The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, September 5, 1897, Page 18

18 THE SAN, FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 5. 1897. The Strange Story of i Pasha of Janina clusion of a definite treaty of peace between Turkey and Greece, the s of delimitation is enzaging attention. Greece is ex- tremely anxious, if possible, to add to her territory the pashalik of Janina. Janina has haa story will n t be unacceptable to readers. here were born to an Albanian hermit named 115 two brothers, two children named fteen, the boy somewhat older, when \d the neighboring viilage of Gir- As the time approaches for the c 20 A bundred and fifty odd v Veli, who had risen tod respectively Ali and Chain in a vendetta between diki, the former i, the inhabitants carried off into slavery, and Alj, Chainitzi and their t amiko, endured the extremity of ontrage and misery. Still, the bo: ew to manhood and was an expert in all sports, Afier several vears of murder and intrigue Ali raised an army of bandits and made robbery a business. This brought him a he bought from the Sultan the pashalik of Janina and thus became the Lord of Epirus. In the years that fotlowed, by the dext 1s use of poiso: 1 sword Le became ruler of a large part of Macedonia, Livadia, Acarania and In the hope o winked at the victories w! s power the Porte connived at the Juliot rebellion and h the mountaineers won over Aliin 1790-1800. The Juliots were Christians, after th hion, and Ali fought them in the name of the Crescent, but when Foto Tzavellas won a victory over Ali’s forces the orthodox Turks on the Bosphorus chuckled, and Stambsul mourned when they read of the withered limbs, curbing the blackened counten , the dry and sunken cheeks, the hungry eyesof the cliff dwellers, who, under the lead of a monk known as *The Last Judzmant,” were living on acorns bark, and supplying themseives with water by means of sponges let down to » the scanty drops which rested in the clefts of the rocks. The last conflict toucaed Turk as well as Christian. The fanatic who 1e Last Judgmeat” remained behind to surrender the rebel ammu- tors. szid the Pasha’s secretary, “what punishment shall the Vizier inflict e placed vourself in his power?” ne,” replied the monk, ‘‘on one who despises death.” pistol into a barrel of gunpowder and blew up tue building, with scene of tk called himse] nition to the “And now on you who “‘He ca And he n bad taken refuge in abuilding which overhung ths black rolling waters of the Acheron, and was so lofty that the roar of the foaming torrent did not reach it. Sixty women, with children in their arms, imprinted a fare well ki on the lips of their infants and hurled them into the abyss. Then, chantinga w dirge to a native air, each in turn sprang from the beeiling rock. The men were exterminated with e refinement of torture. Ali was ingenious. One of his bappy thourhts was to fill the ears of a captive with gunpowder and appiy a match; another was to strip the face of a prisoner of its skin and scalp and to force the mutilated wretch to marciin that areadful condition. The work was done so thoroughly that | Ali received the congratulations of the Divan and was reappointed Roume!i Valisi, | He had then leisure to tarn bis attention to Gardiki, which haa been tho scene of his mother's and his sister’s sad experiences. The fair Chainitza wrote: *You are no longer worthy of the title of v:zier nor the name of a brother if you Lesitate to redeem tne pledge sworn above the inanimate remeins of our mother. If you are the son of Knamko, you will hasten to exterminate the defenders of Gardiki. Trust to me to deal with the women and children. 1 shall never rest on any other bed than a couch stuffed with the hair of the Gardikiot girls.” Tue brother of this amiable creature was equal to the task. Under pretense of a classed as one of the ¢ | ventions of the In a very short time there will be put to the test in New York one of the most novel inventions tor the saying of human beings from burning buildings that have ever been devised. The principle of it is nothing more nor less than the net that circus rings when acrobats are performing on high trapezes and other dangerous is used in places. As is well known, thisnet is a sure safeguard against' injury to the person who falls into it. here are ¢ases on. record of peo- ple falling from a height of sixty feet into one of these nets and not sustaining even bruise. From the experience of many years there can be no doubt of the efficacy of the net. The trouble has been to have hand when it was wanted. James Ryan, who lives at 343 East Fifty-first street, New York, is the man who thinks that he has solved this problem. Furthermore, he is a practical mechanic and has secured a patent on his apparatus which, if it proves all that he ex- pects it to be, will deserve to be atest in- .