The Republican journal., 1909-06-03
The Mission Mail Bag.
Yankee Heroes in Turkey.

AonAcS HeIOcS III turkey.
Humanity instinctively pays tribute t.
the hero. When Lieut.. Shackleton come.
nearer to the South pole than any othel
explorer, when DR.. Grenfell fights deatf
in three forms on the ice foes of Labrador
when railroad engineer saves the lives
of his passengers at the risk of his own,
or fireman plunges into a burning build.
ing regardless of consequences to himself,
all the world applauds, and justly. A
modern writer says that Paul's heroisms
have done more to popularize him than
his theology. Perhaps the stories of
splendid courage that are coming to us
just now from Paul's old home in Tarsus,
and the neighboring regions, may popu-
larize the work of foreign missions.
Letters from representatives of the
American Board in Turkey, giving details
of the recent massacres in Adana and
elsewhere are full of thrilling incidents
of personal bravery. DR.. T. D. Christie,
who is at the head of St. Paul's Institute
in Tarsus, served in our Civil War and
was hit three times in battle. He was
with Sherman on his march to the sea,
and we should expect that sort of man to
be first and foremost in risking his life to
stop the horrible slaughter of Armenians.
He wrote on postal card, April 18th:
"Four thousand homeless people in house
and yard; have hardly time to eat"
And again: GAS the train on which was
riding moved through the vineyards and
gardens this side of Adana, they remind
ed me of Shiloh, of Corinth, of Vicks-
burg, of Atlanta. In the long street
leading up from the station l counted in
quarter of mile over thirty bodies
that had not yet been removed" His
son-in-law, Rev. D. Miner Rogers, was
treacherously shot while trying to rescue
women and children from burning
building. Another missionary, Rev. W.
N. Chambers, rushed into the midst of
the Infatuated mob and threw his arms
around an Armenian preacher whom they
had seized
Mr.. Chambers said: 1.-The ruffians were
pulling him one way and | was pulling
him another. They hit him on the head.
He called on me to save him and sudden
ly screamed in pain. l looked down in
time to see a Turk withdraw long,
crooked dagger from Hogavim's side.
Just then a rifle was discharged at US
and he dropped from my arms to the
ground" Instead of collapsing at the
sight this plucky soldier of Christ man.
aged to get detachment of soldiers
from the government and marched with
them through the town, placing guards
in different places. He said that ''it was
a serious and exciting business, exhort-
ing the crowd to desist from further
slaughter and destruction, forcing them
back with fixed bayonets, and firing over
their heads to scatter them He also
sheltered from 1900 to 1000 refugees on
his own premises, and rendered valuable
service to the British vice-consul, Major
Doughty-Wylie, in relief measures. Still
another American, Rev. w. W. Peet, has
been chosen chairman of the internation-
al relief committee.
1t is men of this caliber who are doing
more to bring order out of chaos in Tur-
key, and to establish that distracted coun-
try on a constitutional basis, than all the
navies Of Europe and America put to-
gether. Yankee heroism, plus Christian
devotion to great ideal, has been nobly