GOVI
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN DIEGO
3 1822 02783 5032
MAUDE M.HOLBACH
UNiyERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
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3 1822 02783 5032
GEfSEL LIBRARY
DNMRSrTY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
LA JOLLA. CALIFORNIA
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BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA
SOME WA YSIDE WANDERINGS
BY THE SAME AUTHOR
Dalmatia
THE BORDERLAND 'TWIXT
EAST AND WEST.
With upwards of 50 Illustrations
from original Photographs by Otto
Holbach, and a Map. Crown 8vo.
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A BIT OK OLD .MOSTAR
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BOSNIA AND
HERZEGOVINA
SOME IVA YSIDE WANDERINGS
By MAUDE M, HOLBACH
WITH 48 ILLUSTRATIONS FROM
PHOTOGRAPHS BY O. HOLBACH
AND A MAP m ^ ^ ^
LONDON: JOHN LANE, THE BODLEY HEAD
NEW YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY. MCMX
PLYMOUTH : WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD , PRINTERS
PREFACE
IT is fitting that I should write the preface
to this book from Dalmatia, which was
my first love in the Balkans, and through
which I learnt to know her sister lands,
Bosnia and the Herzegovina. They are three
twin sisters of almost equal though varied
charms ; and when you are privileged to know
one, it follows as a natural consequence that
you wish to know all three.
Nature, I think, never intended them to be
separated, for the inland countries need the
outlet to the sea, and the coast land needs
the supplies of the back country. From the
purely aesthetic point of view even they sup-
ply each other's deficiencies — Bosnia has the
primeval forests, Herzegovina the grandest
mountain scenery, Dalmatia the sunny shore
and island-studded coast. Climatically also
they are suited to be visited one after another,
beginning with Dalmatia, if your visit is in
the spring ; for when the heat begins to
be oppressive there, a few hours' train jour-
Preface
ney transports you to Mostar, where the
season is some weeks later, and thence on to
the much more northerly climate of Bosnia,
where you can spend the whole summer, if
you will, wandering in its mountains and
forests, and when you weary of this gipsy
life, returning to civilisation and comfort at
Bad Ilidze.
If your journey be in the autumn, naturally
you will reverse the order of the countries.
September and October are delightful months
for Bosnia, as the autumn tints are at their
best during the latter month, and are only
equalled by those of the American continent.
In Herzegovina you will find blue skies and
sunshine throughout November, and I write
this from Ragusa in mid-December, sitting on
my balcony enjoying the sunshine of mid-
summer, and looking across a summer sea
over the ancient towers and walls of the
mediaeval town, which I described in my
previous book on Dalmatia as " a dream city
by the sea."
MAUDE M. HOLBACH
Imperial Hotkl,
Ragusa, Dalmatia.
December loth, 1908
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
I.
Bosnia and Herzegovina (Introductory)
II.
Gravosa to Mostar . . . .
III.
Mostar to Jablanica and Beyond to Jajce
IV.
Jajce ....
V.
Jajce Continued .
VI.
Jajce to Banjaluka
VII.
From Jajce to Sarajevo
VIII.
Sarajevo
IX.
Ilidze ....
X.
On the Drina River
XI.
From Gorazda to Foca
XII.
A Bosnian Feudal Castle — Rataz
XIII.
From Foca to the Valley of the Sutjeska
XIV.
To THE Sandjak . . . . .
XV.
In Plevlje ......
XVI.
The Return from the Sandjak
XVII.
Cajnica .......
XVIII.
Trebinje and its Neighbourhood .
XIX.
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brod
7
15
23
35
44
55
68
77
89
107
116
128
140
152
169
182
201
213
224
234
ILLUSTRATIONS
A Bit of Old Mostar ....
Gravosa Harbour ....
The Old Turkish Bridge at Mostar .
Peasants coming from Church in Mostar
Turkish Women in Mostar
View in Mostar .
The Narenta River
Landscape near Jablanica
Street Scene in Jajce .
Jajce with the Waterfalls
Great Falls of the Pliva River
On the Pliva River between Jajce and Jezero
Shepherds near Jezero .
Between Jajce and Banjaluka
Women of Jajce .
Mosque at Travnik
9
. Frontispiece
FACING PAGE
24
26
28
32
34
38
40
44
56
60
62
66
68
78
80
Illustrations
FACING PAGE
Travnik from the Hills . . ^
Fountain in Travnik ....
Sarajevo ......
A BIT OF Sarajevo, with the Rathaus in th
Distance ......
Courtyard of Mosque Begova Dzamija (Sar
Market Scene in Sarajevo .
Old Servian Church in Sarajevo .
The English Flag on Mount Trebevic
Mouth of the River Lim
FocA from the Hills ....
Mohammedan Graveyard in Foca .
Dervish Monastery near Foca
Street Scene in Foca ....
Feudal Castle of Rataj
The Beg of Rataj ....
The Sutjeska Ravine ....
The Gendarmerie Post at Suha .
A Woman of Plevlje (Sandjak Novi Bazar)
In the Sandjak Mountains .
ID
82
86
90
92
AJEVO) 96
102
I 10
112
120
128
132
136
140
148
152
160
170
178
Illustrations
FACING PAGE
Plevlje from the North . . . . .182
Landscape near Plevlje with Orthodox Monastery
IN THE Distance
188
A Bit of Plevlje
190
Servian Monastery near Plevlje
196
The Main Street in Plevlje
ao2
Our Driver from the Sandjak
210
Cajnica ....
214
Market-place, Cajnica
218
Catholic Girl of Herzegovina
224
A Fruit Market
228
A Muezzin ....
232
A GuzLA Player
234
A Bojnian Gipsy .
240
Map of Bosnia
242
n
BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA
SOME WA YSIDE WANDERINGS
BOSNIA AND
HERZEGOVINA
I— BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
^INTR OD UCrOR T
yA LAND of green pastures and rushing
/ % waters, of wooded hills and forest-
/ ^^ clad mountains, a primitive pas-
toral land, where shepherds still
play upon their flutes and shepherdesses wan-
der with distaff in hand spinning as they
watch their flocks ; a land untouched by the
fret and hurry of modern life, still wrapped
in ancient peace : such was my first impression
of Bosnia. I expected something different —
perhaps a wild mountain land inhabited by a
half-savage people showing still the traces of
oppression, for I remembered that it is but
thirty years ago since Bosnia was rescued from
Turkish rule ; and as I looked around me in
15
Bosnia and Herzegovina
this smiling country, and saw the old Turkish
towns with their picturesque but comfortable-
looking houses standing in fruitful gardens,
noted, too, that in spite of all Europe has
heard of the persecution of Christians in
Mohammedan land, one-half of the population
here remained Christian, a doubt grew in my
mind as to whether the Western world has
not done the Turk an injustice and painted
him blacker than he deserved. Austria has
done much for this country, but could so
much have been accomplished in little more
than a generation if the people had been down-
trodden and degraded by centuries of mis-
rule ? Alas ! my lack of knowledge of the
native language stopped my investigations
here, and much that went before the occupa-
tion is more or less a sealed book.
It has been rightly said that on the banks
of the Save River (which you cross to enter
Bosnia) the two great currents of civilisation
meet : one flowing from the West, the other
from the East — the first advancing as the
latter retires. The traveller who wants to
study the evolution of a people will have
here a fruitful field.
i6
Introductory
In spite of my inability to converse with
them, the Bosnians made upon me the im-
pression of being an intelligent people — I
judge them from their faces and from their
readiness to understand gestures when words
fail. More than one Austrian official, who
came into close contact with the people, bore
me out in this, and the success of the Govern-
ment schools for fostering the native industries
is another proof of it.
The Bosnians and Herzegovinians must also
in their rude way be an artistic people, for
the national dress is beautiful ; and does not
national dress evolve from a people's innate,
if unconscious, sense of beauty and fitness ?
A Bosnian is rarely ungraceful, rarely stiff
even when — most trying ordeal ! — he knows
he is being photographed. For this natural
grace he has to thank his Oriental blood.
And these same remarks apply to the in-
habitants of Herzegovina in even greater
measure. They are, too, remarkable for beauty
of form and feature which cannot fail to strike
every traveller.
The people ot these countries are Southern
Slavs, with the exception of some Spanish
17
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Jews scattered about the country and bands
of gypsies ; there is no difference in race
between the Turks and their neighbours whom
we call Servians (to distinguish them from the
Moslem population). The latter adopted the
Moslem religion after the Turkish conquest,
not, it is now pretty generally admitted, from
compulsion, but to enjoy the greater privi-
leges of the ruling race. About a third of
the population is Moslem, two-fifths belong
to the Servian (Greek Orthodox) Church, and
the rest are Catholics. Moslems and Chris-
tians alike are very strict in their religious
observances, the Moslems more conservative
than in Turkey itself. It is, however, most
exceptional for a Bosnian Moslem to have
more than one wife.
The Servian Croatian tongue is the language
of the country, but a good many of the towns-
people in Mostar and Sarajevo speak German
and some Italian.
I have spoken of Bosnia as a " pastoral
land," and such in truth it is ; but though
agriculture engages the bulk of the population,
there are districts entirely given up to mining.
The mountains are rich in iron and copper,
i8
Introductory
and coal mines and salt mines are worked
profitably. The salt mines were discovered
and worked in primitive fashion under Tur-
kish rule, but coal was not found till 1884.
Both the coal and salt mines are in the neigh-
bourhood of Tuzla. The finding of coal
has naturally given an impetus to other in-
dustries, such as the sugar refineries of
Usar and the mineral oil refinery at Bosna
Brod.
It is greatly to the credit of the Austrian
Administration of Bosnia that so much State
aid has been given to fostering the native
industries ; probably no other country has
done so much in this direction. Hotels
have even been erected by the Government
to assist the tourist traffic.
The great State tobacco factory at Sarajevo
is one of the sights of the capital, and the
typically Oriental industries of carpet-weaving
and inlaying with gold and silver are taught
in State schools, which for a long time were
not even self-supporting. In Herzegovina
there are Government vineyards where the
peasants can learn the best methods of vine
culture and wine making, and in both coun-
19
Bosnia and Herzegovina
tries model farms supported by the State to
give object lessons in up-to-date agriculture,
under which heading tobacco growing is in-
cluded.
A great deal has been said and written
about the heavy taxation under Austrian rule.
The taxes are, however, so far as I have been
able to learn, not higher than in other parts
of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Under
Turkish rule the taxation fell only upon the
Christian population ; naturally, therefore, the
Moslems, long accustomed to immunity, felt
themselves aggrieved under the new regime
in being called upon to pay taxes at all, and
preferred the old slipshod way, even though
they were sometimes robbed by a Pasha in
need of gold.
The Bosnian peasant's chief desire is peace,
to plant his fields and reap their produce; this
secure, I believe he cares little whether Bosnia
be Austrian or Turkish. An incident which
came under my notice at the time of the
annexation shows that the Bosnians on the
Servian frontier had little faith in their kins-
folk the other side. A petition was sent to
Sarajevo when war was imminent, asking for
Introductory
the protection of Austrian troops against Ser-
vian bands !
Another pretty story of the annexation
shows the respect for authority innate in the
people. The Bezirkevorsteher (civil head of
the district) at CSjnica observed a young
countryman (who thought himself unnoticed)
reading the Emperor's proclamation bare-
headed. The Bezirksvorsteher approached
and asked him why he removed his fez
while he read. " I read a letter signed by
his Majesty, therefore I must stand bare-
headed," was the simple reply.
Such stories show the trend of public feel-
ing to be not averse to Austrian rule. From
the point of view of the mere sojourner and
passer-by, the administration inaugurated by
the late Minister von Kally seems to have
brought peace and prosperity to a land which
little more than a generation ago was given
up to bloodshed and sedition through the
inability of the Turkish Government of that
day to repress robbery and clear the country
of agitators who incited the people to crime.
Quite apart from any question as to the
annexation being a violation of the Treaty of
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Berlin, it cannot fail to benefit the people of
Bosnia and Herzegovina to have a settled
government, and the majority of the popula-
tion, especially the townspeople, appeared to
welcome the new era.
22
II—GRAVOSA ro MOSTAR
WE left the pretty little port of
Gravosa, on the Dalmatian coast,
one May morning, by a most
comfortable train which takes
rather less than six hours to reach Mostar, the
picturesque capital of Herzegovina. The rail-
way is a narrow gauge line, which at first
ascends steeply, and from the train we had a
glorious view over the Ombla river. Wild
Cyprus trees grow in profusion along its steep
banks, and are silhouetted against the blue
water below. We rose to the height of Mount
Imperial, which watches over Ragusa, and
crossed the mountain spur, and then the fertile
Breno valley, with its green meadows and
vineyards, lay beneath us — and beyond the
Adriatic. But soon we bid " Good-bye " to
the smiling shore and were away in the Karst
— a mountain region of grey limestone, very
bleak and cold in winter, very hot in summer
— for the limestone reflects the sun's rays.
23
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Stunted trees grew between the rocks, and
made the bravest show they could of fresh
foliage, and here and there were patches of
corn already in ear. Habitations were few
and far between, but a little knot of peasants
in picturesque costumes was to be found at
every station at which the train stopped, and
shepherdesses watched over their flocks wher-
ever there was a little herbage to be found.
We saw them afar off, for they are almost all
dressed in creamy white — both the colouring
and fashion of their dress (which is made
with trousers, not petticoats) denotes the
Turkish influence, though their unveiled faces
showed they were not Mohammedans.
For more than an hour we journeyed along
the shores of a desolate mountain lake, shut in
by barren mountains, which the guide-book
told us bears the unpronounceable name of
Popovopolje, and is only a lake during five
months of the year. It dries up in summer
so completely that the ground can be culti-
vated. The inhabitants of its banks must
have a similar experience to the dwellers in
the villages along the Nile, who are accus-
tomed to go about on dry land half the year
24
Gravosa to Mostar
and the other half by boat. This lake puzzled
us not a little when first we saw it, for the
trees growing here and there out of the water
plainly showed inundation ; and on the other
hand, the primitive little canoes here and there
on its banks showed that the inundation, if
such, was expected and prepared for.
The waters are said to escape in summer
through underground courses, and in proof of
this a special kind of fish is found in this
lake, which could not otherwise get there.
At Gabela, where the line to Metkovic
goes off and another to Trebinje, there are
the ruins of some old Venetian fortifications
(for so far inland did the sway of the Republic
extend in its golden days), and farther on
there is another memory of past conquest and
warfare, in an ancient fortified town climbing
the mountain side, with turreted walls that
recall those of Ragusa. This delightfully pic-
turesque place goes by the name of Potchitelj,
but no one seems to know much about its
history, except that it had formerly the un-
enviable reputation of being a robbers' nest.
The foaming river beneath must have been
very convenient for getting rid of the un-
25
Bosnia and Herzegovina
happy travellers who fell into the bandits'
hands.
My introduction to the Narenta was a re-
velation. It is worthy indeed to rank with
the scenic rivers of the world, yet Western
Europe knows little or nothing about it ! We
followed its picturesque banks through the
rugged gorge of Zilomislic, which it has carved
through the mountains, and might well be
called the Gate of Bosnia (for it is the high-
way to that country from the coast), and had a
glimpse in passing of the once famous summer
palace of the last of the Viziers of Herze-
govina — Ali Pasha Rizvanbegovic — which
crowns a rocky height.
We left cool spring weather behind us on
the coast, and were warned to prepare for cold
in the mountains ; but Mostar lay basking
in the summer sun when we arrived, and it
was not till the cool of evening we went
abroad to gather our first impressions of the
capital of Herzegovina, which is one of the
most picturesque towns in Europe.
Like Bideford in Devon, of which Kingsley
wrote, Mostar's pride and glory, her culminat-
ing point of beauty and interest, is her bridge.
26
Gravosa to Mostar
Not " many-arched," like Bideford's, but
with one great span of exceeding grace,
crossing the rushing Narenta river and join-
ing two grey old towers in which Turkish
prisoners languished during the four hundred
years of Moslem rule. There is a tradition
that the bridge was of Roman origin, for
Mostar is known to have been fortified by the
Romans, and the whole surrounding country
is full of Roman remains ; but authorities
now agree that the present bridge is of Tur-
kish origin, dating from about the middle of
the sixteenth century, built on the founda-
tions of a Roman one. " Kudret Kemeri "
(the Arch of Almighty God) is written upon
it in Arabic.
Almost every world wanderer who visits
Mostar has heard beforehand of Mostar's
bridge, and turns his footsteps thither before
he has been many hours in the semi-Oriental
town on the Narenta river.
If he is fortunate enough to see it first, as
I did, when the golden light of late after-
noon illumines the quaint houses that cluster
by the river side, and the slender high-arched
bridge is silhouetted against the light, while
Bosnia and Herzegovina
over it pass the white figures of Herzegovina
peasant women driving sheep or cattle back
from market, he will carry away a memory
of a scene unsurpassed for picturesque beauty
in Europe.
But thus to see it, you must descend a
footpath to the green banks of the rushing
river, and view it from below. Afterwards
you will cross the bridge and linger on
the top, looking up the stream to where
the oldest and most beautifully proportioned
mosque in Mostar rises on the right bank,
with its minaret piercing the blue sky. An
inscription gives the date of its building as
974 of the Hegira, or 1566 of our reckoning.
Thirteen minarets are visible from the bridge,
and I was told that there are three and thirty
in the town.
Yet less than half the inhabitants are
followers of Islam ; the other half belong
partly to the Greek Orthodox, partly to the
Catholic Church. One of the most beautiful
sights I saw in Mostar, or have seen anywhere
in my world wanderings, was the Sunday
morning Mass at the Catholic Church. One-
half the church was full of the military, the
Gravosa to Mostar
other half filled (all but a few seats occupied
by the officers' wives) with white -veiled
peasant women, with here and there a stalwart
man, clad in his festal attire, kneeling reverently
behind the soldiers. I have said that the
scene inside the church was one of the most
beautiful I ever witnessed, but I am not sure
that the one outside did not equal it in pictur-
esqueness, though the solemnity of the interior
of the church and the military music was miss-
ing. Before the church was a broad tree-shaded
space, and here the men waited for the second
Mass, seated on the wall beneath the trees, or
standing in little groups to gossip with their
friends. There must have been some hun-
dreds of them, bravely attired in the beautiful
peasant costume that makes the Mostar streets
like a charming scene on the stage. They all
wor>e the crimson fez or turban (though the
former prevailed), a short sleeveless jacket
edged with braid showing snowy sleeves on
which the sunlight played, and trousers tight
to the knee and full above, with white wool-
len stockings and *' opankas " (home-made
shoes of untanned skin all in one piece and
pointed at the toe) on their feet, and many a
c 29
Bosnia and Herzegovina
one had a little bunch of spring flowers pinned
on his fez, perhaps for a gift to his sweetheart
after church. Nor must I omit to mention
the silk scarves of many colours twisted
round the men's waists, in which knives and
pistols were formerly carried ; to-day the
owners find them useful as pockets.
After the first Mass was over, and the
soldiers had been paraded and marched away
with their band playing, the men flocked into
the church and occupied the space vacated by
the military. Crowds of more white-robed
and white-veiled women came upon the scene
and likewise entered and occupied the other
side of the building, and the solemn Mass
began again — this time a " peasant Mass " en-
tirely, for which many of them had come far.
We sat under the trees and listened to the
murmur of a little brook that runs hard by
the church, mingled with the music of the
organ and the drone of the priest ; at last both
ceased, the doors once more opened, and the
men came out, the women (though Christians,
sufficiently Oriental to take the second place)
following humbly afterwards.
This was the moment for which we had
30
Gravosa to Mostar
patiently waited for the camera to do its
work. Not without some trepidation, for fear
the youths and maidens, now mingled together
in the most picturesque crowd imaginable,
should turn their backs or flee at our approach,
we went to work to carry away some tangible
remembrance of the scene, and lo ! what was
our joy to find that the people had no scruple
whatever about being immortalised by our little
black box.
Some of them were permitted to peep at
the picture in the finder, which they did with
childlike joy, and one fine old man begged us
by gestures to take his portrait. We wished
to ask for his address, so that we could send
him his photograph, but here gestures were
unavailing, and it was some time before an
interpreter could be found. At last a friendly
passer-by, who spoke the German tongue,
volunteered his good offices, and the old man's
face lit up at the prospect of seeing himself in
a picture ; but still, he asked " How much } "
and when at last he grasped the fact that he
had nothing to pay, his pleasure and gratitude
were touching. He shook hands with us both
and salaamed before and after.
31
Bosnia and Herzegovina
As we wended our way home through the
crowded streets, I had a splendid opportunity
to note the details of the women's dress.
Over their long white robes they all wore
sleeveless jackets of white or coloured wool,
often edged with gold, and the caps under
their flowing veils (which are thrown back and
do not cover the face) were thickly sewn with
coins. Nearly all had necklaces and rings of
gold or silver, and it seemed the right, or at
least the coquettish, thing for the girls to tuck
a rose or other flower over one ear. Their
hair was almost hidden by the caps and veils,
but often neatly-braided plaits twisted round
the head peeped beneath.
There can be little doubt, I think, that the
veils worn by the women of Herzegovina had
their origin in the Oriental custom of com-
pletely veiling the face as the Mohammedans
still do to-day.
Both the men and women of Herzegovina
are singularly good-looking, with dark expres-
sive eyes and clear-cut features, and the men's
close-fitting clothes show off their slim athletic
figures to perfection.
The Turkish women in Mostar, however,
32
WOMEN IN MOSTAK
Gravosa to Modar
are clad in the most hideous, uncanny-looking
costume imaginable, which is a speciality of
Mostar and seen nowhere else in the world.
Their figures are completely hidden in an all-
enveloping black mantle, with a peaked hood
that stands out like a cowl over the head and
projects half a foot or so beyond the face. If
you meet them in the dark you may well start
back in affright at such an apparition, and
expect to see a death's head under the cowl !
It is dangerous to peer into it too closely, for
by so doing you risk giving great offence to
the Moslems, and possibly being attacked by
the lady's indignant male relatives ; though all
you could see inside the cowl, if you looked
ever so closely, would be a thick veil of pat-
terned muslin, through which the features are
quite indistinguishable. The Turks of Mostar
are the most conservative and orthodox in any
Moslem land, presenting in this a great con-
trast to their brethren of Constantinople, who
are beginning to allow their women greater
freedom. The girls in Bosnia go unveiled till
ten or eleven years of age, and are often very
pretty, in spite of their hair being dyed red
with henna.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
The mingled influence of East and West,
which meet in Bosnia and Herzegovina, give
rise to curious varieties of costume. Full
Turkish trousers are generally worn by the
feminine Christian population of the town, in
conjunction with modern blouses of European
pattern — the trousers are so very full as to
have almost the appearance of a skirt, and are
eminently practical for going about in muddy
weather. An American friend of mine was so
much impressed with them, that she announced
her intention of having some made on her
return home.
34
\ lEW I.N MUSTAR
III—3dOST^AR fO JABLANlC<tA
<^ND BETOND TO JAJCE
THE mountain scenery that lies be-
tween Mostar and Jablanica is
exceedingly beautiful, even viewed
from the train ; but only if you
traverse the wild gorge of the Narenta by the
carriage road and see the crags and pinnacles
of rock soaring above you to a dizzy height,
where eagles have their nests, while far beneath
the river rushes through the defile, do you
gain a fair impression of this magnificent
road.
When Mostar is left behind, the road runs
through a broad valley, with peeps of snow
mountains on the right. You will meet many
a picturesque group of peasants by the way ;
the younger men all wear the fez — the older
cling to the turban, which is singularly becom-
ing when its crimson folds crown a grey head.
The women, driving flocks of sheep and goats
to market, or watching over them in the fields,
are delightfully picturesque figures in their
35
Bosnia and Herzegovina
workaday dress of creamy white wool ; beneath
divided skirts, or rather trousers, their ankles
appear, sometimes bare, sometimes protected
by embroidered leggings ; in either case opan-
kas form their foot covering. Like the men
they wear a sleeveless zouave jacket, and over
their quaint little pork-pie caps a thick white
linen veil, which in this district is exchanged,
on Sundays and festivals, for one of embroi-
dered net or muslin, while the trousers on
such occasion are discarded for a more femin-
ine white garment of crepe-like texture, that
reaches to the feet, and is fastened at the
waist by a belt, often embroidered like the
little jacket with gold or silver.
But the glorious spring morning on which
we sped in a friend's comfortable motor from
Mostar to Jablanica was not a festival, or at
least not so marked in the calendar ; though
the pleasurable excitement of seeing for the
first time such an interesting country under
such favourable conditions made it a high
holiday to me ; and judging from the birds'
songs and the beauty of the green spring
mantle in which Dame Nature had arrayed
herself, she too was making holiday.
36
Mostar to Jahlanica
But I am wandering from the way of which
I want to tell you — that wondrous way that
follows the course the Narenta river has
carved out for itself through one of the grand-
est ravines in Europe.
A little before the valley narrows and the
gorge begins we had a perfect view of the
Porin Planina on our right — a magnificent
mountain, at the time of which I write entirely
snow-capped. The ravine begins about eight-
een kilometres or eleven English miles from
Mostar, and it is better to journey from south
to north than in the reverse direction here,
because the gorge increases in grandeur as
you go north.
The railway (a single narrow gauge line, on
which there are only two or three trains a day,
so that the shriek of a railway whistle rarely
disturbs these mountain solitudes) follows the
left bank of the river, the driving road the
right.
Close to the station of Dreznica (distant
many miles from the mountain village of that
name to which it gives access) a valley opens
up most picturesquely on the left, and there is
a magnificent view of snow peaks beyond,
hi
Bosnia and Herzegovina
while a bridge crossing the rushing river
makes a perfect foreground for a picture ; the
motor was stopped here and the camera called
into requisition. At this spot we caused not
a little excitement, for a number of very fine
horses, probably purchased for the army, were
being brought into Mostar and saw a motor
for the first time in their lives. Having at
last assured themselves that the strange, new,
noisy beast they beheld was not seeking to do
them any harm, but on the contrary was
stopping for them to pass it, the frightened
animals at last suffered themselves to be led
past the car.
And then the beauty of the scenery in-
creased ; the bare mountains near Mostar were
exchanged for mountain slopes clad with
young foliage, which vied in brilliancy of
verdure with the meadows between us and
the river.
We sped by picturesque peasant houses
with high peaked thatched roofs, and almost
always their owners ran out to see us pass,
and smiled and doffed their red caps in greet-
ing. Even when the approaching motor gave
them trouble, in spite of all the chauffeur's
38
Mostar to Jahlanica
care, by frightening their horses or scattering
their sheep, they took it most good-naturedly.
Still farther on, the mountains on either
side assumed the most fantastic forms, rival-
ling the Dolomites in their crags and peaks
and turrets, and calling from us exclamations
of wonder and delight as the view changed at
every turn of the road ; which is, by the way,
like all Bosnian main roads, an excellent one,
made for military purposes soon after the
occupation of these Turkish provinces by
Austria. It runs at one point through a
tunnel in the rock which gives the date of its
building 1879.
The last few kilometres of the gorge of the
Narenta, before it opens into the beautiful
mountain valley, in which Jablanica lies, are
perhaps the finest of all ; though it is hard
indeed to make comparisons here. Many
waterfalls descend at this point from the walls
of rock that rise on either side the river, of
which the Komadina is the finest.
Then suddenly we passed through the gate
of this magnificent ravine and found ourselves
in a flowery land, backed by snow-capped
mountains, and sped along a pleasant country
39
Bosnia and Herzegovina
road till we saw the whitewashed houses of
Jablanica before us and reached, through the
long, shaded village street, the cool retreat of
the shady hotel garden.
There we lunched in Elysium, beneath the
flowering chestnut trees, and listened to the
birds'-songs that filled the air with rapturous
melody.
I know no place in Bosnia or the Herze-
govina more tempting for a prolonged stay in
early summer or autumn than Jablanica, nor
one more likely to appeal to English tastes.
