Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1884-07-02
life In a Parkway Place.

Far UP the ancient river Hays, on
either side. is many village where al
most every house has a man at work In
COnstantinople ; for the farming OF
these villages is Just as ancient as the
river, and needs outside help to hold Its
own year by year. And as there Is no
bank in AnatOlia and no system or
postal notes. sometimes from D to III
per cent. of the hamal's earnings Is
consumed by the sharp polltzadjl for
transferring the remainder from Con-
stantinOple to the old home.
These Armenian women and girls,
which they left behind them, are usually
robust, as well as the men. Indeed.
any one born there with frail coastitu-
tion dies before long running this
gauntlet of infantile disease and ex-
posure, so that only the strong are left.
And the twopence worth per day on
which they 1--we, of coarse bread and
curds. or hulled wheat and simple
soups. helps to develop beautiful teeth
and bones. good digestion and iron
mAcles. Some years ago an American
doctor, practIcing IN Sivas, told me it
was not at all uncommon for a village
woman To take her child, one or two
days old, on her back and walk three
miles to town to inquire of him if every
thing was all right with them But
when the doctor asked one of them,
"Why don't you learn to read" she
answered, with that peculiar shrug of
her magnificent shoulder: ugh You
get out. What can a COW learn ?''
And some of them are about as awk-
ward in handling a needle, too, as a
cow would be. When hamal, or Gus
tom house porter, returns after years
at StambOul, he naturally brings with
him new ideas. know one who pre-
sented his wife with full set of civil
lied spoons, knives and forks but she
promptly traded them off and turned
again To rely solely on the great wooden
spOons Of her ancients and on fingers.
Another steadily refused to sell his
daughter till the villagers made him
pay S15 for a girl his boy wanted.
Others discourse learnedly on custom
house tricks and on the different Euro
pean linguas. Some of them are quite
eager for the mental improvement of
their women and children. | visited a
small village near Silvas which has a
good school for both sexes, supported
entirely by the interest on money con-
tributed by its own citizens working in
StambOul. Some time ago Strolling
into an Armenian village church, l
took a secluded corner and heard senti-
ments in the address of the bishop there
which ten years ago would have been
considered rank heresy, worthy only an
American missionary. Among other
excellent things the bishop said: ed
ucate every one of your girls, and sim
plify your weddings. Here's one of
your Young men, with elastic step and
beaming face. He has future of vast
possibilities. RumOrS of a wedding
rise. The young man goes TO town.
At eve he returns, walking heavily.
You look into his face. 1t is no face
at all. What's the matter, man Got
a toothache ? Your girl dead p oh,
nothing, nothing, he says, but L know
he has to-day run 5000 piaStres (S2jOl
into debt for the extravaganza of one
Of our village weddings. y few months
later for that debt he goes to COnstan-
tinop,e TO be a slave for years, and
leaves his young wife 10 be another
here. Beloved by your own voluntary
slavery to evil custom We ara becoming
poorer and fewer In this progressive
country.