The Red Cloud chief., 1892-08-12
LIFE ON THE DANUBE.
Picturesque scenes Along That Beautiful
River.

River
Between LON Palanka aud Sistova, q
stretch of about one hundred and fifty
milcs-which, by-the-way, we padded
In less than two days and u half--therc
are only three towns on the river. Char
Palanka. Rahova, and Nicopolis, and
these are all bulgarian. There are two
Or three busy grain-shipping stations
on the Roumanian side. however. and
we could see on the edge of u low
plateau, miles back from the river, FREE
1ucnt prosperous.looking places, and,
opposite Nicopolis, the church towers
OF Iurnu Maguretc, n of the most i'm.
portant towns In southern Roumania.
rising above the trees. This shore of
the river Is, for almost the entire dis
lance referred to, n broad low marsh,
interscctcd by numerous lagoons and
shallow, irregular lakes, often ten
miles or more in length. The lonely
picket stations are the only hui
man habitations along the bank.
In agreeable contrast to this dull
II desolatc waste of marsh
II willow swamp is the rich pastoral
country of Bulgaria opposite. Although
villages and farm houses are not very
numerous, we saw everywhere abund-
ant signs of life. The meadows were
dotted with hay stacks, and great net
works OF deeply worn cattle paths
scored the smooth slopes of the hills,
all burned yellow 10y the summer sun.
Before the greatest heat of the day
came on, immense herds of cattle and
b%uffalocs, driven by Turkish cowboys,
rushed painting down the hill-sides in Il
cloud of dust to cool themselves in the
stream. The buffalocs wallowcd in the
muddy places and then lay down with
the tops of their heads alone visible
above water, like uncouth amphibions
animals. Great ilocks of sheep stood
IN the shore by the waters edge, crowd
ing together In a solid mass, and hold
ing their heads close To the ground to
escape the heat from the direct rays Of
the sun. and multitudes of goats were
scattered all over the steep and arid
slopes. The shepherds dig little shall
low caves In the mud bluffs, with steps
leading to them, where they lie and
sleep for hours In the daytime; others
curl up in the gullics-so that every
yard of shade IN the rough bank has
its human or its animal occupant, and
sometimes men and goats, both seeking
to avoid the sun, lie down peacefully
together in the same narrow cleft or ! n
She shadow Of the same projecting corr
ner.
la the broad straight reaches OF the
river the frequent sand banks were COW
! cred with waterfowl. Thousands upon
thousands of noisy wild geese, hosts of
ducks, plovcr and oshcr game birds,
rose into the air rs we approached, al
most deafcning us with their cries.
Wheeling round in broad circles, they
settled down again before we had fair
ly passed them. Ranks of solemn peli-
cans awkwardly Topped into the water
and swan ahead of us in stately dig.
nsty scarcely out of pistol-shot, turning
their huge Unbalanced beaks from side
to side. and II we came too near, flew
up with u tremendous splashing and
futtcring. Tall herons scared away
ont of the shadows on every side, and
swans and storks sailed overhead In
graceful flight. Sometimes we padded
II the full light Of MONDAY up to with
in "A few yards Of slender white crane.
wading among the water-grasses, ant
once approached within o paddle,
length of a large gray heron standing
on II leg and blinking in the brillian
glare of the sun. The fora of the rive
bank in this region is best described II
a quotation from Alfred Parsons
note book: "By the camp opposit,
Kalnfat was n very handsom
sedge with brown flowers, a mas
of blossoms of the Towering rush
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