* Not only does Mr. Ryan feel sanguine of success, but he has convinced the heads of the Fire Department to such an extent that they will permit the apparatus to be tried at a real fire and under ail the conditions likely to prevail when such a machine would be needed. If it meets all the requirements, and there seems to be no reason why it should not, it will surely be adopted by the New York Fire Department and become a part of the regular ap- a nference he beguiled the men of Garliki into a cattie corral surrounded by a high wall. Closine the gates he called upon his Mosiem troons to make an end of them | then and there, ati v vras! (kiil, kill). The Turks grounded their arm declering that thev were soldiers, not executioners, and that they would not fire on | una men. He called upon a body of but they, too, refused. Then | stepped out of the ranks an ex sia Vaia, whe commanded a | squadron of Greek irregulars. He said that his men would do the deed. They scaled | the wail with ladders and from the top opened fire; the muskets of the Moslems were | handed up to them and the shootinz was kept up for an hour, during which Ali lis- tened unmoved to the incessant discharga of musketry, the unearthly shrieks of the viciims, the shouts of terror, the groans of agony and the gargling sobs of death. | Tuen all was at. Inside the corral there were 670 corpses, The women were delivered to Chainitza, who tore their veils from their faces | as the greatest insult which could be offered to an Oriental woman. While they | were wailing soldiers tore tkeir clothes from their bod:es, and: their hait was shorn from tbeir heads and stuffed into cushions. They were then driven out into the | woods, naked as they were, and the peasants were warned that they would feel | Ali’s vengeance if they gave food or raiment to the objects of his wrath. It is my | will,” sald Chaini:za, “'that they shail wander like beasts of the field tiil they perish | of famine and coid.” Some weeks elapsel bhefare the remnants were gathered up by humane parties of soldiery and sold as slaves. This was in 1812, Yet the monster Ali had a soft place in bis heart. This was for a fair Greek with flashing black eyes, rounded arms and a voluptuous figure. Her name was Vasilike. For her he felt a passionate Jove which dominated the wild beast in his’| nature. She could soothe him in his paroxysms of rage, and he would leave scenes of bloodshed and cruelty in which he delighted (o rest his head on her knees and | fondle her :aper fingers. Her company was his only honest delight. He dreamed of a new era in which he would drop kis schemes of conquest and dominion, and spend peaceful days by her side in the kiosk he had buiit in the lovely lake of Janina under the blue sky of Greece, and breathiug the perfumes of flowers. But it was too late. The Porte had received the dispatches regardinz Gardiki with coldness. They had aroused a powerful feeling at the foreign embassies. The Turk is at heart a gentleman; an outrage to a woman shocks him. There were long consulta ; the Seraskier was warned that no dispatch-bearer from Con- stantinople was likely to reach Janina alive. But the Sultan was firm. A firman was issued pronouncing Ali Pasha fermanli—that is, an outlaw—and a body of troops was set in motion er an experienced general to execute the decree. i Ali was undismayed. b his fair Vasilike he shut himself up in his kiosk W paratus in all engine and hook and ladder houses The principal thing about the invention that makes its adoption seem certain its simplicity There is not a thing about it that is ‘fcun possibly get out of order, and any man with the least bit of common sense will be able to oper- ate it. The wonder is when one considers the simplicity of the apparatus that nobody ever thought of it before. The idea of the new life net is a truck constructed of steel and capable of being drawn by two horses, on which is rigged a frame- work, to which the net is fastened in such manner that it is stretched out flat. -This frame is capable of being folded up when not in use and when being drawn through the streets, but can be stretched out to its fullest capacity in a moment. The carriage or truck which will carry the life net will be light and strong. It will carry a net thirty stretched across an opening in the platform of the truck directly under the center of the upper and princi- pal net. This is intended to actas a re-enforcement to the upper net. The truck will be steered by the turning of the rear wheels, and will have room for ten men, though four are sufficient to operate the apparatus. The principal net lies flat on the platform of the truck when not in use, and the soft sur- face of the net could be used to lay injured people upon after rescue from fire. Thus the truck would serve as an impromptu am- bulance. Not only will the truck carry the net and crew of men necessary to operate it, but beneath it there are to be places for ladders and for fire- extinguishers, as well as many im- plements necessary to fight the fire fiend. As the machine is put into general use there is no doubt but that other uses will suggest them- selves from time to time. While the truck and the net are in the engine-house it is a com- pact-looking affair and almost meaningless as far as its resem- blance to any known machinery goes. As soon as the alarm comes in the hitching of the horses and the feet long ard from six to nine feet men getting into their places pro- n La defiance. Every boat on the lake was seized and his drawbridge was never let down, except under his own eye. Under the kiosk was a magazine full of powder, to which he declared ke would apply a match if he were attacked by a force he could not overcome. *Ths Sultan,” said he, “will find the bear of Pindus still alive.” One morning he got word that a pleas- ure ypariy wished to take a sail on the lake and to pay him a visit. He lent them a boat and went to meet them in a sum- mer-house. = An officer