not permit himself fuch a hint as this, though the Red Sea was between him and his mistress.

It was impoffible to fleep; the whole night was one continued ftorm of thunder, rain, and lightning; the morning was clearer, and my people very urgent to go away; but I had ftill to fettle with Zor Woldo, who had been kept by his mistress, Fafil's wife, notwithstanding his master's orders, till he had told her the whole circumftances of our expedition, and made her laugh heartily at the oddity of our fentiments and cuftoms. This the repaid to him by plentiful horns of mead and bouza, as alfo large collops of raw meat, which made him a very eloquent hiftorian; whether or no he was a faithful one, I cannot poffibly judge.

After having fettled with him to his perfect fatisfaction, and cancelled entirely the memory of fome disagreeable things paffed, he configned us very folemnly to Ayto Aylo's fervant, in prefence of Welled Amlac, and had taken his leave, when a very fine white cow was brought to the door of the tent from Falil's wife, who infifted, as a friend of her hufband, that I would ftay that day for her fake; and I fhould either learn her my language, or fhe would teach me Galla. The party was accepted as foon as offered; the morning was fresh and cool, nor had daft night's li bation any way difordered my ftomach. Strates himself, though afraid of Welled Amlac, and exceedingly exafperated at the impudent behaviour, as he called it, of Melectanea, was, however, a little pacified at the approach of the white cow. Brother, fays he to Michael, we have nothing to do with people's manners as long as they are civil to us: as to this houfe, there is no doubt but the men are robbers and murderers, and their women wh-es; but if they ufe us well while we are now here, and we are fo lucky as to get to Gondar

a

X

live, let the devil take me if ever I feek again to be at Welled Abea Abbo. It was agreed to relax that day, and dedicate it to herborizing, as alfo to the fatisfying the curiofity of our female friends, by anfwering all their queftions; and thus the forenoon paffed as agreeable as possible.

Welled Amiac, a great hunter, had gone with me early to a neighbouring thicket on horfeback, armed with lances in fearch of venison, tho we certainly did not want provisions. We in a few minutes raised two bohur, a large animal of the deer kind, and each pursued his beaft; mine had not run 100 yards before I overtook him, and pierced him with my pike; and the fame would have happened probably to the other, had not Welled Amlac's horfe put his fore-feet into a fox's hole, which threw him and his rider headlong to the ground; he was not, however, hurt, but rofe very gravely, and defired me to return; it being a rule among these people, never to perfift when any thing unfortunate falls out in the beginning of a day.

I,

Our company was now increased by our former landlord at Goutto, where we were obliged to Woldo's ftratagem for difcovering the cow that was hid. We fat down chearfully to dinner. Welled Amlac's fall had not spoiled his appetite; I think he ate equal to four ordinary men. for the most part, ate the venifon, which was made into an excellent difh, only too much stuffed with all kind of fpices. Fafil's wife alone feemed to have a very poor appetite, notwithstanding her violent fits of laughter, and outward appearance of chearfulness. A melancholy gloom returned upon her beautiful face, that feemed to indicate a wind not at ease. She was of a noble family of Galla, which had conquered and fettled in the low country of Narea. I wondered that Fail her husband had not carried her to Gondar. She laid her husband

husband had twenty othe. wives befides her, but took none of them to Gondar; which was a place of war, where it was the custom to marry the wives of their enemies that they had forced to fly, Fafil will be married therefore to Michael's wife, Ozoro Efther. I could not help being startled at this declaration, remembering that I was here lofing my time, and forgetting my word of returning as foon as poffible; but we had, for many months, lived in fuch conftant alarms, that it was abfolutely as needful to

feize the moment in which we could repole our mind, as to give reft to the body.

In the afternoon we diftributed our prefents among the ladies. Fafil's wife was not forgot; and the beautiful Melectanea was covered with beads, handkerchiefs, and ribbands of all colours. Fafil's wife, on my fift requeft, gave me a lock of her fine hair from the root, which has ever fince, and at this day does fufpend a plummet of an ounce and half at the index of my three-feet quadrant,

ANY writers have given us the hiftory of the Turks, their orriters origin and conquefts; let us now take a view of them as poffeffors of the finest country in the world, and enjoying the fruits of their ancestors valour; and firft let us take a furvey of that immenfe city which they have made their capital.

Conftantinople is fituated between two feas; the port, one of the finest and most extenfive in the univerfe, is always open to veffels both from the Black Sea and Mediterranean. Su perb mofques, furmounted with large domes and lofty minarets, appear above the other buildings, and feem to lofe themselves in the clouds. This capital, fituated on many hills, is feen at a vaft diftance. The fuburbs of Galatea and Pera, fituated on the further fide of the port, and the city of Scurari, which rifes to view on the oppofite fhore of Afia, affords the fineft profpect to perfons approaching Conftantinople, who behold this agreeable mixture of thick trees and painted houfes rifing together in form of an amphitheatre.

