The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-01-12
Sailing Toward
The Golden Horn
Incidents Of a Pleasant Voyage on the
Blue Mediterranean.
OFF THE COAST OF CORSICA
The Journey by Boat from Marseilles TO
COnstantinople Described in Happy
Manner Readable Notes of the Itin.
erary's Interesting Features.
Special Correspondence of The Tribune.

Special Correspondence of The Tribune.
Constantinople, Dec. 22.-The en-
| frances to Constantinople from Europe
are numerous, but for one who Is not
entirely averse to sea travel no better
entrance can be made than through
the Mediterranean, up the Aegean,
| through the Dardanelles and across the
| sea OF Marmora. One can approach In
| this way most comfortably and cheap
ly by steamer from Marseilles. This
route Is much used by those who are
seeking pleasure and are not rushed by
| business or a wild desire for fast travel,
such as Americas Greatest Road" Of
fers in the Empire state express.
The impressions Of Marseilles are
those Of a Spanish rather than French
city. The streets are irregular and
| dirty, the cutters seem to be the sew
ers, and the sun, in summer. beats
down, and, reflected by the Mediter-
ranean, the light and heat are both in
creased. The buildings are low and
Insignificant and yet Marseilles is the
chief shipping port of France The
idea Of Spanish town is heightened
by the posters announcing Bull Bait
ing" for the coming Sunday, and the
tawny men with sombreros sitting
around the cafe, smoking and playing
the guitar.
| The horses are noticeable with their
Immense collars towering above their
| shoulders like an enormous horn. The
harness Is decorated with bits of brass,
| the names are inlaid with bone and
each horse has a string of vari-colored
beads around his neck. This is char
acteristic of the east, as the Turks and
Arabs decorate their horses with
strings of blue beads around the neck.
It's Light Is Not Hidden.
There is a cathedral short distance
from the center of the city. 1t stands
alone high above the city and can be
seen far out at sea. 1t is built on
| solitary rock which rises about $50 feet
out Of a plain, with rough preciplti-
Gus sides. One thinks of the appro-
priateness Of the situation for a cathe-
dral-a candle on an immense candle
stick to give light to all around. The
approach to Notre Dame de la Gaide,
as the cathedral is called, is by an in
clined plane and elevator or by a long
flight of steps.
Situated as Marseilles is, exposed to
the winds from the south and west,
there Is need of a harbor. There are,
In reality, three harbors or basins.
These are made by breakwaters. The
old basin Is guarded by the forts Of st.
Jean and st. Nicholas. There are now
two large ones, the innermost called
Bassin du Lazaret, the outer and large"
called Bassin de la Toilette.
The Mediterranean steamers cannot.
of course, be compared with the Allan
tic greyhounds. but the steamers of the
Messageries line are we'll managed and
clean. 1t is the route of one of these
steamers which is here described.
The view of Marseilles from the sea
Is very imposing. The rock formal ton
is of purest white and the shore Is
rough with jagged cliffs which grow
into mountains and surround the whole
city. The mountains are clad in green,
but capped with bare, bald rock wihch
has the appearance of snow. Then
from the heart of the town rises the
rock on which Notre Dame de Ia
Gaide Is situated and whose golden
cross can be seen far out over the blue
sea.
Just as the day ends the steamer
puts out from the basin and the golden
glory OF the setting sun crests, outlines
and tints everything in gorgeous dis.
play.
The bluest blue of the Atlantic on a
quiet summer afternoon cannot be COM
pared with the intensity of the Medi-
terranean blue, nor does the sky ever
elsewhere deck herself with such n
robe Of blue and with such fieecy clouds
as above this great Inland Sea.
The Coast OF Corsica.
of Bonifacio and at noon the next day
we are skirting the south coast of Cor
sica, which looms UP on our port side
On our starboard side Is Sardinia,
bleak, lofty, almost stubborn in its ap-
pearance and in marked contrast to the
point of Bonifacio. The Corsican hills
are cultivated and green; the Sandman
hills uncultivated and brown. A mon
astery on the summit of a perpendicu-
lar cliff, with Its high walls landward,
Is approached directly from the sea by
a long flight of Steps-Steps cut in the
solid rock. Opposite It on Sardinia is
the solitary lighthouse, the only OBJ
ject of interest on that side unless 1t be
the natural gate formed by the rush.
ing tide. Again attention is called to
the north shore. where we see a little
land-locked and rock-guarded harbor-
of old the port of sally of the dreaded
pirates OF the Mediterranean.
The sun sets in gorgeous apparel be-
hind Corsica silhouetting every noun
tain peak.
A few hours more would take us to
Ostia. the port of Rome, or to Naples,
but we turn our course sharp around
Sardinia to the south.
The next afternoon we make out the
smoking summit of Stromboli a vol
cano, rising right out of the sea, one
of the nine islands composing the
Lipari group. AS we approach we can
see the sudden bursts of flame and the
dense black brown smoke rolling out as
II 1t were the chimney of all the fur
naces of the world. But Stromboll
fades into the dusk of night and OBJ
security and our attention Is called to
the outlined peaks of Etna.
Steering Through Charybdis.
Straight on the steamer goes to cer-
tain destruction. AZ 1t seems, on the
shore, which everywhere surrounds
Suddenly two flash lights appear like
twin stars ablaze in the dark, the helm
is put hard over and we round the sharp
point of Cape Faro only to run into
the boiling, seething. swirlins waters
of Charybdis as we gaze along the
rough. unfriendly side of ship wreck.
ing Scylla."
on the same side with Scylla is the
old town of Rhegium. now looking like
a Newport with the countless lamps
along the shore forming frame of vel.
| low pnld and dotted through with n, ".