This mixture of arrogance and submission only merited indignation, but
it suited Kursheed to dissemble. He replied that, assenting to such
propositions being beyond his powers, he would transmit them to
Constantinople, and that hostilities might be suspended, if Ali wished,
until the courier, could return.
Being quite as cunning as Ali himself, Kursheed profited by the truce to
carry on intrigues against him. He corrupted one of the chiefs of the
garrison, Metzo-Abbas by name, who obtained pardon for himself and fifty
followers, with permission to return to their homes. But this clemency
appeared to have seduced also four hundred Skipetars who made use of the
amnesty and the money with which Ali provided them, to raise Toxis and
the Tapygetae in the latter's favour. Thus the Seraskier's scheme turned
against himself, and he perceived he had been deceived by Ali's seeming
apathy, which certainly did not mean dread of defection. In fact, no man
worth anything could have abandoned him, supported as he seemed to be by
almost supernatural courage. Suffering from a violent attack of gout, a
malady he had never before experienced, the pacha, at the age of
eighty-one, was daily carried to the most exposed place on the ramparts
of his castle. There, facing the hostile batteries, he gave audience to
whoever wished to see him. On this exposed platform he held his
councils, despatched orders, and indicated to what points his guns
should be directed. Illumined by the flashes of fire, his figure assumed
fantastic and weird shapes. The balls sung in the air, the bullets
hailed around him, the noise drew blood from the ears of those with him.
Calm and immovable, he gave signals to the soldiers who were still
occupying part of the ruins of Janina, and encouraged them by voice and
gesture. Observing the enemy's movements by the help of a telescope, he
improvised means of counteracting them. Sometimes he amused himself by,
greeting curious persons and new-comers after a fashion of his own. Thus
the chancellor of the French Consul at Prevesa, sent as an envoy to
Kursheed Pacha, had scarcely entered the lodging assigned to him, when
he was visited by a bomb which caused him to leave it again with all
haste. This greeting was due to Ali's chief engineer, Caretto, who next
day sent a whole shower of balls and shells into the midst of a group of
Frenchmen, whose curiosity had brought them to Tika, where Kursheed was
forming a battery. "It is time," said Ali, "that these contemptible
gossip-mongers should find listening at doors may become uncomfortable.
I have furnished matter enough for them to talk about. Frangistan
(Christendom) shall henceforth hear only of my triumph or my fall, which
will leave it considerable trouble to pacify." Then, after a moment's
silence, he ordered the public criers to inform his soldiers of the
insurrections in Wallachia and the Morea, which news, proclaimed from
the ramparts, and spreading immediately in the Imperial camp, caused
there much dejection.
The Greeks were now everywhere proclaiming their independence, and
Kursheed found himself unexpectedly surrounded by enemies. His position
threatened to become worse if the siege of Janina dragged on much
longer. He seized the island in the middle of the lake, and threw up
redoubts upon it, whence he kept up an incessant fire on the southern
front of the castle of Litharitza, and a practicable trench of nearly
forty feet having been made, an assault was decided on. The troops
marched out boldly, and performed prodigies of valour; but at the end of
an hour, Ali, carried on a litter because of his gout, having led a
sortie, the besiegers were compelled to give way and retire to their
intrenchments, leaving three hundred dead at the foot of the rampart.
"The Pindian bear is yet alive," said Ali in a message to Kursheed;
"thou mayest take thy dead and bury them; I give them up without ransom,
and as I shall always do when thou attackest me as a brave man ought."
Then, having entered his fortress amid the acclamations of his soldiers,
he remarked on hearing of the general rising of Greece and the
Archipelago, "It is enough! two men have ruined Turkey!" He then
remained silent, and vouchsafed no explanation of this prophetic
sentence.
