LANGUAGE PROBLEMS OF THE BALKAN PENINSULA
The Serbian linguistic area, noticed in the preceding chapter, is
both the political and physical link connecting central Europe with
the Balkan peninsula. Beyond Serbia, to the south or southeast,
the true Balkan domain is reached. This region is occupied chiefly
by Greeks and Bulgarians. The Albanian and Rumanian populations of
its western section, although distinct in speech, nevertheless lack
the cultural and historical background required in the formation of
nationality.
The Albanians inhabit the rugged lands which were known as
Illyricum and Epirus in classical times. Secluded within the
narrow, trough-shaped relics of ancient mountain folding, the
natives had no immediate contact with their Greek neighbors on the
south, or with Serbians on the north. Hence Albanian has survived
in the most inaccessible portions of the Dinaric rocky country. In
its grammar Skip or Modern Albanian is exclusively Aryan in form.
Nevertheless only four hundred entries out of a total of 5,140
listed in G. Meyers’ Etymological Dictionary of Albanian can be
classified as unalloyed old Indo-European. The intrusion of Tatar
modified into Turkish words is considerable and amounts to no less
than 1,180 words. Romanic enters into the total to the extent of
1,420 forms, thus predominating. Some 840 words are Greek, while
540 are of Slavic origin.
In the belief of some etymologists the name Albania is related to
the old Celtic form Alb or Alp, which means mountain. Comparison
with the Celtic form “Albanach,” used in Scotch vernacular to name
the mountainous section of Scotland, is of utmost interest and
significance. The Albanians, however, do not call themselves by
this name. They designate themselves as Skipetars or rockmen, and
apply this appellation indiscriminately to all the inhabitants of
Upper and Lower Albania who do not use Greek, Serbian or Rumanian
as a vernacular. Many resemblances in the language spoken by
Albanians and Rumanians point to a probable early association of
the two peoples.
Albania is still a land of mystery. Few European travelers have
ventured within its inhospitable confines. It is a country without
a master, a country where the head of every family is sole ruler
of his inherited plot of land. It is scantily populated. Its
inhabitants are divided into hostile groups by religion and tribal
rivalry. No common aim on which to found nationality exists among
them. The only bond that holds them together is perhaps their
intolerance of alien authority.
Latitude divides the Skipetars into two main groups. A northern
branch is known by the name of Gheks, while the dwellers of
southern Albania go by the name of Tosks. The Skumbi river valley,
running at right angles to the Adriatic, separates the country
into the two sections inhabited by each of these peoples. Each of
these branches is further divided by religion into Mohammedans and
Christians. The Christian Gheks inhabit principally the valleys
of the Drin and the Mati. The powerful Mirdite clan draws its
adherents from this group. They are Roman Catholics and strongly
under Italian influence, which dates back to the beginnings of
Venetian trading on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. The
Christian Tosks have been affected by the views of the Eastern
Church. Almost all recognize the religious authority of the
Phanariot clergy. The Mirdites form a compact community to the
south of the Drin. The group consists of some 300,000 individuals
scattered over a territory about 375 sq. m. in extent. An
hereditary chief is acknowledged head of the clan, his authority
being even recognized by many non-Mirdite tribes. With their allies
the Mirdites number approximately half a million souls while the
clan’s sphere of influence extends over a territory about 1,000 sq.
m. in area.
Both of the Christian groups of the Albanian people have been
mercilessly persecuted by the Mohammedan element, which represents
the landed gentry and nobility of the country. The name of Arnaut
applies generally to the Mohammedan Albanians. All are descendants
of converts who embraced Islam at the time of the Turkish invasion.
By adopting the faith of their conquerors, they were allowed to
retain possession of their farms and property. The Christians
became serfs, and were set to work on the lands under a system of
feudal servitude which was exceedingly onerous.
[Illustration: FIG. 51.]
[Illustration: FIG. 52.
FIGS. 51 and 52--Albanians in native costume. The men shown in
the upper photograph are “Arnauds” or Mohammedans. The lower
illustration shows two Albanians of the shepherd class.]
The inhabitants of Albania are totally devoid of national
feeling.[189] Various causes militate against national unity.
Primeval patriotism, expressed by love of tribe rather than of
country, is one of them. Furthermore the peculiar shape of their
country transforms it into a number of compartment-like areas
beyond which tribal activity rarely extends. The setting up of an
independent state in 1913 was a purely political move undertaken by
Austrian statesmen to prevent Serbian expansion to the Adriatic.
Within the boundaries determined by the ambassadorial conference
held in London in that year strife and dissensions prevail now as
intensely as during the Turkish régime. Natives of the northern
sections of the country speak Serbian dialects and favor union with
Serbia or Montenegro rather than independence. Malisori tribesmen
fought side by side with Montenegrin troops in the fall of 1912
as their ancestors had done in the campaign of 1711 against the
Turks. The Albanians of Ipek, however, gave assistance to Turkish
regulars. The inhabitants of the valley of the upper Morava sent
supplies to Serbian troops against which the chieftains of central
Albania led their men. The purest type of Albanian found in
the vicinity of Elbassan, Koritza and Valona[190] is practically
submerged in a sea of Greeks. Under these circumstances, partition
of the country between Greece and Serbia might not be incompatible
with native aspirations. Political stability could be obtained
in this case without paying attention to linguistic unity.
Nevertheless Albania is not without national boundaries. The valley
of the Drin and the range of the Pindus have left their mark in
the development of the Albanian people, while the sea on the west
provides the country with a most desirable confine.
On the east and south, the limits of Albanian language and
nationality become indefinite owing to the intermingling of foreign
populations. In the Ipek district, along the northeast corner of
the country, two centuries of Albanian invasions have failed to
insure preponderance of the Albanian over the Serbian element.
Nevertheless at the London ambassadorial conference in 1913 Albania
was awarded the only available road between Montenegro and Serbia.
The route, cut in the mountainous tangle which characterizes this
region, follows the Clementi gap, a district settled by shepherds
of the tribe of the same name. The Prokleita mountains allotted
to Albania form here a natural boundary. The inclusion of this
uplift within Serbian territory would have enabled the Serbians to
maintain communication with their Montenegrin kinsmen. Albanians
would have lost little in the transaction, as can well be inferred
from the name of the mountain, which is Serbian for “accursed.”
A small strip of Montenegrin territory which extends from
Podgoritza to the sea at Antivari and Dulcigno is peopled almost
exclusively by about 10,000 Albanians. This district was annexed to
Montenegro by the treaty of Berlin in exchange for the districts of
Plava and Gusinje which were then awarded to Turkey in view of the
predominantly Mohammedan religion of their inhabitants.
