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islands , villages , knd vine-clad hills , —the whole beautiful picture framed in as it were by the magnificent outline of the snow-crowned Olympus . To the left the lovely Bosphorus winding like a river to the Euxine through a succession of such scenery as the world can scarcely match , with the grand mountain range of Asia Minor towering in the distance .
I shall long remember the banquet of beauty on which I then feasted ; nor do I hesitate to pronounce that view unrivalled : rich in materials for poet and painter , replete with historic and classic association , it was more than all this , —the real prize for which three mighty nations are doing desperate deeds !
"Yes , " cried Miss P ., as I mentioned to her the thoughts running through my mind , " and we should not dream of returning without a peep at Balaklava . " " Certainly not , " exclaimed the widow . " Balaklava , by all means , " said the Hon . Charles . . "We could not be happy till there we have arrived , " remarked Herr Miiller .
" It would be rather stupid to turn back now , " said I . " Well , since you are all agreed , so be it , " was the conclusion of Sir Arthur ; and we returned to the yacht in high spirits , anxious to finish our sight-seeing and start for the seat of war .
The next day our fair friends paid a visit to the ladies of a merchant ' s family—the head of which is somewhat of a Turkish Tory . We of the sterner sex were permitted as far as the court , which was a quadrangle surrounded by the offices , chambers , and hareem belonging to the family . A neat verandah ran round three sides of it , furnished with divans , carpets , and cushions ; the centre occupied by a pretty fountain , a flower-garden , and some evergreens .
The old gentleman , a most dignified effendi , but who spoke little English , gave us a capital luncheon of the best salad I ever ate , and an excellent dish called kabobs , which , with rich perfumed sweetmeats , coffee , and pipes , formed no contemptible repast . But we saw none of the ladies , to the infinite regret of the Hon . Charles .
The houses m Constantinople are furnished with a curious broad wooden shutter on the outside , serving at night to make all safe , and by day , when supported by poles in an upward slope—the hinge being at the top , —for a verandah . If the house be a shop , a platform is placed under this , where goods may be displayed , and the shopkeeper smoke his chibouque with imperturbable gravity .
On our way back to the yacht we were surprised by meeting a most incongruous cavalcade ., composed of blue-eyed daughters of England , and several fair blossoms of the Hareem enveloped in folds of muslin , and attended by their black guards ( not blackguards ) . Verily the spirit of Islkmism is departing ! The day before yesterday went to see San Sophia . The exterior is neither pleasing nor imposing . You behold a vast and rather un-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Untitled Article
islands , villages , knd vine-clad hills , —the whole beautiful picture framed in as it were by the magnificent outline of the snow-crowned Olympus . To the left the lovely Bosphorus winding like a river to the Euxine through a succession of such scenery as the world can scarcely match , with the grand mountain range of Asia Minor towering in the distance .
I shall long remember the banquet of beauty on which I then feasted ; nor do I hesitate to pronounce that view unrivalled : rich in materials for poet and painter , replete with historic and classic association , it was more than all this , —the real prize for which three mighty nations are doing desperate deeds !
"Yes , " cried Miss P ., as I mentioned to her the thoughts running through my mind , " and we should not dream of returning without a peep at Balaklava . " " Certainly not , " exclaimed the widow . " Balaklava , by all means , " said the Hon . Charles . . "We could not be happy till there we have arrived , " remarked Herr Miiller .
" It would be rather stupid to turn back now , " said I . " Well , since you are all agreed , so be it , " was the conclusion of Sir Arthur ; and we returned to the yacht in high spirits , anxious to finish our sight-seeing and start for the seat of war .
The next day our fair friends paid a visit to the ladies of a merchant ' s family—the head of which is somewhat of a Turkish Tory . We of the sterner sex were permitted as far as the court , which was a quadrangle surrounded by the offices , chambers , and hareem belonging to the family . A neat verandah ran round three sides of it , furnished with divans , carpets , and cushions ; the centre occupied by a pretty fountain , a flower-garden , and some evergreens .
The old gentleman , a most dignified effendi , but who spoke little English , gave us a capital luncheon of the best salad I ever ate , and an excellent dish called kabobs , which , with rich perfumed sweetmeats , coffee , and pipes , formed no contemptible repast . But we saw none of the ladies , to the infinite regret of the Hon . Charles .
The houses m Constantinople are furnished with a curious broad wooden shutter on the outside , serving at night to make all safe , and by day , when supported by poles in an upward slope—the hinge being at the top , —for a verandah . If the house be a shop , a platform is placed under this , where goods may be displayed , and the shopkeeper smoke his chibouque with imperturbable gravity .
On our way back to the yacht we were surprised by meeting a most incongruous cavalcade ., composed of blue-eyed daughters of England , and several fair blossoms of the Hareem enveloped in folds of muslin , and attended by their black guards ( not blackguards ) . Verily the spirit of Islkmism is departing ! The day before yesterday went to see San Sophia . The exterior is neither pleasing nor imposing . You behold a vast and rather un-