Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-08

can Indians All the towns have old
walls and fine old cathedrals and carved
gates, Ragusa being one of the most pic
turesque cities in the world.
The roads of the Balkan states are
generally well engineered, but with q
very narrow track. one pair of wheels
always running on the loose sharp rock
OF the edges. which destroys tires at a
depressing rate. They wander some
times over high mountain passes, again
through the desolate karst. a barren
waste of rock. creeping down along the
edge of the sea, or winding high above
it with glorious views.
Our first glimpse of Dalmatia was. a
spectacular one: a long gradual climb
through dense woods suddenly terminal
e. in great round crater-like bowl of
barren rock. with few cave huts at in
tervais. group of peasant girls in fam
Ing red and silver. spinning on hand dis
raffs. a huge stone boundary post beside
the road with it's single word 'Dalma-
tia and, high above. balancing on the
topmost pointed crag, a shaggy goat out
lined against the sunset. looking down at
US. 1t was wild and mysterious and
later on We must have added to the mys-
FERROUS ourselves, for descending the pass
We came to fine straight road into
cara and followed it at high speed in the
full glare Of acetylene lights, while the
amazed peasants ran out from their huts
and stared wonderingly at the ghostly
thing flashing by with two enormous
eyes and great white tail Of dust.
Dalmatia Exit Spectacular.
Our exit from Dalmatia was also
spectacular in a somewhat different way.
The days run of ia miles-for places in
the Balkans where one can stop are
somewhat far .between-was increased to
211 by the vagaries of the language which
spelled Ragusa-"Dubrovnik' turn
ed us far enough in the wrong direction
to exhaust our gasoline tank, already
taxed BY nine hard mountain passes We
spent the night in the car half way up
the tenth, and the stiffness was broken
at intervals by Dalmatian shepherds at
tempting to drive their focks past this
shadowy monster. A "whish." of breath
ing, some Slavic oathS and blows, then a
scurry of hoofs and another flock had
passed in the dark. In the morning l
walked in fourteen miles and bought
strange gasoline at china shop. the
only place in town where it was sold.
From Ragusa to montenegro is one
of the grandest trips in the whole world,
including little yachting, crossing the
beautiful BOcche di Cataro on some
blanks laid over one small sailboat and
a rowboat Of most unstable design, which
took three hours to prepare.
Returning, We mOtOred down the other
side of the Adriatic through the hill
towns of Italy-Siena, Montepulciano, Pc
rugia, Orvieto, etc, fascinating medic
val fortress cities. with walls and towers
and splendid cathedrals all perched on the
very tops of inaccessible peaks. The
roads are good nearly to Rome, but be-
yond are execrable, and in southern Italy.
worse. The Amalf-Sorrento drive around
the S0rrentine peninsula is as beautiful
as anything in the Riviera, but even this
road has deteriorated badly. We re-
traced our way to Naples with a tonneau
full of rocks. green apples and various
vegetables hurled by the young italians.
to deliver there our car to be shipped to
Bombay, and found that the boat we were
sending her on had been Communicated
for the war. Fortunately. there was one
other vessel which would reach India in
time for the durbar. leaving In twenty.
four hours-but those who know Italy