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On Horseback Through Asia Minor.

By CAPTAIN FRIiU ItlKSABl.

This Number contains a Complete Story, Unchanged and Unabridged.

Yol. XXIII. ISSZlill

GEORGE MUNRO, PUBLISHER,

Nos. 17 to 27 Vandewater Street, New York.

13opcents! No. 448

Copyright, 1878, by Gborgb Munro.

On Horseback Through Asia Minor.

'-^5

By CAPTAIN FRED BTJRNABY,

Author of " A Ride to Khiva " etcetc.

Preface.

It has been said that a man often writes* his
book first, his preface last The author of this
work is no exception to the general rule.
These volumes contain an account-of a journey
on horseback through Asia Minor. I was five
months in that country, and traversed a district
extending over 2,000 miles. My limited leave
-of absence prevented me from staying more
than a few days at the important towns which
lay on the route.

Although unable to learn so much as was to
be desired of the ways and mode of life of the
various inhabitants of Anatolia, I had the op-
portunity ©f talking to every class of society
witfc reference to the questions of the day—the
Conference, and the impending war with Rus-
sia. Pachas, farmers, peasants, all of them
Jiad something to say about these subjects.

I met people of many different races: Turks,
Armenians, Greeks, Turkomans, Circassians,
. Kurds, and Persians. They almost invariably
received me very hospitably.

The remarks which were made by the Mo-
hammedans about the Christians, and by the
Armenians about the Turks and Russians, some-
times interested me. I have thought that they
might interest the public.

The impression formed in my own mind as
to the probable result of the war between Rus-
sia and Turkey was decidedly unfavorable to
the latter power. Since this work has been
written the soldiers of the Crescent have gal-
lantly withstood their foe. My reasons for
^riving at the above-mentionbd opinion will
be found in this volume. They merely contain
a, sort of verbal photograph—if the reader will
allow me to use the expression—of what I saw
and heard during the journey.

A few official reports, referring to the treat-
ment of the members of the united Greek
Christians by the Russian authorities will be
seen in the Appendices, and amongst other
matter a document brought to England by two
•Circassian chiefs. It relates to the invasion of
Circassia by the Russians. There are also some
march routes and descriptions of various dis-
tricts, taken and translated from different mili-
tary works.	THE AUTHOR.

.Somerby Hall, Leicestershire,

September, 1877.

Preface to the Seventh Edition.

In page 59 of this work, written , twelve
months ago, will be found the following lines:
" The Tzar has thrown down the gauntlet to
England by taking action on his own part
against the Sultan. We should accept the
challenge and draw our swords for Turkey."
A year has elapsed since these sentences were
penned. England did not declare war. The
Russian forces have marched almost to the gates
of Constantinople: the Treaty of Berlin has
been the result.

By this treaty Roumania has been rewarded
for her conduct in saving the honor of the
Tzar's forces and enabling them to take Plevna,
by having to give back to his Majesty the Em-
peror of Russia that portion of the territory of
Bessarabia* which was taken from Russia un-
der the Treaty of Paris, 1856. The Sublime
Porte cedes to the Russian Empire, in Asia,
the territories of Ardahan, Kars, and Batoum,
with the port of Batoum. f The provinces of
Bosnia and Herzegovina^ are to be occupied
and administered by Austro-Hungary.

The Tzar, who solemnly assured Lord Au-
gustus Loftus, in an interview in Livadia, that
he made this war merely for the sake of the
Christians in the East, has again shown the
world how little reliance can be plaoed upon a
Muscovite sovereign's word of honor. Not
one drop of English blood has been shed.
Peace has been brought back to us by our
plenipotentiaries from'the Congress of Berlin.

But is it to be a durable peace? This
is the question which now occupies
men's minds. We may rest assured of
one thing, which is that it will last till Rus-
sia has had time to collect herself for another
effort, and no longer. The losses incurred
directly and indirectly by the Muscovites dur-
ing the late war will probably keep them quiet
in Europe for the next five years—in Central
Asia perhaps for two. In the meantime the
Russian agents, who have been doing their best
to sow disaffection amongst the Bulgarians, will
find fresh occupation in Armenia. Great Brit-
ain, by her convention with the Sultan, is
bound to protect his Asiatic dominions, pro-

* See Article 45 of Treaty of Bei'lin.

t See Article'$8 of Treaty of Berlin.

i See Article yfrof Treaty of Berlin.

vided he carries otit certain reforms and governs

his subjects with justice. It will be the object
of the Russian Government to prevent the Sul-
tan carrying out his share of the contract.
Agents from Erivan and Ardahan will be con-
stantly trying to stir up enmity between the
Kurds and the Armenians. We may hear of
Armenian girls carried away from their homes
by Kurdish chieftains who are subjects of the
Porte ; and perhaps shall read of Armenian
massacres, for Slavonic emissaries will promise
_ the Christians in Anatolia everything they ask
j for, provided that they will only take up arms
' against the Turk.

All these horrors in prospect for Armenia
would undoubtedly ensue, i.e. should our Gov-
ernment allow the convention with the Sultan
to become a cypher. Our protectorate of Asia
Minor, to guard our interests as well as those of
the natives, must be real, and not exist only in
name. A court of appeal in the various dis-
ricts of Anatolia, presided over by Europeans,
and available for Mohammedans as well as for
the Christian subjects of the Porte, will be a
step in the right direction. A well-organized
gendarmerie under British officers should re-
place the utterly inefficient Zaptiehs. Finally,
and most important of all, the military com-
mands in Anatolia, in particular those at Erzer-
oum, Van, and Dierbekir, should be held by
Englishmen. If this were done, and with a
standing army of 30,000 Turks, which could be
capable of expansion to 100,000 in the event of
war, we can afford to laugh at Russia in spite
of her possession of Kars, Ardahan, and Ba-
toum. Should she attempt to push on south-
ward to Persia, we could always threaten her
communications; if she were to attempt an in-
vasion in Hindostan through Afghanistan, she
would find an enemy ready to advance upon
her rear.

The amount of money now wasted in the
collection of the taxes in Asia Minor would go
a long way towards paying the expenses of the
Turkish army in Anatolia. The fact of its offi-
cers in the higher grades being Englishmen
would deter, to a great degree, Russian agents
from intriguing with the Kurds and the disaf-
fected subjects of the Porte. The latter would
find out that a strong arm was at hand, willing
and able to punish them for their crimes, and2

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

that the impunity which they have hitherto en-
joyed could no longer attend them.

Once a state of security forjife and property
exists in Anatolia, and railways are constructed
there, the amount of wealth in minerals as well as
corn, which can be exported, will go far toward
alleviating the present slackness in British
trade. The riches of ancient Greece and Rome
were derived in a vast degree from Asia Minor.
The natural resources of the land are by no
means exhausted. It only requires English
enterprise and capital for Anatolia to become
again one of the wealthiest countries in the
world.

The position to be taken up by Austria, in
Bosnia and the Herzegovina, is a further check
against the ambition of Russia, so far as Con-
stantinople is concerned. Fadeef, a Russian
general, wrote with great force in his pamphlet
on the Eastern Question, published in St. Pe-
tersburgh in 1869 : "It depends upon Austria
not only to restrain Russia from an open inter-
vention in the Eastern Question, but it is in her
power also to hurl the forces of a European
coalition against our Western frontier. She
can at her convenience shield Turkey by an
armed neutrality, as in 1854, or open a road to
the Vistula by revolutionizing Poland, as she
threatened to do in 1856. Such a part belongs
exclusively to Austria, and her position in Eu-
rope is principally founded upon it. In two
quarters of vital importance to Russia—the
Eastern and the Polish—Austria can be both
the shield and the weapon of the hostile part of
Europe, according as it may serve her interests.
It may require but little patience to see how
this double part will be played out."

We have had the opportunity of seeing how
Austria has acted in connection with the late
war—a war indeed wThich need never have
taken place, but with her sanction. However,
there are wheels within wheels in European
politics. It is as yet impossible for us to know
how much pressure was brought to bear upon
the chief of the House of Hapsburg by the Ger-
man emperor to secure his neutrality. At the
same time it was evident at the outbreak of hos-
tilities between Turkey and Russia, by the con-
versation of various German officials of high
standing in this country, that it was their de-
sire to engage Great Britain in an alliance with
the Porte against the Tzar. Whether this was
done under the belief that Russia was much
strongerthan she proved herself to be, and that
she would be more than a match for Turkey and
Great Britain combined, it is difficult to say; but
it was curious to notice how—immediately after
the Russian reverses at Plevna—the German
agents changed their tone, and were afl for
Great Britain's neutrality and for peace.

There was a suspicion on the part of some
Englishmen, that, if we had thrown in our lot
with the Sultan, Germany would have taken
tte opportunity to invade Holland, or would
possibly have picked another quarrel with
France. This, coupled with the agitation pro-
moted by Mr. Gladstone and his friends for
party purposes, was the means of checking any
decisive action on the part of our nation. It is
impossible for a divided England to declare
war; and Messrs. Gladstone, Bright, and Lowe
had undoubtedly succeeded in dividing the
opinions of our countrymen at the time of
which I write. If the country had been united,
as at present, on the Eastern Question, and the
Russian Government had been informed that
war with Turkey meant war with England, I
firmly believe that the hostilities would never
have commenced. Again: if, after the first re-
verses at Plevna, and when the Emperor of
Russia had to write an imploring letter to
Prince Charles of Roumania, beseeching the
assistance of his troops, our government had
declared war against the Tzar, we could have
put the Eastern Question at rest for another
fifty years. English blood would have been
spilt, it is true, but drops in comparison with
the oceans that will have to be shed before the
problem is finally solved, as to which of the
twTo countries is to be mistress of the East,
Great Britain or Russia. It has been said that
there is room enough in Asia for Muscovites as
well as Englishmen, and so there would be if
ambition were not the dominant passion in the
world.

The Tzar has shown his hand very plainly of
late, by the Russ-an military preparations in
Central Asia, and by his endeavor to establish
friendly relations with Shere Ali. That Ori-
ental potentate is ready to play fast and loose
with either side. At the present moment it
would appear that his fears, if not his sympa-

thies, incline him towards the Tzar. Now
eastern nations have little in common with
European potvers. The differences in religions,
habits, and customs, make it impossible for
there to be much sympathy between them. A
government to be respected in Asia must be
feared.

The nearer the Muscovite forces have ap-
proached Herat, the more alarmed, and at the
same time the more friendly, Shere Ali has be-
come towards Russia. ^ It will never do to allow
this state of things to last. It would be fatal to
our prestige in the northwest provinces of
India, if Russians are to be received by Shere
Ali at Cabul, whilst Englishmen are rebuffed.
An open enemy is better than a wavering friend.
If the actual sovereign of Afghanistan will not
decide in our favor, we must replace him on
the throne by some other Afghan prince who
will not be a tool in the hands of Russia.

This may lead us into a war with Afghanistan.
The contrary policy, that of masterly inactivity,
will give Russia in time the highlands which
guard the entrance to India. These we ought
to hold ourselves, or at all events see them in
the possession of natives on whom we can rely.
It is ridiculous to think that at the present mo-
ment English officers cannot ride half a day's
march from Peshawer without an escort, or
travel to Cabul without the risk of having their
throats cut. If Shere Ali cannot govern his
own people properly, it is quite time that we
did it for him, and before the Russians put it
out of our power to do so.

The Gladstonian and the peace-at-any-price
party will talk of the sacrifice of human life in
our last campaign in Afghanistan, and the prob-
able cost of a war in that country, in order to
deter England from any fresh military opera-
tions in that direction. We shall be told by
Mr. Lowe and his faction that India is not
worth fighting for, and be greeted with the cry,
"Perish India!" However, Englishmen have
had enough of that sort of policy, and if the
government find it necessary to use strong
measures to bring Shere Ali to his senses, they
will have plenty of supporters. The old say-
ing, " He who is not with us is against us~"
applies perhaps more forcibly to the Ameer of
Afghanistan than to any other of the eastern
potentates whose territory adjoins our empire.

The Tzar's forces in Central Asia, by the
latest accounts, have been moving through
Bokhara. Merve lies virtually at their feet.
Should it ever be determined by the Russian
generals to advance upon Merve, the first news
we shall probably receive in this country w7ill
be that Merve and the adjacent territory have
been annexed to Russia. From Merve to Herat
there are no natural obstacles to impede, an
army's march. In the meantime we also learn
that some movement has been intended in the
direction of Balkh.

The rumors that have reached us from Cen-
tral Asia have been of a very disquieting nat-
ure. Owing to our having no official agents
or consuls in those regions, we are utterly de-
void of any news save that which leaks out
through Russian channels. This may be true,
or it may be purposely disseminated in order to
deceive. A British representative ought to be
permanently established at Herat. If Shere
AH remarks, as he has hitherto done, that he
cannot be responsible for the life of an English-
man in that city, he must be clearly given to
understand that his throne will fall, should the
slightest insult be offered to our envoy. Once
the Afghans see that we are strong enough to
enforce our threats, there will be no talk
amongst them of throwing in their lot with the
Muscovites. At the same time, it would do no
harm if an account were published in the Af-
ghan language of how the Roumanians have
been rewarded by the Tzar for saving the honor
of his armies.

We must never forget that the bait held out
by Russian agents to Shere Ali's horsemen,
the loot in the rich cities of British India, is a
very tempting one. We cannot offer such a
glittering prize. So far as Central Asia is con-
cerned, Petro Alexandrovisk, Tashkent, and
Samarcand, would, comparatively speaking,
afford little booty. However, we are aware
that, ere this, an army brought from the East
has conquered nearly the whole of the West.
With our money and powers of organization
we could recruit three million soldiers from
British India in a very short time, if required.
The offer of the loot in Moscow and St. Peters-
burg might prove attractive to Afghans as well
as Sepoys.

In the East, a policy of masterly inactivity is

a fatal one. The natives understand the policy
that strikes. They laugh at a government
which gives an enemy time to make his pre-
parations and then declare war. We should
meet the Russians in their forward march;
otherwise, the same arms which we might now
employ will one day be used against ourselves.
At the same time, it must be remembered that
Afghanistan and Persia are not the only coun-
tries through which roads lead to India"

At the commencement of this century a Chi-
nese and Tibetan force advanced into Nepal,
having crossed the Himalayas, and made its way
into the valley of Nawakat, only one day's
march from Kathmanda, the capital of Nepal.
It then forced the Gurkhas to sign a humiliat-
ing treaty. Now Nepal overhangs, as it were,
five hundred miles of an open frontier, in the
centre of the Gangetic valley. The mere ap-
pearance of an invading force in that direction
would undoubtedly stir up those sparks of re-
bellion which still smoulder in the courts of
some of the native princes of India.

The wise action of our government in first
of all assuming the Protectorate of Asia Minor,
and secondly in occupying Cyprus, has made
us more powerful in respect to our Eastern em-
pire than we have ever been before. Should
Russia determine to advance towards India, our
vicinity to the Caucasus will enable us to attack
the Muscovites in one of the most disaffected
parts of their empire, without considering the
moral as well as actual force we shall be able
to bring to bear upon Persia, should she be
tempted to ally herself with the Tzar. Article
No. 60 of the Treaty of Berlin, which gives to
Persia Kotoor (a district which I show in
this work, has been for some time the
scene of Muscovite intrigue), was an attempt
to buy over the Shah to the ideas of Prince
Gortchakoff. It would have also left one of
the passes into Turkey cpen to a Russian force
marching from Erivan. Fortunately, this move-
ment on the part of the St. Petersburg Cabinet
has been checkmated by Lords Beaconsfield
and Salisbury. Our Protectorate of Asia Mi-
nor, provided it is only carried out in its integ-
rity, will thoroughly thwart any hostile action
from the Russo-Persian quarter.

Next, as to Cyprus. Cyprus, as is shown
in this work, commands Syria; it is the
key to Egypt. It affords one more [link be-
tween Great Britain and her Eastern domin-
ions, and will be useful as a check against
Russian aggression, and consequently against
Russian atrocities. But Mr. Gladstone is not
satisfied. Mr. Gladstone, who, owing to his
policy of agitation with reference to the crimes
committed by the Turks in Bulgaria, is the
main cause of the war having taken place. Mr.
Gladstone, who, whilst calling for vengeance
on the Turkish officials for their cruelty and
oppression, and putting himself forward as the
champion of suffering humanity, is now silent
as to the loathsome cruelties perpetrated by the
Russian forces in Bulgaria. Mr. Gladstone,
who, unlike Lord Shaftesbury, is too cowardly
to come forward and denounce the power, to
which he would have, had us extend the right
hand of fellowship. Mr. Gladstone, who lashed
our people's minds into fury by his eloquent
declamation against the Turk, in his pamphlet,
called "Lessons on Massacre," and who now
has not a word to say about the awful crimes
unveiled by the Rliodope Commission. The
crimes of Nero, the massacre of St. Bartholo-
mew, are as nothing in comparison to the
enormities, the horrors, the wholesale butcher-
ies, the atrocities, the infernal cruelties commit-
ted by Russians and Bulgarians. Women, their
children still unborn, have been mutilated and
cut to pieces; babes have been transfixed with
lances—their agonies being the delight of Bul-
garian Christians: but Mr. Gladstone, the sen-
timentalist, is silent. Mr. Lowe, the rheto-
rician, is indifferent, and Mr. Blight, the phi-
lanthropist, holds his tongue.

Many of our fellow-countrymen have already
passed their verdict upon the conduct of these
three politicians: future historians will do the
rest.

INTRODUCTION.

It was the autumn of 1876; I had not as yet
determined where to spend my winter leave of
absence. There was a great deal of excite-
ment in England; the news of some terrible
massacres in Bulgaria had thoroughly aroused
the public. The indignation against the per-
petrators of these awful crimes became still
more violent, when it \^s remembered that theOlST HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

3

Turkish Government had repudiated its loans,
and that more than a hundred millions sterling
had gone forever from the pockets of the
British tax-payer. This was very annoying.

We were on the eve of an important elec-
tion.* Some people declared that our govern-
ment might have prevented the massacres in
Bulgaria; others, that an ostentatious protec-
tion had been shown to Turkey, and that
Europe had been wantonly disturbed through
the instrumentality of our ministry.

Illustrious statesmen, who were solacing
themselves after the toils of the session, by
meandering through the rural districs on bicy-
cles, or by felling timber in sylvan groves, hur-
ried up to town.

Two letters appeared in the columns of the
leading journal signed by gentlemen belonging
to the Church of England, sa)dngthat they had
seen Christians impaled by the Turks.

Pamphlets were written and speeches made
in which the subjects of the Sultan were held
up to universal execration Several distin-
guished Russians, who happened at that time to
be in England, threw oil on the flame which
tad been kindled.

Ladies, like Madame de Lievens, of whom
the late Duke of Wellington wrote, f went
from salon to salon and extolled the Christian
motives of the Tzar. This feminine eloquence
proved too much for a few of our legislators,
■who, like Lord Grey in the year 1829, enter-
tained some old opposition opinions of Mr.
Fox's that " the Turks ought to be driven out of
Europe."

It was difficult to arrive at the truth amidst
all the turmoil which prevailed. Were the
Turks such awful scoundrels? Had the rever-
end gentleman, to whom I have already alluded,
really seen Christians impaled, or were these
clergymen under the influence of a hallucina-
tion? There was one way to satisfy my own
mind'as to whether [the subjects of the Porte
were so [cruel as they had been described. I
determined to travel in Asia Minor; for there11
should be with Turks who are far removed
from any European supervision. Should I not
behold Christians impaled and wriggling like
worms on hooks in every high road of Ar-
menia, or find an Inquisition and a weekly
auto da fe> the amusement of the Mohamme-
dans at Yan?

Judging from the pamphlets, which were
continually being written about the inhuman
nature of the Turks, this was not at all improba-
ble. I should also have the opportunity of
seeing something of the country between the
Russo-Turkish frontier and Scutari.

It was the beginning of November. My
leave of absence would commence towards the
middle of the month. It was time to make prep-
arations for the journey. On this occasion I
determined to take an English servant, a faith-
ful fellow, who had been with me in many parts
of the world.

Before leaving London I thought that it
might be as well to write to the Turkish Am-
bassador, and ask him if there would be any
objection on the part of the authorities in Con-
stantinople to my proposed journey in Asia
Minor, at the same time saying that in the event
of my obtaining the permission to travel in
Anatolia, I should be much obliged to his ex-
cellency if he could supply me with the requi-
site passport. To this letter, I received by re-
turn of post, the most courteous reply. I was
informed that every Englishman could travel
where he liked in the Turkish Empire, and that
nothing was required but the ordinary foreign
office passport, one of which his excellency en-
closed.

In the meantime I read all the books I could
find which treated of Asia Minor. According
to the works 6f those travelers who have been
to Armenia in the winter, the cold would be
very great. Indeed Tournefort found the wells
v ■ | in Erzeroum frozen over in July. Milner in
his "History of the Turkish Empire," remarks
of the mountainous district in Armenia,
"Throughout this high region no one thinks,
except under most urgent necessity, of traveling
for eight months in the year, owing to the
snow, ice, and intense cold."

Regimental duty detained me in England
during the summer. I could only avail myself
of the winter for my journey. I Had experi-
enced the cold of the Kirghiz steppes in De-
cember and January, 1876, and was of opinion

* Buckinghamshire.

t Vide Correspondence of the late Duke of Welling-
ton, letter to the Earl of Aberdeen, dated Walmer
Castle, July 29th, 1829.

that the clothes which would keep a man alive
in the deserts of Tartary would more than pro-
tect him against the climate of Kurdistan.
For shooting purposes, I determined to take a
little single Express rifle, made by Henry, and
a No. 12 smooth-bore. A small stock of medi-
cines was put in my saddle-bags, in the event of
any illness on the road.

My arrangements were completed. I was
ready to start.

IN MEMORIAM.

It may seem strange to the general public
thus introducing into a book a dedicatory
chapter after five thousand copies of the work
are in circulation, and it has gone through six
editions. The author's excuse must be that
since these passages were written he has lost
his fellow-traveler and faithful friend. Wish-
ing to leave some lasting tribute to his memory,
this chapter has been written.

George Radford, the subject of these re-
marks, commenced life as a sailor-boy. He
grew rapidly, and was soon six feet in height.
One day he came to London. His smart ap-
pearance attracted the attention of a recruiting
corporal. A short time afterward, George Rad-
ford found himself a trooper in the Royal
Horse Guards. He gained the good-will of his
comrades and officers. Whenever there was
any extra work to be done, he was one of the
first to volunteer assistance; and, strong him-
self, he was always ready to protect the weak
against the strong.

Years rolled by. George Radford would
have been promoted to the rank of non-commis-
sioned officer, but, in soldiers' language, he
was no scholar. The old spirit of adventure,
which had prompted him when a lad to go to
sea, had not died away. I wanted a servant.
He knew that I liked travel. He applied for
the situation. I took him.

I will pass over the numerous journeys in, so
to speak, civilized countries, where he accom-
panied me. It is now about five years ago since
General Kaufman commenced his march upon
Khiva. I wished, if possible, to be with the
Khivans at the time of the attack. When on
my road, I caught a typhoid fever at Naples,
and fcr four long months was nursed by my
faithful servant. That same autumn the Carlist
war broke out. The editor of the Times wanted
a military correspondent, and asked me if I
would go to Don Carlos's head-quarters. I
consented. At first I tried to dissuade Rad-
ford from accompanying me by pointing out
that he had a wife and children—that he might
be shot. These arguments had no effect.
"Must die some day, sir," was his reply;
" may be run over by an omnibus at home. I
nursed you through your fever. You will let
me go, won't you?"

Many a risk the poor fellow ran in that cam-
paign. He was under fire at the battles of
Alio, Dicastillo, Yiana, and Maneru, besides
being present during the siege of Tolosa and
the capture of Estella. Always cheery, he was
equally at home in the trenches before Tolosa,
or cooking a beefsteak for Don Carlos's staff in
the redoubt at Dicastillo.

On our way back to France, and when cross-
ing the mountains near Yera, Radford had a
very narrow escape for his life. There were
two paths winding round a rock. They over-
hung a mountain stream. The lower path was
some fifty feet from the water. The rivulet
dashed over the pebbles below. It was in no
place more than a foot deep. The upper path
was about thirty yards above the stream.
The side nearest the precipice was broken
away.

To my surprise, the guide who accompanied
us chose the topmost track. He was followed
by Baron von Wedell, the correspondent of the
Cologne Gazette ; then came Mr. O'Shea, on the
staff of the Standard. As I reached the upper
path, thinking that the lower one was the safer
of the two, I called out to Radford, who was
about fifty yards behind me: " You had better
take the undermost track." He did so. A
minute or two later, a sound as of some falling
rocks reached our ears. I looked in the direc-
tion of the noise, and saw Radford on his back;
his foot was fast in the stirrup, the horse with
only his fore-feet on the path—the animal's
body half over the precipice, and the ground
crumbling away beneath his exertions to free
himself. I jumped off my own animal and
drew my hunting-knife to cut Radford's stir-
rup-leather and free his foot; but,- before I
could reach him, by a frantic effort he had

managed to extricate himself. Almost as he
did so, the struggling lioree disappeared over
the edge of the precipice. A dull thud reached
our ears as the poor brute's body struck against
the rocks below.

" Had better go down and get my cloak—it
is strapped to the saddle—had I not sir?" in-
quired Radford, a little exhausted by his strug-
gle to release himself, but with his usual air of
composure. "Yes," I replied. Baron von
Wedell and Mr. O'Shea remained on the path,
looking at the horse, which lay on its back on
the rocks below us, perfectly motionless. My
servant commenced unstrapping his waterproof
from the saddle—the animal began giving some
signs of life.

" DonnerWetter, he is not killed!" remarked
my German companion. The baron was right.
The horse, after a few minutes, appeared to re-
cover from his stupor, and endeavored to rise;
presently he did so. Later on I brought him
back to London—Radford ever afterwards tak-
ing the keenest interest in the animal's welfare
—a horse which, according to him, had fallen
the height of Knightsbridge barracks, and had
been none the worse for the tumble.

Sleeping out in the open during the Carlist
campaign had somewhat impaired my servant's
health. I did not let him accompany me during
my next two journeys to Central Africa ana
Khiva. However, just before I started for the
travels related in these volumes, he so entreated
to be allowed to accompany me that I con-
sented. In November, 1877, and when the
Russo-Turkish war wTas at its height, he again
went with me to the East—this time not to Asia
Minor, but to European Turkey and the Bal-
kans—never grumbling, no matter how great
were the hardships and privations which he
had to undergo. The only thing which could
make him lose his temper was the idleness of a
Turkish servant called Osman, and who was
just as lazy as the individual of the same name
mentioned in these volumes.

Radford was present during the memorable
battle of Tashkesan, when General Baker, with
2,400 Turks, proved more than a match for
thirty battalions of the Russian Guard, the
choicest troops of the Tzar, and hard my serv-
ant worked throughout that life-long day, carry-
ing water to the wounded, and aiding the doc-
tors in their work of humanity.

The battle of Tashkesan was certainly the
most brilliant action during the campaign. As
on this occasion the Turks were led by an En-
glishman, it may perhaps be considered a suffi-
cient excuse for my relating very briefly what
occurred during the memorable fight.

It was the last day of the year 1877. Gen-
eral Baker, who commanded a small Turkish
division, had received orders to cover the re-
treat of Shakir Pacha's army from Kamarli.
This retrograde movement had become neces-
sary owing to General Gourko having crossed
the Balkans and reached Curiae, thus virtually
turning Shakir Pacha's left flank, and threat-
ening his communications with Sofia. The
village of Tashkesan lies on the main road be-
tween Sofia and Kamarli. It is about six miles
from the last-named village. Two mountains
in the shape of saddles slope down towards the
Tashkesan road, which runs through a sort of
gorge for a few hundred yards, and then de-
bouches on to the plain of Kamarli. Shakir
Pacha's left flank was threatened by 30,000
Russians under the command of Gourko. At
the same time, he had opposite to him, and en-
trenched before Kamarli, a hostile force esti-
mated at about 22,000 men.

Shakir Pacha's corps d'armee itself originally
—that is, on the first of November, 1877—con-
sisted of about 20,000 Turks. Owing to the in-
tense cold and want of medical stores, this force
was continually diminishing — some days as
many as 350 men being rendered unfit for ser-
vice, owing to disease, frost-bites, and other
causes. At the time of which I write, Shakir
Pacha's troops did not amount to 14,000 men.*
Two thousand four hundred of the soldiers, with
seven guns, and about two squadrons of cav-
alry, had been detached under General Baker.
This officer was to hold the Russians in check
at Tashkesan, while Shakir Pacha with, it must
be remembered, a hostile force considerably
superior to his own, and immediately in front
of him, was to effect his retreat across the Ka-

* I received the information as to these figures from
one of Shakir Pacha's staff officers; I believe it to be
accurate. General Baker is writing a book about the
recent campaign in the Balkans. He had every means
of knowing the number of Shakir Pacha's force. I
must refer the public to General Baker's more detailed
account of the engagement.

f. 5106i •4

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

marli plain towards Petrie and Tartar Bazardik.
I had ridden on with General Baker on the pre-
vious evening to Taslikesan.

The first faint gleam of the sun was just
beginning to appear, when a mounted soldier
rode into our head-quarters at a gallop with the
announcement that the enemy was advancing
to attack. General Baker had asked for re-
inforcements on the previous day; Shakir
Pacha had refused to give them. " Not a man
can be spared," was his reply. "You must
hold on till the death, for the safety of the
whole army depends upon you." We could
see the enemy advancing. Their long lines of
infantry extended from right to left across the
plain. Their cavalry along the Sofia-Tash-
kesan road, looking in the distance, and
through the telescope, like interminable black
dots speckling the snow-covered ground. The
dots came nearer and nearer. They were no
longer- dots: they were long lines of horsemen.
They came closer. The Russians brought
seventeen guns against General Baker's posi-
tion, where he had but seven, and those small
ones. Then firing became hot and fast, and
when at about 500 yards distance, the whole of
the Russian Guard broke out into one unani-
mous cheer of " Hurrah!"

As the cheer died away we appeared to be
surrounded. The enemy overlapped us on our
right and left, whilst he was steadily nearing
our centre. Things looked very black at that
moment. It seemed as if General Baker would
be forced to retire for a few hundred yards, and
take up another position, when that officer sud-
denly turning to his trumpeter, remarked:
" Sound the Turkish cry—the appeal to God!"
Then, as if with one voice, there burst from the
lips of 2,400 the shout, " Allah il Allah /"

It was a sensation worth feeling; it was a
moment worth ten of the best years of a man's
life; and a thrill passed through my heart at
the time—that curious sort of a thrill—it can
only be described as a thrill—the sensation
which you experience when you read of some-
thing noble and heroic, or see a gallant action
performed. It was grand to hear these 2,400
Mahometans, many of them raw levies at the
time, cheering back in defiance of those thirty
' picked battalions, the choicest troops of the
Tzar.

" By Jove, there is a devil of a lot of them!"
The voice came from a bystander who was gaz-
ing in the direction of the Russian left. Gen-
eral Baker, whose attention had been called by
the remark, and who was scanning the enemy's
movements through his field-glass, without re-
moving the latter from his eye, quietly ob-
served: "I think we shall be able to account
for them yet."

Presently his aide-de-camp rode up to him
with the annoucement, "All is lost! Shakir
Pacha has retired; he has abandoned you. We
s^all be taken prisoners." It was a critical mo-
ment, but now came out the genius of a first-
class British general and the sturdy pluck of a
true British soldier. "It is not so hopeless as
you think," replied General Baker. "Anyhow,
we will die in our places ere we surrender to
the enemy. Here! Colonel Allix!"—this to an
English officer, formerly in the Guards, and
now on General Baker's staff—" there is a good
position a little to the left of the road; take a
couple of guns there, and annoy those masses
of infantry which are advancing in that direc-
tion." This was done. The artillery fire, ably
directed by the colonel, did enormous execu-
tion in the enemy's ranks, and checked for a
time his advance. In the meantime, Captain
Thackeray, who had arrived at Taslikesan a
few days before, volunteered to lead two squad-
rons of horse down the hill in the direction of
some Russian cavalry which were gradually ad-
vancing towards our right. The movement
was skilfully executed, and the gallant manner
in which this officer led his men against a force
ten times their number, elicited hearty cheers
from the Turkish infantry.

But the enemy, though held in check for a
moment, was not baffled. On he came, in
never-ending streams of skirmishes, which, as
they reached our position, formed into seas of
desperate soldiery. An exclamation from Gen-
eral Baker, who was eagerly scanning the left
of our position with his field-glass, called my
attention in that* direction. We could see our
men retiring, but in good order. They had
been forced back by sheer weight of numbers.
It now became necessary to withdraw our right
and centre from the vicinity of the rapidly ad-
vancing foe, and to take up a fresh defensive
line on the second saddle, or height, which was

about half a mile in rear of the first position.
Four guns were playing with considerable effect
from the road below us on the approaching foe.
The Russians had concentrated a very heavy
cross-fire on this point. The Turkish gunners
became unsteady. They limbered up one piece,
and commenced retiring. If the others had fol-
lowed, the day would probably have been lost.
General Baker saw this at a glance, and, stick-
ing his spurs into his horse, he galloped down
the slippery height—his animal now up to the
haunches in the snow, then sliding down the
steepest of declivities—the loose stones and
pebbles flying like hail in the faces of those who
attempted to follow him. He rode up to the
retreating artillerymen, made them return with
the cannon to the original position, and re-
mained there for more than an hour, in the
most exposed part of the field—his presence so
encouraging the gunners that they redoubled
their exertions, and fired so fast and accurately
that for a time they completely paralyzed the
Russians' movements.

It was between eleven and twelve o'clock;
the great orb of day was at its height, nature
above us looked calm and peaceful: below* us
wounded men and corpses, and horses without
riders galloping to and fro. Shakir Pacha's
troops could be seen in the distance, in full re-
treat across the plain: and, if the Russians had
succeeded in breaking through Baker's line,
every man of this force must have been lost.

The Russians probably saw their foe, as it
were, escaping from their grasp.* The Russian
officers again cheered on their men to the at-
tack—not now thirty battalions, for ere this
more than 2,000 Muscovites had bit the dust.
The afternoon wore on. General Baker sat on
his gray horse, gazing at his watch. Would
that day ever finish? Would that sun ever go
down? As we sat looking at our watches, the
Turks gazed at the great dial of nature gradu-
ally descending towards the western horizon.
All this time a life and death struggle was go-
ing on between the two forces. It was the last
position that the Turks could hold. Every
moment gained was so much time lost to the
enemy. The Russian general knew this: he
collected his men for a final effort. The Tzar's
officers gallantly advanced to the attack: their
cheers were met by counter-cheers.

General Baker was in the foremost and most
exposed place, standing in a hail of rifle bullets
and shell fire. He was encouraging his men.
He had confidence in his men, and the men had
confidence in their general. The Russians
came up the hill at the double, but broke with
the Turkish fire: and the Turks, as their foes
retreated, charged home with the cold steel,
and drove them into the valley below. When
our force was musteredf that evening, it was
found that more than 800 of the 2,400 Turkish
heroes had given their lives for Turkey.

Radford saw this memorable engagement,
and was with me on the occasion of the retreat
to Petric. He was of great use to Drs. Gill
and Heath, helping them to dress the wounded
during the battle of Meska.

It was in this engagement that Colonel
Allix performed an act of bravery which, in
our own army, would have won him the Vic-
toria Cross. General Baker had received in-
structions from Shakir Pacha to make a
reconnaissance in force and destroy Meska.
The Russian troops had been driven out of this
village, the Turks were almost in possession of
it, when a panic seized the Mahometans. It
was afterwards said that some lieutenant had
cried out that the Muscovites had made a flank-
ing movement, and were about to take the
Turks in rear. Anyhow, all the Sultan's troops

* I was riding at this time with Mr. Francis Francis,
the Times correspondent. As we were ascending the
height leading to the second position, my breast-plate
broke, the saddle turned, I found myself in the snow.
I had sprained my ankle a few days previous; the pain
was very great, and I could not put my foot to the
ground. The Russians were not more than a quarter
of a mile from us. It is not every man who will dis-
mount from his horse on such an occasion to help a
friend, and the more particularly when the bullets are
flying about in close proximity to his person. Mr.
Francis, however, did not hesitate for a moment.
Springing from his horse, he coolly took off his coat and
waistcoat, unwound along sash from his waist, mended
with it the breast-plate, then helped me on my horse,
and I was able to reach the position.

t For the account of the muster and the loss in-
curred, I am indebted to Dr. Gill. This gentleman,
with Dr. Heath, had been in the thick of the fight
throughout the day, performing the duties of a good ■
Samaritan, regardless of the Russian fire. Dr. Gill, I
whose gallantry under fire and devotion to the cause
he served had repeatedly won the applause of Mehe-
rnet Ali, Bejib Pacha, Shakir Pacha, besides General
Baker, was subsequently publicly decorated at Stam-
boul by Raouf Pacha, the Minister for War.

ran away as fast as possible, leaving General
Baker and Colonel Allix about 300 yards from
the village. This was filled with Bulgarians.
The latter were amusing themselves by butch-
ering the Turkish wounded as they lay helpless
on the ground. " We must burn that village,"
remarked General Baker; and Allix, without
saying a word, galloped into it, accompanied
only by one orderly. Once inside, and when
in the midst of the Bulgarians, and with the
Russians advancing towards him from the
other end of the hamlet, he set fire to some
straw stacks, which speedily ignited the houses.
Many shots were fired at him by the Bul-
garians and Russians. However, the gallant
officer escaped, and returned afterwards to
Constantinople to receive the order of the
Osmanli, a decoration which he had so nobly
won.

From Othlukoi to Tatar Bazardik, and dur-
ing the disastrous retreat of Suleiman Pacha's
army across the mountains to the sea at Kara
Atch, Radford accompanied me, never com-
plaining, never murmuring, in spite of the in-
cessant privations, amounting sometimes al-
most to starvation, to which he was exposed.
On one occasion, having had no sleep for more
than forty hours—being nearly all that time on
the march—and after having to wade through
deep snow, the poor fellow fell asleep on his
horse seven times, each time losing his balance,
and coming on the ground. In the last tumble
he put his thumb out of joint. Dr. Gill coming
up after Radford had mounted, the latter put
out his hand and had his thumb pulled into
joint without even dismounting for the opera-
tion.

Many a time my servant would bring a piece
of biscuit, his own ration for the day, and try
and persuade me that he had already partaken
himself, whilst food had not perhaps passed his
lips for twenty-four hours. At last we reached
Constantinople, and shortly afterwards left for
London. A typhus fever, contracted during
the retreat of Suleiman Pacha's army, showed
its first symptoms in Radford in Vienna; indeed,
as we were leaving for England. When we ar-
rived at Dover he was almost unconscious.
Everything that human skill could devise was
brought to bear, the best medical attendance
was secured. It was too late.

Radford's constitution, already enfeebled by
the hardships of the recent campaign, was not
proof against the fatal malady. Forty-eight
hours after reaching England's shores, one of
the noblest souls that ever tenanted a human
frame soared away towards that unknown
bourn from which no one can ever return.

George Radford lies in Dover cemetery. Can
more be said about him than is contained in the
lines engraven on his tomb—"He was a brave
soldier, a faithful servant, and as true as steel!"
Yes, there might have been added—"In him I
have lost a sincere friend." There are not many
men who would give their lives for their friends.
Radford would have readily given his life for
his master.

CHAPTER I.

" Be quick, sir; you have no time to lose!"
cried an officious porter in the Charing Cross
Station, as he bustled me into a first-class oar-
riage; and I found myself in the same com-
partment with a queen's messenger bound for
St. Petersburg. Time fled rapidly by, and I had
hardly realized to myself that London was left
behind, ere I was walking down those very un-
comfortable steps wThich lead to the Calais
boat. A rough passage with a number of
Gauls, who all talked loud at starting, but
whose conversation gradually died away in
mournful strains, and we steamed into Calais
harbor; five hours later I was having my lug-
gage examined in the waiting-room in Paris.

"Sir, they ain't found the cartridges, for I
took good care to mix them up with the medi-
cine bottles," whispered my servant Radford,
as he mounted the box of our fiacre, and I
drove away to a hotel, somewhat relieved in
my mind, as I was not quite sure whether carry-
ing loaded cartridges is permitted on the Che-
min de Fer du JSTord. I did not remain long in
Paris. The 2,000 miles ride which lay before
me across Asia Minor would take up everyday
of my leave. There was no time to lose, and
in a very few hours I was in a railway station
taking tickets for Marseilles. The night mail
was just about to start. There were none but
first-class carriages. The result was that serv-
ants and masters had to travel together.

fON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

5

"You will sit in that carriage," said an obese
and rubicund Englishman to his groom, point-
ing to my compartment; "I cannot go with
servants"—and he entered another carriage.
Farther on I saw the portly personage in the re-
freshment-room at Dijon. He was talking to a
little Frenchman, and apparently on the best
of terms with him. The sound of their voices
was mingled with the jingling of glasses and
the clinking of knives and forks. Every one
was eating as fast as he could. The waiters
were serving the different travelers with light-
ning rapidity, and the proprietor of the buffet
was calling out from time to time in a deep bass
▼oice:

" Ne vous pressez pas, messieurs. II y a en-
core 10 minutes avant le depart du train."

"Who is the little man?" I inquired of a
talkative Yankee who was sitting by my side
during the table d'hote."

"He, sir? He is my cook, and I am taking
him with me to Nice."

The obese Englishman heard the remark, and
became more rubicund than before.

"I reckon I have collapsed him," muttered
the American. "If I have to travel with his
darned servant, I don't see why he should not
travel with mine."

The train rattled on. Each man in our
crowded compartment tried to compose himself
to sleep; the red light from the American's
cigar gradually died away, and the individual
himself, coolly lolling his head on his neigh-
bor's shoulder, sank into semi-unconsciousness.

The morn broke bright and glorious. Winter
was left behind; we were in the land of orange
trees and olives.

The steamer for Constantinople started at
four o'clock that afternoon, so we drove straight
from the station in Marseilles to the harbor.
Here I found a splendid vessel belonging to
Lcs Messageries Maritimes, and which was al-
ready getting up steam. The captain was
bustling about, giving orders. The crew were
hauling in the ponderous anchors.

There were not many passengers on board;
only a silk merchant from Lyons, a rabid
republican, and a pretty Greek girl—a friend
of Madame Ignatieff, the wife of the Russian
ambassador at Constantinople—who, after pay-
ing a visit to some friends in Paris, was again
on her way to Constantinople. Our vessel was
soon steaming ahead. She ploughed her way
splendidly through the waters, and hardly a
motion could be perceived inside the spacious
saloon which formed the dining-room of the
passengers. We were but a small party. The
captain, a cheery tar who had been in every
part of the world, and knew more stories about
the unguardedness of the fair sex than perhaps
any other mortal living. The doctor, a some-
what billious and elderly gentleman, who be-
came easily excited on all religious questions,
and gave short dissertations between the courses
on the respective merits of medicine and Chris-
tianity. The silk-merchant, who cursed the
empire, and then informed us that trade had
never been, so flourishing as under Napoleon's
rule. Presently he told me in a whisper that
some Frenchmen wished for another emperor,
and he concluded with an oath, that if there
were, he would head a revolution and sacrifice
his own life—yes, his own life!—sooner than
that the Prince Imperial should sit upon the
throne of France.

We steam into the bay of Smyrna; the pict-
uresque and undulating coast is shaded by a
framework of azure clouds; the sea, blue as
lapis lazuli, is dotted with numerous vessels;
flags of almost every nation in the world float
in the balmy air; the clean white houses, with
their many-colored wooden shutters, brighten
up the glorious landscape; and boatmen, dressed
in garbs of many hues and fashions, throng the
sides of our vessel.

"I am going on shore," said the silk-mer-
chant, who was surrounded by a crowd of
vociferous Greeks. " Our steamer will not
start for several hours. Let us dine in a cafe,
and see if the fair sex in this part of Turkey is
as beautiful as some travelers would have us
believe."

I accepted his proposal, and we walked
through the streets of • Smyrna. The town,
clean as it looked from the harbor, proved to
be a hideous deception. The streets were nar-
row and dirty, and the odor which everywhere
met our olfactory nerves, was strongly suggest-
ive of typhus. Women were seated in the
patws or open courts of the houses, and the
Greek ladies in Smyrna are evidently not shy.
They boldly returned the inquisitive glances of

my companion and myself, and appeared rather
pleased than otherwise at our curiosity.

"Well, I can't say much for their beauty,"
observed my companion. "They have good
eyes and hair, but all of them look as if they had
not washed their faces for at least a fortnight.
Come along and smoke a Nargileh. If there Is
one thing I love, it is a Nargileh, and when I
am inhaling the tobacco I imagine myself to be
a Pacha surrounded by my seraglio."

We turned into a cafe; it was surrounded by
a large garden. Some Greek merchants were
playing at dominoes; an Italian prima donna,
who might have been any age from seventy to a
hundred, was singing a popular air; men with
game and fish for sale walked up and down, re-
gardless of interrupting the ancient vocalist,
and offered their wares to the visitors. Pres-
ently my companion moved uneasily in his
chair; some drops of perspiration stood on his
forehead, and his face was becoming rapidly
green under the influence of the Turkish Nar-
gileli.

" I think I have had enough," he remarked.
" The room is very hot. Aurewir." And he
returned to our vessel.

In the meantime I proceeded to call upon a
friend in the town. This gentleman informed
me that the Christians and Turks in Smyrna
were on the best of terms; however, he added
that certain papers, believed to be in Russian
pay, were constantly announcing that there
would shortly be a massacre of the Christians;
it was said that this was done to excite bad
blood between the two sects.

The sound of the steamer's shrill whistle an-
nounced that she was getting up steam. Hastily
retracing my steps, I arrived on board just
as the crew were weighing anchor. The original
number of passengers had by this time received
a considerable addition. Greeks, Armenians,
and Turks were walking about or lying
stretched along the deck. Women and chil-
dren were huddled up in close proximity with
the men. A Babel of different languages was
going on around me, and an old Greek woman
was having an animated squabble with one of
the ship's officers, the subject of discussion
being as to whether the ancient female had
paid the proper fare. The French officer could
speak but little Greek, and the shrill-voiced
dame no French; in consequence of this it was
difficult for them to arrive at any satisfactory
solution of the matter.

A, pacha, his son, and the chief of the tele-
graphs, were the only first-class passengers.
However, four ladies, the Pacha's seraglio,"had
been accommodated on the deck; they were re-
clining on some cushions in close juxtaposition
with their attendant—a negro. The voice of
this sable gentleman was pitched in a feminine
key;he was busily engaged in arranging some
pillows beneath the stoutest of the ladies—a
comely dame, who would have turned the scale
at probably sixteen stone. Two pointer dogs in
a large hamper, which was directed to a Bey in
Constantinople, added their barking to the
general clamor; some horses, bound to Stam-
boul, were fastened by head-collars to the bul-
warks, no horse-boxes being provided. Farther
on, and towards the steerage end of the vessel,
were five hundred recruits, on their way to Ser-
via, in high spirits at the idea of shortly en-
countering the Russians.

It was a lovely evening; I walked along the
deck with the captain, gazing curiously at his
motley passengers. The stars shown bright, as
became an Eastern clime; a gradually freshen-
ing breeze for the moment had cleared the hori-
zon.

"We shall have an easy passage," I remarked.

" Yes, for good sailors," was the reply; "but
it will be a little rough for those poor women,"
(pointing to the pacha's harem) "and for the
half-clad recruits yonder."

The latter did not seem to anticipate the treat
that was in store for them. They were scattered
in groups about the deck,many of them squatting
upon their haunches, and attired for the most
part in rags and many-colored patchwork.

Presently a doleful melody was heard; the
dirge which reached our ears told us of the
readiness of these embryo warriors to meet the
foe and die for the sake of Islam.

" They will die quite soon enough," remarked
the captain drily, as the last verse died away.
" Look down here," he added, pointing to the
ship's hold; "our vessel is laden with three
hundred tons of lead, and once a week for sev-
eral months past the steamers belonging to the
Messageries Maritimes have been freighted with
a similar cargo. This is all going to Odessa.

It will be odd if some of the lead does not soon
find its way back to the true believers, in the
shape of bullets.

" The Russian government is putting itself to
great expense," he continued; " however, there
are people so silly as to think that Gortschakoff
wishes for peace; and in spite of all his prep-
arations they actually believe in the Confer-
ence!"

The captain now left me, but I remained on
deck. The freshening gale gradually imparted
an oscillating movement to our steamer. The
rain fell in large drops. Some of the sailors
covered the ladies of the harem with an awning.
The horses began to kick, and the dogs in the
hamper to bark. A melancholy groan could be
heard from that part of the vessel appropriated
by the soldiers. The first to succumb was the
fat woman; in despairing tones she called for
assistance. The black attendant rushed to the
rescue and convulsively grasped the lady's
head. It was a funny spectacle—that enormous
pumpkin-shaped face supported by two black
hands. The now hazy moon cast a shadowy
beam on the negro's countenance; from black it
changed to green; it assumed a diabolical ex-
pression. The vessel lurched; he lost his
balance; dropping his mistress's head, he fell
down upon the pointers. They set up a savage
growl. The eunuch started to his feet; his hair
bristled with alarm; he felt himself all over.
However, there was no damage done, and with
a sorrowful mien he returned to the side of his
mistress.

CHAPTER II.

The following morning my servant awoke
me with the announcement that we had arrived
in the Bosphorus, and that he had not been able
to eat his supper. By this last piece of intelli-
gence he wished to convey to my mind that the
storm had been more than usually violent. I
was soon dressed, and, going on deck, found it
crowded with interpreters from the different ho-
tels. During previous sojourns in Constanti-
. nople, I had learnt by experience the discom-
fort of some of the purely British establish-
ments. I had made up my mind on this occa-
sion to try a French hotel. My hands were
filled with cards announcing the merits of the
different inns. The commissionnaires were
deafening me with their shouts, each man
bawling louder than his fellow, when the silk-
merchant declared in a loud voice that there
was nothing like the Hotel de Luxembourg, and
he added that the perdrix aux truffes and the
wl-aumnt a la financiere, as supplied by the
chef of that establishment, were something—
yes, something; and he kissed the tips of his
fingers as he made the last remark, so as to
show his appreciation of the exquisiteness of
those dishes.

"Perhaps the gentlemen do not wish their
luggage examined?" said an officious Greek,
the commissionnaire of the Luxembourg. "I
will give a baksheesh to the officials in the cus-
tom-house, and they will pass the luggage at
once. But if we do not give them any
money," he added, with a knowing grin, "they
will detain you at least an hour, and rumple all
the shirts in your portmanteaus."

"Wiir it be much money?" inquired my
companion, who, very reluctant to open his
purse-strings, was equally averse to having his
shirt-fronts rumpled.

" No, sir, leave it to me," replied the Greek,
with an air of great importance.

"I know that this scoundrel will rob us!"
ejaculated the silk-merchant. "But we are in
his hands. We must pay, whether we like it or
not."

We arrived at the custom-house. An elderly
official approached the Greek, and, pointing to
us, said something in his ear.

" We shall be robbed, I know we shall," mut-
tered my companion excitedly. " If I could
only speak the language, I would just give that
official a piece of my mind."

The Greek now put some money into the in-
spector's hand, and the latter, opening and
shutting a hat-case, announced that the ex-
amination was over. Some porters carried our
luggage up the steep hill which led from the
port to Pera. We followed in a rickety old car-
riage. The springs were very weak, and the
vehicle rolled from side to side as our horses
panted along the wretchedly dirty street.
Presently, to the relief of my companion and
self, who were neither of us feather weights,
the driver pulled up at our destination.

In the evening I went to a Turkish Cafe6

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

Chantant. It was a curious sight. Solemn-
looking Turks were seated round the room,
each man smoking his Nargileli. Little active-
looking Greeks with cigarettes in their mouths,
were eagerly reading the most recent telegrams,
and discussing the chances of peace or war. In
the interval between the songs a small knot of
younger Turks loudly applauded a vocalist.
The latter then began to sing about Sultan
Abdul Aziz, of all his glory, and how at last
pride turned his head. He did foolish things,
went mad, and killed himself. "But it was
not his fault," continued the singer, in another
verse, " it was his kismet. If he had been
destined to die a natural death, or on the battle-
field, he would have cone so. We are all under
the influence of destiny, Sultans are like the
rest of the world. Great Sultan, rest in
peace!"

I had the good fortune to be accompanied by
a friend, an old resident in Constantinople. He
was a perfect master of Turkish, and he readily
translated to me each verse of the song.

" What is your opinion about Abdul Aziz's
death?" I inquired of my companion, as the
last strains of the melody died away. "Did
he really kill himself, as the world would have
us believe? or did some one else save him the
trouble?"

My companion laughed ironically, paused
for a few moments, and then remarked:

"No one knows the exact facts of the case,
but t-lie popular belief is that he was assassi-
nated. Indeed, the Turks say that he had
agreed to sell the fleet to Russia, and had con-
sented to allow a Russian force to garrison
Constantinople."

" There is no doubt of one thing," continued
my friend, "viz.: that the late Sultan was
thoroughly under IgnatiefTs thumb. The am-
bassador could do what he liked with him.
The Softas found it out, and feared the conse-
quences. From these facts the public have
jumped to the conclusion that he was assassi-
nated."

" But look," added my companion, pointing
to two men in the corner of the room, " there
are two of the secret police. If they were not
here, we should very likely have had another
verse or so, more explicit as to the Sultan's fate.
The audience would have been delighted if the
singer had given us the popular version of Ab-
dul Aziz's death."

"Are there many secret police?" I inquired.

"No," there is, if anything, too much liberty
in Constantinople; the papers write what they
like, and abuse the government freely, hardly
any of them being suppressed in consequence,
whilst some English newspapers, which are
more bitter against Turkey than even the Rus-
sian journals, are sold at every bookstall."

" Do you think that there is any chance of
another massacre of Christians?" I remarked.

" Not the slightest; that is to say, if Ignatieff
does not arrange one for some political pur-
pose. The Turks and Christians get on very
well together here, whatever they may do in
other parts of the country. However, there is
one thing which would be very popular with all
classes, and that is, an English army of occu-
pation in Constantinople."

" Why so ?" I inquired.

"Because this would bring some gold into
the country. We have now nothing but paper.
Your people would spend money, and business
would go on better. Why, for the last six
months trade has been almost paralyzed. In
fact, to tell you the truth, all classes would be
very glad to see the English at Constantinople.
Not for the sake of your good system of gov-
ernment, as you flatter yourselves in London,
or through fear of being massacred by Bashi
Bazouks, but simply because you have gold.
Unless you bring us some, we shall all soon be
ruined."

On the following day I informed the propri-
etor of the hotel that I wanted a servant who
could speak Turkish, to accompany me during
my journey. The moment that this became
known I was beset by all sorts of individuals,
Armenians and Greeks, eager to offer their ser-
vices. Each man brought his testimonials, and
declared that he was the only honest man in
Constantinople, and that all the other applicants
were thieves, and would certainly rob me. If
ever I appeared to have a predilection for one
of the candidates, I was immediately informed
by the others that the man had been in prison
for six months, or else that he was suspected of
murder.

In consequence of this I determined to follow
the advice of an Englishman who knew Turkey

well, and take a Mohammedan servant, who
could speak no other language than his own.
In that case he would be less likely to have
learned any bad habits from the Armenians,
and at the same time I should be compelled to
speak to him in Turkish, and thus improve my
knowledge of that language. .

The next morning a Turk came to the hotel,
and offered himself for a situation. He was
dressed in the Circassian style, and wore a
short brown serge jacket, dotted across the
breast with empty cartridge cases. His head
was covered by a red fez or cap, encircled by a
green turban. A loose pair of light blue trousers,
fastened at the waist by a crimson sash, and a
pair of boots, half way up the knee, completed
his attire. He was a tall, fine-looking fellow,
and said he had previously been coachman to a
Pacha, that he was a good groom, and would
be faithful to me as an Arab steed to his Arab
master. It was a pretty speech, but as I had
seen some horses in the desert which invariably
kicked whenever their master approached them,
it did not produce the effect upon my mind
which probably the faithful man desired". How-
ever, I was in a hurry to get a servant ; so I
agreed to take the fellow, and give him 4I. per
month and his food. In the meantime he said
that he knew of some horses for sale, and that
he would bring them to the hotel in the course
of a few days.

I had previously ascertained that my best
plan would be to purchase a stud in Constanti-
nople. In many parts of my proposed journey
I should be off the postal track, and then it
would be difficult to hire any horses—indeed it
would sometimes be impossible, as the natives
in certain parts of Kurdistan make use of buf-
faloes as a means of locomotion. I had once
ridden a cow during an African journey. The
motion is very uncomfortable ; 1 had no wish
to repeat the experiment with a buffalo.

Later on an invitation arrived for me to
breakfast with Mr. Schuyler, the distinguished
diplomatist, and the author of the highly-inter-
esting volume, "Turkistan." On arriving at
his house I found some of the guests already
assembled. Amongst others, there were Mr.
Gallenga, the Times correspondent, and Mr.
White, our consul at Belgrade.

Presently there was a ring at the bell, and
who should come in but Mr. Sala, the wTell-
known correspondent of the Daily Telegraph.
His arrival was quite an unexpected pleasure
for our host. Mr. Sala had only reached Con-
stantinople half an hour before, and had come
to us straight from the harbor. He had left
England about three weeks previously, and
first had gone to St. Petersburg. Here he had
been introduced to several Russian journalists.
He related, in a very amusing way, their con-
versation about England's policy towards
Turkey, an account of which Mr. Sala had
duly posted to the Daily Telegraph.

From St. Petersburg he had made his way to
Odessa, and had come on via the Black Sea to
Constantinople. He described all the stations
along the Russian line as crowded with troops
and blockaded by military railway carriages;
whilst he laughed incredulously when some of
our party gave it as their opinion that the Con-
ference would lead to peace.

^ Our host opined that the different representa-
tives at the Conference would never agree, and
that war would inevitably be the result. He
had recently returned from a visit to Philippo-
polis, where he had been staying with Mr.
McGahan, the gentleman who wrote such har-
rowing accounts of the massacres in Bulgaria
to the Daily News. Mr. McGahan, it appeared,
had made himself very useful to Lady Strang-
ford in assisting her to distribute the funds
which had been subscribed for the destitute
families in the East, and was immensely popu-
lar with the Christians.

Meanwhile the Turkish newspapers, it was
said; were very divided in their opinion as to
the Conference. The majority of them, how-
ever, were inclined to believe that it was a ruse
of Russia to gain time for her military prepara-
tions, and of England to make Russia unpopu-
lar, and to sow discord between her and the
other powers.

Later on in the day I met an English officer
in the engineers, who had come to Constanti-
nople during his leave, and was spending his
time, in company with some other officers, in
surveying a position between the Sea of Mar-
mora and the Black Sea, and which is imme-
diately in front of Constantinople. He was
staying at a small village about twenty miles
from Constantinople, and asked me to spend a

day with him and his friends, when we could ride
over the ground which he was surveying. As X
was curious to see the country in that neigh-
borhood, I readily assented to his proposal. It
was agreed that I should leave Constantinople
by the seven o'clock train on the following
morning, and that he should send a horse to
meet me at a little station about twenty miles
from the city.

Mr. Gallenga had been kind enough to give
me an introduction to some influential Armeni-
ans in Pera. On returning to my hotel I found
two of these gentlemen awaiting my arrival.
They were very disappointed to hear that I had
engaged a Turkish servant, as they said
they could have procured an honest Ar-
menian, and they kindly volunteered to pro-
vide me with letters of recommendation to the
different Armenian dignitaries in the chief
towns which lay in my route.

It was easy to gather from the conversation
of one of these gentlemen that he was not well-
disposed to the idea of possibly one day becom-
ing a Russian subject.

"What is your opinion of the wish which
General ignatieff is said to have expressed,
about making Bulgaria independent of the
Porte?" I inquired.

" That would never do," replied one of my
visitors. "We have difficulty enough, as it is,
in keeping our people quiet in Armenia: they
will be verv indignant if the Christians in
Europe arc granted privileges which the
Armenians in Asia are not permitted to share."

" The fact is," observed the other, " that we
have no wish to become Russian subjects.
Should this happen, we know very well what
would be the result. We should not be per-
mitted to use our own language, and consider-
able pressure would be brought to bear to in-
duce us to change our religion. We are aware
of what has been done to the Catholics in
Poland; * we have no wish to be treated in the
same manner."	*

" What we require is similar treatment for
all sects," observed the first speaker, "and that
the word of a Christian when given in a court
of law should be looked upon as evidence, and
in the same light as a Mohammedan's statement.
If the Caimacans (deputy governors) and Cadis
of the different towns in the interior were only
compelled to do us justice in this respect, we
should not have much cause to grumble. How-
ever, if the Russians were to go to Van, our
fellow-countrymen would be ten times worse
off than they are at present."

Just then an Armenian priest entered the
room. He stooped, and was, apparently, on
the wrong side of sixty, but he had a quick,
penetrating glance, when he chose to raise his
eyes from the floor, and it was evident that
there was plenty of vigor in his brain, however
little there might be in his body.

" This English gentleman wishes to learn
some particulars about the road to Van," ob-
served one of the Armenians; " I want you to
give him all the information in your posses-
sion."

" He will find it very difficult to reach Van
at this season of the year, on account of the
snow; and he will run a considerable risk of
being robbed or murdered by the Kurds," re-
plied the priest, without raising his eyes from
the ground.

" Have you ever been from Scutari to Van?"
I inquired.

"No, nor hardly any one else. You had
better go by the Black Sea to Trebizond, ride
from there to Erzeroum, and it is only twelve
days from that town to Van; but you would
probably find the road blocked by the snow."

It was clear that this priest could not help
me much about my route, so I determined to
take a map, Kiepert's Turkey in Asia, and strike
a line across country as nearly as possible to
Erzeroum. On arriving there, I should proba-
bly be able to obtain some information about
the state of the roads.

In the meantime the priest and his compan-
ions had left the hotel—not together, but one by
one—as the old man remarked that this would
be less likely to attract attention. Indeed, sub-
sequently, and throughout 1113^ journey, I fre-
quently remarked the same dread of being seen
speaking to an European on the part of the Ar-
menian priests. Whether this arises from the
fact that they are afraid of being suspected of
conspiracy against the Turkish government, or
it is the result of a guilty conscience, I cannot

say._______________________

* Probably referring to the treatment of the people
professing the United Greek faith. Sedfclppendix A.OIS HOBSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR

7

Armenian newspapers frequently publish
news which cannot be agreeable to the govern-
ment, and they are not interfered with by the
authorities.

Armenians are not thrown into prison or
banished from the capital, without this being
at once published to the world. Then why so
much timidity on the part of the Armenian
priests? If they are not engaged in seeking to
undermine the government, one would have
thought that they had nothing to fear.

CHAPTER III.

I had ordered the porter at my hotel to call
me early on the following morning, as the train
started at seven, and it was quite half an hour's
walk to the station. Luckily I awoke myself,
and, on looking at my watch, found it was
about half-past six. Hastily dressing, I hurried
down-stairs, and found the individual wThose
business it was to awake me, fast asleep under
a billiard table in the cafe belonging to the
hotel. He grumbled at being disturbed, and
did not fancy the idea of carrying my box to
the station. It was necessary to use a little
persuasive force, so, seizing a billiard cue, I
gave him a violent poke in the side.

" Get up directly! I shall miss the train!"

" Please God you will not," replied the Turk,
with a yawn.

I had no time to lose, so, taking the re-
cumbent man by the collar, I lifted him bodily
on his legs, put my bag in his hand, and, "with
another push from the billiard cue, precipi-
tated him down the steps into the street.

"You want me to go to the station, Effendi!"
said the fellow, now thoroughly aroused.

44 Yes."

" But the train will be gone."

" Not if we run."

"Run!" replied the porter, very much as-
tonished, " and what wTill the Effendi do?"

" Hun too."

And with another thrust from the billiard
cue, I started him down Pera.

Fortunately for me, trains in Turkey are not
very punctual in starting. On arriving at the
railway, about ten minutes past seven, I found
that I had time to take my ticket at Hadem
Kui, a small station an hour and a half from
Constantinople. There were two Englishmen
in the same carriage as myself, one of them an
old friend whose acquaintance I had made
some years previous at Madrid. They intended
to stop at a swamp a few miles from the city,
and spend the day snipe-shooting.

Upon my remarking that the railway seemed
to take a very circuitous course, my friend
smiled.

44 Yes," he said, " when the line was about to
be constructed, the government agreed to pay
so much per mile—the result has been that, al-
though the country is level, the line is not quite
so straight as it might be."

"Poor Turks!" said his companion, "they
are always being abused by the Christians, and
yet the latter make a very good thing out of
them. Why, only the other day, a quantity of
Krupp guns were brought here. The cost
price was 150J. per gun, but the Turks had to
pay 750J.

" The Christians are too much for them in a
bargain," he added.

My fellow-travelers now left the train, which
had stopped at the side of a wide marsh, and
before our engine was again in motion, the re-
port of a gun made me aware that their sport
had already commenced.

Half an hour later I arrived at the little sta-
tion of Hadem Kui. " Is there a horse waiting
for me?" I inquired. "Wo," was the answer
of the station-master, a Hungarian. "Can I
hire an animal?" " No," was the reply. " How

far is it to the village where Colonel H- is

living?" "Seven miles." "What sort of a
road?" "No road at all, but deep mud up to
the horse's girths." " When does the next train
go back to Constantinople?" "Not till seven
p. m."

I certainly did not bless my friend H-. To

kick my heels about for twelve hours in a sta-
tion destitute of a waiting-room, and with noth-
ing to occupy my time, was not an agreeable
prospect.

" I tell you what you had better do," said the
station-master, "send a boy with a note to your
friend. There is probably some misunderstand-
ing about the horse, and the boy will be able to
get tc the village and back again in a few hours.

A lanky overgrown lad volunteered to take

the letter, and, tucking up his ragged trousers
till his bare thighs were thoroughly exposed to
view, he took off his boots, and started. In a
few minutes I could see him wading through
mud at least two feet deep. A heavy M F. H.
would have found himself considerably out of
his element if suddenly put down with his field
and hounds in that line of country. Imagine
layers of the heaviest Bedfordshire plough-fields
all heaped one on the top of the other, and then
you will fall short in attempting to realize the
nature of the soil. If ever an invading army
were to make use of the railway from Adrian-
ople for an advance upon Constantinople, and
the line between Buyuk Checkmedge on the Sea
of Marmora, and Kara Bouna on the Black Sea,
be selected by the Turks as the last point from
which to defend the capital, the difficulty in
transporting heavy guns and baggage to the
centre of this position would be enormous.
The defenders will have to make a small branch
railway in rear of the line of defence, or it will
be impossible for them to supply their army.

The station-master now invited me to sit
down in his room, and wait till an answer to
my note arrived. He was suffering from fever,
and complained of the unhealthy nature of the
soil. He could not sleep at night, and what
most worried him was the incessant click of
the telegraph dial. It was a very busy time, and
any number of messages were always passing.

441 can read them as they pass, simply by the
sound," he continued, "and that incessant
click, click, click, all night, is enough to drive
a man mad. My brain aches. I toss from
side to side. I see devils sitting on the tele-
graph-box.

"Take my word for it, sir," he added,

there is nothing which breaks a man down so
quickly as being a station-master in Turkey."

" What is your salary?" I inquired.

" Only 801, a year. It is not enough to keep
a wife," he added. 44 If I had a wife the
life would be easier, but there are no women
here. I shall end by hanging myself upon one
of my own telegraph-posts—I know I shall if I
stay here much longer."

A letter now arrived from Captain F-, a

friend of H-'s, to say that, in the absence

of the latter, he had opened my letter, and, in
consequence, had sent me a horse. Such a
horse as lie was, too, with no shoulders, and
only about thirteen hands high; when I
mounted the animal and had let out the stirrups
to their last hole they were too short. I had
the cramp. When I rode without stirrups my
legs wrere in the mud. It was a choice of evils
—the cramp or the mud, and the mud gained
the day.

At last I came to the little village where

Colonel H-andhis friend were residing. An

Armenian servant now informed me that his
master was busy surveying, but that he would
soon return. The other officer, who had sent
me the horse, wTas also out, but was shortly ex-
pected home. In about three hours both of

them arrived. H--had lost his way in the

dark. He had been attacked by a dog; the

savage brute had bitten his boot, and II--had

only saved himself by using his revolver. He
had ordered a man to bring me a horse, but
from the officer not being able to speak Turk-
ish, his instructions had been misunderstood.

The room was not a large one, and only a few
feet square. There wras no other, so we shared it
between us, I being accommodated on the floor.
We were up at daybreak, and rode over the po-
sition, a succession of rising slopes, which
looked as if nature had made them especially
for the defence of Constantinople. The dis-
tance from the Sea of Marmora to the Black
Sea is twenty-four or twenty-five miles;* but
each flank, being covered by lakes and rivers,
fcould be easily watched and secured. The ex-
tent of the real fighting-ground would be by
these features reduced to nine or ten miles of
plain, but with favorable undulations, affording
a good command over the front. Batteries
could be arranged as to enfilade each other at
every point, and should fifty thousand reliable
troops ever make a stand at this position it
would be a very difficult one to carry.

This time my friend had mouunted me on
a different sort of animal to the one which I
had ridden on the previous day. He was a
stout gray cob, with good shoulders; when I
mounted him the first thing which he did was
to try and run away. I turned his head towards
a neighboring height, and let him gallop

* See Appendices XVI., XVIII.,. on the Defences of
Constantinople.

through the deep mud. To my astonishment,
on arriving at the summit he continued pulling.
There was evidently some good stuff in that
horse, and I determined to buy him. His owner
was not in the village, so 1 left word that if he
would send the cob to Constantinople, I would
give 101. for the animal—a very fair price, taking
into consideration the market price of horses in
the capital.

Meantime, after having said good-bye to my
hospitable entertainers, I turned my face
towards the railway-station. A line of tele-
graph posts served me as a guide, and I arrived
at the booking-office in time to catch the train.

An acquaintance, a friend of the silk-mer-
chant, called upon me later in the evening. He
proposed that we should go together to a cafe,
and hear a song which a French girl sang every
night, and one in which the Turks delighted.

The cafe, or rather music hall, w7as a fine
building, crowded with men of all nationalities.
Good-looking Hungarian and Italian girls took
the place of waiters, and bustled about,receiving
orders from the more than usually excited true
believers. Many of tho*latter, in spite of the
Prophet's injunction, were freely partaking of
raki. Volumes of smoke from the cigarettes
and chibouks of the spectators had created a
dense atmosphere in the building. Some of the
attendants were remarkly handsome girls. In-
deed, as I subsequently learnt, the proprietor
of the cafe would not engage an ugly woman,
his idea being that the Turks, his chief custom-
ers, came quite as much to look at and talk to
the waitresses, as to see the performance. It
must have been a hard trial for the digestive
organs of the better looking of these girls.
One in particular, a tall and very hand-
some Italian, with large dark eyes and an
innocent expression, which probably her
character belied, was in great request, the
Turks always inviting her to share the raki
or the coffee which she brought them. The
performance lasted from eight p.m. till about
two in the morning; it was a wonder that her
constitution could stand the trial. I called for
a cup of coffee, and when she handed it to me,
I asked in Italian what she would like for her-
self. The girl's eyes sparkled on being ad-
dressed in her native tongue.

''Nothing, signore," she said, 441 am not a
barrel, although the Turks think I am;but you
are not a Turk. However, I cannot afford to
offend them, for the proprietor pays us no
wages ; all I have is what the visitors give me.
It is a dreadful life, signore. Chocolate, raki
and beer. I only sip, but I have to swallow a
little all the same; then there is lemonade, cof-
fee, mastic, and occasionally, when gentlemen
like yourself come here—champagne. It is a
mixture. I have a pain sometimes," she con-
tinued, at the same time pointing to the bodice
of her dress, 441 wish to cry, but I have to run
about, smile, wait upon the visitors and drink
with them—it is a dreadful life. Oh, if I could
only return to Florence!"

A Turk seated near me, and who was eagerly
gazing at the girl, made a sign to her.

"I must go," she said. 44 He is a friend of
the-proprietor—I dare not offend him."

Presently she was sipping some punch from
his glass. My friend caught my eye, and
laughed.

" Yes," he said, 44 she is adding punch to the
other mixtures. Poor child, it.will be a won-
der if she does qpt go off by spontaneous com-
bustion some day. But, hush ! the famous
singer is just going to give us the song about
the Turcos."

A tall and rather stout French girl now came
upon the stage. Some long black tresses w ere
hanging down her back. Her dress, which was
made of white muslin, was very low in front,
and a flaming red sash encircled her waist. The
song had reference to the bravery of the Turcos,
how they died for France, and how France
loved them.

The girl had a good voice. As the last notes
died away in the hall, the Turks became greatly
excited. Shouts of applause resounded through
the building. Close to my table* were twro En-
glishmen. One of them appeared to be a cor-
respondent for some newspaper. His pocket-
book was open on the table. He was taking
notes. 4'Patriotic song," he remarked to his
companion, "capital scene for a graphic letter
—sympathy between French and Turks—you
see she says France loves the Turks." 44 Non-
sense," said his companion, 4 4 she is singing
about the Turcos in Algeria—not about the
Turks—you have written it all wrong." The
Special changed color for a moment, and then8

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR,

muttered, " Confound it ! yes ! Algeria is not
Turkey, but it does not much signify." And
he went on writing.

CHAPTER IY.

The following morning I was awoke by a
tap at the door, and who should enter my room
but the newly-engaged servant, Osman.

"Effendi," he safd, "I have five horses for
you to see. They are in a large yard close to
the hotel. Splendid horses they are too. I am
so industrious," he added, "the Effendi will
find this out for himself soon. I am not like
other Turks—I like working ; I have been run-
ning all over Constantinople after the horses,
for I heard that the Effendi was in a hurry to
start. When will he go and see the animals ?"

About half an hour later I accompanied the
industrious man to a small' plot of ground not
far from Pera. It was surrounded by a high
wall, and, judging from the number of loose
stones which lay ab&ut, had once been a ceme-
tery. But cemetery or not it was all the same
to Osman, who had not the same reverence for
the dead as the rest of his countrymen.

" There are a great many stones," I observed.

"All the better, Effendi," was the reply;
"we shall ride over a number of stones on the
road to Kars, and a little sooner or later for the
horses does not make much difference."

The steeds were now led in, accompanied by
their owner, a wall-eyed Turk. They were
not much to look at, if one estimated them
from an English standard, but I had learnt in
pnevious travels that one cannot always judge
of Eastern horses by their appearance. 1 de-
sired my English servant, Radford, to mount
the best-looking one of the lot, a little black,
about fourteen hands high. He was very thin,
and looked as if he had never been given a good
feed of corn, but his legs were fine and hard.
He put down his feet flat when he walked, and
did not go on his toes, which last is a fatal de-
fect to a horse if about to march for many days
in succession. Radford eyed the animal from
head to foot.

"Lor! sir," he said; "this 'ere horse will
never carry me. He ain't got no shoulders!"

"Never mind," I replied. "Jump on hirp.
and try."

There was no saddle, and my man had to
mount bare back. "Very good," I added, as
the animal appeared to carry his burden without
any difficulty, "take him round at a hard
canter."

The little brute now began to pull hard, and
bounded over the rough stones in a way that
showed he was well accustomed to such ob-
stacles.

" Does he pull?" Iinquired.

"Pull, sir? He pulls my harms off!"

This was enough for me, and I determined to
buy the animal; as a horse that walks well, and
will pull with fourteen stone on his back, is not
a bad one for a long journey."

The next one produced for my inspection was
covered with a rug, the other horses not being
provided with any such clothing.

" What is that for?" I inquired, pointing at
the cloth.

" Effendi, I put it on him because I was
afraid that he might catch cold," replied the
owner.	as

"Never mind, take it on. When I buy
horses I like to see them first."

44 He thinks, sir," remarked my faithful
servant, " that we buy 'orses as they marry
their wives—that is, without looking at them.
I should not be surprised, sir, if that 'ere 'orse
had a sore back."

The man's remark proved true, and on taking
off the cloth a raw place of at least six inches
square was exposed to view.

"He has a sore back," I remarked to the
owner. " Take him away."

"Bore back! Yes, he has; it will soon get
well. The Effendi would like this horse though,
and he is a great friend of the horse the Effendi
has just looked at—they eat out of the same
manger. The Effendi had better buy him."

" Get on that little bay," I said to my servant,
not paying any attention to the Turk's observa-
tion. As my man went past at a trot, I heard
a sound which at once made me aware that
there was something the matter with the horse's
wind.

" He is a roarer," I remarked.

" Effendi, he makes a noise, but he is stout
and strong. He would make a capital pack-
horse."

The horse was sound in other particulars,
and as a roarer for slow .marching is as good as
any other animal, I determined to buy him—
at the same time telling the owner that the fact
of the horse's wind not being all right would
considefkbly deteriorate from his value.

" Deteriorate from his value!" said the man,
his wall-eye glaring at me ferociously. "No,
Effendi, he makes a little noise, but that is
nothing; he is a useful horse, and when I let
him out on hire in Constantinople he never runs
over the blind beggars. He gives warning of
his approach, and they hear him coming."

I had by this time selected two more horses,
and now came the knotty point of what price
I was going to give for the four.

" How mnch do you want for them?" I in-
quired.

"How much, Effendi? Sixty liras (Turkish
pounds of 18s.) I want, and not a piastre less;
even then I should be a ruined man."

"Sixty liras! Sixty dogs and sixty sons of
dogs!" I replied, attempting to address him in
the language easiest understood by a Turkish
peasant.

"Ah! Effendi," said the horse-dealer, "you
know the value. To you there is much brain;
but the Effendi's eyes will show him that sixty
liras are nothing for the horses—besides, sixty
liras, what are they? Sixty grains from the
sand on the sea-shore to the gold in the Effendi's
purse."

I was not going to be bamboozled in that
way: taking forty liras from my pocket, I
showed him the money.

" There," I said, " that is all I shall give you,
and all that your horses are worth."

"Look! forty liras!" The man attempted
to impart to his countenance an indignant air,
but the sight of the gold was too much for him.
" Only forty liras!"

"Yes," I said; "and if you will not sell
them, I will buy my horses from another
dealer," and I turned to go away.

"No, Effendi, do not stir!" cried the owner,
hastily. " But for ty liras—let us say forty-one
—one lira more—just one—for a baksheesh!"

"Yery well," I said; and I handed him the
money.

Meantime, Osman, the Turkish servant, led
my newly-acquired property to a stable which he
had engaged for me in the neighborhood.

Later on in the afternoon I received a com-
munication from my friend H--, in which he

said that he had sent the gray horse to Constan-
tinople by the bearer of the letter, but that the
owner of the animal would not take less than
sixteen liras for him. As I had thoroughly
tried the animal, I determined to accept the
offer, and my stud was now complete.

The final preparations for the journey were
soon made. All the horses were fresh shod,
and now I found that a Turkish horseshoe is
very different to the one which we use in this
country. It consists of a thin, circular piece
of iron, with a very small hole in the centre,
not bigger than a shilling; almost the entire
surface of the hoof being thus protected by
the metal.

Two English saddles were bought for myself
and Radford, a Turkish saddle was provided
for Osman, and two pack-saddles for the bag-
gage-horses. Saddle-bags, corn-sacks, and
nose-bags, had been also purchased, and a sup-
ply -of tea and such other necessaries as would
be difficult to obtain when once we had quitted
the capital.

Everything was now ready for the start, so I
hastened to say good-bye to my numerous
friends. Whilst visiting one of them—an En-
glish lady—a Russian acquaintance called upon
her, to solicit subscriptions for a hospital. This
building, as it appeared, was being used for all
classes of patients, and a prince at the Russian
embassy was at that time occupying one of the
wards.

"I went to see him yesterday," said the vis-
itor. " He complains dreadfully of the quietness
of the establishment."

"Perhaps he would like a barrel organ in the
passage?" observed my hostess.

" That is what I said to him," replied the
lady. " If he had his own way, he would give
a ball there before long."

It would rather astonish English people if
they were told that a person holding the posi-
tion of a secretary of embassy was inhabiting
a building which in this country is reserved for
the impecunious, but no one in Russia thinks
anything of such matters; there are so many
princes. NGt many years ago, a prince could

have been seen cleaning the visitors' boots at
Dusaux's Hotel in Moscow.

It was Friday, December the 8th, 1876. I
have always been a disbeliever in the sailors'
superstition about leaving a port on a Friday,
and although several of my friends, particularly
the Greek, entreated me to postpone my de-
parture till the following day, I determined to
run the risk of offending the Fates, and at once
to commence my journey.

The street in front of the Hotel Luxembourg
was filled with a crowd of idlers from an early
hour. It had been rumored about that the
Giaour was mad enough to wish to go to Kars
from Scutari by land, instead of by the Black
Sea and Erzeroum, and that he was about to
start. The Turk had spread the news. His
friends and family had come to see him off. In
the meantime, he himself was busily engaged
in loading the pack-horses, but occasionally
found time to glance superciliously at his ad-
miring and awe-struck relatives. At last every-
thing was ready; giving Osman the little trav-
eling sword, I desired him to strap it around
his waist. The crowd of relations were now
more excited than before. The bystanders
took the liveliest interest in the proceedings.
"Osman has got a sword," said one. "He is
buckling it on," gaid another.

Osman's air of importance increased tenfold
when I desired him to sling my little sporting-
rifle on his shoulder. There was a faint ap-
proach to a cheer from a little boy in the crowd.
This was instantly suppressed, and in the midst
of all the excitement we rode down the streets
of Pera.

Several friends of mine were staying at the
Hotel Royal; as we passed their windows they
invited me to take a stirrup-cup, and in addition
poured out a bumper for the Turk. However,
Osman could not be induced to drink. He was
more particular in this respect than many of his
fellow-countrymen. He handed the glass to
Radford. The latter was not displeased at the
Turk's religious scruples, as he thus got two
glasses for himself instead of one. He at once
tossed off the contents, and smiling benignantly
returned the tumbler to his companion. I now
shook hands with my friends at the Royal,
and we continued our journey towards the
port.

" Good-bye, old fellow," cried my hospitable
entertainers.

"We shall meet again soon," was my an-
swer.

"Let us hope this side of Hades," said an-
other, and we rode onward towards Galata.

An acquaintance, a Greek gentleman, accom-
panied me as far as the port. Here I discovered
that one boat for Scutari had just started, and
that it would be at least three hours before
there would be another. This threw out my
plans. I had wished to march my horses about
five hours that day, but in consequence of the
delay, and the shortness of the evenings at this
season of the year, night would be on us before
we had left Scutari.

The steamer arrived. A wide platform was
pushed out from the deck to the shore, and two
carriages with some horses, belonging to a
Turkish Bey, were taken on board. Then came
Radford and Osman, each leading rtwo horses:
I followed with the little gray. The carriages
and animals belonging to the Bey were placed
towards the bow of the vessel, and the other
horses near the engines.

The sea was as calm as a duck-pond. In Os-
man's opinion it was unnecessary to tie up our
steeds to the bulwarks. The animals which be-
longed to the Bey was simply held by their
grooms, and stood quietly enough by the car-
riages. Everything looked couleur de rose, and
I went up the ladder to a sort of raised deck,
which arched over the place reserved for horses,
cattle, and other merchandise. Here several
Turkish ladies were sitting. They were en-
gaged in sipping glasses full of water. One,
who appeared to be the elder of the party, had
some sugar in her pocket; producing it, she
carefully sugared the tumblers of her compan-
ions, and then sugared her own. The faces of
these ladies could be clearly seen through the
very thin muslin texture which served them as
veils. They were not prepossessing, and sadly
wanted expression—a defect which I subse-
quently observed in almost every Turkish wom-
an whose countenance I had the opportunity
of seeing. We need not be surprised at this.
I have been informed by the Turks themselves
that very few women, not one per 1,000, can
read or write. They amuse themselves with
gossip and eating. Their mental faculties be-ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MIN OR.

9

come absorbed. They live for the moment,
and pine after the coarser and more sensual
pleasures. The domestic life in a Turkish family
is often not a happy one; the elder and less
f ivored wives hate to desperation the more at-
tractive and younger additions to the harem.
The middle-aged spouse is goaded to madness
at being deprived of those favors which the
more comely wife is allowed to share. She en-
deavors to poison her lord's ear with respect to
the new arrival. The jealous husband does
not know what to believe, his home becomes a
pandemonium.

Suddenly a loud report, followed by another,
and then another, aroused me from my reflec-
tions; a tremendous noise could be heard below
our feet, and men's voices expostulating in
anger.

What had happened? One of the Turkish
ladies let her tumbler fall, the faces of the other
passengers became white. Was it a torpedo
which General Ignatieff had set to blow up the
Mohammedans, or had the engine burst?

I hurried down-stairs. The first thing which
met my gaze was the black horse, Obadiah—
I had named him after a favorite old charger—
lying stretched out on deck, and my English
servant seated on the animal's head. Osman
*was holding one end of the gray horse's halter,
the animal amusing himself meanwhile by lash-
ing out with his heels at the panels of the Bey's
carriage. Fortunately the other horse had re-
mained quiet. The Bey's servants, instead of
attempting to save the panels of their master's
carriage, vented their wrath by numerous ex-
pletives, and were keeping as far as possible
from the scene of action.

" Well, I'll bed—d!"

This ejaculation, uttered in a strong Celtic
.accent, attracted my attention, as I was busily
engaged hofcling up the gray's foreleg to keep
him from doing any more damage to the Bey's
•vehicle. The forcible exclamation issued from
the lips of an engineer, who happened to be
engaged on board the boat.

" What has happened?" I asked.

"Happened, sirl The Lord only knows.
We were down below. There was an explo-
sion on deck. I ran up-stairs, and saw smoke
coming out of that box. All the horses were
topsy-turvy."

The box in question contained about five hun-
dred loaded cartridges, which I was taking for
sporting purposes.

"What does it all mean, Radford?" I in-
quired.

"Lor, sir, it was that black 'orse Obadiah, as
"was the bottom of all the mischief. He is that
artful. He stood quiet enough till we started
and the paddles began to turn; he then began to
kick, and frightened the gray. That 'ere
Turk," pointing to Osman, " was a-praying by
the side of the paddle-boxes, and not taking any
account of the hanimals, drat him! Obadiah
upset his pack-saddle and then stamped on the
cartridge-box; some of them have gone off. Hos-
:man left off praying and began to swear, that's
all he did; and as for then there Turks in charge
of the other 'orses, they did nothing. Obadiah
.slipped up, and I sat on his head to keep him
quiet."

Luckily no great damage was done except to
the Bey's carriage. We commenced putting
the pack-saddle on Obadiah, but before this
operation was completed our vessel arrived at
Scutari. The steamer would only stop a few
minutes at the port. There was no time to
properly arrange the baggage. The greater
part of it had to be carried out by hand. A
•crowd of idlers stood on the shore; some of
them, recognizing Osman, came to help us in
adjusting the saddle, each individual offering
advice as to how the baggage should be strapped
to the saddle; Osman meanwhile talking to his
friends about the awful danger which he had
incurred, and how, had it not been for him, the
steamer and all the passengers must inevitably
have gone to the bottom. The Bey's carriage
drove past us; the servants on the box vented
their indignation at the damage done to their
master's panels in some strong language.
Osman answered them in a torrent of expletives,
■which, translated into Saxon, would frighten
a Billingsgate fishwoman. The bystanders
joined in the chorus, and it was some time be-
fore we were ready to start.

CHAPTER Y.

The shades of evening were falling fast as
Ave rode through the town. Presently, lear-
ing behind the dirty lanes and filthy streets,

j the main features of Scutari, we emerged
upon the open country. The road was in
a dreadful state, at least a foot of black mud
was piled on the strata below. In order the bet-
ter to avoid the dirt we rode along a raised path
which overhung the highway, Osman and Rad-
ford each leading a baggage-horse. In about half
an hour we arrived at a place where the highway
ascended rapidly for a few hundred yards. The
footpath rose yet more abruptly, and here and
there large sections of it had fallen into the road
below. We were passing by the cemetery at
Scutari. Thousands of grave-stones which
mark the resting-place of departed Turks lay
scattered here and there. A deep silence reigned
around, and the place appeared a desert, ten-
anted only by the dead. Suddenly I heard a
noise behind me; a sound of horse's hoofs strik-
ing violently against some hard substance. I
looked round. The first thing which met my
gaze was the horse Obadiah, the source of all our
previous difficulties, with his pack-saddle under
the girth. In the hurry of re-saddling him at
Scutari the yarn breast-plate and crupper had
not been well adjusted, nor had they been prop-
erly buckled. The saddle had turned, and
Obadiah was amusing himself by a second time
kicking at my cartridge-boxes, gun-case, and
tins of tea and sugar. Clash went his iron hoof
against one of the cases, away flew the white
sugar into the black mud. A bang resounded
from the gun-case, and that went spinning in
another direction. Fortunately the boxes of
cartridges had rolled to a little distance, and
were just out of reach of the now infuriated
beast's heels. Osman, in a moment of fear,
had released the animal's halter; dismounting
from his own steed, he tried to get to Obadiah's
head. This was by no means an easy task; the
path was very narrow, in fact there was barely
room enough for a horse to walk. ^To reach
the pack animal it was necessary to descend to
the road, which lay some feet below us, and
then climb up the steep and muddy bank.

Whilst this was being done I took charge of
Osman's horse, the roarer, and which he had
selected for his own riding, because, he said,
that the animal was a ralwan or ambler. He
had rubbed his trousers when he made this re-
mark, and had grinned complacently; by this
gesture he sought to convey to my taind, that
his skin was tender, and that he did not wish to
be galled during the journey. -

A noise in front now called my attention to
that direction. The horse that Radford was
leading had become alarmed, and in his strug-
gles to release himself was half-way over the
bank.

" Let him go!" I cried to my servant, fearing
that he would be dragged over the steep in-
cline.

Down fell the animal on his back, and all
the remainder of my luggage was covered with
the slimy clay. The horse was a little shaken
by the fall and did not attempt to rise—he lay
prostrate and helpless in the midst of the havoc
which he had created. Meantime Obadiah, who
had been frightened to death by the luggage
which was hanging round his heels, had kicked
away his trammels. Osman approached him
from the bank, and tried to get to his head. It
was in vain. The horse sprang back a yard or
so, plunged and kicked, then slipping like his
fellow steed, he rolled down the steep. He was
none the worse for the fall, and bounding on
his legs, dashed headlong along the road—his
saddle and everything he had previously carried
lying scattered in every direction.

The sun by this time had long since set. It
was nearly dark. Letting go Osman's horse, I
galloped after the runaway, but it was useless;
in a moment he disappeared from view. There
was nothing to be done but to return to my
party and collect the luggage.

" Our fate is a bad one," said Osman. " The
horse—curse his mother—has gone, what shall
be done? Praise be to Allah that the Effendi
is not hurt. I have worked very hard," he
added.

"It is all your fault," I remarked, angrily.
"It would serve you right if I were to break
your head. You ought to have seen that the
pack-saddle was properly put on the horse at
Scutari."

" Saddle, Effendi? It was all owing to the
saddle. It did not fit the horse."

" What does he say, sir?" inquired the En-
glish servant.

"Say?—confound him! he says it is the
fault of the saddle."

"Saddle, sir! no, it ain't. It is all the fault
of his confounded praying. Why, whenever

there is any work to be done, he is always down
on his knees and a-banging his head against
the ground. Real hard work his praying is,
sir, and no mistake. I catched him at it this
morning in the hotel; then he had another turn
onboard the steamer—and, look, sir, there he
is again. Drat him, he has taken my coat to
kneel on!" And rushing up, my servant drag-
ged his property from beneath the prostrate
Mohammedan.

We were some distance from Scutari, and
about two hours from Moltape, a village in
which I intended to pass the night. I de-
termined to send Osman back to the town, and
desired him to hire a Hammall, or man with a
baggage-liorse. In the meantime, Radford and
myself could keep guard over our luggage.

The night grew darker and darker. The
white grave-stones could be barely discerned.
Leaving my English servant to sit upon the
luggage in the road, I waded through the mud
to a cleaner spot in the cemetery. Sitting down
on one of the broken monuments, I awaited
Osman's arrival. Presently I heard the sound
of steps close -behind me. The locality does
not bear a good reputation, so grasping my re-
volver, I prepared for an attack.

" Peace be with you!" was the new comer's
salutation, arid in a few minutes I discovered
he was the grave-digger, or person in charge of
the cemetery. His house, or hovel, was not
far off, and he invited me to go there and share
his fire. It would not have been safe to have
left the luggage, so I declined the offer. Soon
afterwards the sound of horses' hoofs in the
distance announced the approach of Osman.
He was accompanied by a Hammall. The lat-
ter, placing the fallen luggage upon his animal,
jumped himself on top of all.

"We had better go back to Scutari, Effendi,"
said Osman. "It is late; there will be no vil-
lage for the next three hours. In Scutari there
is good accommodation."

I had no wish to turn back. We had already
lost at least half a day through Osman's stupid-
ity; X resolved to continue the march to Mol-
tape, and halt there for the night. Osman
could start at daybreak for Scutari, and make
inquiries about the lost horse.

"Shall you find him?" I inquired of the
Turk.

"Find him, Effendi? of course I shall find
him. I will not eat, drink, or sleep till my
lord's property is restored;" by way of substan-
tiating this statement, Osman took a piece of
bread out of his pocket and began to eat.

" Well," I observed, "you said you were go-
ing to starve till you had found my horse, and
you are eating already."

"LIt is bad for a man with an empty stomach
to be exposed to the night air. I shall be all the
better able to look for the Effendi's horse to-
morrow, and please God, I will find him," was
the answer.

We continued our journey through the deep
mud, the Hammall riding in front as guide.
The moon rose and threw her pale shadows on
the scene. The Hammall, who was perched
up on the top of a pile of luggage, uttered from
time to time, shrill cries. Cracks from his
whip resounded from the flanks of his over-
taxed steed. Radford rode pensively in the
rear; the bowl of a short wooden pipe glared
with the red hot ashes of some tobacco. Noth-
ing ever seemed to afflict my English servant.
I was going to Kars—well, he must go too; if
I had told him that I was going up in a fire
balloon, he would have been equally ready to
accompany me. I wish we had four hundred
thousand men like him in the British army.
The soldier who will ask no questions, will go
where you like, and die in his place if you tell
him to do so, is preferable, in my mind, to the
more educated individual who reflects, weighs
probabilities, and sometimes runs away.

Now a light appeared in the distance, and
then another. The swamp through which we
had been riding was gradually replaced by
harder soil. A few whitewashed cottages were
met with at intervals along our path. Rresently
we rounded a corner, and a large village was
exposed to view. The Hammall rode up to a
house which was detached from the rest, and in
the centre of the town. He leaped from his
horse, and coming to my side, held the sti-rup-
leather for me to dismount. We had arrived
at a Khan, or resting-place for travelers. On
lifting up the latch, or rather pulling at a piece
of string which was used as a substitute for a
handle, the door opened.

I found myself in a large, low room. So
soon as my eyes became accustomed to the10

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

dense atmosphere, I discovered that almost all
the available space was filled with soldiery. On
one side of the room there was a succession of
broad wooden shelves, ascending towards the
roof; these, too, were tenanted. It was diffi-
cult to put a foot down upon the floor without
treading upon the face or body of some follow-
er of the Prophet. The smell which arose from
so much humanity was everything but agreea-
ble. A mungo, or circular iron pan on a tripod,
was filled with burning charcoal, and placed on
a stool so as to be removed from the immediate
vicinity of the sleepers. It gave out a blue and
sulphurous flame. The charcoal had not been
properly burned through previous to being
placed in the mungo. It added some poisonous
fumes to the unhealthy atmosphere.

CHAPTER VI.