Ali did not on this occasion manifest his usual delight on having gained
a success. As soon as he was alone with Basilissa, he informed her with
tears of the death of Chainitza. A sudden apoplexy had stricken this
beloved sister, the life of his councils, in her palace of Libokovo,
where she remained undisturbed until her death. She owed this special
favour to her riches and to the intercession of her nephew, Djiladin
Pacha of Ochcrida, who was reserved by fate to perform the funeral
obsequies of the guilty race of Tepelen.
A few months afterwards, Ibrahim Pacha of Berat died of poison, being
the last victim whom Chainitza had demanded from her brother.
Ali's position was becoming daily more difficult, when the time of
Ramadan arrived, during which the Turks relax hostilities, and a species
of truce ensued. Ali himself appeared to respect the old popular
customs, and allowed his Mohammedan soldiers to visit the enemy's
outposts and confer on the subject of various religious ceremonies.
Discipline was relaxed in Kursheed's camp, and Ali profited thereby to
ascertain the smallest details of all that passed.
He learned from his spies that the general's staff, counting on the
"Truce of God," a tacit suspension of all hostilities during the feast
of Bairam, the Mohammedan Easter, intended to repair to the chief
mosque, in the quarter of Loutcha. This building, spared by the bombs,
had until now been respected by both sides. Ali, according to reports
spread by himself, was supposed to be ill, weakened by fasting, and
terrified into a renewal of devotion, and not likely to give trouble on
so sacred a day. Nevertheless he ordered Caretto to turn thirty guns
against the mosque, cannon, mortars and howitzers, intending, he said,
to solemnise Bairam by discharges of artillery. As soon as he was sure
that the whole of the staff had entered the mosque, he gave the signal.
Instantly, from the assembled thirty pieces, there issued a storm of
shells, grenades and cannon-balls. With a terrific noise, the mosque
crumbled together, amid the cries of pain and rage of the crowd inside
crushed in the ruins. At the end of a quarter of an hour the wind
dispersed the smoke, and disclosed a burning crater, with the large
cypresses which surrounded the building blazing as if they had been
torches lighted for the funeral ceremonies of sixty captains and two
hundred soldiers.
"Ali Pacha is yet alive!" cried the old Homeric hero of Janina, leaping
with joy; and his words, passing from mouth to mouth, spread yet more
terror amid Kursheed's soldiers, already overwhelmed by the horrible
spectacle passing before their eyes.
Almost on the same day, Ali from the height of his keep beheld the
standard of the Cross waving in the distance. The rebellious Greeks were
bent on attacking Kursheed. The insurrection promoted by the Vizier of
Janina had passed far beyond the point he intended, and the rising had
become a revolution. The delight which Ali first evinced cooled rapidly
before this consideration, and was extinguished in grief when he found
that a conflagration, caused by the besiegers' fire, had consumed part
of his store in the castle by the lake. Kursheed, thinking that this
event must have shaken the old lion's resolution, recommenced
negotiations, choosing the Kiaia of Moustai Pacha: as an envoy, who gave
Ali a remarkable warning. "Reflect," said he, "that these rebels bear
the sign of the Cross on their standards. You are now only an instrument
in their hands. Beware lest you become the victim of their policy." Ali
understood the danger, and had the sultan been better advised, he would
have pardoned Ali on condition of again bringing Hellos under his iron
yoke. It is possible that the Greeks might not have prevailed against an
enemy so formidable and a brain so fertile in intrigue. But so simple an
idea was far beyond the united intellect of the Divan, which never rose
above idle display. As soon as these negotiations, had commenced,
Kursheed filled the roads with his couriers, sending often two in a day
to Constantinople, from whence as many were sent to him. This state of
things lasted mare than three weeks, when it became known that Ali, who
had made good use of his time in replacing the stores lost in the
conflagration, buying actually from the Kiaia himself a part of the
provisions brought by him for the Imperial camp, refused to accept the
Ottoman ultimatum. Troubles which broke, out at the moment of the
rupture of the negotiations proved that he foresaw the probable result.
