Omaha daily bee., 1889-09-22
A SULTAN'S RESTLESS SLEEP.
Turkeys Luxurient Ruler in Con-
stant Fear of Assassination.
HIS is A GROWN OF rAoRNs.
with Ten Millions n Year, Ap 1olute
Power and Hundreds OF Beauti-
fuI wives Abdul Hand is
Not Happy.


CoNsTANTINoPLE, Sept j, 1880 - Especial
Correspondence to The BEE.l-on the
e2d OF next September Abdul Hamid
will be forty-seven years old. He has an en-
pire nearly half the size CT the United States
over which he is absolute ruler and his word
means life and death to more than thirty
three million people. He IS the spiritual
head of the great Mohammedan religion, and
two hundred million lips speak his name in
worship every day. Multtudes in India,
North Africa, China and South Europe look
. upon him as the "Shadow of Cod and like
the Turks of Asia Minor regard HIM as the
representative of Mahomet He has an in
come of SIC, 100000 year. His treasury is
filled with diamonds. His palaces are num-
bered by scores and he counts his Arab horses
by the thousands. He has countless servanst
to satisfy his every wish, and his harem,
filled with the beauties of the
Orient, Is replenshed each year
with the fairest of the young female
slaves of Georgia and Circassla If physical
comfort, sensual enioyments and worldly
power are the chief ends of life this man,
now IN his prime, ought to oe the happiest
man In the world. He is on the contrary
ONE OF THE MOST MISERABLE.
Every one Of the roses of his life conceals
a thorn, and in each of his palaces the skele-
tons of fear hide in the closets, stand behind
the marble columns of the salons and poke
their heads out at him through tho perfumed
steam of his luxurious Turkish bath. Hay-
ing absolute control over millions of lives he
exists in daily fear of the loss Of his own
and he trembles as he spends his nights and
days inside his great palaces surrounded by
his guards. He moves among his people
lar, NH ha 10 In do On nv tha rp.
ligious observauces which are incumbent
upon him as the head of Mohammedan re-
ligion, and his only outing ison Friday after
noon when he goes in ssate to worship at the
mosque
This ceremony is one OF the grand sights
of Constantlnope. The people would rise in
insurrection IL the sultan omitted it, and it
takes seven thousand troops to guard him on
his way from his palace to the place of wor-
ship The favort, mosque of the sultan IS
that of Hamidiea. 1t was built by him and it
8 O beautiful structure of white marble with
great minarets rising hundreds of feet above
IT'S airy dome and looking out over the Bos-
Vhorus, Stamboul and the sea of Marniora.
it is near the sultan's great palace, called
Y ldiz, and II is in the English quarter of
Constantinople known as Pera. A wide,
winding road leads from the palace to the
mosque and at the side of this a house has
been built by the sultan for distinguished
foreign guests This house is just opposite
the mosque and its windows command fine
view of it and the roads leading to it, Armed
with the card of the American minister and
accompanied by my Mohammedan guide
was received by the officer in charge
when l called at this house yes
terday. l was given seat at one
of the windows and for two hours preceding
the ceremony was interested IN the mass
ing OF the soldiers and in the preparation
THE COMING OF THE SULTAN.
First came little army of carts drawn by
donkeys and led by bare-legSed men IN tur-
bans. These carts were filled with soft vel
low sand. and this sand was spread over the
road to the depth OF several inches. The
sultan's royal bones are too holy to be jolted
over cobble stones or macadan, aud when
ever he goes out to drive the ROAD over which
he intends to march is covered with sanu.
After the carts came water wagons ana the
sand was sprinkled TO make it softer and
frmer. As time goes on the soldiers march
up division after division and rank them
selves along the highway. There are regl-
ments of cavalry on the finest of Arabian
steeds, each regiment having horses of the
same color and nearly every regiment uni
formed differently. Here is troop
of Circassans with black caps six
inches high, upon the crown of which
are white crosses. They are dressed
in European uniforms and upon their breasts
are rows of cartridges. Below them are cav
airy from Asia Minor, and coming down the
hill in the distance are troops after troops of
bronZe-faced fine looking men iu turbans and
caps on the finest of Arabian horses. The
soldiers are tall, broad-shouldered and
straight. Down another road march long
lines of infantry, some in the green colors of
Mahomet and others in clothes of blue
trimmed with red. AS the hour for the COM
ing of the Sultan approaches, the roads turn
into
RIVERS OF COLOR,
and along the side of them back of the SOL
diers, are seen the curious characters of a
Mohammedan crowd. There at the right is
patch of white, and you note that the hun
dred balloon-like bags of white cotton
or silk, which seem TO stand upright
ON the ground are alive, and taking
your glass you see that out of each
bag near the top peeps two black eyes and
you know that these are the ladies of sew
eral Mohammedan harems, who have come
out to get view OF the sultan. Now come
the officers Of the court They drive up in
carriages drawn by magnificent horses.
Some of them come on horseback, and the
breasts of all are covered with medals, ,ewhile
their clothes of European cut fairly blaze
with gold lace. Each man wears u bright
fez cap, which looks like gigantic red
tumbler inverted, and these caps crown the
heads Of the soldiers as well, making the
whole crowu look like n great human flower
bed of red.
There is a cheer from 10000 throats and
the music is heard IN the distance. The cry
goes up that the sultan is coming. and now
around the corner preceded by a gorgeously
dressed guard upon horseback, surrounded
by officers, with swords drawn, comes
low barouche driven by the most
magnificent black horses you have
ever seen. These are driven by a
coachman whose body is resplendent in red
velvet suit embroidered in gold. He has a
fez cap on his head and as he holds the rens
tight his gold sleeves hang down like those
of the ladies' fashionable dress of some years
ago. The carriage is black but its trimmings
are gold. The lamps at the sides are gold,
and the horses are resplendent in gold
buckles and trimmings. In the carriage it,
self three persons are seated. On the front
seat note fine, gray-whiskered old man,
IT is Osman Pasha, the hero of Plevna, and
beside hIm is a younger man, favorite OF
the sultan. On the back seat sits the sultan
himself. He is more simply dressed than
any one OF the 1000 people surrounding him
and his clothes are the morning suit of q gen
tleman, the coat cut high at the neck like
that Of an Episcopal clergyman when out o.
the pulpit. His coat is edged with red core
and he wears the same kind OF boiled shir
and turnover collar that you do. His heat
Is covered with u red fez cap which
You could buy for 81, and below
this look out a pair of large, liqnit