with much politeness: for, perceiving from our European costume that we
were strangers, they offered us places in front of the stage; and after
a few minutes' delay a man entered, and was handed up to the platform
and chair amidst a buzz of universal applause. In his hand he carried a
small stick, and in gait, physiognomy, and manner bore a singular
resemblance to our English Matthews. He was dressed in a frock coat, now
so generally worn in Constantinople, and wore, on one of his fingers, a
most superb brilliant ring, which, it is said, was presented to him by
the Sultan, as a mark of his especial approbation. A profound silence
prevailed among the company the moment he made his appearance; every one
seeming desirous to be amused, and most anxious to catch every word that
fell from his lips. [Sidenote: ORIENTAL JOHN TROT.] No story-teller of
Stamboul had ever enjoyed so much fame and popularity as this Turkish
Matthews, who, rising from his seat and making three very profound
obeisances to the company, commenced his "At Home" with a series of
imitations, in which he personated a Turk from Aleppo, the Yorkshire or
Calabria of the East. This Oriental John Trot, is represented as setting
out on his journey to see the world and make his fortune; and with this
intent visits various places. On one occasion, being mistaken for a
Pasha in disguise, he is every where feasted, and treated with the most
respectful attention, until the real truth being discovered, he is
bastinadoed, spit upon, plucked by the beard, and, in short, maltreated
in a thousand different ways. At last he finds his way to Stamboul, and
manages to obtain an interview with his Sublime Highness; after which he
visits England, France, &c., and on his way back is taken by a pirate,
who carries him to the coast of Africa. During this compulsatory voyage,
he describes himself as affected with the most horrible sea sickness;
and here his representation of a person labouring under that detestable
malady was so accurate, that I almost fancied myself again in the
cockpit of the Actaeon, and all the terrors of the voyage across the
Adriatic arose fresh to my imagination. After many other adventures, he
returns safe to [Sidenote: INGENIOUS MIMICRY.] Aleppo, his native city,
no richer than he set out; but, like the monkey who had seen the world,
"full of wise saws," and strange assertions. His hairbreadth escapes,
the unlucky scrapes he gets into, the blunders he is incessantly
committing from his imperfect knowledge of the languages of the various
nations among whom he is thrown, the continual equivoque and play upon
words, his absurd misconceptions of the orders he receives, his
buffetings, bastinadoes, feasts, imprisonments, and escapes, the odd
satirical remarks elicited by the different objects, places, and strange
fashions he encounters,--all afforded opportunities to the ingenious
mimic for displaying the versatility of his powers. The changes, too, of
voice, manner, look, gesture, suitable to the various characters he
assumed, were infinitely ludicrous and entertaining. In this respect he
was little, if at all, inferior, to his mirth-inspiring brother of the
Adelphi; in proof of which, I need only state, that, though utterly
unacquainted with his language, and enabled to follow the thread of the
story only by the hurried explanations of Hodgson, I sat listening and
laughing with the greatest satisfaction for more than two hours, without
feeling my attention at all beginning to flag. [Sidenote: A DELIGHTED
AUDIENCE.] As to the Turks, they were literally convulsed with
laughter; shouting, screaming, and uttering a thousand exclamations of
delight; and more than once it was evident, from their uproarious mirth,
that he had succeeded in satirising the peculiarities of some well-known
individual. At every pause in the story--very necessary for the actor,
who was often exhausted by the violence of his gesticulations--wooden
trays were handed about, and every one was expected to contribute a few
paras. Of course the liberality of the audience was proportioned to the
gratification they received; and on the present occasion he, no doubt,
experienced substantial proofs of their approbation in a pretty
considerable harvest of silver pieces. I could have remained with
pleasure to hear another tale, but the heat was overpowering, and my
friend also seemed anxious to get away; so we quitted the room with our
risible muscles somewhat sore from long-continued exertion.
The refreshing coolness of the sea breeze induced us to hire a caique,
and we coasted along towards the Seraglio Point. The walls on this side
of the triangle, which encloses Constantinople, are, perhaps, the most
ancient of all, and remains of former splendour are every where seen
intermingled with the ordinary materials of which they are composed.
Capitals of superb workmanship, friezes, and columns, are not only
embedded in the masonry, but thousands of pillars piled one above the
other form the foundations, in many parts, which may be plainly
distinguished beneath the transparent waves.
