Elias Henry Jones
The Road to En-Dor: Being an Account of How Two Prisoners of War at Yozgad in Turkey Won Their Way to Freedom
eBook
( March 2, 2019)
"Unforgettable…a true story of heroism, of magic and of madness." -The Guardian, 2014
"Absorbing. There is no book like it." -The Weekly Review, 1920
"The book reads like a wild romance, but is authenticated in every detail." -The Builder, 1920
"Awesome!! An incredible true story about two World War I prisoners of War who plan to escape from the hell hole they have been forced into." -GeekTyrant, 2008
"A remarkable tale of escape … Jones’s account would seem extraordinary if it hadn’t been verified by his fellow prisoners." - DJ Cockburn, 2018
Highly as he may esteem the art of fiction, every novel-reader has experienced the relief of stepping now and again into the free air of the “true story.” It is like opening a door out of a hothouse into a garden. But few readers of Elias Henry Jones' 1920 book “The Road to En-dor” would realize on their own that the book is indeed a true story--because there simply is no other true story like it.
Jones was a lieutenant in the British forces captured by the Turks at Kut-el-Amara in 1916, and was among the survivors of the brutal crosscountry march which landed the survivors in prison at Yozgad, 300 miles in the interior.
Escape from any prison camp in Turkey was difficult. From Yozgad it was regarded as practically impossible. However, using Ouija boards, séances, mentalist scams, poltergeist effects, Jones partnered with C.W. Hill as fellow-spookers in a daring plan to escape the Turkish punishment camp.
The plan was to make the Turkish authorities at Yozgad their unconscious accomplices. They intended to implicate the highest Turkish authority in the place in their escape, to obtain clear and convincing proof that he was implicated, and to leave that proof in the hands of fellow-prisoners before disappearing. It would then be clearly to the Commandant’s interest to conceal the fact of their escape from the authorities at Constantinople.
As Jones notes in introducing his book, "There is a good deal about spiritualism in this book because the method adopted by us to regain our liberty happened to be that of spiritualism. The book is simply an account of how Lieutenant Hill and I got back to England. The incidents may seem strange or even preposterous to the reader, but I venture to remind him that they are known to many of our fellow prisoners of war whose names are given in the text, and at whose friendly instigation this book has been written."
Regarding a "treasure hunt" he convinced the Turkish authorities to undertake, Jones writes:
"A treasure-hunt has a glamour of its own in the most material surroundings. A treasure-hunt under the guidance of a Spook ought to be a stunt beyond price. It only remained to prove that the Spook could find things and the Turk would be on the string.…
"The time had come to risk everything on a single throw. 'Let me tell you, then,' I said. 'You are going to ask me to find for you a treasure, buried by a murdered Armenian of Yozgad. You want me to do so by the aid of Spirits. And you are prepared to offer me a reward.' The Commandant leant back in his chair, in mute astonishment, staring at me…."
Although the book reads like a wild adventure novel, it was authenticated in every detail by fellow-officers and official documents. The Turkish governor was actually court-martialed for his part in a treasure hunt instituted by the “spook.”
By means of skilful manipulation of the ouija board and by very clever acting, the author and his companion, C. W. Hill, would prevail over Englishman and Turk alike, until at last they achieved their ultimate goal of freedom.
About the author:
Lieutenant Elias Henry Jones (1883 –1942) was a Welsh officer in the Indian Army who, together with Australian C. W. Hill, escaped from the Yozgad prisoner of war camp in Turkey during the First World War. A film adaptation of The Road to En-dor is in development written by Neil Gaiman and Penn Jillette.
"Absorbing. There is no book like it." -The Weekly Review, 1920
"The book reads like a wild romance, but is authenticated in every detail." -The Builder, 1920
"Awesome!! An incredible true story about two World War I prisoners of War who plan to escape from the hell hole they have been forced into." -GeekTyrant, 2008
"A remarkable tale of escape … Jones’s account would seem extraordinary if it hadn’t been verified by his fellow prisoners." - DJ Cockburn, 2018
Highly as he may esteem the art of fiction, every novel-reader has experienced the relief of stepping now and again into the free air of the “true story.” It is like opening a door out of a hothouse into a garden. But few readers of Elias Henry Jones' 1920 book “The Road to En-dor” would realize on their own that the book is indeed a true story--because there simply is no other true story like it.
Jones was a lieutenant in the British forces captured by the Turks at Kut-el-Amara in 1916, and was among the survivors of the brutal crosscountry march which landed the survivors in prison at Yozgad, 300 miles in the interior.
Escape from any prison camp in Turkey was difficult. From Yozgad it was regarded as practically impossible. However, using Ouija boards, séances, mentalist scams, poltergeist effects, Jones partnered with C.W. Hill as fellow-spookers in a daring plan to escape the Turkish punishment camp.
The plan was to make the Turkish authorities at Yozgad their unconscious accomplices. They intended to implicate the highest Turkish authority in the place in their escape, to obtain clear and convincing proof that he was implicated, and to leave that proof in the hands of fellow-prisoners before disappearing. It would then be clearly to the Commandant’s interest to conceal the fact of their escape from the authorities at Constantinople.
As Jones notes in introducing his book, "There is a good deal about spiritualism in this book because the method adopted by us to regain our liberty happened to be that of spiritualism. The book is simply an account of how Lieutenant Hill and I got back to England. The incidents may seem strange or even preposterous to the reader, but I venture to remind him that they are known to many of our fellow prisoners of war whose names are given in the text, and at whose friendly instigation this book has been written."
Regarding a "treasure hunt" he convinced the Turkish authorities to undertake, Jones writes:
"A treasure-hunt has a glamour of its own in the most material surroundings. A treasure-hunt under the guidance of a Spook ought to be a stunt beyond price. It only remained to prove that the Spook could find things and the Turk would be on the string.…
"The time had come to risk everything on a single throw. 'Let me tell you, then,' I said. 'You are going to ask me to find for you a treasure, buried by a murdered Armenian of Yozgad. You want me to do so by the aid of Spirits. And you are prepared to offer me a reward.' The Commandant leant back in his chair, in mute astonishment, staring at me…."
Although the book reads like a wild adventure novel, it was authenticated in every detail by fellow-officers and official documents. The Turkish governor was actually court-martialed for his part in a treasure hunt instituted by the “spook.”
By means of skilful manipulation of the ouija board and by very clever acting, the author and his companion, C. W. Hill, would prevail over Englishman and Turk alike, until at last they achieved their ultimate goal of freedom.
About the author:
Lieutenant Elias Henry Jones (1883 –1942) was a Welsh officer in the Indian Army who, together with Australian C. W. Hill, escaped from the Yozgad prisoner of war camp in Turkey during the First World War. A film adaptation of The Road to En-dor is in development written by Neil Gaiman and Penn Jillette.
- Pages
- 208
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