Bulgaria

Bulgaria, a principality under the suzerainty of the Sultan of Turkey, situated on the right or southern bank of the Danube. It extends from the influx of the river Timok to Silistria, and thence to the Black Sea near Cape Kaliakra. It is bounded on the S. by the Balkan range, and on the W. by Servia. Since 1886, however, its boundaries have been enlarged by the union with Eastern Roumelia, on the S. side of that range, which now forms part of the principality, and is often called Southern Bulgaria. The total area is 38,390 square miles. Bulgaria is an extensive table-land, sloping towards the Danube and drained by its tributaries, which are numerous, but of inconsiderable size, and by a few small streams running into the Black Sea, The only mountains are the Balkans (the Haemus of the ancients), of an average height of 5,000 feet, Mount Scardus. the highest peak of the Char Dagh, has an elevation of 9,700 feet above the sea. The mountains are of granitic character, and can be traversed only by certain passes. That known as Trajan's Gate carries the main road between Constantinople and Vienna; the Shipka Pass is memorable as the scene of a gallant struggle during the Russo-Turkish war.

Climate. The winter is severe but not long, the summer and autumn generally warm and dry but for occasional thunderstorms. The soil is a light black or brown loam, very fertile.

Minerals abound. Coal, silver, lead, iron, chrome, manganese, graphite, malachite, gypsum, kaolin, and salt have all been found, but there are very few mines at work. Iron and sulphur springs are numerous.

History. Bulgaria proper includes most of the ancient Moesia, which, when first mentioned by historians, had a Slav population. Various Gothic colonies were afterwards founded, and about the middle of the sixth century the Bulgarians, a Finn tribe from the banks of the Volga, settled in Lower Moesia. In the seventh century Upper Moesia was given by Heraclius, the Byzantine emperor, to the Serbs, a Slavonic race. Bulgaria; as Lower Moesia now came to be called, after remaining for some centuries under the protection of the Byzantine empire, in 1185 declared its independence. The yoke of the empire, however, was merely exchanged for that of Hungary, until the year 1392, when the country was conquered by the Ottomans, and its so-called independence came to an end. The troubles culminated in 1876-7-8 in the Russo-Turkish War, from which Bulgaria rose a separate State. Prince Ferdinand was elected in 1887; and this election was confirmed by the Porte in 1896.

Constitution. The principality was created in 1878 by the treaty of Berlin, which ordered that it should be autonomous, and tributary to the Sultan, with a Christian government and a national militia. The Prince is to be freely elected by the population and confirmed by the Sublime Porte; he may not be a member of any of the reigning houses of the great European powers. Eastern Roumelia was handed over to the Prince of Bulgaria by imperial firman, April 6th, 1886. Sofia forms the joint capital.

The legislative authority was originally vested in a single chamber called the National Assembly. This was elected triennially (by "manhood suffrage") in the proportion of one member to every 10,000 of the population. In 1883 the Assembly assented to the creation of a second chamber. The executive power is wielded by a council of six ministers, those, namely, of (1) Foreign Affairs and Public Worship, (2) the Interior, (3) Public Instruction, (4) Finance, (5) Justice, and (6) War. The country is divided into 23 prefectures, 17 in Northern and 6 in Southern Bulgaria.

Population, according to the census of 1893: - total, 3,309,816. About three-fourths of these are Bulgarians, the remainder being made up of Mussulmans (who are annually decreasing), Greeks, Jews, gipsies, and foreigners of various nationalities.

Education. The constitution makes primary education free and compulsory, but fails to fix a penalty for non-compliance. The natural result is that in the agricultural districts a large proportion of the children are kept away from school to help in farm labour. There are 3,844 elementary schools, with 4,386 masters and 537 mistresses; but whereas the number of children of school age (6 to 12 years) is given at 275,756 boys and 261,968 girls, those attending the schools only number 129,977 boys and 42,206 girls, or 47 per cent. of the former and 16 per cent. of the latter. The proportion of educated persons, according to the census of 1888, was only 11 per cent. of the population.

Sofia has a university, maintained by the government, which also supports higher schools at about a dozen other towns. There is an excellent free library at Sofia.

Agriculture. Though almost exclusively an agricultural people, the Bulgarians are in many respects a long way behind the food producers of other European countries. There are no large landowners, and the cultivated lands, which comprise nearly 6,000,000 acres, or about 25 per cent. of the total area, are chiefly in the hands of peasant proprietors, having freeholds averaging less than 20 acres in extent. These small farmers maintain a strongly conservative attitude with regard to scientific improvements. Modern machinery, chemical manures, and even the rotation of crops, are practically unknown, and the primitive methods of the classical period still prevail.

A more serious difficulty even than this lack of enterprise among the farmers is the want of adequate means of communication and transport. The roads, although somewhat improved during the last few years, are still among the worst in Europe. The railways, few and not easily accessible from the villages, charge prohibitory freight rates.

Grain, principally wheat, is the chief product. The crop of 1889 was estimated at 9,000,000 quarters, of which more than 2,000,000 quarters were exported. Grain constitutes about 80 per cent. of the total exports. Wine, silk, tobacco, rice, and cotton are also produced, but in no great quantities, and flax, hemp, poppies, madder, and colza are cultivated. There are 728,000 acres of forest, containing oak, beech, elm, ash, pine, poplar, cornel, and juniper. New laws have recently been passed for their protection from waste.

The famous attar of roses is produced chiefly in the prefectures of Philippopolis and Eski Zara, in which latter is situated the Kezanlik "Valley of Roses." The output of attar is about, 6,000 lbs. annually, the value being from £12 to £14 per lb. The rose growers are mostly of the poorer class, and derive but little benefit from the business, the crop being bought up, often in advance, by wealthy merchants, who make enormous profits.

Cattle breeding is carried on with little or no attempt to improve the quality of the stock produced. Oxen and buffaloes are used for draught, almost to the exclusion of horses, which are scarcely employed outside the towns, where they are worked in strings as pack-horses. Of late, efforts have been made by the Government to introduce stallions and bulls of a better class, for stud purposes. In 1892 there were 7,060,300 sheep, 1,453,500 goats, and 441,000 pigs in Bulgaria. The annual export is quite unimportant.

Industries. These are practically non-existent. A few inefficiently worked coal mines, and some manufactories of rough homespuns (gaitan) and braid embroidery (abu and shayak), are alone worthy of mention.

Army. Service is compulsory. There are twenty-four regiments of infantry, each of two battalions and a depot, four regiments of cavalry, six regiments of artillery, having four field batteries of four guns and 120 men, two artillery depots, one battery of siege artillery, two battalions of engineers, and one company of discipline. Total peace strength, about 39,000 of all ranks; total war strength, about 175,000.

Navy. This includes three ships of war, ten steam sloops, armed with guns, and two torpedo boats. Personnel, twelve officers and 334 men.