who occupy both slopes. Their upper valleys, however, are but
thinly inhabited, and we may travel for days without meeting with
any habitations excepting the rude huts of shepherds. The political
boundary traced along the crest of the mountains is merely an imaginary
line, passing through the forest solitudes of vast extent. Excepting
near the only high-road, and the paths which join Transylvania to the
plains of Wallachia, these mountains remain in a state of nature. The
chamois is still hunted there, and not long since even bisons were met
with. The Tsigani penetrates these mountains in search of the brown or
black bears which he exhibits in the villages. He places a jar filled
with brandy and honey near the beast’s haunt, and, as soon as the bear
and his family have become helplessly intoxicated, they are seized and
placed in chains.
The physical configuration of Rumania is extremely simple. In Moldavia
low ridges running parallel with the high mountain chain extend from
the north-west to the south-east, being separated from each other by
the valleys of the Bistritza, Moldava, and Sereth, and sinking down
gradually into the plains of the Danube. In Wallachia the southern
spurs of the Transylvanian Alps ramify with remarkable regularity, and
the torrents which descend from them all run in the same direction.
The rivers, whether they rise at the foot of the hills or traverse the
entire width of the mountains, such as the Sil, Shil, or Jiul, the Olto
or Aluta, and the Buseo, turn towards the east before their waters
mingle with those of the Danube.
The slope of the hills is pretty uniform from the crest of the
mountains to the plain of the Danube, and the zones of temperature
and vegetation succeed each other with singular regularity. Summits
covered with forests of conifers and birch, and clad with snow during
winter, rise near the frontiers of Transylvania. These are succeeded by
mountains of inferior height, where beeches and chestnuts predominate,
and all the picturesque beauties of European forest scenery are met
with. Lower still we come upon gentle hills, with groves of oaks and
maples, and their sunny sides covered with vines. Finally, we enter
the wide plains of the Danube, with their fruit trees, poplars, and
willows. The zone lying between the high mountains and the plain
abounds in localities rendered delightful by picturesque rocks,
luxuriant and varied verdure, and limpid streams. In this “happy
{158} Arcadia” we meet with most of the large monasteries, magnificent
castles with domes and towers, standing in the midst of parks and
gardens. As to the plains, they are no doubt barren and monotonous
in many places, but the villagers, though their habitations are half
buried in the ground, enjoy the magnificent prospect of the blue
mountains which bound the horizon. The most characteristic objects in
these lowlands are the huge hay-ricks already figured upon Trajan’s
column at Rome.
[Illustration: Fig. 44.—THE RIVERS SHIL AND OLTO.
Scale 1 : 1,400,000.]
{159}
The Rumanian campagna is a second Lombardy, not because of the high
state of its agriculture, but because of the fertility of its soil,
the beauty of the sky, and of the distant views. Unfortunately there
are no mountain barriers to protect it against the cold north-easterly
winds which predominate throughout the year. Extremes of cold and heat
have to be encountered.[46] The vines have to be covered with earth
to protect them against the colds of winter; and in South-eastern
Wallachia, which is most exposed to the violence of the winds, it
happens sometimes that herds of cattle and horses, flying before a
snow-storm, precipitate themselves into the floods of the Danube.
Several districts suffer from want of rain, and are veritable steppes.
Amongst these are the plains of the Baragan, between the Danube and
Yalomitza, where bustards abound, and a tree is not met with for miles.
Geologically we meet with a regular succession of formations, from the
granite on the mountain summits to the alluvial deposits along the
banks of the Danube. The rocks encountered on these southern slopes of
the Carpathians are of the same kind as those found in Galicia on their
northern slopes, and they yield the same mineral products, such as
rock-salt, gypsum, lithographic stones, and petroleum. Tertiary strata
predominate in the plains, but to the east of Ploiesti and Bucharest
only quaternary deposits of clay and pebbles are met with, in which are
found the bones of mammoths, elephants, and mastodons. The muddy rivers
which traverse these plains have excavated themselves sinuous beds, and
resemble large ditches.
The plain of Rumania, like that of Lombardy, is an ancient gulf of
the sea filled up by the débris washed down from the mountain sides.