Montenegrin covetings of the Lake Scutari area are based on
economic grounds. The eastern shore of this inland body of water
contains broad agricultural tracts which can supply the small
state with food products unobtainable from its rocky surface. The
award of a small strip of the old sanjak and a portion of the Ipek
district, at the end of the Balkan wars of 1912 and 1913, failed to
meet Montenegrin requirements. The new districts are separated from
the country proper by a tangle of well-nigh impenetrable mountains.
At Podgoritza, the commercial center of Montenegro, it is still
possible to buy cereals from Albania more advantageously than from
the Ipek region. Furthermore the acquired territory is relatively
densely populated and hence unfit for settlement or colonization.
Under the circumstances the economic advantages secured by
Montenegro by the increase of its territory in 1913 were slight.
The area claimed by the highland country comprises the shore
district of Scutari Lake and the Boyana valley. To satisfy
Montenegrin aspirations the Albanian boundary should follow the
Drin valley to the point of confluence of the Black and White Drin
and extend along the Drinassa river. Thence, passing through the
coast ranges, it should attain the Kiri river by way of a canal
connecting this waterway with the Boyana. Beyond, the line might
appropriately be carried to Bredizza and the Adriatic between San
Juan de Medua and the mouth of the Boyana.
Such a revision of Montenegro’s frontier would provide the soil
which the country needs for tilling. The valley of the Boyana and
the drained lake district would soon be taken up by Montenegrin
colonists who, now that the Turkish danger is over, are eager
to descend into the lowland from their mountain fastness. The
connection between the coast and inland districts would likewise be
favored by the changed course of the boundary line.
In southern Albania Greek claims to Epirus are not without
foundation. Hellenic language and customs prevail throughout the
province. The hopes entertained at Athens originally aimed at the
establishment of a northern boundary which would have included
Valona. In order to satisfy Italian demands, however, a less
comprehensive line was advocated, beginning at Gramala bay and
extending to the Serbian frontier in the center of the western
shore of Lake Okrida. It comprises the districts of Kimara,
Argyrocastro, Premeti, Koritza and Moskopolis. According to
official Turkish statistics, published in 1908, the region was
peopled by 340,000 Greeks and some 149,000 Mohammedans.
The Greek proposals laid before the London ambassadorial conference
suggested the following delimitation of the line between Greece
and Albania. Starting from Gramala bay on the Adriatic sea, the
frontier was to extend to Tepeleni and thence to Klisura. From
this point the line was to coincide with the crest of the Dangli
mountains and, crossing the basin of the middle Devoli river,
attain Lake Okrida, thus connecting with the eastern boundary of
Albania.
The thwarting of these Greek aspirations was followed by an
insurrection of the Epirote inhabitants of Albania in 1914. The
movement aimed at annexation with Greece. Rebel troops lost no
time in occupying the region of Greek speech between Kimara and
Tepeleni, comprising the coast and the northern extension of the
wide valley of Argyrocastro. On February 25, 1914, the autonomy
of Epirus was solemnly proclaimed by the inhabitants of Kimara
assembled in their cathedral. In the fall of 1914 the Hellenic
government, taking advantage of the European war, despatched
regular troops into the territory claimed by its citizens. As a
result of this invasion the Albanian area of Greek speech was
brought under the direct authority of the Greek government.[191]
The determination of the boundary between the Albanian and Greek
languages presents little difficulty. The upper course of the
Voyussa and the road from Delvino to Ostanitza passing by Doliano
mark the divide approximately. North of this line the prevailing
language is Albanian. To the south it is Greek. On the Albanian
side the village schoolhouse maintained by Greeks is no longer
found. Delvino itself is a town in which the two peoples are
equally represented. The language of commerce however is Greek
and as a rule the Albanian townsmen speak the rival tongue with
high fluency, while the knowledge of Albanian possessed by the
Greek inhabitants is restricted to the few phrases needed in daily
contact.
History, legend and myth, as well as language, testify to the
Hellenic character of the Epirote land. These ties are too strong
to allow the Greeks to relinquish complacently any portion of
Epirus to Albania. Greece’s dawning consciousness of nationality
was nursed in the mountains of Epirus long before the Christian
era. Every step in the rugged country raises the dust of Hellenic
antiquity. Among the fateful oaks of Dodona the land is aglow with
tradition. At a short distance from Filiates, at the junction of
the Kalamas and the Oremnitza, shepherds feed their flocks about
the thick walls of Passaron. Near Delvino may be seen the remains
of the once prosperous city of Phoenike. Every mountain and stream
in the Epirote districts of Albania is part of the foundation
on which Hellenism was built. The annals of modern Greece also
are replete with the heroism of Greeks who claim Epirus as their
native country. The land which produced so daring a leader of men
as Pyrrhus in ancient times, later counted Miaoulis, Canaris and
Botzaris among its sons.
The Greek occupation of Janina and the district surrounding the
city raised difficulties of a practical nature. As is generally
the case in conquered countries land was found to be held by the
dominating element, that is by Mohammedans, whether Albanian,
Turkish or Greek. The Christian Greeks forming the majority of
the population constituted the working, peasant class. The end
of Turkish rule in Europe placed Mohammedan landholders in the
unenviable situation of suppliants before a people whom they had
mercilessly maltreated. Many were ruined and their land taken
over by Greeks without compensation. A general disturbance of the
economic life of the region ensued as agriculture had been its most
important industry.
Geographically--as well as economically--the nation holding Janina
is entitled to Santi-Quaranta. This harbor is likewise the outlet
for the products of the district surrounding Argyrocastro. In fact
access to the sea for the entire Greek-speaking inland districts of
southern Albania is obtained through Preveza or Santi-Quaranta. The
latter harbor alone however is safe for large vessels.
The importance of Albania in European politics is largely due to
the commanding position of the country’s seaports at the mouth of
the Adriatic. Austrians, Italians, Serbians and Montenegrins covet
them equally. South of the Montenegro frontier the first of these
harbors is San Juan de Medua, situated on the northeast corner of
the Gulf of Drino about 11 miles southwest of the mouth of the
Boyana river.
This port, which is in reality a bay of restricted dimensions,
is considered by the natives as the most favored on the Albanian
coast. A bank extending to the south of the bay affords shelter
from high seas. The region is the resort of local fishermen and
is especially favored during winter months. In summer the swampy
nature of the environing country converts it into a malarial
district. Small vessels of the coastwise trade find shelter at the
extreme inland extension of the bay. Ocean-going steamers anchor in
the middle of the bay between the mouth of the Drin and San Juan
Point.
