Read "A Steam Voyage down the Danube, Vol. 2 of 2" by Michael J. Quin online for free on Textopian. Full text with search, annotations, highlights, and AI-powered reading aids.
Constantinople -- The Hellespont -- Change of climate -- Tomb of Patroclus -- Greek quadrille -- Throwing the ball -- Vintage dance -- Greek seas -- Sirocco -- Mytilene -- Pocket winds -- Gulph of Smyrna -- City of Smyrna -- Madame Maracinis -- "Of course" -- Hind cutter.
While I was at Constantinople, two circumstances occurred of a remarkable character -- at least the Christians as well as the Turks deemed them so. The Turkish fleet had gone down to the Sea of Marmora for exercise. The Sultan one day went in his steam-boat to inspect them, and as he was ascending to the Admiral's ship, his diamond-hiked ataghan, which was fixed as usual in his cincture, by some accident got entangled with a rope and fell into the sea! It was the most ancient weapon of that kind in his possession; he wore it on state occasions as one of the most peculiar tokens of his legitimate succession to the throne, and it was now lost beyond all hope of recovery, for the waters were unfathomable!