Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1888-05-29
A lWOMANLESS EDEN.
6reek Monssft ries Of Mount ksbss,
Where No wemsnts KaewsBslf
Permitted to Livs.
The Mopks and Their Relations Co Russsas
HILLARY Adairs-"A Rsvo.utionarT
Movement from Below"
New York Graphic.

| New York Graphic.
Il Is reported in the Sunday csble dis.
patches from Europe that considerable
alarm exists in Turkish military circles
over the gathering Of pilgrims at the
orthodox Greek monssteries of Noun.
Athos. The number OF such pilgrims is
put at 10. 900, and as the monsstic COM
munities, whose predecessors hsve 81
least proved their ability to defend en-
selves, number over 70C0, it is 20 wonder
that the Sultan's advisers should view
the unusual gathering with dread and
doubt Ct It's Character. To moes AmsEi
CANS the name, Mount Athos (Hsgicn
Ofos, or Holy Mouutsir will ce,ry win
it no So cisi significance. To all inte,-
ested in the Greek Catholic Church, OF
knowing more than the suIfscs indic.-
tons Of the religio-politics o; Russia, the
paragraph sent by cable will open 6
world Of cor lecture.
Mount Athos is plsce where, for msny
centuries past, no womsp, and fcr the,
matter, no female creature Of any sort,
has been knowingly permitted to 1--we Il
lie believed by its devotees that since its
irst occupation by religious communities,
about the filth century Of the Christian
era, that NO Woman hts ever lsrce6 there.
Traditions OF some daring beauties, who,
disguised in male attire, Ven.uIed cn the
Salonica pehinsu!s, are floating sbcu.
thst region, but the GcSek Catholics be-
lieve that none such hive ever returled
10 tell the tale. What IL the supposed
pcliticsl and wErlike sigr & :sIos u the
Mount Athos news item? la this sketch
it Is proposed to tell.
The Gce cisn Archipelago heSds on the
Pepinsula-orcken shores Of Old Mscsdc-
bis, still part II the Sultan's European
d0mipiops aud the coveted CT Greece,
Austr!s, Sysis snd the nsscenf Bulgarian
nationality. Ths water ana air are s.ias
alive with the romance and pcesy OF
history. Tbs besuty OF the deep,
cIesr azure abave is r@hscted in the deep
blue Of the Grecian waters. There is
loneliness pathetic in the halt-awzkenet
desolatiLn which broods dTeamiy on
every hand.
The northeast httoral Ct these Arcni.
pc agian waters is broken By the CAT Of
Salopics, whose port and city is fast
growing into larger commercial impor-
lance than ever before In its memorable
history. To the east OF the gulf prs jecte
into the blue watels three rugged, rocky
peEfnsulas, each some thirty miles IN
!ength snd four or five miles wide Be
.een them are the Gulf Ut Calsandra End
Monte santo, aud to ne east OF the Pen.
insula Of Athos is the Golf Of CoItefss.
Mount Atnos Is high, steep range,
literally covered By moaastic communi
.:sa, aud nothing else bus the results Of
the Industry they exercise and the build
iDgs in which tnsae ecciesissEics reside
Toe average altitude is about 6400 test,
which in That lovely semi-tsopicsl climate
makes OF II IS 30 temperaiute most de-
ligh,iul residence. These communities
re Supposed to be enormously r:ca. Oae
thing is known to scholars, ahd ta.s is
that their library treasures in nsnu-
se;ipta, etc are alnlosa beyond Price
Historically they must DE Of v1s. inpor,
tence. Little or nothing is really known
Of the Internal administration
Of these communities; not much
OF their ex ernsl power, though thai
must be # CREST indirect Importance,
affecting through prlesily sgencies tbs
whole body Of Greek Catholics, whD
counting the Russians. are second IN old
world sffairs In numbers, etc, only to
There are other of these Greek Catholic
communities whom Turkey has for gen.
ere,ions past carefully protected. The
nsnastic communities are, Of course, re-
cruiled from the outside word, end CT
late years the principal portion Ct the new
monks have been Russian. Since the &C.
tive Inauguration CT Pan Slavonian
prOpssands thu distiuct Effort has been
msde to control eli Bye milne ceuters,
and the Hsg:oI Oros OF the Egesn sea has
been by no means 1T elected. II there Is
auy foundation for the fears OF the Tur-
kish government, the Peninsula of Athos
would be indeed 9 danger. Il could be
defended from land to apy extent,
and only on being suelled from the ses
could there De eff4ctual suhjugation. It
lie reported thst there are INNER SO gran
aries In connection with this remarkable
community. OF these present monks at
lesst two-ihirds are OF Russian birth. III
the enormous gathering OF pilgrims ere Ut
the same stock, most certainly there IL q
living danger to the Ottoman power
Salslica has RESTLESS population OF 100, !
600. mostly Greeks and Jews, the former
all ripe for revolution.
Ga the west shore CT the Black Sea is |
the important comm Tctsl and railroad
town Of Warns, close by which is great
Russo Greek monastery which by treaty
is under the protection OF Russia itself.
There is also o convent and q hospital
A glance at map ct the region will show
its accessibility to the Russian feet ard
its open comm unicatiou with the Csimea.
II was reported come ten weeks since
that Russia was suspected Of using the
Vsrna monastery as gransry and ersen.
81, and this rumor Is now repeated. Its
correctness is At least credible.
Along the border Of Polish Russis the
organization has been able,
despite police and military activity, fer
long time past to maintain on the German
aud Ausirisn sides Of the line postal sta
tons, through which secret correspond
ence passes to and TO. The Gsllici,n
frontier has been especially available.
Letters from Russis through these sgen-
cIes have quite recently arrived la this
city, aDd from those who received them
some hints OF internal affairs have beeu,l
obtained for use In this sketch.
The tremendous burden imposed by
reason OF the long coutin ued militia y
strain, the Russian armies having prect.-