The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-08-30

boys were among the first at the scene. One of the latter was Sarafoff. now four-' teen years old. Watching the faces of the prisoners as they were dragged by. doubtless with sympathetic emotions, he caught sight of two faces hs recognized. They were the faces of his father and his grandfather. For taking part in some supposed revolutionary movement they had been arrested. The hereditary hatred of the Turks instantly bore fruit in ac- ton. He sprang forth from the crowd of bystanders and dashed himself against the cordon of mounted Turkish guards. As was to be expected. he did not sue ceed in breaking through, and he received a flashing from the whips of the guards. This did not daunt him. and. sill smarting from the pain. he made his way through the crowded streets to the gates of the prison into which his father and grandfather had been committed. Of the sentry he demanded admission. He was called Christian dog. but. displaying the stubborn resistance which has brought him to his present place of com mand, although driven away again and again. he as often returned. His temper was thoroughly aroused, and. picking up a number of stones. he pelted the sentry from short distance. This had the eff feet of bringing out a number of other sentries, and he was pursued and cap
 
 whom he was taken he Is said to have l exclaimed in his wrath: May God so orr dain that you yourself will be one day thrown into prison and that your chil- dren will be driven away from the prison gates without being permitted to see you and relieve the sufferings of your cap- tivity."
 Rather amused at the fiery utterance of the boy. and possibly somewhat impress ed with the display of determination. the officer ordered that the boy be per- mitted to visit his father freely. For a year Sarafoff's father and grandfather l-remained in the prison. This year was I one in which Sarafoff received many im- pressions. Tn 1t he had many opportun- ities to observe the methods of cruelty practiced by the Turks and to learn tbS political creed of the Macedonian Bull garians.
 At the end of the year his father and grandfather. without the semblance of a trial. were banished to Asia Minor for fifteen years When they sailed away the Bulgarian colony at Salonica stood on the quay and watched the vessel pass Idown into the Gulf of Salonica. Sarafoff resolved to have revenge. and from that | time bent all of his energies to preparing himself for the task. He studied hard. ] During his holidays he made long walk ing tours through the country about Us- | In this way he is said to have become ac- quainted with hidden paths and remote Dyways hundreds of miles in extent which he afterwards used in his raids. He succeeded in entering the military l academy at Sofia at the age of eighteen, and. passing his examinations with hon. or. he received a commission as lieuten- ant of the 1st Bulgarian Infantry Regi- ment, at the age of twenty. For three years. until 1895, when the Macedonian question began to attract the attention l Of the world, he retained his commission. Then he became restless. and resigned, to take part in the Macedonian move ment. Gathering about him a hundred men of his own age, he began to drill them. On July he crossed the frontier with eighty men on his way to MeInik. He and his followers slaughtered half of the garrison of one hundred men. Mak- Ing fiery speech to the inhabitants as- sembled in. the market place, he an-- nounced a new movement against Tur- key. The entire Christian population ac- companied him to the local Greek church | to give thanks for his success.
 SaTafon and his followers were obliged to retreat soon from Melnik. for a large body of Turkish troops was on it's way toward the place. His knowledge of the country enabled him to escape. Sarafoft continued his raids over the frontier. cap-
 turing garrisons, stirring up the people
 and escaping before an effective pursuit could be organized. The Turkish Gov
 ernment set price of 100000 francs on
 his head. He organized the Macedonian Committee, which is so well known with
 many local committees, and an execu.
 tive headquarters at Sofia. At the age of
 thirty. Sarafoff's ambition is to organix,
 great rebellion, seize Constantinople
 and after dethroning the Sultan, estab.
 fish new Macedonian State, with him.
 self at it's head.