Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1858-04-08
NEDMS $3.50 strictly i'm adva ne
IEnMD, 800 at the years eud.
Turkish Contrasts.

Turkey is rich to overaowing the population
meek in all the poverty of Incidence. The love
illness of every landscape is broken by the most
hideous public misery. The climate is fine, for
the air is fresh and soft-the temperature gene
rally moderate. 1t is bad because it is both
cold and wet, foggy and rainy.
The Turk proverbial loves his ease; yet he
lives in the most inconvenient manner. He
smokes his chibouque or nargilly on sofas with
out backs !; he uses his knees for writing desk
and the floor for dinner table. He is fond of
visiting hfs friends in state, bu. has no carriages,
his streets are neither named or numbered
Turks are both clean and dirty. They are al
ways dabbling with water, but they eat with
their hands they heap intolerable garbage be-
fore their doors, leave dogs to do the office of
scavengers, and allow dead carcases to putrefy
beneath the windows of their palaces. They
are both quick and slow in business, for they
have few formalities; yet they have always a
score of opposing interests in everything. They
neglect the most important affairs in endeavor-
ing to satisfy everybody on some occasion; and
jump at conclusions with simplicity and good
faith almost affecting upon others.
The Turk s wives are so mufled up that they
cannot see where they are walking, and they
roll around like barrels, from the length of their
dresses and the largeness of their shoes. He
wells and imprisons, yet allows them to 60 where
they please unaccompanied. Turks are never
seen in public with their wives. On the other
hand they appear to consider ladies as natures
choicest handiwork, for they can imagine no
present more grateful to the Sultan, on the
great festival of the Bairam, than a young mai
den. They deny woman any place in society,
and while they refuse them soul, insist they
shall be transported bodily to paradise In
Turkey, girl seldom brings a portion to her
husband but the husband pays sum of mon
ey to her parents. Turkish women are lively,
gossiping, and restless the men are calm, tao
turn and apahetic. A Turk considers it shame
full to look at lady passing him. He never
suffers the name of wife to pass his lips, and
would consider it an insult if you asked after
her health. Yet he is q polygamist and, has
children by his slaves.
The Ottoman is compassionate and cruel.
He will leave a legacy to horse, and support
an army of beggarS but he would roast ii Chris
tian with a great zest, and bastnadoes his slaves
without qualm. He is at once splendid and
mean. Ostcntatious IN servants, horses, pipe
sticks, and houses but his servants are i'll
dressed, his horses are worthless his houses are
keptin such bad repair that the rain often
comes into his drawing-room, and pigeons build
in the hall of audience of his sultans. He al
ways reminds strangers of the Hungarian no.
bleman, who have but one spur. Nothing
about him is complete. A saddle of cloth of
gold will be girt about his steed with an old
rope; and while the mouth-piecc of his pipe
may be worth five hundred pounds, the bowl is
not worth halfpenny He is a democrat
though he lives under a government nominally
despotc. He is democrat, because he can
hardly understand any real difference of ranks
in country. Most governments are supposed
to examine affairs with some view to their set
tlement at the Porte they are usually invest-
gated with view Of avoiding it. In other
countries promotion is slow and business man
aged omparatively quickly. In Turkey, busi-
iness is conducted slowly, and promotion grant
cd quickly. Elsewhere, thanks are usually re-
turned for present; in Turkey it is customary
to thank the receiver Aguest invited to dinner
is also thanked for coming
In Turkey, superiors salute interiors else
where the reverse is the fashion. In Europe,
we uncover our heads as mark of respect; in
Turkey, people take off their shoes to show de-
ference A Turk is brief of speech, and seldom
exagerates; but he is amused by intermnable
stories and the most improbable freaks of i'm
aginaton He suffers evils without complaint,
because he says they are written In the book of
fate, and he considers themas part of the scheme
of divine Providence. lie has a great contempt
for ancestry and comedies to the descendant OF
Mahomet no other advantage in life than a
green turban real Turk cares little for poll
tics most of the persons mixed up in politica'
4, affairs in his country being Greek or of Greek
descent. He is brave and sensitive; but never
dreams of duel, nor have the French been
able to noculate him with their entertaining
. ideas on the subject. can recall no single in
stance of Turk who has committed suicide.
He will tell you, indeed, that the hour of his
:, death is written and that he can neither hasten
not retard it. Persons who are fond of theories
usually recoil with instructive prudence from all
practical tests, and it never occurs to theoreti-
q cal Turk to try the soundeess of his doctrine
>, with razor or q pocket-pisto,
4 SALT LAKE-Ths sheet of water is said to be