River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1892-06-09
A DAY IN BELGRADE.
What American saw In . Turkish
Town.

"Hht an American So" IN Iurkish
Town.
From Semlin to Belgrade is but a half
hours paddle down a bend behind the
Krieg's Inset and across the clear green
stream of the Save Above the great
fortress which occupies the whole area
of a high promontory at the junction OF
the rivers, where a church and other
edifiees are half hidden among bastions
and parapets, an immense cream-colored
government building extends an impos
ing mass, and, as seen from the river
divides the town into two parts. To
the left is the old Turkish quarter or
the Danube, in recent years al
most depopulated of Mohammedans
and with only one insight
icant mosque still preserved; and
to the right, Belgrade proper, along the
Save and the heights which extend
back into the country. Lumber yards
and the usual motley collection of build
ings hid the town from us as we SLOWLY
padded up the sluggish current of the
Save to a great hathing establishment.
all gay with flowers, where large con.
tingent of the youthful population OF
the city were dsporting themselves
naked, in canoes of simple construction
and gaudy color. Our arrival caused
very little hutter on the shore. We saw
one fez on a small boy, and fancied that
on landing we should find everything
suggesting the east, and fierce officials
haughtily demanding our passports
But we moored our canoes alongside
the bath-house and went ashore
without question, found everybody in
European dress, and met a polite sol
dier-policeman who volunteered to look
out for our craft, and Immediately
busted himself with boxing the ears OF
the inquisitive youngsters who ventured
too nea wthe dainty vessels. We were
not long, however, in finding novelties
of dress and architecture, for at short
distance from our landing place we en-.
tered the outskirts of the city, and
passed through street quite as east
ern in aspect as any in the heart OF
Stamboul. Wretched wooden novels
with shattered tiles and crumblins
plaster; dingy low cafes with pallic
Turks inhaling with indolent signs thu
stepefying smoke of nargiles; open air
cooking places where unsavory messei
sizzled on gridirons; and general squat
or, mustiness, and filth everywhere
From this quarter steep, ill-pavee
streets mount to the higher part of the
town, where the hotels, theaters, and
palaces are. and pleasant avenues lead
out to the luxurious residential suburb
on the heights beyond. Butall Belgrade
at the date of our visit, was much like
the normal condition of Broadway, an6
New York in general. The streets were
everywhere torn up for water-pipe,
and sewers, sidewalks were being
widened and leveled, and there wal
every indication of a serious at
tempt to improve the city. The heat
was intense and almost unbearabls
as we explored the streets and parl
and wandered through the fortress
When the sun reached the zenith, al
Belgrade was as quiet as Pompeii, foI
the inhabitants withdrew indoors, and
left the streets void of life and move.
ment. Even the kissing of frying fat
in the numerous cook-shops seemed
hushed for the time; The vender 81
kulxurutz (green corn on the earl SLEPT
in shadow: the Bulgarian bozaji, sell
ing slightly-fermented maize beer
alone broke the drowsy silence with hi,
mournful cries. There was absolutely
nothing to see, and therefore we also
sought shelter, and sleepily waited fol
the town to come to life again. In the
middle of the afternoon, IA few hur
rying peasant women, their brilliant
dresses quite out of harmony with the
commonplace aspect of the streets
flashed along in the sunshine; one OF
two men with effeminate lace-trimmed
TUNES, plated like limitations of the
Albanian fustinella, strobe proudly
past, unconscious that hats of London
make and elastic-sided boots made them
look extremely ridiculous; and so the
streets gradually resumed their norma.
activity as the afternoon GOODNESS came
on. We soon yielded to the tempting
invitation of fresh breeze and sailed
away into the Danube again, escorted
by fleet of Servian canoes with naked
crews.-F. ID. Millet, in Harper's Maya
zine