San Juan de Medua is the harbor of the Montenegrin town of
Scutari. It is also the proposed sea terminal of a railway to be
built between the Danube and the Adriatic. As such it might in
time become Serbia’s economic outlet to the Adriatic. But the
construction of a railroad connecting the valley of the Danube with
the Adriatic presents well-nigh insurmountable difficulties on
account of the mountainous character of the intervening country.
The bay of Rodoni, in the southern part of the Gulf of Drino, is
one of the safe anchorages. A commodious harbor could be provided
here by modern engineering devices. The southern shore of the bay
could be converted into a long wharf at no great cost. A jetty
thrown out on the northern side would afford protection from the
“bora” or northern wind.
Between the bay of Rodoni and Durazzo the two roadsteads of Lales
and Pata intervene. Both are resorts of fishermen and petty
freighters seeking refuge from the vehemence of the bora. The
shallowness of the waters in both preclude their utilization as
western terminals for central Balkan traffic. Beyond however,
to the south, the spacious bay of Durazzo offers ample harbor
facilities to Adriatic shipping.
Durazzo has undoubtedly the most commodious harbor of northern
Albania. From Cape Durazzo to Cape Laghi the bay is about 11 miles
long. Shoals and banks protect its northern entrance. Engineers
would find little difficulty in deepening the bay in conformity
with the requirements of modern navigation. This accomplished,
Durazzo might again become the naval station and port of commerce
which gave fame to its name in ancient times.
Its site is hallowed to history. To the Corcyreans by whom the
first town was founded it was known as Epidamnus, the “far away.”
The Romans changed its name to Dyrrachium. In classical times the
port was the point of transshipment for merchandise en route from
Italy to Macedonia or northern Greece. At the height of Venetian
commercial supremacy, the seaport fully retained its ancient
prosperity. The wharves to which Venetian galleys were moored are
still intact. Although the city is the modern commercial center of
Albania it has lost much of its ancient activity.
None of these Albanian harbors are comparable in strategic
importance to Valona, which is situated opposite Brindisi and on
that portion of the Albanian coast nearest Italy. The holders of
this seaport will control the strait of Otranto and thereby have
mastery of the Adriatic. From a military standpoint, the bay facing
the town is eminently suited to become a strongly fortified naval
station. It is provided with a number of safe anchorages. The
island of Sasseno facing the entrance affords shelter from the
roughness of the open sea and forms at the same time a natural
outpost. Italian and Austrian statesmen, the former especially,
are fully aware of the importance of this Albanian harbor in the
Adriatic question. The aim of each is to plant their country’s flag
on the crenelated remnants of the ancient forts which overlook the
bay. Greece also aspires to the possession of the seaport. In her
case the claim is made that the majority of the inhabitants are of
Greek descent. An attempt to obtain mastery of the position was
made by Greece in the spring of 1913 when she landed in Sasseno.
An energetic protest from the Italian government forced Greece to
recall her troops. The island was occupied by Italian troops in the
fall of 1914.
Valona is the outlet of a region whose population consists mainly
of Mohammedan Albanians. Its commercial insignificance is largely
due to the character of its inhabitants. Had it been peopled by
a majority of Greeks, or even Christian Albanians, its influence
might have been felt in the midst of international rivalries.
Whatever destiny is in store for Albania, it seems as if, in view
of the non-Greek character of the Valonian population, Italian or
Austrian claims would stand greater chance of being heeded.
Of the 8,000 or 10,000 inhabitants of Valona over one-half are
Albanian Mohammedans who adhere to the use of their vernacular.
Greek is spoken extensively by Orthodox Albanians and Greeks, who
together form the next largest religious community. Among Catholics
the cultural influence of Italian prevails. In fact most of the
Albanian Catholics residing in the town have forsaken their native
language for Italian. Through the medium of these Catholics the
only sphere of Italian influence in Albania deserving mention is
found in Valona and the environing district. This western influence
is hardly felt, however, beyond a distance of about 35 miles inland
from the harbor or by more than 20,000 souls. Albanian anarchy
holds sway to the north. Southward Greek influence is strongly
exerted through the agency of the Orthodox church.
Elsewhere in the Balkan peninsula linguistic groupings now
conform largely to the political divisions which ended the wars
of 1912-1913. The future will undoubtedly afford an increasingly
satisfactory perspective of the results which followed this
attempt to eliminate totally the Turk from this portion of the
European continent. Racial siftings followed close on territorial
readjustments. Turks from all parts of the former Turkish provinces
transferred their lands to Christian residents and emigrated to
Asia Minor. Special arrangements for this exodus were provided
by the Turkish government. Greeks who were settled in the newly
acquired Bulgarian and Serbian domain similarly sought new
homes within the boundaries of the Hellenic kingdom. A heavy
flow of Bulgarian emigrants was also directed to Bulgaria from
Bulgarian-speaking territory allotted to Serbia.[192]
But pressing need of further boundary revision on the basis of
language is felt in the peninsula. Resumption of hostilities in
this part of Europe in 1915 was due principally to the moot case
of the nationality of the Slavs of Macedonia. Serbs and Bulgars
both claim them as their own. In reality the Macedonians are a
transition people between the two. They occupy a distinctive area
formed by the twin valleys of the Vardar and Struma and surrounded
by a mountainous bulwark assuming crescentic shape as it spreads
along the Balkan ranges and the mountains of Albania and the
Pindus. For centuries this Macedonian plain has constituted the
cockpit of a struggle waged for linguistic supremacy on the part
of Bulgarians and Serbs. The land had formed part of the domain of
each of the two countries in the heyday of their national life. To
this fact in part the present duality of claim must be ascribed.
The entire northwestern Macedonian highland was under Serbian
rule until the fall of 1915. East and south of the mountains
Bulgarian speech predominates in districts peopled exclusively
by Macedonians. The Greek element is practically entirely absent
here; Serbians begin to appear in small numbers; south of Monastir
and Okrida offshoots of the Pindus Rumanians are found; but the
Macedonian element is present everywhere in overwhelming majority.
[Illustration:
FIG. 53--Sketch map of the western Balkans. The dotted area
represents the northern area of Greek language. Black dots show
Rumanian settlements of the Pindus mountains and adjoining
regions.]
