and knew the way pretty well, I suggested that we go on our own
without any guide or assistance. We explained this to our man who was
very nice about it and said that if we wanted to take the risk it was
up to us.
However, there was little choice so we decided. We paid him for my
first trip and had a little money left. Through some black market
dealer we managed to get a loaf of black bread and with nothing else
but the clothes on our backs, we started out. Nelka wore a sisters
uniform black dress, a heavy cloth coat, a fur cap and black leather
high boots--like riding boots. I wore a military field uniform
without insignia, like most of all the population wore at that time.
While adequate, none of this was too warm for long stays in the cold,
but we had nothing else. It was the end of December.
Early in the morning we took a train in the direction of the Finnish
border. Trains ran as far as the border, but we got off two stations
earlier, at the same one I used the first time. From that station we
proceeded on foot down a country road towards a village I knew some
five miles away. We reached there in the early afternoon and stopped
at a hut where I also had been on my first trip. The peasant woman
gave us some soup and we were resting and warming up, when suddenly a
bunch of red soldiers entered the yard. The woman whisked us quickly
into an empty room in the back of the house and told us to remain
quiet. We could hear the men come in and ask her if she had seen any
refugees around. (It is to be noted that there were constantly people
trying to escape all along the border and the Reds were always
searching them out. At one time as many as 100 to 150 were getting
over the border daily. All along the border within five miles people
were shot on sight.)
We heard the woman say she had seen no one. One of the men asked
about her house and asked what was in that room, meaning the one we
were in. The woman answered, "Oh, I keep my chicken there." The men
did not insist and left. It was a close call. After the men left, the
woman suggested that we better leave too, for it was too risky for
her to have us there. We got by once, but it might not happen again
so we also decided that we better leave. The soldiers had gone in the
direction of the station, and, as we were to continue further, we got
out on to the road and started for the next village, a distance of
nearly seven miles through the woods. I also knew that village and
some of the peasants. From there the path through the woods led to
the Finnish border, some five miles away.
It was getting late and was not a good time to be out at dark for at
night the Reds put out patrols. I hoped however to reach the village
before nightfall and so we hurried along. The road was well rolled
down--the going was not hard and we made good time.
It was just getting dark but a moon was coming up when we reached the
village. The first hut was the one I had been to before and I knew
the peasants there, who were some of the peasants working for our
man. We entered and a woman rushed up to us crying and urging us to
get out. She was weeping and finally managed to explain that her
husband had just been arrested by the Reds and taken away on
suspicion that he was helping the refugees. She practically pushed us
out of the house.
So here we were, out on the road facing a dilemma. Any moment now the
night Red patrol would be out on the road. Another one would be out
at the village we came from. Before us lay the path towards the
Finnish border, but it crossed a wide field before entering the
woods. I knew the way well but with the full moon out you could see a
great distance, like in the day, on the bright snow and I was afraid
to be spotted crossing that field.
I told Nelka I was afraid to risk this trip towards the border as it
was so light. But we had little choice, for the patrols would be out
any minute now and we could not remain on the road. With no other
choice left we retreated into the woods, off the road and settled
under some thick pine trees for the night, right in the snow. It was
Xmas eve.
We survived the night and even slept a little. It was also evident
that Nelka was developing some kind of flu and was running a
temperature. I used to joke that she melted the snow around us
because of that. Luckily there was no wind. The snow was deep and we
dug out a hollow. The temperature was probably about ten or fifteen
above. Remember we had no covers--just our clothes. We ate some of
our remaining black bread. We were tired from so much walking and so
we slept.
By morning it was obvious that Nelka was ill and had a temperature.
We had to act quick and invent something, so we went back to the
village and I entered the same hut again. The woman had quieted down
and did not push us out. We also found there another couple who
turned out to be an officer with his wife trying to get out as we
did, so we decided to stick together. The woman suggested that we go
by sleigh to the next village and try to cross from there. So we
hired a sleigh and started out--this time the four of us with the
driver. It was now fairly safe to move along the roads by day with
the night patrols off.