Kursheed was recompensed for the deception by which he had been duped by
the reduction of the fortress of Litharitza. The Guegue Skipetars, who
composed the garrison, badly paid, wearied out by the long siege, and
won by the Seraskier's bribes, took advantage of the fact that the time
of their engagement with Ali had elapsed same months previously, and
delivering up the fortress they defended, passed over to the enemy.
Henceforth Ali's force consisted of only six hundred men.
It was to be feared that this handful of men might also become a prey to
discouragement, and might surrender their chief to an enemy who had
received all fugitives with kindness. The Greek insurgents dreaded such
an event, which would have turned all Kursheed's army, hitherto detained
before the castle, of Janina, loose upon themselves. Therefore they
hastened to send to their former enemy, now their ally, assistance which
he declined to accept. Ali saw himself surrounded by enemies thirsting
for his wealth, and his avarice increasing with the danger, he had for
some months past refused to pay his defenders. He contented himself with
informing his captains of the insurgents' offer, and telling them that
he was confident that bravery such as theirs required no reinforcement.
And when some of them besought him to at least receive two or three
hundred Palikars into the castle, "No," said he; "old serpents always
remain old serpents: I distrust the Suliots and their friendship."
Ignorant of Ali's decision, the Greeks of the Selleid were advancing, as
well as the Toxidae, towards Janina, when they received the following
letter from Ali Pacha:
"My well-beloved children, I have just learned that you are preparing to
despatch a party of your Palikars against our common enemy, Kursheed. I
desire to inform you that this my fortress is impregnable, and that I
can hold out against him for several years. The only, service I require
of your courage is, that you should reduce Arta, and take alive Ismail
Pacho Bey, my former servant, the mortal enemy of my family, and the
author of the evils and frightful calamities which have so long
oppressed our unhappy country, which he has laid waste before our eyes.
Use your best efforts to accomplish this, it will strike at the root of
the evil, and my treasures shall reward your Palikars, whose courage
every day gains a higher value in my eyes."
Furious at this mystification, the Suliots retired to their mountains,
and Kursheed profited by the discontent Ali's conduct had caused, to win
over the Toxide Skipetars, with their commanders Tahir Abbas and Hagi
Bessiaris, who only made two conditions: one, that Ismail Pacho Bey,
their personal enemy, should be deposed; the other, that the life of
their old vizier should be respected.
The first condition was faithfully adhered to by Kursheed, actuated by
private motives different from those which he gave publicly, and Ismail
Pacho Bey was solemnly deposed. The tails, emblems of his authority,
were removed; he resigned the plumes of office; his soldiers forsook
him, his servants followed suit. Fallen to the lowest rank, he was soon
thrown into prison, where he only blamed Fate for his misfortunes. All
the Skipetar Agas hastened to place themselves under Kursheeds'
standard, and enormous forces now threatened Janina. All Epirus awaited
the denoument with anxiety.
Had he been less avaricious, Ali might have enlisted all the adventurers
with whom the East was swarming, and made the sultan tremble in his
capital. But the aged pacha clung passionately to his treasures. He
feared also, perhaps not unreasonably, that those by whose aid he might
triumph would some day become his master. He long deceived himself with
the idea that the English, who had sold Parga to him, would never allow
a Turkish fleet to enter the Ionian Sea. Mistaken on this point, his
foresight was equally at fault with regard to the cowardice of his sons.
The defection of his troops was not less fatal, and he only understood
the bearing of the Greek insurrection which he himself had provoked, so
far as to see that in this struggle he was merely an instrument in
procuring the freedom of a country which he had too cruelly oppressed to
be able to hold even an inferior rank in it. His last letter to the
Suliots opened the eyes of his followers, but under the influence of a
sort of polite modesty these were at least anxious to stipulate for the
life of their vizier. Kursheed was obliged to produce firmans from the
Porte, declaring that if Ali Tepelen submitted, the royal promise given
to his sons should be kept, and that he should, with them, be
transferred to Asia Minor, as also his harem, his servants; and his
treasures, and allowed to finish his days in peace. Letters from Ali's
sons were shown to the Agas, testifying to the good treatment they had
experienced in their exile; and whether the latter believed all this, or
whether they merely sought to satisfy their own consciences, they
henceforth thought only of inducing their rebellious chief to submit.
