhabited by Russians, separating the Russian Armenians from the Turkish
Armenians._
"Armenian refugees are gradually returning to their country and resuming
the work of cultivating their lands. They usually settle in the villages
that have suffered least, their own villages having been totally ruined.
"To avoid confusion, the Grand Duke Nicholas issued a Ukase in March
last, warning these returned refugees to keep themselves in readiness to
vacate these districts on the establishment of Russian Civil
Administration. In the same Ukase the Commander-in-Chief of the
Caucasian Army has decreed that the vacant lands in the plains of
Alashkert, Diadin and Bayazid may be given in hire up to the time of the
return of their rightful owners. _General Yudenitch has issued orders,
however, prohibiting the settlement in these places of any other
immigrants except Russians and Cossacks._ Only those natives are
permitted to return who are able to prove ownership of land or property
by legal documents. This arrangement makes it impossible for the natives
(Armenians) to return to their homes because it is ridiculous to speak
of title-deeds, when dealing with land in Turkey; and as for other
documents which prove ownership, these always get lost during flight.
"In the above three plains, also in parts of the plain of Bassain, the
surviving native inhabitants are debarred from returning to their homes
and resuming their peaceful occupations."