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[Page 53]
16.1.19
Having gone ashore & travelled around the best part of the town found to be fairly clean the British having cleaned up after the dirty & filthy condition the Turks left it. It has only one beautiful building viz. the Cathedral which is of a very superior architecture with lovely lofty spires. The Inhabitants seemed more at ease with the British troops. The places of amusements Circus, Picture Show & Dance Halls opened after being closed for months. Several large German shops were closed down & having few stocks left. The large shops seemed deserted. We witnessed some parts of the town that had been shelled & the houses badly shattered near the wharf. A Russian general was shot by a British Sentry for refusing to halt when ordered & the General obstinately pulled out his revolver, so was shot fatally.
17.1.19
We embarked this day. British released prisnors of war also some Turkish officers detained & sent back to Constantinople, also Delegates from Armenia & the State of Georgia, Turkey & Russia respectively. They are en route to Paris for to consult the Allies re their independence from Turkey & Russia. Some of these are at my table dining & the Armenian Delegate who speaks English fluently told me that about 800,000 Armenians were massacared by the Turks during the time the Armenian males of under 45 years of age were fighting for Turkey. They were forced to go