Among the peasant farmers of Roumelia there is no regular system of rotation of crops observed; but with the occupants of large estates the ordinary rule for rich lands is two wheat crops and one of oats, then fallow one or more years, wheat, and then sesame. In Macedonia, where arable land is more abundant, one year’s rest is allowed to some lands. The only manure some of these lands obtain is from the treading of the sheep on the land in early spring and after the harvest is reaped, and yet the soil is naturally so rich that a generally bad harvest is of rare occurrence. The mode of cultivation is very primitive, employing much hand labor and involving much waste. Tillage is performed with the native plough, on an average depth of four inches to the furrow. The instrument used for the purpose is very rude and has only one handle. The number of buffaloes used varies from two to five. In Roumelia some large estate owners attempted introducing agricultural implements from Europe, but threshing-machines alone met with any success. In Macedonia even these proved a failure, as their management is not understood, and fuel is difficult to procure in the interior. In some parts the grain is scattered over the stubble and then ploughed in. Much of the harvest is done by young women and girls in Roumelia and Macedonia. They and the male harvesters hire themselves for the June harvest. On the 21st August the harvest-home is celebrated. Decked in their holiday costumes, crowned with garlands, and carrying bouquets composed of ears of corn, the reapers proceed to the nearest town to dance and sing before the doors of the principal houses and in the market-place.
Threshing is performed in the most antique manner imaginable. The instrument used for the purpose consists of two pieces of wood curved at one end, fastened together, and studded with a number of flints. This is attached at the curved end to a team of three or four horses. A girl stands on this sledge and drives the team rapidly over the corn thrown in bundles on the ground, which has been hardened and prepared for the purpose. This process breaks the straw into very small lengths, making it very palatable food for the cattle. The corn is winnowed by being thrown up in the air with wooden shovels, the breeze carrying away the chaff. In some parts of Macedonia the process is even more simple. A team of horses is driven over the bundles of corn, treading out the grain. The women and children also sit on the ground and help in the operation by beating it with sticks.
The principal crops raised in Roumelia are wheat, barley, maize, rye, oats, sesame, and canary-seed. A considerable quantity of rice is grown in some parts. In the south, towards Adrianople, the vine reaches some degree of perfection, and excellent wine is made, which, when kept for some years, resembles sherry in taste and color. The mulberry grows abundantly, and before the silkworm disease appeared in those districts formed a very profitable branch of industry. The mulberry gardens sometimes comprise several acres of land; when they are near towns or large villages, the silkworm nurseries are placed in them. The rearing process begins in early spring, with the budding of the leaves, and lasts over two months. It is a very tedious and laborious work, requiring great neatness and attention, and is generally undertaken by the women. When the crop succeeds and is free from disease, it is an interesting process to watch. In Macedonia the same crops are grown, with the addition of a large supply of excellent tobacco. The best comes from Drama and Cavalla.
The cattle in Turkey, though small, are hardy and very serviceable. Little attention has hitherto been paid by the Government towards improving the breed. The sheep, too, are small, and their wool is of an inferior quality. Those in Asiatic Turkey are mostly of the Karamanian, or broad-tailed, breed. Their fat is much used by the natives for cookery, and their milk made into cheese. Sheep-farming is carried on to a great extent both in European and Asiatic Turkey. Buffaloes for draft purposes and ploughing, and camels as beasts of burden, are very numerous, especially in Asia Minor. Great numbers of goats are also kept; their milk is much used for making cheese. The Angora goats are (I need hardly say) much prized for their fleece. Their introduction into other parts of the country has been attempted several times, but has invariably failed. They do not thrive away from their native mountains.
CHAPTER IX.
TURKISH HOUSES.
The Turkish Quarter—A Konak—Haremlik and Selamlik—Arrangement of Rooms—Furniture—The Tandour—Turkish Clemency towards Vermin—Bordofska—An Albanian Konak—The Pasha and his Harem—A Turkish Bas-bleu—Ruins of Konaks outside Uskup—The Last of the Albanian Deri-Beys—A Konak at Bazardjik—The Widow of the Deri-Bey—Kiosks—Koulas—A Koula near Salonika—Christian Quarters—Khans—Furniture—Turkish Baths, Public and Private—Cafés.
Bright sunshine, fresh air, ample space, and pure water are indispensable to the felicity of a Turk. Both in the capital and in provincial towns the Turkish quarter is invariably situated in the most healthy and elevated parts, and occupies, on account of the gardens belonging to almost every Turkish house, double the ground of the Christian and Jewish quarters. These gardens are all more or less cultivated, but, except in the capital, where horticulture has obtained some degree of perfection, they seldom display either taste or order. A few fine mulberry or other fruit trees may be seen here and there overshadowing patches of ground bordered with box or tiles, and planted with roses, lettuces, and garlic; and in the gardens of the better class of houses one may often see pretty fountains.
The streets of the Turkish quarter are narrow and irregular, and, except in the principal thoroughfares, look solitary and deserted; they are, however, cleaner than those of the Christian and Jewish quarters, and this for three good reasons: they are little frequented; they are not encumbered with rubbish, owing to the space the Turks possess in their court-yards and gardens, where they can heap up most of the refuse that the Christians have to throw into the streets; and they are better patrolled by the street dogs, for these famous scavengers, being under the special protection of the Mussulman, are more numerous in the Turkish than in the other quarters, and eat up all the animal and vegetable refuse.
A Turkish konak, or mansion, is a large building, very irregular in construction, and without the slightest approach to European ideas of comfort or convenience. This building is divided into two parts, the haremlik and the selamlik; the former and larger part is allotted to the women, the latter is occupied by the men and is used for the transaction of business, the purposes of hospitality, and formal receptions. The stables are attached to it, forming part of the ground-floor, and rendering some of the upper rooms rather unpleasant quarters. A narrow passage leading from the mabeyn (or neutral ground) to the haremlik joins the two establishments. The materials used for building are wood, lime, mud, and stone for the foundations. A Konak generally consists of two stories, one as nearly as possible resembling the other, with abundant provision for the entrance of light and air. A large hall, called the devankhané, forms the entrance into the Haremlik; it is surrounded by a number of rooms of various sizes. To the right, the largest serves as a sort of ante-chamber, the rest are sleeping apartments for the slaves, with the exception of one called kahvé-agak, where an old woman is always found sitting over a charcoal brazier, ready to boil coffee for every visitor. A large double staircase leads to the upper story, on one side of which is the kiler, or store-room, and on the other the lavatories. The floors are of deal, kept scrupulously clean and white, and in the rooms generally covered with mats and rugs. The furniture is exceedingly poor and scanty; a hard uncomfortable sofa runs along two and sometimes three sides of the room; a shelté, or small square mattress, occupies each corner, surmounted by a number of cushions piled one upon the other in regular order. The corner of the sofa is the seat of the Hanoum, and by the side of the cushions are placed her mirror and chekmegé.