BEDROS DER BEDROSSIAN, OurfatziPhiladelphia, U.S.A.

Translated byTamar Der-Ohannessian

(Granddaughter)Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

Edited byDr. Vahan Janjigian

(Grandson)New York, N.Y.

October 2005

Printing of this volume was made possible by Leon and Tamar Der-Ohannessian

Table Of ContentsFamily Tree x

Our Family and My Childhood Memories 1

The Financial State of Our Family 3

Nshan’s First Donation 5

Nshan’s and Aghajan’s Governmental Offices 6

What Life was Like Before The Ottoman Constitution of 1908 7

Traveling in The Old Times 10

Craftsmanship and Trade 11

Our Vineyard 12

The Armenian Village of Garmouj 14

The Hot Baths of Jermoug 15

An Hour’s Rest in Garmouj 17

Bitten by a Dog 18

A Co-operative Society in Ourfa 19

How Aghajan Fooled Some Robbers 20

The Custom of Engagements and Weddings 21

King Apkar and The Pilgrimage Site of St. Tasdarag 22

The Plateau of King Apkar 23

The Old Schools of Ourfa 24

Schools I Attended 25

The First Massacres of 1895 26

The Second Massacre of 1895 28

What We Saw After Coming Out of The Cellar 30

The Condition of The Armenian Survivors of The 1895 Massacres 32

i

My Schooling After The 1895 Massacres 34

I was Slapped in School for Helping A Friend 36

Studying at The American College of Ainteb 37

My Failure During The Second Year of College 39

I Temporarily Became A Teacher 40

Details of My Business: Part I 41

Details of My Business: Part II 43

My Cooperative Society 44

The Apostolic and Evangelical School Separates 45

Complaints Against Father Anania 46

A Succession of New Primates 47

I Began Reporting on The Sunday Seminars 48

The Ottoman Constitution of 1908 Raises False Hopes 49

Father Ardavazt Kalenderian’s Reign as Ourfa’s Primate 50

1910, The Year of The Snow 51

My Engagement 52

The First World War, Miss Karen Jeppe And Conscription into The Army 54

Kurdish Hussein Pasha 56

Arrests, Exile and Persecutions 57

The Police Major Delivers A Threatening Speech 59

Arrests and Tortures. 60

Reports of Horrible Deaths 61

Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian, Hovhannes Imrzian And Their Comrades Refused to Surrender 62

My Brother Haroutiun is Saved 63

Hussein Pasha Offered to Save Me, Too 64

ii

How Noyemzar Escaped Death 65

How My Niece Rahel and I Escaped Death 66

Our Crisis in Miss Jeppe’s House and The Betrayal of Der Karekin; Der Karekin and His Wife Left 68

Our Hiding Place 69

They Came and Searched 70

Missak Goes to Town to Get Information 71

We Were Almost Discovered by A Shepherd 72

Der Karekin and His Wife Commit Suicide 73

We Hid in A Dark Cave for Eight Days 75

We Created A Second Hiding Place in Miss Jeppe’s House 76

We Created A Third Hiding Place in Miss Jeppe’s House 77

My Mother in Millet Khan 79

Miss Jeppe Falls Ill 81

An Unexpected and Dangerous Visitor 82

Miss Jeppe Falls Unconscious 83

Miss Jeppe’s Trips to Europe 84

A Typhus Epidemic in Ourfa 85

Colonel Bilel Moves in With Us 86

Surrounded by 150 Turkish Soldiers 87

Ekart’s Big Treachery and his Punishment 89

Burno, Ekart’s Kind Younger Brother 90

Our Innocent Thefts 91

Our Desperate Panic Attacks 92

The Vineyard of Mejayyid 93

How I Went to Aleppo 94

iii

An Unexpected Detour Through Ourfa 95

How I Finally Found My Brother 96

Noyemzar and My Belongings Make it to Aleppo 98

“Good is Born from Every Misfortune” 99

How We Earned A Living in Aleppo 100

I Obtained an Employee Certification 102

Eight Days in Jail 103

Getting Married 104

I Went Back to Ourfa 105

American Aid 107

The German Hospital and The Rug Factory 108

Armenian Coeducational Schools 109

Nshan’s Surviving Children Move to Sao Paolo 110

I Assumed The Role of A Priest and Performed A Marriage Ceremony 111

I Opened A Shop in Ourfa and Started A Business 112

I Received A Letter from Basraveh Agha 113

The Turkish-french War in Ourfa 114

The Fighting Began in Early February 1920 115

The French Were Ruthlessly Massacred 117

The Turkish and Armenian Truce 118

New Armenian Enterprises and Activities 119

Mounla Ayoub Helped Me Collect from Our Debtors 120

I was Elected Member of The Municipality (Belediye) 121

I Lost A Large Amount of Capital 123

Lawsuits Involving The Imirzian’s Properties Lawsuit No. 1: Inheritance 125

iv

Lawsuit No. 2: Inheritance 126

Lawsuit No. 3: The Mill at Ainarous 127

I Reconciled with Ali Effendi 129

Lawsuit No. 4; The Mill of Himbashi 130

The Dire Consequences of A Group Photograph A Valuable Lesson 132

Yeghisapet Dies 133

Desperate Times: We Sent Lousin to Aleppo and Sold Some Properties 134

We Moved in with The Chalians, then The Karakashians 136

Karakashian The Goldsmith Escaped to Aleppo 137

They Killed Karekin Torigian. I Escaped Once More 138

How We Set Out and Almost Got Caught 140

The Kachakjis Returned to Ourfa to Bring Us Some Horses 141

My Final Escape from Ourfa. I Reached Aleppo on Feb. 5, 1923 143

Noyemzar and Rose Come to Aleppo 144

We Married Off Lousin Imirzian 145

I Started Trading in Aleppo 146

Ali Kazzaz Delivered My 500 Gold Coins to Aleppo 147

Buying Wool for The Orphanage in Ghazir 148

The World Economic Crisis of 1929-1930 149

Haroutiun and I Separated Our Businesses 151

The Village of Sheikh Choban 153

The Treachery of Basrave Agha and Guiavour Hajji 154

Another One of Basrave’s Ruses 156

The Fraud of The Farmer, Sheikh Drehe 157

Another One of Guiavour Hajji’s Mischiefs 159

v

We Obtained A Syrian Deed for The Village of Sheikh Choban 160

I Built A Masonry House in Sheikh Choban 161

We Purchased The Other Half of Sheikh Choban 162

Mustafa Bey Farmed Our Village on The Sly 163

A Permanent Judge is Appointed in Arabpounar: Fifth Lawsuit 164

The Judge Visits Sheikh Choban, Examines The Border, And Renders A Verdict in My Favor 165

The Farmers of The Village of Dibrig Cultivated Our Land Sixth Lawsuit 167

Mustafa Bey Appealed The Verdict 168

Mustafa Dies and The Judge Rules in My Favor 169

The Farmers of Dibrig Lose Their Appeal 170

The Villagers of Dibrig Till Another Section of Our Land. 171

The Advice of an Experienced Landowner 172

The Thefts of The Farmers and The Shepherds 173

We Brought Modern Machines to Sheikh Choban 175

How My Wheat Turned into Hay 176

I was Falsely Accused of Smuggling 177

Customers Wishing to Buy Sheikh Choban 179

Syria Turns Socialist and Confiscates 3/4 of Sheikh Choban 181

The Previously Announced Agrarian Law was Changed 182

I Sued Islahe Zira’i : 9th Lawsuit 183

Our 3,000 Syrian Pound Fine was Raised to 3,400 184

Requisitioning from The Lands of Ainarous, 11th Lawsuit 185

Why I Did Not Appeal The Verdict of The Ainarous Lawsuit 186

I Lost The Opportunity to Make 15,000 Syrian Pounds 187

vi

How The Mill at Ainarous was Built; The Ingratitude of The Partners 189

I was Asked to go to Qamishli as an Investigator 191

A Terrible Robbery Attempt in Our House 193

A Second Robbery Attempt 195

I was Held Up One Night in The Streets of Aleppo 197

Why We Formed A Ladies’ Association of Ourfa in Aleppo 198

We Received Aid from Friends in America 200

A Special Room for The Elderly of Ourfa 201

Raising Funds to Help Armenians Immigrate to Soviet Armenia 202

The 20th Anniversary Celebration of The Ladies’ Association 203

Property in The Meydan Region of Aleppo 204

I Bought Taniel Yousoufian’s Properties in Arabpounar 205

The Ladies’ Association Bought an Apartment in Aleppo And Transferred Title to The Prelate 207

The Ladies’ Association Gave 12,000 Syrian Pounds to The AGBU 208

I Escaped Certain Death in Beirut 209

An Unfair Verdict - 13th Lawsuit 210

I Saw Hajji Mustafa The Buyer of The Biggest of Our Houses 211

Opinions About The Arabic Language 212

How I Collaborated in The “Tiutzaznagan Ourfan” 213

I Sold The Remaining Land in Sheikh Choban 216

Lousin’s Children’s Share of Land 218

What I Did With The Rooms I had Built in Sheikh Choban 219

14th Lawsuit: an Unsuccessful Experience Against Jerji Akko 220

The Services and Offices I Held in Ourfa 222

My Contributions in Aleppo 224

vii

I Also Incurred Fateful Mistakes and Losses 226

I Escaped Death Many Times 231

I Suffered Many Unjust Lawsuits 323

What I Learned About Turkish Laws 234

Family Members Martyred By The Turks in 1985 and 1915 236

Initial Preparations to Move to The States 237

Reorganization of The Ourfa Ladies’ Association in Aleppo 239

Getting The Permits in Aleppo to Immigrate to The States 240

Our Final Departure from Aleppo 241

From Beirut to Philadelphia; Two Short-lived Crises 242

From Beirut to Philadelphia 244

Our Lifestyle in Philadelphia 245

We Had Two Misfortunes After Coming to The States 247

Two Sad Deaths in Beirut After Our Move to The States 249

Two Unhappy Marriages 251

Another Unhappy Marriage 252

A Forgotten Memory 253

I was Frightened in Vain 254

I Shipped Vine Branches to The States; The Dishonesty of an Airline Company 255

The Lawyer, Tcherish Mislem Effendi 257

A Remorse 258

Why Sheikh Djevharzade Eomer Broke His Promise 260

My Visit to The Village of Merjanig 262

Dikran Kaghtatzian Refused to Pay His Debt of 40 Gold Coins 263

Dr. Hagop Beshlian Double-crossed Me 266

viii

The Building of Governor Ehdem Pasha and Garabed Imirzian 268

I Lost Sight in My Left Eye and had Prostate Surgery 271

The Premature Death of My Nephew, Yervant 273

My Right Eye Became Weak, Rejuvenated in My Old Age, and Weakened Again 274

We Had to Buy Back Our Own Looted Belongings 275

Sad News: Kayane Dies in Sao Paolo 277

A Campaign and Doubt Against Us 278

Why I Did Not Join A Political Party 282

How Did I Live So Long? 284

I Always Dream at Night 287

God Bless The Brilliant Inventors 288

The Perils of Success 289

Prayer Alone is Not Enough 291

Does God Exist? of Course He Does 292

Criminal Hojas, Clergymen, Politicians and Kings 294

Does Fate Exist? 296

Not Only do The Clever Succeed, Nor The Ignorant Who Fail 298

Ups and Downs; Success and Failure; Wealth and Poverty 300

Many Lawsuits Caused Us Tremendous Suffering 303

Loyal Turkish Friends Became Enemies During The Genocide 304

Our Progeny 306

The Family Pictures 308

ix

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x

Our Family and My Childhood MemoriesI was born on May 14, 1884 in Ourfa, an ancient Armenian city that had become part of the Ottoman Empire. My father died when I was barely three years old, so I experienced almost no paternal love. My father was a priest and went by the name of Der Bedros (Der is the honorary title for a married priest). His father was also a priest and went by the same name. My father’s secular or birth name was Kevork.

I remember only two events concerning my father. According to the custom of the time, when it was the turn of a priest to celebrate the liturgy, he would spend the preceding week preparing in a small room in the courtyard of the church built especially for this purpose. Thepriest would remain in this room day and night, not even going home. In addition to my father, there were about seven or eight other priests in our church.

One time, when it was my father’s turn to prepare for the liturgy, my sister Kayane, who was three years older than me, took me by the hand to and we went to visit him. He patted me on the head and gave us each a kiss. He also gave each of us a metallik (a ten para coin in the currency of the Ottoman Empire.)

My other memory involves his death. At the time, it was common during the summer months to sleep in an open-roofed room called an eyvan. Ours was on top of the pantry. I was suddenly awakened one day from the sounds of screaming and crying. My father, who was ill, had passed away. While I was still asleep, my family had sent news of his death to his sister, Zmo (Zmrout). When she saw her brother’s lifeless body, she began to weep very loudly.

I do not remember anything of the following day. I don’t even remember how they took away his body and buried it. But I have never forgotten his white beard. He must have been about 55-56 at the time of his death. Besides my mother, Yeretzguin Yeghisapet (Yeretzguin is an honorary title for the wife of a priest), my father was survived by his eight children: six boys and two girls. In chronological order, we were Nshan, Aghajan, Krikor, Vartouhi, Hagop, Kayane, Bedros (me) and Haroutiun. None of us were married at the time. My mother was obviously a prolific woman. In addition to us eight, she had given birth to five other boys, including one setof triplets. These children had died when they were very young. I remember the triplets werenamed Setrak, Misak and Apetnakov.

My older brothers were very kind and respectful toward one another. The two oldest, Nshanand Aghajan, never let us feel the absence of our father. They were well-to-do and tended to all ourneeds. They took special care regarding the schooling of the youngest boys, Haroutiun and me.

My paternal grandfather’s brother, Archbishop Hagop Kazanjian, had at one time been the primate of Ourfa. His grave was in the vaulted hallway in front of the big gate of the main church. (There is a discussion of the Archbishop on pp. 169, 183, 185, 224 of Tiutzaznakan Ourfan.) Although our family name had been Kazanjian, it was customary to change the name when there is a priest in the family. As a result, our family name was changed to Der-Bedrossian. We were also called Keshishian because keshish means priest in Turkish.

1

2

My sister Kayane eventually married, but died at a young age from natural causes. Other than Haroutiun and me, the remaining members of my family, as well as most of their spouses and children, were martyred during the Armenian massacres of 1915. I write about this terrible event in due time on the following pages.

3

The Financial State of Our FamilyWhen my father died, my older brothers were already running their own business. We lived in a nice house to which my paternal uncles, Alexander and Nerses, were also heirs. Having large families of their own, my uncles sold their rights to the house to my brothers and moved into other houses in order to live more comfortably. I remember when Uncle Nerses moved out. Uncle Alexander moved out earlier. After my uncles left, my brothers built additions to our house. They also purchased adjoining rooms from our neighbors and annexed them to our house.

My brothers were tailors and wholesale traders of fabrics and silks. They worked in fourshops that were adjacent to one another. Nshan, Aghajan and Krikor sold merchandise out of two of these shops. In the other two shops, under Hagop’s supervision, seven or eight employees sewed ashayeer outfits, such as kermane, gatash, shalvar, etc. and distributed them to retail stores. These outfits were popular with the villagers.

My brothers became successful and gradually bought 11 retail shops. They also purchasedan entire village called Golenje where they employed villagers to raise sheep and agricultural products. They purchased a quarter share of another village called Aghchee Yadat for the samepurposes.

Nshan and Aghajan eventually got married and had a new separate house built. It was a spacious, two-story structure with 10 rooms including pantries, kitchens, etc. It sported Oriental and European styling and was one-of-a-kind in the Armenian Quarter. This house costmy brothers two thousand Ottoman gold coins, which was a fortune at that time. Krikor also married and moved into a separate house.

My family purchased a piece of land some distance away from the city in a village called Kerzi. We had the intention of building a house there sometime in the future. Because of the growing population in the city and a lack of adequate housing, many people were buying property in the countryside.

Hagop was also married, but he was still living with our mother, Haroutiun and me when the massacres began. Haroutiun and I were still bachelors at that time, but we were both newly engaged.

Nshan usually traveled to Aleppo (now in Syria) every fall and spring in order to buy winter and summer merchandise, respectively. He and my brothers used to sell this merchandise to shopkeepers and retail customers. They also sold to wholesale merchants from abroad includingArouj, Tel-Abiad, Severeg, and Verashehir. These merchants would either pay with cash or barterwith ghee, wool, wheat etc. My brothers also sold goods on credit to the wealthier land-owning villagers. During harvest, Krikor would collect wheat, barley, sesame seeds, etc. as payment from these creditors. He would then store these items in safe places in the villages and sell them at a profit when their market prices rose.

Haroutiun started helping out in the stores when he got older. My older brothers started getting more involved in the wholesale trade of ghee, wool, wheat, barley, sesame seeds and

4

sheep. They frequently sent these goods to Aleppo. After leaving school and college, I alsostarted working for my brothers, doing accounting with Monofar Jendri. I also had time to compose my brothers’ letters and bills in Turkish. Aghajan did not have time to do these tasks himself because he was often busy with government and community affairs.

We used to have our wool washed and baled by large presses called mengene. Then we sentthe wool to Aleppo to the Djanandji brothers who were well-known merchants. The wool waseither sold on account or on commission.

We employed many needy women and girls. Most of them were Assyrians. They cleaned thewool and separated the black from the white. Everyday, I compiled a list of the workers’ names so that we could pay them on Saturdays. I also kept a list of the young men who did the baling. Once the bales were made, I would place a trademark on them depending upon their variety. Much of the unsold wool helped support us in Aleppo after we survived the massacres. The loyalDjenandjis and Nouri Moushaqah, another merchant, paid us the full value of our merchandise. I write more on this subject later in this manuscript.

Uncle Alexander’s store was looted during the Armenian massacres of 1895. Because he was in financial distress and in need of capital, he sold his house to his brothers for 200 Ottomangold coins. By selling the property to his brothers, he was able to continue living in the house. He also paid his brothers rent of 600 ghouroush annually.

5

Nshan’s First DonationNshan and Aghajan were very religious men. Each year after settling their accounts, they donated a tenth of their profits to the church. The money was used for charitable works. WhenNshan started out in business, his first donation was a sizable one. He made his donation tothe primate, Archbishop Khoren Mekhitarian. Because the Archbishop was a well educated man, he decided to use Nshan’s gift to build a much-needed classroom next to the school’s hall on the premises of the church. He then had a four-word sentence carved atop the door. Each of the words began with the letters in Nshan’s name. (Using the Armenian alphabet, Nshan is spelled with only four letters.) Transliterated into English, the sentence read “Nakhagurtaranus Shinvetsav Aradatserni mu Nverov,” which means “This classroom was built with a gift from abenevolent person.” This inscription was always visible while we were in Ourfa.

6

Nshan’s and Aghajan’s Governmental OfficesNshan liked dealing in trade. He was always the one who procured merchandise from Aleppo. He had good credit and used it often to purchase goods. Sometimes he wouldn’t even have to travel to Aleppo. He could simply place an order by sending a letter of request. Themerchandise would be shipped to us immediately.

Nshan had no time to participate in national meetings and he didn’t enjoy doing so. Nonetheless, he was a member of the National Representative Assembly, which convened once every three or four years. At one time, he was also an elected member of the municipal Mejlisse Idare, a supreme assembly chaired by the Mayor consisting of Turkish and Christian members.

Aghajan had a high level of education and was expert in both the Armenian and Turkish languages. He was a dedicated subscriber to ‘Hairenik’, an Armenian newspaper published in Bolis (Istanbul). He also subscribed to ‘Sabah’, Diran Kelikian’s Turkish language newspaper. I also remember that Aghajan ordered ‘Hantes Amsoria’ for a year. This was the newspaper of theVienna Mekhitarists (an order of Armenian monks).

At about that time I began reading Armenian books and newspapers. I still remember seeing the photograph in ‘Hantes Amsoria’ of Kapriel Noradounkian with Turkey’s Minister of External Affairs, who was decorated with medals. If memory serves me well, the photograph wasaccompanied by a biography written by Dr. Torkomian.

Aghajan was always elected to Armenian and federal assemblies. He was also elected to educational and political committees and usually served as the chairman. He was a member of several Turkish trade, judicial, and municipal assemblies. In the disastrous year of 1915 when the government began rounding up Armenian leaders, Aghajan was arrested while presiding over a municipality meeting. He was exiled to Raqqa and killed.

Aghajan had a vast collection of Armenian books, which I read with relish when I was old enough.

7

What Life Was Like Before The Ottoman Constitution of 1908

I think it is worthwhile to give the new generation an idea of how difficult life was for theirforefathers. Besides having to suffer oppression and massacres, we made due without any oftoday’s modern conveniences. I hope this description will help make the new generation truly grateful for all of the wonderful things they enjoy today.

Just two or three generations ago there were no trains, automobiles, airplanes, electricity, telephones, radios, elevators, refrigerators, air conditioning, washers, dryers, etc., etc., etc.

A long time ago, Ourfa (Edessia) was a center of high culture. It had a college and a library. It was King Apkar’s capital and it was a center for the Crusaders. But it was later reduced to an unfortunate and miserable state due to the invasions of various enemies. Nerses Shnorhali (Nerses the Gracious) describes Ourfa in heart-rending fashion in his book, ‘Voghp Yetessio’ (TheLament of Edessia). Madteos Ourhayetsi does the same.

In my time, Ourfa was in Mesopotamia, far from the sea and railways. It was indeed in an unfavorable geographic position. As a result, we were unable to keep up with the political developments of the day.

Merchants conducted most of their trade with Aleppo and with the nearby cities of Ainteb, Dikranakerd and Veranshehir. Nobody dealt with Europe or America. Other than my brothers, I don’t think anyone else was trading with Bolis (Istanbul). My brothers did business with a tradesman in Bolis named Djengudurian. They would send him the cleaned, salted intestines ofsheep which expert workers packed into tin boxes. My brothers said the intestines were used to prepared violin strings.

Except for the poor, every family purchased their yearly requirements of food and fuel in the fall. Due to the harvest, everything was plentiful and inexpensive at this time. Supplies included wheat, which was used for bread and bulgur, kerosene, cheese, olives, dried meat (aboukhd or basturma), wine, pickled peppers, molasses, various kinds of syrups, sweets made with grape juice and corn starch (basdegh, sharots, chekchek), honey, butter (ghee), charcoal, dried vine branches (churpi), cow manure (kushkour), olives, lentil, chick peas, etc. These were purchased in largequantities to get a better price and also to avoid the inconvenience of having to shop more frequently. Besides, merchandise imported from other villages was often unavailable during the winter because the weather could make transportation impossible. And prices were always much higher during the winter. For example, kerosene, which came from Aleppo, was unavailable during the winter months.

Food was cooked by burning cow manure (kushkour) and dried vine leaves (churpi) or leaves from another plant called boran. Gas cookers were not yet available. Even today (i.e., around 1975) some villages in Syria and Turkey use cow or sheep manure as cooking fuel.

Men wore zubouns with long and wide skirts. Trousers were a rarity, although some

8

government officials wore them. The red fez was a popular hat. They usually had tassels andaround which colorful scarves were wrapped.

It was considered a great dishonor (amot) for a woman, Turkish or Christian, to go shopping. The men purchased clothing for the women. Sometimes they would bring home many samplesfor the women to choose from. Kurdish and Arab women from the villages, however, did frequent the market. Some years later, stores selling dresses and other goods opened in the Armenian Quarter and our women began doing their own shopping.

Both Muslim and Christian women covered themselves from head to toe in white sheets (charshaf) when going out. They covered their faces with thin scarves. Wealthy women wouldwrap themselves in colorful silk charshafs.

During summer nights, mattresses were placed on the floor or on wooden benches on therooftops. Newly married or young couples would erect long wooden poles around their beds, which they covered with white sheets (chugh) tied with thin ropes. This provided privacy andallowed air to circulate. Housewives cleaned dishes by rubbing them for hours with wet ashes.

There were very few literate people. It was also difficult to find calendars. To keep track ofthe seven weeks of Lent, people stuck seven feathers into an onion. A feather would be plucked at the end of each week. People were very religious and devout. During the seven weeks of Lent, and also on every Wednesday and Friday throughout the year, no one would eat meat and dairy products. Some would fast until sundown.

There were no bathrooms in the houses. There were only public bathrooms. Both Muslimand Christian men would use the facilities before noon each day. Women had access in the afternoons. However, Christian and Muslim women did not use the bathrooms on the same days. Separate days were designated for each. Christian and Muslim women did not mingle.

There were special ovens (toneer) in all the houses for baking bread. Housewives kneaded large quantities of dough with yeast in big containers. Expert women would come to the house and bake a special soft bread first, which did not take much time. Then they would bake thedry round kakhkes, which needed to be left on the walls of the toneer to dry nicely. The kakhkes would last for months without getting moldy. Sometimes they would also bake a thin soft bread on the griddle (saj), which was known as youkhi or saji bread. This bread was especially deliciouswith barbecues. Some housewives baked their own bread without hiring an expert. There werealso bakeries in the market and one or two bakeries in some neighborhoods. Bakeries were particularly important for villagers and travelers who could not make their own bread.

It was not customary to place food on a table and to eat while sitting on a chair. Food was put on a large tray, which was placed on a small stool. Everyone ate from the same tray. Men ate first. Women would later remove the tray and eat by themselves.

Barbers treated the ill when qualified doctors or dentists were unavailable. They extracteddecayed or aching teeth using pliers. They wouldn’t even clean and disinfect their tools withalcohol beforehand. Older ladies worked as midwives. Some older women were familiar with plants that had healing properties. Such plants included mariam khod, okhlamour, peppermint,

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esved, spearmint, etc. These plants were gathered during the summer, dried, and administeredwithout charge as needed to the ill for various aches and ailments. Some individuals would go to sheikhs when they were sick. These sheikhs pretended to cure them by massaging their bodies and whispering prayers. There were others who sucked out the venom from snake or scorpion biteswith their mouths. Some thought the sheikhs’ treatments could make them immune to venom.

Many of these primitive customs and superstitions are still common among some Kurdish and Arabic tribes and other backward people. I have personally witnessed these practices among our villagers.

Daily life, especially for the Christians, improved considerably following adoption of our short-lived constitution.

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Traveling in The Old TimesBack then, there were no cars or airplanes in Ourfa. Even today, there is no railroad going into Ourfa. People traveled by donkey, mule or on horseback. Horse-drawn carts were rare. In the summer, people traveled at night in order to avoid sunstroke. It usually took five days to travelfrom Ourfa to Aleppo on horseback. Today it takes only one day by car or an hour by plane to make the trip. The nomadic and tent-dwelling Aneze, Shammar and other tribes who live in thedesert, still travel by camel today.

I made the trip by donkey in 1899 with a group of classmates when I was studying at the American College in Ainteb. It took us four days traveling only at night. In fact, we made this trip every year. These journeys were very harsh. We often felt sleepy, but were terrified of fallingasleep and falling off the donkey and hurting ourselves.

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Craftsmanship and TradePrior to the massacres, Armenians controlled the majority of trade and commerce throughout Turkey. This was also the case in Ourfa. We referred to this situation as the “golden bracelet.”

The marketplaces had about 40-50 individual shops, all adjacent to one another. This iswhere the Armenians worked including the tailors, shoemakers, slipper makers, goldsmiths, ironmongers, copper-workers, gunsmiths, saber makers, etc. On the other hand, bakers, watchmakers, and painters were dispersed here and there. Stonecutters, masons, plasterers, etc. were also dispersed throughout the neighborhoods, as were the weavers.

On the upper floor of the marketplace called Gumrik Khan, there were more than 30 roomswhere fabric printers designed beautiful colorful patterns using local colorfast dyes. All the fabric printers were Armenian. The Turks engaged in only a few crafts. They made saddles, weavedsilk and cotton ribbons, etc. Some Turks also owned shops, but most preferred to work for the government and military. This allowed them to lead comfortable lives because in additionto receiving salaries, it gave them the opportunity to command bribes. Many of these Turks purchased real estate from which they earned generous revenues.

Prior to the declaration of the Ottoman constitution in 1908, Christians were not drafted into the army. They were instead forced to pay an annual tax. Because they couldn’t serve inthe military, they had the time to learn a craft or a trade. The Turkish youth, however, becamesoldiers and didn’t have the opportunity to learn a trade. They didn’t seem to have the interest ortalent to do so anyway. The majority of the businessmen were Armenian. There were only a fewTurkish or Jewish businessmen.

According to Islam, lending money with interest is a sin. Therefore, Muslims often relied onother methods. Unfortunately, these resulted in even bigger sins. One was called helei shar’ie (investing in the name of charity, but it was more like fraud). For example, a poor man might approach a wealthy man for some money. The wealthy man might purchase 10 bags of sugarfor 100 ghuroush a bag and propose to sell the sugar to the poor man for 200 ghuroush a bag. The poor man, having no money, would sign a note promising to pay 2000 ghuroush. Or hemight pawn his wife’s jewelry or other belongings for 2000 ghuroush and give the money to the rich man. He would then take possession of the sugar and try to sell it for as much as he could. More often than not, however, he wouldn’t be able to get more than 100 ghuroush a bag, which of course was the market price. Thus he would incur a 1000 ghuroush loss.

If he had been able to borrow the money, the interest rate would have been 20% at most. Because charging interest was a sin, the rich often took advantage of the poor in this manner.

This was some of Ourfa’s history. Today, of course, there are no Armenians in Ourfa. Themassacres took care of them.

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Our VineyardWe owned a vineyard on the northwest side of Ourfa, about a half-hour walk from our home. We had 500 grape vines and a number of fig trees in a region called Eski Keriz (Old Fountain). There was also a stone room with porches (sakou) on both sides and a spacious enclosure with high walls all around it but without a roof. The enclosure was used to tie our horses. We oftenspent our summers at the vineyard.

All of the neighboring vine growers were also Armenian. During the day, the men went to the city to work and returned in the evening. There were gardens and a spring of very clear waterjust a short distance from our vineyard. The vineyard owners used the water from the spring fordrinking and washing. We carried the water in tin containers on the backs of donkeys. Then wepoured it into large jars to keep it cool. There were two large pools outside the gardens wherethe spring water was collected and used for irrigating the gardens. People often went swimming in these pools. This is where I learned to swim when I was nine or 10 years old. The pools werenot very deep.

Friends and relatives would come and visit every Saturday night. They would sleep over andspend the next day with us. We relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. The evenings, especially when wehad guests, were usually filled with much happiness. We would sing, play music and tell storiesuntil well past midnight. We would prepare a basket filled with our best grapes and figs to sharewith our guests. My brothers also brought fruits including melons, watermelons, peaches and plums from the city. The guests, of course, would not come empty-handed.

It was traditional for the ladies to place a pot of khesh (lamb’s head soup) on the fire. Thissimmered all night and it would be served with bulghour pilaf in the morning. We spent Sundays sleeping and playing backgammon (tavli) and cards. We would also go swimming. In general, we had a very good time. The men retuned to the city on Monday mornings beforesunup while it was still cool.

After the 1895 massacres, we leased this vineyard to others and rented another vineyard that was bustling with Armenians near the region of Khandjoughaz. It also had a spring with clear and gushing water. This vineyard was adjacent to one owned by our relative, BaghdassarMaghakian. We went there every summer until the schools opened.

There were thousands of vineyards on the northwestern side of Ourfa. Most were invarious Armenian regions with specific names: Hosagh, Eski Kevriz, Deerekli, Khandjoughaz,Karakeopri, Garmoudj, Mudjeid, Ashuk, Mashuk, Keolpounar, Kouzuluk, etc. Some of these vineyards were very close to the city; others were up to two or three hours away on foot or horseback.

Many people earned money from their vineyards. They sold grape leaves for stuffing, unripesour grapes (azokh), ripened grapes and the dried branches of the vines (churpi). They maderaisins from the grapes, molasses from the juice, and various grape-based products called sheere such as basdegh, chekchek and soujouk. The houses of the more remote vineyards were all built

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next to each other in the form of a small village for intimacy and safety. These were called oba. The young boys and girls often danced and sang in the evenings.

After the black and disastrous days of 1915, there were no Armenians left in Ourfa. Theyhad all been massacred, starved to death, or died from thirst on the road of exile. Alas, those lovely days have passed like a dream.

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The Armenian Village of GarmoujThe land surrounding Ourfa was fit primarily for agriculture and sheep raising. There werethousands of villages in the regions of Harran, Arouj, Bezik, etc. These were Kurdish or Arabvillages. Garmouj was the only Armenian village. It was inhabited by about a thousand families. Garmouj was northeast of Ourfa about one hour’s walking distance. It had two springs called Medz Ag (Large Source) and Bezdig Ag (Small Source). It also had a flowing brook named St.Kevork, which powered the village’s mill. Garmouj had many fruit orchards and vineyards. Theharvest from the orchards and vineyards was brought to town and sold wholesale to the markets. The villagers also took some of the harvest to neighboring villages and traded them for ghee,wool, cheese, wheat, barley, lentil, chickpeas, sesame seeds and other goods.

Villagers did not normally have much money, and they rarely spent what they had. Theypreferred to barter with their crops. The itinerant peddlers (cherchi) of Garmouj did the trading. The fruits and vegetables of Garmouj, especially the pomegranates and eggplants, were verydelicious and famous. The population was industrious and resourceful, being made up mostlyof cherchi, gardeners, muleteers and vine cultivators. The cherchi used credit to purchase various wholesale goods, such as clothing and dried foodstuffs, from the merchants in the city. They wouldtake these goods to the villages and exchange them for wool, fat, etc., which they in turn sold to the creditor merchants for the going price of the day. Or they would sell them to others and use the proceeds to repay their debts. These cherchi went everywhere including Verashehir, Severeg, and Arouj. They were trusted and respected by the famous Ibrahim Pasha of Verashehir. Garmouj hadchurches, priests and schools. It was gradually growing and was on its way to becoming a town.

Many Armenians were fooled by the deceptive Ottoman constitution of 1908. Some became optimistic and purchased large pieces of land, either by themselves or with partners. These lands were about 8-10 hours south of Ourfa in the desolate regions of Heeshe, Siulig, andSharagrag. The new Armenian owners began cultivating the land with oxen. They incurredmuch expense. However, the hundreds of camels and the thousands of sheep belonging to the tent-dwelling Aneze and Shammar Arab tribes would come at night and devour the harvest of the poor Armenians. The Armenians had not been told that these unpopulated fields had beenthe grazing grounds for the animals of the Arab tribes.

No one listened to the complaints. The government paid no attention, and the newArmenian landowners were forced to withdraw and suffered great financial loss. After the 1915massacres, a few survivors who held deeds to these lots appealed through me to the primate of Aleppo, Archbishop Ardavazt. They were seeking his help in petitioning the French governmentfor the return of their lands. However, the French had no influence in those regions and thepeople were disappointed.

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The Hot Baths of JermougTo the north of Ourfa, at a distance of three days on horseback, there was a wonderful small town called Jermoug, which had natural hot springs. The hot water contained sulfur, whichwas believed to have healing properties. Every summer, during the warm days, patients from different cities, especially those suffering with arthritis, would go to Jermoug hoping to be cured.Others would go for the sheer pleasure of it.

Around 1892, at the suggestion of Nshan and Aghajan, Krikor took my mother, Haroutiun and me on a pleasure trip to the Jermoug baths. We also went on a pilgrimage to the church of Saint Asdvadzadzin in the city of Arghen, which was about an hour away.

I was about seven or eight years old at the time. Haroutiun would have been five or six. Because of the summer heat, we had to travel at night, which was difficult for two young boys.So, two open sturdy wooden boxes were made especially for us. These were tied together withthick ropes and straddled across the back of a horse. Haroutiun and I sat in these boxes balanced across the back of the horse like a scale. My mother sat on the horse between us. Krikor, who was about 24-25 years old, rode on a separate horse.

In addition to our family, there were more than 30 other individuals of both sexes making the trip. We were all Armenians and we were led by the Armenian caravan specialists Boghos and Yaria Kupelian and Samuel Chilinguirian. Yaria, who was our neighbor, supplied the horses. His adult daughter also made the journey and was always under my mother’s supervision.

The caravan was led expertly through the darkness of the night. The leading horse (pesheng) was well decorated with large 25 cm. bells hanging on its sides. The sound of the bells could beheard at distances of up to an hour away.

We arrived at the city of Severag around dawn after the first night of travel. Severag hadbeen built completely with black stones. We went to a hotel (khan) but had barely disembarked, when some acquaintances saw us and insisted that we stay with them. We enjoyed their hospitality until evening.

We traveled two more nights before arriving at Jermoug. There were no hotels near thebaths, so we rented a tent outside the town. There were no shops nearby, but there werewandering vendors who sold bread, yoghurt, cucumbers, etc. We had already brought enough food with us: koulounja, cheoreg, rice, bulghour, ghee, cheese, etc.

There were two baths—one for men, the other for women. They were built of stone and haddomes. Each had round pools into which flowed the sulfurous hot water from under the hills. There were two or three steps inside the pools. Those who couldn’t swim simply stood on thesesteps with the water up to their waists or necks. Others jumped in and swam fearlessly.

We went to the pools twice a day. We paid one metallig (10 paras) each time we went. We stayed there for 15 days. There was a designated area in the outer section of the baths where wecould change our clothes. There were some families from Dikranagerd. We were surprised to seethat their women sang songs and drank arak (an anisette-flavored alcoholic drink similar to ouzou).

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It was customary to take presents when returning home. Common presents were dried mulberries, whole nuts and a sweet called gezengevou (manana). We also bought locally knitted socks, washcloths and some other things that I can’t remember.

On our way to Argheni for our pilgrimage to the St. Asdvadzadzin church, we passed through Dikranagerd after one day’s journey. All of the buildings, and even the dogs, were black. A family who knew my brothers through their business dealings took us to their house. Theywere very hospitable. From there we set off with the other families of our caravan toward St.Asdvadzadzin. The church was located on top of a high mountain. It was very neat and therewas a priest inside. We prayed.

There was a fountain with very cold water at the bottom of the mountain, which we went tosee. We spent a day at the monastery at Arghen, gave donations and gifts to the church and set off on our way back to Ourfa.

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An Hour’s Rest in GarmoujAfter leaving the Arghen monastery, we arrived at Garmouj four days later. Many acquaintances had come to greet us and present us with arak and fruits. I don’t know how they knew when we would be arriving. Perhaps the date of our return had been previously decided, or maybe someone from our group had sent a telegram. We dismounted at the Little Source in order to take a rest in the shade. A little later we saw one of the Garmouj’s celebrities. He was the brave wrestler Petchents Hagop (also known as Abu Loboutentz). He brought a platter of bulghour pilaf, yoghurt, tahn (a yoghurt drink), bread, onions and spoons for us. He was a large, healthy and handsome man. He once won the official wrestling championship, which was held in thelarge yard of the municipality building of Ourfa. Many years later, Hagop immigrated with his family to Armenia at the ripe old age of 92. He died there two or three years later.

I returned to Jermoug in 1907 with other travelers. I went for relief from what I believed was arthritis and benefited from the hot sulfur water. On this visit, I saw that there was now ahotel there, which we stayed in. The hotel had been built by an Armenian and was owned byanother Armenian from Kharpert who had come to collect the rents.

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Bitten by a DogWhen I was barely five or six years old, while returning home from school one day, I saw a dogrunning toward me. I was on the sidewalk and stepped back against a wall, but the dog jumped on my back, bit my head and ran away. I was scared and ran home bleeding and crying. My mother cleaned my head quickly and changed my bloody clothes. I was kept awake all night, but the next day I went to school.

Forty days later, many of our young and middle-aged relatives and friends arrived at our house. They seated me in the living room and had a big party. They ate, drank, and sang songsand played music until dawn. I was a small boy and could not stay awake. But every time I fell asleep, they would wake me. They would put an apple in my face* and encourage me to eat it. They didn’t let me sleep until morning.

*give me an appleWhen I was older, I learned that my family feared that the dog that had bitten me was rabid.

So, they had resorted to the superstitious custom of removing the victim’s clothing and squeezing it between two large rocks in a sort of a press. On the 40th day, a vigil was held until dawn, until all the stars disappeared from the sky. The bitten victim was prevented from sleeping andfrom looking at the stars in the sky so that he would not go mad. Thank God, I did not go mad. We never did find out if the dog was actually rabid because it ran away and disappeared.

On page 248 of the book ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ there is discussion about the treatment of dog bites, etc.

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A Co-operative Society in OurfaIt was the custom in Ourfa for 8-10 friends to form a society or club. Every Saturday night they would gather at a member’s house and enjoy themselves with pleasant pastimes. They mightread novels, play backgammon or cards, drink arak, sing, play music, eat or just have coffeeor tea. During these get-togethers, each member would pay a certain sum of money to the treasurer. Eventually, they would have collected enough money to make an investment. Theymight buy some goods to trade, or they might lend the money for interest. They would do thisby finding a trustworthy sponsor or by taking a valuable item into custody as collateral.

My eldest brothers, Nshan and Aghajan, belonged to such a co-operative society before the 1895 massacres. Other members were Garabed Imirzian (my future father-in-law), Hovhannes Dadian, Garabed and Hovhannes Halajian, Krikor Maghakian, and Garabed and Hovhannes Tloughian. They liked to read and read several novels translated into Armenian including TheCount of Monte Cristo and Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables.

They also belonged to another co-operative society that traded in food. This was run bytheir partner, Krikor Tloughian. Each partner first paid five Ottoman gold coins. Some paid10 coins or even 15-20 gold coins as capital and received a proportionate share of the profits. Each partner purchased goods for their families’ needs from this co-operative. Goods included sugar, tea, soap, lentil, chickpeas, rice, salt and all kinds of products. They either paid cash orused credit. There was no risk in extending credit, because if someone did not pay, the debt wasdeducted from his share of the capital.

The families of their friends, well-known people and even strangers shopped at the co-operative’s store. It was a secure and profitable business. At the beginning of each year theychecked their accounts and some would add more capital. When I was young, my mother often sent me to this store to get things she needed for the house. A record was kept and my brothers paid later.

During the 1895 massacres the storekeeper, Hovhannes Tloughian and his brother Garabed were martyred. The shop was looted and finished.

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How Aghajan Fooled Some RobbersIn the spring, Kurdish and Arab tribes would shear their sheep and wait for customers to buy the wool. These were nomadic people who lived in tents. So they wanted to unload the woolquickly. They were willing to sell at any price. Once, about two or three years before the 1895massacres, Aghajan, with Nshan’s consent, set off toward Verashehir to buy wool. Because hewas young and inexperienced, he asked Haroutiun Keverian to go with him. Haroutiun was experienced and knew the way. Aghajan agreed to pay him a certain percentage for his help. My brother took a bag containing 400 Ottoman gold coins.

While passing through an uninhabited region, they noticed some horsemen riding toward them. Suspecting the riders might be robbers, Aghajan surreptitiously threw the bag of gold coins onto an elevated area on the side of the road where the grass had grown quite tall. Theycontinued on their way without losing their cool. When they approached the horsemen, who were in fact Cherkez robbers, they were thoroughly searched. The robbers left disappointed. After the robbers had disappeared, Aghajan and his guide retrieved the bag of gold coins and continued on their way. They purchased the wool and returned to town.

I was present when Aghajan returned and related this story to Nshan. What an ingenious thing to do to avert a great loss.

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The Custom of Engagements and WeddingsWhen I was a child, engagement and wedding ceremonies were very conservative. The boyand girl getting engaged had no say in the choice of partner. They would be too shy to expressthemselves, and the choice of a partner was the prerogative of their parents. After getting engaged, the fiancées had absolutely no right to see or to communicate with one another. To doso would have been completely amot (shameful).

Sometimes the two individuals may have been committed to each other even before they were born. For example, when the wives of close friends became pregnant, they vowed to have their babies engaged if they were of the opposite sex. This practice was called beshik kesme in Turkish, meaning an oath or decision of the cradle.

The customs of engagement parties and weddings of the old days are described in detail inthe book of ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ on pages 625-637. Those interested in this subject can readabout it there. Here I will only mention one incident each from the weddings of my brother Nshan and sister Vartouhi. I was just a small boy at the time.

When they brought Nshan’s new bride to our house, my uncle Nerses held her up in the air. Then they gave her a ripe pomegranate, which she struck forcefully against the wall. Thepomegranate broke and many seeds scattered across the floor. This was a sign that the bridewould have lots of children. This is all I remember about their wedding.

As for Vartouhi, a day or two before the wedding a large crowd of ladies and girls who were relatives and friends of the groom’s family (referred to as khenami) gathered on the spacious tiled roof of our house. They all wore colorful silk and velvet dresses and gold jewelry. A famousAssyrian band played and sang Turkish dance music. Old Zmo, my father’s eldest sister, held two sticks in her hands and banged on two small drums in time to the music. Old blind Jurjo played the violin and a third blind man tapped on the tambourine. Only blind male musicians were allowed to take part so that the women and girls could dance and sing without feeling ashamed.

Young women and girls danced together in a circle. Other women trilled (zelghet) lee-lee-lee loudly and enthusiastically with their fingers in their mouths. To encourage the band, manydropped coins into a plate placed in front of the band. This was so the blind men could hear thesound of the coins falling into the plate.

The guests had brought various sweets, semseg, seeds, pistachios, etc. and offered them to eachother. They made wishes that each others’ sons and daughters would also get married (daros).

My mother offered apples, oranges, dried fruits and coffee to the guests. Everyone had a good timeand left in the evening. Members of the groom’s family “stole” a spoon and cup. This was a custom thatmeant the bride would no longer eat and drink at her parents’ house. There was no turning back.

Girls were usually married by the age of 14 or 15; sometimes as young as 13. On the bride’s last day at home, the groom’s family would come and take her away. The girl and her motherwould often cry. Older girls, who were actually very happy to get married, would merely pretend to be sad and cry.

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King Apkar and The Pilgrimage Site of St. TasdaragAccording to history, King Apkar V of Ourfa suffered from leprosy. Hearing about the miraclesof Christ, he sent two messengers to Him who begged Christ to come to Edessia and heal the king. Jesus, being very busy, did not go. Instead, He placed a white handkerchief over His face, making an imprint. He also wrote a letter to the king saying He could not come but that He was sending one of His disciples later to heal him. He gave the letter to the messengers. On their way back, as they neared Ourfa, they noticed a group of thieves coming toward them. Fearing the thieves might rob them of Jesus’ handkerchief, they dropped it into a well and proceeded to the city to present the letter to King Apkar. King Apkar had the handkerchief retrieved from the well the following day. After the ascension of Jesus, the disciple Thaddeuscame to Edessia and healed King Apkar as promised. He also healed many other sick people. After that, King Apkar and many others became Christians.

In my day, there was a large building constructed around that well with a small chapel inside. When Armenians lived in Ourfa, many pilgrims went there with a priest on the feast of St. Asdvadzadzin. The holy mass (Badarak) was celebrated and the sick would wash themselves with the water from the well, hoping to be cured.

Once, when I was five or six years old, I went to St. Tasdarag with my mother and someneighbors. While passing through the Turkish neighborhood about half an hour away at the edge of the city, a Turkish boy threw some liquid lye in my face from a plate he was holding in his hands. He then ran away. The lye got into my eyes and was very painful. I began to cry. They immediately took me to a nearby house and washed my eyes. Then we proceeded to St.Tasdarag with my eyes red and inflamed.

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The Plateau of King ApkarTo the west of Ourfa, about one hour’s walking distance, there is a plateau known as Apkar Takavor (King Apkar). Every Sunday during spring, and on the third day of Easter, Armenians would go there early in the morning. They would spend the whole day there enjoying themselvesand return in the evening. There were some abandoned caves in the rocks, which they said werethe remnants of King Apkar’s summer residence. In the book ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’, detailed descriptions of St. Tasdarag and King Apkar are given on pages 47-50.

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The Old Schools of OurfaLike schools in many other cities, the schools in Ourfa were of the Der Teotik style. The schoolshad been somewhat reformed before the two Ourfa massacres in 1895. At the time there were still two schools—one for boys, the other for girls. All the schools were in the churchyards.

Many parents did not send their daughters to school because they believed it was useless to educate girls. Even most boys attended school only long enough to learn how to read and write. They were then taken out of school in order to learn a trade. Parents believed that trade was agolden bracelet. They thought an education was necessary only to become a priest. Many said,“My son is not going to become a priest.”

The Der Teotik schools, which eventually disappeared, were independent and had no board-of-trustees. The teacher lived on weekly or monthly payments made by the students, which didnot amount to much. There were no chairs or desks, so each student brought a small mattress,which he placed on a straw mat and sat in a cross-legged position. Windows didn’t have glass panes. They were covered with white sheets during the winter to provide some insulation. Therewere no heaters. To keep their hands warm, some of the younger boys would bring brick blocks that had been heated in the oven at home.

We didn’t have books. Instead, we used square wooden boards with a handle on one end. We used these to study the alphabet. It was more efficient than books. A small child might haveto go through many books by the time he learned the alphabet.

The teacher always carried a stick in his hand, which he used to strike the open palm of abadly behaved boy. He would strike the palm of the guilty child 10 to 20 times. If the nine or 10 year olds were caught in a serious misconduct, they were put on their backs on the floor withtheir feet squeezed in thick ropes. The teacher would give their soles 20 or 30 blows dependingon the seriousness of the offense. This punishment was called the falakha.

The pain from these beatings was very intense and a boy’s screams could be heard from a longdistance away. Sometimes the teacher would get very angry and use too much force. This wouldresult in bloodied feet. In such cases, the child’s parents would come to the school and scream insults and indecent words at the teacher, saying, “We gave you permission to beat him, not kill him.”

Parents sometimes sent gifts to the teacher so he would favor their sons. Mischievous boys often called teachers they disliked by derogatory nicknames. For example, gotov tas (a bowl with a handle) for someone with a big head, kolkoun kouladz (big ears) for someone with large ears, pig’s mustache was someone with a protruding mustache, beozdee peran (small mouth), etc.

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Schools I AttendedMy brothers sent me to school for the first time when I was about four or five years old.Hagop Tujarian, a distant relative, was my first teacher. He had an assistant named HaroutiunVartanian.

There were no kindergartens then. I wish there had been so that the younger children couldgain some confidence, initiative and ingenuity before moving on. I was very shy and timid whenI began school, but I was also smart. I learned a lot in just three years. I learned to read and write, I learned some arithmetic, and I learned to read in Turkish.

Later, they sent me to study with Monofar Hagopian who was a graduate from the American College of Ainteb. He was a very capable administrator and teacher. He had an assistant named Hayrabed Kurkjian. I benefited and advanced further in my studies. I learned geography,Ottoman history, a little French, Armenian grammar, etc. However, the study of Armenian history was absolutely forbidden by the government.

The massacres of 1895 disrupted everything. Professor Monofar was martyred. Hayrabedwas exiled as a renegade revolutionary. The schools remained closed for an entire year. Around400 Armenians were killed in the first massacre of 1895. About 5000 were killed in the secondmassacre of the same year. There was much weeping, grieving and mourning in every home. Many people were arrested. School finally reopened in the fall of 1896.

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The First Massacres of 1895The massacres are detailed in ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ starting on page 343. Here, I write about my family’s escape.

The first massacre occurred in October. Our house was on the edge of the Armenian Quarternear the marketplace. Sensing danger, we decided to move the whole family to the house of a relative, Kileji Meghtze Apkar, which was situated on the upper side of the street of Hayr Apraham. When we got there, we found that our relatives were not at home. They had gone tovisit other relatives. But the main door to the house was open. A priest, Father Mesrob, lived in the same courtyard with his family. The Armenian Quarter was separated from the rest of thecity and was built on a hill. The shops of the spacious marketplace separated the Armenian andTurkish neighborhoods.

Under the pretext that a crime had been committed, the Turks unexpectedly began attacking the Armenian Quarter. The Armenians had guns to defend themselves and put up a resistanceby firing from the entrance to the Quarter. The Turks suffered many casualties and retreated.But they massacred numerous Armenians who were near the marketplace or who lived in the Turkish neighborhoods. They looted Armenian shops and the homes of Armenians who lived inTurkish sections of the city. They used axes to smash open doors to houses and the gates of theshops.

We were under siege for 40 days. We couldn’t even go to the market. One evening, we were gathered in a room on the second floor of the Kilejians’ house. The doors and windows wereclosed. I happened to be standing up. Suddenly a bullet crashed through the wooden window shutter and whizzed past my ear. It struck the opposite wall making a hole about 1 cm. in diameter, then fell to the floor. I escaped certain death only by a miracle. I was 10 years old atthe time. We concluded that the bullet must have been shot by a sniper from one of the elevated houses of Kalaboyoun. He probably saw some light from the top of the window in our room.

The Turkish government’s plan to massacre the Armenians and loot their belongings did notsucceed. The government declared a temporary and deceptive truce. Some Armenians returnedto the marketplace in order to resume making a living.

Our shops were in the tailors’ market. It was an enclosed and arched area with solid iron gates at both ends, which could be locked. It also had a night watchman, a faithful and trustworthy Indian who had locked the gates securely. Thus all of the shops in this area,including ours, had remained unharmed. All the shops in the tailors’ market belonged to Armenians.

Our three shops and the shop of the Kullahian brothers were full of fabric and silk materials. My brother Nshan had just returned from Aleppo, and because business was usually good in the fall, he had purchased and brought back thousands of gold coins’ worth of merchandise. Our three stores were full of merchandise. Concerned about the future and taking advantage of the truce, my brothers brought all the merchandise from the shops to our house for safe keeping.

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The government summoned the primate of the Armenians, Archbishop Khoren Mkhitarian. The government announced that since the two sides, the Turks and the Armenians, were filledwith vengeance, they had decided to disarm the public. They said they would collect all theguns from both Turks and Armenians in order to prevent further clashes and bloodshed. Thegovernment said those who refused to turn in their guns would be shot.

The primate returned to our community and called a meeting. There was a lot of discussionabout what to do. It was finally agreed that we would relinquish our guns. A committee headedby Father Hovhannes Kazanjian was formed to collect the arms. The committee members wentdoor to door collecting guns. They often had to plead with the reluctant inhabitants to turn intheir weapons. They assured them that they could be trusted. Supposedly, during this time, theTurkish neighborhoods were also being disarmed.

A spirited young Armenian whose name I cannot recall was so incensed at what was happening that he slapped Father Hovhannes across the face. This young man realized full wellthe big calamity that was about to befall us. After this incidence, the youth was nicknamed Abdagahar (Slapper).

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The Second Massacre of 1895The second massacre occurred in December. The Turkish government, confident that theArmenians were disarmed and in no position to resist, incited the brutal Turkish hordes to attack the Armenian Quarter on Saturday, December 10. In order to shore up confidence, the mobleaders demanded that the Turkish gendarmes lead the way, which they readily did.

First they massacred the Armenians in the marketplace, who were completely caught by surprise. Then, accompanied by professional axmen, and screaming “Mohammedu Salavat,” the mob entered the Armenian neighborhoods. They started slaughtering Armeniansindiscriminately. They tortured the Armenians in various ways.

We were at home at the time. The whole family was very upset, scared and confused. Webegan praying. We begged God for a solution and for help. My poor elderly mother brought dust from the kitchen and sprinkled it on the rugs in front of us, hoping to stir God’s mercy.

The terrifying noise of guns and screams of the savage mob got so close that, leavingeverything behind, we opened the door and fled to Aghajan’s house, which was a little furtheraway. We all squeezed into one room. There were already many others there. My brotherAghajan had a large Bible with him and started reading from the Psalms.

We stayed there until nightfall then walked over the rooftops to the house of a relative, the goldsmith Hovhannes Seferian. The man had some bulghur pilav prepared for us, but no onehad an appetite. We spent the whole night in sleepless terror, cursing those who had convinced us to relinquish our arms.

Early Sunday morning the rumble of guns started from everywhere. Our neighbor, the goldsmith Nerses Karakashian and his family, had fled with us. When the noise of the guns and the screamscame very near, we (our family, the owner of the house and his family and the Karakashian family) had no choice but to go into the cellar. This cellar was right next to another cellar in the basementof the house. We didn’t even know it existed. There was dried churpi in both cellars. We crammed inside on top of the churpi. There was total darkness. We could not even see each other. The two oldwomen, my mother and Hovhannes’ mother, remained outside, reasoning that the Turks would not kill two old women. The women completely covered the entrance to our cellar with churpi.

About an hour later we heard to our horror the noise of the main door to the house being broken down with axes. The Turks entered and searched all the rooms upstairs and downstairs. Finally, they asked the two old women, “Where are the men?” They answered, “They escaped tothe church.” In truth, many Armenians had fled to the church seeking shelter. They believed thechurch, with its high walls, was a safe place.

Then the Turks entered the cellar adjacent to one in which we were hiding. They noticed a rooster and tried to capture it. The rooster escaped and hid in the dried branches just outsidethe entrance to our cellar. We heard the rooster’s caa, caa, caa from inside our hiding place. Oh! God! If they moved the churpi just a little in order to catch the rooster, they would discover the entrance and find us. That would be our end!

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Just then, more bad luck! The Karakashians’ one-year-old daughter started whimpering. Immediately, my brother Aghajan grabbed the baby from her mother and squeezed her throat to silence her. Not wanting to become a murderer himself, he handed the baby to her father, who in turn covered her mouth with his hand. Fortunately, the baby did not die. Thank God, theTurks captured the rooster and left.

Later, we learned that the Turks snatched the gold earrings from my mother’s ears, tearing her earlobes. They also stole whatever they could find of value in the house.

We remained inside for a long time, making no sounds or movements. We stayed there until evening. Then we heard loud shouts from the street. Our ladies brought news that the massacrehad ended. The messengers were shouting in Turkish, “Afeh shahaneh, afeh shahaneh,” which meant “Federal pardon, royal pardon.”

Was it true or was it false? We thought it might be a trap to lure those who were still hiding. We hesitated. Should we come out or not? Our mothers went out and brought back news that many Armenians were out on the streets walking around freely. We too came out with stiff andnumb knees. We were in need of fresh air. Soon we too were convinced that the killings were over.

A thousand thanks to Providence for leading us to Seferian’s house. We hadn’t made any plans for such an eventuality. What good fortune for that cellar! If it had not been there with all that stored churpi, where would we have gone? Certainly to the next world!

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What We Saw After Coming Out of The CellarWe were at a loss where to go. We heard that some of the survivors had crowded into the courtyards of the Turkish mosques. Others had gathered in the nearby house of Mughtzee Bdough. We chose the latter. A large crowd had gathered there. There was very bad news. Those who had taken refuge in the main church, around 2500 persons, had been burned alive. The Turks broke open the doors of the church with axes, poured in gallons of petrol and set itablaze.

After dark, Krikor went to check on our house. The doors to all the houses, including ours,had been forced open with axes. He returned and informed us that everything, including the thousands of gold coins’ worth of merchandise that my brothers had taken there from the shops, had been stolen. But I don’t think my brothers were very upset. Of course, they weren’t pleased about the loss, but our lives were in danger and we had more important things to worry about than losing merchandise and becoming destitute.

Someone told us that our uncles’ families and their home were safe. Their house was onHayr Apraham lane, at the end of the Armenian Quarter. It was probably mistaken for a Turkish house and left alone. We went there in the morning with the entire family. There were nineof us: my mother, six brothers (including myself ) and the wives of my two elder brothers. My uncle received us cordially and with happiness. He had learned that his shop had also been looted.

My family began inquiring about all of our relatives who had been martyred during the massacre. Here is a list:

The young husband of my sister Vartouhi, Garabed Dadian.The wife of my uncle Nerses and his two young boys, Garabed and Matos. They were

burned alive in the church.My father’s sister Hripsime, her two sons Hagop and Khoren and her daughter Rahel. They

were also burned in the church.Bedros, the young son of my paternal aunt Loussia. My aunt’s husband had his throat slashed, but

survived. Nine persons in total.From our next of kin, or extended family, there were many, many more martyrs. The list is

much too long to include here. Hripsime’s two other sons, Garabed and Dikran, were also in the church when it was set

on fire. They had been on the balcony and when they could no longer stand the smoke, theypushed and shoved their way out onto the roof of the church. In this manner, they managed to escape along with about 15-20 other young persons.

Hovhannes, the young son of my eldest paternal aunt Zmo (Zmroukhd), was unable to finda safe hiding place during the massacre. So he wrapped a white turban around his head and blended into the attacking mob pretending he was a Muslim. He held a wooden stick in his

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hand and shouted curses, pretending to be looking for guiavours (a derogatory Turkish word for Armenians) to kill. In this manner, he had managed to stay alive.

It was finally estimated that the total number of Armenian victims in Ourfa was about5000. About half (men, women and children) were burned to death in the church. There wastremendous weeping, mourning and despair in every Armenian household. In sum, in all the cities, towns and villages throughout Turkey, about 300,000 Armenians were massacred by the Turks during 1895-96.

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The Condition of The ArmenianSurvivors of The 1895 Massacres

The whole civilized world heard about the massacres. Miss Karina Shatuk, a missionary from theUnited States, was in Ourfa at the time. She was very kind, charitable, intelligent, and endowed with administrative talents. She must have sent word back to the United States and to other countries about the predicament of the Armenians because large amounts of aid started arriving to her address as well as to the primate of the Armenians, Archbishop Khoren Mekhitarian. The Archbishop was anold man and in poor health. He was very shaken by the massacres and unable to perform charitable works. Fortunately, Miss Shatuk took charge of that demanding work. She relied on her assistant and secretary, Soghomon Kenajian, an Armenian who was fluent in English. Miss Shatuk established twoorphanages—one for the boys, the other for the girls. The orphanages were right next to each other. There were hundreds of children in Ourfa who had been orphaned during the massacres.

She also formed a committee consisting of members of both the Apostolic and Evangelical communities. Their charge was to help the destitute families and to provide capital to thecraftsmen. The Apostolic members of the committee included my brother Aghajan and myfuture father-in-law Garabed Imirzian. The Evangelical members included Hovaguim Kupelian,Hovhannes Vosgerichian and other respected members of the community. The committeeopened a shop in the Armenian neighborhood and assigned two employees, Hayrabed Kurkjian and Haroutiun Sarrafian, to work under their supervision. They distributed food includingflour, bulghur, lentil and chickpeas. They also distributed clothing, mattresses and comforters,and they provided funds for workers to buy tools.

Miss Shatuk established a large needlework workshop. The Armenian ladies made finelyembroidered items such as handkerchiefs, tablecloths, etc. Miss Shatuk shipped many of these goods to American and European businessmen, who sold them at good prices as a charity for the needy.

The few surviving craftsmen and businessmen eventually went back to work in themarketplace. Some Turks, Kurds and Arabs had taken advantage of the massacres by looting Armenian shops. In this way, they had prospered. However, the massacres and the looting left other Turks, Kurds and Arabs from hundreds of villages without access to the high quality merchandise previously available in the Armenian shops. When the Armenians finally reopenedtheir stores, these Muslims rushed back to do business with them. Thus in a short time theeconomic situation of the Armenians improved and they once again became self-sufficient.

Miss Shatuk was also very helpful in reopening and reforming the schools. I write more about this later. As I said earlier, the number of the Armenian victims during the 1895-96 massacres, when Turkey was under the reign of Sultan Hamid, reached 300,000. That was the official published figure.

My brother Aghajan received checks from Miss Shatuk in return for the merchandise and mailed them to Nshan. Aghajan and Krikor sold the goods. Hagop cut parts for clothing and gave them to the workers to sew by hand or machine. The seven or eight workers were not

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enough to sew everything, so a special apprentice carried parcels to needy Armenian women who hand-stitched the orders and returned them every Saturday.

When I was still a schoolboy, Hagop would awake before dawn and go to the market. So did the employees. They had to get up early to prepare merchandise for sale. Demand was strong.

My brother Nshan made another exceptional profit in the clothing business. It wascustomary for Aleppo businessmen to extend credit for merchandise to trustworthy clients. Theydid this with promissory notes calling for payment in four to six months; sometimes longer. For those they really trusted, they often did not even bother to record the transaction in their books.

Nshan purchased merchandise from Aleppo under the same conditions, by signing bills or having his account in a registry. But because he sold the merchandise quickly he had ready cash. He would pay back his debts and deduct one percent for every month he was early. For example, suppose he took possession of some merchandise and signed a note to pay 100 pounds in six months. If he was able to pay the amount one month later, he would deduct one percent for each remaining month. In this case, he would deduct five percent and pay only 95 poundsto close his debt. So in addition to the profits he made from selling the merchandise in Ourfa,he profited by repaying his debts early.

As I wrote earlier, my brothers were successful businessmen. In addition to their fabrics business, they traded wool, ghee and sheep. They became quite well-to-do. They bought shops,houses, a whole village and more land. They also engaged in agriculture. They eventuallyrecovered their losses from the looting during the 1895 massacres and repaid all their debts.

I remember an interesting event involving the famous Kurdish tribesman, Ibrahim Pasha. One year my brothers purchased 400 sheep. They entrusted the herd to a loyal Kurdish partner. Not realizing they belonged to my brothers, Ibrahim Pasha plundered the sheep. Fortunately, the Pasha considered us friends. He often purchased clothing from our shops for his large family. Aghajan went to Ibrahim Pasha and explained that the sheep belonged to him.

The Pasha was also a friend of Sultan Hamid. As a result, he feared nothing. In fact, everyyear he sent 100 tin containers of ghee to the Sultan’s palace as a gift. But after the fall of the Sultan, the new Ittihad government had put Ibrahim Pasha to death because he was a well-known friend and a confidant of the Sultan.

Nshan and Aghajan were already married by 1895. Krikor and Hagop eventually married also. The four households and families all lived together comfortably. When the big disaster of1915 occurred, Haroutiun and I were still bachelors but we were both engaged to be married. My four older brothers, many of their children and my mother were all killed in 1915 after enduring unspeakable tortures. All of our wealth and an property were stolen. Alas! What a shame.

Haroutiun and I and a few of my brothers’ orphans escaped the 1915 massacres by miracle. But we were forced to leave Ourfa and were eventually scattered all over the world. More about this later.

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My Schooling After The 1895 MassacresI wrote about the charitable activities of Miss Shatuk. She was equally concerned with the schooling of the orphaned children—boys and girls, Apostolic and Evangelical.

She formed a board-of-trustees in the autumn of 1896 consisting of members from the Apostolic and Evangelical communities. She chaired the board. The Apostolic members weremy brother Aghajan, Garabed Imirzian (my future father-in-law), Khosrov Dadian and I believe one other person whom I can’t remember. Evangelical members were Soghomon Knajian, Apraham Attarian, Hovhannes Vosgerchian and Hovaguim Kupelian.

She invited Aram Torossian, a graduate of the American College of Ainteb, to serve as principal and to teach science and English to the upper elementary classes. To teach the Armenian language, she appointed Kevork Vosgerchian, correspondent to the Armenian newspapers of Bolis (K.H.V.) and later a priest, Der Karekin, administrator of the Prelacy of Ourfa. All this was done of course with the consultation of the board-of-trustees.

The board invited Miss Ovsanna Sarkissian, a graduate of the American high school of Bolis(Istanbul), to serve as principal and teacher in the girls’ elementary school. They also hired anumber of local assistants. For kindergarten, they appointed a pedagogue from Izmir, but I don’t remember her name. For the lower grade boys’ and girls’ schools they hired local teachers.

There must have been seven or eight schools in total. Some were in the spacious hall of themain Apostolic Church. Some were in the courtyard of the Evangelical meetinghouse. Theremust have been about 700-800 students from the orphanages and from the local families.

From her orphanage, Miss Shatuk sent Miss Mary Haroutiunian, who had lost her sight in one eye, to the school for the blind in London so she could learn to read and write using the special letters for the blind. She returned after two years with special books, which had protruding letters. Miss Haroutiunian used the same system to make books in Armenian, and with the help of Miss Shatuk, opened a school for the blind where she taught reading, writing and arithmetic.

