Year: 1875

When come back at evening from some bone break
Ing excursion among the mighty mountains where the
insurgents make their nests, treated to mystic
rous bits Of Intelligence, such as, 'The Turks have
driven into Austrian territory or The Austrian
government is certain TO interfere within week. -
These harmless and by malicious rumors
serve kind Of pasme for the stay homes who do
not climb out and the irowning walls OF
rock at whose foot quaint and picturesque Ragusa lies
But we, happily pay little attention to them preferring
20 study on the ground the movements Of struggle
which terrible in It's tenacity and Will be very long IN
Is duration


will pass over, for time, the description Of my
charming journey 10 this point along the Dalmatan
coast past the old cities every OF which looks like
in opera cities untouched and untanted with
modernism; cities which front expanses Of blue
water dotted with delicious islands, and which are
backed by giant mountains, whose rocky sides the
sunlight and the shadows play hide and seek all day
The journey long, and rich in material for cores
pondence but must beg you 10 forget for the pres
ent that have made it. and place yourself with me on
the frontier within fifteen minutes walk Of tho In
surgent camp, and at a post where the wild Turkish
patrol racing in evening, discharging pistols
and blunderbusses and whoopng in Indian fashion.
These Herzegovnian Mussulmans are in many respects
ike our savages They have not quite much dig





lamable uncivilized race, Europe does not seem TO
have touched them at all Among the bold peaks and
powders Of their native land they fight and
lake risks and make jest OF death
with the greatest gusto. They not suspicious,
and many Of them seem to look upon tho nsurrection
the normal condition Of affairs and to have prepared
themselves for it. The insurgents certainly making
every preparation for long campaign although they
are poorly fitted with and have almost food at
ALL The endurance of the both sides under
latgues privations and exposures, which would kill
he soldiers OF half dozen Of the best regular armies
Europe is remarkable


FIGHTING WITHOUT


The insurgents who with Ljubibratich and the
famous Peko have not had anything like decent food
,or many days We hear from them almost daily here
N Ragusa, and they always send back encouraging
reports although they add that they have nothing to
and but little ammunition. Out of the whole band
Or 500 which camped at Slivovitch-a wild nook
IN the mountains about three hours march from the
gates of Ragusa-a few days since 1000 were armed
with antiquated weapons with flint locks, some OF
which had ceased their effective service half century
since Had this hardy and resoute band Of lighters
with muscles like steel and with hearts which do not
know fear-had they good weapons as the Turkish
regulars they would sweep the country clear Of
the latter and would maintain their independence ex





A few days before the body OF the insurgents
departed on mission of destruction in remote por-
ton Of the Herzegovina where the inhabitants in
clined take sides with the Turks, some gentlemen
from Ragusa visited the camp There is here in Ragusa
insurreconary committee, which holds daily meet
ings the shop Of loquacious barber the Figaro OF
the locality, and who possesses almost much
iginality as his prototype


A AMONG THE INSURGENTS.


This committee furnished guides and the proper pa
pers to the excursonists who after a brief but not
especially perous nocturnal excursion the frontier
and careful evasion OF the Turkish guards patrollng
it, plunged into the thickets and among the crags and
arrived at the avant posts OF tho insurgents. They
found these perfectly organized at the distance OF
hours march from the camp The men were posted
in parties Of four arranged to form perfect
don protecting The camp and it without great
difficulty that the delegation from the Ragusa
committee and the other visitors succeeded in passing
the lines 1t evident that the insurgents respected
property, because the visitors the next day passed
through village which might be said to be in the
tre Of the camp, and there the villagers peacefully
pursuing their customary avocations. They
witnesses to incident which showed that discipline
among the rough soldery had been carried praise
worthy point One Of the insurgents not finding any
thing else handy TO cook his dinner with took from
kind Of paling few sticks and about to burn
them An old woman at rushed Of the cottage
surrounded by the pang complained to the com
mander who insisted that the sticks should be at once
restored to the paing The visitors found the nsur-
gents the point Of departure Two or three days
before the Turks had been ambushc and terribly cut
up by these insurgents dede not far from the from
tier and the insurgents, flushed with the success OF
their attack and the which il had created
In the Turkish ranks, preparing to fall upon
another body Of troops in another section thus Great
ing the impression that the insurreconists very
numerous aud scattered widely throughout the
Sountry.


This camp with its ], 500 men with its chiefs for
whose heads the Turks would pay, promise TO pay
any price whatsoever and with its stores Of spoils
taken from Turkish dead bodies, was not more than
half an hours march, even by the difficult mountain
passes, from the positions in which the Turks we're
intrenched. 1t seemed incredible that any commander
or regular forces shoad supnely wait for irregular
bodies TO concentrate his ouposts when his duty
clearly dislodge them possible and to give his
whole attention to that But the Turkish regular has
considerable respect for his Life; besides which he
stands supersttious dread or these miraculous in
surgents whom he rarely II ever secs, and who send
death hurting at him from what seemed unoccupied
thicket or from behind bowlder where II does not
seem possible for to hide The insurgents laughed
when asked by the visitors they aware Of the
proximity Of the Turks Certainly they were, said
they, and the fact that the Turks knew who was
in the immediate neghborhood prevented any
chance OF an attack that night have my
self passed through both the nsurgcnt aud the Turkish
lines within half an hour and although tho Turks
knew perfectly well where their enemies we're they
would not venture out 70 attempt 70 disodge them
The mountains here tho effective allies of the in
ia nd vvf gain
tain people must and will be free


NsURGEST LEADERs


IN the camp the visitors saw Ljubibratch and Peko
Pauowitch, the chiefs who are best known and do
most effective work in Herzegovina / have already
given you brief sketch OF Ijubbratich. He st holds
prominent place among the insurgents, but not tho
man TO lead them He is man Of remarkably nne
presence, OF even noble aspect has command Of sev.
era languages and is thoroughly In earnest; but he is