But though the sea has retired, the Danube remains, pouring out vast
volumes of water, and offering great advantages to navigation. At the
famous defile of the Iron Gate, where this river enters the plain,
its bed has a depth of 155 feet, its surface lies 66 feet above the
level of the Black Sea, and its volume exceeds that of the combined
rivers of Western Europe, from the Rhone to the Rhine. The Romans, in
spite of this, had thrown a bridge across the river, immediately below
the Iron Gate, which was justly looked upon as one of the wonders of
the world. This work of architecture, which Apollodorus of Damas had
erected in honour of Trajan, was pulled down by order of the Emperor
Hadrian, who was anxious to save the expenses of the garrison required
for its protection. There only remain now the two abutments, and when
the waters are low the foundations of sixteen out of the twenty piers
which supported the bridge may still be seen. A Roman tower, which has
given name to the little town of Turnu Severin, marks the spot where
the Romans first placed their foot upon the soil of Dacia. The passage
from Servia to Rumania is as important as it was of yore, but modern
industry has not yet replaced Trajan’s bridge.
The Danube, like most rivers of our northern hemisphere, presses upon
its right bank, and this accounts for the difference between its
Wallachian and Bulgarian banks. The latter, gnawed by the floods, rises
steeply into little hills and {160} terraces, whilst the former rises
gently, and merges almost imperceptibly in the plains of Wallachia.
Swamps, lakes, creeks, and the remains of ancient river beds form a
riverine network, enclosing numerous islands and sand-banks. These
channels are subject to continual change, and to the south of the
Yalomitza may still be seen a line of swamps and lagoons, which marks
the course of an ancient river no longer existing. The lowlands on the
Wallachian side of the Danube are constantly increasing in extent,
whilst Bulgaria continuously suffers losses of territory. The latter,
however, is amply compensated for this by the salubrity of its soil and
the fine sites for commercial emporiums which it offers. It is said
that the beaver, which has been exterminated almost in every other part
of Europe, is still common in these half-drowned lands of Wallachia.
At a distance of thirty-eight miles from the sea, in a straight line,
the Danube strikes against the granitic heights of the Dobruja, and
abruptly turns to the north, subsequently to spread out into a delta.
In the course of this détour it receives its last tributaries of
importance, viz. the Moldavian Sereth and the Pruth. Thirty miles below
the mouth of the latter the Danube bifurcates. Its main branch, known
as that of Kilia, conveys about two-thirds of the entire volume of
its waters to the Black Sea, and forms the frontier between Rumania
and Turkish Bulgaria. The southern branch, or that of Tulcha, flows
entirely through Turkish territory. It separates into two branches, of
which that of Sulina is the main artery of navigation.
The main branch of the river is of the utmost importance when
considering the changes wrought upon the surface of the earth through
aqueous agencies. Below Ismail it ramifies into a multitude of
channels, which change continuously, new channels being excavated,
whilst others become choked with alluvial deposits carried down by
the floods. Twice the waters of the river are reunited into a single
channel before they finally spread out into a secondary delta jutting
into the Black Sea. The exterior development of this new land amounts
to about twelve miles, and supposing the sea to be of a uniform depth
of thirty-three feet, it would advance annually at the rate of 660
feet. Yet, in spite of this rapid increase, the coast, at the Kilia
mouth, juts out far less to the east than it does in the southern
portion of the delta, and we may conclude from this that the ancient
gulf of the sea, now filled up by the alluvial deposits brought down
by the Kilia branch, was far larger and deeper than those to the
south.[47] On examining a map of the Danubian delta, it will be found
that, by prolonging the coast-line of Bessarabia towards the south,
it crosses the delta. This is the ancient coast. It rises above the
half-drowned plains like an embankment, through which the branches of
the river forced themselves a passage to the sea. The alluvium brought
down by the Sulina and St. George’s mouths has been spread over a vast
plain lying outside this embankment, whilst that carried down through
what is at present the main branch forms only a small archipelago of
ill-defined islands {161} beyond it. We may conclude from this that
the latter is of more recent origin than the other arms.
In the course of its gradual encroachment upon the sea, the river has
cut off several lakes of considerable extent. On the coast between the
mouth of the Dniester and the delta of the Danube there are several
lagoons, or _limans_, of inconsiderable depth, the water of which
evaporates during the heat of summer, depositing a thin crust of salt.
