BULGARIA. 



7? 



ported to Asia Minor. The total value of the 

 imports in 1883 was 54,749,8*58 piasters, and 

 of the exports, 64,099,964 piasters. 



Railroads. Bulgaria has a line of railroad 

 running from Rustchuk to Varna, a distance 

 of 140 miles. A line, 74 miles in length, is in 

 process of construction from Vakarel to Tsari- 

 brod, to connect with the Turkish system. 



FiiiaiH-e. The Bulgarian budget for 1886 es- 

 timated the receipts at 43,000,000 leii, and the 

 expenditure at 35,780,324 leii. The revenue 

 of Eastern Roumelia was reckoned by the Eu- 

 ropean commission of 1879 at 800,000 Turkish 

 pounds per annum, and the tribute to be paid 

 to the Porte was fixed at three tenths of this 

 sum, or 240,000 Turkish pounds. The actual 

 revenue has not exceeded 600,000 Turkish 

 pounds, and the Provincial Assembly in 1882 

 voted to reduce the tribute to 180,000 Turkish 

 pounds. Since the overthrow of the Eastern 

 Roumelian Government in 1885 no tribute has 

 been paid. The Treaty of Berlin provided that 

 Bulgaria's share in the public debt of Turkey 

 and the annual tribute that she should pay 

 should be fixed by agreement between the sig- 

 natory powers, but the amounts have not yet 

 been settled upon. The revenue of Eastern 

 Roumelia in the budget of 1885-'86 was esti- 

 mated at 672,550 Turkish pounds, and the ex- 

 penditure at 676,650 pounds. 



Diplomatic Negotiations. The Russian Govern- 

 ment, after proposing the Prince of Mingrelia 

 as a candidate for the Bulgarian throne, sent a 

 note to the powers complaining that the re- 

 gency had summoned the Sobrauje, contrary to 

 its advice, and, instead of forming a coalition 

 government, had introduced a more radical 

 element. To this the regents replied early in 

 January, 1887, pointing out that a proposition 

 made to Zankoff to form a coalition ministry 

 had been rejected by the counsel of Gen. Kaul- 

 bars. A suggestion was made that Russia 

 should enter Bulgaria as the madatory of the 

 powers, and compel the observance of the 

 Treaty of Berlin, but the Czar declined to ac- 

 cept a European commission to intervene in the 

 principality. Russia, before proposing another 

 candidate, demanded the retirement of the re- 

 gents and their supporters in the government, 

 and the election of a new Sobranje for Bul- 

 garia only. Negotiations on these bases were 

 carried on between Russia, Austria, and the 

 Porte, and between the Porte and Bulgaria. 

 In January, Zankoff went to Constantinople, 

 and submitted to the Grand Vizier the de- 

 mands of his party, which included the port- 

 folio of Foreign Affairs and the Interior, the ap- 

 pointment of a Russian as Minister of War, the 

 election of the Prince of Mingrelia, a general 

 political amnesty, and the disbandment of the 

 existing army. The regency offered to resign 

 if so advised by all the powers, and all of them 

 except England approved this step. Grekoff 

 and Stoiloff were sent to Constantinople as en- 

 voys of the Bulgarian Government, and the 

 Porte discussed with them Zankoff's pro- 



gramme, except the propositions for appoint- 

 ing a Russian Minister of War, disbanding the 

 army, and recalling the exiled officers, and the 

 points relating to the immediate resignation 

 of the regency, the summoning of a new Great 

 Sobranje, and the election of the Mingrelian 

 prince to the vacant throne. When the Bul- 

 garian delegates met Zankoff, the latier pro- 

 posed that the ministerial offices should be di- 

 vided between the party in power, the adher- 

 ents of Karaveloff, and the Zankoffists. Fi- 

 nally, after Zankoff had made various imprac- 

 ticable propositions, the Porte, on Feb. 22, ac- 

 cused him of bad faith, and refused to treat 

 with him longer. Dr. Vulkovich, the Bulga- 

 rian agent in Constantinople, agreed, on behalf 

 of his Government, that the regency should 

 resign, and a new one be appointed with one 

 Zankoffist member ; that a new Cabinet should 

 be constituted, having two Zankoffist members 

 and a Russian Minister of War, but the latter 

 should be responsible to the Assembly, and no 

 Russian officers should enter the Bulgarian 

 army, except in the capacity of instructors; 

 and, finally, that the Sobranje should be dis- 

 solved immediately, but on condition that a 

 Great Sobranje should be convoked for the 

 election of a prince within thirty days, and 

 that some other candidate should be presented 

 by the great powers besides the Prince of Min- 

 grelia, and Prince George of Leuchtenberg, 

 who had been more recently suggested for the 

 place by the Russian Government. 



Revolutionary Conspiracies. While the diplo- 

 matic discussion was proceeding, a plot was laid 

 for carrying out the Russian plan, as proposed 

 by Zankoff, by means of a military revolution. 

 Col. Nicolaieff, the Minister of War, and Major 

 Popoff, commander of the 1st infantry regi- 

 ment, received through a merchant named 

 Papasoglou and his wife, offers of large brines 

 if they would join in the conspiracy. The 

 woman went to Sofia to make the arrange- 

 ments with Nicolaieff, who pretended to enter 

 into the plot. She was arrested in the latter 

 part of January, and in the judicial examina- 

 tion charged M. de Nelidoff, the Russian am- 

 bassador at Constantinople, with being the 

 prime mover in the conspiracy. 



After the final rejection of ZankofTs terms, 

 a serious military outbreak occurred at Silistria 

 and Rustchuk. The mutiny was planned from 

 Roumania by Grueff, Bendereff. Dimitrieff, 

 Dikoff, Kavaloff, and other cashiered and ex- 

 iled officers of the Bulgarian army. The oppo- 

 sition leaders, Karaveloff, Zanoff, and Zankoff, 

 were privy to the plot. At Silistria the revolt 

 was headed by Col. Kristeff, the commander of 

 the garrison. 



The Government had taken precautions 

 against a general insurrection of the ZankofF- 

 i,*ts, which had been planned for the 3d of 

 Mnrch, the anniversary of the signing of the 

 Treaty of San Stefano. The rising in Silistria 

 was begun prematurely by Kristeff, on learn- 

 ing that messages from Bendereff had fallen 



