03 Fred Douglas Shepard

Chapter 3 FRED DOUGLAS SHEPARD

ONE of the blackest pages in the history of the world is the story of the massacre, soon after the outbreak of the Great War, of hundreds of thousands of Armenians men, women, and children and the death from starvation, along the roadside, of hundreds of thousands more who were driven from their homes. For thirty years Germany had courted Turkey, for the sake of securing the latter’s assistance in the great war that was being planned with a view to German domination of the world. Did not Turkey control the Dardanelles? For through the Dardanelles munitions and other supplies must be sent into Russia by the Allies, except in the warmer months, when the waters within the Arctic circle were navigable. If Russia were to receive supplies at all, beyond the comparatively meager amount which could be transported over the Trans-Siberian railway, the supplies must pass through the Dardanelles. Was not the Sultan the head of Mohammedanism? And if he could be persuaded to declare a " holy war," would not millions of Moslem’s rise up to smite the enemies of Islam? Would not an uprising in India and Egypt so terrify Great Britain, and so wreck British colonial policies, as to shatter the power of the English? Would not Britain quickly withdraw from participation in the war if she were threatened with such an uprising in her colonies?

Nothing seemed clearer in German strategy than the bold stroke which resulted, in November, 1914, in the proclamation by the Sheikh-ul-Islam, calling on Mohammedans everywhere to slay Christians. The proclamation had been worded so as to exclude Germans and Austrians, and it was distributed stealthily in all Mohammedan lands. But even the plain people asked why they were commanded to slay Christians while they were claiming Christian nations, Germany and Austria, as friends, and were fighting for them. In consequence, Germany failed in her attempt to release 300,000,000 Mohammedans against the Allies.

Early in 1915, a certain stalwart American journeyed from Aintab to Constantinople, fully five hundred miles, to assure the Turkish Government of the loyalty of the Armenians in the province of Aleppo, where atrocities had been committed, and to intercede in their behalf. This American was Dr. Fred Douglas Shepard, who for thirty-two years had done much to relieve suffering among the Armenians and to exemplify a gospel of love. Many persons had come almost to worship him. He knew the hearts of the people of Aleppo Province and was able to assure the Turkish Government of their loyalty in the prosecution of the war, but his efforts were of no avail. The atrocities continued. Meanwhile, Dr. Shepard remained near Constantinople, taking charge of the Red Cross Division of the hospital at Tash Kishla, where streams of wounded Turkish soldiers from Gallipoli were treated.

What had been the upbringing and the training of a man who could take so highminded a view of duty? His early life seems like that of many other sturdy young Americans.

Fred Douglas Shepard was born in the little town of Ellenburgh, New York, close to the Adirondacks. While still very young, his family moved to Malone, New York, some twenty-five miles westward; and here his youth was spent. He always loved the woods and the mountains, and while still a boy, he made close friends of two famous hunters with whom he delighted to go into the wilds. When he was a young man, he enjoyed camping alone in the mountains for two or three weeks at a time. This love for the out-of-doors remained with him throughout his life, and in Turkey, when the sick people entreated help until hand and head were unsteady, he found relief by going for a day to the streams and hills, with his rod and gun, which he had learned to use so well in boyhood. His father died when the lad was thirteen years of age, and a large part of the responsibility for the family fell on his young shoulders, since his mother was an invalid and his brother was in poor health. The two sisters could do but little to help. His father, a lumberman, had been defrauded by a partner in the business of a saw-mill. The consequent poverty of the family made it necessary for Fred to work at his uncle’s grist-mill, but he managed to secure considerable schooling, and in time he entered Cornell University where he " worked his way ’ for two years. Part of his expenses he earned by harvesting apples. When he decided to study medicine, he went to the University of Michigan, dependent still upon his own effort. During his first summer there, he worked as a carpenter on a new building. Another summer he worked on a farm near Ann Arbor. The old farmer looked down on the young man, who was only five feet and four inches in stature, and asked, "What can you do? " Young Shepard replied, " If in two weeks any man working for you can do more than I, do not pay me anything." Though small, he was physically powerful, and in later years he often surprised the people of Turkey with his strength. He could pick up almost any patient in his hospital and carry him from the operating-table to a ward, a useful feat where assistants were not numerous.

