Not Ibrahim and all his conquests, nor the presence of the Russian fleet, with all the uncertainty hanging over the subject of their departure, have produced any thing like it. The Perotes, in particular, will now have subject-matter of conversation for a whole month to come; while all good papists among them will feel bound to place additional candles before the Virgin, in token of their gratitude for her timely interference in saving them from antichrist. And were it not for ourselves, they might now hope that ‘ the land would have rest for forty years.’
“ These men, it is said, went one day last week and stood in a conspicuous place to see the Sultan, and, when he passed along, they remained like statues, not showing the least sign of respect; but, whenever they saw a female, of whatever age or of whatever nation, they would run to her, even in sight of the Sultan himself, throw off their caps, bow down before her, gaze upon her face, and compare her features with the model of female beauty they had in their hand, in order to ascertain whether the individual they had accosted were the female messiah.
Now, you know, even the common Turks do not consider it very genteel, to say the least, for strangers to take such liberties with their wives and daughters. And the high Sultan was so indignant to see them give to the harem of his subjects that honor which he considers due to him alone, and give it, too, in a manner which would shock common decency even in civilized countries, where woman is accustomed to receive attention, that he ordered them to be arrested and thrown into prison.
“ A multitude of people of all nations were assembled to see them off. The Turkish guard offered them no abuse, nor did they allow any others to insult them. The Turks carried their baggage on board with as much gravity as they would charcoal, and the prisoners, thirteen in all, walked out two and two and embarked. They were all dressed in livery, having red pantaloons fitting as tight to the legs as their skin; neat boots, reaching liali’-way up to the knee; a sort of Albanian petticoat, though much less full and much shorter, not reaching half-way down to the knee; a girdle round the waist; black cloaks thrown over their shoulders and tied before; red, three-cornered caps on their heads; their beards long; and their hair, like that of Nazarites, hanging over their shoulders. They were all young men, with interesting countenances, and they appeared perfectly at their ease.
“ After they were gone, I asked the captain of the port, from whose office they had just been conveyed on board, Who were these singular-looking men you have been sending away? ’ lie replied, They are Frenchmen Istiklal Street and Taksim Square, whose father is imprisoned in Paris, and who came here to look round in our harems for their mother.’ They certainly displayed great ignorance of the customs of the country, and a great want of common sense, to say no more; but when men turn away their ears from the truth, and are turned into fables,’ what can be expected but that, like wicked men and seducers, they should wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.’
They are called missionaries by the people here, which is, of course, not much to our honor. Yesterday I was in a store at Pera, and heard several persons conversing about the imprisonment of these thirteen. I told them I had understood that there were twenty-four of them in all.No,’ replied a flippant clerk, whom I took to be a papal Armenian, ‘ there are only thirteen of these; the Americans at Orta Keuy are bashkah,’ i.e., not the same; different. Some of those present must, I think, have known that I belonged to the bashhah; but they said nothing.”
No comments:
Post a Comment