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Title: A steam voyage down the Danube, vol. 1 of 2
With sketches of Hungary, Wallachia, Servia, and Turkey, &c.
Author: Michael J. Quin
Release date: March 7, 2026 [eBook #78133]
Language: English
Original publication: London: Richard Bentley, 1835
Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/78133
Credits: Richard Illner and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A STEAM VOYAGE DOWN THE DANUBE, VOL. 1 OF 2 ***
A
STEAM VOYAGE
DOWN
THE DANUBE.
WITH SKETCHES OF
HUNGARY, WALLACHIA, SERVIA, AND
TURKEY, &c.
BY MICHAEL J. QUIN,
AUTHOR OF “A VISIT TO SPAIN.”
SECOND EDITION.
REVISED AND CORRECTED.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. I.
LONDON:
RICHARD BENTLEY, NEW BURLINGTON STREET.
1835.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
PEST.]
C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND.
TO MRS. MICHAEL J. QUIN.
To you I dedicate these volumes, trusting that you may find in them some
compensation for my late absence from a Home, where, as you well know,
all my happiness resides. When our dear children shall be able to read
this work, you will tell them that _their_ interests only could have
detained me from that home, during the five months necessarily occupied
in my journey.
Always most affectionately yours,
MICHAEL J. QUIN.
Haverstock Hill, Hampstead,
20th July, 1835.
PREFACE
TO THE
SECOND EDITION.
Since the first edition of this work was published several gentlemen
have called upon me, to inquire whether the navigation by steam has
been yet completed from Presburg to Constantinople. It may be useful,
therefore, here to state that the steam-boats do not yet regularly
proceed further down the Danube than Galacz. The vessel intended to
carry on the intercourse from that place to the Bosphorus, had been
fitted out, and despatched from Trieste last autumn. But in the mean
time, the object which the Danube company had in view, was frustrated by
some means that have not yet been explained; and the vessel in question
is now employed as a packet between Constantinople and Smyrna.
My own opinion is, that the Russian government has refused permission
for the steam-boats of the Danube company to pass through any of the
embouchures of that river into the Black Sea. The whole delta of the
river became exclusively Russian, under the treaty of Adrianople; and I
am informed that military pontons have been recently established across
the navigable mouths of the Danube, with a view to prevent vessels of
any description from entering the Black Sea in that quarter, without a
passport from the Russian authorities.
The traveller, however, who wishes to become acquainted with the most
interesting parts of the Danube, navigable by the steam-boats, will have
no cause to regret this strange proceeding on the part of the Russian
government. The banks of that magnificent river are wholly devoid of
interest below Vidin. Its beauties commence at Belgrade; and from
Moldava to Gladova, those wild and sublime scenes occur, which I have
attempted to describe in the following pages.
I trust, at the same time, that before many months elapse, the Austrian
and Russian sovereigns will come to an understanding in favour of
the free navigation of the Danube and the Black Sea, as originally
contemplated by the company.
M. J. Q.
_September 10, 1835._
CONTENTS TO VOL. I
PAGE
CHAPTER I.
Arrival at Pesth--Embarkation on board the steam-boat--Congress
of Hungarian ladies--General appearance of Pesth--Buda--Mills on
the Danube--Fruit-boats--Wool-waggons--Wicker carriages--Captain
Cozier--Scene on board--Tyrolese emigrants--Tyrolese
amusements--Countess N—— —Moldavian adventurer--Servian
Jew--Depression of the Danube 1
CHAPTER II.
Dinner--Languages of the party--English groom--State of the
neighbourhood of Tolna--System of landowners--English farmers
in requisition--Arrival at Tolna--Battle with dogs--Search for
a bed--Billiards--Cottage delights--Night scene--Hungarian
politics--Group of peasants--Wood-boats--Village of Mohacs--Costume
of the natives--Appearance of the streets--Industry of
women--Hungarian ladies and their maids 22
CHAPTER III.
Steam-boat aground--Tyrolese melodies--Night scene--“Hanger
on”--Auction at cards--Knave of clubs game--How to float a
steamer--Military valet--Kamenitz--Odescalchi convent--Parting
game--Kissing--Neusatz--Carlovitz--Semlin--Greek church--Plague
at Constantinople--Belgrade--Semendria--Magnificent expanse of
the Danube--Islands of enchantment--Sunset--Spirits of the Danube 43
CHAPTER IV.
Windings of the Danube--Civility of the Moldavian--Arrival
at Moldava--Arrangements for voyage to Orsova--A Wallachian
beauty--Flock of geese--Ditto of children--Woodmen--Commencement
of mountain chain--Rustic sounds--Peasantry--Removal to
fishing-boat--Our equipment--Accusation of robbery--Haunt of
Wallachian brigands--Romantic gorge--Caverns 67
CHAPTER V.
Pastoral scene--Echoes--Picture of laziness--Rapids of the
Danube--Miller and his men--Pedestrian excursion--Wallachian
shepherdesses--Dancing boors--Scene at Swinich--Priest of the
parish--The governor--George Dewar--Contest between the priest
and the poet--Supper--Musical treat--The Moldavian--Sketch of
the inn room--Hospitable invitation--Triple-bedded room--Latin
harangue 85
CHAPTER VI.
Domestic arrangements--Count Szechenyi--Milanosch--Works on
the Danube--Picture of industry--Auberge--Vedran’s cave--Rocky
scenery--Arrival at Orsova--My chamber and its ornaments--Bedroom
utensils--Hungarian civilization--Quarantine adventure--Dinner at
Count Szechenyi’s--Plans for the navigation of the Danube--Origin
of the enterprise 107
CHAPTER VII.
Hungarian reforms--Security of property--Orders of nobility--
Advantages of steam navigation--Reformers--Auxiliary improvements--
Club-house--Newspaper--System of Entails--Censorship--Sybaritism--
The Count’s pursuits--Hungarian language--Verses on the vintage 130
CHAPTER VIII.
First appearance of Wallachia--The Iron Door--Trajan’s road--Reform
of the Hungarian representation--Corporations--Finances--Education--
Justice--Wallachian Gladova--Servian Gladova--Trajan’s bridge--
Navigable stations on the Danube--Wonders of steam--Speech of Prince
Milosch--Neighbourhood of Gladova--Wallachian hut--Matrimonial
speculation--Tea-drinking--Music--Charms of procrastination--
Departure from Gladova--Bends in the Danube--Approach to Vidin--
Magnate’s costume--Visit to Hussein Pacha--The pacha’s deputy--An
interpreter--Explanations--Pleasures of disguise 142
CHAPTER IX.
Hussein Pacha--Hussein’s son--Group at the interview--Commencement
of conversation--Conversation prolonged--Steam expedition--Cool
reception--Pacha’s harem--Wallachia and Moldavia--Treaty of
Adrianople--Silistria--Boat aground--New delays--Zantiote boat--
Adventurous changes--Separation--Ionian luxuries--A grave mistake 177
CHAPTER X.
Zitara Palanka--Turkish hospitality--Interior of a caffiné--
Mahometan devotee--Orisons--Race of Tartars--Social variety--
Turkish khan--The nargillé--Supper--Woman--Seclusion of the sex--
Eating in the dark--Visiters astonished--A general invasion--
Return to the boat--New acquaintances--Nicopoli--Night scene 196
CHAPTER XI.
Sistow--A delusion--New friends--Good fortune--Greek civility--
Wallachian merchants--Supper--Amicable discussion--Gil Blas--
Wallachian ambition--Chief of the Tartars--Striking a bargain--
Equestrian preparations--Greek _v._ Greek--Shops of Rutschuk--
Valley of Repose--Bulgarian peasants--Gipsies--Going astray--
Cogitations--Resolutions--Bulgarian girls--An alarm 219
CHAPTER XII.
A boorish group--Night quarters of a caravan--Shumla--An
intrusion--An angry Turk--Balkan roads--Difficulties of the way--
Forests of Hæmus--Banditti--Terrors--Descent of the Balkans--
Dinner--Karnabat--Gipsies--Catching a Tartar--A fiery bedroom--
A decent khan--Supper 244
CHAPTER XIII.
My companions--Kind attentions--Famine--Annihilation of a Fowl--
Living upon nothing--Disturbance--Still life--Consternation--A
desolate town--Turks at prayers--Dinner--Alarming rumours--Chorlu--
The sea of Marmora--Silivria--Street scene--A factotum--News of
the day--Tartar generosity--Negotiations 264
CHAPTER XIV.
A white cock--Russian agency--Specimen of cookery--Dining in
state--Departure from Silivria--Mahometan causeway--Perilous
roads--Knowing horses--First view of Constantinople--Advantages of
its position--Extent of its capabilities--An abstracted goose--
Entrance of the capital--Pera--Vitali’s hotel--The plague--
Character of the malady--Armenian funeral--Associations--Funeral
of a Greek 285
APPENDIX A.
Treaty of Alliance concluded between Russia and Turkey on the 8th
of July, 1833 303
APPENDIX B.
Treaty between Russia and Turkey, concluded at St. Petersburg, by
Achmet Pacha, on the 29th of January, 1834 308
LIST OF PLATES.
PAGE
FRONTISPIECE, Vol. I. PESTH
BUDA AND PESTH 6
KAMENITZ 52
PETERWARDEIN 54
NEUSATZ 56
SEMLIN 58
BELGRADE 61
THE AUTHOR’S ROUTE FROM PESTH TO RUTSCHUK 220
FRONTISPIECE, Vol. II. TOWING BOATS ON THE DANUBE
CHAPTER I.
Arrival at Pesth--Embarkation on board the steam-boat--Congress
of Hungarian ladies--General appearance of Pesth--Buda--Mills on
the Danube--Fruit-boats--Wool-waggons--Wicker carriages--Captain
Cozier--Scene on board--Tyrolese emigrants--Tyrolese amusements--
Countess N---- Moldavian adventurer--Servian Jew--Depression of
the Danube.
♦ ARRIVAL AT PESTH ♦
While I was preparing at Paris, towards the close of last summer, for
a journey to Constantinople by the ordinary and very fatiguing course
overland through Vienna, Semlin, and Belgrade, I was informed that
steam-boats had been recently established on the Danube, which would
enable me to descend that river to the Black sea, and thence to the
Bosphorus. The hope of accomplishing my object by a route so novel,
so attractive in itself, and so convenient in every respect, was too
tempting to be resisted. I therefore lost no time in repairing to
Vienna; and as the scenery of the Danube possesses but little interest
between Presburg, where the steam navigation begins, and Pesth, the
modern capital of Hungary, I preferred embarking at the latter place.
I accordingly arrived there by the light of a brilliant moon, an hour
or two after midnight, on the 24th of September, 1834; and as a variety
of rumours had met me on the road, some stating that the steam-boat,
or Dampshiffe, as it is called in that country, had been destroyed by
its own engines, others that it had bulged on the rocks, or remained
fixed fast in the sandy bed of the river from the want of water, it was
with no small pleasure that I discovered the vessel of which I came in
pursuit anchored quietly within the shade of the bridge of boats, that
still forms the communication between Pesth and Buda.
♦ EMBARKATION ♦
The inns having been all shut up for the night, I was obliged to proceed
without ceremony on board through a crowd of carriages, packages, and
cases of all descriptions, which were huddled together on the bank,
with a view to transportation by the steamer to different towns on
the Danube. The guardians of the vessel were all wrapped in sleep so
imperturbable, that I could find nobody to marshal me the way to a
berth in the cabin. Having been without sleep myself for thirty-four
hours, I was not at all indisposed to follow the example of these worthy
sentinels, the more especially when, on penetrating to the cabin,
I found it almost entirely preoccupied by passengers stretched on
benches, in full enjoyment of the same “sweet oblivion,” amidst piles of
boxes, trunks, cloaks, shawls, baskets, hat-cases, stools, and tables,
congregated in “most admired confusion.” By the glimmering light of a
lamp which was suspended from the roof, I at length discerned a vacant
corner, and having doubled up a seat-cushion, by way of pillow, and
arranged another as no mean apology for a bed, I threw myself upon it,
wrapped in my cloak, resolved to subside at once into profound repose.
♦ HUNGARIAN LADIES ♦
But scarcely had I forgotten that I was slumbering on the Danube,
when there arose, all of a sudden, such a storm of tongues, and
such an uproar of laughter around me, that I felt for a moment
as if, in punishment for my sins, I had been imprisoned in some
enchanted chamber, where sleep was especially prohibited. At
first the voices sounded as though they were distant from the
cabin; but before I could exactly settle with myself the question,
whether I was waking or dreaming, in they rushed, chattering away
as if they had all the world to themselves. Morning was still far
below the horizon, and I, of course, concluded that our invaders
would soon be tired of their rather premature entertainment. But
vain were all calculations of that description; anecdote followed
anecdote; interrogatory--answer--reply--rejoinder--sur-reply and
sur-rejoinder--slight titter--partial laughter--general shouts--coursed
each other with indefatigable speed round the circle of this noisy
congress, until the broad daylight streamed through the windows, and
dissipated every hope of peace. I was shocked at my ungallant thoughts,
when I surveyed my fair enemies, and found that there were amongst them
two or three really pretty Hungarian ladies. I confess, God forgive
me!--that I had more than once wished them all at the antipodes.
♦ PESTH--BUDA ♦
Pesth looks extremely well from the Danube. It is for the most part
built in a modern style of architecture; several of the public edifices,
and even of the private mansions are splendid. The national casino, or
club-house, forms a distinguished feature of the city, which has been
wonderfully improved during the last ten or fifteen years. Presburg
is the nominal capital of Hungary; but it has, in the estimation of a
Hungarian, one fault which nothing can redeem,--it is near Vienna. It
has been, therefore, long superseded by Pesth, as to all matters which
concern the sciences and arts, as well as the assemblages and amusements
of the higher classes. Here they spend their fashionable season, give
their balls, carry on their flirtations, and plan both their private
and public intrigues. Buda, on the opposite bank of the river, is not
without its share in these good things. Gaiety also sometimes holds her
court in that quarter. The bridge of boats between the two towns has
indeed occasionally operated as an obstacle to social enjoyment. But
that obstacle is soon to be removed. A stone bridge has been proposed,
the expenses to be defrayed by a toll, from which no person shall be
exempt. Never was such an innovation as this heard of in Hungary since
the Danube began its course! A Hungarian nobleman is privileged by his
rank from the payment of taxes of any kind. But the ladies would not
be debarred from the winter enjoyments of Buda; they worried their
fathers, husbands, brothers, until at length the vote was carried in the
diet,--and so a stone bridge they will have. Slight as this incident
may seem to an Englishman, it will probably lead the way to many useful
reforms in that country, on account of the principle of equal taxation
which it involves.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
BUDA & PEST.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
♦ MILLS ON THE DANUBE ♦
Our cargo of carriages, dry goods and passengers having been at length
all duly arranged, our paddles began to circulate at seven o’clock,
instead of four, which was the hour appointed, and we proceeded on
our voyage. The morning was splendid. As we moved along we passed by
several of those curious flour-mills with which the Danube is crowded.
These floating machines are very simple in their construction. A wooden
house is erected in a large clumsy boat, moored near the spot where the
river is most rapid. At the distance of a few paces from this edifice
another smaller boat is made fast parallel to the first, the heads
of both being directed down the stream. In the interval between, the
water-wheel is suspended, and impelled by the natural velocity of the
current. These mills, of which ten or twenty are sometimes found in
immediate succession, are rather picturesque in their appearance, and
give animation to the scenery around them. But, however convenient they
may be to the population on either bank of the Danube, where there
are no heights for windmills, it is certain that they afford serious
impediments to navigation. They uniformly occupy the best parts of the
river, and tend to the formation or increase of sandbanks in their
neighbourhood, which, when the water is low, become, as we subsequently
experienced, nuisances of a formidable description.
♦ FRUIT-BOATS ♦
I believe there is no river in Europe which winds so much as the Danube.
It may, with more than the usual truth of poetry, be emphatically
designated as a “wandering stream.” It consequently abounds with
what are called “reaches,” portions of the bank which at a distance
look like promontories, and add not a little to the difficulties of
the navigators, who have to work their way against the course of the
current. It is amusing to observe a boat of the country labouring
round one of these obstacles. It is generally a huge unwieldly bark,
constructed of oak, covered with a high roof, and laden to the very top
with what here universally passes under the name of fruit--that is
wine, timber, wool, wheat, hay, and produce of every degree. The vessel
is dragged up the river by a force which is not at first very apparent.
You behold the vessel tied to the end of a rope, which is pulled by
something or somebody somewhere, and if your eye can discern the “reach”
at the distance perhaps of a mile, you may discover there a dozen
brawny Hungarian peasants half-naked, trudging along in rope harness,
exerting all their strength to draw the enormous mass behind them. The
more opulent adventurers, however, frequently employ horses for this
purpose, and then the scene is infinitely more bustling. Twenty and
sometimes thirty half-wild horses are required to supply a sufficient
moving power, where the force of the current offers more than ordinary
resistance. Almost every pair of horses belongs to a different peasant,
and he will allow nobody to lash them but himself. He is most probably
a nobleman, and it is a part of his privilege to drive his own horses
after his own fashion. When, therefore, the whole of the team arrives
at a difficult reach, it becomes the signal for a general mutiny; the
leaders are perhaps prancing in the air, while the horses immediately
behind are endeavouring with all their might to bolt off into the
adjacent country. Here a horse and his companion stand quite still, as
if they were in doubt whether they ought not, before going further, to
take a pleasant draught of the element at their feet. Half a dozen of
the animals in the rear have dragged each other into the river, through
which they are wading up to the girth, while the sound of a dozen whips,
the altercations of the drivers, the angry exclamations of the boatmen
shouting on the roofs of their vessels, the neighing of the alarmed
horses, and the barking of dogs, combine to form a most ludicrous
concert, which may be heard far down the river. Although in a broiling
sun these drivers keep on their large cloaks, which are as essential
to the dignity of a Hungarian peasant-noble, as the wide-brimmed hat
slouching over his swarthy countenance.
♦ WOOL-WAGGONS ♦
♦ WICKER CARRIAGES ♦
The high road, that is to say the track over the verdant turf, or the
sandy track most frequently trodden, now and then ran along the side
of the Danube, and exhibited occasionally specimens of the interior
commerce of the country. Now a rude car laden with woolpacks, on the
top of which was perched a lazy fellow smoking, drawn by eight or ten
miserable horses, moved at a snail’s pace, the wooden axle of the
wheels yielding the while a species of music, compared with which the
hoarsest sounds of a hurdygurdy would be enchanting. Now a better
sort of vehicle, a kind of waggon, filled perhaps with water-melons,
Indian corn, or vegetables, for some neighbouring market, appeared on
the scene, drawn by a much better class of horses, whose trappings
were quite brilliant. The drivers of these waggons were generally the
cultivators of the land, which furnished the burden, and they displayed
their prosperity in a smart underdress, of which a waistcoat with
gold or silver plated buttons, and a profusion of silk lace formed
the principal ornament. These were succeeded perhaps by a troop of
travellers galloping on spirited and beautiful animals, or by a family
whisked along in a kind of wicker carriage, which may be found in all
parts of Hungary. I travelled a considerable portion of the way from
Vienna in one of these simple post-chaises, and I found it not at all
disagreeable. It is on springs, and peculiarly light, and as from the
irregularities of the road I was often knocked from one side of the
vehicle to the other without even the civility of a notice, I deemed
it a convenience to come in contact rather with a yielding material
such as wicker, than with a solid board from Long Acre. And then if the
balance were in danger of being more than usually disturbed, if one of
the wheels aspired to figure in the sky, while the other was buried in a
sandy rut, I had no great difficulty in jumping out over the sides of my
carriage.
♦ CAPTAIN COZIER ♦
The captain of our steamer was an Englishman, of the name of Cozier,
who, being little conversant with any branch of nautical science,
was about equally skilled in the topography of the Danube. Though he
had gone up and down several times, he knew no more of the caprices
of the sandbanks than he did of the bed of the yellow sea. He had a
bitter dislike to his office. Why he was permitted to undertake it, I
never could understand. To me, I must say, he was communicative and
extremely civil; but my fellow-voyagers he treated with a degree of
superciliousness which was very amusing. It seemed to be his settled
opinion, that nobody except an Englishman was worthy of breathing the
same air with himself. To be sure we had a motley crowd on board, such
perhaps as never met together on the deck of a steam-boat before.
Behold us all as in a mirror.
♦ SCENE ON BOARD ♦
I am sitting (time, half-past eleven, morning) on a stool near the man
at the wheel. A little before me, on my right-hand, are two Tyrolese
sleeping. One of these has on his head a green hat, with a wide band
of green ribbon around it, in which are stuck some white and black
feathers, selected from a cock’s tail, intermixed with the bristles
of a wild boar. The ribbon, where it joins, is edged with gold lace.
Like most of his countrymen, this man rejoices in a thick gray frieze
jacket, a striped cotton waistcoat, black leather breeches, here and
there rather whitened by the hoar of antiquity, ribbed worsted gray
stockings, and short stout laced boots. He wears his hair long behind,
somewhat _négligée_. Another Tyrolese is sleeping near him, whose hat
was some ages ago green, but now partakes of the colour of night. His
hatband seems also to have enjoyed two shades of existence--it was
formerly green, now it is a dingy yellow. It is tied in front with a bow
of pink ribbon, which, in its early days, must have looked seducing,
especially as it appears to have been accompanied by an artificial
rose and other flowers, the ruins of which are still discernible. One
of these picturesque objects is stretched on a mat; the other has his
head resting on a coil of rope, his feet on a similar cushion: the
intervening departments of his frame repose on the naked deck.
♦ TYROLESE EMIGRANTS ♦
While I was admiring the felicity in which these sleepers appeared to be
immersed, a woman with a child, the wife I presume of one of them, came
and awoke him. He rose, and she took his place. Throwing a handkerchief
over her otherwise bare head, she settles herself to sleep. The sun is
blazing on her ladyship. The child, a round chubby little urchin, has no
fancy at present for following her example. He would very much prefer a
game at romps. Trying what he can do in that way, he, slily laughing,
pulls the handkerchief off her face. Half angry, she gives him a tap,
but he returns to the charge, and succeeds for a while in attracting her
attention by his artless tricks, until at length he falls asleep on her
bosom. She then gladly resumes her interrupted slumber. She is arrayed
in a short blue cloth spencer, edged with black velvet, beneath which
she wears a green thick velveteen pelisse sort of dress. Thick worsted
stockings (I _believe_!) and laced rough boots complete her apparel.
Of the former, however, I am not very confident, as I only saw the most
tiny bit of one of them just beneath the edge of her petticoat.
♦ TYROLESE AMUSEMENTS ♦
At the feet of this happy matron a Tyrolese boy is fast asleep. One
would think that noon had been changed into midnight. Near him a woman
of the same nation is sitting upon a roll of cordage, doing nothing.
A little Tyrolese lad, with a cockade of white cock’s feathers, and a
bunch of artificial flowers in his hat, is helping her! That must be
his father who is sitting near him, smoking, and occasionally talking
with one of his countrymen standing against the springs of one of the
carriages, with which, by the way, our deck is most inconveniently
crowded. Near the mast a group of men, all Tyrolese, are engaged in
the several offices of talking, listening, smoking, musing, whistling,
singing, and gazing at the dense cloud that rushes into the firmament
from our black chimney. They are all rather better dressed than my
immediate neighbours; one of them, a fine-looking fellow, whom I take
to be the captain of the gang, has his hat cocked in a dandyish style,
considerably out of the circular shape. His plume of feathers, too, is
larger and of a finer quality than those of the others. This party
would make a capital study for a band of brigands, could they but assume
a fiercer expression of countenance. As it is, they look too amiable for
a Salvator Rosa. At the top of the boat several knots of women, still
Tyrolese, are sitting in various directions, executing for each other,
alternately, without the slightest consciousness of the external effect
of the operation, the agreeable task of disburdening their hair of its
multitudinous inhabitants. No wonder that Captain Cozier was enraged!
♦ COUNTESS N---- ♦
Descending into the cabin I found a party of Hungarian nobles--men
of genteel appearance and manners--seated at a round table, playing
cards. They had been thus engaged all the morning. The stakes were not
inconsiderable, and seemed to be taken up occasionally by the winners
with infinite delight. Near them, sanctioning their amusement by her
bland looks and smiles, is an elderly lady knitting on a bench, and
occasionally conversing with an exceedingly elegant figure, somewhat
_petite_, whom, upon further acquaintance, I found to be the Countess
N----, on her way from Pesth to Peterwardein. She had married, at the
age of eighteen, a hotheaded nobleman of her own country, who became
attached to her suddenly on account of her beauty. He took her to
Pesth, entered into all the amusements of the place, gambling included,
which is carried on in that capital to a formidable extent. The result
was, that after a short experiment of two years, they were obliged to
give up their establishment, and the young countess was now returning to
her mother, attended by a French _femme de chambre_, the only remaining
fragment of her transient splendour, except her harp, which she saved
also from the ruins. She was reading a book of common Hungarian ballads,
which seemed to afford her amusement. In a corner, two little girls
were tittering away most merrily--I could not make out at what. Within
the ladies’ cabin I heard some of the laughing voices, which recalled
the sense of my “murdered sleep” of the morning. Upon the whole, I was
pleased with the appearance of my companions, and flattered myself with
the hope of a pleasant voyage, in which I was not disappointed.
♦ MOLDAVIAN ADVENTURER ♦
In the course of the day a variety of new characters emerged from the
second cabin, and other hiding places, the greater part of whom soon
ceased to attract my notice, as they were of that class that seems born
for the mere purpose of transforming animal and vegetable substances
into human flesh and blood for the ordinary number of years. Among these
specimens of creation, however, there was one little man, whom I shall
not speedily forget. He was from Moldavia. He had been in the Russian
service during the late war with Turkey, but in what capacity I could
never satisfactorily discover. I suspect he was a spy. He spoke German,
French, and Italian fluently. He wore a blue frock-coat, which probably
had served him during the said war, as it could boast of only a part of
one button, and two very unequal skirts, remaining in any thing like
decent condition. The rest of the garment was covered with grease.
A pair of old black stuff trousers patched at the knees in a most
unworkmanlike manner, rent and not patched in other parts indescribable,
and vilely tattered at the extremities, together with a ghost of a
black waistcoat, a cast-off military cap, and wretched boots, offered
an apology for a better suit, which he said he had at home. His shirt
was also in the list of absentees! He had lost the half of one of his
thumbs, the other was wrapped in a bandage. He had not shaved for three
weeks--he certainly could not have washed either his hands or his face
for three months, and a comb had probably not passed through his hair
for three years. To crown his personal peculiarities, he had a very red
nose, on the top of which was perched a pair of spectacles.
Nevertheless, with all these strong objections against him--so
strong, that I wonder my friend Captain Cozier had not thrown him
overboard--there was something about this man which seemed to have
actually fascinated a rather genteel youth, who was constantly at his
side, and to have already secured him the devotion of a miscellaneous
group of Austrian soldiers and their wives, pedlers, and artisans, who
occupied mats and sheepskins on deck. With the sailors he was quite a
favourite. He whistled well, he sung well, and passed off every thing in
a “devil-may-care” kind of way, which gained him admirers. A charlatan
at a French fair--a romance reader at the mole of Naples--could not
possess more power over his audience, than was exercised over these
simpletons by this Moldavian adventurer. He had a common-place-book in
his bosom--for his pockets had all vanished--from which he occasionally
read to his followers scraps of poetry of his own composition, or
selected from the works of celebrated German writers. These readings
he interspersed with comments often so droll, that he set the whole
deck in a roar. Then he would relate some of his accidents by flood and
field, or describe his travels, in the course of which he mentioned the
most extraordinary scenes in the world, which had occurred to him at
Constantinople, Bucharest, Prague, Vienna, Petersburg, Paris, Berlin,
Madrid, Gibraltar, Venice, every where but London, where he had the
modesty to confess he had never yet been. His eye, when lighted up by
the excitement of the moment, was singularly brilliant, the flush of
fine intelligence was on his swarthy weather-beaten cheek, his voice was
melody itself, and his diction eloquence.
♦ SERVIAN JEW ♦
Retired from the crowd appeared now and then an extremely well-looking
Jew and his daughter, a pale, slight, interesting girl, who seemed to
have much to converse about on their own affairs. They were dressed in
the Turkish costume. As I passed them the father saluted me in Spanish,
at which I was not a little surprised. Upon further acquaintance, I
learned that he was descended from one of the Jewish families, which
having been expelled in the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella from Spain,
were permitted to take up their abode in Servia, where their posterity
still continue to reside. The Spanish language is spoken by all these
Jews, in preference even to the tongue of their fatherland, so great
is their traditional affection for the once Moorish kingdoms of the
peninsula. This man was returning to Vidin from Vienna, where he had
been upon a mercantile speculation, which he did not explain. We became
great friends. The daughter had a mandolin, upon which she sometimes
favoured me with Moorish and Servian airs.
♦ DEPRESSION OF THE DANUBE ♦
Our boat rubbed upon the natural bed of the river two or three times,
very much to the captain’s astonishment and perplexity. Men were
consequently stationed at the prow to sound the bottom, when we found,
that even where it was deepest, we had not more than six or seven feet
of water. I fully expected that we should run aground, an embarrassment
which was about the last I should have thought of in the Danube. I had
rather imagined that our difficulties would have chiefly consisted
in evading the dangerous rapidity of the flood, for I could not have
fancied the Danube any thing less than a magnificent inundation,
hurrying for ever towards the Euxine. Very much to my surprise,
however, I found it considerably shrunk beneath its banks, and often
so lethargic in its course, that it seemed more like a lake than the
principal river of Europe. But from my cogitations on this subject, I
was most agreeably summoned at one o’clock to dinner.
CHAPTER II.
Dinner--Languages of the party--English groom--State of the
neighbourhood of Tolna--System of landowners--English farmers
in requisition--Arrival at Tolna--Battle with dogs--Search for
a bed--Billiards--Cottage delights--Night scene--Hungarian
politics--Wood-boats--Village of Mohacs--Costume of the
natives--Appearance of the streets--Industry of women--Hungarian
ladies and their maids.
We sat down a large and merry party to the table. I must honestly
confess that I enjoy a good dinner at all times, and in all places,
but I fancy that I entertain a particular relish for the performance
of my duties in that way on board a steam-boat. The air, the exercise,
the novelty of the scene, the emulation kindled amongst a number of
candidates for a participation in the spoil, and, perhaps, above all,
the savoury odours of soups and stews, which mingle beforehand with the
atmosphere of the deck, conspire to whet the appetite to a degree of
keenness altogether unknown on _terra firma_.
♦ DINNER ♦
We commenced operations with rice soup, which was followed of course by
_bouilli_; next came sundry dishes of roast fowl, and of fowl cooked as
giblets, and well cooked too. By way of relaxation, we were then invited
to admit a layer of bread pudding upon the said fowls, with a view to
prevent them from finding fault with what was to come after--a prudent
measure; the dinner was closed by capon, served up with plums in their
own syrup for sauce. Upon the whole, notwithstanding the monotony of the
entertainment, it went off, as the theatrical critics say, with _éclat_.
We were not, however, fortunate in our wine: it was pale and sour, a
degree or two beneath small beer. Hungary produces some of the most
exquisite wines in Europe, but I must say that I never had the felicity
to meet with them. Those which are found in ordinary use are truly
detestable.
As soon as the edge of appetite was a little blunted, we became not
only a merry but a noisy party. The Hungarian language prevailed by a
considerable majority, but I happened to sit between a merchant from
Trieste, who spoke a little English, and a medical gentleman from the
Tyrol, who spoke French tolerably. The latter informed me that he had
charge of the Tyrolese families on board, numbering in all nearly a
hundred individuals, who were proceeding on their way to Transylvania,
where they intended to settle, and work mines belonging to the Austrian
government.
♦ LANGUAGES OF THE PARTY ♦
My mercantile neighbour was bound to Peterwardein, whence he was to
journey into the interior, for the purpose of purchasing corn, to be
shipped for Trieste. I was the only Englishman in a party of about forty
persons, and I soon found that I was an object of general attention. All
wondered whither I was going--what were my pursuits--what had brought
me so far from home; and when it became pretty well whispered about
that I was on my way to Constantinople, where the plague was raging
at that moment, according to a thousand reports, in a most formidable
manner, I became not only an object of attention but of sympathy. As
I was altogether unacquainted with the Hungarian language, and my
Hungarian friends knew no other except Latin, I was obliged to turn
out from the recesses of my memory, all that still remained there of
Lilly and Erasmus, in order to answer the questions that were put to me.
We were consequently all speedily arranged upon a footing of agreeable
intercourse, the ladies and myself only excepted, for very much to my
chagrin, they spoke no dialect save their own Hungarian. Even the little
elegant countess was ignorant of French and Italian; but I afterwards
found that the education of the fair sex in Hungary, had been hitherto,
at least, wholly neglected.
I was much pleased with my new companions. They exhibited towards each
other, and towards myself, so much good nature, they were so frank in
their discourse, so cheerful, so full of anecdote, so easily provoked to
laughter, in which they indulged with all the heartiness of children,
that I felt the greatest interest in poring over this new page of the
volume of society. Even when I did not understand the language in
which their conversation was carried on, I could collect its general
meaning from the tone, the look, the animated gestures by which it was
accompanied. After coffee our “house” adjourned.
♦ ENGLISH GROOM ♦
The engineer of the boat, a skilful, active, goodhumoured young man,
from Birmingham, named Pearce, made my acquaintance in the course of the
evening, and pointed out to me, among the crowd before the mast, another
Englishman, near whom was sitting a very pretty German young woman, whom
he had just brought from Vienna as his wife. I went forward and spoke to
this man, whom I found remarkably intelligent for his station. He was
on his way home, his home for the present being the village of Tolna,
where we were likely to arrive about sunset. He had lived for some time
with the Count Tedische, a Hungarian nobleman of extensive possessions
in that part of the country, who, like most of his “order,” made a point
of having an English groom to take care of his stud. From this post,
however, the newly-married exile was about to be elevated to the rank
of the count’s bailiff, or steward. The account which he gave me of the
state of the district in which he lived, was not much calculated to
encourage emigration thither from England.
♦ STATE OF TOLNA ♦
“In former times,” said he, and I give very nearly his own words, “it
was the custom for the emperor to give a title of nobility to every
person who in battle killed his man. These titles unfortunately became
hereditary; the consequence of which is, that almost every second man
you meet in Hungary either is really noble or affects to be so. The
great mass of this kind of aristocracy are wretchedly poor. They are too
proud to work, and having no property they live by plunder. They go,
sir--you coming fresh from England will hardly believe it--these fellows
go in the noonday to a field of Indian corn, the best they can find in
the neighbourhood, with horses and waggons, which they have begged or
seized for their purpose; they cut down as much of the corn as they
please, and then carry it away openly, as if it had been the regular
produce of their own industry; the poor farmer looking on all the time,
perhaps, from a distance, afraid even to be seen, for it would be as
much as his life is worth to offer the slightest resistance to their
proceedings! For this robbery there is no redress. This is not all.
These marauders choose to fall out with a man--they do so easily enough
for they are dreadfully quarrelsome--they attack him, and kill him.
For such a crime there is no punishment; whereas, if one of themselves
happen to be killed in the fray, they obtain redress immediately. They
give themselves the name of Aidelmen, which seems to be a passport of
impunity for every species of wickedness.”
♦ SYSTEM OF LANDOWNERS ♦
“These Aidelmen are in some degree imitated by a still more desperate
set of vagabonds, who prowl in bands all over the country. Six or seven
of these ruffians come into your house of a night, and live upon you
as long as it may suit their convenience. If you do not receive them
hospitably as guests, give them abundance to eat, drink with them, talk
with them, and make them welcome in every way, they will most probably,
after consuming all your store of provisions, beat you to a mummy before
they go. They then elude pursuit by hiding in the woods.”
♦ ENGLISH FARMERS ♦
“I must admit, at the same time, that the Hungarians who do not belong
to either of these two classes of plunderers, are in general a very
good sort of people, as the world goes. To be sure, they will cheat
in bargaining if they can; but in other respects they are friendly,
goodnatured, and trustworthy. They are for the most part engaged
in agriculture. The system of the landowner is this: He sends round
the neighbourhood, by beat of drum, to proclaim that he has a certain
portion of land to let. The peasants who are willing to take this land
in shares, enter into an agreement to that effect; they cultivate their
tenements, and deposit the produce in the landlord’s granary: each
tenant is entitled to half the produce of his labour. Upon the same plan
all agricultural work is done. Those who thresh or tread out the corn,
for instance, receive a fifth in kind. The clergy have for the most part
portions of land settled on themselves, but tithes are still payable in
some places to the landlord.”
♦ ARRIVAL AT TOLNA ♦
“This simple custom works generally very well--indeed I do not know how
it could be altered, seeing that there is so little money current in any
part of Hungary. At the same time, I believe the landowners in general,
and the count in particular, would be extremely glad to get over some
English farmers here, if such a thing was possible, which I think it
is not, for few of my countrymen would long endure the Aidelmen. As
for myself, I have at present very little land, though I hope to have
more. I am now getting used to the thing, and begin to bear it with some
degree of indifference; but I assure you, sir, if I had a livelihood in
old England, I should be very glad to be back there again. To be sure, I
am looked up to at Tolna by my neighbours, and respected by the count’s
friends, on account of the great success which his horses generally meet
with at our races--for we have, I assure you, very fair meetings of that
kind, which have tended very much to improve the breed throughout the
country.”
My intelligent informant’s discourse was here broken off, as we had
just arrived (half-past six o’clock) at Tolna, where we cast anchor
for the night. The idea of stopping here until the morning was to me
incomprehensible, as the moon, though on the wane, would soon in this
climate turn the night almost into day. But the sandbanks!--at that
awful sound the captain shook his head, and so we had no alternative.
No chart of the river had yet been engraved; but it was understood that
one was in progress, of which future passengers might profit perhaps.
Our fate was sealed against the slightest chance of any thing like a
nocturnal expedition.
♦ BATTLE WITH DOGS ♦
“Well, at all events,” thought I, “I shall go into the village, and
find a bed, if such a thing there be;” for I would have gladly avoided,
if I could, the necessity of “roughing it” on a bench in the cabin.
Accordingly, after all the passengers who were bound for Tolna had
landed, together with nearly the whole of our Tyrolese, men, women, and
children, I stepped on shore, having been recommended by the “bailiff”
to put up at the “Black Eagle.” As he was necessarily engaged himself
in debarking some furniture for his new house, he called a sprightly
lad of his acquaintance from amidst a group on the bank, and directed
him to marshal me the way to the inn. This lad not only came himself,
but brought with him a whole “tail” of his companions, some of whom ran
before, some beside, others behind me, along the sandy pathway leading
to the village, which was nearly a mile distant. It was rather fortunate
that I had this _posse comitatus_ in my service, as, upon approaching
the “Black Eagle,” we were met by such a numerous troop of fierce dogs,
which seemed to have assembled from all parts of Tolna, as if to dispute
our entrance, that we were obliged to come to a regular engagement.
Victory having declared on our side, we proceeded onward until we
arrived at the inn gate, where my escort disappeared in an instant,
scampering off in all directions, as the dogs were rapidly rallying once
more for action, barking as if they meant to assail even the “Black
Eagle” itself. I took good care to close the gate after me, and directed
my steps at once to the kitchen, where a prodigal fire was blazing, and
the landlady, as well as her whole household, were running about in an
indescribable hurry.
♦ SEARCH FOR A BED ♦
Upon presenting myself to the presidentess of the “Black Eagle,” I
signified to her, as well as I could, that I wanted a bed; but she was
so entirely preoccupied in cutting up a quarter of a calf for a variety
of parties who were clamouring for supper, she had so many orders to
give her maids, and had so many pots and pans stewing on the hearth,
that, after repeated exertions, I gave up the toil of soliciting her
attention. I stepped forth, therefore, upon an expedition of discovery
for myself, resolved, if I could find a chamber disengaged, to establish
my proper person therein, without further ceremony. My first attempt was
rather unfortunate; for, on opening a door, I happened to light upon a
woman just stepping into bed, her husband being about halfway towards
the same enviable destination. My second effort was not more successful;
for the room I opened was apparently a receptacle for stores of every
description--grapes, flour, oats, onions, casks of wine, hay, and broken
chairs. Courageously persevering in my tour of the house, I next found
myself in the presence of a nurse and three or four children, all of
whom were strenuously engaged in the duty of squalling as loud as they
could. Finding, upon a further examination, that I had no chance of
attaining my object, I resolved to wait awhile until the business of
supper was over, when I thought madame might be able to think of me for
a moment; but, on entering the public room, I had the gratification to
observe that it was full of the Tyrolese families, who, having procured
some milk, were distributing it with paternal and maternal assiduity
among their infant generations. Some of the men were drinking wine, some
were eating supper, others were trying to sleep on a table, or on the
floor, amidst the cries of children, the scolding of mothers, songs,
shouting, dancing, and other peaceable amusements.
♦ BILLIARDS ♦
♦ COTTAGE DELIGHTS ♦
Not yet despairing of fortune, I proceeded to a neighbouring apartment,
which turned out to be a billiard-room crowded with Austrian officers,
who were playing at billiards, or standing round the table enveloped
in an atmosphere of vapour arising from Hungarian tobacco--the most
potent, and to a non-smoker the most offensive, I believe, that has yet
been manufactured. Not being in a mood for suffocation, I speedily
effected my escape, and had the consolation to behold myself once more
in the yard of the Black Eagle, in one corner of which a butcher was
engaged in skinning a newly killed sheep by the light of a lamp which a
swarthy peasant, in an immense hat and a blanket cloak, was holding up
for him. Having at length very reluctantly resolved that my expedition
was an entire failure, hearing no more of the dogs, and presuming that
they were by this time all asleep, I set out upon my return to the
steam-boat. As I passed along through the village, I could not help
looking in at a window where a light was glimmering: the room within
was decently furnished, and a pretty young mother was playing with a
baby in its nightclothes, before putting it to bed. The smiles of the
little angel, and the exuberant joy of the parent, afforded a spectacle
of perfect happiness, which made me forget my late disappointment, and I
resumed my way in good humour with all the world.
