The Holly chieftain., 1897-05-28
RECEIVED BY THE SULTAN.
How the Turkish Ruler Watches His
Own Household.

Own Household.
The palace in which the suitan holds
his grand receptions il one OF the many
ornamental buildings dotted about the
Park at Yildiz. and stands prettiiy situ-
aisd among a varied collection of trees
and flowers. This Iildiz park Is yeri-
table Garden of Eden, and stretches
from the hill top, where the su:tan's
private palace, government Offices and
hHrem stand clustered together, down
TO the blue waters of the Bosphorus.
Here one can see the solemn hr and
cypress trees towering above the cheer
ful chubby orange bushes with eTery
kind of Towering shrub and giant fern
entwined on either side of the well-kept
gravel paths. 1t is reached through the
massive and richly-decoraJed gateway
which spans the familiar road above the
Hamidieh mosque. This mosque is to
ali visitors to Coustantinpple as the
scene of the Salamlik and the imposing
parade of his mujesty's picked bat
talions when he passes TO praycr every
Friday. The Turk is always prone 20
shroud his private life in mystery, aud
II is. indeed. impossible to conceive Of
anything more pitiabie than the hide
aud-seek game which the fear for his
life drives him TO play with his ministers
and his attendants. He informs them
all that he will sleep in one palace, and
when the hour to retire arrives he re-
pairs thither only to escape by Tic back
way. lie frequently spends nights to,
cether without undressing, and his rnin-
istcrs become wegried with the frequent
summons to his presence during the
night upon some trivial matter.
\ bulgarian deputy. whom had the
pleasure Of meeting in Coustantiuuplc
rocountgd his experience Of visit tc
the sultan on a recent occasion. He said:
II was conducted through number oI
apartments. and handed on from one
chamberlain To another. aud eventually
reached the presence of his majesty.
The room in which found him was
practically bare of furniture. and very
cold. His majesty was reclining at the
end of n diyan and leanint, against the
window, wrapped in a fur-lined coat
After my presentation he ordered every
one out of the room, and then beckoned
me to the window. 1t looked out on a
courtyard, and he showed me various
points that | had passed on my way to
his presence, and said: There you
spoke with -- Bey. what did he say
to you?" Then, pointing in another
direction, he said: 4 saw you speaking
with -- Pasha there, what was the
subject of your conversation?'
From what this gentleman told me II
was very plain that the sultan. from his
station by the window, could act as his
own spy upon his visitor. and had noticed
exactly which members of his household
held conversation with the stranger
They in their turn would doubtless he
questioned by the sultan after his dePar-
turc The receptions at Yildiz have not
been numerous during the last IS
months; in fact, some of the ambassa-
dors have declined altogether TO attend
these social gatherings, and their atti-
tude in this respect has caused discon-
tinuance of the invitations. On such oc-
casions the guests are received at the
head of the staircase by Munir Pasba
and others. and by them conducted into
the presence of the sultan. His majesty
has an excellent European string band
placed in the larger audience chamber
which opens onto the gallery, but De
yond the music and Turkish coffee there
is no form of entertainment. No ladies
of the harem are there to grace the gath
cring with their presence, and as the
sultan speaks no language but Turkish
there is little direct intercourse between
himself and his guests.-London
Graphic.