initial commit of ebook 30581HEADmain

1 files changed, 2924 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/30581.txt b/30581.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4a65f00
--- /dev/null
+++ b/30581.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,2924 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Notes in North Africa, by W. G. Windham
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Notes in North Africa
+       Being a Guide to the Sportsman and Tourist in Algeria and Tunisia
+
+Author: W. G. Windham
+
+Release Date: December 2, 2009 [EBook #30581]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NOTES IN NORTH AFRICA ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Dan Horwood and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: R. Pheney, lith. M. & N. Hanhart, Impt.
+
+MY TWO SERVANTS, ANGELO AND NERO.]
+
+
+
+
+ NOTES IN NORTH AFRICA:
+
+ BEING A
+ GUIDE TO THE
+ SPORTSMAN AND TOURIST IN ALGERIA AND TUNISIA.
+
+
+ BY
+ W. G. WINDHAM, ESQ.
+
+
+ NEW EDITION, WITH COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+ LONDON:
+ WARD AND LOCK, 158 FLEET STREET.
+ 1862.
+
+
+
+
+ LONDON:
+ PETTER AND GALPIN, BELLE SAUVAGE PRINTING WORKS,
+ LUDGATE HILL, E.C.
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.
+
+
+Two great faults have been found with my first edition. The first
+was, that I had offended many people by personal allusions. To
+this, I reply, that offence was very far from my mind; and to those
+offended (if any there be), I say, consider the expressions unsaid.
+For the rest, they are omitted in this edition. The second alleged
+defect is, that, while I call my book, to a certain extent, sporting,
+so little allusion is made to sport. I grant there is some reason in
+this, and accordingly I have added matter which I think will be
+useful to future sporting tourists. I would, however, not advise
+the man who seeks sport alone and solely to go to Algeria, as I am
+sure he will be disappointed, as I most decidedly was. With regard to
+the illustrations, I have taken the greatest pains that they may
+faithfully represent, not only the particular localities alluded
+to, but also give a fair idea of the country and climate of these
+latitudes.
+
+    W. G. WINDHAM.
+
+    _Hull, April, 1861._
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+
+                                                TO FACE PAGE
+
+  FRONTISPIECE: MY TWO SERVANTS--ANGELO AND NERO           1
+
+  SHOOTING HYENAS ON THE PURPLE MOUNTAINS NEAR EL
+      GREESHE                                             20
+
+  SHOOTING WILD DUCKS NEAR AIN MOKRA, PROVINCE OF
+      CONSTANTINE, ALGERIA                                44
+
+  HOG-SHOOTING ON THE BANKS OF THE OUED EL AHWENA,
+      IN TUNISIA                                          60
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+     CHAPTER I.
+
+ THE VOYAGE OUT:--Paris in 1860--Notre Dame--Our
+ Hotel--Nero and the Groom--The Steamer for
+ Algeria--Gallic Peculiarities--Life on Board                   7
+
+     CHAPTER II.
+
+ DESCRIPTION OF ALGIERS:--Arrival in Algeria--Murray's
+ Guide-books, and their Amenities--Disembarkation in
+ the Port of Algiers--Our Fellow-travellers--Algiers and
+ its Inhabitants--The Dey's Palace--Cause of the French
+ Invasion                                                      13
+
+     CHAPTER III.
+
+ LIFE IN ALGIERS:--Algerian Society--A Soiree at
+ General Martinprez's--The Sirocco--My Maltese
+ Companion--The Theatre--General Youssouf and his Career       19
+
+     CHAPTER IV.
+
+ "UP THE COUNTRY:"--Departure from Algiers--Blidah--The
+ Zouave Officers and their Companions--Government
+ Establishment of Horses--Joseph, the Horse-dealer--To
+ Arbah--The Caravanserai--Journey towards Oued-el-Massin       25
+
+     CHAPTER V.
+
+ FURTHER EXPERIENCES:--Abd-el-Kader (but not the
+ Emir)--Difficult Road--Perils of the Way--Prospect of
+ Sport--The First Boar--The Chasseurs d'Afrique--Mine
+ Hostess of the "Scorpion"--Teniet                             30
+
+     CHAPTER VI.
+
+ FURTHER PROGRESS--RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES:--Cold
+ Weather--Milianah--Vezoul--The Aubergiste--El
+ Afroun--The Rhamazan--Dancing Dervishes                       36
+
+     CHAPTER VII.
+
+ BONA AND ITS VICINITY:--Passage to Bona--State of
+ Affairs on Board--Bona--The Lake Metitza--Ain
+ Mokra--Wild Duck Shooting on the Lake                         41
+
+     CHAPTER VIII.
+
+ ON TO TUNIS:--Algeria in General--The Arabs and their
+ Conquerors--Antagonism between the Two Races--Social
+ Condition of the Arabs--The _Oasis_ Steamer--Arrival
+ at Tunis                                                      46
+
+     CHAPTER IX.
+
+ MARSA:--Angelo's Horsemanship--The Bey's Palace at
+ Marsa--The Arabs and their Love of Tobacco--The
+ Friendly Moor at Camatte                                      52
+
+     CHAPTER X.
+
+ ABOUT BOAR SHOOTING:--Sleeman--the Oued el Ahwena--Its
+ Scenery, and its Dangers--Beauty of the Landscape on
+ its Banks                                                     55
+
+     CHAPTER XI.
+
+ SPORTING EXPERIENCES:--El Greesh--Shooting Hyenas--An
+ Expedition with the Arabs--The Caid and his
+ Family--Another Wild Boar                                     59
+
+     CHAPTER XII.
+
+ TUNIS AND ITS GOVERNMENT:--Picturesque Situation of
+ Tunis--The Horse Market--Effects of Race--The
+ Bazaars--Mohamed Medea--The Bardo--The Bey of
+ Tunis--His Mode of administering Justice--Prince
+ Puckler Muskau's Account of his Interview                     62
+
+     CHAPTER XIII.
