under Ottoman oppression rebelled, and all Europe was involved.

In January, 1876, the Herzegovinians gained a victory over the Turkish
troops. The European powers then suggested a settlement favorable to the
insurgents, which was accepted by the Sultan. But early in May another
insurrection broke out in several Bulgarian villages, which was quickly
followed by the most horrible atrocities. A conference on the Eastern
question was held at Berlin in May, and soon afterward the English
ministers announced in Parliament that they were unable to assent to the
terms agreed upon at the Berlin Conference. This announcement caused
much surprise and comment in England. Public feeling already aroused,
was not allayed when it became known that the British fleet in the
Mediterranean had been ordered to Besiki Bay, seemingly for the
protection of the Turkish Empire.

June 28th the Bulgarian insurrection was suppressed. On the 10th of July
the Sultan, Abdul Aziz, was deposed and was succeeded by Murad V, who
declared that he desired to guarantee liberty to all. Mr. Disraeli
stated, in the House of Commons, that the steps taken by the Ministry
would lead to permanent peace. But within two weeks the _Daily News_
published a letter from Constantinople detailing the massacre in
Bulgaria by the Turks, which moved all England with indignation.
Innocent men, women and children had been slaughtered by the thousands;
at least sixty villages had been utterly destroyed; the most revolting
scenes of violence had been enacted; and a district once the most
fertile in the Empire had been laid waste and completely ruined. Forty
girls were shut up in a straw loft and burnt, and outrages of the most
fearful description were committed upon hundreds of defenceless
captives.