The feraglio, which commands a view of the fea of Marmora, the port

and the Bofphorus, is a confufed heap of large and fmall edifices, rifing one above another, without order, but intermixed with cypress trees, planted in the gardens or on the terraces, forming a whole, which gives an air of grandeur and majefty to this palace, which is as difmal in appearance as it is well guarded. A number of cannon are placed round the foot of the wall which furrounds it, and ferve to give notice of feafts and public rejoicings, and to falute the Sultan when he goes by water.

Conftantinople which appears fo magnificent at first fight, aftonishes a ftranger who goes through it; he then thinks himself little recomperfed by the fplendor of Sancta Sophia, which has been injured both by time and the Turks, and is equally diffatisfied with the trifling and ridiculous tafte of certain gilt fountains and fumptuous fronts of fome of the mofques; he fees nothing before him but irregular fquares, arfenals badly provided, flips for building fhips, in worfe order, and the veffels themfelves built on a most ridiculous model. When he paffes the Seven Towers, he cannot help lamenting

the

rity which is ignorant even of the laws of nations. Let him pafs wherever he will, he finds narrow streets, most of them on fteep and winding declivities, ill paved and always covered with filth, which the dogs, equally numerous and hungry, and who are the only fcavengers of, the capital, are conftantly fighting for under the paffengers feet: he meets chariots fometimes or coaches, drawn by two horfes, which, moving with a folemn pace, on account of the difficulty of the ways, having in them the Turkish ladies taking the air, or going to pay vifits. Thefe, fhut up in their cheils, have an opportunity of peeping through the lattices of the doors at the paifengers, who are in conftant danger of being preffed against the walls by the wheels of their carriages. Sometimes he beholds an unfortunate perfon, afflicted with the plague, drop down dead before him, and a porter for the trifling hire which he would receive for carrying a bale of goods, takes the corpfe on his back without ceremony, while the relation and friends of the deceafed, as it tle fearful of danger as the porter, relig oufly prefs, to render him the latt duties, without taking any precaution to fecure themfelves from the effects of that fatal disease; and they fometimes perith by it the next day

or on the morrow.

A ftranger will be much furprifed and will behold with pleasure, many troops of women, much lefs confined at home than is generally thought in Europe, conftantly in the streets, go ing backward and forward, from and to the walks, the baths, the markets, or vifiting. Two fine eyes may frequently be obferved through veils of muflin, fo thin as fcarcely to hide the features of the face; a cloak formed to fhew the most beautiful figure, announces the most elegant form, and fets off the fhape of a young female, who feems always attentive to obferve

All the houfes in Conftantinople are built with wood; the fhops are convenient, but fmall, and thew the proprietors have only a moderate degree of property. The Bafettin, or quarter of the jewellers, exhibits very confiderable riches; although in a country where it is very dangerous to appear to poffefs any. We may fometimes wander over a large space of ruins, occafioned by the frequent fires which happen in this city, either for want of care, or by the villany of factious people; fometimes these fires deftroy whole quarters of the city.

The great gate of the feraglio is on the fide of an irregular fquare, ornamented by a beautiful fountain on one fide and by the facade of Sancta Sophia on the other. This valuable monument of the finest architecture ftill retains fome marks of its original magnificence; the dome, ornamented with a moft fuberb Mofaic, compofed of different cryftals, variuly enamelled, ftrongly reproaches the ignorance and barbarity of the Turks, who fuffer fuch a mafter-piece of workranthip daily to perifh. On approaching the feraglio, we behold a large lodge, the windows of which over the door are ftopped up by iron grating, and proclaim it to be rather the gloomy manfion of unhappy prifoners, than the place of refidence of the most powerful prince

of

of Afia. To add to this melancholy fight, the heads of the profcribed are expofed on one fide, and the carcafes of executed criminals ftrewed about the fquare. A fight which increafes the horror of thofe fubjects who approach the palace, and who tremble for fear that they shall foon add to the number.

The interior part of the Seraglio is compofed of thofe edifices which formed the palace of the Greek emperors: the Ottoman princes have enlarged it, as circumftances required, and to adopt it to their manners. The architecture of the new work is not good, and very irregular.

Oppofite to the Seraglio, on the other fide of the port, is a grand edifice with many domes, fome brass cannon of various calibers without carriages, and ranged on the fquare down to the fea fide, proclaim it to be the chief arsenal for the artillery, as the name of it, Top-ana, fignifies. Above the fuburbs of Pera is a ftraight and rough street, built in the form of an amphitheatre, which leads up to the top of the hill, on which is the Frank's ftreet, called fo because the anubaffadors of all the European powers have there fixed their refidence; many merchants of all countries have there alfo built fome very good houfes, every one of which have handfome kiosks, or belvederes, which afford them a fine view of the ftreet each way. It is an agreeable fight to fee the Greek ladies carelessly reclined on their fophas, employed almoft from morning to night in viewing the paflengers. This little recreation is fo agreeable to them, that they pafs half their time in anfwering the falutes of the different paffengers who attract their attention either by aglance, an inclination of the head, or a kifs of the hand.