+
+ THE RUINS OF CARTHAGE:--Reflections on Ancient
+ Carthage--Hannibal and his Career--An Arab
+ Domicile--Picturesque Appearance of the Ruins                 69
+
+     CHAPTER XIV.
+
+ THE RUINS AGAIN:--Great Extent of the Ancient City
+ Marsa, on the Sea-shore--Carthaginian Catacombs near
+ Camatte--Quail Shooting--Trait of Honesty in the
+ Arabs--The Arab Character--Anecdotes concerning them          76
+
+     CHAPTER XV.
+
+ HOME:--My Fellow-passenger, the Sportsman--Passage from
+ Tunis to Malta in a Sailing Vessel--Disagreeables of
+ the Passage--Home Overland--Conclusion                        83
+
+ NOTES FOR THE SPORTSMAN OR TOURIST IN NORTH AFRICA            88
+
+
+
+
+NOTES IN NORTH AFRICA.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE VOYAGE OUT.
+
+  Paris in 1860.--Notre Dame.--Our Hotel.--Nero and the Groom.--The
+  Steamer for Algeria.--Gallic Peculiarities.--Life on Board.
+
+
+_In medias res._ I will not stop to describe my journey to Paris, _via_
+Folkestone, nor to chronicle the glasses of pale ale--valedictory
+libations to _perfide_ Albion, quaffed at the Pavilion--nor to
+portray the sea-sickness of "mossoo," nor the withering indignation of
+the British female when her wardrobe was searched. Briefly, kind reader,
+be pleased to understand that we arrived in safety--guns, rifles,
+"and all"--at the Hotel du Louvre, in Paris, at about eleven o'clock
+on a certain day in February, 1860.
+
+The next day was Sunday, and I went to hear vespers at Notre Dame. How
+I love the old gothic cathedrals, that seem to remove one at once from
+this work-day world--the fanes wherein the very air seems redolent of
+devotion, and peopled with phantoms of the past! 'Spite of all
+disparagement, there is something grand and solemn about them. After
+service, I ascended one of the towers to the gallery immortalised by
+Victor Hugo's wonderful romance. The day was declining, and sunset had
+already commenced. The galleries were crowded with students and
+respectable operatives and _bourgeois_, with their wives and children.
+Every face was bathed in the purple light of the departing sun, and
+many eyes lifted up in silent meditation.
+
+I was aroused from the reverie into which the contemplation of this
+glorious sight had thrown me, by hearing a female voice exclaim, "How
+beautiful is Nature--how magnificent!" I turned, and saw two ladies,
+evidently mother and daughter, of sufficiently pleasing appearance. It
+was from the elder that the exclamation had come, which brought me
+back from my dream to this nether world. Conquering the shyness which
+appears to be the Englishman's birthright, I made some remark on the
+beauties of sunset. Like the earth, we revolved round the sun; but,
+unlike that planet, we quickly diverged into other orbits. I dimly
+remember that we talked of Angola cats, Dresden china, Turkish
+chibouques, maccaroni, and Lord Byron, with whose poems this lady
+seemed sufficiently familiar. I improved the occasion, as the right
+thing to do, when talking with ladies about Byron, to find fault with
+his impiety, his blasphemous scepticism, his cutting sarcasm, and the
+unhappy frivolity which defaces the works of the man, who, with all
+his faults, was undoubtedly the greatest poet the nineteenth century
+has yet produced.
+
+A pleasant walk along the quays brought me back to my hotel, in the
+courtyard of which establishment I found an admiring circle of idlers
+surrounding my English groom, who had just arrived with my dog Nero;
+or rather Nero, who seemed by far the most popular character of the
+two, had just arrived with him; and both appeared to know about as
+much French one as the other, and to make themselves equally
+understood or misunderstood. That evening, my friend and travelling
+companion, B---- and I dined at Dotesio's, in the Rue Castiglione,
+where we had an excellent dinner, washed down by more excellent wine.
+The next day found us at Marseilles, at the Hotel D'Orient, concerning
+which hostelry I have merely to place on record the fact, that B----
+was mulcted in the sum of five francs for the matutinal cold tub in
+which it was his custom to indulge.
+
+The steamer which was to convey us to Algeria was well fitted up in
+every way. We were the only Englishmen on board. The fore part of the
+deck was crowded with Zouaves and French soldiers of various
+denominations, with whom Nero soon made himself perfectly at home,
+though the exclamation of a Zouave on his first appearance seemed to
+forbode but an indifferent reception for the four-footed intruder.
+"_Cre nom d'un chien_" cried the shaven, fez-capped warrior, "_mais
+je ne t'aimerais pas pour mon camarade du lit!_"
+
+Breakfast was served in French fashion on board at ten o'clock, and
+dinner at five. With one or two exceptions, the company consisted of
+French commercial travellers, and they were split up into the usual
+hostile factions of north against south. North, of course, commenced
+the conversation with Paris, _Paris_, and again PAR-RRI; the
+southerners every now and then throwing in a doubt of the universal
+superiority of the metropolis over the known world. One disputant
+stood out for Marseilles, another broke a lance for Bordeaux, and the
+war of words waxed so fierce that I began to tremble for the
+consequences. One young man in company had been some time at Bordeaux,
+and had much to say thereon; but all his remarks were on one
+subject--the theatre. On its beauty, its luxury, and its actresses, he
+held forth at unwearied but wearisome length.
