STORIES OF THE ORIENT.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 81894, 27 November 1906, Page 4

STORIES OF THE ORIENT.

A writer in ''Chamber's Journal" on the "Chaim.ng Orient" tells toe following Bturie^ I once witne-sed a charming 11 u1 • scene at a file winch was raging in Kadkeuy. A pair of storks had built their nest of dry branches on tlie top ol a chimney-stack, and the motherbird had two young to prov.de for. One May night a tire broke out at the far end of the street, and a strong wind drove ilie flames from house to hou-e, until the nest \vathreatened. In the brill ant glare of the burn:ng street the mother bird was sten -uniiing ov r th. nest witn w.de uut-iretehed, wings. The cinder-, and spaiks weie Hying all over her, but that mwhejr-pne which the beast- of the held and the birds of the air d.splay in common «itb sentient human b-'ings forbade her to desert her young ones m the hour of deadly per*). The crowd became quite excite'J and there were calls for a re-cue- This was a ta>k that involved a certain amoun't of danger. for the house wa- already burning. Two. Turkish soldier 1 -, however, rushed into the building am' made their way to t|ie ryot. \\' watched the plucky fellows approach the cliimnev—taek, and suddenly tin stork di-appe.tred with an awkwaul Sounder and a prodigious Happing iof wings. One of the -oldier- had seized it by its ungainly legs, while the other rescued the nestlings. Tiletwo m'-n had ju-t time to get out of the buildiiijr without having their retreat cut off. IJurng the ma-sacres, a Laz, one «.f thoie piratical rutlians from 'lie lilack Sea pittnral- cast an evil eye on the booth i f a sarraf (moneyehangei I. The -anafs are mostly Armenians and for the lurk is fo:b dden by the Ko:an to follow liie u-uriou- tiade. 1h- l.az evit'. nrly 'h'-jght the -arraf was fair pr- v. II- •-w.igg red at."-" die ..it■ k 'k.d o-.e'* Ui" m aey.tr.u-. t'e>k ->ff hwa.-tb,<.i ; .ir.d co» ! y p:oece'.!"d to fitl tin- tr w-v iat>- wit!' Ijijf silver m< djid clw. v. a,. m»l----in'if off with l.t- booty, when a p.rh.i wh'i chanted to v.i'n'*- the -nciden., ea!l'-d him back, b -xed his eat - heartily, and for ed liiin to <1 -gorge every coin he had taken. I his w.ia IV'"-1 action on the part ef the pa s ha.' flute -o! Hut I regret to say that the virtuous pasha forgot to rest'-'e the coins to the sarrar. In an ab-sent-minded way he gathered up the silver and walked off home. Tinis a true tale, and, indeed, in a country wheie Mini-ters of St.ite do not disdain to hold out their palm' to receive bribes from ten pound-! .upwards. it i* not surprising ptk«r m*» jJweeßding (9