As I mentioned earlier, Miss Shatuk had an assistant secretary, a college graduate named Soghomon Knajian, to help with her various undertakings, schools, workshops, needlework set-ups, etc. In 1897, she sent for another assistant, an American named Miss Chambers. Indeed, there were many employees involved with the orphanages. There were surrogate fathersand mothers (hayrigs and mayrigs) assigned to the orphans, caterers and craftsmen for the workshops.

I wrote earlier that my last teacher before the 1895 massacres was Monofar Hagopian. After the massacres, the school remained closed until the fall of 1896. I had no schooling during the interim period. The principal was the aforementioned Aram Torossian. The school had fourgrades. Back then, the division of grades was different. The highest grade was known as the firstgrade and the lower grades known respectively as the second, third and fourth. After an entrance exam, they assigned me to the second grade.

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After studying for four years, I graduated along with 13 classmates. My classmates were: Giragos Keoseyan (later a pharmacist), Krikor Yeranossian (later a dentist), Krikor Kavvenjian (later a teacher and writer), Yessayi Berberian-Elmassian (later a doctor), Haroutiun Jangerian (later a teacher), Levon Roumian (later a lawyer). The rest, Samuel Kondrajian, GarabedSakajian, Haroutiun Khacherian, Haroutiun Berberian, Mihran Roumian and Bedros Der-Bedrossian (me) became businessmen or craftsmen.

Khoren Surpazan, the retired primate, was present at our graduation ceremony. He gave each of us a copy of his two published books: Badmoutiun Gronitz yev Bashdamantz Hin yev Nor Azkatz and Sguzpounk Niutabashd Imasdasiratz yev Asdvadzapanitz.

The next day, the newly elected primate, Father Anania (Vrt.) Hazarabedian, invited us forlunch at the Prelacy. The following day Miss Shatuk invited us for dinner at her house. We hada group picture taken. A copy of that picture is found on page 534 of the book, ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’. Haroutiun Jangerian is missing from the picture.

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I Was Slapped In School for Helping A FriendOne day during arithmetic class, our principal and teacher Aram Torossian wrote a problem on the blackboard for us to solve. Each student wrote his answer in his copybook and took it up for the teacher to check. I solved the problem and got to my feet with the other classmates. Hovhannes Melkonian, one of my classmates, whispered in my ear asking for help. I did not refuse and began explaining the problem to him. Suddenly, I felt a terrible slap across my face. The principal was standing behind us and heard me whispering, but he did not strikeHovhannes. This was the first and last punishment I received during my entire schooling career.In general, I was a very conscientious student and successful in my studies.

There is a proverb: ”Something good is born from every misfortune.” Of course this is notalways true. But at that moment I realized that misfortune could also be born from performing a good deed. Anyway, I realized that my good deed was shortsighted and naïve. Helping Hovhannes would have only encouraged his laziness.

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Studying at The American College of AintebLike Aghajan who was quite educated, I too loved to study. Immediately after graduating from the school in Ourfa, I enrolled in the American College of Aintab in the fall of 1899 along with four of my classmates: Krikor Yeranossian, Haroutiun Khacherian, Levon Roumian (who were among Miss Shatuk’s orphans) and Dikran Kasbarian. We boarded at the college.

There were four classes at the college: freshman, sophomore, junior and senior. In additionto the main college, there were three preparatory classes taught by the same professors. From lowest to highest, the three preparatory classes were the seventh, sixth and fifth grades. After completing the fifth grade, one went into the freshman class. Without giving us anexamination, it was decided that we would all enroll in the sixth grade, which had a total of 18 students. They were from Ainteb, Marash, Kesab, Dikranagerd, Severag and of course, Ourfa. One of my classmates just died this year (i.e., 1977). He was Dr. A. Injejikian who was from Kesab.

There were already five other students from our school in Ourfa who were enrolled in thecollege. They were two years ahead of us. Their names were: Hagop Beshlian, Arshag Roumian,Mirza Ketenjian, Diradour Dikijian and Hovhannes Eskijian.

I was one of the better students in my class and had no difficulty with my studies. Allpreparatory and college students were required to complete a written composition on any subject one month before the end of the school year. At the year-end ceremony (hantes), the name of the author who wrote the best composition was announced and he was given a special prize. Each class was judged separately. To ensure objectivity, the judges were not told who the authors were. Each writer’s name was placed into a sealed envelope. We signed our papers using an alias and the papers only revealed our class.

My composition was titled “The True Student.” I signed it “Khosnag from sixth grade”, wrote my real name on a piece of paper, which I enclosed into a sealed envelope. Then I placed boththe paper and the envelope into a larger envelope and submitted it to the panel.

During the hantes they announced my name as the winner of the sixth grade competition. I went up onto the stage and received an English book as my prize from Father Dr. Asadour Altounian, who was one of the first graduates of the college. He had been especially invited fromAleppo to preside over the ceremony.

Unfortunately, the Turks plundered my composition and my prize along with the entire contents of my house during the 1915 massacres. I had written in my composition what I believed to be the characteristics of an ideal student according to my teenager’s point of view. I am not writing here about this prize in order to brag. I am trying to write an accurate memoir, which I believe should include every success and failure.

I will write this too: Soon after I won the prize, Hagop Beshlian, a sophomore from Ourfa who later became a physician, told me that Alexan Bezjian, the most prestigious professor at the college, had reprimanded his weaker students by saying, “A teenager in a much lower

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grade than you has written a much better composition!” Hagop told me this to encourage me in my studies and share in my happiness. We returned as a group to Ourfa two days after the hantes.

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My Failure During The Second Year of CollegeWe all returned to college the following year and registered in the fifth grade (which was higherthan the sixth). Unfortunately, I had to discontinue my education and return to Ourfa before the end of the academic year. Even though I loved studying, I had become extremely anxious, despondent and pessimistic. I’m not sure why this happened. Perhaps it was news that my sister Kayane had died unexpectedly. She was just recently married and was still very young. I loved her very much.

I may have also been overdoing things. I was an avid reader, and in addition to my daily studies, I read the many Armenian books that were available in our college library. I also pored over Armenian newspapers from Bolis such as ‘Piuzantion, ‘Arevelk’ and ‘Massis’. Perhaps all of this reading stressed my brain and nerves. Even to this day I find that when I do serious andconcentrated reading or writing for more than half an hour at a time, I become exhausted and depressed.

Because I was still a young and inexperienced teenager, I was afraid about what would happen to me. I thought I had contracted some kind of incurable disease. I began questioning the importance of my studies and felt I needed to see a physician. The college physician, Dr.Shephard, had gone back to America for a visit. It didn’t even occur to me to see another doctor. So I left school. If I had continued my studies, I would have liked to have become a physician or engineer, just as some of my friends did. At least I calmed down a little and felt better when I returned to Ourfa.

But without an occupation, life in Ourfa was boring. I wanted to find a job so my brothersset me up in a haberdashery shop. They stocked it with merchandise from their stores. Nshanbrought goods for immediate consumption. My brothers also got one of our relatives, a young man named Monofar Jendoyan, to partner with me. We gradually sold the merchandise and I began traveling to Aleppo with my brother to purchase more. I bought what I needed, paid with cash, and brought it all back to Ourfa. Monofar and I gradually paid our debts to my brothers. Sometimes we paid in cash; sometimes we paid in merchandise, delivering it on their behalf to their customers.

Leaving college was unfortunate, but it was also a blessing in disguise because this interruption in my education allowed me to meet Miss Karen Jeppe. She was the administrator of the German Orphanage for Armenian children. Ms. Jeppe saved my life by hiding me in her house during the great massacres of 1915. I write about this later in this manuscript.

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I Temporarily Became A TeacherAfter leaving college with my education unfinished, and before starting up in business, I had theopportunity to teach. The regular teacher of the lower elementary school, Kevork Hreshdagian,had become ill. During a meeting of the Board of Trustees, my brother Aghajan was asked if I would replace the ailing teacher on a temporary basis. The board did not want the students’studies to be interrupted. I gladly accepted this offer and taught for a month until Kevorkrecovered from his illness and returned to the classroom. The Board of Trustees wanted toreward me for my efforts, but Aghajan refused to let me take payment. We did not need themoney and both my brother and I were happy to help. Of course, we were morally rewarded.

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Details of My BusinessPart I

As I mentioned above, my brothers helped me open a haberdashery (fatoura). I did not care much for this business because there were already about 30 such shops in the marketplace. Most, if not all, of the shop owners got their merchandise from Aleppo. They typicallyused credit and paid back within five or six months. But they often sold their goods at cost,sometimes even less. They were using the cash flows to fund other businesses or to repay otherbills.

Some sold merchandise to Kurdish and Arab villagers at a 20-30% profit with payment duewithin a few months. In the summer and during the harvest, they would go to the villages and collect wheat and barley as payment. If there had been a drought, they would have to wait until the following year to receive payment, assuming of course that there wasn’t another drought the following year. Sometimes the villagers would try to avoid paying their debts by cheating. For example, they might hide the harvest and claim they had barely enough to feed themselves. Or they might hide the good wheat and mix dirt into the inferior quality wheat and present this as payment to the creditor. After a lot of screaming and yelling, the creditor would reluctantly accept this low quality wheat.

This was an unpleasant business. My brothers had many customers in the villages. Mybrothers would sometimes sell these villagers merchandise from our haberdashery. Monofar and I would also sell the villagers merchandise from our shop. But we were not satisfied and wantedto do better. We were keen to carry items that weren’t available in other shops.

The village peasants were fond of the colorful manousaras (alaja) of Ainteb. They wouldbuy these whenever they came to town. The cherchis would buy these wholesale and sellthem in the villages. There were only a few shops who handled this kind of merchandisebecause there weren’t many people engaged in trade with Ainteb at that time. One day, at the recommendation of a friend, we met Kevork Jebejian of Ainteb. He was a famous manousa manufacturer. He agreed to send us some merchandise and our profits grew.

Another popular item during the reign of Sultan Hamid was the red fez (hat). All the men wore them. Some would wrap scarves (yazmas) with colorful flowers around their fezzes. Otherswore the molded red fez with black tassels, which were called tekfez. But very few shopkeepers in Ourfa carried fezzes from Aleppo. The biggest fez merchant in Aleppo was the Swiss ZollingerCompany, which imported all kinds of fezzes from Austria.

So every time I went to Aleppo, I would purchase all kinds of fezzes at wholesale. I would buy expensive ones, cheap ones, light red ones and dark red ones. Soon we had many customers. They liked our fezzes because we offered a wide variety at a good price. Soon, our competitorsstopped carrying fezzes altogether and we had a monopoly on the business.

In Ourfa, barbers shaped the tekfez with special heated molds. Because the tekfez could lose

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its shape from wear or from the rain, it had to be pressed back into shape from time to time in these molds. On my travels to Aleppo I soon noticed that there were special molding shops. In fact, there were about five or six different kinds of molds. Some molded the fezzes with equallysized tops and bottoms. Others made a smaller top and a wider bottom. It all depended on the customers’ preferences.

I purchased five kinds of molds in Aleppo and brought them back to Ourfa. We rented ashop and built a table. We found a dependable young man to do the molding and agreed to split the profits with him 50-50. The business was successful and after a while, nobody tooktheir fezzes to the barbers for pressing anymore because we offered a larger selection of shapes.

The molds we used were made of a yellow metal. Each mold consisted of two pieces. Thesmaller piece was heated with coal and the fez was fitted over it. Then the larger piece waslowered over the fez, which was pressed in between the two metal pieces. Our molds used a special mechanical press. The molds used by the barbers had to be hand pressed. After pressing,the fez would take the shape of the hot mold. The tassel, which was removed before molding,would then be reattached.

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Details of My BusinessPart II

The yazma was a dark red scarf with colorful flowers. It was used by women to cover their facesand for wrapping their heads. The peasant women liked the yazma very much. It was a goodseller. A shopkeeper brought them to Ourfa from Ainteb. The stores in Ainteb got them from amanufacturer in Tokat. One day, our primate Father Ardavazt Kalenderian, was contacted by the yazma manufacturer whose name was Asdvadsdourian. He was seeking help finding a reliablebusinessman. The Primate Father came to my brother who recommended me. Soon Monofarand I received a letter and a large bundle of yazma. From then on, the shopkeepers in Ourfa started buying yazma from us, because we charged less than what they could get it for in Aintab. We sent the manufacturer payment by post. He was very pleased with the arrangement and always sent us whatever we needed right away. We, too, were very happy with this arrangement because it was very profitable.

The Giurin shawl was another popular item. It was made of fine woolen material in variouscolors including white, brown, dark red, etc. It was used for winter coats and other kinds of clothing. It came from Giurin, hence the name. A young Armenian man brought the shawl to Ourfa in large bales and sold it to the shops. We cut a deal with this man. Instead of incurring the expense of traveling to Ourfa, he shipped the shawls to us. It was a profitable arrangementfor both parties.

I was an avid reader. Even today, I still love to read. I always read the newspaper and one day I saw an ad in ‘Piuzantion’ (an Armenian paper). An Armenian from London whose name I can’t remember had taken an advertisement saying he dealt in Armenian embroidered handkerchiefs, tablecloths and the like. He was looking for someone to supply him with these items. I immediately responded. I said I could meet his needs if he could supply the fine whitelinen. He sent me four kilos by registered mail.

As I wrote earlier, Miss Shatuk ran a large needlework establishment where she employed many Armenian girls and women. I delivered the material and silk threads to one of her experts. She and some of her acquaintances prepared samples. I paid them well and sent the samples to London by registered mail. The man sent a few more kilos of linen along with a thank you letter. The people of London were happy to purchase the needlework at high prices knowing that theproceeds would help destitute Armenian ladies who had been widowed during the 1895 massacres.

I did this on my own and didn’t involve Monofar. I’m sure this would have grown into a very profitable business if 1915 killings had not put an end to everything.

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My Cooperative SocietyAs I wrote earlier, it was a common custom in Ourfa for eight to ten friends to form a cooperative club or society. They would get together on Saturday evenings and read, playbackgammon or cards, drink arak, sing and play music. The festivities would usually last untilmidnight. Since the next day was Sunday, they did not have to get up early and go to work.

I too formed one of these clubs with some friends. Whoever hosted the event would offercoffee, tea and sweets made of grape syrup. Each member paid five Ottoman gold coins. Themoney was to be invested. Some members gave 10 coins for a proportionately larger share of the profits. Garabed Yousoufian (Taniel’s older brother) was our treasurer.

The villagers were in need of money during the winter months, and we could lend it to themfor 5% per month (i.e., 60% annually). This was a much higher rate than what a bank wouldcharge a creditworthy individual (about 5% annually). The villagers often borrowed money bypawning their wives’ jewelry or other valuables such as rugs. But they would never part with their sheep or cattle. They were very profitable and necessary for the villagers’ livelihood. Forexample, a ewe gave birth to a new lamb every year. If the lamb was male, it could be sold a few months later for at least 50 ghouroush. Females, however, were kept because they would produce more sheep the following year. Females also produced milk, which the villagers consumed and used for making yogurt. They could sell the excess milk, and they could sell gheefor 15-20 ghouroush per kilo. Thus one ewe could bring in 100 ghouroush per year, which thevillagers used to repay their debts. They made additional money by shearing the sheep every yearand selling the wool. These proceeds, however, were used to pay the federal sheep tax (khachor).

In addition to lending money to villagers, we bought merchandise whenever possible. We would buy things like wheat, barley, lentils and chickpeas—things that would not rot or spoil quickly—at bargain prices. Prices were generally low during harvest time, but would later rise much higher. This allowed us to make a good profit. We continued these activities for twoyears and our capital reached 200 gold coins just prior to the 1915 massacres. That’s when mypartners were all killed and our cash and merchandise was stolen.

As a point of reference, I should mention that prior to 1915 there was no paper money. Large transactions were completed using gold coins. Silver and copper coins were also used. Themejid was a silver coin worth 25 ghouroush. The barghout was also a silver coin. The metallic, mangher and other coins were made of copper.

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The Apostolic and Evangelical School SeparatesAram Torossian, the principal of the higher elementary school, left one year after our class graduated. Dajad Dakessian from Marash, also a graduate of the American College of Aintab, replaced him. Dajad was energetic and gregarious. He organized an auxiliary committee for the church consisting of members from the Apostolic community. The members made weeklypayments, which were used to help the church and the needy students until they graduated from college.

A year after Dajad’s arrival, the Apostolic and Evangelical school, which had been united, split by mutual consent. This was due to a discontinuation of aid that had been coming fromAmerica through Miss Shatuk. Dajad was named principal of the Apostolic school and served for three years. He was succeeded by Garabed Mazloumian of Aintab and later by Hagop Beshlian of Ourfa (who eventually became a physician). Both of these men were graduates of the American College of Ainteb.

The primate, Father Anania Hazarabedian, left and three priests succeeding him on atemporary basis. They were Khachadour Kahana, Father Goriun Ellidremian and Bishop HagopAshod. Eventually, a young priest from Armash, Father Ardavazt Kalenderian, took over. Thisnew priest eliminated English from the curriculum and replaced it with French. He invited Antranig Bozajian, a French expert from Kharpert, to teach. He also appointed Vahe Dinjian, an expert in the Armenian language. (Vahe is now a writer in Fresno, California whose pen name is Vahe Haig.) Kasbar Vosdigian was appointed to teach the science courses.

Consequently, graduates who wanted to continue their studies had to go to Bolis (Istanbul). Although the American College of Ainteb was much closer, the graduates could no longer speak English.

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Complaints Against Father AnaniaFather Anania was from Jerusalem. He had come to Ourfa to replace our former primate, Archbishop Khoren, who was elderly and ailing. Archbishop Khoren retired to the monastery of St. Sarkis, which was just a five minute walk from town.

Father Anania was not as educated as the priests from Armash. He roomed with Kevork Vosgerichian (K.G.V.), my Armenian language teacher and a correspondent to the Armenian newspapers of Bolis. He also served as Father Anania’s administrator. After school, he attended the meetings in the prelacy, documenting decisions and composing the required letters.

One year, there was some sort of scandal involving Father Anania. The community split intotwo over the matter. Those who opposed the executive body (ambitious rivals who wanted totake their place) roused the common people to defend Father Anania. K. Vosgerchian defended Father Anania in the Bolis newspapers. No doubt he feared he would lose his job and salary if Father Anania were removed from office. However, the vast majority of the people wantedFather Anania removed. Petitions with hundreds of signatures were sent to the Patriarch of Bolis. Things got very complicated.

Patriarch Maghakia Ormanian was obliged to order Father Paren Melkonian to investigate the matter and prepare a report. Father Paren, who was about to travel from Baghdad to Bolis, was asked to stop in Ourfa. He came, he listened to both sides and he left without telling anyone what he would report to the Patriarch. In order to avoid a permanent state of disgruntlement among the people, and seeing no advantage in keeping Father Anania in office,the Patriarch recalled him to Bolis. Father Paren had already left when the recall was announced.

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A Succession of New PrimatesAfter Father Anania’s departure, Father Khachadour Kahana held the office for a few months asthe locum tenens. Then, the rather elderly Father Goriun Ellidremian took over. He did notachieve anything special while he was in Ourfa, but he had a strong voice that echoed off thewalls of the spacious church during his sermons. He stayed for two years.

Bishop Hagop Ashod came next as primate. The people greeted him enthusiastically on theday of his arrival. Garabed Imrzian, Chairman of the Council of Representatives (Kaghakagan Jhoghov) threw a large banquet in his honor in the Seminary of Saint Sarkis. Many officialdignitaries attended the banquet. The people, who had not had a satisfactory primate for a longtime, were very hopeful. Unfortunately, Bishop Hagop Ashod left for good just a few months later. Perhaps he was used to the grand and easy life of Bolis and did not care for the sparse surroundings in Ourfa. In the absence of a primate, one of the local priests filled in.

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I Began Reporting on The Sunday SeminarsWe held seminars on Sundays, for one hour after church services. Well-educated persons gave lectures on interesting and useful topics. Kevork Vosgerchian used to prepare reports on these seminars, but he lost his teaching job and his position as administrator to the prelacy when Father Anania left. Of course, he also lost the associated salaries. He was bitter about all this and also stopped reporting on the Sunday seminars.

There was a lot happening on the political front and much optimism in the days followingthe successful Armenian reforms. Kevork was hopeful that the people would rise up in protest and demand that he be reinstated in his former positions. But he was disappointed and remained unemployed for some time. Eventually, he rented a shop in the marketplace and imported manousa (Alaja) from Aleppo, but his business did not do well.

The public had a strong desire to hear the vital and interesting news of the day, and onceKevork stopped reporting on the Sunday seminars, I was asked to fill in. It was well knownthat I was an avid reader of newspapers, so they thought I would do a good job reporting on the seminars. But I wasn’t sure if I should accept. After all, Kevork had been my Armenian teacher. Furthermore, my brothers Nshan and Aghajan and my future father-in-law Imirzian Garabed (I was already engaged at the time) were leaders in the National Executive Council and were among those who had demanded that Father Anania be dismissed. I, too, was in favor of Father Anania’s dismissal. After much thought, I finally accepted the offer. I did my reporting withoutseeking my brothers’ opinions.

After about a year in business, Kevork was obliged to seek reconciliation with his opponents through mediators. Eventually, he was ordained a married priest (kahana) and was renamed Der Karekin. He was much appreciated, even more than the other priests, because he was better educated and he was a good orator.

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The Ottoman Constitution of 1908 Raises False HopesA new constitution was unexpectedly declared in 1908. All of the minorities all over Turkey who had been oppressed under Sultan Hamid’s tyranny, especially the Armenians, were very excited. This was the case in Ourfa as well. Turkish generals came to the Mother Church and announcedthe good news of the total destruction of the Sultan’s tyranny. There was much celebration. Turkish and Armenian youth joined the fanfare and marched together through the Turkish and Armenian quarters singing Freedom, Justice, Equality, Brotherhood (Hurriet, Adalet, Mousavet, Oukhouvet).

Moslems and Christians gathered in the spacious hall of the Ouloudjami, the biggest mosque in town. Turkish orators gave speeches. Khachadour Bonapartian, an Armenian teacher at the Evangelical school and a member of the Tashnagtzagan political party, also gave a speech about absolute freedom. This caused great excitement. K. Bonapartian later became a physician. During the First World War he defected from the Turkish army to the Caucasus and became a bodyguard, physician and English translator to General Antranig.

The Tashnag and Hunchag political parties immediately emerged and rented separate clubs. Paramaz, the head of the Hunchag party came to Ourfa. Later, Ghevont Miloyan of the Tashnag party also came. Each organized members and preached about their party. Soon, the partisan newspapers ‘Troshag’ and ‘Hunchag’, and Raffi’s books began circulating without restrictions.There were also revolutionary songbooks available. Armenians started advancing in giant stepson all fronts including business, education and finance.

But we were deceived. The Turks could not tolerate our achievements and successes. Theybegan spying on us and accusing us of anti-Turkish behavior. Eventually, they organized unprecedented destruction and killings in what became known as the Armenian Genocide of 1915.

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Father Ardavazt Kalenderian’s Reign as Ourfa’s Primate

The primate’s seat in Ourfa was vacant for a long time. But after sending constant requests toBolis, Father Ardavazt Kalenderian, a priest from Armash, was appointed at the end of 1908. He was young, active and constructive. As I said earlier, he introduced many changes. One was replacing English instruction at the schools with French. He also had the dilapidated building of the girls’ higher elementary school torn down and replaced with a beautiful and spacious two-story building. This was financed with public fundraising.

He had the 700-800 graves from the spacious churchyard moved to the fields of the St. Sarkismonastery, which was about a five-minute walk from the city. There was much opposition tothis from the next of kin of the deceased. Subsequently, however, all burials were performed in the new location.

The school was in the courtyard of the church. When the cemetery was moved, the groundswere used by the students for play. They would run around freely during breaks. Previously, themore active boys used to jump around and push each other into the tombstones. They often felland got injured. There were even some deaths. I remember during my school days, a teenagernamed Yazejian fell on a tombstone while he was running and was killed.

The cemetery had become so full that the old graves had to be dug up in order to make roomfor the newly deceased. The poisonous dirt was thrown about contaminating the air. Becausethe school was right there, funeral ceremonies also had a depressing impact on the young students. They often caused despair and an attitude of hopelessness. Students would sometimesask, “Why should we work and study if we are going to die eventually?”

Father Ardavazt had a sweet voice, and it was pleasing to listen to him during the liturgy or when he gave a sermon. He was a musician and had written many compositions, but I remember only one: “Sev Hogher” of Bedros Tourian was put to music and printed.

Father Ardavazt formed the first mixed choir in Ourfa. He used the students and had themsing in three or four voices. He conducted the choir by standing in front of the members and waving his arms up and down, and left and right. Some of the more ignorant people found this scandalous. They accused him of dancing in front of girls.

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1910, The Year of The SnowIt snowed in Ourfa just about every winter. But the winter of 1910 was exceptional. It snowed almost day and night from the beginning of December to the end of February 1911. Almost every day, homeowners shoveled snow from the rooftops onto the street to prevent damage. Because the roofs were covered with earth, snow could cause them to leak.

Due to all the snow, and to the shoveling from the roofs, the streets will filled. In some placesthe snow was piled two to three meters high. The entrances to the houses were blocked and trafficwas at a standstill. People were imprisoned in their own homes. It was very difficult to even visita neighbor. Only a few people managed everyday to push the snow away from their front doors.

Fortunately, people had become accustomed to storing food and fuel for the winter. Thosewho had plenty helped those who did not. Even so, many people suffered that winter. One daywe saw red snow falling from the sky. Some of the ‘wise’ people concluded that the steam of red soil had risen to the sky and was falling back as snow.

Because the snow was so exceptional that year, people always referred to it. For example, someone might say, “My youngest son was born three months after the year of the snow.” (tzoni darin). Some of the older folks said 1875 was also a year marked by a lot of snow. They oftenused that date as a reference as well. They might say, “I got married one year before the year ofthe old snow.”

There were no ice machines in those days, but ice was needed during the summer months. It was used to comfort the sick, to chill water, and for fruit drinks (osharag) and ice cream. Just outside the city, there were caves about five meters deep dug into the mountains. After ithad stopped snowing, these caves were used to store the snow for summer use. Using ladders, workers would go into the caves and spread a thick layer of clean straw on the ground. Thenthey would shovel snow on top of the straw. They put additional straw up against the walls ofthe cave as the snow piled up from the ground. The packed snow would remain without meltinguntil the summer. When summer arrived, the owners of these caves would cut large chunks of ice with saws, pack them into burlap and bring them to town on horseback to sell.

After the Ottoman constitution of 1908, the Kullahian and xxxbashian (illegible) brothers formed a partnership and brought ice machines and experts from Aleppo. They started sellingclean ice during the summers, and there was no more need for hoarding snow in the caves.

During the Year of the Snow, the spacious fields and grazing grounds in the villages werecovered with a thick layer of snow. This caused the grass to rot and thousands of sheep perishedfrom hunger. The shepherds did not normally store hay and barley during the summer for thesheep to eat in the winter. This would have been a very expensive thing to do. Those few whodid have some supplies, quickly ran out of supplies anyway.

That year, all the livestock owners, both Moslem and Christian suffered great losses. TheImirzians, Chalians, and Der-Bedrossian brothers had each bought about 500-600 head of sheep. They all died.

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My EngagementMy five brothers were very successful businessmen and their relations with one another wereamicable. Nshan and Aghajan, the two oldest, were in charge. But my work and income were independent of the rest. I always wanted to be independent. Even as a schoolboy I was embarrassed to ask my brothers for money to buy books and supplies. They always gave withpleasure and took great care of my education. They even sent me to the American College ofAinteb without sparing any expense. They didn’t ask me to share in the household expenses eventhough we all ate and drank together. Even after I started making money, I only spent it on myself for clothing and for my own pleasures.

I wanted my income to reach a certain level before thinking of getting married. By the time I was 28, my business was going quite satisfactorily. My mother and brothers were suggesting that I get engaged. My younger brother, Haroutiun, was only 25 but wanted to marry even before I did. I finally consented to my family’s wishes. But I wanted a wife who had someeducation. My four older brothers were married, but three of their wives were illiterate. Only Krikor’s wife had graduated from elementary school. At that time, educating girls was still a novelty.

We checked into a number of prospects. In those days, there was no such thing as dating. There were no girlfriends or boyfriends as there are today. Before and after getting engaged,the couple could not even talk with one another or see each other alone. That was consideredshameful (amot) and was forbidden. It was the responsibility of the parents to choose their children’s mates.

Finally, my family settled on Noyemzar. She was the eldest daughter of my Uncle Alexander’s daughter (my cousin’s daughter). Her father, Garabed Imirzian Effendi, was the closest friendto my brothers Nshan and Aghajan. He was their colleague in the national councils. Uncle Alexander consented to the marriage proposal with great pleasure. I was his nephew and Noyemzar was his granddaughter.

The girl was fifteen years my junior, quite a difference in age even in those days. This was something to consider, especially for me. But there were many other advantages. She was of good character, good family background and similar lifestyle. We decided to overlook the age difference.

Noyemzar had graduated from the Armenian Evangelical Elementary School that year. Her father sent her there to learn English. He wanted her to eventually attend the American Girls’ school in Kharpert where instruction was in the English language. The Apostolic school inOurfa was teaching in French. We agreed to wait for two years before getting married so that Noyemzar could graduate from college.

There was another problem. Our church does not allow close relatives to marry becauseof medical and genetic concerns. We requested Father Anania to seek permission from the Patriarch so we could marry. He was successful. So with the consent and pleasure of both

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parties, we got engaged. But our happiness did not last long. The First World War began in1914. Turkey sided with Germany. The hateful and vile Turks organized the great massacresagainst the Armenian people during which my mother and Noyemzar’s parents were martyred. Noyemzar and I were saved only by miracle and eventually married. I will write more about this later when the time comes.

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The First World War, Miss Karen Jeppeand Conscription into The Army

The First World War began in 1914 with Germany, Austria, Italy and Japan on one side, andEngland, Russia and France on the other. Turkey entered the war on Germany’s side. TheUnited States of America joined England and the Allies. Gradually, smaller nations such as Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, Serbia, and others entered the war on one side or the other.

Turkey began requisitioning goods for the military such as wheat, barley, textiles and strong horses. They simply confiscated these goods and gave promissory notes with indefinite timelimits in return. Naturally, they took much more from the Christians than the Muslims. Theyalso began drafting men into the army. Those who were 20 years old and older were sent to thefront. Those who paid 45 Ottoman gold coins were exempted. All those 20 to 45 years of agewere rounded up and sent unarmed to certain areas two hours away from Ourfa. These menwere called laborers (amele tabouri). However, the Turks only rounded up the Armenians in this manner. The pretext was that the men were going to build roads.

Business came to a complete halt. To prevent bankruptcies, the government declared a new regulation. It placed a moratorium on the repayment of debts. The regulation said that onthe due date of a promissory note, instead of making the full payment, the debtor could make monthly payments of only 5% of the value of the debt.

I had purchased merchandise from Aleppo with cash and on credit. I owed 30 Ottoman gold coins to Zollinger, the well-known businessman, for fezzes. I had signed a promissory note payable in three months.

The persecution of Armenians had not yet started. I paid 45 Ottoman gold coins as themilitary ransom to avoid conscription. My business partner, Monofar had been taken as a laborer (amele tabouri). The Armenians, including myself, went to the marketplace every dayand opened our shops.

One day, the administrator of the German orphanage sent for me. In the evening, after closing my shop, I went to meet with her. Although I knew of her, I had not yet had the chance to meet her. She was from Denmark and spoke Armenian. She said to me, “You are the brother of Aghajan Effendi. Zollinger has sent me the promissory note for 30 goldcoins bearing your signature. The note is due and needs to be paid. Of course, under thenew regulation, you have the right to pay only five percent at this time. But if you can paya little more, I would be very thankful. Due to the war we are not getting any funds from Germany, and we have 300 orphans to take of and a lot of expenses for food and other goods.” Although the new regulation obligated me to pay only 11⁄2 gold coins, I agreed to pay her the full amount. I didn’t consider the probable hardships we would soon suffer,and I realized how important this money was for helping the orphans. I responded with providential bravery and told her I would pay the full amount the following day. Miss Jeppe

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said she would be very grateful. The next day, I delivered 30 gold coins to her and clearedmy bill.

It never occurred to me at that time that this simple sacrifice on my part would later save mylife. I write about this later.

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Kurdish Hussein PashaHussein Pasha, a Kurdish tribal chief, owned several villages. He had been decorated by the government with the rutbeyi saliseyi, an important honor. He had been my brothers’ customer for many years. When Turkey joined in the war, Hussein Pasha was put in charge of transporting wheat from the Ourfa region for use by the Turkish army.

Before assuming this responsibility, he decided to throw a banquet on the occasion of the circumcision of his son Nebi. According to Kurdish custom, hundreds of guests were invited by letter accompanied with a gift made of silk or some kind of textile. In return, the guests brought a lamb, a calf, a sack of sugar, rice, bulghour, or flour. There would be a large crowd and theeating and drinking would go on for three or four days and nights.

The Pasha came to see my brothers and bought large quantities of silk koutni, pieces of textile and other goods all on credit. He also bought a lot of clothing for the families of his farmers. In fact, he bought clothes like this every year and always on credit. During the harvest, he took a share of wheat from his farmers and used it to repay his debt to my brothers. He would either send the wheat to my brothers or Krikor would go to the Pasha and collect it.

Anticipating the disaster that was about to befall the Armenians, the Pasha took much more merchandise than usual. He was confident that once the Armenians were slaughtered, therewould be no one left to demand payment. He owed my brothers about 100 Ottoman gold coins.

I write about this here because when the violent persecution of the Armenians began, we were to have some more dealings with this Pasha.

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Arrests, Exile and PersecutionsThe heartrending events that occurred during Turkey’s participation in the world war are longstories. They are detailed elsewhere including in the book, “Tiutzaznagan Ourfan”. Here, I write only briefly about some of the incidents that occurred in Ourfa. These incidents followedeach other daily like a motion picture, heartbreaking and sad, one surpassing the other in misery and gloom.

The Turks sent the younger Armenian men to the front lines. The older ones were sent to a location two hours away from the city under the pretext of building roads. Only the few who were able to pay the 45 Ottoman gold-coin ransom remained in the city. From my family, Hagop, Haroutiun and I paid the ransom. We were all under 45 years of age at the time, but were not drafted.

So the government cleverly removed from the city the majority of the men who were capable of putting up a resistance. Then they unexpectedly rounded up 16 men who were thoughtcapable of organizing the community. Their goal was to leave the Armenian people withoutany leadership. These men were collected from their shops and homes under different pretexts,arrested and jailed. These individuals were my brother Aghajan Der-Bedrossian, Sarkis Jerrahian,Soghomon Knajian, Hagop and Nazaret Kulloghlian, Haroutiun Kaghtatsian, Garabed Kataroyan, Kevork, Nerses and Hovhannes Yotneghpayrian, Haroutiun Sarrafian, YezegielBoyajian, Kevork Donavakian, Khosrov Dadian, Garabed Proudian (a teacher from Kharpert), and Kevork Kazanji. Two days later, they were all exiled along with their immediate families to Raqqa, a town inhabited by Arabs 300 kilometers away from Ourfa. Soon after, they were all executed.

One day after the 16 were arrested, the Turks searched the Prelacy and the Monastery of St. Sarkis, which was near the city. They confiscated all the books, records, letters and manuscripts.They arrested Antranig Bozajian (from Kharpert) and Kaspar Rsdigian, two teachers considerednationalists who were living in the monastery. They jailed them and then sent them to themilitary court in Aleppo.

Soon caravans of miserable Armenian deportees began arriving, first from Zeytoun and laterfrom other provinces including Dikranagerd, Kharpert, Severak, Erzroum, etc. These peoplewere forced to walk on foot and half-naked. They were emaciated and skeletal old women, oldmen and children. There were no young men or young women among them. The young menhad been slaughtered and the women had been raped, whipped and sold into harems.

The government announced that all young men must present themselves in the marketplace. They deceived them by saying that if their names did not appear in the confiscated records, theyhad nothing to fear. Many men believed them and did as they were told. They felt they hadnothing to hide and didn’t want to draw suspicion to themselves. However, once they appeared in the marketplace, they were arrested.

The people were desperate and waited impatiently and anxiously for some good news. They

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were hoping the Patriarch of Bolis and our ministers would plead and protest and secure a general reprieve. Instead we received a great shock. It was like a deadly bomb had just exploded. The eloquent Armenian members of the Turkish parliament, Zohrab and Vartkes Krikor, hadbeen arrested and brought to Ourfa under military supervision. A day later, they were taken to Karakeopri, a location about an hour from Ourfa. There they were murdered. The Turksboasted openly about this.

The Armenian people were utterly desperate. Old and young wept and grieved. They beggedGod for mercy and salvation. Alas, God had closed His ears. Where was Christ while we were being tortured for worshipping Him? He was crucified in only one day, but our crucifixion hadbeen going on day after day for months.

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The Police Major Delivers a Threatening SpeechOne day during those unbearable times, we were told that the major of the police force had come to the church to deliver a speech. I went to hear what he had to say. The church wasfilled. We were all hoping he would bring us some good news; perhaps announce a generalpardon and the end of the persecution.

On the contrary, he began with the following words. “You are aware that we are in a fateful war with external enemies. But you Armenians have been rebelling internally against us everywhere. You have been working towards our destruction.” He was no doubt referring to the self-defense measures taken in Van. The Armenians in Van had put up a strong resistance to the Turks who hadcome to murder them. However, we were not aware of this. He continued. “Therefore, with thesupreme command of the government, you are ordered to surrender all of your arms. Furthermore, the 12 insurgents, Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian, Haroutiun Rastgelenian, Hovhannes Imrzian and their collaborators must be surrendered to us within three days. Otherwise we will drive all of you into the deserts with nothing to eat or drink. You will become food for the beasts.” Then hesat down. When he gave this speech, the deportation caravans of the starving, half-naked elderly people and young children were arriving from Zeytoun and the other provinces.

Our priest, Father Karekin, stood up and spoke. He said, “Dear people. We have never had a large number of guns for the purpose of attacking anyone or for any other harmful intention. However, the vineyard keepers keep guns and revolvers for self-defense and for hunting. We must obey the government order and give up what we have.” Then the major stood up againand said, “Do not think that I am simply giving you a warning. You have seen with your own eyes the miserable condition of the refugees from the other cities.” Then he walked out.

There was much argument. Many were screaming, “We won’t give!” Others screamed, “Weshould give!” However, we all remembered well our experience of 1895. We had been deceived then with a thousand promises that we wouldn’t be harmed if we simply surrendered our guns. Yet we were slaughtered like sheep even after we did as they requested. We were on the verge of killing each other over this issue. Many were absolutely opposed to surrendering our guns, and rightly so.

Finally, after much arguing, some individuals convinced the rest that we had to give up something. It would be impossible not to do so. A committee was formed to collect the guns. The members sat in a room in the churchyard and during the next three days and many peoplecame and turned in their arms. About 300 pieces in all were collected. They included huntingrifles, regular and automatic revolvers, swords, daggers and three or four muskets. The weaponswere loaded onto a cart and taken to the police station in three trips.

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Arrests and TorturesUntil this time, the Turks had spared my fiancée’s father, Garabed Effendi Imirzian. He hadbeen of great service to the government. He was a member of the Supreme Regional (Aleppo) Committee and he had been decorated with the rutbe aliye, a very high award. But now even he was arrested and jailed.

They filled the jails with Armenians. Oh God! The prisoners were tortured worse thanChrist Himself. The jailors cut off ears, pierced bodies with hot skewers, laid prisoners on theirbacks and tied their feet tightly with faraka ropes giving them a hundred severe blows with hard wooden sticks to the soles. They tried to force them to confess to hiding weapons. They beatNazar, the gunsmith, to death. While the prisoners were being tortured, a band was instructed to play loudly in front of the prison so that the screams would be drowned out.

What admirable heroism! There were no confessions. There were no betrayals. Of course,there was nothing to confess to. No doubt, some of the prisoners did possess guns, but based on the bitter experiences of the past, many people kept guns for self-defense purposes. They didn’twant to become victims. But nobody was stupid enough to think they could use their small weapons to rise up against a government with a strong army.

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Reports of Horrible DeathsAs I mentioned earlier, all of the Armenian men between the ages of 20-45 were taken out of the city. They were sent two hours away to Karakeopri and Koudema. They were taken as laborers(amele tabouri) under the pretense that were to build roads. There were approximately 800of them. One night, the Turkish soldiers tied the men together in pairs and shot them. Two brothers, Krikor Boyajian and Darakjian were injured, but managed to survive. They fell amongthe dead bodies and remained still until the murderers departed. In the middle of the night, they got up and made their way back to their homes. By morning, the whole town knew what had taken place. There was weeping and mourning in every house.

Two days later, the Turks took the priest, Imirzian Chalian Mgrditch, the four Hallajian brothers (Kileji Mughtsi, etc.) and others by night to the outskirts of the town and tortured them then killed them. I wish they had simply shot them with bullets. But bullets cost money, so the Turks used swords and daggers, which were free of charge.

The next morning, not knowing they had been killed, some of their friends tried to takethem food. The Turkish soldiers told them the prisoners had been taken to Dikranagerd for trial. In truth, they had already been killed. However, three women and eight young men remained alive. They were to be tried later for allegedly committing minor offenses.

We were still mourning the death of these victims when we received more bad news. The16 prominent Armenians, including my brother Aghajan, who had earlier been exiled to Raqqa were murdered. They were simply rounded up one night and killed. It is impossible for me tofully describe in writing the desperation and hopelessness we felt.

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Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian, Hovhannes Imrzianand Their Comrades Refused to Surrender

The 12 persons whom the Turkish major demanded in our church did not surrender. MgrditchYotneghpayrian and a few friends, fearful of being arrested, escaped to the St. Hovhannes mountain of Garmouj. They disguised themselves as Turkish officers. When the governmentlearned about this, it sent a large number of soldiers to surround the mountain. The Turksattacked and Mgrditch and his friends fought back. They killed two soldiers. MarashtziHagopjan was also killed in the fighting. Mgrditch and his friends escaped back to town in themiddle of the night, again disguised as Turkish soldiers. Hovhannes Imrzian did not return to his house. Instead, he hid in the house of an unknown relative situated in one of the inner streets. The others also did not surrender because doing so would have meant death by torture.

Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian and Hovhannes Imirzian came together secretly and devised a plan for revolt.

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My Brother Haroutiun is SavedMy four older brothers, Nshan, Aghajan, Krikor and Hagop, who were all married, were all martyred by the Turks in 1915. Haroutiun and I were both engaged but not yet married. We managed to survive the killings. Here I describe how Haroutiun was saved.

My family owned a village called Golenje. We had a Kurdish partner named Hello. He did agricultural work and raised sheep with his four adult sons and son-in-law. For this, he received a share of the profits.

When the war was declared, we had 200 sacks of wheat stored in our village. Haroutiun went to the village in order to transport the wheat by camels to the train station in Kharabnaz, which was not far away. The wheat was to be sent to Aleppo for sale. He got as far as the trainstation, but due to the war and the urgent dispatch of soldiers and military equipment to the front, the transport of the wheat was delayed.

The killings of Armenians in Ourfa began while Haroutiun was away. He heard aboutthe news and did not return. At the same time, there were a number of Kurdish youths who had defected from the army or who did not enlist at all. As a result, Turkish policemen were searching the villages for these defectors.

Haroutiun was worried that someone would betray him to the police. So he went to our village neighbor, Hussein Pasha and begged him to hide him or help him get to Aleppo. ThePasha proposed that Haroutiun sell him the 200 bags of wheat on credit. In return he promised to take him personally to Aleppo. The Pasha already had the responsibility (mutahid) of purchasing wheat and transporting it to the front for the military. He took Haroutiun to Aleppo as promised. He disguised my brother in Kurdish clothing and passed him off as his servant. My brother now found himself in a foreign city with no money. He asked the Pasha for some money toward payment for the wheat. The Pasha reluctantly gave him only 5 Ottoman goldcoins.

Of course, I did not know any of this at the time. Fortunately, Haroutiun and I were reunited later.

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Hussein Pasha Offered to Save Me, TooIn those days of persecution, we rarely went outdoors. Whenever we did, it was with great fear. One day as I walked past a restaurant, Hussein Pasha who was seated there, called out to me. I went in and spoke with him. He told me he had escorted Haroutiun to Aleppo and offered to send me to Aleppo with one of his men. I thanked him but declined. I was suspiciousand wasn’t sure if I could trust him. How could I be sure he was telling me the truth about Haroutiun? Even if I believed him and trusted him, how could I be sure that I could trust the man he would send me with? That man could easily kill me and rob me and no one wouldever know. No one would even care. The government had ordered the complete annihilationof the Armenian people and fanatic Turks considered it a God-pleasing duty to murder an Armenian. In fact, it had become easier to slaughter an Armenian than it was to kill a chicken. No questions were asked if an Armenian were killed. We had already witnessed the miserable condition of the refugees from Zeytoun, Dikranagerd and Kharpert and we were fully aware that the same fate awaited us.

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How Noyemzar Escaped DeathDuring the last desperate and critical days, my fiancée’s uncle, Hovhannes Imirzian, fled hishome. He went into hiding in a different house because the government was pursuing him. Iknew where he was hiding and when Hovhannes wanted to see me, I went to him. He said, “Our time to be deported has come. There is no doubt about this. Go to the German hospitaland give my greetings to Jacob Kuntzler. Ask him to take Noyemzar into his house as a maid. Danger is imminent and Noyemzar is a mature girl and should not be allowed to fall into the hands of the Turkish beasts.” By that he meant the Turks would violate her if they captured her.

Jacob Kuntzler was Swiss by national origin, but he was an administrator at the German hospital. I went and spoke with him as my uncle instructed. Mr. Kuntzler agreed with pleasure to grant my uncle’s request. Noyemzar’s father was the official owner of the buildingin which the German hospital was housed. Because foreign nationals were not allowed to own property, the hospital had been purchased in Garabed Effendi Imirzian’s name. The hospitaladministrators were comfortable with this arrangement because Garabed was a wealthy and trustworthy gentleman. I informed the rest of the family of the arrangement and Noyemzar was sent to live in Mr. Kuntzler’s house. This was a great relief for me.

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How My Niece Rahel and I Escaped DeathEncouraged by Noyemzar’s situation, I decided to ask Karen Jeppe to take in Nshan’s daughter, Rahel, as a maid. I was hopeful she would agree because as I related earlier, I had paid Miss Jeppe 30 gold coins when she needed the money for the 300 Armenian orphans. I did this even though I was required to pay only 1 1/2 gold coins per month. She had been very grateful.

I went and asked her to take in Rahel. She agreed without hesitation. Then she asked,“What will become of you?” Her question caught me by surprise. Before I could answer she continued, “The final blow to Ourfa is imminent. I am going to keep my stepson Missak inhiding. I will also hide you. My house is ready. I really want you to come.” It was difficult forme to answer. I would be leaving my mother, my brothers, and a large extended family behind in order to save myself. I thanked her for her kind invitation, but I did not give a definiteanswer.

Karen Jeppe had been living in the large National Hotel where the German orphanage for Armenian children was situated. She paid an annual rent of 170 Ottoman gold coins to the national treasury. Because of the war, financial aid had stopped coming from Germany and theorphans had been dispersed.

Miss Jeppe, along with Mr. and Mrs. Missak Melkonian, had just moved into Dr. Fisher’s 8-9 room two-story home. Dr. Fisher was an administrator at the German Hospital. He and his wife had gone to Switzerland for a vacation and had postponed their return due to the war. Miss Jeppe and the Melkonians took some furniture, beds, and other items from the orphanage with them. Two days after they moved in, Rahel and I went there. We took with us a sack of wheat, a sack of chickpeas, a container of ghee, four rugs and all of the jewelry I had given to Noyemzar, which her mother had returned to me because she did not want to be responsible in case of looting.

When we arrived at Miss Jeppe’s, we saw a large crowd. Father Karekin and his family were there. There were also the family members of Reverend Bedros and the pharmacist AprahamAttarian. These men had already been jailed then killed. Also in the crowd were the caretakers(mayrigs) from the orphanage, as well as Avedis Ekmekjian and his wife, Kevork Garabedian, Khachadour Vorgerchian, Garmoujtzi Khacher Khacherian and some others whom I did not know. Miss Jeppe had taken them all in hoping to save them.

Suddenly, we heard the bells of the Mother Church and those of the Evangelical church. They started tolling in long tones. Immediately thereafter we heard the clatter of gunfire andthe sounds of bombs exploding. There was a lot of noise. With binoculars we observed a largecrowd in front of the gates of Samout. The assault on the Armenians had begun. There weremen armed with rifles, revolvers, swords, and all kinds of weapons. It would have meant certaindeath if I had tried to return home. At this point, I had no choice but to stay with Miss Jeppe.

Later, we learned from Jacob Kuntzler that the Turks found out that the two Darakjian brothers had survived the slaughter of the Armenian laborers who had been forced into the

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Amele Tabouri of Kadema. I described earlier how these two had escaped and returned to the city to warn everyone. Someone had betrayed them to the Turks and a large number of soldiers, led by Bazer Chavoush, had come to arrest them. But the brothers resisted and killed Bazer Chavoush. This act provoked the government into a rage. It ordered the soldiers and theTurkish hordes to attack the Armenian Quarter. Of course, this had been their intention all along, but the killing of Bazer Chavoush gave them a convenient excuse.

The Armenians had anticipated the attack and had assigned guards to all the entrances tothe Armenian Quarter. The guards had orders to rush to their positions as soon as they heardthe church bells. So when the Turkish mob began to storm into the Armenian Quarter, which was situated on an elevated position west of the city, the Armenian guards opened fire andbombarded the Turks with bombs. Hundreds of Turks were killed. The rest fled in panic.

The Turks then raided a few Armenian houses that were outside the Armenian Quarter on itsoutskirts. They killed about 8-10 people and looted their belongings. Then they killed a largernumber of Armenians who were in the marketplace and looted their shops.

The government thought up a more devious and sophisticated plan. After a while, it sentin Fakhri Pasha with about 5,000-6,000 soldiers and two large cannons. They attacked theArmenian Quarter continuously for 25 days. Finally, the Armenians ran low on provisions and ammunition. They became disheartened. The rest is a long and tragic story.

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Our Crisis in Miss Jeppe’s House and The Betrayal of Der Karekin.Der Karekin and His Wife Left

We suffered indescribable crises and miseries while hiding out in Miss Jeppe’s house. Only fiveminutes away, our mothers, sisters, brothers and the whole Armenian nation were fighting afierce and losing battle against ruthless beasts and soldiers equipped with horrible cannons andpowerful weapons. It was unbearable to think about this. It was unbearable to know that people were tortured and murdered and that women and girls were being raped. Knowing how they were suffering and being unable to go to their aid, or even to share their fate, was too much forus to bear.

The carnage lasted 25 days. The Turks murdered many people. Many were hanged. Somewere jailed and tortured. Many girls were raped. Many others were driven hungry and thirsty into the desert. They were whipped on the way. The Turks did this to the children and theelderly women.

Somehow the Turks learned that our priest, Der Karekin, was hiding in Miss Jeppe’s house. They questioned Mr. Kuntzler about this. He pleaded ignorance, but then came andimmediately warned Miss Jeppe that her house would probably be searched.

That night, disguised in Kurdish clothing, Der Karekin and his wife fled the house withAvedis and their son Arshag. They left at midnight, taking some food with them. The boysaccompanied them to their vineyard in Khanjoughaz, which was about an hour’s walk from town. The boys returned after concealing them in a storage place built under a hut.

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Our Hiding PlaceThe rest of us who remained in Miss Jeppe’s house were terrified that the Turks would searchthe house the following day. So that night we went into the garden adjacent to the door on western side of the house. Using spades and shovels, we dug a hole two meters from the side of the house. Fortunately, there were many tools available from the orphanage, including saws and pliers. The hole we dug was two meters long, one meter deep and 3/4 of a meter wide. Wearranged wooden planks on top of the hole and covered them with soil. We flattened the endsto be level with the surface of the garden and we left a small entrance. Then we scattered theremaining soil under the bushes and flowers in the garden. We placed two long wooden bencheson the covered hole so that soldiers would not walk over the wooden planks, which might give in.

It was midnight when we began digging the hole and almost everyone was asleep. Only Miss Jeppe and Missak’s wife, Loussia knew of our plan. We instructed Lussia to cover the small opening to the pit after we had entered. We had prepared a piece of wood for this purpose. We told her to cover the wood with soil and to place a large flowerpot over it. We told her to leavea small opening between the flower-pot and the hole so we could breathe. The next day, if theothers asked Loussia and Miss Jeppe where we were, they were to tell them we had left and that they didn’t know where we went.

It was almost dawn when we finished digging. Eight of us entered the pit: Avedis, Missak,Kevork, Khachadour, Khacher, Arshag, Armenag and me. Loussia covered the opening as instructed and went away. We remained there cramped next to one another for 3-4 hours. What a crisis and horror. What if they really came looking for Der Karekin? What if they discovered us? God forbid! I prayed that they would kill us with bullets. I prayed that they would not torture us. Dear God! Please save us!

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They Came and SearchedIt must have been quite late in the day. All of a sudden, we heard footsteps, which alarmed us. The cover of the pit was scratched and opened. Who could it be? We heard someone say, “Howare you guys? Do you want some bread and water?” It was Loussia. But she had barely finishedher question when she suddenly exclaimed, “Dear God! There is dust rising in the vineyard. There are men coming this way!” She covered the hole and left.

We waited silently holding our breath for about two hours. Suddenly we heard conversation and footsteps. I wondered if they saw Loussia and became suspicious when she was covering the opening to the pit. They might find us any minute! But the voices and footsteps soon receded.There was absolute silence both inside and outside the pit.

Then we heard Miss Jeppe’s voice. She said, “They took the women, girls and children. Mr.Kuntzler and I are going to the moutasarref to protest.” They returned disappointed. The Turksreleased only the elderly maid, Sister Anna, and Missak’s young brother Alexander who was 12-13 years old. Miss Jeppe argued that she needed Anna for household chores and Alexander to do the shopping. The Turks promised to release the others after questioning them, but they lied.

We came out of the pit after dark in order to get some fresh air. We were also hungry and had a few bites to eat. We filled the hole with dirt, pulled the benches over it and left everythingas before. We disguised ourselves as Kurds, took our guns and prepared to join Der Karekin at his vineyard hideout.

Miss Jeppe told us, “If you must come back, do so at night. If you see a light in the window of the upper floor room, you can approach. But stay away if there is no light. It is possible thatthe Turks may come and take me away and confiscate the house.” We took some food such asbread, raisins and cheese with us and set off. We were not scared. We were all armed, we hadgrown beards, we had covered our heads with scarves, and we were wearing Kurdish clothing. Anyone coming across us would be terrified. After an hour, we reached our destination andfound Der Karekin and his wife hiding in the cellar under the hut. We told them what had transpired.

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Missak Goes to Town to Get InformationWe remained in the cellar in the vineyard until dusk the next day. The cellar was small and wewere cramped, sad and desperate. We came out and drank some water from the little brook some distance away.

Missak was getting impatient. He decided to go by himself back to Miss Jeppe’s house to get some news. She told him that all of the other residents of the house who had been taken away by the Turks were being deported the following day to the deserts of Deir Zor. They were notgoing to return as the Turks had promised earlier. Miss Jeppe had given fifty gold coins to Ali,Dr. Fisher’s loyal veterinarian, hoping he could save Loussia by bribing her captors.

At this time, my niece Rahel had already been sent to Aghajan’s brother-in-law’s house. This man was an Assyrian Catholic named Putrus Ghaneeme. The Assyrians were not beingpersecuted so she was safe there. Latif Ghaneeme later took her to Aleppo, claiming she was his sister, and delivered her to my brother Haroutiun.

While waiting for Ali to return, Missak suddenly noticed around noon that some policemen approaching the building. They had come in pursuit of Der Karekin. Missak immediatelyran to the upper floor where there was a room with a large number of comforters from theorphanage piled up on the floor. He crept under the pile and covered himself. The policemensearched everywhere, upstairs and downstairs. Finally, they entered the room where Missak was hiding. After looking around for a while one of them lifted up a couple of the comforters. Had he picked up a third, he would have found Missak. Fortunately the policemen gave up and left.

Missak remained still until dark. Ali finally returned with Loussia. He was successful inbuying her freedom. That same night Missak and Loussia came to the vineyard. They broughtsome food and told us everything that had transpired.

We never left the cellar during the daytime. We covered the door of the cellar by arranging some stones at the entrance. We only came out at night so we could breathe fresh air, drink water from the spring and stretch our legs.

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We Were Almost Discovered by A ShepherdOn the third day, we closed the entrance to the cellar carefully with stones as usual. We were sitting cross-legged and silent. All of a sudden we heard sounds of mumbling and whispering. We were terrified. We looked out from the cracks and saw a herd of goats and a young shepherdcoming toward us. The shepherd was pulling down the branches of the trees so his goatscould eat the leaves. Then he came and stood right on the roof of our hiding place. He beganpounding his stick into the ground. It felt as if he were pounding our hearts.

The shepherd was shouting at a goat, which had strayed from the group. Suddenly, anothergoat approached our door and started sniffing the stones. What bad luck! He must have smelledour scent, or perhaps he smelled the bread. We were trembling. If the unsteady rocks on the roof gave way, we were doomed. If the shepherd discovered us, we would have no choice but to kill him. If we let him live, he would inform on us to the government.

Fortunately, the goats sniffed around the remaining leaves on the ground and turned away. The shepherd also walked away carefree and happily playing his flute. He hadn’t realized whatdanger he had faced. We were relieved that we didn’t have to commit a murder.

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Der Karekin and His Wife Commit SuicideTwo days later, Missak and Khacher went to town again to get some food and news from Miss Jeppe. They left at midnight. We had come out of the cellar to relieve ourselves, to drink somewater from the stream and to walk around a little to stimulate our numb legs. Whenever a small tree or shrub moved in the distance from the wind, we were petrified, thinking there might bea policeman approaching. We piled back into the hole before dawn and closed the entrance from the inside with the stones. The next day 18 hours felt like a year. We waited anxiously forMissak and Khacher to return. We worried that they had been arrested. We also worried that the Turks had removed Miss Jeppe from the house. We wondered what news Missak and Kacher would bring back to us. We weren’t expecting anything good.

No one slept. Suddenly we heard muffled footsteps and were upset. Had someone betrayedus? No. Our friends had returned. Thank God they were safe! But they were very sad.

They said the Turks had come every day to search Miss Jeppe’s house. They kept demandingto know where Der Karekin was. They said they knew he was in hiding with his whole family,and they threatened to remove Miss Jeppe from the house if she did not turn him over.

We were dumbstruck. There was silence and extreme desperation. What would become ofus if, God forbid, the Turks took Miss Jeppe away? After five minutes of silence, Der Karekinspoke. “In order to relieve Miss Jeppe from any responsibility and from any danger of being removed from the house, and in order to save all of you who are so young, it is necessary for my wife and I to sacrifice our lives. We will swallow the poison we have with us. Once we are dead,take our bodies and throw them on the road where we will be found. Those who find us will tellthe government and this persecution will finally end.”

Indeed, we all carried poison with us. Miss Jeppe had brought some from the hospital and passed it out to us. We were to swallow it if we were in danger of being arrested, so that we would not be captured alive. It was far better to commit suicide than to have to endure the unspeakable tortures at the hands of the Turks.

Yet we were all stunned when Der Karekin spoke these words. We were confused and stammered a few meaningless sentences, but it was to no avail. Der Karekin’s wife, the yeritsouhi, hesitated and faltered. But the Der Hayr encouraged her saying, “Instead of all of us ultimately being killed, including these young ones and our children, it is best that the two of us sacrificeourselves.”

Committing suicide in front of their children would have been too emotional and heartrending. Missak and Avedis took the kids by the arms and led them to the shack in the neighboring vineyard. Before swallowing the poison, Der Hayr blessed us all and said some encouraging words. He said, “Be brave, my sons. I leave you with God. I hope you survive. Thank Miss Jeppe.” Der Hayr said a prayer and he and his wife used a pinch of soil asCommunion. Then they swallowed the poison. Missak and Avedis had gone a short distanceaway, unable to stand the tragedy. A little later, Der Hayr and his wife began moaning in pain.

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Der Hayr was soon silent. But the yeritsouhi started screaming. Both of her sons heard her screams in the distance. We were all very scared that others may hear her, too. Finally, after a few minutes, the screaming stopped.

We approached the bodies. Arshag and Armenag knelt next to their parents and kissed them. They were sobbing. Our own tears had dried by this time. We dragged the bodies outand carried them to the edge of the vineyard. We laid them on the wide road that ran past the vineyard as we had discussed. All of us felt guilt ridden. We thought of ourselves as criminals. Yet we envied these two who had died. They were now free of the horrors and the suffering.Who knew what was still in store for us? Who knew how much more we would have to sufferor what tortures we would have to endure? Who knew when we would be killed? We wanted to run and escape, but we did not know where to go.

This took place at the end of fall. The vineyard keepers had already finished their harvestingand had returned to town. We stood there alone. It was midnight and there was nobody else around.

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We Hid in A Dark Cave for Eight DaysWe hurried south towards the city, stumbling in the dark through deserted valleys and hills, always trying to stay away from the roads. We weren’t too concerned about encountering the enemy because we were armed and disguised as Kurds. Yet it was best to be careful.

We eventually found ourselves on the banks of the Karakoyoun stream on the western side of Ourfa. We removed our shoes and crossed the river at a shallow spot and ended up on the hill behind the St. Sarkis monastery. Avedis told us his uncle used to smuggle tobacco and that he stored in some caves in the area. We searched high and low and finally found a cave. Weentered and found it was dark and humid, but we were very tired and so we laid ourselves on the cold ground anyway. We saw the gloomy silhouette of the city in the darkness. Smoke continued to billow from the Armenian Quarter where the Turks had set houses and the Armenian Mother Church ablaze.

At dawn we saw to our right some distance away a shepherd grazing his sheep on the hillside. Toward the left on the road to Aleppo there were some peasants returning to their village. Theyhad donkeys that were fully loaded, most probably with goods looted from Armenian homes and shops.

By the time evening came we were very hungry, but we had nothing to eat. Missak and Khacher went to town at midnight to get some bread from Miss Jeppe and to let her know about Der Karekin and his wife. We knew she would be very upset by the news. They returnedthat same night with some food and a jug of water. Before coming back, however, they moved Loussia to Mr. Kuntzler’s house, which was only 50-60 meters from Miss Jeppe’s.

To make a long story short, we spent a total of eight days in that cave. We came out only at night to get some air and stretch our legs. Every other day, two of us would go to town and get food and water from Miss Jeppe. Miss Jeppe told us that the Turks stopped hounding her about Der Karekin. The government must have found the bodies.

Winter was coming and the weather was getting cold. We crouched on the cold floor of thecave with no mats and nothing to lie on. Our health was destroyed. Khachadour became very ill. He had diarrhea and was vomiting continuously. Miss Jeppe decided to take us into her house once again. It was no longer possible to live in the cave. Besides, the government was not even aware of our existence, so there was little fear of persecution at this point.

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We Created A Second Hiding Place in Miss Jeppe’s House

Miss Jeppe was very intelligent and resourceful. She devised a plan to make another hiding place for us. Winter was approaching and we could no longer hide outside. So Miss Jeppe decided to create place to hide in the room on the western end of the house. The room had two doors: One opened into the inner hall and the other opened to the outdoor garden. In the event of danger, we could try to escape through the latter.

The room had a wooden floor. Her plan was to carefully remove two wooden planks fromthe floor, 3 meters long and a 1⁄4 meter wide. Then we would dig out the earth beneath the floorand spread the soil thinly into the garden under the flowers and bushes so that it would quicklydry and not be conspicuous. In case of any danger, we could crawl into the hole and cover it with the floorboards. Then someone would place a rug over the floorboards and arrange a deskand some chairs over the rug to make it look like an office. This would prevent any soldiers fromwalking over the floorboards, which might squeak or give way and reveal our hiding place.

We put the plan into operation. We came down to the city from the cave two by two for three consecutive nights and prepared this hiding place. We spent the days in this room and did not even go into the hall. Both doors were kept shut. Sister Anna, the maid, brought us food and water. In case of danger, she had instructions to immediately come to the room and cover the hole with the floorboards, rug, desk and chairs as described above. We always kept our gunsand containers of poison with us so that we would not be captured alive. Miss Jeppe took a tremendous amount of personal risk helping us. What heroism and unparalleled sacrifice!

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We Created A Third Hiding Placein Miss Jeppe’s House

We spent about one month in our new hiding place, always in fear and terror. We spent day and night in this room with both doors shut at all times. We came out only after dark for a short time to breathe fresh air and relieve ourselves. The maid would let us know if there were guestsor strangers in the house, so that we would not make any noises.

The German hospital was only 3-4 minutes from our house. The Turks had already killedmost of the Armenians, but they left 3-4 Armenian nurses alive to care for wounded Turkish soldiers or ill Turkish citizens. One day, one of these nurses came to our house. She and the maid were having a conversation in the hall next to our room. Not realizing she was there, Avedis opened the door to ask the maid for water. The nurse saw him. We were extremelyworried that she might naively mention to her friends that Miss Jeppe was hiding some Armenians in her house. If word got out, the government might also learn about our existence. We discussed the matter with Miss Jeppe and it was decided that we must prepare another hiding place.

There was an underground cellar on the eastern side of the house. The door to the cellar wasopposite to but very close to the door of another room. The cellar had a window, about a halfmeter wide and one meter above ground, which overlooked the garden. The wall of the housewas about a half-meter thick. The house was surrounded on three sides with a flower garden.

We decided to dig a tunnel 11⁄2 meters deep and a 1⁄2 meter wide just outside the window. We dug in an easterly direction towards the garden then we dug north and south. The tunnelwas large enough for 10 people to sit in. We made an inconspicuous opening of about three centimeters wide above the tunnel from under a thick bush in the garden all the way to our hiding place. This opening was so we would be able to breathe.

We prepared a wooden cover for the square opening at the bottom of the window. We nailed a wooden frame around the square lid and poured some lime dissolved in water to the height of the frame and let it solidify. In case of danger, when we entered the pit, Sister Anna was to cover the hole with the lid. Then she was to place some old shoes and other objects on the lid andsprinkle some dust and dirt on then so that the lid would not be obvious.

We all worked by turn, day and night for twenty days. Every night we took the dirt and scattered it thinly under the flowers and bushes. Once we finished, we refilled the hole in ourold hiding place in the western room and nailed the floorboards back into place like they werebefore. We moved into the room on the eastern side of the house, which was over the cellar where our new hiding place was. This room had windows facing east and south. Every time wesaw a policeman or soldier approaching, we immediately went into the cellar and into the pit.

The kitchen was on the northern side of the house, which also had a window. Alexan andArmenag took turns keeping watch. We constantly kept watch from the three sides of the house.

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On the fourth side of the house was a spacious courtyard fenced with metal wires and a sturdy door, which separated the yard from a similarly spacious courtyard of Mr. Kuntzler’s house. We locked the doors of both the fence and our building. There was no need for surveillance on thisside at night.

There were 10 of us that had to be hidden in the event of danger: Missak, Avedis, Kevork,Khachadour, Kacher, Arshag, Armenag, Loussia, a three year old orphaned girl whom Miss Jeppe had taken in and myself. We had to keep the little girl hidden because the Turks would likely threaten her or beat her to extract information. She might give us away. The 60-year old maid,Anna Toramanian and Alexan, Missak’s thirteen year old brother did not have to be hidden. Thegovernment had already given them permission to remain with Miss Jeppe.

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My Mother in Millet KhanAs explained earlier the German orphanage for Armenian children had been shut down because of a lack of aid due to the war. The orphanage had been located in the Armenian nationalhotel (Millet Khan), which was very spacious. It had two stories and many rooms. Under the surveillance of guards, the government had placed Armenian refugees deported from Zeytoun and other provinces in the courtyards of mosques and in Millet Khan.