Physically Macedonia is the region of the basins of the Vardar and
Struma. Under Turkish rule it was divided into the vilayets of
Monastir, Uskub and Salonica. The area is isolated from the rest
of the peninsula by a practically continuous line of mountains,
which, starting with the Pindus, Grammos and Albanian ranges on the
west, extend through the Shar, Suhagora, Osogov and Rilo uplifts
on the north and connect on the east with the Rhodope massif.
Macedonia is thus well defined on the surface. Within these natural
boundaries, it may be divided into an elevated region extending
over its northwestern portion and a lowland spreading thence to
Ægean waters. The Bistritza valley forms a convenient feature to
mark the beginning of the modern Hellenic area.
In a restricted sense physical Macedonia may be defined as the
southerly extension of the Serbian mountain belt whose drainage
leads to the Ægean. Thus it consists first of a mountain belt
extending between the upper valleys of the Black Drin and Struma.
To this zone must also be added a hill country which forms its
continuation to the Ægean Sea. The Vardar valley is entirely within
this area and divides it into equal east and west sections. The
northern boundary of the area is found at the central watershed
north of Uskub. Four important basins lie within these boundaries.
The Tetovo basin, west of Uskub, lies close to the watershed.
Southward the Monastir and Strumitza basins occupy approximately
homologous positions with respect to the Vardar cut. The twin
basin of Serres and Drama extends over the southeastern portion of
the country. These basins have been the only important centers of
Macedonian populations.
The Macedonian highland is peopled by shepherds and woodcutters.
The lowlanders are husbandmen. All are generally bilingual,
speaking either Greek and Bulgarian or Bulgarian and Serbian.
A knowledge of Turkish usually prevails among all classes.
Occupation generally affords a reliable national clue. As a rule
the Macedonians, and by this term we shall hereafter denote the
Bulgarian-speaking element of Macedonia, are tillers of the soil.
The Greeks are traders and control a large share of the commerce of
the entire region. Land is held by the Macedonians or the former
ruling Turkish gentry. It is worked however by the Macedonians.
The inhabitants of Macedonia may be divided into four groups
according to their vernaculars. The number of individuals in each
group is estimated as follows:[193]
Bulgarians 1,172,136 or 81.5% of the total Christian population.
Greeks 190,047 “ 13.22 “ “ “ “ “
Rumanians 63,895 “ 4.44 “ “ “ “ “
Albanians[194] 12,006 “ 0.84 “ “ “ “ “
The Bulgarians form a compact mass containing slight admixture
of alien elements in northern and central Macedonia. Many
of the occasional Greek communities encountered within this
area are former Slav or Albanian centers having passed under
the sphere of the Greek religious propaganda which has been
actively carried on as a means of increasing the Hellenic
domain. The instrument of Hellenization was the Patriarchate at
Constantinople. The Patriarchs, bearing the title of Œcumenical,
considered themselves as apostles of the Greater Greece idea.
After the fall of Byzantium, and notably after the closing of the
Bulgarian Patriarchate of Okrida, the Œcumenical Patriarchate
of Constantinople was the only official church established in
Turkey for Christians. Its influence, directed through schools and
churches, aimed above all to Hellenize Christians. The clergy was
directed to convert to Orthodoxy the greatest possible number of
Christians of alien denomination and, at the same time, attempt to
enforce the use of Greek speech among non-Mohammedans.
The Greeks of Macedonia are as mixed a people as can be found on
the surface of the earth. Inhabitants of cities are strongly mixed
with Albanian and Slav populations. Strains of Tatar blood can
even be detected among them. The Mediterranean type becomes more
pronounced as Thessaly is approached. In unfrequented villages,
however, the tourist will not uncommonly find living impersonations
of the sculptor’s classical conception of the human form. This
Greek element predominates in the valley of the Bistritza, which,
regionally, should be considered as the northeastern boundary of
the area of the Greek speech.
The Slavs of Macedonia are, in many respects, distinct in character
from the other Slavs of the Balkan peninsula. National feeling
among them is less strongly developed than with the rest of the
southern Slavs. They are industrious and frugal--even grasping.
Yet there are marked exceptions which seem to prove that these
qualities are not natural to them but have been acquired under
the stress of circumstances. Macedonia is a land of poverty. It
may rank with southern Greece as the poorest land in the Balkan
peninsula. Of little fertility, extensively deforested and without
particularly good pasture land, the country cannot support its
relatively numerous population, and therefore an important
occupation with the Macedonians is the taking of service in menial
capacity in foreign countries--“Petchalba,” as it is called.
The language of the Macedonians is intermediate between Serbian and
Bulgarian. Its affinity with the latter, however, is sufficiently
pronounced to have led generally to merging. Travelers in the land
of the Macedonian Slavs soon learn that a knowledge of Bulgarian
will obviate difficulties due to ignorance of the country’s
vernaculars. Serbian, however, is not as readily intelligible to
the natives. This relation has favored the Bulgarian side whenever
controversy arose and compilers of linguistic or ethnographic
maps have generally abstained from differentiating the Macedonian
from the Bulgarian area.[195] The impossibility for Bulgarians to
regard the terms of the treaty of Bucarest as final is, therefore,
obvious. Extension of the Rumanian boundary to the Turtukai-Black
Sea line was also an encroachment on soil where Bulgarian was the
predominant language.[196]
The area of Bulgarian speech awarded to Greece by the treaty of
Bucarest in 1913 attains the Albanian boundary near Lakes Prespa
and Kastoria. The upper valley of the Bistritza river crosses
a region peopled by Macedonians. The former Turkish caza of
Kastoria contained a majority of Bulgarian-speaking inhabitants.
The domain of Greek speech begins south of Lapsista and extends
eastward halfway between Kailar and Kochana. Greek predominance is
maintained around Karaferia. The environs of Salonica contain a
slight excess of Greek inhabitants over Bulgarians, but the Greek
element is not as closely attached to the land as the Bulgarian.
The line of lakes on the north of the Chalcydic peninsula forms
the boundary between Greeks and Bulgarians, the latter element
extending north of these inland waters to the present Bulgarian
frontier.
The loss of Macedonia was bitterly resented by Bulgarians,
not only on account of the racial ties which bind them to
Macedonians, but also because their country’s economic development
is hampered by the want of the harbors which constitute the
natural sea outlets for the rearlands under Bulgarian rule. The
industrial and commercial development of southwestern Bulgaria
is handicapped at present by the necessity of shipping the
products of the region over a devious stretch of railroad through
Sofia-Philippopoli-Dedeagatch. The alternative via Serbia or Greece
is equally costly. The population of a considerable portion of the
country is, therefore, unable to compete with rival producers of
the two neighboring countries.