+
+While this conversation was going on, the inner man was by no
+means neglected. Stewed pullets, potatoes, salad, and etceteras,
+disappeared with marvellous celerity. The cheer was by no means
+bad, though decidedly Provencal, as I remarked to my next neighbour,
+a dark-looking Marsellais; which observation, by the way, brought
+down upon me the anger of the Gods, as impersonated by a large, fat,
+dirty Calaisien, sitting opposite. He was a big man, this champion,
+and, according to Cervantes, should, by consequence, have been a
+good-natured one. Giving himself a sounding blow on the chest for
+emphasis, he declared the Calaisiens to be an infinitely more moral
+people than the Marseillais--and washed down his own dictum with an
+enormous glass of _biere blanche_. I am rather fond of going to sleep
+after dinner; so I secured my nap on cheap terms, by feigning an
+interest in the Picard virtues, and accordingly enjoyed a profound
+rest, disturbed only at intervals by a monotonous and expostulatory
+"_allons donc!_" thrown in by another dissentient southerner. He
+was an enormously fat man, the new disputant, and wore a mass of very
+greasy hair, hanging down over his shoulders. His flannel shirt, an
+exceedingly dingy specimen of British manufacture, did duty for a
+waistcoat also; but he was _decore_, though it was very doubtful to
+what order the medal on his breast may have belonged.
+
+Our captain merits a word of description. He was a short, red-faced
+individual, of such ineffable seediness, as regarded costume, that I
+should never have suspected his station but for the fact that he
+sported a gold band "_bien usite_" round his cap, and sat at the head
+of the table. For the credit of French politeness be it, however,
+added, he was a perfect gentleman in his behaviour throughout the
+voyage. There was also a young French naval officer, whom I afterwards
+got to know much better in Algeria. He, too, like all the Legitimists,
+was a most finished gentleman, and spoke English well--a common
+accomplishment among the officers of the French navy. Though quite a
+young fellow, he had been in the Russian and Chinese wars, and
+imparted some very amusing and instructive intelligence on both these
+subjects.
+
+As the noise and the intimacy at the table increased, and the punch
+and cognac had already "chased" the wine, I adjourned with B---- and
+the French sailor to the after-deck, and, in company with two young
+Dutch travellers, smoked our Havanas in a climate that was already
+African in its heat, while Majorca and Minorca faded away in the
+distance, and the pale moon rose silently over the quiet sea.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+DESCRIPTION OF ALGIERS.
+
+  Arrival in Algeria.--Murray's Guide-books, and their
+  Amenities.--Disembarkation in the Port of Algiers.--Our
+  Fellow-travellers.--Algiers and its Inhabitants.--The Dey's
+  Palace.--Cause of the French Invasion.
+
+
+Next morning, at eight o'clock, came the waiter with the
+intelligence--"_Nous sommes dans la baie d'Alger, monsieur, a une
+heure de la ville._" My desire to see Algiers was vehement indeed; but
+scarcely less strong was the craving of the inner man for bread and
+coffee. With the nectar of Arabia, however, the inspiration of the
+Orient seemed to percolate my veins; but when a fragrant glass of
+cognac crowned the meal, the aroma of the East enveloped me, the
+delicious strains of Bulbul rang in my ears, the Calaisien and the
+Marseillais, sitting stolidly before me, became straightway
+transformed into camels, the stewardess into a houri, and the noses of
+the passengers were as masques in my enraptured sight.
+
+But the book at my side was not the Koran, though it might have been,
+for the strange farrago it contained.
+
+It was a celebrated traveller's manual in the English language, and
+in red binding. The king of the Cannibal Islands has not in his
+library a more absurd volume than this manual; for in its pages
+pathetic bagmen give vent to their ludicrous ebullitions concerning
+the Alhambra, or the Rhine, or any foreign lion you please to name;
+and young boys just escaped from school dish up their first
+impressions of the Continent in a style as savoury as the flavour of a
+Spanish olla podrida. And yet, ascend the Rhine, go to Venice or to
+St. Petersburg, and ten to one for the chance, that when you meet an
+Englishman he will have that eternal manual clutched in his British
+grasp.
+
+Oh, my dear and well-beloved countrymen, what creatures of fashion and
+precedent we all are, from high to low! What one does, the rest must
+do; and in the self-same manner. I verily believe, if the late Albert
+Smith had left it on record that, in ascending Mont Blanc, he planted
+his foot in a certain hole in the snow, every one of his successors in
+that glorious undertaking would have paid their guides an extra dollar
+for indicating to them the identical cavity, that they might go and do
+likewise. Thank goodness, Algeria is as yet encumbered by no manual or
+"Hand-book," as our modern Germanised phraseology elects to call the
+egregious productions; so shall we travellers be at liberty to follow
+our own noses, to go exactly where we like, and to do what we please,
+even to dressing like Arabs, should the whim seize us. Moreover, we
+may do in Rome as Rome does, and enjoy a French breakfast washed down
+with good wine in lieu of bad tea, without having ourselves or our
+proceedings stigmatised as "shocking," as would undoubtedly be our lot
+at Paris, or Brussels, or Berlin.
+
+Behold us, then, in happy hour, ready to disembark in Algiers, with
+the children of the desert thronging on board to act as porters. Their
+appearance pleases me much, as they come forward, with their tall,
+striking figures, dark eyes, and distinguished mien. "Perfect
+gentlemen, these," said I to myself; but beneath the outside crust
+little remains that can be called gratifying. These men are like the
+apple of Sodom; at least, so I thought on landing, after a long
+squabble with them respecting the passage money, carried on in bad
+Italian and French. A nearer acquaintance with them may, perhaps,
+modify my views on this subject.
+
+"Well, it has been a pleasant time on board the packet," is my parting
+reflection as I step ashore; nor shall I lightly forget the captain,
+so different in his politeness and urbanity from the sea-bear with
+whom I sailed in the North Sea; nor the honest Hamburgher, who
+appeared to have an equally beloved wife in every land and in every
+place we came to; nor the would-be dandy, who lit cigars innumerable,
+and invariably flung them overboard after the first puff; nor the
+priests, who seemed to possess the gift of invisibility, so rarely did
+they show themselves; nor the hundred thousand events and personages
+that flash upon our path for a moment on our journey through life, and
+then linger in the memory only as the dim phantoms of a dream that has
+passed away.
