News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1883-12-13
LETTER FROM TURKEY.
A TRIP TO BROOSA.


Who would dream, looking at the
naaceful Marmora, that 1t hides Win
It's broad expanse, sweeping out from
the Bosphorus, such gem lylhs III
the shadow OF snOw-capped olympus
nc Rroosa-or Prusa-fOr the Guy
was named from Pruslas, the louhuel'
= kino of Bithynia, and the protector
of Hannibal, more than two huhdteu
wears before the Christian era roI
more than fifteen hundred years the
CITY was in the possession Of Latln' .
Greek and Mohammedan powers III !
tnrn. and was finally conquered by
Orkhan, III 1896, and for hundred
wears. or until the taking of Constan-
tinople in 1853, remained the capltol
of Byzantine.
The run of five or six hours in
little Turkish steamer from CONSTANT
nople brings us to Mondanla, the sea-
mort of Broosa, where carriages are
nrocured, and then begins q drive
whose varied scenery rivals the WI te
Mountain valleys in June. The time
is the last of April, the Greek Easter
and the young leaves are seen IN the
distance. while here and there the be-
lated ounce and apricot blossoms
flame up, filling the air with fragrance
and the eve with color. Here a whole
field of wheat or rye is decked out
with scarlet peoples, while the road
side is overhung with ivy, hawthorne,
wild roses and black berry vines break
ing into snowy bloom. At our right,
exclamatiOns over the silver grey
olive groves have scarcely died away,
before on our left CLEANS the heaven
" blue of the bay, shut in by bluer
mountains rising in gentle unduIatIonS
in the distance.
We roll along in perfect content for
two hours or more through the ever
changing landscape, growing dumb at
last with the sense Of beauty around
Ms. until, with 4 flourish, our driver
turns down 4 slight descent and we
find ourselves in delicious grove,
dotted all over with carriages con-
tanning pilgrims like ourselves to
Broosa the beautiful. After resting
a quarter of an hour we again mount
the carriage and begin the last stage
of our journey. Until now we have
been climbing up, up, nearer and
nearer to old Olympus, but now we
wind rapidly down road as smooth
as floor, toward the plain, and such
plain. 1t is miles and miles across
it-twenty, at least-and the lights
and shades drive rs distracted with
the ever changing tints. The river,
old Odysseus, winds like silver rib
bon through and through it, and the
young trees, poplar, willow and syc-
amOre, line the banks in reckless pro
fusion. Turning suddenly bend in
the road, far below lies Broosa, nest
ling against the green mountain and
creeping up its side until stopped by
steep, moss covered and ivy grown
declivities. Here and there the slen-
der minarets shoot up amidst the flat
rooted wooden houses, showing that
the Mohammedan element in this city
of 10000 people still prevails. In
deed the language of the city is Turk
ish, even among the Greek and Amer
lean portion of the community. We
say to each other, almost with sigh.
"Oh, we will soon be there now.
But on we go, for near y two hours
after we first discovered the city,
until six o'clock finally brings us to
the suburbs, and the old citadel, built
on q huge rock in the center of the
city, and surrounded by portions OF
the walls built by Lascaris, looms NJ
before US. For a half hour longer
~ e1s:--> ~ o,-o~ road like conn
try lane, uncovered IN bloom. BE
fore we come to the hotel DAuatoli0
, long, low wooden building set back
from the street, and approached
through a pretty terraced garden,
, The hotels presided over by Frencl
woman who is scrupulously neat, i
= plain, and the Cuisine is simply per
feet. A French cook is nowhere
more appreciated than in Turkey, anC
this one is real, for | have seen her
fat and jolly, with the neatest of Whit
: caps tied under her chin, and ont
. could not wonder at the appetiZine
, menu served in the qualnteSt way
When the guests numbered nine, rep
/ resenting five different natiOnalities
one waiter served all, and perfectly
, When the number was increased tC
] nineteen, so well trained were they
that two walters were quite sufficient
/ Like the ''inns" in BustOn, Of which
e James speaks 80 feelingly, there art
no bells, but in this case the deficiency
is not compensated for by ''hele il
the wall" When you want ANYTHING
you simply wander around the house
until you find somebody. If you don't
find anybody you set on the balcony
= and wait until somebody turns up
There is no parlor, reading room o
J any such luxury, if you except tht
I office, little room opposite the din
: ing room, where the landIady sits
But there is little corridor in The
upper hall furnished with table anC
, a couple Of lounges. This corrdo
; opens upon a small gallery which vii
accommodate tour persons, or six
with little squeezing, and there tn
first who comes takes his ease, sip
o ping Turkish coffee and gazing upor
the beautiful plain spread ont like
% picture before the eye.
2 Broosa, aside from It's exquisite
: natural scenery, is celebrated for its
t hot springs-irOn and sulphur-anC
e for the culture of the silk worm. Th
r large groves Of mulberry trees, whicl
e add SO much to the picturesquenes
of the place, are also the source 0
t bvuad winning to nearly half the in
5 habitants of the city. There are one
D OF two large manufactures for prepar
, ing the silk from the cocoons, but The
: weaving of the creamy, gauZe lik'
texture IS mostly done in private
houses, and the silk is in great de
: mand, both here and in Europe. Tn
baths, constituting quite communit,
a by themselves, are a mile or NOR,