The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1921-07-13

Armenian Lad Tells Thrilling
Story Of His Escape
from Arabia
SAVED BY BRITISH SOLDIERS


Mesopotamia Desert Die Of starva-
tIon-Reaches Chicago Through
Help OF Near East Relief.
Chicago. That truth Ii stranger
than fiction is illustrated by the story
told by Bedrus Sislian 8 seventeen
year0ld Armenian boy, who escaped
from slavery In Arabia and arrived
In Chicago recently.
His story Of slavery and flight; the
exiting Of his father. mother and sis
Ter into the Mesopotamia desert and
their subsequent death from starya-
aioM; the meeting In O0nstantinople
1,eaw6en Bedrus and his brother, Ed
Mard, who is seaman on the United
States destroyer No. $50. was told in
the office Of the Near East relief. with
Mrs Ardashes Sislian Of TAO North
Wells street, Bedrus' sister-in-law,
acting as the interpreter.
Until about three years ago the Sis
alan family was living in comparative
comfort in the city Of Adana. which Is
close to Tarsus In Cilicia. One day
the Turkish soldiers came Int the
city and ordered all the ncn1 Gcham-
medan people to leave their homes and
20 toward the Mesopotamia desert.
Hastily, the mother ana 6Gther cut
the hair OF the three girls In the fam.
NY and daubed their faces with mud
10 prevent their sale into slavery.
Bedrus, then fourteen years old, did
mot escape that fate because, he says,
he was strong and the Turks saw In
him the making Of farm laborer.
Family Separated; Boy Sold.
The family was separated
hather, mother and girls being driven
to M0sul near Nineveh, a distances Of
about 500 miles from their home, and
the boy was sold to a caravan Of Ar
sabian traders for sum equivalent to
ian English pound. The traders in turn
ssold him to rich farmer for sum
equivalent to somewhat less than
three English pounds
This farmer told Bedrus that he
would adopt him as his son and make
him his heir If the Armenian lad
would renounce his Christian faith and
become Mohammedan. The lad kept
his own counsel until they arrived at
ID small hotel in Hannah. The hotel
keeper, an Arabian Christian, whis-
pered to the boy that in three days
he would help him to escape. While
the farmer was busy with his affairs
IN the town, the hotelkeeper sent the
boy to a friend, another Arabian Chris
dfan, who owned lunch room In an
other part Of the town. Here Bedrus
worked for seven months as q waiter.
A detachment Of the British army
came to the village and picked UP
many of the Armenian orphans, in
seinding Bedrus. and took them to
newly organized orphanage in Mosul.
THE boy did not know his parents
were refugees In that city until they,
with ether Armenian parents seeking
aOst children. came to the orphanage
and found Bedrus.
Die OF Starvation.
The family reunion was happy
one, but food was scarce. Within the
year the eldest sister, eighteen years
of age; died of starvation. Five
months later the father died Of the,
same cause. The mether's death fol-.
lowed in two weeks. The boy man.
aged. with the help of the English
sarmy, to get back to Adana, accom-
panied by his two younger sisters, who
later were taken by the British to Port
Said Bedrus found job 10 q tailor
ssfaop In his home town, where he
worked for four months, when Turk
Ash soldiers again looted the homes Of
the Armenians and sefd the boys and
sxlris into slavery and he fed toward
sBeiFsafs @
There he worked as q dock taborer
orfhree months. when, fenring the
TnEks. would find him and return him
~ flayery,, he started to Constantine
DIE. There an Armenian society gave
Ains job without pay. except his
board, In general store, where he
ataJed for six months. ~
a6e. boy told Of meeting his brother
1st3ard In Constantinople. The other
Ai0t1ef, ArdasheS. In Chicago, was
communicated with and through the
Chicago headquarters Of the Near
East relief this brother and his wife
sent money for the transportation Of
the ex-slave to the "land of the free"
The youth plans to work to get enough
money to bring his fourteen year-old
sister, who Is In an orphanagein Cy-
sprus, to this country.
His Motor Called.
Bellaire, O.-Recognizing the, purr
of a motor, John Skunk waited until
"a yacht landed and recovered motor
(which had been stolen from him ct
wheeling, w. Va, six months before.
,;;zohn Hall Of WHEELING. w. Va, who
was driving the yacht surrendered Il
and the boat when Skunk proved own
,ership. He explained how he had