French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1916-1919, 1917-01-18
RESOURSEFUL YANKEE.


that come back from the war desolated
lands none bring prouder thrill to
American hearts than this one: From
that much tried country Armenia the
story comes. The Turks were sweep.
ing the Russians before them and the
little army, unable to give protection,
was warning the people to flee from
their homes and seek safety beyond
the mountains. But where should
they go? On one side was the adj
vancing Turks, on the other the rug
ged mountains, the home of Kurdish
bandits. Then Mr.. G. came to the
front He is spoken of merely as
Yankee" By dint of much scheming
he was able to arm about two hum
Cred men whom he sent ahead into
the mounta;ls to clear and hold the
only pass within reach Of the people.
Then he gathered the people together
and so organized and directed the
panic-stricken population that swift
line of march carried with it focks
and herds and women and little ones,
the strong helping the weak and each
working to q common end, so that
25 900 people escaped to safety and
were kept from starvation because
they carried with them their means
of food. What such a deed means can
be realized only by reading the ac-
counts of other starving multitudes
tTamping weary miles and lea ing
their wasted dead along the way. But
no other account is given of the nero
than that he was Yankee.
We Americans remember or have
read of the early use of this term
to indicate Our people. Later it came
to have a special significance of thrift
and shrewdness and kindness and
seemed to belong peculiarly to the
people of the North Atlantic states.
But the word Yankee has never been
term of dishonor. Nor has it ever
been more honored than in the deed
of this obscure life-saver son the plains
of Armenia. The late Mark Twain
made the term immortal in his, GA
Yankee in King Arthur's Court" one
of the rich treasures of American lit
erature. Those who have not read
this book will never know the great
ness of the Yankee character until
they do. The incident given at the
beginning of this article. is only one
more proof of that large hearted. re-
sourceful and ready manhood when
we think of when we hear the worn
Yankee. If it should be applied 10
our whole continent we need not olusn
so long as the old significance re-
mains, The obscure Yankee VINO saw
ed o.. 900 lives in Armenia has made
Good" for our sakes. Not every Amer
ican who goes abroad leaves our name
ca we'll established. The thing L
should like to emphasize is our per
sonal responsibility for Americas
GOOD name, for our national reputa-
tion. There are doubtless sections OF
Europe and Asia in which the name
American or Yankee would arouse
scorn\ and jeers. A few people nave
made condition for which we must
all bear the blame. A comparatively
small number have given us Amerl-
/ cans the reputation of being dollar
! chasers. "a dollar is bigger than
man in America" we are told. We
know how far from true it is and yet
| we cannot deny degree OF truth.
| We must make it wholly false, and we
can do this only one by, one, each OF
us in our own small way proving the
contrary. There is nothing in our ma
/ tional life for which we blush so deep
Iy as our sins of selfishness, nothing
that cuts so destructively into oul
homes. our communities, our states
and our nation. Fair play. justice
righteousness and truth are Nero
homely virtues, mere decencies o.
character But they are at the foun
dalton of life, individual and national
These qualities are being learned
across the seas through terrible ex
periences of suffering A new people
is being born with trained faculties
such as we have never even imagined
We must equal them in fairness, jus
tice and efficiency and hold our oil
place among the nations of the worli
Or go down before a better peopl
with better ideals and better hearts
, America needs today as she has neve
needed before the strength born o
right living. the help of every maj
and woman that tread her soil. Amer
lea needs you.-The National Stock
man and Farmer.