[Sidenote: BOOK MARKET.] _Saturday, June 1st._--Notwithstanding it
rained heavily this morning, I went over to Stamboul to see what I could
pick up in the Sahof Charshousi, or book-market. This bazar is very
quiet, as befits a temple devoted to literature, and most of the
merchants are old fellows with spectacle on nose, who sit in a corner of
their shop-board, and pass the time in poring over the Koran, or some of
the thousand and one commentaries written upon it. Their books and
manuscripts are piled up without order, and they seem never to know
where to put their hands upon any work which may be demanded. There was
an infinite number of manuscripts of Persian poetry, and I bought
several beautifully illuminated almanacks; but if, while examining
these, I approached a volume of the Koran, or, indeed, any religious
book, they either snatched it away, or interposed themselves in such a
manner, that I could not touch the object of this extraordinary
precaution.
[Sidenote: CURIOUS MANUSCRIPTS.] I bought one book, which the owner said
was a treatise on mathematics; it however appeared to me to be more
like a genealogical tree, and so it turned out. My friend Hodgson, who
is well versed in the Oriental languages, pronounced it to be a
Silsileh-nameh, or genealogy of the Ottoman emperors from Adam to the
present Sultan; a work of extreme rarity, and the most complete he had
ever seen. Through his assistance I procured a very good copy of the
Koran, and also a firman, signed by Sultan Selim, granting permission to
a rich Turk to bequeath his fortune as an endowment for four priests, on
condition that they employed themselves in sweeping the mosque at Mecca.
This document, which is very long, is beautifully written on gold, and
is altogether a very splendid specimen of Oriental penmanship. I also
bought some Turkish spelling-books, very tastefully painted and
ornamented, such as are used in the schools.
_Monday, 3d._--As the heat of the weather begins to be oppressive, my
companion and myself have determined to remove to Terapia, where we
have, after some difficulty, engaged a house close to the back gate of
the English palace, and commanding a fine view of the Bosphorus. This
morning we took possession of our abode, which is furnished by its
proprietor, Mauvromati, with all we required; and we have hired one
Demetrio, a most obliging, clever fellow, who speaks Persian, Turkish,
Greek, French, and English; besides these accomplishments, he is an
excellent cook.
The mids of the Actaeon found a name for the establishment immediately:
pipes, porter, bread and cheese, and whisky toddy, became the order of
the day, and night, too; and these jovial youths have transferred their
berth to the "Jolly Landsmen."
[Sidenote: NAVAL BANQUET.] But there was another inducement to move to
Terapia; for the midshipmen of the Actaeon gave their brother officers of
the French frigate Galatea a dinner, in return for one to which they had
been invited. The starboard side of the main deck was partitioned off by
sails, and converted into a very handsome cabin, which was hung with a
drapery of the flags of all nations, except the Rusky, whom we
unanimously voted unworthy to hold companionship with the Jack and the
Tricolor, which, with the Turkish blood-red flag, formed a handsome
canopy at the head of the table. The ambassador and the captain lent
their plate, and the ship's cooks were put under the orders of the
palace chef. The pieces montees, sweetmeats, &c. were under the
direction of the ambassador's Italian confectioner; the wines were
partly from the embassy cellar, and partly from the captain, and the
renowned Stampa of Galata. Plenty of volunteers from the marines and
sailors joined the ship's boys as attendants; so that altogether, the
affair was splendidly got up, and did honour to the British mids. Our
dinner was a capital one; for the cook, fired with national emulation,
surpassed all his previous efforts, and, in consequence, the table was
covered with the rarest delicacies that art and nature could supply; the
dessert consisted of all the rich and exquisite fruits which this sunny
clime and fertile soil produce in an almost endless variety; and of ices
and Champagne there was no lack. Twenty-six sat down to the sumptuous
repast; and when the cloth was removed, the wine circulated briskly,
while the bond of amity between the French and English sailor, was
strengthened by the interchange of many a loyal toast and happy
well-timed allusion to the brave and martial character of the two
nations; nor was music wanting to complete our joyous revelry: the whole
budget of lower deck songs was completely exhausted; the guests
contributing their quota of _chansons a boire_, &c. to the general
hilarity; and "God save the King" and "Rule Britannia" were succeeded by
the "Parisienne" and the "Marseilloise." Thus was the party bravely kept
up till about midnight, when twenty out of the number, though sailors,
were "half-seas over;" and though the sea was, in reality, as smooth as
a lake, they imagined themselves tossing in some heavy swell, bidding
their companions remark how dreadfully the ship pitched and rolled, and
declaring unanimously that a retreat into the hammocks was next to an
impossibility. Three of our ancient and hereditary foes were borne (not
steadily, I trow) to the ship's side, and gently lowered from the
gangway, 'mid tears of joy; dead,--but not from piercing of cruel shot,
nor from "ghastly wound of glittering steel:" no, they were laid
prostrate by rapid discharges from the circling bottle, and the
overpowering draughts of glorious red hot "bishop." Being at length all
safely stowed in the Actaeon's jolly-boat,--for in what other could so
noble a band of topers have been appropriately embarked?--
"They were row'd to their ship,
By the mess they had dined with."
