The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1899-06-28
STRANGE TOWNS
OF THE WORLD.
PLACES THAT ARE HARD TO BEAT
ON SCORE OF SINGOLARITY.
One Built on the Ocean, Another
on Ice and another Is
WOmanleSs.

WOmdHIcSSs
The marine village of Tupuselei, in
New Guinea, would take lot to be beat
on the score of singularity. Here the
houses are all supported on piles and
stand right out in the ocean, sotne con-
siderable distance from the shore. The
object of this strange position is to pros
tect the inhabitants against sudden att
tacks of the dreaded head hunters, who
are always on the lookout for victims.
Other villages in this happy land are
percbed up in all but inaccessible trees
for the same weighty reason.
Another curious place is town with
out a name ON one of the arms OF Lake
Huron. This consists of some 500 wood
en- huts During the summer these little
dwellings, are hidden away in clearing
on shore and the town contains not a
single inhabitant. But on the arrival Of
winter, when the lake is froz n over with
a thick coating of ice, the owners OF the
huts arrive and proceed TO move their
houses out onto the surface of the lake.
The floor of the huts is taken up and a
hole cut through the ice. Through these
holes the residents fish, carrying on their
operations until the spring releases the
lake from It's icy bonds, when this extra
ordinary town is once more broken up,
the shanties go back to their resting
place and the fishermen scatter over the
country. This place even boasts curing
factory and a church, not to mention
several saloons-al on the ice.
Athos, a town situated on promon>
tory on the coast of Macedonia, we'll de-
serves the title of the most curious town
in the uni verse. The peninsula is known
as "The Mountain of the Monks" from
the fact that score or so of inconsistencies
are dotted about The rough hillsides n
the valleys. In these establishments
dwell numerous body of ascetics, kind
and hosptable to wanderers, but full of
superstition and believing In the doc.
trine of separation to a wonderful de-
gree.
The actual town, as distinct from its
monaStic envirOns, is called Caryes, and
supplies the simple wants of the monks.
Here are to be found streets of shops,
crowded bazars, f1ouristing trades and
all the hustle and energy of modern
town. But one thing soon strikes the
visitor as strange. There is not a female
to be seen anywhere, for the gentlcr sex
is vigorously banished from the place
Even the small Turkish garrison, from
the commandant down to the Oriyates,
consists of bachelors.
This extraordinary law is carried out
even among the domestic animals. Only
the wild birds evade it, and then only
when free, for n female bird is even
brought to table; the fowl one has for
dinner is sure to be cOckerel. For this
unparalleled state of affairs there is only
a legend to account Although to our
practical minds tlimsy to a degree, it is
simolcity believed in by the inhabitants.
1t appears that one of the chief monas-
teres on the promOntnry there is mi
raculOus icon, which is picture or i'm
age sacred to members of the Russo
Greek church. This particular picture
is a repre- sentatIOn Of the virgin and the
legend says that one day as the Empress
Pulcheria, who had literally endowed |
the church, as well as beautified and :
stored it, was engaged in her devotions
the virgin spoke, asking what she, wO-
man, was doing in the church. The |
pious lady, no doubt amazed, did not re- |
ply, whereupon the voice commanded /,
her to leave, saying that the feet of a
woman should never tread the fl 'or. The
empress, probably surprised at the seem
ing ingratitude of the speech, as we'll as
awestruck, left the place, which no fe
male has since entered. How the prohi>
bition thus arbitrarily established came
to comprehend the length and breadth of
the promontory is not very clear. AS a
residence for bashfu bachelors we
should imagine Ath IS would be hard to
surpass. Household Words.