Virginia advocate. [volume] (Charlottesville, Va.) 1827-1860, 1830-10-15
INTERESTING LETTER
40 me Editors Of tie Journal of Com meres
d.1ed C1usfnnkinax,le L1ns & la.lN

40 'ne EanoSs Of the Journal Of Commerce,
d'~ed C0nsfantinopie, jane s, 1880.
wrote 10 you few days since by tho way
OF London. announcing Ia you nv arrival in
this city. Since then 1 have bs,, .lnoat
constantly occupied in seeing tho lons-I
nave seen the opium eaters" aud the splen.
d'd ST. S"phia. have been pulled I'm IN.
BosPh"rus IN "caique" light as feather.
nearly 10 the Euxino, and gazed u,,on The
beautiful scenery till my head ached. A CON.
un"ed chain OF villages and royal Kiosks
ad"rn the banas of this celebrated Strait.
The other day rode to Belgrade, l3 miles
distant from Conslantinoplo, from which Ia.
dy Nj 'ntngue wrote many of her letters. I
was in the house where she lived. ] endea.
vored To hear the roaring of the Black Sea in
the midst at the forest NJ Belgrade, but INV
organs We're less acute than those Of her Ia.
acyship Robbers iniost this woud, within
hearing Of the city's din.
visited the Bagnio. The prisoners were
cha'ned 10 each "ther by couples. u did not
appear 10 DO so terrible place as described,
ou, ."ere was n" plag ic and fow prisoners.
aud went ON board the Mah,noud. lao yun
ship Inc Sultan has n Respectable Navy.
J Inc objects which Immediately strike tho
view ut stranger ia T. 'nstan.inpple. are tina
places of the Sultan Oh Seraylio Point. and
Tho Mosques, with their danes and minnrets
stood Ion. tlme before the splendid milo
o 81 S"phin,-fur To enter il ia nav impns-
s'ble tor Christian, aud tho reflections ex-
cited by view "fthis brildi !, in which pray.
ers were once offered To Christ. were of
'ne'ancholy kind. The name of Nah ,m.t il
now heard proclaimed five times day from
the nl"arets, and a Christian is barely per
i united In look upon ths exterior ot that edi.
hce' winch IN time past Twas dedicated 10 his
, own reli uinn
But few steps fran 81 Sophia is the prin.
G,Pa' gate of the Setayli,. called tho Sublime
Forte, which of course 1 was not permitted
10 enter. Here the Christian A,nha ssad,rs
hold their interviews with the Sultan. and
hence the term Sublime Porte has been trans.
! ferrcd from the gate itself to the Emperor
and his Divan. Near St. Sophia is another
large Mosque with six minarcts, called Sui.
tan Achmet, which was also a Christian
Church IN the time of the Cnnstaniines, nam.
ed st. Demetrius. Perhaps the most beau.
t'ul NJ ,sque is that of Sultan 8 Lyman; in
| The p,rtico "f which are many high porphy.
~ t'llars. Directly in front uf this NJ ,sqtie il
! rnw OF cnffse b ,uses, before which sit those
,ntenperate Mussulmans who indulge in eat.
Ing opium. The custom Of swallowing this
de.eieri"us drug is not now general. But sill,
lew were tn he seen sitting in n state of
insensibiIity under its influence, with fixed,
glar'ns eyes, and an expression II faulty in
their c.nnienances Not far distant il a
l.nnatic Hospital, ready t, receive them when
the last spark of intellect shall have been
extinguislled. This I visited also.
The square in from, of st Demetrius is
| ornsmenied with nu Egyptian obel,sk of
grini'e, upon the sides ut which are many
| gr"tesque figures. The bronze serp.nts.
broken, stand near it. In tbs Hppodromo
saw some half dozen wild beasts, which
compose the Managerie of the Snltan. I
have also visited the Seven Towers where.
Foreign Ambassadors have been Confined,
aud where is To be seen the great NJ ,rtar in
winch thu heals Of tho chief Miho,nedan
/ Priests have boen pounded. The Bazaars
In C"ns'antinople are very extensive and
| splendid.
! The Sweet Waters, "les eaux douces."
are the pride of the inl,abitants of StanbonI.
and have been asked a thousand times if [
had seen them. | was obliged tn 90 and SEQ
them In selt.defcnce. The Sweet waters is
narrow river, emptying itself into the H.
den Horn, the h,rbor of Coi,stantinopie } 1t
! runs through beautiful valley, in the mead.
nws OF which are feeding the Sutan's h ,rses.
| There may have been a thousand steeds
grazing upon the banks, and of the finest
| Arabian blond. Il siw much to admire i'm
their delicate forms and graceful notions
Al the head nf the waters is a mosque, a sum
nier pavilion, and a beautiful promenade,
where the Constantin"pnlitans amuse them
selves On 'lidays.-lt was all pleasant enough
but must Tor the present pass over minor
| subjects, (Which may finn a subject of cun.
versatioh when we shall again meet and
come To one which yesterday occupied all
my thoughts. and called firth feelings that [
| may never again experience. ! have looked
upon The Sultan, the Emperor Of all the OF
tnmlns, the descendant and representative
"f Mahomet, the man who rules with despo.
tic p'wer over mill ms of Mussulmans.-
Yesterday morning. in company with gen.
| tlenan, nuI very wnrth twons nan Mr.
Charles Rhind. who has succeeded in effect
ing treaty of Commerce. between tn. United
States and the Porte, was pulled Zip the
B'sph"rus To TheTapia. ID miles from Con-
staniinppie, tn witness the procession of the
Sultan from his Country Palace tn the MOSQUE.
We tnok our stand, Among other franks, di.
recily in front "f the Mosque. A long file of
| Turkish snidiers, in the new costume, was
drawn upon each side of the path, extending
considerable dlstanc, from tie temple of
alahomet towards the Palace We soon saw
the Royal procession advancing between
these two Columns, and more imposing. POM
| pons pageant i never before witnessed. IL
| surpassed any thing had ever conceived of
eastern 'nagnificeBce.
| First came half dozen led horses the most
{; bcauiitnl of their kind, with the richest tran.
/ pings Then followed two censor bearers en-.
| velloped IN clouds IF irankincense and myrrh.
| Then came n double row Of about TO .ty Pages
! (aii boys) in the most splendid dress of sky
blue, embroidered with gold, with gracefully
waving plumes of ostrich feaihers in their
richly "rnamented caps. Between these rode
the Emperor,ln all his glory. I was within a
few feet OF him. He Looked towards us and
smiled lie is about the middle size, rather
stout, d has jolly bronze visage. When he
dsmounted and proceeded up the steps of
the Mosque, a ci"wd OF grandees cried with
! loud volcs three times, Allah tsAllah !,
Allah J! lie remained at his devoiions about
twenty minutes, again mounted but on a diff.
ierent steed, and returned To the palace, fol-
lowed 10y his attendants and the military
Band have the march which was played
at az the time, and some day you shall hear it
This is the first monarch 1 ever saw. a
grander scene | never beheld. was so de-.
hghted That followed The pageant until it.
was lost IN the court oil the palace.
Gen. PeDs. This celebrated Chief wbo