♦ NIGHT SCENE ♦
The stars were shining in the blue ocean of the sky like so many islands
of fire. The moon had just risen above the margin of the horizon
between two of those beauteous worlds, and, though divested of half
her light, flung a long pathway of silver on the surface of the Danube.
The Lyre was peculiarly brilliant, a constellation which I had many an
hour admired and endeavoured to explore from my own garden at home,
accompanied by her who shares in all my thoughts and feelings. Though
wandering alone in a foreign land, I thus found familiar friends every
where in nature around me. The silence of the scene, disturbed only now
and then by the bark of a village cur; the low soothing murmur of the
broad river, the recollections which its celebrated name kindled in my
memory, detained me loitering on the shore until a chorus, sung by a
group of Tyrolese, who were returning to our vessel, reminded me that
it was time to follow their example.
♦ HUNGARIAN POLITICS ♦
Finding my companions at supper I was very glad to join them. They
were in the midst of Hungarian politics, two of them being deputies on
their way home from the diet. I have seldom met a more engaging person
than the Count P----, who appeared to have taken an active part in the
business of the legislature. He was inexhaustible in anecdotes about
his fellow-deputies, and the mode in which the national affairs were
carried on. Eloquent, cheerful, offhand, and thoroughly conversant with
human nature, he often placed the most serious things in a ridiculous
point of view, which kept the table in roars of laughter. His features
beamed with benevolence, and I was not surprised afterwards to learn,
that in his own county of Presburg, where he has ample possessions, he
is universally beloved. He had frequently the goodness to explain to
me in Latin the political parts of his conversation. He said that the
diet was the mere image of what it ought to be according to the ancient
constitution of the country. Many of the deputies were determined on
eventually effecting a reform, but from motives of personal respect for
the then reigning emperor, they would take no steps during his lifetime.
Under a new sovereign, however, they would certainly insist upon the
restoration of the Hungarian constitution. I had more than once occasion
to remark, that politics were by no means forbidden topics in this
country: they are in fact as freely spoken of as in France or England.
No notice is ever taken by the authorities of this liberty of speech;
I have heard even the authorities themselves discuss public questions
without the slightest reserve. The freedom thus generally enjoyed must
be founded not only on custom, which cannot be changed, but upon a sense
of inherent strength with which it might be dangerous to tamper.
♦ WOOD-BOATS ♦
We set off the next morning from Tolna at half-past four o’clock, and
again passed by a number of those picturesque-looking mills already
mentioned. The bank on our right ran along the edge of a vast forest.
I should have liked to sketch some peasants, who were waiting by the
river-side for a boat to convey to one of the mills several sacks of
wheat, which they had brought to be ground. The morning being rather
cold they were wrapped up in their great cloaks, their large hats
pressed low over their brows. They were accompanied by two or three
women, and near them were several wicker cars, which appear to be
generally used in Hungary. A wood-boat, as it is called, was making its
way down the river. It consists, in fact, of four boats which are lashed
together for the purpose of carrying the long timber, that is found in
great abundance and of pretty good quality in the neighbouring forest.
Its cabin is a very frugal affair, being composed only of half-a-dozen
boards raised near the prow in a slanting direction from side to side.
Beneath this shade the operations of cooking and sleeping went on.
♦ MOHACS ♦
We passed in the course of the day by several long straggling villages,
near which I observed some apparently fine vineyards. Certainly the
grapes with which our table was served were among the most delicious
I had ever tasted, and I cannot but think that the inferiority of the
Hungarian wine, in general is to be attributed to the mode in which
it is manufactured. If the process were improved, and more attention
bestowed upon the quality than upon the quantity produced, I have no
doubt that the wines of Hungary would rival even those of Spain, which I
take to be the best in Europe.
At noon we stopped at Mohacs to take in wood and coals. This latter
valuable article is found at a short distance in the interior of the
country: the coals are small and stony, but they form a strong fire when
mingled with wood. The operation of getting them on board being a very
tedious one, we all went on shore to take a stroll through the town. A
large and highly respectable-looking family were waiting in a handsome
phaeton on the bank for the Count P----, who met them in the most
affectionate manner. They were attended by a troop of “followers,” as
an Irishman would say, who kissed the count’s hand, and seemed delighted
to have him once more among them. A decent elderly woman, who must have
been his nurse, wept for joy. She, and one or two fine youths who seemed
to be entitled to higher privileges, kissed not his hand but his arm!
I looked on at this meeting with great interest, and when the carriage
drove away with the count, I felt, under the impression that he was not
to return, as if I had lost a friend whom I had long known.
♦ NATIVE COSTUME ♦
The bank was soon crowded with groups of peasantry, men and women,
extremely well-looking, who had assembled chiefly to gaze on the
wonders of the steam-boat. The former were loosely clothed in shirts,
waistcoats, and loose trousers, all made of coarse canvass. The trousers
were so wide that at a distance they looked like petticoats. Their hats
were of the usual Hungarian dimensions, and they generally wore sandals
without stockings. The head-dress of the women consisted for the most
part simply of a blue handkerchief, which was tied under the chin. They
wore neither stockings nor sandals. Their gowns were of ordinary calico,
blue, red, green, plainly printed, I presume of German manufacture.
Some twenty of these women, the younger of whom were decorated with a
profusion of different coloured necklaces of glass or coral beads, were
seated in a semicircle selling fruit. Their baskets were heaped with
walnuts, magnificent grapes, and apples. A wicker car was also speedily
in attendance, laden with some of the finest melons and plums I ever
saw. The latter were of a deep red colour, and of the most tempting
ripeness. When the Tyrolese began to market with these fruit-venders, an
artist might have found in the scene a picturesque variety of character
and costume.
♦ APPEARANCE OF THE STREETS ♦
Though the Hungarians call Mohacs a town I should rather say that it
is a large village, built with the most rustic simplicity. The houses
generally consist of mud walls, roofed with long reeds, each being
surrounded by a high wicker fence, which encloses a considerable space
of ground, including a farm-yard, a well, with the primitive lever for
raising the bucket, and sometimes a garden. Rows of these detached
houses form several irregular streets, which are planted with shady
trees, on each side. Cocks were crowing in all directions, otherwise one
would scarcely have thought that the place had been inhabited, such was
the silence that prevailed. Even the dogs were mute, sleeping, perhaps,
through the noonday heat. The gable ends of the cottages generally faced
the street, the roof being carried a foot or two beyond the walls, on
which, or upon the window-sills, were strung in the sun, quantities of
a rich-looking green and ruby fruit, here called the golden apple, and
resembling our girkin in form. It is preserved for pickling, is full of
seeds, and even before being pickled is not disagreeable to the taste. I
tried to get into the two churches which belong to the village, but they
were locked. Their external appearance was decent.
♦ INDUSTRY OF WOMEN ♦
The coals and wood were carried to our boat in wheelbarrows by a number
of muscular, active, hardworking girls; hundreds of men were loitering
on the bank, not one of whom could be prevailed upon to assist in the
labour, through sheer laziness. We were consequently detained more
than three hours by an operation, which ought to have been completed
within less than half the time, as the depôt was within twenty yards of
the river. For their industry on this occasion these poor girls, who
went through the work with indefatigable cheerfulness, received only
portions of flax, respectively equivalent to about two or three pence of
our money.
♦ HUNGARIAN LADIES ♦
While these girls were engaged in their task, the first crowd of
spectators gradually dispersed, and left the scene open to some more
respectable groups, who came to gratify their curiosity. Several
young ladies appeared in their hair, which was tastefully arranged,
protected from the sun by parasols, and in other respects attired in the
English style. They were attended by their maids, who also displayed
their ringlets, and but for the smart white aprons by which they were
distinguished, might have been mistaken for their mistresses. These
attractions had the usual effect of summoning also to the general
rendezvous, the beaux of the neighbourhood who were for the most part
apparelled in black velvet vests, and white trousers: a short white
cloak decorated at the collar with red worsted lace, and conspicuously
exhibiting a red cross in front, being carelessly thrown over the left
shoulder.
CHAPTER III.
Steam-boat aground--Tyrolese melodies--Night scene--“Hanger
on”--Auction at cards--Knave of clubs game--How to float a
steamer--Military valet--Kamenitz--Odescalchi convent--Parting
game--Kissing--Neusatz--Carlovitz--Semlin--Greek church--Plague at
Constantinople--Belgrade--Semendria--Magnificent expanse of the
Danube--Islands of enchantment--Sunset--Spirits of the Danube.
♦ STEAM-BOAT AGROUND ♦
We took our departure from Mohacs soon after three o’clock in the
afternoon, having in the mean while dined on vermicelli soup, bouilli
served up with beetroot, roast fowl presented on a couch of stewed
cabbage, beef steaks, boiled rice sweetened and browned before the fire,
together with roast capon, accompanied as usual by plum sauce. I was
glad to see Count P---- once more in his place at the table. From the
appearance of some fishing-boats which I saw for the first time on the
Danube, about two hours after we left Mohacs, I flattered myself with
the hope that we began to enter the deepest part of the river, which as
it was now full a mile in width, was well entitled to be described as an
inland sea. The banks indeed were still low and sandy, which detracted
from its beauty. In the distance on the right, a sugar-loafed mountain,
rising above the summit of a range of hills, indicated an approaching
change of scenery; while we perceived the commencement of a forest on
our left, lower down the river: but in other respects the country around
us was altogether uninteresting. While I was indulging in a day-dream
upon the novelties I was about to encounter, a sudden shock, of no great
violence, however, warned us all that we were absolutely aground. The
captain treated the accident with entire indifference, and it was not
until he found that we were literally imbedded in the sand that he even
thought of despatching a man in the small boat to sound the river on
either side. We had the mortification to observe that in every part of
the river at the distance of a few feet from the steamer, there was an
over-abundance of water, and that had we industriously sought for a
sandbank on which to run the vessel, by no effort of skill could we have
found it any where except on the very spot where we were now detained.
Instead of making any immediate exertions to extricate the boat from
this disagreeable situation, our captain walked up and down the deck for
a while, looking vacantly around him, scarcely knowing what to do. An
anchor was at length borne out to a distance and thrown into the river,
with a slight rope attached to it, which was carried round the axle of
the windlass. The men were then set to work with a view, by pulling at
the anchor, to shift the boat from its unfortunate position; but the
rope was no sooner strained than it broke; it was tied and broke again
and again, until every body saw that the cord was much too slender for
the purpose. It was at length suggested that the only course which
remained was to lighten the vessel of its cargo, when it would probably
float of itself; but as this was an operation that would occupy some
hours, and the day had now nearly reached its close, we were obliged to
content ourselves with remaining motionless for the night.
♦ TYROLESE MELODIES ♦
The Tyrolese considerately resolved to console us all under our
misfortune, by singing in concert some of their choicest national
melodies. They had amongst them an admirable base, and two or three
excellent treble voices, which gave with great effect the leading
stanzas; the whole, men and women, joined in the chorus. It was a
singular musical entertainment on the bosom of the broad Danube: and
ought to have had the Alps to re-echo the songs of the hunter, and the
wild tones of the shepherd, which lost some portion of their cheering
influence by being flung along these quiet waters. We could not but
perceive that the simple people mingled with the song, feelings of
remembrance that they were already far from their native mountains, to
which they were never to return.
♦ NIGHT SCENE ♦
The evening was beautiful. A warm golden tinge illumined the atmosphere
all round the horizon; while, in the transparent azure of the concave
above, myriads of worlds were exulting in their light, visited now and
then by meteors which passed like seraphic messengers from one region
of the heavens to another. The waning moon rose late, and so low in the
firmament that it seemed an apparition evoked by some enchantress from
the waters around us. While I was contemplating this scene my attention
was disturbed by a tremendous fire which broke out at some distance
beyond the forest on our left. A column of dense smoke ascended in
the sky, which reflecting the blaze below seemed itself an unearthly
conflagration. In a little time the whole of the horizon in that
direction appeared to be in flames; we concluded that the fire which had
probably begun in some village, as is often the case in this country,
had reached the forest. The flames were reflected also in the Danube,
and appeared to have threatened more than common dangers in their
course, as we heard in the far distance the sound of horns spreading the
alarm.
♦ “HANGER ON.” ♦
In the cabin, however, we all assembled in our usual spirits. The
Countess N---- was the object of marked attention on the part of the
gentlemen, amongst whom, I must confess, she distributed her smiles
with laudable impartiality. Her sparkling black eyes evinced no want
of self-possession, nor could I perceive that she was much distressed
by her separation from her husband. The Count P---- was accompanied on
his return from Mohacs by a kind of “hanger on,” a military man, poor
but merry, and though to the count habitually obsequious, a goodnatured
fellow. He spoke French fluently. In the course of several conversations
which I had with this decayed gentleman, who seemed to know something
of the world, he fully confirmed all I had hitherto heard of the spirit
of liberty which prevails generally amongst the Hungarians, and of their
fixed determination to convert their diet into a real representation of
the kingdom. The example of England, he said, was not unknown to his
countrymen, who greatly admired her institutions.
♦ AUCTION AT CARDS ♦
After supper we played at a round game called the “auction.” The dealer
held up a certain number of cards, taken indiscriminately from the
pack, and sold them to the highest bidders. When the auction, which was
conducted by Count P---- with infinite drollery, came to a conclusion,
the produce was collected and divided into four or five prizes, the
first being the highest, and the others lessening in proportion. The
remainder of the pack was distributed amongst the players. A second
pack was then given to the dealer, who drew from it at hazard, without
permitting any body to see them, as many cards as there were prizes to
be contended for. These cards so drawn were placed separately on the
table, and on the back of each a prize was deposited. He next proceeded
to turn up successively the remainder of the second pack, comparing
each card as it appeared with those held by the players, who laid down
a corresponding card until the second pack was exhausted. Consequently
there would at that period remain in their possession only the cards
which corresponded with those under the prizes: these latter cards were
finally displayed with due solemnity, and those who were the fortunate
holders of similar ones won the prizes placed upon each. I have never
seen a round game so productive as this was of interest, curiosity, and
merriment.
♦ KNAVE OF CLUBS GAME ♦
Another laughter-stirring game was this: All the knaves, except the
knave of clubs are discharged from the pack. The cards are then dealt
out to the party in hands of five each. If the party be not numerous
enough to exhaust the pack at the first deal, then the hands are
increased to eight or ten, in order to accomplish that purpose. The
player who holds two cards of the same class--for instance, two aces, or
two queens--puts them away, but he is not entitled to get rid of more
than two at a time. The leading hand, on the left of the dealer, if he
hold two such cards, turns them up, and places them in the middle of
the table; if he do not hold a pair then the lead passes on to him who
does. After losing these two cards he then places the cards remaining
in his hand on the table, back upwards. His neighbour next takes one
card out of the hand so laid down, makes a pair if he can in order to
reduce his hand in the same manner, and puts down the remainder. The
third player follows the same course, and it is obvious that as the
company hold amongst them two pairs of all the cards except the knaves,
the knave of clubs must ultimately fall to the lot of some unfortunate
wight. He or she, for this game knows no distinction of sex, is then
decorated with a black eye, or a pair of moustaches, by means of a burnt
cork. This is a game not merely of fun but of absolute riot; for the
operation of painting being usually resisted, the available force of the
company is called out to carry the law into execution.
♦ FLOATING A STEAMER ♦
At an early hour the following morning (26th) a large flat-bottomed boat
was rowed alongside our steamer, and the crew with the assistance of
our Tyrolese in a few hours transferred the greater part of the cargo
from one vessel to the other. The steamer having been thus materially
frightened, rose from its bed in the sand and floated into deeper water,
where it was reloaded and about one o’clock in the afternoon we resumed
our voyage. While the removals of the cargo were going on I observed
that the cases in which it was contained were usually directed in the
Latin language, in a style of which the following is a specimen:
“Spectabili ac Perillustri Domino Francisco Najmay.”
♦ MILITARY VALET ♦
The scenery on either side of the river continued, during the whole
of the day, as uninteresting as that which we had already passed. The
country on the left was still occupied by forests. On the right I
observed the ruins of an old fortification, of which a round tower and
the principal castle remain. Here and there on the same bank we noticed
villages built after the fashion of Mohacs. Immense flights of wild
ducks appeared from time to time, but we found it impossible to get
a shot at any of them, very much to the disappointment of a military
aspirant, who was valet to the Tyrolese doctor. This man was always
dressed in a hussar jacket and tight pantaloons, over which he wore
Hessian boots, with enormous spurs attached to them. It was amusing to
see him wait upon his master of a morning in this attire, with towel and
basin in his hand, or perhaps a clean shirt, or perhaps a pestle and
mortar to mix up some drugs. I have no doubt, such was the ludicrous
military vanity of this fellow, that of the two he would much rather
lose his place than his spurs, which, by the by, were perpetually
tripping him up. He disdained to mingle with the colonists, unless when
he was commissioned to administer a dose, a duty which he performed with
very visible reluctance.
During the evening, the deck before the mast seemed to have been turned
into a barber’s shop, the operator being one of the Tyrolese _women_,
who went through her labours with such admirable skill and expedition,
that even the gentlemen availed themselves of her services. When this
necessary office was over, prayers were said by the Tyrolese, who all
assembled together for that purpose, after which an elderly matron
sprinkled holy water amongst them.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
KAMENITZ.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
♦ KAMENITZ ♦
The towns of Vuckovar and Kamenitz, which we passed by without visiting
the following day (27th), appeared, at a distance on our right, to be
of some importance. The former boasts of a fine convent for monks,
and several churches, which to us, at least, seemed more than usually
handsome. Trees shaded the streets as usual. Several boats laden with
black earthenware were in its little port, and groups of girls were
engaged at the river-side in procuring supplies of water, which they
took away in pitchers, suspended at the extremities of an elastic pole,
which was balanced on the right shoulder. Wicker cars were busily
driving in and out of the town, and in a field near it a troop of
cavalry were exercising their horses.
♦ ODESCALCHI CONVENT ♦
Not far from Vuckovar, on an abrupt hill, which immediately overlooks
the Danube, there is another monastery, said to have been erected by
a prince of the house of Odescalchi, an Italian family, whose wealth
was at one period of their career supposed to be inexhaustible. The
establishment belongs to the Franciscans, and appeared to be almost a
town in itself.
The country as we approached Peterwardein improved rapidly upon us.
On our right undulating hills, wooded with shrubs, villages prettily
situated on the heights, their church spires rising above the trees,
which no village is without, announced a more fertile, a more populous,
and a more cultivated part of Hungary than we had seen since our
departure from Pesth. I remained generally on deck, watching the
variations of scenery which presented themselves, as in a moving
panorama. I did not fail, however, to mingle with my fellow-passengers
occasionally, for whom the aspect of the country had not the same
attractions of novelty. I found the gentlemen whenever I went down
almost constantly engaged at cards--and the ladies knitting, or telling
each other’s fortunes on cards, or arranging them on the table in a
diversity of figures, which required no little ingenuity, the result of
many a long idle hour’s experience.
♦ PARTING GAME ♦
I have no objection myself to a merry round game for an hour or so at
night, or to a determined rubber or two of whist at the same genial
season; but I have an invincible distaste for any such amusement, under
any circumstances whatever, in the light of day. This my new friends
soon found out, and they could not account for it, though I explained it
as an affair of habit. However one auction game, they said, we must have
before we separated, in which the whole cabin must be interested, and
the first prize was to be accompanied by a licence to the winner, if a
gentleman, to kiss every lady on board. My gallantry was touched by this
proposal, and, of course, I sat down at the table, upon which there was
a general shout of triumph.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
PETERWARDEIN.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
The ladies joined in the game, as they said, for their own protection;
but it was plain enough that none of them wished to win the first prize,
though it was equally clear, that they were anxious it should not fall
to the lot of a huge Hungarian sergeant, whom Count P----, for the
drollery of the contrast between this man and the delicate countess, had
purposely invited from before the mast, to participate in our contest. I
need not say that great was the rivalry at the auction, over which the
count, as usual, presided, so that the prices at which the cards were
knocked down, went far beyond all former example.
♦ KISSING ♦
In due course the cards were drawn for the prizes and placed under
them--the ladies were already preparing, by coquettish smiles and
transient blushes, and gentle palpitations, for the visitation they were
about to undergo. At length the ominous card was called out, when lo! to
the mortification, most especially of the young Tyrolese doctor, and to
the consternation of the pretty countess, the sergeant proved to be the
happy man! Her ladyship with inimitable grace allowed the cyclop to kiss
her hand, with which he had the good taste to be contented; but he had
ample revenge, amidst peals of laughter, on a dry old maid, whom nobody
would have kissed but himself.
♦ NEUSATZ ♦
We arrived at Neusatz, opposite Peterwardein, at two o’clock; and after
dinner, at which we drank to each other’s health and happiness with
feelings of kindness, if not of friendship, whose evident sincerity and
warmth showed that the moment of separation was not without pain on all
sides, I found myself almost alone in the cabin. My fellow-passengers
took leave of me in the most warmhearted terms, and I think I never felt
so desolate as I did during the remainder of that evening.
The boat having been detained for an hour at Neusatz I strolled through
the town, which consists of long straggling streets recently built,
and full of shops, in which were sold toys, grocery, clothes, censers,
ironmongery, tinware, earthenware, wooden bowls, dishes, and trenchers,
all of very rude fashion, and jewellery of an ordinary description. I
saw several Greek priests here, in long cloth cassocks, shovel hats, and
long beards. They were remarkably neat in their persons, and humble in
their demeanour. The principal church of the town had not much to boast
of, except a series of ensigns which were taken during the Austrian wars
with Turkey.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
NEUSATZ.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
♦ CARLOVITZ ♦
Neusatz is connected by a bridge of boats with the more ancient town
of Peterwardein, on the opposite bank of the Danube, which is defended
by one of the strongest fortresses on the river. The works are erected
on a lofty rock, naturally very difficult of access from the river,
and protected on the land side by extensive bastions and towers, which
exhibit a formidable appearance. The place was well garrisoned.
Five of the boats which contributed to sustain the bridge having been
disconnected at one end from the line, and suffered to yield to the
force of the current, they gradually swung round together with that
portion of the bridge upon them, so as to afford an opening through
which we passed on our way down the river. Our cabin passengers were now
reduced to four; a little humdrum widow, who never ceased to chatter,
the Tyrolese doctor, a young surgeon who joined him from Neusatz, and
myself. Carlovitz, a town prettily situated on the side of a hill, and
celebrated for its wines, soon attracted observation on our right. The
hills gradually increased in boldness as we proceeded, until night
veiled them from our view, when we cast anchor in the middle of the
stream. The sky was overcast with clouds, threatening a disagreeable
change of weather. I took refuge from an oppressive sense of loneliness
in some books which I had fortunately brought with me.
♦ SEMLIN ♦
About nine o’clock on the following morning (28th), the spires of Semlin
appeared in view, and a little further down the river the cupolas and
minarets of Belgrade. The steamer having cast anchor before the former
place, I immediately went ashore, and explored its curiosities. It
being Sunday the church bells were ringing in all directions, and the
market, which was well supplied with vegetables and fruit, including a
peculiarly fine species of green water-melon, was thronged with people
decked out in several varieties of holiday costume, Hungarian, Greek,
Turkish, and Armenian.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
SEMLIN.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
♦ GREEK CHURCH ♦
After hearing mass in one of the Roman catholic churches, which was
attended by a respectable and, apparently, a very devout congregation,
I went to the church belonging to the Greek catholic form of worship.
As usual in these edifices it had no pews or seats of any description
in the body of the church; near the screen, behind which the altar
was secluded, a few stalls were arranged on each side, not, however,
for sitting but for standing, and a round platform was raised in the
middle, I presume for the lecturer or preacher. The screen, a curious
specimen of the arts of the middle ages, was elaborately carved and
gilt, and ornamented with portraits of the saints, which were painted in
the old Venetian style. In the centre there was a doorway veiled by a
curtain. Very few persons were present at the service, the greater part
of which, according to the rites of the Greek church, was performed with
mysterious secrecy behind the screen: at certain parts of the mass the
curtain was drawn aside, and the ceremonies were then witnessed by those
in attendance. There was no organ, but a small and very indifferent
choir sung, in the ancient Gregorian chant, those portions of the mass
which are commonly set to music.
♦ PLAGUE AT CONSTANTINOPLE ♦
Semlin being the frontier town of the Austrian dominions in that
quarter, where travellers proceeding from Servia, or the interior of
Turkey, are obliged to submit to a quarantine of fourteen days, I was
anxious to hear the latest intelligence concerning the plague, which, I
was informed at Vienna, prevailed in Constantinople to a serious extent.
With the assistance of our engineer, I soon found out a French agent,
who acts as the interpreter of the government; and from him I learned,
with no small pain, that the plague continued to increase, that from
eight hundred to a thousand persons were swept away by it daily; and
that among the most recent victims was Mr. Wood, an Englishman, who was
dragoman to the British embassy. This fact excited some alarm in my
mind, as I had been hitherto taught to believe that the Franks usually
escaped the pestilence, either from their more cleanly habits, their
more substantial diet, or from their residing in a more airy quarter of
the capital. Before we left Semlin, however, an Austrian courier came on
board, who stated that a gentleman in the service of his government had
passed through, from the quarantine station, only the day before, on his
way from Constantinople, and that his report was more favourable. The
plague had undoubtedly been very violent; but it had latterly been on
the decline. The post from Semlin to Constantinople usually takes nine
days; and I was assured that the latest letters fully confirmed this
intelligence.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
BELGRAD.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
♦ BELGRADE ♦
We quitted Semlin at noon, and passed by Belgrade, keeping, however, as
close as possible to the Hungarian bank of the Danube, in obedience to
the quarantine laws, which are enforced here with the utmost rigour.
The city, which is associated with so many interesting recollections
of the wars between Austria and the Ottoman empire, looks a splendid
collection of mosques, with their white tall minarets, palaces with
their domes, gardens, cypresses, and shady groves. The citadel, which
is strongly fortified, occupies a lofty hill that overlooks every part
of the town, and is well calculated for its defence. The palace and
seraglio of the pacha were pointed out to me by our captain; they cover
a considerable space of ground, and exhibit an imposing appearance. A
considerable river, the Theiss, by which it is supposed the cholera
a few years ago found its way into Hungary from Russia, flows into
the Danube a little above Semlin. I expected therefore, to have found
the Danube here exhibiting some signs of grandeur and of commercial
activity: it does, indeed, present a most magnificent sheet of water,
upon which the whole British navy might ride with safety;--but, with the
exception of a few small wherries in which some dirty Turks were fishing
lazily in the sun, there was scarcely a symptom of animation around us.
Belgrade itself looked at a distance like a city of the dead.
♦ SEMENDRIA ♦
The Hungarian side of the river was flat and desolate; the erection
of mud cottages here and there on piles, three or four feet from the
ground, indicated the height to which the river was raised occasionally
by inundations. The cottages which we perceived sometimes on the Servian
shore, were equally miserable, though the country was much higher,
crowned at some distance by finely-wooded hills. By four o’clock in the
afternoon Semendria came in sight. This was once an important naval
station and powerful fortress in the hands of the Turks; but it has for
many years fallen into decay. I saw in its port two brigs of war, of
eight guns each, which had been recently built for the Prince of Servia,
Milosch, by a company of carpenters from the island of Zante. They were
both aground, and appeared to have no chance of being extricated from
their position until the winter. Semendria is prettily situated at the
foot of a hill, which almost approaches to the dignity of a mountain. It
is defended on the side of the Danube by walls and castles in the old
style of fortification, which look picturesque at a distance, but could
afford no protection against the artillery of modern times. The castles
seemed to be the habitation of a numerous tribe of birds. Near the town
I observed a pretty villa, in the grounds belonging to which two ladies
veiled like nuns were promenading.
♦ EXPANSE OF THE DANUBE ♦
The Danube seemed, near Belgrade, an expanse of waters which would have
afforded ample space for the whole of the British navy. We had scarcely
left Semendria behind us when the river became still wider, resembling
indeed a vast lake, sufficient to contain all the navies of the world.
It was here in every respect a truly magnificent object. The more I
became acquainted with this noble river, the greater was my astonishment
that it was so little known to Europe, and hitherto so rarely made use
of for the purposes of commerce. Just as the sun was on the decline,
flinging his last rays on the tranquil mirror beneath us, the Tyrolese
crowded on deck, and favoured us with several of their national songs,
which they performed with infinite spirit. It was the last time I was to
hear them, as we expected to arrive at night at Vipalanka, where they
were to debark on their way to Transylvania.
♦ ISLANDS OF ENCHANTMENT ♦
After passing Kubin, we perceived the commencement of several groups of
islands, which, however beautiful in themselves, diminish the majestic
character the Danube would otherwise have maintained the whole way from
Semendria to Moldava. They occasionally divide the waters into two or
three rivers in appearance; none of which, however, can be considered
as insignificant. The main current which runs by the Hungarian bank
retains uniformly much of the general grandeur of the parent flood.
These islands are densely wooded with osiers and evergreen shrubs, which
afford a safe refuge for waterfowl of every description. Wild ducks, and
geese, frequently rose in clouds one above another in the sky, winging
their way towards their island homes. Now and then a solitary eagle
sailed through the firmament, directing his course to the mountains,
which appeared like pure azure far away on the horizon.
As we proceeded among the islands, we could not avoid admiring the
picturesque order in which they were disposed, the vernal verdure
which every tree and every leaf and every blade of grass exhibited,
while the brown tints of the woods and fields in all other quarters
proclaimed the season of the year. This contrast of decay on one side,
with the blooming freshness of the islands on the other, the variety of
their forms, their shady inlets, their clusters of magnificent shrubs
hung with flowers that sometimes rivalled the rose, sometimes the
strawberry, the snowdrop, the lily, or the blue convolvulus, the wild
beauty of their woods, the deep solitude in which they seemed to be
secluded from all the world, interrupted only by the screams or rushing
sounds of countless birds hastening to their shores, gave them a most
romantic appearance, especially in the golden light of evening which
still lingered around them.
♦ SUNSET ♦
The unruffled surface of the Danube reflected the whole canopy of the
sky, and gave back in softened tones the saffron, ruby, and purple lines
of fire which still glowed in the west. The image of the departing sun
was lengthened in the waters, where it appeared like a perpendicular
column of light. This optical delusion was the more striking, as the
part of the Danube in which we had now arrived was, in fact, little
better than a series of shallows, through which we were steering our
course with the utmost difficulty.
♦ SPIRITS OF THE DANUBE ♦
As soon as the sun went down, the night became rapidly so dark, that I
know not how we should have contrived to pursue our way, had not some
fields of stubble on the left bank been accidentally set on fire. The
flame threw its light far along the river, and materially assisted the
helmsman to keep his track. Here and there, among the inlets of the
islands on the opposite shore, lights also were visible, proceeding from
fires kindled for the purposes of cooking, by fishermen or fowlers,
whose little boats were moored in the neighbourhood. Vast pillars of
smoke moved now and then over the blazing stubbles, assuming the most
fantastic shapes; sometimes, as they apparently flitted along the bank,
they might have been painted by an imaginative spectator as the spirits
of the Danube.
CHAPTER IV.
Windings of the Danube--Civility of the Moldavian--Arrival at
Moldava--Arrangements for voyage to Orsova--A Wallachian beauty--
Flock of geese--Ditto of children--Woodmen--Commencement of mountain
chain--Rustic sounds--Peasantry--Removal to fishing-boat--Our
equipment--Accusation of robbery--Haunt of Wallachian brigands--
Romantic gorge--Caverns.
I was awoke during the night by a violent storm of thunder and
lightning, which I attempted to witness from the deck. The sky was an
entire field of fire, and the thunder pealed incessantly, until at
length the rain fell in warm showers which soon became a deluge. I
was glad to take refuge in my berth again, and slept soundly until a
late hour of the morning (29th), when I found our Tyrolese and their
officers all busily engaged in landing their effects at Vipalanka. The
bank was converted into a marsh by the rain; but, by the assistance of
planks, they succeeded in effecting their object. The village was at a
distance, and its mean appearance did not induce me to pay it a visit.
Nearly opposite to Vipalanka are situated the village and fortress of
Rama, on the brow of a bold and lofty promontory. The fortress still
looks respectable, though partly in ruins; it commands the Danube at
a point where begin those amazing serpentine undulations which form,
perhaps, its most striking characteristic.
♦ WINDINGS OF THE DANUBE ♦
The map will show, that, if a canal were cut in a straight line from
Rama to Vidin, it would be the cord of a vast irregular arch, full
of windings, which indicate the various struggles made by this river
in the early ages of the globe, before and after it forced its way
through the heart of the mountains below Moldava, in its efforts to
reach the Black Sea. Such a canal would save the navigator a period
of full three days, which the mere deviations of the river in that
quarter at present consume. Such a canal would, moreover, avoid some of
the most serious difficulties now impeding the passage of the Danube,
especially in seasons of drought, which are peculiarly felt in the
whole of that interval. I despair of such a work being undertaken for
the next half-century; but I am apprehensive that, until it shall be
accomplished, the steam navigation of the Danube, at least by vessels
of any considerable burden, will be liable to frequent interruptions.
In the river, cranes were wading without any difficulty, so low was the
water in almost every direction.
♦ CIVILITY OF THE MOLDAVIAN ♦
When we departed from Vipalanka for Moldava our passengers were reduced
to the Servian Jew and his pale daughter, the Moldavian adventurer, and
myself. The latter contrived throughout the voyage to amuse himself and
his associates by his inexhaustible stores of poetry and anecdote, but
he had not hitherto addressed himself with any thing like determination
to my attention, or to that of the Jew. Finding, however, that we were
bound further down the river, he gradually mingled in our conversation
by volunteering the information which he possessed concerning the
portion of the voyage we had still to achieve, and conducted himself
with so much civility, that, notwithstanding his objectionable
appearance I began to like the fellow.
♦ ARRIVAL AT MOLDAVA ♦
Although the rain had ceased, the morning continued cloudy; but we were
compensated in some degree for the interruption of the fine weather,
which we lately enjoyed, by the agreeable change of scenery that now
broke upon our view. We glided along, sounding vigilantly however, all
the way, between two ranges of hill, wooded to the top, and opening
now and then into valleys and ravines, in which neat white cottages
were scattered, and shepherds were seen driving their flocks afield.
The bendings of the river were so abrupt that sometimes we could have
imagined ourselves to have entered upon an extensive lake, whence there
was no outlet apparent until we reached the headland round which the
current preserved its course. As soon as we turned that point the scene
behind us was as completely concealed from the eye as if a curtain of
cloud had been dropped upon it.
Fields of Indian corn, hills deeply indented by the rains, and
exhibiting sometimes the appearance of artificial fortresses, sometimes
retiring to a distance, and leaving in front abrupt mounds of the most
fantastic shapes; villages with their churches and steeples on one side,
and churches and minarets on the other; Servians on our right fishing in
little cockle-shells of boats; Hungarians on the left tending herds of
swine; mountains towering in the distance--in turn engaged our attention
until we arrived at Moldava, where we cast anchor at noon.
♦ ARRANGEMENTS ♦
Had the plan of the directors of the enterprise been duly carried into
execution, we should have immediately quitted Moldava in a light boat
owed by four stout Wallachians, and drawing little more than six inches
of water. A neat wherry destined for that purpose was in fact lying
near the village, but to our dismay we were informed that in many parts
of the Danube between Moldava and Orsova, a distance of about seven
leagues, there were not six inches of water, nor even three. The cargo
was intended to be sent on by land, but there was no mode of conveyance
for the passengers except a rough flat-bottomed boat belonging to a
fisherman, who would not permit us to have the use of it, unless it was
committed to his own guidance and rowed by his own comrades. We were
informed by the agent of the company, an Italian, who assumed an air of
great importance, that we should easily reach Orsova in eight hours at
the utmost. Having no choice, therefore, save the flat-bottomed boat, or
a pedestrian tour of twice the distance, over horrible mountain roads,
we submitted to our fate, and it was arranged that the fisherman should
take charge of us at daybreak the next morning.
♦ WALLACHIAN BEAUTY ♦
Moldava is an emporium of some commerce in its way. Several boats were
moored near the bank, laden with hay, which groups of peasants were
engaged in transferring to strong rude cars constructed in the form of a
V. Some fifty or sixty oxen, by which these cars were to be drawn, were
lying on the shore ruminating, or wandering about by way of relaxation.
The cars proceeded to the waterside in succession; in one of these,
which was waiting for its turn, I observed a remarkably fine Wallachian
woman, spinning wool from a distaff in the primeval fashion. She was
attired in a short woollen white mantle, under which was a robe of
printed calico, which, without appearing in front, came down below the
mantle behind. A neat linen chemise was folded in plaits upon her bosom,
beneath which she sported a gay dimity apron, and a canvass petticoat.
Her raven-black hair was carefully divided in front, braided over her
ears, and detained in a knot behind by a tortoiseshell comb, from which
was suspended a snow-white linen veil, that fell on her back gracefully.
Neither shoe nor sandal served to hide her feet, which might have been
chosen by Phidias for the statue of Minerva. This noble-looking woman,
whose features were all of the Grecian mould, was the mother of three
very fine young men, who were standing by her, accompanied by a huge
mastiff, as if their purpose had been to exhibit a living _tableau_ from
the pastoral age and country of Agamemnon.
♦ FLOCK OF GEESE ♦
Amongst the busy group, a young Greek priest recognised some friends.
He seemed a man of authority, in his peaked Shylock-looking hat, black
sutan, cincture of wide blue ribbon, comely beard, and silver-headed
cane. I pitied a little boy who was employed in urging a numerous colony
of geese through the crowd. They seemed very much disposed to prefer
making the journey by water, while he was equally determined in favour
of the dry land. Now a wild dog put them all into confusion, when off
they half-waddled, half-flew, to the edge of the river. Now they were
fairly on the march again, when the leader desirous of cooling his bill,
suddenly gave the word of command. A general mutiny ensued,--the boy ran
breathless after them, throwing sticks and stones, sand and cowdung at
the fugitives, until he succeeded once more in restoring discipline. His
patience was, after many severe trials, eventually rewarded by success.
On another part of the shore some Servians were squatted in a line, with
sacks of onions before them, which they had brought across the river for
sale. A plank was placed between them and their Hungarian customers, who
stood at a little distance, neither being allowed to pass over the plank
which represented the quarantine. The bargains were conducted on the
part of the Servians by a single spokesman, who appeared an extremely
knowing sort of personage.
♦ FLOCK OF CHILDREN ♦
I walked into the village, or rather, I should say, the lower part of
the “town,” which is chiefly inhabited by fishermen. It is inferior in
every respect to Mohacs, the cottages having all roofs of wood, wicker
walls plastered with mud, and even wicker chimneys. As I was strolling
quietly along a troop of almost naked little urchins gathered, shouting,
around me, and grasping my right hand kissed it with tokens of fervour,
which I confess I should have excused under the circumstances, not
knowing exactly what might be the practical recollections impressed on
the said hand of the honours which they thought fit to bestow. A few
small pieces of silver had the effect of dispersing this group, but
also of diffusing information through the whole village of the arrival
of a stranger. Accordingly, as I proceeded, my steps were literally
beset by armies of ragged figures, who claimed my hand. I gave them
to understand, in the course of a regular parley, that I had no more
silver, upon which I was suffered to make a retreat, without being
enabled to visit the upper part of the “town,” where, as I afterwards
learned, much better houses, and a respectable class of inhabitants are
to be found.
♦ WOODMEN ♦
The mountainous scenery of the Danube commences a little below Moldava.
I set out to climb one of the eminences, from which I might command a
view of the country. I had no gun, no arms of any description; nothing
except an umbrella, which I might use in self-defence.--I never, by the
way, encountered an Englishman travelling abroad or at home without an
umbrella: it seems a national distinction.--I do not know that I acted
with much prudence in thus wandering alone and unarmed in a strange, and
I may add, a more than semibarbarous region; the more especially, as in
the course of my excursion among these mountains, I met now and then
savage-looking woodmen returning home from the neighbouring thickets,
driving before them donkies almost hidden beneath their burdens of
brambly firewood, and bearing on their shoulders heavy axes, with which,
if they were so disposed, they might have annihilated me without the
slightest danger of discovery. But in all such cases I was circumspect,
and being nearly as tall and as strong as the ordinary run of men, I had
few apprehensions about encountering at least a single foe, if not taken
unawares.
♦ MOUNTAIN CHAIN ♦
As I ascended I found that the mountains which I trod were but steps
to higher and higher ranges, which rose dimly in the distance, and
appeared to occupy a considerable portion of the country on both
sides of the Danube. By what process the river forced its way among
them--whether they were violently separated from each other by repeated
volcanic operations, or whether the flood created its own channel by
loosening masses of rock and driving them before it--I had no means of
conjecturing. The chain commences here almost like a wall at either side
of the current; but the undulations of the hills which I had observed
on our approach to Moldava, as well as of the lower mountains at some
distance from the banks, strongly favour the supposition that a vast
inundation had accumulated in all that region before an opening was
found for it to the Euxine.
♦ RUSTIC SOUNDS ♦
A few white cottages were sprinkled on the declivities, and swineherds
were seen here and there driving their undisciplined companions
homeward. A train of waggons laden with woolpacks, and drawn by oxen,
whose bells tinkled in the air, was descending from the northern
heights; but on the Servian side of the river all was silence and
desolation. I thought the evening was about to close in abruptly, as
after a slight shower of rain the mountains and hills around me suddenly
put on their mantles of mist. The sun setting with great splendour soon,
however, changed the scene, arraying their prominent slopes in robes of
light, and dispersing the vapours which were fast gathering all round
the horizon.