In the first half of 1913 negotiations between the Greek and
Bulgarian governments were in progress for the division of lands
conquered from the Turks. At that time the Greek government was
willing to recognize Bulgarian sovereignty over the cazas of
Kavalla, Drama, Pravista, Serres, Demir-Hissar and Kukush. This
was done on Mr. Venizelos’ understanding that these districts
were sparsely inhabited by Greeks,[197] and that Kavalla was the
natural seaport of the districts of Strumnitza, Melnik, Jumaya,
Nevrokop and Razlog.
Many of the districts thus offered to Bulgaria were peopled mainly
by Turks. According to Turkish statistics the caza of Kara-Shaban
does not contain a single Christian village. Its population
consists almost entirely of Turks numbering about 15,000. The caza
of Kavalla, having a population of 30,000, is likewise largely
Turkish. The Greek element is reckoned at about 4,000, while
some 3,500 Pomaks or Bulgarian Mohammedans are scattered in many
villages.
Of the 50,000 inhabitants of the caza of Drama fully one-half
were Turks, the number of Greeks hardly attained 4,000, while the
Bulgarian element consisted of 20,000 inhabitants divided into
equal numbers of Exarchists and Pomaks. In the caza of Serres, the
Bulgarians number approximately 40,000, while the Greek population
comprises 27,000.[198] The caza of Demir-Hissar contains 33,000
Bulgarians out of a population of 50,250. The Greeks number about
250. In Kukush there are no Greeks at all. The population of this
caza consists mainly of 20,000 Turks out of a total of 23,000
inhabitants. It should be remembered that the Turks emigrated en
masse from this district after the treaty of Bucarest and that,
barring forcible expulsion by the Greeks, the population of all
this section of southeastern Macedonia is now overwhelmingly
Bulgarian.
Prior to Philip’s time, Macedonia was a little-known mountainous
province constantly overrun by Thracians and Illyrians. Soon after
the overthrow of the Macedonian Empire by the Romans in 168 B.C.
the region took its place among Roman provinces and eventually
formed part of the Byzantine Empire. Rapacious Goths under Alaric
brought havoc to the land after its fortunes were bound to that of
the dominant eastern state. The Slavs made their appearance during
the reign of Justinian. Their colonies had attained importance
while Heraclius was on the throne. In the tenth century, Macedonia
became part of the great Bulgarian kingdom, but gravitated later
towards Byzantium, though not without having been the scene of
disastrous struggles between Byzantine hosts and their barbarian
foes. Turks and Tatars first overran the country in this period
and even founded colonies. The two invasions from the east, of
the Slavs and of the Turks, must have wrought profound changes in
the Macedonian populations. A short period of Serbian rule was
undergone in the fourteenth century. In the fifteenth, Macedonia
became an integral portion of the Ottoman dominions and preserved
this political status until its rescue during the Balkan wars of
1912-1913.
Ethnically Macedonians and Bulgarians consist of mixed European and
Asiatic elements. The oldest layer in the population is Thracian.
This local stock peopled the land at the time of the Roman conquest
and was strongly Romanized during the subsequent centuries. Slavs
overran the country in the sixth century. The Bulgarians made
their appearance in the seventh. Turks, or rather Mongol and Tatar
hordes, began their invasions in the eighth. These Asiatics were
nomads. They made excellent soldiers but poor settlers. Their
settlements, which were made at strategic points, can be recognized
today by their commanding sites.
It is hard to determine how much of the Slav or of the Tatar exists
in the average Bulgarian of our day. The history of the land during
the second half of the first Christian millennium is a record of
constant invasions from the east. The invaders appear at first
to have been Slavs from the southern steppes of western Russia.
As time goes on, however, Bulgaria is seen to absorb wanderers
proceeding from more and more distant districts in the southern
belts of the steppeland which forms the continuation of Europe into
Asia. Slavic culture and speech preserved by the Bulgarians seem
but the veil that hides their strong Asiatic affinity.
The fundamental difference between the temper of the Serbian and
the Bulgarian is apparent to travelers in Balkan lands. The former
are true Slavs. They are lighthearted and always ready to make
merry. Their mountains re-echo with folk songs of the genuine
Slavic type. The Bulgarian on the other hand is inclined to
silence. Both peoples are equally industrious, but in the Serbian
the mobile and restless spirit of the west is discernible, while
the Bulgarian is as slow and ponderous a thinker as ever was bred
on the vast and open stretches of Eurasia’s central lowlands.
Proof of the Altaic origin of some of the Bulgarians is derived
from philology. To be sure, the Bulgarian and Turkish languages,
as now spoken, prevent mutual understanding, even though a number
of Turkish words have crept into Bulgarian in the course of the
centuries of Turkish rule. These are mostly modern words, however,
which did not exist at the time of the Asiatic migrations. On the
other hand, a deeper etymological bond is found in the words for
both wild and domestic animals, which are very similar in the two
languages. In the same way the old stock of words relating to
agricultural or pastoral pursuits are very closely akin in Turkish
and Hungarian. An interesting feature of the peopling of Bulgaria
is the modern tendency of the Bulgarian to abandon his ancient
home in the Balkan mountains and seek the fertile lowlands of the
country’s main valleys. A steady emigration from mountain to plain
has been going on since the Turks withdrew their garrisons from
Bulgaria. This movement reflects a sense of security which followed
the expulsion of the Turks. It is not yet ended. The fertile
basins of southeastern Bulgaria are still sparsely populated. The
reason is clear. They were peopled largely by Turks who preferred
to retire on Turkish soil after the Balkan wars of 1912-1913. The
Bulgarians have not yet had time to occupy the territory abandoned
by the Turks.
After the Turkish conquest Turkish historians, particularly Evlia
Tchelebi and Sa’aeddin, constantly refer to the Macedonians as
Bulgarians. This belief was held by the Turks until the end of
their rule of the province. The first Bulgarian bishop authorized
by the Turkish government was appointed for the diocese of Uskub
and southern districts. This appointment followed census-taking in
the district which indicated Bulgarian predominance.
In southwestern Macedonia the inhabitants of the districts of
Kastoria, Florina and Kailar are generally Bulgarians. Even in the
Mohammedan villages, as, for example, Grevena and Nedilia, nothing
but Bulgarian is heard. The fundamental Bulgarian character of the
entire region is furthermore established by place names which are
Bulgarian in spite of secular infiltrations of Greeks, Albanians
and Turks.