Finally, eight months' pay, given them in advance, proved decisive, and
they frankly embraced the cause of the sultan.
The garrison of the castle on the lake, whom Ali seemed anxious to
offend as much as possible, by refusing their pay, he thinking them so
compromised that they would not venture even to accept an amnesty
guaranteed by the mufti, began to desert as soon as they knew the
Toxidae had arrived at the Imperial camp. Every night these Skipetars
who could cross the moat betook themselves to Kursheed's quarters. One
single man yet baffled all the efforts of the besiegers. The chief
engineer, Caretto, like another Archimedes, still carried terror into
the midst of their camp.
Although reduced to the direst misery, Caretto could not forget that he
owed his life to the master who now only repaid his services with the
most sordid ingratitude. When he had first come to Epirus, Ali,
recognising his ability, became anxious to retain him, but without
incurring any expense. He ascertained that the Neapolitan was
passionately in love with a Mohammedan girl named Nekibi, who returned
his affection. Acting under Ali's orders, Tahir Abbas accused the woman
before the cadi of sacrilegious intercourse with an infidel. She could
only escape death by the apostasy of her lover; if he refused to deny
his God, he shared her fate, and both would perish at the stake. Caretto
refused to renounce his religion, but only Nekibi suffered death.
Caretto was withdrawn from execution, and Ali kept him concealed in a
place of safety, whence he produced him in the time of need. No one had
served him with greater zeal; it is even possible that a man of this
type would have died at his post, had his cup not been filled with
mortification and insult.
Eluding the vigilance of Athanasius Vaya, whose charge it was to keep
guard over him, Caretto let himself down by a cord fastened to the end
of a cannon: He fell at the foot of the rampart, and thence dragged
himself, with a broken arm, to the opposite camp. He had become nearly
blind through the explosion of a cartridge which had burnt his face. He
was received as well as a Christian from whom there was now nothing to
fear, could expect. He received the bread of charity, and as a refugee
is only valued in proportion to the use which can be made of him, he was
despised and forgotten.
The desertion of Caretto was soon followed by a defection which
annihilated Ali's last hopes. The garrison which had given him so many
proofs of devotion, discouraged by his avarice, suffering from a
disastrous epidemic, and no longer equal to the necessary labour in
defence of the place, opened all, the gates simultaneously to the enemy.
But the besiegers, fearing a trap, advanced very slowly; so that Ali,
who had long prepared against very sort of surprise, had time to gain a
place which he called his "refuge."
It was a sort of fortified enclosure, of solid masonry, bristling with
cannon, which surrounded the private apartments of his seraglio, called
the "Women's Tower." He had taken care to demolish everything which
could be set on fire, reserving only a mosque and the tomb of his wife
Emineh, whose phantom, after announcing an eternal repose, had ceased to
haunt him. Beneath was an immense natural cave, in which he had stored
ammunition, precious articles, provisions, and the treasures which had
not been sunk in the lake. In this cave an apartment had been made for
Basilissa and his harem, also a shelter in which he retired to sleep
when exhausted with fatigue. This place was his last resort, a kind of
mausoleum; and he did not seem distressed at beholding the castle in the
hands of his enemies. He calmly allowed them to occupy the entrance,
deliver their hostages, overrun the ramparts, count the cannon which
were on the platforms, crumbling from the hostile shells; but when they
came within hearing, he demanded by one of his servants that Kursheed
should send him an envoy of distinction; meanwhile he forbade anyone to
pass beyond a certain place which he pointed out.