♦ PEASANTRY ♦
As I returned to my temporary home I loitered, not unpleased, to listen
to the variety of rustic noises which the close of the day brought
with it--the barking of dogs, the still tinkling bells of the oxen
already arrived at the river-side, the crack of the swineherd’s whip,
the distant calls of voices echoing in the mountains, the rare and
sleepy twitter of the birds, the shouts of children in the village,
and the merry sounds of a violin. A few old men and their grown-up
hardy daughters were dredging for minnows in the river, apparently
with little success. The woolpacks were all discharged on the bank,
in order to be loaded the next morning on board the steam-boat, which
was to depart without delay on its return to Pesth. The peasants who
had arrived with the waggons exhibited, to me at least, a singular
appearance. Some were in canvass shirts, trousers, and round woolly
caps, without any other protection against cold or rain; others added
to this attire a goatskin in its natural condition, without being even
trimmed of its superfluities. I could not have distinguished the women
from the men, had not the hair of the former been platted and fastened
under a small linen cap, which was fitted closely on the top of the
head. I soon lost sight of the whole of this motley assemblage in the
dusk of night, when I resumed my old station in the cabin, there being
no such thing as an inn at Moldava.
The Servian Jew found an opportunity of sending his daughter, with some
friends, across the river: he intended to proceed to Vidin. The poet
also was fated to be my companion, as his object was to get back to
Jassy. I own that with all my respect for his talents, and with all the
philosophic patience which I have acquired from some little experience
in travelling, I could not enter into discussion with him, as to the
arrangements necessary to be made for the following morning, without
considerable twinges of reluctance. I had no thought of preparing stores
for the expedition, as I presumed that we should reach Orsova early in
the afternoon. He advised me, however, to provide myself with a cold
chicken or two, and a bottle of rum, a suggestion which I took care
to adopt, though it left me to suspect that my period of inevitable
companionship with himself would be rather longer than I had already
apprehended.
♦ FISHING-BOAT ♦
The morning came in all the breathing brightness of summer, though we
were just on the eve of October. It had been arranged that the fisherman
and his associates should be with us at five o’clock, but they failed to
make their appearance until seven. They excused themselves by asking,
whether any body could have expected that they should commence their
labours before they had breakfasted? Our luggage having been removed
into the flat-bottomed barge, the poet, the Jew, and I assumed our
places, after taking a friendly leave of the captain and the engineer,
from both of whom I experienced every kind of civility which they could
possibly show to a countryman.
♦ EQUIPMENT ♦
The master, or patron of the boat as he is more usually called, was a
short weatherbeaten old man, who had already counted more than seventy
winters. The pupil of one eye was completely dimmed, and of the other
scarcely sufficient remained sound to admit more than a single ray of
light. Yet through that small aperture he issued glances of authority,
which enforced by an imprecation or two, sometimes made the fellows at
the oars wince. His helm was a long oar, which he moved to either side
of the stern as occasion required. The rest of our equipage was in a
very simple, or rather in a very unworkmanlike style. The oars which
were just like our fireshovels, with short handles, were passed through
a noose of thong or rope, tied to a peg in the edge of the vessel, which
noose, or which peg, or which said thong or rope gave way about every
quarter of an hour, another quarter being required for its restoration.
We had three rowers, the excess of velocity at one side being corrected
by the long oar of the patron at the stern.
♦ ACCUSATION OF ROBBERY ♦
We had not gone above two hundred yards from the place of embarkation
when a man came running and shouting after us. We took no notice of
him for a while, thinking that he must have been out of his senses,
so furious were his gesticulations. At length, however, he made us
understand that we had stolen one of his oars, and we were obliged to
put in to shore to answer this charge. After a long controversy, if
controversy that can be called in which our patron and his men, and
their accuser were all talking, scolding, and shouting together, we gave
him up an old oar which he took very discontentedly. About eight o’clock
we were once more fairly on our way.
There being no sort of accommodation for passengers in our bark, I sat
on my portmanteau; the Jew disposed of himself on a piece of carpet
beside me, and in front of him the poet on the bare plank. A space
near the prow was occupied by a woman and her two children. Much to my
surprise, when we arrived in the middle of the river, and I began to
hope our men were resolved to regain the time we had already lost, they
deliberately took in their oars, and opening a wallet of bread, garlic,
and cold fried fish, they proceeded to breakfast. The poet asked whether
they had not performed that operation already, to which they replied
that they had been disturbed at their morning meal, and that they must
now finish it. Our precious bark was therefore left to make its own way
down the river, a mode of travelling at all events possessed of the
advantages of enabling us to observe at our leisure the scenery amidst
which we entered.
♦ WALLACHIAN BRIGANDS ♦
At the entrance of the mountain gorge through which the Danube here
finds its course, stand the ruins of Kolubatz, a pile of castles built
on an almost inaccessible rock, which about a century ago, were occupied
by a band of Wallachian brigands, under the command of Borichour, a
name still repeated with a traditional sort of terror in all that
neighbourhood. His depredations were carried on upon a princely scale,
as he affected to consider himself the legitimate sovereign of the
country around him, as far as he could reach without endangering the
safety of retreat to his own fortress, which he deemed impregnable. The
fishermen tell numberless stories of this celebrated robber and of his
banditti, who are said to have often fought against disciplined troops,
five times their number, with invariable success. When once shut up
within their drawbridge, they defied their enemies, however numerous
these might be, for even if their castles had been all demolished,
they had secret passages through the interior of their rock leading to
caverns in the adjacent mountains, where they had always ample store of
provisions, and feared no pursuit. The ruins are highly picturesque, and
by their formidable position give probability to the wildest tales that
are related of Borichour and his Wallachians.
♦ ROMANTIC GORGE ♦
The Austrian guardhouse on the opposite bank exhibited a miserable
appearance, when compared with these remains of chivalry. It was built
loosely of uncemented stones, with a wooden roof and even a wooden
chimney. A sentinel was looking out lazily at the door, in front of
which was a stand for arms. Near the house an angle of an old castle
attests, that that side of the river also had its fortress in former
days, though not so extensive as Kolubatz.
As we proceeded through this romantic gorge, within which the Danube
was pressed by mountains rising on each side to a considerable height,
we heard repeated explosions, which we might easily have mistaken for
discharges of artillery besieging a citadel. We soon observed, however,
a number of men at work on the Hungarian bank, engaged in widening
the carriage-road, and were informed that further down the river it
was necessary to blow up the rocks for that purpose. The echoes of
these detonations resounding among the mountains and along the waters,
gave peculiar interest to the scene; they spoke of enterprise and
industry well applied, and were the harbingers of national prosperity,
civilization and happiness.
♦ CAVERNS ♦
I observed several caverns in our mountain banks as we went along, and
was informed that some of the boldest rocks which shot up in the most
fantastic peaks were all hollow inside, and occasionally inhabited
by fishermen. In the days of brigandage they served as retreats for
pirates, and all sorts of marauders, who rendered the passage of this
part of the Danube an affair of no slight danger. Occasionally masses of
rock appeared above our heads, depending for support on rude pillars,
in which capitals wrought by the hand of nature might be descried. One
immense buttress rose in the shape of a round tower, near the top of
which a large cavern was visible, accessible by a gateway naturally
arched in the Gothic style.
CHAPTER V.
Pastoral scene--Echoes--Picture of laziness--Rapids of the
Danube--Miller and his men--Pedestrian excursion--Wallachian
shepherdesses--Dancing boors--Priest of the parish--The governor--
George Dewar--Contest between the priest and the poet--Supper--
Musical treat--The Moldavian--Sketch of the inn room--Hospitable
invitation--Triple-bedded room--Latin harangue.
♦ PASTORAL SCENE ♦
Still falling down with the stream, as our rowers had not yet finished
their matin meal, we stole quietly along amid tremendous piles of rock,
which rose higher and higher as we proceeded, sometimes barren of the
slightest traces of vegetation, sometimes covered with brambles the
whole appearing as if they had been made the sport of more than one
volcanic convulsion. A grassy glen opening on our right, exhibiting a
clustre of elms, beneath which a Servian boy was tending his swine, and
amusing himself by playing a simple pastoral air on a reed, offered an
agreeable contrast to the frowning horrors around us. The eye ranged
beyond the glen over a richly-wooded valley, opening far among the
rocks, where a group of women seemed engaged in cooking by a fire, whose
smoke curled upwards among the trees.
The pipe of the swineherd seemed to awaken the musical faculties of
our boatmen, one of whom, a short thickbodied Wallachian, wearing on
his head a woolly sheepskin cap, might have been sketched as the very
personification of indolence. His oar was as short as himself, and
when he did permit it to come in contact with the water, his whole
object seemed to be to move it against the least possible quantum of
resistance. When he sated his appetite for garlic and fish, and washed
down those materials by a draught of some thin wine, which he drank from
a small wooden keg, instead of resuming his appointed labour he began to
sing a Wallachian ballad, of which, the following notes may, perhaps,
afford the musical reader some faint idea.
[Illustration: A musical score.]
♦ ECHOES ♦
It was a wild and melancholy strain, sung with a strong nasal accent;
and in the intervals between the verses, one of our Wallachians, a
lathy, hardy, bareheaded youth, who seemed to have been just brought in
from the woods, set up a shrill abrupt shout, which, from the effect of
the echo, seemed in a little while after to be answered by some voice
far away over the mountains.
When the process of eating had no longer any charms, and the
attractions, even of song, ceased to captivate our boatmen, they
deliberately went to sleep. As the morning was thus wearing fast away,
while we made little progress, the poet and I took the oars, and rowed
until he could hold out no longer. The narrow rocky gorge, through
which we had been stealing our course for upwards of two hours, at
length gradually opened into a wider channel, hemmed in by irregular
hills, thickly wooded with brambles. As the boat was still wandering
down the current, our fellows all fast asleep, it landed somewhat
roughly on a bed of rocks in the middle of the river. The patron awoke
from his dreams in a violent rage, the fire glancing from his diminutive
eyeball, as if we were all about to be lost in an inch or two of water!
♦ PICTURE OF LAZINESS ♦
The boatmen, when they were roused from slumber, seemed scarcely to
know where they were, or what they were to do: oars and poles were
in immediate requisition, and amid shouts of imprecations, commands,
interrogations, replies, rejoinders, and expressions of indignation
and wonder, how such a thing could happen, they endeavoured in vain to
move the vessel from its place of rest. At length the patron compelled
them to get out upon the rocks and shift the boat along, which they did
without much difficulty, restoring us once more to the deeper current.
The completion of this operation was the signal for another hour of
recreation, which our Wallachians devoted to smoking, keeping the while
under their legs the oars high out of the water. I never beheld such a
picture of laziness as that which these men presented. Our patron seemed
to have the faculty of guiding the boat, though wrapped in profound
sleep; and his companions, when they were not eating or drinking, were
either sleeping, smoking, singing, or lounging, any thing save working,
which they continued as much as they possibly could, to avoid.
♦ RAPIDS OF THE DANUBE ♦
So abrupt and frequent were the windings of the Danube, amid the
beauteous hills which form its banks below the narrow gorge of rocks
above described, that often, on looking back, we saw no trace of the
direction by which we had come; nor, on looking before us, could we
discern by what course we were to proceed. We seemed to be shut in on
all sides, as within a mountain lake, from which there was no apparent
egress, until, by turning a little cape, we found ourselves in another
and another lake, in succession. We left this charming scenery behind
us, on approaching the rapids of the Danube, where its bed is wholly
composed of rough rocks, sometimes starting up in masses nearly to the
surface of the river, sometimes forming a wall, running across from
bank to bank, and producing a perceptible fall in the current. We
were warned of the danger to be encountered on passing these rapids,
by the hoarse murmur of the waters which we had heard at a distance.
The obstacles which the river met in its course produced considerable
undulations on its surface, amounting now and then to waves, on which
our bark was hurried away, notwithstanding all the efforts of our
rowers, and dashed against the rocks. Had our boat not been a very
strong one, or had the impulse been somewhat stronger, we should
probably have been wrecked among these rapids, owing chiefly to the
unskilfulness of our people, as well as the ludicrous state of alarm in
which their ignorance involved them.
♦ RAPIDS OF THE DANUBE ♦
♦ MILLER AND HIS MEN ♦
The banks again assumed a wild rocky character, and approached so near
each other, that, when the river is full, the volume of waters which
rush through that space must be terrific. As it was, we were constantly
rubbing on the bottom, and might have walked almost dry-footed on
ledges which extended quite across the stream. The boat was literally
carried over these ledges, as there was not water enough to float it.
Our patron repeatedly told us that he, though seventy-three years old,
had never known the Danube so low as it was upon that occasion. In the
almost perpendicular wall which rose on our right, there was a singular
_lusus naturæ_ on a gigantic scale--it was the complete figure of a
water-mill and mill-house petrified, and slightly crushed by an enormous
rock which had fallen upon it from the higher precipices. The face of
the superincumbent mass presented the figure of a monk preaching from
a pulpit; and it only required the existence of a legend, to induce a
superstitious mind to believe, that the “miller and his men” had been
notorious criminals--that the monk had come to reprove them--and that,
while he was still vainly exhorting them to repentance, the whole living
scene was suddenly transformed into stone.
The whole of this narrow passage amongst the rocks was curious, and
highly romantic. A little beyond the petrified mill, on the opposite
side, we beheld a perfect outline of an immense lion, couching; the
head, the eyes, the mouth, and the paws, were as correctly delineated
on the naked stone, as if they had been drawn by the hand of an artist.
A cluster of rocks, somewhat further on, assumed all the appearance of
the ruins of a cathedral, with its towers and ivied walls, and Gothic
windows and gates. The effect of this pile was remarkably picturesque,
as it rose on an eminence above a mass of green foliage, which seemed to
conceal the lower parts of the cathedral.
♦ PEDESTRIAN EXCURSION ♦
The day was now far advanced, and as we lost all hope of reaching Orsova
that evening, and the further navigation of the rapids became tedious
and disagreeable, I proposed that we should put into what is here
generally considered the Wallachian shore; though, on the maps, it is
all Hungarian as far as Orsova. The inhabitants differ in no respect
from those of Wallachia; they speak the Wallachian language, wear the
Wallachian costume, and, though under the dominion of Austria, look upon
the people of the neighbouring province as of their own kindred. The
Jew and the poet readily complied with my suggestion, and the country
becoming quite level as soon as we emerged from the last rocky gorge, we
directed our helmsman to steer for the left bank, where we landed, with
a view of walking on to the village of Swinich, at a distance of about
ten miles, where we were to stop for the night.
♦ WALLACHIAN SHEPHERDESSES ♦
As we proceeded on our pedestrian journey, we met occasionally
Wallachian shepherdesses, driving before them goats and sheep. They
had uniformly distaffs in their hands, from which they actively
spun the wool round the spindle as they walked along. They were all
barefooted; and, over a canvass petticoat and chemise, usually wore a
stripe of plaid in front and another at the back, with long worsted
tassels hanging beneath. The hair was carefully braided round the
head, and sometimes fell in long plats on the shoulders. Those of the
shepherdesses who were mothers, carried their infants in small cradles
made of hoops, which were suspended by a cord round the neck. When the
baby was to be nursed, the cradle was borne in front; when the little
innocent was asleep, the cot was placed at the mother’s back, who then
resumed her distaff and spindle.
I was amused by the vigilance with which the shepherdesses, who were
generally fine strong-looking young women, with a bland expression of
countenance, avoided touching even with the hem of their garments any
of our party. Seeing the Jew in the Servian turban and pelisse, they
assumed that we had unlawfully crossed the river from the opposite
shore, and that they would catch the plague if by any misfortune they
had come in contact with us.
♦ DANCING BOORS ♦
Whenever we approached them, therefore, on the narrow paths, they
scampered off into the adjacent fields until we passed, as if we had
been objects of terror. I once unwittingly lifted up the coverlet of a
little crib, which I found on the ground, to peep at the cherub that was
nestled beneath it, when the mother ran up breathless, and hurried away
with her burden, as if she imagined that I had intended to make a victim
of her offspring.
In the midst of this pastoral scene the sounds of a violin reached our
ears, accompanied by shouts of people dancing. On reaching a clump of
trees we found a rude hut, occupied by a number of the labourers who
were engaged in the works going on upon that bank of the Danube. A large
fire was blazing before the hut at which some of the men were engaged
in roasting kid and frying fish, and stewing vegetables, while others
were dancing to the notes of a fiddle, played by a savage-looking fellow
who was elevated on a chair. They seemed to have abundance of wine, and
they invited us to partake of their fare as well as of their amusement,
with a rough hospitality. The Jew, however, as well as the poet, urged
me with certain shrugs and looks to hasten on; as much as to say, that
our new acquaintances were no better than they should be. I must say,
that when we walked off, some of them did gaze after us with a peculiar
expression of countenance, indicating something like regret that they
had not inquired into the state of our finances.
♦ PARISH PRIEST ♦
Having walked above three hours, we arrived about seven o’clock in the
evening at Swinich, a wretched-looking village, composed of a dozen
or two of huts built in the most primitive style. A flight of ruinous
stone steps led to, what I must call for want of a more appropriate
name, the _auberge_ of the village, where I found several motley groups
of people assembled. In the principal apartment were two large beds, a
few rush-bottomed chairs and wooden stools, a stone stove, and a table
placed near the wall, over which were suspended wax images and little
gaudy daubs of the virgin, the crucifixion, and some of the saints. The
governor of the village, dressed in his blue uniform, was seated at one
end of the table drinking wine, which from its colour as well as its
taste, I should have called cider.
♦ THE GOVERNOR ♦
The Greek priest of the parish, Gregory Georgovitch by name, was
stationed at the other end drinking from a small bottle, without the
interposition of a glass, a weak, pale spirit, called in that country
sleigovitch. The former was a short decent-looking kind of a person,
a picture of good nature, degenerating almost into simplicity, with a
spice of vanity not altogether unbecoming in the “great man” of the
village. The priest had the advantage of the governor in stature,
rivalled him in good humour, and seemed excessively anxious to show
himself greatly superior to his companion, in intelligence. For the
usual sacerdotal hat he substituted a small cloth cap, his beard was of
the ordinary dignified dimensions, and his dress consisted of a large
white figured waistcoat, loose nankeen trousers, over which his boots
were drawn, and a short mantle. His shirt collar was open, _à la Byron_.
The remainder of the company in this “double-bedded” room consisted
of the overseer of the works going on upon the Danube, the captain of
the patrol which formed the police of the country, an officer of the
quarantine, an officer of the customs, a nondescript with silly face,
a little girl and two or three urchins with whom she was playing. The
priest seemed to have all the talk to himself. No subject was started
in which he did not take the lead, and with which sooner or later he
did not contrive to mix up a quotation in bad Latin from a favourite
theological author, probably the only author in that way with whose
works he had ever made himself acquainted. He spoke fluently, with an
air of self-complacency, but at the same time in a tone of kindness and
hilarity quite patriarchal. Nothing in this world seemed to afford the
governor so much delight as either to put down the priest in argument,
or to witness that operation executed by another; all, however, for
the sake of amusement. He would sometimes in the course of an attack
upon the clergyman’s positions work himself up into a simulated passion
until the latter was provoked into a real one; and then, to the great
entertainment of his _official_ friends, he would suddenly resume
his goodhumoured smile, disconcerting all the angry eloquence of his
antagonist.
♦ GEORGE DEWAR ♦
I was initiated in the characters and habits of these “village
politicians” by an Englishman named George Dewar, who had made his
appearance in the room after I entered it: he had been already apprized
at the other extremity of Swinich that a countryman of his had arrived
at the auberge, and it was so long, he said, since he had heard his own
language spoken, that he came instantly to see me. Dewar was a very
intelligent though humble adventurer in the engineering line, who had
managed the diving-bell which was employed in recovering the treasure
sunk near the Mexican coast, in consequence of the wreck of the Thetis a
few years ago. He had performed his duties so much to the satisfaction
of his employers on that occasion, that he was strongly recommended to
the Count Szechenyi Istvan, when that nobleman was in London, as a very
useful assistant, as well for superintending the construction of roads,
as for working the diving-bell in making excavations which were intended
to be executed in the rocky parts of the bed of the Danube, with a view
to remove the obstacles that at present interrupt its entire navigation
by steam-boats. Dewar was delighted to see me--the sounds of my “How do
you do?” filled his eyes with tears, it appearing that I was the first
Englishman whom he had met so far down the Danube, where he had been
employed for nearly a twelvemonth.
♦ THE PRIEST AND POET ♦
The poet now joined the circle, and having ordered his bottle of wine,
made himself as much at home amongst his new acquaintances as if he had
known them a hundred years. He treated the company to a history of his
travels, which he extended on this occasion to Grand Cairo. His audience
seemed at a loss to know where Grand Cairo was, until the priest
enlightened them by declaring that it was in Asia. “In Asia!” exclaimed
the Moldavian, with indescribable disdain; “no such thing; Grand Cairo
is in Africa.” The governor was in raptures at this decided triumph
over the clergyman, who, in order to restore his character, inveigled
the poet into a theological controversy. But to my surprise, and to the
great chagrin of the priest, and the boundless joy of the governor, the
Moldavian proved himself quite as well read in theology as he was in
geography: he repeatedly convicted the priest of entire ignorance of the
works with which he had pretended to be most familiar, and so merciless
was he in following up his conquest, by challenging the divine on the
more abstruse points of doctrine, that the latter literally felt obliged
to decamp from the field. The governor shouted with excessive mirth, and
ordered another bottle, which he compelled the poet to drink in addition
to his own.
♦ SUPPER ♦
While this entertainment was going on, there came into the room a pretty
young woman, who seemed to be well known to all the party present. The
nondescript above mentioned turned out to be her husband, and Dewar
being her lodger, she had come to announce to them that their supper was
ready. Both appeared unwilling to go: it having been, however, conceded
on her part that they might return after supper, if they liked, the
three took their departure; but not before the governor exacted from the
lady a promise that she also would make her appearance again, and bring
with her her guitar. In the mean time I profited of the suggestion which
the idea of supper prompted to my mind, and laid waste a dish of stewed
chicken. The wine being, to me, at least undrinkable, I was obliged to
have recourse to sleigovitch and water.
In less than half an hour the lady, the guitar, and her friends
joined our circle, followed by the priest, who, notwithstanding his
discomfiture, could not prevail on himself to stay away, and by two or
three very fine young men, whom I had not seen before. The instrument
having been tuned, our poet asked permission to look at it, and swept
his mutilated fingers over the strings with the skill of a professor.
The priest looked amazed. After preluding in a singularly graceful
manner, which captivated the Swinicheans, the tatterdemalion, clearing
his voice with a fresh bottle of wine, which was voted to him by common
accord, treated us to “Di tanti palpiti,” not only with great taste, but
in one of the best tenor voices I ever heard. The priest exclaimed that
he knew not what to think of this fellow, unless he was the devil, for
that not only were his talents and knowledge universal, but of a degree
of excellence in every thing that left him without a rival.
♦ MUSICAL TREAT ♦
The lady was quite ashamed to touch the guitar after the poet;
nevertheless she was induced to favour the company with two or three
Wallachian songs, which, after the splendid performances we had just
heard, lost all the effect they might otherwise have produced. One of
the young men, jealous of the musical character of Swinich, next took up
the guitar, but after vexing the chords with a long series of humdrum
tinklings, which he would fain persuade us were Servian melodies, he was
reluctantly compelled, by the unanimous voice of the company, to resign
the instrument to our Mephistopheles, who showed himself, still more
even than before, a perfect master of the art, and that too of the very
best school. Italian, German, Hungarian, and Moldavian airs followed
each other in rapid succession, and in the most admirable style. The
fair owner of the guitar remarked, with a charming simplicity, that she
really did not know her own instrument in the hands of this enchanter.
♦ THE MOLDAVIAN ♦
By this time our apartment was crowded. The door had been thrown open,
and was besieged by a numerous group of savage-looking figures, wrapped
in their cloaks and large hats, who stood staring in upon our musician,
as if they fully participated in the priest’s opinion of his unearthly
character. And in truth, when I looked at this Moldavian--remembered
how he had amused his companions on the deck of the steamer by his
anecdotes, his poetry, and his dramatic declamations; the variety of
information which he afforded to myself during the course of the day;
his undoubted acquaintance with many countries, though he sometimes
indulged in exaggeration on that subject; the wandering life he had led;
the offices, sometimes of trust, and responsibility, and peril, which
he had fulfilled; his various acquirements in science, history, and the
fine arts; and, to crown all, his musical powers, which were of the
very first order; and his ragged, unshaven, filthy appearance--I could
not help feeling that there was a mystery about him, such as perhaps
in a former age might have procured for him the dangerous honours of a
magician.
♦ OUR ROOM ♦
The scene to which I had been thus suddenly transferred from our
fishing-boat, was altogether so strange and picturesque, that I much
regretted my inability to preserve it in the form of a sketch. It would
have been a congenial study for Wilkie.--The loosely-boarded floor over
our heads, with its rude joists; the ladder for ascending to it in the
corner, on which four or five chubby wondering urchins were perched;
the whitewashed walls; the two immense beds; the waxen images, and
the daubs of sacred subjects; the cherry-tree square table, the lamp
burning upon it amidst numerous bottles and glasses; the goodhumoured,
half-simpleton governor; the pompous captain; the shrimp who ruled the
quarantine; the toad of the custom-house, who, whenever the governor
laughed, always laughed still louder; the patriarchal-looking priest;
the gentle proprietress of the guitar, her English lodger, and her
unmeaning husband, who looked upon her as the paragon of perfection; the
three stars of Swinich, as those young men were called, because they
knew Latin; and then our Moldavian sorcerer, who, while he held the
guitar, presented in his own person so inexplicable a combination of
intellectual affluence with the most sordid external poverty; together
with the bandit-looking group locking in at the door--furnished a
picture of rustic life on the Danube, to which the pencil of Wilkie
alone could have done justice.
♦ HOSPITABLE INVITATION ♦
I had engaged one of the two beds for the night, but as Dewar’s landlady
was the “lady patroness” of the village, and I for the moment a person
of no small distinction, an Englishman being looked upon as a kind of
god throughout all that country, she would not hear of my remaining
at the inn: she had in fact already prepared her own bed for me, as
Dewar laughingly said, and as a point of honour I could not refuse her
hospitality. As soon as our circle broke up, therefore, I proceeded with
my hostess and her husband, my countryman, and one of the three “stars,”
who happened to be her nephew, to her mansion. Ascending a large wooden
portico by a ladder, we all entered the bedchamber together, without any
ceremony: it was in fact the only room in the house, and served equally
as kitchen, dining-room, drawing-room, lumber-room, and dormitory. It
had the invaluable recommendation of cleanliness, notwithstanding the
variety of uses to which it was convertible; and the bed, moreover, to
which I was most graciously conducted, exhibited a variegated quilt, the
work of the lady’s own hands, and a pair of sheets fragrant as thyme,
and white as the falling snow.
♦ TRIPLE-BEDDED ROOM ♦
As the night was cold I spread my cloak on the bed, but my hostess,
after seeking an explanation from Dewar of this precaution on my part,
which she felt as a kind of reflection on her household propriety, went
to a handsome wardrobe, which stood at one end of the room, from whose
ample stores she drew forth a new blanket, the produce, also, of her
own industry, and substituted it for my cloak, which she folded up and
put by on a chair. In addition to the bed assigned to me there were
two others in the apartment, one large enough to accommodate at least
half-a-dozen men, and a small temporary pallet, which the presiding
genius of the place had arranged on chairs for her own use.
♦ LATIN HARANGUE ♦
I was very well inclined to form a more intimate acquaintance with my
neat nocturnal repository, the more especially as I had not enjoyed such
a luxury for a whole week; but unfortunately my landlady’s learned
nephew conceived, that it was his duty to entertain me with a long
harangue in Latin upon the various branches of knowledge of which he
was master, interspersing the more abstruse parts of his oration with
Hungarian songs, accompanied by himself on the guitar. I of course
listened to his address with all the gravity I could command, until
taking advantage of a momentary absence of our hostess, I slipped
quietly into bed. My friend had by that time arrived at the botanical
department of his lecture, which completely closed the curtains of my
memory for the night.
CHAPTER VI.
Domestic arrangements--Count Szechenyi--Milanosch--Works on
the Danube--Picture of industry--Auberge--Vedran’s cave--Rocky
scenery--Arrival at Orsova--My chamber and its ornaments--Bedroom
utensils--Hungarian civilization--Quarantine adventure--Dinner at
Count Szechenyi’s--Plans for the navigation of the Danube--Origin
of the enterprise.
By seven o’clock on the following morning (October 1), I beheld the
three male members of the family emerging from their spacious couch,
while our hostess was busily engaged in preparing coffee for breakfast.
My toilet was speedily despatched, and a loaf of capital brown bread,
a brace of new-laid eggs, and a bowl of coffee, pretty well prepared
me for the toils of the coming day. Dewar had taught his kind landlady
English.
♦ DOMESTIC ARRANGEMENTS ♦
She was already as far advanced as “Good morning;” but, by some fatality
or another, she constantly metamorphosed “Mr. Dewar,” into “My Dear;”
which had a droll effect, especially in the presence of her goodnatured
husband, who was as ignorant of the meaning of the expression as
herself. The reader must not draw any scandalous conclusion from this
habitual mistake, for Dewar, a very honest and honourable fellow, in
his way, assured me that his pupil was, in every sense of the word, a
pattern of domestic virtue. He added, that it was the general custom
throughout that part of the country, to have only one sleeping-room for
all the family, as well as their guests; and that this apparent laxity
of discipline, caused by the necessity of the case, produced a sort of
chivalrous feeling, which condemned to the deepest infamy any person
guilty of the slightest disrespect towards the conjugal relations.
He seemed strongly attached, not only to the family with which he
resided, but to the people in general, amongst whom he was pursuing his
avocations; he had never experienced so much friendship, he said, in
any part of the world, as they showed him on every possible occasion;
and nothing, he added, but the pleasure which he derived from that
circumstance, could have induced him to remain where he was.
♦ COUNT SZECHENYI ♦
Dewar spoke also of the Count Szechenyi, in the most enthusiastic terms,
describing him as a Hungarian magnate of ample fortune, who devoted
himself exclusively to the regeneration of his country. It was with the
sole view of collecting information, which he might afterwards apply
to her benefit, that he had frequently visited England, France, and
other parts of Europe. He was in the bloom of life; had served in the
army; was a leading member of the diet, over which his talents, his
superior acquirements, and his disinterested patriotism, gave him great
influence; was constantly occupied in designing plans for the welfare of
Hungary; remained a batchelor, in order that he might be more at liberty
to travel about for the purpose of carrying those plans into execution;
and was now actively engaged in superintending the works going on upon
the Danube, which were entirely the result of his public spirit, and
his indefatigable perseverance. I was delighted to hear that I should
probably meet the Count at Orsova, where he possessed a temporary
residence.
♦ MILANOSCH ♦
The boat, which had arrived in due time at Swinich, having been
announced as ready for departure, I walked down towards the river-side,
after making, through “My Dear,” a small present to our amiable hostess.
But I had not proceeded many steps, when I was joined by her ladyship,
dressed out in her holiday costume, including a gay silk cloak, after
the London fashion, accompanied by her husband and her nephews, also
in their best attire. They could not think, Dewar said, of allowing
me to embark without accompanying me to the latest moment; and so we
all proceeded together through the village. I was touched by their
kind attentions, and felt that if I were a little longer among this
simple-hearted, affectionate people, like Dewar, I should have cordially
esteemed them. Our boat put away amidst their repeated adieus; Dewar
looked quite downcast: nor did they quit the river-side as long as they
could see my bark, which a bend in the river at length shut out from
their view.
♦ WORKS ON THE DANUBE ♦
It was a lowering morning: but the neighbouring hills lifting their
green heads above the surrounding vapours, seemed to promise a fine
day. The new Servian village of Milanosch, on the right bank, nearly
opposite to Swinich, looked picturesque through the veil of clouds in
which it was arrayed. A rock on our left, that jutted boldly into the
river, was crowned by the ruins of three massive round towers, which
presented a striking resemblance to as many enormous sacks of corn. The
Danube still preserved its course between ranges of lofty hills, wooded,
and piled behind each other; some hooded in mist; while the summits and
slopes of the higher ridges shone out in the beams of the morning sun.
As we advanced, the green hills yielded to lofty and precipitous rocks,
which rose from the waterside in a perpendicular direction, sometimes
like ramparts, sometimes like huge columns of Cyclopean construction.
Labourers were busily employed in blowing up these masses, whose
detonations resounded far and wide, among the mountains.
♦ PICTURE OF INDUSTRY ♦
Being desirous of witnessing more closely the mode in which the men
carried on their operations, I directed our patron to put me ashore,
where all seemed animation and industry. The noise of the mallet and
punch, the pickaxe and chisel, was heard in all directions. Where the
rock was perpendicular to the river, a roadway was excavated through
it only to the height of eighteen or twenty feet, leaving the upper
strata undisturbed. I confess I did not enter some of these causeways,
magnificent though they were, without feeling that if any of the
tremendous piles, which rose in most irregular array above my head, had
been loosened by the explosions going on on all sides, and had obeyed a
locomotive fancy, I might have been reduced to powder with the greatest
possible expedition. Where the face of the rock slanted rapidly from
the river, the labour of excavation was comparatively limited. In those
occasional ravines which sunk beneath the general level of the road,
bridges or terraces were erected in a solid and, at the same time, an
ornamental style, which reminded me of old Roman enterprise.
A whole village of wooden huts occupied a glen, in which the families
of the artisans and workmen, and the officers superintending the
operations on the part of the Austrian government were located. Every
body seemed employed--washing, drying linen, spinning wool, weaving,
preparing meat, fowls, vegetables for dinner, baking bread, scouring
furniture, or building additional habitations. I was delighted by this
lively picture of industry, so little resembling any thing I had seen
since my departure from Vienna. An immense eagle, which had been shot
the day before, was displayed upon a post, with his wings extended;
measuring, from tip to tip, full seven feet. Two other eagles were on
a perch, to which they were chained. One of these expanding his noble
wings, looked up wistfully and proudly at the mountains above him, as if
to say, “There is my native and proper home--behold, I have the means of
ascending thither, but am without any crime detained here a prisoner.”
They were truly regal birds. I should have very much preferred to have
seen them soaring in the clouds; never, I think, having felt before with
so much acuteness the extent of that injustice of which men are guilty,
when they destroy or fetter, without any useful purpose, the most
beautiful specimens of creation.
♦ AUBERGE ♦
One of the Austrian officers, who spoke French, very civilly conducted
me over the works, and introduced me to the auberge of the colony, which
occupied a large natural cavern in the rock. The roof of the cave was
curiously composed of several slabs which met in the centre, springing,
like the parts of an artificial arch, from the circumference. This solid
construction seemed absolutely necessary to sustain the pile of rocks,
which, above the cavern, towered into the heavens, tossed into all sorts
of fantastic shapes, and threatening every moment to overwhelm the busy
people at their feet, who, as compared with them, looked like so many
insects.
♦ VEDRAN’S CAVE ♦
The masses on the opposite side of the river seemed to have been thrown
into similar confusion, some shooting upwards as straight as an arrow,
some in a sloping, others in a horizontal position. Wherever I looked
around me, it appeared as if I had found a mystic portion of the globe,
which, like the face of Satan, “deep scars of thunder had intrenched;”
where Chaos still held her reign, and none save the Titans of elder
time could hope to dwell in security. But my terrors were reproved by
some young saplings which burst forth from amidst the rocks, spreading
their graceful branches in the air. Here and there a wild flower, too,
displayed its blue or coral bell; the bee murmured quietly along, the
sparrow twittered, the yellow butterfly wandered about, and the spider
floated by in his gossamer balloon.
♦ ROCKY SCENERY ♦
By this time my Moldavian and Servian friends had joined me, and pointed
out a path by the river-side leading to a very remarkable cave, which
had been converted into an impregnable fortification by the Austrian
General Vedran, during the last war of the emperor against the Turks.
He greatly enlarged the original cavern, which was a natural one, by
burning the stone and then throwing water upon it, when it easily came
away as lime. The cavity was divided into several apartments, one of
which was the general’s room, another the powder-magazine, a third was
for provisions, and a fourth ample enough to afford accommodation to
at least a thousand men. The ruins still remain of the redoubts which
had been thrown up in front of this cavern during the war. We found
several names of the brave soldiers who had occupied this singular
garrison cut in the walls of the cavern inside; among them that of the
chivalrous Vedran himself, who is said to have sustained his position in
the presence of a whole host of artillery brought to bear against him
from the opposite bank of the Danube. While we were within the cavern,
a series of explosions followed each other in rapid and regular order,
so strongly resembling the fire of contending armies, that one might
without any difficulty have imagined that the war between the crescent
and the cross had not yet concluded.
♦ ORSOVA ♦
Returning to our bark we still moved on amidst scenery of the most
magnificent character, formed by gigantic rocks disposed in the most
irregular manner, exhibiting an infinite variety of shapes, strange and
sometimes terrific in their appearance, such as might meetly combine for
the creation of a region of enchantment. On the summit of one of these
craggy mountains an immense isolated pile, bleached by the winds and
rains of many a winter, looked precisely like a Druidical chapel. The
dry bed of a torrent led from the river-side along the heights towards
the temple, and groups of hooded pilgrims were seen winding their way
upwards at each side of the channel in regular procession, while here
and there scattered figures were emerging from among green shrubs, bound
for the same destination. But temple, penitents and all seemed as if
they had been miraculously petrified in the midst of the solemnities in
which they were engaged.
♦ ORSOVA ♦
About three o’clock in the afternoon we reluctantly bade adieu to these
magical regions of the Danube, and came in sight of Orsova, which, with
its neat white houses, its church and spire, looked extremely well at a
distance. Several Servian fishing-boats were moored near the opposite
bank. On landing at Orsova we were met by Mr. Popovicz, the agent of
the Steam Navigation Company, and four or five gentlemen, amongst whom
I soon distinguished, from the respect that was paid to him, the Count
Szechenyi. He very kindly inquired of me, in excellent English, what
sort of a voyage we had had; adding, that he feared it must have been an
unpleasant one in many respects. I frankly answered that I had not found
it at all so. Although we had certainly been detained beyond our time,
nevertheless I had been prepared, in truth, considering the novelty and
difficulties of the enterprise, for much greater inconvenience than I
had actually met with. The Count seemed much gratified that I had made
allowance for the incompleteness of the undertaking, and engaged me
to dine with him on the following day at two o’clock, after which, he
said, he would take me in his carriage to Gladova, where the steam-boat
was waiting. He added that it was his intention to proceed as far as
Rutchstuk, and that he would be happy to have my company on the voyage.
As the Count, with his friends, was stepping into a boat to cross the
river, in order to pay his respects to Prince Milosch, the Prince of
Servia, who was expected to arrive in the course of the evening at the
opposite village (also called Orsova), he directed his groom, who spoke
English, to see me to the inn, and to take care that I should be well
attended to in every respect.
♦ MY CHAMBER ♦
It will be easily believed that these very friendly attentions on the
part of an individual, whom I had never seen before, made a strong
impression on my feelings; the more especially, as the sincere and
cordial tone in which the Count expressed himself, was rendered still
more engaging by that perfect simplicity of manner which bespeaks at
once the man of the world. The hotel to which his servant conducted
me was a very decent one. I dined satisfactorily on stewed fowl,
a favourite dish, it seems, in that country, and although my room
was quite primeval in its appearance and furniture, my bed was
unobjectionable.
♦ BEDROOM UTENSILS ♦
Early the next morning (October 2), the Count sent to inform me, that
as the carriages and other portions of the steam-boat cargo destined
for the lower towns on the Danube had not yet arrived from Moldava,
we should not quit Orsova till the following day. I had, therefore,
ample time to survey my new “domain.” My chamber consisted of four very
plain whitewashed walls, on the ground-floor, looking through a window
which could boast neither of curtain, blind, or shutter, into a large
courtyard, at the back of the inn. The floor was of deal plank, loosely
put together, and unhonoured by rug, mat, or carpet, of any description.
A looking-glass, hoary with age, and cobwebbed, was suspended in the
oldfashioned slanting position, between two coloured old Jack Tar prints
of Juno in her car, drawn by swans, with a rainbow in the distance, and
of Cybele in her chariot, to which a lion and a panther were yoked.
Beneath the wheels a rabbit, a rat, and a mouse, were gambolling; and
behind her a great camel was star-gazing. Her ladyship was about to
drive over a pyramid. An oldfashioned German stove, a large, deal,
square table, three leather-cushioned chairs, the backs and seats of
which were bound together by great bands of iron, a rough, square
washhand-stand, in which there was a baking-dish for a basin, completed
the decorations. The door was large enough, in every way, to admit a
horse, and the planks of which it was composed appeared so hostile to
any thing like coalition, that the daylight played through every part of
it.
I asked for some warm water to shave with. The waiter brought it to me
_in a dinner-plate_! I could not help laughing at this extraordinary
novelty, and he then brought me the kettle.
♦ HUNGARIAN CIVILIZATION ♦
I compromised the matter at last for a tumbler, which was rather an
improvement on the steam-boat, where I never could succeed in getting
hot water except in a tea-pot! Another un-nameable utensil seems rather
scarce in those parts. The only one of which the steam-boat could boast
was used for keeping pickles!
This reminds me of an anecdote which the Count tells with the most
ludicrous effect, as a proof of the barbarism in which his country is
yet enveloped. An old lady, a friend of his, received a present of
porcelain from England, including cups, saucers, plates, dishes, and
basins of every kind, among the rest a bidet. When the latter article
was examined nobody belonging to her household could at all make out
for what purpose it was destined; but as it was a handsome piece of
manufacture they were resolved that it should not be thrown by in a
corner. One day the good dame invited, as the custom is in Hungary, a
very large party to dinner, at which the Count and some other noblemen
who had visited foreign countries were present. To the ordinary luxuries
of the table was added a roast pig, which, to the great amusement of the
civilized part of the company, was served up in the bidet!