We drove to the next village about ten miles away. When we came to
the village, our driver said he wanted to stop at the tavern which
was located at the entrance to the village. He went in while we
waited in the sleigh. When he came out a soldier followed him onto
the porch. He looked at us suspiciously and then asked the peasant
where we were coming from. The peasant named a village to the east.
The soldier then suddenly said: "Why your horse is turned the wrong
way, wait a minute," and he stepped back into the tavern.
Our driver whipped up his horse and we went down the road as fast as
we could. Looking back we saw several soldiers run out on the porch.
One of them lifted his rifle and a shot came over us, but we were
well on our way. They had no horses available to follow us so did not
pursue and we got away. After a ride of some two miles, we turned
sharply to the left and down a narrow lane into the woods. Here the
peasant stopped and said the border was only about two miles away and
that he would lead us for so much. We agreed. He hid his sleigh and
horse in an empty barn and we started out. Soon the lane ended and we
were in thick woods. The snow was waste deep and with the fallen
logs, the going was extremely difficult. We had to haul the women
over the logs and pull them out of the deep snow. Both the women and
especially Nelka who was ill, were completely exhausted. It was a
painful procession. Finally we came to a clearing in the woods and
the peasant turning around, said very calmly, "This is Finland." A
very strange feeling of elation and apprehension and a strange
feeling of leaving in such a manner one's native land.
We were now not at all sure what kind of Finns we would encounter,
but soon we saw two Finnish soldiers and much to my relief I
recognized them as being White Finns. They stopped us and then took
us to the village to their officer. A young lieutenant was sitting at
a table in a small hut. We reported to him and when I mentioned that
I was an officer and named my regiment, he rose and saluted. The
Finns were very decent and helpful in every way. Despite their own
difficulties, they extended help to the numerous refugees coming
over, established receiving camps and medical units for the sick. We
were taken by sleigh to Terrioky. Nelka as having temperature was
taken to the hospital and I to the camp. As soon as possible we
communicated with our friends the Wredes in Helsingfors and they
immediately took steps to get us out of camp and into their own home.
So in a few days we were on our way to Helsingfors where we received
the warmest hospitality from the Wredes and remained with them for
about six weeks.
We then proceeded by way of Stockholm and Oslo to the United States
sailing on the Stavangerfiord for New York early in February of 1919.
Upon our arrival in America we went to Washington where we stayed
with Nelka's Aunt and Uncle. Later in the spring we went to Cazenovia
to the little house which Nelka's Aunt Susie had left her and spent
finally a restful and quiet summer, which was our honeymoon time. We
were also regaining our health, which had suffered from the
starvation period. Nelka put on some forty pounds and I came back to
normal after having been bloated from hunger, like some starved Hindu
child.
However, we soon felt that this easy and restful life was not right
morally. The Bolsheviks were still in power, wrecking Russia and a
civil war was raging between the Bolsheviks and the White Russians:
We decided that it was our duty to go back and help. So I went to
Washington and offered my services at the Russian mission to join one
of the volunteer armies. We first planned to go to Siberia but then
decided we would join the army of General Denikin in the South of
Russia, and I was given an assignment there.
Before sailing for Europe we went to New Orleans to visit Nelka's
cousin and then sailed from there for Liverpool, and then to London
and Paris. Once in Paris we were advised that things were not going
well in the south with the army of General Denikin and that we better
wait before going on. So we stayed in France and I joined the French
airplane factory of Louis Breguet near Paris where I worked for about
8 months. Then things got better in the Southern Army and we once
again decided to go on to the Army reorganized now by General
Wrangel.
Just at that time the Breguet factory received an order for night
bombers for the Russian Army and it was arranged that I escort that
shipment to the Crimea. So once again I put on the uniform of a
Russian lieutenant, Nelka put on the uniform of a Russian Red Cross
nurse and we set out.