Miss Jeppe, who was extremely kind and sensitive, had prepared large pots of soup and had taken them to be distributed to the refugees. She also sent clothing. She did this many times despite the strong objections of the guards. Although she was a Dane, she was officially the administrator of theGerman orphanage. The guards thought of her as a German ally, so they dared not intervene. MissJeppe kept taking aid to the refugees in this manner for as long as her supplies lasted.

After the Armenians of Ourfa were defeated, the Turks killed all the men. Some were simply murdered. Others were hanged or marched in groups to sites about an hour away from the city and slaughtered. The women, girls and children were taken to Millet Khan or to the courtyardsof the mosques. From there they were eventually driven into the deserts of Deir Zor where they died from hunger and thirst. They were often flogged and whipped on the way. They youngerand more attractive girls were either raped or taken away and forced into harems.

Those who were old or sick tried to hire Turkish muleteers so that they could ride the mulesor load them with their belongings during the deportations. But the muleteers were very cruel men. They would take cash payment up front then they would take their charges about a halfhour outside the city and dump them off the mules. Then they would hurry back to the city andfind some other desperate individuals to take advantage of in the same way.

One day, Miss Jeppe returned from Millet Khan and told me she had found my mother. It was as if a fire started burning in my chest. I was absolutely devastated. I was in shock andcouldn’t even ask how she was. I couldn’t even cry. I wished I could cry just to feel some relief. My mother was an angel. She never scolded me. I know I must have been a bother to her as a child but I do not remember her ever hitting me.

She was the mother of six sons. She was elderly, and no doubt she was sick and hungry. But not even one of her sons was able to help her. In addition to her own suffering, she hadwitnessed the suffering and murder of her children, which must have been such a terriblydevastating psychological trauma for a mother.

Forgive me, precious mother! When I left you on that last day, I did not realize that I would not be able to return to you anymore! I should have kissed your hands and asked for your blessing. You brought me up with so much care and sacrifice, staying up all night. And now,with what cruel and heartless persecution did they drive you into the desolate deserts of Deir Zor, starving and thirsty, old and sick?

I protested like Bedros Tourian saying, “This fate of ours is so full of gloom, O God, Was itwritten, I wonder, with the ashes from a tomb?”

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I have to stop here. These memories have affected me very much. I often wonder how longshe was able to walk, my poor old mother. How much did she suffer before exhaling her lastbreath, my unforgettable mother? Innocents like her, kind and compassionate, to suffer like thisat the hands of cruel monsters, what .... (Check the manuscript, p. 59).

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Miss Jeppe Falls IllMiss Jeppe had a weak physical constitution. Having to witness the heart-rending scenes of the Armenian refugees and the terrible tragedies and murders of Armenians in Ourfa took a big toll on her health. I’m sure that hiding our group from the government in her own house also weighed heavily on her. She had taken on a terrible responsibility. She advised us that if the possibility of arrest ever came, we should resist as much as possible. She advised us to fight withour guns and then to commit suicide by shooting ourselves or by consuming the poison she had provided us. She was fully aware of the unbearable tortures others had suffered and didn’t wantthat to be our fate.

Being unable to endure all of this stress and anxiety, she fell ill. Mrs. Kuntzler, an avid German, didn’t like Armenians. Her husband was very helpful to us, but she resented us. She told Miss Jeppe, “You will not relax until you remove those Armenian youths from your house.” Of course, this was true. Miss Jeppe was a Dane. She was a citizen of a free nation. She could have easily walked away from these terrible events. She could have returned home at any time. But she didn’t. What an unbelievably heroic sacrifice she made. She suffered day and night justto save a few wretched Armenians! What a terrible burden a responsibility she took upon herself!

We quickly forgot about our own impending doom and worried instead about her. God forbid! If she died, we would be left completely helpless and defenseless. We would be doomed to die.

Mr. Kuntzler came everyday to look after her. He came every morning and every evening and brought medicine from the hospital. She recuperated a little, but remained bedridden.

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An Unexpected and Dangerous VisitorWhen Miss Jeppe was feeling a little better, she told the maid to ask Kevork and Barkev (the name she called me) to come upstairs and visit her. She was lying in her bed and began by trying to cheer us up. She said, “These gloomy days will pass and we will all buy a small village andengage in agriculture. We will do some farming and raise sheep and chickens.”

It was winter and her bedroom door was closed in order to keep in the warmth. Suddenly someone knocked on the door. Miss Jeppe assumed it was either the maid or Missak so she called out, “Enter.” The door opened and we were shocked. What an unpleasant, dangerousand unexpected visitor! It was the manager of the rug factory, a German Armenophobe named Ekart. He was also the supervisor of the orphanage and Miss Jeppe’s boss. He walked in with a bouquet of flowers in his hands.

He spoke with Miss Jeppe in German, which we could not understand. I cannot describe our shock and fear. This monster had previously instructed Miss Jeppe to get rid of all theArmenians staying with her. Although he knew me personally, he did not acknowledge us. Kevork and I immediately exited the room and went into the adjoining room. We did not dare go downstairs.

Ekart was an expert military cannonier. Just a few days earlier, during the heroic resistance that the Armenians put up, he had helped the incompetent Turks by directing their bombardment of the Armenian Quarter from the hilltops near the fortress of the city. TheArmenians could see him through their binoculars.

Kevork and I remained in the next room like statues for half an hour. What a crisis! What would Ekart do? We hesitated going downstairs even after we heard Ekart exit Miss Jeppe’s room. Suddenly, we heard a loud banging noise coming from downstairs. It was followed by screaming and crying. Curious, we timidly walked downstairs. Missak was ruthlessly beating his brother Alexan with a flexible metal whip. He was beating him on the head and back, almostto the point of killing him. Missak’s wife Loussia, who had barely recovered from a bout of typhus, had jumped out of bed and was chasing after him like a drunk, begging him to stop. We could barely get Missak under control. He was enraged because Alexan had left his checkpoint for a moment and had not noticed Ekart approaching the house. As a result, Ekart was able to walk right in without warning and catch us in the open. We still did not know if Ekart had said anything about us to Miss Jeppe. Missak went upstairs to talk with her.

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Miss Jeppe Falls UnconsciousAfter a moment, Missak came running downstairs in a panic. His face was ashen. “Quick! Quick!” he yelled. “Bring water. Miss Jeppe is dying.” We all rushed into Miss Jeppe’s room with bowls full of water. She had passed out. There was a Babylonian chaos. Some of us begancrying. Others poured water on her face. Someone tried to pry open her clenched teeth with a metal spoon. We were confused and didn’t know what to do. She started showing signs of recovering about fifteen minutes later. By then, we were half-dead ourselves.

Because we didn’t want her to realize what happened and because we feared a relapse, we decided it would be best to go back downstairs and leave her alone with Missak. We immediately sent Anna the maid to the hospital to retrieve Mr. Kuntzler. He came right away and administered the necessary treatment. Miss Jeppe was confined to her bed for months. Missak and Loussia took turns looking after her and did not leave her side. She would sometimes hallucinate, saying, “No, I cannot drive the boys out. I cannot.”

We learned later that when Ekart came to visit and saw us, he demanded that she expel us from the house. He told her that if she didn’t, as a German and an ally to Turkey, he would be obliged to inform the government officials of our presence and have Kevork and me arrested. He told hershe would be held responsible. He did not know about all the others also hiding in the house.

Her breakdown was caused by Ekart’s threats. She was determined not to leave us to our fate in the hands of the ruthless Turks, which caused her terrible anxiety.

One day—a terrible day—while Missak was away from her bedside for just a few moments, Miss Jeppe mustered extraordinary strength and got out of her bed. She went to the open window and tried to climb out onto the ledge in an effort to jump and kill herself. If Missakhadn’t returned in time to grab her by the skirt, it would have been too late. We would have found her smashed body in the garden.

Whenever she was lucid, she instructed us to be extremely careful. She lived in fear of Ekart and didn’t want him to know that we were still in the house. We were always in a state of panic and feared that one day she would succumb to all the suffering that our presence was causingher. We feared that one day she would tell us what Mrs. Kuntzler had advised her. “I have come to the end of my rope. From now on, you will have to look after yourselves. God be with you.” She would certainly be justified in doing that just so she could find some peace.

We sometimes did tell her how guilty we felt about being there and causing her all this anguish. One day she sent for us. We went to her room trembling, convinced that the time had come when she would tell us she could no longer protect us. Instead, she scolded us, “Look here! I come from an aristocratic Danish family. I have received you all into my house and that is final. We will either live together, or we will die together!”

Insert this section after pp.71-76

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Miss Jeppe’s Trips to EuropeJumping ahead, let me recount here that when an armistice was declared after the defeat of Germany, Turkey and their allies during the First World War, Miss Jeppe recovered somewhat from her condition and went to Europe to get some rest and visit with her parents. Later, she settled in Aleppo. She never went back to Ourfa because all the Armenians had been driven out. When she arrived in Aleppo, she brought a large sum of money and used it to help the Armenian refugees. The money was sent by the League of Nations. Miss Jeppe was also decorated by theKing of Denmark for her services.

She began a massive project of rounding up the Armenian orphans that were wandering the deserts. She founded a needlework establishment and put the needy Armenian girls to work. She bought a large piece of land in the Nor Kiugh (Meydan) region of Aleppo and had small shelters built for destitute and homeless Armenian families. Later they named a school after her, the Karen Jeppe Djemaran (High School).

Miss Jeppe needed assistants. I was still in Ourfa at the time so she asked my brother Haroutiun to contact me and ask me to come to Aleppo to be her colleague and assistant. But I was unable to go. The government had forbidden anyone from traveling. Besides, I wasinvolved in a number of businesses and complicated lawsuits at that time.

One day, on the occasion of the visit of Catholicos Sahag to Aleppo, Miss Jeppe invited him and the primate of Aleppo, Ardavazt Srpazan, for dinner. I was in Aleppo at the time and she sent me a note and invited me to attend as well. She modestly let the Catholicos and Srpazan know that I was one of the persons she had managed to rescue. She felt very happy and proud to have succeeded in saving us as a group from the Turkish massacres. Miss Jeppe proposed again for me to assist her, but I refused again.

Miss Jeppe had offered me a job with a nice salary, but I preferred to work with my brotherthinking it would be a more profitable venture. In hindsight, I wish I had accepted her offer,because whatever amount I made in business, I eventually lost.

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A Typhus Epidemic in OurfaBefore the end of the First World War, there was a terrible typhus epidemic in Ourfa, which claimed the lives of thousands of Turks. By the time the epidemic hit, there were no Armenians left in Ourfa other than those hiding in Miss Jeppe’s house. The remainder had already beenmassacred or deported.

The Turks started repenting for their sins. They believed God was punishing them forkilling the Armenians and they begged Him for forgiveness. They blamed the government foreverything saying they were ordered to massacre the Armenians and kill their innocent babies.

As I explained earlier, Jacob Kuntzler was Miss Jeppe’s neighbor. He was Swiss by origin and was the director of the German hospital. Although he wasn’t a physician, he had a lot of medical experience. He was very kind to the Armenian people and loved them very much. His German wife, however, did not. Both of them were aware of our presence in Miss Jeppe’s house and both kept quiet about it until the very end. During the typhus epidemic, Mr. Kuntzler came to the house to inoculate all of us against the disease. But Loussia got sick anyway. He came over several times to care for her.

Mr. Kuntzler later moved to Lebanon with his family. He was active in building shelters in Ghazir for the homeless and provided services for the blind. The people called him PapaKuntzler. The Armenians in Beirut eventually published a biography in his honor, whichdescribed his good works.

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Colonel Bilel Moves in With UsDuring the First World War, while we were hiding in Miss Jeppe’s house, a German named Colonel Bilel came to Ourfa. Miss Jeppe, who spoke German fluently, had two free rooms onthe upper floor of the house and made them available for his use. He stayed with us for about ayear. We actually felt safer with him there. Because of his presence, the house was exempt from search and not likely to be confiscated by the government.

Colonel Bilel never saw us and had no idea we even existed. He had a Greek bodyguard who knew of our presence, but kept it a secret to himself until the very end.

Turkish officers and civilian military employees visited with Colonel Bilel daily. We alwaysremained confined to our room and stayed invisible to visitors. One evening, a large contingentof Turkish militiamen and civilian employees entered the spacious courtyard in front of our house. They brought a band and danced enthusiastically. They were celebrating a great Germanvictory in the war and had come to honor the Colonel.

We heard them give many speeches and wanted to know what they were saying. When it was dark, without Miss Jeppe’s knowledge, we secretly crept out of our hiding place made our way to a group of trees on the side of the house. About an hour later, after much applause and shouts of happiness, they all left.

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Surrounded by 150 Turkish SoldiersColonel Bilel eventually left. Summer came around and it was very hot. We were extremely uncomfortable from the heat. As usual, we locked the gate of the fence surrounding the house as well as the door to the house every night. Because of the heat, we were sleeping in the large hall on the second floor. We slept on mattresses that had been brought from the orphanage. In caseof emergency, we always slept in our clothes.

One midnight, Arshag woke to the sound of muffled conversations. He looked out thewindow and could see the light of many cigarettes burning. He looked out all the windows and was horrified to see that the entire building was surrounded. He immediately woke us all up asquietly as he could.

Within five minutes, we had piled the mattresses on top of all the others from the orphanage,collected our gear including our guns and silently crept downstairs to our hiding place in the cellar. Loussia and the three-year old orphan girl came with us. We instructed the maid not to wake Miss Jeppe before sunrise. She was ill and it would be much better if she agonized a few hours less. The maid covered the entrance to our hiding place as previously instructed.

We waited and waited silently, not daring to make a sound. We were crammed together and it was so dark, we couldn’t even tell who was seated next to whom. The next 3-4 hours seemedlike a year. Suddenly we heard muted bangs, which we assumed were the sounds of footsteps. It was evident that the Turks were coming down the stairs to the cellar. We heard some soldiers talking, but we couldn’t understand what they were saying.

Suddenly, the little girl became upset by the cramped atmosphere. She started grunting and muttering. We told whoever was holding her to squeeze her throat and kill her.

We heard scratching sounds on the cover to our hiding place. We were sure someone had betrayed us. Oh dear God! They are going to open the cover now and we would be torturedand killed. Even though it was dark, our eyes were shut and we were afraid to open them lest we see the doomsday light coming through the opening.

Suddenly the scraping sound stopped. Now we heard a knocking sound. They were bangingon the walls of the cellar, trying to determine if there was a hole or hiding place behind the walls. What a horrible crisis. Gradually the sounds of conversation faded away and became inaudible. We heard more footsteps going up the stairs. We still did not talk to each other because we thought that they might have left someone behind on purpose in order to hear any voices. We waited for one more unbearable hour. Our legs were totally numb.

Suddenly we heard footsteps rushing down the stairs. Someone began scraping the cover again. We almost died from fear. We were convinced that either Alexan or the maid had been tortured and had betrayed us. But we heard someone say, “Come out! Come out! Are you alive?” It was the maid. Thank God! She opened the cover and we came out of the pit one byone with our numb legs. Miss Jeppe was waiting for us upstairs with happy giggles. Then, feelingmuch better because we weren’t discovered, she ordered breakfast and told us what happened.

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The government had heard a rumor that about thirty armed fedayees (freedom fighters) hadcome to Ourfa and found refuge in this house. Suspecting they would stage an armed resistance in order to escape, the Turks surrounded the building with 150 soldiers. In three rows, the soldiers surrounded the house so that the fedayees could not escape. At the crack of dawn, the chief of police, the judge and a Turkish Colonel in the lead, came and awakened Miss Jeppe. After thoroughly searching all the rooms, upstairs and downstairs, all the nooks and crannies, they went downstairs to the cellar. They found five bullet magazines in front of the wall toour hiding-place. To them, this was evidence and they became very suspicious. They beganquestioning Miss Jeppe at length. But she kept her cool and reminded them that, until recently, the German Colonel Bilel was living in the building. She said the bullets probably belonged to one of his soldiers who had dropped them there. She even suggested that perhaps someone had merely tossed in threw the window just to cause her trouble.

They finally left. Before going, however, they wrote a long report about the search and hadeveryone, including Ekart and Miss Jeppe, sign it. They had left dejected.

Those five bullets actually belonged to us. They must have fallen out without our knowledgewhen we were crawling into the hiding place in a panic.

But there was still a very serious problem. The Turks had taken Ali, the servant, with them. Ali was the keeper of Dr. Fisher’s horses. Ali’s house was close to ours, even closer than Dr. Fisher’s house. Ali knew of our existence but did not know of our hiding place.

We wondered if they would beat and bully Ali into betraying us. We waited for his return and we remained ready to cram ourselves back into the pit if necessary. Ali returned after an hour. Fortunately, he came back alone. Despite all kinds of threats and many slaps across his face, Ali had not told the Turks about us. He was a loyal Kurd.

As for the little orphan girl, fortunately, we did not have to kill her. She now lives in Aleppo. Her name is Mrs. Elise Mouradian. When Noyemzar and I finally immigrated to America, Elisetook my place as the chairperson of the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa in Aleppo.

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Ekart’s Big Treachery and His PunishmentThe German carpet factory was housed in a large estate called Masbana, which had a spaciouscourtyard and many rooms. It was separated from the private family quarters by a door. It was located in the center of the town, right between the Armenian and Turkish quarters. Theemployees included the manager, the machinist, a dye specialist, a draftsman (the rug designer) and hundreds of needy Armenian girls and widows who wove the rugs by hand. Ekart was the director of the factory. There was a company that provided financial assistance and wasresponsible for the management of the factory, as well as the management of the German hospital and orphanage. The president of this company was Dr. Lepsius, a well-knownArmenophile.

During the 1915 persecution of the Armenians, Ekart offered refuge to his Armenianemployees and their families. He promised to save them from the massacres and from the looting. Many wealthy Armenian families, including my brother Nshan and his family and my fiancée’s mother and siblings (her father, Garabed Effendi Imirzian, had already been killed)took Ekart up on his offer. They went to him with all their valuables. But Ekart had deceivedthem. He expropriated all their belongings for himself then he turned the individuals over to the government. The men were immediately killed and the women and children were deported tothe deserts of Deir Zor.

The ruthless Ekart could have protected these people and saved them if he had wanted to. All he had to do was argue that he needed their help in his factory, just as other Germans had done in Kharpert and in other cities.

A few years later, after Germany’s defeat in the war, Ekart was murdered in Bulgaria while trying to escape from Ourfa to Germany. I don’t know if he was killed by an Armenian or by someone else. In any case, he got what he deserved.

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Burno, Ekart’s Kind Younger BrotherAbout a month after Ekart turned the Armenians over to the government, his younger brother Burno paid a visit to the factory. Not seeing anyone around, he made his way to the cellar. There, to his shock, he found three skeletal, awful-looking, ghostlike figures. Burno and thethree were frightened of one another. Burno thought they were walking corpses, and they thought he would turn them over to the government.

Finally, the three skeletons explained that they were Armenians who, on the day of Ekart’s betrayal, had surreptitiously hidden in the well in the cellar. They survived by eating breadcrumbs that had been left behind on the ground. But now they had nothing to eat and begged Burno for help.

Burno was a very kind person and, without his brother’s knowledge, went to Miss Jeppe to seek advice. Without hesitating, she agreed to take in the three individuals for a few days. After feeding and caring for them for three days, she suggested they be sent to Raqqa at night, dressed as Kurds. There were some skilled Armenians in Raqqa who had been allowed to live in order toserve the government.

We never met these individuals. But while they were with us, Burno guessed that I was there. He gave Miss Jeppe all of the gold jewelry that belonged to Eliza, my brother Haroutiun’s fiancée. He asked her to give it to me. I don’t know how he came into possession of this jewelry. But Eliza’s father, Mgrditch Kilejian, was the chief dye specialist at the carpet factory. Perhaps he or my brother Nshan had given the jewelry to Burno before they were martyred.

I eventually took this jewelry, as well as the gold jewelry that belonged to my own fiancée,Noyemzar, which her mother had sent to us earlier, with me to Aleppo. There, they were veryuseful to us in our needy days. We sold them and lived on the proceeds. God bless Burno. I don’t know if he is still alive, but he was probably about 23-25 years old at the time of the massacres.

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Our Innocent TheftsPerhaps the reader will be puzzled by my choice of words for the title of this section. After all, how can a theft be innocent? I believe it can.

I have previously written that Dr. Fisher’s house was some distance from the city, next to the German hospital. He was the chief physician at the hospital. Miss Jeppe lived there temporarily as did we.

There were vineyards on three sides of the house. Most of the vineyards belonged toArmenians. One of them belonged to Markar Berejiklian, Noyemzar’s uncle (the husband of her paternal aunt). He had been hanged by the Turks along with many other Armenians in Ourfa. After killing these Armenians, the Turks expropriated their properties including the vineyards.

At the time, the grapes were ripe and at night, we would sneak into the vineyards and collect bagfuls of grapes. We ate them and enjoyed them for 2-3 days without any remorse. Was this not an innocent theft? After all, was it right for the ruthless Turks to kill the Armenians and confiscate their vineyards? I don’t believe the almighty and just God would regard our theft as asin.

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Our Desperate Panic AttacksWe wondered how long the war would last. Days were endless and we were always filled withfear and terror. We feared being arrested and tortured before being killed. We weren’t afraid to die, but we wished we would be killed quickly with a bullet instead of being tortured.

We also wondered what would happen if we survived. Would we be free? What meaning would there be to our lives? Our families had been killed and many of us had no surviving relatives. We thought we might be the only Armenians left in this part of the world.

We sometimes looked out from the narrow crack of the window in our room from behind the curtains. We often saw an old dirty dog wandering about freely, without fear of persecution. How we envied that dog. We wished that instead of being humans, we could be birds and soar up to heaven and escape this hellish world.

God forbid that Miss Jeppe should die! The military would then confiscate our building.Just imagining such an outcome was a terrible agony.

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The Vineyard of MejayyidBefore the persecution began, Missak used to cultivate a spacious vineyard in an orchard called Mejayyid. It was about two hours from Ourfa and a half-hour walk from the Armenian village of Garmouj. Miss Jeppe went there every summer to relax. In fact, she was having a four-room summer house built there, but it was still unfinished. Miss Jeppe had adopted Missak and hiswife Loussia and the three of them had formed a family.

In February 1917, even though it was still cold, Miss Jeppe decided to go to the Mejayyid vineyard in the hopes of regaining her health. She decided that all of us would go. Many of us were ill from having been deprived fresh air and sunshine for so long.

She departed first. The rest of us went two by two, traveling by night, armed and dressedas Kurds. It was not harvest time and there weren’t many people around. The Armenianowners of the vineyards had already been massacred or deported. The shepherds and occasionalpassers-by thought we were Muslims, either Turkish or Kurdish refugees, who had been driven by the Russians from Van and Moush. Our appearance had been completely transformed. We were unshaven and had long beards. We wore old and tattered laborers’ clothing. We were completely unrecognizable. When we saw someone approaching from afar, we pretended to be Turkish refugees working on a dilapidated structure. One of us would sift sand, another would make mud, and someone else would pretend to be the foreman giving orders.

We spent three months like this. We were extremely cautious and there were no incidents. But one day, a villager recognized Missak either by his voice or his features. Two days later, a soldier arrived from Garmouj and asked Miss Jeppe for Missak. She told him that Missak had left long ago. We remained hidden while the soldier was there. After that, we were even more careful. We hid day and night in deserted places, some distance from the house. About 3-4 times a day soldiers from Garmouj would come to visit Miss Jeppe, hoping to find and arrest Missak.

Our situation had become seriously dangerous. We knew we had to leave, but where could we go? There was a village near Mejayyid called Ouloubagh. The chieftain there was friendlytoward Miss Jeppe, thinking she was German. Miss Jeppe put Missak in his care, which is how he survived. At the time, few Turks believed that the murderers who perpetrated the massacres would ever be punished. Yet some were willing to secretly protect Armenian men. They wouldoften “transform” them into Turks by changing their names.

All of the others from our group, except for me, took refuge with the Aneze tribe of Arabs. Avedis had worked with the Aneze and had many friends among them. He also spoke Arabic fluently. The Aneze’s were nomadic tent-dwellers who stayed far from the city and the Turkishsoldiers did not go to the areas where they lived. The Aneze did not pay federal taxes and werenot conscripted into the army.

As for myself, I went to Aleppo.

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How I Went to AleppoI have already written about how my brother Haroutiun was smuggled to Aleppo. I have also written about how Rahel, my brother Nshan’s daughter, went to Aleppo. Haroutiun heard from Rahel that I was still alive and with Miss Jeppe. Haroutiun spoke with Dr. Hreshdakian (Oswald’s father) about me. Dr. Hreshdakian, an Armenian, was married to a German woman. He was the physician for the employees of the Baghdad railway. The doctor told my brother,“Tell Bedros to go to the Telabiad station of the Baghdad railway. I can arrange to bring him to Aleppo from there.”

My brother sent a letter in this regard, but I can’t remember who actually brought the letter to me. I told Miss Jeppe what my brother had written. By this time, a number of Turkish refugees had crowded into Garmouj. Their leader was a man from the Lezki race known asOsman Agha. He visited with Miss Jeppe occasionally, so she asked him to take me to the Telabiad train station. He said, “This will be very difficult. However, a caravan of refugees willbe going from Garmouj to the salt mines of Jaboul, which is near Aleppo. Because they are refugees, no identification papers will be required of them. Let Bedros come tomorrow and Iwill send him with the caravan.”

The next day I set off with half of the jewelry I had in my possession, my small rug anda little dry ‘kahke’ bread. I expressed by gratitude to Miss Jeppe and went with Alexan to Garmouj to meet with Osman Agha. He called the leader of the caravan and handed me over to him, instructing him to take me safely to Aleppo. He did not reveal that I was an Armenian. The man took me to his house. It was summer and very hot. In the evening, we went up to theroof to sleep in the open air. While we were alone, he said, “Do not be afraid of me. I know you are Armenian. I am from Van and have worked with many Armenians. I have transported arms and ammunition many times from Iran to Van for the Armenian fedayees. They compensatedme well.” Then he went downstairs and brought back a typical shalvar (baggy pants) for me towear. He said: “Tomorrow I will call you Ibrahim in front of my friends. Let them not know that you are Armenian.” We ate some bread and yogurt soup together and went to sleep.

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An Unexpected Detour Through OurfaWe awoke before sunrise the next morning from the sound of the bells hanging around the necks of the mules and from the shouts of the men. We got dressed and came down. There were fourmen and about twenty mules and donkeys waiting for us. They gave me a mule to ride.

I soon found out that we would pass through Ourfa. This was very dangerous for me,especially during the day because the Turks might recognize me. I knew we would pass through the wide square in front of the café. People gathered there every morning to buy and sell horses, cows and sheep. There would be no way out.

We were there in an hour and everything was just as I had imagined. There was a lot ofhustle and bustle in front of the café. A large number of men were sitting outdoors on chairs watching us. I recognized many of them. I began praying. I mumbled the ‘Bahaban amenayni’ prayer from ‘Havadov Khosdovanim’. We finally passed through safely and reached Samsatour,the military compound and guard station just outside the city at the edge of the road to Aleppo. I had truly become unrecognizable in my peasant’s shalvar, sunburnt face, long beard and headdress.

To make a long story short, we traveled for six days, mostly at night to avoid the hot sun. We passed through Arouj, Berejig, Moumbaj and Bab. Finally, we reached a khan (hotel) on the outskirts of Aleppo. It was dark when we arrived. My brother had written the location of his house in his letter, but I had destroyed the letter because it was written in Armenian. It would have been very dangerous to have been found with an Armenian letter in my possession. I couldn’t remember his address. I was confused and did not know what to do.

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How I Finally Found My BrotherThat night, one of the muleteers was going to town to buy bread. I went along under thepretense of doing the same. It didn’t occur to me to take my belongings. In fact, I wasn’t even sure I could find my brother.

It was late in the evening and the shops were closed, so we decided to go to Bab-el-Faraj where the shops remained open until midnight. We passed by an ice-cream shop. Therewere two policemen sitting there. They noticed we were strangers and called out to us. Mycompanion headed toward them, but I was scared and forever cautious. Without thinking of the consequences, I began running as fast as I could.

Soon I found myself at the entrance to Bab-el-Faraj. I was wearing only soft slippers on my feet. Fearful that I would be pursued by the police, I decided not to enter Bab-el-Faraj, but instead turned into a narrow side street into a Jewish neighborhood. Eventually, I reached Khandek Street.

I was extremely frightened. I was convinced that if the police caught me, they would arrest me once they learned I am Armenian. But I didn’t know where to go. I did not know where to find my brother. I didn’t know where I would spend the night. I was afraid to approach anyoneor ask for help.

Suddenly I remembered that two years earlier when I visited Aleppo with my brother Nshan, we were invited to dinner by a Mr. Hagop Kasparian who was originally from Ourfa. He lived on Khandek Street. I wondered if he had moved. Keeping away from the street lamps, I managed to find his house. The entrance was recessed from the street. I knocked on the door.Without opening the door, a girl called out in Arabic asking who it was.

I asked for Mr. Kasparian. I asked her to open the door. I said I had something important to tell him. She said they weren’t home. She said they had gone to visit family and would not return until midnight. I asked her again to open the door so that I might wait inside. But she was afraid and did not let me in.

Later I learned that this girl was a foreigner working as their maid. Of course, she was right to be cautious. It was late at night and she was alone. It would have been unwise for her to let in a total stranger. So for the next 4-5 hours I roamed about in the dark. I thought it would look suspicious to remain in front of the house. But I went back to the house every hour or so to see if the Kasparians had returned. Each time, the maid did not open the door.

At one point, while wandering about on the sidewalk, I heard a carriage approaching from behind. Just as it reached me, the horses slipped and fell. Two policemen jumped out with a lit torch and checked on the horses. Fortunately, they did not look my way and I ran off terrified.

Finally, at midnight I went back to the house and knocked on the door again. This time,I heard the landlord’s familiar voice. I stated my name in Armenian. He opened the door, yet seemed a little suspicious because of my appearance. I explained why I was dressed as I was. He took me inside with his family. I was embarrassed by the way I looked, but I was also surprised

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and delighted by what I saw. The place was decorated with wonderful furniture, chandeliers andrugs. I had thought all Armenians in Aleppo were living in miserable conditions.

I told the Kasparians how I had managed to survive and how I had reached Aleppo. I asked them to contact my brother Haroutiun. Their oldest son (who is still living today) went to getHaroutiun. I was too frightened to go with him. They returned half an hour later. My brotherwas astonished by my appearance. After tearful greetings and long embraces, we thanked Mr. Kasparian and walked to Haroutiun’s house. I was still terrified that I would be arrested. Iwas afraid that after surviving 2 1⁄2 years of unbearable hardship, I would now come across a policeman and meet God knows what fate.

We finally reached Haroutiun’s house. Mihran and Kevork (Aghajan’s sons) and Armen(Krikor’s son) were all there. All three boys were now teenagers and had managed to survive the killings. They were saved by our partners at our village in Golenje who had gone to Raqqaand retrieved the boys then brought them to Aleppo. As I said earlier, Aghajan was executed in Raqqa along with fifteen others. I have already written about Rahel’s trip to Aleppo. Haroutiun’s fiancée and her teenage brother, Garabed, had also managed to survive and werenow with Haroutiun.

We stayed up all night and talked. We tearfully exchanged stories of how we had survived the massacres. We also talked about the tragedies of those who didn’t survive.

In the morning, Haroutiun went and brought back Bedros Akkelian, a barber who was also originally from Ourfa. Bedros shaved my beard and cut my hair. We should have taken a picture for a souvenir. Many acquaintances heard about my arrival in Aleppo and came to greet me and ask about the situation in Ourfa.

The mule-owner who had escorted me to Aleppo had been looking for me. He finallymanaged to find my brother’s house. He delivered my little rug and parcel that I had leftbehind. He was indeed a good, loyal and conscientious man—just as he had claimed. Haroutiun rewarded him with two mejidiyehs.

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Noyemzar and My Belongings Make It to AleppoMy fiancée, Noyemzar, had been staying with Mr. Kuntzler who heard about my departure forAleppo. Fifteen days after I arrived in Aleppo, he arranged to send Noyemzar with a trustworthy elderly Arab couple. Upon arriving in Aleppo, they went to the Armenian church and asked for my brother’s house. They were given directions and they delivered Noyemzar to us safely. Shewas dressed up as an Arab girl. The couple had rented a donkey for the trip and asked for threegold coins, which I gave them.

When I took refuge in Miss Jeppe’s house, I took with me three large rugs from our house. I gave the best one to Miss Jeppe as a gift. A few days after my departure for Aleppo, she sent the other two rugs to me along with the other half of the jewelry that I had left behind. She sent these items with a dependable person.

As I said before, my brother Aghajan and his friends, were murdered in Raqqa. In addition to his two sons, Mihran and Kevork, Aghajan’s wife Mariam and his two daughters were with us. The Kullahian brothers and their families were also with us. A few days after I arrived, theKullahians rented another house and moved out.

There was also Lousin, Noyemzar’s 6-7 year old cousin. Lousin was the daughter ofNoyemzar’s father’s brother. She had fallen ill at the Millet Khan and was left behind. Fortunately, one of the nurses from the German hospital recognized her and took her to the hospital where she recuperated. Later, she was sent to Aleppo. We paid her escort 3 Ottoman gold coins.

So we became a large extended family. There were 13 of us in total: My brother Haroutiunand myself (Bedros); Mariam (my brother Aghajan’s wife) and her four children: Mihran, Kevork, Lia and Kayane; Armenag, (my brother Krikor’s son); Noyemzar (my fiancée) and hercousin Lousin; Eliza (Haroutiun’s fiancée) and her teenage brother Garabed Kilejian; and Rahel(my brother Nshan’s daughter).

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“Good is Born From Every Misfortune”Of course, this proverb is not always true. In my case, it was. I described earlier how I fell ill when I was in the college of Ainteb and how I had to discontinue my studies and return home. This was much to my disappointment and dismay because I loved school and had hopes ofbecoming a doctor or engineer. Instead, I returned to Ourfa and started a business. If I had not done this, however, I would never have met Miss Jeppe. It was because of her and the grace of God that I escaped certain death. Had I completed my education, chances are I would have been home instead of Miss Jeppe’s house at that critical moment when the Turks attacked. I would surely have been massacred like my brothers. So I do believe there is good born from every misfortune.

Similarly, as I explain later, I was quite upset with Dr. Hagop Beshlian. But that, too turned out for the best when I married Noyemzar instead of Yeghisapet.

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How We Earned A Living in AleppoWe were a refugee family of 13. Our property and belongings had been robbed. We had almost nothing. We had little clothing, no beds to sleep on, nothing to cover the floor with,no household items and no place of our own. A large number of Armenians who had survived the Turkish massacres had poured into Aleppo from everywhere. As a result, the rents were extremely high. A 2-3 bedroom flat was going for 40-50 Ottoman gold coins a year. Ruthlesslandlords took advantage of the situation and fleeced the poor Armenians, finishing off what theTurks had started.

Haroutiun managed to obtain by bribe a vessika (certificate) as a worker in a factory makingmilitary clothing. This allowed him to walk about the marketplace without restriction. Becauseall the merchants of Ourfa had been killed, Turkish businessmen had to come to Aleppo to buy their merchandise. They would approach my brother as compassionate compatriots. Theywould curse those who had perpetrated the massacres of Armenians. Of course, they were lying just to get his assistance. Sometimes they would slip and say the Armenians had actually brought the massacres upon themselves by revolting against the government. Yet even then, they would ask Haroutiun for his help.

Before the killings, Haroutiun had traveled to Aleppo often to purchase merchandise for our stores. He was an experienced trader and knew many of the businessmen. He made some money helping these Turks with their transactions. In this way, he made about 4-5 silver mejids per day. At that time, one mejid was equal to 25 ghouroushes and one Ottoman gold coin was equal to fivemejids. We also sold the gold jewelry I had brought with me, which belonged to our fiancées. Wesold the jewelry for about 100 gold coins.

I wrote earlier that in addition to dealing in textiles, my brothers also traded wool, ghee, wheat, etc. They did this for our own private business as well as on a commission basis forothers. They would buy dirty wool and give it to workers to wash and clean of all the dirt andmanure. Then they would separate the black and white wool and press them into bales in largepresses. The bales were shipped to Aleppo. I helped them with this work. Because I had apartner in my own shop, I could afford to get away for a couple of hours a day. Everyday, I wentand recorded the names of the workers so that we could pay them on Saturdays. I also wrote the trademarks on the bales and so on, and I did the Turkish correspondence and paid the bills. Aghajan knew Turkish well, but he was always very busy with his government responsibilities and meetings.

Before the war, we had sent a large number of bales of wool (I can’t remember the exact number) to Aleppo to the Jenanji brothers and to Nouri Moushaqqa. They were honest menand paid us for all the wool they had sold. The full amount came to about 200 Ottoman goldcoins, which was extremely helpful in our time of need. We used the money as capital to buy Arabic fabric (choukha) and material for lining. With this material, we made an Arabic dress called gatash, which we sold. A kind Christian tailor came to our house one day and taught

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me how to cut the pattern. I would cut the fabric and the girls would sew the garments, which Haroutiun would take to the stores. The storekeepers would sell these garments to the peasants. This is how our large family lived, modestly and frugally.

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I Obtained an Employee CertificationThe war was raging on and I couldn’t go out into the streets freely because Armenians were beingharassed and conscripted into the army. Of course, they weren’t given arms. Instead, they were forced into labor battalions.

One of our friends, the businessman Elias Noune, was also a close friend of the commander for military supplies. We begged him to ask the commander to give me a suitable job. Because I was able to read and write in Turkish, I was given a job as an assistant clerk. This allowedme to obtain an official document, which permitted to walk about the streets freely and go themarketplace.

I worked in an office on the second floor of a building in Bab-el-Faraj. I received no salary.Instead, I was paid one loaf of bread per day. However, I was also permitted to purchase flour atless than market price. The person who ran the flour stores was a Christian and he was very kindtoward me. He gave me enough vouchers to buy more than enough flour for our large family atfavorable prices. We sold the excess to acquaintances. We continued our dressmaking enterprise as well. Each night, after work, I would cut the material and the girls would sew the dresses during the day. Haroutiun sold the garments to the shops at a reasonable profit.

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Eight Days in JailI continued my military job as an assistant clerk for four months. I recorded official documentsand my workload was light. But I wasn’t content with just one loaf of bread per day and the right to buy flour cheap. Soon it became apparent that the war was not going well for theGermans and Turks. The Turks began to panic and there was a breakdown in law and order. Istopped reporting to my job, but still went to the market on occasion. One day, on my way back from the market, a soldier stopped me. He said our commander wanted to see me. I had no choice but to go with him.

The commander was very angry. He scolded me, called me a “khayin guiavour” (disloyal infidel). He sent me to the military prison. There were about twenty other prisoners there.They were happily singing and playing music.

Late that evening, my family became suspicious because I had not returned. My brother learned about my arrest and came to the prison with some food and a mattress. I was released eight days later thanks to the intermediation of some friends. I continued working in my job until the beginning of the armistice. Germany and Turkey had been defeated and the Armenians were very enthusiastic and had great hopes.

At this point, I no longer needed my government job. Now, I was free.

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Getting MarriedThe war ended after the defeat of Germany, Turkey and their allies. The English army madeits way all the way to Aleppo and conquered it. At this time, my brother and I decided it was time to marry. The war had delayed our marriages long enough. On November 30, 1918, inthe presence of friends and acquaintances, Father Ghevont Kahana Nahabedian married both of us. The late Hovaguim Chalian served as Godfather (best man). I had previously chosen thepharmacist Hagop Satiguian to serve as my Godfather, but he had been murdered by the Turks in his pharmacy in Ourfa. I was 34 years old at the time of my wedding. Haroutiun was 30. My fiancée, Noyemzar Imirzian, was 19 years old. My brother’s fiancée, Eliza Kilejian, was also19.

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I Went Back to OurfaWe learned that the English had also captured Ourfa. Without fear, many surviving Armenians returned to Ourfa and tried to reclaim their properties. I decided to do the same and went back alone.

Oh, what a splendid reception we received by the Turks! There were many welcoming words. They cursed those who they claimed had caused the massacres. They didn’t want any blame. Intheir minds, of course, the real perpetrators were the Armenians themselves who had revolted against the government and forced it to massacre everyone.

They apologized profusely and exclaimed, “Vallah! God is my witness! I do not have even a single piece of straw in my house from a looted Armenian home.” But I saw many valuable items that had been looted from Armenian homes. They added, “Let us get you whatever youneed. Beds, mattresses, etc., we’ll get them for you.” The Turks were terrified by the Britishforces. They were afraid that the British would hold those who were guilty responsible. ManyTurks had been holding Armenian children and women in their homes as slaves, but they set them free when the British arrived.

Our shops, our house, and my wife’s parents’ house were all looted. Indeed, all the Armenian homes and shops had been looted. Turkish and Kurdish refugees, who were fleeing from theinvading Russian army, had come and taken up residence in the homes of Armenians who had either been killed or deported. Over the winter, they tore up the wooden doors, rafters and shutters of any spare rooms and burned them for heat. But when the Armenians began returning under British protection, the Turks and Kurds emptied whatever was left in these houses and disappeared.

After spending some time in Ourfa, I decided it was safe enough to bring back my wife. I traveled back to Aleppo to retrieve her. We moved into her parents’ house because it was the least damaged. In total, my family owned four houses and my wife’s family owned four. All were almost completely destroyed. We had to have them restored otherwise they would have fallen apart completely and the expenses would have been even greater. But we had nothing and had to start from scratch. We even had to buy glasses in order to drink water.

Adour Levonian who was from Ainteb, came to Ourfa with the British army as an Intelligence Service official. He began taking eyewitness testimony from Armenian survivorsof the massacres. I met with him and told him everything I knew. But this was all in vain for nothing was ever done.

Haroutiun came to Ourfa from Aleppo just a few days later and brought Noyemzar’s 6-7 year old cousin Lousin with him.

We heard that Nshan’s young son and daughter, Hovhannes and Araxi, were staying with an Arab sheikh. Haroutiun took some gifts and went to ask the sheikh for our children. The manwas very kind and turned the children over to us. (See a related photograph on page 1198 of the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’.)

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We also received word that Gassia, Hagop’s five-year-old daughter was with a Turkish effendi.The man and his wife had no children and they had taken care of Gassia as if she were their owndaughter. Gassia had become very attached to them. She knew no Armenian and spoke only Turkish. This couple sadly consented to give up the little girl of their own free will. Perhaps,they may have been afraid not to.

Haroutiun stayed in Ourfa for a few days and then took the three children with him back to Aleppo. His family and business were in Aleppo and Nshan’s older daughter, Rahel, was in Aleppo.

I wrote earlier that the Kurd Hussein Pasha owed us 300 gold coins. He welcomed me and sent 10 shimbils* (a measure of weight) of wheat loaded on 5 camels to a new accounting shop I had opened. The wheat was in payment of the money he owed us for clothing and the 200 bagsof wheat. No doubt, he was afraid that I would complain to the British if he didn’t repay his debt.

The Kurd Osman agha, one of the wealthy villagers of the Nalcheghan village, sent me twocontainers of ghee as partial payment for his debts. The owner of half of the mill in Ainarous,the wealthy Severagly Ali Effendi condescended to come to my shop and welcome me back andask about my health. Later, when the political situation shifted again in favor of Turkey, this monster tried to snatch the Imirzian’s one-quarter share in the mill at a very low price, but I wouldn’t let him. I write about this later.

The British helped a lot with the expenses to renovate the ruined or partially destroyedArmenian houses. The Americans also sent aid officials who brought money and opened an orphanage.

But our happiness did not last long. Rumors began spreading that the British were leaving. Oh dear God! Where can we escape? What despair! Armenians were in a state of panic. Theywere all thinking of abandoning the city. My wife had just given birth two days earlier and was still in bed. There was no way we could travel. What was to become of us? Once again we weregoing to fall into the hands of the Turkish beasts who were filled with vengeance against theArmenians. Many Turks were planning to snatch our young children and daughters from us.

After five or six hours of worry, we got some good news. The British were leaving, but theFrench were coming in their place. Thank God!

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American AidRepresentatives of American assistance organizations visited Ourfa and noticed the extreme destitution of the Armenian people. They sent two American ladies, Miss Homs and Miss Lo, tohelp.

Miss Homs started two orphanages—one for boys and the other for girls. They were initiallylocated in the same buildings as the previous American orphanages adjacent to the Evangelical church. In addition to the local orphans, they took in orphans from Severeg, Berejig (not the Berejig near Bolis), Adiyaman, etc. There were more than a thousand orphans in total.

Because the old buildings were inadequate for their needs, Miss Homs had two new buildings constructed on the outskirts of the city with spacious, well-ventilated rooms. Thispresented an opportunity for Armenian artisans to earn a living. They needed stonecutters,masons, carpenters, blacksmiths, etc. It took about 7-8 months to finish the work then theorphans moved in. The orphanages also had schools.

Miss Lo settled into one of the wings of the building that housed the old carpet factory, Masbana. She started helping the poor and needy in different ways. She began handing outalmost new second-hand jackets and pants that had been sent in bales from America. Thosewho could afford it were asked to pay a small price. She also opened a factory for makingmanousa (a fabric with flowery prints used for dress making). She opened a tailor shop in thehouse of Reverend Abouhayatian for this purpose. The Reverend had been killed by the Turks. She employed needy widows and girls who sewed dresses for a fee. She then distributed these dresses free of charge to the needy, or sold them at very low prices to those who could afford topay something. Furthermore, she provided funds to those who needed principal in order to buy tools for their crafts. And she distributed canned milk to needy children.

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The German Hospital and The Rug FactoryDr. Fisher, the chief physician of the German hospital, returned from Switzerland. His assistant was Dr. Hagop Beshlian, who had been released from the Turkish army. Mr. Jacob Kuntzler, the administrator, and Hovsep Alahaydoyan, the pharmacist, joined them.

One of the experts from the former German rug factory, Mr. Hovhannes Tachdjian, who was both a rug maker and a dye specialist, reorganized the old rug factory with the assistance of American aid. This helped provide work and income for hundreds of needy Armenian women.

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Armenian Coeducational SchoolsIn addition to the orphanage schools, we reopened a coeducational school in the old school buildings next to the Armenian Evangelical church. These buildings had remained in goodcondition. The members of the school board were Reverend Yeprem Jernazian, anotherindividual whose name I cannot recall, and myself. I also can’t recall the names of most of the teachers. But there was a female teacher named Mrs. Rebecca Arabian. She later moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina where she eventually passed away.

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Nshan’s Surviving Children Move to Sao PaoloBefore the war broke out, Nshan’s daughter Rahel had been engaged to a tailor named Hovsep Kaghtatsian. Hovsep specialized in making trousers and jackets. But very few people in Ourfa wore trousers. So in order to make some money, he had gone to Aleppo to find work. Whilethere, he had heard about opportunities in Sao Paolo, Brazil and decided to move there with the hope of returning one day.

My sister Vartouhi’s second husband, Attar Tanielian, had a son named Hovhannes (i.e., Vartouhi’s step-son). He also had gone to Sao Paolo in order avoid being drafted into the Turkish army.

After the massacres of the Armenians, Hovsep learned through correspondence that Rahel was alive. He also learned that Rahel’s younger brother Hovhannes, and her even younger sister Araxi, also survived the killings. He sent money to Aleppo asking my brother Haroutiun to send all three of them to Sao Paolo. Vartouhi’s step-son, Hovhannes, learned that his whole family had been killed. But he also learned that Mariam (Aghajan’s wife), Mihran, Kevork (their sons), Lia and Kayane (their daughters) had survived. So he also sent money to Haroutiun to pay for their travel expenses to Sao Paolo. Hovhannes learned that Lia’s fiancé had died. He knew Liawell and expressed an interest in marrying her.

They were all staying with Haroutiun in Aleppo and contacted me for my opinion on thismatter. I knew both gentlemen very well and encouraged them to go. . I replied: “If Rahel, Lia and Mariam agree, I have no objection. They are all adults. It is God’s will.” My brotherKrikor’s son, Armenag, wanted to go with them. So they all went. Rahel and Lia were already of age and soon got married. Years later, Kevork and Hovhannes married non-Armenian Brazilian girls.

Many of them are now dead. Lia passed away and both Rahel’s and Lia’s husbands have died. Mariam has also died. Mihran and Armenag have grown old and neither one ever married. Kayane suffered from an incurable disease for years and passed away on February 12, 1977.

We exchange cards and letters every New Year. Rahel has two sons and two daughters. Her older son is married. Kayane has two daughters and one son. Her older daughter is married to an Armenian. Kevork has a son who is a medical student. Hovhannes has a son who is a physician in North America. Araxi has no children. They all express their regrets that because ofthe massacres, we are all so far apart from each other, dispersed to the four corners of the world, yearning to see each other.

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I Assumed The Role of A Priestand Performed A Marriage Ceremony

After the ceasefire, surviving Armenians who had served in the Turkish army began returninghome. Most of them found that their parents and wives had been killed or had simply disappeared. They found bachelorhood very difficult and wanted to marry and start newfamilies. At the same time, there were many young widows who needed companions and protectors.

The Turks had killed so many of our clerics that there were no priests available and nobishops to ordain priests. So it was impossible to perform weddings. One of my school friends, Krikor Kabbenjian, had come close to becoming a deacon, so he informally married many couples. Dikran Kaghtatsian (who died in Aleppo just two years ago at an advanced age) was a young man at the time. He had fallen in love with Elise Hovaguimian, his mother’s distant relative. Elise had lost her parents during the massacres. The two of them wanted to marry. Dikran had had a feud with Krikor, so he asked me to marry them. I didn’t know the proper rites for a wedding, but if I refused, they were going to get married illegally. The proverb says,“Necessity repeals the law.” So I recited the Lord’s Prayer and whispered some other prayers that I knew and pronounced them married.

Some time later, an elderly priest named Der Haroutiun visited from another city. He performed many marriages. After 9-10 months, we started hearing the wonderful cries of newborn babies. This was a sound we hadn’t heard in a long time and missed it very much. Those cries brought back memories of old and happy days.

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I Opened A Shop in Ourfa and Started A BusinessAfter returning to Ourfa, I got busy renovating our ruined houses and those of the Imirzians. I also renovated the 15 shops (7 of ours and 8 of theirs). After repairing the doors and the window shutters, I rented them out. I sent the proceeds to my brother Haroutiun in Aleppo to help support him and our extended family.

I reserved one of the best shops for myself. It was opposite the Giumrig Khan. I wrote to my brother asking him to send all kinds of merchandise. He was familiar with what goods would sell and he had good credit in the market. He started sending me merchandise, which I sold at a profit. It was a good occupation and we made good profits.

The Armenian population of Ourfa started becoming prosperous again, both from theoutside financial aid and from their own work. Because of the massacres, the Turks, Kurds andArabs of the cities and villages had been deprived of many necessary goods and services. Thesurviving Armenians were now back to work as tailors, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, coppersmiths, masons, stonecutters, etc. They were all ready to work and earn a living.

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I Received A Letter from Basraveh AghaBasraveh Agha was the leader of the Kurdish Kedugantsi tribe, which lived near Arouj. He wrote to me asking for help with the French who were holding 10 Kurds in prison. Basraveh Agha wanted me to intercede on their behalf with the French officer in charge and have them releasedfrom custody.

I knew Basraveh Agha by name only. I had never met him and I also did not know the French officer in question. I learned later that Basraveh Agha was a neighbor in my father-in-law’s large Sheikh Choban village. The old inhabitants of Sheikh Choban were from his tribe. They had been removed from the village because they had fought and killed each other. Somewere now in prison; others had run away. The village was almost in ruins. There were 2-3Kurdish refugee families there from the region of Van. He wrote to me to go and reclaim the village and promised to help and protect me.

I had no hope regarding the release of the prisoners, but the next day I went to meet with the French officer and presented the case to him through an interpreter. He was kind and promisedto take the case into consideration. The following day the ten prisoners were released. Theyunexpectedly came to my house and started kissing my hands and feet in order to express their gratitude to me as their savior. I heard later that Barsaveh had also sent the French officer a nicehorse as a gift.

After that, whenever I went to the Sheikh Choban village for business, or to Arabpounar, the former prisoners and their leader, the bandit Abu Henjoush, would greet me and kiss my hand. They would explain to everyone present that I was their savior.

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The Turkish-French War in OurfaAny hopes the Armenians held that they would benefit from the decisive victory of the Allied forceswere quickly dashed. The national revolt led by Mustafa Kemal approached Ourfa. We heard theTurks were marching on Ourfa via Severeg. The National Union informed the French, but theydidn’t pay attention. The French merely accused the Armenians of being too timid people.

Because our house was at the very edge of the Armenian Quarter next to the Turkish neighborhoods, we moved deeper into the Armenian sector and crammed ourselves into a room at an friend’s house. I sent the 10 shimbils of wheat, which Hussein Pasha had sent to me, to the headquarters of the National Union. This was very useful to us when we came under attack.

The French army consisted of just 500 soldiers and most of them were Algerian Muslims. They were staying about five minutes outside of town in the German and municipal hospitalsand in some houses owned by the Shishoyans and others.

The Turks were fearful that the Armenians, being hungry for vengeance, would side with theFrench against them. So before the onset of fighting, the governor invited about 10 prominentArmenians to meet with him. He pretended he wanted to consult with us but his real intention was to convince us not to fight alongside the French.

Based on bitter experiences, we had already decided to remain neutral. Eight of us prepared to go meet with the governor. Just as we were about to go, a Turkish lad delivered a card written in Turkish and immediately ran off. The card warned us not to go the meeting with the governor. Itsaid it is too dangerous. The card was signed “Vatan perver bir dost” (a patriotic friend). We were confused about what to do, but finally decided not to go. We later learned that the invitation wasactually a trap. The governor had planned on holding us—perhaps even killing us—in a bid tocontrol the whole disorganized Armenian community. We never found out who sent the card.

Before we had received the card, the Turks had already asked us to let them pass through the Armenian Quarter in a bid to launch their attack on the French. This was an unnecessaryrequest since there were shorter and more direct routes to their target. We refused their request and said we wanted to remain neutral in this dispute.

The Armenian Quarter was on a hill, separated from the rest of the city by the shops of themarketplace. The houses on the roads leading to the quarter were manned by armed Armenianguards in case of an unexpected attack by the Turks. There about a thousand orphans living outsidethe city with Miss Homs and the other employees at the orphanage. They all came into the city andcrammed into the American buildings. The French officer, perceiving real danger, sent 10 Algeriansoldiers and a French colonel to the city to protect Miss Leslie, the missionary, and Miss Homs, the superintendent of the orphanage, and Miss Lo. They were all in the American building.

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The Fighting Began in Early February 1920The Turks attacked the French with cannon fire. At the same time, they also fired on theArmenian Quarter from the northern direction of Masbana, toward the house owned by the Knajians. Young Levon Roumian was in the street when the attack began that first day andfell victim. The Turk’s hoped this tactic would scare us into letting them enter our sector. Butwe had learned our lesson well and had decided not to give in. We had more than 400 trained young men from Ourfa who were full of vengeance. They had been forced to serve in theTurkish army while their families had been killed or deported. We had military, medical and provisions committees. We had four doctors to treat the wounded: Beshlian, Abouhayatian, Ketenjian and Kilejian. The members of the provision committee were: Hovhannes Ourishian,Garabed Markarian, Kevork Alan. I served as Treasurer. We had gunsmiths led by Tufenkji Sefer who began oiling the guns, loading them with bullets and preparing bombs. Before the fighting began, we sensed the danger, so the National Union purchased 30-40 Martin rifles andthousands of bullets.

The fighting lasted a long time. We had no access to outside food and had to survive onwhat we had. We were facing a dangerous and critical crisis and there was a serious threat of starvation. We slaughtered and consumed whatever sheep, cattle, horses and donkeys were available. My 10 shimbils of wheat and whatever food we could find in the deserted houses ofthe Turks were almost used up. The large population plus the 1,000 orphans required a lot offood. And of course, the Armenian soldiers guarding the positions needed to be fed.

The 10 French soldiers who had come to protect Miss Leslie, Miss Homs and Miss Lo,communicated with their headquarters at night using special light signals. They told us that theFrench troops were also under siege and faced a food crisis. One day we saw an airplane fly overthe French campsite and drop a sheet of paper. There were rumors that French reinforcementswere arriving. The Armenians were heartened. The Turks were very scared. Turkish familiesabandoned their homes and were fleeing the cities the villages. They traveled by donkeys andhorses. But help was delayed and we eventually learned that it would never arrive.

There was no way out for us Armenians. We had no choice but to side with the French. Weplanned to launch an attack on the city and secure food. The hunger had become unbearable. We sent two young men, Dr. Mirza Ketenjian and Mgrditch Mardirossian, to the French headquarters to inform them of our plan and get their input. The two readily agreed readilyto go, but the road was very dangerous. The whole French army was besieged. The Frenchheadquarters had been notified by signals that two young Armenian men were coming so theyshould not be mistaken for the enemy. Miraculously, they reached their destination and signaled back to us. They returned the following night, but brought very bad news. The French hadalready run out of food and ammunition and had decided to retreat. They wanted us Armeniansto mediate on their behalf with the Turks. This was indeed a horrible situation.

We spent some time absorbing this news and thinking about what to do. We finally decided

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to ask the Turks to allow us talk to the French and convince them to withdraw so that we would not starve to death. Dr. Hagop Beshlian and Missak Herartian went to discuss this with the Turks, who readily agreed because they were convinced French reinforcements were on the way. Indeed, the French general, a man named Norman, was in Tel Abiad with his army, which was nearby.

The Turks let the two messengers pass. But when our men reached the French, they triedinstead to convince them to stay. But the French refused and insisted on retreating. Our men warned them not to take the mountain roads because of a possible ambush. They told them toleave via Telabiad. But the French were not persuaded. They said they would sign an agreementwith the Turks according to internationally recognized laws that would ensure their safety. They also said they would put a condition on the agreement that the Turks were not harmthe Armenians. They obviously didn’t understand the Turkish mind. The French reached anagreement with the Turks that very day.

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The French were Ruthlessly MassacredThat night, escorted by 12 Turkish gendarmes, the French left by the western road toward themountains. Before departing, they gave 1000 Ottoman gold coins to Dr. Fisher to be used to help the needy Armenians. Later that night, the Armenian inhabitants of Telfdour Street heard prolonged gunshots and bombs. In the morning rumors began circulating. From the heights of Telfdour, some inhabitants saw with binoculars that a large crowd was approaching the city. They were screaming and shooting. As they got closer, the Armenians saw that Turks and Kurdsheld the impaled heads of the French soldiers on their swords.

The Armenians were completely dejected. They Turks had just massacred the soldiers ofa great nation after signing an agreement guaranteeing their safety. There was no doubt theywould now massacre the rest of us defenseless guiavours (infidels).

We learned later that when the French entered the valley of the Shebeke mountains, the 12 Turkish gendarmes who were escorting them suddenly ran off. Turkish soldiers andtribesmen who had been hiding opened fire. The French resisted as long as they could, but theirammunition ran out and they were caught out in the open. They were defeated and ruthlesslymassacred. The Turks beheaded them and impaled their heads on their swords.

A very young translator-clerk from the orphanage, Hovhannes Chalian who was a college graduate, and another young man named Armenag Abajian had gone along with the French soldiers hoping to be saved. They too were also martyred.

The men assigned to guard the entrances to the Armenian Quarter were ready to fight. Eventhough we were certain to be exterminated by the stronger Turkish force, we were ready to fightfor our lives.

I immediately sent my wife, our newborn baby, my wife’s cousin Lousine, and our neighbor Mrs. Mennoush and her little daughter, to the house of the midwife, Mrs. Souzan, who lived in the Assyrian section. The Assyrians were not being persecuted and their neighborhoodwas safer. The older women wore Turkish ehrams (which covered the entire body), yet the Turkish hooligans recognized them as Armenians and started throwing rocks at them screaming “guiavour, guiavour.” They were terrified but managed to reach their destination.

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The Turkish and Armenian TruceTwo hours later that same day, we heard that the mayor and the leader of the rebellion, a man who went by the name of Nameq Bey (his real name was Ali Saib), had come to the American missionary building. They wanted to make an announcement to the Armenian people.

We thought they would demand our weapons so that they could slaughter us more easily without incurring casualties on their side—just as they had done in 1895 and 1915. The mayorspoke first. He said, “Armenians, do not be afraid. Our fight was with the French because theyinvaded our country. We know you are starving. If the young are afraid to come out, let the old men and women go to the market to purchase food.” He added, “We are not asking for your weapons. You have every right not to trust us. We deceived you in the past and took your guns then massacred you.”

We could not believe our ears. Was this some kind of trick? Was he lying or was he speaking truthfully? That same day, a few old ladies ventured to the market and brought back somefood. The next day some of the older men went to the market and brought back food. The boyskeeping watch did not leave their posts for 4-5 days.

The mayor ordered that a number of sensible Turkish and Armenian men should walkaround together during the night through the Turkish and Armenian quarters in order to make sure there were no unpleasant incidents caused by foolish individuals. For the next few nights, the famous Turkish Pesadizadeh Hajji Khalil and I walked about together until past midnight. We were accompanied by a few of our followers. Everything was safe. Gradually confidenceincreased and Armenians began going to the marketplace on a regular basis in order to earn a living.

They had to kill us so many times, I wondered why they didn’t simply slaughter us this time. Was it because we had served as mediators with the French? Was it because of some political scheme they had hatched, which we had not yet recognized? Perhaps it was a little of both. In any case, it was a miracle that we escaped being massacred.

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New Armenian Enterprises and ActivitiesThe chief physician of the German hospital gave the thousand gold coins entrusted to him by theFrench to the National Union. He delivered the coins to Dr. Beshlian, who presented Nameq Bey with 50 coins as a token of our gratitude and good will.

The National Union used the money to buy wheat to distribute to the poor. They also gavemoney to the robbed shopkeepers and allocated some funds to reconstruct destroyed houses. They gave a sum of money to Hovhannes Tachdjian, the rug-maker, so he could purchase wooland dyes and get the factory running again. Some funds were allocated to Hagop Devejian, the manousa (alaja), maker so he could buy raw materials and sell the fabric at low prices to those affected by the disaster.

The families who lived close to the Turks at the edge of the Armenian quarter and whohad abandoned their houses, began returning home. The Turks had robbed and destroyed myfather’s house as well as the house of Noyemzar’s parents where we had been living. Haroutiun the goldsmith was living in our ruined house. I had both houses renovated so that I could rent them out. We moved into Hovhannes Imirzian’s (Noyemzar’s uncle) house at Bouchakji Meydan. The tenant who was living there at the time went elsewhere. The Turks had stoleneverything from our home and once again I had to purchase replacements. They had also stolenall the merchandise from our shop in the marketplace. I decided to give up on the trading business and rented out the shop instead. But I still had to go to the villages and collect what we were owed.

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Mounla Ayoub Helped Me Collect from Our DebtorsThere was an old Assyrian man named Mounla Ayoub who had converted to Islam. Hepracticed law with Hovhannes Effendi Ourishian, but neither was certified. One day Mounlatold me he knew the peasants who lived in the villages owned by the Imirzians who owed me money. He suggested that we go together and collect what I was owed and that we ask the governor for authorization for a few soldiers to escort us for protection.

I was unemployed and agreed with his suggestion. After renovating our damaged properties and buying furnishings for our looted houses, I was short of cash. Kevork Monofarian, who was the agent of the martyred Garabed and Mgrditch Karadashjian brothers, heard about our plan and wanted to go with us since the Karadashjians also had claims in the villages of Bezik where we were going. We petitioned the governor who agreed to provide one soldier on horseback to accompany us.

I had a very nice horse, which I kept with the partners of our Geolenje village. By claiming the horse belonged to my partners, I was able to prevent the government from confiscating it. Hearing of my arrival in Aleppo, my partners delivered the horse to me. Kevork Monofarian purchased a horse, and Mounla Ayoub already owned one. So the four of us (including the soldier) toured about 8-10 villages in the Bezik region for a month. This was the only areaMounla Ayoub was familiar with.

Mounla Ayoub was a devout Muslim. He was the one who called the peasants of the villages to namaz (prayer). First, he washed his hands and feet then stood in front of the gathered group and mumbled some prayers he had memorized. He was “more Catholic than the Pope” as they say. He announced to those gathered for prayer, “Whoever owes anything to the Armenians and does not pay will suffer severe punishment from God in the next world.” Some believedhim, but did not have any money. Those who had money, lied and said they had none. Theymight give one or two shimbils of wheat, but no money. Only one villager gave me a gold coin. Kevork also collected an appreciable amount of wheat.

We sent all the wheat on camelback to Mounla Ayoub’s house. His son then led the camels to our houses. We gave 10% of whatever we collected to Mounla Ayoub as his compensation. We also gave a few mejids to the soldier who accompanied us. When we returned to town, I sold the wheat for about one hundred gold coins, which I needed to pay for the expenses I incurred renovating our properties and purchasing the furnishings.

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I Was Elected Member of The Municipality (Belediye)After the French soldiers had been massacred, I received an official letter from the Mutesaref (mayor). He congratulated me on my election to the municipality and instructed me to attend the meetings and help improve the welfare of the city. I was happy, not because of this personal honor, but because I thought that the needs of the Armenian community were finally beingtaken into consideration. But I was also saddened because I realized that all the reputable Armenians had been massacred and there was no one left more suitable than myself for the job.

Before the massacres, we had four Armenian members in the municipality. My brother Aghajan was Vice-Chairman. Others were Mgrditch Chalian, Tavit Melkonian, and Hagop Melkonian the Treasurer. In order to be elected, one had to be wealthy or own real estate. I do not know the purpose of this rule. Perhaps they thought the rich were less susceptible to bribery. Yet the truth was that many among the rich were happy to take bribes, while many of the poor were honest and good.

Unfortunately, due to massacres, I was now the wealthiest real estate owner in Ourfa. Prior to the massacres, the Imirzians (my in-laws) were the wealthiest family in Ourfa. I had become the guardian of their properties. My brothers also had been very wealthy and I was now in charge of all their properties as well. This included their villages, houses, shops and four mills. Iwas both a partner and guardian in all those properties.

I also knew how to read and write Turkish well. I was in what appeared to be an enviable position, but I was still mourning for my family and of my wife’s family. I also became embroiled in several unjust lawsuits involving many of the properties and mills. These lawsuitslasted many years, which I write about later in the manuscript.

The municipality was responsible for keeping the city clean and safe. It checked on thepreparation of foodstuffs including vegetables, fruits, meat, milk, yogurt and cheese to make surethey did not go stale or rotten. It also made sure that homeowners repaired walls that faced the streets so they would not crumble and fall on pedestrians.

Hajji Keamilzadeh Mustafa was Chairman of the committee. He was one of the rebels responsible for massacring the French. But he respected me and liked me, and he trusted me because of my wealth.

Because of the massacres, many houses had been left derelict and were in need of repair. TheChairman, with the consent of the committee, gave me a certain amount of money and asked me to take charge of the renovations. I hired expert Armenian masons to fix these walls.

The municipality also levied taxes on grain sales in the marketplace. Taxes depended on theamount of shimbils sold. To avoid having to appoint employees and clerks for that purpose, they often sold the grains at public auction for a large sum. But that sale was sometimes delayed. Thejob of collecting the tax revenues for those days was also entrusted to me. A few inspectors here and there watched while the wheat was weighed, and then collected the taxes according to the amount sold. Then they would come to my shop and give the money to me. The clerk in my

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shop registered the transaction. The sales would end by noontime, and I would take the moneyto my home. The following day, I would take the money and the statement to the municipalitybuilding and give it all to the accountant.

