CONSTANTINOPLE. The Goal of Russian Ambition.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 380, 26 June 1889, Page 3

CONSTANTINOPLE. The Goal of Russian Ambition.

There have* been twenty-six sieges and eight -captures of Constantinople. The thing that .has been will be. Constantinople is at the junction of the Bosphorus and the Sea of ' Marmora. The approach by sea js through the JSgean. Then we enter the Dardanelles, > the ancient Hellespont, the Strait uniting the iEgean with the Sea of Marmora. ! The shores of the Dardanelles are formed by the Gallipoli Peninsula; European side, and the Asia Minor mainland. Length of the strait 47 miles, average breadth 3or 4 miles. Theie are several castles.^ Two ancient ones were the famous Sestos and Abydos.,, Xerxes' army, one million passed the Dardanelles by a bridge of boats' from Asia, Alexander's army'went over the same way from Europe. Leander, it is said; used to swim ncross to see Hero. Byron did the feat, which, however^ was nothing to Captain Webb s swim over the British Channel. The straight is easily defended, but in 1807 Admiral Duckworth with the British fleet went through to the Sea of Marmora, ready to take 1 Constantinople. This was 19th February. On 3rd March the British fleeb went out 'again, but with great loss, through the castle called Sestos and Abydos hurling down stone shot on the ships. The allied English and French fleets passed the Dardanelles at the Sultan's request, October, 1853. An Engli3h fleet passed for the third 1 time (13th February, 1878) without the Sultans permission, but the forts did not dare to fire. This was the steaming up of our ironclads to checkmate Russia, whose army was encamped on the Tchekmedj, in sight of Constantinople's minarets. Russia extorted the San Stefano Treaty, bub had to come down to that of Berlin. There was a "grand review of 80,000 Russian soldiers in sight of Constantinople, 17th August, 1878. The' war of 1877-8 cost Russia £120,000,000. Passing the Dardanelles, we enter the. Sea of Marmion, in tho course of the channel connecting the iEgean with the Euxine or Black Sea. The Sea of Marmora is 110 miles from the Dardanelles to the Bp9phorus, greatest breadth 43 miles. It is very deep, even to 355 fathoms. The Bosphorus Strait is about 20 miles long, from three-quarters to two and aquarber miles wide, resembling a broad, swift river with high banks. Both sides look -highly picturesque" from the deck of the steamers plying up and down, being richly dotted with cypresses, laurels^ and plane trees, and covered with palaces, kiosks, villages, villas and gardens. ' * Constantinople is where the Marmora Sea narrows to the Bosphorus. The Asian side is called Scutari. Constantinople harbor will float 1,200 ships. This is the Golden Horn. The southern shore is where the mass of the buildings are. This is named Stamboul, or the Turkish quarter proper. Itr juts out to the Seraglio Point, occupied by tho Seraglio. Population of the whole of Constantinople, about 875,000; only about half of them Mahometans. The strategical importance caused a distinguished English 'officer to be engaged lately in superintending the erection of fortifications all across the peninBula at the ends of which ,the city stands. The fortified lines are from Biyukchekmeji, on the Marmora Sea, to Lake Derkos on the Black Sea, only 20 miles across. The line ought to be strong enough against surprise by land. Bear in mind that the Russians have recently been talking about a move through Roumania, by the Dbbrudja, or coast, to Bulgaria and Adrianople. The first through express train from Western Europe, inaugurating a direct service with Paris, reached Constantinople 10th November last. Railways connect the city with the other important Turkish place 3. Christian Constantinople, north side of the Golden Horn, comprises Galata, Pera and Tophaneh. Galata is the merchant quarter. The Tower of Galata serves the same purpose as the Seraskier Tower in Stamboul, giving alarms of the frequent fires. Pera is the aristocratic quarter, with the Embassies, Legations, Consulates. The magnificent Dolmabagche Palace is on the Bosphorus brink. A famous pleasure resort is the beauty spot called Sweet Waters, at the head of the Golden Horn. There are many more beauty spots, and ust a few ugly ones In Stamboul are the monuments and antiquities. Next to the Seraglio is the Mosque of St. Sofia, founded as a Christian Church a.d. 532. Ten thousand workmen are said to have been engaged on it, under 100 master builders. .. Coat £1,000,000, being enriched with spoils of the glorious heathen temples at Heliopolis, Ephesus, Delos and Baalbec. Used as a cathedral 900 years, converted to mosque in 1453. Under Christian rule, Constantinople had 500 churches in 1202 a.i>. Now there are near 500 mosques big and little. The clusters of mosque lowers on the seven hills make Constantinople so unique in its picturesque aspect. Rome has its seven hills, too. In Constantinople there are ample wildernesses of tumble-down houses on the hill sides, below, the mosques, with lane upon lane of bazaars. Mahometan education is a kind of thing our Christian specialists are curious about. In Constantinople we see"ib in full vigour, and at Bokhara. What one would call a State school is the Mahaleh, where boys and girls are mixed, from 5 to 10 years old. The study is up to the reading of the Khoran in Arabic. ' The next class of school is the Rushdiyeh, boys only, from ten to sixteen. The Mahaleh and Rushdiyeh are open to all Mahometan youth without distinction. Indeed our ideas of free and compulsory, though not secular, education appear to come from the Mahometans. ' Most lads finish with the Rushdiyeh. Higher are the Mosque schools, named Medresseh, of which Stamboul has probably over 400. The Rushdiyeh course includes writing, arithmetic, geography, history. The Medresseh course is mainly theological and linguistic! A most valuable class of school is called the Ida'diyek. This grounds up lads for the technical schools.' which include five special Government establishments — military, naval, artillery, engineering, medicine. — Melbourne ' Telegraph.'