Upon graduation from the medical school of the University of Michigan, he gave a year to the special study of the eye, under Dr. Herman Knapp, to whose memory the Knapp Memorial Hospital in New York City is dedicated. Although he had joined the Baptist church in Malone, when he was twenty years of age, he was appointed to foreign mission service by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. Before sailing for Turkey, he was married to Miss Fanny Perkins Andrews, whose parents had been missionaries in the Sandwich Islands. The two had met in the medical school at Ann Arbor. The marriage proved to be an exceedingly happy one in every respect, for both were physicians and both were real missionaries.

Dr. and Mrs. Shepard sailed for Turkey in 1882, and landed at Alexandretta. About one hundred miles northeast was the city of Aintab, where the Azariah Smith Memorial Hospital was already established, and there the new appointees were to assist in the medical department of Central Turkey College. But they were destined to give the greater part of their time to direct medical work in the hospital, which was the only institution of its kind within an area twice as large as New England. The two doctors found multitudes of sick persons awaiting their help, suffering from all manner of diseases. Eye troubles were very common, and the special training under Dr. Knapp proved of great value to Dr. Shepard, immediately upon reaching the field of his labors. He reserved the hospital almost exclusively for surgical cases, but he treated whatever came along. At first the Mohammedans said Dr. Shepard had come to Turkey because he could earn more money there than in America; that he must be very rich, too, since he owned a fine horse and lived in a large house. A Mohammedan priest, however, argued that, had the doctor remained in America, he would have earned ten times the amount of his salary as a missionary. He explained the doctor’s hard work in Turkey on the theory that he was seeking to save his own soul; that he had made a vow, or had committed some sin for which he sought to make atonement by leaving his native land. A patient who had just been treated by the doctor then spoke up and told the priest that he and the others were mistaken; that another inmate of the hospital who had been there two months had explained it all in these words: " These Americans and their Armenian helpers have a strange way of talking about Hazreti Eesa (Jesus of Nazareth). He seems to be their master, and they act as if he cared for us." The patient added that while his wife was at the hospital, he went there every day and found out something for himself about Hazreti Eesa. He had been given a copy of a Gospel which explained Dr. Shepard’s motive. In conclusion he gave his audience this advice: ’ If you want to know the real reason why Dr. Shepard and these other Americans come to Turkey, you must read that book."

Every few years the cholera appeared in Aintab. Dr. Shepard himself had it once. The medical missionaries gave public lectures, instructing the people to use only boiled water and to eat no uncooked food. The mission press cooperated, and printed advice was distributed freely. The results were very striking. The Christians who heeded the advice suffered little in comparison with the Mohammedans. A Turk asked Dr. Shepard: ’ Does God spread his wing over the Christians, so that they do not die from cholera like the Turks? ’ The doctor explained that the Turks in general were too stubborn to be willing to be taught the simple rules which many of the Christians had observed.

Dr. Shepard was strong in mind and heart as well as in body, and he was absolutely fearless, whether dealing with spirited steeds or with Kurdish highwaymen. At the same time, he was tenderly sympathetic; he made the people feel that he cared for them in their trouble; that his first interest was in them rather than in any program of his Mission or triumph of his denomination. He made them feel that, whatever their station, they could get whatever he had to give. He identified himself with the people, uniting with an Armenian Evangelical church, in which he served (he did not attempt to direct), in an unpretentious way, as a deacon.

Although time and strength were given largely to direct hospital service, some excellent results were secured in the medical school, until that department of the college was closed on account of lack of funds. While numerous young men were trained in the four classes that were graduated, several of his students have been notably successful. One of them, Dr. Habib Nazarian, was, for more than thirty years, the leading Armenian physician in Aintab. It has been well said, " His influence was the most direct, wholesome, personal force in the life of the community for a generation." The other is Dr. A. A. Altounyan, the most skilful surgeon in Aleppo, the capital of North Syria, a city of 200,000 people. Dr. Altounyan has made frequent visits to Europe for post-graduate study, and he has built a hospital of his own which is far superior to the Mission institutions. This is as it should be. The native forces in every land should be expected to do a larger work than is possible for the foreign missionary, and he is wisest who trains native leaders to go far beyond their missionary instructors. Both of these native doctors are active Christians, influential citizens, and members of the Board of Managers of Central Turkey College.