Every four years, a new chairman and new members were to be appointed by the existing council (mejlis idare) presided by the governor. There was to be one Armenian member as wellas the Armenian primate on the committee. However, before the end of my four-year term, Mustafa Kemal came into power and began a new persecution against the Armenians and I had to escape once again to Aleppo. I write about this later.

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I Lost A Large Amount of CapitalAfter massacring the Armenians, the Turkish government established offices called emvale metrouke (abandoned goods) in all the cities. These offices were to sell the so-called abandonedgoods and collect rents from those living in properties that belonged to the Armenians. Theywere supposed to register the funds collected in the names of the former owners. But the whole process was plagued with cheating and embezzlement.

We were one of the wealthier families of Ourfa. The Imirzians (my wife’s family), werethe wealthiest of all the Armenians in Ourfa. They owned numerous villages, mills, shops andhouses. Besides our household furnishings and the merchandise in our shops, the Imirzians and Der Bedrossian owned large quantities of wheat, barley, corn and sesame seeds that had already been harvested and stored in silos before the massacres began.

During harvest, the government claimed rights to one-tenth of the grain. It required thousands of employees to actually make the collections. They had to visit thousands of villages,stake the government’s claim, arrange for storage and transportation to the cities and then sell it. This was a tremendous hassle. In order to avoid some of the hassles and to minimize cheatingand stealing, the government often sold its share of the harvest at public auction (mezad).

In addition to their own harvests and what they were owed by others, the Imirzians had purchased large amounts of grain at these auctions. Indeed, their holdings were so vast that it had taken six months to transport it all even though some of it had been stolen on route. Thispilfering was discovered when I got involved in a lawsuit, which I talk about later.

One year during the war there was a terrible drought and famine. One timin of wheat sold for as much as three gold coins (a timin was a wooden container with which grains were measured. One timin was 25 kilograms). At those prices, the Imirzians’ wheat would have amounted to a vast fortune. However, they were murdered and their stores were looted.

After the armistice and the defeat of the Turks, during a time when the British were in Ourfa, a directive was issued calling for all of the income from the properties and the sale of the abandoned goods be delivered to the surviving heirs of those who had been massacred. I had already managed to regain custody of our real estate holdings. I had also written a petition hoping to get reimbursed for the value of our abandoned belongings. In my petition, I included the values of the assets that had belonged to my family and to Noyemzar’s family. I got the figures from the records.

Fifty-eight years have now passed and I do not remember the exact sums that belonged to each family. But I do remember very well the total amount. Combined assets of the two families came to about five thousand gold coins.

I demanded reimbursement, but the director of the emvale metrouke surreptitiously whispered in my ear, “If we pay you now, we will give you paper currency. For every gold coin we will give you one bill for the value of that coin, but you will end up incurring a great loss.” The loss was due to the factthat paper currency was being devalued. At the time, bills representing five gold coins had already

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been devalued to less than one gold coin. He advised me to wait a few days and added, “Armenians everywhere have submitted petitions and complaints. There is great hope that the payments will bemade in actual gold coins. Then you will make a huge profit, and naturally you will be kind enoughto give me a bakhsheesh.” Bakhsheesh was the Turkish word for “tip”.

I did not know if I should believe him, but I decided to wait as he advised. In fact, I wasn’t even sure he would have given me the paper currency if I had opted for that. I went back a few days later. He told me to be patient, saying “The directive will come in a few more days.” Theman lied to me for two months. I never got paid.

Soon after, the Turks slaughtered the French soldiers and felt they had the upper hand, so they paid nothing to the Armenians. In fact, they even banned Armenians from selling their own real estate holdings. Soon, Kemal’s ruthless persecution began. They killed the pharmacist,Karekin Torigian. They shot at Krikor Karakashian in his shop, but he survived. They jailedTaniel Yousoufian accusing him of murder. I have no idea if Taniel had done anything wrong,but I heard rumors that they were coming after me as an accomplice. I immediately fled frommy house and hid in another. Leaving everything behind—including my family—I escaped to Aleppo that night. I write more about this later.

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Lawsuits Involving The Imirzian’s PropertiesLawsuit No. 1: InheritanceWhen we returned to Ourfa after the British arrived, we almost went crazy from all the lawsuits filed against us. There were two inheritance lawsuits. Here I describe the first.

My wife’s father and uncle, Garabed and Hovhannes Imirzian, were martyred along with most of their immediate family members during the massacres. My wife Noyemzar and her 5-6 year old cousin Lousin were the only survivor. Because Lousin was so young, I became her guardian and protector. But the Imirzian brothers had a cousin (the son of their father’s brother) named Garabed who also survived the massacres. By Turkish law (sheriyat), if the decedent has no surviving son, a male paternal cousin is considered the heir.

Garabed was a 40-45 year old married man. He took two witnesses to the sheriyat court who attested to his relationship to the Imirzians. He filed a lawsuit against us demanding more thanhalf of the Imirzian’s estate. The Imirzians had four large houses, valuable shops and a one-fourth partnership in each of four lucrative mills. Each mill had its own grinding stone.

What a headache! Two young girls had just been orphaned. Their parents, brothers, sisters,everyone had been massacred. Now they were about to be robbed of the greater part of their property by a relative.

I was the only who could take responsibility for this complicated matter. Fortunately, we received some news that gave us some hope. Two witnesses claimed they had seen Noyemzar’s 4-5 year old brother, Mgrditch, alive. They said he was with the nomadic Arab Aneze tribe. A friendly Turkish lawyer advised me that the court would be sympathetic to this. Since a man could feasibly live to be 99 years old, it is possible that Mgrdich could one day surface and demand his share of his father’s estate. Therefore, the inheritance could never be given tosomeone else since they might sell the properties or spend it away depriving the legitimate heir of his rights to the property.

Consequently, we took these two witnesses to court and got a ruling in favor of Mgrditch. Garabed was very disappointed. Of course, we weren’t sure if Mgrditch was really alive or not. The witnesses did not know Mgrditch very well and they could have been mistaken. But theywere sure they had seen a boy of his age with a strong resemblance.

Garabed approached us through some friends asking for a monetary gift. He claimed he had incurred expenses coming to Ourfa from Aleppo to stake his claim. We felt sorry for him and were happy to get rid of this nuisance, so we agreed to pay him 30 gold coins if he would go to the office of katebe adla* (notary public) in Ourfa and sign an official document stating he hadno claims against us. He agreed and signed the document.

But two years later when we again were forced to flee Ourfa to Aleppo because of Kemal’spersecution, Garabed went back on his word. He got advice from some scheming lawyers, sued us again and denied ever having signed away his claims. He said any signature that existed must be a forgery.

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Once again, we were embroiled in a lawsuit. Once more we paid him off. We gave him 10gold coins on the condition that he again sign away his rights through the katebe adla. Once again, he signed again. This time we also had his photograph pasted to the documents next tohis signature. We were finally finished with this big nuisance.

Although we lost all our properties in Ourfa, we still owned three mills in Syria. But Garabed had his eyes on those as well. As for Noyemzar’s brother, we never found him.

Lawsuit No. 2: InheritanceAs I explained before, Noyemzar was my cousin’s daughter (i.e., my father’s brother’s daughter’s daughter). Noyemzar’s mother’s brother was named Dikran. He was discharged from the army after the ceasefire of the 1915 war. Once released, he came to Ourfa to find that hiswhole family had been martyred. Dikran and his younger brother Nigoghos were at our house almost every day. Dikran liked to drink and play music. So did his friends. Dikran was a tailor by trade, but he began making and selling arak (an alcoholic beverage similar to the Greek ouzou).

He would ask me for money every two days. “Give me two gold coins. I want to buy grapes. Give me five coins. I will rent a bar. I want to buy fuel.” Since he was a relative, I gavehim more than 20 coins in total. One day, when he was drunk, he came to our house and said to Noyemzar, “I am only taking what’s my due. I still have lots of demands. I am my dead sister’s heir.” He was talking about Noyemzar’s mother.

According to him, the Turkish sheriyat said that if a women dies after her children, her brother becomes the heir. However, Noyemzar was very much alive, and as I wrote earlier, we thought there was a good chance her brother Mgrditch was also alive. In fact, his existence had been affirmed by a court order. But Dikran couldn’t understand this.

One day we heard that Dikran had lost money from his arak business and moved to Aleppo. We were relieved to be free from his demands. But then the Turkish and French war began, the French were massacred, and two years later Mustafa Kemal’s persecutions of the Armenian’s started. We fled to Aleppo in a panic.

Soon after we got to Aleppo, Dikran came to me and asked for 10 gold coins. He wanted to buy a horse to join the cavalry. I assisted him. Soon after becoming a soldier, while on duty in a guardhouse one night on the Turkish Syrian border, he got into a fight with some Turkishsoldiers and his right arm was badly wounded. Naturally, he had to retire from the army.

So that he could earn a living, Dikran was given the job of preparing coffee in the FrenchSecurity Office—a job he could perform with one hand. One day, he told his French boss thatI had stolen his share of the income from the three mills in Syria and that I was not helping him in his unfortunate state. His boss believed him and felt sorry for him and suggested to the chairman of the sheriye court (qadi) to look into Dikran’s claims. He asked for a petition and opened a court case against us.

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I was not fluent in Arabic, so I hired a blind attorney, Levon Tamzarian, as my deputy. I gaveLevon the ruling of the inheritance court that affirmed Mgrditch’s existence. I also explainedthat my wife Noyemzar was also alive. But Dikran managed to find three witnesses who werewilling give false testimony all of Dikran’s sister’s children had died before her.

I was certain that these witnesses hadn’t even known Dikran’s sister. I presented the judge with a group photograph of an entirely different family in which there were some women andchildren. The judge asked the three witnesses separately to point to Dikran’s sister in the picture. Each witness pointed to a different woman and to different children. The qadi (judge) realized that Dikran was at fault. He told our lawyers to reconcile us and reach an agreement.

A few days later, the qadi (judge) went to the Armenian Prelacy and begged Ardavazt Srpazan to intervene and resolve our differences. He did this because the French official kept askinghim to rule in Dikran’s favor and he was embarrassed by the whole thing. The Primate calledme and begged me to find a resolution. Out of respect for the Primate I agreed to give Dikrananother 15 gold coins. Dikran then signed another document in the presence of the katebe adla * (notary public) with his photograph on it, stating that he had no claims against us. The matterwas finally over and done with.

Lawsuit No. 3: The Mill At AinarousThe village of Ainarous was about a day’s walk south of Ourfa in what eventually became Syria. The mill, three millstones, and one-fourth of the land belonged to the Imirzian brothers. One-eighth of the land belonged to Mgrditch Shahinian and another eighth belonged to Khoren and Krikor Piloyan. The remaining half belonged to the very wealthy Severagtzi Ali Effendi.

Ali Effendi took advantage of the war and exploited the murders of the Imirzian brothers forhis benefit. He paid a bribe to the government and cashed in the Imirzian’s share of the mill’sincome for four years until the ceasefire was declared. Mgrditch Shahinian and the Piloyanswere millers by trade. They survived the massacres under Ali Effendi’s patronage and kept themill operating.

Due to drought during the war years, prices went very high. The villagers often did not haveenough cash and had to pay the millers in wheat. The millers sold the wheat at high marketprices and made a very large profit. This resulted in an increase in the rent for the mill. Theannual rent sometimes went as high as 400 Ottoman gold coins. Of course, the tenant profitedfrom the income produced by the business.

So during the four years of war, Ali Effendi collected the Imirzian’s share of the rent as well as hisown. The Imirzian’s share amounted to 100 gold coins a year, or 400 gold coins for the four years.

There was also another reason why the rent went to so high. At the time Syria was part ofTurkey. It was not yet independent and did not yet enjoy the protection of the French. So all of the wheat from the numerous northern villages was milled in Ainarous. When Syria became an independent country, Turkish wheat was no longer brought to Ainarous for milling. Today there

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are three motorized grinding setups near Ainarous, which grind the wheat quickly and efficiently.Customers prefer to go there rather than to Ainarous. As a result, the mill’s income has fallen greatly.

After the French were massacred by the Turks, the Armenians were considered guiavours (infidels) once again. Ali Effendi sent me a message with Dr. Beshlian asking me to sell himthe Imirzians’ share of the mill. His real intention, however, was acquire ownership at a very low price. I categorically refused his offer for two reasons. First, I did not need the money. We already had a decent income. Second, and more important, Lousine was the surviving daughter of Hovhannes Imirzian. She was the rightful heir and I was her official guardian. I had no right to sell her property. But Dr. Beshlian advised me to sell. He said, “The monsteris threatening to have you killed one day if you refuse.” Nonetheless, I refused.

One day I ran into Ali Effendi in the courtyard of the municipal building and told him,“I am the guardian of the little girl and the law forbids me to sell her share.” He replied, “I acknowledge neither the guardian nor the owner,” and walked off. He then instructed Shahinianand the Piloyans to not pay me the Imirzians’ share of the mill’s income. They did not pay mefor a whole year.

Ali Effendi sued me. Apparently, when the partners of a property have a dispute they cannotresolve and resort to the government by suing each other, the government has the right to sell the property by public auction. One of the partners may try to buy the shares of the others, but if an agreement cannot be reached, a third party can purchase the property at auction no matter how low the price. I was not aware of this law.

The mill in Ainarous had three sections and could not be easily divided equally. If it had fourmillstones, we could have drawn lots and become independent of one another.

I received a summons from the court and was instructed to bring a certain amount of money. In order to buy Ali Effendi’s share of the mill, I would need at least 300 gold coins cash, which Idid not have available. I did not know what to do.

Two days before the trial I ran into a Turkish friend who told me, “Don’t ever give up the mill. Go to court on the day of the trial and accept whatever the estimate for Ali Effendi’s shareis. Register that in your name. A friend who likes you will supply the capital. You can pay him later when you are able. I cannot tell you who he is at this time.”

Was I to believe this? I went on the day of the auction, but Ali Effendi was not there. Iwaited for more than an hour. The other cases finished. At that moment, I saw Ali Effendiwalking slowly through the yard of the courthouse with a friend. They came near. I wasstanding on the second floor just outside the courtroom. He looked up and must have seen me. But instead of coming up, he left by the door on the opposite side.

A Turkish friend who was a lawyer and was familiar with our lawsuit walked by and asked me what happened. I said, “Ali Effendi came and saw me, but did not come upstairs. Instead,he left.” He said, “Hurry! Tell this to the judge Da’vane soukoutene taleb ederim”. It meant, I demand the annulment of the trial.

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I learned something else I did not know. When the plaintiff is not present on the day of thetrial, the trial is canceled. It seems that someone told Ali Effendi that the American aid officialin Ourfa had promised to provide me with the required capital. But there was no truth to this. I had gone to court on the promise of some unknown benefactor. I never knew who that person was.

I was a member of the municipality. The chairman was Hajji Zade Mustafa, a veryinfluential person and Ali Effendi’s adversary. I had told him about my problem some timebefore the trial. I had told him that Ali Effendi refused to allow me to collect my share of themill’s income. He to me not to worry and offered to send a cousin to go and stay in the mill tocollect my share of the rent. I thanked him for his offer, but did not ask for his cousin to go.

I Reconciled with Ali EffendiAli Effendi and I remained angry with each other for some time. He still did not allow thepartners to pay me my share in the mill.

When the French and Turks reconciled, Syria stayed under the French protectorship. Therailway tracks were designated as the border between Syria and Turkey and the village of Ainarous and the mill were on the Syrian side of the border. Ali Effendi had little influence inSyria and believed the French would be more sympathetic toward Armenians. So he decided to reconcile with me.

I had a friend in the village named Sheikhzadeh Eomer Effendi. Both he and Ali Effendiwere Kurds. One day Eomer Effendi asked me to go with him to meet Ali Effendi. I objectedsaying that we did not get along. But he said, “No! No! Ali Effendi is a very good man. Do notlisten to others.” He tried his best to convince to go, but I knew that Ali Effendi had put him upto it.

But I was an Armenian and considered a guiavour (infidel). I decided it would be best for meto make up with Ali Effendi. Eomer Effendi and I went to Ali Effendi’s house together. Whenwe entered his living room, Ali Effendi stood and welcomed us cordially. He offered us coffeeand acted as if we had never been enemies. The workers of the mill brought me my share of thatyear’s income.

Ali Effendi was elected a deputy and moved to Ankara where he died. He was a fanaticalKurd and there were rumors that the government had arranged his death by poisoning him. He was born in Severag, but had moved to Ourfa when he married the sister of Nedim Effendi,another prominent deputy from Ourfa. Ali Effendi had two sons from another wife wholived in Severeg. His older son, Sabri, came to Ourfa and Ainteb once or twice as his father’s representative to collect their share of the rents from the mill. Some time later, Shahinian refused to pay him any more claiming that the expenses were very high and there were no profits.

Shahinian has since passed away, but his family still controls the mill. The Shahinians haveappropriated Ali Effendi’s shares in the lands and the mill. They haven’t paid anything in the

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30 years since Ali Effendi’s sons came to Severag. It is ironic. Ali Effendi tried to embezzle anArmenian’s share, yet in the end an Armenian stole his share. As the proverb states, “He who makes a trap, gets trapped himself.”

Lawsuit No. 4; The Mill of HimbashiThe Imirzian brothers owned four mills in all. Ainarous, Hayabendi and Salan were in Syria. They owned a quarter share in each of these and each had millstones. They were also the soleowners of a fourth mill called Himbashi, which was in Turkey in the Kurdish region called Beziki.

Himbashi was an amazing mill. It was all one piece, hewn out of the rocks, without any masonry or cement. The only movable parts were the three sections of the black millstones. Himbashi was at the bottom of a mountain on the banks of the Euphrates River. I went there and saw it for myself. A strong current of water, flowing from under the mountain, turnedthe millstones and then emptied into the Euphrates River. After the Imirzian brothers and the Armenian millers were murdered, the mill had been left abandoned and uncared for.

One day, an Assyrian miller and a Turkish entrepreneur came to see me. They wanted to rentthe mill. We reached an agreement that called for them to pay me 270 Ottoman gold coins for a three-year term. They were to assume responsibility for all expenses including repairing themillstones, procuring tools, paying the federal taxes, etc. The rent was quite low, but I had nothad tenants for three years and thought this arrangement would help get the mill working again. They paid 100 coins up front and promised to pay the remaining 170 coins after six months. Iwrote two promissory documents, which they signed before leaving.

But just about 10 days later they returned and asked for their money back. It turns out that a villager named Hassareh had prevented them from entering the mill. He claimed he had confiscated rights to the mill because the Imirzian brothers owed him 300 Ottoman gold coins. I returned their money. What else could I have done?

I later learned that when Garabed Imirzian was murdered during the massacres in 1915, his brother Hovhannes took refuge in someone’s house and wasn’t able to open his shop for business. Their sons, Kevork and Mgrditch, were sent to one of their villages so the Imirzian’spartners could escort them to Aleppo where they would be safe from the massacres. But the plan had failed and the boys were arrested near the Lake of Father Apraham. They were set free afterpaying a large bribe.

During the massacres, Armenians were forced to give a huge amount of money as a payment to the Turkish government. The Imirzians had contributed the largest share, but had to borrowthe money from Hassareh’s father, a man named Mohammed Reshe. They had borrowed 500gold coins and signed a promissory note. They had also provided collateral. Mohammed Reshehad insisted that they provide large amounts of wheat, barley, sesame seeds, corn, lentil (all in thousands of shimbils) in different villages against the 500 coins. He was authorized to sell onlyenough of the grain to recover his 500 coins.

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The Turkish government found out about the Imirzians’ cache and confiscated what theycould. However, Mohammed Reshe had already stolen much of the grain and had hidden it from the government. As I wrote earlier, Noyemzar’s mother secured Ekart’s consent to go to Masbana with her children, thinking it was safe. She had taken with her all the records, documents and promissory notes that belonged to the Imirzians. These were later given tome. By comparing those records against what the government had confiscated, we were able todetermine that Mohammed Reshe had redeemed more than double the 500 gold coins worth of grains. He later sold what he stole at very high prices.

I hired a lawyer named Ourishian Hovhannes Effendi and his partner Mounla Ayoub. Wewon our case and I repossessed the mill and rented it out. At this time, however, Kemal’s new persecution of the Armenians had escalated. The Turks shot at Kr. Karakash and he fled toAleppo. Then they killed Karekin the pharmacist in the middle of the day. They arrested Tanieland charged him with murder. Word reached me that the Turks were looking for me, so I, too, left everything behind and fled to Aleppo. I left at night with some smugglers, which I writeabout later.

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The Dire Consequences of A Group PhotographA Valuable Lesson

Soon after the Germans and Turks were defeated in the First World War, the British made their way all the way to Ourfa. Many of the surviving Armenians returned to their birthplace and reclaimed their properties. The Turks were in a panic. They returned all the Armenian girls andchildren to their families. They also gave the Armenians many items they might need.

Emboldened by the British presence, a group of Armenians gathered together the skulls of around 50 Armenians who had been massacred. They piled them on top of each other andplaced a sign reading, “These skulls belong to Armenians massacred by the Turks.” Then a number of young men and orphans gathered around the skulls and had their photograph taken. The more prominent individuals in the photograph were Karekin Torigian (the pharmacist whowas later shot), Reverend Yeprem Jrnazian, Dr. Armenag Abouhayatian, Missak Melkonian, Vasil Sabbaghian, Haroutiun Deyirmenjian, Hagop Devejian and Sarkis Gezirian.

After the British departed and after the French were massacred, the Turkish government arrested the men mentioned above who appeared in the photograph. Only Missak and Dr. Abouhayatian avoided arrest because they had secretly left Ourfa. The others were sent to themilitary court in Dikranagerd. In December 1921, after 21 months of harsh imprisonment, they were finally released and returned to Ourfa. Fortunately, they were not killed.

I had not yet returned to Ourfa when that photograph was taken. There is no doubt that if Iwere in Ourfa at the time, I, too, would have been in that photograph. I would have posed with the others either because of my shortsightedness or because I would have felt embarrassed no to. I still have a copy of that photograph.

This should be a good lesson for us Armenians. We should never rely on the Europeans orothers to protect us. We should always live cautiously and bear in mind how the local people will react in the future.

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Yeghisapet DiesYeghisapet, our eldest daughter, was born in Ourfa. She was named in honor of our mothers who had the same name. Yeghisapet fell ill, but due to the war, proper medicines were not available in Ourfa. She died at the age of three after suffering for a long time. This caused usvery deep sorrow. Yeghisapet was very beautiful. Everyone who saw her admired her and loved her. Had we been superstitious, we would have said these admirers had given her the evil eye (achke yeghav).

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Desperate Times:We Sent Lousin to Aleppo and Sold Some Properties

Mustafa Kemal’s persecutions against the Armenians were intensifying day by day. TheAmerican benevolent organizations started moving all the orphanages from cities such as Kharpert to Lebanon. This was done under the leadership of Mr. Jacob Kuntzler, theadministrator of the German hospital of Ourfa. When it was Ourfa’s turn, I sent Lousin, who was 10 years old at the time, to my brother Haroutiun in Aleppo. I urged him to enroll her in a boarding school.

Miss Jeppe had gone to Europe to recuperate. When she returned, she settled in Aleppo. She had a generous budget for Armenians to be used for rounding up orphans, building shelters for the homeless, establishing embroidery and artisanship shops, etc. She had told Haroutiun to write to me to come to Aleppo because she needed my help. I wanted very much to go, but it wasn’t possible. Armenians were forbidden to leave the city. Military guardhouses had been posted at all of the city’s exits. If anyone tried to escape, he would either be shot or arrested and sentenced to hard labor. If he managed to escape, the government would confiscate all of hispossessions.

Against all odds, I decided to try and sell some real estate properties and escape to Aleppo. I was willing to accept any price just to have some funds with me so that I would not become a burden to anyone, which I would have found intolerable. However, it was illegal for me to try to sell our properties. The deeds were in the names of my two eldest brothers. I was a partner onlyin two houses. Even if I could sell the properties, I was concerned that my brothers’ surviving children might one day accuse me of improperly disposing of their inheritances.

The Imirzians’ properties were in their names. They had only one house each registered astheir residences. The biggest obstacle was that Lousin, Hovhannes’ daughter was in Aleppo. Yeteven if she were present, it would not have done much good since the law did not permit minors or their guardians to conduct transactions.

A rich Turkish businessman named Ali Kazzaz wanted to buy two of our valuable shops and our partially rebuilt spacious house, which was in Noyemzar’s father’s name. He knew I was desperate to sell. The deal was settled by bribing lawyers and the director of the department thathandled deeds. They advised finding a 17-18 year old girl and having her stand in as Lousin.The official of real estate deeds came to our house with two witnesses. He secured promises fromNoyemzar and a girl who was posing as Lousin, and finalized the transaction.

I sold the two shops and the partially constructed house for 750 Ottoman gold coins. In the same manner, I sold the house in Buchakji Meydan, which belonged to Lousin’s father, to a Turkish client for 200 Ottoman gold coins. Also, we sold two sections of our villages. In all, I collected 1,175 gold coins. Because 75 coins went to paying taxes, commissions and bribes, I netted 1,100 gold coins.

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I also sold another piece of land for 40 gold coins. This land had no deed and a few dayslater the buyer returned and demanded his money back. He was concerned about an order from Ankara that forbade Armenians from selling property. He was afraid that since there was no deed, the government might confiscate the property since it once belonged to anArmenian. I returned the money.

I could not sell any more properties. Soon news spread that I was in possession of a large amount of cash. I was afraid the government would accuse me of some wrongdoing and demand a large payment. I was also concerned that someone might try to rob me. So I delivered 500 gold coins to Mr. Kuntzler. He gave me a check to be cashed in Aleppo, which I transferred to my brother’s name and sent to him. I took another 500 gold coins to the bank in Ourfa. Less than one month later, the bank director, who was a Christian, urged me to withdraw my money. He said rumors were spreading that the government was going to confiscate all the money fromthe banks that were accounts belonging to Armenians. I retrieved my money, but I did not want to keep it at home. So I took it to Ali Kazzaz, the man who had purchased my properties. He gave me a check that I could cash from his representative in Aleppo. Although Ali Kazzaz was a Turk, he was a dependable person and pro-Armenian.

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We Moved in with The Chalians, then TheKarakashians

I sold Lousin’s father’s house where we had been living and I had rented out all our other houses. I thought it would be more suitable to move into the Chalian’s house in the center of the Armenian Quarter. The house was rented by a tailor named Hagop Balian (Eshgoyan), but ithad three extra bedrooms. He invited us to move in with him and share in the rent. Hagop was Assyrian by birth, but he was Armenian for all practical purposes. He had been orphaned and was accepted into the German orphanage for Armenians. As a result, he had been raised as an Armenian and received an Armenian education. His wife was also Armenian.

We were there barely three months when we received a notice from the government ordering us to vacate the house within five days because Ajemi Pasha wanted to live there. Ajemi Pashawas an Arab who had fought with the Turks against the British near Baghdad. Being defeated, he had fled with his followers to Ourfa. The Turkish government rewarded him by giving himthe village of Garmouj. He lived there with his entourage but he also wanted a house in the city.

Hagop moved to the Assyrian section of the city and we moved in with Krikor Karakashian, the goldsmith. He was living in a house nearby and had an empty room. The house hadbelonged to Berejiklian who had been martyred. We stored some of our possessions in the basement.

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Karakashian The Goldsmith Escaped to AleppoWe were in our new location barely 4-5 days when a stray bullet shot by an unknown sniper wounded Krikor Karakashian’s apprentice. Krikor was convinced the bullet was meant for him. He was completely distraught. He packed up all his belongings in two bales and asked his sister-in-law, Mrs. Maghakian, to send them to Aleppo at some future date. The next day he escapedto Aleppo with some smugglers (kachakji). The smugglers were runaway outlaws convicted bythe government. They made a good living smuggling Armenians to Aleppo. They charged 8-10gold coins per person. Some of those trying to escape would be captured or killed, so it was a dangerous adventure.

I decided I, too, had to escape to Aleppo no matter what. My brother was there and Miss Jeppe had already asked me to help with her work. So I packed up my belongings, which consisted of rugs, beddings and blankets, into two bales to send to Aleppo with Karakashian’s bales. Turkish muleteers were regularly transporting goods to Aleppo and they usually arrived safely.

A young Turkish neighbor from Buchakji Meydan told me that the government was planning to confiscate Karakashian’s belongings since he had run away. With the help of some friends, wequickly packed and within an hour moved everything to Taniel Yousoufian’s house.

Indeed, just two hours later, officials came to impound Karakashian’s belongings. Mrs.Maghakian and her son, Khoren, insisted that the bales belonged to them. But the officialssearched them and found Karakashian’s photograph among other items. Mrs. Maghakian argued that they the picture as a souvenir from their relative, but they confiscated the bales and tookthem away.

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They Killed Karekin Torigian. I Escaped Once MoreKarekin Torigian was from Kharpert. He moved to Ourfa at a young age, opened a pharmacy and became very successful. When the massacre of the Armenians in Ourfa began, the Turks spared certain individuals they had a need for. They spared the physician Armenag Abuhayatian,the pharmacist Karekin Torigian, the dentist Dikran Chertiglian and the baker Nerses Pialbashian. All four were forced to convert to Islam and were given Turkish names.

Karekin became known as Kadri. He was married and his whole family was also forced convert. The doctor and the dentist secretly escaped to Aleppo. After a few Turks working inNerses’ bakery learned the trade, they deported Nerses to Deir Zor. He died on the way.

Kadri survived because there were no other pharmacists in the city. When the British reached Ourfa, Kadri immediately changed his name back to Karekin. He was familiar with the English language and told the British which Turkish houses the many Armenian girls were being held. As a result, the British were able to rescue many Armenian women and girls. When the British withdrew and the French were massacred, Karekin started making preparations to move to America where one of his brothers was living. He sold his house and was very happy to be going.

Early one morning, while we were sleeping at Taniel Yousoufian’s house, we were awakenedby Karekin’s maid. She was terrified and was crying. She told us Karekin had been killed andthat his body was lying in the street. She pleaded for help! But what could we do? Taniel went and opened his store for business. A little later we received news that the Turks had arrested him for Karekin’s murder. We heard they were also looking for Dr. Zakar Kilejian and me as accomplices. I immediately fled in a panic and found refuge at a friend’s house on a sidestreet. Then I sent news to my wife about my whereabouts.

Sometime later, we learned the full truth. Younous Chavoush had received orders from the mayor, Hajji Mustapha, to kill Karekin. He had gone in disguise and shot Karekin in the back as he left his house on the way to his pharmacy. This was done in retaliation for Karekin’s role inhelping the British save the Armenian girls from the Turks.

That evening, I received news from Noyemzar that Ayoub (a smuggler) and his friends wereplanning to leave for Aleppo that night with a few Armenians. I felt I could trust Ayoub. He had already taken Missak Melkonian, Mihran Herartian and others safely to Aleppo and he had brought back letters from them just a few days ago. The person who brought me the messagefrom my wife said that those who wanted to escape were to meet at Aroush Devejian’s house next to Telfedour. I sent a message to my wife asking her to bring my revolver, a pair of soft shoes and some bread and cheese to the meeting place.

I went to Devejian’s house after sunset. The three armed smugglers, Dr. Zakar Kilejian,Kevork Monofarian, Hagop Devajian, Kevork Mkhitarian and a young man named Hovsep were already there. My wife and her maid arrived some time later wrapped in Turkish dress (ehram, or woolen wraps that cover the entire body). They brought what I had asked for. They also

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brought 20 gold coins. They were stopped on the way and were asked where they were going insuch a hurry. They said there was a woman in labor and they were looking for a midwife.

I gave my wife the check for the 500 gold coins, which Ali Kazzaz had given me. I told her to take it back to Ali Kazzaz with Dikran Kaghtatzian, a trustworthy man. I was worried that if I were captured or killed on the way, the government would take the check and demand payment from Ali Kazzaz arguing that because the money belonged to an Armenian, he should give it up to them.

Ayoub admired my revolver and wanted to see it. I handed it over to me and told him I would give it to him as a gift if got us to the Syrian border safely. The gun was worth 10 goldcoins.

Noyemzar and her maid returned home in a very agitated state. Despite these circumstances, I worried about the money I was holding for the municipality.

As I have already written, I was a member of the municipality (belediye). Money had been allocated to rebuild the walls of the Armenian houses. I had seven gold coins that belonged to them. But trying to return this money meant having to go through the Turkish quarter, which was much too dangerous. I explain later how I managed to return the money.

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How We Set Out and Almost Got CaughtWe waited in Devedjian’s house until midnight. There were sentries moving around the streets atnight (devriye) and we heard the sound of their whistles several times. After it had been quiet for a while, we opened the door and sneaked out one by one. We walked quietly toward the western peak of Telpedour from where we descended a very steep 100-meter path to a meadow on the northern side of Halebli Baghcha.

The Turkish guardhouse was 50 meters away. The path was so steep that we had to sit on ourbacksides and slide down grabbing the ground with our hands. Hagop Devedjian had a tin cup attached to his belt and it kept clanging against the stones. He was quite a distance from us so we couldn’t tell him to untie the cup from his belt.

When we reached the entrance to the meadow, we suddenly heard a loud shout from the guardhouse. “Who’s there?” We were terrified and started running through the meadow withall our might. The guards began shooting. Fortunately, they missed. The smugglers who wereaccompanying us were ready to resist if necessary. But we kept running, thinking the soldiers were right behind us giving chase because we heard footsteps from behind. It turned out to be others from our group. We ran until we fell to the ground in complete exhaustion.

After catching our breaths, we noticed that Devedjian was not with us. Ayoub turned back and found him lying on the ground some distance away. He dragged him back. We rested for 10 more minutes and set off again. After walking for an hour, the smugglers took us to a caveon the side of a hill. Some time later an old man and a boy arrived with large plates of cracked wheat (boulghouri pilav), some bread and a pail of water with a tin cup. They said they lived inthe small village behind the hill. We ate and drank and gave the man 5 mejids. He left satisfied.

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The Kachakjis Returned toOurfa To Bring Us Some Horses

Because it was a long way to the Syrian border, the smugglers decided to return to Ourfa to get some horses. I sent a note with them for my wife informing her that we were safe. Theyleft before dawn. We sat on the damp floor in the cave all day long waiting for them to return. Long after dark, they still had not returned. We began to worry. Had they been arrested? Had they been beaten? Had they betrayed our hiding place?

Suddenly, we heard footsteps and the neighing of horses. We were terrified. Thank God itwas them. My wife had sent back a note saying she had been terribly afraid the night before. Soon after our departure, they had heard the sound of gunshots from the guards and feared that we had been arrested or killed. She was delighted to receive my note and gave the smugglers a gold coin in gratitude.

We immediately mounted the horses, two men on a horse, and rode for 5-6 hours. Suddenly our guides stopped. They were puzzled and realized they had gone the wrong way. It was almostdawn and we were near Gregavour, a village that was quite some distance from the Syrian border.

Hagop Devedjian said he was familiar with the village and knew a Kurdish-Armenian family who lived here. This family had converted to Islam. He went to ask them for shelter. Fortunately, they agreed with pleasure to help us. We dismounted and left the horses with our companions who promised to meet us at night in a designated location.

We went on foot and reached a conical or a dome-shaped hut. After passing through it, we entered a second hut. The host greeted us cordially. His name used to be Giragos, but he hadchanged it to Karakoz. One of the huts was on the road, which he had turned into a store where he sold cigarettes and candy. He brought us some food, and realizing that we were very tired, he let us sleep.

We slept until noon and they served us food again. Shortly after dark, we got word that our friends were waiting for us on the outskirts of the village. Karakoz led us to them. We scattered and walked carefully to our rendezvous, careful not to attract any attention. We thanked Karakoz and left. After riding for about an hour, we finally reached the Syrian border. Syria wasunder French supervision at the time and it was separated from Turkish territory by a railway track. We dismounted from the horses and left them with our companions. Each of us paid them 5-10 gold coins. In addition, I gave Ayoub the revolver I had promised him. After saying goodbye, we walked slowly over the railway tracks and entered Syrian territory.

Years later, when I began farming in our village Sheikh Choban near Arabpounar, I met Karakoz’s son. His name was Oso Karakoz. He had become a true Armenian, converted back to Christianity and changed his name to Hovsep Karagoezian. He was a prosperous businessman, he was very patriotic and helped the church and the school generously. He had two grown sons who had opened a large trading house in the Nor Kiugh (Meydan) section of Aleppo. Dr. Zakar

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Kilejian, who had escaped to Syria with us, was practicing in Arabpounar. He always treated Hovsep Karagoezian and his entire family free of charge. This was in thanks for the help thatHovsep and his father gave us in our time of need. I write much more about Sheikh Choban on the following pages.

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My Final Escape From Ourfa. I Reached Aleppo on Feb. 5, 1923

Now that we were in Syria, we had to get to Arabpounar in order to catch a train to Jarablous. Hagop Devedjian led us, but it was a dark night and he wasn’t sure of the way. We wandered back and forth for two hours. We went left and right and stumbled about in the dark until we were exhausted. Finally, we reached a place where we heard the sound of rushing water from a mill. We went closer and knocked on the door. We weren’t concerned because millers were almost always Armenian. Someone from inside asked in Kurdish, “Who is there?” We replied that we are Armenians and asked him to open the door. When he did, I recognized him. He was a young man from Ourfa.

We were about half an hour by foot from Arabpounar, but we were very tired. The youngman invited us to stay and advised to go to Arabpounar the following day. Then he slaughtereda chicken and prepared a meal for us. We ate then slept until morning. He prepared tea in the morning. We thanked him and set out again and walked to Arabpounar where we saw two or three Armenian shopkeepers and another mill.

After a short wait, the train arrived. We boarded and after a half-hour ride, we crossed the bridge over the Euphrates River and arrived at the large and bustling town of Jarablous. Therewere a number of Armenian families from Berejig and a few from Garmouj. We found out that Krikor Karakashian had made it to Aleppo. The Sajour River was raging and it was not possibleto cross with an ordinary carriage. Furthermore, there were no cars or drivers available. I sent a telegram to my brother asking him to come with two cars and take us back to Aleppo.

Hospitable compatriots gave us shelter in their houses. Haroutiun arrived two days later with two cars as I requested. The cars crossed the river with great difficulty. Some villagershelped us. They tied thick ropes to the cars, got into the river and pushed and pulled the carsacross. My brother gave them some money for their assistance. We also gave them some money.

We got into the cars and crossed the river with great difficulty. By evening we reachedMoumbouj where we ate dinner and spent the night at the house of our friend Sarkis Tashjian who was also from Ourfa. We set off in the morning and arrived in Aleppo in the afternoon.

For the next few days, we received visits from many friends and acquaintances. They cameto welcome us and inquire about their loved ones in Ourfa and about the general situation there. It was February 5, 1923 and this was my final escape from Ourfa. I never saw Ourfa again. YetI was still filled with worry because my wife and one-year old daughter, Rose, were still there. Who knew what would happen to the Armenians who remained there. The Turkish governmentwas regularly robbing and torturing them. They used various methods of persecution. Theyoften made false accusations against them and there were many attempts on their lives. I describe more in the next chapter.

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Noyemzar and Rose Come to AleppoAfter I escaped from Ourfa, the Turkish government began another round of persecutions. Theystarted torturing and frightening all the Christians. A few of the elders went to the mayor and begged him to allow all the people them to leave the city. This is exactly what the Turks wantedanyway. So the mayor agreed, but only on the condition that everyone sign an official documentpromising to never return. They also had to sign a document stating that they were willinglydonating all of their possessions and properties to the Turkish government. The people readilyagreed to these conditions. They asked the mayor to provide a few soldiers to accompany themso that they could travel safely. The mayor accepted this condition.

So Armenians, Assyrians and Catholics began arriving in Aleppo in large numbers. My wife and daughter made it safely 20 days after my arrival.

I explained earlier that when I was escaping Ourfa I realized that I still owed seven gold coins to the municipality. This was money that had been budgeted for renovating the dilapidatedwalls of houses in the city. But returning the money meant risking capture and not being able to leave Ourfa. Hajji Moustafa, the president of the municipality, blocked the departure of the last Armenian caravan, demanding payment of the seven gold coins that I owed him. He said to them, “Your leader has run off without returning the money he owes us.” HaroutiunNalbandian paid the money on my behalf and got a receipt. Finally, the Turks allowed them to leave. When they arrived in Aleppo, Haroutiun told me the story. Of course, I paid him back right away. I had already been trying to find a way to return this money to the municipality.

I wrote Hajji Moustafa a letter. I wrote, “You ordered the murder of Karekin the pharmacist. Then you arrested Taniel, an innocent man, and charged him with the murder. I heard you werealso planning to arrest Dr. Zakar and me as accomplices. Had you been in my place, you too would have fled. Yet despite all this, I was still trying to return your money. I left my family andall of my belongings behind and escaped in a panic. Why did you not go to my wife and ask her for the money? She would have readily paid you.”

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We Married Off Lousin ImirzianDr. Zakar Kilejian, who fled from Ourfa with me, had a degree from the Medical Universityof Bolis (Istanbul). When he was in Bolis, he became engaged to a young Armenian lady. He returned to Ourfa after the ceasefire at the end of the first world war. His parents and olderbrothers had all been martyred. Only a younger sister and a younger brother were left alive. He began working as an assistant to Dr. Fisher, the chief physician of the German hospital of Ourfa. He wrote to his fiancée in Bolis and asked her to come to Ourfa so they could get married. Butshe did not come, so the engagement was over.

After we fled to Aleppo, he moved in with his paternal cousin, Mrs. Oghjan Kordaghi whohad been widowed. She urged him to marry Lousin, Noyemzar’s cousin, who was studying and living in a school run by nuns. Zakar’s sister also liked this idea, so he proposed.

But as Lousin’s guardians we were reluctant to agree since the doctor was 15-16 years older than her. Furthermore, Lousin already had several suitors in Ourfa and Aleppo. Among them was my nephew Kevork (Aghajan’s son). He was intelligent and much younger than Zakar, but he had immigrated to Brazil and we did not want to send Lousin half way around the world. So, we finally agreed to the match. Zakar and Lousin got married in Aleppo.

After the wedding, I gave them 540 gold coins in total. This amount represented Lousin’shalf of the 1100 gold coins I had received from selling the properties in Ourfa plus 75 gold coins in interest minus 85 gold coins in expenses related to tuition and support for the two years she spent at the boarding school, and expenses for the wedding and the trousseau.

We split the income from the shares the Imirzian brothers had in the three mills and the three villages in Syria. But after Syria became socialist, the government confiscated the villages. One of the mills collapsed and required a large sum of money to rebuild, so we just left it the way it was. We sold another mill for 4,000 Syrian pounds and we split the proceeds. We still own a quarter of Ainarous. But now it has been three years since we have come to the United States and we have not received any payment from that mill.

Zakar died of cancer in 1958. Lousin has three children and was living in Beirut. Her son Dr. Vahe Kilejian, who lives in California and is married to an American, helped her immigrate to the United States. She moved to New York after the civil war in Lebanon. She was living with her youngest daughter who is a university professor. Lousin went back to Beirut in 1977 to repossess her house. It had been confiscated by squatters. She had to pay the squatters 1,000Lebanese pounds to vacate the premises.

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I Started Trading in AleppoBecause I had no hope or desire to return to Ourfa, I had to find an occupation. We were livingas one family in the house my brother Haroutiun had rented. It was a two-story house with four bedrooms, a kitchen and a basement. He had rented two bedrooms to two families from Ourfa whom we knew. They moved out after my arrival, so we had use of those two rooms.

My brother had invested the cash I had sent him from Ourfa in business, instead of keeping it in a bank. He had no capital himself. But business was good, so I did not object and we started working together. There was a lucrative market for merchandise which was hard to findor very expensive across the border in Turkey. Turkish smugglers placed large orders. We also had two buyers from Rasulain, which was close to the Turkish border and smugglers crossed over to do business there also. But, due to the fluctuations in the price of gold, the merchants doingbusiness by credit started losing money because the peasants had to wait for harvest before they could pay back their debts. So, in turn they refused to pay us and all our capital was lost. I will write more about this later.

Before all this financial misfortune, when we were doing very well, Miss Jeppe offered mea job with a good salary. I thanked her but refused. She then asked me to help Mrs. Horom Gaschick every Saturday afternoon with the accounting of the large embroidery establishment where she was the supervisor. I could not refuse. Every Saturday afternoon, tired and exhausted, I left our business and went to help Mrs. Horom with the paychecks and the accounting. I did this without any fee, which I refused to accept.

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Ali Kazzaz Delivered My 500 Gold Coins to AleppoI explained earlier that before escaping from Ourfa, I returned to Ali Kazzaz the check he had given me in return for the 500 gold coins I had entrusted to him. I did this because I was afraid that if I were captured or killed, someone would confiscate the check and demand payment. Afew days after I reached Aleppo, Ali came personally and delivered the 500 gold coins to me. A few others had also entrusted him with their money. He repaid everyone. Seeing that we were doing well, he returned to Ourfa and started sending us large quantities of wool and ghee so that we could sell them for him. Other Turkish businessmen from Ourfa who knew me also began sending me ghee, wheat, corn and wool by the wagonload to sell on their behalf.

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Buying Wool for the Orphanage in GhazirAll of the orphanages, including the one in Ourfa, were moved to the town of Ghazir in Lebanon under the directorship of Jacob Kuntzler. Mr. Kuntzler, a Swiss, was a great man. It bears repeating that he helped us during the massacres while we were hiding in Miss Jeppe’s house. For example, he vaccinated us against typhus when the epidemic broke out. He was the representative of the Swiss benevolent society for the Armenians. Besides serving as superintendent of the orphanage in Ghazir, he also had numerous houses built in the Bourj Hammoud region of Beirut for the destitute and homeless Armenians. The Armenians of Beiruthad his biography published as a gesture of gratitude for all of the things he had done for them. The title of the book was “Papa Kuntzler.”

After the orphanages were moved to Ghazir, various factories were established for the orphans to work in. One was a rug factory under the directorship of Hovhannes Tachdjian who was also from Ourfa. He was my close friend and later became an in-law when his son, Dr. Vahakn, married my daughter Asdghig.

Of course, Mr. Kuntzler knew me well from Ourfa. He and Hovhannes sent me a letter from Ghazir asking me to purchase wool for the rug factory. I knew that there were many Arab and Kurdish tribes around the region of Rasulain who sheared their sheep during the summer. Because they were nomads, they did not want to store the wool until a time that they could sell it for a good price. They preferred to sell the wool right away for whatever price they could get.

The administration of the orphanage sent an employee, Movses Alahaidoyan, with a checkin the amount of 2,000 Ottoman gold coins. Movses was also an acquaintance from Ourfa. He and Haroutiun went to Rasulain, where we had two customers who were shopkeepers. Therewas plenty of wool available and they were able to purchase the required amount at a good price. They had the wool washed in the clear running waters of the town and shipped it directly toBeirut. The administration of the rug factory was very happy and sent us a nice commissionas a gift. While in Rasulain, my brother noticed a house with four adjacent shops for sale. He bought it at a good price and registered the deed in my name.

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The World Economic Crisis of 1929-1930Commercial distrust.In 1929 there was a great amount of distrust in the commercial sector from North America to the Middle East. Banks, which regularly used to extend credit to trustworthy businessmen, suddenly stopped doing so. In turn, the businessmen stopped selling their goods on credit. Banks and businesses began demanding the repayment of all debts.

Our business, which had been doing very well, was affected by this crisis. We used toconduct about 4-5 times the amount of our capital in business with our customers—shopkeepers in Arabpounar, Rasulain, Telabiad, Ainarous and Raqqa. We regularly bought and sold merchandise on credit. Our customers kept asking for merchandise, which we were unable to buy and deliver to them. So they got angry at us and stopped sending us payments. Commercial traffic came to a halt.

We paid our creditors whatever cash we had until we had no more. Our customers were in the same situation. They either did not have the cash because they had also sold merchandise oncredit, or they realized how bad the situation was and pretended not to have enough cash to pay us. We had large quantities of wool, which we wanted to sell. But the wool traders had stopped buying. We sold what we could at a loss of 500 gold coins just to be able to pay our debts. But even that was not enough. (There is a saying: Dzagu medz, gargudanu buzdig, which means the hole is big, but the patch is too small). We sold the four shops and the large house Haroutiun had bought in Rasulain. Yet that was still not enough to pay all our debts. There was a lot ofmoney owed to us, but nobody was paying.

Gold Rises; Silver FallsBefore the World War, one Ottoman gold coin was worth 5 silver mejids or 125 ghouroushes. But during and after the war, one gold coin gradually rose in value to 275 ghouroushes. Everyone worried about the price of the silver mejid, so they started buying gold coins with silver coins. Eventually, the price of a gold coin went even higher. It rose to 15, 20, 30 mejids. During the winter, the shopkeepers of towns such as Arabpounar and Rasulain sold merchandise to the villagers with credit expecting to be repaid in the summer during harvest. But the villagers did not understand that the prices of gold and silver were changing relative to one another.

(Illegible in the original copy. T.D.O.) p. 110.

Two Years of DroughtEven worse than the worldwide economic crisis and the rising price of gold was the drought of 1929-1930. Because it barely rained, all the crops (wheat, barley, corn, etc.) were destroyed. The villagers lost what they had sown, as well as the profit they expected to make from it.

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All the grass in the pastures dried up and the sheep and cows died of hunger. The villagersof Turkey and Syria never stored fodder for their livestock, even when the harvest was abundant. As a result, they went bankrupt and could not pay anything. All of the money owed to the shopkeepers simply vanished. So did the thousands owed us.

To protect our honor and avoid going bankrupt, we paid all we had. But we couldn’t settle all of our accounts. When our creditors realized we were not trying to cheat, they remained patient. We lived frugally and after 4-5 years of very hard work, we managed to repay all of our debts. But our personal capital, which had risen to 3,000 Ottoman gold coins prior to these catastrophes, had completely disappeared. Some said we were foolish to repay everything we owed. They said we should have just refused to repay our creditors and stash away some moneyaway for ourselves just as others were doing. Then we could convince the creditors to take onlya fraction of what we owed them. Indeed, many people did this. They later settled the claimsagainst them for as little as 25-30%, sometimes 10%, of what they owed. But we felt it was dishonorable to do this.

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Haroutiun and I Separated Our BusinessesWe had lost all our capital, most of which was my own. Our income also decreased. It was no longer possible to support two families with one business. My brother and I each had three children at the time. We were too cramped living in one house so I decided to rent another. We also decided to divide the business.

All of the houses, shops and lands that my family had owned were in Turkey. The Imirzians,however, had many more properties. Some of these were in Syria. The administration of theseproperties had been under my control even though half of them belonged to Lousin. She had already married Dr. Zakar Kilejian, but the demands of his profession did not permit him to look after the properties. He often traveled away from Aleppo. As a result, I was taking care of the properties and every year I would pay half the income to Lousin. I also provided her with the accounting paperwork. Here is a listing of the properties that belonged to the Imirzians:

Half of Sheikh Choban, a very large village. Dr. Zakar and I later purchased the other half and so the whole village belonged to us.

One quarter of Rasmelmaraq, another large village near Telabiad. Our share totaled about 200 acres.

One quarter of land and the mills in the village Ainarous.One quarter each of the mills in Hayabend and Aaloun. These three mills had three millstones each. While working with my brother, I did not

have sufficient time to check on all these properties personally. So we relied on two Armenianpartners at each of them. I would personally visit the properties only occasionally, spending about 1-2 days there. However, after separating from my brother, I began taking care of everything myself. I would often spend months at the villages during the harvest and when the seeds were prepared and sold and sown. I also took care of buying new oxen and selling the old ones.

As mentioned earlier, Haroutiun and I had purchased wool on behalf of the rug factory in Ghazir. Mr. Jacob Kuntzler and Mr. Hovhannes Tachdjian also wanted me to purchase wheat, white corn and ghee for the orphanage. I went to Sheikh Choban during the harvest. There wasplenty of wheat for sale. With the help of the trustworthy Nahsan, I bought xxx bags of wheat. Then I went to Kamishli and bought 300 bags of white corn from some friends. I sent this all toBeirut by train. They had already sent payment to cover the expenses. Later, I personally wentto Beirut to finalize the transaction. Mr. Kuntzler and Mr. Tachdjian were very happy with theresult. They took me to their homes and rewarded me generously because I had managed to buyeverything at very cheap prices. Because prices soon doubled, the orphanage had managed to save a few hundred gold coins.

Mr. Tachdjian was a member of the board of trustees of the Armenian Clinic in Azounieh, which was near Beirut. At his request, I traveled to Arabpounar and purchased 30 tin containers

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of sheep’s ghee for the clinic and had it shipped to them. The money I earned from these errandsand from the three mills we owned made us more comfortable, independent and self sufficient.Needless to say, I always gave half of all the income from the farms and mills to Lousin.

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The Village of Sheikh ChobanSheikh Choban was a village, which ended up in Syria under French protectorate. It was owned equally by Hovhannes Imirzian and Krikor Agha Ghazarian who was from Berejik. I could write for 50 pages about this village because I spent 45 years of my life on farming the village and on all the lawsuits related to it.

Sheikh Choban was 15 kilometers south of Arabpounar. It consisted of 1,750 acres of red, fertile soil. There was no flowing water, but there was an abundant well. The soil was good forgrowing wheat, barley, corn, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, watermelon, etc.

Before Imirzian and Ghazarian purchased it, it had been inhabited by pillaging and villainous Kurds from Kedrkan. Their leader was the infamous Basrave Agha who lived in a village of hisown about an hour away from Sheikh Choban. Every year, the official tax collector would visitBasrave Agha instead of going to Sheikh Choban. He was warmly received and served arak and barbecued lamb. Basrave would send word to the farmers of Sheikh Choban to come and bring their tax payments. Because they were illiterate villagers, they would not ask for a receipt for their payments. The tax collector would then pocket half the payments and give the other halfto Basrave. This went on for years.

Some time later, the farmers of Sheikh Choban had a dispute and they split into two camps. Some murders were committed, and in order to avoid arrest, most of farmers deserted the village. Only a few old men and women remained behind, but there was no one who could sow and harvest the crops. After some time, an inspector from Bolis (Istanbul) arrived. He found no record of tax payments and ordered the village to be sold so the government could collect its due. Furthermore, a new owner would start farming again, which would bring in additional revenues for the government.

The municipal government (mejlis idare) offered the village for sale at public auction inOurfa, Berejik and Arouj. Garabed Effendi Imirzian wanted to buy the village. However,because he was a member of the municipal government, he was prohibited from doing so. So his brother, Hovhannes, offered to purchase it. Krikor Ghazarian from Berejik also wanted to buyit. Instead of competing with one another and pushing the price higher, they agreed between themselves to let Hovhannes buy the property for 300 gold coins. Krikor later paid him 150 gold coins and each of them registered half of the land in his name.

They brought in new farmers, they purchased bulls and they bought wheat and barley forsowing. When the crops were harvested, the farmers were permitted to keep half. They also setaside some of the harvest to be used for sowing the following year. Then they split the revenues fromselling the remainder of the crop. This all took place before the 1915 massacres of the Armenians.

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The Treachery of Basrave Agha and Guiavour HajjiAfter the Armenian massacres of 1915 and the ceasefire of the world war, and after I had settledin Aleppo and started a business with my brother, I received a letter from Nourijan, Krikor Ghazarian’s son. He had moved to Jarablous from Berejik and he informed me that he had begun farming in Sheikh Choban. He had three farmers working for him. However, because the land was vast, he asked me for help. He needed a few more farmers and he wanted to buy things like oxen and wheat for sowing.

A few days after getting his letter, I met with Nourijan in Jarablous. I did this on my way to visiting the shopkeepers in Arabpounar with whom we did business. I gave Nourijan 50 gold coins to purchase oxen and wheat. He promised to pay me back at the next harvest. But when the harvest arrived, Nourijan wrote me a letter claiming that the villagers had refused to give him his share.

I went to Jarablous immediately. Dr. Zakar Kilejian was living there at the time. (He is the son of the daughter of my maternal uncle, and he is the one who later married Lousin.) Together we wrote a petition and took it to the head of the village (kaymakam), a Christian who added a few lines addressed to the mayor of Arabpounar asking him to look after our rights. That same day we heard that Basrave Agha, the tribal leader of our farmers, was in Jarablous. We told the kaymakam about this. He called in Basrave Agha and rebuked him for the behavior of his tribe. But Basrave denied any knowledge of what had happened. However, I am certain he had instigated the whole thing. Most probably, he had come to Jarablous hoping to avoid incrimination.

I was prepared to take our petition to the mayor of Arabpounar, but some local friends advised me not to. They said, “The farmers probably dismissed Nourijan at Basrave’s suggestion,yet the mayor will do no more than assign a couple of soldiers to escort you to the village to try to reach some settlement. But once the solders leave, Basrave can send his men to steal your oxen and have you killed.” They told me the French were very fond of him because he and hismen had fought with them during the Turko-French skirmishes around Jarablous. For this, the French had awarded him 1,000 gold coins and a medal. As a result, Basrave had no fear. Theyadvised me to try to sweet talk him.

Reluctantly, I agreed. Dikran Shahbaz was an Armenian trader in Jarablous. He was friends with Dr. Zakar and Nourijan. He invited Basrave to his house that evening and entertained him with arak and food. He also invited Zakar, Nourijan, a few other friends and me. Dikran promised Basrave 20 gold coins if he would write a letter instructing his eldest son, Kheshman, to go to Sheikh Choban and restrain those dogs (i.e., the farmers). We paid him the 20 gold coins and he wrote the letter.

Before setting off, however, we received a message from Basrave’s cousin, Guiavour HajjiHeme. He was nicknamed Guiavour (Infidel) because he was merciless and cruel. He heardwe had paid Basrave 20 gold coins and wanted to be paid off, too. We were quite upset by this.

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Where did this guy crawl out from? Our friends advised us to pay him off as well. They saidhe was a warlord (agha) and could cause us great harm. So we paid him 7 gold coins and left to see Kheshman, Basrave’s son. We presented the letter from his father and brought him to the village. The farmers finally gave us our share of the harvest without any further ado.

I described earlier how Basrave had invited me to go to Sheikh Choban from Ourfa in order to help me. So was this the help he was going to provide? He wanted to trap me and rob me. He wanted to upset things and profit from the chaos. I must note here that at the time of theseevents, Syria was not yet independent. It was still under the protection of the French.

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Another One of Basrave’s RusesHovhannes Imirzian’s deed to the village of Sheikh Choban was stolen, along with everything else he owned, during the Armenian massacres of 1915. Besides, the deed had been written in Turkish, so it would have been suspect anyway. It was important for us to get a Syrian deed.

Basrave knew this. He called together all of the villagers, many of them were heirs or relatives of the previous owners. They were still there because Nourijan had made the mistakeof hiring some of these people as farmers. Basrave lied to these people by saying, “Imirzian has taken possession of your village with a false deed. Bring me 50 mejids (1,250 ghouroushes) and I will hire a lawyer to repossess your lands.”

The stupid villagers believed him. They managed to collect the 50 mejids. Basrave had a friend in Jarablous named Fuad who wrote petitions. He gave Fuad 5-6 mejids and pocketed the rest. He instructed Fuad to tell the villagers that everything was proceeding nicely if they asked him. This is why our farmers hated us. They were convinced that we had illegally cheated themout of their lands. Every once in a while they would rebel, but usually not for long. They werepoor and destitute and depended on our help. In the meantime, we made many sacrifices tosatisfy their demands for foodstuffs and other goods. We were trying to buy some time until wecould obtain the Syrian deed.

The villagers were supposed to pay their debts during the harvest. But they either did notpay at all or they paid only small amounts. They stole from the threshing ground and from theseeds that were kept for sowing. They often gambled and went bankrupt. Yet we could not oustthem from the village. If we refused to provide the seeds they needed for sowing, they would get it from someone else, which would only have made matters worse for us. So we were obliged to be patient.

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The Fraud of the Farmer, Sheikh DreheSheikh Drehe was a thieving peasant in Sheikh Choban. He was very demanding and never paid back his debts, but we couldn’t kick him out. He always kept a gun in his belt, and would sometimes point it at me and threaten me.

At the time, there was no solid stone-built house in the village and we had no interest in building one. Instead, we stored our crops and seeds in mud houses. We were also worried about drought, which would mean that we would have to purchase seeds at a very high price.

We had an Armenian watchman in the village. Every day during the sowing time, he would measure the seeds and distribute them to the villagers. He kept a record of all the distributions. In addition, he performed other tasks for us. One year, while the watchman was away in Arabpounar with his family, Sheikh Drehe smashed in the door to one of the mud houses. He stole the wheat that was stored inside and wasted it. I was in Aleppo when I heard about this. I became very angry and decided to have nothing to do with him. I also decided not to give him any more seeds for sowing. I went to the village during the harvest and asked him why he had stolen my wheat. He replied, “I needed it so I took it. Are we not partners? I will repay you one day.” I measured his share of the crops and took my half as usual, but he did not pay his debt. He said, “I have a family to feed.” I forgave him this debt, but told him that I would have nothing more to do with him. What he owed me came out to a few thousand ghouroushes.

I had even brought with me two oxen that I intended to loan to Sheikh Drehe. When I realized he would never repay me, I decided not to keep the oxen in the village. I sent them to Basrave Agha with a note asking him to keep watch over them for a few days. Despite my better judgment, I had stayed on friendly terms with Basrave. Every year during the harvest, he would visit me, take 15-20 sacks of my wheat, eat some roasted lamb and rice, then leave.

The next day, while I was still asleep, some men came to tell me that the two oxen were nowtied up in front of Sheikh Drehe’s house. I was furious. I got on a horse and went to complain to Basrave. I asked him why he had given my oxen to Sheikh Drehe. He pleaded ignorance. He said, “I know nothing about this. He must have come at night and stolen them. Go and complain to the government and I will support you.” He was lying.

I went to Arabpounar and filed a complaint. Basrave came to Arabpounar and claimed heknew nothing about the matter. I was very angry and said to him, “It is impossible that the Sheikh would dare to steal the oxen from your house. He must have received your approval.” I said this in the presence of the mayor (mudur). This made Basrave very angry and he replied,“You will not be able to go to you village any more!” These words made the mudur furious. He screamed at Basrave saying, “How dare you tell a landowner in my presence that he cannot go to his own village? You think you are a government within a government?”

The mayor got up and went into the next room to report all this to the French officer. Butthe officer was not there. Basrave quickly regretted his words. He apologized to the mayor, thenhe sent a message to Sheikh Drehe telling him to return my oxen, which he did. The Sheikh was

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then obliged to leave our village. If he could have found someone to lend him oxen and seeds, he would have stayed. But he was a scheming thief and everyone knew it. Nobody trusted him and nobody offered to help him. So I finally managed to get rid of this dog.

Later, I learned that Sheikh Drehe had taken a lamb to Basrave as a gift and Basrave gave him permission to take the oxen. Sheikh Drehe owed me three thousand ghouroushes in all, which I had to write off. Even if he could afford to pay me back, he never would have done so.

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Another One of Guiavour Hajji’s MischiefsOne day Guiavour Hajji called on one of the more influential residents of our village, MghegheBerkel, in whose house I used to stay during my visits to the village. He ordered, “Kick Bedros out of your house!” Mgheghe answered, “I cannot kick out my partner and guest. But you are an agha and you know how to read and write. Write a note and I will take it to Bedros.”

But the sly villain was smart enough not to write a note. He knew that I could have taken his note to the government, which would have been grounds to kick him out of the village. Guiavour Hajji was hoping that Mgheghe would throw me out so I would be forced to go to him and seek his protection. He thought that would put me in a position to pay him a bribe. Then he would intervene on my behalf and reconcile us.

Tribal chiefs like Basrave and Guiavour Hajji were very good at instigating arguments and fights by provoking two parties against each other. They would then accept bribes from eitherparty and mediate and reconcile them.

Every year during the harvest time, Basrave would come to our village with five or six of hiscronies. We were expected to slaughter a lamb and prepare a wonderful lunch for them. Each farmer would also present them with a bag of clean wheat. As the owner of the village, I would give five sacks of wheat—sometimes more. After Basrave died, his son Shevket would comewith his cronies and eat and drink and collect the sacks of wheat. We had no choice but to treat them well. Otherwise they might do something drastic. For example, if they wanted, they could easily kill me. They would never be held accountable.

The wheat the farmers were forced to give them represented a loss to me as well becausenow they were short of money and could not repay their debts. They also would not be able tofeed their own families and would ask me for assistance. Nourijan was fed up with all this and wanted to sell his half share of the village. He wanted to sell it to the bandit Mustafa Bey. But we knew he would probably cause us a lot of trouble so we would finally sell our shares to him aswell at a very low price. So Dr. Zakar and I bought Nourijan’s share. So Nourijan was finishedwith the headache of having to dealing with these aghas. Guiavour Hajji would often send me messages saying simply, “I am in great need. Send me a few bags of wheat.” Of course, I always complied.

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We Obtained a Syrian Deed for The Village of Sheikh Choban

We lost our deed to our village, Sheikh Choban, during the killings and looting of 1915. However, a record of the deed would be available in the municipal registry of Arouj and Ourfa. But there was no way that an Armenian could go to Turkey. So we sent Arouj, a Turkish friend. He was able to obtain the official record showing that the village was registered in the name ofHovhannes Imirzian.

Despite obtaining this record, we had difficulty obtaining a Syrian deed. The governmentwas concerned that the land might have been sold to someone else and that the sale was not reflected in the record we brought back from Turkey. However, after much effort, whichincluded gifts and bribes to certain officials, we obtained a Syrian deed based on the documentfrom Turkey.

We had the deed transferred to Lousin, who was the sole heir of Hovhannes Imirzian. In reality, however, the Imirzian brothers had not divided their estate. Therefore my wife Noyemzar(Garabed’s daughter) was entitled to an equal share in this village. But we were disgusted with the village and wanted to sell it at any decent price. So we did not want to go through the hassle of including Noyemzar’s name on the deed. Besides, we trusted each other completely. Because half the village belonged to Nourijan, Lousin and Noyemzar were each entitled to one quarter.

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I Built a Masonry House in Sheikh ChobanAlmost all of the houses of the peasants in Turkey and Syria were made of mud. They weredome-like structures without joists. They were built right next to each other. Stone was notreadily available. Besides, it was very expensive to build with stone because masons, stone cutters, ironsmiths, carpenters and plasterers had to be brought in from the city.

So the villagers built their own huts. Men, women and children worked together. Theysifted the soil, mixed it with hay and made mud out of it. Then they filled the mud into specialwooden molds and made 15x15 cm. blocks that were 2-3 cm. thick. They let these dry in thesun for two or three days. Then they arranged them on top of one another with mud in betweenthe blocks. Each year they plastered the whole structure with more mud mixed with hay so that it would not leak when it rained. Buildings made in this fashion were not very safe. They wouldsometimes collapse, destroying everything that was stored inside including wheat, barley and the hay used to feed the livestock. This happened to me once.

Because I did not have a house of my own in the village, I would stay in the house of the most hospitable and clean farmer during my visits—often for a month or more. This was verycostly because I was expected to give presents to all members of the family. Finally, I decided to build a house and I brought some Armenian builders from the city. We brought blocks of stone with us and built a house with five adjoining rooms. It had a living room, bedroom and separatestorage areas for wheat, barley and corn. It had solid doors and windows with shutters and iron bars. It cost me about 5,000 ghouroushes to build this house but it was worth the expense. Now I could stay there whenever I wanted, I could safely store the grains, and I had a place to entertain guests.

I covered all the expenses myself. Nourijan, my partner, had not even visited the village for three years. He was completely disgusted with all the problems of the farmers and aghas. Besides, we had not been able to generate a profit.

