Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1893-12-28
HE HAS THE NERVE.
DARING OF STAMBULoFF, Bull GARIA'S
PRIME MINISTER.

FfhhhI ihhNiO Chs
9fngle Handed He Has Held the Russian
Empire at Bay For Yesrs-His Tilt With
the Diplomatic Agent-How He Crushed
the Panitza Plot,
For what Bulgaria is today she is in
debted almost solely to the valor and
wisdom and indomitable will of young
Stambuloff, the prime minister.
For years he has held the whole Rus
sian empire at bay single handed. The
other powers of Europe sympathize with
him, but give him no practical support.
Open attack and secret intrigue he has
alike baff1ed. Assassination he has de-
fed, though it has often been tried
against him.
He has resisted Russian aggression; he
has beaten Servia in the field and Greece
in the courts; he has made his sovereign's
throne secure: he has made Bulgaria a
nation and created a national public
spirit, and he has, at less than 40 years
of age, placed himself worthily in rank
among the leading statesmen of Europe.
One of his most dramatic passages at
arms with Russia occurred during the
war with Servia, when the czar showed
his hand" in a decidedly offensive man.
ner. Stambuloff has told many times
and seems never weary of telling the
story of Slivnitza.
In that battle the destinies of Bull
garia and Servia were to be decided.
Prince Alexander had gone out to lead
the Bulgarian army in person, leaving
Stambulof in charge at home.
It was a brilliant day, with a cloud
less sky and scarcely breath of wind
stirring.
The roar of the cannon was plainly
heard in the city, owing perhaps to some
peculiar condition of the air or perhaps
to echoes from the mountains.
At any rate it sounded much nearer
than it really was, and Stambuloff and
the others thought the Servians were
winning the day and were driving
Prince Alexander and his army in upon
the capital.
In their anxiety they applied to the
Russian diplomatic agent for advice.
That gentleman shrugged his shoulders
and said it was no affair of his.
"But," urged the Bulgarian ministers,
''the Servians are almost at our gates.
You could stop them with a single word
if you would"
''Yes, but that word will not be spoken,
not though they were actually entering
the city with your prince a prisoner, as
indeed they soon will do. On one con-
dition only will stop them, and that is
that your beggar of prince shall abdi-
cate at once"
''And that" thundered Stambuloff,
''he will not do-no, not for 30 Russias!"
With that Stambuloff sprang into
the saddle and dashed away to the bat
tlefela, while the Russian agent sent for
his friends to come to his house and help
him celebrate the defeat of the Bulgarian
armies.
A few hours passed, and then the Bull
garian foreign minister got a telegram
from Stambuloff, dated on the field of
battle, telling of Prince Alexander's
magnificent victory and of the utter rout
of the Servians.
He hurried with it to the house of the
Russian agent, arriving there in the midst
of the festivities. And when he told the
news the representative of the car
ground his teeth with rage.
As the world knows. Prince Alexander
lost his throne because he neglected to
heed the advice and warnings of his
prime minister.
Prince Ferdinand is more wise. He
puts himself fully in the hands of Stam-
buloff, making the latter the real ruler
of Bulgaria and the chief guardian of the |
throne.
How daring and vigorous the minister
is in his great work has again been shown
in striking incidents.
There was, for example, the arrest of
Major Panitza, who was at the head Of
the most dangerous and powerful plot
ever organized against the prince.
stambuloff finally settled the matter
by making the arrest himself alone. At
midnight he knocked at Panitza's door.
The majors wife, with a loaded pistol in
her hand, admitted him.
Recognizing him and divining his er-
rand, she raised the weapon to fire. He
looked at her, and her arm fell, and she
turned away. Then Stambulof went up
to Panitza's room. He found him in
bed, a loaded revolver at his side
Major Panitza," said the minister
calmly. get up. dress yourself and come
with me-"
The desperate grasped his revolver.
The minister folded his arms and looked
1T him as Marius looked at the slave
who came to slay him. Panitxa laid
down the weapon, rose, dressed himself
and followed his captor to prison.-Mel-