About the middle of this street is the college for the education of the Grand Signior's pages he vifits his place once a year, feiects from

among them fuch young perfons as have made the greatest progress in their education, and takes them with him to the Seraglio. It is pretended that none knows fo well as the Sultan, thofe among them who are the moft able, and who deferve to be preferred.

At the bottom of this street is the hofpital for thofe afflicted with the plague, to which fuch Europeans are carried who are attacked with that diforder; there is another for the reception of the Greeks. These establishments ferve as afylums for such Chriftians who do not meet from their relations with that degree of pity and attention which a muffulman, from the principles he has imbibed, affords to his brethren, if God pleases to afflict them, even at the risk of his own life. Beyond this is the burial ground of the Chriftians, which is planted with mulberry trees; this is made ufe of as a public walk, to which every Sunday a vaft crowd of perfons of both fexes refort, who often employ themfelves in fuch a manner, as, rather than in meditating on the mortality of the human fpecies, may in time tend to increase it.

Pera is almoft wholly built of wood, at least there are but very few ftone houses. The palaces of the ambaffadors of France and Venice are of the latter number; those of the other minifters make a very pretty appearance, being painted in frefco; they are fecured from fire by a wall which furrounds the house and offices.

There are many Christian churches in Pera, and divine fervice is performed without reftriction, by monks of different orders. The Greeks and Armenians have churches according to their various rites, with diftinct hierarchal establishments.

From Pera we go down to the fuburbs of Galatea, which is built on a rapid declivity, by the fide of the port; this quarter is inhabited by

Greeks

Greeks and Armenians; there are, however, many Turks refiding there. Here the French merchants and thofe of many other nations have houfes and ftorehouses, fecured by good vaults to preferve their effects from the ravages of fires. Galatea has fome churches and minifters in it alfo. For a good fee the muffulmans are always ready to grant a toleration to their tributaries.

Not far from the custom-houfe of the Francks or Europeans, for they have one to themfelves, is the quarter of the Jews; the exterior of their houfes proclaims the extreme of mifery, but that is only from policy, their dirty appearance, added to their ufual cringing behaviour, feems conftantly to folicit the Muffulmen not to opprefs them farther; they act as brokers and ftorekeepers for all the European merchants.

Near the middle of the port is the arfenal, compofed of many barracks, in which the guards and workmen are lodged; the ammunition, not very confiderable, is in fome fheds, and materials for the conftruction of fhips are never in any great quantity. Diforder and often a total neglect pervades the whole. Their docks exhibit only the aukwardnefs of the Ottoman workmen, in every thing which concerns marine affairs. Ships have remained seven years on the ftocks, before they were ready. It is eafy to conjecture what kind of ships thele muft be, conftructed for the most part with pine timber, which, from the length of time employed in building, remain fo long expofed to the air.

The bath, which compofes part of the arfenal, is employed equally for the confinement of criminals, who are employed for a time on the public works, and flaves who are deprived of every hope of liberty. Here the unhappy prifoners of war are confined, heaped as it were one upon another, in fheds furrounded by thick

walls, and conftantly ill treated by their keepers; overwhelmed with mifery, the plague and every evil incident to human nature continually afflicting them, until they fmk by de grees under the weight of the evils laid upon them by these barbarians.

At one fide of the arfenal is the refidence of the Captain Pacha, divided into feveral little pavilions, all on the ground floor, and by the water fide; they have a pretty appear ance without, being built regularly.

Two cannan placed on a small platform was part of the cannon foundery established by Baron Tott. This officer did a moft effential fervice to the Turks; he gave them the first ideas of a regular fortification, taught them the due proportion and advantage of artillery; his foundery is ftill to be feen with its furnaces, of which the French officers have lately made ufe.

The part of Conftantinople oppofite to this is called the Fanal; it is a hill, the houfes on which being fttuated on the declivity, afford an agreeable profpect. The richest Greeks of the empire are fettled there; the princes of Moldavia and Wallachia have alfo their refidence there, which might be called the palaces of these princes, altho' clothed with fovereign power in the provinces, of which the Porte entrufts them with the government, were they not, while they are at Conftantinople, the Chief among the tributaries who bow the neck to the yoke of fervitude.

The At-Meydan, or the fquare of borfes, is the most confiderable in Conftantinople. There is in it an Egyptain obelisk, on which are fome hieroglyphics, and a very fine column of porphyry, fplit in many places, and fecured by hoops of iron.

The Turks believe the flory that Mahomet II. had fplit with a back ftroke of his fabre one of the ferpents which form a column, raised in

the