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We Purchased The Other Half of Sheikh ChobanAs I have previously written, the Ghazarian family from Berejik were the real owner of one-half of Sheikh Choban. Nourijan, who lived in Jarablous, was their representative and deputy. Because it had not rained for several years and because there was no profit from the crops,Nourijan had stopped visiting the village. During those three years I took care of all the expenses of the village. I purchased the seed, I bought new oxen to replace the old or dead ones, and I fed the hungry farmers. If I had not bought food for them, the farmers might have simply left. Then I would lose everything they owed me.

Nourijan owed me 130 gold coins for his share of the expenses when he sent a message saying that he intended to sell his share. He said he had already found a buyer. The prospectivebuyer was Mustafa Shahin Bey. He owned a share in the neighboring Qantara village and he owned other villages. He was very wealthy and was a deputy in the Syrian government in Damascus. He was also very cruel and tyrannical. He had often made false accusations against landowners and was able to appropriate their properties or purchase them at very low prices.

Nourijan said Mustafa Shahin Bey had offered to buy his share of our village for 500Ottoman gold coins. (Of course, he may have overstated the price.) We knew that if the sale went through, Mustafa Bey would bring in many thieving and villainous farmers who would harass our farmers, steal their oxen, and let their animals eat the crops. They would pick fightsand make life miserable for everyone, hoping I would give up in disgust and cede control of the village or offer to sell it at a low price.

Nourijan realized that this was Mustafa Bey’s intention. As our friend, he preferred not to sell to him and offered to sell us his share for 400 gold coins. We were obliged to purchase it. So Dr. Zakar (Lousin’s husband) and I paid him 270 gold coins (i.e., 400 gold coins less the 130 gold coins he owed me). We destroyed the documents prepared for a sale to Mustafa Bey, who now became our enemy. Because the deed of the land was already in Lousin’s name, we did not need further formalities.

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Mustafa Bey Farmed Our Village on The SlyA few days after we purchased Nourijan’s half of Sheikh Choban, I received news in Arabpounar that Mustafa Bey had sent 30 farmers to our village, each with a pair of oxen. They had plowed15 hectares on the eastern sector and had sown it with barley. It was obvious that he was trying to create trouble. The eastern border of our village was clearly marked. There was no possibilitythat this was done in error. Mustafa Bey owned a share in the village of Kantara, which was immediately to the east of Sheikh Choban. Yet there was a wide (8-10 meters) thoroughfare called Berri Yoli that ran between our villages. This was clearly recorded in the Syrian deed.

In Turkish, Berri Yol means a road that runs through pastures or wilderness. Sheepherders used the road every year to take their herds to graze in the pastures. All I could do was to petition the government. So I wrote a petition and delivered it to the mayor (mudur) of Arabpounar. He told me to rent a car and take him to the border so he could see for himself. We went and he witnessed the violation for himself. However, Mustafa Bey was a federal deputy. He was friendly with all the ministers and with the president. Indeed, he often sent them gifts. The evidence was clear and the mayor could have quickly solved the problem himself through anadministrative process called idareten in Turkish. However, he advised me to take Mustafa Bey to court. Going to court was a process that could take years. There was the conciliatory or primarycourt, then a court of appeals, and finally the Cassation court.

I did not want to go to court, so I went to Aleppo and petitioned the governor. I took a copy of the deed with me. The governor added a few lines under my petition with instructions toexamine the matter fairly and defend my rights. He addressed his message to the mayor (mudur) of Arabpounar. But I already knew what the mudur’s answer would be. He would not want to be involved and would send the matter to court.

I was in a predicament. Because there was no court in Arabpounar (because it was a small town), the judge from Jarablous would travel to Arabpounar once a week. He would take a cursory look at all the cases then return to Jarablous the same evening. I knew I would get no satisfaction and I did not want to appeal to him. But dropping the matter was not an option either since it would mean the loss of the village. Yet suing a government deputy would mean years of unbearable visits to the courthouse. Furthermore, there was a law that said in the event of a lawsuit, the land would remain in the possession of the party who was farming it at the time until the lawsuit was settled. It would take years before the temiz court gave its final decision.

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A Permanent Judge is Appointed in Arabpounar: Fifth LawsuitA young judge by the name of Ziya Bey came to Arabpounar. He was from a well-known and aristocratic family in Aleppo. Like his father, he opposed the dictatorial aghas and beys. Because I could not speak Arabic well, I took a friend with me when I went to meet with the judge. I told Ziya Bey about how Mustafa Bey was appropriating our lands. He said I should get someone to write a petition on my behalf. So I went to Khalil Ghenime, a Christian friend. Khalil asked me for the names of all the people who had plowed our lands. I did not know their names, but thought that maybe the farmers in our village would. Our farmers were able to name only about 20 individuals. I wrote these names and took the list to Khalil who wrote the petition on my behalf against these people. I took the petition to the judge and he sent a subpoena to each of individual ordering them to appear in court on a specific date.

They all came to court on that date, including Mustafa Bey. The proceedings were open tothe public. The bailiff called out the names of the defendants one by one. They all lined up.The secretary of the court called them one by one and asked them to approach him. Then thejudge asked the first man, “Why did you plow the land in Sheikh Choban?” Before he couldanswer, Mustafa Bey called out, “I ordered him to do it.” The judge ordered Mustafa Bey to jointhe defendants. The secretary wrote down the information and assigned a date for the judge togo and check on the borders himself. Then the proceedings ended.

As we exited the courtroom, Mustafa threatened me. He said, “I’ll show you one day when this judge is replaced.” Then he walked away. There was a Moslem man standing next to mewho had also been harmed by Mustafa. He heard Mustafa threaten me and urged me to go back into the court and tell the judge. He said, “I will be your witness.” But I did not go.

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The Judge Visits Sheikh Choban, ExaminesThe Border, and Renders a Verdict in My Favor

The Kurds belonged to a number of tribes: Barazi, Kedekantzi, Sheikhantzi, etc. The leader ofthe Barazis had died and his two sons, Mustafa and Bozan, had become tribal chieftains. But they were rivals. Some of the Kurds were subject to Mustafa; others to Bozan. The chieftainsprofited from their subjects. As a tax, they took from them wheat, sheep, and money.

The farmers in our village were Kedekantzi. Their leader was Basrave about whom I havealready written. The Sheikhantzi leader was Sheikh Noh. The Sheikhantzis were far away from our village and we had nothing to do with them. The Barazi and Kedekantzi did not like one another. There had been many arguments and murders in the past. Sheikh Choban was the lastoutpost in the region of the Kedekantzis. The nearby village of Kantara was on the border ofBarazi territory. Sheikh Choban and Kantara were separated by the well-known Berri Yol, a road 8-10 meters wide and 10 kilometers long.

Mustafa Bey wanted to requisition our land because it was much more valuable than his land. As I said earlier, he was a government deputy and relied on his friendships with the ministers and the president.

On the date specified for the judge to visit the village, I rented a car and drove him andhis clerk to the border. Our farmers also came. Mustafa Bey came with a large crowd. Thejudge asked for the deeds of the two villages. We handed over the deeds. The eastern border ofSheikh Choban and the western border of Kantara were clearly marked as the Berri Yol road. In addition, the judge called several elderly men who were present and made them swear on the Koran. He asked them, “Where is Berri Yol?” They all pointed to the road—the same road thatMustafa Bey had crossed over to plow our lands.

The judge asked Mustafa Bey why he had done this. Mustafa said the road we were lookingat was not Berri Yol. He said the actual Berri Yol was to the west of the land he had plowed. Furthermore, he claimed that our farmers had been illegally farming his land. This was such achildish and ridiculous response. Berri Yol was a well-known road that ran from north to south. It was a border between many villages.

The judge asked the clerk to make a record of the arguments of both parties and said hewould render a verdict in eight days. He appointed two watchmen to guard the land, so that when the sown barley started to sprout and growing, animals would not graze on them. He also wanted to prevent either party from harvesting the barley before the verdict was rendered. Theywere to guard the land day and night and were to be paid at the rate of 50 Syrian liras a month by the loser of the case. The watchmen were chosen from our village because of their proximityto the land.

Eight days later, the judge rendered a verdict in my favor. Mustafa Bey was given an option to appeal. My friends advised me to be careful. They warned that my life could be in danger.

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I already knew this. Mustafa Bey could easily have me killed by a hired gun who would then escape into Turkey. This actually happened some time ago to Sarkis Kurmuzi Kolanian. He wasmurdered because of a similar dispute. His murderer escaped to Turkey.

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The Farmers of The Village ofDibrig Cultivated Our Land

Sixth LawsuitDibrig is a small village south of Sheikh Choban. According to our deed, the territory between Sheikh Choban and Dibrig was marked as Dere, which means “valley” in Turkish. The Dibrigtzishad no deed. One day we heard their farmers had crossed over the border and plowed about 20 hectares of our land.

There were actually two valleys on the land. The larger valley marked the border. The smallervalley was on our property. The villagers of Dibrig plowed all the way to the smaller valley despitethe fact that our farmers had cultivated the land all the way to the large valley for many years.

Dikran Kaghtatzian, a friend who is now deceased, was visiting Mustafa Bey one day and saw four or five farmers from Dibrig with him. Dikran told us that he heard Mustafa tell thesefarmers to till our property. Mustafa wanted our village and was clearly trying to exasperate us so we would simply give it up.

Once again I appealed to Judge Zia Bey and took him to the village. When we got to the border he advised me find a lawyer fluent in Arabic to argue my case against Mustafa Bey andthe villagers of Dibrig. He said, “Mustafa has appealed the court ruling and the boundary with Dibrig is a little ambiguous because there are indeed two valleys.” I remarked that there are few honest lawyers. I said, “They agree to take your case, demand half their payment in advancethen accept bribes from the opponent to lose the case. Can you recommend an honest lawyer?” He recommended a man named Shefiq Naim in Aleppo.

I went to Aleppo and found the lawyer. He was a very young Christian man. He had been a classmate of Judge Zia Bey in law school. I didn’t know if Shefiq Naim was really capable andhonest, or if the judge simply recommended him to me because they were friends and Shefiqneeded work.

The trial for the Dibrig case was scheduled for the next day. We had to leave early in themorning by car in order to make it on time to Arabpounar. I wanted Shefiq Naim to tell mewhat his fee would be so there would be no disagreements later, but he left it pending. He said, “The case may end quickly, or it may drag on. We will determine the fee accordingly.” I paidhim 300 Syrian pounds as a deposit.

We set off very early the next morning and arrived in Arabpounar before noon. Shefiq Naimmet with the judge then I took him to the village so he could examine the border. He won our case based on the deed and on witness testimonies. But the opponents had a right to appeal and did so.

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Mustafa Bey Appealed The VerdictOn the day of appeal, Mustafa, his lawyer, my lawyer, the judge, the clerk and I drove from Aleppo to Arabpounar. Mustafa invited us to his house for breakfast. It was in a village called Mektele—a ten-minute walk from Arabpounar. I did not go, but the others did.

Later, we went to examine the boundary between the two villages. Mustafa’s villagers and my villagers were gathered in a crowd. The judge examined the deeds of both parties. Heasked some older villagers to swear on the Koran and answer some questions. They confirmedBerri Yol as the boundary of our village. The judge asked Mustafa why he had trespassed intoour village. Mustafa muttered that the villagers of Sheikh Choban had tilled and hidden the real Berri Yol, which he claimed was on the other side of the disputed land. This was such aridiculous explanation. The judge told the clerk to record everything. He also ordered the dayand night watchmen to guard the planted barley carefully to prevent the sheep from grazing on it and to prevent anyone from harvesting it before the final verdict. Then we all returnedto Arabpounar and Mustafa invited us for lunch. Again, everyone went except me. In the afternoon the judge told us on what date he would render a verdict and we all returned to Aleppo.

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Mustafa Dies and The Judge Rules in My FavorMustafa’s appeal would take months. The barley ripened and had to be harvested. I paid thefarmers to do the task. If it had remained unharvested, the barley would have dried and ants and sheep would have eaten it. We left the barley in the fields after it was harvested and waited forthe verdict.

Eventually, Mustafa fell ill with cancer. Local doctors were unable to help him, so he traveled to London for medical attention. But it did no good. He returned from London and died after suffering for a long time. Providence had taken our revenge.

The night watchman resigned and the sheep and cows ate most of the barley. The judgeeventually rendered a verdict in our favor. I threshed and cleaned whatever barley remained and sold it. The income was barely enough to pay the watchmen’s salaries. I paid the workers whoreaped the crops out of my own pocket. I should have sued Mustafa’s heirs to recover all of the expenses I had incurred because of this lawsuit. The lawyer’s fee and other expenses amountedto more than 3,000 Syrian pounds. But I was so fed up with lawsuits and lawyers that I decided to drop the whole thing. Even if I had won a new lawsuit, there was no assurance Mustafa’s heirs would have paid. At least this headache, which lasted more than two years, came to an end. Dr. Zakar did not involve himself at all in this mess.

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The Farmers of Dibrig Lose their AppealAs I wrote earlier, although I had won the lawsuit involving the village of Dibrig, it was under appeal to the court in Aleppo. The judge, Sheikh Elias, and his clerk came from Aleppo toexamine the boundary of the village. My lawyer and I accompanied them. The judge checkedthe boundary, questioned both parties then we returned to Arabpounar.

Bozan Bey was Mustafa Bey’s brother. He was the leader of a section of the Barazi tribe. When we reached his house, he came out and invited us all in for dinner. We accepted his invitation. Bozan Bey was familiar with the dispute and the lawsuit. He was an intelligent man and I considered him a friend. He was not like Mustafa.

During dinner, Bozan asked the judge about the lawsuit. Without expressing his opinion, the judge responded by asking Bozan what he thought about the land dispute and the lawsuit. Bozan answered, “Bedros and Dr. Zakar are good and virtuous people. They are Armenians andhave amassed a lot of land. It is not possible for an Armenian to appropriate land from poor people. The people of Dibrig are villains and thieves.”

After finishing our meal, we returned to Aleppo. The judge ruled in our favor. The villagersfrom Dibrig withdrew from our property, but only after we paid them 2,000 Syrian pounds.

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The Villagers of Dibrig TillAnother Section of Our Land

The Dibrigtzis were cunning and sly scoundrels. After losing their appeal, they crossed our border again one night and tilled about 15 hectares of land with 8-10 pair of oxen. I was so fed up from the first lawsuit against these villagers and from the one against Mustafa Bey that Iwasn’t sure what to do. Should I get involved in yet another lawsuit or should I just ignore the whole thing? Ignoring the incident, however, would set a bad precedent. Our other neighbors might be encouraged to the do the same thing. And there was an unfair agrarian law that prevented a court from considering a complaint if there was no lawsuit. This meant the landwould remain under the control of whoever had plowed it.

During my period of indecision on this matter, a major dispute developed among the Dibrigtzis. A woman had been raped and a number of murders had been committed. Many villagers had fled in fear of being imprisoned. Two individuals were jailed in Arabpounar andthe villagers incurred huge expenses and paid large bribes. Thus, they had become very poorand, ironically, were obliged to turn to us for financial assistance. We agreed to lend them 2,000Syrian pounds against a notarized promissory note if they withdraw from our property. We sent an employee to the prison to obtain the signatures.

We ended up spending ten times more than the value of the disputed land. Many ridiculed us for this, but we did it because the boundaries of our village were long and vulnerable. Therewas no distinct border such as a mountain range or fence or river. Only the eastern border was clear because of the Berri Yol. Yet we still had problems with Mustafa Bey on that border. Furthermore, we were Armenians. We were considered guiavours or infidels. Our rights werenot always respected. If we weren’t proactive in protecting our property, the villagers would simply rush in from all sides. Our neighbors had only small pieces of land they had inherited from their fathers. Because of the large number of heirs, each had only 2-3 hectares. That wasn’tenough to earn a living, so they were keen to appropriate our lands.

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The Advice of an Experienced LandownerI became a landowner after the First World War by inheritance. I was still young and had no farming experience. An Egyptian-Armenian named Yervant Aghaton Bey, who was a famous landowner and an expert farmer, had written a book for inexperienced farmers like me. He said, “If you are considering buying land, a village, or part of a village, even before checking the quality of the soil, determine the character of the neighboring farmers or their partners.”

But I had inherited the land and the neighbors that went with it. I wonder if the Imirzians were as inexperienced as I was when they bought the villages. Had they checked on the neighbors, or did they simply buy the villages because prices were cheap? Of course, they bought them before the war. Garabed Effendi Imirzian was a member of the Mejlis Idare (municipal government). He was very popular and influential and would have been able to stop anyinjustice against him through his connections with the government.

My problems were not isolated to Sheikh Choban. I also suffered due to problems at themill of Ainarous. I suffered both emotionally and financially for years due to people who kepttrying to steal our properties.

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The Thefts of The Farmers and The ShepherdsWhen we first started in agriculture with Nourijan in Sheikh Choban, there were no tractors ormachines for sowing and reaping. We delivered seed to the farmers who sowed a little each day. We were lucky if they didn’t steal the seed.

At harvest, the farmers would reap by hand or with a scythe. They transported the crop onthe backs of camels to the flat yard. After heaping everything there, the plants were threshedwith special equipment. These were wooden planks one-meter by half-meter thick with smalland sharp flint stones inserted on their undersides. They were attached to the necks of oxenwith thick ropes. A farmer would either sit or stand in the center and drive the oxen round and round, hitting them with a long stick so they would drag the planks over the crops. This wouldgo on for a few days, until the straw was completely crushed. It was unacceptable to tie the snouts of the oxen so they could work and eat the mixed straw and wheat at the same time.

By the time the straw was completely crushed, the oxen would have devoured about a quarter of the wheat. Then we would wait for the wind to blow and separate the wheat or barley fromthe straw. Sometimes we waited for months for a suitable wind. Sometimes the wind would blow for only a day or just an hour then die down. So we often waited a long time.

If the farmer was a thief (most were), he would throw the mixture of wheat and straw in such a way during the separation process that much of the wheat would be blown along with the straw. By law, the straw belonged to the farmer. He used it to feed his animals. After the threshing and separating, the landowner took his half of the cleaned wheat and left. The farmerwould then take the mixture of straw and wheat he allowed to blow off and separate it again, thistime keeping the wheat for his personal use.

There was a second way the farmers would cheat. Because the ground was not paved, theycould throw the mixture of hay and cereal into the wind in such a way that the seeds would fall further than normal. After the owner left, the farmer would sift the soil and retrieve quite a lot of seeds. Half of what they managed to steal in this manner actually belonged to the landowner.

During harvest and threshing, itinerant salesmen would visit the villages. They would bringsugar, dates, grapes, tomatoes, thread, needles, etc. The farmers usually did not have any money. Even if they did, they preferred not to spend it. So, they would pay the salesmen with the mixed threshed cereal that was lying there. The children would often start crying, asking for grapes anddates. Poor kids! Their parents would buy what the children wanted to keep them from crying. Again, they paid with the wheat on the threshing ground. In fact, the farmers often delayed separating the wheat just for this purpose. The threshed crop often stayed on the ground formonths. There was no use getting angry about this. The farmers stole day and night. Half theharvested crop is the rightful share of the landowner, but he would be lucky to get one quarter.

We always kept a full-time salaried watchman in the village. But even these watchmen were not always trustworthy. They often overlooked the farmers’ thefts and sometimes evenparticipated in them. We always had wheat, barley, corn, and sesame seeds in storage. They

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were used for sowing in the next season or for sale at the appropriate time in the village or in Aleppo. Every year we measured hundreds of shimbils (a measure of cereal) of wheat and barley and stored them in special sheds. We entrusted them to a watchman. During sowing season, the watchman would give one shimbil each day to each farmer to sow. A farmer could barely sow that much in a day. He would scatter the seeds by hand and till the soil over the seeds.

Sometimes, the watchman would mix sand with the seeds without the farmers knowing. Thefarmers would come at dawn to receive their seeds. The watchman would fill a special box used formeasuring (four boxes made one shimbil) and give them their share while it was still dark. Sometimes the watchman would not shake the box properly or not fill it to the top. Sometimes he would mixin fine straw. When I checked what was given to the farmers against what they sowed, there were nodiscrepancies, but one could not know for sure how much wheat the watchman was stealing. Thewatchman would either consume the wheat or sell the stolen seeds. In addition to his salary, we also gave the watchman 4-5 shimbils of wheat each year. So what he stole was on top of that.

Sheep trading could also be a very profitable business, provided there was no drought andthat people did not cheat. Sheep do not eat barley or hay; they graze on grass in the pastures. They were taken to wherever the grass was good. There were two ways to make a profit withsheep. One was to buy small lambs and give them to the farmers who would let them graze in the pastures. After six months or a year, one could sell the sheep at twice the purchase price. The profit would be shared with the farmer. But a dishonest farmer would sell some of the sheephimself and claim that wolves had eaten them. Or he would claim that they simply died and present the skin as evidence. Sometimes, he would sell the healthy and fat lambs right away and buy some thinner ones at a cheaper price.

A second way to profit from sheep was to buy young females that were given to the farmersto raise. The females would give birth to lambs. Half of the newborn lambs belonged to thefarmer. The other half belonged to the owner. Also, each sheep would yield about 1.5 kilos ofghee. Once a year the sheep were sheared and the wool was sold. After paying the federal taxes, the money was split between the farmer and owner. If I remember correctly, the federal tax was about 25-30 ghouroughes per sheep. Every year a federal employee would come, count the sheep and collect the tax.

It was very difficult to find an honest partner in the sheep trade. If they worked faithfully,there would be a lot of profit. But if they cheated, as they usually did, there was little or noprofit. You may be wondering why after all the lawsuits and the cheating farmers I didn’tjust give up the whole farming business. It is because Sheikh Choban was a valuable piece of property. I was hoping that one day I could find a buyer who would pay a good price for it. However, because of all the disputes and lawsuits, no one was interested in buying the property.

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We Brought Modern Machines to Sheikh ChobanWe were very happy when farming equipment operators started coming to our region. We quickly made a deal with them. They were to plow the land deeply and sow the seeds. Duringharvest, they were to reap the wheat, fill it into bags, and transport to bags to where we wanted.

This process was fast and saved us a lot of loss due to spillage and theft. The landowner onlyneeded to provide land and seed. He didn’t worry about the diesel fuel or the wear and tear on the machinery. The machine operators would bring their own tents for the laborers and theirown food. They wouldn’t ask the farmers for anything. Sometimes, however, the farmers wouldbring them some yoghurt (taan) free of charge.

Although this helped, there were still problems. For example, the machines worked best on good soil that had no rocks. The machines could operate if there was some gravel or even stonesthe size of oranges, but they weren’t good on rockier terrain. Larger stones could cause damage to the machines or make them break down.

The soil in our village was clean and smooth in one part, but rocky in another. In the rockyarea we still had to plow with oxen. So I was obliged to keep providing seed to the farmers. If I refused, they would manage somehow to get seed on their own, cultivate the land, and then claim it as their own. Even if they vacated the land, farmers from neighboring villages would cross over and plant on our property, which would mean months and even years of lawsuits.

So because of the rocky soil, I could not get rid of the farmers. After giving them seed we had to wait months until the crop was ready so I could claim my share. The crop had to beharvested and reaped manually then it had to be threshed. Then they had to wait for windy daysto separate the wheat from the chaff as I described earlier. And of course, they would steal someportion of the wheat for themselves and the oxen would eat some of the grain. There were timeswhen I waited three months for the crop to be ready. During this time, I could not leave and return to my family in Aleppo. My family would become restless and annoyed with my long absences. They didn’t understand that these were complicated matters that I could not leaveunattended. These absences from home were difficult on me, too.

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How My Wheat Turned into HayOne day, during harvest, the workers reaping the wheat with machines left the filled sacks sittingin the fields instead of bringing them into the village. I counted the sacks. The next morning,I counted them again and everything seemed to be in order. A little later, the workers brought the sacks to the village and told me that three of them were now filled with hay—not wheat. Iverified this, but it wasn’t clear how it could have happened. Who was I to blame? Did ourfarmers steal the wheat or was it the farmers from the neighboring village?

I called on the best known investigator. He could tell from the footprints of the thieves and their animals where they had been, where they were going and how far they had traveled. However, our robbers were very clever. They had gone back and forth many times, zigzaggingand mixing up their trail. I worked alongside the investigator for hours, but we could not recognize the traces. Perhaps he had figured out who the guilty party was, but was afraid to tellme. After all, they might beat him or kill him. I paid him 10 Syrian pounds for his efforts. Hewandered around our village for 4-5 hours with me and a few villagers alongside.

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I was Falsely Accused of SmugglingOne year, while Syria was under French rule, a French customs inspector came to Arabpounar. He saw that Arabpounar bordered Turkey and assumed without any proof that all the wheat sent to Aleppo from Arabpounar was Turkish wheat, which had been smuggled across the border. He accused all the wheat producers of smuggling and penalized them all with very high fines.

I sent two wagonloads of wheat from the crop of Sheikh Choban (200 sacks in all) to Aleppo by railroad. But, before sending the wheat I completed all the proper paperwork with the mukhtar (administrator) of Sheikh Choban, as well as with the customs director of Arabpounar. After having the customs official of Aleppo check and certify the official papers, I sold the wheatin Aleppo. The coachmen who transported the wheat from our village to Arabpounar was ableto attest to all of this. Three months later, the ruthless and cruel French investigator accused meof smuggling and fined me 60,000 Syrian pounds. It was a sum of money no one could pay. Healso indicted all the other wheat producers who had shipped wheat. Lawyers, petitions, lawsuits were all useless. He penalized not only the landowners and wheat growers, but also all the businessmen who had come to Arabpounar, bought wheat and sent it to Aleppo. If we did not pay the fines, our properties would be confiscated or we would be jailed.

His Holiness Papken Catholicos and the Primate of Aleppo, Archbishop Ardavazt, were visiting Syrian towns with Armenian communities such as Jazira, Jarablous, Telabiad, Raqqa. They also cameto Arabpounar. I had come to Arabpounar from Aleppo and accompanied members of the Regional Representatives (taghagan khorhourt) to pay our respects and welcome them. I took advantage of the situation and told the Catholicos about the unjust accusation and fine. He said, “Come see mewhen I return to Antelias. We will think of something.” I went to Antelias to see the Catholicos as a representative of all those who had been penalized. He wrote a letter to the Armenian lawyer of the Catholicosate (I have forgotten his name). I took the letter to the lawyer who promised to write a petition to the French High Commissioner. I then went to Haig Balian, the editor of Aztag, a daily newspaper. I described to him our problem. He promised to write an editorial in the next day’s issue. Indeed, he wrote about the unfair stealing of the customs office. I wanted to pay himsomething, but he didn’t accept. But he asked for the names of some people so he could send them subscriptions to the paper. I gave him the names of Hovaguim Chalian, Kevork Maghakian, and Hovsep Kouyoumjian. All of them had also been falsely accused of smuggling wheat. He started sending Aztag to all of us.

Finally, I do not know whether it was because of the petition to the high commissioner in Beirut or because of the efforts of our lawyer in Aleppo, but after two years of torture and a lot ofexpense, the fines were reduced. They asked me to pay 140 Syrian pounds instead of the 60,000.I did so. The others also paid their fines, which had been similarly reduced.

Why they insisted on fining us anything at all we did not know. Accusing someone ofsmuggling was a very serious matter. Smugglers were referred to with contempt in the New

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Testament. But it was a profitable business to accuse someone. Whoever turned one in receiveda percentage of the fine. Yet whether guilty or not, they always convicted the accused person. Inthis way, both the customs authorities and the informer made money. I curse them all. Theyharmed so many innocent people this way.

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Customers Wishing to Buy Sheikh ChobanThere were four families (relatives of some farmers living in the Moukharej village) who wantedto purchase the entire Sheikh Choban village. This was a unique opportunity. The neighboringvillages were inhabited by Kurds and none of them was wealthy enough to buy our large village. Once in a while, we would receive offers to buy just a few hectares, but we were reluctant to sellparcels. This is because once someone got a foothold in the village they could cause us a lot ofproblems. Mustafa Bey had offered to purchase the entire village, but only at a very low price. About 30-35 years earlier the village had been in terrible condition. We had bought if for 300 gold coins. Mustafa wanted to snatch it from us at that same price.

The prospective buyers had inherited vast, fertile properties in the region of Seren. The land wasdivided and was suitable for growing rice, cotton, wheat, barley, etc. The soil produced good cropseven during droughts. But they were Kurds and the inhabitants of Seren were Arabs. Because the Kurds were a minority there, the Arabs gave them much trouble. For example, they would often let their livestock graze on Kurdish lands. Often the Kurds would get fed up and sell out to the Arabs at a low price. It was just how the Turks had treated the Armenians. So these people were really fed up and interested in buying our village, which had rich red soil and was very fertile. If there were good rains, we could grow corn, cotton, sesame seeds, melons, etc. in addition to wheat and barley. They already had buyers for their land and were ready to buy ours. But they would sell their landonly if we promised to sell them ours. Otherwise, they would remain put.

We had finished with the lawsuits against Mustafa Bey and the Dibrigtzis. Mustafa Bey had died, and we had just started using the new European machinery. The profit was nowsatisfactory, so we hesitated to sell. I went to Aleppo to consult with Noyemzar and her cousin Lousin. Dr. Zakar had already passed away. The prospective buyers were not willing to paymore than 100,000 Syrian pounds. We decided we wouldn’t accept less than 120,000. We also had some wheat, barley, and other grains in storage for sowing, and we had ten oxen. We wanted an additional 20,000 Syrian pounds for these items so the total would be 140,000. Half of this amount would go to Noyemzar and the other half to Lousin. Although the farmers also owed us a few thousand pounds, we could not count on that.

We were uneasy about the price. We would be selling the whole village very cheaply. In Aleppo, one square meter was selling for 25-100 Syrian pounds. Our village was 17,000 hectares, which was equal to 17,000,000 square meters (1 hectare = 10,000 sq. meters). At least 7,000,000 sq. meters was fit for cultivation. So, if we got just one Syrian pound for each squaremeter that would make 7,000,000 Syrian pounds. But no one was willing to pay that kind of money.

We took into account the fact that I was getting old and too tired to make the annual trips back and forth to the village. I would stay there for months and put up with all kinds of problems. So we decided to sell if they paid us 120,000 Syrian pounds. But they were stubborn and would not consider anything more than 100,000. So the deal fell through.

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We did not feel too bad reasoning that the profit from farming the land was reasonable and if wehad a good harvest for two years we could make up for the 100,000 pounds they had offered us forthe whole village.

But we came to regret our decision for just one year later the Syrian government turned socialist and confiscated most of our land. Furthermore, they fined us 3,400 Syrian pounds forhaving cultivated our own land. I explain this below.

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Syria Turns Socialist and Confiscates 3/4 of Sheikh Choban

As I wrote earlier, the deed to Sheikh Choban was registered in Lousin’s name because the Imirzians had not divided their properties but held everything jointly. Only their individual houses were registered separately. Their parents’ house had become too small for their needs soHovhannes bought a new house in his name and moved there. Garabed started building a new spacious house in a region on the outskirts of Ourfa called Kerzin. Because of the war and the Armenian massacres, the house was left unfinished. As I wrote earlier, we sold them both.

Sheikh Choban was an exception. It had been purchased only in Hovhannes’ name. In order to avoid arguments among the heirs in the future, Lousin transferred half of Sheikh Choban to Noyemzar. We had a receipt for the transaction that was certified by a notary public. In order to make the transaction legal, we wrote 30,000 Syrian pounds as the price of the transaction.

But barely one year went by before Syria struck a deal with Egypt and turned socialist. Thiswas an astonishing development. Indeed, in the past, Syria persecuted the socialists. Now it began persecuting those who opposed socialism, robbing them and confiscating their businessesand factories. The government declared that whoever owned large properties, land and villageshad to officially declare them within a month, otherwise they would be confiscated.

Every landowner was given the right to choose 300 hectares from his property to keep. He could also keep an additional 40 hectares for each child. Experts were to assess the value of the confiscated land. This amount was to be paid to the owners in installments over 20 years.

We hired a lawyer to record our properties, which included the whole of Sheikh Choban and a quarter each of the villages of Ainarous and Rasmelmaraq. We presented our papers to the official government department prior to the deadline. The government also requested theidentity cards of the landowners and their children, which we also presented. We declared 300 hectares each for Noyemzar and Lousin. Noyemzar had five daughters and Lousin hadthree daughters and a son. So there were nine children in all, each of whom was entitled to 40 hectares. So the total amount of land we were entitled to was 960 hectares.

Of that 960 hectares, only half was tillable in any given year, otherwise the soil would become depleted. So, we could plow only 480 hectares each year. We were also to receive installments from the government every year for twenty years for the remaining land they were taking from us. Based on these assumptions, I had 480 hectares plowed and planted.

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The Previously Announced Agrarian Law was ChangedDuring this time I fell ill and went to Beirut for surgery. I had just been released from the hospital when I received a letter from Karekin Barsoumian. He had cultivated our 480 hectares with his machinery. He said an officer from the department of Agrarian Reform (Islahe zira’I) came to the village with an engineer, measured the land and marked it with large rocks they had brought with them for this purpose. I was very upset about this news. Adding to my grief was news that Yervant, my brother Haroutiun’s son, had died of a heart attack while I was in the hospital. He was only 35. My family had kept this from me to spare me the grief. I learned about it only by reading an obituary in the newspaper Aztag while at my daughter Rosa’s house where I went after being discharged from the hospital. This was a big sorrow and shock to me.

A few days later when I started feeling better, I traveled to Aleppo from Beirut and then immediately to Sheikh Choban. The farmers told me they had learned from the officers whohad come to divide the land, that the agrarian law had been changed. The landowners weregoing to get only 200 hectares—not the previously promised 300. Furthermore, they were to receive only 15 hectares per child instead of 40. And there was no mention of reimbursing them for the confiscated lands.

What was worse, the half share we had transferred to Noyemzar was not to be honored because it did not have a separate deed. And the land they allocated to Lousin and her children was from the rocky part of the village instead of the fertile section. So, we were left with a small piece of land that was not arable. We could not cultivate it at all with machinery. Instead we’d have to use oxen and manual labor, which meant waiting at least three additional months for the harvest to materialize.

But I already had almost 500 hectares tilled and sown with Karekin Barsoumian’s machinery. This was what belonged to us according to the government’s original land reform. Now theyhad changed the rules and claimed the land for themselves. The government wanted me to payfive Syrian pounds for renting each hectare, or 2,500 Syrian pounds in all. Then they addedadditional costs and expenses and brought the total to 3,000 Syrian pounds. They sent me aletter of warning informing me of all this. So they stole our land then fined me 3,000 Syrianpounds for cultivating it!

I immediately left for Aleppo with an Armenian friend to see the chairman of the Islahe Zira’I to argue that Noyemzar had bought half of the village from Lousin for 30,000 Syrian pounds. She had lost both the land and the 30,000 pounds. The chairman suggested that Noyemzar sueLousin and ask for her money back. We also told him Lousin had the right to choose which section of land she wanted to keep. We told him the government had given her useless, rocky land. He suggested she file a petition.

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I Sued Islahe Zira’i 9th LawsuitIslahe Zira’I is Turkish for agricultural reform. I sued this committee which represented the government. But who has heard of suing the government? What a stupid thing to do. I suppose we could just forget about the confiscated land. But to be fined 3,000 Syrianpounds for having cultivated my own land, allocated to me by the government itself, was just unacceptable. Yes, it’s true that the law was later changed, but I had already cultivated the land according to the original law.

I complained that the according to the announced law, the landowner had the privilege of choosing the land to be allocated to him. Despite this, the 250 hectares assigned to Lousin were the worst. This land had to be cultivated by farmers and it would take 3 months to plow andweeks to sow. Then they had to reap by hand or with sickles, thresh with oxen, which would eatsome of the harvest during the process, wait for favorable winds to winnow the crop, steal grain by hiding it in the straw, steal from the seeds stored for sowing, etc., etc.

I asked the opinion of lawyers and other landowners. They all advised me to sue, sayingI would win. The lawyer, Krikor Eblighatian was my friend. I asked his opinion, and heencouraged me to sue. He said the judge was a very honest man and his close friend. I appointed him my deputy lawyer with official papers. I wanted to settle on his fee, but he toldme to wait and decide later depending on the length of the procedure. However, he asked for 200 Syrian pounds in advance and 180 Syrian pounds for expenses. I paid him 350 pounds.

The lawyer opened the case and I started going back and forth to court. I would goto court on the day of the trial and there would be a postponement. This dragged on formonths. Finally, the court decided to go to Sheikh Choban and inspect the land. We went in a large group that included the judge, the clerk, our lawyer, the lawyer for the Argrarian Reform office, two land specialists, Mrs. Elmasd Sevian (Lousin’s aunt), who along to preparelunch and dinner, and myself. My family was expected to prepare an extravagant feast for the occasion. I bought two big turkeys and we cooked them in Aleppo. The weather was coldso there was no concern about the food getting spoiled. We took rice to make pilaf, baklava, coffee, sugar and some fruit. I hired two cars, each for 75 Syrian pounds. It would take us awhole day to go and return. The route was eastward, through Bab, Mounbaj and Jarablous. We had to cross the Euphrates River by boat and then drive to Arabpounar toward Sheikh Choban.

We set off early in the morning and reached the village in four hours. After resting a little,we toured and checked the land by car. I pointed out the rocky land they had allowed us to keep. I also pointed out the land we preferred. We returned and sat in the living room of my newly built stone house. I asked the clerk to write down the result of the investigation because I didn’t understand Arabic well. My lawyer was sitting next to him and he whispered in my ear, “He is writing in our favor.”

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Mrs. Elmasd prepared the food. The village head was man named Nahso. He was also ourwatchman. He was in charge of the seeds for sowing, which I gave to him to distribute to the farmers. He worked on a yearly salary. Nahso brought boulghour pilav, yoghurt, butter, etc. Then we offered coffee and tea. The verdict was going to be decided later in Aleppo.

We left some time after lunch and arrived in Aleppo in the evening. After three days the lawyer and I went to court for the verdict. There was to be no change. Lousin was stuck withthe rocky land. The lawyer did not utter a word. After all this trouble and expense we gainednothing but disappointment and anger.

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Our 3,000 Syrian Pound Fine was Raised to 3,400I wrote previously that we were fined 3,000 Syrian pounds because Noyemzar’s share of theland did not have a deed, and because the previously declared allotment for landowners and their offspring was reduced, and because we had already cultivated the land before the law waschanged and it was transferred to government ownership. So, our lawyer Eblighatian sued and the proceedings dragged on for over a year.

One day, we received a notice that because we had not paid the fine on time, it wasbeing increased to 3,400 Syrian pounds. The additional 400 pounds was for interest andcourt charges. We were told that if we did not pay within three days, our property would be confiscated. We managed to put together the 3,400 Syrian pounds and paid the fine. I also paid300 pounds to the lawyer.

Karekin, who had tilled and planted the land, had incurred a lot of expense. He had paid for petrol, laborers, etc. He had every right to ask for reimbursement, but seeing our financialpredicament, he was kind enough not to. He made no mention of this. Later, I gathered and sold the crop, but it was not enough to cover even half of my expenses.

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Requisitioning from The Lands of Ainarous11th LawsuitI have already written about the village of Ainarous and how a fourth of it belonged to the Imirzian brothers. We had just finished with the lawsuits of Sheikh Choban and Dibrig whenMgrditch Shahinian, who owned one-eighth of Ainarous, got into an argument with Sheikh Ahmed, the owner of the adjacent village. Mgrditch had antagonized the man, who in revenge, crossed 50 meters into our western border and cultivated our land. He also built 2-3 clay rooms, thus forming a small village, which he called Mazra, which in Arabic means “farm.” Thisportion was the most fertile and desirable land in Ainarous. It was where we grew wheat and barley.

So, we sued. First, we complained to the mudur (mayor) or Telabiad, who transferred the case to the court in Raqqa, which was 100 km. away. But the mudur did not take the land away from Sheikh Ahmed. According to the agrarian law, when there is a dispute the land stays with whoever has planted it until the final verdict is rendered, which could take years.

The head of preliminary court in Raqqa came to Ainarous and investigated the boundaryhimself. He decided in our favor, but gave Sheikh Ahmed the right to appeal. The sheikh passedaway, but his nephew, Sheikh Esver, appealed to the verakennich (audit) court in Deir Zor. We had a wealthy friend in Aleppo who was from Der Zor. I obtained a letter of recommendation from him telling his brother in Deir Zor to speak with the judge of the verakennich court in our favor. I went to Deir Zor and found my old schoolmate from Ourfa, Dr. Krikor Yeranossian, who was now a popular dentist. We went to the businessman and presented the letter. He gladly agreed to intervene on our behalf. I could not stay in Deir Zor very long and I wasn’t fluent in Arabic, so I hired an Arab lawyer who also spoke Turkish. I paid him 100 Syrianpounds in advance and returned to Aleppo. I kept in touch with the lawyer who often wrote back encouraging me that there would be a favorable outcome.

But Sheikh Esver appealed to the leader of the large Aneze Arab tribe, Mechhem Bey, asking him for a letter of recommendation to the head of the Istinaf court. The Arabs have greatrespect for the sheikhs. Mechhem Bey wrote the letter asking the head of the court to rule in favor of Sheikh Esver, which he did. I was given the right to appeal to the Court of Appeals in Damascus, but chose not to. I explain why in the next section.

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Why I Did Not Appeal The Verdict of The Ainarous Lawsuit

I came to realize that might makes right. There was to be no justice in this case. I did nothave much hope for a favorable ruling in the Court of Appeals. I was fed up with appeals and the courts. I had wasted my time and my money on lawyers. No doubt Mechhem Bey would interfere in the appeals process anyway. Furthermore, my partners of the village did not share in these expenses. Nor did they spend their time going to Raqqa or Deir Zor. Half of the village belonged to Ali Effendi, who was in Ourfa. He later became a deputy and moved to Ankarawhere he died. His sons lived in Severeg and never came to check on the land. One-fourth belonged to the Shahinian and Piloyan families. We (the Imirzians) also owned a fourth, which meant that one-eighth belonged to Lousin and one-eighth to Noyemzar. So, I decided it was not worth my time and effort. In those days land was not very valuable anyway. It was not a goodidea to spend double what the land was worth in order to protect your rights.

My efforts had been in vain. Yet even if I had pursued the issue and won, it wouldn’t havemattered since Syria turned socialist and confiscated this piece of land along with all the rest.

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I Lost The Opportunity to Make15,000 Syrian Pounds

Garabed Demrjian (Noyemzar’s cousin from a paternal aunt), was orphaned during the Armenian massacres of 1915 when both his parents were martyred. He was 12-13 years old at that time. He somehow managed to make his way to Beirut two or three years later. After taking small jobs in Beirut, he began selling clothing. He sold trousers, jackets, etc. in a marketplace called Souk Sursok. He sold his goods in a corner of a stall.

Eventually, he began importing used clothing from North America. He sold these to local shopkeepers and other customers, both retail and wholesale, and made a good profit. He wantedto open a place in Aleppo and came to visit. He suggested I rent space in the marketplace and begin importing bales of used clothing from America. We were to split the profits.

At the time I was busy farming in Sheikh Choban and Ainarous. I thought I would be able to go to Aleppo during harvest so I accepted his offer. I rented a room in Khan Fanar andGarabed ordered 140 bales of clothing to be sent to my address. I arranged the bales in the room. Just at this time the confiscation of Sheikh Choban by Mustafa Bey had started. So, itwas imperative that I go to the village, file the lawsuit, and be present during the examination ofthe boundaries, etc. It was impossible for me to stay in Aleppo for any length of time. I also did not realize how profitable the business of selling clothing could be. I was hoping to free SheikhChoban from all the lawsuits and sell it for a good price.

Some time later Garabed came to Aleppo to check on the business. I had to tell him about my situation. Regretfully, I told him that I could not continue. I gave him the key to the room and left for the village. Even though I had a lawyer representing me, it was important that I be there during the trials.

A few days after my departure, Garabed sold the entire 140 bales of clothing to a wholesaler. He made a 30,000 pound profit. If I had remained in Aleppo and stayed in business withhim, half of that profit would have been mine. I could have used the money to buy moremerchandise and establish a very profitable business.

I spent a lot of money on the lawsuits over our lands. Even though we did not lose the property, the Syrian government confiscated most of it. They left us with only a small and rockyportion, which we eventually sold at a low price before immigrating to the United States.

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How The Mill at Ainarous was BuiltThe Ingratitude of The Partners

Ainarous originally belonged to Severagli Ali Effendi who had bought it from the governmentat a low price. It was unpopulated at the time. It had an abundant spring, which started in the lowlands but didn’t do much good for the village. There was some greenery and a few trees alongthe banks where the spring flowed into the village. However, outside the village, the spring grewstronger and plentiful and flowed for 100 kilometers all the way to Raqqa. It irrigated the landsalong the banks and it turned the grindstones of a number of mills.

Experienced millers recognized the potential for the source of this spring. They suggestedto Ali Effendi that he build a mill with three grindstones. They said it would be very profitablesince there were no other mills nearby. As it was, farmers from many neighboring villages had to take their wheat to faraway mills.

Ali Effendi asked the Imirzian brothers for their advice. They agreed this was a good idea,however, the project would require a lot of money. Skilled builders had to be brought in from Ourfa and stones had to be cut and transported from other locations. Cement was not available at that time, so they needed powdered limestone from the city, etc.

Ali Effendi proposed building the mill in partnership with the Imirzians. They decided toinclude two millers in the partnership and settled on Mgrditch Shahinian and Nerses Piloyan. They agreed on the following terms: After the mill was built, half the village and mill wouldbelong to Ali Effendi, one quarter to the Imirzians and the other quarter to the two millers(i.e., each miller got one-eighth). All the partners had to share in the expenses in the same proportion. Because the millers did not have the necessary capital, they promised to repay their debt with labor by working in the mill once it was completed. The Imirzians were tocover their share of the expenses. The agreement was written out and certified by a notarypublic.

One year later, after a lot of expense and hard work, the mill was completed. It had three grinding areas, each with two millstones. The wall of the pond collapsed a number of timesduring construction. Because the water source was on low ground, they had to build a special pond two meters high in order to raise the level of the water. They also built three canals for thewater to run to the mill and turn the three grindstones. The canals needed wooden barriers, sothat the flow of the water could be stopped when there was nothing to grind. When the millwas working, the water would be diverted into the pond, otherwise the flow of the water wouldcontinue eastward all the way to Raqqa.

This project cost 1,000 gold coins in total. Ali Effendi paid the Imirzians each paid 500 goldcoins. The six millstones were brought in from Aleppo. They also built a small shop next to themill, which they rented out to a shopkeeper. He sold merchandise and foodstuffs to the villagersand farmers who came to have their wheat milled.

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Nerses Piloyan, one of the millers, died before the project was completed. His son, Krikor, took over for him. The Shahinians and the Piloyans worked in the mill as partners and tenants. They paid their debt to the Imirzians within two years. Then Imirzians were martyred duringthe Armenian massacres of 1915. Some time later, I started overseeing the land and the mill as guardian to their heirs, Noyemzar and Lousin. I appointed a worker in the mill to collect my share of the income. In order to avoid any cheating, I decided to rent out my share of the mill. I first asked Shahinian and Piloyan, but they offered me too low a price. It was almost as if theywere trying to rob me. How ungrateful of them! They became owners of a mill thanks to theImirzians, and now they wanted to snatch the share that belonged to their orphans.

One of the workers in the mill was Krikor Kilejian, Dr. Zakar’s (Lousin’s husband) cousin. Fortunately, he was familiar with the daily income of the mill so he proposed to rent our share for 1,500 Syrian pounds provided we paid the taxes and took care of the large expenses. I agreed. But on the first day, the millers refused to pay him his one-quarter share of the income. So I went to Telabiad with Krikor and wrote out an official agreement, which was certified by thenotary public. I gave the document to Krikor and went stayed for two days at the mill. Theymillers finally relented. They were returning our kindness with malice.

I explained much earlier how Ali Effendi, who owned half the mill, had threatened me andwent to court attempting to grab the Imirzian’s share from their orphaned daughters. He didn’t succeed. Yet in this instance, it turned out that both Muslim and Christian were equally cruel and ungrateful.

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I Was Asked to go to Qamishli as an InvestigatorSometime during the 1930s, I received an invitation from the Representatives Assembly of the Armenian Prelacy of Aleppo to attend a meeting. The primate at that time was ArchbishopArdavazt Surmeyian. The chairman of the Assembly was Dr. Hovhannes Hreshdakian fromOurfa who was also the physician for the employees of the Baghdad railway. They told me atthe meeting that used clothing from America had been sent by the Relief Committee to Krikor Sarkissian, a dentist living in Qamishli. This clothing was to be distributed to needy Armeniansthere. But Dr. A. Altounian, the chairman of the Relief Committee, had complained that Krikor had instead given the clothing to friends and relatives.

I sometimes visited the region of Jezire on business and went to places like Arabpounar, Telabiad, etc. The committee asked me to go Qamishli, which was a little farther, and investigatethis situation. They asked me to see Dr. Altounian as well, who would provide me with a letterof recommendation as an investigator.

Krikor, the target of the investigation, was an acquaintance from Ourfa. If I accepted this responsibility, I was obliged to report the truth. But if the truth was not in his favor, it would put a severe strain on our relationship. I hesitated, but in the end, I could not refuse their request.

I went to see Dr. Altounian who gave me a certificate of recommendation. Two days later Iwent to Qamishli. It was my first time there. I checked into a hotel. I sent a hotel employee toinvite three of those who had lodged the complaint. They came immediately and accused Krikorof giving the clothing to his wealthy friends instead of distributing them to the poor.

I sent a message to Krikor asking him to come see me. I explained the situation to him when he arrived, but he denied everything. Then he invited me to stay at his house saying, “I cannotlet a compatriot stay in a hotel.” I refused his invitation and said, “I hope these accusations all prove to be false. But if I find in your favor, people will say I was influenced by your hospitality.”

He returned the next day and took me to his storeroom where there was still a lot of clothing. I asked him for a list of all the people he had distributed the clothing to. He said he had no such list. In fact, he had no proof of any kind. This was a big mistake. He should haveformed a committee of two or three trustworthy persons and he should have distributed the clothing in their presence. The committee could have helped him keep a record of the recipients. It seems that instead, those needy recipients who were smart and fast, came and took the best quality items. Krikor had distributed the clothing on a first-come, first-served basis. So the bestitems had been given away and all that was left was the lesser quality goods.

I returned to the hotel and received a visit from the village priest. It also was his opinion that the clothing had indeed been distributed to the needy, but without any thought or scrutiny.

Krikor was a wealthy man. He was the only dentist in Qamishli. He made good money and owned a lot of land. He was not in need of anything and had no incentive to steal. He would not have stooped so low as to steal second-hand clothing. He had simply made a mistake by being careless in how he distributed the clothing.

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Krikor lived with his widowed sister who was also quite wealthy. She had been married to the late Dikran Churtiglian, also a dentist. She came personally to my hotel and invited me for dinner at their home. She told me we were khenami (relatives through marriage). I had not known that. My niece Kayane (Aghajan’s daughter), who lived in Sao Paolo, Brazil, was married to Hovhannes Vosgeritchian. It turns out that Krikor and his sister are his cousins.

Finally, I went to their home for dinner. I prepared my report on my return to Aleppo. I described what I had seen and understood and gave my report to the National Secular Council. I explained that there had been no foul play or theft. Krikor had distributed the aid randomly and had simply been careless about keeping records.

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A Terrible Robbery Attempt in Our HouseIn 1940, we lived in a rented apartment on Suleymanie Street in Aleppo, which was in the Ram quarter. It was a two-story building with three bedrooms, a large hall, kitchen, etc. There was alarge restaurant/coffee shop on the ground floor. One bedroom was given to the four children ofDr. Zakar Kilejian and Lousin, my wife’s cousin. The doctor’s practice was in Arabpounar andLousin stayed with him, but their children stayed in Aleppo with us where they attended school. Mrs. Oghjan Karadashian helped care for them. She was a widow and the doctor’s paternal cousin. The doctor had another cousin in Aleppo who had two grown-up sons. They oftencame to visit with Mrs. Oghjan.

It was summer and the schools were closed. Oghjan and the children had gone to Arabpounar where the doctor had a house. One day, the doctor’s cousin in Aleppo and her 17-18 year old son came to visit, not knowing that Oghjan and the children were not at home. They spent some time with Noyemzar. They had heard that our daughter Rosa was recentlyengaged to Avak Kahvejian of Beirut. It was customary to give the fiancée jewelry and theyexpressed interest in seeing what Avak had given Rosa. My wife, not suspecting anything, brought out the jewelry from where she kept it in the closet and showed it to them. Then shereturned it to its place.

One night, a few days later, we went to visit our relatives, the Saghatelians. On our way, while passing the firehouse, we saw the same boy who had come to our house with his mother. He saw that we were going out.

When we returned home a few hours later, we found the house ransacked. Everything had been moved from its place and the closets had all been opened. We were terrified. There musthave been a burglar. We had many valuable things in the house including 15,000 Syrian pounds that had been entrusted to me just one day earlier by Mr. Mayer, Aleppo’s representative of the Armenian orphanage in Ghazir, Lebanon. Of course, there was Rosa’s engagement jewelry, worth 50 gold coins. Lousin’s jewelry and the jewelry belonging to her cousin, Mrs. Elmasd Sevian, were also in the house. They had asked Noyemzar to safeguard it.

Noyemzar immediately checked for these things. Thank God everything was in its place. Fortunately, we had moved all the jewelry from their initial hiding place in the closet to another location. The thieves managed to steal only 30 pounds from Noyemzar’s closet. This moneybelonged to the Ladies’ Union of Ourfa. We were not too upset about that since we could make it up ourselves.

It would have been a huge loss and major embarrassment if we had lost all the money and jewelry entrusted to us. No doubt, wagging tongues would accuse us of stealing these valuables and blaming it on burglars. Would anyone understand our plight?

There was a young man from Ourfa who worked in the café on the ground floor of ourbuilding. When he heard about the burglary, he said, “I saw Dr. Zakar’s cousin, Garabed, last night. He went up the stairs to your house and came back down about 15 minutes later.” Our

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suspicions were confirmed. That kid was the burglar. He had been to our house a few days earlierand seen where Noyemzar hid Rosa’s jewelry. We were very lucky that Noyemzar later moved the jewelry to another, safer hiding place. When the Saghatelians heard what happened, they said the same kid stole items from their house, too. He was also related to them.

We changed our lock and attached a chain to the front door. We later heard that the whole family emigrated for Jordan. This young man was eventually arrested in Jordan and jailed forrobbery.

While I am writing these lines, I am realizing how much we would have suffered had he beensuccessful in robbing us. We may never have been able to repay all those who had entrusted us with their valuables. We would have lived our lives in debt and felt guilty. Most probably, we would have been shunned by the community as well.

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A Second Robbery AttemptWe eventually moved to an apartment on the third floor of a building on Kirvan Road inSuleymanie. We went to Beirut during the Christmas season of 1969 to spend the holidays with the families of our married daughters, Rosa and Sirarpi. At the time, our other daughters, Asdghig, Anahis and Rita, were already living in Philadelphia in the United States.

All of our neighbors in Aleppo were Armenian and we thought our apartment was quite safe. But after about a month in Beirut, while we were preparing to return home, we received an urgent telegram from our downstairs neighbor, Hovsep Gulumian. He told us that our apartment had been broken into. He said there was no damage, but he urged us to return quickly. This confused us.

We set off by car the next day and reached Aleppo by evening. We had not yet entered thebuilding when the neighbors gave us good news. They said nothing was missing and that theburglars were already in jail. We climbed up the stairs and our neighbor from upstairs came down with the key. Our door had been tied with a rope and padlocked. The burglars haddamaged the existing lock and the neighbors had secured the door for us.

We walked in and I inspected all the rooms, closets and drawers. We had left some jewelry and money in one of the drawers. They were intact.

Hovsep Gulumian’s daughters were at home, but their mother Selver had gone to Dikran Kaghtatzian’s house in order to get our telephone number in Beirut. She wanted to tell us that the neighbors had secured our door, but that they were concerned about another break-in. Theywere very worried and couldn’t sleep at nights. I hurried to Kaghtatzian’s house to let them know we had returned. They were all very happy and relieved to see me. I returned home withSelver. She told us the whole story when we got back.

Hovsep and Selver Gulumian’s apartment is just beneath ours. On Sunday, two days earlier, an acquaintance came by to visit Selver. When Selver was escorting her guest out she saw a man, who looked like a porter, come rushing down the stairs and leave the building. Selver assumed he had just delivered a package to the apartment on the top floor. But when she went backinto her apartment, she heard footsteps from above. Thinking that we must have just returnedfrom Beirut, she went upstairs and knocked on the door. A suspicious looking man opened the door a crack. When Selver tried to enter, he slammed the door in her face. Terrified, shescreamed, “Burglar! Burglar! Help!” The upstairs neighbor, Apraham Maljian, was at homeand rushed down the stairs. The burglar opened the door and tried to flee, but Selver grabbedthe man by the shirt. Apraham arrived and kicked him to the floor. He searched his pocketsand found his identity card and kept it. The other man who had come rushing down the stairsearlier was captured down the street because he was running frantically and looked suspicious. The Armenian goldsmith, who lived across the street, called the police. Two policemen arrivedand arrested the two men. They searched them thoroughly. They brought them back to ourapartment and searched the premises. The burglars denied having stolen anything. In truth,

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they had no time to steal anything. But the policemen found two screwdrivers behind our front door, which the burglars apparently used to break in. By doing this, they had broken the latch and could not close the door behind them to search the house at their leisure. We assumed that the first burglar had run out to get some tools to fix the door, but we never learned the actualscenario.

One of the policemen said to the older man, “You, dog. So you are still at it!” He was an experienced burglar and well known to the police. The police jailed these thieves. Selver andApraham were called to court as witnesses. We went with them twice, but were never called ourselves because we had not filed a complaint since nothing had actually been stolen. The judgereprimanded the thieves who, being well experienced, said, “We did not break in to rob the place. We just wanted to bring some girls there.” They said this because the penalty for burglarywas very harsh. We never knew how much time they actually spent in jail. We never inquired.

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I Was Held Up One Night in The Streets of AleppoOne evening, after dark, I stopped to buy some mixed nuts from the shop near the firehouseon my way home. It was wintertime and I took out my wallet from the inside pocket of my overcoat to pay the bill. I held the bag of nuts in my hand and continued walking home. I came to a street with no lamps where it was very dark. Suddenly, a man walked up to me and began chatting with me as if he knew me. He asked how I was doing and told me how he had missed me. I didn’t know him and asked who he was. He acted surprised and said, “How come you don’t recognize me?” Then he hugged me and I felt him shove his hand into my coat pocket. I was sickened and pushed him away. He quickly disappeared and I did not know which way he went. I suddenly realized what had happened and reached for my wallet. It was gone. I was very upset, but fortunately there wasn’t much money in it. However, my identity card was inside, which I had just renewed a few days earlier with great difficulty. In those days, identitycards had to be renewed, both in the cities and the villages.

Renewing your identity card was no easy matter. Huge crowds would queue for hours. You would often end up going home at the end of the day without having achieved your objective. This process might go on for days or weeks. I had spent about a month doing this until I finallymanaged to get my card renewed. Even so, I had to pay bribes and rely on the intervention of friends. Now, I would have to go through the whole procedure all over again. It was also mandatory to have a valid identity card with your blood type registered on it. Fortunately, it was winter, which meant that I would not have to travel to the villages on business. I would not have been able to travel without a card.

The thief must have seen me pay the shopkeeper and place my wallet back in my pocket. This was a good lesson for me. After that, I had buttons sewn on the inside pockets of all myjackets and coats in order to secure my wallet. Had my pocket been buttoned securely that day, the thief would not have been able to get his hand on my wallet.

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Why We Formed a Ladies’ Association of Ourfa in Aleppo

After escaping from Ourfa to Aleppo in 1923, I sought out the Compatriotic Council of Ourfa. It was chaired by Dr. Armenag Abouhayatian. Other members were Haroutiun Shahinian, Garabed Keverian, Mihran Herartian and Bedros Akkelian. I accepted their invitation to join. A few months later, Bedros Akkelian resigned as Treasurer and I was elected to the position.

We provided assistance to the robbed and widowed families who had to escape from Ourfa. We also helped needy students. We had a modest budget and raised money by giving concerts and collecting donations. Some friends from Ourfa, including Kevork Alan (Alanjian) who had moved to New York, twice sent $200 checks made out to me to help the needy.

Dr. Abouhayatian resigned two years later because of some disagreement and Mihran Herartian was elected chairman. Unfortunately, the Council eventually disintegrated, but I cannot remember exactly why. In those days a fierce rivalry had commenced between variouspolitical parties. There was an attempt to elect a new Council of Ourfa, but there was muchquarreling, fighting, battering and even bloodshed among the candidates. A new councilwas not elected and many needy families, ill people and students were left without assistance. Yet, because I had been Treasurer, they kept coming to me begging for help. It was a very heartbreaking situation. Although there was also a Youth Organization of Ourfa, it did not have resources to help the needy.

I came up with the idea of forming a Ladies’ Association of Ourfa without holding elections. I wanted members appointed who would be impartial and industrious and who did not have political inclinations so they could focus instead on helping the needy without any discrimination. I consulted Father Asdvadzadour Kassabian, who was well acquainted with all the ladies of the Ourfa community. Together, we chose the following women: Oghjan Chalian, Rebecca Arabian, Mendouhi Ekmekjian, Loussia Kharajian, Feride Hovaguimian, Mariam Kalemkarian, and Mughtzi Nersesian and Mariam Babajanian who were from Garmouj. I was Chairman of the Association. After a year, the women from Garmouj resigned and formed their own Association.

We formed the first Association in 1936. Through the years, some members passed away orleft Aleppo and new members were appointed in their place. Two group pictures of this council are published on pages 1264 and 1265 of “Tiutzaznagan Ourfan.” But there were more changes after those pictures were taken. I will write later about the last Association we were associated with just before immigrating to the United States.

Noyemzar, my wife, was a member of the Association until our last day in Aleppo. She was very helpful. We prepared the by-laws, presented them to the Prelate and the chairman of the Legislative Council, Archbishop Ardavazt, who got approval of the Legislative Council, ratifiedit and signed it. Each member of the Association had the responsibility of signing up her

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acquaintances and relatives as members and collecting a small sum every month as a membership fee. Once a month, a meeting was held in the house of one of the Association members and the fees given to the treasurer. The council congratulated members on happy occasions such asbirths, engagements, weddings and graduations, with a card and received gifts. Occasionally, we rented movies and sold tickets to the public in order to raise money. We used the income to help pay tuition expenses for students of both sexes. In exceptional cases, we helped needy families.

The late Mrs. Mendouhi Ekmekjian was a tireless member. She knew all the people fromOurfa and kept us informed about all the special occasions in the community so that we could congratulate individuals. She had the largest number and highest paying members.

There was a time when we had about 200 members paying monthly or yearly dues. TheCouncil was unbiased and indiscriminately helped all the needy students, letting them choose the schools they wanted to attend. It also helped needy families without any political or denominational considerations. There is much more to tell about the activities of the Ladies’Association of Ourfa, which I will do later.

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We Received Aid from Friends in AmericaI had friends and classmates who had moved to North and South America. I wrote them letters informing them of the establishment of the Ladies Council of Ourfa and its goals. Upon receipt of my letter, compatriots in Los Angeles formed a committee and began sending us $100 to $300 a year from 1947 to 1956. They emphasized their desire to help the students. As a resultof their help, we had no financial problems.

Mrs. Vartouhi Sarrafian, who was originally from Ourfa, came to Aleppo from BuenosAires to visit her daughter, Mrs. Rebecca Yousoufian, who was a Council member. After herreturn, she sent the Council a check for 400 French francs (if I remember correctly) from our compatriots in Buenos Aires. Thus, we were able to pay tuition for around 40 students everyyear. To keep everything transparent, we paid the tuitions directly to the schools and sent the receipts to the Compatriot Council in Los Angeles without being asked. We also managed to save a portion of the membership dues, donations and the aid we received from friends in America. We kept these funds in a bank and earned interest. Our aim was to save enough money to buy some real estate, which would guarantee some income. Eventually, we succeeded in this goal, which I write about later.

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A Special Room for The Elderly of OurfaThe Old Age Home in Aleppo had become cramped and unsuitable, so new accommodationshad to be built. We offered the trustees of the home 1,500 Syrian pounds to build a room inthe name of the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa. This was to be used for the benefit of the elderlyfrom Ourfa free of charge (or for a small fee) without putting them on a waiting list. The roomwas built and an inscription was placed outside the door, which read, “Constructed with the donation of the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa.”

Eventually, we were able to stop providing help to the needy and the sick because of the successful efforts of other organizations including the Armenian General Benevolent Union,the Armenian Relief Society, the Karagueozian Foundation and the Jinishian Foundation. Thisallowed us to focus on helping the students.

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Raising Funds to Help Armenians Immigrate to Soviet Armenia

In 1945, many Armenians immigrated to Soviet Armenia. Many associations from other cities asked their counterparts in North America to donate funds to help needy Armenians immigrate to Armenia. The money was to be used for travel and other expenses. Our friends asked meto write to my acquaintances in America for similar assistance. I wrote to Dr. Hagop Beshlian, Kevork Alan (Alanjian), Onnig Sevkar, Garabed Jerrahian, and Garabed Tatossian. They beganraising funds from their friends and after two or three months sent me checks of $500 from Kevork Alan and $400 from Garabed Tatossian. The monies were receivable from the localbanks upon my signature. Khosrof Tuysuzian, who worked at an exchange, advised me that the Syrian banks would give me only one Syrian pound per dollar, which would represent a loss of 900 Syrian pounds. On the other hand, merchants in Aleppo who imported goods from America would pay an extra Syrian pound per dollar for checks drawn on any American bank. Khosrof advised me to send the checks back to the donors and ask them to write checks payable in America. I immediately sent the checks back explaining the situation. As it turned out, the new checks arrived too late as the flow of immigration to Armenia was stopped.

I had also written to other friends, asking them to write checks payable on American banks. In all, we collected $2,340 from K. Alan, G. Tatossian, Onnig Sevkar and the Keshishian brothers to help those wishing to travel to Armenia. Although some people told me to present the checks to the Immigration Committee, I refused since immigration had been halted and those from Ourfa would not benefit from such a step. Instead, I wrote back to my friends inAmerica and explained the situation. I suggested they allow us to transfer the funds to the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa so that they could put it in a savings account and earn interest. As I explained earlier, our goal was to save enough money to buy some real estate that would produce yearly income to help students. In fact, this is what we eventually succeeded in doing. I will write about this later.

During those days, others raised a sum of 5,000 Syrian pounds to help the needy from Ourfa immigrate to Armenia. But there efforts also came too late. After a lot of arguments,they decided to give the money to the Immigration Committee even though immigration had been halted. This money ended up going to waste. During that time I had gone to Jezire,Arabpounar. Had I been in Aleppo, I might have been able to convince those others to give that 5,000 pounds to the Ladies’ Association, which would have also been added to the funds to help the students from Ourfa.

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The 20th Anniversary Celebrationof the Ladies’ Association

We were always clear that the donations we were receiving from our friends in America were being saved in order to finance the purchase of real estate. It was our plan to use the incomeproduced from that real estate to fund future aid programs. Because this project was taking time and because the 20th anniversary of the Association’s founding was approaching (1936-1955), we decided to hold a public celebration during which we would provide an explanation to the people allaying any doubts they might harbor about the funds in our custody.

We organized the function in 1955 in the spacious hall of Aleppo’s Nadi Saad, under the patronage of the Prelate Archbishop Zareh, (who later became Catholicos). Almost all the people from Ourfa who were living in Aleppo at the time attended regardless of gender, economic class, or political affiliation. As Chairman of the Association, I read a detailed reportof the Association’s activities over the past 20 years. I also announced that after having paid tuition for 40 needy students of both sexes each year, helping extremely impoverished families, and building a special room in the Armenian old age home for the elderly from Ourfa, the Association still managed to amass 20,000 Syrian pounds, which were on deposit in the Reuni Bank of Aleppo. I explained that the funds would be used to purchase some income-producing real estate to help meet the needs of future students.

