The Mellette County pioneer. [volume] (Wood, Mellette County, S.D.) 19??-1971, 1922-12-01

prepared by the National Geographic So
ciety, Washington, d. c.
Few places in the world have eXer-
cised such q power Of attraction for
travellers as Constantinople, or have
had such widespread reputation for be-
Ing picturesque.
The severe, classic art of Athens is
not found here; nor the dignity OF
Rome; nor the exciting, sullen spirit
that permeates Picking. 1t is not gay
like Paris, nor learned like Berlin. An
archeologist would be better pleased
with Egypt. But this is the place be-
fore which Gautier, Byron, Lott, De
Amlcis and Lamartine wept and
swooned with delight before they sat
down to fill books With ecstatic praises.
But practical modernity has left its
mark everywhere.
Already there are on all sides the
changes due to western influence
trans, electric lights, telephones and q
new safe bridge.
Constantinople's geographical posi-
ton has made her sanguinary history,
for she controls Il high road of com
merce between Asia and Europe, and
Nature herself planned the ports. The
city is divided into three separated
quarters, STEAMBOAT and Pera-Galata lie
on the European side, the Golden Horn
between them, and Scutari squats on
the Asiatic side, across the Bosporus.
Like outstretched arms, the two straits
come up from the Sea Of Marmora to
the south.
Galata and Pera are the European
quarter, opposite STEAMBOAT, where the
representatives Of foreign powers have
long maintaineds their embassies and
homes. Once the suburbs of STEAMBOAT,
this part of the city was known as
Justinianapolis until the Genoese made
it into an italian town and fortified it
with walls and many towers, IN of
which, the Galata Fire Tower, still
stands, n lofty lookout station from
which fires are reported and signals
flashed to ships after dark.
Nowadays Pera's crooked streets
are alive with allied soldiers, refugees,
relief workers, adventures, peddlers,
beggars, and a few tourists. Pass
ports, unless one has business, are diff
ticult to get, and tourists are rarely
seen.
The American residents number
about four hundred, the largest colony
between Rome and Manila. There is
but little social life, and the only
places of amusement are the cafes and
restaurants, with their adjoining caba-
rets and mOving-picture screens.
GaIata Bridge Its Keynote.
While the Galata bridge between the
European quarter and STEAMBOAT still
lives up to it's tradition of having every
nationality in the world cross it at
least once an hour, it lacks some Of
its old charm, because of the Turkish
peoples remuneration Of color. The
men for the most part have adopted
the European business suit, with
which they wear q red fez, and the
women's costumes are usually of black.
What the Rialto bridge is to Venice,
the Pont Neuf to Paris, the West
minister to London, so is the Galata
bridge to ConstantinOple-the keynote
to the city. {,
pies flows across the Golden Horn /:
Russian refugees, in ~pajamacoats
tucked into trousers grown too large;
Armenian and Greek merchants and
refugees; British, French and Italian
army and navy officers; American sail
ors; Chinese, japanese and Persian
merchants; the last of the Outmoded
eunuchs; dervishes i'm brown. with
conc-shaped hats; Cretans in baggy
trousers and embroidered vests; Greek
priests with black chiffon wells
streaming from their hats; hamals
(porters) with roomfuls of furniture
on their backs; Arabs in yellow bur-
nooses MANNED and diseased beggars (;
Mohammedan priests in pink or green
robes; black troops in red caps and
sashes; Jewish guides; American re-
lief workers; Hindustani guards In
twisted turbans and scarlet capes; an
occasional woman gypsy i'm baggy
trousers: Levantine tradesmen; Al
bantam peasants In embroidered white
leggings; Hawaiians, F%ilipinOs, and a
few drummers from points west OF
Chicago'-all these pass back and
forth in the course Of a day.
The taxes were recently doubled on
the bridge, and the eight Turkish col
lectors were ordered to make the Turk