Fishing, shooting, mountaineering, are all to
be had here ; the Narenta is full of excellent
trout ; game abounds in the surrounding
mountains, and many interesting ascents may
be made either on foot or on the sure-footed
Bosnian ponies, which, as well as guides, are
provided at the hotel built here by the
Government. This hotel makes no pretence
to luxury, but its very simplicity is charm-
ing to lovers of retirement. The garden, to
which I have already alluded, entirely sur-
rounds the house and invites you to live out
of doors ; needless to say, no one thinks of
taking meals elsewhere from May (when the
40
'^1 •»C;,^'-'^;:'f#*''V
Mostar to Jahlanica
cherries are already ripe) till the middle of
October.
From Jablanica you should make one of the
most interesting excursions in Herzegovina —
the ascent of the Prenj ; either returning to
Jablanica the following day, after sleeping at
one of the tourist huts on the summit, or
taking it en route to Sarajevo, in which case
the descent is made to Konjica, a delightful
old Turkish town with a bridge that rivals
that of Mostar, and should on no account be
missed.
The Prenj is rather a group of mountains
than a mountain ; its highest peak, the Zelena
Glava, reaches the height of 6700 feet, and
can only be climbed by experienced moun-
taineers ; but a good bridle-path goes all the
way to the tourist huts, of which there are
two on the mountain. In the Bosnian tourist
huts, except on Trebevic, there is no attendant,
and travellers take the key and shift for them-
selves ; but that rather adds to the fun ! A
path has just been made by the tourist club to
the summit of the Cvrstnica, the highest peak
in Herzegovina, which has an elevation of
considerably over 7000 feet. It is not the
41
Bosnia and Herzegovina
height, however, but the fantastic forms of
these mountains that make them remarkable ;
they may well be called "the Dolomites of
the Balkans." Words give but little idea of
their bizarre forms and wild beauty.
I think all lovers of nature will agree with
me, that to take the road and not the rail is
the way to see a country — no matter whether
the former be traversed on foot or on horse-
back, or by carriage or motor. I know nothing
more tantalising than to be whirled through
glorious scenery where you long to linger and
let the scene sink into your memory, knowing,
perhaps that you will, in all probability, never
pass the same way again ! This being so, I
would advise others to do, if possible, what
we regretted not having done, and drive from
Jablanica over the Maklan Pass to Bugogno,
thence by rail to Dolnji Vakuf and Jajce, which
most enchanting spot is a point of pilgrimage
for every traveller in Bosnia and Herzegovina,
and has otherwise to be reached by a very
slow train, taking six to eight hours from
Sarajevo. By driving from Jablanica you
avoid going twice over the same ground, and
also save the train journey to Sarajevo — over
42
Mostar to Jablanica
five hours by the fastest express — besides
seeing some magnificent scenery that lies off
the beaten track — if any track can be called
beaten yet in this part of the Balkans.
The road is so good that, in spite of the
height to which it ascends, to cross the moun-
tains, even bicyclists may attempt this way.
You pass through the celebrated valley of the
Rama, where the vegetation is semi-tropical,
and cross the river, which here forms innumer-
able cataracts, by an ancient Turkish bridge
that marks the border between Herzegovina
and Bosnia. Between the valley of the Rama
and the Turkish village of Prozor, which is
the half-way station, the road runs through
narrow defiles and wild mountain scenery ;
but the finest views are beyond Prozor on
the serpentine road that crosses the summit
of the pass at a height of about 3700 feet, and
then descends to Gornji Vakuj through virgin
forest.
43
IF—JAJCE
THE beauty and romance of Bosnia
reach their culminating point in
Jajce, the royal town of the Bosnian
kings which saw so many vicissi-
tudes in the Middle Ages. History relates
that at the beginning of the fifteenth century
it was founded by Hrvoja, and documents
bearing his signature still exist, which were
dated from Jajce in 141 1 and 1412 ; fifty
years later it had become a place of great
importance under King Stefan Tomasevic,
and the story of his cruel fate at the Turkish
conquest is one of the most tragic in the dark
records of those days.
When the great armies of the Sultan
Mohammed II were approaching, the Bosnian
king was at his castle of Bobovac. Leaving
one of his commanders to defend this fortress,
the king retired to Jajce, but Bobovac fell, and
the Sultan sent a force of twenty thousand
cavalry to the royal city with orders to capture
44
jesgs^
WUKKI SL1-.M-. IN JAJCE
Jajce
the king. Stefan Tomasevic heard, however,
in time of their coming, and fled once more to
the castle of Sokol, and then, as he saw that
Sokol could not well be defended against such
a force, to the almost invulnerable fortress of
the ancient Clissa on the Save river. The
ruins of Kjuc are built upon a rock rising so
precipitously from the torrent beneath that on
three sides it is absolutely inaccessible, while
the fourth was capable of defence by quite a
small force. The Turkish commander, Mah-
mud Pasha, learnt from a peasant where the
king had taken refuge (the story goes that
Stefan Tomasevic was betrayed for a cake),
and came to the banks of the Sanna, but saw
at once that, even with his overwhelming
numbers, he had little chance of capturing by
force a fortress so wonderfully protected by
nature, nor could he enter on a prolonged
siege to starve the defenders out, for his own
army was not equipped for such tactics.
In this dilemma he resolved to make terms,
and offered the Bosnian king, in the Sultan's
name, his own life and those of his relatives,
promising, moreover, that another province of
equal value would be given him in place of
D 45
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia ; these terms of surrender he confirmed
in writing by a sworn oath.
Stefan Tomasevic took the tempting bait
and capitulated, as did also his uncle who had
entrenched himself in another fortified castle
in the neighbourhood, and they returned with
the Turkish army to Jajce, where the Sultan
was overjoyed at the success of his General,
but less pleased with the conditions of the
king's surrender. Even a Sultan of those
days could not immediately repudiate a sworn
oath taken in his name ; but Mohammed
sought for a good excuse to release himself
from it, and as his religious adviser, the Ulema,
obligingly told him that his first oath to slay
the king absolved him from that given by
Mahmud Pasha, and moreover that a lord was
not responsible for promises made by his
servant without his sanction, the Sultan's con-
scientious scruples were soon done away with
and the death of Stefan Tomasevic determined
upon.
But the victim was not at once informed of
his impending fate ; he was first persuaded to
sign a royal edict directing the Bosnian forti-
fied towns (tradition says they were no less
46
Jqjce
than seventy in number) to lay down their
arms. The whole country being thus brought
into the Sultan's hands he had no more use
for the man he had betrayed, and Stefan
Tomasevic was first flayed alive and then
decapitated on the Carevopolji near Jajce.
The grave of the last king of Bosnia was
discovered in 1888 by Dr. Treehelka of the
Sarajevo Museum. It would perhaps be more
correct to say that a roughly-hewn stone by
the wayside, on the Hum, spoken of for cen-
turies as " Kraljevski " (the king's grave) by
the peasantry, was removed in that year and
excavations made to ascertain if there was any
truth in the local tradition. On lifting the
covering stone (on which some Christian hand
had rudely carved, doubtless at considerable
personal risk, a little cross with perhaps a
prayer for the repose of the soul of the
murdered king) nothing was visible at first
but blocks of stone, but on these being re-
moved the skeleton of a man was found be-
neath. Everything confirmed the accounts of
the mutilations of the king's body. The
corpse had been laid in the ground naked,
for there was not a shred of any clothing
47
Bosnia and Herzegovina
found, only a fragment of an iron link
upon the foot, and the head was severed
from the trunk. The bones, moreover, were
asserted by experts to have been those of a
young man under the middle height, a descrip-
tion which perfectly accords with that of Stefan
Tomasevic, and the skull to have the same
formation as that shown in his pictures, of
which two exist, one in the gallery in Agram,
and the other in a Franciscan monastery at
Sutjeska. So after the lapse of over four
centuries the remains of the last Bosnian king
were carried with honour worthy of his rank
to rest in the church of the Franciscans at
Jajce.
But Ottoman rule did not last here uninter-
ruptedly from the time of the first Turkish
conquest: the town was so important a strategi-
cal point that it bore the brunt of much
fighting. In the very year of the Sultan
Mohammed ll's triumph, I4i3,the Hungarian
king, Mathias Carvinus, wrested Jajce from
his grasp after an eight weeks' siege. Thus
treachery received its reward, and Stefan Toma-
sevic was avenged. Over and over again the
Turkish armies appeared before Jajce during the
48
Jajce
next sixty years, and again and again they
were beaten back by the Hungarian defenders,
who performed prodigies of valour.
One more story of the battles that raged
round Jajce I must tell you ; it was in 1520,
at a time when Servia and the greater part of
Bosnia had already been conquered by the
Turk. Zwornik — the key of the Drina — fell,
and then Tesanj, another important strategical
point ; but Jajce was brilliantly defended by
the grey-headed commander, Peter Keglevic,
and the Turkish army, fifteen thousand strong,
was repulsed. Yet hardly had the gallant little
garrison breathing time before their deter-
mined foe was once more at their gates, under
the leadership of Usref Pasha, who had with
him the Pashas of Epirus, Sinan, and Belgrade,
with their joint armies. The siege lasted long
and Jajce still held out ; but there were signs
that the besiegers were preparing to give up
what seemed a fruitless task and retreat whence
they had come. It was then that Peter Keglevic
sent out spies, and learnt the apparent prepara-
tions for departure in the Turkish camp were
designed to throw him off his guard, while the
enemy was secretly preparing scaling ladders
49
Bosnia and Herzegovina
in the woods to be used for a night assault.
He was as quick-witted as he was brave, and
met ruse with ruse. A detachment of his
men were sent out also to hide in the woods
and be ready at a given signal, the sound of a
cannon shot, to fall upon the men with the
scaling ladders. Nor was this all ; it was the
eve of a festival on which, in times of peace,
the women and maidens of the town were
wont to dance on the level ground outside the
city gates to the sound of the "gusla."
On a moonlight night, fitting for dance and
song, the brave women made merry as if there
were no foe within gunshot. The Turks,
approaching with their ladders to scale the
walls, saw the dancing women and rushed
upon them, throwing away their ladders in
their haste each to secure a prize — when lo !
a gun boomed from the fortress, the hidden
Hungarian soldiers came upon the Turks from
behind, while those in the castle rushed forth
— the women even drew forth the weapons
they had concealed upon their persons, and the
besiegers were cut down to a man.
Yet once again was Jajce besieged, and once
again the Turk repulsed under the brave
50
Jajce
Peter Keglevic, and this time the siege lasted
eighteen months. The people were starving,
for all the surrounding country was occupied
by the Sultan's armies, and food supplies cut
off. In the last extremity a messenger was
sent out who contrived to pass through the
Turkish cordon and at last reached Budapest.
His story of the sufferings of the besieged
made a deep impression on the king and his
nobles, and especially on the Count Frankopan,
who immediately volunteered to go to the
relief of the beleaguered city. In his letter
to his friend the Doge Dandolo of Venice,
the count gives an account of his expedition,
which started from Budapest on the eighteenth
of April, 1525, but did not reach the banks of
the Save till June ; for the count, knowing he
could not force his way through the Turkish
hosts with the little army with which he
started, had to find recruits as he went along,
and persuaded many of the great nobles of
Hungary and Croatia to join him with their
retainers. Of such great importance was the
expedition that the Pope promised absolution
to any who took service in the army going to
the relief of Jajce, where the forces of the
51
Bosnia and Herzegovina
infidels were arrayed against those of Christen-
dom. When at last he came up with the
Turkish army, Frankoplan found himself at
the head of 6000 men, and with this gallant
little band — hardly a third of the Turkish
hosts — he put the latter to flight and saved
Jajce.
It was the irony of fate that so much hero-
ism should have but postponed the evil day
for a few more years, and that in 1527, after
Hungary had suffered defeat at the great
battle of Mohacs, brave little Jajce too had
to yield to the voracious foe that had hun-
gered for it so long, and was swallowed up in
the vast Ottoman Empire.
I have told you so much of Jajce's past
that you may be able to picture something of
those stirring times when you enter her
mediaeval gates and stand within the walls of
the ancient castle that was the scene of Peter
Kaglevic's gallant defence. It always seems to
me that the ruin without a story is but an
empty shell, as unsatisfying and shorn of
human interest as the land, however beautiful,
that has no history !
You see the castle first, crowning a height
53
Jajce
as you approach the town, which you enter
through a mediaeval gateway in the wall that
is one of the most picturesque points. As your
eyes were drawn to the grey pile from afar, so
I think your feet will find the upward path that
leads within its walls before you have been
many hours in Jajce.
It may be that, on nearer view, it will dis-
appoint you — it surely will unless you are of
those gifted with imagination to recall the
past ; but to me a place where men did and
dared and hoped and suffered so much in a
bygone day will ever be consecrated ground.
Tradition says that before the Turkish con-
quest a royal palace stood where the clock
tower stands to-day, and that it exceeded all
other buildings of that period in Bosnia for
beauty, being of Venetian architecture, built
by an Italian master. The story is confirmed
by many a gracefully carved stone used in the
walls of those portions of the castle built or
repaired by the Turks ; and if you care to
look for them, you will find two fine Gothic
capitals close together in what is known as the
Plivamauer (the Pliva wall), to the right of
the door, and two more are over the door of
53
Bosnia and Herzegovina
the powder magazine, while here and there
are broken rosettes such as are frequently
used in Venetian architecture, and many
another fragment of sculpture on which a
master hand has been at work.
But even if you do not care for history or
for art, the view from the castle walls will
repay you for your climb, for Jajce, lying
below you, is one of the most picturesque
towns to be found, not alone in Europe, but
anywhere in the world, and it is framed in by
forest-clad mountains, like a jewel lying in a
casket of dark green velvet.
54
V—J<^yCE CONTINUED
THE sides of the hill at Jajce, on
which the castle stands, are covered
with quaint wooden Turkish houses,
down to the very edge of the pre-
cipice beneath which the Vrbas river rushes
through a wild ravine ; but out of their midst
rises a graceful tower, which would be more
in keeping with the land of Dante — an un-
mistakable Italian campanile, and beside it
a ruined church dedicated to St. Luke, who,
according to the Bosnian monks, lived and
died at Jajce. I am afraid, however, they will
never be able to persuade any one outside
Bosnia to believe their story. Another and
more likely version is that the bones came to
Jajce as part of the marriage portion of Queen
Helen, the granddaughter of the Servian
despot George Brankovic, who had purchased
the body for the immense sum of 30,000
ducats from the Turks, it having come into
their possession when they took the castle ot
55
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Rogus (to which the saint's remains had been
carried for safety after the fall of Constanti-
nople). However they came, there seems
little doubt that the relics now reverenced as
the body of St. Luke in St. Marks, at Venice,
once rested in the church beneath the cam-
panile which bears his name at Jajce, and that
they were bought by the Serene Republic after
some bargaining (in which the authenticity
of the remains were called in question) from
the representative of the fugitive queen, who
had first sent away her most precious posses-
sions and then escaped from Jajce and taken
refuge in Italy at the time of the Turkish
siege. It is not impossible that the Venetians
feigned disbelief in the genuineness of St. Luke
in order to lower the price, but the queen
was able to prove the amount her grandfather
had paid for the body, and as the Hungarian
king at this point made an offer of three
castles for the saint's bones, the Republic,
fearing to lose so unique an opportunity,
quickly came to terms. The exact sum paid
is not known, but it was probably enough to
support the fugitive queen in exile during
the rest of her life ; so in one case, at least,
56
Jajce continued
the saint justified belief in him by rendering
very substantial help.
Not far from the ruined church of St. Luke
and its graceful campanile is another church
that you must not fail to visit ; but this time
it is an underground one, hewn out of the
solid rock, and locally known under the mis-
nomer of the *' catacombs."
There are no existing records to tell the
story of this strange place of worship, but
it seems possible that the earliest Bosnian
Christians gathered here to be safe from
persecution. It may be it was then a natural
cave of which the possibilities were made use of
by adding partition walls and roughly carving
the rock into the arched doorways and domed
roofs typical of the ecclesiastical architecture
of that period.
If the little church was ever adorned by
pictures or sculptures, they have vanished in
the course of the centuries ; damp has blacked
the walls, and not improbably men aided
nature to wipe out all records of the past, for
some barely distinguishable figures were dis-
covered some years ago under a layer of
blackened plaster, that served as a clue to
57
Bosnia and Herzegovinxi
connect the church with Hrvoja, the founder
of Jajce. The one was a figure of a man
holding in his right hand a lance, and in his
left grasping a sword — the other a woman's
figure holding in her left hand a lily. A coat
of arms also came to light with an arm bear-
ing a sword emblazoned on a shield. This
heraldic device is unknown in Bosnia except
in the armorial bearings of Hrvoja — the King
of Bosnia and Duke of Spalato, who also used
the lily. It is from this conjectured that he
had the intention of converting the early
Christian church into a royal mausoleum,
which also explains the crypt beneath the
church. If this were so, Hrvoja's body was
never laid in the resting place he had prepared
for it.
And now perhaps you have had enough of
history and legend, and are impatient with me
that I have not sooner hastened on to tell you
of nature's wonders — the falls of the Pliva
river.
For her scenic charms Jajce is as justly cele-
brated to-day (when in times of peace men
have leisure to travel in quest of the beautiful)
as she was for the warlike prowess of her
5S
Jajce continued
defenders during the Middle Ages, when her
strong castle was the sole remaining barrier of
Europe against the invading Turk.^
The Pliva river (swollen when I saw it in
the month of May to an immense volume of
water by the melting mountain snows) plunges
in one mighty leap over a precipice a hundred
feet in height, to join its waters with those of
the Vrbas flowing through the ravine below.
Yet not alone for the height of its leap nor
its volume is this glorious fall remarkable
among the waterfalls of Europe, but also for
the exquisite beauty of its surroundings. A
platform has been erected on a spot just above
the cataract — it is embowered in foliage, and
from this leafy retreat, with the sound of many
waters in your ears, you can watch the river
rushing over its rocky bed a foaming mass of
white water swirling round innumerable green
islets, which are covered with mosses and
ferns wet with perpetual spray ; overhead the
1 Mr. H. C. Thomson, in his book The Outgoing Turk,
writes : " Jajce was in a way the key to central Europe ; the
Turk fearing to advance either through Hungary or the
North of Dahiiatia, so long as the Hungarians could
endanger their flank from Jajce."
59
Bosnia and Herzegovina
trees on the banks and the trees on the islets
entwine their branches and form a canopy of
living green, with here and there a bit of blue
sky peeping through, like the stones in an
Italian mosaic.
The little platform, perched on the very
brink of the precipice, has a strange fascina-
tion for me. It is not often you get so
near to a waterfall as to hear its heart beating
— it is not often you feel so close to the
mighty forces of nature as here. It might be
a haunt of Pan in the far-off days when the
world was young !
When I was told by mine host of the
"Grand Hotel," that the waterfalls could be
illuminated by electric light, I shuddered at the
thought, for the May moon was at its full, and
nature seemed profaned by the suggestion 1
And yet the very same night, I must confess,
I went to see the sight — and I repented of my
hasty judgment. The scene was indescribably
beautiful, and we were grateful to the enter-
prising American family who had ordered the
falls to be illuminated, nominally for their
own benefit and that of their friends, but ac-
tually for the gratification of the whole town.
60
L
THE GREAT FALLS OK THE I'LIVA KIVEK
Jajce contiruihed
On this occasion we viewed the falls from
the park opposite, and the little group of
country people in their picturesque dress,
dotted here and there among the trees, added
not a little to the fairylike scene, as did the
tiny toy houses of Jajce with their peaked
wooden roofs. The whole quaint Japanese-
looking town seemed to be perched on the
brink of the falls, while behind it the white
campanile shone out against the green and
grey of the castle-crowned hill. Sometimes
the light was concentrated on a particular part
of the river or the fall, so that each leaf of the
trees, each graceful fern frond on the rocks,
was detailed and received its due meed of
admiration. I was fain to admit that there is
sometimes virtue in art to show the beauties
of nature.
The people of Jajce are pre-eminent even
in Bosnia for their delightful costumes, and the
streets of the little town on a Sunday morning
present a picture even more striking than
those of Mostar, though individually the
dress of the women is stiffer and less beau-
tiful ; the graceful transparent veil of the
Herzegovinians being exchanged for one of
£ 6i
Bosnia and Herzegovina
linen, sometimes plain, sometimes embroi-
dered, according to the fancy of the wearer.
The Bosnians are very religious, with the
childish simple superstitious religion of the
Middle Ages, and the Catholic people of Jajce
still cling to the custom of tattooing a cross
on their hands and breast. It is said it was
introduced in Turkish times to prevent apos-
tacy, for no Christian thus marked with the
sign of his faith could go over to Islam
without enduring the painful operation of
removing the tattooed portion of the skin.
The custom, however, is limited to the
Catholic population and not adopted by the
Serbs, who belong to the Orthodox Church
and are in a minority at Jajce.^ As in Mostar,
the scene within the churches is remarkable,
the whole congregation kneeling or sitting
cross-legged on the ground in Oriental fashion ;
many, I noticed, like the Turks in the mosques,
^ Two-fifths of the whole population of Bosnia and
Herzegovina are Serbs (Orthodox), who look to Belgrade as
their head, and their devotion to their church is very great.
The Catholic population call themselves Croats and they look
to Agram. Unfortunately for an united Bosnia, they are
bitterly opposed to one another.
62
Jajce continued
came provided with prayer carpets ; others
spread a handkerchief upon the floor : all,
without exception, were very reverent. It
was evident by the crowds that assembled that
the country people must come from miles
round to attend the Mass, and those who
found no room within were content to worship
outside, so that without each door of the
church was a kneeling group of figures, fol-
lowing the service as devoutly as if within the
sacred walls.
It is curious to see how Moslem customs
have had their influence on the Christians of
these countries ; witness that of prostrating
the body in the act of worship so that the
forehead touches the ground, and raising the
hands, palms upwards, at the blessing ; and yet
another, common among the men at Jajce, of
shaving the head like the Turks — not wholly,
however, for in the middle is left one lock of
hair which, should it happen to be very long,
is plaited like a Chinaman's pigtail ! This
strange apparition is only seen when they
remove their turbans in the church, and the
origin of the pigtail remains a mystery.
After Mass the country people do their
63
Bosnia and Herzegovina
marketing, and the young men and maidens
their courting in the streets of Jajce. Many
a village belle I saw, decked out with silver
coins resting on her plaited hair beneath a
spotless kerchief, dividing her favours between
one or more turbaned beaux. Once married,
the Bosnian peasant woman is content to
trudge behind the man through life — (there is,
indeed, a saying that when a peasant greets
another he asks him first as to his own health,
then that of his children, then that of his
cow, and lastly that of his wife — of so little
importance is the woman), — therefore I won-
dered at the evident coquetry and spirit of
the maidens at Jajce : but it was their day
— and they made the most of it !
About six miles from Jajce there is an
idyllic spot, famous all over Bosnia for its
sylvan beauty, named Jezero. The driving
road to it follows the course of the Pliva
river, which descends by many cascades from
a mountain lake, and turns innumerable quaint
little mills which are perched like swallows*
nests along its banks. So lovely is the
scenery that you will surely want to linger
by the way, and for this reason will do well
64
Jajce continued
to go on foot or by private carriage, rather
than by the diligence — which, moreover, does
not run every day.
Just before reaching Jezero, you must notice
the ruins of the old fortress of Zaskopolji,
which have seen more recent fighting than
that of the Middle Ages, for at this spot the
insurgents of 1878 were defeated by the
Austrian troops. Most of the inviting tree-
shaded houses of Jezero are owned by rich
Mohammedans, who retire here to enjoy the
dolce far niente life they love ; and who no
doubt regret the occasional advent of tourists
(or shall I not rather say travellers, for the
wanderers who come so far from the beaten
track surely deserve the more serious and
dignified appellation .'') The Austrian Govern-
ment has erected a little chalet here, where
refreshments may be had. This chalet is a
very pleasant place, standing back from the
village street, in a garden by the river's
brink ; here you may lunch or dine alfresco
on a little balcony overhanging the water,
where there is coolness on the hottest day,
and enjoy an epicurean feast of fresh caught
trout washed down by the golden wine of
65
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mostar — with cafe a la Turque to follow It if
you will ! For fishermen Jezero is a paradise ;
the lake swarms with trout, and anyone who
wants to linger here a day or two can sleep
at the chalet, which possesses one bedchamber,
simple but clean. We promised ourselves a
week in this romantic spot some future day !
Fortune was kind to us at Jajce, for we hap-
pened on the weekly market to which all the
mountain folk come down bringing their
sheep and goats. This market takes place
upon a Sunday — a fact which struck me as
very curious — and differed from any I have
seen in Bosnia or elsewhere. In the flowery
meadows beside the clear waters of the Pliva
river, hundreds of shepherds and shepherd-
esses watched over their flocks 1 We came
upon them suddenly, and I was really speech-
less for a moment with surprise and delight
at the entrancing scene.
These men of the mountains are splendid
specimens of humanity — tall and supple of
limb, with finely cut features and dignified
mien. Many of them wore coats of sheep-
skin — wool outside — over their shoulders,
but others were in the short sleeveless jackets
66
Jajce continued
that are their summer garb, with gaily-
coloured belts stuck with knives and turbans
of scarlet. The women were in white, with
aprons of Oriental work, and were plentifully-
bedecked with silver ornaments and coins,
which sometimes literally covered the front
of their bodices, and many of them carried
distaffs in their hands. The afternoon sun
was sinking behind the hills, the golden light
that comes before sunset gilded the white
fleece of the sheep and the white dresses of
the women, and played on the scarlet turbans
of the crowds and the vivid emerald-green of
meadows; while the mountains, where already
the purple shadows lengthened, rose all around
dark and mysterious.
67
VI—JAJCE TO BANJALUKA
THE new road from Jajce to Banja-
luka, which was opened in 1896,
is one of the engineering feats of
the world ; for an almost perfect
level is maintained over a distance of over
forty-five miles, there being only a rise of
2 per cent in a few places — nothing more ideal
for motorists and cyclists can be imagined.
The road recalls that through the gorge of the
Narenta, and we were lucky enough to see it
under the same conditions — on a perfect
summer's day and from the point of vantage
of a friend's comfortable car. We did not
therefore sleep at Banjaluka, which would
have been necessary had we travelled by the
diligence, but returned to Jajce the same even-
ing, and still had some hours to spare in
Banjaluka for sightseeing in the middle of the
day.
The main difference between the roads
through the defiles of the Narenta and Urbas
68
Jajce to Banjaluka
is that the Herzegovinian one Is distin-
guished for the nakedness of its barren
rocks, the Bosnian one for the wealth of foliage
that clothes the mountain sides.
It does not, however, follow that the latter
is the finer; it is more smiling — perhaps, strictly
speaking, more beautiful ; but the remarkable
forms of the rocks in the Narenta defile have
a savage beauty of their own, and are the more
impressive.
There are spots, however, on the road from
Jajce to Benjaluka which are unsurpassed by
any in the gorge to which 1 have compared it ;
and no traveller should visit Bosnia and Herze-
govina without seeing both these marvellous
mountain defiles.
One of the most charming views of Jajce,
with its mediaeval walls and towns, is on the
Banjaluka road a mile or so outside the town.
Three or four miles farther on the road
enters the gorge after crossing the river, and
plunges into what at first seems the pitch dark-
ness of a tunnel (for being built with a curve
the farther end of it is not visible). This
would have been a disagreeable place for an
accident, and the motor crawled through it as
69
Bosnia and Herzegovina
if feeling its way along, till we were out again
in the sunlight in a wild glen of exceeding
beauty. Soon came another tunnel, and a
longer one ; almost the whole road has been
made by blasting, and is hewn out of the solid
rock, which, however, is covered with verdure,
the trees reaching to the water's edge. At
Bocae there are the remains of an ancient
castle, and also of an early Christian basilica,
which you have time to visit, if travelling by
private carriage, while the horses are being
rested ; beyond here there lies the fertile valley
of Aginoselo with its green fields and fruit
trees. The valley narrows again to a defile
which combines the charms of mountain and
forest scenery — exquisitely beautiful as we
saw it, when the trees were clad in the fresh
verdure of May, but equally beautiful, I am
sure, if not more so in October, for the
autumn tints of Bosnia are unsurpassed, per-
haps unequalled, in Europe.