The proprietor of the establishment, a Greek,
slowly raised himself from a recumbent posi-
tion. His head was bound up in what appear-
ed to be a red stocking; the toe part of this
article of attire hung carelessly over his left
shoulder. He was a dirty-looking little fellow,
and had a large wen on one side of his forehead.
Nature had determined to make him as hideous
as possible, and some fellow-mortal had added
to her handiwork, for a large scar, barely cica
trized, and apparently inflicted by a knife, ex-
tended right across his face. This scar and the
wen were, in the daytime, a perpetual resort for
blue-bottle flies. These insects, I subsequently
observed, had a great affection for the frontis-
piece of the proprietor.

" What do you want?" he asked in lingua
franca, that undefined mixture of Italian,
French, Greek, and Spanish, which is spoken
throughout the Mediterranean.

" I want a place to sleep in."

" Place to sleep in? Sleep here," and he
slowly subsided into his original position.

Osman now began to address him, and in a
whining tone said that I was his Effendi, a
great person with gold, not paper, in my
pocket, and that I would pay liberally for ac-
commodation. The allusion to the gold acted
like a charm upon the Greek.

" Gold!" he said. " Gold! Let me see it!"

I took out a lira (a Turkish pound), and spin-
ning it carelessly in the air, let it fall on an
earthenware dish. The coin gave out a metal-
lic ring. The Greek clutched at the fallen lira;
but the niirible Osman was too quick for him,
and picking it up returned it to me.

"I have no rooms but this," said the pro-
prietor, eagerly; "but I have a stable. Why not
sleep in the stable? You want a stable for I
your horses, and I will put down some clean
straw for the Effendi."

Our horses were all this time tied up to a
post outside. I was on the point of accepting
his offer, so as to gain shelter for them as well
as for ourselves, when the door opened. A
strange figure loomed in sight.

"The Onbashee (corporal)," said the pro-
prietor in a cringing tone, springing to his feet;
and seizing several soldiers who were asleep on
a bench, he rolled them on to the floor, thus
making room for the new arrival. The latter,
a dumpy-looking man, with a fez on his head,
red regimental trousers, and a short, yellow
dressing-gown, sat down on the bench, and
beckoned to me to sit by his side. The occu-
pants of the room by this time were thoroughly
aroused. A small boy, the exact counterpart
of,the proprietor, minus the scar and wen, speed-
ily made some coffee. The fragrant beverage
was duly handed first to the Onbashee and my-
self, and then to Osman and Radford, the head
of the latter being in close proximity to the
ceiling of the establishment.

I addressed the corporal, and told him I was
an English traveler, who wanted a night's
lodging.

"English!" he cried, then springing to his
feet he respectfully saluted, and said, "I
thought, Effendi, that you were an Italian or a
countryman of the Greek here," pointing to the
proprietor of the place. " Come along, sir,"
leaving the building, he led me to a small build-
ing, apparently a guard-house, for in the room
below there were ten soldiers, some rifles and
accoutrements being suspended on a rack on
the wall. Ascending a few rickety stairs, I en-
tered a small lobby. It was about ten feet
square, and had no furniture save a wooden
ledge.

" This is my room," said the Onbashee.
"You and the other Englishman can sleep here.
I will sleep down-stairs with the men." Then

bringing two blankets he threw then down on
the ledge, saluted in a military fashion, and
disappeared.

"Queer place, sir," said Radford, looking
round. "However, it is better than the hole
down-stairs. Shall I sleep here, sir, or in the
stable?"

"On the floor," I replied. "Go and look
after the horses, aud then bring up some rugs."

At daybreak Osman started for Scutari in
search of the lost horse. A few hours later I
took my gun, and went to see if I could find any
snipe in a marsh near the town. About six
p.m. Osman returned. It was easy to see from
his crestfallen face that he had heard no news
of the lost Obadiah.

"At Oitdi! The horse has gone, Effendi,"
he said. "I have been to every farm-house
near here, and no one has seen a black gelding
with his tail cut short. Praise be to Allah that
I cut all the horses' tails before starting; our
animal will be different from the others In the
neighborhood, and will be easily distinguished.
I went to the Pacha at Scutari," he added;
" he has given orders to the police to search for
the horse. When he is found, he will be sent
after the Effendi by train to Ismid."

Gitdi (it has gone), I began to hate that word.
Later on, if our tea had been stolen, Osman in-
variably greeted me with gitdi. It is the first
word which a traveler in Turkey hears, he is
kept in mind of it during his entire journey.
There was nothing to be done but to hire an-
other baggage-liorse, and give orders for a start
at daybreak.

A few minutes before leaving Moltape, I went
to the corporal, and put in his hand a dollar
(medjidi), in return for the accommodation he
had given me. There were several soldiers
present. He declined the present with a gran-
diose air* adding that his home was mine, and
that all strangers were welcome to the abode.
However, a few minutes later, when I was
alone, he approached, and putting out his hand,
said: " Effendi, no one is looking, I will accept
a present." Human nature in all countries is
much the same. The corporal's demeanor be-
fore the soldiers much resembled that of a rail-
way porter when offered a tip in the presence
of a railway director.

We rode through a beautiful country. £ur
track lay across a plain. It was surrounded by
undulating hills. Pretty villas with Venetian
windows decked their crests. Vines, fig, and
other fruit trees studded the rising slopes. A
few hours later the path became very bad. We
made our way across deep, half-hidden ruts,
which compelled us to advance with the great-
est care for fear of breaking the horses' legs.

We ascended a steep incline, and then, far
away in the distance, and across the Bay of Is-
mid, are cone-shaped hills covered with fleecy
snow.

The path turned, we rode along the seashore.
The railway ran along the sidcTof the track,
now ascending in tortuous coils, now disap-
pearing altogether from our view, to appear once
more in the distance, and almost level with the
azure deep. Not a ripple disturbed the surface
of the waters; colored rocks and stones met our
gaze as we glanced into the abyss below; fes-
toons of variegated sea-weed hung from the
rugged cliffs.

The sun's rays were fierce and scorching. In
spite of its being the month of December, there
was a glare as if on a July day. I was not
sorry when, on reaching the crest of an adja-
cent hill, Osman dismounted, and suggested a
halt for lunch.

" A capital spot, Effendi," he remarked,
" there is a spring of fresh water, a cave, and
firewood. I have a beautiful goose, plump as
a Georgian woman, in the saddle-bags. My
brother," pointing to Radford, "shall cook
him. Our stomachs grieve now, but soon they
shall be comforted."

He led the way to a sort of cavity in the rock.
A fire was kindled, and the goose, the subject
of Osman's admiration, was shortly simmering
on the embers.

Presently the track became worse, if possible,
than before. Several wooden bridges over
deep and narrow gullies had to be crossed.
There were no parapets to the bridges. Here
and there holes a foot square let us see the
stream below. Then we traversed lanes of
water, in some places up to the horses' girths.
The Hammall went first, and wended his way
with caution. Two ditches skirted the borders
of the track; the rain had fallen heavily, and
had one of our horses made a mistake or floun-

dered, his rider would have found himself in at
least six feet of water.

We were nearing Ismid, the Nicomedia of an-
cient history. Our tired animals seemed aware
of its proximity; they quickened their pace..
Very shortly afterwards we rode into the town.
I had sent forward a messenger to tell the chief
of the police that an English traveler was com-
ing to Ismid, and to ask him to provide me with
lodgings for the night, there being no hotels in
the place.

I was met at the entrance of the town by a
Zaptieh, or gendarme. Going before us, heled
the way to a house kept by a Greek. Here I
found two clean rooms furnished in the Euro-
pean fashion. The Zaptieh, after inquiring if I
had any orders to give him, left the room, saying
that he would report my safe arrival to the
Pacha.

On the morrow I received a visit from the
chief of the Telegraph department in Ismid—
an Armenian who spoke French. On showing-
him a letter of introduction which I had re-
ceived at Constantinople, for the Christian
dignitaries in Ismid, he at once became verjr
communicative, and hastened to relate a griev-
ance which, according to him, an Armenian,
had lately suffered owing to Turkish misrule.
It appeared that this man had borrowed
money from a Turk, and had given his wife's
earrings and necklace as security for the debt.
The arrangements for the loan had been made
in the presence of my informant. " But now,"
he continued, "comes the pith of the story.
The Turk died. The Armenian, paying the
debt to the dead man's heirs, asked for liis
wife's necklace and earrings. The Turk's fam-
ily would not give them up. The Armenian
appealed to the Cadi. The Cadi would not do
justice, because it was the word of a Christian
against the testimony of a Turk; and in such
instances an Armenian's evidence goes for noth-
ing. However," added the speaker, " I tele-
graphed to the authorities in Constantinople.
An order at once came for justice to be
done."

Later on I walked through the town. It is
built in the form of a half-moon, and is erected
on the heights around the shore. Tiers and
tiers of houses are perched up in out-of-the-way
corners. Here a solitary one stands aloft like an
eagle's nest and far above its fellows. No order
has been followed in the construction of these
houses. Every sort of shape and pattern is to
be seen. Many of them are like Swiss chalets.
Their wooden walls are bright with an infinite
variety of hues.	*.

It was, apparently, a washing-day. The
nether garments and shirts of Turks andChris-
tians were suspended from every window-sill.
This apparel was of all the colors in the rain-
bow, and lit up the scene still more. There
were a few well-built stone buildings—amongst
them the palace of the Pacha. 1 called upon
this official in the afternoon, and found him a
tall, fine-looking man, considerably over six
feet in height. He was seated in European
fashion upon a sofa, and not squatted on the
floor like some others of his countrymen who
were present at the time of my visit. He spoke
French fluently, and also Russian, having spent
some years in the Turkish Consulate in Odessa;
his residence there had not inspired him with
any affection for the subjects of the Tzar, whom
he cordially detested.

" Your minister, Mr. Gladstone, hates us
poor Turks quite as much as the Russians do,"
presently remarked the Pacha.

"Mr. Gladstone is not a minister," I re-
marked, "he is not by any means omnipotent
in England. A great many of my countrymen
have already evinced their sympathy for your
nation."

"Yes," said the Pacha, "that is true; the;y
have sent medicines to our wounded soldiery.
Gladstone is what you call a Liberal, is he
not?"

" He is one of the leaders of the Liberal par-
ty, and was its chief till he was turned out by
the actual government."

"Ah! I remember," said the Pacha. "He
told the people of England that they must not
drink after certain hours, and quarreled with
your priests. I read all about it in the news-
papers. It struck me as strange conduct in a
man who calls himself a' Liberal.' Has he many
friends in Parliament?"

" Yes, but not so many as formerly; his con-
duct about this Eastern question has drawn
away some of his most influential supporters."

" 'Well, at all events, if there is war, please
God, we shall be allies."ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

11

" Please God, we shall," I replied, devoutly.

"You know," he continued, "that we are
much stronger than people in Europe believe.
We can put an army of 700,000 men into the
field."

44 Praise be to Allah!" interrupted an elderly
Turk who was squatted on the carpet, at the
same time gravely stroking his white beard.

44 Why is it that the people in England hate
us so much?" inquired the Pacha.

44 Partly on account of the excesses of your
irregular soldiers in Bulgaria, but mainly be-
cause you repudiated your debt. How should
you like to have lent money and then to receive
no interest?"

The Pacha laughed.

4 4 Yes, you are right. It was a great mistake.
But that is all Russia's fault. Her agents
brought about the revolution in the Herzego-
vina. Her functionaries encouraged Sultan
Abdul Aziz in his extravagance, and were the
main cause of the debt being repudiated. They
thought that this would make us unpopular
with England, and they were very right in their
conjectures. There is plenty of wealth in Tur-
key," he continued. "If it were not for the
impending war, we could pay some part of our
interest now; but Russia will not let us be
quiet. She compels us to keep up a large army.
Her agents bring about massacres of Christians,
and set the whole world against us."*

" If there is a war, I hope that we shall cut
the throats of all the Russians," interrupted the
old gentleman on the carpet.

w Allah grant that we may!" exclaimed the
rest of the assembly.

Coffee and pipes were now handed round,
and my interview came to an end, the Pacha
having kindly given order for a telegram to be
sent to Scutari, to inquire if anything had been
heard of my runaway horse.

CHAPTER VII.

In the evening I called upon our Armenian
bishop. He lived in a quaint, old-fashioned
house in the Christian quarter of the town, the
Turks and Armenians inhabiting different dis-
tricts in Ismid, as in many other Turkish cities.
Refreshments were now brought in on a silver
tray, and several kinds of jam handed round in
little silver dishes. The guest taking a spoon-
ful of jam is expected to swallow it; he then
drinks a glass of water. This is an economical
refreshment; a very little jam goes a long way
in the entertainment.

" How do^you like it?" said one of the party.

"Very good," I replied, at the same time
having that sort of feeling in my mouth which
carried my memory back to boyish days, and
to the gray powders which my old nurse used
to administer, " very good."

" We always treat our guests in this manner,"
said an old Armenian pompously. "It is the
custom of our nation."

Now the conversation turned upon the Turks
in Ismid, and it was pleasant to hear that some
of the Turkish officials were well spoken of,
even by the Armenians.

44 The chief of police here is a capital fel-
low," observed one of the company. "During
the Ramazan, one of our people was smoking
in the streets, a Mohammedan went up to him
and struck him with a stick. The chief of the
police, who happened to be passing by, saw this.
He approached and said: ' Why did you strike
that man?' * Because he was smoking during
Ramazan.' 'Did he put his cigarette in your
eye?' 4 No.' 'Then you had no business to
strike him. You shall go to prison and learn
to behave better for the future.' "

44 Yes," said another of the guests; "the
Turkish papers published the story, and highly
praised the conduct of the official."

44 The Turkish government is not so bad,"
observed a third gentleman. " It wishes justice
to be carried out impartially throughout the
empire; but, so long as the Cadis refuse to take
the word of a Christian as evidence, it will be
difficult for us to live with any degree of com-
fort. "

44 After all," he continued, " this is an abuse
which has crept in amidst the Turkish officers.
The Koran says that the testimony of a Chris-
tian witness is to be taken as evidence, but
nowadays many of the Mohammedans have for-
gotten the Koran."

In the evening a telegram arrived from the
Pacha at Scutari. It was to the effect that

♦These statements of the Pacha are confirmed to
some extent by two official reports.—See Appendices
IV. and V.

nothing had been heard of my horse; however,
so soon as the animal was found he should be
sent after me. This would have been useless.
There was no rail beyond Ismid, and I intended
to start the following morning. In consequence
of this I wrote to a friend at the British em-
bassy, to ask him, in the event of the horse
being found, to have the animal sold at the mar-
ket in Constantinople. Meantime, I sent Os-
man to hire a post-horse to carry my baggage
as far as Sabanja, a small village about twenty
miles from Ismid, on the road to Angora. Just
as we were leaving Ismid, two Zaptieh, or
mounted police, rode up. They had been or-
dered by the Pacha to escort me as far as
Sabanja. Smart-looking fellows they were, too,
with light-blue jackets, red trousers, and Hes-
sian boots. Each of them carried a repeating-
rifle slung across his shoulder. Revolvers were
stuck in the crimson sashes which encircled
their waists. Short scimitars, but with no hilt-
guards to protect the hand, were slung from
their sword-belts.

It is singular that the Turkish military au-
thorities, who have adopted the modern arma-
ment in so far as fire-arms are concerned, should
be still so backward in the manufacture of
swords. A cavalry soldier, armed with a Turk-
ish sword without a hilt, would have very little
chance if engaged in a hand-to-hand encounter
with a dragoon supplied with one of our own
weapons.

After riding for about half an hour in the
direction of Sabanja, Radford, who was lead-
ing a pack-horse, remarked to Osman:

" What have you done with the post-horse?"

The Turk did not understand the question.
When it was interpreted to him, he replied:

" The animal is in front with the Zaptieh."

As it is always as well to put a Turk's state-
ment to the test, I determined to trot on ahead
and look for myself. The Zeptieh had not seen
the horse. It appeared that after loading him,
Osman had started the animal, much in the
same way as an Irishman does a pig, with the
object of driving him before our party. We
now all dispersed in different directions, and
finally after a two hours search, discovered the
animal tied up by the side of a khan, an old
woman who had observed the horse wandering
about having attached him to a post.

The track now became much worse than any
thing I had previously seen. In many places
there were quite four feet of mud. It reached
our horses' girths, and with the greatest diffi-
culty we were able to force a passage.

Presently we came to a hollow in the path.
Here a cart drawn by four oxen was at a stand-
still. The bullocks, with only their necks and
shoulders out of the mud, gazed plaintively be-
fore them. The two drivers had taken off
their trousers and under-clotlies; their shirts
were tucked up to their armpits; they waded
through the black slime, and goaded the bul-
locks forward.

A creaking noise was heard from the pon-
derous wheels. The four bullocks put forth
all their strength; it was a useless effort, one of
them pulled the cart a little to one side, the
next instant it was upset and half buried in the
mire. The two men, with nought on them save
little red fez caps and with their tucked-up
shirts, presented a doleful picture. They were
not burdened with much flesh, and the ribs and
shoulder-bones were prominently thrown into
relief by the coating of mud, which reached as
high as their waists. One poor fellow, wading
up to us, asked Osman to give him a light for
his pipe. The other one, looking more woe-
begotten, if possible, than his fellow, had no
pipe, and mournfully asked for a cigarette. '

" Effendi," said Osman, 44 this is a dreadful
place. We may be upset. Our horses will not
get through. Better go back to Ismid, and wait
there till the mud becomes hard."

44 No; go on. Horses can march where bul-
locks cannot."

Osman turned white; he was riding a little in
advance of me, and did not at all like being
sent forward to experiment upon the depth of
the mire.

44 He is a poor creature," observed Radford,
contemptuously. " Lor, sir, what else can we
expect of them? They don't drink no beer.
They turn hup their noses at wine. Hosman's
blood ain't no thicker than ditch-water—I will
lay a pound it ain't."

Our saddle-bags were covered with mud when
we gained a footing on the other side. Osman,
riding up to my side, congratulated himself on
having guided us through in safety.

" Your face was very white," I observed.

"Yes, Effendi, my blood had turned to milk.
It was not for myself, it was for the Effendi.
I thought that he might be suffocated. Osman
is yours, you can do with him what you like."

All these were very pretty speeches; however,.
I had been sufficiently often in the East to
know how to appreciate them at their true
value. I felt tolerably certain that i! Osman's
courage was ever put to the test, he would be
found to value his existence in this world more
than the society of a million beautiful wives in
the world to come.

After all, he would have been no exception to
mankind in general. I remember during the
last Carlist war hearing a story about a priest
who, on the eve of an expected battle, ad-
dressed the soldiers in his battalion, and in-
formed them that whoever was slain in the
morrow's fight should sup with Nuestro Senor
in Paradise. The morrow came, the battle
raged, and the Carlists were beaten—the priest's
battalion being the first to run away, headed by
the divine himself, who, tucking up his cos-
sack, ran as fast as his legs could carry him.
A soldier touched the reverend gentleman on
the shoulder, and said, "You told* us, my
father, that whoever was slain in to-day's fight
should sup in Paradise, but you are running
away." 44 My son," replied the Cura, who was
very much out of breath, "I, I—never sup—I
suffer from a weak digestion—I only dine."
Some people in England believe that a doctrine
of predestination makes the Turkish soldiers in-
different to death. This may be true in a few
isolated instances; but, as a rule, both Turks
and Christians have an extreme dislike to the
dread ordeal.

The track became firmer. We overtook some
Bashi Bazouks returning from Bulgaria. They
were most of them Circassians, and one could
speak Russian. He was very indignant at hav-
ing been ordered home, and brandishing his
long lance, with bright steel point at least
tjvelve inches long, regretted that he had lost
the opportunity of transfixing a few giaour
Russians.

" Did you kill many women?" I inquired.

" There were some killed," he replied. " It
was a pity. We were sorry for it; but what
would you have our men do? Some of their
own mothers and sisters had been ravished and
then butchered by the Russians."

4- Have any of your relatives been treated in
this way?" I inquired.

44 No," he said; 44 but in a village not far from
Gumri, some horrible cruelties have recently
taken place, many women and children were
slain, and all because they wished to leave Rus-
sia and go to Turkey."

"If my mother or sister had been killed, I
should not be particular as to how I avenged
her," he continued. 44 These cowardly Rus-
sians set us the example."

There was no sort of similarity in the attire
of the Bashi Bazouks. Each man had dressed
himself according to his fancy; the broad
sashes around their waists were stuck full of
pistols and daggers. The fire-arms, too, were
of the most primitive kind; some men had old-
fashioned muskets of the Tower pattern, and
others were armed with double-barreled guns,
which had been converted from flint to percus-
sion. Their horses looked hard and fit for work;
they were as a rule not more than fourteen
hands high, and their rough, shaggy coats re-
minded me a little of the Cossack horses which
I have seen in the neighborhood of the Don.

The scenery improves as we approach Sa-
banja. The flat country previouslv traversed
gives way to rising mountains, "fhey bound
our view towards the west. On my bridle-liand
is a wide lake. It lies like a mirror almost at
our feet. Many colored grasses and shrubs
clothe the slopes which lead down to the limpid
water. Acres upon acres of rich grass-land—such
as would make the mouth of a Leicestershire
farmer water with envy—surround Sabanja on
every side. We ride into the village; it con-
sists of about 200 houses, mostly built of dried
mud, and with much difficulty I obtain accom-
modation for the night.

Long before daybreak we were in the saddle.
Our road wound through mountain passes.
Huge clouds of mist slowly rose from the sur-
face of the lake: they floated away into space,
and appeared like icebergs as seen in the
horizon. Now we rode by a place where prep-
arations had been made for the construction
of a railway. Sleepers were lying by the side
of a partly-made embankment. On inquiry, no
work had been going on for two years. There
was to have been a railway to" Angora, but12

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

"Para yoke, there is no money," was the an-
swer to my questions on the subject.

Presently we came up to a caravan of mules
laden with tea and bound for Angora. The
road was very narrow, there was barely room
for two horses abreast. One mule turning his
head towards the bank, blocked up the entire
path; a blow from our Zaptieh's whip recalled
him to consciousness. Backing a few yards he
slipped, and rolled with his burden down the
slope. The owner cursed, and the other
muleteers coming up seemed rather to enjoy
his discomfiture.

CHAPTER VIII.

The road became more level. We encount-
ered caravans of camels, the animals not being
led by a cord attached to a peg through the
nose, but by a halter loosely fastened round
the neck.

They were fine beasts and covered with
shaggy hair. This, I was informed, is cut off
at certain seasons in the year, and is then con-
verted into a material for tents and rugs. Each
caravan was headed by a man riding a donkey,
the pace of the latter being if anything a little
superior to that of the huge camels behind
them.

We continued along the left bank of the
river Sakaria, a rapid stream, sixty yards wide
and with steep banks; presently we crossed it
on a stone bridge, very much out of repair.
The center part had fallen away. This had
been replaced by wooden beams covered with
loose earth. Presently we came to a large val-
ley abounding with corn, vines, and mulberry-
trees, and I halted for the night in the village
of Geiweh. The Mudir, a sort of local mayor,
came out to meet us, and insisted that I should
be his guest. He was a very communicative
man, and informed me that Yakoob Khan was
about to bring an army of 50,000 men to assist
the Sultan.	%

" How will he come?" I inquired.

"By the sea," remarked my host, his geo-
graphical knowledge about Kashgar not being
very extensive. He next informed me that
Persia was supposed to be very friendly to-
wards Russia, and that the Turks hated the
Persians, but liked the Christians, with the ex-
ception of the Greeks, whom they believed to
be in league with the Tzar.

Shortly after leaving Geiweh, the valley takes
a circular form, and is at least three miles in
diameter; hills with slopes well adapted for
artillery fire surround it on every side. The
little stream Kara Su, which is only knee deep,
traverses the district, and finds its way a few
miles further down into the Sakaria. The
Geiweh valley would be a magnificent position
into which to entice a careless general. The
exit towards the east is by a steep ravine with
precipitous banks, and on the west it is blocked
by the Sakaria.

We now reached Terekli, a small town with
about 800 houses. Every house was full of sol-
diers, who were en route to the capital. The
eun was descending over the mountain tops as
we rode through the narrow streets. Hundreds
of Bashi Bazouks were performing wild evolu-
tions in the plain below; some men were firing
at a target from horseback at a gallop, others
whirling their rifles about to the imminent
danger of the by-standers. The many colored
dresses of this guerilla soldiery and of the look-
ers on lit up the surroundings of the landscape.
The wild shouts of the horsemen re-echoed over
the mountains. From the distant peaks the
bleating of the goats could be faintly heard, as
the shepherds were driving them home for shel-
ter. This sound was mingled with the lowing of
cattle and the rippling of the stream below. It
was a romantic picture. It vividly recalled to
my mind some scenes in the Basque provinces
during the late Carlist war.

The soldiers started at four the following
morning, singing in chorus as they marched
through the streets. An hour later ve con-
tinued our journey through a mountainous dis-
trict strewed with blocks of granite, and soon
afterwards crossed the little river Goonook, an-
other tributary of the Sakaria.* Here the
scenery is very wild ; the hills are of all shapes
and forms, as if cast down at haphazard by the
Titans of old. Now we find a series of natural
bastions and ramparts, looking as if they had
been chiselled out of the hard white rocks, and
then approach a slate mountain, large black
stones lying about in endless profusion. Pres-

* For routes which cross the Sakaria, and traverse
Asia Minor, see Appendix XIV.

ently we ride along a path bounded on both
sides by a precipice. Our track twines like a
silver thread amidst the crags which hide the
way before us.

We round a corner. A small village is seen
below, Torbali is reached, and a Bey, the great
man of the place, invites us to share his dwell-
ing.

A little later, a black slave brought me as a
present from his master, some small trout and
fresh eggs. The slave could talk Arabic, He
had been born near Gondokoro, and had been
kidnapped from that part of the world by a
party of Arabs under Sir Samuel Baker's bete
noir, Abou Saood. I asked him if he would
like to return to his own country.

"Yes," he said, "if the Effendi is going there
with Abou Saood. We could then catch plenty
of slaves. I know where to find them," he add-
ed, "we should soon become rich."

There is an old proverb, " Set a thief to catch
a thief," but here it seemed equally applicable
to slaves. I was struck by the extreme eager-
ness to kidnap his countrymen which was
evinced by this negro gentleman.

"Well," I said, "how are you treated by
your master ?"

"He is a good man," was the reply, "there
is plenty to eat, and not much to do. One
thing is bad here," he added, "the mas-
ter does not drink sharab (wine). I like
sharab—lots of sharab, it makes one gay. Will
the Effendi give me a little sliardb V

" I have not any. I do not drink myself."

"And yet you are rich," said the slave.
"You have money to buy it, happy man that
you are. If I were like you, I would drink,
drink,[drink, all day and all night!"

"But Osman does not drink, he attends to
the Prophet's laws."

" Osman is a horse ; he does not know what
is good," was the reply.

At this moment the voice of the Bey was
heard. " Gell!" (come) resounded through the
building ; the negro, leaving me, hurried off to
his master.

It was a nine hours' march to Mudurlu, our
next halting-place, the route leading through a
very mountainous district. The village or
small town of Mudurlu contains 800 mud
houses, which, at the average rate of five peo-
ple to a family, would give about 4,000 in-
habitants. The traveler, when journeying in
this part of Anatolia, is much struck by the
absence of shops. He may pass through vil-
lage after village, small town after small town,
and, unless it be market day, he will be unable
to purchase anything.

" Can I buy some meat?" I would inquire of
Osman.

"We will see, Effendi. I will run to the
Khan, and inquire of the people there."

This was Osman's favorite amusement. Un-
der the pretence of making purchases, he would
go to the different Khans, talk for^some time to
the assembled villagers about his "own merits,
drink several cups of coffee, and return.

"Well, where is*the meat?"

"Effendi, there is no meat,"

"Haveyou been to look?"

"Look, Effendi! My clothes are moist with
perspiration. But there are some chickens;
they will do for our dinner."

This was the daily food—chicken. It is not a
bad diet if a man is living a sedentary life, and
not taking much exercise, but after a nine
hours' ride he requires something a little more
nourishing. Toujours perdrix was too much
for a French cardinal; if the holy gentleman
had been riding through Turkey, he would
have found toujours poulet an equally substan-
tial diet. A crowd assembled to see us depart.
The people in Mudurlu taking as much interest
in an Englishman as the inhabitants of London
would take in a chimpanzee or newly arrived
gorilla, Asiatics have a very high opinion of
our skill as manufacturers. English goods can
be met with in almost every large town in Ana-
tolia, and the Turks prefer English merchan-
dise to the cheaper but inferior articles sent
from Belgium or America.

The Zaptieh who went with me was a mag-
nificent-looking fellow. Picture to yourself a
tall, dark Circassian, with large, piercing eyes,
and carefully-trimmed beard—a striking con-
trast to the huge white turban which sur-
rounded his fez. He was dressed in a green
jacket with red facings; a blue waistcoat
peered from beneath it, and a pair of green
trousers and red leather boots covered his ex-
tremities. He was armed with a sword and re-
volver, and, when the road permitted, was con-

tinually exercising his horse. Now he would
break into a gallop, go at headlong speed for
fifty yards, then, pulling his steed almost on
his haunches, he would start in another direc-
tion, and, bending from the saddle-bow, touch
the ground. All this was done with the most
consummate grace and ease—in fact, as if horse
and rider were one.

Soon we left behind us the light, sandy soil
which admitted of such-like evolutions. A
chain of steep heights had to be passed. The
mud became at each moment deeper. The bag-
gage animals had great difficulty in ascending
with their loads. We were struggling up an
almost perpendicular height, At our feet, and
at least forty yards below, yawned a deep abyss.
The path itself was in no place more than ten
feet wide. The sound of an oath issuing from
Osman's lips attracted my attention. One bag-
gage-horse lay on the ground; he was kicking
violently, and his head and shoulders were
over the precipice. Osman had thrown my
rifle into the mud, so as to be able to use his
hands more freely, and was endeavoring to
make his way to the fallen animal. The Turk's
high boots came half off each time he lifted his
feet, owing to the sticky nature of the soil.
Luckily, perhaps, for us it was so sticky; the
gun-case, which was buried in the clay, kept
the horse from rolling. The Circassian and
Radford had time to reach his head. Pulling
off the pack-saddle, they divided the luggage
among the other animals. We gradually gained
the summit of the hill.

CHAPTER IX.

It was quite dark when we reached Nalilian,
a village with about 400 houses, and situated in
a corn-growing district. I halted at the house
of the Caimacan. He at once invited me to
take up my abode there for the night. Pres-
ently several visitors appeared—Armenians,
Turks and Circassians—all eager to question
the new arrival. I was seated in the place of
honor, on a rug near the fire; the Caimacan,
who was enveloped in a fur-lined dressing-
gown , sat next me. The rest of the company
took precedence according to the amount of this
world's goods which each one possessed—the
man who had 100 cows being seated next to the
governor, and the humble possessor of a mule
or a few sheep squatting humbly by the door.

Asiatics are proverbially reticent. My visit-
ors stared at each other, and did not say a
word. At last the Caimacan broke the silence.
He was wrapped up in a fur dressing-gown,
and looked like aft animated bundle. He gave
a little cough, and then said, "Is there any
news? if so tell us something." Now the in-
habitants of Asia Minor do not talk about the
weather—the state of the roads replaces that
topic of conversation so interesting to English
people.

" The roads are veiy bad," I replied.

To this there was no dissent, everybody
chorussed the wish for a railway.

" Do you think that one will ever be made?"
inquired the Caimacan.

'' Probably when you have some money in
the exchequer."

"We are very poor; why does not your na-
tion lend us some gold?"

"We have already given you more than a
hundred millions; with that money you might
have made railways in every part of Anatolia."

" Will there be war?" asked an Imaum
(priest).

" I don't know."

"If there is," he^added, "I shall go—all the
Imaums will go; we will fight by the side of
our countrymen. We will kill all the Musco-
vites."

"Has it not occurred to you," I here re-
marked, "that perhaps they may kill all the
Turks?"

"Impossible! Allah and the Prophet are
on our side; they will fight for the faithful."

"What do you think yourself?" now in-
quired the Caimacan; " will Russia beat us?"

" Certainly—that is, if you have no European
allies."

" Why so?"

"Because if your government had to put out
all its strength to conquer the Servians, assisted
by only 12,000 Russians, what opposition will
itbe able to make to an army of 700,000 Mus-
covites?"

" May their mothers be defiled!" said an old
farmer. " They are always interfering with
us. All my sons have gone to the war, and I
—well, if the Paddish wants me, I will go too."

He was apparently an octogenarian. ThisON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

13

announcement on his part was received with
great applause by the rest of the company.

"Why do you not give the Armenians arms,
and make them assist?" I inquired.

" They are friends with the Russians," said
the Imaum. "They would turn against us.
Have you Armenians in your country?"

"No."

' \ But you are a Christian, and they are Chris-
tians—you must be the same."

I now had to explain to the company that
there is as much difference between an English
Protestant and an Armenian Christian, as be-
tween a Sunnite and a Sliiite.

" And do you hate the Armenians as much
as the Sliiites hate us?"

"We do not hate anybody. Our religion
does not allow us to do so."

"You Christians are strange people," said
the priest, rising; he left the room, followed by
the rest of the visitors.

The scenery is very lovely in this neighbor-
hood, and as we ascended an incline which
leads in the direction of Angora, I could not
help wishing that I had been born a painter, in
order to have i:)laced on canvas a picture of the
landscape. A succession of hills, each one
loftier than its fellow, broke upon us, as we
climbed the steep. They were of all forms,
shades, and colors, ash-gray, blue, vermilion,
robed in imperial purple, and dotted with
patches of vegetation. Our road wound amidst
these chameleon-like heights. Silvery rivulets
streamed down the sides of the many-colored
hills. A rising sun showered its gleaming rays
upon the sparkling cascades. They flashed and
reflected the tints and shadows. A gurgling
sound of many waters arose from the depths
below.

We reached the summit of the highest hill.
The scene changes. We look down upon a
vast plain. It is surrounded on all sides by un-
dulating heights. The white sandy soil of the
valley throws still more into relief the many-
colored mountains. Patches of snow deck the
more distant peaks. The sun is dispelling the
flossy clouds which overhang the loftier crags.
The filmy vapor floats away into space; caress-
ing for a few mo;r/ r's t7ie mountains'crests,
it is wafted onward, and ilien disappears from
our view.

Now we crossed a rapid stream, about thirty
yards wide, and known as the Altai river. A
fragile bridge spans the waters. Soon after-
wards we put up for the night at a farm house
in the village of Tchairhana. The proprietor,
a jolly-looking Turk, received us very hospita-
bly. Later on in the evening he brought me a
large yorgan, or Turkish counterpane, with the
remark that possibly wthe Effendi might feel
cold during the night.

The Turkish beds are very primitive; no
"bedstead "being used. One or two mattresses
are laid on the floor, the yorgan takes the place
of sheets or blankets. It consists of a silk
quilt, generally lined with linen, and stuffed
with feathers. These quilts pass from father
to son, and are greatly prized by the Turks.
The farmer, to make me appreciate his atten-
tion the more highly, remarked that the yorgan
had been used by his grandfather, as well as by
his father, on their wedding-nights, and that he
himself had employed it on a similar occasion
only a few weeks previous^.

Osman now interrupted the speaker with the
remark that in his family there was also a won-
derful yorgan—something quite out of the
common, it was so beautiful that neither his
wife nor himself liked to use it—and that this
one was like a furze bush in comparison.

" So you are married, Osman?" I remarked.

"Yes; but I have not seen my wife for three
years."

"Do you love her very much?"

" She is a good cook. She makes soup which
is more filling than even my brother's, here,"
pointing to Radford.

" Is she pretty?"

"Effendi, I could not afford to marry a
good-looking girl. There was one in our vil-
lage—such a pretty one, with eyes like a hare
and plump as a turkey—but she could not cook,
and her father wanted too much for her."

"Well, what did you give for your present
wife?"

" Ten liras (Turkish pounds), but she did not
weigh more than forty okas (about 100 lbs).
She was very cheap. However, her eyes are
not quite straight: they look in different direc-
tions But that does not signify—she can
cook."

" Yes," said the farmer; " a good cook, Ef-

fendi, that is what I said to myself when I
wanted a wife. Looks don't last, but cooking
is an art which the Prophet himself did not
despise."

I had no reason to congratulate myself upon
being the occupant of the farmer's nuptial
couch. It was very old and very beautiful,
but it was full of fleas, and they gave me no
rest.

"You ought to burn that quilt," I observed,
next morning, to the farmer. "I have not
closed my eyes during the entire night."

" What, burn my grandfather's marriage yor-
gan—my father's yorgan, and my own yorgan !
Never, Effendi! There are fleas, it is true, but
they will die, and the quilt will do for my son
and his wife, if ever he has one."

The country which we next traversed was en-
tirely uncultivated, although it would have well
repaid a farmer. This, however, is the case
with millions of acres in Turkey. There are no
laborers. The country is depopulated to the
last degree, and land which might produce
wheat enough for the whole of Great Britain is
left fallow.

Presently we came to an old Khan. It had
been built by a former sultan, as a refuge for
travelers during the winter. At this season of
the year the ground is sometimes covered with
snow for several weeks in succession, and trav-
eling is very dangerous. Two soldiers were
the sole tenants of the building. Whilst I was
performing my ablutions in the open air, one
of them came to me and asked for a little tea.
His comrade was ill, and tea he thought would
be good for him. I went to look at the invalid.
He was lying on a dirty mattress, and was
shivering violently. It was clearly a case of
fever, so taking some quinine from my medicine
chest, I administered a dose, and directed his
comrade to procure a clean bed for the sufferer.
The sick man was very grateful. Eagerly seiz-
ing my hand, he kissed it.

" What countryman are you?"

" I am English."

"Your religion is not that of Islam?"

"No."

" What are you?"

"I am a Protestant."

" Protestant," repeated the poor fellow, " I
shall remember that. A Christian," he con-
tinued, "even if he had the medicine, would
have let me die like a dog."

It was very clear that the sufferer had not
much opinion of the Armenian and Greek
Christians. But this was no solitary expressed
opinion. Throughout my journey, I found
Armenians and Greeks equally despised by the
Mohammedans. It is a great pity that the vo-
taries of Christianity in the East should have
brought the only pure religion into so great
disrepute.

CHAPTER X.

There was something on my English serv-
ant's mind that evening. He did not look
happy, and eyed Osman from time to time with
lowering looks.

"My brother is angry with me, Effendi,"
said the Turk, in answer to my inquiries.
" When he speaks I do not understand, when I
speak he does not know what I say."

"What is the matter, Radford?" I asked.

"Please, sir, I ain't had no dinner. I did
not prepare anything for you as the cook in the
house was a-prepanng it. Well, when you had
finished, and Osman had brought out the dishes,
I thought that I should get something to eat.
But no, sir! for Osman invited a lot of dirty
Turks to come and sit round the victuals. Some
of the chaps had just come out of the stable,
and their hands were that dirty. Then they
began a shoving them into the dishes and a lick-
ing their fingers. It turned me hup, that it did.
Osman ought to know better, sir. Whenever I
cooks for you I always give him a tit-bit for
himself."

I now explained the matter to Osman, and
at the same time informed him that in future
he must look after his English companion at
dinner-time. The difficulty was amicably ar-
ranged, and the two men shook hands together.
Osman wishing to show his affection in a more
demonstrative manner; this, however, was not
appreciated by my domestic.

"Lor! how they kisses each other, just like
a lot of great girls. Do the Roossians kiss each
other?"

"Yes, Radford."

" They must be a poor lot then, sir. I have
always heard that one Englishman could lick

two Frenchmen, and I believed it; but I'll be
blessed if I could not lick half-a-dozen Roos-
sians, if they have no more in them than these
'ere dirty Turks."

We left Bei Bazar at daybreak. Osman, as
usual, did not take the trouble to lead one of
the baggage-horses, but drove the animal before
him. Presently we passed through a narrow
passage. On each side were two walls; the
pack-saddle struck against one of them, and
Radford's bag containing the article which he
prized, perhaps, most m the world, some pig
tobacco, was torn open.

" I never seed such a fellow as that Osman,"
exclaimed my indignant servant, " he is always
a-telling of us as how he is industrious, and if
there is a ha'portli of work to do he will borrow
a penny and give it to some chap to do the job
for him. I believe, sir, as how that fellow is
a-cheating the horses of their forage. He told
me that he fed them in the morning before I
was up. He is a liar, he is. I was dressed a
long time before him, and when he did show
himself he was busy the whole time a-praying
and a-doing something with a little gallipot he
carries in his saddle-bags. I don't believe the
horses have had a feed of corn this twenty-four
hours."

I began myself to be a little sceptical about
Osman's honesty.

I was paying as much for the forage of the
five horses as if I had been in England. The
poor brutes were getting thinner every day. I
determined to stop at a farm-house and buy
some barley. On giving this to the horses, they
ate it ravenously, thus confirming my suspi-
cions.

"Osman, you did not feed the horses this
morning!" I exclaimed.

" Fee~d them, Effendi! I fed all of them!"

"But see how hungry they are, they have
eaten all the barley you have just given them."

"Yes, sir, they are wonderful horses. They
are always hungry. It is a good sign in a horse
to be always hungry."

I was not to be taken in by this remark, and
so desired Radford in future to see the horses
fed. At the same time I resolved to keep a
sharp look-out on Osman. It was true that a
considerable portion of his time was spent in
praying; however, I began to be of my English
servant's opinion, that when the Turk was not
engaged in prayer, he was either planning or
executing a theft, and that all these devotions
were performed merely with the view of throw-
ing me off my guard.

We crossed the Tchechmet; it is a tributary
of the Sakaria river, and about thirty yards
wide. There was a wooden bridge over the
stream, but without any parapets; the height
from the water being about twelve feet. This
river is fordable in many places, the banks are
not precipitous, and the bottom is firm.

A messenger, sent forward from the village
of Ayash, had informed the Mudir at Istanos,
our next station, that an English traveler was
on the road. The official, attended by the Cadi
and two or three Zaptiehs, came out to meet us.
All the party, with the exception of the gen-
darmes, were clad in long, dark blue dressing-
gowns, which dragged some distance below the
riders' stirrups. The mule which the Cadi rode
was not of a quiet disposition; from time to
time he kicked as violently as a mule can kick,
at his master's robe, the Cadi saving himself
by clinging convulsively to the high pommel of
the saddle.

Istanos is a little distance from the direct
road to Angora. There was no other good
halting-place in the neighborhood, so I deter-
mined to make a slight detour and remain there
for the night—the more particularly as Istanos
is a village of historic fame, the tradition being
still extant, that it is the place* where Alexan-
der the Great cut the Gordian knot. The vil-
lage, which contains 400 houses—half belong-
ing to the Armenians, half to Turks—is on the
right bank of the river Owas. A lofty rock
overhangs the stream, and according to the
Mudir, there were several huge caverns which
in days long gone by had been inhabited by
bands of marauders.

Later on I procured a guide, and walked to
the foot of the rock. A narrow pathway was
cut in the solid stone. The track was not more
than twelve inches wide, as we ascended it be-
came narrower at every moment. At last we
arrived at a spot where the path had given
way. There was a chasm about twelve feet

* Opinions are divided about this: some people assur-
ing me that it happened at Ayasb^ others at Istanos.14

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

wide. The guide hesitated, and no wonder,
for if he had essayed the leap and missed it, he
must have fallen at least a hundred feet on the
crags below.

"Effendi," he said, "I will try and cross if
you like, but if my foot slips I shall be killed.
You can see the entrance to the caverns from
the place were you are standing."

It was not possible, even if I had wished it, to
pass him and try the jump myself. The sun
was nearly down, and ere a rope could be
brought night would be upon us. Reluctantly
I retraced my steps, having to go backward for
some distance owing to the narrowness of the
ledge. Should any other traveler chance to
visit Istanos, and be able to stay there a day or
two, it would be well worth his while to pro-
cure a rope and examine these, as far as I can
learn, unexplored grottoes.

On returning to the Mudir's house, I found a
levee of the principal inhabitants, Armenians
as well as Turks. I was then informed that
they had come to welcome me to their village.
The real reason being that they wished to hear
the latest news from Constantinople. No
newspapers find their way to these out-of-the-
way villages. The inhabitants can only learn
what is going on in the capital through the ar-
rival of a traveler.

An old Armenian priest was one of the visit-
ors. He sat by the side of the Mudir, on a
raised platform in the centre of the room.
The legs of these two gentlemen were entirely
liid from view, and although the room was
very chilly where I was sitting, the rest of
the party Sid not seem to feel the low tempera-
ture. I now discovered that there was a hole
in the platform. A pan of live charcoal had
been placed in the recess. The natives envel-
oped in furs, and with their feet over the em-
bers, were able to withstand the cold. The
platform was partly covered with a Persian
rug. A^ divan alongside the walls made up
the furniture of the room. In the background
and near the door stood the servants of the
Mudir, and the less important inhabitants. It
was not considered etiquette for them to sit in
the presence of their superiors. They remained
with arms folded and eyes bent down in token
of humility. When the Mudir thought that
they had humbled themselves sufficiently he
made a sign to them. They all squatted down
on their haunches.

" Has the conference commenccd?" inquired
the Mudir.

"Yes."

"What is it all about?" said another old
Turk, the Cadi.

44 It is to see if arrangements can be made so
as to prevent war," I replied.

" But we do not want to go to war with any
one," said the Mudir. " Russia wishes to go to
war with us."

" Why is the conference not held at St.
Petersburg?" asked another of his visitors.

"Because Russia is strong and we are weak
—the other powers are afraid of Russia," said
the Cadi.

" Do Englishmen like Russia?" inquired the
Mudir.

" Some do, and some do not," I replied.

"Do you?"

" I like the people, but do not like the gov-
ernment."

" Why?"

" Because it is a despotic form of govern-
ment, and in my opinion all despotisms are
bad."

" I like to hear that," said the Mudir.

"So do I," said each one of the assembled
guests, taking the cue from the governor.

" Will England be our ally in the case of
war?" asked the Cadi.

" I do not know, but I hope so."

Some one now entered and spoke a few words
to the Mudir. The latter left the room: he was
followed by the rest of the visitors, with the
exception of the Armenian priest.

" How do you like the Turks?" I asked.

" Very well," replied the old man, at the
same time blowing his nose in his dressing-1
gown, pocket-handkerchiefs being apparently
unknown in this part of Turkey. "Here," he
added, " the population is half Armenian and
half Turk, this makes a considerable dif-
ference. In other villages, where the Moham-
medans outnumber the Christians, the latter
sometimes suffer."

" What do you mean by suffer? Are they
tortured?"

"No, never," replied the priest; "but if a
Turk were to strike an Armenian, and the latter

were to hit him back, all the Turks in the
neighborhood would set upon the Christian.
Then, if the Christian-should complain to the
Mudir, the Turk would bring witnesses to say
that the Armenian called him the grandson or
great-grandson of a dog. The Christian's word
would not be taken as evidence. But things
are much better than they used to be, and here
we get on better with the Mussulmans."

My English servant was very much excited
that evening. At dinner-time lie pat down my
plate with a bang on the table, and every now
and then looked at Osman with an air of su-
preme contempt.

"What has happened?" I at last inquired.
" Have you and Osman been fighting, or are
you both in love with the same woman?"

"No, sir; but that Hosman he ain't taken the
pack-saddle off our horse's back since we left
Scutari. Every night I tells him about it, and
he takes no notice of me whatever. I expect
that our 'osshas an awful back—a nasty unfeel-
ing brute is Hosman, sir. How would he like a
saddle on his own back night and day for four-
teen days?"

"Well," I said, "go to the stable, take off
the saddle, and tell me in the morning if the
horse's back is sore or not."

I did not share the apprehensions of my En-
glish servant. The Turkish pack-saddle is ad-
mirably suited for a long journey. During
previous expeditions in the East, I had seen
some Tartars who kept their horses saddled for
weeks and even months together, and all this
without in any way injuring the animals. The
two English riding-saddles which I had brought
from Constantinople, had already proved a
source of annoyance to me. Our steeds had
lost a great deal of flesh, owing to the long and
frequent marches, and the panels required fresh
stuffing. The gray horse which I rode had been
slightly rubbed. In consequence of this I had
changed saddles with Osman, who was much
lighter than myself. The Turkish saddle not
having a panel, is better adapted for long
marches. Unfortunately, it is an uncomforta-
ble one for the horseman: my own experience
being that the English saddle galls the steed,
but the Turkish one the rider.

CHAPTER XI.

"Well, how is the animal's back?" I in-
quired of Radford, when he awoke me the next
morning.

" I can't make it out, sir. I took the saddle
off, and our horse ain't touched at all. Osman
came in when I was a-looking at him. He
laughed, and said ' Eyi' (good), and I said
'Eyi' too. But, sir, it is a wonder to me that
the horse ain't got an awful back."

" How are you getting on with your Turk-
ish?" I inquired.

" Capital, sir; I often have a talk with Os-
man, though I can't say as how we understand
each other much. The fellow, he knows more
about horses than I thought he did; one lives
and learns, even from Turks."

We were escorted out of Istanos* by the
Mudir and his two sons, lads of from twelve to
fifteen, who had got up at daybreak to speed
the Frank on his way. The Armenian priest
also came to the door. In spite of the early
hour, a great many inhabitants had assembled
on the house-tops to have a look at the English-
man and his party.

" They like your nation," said the Mudir, as
the people saluted us.

" Why so?"

"They remember the Crimean war, and think
that you have come to help us against the Rus-
sians. "

" I wish I had," was my answer; " but I am
here only as a ' traveler.' "

We retraced our steps along the route of the
previous day, marching for some time by the
bank of the river. Presently I came to a well-
built stone bridge. It spans the stream, which
is here about forty yards wide, besides being
very rapid and deep. Soon afterwards the
path traversed a spacious plain, formerly the
battle-field of Tamerlane. At one end of this
plain, and on a hill, or rather a ridge of hills, is
Angora. Its ruined battlements and lofty
minarets stand out conspicuously. The town
itself lies rather in the background and on a
slope. A Zaptieh met us as we were entering a
narrow street, and said that a Turkish gentle-
man had sent him to escort me to his house.

* For military importance of this district, see Appen-
dix XIV.

On we rode, through many dirty lanes, until
I finally entered a wide yard. This court was
overlooked by a large and handsome building.

" Suleiman Effendi lives here," said the Zap-
tieh.

The gentleman to whom he alluded now ap-
peared descending some stone steps which gave
access to the courtyard. He approached us, and
aided me to dismount; then, taking my hand, he
led me into a large room furnished with chairs,
as well as with a divan, and carpeted with rich
Persian rugs. Advancing to the place of honor,
in the centre of the divan, he asked me to be
seated, and sat down by my side. Several of his
friends being accommodated on the floor.

Suleiman Effendi was dressed in European
fashion, with the exception of his fez. He had
a very fair knowledge of Arabic; I soon found
that he was well posted in European politics.

" I heard that an Englishman was on his way
to Angora," he said, "and determined that you
should be my guest. We received the news
about you from Ismid."

"Are there any other Englishmen here?" I
inquired.

4 4 Only one—the vice-consul, a merchant: but
I will send and let him know that you have ar-
rived. In the meantime have a glass of raki."
Proceeding to the cabinet in the wall, Suleiman
carefully unlocked it, and produced a decanter
with some glasses.

" Thanks, I do not drink spirits."

"No more do I," replied Suleiman, laugh-
ing; "only medicinally, you know;" and he
drank off a bumper.

In a few minutes the English vice-consul ar-
rived. He was dressed in his official uniform,
and was accompanied by a young Bulgarian,
who was a merchant in the same business as
himself.

Mr.-was very surprised to see an En-
glishman in Angora, no one of our nation hav-
ing visited that town for several years past; and
he informed me that a telegram had just been
received from Constantinople with reference
to the proclamation of a Constitution. In con-
sequence of this, the town of Angora was to be
illuminated on the following evening; cannon
would be fired, and the Pacha would read the
proclamation to the populace in the courtyard
of the palace.

" What does it—the Constitution—mean?"
I inquired.

" Mean?" replied the Bulgarian, who spoke
English perfectly; "it means a quantity of
promises which the government will never ful-
fil."

" It probably means a Parliament in Constan-
tinople," said the consul; "but we have no
particulars as yet." And, making an appoint-
ment for me to call upon him in the morning,
he left the room, accompanied by the Bul-
garian.

I was very much surprised at this intelli-
gence. A Parliament in Constantinople! How
would the members be chosen? and Who
would choose them ? If universal suffrage pre-
vailed, only one in about every 300 of the
electors would be able to read or write; all of
them would be ignorant of everything beyond
the interests of their immediate neighborhood.

" Is a Parliament possible here?" I inquired
of my host.

"It is possible in theory, but impossible in
practice,"* was the reply. "We require more
liberty, but this must be a question of time.
We must educate the people, and teach both
the Christians and the Mohammedans that a
difference of opinion on religious matters is not
a subject about which men should quarrel. Re-
ligion has been the cause of more wars than
anything else in history."

441 tell you what it is," he continued, " I be-
lieve that in another hundred years there will
be either no religion at all, or else that every re-
ligion will be merged into one creed."

"The Christian," I observed.

" Who knows?" continued my host. "We
live in strange times; even we Turks, the more
particularly those who live in Constantinople,
begin to argue about such matters. However
there is one thing I cannot understand about
you Christians—you appear to me to have
so many roads to heaven. For instance, in
Anatolia there are American Protestant mission-
aries, Italian Catholic missionaries, and then
there are the Armenians, wTho profess the Ar-
menian faith."

" Well," I remarked, "what of it?"

* This is refuted by an Official Despatch recently re-
ceived from H.M.'s Ambassador at Constantinople", see
Appendix IV.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

15

"Wait a moment," said my host. "An I
Armenian, who is of the Armenian faith, is
half-way up his staircase to heaven. An
American missionary calls after him, 'Where
.are you going?' ' I am going to heaven.' 'No,
you are not; that is not the road to heaven.
You are going in the wrong direction. Come
down immediately, and 1 will show you the
way.' The Armenian descends the steps, and
begins ascending the road the missionary points
out to him. Presently another voice is heard.
It comes from the mouth of an Italian mission-
ary. ' Where are you going?' ' 1 am going to
heaven.' 'No, you are not; come down im-
mediately. You are on the road to hell.'
The result is," continued Suleiman, "that
the poor Armenian does not know which way
to turn. He is perpetually going up or coming
down the steps, and he never reaches his desti-
nation."

" Stop," I said, " you Mohammedans are also
split up into sects. There are the Sunnites and
the Shiites, and you both hate each other."

"Alas! it is too true," replied my companion,
"but if we have two sects, you, according to
what I have read, number at least a hundred,
and the members of many of the sects think
that every one else besides" themselves must be
damned. A very charitable doctrine that, is it
not?" he added.

" Who was the Bulgarian with our vice-con-
sul?" I inquired.

" He is in business with the vice-consul, and,
I am sorry to say, does not like us Turks."

"Why?"

" Because his brother was one of the victims
in the late Bulgarian rebellion. People in
England blame us for the massacres," con-
tinued Suleiman. "What could we do?
Our regular troops were employed elsewhere.
This was owing to the intrigues of Russia;
we were obliged to employ Circassians. The
Circassians hate the Russians, and indeed
tliey have reason to hate them. Those whose
own mothers and sisters have been ravished and
butchered, cannot be expected to love their op-
pressors. The Circassians looked upon the Bul-
garians as Russians, hence the bloodshed. A
few days ago I read an extract from an English
paper, which had been translated into Turkish.
It was to the effect that an English priest had
seen people impaled by our Baslii Bazouks.
Have you heard of this?"

"Yes, but the story has been contradicted."

"It is a pity when Christian priests or Mo-
hammedan Imaums mix themselves up in pol-
itics," remarked another Turk: "their place is
to calm men's passions, not to rouse them."

They left me; my host having previously
masked at what time I should like to dine, with
the observation that his hour was mine. Three
servants were also placed at my disposal, with
orders to supply me with anything I might re-
quire.

The following morning I called upon the
vice consul, and found him at home with his
wife—a delicate-looking lady, who had braved
■all the hardships of the journey from Ismid in
order to be at her husband's side.

The house was furnished with every English
comfort. It was difficult to believe that they
were so many days from a railroad.

" That piano cost us a great deal of trouble,"
said the vice-consul. " It was brought here in
two parts, and on mules."

"It is wonderful how it could have survived
the journey," said the lady. Going to the in-
strument, she sounded the notes, which were
very fairly in tune. " The Turkish ladies are
so astonished with the piano," she continued.
" They will sit for hours and listen to me play-
ing."

I now started with the consul to pay a visit
to the Pacha. We arrived in a large courtyard,
which was badly paved with loose stones. At
one end there were some steps which led to
the official residence. The courtyard was
thronged with people who had been summoned
to hear the telegram read about the new Consti-
tution; men in uniform, beggars, people with
petitions in their hands all swearing and jos-
tling each other, as my companion and myself
with difficulty made our way up the stairs. We
were at once admitted into the audience-room.
I found the Pacha, a tall, good-looking man of
middle age, engaged in placing his seal upon a
number of documents which an official was
landing to him. He received us courteously,
and proposed that we should accompany him to
the court below, and listen to the proclamation
tof the Sultan's telegram.

The Pacha then introduced me to his son, a

young man about twenty; he spoke French
fluently and without any perceptible accent,
having been educated by a Fi jch tutor.

"We have only one cannon _n Angora," he
remarked, " and it is to be fired 101 times. We
are a little afraid that it may not be able to
stand the ordeal."

" Yes," said his father, "we have only one
cannon, but we have sent 25,000 men to the
war. We do not require any cannons," he
added. " Our own people are quiet enough.
The Russians will not find it a very easy matter
to reach Angora."

We descended the steps: on reaching the
courtyard, the clerk—a wonderful old gentle-
man in a green dressing-gown, and with a
wheezy voice—called for silence.

The Pacha then announced that the Sultan
had been pleased to grant more liberties to his
people, and that the present autocratic form of
government was*to be replaced by a Constitu-
tion. The Imaum, or priest, here said " Amin,"
equivalent to our Amen; and the vice-consul
put on his cap with a gilt peak, which he had
taken off during the ceremony.

The Pacha's son now invited me to visit his
rooms, which were a suit of apartments separate
from those occupied by his father. I found his
book-shelves well stored with scientific French
works, and, to my surprise, discovered that the
young Bey was not only remarkably well edu-
cated for a Turk, but was much better informed
than nine Englishmen out of ten who have
been to a public school, and have taken their
degrees at the university.

" Well, what do you think will be the result
of the new Constitution?" I inquired.

"We are what you would call in England a
very conservative nation. This sudden change
has almost taken away our breath. We have
not yet received the document which contains
all the clauses of the new Constitution, and only
know of them by telegram; if we are to attempt
a form of government such as you have in En-
gland, in my opinion we shall fail."

" Why so?" I asked.

" Because not only the electing class, but the
men who will probably be chosen to sit in Parlia-
ment are only half educated. We shall have ig-
norant legislators for an equally ignorant nation.
We want time," he continued; "we require
roads and railways. If there were means of com-
munication, the people would travel and see
that there is a good deal to be learnt away from
home, and even from you Christians. Give us
roads and railways, they will be worth fifty Con-
stitutions, for the latter, in my opinion, w7ill
soon be found impracticable."

" It will never be carried out," said the vice-
consul, who was sitting next to him. " It has
been drawn up merely as a sop for the plenipo-
tentiaries at the Conference."

"Well, whatever they do in other places,"
said the Bey, " we shall carry it out in its in-
tegrity here."

As he said these words the boom of the can-
non resounded from below, the windows of the
room began to rattle, the sound of a mob cheer-
ing, rapidly followed the report.

"A great deal of noise and a great deal of
smoke ; voila la Constitution," said the consul,
and he prepared to leave the room.

" Stop," said the Bey, "you must not walk,
I will send my carriage with you. It is almost
the only carriage in Angora." he added, "and
I have a compatriot of yours as a coachman;
he has been with me three years.'

CHAPTER XII.

The Pacha's carriage was a funny-looking
old vehicle. It gave me the idea of a broken-
down four-wheeler, which had been taken to
pieces and converted into an Irish car. There
were no springs. My bones were nearly dislo-
cated as we drove down the main street to the
consul's house.

The coachman turned out to be not an En-
glishman, but an Irishman. He had lost all i
signs of the native drollery. Four years spent
in Turkey seemed to have taken the life out of
him. He had been sent home to Ireland during
the previous summer, to buy some carriage-
horses for his master. On returning with his
purchases, a storm arose in the Bay of Biscay.
The captain of the vessel had been obliged to
order the crew to throw the horses overboard.
This, and the absence of all female society, had
weighed upon Paddy's mind. He only bright- (
ened up for one moment, when the consul, ,
giving him a glass of whiskey, desired him to :
drink it in honor of Ould Ireland and of Christ-

mas day. For it was Christmas day in Angora,
and the consul's good wife was busily engaged
in all the mysteries of the cuisine.

" Yoa are going to dine with us, to night?"
said the hospitable gentleman. " Nay, you
must," he added. "We are to have a turkey
stuffed with chestnuts, and my wife is busy
teaching the Turkish servants how to make a
plum-pudding. You will also meet some of
the celebrities 6f Angora."

At dinner one of the guests—if I remember
right, an Armenian—did not seem to share the
opinions which the Pacha had expressed that
morning with reference to the quiet and good
order in the city.

It appeared, according to this person, that
there is a vagabond society, a society of thieves,
in Angora, which preys upon Turks and Chris-
tians. The members of this society go at night
to different houses, and, knocking at the door,
order the proprietors, under threat of assassina-
tion, to draw the bolts. The inhabitants, who
are frightened to death, frequently open the
door. The thieves, entering, eat what they find
in the house, and afterwards make the proprie-
tor give them a sum of money.

" Yes," remarked another guest, "the worst
of it is that several of the chief people in the
town are said to be mixed up in this society."

A great fire had taken place in Sivrissa, a
short time before. Damage had been done to
the Christian inhabitants to the amount of
thirty million piastres. The Turks did not
willingly receive the Armenians into their
houses, but when they did so, subsequently
threw their mattresses out of the window,
saying that they had been defiled by the contact
of a giaour's body. This was mentioned to
show the fanaticism of the Turks.

However, during my subsequent travels in
Armenia, the impression gradually dawned up-
on my mind that the Turks were, first of all,
very wise not to wish to receive the Armenians
into their houses; and, secondly, if they had
been good-natured enough to do so, to destroy
the mattresses after the departure of their
guests. The Armenians in their habits of body
are filthy to the last degree. Their houses ana
clothes are infested with vermin. The Turks,
on the contrary, are much cleaner, and are
most particular about the use of the bath. An
Englishman would not be pleased if his house
became filled with what it is not here necessary
to mention. If he did under such circumstances
admit strangers, he would probably destroy
their bedding the moment that they departed.

One of the visitors now remarked that there
had been ten Pachas in four j^ears in Angora,
and that this frequent removal of officials was
one of the causes which had led to the decad-
ence of the country.

"Yes," said another, "a Pacha never feels
sure of his place. Another evil here is the de-
lay in settling cases of litigation. The arrears
are enormous, and although in November, 1875,
a firman from the sultan called attention to this
matter, and ordered all law cases to be settled
at once, nothing has been done to carry the
edict into execution. If when the authorities
find that they have a good man as a Pacha they
would leave him for say ten years in office, we
should advance much more rapidly than at
present."

I next heard that Angora had not recovered
from the effects of the famine which had de-
vastated the neighborhood in 1873-74, the
amount of taxes owing by the inhabitants to
the government amounting to more than a
million and a half Turkish pounds. The ar-
rears of taxes owing previous to 1872 had been
cancelled, some being as much as ten, twelve,
and twenty years due. Previous to cancelling
the arrears, the government had put up to auc-
tion the right of collecting the entire sum; but,
as many of the inhabitants had emigrated, no
one ventured to bid.

There were 18,000 deaths in the neighborhood
of the town during the famine, and 25,000 peo-
i pie died subsequently in consequence of its
effect. The chief trade of the district is in
goats' hair, 60 per cent of the goats, sheep, and
cattle had perished. Children had been de-
serted and left in the streets; some instances of
babies being eaten by their parents were brought
to light.

The following morning I received avist from
a relative of my host, Hadji Taifik Effendi. It
is said that he will one day be the head of the
I Mussulman faith. I found this Mohammedan
, divine excessively bellicose in his ideas; he
! eagerly desired war.

1 " Why so?" I inquired.1G

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

" Because an open enemy is better than a
poisoner in your house. Because war must
come some clay, and it is better to get rid of a
cancer by sacrificing a limb.* Russian agents
have been doing their best to sow discord
amongst the inhabitants of our provinces; this
they did during peace time and whilst a Rus-
sian ambassador was at Constantinople."

"Yes," said my host, "and an ambassador
who is himself a prime mover in the secret so-
cieties which are agitating Europe. The Rus-
sian government pretends to be alarmed at the
secret societies, but it is the hot-bed of all the
secret societies in the world.* You may de-
pend upon it," he continued, "that the massa-
cres which occurred in Bulgaria had been
planned long before the outbreak. Our regu.
lar troops had been purposely sent to other
parts of the empire. The Russian authorities
were well aware of what was about to take
place, and were delighted at th3%ffect which it
had upon public opinion in England. One
thing, however, I cannot understand, and this
is why yDur newspapers always published the
accounts of the Bulgarian women and children
who were slaughtered, and never went into any
particulars about the Turkish women who were
massacred by the Bulgarians, or about our
soldiers whose noses were cut off, and wlio were
mutilated by the insurgents in the Herzegovina.
A Turk values his nose quite as much as a
Christian," he added.

I now learned that Hadji Taifik Effendi had
five wives, but that Suleiman Effendi only pos-
sessed one. She was the widow of a rich inhabit-
ant of the town, and one day seeing Suleiman
pass her windows, was struck by his appear-
ance. She sent an old woman, as intermediary,
to him. The marriage was arranged; the lady
bringing all her late husband's fortune to her
new spouse.

The Turkish law about the distribution of
property after a man's death, is rather curious.
If a man dies leaving a daughter, but if at the
same time he has a brother, the daughter and
his brother divide the property. Should he
leave two daughters and a brother, each girl
takes a quarter, his brother the half; if he has
one son and a brother, the brother is left out
altogether, and. the son takes everything'.

That evening I received an invitation to dine
with a Turkish gentleman. My host was one
of the guests; we went together to the place
of entertainment. There was a strange mixt-
ure of nationalities, comprising Turks, Arme-
nians, an Italian doctor, a certain M. Gasparini,
who had been for some years in Angora,
and wTas a great favorite with the inhabitants;
Greeks, a Bulgarian, and our consul, who is a
Scotchman. We passed through a courtyard
which surrounded the house. It was illumi'
nated with paper lanterns of various patterns.
Presently I found myself in a room surrounded
by divaus. The guests were all assembled. In
the centre of the apartment was a table. On it
were placed bottles of red and white wine of
Armenian manufacture, raki, mastic, brandy,
and liqueurs, whilst biscuits, nuts and filberts,
with sardines, were on little dishes interspersed
amidst the decanters. My host, who was a
stout and very dark man, pouring out a
bumper, insisted upon all the company joining
him in his libations, then, turning to M. Gaspa-
rini, he complained about the state of his di-
gestion.

" Well, if you will drink so much," said
the doctor, "you ought not to expect to feel
well."

" Spirits," said the fat Turk; " I like spirits
—they refresh my stomach, and I become
cheerful. Send me some medicines," he added.

" There is no good treating these Turks,"
said the doctor to me, in Italian. "They mix
up everything together, wine, spirits, physic,
etc., and then expect to get well. If they
would only carry out their prophet's injunctions,
and leave off drinking wine, they would enjoy
much better health."

" Did you ever hear the story of the prophet
and the old woman in Mecca?" said one of the
guests, who was listening to the conversation.

"No; what is it?"

"Well," observed the visitor, "there is a
tradition that one day an old woman came to
the prophet and said, ' Oh! only true prophet
of God, when I die, to which particular heaven
shall I be sent?' The prophet, who was con-
tinually being bothered by similar questions,
and" (aside to the doctor) " whose digestion on

* This is authenticated to a great extent by an Offi-
cfal Despatch. See Appendix V.

that particular occasion was very likely out of
order, replied gruffly, 'Go away, go away!
There are no ol" women in heaven.' Upon this
the aged damp jft the house crying. In a short
time the prophet's domicile was surrounded by
all the ancient females in Mecca. Their cries
became so loud that they attracted Mahomet's
attention; he went out to them. ' Oh, holy
Prophet! holy Prophet!' they cried. 'Well,
what do you want?' ' You have said that there
are no old women in heaven. Whatever shall
we do!' The prophet was not in the least non-
plussed for an answer. 4 Quite true,' said
Mahomet, ' quite true, I said so. There are no
old women in heaven; they all become young
so soon as they arrive there!'"

CHAPTER XIII.

By this time the guests had consumed many
cigarettes, smoked numerous Nargilehs, and
drank freely of the liqueurs. The host, rising,
proposed that we should adjourn to the dining-
room. There we found three musicians with
instruments much resembling banjos.

"We are to have some music," said the Bey,
the Pacha's son, who was one of the guests.
" I am afraid that it will not be much to your
taste. Our melodies are very different to those
which you are accustomed to hear in Europe."

He was quite right: Turkish melodies are
very different. There is a wildness and pathos
about many of them which strikes the stranger
accustomed to the more regular measure which
distinguishes European music. Now they re-
sounded so plaintively that the guests involun-
tarily ceased talking. Another instant, the in-
struments, bursting forthwith a startling crash,
half deafened us with the clamor.

The performers swung their heads from side
to side, and kept time with the quickening air;
the strains went faster and faster. The guests
were inspired with the musicians' enthusiasm.
All the heads began to swing, we Europeans
involuntarily marking the time with our feet
on the floor. The musicians panted with their
exertions. Suddenly the melody left off ab-
ruptly, and one of the performers commenced
a doleful dirge. This did not last long, and
when he was in the most pathetic part, another
crash from the orchestra interrupted him in the
middle of the verse.

" Turkish music is exactly like a Turkish
dinner," observed one of the guests; "it is a
series of surprises; the leader of the orchestra
goes from andante to a racing pace without
any crescendo whatsoever; the cook in the same
manner—he 'first gives us a dish as sweet as
honey, and then astonishes our stomachs with
a sauce as acid as vinegar. Now we are eating
fish, another instant blanc-mange. A vegetable
is next placed before us, and our stomachs have
scarcely recovered from their astonishment,
when a sweet is served up with some savory
pastry."

The servants, who were much more numer-
ous than the guests, vied with each other in
serving the different dishes. Twenty attendant
domestics were arranged in Indian file. So
soon as the host made a sign to the leading do-
mestic, each kind of food was replaced by an-
other, and number two servant was prepared
with fresh viands, while number one, who had
hurried to the kitchen, returned with another
dish.

The table wras a raised one, chairs were placed
round it. This was done in honor of the Eu-
ropean visitors. We all ate with our fingers,
each man helping himself according to his rank
or social position. It was not etiquette for a
Cadi to seize a piece of meat before the Bey
put his fingers in the dish; a captain had to be
careful not to offend the susceptibilities of a
colonel.

To eat blanc-mange a la Turque requires
some practice; however, the consul and the
Italian doctor had been for some time in the
East, and used their fingers as readily as a knife
and fork.

At last our dinner was over. Fruit, mince-
meat, dishes of vegetables, sweets and raisins,
salads and creams, concluding with a huge
bowl of boiled rice, had been disposed of, the
wrhole having been washed down by tumblers
of red country wine very like Burgundy.

"Praise be to God!" said our host, vising;
his example was followed by the rest of the
guests.

A servant poured water over the hands of the
visitors, beginning with each man according to
his rank. We adjourned into another room.
Here coffee, tchibouks and nargilehs were handed
round to the company.

A servant now approached and said that Os~
man was waiting outside, and wished to speak-
to me.

" What is the matter?" I inquired. " Have'
you come to tell me how industrious you are, or
do you want some more money?" I had pre-
viously observed that when Osman wished to
speak to me, these two topics were almost in-
variably the subject of his conversation.

"No, Effendi, but the horse-"

" Which horse?"

" The bay that makes a noise."

" Well, what of him?"

" He is lame. My brother has seen him. I
have seen him. He will not be able to carry
his pack to-morrow."

"Hire two horses instead of one, and lead the
roarer."

"Yes, Effendi, that is what I have been try-
ing to do; but the people ask for manyliras;
their hearts are stony at the sight of our difficul-
ties, they open wide their purses for the Effen-
di's gold."

" Have you been to the post?"

" Yes, but the post-master hasten horses, and
only one man to look after them. The post-
master says if you hire two baggage animals
that you must pay for ten."

"Wait here, Osman," I said; returning to
my host, I informed him of my difficulties.

"Oh! the dog!" exclaimed the Bey. ""Heis
trying to cheat you!"

Tearing a piece of paper from an old letter
in his pocket, he wrote a note to the chief of
police, desiring him to bring the post-master
immediately before us.

"The post-master is in bed," said Osman,
who had entered the room.

"In bed or out of bed, he shall be brought
here," said the young Bey; stamping the piece
of paper with his seal, he gave it to a servant..
Presently a noise wTas heard. The post-master
arrived, followed by the chief of the police,

"You must give this English gentleman two.
horses at once."

" Yes, Bey Effendi."

" But why did you not do so before?"
"Because I did not know that it was ther
Bey's pleasure—the will of the son of our
Pacha is my will. Upon my head be it: the
horses shall come."

"Good iiorses," I remarked, "stout and
strong."

"Have I not sa, 1 so?" replied the man, and
it was agreed that I was to hire two horses as
far as Yuzgat, payinc he regular tariff of three
piastres for each horse per hour.

"People in Turkey who tieal in horses are great
rogues," said the Bey; "are the same in
your country? Ahorse-dealer m arKars would
try and get the best of his dearest friend in a
bargain."

" They are much the same in England," I re-
plied ; and the young Bey began to tell us some
stories of horse-copers in Aleppo, where he had
passed some years, and in which town the fair
sex was more than usually frail.

" The young men in that city have a curious
way of showing their affection to the lady of
their choice," continued the speaker. " A girl
has, say, three lovers—a small allowance for a
lady in that part of the world—she does not
know which to select, each one of the suitors is
eager to display his gallantry."

" What does she do?" asked one of the party.
"Accept them all?"

"No, she takes three bits of live charcoal
from out of the fire; giving each of her lovers
a piece, she tells them to place it in the palms
of their hands. The fire burns through the
skin, the tendons are laid bare: sometimes
the amorous gentlemen will resist till the flesh
♦has been burnt to the bone. Here one or
two of them generally succumb to the tort-
ure ; the man who resists the longest, wins the
lady."

"But if they are all equally indifferent to
pain, and the charcoal burns out, what hap-
pens then?" I inquired.

" The lady takes three more pieces of char-
coal, and begins again with the other hand,"
replied the Bey. " The more they resist, the
better the girl likes them, because it is a proof
to her mind that they value her more than their
own torture."

"Did you ever try it?"

" No," said the Bey, laughing. "I can get a
wife without any trouble, so I do not care about
burning my fingers. We burn our fingers quite-
soon enough after marriage, as it is."

"Yes," said the doctor,, and he began to giveOK HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MLNOR.

17

me a long account of the domestic life in some
of the harems in Angora.

According to the doctor's experiences there
■wafe a great deal of immorality amidst the fair
sex in the city, although nothing to what ex-
isted in Yurgat, another town which I should
pass by on the way to Kars. In Angora, al-
though the women are very unfaithful to their
husbands, yet everything is kept more or less
concealed. In Yurgat it was very different,
and there you could actually see the dance of
the Turkish gipsy women, although in Angora
it was strictly prohibited.

M. Gasparini was doing a large practice. He
had been established for ten years in Angora
and its neighborhood. From his position as a
medical man he had the opportunity of know-
ing more about the domestic life of the inhabit-
ants than the other European residents.

"Well, although the women may be im-
moral, the men are very hospitable," said the
consul. "Wherever a stranger may go he is
always received with the greatest hospitality.
A few years ago a friend of mine, Mr Thomp-
son, was traveling from the Black Sea to An-
gora. He arrived at a village. The Khan was
full, every room was occupied. However, he
ivas an old traveler, and could easily accom-
modate himself to circumstances. Taking his
cloak, he lay down in the yard and prepared to
pass the night in the open air. Presently he
was awakened by a tap on the shoulder.
On looking up, he found an old Turk bending
over him.

" Why are you sleeping here?" inquired the
Mohammedan.

" Because there is no room in the Khan."

" This is not right. A stranger, and outside
the gate. Come with me."

Taking Mr. Thompson by the hand, the Turk
led him to his house, gave him a clean bed and
his breakfast, waited himself upon his guest,
and would not receive any remuneration.

44 Now," added the consul, " the Turk was a
Mohammedan, and Mr. Thompson a Christian;
if the Turk had been in England, and had
found himself placed in a similar predicament
to Mr. Thompson, do you tlTink that there are
many Englishmen who would have behaved so
generously to an utter stranger?'

The following day I called upon some Arme-
nian gentlemen, and found their houses fur-
nished like my host's, with thick carpets,
divans, and pipes, the walls being bare and
whitewashed. Pictures and looking-glasses
were seldom to be seen, the latter being a very
costly luxury, owing to the difficulty of car-
riage.

The Armenians dressed in a similar manner
■to the Turks. The Christian women were
closely veiled whenever they left the house. In
many instances, an Armenian was not permit-
ted to see his wife* before marriage, and had
to take her, as the Yankees say, "on spec."

Great harmony existed between the Turks
and Christians. Whenever I dined with an
Armenian, there were always Mohammedans
present. When I visited a Turk's house, I gen-
erally found Armenians amongst the visitors.
On inquiring whether this state of things pre-
vailed elsewhere, I was informed by the Arme-
nians that in other parts of Anatolia, and more
particularly in Sivas, the Christians were ill-
treated by the Turks, and that the prisons were
filled with Armenians.^

During my stay at Ismid 1 had heard pre-
cisely the same story of the sufferings of the
Christians at Angora. I had been told that the
Armenians were cruelly oppressed, and that
justice was never shown to them. However,
in Angora the two religions did not seem to
clash. The Mohammedans and Christians
were on the best of terms. I began to be a
little sceptical as to the truth of the statement
about Sivas, and determined not to form any
opinion on the matter from mere hearsay evi-
dence, but to see with my own eyes if the
prisons were so full of Christians as the Arme-
nians in Angora would have had me believe.

Later on in the day, Radford suggested that
it would be as well for me to sell the lame horse
and buy another; he was doubtful whether,
even without his pack, the animal would be
able to march to Yuzgat. The poor beast
was very lame, the frog of his foot was much
swollen. Whilst w7e were talking, a Turkish
veterinary surgeon arrived; taking out his
knife, he made a slight incision in the swollen
.place.

* The Armenian women have more liberty in Angora
than in many other towns in Asia Minor,

Meantime, several horse-dealers, learning
that I wanted to buy a horse, brought me some
animals for inspection, at the same time offer-
ing me the liberal price of 21. sterling for my
own animal.

" Well," said one man, extracting some silver
from what appeared to be an old stocking, "I
will give twelve mejidis."

" Your heart is very hard, brother, soften it
a little," said Osman. " Our horse shall not go
for less than forty silver pieces. You love your
money, but we love our horse still more."

Nobody wTould give this sum, and, as I
thought that possibly the operation performed
by the Turkish veterinary surgeon might bene-
fit the animal, I determined to wait another
day in Angora. This would also give me an
opportunity of inspecting, more closely, the old
Augustin monument, one of the curiosities in
the town.

To my great delight the operation proved
successful; in the evening the horse could walk
without much pain. He would be able to
march on the following morning, and so I gave
orders for an early start. Just before leaving,
a servant arrived from the Pacha's palace. The
young Bey, who had observed that I much ad-
mired a work entitled the " History of the
Ottoman Empire," and which was in his library,
had sent it to me as a present, and hoped that
I would do him the honor of accepting the book
as a men ento of my visit to Angora. There
were about ten volumes, the weight would have
been at least twenty pounds, and a considerable
addition to the baggage. Much to my regret,
I was obliged to decline the kind offer. The
hospitality'of the Turkish nation is proverbial.
The generosity of the Turks is equally great.
In fact, they carry this virtue to excess. Some-
times, after having admired a horse, I have
been surprised to find that the steed has been
sent to my stable, with a note from the owner,
entreating my acceptance of the animal.

I often experienced great difficulty in finding
excuses for not accepting the presents so gen-
erously offered to me by my entertainers. "I
cannot take any more luggage," I would say, if
the presents were at all cumbersome. However,
if it were a horse, I could only decline the gift,
and say that I had not sufficient servants to look
after the animals.

" But I have plenty of servants, take one of
mine; he will accompany you throughout your
journey, and then will return to me," would be
the answer.

People in this country who abuse the Turkish
nation, and accuse them of every vice under
the sun, would do well to leave off writing
pamphlets and travel a little in Anatolia. There
is an old saying that " the devil is not so black
as he is painted," and in many things writers
who call themselves ^Christians might well take
a lesson from the Turks in Asia Minor.

CHAPTER XIV.

My host was up at daybreak to see me off.

" Come and see me in England," I said.

"If Allah pleases,! will," was my friend's
reply, and I only hope that I may have the op-
portunity of returning SuleimanEffendi's hos-
pitality.

The road was hard and good for a few miles;
we rode for some time by the Avash river.

After marching for about five hours, we came
to a small farm-house. It was on the opposite
bank of the river to ourselves; but there was a
ford, and as there was no wood on our side of
the stream, I determined to cross and halt an
hour for lunch. The house belonged to an
Armenian. It was filthily dirty. Vermin could
be seen crawling in all directions on the rugs.
In consequence of this, I resolved to make our
fire outside, and lunch in the open air. There
were some turkeys in the farm-yard, and the
proprietor coming up, I desired Osman to pur-
chase one of the birds.

" The Effendi wants a turkey," said Osman
to the farmer.

This announcement at once created a great
commotion among the female portion of the
Armenian household—the turkeys being looked
upon by the women in the establishment as their
own particular property.

"What for?" said an elderly dame, whose
face was bound up in what appeared to be a
dishcloth.

" To eat."

" Have you any money?" asked the woman,
suspiciously.

"Money?" said Osman, indignantly; "much
money. We can afford to eat turkey every

day! Now, then, how much for this one?"
pointing to an old bird, apparently the paterfa-
milias of the brood.

" Osman is an ass, sir," here interfered Rad-
ford. "That is a very old cock. Osman has
his eye on him because he is the biggest; he
thinks that we can chew leather, that he do."
And pursuing the brood, my English servant
succeeded in catching a young pullet, which he
brought triumphantly to the woman.

" How much?" I inquired.

"Twelve piastres" (about eighteen pence),
replied the woman.

"Twelve piastres," said Osman: "and it is
a great deal of money—we could not afford to
eat turkey at that rate; say ten, and have done
with it."

"The bird is a hen, and will have eggs," ob-
served the farmer.

" She may die and have no eggs, and then
you would have lost ten piastres," said Osman.
"Come, be quick," he added; "pick the tur-
key !" And giving the woman the money, the
old dame retired to a little distance to prepare
the bird for the pot.

When Radford had finished his cooking, and
had helped me to some of the turkey, he put
the remainder in my washing-basin, and handed
it to Osman, for himself and the man with the
pack-horses.

" Why do you not give them the cooking-pot,
and let them eat out of it?" I inquired. 44 Per-
haps they will not like eating out of my wash-
ing-basin."

" I thought of that, sir; but the pot is that
hot that they would burn their fingers a-shov-
ing them into it. Nasty, dirty fellows they are,
too; preferring dirty fingers to nice clean forks!
But Osman, sir, he ain't that nice. He is the
greediest feeder I ever see; he would eat out
of a coal-scuttle sooner than not fill himself.
See there, sir, he has got that turkey's leg. I
knew he would have it! It was on the baggage
man's side of the basin, and Osman had eaten
already one drumstick; the other ought to have
gone to the chap with the horses. But Osman
ain't got no conscience about eating, whatever
he may have when he is flopping himself down
on my coat and pretending to say his prayers."

After luncheon the two Turks were so long
in loading the pack-horse that I determined to
ride forward with Radford, and let the other
men follow with the luggage. We had con-
tinued the journey for about an hour when,
after ascending a hill, I turned round to see if
there were any signs of my followers. Nothing
was in sight except an Armenian woman, who
was on horseback; she was riding cross-legged,
and carried a baby in a handkerchief, which
was slung from her neck.

"Had she seen Osman?" I inquired.

"No,"was the answer.

Desiring Radford to remain where he was, I
galloped back in the direction of the farm-house.
On arriving by the river-side a singular picture
met my gaze. A pack-horse was dripping from
head to foot, and was without his saddle. All
the baggage was wet through. My cartridges,
tea, sugar, and coffee were spoiled; Radford's
bag, containing his pig tobacco, lay dripping
wet by the side of the river. Osman was swear-
ing violently at the man in charge of the pack-
horses, and from time to time was administer-
ing to him a blow with a stick across the shoul-
ders. The chastised individual was sobbing
violently. On seeing me he threw himself
down on the ground and began to embrace my
knees.

" What has happened?" I inquired.

They both commenced speaking together.

" Stop! One at a time," I remarked.

"Yes, you dog!" said Osman to his fellow-
countryman. " How dare you speak? He did
not lead the horse, Effendi, he drove the animal
before him, and the horse lay down in the river.
Everything is spoiled! Oh! you refuse of a
deceased sheep "—this to the culprit. "And
the Effendi's cartridges, he will not be able to
replace them; and my brother, what will he
say about his tobacco? he will be angry—he
may beat me! I knew your mother, your
grandmother, and great-grandmother — they
were all most improper characters—and you,
you hound, you are the worst of the family!"
As be said these words, Osman began to flog
the delinquent most unmercifully.

I was obliged to interfere, taking my servant
by the collar, I ordered him to desist, and at
once to load the baggage animal.

This accident delayed us considerably on the
road. Some time after sunset, on looking at
my watch, I found that we had only placed18

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

an eight hours' march between ourselves and
Angora. We were on a large plain, which was
surrounded by hills; our path wound round
the slopes of the adjacent heifrht; presently the
village of Asra Yuzgat appeared in "sight.
It is built on the side of the hill. We were
soon riding on the tops of the houses, and
had to be very careful lest our horses should
suddenly come upon an open chimney. Some
of the roofs had fallen in. The moon shining
on the white rafters gave a ghastly appearance
to the scene.

The people in this part of Anatolia have a
very economical way of building their habita-
tions. The man who is old enough to take unto
himself a helpmate, and who is about to leave
his father's roof, marks a piece of ground, gen-
erally of an oblong shape and on the side of a
hill. He next digs out the earth to the depth
of about seven feet. Then, hewing down some
trees, he cuts six posts, each about ten feet high,
and drives them three feet into the ground, three
posts being on one side of the oblong and three
on the other. Cross-beams are fastened to the
tops of these uprights, and branches of trees
plastered down with clay cover all. A few
planks, with a hole made in them to serve as a
doorway, enclose the outer side of the building,
and a broad, heavy plank closes the entrance,
hinges being replaced by strips of cowhide. A
wooden railing divides the room into two parts;
one of them is tenanted by the sheep, oxen,
camels, and cows of the proprietor, the other
by himself and family. No partition-wall sep-
arates the cattle from their master; and the
smell which arises at night from tlie confined
air and from the ammonia in the buildingls ex-
cessively disagreeable to a European. In cold
weather a hole in the roof, which serves as a
ventilator, is stopped by a large stone. Fuel,
often made from cow's dung, first dried and
then mixed with chopped straw, is thrown on
the fire. The inmates, sometimes consistingof
twelve or more people, lie huddled together on
the floor. This last in the poorer houses is cov-
ered by rugs made of camel's hair, and in the
wealthier establishments by thick Persian car-
pets.

The barking of the dogs, which swarmed
around us, speedily awoke the inhabitants, and
a middle-aged Turk, clad in a thick, brown
mantle, approaching me, said that he was the
Caimacan or governor, and that he hoped I
would stay at his house that night.

It appeared that my friend the Bey at Angora
had written to him about my journey, and had
said that I should reach Asra Yuzgat at sunset.
The Caimacan knew nothing of our accident on
the road; as we had not arrived by one hour
after nightfall, he had gone to bed.

His house was not a large one. It consisted
of two rooms, a kitchen and a reception-room.
The latter apartment was used for all purposes.
The owner remarked that he was going on a
shooting expedition the following morning; he
proposed that I should join the party. There
were, according to him, a great many partridges
and hares in the neighborhood. However, my
cartridges had been probably all of them
spoiled in the river, so I was obliged to decline
the invitation.

I was rather tired, and wished to go to bed.
On expressing a wish to this effect, a mattress
was produced, and put down in one corner,
and a second the other side of the room for the
Caimacan. Three or four servants were pres-
ent. No one seemed to have any intention to
retire. I took off my clothes, lay down on the
mattress, and drew over myself a marvelous
thing in the way of yorgans, a silk counterpane
of as many colors as Joseph's coat, and lined
with feathers.

"Are you warm?" said the Caimacan.

" Yes."

"Every one is warm with that yorgan" he
continued. " It is light, and there are no fleas
in it. You will sleep well."

He now prepared to go to bed. The four
servants assisted him. First they drew off his
boots, and then his nether garments; the Caima-
can glancing from time to time at me out of the
corner of his eye, probably wishing to see what
impression the fact of his having four servants
to put him to bed had produced on my mind.
He had been astonished when 1 undressed my-
self, and had remarked:

" Why, you have two servants, and you take
off your own clothes! What is the good of
having servants if you do not make them use-
ful?"

By this time he was in bed. His attendants
lay down by his side; Radford and Osman in

another corner. The one tallow dip which lit
the room was carefully extinguished; soon
nought could be heard save the snoring of the
slumberers.

I arose at daybreak, and unpacked the wet
cartridges, then, taking my gun, I tried some
of them; snap—snap—they would not explode.
It was no use stopping for the shooting party;
so desiring Osman to commence loading the
horses, I took leave of my host.

CHAPTER XV.

We rode across a low ridge of mountains,
rocks which looked like iron ore lying about in
all directions, and presently arrived at the fcizil
Ermak, a broad and rapid stream, which runs
into the Black Sea, about fifty miles S. E. of
Sinope. The distance across the river was at
least one hundred yards, the left bank being
very precipitous. The depth of the water,
owing to the recent rains, was not less than
seven feet. There is no bridge in the neigh-
borhood, the nearest being twenty-four miles
higher up the river; I was curious to learn how
we should reach the other shore. The guide
soon solved the problem. Riding about half a
mile along the bank, he put two fingers in his
mouth, and whistled. In a few minutes the
sound was answered from the opposite side of
the river. Six men appeared in sight. Descend-
ing the bank, they dragged a triangular-shaped
barge from some rushes, and getting into it, be-
gan to pull with all their might in our direc-
tion. The current was very swift; the starting
point was nearly half a mile beyond us; but,
notwithstanding this, the oarsmen overshot
their mark. We had to lead our horses some
little distance before we reached the boat.

It was a queer sort of a craft, certainly not
more than twenty-five feet long, and about six-
teen in its widest part. Its sides were two feet
above the water; the men could not approach
the bank nearer than twenty yards. The bot-
tom was muddy. Our horses would have to
walk through the mud to the boat, and then
jump over the bulwarks.

There were altogether eight horses, my own
four, three belonging to the post, and the ani-
mal the guide rode, a brute which kicked, and
already had slightly lamed my gray.

"I shall be drowned," said Osman, plaint-
ively, " I know I shall! Can my brother swim?"
pointing to Radford.

" What does he say, sir?" inquired my En-
glish servant.

" He wants to know if you can save him if
he falls into the water."

" Save him? no, sir. I cannot swim a stroke.
I wonder what our engineers at Aldersliot
would say if they had to get us over in such a
craft as this? It is wuss than a pontoon!"

The boatmen wanted to take four horses
across at a time; a veto was put upon this pro-
posal on account of the guide's horse; it was
determined that he should go alone. Taking
the saddle off my own animal, I led him into
the water; on reaching the boat I climbed into
it, and tried to make the horse follow. This
was by no means an easy task, he had sunk at
least a foot into the mud, and evidently did
not fancy the leap into the bark. Three of the
boatmen now got into the river. One of them,
seizing my horse's tail, twisted it violently, the
others poked him from behind with their oars.
Osman all this time was expostulating with the
animal from the bank.

"Dear horse, jump in! You shall have as
much barley as you can eat this evening."

This argument not having any effect upon
the horse, Osman's language waxed stronger,
and he heaped numerous curses upon the ani-
mal's ancestry.

" Drat you!" said Radford at last; "you are
always a-talking when there is something to do.
Go and help, can't you?" Suiting the action to
the word, he gave a push to the noisy Turk,
which nearly upset him into the water.

At length, and by the exertions of all our
party, my horse was persuaded to make an
effort. Rearing himself up, he placed his two
forefeet in the boat. A chorus of oaths and
ejaculations—the hind legs followed. Once
safely in, I bandaged his eyes. The other
horses, seeing that one of their number were
embarked, followed without much difficulty.

We floated down the stream for some dis-
tance, and at a great speed, before the boatmen
could get any command over their craft, which
whirled round as if in a whirlpool. Fortunately
the horses were all blindfolded, and could
not see the water. At last we reached the

opposite bank, having descended the stream
for more than a mile from our starting-
point. So much time was lost in getting the
other horses over, that night was upon us before
we reached our destination, Yakshagan, a large
village with two hundred houses. It was only
fourteen miles from Asra Yuzgat, though,
owing to the river, we had employed from sun-
rise to sunset in the journey.

At Yakshagan it was necessary to hire fresh
post-horses. The official at the station was
very uncivil, and declared that he would not
supply me with any unless I paid for three
horses from Angora. I had only engaged two;
however, the man with them had chosen to
bring a third animal, instead of riding on one
of the baggage horses. At last the difficulty
was settled by the guide, who was known to the
post-master, saying that he would be responsible
for Ihe amount; whilst I agreed to refer the
matter to the authorities at Yuzgat, and abide
by their decision.

I started rather late, in consequence of the
altercation. After a five hours' ride along a
good road and through a beautiful country, we
arrived at Madeh. Here there are several sil-
ver mines, which till very lately have been
worked by the Turks. I was informed that
water has recently found its way into the pits.
In consequence of this the miners have aban-
doned them.

" It is a great pity," said an old Turk, an in-
habitant of the village. "With proper ma-
chineiy it would be easy to pump out the water,
and these mines abound in silver. We have got
nothing but paper money in Anatolia," he
added, sorrowfully; "all this rich metal lies
buried beneath our feet."

It surprises a traveler to find that the Turks
make so little use of their mines. In the course
of my ride from Angora I had passed through
a country apparently abounding in iron, and
with many traces of coal. At Madeli there is
silver, whilst copper is also found in the imme-
diate neighborhood. With intelligent engineers
to explore the mineral wealth of Anatolia, Tur-
key would be able not only to pay the interest
of her debt, but w«uld speedily become one of
the richest countries in the world.

From Madeh we continued the march to
Kowakoli. The country on each side of the
road is covered with vines. The grapes in this
part of Turkey are very large. The inhabitants
preserve the fruit throughout the winter by
hanging it up in cellars. The atmosphere is
dry: unless the temperature falls much below
zero, and the grapes freeze, they can be kept
till the early spring. There is no wine made in
the neighborhood. The Armenians, who in
other parts of Anatolia make large sums of
money by distilling spirits, here neglect this
branch of industry. The grapes are either
eaten, or the unfermented juice is kept to
sweeten pastry, for sugar is very dear, and costs
more than a shilling the pound. The price is
beyond the means of not only the poorer, but
even of the wealthier inhabitants of the district.
In consequence of this they drink their coffee
without sweetening it, and look upon a present
of a few pounds of sugar as a donation worthy
of a sultan's generosity.

I was hospitably entertained by an old farmer.
He bewailed the disasters caused by the Angora
famine, which had been felt throughout all this
district. The road from Angora had been
blocked by snow for three months and a half.
His cattle all died from starvation, his goats
had also perished. The late Sultan, Abdul
Aziz, had sent large sums of money and food
to the suffering people; but the roads were im-
passible, and the provisions could not reach
their destination. Many poor people had died
of hunger with cart-loads of corn and barley
only a few miles from their doors.