entered the summer-house, and drawing a paper from his pocket pro- ceeded to read to Ali his sentence of death. *Btop,” cried the Pasha, “what is thi:! you read me?” *'Tis the Sultan’s order for your head. Obey the decree of fate and make your ab- iutions." “The head of Ali,” said the old chief, “is not so easily won,” and drawing a pistol he laid the officer dead at his feet. “Run,” he cried to a servant at his side, “and put my faithful Vasilike to death, that she may follow me to the tomb.” At that moment one of the soldiers struck him down with a mortal wound. e Junina, cut off all communication with the shore, and set his enemy at in width. A secondary net will be ceeds as it does in an engine- IR house. When the burning build- ing is reached the truck 1s hauled up on the sidewalk, directly under the window from which the people are trying to escape. The steel frame that supports‘ the net is then spread out, and all is ready for the endangered people to jump. The opened net is to be nine feet wide by thirty feet long, | so that there will be no danger of anybody missing it. While the| | A Weird Story of - Love and Mystery | It wasin the dry season and hot—so hot that the air waved and shin | under the straight-falling rays of the noonaay sun, and the white road benes | teet glowed like molien metal, while the dust-laden trees and bu.hes on either seemed dried and baked and shriveled into mere mummies of vegetation. Clifforl looked at me with an expression of utter disgust upon his Hushe !, " perspiring face. *Itcan’t be much worss in the desert,” he said. “I'vea noti o there next.” 5 | “There’s always water to be had here,” I answered, “and that's an advantage, 11,9 | Ilike the redwoods better than cacti, so I hope we shall not have to move on for s | time vet.”” “IUs hotter than Hades,”” he persisted, moodily, ignorine my remarks, “and [ | am about done up. I wish—By Jove, look there!” One of the sharp turns of the narrow mountain road had brought us (o a bit of | level ground whére an attenuated brook lazily meandered over a bed of stones under- | neath a wagon-bridge of rough planks. On the jurther side of this bridge a fallen | tree, shorn ol its branches, stre ched its decaying length along the roadsice, and on that hard couch lay, prone upon its face, basking in the fiezce neat of tLe unshadowed | 8un, the slender fizure of a young girl! She raised her head as we approached and looked at us with a certain alert | curiosity. The action, though graceful, struck me as si nce sbe assisted it in Do way with either her arms or shouiders, bat sin neck with a single direct movement which told of the | muscles under her smooth, dark skin. CIff rd raised his hat as we drew near. My friend’s eyes had lighted with sudden interest, for, by rc | sectusion, he had not seen the flutter of & peiticoat for o was an carthly puregatory. Flirtation of some d- | the very breath of his existence, and 10 find an apparently fliriavle young woman up here in the redwood solitudes was to him a most tnexpected but an_extremely wel- come blessing. She certainly was not pretty; put she was a woman, and her eves wers wo | fully brilliant, and there was more than a soupcon of encour. she looked np at Clifford’s handsome, grimy fzca. nd slender leness of the | . son of his enforced 1+ mouth, a ttoh meat in her smile in a moment he was sitting on the tree trunk beside her, pleadin cuse. She moved her skirts aside to make room for him, thougn the log was fifty fec long, and I noted with disfavor how thick the dust was on her dead black gown, which, trimmed with lengthwise rows of coarse white lace, seemed a strange garb !%‘T | a mountain ciimb. After that day life had a new interest for my friend, for his roadside acquaintance filled much of his time and thoughts.. Sne would not teil him her name, nor invite him to her camp, for she declared that her peorie would be very angry with ber should they learn of her i prudence in making the informal acquaintance of but she came cver in the vicinity. of our tent almost daily, and he spent | her company. Meanwnile my mind was far :from easy, for I knew that when Clifford and a woman became interested in each other there was usually the devil to pay after st jumping is going on firemen will stand near by and assist those who | have failen into the net to get outi and avoid being jumped upon by | others. | Four or five of these trucks will be enough to surround a large building and guard all places where people are likely to jump from. In the event of the fire getting too | hot for the truck it stands to rea- | son that by this time there will be no. people in the building to save. The truck can then be hauled away and made to doduty in hauling coal and other supplies to the engines. The inventor of this life-saving net has tried it while in a station- ary position and found that it worked like a charm. He jumped into it from the height of four stories and landed with the great- est ‘ease.