Morning journal and courier., 1884-08-27

A T9Skefeh Obtafned-Ehe MereemarV Turks-ssStghts'' in and Around Com stanttn opIe-The Mosque of St. SO- phia-The old SeragIfo-OId Walls The HfppOdrOme-TurkIsh MisgOv- ernmcnt-An Attack Upon the For
 e1gn Postofnces-Other Faults of ssthe Sick Man.''
 CoNsTANTINoFLE, Aug 10 To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
 'You must get teskereh before you can
 enter Constantinople were among the part ing words of Consul Calvert at the Darda- nelles. "A tesk-who?' I incurred "A teskereh. It is a written order entitling you to visit the city'' "But I have an orthodox American passport, and have been to the ex- pense and trouble of having it visaed." ," "Yes, but Turkish cupidity has recently branched out in this new direction To-mor- row there will be some new device to squeeze blackmail out of the Frank traveller. Of course it is but one more feature of the great
 system of petty robbery that has grown up
 in Turkey, but as it is legalized you had bet
 ter provide yourself with the necessary pa-
 pers." I did so at expense of nearly four
 francs. When I arrived at Constantinople
 neither passport nor teskereh were demand
 edl This does not lead me to recklessly con-
 clude that the horrors of going through the
 custom house here are fictitious. They exist
 and have not been magnifed. It means that
 the hotel eommissionaire yearned for patron
 age, ana nm by COndl-
 tioning my choice of his hotel upon his sue
 cess in getting me through. I have no doubt
 that he bucksheeshed the officials in a small
 way. That the teskereh should not be de-
 manded is easily explained. As have hint
 ed before, the Turks always kill the goose
 that lays the golden egg. They know not
 what is polite. A shining bit of silver will
 buy up any official, and thus as fast as laws
 are passed they become imperative by reason
 of the universality of petty bribes Con-
 vince man that you are absolutely "dry,"
 as the Arabs say when they wish to signify
 the utter futility of the squeezing process,
 and he is quite indifferent as to what becomes
 of you. The argument must be conclusive
 however.
 do not know that the public is waiting in
 breathless suspense to learn my impressions
 touching the glorious beauty" of Constanti-
 nople and it's environs. If it were true, I
 fear I should shock a multitude of expectant
 gushers by the lukewarmness of my admira-
 ton. After all, our estimates of scenery and
 architectural monuments are but arbitrary
 There is no absolute standard. The beauty
 of @ place or thing is relative, and what might satisfy man abundantly if his range of observation had been limited might dis gust and annoy him if he had travelled ex-
 tensively. Moreover, what might kindle the fullest enthusiasm of this same man might not rouse ripple of interest in neighbor of his, all the conditions being the same It is
 extremely difficult to emancipate ourselves from the unseen influence of outward cir cumstances also Thus the cancellations of others are of little value to us, unless
 made with the utmost carefulness and dis crimination. I am free to say that enjoyed
 the vision of this triune "Queen-C City-of-the
 Bosphorus," as seen from the head of the Sea of Marmora, just before our steamer Esround- ed the Golden Horn" The distant view of these swelling domes and tapering minarets
 iG T1loo that opened to the view up the picturesque Bosphorus, locked in by fat green hills, was especially refreshing after so many months of recent sojourn in dreary lands But did not find myself glowing and thrilling with intensity of enthusiasm such as I have sometimes experienced elsewhere, and there fore I cannot conscientiously yield to the rhapsodies that are customary in this con- nection. Had seen less of the Orient this
 verdict might have been different.
 The conventional "sights' of the city must be dismissed with but brief mention, since there are other and more novel matters for consideration. These sights include the mosques, Seraglio, walls, bazaars and an- cient remains, most of which are in that pe- ninsular quarter of the city known as StaTn- bout or Constantinople proper. Nominally you must obtain a teskereh in order to visit the mosques and the Seraglio; but the same remark which I made at the outstart applies here also. The Turks overreach themselves by accepting petty bucksheeshes as substi- tute for the more costly teskereh. I saw all l cared to see without once being asked for teskereh Crossing the Golden Horn on a long pontoon bridge from Pera the European quarter, proceeded with Greek guide to far-famed St. Sophia. The architectural pre- tensions of this mosque are to my mind less striking than the historical associations which cluster about it. To me it is a Christian church still-a voice from the very infancy nf icfi Tbo wac iT1aT1 tion though should hesitate to go far as some have done and declare that it best sat- isfes the religious sense. To be sure the Turks have seized upon this design, and made it theirs by a characteristic species of archi- tectural plagiarism which is only relieved by the fact that in so doing they showed good | taste for once; but we may still disassociate the two things and think of St. Sophia as Christian. Half 8 ineligible is all that St. Sophia need cost the traveller, and he need not remove his shoes if he is satisfied with a view from the gallery, which is paved with ! vey from below. The ascent was by ob- long spiral passage of easy grade, without i steps-a principle which I have seen embod- jed in some Indian palaces. The interior proved to be vast hall, with complex roof I capped by dome so far above the floor that shuddered in contemplating it's altitude at i first. Windows sunken into this thick vault ed roof sent rifts of FFdim religious Ight'' ! down, down to the matted stone floor below | The walls were stained, the floors cracked and uneven, and scores of doves and thou ! sands of bowls of grease-the Moslem lamp an impression of untidiness which | all travellers must notice, though few mention it. The lamps were fastened to great chan deliers that depended from the very dome in ! large numbers. Great circular boards, with | Koran texts painted upon them, have been substituted for the early Christian hescoes !