The ruins of another stronghold of the
Middle Ages crown a height at the farther end
of the ravine, by which it may be argued that
there was some kind of a road through the
valley in those far-off days. From the number
70
Jajce to BanjalifJca
of such ruins on the heights above its rocky
bed, the Vrbas almost deserves the title of the
Bosnian Rhine. Very little is known about
them, but Zvecaj-grad claims to have been the
residence of Hrvoja in the fifteenth century.
Perhaps the finest part of the whole road is
just beyond here. The tremendous cliffs that
rise from the river's bed are covered with dark
fir forests, with here and there the fresh green
of beeches ; many eagles have their homes in
the inaccessible summits, and we saw some
sailing high above us on the look-out for
prey.
About eight miles or so before coming to
Banjaluka the character of the scenery changes ;
wild nature is left behind, and cultivated fields
and villages appear.
Banjaluka — the Baths of St. Luke — takes
its name from the hot springs just outside the
town, in the suburb of Gorni Scheher ; tradi-
tion says they were known from the earliest
times. It would be interesting to trace their
connection with the story of the evangelist
having lived in Jajce !
I must confess to having been somewhat
disappointed with Banjaluka, which is dis-
71
Bos7iia and Herzegovina
tinctly less picturesque than other Turkish
towns. It is built in the plain and straggles
over a large extent of ground, with one wide,
European-looking, tree-shaded street running
from end to end. There are, I am sure, from
what others have told me, some quaint and
very interesting bits in the Carsija (bazaar)
and the gipsy quarter, but the heat was so great
at the time of our visit that we had little
energy for exploring the town. The seats
under the trees before the Hotel Bosna (where
there is an open-air restaurant) were more
attractive. I learnt afterwards that such
climatic conditions are most unusual in May,
and the weather got cooler immediately after
we left.
The history of Banjaluka goes back to the
Roman times, when it was known as " Serve-
tium." The highway from Salona on the
Adriatic, through Dalmatia to Berber on the
Save, passed through here, and the Roman
baths are still remaining to bear testimony to
its early civilisation.
According to tradition the Avars, and later
the Goths, must have passed this way, when
they devastated Bosnia and overran some of
Jajce to Banjaluka
the Roman colonies on the Adriatic. But it
was under Turkish- rule that the town first
rose to any importance, on account of its stra-
tegical position. Many were the battles between
the Hungarians and the armies of the Cres-
cent that waged around its castle walls from
the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries. The
old fortress is still to be seen, though half in
ruins, and is used by the Austrian troops as a
powder magazine.
In no part of Bosnia were the Begs more
powerful and despotic than at Banjaluka, and
much blood flowed in their strife with the
Turkish viziers during the early part of the
last century, when the feudal nobles rose in
arms to protect their ancient rights and resent
any change in the condition of the subject
race — the Christian " rayahs."
As Mohammedanism has always been so
strong in Banjaluka, it is not strange that
there should be no less than forty-five mosques
in the town ; most are built of wood and
unimportant, though picturesque, but the Fer-
hadija Dzamija is very beautiful. It dates
from the sixteenth century, and is said to have
been built with the money paid by the noble
7Z
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Austrian family of Auersperg to ransom their
son who had been taken prisoner by the Turks.
The Christian population of Banjaluka is now
almost equal in number to the Mohammedan,
but against the forty-five mosques they have
only three churches — two Roman Catholic and
one Servian Orthodox.
Market day is the best time of all to visit
Banjaluka. Its streets are then a study in
costumes and a feast of colour — for hardly
anywhere else in Bosnia or the Herzegovina
is there such variety of dress to be seen, or
such fine gold and silver ornaments worn by
the women.
Silver filigree work is a speciality of the
town, and can be bought reasonably in the
Carsija, as well as the quaint clasps the women
wear at their waists.
A striking feature of Banjaluka, even more
than of other Turkish towns, is the number of
Mohammedan graveyards scattered between
the houses ; they are eminently picturesque,
but quite uncared for, and seem a little out of
place to Western eyes among the abodes of the
living. Imagine little odd cemeteries here,
there, and everywhere among the gardens of
74
Jajce to Banjalulza
our English towns ! But the East is the East
and the West is the West —
And never the twain will meet.
I have alluded to the strategical importance
of Banjaluka, which explains the large garrison
the Austrians keep there, lately augmented by
some of the troops withdrawn from the Sand-
jak Novi Bazar. The town has always had a
considerable trade, and was one of the first
places in Turkey to possess the advantage of a
railway.
To be sure it only ran to Doberlin in pre-
occupation days, but it was to have been the
first link in the chain connecting the iEgean
Sea with central Europe, and may yet fulfil its
destiny if the projected line is made to Salonika.
Not far from Banjaluka is the famous Trappist
monastery, which, strangely enough, was estab-
lished on the Vrbas river while the country
was under Turkish rule ! Still stranger, Tur-
key, the traditional oppressor of the Christian,
was the only country willing to take the poor
monks in when they were driven forth from
France and then from Germany !
The two to three hundred brethren lead
75
Bosnia and Herzegovina
most self-denying lives, and in spite of the
long hours their strict order forces them to
give to religious duties, are busy, useful mem-
bers of the community. They have founded
an orphanage for Bosnian children, and are
up-to-date farmers, cultivating their land them-
selves on modern methods ; cheese making is a
speciality of the monastery, so that " Trappist
cheese " is famous all over Bosnia ; and so too
is the monks' home-brewed ale ! It is curious
to reflect that the Trappists driven out of
Europe to seek a resting place in a Moham-
medan land have by the Annexation acquired
a home in Europe once more.
76
VII— FROM JAJCE TO
SARAJEVO
EVEN seen from the train, which is
generally so destructive of romance,
I found the scenery through which we
passed from Jajce to Sarajevo de-
lightful. There are advantages in travelling
by a slow train in such a country as this ; for
the people at the little wayside stations are
immensely interesting, and the mixed goods
and passenger trains are usually very long, so
by selecting a carriage at the extreme end you
can have the windows open without the
annoyance of smoke and blacks from the
engine, and not only enjoy the fresh air,
but pop your head out at any moment when
there is anything of unusual interest to be seen.
We have even tried photographing from the
train, but I cannot say that it has been very
successful.
The Bosnian railroads, like the main road
and bridle-paths, all follow the course of the
F J7
Bosnia and Herzegovina
rivers. On leaving Jajce you bid "good-bye"
to the Pliva when you cross it by the great
modern bridge, which is so out of keeping
with the ancient town that you regret that the
model of the old Turkish bridges could not
have been followed, and descend the course of
the Urlas. The bridge, however, is not the
most regrettable thing at Jajce from the point
of view of those who visit Bosnia for the sake
of its scenic beauty. The factory, owned by a
company, which unfortunately acquired the
rights of the immense water power, is the one
blot on the landscape, spoiling an otherwise
ideal spot. I am told that it employs a large
number of hands, and so adds to the material
welfare of the town, from which point alone it
can be tolerated ; but at least those interested
in promoting the tourist traffic should agitate
for the prohibition of the fumes poured forth
from the factory chimneys. It comes as a
shock to travellers who have heard of the far-
famed beauty of Jajce, to approach it through
clouds of smoke in passing the factory, just
before the old town comes in view from the
railway.
The rail probably follows what was once a
7S
From Jajce to Sarajevo
Turkish road or bridle-path, judging from the
ruins of the old castles that here, as well as
o^ the course of the Urlas lower down, crown
the rocky precipices between which it flows.
They are not always visible unless you keep
a close look out for them, for the old walls
are of the same colour as the rock. The
first of these, Vinac, is close to the little
station of Vijenac, about fifteen miles from
Jajce.
Beyond Dolnji Vakuf the train is run on
the cogwheel system, and begins to climb the
mountains to Komar, the highest point on the
line, which is 2400 feet above sea-level. At
this little mountain station we made the
acquaintance of a beautiful collie dog, whom
1 would recommend to your notice if you pass
this way, and who will be grateful for any
scraps from your luncheon basket. He is a
homeless cripple who depends for his living
on the contributions of passengers, and never
fails to meet the train. The kindly guard,
who had come prepared with a little parcel of
bones, told us the dog had once been run over
by a train and so lost his foot, and ever since
has been a pensioner. It is amusing to watch
79
Bosnia and Herzegovina
his tactics when the train arrives : like a two-
legged beggar he travels the whole length of
it, but has the disadvantage that he is not tall
enough to look in at the windows, so he has
to attract attention by barking.
The last time I went over this line I had
not noticed the names of the stations, and was
not aware that we had reached Komar, for it
was in the dark ; but a well-remembered
bark suddenly broke on my ear, and I opened
the door to meet a smiling and appealing face.
We had finished for tea all that was over from
lunch, and I had nothing left but some lumps
of sugar ; this, however, our four-footed friend
found so much to his taste, he ran limping
after the train when it moved off till the last
one was thrown him. I registered a vow
never to forget him again when I passed this
way, and wished I could make arrangements
for a daily parcel of scraps to be delivered at
Komar station.
We broke our journey at Travnik, a typical
Turkish town which looked so interesting
from the railway that we could not resist it,
and hastily decided to take the chances of
there being an hotel and remain the night.
80
From Jajce to Sarajevo
It has, as a matter of fact, no less than three
inns which are dignified by the name of hotel,
and the " Grand " is a very nice modern build-
ing in a charming situation ; but " Grand "
hotels do not pay in Travnik, so it had been
shut up for months, and was only reopened the
day of our arrival. As we were not informed
of this till too late, we unfortunately went to
the " Kaiser von Oesterreich," which was sadly
lacking in cleanliness. The interest of Trav-
nik, however, made up for creature comforts.
We were delighted with the great mosque,
which is the finest building in the town since
the old Konak (once the residence of the
Turkish viziers) has been restored and
modernised.
The mosque is the centre of the bazaar
quarter, and is a white building delicately
painted in ornamental designs, of which the
colouring is soft and beautiful. The pillars of
the arcade are green and white, a delightful
background for the red-turbaned Turks that
are almost always sitting or standing in little
groups before it ; for the vicinity of the
mosque seems to be a centre of Turkish
social as well as religious life. A large part
Bosnia and Herzegovina
of the old town was unfortunately destroyed
by fire some years ago, and modern European
houses have replaced the old ones in this
quarter, so that the main street is a little dis-
appointing. Here, however, are the graves of
the viziers, in a little railed-in space beside a
coffee-house, each tombstone protected from
the elements by a roof or canopy. They
would attract the eye of any artist by their
picturesqueness, but it gives an added interest
to these last resting-places of the rulers of
Bosnia to know something of Travnik's
history. The seat of government was moved
from Bosn-Saraj (Sarajevo) to Travnik under
Turkish rule probably in order to keep a
firmer hand on the north of the provinces,
where, as I have already said, the Begs were
very powerful and fanatical.
Travnik remained the capital until 1850,
when Omar Pasha put down the insurrection,
headed by the feudal nobility, who had, until
then, been supreme in Sarajevo, and set the
viziers at defiance in this city, which he made
once more the seat of government. Travnik
then relapsed into insignificance, and only
partially awoke from half a century of sleep
r- wsBkix^ naim^meft-t vv
From Jajce to Sarajevo
with the advent of the railway. If you want
to try and picture it in its palmy days you
must climb one of the surrounding heights
and choose a point of view from which the
modern innovations are hidden ; then, gazing
on the garden city with its mosques and mina-
rets lying under the protecting walls of its
ancient fortress, you can dream a little of the
days of the proud dominion here of the Cres-
cent and the Star.
It is strange to find the old Mohammedan
city becoming a centre of Catholicism, yet
such must be the result in time of the great
Jesuit college which has been erected here —
not, however, without some opposition on the
part of the Franciscans, who were formerly
the only order represented in Bosnia, with the
exception of the Trappists in Banjaluka. The
students at the Jesuit college are not limited
to those of the Roman Catholic faith, and I
was told there are many Jews among them.
The higher education of the Turks is pro-
vided for in the Medresse, a very charming
building with its own mosque attached, erected
by the Austrian Government. This is not the
only instance I have come across of mosques
83
Bosnia and Herzegovina
being built or restored at the cost of the State
in Bosnia.
The country around Travnik is beautiful,
and we regretted not having time to make
any excursions. There is a giant oak tree of
great age near Doloc that is said to have a
hollow trunk of such vast size as to give shel-
ter to a company of soldiers ! I will not
vouch for the truth of the story, but such is
the local report. It would have been interest-
ing to see so wonderful a tree.
We spent some pleasant hours in Travnik,
wandering in the narrow streets of the old
quarter, where the quaint Turkish houses have
projecting upper stories, shaded by broad
eaves and harem windows of muscharabiah
work in the whitewashed walls.
Here we watched the Mohammedan children
at play in the streets — boys and girls together !
It was sad to remember how soon the play-
time of the latter would be over ; many marry
at thirteen or fourteen, and are then immured
in the harem for the rest of their lives, only
seeing a peep of the world henceforth through
a veil or a hole in the lattice window of their
apartments 1
84
From Jajce to Sarajevo
Some of the Turkish girls are very pretty.
I remember one at Travnik especially at-
tracted our attention. She was all in white,
and her muslin blouse might have belonged to
her European sisters, but in place of a skirt
she wore the not ungraceful full trousers, and
a diminutive round cap with flowers pinned
upon it crowned her henna-dyed hair. The
custom of wearing fresh flowers on fete days
either pinned on the cap or fastened in the
hair is common alike among the Moham-
medans and Christian population of Bosnia,
and is not confined to the women, for I have
seen many young men so adorned for a
festival.
The following day saw us again in the train
on our way to Sarajevo. We travelled through
a pastoral landscape that was Arcadian, of
greenest meadows backed by blue mountains
where herdsmen played upon their flutes as
they drove the cattle home. We saw
white oxen drawing primitive wooden ploughs
and turning over red earth that reminded us of
Devon, with white-clad, red-turbaned peasants
guiding the oxen or following the plough.
The notes of the flute were wafted to us by
85
Bosnia and Herzegovina
the gentle breeze, together with the scent of
the may that crowned the hawthorn trees and
hedges like fresh fallen snow. Along the
river banks golden kingcups shone out from
the dark leaves, and blue forget-me-nots starred
the grass, and in the woods wild cherry and
crab-apple trees made patches of white and
pink blossom among the fresh green. All
this we saw and heard from our ** mixed "
and therefore slowest of trains, and envied not
the passengers in the fastest train de luxe.
There were picturesque groups of peasants
at every station, the men usually wearing
trousers of dark blue, fitting closely below the
knees, and often elaborately braided at the
pockets and down the sides ; their sleeveless
jackets showed the loose bell-shaped sleeves of
their white shirts, which were often edged
with embroidery, as were also the turn-over
collars that stood out round their necks like a
frill.
It is difficult for a stranger to distinguish
between the Mohammedans and Christians,
but whenever I saw a man wearing a bright
green belt I marked him for a Moslem, for
the Catholic and Orthodox population do not
86
From Jajce to Sarajevo
ever now affect the colour sacred to the
Prophet, which under the Turkish dominion
was forbidden them. Occasionally a Turk
was travelling with his harem, and I was
interested in the different way of veiling
adapted here to that in Egypt. Custom de-
crees that a Mohammedan woman of good
family in Bosnia should wear a mask as well
as a veil ; the masks are hideous, though often
elaborately worked with gold and silver. It
was deplorable that we did not dare to photo-
graph these groups for fear of giving offence
to Moslem prejudices !
At Vitez, where there are great sawmills,
we saw with regret the giant trees of the
virgin forest cut up ready for transport, and
passed a whole trainful of timber. Bosnia
will lose half her charm if her forests fall a
victim to the march of civilisation !
Before reaching the main line at Lasva we
traversed a ravine where the train follows the
banks of the mountain torrent between wooded
cliffs. At this point the moon rose and flooded
the whole landscape with silvery light. It was
such a summer's night as that on which the
fairies dance ! We crossed the Bosna river
87
Bosnia and Herzegovina
shining white in the moonlight and saw a
dark castle silhouetted against the sky — we
passed by little towns and sleeping villages
backed by dark forest w^ith moonlit mountain
peaks beyond, and came at last to the capital
of Bosnia — to Bosna Serai — the modern
Sarajevo.
8S
VIII— SARAJEVO
IN the middle of the last century, Sarajevo
was the stronghold of feudalism — the
focus of fanaticism — where the Moham-
medans, Begs, and Janissaries reigned
supreme. To-day Austrian Sarajevo (by which
I mean the quarter lying between the railway
station and the Hotel Europa) is a modern
European city, with fine public buildings, good
shops, and electric trams. Here and there
a picturesque Turkish house has been left,
and here and there the minaret of a mosque
rises between the European houses, and Orien-
tal-looking figures wearing the fez or turban
jostle Europeans on the pavement ; but in the
battle for supremacy between East and West,
the West has won !
Yet side by side with Austrian Sarajevo is
Turkish Sarajevo (so wonderfully situated that
former travellers have likened it to Damas-
cus) — the unchanged Orient ; there are no
boundary lines between them, and viewed
89
Bosnia and Herzegovina
from the surrounding hills they are merged
into one fair city. As at Mostar, the great
fortified barracks catch the eye of every
stranger ; in Sarajevo they are outside the
town near the station, and therefore very
noticeable on your arrival.
From the artistic point of view it is re-
grettable that the approach from the main
line station is so disappointing ; far otherwise
would be the impression you got of the city
if you came from the Servian or Turkish
frontier by the new Eastern Railway and
alighted at Bistrik, a station on a height above
the city which commands a view equally
beautiful to that from the old castle. But
perhaps there are advantages in seeing first
what is least attractive, and not expending all
your admiration at once ; perhaps, too, my love
for that which has the charms of antiquity
leads me to underrate the present.
Sarajevo, with its fine Government buildings
and its beautiful cathedral (in a city where
formerly the only Christian church had to be
hidden out of sight behind a high wall), its
well-lit streets and law-abiding citizens, is in
striking contrast to the lawless Oriental city,
yo
Sarajevo
which as late as the seventies had no communi-
cation with Europe but the weekly post-cart
of the Austrian Consulate, of which Miss
Irby wrote : "Three places in the hay in the
springless vehicle may be hired by those who
do not object to jolt on continuously for two
days and a night or more," ^
In the cathedral square is the Post Office,
and in the same modern building is the
National Museum, founded in 1888, an in-
stitution of which the Austro-Hungarian
Administration may well be proud. Here the
traveller who wishes to study Bosnia seriously
can spend days or weeks, according to the
time at his disposal, and will have every
possible assistance from the courteous officials.
Geology and zoology have each their dif-
ferent sections — in the latter almost the whole
animal life of the Balkans is represented ;
there is a fine collection of old weapons, and
a specially delightful one of the old em-
broideries for which Bosnia is famous, and of
carved distaffs used by the women in spinning ;
but nothing is of such general interest as the
^ Travels in the Slavonic Provi7ices of Turkey in Europe,
By G. A. Muir Mackensie and A. P. Irby,
91
Bosnia and Herzegovina
exhibition of national costumes, which I believe
to be unique.
The groups of wax figures are most lifelike,
and arranged according to the different parts
of Bosnia in which they are worn. As the
dress of the Catholic and Orthodox peasants
varies even in the same district — and no two
districts are quite alike — it is a great help
towards recognising the distinctions to be able
to study them here at leisure. Moreover, some
of the national costumes shown are now rarely
seen — as, for instance, that of the Bosnian
gipsies, who, by the way, have their own
quarter of the town in Sarajevo. The dress,
or rather the head-dress, of the Orthodox
bride from Osatica, particularly attracted my
attention : the little cap, edged with a fringe of
coins that rest upon the hair (commonly worn
by both Catholic and Orthodox women under
their veils), is adorned not only with flowers
and peacock feathers (such a mixture might
not inconceivably appear upon a creation
in a Bond Street window), but this lady bears
upon her head also a small hand mirror. It
is a new idea for a Parisian milliner, but I
should like to understand its significance — for
92
A HIT OK SARAJEVO WITH THli KATHAtS I.N THE DIM ANCE
Sarajevo
surely there is some — as applied to the bride !
The brides in other districts wear crowns, as
do the Norwegian peasants to this day. It is
strange that there should be any likeness in
marriage customs of countries so far removed
from one another as Scandinavia and a Balkan
province of Turkey, as Bosnia was but yester-
day.
Other sections of the museum (which is
free to visitors any day on application to the
custodian) deal with Roman and prehistoric
remains found in Bosnia and the Herzegovina.
Last, but not least, there is a very fine collec-
tion of old Turkish and Bosnian coins as well
as those of the neighbouring republic of
Ragusa. Other interesting institutions in
Sarajevo are the tobacco factory in which
hundreds of women and girls are employed,
the carpet factory, and the schools in which
the native art of inlaying wood and metal with
gold and silver has been brought to great per-
fection ; the designs used are often very beau-
tiful, but, like all hand work, it is costly.
The Government buildings are all very fine,
but the most attractive is undoubtedly the
new Town Hall upon the banks of the Mil-
G 93
Bosnia and Herzegovina
jacke. It is a prominent object in almost
every view of the city, but being in Oriental
style is not out of keeping with the adjacent
houses of the Carsija and the mosques and
minarets which rise in its vicinity. The
interior is well worth seeing, the entrance hall
in particular being strikingly beautiful — octa-
gon shaped, with double rows of arches above
and below. The colouring here is so soft it
does not give the impression of newness. In
the great hall, on the contrary, it is harsher
and more garish, though the room is very fine
in its proportions.
The Town Hall has a broad terrace with
Moorish arches which frame in a most entranc-
ing view. On the farther bank of the rushing
river the quaint broad-eaved houses of the old
town climb the lower slopes of the mountain,
and a white minaret flanked by some tall poplar
trees points heavenwards. A bridge spans the
stream just here, across which I watched the
country people driving their flocks of sheep
and goats to market, and the veiled Turkish
women coming from their homes on the farther
side to make purchases in the bazaars of the
Carsija. I am familiar with the bazaars of
94
Sarajevo
Egypt and of those of the isle of Cyprus, and
the Carsija of Sarajevo reminded me more of
the Turkish quarter in Nicosia than of any-
thing I had seen elsewhere. In Cairo the
goods displayed are more sumptuous, in
Assouan more barbarous.
A family likeness there is in the bazaar
quarters of all Mohammedan cities ; in all you
find the narrow streets without sidewalks
where foot-passengers jostle beasts of burden
and hawkers cry their wares ; the little open
wooden shops with their heterogeneous collec-
tion of goods for sale and the owner sitting
serenely cross-legged on the ground or work-
ing (always in the same Oriental posture) at
his trade ; in all you see the same repellent
sights, smell the same smells, and yet find the
same fascination, the same charm of pulsing
life and vivid colour.
Sarajevo without its bazaars would not be
Sarajevo, and every one who knows and loves
the old streets of the Bosnian capital will
rejoice that the recent fire in the Carsija, which
did considerable damage, did not wipe out the
most interesting quarter. I was very glad to
hear that a large sum of money had been col-
95
Bosnia and Herzegovina
lected to help the poor people to rebuild their
houses.
The Carsija is seen to the greatest advan-
tage on a market day, when the variety of
costumes is truly amazing ; for then side by
side with the Turks are seen the Catholic and
Orthodox peasants from all the surrounding
country-side. The trains coming into Sara-
jevo on a market day are filled with the
picturesque crowd, and the scene in the open
market-place baffles description.
The crowning glory of the Carsija is the
beautiful Begova Dzamija — the third finest
mosque in the realms of Islam, of which the
Bosnian Mohammedans may well be proud.
Through a grating in the walls of the court-
yard you catch a glimpse of a lovely fountain,
shaded by an immense sycamore tree, whose
branches overshadow the mosque, where pious
Moslems are performing their ablutions before
the hour of prayer. When I came upon it
first on a hot afternoon, fresh from the tur-
moil of the Carsija, I stood entranced at the
poetry of the scene ! The green canopy over-
head was grateful to the eye — the sound of
running water to the ear — the graceful arches
96
COUKTYAKU Ul- 11EGI)\'
A D/AMIJA MOSIJUE (SAKAJEVO)
Sarajevo
and lovely colouring of the mosque in the
background — the play of light and shade on
the fountain, and the picturesque Oriental
figures in the foreground would have delighted
an artist ; but I found more in it than this !
The same feeling came over me that I have
experienced in turning from the noisy streets
of an Italian town into some church at the
hour of benediction, or from the busy streets
of London into the cloisters of Westminster —
the relief of the spirit that turns from the mart
to the temple, from the seen to the unseen !
The Moslems on the marble steps in the fore-
court of the mosque (that beautiful forecourt
that I afterwards studied in detail and found
so exquisite) were worshipping towards Mecca
— some bending reverently, others prostrate
on the ground. If they observed me watch-
ing them, they may have thought my curiosity
idle and unseemly ; I could not tell them that
my spirit worshipped with them the spiritual
Presence which is at the heart of the universe,
and man calls God !
We visited the interior of the mosque
on another occasion, accompanied by Olmiltz
Pasha, a well-known personality in Sarajevo,
97
Bosnia and Herzegovina
and so named from his having fought in the
insurrection and been imprisoned at Olmiitz.
From him we learnt much that was interesting
about the endowments and the charities con-
nected with the mosque. The property be-
longing to it called " Vakuf" brings in a very
large income, and one thousand people, accord-
ing to our informant, are supported from these
funds, including priests and poor pensioners.
In Turkish times, he said, the funds were
often misappropriated, but under the superin-
tendence of the present Government they are
well administered. I do not know whether
the sentiments expressed by Olmutz Pasha
fairly represent those of the Mohammedan
population as a body, but he, at least, was
well content with the new order of things, and
often drew comparisons between the pre-occ.u-
pation times and the present, to the advantage
of the latter, which, coming from a Turk,
rather surprised us. The interior of the Be-
govia Dzamija is very fine, the walls being
beautifully painted in Oriental designs of
subdued colouring, and adorned with texts
from the Koran. The inscription over the
doorway states that the mosque was built by
98
Sarajevo
Ghazi Usrej Beg, " The Glory of Justice and
Fountain of Benevolence." The founder and
his wife rest in a little chapel beside the main
building, which is the enduring memorial of
their piety.
There is a curious stone column in the court-
yard you should not overlook, for it is an in-
teresting relic of the past. The grooved por-
tion measures exactly a Turkish ell, and it was
placed here by a pasha of long ago to settle dis-
putes between buyers and sellers as to whether
the former had been given good measure.
The mosque was not Usrej Beg's only gift
to Sarajevo, for almost opposite is the " Med-
rasa," founded by him, where Mohammedan
boys are educated free of cost. If you peep
into the open kitchen adjoining the courtyard
at dinner-time you will see steaming bowls of
soup and bread being dealt out to them, as
well as to some poor pensioners and ragged
beggars. From here Olmutz Pasha took us
on to see the " Scheriat " college for law stu-
dents, established by the Government so that
Bosnian Mohammedans need not go, as for-
merly, to Constantinople. This college,
though not large, is worth seeing ; the new
99
Bosnia and Herzegovina
buildings, which were erected eighteen years
ago, are in Moorish style, built round a cen-
tral courtyard with a fountain in the middle.
The arrangements for the comfort of the
students are as much in advance of the Mo-
hammedan university in Cairo as the English
universities are of this. In Cairo the students
have but one little cupboard each in which to
keep their food, their scanty clothing, and
their books — they sleep on the floor alto-
together ; here each has a comfortable little
room furnished with a divan, which forms a
bed at night, a small wardrobe, and a table,
and takes his meals in the general dining-hall.