Dr. Shepard toured the country, possibly more than any other missionary in Turkey, sometimes needing as many as three horses in a year. When in haste, he would go through the most desolate sections, in order to avoid towns where he would have been required to stop five or six hours " to clean up cases brought on the spur of the moment." Although the roads were infested with bandits, he rode day or night as occasion might require, and he seldom carried arms. He was fond of hunting, however, and it was well known that he could shoot straight and that he brought down bears, wild boars, and deer. The only time Dr. Shepard ever suffered at the hands of highwaymen was when he engaged in relief work after the terrible massacres of 1908. Jemal Pasha, the governor of Adana Province, had appointed him chairman of a committee of three to have charge of the rebuilding of destroyed villages in a mountain district. Usually he carried in his saddle-bags large sums with which to pay the laborers, but this time he had little money with him, and therefore he was attended by only one servant. As he was going down a steep, narrow road in the mountains, leading his horse, he heard his servant exclaim, " Don’t come here. I’ll shoot you’ Turning, he saw two Kurds charging down hill on the servant and several others approaching. The servant was about to shoot one of the Kurds when the doctor threw them apart. The other Kurd knocked Dr. Shepard down with the butt of his gun. The missionary happened to be unarmed that day. The Kurds took their captives to the woods and held them there, while they attacked all others passing that way and robbed them. They could release none of their prisoners until the close of the day, lest other travelers be warned of their presence. Finally an Armenian peddler, who knew Dr. Shepard well, was added to the colony of captives. Turning upon the Kurds he said: " Now you have done it! You can rob any one else you please, and escape, but you can’t rob Dr. Shepard and go unpunished." The Armenian’s remarks had a very disquieting effect on Dr. Shepard, for he feared he now would be put out of the way immediately by the leader of the bandits, a ruffian named Abtino, who was known as the most desperate outlaw of the region. He had twenty murders to his credit, and he added three more within the next two days. Once the Government sent a regiment after him but failed to find him. Why Abtino did not kill Dr. Shepard, whom he seemed not to recognize until heckled by the Armenian, cannot be surmised, unless he remembered that once, when he was wounded, he had been treated by Dr. Shepard at the hospital. Possibly a spark of gratitude flashed in his breast for a moment. At nightfall the doctor and his servant were given their horses and were permitted to go their way.

Dr. Shepard telegraphed the governor, who ordered an army officer to take as many men as he needed and capture Abtino. In seventeen days Abtino was taken, and after being identified by Dr. Shepard, he was hanged. On another occasion he outwitted two Circassian robbers who were well mounted and whose steeds promised to overtake his own. Reaching a turn in the road, he took advantage of his disappearance, for a moment, from the view of his pursuers, and led his horse aside, behind a group of trees. A few moments later the Circassians dashed by in hot pursuit, whereupon Dr. Shepard retraced his steps and took another road to Aintab.

Mrs. Shepard was a botanist as well as a physician, and in Turkey she discovered several flowers and plants that had never been described in any botanical work. Once when she saw, on a high ledge of rock, a certain flower which she wished to examine closely, her husband climbed up the face of the precipice as far as he could, and then, with his revolver, he shot down the plant which his hands could not reach. Mrs. Shepard was also deeply interested in the most practical forms of social service, despite the demands made on her time by her children, two daughters and one son, all of whom are now in missionary service. At the time of one of the famines, she encouraged the women of Aintab to do needlework, which was sold for them in America. Until then, there was little remunerative work for them, except reeling cotton for the hand looms, where their wages were small from three to five cents a day. Thousands of women in Aintab alone have learned to do this needlework, and the industry has spread over the country. Native dealers took it up, and women now are able to command better wages for other kinds of work, since learning how to earn far more with their needles than they had ever been paid for such labor in other days.

Anything to enable the people to secure food in the terrible days of famine in Turkey was an unspeakable blessing. In 1888, Dr. Shepard wrote to America:

