8 Mart 2019 Cuma

TNT Matchbox Diary: A Turkish POW in Russian Prison Camp (1915-1918)/Part XXXIV

//Ed. Note: Friction with another Ottoman Arab officer
erupts in Fuad Bey's house because the fellows are
enjoying themselves a bit too much for the Arab's taste.
For the moment, life in POW camp seems pretty nice.//


kibrit kutusundaki sarıkamış-sibirya günlükleri ile ilgili görsel sonucu
It almost seems physically impossible to write so flawlessly
in such tiny script...



8 July 1916 Saturday
The weather was gloomy in the morning. Then it got rather cold. After 
that it rained, sometimes heavily, sometimes lightly. In the afternoon I 
went to see Şerif. Until evening I worked at sewing Kör Mehmet’s 
initials on his blanket. We had a discussion at night that was about the 
trials that Istanbul and Turkey have suffered. Today I had a huge feeling
of homesickness in my heart. I thought  and thought. I felt just about 
exhausted by a dream so in order to ease this feeling somewhat I wrote 
something to counterpose the dream from fancy to existence. I was able
to obtain some peace in my heart because I grabbed onto the hope of 
faithfulness. My imagination was drowned in sweetness, my heart 
thumped with happiness. My soul was pleased with this. Sometimes 
hope becomes sadness and curses circulate in my mind. In short, 
however much I grumble and descend into despair, I suffer. Just before 
waking up I had a dream in which I saw Feyzi, Mehmet Ali and Cemil. 
I was frightened by the length of Mehmet Ali’s ears. Reverting to
the past a bit.

From Batumi to Sivastopol

9 July 1916 Sunday
The weather is bad, dark clouds. A couple of times it rained heavily. 
Then the clouds broke and the sun came out. The weather has turned 
nice, like a spring day. News: the Turks have surrounded the Russians 
and two Turkish dreadnoughts have bombarded the shores from
Batumi to Sivastopol. We rejoiced and sang songs. Salah related the 
words of a teacher who would give history and geography  lessons to 
Turkish children in an imagined Turan (pan-Turkish)-based future…
today we made a lottery game from wood and in the evening we
drew lots with Süleyman’s participation but Zühdü and I didn’t win.

10 July 1916 Monday
Again in the morning the weather wasn’t good. There’s a mild chill 
in the air but we went for a swim in the river anyway. I still haven’t 
been able to learn how to swim. It rained heavily in the afternoon. 
Time passed pleasantly, lots of laughing and playing. We drew lots
again at night. We had fun and didn’t sleep until sunrise. Osman 
talked about Egypt and a few other things. We listened. On the 
longest days the sun sets between nine and ten and rises between 
two and three in the morning. The nights last five, six hours but 
henceforth the nights will grow longer. Then it will be dark all the 
time.

11 July 1916 Tuesday
I was going to get up late today but I was woken up for the bath. I 
washed up at the bath and came back but even though I lay down I 
couldn’t sleep. The sky is cloudy again. Toward noon the clouds 
thickened and it rained heavily. I passed the time pleasantly chatting
and playing games. Late in the afternoon I learned from Süleyman 
that if we ask Osman he may give us lessons. We chatted in the 
evening and I went to bed around midnight.

12 July 1916 Wednesday
We went for a swim in the river again in the morning. I still wasn’t 
able to learn how to swim but  I hope that I can survive danger in 
10-15 meters of water. The weather is cool, cloudy but no rain. 
Toward evening we made some jokes and laughed among ourselves. 
But sometimes these went overboard and aroused indignation.

13 July 1916 Thursday
Again in the morning we swam in the river. When we came back we 
drank tea. The weather Is cool again and cloudy. I passed the time 
pleasantly with games and chatting. We spent a lot of time walking in 
the garden and doing exercise. After the evening meal we enjoyed 
ourselves with pole vaulting and stone-tossing  drills, in which Osman 
participated. I couldn’t sleep again at night. I talked until dawn with 
Nuri.

14 July 1916 Friday
After morning tea we went for a swim in the river. I’m afraid that I 
haven’t learned to swim well and that I won’t  be able to learn. A 
little before noon we gathered at the table because First Lieutenant
 Cemil Bazergan of Baghdad wanted to say something to everyone. 
He began to speak and said that he was uncomfortable because of all 
the noise, violin and harpsichord playing and singing. He add that 
since he was ill these things should not be done around him. Cemil’s
words were quite dictatorial and threatening, as if to say that we had 
to listen to and obey him because he is older than us. With a haughty 
manner he said that he would complain to the Commander about a 
paper he had come into possession of (a letter Süleyman had written
 to a girl), indicating that this would force us to do as he said. Cemil 
was angry that we were singing and he criticized our laughing. He 
said a few other ridiculous things. He’s a puffed-up Arab. He has 
such a loathsome life that he thinks that sincehe’s sick everything we 
do offends him and hurts him. But actually he’s bothering us. In any
 event, we decided to play music until eight o’clock and to chat 
openly and laugh until ten thirty. The weather is nice.

15 July 1916 Saturday
Again in the morning we went for a bath. When we heard from the 
Russian Commander that Cemil Bazergan  would be sent to the 
Yaroslav Hospital because of his illness the obstinate jerk refused
to go, saying he wasn’t sick. What should have been a happy solution 
for both hm and the people he lives with fell through. Think about just 
how ill-mannered and low this fellow is! The weather is nice. We did 
exercises in the garden and we made a trapeze from wood. Following 
the evening meal we asked Osman to have a conference with us about 
fear. He said there are four ways to reduce fear (1. Alcohol, 2. High 
ideals, 3. Religious ideals, 4. Ideals of homeland, nation and humanity.) 
Osman said that the most appropriate is ideals of homeland, nation and 
humanity and he recommended building a strong bond to this. I wrote 
another card to my father and sent it.

//END of PART XXXIV//


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