Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1913-03-28
WAS ONCE ROMAN CITY
DuRAzZo HAS HISTORY EXTEND.
ING FAR INTO PAST.
Ancient Name for Town, at That Time
Port Of Considerable Promi-
nence, Was Epldamus, but
Later Was Changed.

Durazzo, the Albanian port which
has attracted international attention
on account of it's occupation by the
Servians in opposition to the wishes
of the Austrians, is just such an out
let to the sea as the Servians have
long coveted, says the New New
York. AS Turkish port 1t has been
badly run down in the last quarter OF
a century, for the railway from Sal
onica to MetrovIrza had diverted
much of the trade that it once con-
trolled in the interior of the country
southwark to the Aegean. The harbor
Is filled with big rocks-if you were
to trust the stories of some of the AL
banian patriots the Turks dumped
them there purposely to ruin the har-
bor-and it has become silted up.
Steamers of the Austrian Lloyd stop
there twice a week. and carry away
olive oil, cotton and fruits, which are
abundantly produced on the rich
lands of the neighborhood
1 Durazzo was port more than six
centuries before the Christian era
and became populous and important
city. When the Romans came they
didn't like the sound of its ancient
name, Epidamus-it was too much
like their word damnum-and they
changed 1t to Dyrrachium, which
time and later occupants corrupted to
Its present name. 1t was the begin
ming Of Roman road southwark along
the coast and Of the great military
road, Via Egnatia, running through to
Salonica and the Hellespont. 1t has
been the scene of much strife, and
Slavs, Normans and Venetians had
been masters Of its port before the
Turks took it in 1901. An earth.
quake destroyed Durazzo in 1878, and
the only traces of It's ancient build
ings are in broken columns and mar
bles where the city once stood
The city. which was formerly an
Island, is Joined to the mainland by
huge marsh, over which is built
bridge $50 feet long. The marsh is
partly salt where the government salt
works are situated and partly fresh
and haunted by "storks, frogs and
fevers." Durazzo is scarcely more
than shadow of its former self. The
old walls are dilapidated, plane trees
grow on the ruins Of the ancient By
zantine citadel and many of the Rom
an remains, funeral slabs, columns and
inscriptions have been smashed up by
the Turkish government to build a
road around the point projecting out
into the bay.
The port Is fifty miles south of Sou
tari and is 400 miles nearer the Medit-
erranean than Trieste. The popula-
tion of the place is about 5000. The
Roman Catholic religion through the
hard work Of priests trained in Aus
tria has made considerable headway.
The German or Slav languages are
spoken by as many persons as is the
Italian.
Durazzo has dreamed for years of a
railroad that might help it back to its
lost glory. The people, though, had
expected that 1t would be built from
Monastir. They had not contemplated
that the port might fall into the hands
of Albania's hereditary enemies and
that they would carry out the pet pro-
1ect. Should the Servians manage to
retain this port they would be forced
to make railway communication and
do great deal of hard work upon
the harbor, consuming in all two or
three years, before they could send
their products to foreign market BY
this route.