History of Vardan and the Armenian War

to be counted in the first rank of those who bring honor to the Ottoman Empire and the Armenian nation.

He was great not only in his highest rank, title, and numerous decorations, but also, and above all, in his moral qualities, his firm principles of justice, and his true and noble consciousness of life and honor. Justice, principle, and infinite self-sacrifice to defend them: this was his whole life, which he loved in his public service as well as within the domestic hearth. He loved life, because he was able to develop, ennoble, and utilize those precious gifts that nature had bestowed upon him generously.

No enjoyment or social pastime was as sweet as the hours spent in the family circle, in the evening or on days off, near my mother, surrounded by his five children. My sisters were too small to understand him. Their share was caresses, while my brother’s and my share were his words, which we accepted as truth and as a rule of life; such was our faith in him. He was our most beloved friend. He listened to our various energetic discussions with patience and a smile on his lips, leaving the task of moderating them to circumstances. He often read aloud to us. It seemed as if his vigorous pronunciation clarified difficult points, and his sweet-sounding voice penetrated the depths of our hearts. Then he would isolate himself in his library, which affected us as a sacred place, and where we would enter silently after dinner, when the night hours had advanced, at the fitting moment to say, "Father, good night," and to steal a kiss of rest.

The result of the hours spent in that library was the "Eghishe’s Critique," which he had begun in 1878 and completed in 1886, pouring into it all his skill in history, philology, theology, and political science. The result of those labors were also numerous writings on some of the personalities of his time and various historical incidents, as well as a history of Crete and a history of the Parthians, of which only the first volume is finished, and which constitute his unpublished works.