♦ QUARANTINE ADVENTURE ♦
After breakfasting on coffee and some remarkably fine grapes, I walked
out to explore the beauties of Orsova, and as fate would have it, my
steps were in the first instance directed to the mart, where, under
a shed divided by a partition breast high, the business of traffic
was carried on between the Hungarians and the Servians, neither being
allowed by the laws of quarantine to come in contact with the other.
Even the money which passed from the Servian side was taken in a pair
of tongs, and steeped in a cup of vinegar before it reached a Hungarian
pocket. From the mart I passed on, apparently without having attracted
the attention of the guard, but when I had gone to a distance of about
five hundred yards, walking along the bank of the Danube, a soldier
armed with his firelock, with fixed bayonet, was despatched after me.
Assuming, for what reason I know not, that I had belonged to the Servian
party, he ordered me back, keeping however as wide as possible of his
game. I went up to inquire the reason of his interference with my
perambulations, but he pointed his bayonet in a way not to be mistaken,
which only augmented my surprise. Upon returning to the guardhouse,
my friend, assisted by his officer, endeavoured to make me understand
that I must take my place among the Servians, whereupon the Jew who
happened to come into the mart, explained their error, and I acquired my
liberty. Had they succeeded, by their blundering, in compelling me to
pass the quarantine boundary, I should have had to spend ten days in the
Lazaretto at Orsova before I could proceed further on my journey.
♦ DINNER AT COUNT SZECHENYI’S ♦
At two o’clock I went to dine with the Count. A rude sort of a gate
opened to a courtyard through which I passed to a staircase, or rather
a wide step-ladder, and so on to a gallery leading to a suite of rooms
genteelly furnished. On the table in the Count’s sitting apartment I
recognised as old friends the _Edinburgh_ and _Quarterly Reviews_,
several of our “Annuals,” and other English and French periodical
publications. Besides the Count, a Hungarian magnate of considerable
property, was present, who coincides in most of the prudent views which
the Count entertains with reference to the civilization of Hungary. Mr.
Popovicz was also of the party, as well as a sensible young barrister
from Pesth, named Tasner, who accompanied the Count as his secretary.
We had an excellent dinner of vermicelli soup, bouilli, haricot mutton,
beef ragout, roast fowl, and pudding, followed by a dessert of sweet
cake and grapes. The wines were champagne and the ordinary white vintage
of the country, the best I had yet tasted in Hungary. Our conversation
at dinner turned chiefly on the enterprise in which the Count was
engaged, and in which all his faculties seemed to have been absorbed.
♦ NAVIGATION OF THE DANUBE ♦
I collected from what was said that it was intended to construct a
road wide enough for carriages, along the whole of the left bank of
the Danube, and that canals were to be formed in the rapids and other
rocky passages, where the river was liable to be reduced much below its
ordinary level during the summer and autumn. These works necessarily
required a large expenditure, which the returns of the Steam Navigation
Company were not expected to repay. The Austrian government, therefore,
actuated by an impulse of public spirit which it too rarely acknowledges
on other subjects, has taken upon itself the entire outlay which these
undertakings will require, and has, moreover, with peculiar propriety,
intrusted to Count Szechenyi the superintendence of the whole, as well
as an unlimited supply of funds, for which he accounts directly to
the emperor. It is especially understood that a certain per centage
is secured by the Austrian government to the navigation company upon
its capital, provided the returns should fall below a stated amount:
in point of fact the returns have for some time exceeded the amount
agreed upon, so that the government is not likely to have any further
responsibility in that respect.
♦ ORIGIN OF THE ENTERPRISE ♦
The enterprise was originated by the Count, who, at an early period
of his life (he is at present about forty-four years of age), plainly
perceived the great advantages that would accrue to Hungary, if it
were rendered navigable for steam-boats to the Black Sea. Adopting the
English system for procuring a large capital in small shares, he formed
a list of subscribers at Presburg, consisting of magnates, members of
the lower chamber of the diet, bankers, and merchants, which he brought
over to this country. Here, also, he obtained a few distinguished
names, and made himself master of all the details of steam navigation.
Having ordered the engines for three boats to be sent from Birmingham
to Trieste, he had the vessels built in that port, and then a petition
was presented to the diet, on behalf of the subscribers, praying its
sanction to the undertaking. This was the first instance in which the
diet was called upon to take into its consideration a measure peculiar
to Hungary in its national character, and involving, therefore,
consequences of vast political as well as commercial tendency. If the
diet took this enterprise under its auspices, the popularity and the
sense of independence which the assembly would thus acquire, might
lead to other measures still more conducive to the re-establishment
of the Hungarian nation. Prince Metternich immediately sent for Count
Szechenyi, whose brother is married to a sister of the prince’s wife,
and sought explanations of this treasonable proceeding! The Count’s
answer was very simple and unequivocal.--“If you have no wish that the
diet should adopt the petition and act upon it, do the thing yourselves,
for the Danube at all events cannot be long without steam-boats.” The
hint was taken, the petition was cushioned, the plans of the Count were
not only accepted but improved upon a most magnificent scale, and given
back to himself for execution. The Count is the most distinguished
leader of the opposition party in the diet, but he took care to have
it thoroughly understood, that though, for the benefit of Hungary, he
charged himself with the commission offered to him by Prince Metternich,
he was still free to follow up his political principles in every way
that he thought advantageous to his country.
CHAPTER VII.
Hungarian reforms--Security of property--Orders of nobility--Advantages
of steam navigation--Reformers--Auxiliary improvements--Club-house--
Newspaper--System of Entails--Censorship--Sybaritism--The Count’s
pursuits--Hungarian language--Verses on the vintage.
♦ HUNGARIAN REFORMS ♦
After coffee we rose from the table, and the Count and I walked to the
Lazaretto, a clean, airy building, about a mile from Orsova. As he
was about to go to Bucharest, and on his return from Wallachia would
be obliged to perform quarantine in that edifice, he was desirous of
examining the apartments which he was destined to occupy. We found the
establishment in excellent order, clean, healthy, and very pleasantly
situated. The wife of its medical superintendent was one of the most
beautiful women I had ever beheld. She was sitting alone at a window,
melancholy as if she were a captive, and indeed, as she observed to the
Count, how could she be otherwise, exiled as she was in this solitude
from every chance of society? She was pale and downcast; her voice came
in touching tones from her heart; and though she brightened up for a
while, while we were speaking to her at the casement, the too bright
lustre of her black eyes indicated that her health was deeply undermined
by consumption. She spoke French very well, and the Count informed
me that she was an intelligent and accomplished woman, but that the
solitude of the place had broken down her spirits.
♦ SECURITY OF PROPERTY ♦
In the course of my stay at Orsova I had an opportunity of hearing from
three or four Hungarian noblemen, who were passing through on their way
to Pesth, that opinions differ very much with respect to the propriety
of giving education at present to the people, because, as the country is
still and must be for some years under the feudal system, if the people
were educated, they would see too plainly the position in which they
are placed, and would most probably seek to attain their liberties by
means of a sudden and sanguinary revolution. There is no objection to
their being properly educated as soon as they are fit for that stage
of improvement, and other things are brought up to its level. But it
would be necessary first to give knowledge to the nobles, with a view to
liberalize their minds, and through their instrumentality to bring about
gradually and safely the changes which may be deemed essential to the
welfare of the whole community.
In the next place, the reformers are anxious to see security given to
the titles of those who acquire property by purchase. As the law now
stands, or rather in the absence of all law, if an individual buy an
estate, he may possess it for twenty years, and then somebody comes
with an old piece of parchment in his hand, who says that he has a
better right to the estate than the purchaser. Litigation immediately
commences--the suit goes on in the courts for years--and both parties
probably spend twice the value of the property in law proceedings before
the right of ownership is decided. Again, when an estate is announced
for sale, the next neighbour has a privilege of pre-emption. If the
property be purchased by another person, and it be discovered after
a lapse of thirty or even forty years that the slightest formality
was omitted in giving the next neighbour notice of the intended sale,
the privilege of pre-emption again accrues, and he may buy the land,
together with all the improvements bestowed upon it in the mean time,
for the price which the occupant had paid. This uncertainty about titles
to property is one of the greatest grievances of which Hungary has to
complain.
♦ ORDERS OF NOBILITY ♦
The orders of the nobility also require limitation. At present the
classes of nobles are too numerous, and are becoming more so every day;
for, if a nobleman have fifty sons, they are all as noble as himself. In
some few of the higher families distinguished as magnates, _majorats_
are established by prescription. Some families have as many as three
or four estates entailed upon each of the sons, and by this system
their paramount rank and influence has been sustained. But, generally
speaking, the estate of a nobleman of the second and inferior classes
is divided, upon his death, amongst all his sons; the result of which
division is to produce a swarm of pauper nobles, by whom the country is
literally infested. This indiscriminate descent of title and perpetual
subdivision of property, if not corrected in time, must eventually throw
the whole fabric of society into confusion; or rather, they must prevent
that fabric from ever being settled upon a safe foundation. These two
evils cry aloud for amendment.
♦ ADVANTAGES OF STEAM NAVIGATION ♦
Another very serious grievance is, that the laws and law proceedings
are all framed in the Latin language, which prevents the language of
Hungary, in itself a copious and most expressive dialect, from acquiring
all the perfection of which it is susceptible. Some years ago the
members of the diet all spoke in Latin. Count Szechenyi was the first
to address the assembly in Hungarian, and most of the better informed
magnates have since followed his example.
Hungary will undoubtedly derive great commercial advantages from the
steam navigation of the Danube: but, although enlightened men are
not indifferent to that result, yet they look upon the enterprise
rather with the hope of seeing their country derive from it a European
position. When the people come more in contact with foreign nations,
their emulation will be naturally excited; they will be induced to
improve their roads, to build bridges, to excavate canals, to improve
their towns, to give a style to their houses and public edifices, and to
civilize their manners.
♦ REFORMERS ♦
These are the views of prudent and thorough reformers, who, avoiding the
ordinary clash of interests and prejudices, work upon a comprehensive
plan, more for the future than the present, and addressed to the
improving intelligence, not to the passions, of the people. To check
every impulse that would lead to precipitate changes, which could only
be brought about by the effusion of blood, and to prepare the minds of
men by a slow but indefeasible process for the blessings of rational
freedom, are the leading principles of their policy. The Austrian
government perceives this clearly, and although Prince Metternich fears
the reformers, there are no men in the imperial dominions for whom
he entertains a higher respect. Such men indeed are amenable to no
government jealousies--each in his own sphere is a _fate_ that overrules
them.
♦ AUXILIARY IMPROVEMENTS ♦
While from their familiar acquaintance with the institutions of most of
the countries of Europe, especially with those of England, which they
admire almost to idolatry, the reformers plainly see, and lament, the
numerous deficiencies by which Hungary is still detained in the back
ground of civilization; nevertheless, they are thoroughly convinced that
fundamental changes must be the work of time, if they are to be useful
and permanent. They are perfectly conversant with the character of their
countrymen: allow for their ignorance and their prejudices; which,
however, they never lose an opportunity of rebuking, when they can do so
with effect, and without giving personal offence. They listen calmly to
objections, from whatever quarter they proceed; weigh them patiently;
admit them for what they are worth; and profit by them, if they can, in
their further proceedings. If an obstacle cannot be conquered this year,
they are contented to wait until the principle makes further progress,
and a more favourable opportunity may arrive for further consideration.
Several influential magnates in the diet are disposed to coincide
in these opinions: they are, certainly, resolved on some important
alterations; but they will not attempt to carry them into effect until
Hungary shall be better prepared for them than it is at this moment.
♦ CLUB-HOUSE ♦
In the mean time, all practicable measures of an _auxiliary_ nature are
in progress. For instance, a club has been established at Pesth, upon
the London system; of which all the magnates, most of the deputies,
and of those whom we would call the principal gentry, are members. They
assemble frequently in groups, and freely discuss political topics
at their club-house, which they call the National Casino. The very
epithet, “national,” is not without its spell upon these conversations.
The English, German, and French reviews, magazines, and newspapers,
and popular publications of every description, are found in their
reading-room: they have also lectures on the sciences and fine arts;
and are thus beginning to Europeanize their minds. Some time after
this club had been established, Prince Metternich of course turned his
attention to it, and felt no small alarm, when he perceived its natural
tendency. He required an explanation of its purposes from the Count
Szechenyi; and upon hearing him, decided that it required control. “If
you wish to control it,” rejoined the Count, “the only way to accomplish
your object, is to give us a good subscription, and become one of our
members. You will then have a vote, and your personal influence will, no
doubt, have its due effect.” The prince took the hint, and joined the
club, which is now in a flourishing condition.
♦ NEWSPAPERS ♦
Another of the _auxiliary_ measures of the reformers so characteristic
of their admirable sagacity and forecast, as well as of the prejudices
of the Hungarian nobility, which they have to contend against, is the
proposed bridge across the Danube, to connect Pesth with Buda, which I
have already mentioned. The steam navigation of the Danube will also be
a most powerful instrument of civilization; for it is quite true that
steam and civilization are daily becoming almost convertible terms.
Wherever one of these is found, the other cannot be far distant. A
newspaper also is published at Pesth, and that, too, in the Hungarian
language--a prodigious innovation, and one that promises important
consequences; for there is no _law_ of censorship in Hungary; and it
is not very likely that the diet will sanction any proposition of the
kind. There is, besides, an academy at Pesth, somewhat on the plan of
the French Institute, which publishes its transactions and papers in a
quarterly journal. To that journal, as well as to the newspaper, the
reformers frequently contribute articles, written generally for the
purpose of correcting some national prejudice, or inculcating some
wholesome principle of legislation. These articles they sign with
their names, as they are determined to carry on all their plans of
improvement in the face of day, and upon the system, of keeping “within
the law,” which they perfectly well understand.
♦ SYSTEM OF ENTAILS ♦
Count Szechenyi has written two very elaborate and able works, one on
credit, with the view of doing away altogether the system of entails,
in those cases where the life-owner of an estate chooses to borrow
sums of money upon its security. In such cases, the writer contends,
that if the loan be not repaid before the death of the mortgagor,
the mortgagee should be at liberty to sell so much of the estate as
may be sufficient to meet the debt. The evils which grow out of the
present system in Hungary are enormous, as the nobles retain so much of
the old feudal influence that they borrow money in the most reckless
manner; and having no more than a life interest to pledge for the
funds so acquired, the creditor is often defrauded of his just demand.
If the whole estate were liable to it, the younger children would be
interested in checking the wild extravagance which now prevails in most
of the higher noble families of Hungary; and they would themselves
learn betimes the value of economy, without which they never can be
truly independent. The Count’s second work is of a more miscellaneous
character--it discusses the various reforms of which Hungary stands
in need, with a view to the amelioration of its institutions, the
construction of roads, bridges, and canals. He shows, from a careful
survey, that the interior of the country super-abounds in natural
wealth, which only requires practicable communications with the
frontiers, in order to convert it into gold.
♦ CENSORSHIP ♦
The manner in which one of these books found its way to the light is
worth mentioning. The Count, by way of precaution, although he was
aware of there being no _legal_ censorship in Hungary, submitted his
work to the censor appointed by the Austrian government. The censor in
the first instance licensed the publication; but while it was going
through the press, the eleventh sheet having been already printed, an
order was issued putting a stop to its further progress. By some means
or other the sheets which were printed, together with the remainder of
the manuscript, found their way to Leipsic, and back again to Pesth in
the shape of a neatly printed volume, of which a thousand copies were
sold before the government knew of its arrival! Previously to that event
the Count sought in vain for an explanation of the reasons upon which
the licence had been withdrawn; but when the book could no longer be
suppressed, apology after apology was made for the stupid blunder of
some of the authorities, which alone had been the cause of the delay!
Inquiry was made as to the particular officer who had issued the order,
but no such officer could be found, no such order was in existence,
and the mystery attending the prohibition of the work became just as
difficult to be solved as that of its publication.
Another Hungarian magnate had written and printed at Pesth a very strong
tract indeed in favour of reform. But it could only be purchased at
Bucharest, whence it returned, as if upon the “viewless winds,” whenever
it was ordered. These transactions led to the settlement of the fact,
that there was no _law_ authorizing a censorship in Hungary, and the
first offspring of this advance in knowledge was the establishment of a
newspaper. Other newspapers doubtless will follow, and as there are an
English manufacturer of paper at Pesth, and a type-foundry upon the most
improved system, the press will, in due time, accomplish its wonders in
that region.
♦ SYBARITISM ♦
If the diet could be induced to take upon itself the whole of the
expenses required for improving the navigation of the Danube, such an
act would be a virtual declaration of independence. I have no doubt
that this measure will be soon adopted, and that the day is not distant
when the crowns of Austria and Hungary must be separated. There is at
present no indisposition in Hungary to accept a king from the imperial
family--but he must fix his residence at Pesth, and be contented to rule
under the control of the ancient constitution of the country, which
requires very few alterations in order to accommodate its provisions to
the modern condition of society.
♦ THE COUNT’S PURSUITS ♦
Count Szechenyi was so good as to translate for me one or two of his
articles in the Pesth newspaper, the principal object of which was to
reprove and correct the very general disposition of his countrymen to
Sybaritism. They are in general, like the Germans, fond of the pleasures
of the table, and extremely indolent. His style of writing is piquant
and goodhumoured, wholly free from pedantry, and his admonitions, which
are pregnant with good sense, are conveyed in a friendly and even
parental tone, which shows how deeply this excellent man has the welfare
of his native land at heart. Personal ambition appeared to me to have
no share in his motives of action; they seem to spring exclusively from
a fervent, I might almost say, a romantic affection for his country. He
loves Hungary as a youth loves the first mistress of his heart; indeed
he familiarly calls his country his “wife,” and he looks upon all its
inhabitants as his children. He is perfectly aware that nations never
profit by historical experience, that they must purchase it by a series
of trials for themselves; at the same time he labours incessantly by
his writings to diffuse amongst his countrymen the ample treasures of
information which he has collected during his travels and a regular
course of study directed entirely towards that object.
The Count, as I have said, is now in the bloom of life, yet I regret
to add that his health is occasionally interrupted, I sincerely trust
not yet undermined, by some inexplicable derangement of the digestive
organs. When not affected particularly by this malady, which is of a
periodical character, he appears to be a vigorous, strongbodied, active,
indefatigable, country gentleman; fond of rural sports in the season; a
capital shot, and an excellent horseman. He is of the middle stature, of
a good military figure, and a most intelligent and engaging countenance.
His manners are those of a perfectly well-bred gentleman: indeed if he
had not spoken English with somewhat of a foreign accent, I should have
easily mistaken him for one of my own countrymen, of that class who,
from talent and information, combined with high birth, possess influence
in the House of Commons.
♦ HUNGARIAN LANGUAGE ♦
Speaking of the Hungarian language he observed, that in his opinion,
its roots were Turkish. It was an extremely difficult language for a
foreigner to learn; but at the same time, peculiarly calculated for the
expression of noble thoughts, as well as for the familiar purposes of
society. By his writings, which are all in Hungarian, he has given the
tone on that subject, in consequence of the eminent station which he
holds from birth and property--and from being also the most popular man
in the kingdom. He showed me an “Annual,” with very good embellishments,
and one or two other books, which were printed at Pesth, in a style of
typography not excelled in any other country.
♦ VERSES ON THE VINTAGE ♦
The remarks of the Count upon the Sybaritism of his countrymen, induced
me to copy, upon returning to my hotel, the following Latin verses,
on the vintage, which I found in the Pesth newspaper of the 28th of
September, entitled “Gemeinnubige Blatter.”
_Dithyrambus in Vindemia horna._
Gaudeamus igitur,
Hungari dum sumus!
Nam dant vinum copiosum
Jam in uvis gloriosum
Almus sol et humus.
Cælitus vindemia
Tollit vinitores:
“Vinum vetus ebibemus;
Horno locum præparemus”
Clamant potatores.
Semiusti clausimus
Spatium æstatis;
Sed autumnus restaurabit
Debiles et Bacchus dabit
Novam vim prostratis.
Gaudeamus igitur,
Hungari dum sumus,
Vino patrio et more,
Jubilantes uno ore,
Cætera sunt fumus.
_Fr. Hanak, Dr._
CHAPTER VIII.
First appearance of Wallachia--The Iron Door--Reform of the Hungarian
representation--Corporations--Finances--Education--Justice--Wallachian
Gladova--Servian Gladova--Trajan’s bridge--Navigable stations on the
Danube--Wonders of steam--Speech of Prince Milosch--Neighbourhood of
Gladova--Wallachian hut--Matrimonial speculation--Tea-drinking--Music--
Charms of procrastination--Departure from Gladova--Bends in the
Danube--Approach to Vidin--Magnate’s costume--Visit to Hussein
Pacha--The pacha’s deputy--An interpreter--Explanations--Pleasures of
disguise.
♦ APPEARANCE OF WALLACHIA ♦
Count Szechenyi had already apprized me of his intention to go down
the Danube as far as Rutschuk. As we were preparing, on the following
morning (October 3), to set out from Orsova, he added, that his object
was to land at Giurgeva, a Wallachian town, nearly opposite Rutschuk,
and thence to proceed to Bucharest, in order to obtain the sanction of
the hospodar, for the improvements which were meditated in the bed and
on the banks of the river within his principality. I took my seat with
the Count in his phaeton, and we were followed by another carriage,
occupied by his secretary, Mr. Tasner. Our road by the side of the river
was scarcely practicable for such vehicles, as frequently we had to
be drawn over narrow abrupt rocks, which, sloping towards the Danube,
afforded the agreeable prospect of a cold bath, as well as of fractured
limbs, in case of a break down. In an hour after quitting Orsova we
passed the frontier of Wallachia, where, if we were to Judge from first
appearances, misery seemed to have taken up her favourite abode. The
cabins of the poor people were constructed of hurdles, not defended,
even by the addition of mud on the inside, from wind and rain. Crowds of
children appeared at the doors, literally naked, in company with pigs
and goats, dogs, cocks and hens, and ducks, as if all were of the same
order of existence. Some of these wretched habitations were altogether
underground.
♦ THE IRON DOOR ♦
We soon arrived at the commencement of the celebrated “Iron Door”
of the Danube. It is a series of rapids so called from the extreme
difficulty of passing them, and also probably from the almost
impenetrable nature and ferruginous colour of the rocks, which form the
entire bed of the river to the distance of nearly three miles. These
rocks, though so long washed by the torrent are still as rough as when
the river first found or forced its way amongst them. They are in large
masses, tumbled about in every sort of shape and position, and now that
they were completely exposed to view, in consequence of the depression
of the river, they looked terrific; the gaping jaws, as it were, of some
infernal monster. When the Danube is at its ordinary height, replenished
by its usual tributaries, the roar of its waters in hurrying through the
“Iron Door,” is borne on the winds for many miles around, like the sound
of continued peals of thunder.
The present state of the river was taken advantage of by the engineers,
for the purpose of making an accurate survey of the channel. This is
another of the passages in which it will be necessary either to excavate
a canal in the bosom of the rocks, or to erect one upon them which
might be fed from the springs of the neighbouring heights.
♦ HUNGARIAN REPRESENTATION ♦
I had noticed on the Servian bank, opposite Vedran’s Cave, a tablet cut
in the face of the rock, with an inscription upon it which seemed to
be in good preservation, though we were not near enough to read it. It
records, as the Count informed me, the completion of a line of road on
that side of the river, cut through the solid rock by order of Trajan,
of which a considerable portion still remains visible as far as the Iron
Door.
Though reminded occasionally by jolts which threatened the entire
dissolution of our carriage, that we were traversing no Roman road,
I had every reason to hope that a few years would bring about great
changes in Hungary, in that respect. As to the other reforms in
contemplation, I believe there is no objection to the nomination by the
sovereign of the high sheriffs for the fifty counties, of which Hungary,
including Croatia, is composed, the more especially as in each of the
counties two under-sheriffs are selected by the nobles. But the state
of the representation stands greatly in need of amendment. At present
each of the counties sends to the diet two deputies, who are chosen by
the nobles, comprehending under that title all persons who are descended
from noble families. There are besides, eighteen chapters of cathedrals
which return two deputies for each, and fifty free towns, each of which
returns also its two members. But the representatives of the chapters
and the free towns have no vote in the lower chamber of the diet, they
have only the privilege of delivering their opinions upon any measure
under discussion. It is obvious that this difference between the powers
of the several classes of deputies must be speedily done away.
Again, if a magnate, who is called to the diet by the king’s letter,
cannot attend, he sends an individual as his proxy; but this substitute
does not sit in his principal’s place in the upper house; he sits in the
lower one, where, however, he has no vote. This is a useless privilege
which ought to be abolished.
♦ CORPORATIONS ♦
In the free towns the deputies are chosen by the burghers, who form
close corporations. Now, as was formerly the case in England, some
free towns which have greatly declined in population continue to elect
deputies, while other towns which have much augmented their population
are altogether without the elective franchise. Schedules A and B are
much wanted in those parts of Hungary; the right of election requires
to be more extensively diffused, and thus the work of reform would be
conducted without any great difficulty to a successful conclusion,
inasmuch as a strong spirit of freedom exists throughout the country,
which is sustained by the custom long established, of holding public
meetings, and also assembling at public dinners, at which speeches are
made in every respect after our English fashion. Indeed, as I have
before observed, political topics are as openly discussed in Hungary as
they are with us; and though it can scarcely be said that a press exists
as yet in that country, nevertheless it possesses a certain current of
public opinion, against which the emperor has no means of contending,
however disagreeable it may be.
♦ FINANCES ♦
It is understood that the finances of Hungary are in a most disordered
condition; so much so, that before long a crisis must arrive, dangerous
to the union of the two crowns, unless measures for averting that peril
be adopted in time. It will be impossible to mature any such measures,
still less to carry them into execution without the concurrence of
the diet, which will then assuredly take advantage of its power to
incorporate a complete political reform with that of the exchequer.
♦ EDUCATION--JUSTICE ♦
The imposition of a toll upon all persons, without exception, who will
pass over the new bridge about to be constructed between Pesth and Buda,
is but the commencement of the abolition of those unjust privileges
which exempt the nobility in general from contributing to the taxes.
The clergy have at present a monopoly of all the means of education. It
is intended to put an end to that system, to establish public schools
upon the Lancasterian plan, in every parish of Hungary, which shall be
supplied with masters educated especially for their duties at Pesth. The
administration of justice requires also a complete revision, and the
wealth of the church is supposed very considerably to exceed the real
wants of a Christian establishment. The magnates are disposed to assume
a decided part in favour of all these reforms, but it cannot be doubted
that they will take care not to make the people too strong by widening
beyond what they deem to be strictly inevitable, the democratic basis of
the constitution.
♦ SERVIAN GLADOVA ♦
We arrived about noon at Gladova, where we found the Argo steamer
waiting for us. But as the carriages and general articles of
merchandise which had been forwarded from Moldava to Orsova had not yet
made their appearance at the Wallachian station, I was obliged once
more to draw somewhat liberally on my stock of patience. Here were five
days already spent in making a journey, for which two ought to have
been amply sufficient. An excellent dinner, however, which had been
previously ordered by the Count, and a bottle of Champagne from a case
provided by him for our voyage, consoled us for our disappointment.
The mornings began to be rather sharp. Nevertheless we breakfasted on
deck (Oct. 4) on dry toast and coffee; after which, taking with us a
quarantine inspector, we crossed the river in a small boat to Servian
Gladova, which is a fortified town of some pretensions. We walked
through the environs; our inspector not permitting us to enter the
interior of the town, unless we were disposed on our return to take
up our abode in the lazaretto. The country around seemed remarkably
fertile, but it was almost wholly uncultivated. Such of the inhabitants
as we saw were pictures of indolence--they were mostly dressed in the
Turkish costume, though many were apparelled in the European fashion.
We saw only one woman, in the course of our peregrinations, and she was
closely veiled.
♦ TRAJAN’S BRIDGE ♦
On our return to the steamer, some discussion arose as to the exact
site of Trajan’s bridge across the Danube, which, though recorded in
history, had hitherto puzzled all the commentators; as, in fact, no
trace of that once magnificent edifice had been discovered for many
ages. The Count suggested that, as the river was now so low, there
was a chance of our settling the question by a personal examination.
Accordingly, we proceeded on foot along the Wallachian shore, until we
arrived at the ruins of an ancient tower, built on an eminence, which
had been evidently raised by artificial means. The tower was of Roman
construction, and, as we conjectured that it might have been intended as
a guard-station for the defence of the bridge, we ascended the eminence
with no slight feelings of curiosity.
♦ TRAJAN’S BRIDGE ♦
Looking down the river, which is here of no very great width, and
divided by a sandbank, which, however, cannot be perceptible in the
ordinary state of the Danube, we distinctly observed the water curling
over a series of impediments extending in a right line from bank to
bank. At both extremities of this line we perceived on the land the
remains of square pillars; and, on approaching the ruin on our side,
we found it constructed of blocks of stone, faced towards the river
with Roman tiles, evidently forming the buttress of the first arch
of the bridge. In the river itself we counted the remains of six or
seven pillars, which had manifestly served to sustain as many arches,
connecting the bank on which we stood with the opposite one. No doubt
therefore could remain that here was the site of Trajan’s celebrated
bridge, a marvellous work for the times in which he lived, considering
that it had been constructed on one of the most remote confines of the
Roman empire. I calculated that these interesting ruins were about three
English miles from Gladova. I brought away a fragment of a tile, as a
rude memorial of our discovery.
♦ STATIONS ON THE DANUBE ♦
The Count, who was seldom idle, sat down, upon our return to our cabin,
and wrote for me, in English, a memorandum of the distances of the
navigable stations on the Danube, which I here copy.
German Miles.
Part. | Total.
From Eschingen to Regensburg 50 | 50
---- Regensburg to Vienna 50 | 100
---- Vienna to Pesth 40 | 140
---- Pesth to Peterwardein 60 | 200
---- Peterwardein to Orsova 40 | 240
---- Orsova to Galacz 100 | 340
---- Galacz to the Black Sea 25 | 365
|
If we add to these items the distance from |
the mouth of the Danube to Constantinople, |
by the Black Sea, which is seventy German 70 |
miles then the total distance from Eschingen to |
Constantinople will be four hundred and |
thirty-five German miles or about one thousand |
nine hundred and fifty-eight miles of English |
admeasurement. | 435
As the voyage by steam, however, can only be made from Presburg to
Constantinople, the distance is reduced to about fourteen hundred and
forty English miles; which, when the steam-boat establishment and works
on the Danube are completed, might be easily traversed in eight days and
nights. At present, the journey overland from Vienna to Constantinople
cannot be made in the ordinary mode of travelling within less than
three weeks. The new route by the Danube will exhibit, therefore, one
of the most important triumphs over time which the steam-engine has yet
accomplished.
♦ WONDERS OF STEAM ♦
The advantages destined to arise out of this great enterprise to
Hungary, to Servia, Wallachia, and Bulgaria, and, indeed, to all
Turkey, are incalculable. Those countries, which have hitherto seemed
scarcely to belong to Europe, will be rapidly brought within the
pale of civilization; their natural riches, which are inexhaustible,
will be multiplied; their productions will be vastly improved; their
institutions and laws will be assimilated to those of the most advanced
nations; and new combinations, not only of physical but also of moral
strength, will be created, which may give birth to important changes
in the distribution of political power on the continent. Indeed, while
I am writing this page from my notes, I learn from an authentic source
that the people have demanded and obtained a representative constitution
from Prince Milosch in Servia, and that the first assembly of the
states has been already held at Karagozovatz, where, on the 28th of
February last, he delivered a speech, of which I have procured from
the same quarter an accurate translation. As this speech exhibits an
interesting and characteristic picture of the patriarchal condition of
that principality, and as no copy of it has yet been published, I need
not apologize for placing it before my readers.
♦ SPEECH OF PRINCE MILOSCH ♦
“_Speech pronounced by Prince Milosch, before the General Assembly held
on the 16th (28th n. s.) of February, 1835, at Karagozovatz in Servia._”
“A year has gone by since we met in greater numbers, and on a more
important occasion. It was our intention when we separated to assemble
in greater numbers on St. George’s Day, but owing to want of forage
we were under the necessity of holding only a small reunion some
time after that epoch. During the summer, as well as the autumn, it
became impossible to convoke a national assembly; first, because in
consequence of the extraordinary drought, neither water nor hay could be
procured; and secondly, because we had not been able to terminate the
various reports to be laid before the general assembly. Even up to the
present moment it has not been possible to complete the census of our
population, and ascertain the amount of the income drawn from tithes and
other sources of revenue. It has not been in my power either, within so
short a space of time, to establish many of the institutions of which
I yet perceive the urgent necessity. It is but a year since Servia
has become a state. In laying down the foundation of a new one, it is
necessary to go slowly to work, to take care not to utter even a single
syllable which to-morrow, perhaps, we shall have to retract; much to
the detriment of the public interest, and greatly to our own dishonour.
Centuries have gone by before the different states in the world could
attain the position in which we at present see them. Yet every day their
institutions require some alteration. Such must also be Servia’s fate;
Servia cannot in one year become a state so perfectly administered
as to be faultless. Many are the peculiarities which yet distinguish
the Servian nation. These must be sacrificed to the civilization and
enlightenment characterizing the nations of Europe, before we can aspire
to be ranked among them. First of all, we do not possess yet amongst us
the sufficient number of men capable of directing the administration of
the country, as is the case in Europe. This has been the great drawback
to the foundation of those institutions which it is my wish to establish
in our country.”
“On so solemn an occasion as the present, surrounded by the dearest
members of my family, our metropolitan and bishops, the members of
the Servian legislative body, those of the provincial tribunals, the
captains from the different districts, the elders of the principal
commonalities, and the high clergy, I appear before you, beloved
brethren, to recal to your memory the speech I delivered last year on
St. Tryphon’s day, before the general assembly, and which I caused to be
printed and distributed among the people. In that speech I acquainted
you with the desire I had of forming a regular administration; secondly,
of assessing taxation in a manner both equitable and simple, and at the
same time convenient for the treasury; thirdly, of paying the debts of
our former bishops, which were a great burden on the provinces lately
incorporated with Servia. I have uninterruptedly during a year devoted
my attention, both in the council and when consulting the legislature
of our country, to ascertain the administrative system best adapted
and most advantageous to our country, and have come to the firm
determination, first, to promulgate a statute for Servia, accurately
defining the rights and duties of the Prince of Servia,--the rights
and duties of Servian magistrates,--as well as those of every Servian.
This statute shall be read in your presence. You will then see that
the general national nights are the rights which every Servian is to
enjoy,--are such as humanity demands; that the person of every Servian
is free;--that every Servian is master of his property. Obedience to
this statute we must swear,--not only we who are now here assembled,
but also every one of our brethren who happens to be absent. We must
swear one to the other;--the prince to the magistrates and people, the
magistrates to the prince and people, the people to the prince and
magistrates,--that we consider this statute sacred and inviolable as we
hold the gospel to be inviolable and sacred,--that we shall not depart
an inch from it, or alter a single syllable of it, without previously
obtaining the approval and consent of the whole nation.”
“Secondly, I have resolved to form a council of state, constituting the
first and highest magistrature in the country after me, the prince.
It will consist of six ministers, each of whom will preside over a
department of the administration, and of various privy councillors. The
ministers are to draw up reports on affairs, the councillors are to
examine them,--then authorize acts to be laid before me for my approval.
Ministers, as well as the councillors, are responsible to the prince
and people for their acts, and especially for every abuse they may be
guilty of in the exercise of their power.”
“Thirdly, I have caused our civil and criminal code, to the digestion
of which four years have been consecrated, once more to be revised,
improved, and rendered more intelligible. These will be laid before
our judges, that they may, according to their contents, protect the
innocent and punish the guilty. Henceforth, every Servian will meet
with protection and justice, not as formerly, in the opinions of the
judge, but under the ægis of the law. Through similar institutions,
the internal administration, will, I trust, become strengthened and
connected as by a chain. The people will be placed under the elders, the
captains, and judges; the judges under the council of state; the council
under the prince, and in contact with the prince; the prince himself
under the law, and in constant relation with the council. A similar
institution will, I hope, act as a curb on the arbitrary will of us all
in general, and of each of us in particular. It is possible, that even
in these institutions, imperfections may be detected; they will, in the
course of time, come to light, and be remedied. Neither my judgment, nor
the information I am possessed of, nor the time I have at my disposal,
have sufficed to bring to perfection so important a task, that is, so as
to enable me to say, ‘No one will be able to find fault with my work,’
or ‘It is the most perfect work upon earth.’”
“Having thus fulfilled the promise I made, to introduce order in the
internal administration, I shall beg your attention to the other
important question, mentioned in my speech of last year,--namely, how
should contributions be levied on the people?”
“The Servian nation is placed under the necessity of meeting annually
the following expenses: The tribute to the sultan; the salary of the
prince and his family; the salaries of persons holding situations under
government; the salary of bishops; expenditure for the maintenance of a
military force at home for the police, and also for the troops on the
frontiers; for post establishments; for the quarantine establishment;
for the mission at Constantinople; for the agents at different places;
and lastly, expenses for unforeseen circumstances.”
“Hitherto, revenues drawn from different sources, have enabled us to
defray the above indispensable expenses; in future, the Servian nation
must, as for the past, furnish us with the necessary supplies. I have,
in concert with the legislative body, endeavoured to find out the means
of satisfying the imperious claims of necessity in the lightest and
most equitable manner for the people, and, at the same time, the most
convenient for our government. We had, during the course of last year,
several discussions on the subject; some entertaining one opinion,
others a different one. I perceived, at last, that it was preferable to
draw up an estimate of the expenditure of Servia, and to collect the
amount directly, and in one sum, from the people. The collection of this
tax shall be made at two different epochs of the year, one half being
paid at the feast of St. George, 23d April, the other at that of St.
Demetrius, 9th November, thus to afford the people time enough in the
interval to collect the sum requisite before the appointed day.”
“To prevent the people from being hourly teased by small indirect
contributions, I have established but one tax, one of three dollars
every six months, from every one; let every one, I say, pay three
dollars half-yearly, and thus be exempt from paying any thing; whether
for poll-tax, church taxes, matrimony tax, mill and distillery tax, a
corn tax, and also the tenth on Indian corn, wheat, barley, and oats;
the tenth on bee-hives and wine; and lastly, let the people be exempted
from all kinds of obligatory service to men in office, except in those
cases where government requires labourers for works of public utility;
but even in this case, government shall pay wages to every man who
shall work a whole day. Roads and bridges alone shall be constructed
at the expense of the different villages. Forests and pasture-grounds
shall, in future, be a national property; the whole nation paying
contributions for them, it is but fair that the whole nation should
enjoy the privilege of making use of them. Now if the people will duly
weigh the numerous advantages that will arise from this new mode of
taxation, I trust every one will allow that no nation in Europe is more
lightly taxed than the Servians.”
“It remains to be seen, whether the produce of this tax is sufficient
for the annual expenses. Our administration must now ascertain whether
it be so or not. It will be the duty of the minister of finances at the
expiration of the year to lay the accounts before me, the council and
the national assembly, exhibiting the income as well as the expenses of
government.”
“In order, however, that the assessment of this tax may be made in such
a manner, that the richest as well as the poorest Servian may remain
satisfied, I lay before you the census of the population, in which the
number of married, as well as unmarried individuals is marked: the
property of every Servian is also noted down, and of course the elders
of every village are aware of the amount of each man’s tithes. It is
according to this list, and to each man’s income, that the assessment
of this tax is to take place. To decide what portion of this tax each
individual has to pay is neither my business nor government’s; this
is to be determined by the elders of each municipality. They should
examine this list, compare the amount of the tithes paid by each person,
and in concert with the captains and judges of the district, make the
assessment of this tax in such a manner as not to give to the poor
motives for accusing them of partiality.”
“These words I address to you, Brethren and Gentlemen, and request
you will let me hear, or communicate in writing, your undisguised and
unanimous opinion on the subject, in order to enable me to ascertain
whether you approve of the institutions I have alluded to,--whether
you agree with me on the amount of taxation as well as on the mode of
levying it. Let me hear your opinion, now that you are assembled, and
after having sworn to-day the statutes, choose amongst you the most
capable individuals, and invest them with full powers to act as your
representatives here so as to enable me to act in concert with them and
the Council of State. These persons will afterwards return to their
homes and acquaint you with the result of our combined labours. Chosen
by yourselves, these persons will be your deputies; and those whose
representatives they are must provide for their entertainment;--they
will assist at every meeting in order to examine the accounts, and
communicate information to the people on the subject.”
“So considerable a reunion of men as the present one, cannot, owing
to the expense it occasions, take place annually; but Deputies of the
People, such as I propose to you, exist in other countries and are
equally necessary in our own.”
Private letters further state that the death of the Emperor Francis has
been followed by very serious agitations in Hungary and Transylvania;
that the sultan is proceeding rapidly and boldly with his plans of
reform at Constantinople; and I observe that a company has been
established in London for the purpose of connecting Marseilles
with Constantinople by a line of steam-packets. Thus preparations
are in progress throughout all that region for great changes; and
communications between Vienna by the Danube, the Black Sea, the
Mediterranean, and London, may be said to be on the eve of completion,
which will afford the merchant, the politician, or the summer traveller
the opportunity of visiting most of the principal cities of Europe,
within the brief period of a month or six weeks--a tour upon which
hitherto no person could think of entering who had not at least a full
year at his disposal. Such are some of the miracles of the age of steam!
