father, that he might obtain the daughter, whose own choice is never consulted. The bride is rarely seen till the nuptial knot is tied. The practice of thus searching for wives, by those who desire to be united in wedlock, appears to have been anciently observed. * Having a letter of introduction to the French consul, a Greek by birth, I waited on him, and found him an unwieldy personage, exhibiting a pomposity of deportment which corresponded with that magnitude. I was received with politeness, and conducted to his house and garden, which I found to be the best in the town. After leaving his house, accompanied by his clerk, I apologised for my omission, in not paying a compliment to the consul, by enquiring after the health of his wife; and was on the point of returning to express myself to this purpose, when he told me it was a fortunate circumstance I had not done so, since, so far from being received in a favourable manner, it would have been highly indecorous, nay considered as an insult, and equivalent to spitting in the face of the consul! It may be remarked, that women in the marriage state in this quarter of the globe are in complete captivity. They are absolutely slaves to their husbands, and allowed to see no other persons at home than their families or relations, and when they do appear in the streets their faces are completely veiled. How striking is this difference, arising from the total state of seclusion in which the sex is kept in the East, contrasted with that of Europeans, who are so ambitious to appear in public, and court admiration. I was presented to Hassan Aga, the governor, by the English consul, and went in a kind of procession to the appointed audience, when I was treated with that solemn urbanity so peculiar to the Ottomans. He was a venerable person about seventy years of age, with a countenance expressive of serenity and wisdom; he had co-operated with the British army in Egypt, and commanded a regiment of horse. I was conducted to a cushion spread on * Genesis, xxiv. 4—6. the ground, and had the honour to sit next to him. We sat cross-legged, the slaves handing us pipes and tobacco ; in the course of conversation, I discovered him to be of a liberal mind. He shewed me attention, and asked a number of important questions on different subjects of a political and commercial nature, respecting Great Britain. In going along the streets, I happened to look into a miserable apartment, dignified with the appellation of an academy, which exhibited much the same scene as that I have described at Rosetta. In the back ground there was a group of boys, almost in a state of nudity, who were engaged in the operation of making baskets, and in the front, a ragged schoolmaster was endeavouring to teach about a dozen youths to read. Such is the miserable appearance of the population in general of this country, that it inspires a British traveller with that sort of aversion which prevents him from applying to them, those epithets of charity and compassion which their sad seclusion seems to call for. During the time I remained in Damietta, I was rendered comfortable, as the English consul not only entertained me with hospitality, but used his exertions in contributing to make the time pass cheerfully, both by inviting company to his house, riding about, and introducing me to his acquaintance. He did not omit to exhibit the different donations of fire-arms, sabres, and other articles, which he had received from travellers, thus conveying a pretty broad hint, that he expected in my turn I should present some gratification; I promised to do this on returning to England, when I transmitted to him a present accordingly, and he acknowledged the receipt of it by letter. Damietta is a place of some trade and extent; but, although I had been led to believe that the Ottoman inhabitants had a prejudice against Europeans, which discovered itself in the various insults offered them, yet I own I did not find this verified so far as regarded myself. The town is situated on the eastern bank, and the very edge of the Nile, about four miles distant from the sea, and has only one principal street. In its general appearance it is similar to other Turkish towns, as the view, especially from some distance, is imposing, but internally it is abominable. The back part of the houses and gardens are towards the Nevet, and approach in some degree to the mean parts of Wapping, in front of the Thames. The population is about thirty thousand. There is a market for the sale of human beings. The streets are narrow and winding; the houses are mean; the booths and bazars wretched, and many miserable objects are to be met with in going along. Rice is cultivated in the neighbourhood, and is supposed to be the finest in all Egypt, which I saw piled like so many small hills, and enormous quantities are exported, which yield a prodigious revenue. A considerable degree of bustle is to be seen on the quays. The mode of hatching chickens by means of artificial heat extends to this place. About two miles from the town is the lake of Mensaleh, between thirty and forty miles in breadth, which I visited with the consul. Here I was advised to abandon the dress of the Christian, and assume the costume of the Turk, under an assurance that it would be the means of protecting me from insult, and afford greater facility in travelling. I accordingly procured such a dress, put a red cap on my head, and bound a handkerchief round it to form a turban, and remained some time, in order to allow my beard to grow. I endeavoured to conform in every respect to a Mahomedan figure, the shaving of it being held as a disgrace; the preservation of the beard being one of the principal articles of their religion. I also had a sash round my body, with a sabre on one side of it, and a couple of pistols on the other, and yellow boots as high as the ancle, introduced into slippers of the same colour, without heels, and carried a long pipe. In descending the Nile from Grand Cairo, such is the state of dilapidation into which every thing is fallen, not only by the hands of barbarians, but the ravages of time, that I was fully aware I had passed many interesting spots, without being able to trace any vestiges of their ancient consideration. On inspecting the memoranda of the objects which I had expected to see, I found that nearly where the Rosetta and Damietta branches of the Nile separate, I had passed Matterea, the ruins of Heliopolis, considered the On of the Scriptures*, perhaps one of the most ancient cities in the world. It was chiefly distinguished for a magnificent temple, dedicated to the worship of the sun, or as we might with more propriety say, to the study of astronomy, since the priests were considered the most famous in Egypt for their astronomical observations, and the first who found the year to consist of 365 days. Here, I was told, there was a column of granite upwards of seventy feet in height, discovered with hieroglyphics; other pillars of a similar kind had also raised their lofty heads, which were transported to Rome and Constantinople. It is supposed that the country round this place is the land of Goshen or Rameses, which the children of Israel inhabited, and Grand Cairo their rendezvous, previous to their setting out for the Land of Promise. With respect to the causes of the inundations of the Nile, it may be proper to mention that different opinions have been entertained. Some are disposed to think that it may arise from the high wind that stops the current, and forces the water above the banks. Others presume there is a subterraneous passage between the ocean and this river, and that the sea, when violently agitated, swells. I apprehend, however, the true cause has been concealed from the human understanding, and can only be known to that Almighty Being who created all things by merely speaking, and they were done. * Genesis xli. 45. 50. CHAP. IX. ZOAN. CHRISTIANS' DEFEAT IN THE HOLY WAR. STATE OF THE PLACE. TIES AT USBE. -WRETCHED CONVENT.- ENGLISH CONSUL. DINNER OF THE MONKS. In descending the Nile I passed to the west a considerable town, called Mansura, presumed to have been the Zoan alluded to in the sacred volume. * At the ultimate overthrow of the Christian forces, Lewis IX. lost his liberty by being taken prisoner; on which occasion the town of Damietta was surrendered as part of his ransom. At the siege of this place, during the period of the crusades, in 1291, the English troops were led on to battle by the Earls of Chester, Arundel, and Salisbury, who were distinguished as much for courage as elevation of rank, when the last of them fell most bravely fighting on his knees, and the Earl of Artois perished in the river. I sailed down to Usbe, one mile distant from the mouth of the Nile, in expectation of meeting a vessel destined for Joppa; but the water being so low it was found impracticable for any to pass the bar. This frequently occurs when the wind blows strong, as it throws up a bank of sand, called the Bogaz, and sometimes occasions an interruption of several weeks. Constant heavy rains had fallen in this miserable village, which is composed of huts built of mud, some of which are about six or eight feet in height, with ragged parents and naked children rolling in wretchedness. Mr. Mirza, who was at the head of the custom-house, * Numbers xiii. 22. Isaiah xxx. 4. Psalm 1xxviii 12. |