In returning to the Actaeon, after a game of cricket in the Sultan's
Valley, we approached as close as possible to head-quarters, where the
Russian and Turkish bands were playing. The Russians often sang between
the airs; and some two or three hundred voices joining in chorus, during
the stillness of evening, produced a very impressive effect. Parties of
the soldiers were engaged in dancing; and, in fact, it seemed to be a
gala day, for there was a display of fireworks, and an illumination
throughout the camp in the evening.
[Sidenote: SEVEN TOWERS.] This spectacle, which had all the air of
enchantment, was seen to great advantage from the quay at Terapia. It
continued to a late hour; and the inhabitants of that quarter assert it
to have been merely a _ruse_, to occupy the attention of the idle and
inquisitive, who might otherwise be spying about and discover the other
and more serious game going on behind the Point, where soldiery are
daily landed from the fleet, and the small craft which come in from the
Black Sea. The stratagem is a good one, and I dare say some hundreds of
men will be added to the encamped army, while certain unconscious
diplomatists are sipping their coffee, and complacently gazing at these
fiery devices.
_Thursday, 6th._--Jeddi Cale, or the Seven Towers, may be considered as
the Bastile of the East. They were erected by the immediate successors
of Constantine the Great, to strengthen the fortifications at one of the
angles of the wall which surrounds the city, but in succeeding ages were
converted into a formidable state prison. This cluster of forts was
originally five in number, until Theodosius, in order to commemorate his
victory over Maximus, erected a triumphal arch, which being flanked by
towers, the structure thenceforward received the appellation which it
now bears. In 1768, one of the most ancient of these castles fell down,
and its majestic ruins afford ample proof of the vast solidity of the
masonry. Each tower is about 200 feet high, and the walls which enclose
them are double, and enormously thick, being constructed of immense
blocks of stone; but since the invention of gunpowder they are no longer
considered impregnable. This edifice, after being first used as a
barrack for the janissaries, was converted into a prison, in which,
contrary to the law of nations and every principle of justice, the
minister of any power against whom the Sultan happened to declare war,
was immured, until the termination of the quarrel.
This shameful and barbarous violation of the usages which prevail in
every other European government, has at all times been regretted by the
respectable Turks, who acknowledge it to be a base and disgraceful
stigma upon their national character.
From the time when the Seven Towers thus became the prison of
ambassadors, they acquired an interest and celebrity which otherwise
they never could have attained. Mystery and romance took them under
their especial protection; and Eastern imaginations joined themselves to
those of the West, in inventing tales of horror, dark, deep, and
tragical, connected with the dungeons and caverns beneath these dreaded
walls. That gloomy aperture which yawns beneath your footsteps is called
the Well of Blood; even the Turkish guide acknowledges that it has often
overflowed with human gore! Within this low arched vault, from which the
cheerful sun is for ever excluded, the victim lay extended upon the
rack, until death itself became a welcome relief; and upon its walls
were arranged, in dreadful order, all the infernal instruments of
torture, by which the cruelty of man endeavoured to extort from the
wretched prisoners a confession of crimes, perhaps never committed, and
of conspiracies, existing only in the guilty imaginations of their
oppressors. A little court within the precincts of the building was
pointed out to me as having frequently contained a pyramid of human
heads, reaching so high, that, standing upon its summit, you might have
looked over the walls, and beheld the pure and peaceful Sea of Marmora.
The guide also made me remark a number of narrow passages, scarcely high
enough to admit a dog, through which it is reported that the miserable
captive was formerly compelled to crawl upon his belly, and then left to
perish from starvation, while he licked the dust in the extremity of his
agony.
