The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham.

262 THE BURDEN OF THE BALKANS. the hopes founded on my visit. One woman declared that good could not fail to come of it. Brigandage and the Government, I was told, were what they suffered from. The Government robbed them, and gave them no protection at all. The richer men paid armed guards; the others subscribed for two more. They greatly feared the men of the Kolonia district, but vowed I was safe, as there was no one in the village who would betray my presence to outsiders. Were it known, they would probably be raided, as I was worth putting to ransom. Moslems took to brigandage to escape conscription and to gain money to pay for exemption from military service. They were chiefly from rugged districts where there were no means of earning enough otherwise. It was a dog's life in the Turkish army. Many of those who had taken up brigandage were amongst the strongest and most intelligent. In any other land such men would be good citizens. Here they lived like wild beasts on the mountain, and robbed rather than be robbed and oppressed by the Government. Such is brigandage from the native point of view. They dreaded the brigands, but they pitied them, and regarded them as the victims of circumstances. My guide was afraid to travel anywhere with me without a gendarme or two, as, had anything happened to me, he would have been accused of connivance. I stayed some days with the kindly, simple villagers, many of whom had earned their money, as did my guide, in other parts. There seemed to be a great

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Title: The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham.
Author: Durham, Mary Edith, 1863-1944.
Canvas: Page 262
Publication: London :: Nelson,; [1905]
Subject terms: Eastern question (Balkan); Balkan Peninsula -- Description and travel.

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Collection: Travels in Southeastern Europe
Link to this Item: https://name.umdl.umich.edu/ans3900.0001.001
Link to this scan: https://quod.lib.umich.edu/b/bosnia/ans3900.0001.001/269

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Full citation: "The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham." In the digital collection Travels in Southeastern Europe. https://name.umdl.umich.edu/ans3900.0001.001. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 1, 2025.

The burden of the Balkans / by M. Edith Durham.

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