Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1853-01-12
a ebaa 1as GLARKsBURG, WEDNESDAY JANUARY

ing house until they. have received a
baksheesA or payment IN, money. What
q contrast this affords with the conduct
of the brave men of the monumental ci-
ty who so heroicaily peril life and limb for
no compensation, to save the property OF
their fellow citizens. How often have 1
wished, when the devouring flames were
soaring triumphantly, that Baltimore
engine, worked by Baltimore fremen was
present to arrest their progress. Howey-
er the streets are too narrow for any 9TH
er apparatus than that used, and must
do the Turkish gentlemen the justice to
say that when they once get started to work.
they go at it like tigers: and as these en-
gines, small as they are. throw a stream
of hundred feet. they serve, in connec-
ton with the general practice of tearing
houses down in the vicinity of the fire, as
preventatives at least. sb yrsv s9
In former times, whenever the people
wished to eyince their dissatisfaction of
the Government. they fred the city night
after night until a change of the ministry
took place. The Sultan, knowing the
cause of these incendiary acts. and fear
ing the great impoysrishment which they
produced among his subjects, responded
to their wishes. and changed his minis
ters. This is supposed to have been the
case recently, as the late ministers were
odious in the eyes of the people, fires fol-
lowed each other in rapid succession, but
ministerial change taking place they
have been comparatively rare since.
A few days after our arrival, in order
to obtain general view of Constantinople,
i traversed the streets on horseback, and
really the interesting and diversified OBJ
jects that attracted my attention were
well worth the trouble and risk of such a
ride. All nations, clad in their respec-
tive costumes. were to be seen; the grave
and slowly-moving Turks, or their more
energetic neighbors the Armenians, (for
the latter present present pretty much the
same appearance on the street as the
former waddling along in their full bree-
ches and blue loose jackets heavily en-
broidered with gold and silk. below which,
stuck in rich cashmere scarf, appeared
certain formidable firearms and Damas-
Gus blades, causing me instinctively to
give the wearers plenty of room to pass,
their heads surmounted by large turbans,
or the red fez of modern times, and their
venerable boards falling over their breasts;
tall Greeks with braided jackets, vests and
leggings. snow white and ample skirts,
rich Persian sashes of silk encircling their
narrow waists. jaunty caps, &C.; willy
Jews with long and flowing garments more
like robes de cham6re than anything else /:
dark Moors and Arabs attired in the wild
costume peculiar to the wandering and
tent-dmelling life of the desert: darkly
clothed Persians with their conspicuous,
towering, sharp pointed caps, and per-
haps a pile of costly shawls of their own
country or Cashmere, thrown over their
shoulders fur-clad Georgians, Circassi-
ans and Russians whilst here and there
appeared fat Pasha on horseback. with
a dozen attendants running after him on
foot /; or a representative of civilized Eu-
rope, whose tall, awkward hat, scant coat.
and " tights" rendered him about as odd
looking a biped as any among this mot
ley group. These among the men.
Among the women, groups of whom
crowded the streets. there was not so
great variety of costumes. They all
wore Jeryees. or long, full garments, some
ting like priests robe. composed of diff
ferent materials aud various colors-
These fell from their nccks to their feet,
and were held up in front with one hand
to keep them from trailing. The head,
and all the face. saving the eye, were CO.
vered with the Turkish yashnaack or veil,
which is formed of a white and delicate
ly fine material, kept perfectly clean and
boots, over which were slippers with no
4 ~. II, lalf LII
slid from place to place.
The feregee and yashnaaek impart ve-
ry singular and sepulcheral appearance to
the Turkish women, making them look
as if they had Just arisen from beneath
the marble slabs that adorn their own cy-
press shaded cemeteries. Between the
yashmack's white folds discovered ma
ny pair of large brilliant eyes, black.
long dashed, dreamy and yoluptuous. and
as Franks, Gas all Europeans are called,
attract their attention pte-eminently,
had the full benefit Of observing their roll
ling orbs. Some of them, especially the
Armenian women, wore such thin 'yash-
macks' that l could discern their every
| feature.
Among the other objects that claimed
my attention were the immense number
of donkies, hundreds of which were toll
ing through the streets under burdens
that you would certainly think would sink
them to the ground. Then there were
the hamals or porters, carrying loads on
their backs equal to the united weight of
the donkey and kis burden, and to COM
plete the picture. wolish looking dogs
were proving about or lazily lying in the
street, undisturbed by all these moving
scenes. save when they felt the pressure
of horses feet or those of some unuary
pedestrian on their tails.