ARBERIAONLINE

The Lake of Jannina, a lagoon of no considerable depth, receives copious foun-
tains from the rock; the two basins Avhich form it, the Lake of Jannina and the
"mud lagoon," united by a sluggish, rush-encumbered stream, discharge underground currents, called voinikova ; and these currents carry its watera far away to magnificent springs, which are connected with two coastal rivers, namely, the Mavi-o Potamos and the Arta. In the mountains near Jannina, if not at Jannina itself, are a few clumps of oaks which come from the prophetic trees of Dodona, the most ancient oracle of Greece, the spot around which lived the Grraikoi^ whose name the Romans, little by little, bestowed upon the whole Hellenic nation. The European powers have recently decided not to unite to the Greek kingdom this city and these Suliot mountains, where so many heroes, both men and women, have died for Greek independence. In the main, the Greek element, more or less mixed with Albanians and Kutzo-Wallachians, predominates in the southern valleys of "black Epirus," the most barren portion of the Skipatar land. In the rest of the country the inhabitants are, almost to a man, Albanians ; and not all the Albanians live in Albania.

The Albanians form an important element in modern Greece ; their number is estimated at 100,000 or 150,000, from a twentieth to a fifteenth of the whole population of the kingdom. They possess large towns in Epirus, on the north of the Gulf of Lepanto, in Boeotia, the south of Euboea, and in Attica ; they are likewise found in the
Peloponnesus, and even in certain islands of the Archipelago, as Andro, Hydra, and
Spezzia.

Meanwhile, European diplomacy intervened and asked the commission to draw
the boundary not on the basis of tneir investigation and study but on the basis of a
compromise, which the great powers arrived at to suit their own affairs. By this
compromise the districts of Kortcha, Koloma, Permete, and Arghirokastra with all
its valley, were included within the boundaries of independent Albania, while
Konitza, the district of Pindus, Janina, the capital of southern Albania, and the
whole Province of Chameria, almost exclusively inhabited by Albanians of the Moslem
creed, was given to Greece. Thus, the representatives of the great powers, faithful
disciples of the old school diplomacy, ififnored the rights of the people and drew an
Albania on the map, which shut the Albanians in the narrow mountains, the most
ancient race of Europe being forced to yield towns and low lands to the Serbians
and the Greeks and starve on the ridge of sterile crags. Mr. Wadham Peackock,



Digitized by VjOOQIC



1008 TREATY OF PEACE WITH WSJUULNY.

Bpealdng of the boundary drawn bv the London conference, Bays, " From the C3mical
way in tKrhich large populationB of Albanians are ignored and handed over to their
hereditary enemies, it is obvious that the great powers are not over anxious to found
an Albanian principality which could have a reasonable chance of succen. The
nascent Albania is cut down to a minimum, and if Europe had wished to make the
new state dependant on Austria or Italy, i^e could have hardly set it about mote
effectively. There is not much future for an Albania of this sort, but the ShldpeUis
are a dogged race, who have survived many tyrants, though so far they have only
had to face death by the sword and not strangualtion by the red tape of a bureaucracy."

Again, the European diplomacy instead of askioff Greece to evacuate the temtonei
assigned to Albania, as it was decided she grant^ to Greece first one month, the&
another, changing the date from December 31, 1913, to March 1, 1914, giving Greece
plenty of time to complete her intrigues and preparations for the Epirotian tragedy,
which she was planning to play. The last diplomatic pourparlers between the gr&^
powers and Greece regaidiixg the evacuation of thdse regions by the Hellenic ^oopi
are worthy of record for thev help one to understand the events which followed.

On February 13, 1914, the representatives of the great powers preaented to the
Greek Government a collective note regarding southern Albanian 'frontier and the
Aegean Islands. The powers intimated that they had decided to give Greece the
iBluids occupied by her, with the exception of Tenedos, Imbros, and Castellarizzo.
The islands will not be definitely handcKl over to Greece until the Greek troops have
evacuated the territory assigned to Albania, the Helleiuc Government nndertakiiig
to offer no resistance, either directly or indirectly to the wish of the poweiB. The
evacuation of Albania, the note said, will be begun on March 1 at Koitcha and will
be concluded about March 31, 1914.