Kursheed, imagining that, being in the last extremity, he would
capitulate, sent out Tahir Abbas and Hagi Bessiaris. Ali listened
without reproaching them for their treachery, but simply observed that
he wished to meet some of the chief officers.
The Seraskier then deputed his keeper of the wardrobe, accompanied by
his keeper of the seals and other persons of quality. Ali received them
with all ceremony, and, after the usual compliments had been exchanged,
invited them to descend with him into the cavern. There he showed them
more than two thousand barrels of powder carefully arranged beneath his
treasures, his remaining provisions, and a number of valuable objects
which adorned this slumbering volcano. He showed them also his bedroom,
a sort of cell richly furnished, and close to the powder. It could be
reached only by means of three doors, the secret of which was known to
no one but himself. Alongside of this was the harem, and in the
neighbouring mosque was quartered his garrison, consisting of fifty men,
all ready to bury themselves under the ruins of this fortification, the
only spot remaining to him of all Greece, which had formerly bent
beneath his authority.
After this exhibition, Ali presented one of his most devoted followers
to the envoys. Selim, who watched over the fire, was a youth in
appearance as gentle as his heart was intrepid, and his special duty was
to be in readiness to blow up the whole place at any moment. The pacha
gave him his hand to kiss, inquiring if he were ready to die, to which
he only responded by pressing his master's hand fervently to his lips.
He never took his eyes off Ali, and the lantern, near which a match was
constantly smoking, was entrusted only to him and to Ali, who took turns
with him in watching it. Ali drew a pistol from his belt, making as if
to turn it towards the powder magazine, and the envoys fell at his feet,
uttering involuntary cries of terror. He smiled at their fears, and
assured them that, being wearied of the weight of his weapons, he had
only intended to relieve himself of some of them. He then begged them to
seat themselves, and added that he should like even a more terrible
funeral than that which they had just ascribed to him. "I do not wish to
drag down with me," he exclaimed, "those who have come to visit me as
friends; it is Kursheed, whom I have long regarded as my brother, his
chiefs, those who have betrayed me, his whole army in short, whom I
desire to follow me to the tomb--a sacrifice which will be worthy of my
renown, and of the brilliant end to which I aspire."
The envoys gazed at him with stupefaction, which did not diminish when
Ali further informed them that they were not only sitting over the arch
of a casemate filled with two hundred thousand pounds of powder, but
that the whole castle, which they had so rashly occupied, was
undermined. "The rest you have seen," he said, "but of this you could
not be aware. My riches are the sole cause of the war which has been
made against me, and in one moment I can destroy them. Life is nothing
to me, I might have ended it among the Greeks, but could I, a powerless
old man, resolve to live on terms of equality among those whose absolute
master I have been? Thus, whichever way I look, my career is ended.
However, I am attached to those who still surround me, so hear my last
resolve. Let a pardon, sealed by the sultan's hands, be given me, and I
will submit. I will go to Constantinople, to Asia Minor, or wherever I
am sent. The things I should see here would no longer be fitting for me
to behold."
To this Kursheed's envoys made answer that without doubt these terms
would be conceded. Ali then touched his breast and forehead, and,
drawing forth his watch, presented it to the keeper of the wardrobe. "I
mean what I say, my friend," he observed; "my word will be kept. If
within an hour thy soldiers are not withdrawn from this castle which has
been treacherously yielded to them, I will blow it up. Return to the
Seraskier, warn him that if he allows one minute more to elapse than the
time specified, his army, his garrison, I myself and my family, will all
perish together: two hundred thousand pounds of powder can destroy all
that surrounds us. Take this watch, I give it thee, and forget not that
I am a man of my word." Then, dismissing the messengers, he saluted them
graciously, observing that he did not expect an answer until the
soldiers should have evacuated the castle.
