//Ed. Note: Fuad Bey settles into his lodging in Vetluga.
Some of his housemates are married officers and even
their families. Time passes with poker, shopping and
gazing at the pretty Russian girls.//
The Vetluga River, a tributary of the Volga, is toward the
upper right of the map. Vetluga town is located on the top
bend of the river.
26 May 1916 Friday
I got up a bit late. After morning tea and
breakfast we walked around
the garden a bit. Since setting up a new table d’hote has been
requested,
I got some supplies like a plate and a spoon. Late in the afternoon a
Russian
corporal came from Moscow and he had us write our names
in Turkish on forms printed in
Russian. These forms will supposedly
go to Istanbul to the Ministry of War. In the evening we
filled our
stomachs with tea, bread and cheese. At night we gathered around the
table and
Osman talked to us about some things. For example, war and
the German-Turkish alliance. If we,
the Triple Alliance, defeat the
Allied Powers then Turkey will get Tblisi, Baku and the entire
Caucasus. Very good. May God grant us victory.
Osman is a retired artillery major and was
most recently the Erzurum
Provincial Engineer. Because he suffers from typhus he had
remained
in Erzurum and the Russians made him a prisoner. He is knowledgeable,
knows six
languages and is polite. His education was in France.
Together with those who had come before,
there are 26 people in this
house, which has four rooms. In the first one are five who came
before.
In the dark room next to it are Halis, Ethem, Temel, Fahri, Hurşid,
Kâzim and
Rıfkı. I’m in the big living room with Zühdü, Gendarmerie
Nuri, Erzurumlu Hasan, Mehmet Ağa Tahir and
Mustafa. In the room
next door are Salah, Trabzonlu Hasan, Burhan, Major Osman, Captain
Hakkı,
Secretary Şakir and Second Lieutenant Mustafa. These last four
are married and their families
are with them. Other than the ones who
were already here and the married fellows, we’re all junior officers
and other than Erzurumlu Hasan and Mehmet Ağa, we’re all reserves.
27 May 1916 Saturday
In the afternoon I went to the market for
the first time with two friends
and a Russian soldier as a guard. The avenues here are all
straight and
squared off. There are big shops and stores too. Since there is a
shopping market set
up in the city today (they have this market every
Saturday) it was crowded. I got some clothes from a big store and some
other things, as well.
On the way back I stopped by the pharmacy and
got a bit of linen and
carbonate. I saw a few pharmacies in this city. In
the
evening we ate from the table d’hote we just set up. Then the weather
turned bad and it
started snowing. At night the snow was a finger thick
on the ground. Unexpected. I went to
bed late, a bit after midnight
toward morning. I spent today thinking about the past, my
revered
parents and my brother.
Sometimes Sad and Troubled, Sometimes
Comforted by the
Promise of the Future
28 May 1916 Sunday
Today is Sunday. Every place is closed.
Everyone is streaming toward
a tree-filled, rather long garden that is across from us on the
loading
pier road that runs south of our house. They’re strolling around. It’s
like a park
but it’s plain, simple,
other than trees there’s nothing. It’s
real decorations are the
young, beautiful girls. Most of my time is
spent gazing here and sometimes I listen to the zither
the secretary
plays.
Today I couldn’t help getting lost thinking about some
nonsensical
things. These are all thoughts about the calamity.
Sometimes I’m sad and troubled. Sometimes I’m
comforted by the
promise of the future. In the evening Salah taught us how to play poker.
We played a bit for fun and Osman joined in.
29 May 1916 Monday
Before noon Şerif and Kör Mehmet came to
our room. We sat a while
and then went over to their place. In Şerif, who had
recognized my
father in a photograph at Pehon Kısna village, I found a nice, good-
hearted friend
although I didn’t know him very well in the detachment.
Kör Mehmet seems to be a fellow townsman of
mine. I came back
after chatting quite a bit but at their insistence I went again later in
the afternoon. They served tea and other things. Later they came to
us and we served them tea.
Then it was evening and I began to play
poker with Salah, Ethem and Saffet. Anyway, the night,
which really
can’t be distinguished from sunset and dawn, passes quickly. Then
we started to
play thirty-one and Zühdü joined in this. The poor
fellow lost half a ruble in the game which
lasted two hours. In any
event, we quit and went to bed. I have no time for and get
nothing
out of the game.
30 May 1916 Wednesday
The weather turned bad again. It’s pretty
cold outside and a fierce
wind is blowing snow all over. It has snowed quite a lot. At night
we
played some poker again. I like this and we all had a rambling
conversation among ourselves.
Boredom. When will we be freed
from cold places like this?
31 May 1916 Thursday
The prices are high in this city.
Everything is three or four times costlier
than before. There’s sugar though. The price of white bread at
28
kopeks per funt (12 oz./409.5 grams) is 17 kopeks and a funt of old
black bread ıs eight
kopeks. A bottle of milk, which gives 13 cupfuls,
is 30-35 kopeks. Ten eggs cost 35-40 kopeks. The
Commander came to
see us today. He said he would be leaving and he introduced the new
Commander who was with him to us. Our days pass with nothing to do
and we’re bored.
//END of PART XXVIII//