+
+Algiers, seen from the sea, presents the appearance of a vast
+triangular cone, situated on the slope of a mountain. Like all the
+inhabitants of Northern Africa, the Algerians were at an early period
+Christians, and it was only after several battles that the Mahometan
+religion was finally established all over the coast of Barbary. Before
+the French occupation, the Algerian ladies, like the females in all
+Mussulmen countries, were kept in the strictest seclusion. The wife of
+a rich Moor never left her home except to go to the baths, and even
+that expedition was undertaken only at night. When it became
+absolutely necessary that ladies should go abroad in daylight, their
+faces were covered, and the whole figure so concealed by a redundancy
+of wrappings, that a stranger would be puzzled to find out what the
+moving bundles were. The luxury of the bath is greatly used by them.
+There are public as well as private baths. They consist of three
+apartments. The first is a large hall, for dressing and undressing; in
+the second, the visitors perspire; and the third is for bathing
+proper, or otherwise, as tastes and opinions somewhat differ. After
+the bath, those of the male sex repair to the first room for lemonade
+or coffee, or for a pipe. The modern Mahometan ladies of Algiers have
+almost abandoned this seclusion. They are seen gadding about
+everywhere, and are reported as being by no means particular or
+difficult in their conquests. French ideas and morals have percolated
+them considerably. Excessive obesity is regarded among Mahometans as
+the perfection of beauty; so that, instead of using powders and other
+nostrums to reduce themselves, like some of my friends at home, they
+devour seeds and _couscous_, the national dish, especially employed
+for fattening people. Some young ladies are crammed to such a degree
+that they die under the operation.
+
+On a fine, hot day in February, 1860, I mounted the conical hill on
+which Algiers is built. The weather was magnificent. The sun of Africa
+already made his approach felt, and the mountains in the far horizon
+stood out like _bas-reliefs_ against the azure sky. Here stood the
+palace of the Dey before the French occupation. The building is now
+called the _casbah_, and used as a large barrack; outside are the
+Moorish houses, and the chief part of the Moorish population.
+
+The cause of quarrel between France and Algeria, which resulted in the
+conquest of the country by the Gallic legions was as follows:--The
+Dey, a pasha of the old Turkish school, was, it appears, a potentate
+of extravagant disposition, and owed the French Government a
+considerable sum of money. The creditors, being in a hurry for their
+cash, dunned the Dey incessantly, through the agency of their consul.
+Unaccustomed to the eagerness of French importunity, the Dey, on one
+unlucky occasion, made a gesture of impatience with his fan, as a man
+might do with his riding-whip, if his tailor became too pressing for
+the settlement of his account. It proved an expensive gesture,
+however; for within a few weeks it brought 10,000 French soldiers to
+the shores of the Dey, and cost him his entire realm. The bulk of the
+Mauresque and Turkish population quitted Algeria with their families
+on the arrival of the French. Those who remain are the poorer classes,
+and now live, if report speaks true, in an immoral state. These events
+took place in the reign of that peaceful monarch, Louis Philippe.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+LIFE IN ALGIERS.
+
+  Algerian Society.--A _Soiree_ at General Martinprez's.--The
+  Sirocco.--My Maltese Companion.--The Theatre.--General Youssouf
+  and Career.
+
+
+I have described Algiers as being built on the side of a mountain.
+The city possesses a commodious and safe harbour, where flutter
+the colours of every nation, from the red flag of the Swede to
+the Spaniard's yellow ensign. Economy of space being a primary
+consideration in the laying out of the city, the houses have been
+built very high, and the streets made very narrow, so that there
+is no room for carriages. The Consul has a very fine Mauresque
+house in the old Turkish quarter, where he invited me to dinner and
+a _soiree_ the day after my arrival; and the next day I was invited
+to the reception of the Governor, General Martinprez.
+
+The General received me and my companions most graciously, and, after
+keeping me in conversation for about five minutes, introduced me to
+his lady, a very pleasing person. My friend A---- and I were then
+introduced to two or three other fashionable ladies of Algiers; and,
+engrossed in conversation with these; we strangers were unconscious
+of a general movement of the gentlemen towards the farther end of the
+room, as a preliminary to the amateur concert. I was quite ignorant of
+this Algerian regulation, by which the gentlemen and ladies are
+separated as effectually as in a Lutheran church (a fashion,
+by-the-bye, we appear to be adopting). Accordingly, on looking up, I
+observed, to my infinite chagrin, that I was the "observed of all
+observers," and probably was set down as a _bete Anglais_, who knew no
+better. The extensive crinoline of the ladies effectually prevented a
+retreat in any direction, and I was unpleasantly conscious of the
+suppressed titter the fair ones tried to conceal behind their fans. I
+endeavoured to summon up all the resources of my London phlegm, to
+support me in this ridiculous position; but, unfortunately, I possess
+very little of that desirable quality. The fair one with whom I was
+conversing evidently felt for the unpleasantness of my situation, and
+very good-naturedly kept me talking till the end of the first piece,
+when I succeeded in making my escape.
+
+How I inwardly abused the opera they were performing! It was called
+"_Le Diable_;" and to me it appeared as though the fiend in question
+had no tail--or rather, _no end_--to that appendage, so long did the
+time seem. Far be it from me to despise the arts; I admire them in
+every shape, except in the compound form of speech: _exempli gratia_,
+art-union, art-school, &c. Why, in the name of common sense, can we
+not talk English instead of German, and say school of arts, union of
+arts, &c.? I suppose we shall soon go a step farther in imitation of
+our Germanic neighbours, and call poetry by the appellation of
+poet-art. In the last century, it seemed likely, as Johnson said, that
+we should babble a dialect of France; in this, there is more danger of
+our talking a Teutonic jargon. Let us stick to the middle course--for
+our language is essentially half way between the German and the
+French, the Teutonic and Romance tongues, and any attempt to
+approximate too much to either extreme is simply preposterous.
