Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-05-28

lean college, and naturally enough.
Inc Armenians were Christians,
they We're educated, saw the better
SIDE OF things and had little ~,
mon with their Balkan neighbors.
But Three Families Spared
When the city Of Sevarek was
rayaged, three families out of the
entire population were spared. These
We're men whose knowledge of GER
tam industries would benefit the
turks. George Touraine's brother
ln-laW was one of these men, who
were spared with their lives but who
We're promptly labelled as govern
ment property and forced to turn
thelr knowledge to the benefit of the
turks. who were in turn encouraged
| and helped along by their German
| allies.
Touraine's mother. great grand
mother, grandmother and younger
! sister We're forced into exile by the
| invading Turks. The Mohammedans
IN their invasions pursued a far
j simpler and more effective method
| OF reducing the population of the
! CHRISTIANS. They simply took all the
aple- bodied men and pressed them
INTO the army Of Turkey. The wo-
men were told to get out of the city
IN winch they lived and they must
necessarily pass through a section
OF desert, In which the country
abounds. The Touraine family i'm
| mediately took as many light yalu-
aples as they possibly could and
started for Aintab, where George
| then a leader of a class of BOYS in
| the school, enjoyed the protection
| OF hhe American flag which flew in
glory from the college aagpole.
Rescues Imprisoned Mother
However the family was destined
| not to reach Aintab by their own
EFFORTS. Two Turks, one of them a
Mohammedan priest, accosted them,
the great grandmother was killed,
Georges young sister kidnapped
and the mother taken to Aintab. At
Alntab she was confined in the home
OF the priest. but word got to the
college that the mother of Truro,
, as Touraine was generally known,
was confined there. George, ac-
companied by group of chosen
companions, who refused to desert
HIM, rescued h'~ mother after
vicious battle, and took her to
house in the Armenian section, which
was little inhabited BY any Turks.
George and his brother then re-
turned to their college studies but
the peace they enjoyed there was
destined to be short lived. America
declared war and the American flag
was no longer respected in Turkey
Tearing that the United States was
coming to the aid of the Allies.
George and his brother knew that
the college would soon be visited by
the Christian hating Turks and made
their escape from the study building
just exactly four minutes before the
Turks entered the college and
wrought havoc there.
Touraine then hid in well in the
house which his mother occupied,
but. forced to do something by the
lack of food he sought employment
One requirement of the college was
that the students prepare their own
bread. there being no table set there,
and George was a good plain bread
mixer. There was a demand at that
time from the Turks, for good bakers
to bake bread for the army and
George signed up as a baker.
( While in college and even at this
time Touraine was we'll known
!
cause of his athletic prowess. A
champion middle distance runner and
when but a youth capable of putin;
the Is ID. shot a distance of "A feet
he naturally attracted attention al
the games and was an object of at
tenton. He applied at the baker
shop and everything went we'll until
a former companion recognized him
and spoke to him loudly, whereupou
a Turkish guard heard him and dc
manded an explanation. Upon find
! ing that he was a college youth hi
pass was demanded. Geo. stalled
them off with the remark that he
had forgotten it and 49, it was at
his home.
Escapes Turkish Guard
A Turkish guard, big and burly,
with a heavy rifle and sharp bayonet
but lacking in common sense. started
off to the Touraine home with Georf
in his custody, to get the pass q.
their way the prisoner and his sturd
custodian passed the Turkish bazaal
or market place. Pulling SON
money from his pocket George sua
gested buying some pistachios al
his guard readily agreed. The guard
being able to secure more of III
coveted nuts because of the fac
that he wore the uniform of the
Turkish army, sauntered to a bench
TO buy the goods and George mingled
with the large crowd and made his
escape.
There was now but one thing to
do. Georges brother in law who,
il will be remembered, was saved at
Sevarek because of his ability as
manager of an iron foundry. had
sent for the youthful George to come
to the factory and work for him
under his protection. The journey
from Aintab to Sevarek was a long
one 1t was September, during the
festive season, when George, a mere
youth, set out for the city of his
birth The journey had to be made
by night as the travel on the road
was too populcus for safety.
Disguised as an Arab he started
off on his trip to Sevarek. Travel
ling within easy calling distance of
the main highway, George went along
for three days until he got lost. In
his travels back to the right path,
he discovered an old friend. who
had been robbed and covered by
rocks with the intentions of taking
his life, and the two travelled to-
gether until the pair approached a
river which was too narrow to use
a boat and too deep to wade across.
and they parted company, George