Those who know the undergraduates' rooms at
Oxford or Cambridge will recall the luxurious
chairs and lounges in which the young sybarite
delight. The students at Sarajevo read law and
study theology, and after a four years' course
can enter the Government service as judges in
the Mohammedan courts of law. Those I
saw were extremely intelligent-looking ; many,
no doubt, were sons of those Bosnian nobles
who survived the insurrections of thirty years
ago — the proud Begs who set even the Viziers
at defiance.
lOO
Saragevo
Nothing in Sarajevo recalls those days more
vividly than the old Servian church, hidden
behind a high wall and sunk beneath the level
of the street, so that not even its roof shall
meet the eye ; it typifies the condition of the
subject race who worshipped there, tolerated
only when not persecuted, so long as they
made themselves inconspicuous and kept out
of the way of the followers of the Prophet.
The little church, which dates from 1530,
is a square building with a gallery supported
on arches running round, which is set apart
for the women of the congregation. The
carved and gilded screen and the curious
Ambona (pulpit) are its most remarkable
features. The screen is divided into panels
containing quaint Byzantine paintings, in which
the saints wear halos of solid silver (fastened
on to the painted wood) and the angels have
silver wings. Two large paintings in the upper
part of the screen represent the Last Supper
and Christ washing the feet of His disciples.
A beautiful old silver lamp which will excite
the cupidity of every collector hangs before
the altar, and there are some very interesting
things to be seen in the treasury. The bridal
Bosnia atid Herzegomna
crown especially attracted my attention, and
the " chelenka " given to athletes in token of
victory. It is remarkable that the treasury
was preserved intact during the revolution
and terrible persecutions in the last days of
Turkish rule.
There still survives, among the Orthodox
population of Sarajevo, a curious Easter custom
that arose out of the insecurity or past times,
when even Christian women went veiled for
safety from outrage. On the greatest festival of
the Christian year the country lasses in rural
England still put on something new " for
luck " and also to enhance their charms in the
eyes of country lads, for the budding of the
trees and the mating of the birds seem to
arouse in human breasts a like impulse to wed.
In the Spring a richer crimson comes upon the robin's breast,
In the Spring a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts
of love,
But the poor Christian maidens of Sarajevo did
not dare to show their finery in the streets —
they did not dare to leave their homes alone ;
how should they find lovers — how the young
men wives ? On one day in the year alone — on
Easter Monday — behind the strong walls that
Sarajevo
shut off the precincts of their church from the
Turkish town, did they show themselves in
their best, wearing all the jewels and gold and
silver coins that were their dowry. For in
those days no Christian could possess any
property, that was not portable, and out of
this had arisen the Easter gathering that has
been called for want of a better name " the
marriage market," still held in the quaint
courtyard of the little Orthodox church, and
worth going to see.
The houses that cluster round the old
fortress, within the protection of its sur-
rounding walls, are the oldest in Sarajevo.
Here was the beginning of the town which
gradually spread from the castle to the valley
below and stretched along the river. The
" Grad," as this quarter is called, has escaped
all the fires which have from time to time
destroyed the town beneath, and the old castle
is still a strong fort. Behind the so-called
" White Bastion " the Austrian soldiers who
fell here in the sanguinary battles of 1878 are
buried in one common grave.
It was my good fortune to be in Sarajevo
during the Mohammedan feast of Bairam,
103
Bosnia and Herzegovina
when the city, viewed from the height on
which the castle stands, looked like a scene
out of the Arabian Nights. Its countless
mosques and minarets (reputed to be over one
hundred in number, though I have never been
able to count so many) are hung with myriad
lamps and sketched in light against the dark
background of the surrounding mountains.
1 took the winding way that leads upwards to
the castle in the late afternoon and watched
the glow of sunset fade into twilight. I heard
the muezzins answer one another from mosque
to mosque, and watched as one by one the
minarets shone out in the gathering darkness
— the twenty-four hours' fast, kept so re-
ligiously by every Mussulman, was ended, and
Turkish Sarajevo, with the setting of the sun,
gave itself up to feasting which would last
far into the night.
It matters little in what direction you climb
the hills round the city ; there are lovely views
everywhere, though from the purely artistic
point of view it is impossible not to regret
the old Turkish town which is so infinitely
more picturesque, in a water-colour sketch I
have seen of it, than the Sarajevo of to-day.
104
Sarajevo
Mohammedan churchyards are frequent in
the precincts of the city, and you soon learn to
know the graves of men and women, priests and
people one from another. The turbaned graves
are those of men ; but the form of the turban
decides the rank : those marking the graves of
the janissaries and the dervishes are higher
than those of the merchant. The stone above
a woman's grave is always pointed, and women
are laid to rest in a coffin, which is never the
case with men among the Mohammedans of
Bosnia.
A very interesting churchyard is that of the
Spanish Jews on the lower slopes of Mount
Trebevic, where huge boulders form the tomb-
stones ; this being, according to Mr. Thomson,
who visited Bosnia in 1897, to keep the
wolves from digging up and devouring the
bodies. It is quite probable, as a resident in
Sarajevo told me their howling may still be
heard just outside the city in very severe
winters, though they are gradually being
exterminated.
The Spanish Jews, of whom there are about
3000 in Sarajevo besides colonies in Mostar,
Travnik and Banjaluka, took refuge in Bosnia
los
Bosnia and Herzegovina
in the sixteenth century and are a very in-
teresting section of the community, as they
carefully preserved the language and customs
of their forefathers and hold no intercourse
with the Jewish traders who have settled in
Bosnia since the Occupation.
The head-dress of the Spanish Jewesses
(a high silk cap edged with gold) adds one
more to the infinite variety of national
costumes to be seen in the streets of Sarajevo ;
they have, however, unfortunately discarded
their Oriental dresses for those of Europe, or
at all events do not wear the former in the
streets.
It is to be feared that before long the Serbs
will follow this example, but as yet the Bosnian
capital shows greater variety of national cos-
tumes than any other city of the near East,
and lovers of the picturesque should hasten to
visit it before they vanish into the limbo of
the past and " Sarajevo the Golden " loses one
of its chiefest charms.
1 06
IX—ILIDZE
IT is a distinct surprise to the traveller,
who has the thought of Bosnia as an
uncivilised land, to come across such a
charming bathing-place as Ilidze.
We made it our head-quarters during our
first visit to Bosnia, and it was delightful after
a day's sight-seeing in Sarajevo to come back
to the quiet of an hotel standing in the midst
of an extensive park, and to dine in the garden
where the air was full of the scent of flowers
and listen to the nightingales. It was delight-
ful to go out here in the early morning, before
the dew was off the flowers, and wander
through the avenues of acacia trees, laden with
snowy perfumed blossoms, beyond the park
into the green meadows and see the shepherds
with their flocks and the picturesque country
people at work in the fields.
Often though I feel inclined to quarrel with
the march of civilisation, when it encroaches
on antiquity, I appreciate to the full the work
107
Bosnia and Herzegovina
the Austrian Government has done In build-
ing suitable hotels (so that travellers can see
something of the beautiful scenery of Bosnia
without unnecessary discomfort), and in par-
ticular the work done at Ilidze by the late
Minister Herr von Kalley.
It adds much to the rural attractiveness of
this pretty place that instead of one great
hotel there are three smaller buildings, each
surrounded by trees, each with many balconies,
and all connected by covered ways with the
restaurant, where in warm weather all meals
are served in the open air.
I may say here that should you happen
upon hot weather in Bosnia, as we did in the
month of May, you need not draw the conclu-
sion that the heat will necessarily increase as
summer advances, and therefore hasten your
departure. In this year (as I learnt on my
return to Bosnia in the autumn) the hot spell
we experienced in the early summer was fol-
lowed by much cooler weather, and no extreme
heat occurred again.
The baths of Ilidze were known to the
Romans, and a piece of mosaic at the back of
the Hotel Bosna remains to tell the tale. It
io8
Ridze
may be that this discovery of the hot springs'
curative powers was the origin of the Roman
city that once existed near the source of the
Bosna river. Whether any use was made of the
healing waters during the Middle Ages is not
known, but the Turks had a primitive bathing
establishment here up to the time of the Occu-
pation. To-day the bathing establishment is
in keeping with twentieth century require-
ments, and visited by health seekers from near
and far.
But besides being an inland watering-place,
Ilidze is a pleasure resort for the people of
Sarajevo, being easily reached by a little
narrow-gauge train in twenty minutes from
the capital. On Sunday afternoons especially
our quiet was invaded by crowds from the
city, when the bands played in the park, and
I fear we were sometimes selfish enough to
regret it, though it was an interesting and
representative crowd that promenaded up and
down or drank coffee at the little tables in the
gardens. Many officers were there in smart
uniforms, accompanied by ladies in light sum-
mer frocks of the latest Vienna mode, rubbing
shoulders with Bosnian peasants in gala cos-
H 109
Bosnia and Herzegovina
tume and townspeople who were neither smart
nor picturesque, but always neat and orderly ;
and one and all seemed imbued with the spirit
of light-hearted pleasure-making that is typi-
cally Austrian.
From Ilidze we made our way one day to
the source of the Bosna, and feasted at the
little open-air restaurant on the speckled trout
for which the river is famous. The enter-
prising Government has even extended its
care to the freshwater fisheries, and at the
source of the Bosna there is an interest-
ing establishment for trout-breeding from
which fish are sent to stock the streams and
lakes all over the country.
The distance to this pretty spot (where
there is coolness to be found on the hottest
day on the little green islands in the river
beneath the shadow of the mountain) is only
about two miles from Ilidze, and a shady
avenue goes all the way.
Our most interesting excursion from Ilidze
was the ascent of Mount Trebevic, where we
slept at the tourist hut on the summit to see
the sun rise next morning — but that is antici-
pating !
no
Ilidze
Mount Trebevic rises to a height of over
5000 feet to the south of Sarajevo, and the
members of the tourist club very frequently
make up parties for the ascent and spend a
merry evening on the summit. Such a party,
of which I was the only lady, we were invited
to join by Baron Mollinary, the Prefect of
Sarajevo. All those present on this occasion,
with one exception, occupied high positions
in the Government, and several were heads of
departments ; the exception was the only pure
Austrian who came from Vienna and spoke
German as his native language, the other
members of the party being Hungarian,
Poles, Italians, who all spoke Serb. This
has an interesting bearing on the statement
made in some English papers at the time of
the Annexation that Bosnia is entirely governed
by Austrians of Teutonic race who are ignorant
of the native tongue.
We arranged to meet on the summit, for
the majority were walking, while we preferred
to ride on account of the heat, and arrived
there shortly after sunset, having lingered
on the way to enjoy the views of Sarajevo
from the heights, and then ridden slowly
Bosnia and Herzegovina
through the forest that clothes the upper
slopes of the mountain and stopped to pick
wild flowers.
All the members of our party had arrived
before us but Baron Mollinary, and of him
there was no sign ! The last glow of sunset
had faded and darkness had fallen, when a
faint shout came from below, and some one
recognised the Baron's voice, and suggested
that he must have lost his way in the forest,
which proved to be the case. Guided by the
answering shouts of our party, he at length
reached the tourist hut bearing in his hand —
an English flag !
Then I learnt that his mishap had been
caused by his anxiety to pay me a pretty
compliment. He had said jokingly, a few
days previous, that when we went by raft
down the Drina I must have my flag to sail
under, and it seems he had made up his mind
to procure one and present it to me on the
mountain. In Sarajevo the Union Jack was
unobtainable, so the resourceful Baron went
to work to sketch it at the club, and found a
seamstress to do the sewinor. She did not
finish the work as promised ; the Baron started
Ilidze
late in consequence, and to save time tried to
take a short cut with disastrous results, and
after wandering for hours had almost made
up his mind to spend the night in the forest
when his shouts were heard. 1 was really
distressed, when I saw how much he was
exhausted, to think that I had been the un-
witting cause of so much trouble, and felt not
a little guilty when he handed me my country's
flag which was toasted at supper by the whole
party — a compliment I appreciated the more
highly because the many nations of the Aus-
trian Empire were represented, and because
the Anti-Austrian tone of the English press
over the proposed new Balkan railway shortly
before had caused a good deal of sore feel-
ing, so that cordiality towards my country-
people was hardly to be expected at the
moment.
The tourist hut on Trebevic is kept by a
forester and his wife, who made us most com-
fortable and we would gladly have spent a
longer time there ; as it was our slumbers
were short, for official duties called most of
the party back to Sarajevo at an early hour
next morning, and it seemed more sociable to
113
Bosnia and Herzegovina
accompany them. I stood on the topmost
peak of the mountain at sunrise, looking
across to the snowy peak of the Dormitor —
the giant of the Montenegrin mountains-— and
at five we were again in the saddle watching
the morning mists float upward from the
valley as we descended the mountain.
I regretted that we were not able to make
more mountain excursions from Ilidze, and
especially that we could not visit the observa-
tory on the Bjelasnica, at 2400 feet above sea-
level, which is the highest in the Balkans.
The tour, we were told, could be made in one
day in summer, but as fourteen to fifteen
hours on foot or in the saddle is a harder
day's work than most people care for, it is
usual to take two days over it, sleeping at a
tourist hut on the mountains. From the
observatory, where there are two guest rooms
for tourists, there is a magnificent view of the
highest mountains of Montenegro, Herzego-
vina, and the Sandjak Novi Bazar. The Black
Mountains of the warlike mountaineers — the
" bloody Herzegovina " of the past (though
now as safe as any part of Europe), and the
turbulent province of Turkey, which has just
114
Ridze
been vacated by the Austrian troops — truly
this is a view to kindle the imagination.
It was always a joy to me in Bosnia to
visit the churches on Sunday mornings and
see the gatherings of peasants in festal attire.
At Stab, near Ilidze, the costumes were de-
lightful ; my note-book tells of one or two
that particularly attracted my attention, and
which we photographed : a girl in a white
dress of Turkish crepe worn under an em-
broidered zouave jacket, with vest of crimson
velvet, wearing on her head an orange-
coloured scarf, with a white veil beneath, red
stockings with embroidered leggings showed
below her short skirt, and silver ornaments,
completed her attire. She was accompanied
by a friend who wore full black Turkish
trousers and a zouave jacket edged with gold
braid, and wore curious ancient silver bracelets
set with coloured stones. I frequently saw
peasants whose sleeveless jackets were em-
broidered with gold and edged with fur, and
men and women alike delight to adorn their
caps with flowers on Sundays and festivals.
"S
X—ON THE DRINA RIVER
IT has been truly said that, even in this
world, there are always co rpensations !
To nothing does it more fully ?pply than
to getting up with the sun, or soon after
it, on a summer's morning. Custom makes it
a hardship to leave your comfortable bed at
such an early hour, but Dame Nature repays
you threefold for the effort by showing her-
self at her very best.
To be exact, we were called at half-past
four, the day we were to enjoy the novel
experience of a voyage down the Drina River
on a raft. It was quite unnecessary to get up
as early (as we afterwards found when we had
to wait at the station of Bistrik), but opinions
varied as to the time it would take us to
reach it, the hill being very steep, and we
wished to be on the safe side.
The day's business begins early in the
Orient, and the little coffee-houses we passed
Ii6
On the Drina River
on our way to the station were all open and
had many customers.
The backward views over the city are
charming as you climb the hills to Bistrik,
and not less so those from the train between
here and the point where the new Eastern
Railway to the Turkish and Servian frontiers
joins the main line at the principal station.
From Bistrik to Visigrad there is hardly a
mile of the way that is not extremely interest-
ing. The line is a triumph of engineering,
piercing the heart of mountains and crossing
terrific gorges by many viaducts ; it seems as
if the engineers had specially planned it to
show the glorious scenery, so often do you
come out of the darkness of a tunnel at just
the right spot for getting a perfect view. One
of the most delightful places on the line is
Pale, with its mountain pastures where cattle
graze and its pretty country houses of Sara-
jevo residents.
I am told that this narrow-gauge Bosnian
railway was one of the costliest in Europe to
build, and I can well believe it. The highest
point of the line is reached an hour or so after
leaving Sarajevo at Stambulcic on the Javorina,
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
which is 3000 feet over sea-level, and forms
the watershed between the Bosna and Drina
rivers. We left the train at Ustipraca, having
seen more in the few hours' journey from
Sarajevo than it was possible to remember, of
rushing rivers flowing through narrow gorges,
of dark pine forests varied by beech and oak,
of inaccessible mountain peaks and dizzy
precipices — all from our seats in the comfort-
able train.
From Ustipraca we went to Gorazda, where
the raft awaited us, and the civil head of the
district and some officers from the garrison
were to join the party, and here we lunched
at the little open-air restaurant under the
trees before the inn. Like Foca, the market
town of Gorazda has declined from a place of
considerable importance in the Middle Ages to
little more than an overgrown village.
The modern iron bridge that now spans
the Drina had many forerunners, first of
wood and then of stone, which must have
been much more picturesque ; but doubtless
the present bridge is better able to resist the
overwhelming force of the water at flood time,
which old records show actually broke the
118
On the Drina River
arches of the massive stone bridge erected in
1568 by Mustapha Pasha. In those days all
the caravans from the East crossed the Drina
Bridge, and a great caravansary adjoined it,
for the trade between Turkey and the Adriatic
was considerable, when the little republic of
Ragusa was at the height of its glory, and had
vessels sailing to all lands.
Our raft was awaiting us below the bridge,
and a crowd had collected to see us off, for
there is little happening in Gorazda, and small
events are of importance ; besides, it is not
often that anyone besides the steersmen under-
takes the voyage. We found our novel craft
gaily decorated in our honour with flags and
green boughs of trees arranged to form a little
canopy in the centre for shelter from the sun,
under which rude seats had been made by
fixing two logs of wood on end with a cross
piece to sit on, so high that our feet were a
foot or more off the ground. We saw the
necessity of this later on when the water
washed over the raft in going through the
rapids.
My Union Jack was run up and floated
gaily aloft, surrounded by the black and gold
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
of Austria, the red and yellow of Bosnia, and
the red, white, and green stripes of Hungary.
The raft was formed of mighty trunks of
forest trees, about sixty feet in length, fastened
together for transport, by the medium of the
river to the Danube, and ultimately to the
Black Sea. It was manned by two picturesque
Bosnians, whose skill in guiding it was really
remarkable. Often we seemed on the point of
colliding with some projecting rock, but at the
critical moment a deft movement of the oars
turned the raft in the nick of time. Accidents,
however, are not infrequent ; we were told of
two raftsmen who had been unableto clear
the arches of the bridge at Visigrad, and met
their death there shortly before.
Less than half an hour after leaving Gorazda
we came to a particularly dangerous spot,
where a great rock partly blocked the stream
and a terrific torrent rushed through the
narrow channel ; it was a moment of tense
excitement as the raft was swept along by the
headlong force of the water. Had the steers-
men lost their presence of mind for a moment
it would have been all over with us. Even
where the river was at its normal width (about
On the Drina River
two hundred feet between Gorazda and Visi-
grad) the current was so strong that it was
impossible to stop the raft at Ustipraca, though
a gentleman from the Sarajevo museum, who
had been unable to catch the early train and
wired he would join us en route, was waiting
to board it. The poor man had his four hours'
journey both ways for nothing.
Along almost the whole upper course of the
Drina the banks rise steeply on either side,
covered with thick woods, with here and there
little grassy glades where the herdsmen bring
their sheep and goats for pasturage. In places
the cliiFs rise sheer from the water to a height
of four or five hundred feet. The finest
scenery we passed was near Medjedje (which,
by the way, is the junction for the little branch
line toVardiste) ; just before coming there we
passed cliffs fully a thousand feet in height,
and a little farther on the rocks assumed most
wonderful forms. Perhaps the most interest-
ing point on the river is that where the Lim
joins the Drina, which is spanned at this point
by an iron bridge with a fortified watch-house
beside it. (Every station on the line between
Sarajevo and the Servian frontier is built with
Bosnia and Herzegovina
a view to defence in time of war, having the
windows fitted with steel shutters pierced with
loopholes, steel doors behind the wooden ones
and loopholes in the walls.)
Our voyage on the Drina was all too short.
As we neared Visigrad in the evening we re-
gretted arrangements had not been made for
us to go on to Ljubovija on the Servian
frontier, which takes two or three days by
river. There are, I believe, some very dan-
gerous places beyond Visigrad, especially at
the point where a tributary river, the Zepa,
joins the main stream, and the passage is
blocked by gigantic rocks ; but we were told
passengers can leave the raft and join it beyond
the rapids, and the night can be spent at a
" Finanzwach Kaserne " (fortified border cus-
tom houses). The scenery beyond Visigrad is
said to be much wilder, and in the thick forests
that clothe the mountain sides bears are still
frequently met with.
Visigrad lies on both sides of the Rzava, a
mountain stream which flows into the Drina
below the town, and has some very picturesque
features. Old Turkish watch-towers crown all
the surrounding heights, for under the Otto-
On the Drina River
man Empire the town was a place of con-
siderable importance, lying not only on the
great highway from the East to the coast, but
also on the road between the seat of Imperial
government and the provincial capital. It
was, too, the first place of any importance in
Bosnia to be reached by travellers coming
from Stamboul, and here, as at Gorazda, was a
great caravansary for their reception (which
the ruins showed was built to suit the tastes
of people of rank, being no common " han,"
but fitted with such luxuries as baths). It
stood near the beautiful old bridge, which still
remains to excite the admiration of modern
travellers.
An inscription in Turkish upon one of the
central stones states that the bridge was built
in the year 979 of the Hedschra (Turkish
reckoning), or a.d. 1577, by the Vizier
Mehmed Pascha Sokolovic, a Bosnian noble
who became one of the foremost statesmen of
the Ottoman Empire. It spans the Drina by
eleven graceful arches, and was erected in
accordance with the designs of an architect
from Ragusa, the skill of whose builders was
second only to that of Venice, and was doubt-
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
less famed far and wide as a masterpiece of
construction, for a Serb proverb runs : " As
firm as the bridge at Visigrad." In the
quaintly worded inscription, giving the date
and the name of the builder, Mehmed Pasha's
wisdom and charity is praised, and it is stated
that his bridge was unequalled at that day ;
it is unsurpassed still in Bosnia in point of
beauty, being only equalled perhaps by that of
Mostar.
There are many legends about the building
of this bridge, of which one relates that the
builder had ridden into the stream to ascertain
the depth of the water when suddenly his
horse stood still, and neither whip nor spur
availed to move it. Looking down he espied
the river fairy with her golden hair wound
round the horse's forefeet to stop its speed,
and drew his sword to free his steed by cutting
off her head. The fairy begged that her life
might be spared, and promised in return to
help with the building of the bridge, but failed
to keep her promise, and for seven years the
building done in the day was undone in the
night.
At last the Pasha grew impatient and told
124
On the Drina River
the builder to again summon the fairy to his
aid. She came and declared her inability to
help (the river spirits being against the building
of the bridge), but made the gruesome sug-
gestion that they might be propitiated if two
living maidens were walled up in the pillars.
According to the story this was done, and from
that time on the building proceeded without
interruption. Another version has it that a
woman was to be the sacrifice, and the work-
men determined on seizing the first who
approached ; this happened to be the young
wife of the builder, who, in spite of her
prayers for mercy, was buried alive in the
foundations of the bridge that is an enduring
monument of her husband's art.
Such sacrifices are frequently mentioned in
Bosnian folklore, and it is related that as late
as the middle of the last century, when a
bridge was being built at Trebinje, the people
begged the dead body of a child to bury in
the foundations. If this be true, it is a curious
instance of how superstition lingers among
a primitive people !
The last of the stories about the bridge at
Visigrad relates that after its completion the
I 125
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Pasha feared it would be unable to withstand
the force of the trees carried down by the
water in flood and, at the builder's suggestion,
made a present of money to the spirits of the
river ! A pile of gold was deposited in the
centre of the bridge and shovelled into the
flood beneath, while at the same time the
builder had himself let down by a rope and
struck viciously at a great pine tree that lay
across the arches and blocked the passage.
The legend ends by saying that the tree bled
as the axe struck it, and a voice proceeded
from it declaring that Mahmed's bridge would
last till the end of time. So the Drina spirits
were conquered and the bridge remains !
Some crumbling walls, which are all that
remain of the once strong castle of Starigrad,
crown a height above the Drina just outside
Visigrad ; an old tower below, which doubtless
once formed part of the fortifications, is con-
connected with the story of the Servian hero
Kraljevic Marko who figures so largely in the
national songs and folklore. Tradition says
he was a prisoner here for nine years, and at
his escape cleared the Drina at one bound — a
feat which, if he performed it, would place
126
On the Drina River
him in the foremost rank of the world's
athletes of all time.
There is another old castle rather more
than an hour's drive from Visigrad on the
way to Priboj, which I should have liked to
have visited, as so many legends cling around
it, — this is Dobrunj, which gave its name to a
place of some importance in the Middle Ages ;
but we were due to leave Visigrad early the
following morning, so had to content our-
selves with seeing the town, of which the
gipsy quarter is the most picturesque part.
Very reluctantly we bade good-bye next day to
the Drina river.
127
XI— FROM GORAZDA TO FOCA
IF we had not been very persevering we
should never have seen historic Foca, or
the charming country that lies around it ;
for though we were on the Drina in the
early summer, time failed us to explore the
border ; and when we came again to Bosnia
in the stirring time that followed the annexa-
tion, Foca was literally besieged by the
military, who occupied every room in the
hotel and every private room in the town.
We were warned of this in advance, but as
accounts varied, trusting to our usual good
fortune to find a roof to cover our heads, we
set off from Gorazda one golden October day
for the four hours' drive along the banks of
the Drina.
It was not alone of the lack of accommoda-
tion we were warned, but also of the possible
dangers of the road in such unsettled times,
and the risk of being shut up at Foca should
war break out ! But we had just returned
from the Sand^k, where we had also gone (in
128
From Gorazda to Foca
spite of warnings) and not regretted it, and
we had already given up a long-planned tour
across the mountains from Cajnica to Foca,
because even optimistic people urged us not
to take a path so near the frontier ! Not to
see Foca at all would have been too cruelly
disappointing — so we went ! Nor did we go
alone, for the wife of the General command-
ing the forces in the Sandjak, Baroness von
Rhemen, and her sister, asked to be allowed
to join us while they were waiting at Gorazda
for the troops. The Baroness was careful
not to let her husband know of her inten-
tions, lest her enterprise should be nipped in
the bud by a telephone message from Plevlje.
We learned afterwards, however, that our
movements had been reported to him daily
while she was in our company.
It was the last day of the great Moslem
festival of Bairam, and at the little coffee-
houses by the roadside, on the outskirts of
Gorazda, the Turks were gathered in festal
array. Our driver, too, seemed to have been
celebrating, and his mood as he sang Turkish
songs, and sometimes turned sharp corners at
break-neck speed, at others flicked his whip
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
over the horses' back quite suddenly (startling
us as much as the poor animals), was too con-
vivial to be reassuring. But after a while we
got used to these little incidents, and took them
as part of the programme. It dawned on us,
moreover, that our driver was very proud of
us. Were we not " Ingleski " who had come
from afar to see his country and make pictures
of it } He asked to handle the camera, and
beamed when we took his photo in the fore-
ground of a picturesque group of Turks, who
attracted our attention at a house by the road-
side. I am sure he related to one and all what
distinguished strangers he had the honour of
driving.
Like all Bosnian post roads made by the
military, that from Gorazda to Foca leaves
nothing to be desired, and the scenery is de-
lightful. The country folk here are very
prosperous, thanks to their orchards and to-
bacco fields, so the red-tiled roofs of better-
class houses often replace the peaked wooden
ones, but are not less picturesque, especially
when the whitewashed walls are hung with
garlands of tobacco leaves to be dried in the
sun, as is frequently the case. The tobacco
130
From Gorazda to Foca
grown in this part, by the way, is said to be
the best in Bosnia.
