Repetition—The Esplanade—The Kiosk and the Pavilion—A Short
Cut—Dense Crowd—A Friend at Court—Curious _Coup d’Œil_—The
Arena—The Orchestra—First Act of the Comedy—Disgusting
Exhibition—The Birth of the Ballet—Dancing Boys—Second Act
of the Drama—Insult to the Turkish Women—The Provost
Marshal—Yusuf Pasha, the Traitor—Clemency of the
Sultan—Forbearance of an Oriental Mob—Renewal of the
Ballet—Last Act of the Drama—Theatrical
Decorations—Watch-dogs and Chinese—Procession of the
Trades—Frank Merchants—Thieves and Judges—Bedouin
Tumblers—Fondness of the Pashas for Dancing—The Wise Men of
the East.
It were worse than idle to follow the daily progress of the Fêtes. It
were but to weary the reader with repetitions, or to delude him with
fictions; for the same actors being engaged during the whole of the
festival, only varied their exhibitions sufficiently to emancipate
themselves from the reproach of actual repetition. So monotonous,
indeed, did I find the second representation I was induced to witness,
that I never ventured upon a third.
I have already mentioned that the Esplanade of the Grand Armoury had
been selected as one of the spots upon which the sports were to take
place; but I learnt from an individual who had possessed himself of the
important secret, that the principal performers were to exhibit on a
piece of land situated between the palace walls, and the kiosk in which
the Pashas did the honours to the dinner-guests of the Sultan, after the
termination of their repast; while a garden Pavilion, whose windows
opened upon this space, was to be tenanted by his Sublime Highness, his
Imperial daughters, the Sultana, their mother, and half a dozen of the
most favoured ladies of the harem, who, from the painted lattices, could
look forth upon the scene.
This arrangement sufficiently attested the superiority of the situation;
and, accordingly, avoiding the crowd of the Champs des Morts, and the
thronged descent into the valley, we drove across the hills beyond the
Military College; and then, skirting the height above Dolma Batchè,
suddenly descended almost under the walls of the Palace. But the chosen
spot was surrounded by guards, and the crowd were clustered densely in
their rear; so densely, indeed, that the _arabadjhe_ declared our
further progress to be altogether impracticable.
From this dilemma we were fortunately extricated by an officer of Achmet
Pasha’s household; who, perceiving the difficulty, hastened to remove
it, which he effected in no very gentle manner by striking the
individuals who impeded our passage right and left with the flat of his
sword, until he established us immediately behind the line of military.
The performances had not yet commenced, and I had consequently time to
contemplate the animated scene before me. On my right was the kiosk,
whose wide casements were crowded with Pashas; on my left the Garden
Pavilion, which had the honour of screening from the gaze of the vulgar
the Brother of the Sun and his train of attendant beauties; behind me
rose the hill whose summit was covered with the tents of the Imperial
suite, and whose rise was occupied by a crowd of Turkish females; and
before me stretched the Bosphorus. A small opening, leading down from
the arena towards the shore, was occupied by a detachment of military:
and beneath the windows of the kiosk, mats had been spread for about a
hundred women, who were comfortably established under the long shadows
of the building.
At the other extremity of the circle, thirteen Jews, seated
crescent-wise, were playing upon tambourines; while as many more,
squatted in their rear, were each beating upon a sort of coarse drum,
whose only attribute was noise; and the time to be observed by the
musicians was regulated by an individual, with a venerable white beard
and a staff of office. This head-splitting orchestra continued to
accompany the whole performance, with very slight intervals of rest; and
was quite in keeping with the remainder of the exhibition.
Not the slightest effort had been made to level the piece of land thus
converted into a temporary theatre, and which was stony and uneven to a
degree that must have disconcerted any individuals less philosophical
than those who were to exhibit their histrionic and terpsichorean
talents before the Ottoman Emperor and his August Court. In fact, the
whole of the scenic preparations were conducted in so primitive a manner
that you saw at once no deceit was intended, and that, if you suffered
yourself to be led away by the incidents of the drama, you would not be
deluded thereto by any effort of the actors.
The first arrival upon the scene was that of four ragged personages,
apparently intended to represent the street porters who ply for hire
about the quays and markets; and these interesting individuals sustained
a long and animated conversation, setting forth the dull condition of
the Queen of Cities, in which neither feast nor festival had been held
since the Baïram. Their lamentations at length attracted the attention
of a fifth loiterer of the same class, who, joining the group, gave a
new tone to the subject by announcing the approaching marriage of the
High and Peerless Princess Mihirmàh—the daughter of His Sublime
Highness Mahmoud the Powerful, the Emperor of the East, and Conqueror of
the World!