In its reply the Greek Government agreed to comply with the decision of the powers.
The Hellenic Government at the same time stated that orders will be given to the
Greek troops to evacuate the territories assigned to Albania in due time, and solemnlv
declared that they will offer no resistance either directly or indirectly to the insk
of the powers.

The Greek reply, however, proposed a rectification of frontier, one near Aighiro-
'kastra, and anotiier near Kortoia, and offered in exchange a long but narrow strip
of coast line between Stylos and Gape Pagonia, as well ae $1,000,000. The Greek
Government expressed the hope that these rectifications will be settled upon the bads
suggested, and proposed that the Hellenic troops should withdraw only to "the
natural frontienr' of the respective districts, pending a definite settlement.

Before proceeding fiirther, we inust add that during the Greek occupation the
Greek military authoritiee organized in all parts of the country "sacred regiments
of volunteers," formed mostly of Cretans, Just what the Greek Government had
determined to do with these "sacred regiments of volunteers,*' ba\in^ their head-
quarters at " the natural frontiers'' of the district of Kortcha and Aighirokastra. irill
be fully appreciated later on. On the 22d of March, 1914, the GreeS evacuated the
district of Kortcha, and the Albanian authoritiee entered the city quietly and vith>
out ostentation. But we still had the Greek bishop, the only Greek resident in
Kortcha, to contend with. His holiness attempted in every waypossible to frustrate
all our advance toward independence of thought and deed. We were in constant
conflict, and in April matters reached the crisis. Under the able direction of Maj.
Snellen, of the Dutch mission, we established a small force of gendarmes* but it iras
pitifully small, numbering about 100 men, and while sufiicient for ordinary police
duty, was hardly equal to the task of combating Greek intrigue, accompanied by
authorized attacks oiganized and instituted by the Greek military authorities.

Just when fair promises of the right to be a nation were filling all our hearts with hope
and joy to have these hopes shattered and absolutely swept away is indeed heart
breaking.

At 2 o'clock after midnig:ht April 2, 1914, we were aroused by the sounds of church
bells, followed by gun shots. Half awake, 1 suspected that something unusual was
happening. We all got up and went around trying to peep through the window and
see what was going on; but nothing \isible, as it,war> too dark. Shots, hurried steps,
whispers, was what we heard . Waited impatiently until the dawn, when to our great-
est surprise we heard cheers to the Greek rule. At once we comprehended the greatest
danger in which we were found. We saw Cretans like mad men running up and down
in confusion, shooting any way and whosoever they could and screaming, **Loxifl: live
Greecel " After a five days' severe fight in the streets, the leader of 3ie Gredc dis-
guised attack, the bishop, was arrested and soon after his arrest the Hellenic coup de
main for the possession of the coveted district failed and the repetition of the Barthol-
x>mian massacres was avoided at this time.



Digitized by VjOOQIC



TBBATT OP PEACE WITH GERMANY. 1009

ThuB ended the attack upon Eortcha, which the Greeks claim was a dLvil upruing
a^inst the inclusion of the Province within the limits of independent Albania. Y^
tfiere is a conclusive proof that the attack was engineered and executed by officers and
men of the Greek army operating in conjunction with the Greek bishop. The failure
of this attack demonstrated the rutility of the Greek argument that Kortcha is a Greek
city, for the attack was repulsed by the civil population and not instigated by them.

Tne failure to prove Kortcha a Greek Province by this means did not deter the
Greeks from continuing their attacks, however, and for several months the Greek
army hammered at the frontier, bombarding tne whole Province from three sides
with long-range guns. In the latter part of June a general attack began, and on July
6, 1914, the Albanians on account of lack of ammunition had to give up. Together
with government officials 350, ?00 people fled for their lives, 50,000 crowded in Berat,
a town of 15,000 population; a hundred thousand took refuge in Elbassan, and the
rest wandered for a good while and then went for shelter under the olive trees of
Vallona. It is impossible to depict the horrors which the Albanian people experi-
enced at this time. Bodies of young women, who had been stranglea to death and
outraged by Greek soldiers were found in manv places. Taking ^^oasession of Kodra,
a village near Tepeleni, the Greeks invited all tne villagers, men, women, and children
to Gather in the church. When all were assembled, 295 in number, the Greek officers
ordered the soldiers to Are on them. All were killed; their heads cut down and hung
on the church walk. Gren. De Wier, of the Dutch mission, went himself to tMs
village, saw this terrible Greek cruelty, and took the picture of this horrible sight.

