HON. SERGEANT MAJOR!

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 68, 18 August 1947, Page 5

HON. SERGEANT MAJOR!

SYRIAN MEMORIES LETTERS TO LOCAL EX-KIWI PLEAS FROM IMPOVERISHED ARMENIANS A bevy of letters in the hands of Jack Denham, of Whakatane, are of interest and bring the war days crashing back again to the mind of all who read them. They are carefully written appeals to Jack, then Sergeant Major from Armenians who composed the main body of that organisation known as the P.L.C.O. (Pioneer Labour Corps Organisation) and belong to those hectic days before Alamein when the New Zealand Div. was stationed for some four months in Syria, as a buffer against possible Turkish aggression.

The Kiwis', following in the wake 'of the Australians who had waged the short and decisive Syrian action against Vichy French Forces, were thoroughly enjoying the change from the desert conditions in Egypt. Stationed near Aleppo, the boys from N.Z. found the natives who were mainly Armenians, fully cooperative in any defensive measures likely to be employed against the Turks, their traditional enemies and of whom they stood in the greatest fear.

The job of the Kiwis was to reconstruct all the donkey bridges which usually crossed the streams, and also to mine all strategic roads leading to the Turkish border. The work was arduous and in order to •assist it forward local labour was .recruited from willing bands of waiting natives. What a collection they were' —all types including Arabs, Bedouins and also many husky Armenian girls who could work just as hard as the men, if not harder. They were employed indescriminately on all manual work, in the quarries, on the road formation work, carpentering and plumbing. The letters are addressed from members of this Labour Corps and tell their own story. The first is an appeal from the eleven men employed on the crusher, and the interpreter has been at pains to make .an ingratiating impression. It reads:

Dear Overseer, With this few lines we want to reveal our regrets to you. We eleven workment are in need of bread. Our children are always crying bread. The money we get (we mean the 5 piastres) isn’t enough to keep us from living on. Our children are dying because of hunger. They want bread, nothing else. Five months ago the beginning of our engagement of work, our salaries were five piastres (per hour presumably). At that time the cost of bread was 12 piastres per kilo. But now the same bread costs 32 piastres and we can’t find this bread—we are obliged to buy bread that costs 65 piastres the kilo. We are working not only on crucher but also loading the lorries. Its hard work but we are supporting it cheerfully.

We bag as a daily salary 125 piastres. Please pay attention to our claim and ask for our Sergeant Major for our salaries. We are poor men. Eight of us are skilleds. Overseer, we beg from you to speak with Sergeant Major for your children and death’s sake. Save us from a terrible death. Our claims ar’nt other things but only for bread. It is only for dry bread that makes us and obliges us to cry. We don’t want other things but only bread and bread.

Then follows the signatures of the eleven men concerned, all perfectly formed in the beautiful Armenian script. The Armenians were in those days always on the verge of starvation and looked upon employment by the Army as a windfall which had to be made the most of. Incidentally Armenian artisans were full of initiative and invariably reached a very high standard of workmanship.

The next letter is of a different zflavour.

To my dear Sergeant Major: My son Sarkis Der Bedrosian, has been working in Cairo last week ending work. I am calling to beg from your kindness to permid him to working in job crueller (crusher). Before my transferation in that work there was only thirteen. This time means working. From them two mens are going find another job. Please Sir, consideration very

Your obideind service Nishan Berhadrasian.

A similar request from one Antranig Nounoushian runs as follows: Dear Sergeant Major, With this present letter I Antranig Nounoushian come to ask from Your Highness the following. My father Haroutune Nounoushian hav’nt got any job for two months. You know that it very difficult to live insuch suronstances because everything is very dear. Being seven members in our family, I the eldest and my smaller brother are working. I pray to you please give a job to my father under your hand. If you do this kindness to us you’ll save a family, etc.

Hopping a favourable answer . . . etc. i

The eagerness of the Armenians for employment is pathetic. Almost without exception they were hard, industrious toilers. They also showed a very friendly front to the colonial troops, and the more educated were invariable excellent scholars and linguists. The girls were attractive and intelligent and several Kiwis married or made arrangements to marry members of the better class.

Another letter from Hagop Maghakian shows something of the desperate need for employment when one is aged.

Honourable Sergeant Major, I am coming with my present letter to infoi’m you that I am a poor orphelin (orphan) and obliged to work for my aged mother and brothers. I am your old workman. If you have any labour for me please be kind to give me a strong of recommendation to be able to supply or to find a job in the company of the railway.

The Armenian habit of toadying to those in authority in order to obtain a a favour can be read into the following:

My dear Sergeant Major,

Excuse me to have the daring to write you some lines. This Sunday is one of the greatest Armenian Ester. I wish with all my heart and beg your presence in my house just on the day I have mentioned. This will be a great enthusiasm for me and my family. I don’t know for sure if you are engaged on Sunday and at what o’clock. You may come at noon or at night. Free choise. You are free to bring with you one of your friends and the soldier who works with me. Please accept my humble invitation. Nichan (foreman).

Nichan appears to be a man of parts for he follows up the invitation by a letter a few days after which makes it perfectly clear that the ‘Ester’ was staged for the purpose of what is commonly known as ‘sweetening’ the dear Sergeant Major, and preparing' him for the next round, which was likely to be strongly in Nichan’s favour—or was it?

Here it is

My dear Sergeant Major:

I have the honour to represent you my thanks that by your means I have had a good business and since seven months I am trying with quite honest and faithfulness as a foreman of the Labouress of quarry. During winter time under rain and snows and now under hot sunshine I am keeping the same conduct. And now by this mean I am making 150 piastres could be sufficient to keep my family in good condition which is composed of five members, if the subsistenances had not been so dear. Consequently I would beg you by this letter that since the means of living are so dear and the money I receive daily is not sufficient for such a family I will hope that you have the kindness to augment the quantity of my reward by which I would be contented with you and I am your obliged servant. Nichan Bedrossian.

P.C. Please Dear Sergeant Major, write some lines to labour office concerning about augmentation of my daily salary. N.B.

Although pilfering was comparatively rare, a strict vigilance was maintained on all Army property. Gear of all kinds was carefully checked and any native found wearing portion of military equipment was expected to give a prompt explanation or receive a severe penalty. The next letter concerns a military mackintosh which was seen on the person of a certain Dick Koutoujioy (however that is pronounced), and consists of Dicks written explanation of the matter. It is

interesting in that it gives an insight into the peculiar workings of the Eastern mind with regard the petty jealousies which arose from the fancied favouritism of one of their number. Thus the letter: My Dear Sergeant Major, Excuse me for bothering you with this letter. I come herewith to give you some information about the mackintosh that you asked me to bring and show you. Twenty-one days ago when I was fixing the frame of Lieut Cole’s auto it was raining heavily. Lieut Cole’s driver saw me working under the rain and pittied on me and brought a mackintosh and gave it to me as a present in the presence of Mr Mie and workers of the shop. That’s all.

The story from the other side is this: (a) My fellow workers seeing the possibility of an increase in my wages are jealous of me and try always to find some faults or create them and make a complaint against me. (b) Their jealousy is transmuted into hatred when I tried to forbid them to build personal boxes without the permission of our chief. I should ask you to see these boxes and at the same time the mackintoshes which others have got. No one knows from where. As to my conduct I enclose my military ‘good conduct’ certificate showing that during three years of my military service I have' been very honest.

I should be very much obliged if the abovementioned are thought avise to be considered. Excuse me for troubling you so much.