The intelligence was received with enthusiasm, and the new comer was
encouraged to proceed with his narration; in which he accordingly set
forth not only the beauties and virtues of the Imperial Bride, and the
high and endearing qualities of her affianced husband, but also gave a
_catalogue raisonné_ of all the sports and ceremonies which were to be
observed on the happy occasion of her nuptials; and it is only fair to
believe that he did so with some address, as a murmur of admiration ran
through the crowd who were devouring his discourse.
After asserting that the whole universe had been taxed to produce
novelties worthy of the illustrious event, he proposed to exhibit to his
companions an ingenious machine that had been imported from Europe, and
which was to be exhibited by a friend of his own. Hereupon, a sort of
buffoon was introduced, attended by two men, who fixed a swing with a
lattice seat between two slight wooden frames, which they were obliged
to support during the remainder of the scene.
One by one, the respectable worthies whom I have attempted to describe
were seated in the swing, and rocked gently backwards and forwards by
the proprietor of the show; and during this time an old Jew, with a long
white beard and tattered garments, followed by a deformed and hideous
dwarf, joined himself to the party, but at a sufficient distance to
indicate that he was conscious of his unworthiness to intrude upon their
notice.
A mischievous whim suddenly prompted the hilarious Mussulmauns to make
the quailing dwarf a party in their pastime, and they accordingly placed
him in the swing, and amused themselves for a time with his abortive
attempts to escape; but, wearying of the jest, they agreed to replace
him by his master; and, despite the prayers and terror of the hoary Jew,
they compelled him to occupy the crazy seat, which, failing beneath his
weight, precipitated him to the ground, where, falling upon his head, he
remained apparently lifeless.
At this period of the performance, half a score of the members of the
orchestra left their places, and walked demurely out of the ring, in
order to swell the crowd which shortly afterwards advanced to raise the
body of the murdered man, and convey him away to burial.
Nothing can be conceived more disgusting than the scene that followed;
all the actors being actually Jews, selected from the very dregs of the
people, and compelled to exhibit the degradation of their social state
for the amusement of their task-masters. A wretched bier, borne by four
men, was brought forward, on which the supposed corpse was flung with a
haste and indecency betokening strong alarm; and it was about to
disappear with its loathsome freight, when its passage was obstructed by
a party of police, who, occupying the centre of the path along which it
was passing, and remaining erect on its approach, were supposed to
awaken in the bosoms of the bearers one of the strongest superstitions
of the Jews of Turkey; who, when they are carrying a body to the grave
that is met by a Christian or a Mahommedan who refuses to bend down and
pass under the bier, consider the corpse so contaminated by the contact
as to be without the pale of salvation; and, setting down the body under
this impression on the spot where the encounter has taken place, they
abandon it to the tender mercies of the local authorities.
This wretched and revolting superstition was enacted by the degraded
wretches who were hired on the present occasion to expose the abjectness
of their people, with all the painful exactness which could delude the
spectator into the belief that he beheld a scene of actual and
unpremeditated horror. A distracted wife tore off her turban, and
plucked out handfuls of her dishevelled hair; the body was rolled over
into the dust: a scuffle ensued between the Jewish rabble and the armed
kavasses, in which a few blows were given that appeared to fall more
heavily than was altogether necessary to the effect of the scene; and
the Jew, recovering from his trance amid the shouting and yelling of
the combatants, was borne off in triumph by his tribe, with a wild
chorus that terminated the first act of the drama!
At intervals, the disgust which this hateful exhibition tended to excite
in my bosom was relieved by the arrival of some tardy Pasha, attended by
a train of domestics; who, entering the arena by the passage to which I
have already alluded as opening from the shoreward side of the
enclosure, guided his richly caparisoned steed, whose housings were
bright with gems and embroidery, through the motley throng of actors;
while his diamond star glittered in the sunshine, and his gold-wrought
sword-belt and jewelled weapon-hilt flashed back the light that glanced
upon them.
My pen wearies of its office, as I pursue the detail of the morning’s
performance; but I compel myself to the task, in order to convey to my
readers an accurate idea of the Turkish drama—for this coarse,
revolting, and aimless exhibition, whose description I have commenced,
is the highest effort that the histrionic art has yet made in Turkey;
and I am bound to add that the effect which it produced upon the
spectators was one of unequivocal gratification.
The retreat of the Jewish party was succeeded by the arrival of a group
of ballet dancers, consisting of about a score of youths from fourteen
to twenty years of age, dressed in a rich costume of satin, fringed and
ribbed with gold, varying in colour, according to the fancy of the
wearer. They all wore their own long hair, curled in ringlets, and
floating about their shoulders; and their appearance was so extremely
disagreeable, notwithstanding the splendour of their costume, that I was
surprised to learn that they all belonged to the Sultan, or to different
wealthy Pashas, who take so much delight in seeing them dance as to keep
several constantly in their pay.