Speaking of the work of destruction of the neighbors of Albania, the Hon. Aubrey
Herbert, member of the British Parliament, says:

''It is my conviction that these people were systematicall]^ exterminated in various
frontier areas of Alvania, by those who had sworn to befriend them. In addition
to all her misfortimes, Albania has suffered this great calamity, that the world at
large is ignorant of what is happening in that comer of the Balkans."

The claims of Greece to soutnem Aloania, or Epirus, as they .like to call it, rest on a
hoary confusion. She has been throwing dust in the face of the civilized world for
centuries by calling every '* Orthodox Clmstian" Greek, defying the facts of the case.
The majority of the population of the Albanian territory given to Greece by the
London conference, as well as that of the region claimed by Greece at Paris, is Moslem
Albania, while the Christian minority, thouj;h members of the ** Orthodox Church,"
is Greek neither by race, language, or sentiment. Indeed, if they were Greek by
feeling why did 350,000 of them flee before the Greek army when they ill^ally invaded
southern Albania in 1914, just a few months before the outbreak of the European War,
and went to starve under the olive trees of Vallona? If they were truly Greeks by
feelinff, why did the Greek army massacre so many of those who could not get away,
and wny did they devastate the whole countiv? Tne Christain inhabitants of southern
Albania or Epirus are "Greeke'' only in the sense that the Roumanians and the
Slavs were Greeks a few decades ago, wnen they had the misfortune, too, of being under
the jurisdiction of the ''Orthodox Church" of Constantinople.

Generally speaking, the thoroughly non-Greek character of the Albanian territory
^ven to Greece by the London conference, as well as that claimed by her at the peace
conference under the name of Epirus, can be seen bythe following testimonies:

Viscountess Strangford, traveling in 1863, states: * *We started on June 1, intending
to make Janina, the capital of southern Albania, out farthest point. As we had
diWded upon the plain into three or four different parts, the first thing to be done,
when we reached Delvina, was to find each other; but this was not accomplishea
until we had wandered far and wide, loudly shouting and inquiring from every man,
women, and child we could see. We were decidedly in difficulties, for it was the hour
of the midday sleep and our inquiries were made in Greek, while the seeming answers
were given in Albanian, neither party in the least understanding the other."

Mr. Mavromnatis, the Greek counsel at Scutari, writing in Aloropolis. 30 years a^,
states: ''Ethnically Albania can be divided in five zones. First, soutnem Albania,
which extends from the Greek frontier up to the Shkumbi River; second, central
Albania, which extends from Shkumbi to Matti- third, northern Albania, which
extends from Matti up to Montenegro; fourth, northeastern Albania, which embraces
Novibazar, Prizrend , Prishtina, etc. ; and fifth, western Macedonia, from the Ochrida
and Prespa Lakes up to Monastir and Perlepe.*'

Considering specifically some of the most important towns of this region, we can say,
first in regard to Janina. In the fifteenth century, when Janina was attacked by the
Turks, its fortresses were defended by Albanians and not by Greeks. To this testified
history, which says, that after Janina was besieged, 3,000 heads of Albania's inhabit-
ants of Janina were used to make a pyramid of trophy. On the other hand, Janina is

136546—19 04

Digitized by VjOOQIC



1010 TREATY OF PEACE WITH GEfiMAHY.

called by the best impartial authorities, the capital of southern Albania. Here vere
the headquarters of Ali Pasha of Tepeleni, the independent ruler of aouthem
Albania, to whose court diplomatic representatives from England and France were
accredited. In 1878 Greece begged Europe for a rectification of her northern boimd-
ary, but by the same assemblyjanina was officially declared as belonging to Albania
and so was left to her.