The produce of the orchards — purple plums
and fine walnuts — were on sale at every little
shop in Gorazda and Foca.
All the way we followed the course of the
Drina — its transparent green waters on our
left flowing between wooded banks of golden
autumn foliage, sometimes rushing over stones,
sometimes seeming to sleep in the sun. It is
but a little river after the drought of summer,
a very different Drina to the torrent along
which clever steersmen directed our raft a few
months ago, when the stream was swollen with
the melting snows from the mountains — a very
different Drina to that which uprooted trees
and swept away whole houses along its banks
in the terrible floods of 1898.
We came to the halfway house, where our
Turk, rather to our anxiety, stopped for re-
freshment, but from another traveller who was
returning from Foca and went into the coffee-
house we learned he was taking nothing
stronger than coffee. fVe preferred to remain
outside, for the glimpse we had of rooms hung
round with ghastly-looking sheepskins that
131
Bosnia and Herzegovina
had not long ago left their first owners' backs
was not inviting ; the skins likewise adorned
the outer walls.
Beyond this point the valley narrowed, and
the river, now shut in by high hills sloping
steeply to its brink, formed rapids.
About an hour before coming to Foca there
is an idyllic little village named Ustikolina,
grouped about the minaret of a very ancient
mosque. Long ago, before the Turkish con-
quest, history relates that it was a place of
importance, famous for the skill of its gold-
smiths and with a considerable trade ; on a hill
close by the foundations of a mediaeval castle
may still be traced. But that the history of
Ustikolina goes back far beyond the Middle
Ages is shown by the number of prehistoric
gravestones that have been found in the neigh-
bourhood.
In the fifteenth century the conquering
armies of the Sultan Mehmed Fatih came this
way, and on the banks of the Josanica (a
tributary of the Drina), not far from here,
was fought, in 1463, the bloody battle between
the Turks and Bosnians, in which the great
Bosnian hero, Ivko of Josanica, perished. The
132
From Gorazda to Foca
country people say that he was buried where
he fell, and still point to an ancient gravestone
as " the stone of Ivko," while the Turks hold
sacred the grave of the Moslem leader who
slew him and afterwards fell in the same fight,
and drink the rain-water which collects in a
hollow of the gravestone, believing it a cure
for all manner of ills.
The mosque of Ustikolina, which is one of
the oldest in the land, was built by the first
Turkish governor, Turkani Emin (whose
grave may still be seen in the Turkish grave-
yard at Presjeka). It is conspicuous from all
the rest because the " Mischan " (Turkish
gravestone) is of marble, on which is carved
the Crescent and the Star. There is an inscrip-
tion upon it in Turkish, which can only be
partly read as the marble is broken, but one of
the oldest inhabitants relates that in his youth
it was intact and gave the year of Turkani
Emin's death, 869, after the Turkish reckon-
ing ; so that the age of the mosque can be
determined accordingly.
Like its more important neighbour, Foca,
Ustikolina has declined from a busy town
to a sleepy village. To-day the inhabitants
133
Bosnia and Herzegovina
specially pride themselves on growing the
best tobacco in the district.
The afternoon was drawing to a close when
we came in sight of Foca, a white town with
many minarets, built where two rivers meet,
and backed by forest-clad mountains — there
is no fairer sight, nor fairer town, seen from
afar, in Bosnia. We had to cross the river
twice, once by a new bridge from which there
is a glorious view of river and mountains,
and then again by an old wooden one which
dates from Turkish times. So we came to
the Hotel Gerstl, where we were told every
room was filled to overflowing ; but we
succeeded in persuading our host to put us
up beds in the bathroom, while an officer
from the garrison in the Sandjak, whom we
fortunately met, gave up his own apartment
to the Baroness and her sister, who were only
remaining till the morrow.
Foca's pride and glory is the famous
"Aladza" (coloured) mosque, so called on
account of the paintings of the interior. This
mosque has been recently restored for the
Mohammedans by the Austrian Government
at a cost of kr. 10,000 (about £4^06)^ a plain
134
From Gorazda to Foca
proof that the Moslems will not suffer through
the annexation. It will be very beautiful when
time has softened the tints a little ; at present,
the restorations being but a month old, the
effect is rather garish. Another mark of
Austrian friendship is the costly carpet, so im-
mense that it covers the whole floor, which was
presented by the late Crown Prince Rudolf.
The mosque dates from the year 1549,
and a pretty story is told of the founder,
Hassan Nasir, which runs thus. Hassan was
a Bosnian by birth, a son of poor parents
who lived near Foca. He quarrelled with
them in his youth, ran away from home, and
finally took service with the Sultan, who
showed him great favour, so that he rose in
time to hold high offices of State, and was
one of the Sultan's most trusted servants,
accompanying his master wherever he went.
Many years passed, and Hassan Nasir had
grown rich in the Sultan's service, and he
began to wonder if his parents still lived, and
wished to see them once again. So he begged
leave of absence from the court, obtained a
Firman to build a mosque in his native town,
and set out on his journey to his birthplace,
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
having on his person three belts full of gold
for the building of the mosque.
On the road he was waylaid by robbers,
who took away his treasure and put him in
chains ; but he escaped miraculously, for the
robbers, having drunk deeply at the " Han,"
where they spent the night, fell fast asleep,
and as they slept Hassan prayed for help, and
in answer to his prayer the chains fell from
his hands and feet. He seized his treasure,
mounted a horse, and arrived safely at Foca,
where he saw his mother at the spot where
the mosque stands to-day. Years had changed
Hassan so much that she did not recognise
him, but seeing a stranger from afar, the old
woman began to speak of her lost son, in the
hope of getting tidings of him. Hassan
asked her if there was any mark by which
she could recognise her son, and she replied
that she would know him anywhere by a
mole on his arm ; whereupon the traveller
drew up his sleeve and showed the mole, and
the mother knew her son and embraced him —
but died of joy !
On the spot where he was reunited to his
mother, Hassan built the mosque to her
136
From Gorazda to Foca
memory, sending for a skilled architect from
Asia Minor, and sparing no expense to make
it of exceeding beauty within and without.
Such is the legend of the famous Aladza
mosque. It stands within the town, and from
the churchyard surrounding it there is an
enchanting view of the quaint old town beyond
the river, with its broad-eaved houses grouped
in picturesque confusion around the minaret
of yet another mosque, while behind them
rise the mountains. You cross the stream
by an ancient wooden bridge, and find yourself
in the Carsija, but it is strangely silent and
empty ; one half, indeed, of the little Turkish
shops are shut — instead of a curious medley
of wares for sale you see but wooden shutters
— for Foca has no more its former trade,
though, to be sure, a new industry has sprung
up in fruit-growing for export ; but this docs
not affect the Carsija.
If you continue through the quiet streets
and climb the hill you come upon a Dervish
monastery. A low white building built around
a little courtyard, out of which rises a spread-
ing pine-tree — a sketch ready made to be
transferred to an artist's easel — the dusky stone
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
pine on the brow of the hill standing out
against the blue haze of the mountains across
the intervening valley, while all around it are
the turbaned graves of bygone generations of
Moslems, who little dreamt that a Christian
monarch would one day rule this land.
One cannot wonder that the Turks, born
and bred in the belief that the supreme head
of the State must necessarily be the supreme
head of their Church, were sorely puzzled at
first by the annexation, and feared that it
meant for them compulsory conversion to
Christianity ; but great pains have been taken
to make it clear that the change of govern-
ment in no way will affect their religion, and
having once grasped this they appear content,
or at all events patiently accept the inevitable.
But I am wandering away from Foca ! We
lingered there some days, waiting for favour-
able weather to visit the Sutjeska Valley, in
spite of discomforts arising from the strength-
ening of the garrison and the consequent
overcrowding of the hotel (which, though ex-
ternally promising, can offer little at the best
of times). Travellers less inured to roughing
it might prefer to visit Foca in one day and
138
From Gorazda to Foca
return to Gorazda to sleep, where the inn,
though smaller, is more comfortable ; but if
excursions are to be made to Rataj or the
Sutjeska Valley it is necessary to sleep, one
night at least, at Foca.
We were promoted from the bathroom to
a more commodious apartment, through strong
influence brought to bear upon our host of
the Hotel Gerstl from without, but truth
compels me to say that creature comforts were
altogether lacking here.^
Foca has been Bosnia only since 1880 ; it
formerly belonged to Herzegovina, and played
a great part in the insurrection of 1881 and
1882. Its proximity to the Sandjak and to
Montenegro account for this, and would make
it the chief pawn in the game played on this
part of the frontier if trouble came sooner or
later. Hence the great barracks at each en-
trance to the town — hence the military activity
here during the recent crisis. Moreover, Foca
is on the Drina river, and from the Servian
point of view the Drina is the natural bound-
ary between Servia and Bosnia ; if it ever came
to be so in fact, part of Foca would be Servian.
^ This was written in November, 1908.
159
XII— <tA BOSNI<iAN FEUDAL
CzASTLE—RATAJ
OUR first excursion from Foca was to
the Turkish castle of Rataj, a good
example of the feudal strongholds
of the Bosnian Begs, who exercised
as despotic a sway here, under the Turkish
rule, as any robber knights of the Middle
Ages did in Europe. Curiously enough, I
have not found mention of Rataj in any guide
book, and we had to thank the Bezirks-
vorsteher (civil head of the district) for our
knowledge of it. He told us that the present
Beg, though shorn of power beyond the walls
of the little village surrounding his tower,
still rules absolutely within them, and the
subject of this petty king lived a life wholly
cut off from the outside world, never even
intermarrying with the people of the villages.
This is the more interesting, as the feudal
system in Bosnia did not even survive up to
the time of the Austrian occupation, but was
140
A Bosnian Feudal Castle
put an end to in 1850 by Omer Pasha, who
abolished the rank and office of the feudal
chiefs and deprived them of their right of
taking tithes from their subjects, which from
that time on was paid to the Government.
A very interesting account of the Bosnian
Begs is given by Miss Irby, the Englishwoman
who devoted her life to philanthropic work in
Bosnia and lived in Sarajevo before the Aus-
trian occupation.^ She says, in her book on
the Southern Slavs : —
" After the conquest of Bosnia by the Turks,
those of the nobility who remained alive in the
land became Mohammedan. The Bosnian
Begs were the offspring of an alliance between
feudalism and Islam.
" The feudal system which had been estab-
lished in Bosnia in the Christian period was
continued after the Mussulman conquest ; with
this sole difference, that the feudal lords
changed their faith and their souzerain. Their
own position was confirmed by this change.
We have seen that Bosnia was continually the
object of an attack from Hungary. Now the
1 This lady still resides in Sarajevo during the greater part
of the year and superintends the school for Servian girls.
K 141
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Turkish policy was acute and masterly ; there
was also much that was noble and magnani-
mous in the Osmanli character ; tempting
terms were offered to the Bosnian nobles.
Perceiving that under the shadow of their
mighty conquerors they would be able to pre-
serve their nationality, maintain their feudal
privileges, and bid defiance to Hungary and
the Pope, many of the nobles threw in their
cause with that of the Empire of the Othman
and the Bosnian Slavonic Mussulman ; in the
words of the Turkish writers, * the lion that
guarded Stamboul,' Bosnia was the bulwark
of Islam against Western Europe."^
When the Turkish Empire was at the height
of its power, the Bosnian Begs often led its
conquering armies and were powerful in the
ranks of the Janissaries, who practically ruled
in Sarajevo, and set the Viziers at defiance.
Most of these feudal chiefs resided on their
estates, which were cultivated by vassals over
whom they exercised power of life and death ;
yet some historians maintain that the Christian
rayah was less oppressed by the Begs than by
1 Travels in the Slavonic Provinces of Turkey in Europe,
by G. Muir Mackensie and A. P. Irby.
142
A Bosnian Feudal Castle
the Turkish tax-gatherers who succeeded
them. These Bosnian nobles clung, in secret,
to some of the traditions of their Christian
forefathers, though making in public so great
a show of Mohammedanism, for the German
historian Ranke relates that a Bosnian Beg
sometimes took a Christian priest secretly to
the grave of his forefathers to bless the re-
mains and to pray for their souls, and Miss
Irby says some of them kept the name of the
patron saint of their family and carefully pre-
served the patents of nobility of the Christian
ancestors ; though others were fanatic Moslems
and persecuted the Christians whenever oppor-
tunity offered. Having heard much of these
feudal chiefs, who played so large a part in the
little the outside world knows of Turkish rule
in Bosnia, I was delighted to have the oppor-
tunity of seeing one of their strongholds and
possibly its present lord, even though he be
but a lion with drawn teeth.
We started with the intention of visiting
the little town of Jelec as well as the castle of
Rata], for both lay in the same direction ; but
the days being short in late October we found
this programme could not be carried out, and
H3
Bosnia and Herzegovina
had to give up seeing the former place.
Jelec is surrounded by a mountainous region
that affords pasturage to thousands of sheep
and goats, and was from the earliest times
famous for its tanneries. As the primitive
methods in vogue under Turkish rule could
not compete with modern requirements, and
the trade from which the inhabitants mostly
lived was threatened with extinction, the Aus-
trian Government (which has everywhere fos-
tered the national industries) built a model
tannery and leather factory there some fifteen
years ago, which has more than restored the
reputation of the town. There is another
industry arising out of it in which numbers
of children are employed — the collecting of
sumach, which grows wild on the mountains
here, the leaves of which are used in tanning
the skins to a fine colour.
For the benefit of anyone who may come
this way in the long warm days of summer,
I may say here that a bridle-path leads from
Jelec over the Zelengora, where pastoral life
may be seen at its best in the high Alpine
meadows, and extending south to the Monte-
negran border. This mountain region is not
144
A Bosnian Feudal Castle
the less interesting because its wild ravines
and dark forests were robbers' lairs less than
a generation ago, though safe as any part of
Bosnia to-day.
On the way to Rataj we met hundreds of
peasants coming to the weekly market in
Foca, which is of such importance that the
people come from Montenegro and the
Sandjak Novi Bazar to attend it ; on this
occasion, however, the Montenegrins were
missing, for during the political crisis and
general excitement the Government had con-
sidered it wiser not to allow them to cross the
border.
As our road ascended in serpentine wind-
ings, we saw the approaching groups of
peasants from afar, and were perpetually
stopping the carriage to snapshot some par-
ticularly picturesque people. Most were on
foot, but not a few of the more richly dressed
on horseback ; these bore themselves proudly,
like knights of the olden times. Many peasants
drove their flocks of sheep and goats, and
others had pack-horses laden with goods for
sale. Nowhere in Bosnia have I seen greater
variety of costume, for some men wore the
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
fez, others the turban, and still others the
white cap of Albania, while not a few had
the round pork-pie cap edged with black that
is universal in Montenegro (only the em-
broidered monogram failed, which showed
they were not subjects of the Prince of the
Black Mountains) ; all were evidently in festal
attire. We reached the highest point of the
road about an hour and a half after leaving
Foca, and descended the other side of the
mountain, through a charming wooded glen,
then came out again into a more open land-
scape where green meadows were framed by
distant forest-clad mountains glowing with
autumn foliage.
At a wayside hamlet called Budanj we
stopped to inquire the way to Rataj from
some gendarmes who were resting there, for
our driver could speak only Slav, and we
were a little dubious as to whether he knew
the road himself They told us we must
alight at a certain point and proceed from
there on foot. Before coming to it we saw
the ancient tower, looking in the distance not
unlike a Tyrolese castle, but to reach it was
not so easy, for the river lay between ! A
146
A Bosnian Feudal Castle
Turk we had taken to guide us and carry
the cameras, at the point where we left the
carriage, made us understand by signs he
would carry us across the stream pick-a-back ;
but for reasons of cleanliness 1 had scruples
about coming into such close contact, and
decided to take off my shoes and stockings
and wade ! I must confess, however, I had
not bargained for the icy coldness of the
water, which was nearly knee-deep in places,
nor yet for the difficulty of walking over the
slippery stones of the river-bed against a
strong current, and had not our guide come
to the rescue and held my arm, I think I
should have fallen. On the return journey
I resigned myself to the inevitable, and con-
sented to be carried !
The castle of Rataj, which is built on
a terrace on the mountain-side, stands like a
sentinel keeping watch and ward over the
Arcadian valley below. On the day of our
visit, the whole landscape lay basking in sun-
shine, as warm as that of midsummer, though
it was the last day of October. Blue smoke
curled slowly upwards from the roofs of the
cottages nestling under the shadow of the
147
Bosnia and Herzegovina
ancient fortress, and fleecy white clouds flecked
an azure sky. Everything spoke of peace
but that grim tower with its memories of
past warfare and oppression.
In seeking the best place to take a picture
of it from the distance, we came across a
curious rock-hewn tomb, in what appeared
from the other side merely a huge boulder
that had become detached from the mountain-
side. An arched cavity had been scooped out
in the interior, in which a coffin-shaped grave
was hewn out in the rock ; above this was
one of the boards used in the mosques for
carrying bodies to the grave. There was
some rough carving on the arched entrance,
and other fragments of carved stone lay
scattered around, which suggested that this
was the tomb of no common person. But,
alas ! we could not speak the language to
inquire of our guide about this interesting
find, and no one in Foca whom I asked on
my return there could tell me anything of it.
The village surrounding the castle of Rataj
is still fenced in by its mediaeval walls, and we
were made to understand we must not enter
without the Beg's permission. He was sent
THE I'.KG OF KATAI
A Bosnian Feudal Castle
for and appeared — a fine old man with long,
grey beard, who looked not unworthy of
his ancestors ; we feared at first from his
gestures that he refused us entrance to his
domain, but our guide motioned us to wait.
The Beg left us for a short time, and then
returned and signed to us to follow ; we
afterwards thought he used the interval to
order all the women of the village to dis-
appear.
Following our host, we entered his feudal
walls, and very rude they were on near ap-
proach. First we descended to an underground
stable for horses and cattle ; above this, on
the ground floor, corn was stored ; the other
floors, six in all, were apparently unused. It
was evident the Beg no longer lived in the
castle of his ancestors, but in the more com-
fortable dwelling beside it. We climbed by a
circular stone staircase to the topmost story
of the ancient pile, which had projections on
all four sides for hurling missiles on the
besiegers below. When our host playfully took
hold of my husband's arm to show him how
men were hurled down formerly, it flashed
across my mind how utterly we were in his
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
power had he thought well to rob and murder
us. The gloomy walls were depressing, and I
was glad to leave them and get out again into
the sunshine — it seemed as if memories of dark
deeds clung to them. The Beg became very
cordial before we bade him adieu ; though we
could only communicate to him by signs and
smiles, we felt that we had made a favourable
impression, and he was delighted when we
took his photograph and promised to send
him one.
One thing that surprised me in his tiny
capital was that I saw no harem windows
covered with musharabeah. Did the Turkish
women of Rataj have more liberty than else-
where, I wondered, because there is no one to
see them but their blood relations .''
What a strange survival in the Europe of the
twentieth century is the patriarchal mediaeval
life of this Turkish village in the heart of the
Bosnian mountains !
Only a mile or so distant modern civilisa-
tion is represented by a neat European house
in a garden where the Austrian revenue officers
live, whose duty is to collect taxes in the
district. Here we had left our carriage, and
150
A Bosnian Feudal Cadle
begged for some hot water to make tea on our
return before setting off on our long drive
back to Foca. What was our surprise to find
that they had misunderstood us and provided
a substantial meal of soup and meat, which we
were expected to partake of at four o'clock in
the afternoon, after having had a good lunch
in the middle of the day !
Such hospitality, though kind, was em-
barrassing ; politeness forced us to make a
feint of eating, but it was hard work, and,
fortunately, two pet cats and a dog came to
our assistance. There was, however, no
feigning about our appreciation of the good
Bosnian wine our kind hosts pressed upon us.
I only regretted that, though living so near,
they could tell me nothing of the castle of
Rataj and its past history.
151
XIII— FROM FOCA TO THE
VALLET OF THE SUrjESK<^
THE Sutjeska river runs through one
of the grandest ravines in Europe ;
but not alone for the wild beauty of
the scenery is this valley famous,
but also for the dark deeds wrought there by
the robber bands who inhabited its mountain
fastnesses under Turkish rule and in the early
years of the Austrian occupation. It is no
exaggeration to say that the banks of the Sut-
jeska were literally drenched in blood in the
past centuries. As late as the eighties two
famous robber chiefs, whose names still sound
ominously in the peasants' ears, Stojan Kova-
cevic and Risto Bakac, had their hiding-places
in the side valleys that open into the ravine
through which the river flows ; thence they
issued with their followers to rob and murder
travellers, of whom many passed this way (for,
though the old Turkish road is but a bridle-
path, it was the route by which all commerce
152
The Valley of the Sutjeska
passed from Servia and the Sandjak to Herze-
govina and the coast).
The bandit chiefs took refuge across the
border in Montenegro when driven from the
Sutjeska valley by the Austrian troops, and
Stojan Kovacevic is still living there, as Monte-
negro makes no extradition treaties.
Of Risto Bakac a good story is told that
recalls the courtesy of Robin Hood. He fell
upon the gendarmerie post of Cureva with a
large band ; the few gendarmes were powerless
to offer resistance to overwhelming numbers,
and doubtless expected death. But massacre
was, in this particular instance, not Risto's in-
tention ; he merely wished to get rid of the
gendarmes, whose presence, in the domain he
considered his own, was inconvenient. So he
dispatched them to Foca, afterwards burning
the station to make sure they did not return.
Needless to say, retribution fell later, and the
Austrian Government deserves full credit for
the work of the " Streifkorps " (Border Volun-
teer Corps), which were specially formed to
root out the robbers and make life and pro-
perty safe on the frontier. These did their
duty so effectually that an era of peace and
153
Bosnia and Herzegovina
security dawned for the peasantry, who once
went in fear of their lives.
The " Streifkorps " were disbanded many
years ago, but reorganised in October, 1908,
at the time of our second visit to Bosnia, on
account of the demonstrations in Servia and
Montenegro that followed the annexation, and
the reported formation of marauding bands
in these countries, whose intention was to
cross into Bosnia. The men serving in the
" Streifkorps " are all volunteers from the
regular troops, and it is interesting to note
that so many Turks volunteered for the
service — thirty were serving in one company.
The service appeals to soldiers, who love ad-
venture better than regular routine. The
risks are great, the life arduous, but the pay
good, the common soldiers earning more
than double the ordinary pay. The men
sleep in the open, and never know from
one day to another where they may be ;
naturally the secrecy as to their movements is
one of the secrets of their efficiency. This
alone is certain, that no single spot on the
frontier escapes their vigilance.
To visit the valley of the Sutjeska the
154
The Valley of the Sutjeska
night must be spent at the gendarme station
at Suha, which is so close to the Montenegrin
frontier that, in the rather unsettled state of
affairs at the time of our visit to Foca, we
hesitated a little about making the excursion,
greatly though we desired to see this wonder-
ful ravine. We put it off, therefore, from
day to day, to see if the political horizon
cleared, and by the time the excitement had
died down and we could go the weather had
suddenly turned very cold. It required
almost more courage to face the early start
in the state of the elements, with a whole
day's ride in prospect, and only a possibility
of the sun dispelling the fog later, than the
possibility of being stopped by Montenegrin
bands. We decided to leave the revolver
behind on this occasion, several civilians who
were used to travelling on official duties in
the mountains having told us it was safer to
carry no arms.
A thick fog hung over Foca when the
horses came to the door, and the ground was
white with hoar frost. For the first hour
and a half our way lay along the new road,
which is being made from Foca to Gacko in
155
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Herzegovina (and will be finished, we were
told, in two years' time). Here we might
have trotted the horses and gained time, as
well as got a little warm, but the man who
accompanied them was on foot, so we had to
suit our pace to his, and, as it was chilly work
riding under such circumstances, we walked
too. The mountains were completely hidden
from our view, and all we could see was the
Drina river, whose banks we followed.
About half-past nine, however, our enter-
prise in starting under such adverse condi-
tions was rewarded — the sun was equal to the
faith we had put in him. Within a quarter
of an hour, from the time that he sent his
first gleams through the mist to cheer us, the
whole scene was changed ; the fog lifted and
dispersed in fleecy white clouds which drifted
across the mountains, till peak after peak
came into view, standing out against a deep
blue sky, while their base was still hid in the
river mists.
We had left the new road now, and were
slowly ascending the mountains by a stony
path, so narrow that two horses could scarcely
pass ; far below us the river rushed over its
156
The Valley of the Sutjeska
stony bed, and beyond the mountains rose
again, wooded to their summits, with half the
trees still clad in the golden autumn foliage,
the other half leafless ; yet the interlacing
branches making a feathery mass of delicate
grey hardly less beautiful than foliage.
Signs of human habitation were few and
far between ; only occasionally a heavily laden
pack-horse passed us, with its owner in
picturesque garb walking behind. Nor was
there any sign of wild life, except a few
ravens, birds very common in the Balkan
mountains.
Lovely though the scene was, the keen air
sharpening our appetites brought our minds
to mundane things, and we began to look for-
ward with pleasurable anticipation to a sight
of the halfway house where we were to lunch
and rest our horses. At last we sighted a
white fort crowning a hill that must, we felt
sure, be our goal. But no ! Our guide said
it was deserted, and still we went on. It was
not till five and a half hours after leaving
Foca that he pointed to a " Han " far below
us (the road had been a sort of switchback
ascending and descending by turns all the way)
i^ 157
Bosnia and Herzegovina
as the rest house. The view at this point
was strikingly beautiful : a flock of sheep
grazed on the brow of the hill, tended by two
shepherd lads, and this pretty group made a
charming foreground to the panorama of dis-
tant mountains and tempted us to photograph it.
To reach the " Han " we had to cross the
river by one of the many picturesque if rather
rickety bridges over which the road is carried.
It offered nothing in the way of refreshment
but black coffee, so we were glad to have
brought lunch with us, and picnicked outside
in the sunshine while our guide enjoyed him-
self within. He was evidently anxious, how-
ever, to reach Suha before nightfall, and in
less than half an hour we were again in the
saddle, and none too soon, for the sun went
behind the mountain before we reached the
ravine we had come so far to see.
It was evident that, as it shines for such a
very short time at this season of the year in
this narrow valley, photographing would be
impossible except just before and after noon ;
we therefore decided to stay two nights instead
of one at the gendarmerie station, so as to be
there in the middle of the day. The ravine
158
The Valley of the Sutjeska
commences about an hour and a half before
reaching Suha, and is worthy of its reputation.
It will be the " Via Mala " of Bosnia when the
driving road is finished. The so-called Turkish
" road " by which we went, and which is the
roughest of footpaths, where the horses often
have to climb over boulders and sometimes
go unpleasantly near the edge of a precipice,
is here cut out of the face of the mountain at
a height of three to four hundred feet above
the river bed. Later on it descends so steeply
that riding is impossible. At the point where
a bridge crosses the river the scene is in-
describably wild and grand ; the mountains
rise like walls on either side, their summits
torn into crags and peaks similar to those
we had seen in the defile between Mostar
and Jablanica, and their sides clothed with
virgin forest which hides (so we were told)
the narrow entrances to some side valleys
inaccessible to any but practised mountaineers,
through which the men of the Black
Mountains swooped down to rob and murder,
in the turbulent times of the Sutjeska valley.
We wondered if history would repeat itself in
case the threatened war broke out !
»59
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Suha was reached a little before five, and
we were very thankful to find ourselves in a
scrupulously clean, comfortable room, where a
fire was soon blazing in the stove. The whole
station, indeed, was a model of cleanliness and
order; if it is a fair sample of the gendarmerie
stations in general they deserve the highest
praise ; as also does the system which provides
so well for travellers in out-of-the-way places
where there is no inn.
At the " Fremden Zimmer ' (guest rooms)
attached to the military casino, no provision
is made for meals, but at the gendarmerie
stations food is provided as well as comfort-
able beds, and there is a regular tariff" for
meals, which is hung on the wall, so that
every traveller knows what he has to pay. The
food, naturally, is of the simplest ; but it was a
treat to us to have it served in our own room
instead of in a public one, where the air is
thick with tobacco smoke, as is the case every-
where in Austria at the country inns. After the
disorder and discomfort of the hotel at Foca
the gendarmerie station of Suha was luxury.