This portion of Macedonia along with the Vodena, Yenije-Vardar
and Salonica districts which were lately allotted to Greece,
constitute an interesting linguistic zone. Here alone, of all
Bulgarian-speaking regions, have been preserved forms peculiar
to the old Bulgarian language. The speech of the inhabitants of
Kastoria in particular reveals antiquated styles which are found
only in the first manuscripts prepared for the use of Christian
Slavs.
At the ambassadorial conference of Constantinople in 1876 the cazas
of Kastoria and Florina were included within the boundaries of
the proposed autonomous province which was to have Sofia as its
capital. The treaty of San Stefano likewise comprised the districts
under the newly created Bulgaria. These considerations suffice
in themselves to demonstrate the Bulgarian nationality of the
inhabitants of the present northern confines of Greece.
The Serbian claim on portions of Macedonia acquired after the
Balkan war of 1913 rests largely on a relatively short term of
military occupation at the height of the Serbian might in the
fourteenth century. This is made the basis of an historical
plea. The crowning of Dushan, their most renowned ruler, in the
city of Uskub however did not change the national character of
the inhabitants of the city or the districts surrounding it.
Furthermore, Serbian rule in Macedonia was preceded by Bulgarian
sovereignty and was followed by Byzantine supremacy over the land.
Greeks and Bulgarians may therefore buttress their claims on
equally valid historical contentions. Samuel, one of the Bulgarian
Czars, had extended his domain as far west as the Adriatic. His
success in adding the seaport of Durazzo to his land, however,
failed to change the Serbian nationality of the western districts
he managed to conquer.
Only in recent years have Serbian claims on Macedonia been set
forth by Serbian scholars. Historians like Raitch, Solaritch and
Vouk Karadjitch formerly concurred in setting southern Serbian
frontiers at the Shar mountains. In 1860 Serbian scientific
societies had joined in the publication of Macedonian songs
collected by Verkovitch under the title of “Bulgarian Songs.”
Serbian writers of the period around 1870 describe inland
inhabitants of Thrace, Rumelia and Macedonia as Bulgarians, while
they recognized the coast dwellers as Greeks.[199]
A transition dialect between Bulgarian and Serbian is spoken by the
inhabitants of the Krajste and Vlasina valleys in eastern Serbia.
The Krajste, an ill-known region, skirts the Serbo-Bulgarian
boundary and spreads eastward to the basins of Tren and Kustendil.
The Vlasina upper valley is known to Serbians as containing the
most important peat bog in their country. The two districts are
characterized by seasonal migrations of their inhabitants which
acquire decided intensity in the Vlasina valley.[200]
In its westernmost area the delimitation of a Bulgarian
linguistic boundary is greatly hampered by the relatively large
Serbian-speaking element on the north and a corresponding mass of
Greeks on the south. Reliable statistics are still unavailable.
Figures supplied by rival nationalist propaganda institutions
are for obvious reasons open to suspicion. The region where the
determination of this linguistic boundary is most difficult is
found in the neighborhood of Pirot and Vrania. Here the language of
the Slavic natives departs equally from the Bulgarian and Serbian.
This region, however, lies north of Macedonia proper. At the same
time there appears to be little room to doubt that the area of
Bulgarian speech attains the zone of the eastern Albanian dialects
and that it attains the Gulf of Salonica. But the seafaring
population of the Ægean coast is largely Greek.
Salonica itself is by no means a Bulgarian city, but an excellent
type of the polylingual cities of the Near East. Out of a
population of 160,000 inhabitants, it contains 20,000 Greeks and
an equal number of Europeans and Turks respectively. Its Bulgarian
population is negligible. The most numerous element is made up
of Jews who, it is estimated, constitute about one-half of the
population. Next to Constantinople, Salonica is the best harbor in
the Balkans. It is coveted by the Bulgarians on the plea that the
population of the country environing Salonica is mostly Bulgar.
The city occupies a dominating position on the Ægean coast halfway
between Piraeus and Smyrna and has always been a meeting-point
of Europe and Asia. In a sense it is the eastern terminal of
continental lines with which it is connected by the railroad which
passes through Nish and Uskub. In this light the city may be
likened to one of the piles of a gigantic bridge thrown across the
Ægean to connect Europe and Asia. It is the natural outlet of the
greatest part of Macedonia. Inland towns all the way from Ipek,
Prizrend and Mitrovitza to Monastir, Ishtip and Serres obtain the
goods which they need through Salonica. The products of the fertile
valleys of the Vardar and the Bistritza are almost exclusively
directed toward this harbor. The exchange of commodities between
Salonica and its rearlands reaches a yearly value of about
$100,000,000.
Whatever be the prevailing language spoken in this city, its
greatness depends entirely on the degree of freedom with which
its inhabitants can maintain trade with the districts extending
north and northwest. To maintain its size, or grow, the city must
continue to be the receiving point of manufactured goods shipped
into Macedonia as well as parts of Serbia and Albania. It must
also remain the shipping point for the natural products from those
same districts. To separate Macedonia from Salonica, its natural
harbor, is to create an unnatural condition. The city draws its
life from the resources of Macedonia. Its prosperity is therefore
directly related to the political fate of that country.
Bulgaria was independent during three different periods of its
history. The first kingdom was founded in 679 when Bulgarian bands
led by Asparush crossed the Danube and conquered the Slavs who had
previously occupied Bulgaria. Conquest carried his successors to
the very gates of Constantinople. At the end of the ninth century
under the reign of Simon, the second Christian ruler of the
country, the kingdom comprised all of Hungary, Rumania, Macedonia,
Thessaly, Epirus and Serbia in addition to its present territory.
Preslav was its capital. Bulgaria had then an area of 233,300 sq. m.
The Byzantines conquered Bulgaria in 1018 and maintained their
supremacy until 1186. The second kingdom was reëstablished in
that year with Assen I as its sovereign. In the reign of Assen II
(1218-1241), Bulgarian territory reached the Adriatic, Ægean and
Black seas and the Danube formed its northern frontier. Tirnovo was
the capital of the second kingdom. Bulgaria was at that time one
of the great European powers. Its area was then 113,100 sq. m. The
third kingdom dates from the year 1877.
Several attempts have been made in the past to create a Bulgaria
which would extend as far as the country’s language was spoken.
Towards the end of 1876 an international conference was held in
Constantinople to put an end to the intolerable condition of
the Christians inhabiting this portion of the Balkan peninsula.
