In the future I went up the hill towards Yildiz to see the Selamlik. That morning the sultan was going to wish within the mosque of wooden which Abdul Hamid constructed near the mysterious, walled-in quarter of palaces, harems, kiosks, gardens, barracks, and parks which he made his jail. From the Bosporus you may see it extending from the hilltop nearly to the ocean, an incredible property, exterior the town, but dominating it, with dense groves of timber through which.wild animals have been saved, with open areas, with solitary buildings and features of roofs, and the cupola of the mosque ot the troopers. All about it are the excessive partitions which a coward raised as much as shield him and his worry. The mosque is under the nice entrance- gates on a steep hillside past the partitions. A big fashionable home, white, with inexperienced shutters, through which Abdul Hamid used to grant audiences and, I imagine, to present banquets, appears to be like down on it. From the higher home windows of this dwelling the Turks say the ex-sultan usually stared at his metropolis by means of highly effective glasses.
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The mosque shouldn’t be massive
The mosque shouldn’t be massive. It’s yellow and white, with a minaret of plaster on the facet subsequent the ocean, and a graveled courtyard surrounded by inexperienced iron railings and planted with a couple of timber. On the facet subsequent to Yildiz is a steep financial institution. A street runs up the hill to the left of the mosque as you face Yildiz, and one other hidden street descends from the gates and offers entry to the’ courtyard behind the mosque. The sultan has due to this fact a selection of two routes, and no one appears to know beforehand which method he’ll come. There have been only a few vacationers in Constan-tinople once I was there. Individuals have been afraid of battle, and earlier than I left the Orient specific had ceased to run. However I discovered awaiting the padishah many Indian pilgrims, a big troop of pilgrims from Trebizond who have been on their method to Mecca, a number of Persians sporting black toques, and a very good many Turks. These have been within the courtyard near the mosque, the place I used to be allowed to face by the arisrtocratic younger chief of police, who wore a woolly, grey, fez-shaped cap. Exterior the railings stood a dense crowcj of veiled girls.
Quickly after I arrived a squadron of the body-guard rode up from the town, carrying red-and-green pen- , nons on lengthy staffs, and halted earlier than the gates of the palace. And nearly on the similar second the palace musicians, in dark-blue, crimson, and gold, sporting quick swords, and carrying shining brass devices, marched into the inclosure. They stood nonetheless, then dropped their devices on the bottom, moved away, and sat down on the financial institution, lolling in straightforward attitudes. Time slipped by, and essential folks strolled in, officers, courtroom officers, attendants.
Ottoman in Bulgaria 