New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-04-11
TALKSOF HER EXPERIENCE
MISS STONE SAYS MRS TSILKA'S PRES
ENCE SECURED GOOD TREATMENT
FROM THE BRIGANDS.

| Miss Ellen NJ. Stone. the American mission
ary who with a native missionary worker. MIS-
! TsiIka was taken captive by brigands supposed
| to be connected with the Macedonian Committee
| while iourneying between Bansko and Djuma-
bala on September 2, and released on February
% upon the payment of a ransom or Soo,oo
arrived here yesterday on the steamer Deutsch-
| land. to visit her relatives, rest. write book
detailing her experiences, and to lecture upon
| them under the management Of Major Pond
Miss stone was accompanied by Ray Stannard
Baker who went to Salonica. her Turkish home.
and Mr. Mcclure A host If newspaper men.
her brother. Charles A. stone. and DIR. Henry o..
Dwight who knew Miss Stone in Turkey, went
down on the revenue cutter to greet her. and
on the pier were the Rev. DR.. J. l. Barton. Of
Boston, and the Rev DR.. c. c. Creegan of New
York secretaries of the American Board OF
Commissioners OF Foreign Missions. the organi
, zation under which she has labored as mis-
sionary in Turkey since 1878.
Miss Stone did not have the appearance of a
woman who had passed through her experience
She said she was somewhat "bedraggled" by the
voyage. although the Deutschland was such a
good ship Il not good saler, said she
The portraits of Miss Stone which have been
printed give the impression that she Is larger
woman than she really is Her face has not the
pressed woman of common sense and
resource.
The newspaper men gathered about quickly
and began to PROFOUND questions. to which she
replied freely. She said she had been unable TO
realize why the world was so interested In her
capture. There were six weeks. said she. when
she did not know that the world knew anything
about her captivity cared anything about
her.
we were" she Continued. set upon without
n moments warning in the afternoon. Mr..
Tsilka, who had a pistol. wanted to use it, but
we begged him not to. 1t would have been of
no use The Turkish Government has said that
1t was due to our own careIessness that we were
captured because we travelling without a
guard. 1t was not. We had purposely selected
the day before market day, when many people
would be travelling. We were Just as safe with
two men as we would have been with ten or
twenty. 1t would have been the same either
way. The only difference would have been that
there would have been Scrimmage we Shouid
have reached the town by dark. 1t is never
safe to travel in Eastern countries after dark
How many were there in the party
There must have been thirty or forty, al
though | saw only the eighteen or twenty who
travelled with They must have left some to
guard the remainder of our party They IN
tended to take another woman than Mrs Ts1ika.
but she was in poor health, and so tney TOOK
Mrs Tsiika. It was fortunate that they did
take Mrs Tsika although I suppose she would
not think So as they have feeling that curse
would rest upon them If they i'll treated a
in her condition. and with baby They
were more chivalrous because of her presence.
Their object in taking her with me was to pro-
vide me with a chaperon. They thought, as a
single woman. ought to have one.
How did they treat you:'
Just as you would expect brigands to treat
one. 1t was business proposition with them
They We're after money. | was forced to write
the letters for them. They would say If the
money does not come in twenty days a bullet
for you and bullet for her.
They took good care of us. however. They
wanted to return well when they took
us and were dsgusted when I caught cold.
When / wrenched my knee they became more
disguised. Our treatment was most severe after
the first negotia tions failed"
Were you purSued?''
Although we travelled if pursued
we never saw any pursuers- We always traT-
eIled at night, and only in the darkest hours.
What did you do while you were in cap
tivity?'
plenty to interest Three days after it
born we taken on a journey about eight
hours long / carried the baby in my the
entire journey. That was the time Mrs. Tsilka
was carried in a box.
We did not know anything about our release
in advance. l should at least have said good
by to them if they had given me an opportunity.
We had set out / believed on another jour
ney when suddenly we were left alone. All the
brigands except two had disappeared. I asked
where they had gone. You viii never see them
again said one of the two
When asked as to their nationality, Miss Stone
said that some of them looked and acted like
Turks and talked the Turkish language: others
looked like Greeks and some like Albanians.
Did the brigands look like brigands as they
represented In the theatre" asked one re-
porter.
Miss Stone replied with little emphasis that
she New-Englsnder, and had never at
tended theatrical performance in her life.
When asked If she would return to Turkey
she said she hoped to do SO, as she had a home
in Salonica-