The envoys had barely returned to the camp when Kursheed sent orders to
abandon the fortress. As the reason far this step could not be
concealed, everyone, exaggerating the danger, imagined deadly mines
ready to be fired everywhere, and the whole army clamoured to break up
the camp. Thus Ali and his fifty followers cast terror into the hearts
of nearly thirty thousand men, crowded together on the slopes of Janina.
Every sound, every whiff of smoke, ascending from near the castle,
became a subject of alarm for the besiegers. And as the besieged had
provisions for a long time, Kursheed saw little chance of successfully
ending his enterprise; when Ali's demand for pardon occurred to him.
Without stating his real plans, he proposed to his Council to unite in
signing a petition to the Divan for Ali's pardon.
This deed, formally executed, and bearing more than sixty signatures,
was then shown to Ali, who was greatly delighted. He was described in it
as Vizier, as Aulic Councillor, and also as the most distinguished
veteran among His Highness the Sultan's slaves. He sent rich presents to
Kursheed and the principal officers, whom he hoped to corrupt, and
breathed as though the storm had passed away. The following night,
however, he heard the voice of Emineh, calling him several times, and
concluded that his end drew nigh.
During the two next nights he again thought he heard Emineh's voice, and
sleep forsook his pillow, his countenance altered, and his endurance
appeared to be giving way. Leaning on a long Malacca cane, he repaired
at early dawn to Emineh's tomb, on which he offered a sacrifice of two
spotted lambs, sent him by Tahir Abbas, whom in return he consented to
pardon, and the letters he received appeared to mitigate his trouble.
Some days later, he saw the keeper of the wardrobe, who encouraged him,
saying that before long there would be good news from Constantinople.
Ali learned from him the disgrace of Pacho Bey, and of Ismail Pliaga,
whom he detested equally, and this exercise of authority, which was made
to appear as a beginning of satisfaction offered him, completely
reassured him, and he made fresh presents to this officer, who had
succeeded in inspiring him with confidence.
Whilst awaiting the arrival of the firman of pardon which Ali was
reassured must arrive from Constantinople without fail, the keeper of
the wardrobe advised him to seek an interview with Kursheed. It was
clear that such a meeting could not take place in the undermined castle,
and Ali was therefore invited to repair to the island in the lake. The
magnificent pavilion, which he had constructed there in happier days,
had been entirely refurnished, and it was proposed that the conference
should take place in this kiosk.
Ali appeared to hesitate at this proposal, and the keeper of the
wardrobe, wishing to anticipate his objections, added that the object of
this arrangement was, to prove to the army, already aware of it, that
there was no longer any quarrel between himself and the
commander-in-chief. He added that Kursheed would go to the conference
attended only by members of his Divan, but that as it was natural an
outlawed man should be on his guard, Ali might, if he liked, send to
examine the place, might take with him such guards as he thought
necessary, and might even arrange things on the same footing as in his
citadel, even to his guardian with the lighted match, as the surest
guarantee which could be given him.
The proposition was accepted, and when Ali, having crossed over with a
score of soldiers, found himself more at large than he did in his
casemate, he congratulated himself on having come. He had Basilissa
brought over, also his diamonds; and several chests of money. Two days
passed without his thinking of anything but procuring various
necessaries, and he then began to inquire what caused the Seraskier to
delay his visit. The latter excused himself on the plea of illness, and
offered meanwhile to send anyone Ali might wish to see, to visit him:
The pacha immediately mentioned several of his former followers, now
employed in the Imperial army, and as no difficulty was made in allowing
them to go, he profited by the permission to interview a large number of
his old acquaintances, who united in reassuring him and in giving him
great hopes of success.
Nevertheless, time passed on, and neither the Seraskier nor the firman
appeared. Ali, at first uneasy, ended by rarely mentioning either the
one or the other, and never was deceiver more completely deceived. His
security was so great that he loudly congratulated himself on having
come to the island. He had begun to form a net of intrigue to cause
himself to be intercepted on the road when he should be sent to
Constantinople, and he did not despair of soon finding numerous
partisans in the Imperial army.