Herzegovina; Or, Omer Pacha and the Christian RebelsArbuthnot, George
History
Herzegovina; Or, Omer Pacha and the Christian Rebels
Arbuthnot, George
Hercegovina (Bosnia and Hercegovina) -- History; Serbia
The Austrian Consul also received me with much civility, and most
obligingly placed his house at my disposal, although compelled to start
for Spolatro on business. For some reason best known to himself, he
begged of me to return to Mostar, insisting on the impracticability of
travelling in Bosnia in the present state of political feeling. This,
coupled with the specimen of priestly civility which I had experienced
in the convent of Goritza, inclined me to alter the route which I had
proposed to myself by Foinitza to Bosna Serai. In lieu of this route, I
resolved upon visiting Travnik, the former capital of Bosnia, before
proceeding to Bosna Serai (or Serayevo, as it is called in the
vernacular), the present capital of the province. In fulfillment of this
plan, I started on the morning of the 21st, though suffering from fever
and headache, which I attributed to a cold caught in the damp vaults of
the Franciscan convent. With each successive day my illness became more
serious, and it was with difficulty that I could sit my horse during the
last day's journey before reaching Travnik. At one of the khans en
route, I put myself into the hands of the Khanjee, who with his female
helpmate prescribed the following remedies:--He directed me to place my
feet in a basin of almost boiling tea, made out of some medicinal herbs
peculiar to the country, the aroma from which was most objectionable. He
then covered me with a waterproof sheet which I carried with me, and,
when sufficiently cooked, lifted me into bed. Though slightly relieved
by this treatment, the cure was anything but final; and on my arrival at
Travnik I was far more dead than alive. There an Hungarian doctor, to
whom I had letters of introduction, came to visit me, and prescribed a
few simple remedies. One day I hazarded the remark that stimulants were
what I most required; upon which the learned doctor observed, with
proper gravity, that brandy would probably be the most efficacious
remedy, as he had often heard that English soldiers lived entirely on
exciting drinks. Ill as I was, I could scarcely refrain from laughing at
the drollery of the idea.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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