+
+The next day we had the sirocco; and, to quote the expression with
+which I once heard a popular preacher commence a sermon, it was
+"d----d hot." Start not, ladies of Belgravia, for the preacher in
+question belonged not to the Anglican communion; he held forth to mere
+vulgar audiences, at least, in a remote locality. Thrice he repeated
+the expression (which I will not), and then improved the occasion by
+describing a place hotter than the crowded chapel in which he was
+officiating, in the month of July. He was evidently in his element. He
+was especially hot against those modern spirits, who are not such
+faithful believers in the burning flames of the lower regions, and
+even begin to imagine they may have cooled down, if they have not been
+quite extinguished. "And if"--he cried, in his ardour--"if they were
+on the point of being extinguished, I would with my own breath
+rekindle the expiring flame!" And his voice, which sounded like a gale
+of wind, and his face, red as a furnace, and his enormous fists
+fiercely clenched, made it appear to the congregation, for the moment,
+that this terrifying assertion was no exaggeration. But to return to
+the sirocco.
+
+In spite, or rather by reason of the heat, I went for a stroll on the
+sea-shore with Nero, that we might cool our wearied limbs in the azure
+wave of the Mediterranean. We had been walking along the shore for
+about a mile, when about twenty Arab dogs rushed out most ferociously
+at Nero, and would, I believe, have torn him to pieces, but for the
+large hunting-whip with which I managed to keep them at bay. There was
+with me a young Maltese boy, of Irish parentage--a most amusing
+character this urchin was. He wanted me to take him into the interior
+as my interpreter. "Take me wid you, sir," was his eloquent appeal;
+"give me pound a month, sir; tell Arabs you brother of Queen Victoria,
+sir; Arabs great fools, sir; know no better, sir;" but I was proof
+against the voice of the charmer.
+
+In returning, I met General Martinprez on horseback, and saluted; of
+course, he returned my greeting most graciously. But I was not a
+little amused, and could hardly help laughing, when the young
+Hiberno-Maltese tatterdemalion took off his dirty cap with a flourish
+to the General, simultaneously with my salute, as if he had been my
+confidential friend, taking a promenade with me.
+
+That evening I went to the theatre. The piece performed was "_Les
+Femmes Terribles_"--and a terribly Gallic flavour there was diffused
+over the whole performance--a kind of _haut gout_, for which we stolid
+islanders have, happily, no relish.
+
+General Youssouf was at the theatre this evening. He is rather a
+fine-looking man, and not too stout. His is a curious history.
+Originally a Christian slave at Tunis, supposed to be the son of
+Italian parents, he received the name of Youssouf (Joseph) from his
+Mussulman masters at Tunis, where he was employed in the Bey's palace.
+Of fine stature and handsome appearance, the Christian slave soon
+attracted the notice of the Bey's daughter, an honour to which he was
+not insensible. The Bey was soon informed of what was going on, and
+Joseph would have been caged, if not racked, had not some kind friend
+apprised him of the discovery, and of his own consequent danger. A
+French man-of-war happened to be in the harbour at La Goeletta, off
+Tunis, and young Youssouf, then about twenty years of age, managed to
+effect his escape on board. The Franks, of course, gladly received him
+as an escaped Christian slave. The Bey sent to demand him back; but
+the French commander gave him politely to understand that he would see
+the Bey experiencing the reverse of the joys of Paradise before he
+would comply with such a request. The vessel set sail next day for
+Algiers, where the Gallic occupation had just commenced. Young
+Youssouf--who, in addition to his knowledge of French and Italian,
+could, of course, speak Arabic perfectly--was here landed, and became
+interpreter to a foot regiment. Quick and clever, he was soon
+promoted, till he attained an officer's rank. He is now a general in
+the service. Entertaining--perhaps naturally--a mortal hatred of the
+Arabs, he has generally been selected to enforce those stern acts of
+reprisal against the native population, which, though perhaps
+justified by necessity, still bear the impress of great severity, and
+are unpalatable to officers of French birth and education. These
+measures he has always carried out with strict fidelity and
+unrelenting harshness. He was the centre of attraction this
+evening--every battery of eyes was turned upon him. He had fought a
+duel with the editor of a newspaper, only that morning, for abusing
+him or his wife, and had succeeded in running the journalist through
+the shoulder.
+
+The next few days I was engaged in making purchases, chiefly of shot
+and necessary travelling articles, for the interior. I was swimming my
+dog in the water of the port, according to my daily custom, when I
+stumbled on my servant, Angelo, whom I determined to take with me into
+the interior. Besides English, which he spoke very well, he could talk
+Arabic quite fluently, and I found him very useful.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+"UP THE COUNTRY."
+
+  Departure from Algiers.--Blidah.--The Zouave Officers and their
+  Companions.--Government Establishment of Horses.--Joseph, the
+  Horse-dealer.--To Arbah.--The Caravanserai.--Journey towards
+  Oued-el-Massin.
+
+
+On Thursday, March 8th, after seeing A---- start, by diligence, with
+innumerable bags of cheviotine (deer-shot), I and Angelo left Algiers
+with my newly-purchased horses, and, passing through some very pretty
+country, stopped at the first village, where De Warn, a French
+officer, came up on horseback, with his groom. He admired my horses
+very much, and announced his destination to be the Maison Carree,
+where he was going to shoot quails, a friend of his having bagged
+forty there in one afternoon. It came on to rain very hard as we
+passed through the plain of the Medidja, and arrived at Bouffaseh,
+where there is a column raised to the memory of twenty-three men
+killed there during the war. We galloped in to Blidah, the rain
+pouring down on us. At dinner, I met A---- in a _cafe_, with Count
+L'Esparre and three or four officers of the 1st Regiment of Zouaves.
