By Sempad Shahnazarian

Chapter Thirteen (Continued)

  “The Free and Independent Armenia that we have now hasn’t been given to us by the Allies. We have earned it with our own blood and with our firm determination. We are being called the “Little Ally.” We are proud of that. Our sacrifices and our services to the Allied Cause have been great. Here are some of the contributions made to the Allied victory. The 1915 Genocide tied up an appreciable part of Turkey’s forces. They were engaged in the extermination of our people. As a result of this, Turkey was unable to deploy against the Allies in the Levant and the Caucasus. We fought bitterly in Van, Sassoun, Shabin Karahissar, Musa Dagh and elsewhere to defend ourselves. At the start of the Russian revolution, the Russian army withdrew from Northeastern Turkey in 1918. The Armenians stood all alone against Turkish designs on Baku, the great oil center on the Caspian Sea and they bitterly resisted the Turkish blows until the defeat of Germany in 1918.” 

  Applause!!...

  “The importance of our resistance at that front can be seen in what German General Von Ludendorf says: ‘The principal factor that forced the breakdown of the German army in the West, was due to the lack of a fuel supply and this was due to the failure of the Turks to reach Baku in time!’ Why didn’t they reach Baku in time? They did not reach Baku in time because of the Armenian resistance.”

  The audience roared its approval!

 “The Turkish preoccupation with the Armenians was decisive in the Allies’ victory in the Middle-East and the Arabian Peninsula dismembering the Ottoman Empire of its former possessions. This is not only our opinion, it is the authoritative opinion of General Liman Von Sanders who had been the top German Officer with the Turkish army for over three years. He states that the Turkish debacle in Palestine was occasioned by the fact that the Turks were unable to sustain effective military operations in the Middle-East. This was simply because they had to assign a heavy force to ward off feared Armenian counterblows.” 

 “The fourth reason is the Armenian Legion operating under French sponsorship which was among the most effective Allied forces at the Palestinian front. In the key battle of Arara it carried the day with a heroic charge that swept before it.

  As a result of all these factors, on May 28, 1918, the Armenian Nation was recognized as an Independent and Free Nation by a large number of Allied Powers having their diplomatic representatives seated at Erevan. The Allied Supreme Council recognized Armenia’s Independence and her de facto government. Three months later the United States officially recognized Armenia as an Independent State. All this is all right. It is a beautiful reality that makes us feel happy and proud of our achievements.

  What is happening now? The Red Revolution is spreading not only within our borders, but also along the borders of the neighboring countries. Russia is extending its tentacles toward Turkey with a promise of cooperation to kill the West’s decision to annex Van, Moush and Erzeroum to our country with an exit on the Black Sea. I would be the happiest man on earth if I were mistaken in my judgment. How else can we explain the new movement in Turkey?”

  As he was getting off the platform, someone from the audience shouted: “Down with the Reds!”

  The return of the survivors to their homes had infuriated Mustapha. He didn’t expect to see so many of them back. So he began to scheme against them. Sempad had been told that Mustapha’s men in the neighboring villages, were all ready to attack the casern. They felt that the Legionnaires’ presence was an insult. The casern was under the command of a young “Aspirant,” who knew nothing of the critical situation and the underground movement against them.

  Sempad’s section had its dormitory on the second floor of the building and was ready to follow him at a given signal. All night, they slept with their rifles and equipment under their blankets. At regular intervals they nudged each other from one end of the line to the other to keep alert. They did this all night awaiting the attack.  Nothing happened. They began to get  tired  and disgusted, when all of a sudden, at daybreak, a volley hit the windows, shattering some of them. 

  Sempad jumped to his feet with his rifle in his hand and calling to his men: “Let’s go!”

 All of his men, throwing their blankets off, jumped to their feet, grabbed their rifles and followed Sempad to the ground floor where they kept hand grenades and cartridges. Helping themselves to what they needed, they rushed out of the casern into the direction of the volleys that kept coming from the other side of the stream about a half mile away.

  Beto whispered: “Be careful Sempo!”

 They both spearheaded the Legionnaires and crossed the stream to the other side where the Turks were fleeing toward a village that was at the foot of the mountain. Sempad and Beto were always together. They pursued the attackers to the outskirts of the village where they disappeared from sight. Suddenly, from nowhere three guerrillas appeared at the back of a house overlooking the stream.

  “Do you see them, Beto?” asked Sempad.

  “Yes!”

  “Let’s aim and wait until I say, fire!”

  They aimed at the guerrillas from behind the bank of the stream, while they were trying to locate them.

  “Fire!” said Sempad.

  “Did you see that?” exclaimed Beto  “We got one! They are dragging him away.”

  “Let’s go and get them all!” said Sempad, excitedly.

  “Do you know we are all alone here?” said Beto, calmly.

  “What do you mean...alone? Where are the boys?”

  “Behind rocks and bushes farther down by the stream.” said Beto, cocking his ears at the same time to the clarion that trumpeted “rassemblement” from the casern.