My host had one son, a lad about sixteen
years of age. The boy regretted that he was
not old enough to join the sultan's forces.

"Your time will come soon enough," ob-
served his parent.

" He does not know what war is like," added
the farmer, sorrowfully. "A great many men
have gone to Seivia from this neighborhood,
and several have been killed. God grant, if
my boy should have to go, that he may return
to his old father."

" Is there much enthusiasm here for the war?"
I inquired.

" Immense," replied the farmer; " people feel
that it is a question not only of religion but al-
so of property. We landlords should not like
to have Russian assessors grinding us down to
the last piastre. We do not wish to be torturedON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

19

to change our religion, and we do not want to
be made soldiers against our will."

"But you are all soldiers now," I remarked.

"Yes, because it is the time of war, and it is
a struggle for our very existence. When the
fighting is over, our young men will return to
their homesteads, and gladden their families
once more."

" Do you think that you shall be able to
withstand your foe?"

" Allah is always on the side of justice, and
He will give us the victory," rejoined the old
man proudly. " Our land shall drink our blood
ere we give up one foot of soil to the invader."

We now rode towards Sekili, a village about
twenty-seven miles from the sleeping quarters,
i Presently my gray horse began to walk lame.
He had been kicked by the guide's animal on
the previous day. My weight was too much
for the poor little brute. I resolved to change
horses with Osman, who was much lighter than
myself. Calling the Turk to my side, I desired
him to dismount, and then mounted the am-
bling steed. The pace of a Rahvan, or ambling
horse, is an easy one for the rider; and the ani-
mal can get over the ground at the rate of about
five miles an hour; the ordinary walk of the
small Turkish horses being not much above
three.

W e passed by some hovels. Their walls were
built of marble; the roofs were made of beams
covered with mud;, the pure white rock pre-
senting a striking contrast to its filthy sur-
roundings. Marble abounds in this neighbor-
hood. Large blocks were lying on all sides of
us, and along our path. Some ruins in the vi-
cinity showed that hundreds of years ago the
inhabitants of this part of Anatolia were able
to utilize their quarries.

Poor Turkey, she has descended the steps of
civilization, and not ascended them like Euro-
pean nations.

However, though mud hovels have replaced
the marble palaces of the Turk's ancestors, the
Turks themselves remain unchanged. Hospi-
tality—their great virtue—is as rife in 1877 as
in the days of Mohammed II. No matter where
an Englishman may ask for shelter, he will
never find a Mohammedan who will deny him
admittance.

We left behind us some mountains of slate,
and rode over rich soil, which had been left fal-
low for miles around.

"There are not inhabitants enough to culti-
vate the land;" was the guide's answer to a
question from me about the subject.

He was doubtless right. Asia Minor, like
Spain, needs a threefold population to develop
her natural wealth. Let foreign settlers go to
Anatolia. Let them make railways throughout
the country, it could supply the whole of Great
Britain with corn, and the mines of coal and
of other minerals would prove a source of im-
mense wealth to the inhabitants.

Later in the day we passed a Kurdish en-
campment. The Kurds all lived in circular,
black tents, and some women, with unveiled
faces, rushed outside the dwellings to see the
strangers pass.

The Turkish authorities have great difficulty
in collecting the taxes from this nomad race.
Whenever the Kurds expect a visit from the
tax-collector, they pack up their chattels and
migrate to the mountains. Here they can place
the Turkish officer at defiance, and onl}' return
to the plains when their spies have announced
the enemy's departure. A few years ago the
wealth of the Kurdish sheiks was very consider-
able; many of them owned twenty, and even
thirty thousand sheep, besides large droves of
horses, and numerous herds of cattle. The
famine, however, which devastated the prov-
ince, was as disastrous for the Kurds as for the
Turks. It has left them in a wretched state of
poverty.

TheDelidsclieErmak, a tributary of the Kizil
Ermak, crossed our path. There was no
bridge, and we had some difficulty in finding a
ford. At last the marks of some horses' hoofs
showed our guide the exact spot: riding into
the stream—here about fifty yards wide—and
with the water up to his horse's girths, he
piloted us over in safety. The bottom of the
river is firm. I was informed that the stream
becomes very shallow during the summer
months; the inhabitants can then cross it with
their ox-carts.

The village of Sekili is made up of twenty
mud hovels. Our accommodation for the night
was not of a luxurious kind. But after a long
and tiring march a man speedily reconciles
himself to circumstances. A fire was lit. Two

old hens were stewing in the pot. A kettle full
of tea simmered on the fire; and with a pipe
after dinner, things looked a little brighter
! than at first. We next traversed a district
abounding with salt. The soil sparkled in
the sun. The crystal substance was visible
for a considerable distance. Presently some
Turkoman girls, with high, picturesque head-
dresses, rode by us at a gallop; their merry
laughter rang in the air as they passed. Soon
afterward we came to their village, the habita-
tions being nothing more or less than a few
holes in the side of a hilJ. The Turkomans pro-
nounce Turkish rather differently to the Turks.
At first I had some little difficulty in making
myself understood. Indeed, a man must be a
polyglot to know all the languages spoken in
Anatolia. Armenian, Greek, Circassian, Kur-
dish, Tartar, Persian, Georgian, and Arabic,
besides Turkish, are heard within a radius of
one hundred miles. The different sounds
in these languages are very puzzling to a
stranger who is trying to perfect himself in
Turkish.

Some Turkomans, dressed in white tunics,
broad red trousers, and with gray sashes round
their waists, were sitting idly at the entrance to
their burrows. A woman, in a crimson dress-
ing-gown, and afew girls, with naught 011 save
long white shifts, and caps, were "busily en-
gaged in drawing water from a neighboring
wTell. Some goats, which had descended the
hill, were feeding on the roofs of the houses.

We entered one cf the dwellings, but so
many fleas were hopping about that I deter-
mined to eat my lunch in the open air. The
proprietor of the hovel was very much sur-
prised at our preferring the cold outside to the
shelter of his domicile.

"My Effendi does not like fleas," said Os-
man.

"There are not many here!" said the pro-
prietor. " It does not do to be particular. In
Sekili," he| continued," fleas abound, the Effen-
di ought to be accustomed to them by this
time."

"What does he say, sir?" asked Badford, as
Osman gradually explained the Turkoman's re-
marks to me.

" Say! He says that you ought to be accus-
tomed to fleas by this time."

" Accustomed, sir? No, but they are getting
accustomed to me. Haldershot is a joke to
this here Turkey so far as fleas are concerned."

Presently my servant continued:

" These Turks, sir, ain't got no decent tobac-
co; why a pipeful of cavendish, or good bird's
hi, is worth all the hay they smoke. No wonder
people in England abuse the Turks—and quite
right, too. Men who might grow shag tobacco,
and prefer growing hay tobacco, can't be of
much account."

CHAPTER XVI.

On the track once more; and now we came
to a large stone, in the middle of the path.
This marked the resting-place of a victim to
the recent famine. The poor fellow had fallen
down from exhaustion, and had died on the
spot. It was too much trouble for the survivors
to move his corpse, they had made a hole and
buried him where he lay.

My gray horse, which Osman was riding,
still went very lame; so I limited our march to
six hours, and stopped at the little village of
Daili. Here there were only fifteen houses.
Many camels and herds of cattle were grazing
in the neighborhood, and the ground appeared
to have been cultivated for a considerable dis-
tance. On this occasion the fortune of travelers
gave us better quarters. The house in which
we were lodged was clean. A raised dais of
wood was set apart for the servants. Mattresses
with cushions wrere reserved for the proprietor
and his guests.

There we~e some Turkomans in the village,
and when the news was spread that an English-
man had arrived, several of them came to see
me.

" We are so glad to see an Englishman," said
an old man, the spokesman for their party.

Osman now interrupted him.

"Effendi, they want to tell you that they
hate the Muscovites, and that they hope Eng-
land will not allow the Tzar's soldiers to mas-
sacre them like they (the Russians) massacred
the Teke Turkomans."

" Were many women and children belonging
to the Teke Turkomans killed by the Rus-
sians?"

The old man shook his head.

"Many! many!" he replied. " The women
were violated by the soldiers. The little boys
and girls were abused and then murdered. The
men took pleasure in these awful crimes. The
Muscovite is a beast! He is worse than a hyena;
the hyena sucks the blood of his victim, but
the Russian satisfies his lust first, and then tears
to pieces the object of his pleasure."

"We hear," he continued, "you have as
padishah, a lady. What does she think of
this way of treating the Turkoman's little
ones?*

"And what do you think yourself?" he
added. " Should not you like to cut the throats
of all the Russians?"

This was rather a strong way of dealing with
the question. However, if I had been a Turko-
man, and my own sisters had been treated by
the Russians in the way the Turkoman women
have been, I should have looked upon the mat-
ter from a Turkoman point of view.

"They are not all equally guilty," I replied.

" Equally guilty! Yes, they are. From the
Tzar upon his throne to the soldiers who do his
bidding they are a nation of assassins! What
is the best way to get rid of a wasp's nest?" he
now inquired.

"Smoke it, and destroy the young ones," I
replied.

" Well that," said the Turkoman, "is what
we must do with the Russians. We must kill
them all. And Allah will be with us; for He
knows who began the butchery."

" Have many men gone from this village to
the army?" I asked.

" Every able-bodied man is serving, and we
are now, all of us, going to the front; gray beards
as well as boys. We feel that it is a war of ex-
termination. If we do not defend our home-
steads, woe betide us!"

On leaving Daili the track was firm and good
for the first three hours; it then became very
precipitous, and led down steep declivities,
and over a succession of bowlders. At last we
came to a large circular plain; it was surrounded
by hills; on one side of this vast natural basin,
and on a slope, lay Yuzgat.

As we were nearing the walls a cavalcade of
horsemen appeared in sight. One of them ad-
vancing saluted us by touching his fez and
then addressed me in excellent French. He was
a Pole, Vankovitch, by name, and was em-
ployed as chief engineer in the district. He had
received a telegram from the Italian doctor, M.
Gasparini. of Angora, to say that I was on the
road, and had ridden out with some Armenian
gentlemen to welcome 11s to the town.

An Armenian now asked me to take up my
quarters in his house. I had been lodged be-
neath a Turkish roof at Angora, and was cu-
rious to see the difference between the Christian
and Mussulman mode of living. I gladly ac-
cepted the offer.	x

Many more horsemen, Turks and Armenians,
joined us ere we entered the city. I now
learnt that my kind friend, the Bey at Angora,
had telegraphed to some of his acquaintances,
asking them to do what they could to make my
stay at Yuzgat pleasant.

The news of the approach of an Englishman
had already been spread through the town.
The inhabitants had all turned out to have a
look at the stranger.

" An Englishman in Yuzgat is indeed a sur-
prise for the inhabitants," said a young Turk
who was riding by my side. "I do not believe
that one of your nation has been here for the
last twenty years. We Turks are not ungrate-
ful," he continued, with a smile. " We have
not forgotten our old friends of the Crimea,
and what you did for us then."

"Please God you will do as much now!"
said another horseman. "Anyhow, your ar-
rival has created an immense excitement ; there
was not so great a crowd to see the Pacha of
Angora, when he paid us a visit."

" Sir," observed Radford, who, surprised at
the tremendous ovation I was receiving from
the crowd, had gradual^ sidled up to my horse,
" this reminds me of our riding after Don Car-
los in Spain. Only in Spain, all the people'
came to look at Don Carlos, and here they have
come to look at us. Just, sir, for all the world
as if we were a Lord Mayor with his men in
harmor riding in state by the Horse Guards.
There have been a lot of dirty Turks kissing
Osman already, so pleased they seem to see him.
And two or three men were slobbering over my
boots as we rode up the hill!"

♦For treatment of the Turkomans by the Russian
soldiers, I refer thp reader to Mr. Schuyler's highly in-
teresting work " Turkistan."20

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

We entered a courtyard: dismounting, I
ascended some steps which led to my host's
house. The room placed at my disposal was
furnished in a similar fashion to the one which
I had inhabited in Angora. Several servants
hastened to pull off my riding boots, and the
proprietor said that some Armenians were wait-
ing outside, they wished to speak to me.
"Would 1 see them?"

"By all means," I replied; " show them in."

Several men entered; they were dressed in
various costumes, the dressing-gown pattern
being evidently a favorite amidst the inhabit-
ants of Yuzgat. The visitors ranged them-
selves against the wall in order, according to
their social positions, and then salaamed me.
On my returning the salute, the gentlemen
squatted down upon the floor, and the salaam-
ing ceremony was repeated.

"They have come to ask whether you will
honor them by inspecting the Armenian school,"
said my host, who, of higher rank than the visit-
ors, had not squatted down on the floor, but was
seated with his legs tucked under him on the
divan.

"We are all Christians," said an old and very
dirty Armenian, who looked as if water and
he had long been strangers to each other.

" It is a pleasure to see a Christian," he added.
" It does me good."

" We are all delighted!" said the rest of the
company. Whereupon we salaamed again.

"How do you like the Turks?" l"now in-
quired.

" They get on very well together," observed
the Pole who had accompanied me home, " and
the law is carried out very fairly for all classes.
I will give you an instance. The chief of the
telegraphs in Yuzgat is an Armenian. One
day lie saw a few Turkish boys teasing some
Armenian children, and calling them giaours.
He beat the Turkish children. Some Turks,
coming up, took the part of the Mohammedan
lads, and struck the telegraph-man. The latter
complained to the authorities; the Turks who
had beaten him were at once imprisoned."

" Twenty years ago this would not have hap-
pened," said another of the visitors; " but here
things have altered for the better. However,
at Sivas," he continued, " you will find that
the Christians are horribly ill-treated by the
Pacha. The prison is full of Christians.
There is no sort of justice in that city. The
Pacha takes away Christian little boys aud
girls from their parents, and shuts them up in
his seraglio."

" Is this true?" I inquired of Mr. Yankovitch.

" They say so. But you must remember that
you are in the East," was the Pole's reply.
"Personally," he added, "I make a rule to
believe nothing except what I see myself. You
are going to Sivas?"

" Yes. "

" Well, you will be able to judge for your-
self. At all events, the Christians in this town
are not oppressed in any way. You see Ar-
menians and Turks dining together at the same
table, and so far as justice is concerned, the
Christian obtains quite as much of it as the
Mohammedans."

The Armenians, who by this time had finish-
ed their coffee, now left the room; and Mr.
Yankovitch remaining behind, began to tell me
of his experiences in Asia Minor, and of the
cause which had induced him to leave his own
country.

He had been educated in the Military College
at St. Petersburg, and had passed his examina-
tion for the engineers just before the Polish in-
surrection. He had joined the rebels, and tak-
ing command of a large band which had assem-
bled near Yilna, had fought against the Rus-
sians for more than two years. General Mura-
vieff, known to history by his brutality to the
women of Yilna, published four proclamations
offering rewards for Yankovitch's head. Fort-
une favored the young Pole, who was able to
escape his foes. When the rebellion was sup-
pressed, he succeeded in reaching Odessa, and
made his way on board a Greek ship bound for
Constantinople. After being two days at sea,
the vessel, owing to bad weather, was obliged
to put back into harbor. The captain then
said, that as some Russian officers would be cer-
tain to come on board, it w7ould be better for
Vatikovitcb to remain concealed in a friend's
house until the ship could sail. He took the
advice; but left all his clothes and other effects
in the cabin.

The vessel started that night; he did not re-
ceive any warning, and the captain, carrying off
his luggage, robbed him of evSy thing he had

in the world. The Polish committee in Odessa
raised a little money for their brother in misfort-1
une: after paying for his passage in another!
steamer, he arrived at Constantinople with i
barely five pounds in his pocket. This was
soon spent, and then in order to earn his bread,
he obtained employment as a road-maker. The
engineer who superintended the work discover-
ed that the navvy knew as much about road-mak-
ing as he did himself. He promoted him to be
assistant engineer.

Yankovitch complained that he was unable
to write to his father, a gentleman w7ho resided
near Yilna. The engineer had sent two or three
letters; but on each occasion the envelopes
were opened by the Russian police, and the
parent had been heavily fined, simply because
Yankovitch had dared to write to him.

CHAPTER XYII.

My host now returned, and informed me that
M. Perrot, a French author who wrote a book
about Asia Minor, had resided beneath his roof.
On turning over the leaves of the work, which
had found its way to Yuzgat, I came to a page
in which M. Perrot observes that " one day I
inquired of my host why he did not introduce
me to the lady of the house?"

" It is our custom," was the reply. " And I
find it a wise one. What good does it do me if
other men see my wife? I took her for myself;
she is my property. I have heard that you Euro-
peans spoil your wives; mine is educated prop-
erly. When I enter my harem, she comes to
kiss my hand, then she stands upright before
me in a respectful attitude, and she only opens
her mouth when I address her."

On showing my host the paragraph, he ob-
served, "When M. Perrot was here, my father
owned this house. I remember the circum-
stance well. I was in the room when M. Perrot
asked my father to introduce him to my mother.
I suppose my parent was under the impression
that in Europe you keep your wives for your
guests; but anyhow we keep our wives for our-
selves."

"What!" I inquired, " would you not intro-
duce me to your sisters or mother?"

" No, certainly not."

Mr. Yankovitch here interposed with the re-
mark that on the following day my host's niece
was to be affianced to her future husband; that
the bridegroom had not set eyes upon the face
of his intended, and no one in Yuzgat, save
her own immediate relatives, had ever seen the
young lady.

"Well," I inquired, "and if the wife of an
Armenian is unfaithful to him, can he obtain a
divorce?"

" No," replied my host; "our religion does
not allow of such a step; he does not even see
his wife's face before marriage."

" Then he has no opportunity of studying his
wife's character, and she has no opportunity of
studying his."

"No."

" They are a set of fools," said Yankovitch
to me in Russian, this language not being un-
derstood by the proprietor. " They think that
by shutting up their wives they can keep them
out of mischief, but the husbands are very
much mistaken. We need not be surprised at
it," he continued; " An Armenian lady is in no
way educated. She is confined in a harem.
She is the slave of her husband, and has to do
all sorts of menial work for him—wash his feet,
rub them dry, and wait at table. From her ear-
liest childhood a girl is brought up to consider
herself as a slave in her father's house; until the
Armenians abandon these barbarous customs,
their so-called Christianity will not do them
much good. A Turkish husband has no difficul-
ty in obtaining a divorce—in fact, he is not even
put to the expense of going to a court of law. All
he has to do is to say, in the presence of a wit-
ness, ' I renounce you,' and he is at once freed
from his wife, who is at liberty to go where she
likes, and marry whomsoever she pleases.

" If a Turk," added Mr. Yankovitch, "once
renounces his wife before a witness, he cannot
withdraw his renunciation. There is a story
that a woman, who wished to be divorced from
her husband, dressed up one of her female
slaves in man's clothes, and provided her with
false whiskers and beard. On entering the
harem late at night, the husband found this dis-
guised figure lying by the side of his wife. He
was furious, and at once renounced the, as
he thought, faithless lady. There is a curious
law about marrying a divorced woman, which
is not generally known by Europeans," con-

I tinued the speaker. " If a Turk has divorced
I his wife, but she wishes to return to him and
| he to take her, the lady, first of all, must be mar-
! ried to some other man, and the rights in their
entirety be accomplished; the new spouse then
divorces her. After this process, she can re-
turn to her former husband.

"A husband who wishes to take to himself
again his divorced wife, generally chooses some
beggar, almost alwrays a very old man; he then
offers this elderly individual a sum of money
to marry the lady and afterwards renounce her.
Sometimes, however, there are difficulties in
carrying out these arrangements. The lady
takes a fancy to the beggar, and the beggar to
the lady. The pauper will not divorce her, and
the original husband is laughed at by the rest
of the community."

There were 10,000 inhabitants in Yuzgat, but
there was very little crime. Onty one execu-
tion had taken place during the last fifteen
years, and this had been for murder.

The town itself is, comparatively speaking,
of recent date, its construction dating back 180
years. The neighborhood abounds with mines,
and I was assured that iron, silver, and coal had
been found near the city.

The Armenians did not serve in the army as
soldiers; but, in lieu of military service, paid
the Ottoman government twenty-eight piastres,
thirty-two paras every year for each male child,
from his birth to his death.

The Circassians, of whom there are a great
many in this part of Turkey, are not compelled
to join the army; but they have promised the
government that every able-bodied man amongst
them shall turnout as an irregular horse or foot
soldier, should his services be required.

The people in the province of Angora are
taxed as follows: If ground is cultivated, the
proprietor gives the sultan the tithe of the crop.

The owner of a house pays 41, per 1,000£. of
the estimated value of his abode, that is to say if
he is living in it himself. If on the contrary he
lets it, he must pay 401, per 1,000. The tax for
people engaged in trade or commerce, is 30 per
cent, on their profits. If a merchant sells corn
in a town, he has to pay a duty of two paras
for every twenty okas of grain purchased from
him, and should he dispose of a horse, sheep,
or ox, in the market-place, he must give the
government 2 1-2 per cent, of the proceeds of the
sale. A farmer has to pay the government four
piastres a year, if he is the owner of a goat,
and three for each sheep he possesses. The
collectors of taxes in almost every instance
were Mohammedans; many of the Christians
grumbled at the way they were assessed.

If an Armenian girl expresses a wTish to be-
come a Mohammedan, this gives rise to great
jealousy between the Turks and Christians. At
the same time, the Armenians who profess the
Armenian faith detest any member of their
community who has accepted the Roman
Catholic or Protestant doctrines. The Chris-
tians being much more intolerant towards the
dissenters from their respective creeds than the
Turks are to the Christians.

There has hardly ever been an instance of a
Turk accepting Christianity, but the American
missionaries in Asia Minor were said to have
converted many Armenians to Protestantism.

The Roman Catholic missionaries have not
been idle. A number of Armenians no longer
reverence the Patriarch in Constantinople, but
look upon the Pope as the Head of their
Church.

The Turks laugh in their sleeve at the discord
in the ranks of the Christian community. They
cannot understand why so much hatred and ill-
feeling should exist between people who wor-
ship the same Messias.

This difference of opinion amongst the Chris-
tians is by no means displeasing to the Turkish
authorities; it renders any union between the
Armenians and Russia exceedingly difficult.

The following morning a servant brought a
paper to my host for his signature. It was a
loyal address from the principal people in Yuz-
gat thanking the Sultan for the Constitution.
None of the Armenians believed in the reform.
Most of them held the same opinion as the in-
habitants of Angora, namely, that the project-
ed Constitution was thrown out as a bait to
catch some of the plenipotentiaries at the Con-
ference, and that when the Conference was for-
gotten the Constitution would be numbered
with the past.

Yankovitch now called. I walked with him
to the market which he was constructing for
the townspeople. It was not a large building,
being about eighty yasds long by thirty wide;ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

21

the houses were each of them two stories high,
built of hewn stone with glass windows; the
latter a great luxury for the natives, glass hav-
ing to be brought all the way from Samsoun, a
port on the Black Sea. The difficulties of
transport were very great, half the glass arrived
in a fractured state, this, and the extreme diffi-
culty of carriage, added enormously to its cost
price.

In the market there was literally nothing
which would have attracted an observer's at-
tention. Some of the Armenians sold dye,
wood, and goat's hair: others traded in cotton
stuffs and calicos, one or two American lamps
to burn petroleum were in the window of a
small shop which was kept by a Greek.

The engineer had experienced considerable
difficulty in persuading the townspeople to let
him construct a bazaar two stories high. " Our
fathers have always been satisfied wTith one
story," remarked the tradesmen; "then why
should not we?"

In spite of the opposition, Vankovitch, with
the Caimacan's assistance, had managed to carry
the day. The people who had grumbled the
loudest about the new order of things were the
first to take apartments in the two-storied build-
ing.

We continued our walk through narrow
lanes, and by the side of tumble-down hovels,
till we arrived on the summit of a hill, the out-
skirts of the town. Some good-looking gipsy
women, with brown complexions, large dark
eyes, and long black hair, were standing at the
door of one of these habitations.

"These are the dancers," said Vankovitch;
"Dr. Gasparini telegraphed from Angora to
ask me to arrange a gipsy dance for you. Let
us go and talk to one of the old women, and
choose the girls who are to perform."

An elderly dame recognized my companion;
she advanced, and invited us to enter her house.
"When our errand was known great excitement
ensued amidst the younger damsels of the gipsy
community. Each one trusted that her good
looks and skill in the Terpsichorean art would
influence my companion in his choice.

"Be quiet! " said the old woman, indignantly
to some of the more obstreperous of her young
ladies, who, to show my companion their agil-
ity, were performing a sort of cancan step,
very different from those dances I had hitherto
seen in the East.

"Now, then, Effendi," to my companion,
" how many girls do you require?"

" Three."

"Well, three you shall have. The most
beautiful and gazelle-like of our tribe. I will
come myself," continued the old lady, "and I
too will dance, if only to show the Frank
Effendi what our dance is like."

It was as much as I could do to keep my
countenance ; the old woman was very fat ;
some of the girls, catching my eye, went off
into fits of laughter.

" Ah! you may laugh, children," said the old
woman, indignantly, "but none of you can
dance like I can. They are not supple like I
am, Effendi. They cannot move their hips.
They cannot sway the lower part of their bod-
ies. Look here!"

And straightening her aged limbs, the old
woman commenced wriggling her different
joints, the girls applauding her, and beating
time with their hands to each movement of the
dancer's body.

"Very good," said Vankovitch, as she sank
down on a divan, with a force which would
have smashed any less strong piece of furni-
ture. "Very good. 5Tou dance like a stag.
You shall come too."

"Thank heavens!" he remarked ?in French,
" that she did not throw herself on to my lap,
for this is the custom of these wild dancers; if
she had done so, there would not have been
much left of me. But come along, let us re-
turn; it is very stuffy here."

After making an appointment with the old
lady for the dancers to come to us on the fol-
lowing evening, we descended the hill and
walked towards the principal mosque in the
town.

CHAPTER XVIII.

On taking off our shoes at the entrance, we
were at once admitted into a large building
constructed in the form of a dome. Two vast
circular halls, leading the one into the other,
were beneath the lofty ceiling. Stained1 glass
windows, with infinitesimally small panes, al-
lowed but little light to penetrate to the interior,

which was carpeted with rich Persian rugs of
many hues and fashions. Chains, descending
from the centre of the building, supported a
huge circular hoop of iron. From this were
suspended a hundred lamps of different-colored
crystal. Two enormous wax candles, each as
thick as a man's leg, and about seven feet high,
were fixed in a corner of the building. They
had been made to last a year, and had cost
" tcliok para "—a great many paras.

The attendant evidently thought that he
should impress my mind with this announce-
ment, and he uttered the word " tcliok " in a
way which no Englishman could imitate save
when he is in the extreme agonies of sea-sick-
ness. Forty or fifty Turks were lying on the
floor, and seemed to be in no way disturbed by
the entrance cf Mr. Vankovitch and myself.

" Are there always as many people here?" I
inquired.

" There are very few to-day," was the reply;
but at whatever hour you may enter, the faith-
ful will be found praying to the All-powerful
One who rules the Universe."

This, indeed, I subsequently discovered to
be the case. No matter how early or late I
might enter a mosque, there were always some
men on their knees, praying to the Almighty;
and whenever a service wras going on, the
mosques were invariably crowded.

" They pray more than Europeans do," said
my companion, the engineer, as we quitted
the mosque. "With us," he added, "the
women throng the churches, the men are con-
spicuous by their absence; in Turkey you will
hardly ever meet a man wiio is in the habit of
absenting himself from his mosque. Indeed, a
Mohammedan's superstitious feelings would
not allow him to do so, even if he felt inclined;
he would think that the Divine vengeance
would at once pursue him to his destruction."

We now called upon a Turkish gentleman,
Daravisli Bey. Presently he left the room,
and, returning, brought an old flint-gun, mark-
ed "London, 1802." He next suggested that
we should join him in a shooting excursion,
and, calling a servant, desired the man to bring
in a falcon. This, Davarish Bey said, would
be very useful, as, if we missed the partridges,
the hawk would catch them for us.

"We shall then have some game to show
when we return," he continued, " and the peo-
ple will not be able to laugh at our beards."

"Vankovitch is a wronderful shot," said an-
other Turk. "He shoots partridges flying!
Only think' flying in the air! In the name of
Heaven, is it not wonderful? Can you hit a
partridge, except when he is quite still?"

"Sometimes," I said; "but, unfortunately,
most of my cartridges are wet; anyhow, I will
try and find a few dry ones, and will go with
you to-morrow."

" There is another thing which you must see
before 3^011 leave Yuzgat," observed Daravish
Bey, " and that is our national game, Djerrid.
I have already spoken about it," he continued;
" the day after to-morrow all the best riders in
the neighborhood will assemble on the plain
outside the town. In the meantime, I hope
that you will dine with me this evening."

" But I am staying with an Armenian gentle-
man, and he will expect me to dine at home."

"Bring him with you. Nay, do not disap-
point me," he added. " It is many years since
an Englishman has been at Yuzgat, and we do
do not know how to honor one sufficiently when
he is here. England and Turkey are old allies,
and God grant that they may remain so!"

I returned to my quarters, and found the
Caimacan, who had come to pay me a visit.
He was very busy, as he had to arrange for
some rediff soldiers who were to be despatched
at once to Constantinople. After a few com-
pliments and a cup of coffee, he arose and
took his departure.

My host now observed:

" Effendi, will you do me a favor?"

" What is it?" I inquired.

" Mr. Vankovitch has dispharged one of his
under officers, an Armenian. The man is a
friend of mine—will you ask Mr. Vankovitch
to pardon my friend, and reinstate him in his
situation?"

"The officer is a thief," said the engineer,
" for that reason I got rid of him. But this re-
mark of our host will show you what sort of
people these Armenians are. He is well aware
that the fellow is a rogue. He knows that I do
not wish to take him back; to try and make me
do so, he asks you, who are ignorant of the cir-
cumstance, to intercede in the matter."

"You will intercede?" said the host.

"How can I? Mr. Vankovitch must know
the man's character better than I do."

" But Mr. Vankovitch would do it if you
asked him."

" I certainly shall not give him the opportu-
nity of refusing," I replied. And seeing that I
-was obdurate, my host left off pressing me for
the moment, but only to return to the attack on
the following day.

The next morning, and soon after daybreak,
we assembled for the chase. The engineer
had mounted me on a magnificent coal-black
Arab. He himself rode a little bay, with good
shoulders and fine action; whilst his wife, a
Bosnian lady, who was attired in a light blue
riding-habit, a hat with a peacock's feather, and
who wore on her boot a long cavalry spur—was
mounted on a chestnut.

Vankovitch had slung his gun across his
shoulders. His double-breasted shooting-coat
was dotted with cartridge-cases in the Circas-
sian style. He was an object of great interest
to a crowd of bystanders, and was.evidently the
chasseur par excellence of Yuzgat. Some Turk-
ish women wrapped up in long white sheets,
stared through the corners of their veils at Mrs.
Vankovitch, and were very much astonished
at the proceedings, for the lady was on a side-
saddle, which the engineer had lately received
from Constantinople. It wTas only the first or
second time that it had been in Yuzgat. The
giaour woman balanced on a peg on the side of
the saddle was a source of considerable won-
der to the assembled crow7d.

" How odd these giaours are!" said a Turk to
his neighbor. "Why, even their women go
out hunting! What a thing to ride on! Look,
she has only one foot in the stirrup, and her
other leg is across a peg in the saddle."

" How could you sit cross-legged if you had
on that very thin, long dressing-gown which
she is wearing?" said another bystander. " But
here come Daravish Bey and his brother. They
are actually going with the Frank to the chase!"

The attention of the crowd was now taken up
by the new arrivals.

The two Turkish gentlemen were both
dressed alike in bla^ck cloaks lined with fur,
and which descend'ed to their heels. Gold
necklaces passing through diamond rings encir-
cled each man's neck. Red waistcoats, but-
toned up high in front, exposed to view an inch
or two of limp, unstarched shirt-front; loose
black trousers covered their legs, and a blue
and white shabrach their highly-gilded saddles.

An attendant on a pouy bore a falcon on his
arm. Some pointers and a greyhound brought
up the rear of the procession. Radford carried
my double-barrelled gun, and a few cartridges,
wich on careful inspection seemed not to have
been damaged by the wetting in the river. He
was also a source of wonder to the crowd. It
was whispered about that the gun which he
carried was like the Pole's fire-arm, and that
it would sometimes shoot partridges on the
wing.

We rode over a mountain, covered with peb-
bles. Presently one of the pointers began to
sniff. Vankovitch thought that there was
some game close at hand. He dismounted from
his horse, accompanied by Daravish Bey, who
was armed with the old English flint-gun. A
crowd of men and urchins, who had followed us
on foot from Yuzgat, watched the proceedings
with the greatest interest. Suddenly a covey
of partridges rose about a hundred and fifty
yards from the Pole. Two reports sounded-
in rapid succession, the birds flew away un-
touched. The attendant released the falcon,
and in a few seconds a partridge was in its
claws.

A hare broke from behind an adjacent rock.
In a moment we wrere in headlong pursuit, the
Bosnian lady riding foremost of the flight,
her horse taking the bowlders and loose rocks
which strewed the path in a way that
showed he was well accustomed to this style of
hunting.

A well-known sound made me turn my head.
To my surprise I saw a young Turk gallop-
ing after me on Osman's horse—the roarer. I
had given orders that the animal was to be
left in the stable, so that he might recover from
the effect of our forced marches the week
before.

" What are you doing with that horse?"

" Effendi, I am gallopinghim," was the quiet
reply. " Osman lent him to me, and said that
he was his property. Have I done wrong in
riding him?"

"Yes, "I said; "take him backfat once."
"Sir," interrupted Radford, " that is just like22

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR,

Osman's himpudence, a-lending things which
don't belong to him, and he is not that particu-
lar in returning them either. He is always
asking me to lend him some tobacco, and very
little I ever see of it again, except in the smoke
which comes out of his mouth." •

" How much are you paying for the for-
age of your horses?" now inquired Vanko-
vitcli, w\o had returned with the hare in his
hand.

"About seven shillings a day."

The Pole began to laugh.

"Seven shillings! Do you know, my dear
sir, that your Turkish servant is robbing
you?"

"Very likely," I replied. " Most servants rob
their masters. But what is the price of a horse's
forage for a day?"

"About one-and-a-half piastres, or at the pres-
ent rate of exchange about twopence of your
money. And chickens," continued Yankovitch,
" what has he made you pay for them in the
different villages on your route?"

" A shilling a piece."

"He is a thief," said the Pole, "you have
been awfully cheated! why, the price in the
town is only three halfpence for a fat chicken!
When we return to Yuzgat, send for your
man, and let me ask him a few questions. You
shall not be robbed any more if I can help it.
It is a bad thing for other European travelers,
and it gives the inhabitants a lesson in rob-
bery. There was a Russian officer here a few
years ago. He had been paying as much as a
medjidi a day for each of his horses. How-
ever, he was a Russian, and it did not so much
matter."

The following day I went to see the Arme-
nian schools. In one of them I found 200 girls
who, for Turkey, were receiving a fair educa-
tion. Most of them could read and write. A
class for learning embroidery was well attended,
some of the elder girls' work being very neatly
finished. There were two Mohammedan chil-
dren in a sewing class. I was informed that
many of the Mussulmans had expressed a wish
to send their children to the school.

"Perhaps you would like to ask the boys
some questions," said a priest, who accompanied
me through the building.

Now if there is one thing I dislike it is being
turned into an examiner. There is always a
chance of the boys knowing a great deal more
than the amateur setter of questions. But, as
the clergyman pressed me, I tried to remember
some of the sums which I had once learned
under the tuition of my highly esteemed old
master Mr. Marillier of Harrow.

The herring and a half sum would have been
too easy; I bethought myself of another.

" Well," said the priest, a little impatiently,
" they are waiting for you."

There was a dead pause, and I gave the
worthy divine the following question: "If one
man can mow a field in three days, and another
man in four, how long will they be doing the
work, if they are both mowing it together?"

"Come," said the divine, " you have set them
a very easy sum," and he duly translated it
into Armenian.

" It is hardly worth doing," said one of the
schoolmasters, "for of course the answer is
three days and a half."

" Of course three and a half," said the priest.

" No," I replied.

The engineer began to laugh, and we soon
afterwards left the school, neither masters nor
pupils being at all certain in their minds as to
how they ought to set about doing the sum.

I breathed more freely on arriving in the
open air, and blessed my old master, who had
once set me this catch question, for my reputa-
tion as a profound mathematician is established
forever amidst this generation of school-boys
in Yuzgat. After saying good-bye to the senior
pedagogue who had accompanied me to the
steps of the threshold, I asked him to give the
lads a half-holiday. He very kindly acceded to
my request; and a cheer from the boys inside,
when the good news was imparted to them,
made me aware that they, if not their masters,
were in no way dissatisfied by my visit.

CHAPTER XIX.

I called upon a Greek who had paid me a
visit on the day of my arrival. Several of his
compatriots were with him. They at once com
menced conversing about what they suffered
under the Turkish administration.

"We are very badly treated," said one.

"Very badly indeed," said another.	1

"Are the Christians here ever tortured?" I
inquired.

"No."

" Hate you ever heard of any of them being
impaled?"

The company began to laugh.

" No such things go on in Turkey," said my
host; " but the law is bad, that is what we mean.
Just before you arrived, we were talking about
a Turk who had borrowed some money from
one of our countrymen, and had given a gun
as security for the debt. The Turk died, and
the Christian, not being paid what he was
owed, sold the gun to a friend. Ten years after-
wards a son of the deceased Turk came and
claimed the weapon, which he said was his
father's property, and consequently his own.
There was no papers or witnesses to prove that
the gun had been pledged, and the Cadi decided
for the Mohammedan."

" If a Turk had been in the Greek's place,
would the same decision have been given?" I
inquired.

" Yes," was the answer; " the law is equally
bad for Turks and Christians."

There is one peculiarity about the Armenians
and Greeks in Yuzgat which attracts the at-
tention of the traveler, and this is that many of
them cannot write their own language, although
they employ its characters. Their conversa-
tion is almost invariably in Turkish. In cor-
responding with a friend, both Armenians and
Greeks will write in Turkish, but with the Ar-
menian or Greek letters. The schools, which
are encouraged by the Mohammedan authori-
ties, are improving the Christians in this respect.
The present generation of children can most of
them speak, as well as write, in the language of
their ancestors.

Later on in the day, I mounted my horse, and
accompanied the engineer and his wife to the
outskirts of the town. Here there is a vast natu-
ral basin formed by a circular chain of steep
heights. Yuzgat,* which is built on the side
of a hill, and with its houses towering above
the plain looks down upon the enormous arena.
An immense crowd was assembled. Horse-
men were present of all nationalities and clad
in every kind of costume. Turks, Persians,
Armenians, Greeks,Circassians, Tartars, Kurds,
Turkomans, Georgians, were grouped together
in little clusters, and talking to their fellow-
countrymen. . Hundreds of women, clad in
long white sheets, had retired a short distance,
and from a slight elevation were gazing down
upon the assembled multitude.

Presently the horsemen divided into two
sides. Each man carried a djerrid or short
stick, about four feet long, not quite so thick
as a man's wrist, and weighted a little at one
end. The right hand of the cavaliers grasped
the middle of the djerrid. The two bands of
mounted men, reining their horses back, halted
facing each other, and about eighty yards apart.

Now, at a signal from the leader of one side,
a horseman dashed forward at the opposing
band. Brandishing his djerrid in the air, and
shouting wildly to Allah, he hurled it at one of
his opponents. The latter, who was on his
guard, turned his horse on his haunches, and
galloped away in the same direction as the mis-
sile was coming. Reaching backward, the rider
caught the stick, and was greeted by the ap-
plause of the bystanders.

Meanwhile the horseman who had first attack-
ed, hastened to regain his party. He was pursued
in headlong career by one of the other side,
who in his turn hurled the djerrid. The game
requires considerable skill in horsemanship,
and great nerve. The stick is thrown with all
the rider's strength, augmented by the velocity
with which his steed is galloping. If the mis-
sile be not caught or parried, but strike a man's
body, the effect is often serious; bones are
fractured. DeaUi sometimes ensues. The
horses too have to be highly trained, so as to
be able to halt when at full speed, and, turning,
to start off in a contrary direction.

" We rode better in our time," said an old
man, attired in a crimson dressing-gown, and
wTho was eagerly watching the proceedings, to
a companion by his side; " but what is that
which is coming in this direction?"

In the distance a marriage procession could
be seen winding amidst the hills. A bride was
being carried in a cart drawn by oxen to her
bridegroom's house. A band playing discord-
ant music marched in front. Several women
enveloped in sheets of white muslin rode behind
the vehicle. They were mounted on donkeys,

* For importance of Yuzgat from a military point of
view, see Appendix XIV.

and sat astride them like men. The position is
a curious one, particularly when the lady wears
a short dress.

As the procession passed by the crowd, some
of the donkeys began to trot. The motion
became very disagreeable to the fair equestrians.
The robes began to rise, and the husbands run-
ning forward, held down their wives' attire.
This would have provoked the laughter of a
European crowd, but in Turkey women are
looked upon as beings to be shut off from the
public gaze. The Mohammedan husband as a
rule does not like any one to see him walking
with his own wife." The children too look
upon their father as a being far superior to
themselves. The Turkish parent walks first
along the road, the children next some fifty
yards behind their father. Last of all comes
the wife, alone and neglected. She accepts
this lot with resignation—her mother was a
slave before her, and she will remain one till
death or divorce dissolve the marriage-tie.

I now called upon the head of the Moham-
medan religion at Yuzgat. He received me
very courteously, and we conversed for some
time upon the respective merits of the Mussul-
man and Christian faith. It appeared that very
recently a house belonging to the Imaum (priest)
had been burned to the ground.

" I hope you did not lose much property," I
remarked.

"Everything I had was burned," said the
old man. " But it did not signify. Allah was
kind. The inhabitants raised a subscription
for me. My house will soon be restored," he
continued. "Allah is very good to all the true
believers. If a house belonging to one of your
Christian Mollalis (priests) be burned down,
what does he do?" inquired the old Mohamme-
dan.

" His house is generally insured," I replied.
" He pays a little money every year to a com-
pany, and then if the edifice is destroyed by
fire, it is built up again for him."

" Does he pay much money?"

"Yes, if the house is a good one, he has to
pay a large sum every year."

" What is the good of paying at all?" said the
Mohammedan. Why does he not trust in Al-
lah? That is what I have done. My new
house will cost me nothing. God is great, there
is but one God! And Mahommet, he is the
Prophet of God," added the old man piously.

"But I thought that you believed in Kismet
—destiny," I remarked.

" Destiny is great, but Allah is greater. He
created destiny," was the reply.

"Do you think that Allah can change His
mind?"

"He is All-powerful; He can do what he
likes," observed the Imaum, excitedly.

Later in the day I wralked into an Armenian
church. This was a large building, with red
carpets, and rather reminded me of a mosque.
It must sometimes have been bitterly cold in-
side, for there were no stoves in the building;
I was informed that the upper classes who came
to pray all wore furs. As the lower orders are
not able to pay for any such warm garments,
they must occasionally be half-frozen when list-
ening to their priest's oration.

A raised platform at one end of the church
was enclosed by trellis-work. It was so con-
structed that the occupants of the gallery could
see the clergyman, without their attention being
occupied by the congregation.

" This gallery is for our women," said an
Armenian, who showed me over the building;
"and the trellis-work is to prevent them from
staring at the men."

" Or, rather, to prevent the men from staring
at them!"

My companion laughed at the remark.

"It answers both purposes!" he exclaimed.
"But if you look at the screen, you will see
that it is broken in several places, three or four
of the holes in the trellis-partition have been
made into one. The women have done this to
obtain a better view. Do you not separate the
women from the men in your churches?" he in-
quired.

"No."

" Then if the ladies are as pretty as they are
said to be, your clergymen must find it rather
difficult to keep the attention of his flock."

It was getting dusk. I went straight from
the church to the Pole's house. There was
hardly any furniture in it. This he explained
by saying that he was only temporarily em-
ployed at Yuzgat; so soon as he had finished
building the new bazaar, he would have to re-
turn to Angora. A few divans, as in the Turk-OH" HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MIS OR.

23

ish houses, surrounded the walls. The two-
barrelled gun, which sometimes "shot par-
tridges flying," the wonder of the other sports-
men in Yuzgat, was lying in a corner.

After dinner, which was washed down by
some very fair red wine, manufactured by the
Christians in the town, a little boy, about twelve
years of age, entered the room; coming up to
my host, he whispered something in his ear.

''The gipsies have arrived," said Yanko-
vitch ; turning to the lad, he desired him to lay
down some carpets at the other end of the
apartment.

" That boy does not cost me much," said my
host, pointing to his servant. "I found him
starving in the streets a few years ago, during
the famine. His mother had turned him out
of doors. The child had nothing to eat. I took
pity on the poor little fellow, and he has been
with me ever since; he does more work than
all the rest of the servants together. Whilst, if
I wish to punish him, all I have to do is to point
to the door."

CHAPTER XX.

Some gipsy men .'now entered, and, squatting
down on the carpet, began to tune their lutes.
One of their party carried a fearful instrument.
It was rather like the bagpipes. He at once
commenced a wild and discordaut blast. The
musicians were followed by the dancers.

The chief of the gipsy women was provided
with a tambourine. She was attired in a blue
jacket, underneath this was a purple waistcoat,
slashed with gold embroidery, a pair of very
loose, yellow trousers covered her extremities.
Massive gold earrings had stretched the lobes
of her ears, they reached nearly to the shoul-
ders, and by way of making herself thoroughly
beautiful, and doing fit honor to the occasion,
she had stained her teeth and finger-nails with
some red dye. Her eyebrows had been made
to meet by a line drawn with a piece of char-
coal. * Gold spangles were fastened to her black
locks. Massive brass rings encircled her ankles,
the metal jingling as she walked, or rather wad-
dled round the room.

The two girls who accompanied her were in
similar costumes, but without the gold spangles
for their hair, which hung in long tresses below
their waists. The girls, advancing, took the
hand of Vankovitch's wife, and pTaced it on
their heads as a sort of deferential salute. The
Pole poured out a glass of raki for the fat
woman, who, though a Mohammedan, was not
averse to alcohol. She smacked her lips loudly;
the man with the bagpipes gave vent to his
feelings in a more awful sound than before; the
lutes struck up in different keys, and the ball
began.

The two girls whirled round each other, first
slowly, and then increased their pace till their
long black tresses stood out at right angles from
their bodies. The perspiration poured down
their cheeks. The old lady, who was seated on
a divan, now uncrossed her legs, beating her
brass ankle-rings the one against the other, she
added yet another noise to the din which pre-
vailed. The girls snapped their castanets, and
commenced wriggling their bodies around each
other with such velocity that it was impossible
to recognize the one from the other. All of a
sudden the music stopped. The panting dan-
cers threw themselves down on the laps of the
musicians.

"What do you think of the performance?"
said Yankovitch to me, as he poured out an-
other glass of raki for the dancers. " It is real
hard work, is it not?" Then, without waiting
fortheanswer, he continued, "The Mohamme-
dans who read of European balls, and who have
never been out of Turkey, cannot understand
people taking any pleasure in dancing. ' What
is the good of it when I can hire some one else
to dance for me?' is the remark."

" They are not very wrong," I here observed,
" that is, if they form an idea of European
dances from their own. Our Lord Chamber-
lain would soon put a stop to these sort of per-
formances in England."

"The Lord Chamberlain, who is he?" in-
quired an Armenian who was present, and who
spoke French.

"He is an official who looks after public
morals."

" And do you mean to say that he would ob-
ject to this sort of a dance?"

"Yes."

"But this is nothing:," said Yankovitch.
" When there is a marriage festival in a harem,
the women arrange their costumes so that one

article of attire may fall off after another during
the dance. The performers are finally left in
very much the same garb as our first parents
before the fall. We shall be spared this spec-
tacle, for my wife is here. The gipsies will
respect her presence because they know that
she is a European."

Now the girls, calling upon the old woman,
insisted that she too should dance. The raki
had mounted into the old dame's head. Noth-
ing loth, she acceded to their request; rising
to her feet, she commenced a pas seul in front
of the engineer. First shrugging her shoulders,
and then wriggling from head to toe, as if she
were suffering from St. Yitus's dance, she finally
concluded by kneeling before my hostess, and
making a movement as if she would kiss her
feet.

The following morning, and just before my
departure, the Pole who had come to say good-
bye to me, called Osman to his side

" The Effendi is paying two medijis a day
for his horses," remarked Yankovitch, "and
six piastres for a chicken! Oh! Osman! thou
descendant of a line of thieves! What is the
meaning of this?"

The Turk changed color for a moment; but
then, collecting himself, he replied:

"The Effendi's horses are not like other
horses, they eat more, and work more. We
and he, too, we all like large chickens. The
Effendi is rich, and he pays; he is big, and he
eats a great deal. He is not giving more
money for barley now than he gave when he
was in Constantinople. The people at the
Khans tell me the price, I give them what they
ask. It would not do for me to be mean with
my lord's gold. In future I shall know better.
I will find out the proper value of everything,
and I will only pay what is just."

I interrupted him.

"Osman," I said, "you are a thief! How-
ever, as we leave Yuzgat to-day, there is no
time for me to get another servant. Only, be-
ware! for if I find you deceiving me any more,
not all the hairs in the Prophet's beard shall
save you from being discharged."

"The Effendi knows what is best," said Os-
man, coolly. " He has brain, and I—I am the
dust in his sight. Another time we will not
give so much for our barley, we will tighten
our purse-strings to the chicken-sellers. We
have all been deceived, we will be so no longer."

We rode through an undulating country, in
the direction of Sivas. The track was firm and
good; there was an abundant supply of water
throughout the district, numerous flocks and
herds were grazing by the side of the path.

After marching for six hours and a half, we
halted at a Turkoman village, called Kulhur-
dook, which contained forty-five mud-hovels.
With much difficulty I obtained accommoda-
tion in a filthily dirty barn. Here our horses
were also sheltered; side by side with them stood
several cows and oxen. A small piece of car-
pet covered the ground in one corner of the
building. The proprietor, bringing me a pil-
low, which once had been white, but was now
black as dirt, placed it under my head, Rad-
ford and Osman lying down by the side of the
horses.

There were several mostaphos, or men be-
longing to the last army reserve, in this village.
They eagerly inquired if there would be war,
but did not express any wish to fight their
country's battles. This struck me as the more
remarkable, for elsewhere I had observed great
martial ardor amongst the rural classes. I after-
wards learnt that several men who had been
enlisted from this village had been killed in
Servia, hence the unwillingness of the mosta-
phas to go to what they considered certain
death.

I tried to sleep: this was impossible; some
little insects, which the manager of the Crystal
Palace advertises as " industrious," proved
their industry by making fierce onslaughts on
my body. Repeated groans from Osman made
me aware that even his skin was not proof
against the attack; whilst my English servant,
who had given up all idea of sleeping, was
walking about with a pipe in his mouth, and
probably doing anything but bless his master
who had brought him to such an out-of-the-
way region.

" Can you not sleep, Radford?" I inquired.

" Sleep, sir! No! They are running up my
legs like coach 'osses. Hosman's skin is like
an ironclad, but they give him no peace; they
worry awful, that they do. I have been trying
to smoke them off me, but 'bacca is nothing to

these fleas. We shall be eaten alive if we st&y
here much longer—I know we shall!"

Having come to much the same conclusion,
I ordered him to saddle the horses, and, to the
astonishment of the proprietor of the hovel, we
left our quarters three hours before daybreak.

Presently the country became more mount-
ainous. It reminded me a good deal of the
Saxon Switzerland, the scenery being very pict-
uresque as our path wound round some wooded
slopes.

We were in a country abounding with pine
forests. The telegraph-wire to Sivas was
stretched not far from our track. Many saw-
mills, turned by the mountain streams, showed
where the telegraph-posts had been made; they
had then been dragged by oxen to their desti-
nation.

Our road ran through a pleasant valley, and
by the side of a mountain stream known as the
Gogderi Soo. In a few hours we arrived at a
river, called the Tschekar Ermak. It is cross-
ed by a weak stone bridge, the stream being
about, thirty yards wide by four deep. We
halted for the night at the village of Tchirklik,
a two day's march, or thirteen hours from
Kulhurdook.

I was accommodated in a house which actu-
ally possessed two rooms. They were not con-
structed in the side of a hill, as the other dwell-
ings in the neighborhood, but of wood—one
room being reserved for the proprietor's cattle,
sheep, and camels, the other for himself and
harem.

I was permitted to sleep in the stable. Os-
man, with Radford and our horses, were lodged
in a hovel at the other end of the village.

In the middle of the night I awoke with a
feeling of suffocation, my throat was dry and
parched, my ej^es began to smart, a crackling
noise overhead could be heard. It gradually
dawned upon me that the house was on fire. I
now discovered that the flames from the fire-
place had ignited some boards in the chimney:
they, in their turn, had set fire to the roof. If
the" proprietor, who was sleeping in the next
room, were not immediately aroused, his house
would in all probability be destroyed. The
building was surrounded by a courtyard with
high mud walls. The space outside the dwell-
ing was infested by dogs. They at once came
smelling around me.

Shutting the door, to prevent the flames from
bursting out inside, I went to the harem. The
entrance was barred from within. The pro-
prietor and his wives wrere fast asleep; they
paid no attention to the noise which I made at
the door.

It was of no use standing upon any cere-
mony with a man when his house is being
burnt down: drawing my revolver, 1 fired two
shots in the air; thinking that the sound of the
reports would arouse the sleeping inmates. The
effect was instantaneous; the whole family
awoke, the man, 'greatly alarmed, thinking
that an attack was being made on the village
by a tribe of Kurds; slowly drawing the bolt,
he looked through a crack in the door.

" Come," I said, "your house is on fire! Be
quick, or it will be burned down, and your
camels and oxen be suffocated!"

The proprietor bounded out of the room. He
was followed by the harem; the ladies, in the
confusion, did not think of covering their faces,
and were very scantily attired. They ran to a
well in the yard and brought some pitchers of
water. The proprietor, by this time, had
climbed to the roof of his house. It was a
windy night; the gusts were a source of con-
siderable inconvenience to the water-bearers;
their hands being occupied with the pitchers,
they could riot arrange their garments. The
latter fluttered above the ladies' heads, to the
great discomfort of the proprietor, who, much
enraged at his house being on fire, was equally
annoyed at his wives' legs being exposed to the
▼iew of an unbeliever.

To relieve his mind, I clambered on to the
roof. From this position the ladies' limbs
could no longer be seen. After pouring sev-
eral buckets of water on the charred rafters, we
managed to extinguish the flames.

CHAPTER XXI.

It was a bright moonlight night. Not think-
ing it likely that we should obtain any more
sleep, I determined to start at once, aud take
advantage of the weather. Desiring Radford
and Osman, who had been aroused by the re-
ports of my revolver, to saddle the horses, we
set off in the direction of Sileh Zela, a town24

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

which contains 3,000 houses, and a barracks
which will hold, at a pinch, 1,500 soldiers.

Sileh Zela stands in the centre of a natural
basin, the hills which form its sides being at a
distance of six or seven miles from the town.
A small rising ground near the principal street
is occupied by the ruins of an old citadel. A
streams runs through the heart of the city.
The soil in the neighborhood is very rich; corn
abounds throughout the district. The inhabit-
ants do not seem to have suffered from the
famine which a few years ago so depopulated
the Angora district.

Half a battalion of infantry, about 400 strong,
was drilling in a plain immediately in front of
the town. The inhabitants had turned out,
men and women, to witness the instruction of
the troops. The white dresses of the ladies,
contrasting with the blue uniforms, red caps,
and tiie many-colored dresses of the inhabitants,
formed a bright and vivid picture. It was a
glorious day. The sun poured down its rays
wTith a force much more suggestive of July than
January. The drill was just over as we neared
the town. We rode into Sileh at the head of
the regiment, the band, which consisted of
about twenty musicians, performing a wild and
discordant march. Halting at the house of the
Caimacan, 1 dismounted and proceeded to pay
him a visit. He was in the audience-chamber,
surrounded by clerks, who were on their knees,
and submitting different documents for his ap-
proval.

The great man himself was squatted on a
divan; the members of the town council were
by his side. The Cadi, whose head was en-
veloped in a gigantic yellow turban, was en-
gaged in smoking along chibouk. A crowd of
men were in the ante-room, some with petitions
in their hands, others apparently prisoners,
judging by the guards who stood beside them.

It was evidently a busy day. The Caimacan,
not taking any notice of my arrival, continued
attaching his seal to the different papers.

At last he stopped, and turning to me, sa-
laamed and apologized for his apparent rude-
ness. It appeared that the half battalion which
I had seen drilling was to march the following
morning for Constantinople, ma Samsoun. The
Caimacan was engaged in making arrangements
for its departure. Carriers would have to be
sent forward to the different villages between
Sileh Zela and Samsoun, to apprise the local
authorities of the approaching arrival of the
troops. The chief difficulty which the Caima-
can experienced was the want of money; he
presently observed, " Asker tchok, lakin para
yoke"We have plenty of soldiers, but no
paras " (money).

The colonel of the battalion now entered the
room, and after having been introduced to me,
observed that he had heard in the event of hos-
tilities England would be neutral.

" What! desert her old friend of the Crimea?"
said the Caimacan, turning to me. And the
Cadi, grinning in a ghastly manner at the rest
of the company, remarked that England had
many paras, and that perhaps she would send
some of them to the Sultan.

This created a revulsion of feeling in my
favor—the assembly having been a little an-
noyed at the colonel's statement about the neu-
trality of Great Britain.

" Well," I said, "you will probably have an
ally in Austria."

"An ally in Austria!" said the colonel; " no,
certainly not. There are more Slavs than Mag-
yars in the Emperor Francis Joseph's domin-
ions. However, Andrassy, a Hungarian, is at
the head of affairs, and by all accounts he rules
the emperor. Perhaps Andrassy may prevent
Austria from allying herself with Russia against
us. We shall have to fight our own battles this
time," continued the colonel; " and, please God,
we will win."

An old Imaum who was seated in a corner,
now put in a word, and said that if there were
a war, he too would go at the head of the
Iraaums. I had observed this same propensity for
fighting amidst other Mohammedan priests. In
fact, in Asia, as in Europe, the most bellicose
members of society are often those gentlemen
whose profession is that of peace.*

"We shall have Yakoob Khan of Kashgar
with us," observed the Caimacan.

" No, we shall not," replied the colonel; " the

* Whilst writing these lines I have come across some
verses written by a bishop who calls himself a Chris-
tian, and an answer to them, by an American writer.
The bishop seems to have fo'rgotten that his mission
is one of peace. His verses will be found in Appendix

Russians have stirred up a quarrel between
Yakoob and the Chinese, so as to prevent him
giving us any assistance."

"Will any other Mohammedan States help
you?" I inquired.

"Yes, all of them will fight for Islam."

" Russia is large," continued the officer, "but
she will have to divide her forces. She will
have to be on her guard against the Khivans,
Bokharians, and Turkomans in Asia, she must
also protect herself against a rising of the Poles
in Europe."

The Caimacan, now rising from the divan,
walked with me to a small house in the neigh-
borhood which was reserved for the use of
travelers.

There were very few Armenians in Sileh, the
population being made up almost entirely of
the followers of the Prophet. The ancient city
is nearly a mile from the present site, and tra-
dition tells us that it was built upon the so-call-
ed mound of Semiramis. I found the castle in
a very dilapidated state, the wall round it bore
signs of having been constructed from the
ruins of some very ancient edifice; here and
there were heavy blocks of marble and other
debris which had been let into the sides of the
enclosure.

According to the inhabitants, there is a secret
passage leading from the citadel to a small
square several hundred yards below the hill;
this is very likely the case, for although now a
third-rate town, Sileh was once a city of consid-
erable military importance.

Whilst I was looking at the antiquities, Os-
man had been engaged in buying some tea and
sugar, the supply which I had brought from
Constantinople being almost entirely exhausted,
the tea and sugar having gone more rapidly
than the other provisions. On my remarking
this to Radford, I was informed that Osman
had a sweet tooth, and had declared that tea
was good for his stomach.

I called the Turk to my side.

" Osman," I said, " you have nearly finished
my tea and sugar. What is the meaning of
it?"

" Effendi, I like tea, I like sugar; but what
I like most of all is to hear my lord's liberality
praised. Whenever I am drinking tea, and
the village people see me putting much sugar
in my glass, they honor me. In this manner
they honor my lord."

" I should like to be honored in some other
way for the future,"I observed; "and Radford
tells me that you are always praying instead of
saddling the baggage-horses."

"Quite true, sir," remarked Radford, who
gathered from my gestures what the conversa-
tion was about. " Quite true; he has worn off
the nap of my new great coat a-praying on it. He
is always on his knees whenever there is some
work to do."

"Now, for the future, Osman," I continued,
"should I give orders to commence loading the
animals at daybreak, you must get up two
hours before sunrise: there will be then ample
time for your devotions. In the meantime,
when you pray, you are to kneel on your own
jacket, and not on Radford's."

" Is my brother angry?" said the Turk, point-
ing to his fellow-servant.

"Yes."

" Well, I will not offend him any more."

And shaking hands with the Englishman, Os-
man manifested his friendship by borrowing a
little tobacco.

On leaving Sileh Zela, we rode by numerous
gardens, planted with all kinds of fruit-trees,
and enclosed by high walls built for the most
part of dried mud. The road then continued
through a series of vast circular basins, each
from six to seven miles in diameter, and similar
to the one which surrounded the town. The
walls of these basins were formed of many-
colored sand-hills. The plains below were
sowed with every kind of grain.

We passed Tartars on their way to Sileh Zela,
the women walking along the road, and the
lazy husbands on horseback, riding in front of
their wives.

Turkoman and Circassian villages abound
throughout this district. The inhabitants were
eager to hear about the war. When the Rus-
sians drove the Circassians from the Caucasus,
the Sultan gave the exiles land in Anatolia.
The wild mountaineers thirst for the opportu-
nity of revenging themselves upon the Musco-
vites.

We left the corn-growing country behind us,
and emerged upon a plain thickly planted with
tobacco. On one side of the track the mount-

I ains were covered with vines, on the other were
many-colored sand-hills.

Presently a wonderful phenomenon presented
itself to us. A thick, black cloud, which all
the morning had hung above a mountain-top,
burst over our heads, and then being gradually
wafted onward, it poured down its waters on
the sand-hills. The sun, which was shining
brightly, formed a magnificent rainbow—the
glorious orb joined earth to sky, its matchless
coloring lit up the whole of the firmament.

The waters dashed down the sides of the hills.
The torrent bore with it a million particles of
colored sand. In a moment the rivulets at our
feet ran white, red, and then crimson. The
thunder roared in the distance. A flash of
lightning streaked the horizon with gold.

The sun was setting ere we reached our halt-
ing-place, and as we rode up the main street of
the village of Bazar, our horses had to wade
through about three feet of water—the result
of the recent storm. I obtained quarters for
the night in a small but clean wooden house
belonging to a Turkish gentleman. He was
formerly an officer in the army, and had been
employed at Kars during the siege.

"Pacha Williams proved himself to be a
great man," observed my host. " He was al-
ways busy, and not like other Pachas, who
spend their lives in the harem. He went out
at all hours of the night to inspect the fortifica-
tions. There was another Englishman with
him—a young man of fair complexion, but with
a heart like a lion."

" Teesdale?" I observed.

" Yes, that was his name. The hearts of our
pcor Osmanlis were cheered when they saw this
young Englishman sharing all their privations,
never giumbling, and always cheerful. If the
war breaks out again, God grant that you may
send us many more such officers. Is Pacha Wil-
liams still alive?"

" Yes."

" Is he a very great man in your country?^

" Yes."

" You English are a wonderful nation," con-
tinued my host. "You reward the Pachaa
who are brave and skilful. In our country, if
a captain has a relation in the harem of the
grand vizier, the officer is sure to rise to high
command; but with you a man must have merit
to succeed."

CHAPTER XXII.

It is only a few hours' march from Bazar to
Tokat, the track running parallel to the river of
the same name. There are many villages by the
side of the stream. The valley widens, and then
narrows again as we proceed towards the town.
Tokat at last lies before us. It is a long, strag-
gling city, and on the left bank of the river.

We were met by a Zaptieh. He conducted
me to a house set apart for travelers. Shortly
afterwards I received a visit from the Caimacan
(governor). This official was an active, bustling
little man, and much more energetic than any
of the governors I had previously met

An order had arrived for him to send 1,000
men immediate^ to Samsoun. The battalion
would march the following morning at day-
break. He proposed that I should go and see
the start.

An engineer now called, a Pole by birth, but
a naturalized Englishman. He was engaged in
making a road from Tokat to Sivas; he had been
in Tokat five years, and the work was not half
completed. Indeed, judging by the system
adopted for the construction of public works in
Anatolia, it will be a wonder if the road is ever
finished.

According to the engineer, Tokat has a popu-
lation of 25,000 inhabitants. Of these there
are 8,000 men who should each work four days
a year at the construction of the road.

" It is a pitiable sight," continued the Pole.
" The Zaptiehs are ordered to bring the people.
A rich inhabitant bribes the gendarmes; they
leave him and seize some impecunious indi-
vidual. The latter is brought to me, and I tell
the fellow to commence digging. The man
digs so long as I am in sight, but the moment
my back is turned, down goes the shovel, and he
lights a cigarette. The result is that I have
been here fi ve years, and only five miles of road
are finished."

The engineer complained of the want of funds
in the public chest. His pay was only £10 per
month, and it was never paid punctually.
Meantime, the authorities had discharged sev-
eral engineers in their employ, on the groundON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

25

that every piastre in the treasury was required
for the maintenance of the troops.

There were several Armenian schools in
Tokat, and the Turks and Christians got on
very well together. However, the Caimacan
was of opinion that not much reliance could be
placed upon the Greeks, i. e. in the event of a
war between Turkey and Russia.

"They are very cunning," remarked the gov-
ernor. "They will not declare themselves at
once, but will wait a little, and hang back to
see which side is the strongest. They still
dream of the old Greek Empire, and think that
some day Constantinople will be a Greek capi-
tal. This is not very likely to happen," he
continued. "If Russia were to conquer us,
and to take Constantinople, she would not be
willing to hand it over to the Greeks. What
Russia takes she keeps. Look at the Caucasus.
Look at the Crimea. Look at Khiva, Tash-
kent, and Samarcand. Some day she will try
•and conquer India, and what shall you do
then?"

" Probably take our Indian troops, and, join-
ing with theAfghans, and inhabitants of Kash-
gar, drive Russia out of Central Asia," I re-
marked.

"That is easier said than done," said the
governor. "But, talking of the natives of In-
dia, is it true, as I have read in our newspapers,
that many Mussulmans in India have petitioned
your queen to help the Sultan?"

" Yes," I replied, "I believe so."

" Then why does she not oblige them? Your
interests are bound up with our interests. We
do not wish to lose Constantinople. It would
be our death-blow. It would be your death-
blow if the Black Sea belonged solely to Russia,
for her ships could remain there in perfect
safety, and, running out at any moment, might
attack your commerce in the Mediterranean."

*4 There are a great many old soldiers in Tokat,"
observed the engineer, " men who fought in the
Crimea. They have asked me if there is any
chance of England joining Turkey, and are
longing to serve, with English pay and English
rations."

" The men who leave to-morrow go without
any pay," said the Caimacan, " but they march
cheerfully. We shall have to fight it out to the
end," he continued; " if Russia does not destroy
Turkey, Turkey must destroy Russia! I will
sell my watch" and everything I have in the
world to raise funds for the war. We must all
do the same."

Whilst we were conversing, an order arrived
for the Caimacan to supply all the Armenians
and Greeks in Tokat with fire-arms, and have
them instructed in drill.

"I must go," he observed, and, rising from
the divan, he left me alone with the engineer.

" He is a most energetic man," said the Pole,
pointing to the retreating figure of the Caima-
can. "If Turkey had more governors like
him, she would not be reduced to her present
straits. The great mistake in this country is
the continual change of Caimacans. When we
have a good governor, we never keep him for
more than six months; the present man has
been here about that time, he does not rob the
people, and is thoroughly honest; we shall
probably soon lose him."

Several of the principal persons in the town
now came to call upon me; amongst others, a
certain Osman Bey, a Circassian, and the chief
of a large band which had emigrated from the
Caucasus a few 3Tears previous. He was dressed
in the Circassian style, with a sheepskin coat,
tightly buckled round his waist, embroidered
leather trousers and high boots; a black Astra-
khan cap surmounted his bronzed features. He
was a fine, tall fellow, and immensely popular
with the inhabitants of Tokat.

After conversing for a little while about my
journey, and the state of the roads between
Tokat and Erzeroum, he proposed that I should
accompany him to his house, drink tea there,
and be introduced to his relatives. The engi-
neer came with us. After walking through
some lanes, where the mud reached consider-
ably above my ankles, we arrived before a
square-built, whitewashed house. A solid,
wooden door, absolutely possessing a knocker—
an article of luxury not known in Tokat, save
to the richer inhabitants, gave admission to a
small courtyard. This, in its turn, led to the
apartments reserved for Osman Bey and the
members of his family.

He had sent a servant on before, to say that
he was on his wTay. About fifteen Circassian
gentlemen were seated around the room.

"We Circassians have heard a great deal of

your nation," said Osman Bey, as he motioned
to me to take a seat. "We once thought that
England was going to help us to drive the
Russians out of our country. However, you
did not come; they outnumbered us, and they
had artillery opposed to our flint guns. What
could we do? We resisted as long as possible,
and then, sooner than be slaves, came here."

" If there is a war, shall you all go to the
front?" I inquired.

"Yes, every able-bodied man amongst us.
We do not pay any taxes to the Sultan; he gave
us our land, and we owe him a debt of grati-
tude. Not only that," continued the speaker,
and at the same time drawing a long, keen knife
from his sash, and flipping his nail against the
blade, "but we shall have an opportunity of
cutting a few Muscovite throats!"

"I hope you will not kill the women and
children!" I observed. " Nobody cares about
the men; but in Europe we have a horror of
people who massacre women and children."

"We shall do as the Russians do, and as they
have always done," observed my host, grimly.
"They have killed our old men, have cut to
pieces pregnant women, and have tossed the
children on the bayonets, whilst the soldiers
have satisfied their lust upon our wives, and
burnt them to death afterwards!* Well, if they
do the same thing now, we shall follow the
example set us, and shall continue doing so,
until England or some other power interferes
to save our countrymen from the devilish tyr-
anny of these Muscovite butchers. Let me give
you one instance of their cruelty. A few years
ago the Russian authorities informed the Cir-
cassians that whoever wished might leave the
imperial dominions and go elsewhere. This
was probably done to discover what natives
were well disposed or otherwise to the Russian
rule. There was no real intention on the part
of the government to allow any of its subjects
to pass the frontier. Seven hundred families
belonging to some villages near the town of
Labinsky thought that it was a bona fide per-
mission. Leaving their district, they started
for the Turkish frontier. A short time after-
wards they were surrounded by Russian troops,
cavalry and artillery, and ordered to return.
The fugitives said that they had permission to
leave Russia. The officer in command insisted
that they should at once retrace their steps.
The command was not immediately obeyed,
the troops fired at the villagers, and then
charged them with the bayonet; only thirteen
Mohommedans survived to tell the tale. All
the rest, men, women, and children at the
breast, were cut to pieces."

" Are these assertions really true?" I said to
another Circassian.

"We know it, to our cost," he replied.
"This is only one instance which Osman Bey
has just given you, and which you have written
down in your note-book; but there are many
more equally horrible. The Russians have
made a hell of our beautiful country. They are
worse than the fiend himself."

" Do your country-people like the Rus-
sians?" said Osman Bey.

" Some do," I replied; " but they do not be-
lieve in these horrible cruelties which you have
been just relating to me."

"Well, then, tell them to travel through our
country—that is, if the Russians will let them—
to go to our villages and talk to the country
people; but not in the presence of Russians,
as the poor sufferers would be afraid to speak,
knowing well the fate which would await them,
when their questioners had departed. Let any
of the people of England, who now sympathize
with Russia, do this, and then let them form an
►opinion about the merits of the case."

" When you return to your own country will
you publish what I have said to you?" said Os-
man Bey.

"Yes," I said, "every line. Listen to what
I have written, so that there may be no error."

And I translated to him my notes, the en-
gineer aiding me in the task.

" Are all your countrymen of one mind in
their hatred of the Russians?" I inquired.

"Unfortunately, no," said Osman Bey.
"The authorities have been clever enough to
sow the seeds of dissension amongst our ranks.

* This statement, coming from a Circassian, may be
deemed by some people in England, like the Right Hon.
Robert Lowe, M.P., who believes^that Russia is the pro-
tector of the unprotected, and the refuge of those who
have no other refuge, as hardly worthy of credence.
Unfortunately for humanity it is confirmed, so far as
the ma ssacre of pregnant womfen and of children is
concerned, by the official report of a British Consul.
See Appendix VII.

For example, they will often give the post of
' stanishna' (a local authority) in the different
villages to a Circassian of a low degree. This
gives him authority over our nobles. Ill-feeling
is thus created between the two classes; it is
utilized by the Russians."

"One of our number is doing his best to
avenge himself on the Muscovites," said another
of the party, a good-looking young fellow, ap-
parently about twenty years old, and Osman.
Bey's nephew. " His name is Yonn Bek; he
has taken up his abode in the Farsa Shaguash
mountain, near Ekaterinograd, and kills the
Russians whenever he can meet them. He has
been pursued, but he has depots in the mount-
ain where he keeps provisions, and the Rus-
sians have never been able to trace him to his
lair. The authorities have offered Yonn Bek a
great many gold imperials if he would leave the
country, as the man has done so much mischief
there; but Yonn declines, and says that if the
Russians have not been able to capture him in
eight years, and he has been able to do them so
much damage, what will not happen to the foe
when the war breaks out and he is joined by
other men like himself?"

CHAPTER XXIII.

The following morning the servant of the
house in which I was lodging entered the room
and observed that a Zaptieh corporal, or Onba-
shee, who had escorted us into the town on the
day of my arrival, wished to see me.

" Tell him to come in," I said. In a few min-
utes the Onbashee opened the door; approach-
ing me, he took from his waistcoat five piastres,
and placed them in the palm of his hand.

" What is this for?" I inquired.

"Osman!" answered the Onbashee, with a
sigh.

" Osman! What has he been doing?"

"Osman gave them to me, Effendi; but you
said that he was to give me half a medjidi—he
has kept the difference for himself!"

It now flashed across my mind that the pre-
vious evening I had desired Osman to give the
corporal half a medjidi as a baksheesh, and
that I had told him to do so in the presence of
the servant of the house. The latter had in-
formed the Onbashee. Osman, who wished to
appropriate to himself the difference between
five piastres and the larger coin, was thus de-
tected.

I sent for the culprit. He was aware that his
knavery had been discovered. Instead of com-
ing to me with his usual assertion that he was
the most industrious man in the world, he stood
in the corner of the room, an object of derision
to the Onbashee, who was regretting the loss of
his half medjidi, and to the servant of the
house, who had been the means of disclosing
Osman's dishonesty.

Addressing the guilty man, I asked him why
he had not given the Zaptieh the half medjidi,
and added that the previous evening, when he
had told me of the expenses of the day, he had
charged me with that sum.

Osman had hardly anything to say for him-
self. Presently he stammered out something
about his only having five piastres in his
pocket.

" That is a lie, Effendi!" here interrupted the
Onbashee. "He had many coins in his hand
when he gave me the five piastres."

I at once made up my mind to get rid of Os-
man. Yankovitch's remarks about the Turk's
dishonesty also recurred to my memory. Os-
man was undoubtedly a rogue; I determined to
procure another servant.

"Osman," I said, "you have robbed a Mo*
hammedan, a follower of Islam, and one of
your own religion. If you had confined your-
self to robbing me I could have understood it,
for you might have reasoned to yourself as fol-
lows : ' The Effendi is a giaour, and there is
gold in his purse.' But to rob a brother Mo-
hammedan, and a poor man; to rob him of the
pittance which I had given him—this I can
only understand by the assumption that you
are a greater scoundrel than I thought you
were! You are no longer my servant. You
darken the threshold no longer!"

"I am innocent, Effendi!" cried Osman.

"Well, prove your innocence, and I will say
no more about the matter."

" Effendi, the Onbashee is a liar!"

" Yery likely, but then the servant must be
a liar as well, and he saw you give the five pi-
astres to the corporal. Now what interest has
the servant in telling a lie about the matter?"

This was too much for the delinquent; low-26

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

ering his eyes, he walked out of the room,
through a long row of servants, who had come
from "the neighboring houses to hear me ad-
minister justice.

The sentence appeared to give great satisfac-
tion to the Onbashee.

"May I put Osman in prison?" he eagerly
inquired.

" I have no authority on such matters," I re-
plied.

"No, Effendi, but the Caimacan likes you,
and if you asked him to do so, he would put
Osman in prison. Just a day or so, Effendi I
Please do I"

"Why do you want to put him in jail?" I
asked.

"Because, if he is once shut up, we will not
let him out till he has returned me the differ-
ence between your present and the five pias-
tres."

"No," I said; "here is the difference," at
the same time giving him a small sum of
money. " But now gfrand inquire in the town
for a man who wants a situation, as I want a
servant immediately."

Just then a sergeant entered the room. He
brought word from the Caimacan that he was
waiting for me, and that the battalion would
leave Tokat in about half an hour.

I at once rode to the barracks. They con-
sisted of two old Khans, which surrounded a
courtyard, the Khans being used as barracks
when there were troops in Tokat, and at othei
times of the year as lodgings for wayfarers.
The streets leading to the Khans were lined
with women, muffled up in long white sheets,
and weeping piteously. The battalion was
drawn up in two ranks inside the courtyard.
The men were standing at ease, and engaged in
talking to their numerous friends and relatives.
Immense enthusiasm prevailed amidst the by-
standers. Numbers of volunteers were offer
ing their services.

Look at these men, sir," observed Radford,
who was riding behind me; "they do not look
as if they liked going as soldiers: bless my
heart alive, if they ain't a-crying!"

I glanced in the direction he was pointingj
and saw thirty or forty men with most woe-be-
gone faces, and some of them in tears,

" Why are you crying?" I said to one of
their party. " Are you afraid of being killed"?'1

"No, Effendi, we want to go with our broth*
ers in the battalion, and to fight by their side,
but the major will not take us, he says that his
battalion is complete. Do ask him to let us
accompany him! Our hearts are full of sorrow
at being left behind."

A captain in the regiment, a short, podgy-
looking man, with very fat cheeks, now came
to them, and tried to console the volunteers by
saying that their turn would come soon, and
that they should go with the next battalion.

It was a curious spectacle- the soldiers dress-
ed in a neat dark blue serge uniform, and with
their feet in sandals, surrounded by little knots
of relatives clad in every kind of attire that can
well be imagined: fathers embracing sons,
brothers rubbing cheeks with brothers, and the
sergeant and corporals vainly endeavoring to
get their men into some sort of order; the fat
captain in the background engaged in trying to
console the rejected volunteers; and the
younger portion of the crowd looking inquisi-
tively at the new Martini-Peabody rifles which
had only arrived from Samsoun the previous
evening. Some of the soldiery were showing
how quick their rifles could be loaded and fired.
The rapidity of the system created great aston-
ishment amidst the crowd.

" The giaours come from the country where
these guns are made," said a bystander, point-
ing to Radford and myself.

" The giaours have more brain than we have,"
said another.

" If they help us, we shall eat the Russians!"
exclaimed a third. We became the object of
still more curiosity when a sergeant, coming to
me, sr.id that the Caimacan was in the major's
room, drinking coffee, and hoped that I would
join him there.

"He is going to drink coffee with the gov-
ernor—he is a great man!" said one of the by-
standers. Some of the volunteers, rushing up,
entreated me to intercede with the Caimacan,
and perhaps he could induce the major of the
battalion to take them with him to the war.

The major and several other officers were
squatted on a carpet in a small and rather dirty
room overlooking the courtyard. The Caima-
can was seated on a chair, a dervish sat by his
side. The latter individual was a portly-look-

ing man, wrapped up in a roll of brown cloth,
and with a gigantic sugar-loaf hat on his head.
The hat was made of gray cloth, and would
i have made the fortune of the leader of a nigger
band. Several more officers now came into the
room, amongst others the fat captain. They
each in turn bent before the dervish, who placed
his hands above their heads and pronounced
some sort of a blessing.

A Circassian entered the building. He pres-
ently informed us that five thousand of his na-
tion, who resided in the neighborhood of Tokat,
had expressed a wish to go to the seat of war,
and to bring with them their own horses and
arms,

By this time the sergeants had succeeded in
arranging their men in the ranks, and the major
going down-stairs, followed by the Imaum or
chaplain of the regiment, the latter addressed
the battalion. The Imaum was attired in a
lieutenant's uniform, but with a green turban
round the fez, as a distinctive mark of his pro-
fession.

The chaplain's discourse was not a long one.
It was listened to with great attention by the
populace. When he had finished, the ranks
were again broken by a crowd of eager, excited
Mussulmans, who rushed up to embrace their
friends.

As I was descending the steps, my attention
was called to a man who was seated on the
stair. He was sobbing like a child; at the
same time striking his chest with the palms of
his hands.

" What is the matter?" I inquired.

On his looking lip, I recognized the muleteer
whom I had hired to bring my baggage from
Sileh Zela to Tokat. The man on seeing me
sprang to his feet, then throwing himself on the
ground, he began to embrace my legs, at the
same time kissing my boots.

It appeared that several baggage animals were
required for the battalion which was about to
march. The Zaptiehs of Tokat had pressed the
muleteer into their service, and had taken his
mules.

"Do speak for me, Effendi!" he said. "They
will take me to Kars. 1 shall be a ruined man.
And my wife expects me home—she is in a del-
icate state of health; I shall shortly be a father."

" It is useless," said the Caimacan, wt1io over-
heard his prayers. " We must have baggage
animals," he continued; "you will not be taken
to Kars, only to Samsoun; you will be paid for
the hire of your animals. Dry your eyes, and
do not block up the steps.

" It is a great pity, and I am very sorry for
these poor fellows," observed the Caimacan,
turning to me; "but what can we do? It is
wartime, or very soon will be so; some of us
mu«t suffer.

"Listen to those poor women there," he
continued, as we rode through the gate, pre-
ceded by the brass band of the regiment playing
a melancholy march. A deep wail could be
heard even above the noise of the instruments.
The wives, mothers, and other female relatives
! of the soldiers, had not been permitted to enter
the barracks; but from an early hour they had
taken up a position along the streets. The bit-
ter cry, which was joined in by hundreds of
voices, announced to the people in the very
outskirts of the towTn that the battalion was on
the march.

Presently the band ceased playing; and the
old major, his long white beard streaming in
the wind, began singing the words: " God is
great. There is but one God, the God, and
there is but one Prophet, the Prophet, and he
is the Prophet of God."

The soldiers took up the strain, ten thousand
bystanders joined in the verse—it even silenced*
the women's wail—and resounded along the
banks of the river. Here taken up by some
people on the ruined citadel, the words were
re-echoed back to us; there wafted by the
breeze to an adjacent hamlet, the peasantry
swelled the chorus. The standard of the batta-
lion, with the crescent embroidered on a green
border, was raised high in the air, and several
of the crowd, rushing up to the major, implored
him to take them in his ranks.

It was a striking scene — these weeping
women in their shroud-like dresses; the many-
colored garments of the men; the excited sol-
diery—the still more excited major; and the
I immense religious enthusiasm.

I Snow-capped mountains barred the way be-
; fore us, and the river, its banks set fast with
ice and hoar-frost, glittered in the distance, and
! reflected the rays of a midday sun.

' Large stacks of wood had been piled up near

the stream. The timber had been cut in the
forests above the town, and been floated down
the river to Tokat. It is chiefly used for smelt-
ing copper, the government having some smelt-
ing works in the neighborhood. According U>
my informant, they were established thirty
years ago by a German; after his decease they
had been bought by the Turkish authorities.

The Caimacan thought that he had accompa-
nied the battalion far enough. Drawing a little'
on one side, we let the soldiers pass us. The
standard-bearer waved his flag, the old major
saluted by lowering the point of his sword as
he rode past, and with the words:: "Go in
safety, God be with you. We shall meet in
Erzeroum," we parted.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Soon afterwards I met Osman Bey, my ac-
quaintance of the previous day. He was on
the point of leaving for a Circassian hamlet in
the neighborhood. It appeared that a feud had
arisen between the people of this village and
another one in its vicinity, the Bey was going
there to calm, if possible, the angry feelings of
the inhabitants.

He remarked that in the event of war break-
ing out between Turkey and Russia he should
go to the Caucasus.

"Will there be a great rising in that coun-
try?" I inquired.

" It is very doubtful," was the answer; "our
people have risen several times ;* no foreign-
power has assisted us, and the result is that we
have been decimated by our enemy. My coun-
try-men are afraid of doing anything, unless
they feel certain that they will be aided iu their
attempt. If England wTereto help us," he con-
tinued, "and could only capture one Russian
port on the Black Sea, the Circassians would
have confidence, and there would be a rising
throughout the length and breadth of our
land."

On returning to my house I found the Zap-
tieh who had been defrauded by my late serv-
ant. He was awaiting me with a candidate for
Osman's place.

"Effendi, I have brought you a wonderful
fellow," said the gendarme; " if you send him
with a message, he will fly; he will guard your
purse more carefully than his own."

It appeared that the wonderful man's name
was Mohammed; he was a redif soldier. His
battalion would march in the course of a week
or so to Erzeroum. To avoid going with
the troops he proposed that he should en-
gage himself as my servant until we reached
that town, and then he could join his bat-
talion.

"But will your commanding officer give you
leave to accompany me?" I inquired.

"If the Effendi asks him," interrupted the
Zaptieh.

Mohammed was apparently not above
twenty-five years of age. He had a pleasant,
frank expression, and I determined to engage
him, that is, if I could obtain the sanction of
hi-? captain.

I now went to see this officer. He at once
agreed to the proposal; that is, if I would
pledge myself to give up Mohammed at Erze-
roum.

"How can I pledge myself?" I remarked,
"he may run away on the road."

" That is true," said the officer; "but he is a
straightforward fellow—he will not do so. If
I had the power, I would let you take him as a
servant for all the time that you remain in the
country; but I have no authority to do this, I
am merely a captain."

The matter was settled. Returning to my
house, I informed the man of his officer's con-
sent.

Mohammed was to have the same wages as
Osman, and as he had a horse of his own, which
he wished to take to Erzeroum, I was to pay
for the forage of the animal, and could make
use of him for the baggage. This would be
very useful; hitherto I had been obliged to hire
a horse, owing to my loss of Obadiah. Up to this
time I had been travel ing on the postal track. It
was possible to find horses. After leaving Si-
vas, the next town I should reach, there would

TiO inoTb pos\aVs\.aVioTis, \ b\ao\i\& Wicxi
to trust to my being able to hire animals from
the peasantry, or be obliged to purchase another
horse.

* For statement made by Circassians on this subject,
see Appendix X.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MI^OR.

27

"I have a wife," said Mohammed; " will my
lord give me a little money?"

"How much do you want?"

" Two liras."

"1 wonder if he will bolt with the money,
like the Tartar I engaged last winter in Oren-
burg." This idea at once occurred to my mind.
On second thoughts, I remembered that he was
•well known to the Zaptieli, and to many of the
other inhabitants of Tokat; so I acceded to his
request

An Armenian doctor called to see me. He
had been educated in the States, and spoke En-
glish with a most unmistakable Yankee drawl.

"How is business here?" I inquired.

"Very flat," said the medical gentleman;
" the people do not put much faith in doctors,
that is, until they are really ill, and then we
have a busy time of it. They pill themselves,"
he continued, " and go in for herbs and old
"women's remedies; they get them cheap and
grudge the money which they must pay to a
regular practitioner. 4-

"You do not look very well," said the
doctor.

" Thank you, there is not much the matter,"
I replied. The fact was that I had a splitting
headache, owing to the charcoal pan or mungo
■which warmed the apartment. The gas from
the charcoal being lighter than the air, fills the
upper part of the room. The Turks and Ar-
menians generally squat on the floor. They
do not feel the effects of the fumes so much as
a person who is seated on the divan.

Another Armenian now paid me a visit. He
•was the telegraph inspector in Tokat, and he
informed us that orders had just been sent
from Constantinople to buy up all the available
horses in this neighborhood.

" Things look warlike," he continued, " and
the doctor," pointing to his compatriot, " will
have plenty of practice before long. The whole
Christian population is to be armed. It is clear
that the government has not much faith in the
Conference, and is doing its best to prepare for
war."

The Armenians in Tokat complained of the
slack way in which justice was administered
throughout that district. According to the
doctor, if a man committed a crime, and could
get away for a year or two, and then return to
his home, he would not be pursued by the
authorities; that is, unless the aggrieved parties
made a formal complaint.

" Yes," said another visitor, " three months
ago fifty-four malefactors escaped from the
prison. Forty of them shortly afterwards sur-
rendered ; the rest made their way to the mount-
ains. Their ring-leader, who is a murderer,
has been recently seen in Tokat; no one has
cared to arrest him."

Four young Turks entered the room; the
eldest could not have been more than three-and-
twenty.

"What do you want?" I inquired.

"We do not wish to go to the war," replied
one of them, w7ho took upon himself to be
spokesman of the party.

" Why not?"

"Because we are married men, and have
children."

" I cannot help you."

"Yes, Effendi, you can; you might speak to
the Caimacan, and he could free us from mili-
tary service."

"His duty is to send you to the front," ob-
served the doctor.

"Yes, but he evidently likes the Frank, for
we saw them riding together, and if the Effendi
would only ask him, he could not be so inhos-
pitable as to decline."

I was a little annoyed at this remark, and
observed:

" I certainly shall not ask for anything of the
kind. Other people who have wives and chil-
dren are obliged to go, then why not you?"

"But they did not love their wives so much
as we love ours," persisted the man.

The Caimacan now called. Upon his arrival
the four visitors, after grovelling almost in the
dust before him, took their departure.

" What did they want?" said the governor.

I told him.

"It is very unpatriotic of them," he ob-
served. "The cunning little dogs, to ask you
to intercede on their behalf! But they shall all
go with the next battalion!"

I was evidently destined to have a succession
of visitors on that afternoon, for no sooner had
the Caimacan gone, than another official ar-
rived. He at once commenced a conversation
by saying that he had been employed in collect-

ing the redif soldiery from the different villages
in the neighborhood, and had also started a
subscription amongst the wealthier inhabitants
to provide the men with warm shirts.

"You have acted very kindly, and doubtless
with the best motives," I remarked. " Your
reward will be in heaven."

" Yes," said the man, who did not seem
quite to relish the idea of his reward being so
indefinitely postponed; "but the Effendi is
going to Sivas?"

"Yes."

" He will see the Pacha there?"

" Yery likely."

" Then will he tell the Pacha of my great
merits, and ask him to give me some higher em-
ployment?"

"If it pleases Allah, you will receive some
higher post," I piously observed. " Our desti-
nies are in His hand."

" Yes," the man said, "so they are. But for
all that, I wish that you wTould speak to the
Pacha for me."

From the two examples I have here cited, it
will readily be seen that a system of promotion
through favoritism is very deeply rooted amidst
the Turks. I had been seen riding with the
Caimacan. It was thought that I might see the
Pacha at Sivas—this was quite sufficient to in-
duce some of the inhabitants of Tokat to be-
lieve that any request that I might make to the
Pacha or Caimacan would necessarily be
granted.

" It was fortunate," here remarked the en-
gineer, " that you told Osman to give the bak-
sheesh to a corporal, and that a Turkish servant
heard you give the order. If the fellow had
been a Christian, the servant would never have
taken the trouble to mention it to him. But
the fact of the corporal being a co-religionist
was too much for the servant. It has enabled
you to detect the fraud.

"This is one of the worst features of the
country," he continued. " The Turks will not
do anything to aid a Christian at the expense of
a Mohammedan, even if the Mohammedan is
most clearly in the wrong. And it is much the
same with the Christians in respect to their co-
religionists. The result is that the Armenians
and Turks do not pull well together. The law,
too, is faulty, and requires amendment."

" Let me give you an example," continued
Mr. Gasparini, " and one which has come im-
mediately under my notice, for it affected my
own servant. It sounds like a romance, but,
alas! it is too true! My servant's name is Kara-
tel Mermenk Ovooloo. He is an Armenian;
his mother died when he was a child; his father
re-married, but behaved very badly to his sec-
ond wife, continually ill-treating her, and mak-
ing his son bring another woman to the house.
The lad was very fond of his stepmother, who
was at that time seriously ill; at last he refused
to bring his father's paramour to their home.
The father beat him severely and apprenticed
the lad to his own trade, that of a coppersmith.
The mother soon afterwards died,with an anath-
ema on her lips at her husband's paramour.
The latter, strange to say, died herself three
weeks afterwards. In the meantime, the father
gave the boy three piastres a week for his
clothes. The lad could not clothe himself for
that sum, he left his. home and went into ser-
vice. The parent succeeded in having the boy
turned away from several situations, but at last
I took him. Now, only the other day, the
father went to the Cadi, and swore that his son
was in a coppersmith's business with himself,
and in consequence must pay half the tax on
his trade. There is no truth whatever in the
statement, but the father's word was taken,
and my servant arrested and kept in prison for
three days. The sum is only twenty-six pias-
tres, I would gladly pay it myself but I have no
money; the government will not give me my
salary; so here we are at a dead-lock."

CHAPTER XXY.

The following morning Mohammed arrived
at an early hour, bringing with him his horse,
a wretched brute to look at ; he had not a par-
ticle of flesh on his bones, and was half blind
with one eye.

" This is my horse,Effendi," said Mohammed,
proudly; "is he not a magnificent animal?
My having this horse will save the Effendi the
expense of hiring or buying another one. I
hope that I shall get a baksheesh at Erzeroum,"
he added.

"Of course," I said; "that is, if the brute

reaches Erzeroum. But it strikes me that you
have not been giving him anything to eat
lately!"

"No, Effendi, I was afraid that if he looked
too well he would have been taken for the use
of the troops; but no one will even glance at
him as he is. He has a wonderful appetite,
and will make up for lost time; no one will rec-
ognize him, after he has eaten the Effendi's
barley for a day or two; he will soon be fat
and strong."

The road from Tokat to Sivas is a good one
for the first few hours. My friend the en-
gineer's work had been very fairly done; our
horses were able to get over the ground at from
five to six miles an hour. The track led through
a succession of hills and valleys. In some
places the engineer had been obliged to cut the
road for several hundred yards in the solid
rock.

Presently we passed a small Circassian vil-
lage. Several good-looking women, coming to
the roadside, offered chickens and geese for
sale. One of the Circassians was a very pretty
girl, and would have carried off the palm
amidst many European belles. Her face was
not veiled. There was a great deal of expres-
sion in her large, dark eyes. They flashed ex-
citedly as she sought to induce me to buy her
wares.

" I am tired of chicken," I said; " I should
like a little meat."

"There is no meat here," replied the girl.
"We ourselves live upon bread and eggs; buy
some eggs."

And running back to a house, she brought
out about fifty eggs; the price being eightpence
of our money.

Now we came to Tchiflik, an Armenian vil-
lage. Here there were thirty houses; and as
six hours had sped by since we left Tokat, I
determined to halt for the night, the more par-
ticular^ as Mohammed's horse showed unmis-
takable signs of fatigue.

The Armenian in wThose house I stopped
complained of his Circassian neighbors. Ac-
cording to him, they had hazy ideas as to the
difference between meum and tuum. Several
cows belonging to villagers had recently disap-
peared. It was strongly suspected that some
Circassians were implicated in the robbery.

The country in the neighborhood was very
highly cultivated. The farmers' granaries were
full of corn. Hundreds of cows and cattle
could be seen grazing along the side of the
road.

