Bucharest

Bucharest, the capital of Roumania, is situated in the valley of the Dimbovitza, n tributary of the Danube, in lat. 44° 25' N., and long. 26° 5' E. It is a picturesque city by reason of its many cupolas, minarets, and trees, but is badly built, and is only partly paved. It is the meeting-place of east and west, and is the principal seat of the trade between Austria and the Balkan peninsula, though it has no important manufactures of its own. The chief articles of trade are cattle, coal, grain, hides, metal, timber and textile fabrics. The town is fortified, and is making some progress, and it has the reputation of being the most dissipated capital of Europe - a fact that may be owing to its cosmopolitan nature. The railway system is quite young, but is rapidly extending. Founded in the 13th century, Bucharest was for a long period a bone of contention among Russia, Austria, and Turkey, and although things are now more settled, its future seems far from being secured.