With the Turks in Palestine - Escape

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter eleven of With the Turks and Palestine. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
Recording by Anne Boulat With the Turks in Palestine by
Alexander Aaronson, Chapter eleven. Escape. The failure of my attempt

(00:26):
to leave the country only sharpened my desire to make
another trial. The danger of the enterprise tended to reconcile
me to deserting my family and comrades and seeking safety
for myself. As I racked my brain for a promising plan,
a letter came from my sister in Beirut with two
pieces of news, which were responsible for my final escape.

(00:46):
The American College was shortly to close for the summer,
and the U. S. S. Chester was to sail for
Alexandria with refugees aboard. Beirut is a four days trip
from our village and roads are unsafe. It was out
of the question to permit my sister to come home alone,
and it was impossible for any of us to get
leave to go after her, Nor did we want to

(01:09):
have her at home in the unsettled condition of the country.
I began wondering if I could not possibly get to
Beirut and get my sister aboard the Chester, which offered
perhaps the last opportunity to get out with the refugees.
It would be a difficult undertaking, but it might be
our only chance, and I quickly made up my mind

(01:29):
to carry it out. If it were a possible thing,
I had to act immediately. No time was to be lost,
for no one could tell how soon the Chester might sail.
My last adventure had been entered upon with forebodings, but
now I felt that I should succeed. To us Orientals,
intuition speaks in very audible tones, and we are trained

(01:50):
from childhood to listen to his voice. It was with
a feeling of confidence in the outcome, therefore, that I
bade this second good bye to my family and dearest friend.
Solemn hours. They were these hours of farewell, hours that
needed few words. Then once more I slipped out into
the night to make my secret way to be Root.

(02:11):
It was about midnight when I left home, dressed in
a soldier's uniform and driving a donkey before me. I
traveled only by night and spent each day in hiding
in some cave or narrow valley, where I could sleep
with some measure of security. For food, I had brought bread,
dried figs, and chocolate, and water was always to be
found in little springs and pools. In these clear, warm nights.

(02:35):
I used to think of David, a fugitive and pursued
by his enemies. How well I could now understand his
despairing cry. How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? Forever?
How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? Five
nights I journeyed, and at last one morning, beautiful bay
Root appeared in the distance, and I found myself in

(02:57):
the forest of pines that leads into the city. A
fresh dawn was filled with the balmy breath of the
pines and all the odors of the Lebanon. Driving my
donkey before me, I boldly approached the first picket house
and saluted the non commissioned officer in military fashion. He
stopped me and asked me whence I came and where
I was going. I smiled sweetly and replied that I

(03:20):
was the orderly of a German officer who was surveying
the country a few hours to the south, and that
I was going to Beirut for provisions. Then I lighted
a cigarette and sat down for a chat. After discussing
politics in the war for a few minutes, I jumped up,
exclaiming that if I didn't hurry, I should be late,
and so took my departure. It was also simple, and

(03:42):
it brought me safely into Beirut. My donkey, having served
the purpose for which I had brought him, was speedily abandoned,
and I hurried to a friend's house, where I exchanged
my uniform for the garb of a citizen. My sister
was the most surprised person on earth when she saw
me walking into her room, and when I told her
that I wanted her to go with me on the Chester,

(04:03):
she thought me crazy, for she knew that hundreds of
persons were trying in vain to find ways of leaving
the country, and it seemed to her impossible that we,
who were Turkish subjects, could succeed in outwitting the authorities.
Even when I had explained my plans and she was
willing to admit the possibility of success, she still felt
doubts as to whether it would be right for her

(04:24):
to leave the country. While her friends were left behind
in danger. I assured her, however, that our family would
feel relieved to know that we were in safety and
could come back fresh and strong after the war to
help in rebuilding the country. Having gained her consent, I
still had the difficult problem of ways and means before me.
The Chester had orders to take citizens of neutral countries.

(04:47):
Only passports had to be examined by the Turkish authorities
and by the American consul General, who gave the final
permission to board the cruiser. How was I to pass
this double scrutiny. After long and hour ar to with search,
with the assistance of several good friends, I at last
discovered a man who was willing to sell me the
passports of a young couple belonging to a neutral nation.