We arrived at the Tchamlay Bel Mountain.
As we were ascending a narrrow pass which
overhung a steep precipice, the guide, a Zap-
tieh, observed that only five days previous a
Turk had been killed on this very spot. It ap-
peared that there was a band of brigands in the
neighborhood. Five of them had attacked a
party of four Turkish merchants, who were re-
turning from Sivas with, as it was believed, a
considerable amount of gold on their persons.
Three of the Turks ran away, leaving their
companion, who showed fight, but was shot
down; the brigands had taken from him thirty-
five liras, besides two horses. An hour later,
when the news was brought to the village, sev-
eral of the inhabitants turned out on horseback
to pursue the robbers; it was too late, they had
made their escape and carried off the booty.

"Do not be alarmed," said the guide, as he
concluded his story. "I am with you; the
brigands will be afraid. Look here!" he care-
fully unstrapped a long, single-barrelled, flint
gun from his saddle bow. The barrel was tied
on the stock by a piece of string.

" It is a wonderful gun," said the guide. " It
belonged to my grandfather, I once shot a deer
with it."

"Was the deer far off?" I inquired.

"Yery far," was the reply. "So far,"
pointing to a rock about 1,000 yards from us.
It was clear that however well the guide might
shoot with his gun, he wTas equally good with
the long-bow. I began to be a little doubtful
about the story he had just told us of the brig-
ands.

We rested for awhile at Yenihan, a large
village with 200 houses; the population is com-
posed half of Armenians and half of Turks.
The Caimacan had gone to the mountains in
search of some redif soldiery. He had experi-
enced considerable difficulty in inducing these
men to leave their homes, and join the army in
the field.

There was nothing particular to see at Yeni-
han. Sivas was only nine hours distant : I de-
termined to make a long march on the follow-28

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

ing day, and give our horses a rest in that city.
The track was good. Ox-carts—the chief means
of transporting baggage in this part of Ana-
tolia—have no difficulty in traveling along the
road to the Yeldez Ermak, a rapid stream
which is about seventy yards wide. It is
crossed by a good stone bridge on arches. The
river, though fordable in the winter, would be
impassable in the early spring if it were not for
the bridge. It is a tributary of the Kizil Er-
mak, and meets that stream about twelve miles
S. E. of Sivas. The district is hilly, but is
highly cultivated. In about four hours we
reached the Kizil Ermak, a broad, deep river.
It is crossed by a stone bridge. A road on the
opposite bank lead3 to Divriki.

We did not cross the bridge, but continued
on to Sivas, which lay before us, with a back-
ground of rising slopes. A citadel, in a ruined
state, frowned down upon us from the centre
of the city.

Sivas, the capital of Armenia Minor, is situ-
ated at the head of the valley of the Halys of the
ancients. It is the most important military po-
sition in this part of Turkey. It commands
the sole route which descends with the waters
upon the plateau of Asia Minor. Sivas is the
key to the Peninsula on the Asiatic side; the
Turks ought to fortify this place, particularly
when they are threatened in Asia Minor by the
Russians. Should the latter succeed in forcing
the first line of defence, consisting of Kars,
Ardahan, and Bayazid, and afterwards take
possession of Erzeroum, there will be no other
fortified town between themselves and Scutari.

The governor had sent an officer with some
Zaptiehs as an escort for our party. As we
were entering the principal street a servant ap-
proached us with a fine xlrab horse, and said
that the Pacha hoped I would honor him by
riding his favorite animal to the quarters pre-
pared for my accommodation. It appeared
that the Bey in Angora had telegraphed to the
governor of Sivas about me, hence the prepara-
tions which had been made.

I dismounted from my own quadruped, and
mounted the Pacha's horse. I now found that
the stirrup-leathers, even when let out to the
last hole, were much too short, I was sitting
with my knees nearly up to my chin.

The whole population of Sivas had turned out
to welcome me to their city. I should have
liked to have made my entry in as dignified a
manner as possible. Dignity soon became out
of the question. The Arab horse, unaccus-
tomed to sixteen stone on his back, began to
kick. To avoid ignominiously coming off, I
was compelled to take my feet out of the stir-
rups, and ride without these appendages to the
saddle.

Luckily the rooms prepared for us were not
far distant. On arriving in a small square, the
officers and Zaptiehs halted before a small but
clean-looking house, which faced the Pacha's
residence. On the other sides of the square
were the prison and the barracks. The guard
turned out from the last-named building, and
presented arms as we dismounted. The officer
of the escort, taking my hand, led me up a
staircase to the apartment set aside for my ac-
commodation.

Soon after our arrival I was waited upon by
an Italian engineer, who was employed at Sivas
by the government. He was the only European
in the city, which contains 7,000 houses; how-
ever, there wer^ three American missionaries
who had been settled in Sivas for several years
past with the object of making proselytes.

The Italian was accompanied by an Armenian
who spoke French. The latter gentleman was
very indignant with the Pacha, who had shut
up the shops belonging to the Christians during
the previous week. It appeared that some of
the redif soldiers had pillaged a house in the
market-place. Several hundred more redifs
were expected to arrive at Sivas; there were
hardly any regular troops to keep order. The
governor had taken the precaution of closing
all the shops belonging to Armenians during
the stay of the redifs in the town. This was a
precautionary measure. It had given great
umbrage to the Christians. My visitor loudly
denounced the proceeding.

"Are people ever tortured here?" I inquired.

"No," said the engineer: "the law is, or
rather the judges are, much too merciful. There
has been only one execution during the last three
years. The culprit was a soldier; his first wife
had been seduced by a neighbor. He put her
away and took another, but at the same time
said to his neighbor, ' If you seduce this woman
I will kill you!' The threat had no effect. The

soldier's second wife was treated as the former
one had been ; he revenged himself by killing
the adulterer; for this offence he was hanged."

" Are people ever impaled here?" I inquired,
still having the two English priests, who wrote
some letters to the Times about what they said
they had seen when traveling on the Danube,
in my mind's eye.

The Armenian smiled.

"No, not so bad as that. I believe a robber
was impaled eighteen years ago; at all events,
there is some tradition to that effect."

Shortly afterwards my visitors left the room.

CHAPTER XXYI.

The following day I wTalked across the
square to the prison. I had not said anything
to the authorities in Sivas about my intended
visit to this establishment. I wished to see it
under its everyday aspect, and at the same time
to find out if there were so many Christians
prisoners as the Armenians in Yuzgat would
have had me believe.

I found the jailer seated in the doorway; he
was smoking a long pipe.

" Can I see the prison?" I asked.

" Certainly, Effendi."

Going before me, he led the way to a lofty but
narrow room. Here there were twenty-seven
prisoners, clothed in rags and tatters; each man
had his wrist fastened to his instep by a light
iron chain. No jailer slept in this room with
the prisoners. They would not have had any
difficulty in freeing themselves from their man-
acles had they tried to do so.

"What do you give them to eat?" I in-
quired.

" A loaf of bread (about 2 lbs. weight) every
day, and some water," was the reply. " How-
ever, many of them have friends in the town,
and they are supplied with provisions from out-
side."

" What are the prisoners mostly here for?" I
asked.

" For robbery and murder. We have a great
many Kurds and Circassians for horse and cat-
tle stealing. Then Vhere are a few Armenians,
the latter chiefly for criqae connected with
money matters."

" How many prisoners are there altogether?"
I remarked.

" One hundred and two."

" And how many Christians?"

" Six; all the rest belong to Islam."

As the population of Sivas is fairly divided
between the two sects, it was very flattering for
the Armenians that there should be so few of
their number amongst the prisoners. But, after
what I had been told at Yuzgat, my belief in
the truthfulness of their community was very
much shaken.

In another part of the jail there were several
prisoners without chains. They were walking
about in an enclosed courtyard. One of them,
an old man, who was very much bowed down
by years, appealed to us. Taking my hand he
touched it with his forehead, and then besought
me to speak to the Pacha for him.

" What is he here for?" I inquired.

"For murder," was the reply; "and a very
cold-blooded murder, too. He is a Circassian,"
continued the jailer, "and the firman for his
execution arrived at Sivas two years ago."

" Yes," said the old man, in a whining voice,
"two years ago! and I have been kept in sus-
pense ever since. It is an awful thing, Effendi
—I never know from one hour to another that
it may not be my last!"

"Why was he not executed?" I inquired of
the official.

" Our governor dislikes shedding blood," said
the jailer, " and he ^has put the firman away in
a drawer."

"Yes," interrupted the aged murderer:
" Issek Pacha is a kind man, he will not put
me to death; but he is very old—he may die!
The governor who will succeed him might find
the firman, and order me to be hanged!"

"Well, what do you want me to do?" I
asked.

" Only, Effendi, to beseech the Pacha to tear
up the firman!" cried the old man in imploring
tones. "Let me end my years in the prison,
for here every one is kind to me; and let me
not be strangled at the end of a rope on the
scaffold!"

" Well, I will speak to Issek Pacha," I said;
and with difficulty escaping from the murderer,
who threw himself on all fours and frantically
embraced my legs, I walked to the governor's
residence.

He was seated on a sofa at one end of a large
hall, and surrounded by attendants with docu-
ments awaiting his signature. He at once rose,
and motioned to me to sit down by his side.
After the customary salutations, I mentioned
to him that I had just visited the prison and
had seen the old murderer.

"Ah! you have seen him," said the Pacha,
gravely, at the same time slowly stroking his
stomach. " He is in a great state of mind, I
believe, lest I should die before he does, and
my successor order the sentence to be put into
execution. But he has nothing to fear; I have
the firman safe in my drawer, and am trying
to arrange the matter with the relatives of the
murdered man."

It appears that there is a curious law in Tur-
key, to the effect that if a man has committed
a murder, and the order for his execution has
come from Constantinople, the Pacha whose
duty it is to have the sentence carried out need
not do so, provided that the relations of the
murdered person request that the assassin's life
may be spared.

This frequently gives rise to mercenary deal-
ings between the assassin and the relatives, for
the latter hold his life in their hands. If the
murderer is rich, he will often have to give up
all his property; and then if the relations par-
don him, the law enacts that he must spend fif-
teen years in jail. The manner of carrying
out this part of the sentence is extremely lax.
Should the friends of the prisoner be able to
scrape together enough money to satisfy the
officials connected with the prison, the mur-
derer will be allowed to escape and remain at
large in his native town.

Later in the day two Armenian gentlemen
called upon me. Presently one of them re-
marked that Issek Pacha was immensely rich,
and that many tales were in circulation about
him.

" Yes," said his companion, " there is a story
to the effect that one day the Grand Vizier was
walking by the side of the Bosphorus with the
late Sultan Abdul Aziz. A beautiful yacht, the
property of Issek Pacha, happened to be
anchored close to the royal palace. ' What a
magnificent vessel,' said the Sultan. ' To whom
does it belong?' The Grand Vizier," continued
the Armenian, " did not much like the governor
of Sivas, and replied: 'It was the property of
Issek Pacha, but he has sent it here to be placed
at your majesty's disposal.' 'Write and say
that I accept it with pleasure,* said the Sultan.
The first notification which Issek Pacha had of
this transaction was the receipt of an official
letter from Constantinople enclosing the Sul-
tan's thanks for the present.

"A subscription had been recently started in
the vilayet or province of Sivas, with the ob-
ject of collecting funds to enable the govern-
ment to continue the war. Ten thousand liras
were collected. The Pacha sent the money to
the Grand Vizier without exactly stating the
sources from which it was derived. The minis-
ter at once ordered the receipt of this sum, as
coming from Issek Pacha, to be acknowledged
in the public journals; he also desired a secre-
tary to write an official letter to the governor to
thank him for his large donation, and say in the
postscript that when the rest of the people in
the province of Sivas had sent in their sub-
scriptions, he was to forward them immediately
to Constantinople. Our Pacha did not like this
letter," continued my informant. " However,
what could he do? He is an enormously rich
man, and, though it went very much against
the grain, he sent a fresh 10,000 liras to the
Porte."

It was clear that the Armenians did not love
their Pacha. From what I subsequently heard,
their dislike to him originates in the fact that he
is not amenable to bribes. That he is not a
miser can be easily shown. Misers are not in
the habit of expending large sums of money in
the construction of public buildings. Issek
Pacha, at the time of my stay in Sivas, was
having a large mosque built in the town of
Erzingan, at his own expense. It was said
that this building would cost him 40,000 Turk-
ish liras.

Three American missionaries called; they had
been settled for several years in Anatolia, and
had succeeded in making some converts amidst
the Armenians, but they had not in any one
instance induced a Mohammedan to change his
faith.

I inquired if it were true, as stated at Yuzgat,
that Armenian boys and girls had been carried
away from their parents, and shut up in Issek
Pacha's seraglio.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

29

" No! 110," said one of my visitors. " At all
events, we have never heard of anj^thing at all
authentic as to such proceedings." When I
mentioned the subject of impalement, and asked
if they had ever known of any Christians who
had been impaled by the Pacha's orders, the
three missionaries seemed very much surprised
at the question, one of them observed that the
Turks were by no means a cruel race, but that
theirg system of administering justice was a bad
one.

I now learnt that the proprietor of the house
in which I was living was a shoemaker. The
Pacha had hired from him the apartments
which I occupied, and which were generally
given to travelers. Mohammed, when he gave
me this piece of information, suggested that it
would be a good opportunity for me to buy
him a pair of boots. "Such beautiful boots
as there are down-stairs," he continued, "the
Effendi could get both his feet into one of them.
They will keep out the cold. If I do not
have something to cover my slippers I shall be
frost-bitten before we reach Kars!"

The proprietor brought the boots for my in-
spection. He had a very Jewish type of coun-
tenance, and at once commenced driving a bar-
gain with Mohammed.

" But you told me down-stairs that the boots
•were 125 piastres, and now you ask 165?" ob-
served the Turkish servant, indignantly.

"They are my boots, and not yours!" said
the Armenian, "and I shall charge what I
like for them!"

It appeared that the difference of opinion be-
tween Mohammed and the shoemaker had arisen
owing to the Armenian thinking that he would
be paid in caime, or bank-notes, and not in sil-
ver. Caime, in Sivas, had fallen to 165 piastres
the lira. It was formerly 125; so by the depre-
ciation of the paper currency the shoemaker
would lose forty piastres on every pair of boots
he sold, if purchased from him at the present
rate of exchange. Many of the Turks were
alarmed at the constant fall in the value of
their paper currency. They objected very
strongly to being paid any large sums in Turk-
ish bank-notes. According to the son of Cris-
pin, only ten years previous the government
had issued an immense quantity of caime, and
had said that in the following month of March
this paper would be accepted in the payment
of taxes.

"March arrived," continued the shoemaker,
"we took our caime to the tax-collectors.
They would not receive it. A vast number of
the notes than issued are still in the possession
of merchants in this town, and are value-
less."

When I was in Yuzgat Mr. Vankovitch had
asked me to intercede with Issek Pacha for an
Italian lady, the widow of a Pole who had died
a few months previously in Sivas. The Pole
had been the chief engineer in the district, and
at the time of his death, was owed about 120£.
by the Turkish authorities. His widow had
applied to the Pacha for this sum, but was re-
fused payment on the ground that she had a son,
and that her late husband's father was still
living.

"You must write to your husband's ambas-
sador," said the Pacha, "and ask him to in-
form us how the law of succession is applied in
his country, we will then pay you everything
to which you are entitled."

In the meantime an inhabitant took pity upon
the Italian lady, and had received her into his
harem. Here she was now living, and anx-
iously awaiting a reply from Constantinople to
her letter. Months passed away, no answer
came. The poor women had exhausted the
small resources which she possessed at the time
of her husband's death.

CHAPTER XXVII.

I was thinking of calling upon the Italian
lady when Mohammed, running into my room,
informed me that the governor was actually
coming in person to call upon me, and that it
was a great honor; for some time before this
the Khedive's treasurer had passed through
Sivas, and Issek Pacha had not deigned to visit
him, but had conversed with the Egyptian from
the street.

" See what a great man you are, Effendi!"
said the delighted Mohammed. " The equal of
a Pacha too! fortunate is my fate that I hare
been assigned to you as a servant!"

The governor drove up to the door in a vehi-
cle which very much resembled a brewer's dray.

It was the only carriage of any sort or kind in
Sivas. This fact alone added considerably to
the Pacha's importance in that town. He was
a corpulent man, and required a great deal of
pushing at the hands of his two attendants to
make him pass through the doorway of the car-
riage; two steps enabled the person inside the
vehicle to descend to the ground.

Issek Pacha, turning with great caution,
walked backwards, his two servants holding
his feet and guiding them to the steps be-
low. After resting a few seconds, to recover
from this exertion, the governor slowly mounted
the staircase which led to my apartment.

He now told me that twenty-five years ago
the Turks and Christians got on very well to-
gether, but ever since the Crimean war the
Russian government has been activley engaged
in tampering with the Armenian subjects of
the Porte, and has been doing its best to sow
the seeds of disaffection amongst the younger
Armenians, by promising to make them counts
and dukes in the event of their rising in arms
against the Porte.

"If it were not for Russian intrigues," con-
tinued the Pacha, " we Turks should be very
good friends with the Christians. But Igna-
tieff is very clever, he will not let us alone,
and does his best to create discord in our
ranks."

I mentioned the case of the Italian lady, and
asked him if he could not do something for her.

" It is a very difficult question," replied the
Pacha; " her husband, the engineer, was a
refugee Pole, and had lost his nationality as a
Russian subject. Moreover, his father lives in
Russia, and may claim that the son's property
should be administered according to Muscovite
laws. Then there is an infant child; and, be-
sides this, the lady herself is an Italian, and is
expecting another baby. We have written to
Constantinople for instructions, when they ar-
rive we shall know what proportion of the hus-
band's property is due to the widow. What
should you advise to be done in the matter?"
he inquired.

" My opinion is that you ought to give the
lady sufficient money to pay her expenses as
far as Constantinople; for there she can speak
to her own ambassador, and arrange the busi-
ness more easily than it can be done here."

" Not a bad idea," said the Pacha. "I will
advance two months of her husband's salary."

" Gell! come!" he cried to a crowd of serv-
ants who were waiting outside, and whilst one
attendant handed him a cigarette, and a second
some coffee, the Pacha desired a third to tell his
treasurer that he wished to speak to him imme-
diately. This official now arrived.

"1 want two months' wages from the sum
owing to the late engineer to be brought here
at once," said the governor.

" But no order about the distribution of the
property has come from Constantinople," re-
plied the treasurer, hesitatingly; "if we pay
any money to the widow, we shall be held re-
sponsible for it ourselves."

" No," I said, " I will be responsible for the
amount. If the authorities at Constantinople
say that you have done wrong, I will repay you
the money,"

"Certainly not," said the Pacha; "the re-
sponsibility is mine. My orders are to be in-
stantly obeyed," he added.

" Is the money to be paid in caime or silver?"
asked the treasurer.

"Silver," was the reply. "When the poor
woman's husband died, caime was worth as
much as medjidis, but now there is a great dif-
ference, she must not be the loser. Run!''he
cried.

" On my head be it!" replied the treasurer.
In a few minutes he returned with a small sack
of silver.

" Will you take it to the lady yourself?" said
the governor, handing me a bag. " And when
do you leave Sivas?" he added.

"Probably in three days' time."

" Well," continued the governor, "you will
pass by Erzingan, where I have some property,
and I hope you will stay in my house. Nay,
no thanks. It will be doing me an honor, and
I have written for rooms to be prepared. I
shall send some Zaptiehs with you," he added.

"I do not want any."

"Nay, but you must have some. You will
have terrible hard work in crossing the mount-
ains between this and Divriki. There are al-
ready two or three feet of snow on the track. In
some places you will require men to dig a way
before your party. You do not know what the
cold is in this country," he continued. "I

was once nearly frozen to death myself, going
from Kars to Erzeroum, just about the time of
the Crimean war. I had 500 soldiers with me;
a snowstorm came on, we lost our way. My
men strayed in different directions. I had furs,
and was able to resist the cold, but when we
counted up my party the next morning, more
than half the men were frost-bitten, and several
had died during the night. There is another
reason why you require several guides," added
the governor. " The path over the mountains
is covered with snow, and there are deep
chasms and fissures alongside the track—some
of them are more than a hundred feet deep.
The guides carry poles, and will sound the path
before your horses, otherwise you will not have
much chance of reaching Kars. The Confer-
ence is over," said the Pacha, as he rose from
the divan. " The news has been telegraphed to
us from Constantinople."

"What has been the result of it?" I in-
quired.

"Nothing! What else could you expect?
Particularly when Russia, the cause and origin
of all our difficulties, was permitted to have a
representative at the Conference—and such a
representative—for General Ignatieff is a cun-
ning old fox!"

Then shaking hands with me—which I after-
wards learned from Mohammed was a very
great honor—the Pacha waddled down-stairs,
and drove to his official residence.

Later in the day I rode to the missionaries'
home, a pleasant little house situated in the
outskirts of the town. On their arrival in
Sivas they had taken an abode from some
Armenians, but the latter demanded such an
exorbitant rent for the house in question that
the missionaries determined to build one for
themselves.

My friends' names were Perry, Hubbard, and
Riggs. They received me with that hospitality
which an Englishman always receives from
Americans, no matter whether they meet him
in the States or elsewhere.

Two of these gentlemen had brought their
wives with them from America. Several
ruddy-faced and pretty children who were
playing in the room showed that the climate of
Sivas was in no way an unhealthy one.

The ladies liked the place; but when they
first came here they had to put up with a great
deal of annoyance, owing to the Turkish little
boys. The latter, unaccustomed to see women
walking about in European costume, and with
their faces uncovered, had sometimes followed
them in the street and thrown mud at their
dresses. Whenever this occurred, and any
elder Turks were present, they had chastised
their young compatriots and put an immediate
end to the disturbance.

"I dare say," observed one of the mission-
aries, "that it was a strange sight for the people
in Sivas to see our ladies walking about the
town. However, if a Turkish woman were
put down in the streets of New York, I reckon
that she would have a crowd at her heels before
long."

This remark reminded me of an episode which
had recently occurred in America, and which
had found its way into the newspapers. It
appears that a Chinese lad was selling sweets
and lollipops in New Orleans, when a burly
native, coming up to him, kicked over the tray
and the boy's wares. The lad, without a word
of remonstrance, picked up his lollipops. The
man a second time upset them into the mud.
The child looked at his tormentor, and, collect-
ing his sweetmeats, said to him: "You are a
Christian and I am a heathen; I should be sorry
to change places with you!"

"There are bad people all over the world,"
remarked one of the missionaries; " the poor,
ignorant Turks are not nearly so cruel as some
people would have us believe."

"No, they are not cruel," observed another
gentleman, "but they are pig-headed—that is
their great fault. They will not advance with
the times in which they live; if they adopt
European inventions, they copy them blindly,
and without adapting them to circumstances.
Soon after the telegraph was invented, the
Turks determined to have special lines, and to
use the Turkish alphabet; the man who was
employed to arrange the system copied it
blindly from our own. Now 'E' and 'I,' the
fifth and ninth letters in our alphabet, are those
which occur very frequently in an ordinary
message ; in Europe the telegraph dial is so
arranged as to facilitate the transmission of the
letters most often employed. The Turk, when
he came to 'I,' and found it was the ninth let-30

OK" HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR,

ter in our alphabet, placed the ninth in his own
on the same footing, whereas that letter is,
comparatively speaking, but seldom used."

" A few years ago," observed one of the mis-
sionaries, " there was an Englishman here con-
nected with the Anglo-Indian Telegraph. We
were then as well supplied with information as
the people in London or New York. It was
the time of the French war, and ail the news
was sent dailyj from England to Hindostan.
Our friend used to tap the wire, and send us a
little budget of information every morning;
frut now he is gone, and all that we hear is sev-
eral weeks or months old."

" There was actually a great deal of difficulty
in introducing the potato plant," remarked
another gentlemen; " this will give you an idea
of the nature of the people with whoni we have
to deal. Some foreigners brought over the seeds
and planted them. They came up very well;
the soil is admirably suited for their growth.
But the natives would not eat the potatoes. It
"was not until the military authorities, who were
short of provisions, supplied them to the sol-
diers in lieu of other edibles, that the soldiers
would partake of this vegetable. They soon
acquired a taste for it, and potato culture is
gradually spreading throughout the district.

" I tell you what it is," said another mission-
ary, " the Turks about here are just the inside-
out-sidest and the out-sidest-insidest the bot-
tom-side-upwardest and the top-side-downward-
est, the back-side-forwardest and the forward-
side-backwardest people I have ever seen. Why,
they call a compass, which points to the north,
'Quebleh,' south. just for the sake of contradic-
tion, and they have to change their watches
every twenty-four hours, because they count
their time after sunset, instead of reckoning up
the.day like the Christians."

# The peculiarity of this gentleman's expres-
sions rather struck me at the time. It was
clear that he had not formed a favorable opinion
of the Sultan's Mohammedan subjects; but
when I changed the conversation to the Ar-
menians, I found that the company looked upon
them as being quite as ignorant as the Turks,
and much more deceitful.

The good missionaries found the conversion
of these superstitious and ignorant Christians
of the East a very difficult and uphill task.
Indeed, I subsequently heard from some Ar-
menian Roman Catholics, who might have been
prejudiced in making the statement, that most
of the converts to Protestantism were from
amongst the Armenian shop-keepers, who sup-
plied the mission with goods.

" Supposing the Russians were to conquer
Anatolia, what would be the position of the
Protestant mission?" I inquired of my hosts.

"We should be immediately turned out of
the country to make way for the Russian
priests," was the answer. "The Tzar's gov-
ernment does not tolerate any religion save its
own."

This remark struck me, coming, as it did, not
from an English Protestant, but from an
American, and from an inhabitant of that
country which, in spite of its Republican in-
stitutions, has always been thought to have a
great sympathy with Russia.

So ^ the government of this last-mentioned
Empire would not brook any foreign mission in
its territory, and the emperor would not be
likely to allow American missionaries to impart
to the Russian idolaters a knowledge of the
Protestant faith.

Protestantism implies freedom of thought.
The right of investigation would be very dis-
pleasing to a despotic set of rulers. The super-
stitions and debased form of worship at-
tached to the Greek religion have no chance
of being replaced by our pure Protestant
faith, until such time as the autocratic svs-
tem of government which prevails throughout
Russia is terminated by a revolution.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Tiie following day I rode to an Armenian mon-
astery, which is known by the name of the
Monastery of Nislian or of the Cross. It stands
on a rising slope, about two miles from Sivas.
Its Gothic towers, more than 500 years old, look
down upon the town and neighboring villages,
and can be seen for many miles around.

A large garden, over thirty acres in extent,
enclosed by a high wall made of dried clay,
supplies the monks with fruit and vegetables.
It bounds the monastery upon one side; on the
other there are several farms, which furnish

cattle, sheep, and other live stock as may be
required.

A long, low passage with damp walls led the
way, with many a winding turn, to the apart-
ment which had been reserved for my use.

Here I found the bishop and several other
priests belonging to the community. The ceil
ing of the room was of liandsomely-carved oak,
and divans, as in the Turkish houses, supplied
the place of chairs. Some Armenian merchants
now arrived, and shortly afterwards dinner was
announced.

It was a fast day. The bishop himself could
not partake of the dishes. However, he gave
permission to the other guests to break the fast,
and a turkey stuffed with apples—the piece de
resistance—was nothing to the hungry visitors;
the dinner being in the Turkish style, made up
of a series of surprises to our stomachs.

According to one of the Armenians, the Turk-
isk finance was in an utterly hopeless condition.

" Our government," he remarked, "first said
that it would only issue paper money to the
amount of 3,000,000 liras, and we have caime to
the value of 11,000,000 liras in circulation!"

"Yes," said another merchant, "the lira is
now at 160 piastras, but if there is a war it will
rise to 500. The government will be the loser
in the long run," he continued, "everyone is
speculating for the fall, and we are buying up
all the gold we can."

I now learnt that the Armenian merchants in
Sivas employed the telegraph very freely in
their monetary speculations. The inhabitants
in general only knew of the rise or fall in the
value of their paper money by the post, whi$h
arrived once every fortnight. The value of
caime in proportion to gold was reckoned ac-
cording to the date of the post's delivery. But,
as the Turkish bank-notes were becoming more
and more depreciated every day, the Armenian
merchants who employed the telegraph were
able to make large sums by buying up all the
,gold in the district, and pocketing the differ-
ence between the actual exchange and that
which passed current at Sivas.

The walls of the monastery were not thick
enough to keep the breath of scandal from
reaching the abode of the recluses. I was told
of a former governor of Sivas, who had been
extremely popular throughout the district, and
who in forty days had actually established
order in the town and neighborhood. It ap-
peared that this Pacha was a very good-looking
man. One day, when he was at Constantino-
ple, a sister of the late Sultan Abdul Aziz
chanced to see him. She wished to marry the
Adonis; "but unfortunately," added my Ar-
menian informant, "he was in love with his
own wife, a pretty woman. He declined the
Sultan's offer to take his sister, who was not
good-looking, as chief iady in the harem. Soon
afterwards the Pacha died at Smyrna, under
very suspicious circumstances. It is generally
supposed that he was poisoned."

" His eminence is freed from all such dan-
gers," whispered another of the guests, as he
called my attention by a nudge with his elbow
" How so?" I asked.

"Why, he cannot marry. Our bishops are
not allowed this indulgence. Should a priest
take unto himself a wife, he can never become
a bishop."

"How does your system answer?" I in-
quired.

"Answer! very badly. They are not allowed
to have wives of their own; but they look after
the welfare of the ladies in their congregation.
Are your Protestant bishops allowed to marry?"
" Yes."

" Well, it would be a good thing for the mar-
ried people in Armenia, if our bishops had the
same permission."

I now went to see the chapels belonging to
the monastery,

An altar in one of them was profusely deco-
rated with gold and other ornaments. *It was
erected to the memory of the four martyrs of
Sivas who were torn to pieces by the Pagans
about 1500 years ago. It is said that our
Saviour shortly afterwards appeared to the in-
habitants of the town in the form of a bird, and
alighted upon a large stone near the place where
the four Christians had been murdered. The
stone was subsequently taken to the monastery,
and this altar had been erected upon it. In an-
other chapel, there was a picture of one of the
kings of Armenia in the act of being conse-
crated by an archbishop of Sivas.. The holy
father who called my attention to this picture,
pointed to the suppliant form of the king, who

was kneeling before a priest, and to a monk who
was writing the date of the coronation on a
scroll of parchment, and looking down upon
the sovereign.

" Things are very different to what they were
then," remarked the priest. "In those days
even kings had to obey the holy Church. They
do not think anything of us now," he added,
with a sigh; "instead of giving presents to the
Church, they take away from it the few privi-
leges and the little wealth it has left."

" Have you any privileges belonging to your
order?" I asked.

" Only one; we have not to pay any duty
upon salt, and I suppose that even this slight
exemption from taxation will be taken away
from us ere long."

A throne belonging to a former king of Arme-
nia was next produced. It was made of ebony,
and in form much resembled a shut-up garden-
chair, but one of gigantic dimensions. The sov-
ereign for whom this throne had been made
died several hundred years ago at Sivas. The,,
worthy fathers differed a few hundred years as"
to the date of the monarch's decease, and so it
is impossible for me to give it. Ilis bones were
taken to Yan, and interred there; however, his
sons reigned for many years afterwards, and
held their court at Sivas.

" Our nation has had a great many reverses,"
said the bishop; "but who knows what is in
store for us?"

"We do not want any Russian rulers?" said
an old Armenian merchant. " When I was a
child," he continued, "the Russians made war
upon the Persians. A general, second in com-
mand of the Russian forces, was an Armenian.
The head of our Church helped the Russians,
and 25,000 Armenians were levied to aid them
in the war against the Shah. The Persian
army was annihilated: twenty-five cities were
destroyed, the invading forces advanced to-
wards Teheran. The Shah then made a treaty
writli Russia."

" What has that got to do with your dislike of
the Russians?" I inquired.

"Listen!" said the old man. "After the
war was over, the Russian chief was alarmed
lest the Armenian general, who was a very
skilful officer, might make himself King of Ar-
menia. He accused him of treason, had his
eyes taken out, and sent him a prisoner to Rus-
sia. "*

The Russians would not have been pleased if
wTe had been made independent at that time)"
said a priest. " They have always looked
upon us as a certain inheritance, all they want
to do is to take our territory without having to
fight for it."

" We revenged ourselves upon Hassan, Khan
of Persia, who had defiled one of our churches
near Ararat," remaked the old merchant, " He
was taken prisoner and transported to the
church which he had desecrated. He was after-
wards tied face to face with a dog, and given
the same food as that animal. The Persian
soon died of shame or starvation."	x

There is but little export trade from Sivas.
Tobacco is the staple produce of the country.
All the articles imported are very dear, owing
to the expense of transport from Samsoun, the
roads between Sivas and that port being very
bad.

Sugar, I was informed, cost ei-ghteenpence
a pound. If an enterprising inhabitant were to
start a manufactory of this article of consump-
tion, he would speedily make an immense fort-
une. Beetroot and a peculiar sort of sweet car-
rot abound throughout the district. The first-
mentioned vegetable can be bought for eight
shillings a ton. It might be grown for very
much less. Any amount of water power could
be brought from the neighboring mountains to
bear upon machinery. Coal is also to be found
in the neighborhood. This part of Anatolia is
supplied with sugar from Constantinople. If
it were manufactured on the spot, the profit
would be very great, for the cost of carriage
would be saved; in all probability it would ut-
terly supplant the Constantinople sugar, and
soon find a market throughout the whole of
Asia Minor.	-

CHAPTER XXIX.

On leaving the monastery, we rode to the
principal mosque of the town. I was struck
by seeing a large ostrich egg suspendel from
the ceiling by a silver chain. On my asking

* I wrote this anecdote down at the time. It is given
precisely as the Armenian narrated the story. I have
not been able to find a corroboration of the statement
in any historical document. Very little is known of
what took place during this war.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

31

the Turk who showed me over the building,
*^hy this egg was hung there, lie replied:

" Effendi, the ostrich always look at the eggs
•which she lays; if one of them is bad, she
breaks it. This egg is suspended here as a
warning to men that, if they are bad, God will
break them in the same way as the ostrich does
lier eggs."

! Mohammed met me as I was returning to my
house. He was very much excited.

" What is the matter?" I inquired.

"Effendi, a regiment is about to march to
Erzeroum. It will be a grand sight. The
Pacha will accompany it out of the town.
The dancing dervishes will go before the band.
Other dervishes will be there with sharp knives;
they will cut themselves, but the blood will not
flow! It will be a miracle! And all this we
can see from the Effendi's window!"

" Happy are you, O Mohammed, to be able
to see such wonderful sights without paying
for them," I remarked; then, giving him my
horse, I went up-stairs to my room.

An immense crowd had gathered in the
square; the part facing the barracks was
thronged by hundreds of idlers who were
eagerly pressing against the gates. Presently
they were thrown wide open. The governor,
in his dray-like carriage, issued from the por-
tals. He was accompanied by the colonel of
the regiment, who was mounted on a superb
gray, and rode by the side of the Pacha's
vehicle.

Next came six dancing dervishes clad in sack-
cloth, and with long cowls over their green
turbans. They in their turn were followed by
about twenty men—some carrying what ap-
peared to be bill-hooks—others, maces with
leaden balls attached to them by chains, and
bright steel-skewers.

"This is delightful!" said Mohammed, who,
by way of seeing better, had climbed on to the
top of the divan, torn away the piece of paper
which supplied the place of a pane of glass,
and, having thrust his head aud shoulders
through the aperture, was staring with his
mouth wide open at the procession. "Please
God they will soon begin to cut themselves I"

However, he was doomed to disappointment;
the dervishes had already cut themselves in the
barrack-yard, and were not inclined to repeat
the performance.

On they went in serried ranks, followed by
the troopers, all of whom were excellently
mounted on horses averaging about fifteen
hands, and which looked in capital condition.
The men were armed with American revolvers
and repeating-rifles, whilst a short curved scim-
iter hung by each man's side.

" How long will it be before they reach Erze-
roum?" I inquired of Mohammed.

"About a month," was the answer; "but
they are going by a short route by Kara Hissar,
and we by Divriki, Arabkir, and Egin, which
will be a long way round. We shall arrive
first at our destination, as the regiment will not
march more than sixteen miles a day."

The Pacha ordered his coachman to draw up
the carriage on one side of the road; the der-
vishes raised a mournful yell. The regiment
passing onward, was lost to view behind an
avenue of poplars.

The following morning I started at daybreak
in the direction of Dudusa, a village about five
hours from Sivas. For some distance we
marched alongside the left bank of the Kizil
Ermak. The track was very heavy. The bag-
gage-horses had great difficulty in making a
vray through the mud. Presently we came up-
on some firm soil. The scenery changed from
a flat expanse of plow-land to a winding chain
of rugged heights. Chain succeeded chain.
Snowy crests were piled up in rear of each
other like the billows of the deep. Our path
led round these mountain peaks. From time
to time we caught a glimpse of the Kizil Ermak,
which, white as silver, flowed through the vale
at our feet. Nature's walls on all sides of us
were of every color; at every moment, red,
blue, and gray sandstone met our gaze.

We round a neighboring crag; a vast rock of
the purest marble lies before our party. Huge
blocks strew the borders of the path; they
sparkle beneath the sky, and rival in their
Parian whiteness the snowy heights overhead.
On the summit of an adjacent hill is the mon-
astery of Dudusa, and at its foot the village of
the same name, made up of straggling houses,
built at long intervals apart—some of mud and
marble; others—where the inhabitants had been
too idle to transport the blocks from the adja-

cent rock—of dried clay; and a few of the
abodes of the better-to-do farmers actually
boasting glass windows. In other houses the
panes were replaced by paper or pieces of some
transparent alabaster, which is found in large
quantities in the neighborhood,

Dudusa is an Armenian village. I now
learned that Issek Pacha was very popular
among the villagers. I must say that I w7as a
little surprised at this, after the way the
Armenians in Sivas had abused their governor.
Two months previous, some Turks, from a
neighboring hamlet, had made a raid on the
flocks belonging to the inhabitants of Dudusa,
and had carried off fifty sheep. Information
of the robbery was given to the Pacha, he at
once sent out a party of soldiers. The robbers
had been arrested. They were expiating their
offence in prison.

I had heard at Sivas that a relief battalion
which had lately marched to Erzeroum had
outraged some women near Dudusa. I took
the opportunity to inquire if the story were
true. Like many other statements which had
been made to me by the so-called Christians in
Anatolia, it turned out to be a fiction. The
redif soldiers had passed that way. The only
thing which could be said against them W7as
that they had not paid for the bread with which
they had been supplied, as the military authori-
ties had net given them any money. There
were no officers w7ith the troops, but the men
had given the name of their regiment. On ap-
plication to head-quarters, the amount due
would be transmitted to the villagers.

I did not stay long at Dudusa, but after
lunching at the priest's house, continued the
march towards Kotnu, another village about
twenty-seven miles, or about nine hours from
the capital of the province.

It was dusk long ere we reached our halting-
place. In passing over a narrow wooden bridge,
one of my horses put his foot down a hole between
the planks, and nearly broke his leg. Mis-
fortunes never come singly. A moment later,
the poor brute strayed off a few yards
from the track. He was at once bogged in
the treacherous soil. Everything had to be
unstrapped from the saddle, a rope was attached
to his surcingle, and then, by means of the
other horses, he was dragged from the slimy
trammels. ' It was hard work loading him
again.

The thermometer had fallen to considerably
below zero. The wind howled and blew the
snowy flakes in our faces. The horses would
not stand still. Our matches wTere wet through.
We could not light them. Under such circum-
stances we had to arrange the baggage.

The Zaptiehs who had been sent to act as
guides would not help; they sat still, cursing
their destiny which had made them accompany
a mad giaour like myself, who had chosen to
travel from Scutari to Kars all the way by land,
instead of going the greater part of the dis-
tance by sea, like a sensible true believer. I
have but little doubt that the same train of
thought was passing through Mohammed's and
Radford's mind. However, the latter never
flinched, and Mohammed had evidently won
his friendship, for, on my asking my English
servant how he liked his new companion, he
replied: "Sir, he is wrorth three of Osman at
any time, save praving-times, and then there is
not a pin to choose between them. They must
be awful sinners, these Mohammedans, if they
require five prayers a day to settle the account
with their consciences. Mohammed ain't that
artful as Osman was. He don't choose the
moment that there is work to be done, to set
to work at his victuals, or to flop down on his
knees to say his prayers. Mohammed has his
pray all to himself afterwards, and then it don't
so much signify!"

" What! Has not Mohammed so good an ap-
petite as Osman?"

"No, sir, Mohammed has more of a Chris-
tian's appetite; he is satisfied with what I put
before him, he don't go prigging out of the tin
like that there other Turk. Why, I watched
Osman one day eating a chicken wThich I had
kept back for your supper! A few days before,
I had missed one out of the pot, and had taxed
him with it; he then said, ' keupek,' dog, as if
a dog would go and lift up the lid of the tin!
I used to call Osman ' keupek' afterwards, and
he did not seem to like it. The other Turks,
when they want to give it a fellow, tell him
that he is the grandson of a dog; but I call Os-
man the original animal—dirty hound that he
was too—quite spoiled my coat, that he did!"

And my servant, lighting a short, wooden
pipe, the wonder of the Turks, smoked furi-
ously—the rapidity of his puffs probably de-
noting an extreme dislike to his late fellow-serv-
ant.

CHAPTER XXX.

Snow fell heavily during the night. The
next morning our path was covered to a depth
of quite two feet. In the valley it was as much
as our horses could do to force a passage on-
ward; but, as we ascended a mountain path,
the snow, though deep, was in a frozen state,
and afforded a firm foothold.

The scenery was very picturesque as we
gradually climbed the steep. The bushes and
pine-trees which studded the mountain's sides
were wTreathed in flossy snow; crags of all
shapes and colors glinted out' above the pale,
white carpet. A thick veil of azure clouds
hung on tlie peaks of the distant hills; then,
gradually dispersed by the rising sun, it broke
up into a hundred different forms, and, ascend-
ing higher in the sky, opened out other mount-
ains to our vision. Layer upon layer of seem-
ingly ever-ascending ranges barred the way in
front. They sparkled beneath the ra}^s of the
golden orb. They flashed and glittered like the
billows of the mighty deep. My eyeballs acted
and felt as if they would burst beneath the
glare. The village at our feet disappeared in
the distance; shrubs and such-like traces of
vegetation were now no longer to be seen. We
had arrived in the midst of what seemed to be
a vast, white ocean. The intensity of the light
created a kind of mirage along the surface.
The various crests and ranges seemed to rise
and fall. They became more wave-like than
before. Not a living thing was in sight save
ourselves. Ever and anon a boom, as of thun-
der, announced the fall of an avalanche.

The cry of "Look out!" from a Zaptieh in
rear of our party awoke me from the contem-
plation of Nature's marvelous scene. A second
later, and I found myself on the broad of my
back in a snow-drift; the animal which 1 had
been riding was pawing the air with his fore-
legs, like a spaniel the first time he is thrown
into the water; before any one could reach my
horse's head, over he fell—the soft substance
fortunately saving my body from the effects of
the collision. It appeared that I had strayed
half a yard or so from the track, hence this dis-
aster. The Zaptieh in front of our party dis-
mounted; taking a wrand, six feet in length,
from his saddle-bow, he began to advance with
great caution, and to probe the ground before
him at every step he took.

"There are deep holes," said Mohammed,
wading through the snow to my assistance.
"If we fall down one of them we shall remain
there, and in'the summer the eagles will pick
our bones. It will be better for all of us to
walk and lead the horses," he continued.
"Even then we shall have great difficulty in
effecting a passage. The chief Zaptieh has
been saying that it would be better if we were
to return to Kotnu and try to cross the mount-
ains to-morrow.

The snow had recommenced falling; it was
difficult to see what lay before us. However,
we had accomplished more than half of the
day's march. In all probability the path would
soon become more difficult. I determined at
all hazards to push on, and the more particu-
larly as I had no time to waste, owing to my
limited leave of absence. Forward we waded
through the gradually-rising drifts. Each man
followed his neighbor in Indian file; presently
the leading Zaptieh who was engaged in sound-
ing the path before him, buried the six-feet
wand in the snow; he thrust his elbow down
after the stick; there was still no bottom. We
wTere off the track. A false step might at any
moment send us down the chasm. A consulta-
tion took place between the Zaptiehs, the head
man urging forcibly upon our party the neces-
sity of returning. But when we faced the
other way, the wind cut against our eyes with
great violence. The particles of snow wrere so
blinding that it was clearly much more danger-
ous to return than to proceed.

" It is our fate!" remarked the chief Zaptieh
to the comrade by his side.

"Destruction seize the giaour who maybe
the cause of all our death!" said another.

"Let him die of the plague!" added a third.

This rather strong language was uttered in a
loud tone, and as if the speakers did not care32

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

whether their observations met my ear or not.

" I tell you what it is!" I cried rather sternly
to my unruly followers, and at the same time
drawing my revolver; "I cannot reach you
with my whip; but if you make any more in-
sulting remarks, I shall send a bullet in your
direction to teach you manners!"

" For the sake of Heaven be quiet!" cried
Mohammed to the Zaptiehs—for he, being
directly in the line of fire, did not wish to ex-
pose himself as a shield to the delinquents.

" There will be no baksheesh unless you are
as docile as horses," continued my Turkish
servant.

This last remark, combined with my threat—
which, it is needless to say, I had no intention
to put into execution—brought the guides to
their senses. Presently the stick of the leading
Zaptieh struck against the track, and, after
wading through the snow for some three hours
more, we descended the side of the mountain.
The snow disappeared as we reached the vale
below, and deep mud, reaching above our
knees, covered the track before us. It was
terrible hard work for the baggage-horses. One
of them, stumbling, fell prostrate in the mire.
No amount of pressure would induce him to
get up ; so, taking off his pack-saddle and
dividing the baggage as best we could—placing
some on the saddle-horses and carrying the rest
ourselves—we struggled on to a glimmering
light which marked our quarters for the night

The village of Yarbasan was reached. Send-
ing back some of the villagers for the aban-
doned animal, I prepared to make myself as
comfortable as the circumstances would allow.

In the meantime Radford and Mohammed
were busily engaged in unloading the other
baggage-horse. The pack-saddle was too broad
to pass through the narrow gateway; all the
luggage had to be unstrapped in the street—
such a street as it was too! Imagine a farm-
yard of the dirtiest description, and without
any straw to absorb the filthy refuse; but even
this does not convey to my own mind the
hideous state of the road through Yarbasan.
The inhabitants possessed many cattle, which
were each evening driven into the village, so as
to be out of the way of wolves. It had never
occurred to the mind of the oldest villager to
remove the deposits of their cows and oxen.
If a farmer wished to pay a visit to a neighbor
across the way, he simply tucked up his dress-
ing-gown under his arm-pits, took off his
slippers, broad trousers, and stockings; then,
committing himself to Providence, he would
wade through the dirt to his friend's house.

"Why do you not clean the street?" I in-
quired of my host, an old Turk, who, having
just come in from the country, was rubbing his
legs with some straw before the fire.

"The mud will dry up in the summer
months," replied the man; " why trouble our
heads about it now?"

The inside of the dwelling was not so clean
as an average pig-sty. Horses, oxen, cows,
and sheep were stowed away in the same room
as ourselves. The Zaptiehs had squatted down
in one corner with the host, Radford and Mo-
hammed lay stretched out in the middle of the
floor.

In a few minutes a woman arrived from some
other house in the neighborhood. She was
clad m a long strip of cloth, which enveloped
the upper part of her body; her legs and feet
were covered with mud. Putting down a
large wooden tray, on which were several thin
cakes of half-cooked paste, and a basinful of
oily soup, she retired. The proprietor of the
house, after offering the dishes to me, returned
to the Zaptiehs. In the meantime, closing my
eyes, 1 tried to doze off to sleep. Presently the
gendarmes thought I was in the land of Som-
nus, and my attention was aroused by the fa-
miliar term of "giaour."

" Only think of our being ordered to accom-
pany an infidel to Divriki in the winter!" ob-
served the chief of the party.

" Yes, and for him to threaten to whip us!"
said the other.

" He would have it done, too," said Moham-
med, joining in the conversation. " My Ef-
fendi is not like the Christians about here. He
is an Inglis!"

"So the Inglis giaours are different to the
A-rmenian giaours?" observed the Zaptieh.

" Very different: the Armenians talk, but the
Inglis strike. Hush! hush! we shall awake
him!" and the conversation gradually died away
in a whisper. ,

CHAPTER XXXI.	__

The baggage-horse was very little the worse
for his long march of ten hours on the previous
day. Yarbasan was not a lively place to stop
at, I determined to push on to Divriki.

We passed a range of hills—red-colored
stones lying in profusion along the track—and,
descending a deep incline, arrived on the banks
of the river Dumrudja (Kumet Su), a rapid
stream, here about fifty yards wide. A quan-
tity of wood was floating on the waters. This
had been cut in the pine-forests higher up the
channel, and afterwards been tossed into the
river to find its way to Divriki. There was no
bridge over the stream, the water being more
than four feet deep. A consultation took place
amongst the Zaptiehs.

" What are they talking about?" I inquired of
Mohammed.

"Effendi, they say that if any one of our
horses were to stumble, it would be a bad thing
for the rider. There is a waterfall a few hui>
dred yards down the stream."

The large pieces of timber which were whirl-
ing round and round in the middle of the river
were also a source of anxiety, for should any of
these huge beams strike a horse, the animal
would have been swept off his legs for a cer-
tainty. After a minute or two spent in consid-
eration, the Zaptiehs determined to cross the
river, every horseman riding abreast of his com-
panion. The stream would then press against
the outside horse; he, however, would be sup-
ported by the one alongside him; each animal
in turn, being assisted by the other quadrupeds
of the party.

It was as much as our horses could do to reach
the opposite bank. After several thanksgivings
to the all-merciful Allah, we once more began
to climb into the clouds. A dense mist pre
vailed. Presently almost everything was hid
den from our view. The snow became deeper
and more blinding; at last the pack-horses came
to a standstill. Unloading the baggage-animals,
we distributed the luggage amidst the saddle-
horses, and, wading onward, continued our
march through the snow. This in some places
was nearly breast high.

On the summit of the mountain stood a little
house built of rocks, which were loosely piled
the one upon the other; and, resting here for a
minute or so to recover our breath, I was in-
formed that it had been erected by a charitable
Turk in Divriki, as a shelter for benighted
travelers.

"Blessings on his head!" said the Zaptieh
who gave me the information. "This shelter
has saved several lives already. If we had
arrived here two hours later, it might have been
the means of saving our own. The wind is
rising," he continued, "and the sooner we
reach Divriki the better."

Presently, the little town appears in sight; a
thin skirt of poplar-trees encircles it as in a
frame. An old, ruined citadel, perched up on
a seemingly inaccessible rock, faces us from
the opposite side of Divriki. A tower on a
still higher peak, but communicating by a hid-
den path with the citadel, serves as a place of
refuge for the garrison, should the first-men-
tioned stronghold ever be taken by assault. A
rapid stream—the Tchalt Tchai—runs below
the citadel. The town is said to contain about
3,400 houses, of which 3,000 belong to Turks,
and the "remainder to Armenians.

Behind the houses and in the distance were
fresh layers of snow-covered mountains; the
valley in which the town lies had not felt the
onslaught of winter; it was still covered
with deep mud.

One of the Zaptiehs galloped forward with a
letter to the governor from the Pacha at Sivas.
Presently, the official rode out to meet me. He
was accompanied by an escort of gendarmes
under the command of a captain. The lat-
ter, who was mounted upon a spirited little
Arab, caracoled his steed to and fro—now bend-
ing over the saddle and trying to touch the
ground with his hand—then going through all
the motions of throwing the Djerrid—evidently
wishing to astonish tbe weak nerves of the
newly-arrived giaours.

" Lor! what a cropper!"

This remark from my English servant dis-
turbed me in my conversation with the gov-
ernor. On looking round, I saw the captain
rolling in the mud. His saddle had turned—
hence the fall.

"Serve him right, sir!" remarked Radford,
catching my eye. "He was a spurring his
horse that cruel; now pulling him up short on

his withers, and then loosing him off like an
express train. He was trying to show us ho^
he could touch the ground. I believe, sir, the
fellow thinks that we know nothing about rid-
ing, and that is why he wanted to do a Astley's
performance out here in Hasia!"

The Caimacan led the way to a large house,
belonging to a Turkish gentleman, a personal
friend of the Pacha of Sivas. My host received
me very courteously. He was under the im-
pression that I had come to Divriki on some
business connected with mines, and seemed sur-
prised when he was informed that nothing but
a wish to see the country had induced me to*
ride through Anatolia.

" There are mines in the neighborhood," said
the Turk, " and, according to tradition, some
very rich ones. They were worked several
hundred years ago—that is, when people lived
who had brains—but now, alas! every man's
head is like a blown out calf's skin. The peo-
ple do not know how to get at the treasures
which lie hid beneath the ground, and, even if
they did, would be too idle to do so."

I observed that, judging from the ruins
about Divriki, all the houses must formerly
have been built of hewn stone.

"Yes," said my host, sorrowfully, "our an-
cestors were wise men. They lived in stone
houses, we are satisfied with buildings made of
dried mud. What do you build your houses of
in England?" he inquired.

"Of bricks made of clay, burnt in a fire."

"Yes," said the Turk, "you English have
advanced. You know more than your grand-
fathers. Why have we not done the same?"

"Probably, because you keep your women
shut up in a harem, and do not educate them,"
I replied. " Turkish mothers are very ignorant,
and, consequently, cannot instruct their chil-
dren. The result is that your sons are only half
educated. Besides this, you choose your wives
—at least I am told so—for their looks, and
without any regard to their attainments."

" The Inglis is quite right," said an old Turk,
a friend of my host. " If I want to breed a
good foal, I am as particular about the mare as
the sire. He means that we leave the mares
out of the question, and then complain that our
stock is not so good as that of other nations."

" But hundreds of years ago our women
knew quite as much as the Frank women," ob-
served my host.

" Yes," replied his companion, " and then we
could hold our own against the Franks. But
the Frank women have been educated since
those times; the Effendi thinks that we ought
to educate our wives in the same way."

"It would be difficult to do so," said the
Turk, coldly. "Their women uncover their
faces; I have heard that some of them declare
that they are the equals of their husbands.
What ridiculous creatures they must be," he
continued, " not at once to accept that inferior
position which Allah in His wisdom has awarded
them!''

The following day I walked to the citadel,
accompanied by my host. The building had
been erected 600 years ago as a defence against
the Persians, who at that time frequently made
encroachments into this part of Turkey. The
solid masonry, which in many places had been
allowed to go to ruin, showed that the walls
had been built with great care. Two thousand
men could have been quartered in the citadel,
which now, uninhabited save by dogs and
lizards, is rapidly succumbing to the elements.
Convenient embrasures had been left on that side
of the rampart which was easiest to assault;
through them the defenders could pour down
the celebrated Greek fire so much used in the
middle ages.

The river, which ran below the citadel, sep-
arated us from the tower which was used as a
final place -of retreat should the citadel be
stormed. On my asking how the garrison could
cross the water, there being no bridge in tke
vicinity, I was informed that a subterranean
passage led beneath the stream to the other
bank, and then entering the side of the rock, a
winding staircase gave access to the tower. The
defenders were then able to retreat from the
citadel without their movements being seen by
the enemy.

It was a glorious afternoon. The view of
Divriki, of its numerous minarets and domes,
lying as it were in miniature below us, was very
lovely. Lofty mountains, in winter garb, sur-
rounded the suburbs on every side; and the
silvery river, threading its way through the
more distant quarters o% the town, bubbled and
splashed against the rocks and bowlders. TheOE" HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

33

murmur of the waters was blended with the
hum of the population. The cries of the herds-
men mingled ever and anon with the report of a
fire-arm in the distance.

" Is there much game in the neighborhood?"
I inquired of my companion, who, leaning
against one of the battlements in the tower,
was straining his eyes in the direction of the
shot.

" No; a few wild goats are sometimes to be
seen on the rocks. The sportsman, whoever
he is, has probably managed to come upon some
of them unawares. I have a beautiful gun,"
he continued; " I will show it you afterwards."

"Is it for partridges or for big game?" I
asked.

"For big game. It is rifled," he replied,
" but I often "load it with shot, and shoot at
partridges, that is when they are all huddled
together on the ground. Do you shoot much
in your country with ball?"

"Yes; there is a great meeting once a year
near London. All the best marksmen attend,
and the queen gives a prize to the best shot."

"Does she give many paras?"

"A great many—several hundred liras."

"Now could one of your best shots hit that
cow?" pointing to an animal about four hun-
dred yards distant.

"Yes."

"What a marvel!" said the Turk. "Even
the Kurds could not do that, and they shoot
^ery well. They manufacture their own pow-
der," he continued, " and very good powder it
<6 too. The powder sold by the permission of
our government is very bad and dear; besides
*hat, a man is only permitted to purchase a
^rery small quantity at a time. There is plenty
of sulphur, saltpetre and charcoal in the mount-
ains, and the Kurds supply themselves."

I afterwards learnt that all the powder which
is furnished to the troops in Asia Minor is sent
from Constantinople. T re is no gunpowder
manufactory in this part ^ Asia Minor. It is
a great pity that the Turks have not long ago
started an arsenal in the neighborhood of Erzi-
gan, which could have supplied the troops on
the Turko-Russian frontier with cartridges and
small arms. As it is, every cartridge served
out to a soldier before Kars costs the govern-
ment fifty per cent., in addition to its original
cjst, owing to the difficulties of transport.

"The Pacha at Sivas wrote to me to make
your stay at Divriki as pleasant as I could,"
presently remarked my companion.

" How did you like him?" observed an Ar-
menian who now joined us.

" Very much."

"He is civil to all Europeans," continued the
Armenian. " Probably he took a fancy to 3'ou
because his astrologer had worked out your
horoscope, and had reported favorably upon
v.."

"You do not mean to pay that the Pacha be-
lieves in such things?" I observed.

" Yes; he never makes a journey without first
of all consulting his astrologer."

There was no very active trade in Divriki.
The Armenians supplied the people of the town
with the few goods which they might require
nt exorbitant prices.

In addition to this, most of the Christians
were usurers. Any Mohammedan who chanced
to require a loan had to pay his Armenian fel-
low-citizen a very high rate of interest. How-
ever, in this respect, Divriki is not an exception
to the towns in Anatolia, and in almost every
district which I visited I found that the leading
Christians in the community had made their
money by usurious dealings. In some instan-
ces, old Turkish families had been entirely
ruined, their descendants were lying in jail at
the suit of Armenian money-lenders.

CHAPTER XXXII.

I was cow to learn that the usury laws in
Turkey are also used against the Christians.
On returning to my house, a servant informed
me that an Armenian was down-stairs, and
wished to see me.

He had been in Paris, and could speak a little
French. This he so interlarded with Turkish
that it was rather difficult to follow him. The
man's name was Hanistan Ereek. At length I
discovered that, twelve years ago, his father
had borrowed 300 piastres from a Turk. Soon ;
afterwards the father died, and the son, leaving
Divriki without paying the debt, had gone to
Europe. On his return, the creditor had him
arrested for the sum of 6,000 piastres. This'

Hanistan Ereek refused to pay; he had been
imprisoned for three months in consequence.

The Caimacan was in the room at the time
the man made his complaint.

" It seems a hard case," I remarked.

"It is our law," was the reply; " if he had
been a Turk, the same thing would have hap-
pened.

"No, it would not have happened! 300 pias-
tres could never have amounted to 6,000 pias-
tres!" cried the Armenian, indignantly.

It apppeared that the case was one of hard
swearing. The Turkish creditor had produced
a piece of paper, on which was written that he
had lent a larger amount than 300 piastres to
Hanistan Ereek's father, the document in ques-
tion bearing the latter's signature. This the
son swore was a forgery. However, the Turk
had been believed, and the Armenian had been
sent to prison.

" What would have been done if this case had
happened in your country?" asked the Caima-
can; "would you not have put the man in
prison for debt?"

"No; a son is not liable for his father's
debts?"

" Well, each country has its own laws, which
doubtless are good for the respective inhabit-
ants," observed the governor; "but if my
father had died owing a sum of money, I
should have thought that it was my duty to
pay it."

" A very proper resolution," I remarked,
"but supposing that a government has con-
tracted a debt, do you think that its suc-
cessors are bound to pay the interest of the
loan?"

The Caimacan stroked his beard and looked
at the Cadi, who presently answered:

"We could not put a government in prison."

"No," I observed, "but your nation owes
my nation more than a hundred millions of
liras, and not only do you not pay us any in-
terest, but you have even proposed to repudiate
the debt altogether!"

"How can we pay?" said the Cadi; "we
have no gold, only caime, and your people will
not take that. When the Russians leave us
alone, then we shall be able to pay."

" And in the meantime I suppose I am to go
back to prison?" said the Armenian.

"We shall see," said the Caimacan gravely;
" the law must be carried out."

I have, perhaps, given the above case more
prominence than it deserves, but I have done
so because in this instance the governor of
Divriki and a Christian were confronted in my
presence, and the Armenian made his complaint
without the slightest hesitation or fear. Now
if the Christians had been so ill-treated as some
of their co-religionists would have had me be-
lieve, Hanistan Ereek would not have been
likely to have dared to come forward and find
fault with the Cadi of his town, who had ad-
judicated upon the matter.

According to the governor, the people in his
district had not shown much readiness to go to
the war. In some of the villages the redif sol-
diery were very reluctant to leave their homes,
and could only be made to do so by the Zaptiehs
of the province, who were most of them en-
gaged at present in this duty.

" Why do you not give the Armenians arms?"
I inquired.

" They would turn them against us, and join
the Russians," was the governor's reply. "In
some districts which are very near Russia, and
where the Armenians have the opportunity of
seeing the Russians as they are, and not as they
pretend to be, the Christians prefer being un-
der the Turkish rule; but the Armenians in our
central provinces are constantly being tampered
with by Russian agents. If we were to give
the Christians arms, Allah only knows what
would take place!"

I left Divriki at daybreak the following morn-
ing, and continued the march towards Arabkir.

We ascended once more into the clouds, and,
after a few hours' ride, halted to bait our horses
at the village of Yanoot—if, indeed, it deserves
the name of village—for it consists of a few
huts, and about twenty-five inhabitants made
up the entire population.

Now a curious phenonemon presented itself
before us. We were passing a chain of hills
which traversed our track from north to south.
The northern side of every height was covered
; with deep snow, on the southern declivities
some igneous rocks wTere exposed to view and
glared in the sun. Here the rays were so fierce
that not only was there no snow, but the
"weather became oppressively warm. A few

hundred yards further, and winter attacked us
again in all its rigor. Our horses were tried to
their utmost in forcing a way before them.

The road became very rugged. An immense
quantity of loose sharp pebbles were lying on
the track. Our horses could not see them and
were constantly falling on their knees. Not
a village or solitary house was met with during
our march. It was a picture of desolation. A
few magpies, which from time to time flew
mournfully across the path, were the only living |
things besides ourselves.

" Well, sir, this is a Jordan of a road," re-
marked my servant Radford, referring to some
popular song, as the horse he rode fell down
for the fifth time that morning. " That ceme-
tery in Constantinople, where we tied the
'osses, was a bad place for riding, but it was
nothing to this. Mohammed, he don't seem to
take any account whatever. 1 never see such
fellows as these Turks; they don't seem to be
able to muster a grumble amongst them, no
matter what they may have to undergo! Why,
sir. some of them soldiers as we saw at Sivas
had not received a day's pay for twenty-five
months, and they seemed quite content and
happy like; whilst, as for rations, it is true that
the men fill themselves to bursting when they
have a chance, but when they have to go with-
out their grub they don't grumble! I wonder,
sir, what our soldiers at Aldershot would say if
they had not received a ha'p'orth of pay for two
years, and had to march sometimes from morn-
ing to night, with nothing inside them save a
whiff or so of tobacco?"

Radford was right in his remark about the
track being a Jordan road—that is, if a Jordan
road is the quintessence of everything that is
stony and disagreeable. We had to lead our
horses. Hour after hour sped by; we still
seemed to be no nearer to any signs of Arabkir.
Now we were up to our waists in snow and
quagmire, and then we were lying between our
horses' heels, the result of a slip from some
half-hidden bowlder.

At last we arrived at a spot close to the
town. Here the rocks were of a crimson hue,
their sides were covered with pebbles of ebon
blackness. We mounted our horses, and, riding
along a precipice-bounded path which leads
into the long straggling city, presently halted
at the house of an Armenian gentleman, who
was kind enough to offer us a lodging for the
night.

My host was a silk-merchant. He had started
in business a very few years previous. This
district being suitable for breeding silk-worms,
he had speedily amassed a fortune. He was
now one of the wealthiest men in the province,
and not only supplied the Arabkir district
with textures of his manufacture, but sent them
by caravans to the limits of Asia Minor. He
was very much respected by the Mohammedans
in the town, and was on the best of terms with
the Caimacan. The latter, when he heard of
my arrival, called, and, after salaaming my
host, told him that he should stay to dinner.

The apartment set aside for my use was hung
round with engravings of all the sovereigns in
Europe. A book-shelf in one corner was filled
with Freuch books, none of which my host
could read.

"Do you know French?" I inquired.

"No!"

" Then what is the good of those volumes- to
you?"

" I am sorry for my ignorance," replied the
man, "but I mean to have my child sent to
Constantinople; there he shall learn French,
and afterwards he will be able to read to me
what is inside these books. Pretty covers, are
they not?" he continued, pointing to the bind-
ing. " I bought them when I was residing at
Erzeroum, and the merchant told me that they
were full of wisdom. I have a European serv-
ant," he added.

" A Frenchman?"

" No, a Russian."

" A Russian!"

" Yes. You may well be surprised," he said,
"for there is not much love lost between the
Russians and ourselves. This man was taken
prisoner during the Crimean war. When it
was over he preferred remaining with us to re-
turning to his own country."

CHAPTER XXXIII.

My host now called out in a loud voice,
"Atech!" (fire!) MI want to show you my
Russian servant," he remarked. The door
opened. A man of about fifty years of age,34

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR,

with an unmistakable Calmuck cast of counte-
nance, brought a piece of live charcoal, between
a pair of iron tongs, and placed it in the bowl
of my host's chibouk; then, retiring to the end
of the room, and crossing his arms, he awaited
a fresh order.

"So you area Russian?" I said, addressing
the man in his native tongue.

" Yes, your excellency."

44 And why did you not return to your own
country after the Crimean war was over?"

The man looked down upon the floor; pres-
ently he remarked:

44 I was beaten."

"Who beat you?"

"I was beaten all day and all night. My
colonel beat me. The sergeant boxed my ears,
and the corporals kicked me!"

" But did you get flogged more than the rest
of your comrades?"

"No, your excellency; at that time we were
all beaten. I am told that now the officers do
not flog their men so much."

"You are a deserter," I remarked.

"No, your excellency, I did not desert. I
liked my father the Tzar too much to run
away when he required my services. I was
taken prisoner; when the war was over, I would
not return to Russia; that is all I have done."

" Well, and if the Russians come here, as it
is quite possible they may, what shall you do
then? For you would, in that case, have a very
fair chance of being hanged."

"It would be a dreadful thing, your excel-
lency, but I must take the risk. I would sooner
be hanged than go back."

" But things have improved in Russia since
your time."

" A little," replied the man. " Little by little
we advance in Russia. It is a nice country for
the rich, but it is a dreadful country for the
poor."

" Is Turkey better?"

"Yes, your excellency, no one is beaten
here; when a man is hungry, no Turk will ever
refuse him a mouthful of food—that is, if he
has one for himself. I hope my brothers will
not come here," continued the man, pointing
presumably in the direction of the Caucasus.
"Allah has given our father the Tzar much
land; why does he want more?" and, after put-
ting some more red-hot charcoal in the bowls
of our pipes, the Moujik left the room.

My host's frequent journeys to Erzeroum,
where be had occasionally met Europeans, had
given him a taste for the civilized way of eat-
ing a dinner. He pointed with some pride to
his knives and forks. They had been brought
to Erzeroum from the Caucasus, and were a
mixture of silver, lead, and gold—the three met-
als being blended together by the Circassian
artificers, and then formed into the articles in
question.

The Caimacan was also supplied with a knife
and fork; however, this gentleman did not seem
to understand the use of his plate, and ate out
of the dish.

44 Which do you like the best—to eat with a
knife and fork, or with your fingers?" I in-
quired.

"With my fingers," replied the Caimacan.
"It is so much cleaner," he continued. 441
first wash my hands, and then put them into
the dish; but I do not clean my own fork—that
is the duty of the servant, who, perhaps, is an
idle fellow. Besides this, who knows how
many dirty mouths this fork has been stuck in-
to before I put it in mine?"

Later in the evening, and when the governor
had retired, my host said that his wife and
mother would come and sit with us for a little
while.

"Iam not like the other Armenians in An-
atolia," continued the speaker; 441 have de-
termined to shut up my female relations no
longer."

44 Do they not cover their faces?" I in-
quired."

44 Yes, in the street they do, but not inside
the.house."

The ladies now entered. They were dressed
in loose yellow silk dressing-gowns. Making a
profound reverence to my host and self, they
seated themselves on a divan in the farther cor-
ner of the room, tucking their legs underneath
them, and assuming the same position as my
companion.

44 It is a great honor for them to see an En-
glishman," he observed.

"Yes," said the old lady, 44 and what a dis-
tance you have come! Our roads are bad, and
traveling is very disagreeable for ladies," she

continued. " To have to go always on horse-
back, or in a box slung on a mule, is not com-
fortable. Do English ladies ride?"

44 Yes."

44 And why should they ride?" observed my
host's wife. 44 Have they not carriages and
railways in your country, so that when a man
travels he can take a woman with him without
any difficulty?"

"Yes, but they ride for pleasure. Our queen
is very fond of riding, and often does so when
she is in Scotland."

44 Your queen likes riding! That is a mira-
cle!" said the old lady.

441 do not like it at all—it makes me so sore,"
said her companion; 44 but you Franks are
wonderful people, and your women seem to do
what they like!"

44 Would you not like to do the same?" I in-
quired.

"A woman's place is to stay at home, and
look after the children," said my host's mother,
gravely.

44 Do not the husbands in England often be-
come jealous of their wives?" inquired my host
—44and the wives of their husbands?" inter-
rupted the old lady."

"Yes, sometimes."

44 Well, there is a great deal to be said on
both sides of the question," observed the Arme-
nian. 44 It will be a long time before we follow
you in all your customs."

44 You have places in your country where
the men and women meet and dance together
in the same way as our gipsies dance—at least,
so I have been told," remarked my host's wife.

44 Not exactly like your gipsies," I replied;
44but we have what are called balls, where men
and women meet and dance together."

" The husband with his own wife?"

44 No, not always. In fact, more often with
the daughter or wife of a friend."

441 should like to see a ball very much," ob-
served my host."

44 We had better go," said his mother, " it is
getting late;" rising from the sofa, she made
another very obsequious reverence, and left the
room with her daughter in-law.

The following day I rode to see the barracks.
Arabkir is built in such a stragglingfashion that,
although it only contains about 3,000 houses, it
extends for a distance of six miles. The houses
are built on each side of a deep ravine. The
streets, which are very precipitous, lead, in
some instances, over the flat roofs of the dwell-
ings. The latter were many of them built of
stone, and an air of cleanliness prevailed
throughout the town.

Large gardens, planted with all sorts of fruit-
trees, surrounded the houses. Long avenues
of mulberry-trees were to be met with in every
directiou.

I stopped for a few minutes at the prison,
and, dismounting, walked into the building.
There were only seven prisoners—six Turks and
one Armenian—the latter for attempting to pass
false money, the Mohammedans for robberies
and debt.

The population in Arabkir is equally divided
between the Turks and Armenians. It was
very creditable to the latter that there should
be only one Armenian in the jail. Bv all ac-
counts there was very little crime in the district,
and the prison of the Arabkir would be often
for weeks together without a single criminal
within its walls.

We arrived at the barracks, a square build-
ing, with long dormitories for the troops, and
which were fairly clean. It contained, at the
time of my visit, 500 redif (reserve) soldiers.
They were shortly to start for Erzeroum. There
were quarters for three times that number of
troops, and another battalion was expected
very shortly.

The men had not received their uniform. It
was to be given to them at Erzeroum; they
were clad, for the most part, in rags and tat-
ters, and had been armed with the needle rifle.
I was informed that the Martini-Peabody
weapon would be shortly served out to them.
A squad of men was being instructed in the
manual exercise in one of the passages. I spoke
to the officer, and inquired if the battalion had
ever been out for target practice.

44 No," replied the man, apparently surprised
at the question, 44 we want all our ball-car-
tridges for the enemy."

44 But if your men do not practise at target in
the time of peace, they will not be able to hit
their enemies in the time of war."

" We are a nation of soldiers," said the officer.
"Every Turk carries a fire-arm. You have

doubtless observed this on your journey," he
continued.

44 Yes; but the weapons are for the most part
old flint guns, which, if fired, would be quite
as dangerous to the owners as to the foe, and
are of no use whatever as a means of enabling
your soldiers to aim correctly."

44 If Allah wills it, our bullets will strike the
Russians," observed the Turk.

44 If Allah wills it, there will be no war, and
all this instruction which you are giving the
men in the manual exercise will have been
wasted. What is the good of teaching your
soldiers anything?" I continued. 44 If Allah
wills it so, they can defeat the enemy with
chibouks and nargilelis (pipes) just as easily as
with Martini rifles!"

44 This is the effect of the doctrine of fatal-
ism," observed my Armenian host, who had ac-
companied me to the barracks; 44 it is the cause
of half the apathy which characterizes the
Turks. Why, they only commenced making
roads after Sultan Abdul Aziz's visit to Eu
rope."

44 But you Armenians are equally to blame ib
that respect," 1 observed. 44 Only look at your
own town. There are no roads, the streets are
not paved, and they are full of ruts. The in-
habitants are half of them Armenians; then
why do not you Christians set the Turks an ex-
ample, and begin by making a road to Div-
riki?"

44 We are quite as apathetic as the Mohamme-
dans," replied the Armenian. 44 The same ob-
servation which you have just made has been
repeated to us fifty times over; but there is no
one who has energy enough in his disposition
to commence taking the initiative."

"Why do you not set about the business
yourself?"

" I have my own affairs to look after. We
are not public-spirit d, or like Englishmen,"
continued my cor anion; 44 each one of us
thinks of his purse lirst, and afterwards of how
to benfit his fellow-townsmen. What a good
thing it would be for the country if you English
were to come here!" he continued. " All we
want is a little of your energ3r, with it and capi-
tal, Anatolia would soon become one of tlia
richest countries in the world."

CHAPTER XXXIV.

From the barracks we rode to the Mohamme-
dan school. Here there were about thirty boys,
all squatting on the floor, and engaged in spell-
ing verses of the Koran. A few badly-drawn
maps of the different quarters of the world
were hung round the whitewashed walls. The
governor accompanied me to the schoolroom.
On his entrance the boys at once stood up and
salaamed. The Hodja schoolmaster made a
gesture, as if he too would rise; but then, see-
ing me, his countenance changed. He sank
back into a sitting position.

44 This is done to show his contempt of you
as a giaour," whispered an Armenian. 44 This
is how he insults us Christians."

The Ciamacan turned a little red when he
saw the schoolmaster thus seated in his pres-
ence. However, he did not make any remark,
but accompanied me to the Armenian school.

There were about a hundred boys in the es-
tablishment. The moment I arrived they
commenced an Armenian song, headed by one
of the masters—an elderly gentleman, who sang
through his nose. A performer on an ancient
liarpsicord, which from its signs of age might
have belonged to Queen Anne, accompanied
the vocalists. The words, I was informed, were
about the glories of Armenia, what a fine nation
the Armenians were, and how some day Ar-
menia will lift up her head once more. My
host interpreted to me these verses.

"Do you think that Armenia will ever be in-
dependent?" I inquired.

He shook his head.

" Russia will very likely be here in a year or
two, and then we shall be much more oppressed
than we are at present. Why, the Russian
government will not allow this song to be sung
in our schools at Tiflis. Everything is done to
make my fellow-countrymen in the Caucasus
forget their own language and nationality, and
to thoroughly Russify them. If the Russians
were to come here, our religion would soon
disappear," he continued.

44 But some of your priests rather like the
Russians?"

44 Some people would sell their souls to obtain
a cross or an order," said another Armenian.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

Mils'OR.

35

"But every patriot amongst us who has read
of what our country once was, will scorn the
idea of being degraded into a Muscovite."

" Are the Russians so very degraded?" I re-
marked.

" They possess all the vices of the Turks, and
none of 'their good qualities. They drink like
swine; many of their officials embezzle the
public money; and as to lying, they can even
outdo the Greeks in this respect."

"You have not a high opinion of the Tzar's
people?" I observed.

"No, Effendi; better a hundred times re-
main as we are than be forced to submit to his
rule."

"Is that really so? I thought that you were
always complaining about the want of "liberty in
Turkey," I remarked.

" Yes, Effendi, all we wish for is to be
placed on the same footing as the Turks them-
selves. This is the Sultan's desire; a firman has
been issued to that effect; but it is a dead letter.
The Cadis ought to carry out the law; they will
-aot do so. They ought to be forced to carry
out the Padishah's orders."

On returning to my quarters, the Caimacan,
who accompanied me, remarked:

" Effendi, did you notice the Hodja's (school-
cnaster) conduct?"

"I did."

" I was sorry to remark that lie did not stand
up when you entered the room."

wIt was a very bad example for the boys;
Alley could plainly see that their preceptor did
not hold (he chief magistrate of the town in
oauch respect," I observed.

The Caimacan hesitated for a moment, and

len remarked:

"Oh! it was not on my own account that 1
^poke, but for the sake of the Effendi, who is
*»n Englishman. It was an insult to him."

"Not in the least," I remarked. " How could
it have been, when you were present? Why,
you would have taken notice of it immediately."

" I did," said the Caimacan drily, "and the
schoolmaster is in prison!"

" Is in prison? What for?"

" For contempt of his superiors."

" How long shall you keep him there?"

"That depends upon you; but he has been
shut up about two hours already."

" I should think that it would be sufficient,"
I remarked.

" Shall I send and have him released?" said
the Caimacan.

"Yes, if you think that he has sufficiently
atoned for the way in which he insulted you;
but make him come here and apologize for his
conduct."

My Armenian host now came to me.

" Do not ask for that," he remarked. " All
the fanatics amongst the Turks would be furious
with me if they heard that the schoolmaster
had been forcibly brought to my house to apolo-
gize to you, a giaour. The fellow has had a good
lesson," he continued, " and will be more par-
ticular the next time he sees a European."

"Are there many families in this neighbor-
hood?" I inquired.

" Not more so than in other parts of Turkey;
it is everywhere very much the same. What
ought to be done?" continued the speaker,

' would be to establish large schools, and in-
sist upon the parents sending their children
*o be taught. If Mohammedan and Chris-
tian boys and girls were to meet in the same
schoolroom, and learn their lessons together,
f-hey would be more likely to mutually respect
«*ach other in after-life. To carry this idea
■.into execution, it would first be necessary to
procure a staff of efficient schoolmasters. There
flight to be a college for Hodjas in Constanti-
nople, where Mohammedan and Christian young
men could be educated, and pass an examina-
tion as to their efficiency. We should then have
qualified men as teachers, instead of the ignorant
fanatics who now usurp the office. There is
another reform which we require," continued
my host, " and this is that the Mudirs, Caima-
cans and Pachas in the different provinces
should not be exclusively Turks. The various
posts ought to be open to everjr sect. We are
all, Christians as well as Mohammedans, the
Sultan's subjects; then why make a difference?
If the Turkish lower orders saw that Armenians
were sometimes selected to be Pachas and Cai-
macans, they would be more likely to respect
the Christian community."

"Dothe Turks often insult your religion?" I
inquired.

"No, not often, but they call us giaours (in-
fidels)."

" Y^es," said another Armenian, a professor
at the Armenian school, and who could speak
a little French; "in Malattia there are twelve
thousand inhabitants, made up of three thou-
sand Christians and nine thousand Turks. Only
three months ago some Mohammedans in that
town made a cross and tied it to the tail of a
dog. The hound ran through the streets of the
town; the little boys threw stones at him, and
the holy symbol was dragged in the mud."

" This is very horrible," I remarked. " Did
you see it yourself?"

"No, but I have heard of it."

" Who told you?"

" A man in Arabkir."

" Had he seen it?"

"No, he had not been in Malattia, but he
had been told the story. Every one has heard
of it."

"We are in the East," I observed to my host,
" and it appears to me that you Christians are
very much given to exaggeration."

" Yes, Effendi; we want newspapers. If we
only had newspapers we should then know the
truth. How fortunate you must be in Eng-
land to have so many newspapers!"

"Even they contradict each other some-
times," I remarked.

"Perhaps. But you are a great nation; I
should like to be an Englishman."

"So should I," said the schoolmaster.

The mercury in the thermometer fell very
much during the night. It was a frosty morn-
ing. The steep streets of Arabkir were extremely
slippery. It was difficult enough for a man on
foot to avoid falling; as wTe led our horses
down the treacherous inclines the poor brutes
skated about in all directions.

We crossed a rapid stream, fifty yards wide,
on a fairly strong bridge—this river runs into
the Euphrates, forty miles south of Arabkir—
and next had to lead our animals through a
difficult and mountainous district.

The track was very narrow. It generally
sloped towards a precipice. In some instances
there was a clear drop of at least 400 feet with-
in six inches of our horses. The surface upon
which they had to walk was like glass. A slip
would have been certain death; it was marvel-
ous how they avoided stumbling. In about
three hours' time we reached Sheplie, an Arme-
nian village. I halted here for a few minutes
to bait our animals.

The proprietor of the house w'here we dis-
mounted spoke highly of the Caimacan at Arab-
kir. However, he freely cursed the Kurds,
who in summer-time committed many depreda-
tions in the neighborhood. In the months
of June and July, no man's life was in safety.
There were so few Zaptiehs in the province that
the robbers could carry on their trade with im-
punity.

Presently we passed a stream called the Er-
man Su. It is spanned by a good stone-
bridge. On reaching the other side, I found
myself in a broad, well-cultivated plain. The
ruins of a large city lay heaped up by the
river's banks. This was the site of Hara Bazar,
an Armenian town which flourished long be-
fore either Arabkir or Egin were built. The
ruins lay some little distance from the path. I
did not visit them. My guide informed me
that the debris consists of enormous stones.
These are the wonder of the villagers, who gen-
erally build their houses of mud. They can-
not conceive what manner of men were their
ancestors who had taken the trouble to bring
such massive slabs from the distant mountains.
The village of Aslioot stands in the middle of
the plain, and is composed of fifty-one houses,
all belonging to Mohammedans. The inhabit-
ants, for Turks, were extremely wealthy; some
nice-looking Arab horses stood in my host's
drawing-room. He was the chief person in the
village, and presently informed me that twenty
soldiers, who wrere on their w7ay to Erzeroum,
had deserted a few days before, from a hamlet
about six miles distant. He had been on their
track, and would certainly have shot the
culprits if he had been able to catch them.
There had been no officer wTith these soldiers.
The men had been left to find their way to
Erzeroum without even being accompanied
by a sergeant.

" Three days ago," continued my informant,
"a battalion, 800 strong, came to this village.
The officer in command demanded from the in-
habitants nine mules for the transport of% his
sick men. The amount to be paid by him for
the hire of the animals to Egin was fixed at 200
piastres (about £1 of our money). The officer
omitted to settle the account. The villagers

have applied to the police authorities at Egin
for the sum, and are very angry because it has
not been paid."

A Usebaslie (captain) now called. He had
just arrived from Erzeroum, and declared that
there was a report in that town to the effect
that Yakoob, Khan of Kashgar, had attacked
the Russians near Tashkent—had utterly de-
feated them, and taken 20,000 prisoners and
twenty guns.

"Allah grant that it may prove true!" said
my host. " Twenty thousand sons of dogs in
captivity! This is something! I hope Yakoob
has cut all their throats."

" God is evidently on our side," said the vil-
lage Imaum.

" The Russians say He is on theirs," I re-
marked.

"Yes, replied the Tmaum. "Infidels even
can take the name of the Highest One in vain.
But this time they will be punished, and the
Prophet is already arranging a plan for their
destruction."

CHAPTER XXXV.

I was beginning to be a little alarmed about
the health of my servant Radford. So far he
had not been ill, and he resisted the fatigue of
wading through deep snow, of bad sleeping
accommodation and indifferent fare. He had
complained of a pain in his heart, during our
march that morning, and had not been able to
walk uphill save at a very slow rate. -On arriv-
ing at the farmer's house, he had lain down in
a coi ner, and, according to Mohammed, was
very ill. I went to him, and, feeling his pulse,
found that it intermitted. He wras feverish, and
complained of a pain in the head.

"Would he be able to march the following
day?"

" He thought he should."

I was exceedingly doubtful about it; and
leaving word with Mohammed to call me
should his fellow-servant be taken worse in the
night, I lay down by the side of our horses and
tried to go to sleep.

I myself, for several days past, had experi-
enced considerable difficulty in wading through
the snow, but was inclined to believe that this
was owing to our elevation above the level of
the sea, and that the diminished pressure of air
upon my body, combined with the hard work,
wras the real cause of this weakness. However,
the fact remained that the poor fellow was
knocked up. It would be impossible to remain
for more than a day or two in our present
quarters. I determined to push on as fast as
his health would permit to Erzingan; for once
there we should be within a nine days' march
of Trebizonde, and it would be possible, if he
were still poorly, for me to send him home to
his relations.

To my great delight he was a little better in
the morning, though still very weak. He
would have been unable to walk; he had
strength enough left to sit on a horse. I gave
orders that he wras on no account to go on foot,
and resolved to let him ride my horse from
time to time, should his own animal be unable
to carry him through the drifts.

"My brother will be on horseback all the
day. He will look well down the precipices,"
said Mohammed, with a chuckle.

He had observed that the Englishman did not
relish much riding a few inches frcm a chasm,
and Mohammed was rather amused to learn
that his fellow-servant would now no longer
have the chance of walking by the'precipices.
He himself, though not particularly brave in
other respects, never seemed to value his neck
when on horseback. No matter how steep the
slopes might be, Mohammed seldom or ever
took the trouble to dismount from his animal,
which, under the influence of two good feeds
of barley every day, had improved considerably
since the march from Tokat.

" Why should I dismount?" Mohammed
would say. "If I am to slip and be killed, it
will happen, and I cannot prevent it."

The fellow had been accustomed to a mount-
ainous country all his life, and had previously
been employed as a Zaptieh. This may account
for his coolness on horseback. But at a later
period of the journey, when it was necessary
for us to descend some rapids in a boat, Moham-
med showed unmistakable signs of fear, and
was not at all consoled by Radford's remark
that if .be (Mohammed) were to be drowned, it
would s>e 1-b fate, and so would not signify,36

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

We reached the crest of a lofty height. A wide
stream appeared below our feet.

" What is the name of that river?" I inquired.
The welcome announcement, " The Frat,"
made me aware that at last 1 had arrived on the
"banks of the Euphrates—here a broad stream
about 120 yards wide and nine or ten feet deep.
Numerous bowlders half choked up the river's
channel. The waves splashed high in the air
as they bounded over these obstacles; the sound
of the troubled water could be distinctly heard
even at our elevation.

We continued the march alongside the bank
of the world-renowned river. The path was
cut out of the solid rock. In some places the
track was not above four feet wide. No
balistrade or wall had been made to keep a
horse or rider from slipping down the chasm.
Presently the road wound still higher amidst
the mountains. The river beneath us seemed
no broader than a silver thread.

On we went. The sound of bells made us
aware that there was a caravan approaching.
Our guide rode first. A few moments later,
about 100 mules, all laden with merchandise,
could be seen coming towards our party. We
should have to pass them; how to do so seemed
a difficult problem to solve. The track was not
wider than an average dinner-table.

The guide soon settled the matter. Taking
a whip, he struck the leading mule; the latter,
to avoid punishment, ran with his load up a
steep slope along the side of the path. The rest
of the animals followed. There seemed to be
scarcely foothold for a goat, but the animals
found one. They were removed from the path
on which we stood, my people could advance
in safety.

Numbers of vines clad the lower part of the
mountain slopes. Here and there a few chalets
made of white stone could be seen. These, I
was informed, belong to the wealthier Turks
of Egin, who come to reside here during the
grape season.

Below us some fishermen were seated in a
boat apparently made of basket-work. It looked
like a Welsh coracle, but was of much larger
dimensions. They were engaged in fishing
with a sort of dragnet, one of them was busily
employed in mending a smaller one of the same
kind.

"Beautiful fish are caught here," said the
guide. "Some are 100 okes in weight (about
260 lbs). The people salt and eat them in the
winter."

We met some sick soldiers lying across the
path. They had fallen out of the ranks and
were basking themselves in the sun, utterly re-
gardless of the fact that their battalion was,
ere this, a two hours' march ahead of them.

"What is the matter with you?" I inquired
of one man.

" Footsore," was his reply, at the same time
pointing to his frost-bitten feet.

" And with you?" to another.

" I, Effendi, lam weak and hungry."

" What! have you had no breakfast?"

"No."

I then discovered that these soldiers had been
twenty-four hours without food! There was
no grumbling at this breakdown in the commis-
sariat department. The men were solacing
themselves with a cigarette, the property of
one of the party, and which he was sharing
with his comrades.

Our route leads us by some high rocks. They
are broken into strange and fantastic forms;
they rear themselves up on each bank of the
Euphrates, and frown down on the waters be-
low. Here domes and pinnacles stand out in
bold relief; there, the figure of a man, shaped
as if from the hands of a sculptor, is balanced
on a projecting stone, and totters on the brink
of the abyss.

Mulberry and apple-trees grow in wild pro-
fusion along the banks. We leave them be-
hind. The track steadily ascends. We are
more than 1,200 feet from the waters. I gaze
down on the mighty river; it winds its serpent-
like coils at our feet. They twist and foam and
lose themselves behind the crags. Higher we
go.

Vegetation disappears; we are in the realms
of snow; continuing for some miles over the
waste, the path descends into a valley. Egin
lies before us.

It is a long, straggling town, with a popula-
tion of 10,000 souls, and'much resembles Arab-
kir. We rode over the roofs of many houses
ere we reached our destination, the house of an
Armenian merchant, who had ridden out him-
self to place it at our disposal. The following

day I called upon the Caimacan, a little man,
who spoke Italian very fairly. He had been
only seven months at his present post. The
Cadi was seated at his side. After the governor
had announced that the Conference was a fail-
ure—a piece of news which I had heard before
—the Cadi observed that he should like to tell
me a story.

" He relates a story very well," said the Cai-
macan.

"We all like his stories," said the rest of the
company.

"By all means," I said; and the Cadi, thus
encouraged, began.

"Many thousand years ago there was a
prophet—he was a great man, he was a marvel
—his name was Daniel!"

This last word was duly repeated by the as-
sembled guests; and the Caimacan gave a little
cough.

"I have heard this story before," he observed,
"but it is a good one. Goon."

"Well," continued the Cadi, "Daniel had a
dream. In his dream he saw a young man,
Samson was his name. Samson was beautifully
dressed; his clothes alone would have cost all
the gold and caime that have ever been circu-
lated at Constantinople. The rings on his
fingers were encrusted with precious stones—
beautiful stones—each one more bright and
lovely than the eye of the most beautiful woman
whom mortal man has ever seen.

"But Samson himself was pale, his features
were wasted away; he was very thin, and, on
carefully looking at him, Daniel discovered that
he was dead. There was a large scroll of paper
lying at his feet. No other man could have de-
ciphered the letters on it; but the prophet read
them at once, and he galloped his eye over the
scroll with the same rapidity as a hunter in pur-
suit of a hare-"

"He read very quickly!" interrupted the Cai-
macan.

"Daniel was a Hodja" (learned man), ob-
served the Cadi, indignantly; "of course he
did!

" Samson had conquered almost the whole
world," continued the speaker, "but there was
one very poor and mountainous country which
did not acknowledge him as its lord.

"Samson had 10,000 wives, all of them fat
and lovely. The keys of his treasure-chests
were in themselves a load for 10,000 camels.
He was all vigorous and able to enjoy every
blessing which Allah had bestowed, upon
him-"

"Was he not satisfied with 10,000 wives?"
remarked one of the audience.

"No," said the Cadi. " Some men are never
satisfied; Samson was one of them. He wanted
more. His heart was not full; he wished to
conquer the poor country, and take a few wives
from the lovely daughters of the mountains.
He came with an enormous army. The people
fled. The troops ate up everything. There
were no more provisions. There was nothing
left, even for the king. Samson offered 10,000
sacks of gold for a handful of millet seed. It
could not be purchased. The soldiers died,
the sergeant died, the officers died, the Pachas
died, and, last of all, Samson died!

"Let this be the fate of the Russians if they
come here," added the Cadi. "The Tzar has
much land—he is rich—he has many more
soldiers than we have; he has everything to
make life happy. Yet he is not content; he
wishes to take from his poor neighbor the pit-
tance which he possesses. Let Allah judge be-
tween him and us," continued the speaker.
" And God alone knows who will be victori-
ous!"

" We shall beat them!" said the Caimacan.

Soon afterwards my visit came to an end.

CHAPTER XXXYI.

I now went to the Armenian church. It was
carpeted with thick Persian rugs like a mosque.
Several pictures in gaudy frames wTere hung
against the wall. The building was crowded
with devotees; the galleries being filled with
women; their faces were invisible, owing to the
lattice-work. However, some bright eyes peer-
ing inquisitively through the holes in the screen
were quite sufficient to turn a man's thoughts in
their direction.

The priest put on his robes—several little
boys assisting him in his toilette; a heavy, yel-
low silk garment, with a cross emblazoned in
gold upon the back, was drawn on ovm his
everyday apparel. Some more little bojnTbus-

tled about with long candles, and seemed to do
their best to get into each other's way, then the
service began.

Two songs were sung by the choir—first one
for the Queen of England, as a sort of compli-
ment to the nationality of the foreign visitor;
and then another for the Sultan. The old
priest next addressed the congregation, and said
that they must do everything in their power to
help the Sultan in this war against Russia,
who was a mortal enemy to the Armenian re-
ligion.

The Caimacan was standing by me in the
church, and seemed pleased at the discourse.

" It is good! very good!" he said. 4' I wonder
if the priest means it."

The worthy Turk's meditations were sud-
denly interrupted. Some insect had bitten
him.

"These Armenians are very dirty, they do
not wash," he added. " Let us go."

Everybody bowed as he walked down the
nave, and we then proceeded to the Protestant
church.

This was nothing but a large room in the
clergyman's house. On our entry, some boys
sang a hymn in English. They pronounced the
words tolerably well, though they were ignor-
ant of their meaning, the clergyman who spoke
our language having taught his pupils merely
to read the Roman characters. There were no
pictures or images of any kind in the room. A
simple baptismal font was its sole ornament.
After the hymn had concluded, the clergyman,
without putting on any extra vestments, ad-
dressed his congregation in a few straightfor-
ward and practical sentences, saying that as it
was the duty of the Jews to pay tribute to
Ccesar, it was equally proper for all true Chris-
tians to respect the Turkish authorities; that
the Turks were on the eve of a great struggle
with a power which oppressed all refig-
ions but its own, and consequently it was the
duty of all Armenian Protestants to aid the
government in the forthcoming struggle, and
shed the last drop of their blood for "the Pa-
dishah.

The inhabitants of the towTn are not a trading
community, most of them live by agriculture.
There was a considerable amount of grum-
bling to be heard about the bankrupt state of
the country; I learnt that many of the farmers
had invested their savings in Turkish bonds,
and had lost their capital. A Greek doctor who
gave me this information had been established
for many years in Egin.

" What do you think of the Turkish doc-
tors?" I inquired.

" They are very ignorant," he replied; " but
what can you expect in a country where it is
not permitted to study anatomy, &c., in a prac-
tical way?"

"What, do they not allow dissection?" I
asked.

" No. And even if you were convinced that
a patient had died of poison, it would be very
difficult to obtain permission to make a post-
mortem examination of his body. The result is
that poisoners go unpunished. The Turkish
surgeons are so ignorant that they cannot even
tie up an artery, much less perform an average
operation."

