Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1916-10-04
TuRNU SEVERN, RUMANIA

Y
Washington, ID. C.-Turnu SEVERN, the
frst town in Rumania to receive a bap-
tism of iron after hostilities We're de-
clared between that country and Austria
Hungaria. is described by the National
Geographic society in a bulletin issued
today from Washington:
ut is an II mile voyage down the DAN
ube from the International boundary line
at N'rciorova to q point opposite Turnu
Severn upon which Austrian monitors
opened fire two days after the declaration
of war. This busy Rumanian town of 5000
inhabitants. pleasantly situated on high
ground and partly hidden from the river
by trees, has important shipyards and re-
pair shops for the Danube Steamship Nav
lSatlun company, and is a center for trade
IN petroleum, cereals and preserved meats.
1T is supposed to derive it's name from the
ruins of an old tower in the vicinity which
is said to have been built in commemora-
ton OF one of the victories of the Roman
emperor Serverus.
1T was at Turnu SEVERN that the late
King Charles l, who died only a few weeks
after the outbreak of the European war
In 1914. first landed on Rumanian soil in
May. 1856. and was hailed by the %populace
as the successor to their first prince, Col
onel Cuza. who, as Alexandra John l., had
been forced to abdicate a short time pre-
%.viously. Charles was the second son of
Prince Charles Antony of Hohenzollern-
Simaringen and at the time his name was
submitted to the people of Rumania Che
was chosen by a vote Of Csc, 1853 to 224. was
an officer in the Prussian army. AS the
King of Prussia was pledged to support
another for the Rumanian princi-
pality Charles could not be espoused open-
ly. but upon the advice of Bismarck he
resigned his commission in the Prussian
army and, under an assumed name and
with a forged passport, made his way
dcwn the Danube into the country over
which he was to rule most successfully,
first as prince and later as king. for
more h half a century.
"A short distance below TNurnu Seyerin
is the little village of Kladova which in
Roman times was known as Egeta, the
station from which Trajan's two roads of
conquest diverged, one up the banks of
the Danube and the other striking north
into Dacia. 1t was the latter road which
necessftated the construction of the IA
NOUS Tra5an bridge across the Danube
at this point. the largest in the Roman
empire. How we'll the great Damascus
architect Apollodorus designed this struc-
ture is indicated by the fact that after
more than l.SOo years portions of some OF
Its 20 stone piles described by the his
torian Gibbnn are still to be seen, and
perhaps it would have done service for
centuries had 1t not been destroyed tn
prevent the invasion of the territory south
of the river by the Goths. The remains
of this famous work We're not discovered
until 1884, the honor of the find being
credited to Michael Joseph Quin who
made a systematic search for the piers
while accompanying the Hungarian road
builder Count Szechenyi on one of his
journeys down the Danube. The stones
which are now disclosed at low water are
tho AZ ~ -;--. 1s - I:N 20 81
broad and 163 feet apart. When the
Roman sappers overthrow them to check
the march of the barbarian enemy the
masonry damned the waters.'