IMPRESSIONS OF ASIATIC TURKEY 



603 



inspiring. I have seen while riding in the 

 Adana plain at daybreak 15 snow-white 

 peaks light up with the delicate tints of 

 dawn. The atmospheric effects of early 

 morning and sunset are entirely unique. 

 Rich tints of purple, blue, and rose hover 

 above the horizon at those mystic hours. 



Riding out over the Mesopotamian 

 plain in the heat of summer, I have 

 watched with wonder the phenomenon 

 of the mirage. Beautiful groves of trees 

 of shimmering brightness and grace stand 

 forth on the level horizon; but when 

 some new angle of vision is reached the 

 fair scene grows hazy and vanishes. 

 Again I have seen the distant part of the 

 plain transformed into a vast lake, with 

 many wooded islands. At such times it 

 is almost impossible to believe that the 

 plain has no such beauties, but is in 

 reality a dull, level brown, with clustered 

 villages, monotonously similar and color- 

 less. 



The mineral resources of that part of 

 Turkey are as yet undiscovered ; but it 

 is known that there are rich copper veins 

 in several parts of the Taurus and in the 

 hills near Diarbekr. Coal has been found 

 in ledges near the surface and extending 

 many miles not far from Aintab and 

 Behesne. Near Bagdad oil fields have 

 been discovered. The Karamanian range 

 west of Adana contains vast amounts of 

 iron ore. Given an intelligent and liberal 

 government, these natural resources will 

 attract the attention of engineers and in- 

 vestors from all over the world. 



Out in the plain of Haran, where Abra- 

 ham sojourned, the surveyors have driven 

 their stakes for the "iron road" within 

 eight or ten paces of the well which by 

 ancient tradition of the Arab tribes is the 

 very well where Rebecca watered the 

 camels at eventide. Soon the freight 

 trains will be rushing by and the camel 

 caravans will be forced farther back into 

 the desert. 



The Arabs of the plain are perhaps 

 the most primitive of all the inhabitants 

 of Turkey. 



I have seen a group of Arab men di- 

 vide and devour a large watermelon and 

 toss the rinds out into the dust of the 

 village street. They were not thrown 

 aside for the donkeys and camels, for 



by and by the women and children came 

 skulking up, gathered the gritty rinds, 

 and ate them with avidity ! Probably not 

 more than i per cent of these Arabs can 

 read. The village dwellings are adobe 

 huts, but the nomads live under goats'- 

 hair tents the year round. 



It is here in the north Arabian plain 

 that the finest horses in the world are 

 raised. Every year buyers from Bombay 

 and Cairo come to the Aneyzeh and 

 Shammar tribes to secure polo and riding 

 horses of the purest breeds. These 

 horses, when exported to northern and 

 western countries, do not stand the cold, 

 damp climates. 



DlFt'ICUI^TlES OF TRAVEL 



Journeys are usually made on horse- 

 back in these provinces, though the larger 

 cities are all connected by a system of 

 wagon roads. The roads get into such 

 hopeless condition that it is no strange 

 sight to see five or six Aleppo carriages 

 up to the hubs in mire, the passengers 

 all having abandoned them by wading 

 through the stickiest kind of mud, fer- 

 vently wishing that they had had sense 

 enough to start out on horseback. 



A good riding horse will get through 

 anything except quagmire and quicksand ; 

 but the exposure of riding ten or twelve 

 hours a day in the saddle makes traveling 

 extremely difficult for aged people and 

 those of delicate health. The heat of the 

 sun in summer is so intense that the 

 journey is very exhausting. Horseflies, 

 mosquitoes, and the dirty conditions of 

 wayside inns detract from the romance 

 of life in the saddle. 



But the unfailing hospitality of the 

 people, welcoming the traveler, no mat- 

 ter of what race or religion, to any house 

 in any village, compensates for many of 

 the inconveniences and hardships of vil- 

 lage life. 



When journeying by caravan, there is 

 a continual din at night and sleep is well- 

 nigh impossible ; for whether in an inn or 

 in an open camp the pack-horses and 

 mules carry great bronze bells around 

 their necks which jangle resonantly as 

 the animals move to and fro. The best 

 way is to travel with little baggage, as the 

 Turks usually do, and accept the hospi- 



