The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-02-09
.SNE[zE A 7 YOUR
PERIL IN GERMANY
Emperor William Also Forbids
Whistling and Unseenly
Noises in Streets.
TURKISH FIRE DEPARTMENT.
Austrian Count Has Introduced
American Fire Fighting Me
thods in Constantinoplc.

nY LA MAHauIsE Dr: FON1ENOY.
IN connection with the arrival in this
country of Mrs. Nandcrbilt's Hun
garian son-in-law, Count lAaslo
Szechenyi, II may be mentioned
that his cousin, old count Edmund SEC
chenyi. has Just been playing a very
remarkable rolo at Constantinople, IN
connection with the destruction by IRE
of tho Palace OF Chirigan In 1915 the
scene Of tho suicide or murder of sui
| tan Abdul Aaiz, ii had been for the
| last ten months the home OF tue OF
| toman Parliament. Count Edmund
szcchcnyi although now All old man
stu remains the head of the Constan-
\ tinople Fire Department, which ne
| created. and 1t is thanks to him That
| the entire Turkish capital Is not Pc
| riodicallyA. reduced TO ashes through
| the fires which are constantly being
caused by the proverbial carelcssncss
and insouciance of the Orentals.
| The count. who holds the rank OF gen
| oral in the Ottoman army, and or prin-
cipal aide-do-camp of the sultan. first
achieved prominence by navigating
| little steam yacht of his own up tho
| Danube. and through the Main. Rhine.
| Marine and Seine, TO Paris. which no
! exhibition of 1867. Both Napoleon Ill
| and Eugenie frequently visited him on
board his pretty boat. as it lay moored
| Off the Quai des lnvalides SUBSEQUENT
| ly he was attached TO the Austrian en-
| bassy In Constantinople, and was led
! by some rather conspicuous fcats OF
| bravery which he performed IN saving
/ life at big fire al Stamboul, to turn
! his attention to the means at that
time available in the Ottoman metrop-
| oils for the lighting Of danes.
| Retiring from the diplomatic service,
! he betook himself in the first place
| to this country. which even In those
| days had achieved Worldwide fame in
| fire departments and spent a consider
/ able time in touring through the
/ United States, for the purpose OF
| studying the various means used here
for quenching flames. Afterwards he
/ spent a year in London as volunteer
| fireman. under the orders OF Captain
/ Sir Eyre Shaw, then chief of the Lon
(, don Fire Brigade. and thercupon be-
took himself to Constantinoplc. where
he laid before Sultan Abdul AZiz his
scheme for the creation OF Turkish
/ Fire Department, on American and
English lines. The Padishah not only
! fully approved of the project. but like
wise caused all the money required for
its execution to be placed at his dis
I posal, and in spite of all the changes
! of regime that have succeeded one
another at Stamboul, and the disor-
/ ganization, the corruption and the in
partments, that over which he has con-
tinued to preside has never suffered to
any extent. He has nearly always had
all the money that he needed for it's
4 equipment and for the payment of his
men, while he himself has retained the
Il confidence, the good will and the
i friendship of the three Sultans that fol-
/ lowed Abdul Aziz on the throne. and
! of the scores OF Grand Viziers and
hundreds of Cabinet ministers.
u The count makes his home Con-
j stantinoptc. where his daughter. Count
css Wanda Szechenyi. is married to
4 one of the Armenian Princes Dadian.
i who was a member OF Sultan Abdul
i Hamid's household, while the countess
| herself is on intimate terms with most
of tho princesses of the imperial fam
lily. The old counts son, Andrew, was
formerly married to Russian. who
since her divorce has been forbidden
TO make use of the name and title of
a Countess Szechenyi in Austria and
Hungary, and who, while retaining it
in other countries, figures on the oper-
attic stage in the dominons OF En-
: peror Francis Joseph as Elena Sarvar.
Noisclcss Germany.
| So many Americans visit Germany
nowadays that it is just as we'll that
they should be warned that the in
BILE to involve them in, serious trouble
with the authorities. Thus. al Berlin.
the kaiser'S police are under instruc-
lions to repress whstling, whether
recreative or utilitarian, with the ut
most rigor, and TO display unrelaxing
energy in carrying out their orders to
1.-THE letter. SO strict is the enforce
ment of this edict that not long ago
the hall porter of ono OF the princi-
s pal hotels on the avenue known as
!, Inter den Linden was gathered in
by the police, for sounding his whistle
TO summon cab. Sentenced to fine.
with the alternative of imprisonment
the porter appealed to the higher
court. pleading that from time imme-
mortal it had been customary in Ber-
lin to whistle for hacks, once. twice
thrice or four times. according to the
relative quality and capacity or the We.
hicles required. This plea. however
the Judge rejected as Irrelevant to the
. point at issue. to-wit. the legality OF
y whisting in public thoroughfare. anG
confirmed the decision of the lower
court. and the fine "for making nols,
that disturbed the repose of the pub
: lie"
In another town, or rather twir
town, of Emperor williams dominlons
namely, Dressen-V ordamm. in thu
province of Brandenberg, an unfortu
nate man was recently arrested b,
7 the police for no other offensc thar
, that of sneezlng rather loudly in thu
+ Penal Code. which provides for tn,
punishment of unnecessary noise OF
, a public thoroughfarc. he was sentenc
: ed by the local courts to n fine o
added. brought tho cost Of his snecz
:. up to about So. While this is no
ruinous, yet the man was subjecte,
to the indignlty of an arrest. and t
the inevitable badgering by the authori
: ties, for no other reason than that O
sncezing. SO, If American tourist
happen to catch colds in Germany. tn