THE MIRACLE A True Story anyone in his path, he reached the place where the family gold was hidden. With a dexterity that would have aroused the envy of the most experienced burglar, he wrapped the gold in a piece of cloth and pushed it into his trouser pocket.    Then, employing exactly the same tactic as when he had entered the house, he went back downstairs, threw away the stick and sidled towards the door into the garden. It was at this moment that one of the demonstrators recognised him and shouted: "Get him! He's a giavour!"    Sideris tried to get out through the door but four Turks who were close by jumped on him and started beating and kicking him, using their hands and feet and any object they happened to be holding.    Sideris tried desperately to make use of the narrow space which did not allow his attackers much room for manoeuvre. Summoning all his strength, he pushed two of them away and rushed out into the garden before they could catch him. In a moment the Turks were in hot pursuit, shouting and swearing. One of them who could run faster than the others managed to catch up with him and lunged at him, dragging him to the ground. Sideris tried to struggle up, but the other three chasing him also pounced on him. All four went berserk, beating him up savagely; but as they were out of breath from the chase Sideris once again managed to get away from them and headed in the direction of the police station.    Helped by the fact that he was familiar with every inch of the garden, Sideris succeeded in making off into the darkness. His whole body was racked with pain as though it had been punctured by a thousand needles and his nose and mouth were bleeding.    The four Turks who were after him charged about the garden like mad bulls, shouting wildly. The instinct for self-preservation told him he should stay still for a few minutes, and so he stood like a statue leaning up against the trunk of a tree. He could hear the footsteps and shouting of the Turks who were chasing him very close. After a while, he bent down and started to crawl slowly along the ground, making sure not to make the slightest sound that would give him away. His persecutors seemed to be further away now. With a supreme effort, he dragged himself towards garden gate. Then his blood froze in his veins.    At the exit near the police station he could make out a number of figures walking slowly about. In despair, he thought the rioters must have closed off the exit beside the police station as well, that they were planning to loot Christian homes by breaking down the back gate into the garden. Then it dawned on him that the four figures in front of the police station were none other than his parents and his brother and sister. Gathering what little strength he had left, he stood up and ran over to join them. When they had recovered from their surprise, his mother crossed herself and said: "Thank God! That was a very stupid thing to do!"    Soon the whole family was inside the police station, along with several other Christians who had also sought refuge there. The Turkish chief constable kept them there until the early morning of 7th September, 1955.    It took about six hours for the organised plan for the total destruction of property belonging to the Greeks in Constantinople to be carried out. By midnight, when the well-organised gangs had just about completed their task, the Turkish government was kind enough to impose martial law in a city that was by now engulfed in flames. The plan had been singularly successful. Almost all Greek property had been destroyed. The Greek population was 67 and 68 Leonidas Koumakis THE MIRACLE A True Story If you prefer a hard copy of the book, please send an email to HEC-Books@hec.greece.org Previous Page | Initial Page | Site Map | Next Page (69th of 204) © For Internet 2001 HEC and Leonidas Koumakis. Updated on 19 June 2001.