A SPY IN A PUBLIC BATH.
The Turkish bath--Some of its features--Great number
of baths in Constantinople--Women's baths and a
proverb--Evening parties at the bath--I encounter a spy
in a bath--He is well informed about me--I am alarmed--I
appeal to an Englishman for help in escaping--The 'cursed
country.'
WHEN I came back to Constantinople I decided to lead a more or less
retired life, so that I might if possible avoid becoming a prey to
the victim-hunting Palace spies. A year passed without fresh alarms,
and meanwhile no easy opportunity of leaving the country presented
itself. I was just beginning to feel satisfied that my caution was
rendering any such disagreeable change in my career unnecessary when
one night I was alarmed to discover that a spy was actually at work
plotting my ruin. This happened in a Turkish bath. Before relating
how this occurred, I will describe our baths. The Turkish baths are
much favoured in England, and perhaps there may be some among the
readers of this book who may like to know something about the baths in
Turkey. "Is the Turkish bath known in Turkey?" This curious question
is not infrequently put to travellers from the East by English people.
It is true that there is not much resemblance between the external
appearance and management of the so-called Turkish bath in England and
those of the hammam in Turkey. Outwardly the hammam usually presents
something of the appearance of a domed sepulchral edifice. Of the
little domes or cupolas which rise from its roof, that in the middle
is the highest, and is set with many small windows for the purpose of
lighting the bath. The massive walls that form the sides of the hammam
have no windows, as it is thought that if the walls were pierced the
outside air would penetrate into the interior and cause variations in
the evenness of temperature which it is held desirable to maintain.
The interior thus often becomes very dose, as ventilation is very
slow, being only through the opening by passers to and fro of the
double doors of the passage which leads to the cool entrance-hall.
Every now and then attendants burn frankincense in the interior of the
bath with the idea of purifying the air. The great warm hall under the
central dome has generally three large niches, two on each side and
one in front, as well as two little chambers. Each of these niches and
chambers has a roof in the shape of a half-hemisphere, which contains
a few tiny glass apertures, and which is joined to the central dome
roof. In all these niches and chambers there are, according to the size
of the bath, one, two, or three marble basins, which are fixed to the
low part of the wall, each basin being provided with hot and cold water
taps. Round these basins people sit on marble or wooden seats, which
are raised about five or six inches above the floor, and seated thereon
they have their bath. The little chambers can be engaged for private
use on application. One of these is excessively hot, being situated
close to the hot-water reservoir. Some people go to this hottest
chamber not only in order to perspire, more freely, but also for the
purpose of washing themselves with the warmest water in the bath. In
the hot hall just under the central roof there is a wide circular
marble seat, raised about two feet above the floor. Every bather sits
or lies on this seat before going up to one of the basins to have his
bath, and he stays there till he has sufficiently perspired. While he
is resting there an attendant comes forward and rubs him with a rough
glove which is made of horse-hair; and also massages him, if this is
required. After this operation the bather goes up to one of the fixed
basins, and the attendant follows him with a large copper hand-basin
and a big piece of Cretan soap. The attendant then turns on the hot
and cold water taps, letting as much water as may be required run from
both into the marble basin; he next proceeds to wash the customer by
soaping him with his loofah, and then pouring water over him with
the copper hand-basin. Most Mohammedans, after thus having a bath,
make their ablution with the flowing water, as is prescribed by their
religious law. When this is over the attendant claps his hands loudly
enough to be heard in the entrance-hall, another bath-servant then
enters and rubs the customer with one of the dry _Brossa_ towels which
he brings with him; then covering him up with others, he leads him
out, holding him by the arm. In the bath everyone walks on high wooden
pattens, as after having made the ablution one must not touch the floor
over which the used water runs; moreover, it is somewhat dangerous to
walk barefoot on the marble slabs with which the bath is paved, as
they are very slippery. Between the warm hall and entrance-hall there
is a large square room, round which are arranged several beds. The
people sometimes dress and undress in this room, especially in winter,
as, besides being free from draughts, this apartment is warmer in
temperature than the entrance-hall. The latter is cool, and the air is
not so close and stuffy as in the middle room.
