The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-04-01

various crafts and callings practiced ir
 the empire are to be found, each having
 one or more lodjas-lodges or clubs-ir
 every quarter of the city and suburbs
 Each ESnaf is presided over by several
 officers called respectively according tc
 their rank, Sheiks, Naibs, Oustas and
 Kiayas--or presidents, vice-presidents
 superintendents and inspectors-who
 are annually elected by the members
 from among it's own master craftsmen,
 and these officers are recognized by the
 government, which holds them respon-
 sible for the good behavior of their fel-
 low guildsmen.
 A few Esnafs possess large revenues or enjoy peculiar privileges granted by various Sultans in bygone centuries in return for services rendered at some im-
 portant crisis. Among these are the
 shoemakers, who have special officers
 empowered to judge and punish all of | lenders belonging to their fraternity
 without the Interpretation of the legal
 authorities. This extraordinary privi-
 ege was, it appears, conferred upon
 them in the sixteenth century by Su-
 lehman II, "The Magnificent" This 1 Sultan being on one occasion greatly in- censed with the ever-turbulent Janissa-
 ries, who, in sign of revolt, had as usu- al overturned their camp kettles, swore
 that with the help of the shoemakere
 only he would break their rcbellious spirit. The Padishah's words spread with lightning like rapidty through the streets of the bazar occupied by the shops of the Papoutchdjis, who, rapidly assembling from every lonja in the city, presented themselves armed before the
 Serai, an army of forty thousand men, shouting the Moslem war cry, Allah!
 Allahn' The Sultan, gratified by their
 loyalty and zeal in his service, received their officers in audience, bade them name their own reward, and granted the four privileges they asked for, of which the above named was one. When the news of these events reached the barracks of the Janissaries, these lnsolent troops were so dismayed that, in the words of seventeenth century chronicler, they were ready to eat not only their soup, but their very trench CTS"
 The apprentices to the various trades are, when proficient, recommended by the master under whom they have served their time to admission to the guild of their craft into which they are formally admitted on engaging to observe its rules, and paying the custo- | mary fee. It is usual on these occasions l for all present to proceed forthwith to | some favorite spot in the neighborhood [ of the city, where the rest of the day is spent in feasting and merrymaking. | Some guilds are composed entirely of | Moslems, as certain callings are exclu- sively in the hands of the ruling race; others entirely of Christians. Many, however, include adherents of both creeds, and, as members of the same Esnaf, Christians and Moslems, allied by an esprit de corps and by trade in terests, pull together much better, and svince mutually a greater liberality of feeling than is generally displayed in the social relations of the Greeks and Turks. At their al fresco festivities, which are also held annually in honor )f the patron saint of the guild, the sreatest harmay prevails. The amuse- nents indulged in after the conclusion # the midday repast include variety if juggling and acrobatic performances, wrestling matches and for the Greeks he syrtos horos-the Tong drawn" lassic dance-during the execution of which their Turkish fellow craftsmen, eated on rush bottomed stools in front f a rustic coffee house, with long temmed tchihouks, or bubbling narghf- chs, passively enjoy their kaif
 Every Esnaf has it's own special tra- itional laws and usages which are not . ass binding than is it's Kanoun, or ,ritten constitution; and the social ustorns and made of life of their iembers afford in many instances curi- us and interesting illustrations of na- we manners among the laboring class 5. Of these the boatmen may be in- tanced, naturally very numerous ody in so water girt q city as Constan- nople. The ranks of this Esnaf are . rgelysrecruited among the youths who ,me in great numbers from Asia Minor seek their fortune in the capital alf a dozen or more of these bekiars, "bachelors, as they are termed, live
 common in some humble lodging, lying fixed sum per day or per week
 an old man who acts as their stewar = Id cook, and also as their counsellor Id arbiter in any disputes that may ise in such mixed household Their lations with the master boatmen, to hom they serve long apprenticeship, C. e also of quite f1lial character sisure Hour. r,