Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1876-11-09
THE SERvIANS.
ALI About the Present Bone
of Contention" in Europe.
Relations of Russia, Servia, Turkey
France and England.
The Origin of the Servo. Turkish War.
CFrom the Cincinnati Gazette.

| FROM IHe CluclDuau ud2ettes
The history of the ancient republic:
of Sparta and Athens, and that O
modern Scotland, Poland, Greece and
Italy has in it nothing more heroic in
behalf of freedom than is found in the
Servian annals. The struggle of Ser
via for independence, during hun
dred years past, forms one of the
brightest records of modern times,
made by a brave people against the
despotlsm of the Turkish government.
Whatever Russa's design may be,
the cause of the Servians is the cause
of humanity and freedom.
AS far back as history goes, the
Servians appear upon the stage as a
Sclavonic tribe, possessing the whole
region from the Alps to the Black
Sea, and from the Danube to the
Archipelago. They were warrior
tribe, like all others at first, but re-
ceived Christianity in the seventh
century from Greek teachers and
priests sent as missionaries from
Constantinople. Their governmentwas
of the patriarcha. Kind, the whole
tribe being subject to the rule of its
native chiefs. Two Intellectual at
tempts were made to subdue them, in
the tenth and eleventh centuries, by
the Greek emperors. They defed
the whole power of the Latin empire
besides, and repealed the Mongols OF
Asia who had overrun Russia itself
In the fourteenth century they became
aggressive, and having conquered
| Macedonia and other regions the
Turks attempted to subdue them
The Greek emperors compared them
to "raging fire. or ''swollen tide. "
In the long conflict of the middle ages
between the east and west, they pre-
served their independence, and were
the first warriors to meet the Turks
who set their foot on European soil.
The name the tribe gave to their
prince was emperor of Roumelia
and the Christ loving Gar" From
that :ime on, and after the Ottoman
conquest of southeastern Europe, their
whole history has been one of defense
or aggression against the Turkish
sword and Koran.
On the field of Kossova, 1889, they
lost their independence, as did also
Bosnians and the Albanians in the
fourteenth century, being overpow-
cred by superior forces of the Sultan.
Their churches were destroyed and
mosques erected in their places. A
poll-tax was levied upon every male
child from sovon years of age, to con-
tinue during life, payable to the Sui
| tan.
Under the fecoil from oppression,
and seeking the alliance of Hungary,
they at length recovered their indie
pendence in 1444. The repulse of
the Turks at Belgrade, by John Hun
niadea, won for him the title of DE
fender of the Faith" and for Belgrade
the distinction of being "The Bulwark
hf Christendom. Within six months
the fortunes Of war changed, and the
turks overpowered both the Hunga-
rians and Servians at Varna, who,
with the Bosnians, Greeks and Alban-
ians, all became subject to the Otto
man power 1t was the time of the
Mahmouds, the Solinans and Bal aezts,
the period Of the most brilliant Turk
lsh victories, crowned with the cap
ture of Constantinople itself in 1853
| Henceforward the Christian subject
of the Sultan were called "ravahs,"
and sometimes "Giaouts," or non
Moslems, a name by which they have
been ever since distinguished in his
tory. Some of the Servians became
Mohammedan, while those who were
loyal to their Christian creed either
suffered death or betook themselves
of the mountains, and were called by
the Turks "Haiducs' (High-dooks)
or robbers. The antagonism between
the rayahs was complete, and the
personal treatment of them, even
where their lives were spared, was of
the most oppressive character. Such
was the condition of Servia in the lat
ter half of the eighteenth century,
The spirit of independence was, how
ever, kept alive by the Haiducs in the
mountains.
In 1888 Russia and Austria com
bined in alliance, and resolved to de-
stroy the dominion of the Sultan in
Europe, or, as the Emperor Joseph of
Austria said, to revenge mankind on
these barbarians. Again the splen.
dor of Servian heroism shines out in
rally from the mountains, and an
instruction of the rayabs 1t was
the Servians who retook Belgrad
from the Turks in 1889, recovered
their own towns, cleansed their own
churches, which had been turned into
stables for Turkish cavalry, and made
them resound again with Christian
thanksgiving. Once more Russia and
Austria assisting, Servia was free. To
the eternal shame of the western Eu-
ropean powers, England, France and
Holland, with Prussia half dissenting,
interfered in behalf of the balance
of power" and fearing Russia's ascen-
dancy, required that Servia should
remain under the dominion of the
Sultan, Russia, however, having Sc
cured for Servia some concessions.
In their misfortune, the Servians,
cruelty oppressed by the janizaries,
who were opposed to all reform, still
retained the spirit of independence
and the consciousness of their own
dignity.
1t was at this junction that Kara
| George, pronounced " Kahrah
Gurgy" = 'Black George" as the
Turks call him, arose, and took his
place in the list of the worlds heroes,
beside Leonidas and Bozzaris, Wal
lace and Bruce, KoscIuski and Carl
baldi. The son ola prosecuted Chris
tian peasant, he rallied haiducs aud
rayahs on his side, resolved to seek
death or win freedom. The Turks
were driven from the villages, the