The Prelate rewarded me with a gold medal as a sign of his appreciation. He also presentedsilver medals to all the other Association members. All those present applauded enthusiastically and made generous donations to the Association. Everyone had an excellent time. They ate,drank, sang, and danced until dawn and left with good memories.

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Property in the Meydan Region of AleppoThe Armenophilic Nansen Society bought a large piece of land in the Meydan region (NorKiugh) of Aleppo and allocated it to the homeless and destitute Armenian refugees arriving from the provinces. Among the refugees were some from Ourfa. The refugees were asked to pay avery small amount each year over a very long period of time. After allocating shares of land to those from Ourfa, a small triangular piece, 45 square meters in area, was left over. It was too small to build a house on, so this piece of land was given to the Compatriotic Council of Ourfa.

Over the years, some of the people from Ourfa were unable to make their annual payments. So, the representative of the Nansen Society, Boghos Mouradian, sold the 45 square meter piece of land to a client for 400 Syrian pounds to cover the delinquent payments. The CompatrioticCouncil of Ourfa no longer existed at that time, and although there was a youth organization, it did not have a budget and it wasn’t interested in buying the land.

The Ladies’ Association was not aware that the land had been sold. Khoren Ekmekji, theson of one of the Council members, Mrs. Mendouhi, came to our house and told us about it. It seems that other than the Ladies’ Association, no one from Ourfa was interested in buying the land. My wife and I immediately went to see the representative of the Nansen Society who gave us the name of the buyer. We went to see him, and after much begging, cajoling and persuading, we succeeded in buying the land from him for 450 Syrian pounds, which provided him with a 50-pound profit. Since the land was 45 square meters in area, we got it for 10 pounds per squaremeter. This was a very cheap price by the standards of the day. So the Association incurred aloss caused by those who had taken land, but had not been able to pay. We were hoping to build a few shops there and either rent them out or sell them for a profit.

Over the years we received letters from the municipality claiming we owed a payment for the roads on either side of our land because they had been paved. They wanted us to pay whatthey claimed was our share of the expenses. So we paid what we were asked. In order to obtain a deed to the land, we had to pay so many years’ worth of taxes. So we paid the taxes as well. And we paid for the expense of preparing the deed. Finally, we received warnings telling us that we had to construct a building or else the government would appropriate the land. All of these municipal warnings were delivered to my wife and me as representatives of the Association. We took care of everything and always kept the Association informed.

The Ladies’ Association did not agree to develop the land as the government demanded. Fortunately, the owner of the adjoining property, Drtad Kelenjian, offered to buy the landfrom us. He wanted to build a workshop next to his house. He bought the land through a go-between for 125 Syrian pounds per square meter. After all expenses, the Ladies Association made a net profit of 3,690 pounds. All the details of this transaction are with the LadiesAssociation along with all the official receipts.

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I Bought Taniel Yousoufian’s Properties inArabpounar

I wrote about Taniel Yousoufian earlier. He was the man the Turks framed for killing Karekinthe pharmacist. Taniel eventually managed to get out of jail after paying large amounts of bribes. He eventually came to Aleppo. In those days, there was a lucrative smuggling business in Arabpounar. Turkish smugglers came to Arabpounar by night, and took a variety of goods back to Turkey without paying taxes. Both the shopkeepers of Arabpounar and the Turkish smugglers made good profits. Taniel was without work so I encouraged him to go to Arabpounar and opena shop, which he did. We sent him tea, coffee, sugar, soap, etc. He made a fortune in just afew years. He undertook farming, sheep-rearing and other enterprises. He amassed a capital of about 5,000 to 6,000 gold coins, developed properties, built a two-story hotel with a large café and four shops on the first floor. The café had a large garden, which was used in the summer.He had a house built adjacent to the café with 4-5 rooms. He also had a large garage in the market and three other shops. Altogether, he had 12 different properties, which he rented out.

The mother and brothers (Boghos and Kevork Sarrafian) of Taniel’s wife had moved toBuenos Aires, Argentina a long time ago. Her brothers had become successful and wealthy. Taniel’s mother-in-law came to Aleppo one year to visit her daughter and grandchildren. Taniel’s family used to stay in Aleppo. The mother-in-law tried very hard to convince Taniel to move toBuenos Aires with his family, but Taniel’s work was prospering so he did not want to go. Themother-in-law took Taniel’s two sons, Hovsep and Souren, 8 and 10 years old, to Buenos Aires with her. The boys learned their uncles business and the local language.

One day Taniel said to me, “My wife’s brothers keep telling me to leave everything and move there. They say in two years I can make as much as I have here. I am confused about what todo.” Eventually, he sold everything but his real estate properties. He gave a power-of-attorney to Bozan Bey Shahin (Mustafa’s brother) to collect the rents or to sell the properties if need be, and he moved his family to Buenos Aires. He was offered 13,000 Syrian pounds for his real estate,but he didn’t accept, thinking that one day he might return if he didn’t like Argentina. He kept in constant touch with me by correspondence.

He became successful in Buenos Aires and wrote to Bozan Bey and me to sell his properties. A few days later I went to the Chalians’ garage and saw Bozan Bey and Dikran Kaghtatzian sitting there. Bozan Bey said, “I am going to sell all of Taniel’s properties to Dikran for 7,000 Syrian pounds. We have to send a telegram to Taniel.” I objected, saying, “I cannot sign in agreement. He was offered 13,000 before and he did not sell.” Bozan Bey said, “I will not signin agreement on my own.”

Dikran became very upset with me. I knew Bozan Bey owed Dikran money, which he could not pay back. So he wanted to sell Taniel’s properties to Dikran and finish with his debt,deferring Taniel’s payment for years. Dikran would have gotten his due by buying the property

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at a very cheap price. Taniel told me he had spent about 2,000 gold coins (about 50,000 to 60,000 Syrian pounds) to buy these properties. I wrote to Taniel about this and he wrote back saying, “I don’t want Dikran to buy my property.” They were angry with each other for somereason. He added, “Sell it to anyone else. I don’t care for how much. You don’t have to ask me.”

As I explained earlier, the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa had saved money to buy a profitableproperty. So I wrote to Taniel telling him that we wanted to buy his property for the Council. Taniel’s wife was a member of the council before they moved to Buenos Aires. He answered, “With pleasure!” and agreed to sell it for 7,000 Syrian pounds. But later, the Ladies’ Council decided it did not want to buy property outside of Aleppo. I thought the mentioned properties would bring in a minimum of 1,500 Syrian pounds annually. The asking price was very cheap. So I offered to buy it from Taniel. I wrote to him about my intention. Because it was for me, heoffered to sell it for only 5,000. It was a sacrifice on his part.

I told Bozan Bey that I wanted to buy the properties. But before giving his permission, he asked me for 4,000 pounds. He said his son was getting married and he needed the money. I had 2,000 pounds cash and borrowed another 2,000 from my son-in-law Avak Kahvejian. He transferred the title to my wife’s name. He also gave me a promissory note and slowly paid his debt over ten years. I paid Taniel in installments.

Unfortunately, one day Taniel went on a pleasure trip near Buenos Aires. He went into the sea for a swim and was dragged our by the current and drowned. They found his body withgreat difficulty, brought it back to the city and buried it. He has three adult sons who are intheir father’s trading business. His two daughters are married. His wife is still living to this day.

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The Ladies’ Association Bought an Apartment inAleppo and Transferred Title to the Prelate

The Ladies Council of Ourfa paid tuition for 40 students each year. It had 29,000 Syrianpounds in the bank. We decided to buy two pieces of property and transfer the titles to the Armenian Prelacy and the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), respectively, on the condition that they collect the rents and give them to the Association who would then use the funds to support the needy students. We took this step in order to satisfy all the members of the Association, regardless of their background and class. We also wanted to prove a point to those who had spread rumors among the simpleminded that the monies had disappeared or been used for personal purposes.

We reached an agreement with the Prelacy and bought a spacious third-floor apartment onBaghdad Station Road in Aleppo for about 17,000 Syrian pounds. We transferred title to the name of the primate, Archbishop Ghevont Chebeyan. The Titles Department would not registerproperty in an organization’s name. They wanted the name of an individual. And we werereluctant to use even the most reliable and faithful person from Ourfa because human beings are mortal and we didn’t want to have problems with heirs that might arise after a person’s death.

We made two copies of the agreement, which the Primate signed. The Ladies’ Associationkept one and the other was kept in the records of the Prelacy. The Prelacy collected the rentevery year, paid the federal tax, and kept a 10% commission as previously agreed. Then it gavethe remainder to the representative of the Ladies’ Association against a receipt.

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The Ladies’ Association gave12,000 Syrian Pounds to the AGBU

We wanted to purchase another piece of property under the same conditions but in the name of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) of Aleppo. We found a suitable house. Thesellers would not accept less than 15,000 pounds. We had only 12,000, so we asked the AGBU to loan us the remaining 3,000 Syrian pounds under the condition that they keep all the rents until the loan was paid off. But the AGBU did not like the idea of owning an apartment forfear that there might be problems with the tenants. Tenants might not pay the rent or refuse to vacate the apartment. We would also want to avoid lawsuits. There was also the fear that thegovernment might confiscate the AGBU’s properties as it did with the properties of the Muslimfactions.

The AGBU suggested we give them our 12,000 pounds and they would pay us 600 poundsa year (i.e., 5% interest). They offered to provide a contract to this effect. But we objectedbecause we were afraid that future committee members might refuse to honor the contract. We said we would go along with the deal only if the AGBU’s central committee in New York agreed to it. It did. So we paid the 12,000 Syrian pounds and they gave us an agreement signed by the chairman of the AGBU committee in Aleppo, Dr. Robert Jebejian, dated October 30, 1968. Later, we received a thank-you letter from the executive administrator of the AGBU headquarters in New York, Kr. Guiragossian, restating the above conditions. The agreement wasalso announced in the April 15, 1969 issue of the official newsletter of the AGBU, ‘Housharar Mioutiun’. They paid us regularly 600 pounds every year for the needy Ourfatzi students.

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I Escaped Certain Death in BeirutIn 1970, my wife Noyemzar and I went to Beirut to spend the New Year season with our daughters Rosa and Sirarpi and their families. One day I was going from the marketplace to Rosa’s house by car. I got off at the corner of Jomblat from where it was a short walk up a steepstreet to home. I had to cross the street. There was a large car parked in front of me so I couldn’tsee very well. I heard a loud rumbling noise from the house behind me. Cars used to come up the street, so I checked before crossing. I had barely taken a step when a tramway came from behind the parked car. I automatically extended my arm, which touched the speeding tramway and threw me sprawling on my back. The tramway stopped immediately. The conductor andpassengers were terrified thinking that I was fatally injured, but I managed to get up. They askedhow I was and if I wanted to file a complaint. I said I did not and the tramway left.

I felt that may hand and cheek were injured. A gentleman came by and offered to take meto a nearby pharmacy to have them look after my injuries. I refused at first, but he insisted, soI went. My wife and daughter were very scared when they saw me with all the white bandages. We thanked God for having saved me from certain death. Because of the loud rumbling from the house behind me, I wasn’t able to hear the tramway coming. Had I taken a step a fraction of a second sooner, I would have become a smashed corpse.

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An Unfair Verdict - 13th LawsuitI have written that my brothers Nshan and Aghajan traded in fabrics among other businesses. They imported fabric from Aleppo paying with cash or credit. My brothers were martyred bythe Turks during the 1915 massacres and their assets were looted by the government. I have also written that my brother Haroutiun and I did business in Aleppo with cash or commission.

One day, the son of the fabric merchant Nigoghos Ajemian, filed a lawsuit against usdemanding 12 Ottoman gold coins. He had a promissory note signed by Nshan and Aghajan Keshishian payable to the late Nigoghos Ajemian. But even before the massacres, my business was independent of that of my brothers. Haroutiun had just finished school and was anapprentice in Nshan and Aghajan’s business.

We asked an Ourfatzi lawyer named Jabra Mousalli for his opinion. He told us we were under no obligation to pay. So we hired him as our representative and paid a portion of his retainer as well as the court expenses. He went to court for a few weeks, but we never went because he was representing us.

One day, he came to me pretending to be very upset. He said we had lost the case. He claimed he had forgotten the date of the trial, and so the judge ruled against us. So we lost the 12 Ottoman gold coins, the retainer we had paid the lawyer, and the court costs.

We later learned that Ajemian’s son bribed our lawyer to lose the case.

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I Saw Hajji Mustafa The Buyer of the Biggest of Our Houses

One Easter eve, I was traveling to Aleppo from Ainarous by the Telabiad station train. Thetrain was packed with Christian passengers from the villages of Qamishli, Derbesie, Amoude, Telabiad, etc. They were all going to Aleppo to celebrate Easter with their families.

A new passenger, carrying a bag, boarded the train. He walked up and down the aisle looking for a seat. I looked at him carefully because he looked familiar. Then I recognized him. He was an Ourfatzi, Hajji Kamelzade Mustafa. It had been 20 years since I had seen him and he had changed a lot. So had I. As he went by me toward the door of the train to get off, Istood up and said, “Please, have my seat.” He thanked me, but got off the train. He returned alittle later with the director of the station and said to the director in an angry voice, “If there are no seats, why did you sell me a ticket?” The director gave orders to bring a chair from outside,which they placed next to me. Hajji Mustafa sat down.

I asked him how he was and he recognized me. I asked about the condition of our house. He became distressed. He blushed and seemed embarrassed. He said, “I bought the house from the government at auction. I live there now. I opened a road through the dilapidated house of the Saghatelians across the street towards the Halebli garden, which I also bought. You’re most welcome to come back to Ourfa. The house is yours. I will gladly give it back to you.” Ofcourse he said this with false politeness. I answered with the same dishonesty, “Thank you verymuch. Even if you give me the whole of Ourfa, I would have no interest in returning. I have very bad memories of the place.”

That house was the best house in the Armenian Quarter, if not the whole city. It was builtwith 200 Ottoman gold coins, which was a large amount of money in those days. I heard that he bought it for only 2,000 Turkish pounds.

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Opinions About the Arabic LanguageAfter miraculously surviving the 1915 genocide and settling in Aleppo, I started doing business in the market, but had great difficulty because I barely knew a few words of Arabic. Mybrother Haroutiun and I worked together. I was responsible for the accounting and for all the correspondence in Armenian and Turkish. Haroutiun had come to Aleppo long before me and was more familiar with the Arabic language, so he did the buying and other dealings in the market.

When we got involved in lawsuits, I could not express myself in court with confidence. There was only one Armenian lawyer, the blind Levon Tamzarian, who worked with an Arabassistant. We gave all our cases to him. There were almost no Armenian employees in thegovernment simply because there were few Armenians who knew Arabic well enough.

One day I went to the post office and asked for stamps in Turkish. The employee got angryand said, “Talk Arabic. I do not know Turkish.” He refused to sell me the stamps.

I was still young and decided to learn Arabic. I looked in the bookshops for appropriate books, but didn’t find any. I found out to my dismay that the level of Arabic instruction inthe Armenian schools was very poor. A typical graduate from an Armenian school could not even write two lines without making mistakes. So, I wrote an article stressing the importance of teaching Arabic in the Armenian schools. I submitted it to the ‘Aztag’ newspaper in Beirut where it was published.

The situation changed a few years later. The Syrian government ordered all Christian schoolsto give more importance to the teaching of the Arabic language. Now Armenian could be taught for only one or two periods a day. All other courses, such as science, math, geography, history, etc., had to be taught in Arabic. The teaching of Armenian history was banned. The Armenian Catholicschools which did not comply with these regulations were closed down and their properties were confiscated. Buildings belonging to their communities were also confiscated. The other Armenianschools conformed. Now the situation was worse. Whereas before, the graduate could not write proper Arabic, now he couldn’t write a few lines of Armenian without making mistakes.

I want to also mention some of the articles I had published in the papers. Before the massacres of 1915, when I was still an adolescent, I sent two correspondences to the ‘Arevelian Mamoul’ in Izmir. Both were published to my great pleasure. While living in Aleppo in 1935, I wrote an article published in ‘Aztag’ about the death of the great Armenophile and my savior, Miss Karen Jeppe from Denmark. I wrote about her services to the Armenian community. Later, as Chairman of the Ourfatzi Ladies Council, I wrote a number of articles about the activities and services of the Council in the ‘Arevelk’ paper in Aleppo and the ‘Zartonk’ paper in Beirut.

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How I Collaborated in the “Tiutzaznagan Ourfan”I think it was during 1937 that my friend, Kevork Alan (Alanjian), wrote me from North America to say that a few of our Ourfatzi compatriots had decided to publish a book about Ourfa. They wanted my collaboration and ensured the cooperation of other Ourfatziintellectuals. My close friend, Hovhannes Arzouhaljian, had promised to cover the cost of publishing the book. I started writing with great enthusiasm. I collected the dialect of Ourfa, the proverbs, the blessings, curses and songs. I asked the elderly for information and asked survivors to write down their memories. I sent some materials, writings and photographs to Kevork Alan, but there was no outcome. The person who had promised to finance thepublication died and then World War II began. We were disappointed.

Our compatriot, Aram Sahagian, came to Aleppo from Beirut in 1952. He had already written a very brief book called “Ourfayi Herosamarde” (The Heroic Battle of Ourfa). Oneevening, while we were gathered with friends, I brought up the subject of the book we had begun and how the work was interrupted. We requested Aram Sahagian to form a committee upon his return to Beirut and undertake the publication of such a book.

The committee included the following members. From Beirut: Garabed Keverian, AramSahagian, Mihran Herartian, Levon Kasbarian, and Zareh Vorperian. From Aleppo: Armen Anoush and myself. From New York: Kevork Alan. From Paris: Hagop Hisayan. From Los Angeles: Yessayi Attarian. There were 10 of us in all. We sent circulars with information andrequested the cooperation of our compatriots. We sent these to our compatriots everywhere. It was decided to print the book in Beirut. They collected donations and gathered orders fromcompatriots in Beirut. The widow of the late Hovhannes Arzouhaljian had promised 5,000dollars, but gave only 1,000. Aram Sahagian undertook the responsibility of editor. Kevork Alan sent all my articles and pictures to Aram in Beirut.

I gathered information from the elderly in Aleppo and recorded whatever I could remember. I also wrote letters to those living outside of Aleppo and urged them to submit materials to me or to Beirut. I also sent them the circular our committee had prepared. I wrote to Avedis Ekmekjian in Ainarous, Father Asdvadzadour Kassabian in San Paolo, Brazil, Taniel Yousoufianin Buenos Aires, Argentina, Garmoujtzi Nazar Boghossian in Raqqa, Hovsep Chilinguirian in Mousoul, Iraq, Mardiros Madaghian in Kerkuk, Iraq, etc. All of them sent their writings and photos to me in Aleppo, and I sent them to Beirut.

One day, Sarkis Mesrobian, who was much older, told me, “The late Father Apraham Arevianhas written a detailed history of Ourfa. After his death, his son sold it for one gold coin to a British antiquarian visiting the American missionary, Miss Shatuk.” I immediately wrote to Aram Sahagian in Beirut asking him to find out what he could about this. His committeeinvestigated and had found it in the library of Leiden in Holland. It gave very valuable and detailed information, which was then included in its entirety in the book on Ourfa. However, Aram Sahagian wrote that it was Bishop Khoren Mkhitarian (the primate of Ourfa) who gave

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that manuscript to the professor. The important thing is that the manuscript was not lost. Ascan be seen in the book on Ourfa, I collected the dialects, blessings and curses of Ourfa for a 10-year period. But after writing my eyewitness accounts of the two massacres of 1895 and the massacre of 1915, and the killings of my loved ones, and writing my memoirs of escaping death so many times, I was emotionally upset and fell seriously ill. I could not write anymore and I could not edit and copy the mentioned dialects anymore. So, I asked our compatriot, Arshavir Kabbenjian to do it for me. I promised to pay him 200 Syrian pounds. So, he copied them for me, but unfortunately he left out the curses. I don’t know if he did this intentionally or he just forgot. He took the finished product to the committee in Beirut and collected 300 poundsinstead of the promised 200. That was a lot of money in those days.

Ever since we began work on the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’, we had agreed as a committee that half of the proceeds from the sale of the book would be given to the Ourfa Compatriotic Society of Beirut and the other half to the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa in Aleppo. During that time, the Ourfa Compatriotic Society of Aleppo was dissolved. I was the chairman of the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa. The book was published and was very well received. Each hard covervolume sold for 25 Lebanese pounds in Beirut. It sold at an equivalent price abroad. The editorgot a mere 3,000 Lebanese pounds as a reward.

Some time later I went to Beirut on business. The initial committee had been dispersed andAram Sahagian had already passed away. He had given the financial report and the surplus books tothe Ourfa Compatriotic Society of Beirut. The chairman at the time was Khosrof Shamlian. Thetreasurer was Avak Kahvejian. New members had joined the committee, one of whom was Garbis Kazanjian. He refused to pay the share promised to Aleppo. There was a lot of argument, but thechairman and the treasurer knew about the initial agreement and they were willing to appease us in part. They finally gave us 600 Lebanese pounds in cash and decided to pay the amount which hadbeen realized from the sales in Aleppo, too. So, the Ladies’ Association in Aleppo received 1,000 Syrian pounds. They did not show us any statements. There were still many unsold books. I thinkthey must have taken the lion’s share of 3,000-4,000 Lebanese pounds.

As mentioned earlier, the chief editor of the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’, Aram Sahagian had published a short book in 1933 titled ‘The Heroic Battle of Ourfa’. It was about the hopelessfight the Armenians of Ourfa put up against the Turks in 1915. Here he had mentioned onlythe names of Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian and his partner Haroutiun Rastgelenian, as the main organizers and fighters. He mentioned some secondary young men and women, but omittedthe name of the wealthy Hovhannes Imirzian, who consulted and cooperated with Mgrditch Yotneghpayrian. He even fought all through the resistance together with a group of young men. One day, he tried to throw a bomb at the enemy from behind the wall of an Armenian home. But the bomb hit the wall and fell back into the courtyard where it exploded. Hovhannes was seriously wounded. He was arrested at the end of the battle, jailed and martyred on the gallows.

Aram cannot be blamed for omitting this because he was not in Ourfa and did not take part in the fighting. Suspecting that oversights might happen, I wrote to Aram and asked him to be

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completely unbiased in his editing and not to omit the names of any participants due to their denominational or political inclinations. They were all helpful to their people and should berecognized. This was important so that the book would be favorably received by all membersof the community. Aram Sahagian was Tashnagtzagan and was naturally familiar with the work and members in that ambiance. Whereas there were many complaints against the previous ‘TheHeroic Battle of Ourfa’, it is a great satisfaction that ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ included everything and everyone. This time, Aram Sahagian assigned a whole chapter in the new book (page 1063)where he glorified the heroism of Hovhannes Imirzian. However, he did not mention the storyof the bomb, probably because he did not know about it.

The Imirzian and Der Bedrossian residences were near each other at the edge of theArmenian Quarter close to the marketplace. During the days of the massacres in Adana and the surrounding provinces in 1909, the Armenians were very apprehensive, expecting an attack from the Turks. One day, many Armenians did not go to the marketplace in fear of an impending attack. I remember that night Hovhannes Imirzian gathered the young men in our neighborhood at the house of the Demirjians, their next-door neighbor. My brother Hagop was among them and I accompanied him. He instructed some of the men to assemble in one of the rooms on the upper floor of the house at the end of our street, armed and ready to ward off a probable Turkish onslaught. Fortunately, it was announced in the morning that Sultan Hamid had been dethroned and was succeeded by Sultan Reshad. The situation improved somewhat.

Many thought that the wealthy in Ourfa and those who were politically neutral were not patriotic and did not care about the resistance effort. On the contrary, they were very patriotic,but they were careful not to show it off. Many had secret caches of arms and ammunitionand did not want this fact to be known because they feared retribution from the Turks. TheImirzians, Der Bedrossians, Chalians, Ketenjians, Kullahians, etc. all had arms, which became evident immediately after the Turks attacked. An eloquent proof of this can be seen on page 1053 of ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’, as told by S. Hakouian regarding Aghajan Der Bedrossian’s secret stashes of arms.

We must truly congratulate the committee on their publication of ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ and especially the late Aram Sahagian and all the cooperating writers who researched and documented in an even-handed manner and without any political bias all the persons and committees who were helpful to the nation. Had the publication been postponed for a few more years, the few survivors from the older generation would have died and we would have lost access to many eyewitness accounts. Of course, the publication cannot be considered perfect. There areoversights and omissions due to the fact that the writers were not familiar with certain facts and events. Still, it is a satisfactory and valuable document for the present and the future generations.

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I Sold the Remaining Land in Sheikh ChobanAs I explained earlier, the Syrian government became socialist and confiscated the majority ofSheikh Choban, leaving only 260 hectares of rocky land as Lousin’s and her four children’s share. It was impossible to farm this portion with tractors, and dealing with the peasant farmers was a big headache, time consuming, not cost effective. Sometimes, it was even unprofitable. But I kept at it because I did not want to lose the village to the government completely. However, I was willing to sell the land at just about any price. Lousin also wanted to sell.

Muhammed Bey approached us in 1968. He was one who previously wanted to buy the entire village. He was a villager from neighboring Moukharej. He had some land there, but he also owned fertile plots in Serron where rice, cotton and all kinds of crops could be grown. It was a very profitable business. He managed to have a harvest even during years of drought. But he was a Kurd and Serron was an Arab village. The Arabs gave him no peace and quiet. For example, they did not tie their cattle and camels at night. The animals would go and grazeon Muhammed Bey’s cultivated land. They harassed him like this so he would sell them hisland.

So he was willing to sell his land if he could buy ours. After long negotiations, we agreed to sell our 260 hectares for 32,000 Syrian pounds. But I had already sown the land with wheat and half of the harvest belonged to the villagers. I sold him our half for 1,000 Syrian pounds. Thus,the total price was 33,000 Syrian pounds.

However, we were both wary that the socialist Syrian government might forbid the sale. Muhammed Bey made inquiries through a friend and was assured that there would be no problem. Nonetheless, he wanted the borders of the 260 hectares he was going to purchase to be officially specified in order to avoid any possible disputes with the government in the future. We went together to the appropriate government office and asked for an official document specifyingthe borders of the land. They told us an official survey was required, which would involve goingto the site with engineers and surveyors. This meant that I would have to rent two or threecars and prepare a sumptuous lunch for the surveyors. This was a lot of trouble and expense. I offered to give Muhammed Bey a 500 Syrian pound discount if he would take care of allthis. He cheerfully agreed, but never went through with the official surveying. But he wantedan official document showing that Lousin owned the 260 hectares. I gave him a documentstating, “Lousin Kilejian owns 260 hectares of land in the village of Sheikh Choban.” I did not mention her four children. In reality, Lousin owned 200 hectares. Her four children owned the remaining 60 hectares, but I made no mention of this.

I gave the man the document and he was reassured. I sent the information to Lousin in Beirut and she came to Arabpounar personally. The notary public came to our house and wrotea statement regarding the sale of 260 hectares in Sheikh Choban for 32,500 Syrian pounds, which Lousin signed. I gave half the money to Lousin who returned to Beirut. I kept the other half because the village actually belonged to both Garabed and Hovhannes Imirzian. They had

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not divided their wealth and property before they were killed by the Turks. Because Garabed (Noyemzar’s father) was a member of the Mejlise Idare, he could not put the property in his name. As a result, it remained in Hovhannes’s (Lousin’s father) name.

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Lousin’s Children’s Share of Land Two months after selling the 260 hectares of land in Sheikh Choban, M. Bey Besho came to me in an agitated state. He said the government wanted him to transfer the deeds of Lousin’s four children’s shares. The government had threatened to confiscate these 60 hectares. M. Bey Beshodemanded I pay him 7,400 Syrian pounds for these 60 hectares. He said he had presented the document to the government showing that Lousin owned all 260 hectares, but the officials didnot care.

I told him I could do nothing and explained that Lousin had taken the money and left for Lebanon. I offered to write to her and ask her to come and transfer the deed of the 60hectares that belonged to her children. But I said, “I don’t think she will come. Her children have moved and do not care about the land. And Lousin is not going to spend four times the value of the land just to create paperwork to satisfy the government.” I advised him to sue the government since they had provided the paperwork stating that Lousin owned all 260 hectares. But he demanded the price for the 60 hectares from me. I told him I was not the one who sold him the land and that I hadn’t signed anything. Nonetheless, I told him I would write to Lousin and ask her to send the money. I wrote to her, but I knew she would not pay any attention. All the time I was in Arabpounar, he would come and bug me with his demands. I later heard that he had to pay 300 Syrian pounds to rent those 60 hectares of land. The government hadconfiscated the land and rented it back to him.

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What I Did With the Rooms I had Built in Sheikh Choban

I was willing to give the four adjoining rooms I had built at great expenses in Sheikh Choban to Muhammed Bey along with the 260 hectares of land. But the building was quite far from the plot of land, so he expressed no interest in it. He wanted to build a few rooms on the land that he had purchased and create a small village there, which he did. So I gave my rooms to Nahsan Meghegh as a present because he had worked as my agent in the village for 8-10 years. Besides, there were no customers for the land. There were no prosperous people among the peasants.

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14th Lawsuit: An Unsuccessful Experience Against Jerji Akko

We lived in a rented apartment in the quarter of Suleymanie in Aleppo. The owner wasa Christian man named Jerji Akko. The building had three stories. The first floor was arestaurant. We lived on the middle floor and Jerji Akko lived on the top floor. One year (I donot remember the date) we decided to go to Beirut to celebrate the New Year and Christmas with our daughters, Rosa and Sirarpi, and their families.

The annual rental payment for our apartment, 500 Syrian pounds, was due shortly. I wantedto pay it before leaving for Beirut because if the rent is not paid on time, the landlord has the right to evict the tenant. With the money in my pocket, I went to see our landlord who was playing cards downstairs in the restaurant. I told him we were leaving for Beirut and I asked him to write me a receipt so I could pay what I owed before leaving. However, he did not know how to write. I offered to write the receipt in Arabic and have him sign it. But he said, “It is alright. Go to Beirut. You can pay me when you come back.” I trusted him. He apparently didn’t want to be interrupted at his game of cards. I suppose I could have come back later to pay him, but I did not insist. We were leaving the next day.

The rent for the apartment had been estimated at 500 Syrian pounds by the government. This means the landlord could not raise the rent or evict the tenant as long as the tenant paid. But if we vacated the apartment, he could disregard the government’s assessment and rent it to someone else for much more, maybe 1,000-1,200 pounds. Because my other daughters had moved to the United States, we asked an elderly lady friend to stay in the apartment while we were away. This way, it would not be left vacant and it would not be burglarized.

We went to Beirut and returned after about a month. Two days later I received an officialwarning stating, “You must vacate the house in two days because you have not paid the rent on time.” I was very upset and immediately contacted a lawyer. Fortunately, the judge of the appropriate court, Zgo Bey, had previously been the head of the court in Arabpounar. We were friends. I found out that two days after the due date for the rental payment, an official noticehad been placed on our front door by a lawyer during the night informing me that if I did not pay the rent within two days, I would have to vacate the house. We were in Beirut and the elderly lady was asleep inside the apartment when the notice was placed. But the landlord had removed it before she awoke so she would not see it and call us. I informed the judge in an intimate conversation that the landlord had cheated me and did not accept my rent payment when I offered it to him before leaving for Beirut.

On the first day of the trial, the judge declared me innocent. My lawyer was astonished sincehe had not yet opened his mouth. The landlord appealed and had the lawsuit moved to Damascus. He went to Damascus himself and probably bribed the officials who reversed the ruling in Aleppo.He then brought the ruling to me and ordered me to vacate the premises in three months.

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I should not have trusted the landlord. I should have sent him the 500 Syrian pounds by certified mail. What was the use? I learned my lesson, but too late, or as K. Zohrab wrote,“After the glass was already broken.” I rented a new apartment for 1,300 Syrian pounds a year, which was not as comfortable as the old one.

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The Services and Offices I Held in OurfaI hesitated to write about the offices I held and the services I rendered in Ourfa before and afterthe 1915 massacres of Armenians because I was afraid that readers (if any) may find this boastfulor conceited. However, I am trying to be a truthful and unbiased chronicler, so I decided to include my meager contributions as well as my mistakes and shortcomings.

I loved to read, so I convinced a few friends in 1903 to form a Booklovers Union. We had a small cabinet built in one of the classrooms of the school on the premises of the main church. We arranged some books in it and we subscribed to a number of periodicals published in Bolis. These included ‘Piuzantion’, ‘Massis’, and ‘Piuragan’. In the evenings, after work, we would go there for an hour or two and read about the news of the day. We would also borrow books from the cabinet. Other youths and schoolboys also profited from this club.

We had a Sunday Seminar, where meaningful lectures were presented. The teacher, Mr.Kevork Vosgeritchian (who later became Father Karekin) presented important national and political information. But he stopped his involvement when he got upset about some incident. The people were anxious to hear about interesting events and especially about the political newsand news regarding the Armenian reforms. They asked me to assume the responsibility. BecauseMr. K. Vosgeritchian had been my Armenian teacher, I hesitated for a while. Finally, I accepted and even gave a few lectures myself.

I wrote previously about the teacher, Kevork Hreshdakian. I explained that he got ill and the school board asked me to replace him. At the time, I had not started out in business so I accepted with pleasure. I taught for about a month until the teacher recovered. Although they offered to pay me, I did not accept payment. I asked them to pay the ailing teacher instead.

In 1909, I was appointed member of the Board of the National Schools. In 1915, there was a ceasefire after the massacre of the Armenians when Germany and Turkey

were defeated. First the British, then the French were in charge of Ourfa. During those days, I was elected member and Treasurer of the National Union. I was appointed Chairman of the Ourfa chapter of the AGBU.

While the French were in Ourfa, Reverend Yeprem Jernazian and I were members of the Board of the Evangelical and Apostolic schools. There were two or three other members whosenames I cannot remember.

In 1920, when the Turko-French war started in Ourfa, the Armenians remained neutral despite pressure from the Turks to ally with them and give them passage through the Armenian Quarter so they could attack the French positions. We built barricades at the entrances of the Armenian Quarter preventing the Turks from entering. Armed sentries guarded the positions from the houses behind the barricades. Military and provisions committees were formed and I was appointed Treasurer and member of the Provisions Committee.

After the French were massacred, the Turks and Armenians began cooperating. I received an official notice from the Mutesarref (governor) of that time informing me that I was to be

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appointed a member of the municipality. I continued in this position until the onset of the new and brutal persecutions and massacres of the Armenians. That’s when I secretly escaped toAleppo in order to save my life.

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My Contributions in AleppoAfter escaping the persecutions and settling in Aleppo, I started corresponding with my compatriotic friends in North America: Apkar Naccashian, Kevork Alan, Onnig Sevkar, Dr. Beshlian, etc. Without my asking, the first three sent $350 for the needy people from Ourfa. Ihelped some exceptionally needy patients, but preferred to help the students.

At the time, there was a bleak and poor coeducational elementary school made of wood in the Meydan region of Aleppo. Two ladies were teaching some basic Armenian. They were paidone barghut (a silver coin) a week from each student. I wanted to help that school with the funds I received from my friends. I found an Armenian lady originally from Ourfa who was a graduate from the Sisters’ school. She knew both Arabic and French. With great difficulty, I convinced her to teach Arabic and Armenian for three Ottoman gold coins per month. After the first year, I reduced her pay to two gold coins per month in order to economize. After firstrefusing, she relented because she could not find another job.

The second year had barely finished when, during the school holidays, the NansenianArmenophilic Society purchased a large plot of land in the Meydan quarter. The plot includedthe land on which our school was standing. They bought the land in order to allocate it to thehomeless destitute Armenian families. Our school was torn down and the students dispersed. Our funds had run out anyway.

I forgot to mention that I had as my assistant on the school board an industrious young man from Garmouj named Nerses M. Nersesian. The group pictures of the school are on pages1254-1255 of ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’. There is a mistake. The caption under one picture reads,“The school of the Compatriotic Society of Ourfa.” But the Compatriotic Society had alreadydisbanded at the time due to discord and fanaticism. In the photograph, the lady sitting next to me is the headmistress, Miss Assion, and the young man is Nerses M. Nersessian.

In Aleppo, I joined the Ourfa Compatriotic Society three times. Unfortunately, each time the society was short lived due to fanaticism and discord. It happened first during thechairmanship of Dr. Armenag Abuhayatian, then again when Mihran Herartian was the chairman, and finally, when Father Adom Kehiayan was president and I was the chairman. Thelast time, the other members were Boghos Tenekedjian, Hagop Khandzoghian, Hovhannes Abejian, Boghos Chalian, Mgrditch Sarkissian, and Markar Karakashian. These members wereappointed, rather than elected, so that we could include unbiased persons from all classes. We started with great enthusiasm and had a group picture taken. However, we had been in officebarely two years when we split up again due to a disagreement. I cannot remember the exact dates of these three events.

We formed a Ladies’ Association in 1936 and I was the president. It is still active to this day (1977 -- 41 years later). Before my wife and I moved to the United States, we reorganized the Association with new members. They have been working with a lot of enthusiasm. Weare in constant contact with them and they inform us about their activities. Before moving

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to the States, we had a room built in the new old-age home of Aleppo for the Ourfatzi elderly to be admitted at a low fee. We bought an apartment, which we transferred to the Armenian Prelacy under the condition that they pay us the rent they collected. The proceeds were to beused for the needy Ourfatzi students. Later, we gave the AGBU 12,000 Syrian pounds, which in turn paid the Ladies’ Association 500 pounds annual interest. Two group pictures of the Ladies’ Association can be seen in the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ on pages 146-147. Long live the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa, which has been getting stronger and has served the needy Ourfatzi students year after year without interruption.

I was a member of the National Representative Assembly of Aleppo for 16 consecutive years. I was elected every four years. One year I served as secretary of the Assembly. I do not remember the dates but it was during the times of the prelates Ardavazt Srpazan and Zareh Srpazan.

I was a member of the National Judicial Committee of Aleppo for 12 years, being elected after every term. I served under the chairmanships of Dr. Levon Papazian and Dr. Minassian. I do not remember the dates. Those who do not believe can check the archives of the Prelacy (justjoking).

I was on the editorial committee of the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan.’

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I Also Incurred Fateful Mistakes and LossesMen are not prophets; nor am I. During the First World War when Turkey lost badly and firstthe British, and then the French occupied Ourfa, I too went back to Ourfa like many others to reclaim our (Der Bedrossian and Imirzian) properties and villages. At the time, the Turks feared retribution and were offering their condolences and pleading their innocence.

I did not know at the time that the victorious nations would be so shortsighted and that the Turks would reinstate their old ways and that Armenians would once again be considered guiavours. I should have sold all our properties when I had the chance. I could have cashed out with the Emvale Metrouke (properties left behind) for at least 10,000 Ottoman gold coins. Thenwe could have immigrated to a safe country. I am sure there were over 60 pieces of real estate and villages belonging to the two families. Eight houses, 18 stores, 4 mills, 30 villages, farms, pastures, orchards, vineyards, etc.

I had just returned to Ourfa when a friend told me that a wealthy Kurd, Beder Agha, wanted to buy the 13 pieces of land belonging to the Imirzians for 500 Ottoman gold coins. I had not seen the plots and did not know their value and I did not know Beder Agha, so I refused. I was sure the lands were worth much more. Besides, I didn’t need the money and expected to stay in Ourfa.

There were eight adjoining stores of the Der Bedrossians in the center of the marketplace,half of which belonged to the Fayilbashians. The businessman, Hajji Eomer Kassab, wanted tobuy our share of these stores for 1,000 Ottoman gold coins. I refused.

There were buyers for our paternal house and the vineyard in the Eoferiz region and I refusedto sell those, too. All of these buyers came spontaneously. If I had advertised my desire to sell the properties, I could have sold them all easily.

Also, our partner, Ali Effendi, wanted to buy the quarter share of the mill in Ainarous. Heeven threatened my life if I did not sell, but again, I refused to sell. Later, there was an offer of10,000 Syrian pounds for the village of Ainarous and I refused to sell.

My brothers had vast amounts of barley, which they had collected from the farmers in payment. They had stored it with a trustworthy Kurd in order to sell at a later date. That Kurdcame to see me accompanied by Yacoub Shemmes. He offered to pay me for the barley. Idid not know it, but he had already sold the barley at a cheap price. I did not accept his offerbecause it was too low. He did not want to offer a higher price and left. I did not see him again.

We had sheep and horses in our village of Golenje, which the government had appropriated with all the other Armenian properties. The villagers kept only one very beautiful horse. Oneday they brought the horse and gave it to me. After keeping it for a few days, I sent it back to the village for safekeeping. I could have sold it for 8-10 gold coins, but I did not.

Later, we left everything and escaped to Aleppo in a panic to save our lives. After arriving in Aleppo, we were offered 100,000 Syrian pounds for the village of Sheikh Choban, but we didnot sell. Then, the socialist government of Syria acquisitioned most of it and we suffered great

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financial loss and entered into a number of lawsuits that were all in vain. We sold the remainingsegment for 32,000 Syrian pounds—a quarter of which we had already spent on lawyers, finesand court expenses.

The total value of all the amassed belongings of the houses, the stocks of wheat, barley,corn and sesame seed could have amounted to 40,000-50,000 Syrian pounds, but I did not sell because I believed they were worth more. Sometimes you think you are doing the right thing, but it turns out to be wrong and vice versa. Being wise is not always beneficial. Unpredictablethings happen which upset everything. Here is another example. Everyone, especially Armenians, thought that living in Beirut was very desirable. It was a privilege, and it is true that many people found success and safety there. But who would have thought that Beirut would eventually get into such a lamentable situation?

Another example involves the time when I escaped from Ourfa in a panic and came to Aleppo. I started a business with my brother, which was very lucrative and successful. At the same time, Miss Jeppe, having returned from Europe, started rounding up the orphans. She established an embroidery workshop in the orphanage and other such enterprises. She wanted me to work for her and I’m sure she would have paid a good salary (I did not ask at the time). I thanked her, but I sheepishly refused because my situation at the time was very good. Then the worldwidecrisis of 1929-1930 started. All of the banks stopped granting credit and many millionaires went bankrupt. There was no rain for two years. There was no harvest. The sheep died and peoplecould not pay their debts. Our business, which we had started with 500 pounds and which had grown to 3,000 pounds, disappeared. So, I was mistaken in thinking that my business was secure and prosperous. In hindsight, it would have been better to have accepted a salaried position with Miss Jeppe and to deposit the funds I had brought from Ourfa in the bank to earn interest. It was an unexpected failure. Not only did our capital disappear, but we were now in debt and all the money we were expecting to collect vanished. We had to work hard for four or five years to finishpaying our debts.

People should not boast about how intelligent or clever they are. You can build a solid and splendid palace, but it can be destroyed by a terrible earthquake in one minute. Your intelligence would have amounted to nothing. I don’t mean to say that intelligence is not important, but when unexpected events wreck your clever plans, you should not be blamed for it.

Our families built or furnished 25 houses for ourselves and our villagers, but because of the massacres, we abandoned them all. We threw them to the wind.

It began in 1895 when the Turks plundered my father’s house including all the furniture, rugs and merchandise we had taken there from our stores, thinking it to be a safer place. TheTurks took everything.

Twenty years later, we bought or built three new houses, so we owned four homes. One was brand new. It was spacious, has two stories, and it cost us 2,000 Ottoman gold coins to build. My older brothers, Nshan and Aghajan had moved there. This house was one of a kind in theArmenian Quarter. It had oriental and European styling. It had a pool with running water.

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We bought another house for my brother Krikor. There was another house where my uncleAlexander lived. It used to belong to him, but having lost his business, he sold it to my brothers and continued living in it. So we had four houses in all. They were all looted and appropriatedwith their contents by the Turkish government and the families were all killed. By miracle, my younger brother Haroutiun and I, and a few of the smaller children survived.

Haroutiun and I found refuge in Aleppo. Our fiancées also survived. We rented a house. After the ceasefire of the World War we got married. When the British entered Ourfa, we leftour belongings in Aleppo and returned to Ourfa.

All our houses in Ourfa, mine and those belonging to my wife’s family (eight in number), were inhabited by Kurdish and Turkish refugees escaping from the Russian army in Van and Moush. All the other Armenian houses were also inhabited by refugees. During the winter, they had removed the wooden doors, windows and rafters to burn for heat. Thanks to the British,we reclaimed our houses. We kept for ourselves the one that was least damaged, the Imirzians’ house. We renovated that and all the others so that we could rent them out. We bought everything for our home starting from water glasses and kitchenware to furniture, rugs, and beds. We bought everything we would need for a comfortable life, hoping to live there permanently.

Was it conceivable that the British and then the French abandon us? The British withdrewand the French were massacred. After a short time, the Turks started persecuting the Armenians again. They killed Karekin the pharmacist and I escaped to Aleppo. After a few days, my wifeand all the other Armenians came to Aleppo according to a sanction granted by the government. We left everything behind.

I have written about how the French withdrew and were massacred. Our house was at the very end of the Armenian Quarter neighboring the Turkish sector. When the fighting with theFrench started, fearing Turkish attacks, my wife and I, with our newborn daughter, took one blanket and one mattress and escaped in a panic to the house of an acquaintance in the inner part of the Armenian Quarter. We left everything behind and crammed ourselves into one room. During the fighting, our house, being on the border of the Armenian-Turkish sectors,was confiscated by the Turks and used as a guardhouse. The same thing happened to my father’shouse which was also on the border.

When the fighting ended and the French were killed, there was an Armenian-Turkish truceand we returned to our house, but the Turks had taken everything. They had also broken anddamaged the house. We again had to buy everything. We needed kitchen utensils for cooking, rugs for the floor, etc. We mended and repaired what was broken.

I mentioned that our paternal home was also occupied by the Turks during the fighting withthe French. The Armenian family that was renting it had escaped to the inner Quarter. The Turksplundered everything in that house, too. They caused a lot of damage. They had smashed up theentire roof and thrown the pieces into the courtyard. I had to incur a great expense to repair the house so I could rent it again.

When my wife and I moved to Aleppo for good, we lived with my brother in one apartment

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for a few years, spending and eating together like one family. After a while, the number of our children grew, so I had to rent a separate house and furnish it again with all kinds of household goods.

Haroutiun and I were partners in a quarter-share of the Ainarous and Resmelmaraq villages. We had villagers working in both. We bought oxen and seeds. If we did not do this, someone would have cultivated our lands and claimed it as their own. This would have led to long, drawnout lawsuits. We also had shares in the three mills around that area and I had to visit them during the harvest season. I had to have someplace to stay. I could not stay with friends all the time. This would have been amot (shameful) and would hurt my pride. So I had a nice house built in Ainarous with four or five rooms, a living room, bedroom, kitchen, basement, toilet, anda water well. It had a fence around it. I used to take my family there in the summers, during the school vacations. We needed all kinds of furnishings and could not bring everything with us from Aleppo all the time.

I planted two orchards in Ainarous and irrigated them with water from the mills. I hired two gardeners to take care of the orchards, trees, tomatoes, eggplants, squash, etc. The gardeners hadto be there day and night with their families, so I had to build a house in each orchard for them.

I mentioned that one-quarter of the Rasmelmaraq village was ours. I hired two farmers to work there and had two brick houses built for them, each with 2-3 rooms: bedrooms, a storage place for hay, etc.

We had 20 farmers in Sheikh Choban, 12 of whom lived in previously built accommodations. Later, we brought in nine more farmers because the land was vast and we were obliged to cultivate it, otherwise others would do so illegally and cause problems. We could always sue them, but lawsuits and appeals weren’t helpful. The land remained in control ofwhoever was farming it until everything was settled. Lawsuits and appeals took a long time and required trips to Aleppo and Damascus, fees for lawyers and other big expenses. So to prevent neighbors from cultivating our lands, we had to hire additional farmers, buy more oxen for them and provide them with seed. We also had to provide living quarters. We built nine houses for the nine new farmers and their families.

During the harvest season in Sheikh Choban, I would spend one or two months in the village. The harvesting process took a long time. The grain had to be gathered manually,threshed with oxen, and then we had to wait for favorable winds. I had to have a place to sleep and relax. I also had to have a place to store large amounts of wheat, barley, corn, sesame seeds, etc. So, I built a masonry house at great expense.

I bought 11 pieces of real estate in Arabpounar from Taniel Yousoufian. I already had3 stores there, so this purchase brought my properties to 14. Occasionally I used to go to Arabpounar from Sheikh Choban on business. For some years, I would stay with Dr. Zakar on these trips. He was an in-law and a partner in Sheikh Choban,. When Dr. Zakar died, his wife Lousin sold the place and moved to Aleppo. I was obliged to keep three of the rooms of Taniel’s 9-room hotel for my own use. I had to buy the furnishings for a bedroom, living room and

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kitchen. Sometimes my wife would come and stay there during the summer and even during the winter.

In all, we had about 25 houses and apartments. When we finally decided to come to theUnited States, we sold some of our belongings from our apartment in Aleppo, which we had furnished nicely over 50 years. We sold our things at very cheap prices and gave away the rest to friends and relatives.

We came to the United States where we do not own even one square foot of land. However, we live happily and comfortably in the house of our son-in-law, Dr. Vahakn and our daughter Asdghig. There is no more terror of confiscation, massacre and plunder. Thank God. Threeother daughters, Rosa, Anahis and Rita, also live in the same area (outside Philadelphia). We see them often. Only Sirarpi, our second eldest daughter, and her husband and one son are living in Beirut. To this day, God has kept them safe from the terrible dangers of Lebanon.

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I Escaped Death Many TimesI wanted to summarize all the times I escaped death thanks to Providence. I want to remember my gratefulness to God.

The first time was in 1895 during the massacre of the Armenians in Ourfa. We had foundrefuge in the house of Meghtzi Apkar Kilejian. One night, while standing in a room, a bullet fired by a Turkish sniper whizzed by my ear and just missed hitting me in the head.

The second time was again in 1895 while hiding from the Turks in the basement of Sefer’shouse. The Turks were looking for Armenians to kill and they entered the basement. Theytried to catch a rooster, which escaped and hid in the dried branches (cherpi) piled in front of the door leading to our hideaway. Had they been unable to catch the rooster quickly, they would have discovered the door to our hiding place. At the same instant, a baby hiding with us began whimpering. One of us squeezed her throat to prevent her from crying. Had we been discovered, our death would have been certain.

The third incident occurred when we were hiding in Miss Jeppe’s garden and the Turkishpolice came looking for Der Karekin and other Armenians. If Lousia, who had opened the cover to our hiding place to talk with us, had seen them just a moment later, the policemen would have discovered us and we would have been killed.

The fourth incident was when we were besieged by 150 soldiers, again while hiding at MissJeppe’s house. The inspectors came down into the basement and could have heard the sighs of athree-year old girl who was with us. That would have been our last day.

In 1923, during Mustafa Kemal’s regime, while persecuting the Armenians in Ourfa, they killed the pharmacist Karekin and framed and jailed Taniel Yousoufian as the murderer. Wordgot out that the Turks were also planning to charge Dr. Zakar and me as accomplices. I escaped to Ourfa that night. On the way, the soldiers in the guardhouse on the outskirts of the town heard us and started firing at us and gave chase. We escaped only by running very fast.

In Beirut, I just missed being run over by a tram.I had a prostate operation in the American Hospital of Beirut. During the procedure, they

inserted a rubber tube through my abdomen and into my bladder in order to drain my urine. After the operation, they brought me back to my room and laid me down in the bed. When I came to some time later, I was uncomfortable. A male nurse came and lifted me and dragged me about in order to situate me more comfortably in the bed. During the ordeal, the tube must have slipped out of its place. I did not feel anything, but my urine started accumulating in my body instead of being drained into a bag. I started getting contaminated and started feeling cold. I was shivering and shaking. Fortunately, Noyemzar and my daughter Sirarpi walked in at that moment to visit me. Seeing my condition, Sirarpi ran out and called for help. Immediately, doctors and nurses came and realized what happened. They reinserted the tubing and startedtreating me with medicines. Had my wife and daughter come a few minutes later, I would have fallen unconscious and gone to the next world...

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I Suffered Many Unjust LawsuitsIt would not be an exaggeration to say that I spent half my life with harrowing lawsuits. Despite being innocent in all cases, my opponents always wanted to double-cross me. I have always worried and been subjected to losses because of unfair circumstances. I had neither the time nor the inclination to harm anyone because I was never in need and my assets were enough to tend to ten families. Here I list the important lawsuits, some of which I have mentioned before:

An inheritance lawsuit in Ourfa. Imirzian Grbo wanted to get hold of the Imirzian’s wealth arguing that there were no surviving male children.

My wife’s uncle, Dikran Der Bedrossian (who was also my cousin), sued me upon the death of his sister, Mrs. Ekhsa, daughter-in-law of the Imirzians. He was seeking a share of the inheritance, since there were no surviving sons.

Our partner in the Ainarous mill, Ali Effendi, sued us in Ourfa.Mahmoud Resh’s son sued me arguing that he had demands against the Imirzians. He

actually wanted to get hold of the Himbash mill.Instigated by Basrave, our farmers in Sheikh Choban revolted and tried to take over the

village and the harvest.Mustapha Shahin Bey wanted to snatch our quarter share of Sheikh Choban.The peasants of Dibrig, the neighboring village of Sheikh Choban, appropriated 30 hectares of

our village.The Dibrig peasants entered Sheikh Choban for a second time from another direction and

plowed it. I was accused of being a smuggler for bringing wheat from Turkey and selling it in Syria.The Socialist Republic of Syria appropriated the majority of Sheikh Choban. Instead of

leaving us with a choice piece of land, it left us a small, rocky plot. So I sued.I was fined 3,000 Syrian pounds for having cultivated our part of Sheikh Choban, so I sued

the government. I lost and had to pay 3,400 pounds.We sued Sheikh Ahmed because he tilled and sowed a large part of the land of Ainarous. We

lost the land as well as the money spent on lawyers and lawsuits.I sued the burglars in Aleppo who tried to rob us during our absence.In Aleppo, N. Ajemian’s son sued us demanding we pay my martyred brothers’ debts. He

bribed our dishonest lawyer and won. We had to pay.The farmer Sheikhe Drehe stole my wheat and the oxen, so I sued.Grbo Imirzian sued us again in Aleppo, asking for his share of the Imirzian inheritance.Many of these lawsuits lasted years. They went through appeals and cassation courts

(bedayet, istinaf, temiz). The preliminary hearings were held in Arabpounar, then in Raqqa again(at first, there were no courts in Arabpounar, so we had to complain to the mayor). The appealwould be in Aleppo or Deir Zor and the cassation court was in Damascus. Often, I had to go in

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person to these faraway cities because I could not trust the lawyers. They either did not care oraccepted bribes from our opponents to lose the case. That is why I had to go in person and waitlong hours outside the courtroom until our turn came. After all, who cares about the lawsuit of an Armenian?

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What I Learned About Turkish LawsWhen a man dies without sons, his nearest male relative is heir to his assets (except land) along with his wife and daughters.

A deceased man’s son cannot be presumed dead if two witnesses testify in court that they have seen him in a faraway land. In such a case his share of property becomes untouchable. Thelaw assumes a boy will live to 90 years and may someday come back to claim his share.

A lawsuit will be disqualified if the plaintiff fails to appear at trial.If a property (such as a house or mill) has partners who get into a dispute they cannot resolve

and the property cannot be easily divided equally, the government will sell the property at auction. One of the partners or a complete stranger can buy the property and the proceeds are divided among the partners according to their shares.

When someone cultivates land belonging to another and the owner does not have the proper deeds to his land, the government will not force the interloper out until the case has gone through preliminary, appeals and cassation procedures, which might take years. Many properties in Turkey and Syria do not have deeds because getting one requires lengthy and expensive procedures, which many people cannot afford. A malicious neighbor can easily takeover another’s land.

If you need a lawyer, hire one who is conscientious and reliable. Lawyers have made it a practice to cash half the retainer in advance and the other half after the completion of the case. An unscrupulous lawyer does not even try to win the case. After taking one-half the retainer, he either forgets about the trial, refuses to go to trial, or accepts a bribe from the opposing side to lose the case. For example, assume that you have a demand against another for 100 pounds and you have given five pounds to your lawyer in advance and promised topay an additional five pounds when the case is finished. Your adversary does not want to paythe 100 pounds, so he bribes your lawyer with 10 or 15 pounds to lose the case. We lost a legitimate case this way. A good lawyer will ask you about your complaint and will study the case completely. He will not undertake the case if he is not sure of winning it, nor will he take any money from you. He will not want to lose the case and thus harm his reputation. Theysay about the famous Armenian lawyer, Krikor Zohrab, that if he was not sure of winning a case, he would not take it no matter how much money he was offered. Krikor Zohrab was anative of Bolis. He was a deputy in the Turkish parliament and a famous national figure. Hewas arrested by the Turkish government during the First World War during the times of the Armenian massacres along with Vartkes, another deputy in the parliament, and brought to Ourfa. The next day, they were taken to a location an hour away from the city and killed afterterrible tortures.

Even if you get an official paper through a notary public from an individual regarding a matter of contention, years later that individual can deny his signature and sue you again. This happened to me. We paid 30 gold coins to settle an Imirzian inheritance dispute, yet the

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plaintiff sued us again in Aleppo. We paid him another 10 gold coins to finish with him forgood, and had his new papers notarized by a notary public, with his picture attached next to his signature.

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Family Members Martyred by The Turks in 1985 and 1915

Nine individuals were martyred in 1895:Garabed Dadian, the husband of my sister Vartouhi. He was slaughtered by the Turks when

he was 25 years old.My uncle Nerses’ wife, Anna and their two sons, Garabed, 10 years old and Matos, 7 years old.

They were burned to death in the main church of Ourfa after the Turks set the church on fire.My aunt, Hripsime Knadjian, her sons Hagop and Khoren, and her daughter Rahel were also

burned to death in the church.My aunt Loussia’s son Bedros, 25 years old.Twenty-four individuals were martyred in 1915:My mother, Yeghisapet Der-Bedrossian, 70 years old, died in the deserts of Der Zor.My brothers, Nshan, Aghajan, Krikor and Hagop, all executed by the Turks.My sisters-in-law, Khanem (Nshan’s wife), Mariam (Krikor’s wife), Yester (Hagop’s wife) all

died in the deserts of Der Zor.Nshan’s children: Kevork (13 years old), Kayane (12 years old), Azniv (3 years old).Krikor’s children: Maghak, Hovsep, Elise, ZarouhiHagop’s children: Noyemzar (5 years old), and another daughter whose name I have forgotten.My sister Vartouhi, her second husband, Taniel, and her five children: three boys and two girls.A total of 33 persons, nine in 1895 and 24 in 1915, were killed by various tortures. Some

died at the gallows, some were slaughtered by swords or shot, and the elderly and small children died in the deserts of Der Zor from hunger and thirst. In 1915, the Turks killed almost all the Armenians of Ourfa, including hundreds of our distant relatives, with various tortures. I shall not mention them one by one.

There were 12 survivors of the massacres from our family. They include:Bedros (the author of these words) thanks to God and Miss Jeppe.My brother Haroutiun, thanks to God and the Kurd, Hussein Pasha.Aghajan’s wife, Mariam, and their children: Mihran, Kevork, Lia and Kayane. My brother

was exiled to Raqqa and killed there along with 15 comrades.Nshan’s three children: Rahel (saved by Miss Jeppe), and Hovhannes and Araxi (saved by an

Arab family).Krikor’s son, Armenag, who was about 8-9 years old. He found refuge in Raqqa and later

moved to Sao PauloHagop’s daughter, Gassia, who was 3 years old, was saved by a Turkish family.

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Initial Preparations to Move to the StatesThe eldest two of my five daughters, Rosa and Sirarpi (Siroun) were living in Beirut with theirfamilies and children. The other three, Asdghig, Anahis and Rita lived near the big city ofPhiladelphia in the United States. They were also married and all lived in the same suburb closeto each other, and all were well to do. Noyemzar and I, an aging couple, lived in Aleppo, Syria all alone. Asdghig’s husband, Vahakn Tachdjian, was a doctor, Anahis’s husband, Bedros (Peter) Odabashian, was a professor in an American university, and Rita’s husband, Arthur (Haroutiun) Odabashian, was a doctor. Peter and Arthur were brothers. For the past ten years they had all been writing to us urging us to leave everything behind and join them in the States. They wouldeven get angry and upset with us, especially Dr. Vahakn and Asdghig.

We wanted to go, but we were involved in such complicated and problematic issues that we could not get away. Besides our own properties, we were concerned about the 29,000 Syrian pounds belonging to the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa, which had been entrusted to us. We wanted to invest that money in an apartment as we had promised the benefactors. We also had quite valuable properties, which we had rented out. The tenants would not vacate them so wecould sell them, and they would not buy them themselves. By law, if the tenant pays his rents on time, you cannot evict him from the property. Some of our tenants were military or government employees. The government postal service had rented the hotel in Arabpounar from us and waspaying a pittance. We begged them to buy the property at a low price. We even wrote to the ministry in Damascus, but it was of no use. They said they wanted to build a more spacious postoffice, but they would not vacate the premises so we could sell it to someone else.

We also had one-quarter ownership in three large villages: Ainarous, Resmelmaraq and Sheikh Choban. The Syrian government confiscated three-quarters of Sheikh Choban. AsI have written, I sold the other quarter at a very low price. The government confiscated onequarter of Resmelmaraq as well. I sold each shimbil (a little over a hectare) of the land in Ainarous for 300 Syrian pounds, while others sold theirs for 1,000 pounds. We had three mills in Ainarous, Salan and Hayabend. There was no customer for the one in Ainarous. I sold theone in Salan for 4,000 pounds with a two-year time limit. The tenants in Hayabend had usedthe premises carelessly, so it needed a lot of renovation at great cost. They had also neglectedto pay taxes for the last ten years, so a lot of money was needed for back taxes and for fixing thedamages.

One-quarter of each mill was ours. The three quarter of the Hayabend mill belongedto Turks from Ourfa, who neither came nor paid the maintenance costs. I also neglected it completely and the mill became totally derelict. We had two orchards in Ainarous. I sold them at 1,000 and 2,000 Syrian pounds respectively. We gave our house in Ainarous to Hagop Saghatelian who lives there rent free. Hagop looked after our other properties as well and is our representative to date. We had a large hotel in Arabpounar, with a restaurant on the ground floor. There was an outdoor café opposite the restaurant with a swimming pool and shade trees.

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We also had a house, a garage and ten stores, all built of hewn stone. I gradually sold them all for a total of 5,700 Syrian pounds. We had spent more than 100,000 pounds to build them.

I have written about the funds belonging to the Ladies’ Association. We bought a house for 17,000 pounds and transferred it to the name of the Prelacy, on condition that they pay the annual rent to the Ladies Association. We also gave 12,000 pounds to the AGBU, with the understanding that they would pay an annual interest of 600 pounds to the Ladies Association. We had an official agreement and the proper paperwork. They have been paying regularly.

I managed to make all these sales over a period of 8-10 years. After that, we sold our household goods in a short period of time, and gave some away to needy families.

We still had many properties, houses, stores, villages, a very lucrative mill belonging to both the Der Bedrossians and Imirzians, which we had given up a long time ago.

Of all the properties I sold, only the hotel/restaurant, the garage and the stores in Arabpounar belonged to me. All the others belonged to the Imirzians, so I paid half the proceeds to Lousin Kilejian (Imirzian). Let me also mention that the Syrian pound at that time was worth about one-fifth of a U.S. dollar. Today, one dollar is worth 4 1⁄4 Syrian pounds. Thatis what Hagop Saghatelian told us on his visit to Philadelphia at the end of December 1976.

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Reorganization of the Ourfa Ladies’ Association in Aleppo

Along with our preparations to move to the States, our first concern was to reorganize the boardof the Ladies’ Association to put it on solid footing and leave with our minds at peace. From its establishment in the beginning of 1936 until 1972 (the date of our immigration), the board went through many changes. Fortunately, the work had gone on uninterrupted. From the two group pictures on pages 1264 and 1265 in the ‘Tiutzaznagan Ourfan’ only my wife Noyemzar and I had remained on the board throughout the full period. All the others had either emigrated or passed away.

Although new members had been appointed to the board, there was no quorum and our departure would have decreased the numbers further. Other than my wife and myself, there were five members on the board at the time: Mmes. Ovsanna Shahinian, Noyemzar Basmajian,Azniv Kellegian, Arshalouis Kataroyan and Sona Youghaperian. After some consultation, we invited Mmes. Elise Mouradian as chairperson, Hermine Manuelian (Tatarian), Yeritzouhi (title given to a priest’s wife) Kehiayan and Marie Baydarian, who accepted readily and started working enthusiastically.

Since coming to the States, we have been in regular communication with the newly appointed board. They seem to be having success. They recently celebrated the 40thanniversary of the association, which an enthusiastic crowd attended. Almost all of them were Ourfatzis. People of all political inclinations attended, which had always been the aim of our Ladies’ Association. They now have 15,000 Syrian pounds cash. They have been receivingrent payments from the Prelacy for the apartment, and they have been receiving the 600 Syrian pounds from the AGBU as interest for the 12,000 Syrian pounds we gave them. Theypromised to pay the tuition of 50 or more students instead of 40. They visit families on happyoccasions such as childbirth, engagement, wedding, graduation or the purchase of a new house. They congratulate them and receive monetary gifts in exchange. We are very happy that theassociation we established has been continuing stronger than ever. They sent us two grouppictures taken during the celebration. They told us that Father Adom mentioned our names inhis speech as the founders of the association and the public applauded happily.

I should have mentioned earlier that another source of income was the membership fee, which the regular members of the association paid monthly to the treasurer. Some would pay the whole annual fee at once. We had more that 100 paying members during our time. I don’t know how many there are now.

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Getting the Permits in Aleppo to Immigrate to the States

Our three married daughters in the United States were citizens. They could lawfully bringtheir parents to the States provided they could guarantee their living expenses, or if worse came to worse, provide for their return. They wrote to us saying that to expedite the procedure, weshould apply as tourists and then apply for permanent residency once we were in the States. We prepared all the required paperwork: official statements from the Prelacy and the moukhtar of the area written in English and Arabic confirming that we were husband and wife, and thatAsdghig was our daughter. We sent these to Asdghig, who had them notarized by the Syrian ambassador and sent them back to us. We sent the notarized documents to Damascus to the Foreign Ministry, which in turn approved the formalities. After that, the documents had to be approved by the American embassy in Syria or Lebanon. We preferred to have it done in Beirut because two of our daughters lived there. That would allow us to spend a few days with themwhile waiting for approval.

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Our Final Departure from AleppoWe were all alone in Aleppo. Rosa and Sirarpi were living in Beirut with their families. Asdghig, Anahis and Rita were in America with their families. My brother Haroutiun’s family and my wife’s cousin, Lousin, and her children had moved to Beirut. We did not own a house in Aleppo. We arrived in Aleppo from Ourfa as refugees. The Turks had robbed us of ourbelonging and we had no money to buy a house. When we finally saved enough to buy a house,the international crisis of 1923-1930 destroyed our capital. Whenever it became possible to buy a house with a down payment and monthly mortgage payments, the subject of moving to the United States came up. So we always rented throughout our stay in Aleppo. As a result, we only had to sell our household goods or give them away to friends.

