Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-03-16

other architecture, in costumes and in man
ners.
On Friday. when the weekly market is
held in the city, the streets are full of red
| fezzes. The Servian peasant still wears the
turkish trousers gathered at the ankles
Often he wraps a towel-like mass Of linen
around his high fez. Often he wears a high
sheepskn cap.
Every peasant wears a long. sharply
pointed and keehly ground knife on his
right side in a wooden scabbard.
From Belgrade the train roars through
land which, only few years ago. was a
land OF brigands. whole villages being held
as openly by them If their occupation
were the most commonplace One particu-
larry famous and strong home of the brig
ands was the village Of Domuspotek (the
brook of pigs).
OF those villages Is to boil down plums in
great caldrons in the open air In the season
Where All the Balkans Meet.
If man wishes to see all the tribes OF
the Balkans he need merely continue on
the train to the town OF Nisch
Nlsch will be the great object of maneu-
yers II ever there is Balkan war
Its strong fortress commands the kew to
the road into Bulgaria and Macedonia
CHRISTIAN churches and Turkish MOSQUES
stand there almost side by side. The cry
| VI Inc HUN lHS nllnaret miQgieS
WIN the bells that call the Catholic wor-
| shipper.
Armed like arsenals. with long pistols,
| long flnes long Knives Macedonians Al
banlans and Arnauts shuttle along with the
| walk Of the Gnountaineer Seryian peasant
women in gaudiy striped frocks, Bulga-
Ran women dressed in black and looking
like priests nountaineers from Montenegro
In fustanellas, with long-beaked yellow and
red shoes and brilliant scarlet cloaks grave
1odschas In silken caftans and green tur-
bans mingfe on the streets with Spanish
JeWesseS with brilliant gold and silver
headdresses, and Montenegrin women In
white skirts and sleeveless waists and
little red caps with a rising sun embroid-
cred on their fronts in gold.
Near Nisch Is a square tower Tell lis
story and you tell the story of the Balkans
A Story of Blood.
The tower Is known as the Tschelekuia
| meaning skull tower" In 1909 the Turks
advanced toward Nisch. The Servian
Woiwode, Stefan Sindjelitsch, intrenched
himself with 1900 Servians in the village
of kamenitza. They were overcome. When
the Janissarfes rushed among them SinG-
jelitsch fired the powder magazine and
blew his own men and the Turks into
pieces.
The Turkish army ravened like a band
of wolves and killed all Servfans who were
left alive by any chance. After they had
Killed and burned till there was nothing
heads off the dead Servian patriots. Then
they began the erection Of great square
tower. After 1t had risen to some height
they began to alternate the rows of stones
with rows OF Servian heads. Altogether
they set fifty-six rows Of seventeen heads
each in alternate rows of stones
This memorial of the Tamerlanes Of the
nineteenth century was left untouched
with the skulls grinning out upon the land,
until 1873, when the Servians took them out
reyerentiy and buried them, with the ex-
ception OF one that still looks out from the
east Side OF the tower.
Farther on, near the Bulgarian boundary
Is another strategic place that will be
heard from in case of war. 1t is the for
tress OF Bella Palenka, and Moltke pro-
nounced It one of the important points Of
the Balkans. 1t was the old Roman city
of Remesiana. 1t is guarded still by an
ancient castle-fort. built in 1900 by the
Grand vizier Mustapha Pasha. He built
1t by the pleasant expedient of tearing
down Seryfan churches and using their
stones for it. He also took the stones from
ancient Roman ruins.
This town Is close to Pfost, which stands
on the Bulgarian boundary and has a true
Balkan history. 1t has been occupied at
various times by Turks, Bulgarians Ser
vians, Russians and Austrians. Almost
every time 1t was taken only after bloody
fighting
The Conspiring Bulgarians.
From Servia to Bulgaria is leap into
ferent architecture.
The Bulgarian does not love the Servian
unduly. Luckily for the peace between
them, the Bulgartans are kept SO busy plot
ting and contemplating about Macedo-
mia that their somewhat embarrassing at
tentions are directed almost entirely south
ward just now.
/ As the Cuban 1unta made its headauar-
tiers in the United States.so the Macedonian
junta makes its headquarters In Bulgaria
Pr1t fha
Macedonian committee has not merely en-
listed Bulgarian sympathies and aid. 1t has
risen to a great Bulgarian political power.
It keeps the pitch hot all the time.
Dive out Of Bulgaria and into the noun
tain districts of Macedonia and you dive
into land OF Alexander the Great, of Ro-
long before Russia had any. Time has
Jumped over this land and touched it only
in leaps ages apart.
Go only short distance from salonica,
ancient. stored Saionica livery dirty now
and inhabited by ea7bitten Turkish SOL
diers who do not like life, apparently, and
you will find country marked with the
tumuli Of the Macedonian kings, big stone
piles just within sighting distance Of each
other. that served as the stations for the
wireless telegraphy Of those days.
f.. Levying Tribute.
You may find fine old gentleman,
dressed in a long skirt that fails below the
knees and with pretty weapons fastened
to all available protuberances. He win talk
to you az he trusts You and you are FORUM
ately so poor that you are not worth cap
turing of his system OF leyying tribute as
unconcernediy as ff he lived In the day Of
Ulysses. earnfne his living With his good
Turkish soldiers gaze with respect at the
very brigands whom they are technically