Bitlis
town of Asia Minor and capital of the former Turkish vilayet beartal of the former Turkish vilayet bear- Chai, a tributary of the Tigris. The beginnings of the town date back to the time of Alexander the Great, to whom is attributed the building of a castle now situated about 5,000 feet above the level of the sea, and is a place of considerable strategic importance. The inhabitants are composed of Turks and Armenians, the latter having most of the trade of the district of which the town is the commercial center. The principal articles of The principal islands belong to the Portuguese, whose governor resides at BITTER trade are fruits, manna, gum, spices, arms, wool, and tobacco. In the course of the World War it was occupied by the Russian armies on March 2, 1916. It has been the scene of terrible massacres of the Armenian inhabitants, a large number of whom have been exterminated or deported. It is included within the territory of the new Republic of Armenia created by the decision of the Peace Conference. Before the war it had a popиlation of about 36,000.