The Caimacan now joined in our conversa-
tion, which was in Italian, and began to find
fault with the old school of Turks, which is an
enemy to education, and bigoted about religious
matters.

" I make no difference between a Christian
or a Mussulman," said the governor. " All
religions are good, provided that the man who
practises them is honest.

" What we require are schools for the elder
Turks," he continued; "something to force
them to advance with the age, and to make
them forget that old maxim, ' What was good
for my father, is it not good enough forme?'
Until they forget this, there will not be much
improvement in Turkey. A company once
offered to make a railwTay from Diarbekir to
Constantinople, and if Sultan Abdul Aziz had
not spent all the money he borrowed from you
English people in palaces and his harem, the
railway might have been made. Meat is here
only one penny a pound; at our seaports y©u
have to pay fourpence for the same quantity.
We have mines, too, but no means of trans-
porting the mineral if we worked them. I have
been at Egin six months," he continued. "I
may be dismissed at any moment. What in-
ducement is there for a man to try and improve
the condition of the people, when all his work
may be upset by his successor? We CaimacansON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

37

are underpaid," he added. "We have not
enough to live upon. If we received a better
salary, and our positions were more stable, there
would be less bribery throughout the Turkish
empire."

" Do you believe that there are many Russian
agents in the neighborhood?" I inquired.

" Undoubtedly; particularly atErzeroum, and
there they intrigue with the Armenian clergy.
In the other towns the Armenians will not have
much to say to tbem. The Russians are more
unpopular near the frontier of the two empires
than elsewhere. We are spoken of very harshly
in Europe," continued the Caimacan. "The
massacres in Bulgaria are very horrible, but
they were the work of a few fanatics, and
brought about by Russian instigation. It is
hard upon us for people to judge of the entire
Turkish nation by the misdeeds of a few Cir-
cassians."

My host insisted upon seeing me off, and the
following morning we walked down to the nar-
row wooden bridge which spans the Euphrates
—here about forty yards wide.

After crossing the river, our course lay across
the Hasta Dagh (mountain). Presently we
came to a glacier. The frozen surface extended
for at least one hundred yards. The incline was
steeper than the roof of an average English
house.

How wrasthis to be passed? Radford looked
at Mohammed. The latter gave a grunt.

"What do you think of it, Mohammed?" I
asked.

" Effendi, we shall go down very fast. If the
Lord wills it, we shall not break our bones."

"If we do not take this route," said the
guide, " we must make a detour for at least two
hours. 1 think the horses can manage it, Ef-
fendi."

" Very well," I said, " you can try."

The guide rode his horse to the glacier. The
poor animal trembled when he reached the
brink.

" Haide, get on!" cried Mohammed from be-
hind, and, striking the quadruped on his flanks,
the animal stretehed his forelegs over the de-
clivity, almost touching the slippery surface
with his girth.

Another crack with the whip, away went the
guide and horse down the glacier. For the
first fifty yards the man succeeded in keeping
his steed's head straight. A slight inequality
in the ice gave the animal's hoof a twist in an-
other direction; horse and rider went round in
mazy circles; they had nearly obtained the veloc-
ity of an express train, when they were sud-
denly brought up by a snow-drift. There was
not much damage done, and now I prepared to
make the descent. It was not an agreeable sen-
sation. I was on the edge of the precipice.
The yelling Mohammed was castigating my
animal from behind. I felt very much like Mr.
Winkle, as described in the "Pickwick Pa-
pers," the first time he was on skates. I would
have gladly given Mohammed five shillings or a
new coat to desist from the flagellating process.
However, the die was cast. My followers were
looking on. What the guide had done it was
very clear that an Englishman ought to do. I
committed myself to Providence. Away we
went. The steam roundabouts in the Champs
Elysees, in Paris, revolve at a great pace; a
slide down the artificial ice-hills in St. Peters-
burg will sometimes try a man's nerves; but
the sensations experienced in these manners
of locomotion are nothing to what I felt when
sliding down that glacier. Was I on my horse
or was I not? Now we were waltzing madly
down the slippery surface, and then my boots
were touching the ice itself, owing to my ani-
mal's position. One moment we ricochetted
from a rough piece of the hard substance, and
were flying in the air, as if jumping the Whis-
sendine brook; a second later we were buried, as
the guide had been, in six feet of snow.

Next came the turn of my followers. Their
descent was a fearful thing to witness, but, for-
tunately, not half so dangerous as it appeared.
With the exception of some damage to the lug-
gage and saddlery, there was little harm done.

'' I neVfcr thought as how a horse could skate,
sir, before!" remarked my English servant, as
he slowly extricated himself from the snow-
drift. " It was more than sliding, that it was
—a cutting of figures of eight all down the
roof of a house! And then I was buried alive
in snow, to finish up with! Mohammed will
have something to pray about, if he has to go
down any more of these hills, for nothing but
Providence can save a man's neck in these here
parts.^'

CHAPTER XXXVII.

On we went, fortunately not down any more
glaciers, and, after being upset about twenty
times in the snow-drifts, reached Hasta Khan.
This was a house built on the road-side for
travelers. It was kept by an old Turk.
According to him, the Kurds in the neighbor-
hood were engaged all the summer in robbing
their neighbors, and were hardly ever brought
to justice.

"They take our cattle," said the man, "and
they bribe the police. There is no sort of
order here. What we want is our Sultan to be
Padishah in his own dominions."

I subsequently heard from the English
Consul at Erzeroum a story which rather
corroborated the Turk's account of the Kurds.

It appeared that in the Deism, not far from
Erzingan, a major commanding a battalion of
infantry received orders to apprehend a Kurd-
ish chief. Somehow or other the Kurd heard
of this. One day, taking with him about five
thousand followers, he managed to surround
the place where the troops were encamped.
Riding up to the commander's tent, he accosted
the officer—who was much surprised at the un-
expected presence of the culprit — with the
words:

" Peace be with you! I have come to dine
here this evening."

It was a very disagreeable position for the
major, but what could he do? His battalion
had been taken unawares; it was surrounded by
the Kurd's followers, and all of them were
armed men. He put on the best face he could
about the matter, and gave his guest an excel-
lent dinner. The following morning the Kurd
said to him:

'' I dined very well last night, and slept com-
fortably. I have accepted your hospitality,
and now you must accept mine. I am going to
take you to dine with me. Nay, I am!" he
continued, to the officer, who appeared a little
indignant at the proposal, "and every man
under your command as well. They shall all
dine and sleep in my encampment this even-
ing-

"It was a disagreeable position for the
major," observed the consul at Erzeroum,
when he related the story to me. " He was
ordered to arrest the Kurd, and now the Kurd
was about to arrest him! However, resistance
was useless. His battalion was surrounded by
Kurds, who, at a sign from their chief, would
have massacred every Turk on the spot. The
only thing for the officer to do was to accept
the invitation. The Kurd, when the soldiers
arrived at his mountain home, commanded his
servants to make preparations for a feast.
Several hundred sheep were killed, to be
cooked for the occasion, and the stream on the
liill-side ran red with blood of the slaughtered
animals."

After dinner the major tried very hard to
persuade the Kurd to recognize the Sultan as
his lord.

"You need only acknowledge our Padishah,"
remarked the officer; "you have 30,000 sheep;
give 1,500 piastres (10?.) a year to the Sultan.
You have 10,000 retainers; give him ten to
serve in his army. I can arrange the rest.
You are a very rich man, but this need not be
known at Constantinople."

" I have never given any one of my children
to serve another master," replied the chieftain,
proudly. " Your Padishah is Sultan at Stam-
boul, but I am Sultan here!"

The following morning the Kurd allowed the
battalion to return to their quarters, and pre-
sented the major with an Arab charger as a
memento of his visit.

" All the circumstances were reported to the
military authorities at Erzeroum," added the
consul, when he related the story, "and the
officer was afterwards promoted."

Shortly before leaving Hasta Khan, Moham-
med came to me with a smile on his counte-
nance. I at once thought that something disa-
greeable had happened. The Turk seldom in-
dulged in a smile. Radford, too, in spite of his
illness, seemed rather more cheerful than usual.
I began to be a little alarmed.

" What is the matter?" I inquired.

"At—the horse!" said Mohammed.

"Yes, sir," said Radford, who had accompa-
nied him, and had acquired the habit of some-
times interlarding his English with a few words
of Turkish; "the At has a hawful sore back,
and all the 'air is off it."

"Which horse?"

" The old pack-horse, the roarer."

Mohammed shook his head mournfully.

"We had better sell him," he said. "One
of the Zaptielis has a mule; he is not a big
mule, but he is a nice animal, sleek and comely,,
besides being strong. The man says that if the
Effendi will give him five liras and the horse
which makes a noise, that we may have his.
mule."

The animal in question was a brute whicb
the gendarme rode, and which was always try-
ing to run away. I had previously gathered
from the fellow that his mule had escaped three
times whilst he was being saddled. Howeverr
the gendarme had forgotten that he had told me-
of this, and in all probability had offered Mo-
hammed a share of the five liras, should I be
fool enough to accept the proposal.

" Let me see the pack-saddle!" I exclaimed.

On looking at it I found that by cutting out
a considerable portion of the lining, it would be
possible to prevent any weight pressing upon,
the horse's sore place.

"He can carry his pack," I remarked to
Mohammed.

" If I cut the saddle he can," replied my
servant; "but it will cost twenty piastres to
mend it again."

"Yes," I observed, "and it will cost five
liras to exchange the horse, besides which we
should have a worse animal than at present."

"The Effendi knows best," said the Zaptieh,.
with a grin.

"He knows," said Mohammed.

" Shall I have a little backsheesh?" remarked
the gendarme, rather alarmed lest his endeavor
to deceive me might have done away with his
chance of a present.

" Insliallah!" I replied; and, this matter be-
ing arranged, we continued our march across
the mountains.

Presently we had to descend almost to the
bed of the Euphrates. Here there were traces
of copper ore. A little farther on we came to
a place where what seemed to be iron ore was
lying strewn along the mountain side; I was in-
formed by the guide that a few miles to the
east there is a substance in the earth which the
villagers use as fuel. According to my inform-
ant it is hard and black, ar.d gives a bright
flame; so in all probability coal is also to be met
with in these regions.

As we approached Kemacli, the Euphrates
became narrower; in many places it was not
more than thirty yards wide. The stream was
very rapid. Any man, no matter how good a
swimmer he might be, would have a poor
chance for his life if he were to fall into the
torrent. Here and there large rocks and loose
stones, which have been washed down from the
mountain sides, block up the channel; they
check the waters for a second. The river bub-
bles and roars; it lashes furiously against the
bowlders, and leaping over them, rushes head-
long with a fall of at least four thousand feet
to the ocean.

The Caimacan of Kemach and a few of his
friends were engaged in playing at Djerrid near
the outskirts of the town. It was a lovely
scene. The sun was setting on the snow-capped
mountains; the river ran at my feet; bright-
colored vegetation and many-tinted rocks look-
ed down upon us from either hand; cascades
and waterfalls dashed over the rugged crags;
whilst the Caimacan and his party, who were
immensely excited with their game, shouted
" Allah! Allah!" as they rode at each other and
hurled the wooden missile.

The governor stopped playing when he saw
our party, and, riding up, asked the Zaptieh
who I was. He then introduced himself and
the company to me. They had been busily en-
gaged in learning drill all the morning. An
order had been received from Constantinople
for the Caimacan to form a National Guard.
Every able-bodied man in the district had at
once enrolled himself as a volunteer. On en-
tering Kemach I was struck by a high rock,
which might have been a miniature Gibraltar,
and which stands immediately behind the town.
The rock was about 500 feet in height, and a
ruined citadel towers above the Euphrates and
the town.

The Caimacan and his friends were well
mounted, their horses being of a very different
stamp to those which -1 had seen during my
march from Constantinople. They were most of
them fifteen hands high, and one or two over six-
teen. On inquiry, I found that they were Turko-
man horses. I also learned that most of the ani-
mals in the district had been bought by govern-
ment agents for the use of the army at Erzer-
oum.38

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

A large proportion of the houses in Kemach
are constructed of dried mud. Numerous wells,
"with high cross-bars and long iron chains for
"buckets, were to be seen along our path. One
of the faithful, on a tower above our heads,
•was calling the Mohammedans to prayer. His
loud but melancholy strains were being listened
to with great attention by Mohammed and my
English servant. It appeared that Mohammed,
through some strange inadvertence, had omitted
praying at mid-day. Radford was a little
alarmed lest the Turk might make up for his
shortcoming by an extra-long prayer that even-
ing, which would have kept him from attend-
ing to the horses.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

There are 800 houses, or about 4,000 inhabit-
ants in Kemach, and barley is very plentiful
throughout the district, the price for the mainte-
nance of my five horses not exceeding seven-
pence per day.

This town had been visited by an English
traveler about five years previous; whereas no
Englishman, so far as I could learn, had been
in Divriki or Arabkir in the memory of the
oldest inhabitant.

The Caimacan, who informed me about my
compatriot having been in Kemach, was very
curious to learn my opinion about the impend-
ing war; and when I told him that I believed
England would remain neutral, remarked:

" Yes; but if we beat Russia, will England
permit us to take back the Caucasus?"

" I really do not know, but I should hope
so."

" Well," continued the governor, " if we beat
Russia this time, we ought to cripple her. We
must take back the districts she has conquered
in Central Asia, and give them to the original
possessors, or else form one Mohammedan Em-
pire in Central Asia, under Yakoob Khan, who
nominally acknowledges the Sultan. We ought
to free the Poles in Poland, and give Germany
the Baltic Provinces."

"You seem to know a little about political
geography," I observed.

"Yes," said the Caimacan, " I take an inter-
est in the subject, and I love my country. Un-
til we can hem Russia in on every side, she will
always be a thorn, not only in our side, but also
in that of Europe."

" Well, what should you do about the
Crimea?" I inquired.

"That we should keep ourselves. Russia
"would then have to be more or less an inland
power, and Moscow would become her capital."

" Do you like the Russian system of govern-
ment?" inquired the Caimacan.

"No."

"I am not surprised," said the official.
"Foreigners say that there is no liberty in
Turkey, but I should like to know which
government is the most liberal. Mohammedans
tolerate every religion, whilst the Russians make
converts by force, and flog women and children
to induce them to change their faith.* The
Russian faith is very different to the English
religion, is it not?" he added.

"Yes, we do not worship idols, or venerate
mummified bodies."

" What do you worship?"

"The one true God, and Jesus Christ his
Son."

"We worship the one true God, and worship
Him through Mohammed His Prophet. But
Mohammedans dislike idols and all that sort of
thing, quite as much as you do."

The following morning the Caimacan was
up at daybreak to see me off. He accompanied
us a little way on the road. The moon was
throwing her pale beams on the old citadel as
we rode beneath the turrets. In a few minutes
we crossed the Euphrates on a narrow wrooden
bridge, and, continuing for a short distance
over mountains, came again upon the valley of
the river. Here there were green fields in
abundance. The country in summer time is
said to be rich in corn and barley. Hundreds
of cattle and sheep, grazing on some rich past-
ure lands, testified to the wealth of the inhabit-
ants.

It was an eleven hours' march to Erzingan.
By the time we neared that city our horses
showed symptoms of being thoroughly exhaust-
ed. Indeed, there was no reason to be surprised
at this. They had marched a thousand miles
since we left Constantinople. The last two

* The Caimacan did not exaggerate, judging by
Consul-General Mansfield's official Report. See Ap-
pendix i. ii.' and ii.

hundred miles had been exceptionally fatiguing,
not only on account of the snow and constant
| mountain-climbing, but also owing to our high
elevation and the rarefied nature of the atmos-
phere. Radford was weak, and from being a
fourteen-stone man had come down to about
eleven. His clothes hung on his wasted limbs.
Some rest would be absolutely necessary to en-
able him to reach Erzeroum.

The road became much better as we entered
the suburbs of Erzingan, and, to my surprise,
I was met by a man in a four-wheeled chaise.
He announced that he was the intendant of
Issek Pacha, the governor of Sivas. The gov-
ernor had written to him to say that I had
promised to reside in his house during my stay
at Erzingan. A servant advanced and took my
horse; I dismounted, and getting into the
vehicle, drove to the Pacha's residence.

Some pretty Armenian women were standing
on the roofs of their houses. They were not
so particular about veiling themselves as their
compatriots in Sivas. They stared at the pro-
cession with wondering eyes. The Pacha's
carriage was not often seen in the streets of
Erzingan. It was the only vehicle of the kind
within an area of 150 miles. It was only
brought out on state occasions, religious cere-
monies, or when some very important visitor
arrived. This was quite enough to set the ladies
in Erzingan on the qui-vive; the European
dresses of my servant and self whetted their
curiosity still more.

Erzingan is different to either Egin or Arab-
kir, both of which towns are built upon the
sides of a mountain. Erzingan stands in the
middle of a large plain, the Kara Su—Black
Water—as the Euphrates is here called, run-
ning through the plain a few miles south of the
city.

I now made the acquaintance of a very in-
telligent Turk. He was an officer with the rank
of major, but employed as the superintendent
of a large manufactory, which had been estab-
lished to supply the troops in Asia Minor with
boots. He had spent three years in France,
where he had studied everything connected
with the trade in question. In addition to this
he was a fair chemist and mineralogist.

He informed me that there were ebony for-
ests in the neighborhood of Erzeroum. A great
deal of this wood used formerly to be bought
by Armenian merchants and despatched to
France. Of late years this branch of industry
has been neglected. Iron, silver, and gold,
could be found here, but the people were much
too idle to search for these metals. The lead-
mines were worked to a small extent by the
Kurds. These mountaineers required this sub-
stance for bullets and shot. The lead in the
towns of Asia Minor was all brought from Con-
stantinople. It was, consequently, very dear;
this had led the Kurds to make use of the metal
beneath their feet. According to my inform-
ant, there is coal of a good quality in the neigh-
borhood of Kemach. However, the peasantry
do not like the idea, that this mineral may seme
day replace wood as an article of fuel. Cutting
down trees is easy work in comparison with
mining. The villagers do their best to keep the
people in the towns from burning coal; and
they make their livelihood by bringing firewood
from the mountains and selling it at a large
profit to the citizens.

The government take twenty per cent, of
the net produce of all mines which are wrorked
in Antolia, and only two-and-a-half per cent,
from the price fetched by sheep, oxen, and
horses in the market. The result is that the
people think it more profitable, and less labori-
ous to breed cattle, than to dig in the earth for
treasure.

I called upon a relation of the Pacha at Sivas.
He was a stout, middle-aged man, and at that
time ill in bed. I was shown into his room.
During my conversation with him, an Italian
doctor came to see the patient. The medical gen-
tleman was the only European in Erzingan, he
had been there half a century; his age, accord-
ing to himself, being ninety-two years. The
old man's appearance belied his assertion. He
at once commenced talking with me in his
native tongue.

" What is the matter with the invalid?" I
inquired.

"Drink, my good sir, drink!" said the old
gentleman. "He is forty, and I am over
ninety, but, please God, as the Turks say, I
shall outlive him. If the upper classes of Mo-
hammedans were only sober, they would live
forever in this delightful climate. But what
with their women, and what with their wine,

they shorten their existence by at least thirty
years. This man would have been dead ten
years ago if he had lived in Constantinople."

"Why so?"

"Because of the climate. He would have
drunk himself into a dropsy."

"What are you talking about?" said the sick
man.

"I was saying, Bey Effendi," said the doc-
tor, "how very popular you are in the neigh-
borhood, and how much every one loves you!"

The sick man smiled benignantly, and the old
gentleman continued:

"I should have been sorry if he had divined
the topic of our conversation. He would never
have employed me again, and might have called
in the Turkish practitioner, an ignorant ass,
who does not know so much about anatomy as
a butcher in the market, and who treats cases
of inflammation by firing his patient."

"What! would he fire at the Bey's foot?" I
inquired.

"God knows! but he is quite capable of
doing so if the Bey would let him."

The doctor now felt his patient's pulse, and
administered a few words of consolation; then,
promising to send some medicine, he left the
room.

CHAPTER XXXIX.

I next visited the Mutasarraf Pacha, the
civil governor of Erzingan. He was an active
little man, of about sixty years of age, full of
energy. He seemed to have more of the Gaul
than the Osmanli in his disposition. Formerly
he had been civil governor at Widdin. Whilst
lie occupied this post some of his Zaptieh had
arrested a Russian. The latter had documents
on liis person which clearly showed that he was
an agent of a society in Moscow, formed with
the objcct of creating a revolution in Bulgaria.
Abdul Aziz was then Sultan, and the Mutasar-
raf Pacha forwarded the documents to Constan-
tinople. Ignatieff's influence was at that time
paramount with the Sultan. No notice was
taken of the papers. - Very shortly afterwards
the Pacha was removed from Widdin to Erzin-
gan.

" Were there any names upon the document?"
I inquired.

"Yes, names implicating some very high
Russian functionaries. I hope that we shall be
soon engaged in hostilities wTith Russia," said
the Pacha. "Ever since the battle of Sedan,
she has been secretly at war with Turkey, and
trying to stab us under the guise of friendship.*
Ignatieff encouraged Abdul Aziz in his extrav-
agance. He knew that this would lead to
bankruptc}', and to a rupture of the alliance
with England; and you may depend upon it,
that the Russian ambassador was one of the
first men to advise his majesty to repudiate the
debt. They are very clever, these Russian
diplomats," continued the Pacha; "and how-
ever poor Russia may be, she has always
enough gold to sow the seeds of sedition and
rebellion in her neighbor's territory. You will
find this out for yourselves some day."

" How so?"

"When she touches your Indian frontier;
by that time you will have enough to do to
keep your native troops in order. Will Eng-
land help us in this war?"

" I do not know; but it is not likely. You
see the Turkish government is very unpopular
with us, because it does not pay the interest of
its debts, and also because of the massacres
which have taken place in Bulgaria."

" Say for the first reason," replied the Pacha,
" and I agree with you, for you English, by all
accounts, dearly love your gold. However, I
should have thought that by this time your
people had learned that we were not the orig-
inators of the massacres in Bulgaria."

" Who caused them, the Russians?"

The Pacha nodded his head affirmatively.

" If there be a war in Asia Minor, they will
do their best to excite our Kurds to massacre
the Armenians in the neighborhood of Van, and
will then throw all the blame on our Soldiers."

"Do you think that the Russians will be able
to conquer you in Asia Minor?" I inquired.

" No, we are the strongest in this part of the
world. The Georgians, Tartars, and Circas-
sians hate the Russians, and will rise upon
them; besides that, there are no roads."

* These remarks of the Mutasarraf Pacha resemble
those made on the same subject by other Pachas in
Asia Minor. All these Turkish gentlemen had the same
opinion of the Russian Ambassador.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

39

" But Russia lias taken Kars before."

"Yes, but she will not do so this time, and I
should not be surprised if we were to go to
Tiflis instead."

This I subsequently found to be the prevailing
opinion amidst all the civil and military Pachas
in Asia Minor.

"What do you think will be the final result
of the war?" I now inquired of the Pacha.

He shook his head sorrowfully.

" If we have no ally, it will go hard wTith us;
but your countrymen will be mad if they do not
help us."

" Why so?"

"Because when we find that we have no
chance against our foe, what is to prevent us
from turning round and allying ourselves with
him; that alternative might be preferable to
annihilation. And when Russia has our fleet,
the Dardanelles, Batoum, and another port or
so on the Black Sea, she might leave us alone at
Constantinople. Anyhow, if she has once
crushed us, we shall no longer have the power
of lifting our heads, and however much we
may dislike the alternative of slavery or de-
struction, shall end by being menials of the
Russians."

The following day I walked with the Turkish
major to see his boot factory; a large building
on the outskirts of the town. Four hundred
and fifty men are employed in the business."

An order had arrived from Constantinople
for all the workmen to be drilled. Two hours
per day had been allotted for this purpose."

The shoemakers were drawn up in two ranks
outside the building.

The officer who was instructing them com-
menced putting his men through the bayonet
exercise. Many of the townspeople were
amongst the spectators. They were greatly
pleased at the eager way in which the men gave
their thrusts into the air.

"If we only had some Russians to run
through!" said a corpulent, middle-aged Turk.

"Ah! if we had," replied his friend. "Our
bootmakers alone would be enough to make all
the Cossacks turn pale and run!"

The manufactory was clean, and great order
prevailed in the arrangements. ■ Forty thou-
sand pairs of boots had been made during
the previous two months, my companion had
received instructions from the authorities to
forward 12,000 more to Erzeroum. The order
had only just been issued, and was urgent.
The result was that the leather which under or-
dinary circumstances would have been left in
the tan for four months could only be soaked for
five weeks. The major complained that he had
not been supplied either with a machine to
triturate the bark, or with a steam-cutter's ma-
chine, which would have very much facilitated
the work.

" I have written to the authorities at Con-
stantinople about the matter," remarked the
officer; " a reply has come to say that the arti-
cles in question are on their way. They will
probably arrive wThen the war is over," added
the officer, despondently. "In the meantime
some of our soldiers will have to march bare-
foot."

The thread used in the manufacture came
from an English firm, Finlayson, Bousfield &
Co., of Glasgow; and the officer, as he showed
me some of the packets, observed: "that for-
merly he had been supplied with French thread.
It was a little cheaper than the 'sort now em-
ployed; but after some trials he had discovered
that the English article was three times as dura-
ble, and consequently far more economical in
the long-run."

The boots manufactured in the establishment
were made to lace high up over the ankle and
with very thick soles. They are much heavier
than those furnished to English troops, and
would be apt to tire the soldiers during a long
day's march. In one room a number of Arme-
nian and Turkish lads were working sewing-
machines.

All the hands in the manufactory were paid
I by piecework. The boys could earn from one
to five piastres per day, and some of the men
forty. Owing to the pressure of business, the
workmen were employed sixteen hours per day,
fourteen hours in the'manufactory, and two at
drill.

I now went to the jail. Here there were
nineteen prisoners. They were made up of
seventeen Mohammedans and two Christians;
the latter had been arrested, one for coining
money, the other for murdering his wife.
Whilst walking through the building, I heard

a great noise in one of the cells, and a woman's
voice.

"What is she doing?" I inquired of the
jailer.

"Effendi, it is a curious case," said the man;
" she has a husband, but is very much in love
with a young Armenian shopkeeper. The latter
is a married man, and does not return the
enamored female's affections; however, she is
continually leaving her husband's house and in-
vading the Armenian's premises. The husband
became annoyed and complained—he thinks
that the Armenian encourages his wife. Any-
how," continued the official, " the affair created
a scandal, the Cadi did not like it; he has or-
dered the woman to be shut up for a day or
two, and the Armenian as well."

"What, together?"

"No, Effendi, apart; it is rather hard upon
the man," he added; "but who knows? per-
haps he encouraged her."

" Why is she making that noise?"

"Because she has learnt that the Armenian is
in the prison, and she wishes to be confined in
the same cell wTith him. He does not want it
himself, and of course it would not do; for
what would the husband say? A jealous
female is a first cousin of the devil," contin-
ued the jailer; "it is bad enough when she is
jealous of her own husband, but when she is
jealous of some other woman's, that is ten times
worse."

CHAPTER XL.

Later in the day, the Mutasarraf called at
my house, and at once commenced his favorite
theme, politics.

"What do the people in your country say
about Russia's conduct in Servia?"

"Many of them do not like it," I replied.

" It was a cowardly act on the part of the
Tzar, was it not?" said^the'jPacha; "he pre-
tended to be at peace with our Sultan, and
allowed Russian officers and soldiers to take
part in the fight against us. I tell you what it
is," added the speaker, " Ignatieff wishes to
cut off another arm from Turkey, by making
Bulgaria independent, like Servia. If we are
to die, better to perish at once than to be torn
to pieces limb by limb!"

"But I thought you told me this morning
that in your opinion, sooner than this should
occur, your government ought to join Rus-
sia?"

"Yes, I did," said the Pacha, "and if we
were to join Russia and attack Europe, who
will do nothing for us now, what would hap-
pen then?"

"Yes; what would happen then?" said the
Hodja, or schoolmaster, a friend of the Pacha,
and who had accompanied him during his
visit.

"Europe would probably swallow up both
Turkey and Russia!"

"You do not really think so?" said the
Pacha.

"We have a great many troops," said the
Hodja.

"Yes; but not many officers."

" He is right," said the Pacha, sadly; " our
officers have not much brain, but we have one
chance," he added.

" What is it?"

"If the Circassians were to rise, the Rus-
sians would have so much on their hands that
they wrould be unable to advance."

"Is it likely that there will be a rising?"

" There is sure to be one," said the Pacha;
"but it is doubtful whether it will be general,
or confined to some districts;" and shaking
hands with me he left the room with his com-
panion.

The Pacha was an energetic man, and very
popular with the inhabitants. He had been at
Erzingan but a few months. He had found
time to put the streets in tolerable order, and to
make the town one of the cleanest in Anatolia.
He was desirous of purchasing some machinery
with the object of making cloth from the cotton
which grows in this district. As it is, the raw
cotton is sent to England, and is then manu-
factured into the articles required. The Pacha
would have' liked to save all this expense, and
have the work done on the spot. He had tried
to form a company, with the object of realiz
ing his idea; but there was no energy in Erzin-
gan—the people were afraid of risking the lit-
tle money they possessed; it was impossible to
carry the project into execution.

I now went to the Mohammedan school.

"Will you ask the boys some questions?"
said the Hodja.

I remembered the success which I had ob-
tained with the sum put by me to the lads at
Yuzgat, and at once gave it. The schoolmaster
was at his wits' end for a solution. However,
later in the day he came to my hoijse and
said:

"You set me a sum this morning—I cannot
do it. I should like to ask you one."

" Go on," I remarked.

"Three men," said the Hodja, "who were
accompanied by their three wives, arrived at a
river. The husbands were all jealous of their
wives. There was one boat in which to take
the party. The bark would only hold two per-
sons, and no woman could be trusted by her
husband unless there were two men with her.
How did they cross the river?"

" Can you do it?" said the schoolmaster.

" I will think it over," I replied.

" This sum has puzzled our Mutasarraf for
six months," said the Hodja; " it is a beautiful
sum."

"Do you know the answer?" I inquired.

"Unfortunately, I have forgotten it," he re-
plied.

I proceeded to visit the mosque, which was
being built at the expense of Issek Pacha, gov-
ernor of Sivas. It had been in the course of
construction for three years, and was only half
finished. The walls were made of stone and
marble, which had been brought from some
quarries, about eight miles from the town. It
was said that when the mosque was finished, it
would be the handsomest one in Anatolia.

I met the Italian doctor as I was returning to
my quarters.

" So you have seen the mosque?" he said.

"Yes."

" Well," he continued, "the Turks in some
way resemble us Catholics. Issek Pacha prob-
ably thinks that by building a magnificent
mosque, he will be less likely to be fried in a
future state of existence; and we are told that
if we leave money to the priests, to say masses
for our souls, we shall not have to remain so
long in purgatory."

"It all comes to the same thing," said the
old gentleman. " It is no matter where a man
is born, whether in the Mohammedan East or
in the Christian West, his Imaum or priest will
always get money out of him in some manner
or other."

" In this instance," I remarked, " the money
has gone to build a mosque and not to
Imaums."

"Yes," said the Italian, "but whenever a
priest or dervish asks a good Mohammedan for
anything the latter will never refuse. The re-
sult is that the religious profession in Turkey is
made up of as many idlers and beggars as can
be seen in my own country."

Provisions, according to the doctor, were not
very dear in Erzingan. A good sheep could
be bought for six shillings; 80 eggs for a
shilling; two pounds and a half of bread, or
rather of the thin unleavened cake which takes
the place of the staff of life in Anatolia,
for a penny; whilst eight pounds of pota-
toes could be purchased for the same price.
A nice-looking horse would not cost more
than 10£. Fuel was dear in proportion to
the other articles of consumption — charcoal
costing a farthing the pound.

" Erzingan is not a bad place for poor people
to live in," added the old doctor. "I have
resided here nearly half a century. A man can
get on very well if he has 501, a year."	. ;

On leaving the towm I found a fair carriage '
road, which "led in the direction of Erzeroum.
This state of things was not to last long, and
after marching two or three miles we were rid-
ing once more along a track.

Marshes extended for some distance on either
side of our route. A number of geese and ducks,
some of the latter of a very peculiar breed and
different to any I had hitherto seen, were feed-
ing in the fields around us. I tried to approach
them, so as to have a shot, as goose or duck
would have been an agreeable change to the
chicken fare which awaited us in every village.
But the wild geese in Anatolia are quite as wary
as their kindred on this side the Channel. It
was impossible to stalk them.

I began to disbelieve in the stories which
have been written about the amount of sport
which can be obtained in Anatolia. With the
exception of a few snipe, partridges, and hares,
I had seen literally nothing in the shape of

fame since our departure from Constantinople.

>eer were said to exist in some of the forests,40

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

but I had never even heard of any being ex
posed for sale in the different markets.

Should an Englishman ever think of under-
taking a journey through Anatolia, and have
the idea that he will be able to combine shoot
ing with the pleasure of travel, he will find
himself very much mistaken.

Now we overtook three hundred Kurds—
redif soldiers on the march to Erzeroum. There
were no officers with them. The men had to
find their way as best they could to their desti-
nation. They were armed with needle rifles,
but had no uniform, and were clad for the
most part in rags and tatters. Many of them
had no shoes or even slippers, but were
walking with bare feet through the snow. A
few men were riding on mules, and on a closer
inspection I found that these poor fellows had
been frost-bitten. Some of them had lost their
toes on the march.

CHAPTER XLI.

It was bitterly cold as we gradually climbed
the mountains which lie between Erzingan and
Erzeroum, and after a nine hours' march we
halted for the night at a little village called
Delan. There were only twelve mud hovels.
The three hundred Kurds stowed themselves
away as best they could. I was fortunate
enough to obtain a resting-place in a stable. My
horses were packed together as closely as
possible on one side of the building. There
was just room for my followers and myself on
the other.

The inhabitants of this little hamlet were
Kurds, and the people did their best to make
the newly-arrived soldiers comfortable. The
latter were all fed at the expense of the villagers;
each inhabitant giving as much bread as he
could spare towards the rations of his country
men. So far as I could learn, none of the sol-
diers had any money with them, and it was a
five days' march to Erzeroum. But they evi-
dently had solved the problem of how to get
on without money; a week later I saw them ar-
rive at their destination, and, with the exception
of a few men laid up with frost-bite, they were
not much the worse for their journey.

It was very slippery as we descended the
slope which leads from Delan. We drove our
horses before us; the little animals tacking
from side to side, like ships beating against the
wind, and putting their feet down with the
greatest caution, so as to make sure of the
ground before them. We then had to lead the
animals up the mountains, Radford having
great difficulty in wading through the snow,
owing to his state of debility. Fortunately we
soon arrived at a place where it was possible to
ride. Here another path branched off to the
village of Kargan, but continuing by our old
track we shortly came to a fine stone bridge,
called the Kutta Kupri. It is about seventy-
five yards wide, and spans the river Euphrates.

We passed through a series of natural basins,
each of them two or three miles in diameter,
and after an eight hours' tiring march put up
for the night in the village of Mohallata. It
contains about 100]houses, and a small barracks,
with quarters for a squadron of Zaptiehs '

A battalion of redifs had also halted here.
The men had marched from Erzingan without
having had anything to eat since they left that
town—the soldiers had gone more than thirty
hours without food. There were no grumblers
in the ranks.

I One of the sergeants appeared rather an in-
telligent fellow; I spoke to him about the
matter.

" We'came to a village," he said; " there was
nothing to eat, and so we went without our
dinners."

" Did the men make any remarks?"

"No, Effendi, they knew that the people
would have given them food if they had any to
spare. When we beat the Russians, go to St.
Petersburg and conquer all their country for
our Padishah," said the sergeant, "we shall
have man}' paras, there will be plenty to eat.
But our Padishah is poor now," continued
the man, sorrowfully, " he cannot give us any
pay, there is no money in Stamboul."

The captain of the Zaptiehs accompanied me
in my walk through the barracks. This officer
was anxious to obtain his promotion.

"I am forty years of age," he remarked,
"and a captain's pay is very little. It is not
enough for me to keep a wife. I want to be
married, but before that event can take place I

must be a major. Shall you see the Pacha at
Erzeroum?" he added.

"Yes."

"Will you speak to him for me, and rec-
ommend me for promotion?"

"How can I? I do not belong to your army,
and am only here as a traveler."

"But you are an Englishman!" exclaimed
the Zaptieh, excitedly. "That is quite suffi-
cient. The Pacha would know that no English-
man would recommend any one without a
reason. I should be promoted!"

"My good sir," I observed, "I have only
seen you for a few minutes; how could I solicit
your promotion on the ground of your merits?"

The captain was not to be rebuffed.

"I will write down my name," he said," and
then you will speak to the Pacha."

Taking a dirty piece of paper from his pocket,
he scribbled something and handed it to me.

Forward again for twelve more hours, our
horses slipping up, or varying the performance
by falling into snow-drifts, and we came to a
spot where the Erzingan track meets the Tre-
bizond and Erzeroum road. Here most of the
snow had been cleared away. There was but
little to impede our progress. Large caverns
of several hundreds of horses and mules were
bringing cartridges from Trebizond; bands of
Bashi Bazouks were with them and on the march
to Kars.

We rode along the left bank of the Kara Su
(Black Water), the name given to the Euphrates
in this district, and presently were met by some
Zaptiehs. Their leader, advancing a few steps,
said that he had been ordered by the Pacha
to meet me, and escort my party into the town.

Erzeroum lies at one end of a large plain. It
is surrounded on the north, south and east sides
by hills. A few detached forts had been thrown
up on these heights. The town itself is encircled
by an entrenchment of loose earth—this de-
fence was in no place more than three-quarters
of \ mile from the city.

I rode to Ismail Pacha's residence. It is a
large building in the middle of the town, and is
also used as an office by the military Pacha.

Ismail, the civil governor, is a Kurd by birth.
Some of his female relatives have made influen-
tial marriages;this, added to the talents which
the Pacha possesses, has raised him to his pres-
ent high position.

He did not think that war would take place
between Turkey and Russia. A pacific speech
made by Lord Derby had been telegraphed
from London to Erzeroum. It was the opinion
of many of the townspeople that the Tzar did
not mean to break the peace.

"It will be much better for us if we fight
now," said the Pacha when he gave me the
above-mentioned information. "If war is
postponed, Russia will continue her intrigues*
amidst our Christian population."

A few months previous the Tzar had sent a
decoration to the Armenian bishop of Erzeroum.

The order had been forwarded through the
Russian consul. The latter, instead of asking
Ismail to give the decoration to the bishop, had
ignored the Pacha altogether, and had not even
invited him to the ceremony.

This had been converted into an Armenian
demonstration. The relations between the
Mohammedans and Christians were not so
friendly as could be desired.

Erzeroum is the principal depot for the cara-
van trade which is carried on by the merchants
in Teheran and their confreres in Constantinople.
Timbaki, the tobacco used in nargilehs, is ex-
ported from Persia to this part of Asia Minor.
Of late, the Turkish authorities have increased
the duty on Timbaki from eight to seventy-six
per cent. This has been done in consequence
of many Turks liking the Persian plant better
than that which is grown in their own country.
The price of ordinary timbaki was formerly
only twenty-five piastres an oke at Constanti-
nople, whilst Turkish tobacco of the same
quality costs as much as sixty-one.

Ismail Pacha was doubtful whether in the
event of war he would be able to keep the
Kurds quiet in the neighborhood of Erzeroum.
Russian agents had been busily engaged] for
some time past in attempting to suborn these
mountaineers. Money had been lavished upon
their chiefs. Anxiety was expressed as to which
side they would take.

" The" Russians are nearly as poor as we are,"
continued the Pacha, "but they have enough
money left for the purpose of intrigue. If the

* See Consul Taylor's Report on this subject, Ap-
pendix XII.

war breaks out, it is not at all improbable that
they will bring about a massacre of Christians
in Asia Minor. Some of the Kurds would obey
any order they might receive from St. Peters-
burg. It^ouldgo very hard with us in the
court of European public opinion, if any fresh
rebellions had to be suppressed by strong meas-
ures on our part."

s

'/ —

CHAPTER XLII.

An Armenian, the Pacha's interpreter, now
entered the room. Presently he observed that
the Russian consul at Erzeroum had just re-
ceived a telegram.

"He read it to me himself," said the Ar-
menian. "He wants its contents to be made
known to you. It is from the Russian authori-
ties in the Caucasus, and has come ma Batoum.
It runs as follows: 'Two months ago, an En-
glishman, a certain Captain Burnaby, left Con-
stantinople with the object of traveling in Asia
Minor. He is a desperate enemy (un ennemi
acharne) of Russia. We have lost all traces of
him since his departure from Stamboul. We
believe that the real object of his journey is to
pass the frontier, and enter Russia. Do your
best, sir, to discover the whereabouts of this
aforesaid captain. Find means to inform him
that in the event of his enterirg our territory,,
he will be immediately expelled.'''

The following day I went to the English
consulate. Mr. Zohrab is our consul in Erze-
roum. He is a good Turkish scholar, besides
knowing most of the European languages.

I soon learned that there was no exaggeration
in the interpreter's story. It was said that the
Russians had procured my photograph, and
hung it up in all the frontier stations, so as to
enable their officers to recognize me should I
attempt to enter Russian territory.

I must say that I was rather surprised to find
that the Paternal government still took so
much interest in my movements. From the
fact of the Russian agents having lost all trace
of me since I left Constantinople, I presume
that my movements were watched during our
journey on the steamer, and also in the capital.
This was doubtless done with a kind motive,
and to prevent my being assaulted by any
fanatical Mussulmans. When I was in St.
Petersburg, only twelve months previous, Gen-
eral Milutin, the Russian Minister of War, had
shown a most fatherly interest in my safety;
he was much alarmed lest I might "be assas-
sinated by the Khivans or Turkomans in Cen-
tral Asia. It was very kind of him. I had
evidently not sufficiently appreciated the philan-
thropy of that gallant officer, and of the gov-
ernment which he serves.

I could hardly believe that the Russian au-
thorities were so interested in my welfare as to
set spies to travel with me on board a steamer
or to track my steps in Constantinople.

I much regret that my short stay in that city
had not permitted me to call upon an old ac-
quaintance, General Ignatieff, the Russian am-
bassador to the Porte. I should then have been
able to give his excellency my solemn assur-
ances that I had not the slightest intention to
cross the Russo-Turkish frontier. However,
possibly the term "solemn assurances" does
not convey quite the same meaning to a Musco-
vite diplomate as to an English officer; it
might have been that his excellency would not
have placed Any reliance on my promises.

The odd part of the matter was that I had
not even dreamed of entering the Tzar's domin-
ions. I was not ignorant of the state of Russia.
Mr. Schuyler had proclaimed to the world that
several of the Tzar's officials were corrupt.
The scarcity of gold and the overwhelming
paper currency proved the bankrupt state of
the country. Every traveler could testify that
many of the inhabitants of European Russia
were drunkards. Major Wood in his book, the
"Sea of Aral," had declared that some of the
conquerors in Central Asia were worse. These
facts were well known throughout Europe. I
had traveled in Russia myself. Then how
could the Russian authorities be so childish as
to think that I, of all people, wished to revisit
the empire? On second thoughts, I could only
account for it by the supposition that they were
afraid lest I should travel through the Cau-
casus, and discover their method of dealing
with the Circassians.

A few j^ears ago, a British consul called at-
tention, in an official report, to this subject.
From what the Circassians whom I had met
during my journey had said, there was everyON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

41

reason to believe that the following manner of
treating Circassian ladies is still sometimes re-
sorted to by the Russian promoters of Christian-
ity and civilization. Consul Dickson remarks,
in a despatch dated Soukoum Kale, March, 17th,
1864: "A Russian detachment captured the
vilage of Toobeh, inhabited by about 100 Abad-
zekh, and after these people had surrendered
themselves prisoners, they were all massacred
by the Russian troops. AMONG THE VIC-
TIMS WERE TWO WOMEN IN AN AD-
VANCED STATE OF PREGNANCY AND
FIVE CHILDREN."

Some people who call themselves Christians,
and who sympathize, or for political motives
pretend to sympathize with Russia, attempt to
gloss over these facts by observing that the Cir-
cassians are a nation of freebooters, and that it
is necessary to rule them with a rod of iron,
and through their fears. So in order to strike
terror into thieves and other malefactors, it is
justifiable to murder pregnant women, and fire
upon little children!

Amongst other ways of compelling the Cir-
cassians to submit to their conquerors was one
so fiendish, that if proof wTas not at hand to
confirm the statement, I should hesitate to place
it before the reader.

In order to frighten the mountaineers and civ-
ilize them a la Russe, the Tzar's soldier* cut off
the heads and scooped out the eyes of several
men, women and children; then nailing the
eyeless heads on trees, they placed placards
underneath them, saying, "Go now and com-
plain to the Kralli of the English, and ask her
to send you an oculist."

An Englishman, Mr. Stewart Rolland, of
Dibden, Hants, has traveled in Circassia. He
can authenticate my statement. One of these
blood-stained placards is in his possession. He
-will show it to any one who wishes to see for
himself a proof of Russian civilization.

It may be asked why these Muscovite gentle-
men were so inveterate against Great Britain.
The Circassians formerly were of opinion that
England would help them against their foe.
Some years ago* they actually sent twTo chiefs,
to state their grievances to the people of this
country. These chief being asked why they
counted upon England's good offices, said:

"We have been told that the English nation
is a great nation, and a nation that protects the
distressed. Our wTives and our children, our
little ones and our old men said to us with
groans and tears, ' You must go to that nation,
and get us help/ And we replied, 'We will
go, and we will tell that nation that if they do
not give us help we shall become the slaves of
Russia, or shall be destroyed by Russia. We
grown men will not become slaves, but who
knows what will happen to those who come
after us; and once enslaved, they will be an
army in the hands of Russia to attack the great
English nation.'"

The Circassian chiefs visited England in 1862.
Some Englishmen thought that it would be
dangerous to interfere with a strong power like
Russia, for the sake of a few mountaineers.
The assistance asked for wras denied. The
Russian authorities did not value the Caucasus
so lightly as our English officials.

This can be shown by the following extractf
from a memoir drawn up by the Emperor
Nicholas for the instruction of the present
Emperor Alexander:

" Our inheritance is the East, and we must
not suffer our activity in that quarter to relax
for a single moment. Our aim is, and remains,
Constantinople, which is destined in our hands
to become the centre of the world, and the
eternal door to Asia. For a long time England
has had the supremacy of the ocean; but the
same position which we have attained on land
will be occupied by our maritine power. The
possession of Constantinople, the Dardanelles,
the whole literal of the Black Sea are indispen-
sable to us. The sea is to become one great
Russian port and cruising-ground for our fleets.
The Emperor Alexander claimed Constantino-
ple and the Dardanelles, when Napoleon pro-
posed the partition of Turkey to him. At a
later period, at the Congress of Vienna, he him-
self made a like proposal. The great Catharine
foretold in prophetical spirit, that the execution
of the grand scheme would be reserved for her
second grandson. The Emperor Nicholas has
taken the task upon himself. Everything of a

* See statement made by the Circassian Deputies,
Appendices IX. and X.

t This extract is quoted from a remarkable pamphlet,
-entitled " Circassia," published by Hardwicke in 1862,

higher order on which Mussulman life rests has
disappeared. Old forms and habits are upset;
all higher education and activity are wanting;
the complete dissolution is near at hand. Eu-
rope will try to oppose our taking possession of
Turkey. Our conquest advances step by step,
without any considerable sacrifice on our part.
It extends already to the vicinity of Stamboul.
Our apparent moderation restrains even our
enemies from taking up arms. Things, too, are
not quite ripe yet. The erection of forts and
the arming of all important spots on the Black
Sea is an indispensable preliminary. We have
to continue our struggle with the tribes of the
Caucasus. It is sometimes troublesome, but it
exercises our armies, and covers our prepara-
tions in the Black Sea. Our moderation in the
Treaty of Adrianople deprived England itself of
every pretext for interference; yet we obtained
everything that we wanted. By fostering Egypt,
we continued afterwards to weaken Turkey.
Events of the utmost importance to the splen-
dor of our arms are not far distant. We keep
the Divan in good disposition towards us, and
at the same time in dependence upon us. It is
most important to confirm the Sultan in his
pseudo-reforms, and to push him on in the same
way; but it will be expedient to throw obstacles
in the way of any real improvement for the
military regeneration. Of equal importance is
it that the Porte should never get clear of finan-
cial embarrassment."

The possession of the Caucasus is undoubt-
edly most important to Russia. It enables her
to make preparations for a march westward
towards Scutari, and another southward in the
direction of the Persian Gulf, without consid-
ering the possibility of her some day taking a
fancy to the Bay of Iskenderoon.

Should Russia ever take possession of Arme-
nia,* Persia would be at the mercy of the Tzar.
The latter would command the highlands of
Asia Minor. He could descend upon the val-
leysf of the Euphrates and Tigris.:): Syria
would be exposed to his attack. We should
have to be on our guard lest he might wish to
invade Egypt. It is quite true that England
could easily defend Syria against all the Tzar's
forces—but this would cost money. We should
have to increase our military expenditure by
several millions a year. This would not be
agreeable to the British tax-payer.

People may argue that the Caucasus is far off
from the points which I have mentioned; so it
is; the Russian frontier town in Asia Minor,
Gumri, is more than 1000 miles from Scutari.
It is not likely that in one, two, or even three
campaigns, the Tzar's troops would be able to
reach that town. The policy of the Russian
officials is a safe one. They do not attempt to
swallow at one time more territory than they
can easily digest.

This is what the possession of the Caucasus
means to Russia. Should the fortune of war
ever enable us once again to place our heel upon
the throat of the Muscovite, we must not forget
the Circassians. The people ought to be freed
to act as a barrier between Russia and the Sul
tan's eastern dominions.

CHAPTER XLIII.

There was not much European society at
Erzeroum. It was made up of the English,
French, and Russian consuls and their families;
no other European, so far as I could learn,
being in the town. The Russian official was an
energetic man. A short time previous he had
discovered that some Circassians had the inten-
tion to leave the Caucasus, and enter Turkey.
He had telegraphed the news in cypher to the
Russian authorities. Troops had been sent to
the Circassian villages. The inhabitants had
been caught in the act of packing up their
goods and chattels. Very strong measures had
been taken. It was not likely that any similar
attempt would be made by the inhabitants.
There were now hardly any of them left.

An empty house is better than a bad tenant;
this seems to be the policy of the Tzar's gene-
rals in the Caucasus. It is undoubtedly cheap-
er to hang a prisoner than to imprison him.
The Russian officers have great ideas of econo-
my in this respect. The Russian consuls at
Erzeroum had been engaged for some time past
in intriguing with the Armenians. Many

* See Appendix IY.

t See routes which cross the Euphrates and Tigris,
ApDendix XIV.

t See Importance of Syria from a Military Point of
View, Appendix XV.

Christians belonging to the higher, monied
classes were in favor of Russian rule—almost
all of them being supplied with Russian pass-
ports. The traffic in such documents carried
on in the Erzeroum district was very great. No
large town in Armenia is free from pseudo-
Russians. Consul Taylor, writing from Erze-
roum to the Earl of Clarendon, on March the
19th, 1869, remarks about the Russian consul,
who was then in that city, as follows: "The
exaggerated pretensions, overbearing conduct,
and ostentatious display of the Russian consul
in his relations with the local authorities in
which it is needless to say other consuls do not
indulge, coupled with the unaccountable ser-
vility of the Turkish officials here in their in-
tercourse with him, tend among an ignorant
people to give a false value to his particular im-
portance, or, rather, to that of the country he
serves—wThich by still further strengthening
their belief (alluding to Armenians) that no
other power than Russia is so able or will-
ing to help them—makes them eager to ap-
ply to him in their differences, and to ac-
quire DOCUMENTS that to them appear
claims to the interference of a foreign power in
their behalf. That the INTRIGUING, med-
dling conduct of the RUSSIAN CONSUL is
approved, I may state that although in disfavor
wi»h the Embassv at Constantinople, he is SUP-
I oRTED by the" AUTHORITIES in the CAU-
CASUS, to whose diplomatic Chancery, at
Tifiis, he is directly subordinate. It is the
POLICY of the RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT,
and therefore of its AGENTS, to encourage
such ideas—as also to exaggerate real, existing
evils, or trump up imaginary complaints, in or-
der to keep up that CHRONIC DISAFFEC-
TION so suitable to the line of conduct it has
always pursued in the limits of Eastern coun-
tries."

I now learnt that a very large sum of money
had been nominally spent in throwing up some
earthworks round Erzeroum. They were said
to have cost a million of liras, nobody seemed
to know how the money had been spent. I had
not as yet visited the fortifications. From what
I could gather, the defences were in a very bad
state. It was stated that they world be utterly
untenable in the event of an attack.

One thing seemed to be the unanimous opinion
of all classes in Erzeroum—with the exception
possibly of the Russian Consul, whose acquaint-
ance I did not have the pleasure of making; this
was, that should the Armenians ever get the up-
per hand in Anatolia, their government would be
much more corrupt than the actual administra-
tion. It was corroborated by the Armenians
themselves; the stories which they told me of
several of the wealthier and more influential of
their fellow-countrymen thoroughly bore out
the idea.*

The soldiers in Erzeroum were very discon-
tented about the wray in which they had re-
ceived their pay, or, rather, I should say, some
of their back pay, as the amount owing to them
was now more than twelve months in arrear.
Where formerly they used to be paid in me-
tallique—a debased coinage of silver mixed with,
copper, but which always keeps its value of
about 140 piastres to the lira—they were now
being paid in caime or bank-notes. Caime had
depreciated enormously, a lira being worth at
Constantinople 200 piastres. The Governor of
Erzeroum had issued an order that a paper
piastre was to be considered as equal to a me-
tallic piastre. This did not prevent things from
rising in value. The soldiers were not able to
buy half so much with their caime as formerly
with their metallique. They had petitioned the
Governor on this subject and were in hopes that
he would let them be paid after the Constanti-
nople rate of exchange.

The following day I went to the Military
Hospital, a large building in the middle of the
town. Many of the patients were suffering
from typhoid fever, and others from frost-bite.
The men who had marched from the southern
provinces of the empire had felt the extreme
cold in Erzeroum. Their clothes, well adapted
for the climate of Bagdad, were no protection
against the low temperature on the mountains.
There were also several cases of ophthalmia
and pneumonia.

The head surgeon in the hospital was a Greek,
and one of his assistants a Hungarian. They
both appeared to be .intelligent men, and be-
wailed the lack of resources for the hospital.

"We have enough at present," said theHun-

* See Mr. Taylor's Report to the British Government
on this matter, Appendix XXII.42

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

garian; "but it is the time of peace. When
the war breaks out we shall require medicines
and instruments; how the government will be
ale to pay for them I do not know. Every
para* will be required for the soldiers in the
field. Notwithstanding the best intentions on
the part of the authorities, the wounded will
many of them be left to rot."

The wards were well ventilated. But owing
to the dearth of accommodation, patients laid
lip with typhus were lying next to men suffer-
ing from oplhalmia. It was impossible to sepa-
rate the/lifferentjcases. The doors, too, did not
fit. On opening one of them, a current of cold
air cut through the room, and attacked those
patients who were suffering from inflammation
of the lungs. Hollow coughs could be heard
from all sides of the apartment.

The name of every inmate, and the nature of
the case, was written in French over his pallet,
and the sufferers seemed to be much attached
to their attendants.

" One of the most valuable medicines in this
hospital," remarked the Greek, as I finished my
inspection, " is wine. The Turks who come
from the south suffer from poorness of blood.
They have never drunk wine before, their law
prevents them; when they receive alcohol as a
medicine the effect is marvelous."

I now walked to one of the barracks, to see
the cavalry regiment which had left Sivas
whilst I was in that town. It had just arrived
in Erzeroum. An officer accompanied me
through the stables. They were large and
lofty. The saddles, arms, and accoutrements
were clean and bright, and the men appeared
very particular about these matters; the colonel
telling me, with a certain amount of pride, that,
notwithstanding the long march from Sivas, he
had no cases of sore backs amongst the horses
in his regiment.

Unfortuuately there were only one other
cavalry regiment in that part of Anatolia. The
Turks, in the event of war, would have to de-
pend upon their Circassian irregulars for out-
post duty. Now if there is one branch of war-
fare which requires study more than another it
is outpost duty. The safety of an army de-
pends upon this being well done. Intelligent
cavalry officers are the eyes and ears of" the
commander of an expedition. A general who
is not supplied with a numerous and efficient
cavalry is like a deaf and blind man; he knows
nothing of what is going on around him.f J My
companion was well awTare of this. He
regretted that there were not more cavalry
regiments on the frontier.

" We shall do our best," he said, "but there
are only 400 troopers; when we are killed there
will be no one to replace us."

He was not so sanguine about the result of
the war as many of the officers with whom I
had conversed.

" I fought against the Russians in the Crimea,"
was his remark on this subject. "They have
very little money," he continued; "however,
we have less. We shall have to buy arms from
abroad. So long as we have gold, your manu-
facturers will supply us; when we have no liras
left, there will be no more rifles and cartridges.
We have plenty of men. We can recruit from
the Mussulmans throughout Asia. We can put
into the field quite as many troops as the Rus-
sians. The latter are not to be despised as sol-
diers, they will die in their places. Our men
will do the same. It will be a question of
money and the longest purse will win."

From the cavalry barracks I proceeded to a
large Khan, originally constructed for travelers
hut now given over to the troops. Here a bat-
talion of red if s (reserves) was quartered. They
had just received their uniforms—a blue tunic
and trousers, very much like the dress worn by
the red French infantry, and were armed with
Martini-Peabody rifles—a quantity of these fire-
arms having been recently purchased from an
American firm.

The rooms in which the troops were lodged
had nothing to recommend them; they were
dirty and low, besides being overcrowded. The
officers' rooms adjoined the men's dormitories,
and were equally filthy.

A captain was drilling his company in one of
the passages, and was making the soldiers eo
through the motions as if they were volley-
firing. The moment the men had their rifles
to the shoulder he gave the word " fire;" there
was no time allowed for taking aim.

* a small coin, but often used as a general term to ex-
press money.

t Fortunately for the Turks in the present war, the
Russian cavalry has so far proved itself very inefficient.

The same fault I subsequently observed in a
battalion which was ordered to form a square
to resist cavalry. The band was placed in the
middle of the square, the men, so soon as the
music strnck up, commenced firing inde-
pendently—the object of each soldier being to
discharge liis rifle as rapidly as possible, the
officers encouraging them in this bad habit.*
If the same system is to be carried on in a war
with Russia, the Sultan's army in Anatolia will
soon be without ammunition.

CHAPTER XLIV.

Erzeroum was certainly the land of rumors,
or, to use a slang expression, " shaves." Short-
ly after returning to my quarters, the Pacha
called and said that he had received a telegram
to the effect, that England, Germany, and Tur-
key were to be allies in the coming struggle.

" Do you believe it?" I inquired.

"Well," replied the Pacha, " the Germans, it
is said, do not like the Russians, and Russia is
believed to be an ally of France."

"If Germany does not fight France soon,"
observed another Turk, "France will be too
strong for Germany."

"That is what I think," said the Pacha;
"Germany sees the nation that she has beaten
making every effort to become strong, so as to
revenge herself for her defeat. Bismarck will
not be likely to await that event."

A Turkish engineer officer now entered the
room. He informed us that a telegram had ar-
rived to say that that the English Parliament
had been opened.

"What will they say about Turkey?" con-
tinued the officer.

" Probably some more about the Bulgarian
atrocities," I replied; "but I really do not
know."

"You English people," observed the engi-
neer, " think that you know a great deal about
what is passing in foreign countries. You know
nothing at all about Turkey. Can the people
at your embassy speak Turkish?"

" One can."

" All our officials in England can speak En-
lisli," said the engineer. " Our newspapers say
that you receive your information from people
who are sent to travel for different English
journals, and that hardly any of these metTcan
speak Turkish: is that the case?" he continued:

" Our newspapers, as a rule, are very well in-
formed."

"They wrote a great many falsehoods about
us in Bulgaria," said the officer; " our journals
say that the writers were bribed by Russia."

" Englishmen do not sell their pens," I ob-
served; "this is a habit which is more likely to
exist in j^our country than in my own."

"If England, Austria, and ourselves fight
Russia," said the Pacha, "we shall annihilate
Russia. Do you think France will be against
us?"

" Probably not."

"I should be sorry if France were our foe,"
said the Pacha; " the French are brave soldiers,
and were our friends in the Crimea."

" Allah only knows what will happen," said
another of the- company; "we are in His
hands!"

I now mentioned to the Pacha that Moham-
med had come with me as a servant from
Tokat, and inquired if I might keep him during
my stay in Asia Minor?

" Is he a soldier?" said the Pacha.

"Yes."

"Well, there will be no fighting at present; he
can remain with you till you reach Batoum; a
battalion from Tokat is in that town, he can
join there.

Later in the day, I rode round the fortifica-
tions, accompanied by a Turkish officer. There
were nineteen small forts—those on the Kars
side being on an average 3000 yards from the
town, but those in the direction of Ardahan
only 1000.

On the south . mountain descends to within
a very short distance of Erzeroum. There is a
direct road from Van to Moush, and from that
town to the mountain which commands the
city. I learnt that no preparations had been
made to defend this height, but, Inshallah, so
soon as the winter was over, a redoubt will be
thrown up in that direction.

Two water-channels lead from this mountain
into Erzeroum; if an enemy once had pos-

* This actually happened in the first engagements in
the neighborhood or Deli Baba.

session of the eminence, he would be able to-
turn them off from the town. There are a few
wells in the city. The water supply is insuffi-
cient for the requirements of the population.

Erzeroum is entered by three posterns, known
by the name of the Stamboul, Ardahan, and
Kars gates. The roads from them lead to Ar-
dahan, Kars, Van, Erzingan, and Trebizond.
On the Van road, and about five miles from
Erzeroum, there is a position known as the Pa-
landukain defile; here it had been proposed to
build a fort—that is, so soon as the weather be-
came a little warmer. It was also the intention
to construct another at Gereguzek, eighteen
miles from Erzeroum, on the Ardahan road.

The officer now remarked that the Deve
Boinou Bogaz, five miles from Erzeroum, and
on the Kars road, would be a good place for a
fort, whilst redoubts, in his opinion, ought to
be thrown up at Kupri-Kui—a place nine hours
from Erzeroum, and where there is a branch
road to Bayazid. He added that some more
defences should be made at the Soghana defile,
which is twenty-four hours from Erzeroum. If
this were done, it would be very difficult for
the Russians to advance by that route.

The important positions on the Bayazid road
are at Deli Baba—a narrow gorge through high
mountains, and which pass, the Turk declared,
was impregnable—at the Taher Gedi, a five
hours' march from Deli Baba, and at Kara Ki-
lissa; after which the road is level to Bayazid.

The forts around Erzeroum were many of
them armed with bronze cannon, which'had
been manufactured at Constantinople. The
artillerymen had very little knowledge of these
pieces. The officers in command of the diff-
erent batteries were ignorant of the distances
to the different points within range of their
guns.

A million of liras had been spent in the con-
struction of the defences of Erzeroum; after
riding round them, it was difficult for me to
imagine what had been done with the money.*
As it is, this sum has been entirely wasted;
Erzeroum, if assailed by a resolute foe, would
not be able to offer any resistance—the easiest
points of attack being by the Ardahan or the
Van road.

Later in the day, I dined with our consul,
Mr. Zohrab. There was an Armenian present,
the Pacha's interpreter, and also Mr. Zohrab's
dragoman, a gentleman who I believe is of
Arab parentage. The conversation after dinner
turned upon the Kurds; the consul, lighting
his cigarette, remarked that there were several
curious anecdotes with reference to these wild
mountaineers.

On being pressed to relate one, Mr. Zohrab
began:

"Not long ago, and in the neighborhood of
Karpoot, a Kurdish robber attacked a Turkish
merchant. The robber was wounded. He fled
from the scene of his crime, and took refuge
in the house of a Kurd known as Miri Melimed,
a rich and powerful sheik, or chief. News of
the outrage reached Erzeroum. The Pacha
sent orders to the colonel of a regiment in the
neighborhood of the sheik's encampment to ar-
rest the robber. The chief soon heard of this.
He was able to dispose of several thousand
armed men. He was not at all inclined to sub-
mit. In the meantime the officer, who did not
know how to arrest the Kurd, wrote to the
shiek and invited him to dinner.

"The colonel had lately taken to himself a
young and beautiful bride," added the consul,
by way of a parenthesis. "Most of the officers,
in his regiment were married men. The day
fixed for the dinner arrived. At the appointed
hour the Sheik rode down to the encampment.
He was unaccompanied by any retainers; dis-
mounting at the door of the colonel's tent, he
passed the threshold. The officer received his
guest very courteously, gave him a magnificent
entertainment, and, after the dinner was over,
asked him to give up the Kurdish robber. To
this, however, the Kurd would not agree. ' He
has eaten bread and salt in my house,' was his
reply. 'I shall not surrender him.' The offi-
cer exerted all his powers of persuasion: finally,
discovering that the Kurd was obdurate, he
arose, and, taking a document from his pocket,
showed him that his orders w^ere to arrest the
Sheik himself sooner than that the robber
should be allowed to escape. ' So you
mean to arrest me?' said the Kurd. 'You
probably think that, because I am unat-
tended, I have no one at my beck and call.

* Since my stay at Erzeroum, the defences of that,
city have been strengthened.OIsT HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MLNOK.

43

Wait! If I have not returned to my encamp-
ment in three hours' time, my men will come
here to look for me; and I tell you what will
happen. I shall take the wife you love best, I
will revenge myself by dishonoring her before
your eyes. My men shall do the same to the
■wives of every officer in your regiment!' The
colonel was dreadfully alarmed at this," con-
tinued the consul. " He knew that the Sheik
was quite capable of carrying his threat into
effect, he trembled at the vast superiority of
numbers on the side of the Kurds. He went
down upon his knees, and implored the chief
for mercy. The other officers were equally
alarmed. They entreated the Kurd to depart.
The colonel, kneeling down on the ground, em-
braced the Sheik's feet as a sign of humility and
respect. The chief was inflexible," added the
speaker. "He stood motionless as a block of
stone. He made no remark. At last the col-
onel, goaded to a state of frenzy, sprang to his
feet and cried out to the chieftain, 4 You are
worse than a Christian! you are not a Mohamme-
dan! You have eaten bread and salt in my
house, and yet you wish to do me this great
wrong.' 4 And what did you wish to do to me?'
said the Kurd. ' You thought that I was without
my followers and unprotected. You wished to
take me a prisoner to Egin; and then what would
have been my fate? Perhaps I should have been
put in jail or hanged, as has been the lot of some
of my tribe. But,' added the Shiek, 'you
have thrown in my teeth the remark that I am
worse than a Christian! I wTill show you if I
am so. My followers will be here in a very
short time. They shall not harm your women.
To-morrow morning I will go with you to Kar-
poot ; but only on one condition—that we ride
there without any of our men. I will send for
my wife whom I love, and you shall take your
wife whom you love. They shall accompany
us. We will go together to the governor of the
town.' The next day they started," added Mr.
Zohrab. "The governor was first of all for
treating the Kurd very severely; but when the
news had been telegraphed to the authorities,
and all the facts of the case were known, an
order came to release the chief."

"From whom did you learn this story?" I
inquired.

4 4 From a Hungarian doctor who was attached
to the batlalion in question, and who was an
eye-witness of the greater part of the scheme."

44 Some of these Kurds are very chivalrous
fellows," remarked an Armenian. 44 However,
they are great robbers, and a curse to the
neighborhood. They often bribe the Pachas,"
he continued, 44 and when troops are sent to
force the mountaineers to submit, the general
in command, instead of surrounding the mount-
ain, or blocking up all the passes, will purposely
leave one or two defiles open. The Kurds then
escape, and the Pacha telegraphs back to Con-
stantinople that perfect order reigns throughout
the district under his command."

44 What will the Kurds do in the event of a
war with Russia?" I inquired.

44 They will go with the side which pays them
the most mone^," was the reply. 44 They are
many of them known to be in Russian pay, and
presents are continually being sent by the
authorities in the Caucasus to the chiefs in this
part of Anatolia."

CHAPTER XLY.

It was bitterly cold at Erzeroum. The ther-
mometer had fallen below zero. The half-clad
recruits could be seen running up and down in
front of their barracks, endeavoring to keep
themselves warm. There were at that time
about 12,000 troops in the town. The number
was continually changing, every week fresh
battalions of redifs arrived from the interior,
and then the older soldiers were marched off in
the direction of Bayazid, Kars, and Ardahan.

Wood was dear in the market. The inhabit-
ants had to trust to their tezek, the dried ex-
crement of cows, bulls, and oxen. The town
is in the form of a pentagon. Its appearance
from afar off has been compared by a traveler
to a ship of enormous size, raised by the waves
and thrown into a neglected bay. The main-
mast is an old tower, which stands out con-
spicuously amidst the mud-built houses.

Formerly, there used to be a great trade be-
tween this town and Persia. All the caravans
going from the latter country to Trebizond
pass through Erzeroum, and halt a few days to
dispose of some merchandise. Of late years,
a great deal of the Persian trade has found its

way via Khoi and Erivan to Tiflis. The cara-
vans between Persia and Erzeroum are not so
numerous as they wrere some eighteen years
ago. Two per cent, duty is charged upon all
merchandise going from Erzeroum to Persia,
and eight per cent, upon imported goods. Any
article manufactured in Erzeroum, and sent out
of the town without being marked with the
government stamp, as a sign that it has paid the
duty, is liable to be confiscated.

The following morning I was awoke by Is-
mail Pacha's head servant. It was bitterly
cold. He proceeded to make a little fire in the
stove. From time to time he looked at me in
an excited manner, then he would blowT the fire.
There was evidently something on his mind.

"What is it?" I inquired. 44 Have the Rus-
sians arrived?"

"No, Effendi, but the Pacha has hanged
himself, that is all!"

44 Not Ismail Pacha?" I exclaimed, at once
thinking of my hospitable old host.

44 No, Effendi, not Ismail, but a military
Pacha—a young man, only forty. Woe is me!
He has hanged himself; our Pacha has gone
to his house with all the other Pachas. The
body is quite cold; if the Effendi were to go
there, perhaps he might bring it to life again."

" I am not a Hakim," I said.

" Yes, Effendi, you are. Mohammed has
told me that you have some medicine."

44 Nonsense. But what made the Pacha hang
himself?"

44 Effendi, no one knows for certain. It may
have been owing to his wives; some people say
he has lost all his money by lending it to the
Sultan. Allah only knows! I should say his
wives had something to do with it."

" Why so?"

44 Because he was gay and handsome. His
wives were jealous. They were always scold-
ing him—that is, whenever he went to his
harem. If he had not been a military Pacha,
he might have abandoned his seraglio, but he
could not leave Erzeroum; the wives knew it,
they had him in their power. He was such a
nice gentleman!"

Later in the day I met the consul's dragoman.
He was of opinion that the Pacha had not com-
mitted suicide, but that some one in his. house
had saved him the trouble. This was the im-
pression of many people in the town.

44 Anyhow," continued my informant, 44 no
one will be the wiser. The poor fellow is in
the ground; coroners' inquests, or any sort of
judicial inquiry as to the causes of death, are
unknown in this part of the world."

Radford was still looking ill. I wished to
leave Erzeroum. It was necessary for me to
make up my mind as to what was to be done
with him. It is a six days' march from Erze-
roum to Trebizond: once there he might have
gone on board a vessel bound to Constanti-
nople. But on my proposing this plan, the poor
fellow so entreated to be allowed to continue
his journey, that rather reluctantly I consented.

When long, forced marches have to be made
through deep snow, an invalid is a source of
great inconvenience. In addition to this, I was
anything but well myself; a sudden chill had
left me with an attack of dysentery. The food
supplied us by the Pacha at Erzeroum con-
sisted of very rich dishes. It was not the best
thing for the digestive organs.

I was eager to commence the journey to Van;
however, if both man and master were to fall
ill on the march, it would be next to impossi-
ble to reach that city. When I announced to
Ismail Pacha my intention of starting for Yan,
he did his best to dissuade me from the under-
taking.

" It is a fourteen days' march," he observed.
" You will be in a country infested by Kurds,
many of whom are in Russia's pay.* The Rus-

* Major-General Macintosh, writing in 1854 on the
subiect, remarks that " in their desire to win over the
Kurds* the Russian authorities proceeded so far, that
on the pretext that they were a migratory people, they
claimed aright for them to cross the frontier for the
purpose of grazing their cattle; and that even in
Turkey they should still be looked upon as Russian sub-
jects, and have no imports to pay on that side." He
continues. " I have no doubt it is the interest of Russia
that the Kurds should to a certain degree be weakened
and scattered, though it has been her crafty policy,
while urging or encouraging Turkey in this course
(referring to attacks upon Kurds), to pretend to be their
champion and friend. She has pursued a similar course
among the Turkomans to the eastward of the Caspian;
and when in a contiguous part of Asia I heard of
dresses of honor having been given to the chiefs, at the
same time that the Shah of Persia was encouraged to
attack them from the south. The more these various
tribes of barbarians weaken themselves by their inces-
sant conflicts, the more they are paving the way for the
dominion of such a power as Russia."

sian consul in Erzeroum is aware that you are
here, he also knows that this government looks
upon you as an enemy—this I have heard from
the interpreter. Should the Kurds kill you,
your countrymen would very likely throw the
blame on us. Take my advice," said Ismail
Pacha; " do not go to Yan. There is nothing
to be seen in that town. Go straight to Kars,
you will then meet with no Kurds on the road."

But I had made up my mind to see Yan, and
the more particularly because I had been in-
formed by many of my Armenian acquaintances
that the bazaar there had been recently set on
lire by some Turkish troops, and that the Chris-
tians had been robbed of all their effects by the
Mussulman soldiers. The bazaar was repre-
sented to me as having been of gigantic dimen-
sions. The Armenian merchants in Yan were
said to have been reduced from a state of afflu-
ence to one of abject poverty.

I was anxious to ascertain for myself how far
this story wras true; and as it is perfectly im-
possible to trust to any evidence in the Easty
save to that of your own eyes, I had determined
to visit the seat of conflagration.

Another Pacha called upon me, Fezzee
Pacha (General Kohlmanc), the chief of the
staff in Erzeroum. He was a Hungarian gen-
tleman, and had formerly been engaged as one
of the leaders in a revolution in his own coun-
try. At that time he had been ordered to blow
up the bridge over the river at Buda-Pesth, but
had not done so. Shortly afterwards he en-
tered the army of the Sultan. He showed me
one of Kiepert's maps of Asia Minor, dated 1856,
but with numerous corrections, which had been
made subsequently by European officers in the
Turkish service. The Pacha had enlarged this
map by photography, he had then distributed
fac-similes of it to the officers under his com-
mand. He was a fine-looking old man, nearer
seventy than sixty, but upright as a lad of six-
teen, and with a pleasant, frank smile which
did one's heart good to witness.

The Turks, as a rule, are not in the habit of
smiling; indeed, Radford often used to expati-
ate on the extreme melancholy wiiich prevailed
throughout all the Mohammedan classes; his
favorite remark being "that they looked as if
they had found a sixpence and lost a half-
crown." General Kohlmann was an exception
to this rule. He had adopted the Mohamme-
dan religion, but this had not taken away from
him a keen sense of the ridiculous. I have
seldom found myself in pleasanter company
than that of the chief of the staff in Erzeroum.
He had been in Kars during the last siege, and
was personally acquainted with Sir Fenwick
Williams, Colonel Teesdale, and several other
Englishmen; besides having a great deal to say
about the gallantry and skill which had been
shown by the British officers during the in-
vestment of the fortress.

44 Shall you remain much longer in the Turk-
ish army?" I inquired. ^

441 am waiting here in hopes that there will
be a war with our enemies the Russians," said
the old general, " and if we can only beat them,
shall then return to Constantinople, and take
mv pension."

In the Pacha's opinion, Erzeroum was very
weak and could not stand a siege. He did not
apprehend any danger from an attack along the
Yan road, as there is a very strong position
near Meleskert, and one which the Russians
would not be able to take without enormous
loss. He did not believe that the Tzar's troops
were so strong* in the Caucasus as was gen-
erally supposed. If the general could have had
his way, he would at once have commenced the
war by an attack in that direction.

Later in the day I heard from an Armenian
that there were some curious caves in the neigh-
borhood of Erzeroum, and which no one had
ever explored. They were said to extend for
miles, and to pass under the different detached
forts. My informant declared that a priest who
had been in them for a short distance had said
that they contained gigantic halls, and seem-
ingly never-endins: passages.

I now asked the Pacha if I might undertake
the exploration of the cavern. It would be in-
teresting from a military point of view to know
where the passage ended. Should there be a
war, an attempt would be made by Russian
agents to blow up the batteries with gun-
powder.

Ismail Pacha readily gave his consent, and
at the same time ordered an officer of engineers

* Subsequent events have proved how right General
Kohlmann was in his opinion.44

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

to take some men with lanterns and pick-axes
to aid me in the task. The English consul, Mr.
Zohrab, and his two sons, expressed a wish to
join the party. It was arranged that we should
meet the following morning at the consulate,
and go from there to the caves.

CHAPTER XLVI.

When I arrived at Mr. Zohrab's residence, I
found that gentleman and his boys, two English-
looking lads with ruddy cheeks, prepared for a
journey to the centre of the earth, if the sub-
terranean passage would only lead us there;
and riding by a Turkish cemetery which is just
on the outskirts of Erzeroum, we proceeded
onward towards our destination—a hill a short
distance from the walls of the city.

A few melancholy-looking dogs were walking
about the dead men's home. A grave-digger
was busily engaged in making a hole in the
frost-bound ground with a pick. Further on a
small band of people, howling and making a

fxeat noise, showed that another follower of
slam had just been committed to his last abode.
Some of the monuments were surrounded by
wooden railings. Others had the names of the
-departed written on them in Arabic characters.
Every stone was upright, none of them being
placed horizontally on the ground, as is the cus-
tom with the Christians in the East.

Some soldiers were standing near a small
aperture in a neighboring hill. One of them
advanced as we rode up the slope, and said a
few words to the officer.

"We have arrived," said the latter, and, dis-
mounting, we followed his example.

The hole was not a large one. To enter the
cave it was necessary for each man to lie flat on
the ground, and gradually squeeze his body
through the aperture. The first to attempt the
passage was a thin Turk; he looked as if he had
never been properly fed, and was as emaciated
in appearance as some of the dogs about the
cemetery. Holding a candle in one hand and
a box of matches in the other, he disappeared
head-foremost down the cavity. I prepared to
follow, not without some misgivings, as I was
not at all sure whether there was room for me
to pass.

44 You will stick I" said the consul. And I
did stick.

However, by the aid of a friendly shove from
those behind, and a hand from the little Turk
in front, I succeeded in entering the cavern.
The others in turn followed. The passage be-
came higher; we could walk upright. There
were still no signs of any barrier; all of a sud-
den we arrived at a branch tunnel. Leaving
some soldiers to explore this passage, we con-
tinued onward, and presently came to a small
cavern to the left of our path, the latter being
now blocked up by some loose stones.

The soldiers began clearing away the debris.
The rest of the party sat down in the cave and
began to discuss the grotto. The officer was
of opinion that it had been made several hundred
years ago, as a refuge for the women and chil-
dren of Erzeroum, in the event of that city be-
ing attacked by an enemy.

4' Erzeroum is supposed to have been the site
of the Garden of Eden. Perhaps this is the
spot to which the serpent retired after the fall,"
remarked another of the explorers.

The officer shook his head; he did not believe
in serpents. He stuck to his original idea.

The soldiers by this time had succeeded in
-clearing away the detnHs. An aperture was ex-
posed to view. It was about the same width as
the one through which we had previously pass-
ed, and, on reaching the opposite side, several
tunnels were found, branching in different di-
rections.

Taking a ball of string, we attached it to a
stone by the entrance. Gradually unwinding
the cord, we advanced along one of the passages
—now crawling flat on our stomachs, and then
stumbling over heaps of rubbish—the consul,
who was rather blown by his exertions, remain-
ing in the first room, and solacing himself dur-
ing our absence with a cigarette.

Presently a candle went out. We had to
send for another. Two or three small caverns
were now passed. Finally we arrived at the
bare rock. There was no exit. We had ex-
plored the caves on one side.

Retracing our steps, we tried the other tun-
nels, but, after a very short time, found that
they too ended in the bare rock. There was
nothing more to be done, and, returning to the
open air, I soon afterwards reached my quarters.

My faith in Armenian stories was still more
shaken by the events of the morning. I had
been told that I should see gigantic caverns;
they had turned out to be small places, most of
them not more than twelve feet square.

The officer who accompanied me was intelli-
gent for a Turk, but he could not understand
our getting up so early and riding through deep
snow, merely to explore an old cave. Curiosity
about antiquities does not enter into a Turk's
composition. He lives for the present. What
has happened is finished and done with.

That evening I dined with a general of en-
gineers. Some officers on his staff and Fezzee
Pacha were amongst the guests. After dinner
the son of my host, a child of ten years of age,
came into the room, accompanied by an at-
tendant. The boy was dressed in a cadet's uni-
form, and had a very pleasant cast of counte-
nance.

"He is a pretty boy," I remarked to his
father.

" Mashallah!" interrupted the old Hungarian.
" Say Mashallah," he added, " or else the father
will be afraid of the evil eye! You have no
idea how superstitious the Turks are," contin-
ued the speaker, in French; "if you had not
said Mashallah, and subsequently anything had
happened to the child, they would then have
declared that it was owing to you."

The engineer-general was much surprised to
learn that almost every Englishman could read
and write, and would not believe me till the
Hungarian had corroborated my statement.

"It is wonderful!" exclaimed our host.
"Only think! A whole nation of Hodjas—
schoolmasters! No wonder that the English
people are so clever. It would never do for us
Turks," he added.

" Why not?"

" Because it would make our poor people
dissatisfied to find that they knew as much as
their masters, but were only receiving a
servant's wages. Does it not make your lower
orders dissatisfied?" he inquired.

"No, because their masters know something
beyond reading and writing."

" You English are a marvelous nation," said
the Pacha; "but, I should not be surprised if
one day you had a revolution. Why, some of
our Pachas cannot write, and yet they get on
very well. All your laborers being able to read
and write—this is a miracle."

I said farewell to my host, and to our hospit-
able consul, who had done his best to dissuade
me from the journey. The following morning
we started for Van.

It was a windy day. The postman, who was
carrying the Van letter-bag, did not much
fancy the march.

"It will be all right for a few hours," he re-
marked; " but if it is like this to-morrow, we
shall not be able to pass the mountains."

I now learnt that, owing to the wind and
snow, the track was sometimes blocked for
days together, the path too was slippery, and
there were precipices on either side.

Presently we met a caravan of camels from
Persia—the huge beasts were covered with
icicles, owing to the extreme cold. The men
who accompanied the caravan were clad in
sheepskins, and wore high black hats. The
track was very narrow, not being more than
twelve inches broad; on either side of it there
were five feet of snow. The camels had to make
way for the postman, who preceded us. With
a crack from his whip, he sent the foremost of
them off the track, and breast-deep in the drift.
The other camels, more than a hundred in
number, followed in their leader's wake.
There was one mule left in the path; on ap-
proaching, we found that he bore two ladies.
They were the wives of the Persian merchant,
and were seated in large baskets—a pannier
being slung on either side of their animals.

The postman proved to be more chivalrous
than I expected. Spurring his horse, he made
his animal leave the track. Man and steed
were half buried in the snow. We followed
him. The mule was now able to pass with the
ladies, who seemed much alarmed lest their
quadrupeds should stumble. The women
appeared to be very uncomfortable in their
conveyance. One of them was much heavier
than the other, the Persian ^had balanced her
weight by putting a huge stone in the pannier
containing his thinner wife. Some parts of the
road along which they had come led by the
side of a precipice. It must have been very
disagreeable for the ladies to have sat still in
their baskets, and have looked down the abyss,

with nothing save the sure-footedness of their
animal to insure them against eternity.

This caravan had come from Khoi and
Bayazid—the owner reported that the roads
were in a dreadful state. He had been twenty
days performing the journey. We halted that
evening at an Armenian! village called Herteff,
containing about ninety houses, and a short
distance from Kupri Kui. I was not sorry to
reach a resting-place. My illness had weakened
me. I had discovered this when we were
obliged to wade on foot through the snow, and
was now as great a cripple as Radford had
been when on the road to Erzeroum.

The owner of the house where we stopped
was not a cleanly object. His domicile was as
dirty as his person. His wife and children
were manufacturing some tezek for fuel in one
of the two rooms the house contained; this
room was given over for the use of my party
and self. It was bitterly cold outside. To
keep the habitation tolerably warm, the owner
had blocked up a hole in the roof, used as
ventilator, chimney, and window. The smell
of the tezek, and the ammonia arising from the
horses and cattle, was excessively disagreeable.
There was no other accommodation to be ob-
tained. Mohammed presently informed me
that two merchants had been waiting three days
in the village. They wished to go to Van, and
had made several attempts to cross the mount-
ain, but in vain.

The wife of the Armenian host, and her
children, were not at all coy about showing
their faces—at least so much of them as the dirt
did not hide from our view. They squatted
round my English servant, who was making tea,
and watched his proceedings with great interest.
Now the woman, sticking her filthy fingers into
the basin, took out a lump of sugar; then, put-
ting it in turn into*each of her children's mouths,
she had a suck herself. " Give it me!" sudden-
ly exclaimed her husband. The lady did not
show any signs of readiness to surrender the
prize. The man sprang to his feet; thrusting a
finger and thumb into the mouth of his help-
mate, at the same time clasping her tightly
round the throat with the other hand, so as to
avoid being bitten, he extracted the delicacy.
Holding the sweet morsel high in the air, he
displayed the treasure to the assembled guests;
then, greatly to the woman's indignation, he
placed it within his own jaws.

CHAPTER XLVII.

In the next room, which was only separated
from us by a railing about three feet high, there
were buffaloes, cows, calves and pigeons, be-
sides the relatives of the Armenian, the postman
and a Kurd. The latter individual had a won-
derful turban in the shape of a bonnet on his
head. It was made of blue satin, and adorned
with gold thread. He was evidently very proud
of this attire, and told the Armenian that he
had purchased it at Erzeroum, and that, when
he had finished wearing the turban, he should
give it to his favorite wife.

Presently an Armenian woman brought in a
wooden tray, on which were several of the
cakes which are used as bread by the inhabitants,
and some oily soup.

The Kurd, postman and Armenians, squatting
round the dishes, devoured the contents with
rapidity.

Mohammed was lying in a corner of my
room; from time to time a groan escaped his
lips. I discovered that he was suffering from
rheumatism. Radford had put a mustard plas-
ter on him by way of alleviating the pain. Mo-
hammed had been told that he was to keep it
on all night. The mustard was rapidly creating
a blister.

"Atech—fire!" said the Turk, pointing to
his back.

"Yes," said Radford. " Hottish—I should
say it was. It will be better presently."

" Turkish is very like English, sir," observed
my man to me. "You see that he says it is
4 hottish.'"

"Nonsense!" I replied. "He says 'atech—
fire.'"

" 'Atech,' or 'hottish,' it don't make much
difference, sir; the plaster is raising a beautiful
blister. I should not be surprised if Moham-
med left off complaining about his haches and
pains after this. I don't think that as how any
other Turks will ask me to doctor them again 1"

Radford was wrong. The sound of Moham-
med's groans attracted the Kurd's attention;
accompanied by the Armenian, he came to theON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

45

side of the sufferer. They minutely inspected
the plaster.

"It is a wonder," said the Kurd. "The
plaster is o/Q, but Mohammed says he is on
fire! Where has the Frank put the flames? I
should like a plaster too." Turning to Radford,
he held out his hand for one.

" Plasters are for sick people, not for men in
in a good state of health," I observed.

"But I am not well," said the Kurd.

" What is the matter with you ?"

" I have a pain here ;" taking off his slipper,
he showed the remains of an old frost bite.
"The cold did this," he added, "the fire
there," pointing to the wet paper, " will put it
right again."

I had considerable difficulty in explaining to
the man that the plaster in question would be a
useless remedy.

The following morning the wind blew harder
than before. The mountain which barred our
progress was entirely hid from view in what
seemed to be a whirlwind of snowy particles.
The cold, too, was intense. The thermometer
was siill several degrees below zero.

" It is no good starting," said the postman,
coming to me; " to-day the sun does not shower
its rays upon our destiny. Fortune is against
"us. We must wait here the till wind goes
down."

The two merchants had made another attempt
to ascend the mountain a little before daybreak.
They had found it impossible to cross the
passes. The track was hid from their view by
the snow. They were half blinded by the flakes
which the wind carried with it in its course.

There was nothing to be done but to wrait
patiently. In conversation with a Turkish
lieutenant, I discovered that it would be possi-
ble to reach Bayazid and from Bayazid there
was a road to Yan. It would be a much longer
route than the one which led direct from Erze-
roum to Yan.

The officer interrupted me iu my reflections,
and proposed that we should go to Bayazid.

" Who knows," he continued, " how long we
may have to wait here? The mountain is some-
times impassable for two or three weeks at a
time; and, besides this, the smell in this room
is enough to poison any one. These Christians
do stink," he added, pointing to my Armenian
host and hostess, who, begrimed with dirt,
were squatting in a corner—the woman engaged
in making some cake with flour and water, and
the man in looking for what it is not necessary
to mention amidst his clothes.

The Russian moujik is not a sweet animal; a
Souakim Arab, with hair piled up two feet above
his head, and covered with liquid fat, is an
equally unpleasant companion; but either of
these gentlemen would have smelt like Row-
land's Macassar oil in comparison with my Ar-
menian host, who, apparently, had no ideas be-
yond that of manufacturing fuel from cows'
dung. His conversation was entirely engrossed
with this subject. It was also an important topic
with the rest of his family, who were all long-
ing for the frost to go, so as to commence
making the article in question on a large scale.

Wood is very dear in these parts. The in-
habitants would die if they had not a supply of
fuel. It is not surprising that they take a con-
siderable interest in their tezek. But to hear
this subject discussed from morning to night,
and in a room with an atmosphere like a sewer
—besides being ill at the time—was a little an-
noying to my senses. I made up my mind that,
if the weather did not improve in the course of
the next twenty-four hours, I would continue
my journey towards Bayazid.

The lieutenant would accompany me in that
direction. He was a very cheery little fellow,
and not at all disposed to hide his own lights
beneath a bushel. He had been a lieutenant
about six years, and took an opportunity to
mention to me this fact. He knew that I had
stayed with Ismail Pacha inErzeroum, and was
in hopes that I would write to the governor,
and casually mention his, the lieutenant's, name
as a gallant and exceedingly efficient officer.

There was no improvement in the weather.
The following morning I left Herteff for Baya-
zid—the postman remaining behind with the
letters.	§

We crossed the Araxes on the ice. The river
was said to be only two feet deep. Kupri Kui
was about one mile from our track. Here there
is a bridge over the stream, which is about
thirty yards wide, besides being deep. Our \
track was firm and level. There were no
mountains to cross. Every now and then we
passed by villages; they all contained soldiers,

and, so far as I could learn, there were about
8,000 troops echeloned between Erzeroum and
Bayazid.

After a seven hours' march, we halted at
Yusueri, an Armenian village. From here it
was a three hours' ride to Deli Baba, a cele-
brated gorge or mountain pass, and the most
important place, from a military point of view,
on the road to the Russian frontier.

The women in the house where I was lodged
were busily engaged in making some earthen-
ware jars. Taking some cla}r from the soil,
they knead it for several hours with their fin-
gers, and then form it into the shape they re-
quire. In every house there is a hole left in the
floor, which is used as an oven. The women
place the jars in this receptacle, and filling the
space between them with tezek, set fire to it.
They afterwards color the pottery by some pro-
cess of which I am ignorant. The result is an
extremely well made and serviceable article, in
which they keep their corn, flour, and house-
hold goods.

Now we came to the famous pass of Deli
Baba. It is about a quarter of a mile long.
High and precipitous rocks are on either hand,
and the gorge is not more than forty yards wide
at the exit from the defile towards Bayazid. It
is a spot where a thousand resolute men, well
supplied wTith ammunition, might keep at de-
fiance a force of a hundred times their number.
However, in spite of the extreme importance
of the position, nothing had been done to
strengthen any part of it.

"We are going to throw up earthworks, and
place some batteries here when the winter is
over," was the reply of the lieutenant, when I
interrogated him on this subject.

" When the winter is over." "Not to-day,
to-morrowthis is the stereotyped answer which
a Turk has always at the tip of his tongue.
Until the Sultan's subjects can shake off the
apathy which prevails throughout the empire,
it will be difficult for them to hold their own
against other nations.

CHAPTER XLYIII.

Our track led over some low hills. The
ground was covered with deep snow. We had
to dismount, and struggle as best we could
through the treacherous soil. The sun shone
bright above our heads; the reflection from the
white surface at our feet was blinding in the
extreme. We staggered about, and followed
in each other's track, like a number of drunken
men, and after eight' hours' incessant toil
reached Daha, a Kurdish village.

We were here informed that the road to
Bayazid had been blocked for eight days; and
that the village was full of caravans which had
made daily attempts to force a passage forward.
All the inhabitants were going to turn out at
daybreak on the following day. They intend-
ed, if possible, to clear a track from Daha to
the next village.

The daughter of my host took a great deal
of interest in her father's guests. She was a
tall, fine-looking girl, with a high cone-shaped
head-dress of black silk. A quantity of gold
spangles were fastened to this covering. A red
jacket and loose white trousers enveloped her
limbs and body, her feet wrere thrust in some
white slippers. If only she had been properly
washed, she would have been a very attractive-
looking young lady. But soap and water were
evidently strangers to the Kurd's dwelling, if I
might judge by the surprise the girl evinced
when Radford commenced washing his pans
after he had cooked my dinner.

" So you wash the dishes and pans in your
country?" she remarked.

"Yes."

" But it gives a great deal of trouble," ob-
served the girl; " and it does not make the din-
ner taste any better."

The voice of her father on the outside of the
dwelling made the young lady aware that she
would probably receive a scolding if she was
found talking to a European. Sticking her
fingers into a tin box, and seizing a handful of
biscuits, she ran into the stable.

" She is very dirty," observed Mohammed,
who had overheard the conversation; "but,
for all that, if she were well washed, she would
fetch a good price as a wife for some Bey in
Constantinople. It is a pity that you are not
a follower of Islam, Effendi," continued my
servant; "she is tall, she would make a good
wife for you."

I now learnt that certain Turkish merchants

were in the habit of visiting the Kurd district
in the summer months. If they meet with a
pretty girl, they buy her from her parents, and
then, taking the young lady to Constantinople,
make her go through a course of Turkish baths,
and feed her well. Under this regime, the girl's
complexion improves. She will command a
considerable price as an addition to the seraglio
of some magnate or Other. If she succeeds in
gaining the favor of her lord, she does not for-
get the relatives at home, but sends them money
and presents, besides interesting herself for the
advancement of her brothers and other rela-
tions. The result of this is, that a Kurd has
no objection to part with his pretty daughter.
If she is well sold at Constantinople, this is
looked upon, by the 3roung lady's family, as
rather a feather in their cap than otherwise. /

" Rich men generally get pretty wives," said /
Mohammed, as he concluded, giving me this
information. " Is it the same in your country,
Effendi?"

" Occasionally," I replied, "but not always.
The girls are sometimes allowed to choose for
themselves. There are instances when they
prefer a poor man to a rich one."

"What do their fathers say to this?" said
Mohammed. "Do they not beat their daugh-
ters if they do not like the rich man?"

"No."

" I cannot understand that," said Mohammed.
"If I had a daughter, and she might marry a
rich man, but she preferred a poor man, I
should whip the girl till she altered her mind!"

The owner of the house entered the room.
He was accompanied by three of his sons, all
fine-looking lads. They were dressed in green
serge, and in a costume which somewhat re-
sembled that worn by the foresters in the opera
of " Freischutz." Several daggers and pistols
were stuck in their sashes, enormous orange-
colored turbans adorned their heads. They
squatted down beside the Imaum of the village
—a thin man dressed in a white sheet.

