The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-02-28
THE TURK AT HOME.
An Industrious Farmer and a Pic
turesque Figure in the City.

Corresi OF dcnce New York Sun.
Tourists stop at Mostar before com.
ing to Serajevo. Mostar is a Moham-
! medan town settled by Turks. You
realize this as soon as you arrive, even
if it is after dark, for the Turk is
everywhere and you can make out
without difficulty the white minarets
rising from the mosques against the
black sky. In the markets and the
shops you get the best sight foreigner
can of the unspeakable Turk, and q
very curious sight ii is. Imagine
long line of low houses or sheds raised
about two steps above the street level,
with the entire fronts lacking, and You
have a Turkish business street. Here
the shupkeepers sit Cross-legged be-
hind their wares, smoking long pipes
or cigarettes in holders and contempiat-
ing wouid-be purchasers. In the mar
row streets is a mixture of donkeys.
panier-ladcn. bringing fruit and mer-
chandise from the country. soldiers,
MOntenegrins. Dalmatians and Bosni-
ans, all pushing and jostling along.
AS you walk along you see for the first
time Turkish woman fully veiled. and
an urcanny sight she makes, being
clad in a black cloak which reaches
the ground, and has huge hood ar
rangement that projects in front.
Within this hood you see the veil which
completely hides even the eyes of the
wearer. Outside the city. in the coun-
try, you see that Turkish life is not
all cigarettes and black coffee. for to
the right and left stretch splendid field.
of corn and other vegetables, all in
fine condition, among which men with
brown arms bare To the shoulders may
be seen toiling, even late in the even
ing.
There is but one train a day from
Mostar to Serajevo. 1t runs at the
rate of about twenty miles an hour and
stops everywhere. AS you wind up
through the mountains you have plenty
of time for observation of the country.
First it is "A land of rock. huge jagged
cliffs little verdure. and the green
Narenta churning through gorges be-
low YOU. After an hour the scene
changes, more vegetation Is seen, the
Narenta flows more peacefully and un-
der its high banks are caves, fenced
in with interviewer branches. In these
caves the peasants live with their
goats. Next the rough mountains have
fallen away, the country takes ON
more fertile aspect, and you see corn
fields on each side of you. the feathery
tops of the ripe stalks waving gently
in the cool breeze. After while you
reach little station, the platform
crowded with Turks and Bosni ms.
while perhaps a Greek priest stands a
little apart, his long hair done up like
womans. The different types OF
Turks are interesting. There are those
who have been to Mecca. distinguished
by the white and gold turban they
wear over their fezes, the soldiers in
their simple red or white fez, Chris.
tian Turks with white bands around
their fezes in no way to be confounded
with the Bosnian shepherds, with their
red turbans and white shawls.
As the country opens out you can
see how fertile II is and how well cul-
tivatcd. The hay is piled in neat
stacks and the grass is kept short as
a lawn by the feeding cattle. Now
and then you pass peasant, thrcsh-
ing his wheat by driving a pair Of
mules over II in circle, and after
ward sweeping away the straw and
casting the residue against the wind
So that tho wheat falls on one side and
the chaff on the other.
On exploring Serajevo you soon find