The planes were boxed and sent to Marseilles where they were loaded
on a French freighter, the Saint Basil, and we left for
Constantinople. As the planes were bulky but light, the boat was
light and high in the water. Because of that the propeller was but
halfway in the water and our progress was very slow. It took us 17
days to get to Constantinople. Hardly had we dropped anchor in the
Bosphorus as a launch drew up and a French officer came aboard and
asked who was in charge of the shipment. He informed me that we could
not proceed any further because news had just been received that the
Army of General Wrangel had started the evacuation of the Crimea.
So we had to go ashore. The planes, having come from France, were
unloaded and left with the French Army of occupation. So, came to an
end our trip and our efforts to join the White Russian Army. We
landed in Constantinople and in the next few days the evacuated Army
of Wrangel started to arrive. Over 140,000 people arrived including
the remnants of the army and between 6 and 7 thousand wounded. The
plight of these people was terrible. While the wounded were landed
and taken care of by the American and British Red Cross, most of the
rest were not allowed ashore and were kept on board the ships in the
harbour. One boat had 12,000 people aboard.
The day after we had arrived, I accidentally met in the street Robert
Imbrie, whom I had known when he was American Consul in Petrograd. It
turned out that he also had just arrived and like ourselves was also
on his way to the Crimea, appointed from the State Department. He
asked me what I was going to do and I explained that probably for the
moment we would return to France. He said that he was waiting for
instructions from Washington to know what to do. Next day he
contacted me saying that he was assigned to form a Russian Section at
the American Embassy in Constantinople and offered me a job to work
with him. I gladly accepted and so we stayed in Constantinople for
the next 8 months.
It was a very interesting period. My work was varied. I acted as
interpreter at the American Embassy with the Russians and with the
French. Nelka joined the organization of the French Admiral's wife,
Madame Dumesnil, doing refugee relief work.
It was an interesting and exhilarating time in Constantinople. We saw
and knew a number of very interesting people. We saw unusual
situations and we were both very busy.
Mr. Imbrie, with whom I worked, had as his assignment to undertake
inspection tours. For this he often used the American destroyers
which were anchored in the Bosphorus. Thus, we went to Gallipoli, to
Lemnos, to Salonica, etc.
On a certain day we took off for Varna in Bulgaria and from there to
Batum in the Caucasus.
Nelka remained in Constantinople and had with her a little companion,
a dog Djedda. Djedda influenced a great deal of our future existence,
and as you will see there was quite a story attached to this little
dog.
One day we were visiting the bazaar of Constantinople, a colorful,
typical oriental spot, crowded and noisy, with oriental smells and
sounds. In one of the passages we came across a small, brown dog,
which was running around frightened and miserable. We spoke to her
and, while she was timid, she was friendly and came to us. We decided
to pick her up and that we could give her to the little daughter of
the man in whose house we had a room. The little girl Offy was living
with her father who had recently lost his wife and we thought that
the little dog would fit in nicely as a playmate for the little girl.
Offy was very pleased and we showed her how to take care of the dog.
The first thing to do was to wash the dog and get some of the grime
off. When this was done we were surprised to find out that she was
white not brown, the size of a small fox terrier, with lovely eyes
and a vivacious disposition. So all was well for the dog, for Offy
and for us--at least for the moment. A few days later Offy announced
that the dog seemed ill. We examined her and found that she was
running a temperature, would not move and certainly was not well. We
arranged her in a small box and took her to our room for she needed
better care than the little girl could give her. As she did not
improve, we took her to the veterinary and he found that she was
suffering from inflammatory rheumatism of the joints. He gave her
some medicine and told us to keep her quiet. This was not difficult
to do for she was very ill and did not move. In this critical
condition she must have stayed for about two weeks, possibly more.
Then she began to show some signs of recovery, but even this was very
gradual. Gradually she began to regain strength and finally we tried
to have her get out of her box and walk about. When we tried this, we
found to our surprise that she could not stand up and we discovered
that her two front legs had stiffened in the joints, which would not
move. Those joints had actually grown together and the dog would
never be able to move them again. However, with time Djedda adapted
herself wonderfully to this situation and learned to hobble about
just on her hind legs supporting herself by holding her left front
leg against her hip. The right front leg was bent up below her chin
against her chest. Naturally in that condition the dog could not
remain with the little girl so she stayed with us. And despite her
crippled condition, Djedda was a most wonderful and lovable dog. She
adapted herself so well that she could even go up the steps.