+They were a very pleasant set of fellows, but did not appear to admire
+their remote quarters at Blidah by any means. The heat, during the
+height of summer, they informed me, was terrific, and the private
+soldiers are not allowed to quit their quarters between 10 A.M. and 5
+P.M. during the four hottest months of the year. We drank unlimited
+punch to the "Alliance," and, on returning to the hotel, after a
+mutual exchange of good wishes, we found familiar faces--belonging to
+the Dutchmen who had travelled with us from Marseilles to Algiers.
+
+I went with Count L'Esparre to see the Government establishment of
+horses. There were some very fine creatures of Arab breed; also some
+Persian horses which had been presented by the Shah of Persia. We then
+started on horseback for Medea, and on my way passed the "Grotto of
+Monkeys," but none of the animals from which the grotto takes its name
+met my inquiring gaze. The Rocher Pourri, which I also passed on my
+way, had just acquired an additional but a lugubrious celebrity, an
+Arab having killed a Frenchman there the day before. We rode on to
+Medea through a rattling snow-storm, and arrived properly powdered at
+the Hotel du Gastronome, where they made us comfortable enough. Medea
+is built in a very elevated situation, among the mountains, and must
+be a very cold place.
+
+On the next day, Saturday, it was still snowing hard. A---- had to
+provide himself with a horse, and we were afterwards both engaged,
+with Angelo, my Maltese servant, looking for mules to carry our
+baggage to Teniet. At the hotel, there was a very celebrated picture
+by Horace Vernet, for which one of the Dutchmen offered a thousand
+francs, but the offer was declined by Madame Gerard. In my opinion,
+the picture was far from being a masterpiece.
+
+Rising early on Sunday, I was immediately pounced upon by a set of
+Arabs, who had engaged to take our luggage, and to whom we had paid a
+deposit in advance. They now refused to take our luggage at five
+francs per day, the sum agreed upon, unless we retained their valuable
+services all the time we remained at Teniet, which, of course, we
+never contemplated doing. I demanded back the deposit, but they would
+not give it up. On going to the Bureau Arabe, we found it closed, and
+the Commandant de Ville, to whom some officers recommended us to
+apply, was gone to Blidah, so there was nothing for it but to invoke
+the aid of Joseph, a French horse-dealer, who engaged to take our
+effects on two mules to Teniet at seven and a half francs per mule per
+day, we paying the return journey. After all, we could not manage to
+get off until one o'clock in the day. Joseph accompanied us as far as
+Lodi, to indicate the route to the caravanserai of Arbah, where we
+were to stay for the night. The good horse-dealer insisted on our
+taking two or three _petits verres_ on the road. A terrible fellow he
+was for "nips," that Joseph.
+
+The road to Arbah lay across a very barren, desert, mountainous
+country, with splendid views over the whole Atlas range, as far as
+Mostaganem, now covered with snow. We passed one or two Arab villages,
+and had great difficulty in finding our way, on account of the number
+of roads that branched off right and left. On the journey we passed a
+very fine house belonging to a rich Arab chief. We were sorely tempted
+to turn in here, but refrained, and arriving at the caravanserai at
+about seven o'clock, found a party of French officers just sitting
+down to dinner. They very politely invited us to join them.
+
+The caravanserai is a Government establishment. In form it resembles a
+large farm yard, entirely walled in and crenellated. It has stalls for
+horses, and good accommodation for European travellers. A large fair
+is held here every Wednesday, chiefly for the sale of native horses.
+We had a long and interesting talk with the officers, and then retired
+to bed, but not to sleep, for our baggage had not arrived, and the
+bitter cold kept us in a state of enforced watchfulness.
+
+Before breakfast, next day, I walked out on a tour of inspection
+through the neighbourhood. The caravanserai is situated almost in the
+desert; and very cold and barren are its surroundings. During
+breakfast, we were rejoiced by the arrival of our baggage, and at once
+started for Ouad-el-Massin. There is a very grand sensation of
+solitude and silence in riding through these vast plains. The weather
+was still tremendously cold and rainy. I managed to shoot two
+partridges as we came along.
+
+A chapter of accidents now began. My Maltese servant had been mistaken
+concerning the capacity of our mules; for they broke down, and we were
+obliged to leave them behind. Then my horse, an exceedingly vicious
+brute, nearly succeeded in appropriating a piece of Angelo's shoulder,
+as the latter stooped to tighten the girths. I found afterwards that
+my steed had a very bad character all over the country; his ill fame,
+however, was slightly redeemed by the fact that he was a good goer.
+Then we missed our way among the mountains, and with difficulty
+succeeded, just as it was getting dark, in reaching a small house at
+Guebla, kept by a Frenchman. The proprietor received us very
+hospitably, and gave us all the accommodation he could: it was of
+rather a limited character, inasmuch as we all slept together in the
+small room where we dined and breakfasted. Our host informed us that
+there were a great number of lions in the neighbourhood. He had
+himself been surprised by one, just after dusk, on the road from
+Milianca, and offered to induce the Caid of the adjoining tribe to get
+up a battue on our return. He also spoke of the great number of wild
+boars in a way that would make a hunter's heart leap within him. We
+retired to rest, and, sheltered for the nonce from the searching cold,
+I slept as only a weary traveller can.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+FURTHER EXPERIENCES.
+
+  Abd-el-Kader (but not the Emir).--Difficult Road.--Perils of the
+  Way.--Prospect of Sport.--The First Boar.--The Chasseurs
+  d'Afrique.--Mine Hostess of the "Scorpion."--Teniet.
