Hide Article Text (OCR)
»ILouis Chanen Tells Story Of His Life to Rotations.........— ■■■■■i!Ii1I“In the Hictin of youththwe no inch word^^^^H•fail.”Lou it- Chanen. one time Russian immigrant, now past president of Rotary, past post commander of the American Legion at Independence, la, came to Burlington, his first American home, yesterday and told Burlington Rotarians a story. It was the story of Russian poverty and cruelty, of unwinding yards of red tape, of everlasting etick-to-itiveness, of not possessing in his vocabulary the word fall.”Mi. Chanen, born in a small Rus-fcian village some 900 miles from the great port of Riga, of hard-working oppressed parents, denied the right to attend school, meagerly educated by his father, starting out to make his way in the world at the age of eight, finally “discovered America a land where a man is rated for what he is and what he does and Is given a chance to do.” He came, found a Job. traveled about “seeing the country and working. Incidentally he never asked what the salary or wage would be, merely if he could work. Then came the World war. He enlisted “to give, if necessary, the life this country had made worth living, for the country.” He served more than a year in France. He returned, w*as mustered cut. heard of the terrifying conditions In Russia, determined to go and bring back his mother and sister and brothers and re unite the family in Burling--ton.A Long Batti.He found Miss Dora Weinstein and others willing to help. The services of Judge Kenyon, then United States Jenator from Iowa and Congressman W F Kopp were enlisted. He secured a passport against great odds but could find no ship clearing from New York that would take a passenger bound for Russia. He bribed a capIfitain of a Spanish trarnp-stearner totake h:m across the Atlantic 'anyplace”He was landed at Madrid. Spain-Then followed an Odyssey; wanderings through Italy. France, persistent pleading at the United States con-£ulates and embassies, kindnesses but no real help. Daily visits to the Swedish legation at Paris until he persuaded the representative of the Swedish crown to give him a passport to Sweden. After more wanderings he reached there, chartered a tug to smuggle him into the port of Riga. He flt; and starvation on every hand, forty below zero, mothers, standing In the snow nursing naked babies.” Making his way to his native village he found his mother and family had been driyen out and scattered from Riga to the Volga, into the heart of Siberia. Another long search, a reunited family, the escape from Russia but refusal to issue American passports for the entire family to come to this country.Wins Over Secretarj HughesThen followed serious illness and the return. Burlington friends again tried to help. Finally an interview with Chief Justice Hughes, then secretary of state, was secured, and Lou:s Chanen made the plea of his life, won the respect, sympathy and admiration of the great statesman and. “three days later Congressman Kopp telegraphed that the passports were issued.”The family came together in Burlington and the story ends like a good fairy tale, they lived happy eversince.”The dramatic tale is In much demand. Mr. Chanen’s was the outstanding address of the recent district Rotary convention and he has several other invitations to speak “but it makes me the happiest to come here to Burlington and tell you men my story,” he says.t!1til
Newspaper Details
Burlington Hawk Eye
Burlington, Iowa, US
Tue, May 27, 1930
Page 5
Full Page
Clipped by
Little D.
MO, USA 23 Feb 2020
Other Publications Near Burlington, Iowa
Mississippi Posten
Burlington Weekly Hawk Eye and Telegraph
Iowa State Gazette
Burlington Weekly Hawk Eye
Burlington Tri Weekly Telegraph