In their general configuration, the nature of the surrounding land, and
parallelism of the rivers which flow into them, these sheets of water
are very much like the lakes met with more to the west, as far as the
mouth of the Pruth. These latter, however, are filled with fresh water,
and the sandy barriers at their lower ends separate them not from the
Black Sea, but from the Danube. There can be no doubt that these lakes
were anciently gulfs of the sea, similar in all respects to the lagoons
still existing along the coast. The Danube, by converting its ancient
gulf into a delta, separated them from the sea, and their saline water
was replaced by fresh water carried down by the rivers. The existing
saline lagoons will undergo the same metamorphosis, in proportion as
the delta of the Danube gains upon the sea.
[Illustration: Fig. 45.—THE DANUBE AND YALOMITZA.
Scale 1 : 1,443,000.]
The plains of Wallachia were defended formerly by an ancient line
of fortifications passing to the north of these Danubian lakes and
lagoons, and known as “Trajan’s Wall,” like the ditches, walls, and
entrenched camps in the Southern Dobruja. The inhabitants ascribe
their construction to Cæsar, although they are of {162} much later
date, having been erected by Trajan as a protection against the
Visigoths. This ancient barrier of defence coincided pretty nearly
with the political boundary between Russian and Rumanian Bessarabia,
and extended probably to the west of the Pruth, across the whole of
Moldavia and Wallachia. Vestiges of it still met with there are known
as the “Road of the Avares.” A second wall, still traceable between
Leova and Bender, defended the approaches to the valley of the Danube.
* * * * *
In spite of the diverse races which have overrun, conquered, or
devastated their territory, the inhabitants of Rumania, more fortunate
than their neighbours, have preserved their unity of race and language.
Wallachians and Moldavians form one people, and not only have they kept
intact their national territory, but they have actually encroached
upon the territories of their neighbours. Throughout Rumania, with the
exception of that portion of Bessarabia ceded by the Western powers
after the Crimean war, the inhabitants belonging to alien races are in
the minority.
The origin of this Latin-speaking nation is still shrouded in mystery.
Are they the descendants of Getæ and Latinised Dacians, or does the
blood of Italian colonists brought thither by Trajan, of legionaries
and Roman soldiers, predominate amongst them? To what extent have they
become amalgamated with their neighbours, the Slavs and Illyrians? What
share had the Celts in the formation of their nationality? Are the
“Little” Wallachians, the “men with the eighty teeth,”—so called on
account of their bravery,—the descendants of Celts? We cannot say with
certainty, for men of learning like Shafarik and Miklosich differ on
all these points. The vast plains at present inhabited by the Rumanians
became a wilderness in the third century, when the Emperor Aurelian
compelled their inhabitants to migrate to the right bank of the Danube.
If it is true that the descendants of these emigrants ever returned
to the seats of their ancestors, in the meantime occupied by Slavs,
Magyars, and Pecheneges, when did they do so? Miklosich presumes that
they did so towards the close of the fifth century; Roesler thinks in
the fourteenth, although ancient chroniclers of the eleventh century
mention Rumanians as dwelling in the Carpathians. Other authorities
deny that there was any re-immigration; they maintain that the
residue of the Latinised population sufficed for reconstituting the
nationality. Thus much is certain, that this small people has increased
wonderfully, and has become now the preponderating race on the Lower
Danube and in Transylvania.
[Illustration: WALLACHIANS (VALAKHS).]
Even in the seventeenth century the language spoken by the Rumanians
was treated as a rural dialect, and Slavonian was used in churches
and courts of justice. At the present day, on the contrary, Rumanian
patriots are anxious to purge their language of all Servian words,
and of Greek and Turkish expressions introduced during the dominion
of the Osmanli. The “Romans” of the Danube are endeavouring to polish
their tongue, so that it may rank with Italian and French. They have
abandoned the Russian characters, and their vocabulary is being
continually enriched by new words derived from the Latin. The idiom
spoken in the towns, which was the most impure {163} formerly, in
consequence of the influx of strangers, has now become more Latin than
that spoken in the country. There are, however, about two hundred
words not traceable to any known tongue, and these are supposed to
be a remnant of the ancient Dacian spoken at the period of the Roman
invasion. The Wallachian differs, moreover, from the Latin tongues of
Western Europe by always placing the article and the demonstrative
pronoun after the noun. The same rule obtains in Albanian and
Bulgarian, and Miklosich is probably right when he looks upon this as a
feature of the ancient language of the aborigines.
