New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1911-01-04
TURKS YANKEE
ADMIRAL HERE
Bucknam Pasha Again Visits
Land Of His Youth.
.FAyORITE Of TWO SULTANS.

Made Hit With Abdul Hamid by Re-
organizing Navy and Baking Rob-
b;na European contractors--Nearly
Started Mohammedan Revolt by Fail
ina to Salute French Flag at Algiers.
A short, squarely built man was a
| recent visitor to New York and WASH.
| ington and registered at hotels as *.
D. Buchanan, Constantinople." That
Is the way Buchanan Pasha, vice ad-
miral of the Ottoman navy. aid-de-
camp and naval adviser to the sultan,
nuts himself down when ne ge!a
among his old friends. The admiral
| Is. or was, an American. He has had
| a career of real adventure. Twenty
seven years ago he was a cabin boy on
a schooner on the great lakes.
Ransford D. Buchanan was born IN
| Nova Scotia in 1869. but his parents
almost Immediately moved to Maine
| At the age Of fourteen he felt the call
of the sea and followed it to the great
lakes, where he became cabin boy on a
schooner whose skipper was her owner
The captain and his wife took liking
to the youngster.
| At sixteen Buchanan went from New
| York as uuartermaster of Il schooner
| bound for the Pacific. When the 'lttia
| vessel reached Manila the captain ana
the mates died of cholera. and as the
boy was the only person left on the
| craft who had studied navigation ne
! went before a special examining board'
| got a masters certificate, became
| cantain at seventeen and brought his
| vessel home.
Then followed many years on many
scenes, including more experiences on
the great lakes.
Captured SuItan's Fancy.
Buchanan had not made many trips
| across the Pacific before he was asked
by the Cramps of Philadelphia to be-
come their nautical expert. When the
battleship Maine made her trial runs
he was in command of her, and when
the Cramps finished the turkish
cruiser Medjidia he was assigned TO
deliver her and sent to Turkey with 4
three months contract to train her
crew.
The Turkish navy had been joke,
at least since the battle of Navarlno.
! Somehow Abdul Hamid took a Fancy
to the American sailor and asked him
| oh
wiser to himself at princely salary.
Buchanan asked for long enough leave
to come home and get married After
n hurried trip to San Francisco he re-
ported to the sultan on April 10, 1914.
He started to put things shipshape so
far as he could. 1t was not long be-
fore the sultan made him a pasha ana
admiral and conferred on him the order
of Osmanlieh and gave him a medal
for distinguished service.
Report has it that Buchanan saved
the sultan's life when an attempt was
made to assassinate Abdul Hamid sew
eral years ago. While the sultan was
returning to the Yildiz kiosk from the
Il Hamidieh mosque bomb thrown into
the imperial escort killed scores OF
men and horses, rent the ground
whereabouts and shook neighborinG
buildings Buchanan Pasha stepped to
the side of the sultan's carriage and
shouted that he would lop off any hand
that dared stretch forth toward the
sultan. He walked, sword in hand, be-
side the carriage all the way to the
palace. This act Abdul Hamid never
forgot.
Baked Robbing Contractors.
Buchanan Pasha is the first Christian
who ever had actual command Of the
, Turkish navy. He won the sultans
favor by his honesty. 1t used to be
the system, it is said, for English ship
builders to get as much money as pos
sible for ships as nearly worthless a:
: the sultan's officers would accept. IN
sultan paid in one instance $1,65O,OO'
, and got in return an iron tub fillet
, with Junk, the whole worth perhap:
:, 100000. OF the money that went on
of the sultan's purse his own officer
, got 81 100000 and the contractors peck
. eted the modest sum Of $450,OOO.
= While bringing one of those new
: vessels around from the Atlantic
! Buchanan made big hit with Mo
= ! hammedans by neglecting to salute thu
French flag in Algerian waters. Th'
= Ottoman government had never recog
), nized the French occupation OF Alge
ria, and no Turkish ship had ever pu
into Algiers since the occupation.
A breakdown in his machinery lat
one evening off the Algerian coas
obliged Buchanan to take refuge in tn
. port Of Algiers. which by careful tim
ing he entered just before daybreak
;, Three times the French commando
a sent out word that he was ready t
a return the Turkish salute. Buchanan
t guns did not boom. The port com
mander came to the conclusion tina
n the habitual worthlessness of Turkis
n warships extended to the guns OF thl
r vessel.