Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-06-15
SALON|K| OLD CITY
Home of Philip of Macedon
and Alexander the Great.
CAPITAL OF GREAT EMPIRE
Macedonia Was Once as Powerful as
England Is Today.
NOW A TURKISH VASSAL
Heathens, Christians and Mahom-
medans Have in Turn Ruled the
Land-Ancient Churches.
CAPITAL OF GREAT EMPIRE
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Special Corresponding of The Star and the
Chicago Record Herald.
| SALONlkI. Macedonia May 10, 1910.
Mount Olympus always wears a crown
of snow like Parnassus, that other sacred
peak of classic days. Snow from the
summit of Parnassus is still brought down
on the backs of men and donkeys to cool
the wine of the epicures of Athens, as
was done $500 years ago, but the people
| of Saloniki are too much absorbed in
| business affairs to take any such trouble.
They seem to be drinking coffee chiefly,
for every corner is occupied by a crowd
ed cafe and every sidewalk is blocked
| with tables and chairs, where Turks and
Jews, Greeks and Armenians and repre-
sentatives Of the Balkan races are sip
| ping coffee from morning until night
black. thick, siruplke looking stuff.
| which is served to them from brass pots
| in cups scarcely bigger than thimble.
| Nobody seems to be drinking wine or
| beer, but everybody has cup of coffee
every few minutes.
| Saloniki l told you yesterday, was
| the capital Of the Macedonian empire,
and the home of Philip of Macedon and
Alexander the Great. Some people con-
tend that Cleopatra was born here also
| instead of being a Jewess, and that
she accompanied a Roman general to
Jericho, where Herod the Great met her
and made her his mistress. Others con-
tend that she was an Albanian-but that
Is not a matter of Importance.
More Grecian Than Turkish.
salokini is still more Grecian than
Turkish, although the most important
architectural features Of the city date
from the Roman occupati ton. Next in i'm
portance to the Jews are the Greeks and
after them the Macedonians and Bull
garians. with a top dressing of Germans
and Italians the body polite. The
Turks fill the offices of the government
and the military barracks, which here.
as everywhere in the Ottoman empire,
are the largest buildings in town The
Macedonians and Bulgarians do the farm
ing, the Greeks do the fishing and keep
the small shops.
Sa!oniki has seen at least eight differ
ent sovereignties: eight different races
have invaded the city and occupied it and
retired; and at least five empires have
used Saonik a capital. The Balkan
peninsula has been conquered and lost and
reconquered again and again and Mac
edonia, which is now an Insignificant
and helpless province of Turkey, befors
the Christian era was powerful as
Germany or England is today. 1t was one
Of the proudest stronghods of the Ro
mans. Its mosques rank next to those of
Constantnople, and the most interesting
were originally temples erected by the
Romans for the worship of their pagan
gods The calendar of the ages in Sa-
.oniki runs like this:
$50 B. c. Philip of Macedon ruled with
great magnificence at SalOniki
33S B. c. Philip chosen leader of the
Hellenes; that il, all the inhabitants west
Of the BoSphorus to resist the invaders
from Persia, who numbered millions.