Although no Western Power has ever played a greater part in the problems of the Ottoman Empire than Great Britain, yet in no other country in Western Europe is Turkey more grossly misunderstood. I have been many times asked by my English acquaintances to write a book on Turkey from a Turkish point of view, and two ways of writing were suggested to me: the one was to compile a detailed work, the other to write a small and light book. To take the former advice was not possible to me, as I found my

My Asiatic origin—My great-grandfather's religious order— His miracles—My grandfather and Sultan Mahmud II. —An ordeal by wine—My father's charitable extravagance—His death—Primitive surgery in Asia Minor— The original home of vaccination—My mother's European ancestors—Writing a forbidden accomplishment for women. I was born in the ancient town of Angora, Asia Minor, famous not alone for its silky-haired cats and goats, but also for its historical and archæological importance, and with it my mem

My hatred of lessons—Compulsory attendance at school—The bastinado in schools—My own experience of it—How schoolgirls are punished—The old-fashioned implement for beating—"The rod is a gift from Heaven"—I help to kidnap a bride—My mother's grief at my behaviour—I am handed over to a stem uncle in consequence—My uncle's wives—Etiquette in the harem—A first cigarette—Bastinado again—I am shut out of the harem—The practice of polygamy—Its popularity estimated—The European system. "Paradise is benea

True meaning of the word harem—Eastern houses divided into two parts—Male members of the family only allowed to enter the female quarter—Seclusion of women stricter among the well-to-do—Seclusion not wholly due to religion of Islam-Life in the harem—Occupations of its inmates—Misrepresentation of the system in England—Royal harems—Custom doomed to disappear—Circassian women—Reasons for their popularity as wives—How a woman gets engaged—Some marriage customs—Marriage a more civil proceeding than

The discomforts of travelling—Precautions against brigands —Village hospitality—Bad condition of inns and hotels—Broussa, the first capital of the Ottoman Empire—Constantinople—The 'parish' of the conqueror— First impressions of the European quarter—The question of my education—Seats of learning, old and new—I am forced to choose the old—I become a sort of monk—The distinctive dress—Description of the old-fashioned colleges—The Ulema—Their position and influence. My residence in my uncle's home

First moderation of my prejudice against Europeans—The Levantine guide—The truth is not in him—I begin to wish to visit England—A summer trip to Asia Minor—A British consul—His wife and my mother—A trip in the Eastern Mediterranean—Thoughts of a more profitable career—I join a law college—The law of Turkey —Untrustworthiness of English books of reference—Turkish law courts—A quasi-religious magistracy—Palace influence over justice—I am called to serve in the army—I obtain exemption with much dif

The anomalous position of foreigners in Turkey—Capitulation privileges—The Porte has no jurisdiction over foreign criminals—Attempts to modify the anomaly—Reason for their failure to be found in the Sultan's misrule—The independence of Turkey a mere fiction—The native Christians—Their separatist aspirations—Their treasonable acts—Their English apologists—Tolerant policy of the Turks—Dangers of this tolerance —The Armenians—Their ancient privileges—The massacres— Their present position. In the pr

I adopt European dress—The standard of civilisation—English clothes 'made in Austria'—European dress first adopted under Sultan Mahmud—My vain attempts to get an appointment—Requisite qualifications for Government employment, bribery and espionage—The only livelihood possible for educated men—I become a lawyer—I penetrate high official quarters. When I had passed the final examination in the law college I began to attend the Courts to see and learn the actual working of the forms of the procedur

The Porte the old centre of authority—The Ministers' present degraded position—A conversational opening—Meaning of 'Yildiz Kiosk'—The Sultan's Armenian appearance—The reasons for his living at Yildiz—A fortified palace—Its gardens and forest—The 'Charitable Hotel-keeper'—The apartments of the palace— Governing bodies in it—A cosmopolitan crew— Expenses of the Household—The Sultan's Civil List managed by Armenians. Before the reign of the present Sultan the centre of the ruling power in Turkey wa

The old right of appeal to the Sultan's person a thing of the past—He only leaves his palace once a week—The selamlik—Religious ceremonies and the sacred caravan—Its departure for Mecca—A military display— Abd-ul-Hamid's mosque—Its convenient proximity to the palace—A study in precaution—Dwarfs in the palace. As the Sultan has concentrated all governing power in his own palace, it might be thought that the palace was the place to which all who seek for justice and the redress of wrongs would com

The Sultan's personal power—The unimportance of territories—"Après moi le deluge"—Interested Europe—The poor native Christians—'Squeezability' of the Sultan—Every man has his price—Bakhsheesh and decorations—The Sultan's vast ability—His favourite literature. The object of the Sultan in sacrificing so much money, and in making such strenuous efforts to concentrate all the ruling power in his own hands, is simply that he may satisfy his extraordinary and insatiable lust of tyranny. To gain this e

The Sultan's opponents—His manner of dealing with them —The 'humanity' of Europe—Attempts on the Sultan's life—Lack of organisation in Young-Turkey— refuge for the reformers in England—The short-lived Parliament suppressed by the Sultan—Opposition of English Russophiles to Turkish schemes of reform—What Young-Turkey wanted—Persecution of Young-Turks—A long tale of victims—The possibility of a revival. In spite of all the measures taken by the Sultan to preserve his personal rule, he has met at t

Abd-ul-Hamid's use of his power as Caliph—What the Moslems think of him—British Mohammedan subjects —The validity of the Ottoman claims to the Caliphate —The mistaken policy of British Statesmen in opposing them—Danger of alienating the Mohammedan world—The errors of English writers. There can hardly be found in the history of nations a more fortunate tyrant than the autocrat of Yildiz Kiosk. Besides all the circumstances I have noted, Abd-ul-Hamid has at his back the authority of the Caliphate,

I become an object of interest to the Palace spies—I therefore leave Constantinople for a time—England and the Anatolian Railway—Prosperous whitewash and a deceitful governor—Bureaucratic changes in Asia MinorThe measures for restricting large gatherings of the people—Wedding entertainments diminished—The war-game of Jareed—My mother's objections to my visiting England—A perversion of the truth on my part. At this time, when I was making a fair living by means of the business entrusted to me by

The Turkish bath—Some of its features—Great number of baths in Constantinople—Women's baths and a proverb—Evening parties at the bath—I encounter a spy in a bath—He is well informed about me—I am alarmed—I appeal to an Englishman for help in escaping—The 'cursed country.' When I came back to Constantinople I decided to lead a more or less retired life, so that I might if possible avoid becoming a prey to the victim-hunting Palace spies. A year passed without fresh alarms, and meanwhile no easy o

I obtain a passage on a merchant vessel—A fortune of forty pounds—The people on board the ship—The difficulty of conversation—English cooking—Coffee and pig! Gibraltar, a first impression of British soldiers—From Hull to London—An instance of feminine courtesy—Lost in the Underground—Olympia—An interview with the Turkish Ambassador—A promise of justice conditional on my return to Turkey. When I described my last night's experience, my English friend promised to see about getting me out of the co

Christian Ambassadors accredited to England by the Sultan—I am strongly urged to return—A question of money and health—I consent and go back to Constantinople—At the palace of Yildiz—A 'private salary' and an appointment—A suggestion of espionage work—A warning—Broken promises move me to try and escape again—My plan—I sign on before the mast at the British Consulate—On a paraffin boat without luggage—I reach Liverpool in safety. About twenty days passed, and then I was again asked to go to the E