EASTERN ROUMELIA. 



MO 



posed of all sections of the population, and 

 commanded by officers named by the Sultan, as 

 provided for by the statute, had not been cre- 

 ated. < that when the Russians began to evac- 

 lie tranquillity of the province would in 

 tho interval have to be intrusted to the Bulga- 

 rian militia, organized by Prince Dondoukoff- 

 Korsakoff, and officered in a great part by 

 ins. As the Bulgarians had hitherto 

 shown themselves hostile to the Commission, 

 it seemed doubtful whether tliis militia could 

 bo relied upon to suppress disorders. The 

 Governor-General had by the treaty the right 

 to call in Ottoman troops ; but the exercise of 

 this right would inevitably cause serious dis- 

 turbances. The Porte, also, which at first had 

 insisted upon occupying Burgas and other 

 points, had abandoned this project, and there- 

 fore no Turkish troops were in a position to 

 promptly answer such a call. If the extreme 

 party among the agitators should get the upper 

 hand, it might even be impossible for the Com- 

 mission to remain at Philippopolis. These dif- 

 ficulties were fully recognized both by the 

 Porte and the foreign diplomatists ; but, since 

 the abandonment of the scheme of a mixed 

 occupation, no one seemed to. know what 

 should be done. This state of uncertainty 

 soon had serious consequences. The Mussul- 

 mans, afraid of being left alone with the Bul- 

 garians, emigrated in great numbers from 

 Roumelia, so that in the beginning of May 

 from 50,000 to 60,000 were in Adrianople. 



On May 27th Aleko Pasha entered Philip- 

 popolis. He wore on this occasion a Bulgarian 

 bonnet, although the Sultan had ordered him 

 to wear the Turkish fez. The question, in 

 spite of its apparent insignificance, had become 

 a warmly debated one. The fez is regarded 

 as the emblem of the old Turkish regime, and 

 the hat as that of the new European adminis- 

 tration. The Russians had undertaken to use 

 their influence in favor of the hat, and obtained 

 from Aleko Pasha a formal promise that he 

 would not wear the fez. Relying upon this 

 promise, Generals Obrutscheff and Stolypine 

 publicly declared upon several occasions that 

 the new Governor-General would wear the 

 hat, and thus manifest that he did not belong 

 to the old school of Pashas. On May 30th 

 Aleko Pasha was formally installed as Gov- 

 ernor-General. After the reading of the two 

 firmans of the Sultan sanctioning the organic 

 statute, and appointing Aleko Pasha, the fol- 

 lowing manifesto of the new Governor-Gen- 

 eral was read : 



MY DEAR FELLOW COUNTRYMEN : His Imperial Ma- 

 jesty tho Sultan, our august sovereign, desiring to pro- 

 cure a revival of prosperity for your province, which 

 lias suffered so much in consequence of recent events, 

 ' and to insure tranquillity for all the inhabitants with- 

 out distinction, has appointed me Governor-General 

 of Eastern Rnumelia for a period of five years, with a 

 view of currying into effect the organic statute pre- 

 pared by the Mixed Commission which was formed 

 For that purpose, and which was composed of Com- 

 missioners from the great Powers signatarics to the 

 Treaty of Berlin. The reforms which the Porto de- 



nim to introduce into tho government of Eastern Rou- 

 melia arc contained in detail in the above-mentioned 

 statute, and I think it i* needless to enumerate them 

 here. It w sufficient to add here that the union of all 

 is necessary to insure a faithful and complete applica- 

 tion and fulfillment of the statute, an well as the nub- 

 i and good will of the inhabitant*. 1 eamcftly 

 recommend people not to allow themselves to be dU- 

 couraged by the recollection of past evils, but to en- 

 deavor, on the contrary, to profit by the advantages 

 granted them by the Porte, as well as by the princi- 

 ples applied by virtue of the organic Htatuto above 

 mentioned, ana to endeavor thereby to repair all past 

 misfortunes. You arc not ignorant of the fact that in 

 all situations and in all countries the fruits of skill and 

 of labor, as well as the continued growth of public 

 riches and prosperity, depend mainly upon order and 

 good understanding* in general and between individu- 

 als. It is the duty of all of you, therefore t to employ 

 your best efforts to maintain public tranquillity while 

 BtMdily pursuing your own occupations and labors. 

 The entry of Ottoman troops into the interior of East- 

 ern Eoumelia being dependent upon tho maintenance 

 of public order ana upon my own request for that pur- 

 pose addressed to the Porte a request which is not 

 to be made except upon my personal appreciation of 

 tho circumstances requiring it I rely with confidence 

 upon those of tho inhabitants who are attached to 

 their country that they will abstain from all acts of a 

 character which would justify the entrance of the Ot- 

 toman troops. Those who seek to create a belief that 

 the entry of Turkish troops will be carried out, there- 

 by causing alarm to the inhabitants of Eastern Eou- 

 melia, completely ignore the real intentions of the 

 Sublime Porte ; for whenever the Imperial Govern- 

 ment shall deem it necessary to occupy by its troops 

 the frontiers and certain other localities, this will only 

 be done in conformity with the stipulations of tho 

 Treaty of Berlin, without giving cause for alarm to the 

 inhabitants. "What proves this is the fact of my ar- 

 rival in the chief town of tho province without the 

 presence of any Ottoman troops. Therefore I entreat 

 you not to listen to the malevolent suggestions, but to 

 manifest your gratitude to tho Porto for its anxiety 

 for the well-being and interest of your country, and 

 by employing all your efforts in facilitating the lit- 

 eral execution of the organic statute which assures you 

 a free administration. In conclusion, I salute you, 

 and offer up most hearty prayers to the Almighty for 

 your good health and a happy life. 



The question of hoisting the Turkish flag 

 had been considered, and for that purpose a 

 flag-staff had been erected at the gate of the 

 konak. The Prince having been informed that 

 the display of the flag might cause demonstra- 

 tions and disorder, he consulted the Commis- 

 sioners, observing that if disorder did occur he 

 should immediately resign and leave for Con- 

 stantinople. The Commissioners thereupon 

 had a meeting to consider this question. The 

 chief Ottoman Commissioner having explained 

 that it was not customary to hoist a nag be- 

 fore a konak which was not a fortress, the 

 Commission decided that, as the formality of 

 the hoisting or not of the Ottoman flag could 

 have no influence upon the execution of the 

 organic statute, the Commission considered 

 that the Governor-General alone could decide 

 upon the opportuneness of observing this for- 

 mality. The Prince acted upon this decision, 

 and, wishing to avoid all risks of disturbance, 

 directed that the flag should not be hoisted. 

 The troops then defiled before the Governor- 

 General, and the ceremony ended. On June 

 3d the Governor made the following nomina- 