As I had been assured that the whole of the exhibition remained
precisely similar to the scenic amusements of the ancient Romans, I
contemplated it with more patience than I should otherwise have been
able to exert: for I soon discovered that the dancing was quite upon a
par with the dramatic portion of the entertainment. If that upon which I
now looked were indeed the germ whence sprang the most graceful and the
most elegant of all the movements of which the human form is
susceptible—if this were indeed the birth of the Ballet—then is it a
fair child that may truly blush for its parentage: for the exhibition
was coarse, monotonous, and wearisome, nor did it possess one redeeming
attribute. An unceasing circuit of the enclosure—a wreathing of arms
and handkerchiefs—an affected inclination of the head first to the one
side, and then to the other—a beating of feet upon the earth, and a
succession of prostrations before the Pashas, appeared to be the extent
of talent of which the dancers were capable; and the only variation that
I was able to discover was an increase of speed, which rendered the
heavy movements of the exhibitors only the more conspicuous. The very
appearance, moreover, of this party of petticoated and long-haired
youths was revolting to my English ideas: and, despite the acclamations
with which they were liberally greeted, I felt glad when they made their
parting obeisance, and gave place to the second series of performers.
A Turk, fèzed and coated, next entered upon the scene—a sort of
Oriental Jacques, melancholy and gentlemanlike, who told a tale of
blighted love, and consequent sadness; at whose termination he was
accosted by the buffoon, who in his turn delivered a panegyric on the
loveliness of the veiled beauties of Stamboul, which however failed in
its effect upon the slighted suitor; who, with sundry contortions, and
wringings of the hands, professed his inability ever to love again.
The buffoon, resolved, as it appeared, to make trial of his constancy;
or outraged at the affectation of so anti-Turkish a display of
sensibility, shortly withdrew; and returned accompanied by three of the
Ballet dancers, disguised as females, and wearing the _yashmac_ and the
_feridjhe_. Of course, curiosity succeeded to indifference, and passion
to curiosity; and a scene of love-making ensued, that consisted of
attempts to induce the ladies to unveil; experiments with the swing,
which occasionally broke down to the great amusement of the spectators;
and energetic asseverations on the one part and the other.
During the scene, the principal dancer, who personated the attractive
fair-one, displayed considerable talent in his part; the _feridjhe_ was
thrown aside; and those Franks who were present, and who could not
necessarily hope to gain even a glimpse of a Turkish female in the
costume of the harem, had here an excellent opportunity of forming an
idea of their appearance; and not only of their appearance, but of their
manners also, for the resemblance was perfect; and, to render the
ridicule still more complete, the dress was that of the last Palace
adoption—the antery and trowsers, wedded to the wadded silk jacket and
_gigot_ sleeves!
In the course of the performance, he danced the dance of the harem, with
a degree of skill that few of the female dancers ever attain; and which
elicited great applause from the audience; and, had the exhibition
ended here, it would have been rather absurd than revolting; but the
jealous Musselmauns, who veil the casements of their harems with
lattices, and the faces of their women with _yashmacs_, sat not only
quietly but admiringly by, while all, and probably more than all, the
secrets of the interior were laid bare, and caricatured for the
amusement of the vulgar. There could not have been a high-minded Turkish
woman present, who did not blush at least as deeply for her husband as
for herself; and not a pure-hearted female of any nation, who did not
feel more contempt for the instigators of the insult than for its
objects.
Not one of the least extraordinary portions of the day’s performances
was enacted by a young Pasha, recently promoted to that distinguished
rank, with the additional titles of General, and Provost-Marshal of the
Ottoman armies. This very heavy and coarse-looking individual, who was
formerly Commandant of the Military College in its days of neglect and
utter uselessness, is the son of Yusuf Pasha, the treacherous Chief who
sold Varna to the Russians, and escaped into the Northern States, where
he remained secure, until the kind-hearted Nicholas had wrung his pardon
from the betrayed Sultan; who in his plenitude of mercy not only forgave
the crime of his false servant, but rewarded his affected penitence
with the Pashalik of Belgrade, which he now enjoys.
Mustapha Pasha, his son, figured on the occasion of the Fêtes with a
diamond star upon his breast, and grasping a whip bound with gold wire,
and furnished with a long lash, which he laid about the heads and
shoulders of the mob with a most lavish hand, whenever they advanced an
inch or two beyond their allotted boundary. I confess that I could not
help smiling as I pictured to myself the reception which His Highness
Mustapha Pasha, General of Brigade, and Provost Marshal of the Ottoman
Armies, would have received from a sturdy English mob, when they felt
his long whip among them! I suspect that his labours would have been
brief, and his office not altogether a safe one.