We received 1,000 Syrian pounds from our landlord when we handed him the key to our apartment. The landlord had wanted to sell the apartment, but as long we were paying our renton time, the law prevented him from evicting us. When he heard about our planned departure, he was very happy because he had a customer willing to pay 30,000 Syrian pounds. However, we found an Armenian customer for him who was willing to pay 40,000 Syrian pounds. At the same time, a Muslim military person promised us a 1,500 Syrian pound bribe to give him the key. If we had given him the key to the apartment, it would have been very difficult—perhapsimpossible—for the landlord to evict him. It would require lawsuits, lawyers, and a lot of trouble. A military man could challenge the rental amount and demand it be reduced. Or he might pretend that he had to make repairs. He could have the house painted and have the bill sent to the landlord. Those in the military often took advantage of their position in this way. Sowhen I told the landlord that a military man was offering me 1,500 Syrian pounds to hand himthe key to the apartment, he became very worried. He was thrilled when I told him I knew of customer who would pay him 40,000 Syrian pounds for the apartment. That is why he paid us1,000 Syrian pounds.

We finally bid farewell to our friends and neighbors, rented a car, and drove to Beirut,arriving at Rosa’s house by evening. We found Rosa and Sirarpi and their families in good health. We were all very happy.

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From Beirut To Philadelphia; Two Short-lived Crises

After resting with our loved ones for a few days, we started the formalities for traveling to America. First, we had our passports certified by the American ambassador. Next, we reservedour seats with the Italian Airlines to travel five days later. We paid the fare in advance. It wasDecember and Noyemzar wanted to take a bath in Rosa’s house. Because the water was not warm, she caught a severe cold. She was very sick, almost comatose. She could neither stand nor talk. We were very worried. There were two days left before our trip. The plane wouldnot wait for us. We saw a doctor and got some medicine. Thank God she recovered enough totravel.

We went to the airport with our daughters and their families. My brother’s wife and daughters also came to the airport. (My brother had already passed away.) Noyemzar’s cousin, Lousin, and her married daughters, also came to the airport to see us off.

They weighed our two large suitcases and took them. We embraced our family members,thanked them and told them to go home. We went in with our hand luggage and presented our passports for check in. The employee asked us for the official travel document permitting us to come to Beirut from Aleppo. It had never occurred to us that we would need it to board the plane. I no longer had it and wondered if I had thrown it out. After all, we had no intention of returning to Aleppo. I did not realize I had to keep this document.

We went to see a manager and showed him our passports. He also asked for the document. I told him I don’t have it and he threw our passports back at me and frowned. I’m sure he suspected we were refugees from Syria. Dear God! What were we to do? Theyhad taken our suitcases and I wondered if they had sent them already. I was afraid the plane would take off. I had a tiny hope that perhaps I had placed some important papers in thesuitcases and wondered if this document might be there too. I came out of the room into the large hall and saw that our relatives had not yet left. I explained the problem to them. Theyasked an employee to take me to my suitcases. He was very kind and took me to the storage area. I saw hundreds of bags arranged next to each other. I recognized mine and asked him to bring one of them down. The key was in my pocket. I opened the suitcase and saw thebig envelope containing all the documents. I opened the envelope and, thank God, both ticket coupons were there. I immediately went and showed the coupons to the employee who stamped our passports without argument. When we were climbing the stairs to board the plane, I looked back and saw our loved ones waving goodbye. We too waved our hands in their direction.

It was so fortunate that the plane had arrived to Beirut two hours late. If it had been on time, they would have loaded our suitcases on the plane and left without us. We would have remained in Beirut and would have had to return to Aleppo without proper documents or our

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belongings. What a horrible situation that would have been. This and Noyemzar’s illness weretwo big last minute complications. When I think about it today, I thank God again and again that our despair was short lived.

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From Beirut to Philadelphia17 Dec. 1972

After a few hours on the Italian aircraft, we arrived in Rome and were told to disembark. I knew a few words of English and asked why we were being taken off the plane. I was told we weretransferring to a Pan American plane. They led us to an employee who checked our passportsand made a few notes. While following the other passengers to the other aircraft, a very nice employee who saw us struggling with our heavy hand luggage, a heavy bag and a large blanket, carried the blanket for me. Finally, we boarded the other airplane. It was more luxurious and much larger. They showed a movie, so that the passengers would not get bored. They servedus food and beverages several times. This trip, crossing the Atlantic to Philadelphia took muchlonger. When we arrived, they again checked our passports and registered us then we were free to come out. I had Dr. Vahakn’s and Asdghig’s telephone number ready in my hand so that we could phone them to come get us. However, when we exited, all our relatives were already there waiting for us. Dr. Vahakn and Asdghig, Dr. Arthur and Rita, Prof. Bedros and Anahis, Ashkhen and her husband Ara, Tamar and her husband Levon. They had found outby telephone the arrival time of our plane. We embraced all of them. They retrieved our twosuitcases and we all went by car to Dr. Vahakn’s house. It was 10 p.m. local time, yet we stayed up well beyond midnight talking and rejoicing.

Finally, the others said goodnight and went home. The doctor and Asdghig led us to a largeand comfortable bedroom and we slept peacefully. I think it took us about 24 hours to travel from Beirut to Philadelphia. Beirut is six hours ahead of Philadelphia. When it is morning in Philadelphia, it is noon in Beirut.

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Our Lifestyle in PhiladelphiaUp to 20-25 days after our arrival in Philadelphia, friends and acquaintances kept coming to congratulate Asdghig and Vahakn and to wish us a warm welcome. Many came with presents or invited us to lavish parties out of respect for the doctor because most of these people were unfamiliar to us. We received invitations from the doctor’s brother, Kegham, and his family, from the Der-Avedissian, Babayan, Aboyan and Serop Kalousdian families, from Adour Levonian’s widow, Chilingirians, etc. Also we were invited by our daughters, Rita and Anahis, our granddaughters, Ashkhen Setrakian and Tamar Der-Ohannessian, our relatives, Sirvart and Souren Topjian. Fortunately, all those I mentioned lived in or near the suburb of Wynnewood. They all had cars and telephones so we visited each other often and talked on the phone.

Besides visiting patients in hospitals, Dr. Vahakn saw patients in a clinic in his house. He is much liked and has many patients. Most are Armenian and many come inside to visit after their examinations. So we were not bored. Sometimes, we wanted some peace and quiet. Thereis an Armenian church just five minutes walking distance from our house. There are also otherchurches further away. Holy Mass is celebrated every Sunday and on feast days. We always attend to pray and to see friends. The church has a very nice library with Armenian and English books. They also receive periodicals. I became friends with the priest, Father Yeghishe Gizirian. Afterhis transfer to Boston, I became friendly with the new priest, Father Zaven Arzoumanian. Both were very kind and obliging. They loaned me whatever books or papers I wanted. Sometimesthey would bring them home to our home. I would return them after reading. Dr. Vahakn also has hundreds of English and Armenian book. He receives 7-8 English and Armenian newspapers. I have an unlimited supply of reading material. I understand English, but I am a little weak at conversation. I am also getting hard of hearing and I am not used to the how Americans clip their words.

Before coming to the States, we were a bit biased. We thought that because we were old we would not have anything to do and would quickly get bored. We had heard this happened to many elderly people. It didn’t happen to us. On the contrary, we were bored in Aleppo because all our children and relatives had moved on to Beirut or America.

Because we had arrived on tourist visas, Dr. Vahakn and Askghig applied to change our status so we could stay permanently. We were both older than 65, which gave us certain privileges. For example, according to American law, we were eligible to be treated in a hospital free of charge. This was important since it is very expensive to be treated in an American hospital. Itcosts $100-120 per day. If someone had to stay for a month, he could be financially ruined. We were considered rich when we lived in Turkey and Syria. We owned many properties and villages. But we could not relax. We lived with the fear of massacre, appropriation of properties, lawsuits and disappointments during the trials. Here we have no properties—not even one square foot of land, yet we are very comfortable and do not lack anything. The doctor andAsdghig respect us with genuine and honest affections and take care of all our needs. Our other

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daughters, Rosa, Sirarpi, Anahis and Rita, along with their husbands, also do their best to be helpful to us. We are very thankful.

The one disadvantage of life in the States is the danger of assimilation—the white massacre. We Armenians are but a drop of water in an ocean. Recently, however, the Armenians in the States seem to have awakened to this danger. They are establishing daily and weekly schools. This helps somewhat. Yet the Armenians are so spread out in large and small cities, that this isnot a very satisfactory solution.

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We had Two Misfortunes After Coming to the StatesOur happiness did not last long. Barely six months after we arrived, our daughter Anahis’s husband fell ill. He had a high fever. Dr. Vahakn gave him the necessary medications, but they did not help. He suggested that Peter be admitted to the hospital for more specialized tests and care. A few days later, on my birthday, May 14, 1973, we were having a celebration in Asdghig’s house when the hospital called to say Peter had gone into a coma. Our happiness was transformed into sorrow. He did not open his eyes again. All the treatments by the specialists were in vain. He passed away on June 14, 1973. He was a professor of Russian language in an American university. He was 42 years old. He had a wonderful funeral. The professors from hisuniversity were present. Professor Vartan Gregorian gave a very nice eulogy in English, talking about his kindness and good humor. He had medical and life insurance. The huge hospital billswere paid by the insurance companies. Anahis also had to pay a certain sum. Anahis lives in her own house, although she still has to make payments. She has a son, Vahan, and a daughter, Kayane, both from her previous marriage. Both are intelligent and are still in school. Anahis is highly educated. She used to be a teacher in the Women’s College in Beirut. After coming to the States, she taught French in an American university for a few years. Now, because of her household responsibilities, she is a visiting lecturer in a college, 3-4 times a week.

A Second Disaster:Our two eldest daughters were living in Beirut with their families: Mr. and Mrs. Avak and Rosa Kahvedjian and Mr. and Mrs. Levon and Sirarpi (Siroun) Topjian. Rosa has two sons, Bedig and Ara, and two daughters, Sella and Rima. Sella is married and lives in London with her husband. Rosa went to London to be with her because Sella was having a baby. Then she cameto Philadelphia to visit with us and attend the wedding of Asdghig’s daughter, Houri, which was on August 23, 1975.

The bloodbath in Lebanon had started and was getting worse. Rosa had come as a tourist,but did not want to go back to Beirut. She managed to get permanent residency. Her husband, Avak, also left Beirut and after visiting Sella in London, came to Philadelphia. He also came on a tourist visa then applied for permanent residency. Avak had a heart condition and took medication. He was doing quite well, but died five months after arriving he Philadelphia. Dr.Vahakn has a summer house near the beach in Wildwood Crest, New Jersey. On Sunday, March 20, 1976, Vahakn and Asdghig went to their beach house together with Rosa and Avak for some relaxation. Avak had a heart attach just half an hour after getting there. Dr. Vahakn gave him the necessary treatment and called an ambulance, which carried Avak to a nearby hospital. Immediately after arriving at the hospital, Avak had a second, more massive heart attack that put an end to his life. Asdghig called us with the bad news. They all came back next morning, sadand depressed. They took the body to a funeral home.

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Death is very problematic in the States, especially for a foreigner. A medical and government investigation is required. A cemetery plot must be purchased and arrangements must be made with the funeral home, etc. The funeral took place three days later. We called Sella in London,Rima who was studying in Ohio, Avak’s cousin Mrs. Anahis Afeyan in Canada, Father Khachig’s family in New York, and many relatives and friends in Philadelphia. On that Wednesday they all came to church then to the cemetery. Then they all came to Dr. Vahakn’s house for dinner.

Avak had been orphaned in Ourfa when his father was killed during the 1915 massacres. He worked with his uncle, Levon Kassabian, in Beirut. He started his own clothing business and was successful. He was very hospitable and nationalistic. He was the treasurer and leader of the Ourfa Compatriotic Union in Beirut for 30 years. He was given a gold medal by the Union in appreciation of his services. His close friend, Ourfatzi Shahe Derderian, wrote a nice obituary in the “Hairenik” newspaper.

Rosa’s son Bedig was married and had just moved to Canada from Beirut. He and his wife came to Philadelphia to visit Rosa and stayed for about a month. Her younger son, Ara, is in London near his sister Sella. They are trying to arrange for him to come to Philadelphia. Rimahas finished her studies and is now living with Rosa in a rented apartment. Rosa is hoping toreturn to Beirut when there is peace so that she can sell their house and properties. After that, she hopes to return to Philadelphia or Canada. She may even decide to stay in Beirut. Avak had life insurance for 30,000 Lebanese pounds, but the company is showing reluctance in paying the equivalent sum in U.S. dollars. They want her to come to Beirut to receive payment. The banksin Beirut remained closed for some time and that is why the formalities took so long. That iswhy Rosa has to go to Beirut when it is safe, so that she can receive the payment. I am writing these lines on February 10, 1977.

P.S. After considerable procrastination the equivalent of the 30,000 Lebanese pounds was transferred to a bank in Philadelphia in Rosa’s name. Rosa had also asked for interest, but was refused.

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Two Sad Deaths in Beirut After our Move to the States

Gassia is my older brother Hagop’s daughter. Hagop and his wife Yester were martyred during the massacres. Their five-year old daughter, Noymezar was snatched from her mother by a Turkish officer and taken to Bolis (Constantinople). We do not know if she is alive or dead.Only Gassia, who was three at the time, was known to have survived. She was taken in by a Turkish couple in Ourfa. This couple had no children of their own. They doted on Gassia andtook very good care of her.

Taking advantage of the British presence in Ourfa, we approached the Turkish couple and asked them to return Gassia to us. Fearing retribution, they reluctantly gave her back. Gassia had forgotten how to speak Armenian. She spoke only Turkish. My brother, Haroutiun, escaped to Ourfa from Aleppo by himself. He didn’t want to stay there alone, so we sent Gassia to live with him and to attend an Armenian school. Once the British and French left Ourfa, the persecutions against the Armenians resumed and I also escaped to Aleppo with my family. Gassia was growing up to become a well-educated young lady. I can’t remember how it came about, but Gassia learned about two aunts and an uncle, Krikor, who were living in North America. She started corresponding with them. They wanted Gassia to join them. She was very enthusiastic and wanted to go. After going through all of the formalities, she was required to procure a document from the American ambassador. Because there was no American ambassador in Aleppo, she had to travel to Beirut. My daughter Rosa and I went with her.

The Americans had a quota system, which allowed for a certain number of immigrant fromdifferent nationalities. The allocation for Syria was very small, yet the number of applicantswas very high. The officials at the embassy said Gassia would have a ten-year wait. We weredesperate and Gassia was in tears.

We had many Ourfatzi friends in Beirut who wouldn’t allow us to stay in a hotel: Sahag Momjian, Hovhannes Tachdjian, Levon Kassabian, Demirjian Garabed, etc. We were invited to Levon Kassabian’s house one evening. An Assyrian watchmaker, Abdelnur Khoury, who was from Ourfa, and Levon Kassabian’s sister’s son, Avak Kahvejian, also came along. We were friendly with Abdelnur. We were even friendlier with his late wife and his mother-in-law, Mennoush, who was still alive. They used to live in our house in Ourfa. Abdelnur wasenchanted with Gassia and, through Levon, asked for her hand in marriage. We did not give a final word because we wanted to return to Aleppo and ask for the consent of my brotherHaroutiun. Finally, after everyone approved, including Gassia, we promised her hand in marriage. The wedding took place in Aleppo and they returned to Beirut.

Abdelnur was almost Armenian. His first wife was also Armenian. He had two daughtersfrom his previous wife both of whom were married. Eventually, he and Gassia had two sons:

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Robert and Jacques. The former became an engineer and the latter is a doctor who works inPhiladelphia. They also had a daughter, Hilda, who is married.

Gassia’s marriage took place thirty years before the writing of these lines. They were ahappy couple. Last year (1976) Abdelnur became ill in Beirut. The fighting in Beirut was wellunderway at the time. He and Gassia came to Philadelphia to see their son, Jacques, and to get medical attention. The doctors told Gassia that Abdelnur had a serious case of tuberculosis. Infact, he was terminally ill. Dying in the States was a complicated and expensive affair with all therequired reports from doctors and government offices, purchasing a plot in a cemetery, funeralexpenses, etc. So Gassia and Jacques decided to take him back to Lebanon. He passed away about 15-20 days later. Like Anahis and Rosa, Gassia also became a widow after our arrival in the States. Now, (February 1977) Gassia is living in the States near her son Jacques. Her eldest son, Robert, recently married and lives in Beirut.

A Second DeathLast September (1976), my late brother, Haroutiun’s wife, Eliza, died in Beirut. She had a life full of sufferings:

During the 1915 massacres of the Armenians, her family was martyred by the Turks. Only she and her younger brother survived. Because she had fallen ill in the Millet Khan, she could not join those being deported to Der Zor. She stayed behind all alone.

Dr. Hagop Beshlian, a military physician, served in the Turkish army in Chanak Kale. He met General Mustafa Kemal and succeeded in getting permission for his wife and her sister Lia to travel safely to Aleppo. But Lia was not ready to go. So they allowed Eliza, who was already engaged to my brother, to go in her place. She and her younger brother Garabed found refuge near Haroutiun. Eliza and Haroutiun married after the ceasefire.

They had two sons and three daughters. Eliza was widowed in 1956 when Haroutiun died. Her eldest son, Yervant, died in 1965 of a heart attack.Her brother, Garabed Kilejian, also died of a heart attack.A few years ago she slipped and fell, breaking her hip.The husband of her youngest daughter Betty, Dr. Oswald Hreshdakian, is being treated in a

hospital in Switzerland for a serious illness. This of course is stressful for a mother.Many other friends and relatives have died during the four years since we immigrated to the

United States. Siroun’s mother-in-law, Mrs. Mejide Topjian, Dikran Kaghtatzian the dentist, Joseph Tashjian, and the well liked doctor Avedis Injejikian in Kessab who was my good friend in the American College of Ainteb, etc.

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Two Unhappy MarriagesPrior to the 1915 massacres, a man came to our house one evening and asked my brothers Nshan and Aghajan for permission to allow his brother, Hovhannes Kerdoyan, to marry my sister Kayane. Hovhanness must have been about 34-35 years old at the time. I was just a young boy and Kayane was only 2-3 years older than me. My father was deceased and my mother was a simple and kind woman who had no say in such matters. Because Kayane was young and inexperienced, she had no right to express her opinion. It was a considered a great shame for her to speak out.

My brothers were also young and not very experienced, yet they promised Kayane’s hand in marriage. They didn’t consider that Hovhannes was a pale and unhealthy looking man, or thathe was much older than my sister. I was too young at the time to understand what was going on. I think it was about a year later when Kayane married Hovhannes. She was just 15 at the time. Just a year after that, she had a child who did not live. She also became seriously ill, so we brought her home so that my mother could take care of her.

It so happened that a famous American doctor, Dr. Shephard, came to Ourfa from Ainteb to treat a wealthy Turk. My brothers succeeded in bringing him to our house to examine Kayane. The doctor discretely told my brothers that my sister was suffering from tuberculosis. I wasbarely 15 by then. I was studying at the American College of Ainteb. Aghajan wrote to me about her demise and told me to write a letter of condolences and consolation to our mother. I was very distressed by this news and started to cry even though I did not have the habit. I loved my sister dearly. She was very intelligent and very beautiful. I wrote to my mother, but I was the one who needed consolation.

I don’t know if it was because of this tragic news or some other reason, but I soon became severely depressed. I was desperate and thought that I too had been infected with an incurable disease. Although I loved education and was one of the best students in my class, I wrote to my brothers to say I could not take it any more and had to leave school.

Aghajan was on the board of trustees of the united Apostolic and Protestant schools. Theprincipal was an American named Miss Karina Shatuk. He informed Miss Shatuk about my situation. She wrote to the president of the college, Dr. Merrill, and asked him to take care of my affairs. The president met with me, refunded the balance of my tuition, and I returned to Ourfa.

When I got older, I realized that Kayane’s resistance had been weakened due to her pregnancy. She had become infected with tuberculosis from her husband, who died only sometime after Kayane’s death. She was the victim of ignorance. I think couples who want to marry should be required to get a certificate of good health.

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Another Unhappy MarriageI had another sister, Vartouhi, who was older than Kayane. The Turks killed her husband,Garabed Dadian, at a very young age during the 1895 massacres. She had a daughter, Haiganoush, who was 2-3 years old at the time. Vartouhi lived as a widow for a few years. Attar Taniel, who was a widower and who had a son and two daughters, wanted to marry Vartouhi. My mother and brothers did not refuse. A few years later after their marriage, Taniel’s son, Hovhannes, ran off to Sao Paulo to escape conscription. His two daughters got married. Mysister had three more sons from this marriage.

When Haiganoush had grown up, a young man named Garabed Nakeyan wanted to marry her. Like Kayane’s husband, he also suffered from bad health. Mediators convincedHaiganoush’s grandmother (the late Garabed Dadian’s mother) and aunts to promise her hand in marriage, which they did. Vartouhi was a simpleminded woman and did not argue. One year later, Garabed Nakeyan fell ill and was bedridden for months. The doctors could not helphim and poor Haiganoush became a full time nurse. Finally, Garabed was diagnosed with tuberculosis and died. Haiganoush, who had grown up without her father, was now widowed at a very young age. She, too, was a victim of relatives’ ignorance.

In the tragic year of 1915, Haiganoush, like so many others, was condemned to the caravans and exiled to Der Zor. We thought she had died like so many of our next-of-kin. Years later, when my brother Haroutiun and I found refuge in Aleppo, we received a letters from Oufatzi Mrs. Lousia Ketenjian (Yesayi) from Baghdad and from Haiganoush’s cousin, Mgrditch Dadian, informing us that Haiganoush was alive. According to Haiganoush, the Turks massacred everyone in her caravan before they reached Der Zor. Haiganoush was wounded and fell among the dead. She lay there quietly pretending she was dead. Somehow, she was discovered by an Arab, who took her home, nursed her to health and married her. She lived in a village near Baghdad and visited Baghdad from time to time. We tried to convince Haiganoush to come back to us in Aleppo, but she had grown Arab sons who were well to do and did not want to come to Aleppo.

Forty years have since passed and we do not know whether she is still living or not. TheKetenjians and her cousin Mgrditch Dadian, who was a musician, are all dead. There is no onewho can give us any information.

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A Forgotten MemoryDuring the massacre of Armenians in Ourfa, the Turks realized that all the doctors, dentists, pharmacists, bakers, etc. were Armenian. There were no professionals among the Turkishpopulation. So while killing the general Armenian population, they decided to spare the lives of certain key individuals including the physician Armenag Abouhayatian, the pharmacist Karekin Toriguian, the dentist Dikran Churtiglian and the baker Nerses Fayilbashian. They were allforced to assume Turkish names and convert to Islam.

The Turks then put a Turkish apprentice in Fayilbashian’s bakery. As soon as he learned thetrade, they exiled the old and handicapped Nerses to the deserts of Der Zor where he perished after being tortured. Soon after the British occupied Ourfa, Karekin Toriguian reassumed his Armenian name. He was instrumental in identifying all the Armenian women and girls who had been kidnapped and kept in Turkish homes. After the retreat of the British, the French came to Ourfa. After Mustafa Kemal and his revolt massacred the French, the Turks once again called the Armenians guiavours (infidels).

Karekin was preparing to move to the United States with his family. His brother had already gone to the States. However, one morning as he left his house to go to the pharmacy, a Turk in disguise instigated by the government shot him in the back and killed him. That same day, theTurks accused Taniel Yousoufian of the murder and arrested him. Armenag and Dikran wereconvinced they would also be murdered like Karekin, so they fled to Aleppo. Word got outthat Dr. Zakar and I were being pursued as Taniel’s accomplices in Karekin’s murder, so we too escaped to Aleppo.

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I was Frightened in VainThe Turkish-French war had just ended in 1920 with the French being massacred. The Turksassured the Armenians they would be safe, but we were apprehensive and fearful. After a few days passed, the Armenians began returning to the marketplace in order to earn their livelihood.

I took the opportunity to go to the gold market to see a friend. While there, the mailman came with many letters. Because of the Turkish-French fighting, the stores had been closed andthe Armenians were closeted in their homes, so a lot of mail had accumulated in the post office.The mailman had a letter for me from the AGBU. I had been undeservedly appointed the Ourfachairman of the AGBU in Ourfa. The contents of the letter surprised me. The letter was writtento or by (I have forgotten now) the famous revolutionary, Mihran Damadian. He was the leader of the Armenian Volunteers of Adana. I read a few lines. There were encouraging words aboutexpediting reinforcements to the nearby army of revolutionaries.

I did not finish the letter. Instead, I immediately walked home. I would have run but Iwas afraid of calling attention to myself. As soon as I got home, I burned the letter and washed away the ashes with water. I was frantic. I was afraid the Turks were trying to set me up as a traitor and would soon come to arrest me. I left home looking for refuge elsewhere. I met Mr. Hovhanness Tachdjian (my future in-law) in the street. I told him about the letter. He immediately encouraged me to leave for Aleppo.

How was I to go? I remembered that Krikor Sevian’s house was at the innermost end of the Merjemeg’s cul-de-sac. I was in the vicinity. Krikor’s wife, Elmas, was Lousin’s cousin. We were good friends. I went there and explained my problem. I sent word to my wife about my whereabouts. I remained until dark then went home. After a while, I settled down and began thinking more clearly. If the government had the slightest suspicion about the letter’s contents, why would they send it to me? If they had any suspicion, they would have immediately arrested me. Furthermore, the letter had not been opened. Even if they had opened the letter and read it, they would have realized I had nothing to do with freedom fighters and that the letter hadbeen sent to the wrong address.

I can no longer remember from where the letter had been sent. I can’t even remember if there was enough information to tell me where it came from. Most probably, the sender had mixed up letters, putting a letter to me in the envelope addressed to Adana, and sending the letter intended for Adana to me. I panicked in vain before thinking about the matter level-headedly.

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I Shipped Vine Branches to the StatesThe Dishonesty of an Airline Company

Due to my position as president of the Ladies’ Association of Our in Aleppo, I was in constant communication with the Ourfatzi Compatriotic Society of Los Angeles.

The Los Angeles society had sent us $300 a year for nine consecutive years for the benefit ofOurfatzi students. This continued until their dissolution. One day I received a letter from oneof the members, Haroutiun Sarkissian, asking me to send him some branches of the tahannabi grapes found in Ourfa. He wanted to grow these grapes in his garden. This particular varietyripened a month sooner than other varieties. Producing such grapes in the United States would give him a big advantage. He could sell them at a high price and make a good profit.

So that I would take the matter seriously, he promised to give me a share of the profits. I was inAleppo at the time and there was no way I could go to Ourfa. However, I often went to Arabpounar for farming and business reasons. Arabpounar was not too far from Aleppo and it had a community of Ourfatzi and Garmoujtzi Armenians. The Garmoujtzis were mostly vintners and had cultivated anumber of vineyards surrounding Arabpounar. They worked for Kurdish landlords for a salary or asmall percentage of the income.

I asked my friend, Garmoujtzi Mardiros, if tahannabi vines were available in Arabpounar. He said they were. He was an experienced and expert vintner. He often pruned the vines for the Kurds at the proper time of year. The cut branches were then dried and used for firewood.He said tahannabi could be found in the vineyard of Severagli Mahmed Ali. Fortunately, the season was right for pruning so I asked him to get me 100 branches and promised to compensate him well. He got them the next day. The branches had to be kept wet and had to be shippedto America quickly. There were no airline companies in Aleppo so I went to Beirut. With oneof my sons-in-law (I can’t remember if it was Avak Kahvejian or Levon Topjian) we went to an airline company and gave them the package to ship to Los Angeles. I paid a good sum of money and they promised to deliver it in 24 hours.

I was happy and immediately sent a letter to Haroutiun Sarkissian. One month later, while still in Beirut, I received a letter back informing me that the package didn’t arrive. We learned from some neighbors that the travel agent we dealt with was a crook. He had cheated many others, taking their goods as well as their money. They had complained and he had beenarrested. I wrote a letter to Haroutiun Sarkissian telling him that and promising to send him some more tahannabi branches. I went to Arabpounar, got 100 more branches, returned to Beirut and shipped them to Los Angeles. The branches had been inspected for parasites andinfectious diseases by government experts then delivered to Sarkissian.

About three years later Sarkissian wrote to thank me and inform me that the grapes were being sold on the market. However, he said they were not very sweet. I wrote back to tell him he must have over-watered them. I recommended he not give the vines so much water. I don’t know what

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ever happened because before long I heard of his passing. He had reimbursed me for the vines and I wrote a letter of condolence to his family, but I did not probe the matter any further. I do not even know if he had children.

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The Lawyer, Tcherish Mislem EffendiI was optimistic when the British arrived in Ourfa and like many others, I returned. The Turkswere dejected and terrified that the Armenians would get revenge through the British. Theybecame very friendly and apologetic toward the Armenians.

Tcherish Mislem Effendi worked as a lawyer without a formal diploma. In those days,lawyers with college degrees from law schools were rare in the inner provinces of Turkey. Theword “Tcherish” was a satirical adjective meaning “glue”.

He started showing great respect toward me and I later learned that he had appropriated my late Uncle Nerses’s house. He was living in it with an Armenian girl he had taken as a wife even though he was in his sixties. Except for his son Garabed who was 8-10 years old, my uncle and his entire family had been massacred. Garabed, the sole survivor, was living in Aleppo.

Tcherish Mislem Effendi was afraid that as a guardian I could ask the British to have himvacate the house and free his Armenian wife just as so many others were doing. However, I was so involved with the properties of the Der-Bedrossians and Imirzians (my wife’s parents) and in numerous inheritance lawsuits and other complications that I had no time to deal with him.

He invited me for dinner one evening and served wonderful food, baklava, etc. He had a son from his Armenian wife and told me boastfully that they had decided to name him Antranig. It turns out they changed his name after the British arrived. Before that, he went by a Muslim name.

Tcherish Mislem helped me twice. Garabed and Hovhannes Imirzian and their families had been martyred during the 1915 massacres. Only one daughter from each (Noyemzar and Lousin) had survived. According to the Turkish Shariat law, if a deceased does not have a son, the nearest male relative is entitled to the inheritance. By law, sons inherit more than daughters.

An individual named Garabed Imirzian, who was the 45-50 year old cousin of the Imirzians, came to Ourfa from Aleppo and obtained a ruling from the Shariat courts claiming to be the proper heir. He sued us and demanded to receive a son’s share of the Imirzian estate. However, a young man told us about a boy living with the nomad Arab tribe of Aneze. He said the boy looked like Noyemzar’s 6-7 year old brother Mgrditch. He said the boy had fair skin and red hair. The Aneze tribe was always on the move. It traveled as far as Baghdad and Mosul. Itold Mislem about this young man’s sighting. He gave me great hope, saying that if Mgrditch was alive, the courts would assume that he could live to 90 years old, but I would have to findtwo witnesses who would testify that they had seen him alive. This would allow us to get anIsbate Verese (an inheritance document) and Mgrditch’s share of the inheritance would remain untouched for up to 80-90 years. Mislem said Mgrditch might show up one day. If his share of the inheritance had been grabbed and spent, this would be a serious breach. Mgrditch would have suffered irreparable harm and we would be held responsible.

So we took Mislem’s advice. Garabed was greatly disappointed. He appealed to us through friends asking for financial assistance saying he was destitute and had incurred tremendous

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expense traveling from Aleppo. In truth, we were not sure about Mgrditch’s whereabouts. Since Garabed was a relative, we promised to give him 30 Ottoman gold coins provided he sign a notarized document stating he had no claims. He signed the document and we paid him the 30 gold coins. This was all thanks to Tcherish Mislem.

Yet when we moved to Aleppo, Garabed sued us again, denying he had ever signed such a document. He accused us of having forged his signature. I was fed up with all the lawsuits and courts. I wanted to get rid of this headache. So I promised to pay him another 10 Ottoman gold coins provided he sign another notarized document stating he had no claims against us. We even had his photograph attached to the document. He agreed to do this and that’s when we finally finished with him. We haven’t heard anything about Mgrditch to this day.

The second time Tcherish Mislem helped me was in the matter with Severagli Ali Effendi,who sued me in order to snatch my quarter share in the mill of Ainarous. Because the mill had three millstones, we could not divide it equally among the partners. Ali Effendi must haveheard that I was willing to buy his share of the mill. Seeing me at the courthouse, he passed through the courtyard and did not come into the courtroom. After the other trials finished, Iwas standing in front of the courtroom. I don’t know if it was by design or coincidence, but Tcherish Mislem saw me and asked about our lawsuit. I told him Ali Effendi had shown up, butleft when he saw me. He advised me to immediately request that the judge cancel the lawsuit. The bailiff told the judge that Ali Effendi had not shown up. The judge told the secretary towrite down the necessary information and terminate the lawsuit. Had I not made the request, the lawsuit would have continued. This was something I did not know. We finished with thisnuisance thanks to Tcherish Mislem.

The mill is still working to this day. However, it has depreciated in value and the numberof customers has decreased. There is competition from other mechanical mills in the area. AliEffendi died and all his properties in Ainarous and half the mill went to Hovhannes Shahinianwho didn’t pay one cent for them.

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A RemorseI wrote about how Haiganoush, my sister Vartouhi’s daughter, escaped the massacres, but I forgot to mention something. Her husband, Garabed Nakeyan died at a young age of tuberculosis. A few years before his death, he purchased a life insurance policy with the Union Company, although I am not sure of the company name. He was to pay five Ottoman goldcoins each year for 20 years. If he survived for 20 years, he would get back 100 gold coins along with some interest. If he died before 20 years, the beneficiary would receive 100 gold coins rightaway. So even if he died after just one payment of five gold coins, the insurance company wouldpay his heirs 100 gold coins.

Garabed died a few years after he purchased this policy. The company paid the 100 Ottomangold coins to my brothers for Haiganoush’s benefit. Because Haiganoush had no children, shereturned to her mother’s house, who by then had married to Attar Taniel. My brothers, who were in business with Monofar Jendoyan, did not need the money. My brothers gave the 100 coins to me to disperse to Haiganoush at the rate of 10 coins per year. In this way, she could spend the money on whatever she needed and she would not be a burden on Attar Taniel.

I invested the 100 gold coins into our business. Unfortunately, less than a year later in 1915, the Turks began killing the Armenians. All our belongings, the home furnishings, and our store merchandise was looted and Haiganoush’s 100 gold coins were lost.

As I explained earlier, Haiganoush survived the massacres when an Arab man found her in an injured state, nursed her back to health and married her. We thought she was dead until we received letters from Baghdad 40 years later telling us she was alive. I wrote to her numerous times, urging her to come to Aleppo and join us. We wanted to take care of her as a member of our family and try to pay her the 100 gold coins. However, she did not want to come. Her sons from her Arab husband had grown. They were well-to-do with flocks of sheep and camel,etc. Naturally, her sons did not want to come to Aleppo and she did not want to leave them. Eventually, we lost touch with her. We don’t know if she is still alive. Haiganoush’s 100 gold coins were lost in the looting, which caused me great remorse. Unfortunate circumstances, the disastrous year of 1915, etc. were the reasons why poor Haiganoush became a widow at a very early age. She did not benefit from the insurance money. Neither did I.

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Why Sheikh Djevharzade Eomer Broke his PromiseI wrote earlier about how I sold the two villages of Sheikhzade Eomer (a Kurd who was assimilated by the Turks). A wealthy Turkish Ourfatzi had four villages next to each other: Merjanig, Bournaz, Telsepi and Touteg. Being elderly, he passed away. His heirs wanted to sell the four villages. They either could not agree among themselves on how to split the propertiesor they needed the money. One of the heirs was a patient of Dr. Hagop Beshlian. He told the doctor about their intention to sell the villages. The doctor told the Imirzians, who askedaround and learned that the villages were good ones. Merjanig, in particular, had fertile soil and vineyards. The Imirzians decided they wanted to buy all four villages. Beshlian also wanted totake part.

There were two Armenians among the many Kurdish villagers. One was Hagalli Hagop andthe other was Dono (Donavak). They too wanted to participate in the purchase. The Imirziansliked the idea of having partners who were also villagers. After lengthy consultations with the owners, they bought all four villages. I don’t know how much they paid, but it must have been 1,500 gold coins or more. That was a very large sum of money back then. They agreed to dividethe villages among themselves in the following manner:

Merjanig was divided into five shares. The Imirzians got two-fifths, Dr. Beshlian, HagalliHagop and Dono got one-fifth each.

Telsepi was divided into two shares with the Imirzians and Dr. Beshlian getting one share each.

Bournaz was divided into four. The Imirzians got two shares and Hagalli Hagop and Donogot one share each.

Touteg was divided into four, two for the Imirzians and one each for Hagalli Hagop and Dono.

Each partner invested according to his share. Because the doctor could not pay his amount, the Imirzians helped him, but I don’t know to what extent. I got some of the Imirzians’ documents from the government and some from Masmana, where Garabed Effendi’s wifetook refuge during the massacres. She took some documents with her. I found out from these documents that the doctor had not paid his debt to the Imirzians. I don’t remember the exact sum. The doctor survived the massacres. He did not deny his debt, but he made some lameexcuses and did not pay. Hagalli Hagop and Dono were killed during the massacres.

After the Turks massacred the French in Ourfa, the Armenians lived in peace for a little while. Then the persecutions of Mustafa Kemal started and conditions became unbearable forthe Armenians. Dr. Beshlian wanted to sell his share of the villages and escape from Ourfa. Sheikhzade Eomer wanted to the whole village, not just a portion. He did not want any partners. So they both came to see me. Eomer wanted the village of Telsepi, half of which belonged to the doctor and half to the Imirzian. They asked me to transfer half of Telsepi toEomer. In return, the doctor would give his one-fifth share of Merjanig to the Imirzians’ two

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daughters and pay me the difference. Telsepi was worth 800 gold coins, half of which belongedto us. Merjanig was worth 1,375 gold coins one-fifth of which, or 275 gold coins, belonged tothe doctor. Therefore, the difference was 125 gold coins, which they had to pay me.

This arrangement suited me. The Sheikh also promised that when the harvest from hisnearby village was good, he would buy the rest of the villages. We also agreed with Eomer to sell him our half of the Touteg village for 100 gold coins. So he paid me 125 + 100 = 225 gold coins and we transferred the deed to his name accordingly. However, Eomer did not buy our other villages as promised. I don’t know if his harvest was not good or if he just double-crossed me.

I found out later that Eomer had not paid the doctor, who secretly escaped to America. Eomer had promised to send 200 gold coins to the doctor in the United States. Anyway, soon after, any sale or purchase of Armenian property was banned. If Eomer had been able or willing to keep his promise, I would have received from him 825 Ottoman gold coins for the three shares of Merjanig and 400 gold coins for half of Bournaz. It did not happen.

A few years later, all the Armenians escaped from Ourfa or were killed. They left everythingbehind. We, too, escaped and settled in Aleppo. One day, Sheikhzadeh Eomer came to Aleppo on his way to a pilgrimage. I had gone to Arabpounar or Ainarous on business. He looked for me apparently to give me the 200 gold coins he owed the doctor. He wanted to get the doctor’s address or have me send it to him. According to Islamic law, a person must pay all his debts before going on pilgrimage, but I don’t really know if that was his intention.

A similar story happened to me. I have written that Taniel Yousoufian’s representative, BozanBey, transferred Taniel’s properties to Noyemzar after borrowing 4,000 Syrian pounds from me. One year, Bozan Bey saw me in Aleppo and told me, “I am going on a pilgrimage and I still owe you 2,000 Syrian pounds. I don’t have it now, but I have recorded in my book.” I do not know if it is written in the Quran that a debt is forgiven simply by recording it down.

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My Visit to the Village of MerjanigAlthough the reader may not be interested, there are many empty pages in my notebook so I will write about my trip to the village of Merjanig if only to have the illusion of reliving the experience.

I wrote in the previous chapter that Hagalli Hagop and Dono from Merjanig were killed during the 1915 Armenian massacres. The villagers told me that Ibrahim Khalil, the chieftain ofa neighboring village, killed Dono in order to confiscate his properties and take his young wife. Dono’s wife was the daughter of one of the well-known Armenian families of Ourfa. Ibrahim Khalil changed her name to Sedeqa. He also moved into Merjanig.

This Armenian woman had two brothers who survived the massacres. One was calledBedros, but I don’t remember the name of the other. They had resigned themselves to the factthat their sister had become a Moslem. They used to go to the village to visit her, and whenIbrahim Khalil and Sedeqa came to Ourfa, they stayed with her brothers. One evening, when Ibrahim Khalil and Sedeqa were in town, they invited my wife and me for dinner. We went to get acquainted with our partners. I had not yet seen Merjanig. Ibrahim Khalil invited me to visit the village. I had always wanted to go so I went. Sedeqa’s brother, Bedros was also there. Naturally, the brothers profited from the wheat, etc. of the village. Sedeqa was completelyassimilated as a Moslem. She seemed to be influential in the village and she seemed happy tohave accepted the “true” faith. At least, that was the impression I got. She had a son from her new Moslem Kurdish husband, Ibrahim Khalil, but I have forgotten his name. It was either Ahmed or Ali.

Ibrahim Khalil was very envious of Sheikhzadeh Eomer because he had bought Beshlian’s shares and half of the Imirzians’ Touteg village. Eomer was also a Kurd, but he lived in the city. He was almost like a Turk. He could read and write and he owned a village near our village. Some time later, after we settled in Aleppo, I heard that Ibrahim Khalil was charged with murder and jailed for a number of years.

I forgot to mention that Sedeqa had made sweets from the grapes of the village vineyards. When I was returning to the city, she brought me a kilo of chekchek as a partner of the vineyard. It was prepared with flour. It was very tough and inedible. I threw it away.

I also forgot to write about another incident. When I was in Merjanig, the villagers all went to bed at a certain time. However, Ibrahim Khalil would not go to bed. He stayed up for a long time. Someone told me that he had a lover in the village. He waited for everyone to go to sleep before he went out to visit her.

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Dikran Kaghtatzian Refused to Pay His Debt of 40 Gold Coins

After the 1915 massacres, when the British and later the French occupied Ourfa, many surviving Armenians returned to Ourfa, our birthplace. During that time, Dikran Kaghtatzian started trading Turkish banknotes and gold coins according to the fluctuations of the market. Whenthe persecutions of Mustafa Kemal against the Armenians started, I decided to sell some of our properties if possible, so that we could escape to Aleppo if necessary. I sold three of the Imirzian’s properties to Ali Effendi Kazaz for 750 gold coins. Dikran Kaghtatzian was the go-between. Dikran brought me the 750 gold coins in person. Right away, I paid him 12 gold coins as a fee and he thanked me. Then I sold the house in Bouchakji Meydan, which belongedto the Imrzians, for 200 gold coins, again with Dikran as the go-between. I paid him 4 gold coins because I wanted him to get some benefit, too.

Later, when I had to escape to Aleppo, I sent 500 gold coins with Dikran to Ali Effendi forsafekeeping. I did this without a receipt because I was afraid that I might be robbed or killed on the way. If a robber got the receipt, he could demand payment. Ali Effendi was very wealthy,trustworthy and totally sympathetic toward the Armenians. Other Armenians had also given him money for safekeeping. Later, Ali Effendi traveled all the way to Aleppo and personally gaveeach person everything they had entrusted to him.

When my brother and I started our own business, Ali Effendi sent us ghee, wool and wheatto sell for him for a commission. Ali Effendi dealt extensively in Ourfa, Veranshehir, Severeg,etc. and in hundreds of villages throughout the cherchis. I can say that he had a hand in almost half of the consumption there. A lot of the shopkeepers in the city bought from Ali Effendiinstead of going to Aleppo. It was more profitable. Ali Effendi sold to the shopkeepers at thesame price they would have paid in Aleppo. He could do this because he purchased very large quantities at more reasonable prices than the individual shopkeeper would pay on his own.

Ali Effendi made his purchases from Aleppo through an Arab agent. He personally came toAleppo only once or twice a year. He paid a lot of money to the Arab agent. It was the law in Aleppo to pay the agent 3% of the total transaction. So instead of paying large sums of money to his Arab agent, Ali Effendi sometimes sent a young relative, Bekir, to Aleppo. Bekir andDikran Kaghtatzian would often come together and stay in a room in the Khan Fanous hotel. Bekir and Dikran would buy whatever Ali Effendi needed and sell whatever he sent from Ourfa. They worked like this for about three years when Bekir died and Dikran acquired the wholebusiness.

One day Dikran came to my office and said that Ali Effendi needed 40 gold coins for a veryimportant transaction. He had first gone to Krikor Zobian, a money-changer, who said that hewould only lend the money if Haroutiun Keshishian and I endorsed the loan. I was surprised by this unusual request, but I could not refuse. Dikran said he would give us an invoice for the 40

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gold coins signed by himself and Ali Effendi. He said Ali Effendi had purchased large quantitiesof wool, which he was going to send to Aleppo for sale and would then pay back the 40 gold coins.

I think anyone else in my place would not have refused. I had done a lot of business with Dikran and had exchanged many hundreds of gold coins with him. Besides, he was making the request on behalf of Ali Effendi, who had safely kept my 500 gold coins with no receipt thentraveled to Aleppo many months later to deliver it to me. Once, when I was still in Ourfa, after having sold the properties, Dikran came to me saying Ali Effendi needed 200 gold coins and hadtold him to get it from me. I gave him the money immediately and after one month he paid me back without my asking. He even added two gold coins as interest. All this was done without receipts.

So I agreed to the deal. He left and came back some time later with two invoices written in Arabic having official stamps attached. One invoice stated that my brother and I owed 40 goldcoins to Ali Effendi Kazaz payable in 30 days. Dikran would take this to Zobian who wouldgive the amount less one-month’s interest to Dikran. We would then have to pay Zobian. Thesecond invoice was for 40 gold coins payable to us within 35 days. It contained the signatures of Ali Kazaz and Dikran Kaghtatzian. He gave it to us for safekeeping.

Two days before the 30 days were up, we received a notice from the bank notifying us to pay the bank 40 gold coins in two days. If we failed to pay, we would receive a complaint and our bankruptcy would be announced. It turns out that Zobian sold our invoice to the bank. We went to Dikran and complained. Where was the wool, which was supposed to arrive? Where were our 40 gold coins? He did not care. He told us to pay the bank and said the wool would arrive in a few days and then he would pay us. Two days later we went to the bank and cleared our debt. We had no choice. Not paying would have led to bankruptcy, disgrace and death.

Dikran’s promise of a few days quickly turned into months. We received news that Ali Kazaz had spread his business too much and incurred big losses. He owed 30,000 to the businessmen in Aleppo and had gone bankrupt. We couldn’t talk to Dikran anymore.

A few days later I went to Arabpounar on business. A friend told me that Ali Kazaz was on a train on his way to Ourfa. I think he was on his way back from Istanbul. I went immediately to see him. At the time, we could go to Turkey freely. Turkey and Syria bordered each other and the railway ran along the border. I boarded the train and found him. He looked haggard. After preliminary greetings, I told him about the business of the 40 gold coins. He was very surprised. He told me that after his business started going bad, he wrote to Dikran and told him to pay his debtors. He had 10 bales of wool in Aleppo at the time and told Dikran to sell it and pay me, the hotel manager Arakel, the rent for his office, the workers who had tied the bales, etc. He saidhe could not pay his larger debts. We were still talking when the train whistle blew. I bade him goodbye and disembarked. When I returned to Aleppo, I called on Dikran and told him what Ali Effendi said to me. He said it was a lie and muttered some excuse. I am sure Ali Effendi wastelling the truth because he was very upset.

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Some time had passed when I heard that Dikran and Taniel Yousoufian had jointly boughtbarley wholesale and sold it for a good profit. Taniel had Dikran’s share of the profit. I went toTaniel and requested that he deduct 40 gold coins from Dikran’s share to pay me. He agreed.

The next day Hovaguim Chalian came to my office in the marketplace. He asked, “Whyhave you started a fight between these two fools?” When I asked him what he was talkingabout, he said that the day before Dikran Kaghtatzian and Taniel Yousoufian had been in afight in the café and had almost killed each other. They had thrown chairs at each other andhad made quite a scene. Dikran claimed the 40 gold coins were his commission for selling the Imirzians’ properties in Ourfa. This was a lie and I told Chalian so. I had already paid Dikrana commission for those sales. Chalian was surprised, yet he believed me. However, I was concerned that I could be the cause of spilled blood or some serious consequence. I also thought that perhaps Taniel sent Chalian to see me so I might forfeit my demand. I told Chalian to tell Taniel to pay Dikran the full amount. However, I showed Chalian the two invoices Dikran had given me, and I told him what Ali Effendi told me.

Dikran stole my 40 gold coins. Some have told me that since Dikran claimed the sum as a commission on the properties of the Imirzians, I should demand half the amount (i.e., 20 gold coins) from Lousin. But it was an old story from 20 years before. Right or wrong, I was the one who had given the money to Dikran. I never told Lousin or her husband, Dr. Zakar, about it. I also did not involve my brother Haroutiun in the story because he had nothing to do with the Imirzians.

Dikran has since died, but he has left a bad memory in my heart. This incident took placeduring the worldwide economic crisis of 1929-30 when all our capital had vanished. The 40gold coins would have been a great help to us. We were very good friends with Dikran in Ourfa and Aleppo. We had helped each other a lot, but this last bad deed marred the past memories. He still visited us unashamedly once in a while with his wife. We entertained them out of politeness. What hurt me more than the financial loss was his deception. He accused me of notpaying his commission for 20 years even though I had been very generous to him. This hurt mypride. I wanted to help him at the time. The proverb says, “If the thief is smart, he can catchthe landlord.” He was at fault but wanted to accuse me of ingratitude. What an ingrate!

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Dr. Hagop Beshlian Double-crossed MeI always wanted my life’s companion to be somewhat educated. In those days, few girls received an education. A friend of mine, Vagharshag Khatchadourian, encouraged me to take interest in one of his relatives. Her name was Azniv Attarian. She was 17-18 years old and had graduated from the American High School of Ainteb. She was an orphan and lived with a relative.

My family and I were interested, but I didn’t know how I could meet the girl. Bedros Akkelian, who owned a barbershop where I used to shave, offered to help. Without prompting,he brought up the subject. He said, “I know Azniv Attarian’s house, and if you like, I can take you there to see her.” Apparently, the girl’s relatives had suggested he do this. We agreed to go on an appointed day. She was very beautiful, educated, and of suitable age. I had no objections to her, but I wondered why she was not already engaged. Indeed, Dr. Hagop Beshlian and Dr. Mirza Ketenjian were both ready to marry and I wondered why they had not taken an interest in this girl. Was there something unpleasant about her?

Although he was three years older, I was friendly with Dr. Beshlian. I saw him on the street a few days later and asked him if he knew Azniv Attarian. Without answering my question, he said, “Yeghisapet Vogeritchian is a more suitable and more beautiful girl.” Yeghisapet was his cousin. I had seen her casually going to school. Her family was Protestant and she attended the school of the Protestant community. My cousin, Barkevouhi, attended the same school.

My aunt suggested that Barkevouhi bring Yeghisapet to their house one day and that I come over and meet her. We agreed on a day and time. Yeghisapet was 15-16 years old, quite pretty with beautiful black eyes. I preferred Yeghisapet and forgot all about Azniv Attarian even though I had found nothing wrong with her. I told my mother about Yeghisapet and she did not object. I also told my older brothers. Aghajan talked to Nazar Kullahian, the husband of Yeghisapet’s older sister. They were close friends and had shops next to each other. Nazar was very pleasedwith the news and informed Yeghisapet’s parents. They accepted the idea with pleasure.

My mother and sisters-in-law used to frequent the same baths as Yeghisapet Vosgeritchian’s family. They all started treating each other with respect as khenamis (in-laws). We fixed anengagement date and ordered rings. Suddenly, we heard that Dr. Beshlian had put a stop to our engagement because he wanted to marry Yeghisapet. Because he was her relative and a doctor, her parent’s could not refuse his proposal. Nazar Kullahian went to see them. He protested, screamed, and cursed, but to no avail. He stayed angry with his parents-in-law for years, and he never spoke again with Dr. Beshlian. Had it been a hot-headed young man in my place, he might have gone out and shot the doctor.

Dr. Beshlian was the one who had recommended Yeghisapet to me in the first place. I wasvery distressed. Everyone heard that I was getting engaged to her. I don’t know why he would want to hurt my pride like this. My mother and my brothers had consented to my request only because they did not want to refuse me. They actually preferred that I marry Noyemzar,the daughter my cousin Yeghisapet. We knew her family well. Her father was Garabed Effendi

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Imrzian, a very wealthy and respected person. The only problem was that Noyemzar was stillyoung; she was 15 years younger than I was.

However, it was very fortunate that I married Noyemzar. She already had a few suitors, but her parents had refused them all. All those suitors were later slaughtered during the 1915 massacres. If she had married any one of them, she would have become a widow at a very young age. We both survived thanks to divine Providence. We are very happy and content to this day. We are still alive. I am 92 and she is 76. Many of my friends congratulated me because I married a girl from a better family. Even though I was sad at first about Yeghisapet, thingsworked out for the best.

Years later, we became friends with Dr. Beshlian again. After the ceasefire, when first theBritish and then the French came to Ourfa, we were colleagues in the National Union. When the new persecutions started under Mustafa Kemal, the doctor escaped to America and I escaped to Aleppo, but we kept in touch by correspondence.

With God’s mercy and thanks to Miss Jeppe, I survived the massacres in Ourfa and ran away to Aleppo. War was still raging at the time. Dr. Beshlian was a military physician in the Turkish army. His wife, Yeghisapet, was alive and somehow managed to escape to Aleppo. When she learned that I also was in Aleppo, she asked my godmother, Marie Sarigian, if I would receive her if she came to visit. Upon receiving my positive response, she came to welcome me and apologized shyly for the inconsiderate events of the past. I have written in the previous pages that Dr. Beshlian was a partner with the Imirzians in several villages including Mrjanig, and that he owed them money. He did not deny that, but found some excuse not to pay his debt.

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The Building of Governor Ehdem Pasha andGarabed Imirzian

About two or three years after the proclamation of the short-lived Ottoman Constitution in 1908, Ehdem Pasha was appointed governor of Ourfa. He was a big and imposing man who wore black glasses. He did not stay in Ourfa long, but he left a good impression as a renovator and builder. When he arrived in Ourfa, there was a German hospital, which was founded after the 1895 massacres by the German Armenophile Association. Dr. Lepsius was the chairman of the hospital. This hospital was not sufficient for the city’s needs, which had a population of morethan 100,000. There were also five towns surrounding Ourfa: Berejig, Srouj, Verashehir, Ehnesh,and Jibin. There were also a few hundred villages.

Ehdem Pasha realized that Ourfa needed another hospital, so he began construction on a luxurious and spacious two-story hospital. This hospital was built on the land calledKerzi Kloukh, which was about a five-minute ride to the north of Ourfa. The hospital had a pharmacy, a medical staff, and nursing staff. Kerzi Kloukh was a large, flat and empty piece of land with a clear spring.

Ourfa was surrounded by fortresses and the hill of Telfdour. The population was growingand the city was becoming congested. As a result, there was a housing shortage. Ehdem Pasha wanted to create a suburb where the population could live outside the city in clean and well-ventilated houses. He called together wealthy individuals of all nationalities and forced them to buy enough land around Kerzi Kloukh for each to build a house. There were many Moslem andChristian buyers. The Armenian buyers included those from the following families: Imrzian,Der-Bedrossian, Chalian, and Kullahian. The Chalians built a khan (hotel) on the Garmouj road. A wealthy Turk who was exiled from Bolis erected a very beautiful European style building next to the hotel, but he lived there with his family for just a few months before he was granted clemency and returned to Bolis. He sold the house to the mayor, Bejanzade Eomer Edib Effendi.

My family already had four houses in the city, so we postponed building in Kerzi Kloukh. The last one we built was the one where Nshan and Aghajan lived comfortably with theirfamilies. It had cost us 2,000 Ottoman gold coins. We did not need a new house and it would have been difficult to spend a large sum of money again. Our last house was built by Khachervarbed (master) Arabian. It had an oriental and a European section. The oriental part had anoutdoor courtyard and a tiled roof (yazlek). There was also a fountain in the yard. On two sidesof the yard were rooms on two levels, the women’s quarters, etc. The European section was threefloors, with numerous rooms connected with hallways and stairs. Khacher varbed made quite a reputation for himself by building our house. He built nice houses for others as well.

The Imrzian brothers had one house each, and a third house, which they rented out. Garabed, the elder brother, wanted to build a European style luxurious house on the land in

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Kerzi Kloukh. The land surrounding his property had been developed quite a bit. The GermanHospital was on one side and the newly built municipal hospital was on the other. The three-story European style house of the chief physician of the German Hospital, Dr. Fisher was not too far away. Next to that was the two-story European house of the director of the German Hospital and the assistant physician, Dr. Jacob Kuntzler. Both of these houses were surrounded by flowergardens.

Behind the Imirzian’s land to the east, was a large house belonging to Shishoyan. Not far from the German Hospital, to the south, was the palatial, three-story building of the wealthy Mahmoud Nedim Effendi. He was a deputy in the Turkish government. There were also a few ordinary houses. The point is that the area was well developed. Garabed Effendi had theblueprints to his new home drawn several times. He entrusted the construction to Khacher varbed. He wanted to build the house in stages so as not to appear too prosperous to the Turks. He didn’t want to instigate their envy. He took a long time to have the stones hewn and prepared. The construction was done without rushing. After laboring for a year, the rooms onthe first floor, including the kitchen, were partially finished. Their walls were in place, but not the ceilings. To support the ceilings, his brother Hovhannes had purchased long iron beams in Aleppo. He bought enough for 7-8 rooms. The work was only partially started on the ceilingswhen the 1915 Armenian massacres started. Both Imirzian brothers were martyred along with their families and only Noyemzar and Lousin survived.

After the war, when the British conquered Ourfa, I, like many others, returned to Ourfa. The hewn stones and iron beams of this half-finished house had been stolen. I undertook thenecessary expenses to secure what was left, but it was of no use. The Turks would come at night,break down the doors and steal the stones. I spent a lot of energy and got very angry. When the persecution of the Armenians resumed, I decided to leave Ourfa for good. I sold the house to Ali Kazaz.

On the southern tip of Ourfa there was a large and famous lake. It had sweet water and an abundant flowing spring. Its name was Ainelzelkha, but most people called it Ainzelkha. It was around 50 meters long and 20 meters wide. There were large trees on both sides. Tomake the area more useful, Edhem Pasha had the trees on both sides of the lake cut down. He paved the land around the lake with 3-meter wide flat stones. There was a narrow lanefrom the edge of the city to the lake with the high walls of the gardens on both sides. ThePasha had the walls torn down and taking from the land on one side, he had a wide avenue built. He then leased the place to a young Turk called Topal Hajji with the understanding that he would arrange for whatever was needed for a coffeehouse, including tables, chairs,backgammon sets, checkers, playing cards, coffee, tea and cold drinks, and special outfits forswimming in the lake. Topal Hajji took care of all that. The Pasha also had a room built ofstones near the entrance to be used for storage during the nights or during the winter.

The place became very popular, especially among the Armenians because it was very close tothe Armenian Quarter. In the summer, after closing their shops for the night, many came to the

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lake to sit under the trees and relax in the cool surroundings. They drank coffee, tea, or a colddrink (osharag, a diluted fruit syrup) and played backgammon. They smoked the water-pipe(nargile) and the young ones swam. On Sundays, hundreds gathered. The young and old cameand sometimes there would not be enough chairs to sit on. I was young then and went there almost every day to swim, sometimes both in the morning and the evening. I used to pay one metellig (10 paras).

One end of the lake was more than two meters deep. Those who did not know how to swimstayed away from that end. One day a young man from Dikranagerd who was not familiar with the lake almost drowned in the deep end. My brother, Aghajan, who was young at the time and a good swimmer, took off his clothes, jumped in the lake and pushed the young man with hislegs until he got near the bank where others pulled him out of the water. They held him upsidedown to clear his lungs of water. Fortunately, he survived. My brother was smart enough not to get too close to the drowning man; otherwise, the man may have clung on to him to save himself and drowned them both.

Edhem Pasha made other improvements to the city as well, but he did not stay very long in Ourfa. He moved on to another city but left behind a good impression.

The Der Bedrossian residence circa 1995, in Ourfa, Turkey

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I Lost Sight in My Left Eye and Had Prostate SurgeryI often traveled for business by car to Arabpounar and Ainarous. One time while sitting in the back seat, I was leaning against the back of the driver’s seat. Suddenly the car hit a large stone and shook violently. The driver’s seat pushed me back with great force. My chest hurt quite abit, but I didn’t pay any attention. We reached Ainarous. As I removed my notebook and glasses from my breast pocket, I noticed that the left lens of my glasses was broken. It broke from the jolt. I was able to read and write with just one lens.

Upon my return to Aleppo, I went to Gureghian’s optician shop to get a new lens for my glasses. The optician asked me to read letters on a board to determine how strong of a lens Iwould need. When I closed my right eye, I realized that I could not see the letters at all. I could not remember how long I had had this condition. I had been able to read with my right eye and didn’t realize something was wrong. I was very upset. The optician notices some white liquid inmy eye and said it could be treated with surgery. He replaced the broken lens with a plain one.

I went to see Dr. Iskender Abella, an ophthalmologist. He examined me and said the condition was not yet bad enough to require an operation. I waited a few days and then went to see the famous ophthalmologist, Dr. Robert Jebejian. He confirmed that the conditionwas not yet operable. After a month, my wife and I went to Beirut. I was afraid to wait too long and find out it was too late to operate. Several people in Beirut recommended that I seeDr. Naccash. My daughter Rosa took me to his office. He repeated the same diagnosis, butsaid the time to operate was quite near. After ten days, I went to see Dr. Naccash again. He recommended an operation the following day. He called the hospital to prepare a bed for me and gave the hospital’s name and address to Rosa. Rosa took me to the hospital the next day. The doctor, wearing his white coat, was ready for me. I lay down and they anesthetized me. Idon’t know how long the procedure took. When they woke me up, my left eye was bandaged. They lay me down in the bed.

Meanwhile, I had been having prostate problems for a year and had been having difficultyurinating. The doctors did not think an operation was necessary so they had been treating mewith medicine. Five or six hours after my eye surgery, I wanted to urinate, but couldn’t. Perhaps the medicine they used to anesthetize me had caused my prostate to swell and block the urinary tract. I started feeling very uncomfortable and told the supervisor that I wanted to go to the American Hospital to have prostate surgery to get rid of the pain. The doctor who had operatedon my eye came in to check on me and administer the required medication. We told him about my prostrate and asked him to discharge me. He didn’t agree to do so because my eye still needed treatment. I did not know what to do and I couldn’t stand the pain. I was afraid the urine would accumulate and contaminate my system.

They called in a specialist to extract the urine with a tube. He came and did so, but I wasworried because the procedure could cause complications. Two days later, the specialist repeated the procedure. Finally, two days after that, they let me go. As soon as I got home, we informed

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the American Hospital to prepare a bed for me. They said that no beds were available in anyof the classes. My daughter Sirarpi was a friend of the head nurse. She pleaded with her to let us know as soon as a bed became available. But I could not wait. Again, the situation became unbearable. We went to the emergency department for treatment. They performed the sameprocedure with some reluctance and did not promise to do it again because it was unsafe. Fortunately, two days later a bed became available in third class. The bad news was that thespecialist doctors or professors do not treat the patients in third class. These patients are treatedby secondary physicians and residents. Medical students attend the sessions to gain some experience. However, my daughter’s friend asked the specialist professor to perform the surgery himself, saying that the patient was her close relation. The professor did not refuse.

They examined my heart prior to the operation then took me to the operating room andanesthetized me. I don’t know how long it took. After the operation, they took me to my room and laid me in my bed. I was worried that because of the delay my condition may have become cancerous. I asked one of the nurses about this, but she assured me that there was no such danger. However, I nearly died because of a mistake made during the operation. (See page 184 in the Armenian version).

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The Premature Death of My Nephew, YervantYervant, the eldest son of my brother Haroutiun, had a serious heart attack at a very young age in Beirut. He was treated at the American Hospital, where he stayed for more than a month in intensive care and finally pulled through. After leaving the hospital, he was very careful abouthis health. He avoided alcohol and smoking, and he avoided climbing stairs and other strenuous activities. After four or five years, he was so encouraged by the state of his health that he startedleading the life of a healthy person. He began smoking and drinking again. One night, he was drinking and eating too much at a party in Aley (a town near Beirut). A little while later, he suffered another heart attack and died. They phoned his next of kin in Beirut, who went toAley mourning and weeping. They brought his body home and buried him the next day in thepresence of a large crowd of friends and relatives.

This tragedy happened while I was still in the hospital recuperating from my surgery. Mywife and daughters and some friends came regularly to visit me. One day, my wife came alone dressed in black. I was a little surprised, but didn’t suspect anything. I simply thought she wanted to wear black that day. In reality, however, she had been at Yervant’s funeral. No one had told me about Yervant because I was still weak and they did not want to upset me.

After leaving the hospital, I returned to Rosa’s house where we were staying while in Beirut. Rosa’s husband, Avak, was a subscriber to ‘Aztag’, a daily newspaper. Some of the old papers were on a table and I picked one up to read. That’s how I learned about Yervant’s death. There wasan obituary titled, “Yervant Der Bedrossian, heart-attack.” Naturally, I was very upset. Yervant must have been only about 38 years old. He had wanted to get married. He had a good job in television and was well liked. He came to visit me in the hospital just a few days before his death. He seemed quite well. I can’t remember what it was that I needed, but I asked him to bring me something from a local shop. He went and bought it for me with pleasure. I wanted to pay him, but he would not accept payment. It was such a shame. He was very young. At least his father had already died and did not have to experience his son’s death.

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My Right Eye Became Weak, Rejuvenated in My Old Age, and Weakened Again

I did not need glasses until the age of 35. At that time, the optician told me my left eye was weaker than the right one. When I was 70 and the left lens of my glasses broke, I went to see an optician again and found out I needed surgery. After surgery, the ophthalmologist prescribed two pairs of glasses: one for distance and one for reading. I used both for a few years, but I was not happy about it. One day I forgot my reading glasses at home and realized I could read without them. I realized that I could read fine with my right eye, but that my left eye was veryweak and I could read with it only through a magnifying lens.

From that point on, I was able to read and write without any difficulty without the help ofglasses until the age of 85. However, since then to this day (It is 1977 and I am 93) my right eye has weakened. Now I read and write with the glasses and with a thick magnifying glass. A regular glass lens has been placed in the frame for my right eye.

I notice that many people wear glasses that have lenses consisting of two parts. The lowerpart is for reading and the upper part is for distances. This seems convenient. I wanted to seean ophthalmologist to get similar lenses with the proper prescription for my eyes, but my son-in-law, Dr. Vahakn Tachdjian, advised against it because I suffer from dizziness, which could beaggravated by such glasses. I use medication to treat my dizziness. Once I get better, I should go and get my eyes examined.

P.S. It seems that many people are able to discard their glasses as they get older. I had a friend in Ainarous, Avedis Sanossian, who wore eyeglasses. After getting old, however, he was able to read and write without them. At that time we were surprised. Then it happened to me. Many people ask me, “How come you can read without any glasses at your age?”

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We Had to Buy Back Our Own Looted BelongingsAfter the massacres and lootings of 1915, after Germany and Turkey lost the war and the British then the French occupied Ourfa, I returned to Ourfa from Aleppo without my wife. Convinced it was safe, I went back to Aleppo and brought back my wife. The Turks had leftnothing in the houses and I had to buy all kinds of necessary items from the market so we could live.

One day while shopping, I came across a Turk called Kestozade Eomer who knew me. He greeted me and said, “I saw someone carrying the large wooden cabinet of your office in themarketplace on his back. I bought it from him for 8 mejids. If you want, give me the 8 mejids and I will give you your cabinet.” Most probably he himself was the thief. How else would he know that the cabinet was mine? The cabinet was a very sturdy and beautiful piece of furniture. It was one meter high and one and a half meters wide. It had eight drawers of different sizes. Iteven had a small secret compartment for hiding gold or other precious items. Even though it was my cabinet, I would have paid him 25-30 mejids if he had asked. So I gave him 8 mejids, hired a porter and brought the cabinet home. If I had complained to the British, I am sure I could have gotten my cabinet back for free, but I did not want to go to the trouble of rounding up witnesses and I didn’t want to make more enemies with the Turks.