The delegates decided to form two new Turkish provinces, the
boundaries of which would coincide with the ethnographic limit of
the Bulgarian people. Sofia and Tirnovo were selected as the chief
towns of the new provinces. The Sultan’s government succeeded in
blocking the execution of this project. War with Russia followed
and Russian victories forced Turkey to sign the memorable treaty of
San Stefano on February 19, 1878.
The boundary then decided upon was practically identical with
that provided by the ambassadorial conference of Constantinople.
Bulgaria however obtained in addition a band of territory in
Thrace and access to the Ægean through the seaport of Kavalla and
the mouth of the Vardar. In exchange, the principality lost the
Dobrudja to Rumania and a portion of the sanjak of Nish with the
towns of Nish and Leskovatz to Serbia. Russia at San Stefano had,
therefore, merely enforced execution of the agreement reached
jointly by the representatives of European powers. The treaty
she imposed on the Porte was from the linguistic standpoint an
improvement on the ambassadorial plan elaborated at Constantinople.
Unfortunately for Bulgaria, the unity of the nation failed to
receive the sanction of Europe at the treaty of Berlin in spite
of the sound scientific basis on which it was founded. Political
and strategical considerations, on the plea of which many
international blunders have been committed, prevailed. After this
act of injustice Bulgarians organized themselves to reclaim the
land of which they had been despoiled. Thirty-five years were spent
in preparation. On February 19, 1913, Bulgar guns and bayonets,
backed by Bulgar determination, had almost reëstablished the
national unity for which they had striven. This new effort was not
to be crowned with success. Only in the winter of 1914-1915 were
the Bulgarians able to occupy with their arms the territories of
Bulgarian speech which had been allotted to Serbia by the treaty of
Bucarest. The permanency of this occupation is, needless to state,
subject to international approval.
The extreme southeastern angle of the Balkan peninsula, east of
the Maritza river, is probably the most polyglot region in Europe.
The valley of the Maritza is mainly Bulgarian. Numerous colonies
of Greeks settled along the coast between the Dardanelles and the
Black Sea entrance of the Bosporus ply their trade as fishermen or
sailors. The petty coastwise traffic is almost entirely in their
hands. The Bulgarians are mainly farmers. Their properties are
scattered east to the very walls of the world-metropolis which
brings fame to the region. Within Constantinople itself truck
gardens are generally owned and exploited by Bulgarians. Bulgarian
and Greek languages are therefore common in this peninsula
extremity of Europe. The latter however is in constant use by most
of the inhabitants, whereas Bulgarian is restricted to the Slavic
element.
The Turkish masters of the land were never able to impose their
language on the Christian population. Many of the Greek and
Bulgarian inhabitants of the region cannot speak a word of Turkish.
The fact is particularly observable among Greeks. The language of
the conqueror hovers over the land as the medium of administration.
Its function ceases then, as far as the Christian element of the
region is concerned. The Turkish population in this bit of the
Balkan peninsula is numerous, owing to the attraction exerted by
the capital. Reliable census figures are unavailable. Thanks to
the presence of a strong garrison and a host of civil-service
officials the Turkish population of Constantinople, added to the
Turks remaining in the strip of European Turkey still owned by the
Sultan after the treaty of Bucarest of 1913, probably musters as
many individuals as those to whom Greek is vernacular. An important
Armenian colony is centered at Constantinople and radiates in
settlements without the capital. These Christians also have held
fast to their native speech, although most of them can claim
proficiency in Turkish. This familiarity with the language of their
conquerors betrays their Asiatic origin, in contrast with the
ignorance of Turkish found among the Greeks, who never forget their
European affinities.
In Europe the Turk, child of the ungrateful Asiatic steppeland, has
always been the heartily despised intruder. He has shown himself
incompetent to follow up the task of conquest by assimilating the
peoples he subdued. Perhaps his lack of national ideals lies at
the root of his failure. The language he imposed on his Christian
subjects never replaced their vernacular. It was spoken only by the
males of the subdued populations. Only in rare instances did it
penetrate within their households. Hence, Turks never felt at home
in Europe. They knew that their nomad’s tent was pitched only for
a while on the continent in which they sojourned as conquerors and
as strangers. They were emigrants who had lost all memory of their
land of origin and who nevertheless could not adapt themselves
to the land which their bravery had won. The state they founded
had a weak head and no heart whatever. Under these conditions the
expulsion of Turks from Europe could always be foreseen in spite of
the weary years it took to accomplish it.
Every boundary revision that marks the successive shrinking
of Turkish territory in Europe has been attended by wholesale
emigration of Mohammedans from lands reclaimed by Christians.
Immediately after the Balkan wars of 1913 about 50,000 Turks
voluntarily departed for Asia Minor from territory allotted to
Greece. An equal number left sections of Macedonia taken over by
Serbia, while about 25,000 abandoned land annexed by Bulgaria.
The historical fact is that Turks have never consented to live in
a land governed by Christians. In 1882 Thessaly was annexed to
Greece by a decision of European powers. No armed conflict between
Greece and Turkey took place on that occasion and racial hatred had
not been increased by the horrors of war. The Greek government at
that time offered special inducements to the Turkish inhabitants
of the ceded territory to remain on their land and continue their
agricultural pursuits. The Turks, however, preferred to emigrate to
the Sultan’s domain.
When Crete was awarded to Greece over 50,000 of the 80,000 Turkish
inhabitants of the island abandoned their homes and decided to
settle in Asiatic Turkey. This exodus took place in spite of the
perfect security of life and property that had prevailed in the
island since its administration was taken over by a committee of
Europeans in 1877. This tendency of Turks to forsake Christian
countries is observable even in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where the
Austrian government has shown decided favor toward Mohammedan
inhabitants, considering them more loyal than other elements of its
southeastern population.
The Turk’s last stand in Europe marks the final stage of his
colossal struggle to retain mastery over the Dardanelles and
Bosporus to which the highways of Europe and Asia lead. The
Bosporus is the junction of two important world routes. One
of these connects the peoples of central Europe with the
crowded settlements of British India. The other is the line of
communication between the commercial ports of the Mediterranean
and the caravan terminals on the Black Sea coast. Each of these
highways has constituted a channel through which the trade
between eastern and western lands has been directed from the very
beginnings of commerce. The narrowness of this Eurasian waterway
permitted continuous travel between two continents, while the
straits allowed uninterrupted maritime travel from Black Sea
harbors to distant seaports of the western world. Modern railway
communications have benefited by the former circumstance. The sea
commerce of medieval days thrived on the latter.