I have wandered far and on many a shore,
from the Pacific to the land of the Pyramids
1^
r^3ti^£i^ ■, .
The Valley of the Sutjesha
and the Sphinx and the borders of the far
Soudan, but never has it been my lot to
sleep in a more romantic spot than this
little border fort in the Balkans. Darkness
fell soon after we reached its hospitable walls,
but then the moon rose and flooded the valley
with silver light, and the ravine on which our
windows looked had a weird fascination in the
moonlight ; it would have formed a fitting
background for a scene in Dante's Inferno.
The " Wachtmeister " who commanded the
little garrison of eleven gendarmes (strength-
ened at the time of our visit by the addition
of three soldiers from the regular troops on
account of the unrest on the border) came to
our room by our invitation after supper, and
from him we learnt much that was interesting
of life on the frontier. We were surprised
that there is no telephone between the different
posts, the only communication being by the
patrols which meet halfway. The men's duties
are most various, for the peasants seem to
come to them in all sorts of difficulties ; they
have alike to give assistance in illness when a
doctor is far away, and to hunt down wolves
or bears that have carried off the peasants'
i6i
Bosnia and Herzegovina
sheep or goats. A not unimportant part of
their work is to get in touch with the people
and hear of any complaints or dissatisfaction
which may be discussed at the wayside coffee-
houses. As they always go about in twos, there
is no opportunity for a single man to abuse
his somewhat privileged position towards the
peasants, and doubtless also the regulation of
their working in couples is for reasons of
safety.
We learnt from the Wachtmeister that,
though we had seen so little wild life on our
way, chamois and wild boars are plentiful
around Suha, and the former particularly tame,
as they have sanctuary in this district. The
Government has set a price of Kr. 20 on the
head of every bear and wolf killed in Bosnia,
and our informant told us he had himself
earned Kr. 40 in one day by killing two large
bears (besides the value of their skins) when
a peasant sent for assistance to protect his
sheep, several of which had been devoured.
This reminded me that I had heard of a tax
on sheep and goats which weighed heavily on
the peasants, and I inquired as to the amount,
and learnt that ten heller (one penny) a year is
162
The Valley of the Sutjeska
collected on sheep and fifty heller (rather less
that sixpence) on the latter ! The value of a
sheep in Bosnia varies from Kronen I2 (ten
shillings) to Kronen 20.
The sun shone in a cloudless sky next morn-
ing, but it was so cold in the shade in which
the valley lay that we did not venture out very
early ; when we did, our first business was to
inspect our fortified dwelling, which we had
not paid much attention to when we arrived
tired the previous night. Heavy iron doors
closed the only entrance to the little courtyard,
beyond which lay the house door ; the wall of
this courtyard, as well as the walls of the
house all round, were pierced with loopholes
for guns. Yet we did not think the place
could have resisted a prolonged attack. In
case of trouble, no doubt the two cows be-
longing to the establishment, together with
the turkeys and cocks and hens, would be
placed in safety inside the courtyard. In spite
of its warlike aspect, however, the gendarmerie
station of Suha is a most pleasant place, stand-
ing in a garden with a summer-house that
must be delightful in warm weather ; the men
have also fenced about a little park and planted
163
Bosnia and Herzegovina
it with trees and placed a seat at the finest
point of view. The only other building near
the station is a Turkish " han," where our
man put up with his horses.
We walked to the end of the ravine on the
Gacko side, and much wished to proceed as
far as Cemerno at the summit of the pass, but
had we done so should not have had time for
photographing. The fortified barracks on the
Cemerno pass are at a greater elevation (4000
feet) than any other garrison in the Austrian
Empire, and the pass is the watershed between
the Adriatic and the Black Sea. Were I to visit
the Sutjeska ravine again, I would proceed into
Herzegovina over the pass (three hours from
Suha to Cemerno and another three to four to
Gacko) instead of returning to Foca ; but we
had made our arrangements and had to abide
by them.
We looked in vain for traces of the two
castles, said to have guarded the entrance to
the ravine, on this side in the Middle Ages,
and which, tradition says, were joined together
in the legendary Duke Stefan's time by a
hanging bridge ; but there seems no need of
castles, for Nature herself has provided senti-
164
The Valley of the Sutjesha
nels to keep eternal watch and ward in two
immense pyramidical rocks, which rise to right
and left of the foaming torrent of the Sut-
jeska.
The whole valley lay glowing in the mid-
day sun when we retraced our steps to Suha,
and so beautiful were the views at every point
along the way, and especially when we crossed
the river by one of the numerous wooden
Turkish bridges, that our progress was very
slow. The clear green water flowed between
banks fringed with russet beeches and feathery
golden willows ; high above, dark fir forest
clothed the mountain sides, and here and there
some ancient fir tree had gained a foothold in
the rock on a dizzy peak and was silhouetted
against the blue sky.
Next day we bid " good-bye " to Suha !
There was a delay in starting, caused by our
man trying to make us pay for the horses'
fodder, though he had agreed to include it in
the price per day (a much higher one, by the
way, than the natives pay) ; it was rather
annoying, as we had risen early to try and
reach Foca before dark ; but we refused to be
cheated, and he had to keep to his bargain,
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
though he did it with an ill grace and sulked
all the day, walking far in advance of or behind
the horses, so that he would have been no
possible use in case of need. Alas for poor
humanity, how such a trifling incident has
power to mar one's mood ! But after a little
while the lovely scenery claimed all our atten-
tion, and by the time we reached the han,
where the man insisted on stopping to rest
and feed the horses, though we had done but
two and a half hours out of nine, we were in-
different to his sour visage.
I overcame my scruples about the doubtful
cleanliness of " bans " in general sufficiently
to enter this one and partake of some black
coffee ; for the Bosian " coffee-house " is so
essentially an institution of the country, curi-
osity compelled me for once to see the interior
with my own eyes. It was a small room with
an open fire, on which the coffee was boiled in
little brass pots — one for each person — and
another tall earthenware stove of the type pe-
culiar to Bosnia, round which some peasants
squatted. We were invited to sit on a broad
wooden shelf covered with a mat, which did
duty for a bed for several persons by night
i66
The Valley of the Sutjeska
and for a divan by day. Two gendarmes from
Bastaci sat by the fire, with whom we were
able to converse in German, and they told us
such accommodation as the " han " offered
was free, the " Open Sesame " to bed (such as
it was) and fire being the purchase of a cup of
black coffee at a cost of five hellers (one half-
penny). Assuredly travelling is cheap in
Bosnia if you can fall in with the ways of the
country ! The gendarmes thought the " bed "
would hold at least four people lying head to
feet — bedclothes, needless to say, were not
provided. It passed my understanding, how-
ever, how the " han " keeper could earn a
living by the sale of halfpenny cups of coffee.
He was a genial soul, and I liked his name of
Omar, which brought the Rubaiyat of the
Persian poet to my mind for the second time
that day ; for when I saw our lunch of a loaf
of rye bread and a flask of red wine being put
up, I mentally quoted :
" A loaf of bread, a flask of wine — and thou
Beside me singing in the wilderness —
Oh, wilderness were Paradise enow ! "
The East is still the East of Omar Khayyam
167
Bosnia and Herzegovina
— and Bosnia, though now politically Europe,
is the Orient of the Prophet.
What a wonderful blue the mountains were
on our homeward way ! Neither in Switzer-
land nor Tyrol have I seen this colouring.
We walked during the afternoon the better to
enjoy the scenery, and we walked after sunset
because our feet and hands became stiff with
cold riding.
Foca was bathed in moonlight when we
came to it, and its white minarets gleamed out
against a starlit sky — the way par excellence to
see a Turkish city is by moonlight !
i68
XIV— TO THE S^NDJ^K
THE Sandjak of Novi Bazar was being
evacuated ! Could we still get there
before the troops left and witness
the exodus ! Reports (even official
reports) were conflicting — the air was full of
rumours. The morning paper spoke of the
uneasiness of the Albanians in the Sandjak as
to their fate after the evacuation. In Sarajevo
nothing was happening ; indeed, the whole town
wore a holiday air, though business went on
as usual ; even the proclamation on the walls
attracted little attention ; but everyone waited
for news from the frontier, and to the frontier
we went, trusting to our luck.
It was a superb morning, and as we waited
for the train at the station of Bistrik, above
Sarajevo, the beautiful city, with its multitude
of minarets, lay beneath us basking in the
sun's rays. Never had the city, which has
been likened to Damascus for beauty of situa-
tion, looked fairer, for the mountains which
169
Bosnia and Herzegovina
encircle it, as if they loved it, were in glorious
apparel of russet and gold, decked like the
beflagged city for a festival.
The train was very late, but who could
grumble with such a view to look at ? At last
it came, no passengers in the first or second
class but a few officers ; civilians were not
going towards the frontier.
We watched the beautiful city till the first
tunnel hid it from our gaze, and we found
ourselves in a mountain canon where the grey
walls of rock on either side were enlivened
by vivid splashes of crimson foliage ! What
a railway is this that pierces the heart of the
wild Balkan mountains ! At one moment you
are plunged into the darkness of one of the
countless tunnels, the next you are enchanted
by the beauty of some pastoral scene forming
a background for a picturesque group of pea-
sants ; then again you find yourself hanging
on the edge of a precipice with a mountain
torrent thundering below and the cliffs rising
in fantastic forms high above you.
But to-day the railway had another interest
than its scenic beauty. At the first station
the blue uniforms of the soldiers were con-
170
t',\\l>/Ak Ni'\l I'.A/AK)
To the Sandjak
splcuous ; the whole line from Sarajevo to the
Turkish and Servian frontiers was guarded by
military and patrolled night and day between
the stations. No wonder ! For was not the
great bridge across the Save river tampered
with a few days ago by cunning hands which
all but caused catastrophe to the one express
train which connects faraway Bosnia with
Budapest and Vienna ? We little thought of
the reason when we crossed it so slowly ! The
soldiers made a rush for our train which brought
their rations. Poor fellows ! brought from
their peasant homes perhaps in a few days to
be shot at !
We reached Ustipraca without any disquiet-
ing incident, but in a chat with the station-
master, while waiting for a carriage, he re-
marked that the people here were living on a
volcano 1
Darkness falls early in October in the
Balkans, but the moon was kind to us, and
rose like a great golden ball to light our way,
which lay along the bank of the rushing Drina
river. Like all Bosnian post roads, that which
connects Gorazda with the railway at Usti-
praca is excellent, and we had a comfortable
171
Bosnia and Herzegovina
carriage, drawn by two stout Bosnian ponies,
and a picturesque driver who wore a scarlet fez
and was seated on a sheepskin. So we came
to Gorazda and eagerly asked for news from
the Sandjak. Could we get in ?
The officers of this little garrison town
said " No." We were told the military post
was stopped. Afterwards we learnt it was
again running, but were warned that we ran a
grave risk in proceeding, for guerrilla bands
might be about. It was pointed out that we
ourselves might be the means of war if we
were attacked. All the women and children,
twenty-five officers' wives and their families
had left some days before, and the sick soldiers
had been sent into safety ; no civilian was left
in the Sandjak, and yet an Englishwoman
would go there ! They did not say so, those
courteous, kindly officers, but they thought us
mad, I'm sure ; madness of this sort, however,
is characteristic of our nation.
We went to bed, almost resolved to give up
our plan and content ourselves with visiting
Metalka on the border of the debatable land
— at all events, we promised our military
friends to ask the advice of the commander
172
To the Sandjak
of the garrison at Cajnica before proceeding
further. The news next morning was not
reassuring ; orders arrived for strengthening
all the garrisons, and we privately learned
that there was graver news still. But, at all
events, we could get as far as Cajnica ! It
was Sunday, and we could not send an im-
portant telegram before three o'clock, so it
was late in the afternoon before we could
start on our three to four hours' drive.
The people we passed on the outskirts of
the town did not return our greetings, which
seemed suspicious, as we remembered their
friendliness on our previous visit to Bosnia.
After we left the town behind this changed,
however ; the country people were smiling as
of old, and stood up to salute us if sitting
outside their houses — the quaint, whitewashed
houses with high wooden roofs that are so
very picturesque and very Bosnian. We
passed a Turkish graveyard with turbaned
gravestones on our left, and a little farther
on another graveyard where the sign of the
cross showed the faith of those who slept
beneath. The Cross and the Crescent side
by side, typical of this borderland where the
M 173
Bosnia and Herzegovina
East meets the West and Moslem and Chris-
tian are neighbours.
The broad white road along which we
travelled ran sometimes between meadows
parched by the sun of the Orient, at others
the woods hemmed us in on either side.
An hour or so after leaving Gorazda we began
to ascend through a wooded mountain gorge,
and as we rose higher and higher we saw the
way by which we came — lying half in shadow,
the other half glowing in the afternoon sun —
winding like a white ribbon through the
valley far beneath. The setting sun shining
through the yellowing leaves of the chestnut
trees turned them to shining gold, silhouetted
against the dark blue of the distant moun-
tains. At the highest point of the road we
reached a primitive wayside inn, where we
stopped to water the horses and chatted to
the innkeeper (who came from Bohemia) in
the hope of getting the latest news from
the Sandjak ; but he knew no more than
we did.
Dusk and then darkness fell long before we
reached Cajnica, and although we knew the
road was patrolled by troops, none were visible ;
174
To the Sandjak
so in the disturbed state of the country we
were not altogether sorry to see the first lights
of the town in the distance. The minarets
were illuminated for the feast of Bairam, and
made a lovely picture against the clear, starlit
sky. Our carriage drew up beneath a spread-
ing tree before a long, low building which,
even in the darkness, we knew must be the
barracks from the number of soldiers out-
side, and we inquired for the commander,
Captain , to whom we had brought a
letter from our military friends at Gorazda.
The captain was not at the barracks, and two
soldiers with fixed bayonets were given us as
an escort to go and find him.
" Was an armed escort necessary } " we
asked in surprise. The non-commissioned
officer said " Yes." The captain was not to
be found, so we returned to the barracks and
interviewed a youthful lieutenant, our first
question being, of course : " Can we get into
the Sandjak.'"' With boyish confidence he
told us the road was as safe as any street in
Vienna, being patrolled night and day by the
military ! Just then the captain (a handsome
Servian, who is a blood relation of the murdered
175
Bosnia and Herzegovina
King Alexander) arrived upon the scene and
gave us a very different version ; he had
private information by telephone, which of
course he could not reveal, but which made
it inadvisable for us to proceed — he would
not be answerable for our safety ! The nice
young lieutenant, with the pink and white
face, quite nonplussed at the turn things had
taken, saluted and walked away.
Quarters were found for us in the military
Casino, for in the little garrison towns of
Bosnia and Herzegovina it is customary to
keep a guest room for visitors. While this
was got ready we took supper at the inn in a
smoky room which seemed to be the rendez-
vous of townspeople and officers alike. Here
our picturesque captain joined us and repeated
his advice, but the " Bezirksvorsteher " (civil
head of the district) who arrived shortly after-
wards was more optimistic and sympathetic
with our desire not to lose such an interesting
experience as to be the last civilians to visit
Plevlje before the evacuation and its return to
Turkish rule. All the officers present were
introduced to us and all gave their opinion,
and, as no two thought the same, we were no
176
To the Sandjak
wiser, and went to bed once more irresolute
as to the morrow.
Everything possible was done for our com-
fort in our military quarters, and we were
grateful to find a wood fire burning cheerily
in the stove, for the autumn nights are cold
in Bosnia, though the sun is hot at midday.
Our windows looked upon a Turkish grave-
yard — a most romantic scene in the moonlight ;
the turbaned graves were just beneath and
beyond, a white mosque stood out against the
mountains with its minaret illuminated for
the feast of Bairam. The " Bezirksvorsteher,"
who lived in the same house, warned us that
our sleep might be disturbed by the Turks'
midnight prayer, and bid us not to take it for
an alarm, but so tired were we that we heard
not a sound till morning, when I was awakened
by the door opening and a soldier appearing on
the threshold. He gave me quite a fright till
I remembered that we had given orders to be
called at half-past six and realised his pacific
intention of lighting our fire and brushing our
clothes. Communication was difficult, as he
spoke only Hungarian, and signs failed to
convey to him that hot water was wanted for
177
Bosnia and Herzegovina
shaving, but here my spirit-lamp came to the
rescue, and " kaffee " (coffee) and " brod "
(bread) were within his vocabulary, so that he
brought us both, and we neither had to resort
to the not too appetising hotel nor start break-
fastless.
Next morning the military post for the
Sandjak arrived quite empty (we had been
told it was questionable if we could get
seats, and to travel by private carriage without
escort would be more risky), and the tempta-
tion to go on was irresistible. So the die
was cast, and we engaged places for the thirty
miles to Plevlje.
Our spirits rose and danger was forgotten
when we found ourselves really off, or if
remembered it lent only a spice of adventure,
for the morning was one of those peculiar to
autumn in the mountains when it is a joy
merely to be alive. The road led upwards
through thick fir forests varied by the russet
and gold of beeches. The scenery might
have been anywhere in Switzerland or Tyrol
but for the Oriental looking garb of the occa-
sional peasants whom we passed, some on
foot and some riding sturdy Bosnian ponies.
178
^
^') ^
•V
f
To the Sandjak
The military patrols were so frequent we
ceased to count them ; at some points they
were every half mile or so, and at others
double or treble that distance, but as we neared
Metalka there were sentries every few yards.
This little mountain station, which consists
of a group of wooden houses surrounding the
fortified barracks, will henceforth be the
farthest outpost of the Austrian Empire on
the Turkish frontier. There is a Turkish
watch-house on the hill opposite the Austrian,
and a short walk brings you within sight of
the Black Mountains of Montenegro.
The officers of the garrison came out to
meet us, for news of our coming had been
telephoned by the military authorities at
Cajnica ; they made light of possible danger,
as is often the case with those actually on the
spot.
In ten minutes we were off again, and
found ourselves actually in the Sandjak, that
unquiet bit of Turkish Empire of which we
had heard so much long before the political
crisis gave it European importance. On the
Turkish side of Metalka the military patrols
were less frequent and the country grew wilder.
179
Bosnia and Herzegovina
We still ascended, leaving the fir forest behind
and crossing desolate mountain passes. A few
cattle and sheep were trying to pick up a
living on scanty herbage ; some peasants were
reaping the meagre crops grown on stony
ground, for harvest is late in these high alti-
tudes. Some were threshing, driving horses
round the threshing floor to tread out the
corn in primitive patriarchal fashion.
The loneliness of the scene had a strange
fascination, and away to our right, chain upon
chain, rose the Montenegrin mountains, re-
calling to our minds, very forcibly under
existing circumstances, grim tales of the war-
like prowess of the fierce mountaineers.
The keen air sharpened our appetites, and
an invitation to lunch, or rather dine (for
mid-day dinner is de rigueur in Austria) with
the officers at Boljanic was gladly accepted.
Here all was life and movement, for the first
luggage train had returned empty, and another
was going out laden, some fifteen carts in
each.
The road was all through the Karst after
leaving Boljanic, but even the Karst was beau-
tiful in the mellow sunshine of the autumn
1 80
To the Sandjak
afternoon, the bare brown hills aglow against
the hazy blue of distant mountains. Gradually,
as we descended, patches of wood became fre-
quent ; below us a little mountain stream
watered the valley, and a few sheep enjoyed
the fresh green grass along its banks. Two
veiled Turkish women passed us on horseback,
and then a venerable looking orthodox priest,
with long white beard and high black cap —
picturesque figures belonging to another world
than ours, but not so picturesque as the Ser-
vian peasant women, clad in white and crim-
son-embroidered jackets, who delighted us as
we approached Plevlje.
The white town, with its minarets, shone
out long before we reached it, and signs of the
evacuation were not wanting before we entered.
Bugles were sounding, soldiers hastening here
and there, and another long train of carts
laden with every imaginable kind of luggage
stood ready to start.
i8i
XF—IN PLEVLJE
jA N adjutant sent by the general met us
/ ^ with the news that there was not a
/ ^L room in the town — not a furnished
room, at least, for beds and bedding
were packed, except those reserved for the
officers of other garrisons, who were coming
in with the troops on the morrow.
We might find quarters in the Turkish
town ! But ! and the adjutant shook his
head ! We replied that we would prefer to
sleep on the floor in barracks ; for in the
Turkish quarters cleanliness was not to be
expected, and safety was questionable in the
excited state of the people, all the troops
being withdrawn from the town. Even the
consuls had moved into military quarters !
Yet somewhere we must find a roof to
cover our heads ; so after passing our luggage,
consisting of one bag and two cameras,
through the Turkish customs (where the
officials were very courteous), we set off to
182
In Plevlje
see some private houses where rooms might
possibly be found, guided by a soldier told
off to carry our baggage.
But even in the Turkish town it was the
same story — every European was on the point
of departure ; those who had formerly kept
lodging-houses were no longer prepared for
guests.
Happily just then, when we were contem-
plating a night in the open, we met the two
Austrian consuls (one suffices for Plevlje in
ordinary times, but for this crisis another had
been sent from Constantinople), and with the
invariable courtesy of officials of the Austro-
Hungarian Empire they placed one of their
own rooms at our disposal.
It mattered nothing that it was dismantled,
the floors bare, the beds of a military hard-
ness. It was clean and it was safe, for we
were in the house where rooms are set apart
for the officers' guests, and known as the
" Fremdenzimmcr."
Having found this anchorage, we proceeded
to make tea, with the youngest of the two
consuls, Count Drascovich, as our guest ; and
I believe this is the only time in my life that
183
Bosnia and Herzegovina
I have entertained a distinguished visitor in
such unconventional fashion, for one of our two
teacups was broken on the journey, and the
men had to drink out of tumblers, while our
seats were the beds and a packing-case the
table. There over the tea "cups" we dis-
cussed the political situation, and wandered
from this to talk of Vienna and London,
which the Count had recently visited. He
was, by the way, the only person in Plevlje
who spoke English.
The other consul then took us in tow, and
with him we went to call on General von
Rhemen, who gave us a cordial welcome, and
expressed his regret that he was not able to
do more for our comfort under the circum-
stances.
Supper at the military casino was an interest-
ing experience ; from eighty to a hundred
officers who were seated when we entered
rose, and remaining standing while we made
our way to seats opposite the general at the
central table. On this occasion, I must con-
fess, I found Austrian courtesy a little over-
powering ; it was quite an ordeal to walk
down the long room and bow right and left
In Plevlje
as I made my progress, and as this was re-
peated twice a day during the day we spent
at Plevlje, I had recourse to stratagem to
escape so much publicity — sometimes coming
early to get seated before many officers were
there, and sometimes waiting to enter with
the general, so that when they rose to
salute him they might include me too. The
Austrian officers have no " mess," as it is
understood in the English army ; the midday
dinner is a table d'hote, and supper is served
a la carte, everyone ordering what he chooses,
and paying at the end of the meal as at a
restaurant. The charges are extremely moder-
ate, and at Plevlje the food, though plain,
was of excellent quality. In the dining-hall
there were several tables ; the consuls as well
as the officers of highest rank sat at the
general's table, the former opposite and the
latter on either side of him. My seat opposite
the general afforded me particular satisfaction,
on account of the opportunity of hearing the
situation discussed by the staff officers when
telegrams arrived, as they frequently did
during meals. It was an interesting study
to watch the general's face when he received
i8s
Bosnia and Herzegovina
them, and try to guess their import. The
most exciting incident occurred a few days
after our arrival, when the news was brought
during supper that the Turkish barracks were
on fire. Everyone in the room (excepting the
general, his adjutant, and ourselves) rushed
out on to the terrace which overlooks the
town, from which the fire was distinctly
visible. For a few minutes, I am sure, the
thought was in all minds that this might be
the signal for a general conflagration ; but very
soon we learnt that the fire, which had been
in the stables only, was already out ; whether
it was incendiary or not we never learned.
The Austrian officers at Plevlje had a little
world of their own outside the Turkish town
— an European world girt about by gardens
made with infinite labour by the soldiers who
had brought soil from a distance, and so
turned the bare rock into shady plantations.
In the casino concerts were given daily, and
every afternoon the tennis courts were a centre
of life and gaiety, when the band played on
the terrace.
The bells of the little Catholic church rang
daily for matins and evensong, just before the
1 86
In Plevlje
muezzins call to prayer — Christian bells in a
Moslem land have a strange power to stir the
emotions of even the careless Christian. To-
day they ring in Plevlje no more !
On the evening of our arrival, the two
consuls escorted us to the Turkish barracks
to call on the commander and officers of
the garrison ; the former spoke a little
German, and the consuls translated our re-
marks to the other officers who were present.
The room in which they received us was very
bare, being furnished only with divans on
three sides ; we sat on one side, the Turks
opposite, and of course we drank the in-
evitable black coffee, and everyone smoked
but myself.
The ostensible reason of our call was merely
the polite observance of a social custom, for
during the feast of Bairam good Moham-
medans, who have fasted all day, devote the
night to feasting and exchanging social calls.
But the real reason of our visit, or rather that
of the consuls (for ours was prompted by
curiosity to see Turkish military quarters),
was to ascertain the truth of a rumour that
the populace of Priboj had set fire to the
i87
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Austrian garrison after the troops left. The
Turkish commander had heard nothing of it,
but immediately telegraphed to find out ; we
did not, however, hear the answer till the
following day, when the alarmist rumour —
like many another in those days — proved to
be without foundation.
Our hosts ordered the military band to
play some Turkish music for our entertain-
ment, and we afterwards went downstairs and
saw the musicians, who were all seated on low
divans in Oriental fashion. The tunes they
played were melancholy rather than martial,
and had a weirdness truly Eastern ; the music
had the curious effect of bringing the Nile
scenery, where I last heard such strains,
vividly before me.
Next morning a Turkish gendarme was
awaiting our orders, courteously sent to act
as our escort by our host of the previous
night ; the consul had lent us his dragoman
to act as interpreter, and the latter had
engaged a native to carry the heaviest of the
two cameras. So we set out to see the town
on photographic thoughts intent, and doubt-
less with such a retinue appeared in the eyes
i88
LAXUSCATK NEAR I'LEXLJl!., Willi i iK 1 1 li il)( )X .MU.NASIEKV IN Uli.rA.\Ct:
In Plevlje
of Plevlje as distinguished strangers of no
small importance. Very soon, however, we
dropped all this state and ceremony, for the
dragoman we found to be superfluous, the
gendarme speaking sufficient German to under-
stand what we wished him to convey to the
natives (chiefly requests to allow us to photo-
graph them, and not to stand at attention
during the process), and being also quite
ready to carry the camera. The third day of
our stay, when he did not appear, we ven-
tured alone to the Servian monastery, some
distance outside the town, and found the
country people so friendly we had no more
fear of unpleasant incidents, and thenceforward
went alone on all occasions.
Plevlje is a town of 9000 inhabitants, with
a population half Servian, half Turkish, among
the latter being some Bosnian emigrants, who
left their country at the time of the Austrian
occupation, and have their own quarter.
Seen from the east, looking towards Monte-
negro, the town is very beautiful. Seven
white minarets rise from among the red and
brown roofs of the houses, and are con-
spicuous from the distance. Not less charm-
N 189
Bosnia and Herzegovina
ing, though less extensive because the moun-
tains on the opposite side are nearer, is the
view of the town from the terrace of the
military casino, framed in by the trees of
the surrounding plantations. On close ap-
proach the town offers nothing of architectural
interest, though there are some picturesque
bits. But the people are the real interest of
Plevlje, and we saw them out in crowds the
day after our arrival to welcome the new
Governor, who had come from Salonica to
succeed Suljman Pasha (the old Turkish
Governor, who had ruled over the destinies
of the Sandjak during the whole time of the
Dual Control). Both men and women are
often remarkably handsome, and there is con-
siderable variety in the costumes, for, besides
Turks and Servians, Albanians are not in-
frequently seen in the streets of Plevlje. The
dress worn by the Servian women here, of
creamy woollen stuff made with a short kilt
below the waist, edged with embroidery and
worn over an underskirt, is quite different to
that of Bosnia, and pleased me greatly. The
very first photograph we took in the Sandjak
was of a good-looking young woman in this
190
A r.ri- i)i- I'l, i:\LiR
In Plevlje
picturesque attire standing beneath what the
Turks call the Sacred Tree, though another
story has it that the first Austrians who entered
Plevlje were hung on it in 1878.