Like all invalids, Djedda adapted herself wonderfully and was quite
proficient in her movements, though she always remained a cripple.
The only thing she could not do was come down the stairs. So, if she
found herself at the head of the stairs, she would start barking
until someone came to carry her down. She was a very wonderful pet to
us for about 12 years. This poor little cripple was the most gay and
joyful little dog, a wonderful and devoted companion and we never
regretted for a moment having had the good luck of finding her. She
gave us a great deal of joy and comfort.
So when I left with Imbrie for Batum, Nelka remained with Djedda.
When leaving I told Nelka that I was to be back a certain Monday.
Well, things did not go exactly on schedule. When we got to Batum, we
found that the city, which was occupied by the Turks, was being
besieged by the Georgians. We went ashore, looked the situation over
and saw that it was not good. We remained anchored in the harbor. The
next morning the Georgians attacked and hot fighting resulted. Most
of it was with small arms only, but when the bullets begun to spatter
against our destroyer, the captain decided that we better get out,
which we did, and we steamed back to Constantinople. With this delay,
we were off schedule and instead of arriving on Monday it was
Wednesday. When I returned home I found that Nelka was gone, with a
note left for me. The note said that as I had not returned on Monday
and as news had reached Constantinople that heavy fighting was on in
Batum, that she was leaving to look for me. I was furious, because it
was so utterly useless.
Upon inquiry I found that she had boarded a small Italian freighter
plying the cost of Asiatic Turkey. The boat named San Georgio had
left on Tuesday and had no wireless. The boat's company explained
that she was due back in about three weeks.
I went to explain the situation to Admiral Bristol at the American
Embassy. He said that he knew about Nelka having gone, for while
disapproving of it and advising her against it, he had helped her get
the Interallied visas which were necessary to be able to leave the
city. Normally it took about a week to get these visas, British,
French, Italian and United States. Nelka got them in 3 hours.
While the Embassy reassured her and told her there was nothing to
worry about, her main objective of getting on a boat was to try to
communicate with me on the destroyer by wireless. It later developed
that, after she had left on the San Georgio and they were out at sea,
then only did she discover that the boat carried no wireless.
Therefore her main objective of communicating with me was not
possible but this she discovered too late.
She had booked passage first class and upon arriving found out that
that entitled her to a chair in the salon. Others sat on the deck on
the floor. The decks were crowded with Turkish men who were traveling
from one small port to the next along the east. Each night they
brought out their small prayer rugs and turning towards the setting
sun, prayed kneeling in rows on deck.
Once aboard, Nelka also found out that first class tickets did not
include meals. Having very little money with her, she found that she
was not able to afford to buy much. She had a bag of apples with her.
Not having anyone to leave Djedda with, Nelka took her along and
carried her under her arm all the time. While they did not feed
Nelka, the steward was very kind and Djedda was fed. And so they
traveled.
I, in the meantime, was desperately trying to find a way to contact
Nelka on the San Georgio. The admiral and the Embassy were very
cooperative and the admiral issued orders to all the destroyers to
keep an eye for the San Georgio and intercept her if spotted.
Having traveled most of the length of the southern coast of the Black
Sea, the Italian captain announced that he was going into Batum.
Batum in the meantime had been occupied by the Bolshevik forces and
therefore Nelka's position became very precarious. She argued with
the captain but he said he had a cargo to pick up and that he was
going in. The first thing Nelka did was to hide her identification
papers, her passport and visas. Better to have nothing than to be
found out as a White Russian. She remained in the cabin while in
Batum. On the second morning a bunch of Bolshevik soldiers arrived
and announced that they were going to search the ship. This was a
very dangerous situation for Nelka. However after a while, and while
they had been half through the boat, another party arrived and
started an argument with the first bunch as to who had the right to
make this search. They pretty nearly came to blows in this argument,
but finally still arguing all left without finishing the search. This
was a close call for Nelka. Next morning the San Georgio pulled out
on her way back to Constantinople. She was grateful, but by now was
becoming pretty hungry and what food she managed to get was very
scarce.