These niceties, however, are altogether unnoticed by the mass of the
people. The Rumanian peasant is proud of the ancient conquerors of his
country, and looks upon himself as the descendant of the patricians of
Rome. Several of his customs, at the birth of children, betrothals,
or burials, recall those observed by the Romans, and the dance of the
_Calushares_, it is said, may be traced back to the earliest Italian
settlers. The Wallachian is fond of talking about Father Trajan,
to whom he attributes all those feats which in other countries are
associated with Hercules, Fingal, or Ossian. Many a mountain valley
has been rent asunder by Trajan’s powerful hand; and the avalanches
descending from the hills are spoken of as Trajan’s thunder. The
Rumanian completely ignores Getæ, Dacians, or Goths, though in the
hills we still meet with tall men having blue eyes and long flaxen
hair, who are probably descended from the aboriginal inhabitants of the
country.
The Rumanians have generally fine sunburnt features, fair hair,
expressive eyes, a mouth finely shaped, and beautiful teeth. They
allow their hair to grow long, and sometimes even prefer to expatriate
themselves to sacrificing it to the exigencies of military service.
They exhibit grace in all their movements, are indefatigable on the
march, and support the heaviest labour without complaining. Even the
Wallachian herdsman, with his sheepskin cap, or _cashula_, his wide
leather belt used as a pocket, a sheepskin thrown over his shoulders,
and drawers which recall those of the Dacians sculptured on Trajan’s
Column, is noble in his bearing. In the large towns, where much
intermixture has taken place with Greeks, Southern Russians, and
Magyars, the brown complexion predominates. The Rumanian women are
grace itself. They always charm us by taste and neatness, whether
they have adopted a modern dress or still patronise the national
costume, consisting of an embroidered chemisette, a floating vest, a
party-coloured apron, a golden net, and golden sequins placed in the
hair. These external advantages are combined in the Rumanian with
quickness of apprehension, a gay spirit, and the gift of repartee,
which entitle them to be called the Parisians of the Orient.
In the midst of this homogeneous Rumanian population we meet
with Bulgarian colonists, whose number has increased recently in
consequence of the persecutions of Turks and Greeks. The character
of the Bulgarians born in the country has undergone considerable
modifications. They are at present the most industrious tillers of
the soil, and in the vicinity of large towns they occupy themselves
principally with horticulture. Many of these Bulgarians live in that
{164} portion of Bessarabia which was ceded by Russia in 1855. They
settled there in 1829, more particularly in the _Budzak_, or southern
“corner” of Bessarabia, and their fields are better tilled, their roads
in better condition, than those of their Moldavian neighbours. Their
villages still bear Tartar names, from the time when their country
was occupied by Nogai Tartars, and they contrast favourably with the
villages of the surrounding peoples. Bolgrad, the capital of this
colony, is a small bustling town, the schools of which enjoy a high
reputation. These Bulgarians, so distinguished for industry, sobriety,
and thrift, have more or less amalgamated with Russians, Greeks, and
gipsies, and they talk almost every language of the East.
[Illustration: Fig. 46.—ETHNOLOGICAL MAP OF MOLDAVIAN BESSARABIA.]
The Russians of Moldavian Bessarabia have their settlements on the
banks of the Danube, to the east of these Bulgarian colonies. They,
too, are good agriculturists. The Russians met with in the towns
are generally engaged in commerce, and enjoy a high reputation for
honesty. Most of them belong to the old sect of the _Lipovani_, and
fled from Russia about a century ago to escape religious persecution.
They nearly all speak Rumanian. Vilkof, a village near the mouth of
the Danube, is almost exclusively occupied by these Lipovani, who are
expert fishermen, and share the produce of their labour in common.
Others amongst the Russians belong to the sect of the _Skoptzi_, or
“mutilated,” which is said to recruit itself by stealing children.