The great French counsel, Laurent Pouqueville, speaking about Ai]^fdrokaBtca, says:
"There are in Arghirokastra about 2,000 Moslem Albanian famihes. The bishop
complained that there were only 60 Christian families thrown aside the plains out of
town."

The report of the foreign representatives of Monastir vilayet and especially that of
the Swedish charg6, for the reorganization of the Macedonian gendarmerie proves fully
that the inhabitants of Kortcha, town and district, are purely of Albanian nationality.

August Dozen, French consul and distinguished scholar visited Kortcha in 1S75.
In his report he says, in part, *'The population of Kortcha is entirely Albanian."

The people of the district of Kortcha nimiber 132,000 of which 100,000 are Uoskm
Albanis and 32,000 orthodox Christians, Albanians. The town of Kortcha itself hie &
population of 22,000, of whom there is but one resident Greek by nationality, the
oiflhop, sent there by the patriarch to anathematize all tbotae who refusing to all
themselves Greek worked for the upliftinj^ of their nation. But in spite of this ecclesi-
astical and school propaganda made durmg the Turkish r^^ime witn such great saoi-
fices by the Greek patriarch, the inhabitants of these districts have always conserved
their national consciousness, as the rest of their fellow countrymen throughout the
country, their language and their customs. Under the Turkish r^^une, when our
nationality was denied to us, and when we were persecuted and impnsoned, Kortchk
had the nrst Albanian schools, and always has been l^e center of gravity of the
Albanian national aspirations, with its schools, papers, and societies. Kortcha is
also the headquarters of the Albanian Orthodox League, whose purpose is to aoun-
cipate the orthodox Albanians from the yoke of the Greek clergy.

During the young Turkish r^ime, Kortcha has manifested anew its national aspira-
tions by a meeting of 12,000 men held against the young Turk scheme of forcing the
Albanians to write their language with the Arabic characters, inst«id of Latin. All
the foreign consuls are witnesses of the spontaneous national manifestationBasweUaB
of the blood shed in the summer of 1911 by the young Christian Albanians, who
fought for liberty. They also are witnesses of the f rm stand of the neople of Kortcha
durmg the summer of 1914 and how stubborn they fought the Greek Armv vbo
attacked the place and like the Huns committed unspeakable atrocities with ibe pur-
pose of forcing them to deny their nationality and claim union with Greece.

We are here not to ask that such and such a town or district be included within the
boundaries of Albania. We have come here to b^ your honorable members of the
Foreign Relations Committee to see that a commission ^presenting countries which
have no personal interest in Albania be sent on the spot, see the conditions with th^
own eyes, and decide the fate of Chameria and the rest of the districts which are is
dispute.

To mighty, just, and freedom-lovinff America we earnestly appeal for justice. We
do not ask but that which is our own from time immemorial.

Chbisto a. Datso,
President and Representative of the Albanian National Partv

The Chairman. Mr. Erickson, I would like to ask one question.
What are the Albanians, ethnically ? You speak of them as haying
been there before all these other races. What are they ?

Mr, Erickson. Mr. Chairman, the ethnologists and anthropolo-
gists are not absolutely a unit as to the origin of the Albanians, but
are practically so that they constitute a remnant of the Pelasgian race
that built those great monoliths in the Balkans; that after the Pelas-
gian race came they were in three branches.

The Chairman. They are Aryans, then?

Mr. Erickson. Yes.

The Epirots, the Macedonians, and the Illyrians speak all the same
tongue or branches of the same tongue.

Tne Chairman. Their language is of Aryan derivation.

Mr. Erickson. Yes; with a construction like the Latin.



Digitized by VjOOQIC



TREATT OF PEACE WITH GERMAHTY. 1011

Senator Mosbs. Is the instruction at the school at Elbassan in the
Albanian language ?

Mr. Erickson. No- in Albania there had been no schools where
Albanian instruction had been permitted; but it had been in Italian.

The Chairman. The hearing is closed.