" We reached this place yesterday, after having spent three days traveling about the northern part of the great Adana plain. It was a sad sight, this great, fertile plain as deserted and desolate as Sahara. Village after village was completely deserted, or had a single family left in it to guard it. Very little had been sown or planted, and what little had been was dried up from the root. Arrived at Adana, we found the mission house besieged by crowds of hungry women with their starving infants at their breasts. I hope the good people at home will give from their plenty to feed these starving bodies. In the providence of God it will be instrumental in feeding many starving souls as well." The work at the Azariah Smith Memorial Hospital at Aintab developed amazingly, with a staff of two American physicians, three Armenian doctors, a superintendent and head nurse, six other nurses, a chaplain, a cook, and numerous servants. The total number of out-patients in a year was 5,492, three fourths of whom had nothing whatever with which to pay for the care given them. The annual major operations averaged five hundred. An average of more than two hundred and fifty persons visited the hospital every day Turks, Armenians, Greeks, Jews, Arabs and others. The chemist compounded 20,000 prescriptions in a year, and the physicians registered 54,208 visits to patients at the hospital and outside during the same period. Added to this was the religious work (if there is a line of distinction) done by the chaplain, the missionaries, and the others. In 1907, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the coming of Dr. and Mrs. Shepard to Aintab was appropriately celebrated. The exercises had been announced for October 19, but a telegraphic demand for medical help came from Aleppo, and the Doctor hastened to respond, remarking, " That patient’s life is worth more than all this celebration." So the exercises were postponed a week, when the First Church in Aintab, which accommodates more than 3,000 persons, was crowded with an audience composed of representatives of all the nationalities and all the religions of the land, while many others stood outside, listening through the open windows. The speakers recognized the truly great service which had been rendered by Dr. and Mrs. Shepard, and all of them alluded to the gift which had been made to Turkey by one who might have earned a large fortune, had he used his skill for his own benefit. Mrs. Shepard’s labors for the industrial improvement of the women of the province were also recalled. It was estimated that through her efforts the annual income of the women of Aintab alone had been increased more than $35,000. In response to the numerous eulogies, Dr. Shepard made a very simple address which revealed the real spirit of the man. He said in part:

"If one who did not know me had listened to what has been said about me during the last two hours, he would think that Dr. Shepard must be some great man; but you and I know that it is not so. A farmer’s son, I grew up as an orphan. I finished school with great difficulty. I have not marked intellectual ability. Yet this great gathering on a busy week-day afternoon must have a reason. I know that this reason is not I myself. It is one greater than I am - God and his love. For one who knows how God loves men and how; Jesus has saved us, not to tell others about his love is impossible. Because I have understood a little of that love, I try to let others know about it. This is the purpose of my life. I did not come to this country to make money or to win a reputation. I came to bear witness to this, that God is love. And if, by my work or life, I have been able to show this to you, I have had my reward, and for it I thank God." In the autumn of 1914, Turkey’s response to Germany’s overtures resulted quickly in great wailing and lamentation among the Armenians. The suffering of the people was almost crushing in its effect on Dr. Shepard, who was ever a man of peace. With reference to the countless harrowing atrocities which followed he wrote:

" It looks as if there were a settled plan to destroy the Armenians, but in such a way as to avoid the hue and cry that would follow another massacre." In the autumn of 1914, while at the seacoast on business, he wrote that he could hardly endure the thought of returning to Aintab and facing again the terrible conditions there, unless some way were found to give larger relief to the suffering creatures of that community. In the early days of the massacre of the Armenians in 1914, Jemal Pasha, military governor of the region around Aintab, was able to prevent deportation from that section, but after a time he was transferred to another post. Dr. Shepard visited Jemal Pasha’s successor, hoping to influence him in the direction of leniency towards the poor people. As he was not successful with the local governor, he next made the long journey to Constantinople to see what could be done at the capital of the Empire. As already related, he did his utmost to assure the Government of the loyalty of the Christian people of Aleppo Province, but a policy of extermination had been adopted, and his pleadings were in vain. He had a hard summer, ministering to the wounded Turkish soldiers in the hospital near Constantinople, and when autumn came, it seemed wise for him to return to Aintab, where his wife had remained.

After a few weeks at Aintab, weakened in body and mind by the suffering he had witnessed, and by his inability to do anything effective to save the Armenians from deportation, Dr. Shepard succumbed to an attack of typhus fever and passed away in December, 1915. With the community terrorized as it was and with the population reduced by reason of the atrocities committed, there was not given to the people the opportunity to express, in a public way, their appreciation of the noble services of one of the noblest men who ever lived in Turkey. When the life and work of such a man as Fred Douglas Shepard are reviewed in the light of the turmoil in Turkey for many decades, it is easy to accept the remark attributed to Viscount Bryce, formerly British Ambassador to the United States, that the only international influence which has ever helped Turkey, has been American teachers and American missionaries.