Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-07-02
STREET SCENE At BATOUM.

any difference with the vigilance of the
police, and il seems as If the passengers
of the good ship Euterpe were subjected
to more than ordinary scrutiny by the
police before they would allow US to
land
The captain made the dock at daylight.
which this time OF year is about j o'cIock
in the morning. and shortly before u
o clock all the passengers were awakened
and invited to the saloon. There we round
police officer with a couple of clerks
sented ours and had explained our mo-
tives In visiting Russia we were gruffiy
dismissed; but ii was after o'clock be-
fore they would allow us to land. In
the meantime they examined our luggage
with great care in order. as we were ad-
vised, to make sure that We were not i'm
porting arms Or anarchistic literature TO
corrupt the Caucasians.
When the examination was about half
finished l showed the chief inqusitor
a general letter of introduction given me
by the Russian ambassador at Washing
ton certifying to my responsibility and
innocence. He read il through carefully,
scowled fiercely, shook his head and then
began to search more energetically than
before.
'He seen his duty and he done it," re-
gardless of ambassadors or other outside
influence who had nothing to do with the
case. But We are taught that there is
good in everything. and contact with
Russian police officials certainly cult
Yates the patience If nothing else.
But the long wait was not tedious. after
all, because we were entertained by oui
fellow-passengers. AS explained in a
previous letter, our ship was a sort OF
travelling menagerie. The costumes and
conduct and the characteristics of ouI
felloW-passengerS were SO novel and fan
tastic that we never lost interest in them
for a moment
Persians a Picturesque Lot.
On the forward deck, where the anchor
winch is. was camped a group Of Per-
| slams. Some of them were merchants OF
Constantinople and other cities on their
way to their native country to buy rugs
and other goods; others were faithful Ma
! hommedans returning from pilgrimages to
Mecca. They were dignified, thoughtful
persons with dreamy eyes and intensely
black boards, and two or three old mer
had made themselves supremacy ridicu
louS by the use Of henna, which give:
hair bright scarlet hue. 1t reminded ms
of What's -His-Name in Alice in Wonder
land" who suggested that it would b'
awfully funny if everybody would dye
his whiskers green.
"And hide our heads behind our fans, Sc
they cannot be SEEN
Others had their finger nails stained scar.
let with the same stuff, which gives a
startling effect.
There were many Armenians aboard
also. but they are commonplace. They
wear store clothes of modiSh style and
some of them indulge in black broad
cloth frock coats, that they did not
afford us any amusement.
On the other side of the deck. however
was nest of their hereditary enemies
Kurds and Turks. tall. robust, brown
fellows, with snub noses. small. fierce eyes
and garments that are indescribable be-
cause of the variety of cut and color
They lay around smoking cigarettes in
the most indolent manner. each having
what looked like an old-fashioned quilted
comfortable for a mattress and an en-
broidered bag for a pillow.
The most interesting Of all were the
Lazis. short, broad shouldered, muscu-
lar chaps, most of whom brought their
wives and children with them and camp
ed an1idships on the open deck like a
lot of gypsies.
Women Entirely Concealed.
The women were entirely concealed in
shawls of cotton or silk, that cover the
head as well as the body. and they squat
ted in groups in the same place all day
long. scarcely moving a muscle. except
when their husbands were hungry, and
then they would dig down into a bag and
produce a loaf of bread, a dried fish, a
few onions and other simple forms OF
food
There were several babies scattered
about perniciously in bright-colored
wrappings. and number of children un.
der ten years old. Some of them had
dainty features and lovely eyes and q
better behaved lot of children you never
saw. We did not hear one of them cry
during the entire voyage. They lay in
the clumsy. queer looking cradles made
by rude carpenters, without the slightest
attention. self satisfied as if they had
been millionaires smothered i'm luxury.
The night before we landed and in the
morning, while we were waiting for the
police to find something against us, the
peasants from LaZistan killed time by
dancing and gave us very interesting
performance. The music was furnished
by an ordinary pipe with three stops
which emitted a mounrful and monoto-
nous refrain, but with perfect time, and
the dancers kept step to 1t very much
after the manner Of the North American
Indian. They placed a child in the cen
ter. dozen or SO of them clasped hands
in circle, alternately, spreading out as
far as their arms would reach and then
coming together in bunch and i'm the
meantime stamping their feet, bowling the
knees and bending the upper part of the
body forward. Sometimes they would
stoop to a squatting posture and hop
along on one side and then on the other;
tnen tney WOuiQ raise their arms as high
as they could reach, revolving all the
time to the left.
1t was 4 graceful movement and rather
fascinating, and they seemed to enjoy it,
Trade Is Not Large.
We haven't very much trade with
Batoum, although Alexander Heingarten
of Canton. O., who has been our consul
here for several years. tells me that the
exports to the United States of manga
nese ore, sheepskins. wool, rags. licorice
root and other products Of the Caucasus
amount to about $1.5OO,OO0 a year The
exports for the first three months of
1910 were valued at 1888. S53. The ship
ments of manganese ore from the eau
casus mountains to Baltimore are in
creasing. BY mixing it with our ordinary
ore a finer grade of steel can be produced
There is ma nhere from Cincinnati
now buying walnut logs, which are
brought down from the mountains by
railroad and lie in great piles at the
docks. An indianapolis man was here on
the same business last year The supply
of black walnut in the United States has
become exhausted and our furniture deal
ers are compelled to send over here into
the Caucasus for il.
Mr.. and Mrs. Heingarten and their at
tractive daughters are the only Americans
in Batoum. although the Standard Oil
Company had an agent here until last