  “...No sense staying here anymore,” said Sempad.

  “When they got back and crossed the stream, Sergeant Dubois, a tall, husky Legionnaire who had been decorated for valor on the Western Front, stood fearlessly under the fire and said with a smile on his face:

  “What were you doing there all alone Sergeant Sempad?”

  “I wasn’t alone. Beto was with me.”

  He smiled again and said: “Can’t you hear the clarion calling? Let’s go!”

  The Legionnaires came one by one and following Sergeant Dubois entered the courtyard where the “Aspirant” came threateningly forth and shouted at Sempad: “You are the one responsible for all this!”

  “You should congratulate Sergeant Shahnazarian for the work he did. He is the one who assembled his men and brought them back safely.” Said Sergeant Dubois.

  He looked at Dubois, with surprise, and entered his room without uttering a word.

  Sergeant Sempad was with his section on the second floor when the Aspirant came and told his men: “Hand me all the cartridges and grenades that you have.”

  The Legionnaires did not pay any attention to him. They took their orders from Sergeant Sempad. At this time the Turks had come down from the wooded heights and began firing at the casern’s windows. The Aspirant ordered Sergeant Dubois to take a patrol and face the guerrillas. During this operation a Legionnaire was shot. From the second floor, they could hear him shout: “I have been shot! Take me away!” The Legionnaires could not help him under these circumstances without suffering more casualties.

  Considering the situation serious, the Aspirant sent a note to Captain Milon to send Mustapha to stop the guerrillas from firing so they could get the wounded Legionnaire out of the ditch. He came, followed by three of his men, who were armed. With a signal to the attackers, the firing stopped right away and the wounded man was brought in...dead!

  Mustapha, slowly and ceremoniously was on his way back to the town when Sempad thought out loud: “This is the moment!” With the rifle in his hands he ran down the steps into the courtyard. From there he could see four heads above the stone wall. They were moving down slowly, passing the gate going to where they had come from. Sempad, crossing the courtyard, came out of the gate into the street and shouted at Mustapha: “Stop!!! I am Satenik’s brother!!!”

  Alarmed and with his back against the wall, eyes bulging, he gasped violently when Sempad fired at him twice...He collapsed in a puddle of blood.

  Cheers came from the casern.

  Sergeant Shahnazarian reentered the courtyard with his rifle still smoking.

  The Aspirant came out screaming: “You are going to pay for this!”

  The Legionnaires, disregarding the Aspirant’s attitude, gathered around Sempad with wild exclamations, congratulations and handshakes.

  A moment later, Sempad, accompanied by two armed soldiers appeared before Captain Milon. After reading the Aspirant’s note, he said: “What did you do?”

  “I killed him!”

  Sempad noticed a faint smile on his face.

  “Aren’t you ashamed of yourself to shoot an unarmed fellow?”

  “He was armed. He had his pistol and was followed by three of his men who all had rifles in their hands.”  His smile became more perceptible. He entered his office. One could hear an excited conversation going on in there, and the Captain appeared again, saying: “You are not a sharpshooter.”

 “Isn’t he dead?”

  “He is wounded in both shoulders!” 

  Looking at him inquisitively he said: “Do you promise not to run away?”

  “I promise.” He, then showed him into a room next to his and said: “Go in there and stay there!”

  The town was electrified by this action. Groups of people were standing in the streets shaking hands, exhilarated. At night, people climbed the ladder to Sempad’s window, calling: “We are here to save you if your life is in danger. We are all proud of you.” These night visits continued for an entire week making him cry with happiness. How sweet...how wonderful those visits were!

  One morning, Sempad heard someone calling his name from the street.  He rushed to the window as the voice sounded so familiar to him, but unbelievable! He had not heard that voice for over three years. When he looked out of the window he was astonished to see Karekin Yeretzian, his classmate, standing in the street staring at the window. After a moment of staring silently, he began to recite Dante’s inscription upon the entrance to Hell: 
 

“C’est moi qui vois tomber les Légions rebelles,   C’est moi qui vois passer les races criminelles,  C’est par moi qu’on arrive aux douleurs éternelles,  La main qui fit les cieux, mit mes fondements,  Et je dure au-delà des Temps.  Entre qui que tu sois et laisse l’espérance...”

“It is I who sees the rebellious Legions fall, It is I who sees the criminal races pass, It is through me that one arrives at pain eternal, The hand, which made the heavens, made my foundations, And, I endure beyond Time. Enter, whomever you may be, and leave hope behind.”

When he finished it, he said calmly: “Bravo! Sempad. I am trying to go back to Constantinople. I will tell Dikranouhie what you did. She will be proud of you. Good-bye.” He walked away and disappeared from sight.
 

  A week later when Sempad went back to his unit he heard that both of Mustapha’s arms had been amputated.

  Two weeks later, their battalion moved from Eks to Meydan Ekbez.