♦ NEIGHBOURHOOD OF GLADOVA ♦
The country around Gladova presents a picturesque succession of hills,
which sloping gradually towards the Danube, open their bosoms to the
southern sun. At present they are scarcely cultivated, but it can hardly
be doubted that in a few years they will be converted into vineyards,
for which the soil is well adapted. The Count looked forward with
singular pleasure to the improvements which his efforts were calculated
to produce in all the countries washed by his native river.
♦ WALLACHIAN HUT ♦
We were invited in the evening to take tea with the military, or rather
the quarantine, commandant of the place. As we quitted our boat the day
had just closed. There was a golden hue along the verge of the horizon
towards the east, and the new moon appeared in the transparent sky of
Servia a delicate crescent of silver. I had never before beheld our
satellite at so early a period of its monthly course. It seemed to have
but that moment received on its mountain tops the first rays of the sun.
I no longer wondered that it should have been adopted as a national
ensign in that country: seen, as I then saw it, suspended like the bow
of an angel in the heavens, it was an object almost for adoration.
Our host, a Wallachian officer in blue uniform, was a well-looking
young man, full of good nature. His house, or rather his hut, was
constructed of hurdle, plastered on both sides with mud, and on the
inside whitewashed, the walls betraying all the irregularities of the
wicker-work. The flat roof was in the same style. His bed, a mattress,
which lay in one corner, raised a few feet from the ground, was the
common sofa. His chamber boasted of two tables, on one of which his
museum and toilet were established, consisting of heads and amber
mouthpieces of Turkish pipes, a silver bell, a pair of scissors, a
snuffbox, a musical box, a dressing-case, a huge silver watch, a
penknife, a smelling-bottle, and a pot of pomatum; all enshrined beneath
a brown gauze veil. On the wall a gay rug, exhibiting in the middle a
Mameluke holding a hound in the leash, was suspended, and within this
compartment were tastefully displayed his sword, gun, cartouche-box,
powder-horn, ataghan, belt, and epaulets.
♦ MATRIMONIAL SPECULATION ♦
Our party was soon increased by one of our friend’s brother officers,
an ill-looking guest with one eye, who was accompanied by a great, fat,
ugly woman, without a tooth in her head, dressed out in all her finery
of “tinsel and brocade.” Though not young it was apparent that she had
won the heart of her attendant, who having found for her a chair, placed
himself on a stool at her feet, holding her brawny hand in his, which
he frequently kissed. I learned afterwards that she was very rich, and
that hearing of the establishment of the steam-boat she removed from
the interior of the country to Gladova, with a view to look out for a
husband. She appeared to be on the highway to success.
♦ CHARMS OF PROCRASTINATION ♦
We had tea in tumbler glasses, mixed with milk and rum, which, as the
evening was cold, we unanimously pronounced excellent. The musical box
in the mean time was wound up, and afforded the _lovers_ a treat.
The Count entered into the spirit of the scene with the most playful
goodhumour, exhibiting that unaffected condescension, that happy power
of placing himself upon an equality with those around him, without at
the same time impairing the natural dignity of his manner, which have
procured for him unrivalled influence amongst his own countrymen. We
finished the night in our cabin with a rubber of whist, the count taking
“dumby” against Mr. Tasner and myself.
Morning came again (October 5), but still no sign of the carriages or
merchandise, for which we were waiting. We were all really provoked by
this protracted delay, which seemed unaccountable, as we had received
intelligence of their arrival at Orsova. The Count, having procured
a horse, said he would ride on as far as the “Iron Door,” hoping to
meet the caravan on the way. He hoped in vain, and rode on to Orsova,
where he found the oxen and men engaged for the purpose, all asleep! He
set about putting the oxen to the cars himself, and remained until he
saw the whole team on the road. The laziness of these Wallachians is
indomitable. They would have remained at Orsova for a week, without
thinking of moving, if the Count had not luckily paid them a visit.
♦ DEPARTURE FROM GLADOVA ♦
Our cargo having been once more arranged on board, we most willingly
took our departure from Gladova at noon the next day. The Danube being
extremely low, we were obliged to proceed at a cautious pace until after
we passed Trajan’s bridge, where the water became deeper. The Count
pointed out to me the tops of the higher range of the Balkan mountains,
which appeared at a great distance, like a blue vapour in the sky. The
country on each side of the river seemed wholly uncultivated; it was
composed of gently-swelling hills, which, when subjected to the plough,
will, doubtless, abundantly repay the toil of the husbandman. The grass
was parched by the long-continued drought, which had scarcely been
interrupted by more than partial showers during the preceding seven
or eight months. In spring those hills clothed in fresh verdure must
look beautiful. Naked and desolate even as they then appeared, every
bend of the Danube, and the bends were innumerable, opened a new and
ever-varying prospect.
♦ BENDS IN THE DANUBE ♦
The Wallachian bank, exposed to all the fervour of the noonday sun,
appeared peculiarly destined for the vintage. But the whole of that
country had been so long distracted by anarchy, that the people, who
had fled to Hungary are only now beginning to return. Their cottages
are still constructed in the most simple and temporary style, because
they do not feel assured of the continuance of that domestic peace,
which happily they now enjoy. When the population increase--when their
habitations are improved--when their industry is encouraged by the
influence of order and the laws, and they feel themselves protected
from the spoliation of marauding armies--they will be enabled, with the
assistance of a few years, to convert the whole of that region into a
Paradise. The Servian territory also, on our right, seemed capable of
great things. The soil looked rich and crumbling; nor was beauty of
scenery wanting to its other attractions.
Some hours after leaving Orsova, such is the extraordinary manner in
which the Danube winds in its course, that it actually retrogrades
towards Moldava, and I came again in sight of the mountains through
which I had passed in the fishing-boat. These mountains stretch across
the north-east angle of Servia, where they form a cluster like the
Apennines, and partly divide that principality from Bulgaria. We
stopped for the night at Vervo.
♦ APPROACH TO VIDIN ♦
Having resumed our voyage at the dawn (October 7), we arrived early
at Kalefat, where we took on board three Wallachian officers of the
quarantine, as the Count intended to pay a visit to the Pacha of Vidin.
The redoubts still remain here which were thrown up by the Turks
during the late war with Russia, and in the neighbourhood of which a
severe engagement took place. The Russians are supposed to have lost
eight thousand men on that occasion, although in their report of the
battle they took no note of the slain. The important city of Vidin, in
Bulgaria, exhibited at this point a very imposing aspect. I counted
twenty minarets shooting up their whitened spires above the domes of
the mosques, and amidst the tall cypresses, which are found in almost
every Turkish town. Several troops of infantry were encamped on a plain
in the neighbourhood; the activity which prevailed about their tents,
and the marching and countermarching of divisions in order of battle,
informed us that they were under review at that moment by the Pacha. The
regiments seemed well accoutred, and thoroughly conversant with the
evolutions which they had to perform.
♦ MAGNATE’S COSTUME ♦
As we approached Vidin, the scene became extremely animated and
picturesque. Numerous boats were gliding up and down the river, between
the town and the camp, or stationed near the bank, where crowds of the
inhabitants, including a large proportion of females, were collected in
order to see the steam-boat. Two or three groups of ladies, who appeared
to be persons of distinction, as I concluded, from the respect which was
paid to them, as well as from their snow-white lawn veils and their long
green and scarlet cloth pelisses, were seated apart from the multitude.
They had no male attendant with them, and they occasionally rose and
walked about, as if to show that they were under no sort of restraint.
The Count having obtained permission from the Turkish authorities
to go ashore, exchanged his ordinary dress for the court costume of
a Hungarian magnate, which is peculiarly splendid and becoming. It
resembles the uniform of an officer of the hussars, with the exception
that the jacket, as well as the short mantle, are of purple velvet.
The Count’s sword and sword-belt, with its large gold clasp, were
magnificent. He wore, moreover, the gold key as chamberlain to the
emperor, and three or four Austrian collars and orders. He had the
goodness to invite Mr. Tasner and myself to accompany him on his visit;
the former had already a character as his secretary, and as it was
necessary for me to comply so far with Turkish customs as to appear also
a member of the Count’s travelling suite, I became for the hour his
_physician_!
♦ VISIT TO HUSSEIN PACHA ♦
The pacha to whom we were about to pay our respects was the celebrated
Hussein, who had so bravely defended Shumla against the Russian army in
the last war. He is known to be the best soldier, and one of the most
able men in the Ottoman empire; but having failed in the expedition
to Syria, where he was twice beaten by Ibrahim, he was recalled in
disgrace. His enemies at the Porte strenuously exerted themselves to
have him introduced to the acquaintance of the eunuch who has possession
of the bowstring; but the sultan respected the talents of Hussein,
and never doubted his fidelity. Had he remained at Constantinople,
he would have probably regained his former ascendancy in the state:
he was therefore _exiled_ with the extraordinary rank, however, of
Field-marshal to the Pachalic of Vidin, where he endeavours to forget
his reverse of fortune in his exertions to form a few regiments who are
intended to be models of discipline to the whole army. Hussein is a
sincere patriot--a thorough hater of Russia; and there is no doubt that,
if a revolution were to occur at the capital, threatening a change of
dynasty, he would be found a formidable champion of the Mahometan cause.
♦ THE PACHA’S DEPUTY ♦
Upon landing with our quarantine attendants, we were conducted through
an immense crowd of the people on shore, who received us with every
possible degree of civility, to the pacha’s palace, which is just at
the entrance to the town. Ascending an open staircase we were shown,
in the first instance, to a large balcony which commanded a fine view
of the river. Here we found the pacha’s chief officer sitting in state
in the usual Turkish fashion, on a wooden sofa, which was covered with
a carpet. He had two or three pillows to support his back, was smoking
a long pipe with an ordinary amber mouthpiece, and was surrounded by
eight or ten domestics, some of whom were most wretchedly attired in the
Greek or European dress, barefooted, and wearing on their heads the red
Greek cap, which, in fact, is like a red cloth nightcap with a blue silk
tassel at the top, and to my mind peculiarly unbecoming.
♦ AN INTERPRETER ♦
The Count had forgotten to provide an interpreter. The embarrassment,
therefore, may be easily conceived, which was felt by both parties, when
the vice-governor could not ask us what we wanted; and if he did ask any
such question, we could make no reply. We examined each other, so far as
looks could serve, with unfeigned curiosity, and resolved that we were
mutually in a very ludicrous situation; from which, however, we were,
after half an hour’s delay, fortunately released by the entrance of
Hussein’s physician.
This man was a Florentine by birth; but he had been sent to Turkey at a
very early age to seek his fortune, and had now almost wholly forgotten
his native language. He affected to speak French, and was looked up
to by the vice-regal court of Vidin as a linguist of the first order.
He was dressed in the Greek cap, blue round jacket and trousers, gray
worsted stockings, and yellow slippers. There was a sinister expression
in his eye, and a consciousness of guilt upon his flushed forehead, as
well as in his nervous utterance, which warned us at once that we were
in the presence of an adventurer, who for an adequate consideration
would never refuse the secret exercise of his skill against the enemy of
his employer. We felt as if we could read in his countenance a volume of
crime, and we afterwards learned from our quarantime companions that our
suspicions were by no means unfounded.
♦ EXPLANATIONS ♦
The Count explained in French, that he had come to pay his respects
to the pacha, upon which we were informed that the pacha was not at
home; that he had gone out with his favourite son to review the troops
encamped near the town, but that he was expected back every moment, as
his carriage had been sent for him, and a messenger would be despatched
to hasten his arrival. The physician stood at the end of the sofa,
covered, as in fact we also were, in compliance with the manners of
Turkey; whenever he had occasion to speak to the vice-governor he put
his hand to his forehead, then to his lips and breast, the established
mode of giving the salaam, which by the way constantly reminded me of a
Roman Catholic making the sign of the cross. Our carpet stools meanwhile
were brought from the steam-boat, in order that we should strictly
observe the quarantine laws, by not touching any thing capable of
communicating the plague. We then sat down, looking at each other, as
before, for nearly an hour, the silence being now and then interrupted
by a question addressed to the physician by the vice-governor, then
interpreted to the Count, who gave his answer, which was again
interpreted to the vice-governor, who nodded his head, looked surprised,
and again puffed a more than ordinary cloud of smoke from his distended
cheeks.
♦ PLEASURES OF DISGUISE ♦
I own I did not feel quite at ease in my medical character. I was
apprehensive that the physician would have interrogated me on
professional matters, and would have discovered my entire ignorance
of the subject, for in truth I had never opened a medical book in my
life. Luckily he avoided every topic of the kind as much as I did, and
most probably for the very same reason. Pipes and coffee were brought,
which varied the scene for a moment, the attendants taking scrupulous
care while they handed us the little china cups on a tray, and the long
pipes, to keep themselves from touching any part of our dress with their
own habiliments.
CHAPTER IX.
Hussein Pacha--Hussein’s son--Group at the interview--Commencement
of conversation--Conversation prolonged--Steam expedition--Cool
reception--Pacha’s harem--Wallachia and Moldavia--Treaty of
Adrianople--Silistria--Boat aground--New delays--Zantiote boat--
Adventurous changes--Separation--Ionian luxuries--A grave mistake.
The vice-governor was a fat, sickly-looking man, about fifty years of
age, and grave even to stupidity. He could not hold out his curiosity
beyond the ordinary question, whence we had come, what we wanted, and
whither we were going. Having exhausted these topics he sunk again into
a sort of Sybarite dreamy torpor, as if the odour of his tobacco were
the perfume of Paradise. It was certainly very fragrant, and his coffee
was the best I ever tasted. The physician was still a young man, but he
looked also pale, haggard and nervous. He complained much of the air of
Vidin, as peculiarly unwholesome; it was, he said, extremely cold, as
compared with that of Stamboul, where he had lived for thirteen years.
The town, and especially the palace, were exposed on one side to the
vapours of the Danube, which here presents an extensive surface to the
rays of the sun, and on the other to the freezing blasts which rush
down from the Balkan mountains, He was assuredly much discontented with
his lot, and confessed with an involuntary pang, which flung a strong
expression of remorse athwart his forehead, that he had adopted the
Mahometan faith.
♦ HUSSEIN PACHA ♦
At length the rattle of a carriage was heard driving into the courtyard
below: it was immediately announced that the pacha had returned, and
in a few minutes we were summoned to his presence. Passing through a
line of twenty or thirty shabby officers, some of whom were dressed in
turbans and flowered silk pelisses, we entered a large plain saloon,
covered with a blue carpet, and containing no other furniture, except a
divan, or bench, hung with yellow damask, which extended all round the
room close to the walls. In a dark corner, seated in the usual Turkish
attitude, was Hussein, apparently about fifty-five years old, his face
deeply marked by the smallpox, swarthy and tremulous, as if he had not
been unaccustomed to opium. His eye beamed with the light of superior
intelligence experienced in the exercise of authority. He wore a dark
olive cloth pelisse, edged with sable fur, and the red Greek cap with
its blue silk tassel. He was smoking when we entered, and continued to
smoke while we remained.
♦ HUSSEIN’S SON ♦
On his right-hand was seated, also in the Turkish fashion, his son by
his favourite consort, about ten years old, dressed precisely like his
father, beyond all comparison the most beautiful boy I ever beheld. A
high forehead, dark well defined eyebrows, long black lashes, brilliant
hazel eyes, downy oval cheeks glowing with the blush of health, lips red
as the rose and pregnant with the consciousness of high station, but at
the same time pensive, combined with other features of more than Italian
perfection to exhibit a model for one of Raphael’s angels. The contrast
between this boy and his father will be understood by those who have
seen the statues of Prudence and Justice in St. Peter’s at Rome, or who
can imagine Winter furrowed by storm and mantled in cloud, coming back
to look at the joyous Spring.
♦ GROUP AT THE INTERVIEW ♦
The tone of Hussein’s voice, naturally rough, was evidently softened by
the influence which the presence of this lovely youth exercised over
him. He desired us, in a very kind manner through the physician, to
be seated, our own stools having been brought in for that purpose. We
formed a strange group altogether--the pacha smoking on the divan, his
son near him with a small riding-whip in his hand headed by a silver
whistle; the Count in his Hungarian costume seated in front of the
pacha; Mr. Tasner and myself in black, our hats on, seated on the left
of the Count; the three quarantine officers standing in a line with
us; immediately behind the Count his groom in rich livery, and his
gamekeeper dressed in “Lincoln green,” cocked hat and green feathers,
each with a double-barrelled fowlingpiece in his hand, mounted in
silver; and at the back of these a train of officers and domestics
without either slippers or shoes, their toes peeping through their
stockings, arrayed in every variety of European and Eastern habiliments,
extending from the angle occupied by the pacha to the door.
♦ COMMENCEMENT OF CONVERSATION ♦
The preliminaries of presentation having been gone through, the Count
stated, through the Florentine, that as he was passing by Vidin on his
way to Bucharest, he felt it incumbent on him to pay his respects to the
pacha: that he was a nobleman of Hungary appointed by the Emperor of
Austria to direct the improvements which were necessary to facilitate
the navigation of the Danube by steam-boats from Presburg to the Black
Sea, whence they might then proceed to Stamboul. The enterprise, when
completed, would be equally advantageous to Turkey as to Hungary, and
he availed himself of that opportunity to recommend it to the pacha’s
protection. Hussein bade the Count welcome, and said that he was very
glad to see him, but made no allusion to the enterprise, which he did
not appear to comprehend. A pause of nearly a quarter of an hour then
ensued, during which we seemed all conscious of being employed in
conjecturing how this oppressive silence was next to be broken.
♦ CONVERSATION PROLONGED ♦
At length, the pacha having exhausted his pipe, inquired if the emperor
was much beloved in Hungary. The Count answered in the affirmative,
adding that it was impossible for any man to know the emperor without
esteeming him for his great personal virtues. An effort was then made
to prolong the conversation by an allusion to the relations of peace
which were now happily established between the Turks and the Hungarians,
who had been so long engaged in hostilities; but Hussein cut it short
by the maxim, that it was always better for men to be at peace with
each other than at war. This truism having been pronounced with great
self-complacency, and admitted on all hands, a second quarter of an hour
elapsed in solemn taciturnity, which was really very embarrassing.
The assigned period for the generation of another idea having been
fully accomplished, the pacha delivered himself of an observation,
that the emperor had several officers of distinguished talent in his
service. The Count confirmed the justness of this remark. Silence again
resumed her wand, and we were all spellbound. In the mean while, pipes
with splendid amber mouthpieces, were brought by the attendants, and
presented to us; after which, another set of domestics came round with
a japanned tray, on which sweetmeats were served in glasses. But as it
would be necessary for us to use silver spoons, which were on the tray,
and silver is supposed to be a conductor of the plague, our quarantine
friends interposed and prohibited the luxury, much to my annoyance, as
beside the sweetmeats were arranged glasses of sherbet. Hussein smiled,
not pleased however, at the scrupulousness of our guards, which he must
have felt as a sort of imputation upon his country.
♦ STEAM EXPEDITION ♦
Small china coffee-cups were then brought in upon a gold tray; they
were turned down, with silver filagree cups placed over each. Coffee
was next produced in a japanned pot, and the tray and coffee-pot having
been placed on the floor by the attendants, one of them presented a
cup to our chief officer, who removing it from its silver case, filled
it with the fragrant beverage, and placed it in the Count’s hand. In
this way Mr. Tasner and I were also served. The pacha and his son took
some sherbet. This ceremony being concluded, the pacha inquired whether
the steam-boat was going to Stamboul. The Count replied that the steam
navigation so far was not yet completed, but that when another boat,
which was daily expected from Trieste, should arrive at Galacz, it would
be possible to make the voyage from Presburg to Stamboul in eight days.
This intelligence produced an exclamation of surprise from Hussein. His
officers and domestics held up their hands in amazement. But it was
clear that Hussein was no friend to this sort of expedition, which he
evidently thought predicted no good for Turkey.
♦ COOL RECEPTION ♦
The Count finding that the interview had already lasted long enough,
rose, and we took our departure. As we came out he gave one of the
servants ten gold ducats to be distributed amongst them, according to
the Turkish custom, which permits no person of rank to visit another
without levying this kind of tax for the benefit of the domestics. In
most cases it forms the only wages they receive. The Count had intended
to present the two fowling pieces to the pacha, but he came away without
effecting his purpose, as the medical adventurer’s interpretation was
really so loose and blundering, that it would have been impossible to
have performed the ceremony with that degree of gracefulness, which
would alone have given value to the gift. Perhaps, too, the Count felt
that his reception was cool.
♦ PACHA’S HAREM ♦
It was our wish to have walked through Vidin, and made ourselves
acquainted with the features of that important town, but our quarantine
officers would not hear of such a thing. We were even directed to get
rid of the dust of Vidin on the soles of our boots by dipping them in
the river. Upon returning to our boat we were therefore obliged to
content ourselves with all that we could see through a telescope of its
fortifications and mosques, bounded in the distance by the Balkans.
The pacha’s harem formed a striking object in the scene, but we could
discern no bright eyes peeping through the lattices by which every
window was guarded. We were told, indeed, that two ladies, dressed in
black long cloth pelisses, and closely veiled, who stood on the bank of
the Danube under the harem, were its principal inmates. But beyond this
supposition our curiosity was destined to meet no gratification.
The Wallachian officers dined with us. In the course of conversation I
learned that the quarantine establishment, which gave full employment to
the only troops the hospodar possessed, was entirely under the control
of the Russian consul at Bucharest. I took the liberty, therefore,
to remark that our guests were in fact Russian officers much more
than Wallachian, inasmuch as the regulation of the quarantine in any
country is the peculiar attribute of sovereign authority. This remark,
far from being contested, was on the contrary immediately acceded to:
the gentlemen appeared rather pleased at being recognised as imperial
servants, in which character they also considered the hospodar. Indeed,
they added, how could any doubt exist upon the subject, seeing that the
prince, when he was invested with the office of hospodar by the sultan
at Constantinople, was arrayed in the Russian uniform?
♦ WALLACHIA AND MOLDAVIA ♦
The political condition of the two provinces, Wallachia and Moldavia,
is very little known in England. They are occupied chiefly by a
Sclavonian population, to which the Greeks also belong, professing
the Greek Catholic religion, actuated by an indelible hatred to the
Turks, and intimately connected with Russia by religious as well as
national sympathies. Though compelled by conquest to acknowledge the
sovereignty of the Porte, the provinces which are separated from the
Russian empire by the Pruth and mere geographical lines, were governed
for many years by two hospodars, native princes, selected by the Porte,
and continued in authority during the sultan’s pleasure. Vexatious
imposts, and great irregularities in the administration of justice,
produced incessant discontent among the people, who demanded the
protection of the emperor against the exactions and abuses of Turkish
authority. The emperor listened willingly to their complaints, and under
the pretext of securing them the free exercise of their religion, which
was in truth never disturbed, interposed in their favour. The treaty of
Bucharest, which was concluded in 1812, gave a direct sanction to that
interposition so far as the interests of religion were concerned. The
treaty of 1829, concluded at Adrianople, at the end of the late war, may
be considered as handing over the provinces to Russia altogether.
♦ TREATY OF ADRIANOPLE ♦
By that treaty, or the articles subsequently added to it, it is
stipulated that the hospodar shall be appointed by the sultan for life,
and not for a term as before, from a list of native princes elected by
persons possessing a certain amount of property in the provinces. A
small annual tribute is to be paid to the sultan, who retains, under
the title of _suzeraineté_, the nominal supremacy of those districts. A
rigid quarantine, under the control of Russia, whose extensive empire
would be most endangered by the introduction of the plague from Turkey,
is to be observed along the whole of the Wallachian bank of the Danube,
thus establishing, in fact, an armed line of separation between the
Ottoman empire and its northern _dependencies_!
♦ SILISTRIA ♦
On the opposite bank of the Danube, Silistria, the strongest fortified
town in Turkey, which commands all Bulgaria, and opens the road to
Constantinople, is given up for ever to Russia. I say “for ever,”
because Turkey engaged to pay an enormous sum by way of indemnity
for the expenses of the late war to Russia, and it was arranged that
until the whole of that indemnity was discharged Silistria should be
garrisoned by Russian troops. But all the various stipulations upon this
subject are so framed, as to leave the _time_ of payment entirely at
the discretion of the emperor, who will probably adjourn his demand for
the last instalments _sine die_. By this truly Russian diplomacy he may
retain Silistria as long as he pleases, which places in his hands the
moral sovereignty of Turkey.
In order to complete his encroachments in that quarter, it has been
further provided in the treaty of Adrianople, that besides the
Bessarabian embouchure of the Danube, which he had already gained by the
treaty of Bucharest, the whole of the Delta of that river should be
ceded to him, and that with a view to prevent his sovereignty over that
part of the Danube from being disturbed, the Bulgarian side of the Delta
should remain for ever uninhabited, to the distance inland of six miles.
By these arrangements, the navigation of the Danube, so far, at least,
as intercourse with the Euxine is concerned, is subjected exclusively
to Russian control; and Wallachia and Moldavia, really separated from
Turkey, are as really added to the Russian empire. The _suzeraineté_
of the sultan, and the nomination of the hospodars are mere diplomatic
contrivances for “throwing dust” in the eyes of Europe.
♦ BOAT AGROUND ♦
After dinner we proceeded on our voyage; but found the river so shallow,
that we stopped for a while, and sent out men to sound for a deeper
channel. Under their guidance, and rubbing occasionally over sandbanks,
we kept on until the evening, and stopped for the night at Argugrad.
On the following morning we again proceeded on our way; but about nine
o’clock the boat penetrated a sandbank, where it remained as firmly
fixed as if it had grown up from the bottom of the river. Anticipating
an accident of this kind, we had brought with us from Argugrad a
flat-bottomed vessel, for the purpose of lightening the steamer of its
cargo: but upon sounding the river from bank to bank, it was discovered,
to our dismay, that even if the cargo, boiler, engine and all, were
removed, we had not the slightest chance of moving beyond the spot,
where we were fixed as by the spell of an enchanter. Indeed, we had the
agreeable prospect, about a mile before us, of three country boats,
laden with “fruit,” planted also like so many rocks, in the bed of the
Danube.
♦ NEW DELAYS ♦
The paddles of the engine were backed, with the view at all events of
getting the steamer afloat, but they revolved in vain. The boiler was
then emptied of its contents: still she remained imperturbable. Anchors
were thrown out to shift her from her ground; but after breaking all
our ropes, and exhausting every contrivance, we were obliged to give up
the task in despair. The Count made up his mind to remain on board the
rest of the day, and if no chance of liberation should offer itself,
to send for horses to Kalefat, and to proceed by land to Giurgeva, and
Bucharest. He obligingly proposed to take me with him in his carriage,
saying, that I could have no difficulty in crossing from Giurgeva to
Rutschuk, where I could procure horses for a journey over the Balkans
to Constantinople. I calculated that it would take a day to go to
Kalefat for the horses; a second day, probably, to find them; a third
to return, and get the carriages ashore, and that after all it was
not certain that a carriage road could be found practicable as far
as Giurgeva, without first going to Bucharest. I looked forward with
no very pleasant feelings to this delay, seeing that the season for
travelling was rapidly drawing to a close.
♦ ZANTIOTE BOAT ♦
Towards evening, while I was walking alone on deck, impatient of the
obstruction which my voyage had encountered, an Italian ship carpenter,
whom we had taken on board at Gladova, came to announce to me that a
boat was in sight, which he knew to belong to some Zantiotes, with whom
he had been employed in constructing the two frigates we had seen at
Semendria. The boat, he added, was certainly on its way to the Black
Sea, where they would coast it down to the Bosphorus, and so on by the
Hellespont and the Archipelago, to Zante.
♦ ZANTIOTE BOAT ♦
I had already learned from the captain that beyond Rutschuk, the banks
of the Danube were low, marshy, and wholly destitute of interest,
especially for one who had passed through the splendid scenery between
Moldava and the Iron Door. I was informed, moreover, that if I went as
far as Silistria, I should have very little chance of finding horses
there, and would run the risk of being even inhospitably treated by the
Russians, who might suppose that I had some political purpose in view,
in paying their garrison a visit. I therefore resolved to take a passage
in the Zantiote boat to Rutschuk. The Italian informed me that the men
to whom it belonged were perfectly trustworthy and civil, and that as
I was an Englishman, and in some degree a fellow-subject of theirs, I
might depend upon the best accommodation they could afford me.
♦ ADVENTUROUS CHANGES ♦
It was no very welcome change to pass from the comparative luxuries
of the steamer--from a good mattress, excellent dinners, champagne,
and the fascinating society of the Count, to an open boat, manned by
Greek carpenters, with whose conversational language I was wholly
unacquainted. But my anxiety to “go on,” superseded all other
considerations; and there was, moreover, an adventurous character about
the transition, which was not without its influence upon a mind fond of
examining the phases of human character in every shade of society. The
Servian Jew we had left at Vidin; the Moldavian poet had been for some
days laid up with a nervous fever. But when he heard of my resolution,
he crept up on deck to take leave of me.
♦ SEPARATION ♦
As the Zantiote boat, which to me, at first, appeared like a little
black speck in the distance, approached, I desired the Italian to
hail it, and inquire whither they were bound. His former companions
immediately recognised him, and they pulled up, within quarantine
distance, of the steamer. They said that they were on their way home;
that they had two Turkish passengers; one for Nicopolis, the other
for Rutschuk; that they would be very happy to afford me a passage,
if I would accept it, as far as I pleased, and that I might depend
upon their utmost attention. The goodhumoured look of these Ionian
islanders confirmed me in my determination, and I much surprised the
Count, who with Mr. Tasner, was busily engaged in writing, when I went
to communicate to him my plans, and to bid him farewell. Though not
prepared for so sudden a separation, he saw at once that the opportunity
of so soon pursuing my voyage to Rutschuk ought not to be thrown away,
as he confessed that he was not very certain of being able to go
overland to Bucharest or Giurgeva. Having already made the journey to
Constantinople from Semlin, he gave me some useful instructions as to
the mode in which I should proceed, and directed the captain, who was
acquainted with the Wallachian language, to furnish me with a letter to
the agent of the Steam Navigation Company at Rutschuk.
♦ IONIAN LUXURIES ♦
Having taken leave of my friends, I descended into the Ionian boat, and
was instantly separated from them by the bar of quarantine. The crew of
the steamer assembled, and cheered us as we departed, and the Count,
whose kindness to me I shall never forget, waved his handkerchief until
we were veiled from his view by the increasing dusk of the evening.
The vessel in which I found myself seated was a large, strong, open
boat, in which there was a company of seven hardy well-looking men, who
occasionally relieved each other at the oars and the helm. Three hoops
were stretched over the centre of the vessel, and over these was spread
a thick mat formed of dried reeds, which served as an awning. Beneath
this canopy my Turkish fellow-passengers were seated on carpets. They
received me with the utmost civility, and made room for my portmanteau
and carpet-bag, which I converted into a sofa. Near me was a sack of
walnuts, which offered no mean apology for a pillow.
♦ A GRAVE MISTAKE ♦
My new friends immediately offered me some grapes and bread, which I
declined, but which reminded me that I had committed a grave mistake
in not having provided myself for the remainder of the voyage from
the larder of the steam-boat. One of the crew, who seemed to be their
captain, opened his chest, and took out of it a large thick blanket,
which he wrapped carefully around me. The night was cold, and the
moon in its first quarter gleamed on the swarthy faces of my Turkish
companions; one of whom, a military officer, was an extremely handsome
man. The stars were all out, and we had so much light that we pursued
our way until ten o’clock, when we stopped for the night near a Turkish
village.
CHAPTER X.
Zitara Palanka--Turkish hospitality--Interior of a caffiné--Mahometan
devotee--Orisons--Race of Tartars--Social variety--Turkish khan--The
nargillé--Supper--Woman--Seclusion of the sex--Eating in the dark--
Visiters astonished--A general invasion--Return to the boat--New
acquaintances--Nicopoli--Night scene.
Soon after daybreak (October 9) our men were at their oars, which
they plied with a degree of vigour and determination very different
indeed from the annoying and invincible indolence of my Wallachian
acquaintances. The morning was sunny and cheerful; but the banks of the
Danube no longer presented any scenery worth observation. The Balkans
had altogether vanished from our view, and there was not a hill, or
even an eminence of any kind to be seen.
My breakfast consisted of a piece of excellent brown bread, and some
dried curds, which I afterwards often found in Turkey and Greece, as a
substitute for cheese. The captain, perceiving that I had brought no
provisions with me, seemed pleased to perform for me all the duties of
a host; placing near me a wooden bowl, filled with curds, a brown loaf,
and a wooden canteen replenished with wine. I preferred, however, the
pure element below, whenever I had occasion for it. To be sure, this
frugal fare was a change from the well-served board of the steamer; but
I consoled myself by thinking, that good living was not always conducive
to health, and that a fast now and then is among the best prescriptions
which a doctor can furnish.
♦ ZITARA PALANKA ♦
Towards noon we put in to a Turkish village, which the crew called
Zitara Palanka. We went ashore to get a supply of provisions; the
Turkish officer who wore the red Greek cap, his pistols and ataghan
stuck in the silk scarf with which his loins were belted, and his long
pipe in his hand, took me under his protection. The village was a small
straggling place, consisting of wooden houses, most of which were shops
for bread, curds, butchers’ meat, soft goods, groceries, fruit, rock
salt, dried skins, shoes, boots, and slippers. We went to the caffiné,
or coffee-house, before which we found three or four Turks sitting on a
mat, in a rude sort of balcony, the floor of which was slightly elevated
above the level of the street. They were well-looking men, and they
received my friend and myself with a salam full of good nature, and, at
the same time, not without dignity.
♦ TURKISH HOSPITALITY ♦
The pipes were all immediately put into requisition, and coffee was
brought to us in china cups, my only objection to which was their
minuteness. The beverage was served without sugar, the latter being a
luxury in which Turkish villagers seldom indulge. My friend observed,
at once, that I did not much relish my coffee in this way, and ordered
sugar to be brought. But there was none to be found in the caffiné,
until “mine host” procured some from a neighbouring shop. With that
addition the coffee was very good, and I found three or four cups no
unwelcome illustration of my philosophy of fasting. A considerable store
of curds, bread, and grapes, was purchased by my military companion,
who would not suffer me or any other person to contribute to the sum
which he paid for it, though he intended it for the common use of the
passengers and crew. The grapes were large and well flavoured, but they
would have been much better if they had been kept a little longer in the
sun. I rather pressed a few piastres on my friend, as my share of the
day’s expenses, but he would allow me to pay for nothing, and looked as
much as to say, “you will offend me if you insist.”
♦ INTERIOR OF A CAFFINÉ ♦
The interior of the caffiné consisted of one large room, divided by a
low railing into three boxes, if I may so call them, within which mats
were spread. At the side of the room, opposite to the door, was the
fireplace, arched at top, not level with the floor, but raised nearly
breast high, for the greater convenience of making coffee. The fire was
of wood, and on one side a large tin pot held water constantly boiling.
On the other side was an earthen pot, containing roasted coffee reduced
to a fine powder by the aid of a pestle and mortar. Whenever a cup of
coffee was ordered, it was prepared in two or three minutes, uniformly
by itself, in a small saucepan.
♦ MAHOMETAN DEVOTEE ♦
A beggar-woman, who shifted herself along the street upon a pair of
low crutches, exhibiting a picture of the most squalid misery; three
or four ragged boys, and a wild-eyed dwarf, came to gaze at me with
astonishment, hearing that I was an Englishman. The village has a
mosque, with the usual accompaniment of a white minaret, crowned by
a tin spire. It was a wretched building. The road through the street
was the natural sod, trod into dust and hardened by use. With all
these symptoms of poverty there appeared every where an abundance of
all the necessaries of life, and a degree of personal ease, or rather
indifference, about the inhabitants, who, by the way, were mostly armed
in the Turkish fashion, which induced me to conclude, that, though so
remote from the haunts of civilization, even Zitara Palanka was not
without its share of the general happiness bestowed by a benignant
Providence on mankind.
We returned to our boat, and there being a light breeze in our favour,
we hoisted a sail. I had a favourable opportunity of observing the
practical influence of the Mahometan faith, in the demeanour of one
of my fellow-passengers, named Noureddin, who wore a green turban,
long gray beard and moustaches, a tattered brown cloth pelisse, and
wide blue trousers, patched all over. I understood that he was on his
way to Constantinople, intending to ride on a donkey from Rutschuk to
Varna, whence he would proceed by sea to the Bosphorus. After visiting
the principal mosques at Stamboul, he was resolved to join one of the
parties of pilgrims who usually sailed at this season of the year for
Alexandria, thence to proceed on foot to the shrine of the prophet at
Mecca. He was therefore a “devotee;” and I must confess that I have
never seen any Christian so constantly so fervently animated as this
Mussulman was, by the all-absorbing consciousness that he lived and
moved in the presence and under the immediate protection of the great
Creator of the universe.
♦ ORISONS ♦
Noureddin watched for the rising sun having previously spread his carpet
(about the size of one of our hearth-rugs) on the floor of the boat.
Turning his face towards the east, he stood wrapped in pious meditation.
The moment the sun appeared above the horizon he knelt down, prostrated
himself three times, kissed his carpet, and then remaining on his knees,
said some prayers which were manifestly poured out from the fulness of
his heart. When these orisons were concluded he again thrice prostrated
himself, kissing his carpet each time. He next rose and repeated a few
prayers standing. Then folding up his carpet, he sat down and told his
beads.
♦ RACE OF TARTARS ♦
On the contrary, my military friend seemed to have no thought whatever
of religion. Though dressed in the scarlet uniform of an officer of
rank, and that splendidly too, his pistols, sword, and ataghan being
richly mounted in gold, and his highly ornamented cartouche-box being
suspended by a cord of gold twist, nevertheless he sometimes smiled at
the ardour displayed by Noureddin. I afterwards learned that he was in
fact a Tartar, a race of men who are met with every where in Turkey,
are usually employed in the most confidential subordinate offices of
the state, and are identified with the Turks in manners as well as in
religion. But in the practices of the prevailing faith they are cold and
negligent from habit, or rather perhaps from their general intelligence
which has elevated them above the koran. He displayed in his cincture
the oldfashioned brass case for ink, and pens formed of reeds, which
he civilly requested me to use instead of my pencil, when he saw me
writing notes in my journal. He examined my silver tube on the new plan,
containing lead alone regulated by a screw, with great curiosity. He
also looked over my journal, apparently wondering how I could make any
use of the characters, to him wholly unintelligible, with which my pages
were crowded.
♦ SOCIAL VARIETY ♦
The scenery of the Danube continued desolate on both sides. Occasionally
we saw amongst the islands immense flocks of wild ducks and geese, the
latter of an extraordinary size. Our boat proceeded down the current
at a very fair rate. I dined on bread, curds, and grapes, read for some
hours, and wrote with my friend’s reed and ink the paragraph which is
now under the eye of my “gentle” critic. In the course of the afternoon,
Noureddin twice repeated his orisons and ablutions, always with the same
unaffected sincerity of devotion. The captain of the crew, who though
their acknowledged master in all things requiring regulation, seemed in
every other respect upon an entire equality with his companions, read
to them while the distended sail permitted them to lay up their oars,
popular fables from a small octavo Romaic Greek book, which appeared to
attract their general attention. Now and then he interpolated between
the sentences a short commentary of his own, which uttered with a
roguish smile made them all laugh. The day continued to its close
warm and beautiful, and though I devoted some thoughts to the esteemed
Hungarian friends whom I had so lately left, as well as to the case
of champagne which they had not yet exhausted, yet I must acknowledge
that I shared, without a murmur, in the simple fare, as well as in the
contented, I might say the happy feelings of the people around me.
♦ TURKISH KHAN ♦
At half-past six we stopped for the night, and landed, by the light
of the moon, near a small village, where my Tartar friend gave us to
understand we should meet with excellent accommodations. The path led
us by an old fortress, near which the khan was situated, we found the
owner standing outside, and he showed us a ladder by which we ascended
to an open balcony covered with mats. He then took a key out of his
pocket and opened a door through which we entered a large room, divided
as usual by low railings into several compartments, one of which,
however, was considerably elevated above the rest, and was covered with
a finer mat. The embers were still alive in the fireplace, which exactly
resembled the hearth already described, except that it had a reservoir
beneath for the ashes. I sat down upon the edge of the elevated box. My
fellow-passengers, and most of the crew who came with us, took off their
shoes in the middle of the room, and then seated themselves in the usual
attitude of Turks, in one of the lower compartments.
♦ THE NARGILLÉ ♦
Coffee was served without sugar, but my friend, more provident than
myself, produced from beneath his cincture a little paper of sugar,
which he gave me. Noureddin smoked the hooka, or nargillé (_i. e._ fire
and water), the bubbling noise of which was peculiarly disagreeable
to my ear. This instrument resembles a large carved glass decanter,
in the neck of which two small tubes are inserted. One of these tubes
communicates with an elastic pipe which reaches the mouth of the smoker;
the other tube terminates at the top of the decanter in a small cup,
called the _loulé_, in which the dried leaves are placed, whose essence
is to be extracted. These leaves usually come from Shiraz; they are a
species of tobacco much relished by Turks, but when ignited, the smoke
is so rancid that they are obliged to purify and mitigate it by passing
it through water. The two tubes inserted in the neck of the decanter
descend halfway down the vessel, and the remaining half is _nearly_
filled with water. Thus the suction through the elastic pipe and one
of the small tubes draws down the smoke from the loulé, which, after
depositing all its impurities in the water, passes into the mouth of the
operator.
♦ SUPPER ♦
In the course of an hour supper was brought in, which consisted of
chicken stewed and served in a savoury sauce, hot bread, hot buttered
cakes, and boiled rice, which I found by no means unpalatable,
notwithstanding my recent conversion to the Pythagorean system. These
dishes were cooked by the female branches of the family, in the lower
apartments of the house, which to us of course were inaccessible. Even
in the most obscure villages of Turkey the custom of secluding the
women from every place frequented by man is most rigidly observed.
