TURKESTAN. 556 TURKEY. try from the rule of China. From 1872 to 187G Eastern Turkestan was practically independent under Yakub Beg, but the rule of China was restored soon after his deatli. Consult: Schuyler, Xvlcs of a Journey in Rus- sian Turkestan {London, 1876) ; Jaworski, Turkestan (in Russian, Saint Petersburg, 1889) ; Albrecht, Russisch Centralasien (Hamburg, 1896) ; Phibbs, A Visit to the Russians in Cen- tral Asia (London, 1899) ; Schwarz, Turkestan (Berlin, 1900) ; Kraft, A t ravers le Turkestan russe (Paris, 1901). TURKESTAN. A town in the Territory of SyrDar3a, lUissian Turkestan, situated about 20 miles east of the right bank of the Syr-Darya, about 180 miles northwest of Tashkent (Map: Asia, F 4). The Mosque of Hazret-Vassavi is a noted place of pilgrimage. Population, in 1897, 11,598. TURKEY, or The Ottoman Empire (so named from its founder, Othman) . An empire in Europe. Asi.a, and Africa, with its capital at Constanti- nople. The bulk of the territories over which the Turkish Sultan exercises actual sovereignty is Turkey in Asia, which, exclusive of Arabian pos- sessions, has an area of nearly half a million square miles. A broad strip of country extend- ing the whole length of Arabia along the west coast, and containing Mecca, with an area of about 175,000 square miles, is included within the Ottoman Empire. The European territory actually under Turkish rule (includ- ing Novibazar) has an area of nearly 70,000 square miles. B^ilgaria ( with Eastern Rumelia) is tributary to Turkey. Bosnia and Herzegovina, nomiiially reckoned a part of the Ottoman Em- pire, virtually belong to .Austria-Hungary. Crete is a vassal State of Turkey and Samos pays tribute to the Sultan. Cyprus virtually passed in 1878 from the possession of Turkey ta that of England, which turns over part of the revenues to the Sultan. In Africa Turkish rule extends over Tripoli and Barca (Bengazi), the territory claimed (mainly desert) having an area of about -100,000 square miles. Egj'pt is tributary to Turkey, but is independent of Turkish rule. The Ottoman Empire, with the various tributary States and alienated provinces nominally reckoned as included in it, has an area in roimd numbers of about 1,500.000 square miles. The Ottoman domain, owing to internal weakness and external aggression, is in a state of disintegration, and is held together less by the cohesive power of the Turkish Government than by the jealousies of the European powers. This article deals especially with Turkey in Europe. For the other parts of the empire, see the articles on Anatolia (Asia Minor), Syria, Armenia, etc. Turkey in Europe embraces .about one-third of the Balkan Peninsula. It is bounded on the east and west by the Black and .■Vdriatie seas, on the north by Bulgaria, Servia, Bosnia, and Monte- negro, and on the south by the Sea of Marmora, the .Egean Sea, and Greece. Topography. Turkey in Europe shares the topographic characteristics of the whole Balkan Peninsula. It is chiefly covered with mountains, which, generally spealcing. extend in parallel chains from northwest to southeast, often, how- ever, interrupted by short, transverse ranges. There are no large plains excepting those of the Maritza Valley and the central coastal plain north of the island of Thasos. The greatest ele- vations are in the west and south. Here the -Albanian-Greek Mountains rise in the Shar-Dagh to a lieight of about 10,000 feet and to a nearly equal altitude in Mount Olympus. Above the low coasts of the Black Sea rise hills of snurll elevation, west of which is the fertile valley of the ilaritza River. West of the ilaritza 'alley are the Rhodope Mountains or Despoto-Dagh, towering up on the Bulgarian border to a height nearly equal to that of the western mountains. A little to the southwest is the Perim-Dagh, not greati}" inferior in elevation. Mount Athos, at the southeast end of the momitainous peninsula of Chalcidice, which projects into the -^gean, rises stceplj' to a height of over 6000 feet. In the extreme west is the wild and ahnost inacces- sible mountain land of Albania, descending to the marshy and unhealthful coastal plain of the Adriatic. The coasts are valuable features for the trade of the country, though the Black Sea coast is poor in havens. The Avinding river-like strait of the Bosporus, which connects the Black Sea with the Sea of JIarmora, and through it with the ^Mediterranean, has ample depth for the largest vessels. Here is the magnificent harbor of Constantinople, the great meeting place of the Eastern and Western trade. On the strait of the Dardanelles, leading from the Sea of Mar- mora into the Mediterranean, is the harbor of Gallipoli. The -Egean coast abounds in bays and excellent harbors, of which the chief are Dedea- gatch, the outlet of the grain exports of the Maritza Valley, and Saloniki, which shares with Constantinople most of the foreign trade. The Adriatic coast, though less irregular, also has good harbors, none of them, however, being of much modern importance. Hydrography'. The principal rivers of Euro- pean Turkey are the Maritza, the Struma, and the Vardar, flowing into the .Egean Sea. They are of little use for navigation except the lower part of the Maritza. Their great importance is that their alluvium has converted the valleys into very fertile lands, and these valleys are very useful for connnunication in connection with the overland routes from Western Europe to Con- stantinople and Saloniki. In Albania, among the limestone mountains, there are only turbu- lent torrents forcing their way through wild gorges, like the Drin. flowing into the Adriatic Sea. Scattered among the valleys of Turkey are a few lakes and even extensive marshes, partly filling larger lake basins. The largest lake is Scutari, which projects across the frontier into Montenegro. Climate and Soil. Climatic conditions vary greatly in different parts of the country. The mildest regions are on the .Egean Sea, where in the valleys opening to the south the climate is that of the Mediterranean, with mild winters and with the South European flora, including even cotton. The mountainous regions of the interior, largel.v cut off from the influence of the sea air. have, on the contrary, a very ex- treme climate, with cold and snowy winters, when the temperature often sinks below zero F., followed by summers so hot that the snow melts even on the loftiest summits. At Constantino- ple the mean temperature in .Tanuary is 43° F., and in July 72.5°. The precipitation on the