The entrance-hall is also square, and has galleries running along on
each side, in which are many beds. The bath-keeper is always to be
seen in his place close to the door, smoking his pipe or _narguileh_,
and saluting the customers who come and go. In the middle of the
entrance-hall is a fountain, the pure and cold water of which is
ceaselessly splashing into its marble tank. In this water fresh fruits
and bottles of lemon squash are kept cool in summer time for the use
of customers. Near it a man may be seen always busy making coffee on
the charcoal fire; for most people are ready to take a tiny cup of
coffee at almost any time during the day. There are some persons who
stay in the bath for a very long time, and at the meal hours attendants
may frequently be observed bringing trays covered with dishes from
neighbouring restaurants.
The stove-room, where a huge fire is kept up day and night all the year
round, is situated at the back of the bath building. It is underground,
and a large portion of its floor is covered with piles of logs, the
fuel used for heating the water of the bath. The furnace itself is
very much like an oven upon which is placed a huge boiler. This boiler
receives cold water from one side, and after heating it gives it to the
reservoir. Many homeless young vagrants go to this underground place at
night in winter and sleep on the heaps of dried horse droppings which
are used as fuel along with the wood, and which are piled up opposite
the fireplace. It is a dismal sight to see those poor young fellows
lying in that foul and filthy place. They are allowed to shelter there
by the fireman, because he employs them in the hardest part of his
work without giving them any money.
Many of the Turkish baths are built double, one part being assigned
for the use of ladies. In some places ladies go to the bath only on
certain days of the week which are given up to them. Certain baths
again are used by them every day up till seven o'clock in the evening,
after which hour they are made over for the use of men. The charges
are very reasonable. A man can have a complete bath, and may stay on
the premises of the establishment as long as he pleases, by paying a
sum of about is. 8d., and when going out, after paying this, he will
be respectfully greeted by the bath-keeper and the attendants. Ladies
pay much less than this sum; their expenses can hardly be much over
sixpence, as they take all their own soaps, towels and clogs with them.
What they pay is really the 'water fee' and a penny or two for the
attendants.
Women go to the bath oftener than men, and they go in groups of three
or four or more, always taking their children with them. Boys over
eight or nine years of age are not allowed to go to the women's bath,
and even tall boys under that age are sometimes pushed back from the
door by the manageress, who is always a stern and unbending personage.
She usually says to such tall boys, "Good heavens! Is your father
coming too?" and she will listen to no expostulations from the boy's
mother as to his real age. The women's bath is always crowded, and free
fights for the fixed basins are of not unfrequent occurrence. Shrill
voices, mingled with the howlings and cryings of children anxious to be
taken out of the almost suffocating hot room, may sometimes be heard
from outside. This has given rise to a well-known saying in Turkey
which is used to describe a noisy gathering where many persons try to
speak at the same time: "the place was turned into a women's bath."
When women go to the bath they stay there all day long, and on such
occasions the poor husbands do not get much to eat in the evening.
Men go to these establishments in order to have a complete bath at
least once a fortnight; but they visit them oftener, especially in
winter, for the purpose of performing the ablutionary washing ordained
by the Mohammedan religion. It is said that once an Armenian was
annoyed at seeing his Mussulman neighbours, besides washing their
arms, faces and feet five times a day before the five canonical
prayers, go to the bath so often. He thought this a fanatical religious
fidgetiness. But when he went to Egypt and saw the dirty fellaheen and
Arabs, he was obliged to confess that the Prophet was quite right to
establish his strict ablution system.
