Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1869-03-30
correspondence
TALLAs, NEAR CEsAREA, }
Asia Minor, Feb. II, 1869. J

better idea Of social and domestic lie
in Turkey, than l have thus far been able
to give.
| have before, spoken, to some extent
of the houses. The style of building va
ries according to the material at hand.
The most common style which prevails
among the villages which lie scattered over
the plains where neither timber nor stone
are to be found, is as follows: "Bncks"
are made of mud and fine straw, thorough
" mixed and dried in the sun. OF these
brick wall is built about two feet thick
into which are set posts at convenient dis
tances to serve as support for the roof.
The partitions in the rooms are built III
the same way. The roof is formed by
means of tilnbers laid horizontally from
wall to wall, over which are spread the
boughs of trees, of sufficient thickness, TO
serve as foundation for the coverings Of
earth, which is spread over all From six
to ten inches in depth. This covering is
made hard by means Of stone rollers.
The timber for the posts and beams OF
the roof are frequently brought distance
of thirty or forty miles, upon their rude
buffalo carts. Tie rooms in these houses
are usually of the rudest kind, with earth
floors, and Fireplace and chimney in one
end, very small windows and few at that,
and often so high as to be entirely out of
reach from the floor. Glass is seldom
used, but instead, paper pasted over the
sash in winter and often oiled, TO admit
more light The furniture is simple and
scanty. few cushions of wool, arranged on
either side with pillows of the same ma
terial arranged at the back a large wood
en- Jug for water, few vessels of copper
and of earthen, for cooking and serving
the food, is about all that is found essen
tial to health and comfort. Bedsteads
are never used, but the beds, universally
made Of wool, are always packed away
during the day, and spread upon the floor
at night, and in the summer, are often
spread upon the roof. In immediate con-
nection with the principal room, the stable
is generally built, often with no door Of
separation between. Thus taking advan-
tage of the heat from the animals, fuel is
saved in cold weather. In localities where
timber is more abundant, framework o!
wood is raised, and instead of boarding
the outside, the spaces between the tim
bers, which are firmly braced, are filed
with the bricks above described, laid with
mud for mortar, after which the whole is
covered with coating of mud and straw
entirely concealing the timbers. In houses
Of the latter class. the inner walls are
covered with thin coating IF lime, and
often finished with neat white surface of
plaster of paris. The hight of the village
houses, of which | have spoken, is seldom
more than ten or twelve feet, and they are
often so constructed, that one may pass
over large number Of them from roof to
roof
In larger towns like those in the yicin-
ity of Ceserea, the style of architecture is
quite different.
In this town, the buildings are entirely
of stone, many Of them two or three sto-
ries, and some really elegant structures.
The same is true of several other towns
in this vicinity. Most of the buildings
are OF hewn stone, of light brown color,
and the roofs are all fiat and covered with
earth, though in some quarters, in Marso-
van and Yaggat for example, the roofs are
sloping and covered with earthen tiles
In all the larger towns and cities the
streets, entirely shut in by stone walls,
usually net less than ten or twelve feet
high, and one can form no idea of the ap-
pearance of the houses by passing in the
street. The door in the wall generally
open into a court or open yard, from
which access IS gained to the house, which
is often built on the sides of the court.
If there is beauty of architecture, it is
seen from the court, but not from the
street. Ii one wishes to enter the court
from the street, he raps with the iron
knocker upon the outer door, and in reply
to the question " Who's there 2" he an
swers, "Open." 1t was thus that Peters
noise was recognized as narrated in Acts
12:14. LIB.
The mammoth musical festival in Bos-