+
+
+In the hope of obtaining some reliable information as to hunting
+prospects, I had in the Caid's lieutenant a fine-looking fellow,
+rejoicing in the famous name of Abd-el-Kader, though he was no
+relation to the renowned chief. He gave a long description of the
+capture of a boar, that had been wounded by some Arabs; how he caught
+the brute by the hoofs, gagged it, and brought it home alive. Mr.
+----, he also informed us, had been surprised, about a month before,
+by a lion, as he was returning at dusk from Milianah. There were many
+lions in the vicinity, he added; and promised that his friend the Caid
+should treat us to a lion-hunt on our return, if we came back this
+way.
+
+Then we started, Abd-el-Kader accompanying us to show us a short
+way over the mountains to the caravanserai of Oued-el-Massin, where
+we were to pass the night, and expected to find our luggage. We
+were prepared to find the river very high, and our anticipations were
+not deceived. Abd-el-Kader admonished me to wait on the bank while
+he went in to try if there was any getting through. He returned and
+asked if my horse was good, and if I was willing to follow him. On
+receiving my affirmative answer, he told me to fix my eyes on the
+opposite shore, and, above all things, to abstain from looking at
+the water, which was tearing along at a tremendous rate; if I
+neglected his instructions, I should infallibly be carried away and
+drowned. I started, and, by dint of spurring, managed to get
+across, though my horse plunged up to his shoulder, and at one
+moment I thought I was a "gone coon." Abd-el-Kader, the undaunted,
+then went back once more for the second horse, which he dragged
+across in due time by the bridle. Then he pointed out to us the road
+over the mountain to Oued-el-Massin; nor did he think it derogatory to
+his dignity to accept a reward for the trouble he had taken on our
+behalf.
+
+In spite of the valiant lieutenant's directions, the road was a very
+difficult one to find. After wandering about in the forest through a
+number of out-of-the-way paths, we managed at last to stumble on an
+Arab house or two, where the promise of a supply of powder prevailed
+with an Arab, and he piloted us down to the caravanserai, where we
+arrived at about six P.M., wet to the skin, and weary with a most
+fatiguing day's march. We found our luggage had preceded us by about
+half an hour; so we had a change of clothes, and sat down gleefully to
+a capital dinner in very comfortable quarters. These caravanserais are
+a famous institution. They are built by the French Government for the
+convenience of travellers, and are very well organised. Each one is
+under the superintendence of a Frenchman, and has one part devoted to
+Europeans and another to Arabs. We had an excellent sitting-room and
+bed-room to ourselves, and, as may be supposed, were exceedingly
+comfortable.
+
+Wednesday, the 14th of March, was ushered in by a pouring rain; and we
+received the agreeable intelligence that the river between this and
+our next station was perfectly impassable; so we made up our minds to
+stay where we were. There was some consolation in the thought that
+Joseph, the exceedingly keen horse-dealer at Medea, will not be
+entitled to charge extra for the delay to his mules, he having bound
+himself, by solemn covenant, to deliver the baggage safely at Teniet
+for a certain stipulated sum.
+
+After breakfast I walked into the forest which surrounds the
+caravanserai on all sides, and shot two or three brace of red-legged
+partridges and a woodcock. I saw the traces of several wild boars;
+they were evidently quite recent; also a wretched porcupine the Arabs
+had killed.
+
+In the course of the day the Arabs brought in a boar which they had
+killed in the morning. They threw the entrails outside the house, and,
+during the night, quite an army of jackals came down to devour them.
+It was so dark that we could not get a shot at these African
+scavengers, though I sallied out once or twice after them.
+
+It rained all night, so that going on was out of the question, from
+the swollen state of the river; so I walked off before breakfast, with
+Angelo, to an Arab village, about a mile and a half distant, to
+inquire about boars. The promise of some powder brought out the
+inhabitants; and, after a little banter and chaffing, they agreed to
+meet me after breakfast, and to show me one of those animals. So I
+returned to the caravanserai to breakfast, and then, with my friend,
+rode back to the Arab huts. We left our horses at the village, and
+proceeded to climb a horribly steep hill in company with some of the
+natives, to whom I had promised tobacco-money, on condition of being
+brought face to face with a boar. After some tremendously steep
+climbing, we came upon a number of recent tracks, one of which B----
+followed with his Arab, while I remained in another gorge. Presently I
+heard a shot fired, about a mile off; and, on returning to where the
+horses were tethered, I found that B---- and his Arab had succeeded in
+discovering a boar. The Arab had fired at the brute at twenty paces,
+but missed his aim. It was now past five o'clock, so we returned to
+the caravanserai to dinner. Some Chasseurs d'Afrique had arrived in
+the interim. Their captain joined us in our room, and promised us an
+escort for the morrow. He was from Boulogne-sur-Mer, and spoke English
+pretty well. He told us we should have to start at six in the morning
+to cross the river.
+
+Accordingly, next morning the Frenchman set out at six o'clock with
+his troops and traps, leaving a dragoon behind as an escort for us,
+but with the important qualification that the man might only stay one
+hour behind the rest, as he must be present on the arrival of the
+troop at Teniet. "_Et maintenant_," quoth this bold warrior, "_je vais
+me servir d'un peu de votre tabac, s'il vous plait, car je vois que
+votre blague est bien garni;_" and, filling his pipe, he vanished,
+with a polite "_Au revoir, messieurs_!"
+
+Feeling too tired to rise at seven for the sake of escort, especially
+as we had not a very long journey before us, I remained comfortably
+for breakfast, and B---- started alone. After a good meal, I set out
+with Angelo, and we forced our way through a densely-wooded country,
+till we came upon the obstacle which had lost us two days--the river
+Klebah. This stream we managed with some difficulty to cross; a
+Frenchman, who emerged from the auberge on the other side, assisting
+us, by his advice, as to the best spot to choose for our passage.
