Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this file which includes the original illustrations. See 53976-h.htm or 53976-h.zip: (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/53976/53976-h/53976-h.htm) or (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/53976/53976-h.zip) Images of the original pages are available through Internet Archive. See https://archive.org/details/whyarmeniashould00pasduoft WHY ARMENIA SHOULD BE FREE Armenia's Rôle in the Present War [Illustration: DR. G. PASDERMADJIAN (Armen Garo)] WHY ARMENIA SHOULD BE FREE Armenia's Rôle in the Present War by DR. G. PASDERMADJIAN (ARMEN GARO) Ex-Deputy from Erzeroum in the Ottoman Parliament Former Commander of the Second Battalion of the Armenian Volunteers on the Caucasian Front Representative in America of Armenian National Council of the Caucasus. With an Introduction by George Nasmyth, Ph. D. Former President of the Central Committee of the International Federation of Students Secretary of the Massachusetts Joint Committee for a League of Free Nations Illustrated Boston Hairenik Publishing Company 1918. Written at Washington, D. C., October, 1918. All Rights Reserved Published, December, 1918 The Blanchard Printing Co. Boston Massachusetts. TO THOSE WHO WERE MARTYRED AND TO THOSE WHO DIED ON THE FIELD OF BATTLE FOR THE LIBERATION OF ARMENIA CONTENTS _Page_ INTRODUCTION 1 TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE 5 TURKISH AND RUSSIAN PROPOSALS TO THE ARMENIANS IN 1914 15 MILITARY SERVICES RENDERED BY THE ARMENIANS ON THE CAUCASIAN FRONT 18 ARMENIAN RESISTANCE TO THE TURKISH MASSACRES 24 ATTITUDE OF RUSSIAN CZARISM TOWARD THE ARMENIANS 28 RÔLE PLAYED BY THE ARMENIANS IN THE CAUCASUS AFTER THE RUSSIAN COLLAPSE 34 ARMENIA'S CO-OPERATION WITH THE ALLIES ON OTHER FRONTS 41 CONCLUSION 42 INTRODUCTION Armenia has become a touchstone of victory in the great war for freedom and humanity. If Armenia is granted national independence it will mean that in the making of the peace treaty the forces of democracy and human progress have triumphed over the forces of imperialism and short-sighted reaction. It will mean that in the future the rights of the small nations are to be recognized as well as those of the great. It will mean that international justice is to be the foundation of the new world order. The triumph of the principle that is involved will mean that the war has been won because its moral aims have been achieved.