The father rose from the divan, and, standing
before me, pointed to his tooth.

" What is the matter with it!" I inquired in
Turkish—a language which is general^ under-
stood by every Kurd, though few of them speak
it well.

"It aches; I have heard, Effendi, of your
great skill as a hakim (doctor)," continued the
man. "Mohammed has told me how you set
his shoulder on fire with a piece of wet paper.
This is very wonderful, perhaps you could cure
my tooth."

Now it is one thing to be able to prescribe a
mustard plaster, it is another to be called upon
to act as a dentist. However, the Kurd's
children were all expectant. They evidently
believed that if I put a mustard plaster on their
parent's tooth that this would relieve him im-
mediately.

Mohammed was also of this opinion. He
wTent through a sort of pantomimic perform-
ance in the corner of the room, suggestive of
the sufferings which he had undergone, and of
the subsequent benefit which he had received.

A thought occurred to me. I remembered
that, three years before, my servant Radford
had extracted the tooth of a u aid servant in a
country house in Norfolk. Why should he not
extract the Kurd's tooth? And if he were able
to do so, would not my reputation as a hakim
be higher than ever amidst the inhabitants of
Kurdistan?

" I am not a hakim for teeth," I remarked to
the patient. " I am a hakim for the stomach,
which is the nobler and more important por-
tion of a man's body."

The Imaum and the Kurd's children made a
sign of assent to this: the Kurd himself (Jid not
seem to see it.

"You are in my house," he said. "You
have accepted my hospitality—cure my tooth!"1

" Well," I continued, "I have a servant with
me; he is a hakim for teeth. If you like he
shall look in your mouth."

" By all means!" said the Kurd.

In a"few minutes a servant of my host arrived,
leading Radford by the sleeve of his coat.

"Do you want me, sir?" inquired Radford,
touching his cap. " This dirty chap," pointing
to the man who had brought him to the room,
"came into the place where I was a cooking,
laid hold of me with his dirty fingers, and
without saying a word led me here!"

" Yes," I said; "this gentleman," pointing
to the old Kurd, "has something the matter
with one of his teeth. Look at it."

My servant, without moving a muscle of his
countenance, seized the patient by the nose with46

OIST HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

the fingers of one band; then, thrusting a finger
of the other into the sufferer's mouth, looked
well down the gaping orifice

w It had better come out: but it is very tight
in his 'ead," remarked my man. "If I only
had a pair of champagne nippers, I would have
it out in a trice."

"Could not you pull it out with a piece of
string?"

"No, sir; could not get a purchase on it;"
and with that remark my servant released the
Kurd's head.

" What does he say?" said the sufferer, rather
alarmed at our conversation in a language un-
known to him, and the more particularly at the
grave demeanor of my servant.

" He says that the tooth had better be ex-
tracted."

"Will it hurt much?" inquired the Kurd, ex-
citedly.

" Yes, a good deal."

This observation of mine appeared to afford
great satisfaction to Imaum and the Kurd's
children.

" Have it out!" they all cried.

But their parent did not see the matter from
his sons' point of view. He remarked in an in-
dignant tone of voice:

" Silence!"

Then, turning to me, he inquired if I could
not give him some medicine for his stomach.

"But your tooth hurts you, not your stom-
ach," I observed.

" Yes," replied the man, " but for all that, I
should like some medicine."

Taking some pills from my medicine-chest, I
gave them to him. The old man, putting three
pills in his mouth, commenced chewing them
with great gusto.

"My tooth is better already," he remarked,
and in a few minutes prepared to leave the
room, accompanied by his sons and the Imaum.
The latter was very much disappointed that
my host's tooth had not been operated upon.

" If it had been my tooth, I should have had
it out," he observed tome sottovoce; "but he
is afraid."

The Kurd overheard the remark.

"You would have donevnothing of the kind."
lie replied. "You would have swallowed the
medicine like me!"—and a whelping cry from a
dog outside the door announced to us that the
old gentleman had vented his bile on the ribs of
the animal in question.

CHAPTER XLIX.

On the morrow we were up before daybreak,
and not only ourselves, but almost all the male
inhabitants of the village. They had turnecf out,
some on horseback and others with spades and
shovels, to try and force a passage through the
snow. In addition to these men there were two
caravans, comprising between them over 200
camels, and accompanied by fifty Persians. It
was very cold. The lieutenant was doubtful
whether we should succeed in clearing a way
before us. According to the Kurd, there were
still six feet of snow in many places along the
track.

Just as we were leaving Daha, the eldest son
of my host approached and apologized for the
absence of his father. There was evidently
something on the lad's mind, he hesitated as he
said " Good-bye."

" Is there anything I can do for you?" I ob-
served

"Yes, Effendi, there is," said the boy, de-
lighted at the ice being thus broken for him.
" But I am afraid to ask for it."

I now began to be a little alarmed, thinking
that possibly the lad had set bis heart on pos-
sessing my little express rifle or revolver, both
of which he had much admired on the previous
evening.

" What is it?"

" Effendi," replied the boy, " I know that it
is contrary to our ideas of hospitality for a host
to ask for a present from a guest; but in this
case my father-"

" What does he want?" I remarked, a little
hastily, as it was anything but agreeable sitting
still in the cold.

" He was so well cleaned last evening," con-
tinued the lad; "he has never been so well
cleaned before! He would like you to give him
some more of that wonderful medicine."

All the luggage Was on the pack-horses. But
the boy so entreated me to comply with his re-
quest that I could not refuse. Unpacking my
bag* I gave him a box of pills. The lad's face

became radiant with delight. Taking off the
lid, he took out a couple and ate them on the
spot. Then, touching his head with my hand,
he hurried off in another direction.

"He is a rogue," said Mohammed, chuck-
ling. " He does not want the medicine for his
father. It is for himself. He wants to set up
as a hakim in the village. When once it is
known that you have given him some medicine,
he will be a person of great importance in the
neighborhood."

Presently we came to a place where the
camels, which were in the van of our party, had
come to a halt. One of the animals had almost
disappeared in a snow-drift, nothing save his
longaeck could be seen. The men coaxed and
whipped their unruly beasts, all was to no pur-
pose, they wTould not move a step.

I thought that we should "have to dig out the
road with shovels. However, the Kurd who
directed the operations did not resort to this
measure. Ordering one of the Persians to make
his camels retire about 200 yards, the Kurd
called twenty of the best mounted of the vil-
lagers to his side, then striking his horse and
shouting wildly, he galloped along the track and
charged the drift. In a second or two noth-
ing could be seen but the head of the rider, his
steed was entirely hidden from our view. After
a few struggles the man backed the animal out
of the snow, having made a hole in it some
twenty feet long by four wide. The next
horseman rode at the place, like his leader.
Each Kurd followed in succession. They final-
ly forced a passage.

It was a wild sight to witness—these Kurds
in their quaint head-dresses, and on strong,
fine-looking steeds of Turkoman breed, many
of them quite sixteen hands high, charging the
snow-drifts, yelling and invoking Allah—the
Persians, phlegmatic and still, seemingly not
caring a straw about the matter—the lieutenant
encouraging the Kurds by cries and gesticula-
tions, but having too great a regard for his own
safety to gallop at the ridges—and the leading
horseman now far in front, his horse apparently
swimming through the snow as he slowly burst
the barrier.

It was hard work even following in the steps
of the Kurds. If a horse or camel deviated a
hair's breadth from the line marked out, he
would be often buried in a drift, and a long
time be wasted in extricating him.

The track led over a succession of rising
ground until we reached Zedhane, an Arme-
nian village with about thirty houses.

We were close to the village of Molla Sulei-
man, and were not far from Toprak Kale—a
town in which a sanguinary drama had been
enacted but a very few months previous. I
wili relate the story as it has been told me by an
eye-witness of part of the scene.

Four years ago a Kurd was Caimacan at
Toprak Kale. His grandfather had been a
sort of king at Bayazid; the family being well
off and having relatives married to some mag-
nates in Stamboul, had considerable influence
in the district. However, many complaints had
been made about the conduct of this Caimacan.
He was removed from his post. It was given
to a Circassian. This gave rise to a feud be-
tween the ex and the new governors—the Kurd
often vowing vengeance against his newly-ap-
pointed successor. Shortly before my inform-
ant's visit to Toprak Kale, the Kurd's father
had died. His family was in mourning.

An Armenian peasant, who resided in Toprak
Kale, was about to be married. It is the cus-
tom amongst the Christians in this part of Asia
Minor, when the wedding ceremony is conclud-
edx to beat drums, hire a band of w7hat they call
musicians, and fire guns in the air, as a sign of
general rejoicing.

The peasant, "knowing that the Kurd's father
had recently died, went to the ex-Caimacan,
and asked his permission for the wedding to
take place, as it would be impossible to have it
without the music, gun-firing, &c.

The Kurd consented, provided that he re-
ceived a present, this the Armenian gladly
promised to give. The marriage ceremony be-
gan, but when the Armenians in Toprak Kale
commenced beating drums, &c., the noise
reached the Kurd's ear. She hastened to her
son, asked him how he could allow people
to insult his father's memory, and insisted
that he should instantly put a stop to the pro-
ceedings.

The son allowred himself to be persuaded, and
sent some servants, who broke in the heads of
the drums. The peasant wTas very indignant.
He at once proceeded to the Circassian, the

actual Caimacan, and related everything that
had happened!

" Did the Kurd accept a present from you?"
inquired the governor.

" Yes."

" Very well," continued the Caimacan, "go
back to your house. My servants shall accom-
pany you. Make more noise than before. Get
more drums; beat them harder than ever, and
do not spare your powder. I will show the peo-
ple in Toprak Kale who is Caimacan—the Kurd
or myself."

This was done. When it came to the ears of
the Kurd's mother, she told him that he must
be revenged on the foe, or his father's bones
would not be able to rest in peace in the tomb.
The Kurd consented. That evening he went
to the Caimacan's house, accompanied by two
of his brothers, and inquired of a servant where
his master, was.

" In the harem," replied the attendant, much
surprised at so late a visit on the part of the
ex-Caimacan.

" Go and tell him I am here," said the Kurd,
then, without waiting for an answer, he
pushed aside the man, and tried to force a
way into the apartment reserved for the Cir-
cassian's wives. The governor was in bed at
the time. He heard the noise: snatching his
sword fiom the sheath, he rushed to the en-
trance. The Kurd fired at him with a pistol,
the ball going through the Circassian's shoul-
der; but the latter was able to cut down his
foe. The Kurd's relatives now rushed upon
the governor. He called loudly for assistance;
his brother, who slept in another room, hur-
ried to the rescue, the result of the encounter
being that three of the opponents were killed,
whilst the Circassian governor was left des-
perately wounded on the field of battle.

In the meantime, hundreds of Kurds, who
had heard of the disturbance, came down from
the adjacent mountain. They vowed that they
would kill every Circassian in the neighbor-
hood. The Circassians trooped into Toprak
Kale, and swore that they would exterminate
the Kurds.

Fortunately, the gentleman who related this
story to me was able to dispatch a mounted
Armenian to the governor at Bayazid asking
him to send some troops to the scene of the
disturbance. The soldiers arrived in time to
prevent a battle royal between the two factions.
This probably would have ended in the anni-
hilation of every Kurd and Circassian in the
district, neither side being inclined to grant
any quarter to its foe.

We rode through Molla Suleiman. All the
houses in this village were filled with soldiery.
On emerging into "the open country, I found
that the path in front of us was blocked by a
caravan coming from Persia. A pond was on
the right hand side of the path. The leading
camel-driver led his animals along the frozen
water, so as to avoid a collision with our party.
He miscalculated the thickness of the ice; a
loud splash made us aware that it had given way
beneath the camels. Five of the huge beasts
were sprawling in the water, here about five
feet deep: their packs, containing timbaki,
Persian tobacco, became dripping wet. The
animals, frightened at the breaking of the ice,
lay down on all fours. They refused to get
up, in spite of the cries and the whips of their
drivers.

CHAPTER L.

We met with some Armenian lads riding
calves, and driving others before them, the
driven animals carrying pack-saddles, which
were laden with sacks of corn, The Christians
in this district make use of their cattle as beasts
of burden. It is not at all an uncommon sight
to see Armenians, man and wife, riding to
market on cows and oxen. Buffaloes are much
in request with the inhabitants, on account of
the great strength of these animals. Some of the
richer Christians possess from twenty to thirty
buffaloes, two of which are considered a fair
price for a girl—it being the custom of the
poorer Armenians in certain districts, to receive
money from their sons-in-law, and seldom, if
ever, give any dowry to their daughters. On
my remarking this one day, when in conversa-
tion with a Christian, the latter replied:

" Our daughters are our maid-servants, when
they marry we lose their services. It is quite
right that the husband should compensate us
for our loss. Europeans educate their girls
very well, but the latter are utterly useless asON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

47

cooks or sweepers. When they marry, the
fathers lose nothing, but, on the contrary, gain,
as they have no longer to pay for their daugh-
ters' maintenance or clothes. It is quite proper
that you should give a husband something
when he saddles himself with a useless incum-
brance; and you have no right to find fault with
us for our system."

Presently we met a dervish; his long black
hair was streaming below his waist; he bran-
dished a knotted stick. The fellow looked very
hard at us, as if he were of the opinion that we
ought to leave the track, and let our horses sink
into the snow-drift so as to enable him to pass.
The lieutenant did not see it in this light. This
officer was a little man, but he had a tremendous
voice, which sounded as if it came from the
very bottom of his stomach. He roared at the
dervish; the latter, who was greatly alarmed,
sprang on one side into the snow. Nothing but
his head and face were visible—his dark eyes
glared fiercely at the giaours as we rode past.

Kara Kilissa came in sight. It is a large vil-
lage; every house was crammed wTith soldiers.
It was impossible to obtain any accommodation.
We rode 011 towards Kaize *Kuy, another Ar-
menian hamlet. The track descended for a few
yards, and then ascended precipitously. I
thought that we were in a gully. However,
the Zaptieh and his horse floundering in some
water made me aware that we were crossing a
frozen stream, and that the ice had given way.
It was very cold; the man was wet from head
to foot; in a minute or two he looked like one
gigantic icicle. Pushing on as rapidly as pos-
sible, we reached our quarters for the night.

The streams which traverse the tracks in
many parts of Anatolia are a source of constant
annoyance to travelers during the winter. The
water becomes frozen; snow falls; it covers
the glassy surface, and in time fills the space be-
tween the banks. There is nothing to warn the
wayfarer that he is leaving the Track, till he
suddenly finds himself upon the ice; a horse-
man is fortunate if it is strong enough to bear
him.

Now we saw some Persian women sitting
cross-legged on their horses like the men. Some
of these ladies were mothers. They carried
their children slung in handkerchiefs round
their necks. In a short time I came to their vil-
lage, one amongst several others which are
scattered about in this part of Turkey. The
houses were clean inside, and, in this respect,
a great improvement upon those inhabited by
the Kurds. The floors were covered with very
thick rugs made by the wives of the proprie-
tors. I was informed that the people in the
district send their manufactures to Erzeroum.

The inhabitants formerly lived in the neigh-
borhood of Erivan. When the Russians invaded
Persia, conquered the Shah, and annexed a part
of Persian soil, many of the vanquished deter-
mined not to remain under the Muscovite yoke.
Leaving their houses, they crossed the frontier
and settled in Turkey. The Sultan gave them
land. They expressed themselves as being
much happier under their present rulers than
their relatives who are Russian subjects. The
latter would be delighted to pass the border-
line and join their countrymen in Anatolia: this
the Muscovite authorities do not allow.
"Once a Russian, always a Russian," is the an-
swer given to the Persians on this question.

Our track led us along the right bank of the
Murad, here about seventy yards wide. We
came to a bridge which spans the river—the
road on the opposite side leading in the direc-
tion of Van. We did not cross the structure.

Soon Diyadin was reached. Here there were
two squadrons of cavalry, besides infantry.
The commandant, in spite of the rumors of
peace which had been telegraphed from Con-
stantinople, was daily expecting an outbreak of
hostilities. The Russians, according to him,
had concentrated a large force of Cossacks in
the neighborhood of Erivan. It was believed
that the war would commence by an attack
upon Bayazid.

We rode for an hour over a low mountain
ridge, and then entered a vast plain girt round
by sloping heights. On our right front lay
Persia. On my bridel hand I could see the ter-
ritory of the Tzar. The mighty Ararat is in
front of us. and stretches upwards into the
realms of space, its lofty crest hidden in some
vaporous clouds.

It was extremely cold. A bright sun poured
its rays down upon our heads. The golden orb
gave out no warmth, but it half blinded us with
its splendor.

The people in this district suffer very much

from ophthalmia: a traveler rarely finds himself
in a house where one of the inmates is not
laboring under this complaint.

The plain narrows. A broad lake of water
is on our left. To our right front and amidst
the rocks lies the little town of Bayazid. The
ruins of an old castle are in the fields below.
The track begins to ascend. It winds higher
and higher amidst the crags. A few houses are
passed, and the barracks which contain two
battalions of infantry. We come to the Pacha's
residence. Dismounting, I proceeded to pay
that official a visit.

He had been for some time in Egypt, and
spoke Arabic very fairly, having great pleasure
in showing off his proficiency in this language
to the officers of his household.

I learnt that, six weeks previous to my ar-
rival, the Russian authorities in Daghestan had
ordered a levy of troops to be made amidst the
inhabitants. The latter declared that they were
Mohammedans, and said they did not wish to
fight against their Lord, the Commander of the
Faithful. They added that the Tzar formerly
had promised that those men who wished might
leave Russia with their wives and children, and
settle on Turkish soil; they asked for this per-
mission for themselves.

"However," continued the Pacha, "the Rus-
sian authorities would not allow them to leave
the country. Cossacks were sent to the dietrict
in question, and 400 people—amongst them
women and children—were shot down and
beaten to death!"

Bayazid is only a twelve hours' march from
Erivan, the frontier town of Russia. There is
a level road between these two stations. The
Russians had a large artillery force in Erivan,
and there were only two mountain guns in
Bayazid. The Turkish officers were convinced
that if an attack were made upon Bayazid, they
would be unable to offer any effectual oppo-
sition. In their opinion it would be better for
them to retire upon Kara Kilissa and Deli Baba,
and make a stand at these points.

Major-General Macintosh, when writing about
Kurdistan during the time of the Crimean War,
remarks that he does not think there is a place
of greater importance than Bayazid, in a mil-
itary point of view, in the whole of Western
Asia. There is a continuous descent along
the banks of the Euphrates to the Persian Gulf;
but as this great valley conducts through the
range of Mount Tauras into Syria, its value to
Russia, on this account alone, must be ob-
vious. It is much nearer to her present
frontier, and much more accessible than
Erzeroum, which lies on the western branch
of the Euphrates; and should the contin-
gencies of the present war render it possible
for Russia to push on a force into the northern
part of Syria, the good will of the Kurds* at
the moment of undertaking such an operation,
would afford her an immense advantage. There
is another exceedingly strong pass at Bayazid,
on the Persian side, where a very small regular
force might completely seal the entrance into
Persia, from the side of Erzeroum, except
through the roads of Central Kurdistan. It may
also be looked upon as a key to Kurdistan, and
to Diarbekir, Mosul, and the whole course of
the Tigris as far as Bagdad. I have no hesita-
tion in saying, that Russia, with the assistance
of the Kurdish tribes, could speedily establish a
route, and march an army down this valley into
Syria, f The distance from Erivan to Aleppo
is not above 500 miles, if so much, and the
route b}r Aleppo, Diarbekir, and Van, to
Aderbzou, from the Mediterranean is quite
practicable for an army.

I roue, to see the barracks. Eighty years ago
they formed part of a palace belonging to a
Kurdish chieftain, a certain Malimoud Pacha.
He had expressed a wish to have the most beau-
tiful residence in the world, and, after convers-
ing with numerous architects upon this subject,
had accepted the service of an Armenian. The
latter had designed a very handsome building,
with large glass windows, and everything that
could be desired in the way of comfort. The
Pacha was satisfied with the palace, but not
with the idea that the Armenian architect might
possibly construct a similar Duilding for some
other kindred chieftain. To prevent this,
Mahmoud ordered his executioner to cut off
the Armenian's hands. This wTas done. The
poor victim shortly afterwards died a beggar.

* Fortunately during the present war the Kurds have
remained true to the Sultan, or Major-General Mackin-
tosh's predictions mi^ht have been realized.

t For importance of Syria from a Military Point of
View, see Appendix XV.

In the meantime the Pacha was gathered to his
fathers, leaving one son. This man, after com-
mitting all sorts of excesses, was bitten by a
snake; and died at Alexandretta. His child was
brought up at Bayazid, and afterwards became
Caimacan at Toprak Kale. He had lost his life
in the affray with the Circassians, which has
already been mentioned in this work.

On entering the barracks, sometimes called
the citadel, the irony of fate was clearly shown.
The large window-frames which had been
brought to Bayazid for Mahmoud eighty years
ago, and at an immense expense, had all disap-
peared; their places were filled up with sheets
of Turkish newspapers. The marble pillars
and carving in alabaster over the portico were
chipped and hacked about, the harem of the
former owner was a dormitory for the troops.
Four hundred soldiers slept in the rooms allot-
ted by Mahmoud to his seraglio.

A Hungarian doctor in the Turkish service
accompanied me over the building. Descending
a flight of steps, he led the way to a large vault.
Here lay the bodies of Mahmoud and of his fa-
vorite wife, in two tombs of the purest marble.

"He was a great rogue when he lived," said a
Turkish officer who had joined our party,
pointing to an inscription which merely said,
"Mahmoud Pacha, son of Issek Pacha, lies
here" "but he is still now, and can do no on^
any harm. Peace be with his bones!"

CHAPTER LI.

We leave the barracks. A beautiful view
extends before us. We look down upon the
red, green, and white plateau which divides us
from the Tzar's dominions. In some places
the sun has slightly melted the snow, the sand
is exposed to view; in others, and nearer the
lake which lies in the midst of the plateau,
patches of vegetation can be seen. The clouds
which overhung Ararat have been dispelled by
the sun; the huge mountain, enveloped in its
white pall, stands out in bold relief.

I now called upon the Pacha. Whilst I was
conversing with him, a servant entered and
whispered something in his ear.

" Let the fellow come in," he observed; then,
turning to me, he remarked that a Turk had
just arrived from the Russian frontier, and
brought the latest news of the military prepara-
tions in Erivan.

For some time past the Russians had pro-
hibited any inhabitant of Turkey from crossing
the border-line. It wTas difficult to obtain any
authentic information as to the quantity of
troops the Tzar's generals had massed in the
neighborhood. The new arrival succeeded in
passing the boundary-line by saying to the
Russian officers that he had been forcibly en-
listed as a soldier, and was a deserter from his
regiment. He had obtained permission to re-
turn to Turkey by declaring that he wished to
bring his wife — who lived in a village near
Bayazid—to Erivan; the Russian general had
ordered him to obtain as much information as
he could about the strength and disposition of
the Turkish forces. He was a thick-set, sturdy-
looking little fellow, with a bull neck and keen
grev eyes; his attire consisting of a blue turban,
a yellow shirt, and a pair of crimson trousers.
According to him, the Mollahs were preaching
a war of extermination against the Russians in
Persia. However, the natives of that country
were very luke-warm in their friendship to the
Turks. It was not impossible that they would
join Russia, or at all events allow the Tzar's
troops to march through their territory in the
event of an offensive movement against Van.

The Pacha took up a Turkish newspaper which
he had just received from Constantinople.

" Listen!" he said. "The man who writes
for this paper knows what he is about."

The article was to the effect that Russia
wished to drive the Turks out of Europe be-
cause they were Mohammedans, ^ and be-
cause in European Turkey the Christians were
in the majority. " Very good," said the writer,
" let us abandon Europe; but in Asia the Chris-
tains are in the minority. According to the
same reaconing, the Russians and English ought
to leave all their Asiatic possessions, and give
them up to the original proprietors of the soil.
Our Sultan has no objection to let every Chris-
tian in his dominions leave Turkey and go to
Russia; but the Tzar, on the contrary, he will
not let the Mohammedans in his empire cross
the frontier; if they try to do so, he sends his
soldiers; they cut the throats of our co-religion-
ists. A conference, composed for the most48

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

part of Christians, has been held at Constanti-
nople to inquire into the way the Sultan treats
his Christian subjects. Why should not a con-
ference be assembled at St. Petersburg, com-
posed for the most part of Mohammedans, to
inquire into the way the Tartars, Turkomans
and other inhabitants of Central Asia are treated
by the Tzar?"

" Yes," said the Pacha, as he finished reading
to me these extracts. " The European powers
dislike Russia, and although they hate her, and
know that she is the origin of all our difficulties
they are too timid to allow the fact. What a
mockery it must have seemed to the representa-
tives of England, France and Germany to find
themselves sitting in judgment upon Turkey,
and General Ignatieff, instead of being equally
on his trial, seated at their side, and a judge in-
stead of a prisoner. Does it not make you smile
to think of it?" added the Pacha; "how the
general must have laughed in his sleeve."

Another officer entered the room. He had been
educated in the military school at Constanti
nople. From frequent intercourse with Euro-
peans, mostly Frenchmen, he had begun to
look down upon the religious observances of his
countrymen.

It was about the hour for the evening prayer.
The Pacha, Cada, and several other Turks com-
menced performing their devotions, regardless
of the presence of a stranger. The new arrival,
the Hungarian doctor, and myself, remained
seated, the former remarking that it was very
hard work praying, at the same time glancing
rather contemptuously at his superior officers.

"Did you not pray when you were at Con-
stantinople?" I inquired.

" Effendi, I did everything a la Franga (in
European fashion). Europeans, from what I
could learn, do not pray much."

"Not pray!" I observed; "what do you
mean?"

"No, Effendi; the men, I have been told, go
to the churches to look at the women; the
women, some to pray, but others to look at the
men and show off their fine clothes the one to
the other. Is not that the case in your coun-
try?" he added.

"No. Of course there are exceptions; but
the English people as a rule are religiously in-
clined."

"Effendi," continued the officer, "I have
often heard Frenchmen say that a Christian
ought to be a poor man—that is, if he carried
out the doctrines of bis Prophet. But my
friends used to laugh and declare that their
bishops and priests were rich men, and that
some of the Protestant Mollahs were so wealthy
that they could afford to keep carriages, eat
mutton every day, and have servants to wait
upon them."

" The fact of our bishops and priests eating
mutton or keeping carriages does not make the
Protestant religion the less true," I now ob-
served.

" I do not know that," replied the Turk. " If
I were to be taught a religion by a man who
did not believe in it himself, or who did not
carry out its doctrines, I should think that I
was wasting my time."

The rest at Bayazid had done all our party
good. The horses, which were still very ema-
ciated on account of the long and frequent
marches, had picked up a little flesh. I deter-
mined to leave Bayazid and accompany a Turk-
ish captain who was going through Persia to
Van with despatches for the governor of that
town. The officer must have been sixty. He
was quite gray; but he sat his horse like a cen-
taur, and was more enthusiastic for the war
than any Turk with whom I had* previously
conversed.

"You may get killed," I remarked.

"Please God I shall not*" was his reply;
" others may die, and then there will be some
promotion."

CHAPTER LIL
We turned our backs upon Mount Ararat,
and, ascending a low range of hills covered with
loose rocks and bowlders, arrived u% a Yezeed
(devil-worshippers) village.

The houses were built in the sides of a hill.
Cone-shaped huts made of tezek, and filfed with
that fuel, showed that the inhabitants had no
objection to heat in this world however hot
they might expect to be in the next.

An old man, considerably above the middle
stature, approached our party. Addressing the
Usebashe, he invited us to "dismount. It was

about luncheon-time. I determined to avail
myself of the opportunity afforded me to learn
1 a little about the ways and habits of these
| strange people.

| " Here we are, sir, with the worshippers of
Old Scratch!" observed Radford, as he was pre-
paring the mid-day meal, which consisted of a
freshly-killed hen, boiled with some rice. " Mo-
hammed has just been telling me something
about them. All that I know is that Old Nick
has not much to complain of so far as his flock
is concerned. They have been at our sugar al-
ready, and would have carried off Moham-
med's tobacco if he had not been on the
look-out. I suppose they think it right to
steal, so as to keep on good terms with their
master."

I The Yezeeds' religion, if such it may be
called, is based uponlhe following dogma: that
there are two spirits—a spirit of good and a
spirit of evil. Allah, the spirit of good, can do
no harm to any one, and he is a friend to the hu-
man race. The spirit of evil can do a great deal
of harm, and he is the cause of all our woes.
From this starting-point the Yezeeds have been
brought to believe that it is a waste of time to
worship the spirit of good, who will not hurt
them, and that the proper course to pursue is
to try and propitiate the spirit of evil, who
can be very disagreeable if he chooses. To do.
so they never venture to make use of the
name of the devil, as this they believe would
be an act of disrespect to their infernal master.

They are visited twice a year by different high
priests, when certain rites are performed. These
rites are kept a great secret. The Turks who
gave me some information about the Yezeeds
were unable to give me any details about the
nature of the ceremonies. I was informed that
the Yezeeds are divided into two sects; that the
one looks upon the devil as the Grand Vizier
of Allah, and the other regards him as the
private secretary of the good spirit. It was
said that the two sects hated each other to such
an extent that, if a man belonging to the one
which looks upon the devil as being the Grand
Yizier of Allah were to enter a village belong-
ing to members of the rival faith, the new
arrival would have a great chance of losing his
life.

The Yezeeds' priests are many of them un-
married. However, should a priest or sheik
arrive in a village, the first thing which is done
by the inhabitants is to offer their wives and
daughters for his inspection. The Sheik will
select one. It will then be considered that he
has conferred a very high honor on the young
lady's relatives. There are different laws as to
the subsequent treatment of these women. In
one of the sects they are not allowed to many,
but are set apart; and, in the case of a married
woman, she is not permitted again to live with
her husband. In the other ^ect they are per-
mitted to marry, or if the lady has a spouse,
she must return to him. It is then the duty of
every Yezeed to make her rich presents, and
the inhabitants of the village must maintain her
husband and herself during the rest of their
lives. Under these circumstances a woman
who has been honored by the attentions of a
priest is looked upon by a^QUthful Yezeed in
much the same light as a rich heiress by many
impecunious younger sons in a European ball-
room; her hand is eagerly sought for in mar-
riage. If she already possesses a husband, the
latter considers himself as one of the most fort-
unate of men. The result of this is, that when
a priest arrives in a village, great excitement
arises amidst the population—every man hoping
that his wife or daughter will be honored by
being selected. The ladies take immense inter-
est in the proceedings. The visits of the rev-
erend gentlemen are eagerly looked forward to
by all classes of Yezeed society.

This information was given me by some
Turks with whom I had conversed during my
journey. I now asked my host if these state-
ments were true. He at once repudiated them,
and declared that they were inventions of the
followers of Islam.

" Do you look upon the devil as the Grand
Yizier of Allah?" I now inquired.

If a bombshell had exploded in the room
where I was sitting, there could not have been
greater consternation than that which was
evinced by the members of my host's family.
Springingto their feet, they fled from the build-
ing—an old woman very nearly upsetting Rad-
ford's cooking-pot in her haste to escape into
the open air. The captain looked at me, and
then indulged in a sort of suppressed laugh.

" What has frightened them?" I inquired.

"Effendi," he replied, "you mentioned the
word ' Shaitan ' (devil). It is very lucky for
you," continued the old man, " that there are
five of us, and we are all well armed; for,
if not, the Yezeeds would have attacked our
party for a certainty. Any disaster which may
happen in this village during the next twelve
months will be put down to you. If a man's
cow or camel dies, the fellow will say that it is
all your fault; the sooner we continue our
march the better."

It was getting late; the inhabitants had v*ith-
drawn to some distance from their houses, they
were gazing at our party with lowering brows.
I would gladly have repaired the mischief that
I had done; but an apology might have only
made matters worse. I was the more sorry,
as I had hoped to have had the opportu-
nity of questioning the Yezeeds as to some of
their customs. What I had heard about them
from the Turks was so different to what is re-
lated of this singular people by Mr. Layard, in
his admirable work, " Ninevali and its Re-
mains," that I had become rather sceptical as
to the veracity of my informants. The old
captain, however, consoled me by saying that,
on my journey from Van to Kars, I Should
have to pass by many other Yezeed villages,
and would there be able to pursue my inquiries
upon this subject.

Very shortly after leaving our halting-place,
the guide stopped, and said something to the
officer.

" What is he saying?" I inquired.

" The summit of this hill is the border-line,"
was the reply. In another minute we had en-
tered the territory of the Shah.

The track was good and firm; although there
was plenty of snow on the hills, there was but
little on the plain below. After a few hours'
march, we halted for the night in a village
called Kelise Kandy.

The Usebashe was well known to the chief
proprietor in the district, and, coming out to
meet us, he invited our party to enter his
house.

Kelise Kandy is a large village, and much
cleaner than any of those which I had seen on
the Turkish side of the frontier. The houses
were well built, and many of them whitewashed,
Several haystacks were in a yard belonging to
our host, hundreds of sheep and cattle slood in
a large enclosure near his dwelling.

The proprietor was dressed at first sight a
little like a European. He had a black coat; a
red sash wras tied round his waist; a pair of
white trousers covered his legs. But a very
high, cone-shaped, astrackan hat was on his
head, and this article of attire, much resem-
bling an extinguisher, did away with his other-
wise slightly European appearance.

A number of servants, all armed with daggers
stuck in their waist-belts, and with hats, if pos-
sible, still more like an extinguisher than that
which their master wore, stood round the
room. It was a good-sized apartment, thirty
feet long by twenty broad. The floor was
covered with a thick Perisan carpet, of beauti-
ful design, but not dear; indeed, I subsequently
learnt that it had only cost fifteen pounds of our
money.

Light was let into the room by some double
windows—probably made in this fashion so as
to keep out the cold. Our host, after motion-
ing to me to squat down on one side of him,
and to the Usebashe to squat down on the other,
produced a cigar-case, and offered me a cigar-
ette.

He had been often in Erzeroum, and also in
Russia, where he had imbibed a taste for smok-
ing tobacco in this form. His acquaintance
with the Muscovites had not prepossessed him
in their favor.

" They want to conquer the Shah," he
presently remarked. "They will make use of
us as a stepping-stone to Van and Bagdad;
after which they will annex theircatspaw. We
ought to have another Nadir Shah," he con-
tinued. " If we had one, the Russians would
not dare to laugh at us as they do."

"I thought that there were very good rela-
tions between the Courts of Teheran and St
Petersburg," I now remarked.

" The Shah is obliged to be on good terms
with the Tzar," replied the Persian. " The Tzar
is too strong for him." .

"If there be a war between Russia and
Turkey,, which side will Persia take?"

The proprietor shook his head.

" We ought to go with Islam," he remarked;
"but, better still, remain neutral. I am told
that there are many Russian officers in Teheran.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

49

They are doing their best to influence the Shah
in their master's favor. Nadih Shah once con-
quered you English in Hindostan," he added.

"No, he conquered part of India before we
•went there. However, now Hindostan belongs
to us."

"I thought he had," continued the man. "1^
was told so in Russia; I was also informed that
the Tzar of America had defeated you, and was
an ally of the Emperor of Russia. Is that the

case?"

"There is no Tzar in America," I replied,
"we have had no war with the United States
for many years."

"But you paid them a certain sum of money
to prevent them going to war with you?" ob-
served my host; "and not only that, but you
pay Sliere Ali, of Afghanistan, a large sum
every year with the same object. Will Shere
Ali fight against Russia if there is a war be-
tween the Tzar and Turkey?"

" I do not know."

" Some Muscovites say that Shere Ali is on
their side," remarked the Persian. "But he is
a clever fellow, and is not likely to join the
weakest party."

CHAPTER LIII.

Later in the day dinner was brought in—a
chicken surrounded by a huge pile of rice. A
Turk as rich as our Persian host would have
provided his guest with fifteen or twenty
courses, but the Persians are satisfied with one.
I was not aware of the custom, and only tasted
the chicken. Presently it was taken away; in-
stead of a fresh dish making its appearance,
some water was brought, in an ewer, for us to
wash our hands.

"You Englishmen are very temperate," said
the host, rising.

1 did not tell him what was passing through
my mind. I was ravenously hungry, and
would gladly have had that chicken brought
back again; but it was already in the hands of
the servauts outside. They were devouring the
contents.

" You are a great hakim," now observed the
proprietor.

"Who told you that?" I remarked, surprised
that the reputation acquired in the Kurd's
house had thus preceded me.

" The Usebashe knows it. Mohammed, too,
has told my servant. Praise be to Allah who
has sent you here!"

"I am not a hakim 1" I hastily replied. "I
am an officer."

" Do not say that," said the Persian, who
spoke Turkish fluently. "Do not deny the
talents that Allah has given you. Your arrival
has cast a gleam of sunshine on our threshold,
and you will not go away without gladdening
the hearts of my family."

" What do you want me to do?" I inquired.

"My wife is poorly: I ask you to cure her."

"But really I know very little about medi-
cine. I have only a few simple remedies with
me."

" Simple remedies indeed!" said the Persian.
" A man who can set a person's shoulder on
fire with a piece of wet paper!"

" What is the matter with your wife?"

" I do not know, but you will tell me."

" Well, I must see her," I replied.

"Impossible!" said the Persian. "She is in
the harem. I cannot take you there!"

"But how can 1 tell you what is the matter
with her if I do not see her?"

"Give me a piece of that wonderful wet
paper; perhaps it will cure her."

" Effendi," said the Usebashe, turning to the
Persian, " you cannot tell a horse's age without
looking into his mouth. The Prank cannot
tell your wife's ailments without looking at
her tongue."

A consultation took place between my host
and some other Persian visitors. It vj&s a*,
length agreed that, as a hakim, I might be ad-
mitted into the harem.

In the meantime, a servant brought in a
samovar (tea-urn), which the proprietor had
purchased at Erivan; and whilst the Usebashe
and myself were drinking tea, with lemon-juice
instead of cream—as is the custom in Persia as
well as in Russia—my host left the room and
proceeded to the harem to announce to his wife
that I would see her.

Presently he returned, and, taking my hand,
helped me to rise from the ground. Then, go-
ing first, he led the way across a yard, sur-
rounded by a high wall and planted with fruit

trees, to a detached building, which I had pre-
viously thought was a mosque.

" This is the harem," said the proprietor.
We entered an outer room, he drew a thick
curtain which hung against one of the walls.
An opening now appeared: stooping low, 1 en-
tered the inner apartment. It was furnished,
or rather unfurnished, like the one set apart
for the Usebashe and myself. A pan of live
charcoal stood in one corner. In the other, re-
clining on a quantity of silk cushions, was the
wife of my host.

She was enveloped from head to foot in a
sheet made of some gauze-like material. There
were so many folds that it was impossible to
distinguish her features or even divine the con-
tour of her form. Her feet, which were very
small and stockingless, were exposed to view.
She had taken them out of two tiny white slip-
pers which lay by the side of the charcoal pan,
and was nervously tapping the ground with
her heel.

" She is alarmed," said my host. "Be not
alarmed," he added, turning to his wife. " It is
the hakim who has come to make you well."

These remarks did not tranquillize the lady.
Her heel tapped the ground more quickly than
before, the whole of her body shook like an
aspen-leaf.

" She has never seen any man save myself in
the harem," said her husband; " and you—you
are a European."

" What is the nature of her illness?"

" She is in a delicate state of health."

" Can I look at her tongue?"

There was a whispered conversation with the
lady. By this time she was a little more calm.
Removing the folds of her veil, she allowed
the tip of a very red little tongue to escape
from her lips.

"Well, what do you think of it?" said my
host, who was taking the greatest interest in
these proceedings.

" It is a nice tongue; but now I must see her
eyes."

" Why her eyes?"

" Because she may have what is called jaun-
dice; I must see if her eye is yellow."

"Perhaps she had better expose the whole
face," said the Persian.

" Perhaps she had," I remarked.

And the poor little lady, whose nerves were
now less excited, slowly unwound the folds of
muslin from around her head. She was cer-
tainly pretty, and had very regular features,
whilst a pair of large black eyes, which looked
through me asl gazed on them, were twinkling
with an air of humor more than of fear.

She understood Turkish well, as she came
from the border, and, looking at me, said some-
thing in a low voice.

" She feels better already," said my host.
"The sight of you has done her good; when
you have given her some medicine, she will
doubtless be quite well."

" What is the matter with you?" I said, turn-
ing to the patient.

She blushed. Her husband then remarked
that she fancied strange dishes at her meals, and
in fact was delicate.

It gradually dawned upon me what the nature
of her malady was, and the more particularly
as I was informed by my host that they had
been married but a very few months.

" I have no medicine for your complaint," I
remarked.

"No medicine!" said the Persian, indig-
nantly. "Mohammed has shown me the bot-
tles and the little boxes. Besides that, you have
the wet paper."

"A mustard plaster would be useless."

"But she must have something," said the
husband.

Now, my medicine-chest was very limited in
its contents. It merely contained cholera medi-
cine, pills, and a few ounces of quinine, besides
the prepared mustard plasters.

A pill, in the lady's condition, would not
have been safe; I could not have answered for
the consequences. Cholera mixture might have
been equally disastrous in its effects. Quinine,
I thought, could not do any harm; it is exceed-
ingly nasty, an infinitesimally small dose leaves
a very disagreeable taste in the mouth.

" You shall have some medicine," lobserved.
" Please God, it will do you good."

"Inshallah! Inshallah!" replied my host,
devoutly; and accompanying me to the room
prepared for the Usebashe and myself, I gave
him three grains of quinine to be taken in three
doses, one grain in each dose.

"Will it do her much good?" inquired the
Persian.

" That depends upon Allah," I remarked.

" Of course it does," said my host, and tak-
ing the medicine he returned to his seraglio.

As he was leaving the house, I observed a
great commotion amidst my host's servants.
Slohammed was some time before he joined our

hat was the matter?" I asked.

"Effendi, they are sons of the devil, these
Persians!" vociferated my man, indignantly.
" I waited behind to give them my lord's bak-
sheesh, but they were greedy creatures, and
one—a strong man—snatched all the paras out
of my hand, and thrust the money in his waist-
belt. The others cursed and called him many
dogs, but the fellow did not care. They then
wanted me to give them more money; I had
none to bestow. They are like jackals, these
Persians. They would cut a man's throat as
soon as eat a pillaff!"	^

CHAPTER LIV.

We rode along a flat country. A few hills
could be seen on our bridle-hand. The track
was in capital order for the march. After pass-
ing several small hamlets—amongst others, Arab
Dize, Shadili, and Shalendili—we pulled up at a
large village called Karenee. It was inhabited by
Kurds, all of them being Persian subjects.
Here there were 350 houses. Judging by the
number of people who came to ask for medi-
cine, so soon as I dismounted from my horse,
the whole population was unwell. It appeared
that the Persian in whose house I had stopped
on the previous evening had sent word to the
chief proprietor in this Kurdish village, to say
that a celebrated hakim was on his way. No
amount of expostulation saved us from the in-
trusion of the inhabitants. Every one wished
me to look at his tongue, and to feel his pulse.
Radford, who was in another room, was inter-
rupted in his cooking by a crowd of the hum-
bler Kurds, who believed that, when the master
was so great a hakim, his servant must neces-
sarily have some medical skill.

Presently my servant entered.

"What has happened?" I remarked.

" I cannot get on with my cooking, sir," was
the reply. '^They will come and shove out
their dirty tongues just over my cooking-pot.
Some of the people who have got nasty dis-
eases and sore legs insist upon showing them to
me. Quite turns me hup, that it does. I had
two boxes of hantibilious—I have given them
all away. If I had only a pair of champagne
nippers, sir, I would draw the rascals' teeth,
perhaps that would take away their taste for
my doctoring. Do you think it would do any
harm if I were to bleed one or two of them,
sir?"

" Could you stop the bleeding after the
operation?" I inquired.

" That, sir, is just what was passing in my
mind. If I thought as how I could, I would
have taken a little blood from each of them in
turn. It would have cooled them down a little,
and they would not have been so anxious for
my company in future."

On reaching a village about three hours' dis-
tance from our sleeping quarters, we heard that
the short road over the mountains to Van was
blocked by the snow, and that it would be ab-
solutely necessary to go by Khoi, and by a cir-
cuitous route which I had hoped to avoid.

I did not believe the statement, and ordered
the guide to take the mountain track. The man
reluctantly consented Higher and higher we
ascended the steep which divided us from the
capital of Armenia. The snow at each moment
became more deep. At last the guide halted
and distinctly refused to advance.

" I shall lose my life," he said. "You can
do what you like with your own, but I have
Sot vibom to pToVi&e."

The Usebashe interfered.

" The fellow is telling the truth about the
road,'' he said. "I too, like yourself, thought
that he was deceiving us. We had better go to
Khoi."

There was nothing to be done but turn round
and continue towards that town. It was about
fifty miles distant from us. We halted for the
night at a Kurdish village called Melhamee. Here
the inhabitants treated us very discourteously.
If it had not been for the Usebashe, who re-
minded them of the laws of hospitality which
are prescribed by their religion, I much doubt
whether we should have obtained a^esting-place.50

OB HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

They had learnt that I was an Englishman,
and were under the impression that they would
be pleasing the Russians if they threw difficulties
in our way.

" We know who you are," said a Kurd, "and
the people in Erivan know who you are too.
The Russians are our friends," he continued.

" Take care that your friends do not eat you
some day," said the Usebashe.

"They will eat you first, and we shall help
them," said the Kurd.

This aroused the captain's indignation. I
thought, that there would have been a disturb-
ance. Bat, after a little more verbal warfare,
the belligerents parted.

14 All the people in this village are in Russian
pay," said the Usebashe, " and that is why they
are so hostile to you as well as to ourselves.
These men," he continued, " are foolish enough
to believe in the Russians, and think that be-
cause the Tzar's agents give them money and
presents, this same sort of treatment will be
continued. Poor fools! they will find their
mistake some day."

We rode by men driving before them oxen
laden with wood for fuel. There were many
villages on either side of the track. The Per-
sian inhabitants, attired in loose blue garments,
and with their beards dyed red, gazed curiously
upon us as we passed.

Some of the greater dandies amidst these
gentlemen had their finger-nails also stained;
and unless a man has his beard dyed a bright
color, he has very little chance of meeting with
the approval of the fair sex. A stout red-haired
Welshman would have what is termed u?i
grand succ-es amidst the ladies in these regions.

"These Persians are ridiculous creatures,"
said the Usebashe. "Only think of the men
dyeing their beards red! One would have
thought that black would have been a more ap-
propriate color."

" Some of our English women dye their hair
a light color," I remarked.

" With women I can understand it," said the
Usebashe. " Every part of a woman is false,
from her tongue to her smile, dyeing her hair
red enables her to carry on the deception; but
for men to dye their hair red—they might as
well form part of a harem at once! However,
these Persians are a nation of women."

And the Usebashe pointed contemptuously
at a little knot of men who were seated outside
a small dwelling, and waching eagerly for the
moment when the sun would disappear behind
the hills.

I have often wondered whether something
connected with the old fire-worshippers' super-
stition has a lurking place in the minds of the
Persians or Kurds. Day after day, and at the
same hour, I have seen the entire inhabitants of
a village turn out and gaze intently upon the
great orb of light slowly sinking into space on
the distant horizon. I have questioned them
about this subject. They indignantly repudiate
the idea of any act of worship to the sun; they
say that they do so because it is their habit, and
because their fathers, grandfathers, and an-
cestors did the same thing before them.

We rode by many gardens surrounded by
high walls; some of these enclosures were five
or six acres in extent. Cherry, apple, peach,
and mulberry-trees abound throughout the dis-
trict. A plentiful water-supply, which is
brought from the mountains by means of arti-
ficial dykes, irrigates the various orchards.
Little trenches intersect each other at many
places along the fields, and when the proprietor
wishes, he can at once place his land under
water. This must be an inestimable boon to
the inhabitants during the hot months, as oth-
erwise their entire crop would be destroyed by
the heat.

Soldiers dressed in a dirty sort of French
uniform, but with black sheepskin hats of the
extinguisher shape, sat outside the guard-
houses in the different villages. They looked
askantly at the Usebashe as he passed—for the
Usebashe was in uniform. A wonderful sort
of blue cape covered the upper part of his per-
son, and red knickerbockers stuffed in high
boots, his extremities. A curved scimitar hung
from his waist-belt. The red fez on his head,
and on our guide's, showed their allegiance to
the Sultan.

The two men clad in European costumes
were also a source of wonder to the soldiers.
Some of them gripped the flint fire-locks with
which they were armed, and made a movement
as if they would like to have had a shot at our
little party.

" Yes, you dogs! I have no doubt but that

you would like to do so," said the old Useba-
she, shaking his fist at them after he had got to
a safe distance. "However, your guns are
only servicable up to fifty yards, it takes you
five minutes to load them! They are unclean
ones, these Persians; do you not think so, Ef
fendi?" continued the old Usebashe.

" I have seen so little of them I cannot judge.
But their roads and houses are much better
and cleaner than those which you have in
Turkey."

" That is true," said the captain, sorrowfully.
" The little dogs can do some things well, but
they are sly and deceitful. A Persian will kiss
you on one cheek, and will stab you behind
the back. He will call himself your friend,
and will slander you to your neighbors. He will
offer you the best horse in his stable: the offer
comes from his lips, and not from his heart.
When you know them better, you will find this
out for yourself."

CHAPTER LV.

Village after village were left behind us,
still there were no signs of Khoi. We had
been told that it was only an eight hours'
march from Melhamee; two more sped by ere
the walls of the city were in sight. Soon after-
wards we rode through a narrow gate, which
gives access to the town, and presently pulled
up at a house belonging to the Turkish consul,
who is the only diplomatic agent to be found
in the city. He had been educated in Con-
stantinople, and spoke a little French. For the
last two years he had been established in Khoi,
and he greatly bewailed his thus being cut off
from alT European society.

1 now learned that Russian intrigues had been
the means of very nearly creating a war between
Persia and Turkey. There is a Turkish border-
hamlet, called Kashka Beulah, about nine miles
from Khoi. Some Persian soldiers had recently
attacked this village, and had robbed the inhab-
itants of everything they possessed.

Whilst the Persians were engaged in their
work of pillage, some Turkish soldiers, under a
Usebashe, arrived from an adjacent guard-
house. But the Persians were more numerous.
They captured the captain and seven of his
men, and brought them prisoners to Khoi. A
Turkish lieutenant in the guard-house heard of
the fate of his Usebashe, and arrested two Per-
sian merchants who happened to be in the
neighborhood. He sent them as prisoners to
Yan. The consul, on hearing of this, tele-
graphed to his ambassador at Teheran, for
instructions how to act. The latter official
sent back an answer that the Persian merchants
were to be immediately released. The consul
then wrote to the governor at Yan, informing
him of the order he had received. The governor,
however, declared that he could not comply
with it without authority from Constantinople.
After several weeks' delay, during which time
the Turkish captain and his men had been kept
in chains in the prison at Khoi, and had been
treated like the commonest of malefactors,
orders came from Teheran and Constantinople
for the mutual exchange of prisoners.

A day was fixed. At the appointed time the
Turkish consul, with the prisoners and three
hundred Persian soldiers, started for the
frontier. Here he was met by the Persian
consul from Van. The latter was accompanied
by the Persian captives and by an escort of
Turks. The troops then retired to a short dis-
tance. The consuls remained alone with their
prisoners. The exchange was effected.

"What was the origin of the disturbance?"
I inquired of the consul.

" That is exactly what I wished to discover,"
replied that official. " I went to the governor
of Khoi—who, by the way, is. the Shah's uncle
—and asked him why his regular troops had
first of all attacked our village. The reply
was, ' My orders came from some one of higher
rank than I am.' Later on. it turned out that
Russian agents at Teheran were the origin of
the affair "

"I am very dull here," now remarked the
consul. " My wife died six months ago. I
have not been able to find any one to replace
her "

"Why do you not take a Kurdish girl?" ob-
served the Usebashe. " They make the best of
wives," he continued: " if their husbands have
money they do not ask for any, if the husbands
have no money the wives never bother their
heads about the matter. In addition to this,,
they do not care about fine clothes. A long

piece of calico and a pair of slippers content
each one of them as well as all the silks and
satins in the bazaar at Erzeroum."

"My late wife was a Kurd," replied the
consul, sorrowfully. " She cost me very little."

A servant entered the room and lit the speak-
er's pipe.

"This man is my father-in-law," he added.
"My mother-in-law cooks for me down-stairs.
When I married their daughter I wanted some
servants; my wife proposed that we should en-
gage her father and mother. I did so, and
have found them hard-working people. When,
my poor wife died, I allowed them to remain
with me. When I marry again, my new lady
will probably wish her own relations to come
here: I shall be obliged to get rid of my
present servants."

"It is a very economical way of providing
for a wife's relatives," I observed.

"Yes," said the consul, laughing. "You
could not make use of your mother-in-law as a
cook in either Constantinople or London.
Besides that, the women in your country cost
their husbands a fortune in dress."

"Yes," I replied, "some of the women's
dresses cost from 50 to 60 liras a piece, and
after having been worn once or twice they are
thrown away or given to the servants."

"Allah!" said the Usebashe, "50 or 60 liras!
only think of it!"

"The Inglis speaks the truth,"said the con-
sul. " I have heard of this before, when I was
at Constantinople. My last wife cost 10 liras,"
he continued; "I could buy five or six wives
for the same price as a great English lady gives
for her dress!"

"Why do you not marry a Persian woman?'*
I now remarked. "By all account they are
very pretty, and you would have an oppor-
tunity of learning the language "—the consul
having previously bewailed to me his ignorance
of that tongue.

"Marry a Persian, indeed!" interrupted the
Usebashe. "The Persians will not give their
daughters in marriage to us Turks. They are
very selfish," he added. "We make no ob-

i'ections to our daughters marrying Persians.
Sat the latter are most particular about this
subject."

"You are both Mohammedan nations," I re-
marked.

"Yes, we are," said the consul; "and the
Armenians and yourselves are both Christian
nations, but your forms of Christianity are very
different. There is as much difference between
a Persian and a Turk as between an Armenian
and yourself."

" The Persians are very cruel," observed the
Usebashe. " If a man commits a crime, and is
detected, the authorities are not satisfied by
taking the culprit's life, but often torture him
first—sometimes by taking out his eyes, and at
others by mutilation."

"The inhabitants do very odd things," said
the consul. "For instance, a short time ago
there was an official in this town who was ex-
tremely unpopular. He died, and you would
have thought that the matter was over; but no,
six months after the man's decease, some of the
townspeople went to the cemetery, exhumed
the body, and hacked it to pieces. This was
done by way of revenging themselves upon the
official. There was a robbery in the bazaar,"
continued the speaker. "A man was taken up
on suspicion of being implicated in the theft;
he swore that he was innocent, but accused
another man. The latter had nothing what-
ever to do with the robbery, but was unpopular
in the town. Some people belonging to the
bazaar went to the governor, and said to him:
4 The man last arrested is the thief: you must
order the executioner to cut his throat.' The
governor was weak enough to consent, the in-
nocent person was put to death. Soon after-
wards the governor repented of what he had
done. However, he was in need of money at
the time, he determined to turn his repentance
to some account. He ordered fifty of the rich-
est people amongst those who had pressed him
to execute the innocent man to be imprisoned,
and he kept them in jail until such time as they
had paid him a large sum of money."

I now walked round the fortifications of the
town. They consist of a wall about thirty-five
feet high, built of clay, with a brick founda-
tion, and a dry ditch, which can be filled with
water if necessary. There were sixteen old
cannon on the ramparts. The Kurds and the
inhabitants think that the place is impregnable.
A battery of nine-pounders would be quite suf-
ficient to destroy the fortifications, which areOlsT HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

51

much out of repair. Any properly-equipped
force ought to take the city, which contains
7,000 houses, in about half an hour.

The soldiers in the different guard-houses
ran outside the buildings. They presented arms
to the consul as he walked with me through the
streets. Presently we came to a place where
two sentries had been posted. The men had
put their fliut muskets on the ground, and were
engaged in gambling with each other—small
balls of dried clay, something like marbles,
taking the place of dice.

CHAPTER LYI.

I arrived at the bazaar. It is a very large
building, arched over in many places, and here
and there is constructed of bricks. It was a
hot afternoon. The bazaar was delightfully
cool, many of the inhabitants had gone there
merely with the object of lying in the shade.
At almost every step we took, wTe came upon
the forms of some recumbent Persians. It was
rather dark. The idlers' ribs must have suf-
fered. A muttered curse would be the only
sign of the men's disgust; they would turn over
and be asleep again in another minute.

The bazaar w"as better arranged than any of
the market places which I had visited in Ana
tolia. The shops belonging to men who sold
one kind of article were all side by side, and
not mixed up with the stalls belonging to trad-
ers in other merchandise. Some carpets were
very beautifully designed, and could have been
purchased for one-fourth of the price they com-
mand in the London market. The cutlery
mostly came from Erivan in Russia. An im-
mense quantity of gaudily-colored Russian cali-
coes wTere exposed for sale.

We came to a samovar (tea-urn) shop. The
owner, a sleepy-looking Persian, was very wide
awake, so far as his interests were concerned.
He was engaged in a wordy warfare with a
Kurk who wanted to buy an urn for his house.
The conversation became so loud, and the ges-
ticulations of the Kurd were so energetic, that
I thought he was about to attack the merchant.
However, a minute later the affair was settled,
and the purchaser was drinking a glass of tea
■with the salesman.

Most of the houses in Khoi are built of a sort
of brown clay. If it were not for the numerous
mosques which are painted blue, and green, the
town would be very sombre in its appearance.
Many of the doors to the buildings were sup-
plied with massive iron knockers—a rarity in
Asiatic Turkey—and the many windows on the
ground-floors, which were guarded by iron bars,
rather reminded me of Cordova.

Streams of muddy wrater ran through the
streets. Hundreds of women were busily en-
gaged in washing the domestic apparel.

We passed bj^an open window, and, on look-
ing in, I found that the building was used as a
school. A master was seated on the window-
sill, fifty or more children were clustered round
his feet. He was teaching therii pieces of the
Koran, which the little ones were endeavoring
to learn by heart. A class of lads, averaging, I
should say, from fifteen to twenty years of age,
were squatting in a corner occupied in learning
how to write—a very rare accomplishment in
Persia, and principally confined to the merchant
classes. Some of the lads had escaped for a
moment from the vigilance of their master, and
were buying oranges from a pedlar. The fruit
had been brought from Tabriz, as there are no
orange trees in the neighborhood of Khoi.
Suddenly the Hodja discovered their absence;
he ran outside the school. He did not confine
his blows to the lads, but allowed the pedlar to
share them with his pupils.

We arrived at some pillaff shops; here legs
and wings of chickens, surrounded by piles of
rice, were placed before the merchants. One
of them, taking a piece of meat in his fingers
from a plate, handed it to me. He wanted my
opinion of his wares.

" Good!" I said.

" Have you pillaff in your country?" he in-
quired.

"Yes."

" Rut not like my pillaff?"

" No, not so good."

This greatly delighted the trader: running out
of his shop, he insisted that I should return with
him and taste his sweetmeats. These last were
some of them very well made, and had been
manufactured with a considerable amount of
skill—a trade going on in bon-bons between
Khoi and other towns in the interior. The

Persian ladies are very fond of sweatmeats, a
large quantity of these delicacies being con-
sumed in the different harems.

I wanted to buy some article of native manu-
facture in silver. " It was impossible; the jewel-
ers kept nothing by them ready made; they could
have executed an order, but this would have
been a tedious affair. After having visited the
mosque in the town—a building which was
rather more lofty than the Turkisk mosques,
but in other respects very similar—I began to
think that it was time for me to continue my
journey to Van.

It was very warm here, but the route from
Van to Kars would be covered with snow, and
I had only two months left of my leave of
absence to complete the journey to England.
The consul pressed me to stay another day in
his house. However, we had commenced
making our preparations, and 1 was the more
eager to leave the town as I had been friven to
understand that my arrival had caused great
uneasiness to the Russian officiate in Erivan.
From their being so close to Khoi they have
begun to look upon this town as their own
territory.

The paternal government was alarmed lest I
should be murdered by the Persians; and after
the extreme solicitude the Russian authorities
had shown for my safety when I was traveling
to Khiva, I should have been deeply grieved
to have given them anymore annoyance on my
account.

The following morning we left Khoi at day-
break. The city stands on a plain, and is
surrounded by a chain of hills, but they are at
a considerable distance from the walls.

The latter gradually disappeared, and, after a
march of two hours and a half along a good
road, we arrived at Kotoor Boghaz, a famous
pass which divides the territory of the Sultan
from that of the Shah. There is no Persian
military station in the neighborhood. The
Turks have built a sort of block-house at the
entrance of the gorge. Here I found a small
force consisting of one captain, two lieutenants,
forty infantry, and twenty-eight cavalry sol-
diers. Ahmed was the name of the captain. I
now discovered that he was the identical officer
who, six months previous, had been made pris-
oner by the Persians, and taken to Khoi. He
informed me that one Turkish soldier, Osman
by name, had been killed in the fray, and that
he himself had been kept in chains for forty
days in a jail at Khoi, during which time he had
nothing given him to eat save bread and water.
In addition to this he had to sleep on the bare
floor. According to my informant, the Persian
captives who had been sent to Van had been
well treated. They had been given beds in
which to sleep, and had been supplied with
pillaff.

" What do you think was the cause of the
Persians attacking the Turkish village?" I in-
quired.

" The Russians were the origin of the dis
turbance." replied the officer. " Whilst I was
being taken a prisoner to Khoi, I heard the
Persian soldiers say: 'The Russians are our
fathers,' and they laughed at me as they said
so. The sooner we fight Russia the better,"
continued the speaker. " She will not be half
so troublesome to us in open fight as she is at
present."

We proceeded onward through the Kotoor
Pass. A little stream, called the Kotoor Su,
dashed along at our feet, and gradually became
wider as it received a succession of small
tributaries from the adjacent mountains.

The defile presents a series of magnificent
positions for defence. It is in many places not
more than 200 yards broad. 'Precipitous
heights look down upon the stream from either
hand.

There are several mineral springs in this
neighborhood—some being of a sulphurous
nature. These are largely used by the Kurds,
who, if unwell, come here during the summer
months and drink the waters.

Presently the guide turned off the path; as-
cending some rising ground, he dismounted by
the side of a spring." Taking a tin cup from
my holster, I desired him to fill it, after which
I tasted the water. It wafwarm and reminded
me of the Sprudal spring at Carlsbad, but is
much stronger. Two glasses full of this Kotoor
water are equivalent in their effects to at least
four of the Sprudel.

Snow lay on the ground beneath us. At first
in patches, then becoming more frequent it
covered the winding path. A hailstorm came

on. A cutting wind whistled through the
gorge. The sudden difference between the heat
at Khoi,- and the cold in the Kotoor Pass, struck
a chill to our very bones. We had been march-
ing for six hours; there were still five more ere
we could reach a resting-place.

Dismounting from our horses we ran by their
side, and tried to restore circulation in our
bodies. The rapid changes of climate in this
part of Asia Minor are very dangerous to travel-
ers. The natives have a saying: "A chill in
the evening is death in the morn." If any one
experiences a chill, and does not succeed in be-
coming warm again immediately, he is certain
to feel some ill effects. We passed by another
hot-spring; it issues from the bank of the Ko-
toor river. The guide, borrowing my tin, dis-
mounted, and began to wash his mouth.

" Why are you doing that?" I inquired.

"For toothe-ache," was the reply.

We now learnt that the Kurds have an im-
plicit belief in the efficacy of this water for
such complaints.	^

CHAPTER LVII.

I was not sorry to reach Kotoor. The track
had been very bad for the last half of our jour-
ney. An eleven hours' march made under such
circumstances is tiring for man as well as
beast.

There is a quarantine station in the town.
The medical officer in charge has to examine
all people traveling from Persia to Turkey by
this route.. This is done to prevent persons
suffering from cholera or plague spreading these
maladies throughout the Sultan's dominions.

The governor of Kotoor was a Persian by
birth. His father had been in the Shah's ser-
vice, but had changed his allegiance and en-
abled the Sultan to take possession of some
land round Kotoor, which originally belonged
to Persia. He now informed me that the Per-
sians w7ere forming a military camp at Salmas,
and said that probably this was being done
with the connivance of Russia.

The medical officer, an Italian, entered the
room; he was about eighty years of age, and
had been in Kotoor since 1847. His emolu-
ments consist of ten piastres per head, which
he receives from every one who passes along
the Kotoor road from Persia to Turkey.

" A Russian came here the other day," ob-
served the doctor. "He was disguised as a
Persian, and thought that I did not recognize
his nationality."

" What was the object of his journey?"

Probably to stir up the Kurds, and invite the
Armenians to rise against the Mohammedans,"
.eplied the doctor. " There is a great deal
of mineral wealth in this neighborhood," he con-
tinued; " coal and iron abound within two miles
of this place."

" The Russians would like to take this terri-
tory for two reasons," remarked the governor;
"first, because having Kotoor and Van, they
would be able to make depots and preparations
for a march further south upon Bagdad and
Mosul; and, secondly, on account of the mines
in the district."

A Kurdish chieftain who lived near Bitlishad
recently written to the Sultan, offering him the
services of 20,000 men, in the event of a war
between Turkey and Russia. His offer was
accepted, and the loyal Kurd's heart had been
gladdened by the present of a magnificent silk
turban and a sword.

The mountaineers near Kotoor could all be re-
lied upon by the Turks. But there was reason
to mistrust the sincerity and good faith of the
Kurds in the neighborhood of Moush and
Aleshkert. They were said to have recently
received large sums of money, besides arms,
from Russia.

"If the Russians were to be worsted, the
Kurds would be the first to turn these arms
against their quandoin friends," added the
governor, " for the people about Aleshkert are
proverbial for one thing—namely, that they al-
ways take the winning side."

The following morning I said good-bve to the
hospitable old doctor, in whose house I had
slept. He had kindly given me a bed in one
corner of his room—he himself, and the rest of
his family, having slept in the other.

We rode towards Van. It is about sixty
miles distant from Kotoor. Our track for the
first hour ran within the mountain goige—a
continuation of the Kotoor Pass, but which
here is several miles wide. After riding by52

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

several Kurdish villages, we began to ascend a
succession of rising slopes. Plateau after pla-
teau, each nigner than its neighbor, were ex-
tended in front of us; the snow at each moment
became deeper. It was evident that we could
not reach Van on mat evening. I determined
to break the journey at the village of Moullah
Hassan, which would be about a ten hours'
march from Kotoor. Several Kurdish mer-
chants had'joined our party; they were travel-
ing from Khoi, and drove before them oxen and
calves laden with timbaki (Persian tobacco.)

One of the Kurds possessed a mule. This
animal, besides his master's persona) effects,
carried the post-bag from Khoi to Van. The
Kurd led his mule for sometime, but at length,
tiring of this, ne turned the animal 'loose, and
drove him before our party, in company with
the oxen and calves belonging to the other
traders. We had nearly reached Moullah Has-
san; the mule had outstripped the rest of the
caravan, I was ruling behind him. The road
suddenly dipped. There was a declivity in
front of us. I lost sight of the animal. He had
disappeared.

It was becoming dark. I pulled up my horse
for a moment—it was lucky that I did so, for
in another moment we should have been in a
river—the dip being neither more nor less than
the bed of the stream, which was covered over
with a thin film of ice and two or three feet of
snow. In another second the mule's head ap-
peared above the surface. His frantic struggles
showed that he was endeavoring to gain a foot-
hold.

The proprietor of the animal came up.

"My new yellow trousers!" was his first re-
mark. A fearful oath then resounded from his
lips.

He had bought some clothes at Khoi. They
were in his saddle-bags and on the mule—the
letter-bag being evidently considered by the
muleteer as something quite secondary to his
personal attire. He tried to reach the animal,
but the ice, breaking, let him into the water.
In the meantime the exertions of the mule had
loosened his surcingle, presently it gave way;
saddle, an-1 letters, in addition to the wardrobe
of the Ki r 1, slipped off the animal's back. They
sank to tue bottom of the river.

Our guide, turning to the right, proposed
that we should ride up the stream, and try and
find a place where the ice would bear. This
was done. About half an hour afterwards we
found ourselves beneath the roof of a Kurdish
farmer—the chief proprietor in the village of
Moullah Hassan.

There were several Nestorian villages in the
neighborhood; however, the inhabitants of these
hamlets possessed the reputation of being dirtier
than the Kurds, so the traveler who is wise will
invariably elect to pass the night with the
mountaineers.

The Kurd whose mule had fallen into the
water entered the room. In one hand he bore
something which was dripping wet. He sa-
laamed, and then began to wring out the arti-
cle he was carrying; the trousers were exposed
to view. Once of a yellow color, they were
now a dull brown. The Kurd, stretching them
out on the floor, gazed in a melancholy man-
ner upon the soiled vestments.

"A horse and two sheep," he remarked with
a sob; 44 Effendi, have pity upon me!"

"What does he want?" I inquired of Mo-
hammed.

It appeared that the Kurd wished to buy a
wife from a neighboring farmer who had some
marriageable daughters. Their father, nothing
loth, and who was in want of a pair of broad
yellow trousers, had consented, provided the
candidate for his girl's hand would provide
him with a beautiful pair, a turban, and some
tea. Broad yellow drawers, or pants, as
Yankees would call them, are not often to be
met with in Kurdistan. They are brought
from Erivan in Russia, and are greatly prized
by the mountaineers. The Kurd had been to
Khoi on purpose, had sold there a horse and
two sheep; with the proceeds of the sale he
had purchased the attire in question. He was
now dreadfully alarmed lest the father of the
girl should decline giving his daughter in ex-
change for the soiled apparel.

" But what can I do in the matter?" was my
next question.

" Give me a baksheesh," said the Kurd, " and
I will return to Khoi and buy some more var-
ments."

The man had forgotten about the mail bag,
which lay buried beneath the frozen surface of
the river.

Desiring him to go and fish up the letters, I
promised that, later in the day, I would take
his case into consideration.

The snow disappeared as we approached the
town of Van. We rode by a small lake, about
twelve miles from our halting-place. Continu-
ing on over a succession of table-lands, the
path sloped down towards the great lake or
sea, to which the capital of Armenia gives a
name.

Van stands in a plain, and is surrounded by
orchards filled with fruit-trees. The ground
in the neighborhood is highly cultivated, corn
and other cereals flourishing throughout the dis-
trict.

I had sent forward a letter of introduction to
the governor of Van from Ismail Pacha of
Erzeroum. The man to whom 1 had entrusted
the epistle had not taken the trouble to deliver
it. The governor was quite ignorant of my
arrival.

I stopped at his house, and, going up to the
reception-chamber, found him busily engaged
in conversation with an official who had re-
cently arrived from Constantinople, to inquire
into the excesses said to have been committed
by some soldiers upon the Armenians in Van.

The Pacha received me very courteously, in
spite of my not having a letter for him; he re-
marked, with a smile, that there were no hotels
in Van as in Constantinople, and said that he
would provide me with a room in a barrick
which had been lately erected in the town.

The officer commanding the garrison now
entered the room, and accompanied me to my
quarters. The barrack was two stories high,
and in the form of a square, with a court-yard
for drill in the centre of the building. The
officers and men's rooms were on the first story,
and below them the stables for the horses. The
apartment given me was large and clean. The
walls were whitewashed, the floor was covered
with a Persian carpet. A large looking-glass—
the first I had seen since I quitted our consul's
house in Erzeroum—was suspended from the
walls.

There were only half a battalion of infantry
and a battery of Krupp guns at that time in
Van. The remainder of the garrison consist-
ing of one battalion and a half, had marched
the previous week to the neighborhood of Bit-
lis, where some Kurds had burnt down a Turk-
ish guard-house.

CHAPTER LVIII.

The following morning I walked with the
commandant to see the artillery at practice.
The drill was fairly done. The guns were
hoised with fine-looking animals from 15-3 to
16 hands high, mostly grays, and brought
from European Turkey. The officer who com-
manded took great pride in his battery. A
few hours after the drill was over, he accom-
panied me through the stables. The steel was
bright, and the harness in thorough good order.
When I remarked this to the commander, he re-
plied :

"Effendi,! was educated in the military
school at Constantinople. If the rest of our
officers had been there, we should have a better
army. But, please God, for all that, we shall
give the Russians more to do than they ex-
pect."

I now went to see the citadel. It stands on
a rock in the middle of the town, and is about
500 feet above the level of the lake.

Van is surrounded on three sides by a chain
of hills, which are at a distance of from three
to seven miles from the town. On the fourth
side it is bounded by the lake which bears its
name. There is a swamp towards the west,
and close to the houses. This makes the place
very unhealthy in the summer months—typhus
and other fevers are prevalent in the district.
The military surgeon, a Hungarian, who ac-
companied me in my ride to the citadel, ob-
served that several complaints had been made
to the authorities at Constantinople as to the
sanitary state of Van, and a letter had been sent
to the Medical Department recommending that
the swamp should be drained. A Pacha had
died of typhus only six months before; this
had thoroughly aroused the new governor. It
had acted upon him like the death of a director,
in a railway accident, acts upon the other di-
rectors of the line. However, nothing had
been done up to the present time towards carry-
ing the governor's and doctor's suggestions into
effect.

I now learn that the lake contains natron.

The townspeople have a very simple manner of
obtaining this substance. In the summer months
they pour water from the lake into large shal-
low basins; the heat of the sun evaporates the
water, and carbonate of soda is deposited at the
bottom of the vessels. It is afterwards sent to
Erzeroum and Stamboul. The inhabitants of
Van use this substance for washing purposes as
a substitute for soap.

The road wound round the height on which
the citadel stands. After about a fifteen min-
utes' climb, our horses reached the summit.
Here there were several very old guns, some
dating back more than 250 years. Large piles
of stone balls lay behind many of the pieces;
the commander, pointing at them, remarked
that nowadays they would not be of any use,
although in the last century they had struck
terror into the midst of a Persian host. The
modern citadel, if it may be termed by that
name, is merely a block-house, with accommo-
dations for about 100 soldiers. There are many
galleries cut in the solid rock, some of which
were used in old days as quarters for the troops,
and others as dungeons for prisoners. Some
heavy chains were lying on the floors, or fast-
ened*^) rings in the rock. Presently we came
to an enormous cavern filled with stone cannon-
balls. The commandant informed me that
these had been brought there just before Nadir
Shah's attack upon Van.

"Nadir Shah besieged this town for seven
years," continued the officer; "look at the marks
of some of his handiwork." With these words
he showed us a few holes in the wall which had
apparently been made by artillery fire.

Many ancient Greek and Assyrian coins had
been found in the neighborhood of the citadel,
and, according to the doctor, the place abounds
with inscriptions in characters which cannot be
read by any of the inhabitants.

There is a well of naphtha about fifty yards
from the block-house. The commandant, going
with me to the spot, made a soldier draw out
some of the contents. The well was very deep,
and the inhabitants of Van had used the naph-
tha from time immemorial. The doctor was
doubtful as to whether it was a natural well, or
merely a large cistern which had been filled
many years ago with this liquid, possibly for
the use of the garrison.

"Are the guns in the citadel ever discharged?"
I inquired.

"No," said the commandant; "they are all
useless with the exception of one small piece,
which we keep for firing salutes during the
Bairam. This rock is much too near the town
to be used as a fort," he continued. " A hos-
pital ought to be built here, or it would be a
good site for a depot of stores; but as a de-
fensive position it is useless against modern ar-
tillery."

We came to a place in the rock where it de-
scends abruptly for several hundred feet. " An
Englishman was let down from here by a cord
some years ago," observed the doctor. "About
200 feet below this spot there is an inscription
cut on the stone. The inscription is about
Semiramis. Formerly we all wished to know
what was the meaning of the writing; but no
one in Van was bold enough to descend the
rock, or, even if some Armenian or Turk had
dared to make the attempt, he would have been
unable to decipher the characters. Well," con-
tinued the speaker, " an Englishman came here
and was lowered by cords over the precipice.
If he had fallen even from the spot where the
inscription is cut, he must have been dashed to
pieces, as it is a long way above the rocks.
However, your countryman succeeded in taking
an impression of the characters, and I believe
a translation of them is in the British Museum.
You can see the inscription from the town it
self," he added. " The letters are very large;
they occupy a place about twelve feet long by
eight wide."

We returned towards the barrack. On the
way I took the opportunity of looking at the
characters on the rock. They are cut on four
square blocks, each block being placed by the
side of its fellow\ Imagine four gigantic sheets
of the Times, placed one alongside the other,
and covered with huge, quaintly-formed letters;
you will then be able to form an idea of the ap-
pearance of the inscription. As you look at
the writing from the ground, it appears that in
the third square from the right the letters are a
little defaced, but in the others the characters
ystand out as clear as on the day when they were
first chiselled. Several Armenian children were
playing at soldiers in the street, their fathers
and brothers were being instructed in drill inON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

63

the barrack-yard. Some little military en-
thusiasm existed in the town, even amongst the
Christians; and the governor had promulgated
the Sultan's edict that every one of his subjects
was to be taught the use of arms.

1 paid the commandant a visit. His apart-
ments adjoined mine, whilst I was with him
several men arrived—some wishing to be sol-
diers, others desirous of being released from
the conscription. A fine-looking Kurd was
amongst the last-mentioned applicants. He was
dressed in the usual picturesque costume of his
race, but, in addition, wore a sort of white
muslin shawl, which enveloped him from head
to foot.

"You will make a capital soldier," said the
commandant. " You had better serve.",

" Bey Effendi," replied the man, " I am rup-
tured."

"Really," said the doctor, who was present
in the room; " on which side?"

" The right," replied the man, pointing to his
groin.

"Then you will do very well for the in-
fantry," observed the Hungarian. "A man
must be ruptured on both sides to be freed from
service in that branch of the army." ■

The Kurd went away rather crestfallen. I
then learnt that it is a common practice amongst
those mountaineers who do not wish to serve,
to purposely rupture themselves. This they
do by pressing with their finger and thumb
on the lower part of the stomach until a swell-
ing arises. The operation hurts. After a man
has ruptured himself on one side he does not
feel inclined to repeat the process on the other.
The doctor, who gave me the information, ob-
served that the Kurds have a way of curing
ruptures which is not generally known to the
medical faculty. They burn the skin around
the ruptured spot with a hot iron, the muscles
will then contract, and this often effects a
cure.

Three American missionaries called: they
were living at a village about an hour's
ride from Van. They had been there for some
years, but had not succeeded in making many
converts.

They described the country as being in a
very unsettled state, and said that they had
lately heard from some other missionaries near
Bitlis that a Kurdish sheik in that neighbor-
hood had recommended them not to go to the
mountains, as they were in the habit of doing
during the summer months, for he could not
guarantee their safety.

The missionaries at Yan were eager to know
what part England was likely to take in the
event of a war. Although Americans, they
are looked upon by the inhabitants as English-
men, and the English flag is much more re-
spected in Asia Minor than that of the United
States.

The commissioner who had been sent from
Constantinople, to inquire about the recent dis-
turbances at Yan, and the burning of the Ar-
menian bazaar, entered the room. He informed
me that immediately after the conflagration
had occurred, fabulous reports as to the amount
of the property destroyed had been published
in the Armenian papers. It was first stated
that 1,000,000 liras would not cover the loss
experienced by the merchants in Yan. Subse-
quently it was said that 200,000 liras in specie
had been stolen by the Turkish soldiery, and
that goods to the value of 300,000 liras had
been destroyed by the flames.

When the commissioner arrived at Yan, his
first act was to make a list of all the merchants
who had shops in the bazaar. Then, sending
for each man separately, he asked him what
was the nature of his merchandise, and at how
much he valued his losses. When the commis-
sioner added up the sums claimed by all
the merchants in Yan, he found that the
total amount did not exceed 96,000 liras. In
addition to this the Armenians acknowledged
having saved goods to the value of 10,000
liras.

In the official's opinion 23,000 liras would
cover the entire loss; and from what I after-
wards saw of the ruins of the bazaar, and
judging from the small area over which they
extended, I am inclined to believe that he had
fairly estimated the damage.

The Armenian newspapers, probably instigat-
ed by Russian agents, had declared that the
Turkish troops stationed in Yan had first set
fire to the bazaar, and then pillaged it in the
confusion. The commissioner, after the most
searching inquiries, was unable to discover that
the troops were in any w7ay implicated in the

affair. Several Armenians kept petroleum and
lucifer matches in their warehouses: his idea
was that the fire originated either by spontane-
ous combustion, or through some one accident-
ally dropping a lighted match.

The soitliers had been called out to help to
extinguish the fire. Thinking that the men
might have stolen something during the con-
flagration the commissioner asked the com-
mander to issue an order for all the garrison to
march to Erzeroum on the following morning.
This was done. Shortly afterwards the differ-
ent battalions left the town. The commis-
sioner, accompanied by some Armenian mer-
chants, met the troops on the road. The sol-
dier's baggage was then searched, and each
man in succession. Nothing was found which
could in any way connect the troops with the
robbery.

CHAPTER LIX.

I now walked to an extempore market which
the Armenians are making use of until the
old one is reconstructed. With the exception
of quantities of rough silk brought from Persia,
raw cotton, and carbonate of soda, which had
been taken from the lake, there was literally
nothing to see.

It was said that there were 20,000 inhabitants
in the town; I am inclined to believe that the
number has been exaggerated. The market-
place which had been destroyed by fire stood
on a very small area of ground. The impres-
sion conveyed to my mind was that the whole
town did not contain above 16,000 inhabitants.
The Pacha receives a yearly salary of 2200 liras,
and is paid in gold. The other officials are not
so fortunate; the pay of the commander of the
garrison only amounted to 201, a month, and
was always several months in arrear; in addi-
tion to this he was paid in Turkish bank-notes.
The Hungarian had a contract with the govern-
ment; his pay amounted to 171, per month, and
had to be given him in gold; in consequence of
this, he was quite as well off as the commander.

From the market-place I went to the Ar-
menian church, which stands in the middle of
the town. It consists of several rooms, one of
them being very much like a wooden barn, the
others are built of stone with arched roofs.
There was nothing to be seen in the building
save a few tawdry pictures of saints; it was
carpeted in the same wTay as the Turkish
mosques. The priest wTho accompanied us,
raising a curtain, showed me an inscription in
cuneiform characters cut in the stone.

"This part of the building is very old," he
said; " it was formerly a heathen temple."

" How old?" I inquired.

"One thousand eight hundred years," said
the priest.

"Nonsense, brother," said another, "it is
two thousand."

" Say three thousand, and you will be nearer
the mark," added a third.

It was evident that none of these gentlemen
had any data to go upon for their calculations;
I left the church rather disappointed. I had
hoped that some of the divines might be able
to give me information as to the antiquities of
the city. The Armenian clergy do not trouble
their heads about such matters; their time is so
taken up in the performance of idolatrous rites,
and in looking after the welfare of the fairer
portion of their flock, that they have net a mo-
ment to spare for the study of the ancient his-
tory of Armenia.

The Armenian who wishes to be a priest
must serve in six different grades before he can
be ordained. He must be an exorcist, porter,
reader, sub-deacon, candle-lighter, and deacon.
If he has any-interest with his bishop, he can
pass through all these grades in one day.

As a priest, he is allowed to marry; however,
like the clergy belonging to the Greek Church,
if his wife dies, the Armenian cannot take unto
himself a second spouse. He then may become
a monk, and live, free of expense, in one of
the monasteries. Next in order, but above the
monks, are the bishops and the two patriarchs—
one residing in Constantinople, the other at Jeru-
salem—the patriarch at Constantinople being
looked up to by the Armenians as a sort of civil
head, besides being their spiritual guide. We
now come to the Catolicos, who is first of all in
the ecclesiastical hierarchy. He lives in Russia,
near Mount Ararat, and is the chief personage
of the Armenian Church.

All bishops and priests have to wear beards.
The bishops are ordained by the Catolicos, and

a council of bishops consecrates the latter..
The Armenian Christians worships pictures;:
confess to their priests; offer prayers for the
dead, and ask for the intercession of their
saints. An oil is used for the baptism of chil-
dren. It is called meira. The Armenians be-
#lieve that this oil has boiled without any fire-
having been placed under it, and they think:
that this has been effected through the miracu-
lous power of the Catolicos. Whoever and
whatever touches this oil is made holy, and is
looked upon as having been sanctified.

The Catolicos sells the meira, and makes a
very large sum by the sale of the oil. The
other revenues of the church arise from bap-
tismal and burial .fees, prayers for the dead,
taxes imposed upon the people by the ecclesi-
astics, voluntary contributions, and money left
in the wills of devotees.

According to an American missionary at
Erzeroum, the Rev. Moses Parmelee, who has
published a work w7hich treats of the Armenian;
clergy, "many of the higher ecclesiastics be-
come very wealthy at the expense of the poor
people whom they cheat and oppress."

He also remarks that the Bible of the Arme-
nians is in their ancient language, which is not
understood by the masses of the people.

They wTere a free nation till the beginning of
the eleventh century, but later on the Moguls
and Turks devastated Armenia, and the inhabi-
tants have never raised their heads since.

There is a curious tradition connected with
the Armenian faith. It is to the effect that, at
the beginning of our era, some envoys from
Abgar, King of Armenia, happened to be in
Jerusalem. Whilst they were in the city they
saw Jesus Christ, and afterwards informed
their sovereign of the miracles which our
Saviour was performing throughout Syria. The
monarch wTas a leper, and, thinking that the
same supernatural being who had saved so
many lives in Jerusalem might be able to do
something for him, the king wrote, say the
Armenians, the following letter to the Saviour:

"Abgar, son of Arsham, Prince of this land,,
to Jesus, the Saviour and benefactor of man.
Greeting. I have heard of Thee, and of the
cures wrought by Thy hands without reme-
dies and without plants. For it is said that
Thou makest the blind to see, the lame to walk.
The lepers are healed, and spirits are cast out.
Thou healest the unfortunate afflicted with long
and inveterate diseases. Thou dost raise the
dead. As I have heard of all the wonders done
by Thee, I have concluded that Thou art either
God come down from heaven, or the son of
God, to do such things. I therefore have writ-
ten beseeching Thee to deign to come to me
and cure my disease. I have also heard that
the Jews use Thee ill, and lay snares to destroy
Thee. I have here a little city pleasantly-
situated, and sufficient for us both."

Jesus replied: "After I have gone I will
send one of My disciples, who salill cure thy
malady, and give life to thee and thine."

Some Armenians say that Christ caused the
imprint of His face to be left on a handkerchief,
and gave it to the envoys, telling them that it
would cure their master. This is cited to jus-
tify the adoration of pictures, which is part of
the Armenian faith. According to another
tradition, the handkerchief never reached the
leprous king; for the envoys who were carry-
ing it to their master were attacked by brigands,
and it was stolen on the way. This version
tells us that Thaddeus subsequently healed
the leprous sovereign.

It was the 7th of. March. I had already
spent several days in Yan, and contrary to my
hopes, had not benefited by the rest. I wTas
still suffering from dysentery; instead of the
complaint getting better, it had become worse.
By all account we should be able to find milk
in most of the Kurd and Yezeed villages be-
tween Yan and Kars; so I determined to start
for the latter place and try what a milk and rice
diet would do towards restoring my health and
strength. We rode for two hours by the side
of the lake; then, leaving the blue water, as-
cended a low range of hills. The sun's rays
were very powerful; a mirage was formed be-
fore us. Miles upon miles of water w7ere re-
flected in the sky. Presently we crossed a
little stream known as the Mahmod Tchai, and
after a short march halted at Gull—a small vil-
lage with thirty houses, half belonging to Ar-
menians, half to Mohammedans.

The morn breaks. We ride over some high
table-land, and then return to the lake. Our
route lies ' along its shores. Sandhills slope
down to the water's edge; myriads of starlings54

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR,

flit about the beach; pelicans and other wild
fowl sail along the surface of the deep. After
a six hours' journey we rest at Paz—a small
Kurd village with only ten houses.

The following day we marched along a good
track to Tishikoomlekui, a devil-worshippers'
village. Then crossing the Bendimah river—
here about thirty yards wide—on a stone bridge,
we continued to Karahana, and so on to Ar-
dish, an Armenian village with 200 houses and
a resident Caimacan.

A pretty Kurdish girl, whom I had seen at
Paz, accompanied us to the latter place. I now
learnt that the females in some parts of Kur-
distan have a strange custom. This is to be-
set any stranger who is about to enter or quit
their village. The girls dance round the way-
farer, and take the opportunity to divest him
of his apparel. When he is in a nude state,
they seize their victim and carry him with them
before some old matron,* complaining to her
that their prisoner has grossly insulted them.
The man is lucky if he escapes with his clothes
minus the cash in the pockets.

CHAPTER LX.

¥e reached Akserai. I was informed by
my host, an^Armenian, that the Christians in
this district^ live in constant dread of their
warlike neighbors, the Kurds—and the more
particularly of the Kurds from Persia. These
mountaineers sometimes made raids upon the
villages and committed all sorts of excesses
-on the women. Only three months previous
a scene of this description had taken place at
Akserai. The Kurds had come tlu re in the
night: live of the females in the vii -je had
been ravished by the assailants.

The Armenian who gave me this information
declared that he liked the Pacha at Van, but
said that the latter was powerless to prevent
these attacks. There were 5000 Kurds in the
mountains, and all were well-armed men. Ar-
tillery could not be transported in those regions.
The troops at the disposal of the government
were too few to be of any real assistance.

There were many hot springs in Lake Yan,
and I was assured that, in places, a man could
not put his hand in the water without being
scalded.

Fish, according to my informant, are only
caught in the spring months. The finny tribe
then descend the rivers to the Lake, and are
taken in large numbers.

The villagers draw three nets across the
mouths of the rivers. There are funnels in
the first two nets, which are left open for the
fish to pass. The apertures in the second net
being much smaller than those in the first.
When the men discover, by the pressure against
the outer net, that they have as many fish as
the trammels will hold, they close the funnels,
and draw the nets together. The captives, in
their endeavors to escape, leap several feet into
the air, and the scene is a highly-animated one.
No large fishes are met with, their average size
being from one to two pounds. When a suffi-
cient number have been taken, the women salt
them down, and they are kept for winter con-
sumption.

There is a great deal of plow-land in the
neighborhood of fAkserai, and, on inquiry, I
learnt that corn is' grown here in large quanti-
ties.

We rode along the shores of the lake for two
hours, and, after traversing a well-cultivated
country, reached Zerekli. Here many of the
inhabitants were seated on the roofs of their
houses—the women working and the men bask-
ing in the sun. A few soldiers could be seen
mending their uniform, and an old Armenian
woman was occupied in stitching a shirt be-
longing to a truculent-looking^sergeant. This
gentleman sat beside her, sans ^chemise, and
smoking a long chibouk; volumes of smoke
from his pipe were slowly wreathing them-
selves in the atmosphere.

My host was engaged in mending the roof of
his house. A buffalo, or some heavy animal,
had walked upon it. The part near the chim-
ney had given way.

Thousands of starlings were perched on
some trees in the rear of the dwellings. Many
of these birds could be seen hopping about in
-close proximity to a crowd of Turkish and
Armenian urchins. The latter were very dif-
ferent to English lads; for if the starlings had

* Major Millingen goes more fully into particulars
About this custom of the Kurdish women. See Appen-
dix XII.

settled down in one of our own villages, it would
not have been long ere some boy or other had
thrown a stone at them.

It was pleasanter sitting on the roof of the
house than being an inmate of its subterranean
recesses. But the night turned bitterly cold.
A thick mist arose from the lake. It warned
the villagers to retire within their dwellings, if
they did not wish to risk catching a fever.

We followed their example, and in a short
time experienced one of the plagues with which
Moses afflicted the Egyptians. There were
some loose boards in a corner of the stable; I
took them and tried to remove my body from
the onslaught of the vermin by making a sort
of scaffolding to sleep upon, three feet from
the floor. However, it was all to no purpose.
If my tormentors could not reach me by climb-
ing from the ground, they ascended the sides of
the building and dropped down upon the scaf-
folding from the ceiling.

Sleep was out of the question. Starting be-
fore daybreak, we continued our journey along-
side the lake. Thousands of geese and ducks
were skimming along the surface of its waters.
In the distance some broad-bottomed boats could
be seen. They were laden with wood, and were
transporting this article of fuel to the adjacent
villages.

We crossed two small rivers, and then, con-
tinuing through deep snow, arrived, after a six
hours' march, at Patnos. A river of the same
name runs through the village, which contains
fifty houses, and the stream, continuing its
course a few miles farther; runs into the Murad.
Patnos was garrisoned by a company of sol-
diers. A Mudir looked after the welfare of the
inhabitants. The troops were not strong enough
to cope with the Kurds in the neighborhood.
The result was that the misdeeds of the moun-
taineers went unpunished.

A few hours later, and we crossed the Murad
river, here about sixty yards wide, the water
being up to our horses' shoulders, and, after an
eight-hours' march, halted in a Yezeed village
called Dotah.

The Caimacan in this place was not very
hospitably inclined. Instead of offering me a
room in his own house, as had been the custom
of the governors at our previous halting places,
he ordered an old Yezeed farmer to provide us
with accommodation for the night.

The ancient devil-worshipper was anything
but pleased at having to find shelter for my
servants and self. He had only two rooms, and
one of the traveling priests or sheiks of his
community was with him as a visitor. The
sheik would want a room to himself, and there
would be only the stable left for the old man,
his family, our horses, and selves.

CHAPTER LXI.

My landlord was not a sweet creature to look
upon. The sheik who was his guest had a still
more forbidding countenance; the latter gen-
tleman, with his deep-set eyes, high, narrow
forehead, coming almost to a point where it
reached his skull, and long cockatoo-like nose,
having a very demoniacal appearance. My
host had two daughters, who had been deputed
to wait upon the sheik. They followed him
about like spaniels, and vied with each other in
obeying his commands.

I was seated beside the fireplace when the
distinguished individual entered the room. He
evidently expected that I was about to arise to
receive him in a way becoming to his dignity,
and made a sign as if to ask me not to move.
I paid no attention to this gesture, but motioned
to him to sit by the fire. This he did, and squat-
ting opposite me, unbared a pair of long, shin-
ing arms, and began to pass them through she
flames, as if he were caressing the fiery ele-
ment.

"You like heat?" I remarked, by way of
commencing a conversation.

The man slowly raised his eyes, which glit-
tered in his head and flashed like the embers on
the hearth.

" Heat is good, Effendi. Fire gives warmth
—without warmth we should die. Fire gives
life, and destroys it. I love the flames."

Mohammed came close to the fire and stooped
down. The sheik's eyes sparkled brighter than
before: he said something. My servant laughed,
but moved away from the hearth.

" What did he say?" I inquired.

" He was afraid, Effendi, that I was about to
spit in the fire. They think that this is a great
insult to the-" Here Mohammed stopped;

he did not like to utter the word "Shaitan"
(devil). The sheik, who appeared much fright-
ened at the beginning of the sentence, and
had left off passing his arms through the flames,
commenced repeating that operation.

" Do you believe in Allah?" I remarked.

" Allah is good," was the reply. " Allah can
do.no harm."

My host now came up, and, bowing before
the sheik, said something. The latter, placing
his hand into his sash, produced two clay balls,
which he gave to the proprietor—the latter re-
ceiving them with an air of the greatest satis-
faction.

These balls had been manufactured with clay
taken from the tomb of Sheik Adi—a saint who
is highly reverenced by the Yazeeds—the tra-
veling sheiks make a certain sum of mcney by
selling them to the devotees.

"Your visit has brought happiness to my
daughters and myself," observed the propri-
etor.

The sheik did not reply immediately, but
presently remarked:

"Your cows shall not die; no robbers shall
enter your doors; illness shall not attack your
family."

Mohammed approached.

" I too should like a ball," he remarked. " It
might keep off my rheumatism. The Effendi's
plasters do good, but they hurt. The ball
would not cause me any pain. Give me one;"
and my servant held out his hand to the sheik.

