New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1888-03-07
a TALE OF C0HsTAHTlNOpIE


told regarding those poor Gagged birds
OF the harem in Turkey, perhaps the
most remarkable is the one which 7
here relate. The outlines of the story
was first told me in Vienna, and it
Then took very strong hold OF my
imagination and sympathies, but I
scarcely believed it to be true. One
DAY, however, some six months later
n was sitting in a coupe in O. street
near the volvoda in Constantinople,
waiting for some one, when a Turk
passed along the street and descend
ing toward Galata. / saw hundreds.
perhaps thousands Of Turks every
day, and paid no special heed to them,
but this man drew my attention in
stantly. lie walked slowly, as if every
step was burden and every breath
a WEAKNESS. His head was bowed
forward, butnot from weakness. It
y~was asthough a weight of sorrow bore
upon him, SO helpless and so great
that he could hardly even lift his eyes,
and grief and remorse seemed to exude
from every feature of his lace and
every line Of bis bent form. [ looked
at him feeling that here was no COM
mon sorrow, and he raised his eyes to
mlne'by pure accident, and before he
passed on | had read in them the ut
! ter despair of a strong man in q mis-
ID cry beyond aid, human or divine.
IS While [ was still under the strange
influence OF that mans crushing agony
my friend came out just in time to see
him pass, and with a start said:
'"That man is the one l told you of
IN the history of the medjidieh. He is
apasha, and at that time was about
'thlrty-hve years old, and he belonged
to the school OF liberal or young Tur-
key, which means that they do not
hold to the strict rules and orders of
\ Mohammed in very many things, but
Tmost particularly they adopt
what they call the Frank
style of living as far as is
practicable. This young pasha was
highly esteemed even by the fanaticaI
old-school Turks, though he regulated
his household upon the European
plan as far as he could and still be q
Mohammedan. He had but one wife,
and her he loved and cherished as his
one precious jewel. He had teachers
for her and she learned several Ian
Eguages, music and singing and every
lother accomplishment that could
Fpossibly add to their happiness.
fHhey had a dining-room alter the
E'rankish fashion, and took their
meals together from a. table and not
separate as do the other Turkish fam
lies. They occupied the same Sleep
Ing apartment instead OF having the
haremlik and selamlik as in other
houses. They went out together, to
theatres, to ride on horseback, in
caiques and in carriages, all of which
IS utterly at variance with the
time-ordained customs of the
country; and while she still wore
a the yashmak or veil in the
ystreets, it was of the most transpar-
R< silk gauze. In short the pasha
Reposed the utmost confidence in her.
land feeling sure that his honor was
sale, he absolutely refused to have her
followed by one Of those eunuchs
(which are considered necessary evil
10y all other Turks. and above all he
invited his nearest friends to visit his
home in the same manner that he had
found usual in other. countries where
he had Travelled until he had imbibed
much OF their customs.
1.-The vile was beautiful, 1.-the, willowy
and tall, with long chestnut hair and
the loveiest of blue eyes. Her face
was a. pure oval, and indeed those
WHO have seen her speak Of her beau
ty as rare even among the famous
beauties of the Orient, and OF high
Rpiritual cast. She was a Georgian,
end had been tbought when but ten
years old by thelpasha's mother, who
raised her for the, express purpose of
becoming her sons wife. No
restraint was laid upon her,
her husband believing that the
liberty Of action he ;allowed her would
be her surest safeguard, andihe believed,
700, that she loved him, and so she
aid, like a child, bort he forgot that
c,ges ofGepression and imprisonment
md an implied responsibility among
the Turkish women have corrupted
them to ouch an EXTENT that they do
not even know the meaning of honor;
fidelity means forced seclusion from
5@mptatioa. and, besides she was but
Rt8lave, sold into bondage worse than
Heath unless true love .SOftenS the
chains, and she had example and OPP
portunity. She could MISUNDERSTOOD
that out of her husbands adorang
trust came that apparent neglect
which did not even provide one to
watch her and guard her, amd she fell:
and the worst OF it was that her as
sociate was a naa4a whom herausband
had loved like g. brother. She did
not think. She had no noble iRstinct. |
None had ever been engrafted into !
hn >,4 - 1, Il, 10 Ok,