Could I have disengaged my carriage from the crowd, I should at once
have retired, perfectly satisfied with the specimen I had obtained of
the Turkish taste in theatricals; but the arabas were standing four
deep, and pressed upon from behind by a dense mob; and I was
consequently compelled to remain a patient spectator of the whole
performance. Intrigues with Greek serving-men, domestic quarrels ending
in blows, and similarly well-conceived incidents, filled up the canvass,
until the end of the second act, when a fresh set of ballet dancers,
amounting to nearly one hundred, and clad in the beautiful old Greek
dress, entered, and made their bow to the Pashas.
During their performance, which was similar to that of the first party,
although less gracefully executed, a new feature was added to the
exhibition. An attempt at side scenes was evident, though I confess that
for the first few minutes I was at a loss to imagine the intention of
the very primitive machinery that was introduced. A couple of frames,
similar to those on which linen is dried in England, were placed on a
line about twenty feet apart, while, in the centre, a low railing of
about six feet in length divided the distance. A poor old wretch, with a
rope about his neck, was then tied to each frame, and made to squat down
upon his hands and knees, to represent a watch-dog; and some green
almonds were scattered about him for his food.
These miserable individuals, whose hired and voluntary degradation made
me heart-sick, were both of them old men, whose beards were grey, and
whose age should have exempted them from such an office as their
necessities had induced them to fulfil. Beside these were placed two
youths dressed as Chinese, with long braids hanging down their backs,
and feather fans in their hands; not very unlike the figures which adorn
the old china in the cabinet of an antiquary. Next came forward a
procession composed of all the trades of Constantinople, from the Jew
who vends fried fish at the corners of the streets, to the Frank
merchant, who, when he closes his office, becomes one of the
“Exclusives” of Pera.
Of course, the Frank was very roughly handled. His hat was struck off,
and made a football for all the ragamuffins by whom he was surrounded;
and the comments which were uttered alike upon his costume and his
country were by no means courteous or conciliatory. But it could
scarcely be expected that more delicacy would be observed towards a
Frank than had been shown to the women of the country; and, this
specimen of bad taste apart, the procession was the best point of the
performance; as the individuals who composed it appeared to have been
principally “taken in the fact,” and forced upon the scene; thus
affording faithful rather than flattering representations of their
several callings.
When the procession moved off, the serious business of the drama was
resumed; the three females re-entered on the scene, accompanied by their
mother, and a Greek serving-man, laden with their parasols and
essence-bottles; and followed by two thieves, who concealed themselves
behind the Chinese statues, for such I found that the two quaint figures
who had so quietly walked to their places were intended to represent.
After a vast deal of absurd grimace and buffoonery, rugs were spread in
front of the low railing, and the four females and the Greek servant
seated themselves, to listen to a tale told by the old woman.
While they were thus engaged, the melancholy Jacques of the previous act
stole upon their privacy, when an absurd exhibition of screaming and
fainting took place; during which the two thieves contrived, without any
attempt at self-concealment, to possess themselves of the cachemires and
handkerchiefs of the ladies, and, moving a few paces apart, they began
to divide the spoil; when the buffoon, in his turn, prowling about the
neighbourhood, discovered the theft, and, raising a hue and cry, at
which the dogs were let loose by the party, hastened during the
confusion to seize upon the booty of the robbers. The outcry attracted
the attention of the Cadi, who entered, accompanied by his attendants,
to ascertain the cause of the tumult; when the ladies, with tears and
shrieks, declared the amount of their losses, and demanded justice.
Of course the good taste which had made a jest of the feelings of their
allies, and the morals of their women, would not permit the Turkish
comedians to spare their judges; and accordingly the Cadi was a huge
caricature of humanity, with spectacles as large as saucers, and a
beard of sheep skin. A hurried trial ensued, in which, while the Cadi
was ogling the females, the buffoon was making himself merry at the
expense of the Cadi; the executioner with his bastinado, and the clerk
with his ink-horn and parchment, were both forthcoming; and the drama
ended by the capture of the thieves, and the restoration of the stolen
property!
A confused dance, accompanied by the wild, shrill chanting of the
dancers, which I can compare to nothing but the orgies of a troop of
Bacchantes, succeeded the departure of the actors, and the whole arena
appeared in motion. The drums and tambourines gave out their loudest
discord; gold and silver glittered in the sunshine; arms were tossed in
the air; the long tresses of the performers floated on the wind; and I
was delighted when the appearance of a troop of Bedouin Arabs, summoned
to Stamboul expressly for the occasion, possessed themselves of the open
space to exhibit their feats of strength and address. They were
magnificently attired in coloured satins, and formed a very curious
group; but their accomplishments would scarcely have secured for them an
engagement in a respectable English booth. It was altogether pitiable.
When I at length contrived to escape from the crowd, I left a party of
the dancing boys performing their evolutions in the Kiosk of the
Pashas. Their Highnesses had not yet had a surfeit of the senseless
pastime; and the youths were reaping a golden harvest.
The days are gone by in which people were wont to talk of the “Wise Men
of the East.”