The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1912-11-06
g. aat6zR m r


once belonged to her, but which lately
have fallen to the Italians.
Bulgaria Ranks High.
The most important of the Balkan
states is Bulgaria. Prince Ferdinand
was crowned as it's car October 5,
1908. Bulgaria was conquered by the
Turks in 1896 and for nearly SOC, years
remained a part Of the Ottoman en-
pire. 1t was constituted semi-indepen-
dent by the Berlin treaty In 1878. One
of the hopes of the Bulgarians Is to
restore that country to its greatness
of centuries ago and to include with
in It's boundaries all Of Macedonia. In
Macedonia dwell Mahometans and
Christians. These always are ready
to fly at each others threats. The
Christians are divided into Greeks
Servians and Bulgars. These three
nationalities hate each other fully as
much as all OF. them hate the Turk.
Servia was conquered by the Turks
in 1889, ceded to Austria In lib and
retaken by Turkey in 1889. In 1903 It
was the scene of the c~old-blooded as
sessination Of King Alexander and his
queen, whose reign was stained by 30
much vice and crime that the other
rulers of Europe refused to receive
them.
Montenegro Is an Independent pr1n-
cipality whose inhabitants are hardy
m~ountaineers. They are descended
from S~ervians who, in the fourteenth
century, fed to those mountains and
established their Independence there,
maintaining it against all the attacks
Of the Turks.
Geographical Situation.
The Balkan peninsula, generally
speaking, Is a difficult country for an
army to invade and an easy n for
troops to act on the defensive in. It
Is traversed by two great mountain
systems, the Balkans on the northeast
and the Dinaris Alps on the west.
The Balkans begin at the great gorge
of the Danube-the Iron Gates, as
they are called. At this point Hun
gary, Roumania and Servia meet.
Through the Iron Gates Of the Dan
ube have passed the armies Of many
great commanders. The nations Of Eu-
rope and Asia have passed back and
forth from prehistoric times In their
peaceful migrations or those Of con-
quest. AS result there Is the greatest
mixture Of peoples and races in that
region of anywhere on earth.
The Balkan range runs southwark
through eastern Servia, then curves
eastward, passing through the center
Of Bulgaria to the Black sea. 1t is
from IL to 80 miles wide. On the
south side 1t is very precipitous, but
slopes gently or the north. 1t forms
a vast natural barrier and is crossed
by more than 30 passes. The most
famous of these is Shipka pass. where
during the war between Russia and
Turkey in 1877 a desperate battle was
fought. The Russians, with $500 men,
held the pass for three days against
10000 Turks. A little later, in mid
winter, 60, 900 Russians advanced upon
the Turks and drove them out of the
pass. The Russians lost nearly 5000
men in this battle In the deep snow,
and the Turkish troops suffered al
most as heavily.
The Turks still quote the old saying
Of Mahomet II. to the Venetian repub-
lie, when the flag of Islam was the
most feared banner of Europe: I'VE
Ottomans came to Europe against all
Christendom, and 1t will take all
Christendom to put US out"
Turkish History.
The Turks first appeared in Euro
pean history in the middle Of the four
teenth century. They were driven by
the Mongols from Central Asia to Ar
menia. They extended their domain
gradually westward into Asia Minor,
and about this time began to be known
as Osmanlis. from their first sultan,
Osman. This name afterward was
corrupted to Ottoman.
Osman's son made his capital at
Bursa, opposite Constantinople, and
his son gained a foothold in Europe
in 1858. Murad l. established the cap
ital Of his empire at Adrianople 30
years later. He defeated the Servians
and the allies at the great battle of
Kossovo in 1889, and himself persisted
on the field. In the following decade
the Turks subdued Wallachia, Bull
garia,, Thessaly and Macedonia, and
annihilated the combined hosts of
Hungary and Poland.
The Ottoman empire reached it's ut
kkA6 n3Srsm