Senator Bjnox. May I bring a matter up ?

The Chairman. Certainly.

Senator Knox. A few days ago two very prominent Persiani
citizens called on me to inform me of this state of facts that though
Persia had been upon the Hst of those who are to be invited to jom
the league of nations yet that here very recently these Persian
gentlemen only received information, within the past 10 days it
appears, that Great Britain since the project of the league has been
brought forth, has made a secret treaty with Persia in complete
violation of her fundamental law and would substantially put the
sovereignty of Persia in the hands of Great Britain. These gentle-
men had possession of the material part of this treaty. I told them
that it had not been the rule of this committee to hear foreigners upon
that subject, but that they perhaps mig;ht be able to find an American
citizen who was sufficiently interested in Persia to give us this infor-^
mation, which I think is highly important and hirfily interesting
They were fortimate enough to get Mr. Charles W. Kussell, whom 1
have known intimately for several years. He was my assistant as
Attorney General ana was ambassador to Persia during the Taft
administration. Mr. Russell is here and he says he does not want
more than 25 or 30 minutes to present this matter and I think perhaps
it would be more convenient to hear him now than at some other
time.

The Chairman. To-day you mean ?

Senator E^nox. I mean now.

The CHAreMAN. Certainly. I wUl be very glad to if the committee
desires.

Senator Knox. I move that Mr. Russell be heard for 30 minutes.

The Chairman. All right. 1 will ask Senator Brandegee to
preside. The committee meets at 10 o^clock to-morrow to near a
representation of Swedish American gentlemen in regard to the
Aland Islands, and also to give 10 or 15 minutes to the representative
of the Czecho-Slovaks in regard to what was said to-day.

STATEMENT OF HE. GHAELES WEILS BTTSSELL.

Mr. Russell. Mr. Chairman, Senator Knox has stated very cor-
rectly what I propose to discuss, and that is the treaty, or a supposed
treaty, between Great Britain and the Persian Cabinet which actually
turns over to Great Britain the total sovereignty, as I understand it,
of Persia. That is to say it gives Great Britain control of the purse
and the sword, which constitute the assurance

The same shade which involved this part of Europe in ancient times, seems never to have been dispelled during the middle and latter ages. All that we have, till very lately, known of modern Albania is, that it is a province of European Turkey, bounded to the north and north-east by a chain of mountains called the Black Mountains, dividing it partly from the country formerly called Macedonia, and partly from Servia and Dalmatia; having to the west the Gulf of Venice, to the east Macedonia, Thessaly, and Greece Proper; and being terminated to the south by the Gulf of Lepanto, or, according to some, the Gulf of Arta. This extent of country has been divided by the Venetians, 1 believe, into Upper and Lower Albania, the first being supposed to correspond nearly with the ancient Illyricum, and the last with Epirus. Some writers, indeed, when speaking of Albania, have alluded only to the former, which they would bound to the south by an imaginary line separating it from the latter country. obtain amongst the inhabitants a notion of a distinction between the northern and southern parts; but I have never seen a map in which the line of separation is distinctly marked; and perhaps the whole region, even including Acarnania, may be correctly denominated Albania.

A journey through Albania: and other provinces of Turkey in Europe ..., Volume 1 By Baron John Cam Hobhouse Broughton, page 8-9, 1813

No Greeks fought harder for the Hellenic cause against the Turks than did the
Albanian Souliotes, and the Albanians are not numerous enough in the coveted position which they occupy, to stand alone.

Arbëri wrote:Gepubliceerd op 21 december 1912



http://users.skynet.be/ovo/GodsdBalkan.html

Arbëri wrote:Kjo ishte edhe vonë , në vitin 1912 kur filluan te shpërngulen Shqiptaret , po të ishte disa vite ma herët do ishe dukshem ndryshe ..
Më duket se kjo statistik është nga '' tefteret e turqëve'' .

Nordisk Familje-Bok 1904-1926, Article : Ja'nina

Ja'nina, capital of the Vilayet Ja'nina in European Turkey, southern Albania (17,900 square km, about 527,000 inhabitants)