One day I heard that a policeman had a harmonium for sale. Noyemzar knew how to play and wanted one very much. She had one as a child, but it had been stolen during the massacres. I went to see this policeman who took me to his house. I saw the harmonium and wondered if it was not Noyemzar’s. The policeman said he had purchased it for his wife, but she wasn’t ableto learn how to play it so he wanted to sell it. He said he had paid two gold coins for it. Most probably he had stolen it himself from an Armenian home, or perhaps he had confiscated it orbought it from another Turk who had stolen it. Anyway, I paid him two gold coins and had a porter bring the harmonium to our home. Noyemzar recognized it immediately. It was her own instrument. The Turks had damaged it a bit when it had been looted. Some of the keyswere broken, but Noyemzar was able to repair it to some extent herself. Like our cabinet, the harmonium was another one of our belongings that we had to buy back.

The pharmacist at the German Hospital had a daughter named Miss Ovsanna. She hadbeen Noyemzar’s teacher and she had a very beautiful harmonium, which she wanted to sell. The Turks had killed her father and she said she needed the money to help support herfamily of six or seven. That was true, but they also planned leaving to Aleppo and needed themoney for expenses, but they didn’t want anyone to know that. During the massacres, they hid the harmonium in the German Hospital to keep it safe from looting. They swore theyhad purchased it just before the massacres from America for 25 Ottoman gold coins. Because Noyemzar’s harmonium was damaged, we decided to buy this one. We bargained a little and bought it for 12 gold coins. We enjoyed it for quite some time. Noyemzar played well. I, too, started playing some simple tunes.

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When the persecutions of the Armenians started up again, we decided to leave Ourfa for good. I had two special boxes made and packed some of our belongings, including the two harmoniums. I shipped these to my brother in Aleppo. When things got unbearable, I escaped to Aleppo as I have already written. Noyemzar and our two-year-old daughter Rosa came later with all the others. I had the old harmonium repaired by an expert and sold it to Hagop Balian, a tailor from Ourfa, at a cheap price just to have one less thing in the house. We played the other harmonium frequently until we finally moved to the United States. At that time, we soldit cheap to Hovsep Gulumian, our downstairs neighbor. Hovsep was from Dikranagerd and his wife was from Ourfa. Her name was Selver (nee Mahserejian). They wanted to buy theharmonium for their daughters. Even though we had initially promised to sell it to another individual, we sold it to Hovsep and Selver because they were close friends.

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Sad News: Kayane Dies in Sao PaoloThe children of my older brothers immigrated to Sao Paolo, Brazil after the cease-fire of the 1915World War. My brother Haroutiun’s daughter, Anahid, was married in Aleppo to a photographer named Avedis Shahinian. His sister married into the Dizchekenian family in Sao Paolo. In 1964, her young son came to Aleppo for a visit and talked Avedis into moving to Sao Paolo with his family. Avedis sold his belongings in his shop and apartment and moved his family to Sao Paolo.

I used to correspond with Anahid regularly and she used to give me all the news regarding my brother’s sons. This year (1977), Anahid’s young daughter, Nayiri, who is about 15-16years old, came to the United States for a visit during her school holidays. She came to see her relatives in San Francisco and New York then she came to Philadelphia to see us. Anahid had told us that Nayiri would visit. She also mentioned in her letter that Aghajan’s daughter, Kayane, who we knew had been suffering with cancer, had finally passed away. Naturally, we were veryupset. Nayiri arrived just one day before the letter. She could only stay for two days because she was a college student and had to get back for the new school term. We sent with Nayiri some presents for our relatives and a letter of sympathy to Kayane’s brother Mihran and her son Garo and two daughters Elsa and Ani. We also sent a letter and some presents to Anahid.

We received a letter from Anahid a few days later (dated 25 March 1977) saying that Nayiri had arrived home safely and had taken our presents and the sympathy letter herself to the requiem mass at church. After the service, they had all gone to Elsa’s house. There, Anahid sawArmenag and Kayane’s younger brother, Kevork. They lived in a different city, but had goneto Sao Paolo for the requiem mass. We knew that Kevork was married to a non-Armenian and had a son named Aghajan, which was the name of his father (my brother). We also knew that Kevork’s son was a physician and was married and had two sons. He had also named his eldest son Aghajan. Both father and son were named Aghajan in memory of my late brother. Anahid wrote that Dr. Aghajan had also married a non-Armenian and had two sons who did not speak a word of Armenian. It is sad.

Anahid read our sympathy letter to everyone. The older generation could understand, butthey had to translate the letter for the children and wives who did not understand Armenian. They were all touched and thanked us. They had asked Anahid to write us a thank you noteon their behalf, promising to write themselves later, when they were feeling better. Kayane’s children seem to know English, but their local language is Portuguese. Mihran, Kayane’s son Garo and her youngest daughter, Ani, all live together. They are all single. Ani has a watchshop. Mihran is elderly and does not work. Garo also does not have a specific job. He is a littleweak. They have an extra house, so they collect rent and live on that income.

Dear reader, my writing is not clear because my eyesight is weak. Please excuse me. I do not think that anyone will ever read this anyway because these things are not of interest to anybody. I am 92 and my fingers are weak. Old age!

April 25, 1977

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A Campaign and Doubt Against UsI wrote earlier about the $2,340 sent from America, which arrived late. With the consent of the donors, we invested the money in the bank paying interest. Our goal was to increase the principle so that we could eventually buy a profit-making piece of real estate. This wouldprovide income, which could be used to help the needy students from Ourfa. Many people knew about the money. They also knew that our plan to buy some real estate was being delayed. So several people asked us to give disburse to them some or all of the principle. However, the donors wanted us to try and increase the principle, not decrease it. Because we could not disburse the funds, some started a campaign against us and we became the subject of gossip. Let me mention some of what I still remember:

We did not have a Compatriotic association, but we had two youth associations affiliatedwith political parties. One was Tashnagtzagan; the other was anti-Tashnagtzagan. Thesetwo groups opposed to each other, but both had their sights set on the assets of the Ladies’ Association. They kept appealing to us for help. We helped the Tashnags twice with 50Syrian pounds each time. The others wanted to unite with the Ladies Association. Oncewe held a function together. We sold tickets and split the proceeds, but we refused to merge because belonging exclusively to one party was completely against the principles of the Ladies’ Association. Our association was for all who were from Ourfa. The council and dues-payingmembers came from all walks of life regardless of political affiliation. If the council joined one orthe other of the parties, members who did not sympathize with that party would quit. In those days, there was a newspaper in Aleppo called ‘Yeprad.’ One day we read an article in it signed “Ourfatzi” (i.e., “one from Ourfa”). The article severely criticized the Ladies Association madefalse accusations saying the council consisted of ambitious nincompoops, etc. It added that a new council would be elected in the near future, which would genuinely serve the people. We immediately replied in another newspaper called ‘Arevelk’ saying that the council of the Ladies Association would be very happy if a new council wanted to assume our responsibilities. We said in such an event, we would all resign. We waited in vain for this new council, but it never materialized. No doubt that indecent article had been written by that youth association with whom we refused to merge.

A few days later, the principle of Haigazian School in Aleppo, the Ourfatzi Armen Anoush, said, “The Ourfatzi Youth Association (Tashnag) wants to unite with the Ladies’ Association. Iwill cooperate and we can have a stronger group and be of greater help to our compatriots.” I refused his offer based on the reasons I mentioned above. He was upset.

Another day, Father Asdvadzadour Kassabian (originally from Ourfa, but now living in Sao Paolo) saw me on the street and asked me for the address of the Ourfa Compatriotic Union in America. He gave me some excuse for wanting the address. There was no compatriotic unionin New York, but there were individual Ourfatzis. I knew the address of Kevork Alan (Alanjian) and gave it to him. He was the most instrumental person in helping raise funds for immigration.

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Around 20 days later, I received a letter from K. Alan. He said he had received a letter from the Youth Association of Aleppo. They had written to him making false accusations against theLadies’ Association. He did not believe them and ignored the letter. K. Alan was fully aware of our activities. We had been classmates for many years and he had absolute confidence inme. The Youth Association got his address from Father Asdvadzadour who got it from me. They wrote to him thinking in their little minds that they would be able to discredit us. Thebiggest culprit, who later admitted it shamefacedly, was a very young man named Michael Kehiayan. He was the secretary of their association. Ironically, today he is a priest named Father Adom Kehiayan. He had written the letter and had convinced the naïve chairman Garabed Deyirmenjian to sign it. Michael Kehiayan, when he was still a student, brought me a certificatefrom some committee asking me to pay his tuition saying he could not afford it. I had somemoney at my disposal, which I had received from America for the needy Ourfatzis and paid him one gold coin. He changed his ways after becoming a priest. He finally realized the Ladies’Association was doing good work. Besides paying the tuition of 40 students, we had bought a flat for 17,000 Syrian pounds, which we registered in the name of the Prelacy provided theypay us the rents to be used for the needy Ourfatzi students. We had also given 12,000 pounds to the AGBU, who paid us 600 pounds annual interest also to be used for students. Two years ago, while we were in the States, the executive committee of the Ourfatzi Ladies’ Association organized and celebrated the association’s 40th anniversary. Father Adom, who had hoped to one day become Chairman of the Association, gave a speech and mentioned Noyemzar and me as founders of the Association and praised us amid enthusiastic applause from the audience. The present Chairman of the Ladies’ Association, Mrs. Elise Mouradian, told us this in a letter. When we were getting ready to leave for the States, my wife and I appointed Elise Mouradian Chairman of the Association. She has been working diligently. Although this is becoming very lengthy, I want to mention one more thing: Two months ago, (March 1977), the Ladies Association organized a dance during which the executive committee gave Mrs. Elise a gold pin in appreciation of her work. She in turn donated 1,000 Syrian pounds to the Association. Many others had also made donations during the dance and 15,000 Syrian pounds was raised. They also raised 14,000 pounds during the 40th Anniversary function held earlier. So they putthe entire 29,000 pounds in the bank to earn interest. From our days they had 17,000 pounds (the value of apartment) and 12,000 pounds (the amount invested with the AGBU) for a total of 29,000 Syrian pounds. With the additional 29,000 pounds they raised at the two dances, they now have 58,000 pounds. With the interest earned so far, they have 60,000 pounds. No other Ourfatzi organization has lasted this long (41 years from 1936-1977). No other organization has been able to save this kind of money and help so many people at the same time.

Sarkis Selian, the Chairman of the Relief Society of Aleppo, approached me one day and said, “I went to America to raise funds for the Relief Society. When I approached the Ourfatzis, they said, ‘We have already sent what we could to Aleppo, to Bedros Der Bedrossian. Go and ask him for the money.’” Of course, they never told him to go and ask me for the money. He

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simply made this up. I asked, “Then why did they not write to me instructing me to give youthe money?” He was embarrassed.

One day, Zareh Srpazan (the Archbishop of Aleppo), sent for me. When I went to meet with him, the Chairman of the National Representatives Assembly and head of the Tashnagtzagan party, Hratch Papazian, was also there. They said, “It seems there is a certain amount of moneyat your disposal. We would like you to donate it to the Karen Jeppe Djemaran.” I replied, “Thatsum has been sent exclusively for needy Ourfatzi students. It is in the bank where it will stay until we have saved enough to buy an apartment. That decision was reached on consultationwith the benefactors in the States. It is not possible for me to donate the money to another organization.” I also added, “The students of the Djemaran are from many towns.” The Srpazansaid, “We will allocate that sum only to the needy Ourfatzi students in the Djemaran.” I said, “One day you might leave, and your successors might not want to bother with those details about the Ourfatzi students.” They were disappointed in me.

A few days after that meeting in the Prelacy, I received a letter from Minas Toelelian, the principal of the Karen Jeppe Djemaran. He is now chief editor of the ‘Hayrenik’ newspaper. He said in his letter that he had received a letter from the Ourfatzi Society of America. He claimed the letter said, “The money we sent for immigration should be given to the Karen JeppeDjemaran.” I replied, “The Ourfatzi Society must have gone mad. Have they forgotten that wehad decided to buy a property with that sum? Also, why did they write only to you and not to us as well?” He did not answer that question. Furthermore, why did he not show me that letter he claimed to have received? I believe he wrote to the States, but did not receive a favorable reply.

I explained earlier that due to conflicts between opposing political parties, we did not havea Compatriotic Society of Ourfa for a long time. The few attempts to form one were short-lived. Trying to choose a council by election resulted in fights. Instead, a number of youthsdecided to appoint a council from all walks of life. The chosen members were Father Adom,Boghos Tenekejian, Hagop Khandzoghian, Boghos Chalian, Mgrditch Sarkissian, Hovhannes Apenjian and Markar Karakashian. They asked me to join as Chairman. I did not want torefuse since they were all patriotic and sensible young men. At the first meeting, we completedthe executive council as follows: H. Khandzoghian was appointed Secretary, B. Tenekejian was appointed Treasurer, and Father Adom, being a clergyman, had to be the President. We worked amiably for quite some time and had some positive accomplishments. One day, the Compatriotic Society requested a meeting with the Ladies’ Association. It was held at the home of Mrs. Oghjan Chalian, Chairperson of the Ladies’ Association. All the executive members of the Ladies’ Association and the Compatriotic Society were present. After some general topics of conversation, the Compatriotic Society said they had received a letter from the Ourfa Union of America, which said the Ladies’ Association should give the money that was sent for immigration to the Compatriotic Society. Fortunately, I had in my possession a letter I had just received from the Union congratulating the activities and services of the Ladies’ Association

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and expressing thanks. I showed them the letter. They took it from me and compared thewriting in this letter with the writing in their letter, but they did not let us see their letter. Who knew what was really written in it, if indeed anything was written? Even if the Ourfa Union of America really intended to do something inappropriate, why had they not written to me or to the Ladies’ Association informing us of their decision? I gave them all a piece of my mind. It is very conceivable that our Compatriotic Society, without my knowledge, applied to the States. Perhaps they didn’t receive the answer they hoped for. Maybe they were told to talk to the Ladies’ Association directly. Anyway, the Compatriotic Society subsequently asked why we should keep the money in the bank at such a low rate of interest. They wanted to invest themoney in order to double it, but they were disappointed.

There were so many who asked for money and pestered us with their demands. Parents whowanted to send their children to the American University of Beirut to study medicine, pharmacy, etc. asked for large sums of money.

Finally, let me say this and finish. I have already written a lot because as Chairman of theLadies’ Association, I was subjected to numerous headaches and gossip for 40 years. The lateMrs. Mendouhi, a member of the Ladies’ Association, was extremely helpful. She was in her sixties and knew all of the Ourfatzis. Wherever there was a happy occasion such as a birth, engagement, graduation, the purchase of a house, etc., she would inform the Association. Theladies would visit and congratulate the families. They would receive donations in return. Oneday Mrs. Mendouhi came to our house in a fit. “Kaa, kedineh mdnan. Krroghe dane irenkig.” (Insults in the Ourfa dialect). “I went to visit a family today and they said to me, ‘We heard that the Ladies Association used the money to plant cotton and that the cotton failed and all the money has vanished.’” We tolerated all kinds of gossip like this. Thank God, the Ladies’Association is still flourishing and growing and continues to help the needy Ourfatzi students. One day, all these gossipmongers will regret their actions and will be ashamed.

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Why I Did Not Join a Political PartyBecause of fanatical political rivalries, we did not have a Compatriotic Society of Ourfa or any youth committees in Aleppo. A few were formed, but they were short-lived. That is why wedecided to form the Ladies Association of Ourfa. We appointed non-fanatic and unbiased members who would focus on helping needy students. Other needy people were already being helped by the AGBU, the Relief Society, and the Karagueozian and the Jinishian foundations. At first, the Ladies’ Association also assisted other destitute cases for the first few years, butstopped doing so in order to be of greater help to the students.

Undoubtedly, all the parties were established with decent and constructive purposes. Unfortunately, however, because of some shortsighted, unwise and envious individuals, fightingensued. There were many accusations and even some crimes. Many persons chose not to jointhe parties. Others, who had joined, resigned.

“All roads lead to Rome.” Each person helps in his own way. But there was no respect for freedom of opinion. Instead of attacking and accusing one another, they should have focused on doing good deeds and serving the people. They should have competed with good intentions.

Look at the magnificent way the universe is organized. Look at how the body’s organs allwork together. The heart, the stomach, the liver, the kidneys, the nerves, the brain, etc. all worktogether with wonderful harmony. Each is working alone, but in harmony with the others in order to serve the health of man. The malfunction of any one of those will result in disease oreven death.

I have often come across stupid fanatics who make derogatory remarks about members of a different party. They call them scoundrels or hooligans. Sometimes they use more shamefullanguage. Yet, there are many kind and respectable people in the party they are berating. Members of the same family stay angry with each other. There were such fanatics in my familyand had I joined a party, those from the other party would have been displeased.

I had such an experience. Archbishop Zareh, the prelate of Aleppo, was a candidate to become Catholicos of the See of Cilicia. This became a matter of contention. One of my sons-in-law and a son-in-law of my brother opposed Archbishop Zareh. They brought me a petitionand asked me to sign it. The petition contained unfounded allegations against Archbishop Zarehand deemed him unfit to be Catholicos. I did not sign. This caused them to give trouble totheir wives and they remained angry with me for a while.

During that time, I was a member of the National Representatives Assembly and the judicial panel. I used to participate in meetings under Archbishop Zareh’s presidency. Zareh was also a personal friend. When Mustafa Shahin illegally cultivated our village of Sheikh Choban, Archbishop Zareh mediated in my favor with the judge during the trial in Aleppo. Furthermore, a petition of grievances against the Archbishop was pointless just as he was about to become the Catholicos. These two were hurt because I would not simply sign the petition ignorantly. Should I have made an enemy of Zareh in vain?

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It is very fortunate that the parties are now reconciled, but it is too late. There was a lot ofdamage and many lives were lost. The proverb says, “The nail can be pulled out, but the damageremains.” Today, the division in the church continues the anguish. When I go to church, I am offended. The celebrant mentions only the name of the Catholicos of his church. He mentionsthe names of the patriarchs of Jerusalem and Istanbul. But he does not mention the name of the other Catholicos. I have to wonder about the clergymen who preach love, unity and peace, but who do the complete opposite. I am sure the churches will unite sooner or later, but what a shame it has all been.

I don’t want people to think that I was indifferent to my community simply because I wasnot a member of any party. Before the genocide of 1915, my older brother was the treasurer of the Ourfa branch of the AGBU. I also was a member. When I came to Aleppo after the massacres, I was disappointed that we could not sustain a compatriotic society due to political rivalries. That’s why I founded the Ladies’ Association of Ourfa in 1936, which is still activetoday and paying the tuition for 40 students regardless of their political affiliation. The studentsare free to choose the schools they want to attend. Up until our last days in Aleppo in 1972, I was the chairman of the Association. My wife was also a member. Upon our emigration to the States, we appointed new members to the executive council and we appointed Mrs. Eliza Mouradian as Chairperson. They work very hard. In addition to paying 100 Syrian poundsin tuition for 40 students every year, they have 30,000 Syrian pounds in the bank, which earns some interest. They also receive 1,000 Syrian pounds in annual rent from the apartment that weregistered in the name of the Prelacy, and they receive 600 pounds in interest from the 12,000 pounds invested with the AGBU. These income streams have been continuing since beforeour move to the States. All the Ourfatzis respect the Ladies’ Association because it has served everyone on an equal basis for 41 years (1936-1977) and it has been growing all the time.

I was not a party member, but by founding the Ladies’ Association and helping the needy students, I believe I was much more useful than many party members. I don’t want to list all of my services in Ourfa and Aleppo, lest it be considered boastful.

I wrote earlier about how there were numerous attempts to usurp from us the assets of the Ladies’ Association. We endured all kinds of gossip and headaches, yet we managed to continue the association’s work to this day.

P.S. When I lived in Aleppo, during my younger days, I used to visit both political clubs in order to read their newspapers. I usually did this on Sundays during my leisure. I was amazed that each party had only their own papers available. Political papers usually give only one-sided opinions and write derogatory and hostile articles about the real and imaginary faults of the other party. They always ignored the virtues of the other party. Thus, the new generation wasprejudiced against each other. In my humble opinion, the young generation of both parties must learn about the virtues and faults of both parties. Only then, I think, will there be more harmony and good-willed competition.

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How Did I Live So Long?I don’t know. I was the fifth of six brothers. I don’t remember any of my brothers ever being illor complaining of any ailments. On the other hand, ever since I was very young, I was always prone to sickness. When I was five or six years old, I would get rashes consisting of small redpimples all over body. They itched severely and it felt as if my body was being pricked byneedles. An old-wives’ remedy was for a member of the Yotneghperian clan to burn the patient’s arm with a red hot needle. Another supposed cure was to boil a certain type of plant (I do not remember the name) and bathe the patient with it. We tried both methods every time I got the rash, but to no avail. The rash typically lasted seven or eight days and then it would go away. Iwould immediately get the rash whenever I ate hot or sour foods such as garlic and pepper. Even now, at age 93, I feel some discomfort whenever I eat anything hot or sour. My body is still very sensitive, although not as much as it was before, when I got those painful pimples.

When I was an adolescent, I became melancholic and dejected for a few years for no particular reason. As I have already explained, in 1900 when I was in the American College of Ainteb, I became so extremely despondent and downhearted that I had to drop out of school even though I loved learning and was one of the best students in my class. At that time, I received a letter from Ourfa informing me that my beloved sister, Kayane, who was three or four years older than me, had died. This really aggravated my situation, and I started thinking thatI too would die. I wondered what the point was of getting an education if I was going to die. There was no one from my family around. There was no older and experienced person who I could ask to take me to a doctor. So I left school and went back to Ourfa and suffered for threeor four years. I was nervous and depressed. Every year, during the summer, groups of people would go to the city of Jermouk. Some were sick and suffering from arthritis. There were twohot sulfur springs there and two baths next to each other. One was used by the men; the other by the women. One year I went there and stayed for 18-20 days. I went to the baths three times a day. This helped me somewhat and lifted my depression a little. I think the vacation and themineral waters helped me.

My hair started graying when I was only 15 years old. A young relative who noticed this said, “You have started to wilt before you bloomed.” This hurt me very much and I began tothink I was getting old.

I suffered from indigestion. I went to Beirut to see my son-in-law, a specialist of internalmedicine at the American hospital. I stayed in the hospital for a day. He inserted a long plastic tube into my mouth and down into my stomach. He examined and cleaned it, and gave me some medicine. I recuperated gradually.

My left eye was blocked with a “white liquid” (cataract). The doctors said that ithad to mature before they could operate. After three months, when I was in Beirut, the ophthalmologist, Dr. Naccash operated. Since then I have been able to read and write with that eye using a special magnifying lens.

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I had a slight prostate problem, which was controlled with medicine. However, after my eye surgery, the prostate gland became inflamed and my urinary duct was blocked completely. Aftersurgery, I got better.

All of these things happened to me before I came to the States. I had some other problems in the States:

I had pains in my stomach and X-rays confirmed an ulcer. Fortunately, it was a small one. Ittook about five or six months of treatment with drugs and a special diet for me to recover.

I had just recovered from the ulcers, when I started getting an excruciating pain in my intestines. It felt as if a snake was in my belly biting my intestines. In the beginning, the doctor thought it was a disorder of the intestines, but then I developed severe itching on my left side. I wanted to scratch all the time. My son-in-law, Dr. Vahakn Tachdjian, checked my skin and immediately diagnosed it as otzi tzav (affliction of the snake), called erysipelas in English andyelanjek in Turkish. The doctor gave me an ointment to relieve the itching, but he said there wasno treatment for my intestines. He said it would go away in three or four months. I suffered alot. They have really given this condition an appropriate name in Armenian. It feels exactly as ifa snake is biting and chewing at the intestines all the time. Thank God, I recovered. In Turkish,yelan means snake and yelanjek means snake-ache or small snake.

I am writing these lines in May 1977 and I am 93 years old. I had some dizziness the other day. Dr. Vahakn Tachdjian gave me some tablets called Vicalex, which I take three times a day. I take half a tablet each morning, noon and evening. It helps a lot. I cannot hear too well. When someone says antz (person), and I hear kantz (treasure) or dantz (pear). People have to repeat things two or three times for me to understand. My eyesight is also bad. I mentioned before that I started using eyeglasses at a young age. As I got old, I could read and write without glasses. But this year, the eye with which I could read and write without the help of a corrective lens, has weakened. Now I cannot read and write anymore without a lens. But I can see through the eye, which was operated on, with the help of the magnifying lens in my eyeglasses. I have to ask Dr. Vahakn’s opinion. If he allows me, I could have my eyes examined and I can buy the proper eyeglasses.

The reason I am writing for so long on this subject is to show that even though I havereached a very old age, I have suffered from various maladies since childhood. I also sufferedthe terror of imminent death during the Armenian massacres of 1895 and 1915. By the grace of God, I do not know how much longer I will live. I wonder how long my four older brothers would have lived had the Turks not killed them. My younger brother, Haroutiun, died of a heart attack at 68 even though he had always been in good health.

No doubt I lived this long by the grace of God. I think that being involved in agriculture for 50 years also helped. I had to spend three months out of every year in the clean air of the villages where I consume milk and yoghurt, which I liked very much, on a daily basis. There wasnothing else to eat in the villages anyway. I do not know how true it is, but I have read that the Bulgarians eat a lot of yoghurt, which is why there are many 100-year olds among them. Also,

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I have always steered away from excesses. I never ate too much and never overindulged. I have led a careful and simple life. I cannot think of any other reasons why I have lived this long. My father was only 58-60 when he died. I always pray to God that I may die after a short illness, or even suddenly, so that I do not cause anguish to my loved ones.

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I Always Dream at NightAfter coming to the States, I always dream at night—pleasant ones as well as scary or upsetting ones. Some say that you do not dream if you are very tired and are sleeping soundly, but you dream when you are sleeping lightly or about to wake up. I do not know how true this is, but it seems to be the case. Since coming to the States in my old age, I do not have anything in particular to do during the day to tire me. I take a nap after lunch for about two hours so my sleep at night is always very light.

I read in a newspaper that “Dreaming is like sailing without a rudder.” This too is true,because sometimes my dreams are unreasonable. For example, I dream that I am in Ourfa even though I haven’t been there for 62 years. In my dreams I see my mother and brothers, who are dead. I find myself at school with my classmates or on vacation in our vineyard. Or I might beriding a horse and the horse turns into a donkey, etc. When I wake up after a pleasant dream, I am sorry that it was just a dream and that it passed so quickly. I may be seeing and reliving those happy days before the massacres, when my mother, brothers and loved ones were alive. Sleep means temporary death and loss of consciousness. With happy dreams, I get the delusion of extending my life. I feel glad. When I go to bed immediately after a heavy meal, I see disturbing or frightening dreams such as a huge snake coming toward me, a rabid dog attacking me, or a Turkish policeman arresting me and threatening to kill me. I wake up terrified and thank Godthat I was just dreaming. I see myself in church as in the old days when there were no pews and everyone had to remove their shoes and stand or sit on carpets. The shoes were kept in a cornerin the stables, or on shelves carved into the walls. In my dreams, I would come out of church and be unable to find my shoes. Someone had stolen them and I would be distressed abouthaving to walk home barefoot. I wake up in a bad mood, but realize it was just a dream. I also have pleasant and sad dreams during my afternoon naps.

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God Bless the Brilliant InventorsWhen I read about or imagine how difficult life was for prehistoric man, or even for those wholived just 50-60 years ago, and I compare that to the comfortable and pleasant life we lead today (except for a few especially miserable persons), I realize how grateful we should be to all the brilliant scientists. They worked so hard poring over and experimenting on their ideas until theygradually developed them. They often spent and lost everything they had, became destitute,and yet invented magnificent devices and gadgets, which we enjoy today. I wonder whatunbelievable miracles those succeeding us will enjoy. Which ones of the present day inventions should I list? They are so many and I don’t even know most of them or I will forget to list them. Let me just mention some in passing.

When your eyesight deteriorates or is lost, you can still see clearly with the help of surgery or by using eyeglasses. You are not deprived of anything. Your teeth may decay and you cannot chew food well, which causes problems in your stomach. The dentist can treat the bad teeth andeven make new teeth for you if necessary. Your hearing diminishes and you can get a hearing aid. You might hurt or break one or both of your feet in an accident, yet you can get around using artificial limbs or a wheelchair. Your heart or kidneys may fail and an expert surgeon canreplace them with a younger heart or kidneys. You may get wounded and lose a lot of blood, but you can get a blood transfusion. There are so many more such miracles for healing the humanbody. They increase the lifespan, make a person feel younger and often save him from imminentdeath.

There are other innumerable other inventions. I remember when 50-60 years ago Christianswent to Jerusalem and Moslems to Mecca on pilgrimages. They traveled for months on mulesand horses. The weather in Mecca would be extremely hot and some would succumb and die. Nowadays, pilgrims complain about trains and cars, so they fly to their destination and backin just a few days. Telephones allow you to talk to your friends, near and far, while sitting in your living room. You can get all the news immediately by radio or television. You do not fear thunderstorms and lightning because there is a lightning rod on your roof to protect you. Thedress that would have taken the dressmaker or the housewife days to make can now be sewn in just a few hours with an electric sewing machine. The wash that would take the housewife hoursto clean and dry, is done by a machine in a few minutes. Our ancestors used wax, candles and paraffin to illuminate the darkness. Today, an electric bulb converts the night into day. Thereare so many more miracles. It is really amazing.

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The Perils of SuccessSometimes people are lucky and they achieve great things in trade, the military or physical accomplishments. They are often encouraged by these achievements and go to extremes,eventually failing and becoming miserable. Let me mention my own personal experiences.

After surviving the 1915 Armenian massacres by a miracle, my brother and I started doing business in trade by commission. We sent merchandise to the shopkeepers in Arabpounar, Telabiad, Raqqa, Ainarous, etc. There was great demand for this merchandise, which was also sent to Turkeyand sold in the villages in the nearby regions. The shopkeepers quickly sold the goods for cash andsent us the money. We did very well for a few years. Encouraged by this, we started buying larger quantities of merchandise wholesale on credit, and sent it to the shopkeepers on credit. We had good credit with the merchants in Aleppo, so they gave us as much as we needed because we always paid them back in a few days. Our customers, the shopkeepers in the villages, also started selling merchandise to their customers on credit to be paid during the harvest season. In 1929-30, there was an unexpected worldwide economic crisis. There was loss of trust, an extreme increase in thevalue of gold, and two consecutive years of draught in the regions where we did our business. Therewas no rain and the crops were spoiled. Because grass did not grow in the pastures, thousands of sheep were killed. There was widespread loss and bankruptcies. The shopkeepers could not collectwhat they were owed. With that pretext, they could not or would not pay us. We were in a lot of trouble. To safeguard our credit and protect our self-esteem, we did our best to pay our debts. We had bought a large quantity of wool (1,000 gold coins worth) hoping to make a profit. But all thebig merchants had lost money or gone bankrupt and were not willing to buy more wool. We were in dire need of money because we wanted to pay our debts. As a result, we had to sell our stock at a loss of 500 gold coins. To make a long story short, we were victims of our own greed. We were deceived by our initial success and took more risks, thus losing all our capital of 3,000 gold coins. I have written about this in great detail in earlier chapters.

As I mentioned earlier, many village owners and peasants, encouraged by their good fortune, had borrowed money to plant wheat, barley, corn, sesame seeds, etc. This was in addition towhat they already had to plant. When it did not rain for two consecutive years, all the seeds, which had been sown mechanically with tractors, at great expense, were destroyed. Also, many merchants, hoping to make a profit, had bought thousands of sheep and lambs, which grazedfreely in the pastures. Because the grass did not grow due to the lack of rain, all the livestock were killed causing great losses.

Those who are healthy, young and confident of their health often go to extremes in eatingand drinking. They don’t exercise restraint in their lifestyles and end up ruining their youthfulbodies and become sick or even die prematurely.

Napoleon and Hitler became excited with their initial victories and wanted to take over the whole world. They ended up destroying the lives of millions of young people and destroyedcountless equipment in the ice covered and deserted wastelands of Russia.

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Let me also mention this. So many very beautiful girls, self-confident because of the interestshown in them by numerous gentlemen, wait in vain for the most suitable person with the highest qualifications. In so doing, they waste their youth and beauty. They regret it later anddeign to accept the most common of candidates and usually end up as old maids. The readercan find many other examples. Our experienced elders used to say, “One must stretch his legsaccording to the size of the bed in order not to get cold.”

I stopped writing in the beginning of 1977, because I did not have anything of importance to write about. Today is February 24, 1978, so it has been a year since I have written anything. There are a number of empty pages in this notebook, so I want to paste some of the originalletters I received from America about the Ourfa Ladies Association. There were many otherletters, which I left in Aleppo. I also wanted to paste the originals of the agreements with the Armenian Prelacy of Aleppo and the agreement with the AGBU. I have already written about this in the previous chapters, but it is better if the originals are included.

March 10, 1978 – Dear reader, since I am trying to write down some more forgotten memoirs, it is conceivable that I will make some mistakes. I am tired in body and mind. I am almost 94. I apologize for any mistakes or for repeating myself.

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Prayer Alone is Not EnoughMany people know this. I experienced it. I am one of the eyewitnesses from Ourfa who miraculously survived the 1895 and 1915 genocide of the Armenians at the hands of the Turks. Both times, the Turks snatched what few arms the Armenians had by making a thousand promises that no one would be hurt, or by making outright threats. In 1915, some Armenians hid their weapons and did not forfeit them, so they were able to defend themselves for some time. However, they eventually had to surrender because food and ammunition ran out. Being surrounded by the enemy, no one could reach them from the outside.

Let me repeat it in a few lines. In 1895, the Turks wanted to attack the Armenians, but were unsuccessful because the Armenians had some weapons and put up a resistance. Also, the Armenian quarter was separate from the Turkish quarter and on a higher elevation. After that, the government cunningly ordered the Armenians and the Turks to disarm saying that this would avoid the possibility of revenge and further armed confrontations due to the existing tensions between the two communities. Naturally, the Armenians were suspicious. After some debate, they agreed to give up their weapons. The Turks also gave up some weapons for show, but these were quicklyreturned to them. Some time later, a mob of Turks and Turkish soldiers attacked the Armenians. The total count of the martyrs was 5,000, of which 2,500 men, women and children were burnedalive in the main church. The Turks then looted all the shops and homes, ours included.

In 1915, the Turkish chief of police came to the main church and threatened the congregation by saying, “You must relinquish all your weapons, otherwise you will be exiled into the barren desert where you will die of thirst, hunger and looting. You have seen the residents of Zeitun and other cities pass through here on their way to the deserts of Der Zor. They arehalf-naked, hungry and miserable. We are at war with an external enemy. You are traitors who will stab us in the back. We do not trust you at all.” Once more, there were arguments within the Armenian community about whether or not to give up our arms. Finally, we did so. Some did not comply, and when the Turks came to kill everyone, they were able to put up a resistance for about a month. But we were surrounded and could not get any help from the outside. After using up all our food and ammunition, we surrendered. Then we were subjected to massacre. Some were hung at the gallows. Others were exiled into the desert. The Turks were ferocious.

The reason I write these lines is that both in 1895 and 1915, the poor unarmed people, intheir indescribable suffering, had no option but to resort to prayer. The old and young, thesinners and the innocent, all prayed tearfully asking God for salvation. But it was all in vain. Prayer did not save us. Jesus, on his last day of danger told his disciples, “Sell your coats and buy guns.” (Luke 22:36.)

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Does God Exist? Of Course He DoesJust as I wrote in the previous chapter, I personally remember the tortures inflicted by the Turkson the Armenians. The poor, unarmed people, old and young, sinful and innocent, prayed dayand night and begged God for deliverance, but in vain.

They snatched infants from the arms of their mothers, pulled their legs apart and severed thebaby in two with one blow of the sword. They raped the mother then killed her. They droveholes in the eyes, ears and bellies of the men with red-hot iron rods, in order to make them confess the hiding places of the arms they did not have, or to reveal where their collaborators were. They entered the churches and spit on pictures of Jesus and Mary, the mother of God. They slashed them and yelled, “Let them save you now!” In short, they committed a thousandhideous tortures. This went on for months then years in all the cities that were inhabited byArmenians and on all the roads of forced deportations. They boasted about what they had doneas if they were things for joy and respect to their Allah and their Prophet Mohammed. And how astonishing and bewildering when the God they worshipped did not strike these human monsters on the spot with lightning, but encouraged them by letting them enjoy their lives and become rich. After all those unpunished crimes, we cannot blame some Armenians for becoming atheists and for—God have mercy—expressing doubts about His existence. All their prayers were to no avail...

Let us forget about this mystery, which is beyond our ability to understand. Let us focus on the harmonious and wonderful equilibrium of the universe around us, the secrets of existence of humans, animals and plants, their reproductive abilities and their progression. From the smallest seed, the size of a grain of sand, emerges a human being, male or female, with stomach, heart, lungs, hands, feet, ears, brain and eyes. His eyes are made in such great detail, he can see. How many kinds of small and large animals emerge from the smallest of sperms, from the tick to the huge elephant? How many kinds of sweet scented plants and colorful flowers, as well as treeswith delicious fruit?

Then there is the sun, which rises and sets every day, day and night, which succeed eachother, as well as the four seasons. Our earth revolves on itself and rotates around the sun. Themoon turns around the earth. All these take place with such great punctuality and order. When we raise our eyes to the sky on a clear night, we see millions of stars. Sometimes a comet passes by. I once read what an expert astronomer had written: “Light travels 300,000 kilometers in one second and there are stars whose light reaches us after 100,000 years.” This means thatthe light of some of the stars we see now started traveling toward us 100,000 years ago. How incomprehensibly vast the universe is. Compared to a large star, our earth is only as big as a grain of sand. There is a comet, which comes close to us every 500 years and can be seen fromthe earth. All these millions, probably billions, of large and small stars revolve around each other and upon themselves in the void without disturbing each other or crashing into each other. I said it already, but let me repeat it again. Our body is composed of such amazing organs. Each

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performs its function regularly for our well being. Oh, what an amazing and fabulous creation. Still, how many more marvels are there, which we have not seen or don’t understand? Hundreds of cities and thousand of lives are destroyed by the explosion of a nuclear atom. It is not possible for all these marvelous organizations to be created or invented by themselves. It is undeniable that there is an omnipotent, miracle working Creator God.

I wrote earlier that many Armenians turned away from God and became atheists because their prayers were not answered during the Turkish persecutions. Later, we saw how impossible it would be for all the marvels of the universe to work without the existence of God. Theselatter proofs are more convincing and superior. This mysterious phenomenon is much too greatfor our small brains to understand. The wise man said, “Do not worry. Just believe in God.” Millions of philosophers and theologians have not been able to solve this problem. How nice it would be, if everyone believed in the existence of God. God forbid, if the wild and merciless races suddenly believe that there is no God, no Hell, no judgment day, no everlasting life. What an unbearable hell our earth would become with theft, gruesome crimes, rapes and all kinds of atrocities.

It is written in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, that God created the world, man, animals,plants, from nothing. But the brain, given to man by God, is convinced easily and is not fully satisfied. Some try to get deeper into the matter. They say, “Fine, we accept the existence ofGod, but how and when did God Himself come to being?” This is the biggest unsolvable puzzle. God forgives those who think this way, because it is the brain He created that is trying in vain to get to the bottom of every secret. Only absolute faith can solve this dilemma. March 14, 1978

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Criminal Hojas, Clergymen, Politicians and KingsClergymen and heads of state of all kinds of religions and nations, Moslem, Christian, Jewish or Buddhist, have the job of leading their people and persuading them to lead humanitarian and God-worshipping lives. The majority of people will follow their leaders like sheep. Unfortunately, many fanatical and jealous religious leaders preach hatred and hostility against others who do not subscribe to their religion or beliefs. They pit Moslems against Christians andJews, or Christians and Jews against Moslems, etc. Even within religions, they fight one another;for instance, Catholic against Orthodox or Evangelical, and vice versa. The denominations ofthe same nation, Armenians for example, might pit Apostolic against Evangelical or Catholic.

When Evangelism and Catholicism first appeared among the Armenians, the Patriarch ofBolis (Istanbul) anathemized them and declared them heretics. There was a lot of bitternessbetween the Apostolic Armenians and those who had changed their denomination. Theywould not marry someone from the other sect. Previously engaged couples separated. In Spain, I do not remember during which century, thousands of proselytizers became innocent victims of fanaticism during the Inquisition and were tortured and condemned to death. Fortunately, the old fanaticism has mellowed and reformed greatly. The Pope of the Catholicshas made numerous reforms and concessions on the stringent laws. Occasionally Christian ecumenical conferences are held with all the leaders of the Christian religion in order to bring about harmony and possible agreements. The Co-adjutor-Catholicos Karekin II of theArmenians holds an important position in that organization. Recently, after being anointed Catholicos, he attended a meeting and it is hopeful that the very unfortunate rift between Etchmiadzin and Antelias will soon end. Most if not all the above mentioned disagreements and divisions have resulted from the incitement and venomous sermons of fanatic and selfishreligious leaders.

A few words about Islam: Fanatic hojas preach and convince their naïve followers that all the peoples who are not Moslem are guiavour (atheists or pagans) and that they deserve to go to hell. They preach that Paradise belongs only to the Moslem faithful. They preach that according to theProphet Mohammed, to kill a guiavour is a good deed and agreeable to God. A Moslem will enjoy as many houri-s and lovers in paradise as he has killed guiavours, something which is the promise of utmost bliss for the lazy, looting, womanizing and thieving people. The real criminals are thesefanatic hojas who poison the minds of their people.

There is also fanatic political and diplomatic exploitation and pride. Governments fightagainst governments and the strong seize the lands of the weak. Napoleon Bonaparte, Wilhelm II, German kaisers, Hitler, etc., sacrificed the lives of millions of innocent young soldiers, inorder to snatch the rights and the lands of the innocent and weak. This aggression forces thenation under attack to defend itself, resulting in the deaths of millions of innocent young soldiers. It is such a shame, especially for weak nations such as Armenia. Sultan Hamid and later the monsters, Talaat and Enver, who snatched the lands which had been ours for thousands

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of years, massacred one and a half million Armenians and annihilated them by exiling them into the desert.

Let all the ambitious and egotistical religious and political leaders and tyrants, who are the real criminals, be damned.

March 17, 1978Philadelphia

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Does Fate Exist?It is a shame that many people believe that there is inevitable fate, which is determined by Providence, and there is no way of escaping or changing it. Therefore, why work? Why try toevade poverty, sickness, death and other dangers? It is very wrong and harmful to resign oneself to this idea. It makes men passive, weak and lazy.

There are many who do not believe in inevitable fate. I, for one, do not believe in it. Someone’sfate depends on his own will. It depends on his good or bad lifestyle, as well as on favorable or unfavorable occurrences. Whether it is good or bad will be determined later and not prior to his birth. It is not out of his control.

Because I was involved in agriculture in the village of Sheikh Choban, near the town of Arabpounar, I traveled there often for harvesting and other reasons. Once while there, I saw a young man who was seriously ill. I said to his parents, “It is a shame. Either take him to a doctor in Arabpounar or go there yourselves and bring the doctor here.” They did notpay attention to my words. They said, “Why should we undertake all that expense in vain? Whatever his fate is, that is what will happen.” So he had no medical care and died.

Another time there was some other patient in the village. Again, I insisted that they call a doctor. I even offered to pay the doctor’s fee. I wrote a note to the doctor who cameimmediately and gave the proper instructions for the patient. He wrote a prescription, and a boy went with him and brought back the proper medicine. The patient recuperated in a few days. The first patient died because of his parents. The second patient recovered also because of hisparents. The fates of these two men were determined later and not at birth.

Statistics show that because of the advance in modern medicine and the use of treatments, medicines, better hygiene and care given by doctors, the average age of death has risen markedly. If it was only 40-45 in the past, it is closer to 60-65 in modern times. In the past, many places did not have doctors, so newborn babies as well as adults died due to lack of care.

There are many reasons why the fate of man may be good or bad. For example, these days,houses are built with iron rods, cement and other advances in engineering. They are very sturdyand will not collapse in case of an unexpected earthquake. The occupants do not die underthe ruins. But houses of the past were not built properly. They would tumble down causingthousands of deaths. These days, the lightning rod has been invented and is placed on the roofsof houses and buildings to protect them during thunderstorms. So, there is a big differencebetween the fate of the past and the present.

Even today, the lifestyle of some nomadic tent dwellers in the deserts is very primitive. Theyare deprived of civilization. For example, a trip that the desert dweller would cover walking barefoot all day under the burning sun in summer or in the pouring rain and hail in winter, civilized man can cover safely and comfortably in his car in one hour. If fate determines all, then men must be foolish to spend millions and billions for establishing medical or other scientificinstitutions where young people spend years of study to learn various specializations. They do

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this in order to steer the fate of humanity for the better and to avoid being victims of ignorance. Providence, God, is not biased. It is the same God who has determined the fate of the

people living in the past and the present. In general, men are responsible for their own fates. Also, environment and unexpected occurrences affect changes in fate.

P.S. What I wrote above does not hold true for those who are born to sick, poor and of ignorant parents, or those who are born in nations surrounded by fanatical and murderous people (like us). Their miserable fate is already determined at birth and only very few can change it.

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Not Only Do the Clever Succeed, Nor the Ignorant Who Fail

It is generally believed that only the clever and shrewd succeed and become rich, while the unsophisticated and simpleminded remain poor. This is wrong. Unexpected events in life canmake the poor rich and vice versa. Let me relate my own experience.

Before the First World War of 1915 and the ensuing genocide perpetrated by the Turks on the Armenians, we were six brothers who worked together in trading. Our business was very successful. We belonged to the wealthy class of Ourfa. We owned many assets including real estate. During the war, the Turks killed my four elder brothers and their families. Only a few children survived. They looted all our possessions in our houses and stores, and they confiscatedour lands. My younger brother Haroutiun, who was 25, had gone to the village near our Arab partners. He survived because they hid him. I escaped thanks to God and the Danish Miss Karen Jeppe. We became poor, but this had nothing to do with being stupid or ignorant. It happened due to an unexpected war and massacres. They made our whole family bankrupt andthey brutally massacred my innocent mother and my four brothers along with their families.

I was engaged to Noyemzar, the daughter of the richest Armenian in Ourfa, Garabed Effendi Imirzian. The Turks slaughtered the two Imirzian brothers, Garabed and Hovhannes,along with their families and they looted all their wealth. Only Noyemzar and the daughter of Hovhannes survived.

The mentioned World War ended in the defeat of Germany and its ally, Turkey. Accordingto the peace treaty, the surviving Armenians were entitled to reappropriate their properties. My fiancée, little Lousin and I had escaped to Aleppo. After the ceasefire, we got married in Aleppoand returned to Ourfa and reclaimed the Der-Bedrossian and Imirzian properties. The British hadtaken control of Ourfa. There was absolute freedom at the time and the Turks were in a panic. Fearing the vengeance of the Armenians, they resorted to false compliments. They commiseratedwith us and offered help in securing minor household items. Eventually, we became rich againbecause I was able to repossess the properties of the Der Bedrossians and Imirzians. However, anything that was movable had been plundered. I would not be exaggerating if I said that the real estate of the two families were worth millions. We had eight houses, 27 lucrative shops in the center of the marketplace, four very successful mills in Ainarous, Hayabend and Aslan in which we owned 1/4, and the entire mill in Himbash. Only the mill in Ainarous was operating, which some millers had rented for 400 gold coins a year. Our share was 100 coins. The other three mills hadbeen neglected and abandoned because the Armenian millers were either massacred or had fled theatrocities. Thanks to the ceasefire, many surviving Armenian millers returned. So we renovatedthe mills and started operating them at a good profit. There were also villages, pastures, orchardsand vineyards that belonged to the two families. We, the Der Bedrossian, did not own many villages. We had one whole village, Golenje, one quarter of a village called Aghzidat and a vineyard

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around Esguriz. The Imirzians owned several whole villages, and parts of more than 30 villages,most of which I did not even know about. One day, a go-between came to see me and said that the Kurdish Bedir Agha wanted to buy the 13 pieces of land the Imirzians owned in the village of Yalagh for 500 Ottoman gold coins. I was not familiar with Yalagh village or the 13 pieces of land or what they were worth, so I refused to sell. I did not need the money anyway. I used a portion of the income from our personal properties to renovate the ruined houses and pay the federal taxes, and I sent the balance to my brother in Aleppo because the nine surviving sons and daughters of my elder brothers were living there with him. From the income I received from the Imirzians’ properties, I paid for renovations and taxes and recorded half of the remaining amount in the name of Hovhannes Imirzian’s daughter, Lousin. Lousin was living with us anyway. I used the other half, which was Noyemzar’s share, to pay for my taxes and the lawsuits, for renovating the ravaged buildings, and to buy furniture and to live on.

The point of these explanations is to show that, without any rash spending or gambling,we went bankrupt and became destitute. Then, after the ceasefire and the defeat of Turkey,I became the owner of great riches without any effort or acuity on my part. But this goodfortune lasted for only 2-4 years even though I was always involved in inheritance and other lawsuits. During the rule of Mustafa Kemal, Turkish atrocities and persecutions forced us to leave everything behind. We left our properties, our home and all our belongings and escaped to Aleppo, once more becoming impoverished. Fortunately, with the French and Turkish accord, Syria came under French protection. The mills in Airnarous, Hayabend and Salan,which belonged to the Imirzians, as well as half of the village of Sheikh Choban, and the quarter of the villages of Ainarous and Rasmelmaraq, were within the Syrian border. So we profitedfrom that somewhat. But this, too, did not last long. Syria turned socialist and most of our properties were confiscated. Mechanical mills were built near our mills, so the income from ourmills decreased appreciably. It barely covered the expenses. Finally, in December 1972, due to economic and political concerns, we came to North America. We moved to Philadelphia to be with our daughter Asdghig and her husband, Dr. Vahakn Tachdjian, where we have been living a comfortable and happy life. We do not own an inch of land here and we are not rich, but we are free of lawsuits and the terror of massacres and persecution. We lead a peaceful life in our old age. Two of our other daughters, Anahis and Rita, also live in Philadelphia.

I am sure the reader already knows much of what I am saying. Often things beyond our control make us very wealthy or very poor. Atomic bombs or violent earthquakes can make paupers out of millionaires. What has been happening in Lebanon for the past two years is also making victims of hundreds of decent families who have nothing to do with politics. They arevictims of looting and killing. All this is happening through no fault of their own.

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Ups and Downs; Success and Failure; Wealth and Poverty

Like everyone, I have had good and bad days. Let me mention some that I have not forgotten. During the massacre of Armenians in 1895, the brutal and murderous Turks entered the

room just outside the storeroom where we were hiding at Sefer’s house in Ourfa. They saw arooster and tried to catch it. The bird tried to escape and jumped into the churpi (i.e., dried vine branches) covering the door our hiding place. We could hear the rooster cawing. The Turksstarted pushing the dried branches aside in order to catch the rooster. Apparently, they caught it. If they had rummaged around a little more, they would have found the door and would have undoubtedly slain all the males in the room, including me, after inflicting unspeakable tortures. Our lives were hanging by a thread. I was at the gates of death, but God saved me. Bad luck would have meant death. Good luck meant life.

I suffered a nervous breakdown while studying at the American College of Ainteb. I hadto drop out even though I loved education and was hoping to become a doctor or engineer. I considered that a misfortune. However, it led me to start a business, through which I got to know Miss Karen Jeppe, the supervisor of the orphanage in Ourfa. Because I helped her in her time of need, she returned the favor. Without my asking, she saved my life by giving me refuge when the Turks embarked on the campaign to kill all Armenians. The Turks came to MissJeppe’s house many times to search it for Armenians. I was saved thanks to her and to God. Once again, I was at the gates of death and was saved.

My brothers helped start a business for me. Mr. Jendo was my partner and we were doing quite well. I decided to marry. I had just gotten engaged when, due to the massacres of the Armenians, we were looted. We went bankrupt and barely escaped with our lives. I went from being well off to going bankrupt.

When I was ready to marry, we asked the parents of Miss Yeghisapet Vosgerichian for her hand upon the recommendation of Dr. Hagop Beshlian who was her relative. The parentsaccepted immediately, the day of engagement was set and we ordered the engagement ring. Suddenly, we were told that the engagement was off because Dr. Beshlian decided that he wantedto marry this girl. Needless to say, we were very hurt. Their son-in-law, Mr. Nazar Kullahian,had promised my brother Aghajan that Yeghisapet would marry me. He was their spokesperson. He became very angry and stopped talking to Dr. Beshlian. Nonetheless, all this had a happy ending. I got engaged to a much more desirable girl, my present wife Noyemzar. She was the daughter of the well known Garabed Effendi Imirzian. Her mother was my paternal cousin. First sadness, then joy.

The First World War, which started in 1915, ended in 1918 with the defeat of Germanyand its allies including Turkey. My brother Haroutiun and I both got married in Aleppo to our respective fiancées. We heard that the British had entered Ourfa and that many surviving

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Armenians were returning to Ourfa and reclaiming their property. At first, I went to Ourfaalone. Then I returned to Aleppo to get my family and Noyemzar’s cousin Lousin. I managedto reappropriate the properties of both the Der-Bedrossians and the Imirzians. These includedeight houses, 15 shops, four mills and more than 30 villages, parts of villages, lands, orchards and vineyards. I was both partner and custodian. From a state of poverty, I suddenly became very wealthy without having to work for it. However, prosperity lasted barely three years, albeit with inheritance and other lawsuits. Then, Mustafa Kemal’s reign of terror began. Terrified ofhis persecutions and massacres, we left everything behind and fled to Aleppo again. Prior to1915 we were rich and became poor. After the ceasefire, we became rich again. Then we losteverything during Mustafa Kemal’s era. Bad fortune and good fortune.

I had both success and failure in business in Aleppo. I had brought a small amount of capital with me from Ourfa. My brother had already started a business with commission. He used to help businessmen from Ourfa and other cities buy merchandise from dealers in Aleppo. It was the law in Aleppo for the big businesses to pay a 3% commission to the go-between. There weremany clients. I joined Haroutiun in this business. We rented a room and began buying and selling merchandise ourselves. We also continued doing it for others on commission. Gradually, we started buying for the shopkeepers from Jarablous, Arabpounar, Telabiad, Ainarous, Raqqa and Ourfa. We acquired a good reputation in the market. The merchants of Aleppo gaveus large amounts of credit. In turn, we gave the merchandise to the shopkeepers on credit. Business was very good. Turkish smugglers, in particular, would cross the border at night and buy merchandise from Armenian shopkeepers along the border paying cash, so the shopkeepers paid us promptly and we paid our creditors in Aleppo promptly. Eventually, our capital rose to 3,000 gold coins, but the amount of our trade was double that figure. We could borrowfrom the banks up to 1,000 gold coins at a low interest rate. One year before 1929, we bought wool for 1,000 gold coins, hoping to make a profit. Then, a widespread economic crisis began,which lasted until 1930-31. There was no more confidence. Creditors started demanding whatthey were owed. The value of silver fell and gold rose. For example, you may have boughtmerchandise for 30 gold coins when the exchange rate was 15 mejids/gold coins. When silver fell, the exchange rate went to 30 mejids/gold coin. You have to repay your debt at the new rate. To make matters worse, it did not rain during the 1929 and 1930, so all the money the villagers had spent for cultivating and planting amounted to nothing. There was no harvest for twoyears. The grass in the pastures did not grow. All the sheep and cattle died. The shopkeeperswho owed us a lot of money could not pay us and went bankrupt. Even those who could pay a little did not. Big businesses that could have bought our wool also went bankrupt. We had wool to sell, but no one to sell it to. We wanted to sell the wool to repay our own debts. Finally, we managed to sell it at a loss of 500 gold coins. To make a long story short, we gave away what we had in order to gradually pay our debts. All our capital—what I had brought from Ourfa and what we managed to accumulate over ten years of hard work—was lost. There were thousands ofpeople like us. Millions went bankrupt across America and Europe. Encouraged by our initial

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success, we expanded our business, but we could not withstand the economic crisis. Once more, we saw success and then failure.

Note – When I fled the Turkish persecutions in Ourfa and arrived in Aleppo, my rescuer,Miss Karen Jeppe, offered me a job. She had gone to Europe and returned with a large budgetfor the destitute Armenians. She had gathered the Armenian boys and girls from among the Turks and established workshops and orphanages for them in Aleppo. She needed employees and asked me to be her assistant with good pay. In fact, she had even written to me when I was still in Ourfa, asking me to come to Aleppo and help her, but I declined her offers. I wish I hadaccepted because, even though I made a good profit at commerce, I eventually lost everythingand suffered a lot.

After our failure in business, I separated from my brother and went my own way. Some Syrian cities such as Aleppo and Damascus came under the French mandate. There were threevillages, which belonged to the Imirzian brothers. They had a half-stake of Sheikh Choban, anda one-quarter stake each of Airnarous and Rasmelmaraq. They also had quarter shares in themills of Airnarous, Hayabend and Salan. I became engaged in agriculture in these villages. I distributed wheat, barley, corn and sesame seeds to the Kurdish or Arab peasants who plowed the earth with oxen, sowed, harvested, winnowed and gave me half the crop. Then we broughttractors and other mechanical equipment, which made farming much easier. I also rented my share in the mills to Armenian millers. There was a large orphanage and home for the blind inGhazir, Lebanon sponsored by the Swiss Armenophilic Association. The administrator was JacobKuntzler, who was previously the head of the German Hospital in Ourfa. He was my friend. They used to buy wheat, corn and ghee for the orphanage and the home for the blind fromme. They would write to me telling me their needs and I would buy wheat and corn for themfrom my supplies as well as from others. I also bought sheep ghee in tin containers and sent it to them. They were very happy and compensated me well. Even before that, when I was stilla partner with my brother, they would ask us to provide them with wholesale wool, which we would buy and have washed before sending it to them. They used the wool in a rug factory thatemployed many Armenian orphan girls. I worked in agriculture and other suitable jobs until we immigrated to the United States.

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Many Lawsuits Caused Us Tremendous SufferingThe two Imirzian brothers and their families were massacred by the Turks who took advantage ofthe First World War to get rid of the Armenians. Only one daughter from each brother survived: my wife Noyemzar, and her 6-7 year old cousin Lousin. I became Lousin’s legal guardian. She lived with us as our own child. According to a strange Turkish law, when the father and male children of a family die, the nearest male relative inherits all the family’s properties. Garabed, one of the cousins of the Imirzians, sued us and claimed a major part of the Imirzians’ estate leaving only a small portion to the daughters. Fortunately, with the help of a friendly Turkish lawyer, we won the case. However, we incurred great legal expenses and paid off Garabed twice.

Noyemzar’s mother, who was my cousin, had a brother named Dikran. As a relative, he too asked me for money, which I gave him. But he was not satisfied and sued us as the legal heir tohis sister’s estate. We went to court both in Ourfa and Aleppo, and spent around 100 gold coins between legal fees and paying Dikran off.

One quarter of the mill in Ainarous belonged to the Imirzians. Another quarter belonged to the Shahinian and Piloyan families. The remaining half belonged to the wealthy Turk, SeveraglyAli Effendi, a former friend and partner of the Imirzians. However, taking advantage of theirdeaths, he asked me to sell him the Imirzian’s share of the mill. I did not want to sell, so he made threats to my life and prevented me from receiving our share of the income. He sued me based on some article of the law, but I remained firm and refused to be intimidated. When thevillage of Ainarous came within Syrian borders under French mandate, he assumed we had the advantage since we were Christian. He figured the French would protect us. So he finally madeup with me.

These are just three of the many lawsuits with which we were involved. I have alreadydiscussed all of them on previous pages. They were all unjust lawsuits and involved theconfiscation of our lands by stronger neighbors or by the socialist Syrian government. Theyaccused me of smuggling and they demanding the money Haroutiun and I inherited from our martyred elder brothers. I spent a major part of my life fighting these false accusations made bygreedy and tyrannical individuals. It caused me a lot of suffering.

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Loyal Turkish Friends Became Enemies During the Genocide

Many Armenians became victims of Turks whom they once thought were their trusted friends. Turks who had purchased goods from Armenian shop owners on credit, betrayed the Armenians’ hiding places to the police. They welcomed the opportunity to get out of their debts by seeingthese Armenians killed. During those days of danger, many naïve Armenian families moved into the houses of their trusted Turkish friends and neighbors. They took with them all theirvaluables including jewelry and money. Many Turks invited Armenians to take refuge in their homes. However, they soon killed their male guests and stole all their belongings then they forcefully married or raped their young wives and daughters.

The Imirzians owned a large village called Merjanig. An Armenian farmer lived in the villageand worked as a partner. He was known as Dono (Donavak). A Turkish peasant from the neighboring village came and killed Dono, married his wife and appropriated his share of the land.

Severagli Ali Effendi was a close friend of the Imirzian brothers. They were partners inthe land and the mill of Airnarous. He could have easily saved the life of at least one of the Imirzians’ sons. In fact, he did save the life of Mgrditch Shahinian who was a miller and who owned one-eighth of the mill. All the other millers in the region had been massacred, so Ali Effendi knew that he needed to save Mgrditch to remain in business. Only one daughter fromeach of the Imirzian brothers survived, yet Ali Effendi threatened my life and sued me hoping tointimidate me into selling our share in the mill at a low price.

Many Turkish and Kurdish peasants and traders owed large sums of money to my elder brothers. I knew some of them and whenever I tried to collect, they would either lie and claim they had already paid, or they would make false promises to pay in the future. This occurredduring the time the British and then the French came to Ourfa. After they left, all these Turks and Kurds completely denied their obligations. I received negligible payments from only two individuals. One of them was the Kurdish chieftain, Hussein Pasha, who owed us more that 200 gold coins. While the British were in Ourfa, he was afraid and sent us a few sacks of wheat. Another payment came from one of the wealthy villagers of Naljeghan who sent me nothing more than a bag of sheep’s fat (8-10 kilos).

We owned a village called Golenje in which we had an elderly partner named Hellu. He had four married sons and a son-in-law. For profit, they grew the wheat and barley that wegave them to sow. We had many oxen and horses for plowing in addition to hundreds of sheep. During the 1915 massacres of the Armenians, my brother Aghajan and 15 other prominent Armenians were exiled to Raqqa with their families. The men were soon killed by the Turks andtheir families became destitute. Our Arab partners took a calf to my brother’s family so that they could sell it and live on the proceeds. They disguised as Arabs Aghajan’s two adolescent sons,

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Mihran and Kevork, as well as my other brother Krikor’s son Armenag (who was a teenager) and took all three boys with them to Aleppo to Haroutiun. These three boys are still alive today. They have grown old now and live in Brazil. Hellu’s grandson brought a horse to me in Ourfawhen I was there during the British occupation. He said it was the offspring of one of ourhorses. The government had impounded all the sheep, cattle, wheat and barley, as well as all ourhorses. The horse they brought to us was still small and they had succeeded in hiding it fromthe authorities. I kept the horse for a few days, but sent it back to the village thinking it would be safer to keep it there. This was during the British mandate. Had I known that the Britishand the French would eventually withdraw from Ourfa, I would have sold the horse. After the persecutions of Mustafa Kemal started, we escaped to Aleppo saving only our lives. We lost the village, the horse and everything else we owned. The village of Geolenje remained in Turkishborders.

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Our ProgenyI did not have any sons, but I had five very clever, kind and beautiful daughters. In order of age,they are Rosa, Sirarpi, Asdghig, Anahis and Rita. All except Anahis married nice men. Anahis’s husband was short-tempered and arrogant, which she could no longer tolerate so she left him. They had a son and daughter, Vahan and Kayane, who stayed with Anahis. Anahis is verybright and highly educated. She remarried to Bedros Odabashian, who was a young university professor. After seven years of a very happy marriage, her husband passed away. Anahis, who is a linguist, is working as a visiting lecturer of English, French and Spanish in colleges and schools. Her two children are intelligent and are college students.

Rosa married Avak Kahvejian, who was from Ourfa. While we were living in Aleppo, we went on a trip to Beirut, where Avak and Rosa met and where Avak asked for her hand in marriage. He was a well-to-do businessman and we thought it was a good match. They marriedand lived in Beirut. They came to visit us in the United States, but after just a few months,Avak died of a heart attack on March 28, 1976. Rosa has two sons, Bedig and Ara, and two daughters, Sella and Rima. Bedig is married to Dzovig and lives in Canada. He works for an aeronautical company. They have a son named Avak and a newborn daughter named Lori. Sellais married to Adom Tenjoukian. They live in London. They are well-to-do and have boughttheir own house. They have a 2-3 year old son named Hovan. Rosa’s second son and seconddaughter live in Philadelphia and work as employees. The situation in Beirut is unsafe so theydon’t want to return there. Rosa went back to try and sell a building and some land they own. If she succeeds, she wants to come back to the States to be with her children. There is a good jobavailable for Rima in Beirut. The Catholicos wrote to her urging her to return, but because thecountry is not at peace, she does not want to go.

Sirarpi lives in Beirut. She is married to Levon Topjian who had a copper factory and his own house when he lived in Aleppo. He sold everything and moved to Beirut with his family. He bought a three-story building in Beirut and rents out the upper floor. Levon nowruns on a photocopying setup in the basement of his house. Sirarpi is a much-liked employee at the American Hospital. They have two sons, Parsegh, who is an engineer and Armen, awell-appreciated employee. Her eldest is a daughter, Tamar, who is married to Levon Der-Ohannessian. They used to live in Philadelphia, but they moved to Saudi Arabia a few monthsago where Levon works with a large company as an engineer.

Asdghig is married to the much-loved Dr. Vahakn Tachdjian. They have a nice house inPhiladelphia with a clinic. They also have a nice summerhouse in Wildwood Crest. They werethe ones who brought us here from Aleppo in 1972 and now we live with them very happy and content. They have three daughters. The eldest, Ashkhen, is the wife of Ara Setrakian. Ara isa Doctor of Pharmacy. They have their own house and are well-to-do. They have two sons,Seto and Raffi, who attend the Armenian Sisters Academy. Asdghig’s second daughter, Houri, ismarried to Dr. Jim Watson. Her third daughter, Maral just got married to Stephen Tekirian.

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My fourth daughter is Anahis, about whom I already wrote out of turn.My youngest daughter, Rita, is married to Dr. Arthur Odabashian. They also live in

Philadelphia and have their own house. They have two daughters and a son, Tania, Stephen andLara. All attend the Armenian Sisters Academy.

Fortunately, my three daughters who are in the States, Asdghig, Anahis and Rita, live near each other. Asdghig’s three married daughters also live in Philadelphia. We visit each other often and talk on the phone. They all have cars. They are happy. So are we. May God keep everyonehappy.

My Children and Grandchildren:Five daughters15 grandchildren: 6 boys and 9 girls7 great grandchildren: 5 boys and 2 girlsThere are 27 in all.April 9, 1978 – We are still alive. Only God know how many more days we have. I will turn

94 on May 14.

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Around -1939Sitting: Bedros and Noyemzar Der Bedrossian. The baby is Rita.

Second row, left to right: Asdghig, Sirarpi, Rosa, Anahis.

Around -1947Sitting, left to right: Rosa Kahvejian, Noyemzar Der Bedrossian, Bedros Der Bedrossian, Asdghig Tachdjian.

Standing, left to right: Rita Der Bedrossian, Avak Kahvejian, Sirarpi Topjian, Levon Topjian, Vahakn Tachdjian, Anahis Der Bedrossian