TURKEY. 



725 



treasury. He also expressed hope of a favor- 

 able issue to the negotiations entered into with 

 Montenegro, a result which would enable the 

 Government to send the troops at present under 

 arms to their homes, to the great advantage of 

 agriculture. Finally, the Sultan declared that, 

 though the conference, which met in Constan- 

 tinople on the proposal of England, did not re- 

 sult in a definite understanding, it had been 

 none the less demonstrated that both before 

 and since the conference the Government had 

 been, and would be, ready to anticipate in 

 practice those wishes of the Powers which 

 could be. reconciled with existing treaties, the 

 rules of international law, and the exigencies 

 of the situation. 



In Bosnia, the insurrection continued to 

 smoulder on during the early part of the year. 

 In the Herzegovinia outrages were committed 

 by the Bashi-Bazouks upon the refugees who 

 had returned from Austria, and were about to 

 rebuild their homes. 



TUKKISH BATH. 



In April an insurrection broke out among 

 the Miridites, a Catholic tribe of Albania, oc- 

 cupying the country between Prisrend and Scu- 

 tari. Dervish Pasha was sent against them 

 with about 10,000 men; and having defeated 

 them in several small engagements, they re- 

 treated to the mountains, where they were 

 soon forced to surrender by a scarcity of pro- 

 visions. 



At the outbreak of hostilities between Russia 

 and Turkey, the two armies were about 450 

 miles apart. The Russian army was massed 

 near the northeastern frontier of Roumania, 

 with the headquarters at Kishenev, a town on 

 the railroad between Odessa and Jassy. The 

 Turkish troops were stationed at various points 

 along the line of the Danube from Tchernetz 



to Silistria. Between the armies was the prin- 

 cipality of Roumania, which, nominally a vas- 

 sal of Turkey, had been drifting during the 

 period immediately preceding the war into an 

 alliance with Russia. Late in March, stores 

 and ammunition were sent by the Russians 

 into the former country, and the Russian and 

 Roumanian railway lines were connected, so 

 that rolling-stock could be easily concentrated 

 at Jassy. On Monday, April 23d, about 17,000 

 Russian troops were transferred by railway to 

 Jassy, which is about 80 miles distant from 

 Kishenev. Within twenty-four hours the Rus- 

 sians occupied Galatz, Braila (also called Ibrail, 

 Brahilov, and Brailov), and Bucharest, the 

 capital of Roumania. The Russians made 

 themselves masters of the Roumanian railway 

 system, and could mass their forces either at 

 Giurgevo or Tchernetz. There is a tolerable 

 road between Bucharest and Oltenitza, where 

 the Danube is about 800 yards wide. At Gi- 

 urgevo the width of the river is thi-ee- fourths 

 of a mile. The natural crossing-places are at 

 Giurgevo, Oltenitza, and Kalarash, and of the 

 three Giurgevo is the most important; The 

 Danube is a wide and swift river, across which 

 it would not be easy to throw a bridge of 

 boats ; hut as the line of defense was so long, 

 the assailants had on the whole a great advan- 

 tage. The Turkish divisions were scattered, 

 and the assailing army could be massed quietly 

 and hurled suddenly in overwhelming force 

 against the defenders at a single point. The 

 first line of the Turkish defense was, however, 

 quite formidable. The southern bank of the 

 Danube is for the most part high, while the 

 Roumanian is low and swampy. The Turkish 

 towns nestle among the hills, and many of 

 them are fortified, while the Roumanian side 

 is desolate. The little Turkish gunboats, each 

 carrying a heavy gun, could have pretty much 

 their own way, unless the Russians could drive 

 them off with torpedoes, large numbers of 

 which had been stored along the Roumanian 

 bank. Of the fortified towns in Turkey, the 

 most important are those forming what is 

 known as the Turkish quadrilateral Rust- 

 chuk, Silistria, Varna, and Shumla. Rustchuk 

 is a town of about 30,000 inhabitants, and is 

 situated on the Danube. In 1811 it was be- 

 sieged for several weeks, and was finally taken 

 by the Russians. After its evacuation in 18J2 

 the Russians burned it, but it was soon re- 

 built, and what is now the town of Giurgevo, 

 on the other side of the Danube, was con- 

 structed as a fortified bridge-head. At the 

 opening of the Danubian campaign the Rus- 

 sians then occupied Giurgevo, and the Turks 

 Rustchuk, but several months passed in win 

 both armies attempted to make a passage, until 

 at last the Turks gained a foothold on one of 

 the islands, and eventually captured Giurgevo. 

 During the early months of 1877, the fortifica- 

 tions of the town were considerably Improved 

 In April, for a distance of three miles along 

 margin of the stream, the bank waa thick! 



