The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1921-06-02
WISCONSIN BOY n
TELLS OF WORK
IN NEAR EAST
Gives Graphic Description Of
Refugees Privations in
Letters Home.
fFrom The Milwaukee JournaD

(From The Milwaukee JournaD.
Jlmmie Van Toor former service
man, recently took service with Near
East Relief, leaving Milwaukee IN the
early fs:,, arriving on Nov. ID In Con-
stantInopIe. He has written an "al-
most diary" Of ali that has happened
to kim since he left. Under date OF
Nov. IS, he wrote TO his mother, MRS.
a. G. Van Toor, 600 Forty-ninth street,
Milwaukee. as follows:
"Constantinople is still filthy. dirty
and more crowded than ever. The
crowds on the sidewalks, overlooking
into the streets, are always Interest,"
ing and cosmopolitan Officers, sol
diers and sailors in English. Scotch,
French, Italian uniforms, Russians III
weird combinations of what is left of
their clothes and uniforms; women,
French or Russian, dolled up like
Paris; heggars. Greek priests. refugees
In rags. Turks with fezzes, Red Cross
nurses. Chinese, Singalese, Hindoos,
negroes. the lame, the halt and the
blind and the wealthy, the fashionable
and the arrogant; all mixed up in one
grand hodge podge. Then, every little
while. some Greek or French or Indian
troops tramping by.
The dinky street cars are running,
damned to the guards and street lights
! are on, now and then, at night. Boys
sweep the streets, Italian, French and
British soldiers are traffic cops, and
any old time at night, we hear the cop
on the beat pounding his stick along
the pavement. to warn burglars. sup
pose. and give 'em chance to get
away. Thec, the stores, shops, stalls
Of all kinds. fruit stands, 'bazaars and
hawkers. all in great variety OF funny
places. and displays of goods (some
carry their stores on their heads or
backs). The hawkers with the weird
est and loudest cries in the world
| (from a. m. to ] a. m, 1t seems)-
these are running in full blast. So, on
the whole, the town looks much buster
and normal than when was here be-
fore (while in service) though not
much cleaner. Trees are still green
and the sun is bright and warm during
the day. The water and views are
lovely as you come into the harbor or
sail up the Bosphorus.
constantincpIe Crowded.
when we. arrived here on Saturday,
they told us we might go out on Mon
dag to the Caucasus, SO we got busy
right away and spent the afternoon,
but no money. around the bazaars in
STEAMBOAT. the old part of the city. It
was lots of fun.
Sunday morning followed crowd
! into the old Russian embassy yard.
Here saw posters of sale of refugee
| goods. so l kept on going. The crowd
went past the sale and up into the
chapel, where found myself with 'em.
Between the incense, perfume and bum
air (not window open and crowd
damned in-all stand for two hOurs)
was nearly asphyxiated, but stuck ii
out. The music was great-just voices
beautifully trained, and no organ.
Some of the people were fairly well
| dressed Gall the women seemed to
| have hung onto their, earrings, some
| very Handsomely, but many were in old
sweaters and coats, and the men, many
of 'em, wore old American army coats,
donated by the United States, sup
/ pose. Among them seemed to be many
high class Russians. All claim to be
descended from grand dukes OF
| princes, at least, / believe-but these
i really did look very refined, and you
couldn't help feeling sorry for EN- The
| priest, with long, greasy hair and
beard, and in a gorgeous embroidered
robe and jeweled inter, evidently was
talking of their troubles, as nearly
everyone wept, even the assisting
priests, and often people dropped to
their knees on the floor, crossing them
selves times without number. The poor
things al looked as though they had
suffered and were still very sad
"Then, in the afternoon, our gang
went out to Constantinople's college
an American girls school on the Bos
phorus. for tea.
4 1.-The Constantinople headquarters
and transients, such as we, live in
three houses here, all of them two OF
three rooms wide and then up in the
4 air. six or seven stories. SO one mostly
i climbs stairs. The bedrooms are cell
like, but there is a fairly decent living
room and dining room in ours. It's
fine to get American meals once more
--eats are very good Armenian sery
ants. who talk English, do the work
It's nice way for those stationed here
J to live. for hotels would be impossible
!; prices are fierce. Most of the Neal
East Relief people are good scouts
too; not at all like the missionary type
we had pictured en- route.
| Bolshevist Rumors Current.
"Just now. things are much upset