Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1909-07-08
INTERESTING ITEMS
from Smyrna, Joppa and
Other Points In the Turk
ish Domain.
Joppa, Turkey, June ID, 1909.

about o'clock from Smyrna and
will go from here to Bayrout next
Tuesday, and from there back to
Messina. l received nice long let
ter from you while we were at Smyr-
ma. 1t was written April 18th, but
| did not care how old it was, | was
glad to get it and hear from you
once more. While at Smyrna we
were given liberty for forty-two
hours. With four of my shipmates
| went ashore and had fine time.
certainly does cost a bluejacket
money to make liberty here, as we
four spent about 500 dollars in the
forty-two hours.
The first thing we did was to get
our money exchanged for Turkish
money. We went in a bazaar" in
Smyrna and it seemed to me that at
least 500 men, women and children
followed us all the way through,
gazing at US and stopping every time
we would stop. If our shoes CHANGED
to come united they would readily
tie them for us. They are afraid of
an American, we were told. The old
Turks still wear their native dress
and some Of the fanciest are worn so
the public will rubber" at them.
Smyrna is a fine place and the
weather was fine while we were
there. If l could only speak the
language spoken there would have
enjoyed my liberty more. The PEG.
pie are of very poor class and there
were hundreds Of beggars on the
streets all the time There are no
Americans there, but Turks and all
other nations of the globe are in this
port, it does seem, and a very few
can speak our language. When we
left Smyrna yesterday morning we
had on board the American consul,
but we dropped anchor at 10 o'clock
that day at a beautiful city called
Roades and let him go ashore. A
liberty party composed of petty Of
ficers alone will go to Jerusalem
this afternoon and remain until
Tuesday. Jerusalem is an inland
city fOrty-three miles from this place
by railroad. Joppa is a very pretty
place indeed. This morning | saw
three or four caravans with cameIs
crossing the desert, which was only a
short distance from our ship. 1t is
amusing to see these but have seen
so many in the last month | do not
pay much attention to them now.
1t is nice to read about foreign
countries, but when you are in the
heart of the troubles there it is
quite different. We had to stand
guard around. the Turkish hospital
where blood was spilled all around
us. Of course we were in no inme-
date danger but none of US enjoyed
being there. Men. women and chill
dren were killed by the hundreds
and no one to interfere until we ar
rived out here in company with the
British ships. The troubles here
now are about over and the only
thing keeping US here is to care for
the sick and wounded under the
charge of the American consul.
| can tell you people who live in
the United States should be proud
and well satisfied and never want to
change their homes for foreign
lands, There is no coast 1 have ever
visited yet that looks good to me
like the United States. These peo-
pie here do not know Sunday from
any other day and celebrate no day
or nothing. Half naked and half
starved is the way they appear. The
streets in Smyrna are so narrow the
smallest cab can hardly pass through
them. While coming over here |
saw many interesting sights, among
which was the Sphynx, and the Pyra-
mids of Egypt. We have field glasses
and we get some nice views of the
cities and things we pass. 1t may
be we will be given liberty here, too,
and get to make visit to Jerusalem.
! hope we will for | would like very
much to see that city. Today is
Sunday and some of the sailors are
feeling rather blue because they