THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



91 



ussa) from about the bend of the river 

 Semeni, with the Adriatic on the west, 

 Greece to the south, and by the left flank 

 of the French Armee d'Orient on the east, 

 in the neighborhood of Ersek, on the line 

 of communication from Santi Ouaranta 

 to Saloniki. 



The French sector is smaller than the 

 Italian and numbers fewer people, though 

 within its boundaries are included the 

 lakes Ochrida and Malik and the fertile 

 valley of the latter, in which is Koritza, 

 probably the wealthiest town of the 

 country. 



Throughout southern Albania — indeed, 

 probably throughout all of Albania in 

 these days — government is administered 

 by the armies of occupation. The people 

 have little to say as regards their own 

 affairs and have been almost completely 

 disarmed. In the Italian section, how- 

 ever, many local prefects and magistrates 

 hold office and administer the law as it 

 now exists, the old Turkish Code having 

 been partially replaced. 



NATIVES APPOINTED TO OFFICE 



For this administration lower courts 

 have been established, methods of pro- 

 cedure drawn up, and, wherever possible, 

 natives have been appointed to minor 

 offices. This recognition of the Alba- 

 nians and delegation of authority to them 

 has caused great satisfaction. They are 

 beginning to understand that under the 

 mild military control of the Italians they 

 are treated simply as Albanians, without 

 regard to religious differences. No in- 

 iquitous distinction in law is now made 

 between Orthodox, as the people of the 

 Greek Church are called, and Moham- 

 medan. In this respect the Italian wisely 

 differs from the Greek, who, perhaps nat- 

 urally enough, sees little good in the 

 Moslem. 



The French have gone a step further 

 than the Italians in Albanian affairs, last 

 year proclaiming an Albanian republic at 

 Koritza. Of this, however, at the time 

 of my visit to Koritza, I could find no 

 trace. The republic seems to have died 

 quietly and naturally. It probably had 

 no support from the people and was a 

 forced attempt of the foreigner, upon 

 whom the Albanians always look askance. 



As a matter of fact, the Republic of 



Koritza had no reason for its existence. 

 It seems that an Albanian, Germani, had 

 been induced to come over from the Aus- 

 trian camp to become prefect of police, a 

 most important post in the new republic, 

 but something went wrong with Ger- 

 mani ; he has disappeared. At all events, 

 Koritza and the surrounding country to- 

 day remain under French control. A 

 civilian prefect holds office, presumably 

 under the general commanding, but a 

 council of fourteen natives assists him in 

 an advisory capacity. 



MOST ANCIENT RACE OF SOUTHEASTERN 

 EUROPE 



The Albanians are regarded as the 

 most ancient race of southeastern Eu- 

 rope. There is no record of their arrival 

 in the Balkan Peninsula, no legend re- 

 lating to their origin. They are thought 

 to be descendants of the earliest Aryan 

 immigrants, and with praiseworthy per- 

 sistence have retained their mountain 

 strongholds through many ages. 



Except for Byron's casual tribute in 

 "Childe Harold," the Albanians, unlike 

 other peoples of the Balkans, have not 

 been praised in song or story. Indeed, 

 they appear to have received but little at- 

 tention from the world, except to be 

 characterized as a turbulent race of 

 mountaineers, whose principal occupation 

 has been to fight among themselves when 

 not engaged in fighting against some one 

 else. But, like the early Swiss, these rude, 

 untutored people possess many primitive 

 virtues. They have preserved with re- 

 markable tenacity the traditions of their 

 descent, and are brave, honest, and hos- 

 pitable. Their lives having been spent in 

 constant conflict with nature in its most 

 unfriendly aspects, they have been taught 

 from infancy to fight against man as 

 readily as against the warring elements 

 of the air. 



THE BLOOD FEUDS OF A FEW YEARS AGO 



Albania is notorious as the land of the 

 blood feud — a tribal, or perhaps more 

 properly a racial, custom observed for 

 many centuries. Travelers and commen- 

 tators usually refer to the Albanian 

 mountaineer as utterly lawless, but in 

 reality his actions toward his fellow-men, 

 up to a few years ago, were based upon 