Thanks, however, to civilisation, these horrors are now no longer
perpetrated; and, indeed, for the honour of human nature, one is
desirous of believing that the greater portion of them are mere fables,
invented by the guides, for the purpose of gratifying a morbid taste for
the horrible, and to enhance the interest of the place. A few old
soldiers are at present the only occupants of this redoubtable fortress,
which is rapidly falling to ruin, though a remnant of the jealousy of
former ages still requires a firman to be obtained, before you are
allowed to visit its once formidable interior.
[Sidenote: TOMB OF ALI PASHA.] Leaving the towers, and proceeding on
towards the village of Ejub, we came to the range of tombs, which formed
one of the principal objects of the day's excursion. It is situated near
the gate Selyori, through which passes the road leading in the direction
of Santo Stefano.
It is a low square piece of rough masonry, erected of oblong stones, in
the centre of a small verdant grove, and canopied by the luxuriant
foliage of a magnificent plane tree.
Intermingled with this mass of smiling verdure and blossom-loaded
boughs, appeared the dark funereal cypress, the emblem of death,
intruding itself in melancholy contrast with the smiling and cheerful
tints by which it is encircled.
The tombs consist of five tall sculptured stones, of unequal height,
surmounted by turbans, and inscribed with the following legend in
gilded characters, explanatory of the fate of the individuals whose
names it commemorates:--"Here is deposited the head of the once
celebrated Ali of Tepeleni, governor of the Sanjak of Janina, who for
upwards of fifty years aspired to independence in Albania. Also, the
heads of his three sons, Mouktar Pasha, Veli Pasha, Saelik Pasha; and
that of his grandson, Mehemet Pasha."
[Sidenote: RUSSIAN INSOLENCE.] Being unable to proceed farther along the
walls, we returned, through the city, to the Golden Horn, and arrived
rather late in Pera, where Hodgson and a friend of his from Beiroot,
were waiting dinner. The latter gentleman is the American Vice-consul in
Syria, and has visited Constantinople in the hope of recovering some
money to which he is entitled for the salvage of a valuable English
ship, lost on the coast near Beiroot. He amused us until a late hour
with many interesting descriptions of Beiroot, Lady Stanhope, and the
monks and cedars of Lebanon. Among other anecdotes, he related a curious
incident that happened to him yesterday. He accompanied a party of
Americans to Buyukdere, where they took a caique, and rowed alongside
the Russian flag-ship. The sentinel at the gangway immediately ordered
them to sheer off, and, on demanding the reason, they were told that
they must not attempt to approach without the admiral's permission.
Nothing daunted, they desired the man to ask the officer of the watch to
allow them to inspect the interior of the vessel; but he flatly refused,
because "they were Englishmen."
No sooner, however, was it explained that they were Americans, than they
were desired to wait, while the officer reported this communication to
his superior; the result of which was, that the admiral himself came on
deck and took them down to his cabin, where he treated them to a
luncheon of bread and cheese, fruit, and porter. When he had shown them
over the ship, he ordered his boat to be manned, and conducted them
himself to the head-quarters of the camp, sent an officer as their
guide, and patiently waited until they had fully gratified their
curiosity. But his attentions did not end there; for he took them on
board again, gave them another luncheon, and afterwards sent them ashore
at Buyukdere in his own boat.
My friend Marriot, who left us some time ago to visit Ibrahim at
Kutahieh, has returned with Mr. Costingen, who went to meet him at
Broussa, a charming city, surrounded by mulberry groves, situated at the
foot of Mount Olympus. It was the first residence of the Ottoman Emirs,
commencing with Orchan, whose mausoleum, strange to say, is a beautiful
octagonal church, belonging to a Greek monastery of that period. The
tombs of sultans, Ilderim, Bayazid, and of Amurath I., are also at
Broussa.
[Sidenote: IBRAHIM PASHA.] Marriot remained a day with Ibrahim, taking
the bath and dining with him. He is a fine fellow by his account; he
said he would have been in Stamboul, in spite of the Russians, if the
French and English had not interposed, and prevented him by their
threats; adding, that they would, ere long, back him, and wish they had
not interfered. If the allies would furnish him with 50,000 muskets, he
declared himself ready to begin the war again, with certain hopes of
success, provided they took no part in the contest; for he could raise
150,000 Syrians, besides the assistance of 45,000 Persians, who were
offered to him. He says, the day must arrive, when he shall be in
Stamboul, with the full approbation of both English and French, who will
find their truest policy is, to establish him on the throne of
Constantinople; and thus erect an effectual barrier against the
encroaching ambition of the Northern powers.
