Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1877-07-26

one loFel0lU series or ordinary au-
ventures, terminating in final return
to the paternal roof, where love and
full cup, and the usual accessories
of the last act in life's comedy, await
ed that Bashi Bazouk- you, my
children (curtain) A few idlers
gathered about while the sorceress
growled among her enchanted trink-
cts, and as the climax approached
she threw her arms about, widening
the circle that had closed about her.
Constantine the Great surrounded
his city with wall thirteen miles in
length, having eight and twenty gates,
and many lofty tower. These walls
still stand, tottering, and are wonder
fully picturesque. In parts of the old
Notifications, you can still! see the
breaches made by catapults and bat
tering-rams. Of all the gates, there
are no two alike, and each has some
thing of its own that is either beauti-
full or pleasant. One of the pleasant.
est excursions about the City of the
Sultan is the exploration of the walls
and towers. There are cemeteries
by the way, and mosques and a thou
sand cafes to beguile you. You float
under the walls in caique, for their
very foundations are laid in the sea,
on one side of the city; you may ride,
or drive, or walk you may have a
distant view of the Mosque of Eyoob,
where the Osmanli Sultans grid on
the sword of Osmon. Eyoob was the
standard. bearer and companion-in-
arms Of the Prophet, and was killed
at the siege of Constantinople by the
Arabs, A. D., G6s. Mohammed II,
having had tho tomb of Eyoob re-
vealed to him in vision, the very spot.
They arc far too holy for Christian
to enter, even in his stocking feet,
which is rather pity, inasmuch as
this mosque is one of the most elegant
and beautiful of any near the capitol.
At Greek church, buried in one of
the groves, there are some miraculous
fish, red on one side and brown on the
other. These fish were in the frying
pan, perfectly resigned to fate, when
Constantinople was taken. That was
little too much, and they leaped out
of the frying-pan, Drowned on one
side only. If you don't believe it, in
quire at the Greek church and see
these precoclous wrigglers swimming
aboutin the fountain as gaily as if they
were not we'll done on one side and
raw on the other. At the seven tow.
ers, where the treasury was formerly
kept, the walls are ponderous, and
the interior OF the court, which they
inclose like some ancient garden, neg
lected and formal. There are stone
stairways leading up to parapets,
whore the grass waves in the wind,
and the poppies futter their leaves
like butterfly wings where the huge
hollow towers are rent from top to
bottom, but the vines that clasp them
in their strong embrace keep the old
fellows from following. Trees force
their way out of crevices, and the
place is alive with lizards. As quiet
as country dooryard in the SON.
shine, this ancient fortress was once
the scene of continual slaughter, and
there is hardly stone in it but might
mark the grave of some victim of
tyranny or treachery, whose blood has
stained this soil.
The fire brigade of this infamable
city is better than nothing, for it
shows willingness on the part of the
authorities to afford the populace a
cheap and perfectly harmless amuse-
ment.
Constantinople is always in flames;
it has several times attracted the at
tention and the sympathy of the
world in consequence of the extent of
its suffering. l have wondered what
means are taken to arrest the pro-
gress of so dangerous an element in
a community that is perfectly at the
mercy of it. Lounging on the bridge
day, listening to the delightful chant
of pair of sherbet sellers, who went
off every two minutes, like musical
clock, looking at the spectacular pop.
ulace crowding to and fro, ! heard an
unusual commotion and saw that a
charge Of half-naked infantry was
cutting an avenue through the dense
crowd. Then came five and twenty
lusty fellows, who bore above their
heads in triumph a small box-its
size might have been two by four,
and couple of feet deep-with a
garded hose-pump attached. IF it
were the Ark of the Covenant being
hurried away to the mountains, it
could hardly have created more SEN
sation in the bottom of the Constan-
tinopolian. The ten tribes leaped for
joy !; all the nations sang together. /
joined the chorus, for it was impos-
sible not to be infected by such uni
versal enthusiasm. On came another
and another and yet another caravan,
bearing its trophy aloft and shouting
the battle-cry of something which /
was unable to interpret. 1t seemed
to me that hundreds of these ma
chimes were hurried over the bridge.
Some of them were returning at a
moderate pace long before the process
sion was over. The companies sa-
luted one another in great glee, and
the enthusiasm of the hour was in no
wise abated. ] asked what was the
meaning of all this extraordinary DEM
onstration. 1t might have race of
the youths of Turkey, or happy souls
bearing tribute to the Sultan of the
unhappy empire-but it was not. 1t
was only the fire department of Con-
stantinople on active duty and the
wonder is that there is soul SUR
yivor capable of telling the tale, or a
solitary stone left standing upon the
hills of the Bosphorus.