The public baths in Turkey are mostly very old buildings, for, as
in most towns, the Turkish population has not increased for many
generations, only very few new baths have been erected. But in all
the new houses of the well-to-do families there are miniature Turkish
baths of two or three rooms. Still, notwithstanding their stuffy
atmosphere, and the horrid-looking little vermin called 'bath locusts'
that infest them, even rich people prefer to go to the large public
baths. The baths in private houses are only occasionally heated, and
so the temperature cannot be kept steady. They usually either get very
hot throughout, or else some parts become so extremely hot that it is
almost impossible to touch the wall or the floor, while in other places
the marble is quite cold. Persons who wash themselves in these private
baths in winter not unfrequently run the risk of taking a chill. A new
feature which has been introduced into the old Turkish bath is the cold
water douche, which it is becoming customary for the people to take
after their hot bath. Whether the Turkish bath was originally modelled
on the system used by Romans, or whether some of the bath-houses in
Turkey were founded by the Byzantines, it is quite certain that all
the good baths in large Turkish towns were constructed and organised
by the Ottomans centuries ago; and although most of them are now owned
by private persons, a certain portion of their revenue was originally
assigned to mosques, schools, and other religious or charitable
institutions. In Constantinople there are about seventy-five public
baths.
I remarked that the first intimation of danger from the Palace
espionage came to me in a bath. One night I happened to be in a public
bath in Pera with a few friends. I must explain that some of the
Turkish baths are opened at night, and so young men who work during
the daytime make up parties to go to them then. There they eat,
drink, and amuse themselves, and after the bath rest on the couches
which are always ready in the cooler section of the bath-house. I was
feeling particularly cheerful that evening; there were a few other
men in the baths besides our party, and a short and feeble-looking
man, who was sitting close to me on the raised marble in the centre of
the hot chamber, entered into conversation with me. As it is usual in
Turkish baths to take a lemon squash, he offered me one. He was very
amusing, and talked of trivial matters at first; but presently his
conversation turned upon other subjects, which were decidedly out of
place. Not being able to draw from me easily any remarks on internal
politics, he himself began to comment on the state of affairs in our
country in a way which was unusually frank for a Turkish subject in the
present reign. Of course, like most of my young countrymen, I was on
the lookout for possible peril from spies, so I professed ignorance,
and feigned to have little interest in the political situation which
he wanted me to discuss. In spite of my reticence the man became
annoyingly persistent, and said that I must be well-informed, because I
was acquainted with several Europeans. This last remark disturbed me
not a little. The man knew something about me. Although the aggressive
attitude of the fellow was provoking, and although I was physically
more than a match for him, I refrained from ejecting him from the
baths, or thrashing him with a wooden bath patten. To chastise the
Palace spies, as they deserve, is a very risky proceeding, for they
are the most trusted servants of his Imperial Majesty. If I had given
way to my then still excitable temper, and had thrashed my aggressor,
I should certainly have been sent into exile on the usual 'political
charges,' and the man himself would have been rewarded by his imperial
master. I pretended to be very sleepy, and yawned constantly, thus
eventually persuading him to give it up and leave me alone. As a matter
of fact I was not sleepy, and I did not sleep that night at all. I did
not tell my companions in the baths anything about my experience. Next
morning, when I left the baths, my first business was to see my English
friend. Seeing that I was in rather a nervous state of mind, he asked
me what was the matter.
I requested him to help me to get out of 'this cursed country.' The
old gentleman said, in a calm and compassionate manner, that I was
a traitor to call my own country 'cursed.' He knew well that I was
not a traitor, and that I belonged to a family whose sons had shed
much blood in the defence of Turkey in the past. I was not the only
man who would be happy to get away from his country. Not only the
thousands of Young-Turks who are in exile and in prisons, but also many
thousands who are actually in the service of the Government, would
only be too glad to escape abroad if they could get a chance. There
is not one of them who is for a moment safe from the spies, and their
flimsy but deadly accusations. These people are not traitors, or even
revolutionists, but law-abiding, educated, and patriotic men, who do
not even wish for radical changes in the established laws of their
country, which work satisfactorily if they are administered justly and
honestly. But they suffer from the most capricious and cruel despotism
of a single man, who has made their country an absolute hell for them.