We had been warned to expect unfriendli-
ness, if not hostility from the people, and
especially that in their present frame of mind
it might be dangerous to try photographing
them. But our experience was quite contrary
to this ; none objected, many purposely stood
still or deliberately posed to assist us, and
some even asked us to take their pictures.
The Turkish troops also were very pleased
to be photographed at the review on the
arrival of the new Pasha, who, by the way,
made a very good impression on us. He is
one of the " Young Turks," and had been a
staff officer at Salonica previous to his appoint-
ment as Governor of the Sandjak.
He will need to be a strong man to keep
order in the Sandjak, for, even with the sup-
port of the Austrians, his predecessor, Suljman
Pasha, was sometimes afraid to punish crime.
I was told some tales of the latter, on good
authority, which showed criminal weakness.
My informant stated that about two years
191
Bosnia and Herzegovina
ago a young Turk was taken prisoner in the
mountains by fanatical orthodox Christians,
who tried to force him to kiss the cross ; on
his refusal they cut off his nose and ears,
afterwards imprisoning him, and finally — as
he remained obdurate — they killed him, and
the murderers went scot free.
Another story illustrative of Suljman rule
related to a young Montenegrin girl, who
loved and was beloved by a Turkish soldier,
and left her home to join him, but was over-
taken by her parents before she reached
Plevlje, cruelly beaten, and forced to return
with them. She ran away, however, a second
time, and reached the Turkish barracks,
where she begged to become a Moslem and
marry the man of her choice. The Turkish
priests were willing to receive her as a con-
vert to Islam, but not so the Suljman Pasha,
who saw an opportunity of winning popularity
for himself with the orthodox population ;
so he sent the poor girl back with an escort of
zeptiahs, and the story ends with her death,
whether from a broken heart or ill-usage I
cannot say ! Yet this was the charming
cultured man whom all travellers who met
192
In Plevlje
him united in praising, and many Austrian
officers told me was a delightful person socially
— a typical Turk of the old school ; vastly
different to his equals and to the people he
ruled.
"Are the people glad the Austrians are
going ? " I asked our zeptiah (Turkish gen-
darme) one day. He had grasped the fact
that we were English and not Austrians, so
he gave a candid answer : " Half the people
work for Austrians ; when they go, no
money ! " This expressed the situation.
Property at Plevlje depreciated in value
immediately the order came for evacuation.
Natives who made money during the Austrian
regime, and invested it in houses of European
build which they let to the officers, have them
now standing empty ; for the Turk rents no
house. He lives in his own, though it be but
a hovel. Shopkeepers have no one to buy
their wares, and workmen who have lived on
Austrian pay for more than a generation no
one to work for ! And this is the case
wherever there were Austrian garrisons.
The army of occupation in the Sandjak
Novi Bazar consisted of 2000 men ; two
193
Bosnia and Herzegomna
battalions were stationed at Plevlje, one batta-
lion lay at Prjepolje, a company and half a
company each at Metalka, Boljanic, and Jabuka
(the half-way station between Plevlje and
Prjepolje). The work done by the Austrian
troops is certainly very creditable, for they
have made good roads across the country
where formerly there were but rough forest
and mountain tracks often blocked by fallen
trees. They have planted trees and gardens
where there was nothing but bare rocks, and
the interest the officers and men took in their
gardens is the more remarkable when you
think how short a time they were likely to
enjoy them, owing to the frequent changes of
the regiments, and therefore laboured for the
most part for those who would come after.
The garrisons of Pribov and Prjepolje were
withdrawn and the whole forces concentrated
at Plevlje when we were there, and we wit-
nessed the march-in of the company from
Prjepolje (not a few dogs, among them some
lovely collies, were marching with the soldiers).
A colossal work, indeed, is the evacuation
of an army which has occupied a country for
thirty years ! Nothing like what we witnessed
194
In Plevlje
has been seen in Europe for a generation, if
ever, save in time of war !
One of the most curious sights was the
destruction of the old uniforms — the whole
army had been given new ones for the march.
The old ones could not be left, or the whole
population of Plevlje would be clad very
shortly in the Austrian uniform, and one can
imagine the confusion that might occur if
the populace so garbed rose and crossed the
Bosnian frontier ! Moreover, military regula-
tions strictly enjoined that each uniform given
to the flames should be accounted for, so a
squad of soldiers was at work cutting a small
piece from each garment as evidence of its
destruction.
Everywhere in the streets of the Turkish
town was furniture from the officers' houses or
the casino. We saw a billiard table sold for a
few pounds because it was too heavy to carry
away, and yet one convoy after another went
out laden day by day.
More than once during our visit to Plevlje
we found our way to the old Servian monas-
tery, half an hour's walk from the town, which
nestles in an idyllic little wooded valley in the
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hills. Living as we were in military quarters,
where all was excitement and the air full of
war's alarms, it was a pleasant change to seek
this restful spot, with its old-world atmo-
sphere.
The monastery dates from the thirteenth
century, and is picturesquely built round a
great central courtyard, with a tiled roof faded
by wind and weather to the shades of autumn
leaves ; a wooden gallery supported on arches
runs all round the building, and is reached by
an outside staircase. In the centre of the
courtyard is a little whitewashed church worth
visiting, for the interior walls are covered by
curious paintings dark with age, and per-
mission can be obtained to see a very ancient
bishop's staff and silver-bound copies of the
Gospels. Alas ! the priest who showed them
to us one day spoke only Servian, or we
might have obtained some interesting informa-
tion about the monastery and its inmates.
We went for two days to the Sandjak and
remained nine, as the chaplain and many of the
officers begged us (when we were fixing the
day of departure) to remain over the follow-
ing Sunday for the last mass at the Catholic
196
In Plevlje
church before its destruction, and the services
on the following day in the military church-
yard, and we consented.
It is hard to say which ceremony was the
most impressive and most touching ! I felt
something like personal grief for the little
church whose fate was sealed — it was sad to
hear the bells ring for the last time. Many
churches are built but, thank God, few de-
stroyed ! Yet it were better for those who
loved it to reverently lay it low than to leave
it to possible — nay, probable — desecration.
It was a glorious autumn morning on which
the last mass was celebrated within its walls ;
the sun gleamed on the white robes of the
priest as he read the gospels for the day on
the steps before the entrance, on the golden
foliage of the acacia groves that surrounded
the church, and on the brilliant uniforms of
the officers and the shining arms of the two
thousand troops assembled for the last act of
worship in and around the sacred building.
There was but little sunshine for the Re-
quiem Mass, and perhaps it was more fitting
that Nature's mood should be in keeping with
that of the soldiers, who were leaving com-
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rades or loved ones behind. An altar was
erected in the centre of the churchyard (which
is on the bare hillside), and candles, lit by
loving hands, burnt upon all the graves.
Before the altar bareheaded, with bowed heads,
stood the general and his staff, and beside it
a little group of men, women, and children,
whose black garments showed recent bereave-
ment. The bands played funeral dirges —
solemn, soft, and low, and many eyes were
dim. This is how the Austrians bade farewell
to their dead !
By remaining for these two ceremonies we
had lost the chance of seats in the post, for it
was taken by the military for the removal of
the sick from the hospital, so we had to engage
a private carriage and take our chances of
travelling without escort. It was not without
difficulty that we secured a carriage at all, and
we did not feel quite comfortable about the
forty miles' drive over the mountains in the
unsettled state of the country ; there was,
however, no choice of routes or means, and
every day increased the difficulties of getting
away, for the few tradespeople left in the
town, who had stayed to the last to pack their
198
In Plevlje
goods, were securing every available vehicle
in their haste to place themselves and their
wares in safety before the troops left. So, in
spite of tales told us by the officers of carriages
being days on the way and drivers stopping
half-way to demand extra money, we ordered
our conveyance for an early hour the following
morning.
We were not to travel alone, for a half-
grown grey kitten, who had been the soldiers'
pet at the " Fremdenzimmer " and attached
herself to me since my arrival, would be left
to starve, I knew, when the army had its final
marching orders, so I decided to take her
with me.
We stayed late at the casino that night, for
there were many " good-byes " to be said, and
though we had lived among the Austrian
officers for but little over a week, the circum-
stances had brought us into more intimate
relations with them than a month would have
done elsewhere. There is no term in the
English language that quite expresses the
social atmosphere of an Austrian military
casino ; among these officers there was a cor-
diality, a geniality, a good-fellowship that is
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
summed up in the German word so often used
to describe the social life of Vienna and equally-
fitting here — " Gemiithlichkeit."
It was with real regret we shook half a
hundred kindly hands, and with a cordial hope
to meet, some of them at least, again that we
said " Auf Wiedersehen."
200
XVI— THE RETURN FROM THE
SANDJAK
THE day of our adventurous journey
dawned darkly. Heavy snow-clouds
hung over the mountains — the
prospect was not reassuring. The
orderly came and lit our fire at a quarter to
six, for we meant to start warm at least,
though probably no amount of wraps would
keep out the cold on the bleak mountain
passes that lay between us and Cajnica. We
had ordered the carriage for seven, that being
the latest hour at which our Kurd driver was
willing to start, for he evidently feared to be
benighted before reaching our destination.
But somehow it was nearly eight before we
got off, what with dressing and packing and
making tea, for we had to wait for the milk,
which our orderly fetched daily from the
military casino where, for some reason we
never could understand, as everything is astir
very early in camp, they always kept him
waiting.
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
We could have done without milk, but not
so our adopted kitty, who was watching our
preparations with anxious eyes. At least I
wanted her to start with a good breakfast, but
after all she refused it, seeming to know some
crisis in her kittenish life had arrived, and
being too concerned thereat to have any
appetite.
My heart misgave me when I thought of
her terror when she found herself imprisoned
in a basket and jolted all day in the darkness
towards an unknown destination ; but I had to
be cruel to be kind, so I remorselessly bundled
her in, in spite of her protests, and carried
her down to the carriage, turning a deaf
ear to her pathetic mews, which presently
grew to loud " miows " when we started ;
but after a while she resigned herself to her
fate and forgot her sorrows in slumber.
A few last handshakes and " Good-byes,"
and we were really off! Up the hill between
the groves of acacia trees that are all round
and about the Austrian quarter, what a changed
scene from the day of our arrival, when all
had been bustle and confusion ! Now every-
thing cleared away — the thousands of wooden
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The Return from the Sandjak
packing-cases that were then strewn about
already on their way to Bosnia, the soldiers
no longer busy packing as if their lives de-
pended on the speed with which they did it,
but standing about in their new uniforms
ready for the march towards home.
I have said we were really off, but before
we were out of the town our poor little horses
came to a full stop and refused to take the
hill. It seemed a bad beginning, when we
thought of the thirty-three miles before them,
and the steep ascent to Metalka. Visions of
having to sleep on the road or in some doubt-
fully friendly peasant's hut came before us.
Would that we had taken the post ! But the
driver's whip prevailed, though it made our
hearts bleed for the overworked, half-starved
horses ; they described a complete circuit,
nearly overturning the carriage, but to our
relief they went on, for well we knew the
chance of getting another carriage was more
than doubtful, and we had already paid our
driver half of his fare in advance, and every
seat in the post was engaged days ahead,
besides which, the order might come any day
to reserve it for the military.
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
We turned at the top of the hill, by the
new barracks which show, as well as the new
roads, how unpremeditated was the evacuation
of the Sandjak, to look our last at Plevlje.
What will be its coming fate ?
The desolate road was guarded by numerous
patrols, especially near the town ; we passed
three within the first mile. Farther on they
were less frequent. The roads and bridges
we noticed were either being mended or had
newly been put in order to prepare them for
the heavy guns passing over when the troops
left.
The old Turkish road — more a mountain
track than road — sometimes ran alongside
and sometimes crossed ours. The natives,
who travel chiefly on horseback, take it in
preference to the post road made by the Aus-
trian soldiers along which we drove. The
Servian population here wear woollen scarves
wound round the head and over the ears, even
in summer, but to-day they had hoods of
coarse white woollen stuff attached to coats of
like home manufacture for still further pro-
tection against the cold, which was piercing.
My feet and hands were soon numb, in spite
204
The Return from, the Samljak
of two pairs of stockings and two pairs of
gloves, and a warm rug tucked over the former.
The sudden change from the warm weather of
the previous week was particularly trying.
It took us an hour and a half to reach
Gotovusa — the white barracks were visible
on a height long before we got there, and we
wondered why they were not painted a less
conspicuous colour — where we stopped at the
barracks to telephone to Captain at
Cajnica that we were on our way and hoped to
arrive before nightfall. Two little obelisks
here record the names of the regiments who
have garrisoned this outpost.
On again for another hour or so, still ascend-
ing, and now we saw the first traces of the
snow we had heard was lying deep the previous
day at Metalka. The bushes by the roadside
were a network of white lace ; snow lay by
the roadside in patches, but soon we saw more
of it ; clouds of mist and melting snow en-
veloped us as they drifted across the moun-
tains. The hood of our carriage gave us
partial protection, but pussy's basket on the
front seat had none. I tried holding it on
my lap, but the rain and snow beat in. At
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
last a happy thought struck me — the greasy
paper in which our sandwiches had been
packed ! Grease keeps out wet effectually.
The buttery paper formed a roof which the
raindrops could not penetrate, and puss slept
snug and dry within.
As we put mile upon mile behind us the
dangers of the road seemed less. We were
more concerned with the elements than with a
possible attack. The fog grew thicker, the
damp cold more penetrating ; there was not a
sign of life, but here and there the roof of a
peasant's hut looming ghost-like through the
clouds, and a few ravens — birds of ill-omen in
keeping with the weird scene — sitting on a
fence.
Glad indeed were we to reach Boljanic !
The officers at the garrison gave us a warm
welcome, and insisted on our joining them at
their midday dinner ! I really do not know
whether the warm rooms or the hot soup were
most acceptable ! My kitty, too, came out of
her basket for refreshment, and was less
frightened in a strange place than I feared. I
take this opportunity of saying I was very
jpuch touched at the kindness and hospitality
?O0
The Return from the Sandjak
displayed to us at all the garrisons in the
Sandjak at a time when our newspapers were
bitterly hostile towards Austria.
The commander, Captain , who was a
good amateur photographer, very kindly gave
us several photographs of Boljanic, among
them one of Suljman Pasha's arrival there on
his flight from Plevlje.
The sun broke through the clouds just as
we finished dinner, and my husband seized
the opportunity to take a photograph of our
picturesque driver. We were a little afraid
he might offer objections (for the Count had
told us he was a fortune-teller who wrote
charms for the peasants against the Evil Eye,
so it seemed not improbable, as he presumably
believed in it, he would fear it for himself),
but he was well pleased and, I think, flattered
at being immortalised.
The Muktar (Mayor) of Boljanic, a splendid
looking old Turk, was among the lookers-on,
and permitted me to handle and admire a
wonderful old knife in an ancient silver sheath
which he wore in his belt. We longed to take
his portrait also, but time pressed, so it was
arranged that the captain, who had already
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photographed him, should exchange with us —
a picture of the Muktar for one of the Kurd.
About an hour after leaving Boljanic the
fir forest begins, which reaches as far as
Cajnica. The points of the first trees were
visible from afar, while the lower branches
and trunk were hidden in a thick mist — a
most curious effect. As we got nearer we
saw that the branches of the trees were fes-
tooned with snow, and it was nearly a foot
deep on either side of the road — and this
was on October 2ist ! Here and there
among the dark fir trees were golden birches
which had not yet lost their leaves, and we
longed for the sun to show us the glories of
the woods in their mingled autumn and winter
attire.
We had passed several baggage trains on our
way, and it was always a tight squeeze to get
by ; but just before reaching Metalka one
waggon was broken down, and the road com-
pletely blocked. Great excitement prevailed,
and the scene was most romantic : Austrian
soldiers with fixed bayonets standing on either
side the way to guard the baggage ; in the
foreground Turks and Servians discussing the
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The Return from the Sandjak
situation, and for a background the dark
forest !
Somehow the baggage cart was moved suffi-
ciently to enable us to squeeze by once more,
and this time we were on the edge of a preci-
pice.
Metalka was our next stopping-place. Be-
fore coming to it we drove for fully an hour
through virgin forest where the trees had tall
straight stems like the pillars of some cathe-
dral aisle. Our carriage stopped at the fron-
tier before the Turkish customs, and our pass
was demanded and given up with some trepi-
dation, for we had forgotten to get it viseed in
Plevlje ; but fortunately all went well. Still,
I did not breathe quite freely, for some one
had told me of a law forbidding live animals
— horses and dogs, at any rate — to be taken
into Austria. What about cats } I displayed
a bit of pussy by partially lifting the lid of
the basket, first to the Turkish and secondly
to the Austrian customs-house officials (for
the former are almost as strict about what you
take out of their country as what you bring
in). I do not know whether the law-makers
left cats out of their calculations, or whether
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Bosnia and Herzegcmna
my little pussy's pretty face pleaded for her,
but she was allowed to enter Austria without
any trouble ! We crossed the boundary be-
neath the great hanging bar that marks the
frontier line, and the most dangerous part of
our journey was over ; we had left the Sand-
jak Novi Bazar, and were back again in Bosnia
— the new province of Austria-Hungary.
Metalka will henceforward be the farthest
outpost of Austria-Hungary on the Turkish
frontier. We took tea with the officers in
the fortified barracks that command the pass,
and they would hardly let us go, so we had to
telephone to Cajnica that we should arrive an
hour later than we expected.
If Metalka were in Switzerland or Tyrol it
would be much sought after as a health resort
both in summer and winter, for it lies at a
height of 4000 feet above sea-level, sur-
rounded by virgin pine forest, and has the
high mountain climate. I was glad to learn
that a small hotel is to be built there next
year. Skeeing and toboganning are the fa-
vourite amusements of the officers of this little
garrison in winter, varied by shooting parties
when the wolves, that are still plentiful in
OUK DRIVEK KKOM THE .sAMJjAlv
The Return froin the Sandjak
Bosnia, grow troublesome, and the peasants
ask for help to protect their flocks. Some of
the fir trees in this region are veritable giants,
rising, with tall straight stems, to an immense
height. We were sadly disappointed to lose
all this beautiful scenery through the fog, and
promised ourselves to go up again from Cajnica
if it should clear the next day.
It was really surprising how fast our little
horses went from Metalka to Cajnica. The
road descends in serpentine windings all the
way, but remembering our start, I had not
expected the poor beasts to have so much
strength left at the end of the day. It was
very dark in the woods, and seemed a likely
place to be attacked if any marauding bands
were about, so we had the revolvers ready.
But we reached Cajnica in safety, rather in-
clined, as one often is when a danger is passed,
to laugh at our fears, and especially at our
mistrust of our wild-looking Kurd driver,
with whom we were now good friends. In
fact his leave-taking was rather embarrassing,
for he lingered by our fire so long I feared he
would never go, and, to my dismay, pulled
out a long Turkish pipe which he filled with
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
strong tobacco, evidently without the least
idea that he was doing anything incorrect in
filling our bedroom with the fumes — nor could
we find it in our hearts to remonstrate ! He
went at last, saluting us by touching forehead,
mouth, and heart. "What the heart feels,
that the head thinks and the mouth speaks,"
was the significance of his gesture ; and though
we did not understand his words, we knew that
he bid us a kindly and gracious " good-bye."
212
XVII—CAJNICA
AS we had arrived at Cajnica in the dark
and left it very early the next morn-
ing, on our way to the Sandjak, we
got only a vague impression on our
first visit of a little town surrounded by
mountains which seemed from our bedroom
windows to rise like a wall of rock behind
houses.
I knew, however, that Cajnica was famed
for its beauty, as well as for its pilgrimage
church, which is known far and wide and
visited by the orthodox population of Monte-
negro and Turkey as well as by that of the
whole of Bosnia ; therefore I was sadly dis-
appointed to find on waking the morning after
our arrival from Plevlje, that the storm we
had driven through in the mountains had
pursued us, and snow lay nearly a foot deep
upon the ground. Going out was out of the
question, as I had only summer clothes and
light shoes with me, suited to the warm
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Bosnia aifui Herzegovina
weather of ten days previous, when we had
left the bulk of our luggage behind at Sara-
jevo.
The kitten objected to the snow as much as
I did ; it was the first she had seen, and nothing
would induce her to venture out in it ! How-
ever, I consoled myself with the remembrance
of similar storms in the Swiss mountains,
even earlier in the season, which was followed
by glorious weather, and settled down to write
my impressions of the previous day's adven-
tures with kitty on my lap. But this was
after we had surmounted the difficulty of
getting breakfast, which proved to be no
slight one, for the Hungarian orderly told off
to look after the military " Frendenzimmer "
(guest room) at Cajnica spoke only his native
Magyar, and was not quick at understanding
signs.
He interpreted his duty towards us, after
lighting the stove, in scrupulously brushing,
with not too clean a brush, not alone our
boots and travelling wraps, but every one of
our personal belongings, and I had to forcibly
rescue some of them from his well-meaning
hands. The breakfast difficulty was finally
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Cajnica
solved by the aid of a policeman (the police
office being in the same building), who sent
our man to fetch fresh rolls, milk and eggs
from the inn, while I made the tea. We had
in the end quite an excellent repast, for
delicious rolls are obtainable everywhere in
Bosnia, and on this occasion we not only
warmed them on the stove, being in a luxuri-
ous mood born of our cosy room and the
snowy vista seen from the window, but had
plenty of butter, which we had brought from
the casino at Plevlje, and butter is not an
article of everyday consumption in Bosnia, as
it is all imported from Austria. The poor
Bosnian cows give little milk, and that of such
inferior quality it has hardly any cream. No
wonder, for, like the hard-worked horses, the
cattle get but little to eat ; the former, how-
ever, are the worst off, for they carry their
heavy wooden saddles, or rather packs (on
which wood and other things are fastened for
transport) through life ; the peasants never
having been accustomed to remove them,
cannot see the cruelty of leaving the poor
animals day and night so burdened.
But I am wandering far from Cajnica. We
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
saw nothing of the town that first day, except
the village street, along which we made our
way, in spite of snow and slush, to the inn,
for our midday meal. We dined off soup,
followed by the meat that went to the making
of it, and a kind of apple pie that is known
all over Austria as " apfelstrudel." Cajnica
cannot be congratulated on its inn, but doubt-
less better things will come in time.
Though the acute political crisis was prac-
tically over before we left Plevlje, the news
was still exciting enough to make us look
eagerly for the papers, so we greatly appre-
ciated the use of the reading-room belonging
to the casino, which was kindly accorded to
us here as at Plevlje. This gave us the oppor-
tunity of meeting not only the officers but
also the civil officials, with whom we had
many interesting talks about things Bosnian.
On this particular afternoon I found a para-
graph in the Sarajevo paper stating that packs
of wolves had appeared in the country near
Banjaluka, and a remark on the subject led to
my being told what had happened to an unfor-
tunate shepherdess a few months previously
not far from Cajnica.
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Cajnica
Two sisters were with their flock in the
mountains and lost ten sheep during the
night. Both started off in search of the
truants, but one sister lost her footing on the
edge of a precipice and fell into the chasm
beneath ; the other hastened to the nearest
peasant's hut for help, and led the rescue-party
by another path to the foot of the cliff down
which her sister had fallen. There the poor
girl lay dead. By a strange coincidence, not
far from her were the bloody remains of one
of the sheep she had lost her life in seeking ;
of the other nine the wolves had left nothing !
Such stories tell their own tale of the hard-
ships and dangers of a Bosnian peasant's life
in the mountains, which, nevertheless, he
loves as well as the Swiss his native Alps.
We hoped for sunshine the following day
to disperse the half-melted snow and enable
us to take some photographs ; but though no
snow fell, and the clouds were a little lighter,
there was only a very slight improvement in
the weather. Our orderly had brought arm-
fuls of wood in the previous night, of which
we now understood the reason, for he did not
appear to light the fire, and we guessed had
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Bosnia and Herzegovina
been sent off on duty. We soon had a blaze
roaring up the chimney, and sent the police-
man to the inn for breakfast. It was funny to
see this grand individual, with a scarlet fez
and sword clanking by his side, gravely carry-
ing in the coffee and rolls and two boiled eggs
in a newspaper parcel ; no egg-cups were pro-
vided nor any salt 1 Later in the day the
weather cleared sufficiently for us to visit the
Orthodox Church, which is dedicated to the
Virgin and her wonder-working picture painted,
according to local tradition, by St. Luke
(whom, as I have related elsewhere, the Bos-
nian monks believe to have lived at Jajce).
The picture was brought from the monastery
at Banja in the Sanjak Novi Bazar some four
hundred years ago by the great Vizier Ghazi
Sinan, who was himself a native of Cajnica.
Why he should have plundered a monastery and
stolen the sacred picture, only to give it back
to the Orthodox Church at Cajnica, is a riddle ;
possibly the reputation of the picture was so
great that even the Mohammedans were a little
superstitious about it, and being uneasy about
the sacrilegious deed he found this the easiest
way to salve his conscience. Be that as it may,
3l8
Cajnica
Cajnica became a celebrated place of pilgrimage
from this time on, and no one who is in Bosnia
on the day celebrated by the Orthodox Church
as the Festival of the Virgin, August 28th,
should miss going to Cajnica to see the thou-
sands of pilgrims who assembled here from all
the countries that once formed the Servian
kingdom. The painting is in Byzantine style —
that is, all that can be seen of it, for the piety
of generations has kissed away the features of
the Virgin, so that little more than an outline
of her features remains. A representation of
St. John the Baptist is painted on the back of
the wood on which the sacred picture is
painted, the whole being in a very ancient and
valuable frame.
The miraculous picture was formerly in
the old pilgrimage chapel beside the modern
church, completed about twelve years before
the Austrian occupation. The older building,
like the Servian church at Sarajevo, is partly
underground, the reason of this being that
the dimensions above ground permitted for a
Christian church in Moslem lands during the
Middle Ages were so small that the only way
to secure the necessary height for the interior
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Bosnia ami Herzegovina
was to sink the building in the earth. This
gives the little Christian churches a humble
crouching appearance, which doubtless the
Turk thought fitting to a place of worship of
the despised " rayah," a word universally used
for the Christian in Turkish times, which im-
plies that the man so designated has forfeited
his life, and is only permitted to live at the
pleasure of the " true believers." The gloomy
little chapel has still some votive offerings
hung on its walls by pious pilgrims of the
past, among which are the curious leather
belts of great weight and thickness which
were formerly universally worn by the women,
and are still occasionally seen.
I was told they were placed here by the
widows of murdered men, who had tracked
down the murderers with their dead husbands'
pistols in these belts, and after avenging the
slain, hung them here in the church.
It is a place of many memories, this little
Christian church, which kept alight the flame
of Christianity in a Moslem land throughout
the centuries of Ottoman dominion, and
worthy of being more carefully preserved for
the sake of its past.
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Cajnica
The new church Is symbolic of the greater
tolerance towards Christianity of the nine-
teenth century. When Sultan Medshid allowed
this prominent building to be erected between
1857 and 1863, the knell of Moslem rule had
already sounded in Bosnia, though it was not
till fifteen years later that it passed into the
occupation of a Christian power.
Both churches stand in a roomy court, sur-
rounded by a wall which doubtless was built
for protection in former times. The buildings
around the courtyard are for the accommoda-
tion of pilgrims ; but once, at least, they had
other tenants, for when the Austrian troops
vacated the Sandjak, they slept at Cajnica, on
the march to Sarajevo, in the pilgrims* quarters
at the Servian monastery.