I began already to feel the sombre colour, which this national law
imparts to the external appearance of every Turkish community I visited.
Men--constantly men, and nothing but men, were to be seen every
where--so much so that I got quite tired of looking at them.
♦ WOMAN ♦
I am one of those who think that without Eve there could have been no
Paradise. Indeed, I sincerely consider woman as a creation standing in
the scale of existence between us and the celestial spirits. She excels
us greatly in purity and ardour of feeling, in tenderness of heart, in
absolute unchangeable devotion to every object of her affections. As
parent, wife, or daughter, there is a sacred intensity of soul in the
performance of all her duties, that prevents her from bestowing even
a thought upon the exertion or the difficulties with which they are
attended. If there were no female in the world there could have been
no genuine religion. She has received from her Creator a temperament
for the belief in mysteries, and for the conversion of the most sublime
doctrine into practice, which man will never rival. Equally fitted for
society or solitude, the ornament of the cottage as well as the palace,
guided by the impulses of good sense, which are better for the routine
of every day than our most elaborate reflections, the calm and secure
harbour of every good and noble thought amid the storms of life, woman
was given to us that she might constantly point the way to a better
world.
♦ SECLUSION OF THE SEX ♦
The systematic absence, therefore, of that portion of the inhabitants
from the group which were to be met with in the bazaars and shops
and coffee-houses, often cast a cloud upon the enjoyment which I
might otherwise have derived from the novelty of the scene. It is
not, however, as some travellers have represented, a custom peculiar
to Mahometan manners. It existed in ancient Greece, and continues
there still. It prevails very much in Wallachia, where the religion
of the prophet never acquired any influence. In fact, all over the
East, as I am informed, it is deemed a violation of traditional and
well-established notions of delicacy, rather than of any rule of the
koran, for a female, especially before marriage, to appear in public
without an imperative necessity, and then not without being closely
veiled.
Before we dipped our fingers in the dish, we washed them, our host
pouring out water on them from a jar with one hand, while the other
supplied us with a towel. This operation tended in some degree--a very,
very small degree I must confess, to reconcile me to the further process
of dividing the members of our prey with my greasy friend Noureddin, and
two or three of our crew. I could also have excused the attentions of
the Tartar, who really meant to be most friendly, when he selected from
the middle of the stew a couple of legs for my approbation. However,
cautiously avoiding the part which he touched, I found the remainder
very pleasant.
♦ EATING IN THE DARK ♦
From circumstances which afterwards took place, I inferred that perhaps
it was as well that while we sat upon the mat to supper, I could not see
all the contents of our dish very plainly. The light, a solitary candle,
was stuck in a sconce by the side of the elevated fireplace, and lent to
us but a feeble ray. Nor can I even now think without horror upon the
courage with which, adopting the manners of my companions, I immersed
my bread in the sauce after the more solid materials had vanished. The
bread was unleavened, and hot, having been just baked for us on the
hearth in the harem below. It was prepared in large cakes, which were
broken into pieces, and arranged round the dish. The buttered cakes
formed the second course, but I did not touch them, as they appeared not
to have been cleanly made. I supped chiefly on the boiled rice, which
I ate with a wooden spoon, and finished off with grapes and coffee.
When the pipes and hooka were again resorted to, some Turks came in
who seemed to be acquaintances of the Tartar. They appeared glad to
see him, and after conversing with him at some length, one of them who
spoke a little Italian, asked me if I were an Englishman. I answered of
course in the affirmative. He then asked me how long it was since I left
England. I told him that after my departure from London I spent some
time in Paris, which I had quitted exactly a month ago. My interrogator
and his friends looked quite astonished at the expedition with which I
had so far accomplished my journey. But when I added that I lost nearly
the half of that month in delays of one kind or another, and that when
the steam navigation of the Danube should be completed, I might hope to
make the whole journey from London to Constantinople in fourteen days,
they gave up any further inquiry into the matter; it was altogether
beyond their comprehension.
♦ VISITERS ASTONISHED ♦
Preparations were made for our stay at the khan during the remainder
of the night. A flock bed was brought up from below and spread for
me in the elevated compartment. It was covered with a wadded silk
counterpane, to which a foul sheet was sown on the inside. A large
greasy-looking pillow was placed at the head. I felt an instinctive
reluctance to commit myself for some hours of unconsciousness to the
keeping of this concern; but as all my companions were either preparing
for repose on the mats which they occupied, or were already wrapped
in sleep, I took off my coat, hung up my cloak over my head, and got
under the counterpane. But I was not long in my position before I was
apprized of the presence of numerous intruders. The reader may imagine
my uneasiness, although they did me the honour of simply marching in
multitudes over my face and hands, for I happen to be one of the human
race whose blood, for some unaccountable cause, they are uniformly
compelled to spare. An immense cat came also to share my couch; but to
her company I objected at once without the least ceremony.
♦ A GENERAL INVASION ♦
Matters being in this situation, and new colonies swarming around me
every moment, I started up and performed a series of pirouettes on my
bed, until I disencumbered myself of some at least of my too curious
acquaintances. Noureddin meanwhile awoke, and having succeeded in
lighting the candle by blowing into a flame an almost extinguished
ember, which reflected a Rembrandt brightness on his gray beard and
swarthy cheek, proceeded to smoke his hooka, whose bubbling sounds were
by no means music to my ear. I hid myself in my cloak, applying to my
soul the flattering unction that I might thus avoid all my enemies,
and laid down outside the counterpane. Happily the dogs of the village
had held an aggregate meeting, wherein they agreed that the Englishman
should have no sleep that night, and straightway they despatched a
radical deputation to present to me their impertinent address. I say
“happily,” because I had scarcely remained half an hour listening
to their clamour, when, peeping out from my place of concealment, I
beheld the walls at my head and at my left hand literally black with
many armies, bent on fresh hostilities. I was struck with horror. Even
Noureddin was astonished. There was no alternative but to return to
the boat, and I cannot soon forget the obliging manner in which my
proposition to that effect was immediately adopted by all parties, but
not before my cloak had undergone a thorough cleansing.
♦ RETURN TO THE BOAT ♦
♦ NEW ACQUAINTANCES ♦
It was midnight when we found ourselves once more beneath our matted
canopy. The pure atmosphere, and my couch formed of my portmanteau,
carpet-bag, and pillow of walnuts, were delicious after the close and
populous prison from which we had just effected our escape. I fell
into a profound sleep, from which I never awoke until six o’clock
in the morning. I then washed my face and hands in the Danube, and
felt as joyous as the day itself, which was splendid. As the men had
resumed their oars soon after our return to the boat, we had made
good way during the night. The banks of the river continued flat and
wholly devoid of interest. We did not meet even a single wherry on the
water to interrupt the dulness of the scene. Now and then, indeed, we
encountered large dark green water-snakes, swimming against the current,
by the undulating motion of their tails, holding their heads carefully
out of the element. If we attempted to strike them with an oar, they
dived instantly, and reappeared a few minutes after at a considerable
distance. Large flocks of wild ducks also passed, high over our heads,
which sometimes produced a singular effect by their wings glistening in
the distant hazy air.
♦ NICOPOLI ♦
About five o’clock in the afternoon we came in sight of Nicopoli, a
considerable Turkish town, remarkably well situated upon a range of
hills rising above a bay in the river. The Wallachian shore looked
marshy and desolate; but on our right the hills were abrupt, and so
chalky in appearance as to remind me of the cliffs at Dover. The whole
range forms a semicircle, at the foot of which are the waters of the
bay. At a distance these hills looked like a series of fortresses, each
cluster of cliffs resembling redoubts and towers admirably adapted for
defence. The town is surrounded by strong ramparts in good repair, and
well mounted with cannon. We landed. My Tartar friend, having procured
a donkey, rode away after consigning me to the care of Noureddin, and
wishing me farewell in his best manner. The crew laid in a fresh stock
of bread and grapes. Noureddin led the way to a caffiné where the
nargillé seemed all the rage. It was crowded with Turks. This (Friday)
being their sabbath, all the shops with the exception of those of
the butchers, bakers, and fruiterers, were shut in the market-place.
Noureddin ordered coffee and a sausage. When the latter was produced,
half heated through, I did not much relish its appearance; it found
still less favour in my eyes when I saw that Noureddin had no other
means of dividing it than by pulling it asunder. The coffee I could not
take, as it was without sugar, and, the grocers’ shops being closed,
none was to be had.
I was proceeding alone to take a view of the interior of the town,
when I met a Moldavian, who addressed me in French. He advised me not
to go into the town, as the Turks were extremely jealous of strangers.
He told me that he had come from Galacz, on his way to Giurgeva, where
he had business, but that the boat in which he performed the voyage
was prevented from going further than Nicopoli by the want of water
in the Danube. He added that it would be quite impossible for us to
proceed further down the river, as a little below Nicopoli there was
hardly any water at all. While we were talking, a Servian, dressed in
the European fashion came up, who also spoke French. I inquired of him
whether it would be possible for me to procure any thing in the shape
of a good dinner in the town; he answered with a smile that the thing
was quite impossible. I expressed my regret that I could not even get a
cup of coffee, as there was no sugar to be found any where; upon which
he pulled a piece of dirty blue paper out of his pocket, in which was
carefully wrapped a small lump of sugar. He very kindly offered it to
me, but as the article was so scarce, and in his sample of it not very
inviting, I declined his civility. The Moldavian hung about me for some
time, for what purpose I could not guess, until at length he produced
what he called a coin of the Byzantine empire, which he offered me for a
Napoleon. I was too well prepared for this species of dealing, to afford
his bargaining propensity the slightest encouragement.
The captain of our vessel came to me to state that as the river was so
extremely low, he could not think of departing from Nicopoli until next
morning. But as I did not choose to put up with this delay, I insisted
on our resuming our voyage without further loss of time. As to the
deficiency of water, we did not require more than two or three inches
to keep our boat afloat: if we could not find that depth we must drag
the boat along until we passed the shallow, which had been described to
me as extending to no great distance. The moon would soon be up, and
therefore we could make the experiment by night as well as by day, and
at all events it would be attended by no danger. He pointed out to me
eight or ten vessels in the little bay, which it was found impossible to
move: nevertheless he yielded to my wishes, and we set off at half-past
seven in the evening.
♦ NIGHT SCENE ♦
For about an hour after our departure the bottom of our bark was
perpetually in contact with the rocky bed of the Danube; so much so
that we were pushed rather than rowed along We then found ourselves in
deep water, and as there was no further difficulty to be encountered,
I consigned myself to repose. I awoke, however, about eleven, when I
perceived that the helm was abandoned, the crew were all fast asleep,
and the vessel was left to take its own course down the current. The
moon exhibited but half its orb, and veiled behind a thin haze was
lingering on the edge of the horizon. I took the helm for a while,
but every thing in nature looked so sleepy, that I returned to my
couch, and gathering my cloak and blanket around me submitted to the
general destiny. I opened my eyes again about two o’clock, when I
beheld Noureddin standing near the helm, praying in an audible voice,
his hands stretched towards the stars which were glowing in all their
splendour above his head. The boat was still gadding slowly wherever
the stream directed it: so turning away from the starlight, I again
courted, and not in vain, the charms of forgetfulness.
CHAPTER XI.
Sistow--A delusion--New friends--Good fortune--Greek civility--
Wallachian merchants--Supper--Amicable discussion--Gil Blas--Wallachian
ambition--Chief of the Tartars--Striking a bargain--Equestrian
preparations--Greek v. Greek--Shops of Rutschuk--Valley of repose--
Bulgarian peasants--Gipsies--Going astray--Cogitations--Resolutions--
Bulgarian girls--An alarm.
♦ SISTOW ♦
The labours of our crew were recommenced at daybreak (Oct. 11), and
at nine o’clock we came in sight of Sistow, which was still mantled
in gossamer vapours. Here and there the sunbeams pierced through the
mist, and shone upon the spires of the minarets. Sistow is beautifully
situated. A range of magnificent hills commences a league or two west of
it, and extends a considerable way along the right bank of the Danube.
The town, rising at the water’s edge, winds its way up the undulations
of the eminences, which seem destined by nature for the reception of
clusters of human habitations. After ascending for a while the houses
are then lost, then they appear again higher up, the whole protected by
a citadel, which crowns the summit. These hills are all well wooded, and
extremely picturesque.
The Danube here presents a fine sheet of water; so deep, too, that four
or five Russian merchant-ships were proceeding, without difficulty,
towards Sistow. We met again several water-snakes swimming up against
the current. At half-past three we came in sight of Rutschuk, to my
infinite satisfaction, and in two hours after our boat was moored amidst
a number of Russian, Turkish, and Greek merchant and fishing vessels of
every size, which presented an appearance of considerable commercial
activity.
[Illustration:
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._
Pest to Roustchuk.
_London, Richard Bentley, New Burlington Street, 1835._]
My captain volunteered to accompany me to find out the agent to whose
care the commander of the steam-boat had recommended me by letter. We
walked for some time through the town without meeting any person who
could give us information as to the agent’s residence. When first I
beheld Rutschuk at a distance with its numerous mosques and minarets
shining in the sun, rising on a bold promontory from the edge of the
vast expanse of waters formed by the Danube, I felt confident that it
was a wealthy, populous, active, cleanly, and handsome city, which
I should experience great gratification in examining. Never was my
imagination more deceived. A more poverty-stricken, deserted, idle,
filthy, ill-contrived town does not exist, I believe, even in Turkey.
All the habitations, with the exception of the greater part of the
shops, are literally turned outside in. That is to say, the streets on
each side present only lines of dead walls, without even a window to
relieve their desolate appearance. The “fronts” of the houses are all,
as an Irishman might say, “backwards,” opening to a courtyard, which is
entered by a gate.
♦ A DELUSION ♦
In Spain the private residences are built in the form of a square, with
an open space in the middle, but still fronting to the street. The
streets of Rutschuk look like the ways through a fortress, nothing but
wall on each side, except where the gates here and there interrupt the
dull uniformity of the stone and mortar. I now, for the first time,
understood the truth of the phrase, that the Turks were only “encamped”
in Europe. This is literally the fact. Almost all the towns which I
afterwards visited in Bulgaria, as well as in Romania, were constructed
on the same plan, evidently with a view to self-defence, for every house
was in itself a fortress.
♦ NEW FRIENDS ♦
At length we chanced to meet a Greek, whom my guide saluted in his own
language. Upon the superscription of the letter being shown him, he
said that he was very well acquainted with the person to whom it was
addressed, but the agent’s residence was at some distance from where
we stood, and he refused to conduct us to it until the morrow. This
specimen of indolence was too ridiculous not to betray its real motive.
Of course I immediately produced a piastre, which without any further
negotiation gave motion to his feet, and he led us through one or two
streets to a gate, which he opened without any ceremony. We entered a
large square, on each side of which were houses belonging to different
families, including a public inn, in the balcony of which several Turks
and Greeks were smoking and sipping coffee. One of the latter, a short,
thick, cunning-looking fellow, dressed in my own way, saluted me at
once in excellent French, and offered me his best services. I gave him
the letter, and sad he would oblige me very much if he could tell me
where the individual lived for whom it was intended. He answered me by
pointing out another Greek who, also dressed as a European, was sitting
on the mat opposite to him. The letter was immediately read by the
agent, who promised to show me every civility in his power. I felt quite
relieved from the difficulty in which I had been placed, and adding one
to the party enjoyed an excellent cup of coffee.
♦ GOOD FORTUNE ♦
The Greek who first addressed me was the only person present who
spoke French. He said that he had only arrived two days ago from
Constantinople, and that if I were bound for that capital he would be
happy to do every thing necessary to facilitate my progress. Here,
thought I, is another striking instance of the good fortune which has
attended me throughout my journey. I was wholly unacquainted with the
Turkish and modern Greek languages; I travelled without a companion
or a servant who might compensate for my deficiency in that respect;
and yet, though my ignorance might have been followed by the greatest
embarrassment, in a town where I was an utter stranger in every sense
of the word, I had the good luck to meet with this man, who in a moment
dispelled from my mind every apprehension of delay or inconvenience.
♦ GREEK CIVILITY ♦
I had seen enough of the world to be able to perceive that my Greek was
already calculating, within the interior of his own breast, how much he
was likely to gain from an English traveller by this adventure. But I
cheerfully accepted the offer of his services, well knowing that I must
pay for them, and that perhaps I was destined to submit even to some
degree of imposition. But civilities and attentions, rendered especially
under such circumstances, are well worth their price. I explained to him
that I was most anxious to continue my journey with the least possible
delay; that it was necessary for me to engage a Tartar and the usual
number of horses, and that if it were at all practicable I should wish
to proceed that evening on the road to Constantinople. This, he said,
was altogether out of the question, as no Tartar could supply me with
horses without a firman from the pacha, who was already shut up for the
night in his harem with his family, and would not be accessible until
eight o’clock the next morning.
♦ WALLACHIAN MERCHANTS ♦
Meanwhile the agent had my luggage brought to the khan, and having
desired my Greek to thank the Ionians for their hospitality and kindness
during my late voyage, I presented them with a gold ducat, with which
they seemed perfectly satisfied, observing that they much regretted I
was not to accompany them any further. I felt a little depressed on
bidding farewell to these kindhearted islanders, whom I looked upon as
my fellow-countrymen. The agent then conducted me to his own house,
my Greek having promised to be with me at seven o’clock the following
morning, in order to make all the requisite preparations for my journey.
I met at the agent’s house four or five Wallachian merchants from
Bucharest, who, under a cunning aspect, that seemed to inquire, “Can we
gain a ducat or two out of this Englishman?” appeared, nevertheless,
very agreeable men, and disposed to pay me every kind of attention. They
all spoke a little French; seemed respectable in their way; and guests
in the house, which I assumed to be a private sort of hotel for Franks.
The room in which we sat was a large one, containing a divan, extending
along two of its sides, which was spread with cushions, covered by
white cotton cloth. Two rickety tables were brought in, upon which,
after a little delay, supper was served for the Wallachians and myself,
our host, and three or four brothers, or other relatives, who lived with
him.
♦ SUPPER ♦
Our first course was stewed mutton and cabbage, which, after three days’
Lenten fare, I found very acceptable. Next came some fried fish, which
was not bad either; then a piece of roast-beef, so tough that it defied
even Wallachian powers of mastication; and finally, a dish of boiled
rice, mixed up with some curdled milk, which was not at all to my taste.
These viands were exhibited in pewter dishes, and we had each a pewter
plate, a pewter spoon, and a steel knife and fork, which I considered as
a decided improvement upon my late mode of living. We had for dessert
some large flavourless grapes. The wine was, to me, undrinkable; but a
bottle of white rum was produced, which, mixed with water, compensated
for the want of a better beverage.
♦ AMICABLE DISCUSSION ♦
While we were taking our coffee, my intended movements were discussed.
My new friends had, as they said, lately arrived from Constantinople;
and they assured me that I should find my ride over the Balkans a
much more serious affair than I appeared to imagine. They had no doubt
that by this time the mountains were covered with snow and ice, and as
in addition to these refrigerators, I should most probably encounter
piercing winds, that would freeze the blood in my veins, they agreed,
in the first place, in condemning my cloak as wholly inadequate for
my protection against the inclemency of the weather. They further
unanimously recommended that I should purchase a cloth pelisse, lined
throughout with fur, a fur cap, boots lined with fur, and a fur
waistcoat. If, in addition to these articles, I provided myself with a
_muff_, a mattress, a warm rug, a strong blanket, and a store of rum,
I might, perhaps hope to effect the passage in safety, provided I wore
arms. When I confessed that I had neither sword, stiletto, nor pistol,
they all held up their hands in astonishment, and exclaimed, that I
should by no means omit to purchase a carbine, and a pair of pistols
at the least, before I set out, otherwise I should have no chance of
escaping the savage banditti who infested the forests of Mount Hæmus!
♦ GIL BLAS ♦
The favourite book of my youth was Gil Blas; and I could not but feel a
secret delight in recalling the philosophy of that unrivalled production
to my assistance on the present occasion. I was, in fact, much amused
by the combination in which they were all engaged, in order to practice
on my simplicity; but I listened with great attention to every thing
they had to say; though I could hardly refrain from laughter, when, as
I fully expected would be the case, one produced a threadbare Russian
pelisse, which he had _never_ worn; another a pair of old jack-boots,
lined with fur; another offered to dispose of the fur cap, which he had
at the moment on his head; another brought forth an assortment of sabres
and firearms, pressing me on the spot to offer a round sum, about fifty
ducats, for the whole! I observed that I must take time to consider
their very obliging propositions; being inclined, at all events, to
negotiate for a pelisse, as I had reason to suppose that so much of the
autumn could not have passed over without leaving its usual snows on the
Balkans.
After supper, the tottering tables were removed, and the night being
brilliantly fine, mine host and his friends and guests amused themselves
in walking up and down the courtyard; some talking, some singing Greek
songs, one playing on a flute, and another strumming a guitar. It being
Saturday evening, they all appeared in a festive mood. I sat in the
balcony, gazing upon the scene before me and on the domes and minarets
around shining in the moonlight, with a sort of feeling which, I might
say, induced me for the moment to doubt my own identity, transferred as
I was thus suddenly from people to people.
♦ WALLACHIAN AMBITION ♦
Before we retired to rest there was a general muster of all the people
in the house in the principal room; when the conversation happened to
turn on the actual state of Turkey. The Greeks maintained that their
nation was rapidly rising once more to the ascendancy which they
formerly possessed in that part of Europe, and that as they were certain
of the assistance of Russia, they had no doubt that they would be soon
again masters of the whole of the old Greek empire. They said all this
with a degree of confidence, which plainly showed that the subject had
long formed a general topic of conversation in Wallachia, and that it
was a theme by no means unacceptable to the ear of the autocrat. There
is a Greek church at Rutschuk, which they told me was usually well
attended. The hour of repose was at length announced when the Wallachian
merchants and I proceeded to occupy the places assigned to us on the
divan.
♦ CHIEF OF THE TARTARS ♦
I rose betimes in the morning (October 12), when I found my Greek friend
already waiting to receive my orders. It was necessary for me to pay my
respects to the chief of the Tartars, in order to arrange with him for
a guide and for horses to take me to Constantinople. I was told that I
might, with a little exertion, accomplish the journey in three days,
and that, allowing a horse for myself, one for my Tartar guide, one
for my luggage, one for the postilion, and one for relief, that is to
say five horses in all, I might easily obtain the whole for the sum of
fifteen hundred piastres. I proceeded to a caravanserai wholly occupied
by Tartars, attended by my Greek, who pointed out to me their chieftain
seated in a balcony smoking his pipe. He was seated at a table, and
on the opposite side I discovered a countenance not unfamiliar to me,
which turned out to be that of my late Tartar fellow-passenger, who had
arrived here overland the evening before. Doubtless he had prepared his
tribe for the approach of an Englishman, and accordingly, the first
principles of the negotiation were laid down upon a basis of three
thousand piastres. Nothing less could be taken.
♦ STRIKING A BARGAIN ♦
My Greek, who doubtless had also his slice out of the bargain, and who
had instructed me the evening before that I ought to pay no more than
the sum I have first stated, now suddenly went round to the other side,
and declared that considering all things, especially that if I could
procure no horses, it would be impossible for me to quit Rutschuk,
advised me, if I wished to conclude the matter speedily, to make an
offer at once of the highest sum I meant to give. I then proposed two
thousand piastres; but ultimately the sum agreed upon was two thousand
five hundred, about £25 sterling, which was to include all expenses
whatever. Half was to be paid down; the other half at Constantinople.
When it is considered that the distance from Rutschuk to the capital
is about three hundred and fifty English miles, that I was to be
attended the whole of the way by a respectable Tartar guide who was
to be responsible with his head for my safety, that we were to have
several relays of five horses on the road, each relay accompanied of
course by a postilion, that the Tartar was to defray all charges, and
that after seeing me lodged at a hotel in Pera, he was to return to
Rutschuk with a certificate of my arrival, and of his own good conduct
on the journey, it must be admitted after all that the bargain was
not unreasonable. When it was concluded, the chief undertook all the
necessary arrangements about my passport, or firman, and promised that
my horses should be ready in two hours.
♦ EQUESTRIAN PREPARATIONS ♦
In the mean time, I had to equip myself with a saddle, bridle, whip,
straps and cords, and a pair of strong boots, all of which the Greek
procured for me. It so _happened_ that there was not a saddle or bridle
ready mounted to be had in the town, except those which my Greek had
himself used on his late journey from Constantinople, for which he
had the modesty to demand four ducats. I was obliged to submit to his
imposition, but I must do him the justice to say, that though very well
inclined to extract as much as he possibly could out of my purse, he
would not suffer any body to rob me in the ordinary way but himself.
When I consulted him about the pelisse and pistol affair, he laughed
outright. He had crossed the Balkans only a few days before, there was
not a particle of snow upon them. As to the banditti, it was probable
enough there might be some Bulgarian marauders in the forests, but they
would never dare to attack my Tartar.
♦ GREEK _v._ GREEK ♦
He then took me to the apartments which he occupied, where with the
assistance of an imp, whom he called his servant, he manufactured a
couple of tumblers of egg-coffee, and enabled me to make a tolerably
good breakfast in what he denominated the European style. He took my
luggage under his care, saw it carefully packed on one of my horses,
and besides assisting me to get rid of my Wallachian friends--who,
contrary, I must add, to the expressed wishes of my very worthy host,
again pressed upon me a whole wardrobe of fur, old pelisses, sabres and
guns--exerted himself in every possible way to expedite my departure.
With reference to the plague, he said that certainly some “accidents”
had occurred at Pera; but that the contagion was principally confined to
Constantinople.
Though fleeced a little by this fellow I could not help being pleased by
his superior intelligence, his activity, and his useful attentions. Nor
did I think the less of him when, with a manly tear stealing down his
weather-stained cheek he entreated me to call upon his wife and little
girl at Pera, to assure them of his safety, and to say that after
performing his mission at Bucharest, he would speedily return home. He
wrote down her address in my journal as follows:--“Madame Catherine
Marcello à Arnout kioy a coté du l’Apothecaire sur la mer dans la maison
du Nicolaki Afesso. S’appelle demoiselle Effrdani.”
♦ RUTSCHUK ♦
The horses having been saddled and all things prepared, about ten
o’clock I and my Tartar and postilion mounted, and rode quietly through
the town. The shops were all open, and exhibited a rich display
of military saddles and bridles, belts and cartouche-boxes, gaily
ornamented; of Persian carpets, Broussa silks, sashes, ataghans, pistols
beautifully mounted in ivory and silver, pipes with every variety of
amber mouthpieces, umbrellas, Greek caps, scarlet jackets, yellow
pointed slippers, gold-headed canes, fine cloths, woollen and cotton
stockings, and every article of grocery, fruits, vegetables, meat, fowl,
bread, fish, hardware and jewellery. The floors of these shops were
usually elevated above the level of the street, and the owners and their
assistants sat inside upon the floors, some working as tailors, some
as saddlers, and artisans of the ordinary trades. In several of these
shops, which were well stored, I saw nobody attending. They were quite
open to the street, as when the shutters are taken down there is no
glass window to prevent any person who chooses from entering.
♦ VALLEY OF REPOSE ♦
I had already noticed this peculiarity to my Greek friend, who said that
it was observable throughout Turkey, where those petty larcenies so
common in other countries were never heard of. He added, moreover, that
perhaps the forests of Mount Hæmus excepted, I might travel alone all
over Turkey, my portmanteau filled with gold, and unlocked, and that I
should not lose so much as a ducat by robbery. His information on this
point was perfectly correct. The Turks will gain as much as they can in
making a bargain with foreigners, or with each other, but they never
think of stealing money, or indeed property of any description.
As soon as we passed out of the town we put our horses to their speed,
alternately trotting quickly, or galloping almost without interruption
until one o’clock in the afternoon, when we reposed from the heat
of the day in a valley admirably suited for that purpose. It was of
considerable extent, surrounded on all sides by craggy precipices. A
brook rushed rapidly through the middle of the valley from one of the
neighbouring heights. A caravan consisting of twenty or thirty waggons,
laden with wattles, mats, fruits, and merchandise of every sort, had
already stopped here to take advantage of the coolness of the shade, and
the freshness of the torrent, whose waters were delicious. Their oxen
were drinking from the stream, or ruminating upon its banks. Groups of
families belonging to the caravan were formed here and there; the men
smoking, the women preparing their dinner round a fire, or washing linen
in the brook, the children playing about and shouting. Other travellers
who had rested their appointed time, amongst them some Turkish troopers,
leading beautiful black Arabian horses, were preparing to resume their
journey. My Tartar and I sat down behind a waggon, which protected us
from the rays of the sun, until our horses were sufficiently refreshed.
We then galloped on as before.
♦ BULGARIAN PEASANTS ♦
Our road, which was only marked through the open country by the tracks
of wheels and of the hoofs of oxen and of horses, passed over low hills
and valleys, occasionally patched with brushwood. About three o’clock
we stopped at a solitary Bulgarian khan, where we found a number of
ragged peasants, with their families, drinking white rum and water under
a shed. They all came forth, upon our riding into the yard, and in a
fawning servile manner welcomed the Tartar. A mat was spread for us in
a rude balcony, which was protected by a roof of reeds from the sun.
While we were resting here, one of the peasants who was intoxicated,
though he had scarcely a fragment of shirt to cover his nakedness, his
long hair matted by filth upon his forehead, and a long staff in his
hand, approached as well as he could, to make our acquaintance. The
Tartar took up his whip and lashed his feet soundly, until some of his
companions came and took him away.
♦ GIPSIES ♦
Two female gipsies, dressed in the usual costume of that mystic race,
next appeared standing by our balcony. I could not discover whence they
so suddenly came. They were not deficient in the browned ruby cheek, the
black eye, and swelling bosom which distinguish the tribe. They bore
also long staffs[1] in their hands, and evinced a desire to disclose
to us our future destinies. But they spoke laughingly, as if they
were convinced that they had very little chance of imposing upon our
credulity. Upon the Tartar’s returning their invitation with a shake of
his head they went away, disappearing through the hedge which separated
the yard from the neighbouring field.
[1] The peasant sometimes places his staff upon the back of his
shoulders grasping it tightly at the same time with each hand lifted
as he walks. In this manner it affords relief to his back and chest,
and also supports his arms.
♦ GOING ASTRAY ♦
A waggon was standing in the yard, which was hurdled in all round, and
filled with a noisy multitude of cocks and hens on their way to the
market. I had a most refreshing drink of spring water flavoured with
rum, from a clean wooden bowl, after which our dinner was served to us
in the balcony, consisting of black bread, hard eggs, very fine onions,
and the best salt I had tasted since I quitted England. I asked for
some grapes, but none were in the house, which seemed well stored with
Indian corn hanging in bunches from the roof. I dined heartily, and with
renovated energies galloped away as soon as our frugal meal was over.
The afternoon was delightfully fine, neither hot nor cold, but of that
medium temperature which makes the blood tingle in its circulation
through the channels of the frame. Having been so long confined to
vehicles of various descriptions, I enjoyed the free air and the
boundless greensward, over which I was riding. My horse too, though a
poor miserable-looking hack, refreshed by a good feed, and an hour’s
rest, cantered along in a spirited style. On starting I rode on before
my Tartar and postilion, firmly persuaded that my horse knew the road
to Shumla as well as either of them. For a while I heard them galloping
behind me, but the sound ceasing to reach my ear, I looked back, and
to my consternation beheld not a creature within the whole range of my
horizon. I waited for a while, and then rode back two or three miles
without meeting any body. I concluded that I had lost my road, and
entered another beaten track, to which my horse, however, manifested
several very intelligible objections. I took counsel with him, leaving
the bridle on his neck, when he deliberately turned round, and followed
his own course.
♦ COGITATIONS ♦
My mood of mind at that moment was by no means enviable. I had no means
of ascertaining whether I was in the right way to Shumla, or whether, as
I almost apprehended, from the alacrity of my horse, we were returning
to Rutschuk. As I had missed my Tartar and postilion, whither had they
gone? Would they ride forward to Shumla to inquire for me, or would
they return to Rutschuk, satisfied with the sum already paid, in order
to justify themselves by stating what was the truth, that my parting
from them was my own act? They had all my luggage, and even my cloak;
how was I to cross the Balkans without any protection against the
reputed inclemency of these mountains? They had, moreover, some little
remembrances of my journey, which I had bought for my wife and children,
the loss of which I believe I should have regretted more than any thing
else. I possessed, indeed, enough of gold in my pocket to defray my
expenses to Constantinople, but I knew not a syllable of the language
spoken by the Turks, and was equally ignorant of that in use amongst
the Bulgarians. How was I to inquire my way? How was I to make any body
understand what I wanted, when it would be necessary to procure fresh
horses, and even the scanty meals with which I must be contented on the
journey? Was it quite safe for me to travel alone, and if not, how and
where was I to meet with a new guide?
♦ RESOLUTIONS ♦
These questions passed rapidly through my mind, but I came to the
conclusion that at all events, I would go on. The country rose gradually
into hills, which indicated that I should soon be in sight of the
Balkans. I met some shepherds tending their goats, to whom I shouted
the word “Shumla,” and then pointing along the track in which I was
riding, inquired by this gesticulation, if I were in the right road; to
which they seemed to answer in the affirmative, by pointing the same
way. This information removed a heavy burden of doubt and anxiety from
my mind. The sun had already set, and twilight was fast fading away;
but I allowed my horse to get on after his own fashion, trusting to
a benignant Providence for protection, and consoling myself with the
thought that I was engaged in an adventure which seemed pregnant with
interesting incidents.
♦ BULGARIAN GIRLS ♦
My romantic anticipations were by no means dispersed, when, descending
into a valley, I arrived at a fountain, round which several Bulgarian
girls were assembled with pitchers. They seemed to wonder very much
“what manner of man” I was, and I could not help admiring their
beauteous large black eyes and dark hair, which fell in plats on their
shoulders, ornamented with pieces of silver coin. Some wore similar
ornaments in their ears, connected together by beads of coral. They were
dressed in linen or flannel tunics, marked with a red cross on the left
breast, to show, I presume, that they were Christians, and therefore
not obliged to wear the veil. They seemed, however, extremely shy;
though curiosity, which characterizes the sex in every climate, now and
then tempted them to take a peep at the solitary stranger. I prevailed
on one of these damsels to allow me to drink out of her pitcher; but as
soon as they filled their vessels, which they did in a great hurry, they
commenced a general flight.
♦ AN ALARM ♦
I felt very much inclined to follow them, satisfied that they lived
in some neighbouring hamlet, where I might spend the night, when I
was alarmed by the sound of two shots, which rapidly followed each
other, at some distance. Looking round towards the eminence from
which I had myself just descended, I saw in the increasing dusk, a
horseman, galloping wildly as if he were pursued by a whole troop
of banditti. Holding his pistol in his hand, he directed his course
towards the fountain, when, looking at me with a frightened aspect, his
lips trembling, his forehead bathed in perspiration, he threw himself
down from his horse upon the ground, where he sat for a few minutes
perfectly motionless. It was my Tartar! I hardly knew him, so changed
was the expression of his countenance, so disordered was his turban,
and his whole dress, as if he had just fled from a field of battle. My
postilion appeared soon after, leading the baggage horse, but the fifth
was missing. It was soon explained, that the horse which he had ridden
all the day fell on the road soon after our departure from the place
where we had dined; that every effort was made to get him on his legs
again, but that after losing a great deal of time in the experiment they
were obliged to abandon the animal; the more so, as from my imprudence
in hastening on they found it necessary to come in pursuit of me. The
Tartar’s head was at stake, which he would probably have lost had he
not fortunately overtaken me. I blamed myself for causing the man so
much tribulation, though the occurrence was one of those mere chapters
of accidents which now and then are to be found in the history of every
man’s life, be he ever so circumspect.
CHAPTER XII.
A boorish group--Night quarters of a caravan--Shumla--An intrusion--An
angry Turk--Balkan roads--Difficulties of the way--Forests of Hæmus--
Banditti--Terrors--Descent of the Balkans--Dinner--Karnabat--Gipsies--
Catching a Tartar--A fiery bedroom--A decent khan--Supper.
♦ BOORISH GROUP ♦
Having all refreshed ourselves and our horses at the fountain, we
remounted in the bright light of the moon, which almost renewed the
day. There was a balmy softness in the air which was quite luxurious;
and as we galloped along I experienced a confirmed confidence in the
goodness of that Providence to whose parental vigilance we are all so
constantly indebted. We arrived at Rasgrad about eight o’clock at night,
and stopped at an inn; where, as usual, we were shown to the open
gallery, which communicates with all the upper apartments; the lower
being entirely secluded from observation, and occupied by the family.
A room was assigned to our use, but it was fastened on the outside by
a padlock, the key of which could nowhere be found. A foolish-looking
clown, with thick lips and staring eyes attempted to open the lock with
an immense knife, but without effect. The master at length came, and
forced the hasp out of the door, which then permitted us to enter a
tolerably good apartment. We sat upon the floor, and took coffee, while
a fresh set of horses were prepared for our journey.
At midnight, having galloped for nearly four hours without cessation,
we arrived at a solitary hut, in which we espied a light. My Tartar
generally contrived to have a rest and a pipe, at least, at that
interval, and we accordingly dismounted. The door was upon the latch,
and going in, we found a great log of wood burning in the middle of the
floor, round which five peasants were sleeping. A boy was awake, to
take care of the fire. We sat down without any ceremony, and enjoyed
the warmth of the chamber, as the night was cold. My Tartar, who was
a fine-looking man, though somewhat bulky for a courier, had bound a
silk handkerchief round his turban, to preserve it from the dust. Over
the usual military dress he wore a large blue cloak, which he wrapped
round his shoulders in the Spanish fashion. His pipe was a plain rod of
cherry wood, with a red earthen head. Taking out his pistols and sabre,
which were fastened within his cincture, he laid them on the floor, and
proceeded to smoke, as if he felt himself quite at home.
♦ NIGHT QUARTERS ♦
One of the peasants, disturbed by the voice of the Tartar, who directed
the boy to go and fetch a fresh pitcher of water from the well outside
the hut, opened his eyes and looked at us with ludicrous astonishment.
An expression of terror kindled gradually over his countenance when
he beheld the pistols and sabre glistening in the light of the fire.
He shrunk into a corner, where he sat upon his haunches, apparently
incapable of comprehending where he was, or how he could best make his
escape. He then awoke his companions fearfully, who one after another
gazed upon their unexpected visiters with a sort of awe, as if they were
persuaded that it was all over with them, and we were come to sacrifice
them without further inquiry. They must have been marauders, for their
own consciences were evidently the most immediate sources of their
alarm. Having rested a while and slaked our thirst from the pitcher of
cool spring water, we pursued our road, to the great delight of these
boors, who were quite happy to get rid of us.
♦ OF A CARAVAN ♦
We rode for about two hours, when the night became so dark that we could
hardly see each other as we galloped along. Perceiving some fires among
brushwood, at a distance, we directed our horses towards them, and found
several men and women sleeping near burning piles under the shelter
of the shrubs and brambles. In the dark ground behind was a large
caravan of waggons and numerous oxen resting for the night. We were
most hospitably welcomed by these people, who were immediately awoke by
the salute of the Tartar. He seemed to be well known to them, and they
placed mats for us by the side of their fire. We dismounted and sat
down, when some cakes of excellent brown bread were brought. A whole one
was put into my hands, and then a wooden keg was presented to me, from
which I took a draught of the most delicious water I ever tasted.
♦ SHUMLA ♦
We waited here until the dark clouds with which the sky was overcast
travelled away, and the stars shone out. The Tartar had much to say
to his friends. He did not forget to relate to them the story of our
accidental separation, which induced them to look at me earnestly, as
much as to ask, though in a kind manner, “How could you have done so?”
We were now at the foot of the Balkans, which, after mounting our
horses, we began to ascend by the light of a few stars that twinkled
dimly in the heavens. The road was rough and winding, but the horses
seemed well acquainted with it, and the distant lights of Shumla,
now glimmering on the heights like a single taper, now scattered in
various directions, cheered us through the difficulties of the way. We
arrived at that celebrated town at four o’clock in the morning, amidst
the barking of some hundred dogs, and rode to an inn, where we were
immediately accommodated with coffee and apartments, the people being
already up and stirring about the business of the day.
I had my rug brought up, and laid on the floor. Having then satisfied
myself by examining the panelled partitions of my chamber, that it
had no communication with any other room, I locked my door, having
previously entreated that the labours of a lad, who was pounding coffee
in a mortar below, should be suspended. Placing my portmanteau at my
head I lay down much fatigued, hoping that I might have a few hours
of refreshing sleep. I had scarcely slept an hour, however, when just
as the light of day was coming in at my window, a door which I had
not perceived at the head of my couch, opened, and a great Turk, half
dressed, stepped over me. I presumed that seeing me there he would not
think of remaining in my room to disturb my repose. But I was very much
mistaken; for, approaching the window, he sat himself down near it in
an armchair, having ejected from the said chair very unceremoniously my
coat, waistcoat and suspenders, of which I had disencumbered myself.
Then calling through the window to his servant, he ordered his hooka
to be brought, and crowned his impertinence by giving way to a violent
cough with which he was afflicted.