" Go away!" said the latter, in rather strong
tones. " Go to your own saints, and let them
cure you."

Then, rising, the man left the room, closely .
followed by the two daughters of the pro-
prietor.

These girls were neither of them good-look-
ing, and dirty to an extent which no man who
has not been in the East could imagine.

It is said that there are pretty women amidst
the daughters of the worshippers of the devil;
my personal observations do not lead me to
place any credence in this statement.

I inquired of the proprietor if the sheik had
brought the Melek Taoos (King Peacock) with
him. This is a bird manufactured of bronze,
which is occasionally carried about by the lead-
ing men amidst the Yezeeds, and which all
devil-worshippers are bound to reverence.

" No," replied my host; " our guest is not a
Cawal (a sort of priest). Who told you about
the Melek Taoos?"

" The Turks, and, besides, I have read about
it, and seen a picture of the bird in a book
written by a Frank."

" What a marvel!" said the host; " very few
of our sheiks can read, much less write/'

" Do you ever pray?" I inquired.

"Prav? like the Mohammedans?"

" Yes."

"No; what is the use? You Christians do
not pray like the Mohammedans," continued
the old man.

"No; but we pray to the Founder of our
faith."

" Everything is fixed," observed the Yezeed;
" then what is the good of praying? You can-
not force Destiny to change her mind."

" Then what is the good of the balls you have
just received? for if your cows are destined to
die, they will die."

My host did not show any wish to continue
this conversation, and he presently remarked:

"We are talking about hidden things; no
good will come of it."

" But if you have got the balls of clay," said
Mohammed, joining in the conversation, " they
ought to keep you from any harm."

"Who knows?" said the proprietor; and,
rising from the ground, he lay down in a
farther corner of the room, next some sheep,
and was soon lost to consciousness,

Mr. Layard, who lived some time amongst
the Yezeeds, remarked about these strange
people:

"They recognize one Supreme Being; but,
as far as I could learn, they do not offer up any
direct prayer or sacrifice to him. My questions
on this subject were evaded, and every topic wras
shunnrd connected with the attributes and ex-
istence of the Deity.

"The name of the devil is never mentioned,
and any allusion to it by others so vexes 'and
irritates them that it is said that they have put
to death persons who have wantonly outraged
their feelings by its use.

"So far is their dread of offending the evil
spirit carried that they carefully avoid every
expression which may resemble in sound theOTsT HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MI]S7 OR.

55

name of Satan, or the Arabic word for ' ac- i
cursed.' When they speak of the devil, they j
do so with reverence as Melek-el, the mighty
angel. The Yezeeds believe Satan to be the
chief of the angelic host now suffering punish-
ment for his rebellion against the Divine will,
but still powerful, and to be restored hereafter
to his high estate in the celestial hierarchy. He
must be conciliated and reverenced, they say,
for as he now has the means of doing evil to
mankind, so will he hereafter have the power of
rewarding them. Next to Satan, but inferior
to him in might and wisdom, are seven arch-
angels who exercise a great influence over the
world; they are Gabriel, Michail, Raphail,
Azrail, Dedrail, Azrapheel, and Sliemkeel.
Christ, according to the Yezeeds, was also a
great angel who had taken the form of man.
He did not die on the cross, but ascended to
heaven."

CHAPTER LXII.

We were once more in winter, deep snow lay
along our path. There were several Yezeed vil-
lages by the track, which began to rise abruptly
by the side of the river Murad, and was here
and there cut out of the solid rock.

In many places waterfalls dashed over the
path, and we were literally riding beneath a
canopy of water, which fell several hundred
feet over precipices into the river below. At
others the torrent dashed across the track itself.
We had to advance with the greatest caution to
avoid being swept down the abyss.

I now crossed the Melaskert river. Here our
guide had a narrow escape of being carried
away by the torrent. Presently we arrived at
Tcliekane, an Armenian village, about eight
miles distant from the Town of Toprak Kale.

I had been suffering great pain during the
last two marches, and, on dismounting from
my horse, should have fallen to the ground if it
liad not been for Mohammed.

The latter helped me to enter the house of
my host, an Armenian peasant. Staggering up
to the hearth, I threw myself down beside^the
fire. My legs seemed to have lost all their
strength; I had great pain in my head and back.
My pulse was beating very rapidly. It inter-
mitted.

Thinking that it was an attack of fever, I
desired Radford to give me the medicine chest,
and after taking ten grains of quinine, tried to
sleep. This, however, was impossible—the in-
sects in the house would have prevented slum-
ber, even if the fever had not done so.

The night passed away. In the morning I
found myself so weak that I could barely raise
my head from the pillow.

" There is a doctor at Toprak Kale," observed
my Armenian host. " He is a Frank: why not
send for him?"

I did so; but the medical man did not arrive.
I lay all that day racked by pain, and half de-
voured by insects.

In the morning I overheard the following
conversation between Mohammed and the pro-
prietor.

" There are many fleas; my Effendi cannot
sleep."

" It is true," replied the Armenian; " but
there are by no means so many here as in a
Kurd village a few miles distant. The Kurds
have been obliged to abandon their houses in
consequence of these insects. They have had
to live in tents for several months past."

Another night passed without my obtaining
any slumber. In the morning I had a visit
from the doctor, a Hungarian who was attached
to a regiment at Toprak Kale.

The news of the arrival of the son of
iEscuiapius was soon spread through the vil-
lage. My bed-cluimber, the stable, in which
there were three cows, was speedily thronged
by as many excited inhabitants as could find
standing-room.

The doctor was a young man; he had not
been long in Asia Minor, and could only speak
a few words of Turkish. But he wore a uni-
form and was accompanied by a Zaptieh. This
was sufficient at once to strike awe into the Ar-
menian villagers.

"Are you in pain?" said the doctor, in Ger-
man.

" Yes."

" Where?"

" Behind the shoulders and in the side."

" I will examine you."

Producing a stethoscope, he placed one end of
it upon my chest, and the other to his ear.

This proceeding gave rise to great astonish-
ment amongst the assembled visitors, who
eagerly pressed forward to witness the opera-
tion.

" Donnerwetter!" said the indignant physi-
cian, in German. " Haide, go away!" This
last word in Turkish to the Armenians, wTho,
frightened at the sonorous sounds of the " Don-
nerwetter," had already withdrawn for a few
steps.

There wras also some Turkish peasants in the
room. They had made friends with Moham-
med. He had placed them behind two cows in
a corner, so that they might have a good view
of the doctor.

" What is he doing to the Effendi?" inquired
one of them of Mohammed.

" He is looking into his body," observed an-
other.

Mohammed himself now craned out his neck
in my direction.

" Effendi! is he looking into your stomach?"

" No; he is listening to the beats of my
heart."

"How clever these Franks are!" said one
of the Turks. " They do not even take the
trouble to look; they are quite satisfied by lis-
tening. 1 wish the hakim would put the instru-
ment on my chest; it would do me good," he
continued.

"Perhaps he would if we asked him," added
the other.

4' Silence!" said Mohammed. '' The doctor is
saying something."

The face of the medical gentleman became a
little grave after he had sounded me. This gave
great satisfaction to the audience.

" See how solemn he looks!" remarked one
of the by-standers; "the Effendi is going to
die."

" What is the matter with me?" I inquired.

" Rheumatic fever; and your heart is out of
order," said the doctor. "You must lie quiet for
several days, and I will send you some medi-
cine. The battalion probably marches to-mor-
row," he continued, "and so I fear I cannot
come here again."

Pocketing his fee, the medical gentleman
mounted his horse, and rode off with the Zap-
tieh.

I had eaten nothing for two days, and my
mouth wTas parched. Mohammed, seeing this,
brought me some pressed fruit—a sort of wild
cranberry, which the natives dry, and then, if
any one has a fever, they soak the fruit in water
and give it him to drink. The pressed berries
are very nasty to look at. They much resem-
ble tezek. For a moment I thought that Moham-
med was giving me a piece of that fuel by way
of a febrifuge. On tasting the beverage I found
that the flavor was very agreeable. It was acid,
and, in Mohammed's opinion, was a most valu-
able remedy for fever.

The day wore on. In the evening the cows
inside my bed-room were joined by three buffa-
loes.

The air in the room became fouler and more
dense. It was snowing outside, and the propri-
etor had covered the hole, which took the place
of a chimney, with a large stone. I lay awake
for the greater part of the night, every now and
then drinking copious draughts of the pressed
fruit dissolved in water. Nature at last suc-
cumbed. I had not slept for several nights. The
figures of the cows^and buffaloes became smaller;
they gradually disappeared. The light given
out by a piece of cotton steeped in some'melted
fat, and placed in an iron tripod, became more
flickering; the sounds of my followers' snoring
seemed to fade away. I shut my eyes and fell
asleep.

I was awakened late the following afternoon
by something cold and clammy against my
hand. On looking up, I found it was one of
the cows. My arm was stretched out by her
trough The animal was licking my fingers
with"her tongue.

" I was afraid that she would awake you, sir,"
remarked my servant Radford, coming to my
side. "I wished to drive her away, but was
afraid of disturbing you."

CHAPTER LXIII.

The rest had done me good. Mohammed's
febrifuge seemed to agree. Later on, the doc-
tor's medicine arrived. I took a dose, and felt
myself much worse in consequence. I deter-
mined to stick to the native remedy.

Day after day passed by. At last I was able
to raise myself a little from the floor; my appe-

tite gradually returned; and one fine morning
I determined to make an attempt to reach
Kars. My servants lifted me on my horse:
once on his back, I made them strap me to the
high pommel in front of the saddle—a Turkish
one.

The fresh air did wonders, and, though very
weak, I managed to reach Zedhane, a village
which we had stopped at on our way to Baya-
zid, and which lay on the route betwTeen Van
and Kars.

We rode to Daha, passing by Kurdali, a
small village, seven miles from Zedhane, and
with some strong positions, from a military
point of viewr, in the neighborhood. The track
was very different to what it had been a few
weeks previous. There was little snow, and
we were able to reach Daha in five hours.
Our course was almost due north, and ran
through a broad mountain pass to Haasan Bek,
a Kurd hamlet, and from there to Bash, an Ar-
menian village with a hundred Khans. Here a
battalion was quartered. The men had fought
at Alexinatz, and, according to their lieutenant-
colonel, an officer whose acquaintance I had
made at Erzeroum, they were eager to cross
baj^onets again with the Russians.

We left Bash, and, after a two hours'march,
crossed the Araxes on a rickety wooden bridge.
It had been made by an enterprising Circassian.
There is a ford several miles down the stream,
but the Circassian had thought that, if he were
to make this bridge, a great many passengers
would prefer taking the short cut, and would
gladly pay a few piastres for the privilege of
crossing the structure.

We came to the village of Karakroot, in which
the Circassian lived. The sheik, a fine-looking
man, informed us that here there were only
twenty-five houses, but there were 1005 houses
which belonged to people of his nation in the
neighborhood. In the event of wrar, the inhab-
itants of this district could muster 2000 horse-
men. The houses belonging to these Circas-
sians were far cleaner than any which 1 had
seen in the Kurdish or Armenian villages.
They were all built of wood, with wooden
floors. A small enclosure, made of sharp-
pointed stakes, surrounded each of the dwell-
ings. There were quantities of buffaloes, cows,
and sheep in some adjacent fields, and the gran-
aries were said to be well supplied with corn and
barley.

The inhabitants were smart-looking fellows,
and all of them dressed in their national attire
—in tight-fitting sheepskin coats, with the wool
w7orn inside, and buckled round their waists by
a narrow leathern strap, studded with buttons;
broad leather trousers, stuffed into high boots
covered their legs, and small Astrachan caps
their heads.

For arms, the men carried long daggers in
their waist belts—many of the hilts being beau-
tifully worked in silver.

There were several women and girls in the
village. They did not conceal themselves, as
is the custom of the Armenian or Turkish
women. We had the opportunity of looking
at their faces. I was under the impression that
the Circassian girls were very fair. This is not
the case; they more resemble the Spanish belles,
and have a clear olive complexion, through
which you can discern the blue veins. One girl
wras very good-looking. She could not have
been more than sixteen, and sat the horse on
which she was mounted with more grace and
ease than any of her male companions.

The chief features in all these women are
their eyes and teeth. The former are very
large, and the latter small, well-shaped and
white as pearls. Tooth powder is unknown in
this district. How they preserve their teeth so
perfectly is to a European an enigma.

You see men of from sixty to seventy years
of age who have never lost a tooth, each one is
as white as the purest ivory. The Circassians
have another advantage, from a European
point of view, over the Kurds. They do not
sleep in their cow hovels. The stables are
separated from the apartments reserved for the
family.

We rode by several more Circassian villages,
and after passing Gedjerharman, which is a
nine hours' march from Bash, came to a dis-
trict inhabited by Turks and Armenians. The
latter complained of their war-like neighbors,
the Circassians, and declared that a Turk had
been killed the previous evening, in a quarrel
with one of the mountaineers. All this part of
the track was in good order. Seven hours after
leaving Gedjerharman, we entered the plain
around Kars. In rear of the town, which is56

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR

built in the form of a sickle or half-moon, are
some high mountains. A series of detached forts,
occupying commanding positions, defends the
approaches to the citadel. This last stands in
the north-west angle of the town.

Seven battalions of infantry were drilling in
the plain. They presented a more martial ap-
pearance than any of the troops which I had
previously seen in Asia Minor.

The streets of Kars were in a filthy state.
Every house was crammed with soldiers. The
whole sewerage of the population had been
thrown in front of the buildings. Fortunately,
the weather was cold. A very disagreeable
smell could be perceived, as our horses stirred
up the refuse beneath their hoofs.

We halted at the house of the civil governor.
He had been kind enough to place a room at
my disposal. The following morning I rode
out to visit the fortifications. The river Kars
Tchai runs through the town, and is crossed by
three stone bridges, each about forty yards
wide. The Persians in a war with the Turks
had tried to turn this river, so as to cut off the
water from the garrison, but failed in the at-
tempt. I first went to Mount Kara Dagh,
which is about 1400 yards from the town, and
commands the road to the Russian fortress at
Alexandropol or Gumri. A small barracks had
been erected for half a battalion of infantry;
some earlhworks had been thrown up around
the position, which was defended by twelve
Krupp guns. The site for the powder maga-
zine had not been judiciously selected; but, as
it is possible that the war may not be over ere
this work is published, the reader will pardon
me if I do not mention its exact situation.

On the plain below, 1,600 yards from the
Kara Dagh, and 2,000 yards from the town, was
a small redoubt called the Hafeez Pacha Tabia;
here there were nine guns, the battery facing
the south. Fifteen hundred yards southwest
of this point, and 3,000 from the town, stood
the Kanli Tabia, an important redoubt, in very
good repair, and with sixteen guns in position.
The only other defensive works in the plain
consisted of a small redoubt called the Sowaree
Tabia, in which were two guns. No connect-
ing lines had been made to join the different
redoubts; the ground between them was en-
tirely unprotected. On my mentioning this to
. an engineer officer who accompanied me, he
remarked that it was winter, and the ground
was hard: when the weather became milder,
the troops would commence digging trenches
and forming breast-works.

On the northwest of the citadel, and in a
commanding position, stood the Yeli Pacha
Tabia with fourteen guns; and to the right of
this battery, and slightly in advance of it, some
earth-works had been thrown up at the sugges-
tion of Bloom Pacha, a German officer; here
there were five guns. The river separates
these works from the Kara Ka\pak Tabia, a
strong position adjoining the Kara Dagh, and
defended by ten guns.

In the citadel known as the Itch Kale, and
which is slightly in rear of Bloom Pacha Tabia,
and on the opposite side of the river, there were
twelve guns. To the left of Yeli Pacha Tabia
was a battery of thirteen guns, known as the
Tchim Tabia. Closed adjoining this bat-
tery, but more to the west, I saw the Tamar
Tabia with twenty-three guns; here there was a
barrack for one batallion. Five hundred yards
in rear of the Tamar Tabia stood the'Dik-
tipe Tabia with thirteen guns; and about the
same distance behind Diktipe, covering the
northern slopes, the Tachmacli Tabia with
eighteen guns. On the east of Bloom Pacha
Tabia there was a work with four guns, known
as Inglis Tabia; and slightly in advance of this
battery William Pacha Tabia with twelve guns.
This made up all the defences on the north side
of Kars. Most of these redoubts had been very
much neglected; however, the town was better
fortified on the northern side than from the
south. Every facility was afforded to me for
viewing the works in"question, and I was per-
mitted to take the angle between the different
positious, besides being shown the exact bear-
ings of all the powder-magazines.

CHAPTER LXIY.

There were at the time of my visit to Kars
about 20,000 troops quartered in and about the
town; but large reinforcements could be sent
from Erzeroum should occasion arise for their
services. Later in the day, Dr. Lanzoni, of the
Quarantine, called upon me; he is an Italian,

and in the International Service. On my allud-
ing to the state of the streets in Kars, he re-
marked that he had written twice to the authori-
, ties at Constantinople, but that no notice had
been taken of his letters. <l We shall have an
outbreak of typhus or plague in the summer,"
continued the doctor. " The mortality will be
very great, if we are besieged before the filth
is cleared away."

The civil governor entered the room. He
joined in the conversation.

" It is the fault of the military Pacha," he
observed. " The soldiers have made this mess
in the streets, and the military Pacha thinks
that the civilians in the town ought to clear it
up. I have told him that this work ought to be
done by the troops, but he says that the soldiers
are the Padishah's servants, and that their duty
is to fight, and not to be scavengers."

" What have you done about the matter?" I
inquired..

"We have written to Constantinople," replied
the governor.

" How long does it take for a letter to go
there ?"

" About three weeks."

"Yes," said the doctor, " three weeks to go,
and three weeks to return, in all six weeks,
without considering the delay there will be in
answering the communication. We may have
the cholera here long before that time."

" If God wills it, there will be no cholera,"
said the Pacha.

I interrupted him, "You are strengthening
your garrison ?"

" Yes."

"You will repair the fortifications?"

" Yes."

" You are supplying the troops with Martini-
Peabody rifles at a great expense to your gov-
ernment?"

"Yes."

"Well," I continued, "why are you doing
this?"

"On account of the Russians," said the
Pacha; " but why do you ask me these ques-
tions?"

"Because if God wills it, the Russians will
not come here, and if He has decreed that Kars
is to fall, nothing that you can do will prevent
that event taking place."

* "Then you think that armies are useless,"
said the Pacha.

" No, but you would seem to hold that opin-
ion, for you do not take the trouble to have
the streets cleared, and say, if God wills it so,
that there will be no epidemic."

'' Allah is all-powerful. He knows everything
that has happened and that will happen,".said
the governor, devoutly. "We are all dust
in His sight. If we have the cholera in Kars,
it will be the military Pacha's fault."

Shortly afterwTards my visitor left the room.

"I am very glad you spoke to him as you
did," said the doctor. " Our hospitals are full
of men suffering from typhoid fever; more than
10 per cent, of the poor fellows do not recover.
This is a case in which the European powers
ought to interfere," continued the speaker. "I
am a quarantine officer, and am paid by the In-
ternational Commission. It is my duty to pre-
vent the cholera or any other infectious disease
being brought from the East, but these Turks
are doing their best to breed a plague in the
heart of their principal fortification'. Kars is
only thirty miles from Gumri," he added, "if
this place were to fall, the whole of Asia Minor
would follow."

'' Do the Armenians in this town'like the Rus-
sians?" I now inquired.

"'Not at all," said the doctor. " Only seven
months ago the Grand Duke Michael visited
Gumri, the Russian frontier fortress. When
he was there he inspected the Armenian schools,
and made a speech to the girls in one of these
institutions. After a f§w remarks about the
progress they were making, the Grand Duke
concluded his discourse by addressing their
mothers iu these words: ' Rappelez-vous bien
que le lait avec lequel vous nourrissez vos en-
fants doit etre le lait Russe.' The Armenians
are immensely vain of their nationality. This
speech of the Grand Duke incensed them very
much against him. The Russian Prince made
himself still more unpopular a few days later,"
continued the doctor. "In the course of a
visit to the master of one of the Armenian
schools, he observed some pictures in the school-
room. 'What pictures are these?'he inquired.
' They are likenesses of some of the former
kings of Armenia/ replied the schoolmaster.

' You have no right to have any portraits here
save those of the Tzar and of the members of
the Imperial family,' said the Grand Dukey
4 you shall go to prison.' "

An Armenian gentleman entered the room;
he corroborated everything that the doctor had
said, and presently remarked that many years
ago the Emperor Nicholas had given the Patri-
arch Mateos a document, in which the Tzar
granted full religious liberty to all Armenians
in Russia. "Our Patriarch kept this deed
always on his person," continued the speaker.
One day he died very suddenly, and under
rather suspicious circumstances. His successor
searched everywhere for the document, but
could not find it. At length he discovered a
copy; he then wrote to the authorities in Tiflis,
and asked for a fresh paper. His request was
refused, and at the same time he was informed
that no such religious liberty had ever been
granted to the Armenians."

"Is it true that the Russian authorities do
not permit the Mohammedans to leave the Tzar's,
dominion?" I now inquired.

" Yes," said the doctor, " a very few months
ago a case came under my own observation.
Some Mohammedans wished to leave Russia
and escape to Turkey; as they were passing the
border-line, a band of Cossacks fired upon them.
They continued their flight, but three children
had been wounded and were afterwards treated
in the hospital at Kars."

As I copy the above lines from my note-book,
I cannot help thinking of some few clergymen
of the Church of England who secretly hanker-
ing after the superstitions attached to the Greek
faith, put themselves forward as champions of
Holy Russia. But we need not be surprised..
Those people who are so deadened to a sense of
right and wrong as to imagine that they are doing
God service by instilling into the ears of our
wives and children sentences from the foul pam-
phlet entitled " The Priest in Absolution," can
readily bring themselves to believe that killing
pregnant women,* and flogging Christian
women and children,! to make them change
their religion, is justifiable on the part of the
Russian government. Priests like these would
gladly re-establish the Inquisition in our midst.
They could defend the massacres of St. Bar-
tholomew, if the victims had been Mohamme-
dans; and on the seventh day of the week
they stand up in their pulpits and preach the
doctrine of peace by advocating the extirmina-
tion of the Turks.

The above-mentioned way of treating Mo-
hammedan little children is no novelty on the
part of the Tzar's soldiery. Colonel Lake, in
his work, the "Defence of Kars," remarks
that, "brought up as savages from their infancy,
some of these Cossacks will not scruple to
commit the most barbarous actions. As an
instance of this, on one occasion, during the
earlier period of the blockade, a party of them
made a dash at a small village by the river side
called Karaba Kilissa, and though the inhab-
itants offered not the slightest opposition to
them, they beat a little boy, twelve years of
age, very cruelly with their whips, and finally
shot him—the ball passing through his thigh
and breaking the bone. It was heart-rending
to see the poor old mother weeping over her
dying child. He was packed up in an araba,
or country cart, and sent down to the hospital,,
where he was attended by Dr. Sandwith.
Every possible care was taken of the little
sufferer, but he died under the amputation of
the shattered limb.

We were told a few months ago by the Right
Hon. Robert Lowe, M.P., that Russia was the
father of the fatherless; judging from the way
she has treated these Mohammedan children, it
would not put her to much expense to provide
for a numerous family.

It was a goodly spectacle this Holy Russia,
putting herself forward last autumn as the
champion of the Bulgarians, after she had done
her best to foment J the disturbances which led
to the massacres in their country. If; may be
refreshing to some of the believers in Musco-
vite philanthropy if I recall to their recollection
what took place very recently in Central Asia.

"Kill the Turcomans! kill them all!" was
General Kauffmann's order during the Khivan
campaign.

"I suppose 3^011 mean in the Circassian style,"
was the dry remark of an old colonel, well ac-
quainted with the Russian manner of making
war upon the Circassians.

* See Appendix IX.	+ See Appendix I.

t See Appendix IV., Russian Agents and the Massacres
in Bulgaria.ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

57

'"Yes; kill them all! Spare neither age nor
:sex! Let none escape!"

Circassian* pregnant woment cut to pieces!—
does this go for nothing in the eyes of those
gentlemen who called out for vengeance on the
Circassians in Bulgaria? Circassian children
■butchered by Russian soldiery!—is this nothing
to two clergymen of the Church of England,
who denounced in the strongest language an
imaginary atrocity of the Turks?

Are these things nothing to the Right Hon.
W. Gladstone, M. P., who, writing last autumn
about a friendly power, remarked, "What
seems now to be certain in this sense (besides
the miserable daily mis^overnment, which,
however, dwindles by the side of the Bulgarian
horrors) are the wholesale massacres—

' Murder most foul, as in the best it is ;

But this most foul, strange, and unnatural!'t

the elaborate and refined cruelty—the only re-
finement of which Turkey boasts!—the utter
disregard of sex and age—the abominable and
bestial lust—and the entire and violent lawless-
ness which still stalks over the laud."

Two wrongs do not make one right. This is
an old saying and a true one. The atrocities
committed by the Russians in the Caucasus are
no excuse for those perpetrated by the Circas-
sians in Bulgaria; but the Circassians are Mo-
hammedans; the Muscovites profess the doc-
trines of Christ. Why was the author of the
Bulgarian horrors silent when his own officials
reported the crimes of the Russian soldiery?
We have been told that Russia is the torch-
bearer of civilization, and our military attache
at St. Petersburg, Captain and Lt.-Col. Welles-
ley, has stated that he believes the Muscovite
soldiers are incapable of the atrocities laid to
their charge. Mr. Gladstone has quoted this
officer as an authority.

It may be that our military attache [is igno-
rant of what took place during the Crimean
war. He was a child in petticoats at the time.
But Mr. Gladstone cannot assign extreme youth
in his own case as an excuse for bad memory. He
was a member of the Cabinet, and, as such,
bad access to all official despatches. Let me
ask him if he can remember the circumstances
under which many of our officers and soldiers
met their death at the battle of Inkerman, and
when they were lying helpless on > the field?
Does he know how Captain the Hon. Henry
Neville, of the 3rd battalion of Grenadier
Guards, was butchered? and liow Captain Sir
Robert Newman, Bart., shared the same fate?
Does he know how poor Disbrowe of the Cold-
streams was tortured. Possibly all these things
have escaped from his memory, but the Cabinet
to which he belonged did not forget them at
the time.

A Court of Inquiry^ was held in the Crimea.
It investigated the accusations made against
the Russian troops. The proceedings of this
Court of Inquiry, accompanied by a despatch,
were forwarded by Lord Raglan to the authori-
ties at home. In these papers will be found
the names of many British officers and privates
who were proved to have been brutally mas-
sacred—by the Russian soldiers—when implor-
ing mercy, and helpless owing to their wounds.
Such horror was created in the minds of some
of the Cabinet, that one of its members, the
War Minister, the late Duke of Newcastle,
alluded to the matter on the 12th of December,
1854, in the House of Lords as follows. I give
his own words:

"The enemy which our men met were not
content wTith the legitimate use of their weapons,
but had the BARBARITY, THE ATRO-
CIOUS VILLAINY, I will call it, TO MUR-
DER IN COLD BLOOD THE WOCJNDED
SOLDIERS AS THEY LAY HELPLESS ON
THE FIELD; AND not the ignorant serfs
alone did that, but MEN HOLDING THE
POSITION OF OFFICERS. Our men have
had to fight the savage and uncivilized Kaffirs,
but in no instance have THEY EXPERI-
ENCED SUCH BARBARISM AS WITH
THE RUSSIAN SOLDIERS!!!!"

A number of families in Great Britain were
in mourning after Inkerman. Many old fathers
and mothers thought that their sods had been
killed in fair fight. They have been deceived.
The proceedings of the Court, of Inquiry were
in the War Office this summer. I challenge
the author of the Bulgarian horrors to ask the
Government to lay these papers, with Lord

* Set, Appendix VII., The Schoolmasters in Massacre.

t Hamlet, i. 5.

X Th^ first witness examined at this Court of Inquiry
"was Sir Charles Russell, Bart., M.P. for Westminster.

Raglan's and Marshal Canrobert's despatches
relating to them, on the table of the House of
Commons. It is to be hoped that he will do
so. The British public would then be able to
judge for itself what sort of men the Russians
are, and how thoroughly Russia merits the
terms—The Torch-bearer of Civilization and
the Protector of the Unprotected—which have
been applied to her by the Right Hon. W. E.
Gladstone and the Right Hon. Robert Lowe.

CHAPTER LXY.

I started early the following morning en
route for Ardahan, a Turkish fortress about
forty-two miles from Kars. The road was
good for the first three hours, but then became
very bad. We rode over some mountains cov-
ered with deep snow, and halted for the night
in a small village called Molla Hassan, inhab-
ited by Kurds. A Turkish major had recently
inhabited the room assigned to us. He had in-
tended remaining there for some time; but the
insects proving too much for him, he had taken
up his abode in a Turkish village near Kars.

" These Turks have thin skins," said an old
Kurd, my host, as he told me the story; " only
think of their being frightened by a few fleas.
You Ingliz are much braver people."

"My Effendi is very particular about these
matters," remarked Mohammed; "if he is
bitten, there will be no baksheesh."

The Kurd's face lengthened.

"I have a cart," he presently observed; "it
is clean, it has been standing in the cold. The
fleas are frozen. I will drag the cart into the
road and the Frank can sleep in it."

This was done, and I managed to secure a
few hours' rest, a very rare occurrence in a
Kurdish village. The track was very bad be-
tween Molla Hassan and Ardahan; after march-
ing for six hours and a half, we reached the
latter place, which was at that time garrisoned
by 12,000 soldiers.

Ardahan is surrounded on the north, south,
and east by mountains—towards the west there
are some heights about five miles distant from
the town. The site is a bad one for defensive
purposes. The roads which lead from the Rus-
sian frontier stations, Akellaki and Akiska, pre-
sent a series of commanding positions which
dominate the Turkish lines. A little river
winds through a valley on the west front of
Ardahan, and finally traverses the town. The
stream is crossed by tw7o wooden bridges with-
out parapets.

An attempt was being made to fortify Arda-
han on its western side by throwing up some
earthworks only eight hundred yards distant
from the houses. No guns had been placed in
these batteries.

There were thirteen pieces in a fort on the
hill called Manusa, about 3000 yards to the
north of Ardahan, and in another position south
of the town on the Kars road. Here there were
four small earthworks, called Ahali, Sang-
her, Gaze, and Kaptamele, mounting in all
twenty-four guns. Three hundred yards to the
east there was one mere earthwork, called Kaia-
bashe, containing eighteen guns. Fort Manu-
sa, the strongest point in the defences of the
town, is commanded by a height called Rama-
zan. The Turks had not thought of occupy-
ing this last position; although should an enemy
once succeed in placing some guns on the Rama-
zan height, Ardahan must eventually be taken.

On my pointing this out to an engineer officer
who accompanied me, he acknowledged the
truth of the remark, at the same time observ-
ing that,(Inshallah,(when the winter w7as over, he
would fortify the height in question.

Procrastination in military matters is the great
defect on the part of the Turkish authorities.
But it ill becomes an Englishman to blame them.
Perhaps no country is more negligent about
these subjects than our own.

The Russians will not come, Inshallah," re-
marks the Mohammedan, and he sits down and
lights his pipe.

" It is extremely unlikely that Germany will
invade Great Britain, or that India will ever be
attacked," says one Englishman. " It is high-
ly improbable that Russia will take Constanti-
nople or the highlands in Armenia," remarks
another, " when that moment arrives it will be
time enough to go to war. We can then talk
about a conscription for our army. We have
more money than any other nation, and should
be stronger at the end of a campaign than at
the beginning." People wiio make use of these
arguments, forget that France was a very rich

country; but that with all her money and her
hastily levied troops, she was unable to with-
stand the disciplined armies of Moltke.

The military governor was despondent as to
his power of defending Ardahan. If he could
have had his owm way, he would have selected
another position nearer the Russian frontier.
It wras now too late to do this, and the more
particularly as the Pacha believed that hostili-
ties would break out immediately. He had no
cavalry at his disposal to bring him informa-
tion about what was going on near the border.
However, 2000 Circassian horsemen were short-
ly expected, and wooden sheds wrere being
built for them close to the Kaiabashe earth-
works. A colonel of artillery called upon me:
he had been educated at Woolwich. He had
not been in England for more than twenty years,
but he spoke English remarkably well. On my
observing that I had heard that the Russians
had lately withdrawn their troops from Erivan,
he remarked that the Muscovite general had
probably done so through fear lest the Turks
should advance upon Tiflis from Batoum.

" What would be the result if the Russians
were to take Batoum?" I inquired.

"They might remain there. It would be
very difficult for them to advance inland," was
the reply. '' There are no roads. The Russians
might take Van," he continued; " but even if
they were to do so, they would find it very diffi-
cult to advance upon Erzeroum via Mousch. It
would be almost impossible for them to trans-
port their artillery over the Ala Dagh mount-
ains. "

" Would the Kurds help the Russians?"

" The Kurds would probably join the
strongest side. I have been a great deal in the
mountains, and know the Kurds well. There
are freemasons amongst them," added the
colonel. " Their freemasonry dates back from
the time of the ancient Assyrians."

I now learnt that it would be better for me
to sell my horses in Ardahan, than to take
them to Batoum. The shortest route to the
last-named town was to go to Livana by road,
and then down the Tschoroch river, to the sea-
port in question. We could hire five horses so
far as Livana; if we were to take our own ani-
mals there, we should not be able to dispose of
them. Calling Mohammed, I desired him to
go to the market and inform any people who
might wish to buy horses, that there were four
for sale.

" Five, Effendi," said Mohammed; " I shall
sell mine too. When we reach Batoum the
Effendi will go to Stamboul; but I must join
my battalion. That is, unless the Effendi will
take me with him."

"Impossible, Mohammed," I replied. "I
shall only remain for twenty-four hours in Con-
stantinople, and from there go to my owTn
country. You would be taken up as a deserter
after I had £oneand perhaps shot. What would
your wife say?"

" I could get a fresh wife at Stamboul."

" Go and sell the horses!"

A tear fell down Mohammed's cheek. He
sighed deeply and left the room.

Presently Radford came to me:

" Bless my heart, sir, if that 'ere Mohammed
ain't a crying; he keeps on saying Stamboul,
and wants to go there. He says, 4eta la Franga,
meat cooked in the European style, is nice; and
that he loves my cookery!' the fact is, sir, he
don't want to go to his regiment."

A sound in the courtj-ard attracted my atten-
tion; I wTent to the window. Mohammed w?as
outside with the five horses; several Turks and
Circassians were looking at them. The ani-
mals had very little flesh on their bones; bu«t
they wTere in much better condition for work
than on the day w7e left Constantinople. Mo-
hammed's horse was in a wretched state; he wTas
nearly blind, from the effects of the snow. In
addition to this, lie walked lame.

"He is a brute," observed an old Turk;
"take him away, Mohammed; kill him for 1ms
skin, make leather of it."

" His grandfather was a magnificent ani-
mal," replied Mohammed, indignantly. "His
sire wras the admiration of the people in Tohat.
He himself is thin, he will soon get fat again.
Anyhow," continued my servant, " my lord's
horses are for sale: unless you first buy mine
you shall not purchase his animals."

Some conversation ensued, a farmer at last
offered 10 liras for the five horses.

" The Effendi gave 16 liras for the grey at
Stamboul," remarked my servant.

"Ardahan is net Stamboul," replied the Cir-58

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

cassian; " the horses have carried the Effendi a
very long distance."

""This proves that they are good animals,"
said Mohammed.

"It shows that they were good horses," ob-
served the Circassian, drily.

No one would bid any higher, and as I was
in a hurry to start, I agreed to accept 7 1-2
liras for my own four horses, letting Moham-
med have 2 1-2 for his own Rosinante-like steed.
Seven liras and a half, or £6.15s. is not a great
price for four serviceable animals. I could
have obtained the same amount for four dead
horses in London. Howrever, my stud had car-
ried us for more than twro thousand miles,
over a country without roads, and for the
greater part of the distance through snow. I
could not complain that the animals had been
dearly purchased. It cost me a pang to part
with the little grey. He was a sterling good
liorse, and in England would have been worth
from £60 to £70. The sale was concluded. In
a few minutes I was receiving from the Circas
sian a pile of Turkish bank-notes, which he
extracted one by one from some hiding-place
next his skin.

CHAPTER LXYI.

We rode by several Turkish and Kurd vil-
lages in the direction of Ardanusch. The track
was firm and tolerably level. After a four
hours' march we crossed the Ardahan river on
a wooden bridge about seventy yards long by
sixteen feet wide. The structure was very
much out of repair; the planks were loose in
many places, here and there large holes in the
timber let us see the river below. We halted
at Sliadavan, a Turkish village containing
about thirty houses, and close to the waters'
edge. I had iutended to have made a longer
march, but the hired steeds were wretched
brutes. They had shown unmistakable signs
of fatigue. The proprietor of the house in
which we stopped owned large flocks of sheep,
the country round Ardahan being chiefly grazing
land. He informed me that for every thousand
sheep he possessed, the tax collector took from
him the sum of thirty liras annually. There
was no tax for sheep under a year old, nor for
cows and oxen.

Two hours after leaving Shadavan, the path
crossed a high mountain. It was covered with
its winter garb; this fortunately was frozen
hard and afforded a firm foothold. The scenery
around us became each moment more wild; fir-
trees, shaded in their cold white robes, embroider
the sides of the steep; huge rocks, their north-
ern faces covered with snow, but black as ebony
towards the south, frown down on the glisten-
ing carpet. The track wound higher and
higher. A thick oppressive mist enveloped us
like a shroud. We were above the clouds. The
air became each moment more rarefied. We
breathed with difficulty, owing to our elevation.
It seemed at last as if we had reached the roof
of the earth. A plateau lay before us.

Onward we march. Our horses struggle
through the drifts. Every minute we have to
stop to let them take breath. At last the road
begins to descend; now abruptly for a few hun-
dred yards, we slide down some glaciers; then
it dips over a succession of crests, each one
lower than its predecessor. We reach the
regions of vegetation, and continuing for some
time our descent, find that winter has been left
behind us.

There were many villages in this district,
fruit-trees abounded throughout the neighbor-
hood. No more snow could be seen. The
weather wras oppressively warm. The Tscho-
roch river dashed along at our feet on its way
to Batoura. Mohammed, pointing at the rapid
stream, said something to my English servant.

" What is he saying?" I inquired.

" He don't like the idea of going in a boat,
sir," replied Radford. " He is afraid that he
will be drowned."

" Do you know how to swim, Mohammed?"
I inquired.

" No, Effendi. Cannot we continue our
journey by road to Batoum?" he added. " The
road is safe, but the water is dangerous."

'' Mohammed, it may be written in your
kismet that you are to be drowned."

" Perhaps, Effendi. But-"

" But what?"

" If I am to die, I would sooner end my days
in a bed."

"You ought to be very glad to have the
chance of dying," I now remarked. "Only

think of the many wives who are awaiting you
in the next world."

Mohammed here shrugged his shoulders.

" Effendi, you are a Christian."

" Yes."

" Do Christians believe in a future state of
happiness?"

"Yes."

"Do they think that their heaven will be
more delightful than this earth?"

"Yes."

" If a Christian is ill, does he send for a hakim

(physician)?"

" Yes."

f Then added Mohammed, triumphantly," Why
does he do so? he ought to be delighted at the
chance of speedily going to Paradise, and yet,
Effendi, according to you, the Christion does
his best to postpone his pleasure."

The track now became very bad, it led several
times across the river which was spanned by
rickety wooden bridges. The May-trees were
in full blossom. The voices of a thousand song-
sters chirruping amidst the branches echoed
over the waters.

We enter what appears to be a vast amphi-
theatre. The Coliseum at Rome on a gigantic
scale lies before us. Its walls are represented
by a circular range of hills, the boxes looking
down upon the arena by numerous chalets, they
jut forth from the slopes. An enormous rock
faces us. It stands out on one side of the am-
phitheatre, and might have been an emperor's
throne. The boxes grow larger as we ride
across the arena. The resemblance fades away.
A speck appears on the crest of a neighboring
height; bigger and bigger it becomes.

"Kale, or the old fortress of Ardanusch,"
says our guide, pointing to it. Soon after-
wards we put up for the night in a house be-
longing to the Caimacan of the district. This
official informed me that it was only an
eighteen hours' march to Akiska, the Russian
frontier station. The road to the border was
a good one; artillery could be brought along it.
There were no troops in Ardanusch, and the
governor was much alarmed lest the Russians
should commence the war by an attack upon
his town. Whilst we were conversing, a serv-
ant brought him a letter which had been sent
on by special messengers from Ardahan.

The Caimacan opened the envelope. " War!"
he cried. "An order has come for me to call
out all the Mostaplias (the last reserve) in this
district. The government would have never
put itself to this expense unless our Padishah
had felt sure that war was inevitable."

Leaving me, the governor went out to give
the necessary orders for the execution of the
Sultan's mandate.

We continued onward to Livana; the track
was sometimes so narrow that we had to ride or
lead our horses in Indian file. Now we come
to a place where ten men could defend the road
against an army, and then to a spot where the
path has given way altogether, and fallen into
the stream below. Our guide reins his horse
backward. It is impossible to turn. We essay
another route, and presently again strike the
river. A large cayek wras anchored by the
bank. A man coming up to me proposed that
we should go in his boat to Batoum.

"How much money do you want for taking
us there?" I inquired.

"Ten liras, Effendi."

"Go away, sheep's son!" ejaculated Moham-
med, indignantly; "we will ride to Livana,
which is only four hours march from here; and
then, if it pleases the Effendi to trust himself
to a boatman, I will get a ship for two liras—
rascal that you are to ask ten liras for the hire
of your little cayek?"

CHAPTER LXVII.

The road took a very circuitous course as wre
approached Livana. We were several hundred
feet above the Tschoroch river, and could gaze
down almost perpendicularly into the abyss be-
low. Suddenly, the sound of a shout reached
our ears. We glanced in the direction of the
noise.

" It is the cayek," said Mohammed, eagerly;
"the men are taking it to Livana. They will
next propose that we should hire it from there
to Batoum. Holy Prophet!" he continued,
" how the waters roar, how near the boat goes
to the rocks! My body groans, Effendi, at the
idea of going to Batoum by water."

"You will very likely soon have to fight the
Russians," I replied; " what difference can it

make if you are drowned to-morrow in the
Tschoroch, or are shot a few w7eeks later?"

"To-morrow is close at hand, Effendi. It
wrould be better to die a few weeks later; besides
that, when the Russians are shooting at me, I
shall be shooting at them. 1 shall be fright-
ened, but they will be frightened too. It is
very different to travel on the river. I cannot
drown the river, the river can drown me," and
Mohammed shuddered as the cayek, darting
round a neighboring crag, suddenly disappeared
from our view.

We crossed a stone bridge, which spans the
Tschoroch, and began to climb the steep hill
on which Livana is built.

I stayed at the house of the Caimacan, a
Georgian by birth. He was popular with the
Armenians. Several of the Christian mer-
chants who came to visit me spoke very highly
in his praise. Formerly there had been many
robberies in the1 neighborhood,but Alinihat Beyy
the Caimacan, had arrested all the robbers,
every man's life and property were now secure.
I now heard amongst other rumors, one which
I had previously heard in Persia, to the effect
that the Padishah of the United States had
informed the Queen of England that if she were
to join Turkey against Russia, that he, the Pa-
dishah of the United States, would ally him-
self with the Tzar. According to the Caima-
can, this had restrained England up to the pres-
sent time from allying herself with the Sultanc
You will see the Pacha at Batoum," observed
the speaker.

"Yes?"

"Will you do me a favor?"

" Certainly."

" Effendi, I have a Kateb (clerk) a good mar*
—that fellow on the carpet. Look how beau-
fully he writes! He is nice-looking, too, and
we all like him. But the Pacha, he has a
Kateb. The fellow is hideous, besides that, he
has a node in the middle of his forehead. The
governor wishes to change Katebs with me.
He says he does not like a man with a node on
his forehead; I do not like this either; and to
sit all day long with a man who is so disfigured
would make me very ill."

"It would make us all ill," observed the
Armenians, eager to please the Caimacan.

" Yes," continued the latter; "Effendi, you
would oblige us very much if you will tell the
Pacha that I like my Kateb, and do not wish to
part with him. A man with a node is a dis-
gusting sight," he added.

" Very disgusting," said the Armenians—the
man who spoke loudest being a Christian with
a liump-back.

In the meantime, Mohammed had made am
arrangement with the owner of a large cayek
to take us the following morning to Batoum,
which would be about a nine hours' journey by
w-ater from Livana. We rode down to the bank
of the river. Here, close by the bridge,
was a large boat. It was half full of firewood,
which was going to Batoum. Two oarsmen
sat in the stern of the cayek, and two more in
the bows. There were no rowers in the middle
boat; this part was filled with wood, some
other passengers, my party and self. Our
fellow-travelers and the boatmen were Georg-
ians. A very stout old gentleman who sat be-
hind me wras arrayed in a bright blue jacket
and a large white turban; in addition to this he-
carried a gigantic scarlet umbrella. A few
drops of rain began to fall; the umbrella was-
opened. Its happy possessor looked proudly
round; he was ac object of admiration and
envy to the rest of his countrymen.

The boatmen, who were clad in brown serge
jackets and trousers, had their breasts covered
with cartridge-cases, in the Circassian style.
Each man carried a long silver-mounted dag-
ger in his waist-belt, and a black cufia, a sort of
head attire, was worn by them instead of a tur-
ban. The river, which was very high, ran
through the arch of the bridge at a great pace.
Mohammed's face became an ashen hue as the
captain of the cayek, loosening the cord which
bound his bark to the shore, pushed off into
the boiling torrent. For the first second or
two the oarsmen could not get any command
over their boat. It turned round and round,
missing, as it were, by a miracle the many
rocks in the channel.

The rowers were all this time raising wrild
cries to Allah. Mohammed, who had crouched
down in the bottom of the bark, was grasping
Radford's hand in a paroxysm of terror. In
another moment the crew succeeded in gaining
the mastery over their craft. They steered her
into the middle of the river. The current wasON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

59

running like a mill-stream. We flew rather
than floated along the waters.

Numerous rocks interrupt the channel; some
of them are forty and fifty feet above the sur-
face; others can only be detected by the foam
and surf which bubble over their dangerous
peaks. The mountains on either side of us are
of igneous stone; they are covered with green
bushes. A white line winds amongst the
heights; it marks the track to Batoum, an
eighteen hours' march by land, but only nine by
water. We pass the ruins of an old castle. We
dart round a promontory. The scene changes.
Vineyards deck the river's banks. Oxen can
be seen ploughing the slopes above us. Many
women, in bright red garments, and with
white head-dresses, follow the plough. They
knock to pieces the clods of earth with iron
hoes. Waterfalls pour down the heights. The
river grows wider; it becomes more rapid
every moment. The wind is rising. The chief
boatman remarks that we cannot arrive at
Batoum that evening.

To reach the town it was necessary to enter
the Black Sea; but to effect this in stormy
weather, and in an undecked boat, would be
impossible. We anchored for the night at the
village of Miradet, four hours from Livana by
the river, but twelve by land. I obtained ac-
commodation in the house of the Mudir of the
district. There were some cells in this build-
ing; in one of them was a prisoner—a deserter,
who had run away from the army. There was
a hearth in his dungeon, and Radford was per-
mitted to cook there, the deserter taking great
interest in the culinary operations.

CHAPTER LXVIII.

I now learnt that corn is dear in this dis-
trict, costing two piastres and a half the oke. It
is chiefly brought here from the neighborhood
of Ardalian, the difficulty of transport adding
enormously to the price. Indian corn is grown
in the vicinity of Livana, but it is not easy to
procure barley. This last, however, is not so
much required, as there are hardly any horses
in the neighborhood.

Just above Miradet lie the ruins of an old
bridge. At this time of the year, the only way
to cross the river is in the cayeks of the peas-
ants. I was informed that in the summer
months a horseman could ford the Tschoroch
in some places near the village. According to
the Mudir, there are iron-mines in the neigh-
borhood, but the inhabitants did not work
them,

There was a battalion of infantry, Bashi Ba-
zouks, in his village. The men, Georgians,
were magnificent fellows, much taller than the
Turkish soldiers, and wTith that light elastic step
which distinguishes mountaineers. A report
had just reached Miradet that the Persians Were
attacking Bagdad with thirty thousand men.
In the opinion of the Mudir, this was the pre-
cursor of an immediate outbreak of hostilities
between the Sultan's forces on the one hand and
Russia and Persia on the other.

We entered our cayek early the following
morning. Mohammed was more alarmed, if
possible, than on the previous afternoon. A
passenger had been drowned two weeks before,
when going to Batoum. Mohammed had learnt
this; he now bandaged his eyes with a pocket-
handkerchief.

" What are you doing that for?" I inquired.

" So as not to see the waters," replied Mo-
hammed; "they roar, my stomach aches."

" Tchok eyi (very nice), is it not?" suddenly
remarked Radford, nudging his fellow-servant
violently in the ribs. We were in the midst of
some rapids. Two or three violent bumps an-
nounced our close proximity to the rocks. " He
will not laugh at me any more, sir, for not
liking to look down precipices. Have a hegg,
Mohammed?" taking one from his own pocket,
Radford handed it to the sufferer.

We had arrived at the open sea. Mohammed
removed his handkerchief from his eyes, the
motion of the cayek was different to that
which he had experienced on the river. He
gazed upon the egg for an instant, and then
thrust it away indignantly; the sea and his
fears were too much for him; he leaned against
the side of the boat. Radford was thorough^
reveaged.

The harbor of Batoum is one of the finest in
the Black Sea. Numerous batteries mounted
with heavy guns defend it on the sea side.
Three large ironclads were anchored within
thirty yards of the shore, the water being very
deep.

I landed at the quarantine station, and now
learnt that every house in the town, or rather
village, was crowded with troops. The doctor
of the quarantine offered me a room in the sta-
tion; I gladly availed myself of his kindness.

There were only 8,000 men in Batoum itself;
the remainder of the garrison, consisting of
12,000 infantry, with some artillery, were sta-
tioned at Tschoroch Su, a strong position about
six hours from the town, and defending the
road from Poti. Mohammed's Tokat battalion
was quartered here. It was probably the point
against which the Russians would make their
first attack, he was aware of that fact.

" Would you like to accompany me to Con-
stantinople ?" I asked.

" No, Effendi, not for all the money in the
world will I go there. One hour on the sea is
very awful; five days would kill me. My
brother," pointing to Radford, " is brave on the
water; I am brave on the land; we are both
brave;" seizing his fellow-servant's hand, Mo-
hammed shook it heartily.

A major on the staff called. According to
him, the Cossack outposts were in the habit of
firing upon the Turkish troops. It appeared
that on the 26tli of March, 1877, a few Turkish
soldiers were walking in the Sultan's territory,
but on the edge of a frontier-line. Some Rus-
sian soldiers fired and shot three of them; then,
fording a river, which divides the two coun-
tries, the Cossacks carried the dead bodies and
arms to the Russian side of the border. They
afterwards complained to their officer that the
Turks crossed over on Russian soil.

"War has not been declared," I remarked.

"No," said the major; "the Russians are
doing their best to make us attack them; but
we shall not do so. They shall have the whole
odium of the war, and Allah will judge between
us!"

I accompanied the officer to an encampment
close to the coast. The tents had been pitched
between the mouth of the Tschoroch river and
the town. Three thousand infantry soldiers
were quartered in this place. The sanitary ar-
rangements of the camp left very little to be de-
sired. Everything was clean and orderly. An
air of smartness prevailed amongst the soldiers,
which was refreshing to witness after what I
had seen in other parts of the empire. The
mens' tents were banked up with stones to a
height of three feet from the ground. Well-
dug trenches carried off the rainfall Many of
the officers lived in huts which were surrounded
by little gardens. All these battalions were
armed with the Martini-Peabody rifle. I asked
some of the men how they liked their new
weapon, being curious to know if they objected
to the recoil. There was no fault found with
the gun on this score. The troops were highly
pleased with the arm. They wished for nothing
better than to have the opportunity of trying it
upon their quarrelsome neighbors.

We next visited the market in the town, or
rather village, for Batoum, with its few hundred
straggling houses, does not deserve the former
title. There was hardly anything exposed for
sale. A solitary sheep was hung up in one
shop. Some stale fish were lying on the counter
of another. There were several money-chang-
ers in the streets; business, however, was slack,
and these gentlemen lived by lending money on
exhorbitant terms to the Turks—the usurers
being many of them Armenian Christians.

A Turkish steamer was to leave Batoum that
night for Constantinople. I made inquiries as
to when she would be likely to arrive at her
destination.	"

" Li five days," said the agent at the book-
office—a most saturnine-looking old Turk,
" that is, if the Lord wills it; but the Lord may
will that the vessel shall lay to in Trebizond,
and return here with troops without going to
Stamboul."

Under these circumstances I determined to
go in the Turkish boat as far as Trebizond, and
continue mv journey in some other steamer to
Constantinople. Mohammed accompanied me
on board the vessel. The moment for parting
at length arrived. The poor fellow was much
affected. Some big tears began to roll down his
cheeks.

" Will you go with me to Constantinople?" I
inquired.

" To the end of the world, Effendi!"

"But think how ill you will be."

"Never mind, Effendi, only let me come. It
is true that my stomach sank within me yester-
day, but my heart is very full to-day; for am I
not losing my lord as well as my brother?"—

seizing Radford's hand, Mohammed wrung it
heartily.

The vessel had got up steam; the deck was
being cleared. Mohammed rubbed his eyes with
the back of his hand, and clambered down the
side of the ship into a little boat. Several of
his countrymen tried to comfort him. He was
not to be consoled. As we steamed out of the
harbor, I could still see the poor fellow straining
his eyes in our direction.

"That Mohammed was not such a bad chap
after all, sir," presently remarked Radford.
" Them Turks have stomachs, and like filling
them they do; but they have something in
their hearts as well."

There was a great deal of truth in the obser-
vation. Those people in England who have
declared that it is impossible to reform the
Turks would do well to learn the Turkish lan-
guage, and travel in the Sultan's dominions.
Human nature is everywhere much the same.

There is more good in the world than bad, or
otherwise, as a French philosopher once said,
the bad would have destroyed the good, and
the human race would no longer exist. Give
the Turks a good government, and Turkey
would soon take her place amidst civilized
nations.

This, however, would not be pleasing to the
Sultan's powerful neighbor. Reform is im
possible in Turkey so long as Russian agents*
ferment rebellion amidst the Sultan's subjects.

One of my fellow-passengers was a Turkish
doctor. He had the rank of Pacha, and was
under the Army Medical Department. He had
left Constantinople with orders to visit Kars,
and report to his government about the sanitary
state of this town. On arriving at Batoum, he
found that the tracks were still covered w7ith
snow. The doctor, who was suffering from
heart disease, had determined to return to
Trebizond.

" In what state is the road between Erzeroum
and Kars?" he now asked.

"Probably it is covered with snow."

" Dear me," said the Pacha, "I shall wait a
little at Trebizond for a change of weather."

"You had better go to Kars as soon as possi-
ble," I remarked, "or there will be an outbreak
of fever there."

"If I travel quickly," observed the official,
"I shall die of heart disease. A little sooner
or later will not make much difference to the
people in Kars. I shall be able to leave the
service in a year and a half," he continued; " if
I were to hurry myself, death might carry me
off before I could enjoy my pension. Please
God there will be no war. We shall have so
many cases to attend. I was at Alexinatz," he
„added.

" Did you have a great deal to do?"

" Yes, so few of our surgeons know anything
about anatomy; dissecting a Mohammedan is
contrary to the tenets of Islam. But there were
plenty of dead Servians, and so our people prac-
tised upon them."

The following morning we arrived at Trebi-
zond. There was a French steamer on the
point of starting for Constantinople. I had
just time to take my luggage on board of her.
In a few minutes we were again steaming ahead.
Three days later, and after a most delightful
passage, we anchored in the Bosphorus. My
leave of absence had nearly expired. There
would be another French vessel belonging to
Les Messagenes Maritimes leaving on the mor-
row for Marseilles. I took our tickets on my
way to the Hotel de Luxembourg, and eight
days afterwards arrived in London.

CHAPTER LXIX.

My journey was over. A few weeks after
my return to London, war "was declared by
Russia against Turkey. In the opinion of Her
Majesty's government, this was a most iniqui-
tous and unnecessary step on the part of the
Tzar. Her Majesty's government did not con-
ceal its views about the matter. The Earl of
Derby, in a despatch to Lord A. Loftus, dated
May 1, 1877, made use of the following ex-
pressions:

" They (i. e. her Majesty's government) have
not concealed their feeling that the presence of
large Russian forces on the frontiers of Tur-
key, menacing its safety, rendering its disarma-
ment impossible, and exciting a feeling of ap-
prehension and fanaticism among the Mussul-
man population, constituted a material obsta-
cle to internal pacification and reform. They
cannot believe that the entrance of these armies

* See Appendix IY.60

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

on Turkish soil will alleviate the difficulty, or
improve the condition of the Christian popula-
tion throughout the Sultan's dominions. But
the course on which the Russian government
has entered involves graver and more serious
considerations. It is in contravention of the
stipulations of the Treaty of Paris of March
30, 1856, by which Russia and the other sig-
natory powers engaged each on its own part, to
respect the independence and the territorial in-
tegrity of the Ottoman Empire. In the Con-
ference of London of 1871, at the close of which
the above stipulation, with others, was again
confirmed, the Russian Plenipotentiary, in
common with those of other powers, signed
a declaration affirming it to be an essential
principle of the law of nations, that no power
can liberate itself from the engagement of a
treaty, nor modify the stipulations, thereof, un-
less with the consent of the contracting parties
T)y means of an amicable arrangement. In
taking action against Turkey on his own part,
and having recourse to arms without further
consultation with his allies, the Emperor of
Russia has separated himself from the Euro-
pean concert hitherto maintained, and has at
the same time departed from the rule to which
he himself had solemnly recorded his consent.
It is impossible to foresee the consequences of
such an act. Her Majesty's government would
willingly have refrained from making any ob
servations in regard to it; but Prince Gortscha-
koff seems to assume, in a declaration addressed
to all the governments of Europe, that Russia
is acting in the interests of Great Britain, and
that of the other powers; they feel bound to
state, in a manner equally formal and public,
that the decision of the Russian government is
not one which can have their concurrence or
approval."

It is very clear, from this despatch, what the
opinion of Her Majesty's government was about
the matter. However, neither Prince Gorts-
chakoff nor his august master are easily alfected
by verbal remonstrances. They had shown how
little they cared for treaties by their conduct
after the battle of Sedan.

" France is beaten, and who cares for Eng-
land ?" thought Prince Gortschakoff: he tore up
the Black Sea Convention.

His august master, animated of course with
the most peaceful intentions, wishes to destroy
the Turkish Empire. Verbal remonstrances
are of no use if applied to a semi-barbarous
nation. Some people can be appealed to
through their sense of right and wrong, others
only through their skins. The Russian nation
iias a peculiarly thick skin; for this reason the
rod ought to be a heavy one. England, allied
with Turkey, and before the latter power is
crippled, could easily apply it. The Tzar might
be compelled to fulfil his solemn assurance
about Khiva; Russia could be driven out of
Central Asia, and forced to relinquish her hold
on the Caucasus.

A conference might then be held at St. Peters-
burg to arrange about the conditions of peace,
and to inquire into the treatment of the United
Greek Christians. Lord Salisbury could in-
form Prince Gortschakoff that some of the
British nation do not approve of the Russian
authorities ordering soldiers to flog Christian
women and children,* by way of making them
change their religion; and that others object
to the Tzar's troops killing Circassian women
in the family-way.f

We have been told that these last mentioned
individuals were Mohammedans, and that
Priuce Gortschakoff's master would have liked
to Christianize and civilize them; but at the
same time, and in spite of the assertion of a
member of the late Liberal government, that
Russia is the protector of the unprotected, our
plenipotentiary might be instructed to tell the
Tzar that his soldiers should have shown their
amiable qualities in some other manner. The
subject of the Teke Turkomans, and how they
were massacred—men, women, and children—
during the Khivan campaign, could also afford
our representative an opportunity for remon-
strating with the Imperial chancellor.

The latter should finally be distinctly given to
understand that Englishmen do not look upon
the establishment of a Constitution and a Par-
liament bv the Turkish government as an insult
and defiance to Russia, whatever the Russians
may do.J

* See Appendix I., the Floggers of Women and Chil-
dren.

+ See Appendix YII., The Schoolmasters in Mass-
acre.

$ See Appendix IV.

APPENDIX I.

THE FLOGGERS OF WOMEN.

Lieutenant-Colonel Mansfield to Earl Granville.

Official (Received Feb. 16).

Warsaw, January 29, 1874.

My Lord—It is with regret that I have to report to
your Lordship a renewal of disturbances in the districts
inhabited by the United Greeks in the Governments of
Siedlce and Lublin, resulting in bloodshed, loss of
life, and the MOST BARBAROUS TREATMENT in-
flicted on the peasants.

* * * * *

Several months since various of the United Greek
priests represented to M. Popiel, the Administrator of
the Diocese of Chelm, that the measures of assimilation
had been but partially carried out: and that those
priests wrho had done so were exposed to the gravest
difficulties, amounting almost to persecution, at the
hands of the peasants.

M. Popiel applied to Count Tolstoi, who forwarded
from St. Petersburg, within the last few weeks, a Cir-
cular,^enjoining the strictest uniformity in the abolition
of organs and benches, the disuse of the rosary, the
bell at the mass, chants in Polish, and many other de-
tails, too numerous to be worth relation.

Such of the priests as had not, or were not prepared
to execute the recommendations of the Circular, have
been ejected from their cures. The number, however,
is insignificant, as almost all had previously acquiesced
in the views of the Government, and the Noncomfor-
mists had been eliminated.

As maybe supposed, the peasants care nothing about
the Synod of Zamose, or about the purity and usages of
the Primitive Church, Oriental or otherwise; but they
have a deep-rooted veneration for the usages in which
they and their fathers have been brought up.

The operation of Count Tolstoi's Circular has been
most disastrous; in some few villages the peasants
have entirely abstained from frequenting the churches;
but in many the priests have been ill-treated, one hav-
ing been stoned to death.

The aid of the police and military has been called in;
in one parish three peasants were killed and many
wounded. Isolated Cossacks are waylaid and murdered
by the peasants. In some of the conflicts the military
have been roughly handled, stoned, wounded by
scythes, bones broken, and contusions, more especially
among the officers.

In the district of Minciewicz, the peasants surrounded
the church, and defied the military to introduce the
priest.. The former, with their wives and children,
were finally mastered and surrounded, and were given
the option of signing a declaration accepting the priest;
on their refusal FIFTY BLOWS WITH THE "NA-
GAIKA "* (COSSACK WHIP) were given to every adult
man, TWENTY-FIVE to EVERY WOMAN, AND TEN
to EVERY CHILD, IRRESPECTIVE OF AGE OR SEX;
ONE WOMAN more vehement than the rest, receiving

as much as ONE HUNDRED.

*****

I have, &c.,

(Signed) C. E. Mansfield.

APPENDIX II.

CHRISTIANITY AS UNDERSTOOD IN RUSSIA.
Lieutenant-Colonel Mansfield to the Earl of Derby.

(Received February 22.)

Warsaw, January 29, 1875.

(Extract.)

I have the honor to report to your Lordship that
52,000 United Greeks in the Government of Siedlce have
been received into the Russian National Church.

I need not recall to your Lordship's notice, the PER-
SECUTION of the UNITED GREEKS, which I have
had to report for several years past, and which, within
the last twelve months, has taken a more exaggerated
form.

THE PASSING OVER OF THESE 52,000 UNITED
GREEKS has been effected by various means, in which
PHYSICAL MALTREATMENT has formed a not incon-
siderable element.

In some parishes, THE MOST OBSTINATE having
been sent to the interior of the Empire OR SIBERIA,
THE REMAINDER, finding their substance being eaten
up by the Cossacks, gave in to the pressure of the sub-
ordinate officials, and SIGNED THE PETITION DE-
SIRING TO BE RECEIVED INTO THE RUSSIAN
CHURCH.

In other districts money has been distributed, when
it was seen that the resistance was less obdurate.

In others CORPORAL MALTREATMENT was re-
sorted to, until the peasants gave in: but stating as they
did so, that they yielded only on compulsion.

The details of the different degrees of compulsion in
the various villages would take too much space to re-
late; but I cite as a specimen what I have heard, from
a gentleman of whose veracity I have no reason to
doubt, of what took place in a village on his property.

The peasants were assembled and beaten by the Cos-
sacks, until the military surgeon stated that more
would endanger life; THEY WERE THEN DRIVEN
THROUGH A HALF-FROZEN RIVER UP TO THEIR
WAISTS INTO THE PARISH CHURCH, through files
of soldiers, where their names were entered in the peti-
tions as above, and passed out at an opposite door, the
peasants all the time crying out, " YOU MAY CALL
US ORTHODOX. BUT WE REMAIN IN THE FAITH

OF OUR FATHERS."

*****

APPENDIX III.

RUSSIAN CIVILIZATION.

In an extract from the Monde, published in some cor-
respondence laid before the'Houses of ^Parliament, I
find the following remarks:

" Russia is anxious for a second Congress, and asks
all Europe to agree to it, in order to settle certain rules
of humanity to be observed during a war, and she
aspires to appear in the e}7es of the world as a civilized
nation full of charity; how can we reconcile this with
the fact that this Power should be so barbarous in time
of peace as regards its peaceful subjects, whose only

* Is this the way the Rev. Mr. Malcolm Maccoll would
like to see the union of the Eastern and Western
churches brought about?

fault is that of remaining faithful to the religion of
their fathers?

" The cruelties that the Russian Government perpe-
trate against the unhappy Catholics who are called
United Greeks, are worthy of the horrors of the time
of Nero. The Province of Podlachia, the people of
which are Ruthenians, is more especially persecuted.
There blood has flowed in streams for more than a
year. Troops have been sent there who behave as if
they were in an enemy's country, for they live entirely
at the expense of the people, who are not rich. The
soldiers are authorized to kill for food all the cattle
without exception, even the draught oxen.

"The inhabitants who remain true to their faith are
delivered over to a THOUSAND TORTURES. The
commonest form is to STRIP THEM, then ONLY
CLOTHED IN THEIR SHIRT, THEY ARE STRETCH-
ED ON THE SNOW AND BEATEN UNTIL THEY
ARE NEARLY DEAD, as much from the effects of the
blows as from the loss of blood and the cold they suf-
fer. They are then taken to the ambulances. If they
recover those ingenious tortures can be renewed on
them, which Russia distributes freely to those who re-
fuse obstinately to embrace that orthodox religion
which is brought before them in so benign and attract-
ive a manner.

"This Polish province contains at least 300,000
United Greeks, all under this same religion, for all are
to be converted by this apostolic proceeding. The
number of unfortunates crippled by the beatings is so
great that it has been found necessary to organize
many new ambulances. They are thrown into them;
but it must not be imagined that they are cared for
there. God alone is their doctor, for no trouble is
taken either to treat or feed them.

" Moreover, this same treatment is adopted for sick
and wounded soldiers. With the object of cheering
them they are given a kind of soup made of gruel of re-
volting, half-moldy buckwheat, in which the grains
are drowned in a quantity of hot water. In time of war
THE SORES OF THE WOUNDED ARE OFTEN
DRESSED WTITH STRAW, BECAUSE THE LINT AND
THE CLOTH WHICH ARE SENT BY CHARITABLE
PEOPLE TO THE HOSPITALS ARE SOLD BY THE
OFFICERS TO PAPER-MILLS.

" All this may give some idea of what is passing there,
where the passion of cruelty follows an unrestrained
course, proud to be able to advertise its unrighteous
zeal in sight of those whose orders are being carried
out.

" One is filled with grief and astonishment when one
thinks of the people exposed to tortures by Russian
barbarity and wickedness. It is a counterpart of the
Chinese persecutions, which the Muscovites seem
anxious even to surpass.

" The heroism of the unhappy Podlachians is forgot-
ten by all the world, they are delivered up to rapine
and torture, deprived of union and hope, and bear all
this with calm gentleness and perseverance; they are
ready to die, so long as it is not outside the bosom of
the Church, and after having betrayed their faith.

"What an example to all, and what a disgrace for
those who, without being exposed to such trials, have
not been able to persevere 1"

APPENDIX IV.

RUSSIAN AGENTS AND THE MASSACRES IN
BULGARIA.

Extract from Mr. Layard's {II.M. Ambassador at Con-
stantinople) Despatch to the Earl of Derby, dated
30 th May, 1877.

" Since my arrival in Constantinople my main object
has been to prepare the way for peace. I have thought
that in doing so I should best carry out the wishes and
intentions of her Majesty's Government. I had this end
in view, as I informed your lordship at the time when I
induced the Porte to appeal to the Powers for their me-
diation under the 8th Article of the Treaty of Paris. I
had little hope that war could be averted by this step,
but it appeared to me that it might afford an opening
for the interference of those Powers in the interests of

Eeace on some future occasion. The opening of the war
as not been quite so favorable to Russia as she appears
to have expected. The extraordinary rise in the Danube
has checked her advance on the side of Europe, and has
enabled Turkey to increase her means of resistance.
Although the Porte might, no doubt, have done more in
this respect, there is no doubt that the difficulties of the
Russian campaign in Roumelia have been much in-
creased by the delay, and although Russia may succeed
in the end, it will probably be at a greater sacrifice
than she may have at first contemplated. The simul-
taneous attack on the European and Asiatic territories
of Turkey has not, therefore, led to all the results upon
which Russia apparently counted. According to in-
formation derived from various sources, it would ap-
pear that the rise in the waters of the Danube, and the
consequent floods over the surrounding country, will
render its passage very difficult, if not impossible, for
three or four weeks to come. Does not this delay afford
an opening for another effort in the interests of peace?
The position of affairs is this. Russia has succeeded in
Asia, and thus she holds a material guarantee for what
she may require on behalf of the Christians of Turkey
in the shape of a province; in Europe she cannot be
said to have yet succeeded, and she will probably have to
encounter a desperate resistance, and to make vast sac-
rifices, before she can impose her own terms upon the
Porte. Moreover, the longer the war lasts the greater
the risk of drawing other Powers in it against her. If
hostilities be prolonged, Turkey, in her despair, may
have recourse to measures to embarrass and injure
Russia, which may to a certain extent effect that ob-
ject. Although the rising in the Caucasus may not
have the importance that has been attributed to it. and
the negotiations between the Porte and revolutionary
and national leaders may not lead to serious results,
they are undoubtedly a danger to Russia. The real
intentions of Russia would also be brought to a test by
proposing to her at this moment a mediation. If her
real object is, as she asserts, the improvement of the
condition of the Christian populations, she has surely
now the means of obtaining a satisfactory guarantee
for it. The Turkish Government, it must be admitted,
has already done a good deal in the direction pointed
out by the Powers at the Conference and m the Protocol
of London. It is prepared to do more, and would do
more, if the war waged against Turkey by Russia per-
mitted it., The lesson which the Porte has received has,ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MIN OR.

61

no doubt, made it see the absolute necessity of comply-
ing with the demands of Europe, without even the ma-
terial guarantee which Russia'may require. If, on the
other hand, Russia has the ambitious designs generally
attributed to her, and has entered upon this war for the
purposes of territorial aggrandizement, her professions
of humanity and disinterestedness can now be gauged,
and her Majesty's Government will be able, at least, to
judge what her real objects and intentions are, and how
far the interests of the British Empire may be affected
or endangered by tliem. It must not, however, be in-
ferred that the Porte will be so easily induced to make
peace, even were it in extreme peril. There are some
Turkish statemen who see the dangers which threaten
their country, and who would feel the absolute neces-
sity of bringing the war to an end almost at any sacri-
fice. Whilst Russia might desire to exact much, no
Turkish ministers could accept very hard or humiliating
conditions without risking their own lives, and even
that of the Sultan, and without exposing the Christian
populations to a massacre. I may be excused for point-
ing out the dangers to England of a prolongation of the
war, and of a complete subjugation of a large part of
the empire by Russia. Should Russia desire to annex
at this time any of the European provinces of Turkey,
European interests would, probably, be called into play,
and she would be prevented from carrying out her in-
tentions. The influence, however, which she would in-
evitably establish over these populations would be al-
most tantamount to absolute possession, and would en-
able her to annex them, sooner or later, when she
could do so with impunity; but as regards the acquisi-
tion by her of territory in Asia Minor, the case is differ-
ent. The interests of England would then be alone con-
cerned. IT WOULD PROBABLY SIGNIFY LITTLE
TO THE REST OF EUROPE WHETHER RUSSIA RE-
TAINED ARMENIA OR NOT. BUT ENGLAND HAS
TO CONSIDER THE EFFECT OF THE ANNEXATION
TO RUSSIA of this IMPORTANT PROVINCE UPON
THE BRITISH POSSESSIONS IN INDIA. RUSSIA
WOULD THEN COMMAND the WHOLE OF ASIA
MINOR and THE GREAT VALLEY OF THE EU-
PHRATES AND TIGRIS, WHICH WOULD INEV-
ITABLY FALL INTO HER HANDS IN THE COURSE
OF TIME. Persia, moreover, would be placed entirely
at her mercy. The suspicion that Russia has already
made secret offers to Persia to assist her in acquiring
the province of Bagdad, in exchange for Ghilan and
Mazanderan, may be unfounded; but the fact that it
exists, and has been entertained by persons not gen-
erally ill-informed, proves that this consideration is not
one to be altogether lost sight of. In most cases, when
the evident interests of two parties are concerned in ef-
fecting an exchange, the exchange is sooner or later
effected. The desire of Persia to possess the province
of Bagdad, and the holy shrines of their prophets and
martyrs, is of very ancient date, and is shared by the
whole Persian nation. On the other hand, THE POS-
SESSION OF THE ENTIRE COAST OF THE CAS-
PIAN SEA, AND THE DIRECT ROAD through a
rich and well-inhabited country TO HERAT AND
AFFGHANISTAN, AND ULTIMATELY TO INDIA,
is a matter of VAST POLITICAL IMPORTANCE TO
RUSSIA. Such being the case, there is every reason to
believe that, w hen Persia finds that the Turkish Empire
is threatened with dismemberment, her own interests
will get the better of any sympathy for it founded upon
community of faith, and that, completely under the
control of Russia, she will not be indisposed to agree to
an arrangement which would be acceptable to the re-
ligious feelings and to the ambition of the Persian peo-
ple. The possession by Persia of the province of Bag-
dad would be, as far as England is concerned, its pos-
session by Russia. It must not be forgotten that the
possession of Armenia by Russia, as regards any de-
signs that she may have upon India, supposing her to
entertain them, would be very different from that of
any part of Turkestan or Central Asia. In Armenia
and the north of Persia she wTould have a hardy and
abundant population, affording her excellent materials
for a large army, ready at any time to advance upon
our Indian frontier, and resting upon a convenient and
sure base of operations, in direct communication, by
the Caspian Sea and by Batoum, with the heart of the
Russian Empire. The moral effect of the conquest of
Armenia and the annexation of Ghilan and Mazanderan
by Russia upon our Mohammedan subjects, and upon
the populations of Central Asia, cannot be overlooked
by a statesman who attaches any value to the retention
of India as part of the British Empire. It would be out
of place to enter at length in this despatch upon the ar-
guments in support of what has been above stated. The
great calamities which the prolongation of the war may
entail upon the various populations of this country,
Mussulman and non-Mussulman, and the vast impor-
tance to the interests of humanity in bringing it to a
speedy end, may be briefly mentioned. It is scarcely
necessary to refer to the terrible loss of life and desola-
tion which such a war must occasion. If the slaughter
of thousands and tens of thousands of Turks is to be
justified, even those who profess to be the most humane
of men may feel some pity for their innocent women
and children, who will be left to perish in utter misery.
But the Christians may suffer scarcely less than the
Mohammedans; their homes will be rendered desolate;
their lives and property will be sacrificed to Turkish
fanaticism, or to the disorder and anarchy which the
prolongation of the war will cause. The Porte, believ-
ing the very existence of the Empire to be at stake, has
already withdrawn from the provinces even the forces
absolutely necessary for the maintenance of tranquillity
and for personal security. From all sides come already
complaints of fears of disorders. In a country infi-
nitely more civilized than Turkey, such would probably
be the case under similar circumstances. An impartial
man will be surprised that as yet there have been so
few excesses committed. The reports of our consular
agents prove that the public peace has been maintained
in a very remarkable manner. Such outrages as have
occurred have been for the most part committed by
Circassians, Kurds, and other wild tribes, over which,
even in times of peace, the Government can exercise
but small control. In Bulgaria and Roumelia in gen-
eral, as Mr. Blunt's despatches show, the Mohammedan
population are well disposed towards the Christians,
and their attitude towards them is, for the present,
friendly and peaceful. I am informed that the trans-
port of the new levies of many thousands of men from
the remotest part of the empire to the armies in the
field has been effected with the greatest order. This
fact has been confirmed to me by Englishmen and
others connected with railways which have been used
for conveying them. In Constantinople, notwithstand-

ing the alarm and panics which normally prevail in
Galata and Pera, there is also for the present perfect
quiet, and there is no reason, as far as I can judge, to
anticipate any hostile movement or demonstration
against the Christians. Although the state of things
in Turkey as regards the Christians is at this time such
as I have described it, yet w e must not count upon its
lasting. Any serious reverses or disasters experienced
by the Turkish army in Europe, and the advance of the
Russians upon the capital, or a rising of any part of the
Christian population, might be used to provoke an
outburst amongst the Mussulmans, founded rather
upon a feeling of despair than upon fanaticism, that
might have the most fatal consequences. The Em-
peror of Russia has declared to his people that THIS
IS A RELIGIOUS WAR, WAGED IN THE CAUSE
OF THE ORTHODOX FAITH and against its infide
enemies. If Mussulmans are once convinced that it
is a crusade against them and their religion they
may, in their agony, turn upon the Christians, and
frightful massacres may ensue. Another motive for
desiring peace before Russia can completely crush
Turkey anc dictate her own terms is the REPUGNANCE
UNQUESTIONABLY FELT by the most ENLIGHT-
ENED and INTELLIGENT CHRISTIANS of all de-
nominations to being placed under RUSSIAN RULE
OR PROTECTION, or even under her predominant.in-
fluence. I have given your lordship evidence of this
fact which I believe to be indisputable. It is shown by
the encyclical of the Greek patriarch, transmitted to
your lordship by to-day's messenger. It is further con-
firmed by the remarkable statement ot Dr. Wash-
burne, whose impartiality cannot be doubted, and who
is certainly no advocate of Turkish misrule, that of the
many hundred Bulgarians who have received an
American (equivalent to an English) education at Rob-
ert College, not one was implicated in the attempted
insurrection in Bulgaria. The English people cannot,
perhaps, yet bear to hear the truth of the events of
last year; but it is my duty to state it to your lordship.
The marvellous ability shown by RUSSIA and HER
AGENTS in MISLEADING PUBLIC OPINION in Eng-
land and elsewhere has been amply rewarded. It will
probably be long before that which is true can be
separated from that which is false; when history does
so it will be too late. The Porte has taken no effective
means to place its case before Europe. It neither em-
ploys the Press nor competent agents for such pur
poses. Its appeals to the Powers, and the State papers
that it issues, to refute the charges against it are so
prepared that they are more calculated to injure its
cause. A great portion of the English public are, pro-
bably, still under the impression that the statements
upon which the denunciations against Turkey were
originally founded are true—the 60,000 Christians out-
raged and massacred; the cartloads of human heads;
the crowd of women burnt in a barn; and other similar
horrors. There are persons, and amongst them, I
grieve to say, Englishmen, who boast that they invent-
ed these stories with the object of "writing down"
Turkey, to which they were irrpelled by a well knowrn
hand. People in England will scarcely "believe that the
most accurate and complete inquiries into the events
of last year in Bulgaria now reduce the total number
of deaths to about 3,500 souls, including the Turks who
were, in the first instance, slain by the Christians. No
impartial man can now deny that a RISING of the
CHRISTIANS, which was intended by its authors to
lead to a GENERAL MASSACRE of the MOHAM-
MEDANS, wras in contemplation, and that it was di-
rected by RUSSIAN and PANSLAVIST AGENTS. The
panic that it created amongst the Mohammedans was
the cause of the frightful vengeance they took. The
great mass of the Bulgarians did not join in the move-
ment, but were, on the contrary, opposed to it, and
took no part in it. The Porte dealt with the insurgents,
and those whom they suspected of being their accom-
plices, in a foolish and barbarous manner. The agents
it employed in putting down the incipient insurrection
were, for the most part, ignorant, corrupt, and brutal
men. The Turkish Government has justly been held
responsible for their acts, especially as it has refused
to punish with condign severity those who committed
horrible outrages; and whether the number of the
killed was 60,000 or 3,000, the guilt of the Porte is the
same. It must not, however, be assumed that the con-
dition of the Bulgarians under the rule of the Sultan
was as bad as the enemies of Turkey desire to make it
appear. That the administration was vicious and cor-
rupt, and that the Christians of all denominations were
unjustly treated, and were not placed on that equality
with their Mussulman fellow-subjects to wrhich they
have a right, are admitted facts. But, nevertheless,
they have made great progress of late years in ma-
terial prosperity, education, and wealth. Englishmen
who have been engaged in works of charity amongst
them, and wrho were certainly very far from having
any prejudice in favor of the Turks when they first
came out to Turkey, have told me that they have seen
with surprise the condition of the Bulgarian villages
and the general comfort and prosperity of their in-
habitants, and have learnt with equal surprise how
little they had really to complain of before a secret
agency excited the hopes and passions which brought
about the lamentable events of last year. The Chris-
tian populations of Turkey, or, rather, it may perhaps
be said those who, by their knowledge and intelligence,
are capable of representing them, are convinced that
under the Turkish rule they have a far better chance
of carrying out their national aspirations, of retaining
their national faith, and developing their political free-
dom than under that of Russia. They believe that the
pressure recently brought to bear upon the Porte by
the European Powers, and the lesson which the Turkish
Government has received, will contribute to these ob-
jects. They are encouraged by the unexpected success
of a Turkish Parliament, in which they find that they
can freely express their opinions and expose their
grievances. They knew that the unchecked success of
Russia would at once lead to the destruction of this
germ of future liberty and good government. I be-
lieve that they are right. A Russian gentleman ob-
served to me. ' RUSSIA LOOKS UPON THE ESTAB-
LISHMENT OF A CONSTITUTION AND A PARLIA-
MENT BY THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT AS AN
INSULT AND DEFIANCE TO HER. Their existence
wrouid alone furnish us with a sufficient reason to make
war upon Turkey. Wre will never consent to be the
only Power left in Europe without constitutional insti-
tutions, and as we are not yet prepared for them, we j
cannot, it is evident, allow Turkey to have them.1 j
1 What I have ventured to write in this despatch is, I
assure your lordship, founded upon no preconceived i

ideas with regard to this country, but upon the infor-
mation that I have obtained in free and unrestrained
conversation with men of all classes, conditions, and
religions. Not a day has passed since I have been here
that I have not seen many such persons. Some have
come to me of their own accord; others, who may
have believed that their views would not be palatable
to me and have kept away, I have invited to call upon
me. I believe that the considerations which I have
ventured to place before your lordship will be of con-
siderable importance in the event of the mediation of
her Majesty's Government and other Powers being ac-
cepted by Turkey and Russia. I must apologize to
your lordship for stating them thus frankly. The vast
and vital interests at stake in this wrar, and the con-
fidence which her Majesty's Government have placed
in me could alone justify me in doing so."	#

In a despatch to the Earl of Derby, dated May 23d,
Mr. Layard says:

" I have had a visit from the Servian agent, M. Chris-
tich, who showed me a telegram wrhich he had just re-
ceived from the Servian Prime Minister, and had com-
municated this morning to Safret Pasha. In it M. Ris-
tios gave the MOST POSITIVE ASSURANCES* that the
SERVIAN GOVERNMENT did not contemplate ANY
ATTACK upon Turkey; and that, so far from any
troops having been concentrated on the Turkish fron-
tier with this object, ' there was not in the whole prin-
cipality a band of more than five men together/ M.
Christich said that the Grand Vizer had informed him
that the Porte had received information that Russian
troops were beginning to arrive at Turn Severin, oppo-
site Gladova, exactly where the Russian volunteers had
crossed last year into Servia, and that there are there-
fore strong grounds for suspecting that,notwithstanding
the assurances given by Russia to Austria, she intended
to pass an army into Servia. M. Christich added that
he had assured the Grand Vizier that the Servian Gov-
ernment had no reason whatever to believe that Russia
intended to cross the Danube into Servia; but that, on
the contrary, they were convinced that she had no such
intention. I thought the opportunity a good one to
speak to M. Christich of the great danger that Prince
Milan was running if he were to plunge the Principality
again into war; and I hinted to him that his Highness
might have to deal with Austria as well as Russia."

In a despatch to Lord Derby, dated from St. Peters-
burg on the 31st of May, Lord A. Loftus, the British
Ambassador, gives an account of an interview he had
with Prince Gortschakoff prior to his departure for the
seat of war:

"His Highness," says Lord A. Loftus, "expressed
his conviction that the interests of the two countries in
the East ought not to clash (se heurter), and his hope
and expectation that the note of which Count Schou-
valoff was the bearer, would be satisfactory to her
Majesty's Government. I inquired of his highness in
what light the Imperial Government regarded the
declaration of independence by Roumania. Prince
Gortschakoff replied that he regarded it as a fait ac-
compli de facto, but not de fare. It was a question
wrhich could only be treated later, in conjunction with
the European PowTers. His highness believed that the
Austrian Cabinet took a similar view of it. In regard
to Servia, Prince Gortschakoff stated that Prince Milan
and the Servian Government had expressed their readi-
ness in the present conjuncture to act according to the
(volonte) wish of the Emperor, and that it had been sig-
nified to them in very decided terms that the EMPE-
ROR'S WISH+ was that SERVIA should remain PER-
FECTLY PASSIVE. Prince Gortschakoff was unable
to say what would be the probable duration of the
Emperor's absence, but I am told that in the official
and court circles it is expected that his absence will
not exceed six weeks."

THE TURKISH CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES.

In a despatch bearing the date of June 2d, and ad'
dressed to the Earl of Derby, Mr. Layard gives an ac-
count of his visit to the Turkish Chamber of Deputies.
He says:

" At the time of my visit the Chamber was discus-
sing a bill concerning municipal taxation. I may
state, with confidence, and with some experience of
the House of Commons, that I never saw a debate car-
ried on with more order and propriety. Members may
either speak from their seats or from a tribute, after
the French fashion. With the exception of one indi-
vidual, a Greek, they addressed the speaker or presi-
dent from their places. Their speeches were short and
to the point. Each article of the bill before them was
discussed, explanations ere demanded of the repre-
sentatives of the department of the Government that
had submitted the law to the Parliament, and were at
once given. It wras then put to the vote, and was
passed without a division. Each deputy had a copy of
the bill before him, and followed with the greatest in-
terest and attention the discussion. I did not observe
one exception. Once, during my presence, there was
a little expression of dissatisfaction in the house. The
exceptional Greek, to whom I have alluded, went into
the tribune with a bundle of papers, and began to read
a speech which threatened to last for an indefinite
tirrie. It related to the history of Turkey in general^
and especially to the grievances of the Christians. The
president once or twice represented to him that, al-
though his speech might properly be delivered on a
suitable occasion, it had nothing to do with the ques-
tion in discussion, which referred to a matter of detail
of local administration. The deputy, however, per-
sisted, and at last the house, becoming impatient, called
upon him to comply with the regulations, to obey the
president, and to come down. This he was at last
obliged to do. In the English House of Commons, the
speaker would certainly not have allowed him to goon
as long as he did. No public assembly of the* kind in
Europe could perhaps show a more respectable, in-
telligent, and dignified body of men than the present
Turkish Parliament. Christians and Mussulmans from
all parts of the empire, even an Arab with his half-
Bedouin dress, are seated without distinction together.
Among the Mohammedans there'are many mollahs, or
teachers of the Koran, in their white turbans. The
Christian speakers, who predominated the day that I
wras present, were listened to without any sign of im-
patience. They spoke with the most complete free-
dom, and without any restraint. The president rarely
interfered, except to point out to a deputy that he was

* This actually happened in the first engagements in
the neighborhood of Deii Baba.

t This is worth while remembering—F. B.62

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR

wandering from the question in debate. It must be
borne in mind that this was the first attempt to bring
together in a popular assembly men from all parts of
the empire, Mussulmans and Christians, who were en-
tirely ignorant of the duties they had to perform, and of
the way to perform them. Had they not been directed
and controlled at first by a strong hand, there would
have been general confusion, and the experiment would
probably have failed. I know no man in Turkey so com-
petent to be their president as Achmet Vefyk Pasha,
from his knowledge, his honesty, and his determination
and vigor of character. It is surprising, considering
the materials with which he had to deal, that he has
succeeded so soon in bringing the house into an
orderly and business-like assembly. For some months
there have been no complaints, even on the part of
those who have done their best to discredit the Turkish
Parliament, that the president has unnecessarily inter-
fered in its discussions, or has in any way restrained
the perfect freedom of debate. If there be auy cause
of complaint it is perhaps in the opposite direction.

APPENDIX Y.

STABBING UNDER THE GUISE OF FRIENDSHIP.

Russian Government Officials encouraging the in-
surgents against the porte, whilst general igna-

tieff was the russian ambassador at constati-

nople, and Turkey and Russia were at Peace

together.

The following is a despatch from Sir H. Elliott to the
Earl of Derby on this subject:

Constantinople, February, 14th, 1876.

My Lord—The account of the encouragement and
countenance given to the insurgents at Ragusa greatly
exceeds all that I was prepared for.

THE RUSSIAN CONSULATE IS THE OPEN RE
SORT OF THE INSURGENT CHIEFS. Their corres-
pondence is sent to the CONSUL, who is a PARTY to
all their PROJECTS, and ASSOCIATES HIMSELF
INTIMATELY WITH THEM.

He does not appear to make an attempt to conceal
the part he is playing, for on the occasion of the death
of the Chief Maxime, in one of the late encounters, the
Russian flag at the consulate was hoisted at half-mast,
and M. Jonine himself joined the funeral procession.

With such acts as these, it is not surprising that the
insurgents should suppose their attempt to be fully
APPROVED BY THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT, for
they can hardly be expected to believe that an AC-
CREDITED AGENT would venture upon them without
knowing that it meets with the APPROVAL OF HIS
SUPERIOR AUTHORITIES.

Some of the wounded, when asked why they continue
to struggle when the Porte is ready to grant all their
demands, have answered plainly that THEY ARE
BOUND TO GO ON AS LONG AS THEY ARE TOLD
BY RUSSIA TO DO SO.

The assurances given at St. Petersburg of the wish of
the Imperial Government that the insurgents would
lay down their arms, must naturally go for nothing, as
long as its OFFICIAL REPRESENTATIVE, with whom
they are in communication, ENCOURAGES THEM TO
GO ON.	I have, &c.,

(Signed)	Henry Elliott.

APPENDIX VI.

THE RUSSIAN WAY OF CHRISTIANIZING
THE TURKS.

{Official.)

Consul Reade to Mr. Layard.

Shumla, July 23rd, 1877.

Sir—Having on my arrival here heard that a num-
ber of Mussulman men, women, and children, said to
have been attacked and wounded by Russian troops,
were lying here, I obtained permission to see them.

I have the honor to inclose a list of those whom I
saw, and who were lying in a " teke," a Dervish
mosque, and apparently well cared for. I saw most of
their wounds, and spoke to them.

Several of the elder ones gave very clear accounts of
what had occurred to them (as they all said) by horse-
men carrying lances, and many of them stated that
they were attacked in the long grass where they were
hiding themselves. One poor infant, of about nine
months, had two frightful gashes on the head, and
had one toe cut off.

Most of them had lance thrusts about their body;
some sabre-cuts, i saw them one by one, and a more
sickening spectacle J. seldom witnessed, not only from
the nature of the wounds, but also from the youth and
simplicity of the younger ones.

As regards rumor that any of these attacks were
committed by Bulgarians, I am able to state that, ac-
cording to those I saw, not one such case has occur-
red. I asked all the sufferers one by one, separately,
if they had been maltreated by any Bulgarian Chris-
tian, or if Sthey had heard of any such case; they one
and all said not.

From what all asserted, these cruelties can only be
attributed to Cossacks, as the perpetrators were all de-
scribed as "horsemen with lances."

The number of these victims is increasing, as others
are brought in daily; and from what those I saw said,
a considerable number must have been killed on the
spot.	I have, &c.,

(Signed)	R. Reade.

List of 'Wounded Women and Children lying in the

Teke, or Dervish Mosque, at Shumla, and visited by

Consul Reade:

1.	Habibe: a woman aged 25 years. Wounded in the
back by a lance.

2.	Mehemed: a boy aged 7 years. Wounded in the
left thigh by a lance. Son of No. 1.

3.	Ibrahim: a boy aged 5 years. Wounded on the
right thigh by a lance; also son of No. 1.

4.	Hava: a woman aged 25. Lance-wound on the
head.

5.	Aishe: a woman aged 30 years. Arm and head
wound by a sabre; a lance-wound on the breast.

6.	Mehemet: a boy aged 6 years. Stomach pierced
by a lance. Son of No. 5.

7.	Anfe: a woman'aged 24. Four sabre-cuts on the
head, three lance-thrusts on left leg, one on right

shoulder, and one on right thigh. Sabre cut on right
hand.

8.	Nazife: a girl aged 15. Sabre-cuts on breast and
back; lance-thrust on right foot and right thigh.

9.	Mustapha: an infant of about 9 months of age.
Top of head frightfully lacerated by a sabre. Toe of
right foot cut off. This was a sickening spectacle.

10.	Feride: a woman aged 55 years. Right shoulder
wounded by lance. Right hand cut off. Lance-wound
on back.

11.	Emine: a girl aged 9 years. Three sabre-cuts on
head and one on back.

12.	Muzcie: a girl aged 12 years. Trampled upon by
a horse and severely wounded.

13.	Feride: a woman aged 40 years. Lance-wound on
back.

14.	Mustafa: a boy aged 9 years. Lance-wound on
left leg. Son of No. 13.

15.	Fatme: a girl aged 12 years. Right thigh wounded
by lance. Daughter of No. 13.

16.	Gursun: A woman aged 32 years. Lance-wound
on back.

17.	Aishe: a girl aged 7 years. Lance-wound on
head.

18.	Abrahim: a boy aged 9 j^ears. Sabre-cut on head.
Lance-wounds on forehead and thigh.

(Signed)	R, Reade.

Shumla, July 22d, 1877.

APPENDIX VII.

THE SCHOOLMASTERS IN MASSACRE.
Consul Dickson to Earl Russell.—(Received May 17th.)

{Extract.)

Soukoum Kale, March 17th, 1864.

I feel it a painful duty to report a deed that has
come to my knowledge, which has so exasperated the
Circassians as to excite them to further resistance,
however desperate their case may be.

A Russian detachment having captured the village of
Toobeh on the Soobashi River, inhabited by about 100
Abadzeks, and after these had surrendered themselves
prisoners, they were all massacred by the Russian
troops. AMONG THE VICTIMS WERE TWO WOMEN
IN AN ADVANCED STATE OF PREGNANCY. AND
FIVE CHILDREN. The detachment in question be-
longs to Count Evdokimoff's army, and is said to have
advanced from the Pshish valley.

As the Russian troops gained ground on the coast, the
natives are not allowed to remain there on any terms,
but are compelled either to transfer themselves to the
plains of the Kouban, or emigrate to Turkey.

APPENDIX VIII.

OUGHT WE TO HAVE SAVED THE CIRCASSIANS?
Sir H. Bulwer to Earl Russell.—{Received May 20th.)

{Extract.)

Constantinople. May 3d, 1864.

You are aware of the large and sudden immigration
of Circassians into the Ottoman dominions.

The Russian Government has now acquired the ter-
ritory of that brave and devoted race, who have only
prized one thing more than country—liberty, or at least
the life which is free from the domination of a foreign
foe. They are flying the shores immortalized by their
defence, and seeking an asylum in a neighboring Em-
pire. In short, Circassia is gone; what yet remains to
SAVE IS THE CIRCASSIANS.

