l Greco-Slaavic
communities from the Adriatic to the utmost confines of Russia, and
the parent of all the modern varieties of the Southern and Eastern
Slaavic languages.

CHAPTER XXI.

A Battue missed.--Proceed to Alexinatz.--Foreign-Office
Courier.--Bulgarian frontier.--Gipsey Suregee.--Tiupria.--New bridge
and macadamized road.

The Natchalnik was the Nimrod of his district, and had made
arrangements to treat me to a grand hunt of bears and boars on the
Jastrabatz, with a couple of hundred peasants to beat the woods; but
the rain poured, the wind blew, my sport was spoiled, and I missed
glorious materials for a Snyders in print. Thankful was I, however,
that the element had spared me during the journey in the hills, and
that we were in snug quarters during the bad weather. A day later I
should have been caught in the peasant's chimneyless-hut at the foot
of the Balkan, and then should have roughed it in earnest.

When the weather settled, I was again in motion, ascending that branch
of the Morava which comes from Nissa. There was nothing to remark in
this part of Servia, which proved to be the least interesting part of
our route, being wanting as well in boldness of outline as in
luxuriant vegetation.

On approaching a khan, at a short distance from Alexinatz, I perceived
an individual whom I guessed to be the captain of the place, along
with a Britannic-looking figure in a Polish frock. This was Captain
W----, a queen's messenger of the new school.

While we were drinking a cup of coffee, a Turkish Bin Bashi came upon
his way to Belgrade from the army of Roumelia at Kalkendel; he told us
that the Pasha of Nish had gone with all his force to Procupli to
disarm the Arnaouts. I very naturally took out the map to learn where
Procupli was; on which the Bin Bashi asked me if I was a military
engineer! "That boy will be the death of me!"--so nobody but military
engineers are permitted to look at maps.

For a month I had seen or heard nothing of Europe and Europeans
except the doctor at Csatsak, and his sage maxims about Greek masses
and Hungarian law-suits. I therefore made prize of the captain, who
was an intelligent man, with an abundance of fresh political
chit-chat, and odds and ends of scandal from Paddington to the Bank,
and from Pall-mall to Parliament-street, brimful of extracts and
essences of Athenaeums, United-Services, and other hebdomadals.
Formerly Foreign-Office messengers were the cast-off