The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1921-02-26
FORMER PASTOR
TELLS Of TRIALS
IN ASIA MINOR
Rev. c. F. H. Crathern Long a
Prisoner in Inland Village
WITH NEAR EAST RELIEF
Letter Written in Mesopotamia
Late in December Has Come
To Bennington
WITH NEAR EAST RELIEF

Rev. c. F. Hill Crathern a former
pastor OF the Old First (Congrega-
ticnaD church at Old Benn ngton and
who has been for some time with the
Near East Relief organization OF the
Y. Nj c. A., has written the editor OF
the Banner an exceedingly interesting
letter. Mr.. Crathern has had some
interesting and thrilling experiences
some OF which appear in the letter
which Is as follows:
Urfa ,Mesopotamla,
December 20, 1920.
My dear Mr.. Howe:
Ii is only five days TO Chr stnas
and here | am in Urfa IN what Is re-
puted to be the oldest city in Mesopo-
lands. | had hoped to reach Con
stantinopie before that happy day and
N ion Mrs. Crathen who unfortun-
atelv has been waiting there for me
since September 9Th When We shall
meet do not knew and 1t is not safe
TO specu ate in land where the TURK
holds the re MS of government
have had rather adVenturesoihe
experience since leaving France lot
tn Near East
NV Y NJ. G. A. career started as
y,u may remember in Aintao, Clllcla'
We had a wonderful building and a
magnificent equipment If the war
IN the Near East had stopped at the
signing of the Armistice the work
might have developed with increasing
interest and success. But when the
war ended in France it began in lur-
key and have been in the war zone
ever since. My experience in Marash
during the seige you may be familiar
with through my repor (which was
printed in the London Times, the New
York Times and many other American
Newspapers. This was only brlei
summary: a fuller account ! sent 10
Mrs. Crathern from which | took the
Press Diary Extract. Perhaps you
have seen some member OF the fam'
lily and have learned more particulars.
| have written you occasionally but
have received no word in return. This
IA not surprising as did not hear
from my own family for months to-
gether. A few Christmas letters Of
last year reached me in June and
since July of 1920 have no COM
munlcation from Massachusetts or
America, or even Vermont My
summer this year was spent in orga-
n3zing a camp for 600 Armenian or
phan boys The camp was pitched on
fne site of land bordering on the
Gulf of Ismid about Is miles from
STEAMBOAT. We had no sooner organic
ed the camp In the early days Of June
than | was asked by Admiral Webb,
the British high commissioner, If |
could take immediate care of 150 boys
who were obliged to leave Ismid, as
that city had become the fighting front
between the British and the National
lists. gave an immediate answer and
the same day an English man Of war
landed the refugee boys at our camp.
This in addition % our own number
was an added burden, but the war
emergency demanded 1t and we had to
play the game. We had wonder
ful tent city which hope by this
time you may have seen in America
filmed In one Of the cinema play
houses. We had moving pictures of
the camp taken for the purpose of
sending to the States.
The film was shown to our own
boys in the camp and they were de-
lighted TO see themselves as others
see them"
Our 600 boys kept us very busy but
we had the camp well organized and
under such military regulations that
everything moved smoothly and
pleasantly.
Every minute of the day was plan
ned for so that we knew at any mo
ment what the boys were doing and
where they We're. With the Gulf OF
lsmid for our bathing beach and sew
eral adjacent areas for our recreation
grounds we were not crowded either
IN the bath tub or on the ball field.
This Is something like the schedule
we followed with occasional varia
tions
Y a. m. Bugle rising cau
40 AAfembly and formation on
drill grounds. ~
T.15 Physical exercises.
725 Raising of the United Statas
flag and singing of National Anthem
7.30 Breakfast.
800 Tent and camp duties, airing
cleaning, washing, etc.
$50 Leaders conference.
900 School lessons.
Glasses were regulated by directo,
of education and were conducted h,
Robert college students from 9 unit
II o'clock.
ll.OO Parade to bathing beach
'1l.4O Bugle, all out,
100 Dinner.
s1-2 Rest hour.
"a Group games.
400 Swimming.
5-B Quet hour for reading socla
talks or other pastmes.
6 90 Supper.
.6 30 Sports, baseball, volley ball
basket ball, foot ball, etc.
800 Cinema exhibition, times
week.
1000 Evening prayer and bed
During the summer camping session