The entire European coast of the elongated waterways which
connect the Ægean and Black seas is inhabited by peoples speaking
languages each of which symbolizes conflicting aims and aspirations
without being strong enough to silence its rivals. From the
political standpoint the linguistic factor appears to be of slight
value in this case. Economic needs, to the exclusion of other
considerations, will probably determine the destiny of this region.
The relation of a region to the world depends in general upon its
economic value. The importance of this southeasterly strip of the
Balkan peninsula is therefore affected by its central location with
reference to the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa. Between
Paris and Bagdad, or the Cape of Good Hope, the overland route
is continuous save for a short mile of water at the Bosporus and
an equally insignificant crossing at the Isthmus of Suez, in the
case of African travel. Herein lies the economic relation of this
portion of the Balkan peninsula to the rest of the world. But the
European coastland of the intercontinental strait separating Europe
from Asia does not constitute a complete region. The Asiatic coast
of the waterways must be taken with the European and a single
district formed out of the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmora and
the Bosporus with their coasts and shores. This region is the
threshold of Asia and conversely the entrance to Europe from the
east.
A Balkan zone of depression extending west and south of the Balkan
uplift affords natural access between the valley of the Danube
proceeding from the heart of Europe and the Dardanelles-Bosporus
passage. This convenient gap is provided by the wide valley of the
Morava and the narrower Nishava course which lead to the Sofia
basin, whence penetration into the Thracian plains is obtained by
the Maritza valley. The corresponding function for the Asiatic
shore is performed by the valley of the Sakaria and in a less
degree by the Pursak river depression--both trending westward from
the high plateau of western Asia.
The main roads from the Bosporus and the Dardanelles to the Sakaria
river valley skirt the shores of the straits of the Marmora,
as they follow a coastal lowland which fringes the Dardanian
and Bithynian heights. At Panderma however the old highway
strikes inland slightly south of east to Brusa in order to avoid
the elevated plateau intervening between the Marmora and Lake
Abullonia. Thence, still following a line of least elevation, it
winds towards the small harbor of Ghemlik (the Cius of Graeco-Roman
times) until beyond Isnik (ancient Nicaea of ecclesiastical fame)
it debouches into the waters of the Sakaria.
These natural features connect the heart of Europe with the high
plateaus of western and central Asia as well as with the fertile
Mesopotamian lowland and the Indian peninsulas. The silk sent to
Europe from eastern Asia in medieval days followed this road. The
route has declined since the construction of the Suez waterway.
Railway lines planned to connect Channel ports with the Gulf of
Persia will restore the commercial value of the region. The value
of the Bosporus as an avenue of trade remains unimpaired in modern
days. It is the only maritime outlet for the export of the cereals
and farm products of southern Russia and the oil of the Caucasus.
Hence the commercial importance of Constantinople. The city is a
huge caravanserai--the meeting place of traders from the world’s
remotest corners. Control of its commanding position is coveted by
every nation whose citizens depend on industry and trade for their
welfare. The commerce of three continents lies within its grasp.
The political status of the extreme southeastern corner of the
Balkan peninsula, together with that of the extreme northwestern
corner of Asia Minor, therefore affects the interests of the entire
community of European nations.
We have in this a factor which may exert greater weight than
language in the eventual formation of an independent political
unit comprising the elongated zone of coastland inclosing the
Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmora and the Bosporus. A convenient
boundary for this territory in the Balkans might start at the
Gulf of Saros and, coinciding thence with the heights overlooking
Rodosto, might reach the course of the Chorlu. From here to the
Black Sea coast the administrative boundary of the vilayet of
Constantinople might be converted into an international frontier.
This delimitation would leave the valley of the Maritza in
Bulgarian hands. This award is justifiable not because the beauty
of the river banks is proclaimed in the Bulgarian national hymn,
but rather on the grounds of Bulgarian linguistic preponderance in
this valley. Substantial coincidence between Bulgarian political
and linguistic boundaries on the southeast would then have been
obtained.[201]
FOOTNOTES:
[189] Reliable estimates of the population of Albania are given by
Petrovich in “Servia: Her People, History and Aspirations,” London,
1915, p. 175. According to this author the country is inhabited by:
Arnauts (Mohammedans) 350,000
Tosks (Orthodox) 350,000
Mirdites (Roman Catholics) 300,000
Serbs (Orthodox) 250,000
Greeks (Orthodox) 150,000
Bulgarians (Orthodox) 50,000
Turks (Mohammedans) 50,000
--------
Total 1,500,000
[190] G. Gravier: L’Albanie et ses limites, _Rev. de Paris_, Jan.
1, 1913, pp. 200-224.
[191] L. Büchner: Die neue griechisch-albanische Grenze in
Nordepirus, _Pet. Mitt._, Vol. 61, Feb. 1915, p. 68.
[192] Such migrations generally follow boundary revisions. The
crossing of Alsatians into French territory since 1870 has been
already mentioned. A large number of Danes abandoned their home in
Schleswig-Holstein in 1865, and wandered into Denmark.
[193] D. M. Brancoff: La Macédoine et sa population chrétienne,
Paris, 1905.
[194] The number of Serbians scattered in the highland region of
northern Macedonia has been omitted, probably owing to its relative
inferiority.
[195] D. M. Brancoff: La Macédoine et sa population chrétienne,
Paris, 1905. The Serbian viewpoint is resumed by J. Cvijić in
“Ethnographie de la Macédoine,” _Ann. de Géogr._, Vol. 15, 1906,
pp. 115-132 and 249-266.
[196] R. A. Tsanoff in the _Journ. of Race Develop._ (Jan. 1915, p.
251) estimates that 1,198,000 Bulgarians have passed under foreign
rule as a result of the treaty of Bucarest. Of those 286,000 have
become subjects of Rumania, 315,000 of Greece and 597,000 of Serbia.
[197] A. Schopoff: The Balkan States and the Federal Principle,
_Asiat. Rev._, July 1, 1915, p. 21.
[198] Brancoff: op. cit., p. 23.
[199] _L’Écho de la Bulgarie._ Dec. 20, 1914.
[200] R. T. Nikolić: Krajste i Vlasina, _Naselia Srpskikh zemalia_,
Vol. 8, 1912, pp. 1-380.
[201] On the Asiatic side the valley of the Sakaria and a long
fault revealed by the line of lakes east of the Marmora provide
ready-made frontiers which could be conveniently extended to the
Gulf of Adramyt on the Ægean. This line constituted the Asiatic
boundary of the Latin Empire of Constantinople in the period
intervening between the years 1204 and 1261.