The present pilgrimage church is in Eastern
style, with no less than fourteen little cupolas
on the roof; the interior is somewhat bare,
and besides the famous picture, only the
pulpit and bishop's throne and the offerings
brought from the old church hung on the
screen are interesting.
The same great Vizier who brought the
miraculous Madonna to Cajnica, and thereby
Bosnia and Herzegovina
made his birthplace famous amongst the Serbs,
erected its finest mosque for his own place
of worship, and rests beside it with his wife
and son. The pilgrimage church and the
proud Vizier's mosque representative of the
Cross and the Crescent have changed places.
Once the mosque was the prominent feature
of Cajnica ; to-day it is the great white church
upon the mountain-side, and so it is in Bosnia
with the faiths they represent.
Cajnica is proud of its " Appelquelle," a
spring of delicious water that rises in the
mountain-side above the pretty town, where
a little terrace has been built from which to
enjoy the view. The spring is named after a
former Governor of Bosnia, Baron Appell,
who seems to have won his way (as also did
his wife) to the hearts of the Bosnian people,
who erected the fountain that encloses the
crystal water. The finest view of the town,
however, or at least that which we preferred,
was from the road which climbs the hill
through the forest to Metalka. In sunshine
it must be exquisite ; but the elements were
not kind to us at Cajnica, and though we
waited patiently four days for weather pro-
222
Cajnica
mising enough to risk the eight hours' ride
over the mountains to Foca, and a lady's
saddle, kindly lent me by one of the officers'
wives, was sent specially from Gorazda for
my use (there being none procurable at
Cajnica), we had at last reluctantly to give up
this long-planned tour. Perhaps we might
have waited even longer, but in this instance
the civil officials as well as the officers were
against our taking this road, owing to the
rumours of Montenegrin bands on the frontier.
In fine weather we might have laughed at
their fears, but to risk being captured by
brigands in a drenching rain or possible snow-
storm — that was too much for us 1
So we returned over the road we had come
to Gorazda ; alas ! but not all of us. I left
my kitty in the kindly care of the wife of the
" Bezirksvorsteher " at Cajnica — not without a
pang, for the gentle little creature who had
been my constant companion in such stirring
times had won her way to my heart, and but
for the long journey that still lay before us, I
would have taken her home to be an English
cat, and remind me of the wild Sandjak where
1 found her.
223
XFIII—TREBINJE AND IT'S
NEIGWBO U%HOOD
THERE are three ways of approach-
ing Trebinje — by train from Hum,
a station between Mostar and Gra-
vosa, where the line branches off,
or by road either from Gacko to the north or
Ragusa to the south.
My first visit to Trebinje, when I reached
it by the last of these three routes, I have de-
scribed very fully in my book on Dalmatia. It is
a drive of from three to four hours, part of the
way along the coast. From the height to which
the road ascends before turning inland the
distant view of Ragusa and the wooded Isle of
Lacroma is exquisite. Later on you traverse
the barren Karst, but the shape of the moun-
tains are very fine, and early in the morning
and just before sunset the grey rocks take on
lovely colourings.
The road from Gacko to Trebinje is like-
wise through the Karst, and as the distance is
224
CATHOLIC GIKL OK HEKZKGO\lNA
Trehinje and its Neighhourhood
great — fifty miles — it would only be taken by
travellers anxious to visit the most out-of-the-
way parts of the country, which are untouched
by the modernising influence of the railway :
to such I would recommend the road, or rather
bridle-path, from Suha in the valley of the
Sutjeska to Gacko over the Cemerno Pass on
horseback, and then by post or private carriage
to Trebinje. This wild road leads along the
Montenegrin frontier, and old Turkish and
modern Austrian forts are frequent. Gacko
is a tiny town that has been forced, by its
strategical position, into playing an important
part in Bosnian history, and has many tragic
memories of the insurrection of 1878. The
hero of that time, Bogdan Zimunic, is still
living here, and has tales to tell to those who
understand his native tongue of more en-
grossing interest than any fiction.
But Gacko is also of great interest to anti-
quarians, on account of the wonderful early
Christian gravestones in its neighbourhood,
which throw light on ancient Servian usages
and history. Hunting scenes are depicted
upon some of them, and men in single-handed
combat upon others. Horses are frequently
225
Bosnia and Herzegovina
represented, for the old Bosnian knights dearly
loved the trusty steeds which carried them to
battle, and a good horse is the most prized
possession of a Bosnian Beg to this very day.
From Gacko the military post goes three
times in the week as far as Bilek ; there is a
daily postal service on to Trebinje connecting
with the post cart from Gacko, so it is not
necessary to stay a night on the way.
The Trebinje of to-day is a strongly forti-
fied Austrian garrison town, which on first
approach makes no appeal to the lover of that
which is old-world and picturesque ; but with-
in the modern quarters which encircle it is
Trebinje of history, with its ancient walls and
strong towers that bid defiance to its enemies
in the stormy Middle Ages.
The town was known as Trebunia, or Tra-
vunia, under the Romans, and ruled over by
a Slav prince at the time of Constantine. In
the fourteenth century it formed part of the
dominions of the Count of Chlum, which were
annexed by the Bosnian Ban Tvrtko, who pro-
claimed himself " King of Bosnia and the
Coastland."
After the Turkish conquest the town rose
226
Trehinje and its Neighbourhood
to no small importance, for it was the first
station on the great high road from Ragusa to
Stamboul, along which so much costly mer-
chandise was carried from the Adriatic to the
Orient. As it was also a very vulnerable point,
owing to its proximity to the Ragusan and
Montenegrin as well as the Venetian frontiers,
fortresses and watch-towers were erected on
all the surrounding heights for its protection.
Some of the Turkish forts are still stand-
ing, others have been replaced by modern
Austrian ones, for the vulnerable point of the
Turkish Empire in the Middle Ages is the
vulnerable point of the newly acquired do-
minions of Austria to-day, and the armies of
Franz Joseph guard Trebinje in the present
political crisis even more jealously than did
the armies of the Sultan during the bloody
wars with the men of the Black Mountains.
That the value of strategical positions alter
little in the course of the ages is shown by
our garrisoning Egypt just as did the Romans.
On our first visit to Trebinje, in the spring
of 1906, we were very kindly entertained by
Lieutenant-Colonel von Lilianhof, at that time
of the Trebinje garrison, and heard from him
227
Bosnia and Herzegovina
and from his wife a good deal about army life
in the Herzegovina. The tropical summer is
so trying that, as with us in India, the officers'
wives are all sent away during the hot months
— indeed, there are many points of resem-
blance between the Austrian officers' lot in
Herzegovina and that of the British officer in
India. Both are exiles, though certainly the
Austrian is a great deal nearer to his beloved
Vienna than the Englishman to London. The
semi-tropical climate of Trebinje has been
wisely utilised by the present Government for
the cultivation of the tobacco plant and the vine,
and model vineyards and orchards were planted
at Lastva, a mountain valley about eight miles
from Trebinje, in 1892, which have met with
great success and are well worth visiting. In
order to get the best results, Hungarian vint-
ners were brought from the famous vineyards
where the juice of the grape is converted into
Imperial Tokay to teach the people of Lastva
the art of vine culture and wine making.
Cherries, pears, peaches, and apricots all
flourish in the peaceful fertile valley, which is
now reached by a good driving road from
Trebinje, but was, before the Occupation, so
228
Trehinje and its Neighbourhood
cut off from the outside world that it was one
of the most lawless parts of Herzegovina,
where border fights with the neighbouring
Montenegrins were of constant occurrence.
It is said that the inhabitants of Lastva were
paid by the Turkish Government to keep the
border, and were so busy fighting that the
fruitful land lay barren under the old regime.
The Lastva of to-day is the seat of a local
government department (Bezirk), and has,
besides the inevitable gendarmerie post of the
frontier, a small military post, schools, and
some houses which are used in summer by
residents of Trebinje.
One of the most interesting excursions in
this neighbourhood is to the Popovopolje — in
summer a fruitful plain, in winter an inland
lake ; it is easily reached by a good driving
road from Trebinje. These periodically dis-
appearing lakes are peculiar to the Karst, and
where the waters come from and whence they
go remains a mystery. It seems, like the
overflow of the Nile, to be nature's provision
for watering and enriching the soil of a rain-
less stony country, for the waters of the
Popovopolje leave a deposit of mud which
229
Bosnia and Herzegovina
acts as a manure. A peculiar thing about this
particular Karst lake is that the low-lying
swampy land seems to have no ill effect on the
health of the population living around it, for
the Popovopolje is one of the healthiest dis-
tricts in Herzegovina, in marked contrast to
the very similar district of Gabella, near
Metkovic.
The Popovopolje (or rather the villages
around it which nestle at the foot of the bare
surrounding mountains) have a population of
about 5000 persons. The lake is twenty miles
long when the waters are at their height, and
from forty to over a hundred feet deep. Not
unfrequently, when the wind blows down from
the mountains, quite high waves are seen, and
it is not pleasant to be caught on the lake in
a small boat on such an occasion. I was told
that but one kind of fish, called " gaovice,"
is caught in the Popovopolje, and that it is
esteemed by the natives as a great delicacy.
The gaovice is hardly as large as a sardine,
and perhaps for this reason the fish manage to
squeeze through the 1 oles through which the
water rises, where their larger brethren would
stick fast. Possibly as Herzegovina advances
230
Trehinje and its Neighbourhood
in civilisation, under the new regime, some-
one may erect a fish cannery on the banks of
the Popovopolje, and introduce to the world
of gourmands a new finny delicacy that will
cast our old friend the sardine in the shade.
Antiquarians will find the banks of the lake a
happy hunting ground, for it abounds in ancient
burial places, which are often called Bogomile
graves ; but the orthodox priest, Iguman
Mihajlovic, who studied them when superior
of the monastery in the district, says that
many of the stones bear the signs of the
cross, which it was not the custom of the
Bogomiles to use. Nor are the gravestones
all that show that this district was of import-
ance in past times, for more than one ruined
castle crowns the surrounding heights, and
the tumuli tell the story of a still earlier
occupation.
Another natural curiosity is the Vjetrenica
cave. The entrance is in the mountain-side,
about a hundred feet or more above the level
of the lake, so that the waters never reach it ;
the interior bears traces of human habitation
at some former period ; figures are roughly
depicted on the walls at the entrance, which
231
Bosnia and Herzegomyia
probably were meant to represent knightly
heroes of the Middle Ages, for they are wear-
ing helmets and bearing swords ; a cross shows
their Christian origin. In an inner cave,
some hundred and fifty yards from the main
entrance, fragments of iron vessels and animal
bones are to be seen ; it probably served the
cave-dwellers as a kitchen.
At the village of Zavala, in the Popovopolje,
is a very interesting old Servian monastery,
standing high above the banks of the Tre-
binjcica ; yet not so high but that the waves
of the lake wash against the rocks on which it
is built during the winter inundation. The
library contains some interesting old manu-
scripts and rare books in the Turkish and
Servian languages, and the monastery seal is
shown, which bears the date 1271.
It is well worth while to make an excursion
from Trebinje by carriage to Ragusa Vecchia,
near which are the ruins of Gradina, about
which the following legend is told.
When the Venetian Republic was at the
height of its glory, Ragusa Vecchia, like its
greater namesake, was an independent state,
ruled over by a young princess who was
232
A MLEi-'ZIX
Trehinje and its Neighhourhood
famed for her beauty far beyond the borders
of her kingdom. Needless to say, she had
many lovers, but she most favoured a young
engineer, and promised to marry him if he
could bring fresh water from the hills to her
tiny capital.
This the young man set himself to do, and
in time accomplished. The day was fixed on
which the waters should be released and flow
for the first time into the town. Unfortunately
for the ardent lover, in a spirit of mischief
he introduced a harmless snake into the pipe,
thinking it would cause fun to the onlookers
when it came out at the other end. Little
did he dream of the consequences of his joke !
The princess came in person to the opening
of the new aqueduct to do special honour to
her lover. So great was the force with which
the pent-up water rushed out at a given signal
for its release, that the imprisoned snake was
thrown against the royal breast, and the
princess, not knowing the reptile was harm-
less, fell fainting to the ground and died of
fright.
233
XIX—F%pM SARAJEVO "TO
BOSNA BROD
FEW are the travellers who break their
journey between the capital of Bosnia
and the Hungarian frontier of Brod,
but there is much that is worth see-
ing, by those who are interested in the de-
velopment of the country, at some of the
intermediate towns along the main line and
on its branches.
Here, more than anywhere else in Bosnia,
industry has made strides, and though factory
chimneys occasionally spoil the landscape, there
is satisfaction in the thought that they mean
greater prosperity to the people.
Vares, for instance, at the terminus of a
branch line going off from Podlugovi — a
station about fifteen miles distant from Sara-
jevo — is the centre of a flourishing iron trade.
The mines are worked by the Catholic popu-
lation, for mining is foreign to the nature of
the Turks, who were content to let the rich
234
A GUZLA PLAYER
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brocl
mineral treasures of Bosnian mountains lie
buried for the most part. Yet even under
Moslem rule the Christians of this district
worked these mines in a primitive fashion,
using the same methods that their forefathers
had done for hundreds of years, and so great
was the reputation of the iron ore that it was
sent not only all over the Balkans, but even
into Asia. Under the Austrian regime modern
methods have been introduced at Vares, and
two large iron foundries erected by the Govern-
ment give work to a whole township that has
grown round them.
At Zenica, on the main line, there are
" Landesararische " (Government) coal mines
and steel works. A model convict prison on
the progressive system, where the prisoners
are taught trades and work on the land, is one
of the sights of the place. Fruit culture on
a very large scale is carried on, all the work of
planting and cultivating the orchards being
done by the prisoners. Yet in spite of industry
and the modern buildings, something of old
Zenica remains in the green gardens surround-
ing the Turkish houses and the slender mina-
rets that rise from among them.
235
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Usora is another important industrial centre.
It is the end station of the Usora railway, a
private line owned by a company who export
wood from the great oak forests of the Usora
valley : under a contract with the Government
the line owned by this company will, in time,
become state property and probably be ex-
tended to Banjaluka.
The Austrians have introduced the cultiva-
tion of beet-root for sugar-making into Bos-
nia, and in 1892 a large sugar refinery was
erected at Usora, in which many hundreds of
refugees from Russia, chiefly Chekhs, are em-
ployed. The company owning the sugar re-
finery also have a large stock-breeding estab-
lishment. At Doboj another branch line goes
off to the coal and salt mines of Dolnja Tuzla.
I have said there is much to see in this district
for those interested in the industries of the
country, but there is also much worth seeing
here from quite another point of view, that of
the travellers whose interest lies mainly — as I
confess does my own — in its scenic beauty and
historical interest. The oldest Franciscan
monastery in Bosnia, at Sutjeska, and the
ruins of the famous old royal castle of
236
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brod
Bobovac are easily reached from the station of
Kakanj-Doboj, and both are worth a visit ; a
driving road goes to Sutjeska, but Bobovac
can only be reached on foot or on horseback.
The monastery was founded in the fourteenth
century by the first Franciscan monks that
found their way to Bosnia, but only the
church remains of that period, for the other
buildings were destroyed by fire in 1658 and
rebuilt six years later, as a Latin inscription
on the west door testifies. It is marvellous
that one stone remains upon another of those
placed there by the founders, when you recall
how often fire and sword have swept this land
in the course of six centuries.
History relates that after the Turkish con-
quest of Bosnia in 1464 and the destruction
of the neighbouring castle of Bobovac, the
monks of Sutjeska by some means procured
a document from the Sultan promising them
protection ; this sufficed for their safety for a
time, but did not save the monastery from
molestation in the following century, when the
fanatic zeal of the Bogomiles who had gone
over to Islam under the leadership of the
then governor, Hassan Bey, destroyed one re-
Q 237
Bosnia and Herzegovina
ligious house after another ; Sutjeska was
plundered when Fojnica, Kresevo, Visoko, and
Konjica were utterly destroyed. In the monas-
tery archives chronicles of one of the monks,
by name Fra Bona Benic, exist which give a
graphic account of the trials that overtook the
brotherhood in the period that followed the
reverse of the Turkish armies before the walls
of Vienna. The unfortunate Christians in the
realm of Islam then suffered for the success
of their fellow Christians in Europe.
For sixteen years the monastery was de-
serted, while the monks wandered in the
mountains, sleeping in caves or in the open,
disguised as peasants ; but still at hand when
sought for to administer the rites of religion
in secret to the fast diminishing Catholic
population.
The monastery church of St. John the
Baptist, on the right bank of the Trstivinica,
claims the proud distinction of being the first
Christian church in Bosnia to possess a belfry
and have the privilege of calling its worship-
pers to prayer by the sound of the sacred
bells, while yet under Ottoman rule. An
inscription commemorates this great conces-
238
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brod
sion granted in the year i860, at a time when
the ringing of church bells was still fraught
with dire penalties. " When the Turk hears
the sound of a church bell then is his anger
kindled against the Christians," was a saying
typical of popular feeling in those days.
Visiko is a place that has historic associa-
tions of special interest to all travellers who have
visited Dalmatia and become enamoured of the
romantic history of Ragusa, for it was here in
1335 that the representatives of the proud
little republic, received from Ban Stefan
Tvrtko the privilege of free trade in the
Orient ; nor is this the only connection Visiko
has with Dalmatian history, for some fifty
years later King Stefan Ostoja here confirmed
the privileges of Zara and Sebenico.
From Visiko, a driving road leads to another
interesting old Franciscan monastery at Foj-
nica, which has an idyllic situation and pos-
sesses in its archives, a Firman of the Sultan
Mahmud II, which was the charter of freedom
to worship the God of the Christians for the
Franciscans under Ottoman rule. An equally
interesting document in the monk's library is
an ancient book of heraldry containing the
239
Bosnia and Herzegovina
names and arms of all the Bosnian nobles who
left the country on account of the Turkish
invasions or adopted the religion of the conquer-
ing race, and in so doing dropped their family
names, but preserved the tradition of the
nobility. In spite of so many valuable docu-
ments being lost in times of persecution, the
Franciscan monasteries of Bosnia are still a
happy hunting ground for the lovers of rare
volumes and old missals, and the monks
delight to show them to appreciative travellers.
An interesting book might be written about
the feudal castles of Bosnia — so numerous are
they, so stirring their history, and nowhere
more frequent than between Sarajevo and the
Hungarian frontier at Brod. Those who de-
light in such relics of the past, should drive
or travel by the military post from Usora to
Tesanj and see the ancient strongholds of the
Bans of Usora, famous alike for its pictur-
esque position, on an almost inaccessible rock,
and for its stirring history. This castle shared
the fate of Jajce, being conquered by the
Turks in 1463 and retaken by the Hungarian
king, Mathias Corvinus, in the same year ;
but its final conquest by the armies of the
240
A BOSNIAN 1.11 -\
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brod
Sultan was eight years previous to Jajce's final
fall ; some of the breaches in the massive
walls may have been made when it was be-
sieged by Prince Eugene, who took it on one
of his many raids against the Turks.
The castle of Maglaj, which crowns a rocky
height, is a striking object from the train,
and is in particularly good preservation.
Maglaj boasts too a very fine mosque, and is
so picturesquely situated that it is well worth
while to break your journey there, if only for
a few hours ; and if you are an artist or
photographer, with an eye for picture-making,
you will certainly find that a day is not enough
to devote to it. The town has tragic memories
of the insurrection of 1878, which an obelisk
erected to the memory of the Austrian soldiers
records, and is strongly garrisoned to-day for
the protection of the great bridge across the
Bosna river. Not far from here is the battle-
field of Kosna, where the insurgents were
defeated on August 4th, 1878 ; another
memorial of that time is at Doboj, where a
great iron cross is erected on a height at the
entrance to a mountain ravine to the memory
of those who fell in the battle near that town
241
Bosnia and Herzegovina
where the Austrians, under Count Szapary,
defeated the insurgents under the Mufti
Taslidza.
Doboj has preserved its mediaeval character
almost intact ; from the height on which its
ancient castle stands there is a wonderful view
that well repays the exertion of the ascent.
To the east you look across the river to the
forests and mountains of the Spreca valley :
to the west one mountain-chain rises behind
the other till the snow-capped peaks of the
Vicija and Vlasic-Planina near Travnik bound
the horizon. There is another view from a
height along this line which is strikingly
beautiful, and can be enjoyed from the train
when you reach the station of Han Marica,
at the watershed of the rivers Save and
Bosna ; and after this the train gradually
descends to the plain in which Dervent lies,
reaching to the banks of the Save. This
whole district, I was told, was one great lake
during the insurrection in the autumn 1878
to 1879, but the old quarter of Dervent which
then existed is built on two little hills, and
rose above the flood ; the new houses are in
the plain, and would fare badly if the same
242
</ .t
?>
^r.J*-' "*
^jfe^p^._''
THt Lonooit slographical institute
r
From Sarajevo to Bosna Brod
conditions occurred again. From Dervent to
the frontier at Brod is but a distance of six-
teen miles, and at the intermediate station
Sijekovac the Save river is reached, which
there forms the boundary between Bosnia and
Hungary.
Brod is a little town with two mosques, a
Greek orthodox church, and two monuments,
one of which records that the Austrian army
here entered Bosnia on July 29th, 1879, and
the other the visit of the Emperor Franz
Joseph in 1885. Its only importance lies in
it being the terminus of the narrow-gauge
Bosnian railway at its junction with the
Hungarian lines.
Here we crossed the great bridge across
the Save river, and bid a regretful " Good-
bye " to beautiful Bosnia, which will have
henceforth a place in our affections second
only to its sisterland of Dalmatia.
THE END
INDEX
A
Aladza mosque, 134, 137
Ali Pasha Rizvanbegovic,
26
Annexation, Austrian, 1 1 1
Anti- Austrian tone, English
press, 1 1 3
Arabian Nights^ 104
Austrian soldiers in 1 878, 103
Austro-Hungarian Adminis-
tration, 91
Austrian Government, 83,
108, 134
B
Bairam, feast of, 103, 129
Banjaluka, 71-76, 83, 105
Baths of Ilidze, 108
Bears, price on heads of, 162
Beg of Rataj, 1 48-1 51
Begs, Bosnian, 73, 141, 142
Q2 245
Bcgova Dzamija, 96
Bobovac, 237
Boljanic, 180, 194, 206
Bosna Brod, 19, 234, 243
Bosna Serai, 82, 88
Bjelasnica, 1 1 4
Bistrik, 90
Black Sea, 120
Burying human bodies in
masonry, 125
Cajnica, 129, 174, 201, 21 3-
223
Cairo, 95
Caravopolji, 47
Chelenka, 102
Croatian {see Servian) lan-
guage, 18
Crown Prince Rudolf, 135
Cvrstnica, 41
Index
D
Damascus, Sarajevo compared
to, 89
Danube, 1 20
Dervent, 242
Dervishes, graves of, 105
Dervish monastery, 1 3 7
Dobrunj, 127
Doloc, great oak tree, 84
Dormitor, 1 1 4
E
Egypt, 87, 95
Feudal system in Bosnia,
141-143
Frankopan, Count, 5 i
Freshwater fisheries, 1 10
Foca, 1 18, 128-139, 168
Fortified watch-houses, 121
Gabela, 25
Gacko, 155, 164, 224, 225,
226
Ghazi Usrej Beg, 99
Gorazda, 118, 119, 121,
129-131, 172, 174, 223
Gornji Vakuf, 43
Government, Bosnian (Aus-
tro-Hungarian), 99, 100,
108, 1 10
Grad (Sarajevo), 103
Gradina, 232
Gravosa, 23
H
Han, Marica, 242
Hans, Turkish, 166, 167
Hot weather in Bosnia, 108
Hrvoja, King of Bosnia, 5 8,
71
Ivko of Josanica, 132
Ilidze, 107-115
Irby, Miss, 91
Janissaries, 89, 105
Jablanica, 35, 40-42
Jajce, 44-64, 68, 69
Jesuit College, 83
Jezero, 65-67
Josanica, 132
246
Index
K
Karst, 229
Kaglevic, Peter, 52
Kally, Minister von, 108
Komadina waterfall, 39
Konjica, 41
Kraljevic Marko, i 26
Lasva, 87
Lim river, 1 2 i
Ljubovija, 122
Luke, Saint, 55
M
Maglaj, 241
Maklan Pass, 42
Mathias Carvinus, 48
Marriage market in Sarajevo,
103
Mecca, 97
Medjedge station, 1 2 1
Medresse, 83
Mehmed Fatih Sultan, 132
Mehmed Pasha Sokolovic,
123
Metalka, 209, 210, 211
Metkovic, 25
Mischan graves, 1 3 3
Middle Ages, 109, 118, 132
Military casino, 184
Miljacke river, 93
Montenegro, 139, 146
Mostar, 26-35,90, 105, 124
— bridge, 27
— Catholic church at, 28
— curious dress of Moham-
medan women, 33
Mount Treberic, 105, iii
N
Narenta river, 26, 27
— gorge of, 39
Nicosia, 95
O
Occupation, Austro-Hungar-
ian, 106, 109
Olmlitz Pasha, 97, 98, 99
Omar Pasha, 82
Osatica, costumes of, 92
Oxford, 100
Pale, 1 1 7
Plevljc, 129, 181-204
Pliva river, 59, 78
Porin Planina, 37
247
Index
Popovopolje, 230-232
Prenj, ascent of, 41
Presjeka, town of, 133
Priboj (Sandjak), 127, 130
Prjepolje, 194
Prozor, 43
R
Ragusa, 93, 119, 123
Rama, valley of, 43
Rataj, castle of, 139, 140,
Rhemen, General von, 184
Risto Bakac, 152
Rizvanbegovic, Ali Pasha,
26
Rzava river, 122
Sandjak, Novi Bazar, 129,
i34-» i39» i79» 210
Safety in Herzegovina, 1 1 4
Sarajevo, 82, 85, 89-106,
109, 121
Save river, 16, 242, 243
Scheriat (college), 99
Servian Croatian language, 1 8
— church, 1 8
Stab, 1 1 5
Stone of Ivko, 1 3 3
Streifkorps, 154
Suha, 155, 160, 165
Sutjeska monastery, 236, 237
— valley, 139
— ravine, 152-168
— river, 1 5 2
Sokol, castle of, 45
Spanish Jews, 17, 105, 106
Stambulcic, 117
Stefan Tomasevic, 44-48
State aid, 19
— tobacco factory, 19
— vineyards, 19
— schools, 19
Suljman Pasha, 193, 207
Superstition in Bosnia, 125
T
Tattooing in Bosnia, 62
Tobacco growing, 130, 134
Trappist monastery, 75, 76
Trebinje, 224-234
Trebevic, 105, 111-114
Travnik, 80, 81
Treaty of Berlin, 21
Trout breeding, 1 1 o
Turkani Emin, i 33
248
Index
u
Urlas river, 78, 79
Ustipraca, 118, 121, 171
Usar, 19
Usora, 236, 240
V
Vakuf, 98
Vardiste, 121
Vares, 234, 235
Veils worn by women of
Herzegovina, 32
Venice, 1 2 3
Vinac castle, 79
Visika, 239
Vitez station, 87
Vlasic Planina, 242
W
Watershed, Bosna and Drina,
118
Wolves, price on head of, 162
Zelengora, 144
Zeleneslic gorge, 26
Zelena Glava, 41
Zenica, 235
Zepa river, 1 2 2
Zwornik, 49
DALMATIA
THE LAND WHERE EAST MEETS WEST
By Maude M. Holbach.
With upwards of Fifty Illustrations
from Photographs by O. Holbach, and a Map.
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LEAVES FROM
A MADEIRA GARDEN
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WALKS AND
PEOPLE IN TUSCANY
By Sir Francis Vane, Bt.
With numerous Illustrations by Stephen Haweis
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