Marriot and his friend went up to Olympus, and remained encamped there
two days, for the purpose of bear-hunting; but meeting with no success,
they returned, and, taking boat, arrived at Constantinople by night.
[Sidenote: RUSSIAN INSOLENCE.] As they were quietly ascending the hill
towards Pera, the guard seized upon them, and, notwithstanding their
remonstrances, took them to the common prison, where they were thrust in
among a crowd of wretches who had been pining there for several days.
Indignant at this outrage, they sent a messenger for the consul, and for
Giuseppino, at break of day; and in the course of the morning, after a
tremendous row with the colonel of the guard-house, they were set at
liberty. The consul is exasperated, but they will get no redress, so
long as the present system of English diplomacy exists. Be it in Pera or
in Madrid, Petersburg or Naples, poor John Bull must always be kicked
and cuffed, ill used, and treated contrary to the law of the land in
which he happens to be sojourning. Is it to be supposed that any
minister would give himself the trouble to mix himself up in such
affairs? He might address a note to the authorities, when the facts
would in all probability be denied, or some paltry excuse made: the
minister declares himself satisfied, and the Perotes have the laugh
against us and our boasted powerful and energetic government. Now, had
it been a Frenchman, a Russian, or even a Prussian, who had been served
in this scandalous manner, how different would have been the result! The
colonel would have been dismissed, if not imprisoned; an apology from
the government, with the corporal punishment of the insolent soldiers,
and every satisfaction that could have washed away such foul treatment,
would have assuredly followed. For, though the law allows the arrest of
persons going through the streets at night without a light; yet, the
officer, seeing they were gentlemen, and just arrived by sea, had full
discretionary power to send them home with a guard; or, if it was
thought requisite to detain them, he had a good chamber in which they
might have been placed. But, insolent and obstinate, he turned a deaf
ear to every remonstrance, and ended by placing them in the same room
with filthy beggars and malefactors.
[Sidenote: ANECDOTE.] As an illustration of what has been just stated, I
will present the reader with a similar and somewhat more ludicrous
anecdote. A few weeks since, Costingen had gone on horseback to
Buyukdere, where, in passing the Sultan's kiosk at Dolma Batche, it is
always necessary to dismount. Woe betide the unlucky wight who, failing
to comply with this custom, happens to ride through the precincts of
the palace. Our Turk, however, forgot all this, and was instantly
arrested and insulted by the officer of the guard and the soldiers, who
dragged him into the guard-house, preparatory to his being sent off to
prison. Having discovered that he was mistaken for an Englishman, and
finding matters were assuming a rather serious aspect, he luckily
bethought of saying he was a Russian, "Rusky effendi ben! Rusky, Rusky!"
roared he. Consternation immediately spread itself over the sleepy
countenances of the Turks at this announcement. The captain, in the
utmost alarm, begged his pardon, and pipes, coffee, ices, &c. were
offered him by the soldiers, who declared themselves ready to fulfil his
slightest commands. The captain of the guard, as well as he could
explain himself, enquired why did he not say at once that he was a
Russian? "Mashallah! it was an unlucky mistake. Am I not blind, not to
see that you were no Englishman?" Further to propitiate the newly
created Muscovite colonel's wrath, a guard of five men, a guard of
honour,--hear it, ye Englishmen!--was sent to conduct him safe home, and
to protect him from further insult; and with this guard of honour,
Costingen the Turk actually marched through the streets of Pera, and
came to Tongo's house!
[Sidenote: GREEKS AND TURKS.] Such is the respect paid to the subjects
of an energetic government. Yet it must not be supposed that the Russian
finds any real sympathy in the breasts of the people: no! the Turks hate
them as they do Satan, and declare in private that they would "spit upon
their beards, and burn their fathers;" an oriental expression,
indicative of extreme hatred and contempt.
It was very late when I started from Tophana[13] to return to Terapia.
The evening was calm and beautiful, and as the caique glided slowly up
the stream, following all the sinuosities of the shore, the jasmine and
orange flower, and the sweet roses which are now blooming in myriads,
filled the air with their perfumed odours.