These Skoptzi are recognised by their portliness and smooth faces, and
at Bucharest they are reputed to be excellent coachmen.
Magyar Szeklers from Transylvania, known in the country as _Changhei_,
are the only other foreign element of the population occupying distinct
settlements. These Changhei, who first came into the country when
the Kings of Hungary were masters of the valley of the Sereth, are
gradually becoming Rumanians {165} in dress and language, and would
have become so long ago were they not Roman Catholics, whilst the
people among whom they live are Greeks. They are joined annually by
a few compatriots from Transylvania, attracted by the mild climate
and the fertility of the soil. In spring and autumn large bands of
Hungarian reapers and labourers descend into the plains of Moldavia.
The Hellenic element was strongly represented last century, when
the government of the country was farmed out by the Sultan to Greek
merchants of Constantinople. At the present time the Greeks are not
numerous—not exceeding, perhaps, 10,000 souls, even if we include
amongst them Hellenized Zinzares—but they occupy influential positions
as managers of estates or merchants, and the export of corn is almost
exclusively in their hands. Traces of the ancient government of
these Phanariotes still exist in the language of the country, and in
the relationships resulting from intermarriages between seignorial
families. Far more numerous than these Greeks, and of greater
importance, are the members of those homeless nations—the Jews and
Tsigani (or gipsies). A few Spanish Jews are met with in the large
towns, but the majority are “German” Jews, who have come hither from
Poland, Little Russia, Galicia, and Hungary. As publicans and middlemen
they come into close contact with the poor people, and they are
universally detested, not on account of their religion, but because of
the wonderful skill with which they manage to secure the savings of the
people. Imaginary crimes of all kinds are attributed to them, and they
have repeatedly been exposed to maltreatment on the frivolous charge
of having eaten little children at their Passover. The Rumanians,
however, can hardly manage without these detested Jews, and their laws,
by preventing the Jews from acquiring land, fortify their commercial
monopoly. The Jews, if certain estimates may be credited, constitute
one-fifth of the total population of Moldavia. The Armenians, the
other great commercial people of the Orient, are represented by a few
flourishing colonies, more especially in Moldavia. These Haikanes are
the descendants of immigrants who settled in the country at various
epochs between the eleventh and seventeenth centuries. They live
amongst themselves, and, though not exactly liked by the people, they
have known how to avoid becoming objects of hatred. A few Armenians
from Constantinople, and speaking Turkish, are met with on the Lower
Danube.
The Tsigani, or gipsies, so despised formerly, become merged by degrees
in the rest of the population. Not long ago they were slaves, the
property of the State, of boyards, or monasteries. They led a wandering
life—working, trafficking, or stealing for the benefit of their
masters. They were divided into castes, the principal of which were the
_lingurari_, or spoon-makers; _ursari_, or bear-leaders; _ferrari_,
or smiths; _aurari_, or collectors of gold dust; and _lautari_, or
musicians. These latter were the most polished of all, and were
employed to celebrate the glory and the virtues of the boyards. They
are now the minstrels of the country and the musicians of the town.
Very few in number are the _Netotzi_, a degraded caste who live in
woods or tents, subsist upon the foulest food, and do not bury their
dead. The Tsigani were assimilated in 1837 with the peasantry, and
since {166} their emancipation nearly all of them lead a settled life,
cultivating the soil with great care, or exercising some handicraft.
The fusion between Tsigani and Rumanians is making rapid progress,
for both races have the same religion and speak the same language.
Intermarriages between the two are frequent, and in a time not far off
the Tsigani of Rumania will be a thing of the past. They are supposed
still to number between 100,000 and 300,000 souls.[48]
The Rumanian nation is still in a state of transition from a feudal to
a modern epoch. The revolution of 1848 shook the ancient system to its
foundation, but did not destroy it. As recently as 1856 the peasants
were attached to the soil. They had no rights, but were at the mercy of
the boyards and monasteries whose soil they were doomed to till, and
lived in miserable hovels. The whole of the country and its inhabitants
belonged to five or six thousand boyards, who were either the
descendants of the ancient “braves,” or had purchased their patents of
nobility. Most of these boyards were only small proprietors, and nearly
the whole of the land belonged to seventy feudatories in Wallachia, and
three hundred in Moldavia.