♦ AN INTRUSION ♦
♦ AN ANGRY TURK ♦
When the servant came, he could not, of course, open the door, as it was
locked inside. The Turk was obliged to get up to open it, an exertion
which annoyed him excessively. I had, moreover, the misfortune, on
shutting the window before I lay down, to break a pane of the glass in
endeavouring to close the frame that opened on a hinge, of which all the
nails were loose. Here was another theme for his anger, which became
violent. Every person belonging to the house was summoned to account for
this occurrence, which was the more deeply resented, inasmuch as it was
calculated, the morning being raw and misty, to increase the invalid’s
malady. I, at length, gave them to understand that I was the offender;
upon which the Turk threw himself back in his chair, took the end of his
hooka in his mouth, and bubbled away as loud as he could, determined
to revenge himself by rendering it impossible for me to sleep. In this
object he effectually succeeded. I continued prostrate, however, until
seven o’clock, when I rose and breakfasted capitally on brown bread
and a bowl of boiled milk. There was a waggon in the yard, filled with
grapes, which a Turk was preparing to tread out. A tub was placed
beneath to receive the liquor, in which state, before the process of
fermentation begins, it is a favourite beverage all over the country at
this season of the year. I went to the waggon, and selecting a cluster
of the grapes, helped myself, looking at the same time round for
some person to whom I might pay the price of them. The owner made his
appearance with a very surly frown on his face; but when I tendered him
some pieces of silver, he, with a very different expression of feature,
not only refused them, but picking out two or three of the best clusters
he could find, substituted them for the inferior one which I had chosen
for myself.
♦ BALKANS ♦
We set out at eight o’clock in the morning, (Oct. 13) slowly ascending
the mountains. I had no opportunity of examining the fortifications
which Hussein Pacha was said to have erected at the side of the town by
which we had entered. On the side towards the Balkans I perceived no
symptoms whatever of warlike preparation, though the abrupt precipices
beneath which we rode for a while afforded the most favourable
positions for defences that might, I should suppose, be rendered almost
impregnable; as, from the nature of the ground, it would be difficult
to bring artillery to bear upon them. Passing into the more open
country, we found it pretty well cultivated; the people were gathering
the vintage every where, so that, during the whole day, we obtained
abundance of fine grapes merely by asking for them. My limbs were a
little jaded from riding so many hours at the rate we had hitherto
travelled; but, as we were now constantly ascending, we were obliged
to slacken our pace. I was therefore by no means so much knocked up as
I had expected. My Tartar gave me reason to hope that we should arrive
at Stamboul on the evening of the following day, provided we could meet
with good horses.
♦ DIFFICULTIES OF THE WAY ♦
The road through the mountains would certainly not have been deemed
practicable for an English saddle-horse. It was simply marked over
the natural rock by frequent use, no care whatever having been for
one moment expended upon it, even for the purpose of removing the
loose stones, or breaking down the more prominent masses. Sometimes we
rode over a track polished like ice by the winter torrents, on which,
when ascending, we were obliged diligently to take a zigzag course,
when descending, to allow the animal now and then to slide at his own
discretion. On other occasions, the near foot might be seen on a pointed
rock, while the off leg was about to pounce into a hole, the hinder
hoofs making the best of their way through boulder-stones, as if playing
with them at marbles.
♦ FORESTS OF HÆMUS ♦
It seemed to me, at first, an improper hazard of life to attempt to
ride over such a road as this, where the horse and rider, even going
at the most stealthy pace, were every moment in peril of being dashed
to the ground. But the animals, though in England the whole five would
not be deemed worth as many pounds, were so well accustomed to the
business which they had to perform, that, be the disposition of the
track what it might, they never by any chance made a false step. Their
intelligence, prudence, courage, and extreme watchfulness for their own
safety, as well as for that of the lives intrusted to their keeping,
were wonderful. No human being could have executed their office with the
uniform success which attended all their movements. So rapidly did they
gain upon my confidence, that, on levels or even on declivities, I did
not hesitate to follow my Tartar’s example, when, with a view to recover
the time lost in ascending, or to escape quickly from a pass through
a dense part of the woods, whence banditti sometimes fire upon the
traveller, he absolutely galloped over these smooth or broken masses,
both equally dangerous, as if he were flying for his life.
♦ BANDITTI ♦
Nothing in nature can be more beautiful than the variety, especially
towards the close of the autumn, of the hues that distinguish the
shrubs and trees which compose the forests of Mount Hæmus. On one side,
as if for the purpose of ornament, an eminence rising gradually from
the torrent bed over which we rode, and extending towards the heavens,
was clothed to its summit with the most magnificent shrubs, tinted with
all shades of colour, light gold, russet brown, silver ash, pale green,
scarlet red, orange, and the incomparable blue of the iris. Amidst these
shrubs the convolvulus and other flowering creepers suspended their
festoons of bells, rivalling the delicate white of the lily, or the
transparent pink of the wild rose.
On the other side the thick forests sometimes below us, sometimes
threatening to march down upon us from their tremendous heights, rank
long grass, ferns, and brambles, branches interlacing with each other,
old trees fallen in all directions and scathed by the lightning,
rendering them impenetrable, seemed, indeed, peculiarly fitted to be
the haunts of robbers. The assassin has only to place himself behind
the trunk of a tree, wait until the wayfarer appears in view, then
deliberately take his aim, and he can hardly fail to bring down his
victim. Pursuit is altogether out of the question. Retaliation would be
equally impracticable, as the murderer could not be seen. The traveller
who is best armed, as in this case my Tartar was, is usually selected
for the first experiment. The discharge is the signal to the whole band,
who are stationed at their posts along the edge of the forest to be
ready to fire at the remaining fugitives; and then, when all danger of a
contest is over, the work of plunder commences.
♦ TERRORS ♦
My Tartar and postilion were in a perfect fever during the whole
time we were riding through these passes. We galloped the whole way,
whether up or down the declivities. Sometimes the road was occupied
by caravans, and we were obliged to mount narrow and broken pathways,
which we found or made upon its edge. But even over these tracks, where
there was scarcely room for the horse’s hoof, we flew with a speed
which must have betrayed their terror. I do not affect to say that I
was myself altogether free from alarm; but I confess that I thought a
great deal less of perils from banditti than from the rocks over which
I was obliged to pursue my companions. It was emphatically one of those
instances of which I have occasionally seen other examples in the course
of my life, where in order to escape visionary dangers, real dangers
were incurred of a much more serious description.
♦ DESCENT OF THE BALKANS ♦
Heated and fatigued with our steeple chase, we at length rested on the
summit of the lofty range on which we had been travelling all day,
in a hut formed of planks inserted perpendicularly in the earth, and
roofed with tiles, inhabited by a solitary old man who supplied us with
coffee. In the evening we descended towards the lower ranges of the
Balkans, which succeed each other like so many undulations, varying
in height, but almost all destitute of trees, here and there speckled
with brambles, sometimes covered with heath, but wholly unfit for any
purpose of cultivation. My Tartar, therefore, had no longer any fears
of banditti. We occasionally saw in the sheltered valleys considerable
encampments of gipsies, but these wanderers excited no apprehension in
his mind. Indeed they appeared every where much more intent on enjoying
the pleasures of music and dancing, or preparing their meals at the
fires which were lighted near their tents, than in meditating attacks
upon travellers. At the same time we prudently avoided making their
acquaintance, being quite satisfied with the distant view of their tents
and fires, and the groups moving around them--objects which in every
climate are so picturesque--and with the sound of their pipes, violins,
hurdygurdies and tambourines, intermingled with the regular stamping of
the dancers, and the shouts of men and children, which echoed in joyful
tones through the otherwise desolate mountains.
♦ DINNER ♦
Our horses having behaved so well in conducting us without accident,
and with such fearful expedition over the first and highest ridge of
the Balkans, I urged the Tartar to stop and allow them to be fed at one
or two hamlets through which we rode. But my entreaties were in vain.
He seemed to have no feeling whatever with respect to the unfortunate
animals, except to urge them on as far as he could within the shortest
possible space of time. I insisted, however, upon justice being done to
them, and dismounting at the first house, looking like an inn, which I
met on the road, I refused to go further until the horses were provided
with corn. He observed, that if the horses were to dine there so also
must I, a proceeding, however, to which I objected, as we were not then
more than two or three leagues distant from Karnabat, a town of some
importance in Romania. However, he gave orders for dinner. An unhappy
hen who was amusing herself sauntering about the farm-yard, was laid
hold of by our landlady, who having gashed the jugular vein with skill,
dipped the body into boiling water, plucked off the feathers, and in
about an hour presented the victim to me boiled to rags, in a wooden
bowl, which looked so filthy that nothing could induce me to touch
its contents. A wooden tray was also brought with coarse dirty salt,
half-baked black bread, and a rusty knife. I resolutely deferred dining
until we should stop for the night at the town already mentioned. The
Tartar took his usual meal of bread, hard eggs, and onions; and when he
saw that I would scarcely even look at the fowl, he deliberately wrapped
it up in some paper, and put it into the haversack, which dangled from
his saddle--“a very useless precaution,” thought I, “for if you do not
eat it yourself, I am quite sure that nobody else will!”
♦ KARNABAT ♦
We remounted about seven o’clock in the evening. Our horses at first
got on very well but after exerting themselves for an hour or two, it
became evident that the toils of the morning among the rough roads of
the mountain had literally knocked them up. Even at a moderate pace we
ought to have reached Karnabat at nine, but it was past eleven before
we entered its gates, though we had seen the lights of the town the
whole evening. I was a good deal fatigued, less from riding, which never
affects me, than from the labour which it cost me to push my miserable
horse forward. His limbs seemed to have lost all their vital supply of
lubricity. Every step was a stoppage. I should have greatly preferred
walking, if that had not been rendered impracticable by my Turkish
jack-boots, with pointed toes, which, as well as the heels, were turned
up, so as to give the sole the complete form of the segment of a circle.
♦ GIPSIES ♦
However I looked forward to the hope of finding good quarters at
Karnabat, as most of the towns of Romania, being inhabited principally
by Turks, are of a better description than those in Bulgaria, which I
had hitherto visited. The proportion of Mussulmen in the latter province
is not considerable, and is dispersed through Vidin, Nicopoli, Rutschuk,
and Shumla. The great mass of its population consists of the Sclavonian
race, who profess to be Christians, but who appear to have scarcely any
houses of worship.
♦ CATCHING A TARTAR ♦
The southern valleys of the Balkans seem to be favourite abodes of
the gipsies, who occupy them without any fear of disturbance. How
these people, who neither spin nor weave, nor cultivate the earth,
clothe themselves so well, and accumulate the abundance of vegetables,
flesh-meat, fowls, and rum, with which they are always provided, is to
me as great a mystery as the origin of their tribes, and the purpose for
which they are endowed with migratory dispositions, apparently destined
to defy all the powers of civilization.
The conduct of my guide during the day did not tend to raise him very
much in my esteem. Upon alighting for the night, I was not long in
finding out that I had indeed “caught a Tartar.” We stopped near a
mean-looking house; upon the door being opened, I saw that it consisted
of only one room, in which eight or ten persons were already sleeping,
and an immense fire was blazing in an oven, in which bread was about to
be placed. Had the information of my Wallachian friends, of fur boot and
pelisse memory, been at all correct with reference to the inclemency of
the Balkans, I should probably not have very strongly objected to the
neighbourhood of the oven. But as the fact was, that in crossing these
mountains, I not only saw neither ice nor snow, but found it impossible
even to wear my cloak, on account of the intense heat, which even at
this hour of the night was but little mitigated, I refused at once to
expose myself to the danger of being baked on one hand, and poisoned by
the atmosphere of so many companions on the other. Besides, I perceived
there no chance whatever of a good dinner, of which I really stood very
much in need.
♦ A FIERY BEDROOM ♦
The moon was shining brightly in a cloudless sky, and after parleying
for a while with my Tartar, who understood, or seemed to understand,
very little of my Italian, I said that if he did not conduct me to a
respectable inn, I should endeavour to find one for myself, and that
moreover I should report him to his chief for his behaviour. He declared
that there was no other inn open in the town at that hour of the night,
and that he would not go in search of one. Kindling his pipe, he sat
down outside the door, and said that from that house he would not
depart. In the mean time the owner went out and borrowed a feather-bed,
which he displayed before me with great triumph; and he added that if
that would not do, he had even a magnificent hooka at my service, which
he had also borrowed for the occasion. I could not help being pleased
with the kindness of this poor Turk, but no temptation whatever could
induce me to enter the furnace which he called his house.
♦ A DECENT KHAN ♦
I walked up the street as well as I could in my boots, my whip in my
hand, to see what I could do for myself. Some six or eight fellows
followed me chattering, and one or two going before me, seemed resolved
to prevent me from proceeding further. I calmly applied my whip to their
legs, and dispersed the whole group in an instant. After I had searched
about in vain for a while, the Tartar at length came to find me, and
seeing that I was inflexible in my purpose, he conducted me to a khan
of the first class, where I was delighted to find some appearance of
decency.
♦ SUPPER ♦
We knocked for a while before we were admitted, and we had some
difficulty in finding vacant places on the divan, as the inn was
crowded. But two Turks, in the most civil manner, yielded us their
stations in the principal chamber, and adjourned for the remainder
of the night into another room. My supper was served about half-past
twelve. Poached eggs floating in oil were first brought, which I
could not reconcile by any effort to my taste. A dish of boiled rice
next made its appearance, together with a bowl of milk, which I found
excellent. Pickles were appended to the rice, but I had no fancy for
them; and then some hard eggs made their appearance, which constituted
the principal part of my meal. I closed this operation with a glass
of hot rum-and-water, after which, wrapping myself up in my cloak, I
lay down on the cushion of the divan, and slept profoundly till seven
o’clock the following morning.
CHAPTER XIII.
My companions--Kind attentions--Famine--Annihilation of a fowl--Living
upon nothing--Disturbance--Still life--Consternation--A desolate
town--Turks at prayers--Dinner--Alarming Rumours--Chorlu--The sea of
Marmora--Silivria--Street scene--A factotum--News of the day--Tartar
generosity--Negotiations.
My companions were all Turks, apparently of a very respectable class
in society. Besides the divan which afforded couches to six or seven
persons, two others had mattresses on the floor.
♦ MY COMPANIONS ♦
There was no want of fresh air in the room, as several panes of glass
were broken in the windows. Indeed one whole frame which was papered all
over fell in during the night, and had the temperature of the external
atmosphere not been peculiarly mild, one of my new acquaintances, over
whose face the morning breezes were playing, might have suffered from
the accident.
As soon as I emerged from the folds of my cloak, I became an object of
general attention to these gentlemen. One presented me immediately with
his pipe, and looked very much astonished to find that the first thing I
did on opening my eyes was not an act of conformity with the universal
custom of smoking. Instead of a chibouke, however, I ordered a napkin
and some water, which was brought to me in a pewter dish, and after
making my toilet in the best manner I could, I proceeded to write my
journal. My memory being full of the incidents of the preceding day, I
of course wrote with great rapidity, being much more anxious to set down
all the matter, than to impart to it any form of style. They followed
my movements with surprise, the more especially as my mode of writing
the characters from left to right was the reverse of their own, and they
could not conceive how it was possible for me to create any character
at all with the silver instrument which I held in my hand, and which
borrowed no assistance from the ink-bottle. They smiled at each other
as much as to say, “These Englishmen are the strangest beings in the
world, they have ways of their own for every thing.”
♦ KIND ATTENTIONS ♦
I unscrewed my pencil and showed them the mode in which it was
constructed. Simple as it was they could scarcely be made to comprehend
it. I very much regretted that I had not brought a few of these
instruments with me for the purpose of presenting them to such persons
as these, whose civility and good nature deserved every return I could
make. While I was performing my ablutions one would hold the dish,
another the napkin. A third ordered coffee for me. Then the pipe was
again and again offered. My objection to this grand luxury of Turkish
life seemed to them unaccountable. Then my suspenders became objects
of examination, as well as my moveable shirt collar, and my black silk
cravat. When I finished dressing by putting on my blue cloth cap, they
seemed to look upon my _tout ensemble_ as a complete puzzle.
♦ FAMINE ♦
After breakfasting on a bowl of boiled milk, three or four eggs, and
very good brown bread, I proceeded on my journey through the lower
ranges of the Balkans. These mountains and valleys are almost wholly
unpeopled. The few huts which we passed in the course of the day were
of the most miserable description. The country is every where so barren
that the human beings who are scattered over it, few though they be,
have scarcely any thing to live upon. We rode on until the afternoon
without being able to find any accommodation either for man or horse.
The fountains were all dried up, so that we could not obtain even a
draught of water, which would have been the more acceptable, inasmuch as
the day was inconveniently warm. At length we came to a little brook, by
the side of which we were delighted to sit down. The Tartar, though much
heated, stooped down and drank copiously from the spring with impunity.
I did not dare to follow his example until I had rested a while, when he
produced a bottle of rum. I prevailed on him and the postilion to empty
it of a portion of its contents, after which I filled it with water from
the brook. The mixture then was not only safe but truly delicious. It
renovated my appetite, which had been sickened by long fasting and hard
riding, but what was there to eat?
♦ ANNIHILATION OF A FOWL ♦
My cunning Tartar then brought forth from his haversack the
much-despised, the abhorred fowl of the previous evening, together with
a loaf of bread and a paper of salt! After a little reflection upon the
vanity of all human resolutions, I was prevailed upon to sever a wing
from the breast, and to taste the inside meat, to which I could discover
no just objection. I tried a similar experiment with the other wing,
which I was forced to admit to be equally free from any fair ground of
impeachment. Both these members being pretty well dealt with, I thought
there could be no harm in extending my acquaintance to the breast,
which disappeared in due time. The legs next became objects of curious
inquiry, and fully answered my new-born expectations. The side-bones
and “merrythought” pleasantly reminded me of the “soul,” which soon
established to my entire satisfaction the truth of the Pythagorean
doctrine, by migrating under my own superintendence into a different
body. Finally the back yielded up its treasures, and though I was in
the land of Mahomet, I could not help being Catholic enough to pay my
compliments to the “pope’s nose.” When I thought of my late cackling
friend, who sauntered about with so fine an air of self-complacency,
now reduced to such a wonderful state of disorganization, I convinced
myself that her ladyship must have been guilty of some dreadful deed
in this world or some other, which caused her to be thus decapitated,
drawn and quartered, I may say annihilated with a degree of expedition
unprecedented in the “annals of crime.”
♦ LIVING UPON NOTHING ♦
My guide, as usual, contented himself with hard eggs. How the postilion
fared it was no business of mine to inquire. I saw him at a distance,
chewing something. He had plenty of water, at all events, and so had our
horses; who, moreover, feasted on some brambles. I began to think that
Turkish horses have the peculiar faculty of living upon nothing; and as
they made no objection to going on, I thought it would be words thrown
away to attempt to persuade them of their folly in resolving to gallop
over these boundless wastes without so much as a straw in their inside.
A fresh relay at nine o’clock, which we procured at a wretched hamlet,
enabled us to pursue our journey rapidly the whole night; the moon
lighted our way until the morning came, and disclosed Adrianople in the
distance.
From the various descriptions which I had read of this city, second
only to Stamboul itself, I had expected to find it characterized by
a considerable degree of splendour. The cupolas and minarets of its
numerous mosques undoubtedly do afford to the traveller, for some time
before he enters it, ample grounds for believing that he is about to
visit an important, well-inhabited, and flourishing town. But though not
wholly disappointed, this expectation is much attenuated by the time he
reaches his khan, after riding through the principal streets, which,
beyond the usual variety of shops, supply no materials for admiration.
♦ DISTURBANCE ♦
I was feverish after my long uninterrupted ride, and mingled cold
water copiously with my coffee. The Tartar seemed to have no intention
of resting; but I insisted on being shown to a chamber, where I was
determined on remaining for five or six hours, even if I could not
sleep. By way of precaution I discarded all the pillows and cushions
which I found in the room, as they were by no means inviting; and
spreading my rug on the floor, with my carpet-bag for a pillow, I
enjoyed, for about two hours, a most delicious slumber.
A rascally boy then came to knock at my door, which I had contrived,
very much to his astonishment, to fasten on the inside. I pretended
not to hear him for a while, suspecting he was a messenger from my
more villanous Tartar. But he knocked and pushed and kicked at my
barricades, until he succeeded in forcing the door a sufficient
distance from the jamb to enable him to take a view of my person. This
was impertinent. I therefore got up and let him in. Whereupon I laid
my whip upon his shoulders until he was very glad to make his escape
by jumping down a whole flight of stairs. The chatter of customers
in a butcher’s shop immediately under my window, the noise of people
walking and talking in the street, each group of gossips seeming to
have a particular fancy for stopping in my neighbourhood, the sound of
ungreased waggon-wheels, creaking over the rough roads below, the bellow
of oxen, and the occasional shouts of children, all conspired to assure
me that further forgetfulness was, for that day, out of the question.
♦ STILL LIFE ♦
However, I continued in the attitude of repose, and as I could not keep
my eyes shut I amused myself in observing the still life of a tailor’s
shop opposite, which appeared to be the favourite lounge of all the
idlers of the town. The master and three journeymen were seated in the
Turkish fashion, which tailors have adopted in every age and clime.
Three visiters took their seats also on the board, smoking their long
pipes, and looking on with profound gravity at the perpetual passing
and repassing of the needles and threads through the cloth, which was
destined in due season to become a waistcoat or a pair of trousers.
Not a word escaped any of the party. A voluptuous, well-dressed,
fine-looking man, with a long gold-headed cane balanced in one hand, and
his immense pipe in the other, next made his appearance. He could not go
by the shop without “looking in.” Kindling his pipe, he also took his
station on the board, and while his charge of tobacco lasted, seemed the
happiest of mortals. When the last puff expired he quitted his seat,
walked down the street, paid a visit to a tinman, smoked another pipe,
came back, sat down again in the tailor’s shop, where he found the
whole party undisturbed, filled his pipe again, exhausted it, and then
seemed fairly at a loss to know what he was next to do. He looked up the
street, down the street, went out, came back, stood a few minutes at the
door in a state of listlessness, within a degree of petrification, and,
at length, resolutely disappeared.
♦ CONSTERNATION ♦
Being somewhat refreshed, I proceeded to what I should call the kitchen,
but which the Turks treat as a coffee-room, where several Adrianopolites
were assembled, sipping their universal beverage, amidst clouds of
their fragrant tobacco. Here I learned, very much to my consternation,
that the Russians were in the Bosphorus, preparing to take possession
of Constantinople. I inquired by what means this intelligence had
arrived, as when I left Vienna nothing of that kind had transpired. The
answer was, that a courier from the English embassy had just passed
through on his way to Semlin, and that it was expected that England
would immediately declare war against the emperor. As all this was
conveyed to me in broken French and Italian, I concluded at first that
I misunderstood what was said, and that they were speaking of the
events of 1833, not of the present year. But I was positively assured
that the Russian fleet and troops had arrived a few days ago in the
Bosphorus, and that unless England should in time prevent them, they
would soon be the masters, not only of the capital, but of all Turkey.
While this conversation was going on they gathered gradually around me,
and expressed themselves quite anxious to know whether I thought that
my countrymen would really come to their protection. They appeared to
despair of being able to do anything in their own defence, and even
accustomed to the idea of resigning themselves to Russian supremacy,
unless England interposed in their behalf. I expressed my confident hope
that the intelligence was at least premature; but if it were true, I
conceived that not only England but France also could hardly contemplate
such proceedings with indifference.
♦ A DESOLATE TOWN ♦
Our horses having been announced, we took our departure at noon, and
arrived at Burgas at four o’clock. This town has more of a European
aspect at a distance than any I had yet seen in Turkey. It boasts of
several mosques, and other public buildings of great extent, which give
it an appearance of grandeur. But on strolling through the streets I
found them almost a wilderness. The edifices which I had expected to see
inhabited as palaces, or used as public institutions, were abandoned
to the winds and rain. The fountains, which in a former age had been
beautifully decorated with marble, were thrown down and neglected. The
cloisters of the mosques, which in one or two instances were upon a most
magnificent scale, had become the safe abode of wild cats and dogs,
owls and ravens, whose croaking added not a little to the desolation of
the scene. The mosques were all out of repair.
♦ TURKS AT PRAYERS ♦
A boy proclaimed, from the top of a minaret, in the usual terms,[2] the
hour of evening service while I happened to be at the gate of one of
these temples. It was immediately opened. Eight or ten wretched-looking
devotees emerged from different quarters of the cloisters, washed their
feet at the ruinous fountain, and leaving their slippers outside the
door, entered the mosque. I did not deem it prudent to follow their
example, as I was alone.
But I stood unmolested at the door, which remained open. Lamps, like
those we use in illuminations, were lighted, suspended from the roof,
almost low enough to touch the head of a man standing. The thin
congregation were arranged in a semicircle, and all joined aloud in
prayers, in tones not unlike those in use among the Jews, but without
being quite so boisterous, and with every external appearance, at least,
of profound devotion to the great Father of the universe, towards whose
abode in heaven, their eyes were constantly directed.
[2] _La Allah ila Allah, Muhammed Resoul Allah_ (No God but God,
Mahomet Prophet of God).
♦ DINNER ♦
I dined on rice and haricot mutton, which, by the way, I had great
difficulty in compelling my Tartar to order, as he would have preferred
limiting my fare to eggs, which cost less money. He was a most penurious
caterer, and if by inflexible firmness I had not gained an ascendancy
over him, he would have starved me through the whole journey. I mention
these things in order that future travellers in Turkey may be prepared
to adopt the same course--the only one that will satisfactorily carry
them through the difficulties attending a journey in that country.
I think it may be assumed as a general principle, that though your
personal safety is assured in the hands of a Tartar, your digestive
organs will not have much reason to thank him, if he can help it.
While I was engaged at my humble meal, several persons, as usual,
came to witness my operations. A meat dinner appears to be in Turkey
a public exhibition; but I must do my spectators the justice to say,
that the chief attraction of the scene was the national character of
the principal performer, whom they treated with the utmost respect. I
began to feel myself somebody of distinction, and to have doubts of
my personal identity, as all my habits and tastes were formed amid the
shades of life, wherever I could find them. But here I was invested with
a character which seemed, in the opinion of the Turks, to place me at an
immeasurable distance above themselves on the scale of existence. They
saw in me--a simple, dusty-coated, jack-booted, unshaven, travel-stained
equestrian--nothing but my country, of whose power to accomplish
whatever she resolves to do in any quarter of the world, they appeared
to entertain the most entire conviction.
♦ ALARMING RUMOURS ♦
The report of the Russians being at Constantinople was here repeated
by every tongue. It was added, that a conspiracy had broken out there
about a fortnight before; that there had been much fighting in the
streets; that Pera had been again laid waste by flames; that the sultan
was a prisoner in the seraglio; and that the imperial flag of Russia
was waving over the seven towers. These additional circumstances
seriously affected the obstinacy with which I had hitherto treated the
whole story as a fabrication; I even began to think whether I ought to
proceed any further, as, if the news thus thickening upon me were true,
a solitary Briton would have little chance of safety within the walls
of Constantinople. However, I resolved to go on. As I was mounting my
horse, several of my new friends pressed their hands on my shoulder in
a warm and even affectionate manner, exclaiming, in energetic terms,
“England and the Sultan at Stamboul--the Russians _in the sea_!” There
was a slight “hurra!” when we rode off; and one of the Turks accompanied
me through the streets, pressing his hand upon my knee. The excitement
of this scene rendered me extremely anxious to learn the real state
of affairs at the capital. My host had procured for me, without any
solicitation on my part, the best horse he could find at Burgas--a fine
Arabian, as gentle as a child, as fleet as the wind, and almost as
indefatigable.
♦ CHORLU ♦
We rode, without cessation, through the bright night for eight hours,
and arrived about three o’clock in the morning at Chorlu, where I was
shown into a filthy room in an outhouse, as I had no fancy for sleeping
in a stable. I lay down upon a mat on the floor, and slept soundly until
seven, when, after a good breakfast on eggs, brown bread, syllabub, and
grapes, which I found here remarkably fine, we resumed our journey with
fresh horses, very much inferior to those we had during the night.
♦ SILIVRIA ♦
The morning was misty, but the sun soon shone out, and my heart bounded
with delight, when, on galloping along the ridge of an eminence, I
beheld, glittering in the distance, on my right, the waters of the
sea of Marmora. They appeared through the refraction of the misty
air as if they were in the sky, but the white sails stealing over
their surface convinced me that I was under no delusion. Those waters
would soon mingle with the Mediterranean, the Mediterranean with the
Atlantic, which washed my native shores. Some of those sails were most
probably lately from England, or now returning thither. These are
the associations which make an Englishman feel every where, when he
approaches the sea, as if he were once more at home!
Our horses being very sorry animals, we were obliged, after the first
hour or two, to ride at a snail’s pace. Silivria, with its picturesque
castle and fortifications reposing on the vast blue lake of Marmora, was
in sight all day, but we did not arrive there until two o’clock in the
afternoon. The town was filled with Turkish soldiers, dressed in the
new uniform of the country--blue round jacket, vest, and trousers, the
red Greek cap with blue silk tassel, strong square-toed shoes, and white
cotton stockings. They presented a most unmilitary appearance, and I
concluded at once, from the reports with which my mind had been filled,
that they were flying in dismay from Constantinople.
♦ STREET SCENE ♦
On dismounting at a caravanserai, which was midway down the principal
street, I was conducted to an open balcony, where mats were spread. The
scene before me was not magnificent. The street was shaded by a few
large trees, planted on each side. You may imagine how it was paved, if
you have ever seen a street in London when the pavement is _taken up_.
A stream of muddy water ran through the middle, leaving in its course a
pool near a dunghill, on the top of which an old pelican was strutting,
apparently the master of that position, much to the envy of a poor hen,
who was looking up at him wistfully, and also of a cat, who seemed to
be thinking how she could best dislodge the usurper. But he was on his
guard against both his enemies, now looking down on one, now on the
other, fiercely.
♦ A FACTOTUM ♦
Two little pug-dogs were busy at a game of romps, running here and
there, grappling with each other, rolling each other over, biting the
back of each other’s neck, leg, or tail, without hurting it, barking in
well-feigned passion, the fugitive turning on the pursuer, who, in his
turn, affected a retreat. Some sturdy cocks were gadding about, crowing
at intervals, to remind the world of their importance. Geese and ducks
frequented the pool, and every time a cock crew they gabbled in chorus.
The sound made the pelican tremble on his throne.
Seated on a stone near a gateway was a genteel, well-dressed Turkish
boy, afflicted by a nervous affection in the face, which every two or
three minutes drew up the right corner of his mouth close to his ear.
His whole occupation was looking at me, an occupation which detained
him on his stone three hours without a moment’s interruption. A little
way down the street was the tomb of a saint, a circular edifice, roofed
with wood, and railed all round; upon an elevated platform within, the
holy man was laid out in the dress in which he died a century ago. He
presented as yet no visible signs of decay, which proved his title to
canonization!
An Italian, half idiot, half knave, wretchedly attired, the factotum
of the caravanserai, introduced himself to my acquaintance, and asked
me if I were not much fatigued, offering at the same time his services
to procure me some seawater, which he strongly recommended as an
application of sovereign power to any part of my frame that might have
been affected by the saddle. Although somewhat jaded I had no occasion
to accept his advice, though I should have been extremely glad to dip in
a warm sea-bath if such a thing were to be found in Silivria. Nothing of
the sort was to be had, but there was a vapour-bath, in which I might be
shampooed if I thought fit. But the sense of suffocation with which that
operation is attended, forbade the experiment.
♦ NEWS OF THE DAY ♦
I inquired the news from Constantinople. “All quiet.”--“What! no
revolution?”--“Revolution! Oh yes; that was all over.”--“And the
Russians have come to Constantinople!”--“Yes; the Russians came, and
have gone again, Signor!”--“How long is it since they went away?”--“A
year ago, Signor.”--“A year ago! what do you mean?”--“I mean two
years ago, Signor.”--“What are all these soldiers about?”--“Some are
getting shaved, Signor.”--“Poh! I mean, where are they going?”--“I saw
two of them just now going to bed, Signor.”--“But whither are they
marching?”--“Nowhere, Signor, for they are all boys and have not learned
to march yet?”--“Where have they come from?”--“Stamboul.”--“Oh! I see
you are a Turk, though you have not put on the turban.”--“Sometimes
a Turk, Signor, sometimes nothing at all.”--“What are these soldiers
about?”--“Do you see these men coming up the street, Signor, one of them
with half a sheep on his back?”--“I do.”--“Well, Signor, those men are
about to get their supper.”
♦ TARTAR GENEROSITY ♦
Finding that I had no prospect of extorting any political information
from this addlepated Italian, I engaged his services in the culinary
line, desiring him to proceed forthwith to the cook’s-shop and get me
some stewed mutton for dinner. He fled, delighted with his mission,
already contemplating with such an eye as his mind possessed, the
probability of there being fragments which might fall to his share. He
returned immediately, however, rather downcast, followed by my Tartar,
who with an effrontery too ridiculous for anger, assured me that not a
morsel of mutton, or of meat of any kind was to be had in the town, the
troops having consumed the whole stock of that article in the trade.
I directed their attention to a butcher’s stall opposite, where two
men were engaged cutting up or rather cutting _down_, a sheep with a
sabre, and to another shop in the lower part of the street where similar
operations were in progress. “Those sheep,” said the Tartar, “are all
bought up for the army, which is going to Adrianople: I can get nothing
for you but some eggs.”
♦ NEGOTIATIONS ♦
I rose from my mat, and bade them attend me to one of the shops which
I had noticed, where, through the medium of the Italian, no unwilling
interpreter on the occasion, a negotiation was immediately concluded
upon the subject of a leg of the said mutton, which being separated from
the other members by a sabre, was taken possession of by my accomplice,
who triumphantly posted away with it to the cook’s-shop at the further
end of the street.
CHAPTER XIV.
A white cock--Russian agency--Specimen of cookery--Dining in
state--Departure from Silivria--Mahometan causeway--Perilous
roads--Knowing horses--First view of Constantinople--Advantages of its
position--Extent of its capabilities--An abstracted goose--Entrance
of the capital--Pera--Vitali’s hotel--The plague--Character of the
malady--Armenian funeral--Associations--Funeral of a Greek.
♦ A WHITE COCK ♦
I sauntered about Silivria for some time, amused by the novel and
animated scene which it presented. Several large charcoal fires were
made up in pans in the street, on which kettles containing pieces of
meat, onions, and other vegetables were boiling, surrounded by groups
of soldiers who fanned the fires occasionally with a turkey’s wing.
Here a baker was as busy as he could possibly be, serving out cakes of
bread, just taken from the oven, to soldiers who passed in single file
before his window. A beautiful white cock was a conspicuous character
all day: he seemed to think that the whole of these preparations were
going on for persons very much inferior to himself in all the requisites
of dignity. Flies swarmed in all directions. The balconies of the
caffinés were filled with Turks, who as usual sipped their nectar,
smoked and continued for hours gazing at vacancy. I was honoured by a
look from a Mussulman who was idling about like myself, one hand in his
breeches pocket, while the other wielded his pipe and a switch. A boy
walking along with a pitcher of water on his head, seemed also very
much astonished at my appearance in Silivria, a feeling in which he was
joined by a shoemaker who was taking home a pair of mended slippers to a
customer hard by.
A fruitman seemed to be making his fortune amongst the recruits, to
whom he had already disposed of five or six large baskets of very fine
fresh grapes. He had still a few clusters remaining, which I purchased
for a small silver coin equivalent to about two pence of our money.
Even out of this he gave me some change in copper, which I presented to
a decent-looking beggar-woman who was going about from shop to shop
veiled. A string of camels laden with merchandise, and as usual led by a
donkey, entered the town from the Constantinople road, their loud bells
tinkling as they paced along. They lay down in the middle of the street,
while their drivers went in search of refreshment. Here and there the
merry tones of the xebeck were heard from latticed windows.
♦ RUSSIAN AGENCY ♦
While I was thus roving about, one of a group of soldiers who were
sitting on a wall addressed me in good French. He turned out to be
a Corsican, who, by some vicissitude of fortune, was enlisted in
the Mahometan service. From him I learned that Constantinople was
perfectly tranquil--that no tumults had recently occurred there--and
that the Russians, as he expressed it, had “not yet” possession of
Constantinople, nor had they “yet” even returned to the Bosphorus. He
placed such an emphasis on his _pas encores_, that I instinctively
assumed him to be a Russian spy. There can be no doubt at all that
Russian agency is at full work in every part of Turkey; and that the
stories which I heard on the road were the inventions of men well paid
for the propagating them, under the impression that, by means of that
kind, Mussulmen will become reconciled, by so often hearing of Russian
invasion, to the ultimate result of Russian supremacy. But this will be
found a most grave mistake, if I have read the Turkish mind with any
thing like critical acumen.
♦ SPECIMEN OF COOKERY ♦
By the time I returned to my balcony I fully expected that my dinner
would have been there before me, but no symptom of it was perceptible.
I called the factotum to account, who assured me that it would be ready
in a few minutes. I waited for half an hour, when I sent him to make
inquiries. He returned with a question, how I wished it to be done?
I desired it to be plainly boiled, and sent to me in its own gravy,
without any rice or oil. He came back, after the lapse of another
half-hour, with a piece of the meat in his hand, by way of a sample for
me to taste, and say whether it was boiled enough! I objected to touch
this precious fragment which he had dug out of my leg of mutton with the
dirtiest fingers I ever beheld, and directed the dish, such as it was,
to be served without further delay.
♦ DEPARTURE FROM SILIVRIA ♦
At length the mutton made its appearance in a wooden dish, without any
accompaniment of any kind! There was not even a grain of salt. The
cook ran off in one direction, the Italian in another, and, in about a
quarter of an hour, the latter returned with a little coarse salt in a
bit of greasy paper. Then there was no bread. Off scampered the Italian
to a baker’s shop, whence he brought back a smoking hot roll, which he
put into my hand. Meantime my Tartar came to claim his share of the
spoil, which he by no means deserved. I cut out some slices, however,
for myself with his knife, and gave him up the remainder. My repast was
soon over; but, after all, not unsatisfactory, concluding with coffee
and grapes. I was glad to see that something continued in the wooden
dish for my faithful auxiliary, for which he waited with a keen eye,
but at the same time with exemplary patience. This dinner scene passed
in the balcony, open to all the street; and I had the felicity of being
closely observed, during the whole transaction, by a group of gaping
recruits and ragged children.
We found some difficulty in procuring four horses at Silivria: at
length, about seven o’clock in the evening, we mounted a set of animals
of the most wretched description, already fatigued, as I afterwards
learned, by a long journey, from which they had rested only a few hours.
We set out by the light of the moon, and, in about an hour, reached a
very handsome khan, where we took coffee. We then proceeded along the
beach of Marmora, the murmur of whose gentle waves, borne on the fresh
atmosphere of the sea, fell upon my heart like a spring shower on the
parched earth. At midnight we arrived near the once magnificent series
of bridges, which, in a former age, were erected over a wide arm of the
sea, and considerably shorten the road to Constantinople. Clouds having
set in and darkened the night, a thunder-storm and violent rains came
on, which compelled us to take shelter in the gateway of an inn at the
foot of the principal bridge. We dismounted and rested here until four
o’clock, when we again proceeded on our journey.
♦ MAHOMETAN CAUSEWAY ♦
From these bridges to Constantinople a causeway has been constructed
upon the plan of the ancient Roman roads. But, like the bridges across
the arms of the Marmora, it has fallen into such a state of ruin as
to become infinitely more a source of danger than of convenience to
the traveller. It is as bad as the worst parts of the track over the
Balkans. Had the sultan taken pains to render his capital inaccessible
to cavalry on the side of Silivria, no engineer could have broken up
the causeway, which in some places is the only road, with more skill,
with a view to render it perilous, than time and shameful negligence
have done throughout the whole of the line. Five hundred or a thousand
men, employed for a fortnight, would, at a trifling expense, restore
it to its pristine solidity and beauty. But the genius of decay seems
to have paralyzed, for the present, the wonted energies of the Turkish
people.
♦ PERILOUS ROADS ♦
The soil through which this causeway runs, is in general a soft clay,
upon some more adhesive strata, which do not rapidly absorb the humid
atmosphere of the neighbouring waters. The consequence is that when
heavy rains have fallen, the earth becomes so slippery that it requires
the greatest care on the part of the rider to preserve his horse from
falling at every step, when he is not on the causeway, which for the
greater portion of the way is absolutely impassable. My Tartar, a bulky
man, was seated on a wretched pony, which came down three or four times.
Once the animal lost footing for both his hinder legs, and stuck so
firmly in the mud on his haunches that the Tartar tumbled backwards head
over heels. He got up in a fury and assailed the postilion in such a
storm of passion, that I thought he would have ended by shooting him.
However he was content with compelling the man to give up his own horse
and mount the pony.
♦ KNOWING HORSES ♦
In a few minutes after down came the unfortunate postilion in a marsh,
whence we had great difficulty in extricating him, covered all over with
mud. I held a tight rein, and though my Rosinante stumbled at every
fourth or fifth step, I had the good fortune to escape the general
destiny. Even the baggage-horse was tripped up repeatedly, falling
sometimes on his haunches, sometimes rolling quite over on his back,
his legs dancing in the air. Whether riding on a level, ascending or
descending the numerous hills which intervene between the bridges
and the capital, the peril was the same. The horses seemed painfully
conscious of the difficulties which they had to go through, and whenever
they could get upon the causeway they preferred it, picking their steps
through the stones with marvellous ingenuity. To the less experienced
traveller, however, the change appeared to be only “from the frying-pan
into the fire.”
♦ VIEW OF CONSTANTINOPLE ♦
At length we entered on a more sandy track, and rode with less toil
until the day returned: when, from the top of the highest eminence
we had yet ascended, we beheld at three leagues’ distance below the
Ottoman capital, still reposing in the twilight of early morning. The
east soon after began to redden, and the sun rose in all his Asiatic
glory over the mountains behind Scutari, which almost touched the sky.
Their tabled summits were already spread with cloth of gold, and clouds
of fiery dust were rolling around, as if raised by the march of armies
tending towards that splendid plain for encampment. The crescents and
spires of the white minarets, the tall green cypresses, the minarets of
nature, greatly excelling the others in the solemnity of their beauty,
shone out in the descending beams. The venerable watch-towers, and
the countless domes of the mosques were all illumined, and then the
castellated battlements, caravanserais, bazaars, and palaces, extending
in a long line to the waters of the Marmora, which reflected the blaze.
