Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1894-06-16
A NOVEL TOUR.
TWO AMERICANS RIDE ACROSS
ASIA On BICYCLES.
Armed and Mounted Guards Accom-.
pany Them Through Turkey
sGoodNatured Curiosity
OF the Natives.


around the world. When to this is
added the tact that the route
did not follow the beaten lines oil
travel. but lay through the inho..
pltable desert OF Cobb. and among
the lawless and superstitious tribes o.
western and central China, the achieve.
ment Of the Mess,s Allen and Sachtle.
ben assumes unusual proportions.
These young men, upon the com
pletIon of their college course IN St.
Louis, determined,to acduaint them
selves with the lands and people OF
the Old World. In order to have
greater leisure for their stuoief. anl
to come into closer contact with the
inhabitants of the country visited,
they travelled on bicycles, AMI the
strangeness of their mo 10 OF locomo-
tion in the Orient brought them many
surprising adventures
They have written the story Of thei,
long jaunt from Constantinople ~
Pekin IN series OF papers in the Cen.
tury. Like all enterprisins Ameri.
cans, they had their camera with them,
and they took frequent snapshots 0;
strange phases IF life, many of which
are reproduced in the pages OF the
magazine. They left Constantinopl.
early in April, 1891, crossing from
Stamboul by steamer. We quote from
the first of the Century articles: a
weeks cycling from the Bosporu.
brought us beyond the Allah Daeh
Mountains. among the barren. varie
gated hills that skirt the Angora
plateau. We had nj, ealy passed
through 1smid, the ancient Nicomedia
and capital Of Diocletian aud had left
behind us the heavily tlmbered valley
of the Sakarih. upon whose banks the
Freebooter OF the Bithynian hills
settled with his four hundred tents
and laid tue foun ndation Of the Otto
man empire. Since Leaking Geivel
we had been attended bv mounted
guard, or zaptieh, who was sometimes
forced upon us hy the authorities IN
their anxiety TO carry out the wishe,
expressed iB the letter OF the Grand
| Vizir
ION emer rzing from tue door OF al
inn We frequently found this unex.
| pected guari waiting with Winches
ter rife swung over his shoulder, and (
feet steed standing by his side. Imme
stely on our appearance he would
swing into the saddle and charge
through the assembly. Away We
streets of the town or village. to the
inter amazement o. the natives am
tile great satisfaction u oar, vain
glorious zaptieh. A. long as hi
horse was fresh, or until We wer. on
OF sight of the village, he would urx'
us on with cries Of 'Gellcnabuh f.com,
on, ride fast. When bad piece d
road or a steep ascent forced US t
dismount he would bring his horse /
walk, roll a cigarette. anil draw II
vidious comparisons hetween uu1
steeds. His tone. however, change
when we reached a decline or lons
stretch of reasonably good rosd
Then he would cut across country |.
head Us of. or shout after ~ At tt
top Of his voice. 'favasl vavssa
i'5lowly, slowly
"On the whole nc foanl them goo
nasured and sompaniouGp.c ieI.o~.
notwithstanding thei- interest u oa,
! shi.h which Ne we're compelled a. l-s
n self defense, - IL al oae pissts
g. hour We frequently -aarel ut
them our frugal. ali eve1 rcaas
meals and IN turn :hey assisted t.
our purchases aud arraageuea.
.or lodgings, fo- their word. :
found, vas With tee common peop
&c AIN ost unwr..ten lsw. Toeu, 20.
they we're o. greA. assistance "a csos
,as streams WHARF TIE .ert- va