=s He not a practical athlete either, and says that any- body else can do the same. | In fact there is no doubt about! the apparatus working under ordi- nary circumstances. All that really | remains to be seen is whether or | not it can be handled under the| excitement of a big fire, when all | is rush and tumult. There is no doubt but that if the net and truck ‘ are hauled to the fire and placed in | position all who jump into it will be | sure to be saved from a horrible death. Odd as Mr. Ryan’s inventicn may seem, it is nothing to some of the freaks that have been evolved in the past for the purpose of res-| cuing lives at fires, and some of : the craziest of them bhave actually | been adopted by the fire depart-| ments of some of our large cities| and not abandoned until after they had cost many thousands of dollars., One of these freaks appeared last fall, and, strange as it may seem, caught the eye of the chief of an Ohio fire department. The idea was to keep in each engine- house a large dray loaded with box couches having padded sides ex- tending upward several feet. It was hoped that these could be hauled to the fire and distributed around the burning building. Only one trial was given the scheme, and then the only man who jumped into one of them was instantly kilied. is His head was cot off and sent to Con- staptinople, according to the Turkish W, &ty custom; his body was piously burned by i } awhile. That he did not love this girl I knew, but I knew also that he would spare no effort to make her love him. The fact that he had a wife and child in the East— forced upon bim by untoward fate at an early period in his career—and that a certain pretty girl’s father and brothers had individually sworn to shoot hir: on sight, made no difference in_his regular routine, and, altbough I rather blamed this new vic'im of his fascinations for ner lack of discretion, I felt sure that she. was an honest girl and I pitied her, Once, meeting her alone, I tried to give her a word of warning, but she so resented my well-meant interference that I regretted it instantly. I then noticed for the first time, 'as one notices trifles even when most deeply moved, how unusually long were her two upper front teeth, and how ugly they made her mouth look when she sneered. Phlegmatic as T am, I confess that [ experienca¢ a queer, cold, creeping thrill of something very like fear as I looke«d at her standing with her black and white gown twisted about her fzet with the suddenness of her turning upon me, her head bent forward and waviug slightly from side to side, and her eyes glittering, while ner fingers, plucking at the beaas around her wrists, made them give forth that ominous rattie which had so stariled me at our first’ meeting. She could *‘take care of herself,”” she said. The next day I went down to the viliage and found there a letter, the coming of which we had daily expected. The man-hunters had scented our trail and we must leave that locality at once. Back to camp I hurried, but Clifford was not as usuai awaiting me to hear of the “no news’’ which was ‘‘gooa news” to us. The brandy-flask was in evidence on the box which served as our table, and that was a bad sign, for Clifford’s head could carry no lquor, and a trifie of any kind made him a thousand times more of a dare- devil than he was by nature. Our flight must be sudden and swift—there was not a moment to lose—and yet bacause of that confounded girl I might have trouble get- ting him away. 1 nad it all planned ana prepared for, but where was Chfford? Nowhere about the camp most certainly. Well, she had informed me that she could take care of her- self, so I had no cause for anxiety concerning her, but my news would not wait for Clifford’s leve-making—1 must find him and at once. At first I searched in vain, not daring to shout or blow the horn, sinc: it wa not a time to make our presence in that place an iutrusive fact, but at last, fro among some trees far down a side-hill slope, I heard voices. I started down tie stony, winding path, notinz as I came nearer that the girl's tone was one of angry remonstrance, not of fear, and that Clifford seemed trying laughingly to plead w and pacify her. It was well that I had come, I thought grimly, and it was well for us ail that I was to carry Clifford away with me. Downwa~d [ burried, but I had taken only a few steps when [ heard the sharp rattle oi the girl’s bracelets as she evidently tried to free herself from her com- panion’s grasp. A moment later and there rang out upon the stillness—the solemn silence of the woods and hills—a cry like that of a lost soul, mingled with terror, horror and despair, tbat for tie instant I stood spellbound, shivering with a deadly dread that seemed ireezing my very beart. Then I sprang from the tortuous path and plunged down through the chaparral —stumbling, crawling, breaking my way ke a mad creature—with that awful sound still beating on my brain, deafene ing, blinding, benumbing me to all bug tne one thought, that Clifford—the friend whom in spite of all his faults I loved so well—was facing alone some mortal dan. ger from which my presence might Save him. & 8" s i I was too.Jate. It mu-t have been ale ready too late when his summonscame to me, for when at last, painfu ly dragging my bruiced body on the :wisted ankie which bad played me false und precipi. tated me nearly to the bottom of the can- yon, 1 reached him he was but a hide- ousiy swollen, purple, dead thing, a hor. ror to haunt one’s dreams! ‘What killed him? That I cannot te put I know that on the side of his nem:: just where the throbbins artery would wost guickly carry the venom on its . % deadly mission, there were two sharply Vasilike, who was probably the only wo- man he bad ever loved. Joux BoxxEr. punctured wounds, such as might nave been made by a monster Crotalis horridus, FLorENCE PERCY MaTHESON.