Seen at that moment of enchantment, Constantinople, distinguished from
all other European capitals by its oriental architecture, whose filagree
Arabesques became transparent in the light, and rising from amidst
groves and cemeteries and gardens, where the foliage and the flowers of
summer were still in bloom, looked less a reality than the vision of
some Persian tale.
♦ EXTENT OF CAPABILITIES ♦
It was unnecessary for my Tartar to point downwards and say, “There
is Stamboul!” The capital of the Constantines has no rival upon this
planet of ours, in external appearance, at least, and in the peculiar
advantages of its position. Having free access to the Mediterranean
through the Hellespont, it may with every possible facility defend
itself at the Dardanelles from a maritime force, and having shut its
gates at that point, may withdraw to the Marmora, the Bosphorus, or the
Euxine, repair there its ships, build new fleets, equip and abundantly
provision them from a populous and fertile territory, and rush out again
upon its enemies, with an overwhelming force. Or if the chieftain who is
master of Stamboul choose not to run the further risk of maritime war,
he need only put the key of his gates at the Dardanelles in his pocket,
turn his men of war into merchant ships, and find employment for them
in trading along the coasts of Turkey, Asia Minor, the whole of the
borders of the Black Sea, to which the silks of Broussa, the carpets
and brocades of Persia, the rice, and fruits, and corn of all that
territory, and the riches of central and southern Russia, are brought.
♦ ABSTRACTED GOOSE ♦
If not content with the field of the Euxine, he may extend his commerce
without a single convoy, along the Danube to Wallachia, Bulgaria,
Hungary, Servia, and Austria, attracting within his reach, in exchange
for the productions of the East, the spoils of all Germany. When the
Danube shall be united with the Rhine, by means of the canal now about
to be formed, the ruler of Constantinople, though at war with Syria,
the Barbary States, Egypt, Greece, France, Spain, England, and the
two Americas, may not only live in safety within the castles of his
Dardanelles, but carry his trade to the very verge of the British
channel, fearless of all the naval powers in the world!
While I was indulging in these fine speculations, my reverie was turned
into uncontrollable laughter by a lad whom we overtook, riding behind
a stately Turk, having at his saddle-bow a bag, from which a goose was
looking out. The picture was an odd contrast to my airy dreams, and was
not a little heightened when the winged prisoner, effecting his escape,
ran off towards the home from which he had been just abstracted. The
Turk was discomposed, the lad went off in chase of the goose, which his
lordship had intended for his dinner. But though he would not wait to
witness the result of the pursuit, he cast many a “longing, lingering
look behind,” until at length the boy returned in triumph, and tied up
the goose again in his bag, allowing him, as before, to look at the
beauteous world which he was so soon to leave.
♦ ENTRANCE OF THE CAPITAL ♦
As we approached the outer gate of Constantinople, we were confined
entirely to the causeway, the sands being deep and marshy. It was,
gently speaking, a most execrable road. If our animals from long
experience, and the judicious selection which marked all their steps,
had not been enabled to work miracles, I know not how we could have
got on. It was half-past ten o’clock when we passed the gate, where
my firman was exhibited. We then pursued our way through numerous
cemeteries, planted with cypresses, and crowded with gravestones,
usually small round columns, carved at the top in the figure of a
turban. As I was hastening as well as I could after my Tartar, through
these desperate defiles, a fine-looking Turk stopped me, broke a walnut
in his hand and divided it with me. It was his mode of bidding me
welcome to my destination.
♦ VITALI’S HOTEL ♦
After leaving the receptacles of the dead, which were very extensive,
and afforded by their numberless fresh graves, abundant evidence of the
havoc which the plague had recently made, we entered the streets, and
were immediately in the midst of the industry and bustle of a great
city. Riding to the edge of the “Golden Horn,” as the inner harbour is
called, I gladly dismounted, and transferred my weary limbs to a boat,
where my luggage and Tartar were also speedily deposited. In a few
minutes we were landed at Galata, whence we walked on to Pera, and found
a French youth, who conducted us to Vitali’s hotel, familiarly called
Giusepino’s, in the Strada Santa Maria, and almost next door to the
church of the Holy Trinity.
The hotel was full of Englishmen; but Vitali very civilly offered to
fit up for me in an hour or two, a chamber at the top of his house,
which presented magnificent views of Constantinople. My goods and
my person having been then fumigated--as, through ignorance, I had
taken no precautions whatever in passing through crowds amongst which
the pestilence was absolutely raging--I was admitted to intercourse;
breakfasted, reposed a while on a sofa, then with infinite delight
changed my travelling attire, and noted in my journal, that,
calculating to a moment, I had thus been exactly five days and nights on
the road from Rutschuk to the gate of the capital. This was considered
a good journey, as, although the Tartars perform it in three days and
nights, when great expedition is required, travellers seldom go over the
whole ground in less than nine. The expectation, therefore, held out to
me at the commencement of my ride, that I might accomplish it within
three days was all moonshine.
♦ THE PLAGUE ♦
Vitali’s account of the plague was alarming. Within the last week it had
considerably diminished, but suddenly returned again with more violence
than ever, and in the city no fewer than fifteen hundred victims had
been numbered with the dead only the day before. At Galata and Pera
a few deaths had also occurred, and even Therapia, higher up the
Bosphorus, was said not to be exempt from the contagion. He confirmed
the reports of Mr. Wood’s death; but I afterwards learned, that, in
point of fact, that gentleman had recovered from the plague by means
of prompt, judicious, and vigorous measures; that being then in a very
weakly state, he unfortunately accepted the advice of an Ionian quack,
who promised to restore his strength rapidly by the use of a potion
which he carried about as a sovereign remedy in all cases of debility,
and that the patient died of the dose, in consequence of its having been
too powerful for his then wasted constitution.
♦ ITS CHARACTER ♦
Mr. Cartwright, the British Consul-General, who lived nearly opposite to
Vitali’s, and to whom I lost no time in paying my respects, also assured
me that he had himself recovered from the plague, by the adoption of
timely applications: that the malady was, in truth, nothing more than a
violent typhus fever, which, if permitted to reach its height, seemed
to be in all cases fatal, but if met in the beginning by medical skill,
and determination on the part of the sufferer, it yielded the contest,
though the poison which it diffused through the veins was felt for a
long time after. The first symptoms of the malady are swellings under
the arms, which if not opened at once, spread in an hour over the whole
frame. The only precautions, he said, which I could adopt, were to
procure airy apartments, to live generously, to be attentive to personal
cleanliness, and when I walked out to carry in my hand a substantial
cane, by which I should prevent any body whomsoever from touching me
even with the hem of his garment. I found it awkward enough at first
to guide my way through the very narrow streets of Pera, especially
during the hours when they were most crowded, by poking people away,
now at one side, now at the other. But the same thing, I observed, was
done by every passenger: it was no rudeness, for it was the result of a
universally understood necessity; and I soon found that I was not more
anxious to avoid coming into contact with others, than they were to shun
too near an approach to me.
♦ ARMENIAN FUNERAL ♦
As I was returning from the consul’s, where I had the happiness to find
letters from home, to my hotel, I met an Armenian funeral procession
passing along the street, formed of a long double file of men, preceded
by several priests and choir-boys, who were singing the Roman catholic
anthems of the dead, bearing a large silver crucifix, a vase of holy
water, a pan of incense, smoking censers, and lighted tapers; the
priests in their stoles, surplices, cassocks, and caps; the boys in
surplices and cassocks; all moving on with as much order and freedom
as I had ever observed in any part of Spain. A black velvet pall was
thrown over the coffin, which six men sustained on their shoulders.
I followed the procession to the Frank cemetery, which was at the
distance of about a mile higher up the Bosphorus: when they arrived at
the newly-made grave, the concluding psalms and prayers, closed by that
solemn and affecting series of supplications, the _De Profundis_, were
read by the officiating clergyman, and responded to by the crowd, in a
manner that made me feel at once as if I were not in a Mahometan but a
Catholic country.
♦ ASSOCIATIONS ♦
Here was a remarkable result of the plan upon which that religion was
traced from the earliest ages. By its having adopted for its invariable
and universal dialect the Latin tongue, I, who am wholly ignorant of
Armenian, found myself at home amidst the orisons of that people to the
God of all men. The psalms which they repeated, the _Requiem_ which they
sung, their final adieus to the dead, as the body was lowered into the
grave, were those to which I had been accustomed from my infancy--those
in which I last took a deep share when I was separated from a mother who
had loved me above all earthly things. My tears mingled with those of
the real mourners over the departed--the associations of the scene were
not to be controlled.
♦ FUNERAL OF A GREEK ♦
I was not at all prepared for this open and authorized celebration
of Christian rites in the public streets and cemeteries of the very
capital of the koran. But I had afterwards abundant opportunities of
satisfying my mind, that, in no other part of Europe is the existence
of all religions more liberally secured and even protected than within
the precincts of Constantinople. It was, I think, only the very next day
that I witnessed a similar procession of Greek catholics, whose anthems
and prayers differed in language and in other points from those of the
Armenians. The body was borne on a bier, clothed in the ordinary attire
of life; the head was crowned with a wreath of flowers, the eyes were
still open, and the spirit seemed to have departed but a few moments
before its receptacle was carried to the cemetery, where it had to wait
until its place was hollowed in the earth. On each of these occasions,
Turks, Greeks, Armenians, Franks, were seen collected round the grave,
all listening with respectful and even solemn attention to the prayers
which were uttered by the ministers in attendance.
APPENDIX A.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE CONCLUDED BETWEEN
RUSSIA AND TURKEY ON THE 8th OF JULY, 1833.
_In the Name of Almighty God._
Translation.
His Imperial Majesty the most high and most puissant Emperor and
Autocrat of all the Russias, and his Highness the most high and most
puissant Emperor of the Ottomans, equally animated by a sincere desire
to maintain the system of peace and good harmony happily established
between the two Empires, have resolved to extend and to strengthen the
perfect amity and confidence which reign between them by the conclusion
of a Treaty of defensive Alliance.
In consequence, their Majesties have chosen and nominated as their
Plenipotentiaries, that is to say, his Majesty the Emperor of all the
Russias, the most excellent and the most honourable Alexis Count
Orloff, his Ambassador Extraordinary at the Sublime Ottoman Porte, &c.
&c.
And Mr. Apollinaire Bouténeff his Extraordinary Envoy and Minister
Plenipotentiary at the Sublime Ottoman Porte, &c. &c.
And his Highness the Sultan of the Ottomans, the most illustrious
and most excellent the oldest of his Viziers, Hosrew-Mehmet Pacha,
Seraskier Commander-in-chief of the regular Troops of the Line, and
Governor-General of Constantinople, &c. &c. the most excellent and
the most honourable Ferzi-Achmet Pacha, Mouchir and Commander of his
Highness’s Guard, &c. &c.; and Hadji-Mehmet-Akif Effendi, actual Reis
Effendi, &c. &c.
Who after having exchanged their full powers, which have been found in
good and regular form, have agreed upon the following Articles.
ARTICLE I.
There shall be for ever Peace, Amity, and Alliance between H. M. the
Emperor of all the Russias, and H. M. the Emperor of the Ottomans,
their Empires and their Subjects, as well by land as by sea. This
Alliance having solely for its object the common defence of their
States against all attack, their Majesties promise to have a mutual
and unreserved understanding as to all objects which concern their
tranquillity and safety respectively, and to lend to each other for this
purpose _materiel_ succours and the most efficacious assistance.
ARTICLE II.
The Treaty of Peace concluded at Adrianople on the 2nd of September,
1829, as well as all the other Treaties comprised in it, as well as the
Convention signed at St. Petersburg on the 14th of April, 1830, and the
arrangement concluded at Constantinople on the 9th (21st) of July, 1832,
relative to Greece, are confirmed throughout all their tenour by the
present Treaty of defensive Alliance as if the said Transactions had
been inserted in it word for word.
ARTICLE III.
In consequence of the principle of conservation and of mutual defence
which serves as the basis for the present Treaty of Alliance, and
by reason of the most sincere desire to assure the duration, the
maintenance, and the entire independence of the Sublime Porte, H. M. the
Emperor of all the Russias, in case that circumstances which might again
determine the Sublime Porte to claim naval and military aid from Russia,
should occur, although the case be not now foreseen, if it please God,
promises to furnish by land and sea as many troops and forces as the
contracting parties shall deem necessary. It is accordingly agreed that
in this case the forces by land and sea whose assistance the Sublime
Porte shall demand, shall be held at its disposal.
ARTICLE IV.
According to what has been said above, in case one of the two Powers
shall have demanded assistance from the other, the expenses only
of provisions for the forces by land and sea which shall have been
furnished, shall fall to the charge of the Power which shall have
demanded the succour.
ARTICLE V.
Although the two high contracting Powers be sincerely disposed to
maintain this engagement to the most remote period, inasmuch however as
it is possible that hereafter circumstances may require some alterations
in this Treaty, it has been agreed that its duration should be fixed
at eight years, to run from the date of the exchange of the Imperial
Ratifications. The two Parties, before the expiration of that term,
shall agree according to the state in which things shall be at that
epoch, upon the renewal of the Treaty.
ARTICLE VI.
The present Treaty of defensive Alliance shall be ratified by the two
High Contracting Parties, and the ratifications shall be exchanged at
Constantinople, within the period of two months, or sooner if possible.
The present Instrument, containing six Articles, and to which the last
hand shall be put by the exchange of the respective ratifications,
having been drawn up between us, we have signed and sealed it with our
Seals, in virtue of our full powers, and delivered, in exchange for
another of the like tenour, into the hands of the Plenipotentiaries of
the Sublime Ottoman Porte.
Done at Constantinople, the 26th of June (8th of July), in the year one
thousand eight hundred and thirty-three (the 20th of the moon of Safer,
in the year 1249 of the Hegira).
(Signed)
COUNT ALEXIS ORLOFF (L. S.)
(Signed)
A. BOUTENEFF (L. S.)
_Separate Article of the Treaty of Alliance concluded between Russia and
Turkey, on the 8th of July, 1833._
In virtue of one of the clauses of the First Article of the Patent
Treaty of defensive Alliance concluded between the Sublime Porte and
the Imperial Court of Russia, the two High Contracting Parties have
engaged to lend mutually _materiel_ succours and the most efficacious
assistance for the safety of their respective states. Nevertheless, as
H. M. the Emperor of all the Russias wishing to save the Sublime Ottoman
Porte the expense and the inconveniences which might result to it from
lending such _materiel_ succour, will not demand this succour should
circumstances place the Sublime Porte under the obligation to furnish
it, _the Sublime Porte in lieu of the succour which it is bound to
lend in case of need according to the principle of reciprocity of the
Patent Treaty, should limit its action in favour of the Imperial Court
of Russia to shutting the strait of the Dardanelles, that is to say,
not to permit any foreign vessel of war to enter it under any pretext
whatsoever_.
The present separate and secret Article shall have the same force and
validity as if it were inserted word for word in the Treaty of defensive
Alliance of this day.
Done at Constantinople the 26th of June (8th of July), in the year one
thousand eight hundred and thirty-three (the 20th of the moon of Safer,
in the year 1249 of the Hegira).
(Signed)
COUNT ALEXIS ORLOFF (L. S.)
(Signed)
A. BOUTENEFF (L. S.)
APPENDIX A.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE CONCLUDED BETWEEN
RUSSIA AND TURKEY ON THE 8th OF JULY, 1833.
_In the Name of Almighty God._
Traduction.
S. M. I. le très haut et très puissant Empereur et Autocrat de toutes
les Russies, et S. H. le très haut et très puissant Empereur des
Ottomans, également animés du sincère désir de maintenir le systême de
paix et de bonne harmonie heureusement établies entre les deux Empires,
ont résolu d’étendre et de fortifier la parfaite amitié et la confiance
qui règnent entre eux, par la conclusion d’un Traité d’Alliance
défensive.
En conséquence L. L. M. M. ont choisi et nommé pour leurs
Plénipotentiaires, savoir, S. M. l’Empereur de toutes les Russies, les
très excellens et très honorables le Sieur Alexis Comte Orloff, Son
Ambassadeur Extraordinaire près la Sublime Porte Ottomane, &c. &c.
Et le Sieur Apollinaire Bouténeff, Son Envoyé Extraordinaire et Ministre
Plénipotentiaire près la Sublime Porte Ottomane, &c. &c.
Et S. H. le Sultan des Ottomans, les trés illustre et très excellent le
plus ancien de ses Visirs, Hosrew-Mehmet Pacha, Seraskier Commandant
en chef des Troupes de Ligne regulières et Gouverneur Général de
Constantinople, &c. &c. les très excellens et très honorables
Ferzi-Achmet Pacha, Mouchir et Commandant de la Garde de S. H. &c. &c.;
et Hadji-Mehmet-Akif Effendi, Reis Effendi Actuel, &c.
Lesquels, après avoir échangé leurs pleins pouvoirs, trouvés en bonne et
de forme, sont convenus des Articles suivants.
ARTICLE I.
Il y aura à jamais Paix, Amitié, et Alliance entre S. M. l’Empereur de
toutes les Russies et S. M. l’Empereur des Ottomans, Leurs Empires
et Leurs Sujets, tant sur Terre que sur Mer. Cette Alliance ayant
uniquement pour objet la défense commune de leurs états contre tout
empiètement, L. L. M. M. promettent de s’entendre sans réserve sur tous
les objets qui concernent Leur Tranquilité et Sûreté respectives, et de
se prêter à cet effet mutuellement des secours matériels et l’assistance
la plus efficace.
ARTICLE II.
Le Traité de Paix conclu à Andrinople le 2 Septembre, 1829, ainsi que
tous les autres Traités qui y sont compris, de même aussi la Convention
signée à St. Petersbourg le 14 Avril, 1830, et l’arrangement conclu
à Constantinople le 9 (21) Juillet, 1832, rélatif à la Grèce, sont
confirmés dans toute leur teneur par le présent Traité d’Alliance
défensive comme si les dites Transactions y avaient été insérées mot
pour mot.
ARTICLE III.
En conséquence du principe de conservation et de défense mutuelle qui
sert de base au présent Traité d’Alliance, et par suite du plus sincère
désir d’assurer la durée, le maintien, et l’entière indépendance de
la Sublime Porte, S. M. l’Empereur de toutes les Russies, dans le cas
où les circonstances qui pourraient déterminer de nouveau la S. Porte
à réclamer l’assistance navale et militaire de la Russie, venaient à
se présenter, quoique ce cas ne soit nullement à prévoir, s’il plait
à Dieu, promet de fournir par terre et par mer autant de Troupes et
de Forces que les deux Hautes Parties Contractantes le jugeraient
nécessaire. D’après cela, il est convenu qu’en ce cas les Forces de
terre et de mer dont la S. Porte réclamerait le secours, seront tenues à
sa disposition.
ARTICLE IV.
Selon ce qui a été dit plus haut, dans le cas où l’une des deux
Puissances aura réclamé l’assistance de l’autre, les frais seuls
d’approvisionnement pour les Forces de terre et de mer qui seraient
fournies tomberont à la charge de la Puissance qui aura demandé le
secours.
ARTICLE V.
Quoique les deux Hautes Parties Contractantes soient sincèrement
intentionnés de maintenir cet engagement jusqu’au terme le plus
éloigné, comme il se pourrait que dans la suite les circonstances
exigeassent qu’il fût apporté quelques changemens à ce Traité, on est
convenu de fixer sa durée à huit ans, à dater du jour de l’échange
des Ratifications Impériales. Les deux Parties, avant l’expiration de
ce terme, se concerteront suivant l’état où seront les choses à cette
époque, sur le renouvellement du dit Traité.
ARTICLE VI.
Le présent Traité d’Alliance défensive sera ratifié par les deux Hautes
Parties Contractantes, et les Ratifications en seront échangées à
Constantinople, dans le terme de deux mois, ou plutôt si faire se peut.
Le présent Instrument, contenant six Articles, et auquel il sera mis la
dernière main par l’échange des ratifications respectives, ayant été
arrêté entre nous, nous l’avons signé et scellé de nos Sceaux, en vertu
de nos pleins pouvoirs, et délivré, en échange contre un autre pareil,
entre les mains des Plénipotentiaires de la Sublime Porte Ottomane.
Fait à Constantinople, le 26 Juin, l’an mil huit cent trente-trois (le
20 de la lune de Safer, l’an 1249 de l’Hégire).
(Signé)
CTE. ALEXIS ORLOFF (L. S.)
(Signé)
A. BOUTENEFF (L. S.)
_Separate Article of the Treaty of Alliance concluded between Russia
and Turkey, on the 8th of July, 1833._
En vertu d’une des clauses d’Article 1er du Traité Patent d’Alliance
défensive conclu entre la Sublime Porte et la Cour Impériale de
Russie, les deux Hautes Parties Contractantes sont tenues de se prêter
mutuellement des secours matériels et l’assistance la plus efficace pour
la sûreté de leurs états respectifs. Néanmoins, comme S. M. l’Empereur
de toutes les Russies voulant épargner à la Sublime Porte Ottomane la
charge et les embarras qui résulteraient pour elle de la prestation
d’un secours matériel, ne demandera pas ce secours si les circonstances
mettaient la S. Porte dans l’obligation de le fournir, _la Sublime
Porte Ottomane à la place du secours qu’elle doit prêter au besoin
d’après le principe de réciprocité du Traité Patent, devrait borner son
action en faveur de la Cour Impériale de Russie à fermer le détroit des
Dardanelles, c’est à dire, à ne permettre à aucun bâtiment de guerre
étranger d’y entrer sous aucun prétexte quelconque_.
Le présent Article séparé et sécret aura la même force et valeur que
s’il était inséré mot à mot dans le Traité d’Alliance défensive de ce
jour.
Fait à Constantinople le 26 Juin, l’an mil huit cent trente-trois (le 20
de la lune de Safer, l’an 1249 de l’Hégire).
(Signé)
CTE. ALEXIS ORLOFF (L. S.)
(Signé)
A. BOUTENEFF (L. S.)
APPENDIX B.
TREATY BETWEEN RUSSIA AND TURKEY, CONCLUDED AT ST. PETERSBURG, BY ACHMET
PACHA, ON THE 29th OF JANUARY, 1834.
Translation.
The most high and most puissant Ottoman Emperor, my benefactor and
master, on the one part, and the most high and most magnanimous
Emperor of all the Russias, on the other, animated by the desire with
which they are inspired by the sincere friendship, cordiality, and
confidence, that happily exist between them, to arrange definitively
certain points of the Treaty concluded between the two High Powers at
Adrianople, which have not been hitherto carried into execution, have
named for this purpose as their Plenipotentiaries, that is to say, H.
M. the Ottoman Emperor, His Excellency Mouchir Ahmed Pacha, Military
Counsellor of the Seraglio, Ambassador Extraordinary of the Sublime
Porte at the Imperial Court of Russia, &c. &c., and H. M. the Emperor
of Russia, their Excellencies the Count Nesselrode, Vice-Chancellor
of the Empire, and the Count Alexis Orloff, General of Cavalry,
Aide-de-Camp of the Emperor, &c. &c., who, after having reciprocally
shown their full powers, have agreed on the following Articles:
ARTICLE I.
The two high Courts having deemed it necessary to establish, as
has been already stipulated in the Treaty of Adrianople, a line of
demarcation between the two Empires in the East, such as may henceforth
prevent every species of dispute and discussion, it has been agreed
that a line should be traced that should completely obstruct the
depredations which the neighbouring tribes have been in the habit of
committing, and which have more than once compromised the relations
of neighbourhood and friendship between the two Empires. Accordingly,
and as Commissioners on both sides have examined the localities,
and obtained the necessary information for this purpose, the two
Contracting Parties have resolved to proceed to the settlement of the
frontiers in such a way as that the object wisely laid down in the
Treaty of Adrianople should be completely fulfilled; and with that
view they have adopted, with common accord, the line which may be seen
traced in red on the map which is appended to the present treaty.
Conformably to the fourth Article of the Treaty of Adrianople, this
line departs from Port St. Nicolo on the coast of the Black Sea,
follows the actual frontiers of Guriel, ascends as far as the frontiers
of Juira, thence traverses the Province of Akhiskha, and strikes the
point where the provinces of Akhiskha and of Cars are reunited to the
Province of Georgia. Thus the greatest part of the Province of Akhiskha
remains, together with the other countries and territories mentioned
in the said Treaty, under the dominion of the Sublime Porte, as may be
seen by the map, of which two copies have been made and collated by the
Plenipotentiaries of the two Powers, and which, considered as forming
part of the present Treaty, are to be subjoined to it, as evidence of
the manner in which the future limits of the two empires have been
settled.
After the exchange of the ratifications of the present Treaty and
as soon as posts shall have been erected by the Commissioners named
on both sides, according to the line traced on the map, from one
end to the other, the Russian troops shall evacuate the territories
situated beyond that line, and shall retire within the limits which
it prescribes. So also the Mussulmans who inhabit the inconsiderable
territories which are comprised within the line that passes by the
Sandjack of Ghroubhan and the extremities of the Sandjacks of Ponskron
and of Djildir, and who may wish to establish themselves within the
territories of the Sublime Porte, shall be at liberty, within the term
of eighteen months, from the date of the exchange of the ratifications
of the Treaty, to arrange the affairs which attach them to the country,
and to transport themselves to the Turkish States without molestation.
ARTICLE II.
By the Instrument executed separately at Adrianople relative to the
Principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia, the Sublime Porte had
undertaken to recognise formally the regulations made, while the
Russian troops occupied those Provinces, by the Principal inhabitants
with reference to their internal administration; the Sublime Porte
finding nothing in the Articles of that Constitution which can affect
its rights of Sovereignty, consents henceforth to recognise formally
the said Constitution.
It engages to publish in this respect a Firman, accompanied by a Hatti
Sherif, two months after the exchange of ratifications, and to give a
copy of the same to the Russian Mission at Constantinople.
After the formal recognition of the Constitution, the Hospodars of
Wallachia and Moldavia shall be named, but for this time only, and as a
case entirely peculiar, in the manner which was agreed upon some time
ago between the two Contracting Powers, and they will proceed to govern
the two Provinces conformably to the Constitution, in pursuance of the
stipulations above mentioned.
His Majesty the Emperor of Russia wishing to afford a new proof of the
regard and consideration which he entertains towards his Highness, and
to hasten the moment when the Sublime Porte shall exercise the rights
which the Treaties secure to it over the two Provinces, will order
his troops, as soon as the Princes shall have been named, to retire
from the two Provinces. This point shall be executed two months after
the nomination of the Princes. And as a compensation is due in all
justice for the advantages which the Sublime Porte grants as a favour
to the Wallachians and Moldavians, it is agreed and ordained that the
annual tribute, which the two Provinces ought to pay according to the
Treaties, shall be fixed henceforth at six thousand purses (that is to
say, at three millions of Turkish piastres); and the Princes shall take
care that this sum be annually paid, counting from the 1st of January,
1835.
It is agreed between the two Courts that the number of troops, which
shall be employed as garrisons in the interior of the two Provinces,
shall be fixed in an invariable manner and with the approbation of the
Porte, and that the latter is to give colours to the garrisons, and
a flag to the Valacho-Moldavian merchant vessels which navigate the
Danube.
ARTICLE III.
With respect to the desire manifested by His Highness to execute
scrupulously the engagements which he has undertaken by the third
Article of the explanatory and separate Act which is appended to
the Treaty of Adrianople, and by the Treaty of Petersburg relative
thereunto, H. M. the Emperor of all the Russias is most willing to
afford to the Sublime Porte new facilities for the execution of the
engagements imposed by the Acts above mentioned, and it is accordingly
agreed:
1º. That although it has been stipulated by the second Article of the
Treaty of St. Petersburg, that the Sublime Porte shall pay annually,
and during eight years, one million of Dutch ducats, it shall pay only
five hundred thousand ducats per annum.
2º. That the Sublime Porte be no longer obliged, as it has hitherto
been, to pay in the month of May, each year, and at one time only, the
whole yearly sum, and that it shall henceforth pay the five hundred
thousand ducats by degrees, but the entire sum within the interval from
the month of May of one year to the month of May in the following year.
3º. That his Imperial Majesty renounces his right to demand the
difference, which arose at the period of each payment of the portion of
the indemnities for the expenses of the war and the commercial claims,
between the price at which the Sublime Porte paid the ducat in Turkish
piastres, and the real value of the ducats.
4º. That moreover, his Imperial Majesty, taking into consideration the
embarrassments in which the Treasury of that Empire has been lately
involved, consents to the immediate defalcation of two millions of
ducats, which is the third of the amount of the indemnities for the
expenses of the war.
5º. That considering the defalcation above announced, and the other
arrangements already mentioned, the sum total of the indemnities
amounts to four millions of Dutch ducats, of which the first portion to
be paid in one year, as one account, consists of 500,000 ducats, and
which shall be paid from the 1st of May, 1834, to the 1st of May, 1835,
and the corresponding portions in the following years shall be paid
in the same manner until the whole debt be discharged; but upon the
condition that the assurances, guarantees, and facilities stipulated
by Articles 4, 5, 6, 7, and 9 of the Treaty of St. Petersburg shall
preserve down to that period all their force, as if they had been
inserted word for word in the present Treaty.
CONCLUSION.
In virtue of the powers which have been given me, I have concluded the
present Treaty, which shall be ratified by the Contracting Parties, and
the ratification of which shall be exchanged at Constantinople, within
the term of six weeks, or sooner if possible; I have affixed to it my
seal and signature, and I have delivered it to their Excellencies the
Plenipotentiaries of the Court of Russia at Petersburg, in exchange for
the counterpart which they have delivered to me.
Done the 18th Ramazan,
1249.
APPENDIX B.
TREATY BETWEEN RUSSIA AND TURKEY, CONCLUDED AT ST. PETERSBURG, BY ACHMET
PACHA, ON THE 29th OF JANUARY, 1834.
Traduction.
Le très haut et très puissant Empereur Ottoman, mon bienfaiteur et
maître, d’une part, et le très haut et très magnanime Empereur de
toutes les Russies, de l’autre, animés du désir, que leur inspirent
l’amitié sincère, la securité et la confiance qui existent heureusement
entre eux, d’arranger définitivement certains points du Traité conclu
entre les deux Hautes Puissances à Andrinople, lesquels n’ont pas
été mis à exécution jusqu’à présent, ont nommé à cet effet pour
leurs Plénipotentiaires, savoir, Sa Majesté l’Empereur Ottoman, Son
Excellence Mouchir Ahmed Pacha, Conseiller Militaire du Sérail,
Ambassadeur Extraordinaire de la Sublime Porte à la Cour Impériale de
Russie, &c. &c. et Sa Majesté l’Empereur de Russie, leurs Excellences
le Comte Nesselrode, Vice-Chancelier de l’Empire, et le Comte Alexis
Orloff, Général de Cavalerie, Aide-de-Camp de l’Empereur, &c. &c.
lesquels, après avoir montré réciproquement leurs pleins pouvoirs, sont
convenus des Articles suivans:
ARTICLE I.
Les deux hautes Cours ayant jugé nécessaire d’établir, ainsi qu’il
est stipulé dans le Traité d’Andrinople, une ligne de démarcation
entre les deux Empires dans l’Orient, capable de prévenir désormais
toute espèce de disputes et de discussion, il a été convenu que l’on
tracerait une linge qui peut empêcher entièrement les déprédations
que les peuplades circonvoisines commettaient, et qui ont plus d’une
fois compromis les relations de voisinage et d’amitié entre les deux
Empires. En conséquence et après que des Commissaires de part et
d’autre ont examiné les lieux, et pris des renseignemens à cet égard,
les deux Parties Contractantes ont résolu de procéder à la fixation des
frontières de manière à ce que le but qu’on s’est sagement proposé dans
le Traité d’Andrinople fût complètement rempli; et pour cela, elles
ont adopté, de commun accord, la ligne que l’on voit tracée en couleur
rouge dans la carte qui est jointe au présent Traité.
Conformément au IVme Article du Traité d’Andrinople, cette ligne part
du Port de St. Nicolo, sur la côte de la mer noire, suit les frontières
actuelles de la Province de Guriel, monte jusqu’aux confins d’Iuira, et
de là elle traverse la Province d’Akhiskha, et elle aboutit au point
où les Provinces d’Akhiskha et de Cars se réunissent à la Province
de la Georgie. Ainsi la plus grande partie de la Province d’Akhiskha
reste, avec les autres pays et terres dont il est question dans le
dit Traite, sous la domination de la Sublime Porte, comme on voit
par la carte dont deux de copies ont été faites et collationnées par
les Plénipotentiaires des deux Puissances, et qui, considérées comme
faisant partie du présent Traité, doivent y être jointes, pour y voir
la manière dont les limites futures des deux Empires ont étés fixées.
Après l’échange des ratifications du présent Traité, et aussitôt que
l’on aura fait planter des poteaux par des Commissaires nommés de
part et d’autre, d’après la ligne tracée dans la carte, d’un bout à
l’autre, les troupes Russes évacueront les terres situées au dehors
de cette ligne, et se retireront dans les bornes qu’elle prescrit. De
même les Mussulmans qui se trouvent dans les terres peu considérables
qui sont comprises dans la ligne qui passe devant le Sandjack de
Ghroubhan et des extrémités des Sandjacks de Ponskron et de Djildir,
lesquels voudront s’établir dans les terres de la Sublime Porte,
pourront, dans le terme de dix-huit mois, à dater du jour de l’échange
des Ratifications du Traité, finir les affaires qui les attachaient au
pays, et se transporter dans les Etats Turcs, sans que l’on y mette
obstacle.
ARTICLE II.
Par l’Instrument fait séparément à Andrinople relativement au
Principautés de la Valachie et de la Moldavie, la Sublime Porte a
pris l’engagement de reconnaître formellement les règlemens faits,
pendant que les troupes Russes occupaient ces Provinces, par les
principaux habitans sur leur administration intérieure; la Sublime
Porte ne trouvant rien dans les Articles de cette Constitution, qui
puisse affecter ses droits de Souveraineté, consent dès à présent à
reconnaître formellement la dite Constitution.
Elle s’engage à publier à cet égard un Firman, accompagné d’un Hatti
Sherif, deux mois après l’échange des ratifications, et à donner une
copie du même à la Mission Russe à Constantinople,
Après la reconnaissance formelle de la Constitution, les Hospodars de
Valachie et de Moldavie seront nommés, mais pour cette seule fois-ci,
et comme un cas tout particulier, de la manière qui a été convenue,
il y a quelque tems, entre les deux Puissances Contractantes, et
ils commenceront à gouverner les deux Provinces conformément à la
Constitution, laquelle est une suite des stipulations dont il a été
parlé plus haut.
Sa Majesté l’Empereur de Russie voulant donner une nouvelle preuve
des égards et de la considération qu’il a pour Sa Hautesse, et hâter
le moment ou la Sublime Porte usera des droits que les Traités lui
assurent sur les deux Provinces, ordonnera à ses troupes, une fois que
les Princes auront été nommés, de se retirer des deux Provinces. Ce
point aura son exécution deux mois après la nomination des Princes.
Et comme une compensation est dû en toute justice pour les avantages
que la Sublime Porte accorde par faveur aux Valaques et aux Moldaves,
il est convenu et arrêté que le tribut annuel, que les deux Provinces
doivent lui payer d’après les Traités, est fixé desormais à six mille
bourses (c. à d. à trois millions de piastres Turques); et les Princes
auront soin que cette somme lui soit payée annuellement à compter du 1
Janvier, 1835.
Il est convenu entre les deux Cours que le nombre des Troupes, qui
seront employées comme garnisons dans l’intérieur des deux Provinces,
sera fixé d’une manière invariable et au gré de la Sublime Porte, et
que celle-ci donnera les drapeaux aux garnisons, et le pavillon aux
bâtimens marchands Valaco-Moldaves qui naviguent sur le Danube.
ARTICLE III.
En égard au désir témoigné par Sa Hautesse d’exécuter scrupuleusement
les engagemens qu’elle a pris par le troisième Article de l’Acte
explicatif et separé qui fait suite au Traité d’Andrinople, et par le
Traité de Pétersbourg y rélatif, Sa Majesté l’Empereur de toutes les
Russies a bien voulu offrir de nouvelles facilités dans l’exécution
des engagemens imposés par les Actes ci-dessus mentionnés à la Sublime
Porte, et par conséquent il est convenu:
1º. Que quoiqu’il ait été stipulé par le second Article du Traité de
St. Pétersbourg, que la Sublime Porte payera annuellement, et pendant
huit ans, un million de ducats de Hollande, elle ne payera que cinq
cent mille ducats par an.
2º. Que la Sublime Porte n’est plus obligée, comme elle l’était
jusqu’ici, de payer au mois de Mai de chaque année, et en une seule
fois, tout l’argent qui était dû pour l’année, et qu’elle paiera
desormais les cinq cent mille ducats peu à peu, mais en entier dans
l’intervalle du mois de Mai d’une année au mois de Mai de l’année
suivante.
3º. Que Sa Majesté Impériale renonce à son droit de demander la
différénce, qu’il y avait à l’époque de chaque paiement de la portion
des indemnités pour les frais de la guerre et pour le commerce, entre
le prix auquel la Sublime Porte payait le ducat en piastres Turques, et
la véritable valeur des ducats.
4º. Qu’en outre, Sa Majesté Impériale, prenant en considération
les embarras dans lesquels le Trésor de cet Empire s’est trouvé
dernièrement, consent à défalquer sur le champ deux millions de ducats,
ce qui est le tiers du solde des indemnités pour les frais de la guerre.
5º. Que vu la défalcation ci-dessus énoncée et les autres dispositions
dont il a été parlé plus haut, le total des indemnités est de quatre
millions de ducats de Hollande, dont la première portion à payer dans
un an, comme une compte, consiste en 500,000 ducats, et sera payé du
1er Mai, 1834, au 1er Mai, 1835, et les portions préalables
dans les années suivantes seront payées de la même manière jusqu’à
l’acquittement de la dette; mais à condition que les assurances, les
garanties, et les facilités stipulées par les Articles 4, 5, 6, 7, et
9, du Traité de St. Pétersbourg conserveront, jusqu’alors toute leur
vigueur, comme s’ils étaient insérées mot à mot dans le présent Traité.
CONCLUSION.
En vertu des pouvoirs qui m’ont été donnés, j’ai conclu le présent
Traité, qui sera ratifié par les deux Parties Contractantes, et dont
les ratifications seront échangées à Constantinople, dans le terme
de six semaines, ou plutôt si faire se pourra; j’y ai apposé mon
cachet, et mis ma signature, et je l’ai remis à leurs Excellences les
Plénipotentiaires de la Cour de Russie à Pétersbourg, en échange de la
pièce qu’ils m’ont remise.
Fait le 18 Ramazan, 1249.
END OF VOL. I.
C. WHITING, BEAUFORT HOUSE, STRAND.
TRANSCRIBERS’ NOTES
In this version, text originally printed in italics is marked with
_underscores_ and small caps have been converted to ALL CAPITALS.
In the original text, Appendices A and B were printed in two columns,
with the French version on the left side of each page and the English
translation on the right. In this version, the texts have been
separated: the complete English text appears first, followed by the
full French text.
The last listing in the “List of Plates” is: Frontispiece, Vol. II.
Towing boats on the Danube. This illustration does not appear in Vol.
I, but is used as the Frontispiece for Vol. II.
In some cases, the placement of the illustrations has been adjusted to
better align with the text.
Page headings have been placed as sidenotes and enclosed in ‘♦’ symbols.
Original spellings have been kept as printed with the following
exceptions:
Page v: “no” changed to “not” in - “...the steam-boats do not yet
regularly proceed further...”
Page v: a period was added to end of sentence - “...down the Danube
than Galacz.”
Page vi: “poceeding” changed to “proceeding” - “...this strange
proceeding on the part of...”
Page 45: “it-” changed to “its” - “...the day had now nearly reached
its close...”
Page 50: a period was added to end of sentence - “...then the lead
passes on to him who does.”
Page 50: “an” changed to “and” - “...rose from its bed in the sand and
floated into deeper water...”
Page 62: “winte” changed to “winter” - “...have no chance of being
extricated from their position until the winter...”
Page 71: “mmediately” changed to “immediately” - “...we should have
immediately quitted Moldava...”
Page 85: a period was added to end of sentence - “... more than one
volcanic convulsion.”
Page 191: an “I” added to beginning of the sentence - “I calculated
that it would take a day...”
Page 244: “Forsets” changed to “Forests” - “...of the way—Forests of
Hæmus—...”
NEW WORKS
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1.
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ITALY;
WITH SKETCHES OF SPAIN AND PORTUGAL.
“One of the most elegant productions of modern literature. It will keep
Mr. Beckford’s name alive for centuries.”--_Quarterly Review._
2.
In 2 vols., with Plates,
A SUMMER RAMBLE IN SYRIA,
WITH A TARTAR TRIP FROM
ALEPPO TO STAMBOUL.
By the REV. VERE MONRO.
3.
In 2 vol. 8vo, with two Portraits,
MEMOIRS OF LORD BOLINGBROKE,
AND OF HIS TIMES,
By GEORGE WINGROVE COOKE, ESQ.
“To Mr. Wingrove Cooke, of the English Bar, belongs the high praise of
having produced a biography of the celebrated Lord Bolingbroke, at once
full, exact, and impartial.”--_Times._
4.
In 3 vols., small 8vo, with a Portrait of the Author,
A PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND, &c.
By M. DE LAMARTINE.
“Lamartine’s European reputation will be infinitely heightened by these
delightful volumes. As a book of travels the work is valuable for its
descriptions of Syria, and the whole neighbourhood of Mount Lebanon and
Baalbec. We should have quoted largely had we been dealing with a work
less certain of popularity.”--_Quarterly Review_, July, 1835.
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