APPENDIX IX.

LESSONS IN MASSACRE.

A Petition from the Circassians forwarded to Earl
Russell by Sir H. Bulwer, dated Constantinople,
April 12th, 1864.

{Translation.)

Our most humble Petition to Her Magnificent Ma-
jesty the Queen and Emperor of England is to the
effect that:

It is now more than eighty years since the Russian
Government is unlawfully striving to subdue and an-
nex to its dominion Circassia, which since the creation
of the wrorld has been our home and our country. It
slaughters like sheep the children, helpless women, and
old men that fall into its hands. It rolls about their
heads with the bayonet-like melons, and there is no
act of oppression or cruelty which is beyond the pale
of civilization and humanity, and which defies descrip-
tion, that it* has not committed. We have not, from
father to son, at the cost of our lives and properties,
refrained from opposing the tyrannical acts of that
Government in defence of our country, which is dearer
to us than our lives. But during the last year or two it
has taken advantage of a famine caused by a drought
with which the Almighty visited us, as well as by his
own ravages, and it has occasioned us great distress by
its severe attacks by sea and land. Many are the lives
which have been lost in battle, from hunger in the
mountains, from destitution on the sea-cost, and from
■want of skill at sea.

WE THEREFORE INVOKE THE MEDIATION AND
PRECIOUS ASSISTANCE OF THE BRITISH GOV-
ERNMENT AND PEOPLE—THE GUARDIAN OF
HUMANITY AND CENTRE OF JUSTICE—IN ORDER
TO REPEL THE BRUTAL ATTACKS OF THE RUS-
SIAN GOVERNMENT ON OUR COUNTRY, AND
SAVE OUR COUNTRY AND OUR NATION TO-
GETHER.

But if it is not possible to afford this help for the pre-
servation of our country and race, then we pray to be
afforded facilities for removing to a place of safety our
helpless and miserable children and women that
are perishing by the brutal attacks of the enemy as
well as by the effects of famine; and if neither of these
two requests are taken into consideration, and if in
our helpless condition we are utterly annihilated not-
withstanding our appeals to the mercy and grace of
the -Governments, then we shall not cease to invoke
our right in the presence of the Lord of the Universe,
of him who has confided to your Majesty sovereignty,
! strength, and powrer for the purpose of protecting the
weak.

We beg j^our Excellency to be the medium of making
known to the great British Government and to the
glorious British nation our condition of helplessness

and misery, and we have therefore ventured to present
to your Excellency our most humble petition. A copy
of it has been submitted to the Sultan's Government
and to the Embassies of the other Powers.

Signed by the people of Circassia.

April 9th, 1864.	29 Sheval, 1280.

APPENDIX X.

STATEMENT OF THE CIRCASSIAN DEPUTIES IN
REFERENCE TO THE CRIMEAN WAR.

We, the undersigned, having been sent from the peo-
ple of the Nectouage and Abaseck, and further com-
missioned on their behalf by the Deputies of the
other tribes of Circassia assembled at Constantinople,
to carry to the Sovereigns and to the people of Eng-
land and France the appeal of our nation, and to speak
for our nation, and after that appeal has been rejected
by the Governments of France and of England, and
we nave presented ourselves before various assemblies
of the English people, from whom wre have heard kind
words, it has then been told to us that there are, among
the English people, some who say that we are subjects
of the Emperor of Russia, and others who say that in
the time of the war in the Crimea the generals of Eng-
land and France sent to us to require troops to aid
them in the war, and that we refused to give such
troops, and therefore it is not proper now for England
to help us in our distress, or to resist Russia in her vio-
lence and aggressions. Therefore, we now say that
the words so spoken against us are not true words, but
false ones, and we further declare that any one who
charges us with such things privately, and who does
not bring them forward in such a manner that all shall
hear and all shall judge, commits an act not worthy of
an honest man, and ought not to be listened to by
honest men.

It is easy for us to declare that we are a free people,
over whom no king or emperor, or government, has
had any power or authority since the world began, or
as far back as the memory of man can reach, but we
do not do so; we only ask what proof those can adduce
who say to the contrary. Let those persons show who
the king is who has conquered our country; let him
tell what taxes the Circassian people has paid, or what
troops have been raised amongst our tribes for the
service of a foreign master. This is what no man can
tell.

So also let our accusers bring forth the letters, or
repeat the words, by which any request for aid was
made to us in the time of the w'ar in the Crimea, and
then let him produce the answer given by us, refusing
that aid or succor, and when he has done so, then he
may say that we did refuse to join the Allies, but not
till then; but no such letter can be produced, and if
such demand and such answer would be produced, it
would not on that account follow that the injustice of
Russia should become justice, that the danger from
Russia should become security, or that the taking pos-
session of the Black Sea by the cruisers of Russia, to
interrupt all communication and all traffic, and so to
make a war with England as well as Circassia, should
become honorable and safe to the British nation.

The Circassians are a very small and weak people;
they have no money, they pay no taxes, they have no
government, they have no newspapers, they are ignor-
ant; but this they do know, that many years Russia
has been fighting against them, and that the thousands
of men she loses in fighting every year, and the great
treasure she expends every year, is not for the sake of
Circassia. All our mountains, from the BlacK Sea to
the Caspian, would not be worth to Russia, if she pos-
sessed them, so much as she expends on trying to con-
quer them in one year of the forty years she has been
endeavoring to conquer them.

We therefore know that she is expending her army
and her treasure, not because she wants Circassia, but
because she wants India and the Ottoman Empire; and,
therefore, do we say to ourselves, it is because of Tur-
key and England that we have to fight night and day,
that our cattle are carried off, that our houses are
burnt, and that our young men have to die, and our old
ones and children and women to perish. Why do the
Turks and the English not help us; why are they the
friends of the Russians?

We will now tell that which happened in the Crimean
War.

It was in the year of your era 1854 that you drew
your sword against Russia; before then that sword
was in the scabbard, but our sword has never been in
the scabbard; peace there never had been between the
Circassians and Russians, and for thirty-three years
there had been fierce wars. It was at the end of that
time that the great nations of Europe went to make
war. When we heard this we were very happy, and
thought that the time was come when we might take
breath: for we have not only to fight, but also to live;
but it is very hard for us to live when we have always
to fight. We said to ourselves, The great nations in
whose hands Russia is nothing are going to stop her
and give peace. Now we can plough our fields, and
pasture our flocks, and rest from our long sufferings.
Yet many amongst us got ready to help, and when the
Russian troops that lay all along from Anapa to Soukum
Kaleh withdrew and collected together, and retired
north, wre also on our part followed them; but when
they crossed the Kouban they did not retire further,
but stopped there, and they were in great force, being
tens of thousands on one bank of the river and Ave on
the other, so that neither ventured across to attack.
We could not go across whibt they were so posted, but
when they saw us ready, neither could they retire so
as to go to the Crimea.

Now, every day we expected that some of the Allies
wrould appear behind them, and enable us to do some-
thing to destroy them; but none came, nor did they
send us any succor by the sea; and then we saw there
was no aid for us. So it was at the end as at the be-
ginning, and the Allies went away, and. as before, we
remained the only enemies of Russia. But it was not
by sending our horsemen into the steppes of Russia or
into the Crimea that anything could be done to make
Russia less powerful or give to us security after the
peace.

Tiie Lesghians on the east held a body of 50,000 men
ready to fall on Tiflis, so soon as word should be sent
by the generals of the English or French, or from Con-
stantinople. The people of our coast knew very well
that what they had to do wras to crush the Russian
armies in the south of the Caucasus, and to restore the
people of Georgia. Gouriel, and Imerettia to independ-ON HORSEBACK THROUGH A SIA MINOR

63

ence. This was the help they looked for in the war ;
which England and France was making-against Russia. ,

At various times, to the number of seven or eight, on
news arriving of envoys sent to us, assemblies were
called among the Shapsug and Nectouage to be ready
to hear without delay their proposals, so that if any
such envoy had come to concert measures with us,
such as that above described, and which should be
within our power to attempt and for our benefit to
achieve, 25,000 horsemen from these tribes alone would
have been ready to take the field in a week. Our as-
semblies met and waited in vain; no envoys came; and
they dispersed with heavy hearts.

Then it was that we considered what we ourselves
could do, and as the Turkish commander in Kars sent
no word to us, we determined to send word to him; and
thereupon an envoy was sent—namely, one of the two
undersigned now present in London, Hadji Hassan by
name, to offer to Selim Pasha the co-operation of the
forces of the Circassians, so that whilst we descended
from the north they might march from the south, and
thus crush the Russian power in Georgia, rescuing a
Christian people from a barbarous yoke.

This envoy could only reach the Turkish camp by
passing through the Black Sea in a boat with four oars,
and bad great difficulty in escaping the Russian cruis-
ers. He reached Batun, and then proceeded to the
Turkish quarters at Uzurget, twenty hours from Kar£.
The Turkish commander was glad to hear his tidings,
and the plans were being prepared for the campaign,
when a messenger arrived from Constantinople. The
Pasha read the despatch which he had received; he
did not say what it contained, but with tears in his
eyes exclaimed: ''We are betrayed!" The Circassian
envoy understood that the Governments of France and
England would not allow the Russians to be attacked
where they could be really injured, so he returned to
his own country. After the Russian army had been
thus saved from destruction, Kars itself became their
prey.

Whilst the war was going on in the Crimea, various
Turks came from Constantinople; they called them-
selves envoys, and every one had a different story; but
they never came amongst the Circassians, they all
stayed at Anapa and Soukum Kaleh, the posts aban-
doned by the Russians.

There also came from the English and French, con-
suls and envoys, and captains of ships, and they also
said one thing and another; one saying that he had
authority, and another saying he had authority; and
then they talked to the Turks, and the Turks talked to
them, but never came to the Circassians, but, like the
Turks, remained at Anapa and Soukum Kaleh; whilst
we were looking for men to propose to our tribes meas-
ures.of war, and to bring from their countless hosts
troops, artillery, and ammunition, to help in the war
we were waging against Russia, and had been waging
for generations past.

*mve sillce heard that at Anapa and Soukum
Kaleh many conversations took place; we have heard
that between the Europeans and the Turks, and some
Circassians, men who have no authority to act on be-
lialf of the people, that it was said that the European
generals wanted a large army of Circassians to leave
their countiy to embark on the sea, and fight in the
Crimea. Such things could never have been spoken in
an assembly of Circassians, for the long time which
they have resisted Russia shows that they are men who
know how war is to be made. If such things had been
proposed in an assembly of Circassians, our people
would have answered, "That is not the way to injure
Russia, that is not the way to protect Circassia, that is
the way only to destroy your own armies." But such
proposals were never made to us, for we are a free
people, and nothing is done in secret. We have no
Minister, as the people of England have. Our war-
riors fight, not because they are paid, but because they
have hearts, and when anything is proposed to us, then
a meeting must be held. Messengers go forth, and
many thousand people are collected together, some-
times 5,000 and sometimes 20,000, and they give ear to
what is said to them, and when they have understood
it, they appoint twenty or thirty of the wise men and
elders, who consult apart, and after that tell the people,
and it is only when the people say Yes to what is con-
sulted that the answer is given. Then all are willing to
do what all have understood and all consented to. But
amongst our people there is not one who would have
consented to go to the Crimea, while every man would
have been ready to march on Tiflis and save Kars. So
that it appears to us that no message came from the
French and English commanders to attack Tiflis, for
the same reason that the Russians remained on the
Kouban instead of retiring into the Crimea. If our
troops had not been detained on the Kouban, we our-
selves would have attacked Tiflis without the aid of
the Allies or the co-operation of the Turks.

We have also learnt that when the envoys of Eng-
land and France at Anapa and Soukum Kaleh said
that we should send our forces to the Crimea, the
Turkish envoys and other persons replied to them that
such proposals could not be made unless the Allies en-
gaged to secure our independence at a peace, and that
this was the first word that had to be spoken on the
matter: but these envoys would not allow such a word
to be spoken either first or last.

Now, what advantage have we gained from this war
in the Crimea? That war is over seven years ago, and
we have been fighting ever since!

YOU MAKE A TREATY OF PEACE TO OPEN THE
SEA. THE SEA IS NOT OPEN. Had the undersigned
been taken by the Russian vessels in coming to Eng-
land we should have been sent to the mines of Siberia,
and we know that we the undersigned are in all cases
devoted to death because we have come here.

YOUR ARMIES HAVE BEEN IN THE CRIMEA,
WHAT BENEFIT HAS COME TO THE CRIM TAR-
TARS? DTD YOU RESTORE TO THEM THEIR
COUNTRY? NO, YOU GAVE IT BACK TO RUSSIA.

WHAT BENEFIT DID THE TURKS GET FROM
YOUR WAR? You made your enemy pay none of the
•expends, and YOU ONLY DEPRIVED THE TURKS
OF THEIR VICTORIES.

THE POLES did go to the Crimea, and WHAT BEN-
EFIT did THEY GET FROM THAT WAR?

Did we too not help you? Did we not keep in check
100,000 men? Is Russia not sore and weak by the many
years she has been fighting with us. If we did not pre-
fer independence to slavery, would not 100,000 of our
men be in her ranks? If we were not engaged in defend-
ing our country, would not the Russian frontiers be at
Batun?

WHY DO WE SUFFER FROM THIS WAR? Is it not

because RUSSIA WANTS TO BE MISTRESS OF IN-
DIA and MISTRESS OF CONSTANTINOPLE? If you
wait till her ends are gained it will be too late to get
aid from us. If you do not give us to-day a favorable
reply, we must go back to our people and tell them
that the English people are joined with Russia, so that
what Russia could not effect by her arms some people
in England will have effected by their calumnies.

All these things we tell you. If you wish to be sure
ofv the truth, make an assembly, as we do, and we will
prove them. If you make no such assembly you have
no right-to say them. From Europe or from England no
help has come to us. We have heard that if there was
justice to be found it was in England; we came then to
England, weak and poor, expecting to find justice from
you.

(Signed) Hadji Hayden Hassan.

Kustar Ogli Ismael.

APPENDIX XI.

HOLY RUSSIA AND THE CURSED CRESCENT.
By A. Cleveland Coxe,*

Bishop of the Western Diocese of New York.
Trump of the Lord, I hear it blow;

Forward the cross; the world shall know
Jehovah's arm's against the foe,

Down shall the cursed crescent go.

To arms! To arms!

God wills it so.

God help the Russians—God bless the Czar,
Shame on the swords that trade can mar,
Shame on the laggards, faint and far,

That rise not to the holy war.

To arms! To arms!

The Cross and Czar.

How long, O Lord, for Thou art just,	j

Vengeance is Thine, in Thee we trust.

Wake, arm of God, and dash to dust
Those hordes of rapine and of lust.

To arms! To arms!

Wake swords that rust.

Forward the Cross. Break, clouds of Ire,
Break with the thunder and the fire,

To new Crusades let Faith inspire,

Down with the crescent to the mire.

To arms! To arms!

To vengeance dire.

The Bishop answered fry Mr. W. Oroffut.

Thou Man of God, who thus implore
Thy brother's sacred blood to pour
In hateful tides of turbid gore,

From Dardanelles to Danube's shore.

Bestiil! Be still!

Blaspheme no more.

God help the babes, God bless the wives;
Shame on the priests that whet the knives,
Shame on the Church whose altar thrives
By wrecking peaceful peasants1 lives!

Bestiil! Bestiil!

'Tis hell that drives.

How long, O Lord, before Thy shrine
Shall men pray Vengeance, God, is Thine,
Then worship Moloch as divine,

And drink the battle's bloody wine?

Be still! Be still!

O heart of mine.

APPENDIX XII.
THE CORRUPTION OF ARMENIAN OFFICIALS.
Report of Mr. Taylor to her Majesty's Government

with reference to the corruption of armenian

Officials in his (the Erzeroum) District.

{Extract.)

Christians.—The different sects into which the Chris-
tians are divided in the Erzeroum Vilayet are:

Souls.

Gregorian Armenians . . . 287,700
Nestorians .	. . . 110,000

Armenian Catholics	. . . 8,000

Orthodox Greeks .... 4,000
Protestants (natives)	. . . 1,300

crying wrongs, as wrell by the criminal assistance as
wilful apathy or silence of the Armenian Medjliss
members, ostensibly elected by the suffrages of their
co-religionists to guard their interests. Unfortunately,
then, as the evil lies as much with the Christians as the
Turks, under existing regulations there is no remedy
for it, and there can be none till the local authorities
really see for themselves that the Porte's orders are
really carried out, and to open the way for the intro-
duction of a higher class of people for such employ-
ments. As it is, no man of wealth, influence, or char-
acter will accept a seat in any one of the Councils; he
will not waste time in attending to official duties in a
place where he has to put up with the contumely and
impertinent insults of the Moslem members, all which
are patiently borne by the fawning and obsequious
Christians whose living depends upon this appoint-
ment. And even were a man of character and ability
to accept a nomination at the hands of his community,
the Pasha, with whom, in fact, the fate of such elec-
tions lie, as he has the power of rejection, would al-
ways prefer a needy, pliant member to one whose
riches and position would place him beyond the reach*
of his menaces or influence. The interests of the
community are consequently entrusted to speculators
accustomed to the atmosphere of the Serai in their
capacity of revenue farmers, or Seraffs, who in such
positions have, in addition to their own disgusting ser-
vility, all the chicanery and vices of Turkish officials—
acquired a dangerous influence, either as the partners
or creditors of the chief provincial officers. Such an
influence might be meritorious and useful if exercised
in the interests of justice and duty, but it becomes a
downright evil when practised, as it always is, for their
own benefit or that of their partners in corruption, and
scarcely ever for their brethren. The claims of the
poor are either neglected or betrayed, and those of the
rich depend upon the amount of their presents or de-
gree of their sycophancy. The Armenian clergy and
head men, on their part, purposely ignoring the villain-
ous conduct of their Medjliss members representing
the repeated failures of justice that inevitably result
as due to the fanaticism or imbecility of a Government
determined to ignore all just claims, exaggerate actual
facts; the more readily to induce their dependents to
adopt the disloyal views they propogate. As they pur-
sue such intrigues, apparently unchecked, and with the
secret approval of Russian agents, wavering members,
formerly content with or resigned to their lot, openljr
express disaffection and traitorous ideas.

APPENDIX XIII.

FEMALE BRIGANDAGE.

Millingen remarks, in " Wild Life Amongst the
Koords "—Amongst the many acts of brigandage of
which the Koords are guilty, a peculiar kind of high-
way robbery must here be stated, which is probably
unparalleled. The culprits, the brigands, are in this
case young women, who set out on plundering pursuits
in order to turn a dishonest penny. A troop of fair
bandits take up a station at the side of the road, there
patiently to await for the arrival of the doomed trav-
eler. As soon as the vedettes announce his approach,
the fair troop starts off to meet him, welcoming him
with dances and with fiery glances of irresistible power.
He is compelled to stop, as a matter of course, and the
fair maids then politely request him to alight. No
sooner has the bewildered victim put his feet on the
ground than he finds himself at close quarters with
the whole troop. Immediately he is stripped of all he
has on his back, and is left in that primitive state in
which Adam was at one time. Then begins a series of
dances and fascinating gestures in the style of those
performed by the maids at the Lupercalian games, the
object of which is to make the unfortunate victim lose
his self-control. An attempt, however, on the part of
the victim to reciprocate the advances of his alluring
tyrants, becomes instantly fatal. The troop get hold
of him in a summary way, declare him to have made
attempts on the virtue of the fair maids, and condemn
him to be pricked with thorns upon a very sensitive
part of his person. These dances and the flagellations,
which serve as entractes, are repeated several times
over, till the sufferer, exhausted and bleeding, is nearly
in a fainting condition. Then the female troop of ban-
dits drag the wretched traveler before a court of
matrons, which holds its sittings somewhere in the
neighborhood. There a charge of attempting a crimi-
nal assault is brought against the pretended culprit,
who not only receives a good dose of upbraiding, bufc
is also condemned to pay a fine.

Total

411,000

Armenians.—"The advice and ostentatious leaning to-
wards Russia of the Armenian clergy in my district,
headed by the Catholicas residing at Etchmiazin in
Russia, and his bishops in these parts, have naturally
enough inclined the more ignorant members of their
j flocks—rich and poor—to adopt the same views; and
I considering also that a whole Christian house of ten
I souls in Russia pays only, for all taxes, 9 roubles (11. 10,v.)
| annually as against three times the sum here, if there
j has not been a general emigration, it is simply owing
i to the fact that disposable arable lands in Russian Ar-
! menia are scarce, while the reverse prevails in Turkey.
| Everywhere throughout these districts I found the
S Armenians bitter in their complaints against the Turk-
| ish Government, at the same time that they were un-
! reserved in their praises of Russia, openly avowing
! their determination to emigrate. This bias is owing,
! as already stated, to the constant hostile teaching of
j their clergy; at the same time, ample cause for discon-
| tent, as has already been shown further back, is af-
| forded by the really wretched system of Turkish pro-
j vincial administration, the unequal imposition of taxes,
| scandalous method of levying them and the tithes,
j persistent denial or miscarriage of justice, and practi-
cal disavowal to the Christians' claim to be treated
with the same consideration and respect as their equals
among Moslems. But experience has taught me that
which candor and strict impartiality compel me to
, state, that the subordinate officers of the local Govern-
ment are aided and abetted in their disgraceful pro-
ceedings, or encouraged in persistent indifference to

* I extract these lines from an American paper,
which declares that they were written by the Prelate
in question. To the best of my belief the Bishop has
not denied the statement nor the sentiments which the
verses express.—F. B.

APPENDIX XIV.

THE ROUTES WHICH TRAVERSE ASIA MINOR,
AND THE EUPHRATES AND TIGRIS.

The routes which traverse Asia Minor and cross the
Euphrates and Tigris commence at Constantinople on
the Bosphorus, or at Smyrna on the ^Egean Sea, and
meet upon the plateau of Asia Minor.

Of these routes the chief are—The Erzeroum and
Tabriz; the Diarbekir and Mosul; the Aleppo and Bag-
dad. On leaving Constantinople, the Bosphorus is
crossed; the road then leads along the coast of the
Propontus, from Scutari to Gebiseh, the ancient Ly-
bissa, and where the tomb of Hannibal can be seen;
then beside the Astacenian Gulf, from Gebiseh to Ni-
comedia (Ismid). Here the three routes separate.

The Erzeroum road leads eastward, and parallel to
the coast of the Black Sea.

The Diarbekir route cuts Asia Minor longitudinally,
and descends into the valley of the Euphrates towards
Malatia. The Aleppo road cuts it obliquely, and de-
scends upon the shores of the Mediterranean near

The Erzeroum route crosses the Sakaria towards its
mouth, between Sabanja and Kbanda, leads by the vil-
lages of Dusdscheh or Muderli to the town of Boli, situ-
ated near the ruins of Hadrianopolis; beyond Boll the
road is very hilly; it then traverses the towns of Geri-
deh and Hamanli, and descends with the waters of the
Parthenius to the little town of Tcherkis. Tcherkis is
at the junction of the Trebizond and Tokat route. The
Trebizond route ascends more to the north, crosses the
mountains which separate the basin of the Parthenius
from that of the Halys, and descends with an affluent
of the Halys to Kastamuni, and from there, by Tach-
kupri, to the town of Voyavat.64

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR

Tach-kupri is built on the site of Pompeiopolis, and
Voyavat in a fertile plain, at the foot of a height
crowned by an old citadel. Voyavat is an important
position, because it is at the intersection of the Sinope
and Trebizond route.

The Sinope route turns to the north, and leads through
a very rich and undulating country. This is one of the
most fertile districts in Asia Minor.

The Trebizond route leads eastward, passes the Halys
near Vizir Kupri, and, after numerous ascents and de-
scents, issues beside a watercourse in a bay surrounded
by olive-trees. Here is the town of Samsoun. It then
leads along the coast of the Black Sea, crosses the Iris
near Tcharchembeh, and the Thermadon near Ther-
meh; and leaving the little town of Unieh to the left
and on the sea-shore, it goes by Fatsa, Ordau, and
Kerasun to Tripoli; from there, after turning the bay
of Platana, it leads to Trebizond.

The Tokat road bends more to the south after leaving
Tcherkis; it crosses the mountains which border the
basin of the Parthenius near Karadicur, and descends
by Kodia Hissar to the town of: Tusia upon the Halys.
It next traverses the river near Hadjii Hamzeh or Os-
manjik, and, after passing Marsivan, crosses the west-
ern affluent of the Iris at Amasia; from here it goes by
Turkhal to Tokat. The direct route from Tokat to
Erzeroum eastward goes from Tokat or from Turkhal
to Niksar, on the Lycus, the eastern affluent of the Iris;
and continuing by this affluent to Kara Hissar, it as-
cends near the villages of Kerkif or Lorri, the mount-
ains which separate the waters of .the Black Sea from
the Euphrates, and descends into the plain of Erzeroum
near Vijan.

There is another road from Constantinople to Sivas.
This is the regular Angora track; it leaves the Trebizond
route at Nicomedia, crosses the Sakaria near Geiweh;
and following the chord of the arc which this river de-
scribes as it descends from the plateau of Asia Minor,
leads by the little towns of Terekli and Torbali to Nali-
han, near the ruins of Gordium; after which it ascends
by the little town of Bei Bazar on to the Angora plateau.
This plateau is one of the points which dominate Asia
Minor; hence the reason why formerly so much impor-
tance was attached to the fortress of Gordium. The
road then leads by the village of Bei Bazar, or by Ta-
badji, on to a ridge of mountains which separate the
basin of the Sakaria from that of the Halys, and de-
scends by the village of Akserai to the latter of these
rivers. The stream is crossed either at a ford or on a
raft, and the route goes by the villages of Sangor and
Osman Koi to the town of Yuzgat; the chief seat of the
family Tchapan-Oglou, * formerly one of the most pow-
erful'in Asia Minor. Yuzgat is an important position,
because it is at the junction of the two routes from
Tokat and Caesarea. The first leads to the east; and
crossing the mountains which separate the basin of the
Halys from that of the Iris, it debouches through a deep
ravine on to the lofty plateau of Zela, celebrated for
Ccesar's victory over Pharnaces: from here it descends
and slopes gently down to the Western Iris, near Tokat.
The Caesarea route turns to the south after leaving Yuz-
gat, and leading by the villages of Ingourli, Kislan, and
Boghazlayan, recrosses the Halys near Emlar; after
which it goes by Erkelet (Hiklar) to Cassarea.

Another route leads by Angora to Cassarea, and from
Caesarea to Malatia in the valley of the Euphrates. It
is the route from Constantinople to Diarbekir and to
Mosul. After leaving Nicomedia (Ismid) it turns south,
ascends the mountains which separate the Astecenian
from the Cianean Gulf, and descends to Lake Ascanius,
near Nicea; then turning eastward, and passing along-
side Mount Olympus, it crosses the Gallus at Lefke
(Louka) near its junction with the Sakaria; then ascend-
ing this river along its left bank as far as Zugud (Soghat),
it crosses the Thymbrius near Eski-Shehr, the ancient
Doryleum, situated in the middle of a vast and bare
plain. The road now rises insensibly by Sidi Ghazi
and Sever Hissar to the Angora plateau. This is the
easiest route to go from Nicomedia to the plateau of
Asia Minor. It follows the watercourses.

Two routes lead from Angora to Cassarea. One
crosses the Halys near the village of Kara Keni, from
whence it ascends the river along its right bank to the
little town of Mandjour, where its two principal
affluents unite. Then crossing the eastern affluent,
between the villages of Tchalik and Ambar, the route
leads to the foot of Mount Argea towards Cassarea.
The other road borders the eastern plateau of Asia
Minor; and ascending the Halys along its right bank,
passes the eastern affluent of tliis river above Mandjour;
from here the route goes to Caesarea, across a vast plain
destitute of trees. It is the easiest road, but there are
no habitations, and provisions are very scarce in this
direction.

Caesarea is a branching point for all the routes which
cross the Euphrates, or which descend from the plateau
of ?Asia Minor to the littoral of Cilicia. One of these
routes leads to Sivas, another to Diarbekir, a third to
Aintab, and a fourth to Adana and Tarsus. The first
leads in a northeaster^ direction, and ascends the
eastern affluent of the Halys from Emlar to Sivas; this
is the easiest route by which to ascend to the plateau of
Armenia. The road from Angora by Tokat to Sivas is
the shortest. It is best provided with provisions; but
the route by Cassarea is less broken and more accessible
for artillery. The route from Cassarea to Diarbekir
leads eastward along the Melas till that river joins the
Euphrates below Malatia. The river is then crossed in
a ferry-boat at the village of Teis Oglan. and the road
continues by the little town of Kharput to a chain of
mountains which unite Mount Taurus to Mount Ni-
phates. It descends with the principal affluent of the
Tigris to Maiden, and from Maiden goes to the town of
Arghana: from here it leads alongside this river to
Diarbekir, and from Diarbekir goes by Djesire to Mosul.

The road from Cassarea to Aintab leads in a south-
easterly direction, traverses one of the chains which
unite Mount Argea to the southern branch of Mount
Taurus, and descends by the village of Garrin into the
valley of El Bostan, towards the sources of the Saurus.
The valley of El Bostan, although very high, is fertile,
and planted with fruit trees. El Bostan is the branch-
ing point of three routes which lead -one to Samozate,
another to Aintab, and the third to Marash. The first
route turns to the east of Mount Amanus and descends
with an affluent of the Euphrates to Samozate; the
second crosses the mountain, descends by a profound
ravine to Aintab, and leads from Aintab to Aleppo
alongside the Chalus. The thvrd turns Mount Amanus

* Daravish Bey is the last of that celebrated family.
J To is nearly ruined owing to some dealings with an
Armenian usurer.

on the west, and descends with the Pyramus to the little
town of Marash, and from Marash goes to the village of
Messis, on the gulf Alexandretta.

The most frequented route from Caesarea to Alexan-
dretta is via Adana or Tarsus. This route leads to the
south, turns Mount Argea towards the west, and goes
by Endjazou, the ancient Castabale, and by Kara His-
sar, the ancient Cybistra, to Yenji Bar, probably the
ancient Nora; from here it ascends to the'high plain of
Nigdeh, which is watered, like El Bostan, by an affluent
of the Sarus. It descends from Nigdeh to Ketch His-
sar, called Dana by Xenophon, an important position,
because it is at the intersection of the two routes of
Cassarea and Koniah; from there the road leads by the
village of Tchikisla into a deep and winding gorge, hol-
lowed out in the slopes of Mount Taurus, and where the
different affluents of the Sarus unite together. From
here the route debouches by the village of Abi Cheik
into the great plain of Cilicia, on one side of which is
Tarsus, and on the other Adana. In leaving the defile
above mentioned, the road branches to the right for
Tarsus, and to the left to Adana, and from Adana goes
to Alexandretta. The best-known route from Constan-
tinople to Syria is that of Koniah. It traverses the
western border of the plateau of Asia Minor, and cuts
the peninsula obliquely from the northwest to the
southeast. This route, leaving the road to Angora, at
Nicea, and ascending those branches of Mount Olympus
which bound Lake Ascanius on the south, descends to
the little town of Yeni Cheer, where the two routes
from Brusa and Kiutayah cross. The first turns to the
west and leads to Brusa; it passes by Mount Olympus,
on the north. The second turns south ward, and pass-
ing by Mount Olympus on the east, goes to the town of
Ainegol (Yeni Ghoul), towards the sources of the Gallus,
and from Ainegol leads by the village of Turbah to the
town of Kiutayah upon the Thymbrius. It then ascends
by the Thymbrius to its sources towards the village of
Altyn Tash, and finally reaches the plateau of Afiun
: Kara Hissar, bounded on the west by the western chain
of the Taurus, and on the east by a range of little lakes
which almost touch each other, and which extend to-
wards the south to the environs of Koniah. This pla-
teau is very high. It is separated from the central pla-
teau of Asia Minor by a series of hills, which are
crowned towards the south by the Baba Dagh (mount-
ain). The route passes between two chains of mount-
ains, and leads by Bui wa din, built upon the side of
Dynia, and by Isaklou to Ak-Shehr. This little town is
situated in a well-watered plain, at the foot of a mount-
ain covered with vegetation, and about six miles from
a lake which bounds the plain on the east. The route
leaves all the lakes to the left, and goes by Ilgyn and
Kadoun Khan to the village of Hi Ladik, built upon the
ruins of Laodicea Combusta; from here it is a ten
hours' march to Koniah, the road leading there at the
foot of the mountains which bound the plateau of Asia
iVIinor on the south, and wrhich rise gradually to the
southern chain of Mount Taurus.

The most frequented route from Koniah is that which
leads by Tarsus or by Adana to Alexandretta. It is the
route from Smyrna and Constantinople to Aleppo and
Bagdad. It is the route of Antioch, Palmyra, and Baby-
lon. It is the route of all the conquerors.

This route, when it leaves the plain of Koniah, turns
the Kara Dagh (mountain) towards the north; goes by
the villages of Ismil, of Geiweh, and Hartan to Erekli;
and after joining with the Caesarea route and below
Ketch Hissar descends with the river Sarus towards
the village of Tchikisla, and issues from a deep gorge
of Mount Taurus into the great plain of Cilicia.

'll.e Alexandretta route cuts the plain obliquely
leaving Tarsus to the right, it passes the Sarus at
Adana, the Pyramus at the village of Messis, three
miles from this village enters a cleft in the mountains
which border the gulf of Alexandretta; from here it
debouches into a fertile but desert plain, nine miles
long, from three to four wide, and surrounded on all
sides by arid mountains. There is an exit towards the
east, and after a difficult march for an hour, the route
descends to the ruined town of KartanlehT, which is now
inhabited in the winter by some Turcoman tribes. Kar-
tanleh is situated at the edge of a plateau, or rather a
terrace, about three miles long, and bordered on its
eastern extremity by some black rocks. They ap-
proach each other very closely. The passage is exces-
sively narrow. The defile gradually becomes wider,
and a mile further it debouches on to a little plain
about two miles long and one mile broad, bounded on
the south by the gulf of Alexandretta, on the east by a
vast marsh, and on the north by a chain of heights,
which rise gradually to Mount Amanus. Ayas is at the
foot of these heights, and about one mile from the sea.
The road now turns south, leads for some time along a
sandy shore, and then crosses a little mountain torrent
which flows into the marsh, and which some travelers
have taken to be the Carsus of Xenophon; others, the
Pinarus of Arrien. After having passed the torrent and
rounded the gulf, the road leaves the shore and rises
gradually to Pias, situated like Ayas a little distance
from rhe sea, and at the foot of some heights which
keep on ascending till they culminate in Mount Amanus.
Pias is twenty-six miles from Ayas, sixteen from Alex-
andretta, and at the southeastern angle of a bay. Its
shore is more easily approached than that of'Ayas;
troops could be easily disembarked here. It is the most
vulnerable point of the coast. From Pias, as from Al-
exandretta, it is only three marches to the plateau of
Antioch, a dominating point and the key to Syria.

The Aleppo route leaves the sea at Alexandretta, and
burning southeast ascends through a deep gorge to
Beylan. From here it leads over some "mountains
which bound the gulf on the east, and which unite the
Taurus to the Syrian chain. The route then descends
to the plain of Antioch. The road here branches. One
branch leads by some mountains, which are on the
north, to Killis and A.intab; it then crosses the Euphrates
at Kum Ka Mi, the ancient Zeugma. The other branch
cuts the pi; 11 of Antioch from the north to the south,
passes the Orontes beneath the walls of the town, and,
turning to the east, crosses the Chalus beneath Aleppo.

Aleppo is at the junction of two roads which cross
the Euphrates—the one at Bir, in taking a northeastern
course, the other at Kerkisieh or Anah. in leading to-
wards the southeast. The first is the Mosul, and the
second the Bagdad route through Babylonia and the
desert. The Mosul route, after leaving Aleppo, ascends
to a bare plain, traversed by two affluents of the Sad-
jour, which fall into the Euphrates near the ruins of
Hierapolis. The first station is at the village of Harda-
ran.^ The road then leads across two affluents of the
Sadjour, and goes through olive-gardens to the Eu-
phrates, which is crossed at a ferry near Bir. It would

be very difficult to ford the river at this point. After
leaving Bir the road passes over two chains of calcare-
ous hills, between which is a pretty valley, covered with
fruit-trees. It descends from the second chain by a
steep path, which is paved with big stones, and is cut
in several places out of the rock.

Urfa, the ancient Edessa, is situated in a valley be-
tween two hills, which are separated from the Tauric
chain and united to a series of other hills which cut
like a curtain the vast plain of Mesopotamia.

From Urfa to Mosul there are two routes: one, more
to the north than the other, joins the Samozate road
towards Severek, and, crossing one of the heights of
Mount Masius, descends with an affluent of the Tigris
to Diarbekir. It goes from here by Djesireh to Mosul.
It is a difficult route, but the only one where provisions
can be met with. The other route ascends in the direc-
tion of the sources of the Khaboras, follows the chord
of the arc which forms the Tauric chain from Severek
to Mardin, leads from Mardin to Nisibin through a cul-
tivated plain watered by the Mygdonius, and goes from
Nisibe to Mosul through an uncultivated district, which
extends from the foot of the Tauric chain to the mount-
ain of Singare. There is nothing to stop an army-
marching along this route save the scarcity of provis-
ions. It is the best road for cavalry. The other one
would be more convenient for infantry. Two roads
lead from Mosul to Bagdad. One passes along the
right bank of the Tigris, and the other the left. The
first passes by Tekrit and across the desert—the second
by Arbeles and through ancient Assyria. This last
route is the longest. It leaves the river, to avoid some
hills which border the left bank; but it is the only road
where cultivated lands and provisions can be found.
Leaving Mosul, it crosses the Tigris upon a bridge of
boats, and passes in succession the Bumadus and the
Zabus, six miles apart the one from the other. The
plain between the two rivers is elevated, and is undu-
lating towards the northeast; but it sinks and becomes
flat towards the southwest, in the direction of the angle
where the two rivers meet. From the ford where the
road crosses the Zabus, it is only twenty-seven miles to
Arbeles, which rises like an island in the midst of the
most beautiful plain of Assyria. The road undulates
slightly, and the position is a favorable one for man-
oeuvring an army. On leaving Arbeles, the route de-
scends beside a small watercourse to Altyn-Kupri.
Here the Caprus is crossed upon a stone bridge. The
little town of Scherzour, at the foot of the Median
chain, is on the left of the route, and it continues by
Kerkut and Daour towards the villages of Kifri and
Kara Tepe in the plain of Bagdad.

The direct route from Aleppo to Bagdad leads in a
southeasterly direction. After leaving the plain of
Aleppo, it passes through a long valley closelv bordered
by two hills. In the middle of the plain is the town of
Taib. The road now debouches upon the Euphrates—
on one side towards Racca, the ancient Nicephorium,,
and on the other towards the ruins of Tapsaque, at the
beginning of a bend which the great river makes in its
course towards Kerkisieh, the ancient Circesium. It
appears that the ancients crossed the Euphrates some-
times at one and sometimes at the other oj these points.
At the present time the route leads along the right bank
to Ana, the ancient Ahatho, and to Hit, the ancient
iEiopolis. Here the river is crossed in a ferry-boat.
The road continues along the left bank to Ambar, the
ancient Perisabour, and to Felujah, which is the point
where the Euphrates in its windings nearest approaches
the Tigris. The Babylon and Bagdad routes now sep-
arate. The first leads to the south, along the Euphrates.
Fifteen hours' march brings you to Hillah, which is
built on the site of Babylon. The other road leads east-
ward; and, after crossing a bare plain which divides
the two rivers, you arrive in eleven hours at Bagdad.
To enter this town the river has to be crossed on a
bridge of boats. As the crow flies, it is only fifty-four
miles from Babylon to Bagdad. The route leads from
south to north. It is a difficult one. There are Assures
in the ground. They become filled with water during
the inundations caused by the two rivers. Caravans
going from one town to the other generally go round
by Felujah; this lengthens the road by about twenty-
one miles.

The route from Aleppo to Bagdad by the desert and
by Babylon has this advantage over the Mosul road.
It is shorter, because it follows the cord, the other fol-
lowing the circumference of the bow; but as the
ground between Aleppo and Tapsaque is no longer
cultivated, and as troops can no longer be accompanied
by a flotilla of vessels, it is not practicable for an army.
It is only suited for a division of cavalry and for cara-
vans with camels; even then there would be a risk of
the force perishing from hunger or thirst. The long
zone which the road traverses, and which loses itself
in the Arabian desert, is a plain with slight undula-
tions, but they are so slight that a man on horseback
could hardly conceal himself. There are few plants;
you find some wells of petroleum, hardly any animals.
There are no birds; everywhere you see a white soil
impregnated with gypsum or salt.

A few palm and fruit trees announce to the traveler
that he has arrived at the environs of Bagdad.

Bagdad is the starting point of two important roads:
they lead, one to the south of Persia, the other to the
north. The first leads to the southeast, and passing
alongside the foot of the Median chain, crosses the
Kerah or river of Kirmanchah, the ancient Eulee, near
the ruins of Suza, and the two branches of the Karoon,
the ancient Orontes, the one at Dizful, the other at
Sinister; from whence the route ascends to the plateau
of Media, and to Lourkian. It then passes the Persian
Pyles towards the sources of the Bendemir, or of the
Persian Araxes, and descends with this river upon the
plateau of Persia towards Ispahan.

The second road goes to the northeast, ascends the
Diala to Sheraban or Apollonia, from whence it rises
by Zar-Zil upon the plateau of Media towards Karman-
shah. It then passes the defiles of Mount Orontes to-
wards Kangawar, and descends to Hamadan, This is
the ancient route from Ecbatana, the great route from
Turkey to Persia, Hamadan is at the intersection of
two roads which lead—the one to Ispahan in turning
southeast, the other to Teheran in leading northeast.

Such are the different routes, remarks Baron Beau-
jour, which lead from Asia Minor across the Euphrates
and Tigris into Asia proper. From what has been said,
it will be seen that they are reduced to three principal
ones—to the Erzeroum and Tabriz, which turns the two
rivers towards their sources; to the Urfa and Mosul,
which crosses the rivers in the middle of their course;
and to the Aleppo and Bagdad, which leads along the
Euphrates to Babylon, and which passes the TigrisON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA

MINOR.

65

near Bagdad. The first route is impracticable for ar-
tillery, the last for infantry. The centre road is the
only one available for a large army; for whilst cavalry
and artillery could pass by Merdin and Nisibin, infantry
penetrating from Urfa through the defiles of Severek,
into the valley of the Tigris, could descend with this
river from Diarbekir to Mosul, and from Mosul to Bag-
dad; from here, ascending the Diala, the army might
continue by the defiles of Mount Zagros on to the
plateau of Media towards Karmanshah, and from the
plateau of Media by the defiles of Mount Orontes upon
the Persian plateau towards Hamadan. Master of the
Persian plateau, an army could march towards Tehe-
ran as far as the foot of the Tauric chain, continue
along this chain to Mount Paropamisus, and descend
by Kandahar or Cabul into the valley of the Indus to-
wards Attok.

Although this is a long and difficult route, it is not an
impracticable one for an army which has previously
conquered the Turks and the Persians.

Means of subsistence can be found everywhere along
this road. Troops would only meet with opposition
from wandering hordes, or from people like the Af-
ghans. However, the hordes are mere robbers. The
Afghans would have no chance of victory unless they
were united amongst themselves. To conquer the
Afghans, all that would be required would be to fight
them in detail.

Alexander formerly marched along this route. In
our own times, Napoleon and Paul the First, the two
most powerful monarchs in Europe, wished to follow
it, to attack the English in India. This project, the
boldest which has been conceived in modern times,
could only be executed by generous princes, who would
like to conquer India, not to keep it, but to civilize the
country. In the present state of Europe, India could
only be conquered by the Russians, who are very little
exposed to attacks from other nations. Masters of
Georgia and of the line of the Araxes, the Russians
can turn the western side of the Caspian Sea, and pene-
trate by Oasbin upon the plateau of Persia, or pene-
trate by the east and by Bokhara across the Oxus and
JTaxartes, which are by no means insurmountable ob-
stacles.

Baron Beaujour concludes his remarks upon the sub-
ject by saying:

" This enterprise would be justifiable provided that
the attacking force had some glorious object in view,
such as that of civilizing India. The English, who are
already masters of the peninsula, can do this last bet-
ter than the Russians. THE LATTER OUGHT TO
CIVILIZE THEMSELVES BEFORE THEY THINK
OF CIVILIZING OTHER NATIONS."

APPENDIX XV.

THE MILITARY IMPORTANCE OF SYRIA.

Baron Beaujour, in his " Voyage Militaire dans
l'Empire Ottoman," established in 1829, remarks about
the military importance of Syria as follows:

Syria has a great military importance. It is on the
route from Asia to Africa, if the Isthmus of Suez were
cut through, Syria would acquire a still greater impor-
tance. This country is now open; art has not defended
it on any side; but "Nature has defended it on the east
and south by deserts; on the west by the sea, and on
the north by a chain of mountains which surround it
like a rampart. Mount Amanus, which forms this
rampart, and which extends from the Mediterranean
to the Euphrates, dominates Syria; this is the reason
why the masters of Aleppo and Antioch have always
been the masters of the rest of the country. All the
routes were open to them. They could not be arrested
on any particular road, because each route could be
turned by the others. The road from Antioch to
Jerusalem ascends the Orontes, and traverses the two
chains. It descends by the Leontes into Coele Syria,
by the Jordan into Judea; and by the Chrysorrhoas
into the plain of Damascus. This route is the only one
which opens out all the interior of the country. The
others only open out the littoral. An army can always
be stopped by a foe who occupies the first-mentioned
route. The road from Gaza to Laodicea along the
coast is only suitable for an army which is accompanied
by a fleet. The transversal routes of Caifa or Acre to
Damascus by Nazareth, of Tyre or Sidon to Emesa by
Coele Syria—from Tripoli to Hamah by Akka, and from
Laodicea to Schogr by Abdama can only conveniently
be used by an army which is mistress of the sea.

Syria can be attacked from two sides—either^through
Asia Minor or through Egypt. TO ATTACK SYRIA
FROM ASIA MINOR, MOUNT AMANUS MUST BE
PASSED EITHER AT ITS CENTRE NEAR AINTAB,
OR AT ITS TWO EXTREMITIES BY ZEUGMA OR BY
ISSUS. THE PASS BY ZEUGMA 11S THE EASIEST—
TO HOLD THIS PASS IT IS NECESSARY TO BE THE
MASTER OF THE EUPHRATES. The passage by
Aintab is more difficult, but it can be turned. An army
can descend by several roads from Mount Amanus
along the watercourses into the plain of Antioch as into
the plain of Aleppo.

An attack ! v the gulf of Alexandretta is more diffi-
cult. This gulf is closed by a cordon of mountains
which is bent on the seaside like a bow. Even if this
bow were pierced from one side, it would be necessary
to pierce it from the other and penetrate into Syria by
the defile of Beilan, after having entered by that of
Issus. Syria is defended on the Egyptian side by a
desert—here there is neither water nor grass; but so
soon as an army has crossed this desert and taken
Gaza, it can ascend the coast to Carmel, and if it is
mistress of the sea can ascend at pleasure by the trans-
versal valley of Esdrelon upon the plain of Damascus,
or by the transversal valley of Balbek upon the plain
of Emesa, which commands the entire valley of the
Orontes. An army could even ascend the coast to
Laodicea. its right supported on the Lebanon, its left
on the sea, and sweep before it the Turks dispersed
amidst the towns of the littoral, as the wind drives be-
fore it the dust. If the Turks were to rally in the
valley of Coele Syria, or in the plain of Damascus, a de-
feat here would drive them into the desert. The
Mutualis, Drunes, Maronites, Ansares are not united—
to conquer them it is sufficient to sow dissension in
their ranks; even if they were to fight beneath the
same standards they could never arrest an army in its
march. These people know nothing about tactics,
they are only acquainted with mountain warfare. They
would never dare to risk themselves in the plain or to
sustain the shock of a European battalion. AH these

people are like Arabs; they are only fit to rob caravans
or to follow an army with the object of pillage.

An attack upon Syria by the littoral of Palestine and
Phoenicia could only succeed so long as you were mis
tress of the sea. It would be better to attack Syria by
sea than from Egypt; but to attack Syria by sea, one
must begin by establishing oneself in the island of
Cyprus. Cyprus is to Syria what Zante is to the
Morea; it would serve as a depot for the army and a
harbor for the fleet. Larnaca and Famagusta are the
most favorable points for naval stations. The Syrian
coast is too straight, it possesses no good port, nor
even any good roads. The ports of Laodicea, Tripoli,
Beyrout, and Sidon are too small. The anchoring roads
of Acre, Jaffa,; and Gaza are too exposed. Alexan-
dretta and Tyre are the sole points where an army can
: be disembarked without danger. This is the reason
why these two places have always been considered the
two keys of Syria, on the side of the sea. An attack by
Alexandretta has this advantage, it separates Syria at
once from the rest of Turkey. It also has its disad-
vantages. Depots must be formed on a very, unhealthy
shore. The defiles of Mount Rhosus must be passed;
here there are difficult gorges where a handful of sol-
diers could resist an army.

An attack by Tyre would be the easiest and the least
dangerous. The peninsula on which this town is built
is now no longer defended. This peninsula facilitates
a descent upon the neighboring coast. The surround-
ing plain is fertile. An army would be thoroughly
protected by guarding on one side the defile of Cape
Blanc, and on the other, that of the valley of the
| Leontes or of Ccele Syria. From this valley an army
I could ascend by Balbek to the highest point of the
; Syrian chain. It could dominate the whole country as
i if from the summit of an enormous citadel. This point
surmounts all the passes, and an army could descend
by the Jordan to Jerusalem, by the Chrysorrhoas to
j Damascus, and by the Orontes to Antioch.

I Tyre and Alexandretta are the two most vulnerable
points in Syria. If history does not recall to the Turks
the importance of these two towns, Europeans have
l not forgotten it. Acre and Laodicea are the next most
| important points. In summer an army could easily
disembark there, and, "like Tyre and Alexandretta,
I they give access to the entire country. The Turks,
then, ought to fortify these places better, and especi-
ally Alexandretta and Tyre, so as to make tliern the
principal fortresses in Syria: and not to think so much
of Aleppo and Damascus, which can be easily^defended
against the Arabs of the desert.

If Syria is easy to attack—she is equally difficult to
conquer. Her territory is mountainous. A small army
could defend itself for a long time against a large
force. In Mesopotamia and in Egypt a single battle
won would be sufficient to reduce the entire country.
In Syria it would only enable a foe to occupy a more
advanced position, and to march from one valley to an-
! other, as from the valley of the Orontes to the valley of
the Jordan, or from the littoral of Phoenicia to Pales-
tine ; but to march from one of these positions to the
other, it is necessary to pass defiles. If the defenders
; were masters of the transversal valleys which unite the
littoral with the interior of the country—and in par-
ticular of the valley of Balbek—no enemy could ad-
vance a step without encountering obstacles. This
would protract the war and give the defenders a great
advantage. Syria, then, is difficult to conquer, but,
once conquered, is easy to defend. This is the reason
why it is so important from a military point of view.

APPENDIX B. (XVI.)

SIR JOHN BURGOYNE ON THE DEFENCES OF
CONSTANTINOPLE.

The following remarks made by Sir John Burgoyne
in his work, "Military Opinions." and published in
1859, may not be uninteresting to the reader. Allud-
ing to the events preceding the Crimean War, the
author observes:

There can be but little doubt that the Turkish force
on the frontier will be numerically very inferior to that
of the Russians. It ma3r be stated at about 120,000,
while their enemy must be able to dispose of at least
200.000 serviceable forces. Under such a state of things
: it is manifest that the best policy for Russia would be
' to use every effort to strike a heavy blow at once, to
force the Danube in mass, and by rapid and vigorous
^ movements to cut off, or thoroughly defeat the divided
! hordes of the Turks. In the event of success they
! would push on, so far as their arrangements would
allow, towards the Balkan.

When once the Russians are firmly established on
the right bank of the Danube, the Turks must neces-
sarily retire to Shumla and the Balkan, and it is to be
hoped that this will be effected before the detached
corps or the fianks shall be too much compromised.
The first real defence, then, that it would appear could
be prudently made, would be on the Balkan passes.
On the Balkan it is to be hoped that the Turkish armies
would, by due arrangements, be under such great ad-
vantages of position as to enable them to make an ob-
: stinate stand.

i Still, the line is long, the passes must be many, and
the enemy, still numerous, would probably at length
! establish himself across it; but by this time, feeling the
effects of the campaign and forward movement in such
a country, he would find a difficulty in keeping to-
gether such large bodies, in maintaining their efficiency,
and obtaining supplies for them. These difficulties
would increase as he prolonged the advance.

It may be considered that at such a period a well-
prepared field of battle covering the capital, and whose
flanks could not be turned, could be relied on for
effectually preventing the invader from attaining his
great and final object; and there is no doubt but that
circumstances afford facilities for the arrangement of
such a field of battle along the line of the Carasu river
—from its mouth in the Lake of Bujuk Checkmedge,
on the Sea of Marmora, to Kara Bournu on the Black
Sea. The length of this line, from sea to sea, is
: twenty-four or twenty-five miles; but each flank being
i covered by lakes and rivers, would be easily watched
and secured, and the extent of the real fighting-ground
: would be, by these features, reduced to nine or ten
miles of plain; but with favorable undulations afford-
ing a good command over the front, and which might
be improved in strength in a most powerful degree by
a great development of respectable field-works. One
most important advantage to be obtained from the
occupation of this position would be that it covers the

entire Bosphorus, and would therefore enable our
fleets to remain masters of the Black Sea to the last,
and preclude the enemy from the use of it.

To apply the resources of this position with effect,
two ingredients must be available; first, early and
energetic measures for entrenching so Ri eat an extent,
so as to give it the greatest possible strength; and the
other, that an adequate force should remain available
for its occupation and defence. The first would re-
quire the application of several thousand w orkmen for
several months, and could only be effected by the em-
ployment of troops, but with an understanding that a
degree of benefit would be derived from their very first
labors, which could be progressively improved to the
very last moment. The second would require 50,000
good troops, or a proportionate increase in number of
such as might be inferior.

These may appear to be heavy demands, but can
scarcely be considered so as the main and last stand to
prevent the fall of an empire. The situation of the
Dardanelles is detached, but presents far greater facil-
ities for its protection, though still requiring consider-
able means. This is to be effected by occupying
powerfully the neck of land which connects the great
European Peninsula (the old Chersonese of Thrace)
with the main land. At about seven miles in front of
Gallipoli, and near the village of Boulaher, this neck is
only three miles wide, being the narrowest part, and
presents at that identical part a position that, duly for-
tified and garrisoned, may be given enormous strength.
The whole extent of coast round the peninsula in rear
of that line would be protected by the naval forces.
Large means would be required to be applied to the
preparation of this position within a short time; 4,000
workmen would do it in three months, and a garrison
of 12,000 good troops would be necessary for its defence
if properly attached.

The use of this position, however, would not be
solely confined to securing the retreat of the fleet, but
would be very threatening for offensive measures also;
it would cover a very extensive district, within which
might be rapidly collected by sea any force that it
might be thought advisable at any time to advance,
either to the front or flank of the invader, with a com-
paratively short communication and secure depots and
retreats. It is, in fact, the point that would form the
best line of operations for any forces acting in alliance
with Turkey, excepting those which would be applied
to che immediate protection of Constantinople, al-
though the water communication would be open to
the Gulf of Enos, and perhaps up the Maritza. the
depots, hospitals, reserves, &c., should be established
on this peninsula.

To return to the consideration of the defences for
Constantinople. A second line has been designed
round the city, at only a mile or two in advance; the
ground is extremely favorable. It would cover the
whole space from the Sea of Marmora to the Bos-
phorus, and, well entrenched, would be capable of con-
siderable resistance, but it has several defects. 1. It
can hardly be deemed sufficiently extensive and in-
fluential for the last resort of a great army . 2. It
would be too near to the city, and the proceedings and
feelings of the forces would be greatly influenced by
the tumults, panics, insurrections, treacheries, and
confusion of the place; so much so, that no vigorous
defence could be expected from it. 3. It would be con-
sidered as a last hold, and merely as a point for sur-
render. 4. It would not cover the whole of the Bos-
phorus, and consequently it would necessitate the
evacuation of the Black Sea by our fleet.

On these accounts I attach no value to it, provided
the Carasu frontier be taken up. If the disposable <k>rce
was only from 5,000 to 12,000 strong, I would recom-
mend its services being exclusively engaged to secure
the Dardanelles; an additional force of 25,000 might
form a valuable nucleus for the preparation and de-
fense of the frontier of the Carasu. If a larger army
could be collected, it would join and act in conjunction
with the Turkish forces in the Balkan, for which pur-
pose their best landing place would be the Gulf of Enos,
proceeding to Adrianople up the Maritza river; or they
might act elsewhere, according to the circumstances of
the times. An idea is suggested that the Russians, on
the understanding of the preparation by the allies,
may content themselves with remaining in quiet posses-
sion of the Principalities, and thus gain an absolute ad-
vantage. It is not for me, taking in view military
operations only, to judge of the effect of such a course,
further than to give an opinion that I am not aware of
any military measures that it would be desirable to at-
tempt to drive them out without the co-operation of
Austria.

The question is rather political than military, but it
would appear to me that by so doing they would cer-
tainly abandon their cause for war, and would suffer
more in prestige than they would gain in substance.

APPENDIX XVII.

THE CHEKMAGEE LINES.

Major-General Macintosh, in his work, " A Military
Tour in European Turkey," remarks on the possibility
of a winter campaign, and on the defenses of Constan-
tinople as follows:

" About the time that I visited the Dardanelles I made
an excursion from Constantinople into Bulgaria, noting
as I rode along all that appeared of professional inter-
est in the country through which I passed. It was the
beginning of November when I set out, but I found the
passes of the Balkan quite practicable as regarded
snow, though this is not always the case at that season.
Excepting an occasional rainy day, I traveled agreea-
ly enough over the plains on both sides of the moun-
tains." "On leaving Constantinople, the Adrianople
road carried me over a bleak track of undulating
country resembling our downs, but deeply furrowed in
many places with steep ravines, and showing few ves-
tiges of habitation beyond an occasional farm-yard en-
closed by a solid wall, and generally containing several
dwellings and sheds for cattle. These enclosures might
often serve for posts, but they could hardly resist ar-
tillery; although there is a method employed in the
East of digging outside the wall a deep ditch, and
throwing the earth up to a certain height against it,
which would in some degree deaden the fire, at the
same time that the ditch formed by the excavation
adds an obstacle" compensating for the facility which
the earth thrown up within would otherwise gire to an
escalade.

" The road passes at no great distance from the shore66

ON HORSEBACK THROUGH ASIA MINOR.

of the Sea of Marmora, about ten miles from the city-
wails. I reached the crest of one of the elevated
downs commanding a view of an extensive lake, about
seven miles in length and two in breadth, bordered
with marshy land, and stretching from the sea into the
country, and in the direction of the ridge called the
Lesser Balkan, which lies to the north. The lake is
separated from the sea at its south-western extremity
by a low ledge, not many yards in breadth, traversed
by the ancient highway, now in a ruinous state, and
supported in some places on low arches, through which
the brackish water passes and repasses, according to
the direction of the wind between the sea and the lake.
The causeway could be easily closed artificially, when
seven miles of country would be rendered unassailable
by an enemy ; for, although boats might navigate these
lakes to a certain extent, its marshy shores must
always render navigation difficult, even if such vessels
were at hand, which, hitherto, has not been the case.

"The spot which the Turks call Kuchuk Chekmagee
is designated by the Franks Ponte Piccolo, to distin-
guish it from the greater bridge crossing the isthmus at
Buyuk Chekmagee, or Ponte Grande, the second lake,
about six miles and a half further on towards Adrian-
ople.

" The ledge at Ponte Piccolo is about three-quarters
of a mile in length, but the lake expands very consid-
erably further up, and at the distance of four miles is
broken into a fork, each branch being fed by a stream
whicb flows from the highlands to the north. Pro-
ceeding over the ledge, a country of heights and val-
leys, becoming bolder to the northward extends for
about six or seven miles, when the second lake of equal
length, but somewhat narrower than the first, presents
itself, divided like the other from the sea by a narrow
ledge, supporting a bad causeway, the centre of which
rests on the large bridge above mentioned. From the
brow or crest of the heights above, which are lower
than those at Kuchuk Chekmagee, but which command
the ledge at a very short distance, a zigzag path leads
down to the village of Buyuk Chekmagee. Standing
at this point, the spectator is immediately impressed
with the conviction of the great strength of such a
pass, and of its immense utility to Turkey, if turned to
proper account ; being, as it were, the abutment on
which the left flank of a fine position rests, covering
the capital from an enemy in this direction, a capital
which, once attained by an hostile army, would mark,
most probably, in its own ruin, the fall of the Ottoman
Empire in Europe."

"A recent writer has described the locality as 'that
formidable position about twenty miles from the
capital so celebrated in history, where, owing to the
nature of the ground, Attila was stayed in his march
to conquer the Eastern Empire, and where at a later
period the Huns* were signally defeated by Belisarius.'
In reference to this statement, however, it must be
observed that, as regards the advance of Attila, Gib-
bon especially mentions that he was only arrested by
the city walls of Constantinople, without alluding to
any position whatever. The following is the passage
from Gibbon. 'The armies of the Eastern Empire
were vanquished in three successive engagements, and
the progress of Attila may be traced by the fields of
battle. The two first; on the banks of the Utus, and
under the walls of Marcianopolis, were fought on the
extensive plains between the Danube and Mount
Haemus. As the Romans were pressed by a victorious
enemy, they gradually and unskilfully retired towards
the Chersonesus of Thrace (the peninsula of the Dar-
danell s), and that narrow peninsula, the last ex-
tremity of the land, was marked by their third and
irreparable defeat. By the destruction of their army,
Attila acquired the indisputable possession of the field.
From the Hellespont to Thermopylae and the suburbs
of Constantinople he ravaged without resistance and
without mercy the provinces of Thrace and Mace-
donia. Heracliat and Constantinople might perhaps
escape this dreadful irruption of the Huns.' ....
Belisarius is said by the historian to have intrenched
himself at Melanthius, about twenty miles from Con-
stantinople, and there repulsed seven thousand Bul-
garians, by whom he was attacked "

Major-General Macintosh, after having described the
shore road from Constantinople to the lake, describes
the inland road as follows:

" Quitting the city by the gate of Adrianople, and
leaving on the right the river Sydaris, vulgarly called
the Alibey, which flows through a ravine into the
Golden Horn, not far from where it receives the Bar-
bysis (now called the Kheat-Khaneh-soo), the road
passes between the two great barracks of Ramish
Chiflik and Daoud Pasha, situated about two miles
from the walls where the Turks, looking much too near
the city for its strongest defences, formerly erected
field-works, which, though fallen into decay, might, if
repaired, serve as the scene of a last struggle with the
enemy. This neighborhood is intersected by the sub-
terranean conduits and lofty aqueducts which convey
water from Kalfas, Kavas-Kioi, and other great reser-
voirs to Constantinople; and though when I visited them
they were quite undefended, the Chekmagee lines if
erected would effectually protect these works. The
vast importance of preserving them will be under-
stood when it is recollected that Constantinople is situ-
ated on the extremity of a wedge of land ill-supplied
with springs or running streams, and in a climate
where, at certain seasons, there is but little rain for
months. Leaving the aqueducts behind, a country is
now traversed resembling that on the parallel route al-
ready described, but in which the heights are bolder,
and the valleys more abrupt, while small towns and
farm-houses are of more frequent occurrence, and the
supply of water near the road is, by means of copious
artificial fountains and occasional rivers by which it is
crossed, considerably more abundant. This highly de-
fensible track extends as far as the Chekmagee lines,
which may be said to run from the two lakes on the
Sea of Marmora, nearly to the Fort of Kara-bornoo, on
the Black Sea, where it has in its front the salt lake of
Derkos, and the narrow ledge dividing it from the sea,
which, no doubt, might be easily cut through, so as to
admit the waters of the Euxine. Our approach to the
first of these lines, or that nearest Constantinople, is
marked, after passing a khan and fountain, by the
summit of a bold position on the Constantinople side of
the river, flowing through a deep ravine towards the
lesser lake, and hence a view is obtained at Kuchuk
Chekmagee and the neighboring sea. Descending into

j the ravine, the road, which is generally good, crosses
; the river by a substantial stone bridge, close to which
; is a fountain, and descending the steep bank on theop-
j posite side passes a large walled farm, where another
; position commences.

kk From this point we come on a succession of inferior
slopes, dipping towards the lakes and marshes, each
affording a position.

" One of these, about two miles from the Chatsalda
marsh in its front, to which it extends, has, in its
course, a little to the west of the road, a small isolated
height, well-suited for a fort or telegraph. From this
eminence there is an extensive view, embracing the
second lake, with its town and isthmus; and several vil-
lages occur on both sides of the road. This locality is
well suited for the encampment of troops, being ele-
vated above the marshes, and at the same time not far
distant from water.

"Descending the height the road commences the
passage of the marsh, by a narrow ancient causeway,
composed of square blocks of stone, often much dis-
placed, and frequently intersected by the Kara-soo and
other streams, over which long stone slabs are placed,
forming a species of bridge, removable at pleasure, thus
adding to the other means available here for prevent-
ing the advance of an enemy. A similar road leads
also from Chatsalda towards Derkos, on the Black Sea,
a distance of about ten miles, where the right of the
lines described would rest near the Cape and Fort of
Kara-bornoo. Chatsalda is also about ten miles from
the greater bridge, and fifteen or sixteen from the
lesser; and, unfortunately, is in front of the lines, or it
would have formed a good station for a depot, or
might have been the headquarters of a force during the
healthy season of the year.....The country ex-
tending from the Sea "of Marmora to the right of the
Chatsalda road is 4very well secured. Thence to the
Black Sea the heights become still bolder, and the val-
ley deeper, till the road crosses the Lesser Balkan. The
course of the river Kara-soo lies through one of the
ravines peculiar to the country, which look like abrupt
cracks across the mountain ranges, and of this peculiar
formation the Bosphorns itself affords the most strik-
ing example.

" A third pass to the right leads through the lines by
the village of Kastana-Kioi, and a fourth across the
heights of the Leaser Balkan transversely by a road
which leads from it along the shore to Midia, joining
one from the mouth of the Bosphorus. The three last-
mentioned roads, as well as the Chekmagees, could, if
strengthened by defensive works, bo included in a posi-
tion comparable with any existing."

* Bulgarians.

t Situated at the modern Erakler, forty miles beyond
Busuk Chekmagee.

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So# * •	Price, ets.

" 1 East Lynne, Mrs. Henry Wood (smaller type) 10
•881 East Lynne, Mrs. Henry Wood (clear, bold

and hiuidbome type).........................SO

• ft John Halifax, Gentleman, Miss Mulock.. 10
8 Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte (smaller type). 10
396 Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte (clear, bold

and handsome type).........................SO

4 A Woman-Hater, Charles Reade...........10

& The Blaek Indies, Jules Yerne............10

6 Last Days of Pompeii, E. Bulwer Lyiton.10
1 Adam Bede, George Eliot..................SO

8	The Arundel Motto, Mary C. Kay [smaller

typo)......................................10

40? The Arundel Motto, Mary C. Kay, [clear,

i) I I and handsome type]....................SO

9	Old MTw.CE.i2ey, Wary Cecil Hay. 10
42? Old Myddelton's Money, (in clear, bold

type). Marv Cecil Hay.....................SO

10	The Woman In White, Wilkie Collins... 10

11	The Mill oh the Floss,' George Eliot......SO

IS The American Senator, Anthony Trollope SO
18 A Princess of TIrule, William Black......SO

14	The l>ead Secret, Wilkie Collins...........10

15	Roinola, Genrg«> Eliot.................*.....10

16	The Enjj!1«h at the North Pole, and

The Field of Tee, Jules V«mc.........10

17	Hidden Pe?1'«. »Jsry Ce<?I Hay............10

484 Hidden Perils [clear, bold, handsome type]

Mary Cecil Hay..............................SO

18	Barbara's History, Amelia B. Ed wards.. SO

19	A Terrible Temptation, Charles Reade.. 10

50	Old Curiosity Shop, Charles Diekens......10

51	Foul Play, Charles Reade..................10

SS Man and Wife, Wilkie Collins.............SO

28 The Squire's Legacy, Mary Cecil Hay.....SO

S54 Never Too Late to Mend, Charles Reade.SO
»5 Lady Adelaide's Oath, 51rs. Henry Wood.10

Aurora Floyd, Miss M. E. Braddon........SO

27 Victor and Vanquished, Mary Cecil Hay. .10

SS A Daughter of Heth* William Black........10

»9 Nora's Love Test, Mary Cecil Hay.......10

80 Her Dearest Foe, Mrs. Alexander.........SO

£»1 Love Me Little, Love Me Long, C. Reade. 10

$3 Queen of Hearts, Wilkie Collins...........10

88 liandy \ndy, Samne' Trover.............SO

A Simpleton, Charles Reade................10

85	Felix Holt, tne Radical, George Eliot... .SO

86	The Wooing O't, Mrs. Alexander---------SO

8? The Mystery, Mrs. Henry Wood...........10

88	Antonina, Wilkie Collins....................SO

89	Ivanhoe, Sir Walter Scott, Bart............SO

40	The Hs4r to Ashley, Mrs. Henry Wood... .10

41	White Lies, Charles Reade.................SO

43	Hide-and-Seek, Wilkie Collins.............SO

48 Hector Servadac, Jules Yerne.............10

44	The Tower of London, W. H. Ainsworth.20

45	A Life's Secret. Mrs. Henry Wood.........10

46	Heritage of Lahgdale, Mrs. Alexander.. .SO
4? In Silk Attire, William'Bla.«k..............10

48	Strange Adventures of a Phaeton,

William Black..............................10

49	Granville de Vigne, "Onida."............SO

60	Under the Greenwood Tree, T. Ilird^. .10

61	Kllmeny, Wiliiam Black.....................10

62	The Lost Bank Note, Mrs. Henry Wood.. .10
58 Monarch of Mincing Lane, Wm. Black.. 10

64	Under Two Flags, "Ouida.".............SO

65	A Winter City, *'Ouida.".................10

66	Strathmore, 44 Onida.".....................SO

6? A Voyage Round the World—South

America, Jules Verne.....................1©

68 Silas Marner, George Eliot................10

5«l> Chandos, ''Ouida."........................SO

60 A Voyage Round the World—Aus-
tralia, Jules Verne........................1©

m Bebee, " Onida."............................10

$2 Folle-Farine, "Onida."...................SO

<88 Dene Hollow, Mrs. Henry Wood......._.... .20

64	A Voyage R-aund the World—New

Zealand, Jul-s V erne ....................10

65	The NoMeman's Wife, Mrs. Henry Wood. 10

68 llory O'More, Samuel Lover................SO

6? Castle Wafer, and Henry Arkell, Mrs.

llenrv Wood................................10

68	Five Weeks in a Balloon, Jules Verne...10

69	T» the Bitter End, Miss M. E. Braddon----SO

'S'O Middle march, George Eliot................SO

*Z 1 Ariadne, "Ouida.".........................10

MerLlhuia, and The Blockade-Run-
ners, Juios Verne..........................10

^8 Bessy Ranc, Mr». Henry Wood.............SO

Y4 Rupert Hall, Mrs. Henry Wood............10

'?5 The Fur Country, Jules Verne........... .10

'?6 The New Magdalen, Wilkio Collins.......10

tt Mistress and Slaid, Miss Mulock...........10

*?8 GriiHth Gaunt, Charles Reade..............10

79	Madcap Violet, William Black.............SO

80	Daniel Deronda, George Eliot.............SO

81	Christian's Mistake, Miss Mulock..........10

82	My; Mother and I, Miss Mulock............10

US Verner's Pride, Mrs. Henry Wood.........SO

■®4 20,000 Leagues Under the Seas, Jules

Verne......................................10

85	Marjorie Bruce's I.overt*, Mary Patrick.. 1©

86	Put Yourself in His Place, C. Reade.. ..SO
8? A Journey to the Center of the Earth,

Jules Verne........... ...................:.i©

88	Two Marriages, Miss Mnlock..............10

89	The Lovels of Arden, ifass M. E. Braddon.SO
^0 Mysterious Is!and---Dropped From

tha Clouds, Jules Verne..................10

91 The Woman's Kingdom, "Miss Muiock----10

93 Mrs. Halliburton's Troubles, Mrs.

Henry Wood................................SO

5)3 Mysterious Island—The Abandoned,

Jules Verne.................................10

D4 The Law and the Lady, Wilkie Collins.. .10

95	Dead Men's Shoes,- Miss M. E. Braddon—SO

96	Love's Victory, B. L. Farjeon.............10

9? Mysterious Island- — The Secret of the

Island, Jules Verue.......................10

98	Harry Lorrequer, Charles Lever..........SO

99	From the Earth to the Moon, and

f Around the Moon, Jules Verne..........10

100	A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens----10

101	A Noble Life, Miss Mulock..................10

103	Hard Times, Chsirles Dickens...............10

108 A Brave Lady, Miss Muloek................SO

104	Peep o'Day, John Banim..................10

105	At the Sign of the Silver Flagon, B. L.

Farjeon..................................... 10

106	The Master of Greylands, Mrs. H. Wood.SO
10? Blade-o'-Grass, B. L. Farjeon..............10

108	The Sea-King. Captain Marryat............10

109	Eleanor's Victory, Miss M. E. Braddon____SO

110	The Girls of Feversham, F. Marryat.----10

Ml A Tour of the World in Eighty Days,

Jules Verne..„..............................10

11S Hard Cash, Charles Reade..................SO

118 Golden Grain, B. L. Farjeon...............10

114	Darrell Mark ham, Wiss M. & Braddon____10

115	Within the Maze, Mrs. Henry Wood......SO

116	Pauline* L. B. Walford......................10

11? The Female Minister, Translated from the

French of Eugene Lies and Eugene PIunkett. 10

118	Great Expectations, Charles Dickens.....SO

119	Petronel, Florence. Marryat...........*.....10

ISO Romance of a Poor Young Man. Octave

Fen Wet............................'.......10

IS I A Life for a Life, Mis-s Mulock.......5....S0

1SS The Privateersmr.il, Captain Marryat-----10

123	Irish Legends, Samuel Lover................10

124	Squire Trcvlyn'e Heir, B!rs. Henry Wood.SO

1S5 Mary Barton. Mrs. Gaskell ...............10

1SS Erema; or, My Father's Sin, R. D.

Blaekmor*.................................10

IS? My Lady Ludlow, rs. Gaskell...........10

"IS8 Coushi PMOIs, M'-s. Gnskell..........:....10

129 The Wanderfng Jew (1st h'f), Eugene Sue.SO
129 The Wandering ;	Eugene Sue.SO

180	Sermons Out of Church, Miss Mulock..,.10

181	Michael Strogof, Jnl«s Verne.......,.....10

183	Jack Hinton, Ch;< >•!<•« "Lever................SO

138 The Duchess of liosemary Lane, B. L.

Farjeon............ ........................ 10

184	My Brother's Wife, Amelia B. Edwards.. 10
1§5 Agatha's Husband, Miss Mulock.......,,49

No.	Price, ets.

186 Katie Stewart, Mrs.Ollphant..............10

13? A Rent In a C&oud, Charles Lever........10

li>8 Vv'il'a, j—c vcoat	da«.es Fayn..........10

189 London's Heart, B. L. Farjeon............SO

140 The Lady Lisle, Miss M. E. Braddon......10

111 Masterman Ready, Captain Marryat......10

14S The Head of the Family, Miss Mulock..SO
148 The Haunted Tower, Mrs. Henry Wood. .10

144	The Twin Lieutenants, Alex. Dumas____i©

145	Half a Million of Money, Amelia B. Ed-
wards.	~ "

146 Charles O'Malley, the Irish Dragoon.

Churlt s Lever (TripIefNo.)................

14? Raitlin, the Reefer, Captain Marryat____

148	A Blue Stocking, Annie Edwards.........

149	Joshua Marvel, B. L. Farjeon...........

150	Midshipman Easy, Captain Marryat.....

151	The Russian Gipsy, Alexander Dumas...

15S Arthur O'Leary, Charles Lever..........

158 Ward or Wife ?..........................

154	A Point of Honor, Annie Edwards.......

155	Count of Monte-Cristo, Alex. Dumas.. .

156	The King's Own, Captain Marryat.......

15? Hand and Glove, Amelia B. Edwards.....

158	Treasure Trove, Samuel Lover..........

159	The Phantom Ship, Capt. Marryat

160	The Blaek Tulip, Alex. Dumas..........

161	The World Well Lost, E. Lynn Linton.

16S Shirley, Charlotte Bronte...............

168 Frank Mildmay, Captain Marryat.....

164	A Young Wife's Story, Harriett© Bowra

165	A Modern Minister (Vol. 1)..............

186 The Last Aldini, George Sand

16? The Queen's Necklace, Alex. Dumas____

168	Con Cregan, Charles Lever.................

169	St. Patrick's Eve, Charles Lever.........

170	Newton Forster, Captain THarryat........

1?1 Hostages to Fortune, Miss M. E. Braddon,
1?S Chevalier de Maison Rouge, Dnmas —
1?S Japhet, In Search of a Fatner, Captain

Marryat...................................

??4 Kate O'Donoghue, Charles Lever.........

1?5 The Pacha of Many Tales, Captain

Marryat...................................

1?6 Pereival Keene, Captain Marryat.........

1?? " Cherry Ripe,''Helen B. Mathers........

1?8 Rare Good Luck, R. E. Franeillon........

1?9 The History of a Crime (Vol. 1), Victor

180	Armadale, Wilkie Collins...................

181	Beatrice Boville, "Ouida."...............

18S Juliet's Guardian, Mrs. Cameron..........

188 Kenilworth, Sir Walter Scott..............

184	The Countess de Charny, Alex, Dnmas.

185	Little Savage, Captain Marryat............

186	''Good-Bye, Sweetheart," Rhoda Brough-

18? David Copperfleld, Charles Dickens.......

188	Nanoia, Alexander Dnmas....................

189	The Swiss Family Robinson...........

190	Henry Dunbar, Miss M. E. Braddon.......

191	My Lady's Money, Wilkie Collins
The Three Cutters, Cr-X1- w—

alsamo; or, Memtii
elan, Alexander Dumas.

19S '

ie Three Cutters, Captain Marryat-----

" Physi-

CEHll, Aiexjuiuwr i/uicns. ...................

194 The Conspirators, Alexander Dumas......

198 Balsamo; or, Memoirs of a Physi-

195	Madame I'ontenoy.....................

196	Heart of Midlothian, Sir Walter Seott...
19? No Intentions, Florence Marryat..........

198	Isabel of Bavaria, Alexander Dnmas....,

199	Settlers in Canada, Captain Marryat.....

300 Nicholas Niekleby, Charles Dickens......

SOI Catharine Blum, Alexander Dumas.......

SOS Mr. Giliil's Love Story, George Eliot____

SOS Cloister and the Hearth, Charles Reade.
304 The Young Llanero, W. H. G. Kingston
205 The Mysteries of Paris (1st half), Sue..

205	The Mysteries of Paris (2d half), Sue..

206	Poison of Asps, Florence Marryat.........

2i>? The Children of the New Fwest,

Captain Marryat...........................

SOS North and South, Mrs. Gaskell...........

S09 A Jewel of a Girl........................

210	Young Musgrave, Mrs. Oliphant........

211	Randolph Gordon, ''Ouida"____r........

21S Brigadier Frederick, Erckmann-Chatrian.
218 Barnaby Rudge, Charles Dickens.........

214	Winstowe, Mrs. Leith-Adamsi..............

215	Birds of Prey, Miss M. E. Braddon........

216	Legends of the Black Watch, J as. Grant,
21? The Sad Fortunes of Rev. Amos Bar-
ton, George Eliot..........................

SI8 Dombey and Son, Charles Dickens________

©19 My Own Child, Florence Marryat.........

220 George Canterbury's Will, Mrs. Henry

*- Wood...................................

SSI Poor Zeph, F. W. Robinson................

222 Last of the Mohicans, J. Fenimore Cooper,

828 The Marriage Verdict, Alex. Dumas____

£24 The Deer-slayer, J. Fenimore Cooper_____

&S5 Two Destlmsle*. Wilkie 4'ollins..............

S36 The Path-flnder. J. Fenimore Cooper____

SS? Hannah. Miss Muloek......................

558	The Regent's Daughter, Alex. Dumas..,

559	The Pioneers, J. Feiihnor» Cooper.........

S80 Little Grand and the Marchioness,

"Ouida."...............................

SSI The Prairie, J. Fenimore Cooper...........

585	A Dark Night's Work, Mrs. Gaskell_____

S88 The Pilot, J. Fenimore Cooper............

S84 The Tender Recollections of Irene

Macgillieuddy........................

385 An Open Verdict,|Miss M. E. Braddon_______

586	Shepherds All and Maidens Fair, Wal-

ter Besant and James Rice..................

S8? The Wandering Heir, Charles Reade...

288 Beatrice, Julia kavanagh...................

S39 No Thoroughfare, Charles Dickens and

Wilkie Collins...............................

S4© The Laurel Bush, Miss Mulock..........

241 Tricotrin, "Onida.'". ......................

S4S. The Three Feathers, William Black.....

218 Daisy Nichol, Lady Hardy................

244	The Three Guardsmen, Alex. Dumas____

245	Jack Manly, James Grant...............

246	Peg Wofflngton, Charles Reade...........

24? Martin Chuzzlewit, Charles Diekens.....

248	Bread-and-Cheese and Kisses, B. L.

Farjeon....................................

249	Cecil Castlemaine's Gage, "Ouida"____

'350 No Name, Wilkie Collins...................

251 Lady Audley's Secret, Miss M. E. Braddon.

'•25S Hard to Bear, Georgiana BI. Craik.........

.f53 A True Man, M. C. Stirling................

254	The Octoroon, Miss M. E. Braddon........

255	Lothair, Right Hon. B. Disraeli.............

S56 Lord Oakburn's Daughters, Mrs. Wood.
''3is? That Boy of Norcott's, Charles Lever...

258 Phillis, The Dnchcss........................

■559 Valentine Vox (1st half), Henry Cockton..
;359 Valentine Vox (2d half), Henry Cockton..
5360 Charlotte's Inheritance, Miss Braddon..
261 Les Miserables—Fantine, Victor Hugo..
''J6S Les Miserables-"Cosette, Victor Hugo..
1368 Les Miserables— Marius, Victor Hugo..
364 Les Miserables—St. Denis, Victor Hugo.

265	Les Miserables—Jean Valjean, Hugo.

266	Jacob Faithful, Cnptain Marryat..........

267	The L&»t of the Haddons, Mrs. Newman.
288 The Forty-live Guardsmen, Alex. Dnmas.
f*69 Red as a Rose Is She, Rhoda Bronghton.

270 The Jilt, Charles Reade.....................

S?1 The Diary of a Physician, (1st half),

Samuel Warren............................

S?1 The Diary of a Physician, (2d half),

Samuel Warren.............................

S?S The Cricket on the Hearth, Dickens...

Snarleyow, Captain Marvyist................

2?4 Ten Thousand a Year (1st half), Samuel

Warren.. .... i.............................

S?4 Ten Thousand a Year (2d half), Samuel

S?5 A Shadow on the Threshold, Mhry

Ceiil Hay..................................

S?6 The Page of the Duke of Savoy, Dumas.

S?? Brother Jacob, George Elint..............

278 Six Years Later, Alexander Dnmas.......

No. Price, ets.
S?9 A Leaf in the Storm, "Onida.".......,.10

580	The Wreck of the " Gro»\ en or.".....10

581	Lady Marabout'® Troubles, "Ouida"..10
S8S Poor Jack, Cuptsnn Ii.arryat................10

583	Twenty Years After, Alexander Dumas..SO

584	Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens.............10

585	Cometh Up as a Flower,Rhoda Broughton.10

586	After Dark, Wilkie Coiiins.................10

S8? Leighton Grange.........................10

588	The Cliannings, Mrs. Henry Wood........SO

589	A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens..... 10

390 Dick Rodney, dames Grant................10

S91 Olive, Miss Malock..........................SO

SOS " ' He Cometh Not,' She Said," Annie

Thomas.....................................10

293	Tom Crosbie, Samuel Lover...............10

294	The OgiUvies, Miss Mulock.................SO

295	Lost for Love, Miss M. E. Braddon........SO

296	Tom Burke or "Ours" (1st half), Lever.SO
296 Tom Burke of "Ours" (2d half), Lever.SO
29? The Haunted Man, Charles Dickens...... 10

298	Captain Paul, Alexander Dumas...........10

299	By Proxy, James Payn.....................10

800	By Celia's Arbor, J. Besant and W, Rice..20

801	The Grumbler, Miss E. Pickering..........SO

SOS David's Little Lad, L. T. Meade..........10

803	Margaret Graham, G. P. R. James.......10

804	Little Dorrit, Charles Dickens.............SO

805	Her Lord and Master, Florence Marryat. 10

806	Three Strong Men, Alexander Dumas.....10

80? The Toilers of the Sea, Victor Hugo____SO

808	The Chimes, Charles Dickens...............10

809	Janet's Repentance, George Eliot........10

810	Roland Yorke, Mrs. Henry Wood.........SO

811	The Professor, Charlotte Bronte...........10

81S Artiste, Maria M. Grant..............-.......10

818 Old St. Paul's, W. Harrison Ainsworth____SO

814	Nothing New, Miss Mnlock................10

815	Twice Lost, W. H. G. Kingston....^.......10

816	Uncle Silas, J. Sheridan LeFann...........SO

81? The Battle of Life, Charles Dickens...10

818	Ingenue, Alexander Dumas..................10

819	Davenport Dunn (1st half), Charles Lever.$0
819 Davenport Dunn (2d half), Charles Lever.SO

850	A Hero, Miss Mnlock................ .......10

851	Captain of the Guard, James Grant.....10

8SS Dead-Sea Fruit, Miss 91. E. Braddon ......SO

858	A Lucky Disappointment, Flor. Marryat. 10

851	Shadows on the Snow, B. L. Farjeon____10

855	Our Mutual Friend, Charles Dickens.....SO

856	Lena; or, The Silent Woman..........10

83? Janet. A Novel............................10

838 The Shadow of Ashlydyat, Mrs. H.Wood.SO

859	Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte.......10

880	A Low Marriage, Miss Mnlock............10

881	The Adventures of a Marquis (1st half),

Alexander Dnmas'...........................SO

831 The Adventures of a Marquis (2d half),

Alexander Dumas.......................... SO

852	The Two Orphans........................10

888 A Sussex Idyl, Clementina Black..........10

884	Puck, "Ouida."............................SO

885	The Queen's Cadet, James Grant.........10

886	Sunshine and Shadow, Mrs, J. C. Newby.10
88? Bleak House, Charles Dickens.............SO

888	Village on the Cliff, Miss Thac'ieray......10

889	Letty Hyde's Lovers, James Grant.......10

840	Peter Simple, Captain Marryat............SO

841	Only Temper, Mrs. C. J. Newby...........10

84S The Mohicans of Paris, Alexander Dumas. 10

848 Robinson Crusoe, Daniel Defoe...........SO

344 Ascanio, Alexander Dumas..................10

845	Halves, James Payn.........................10

846	The Children of the Abbey, R. M. Roche.SO
84? The Hundred Cuirassiers, James Grant. 10

848	The Mysteries of the Court of the

Stuarts, W. Harrison Ainsworth..........10

849	Elster's Folly, Mrs. Henry Wood..........SO

850	The Great Thirst-Land, Parker Gilmore. 10
fveji The Story of Elizabeth, Miss Thackeray. 10

85S Pickwick Papers, Charles Diekens........SO

358 Georgie's Wooer, Mrs. Leith-Adams.......10

854	A Celebrated Case.......................10

855	Russia, D. Mackenzie Wallace...............SO

856	Deceivers' Ever, Mrs. H. Lovett Cameron.. 10
85? Red Court Farm, Sirs. Henry Wood.. . ..20

858	Less Black Than We're Painted, Payn. 10

859	Somebody's Luggage, Cl-.iirlea Dickens... 10

860	Windsor Castle, W. Harrison Ainsworth.. .10

861	A Vagabond Merofne, Mrs. Annie E a wards. 10
83S Vicar of Wakefield, Oliver Goldsmith....10
868 Reaping the WhirUvind, Mary Cecil Hay.lt

864 Hugh Melton, Katharine King.............1 <!

165 Oswald Cray,' Mrs. Henry Wood...........20

866 Lester Ashland's Wife, Magdalen Barrett. 1 €
86? Mrs. Lirriper's Lodgings, Chas. Dickens. 10

868	Little Kate Kirby, F. W. Robinson— ...20

869	Found Dead, James Payn.... .............1.0

8?0 Ralph Wilton's Weird, Mrs. Alexander. .10

8?1 Christie Johnstone, Charles Reade........10

S?S The Lazy Tour of Two Idle Appren-
tices, Charles Dickens......................10

8?8 St. Martin's Eve, Mrs. Henry Wood.......SO

3?4 Woman and Her Master, J. F. Smith ..SO

8?5 Mugby Junction, Charles Dickens.........1(1

8?6 Mine Is Thine, L. W. M. Loeklmrt.........SO

8?? Friendship, "Ouida.".....................20

S?8 Bright Morning; or, Once and For-
ever, Miss Grant...........................SO

S?9 Pascarel," "Onida.".......................SO

880	The Golden Butterfly, Walter Besant

and James Rice.... ........................SO

881	East Lynne, Mrs. Henry Wood (in clear,

bold, and handsome type)...................SO

883	Gwendoline's Harvest, James Payn......10

888 The Sun-Maid, Miss Grant.............../.SO

884	Back to the Old Home, Mary Cecil Hay.. 10

885	Wooed and Married, Rosa N. Carey____..SO

886	Signa, "Ouida."............................SO

38? Jet: Her Face or Her Fortune? Mrs.

Annie Edwards.............................10

888	Fred Veritdn; or* The Victim of

Avarice, J. F. Smith.....................SO

889	Idalia, "Ouida."...........................SO

890	The Marriage of Moira Fergus, and

The Maid of Killeena, William Black.. 10

891	The Primrose Path, Mrs. Oliphant.......SO

893 Vivian Grey, by Benj. Disraeli, Earl of

Beaconsfield................................SO

893	Molly Bawn, by the Author of "Phyllis.". .20

894	Throstlethwaite, Susan Morley...........iO

895	Fair Women, Mrs. Forrester..............30

896	Jane Eyre (in large, bold, handsome type),

Charlotte Bronte...........................SO

89? Dorothy Fox, by the Author of "How It

All Happened." ............ ..............10

898	Victor Lescar, Miss Grant ... a...........30

899	The Lady of Launay, Anihony Trollope. .10

400	Which Shall It Be? 'Mr.*. Alexander.....30

401	A Beggar on Horseback, James Payn... 10
403 "Not Wisely But Too Well," Rhoda

Bronghton..............................,.. .30

403	Tom Tiddler's Ground, Charles Dickens. 10

404	Ariadne, Henry Greville.....................10

A05 Henrietta Temple, Benjamin Disraeli,

Earl of Beaconsfield....................... .SO

406 One of the Family, James Payn..........10

40? Tiie Arundel Motto, (in large, bold, and

handsome t ype), Mary Cecil Hay............30

408 FileNo. 118, from the French of E.Gaboriau.SO

109 The Haunted Hotel, Wilkie Collins.......10

-110 Eugenia Grandet, llonore de Balzac......10

411 The Love that Lived, Mrs. Eiloart.......SO

413	Mrs. Jack, Frances Eleanor Trollope........10

418 Sam Slick, Thomas Chandler Halibnrton____10

414	A Captain at Fifteen [Part I], Jules Verne. 10

414	A Captain at Fifteen [Partll], Jules Verne. 10

415	A Dark Irheritance, Mary Cecil Hay----lO

416	Comin' Thro" the Rye, Helen B. Mathers.30
41? Maeleod of Dare, William Black..........10

418	Hathereourt, Mrs. Molesworth (Ennis Gra-

ham)........ ........ .....................30

419	Mademoiselle Saint-Maur's Lover,

Victor Cherbnliez.......................... 10

4S0 Niania, Henry Greville (Translated by

Mrs. Kendall.i,................................10

&<>•	Price, i

431 Nora's Love Test, Mary Cecil Hay,

(clear, bold type)...................... ;

4SS On the Heights. From the German of "

Bertbold Auerbach......................--

4S3 Night Side of New York. A Series o"*

Sermons. Rev. T. DeWilfc Talitiuge.....i

424 Sonia. Henry Greville.............

4^5 Maid Ellice. Theo. Gift...............

426 Written in Fire. Florence Marrv&t, . j
43? Old Myddelton's Money [in clear,
bold type, ] Mary Cecil Hay............

458	A Woman's Journal. From tue Freae"

of Octave Feniilet....................

459	The Disappearance of Mr. Jere-

miah Red worth. Mrs. J. II. lUddell

480	Quintin Matsys, Ficrce Egan, Esq.....'"

481	Diana Carew, Mrs. Forrester .........

485	Jean Teterol's Idea. From ike French

of Victor Cherbuliez.....................

438 A Shocking Story, Wilkie Coiiins......

484 Hidden Perils, Mary Cecil Hay (in clear,

bold type)..........................................%

435 Samuel Brohl and Company. From

the French of Vi;-t!;r Cherbuliez.........!<

486	In the Year '18, Fritz Renter.........1

48? India and Her Neighbors, W. B. An.

drew....................................

438 Villette, Charlotte Bronte...............

489 Cyprus, Its History, Its Preecntf lie-
sources, and Future Prospects, 11. Ham-
ilton Lang..............................

440	The Sorrow of a Secret, and Lady

Carmichael's W ill, both in one book,
Mary Cecil Hay..........................1

441	'Twas In Trafalgar's Bay, Walter ,

Besant and James Rice..................1

443	The Notary's Daughter, From tke

French of M.tdame Leouic D'Aulney......"

448 Pomeroy Abbey, Mrs. Henry Wood____

444	A Letter on Corpulence. By#Wm.

Banting, and The Romance of a '
Back Street. By F. W. Robinson____f

445	Michael Gargrave's Harvest, by

Mrs. J. H. Riddell, and The Baby,
by the author of " Phyllis "............

446	When the Ship Comes Home. By .

Walter Beasant and James Rice.........

44? Filthy Lucre—A Story without i

Crime—By Albany de Fonblanqne........

On Horseback Through Asia Mi-
nor, Captain Fred Barnaby, Author of

"A Ride to Khiva"......................

An Odd Couple. Mrs. Oliphant.________

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Whoa! Emma?...........Given AWaywKh No. 5

Sweet By and By.........................Ko. 5

The Tar's Farewell. Ballad...........No. £»

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Johnny Morgan. Song and Chorus froia

4'Babes In the Wood."............No. 5T

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Irish Ballad......................... No. 5?

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"Let Me Dream Again," Song- Sullivan.. No, St

Molly Bawn. Song. Musi^ by Lover...... No. S>7

Davy Jones. Song and Chorus. Mollov... No. ST
Kiss-Ki8s." Song and Chorus, by Anton

Louis............................... No. -&3>

They All Do It. Song and Chorus, by the

Author of "Johnny Morgan." ______No. 68

Love, the Vagrant. Song fr'om (he New

Opera of "Carmen" ...............No. 68

Secret Love. Gavotte Galop. J. lU-i.eli... No. &S
Don't Make Me Laugh. A Tickling Song.

Music by A. Lindheim...............No. S8

"All's Well." Duet. Companion to " Lar-
board Watch Ahoy"................. No. £8

Give Me the Man of Honest Heart. Soug	,

and Chorus. Hobson................ No. 58

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GEORGE MUNRO, PUBLISHER
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ISSUED TRI-WEEKLY.

No. 448.—Jan. 4, 1879.

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