A few days later, just as they were pulling into Samsun, the American
destroyer John D. Edwards spotted the San Georgio, hailed her and
inquired about Nelka. When told that she was aboard, they lowered a
boat and came to fetch her, and took her and the dog aboard upon
specific orders from Admiral Bristol. The commanding officer, Captain
Sharp was most helpful and kind. He gave Nelka his cabin and, also as
she had run out of everything, offered her his underclothes. Two
sailors were assigned to take care of Djedda.
They steamed back towards Constantinople, but had to delay the return
for they had to go out to sea for gunnery practice. Thus, Nelka must
have remained on the destroyer for four or five days before
returning. This was a very harrowing and needless expedition which
could have very easily ended in a tragic manner.
By summer the work of the Russian section of the Embassy was coming
to an end. My chief, Mr. Imbrie, received a new assignment to go to
Rumania, and we decided to return to France. The Embassy hearing
this, offered to give us a permit to travel to Marseilles on an
American Shipping Board vessel, which normally did not carry
passengers. They advised that it would be convenient for us and
inexpensive, the rate being only $5 per day for each of us, for a
trip of about five days.
We accepted with pleasure. It was also convenient for the
transportation of our animals, for by this time, in addition to
Djedda we had a small black dog and two young cats. One, Nuri, was a
small kitten which I picked up out of the gutter where it was nearly
drowned in the rain. That was a very wonderful cat who lived with us
for 18 years.
Late one evening we boarded the Lake Farley. The captain assigned to
us our cabin and we were underway. It was late July and when we
entered the cabin we found that the temperature must have been well
over a hundred. It was so hot that the floor was too hot for the cats
to walk on and they kept jumping back and forth from one bunk to the
other. The dogs we had left on deck.
So we went to the Captain and complained about the heat. He said he
was sorry he had nothing better but that the whole boat was at our
disposal and we could arrange ourselves wherever we wished. So after
looking everything over, we finally decided to sleep on top of the
chartroom. We climbed up there with a couple of blankets and settled
for the night under the stars. This was not bad but only the sparks
from the funnel kept raining down on us most of the time. But we got
used to this and stayed that way most of the trip. The captain was
American as well as the mate but the crew was of all nationalities,
the cook being a Turk. However it did not look as though the trip
would last only five days as the boat was very slow. We stopped on
our way at Biserta on the African coast and had a day ashore. The day
after we left Biserta at lunch time, I smelled smoke, so I told Nelka
I would go and investigate. The moment I came out on deck the alarm
bells started off and I saw the middle of the ship aflame.
While I went on deck, Nelka had gone to our cabin, and when she
entered she also heard the alarm. So picking up the two cats and a
life belt, she hurried on deck. I likewise picked up the two dogs and
a life belt.
The captain was hollering from the bridge to lower the boats as the
ship would blow up because of the oil. In a few minutes one of the
boats was already bobbing on the water and the cook in his white cap
was in it. However, all who were available were fighting the fire,
mostly with sand and finally we got it under control. All was fine,
only the fire did some damage in the engine room and for more than a
day we drifted while they were making repairs.
Then we resumed our way to Barcelona where we were to unload some of
the wheat we were carrying. When we got there the Spanish authorities
would not allow us to go ashore for, as we were Russians, they
decided that we may be communists. So they even posted a policeman to
see that we would not sneak off. This might not have been so bad, but
in the unloading a mistake was made. The forward hull was emptied and
as a result the ship sank by the stern and got stuck in the mud
bottom. It took us a whole week to extricate ourselves and all that
time we had to just sit on that boat.
By the time we finally got to Marseille we had been traveling for
three weeks.