(05:09):
I cannot go into particulars about this arrangement, of course,
suffice it to say that my sister was to travel
as my wife, and that we both had to disguise
ourselves so as to answer the descriptions on the passports.
When I went to the American Consulate General to get
the permit, I found the building crowded with people of
all nations, Spanish and Greek, and Dutch and Swiss, all

(05:32):
waiting for the precious little papers that should take them
aboard the American cruiser, that haven of liberty and safety.
The Chester was to take all these people to Alexandria,
and those who had the means were to be charged
fifty cents a day for their food. From behind my
dark goggles, I recognized many a person in disguise like
myself and seeking to escape. We never betrayed recognitioned for

(05:54):
fear of the spies who infested the place. After securing
my permit, I ran downstairs and straight to my consul,
whose drago man I took along with me to the
Soria or government building. Of course, the drago man was
well tipped and he helped me considerably in hastening the
examination I had to undergo at the hands of the

(06:15):
Turkish officials. All went well, and I hurried back to
my sister Triumphant. The Chester was to sail in two days,
But while we were waiting, the alarming news came that
the American consul had been advised that the British government
refused to permit the landing of the refugees in Egypt,
and that the departure of the Chester was indefinitely postponed.

(06:36):
With a sinking at my heart, I rushed up to
the American consulate for details, and there learned that the
USS des Moines was to sail in a few hours
for roads with Italian and Greek refugees, and that I
could go on her if I wished. In a few minutes,
I had my permit change for the trip on the
des Moines, and I hurried home to my sister. We

(06:56):
hastily got together the few belongings we were to take
with us, jumped into a carriage and drove to the harbor.
We still had another ordeal to go through. My sister
was taking into a private room and thoroughly searched, so
was I. Nobody could leave the country with more than
twenty five dollars in cash on his person. Our baggage

(07:16):
was carefully overhauled. No papers or books could be taken.
My sister's Bible was looked upon with much suspicion, since
it contained a map of ancient Canaan. I explained that
this was necessary for the orientation of our prayers, and
that without it we could not tell in which direction
to turn our faces when praying. This seemed plausible to

(07:37):
the Moslem examiners, and save the Bible, the only book
we now possess as a souvenir from home. Now our
passports were examined again and several questions were asked. My
sister was brave and self possessed, cool and unconcerned in manner,
and at last the final signature was affixed and we
jumped into the little boat that was to take us

(07:58):
out to the ship. At this moment, a man approached,
a dry good stealer of whom my sister had made
some purchases a few months before. He seemed to recognize her,
and he asked her in German if she were not
miss Aaronson. I felt my blood leave my face, and
looking him straight in the eye, I whispered, if you
say one word more, you will be a dead man,

(08:20):
So help me God. He must have felt that I
meant exactly what I said, for he walked off, mumbling unintelligibly.
At last the boat got away, and five minutes later
we were mounting the side of the Des Moines. Throngs
of refugees covered the decks of the cruiser. Their faces
showed tension and anxiety. Their presence there seemed too good

(08:40):
to be true, and all awaited the moment when the
ship should heave Anchor, a Filipino sailor, showed us about,
and as he spoke in Italian, I told him I
wanted to be hidden somewhere till the ship got underway.
I felt that even yet we were not entirely safe.
That my fears were justified, I discovered shortly when from
our high fighting place I saw the shopkeeper approaching in

(09:02):
a small boat with a Turkish officer. They looked over
all the refugees on the deck, but searched for us
in vain. After a half hour more of uncomfortable tension,
the engines began to sputter, the propellers revolved, and we
were safe. The day was dying, and a beautiful twilight
softened the outlines of the Lebanon and the houses of Beirut.

(09:23):
The Mediterranean lay quiet and peaceful around us, and the healthy,
sturdy American sailors gave a feeling of confidence. As the
cruiser drew out of the harbor, a great cry of
farewell arose from the refugees on board, a cry in
which was mingled the relief of being free anguished at
leaving behind parents and friends, fear and hope for the future.

(09:45):
A little later, the American sailors were lined up in
arms to salute the American flag when it was lowered
for the night. Moved by a powerful instinct of love
and respect, all the refugees jumped to their feet, the
men bareheaded and the women with folded arms. And in
that moment I understood, as I never understood before, the
real sacred meaning of a flag. To all those people

(10:08):
standing in awe about that piece of cloth bearing the
stars and stripes, America was an incarnation of love, universal,
of freedom and salvation. The cool Syrian night, our first
night on the cruiser, was spent in songs, hymns and conversation.
We were all too excited to sleep. Friends discovered friends,

(10:28):
and tales of woe were exchanged, stories of hardship, injustice, oppression,
all of which ended with mutual congratulations on escaping from
the clutches of the Turks. The end end of chapter eleven,
end of With the Turks in Palestine by Alexander Aaronson