The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-10-07
Hopes to Rescue COuntrymen
From Turkish Oppression.
BECAME AN EXILE FROM HOME
All His Family Has Been MUIR
dered by Turks.
At Present He Is a Student at
X. S. A. C.

States citizen by naturalization, and
Topekan, a cosmopolitan by thought,
Christian by belief-Bagdasar Kre-
kor Baghdigian, senior in the course
in industrial Journalism at the Kansas
State Agricultural college, plans big
things for Christian Armenia after the
war.
When in 1904, he foreswore allegi-
ance to the sultan and embarked for
the land of golden opportunities, ne
did so more from necessity than from
choice. His photograph was placed IN
the hands of Turkish representative
in every capital of Europe, to use for
future reference.
The massacre of S95 had been ter
rible The year after, he and his
nephew took refuge with the wild peo-
pies of the mountains. They were
finally captured by the Turks but were
ransomed by the jewels of wealthy
Kurdish woman.
For a long time following, he, with
other Christians, was subjected to 4
slow and merciless persecution. Final
w. wnen his mother came to rear 1or
his return every time he started to
school, he determined to come 10
America.
Upon his arrival at Ellis island,
Baghdigian possessed exactly SO cents
He had friends in Boston and a tick
ct reading to that city, so the port Of
ficials allowed him to land.
He Was PIacarded.
| Baghdigian likes to joke about his
| ignorance of the English language at
that time, and how the port officials
pinned an explanatory placaro 10 tIe
front of his coat.
He received his first American edu-
cation in the Charlestown Warren
evening school, the Morse school at
Summerville and in the family of John
A Hazelton of Chester, N. h. In the
fall of 1907, Baghdigian passed the
Charlestown high school examination
A year later he changed to the sum-
: merville English high, graduating in
1911 In the fall of that year, he
imatriculated in the New Hampshire
state college, during the first winter
teaching English to class of Armeni-
ans in the Dover evening school.
For two or three years. Baghdigian
was an atheist He compared the ma
teriaI religion of America and it's &C
| complaining prosperity with the spir-
itual religion of Christian Armenia
and could not see how, if there was a
great and good God, the massacres of
Armenians could be explained. Grad
ually, however, the Hazeltons led him
to other ways of thinking.
with this change of consciousness,
there unfolded to me the causes of
some of the sorrow and suffering of
the WOTlQ, eXpldlIlS III
stead of indulging in hateful inclina-
tons, as before, l began to train my
self for position from which 1 could
Ito some degree ameliorate those con-
ditions."
At the end of his junior year in COL
lege, he decided to visit the San Fran
| cisco exposition-and anything Bagh-
digian decides to do he usually does.
He stopped at Manhattan.
h fn no Poi ha
off at Manhattan, the home of the
Kansas State Agricultural college. He
liked the school; he liked the town.
81 was United States citizen, with
gian declares. The Sunflower state
and 1 were sympathetic in our ideals,
SO upon my return from San Fran
cisco, 1 adopted Kansas as my home. d"
/ Baghdigian has made many friends
in the town and college. He is mem
Der of Sigma Delta Educational
journalism fraternity, of the Cosmo-
politan club and of the Quill club, and
was formerly vice president and ex-
tension secretary of the national fed
GRAFTON of common clubs
He has had a number of articles ac-
cepted by magazines and newspapers
this year, and has delivered many lee
lures on Armenia in Manhattan and
other Kansas towns.
Turnout all his school and college
years, this ambitious young man has
earned his way largely by milking
cows, scrubbing floors, washing dishes
and lacking up signs along country
roads, advertising a Kansas City bis
cult company.
But even now, the waters of his life
are far from placid. Turkey is again
massa creing helpless Armenians. His
father, brother and old friends and
teachers of Harpoot, Asia Minor, have
been dubbed and tortured to death.
Out of 100000 Armenians in Tur-
key before the war. 1000, 000-mostly
men-have been slain, according tc
the most reliable reports. Attractive
women have been sold into the de-
grading life of the harem. Boys I'M
der IL years of age have been placed
is a vicious misnomer-to grow up as
Moslems. Youths over this age have
met the same fate as their fathers.
The rest of the people have been
driven down into the desert, where
they are now said to be eating grass
of starvation and exposure.
Baghdigian plans to return to Ar
menia for a wonderful work. He will
establish great industrial school
gathering up the little Armenian boys
from all over Turkey for his pupils
and bringing them up as Christians
This is possible because there will
be more land than money available
. in the old country. The Armenians
in contrast to the Turks, crave learn
ing. Money will be raised by the Ar
menians in this country and by pub
lie lectures given by Baghdigian
Modern methods of agriculture an
the publication of an agricultural pa
per will enter largely into the fnstruc-
ton WELLINGTON BRINK.
CT