+B---- and the trooper had just finished breakfast in the auberge, and
+departed. The landlady of the "Scorpion," a very chatty and amusing
+personage, insisted upon it that I was a German. She favoured me with
+a sporting anecdote, setting forth how she had killed three rabbits
+during an expedition to pick some rose laurier on the hills. As the
+bunnies popped their noses out of their holes, she had managed to pop
+them off with the branches. As this was the only house to be met with
+on that day's journey, I halted there for half an hour. Mine hostess
+related how an "English milord" had stayed there for six months with
+his wife, in a tent, without even a servant--"_Qu'ils sont droles ces
+Anglais!_" was the landlady's final comment; and it was not for me to
+contradict the oft-repeated sentiment.
+
+Through a mountainous and most barren country, amid a pelting
+snow-storm, we wended onwards to Teniet. In my way from El Massin to
+the "Scorpion," I might almost have knocked over several partridges
+with my whip, so close did they come; but here there were none to be
+seen, nor was there any cover that might shelter them. At a miserable
+auberge called "_les Cedres_," I found B----.
+
+The fort at Teniet is a fine edifice, in a commanding position. I went
+up and left my letter of introduction for Captain Camatte, who gave us
+very small hope of sport. He did not seem very keen on the subject,
+and advised us to try some other place, offering to give us
+recommendations, &c. I returned to a most miserable room, where we
+could hardly sit, so much were we annoyed by the smoke from the fire;
+we could scarcely decide which was hardest to bear, the smoke within,
+or the cold without. With a hearty laugh at the absurdity of coming to
+such a place as Teniet in search of game, and with a determination to
+set out on our return the next day, we betook ourselves to an early
+bed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+FURTHER PROGRESS.--RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES.
+
+  Cold Weather.--Milianah.--Vezoul.--The Aubergiste.--El Afroun.--The
+  Rhamazan.--Dancing Dervishes.
+
+
+In order to avoid the trouble of carrying our ammunition back with us,
+we sold the greater portion of it. The snow lay four or five inches
+deep in the road; we sent to the commandant to procure us mules and
+other necessaries, and set out, with a snow-storm beating down upon
+us, and the cold as sharp as it well could be. At the "Scorpion" we
+refreshed ourselves with coffee, and then re-crossed the river, which
+was scarcely fordable; we got to El Massin about six o'clock; the
+brigadier told us he had shot a hyena. Some capital wild boar they
+gave us for dinner, seemed to be an earnest of our return to sporting
+latitudes. At half-past seven next morning, we emerged from the
+caravanserai. The weather seemed at last, after a long season of
+inclemency, to have set in for heat. "_Le temps s'est remis a neuf_,"
+observed Mr. Ball; and it had changed with a vengeance, so far as the
+temperature was concerned. Terribly hot we found it, marching across
+the Milianah plain. We crossed the Djelish in a bac, or flying
+bridge, and reached Afreville about ten o'clock. Leaving B---- and
+Angelo to proceed to Medea, I went on to Milianah, where I arrived at
+about twelve o'clock. While waiting there for my baggage, I noticed
+some Arab boys playing at a game closely resembling hockey. Milianah
+is a very strong fort, with a splendid view over the Atlas mountains
+and the plain of the Djelish. I stopped at the Cat or Du-chat stables,
+appropriately kept by Mr. Duchat-_el_, and found that it was too late
+to stop at any place on the road to Blidah.
+
+I took a walk through the town, and on the Grande Place found a number
+of soldiers singing a chorus very creditably, without instrumental
+accompaniment. They perform in this manner every Sunday. The view over
+the plain of the Djelish is one of the most splendid I ever beheld,
+not excepting that from the Alhambra itself. I was told I could easily
+get to Blidah in a day on horseback, from Milianah, so I determined to
+stay at the Hotel d'Iffly, a very comfortable place. At dinner I met
+Mostyn and Captain Ross, just arrived from Algiers, per diligence.
+Captain R----, who is in the Bengal Artillery, told me he thought the
+French used the natives much better than we do those of India. I
+differ from him. One of the French officers with whom I dined told me
+the only way to manage the "Indigenes" was by that vigorous measure,
+"_un coup de fouet_," and, from what I saw, I believe it to be the
+case.
+
+On Monday, the 19th, I left Milianah at about half-past seven, and
+rode through splendid Pyreneean scenery to Vezoul, a French village.
+The aubergiste took me for a German, and announced that he had two
+German workmen staying with him, who spoke with the same accent I
+used. When I repudiated my Teutonic nationality, he met me with the
+remark: "_Enfin, c'est le meme sang rouge qui coule dans nos veines,
+que nous soyons Anglais, Francais, ou Allemands;_" to which undeniable
+proposition I rejoined, "_Oui, c'est vrai nous sommes tous Europeens
+ici._" I fed my horse here, and came on, over the mountains, under a
+very hot sun, to Bourkikah, where I entered the Medidja plain. On
+entering this plain, the traveller enjoys a magnificent view right
+onward to sea, gleaming miles away in the sunny haze. At Bourkikah, my
+horse was so tired, that I was obliged to take off the saddle-bags,
+and leave them at the "Bureau des Diligences," to be forwarded. Some
+French officers at the hotel assured me I should not be able to get to
+Blidah, and recommended me strongly to stay at El Afroun, "_chez les
+Petits Freres_," if I found my horse too tired to proceed. I rode
+determinedly on through the plain, but could scarcely get my horse to
+move by dint of whip or spur. By the time I had crossed the river into
+El Afroun, I found my horse so entirely knocked up, that it was
+clearly impossible to proceed. So, of necessity, I turned into the
+auberge, and had a very good dinner, enlivened by a serenade from a
+legion of frogs, croaking dolefully in the neighbouring marshes.
+
+Getting away from El Afroun by six o'clock next morning, I found
+myself at Blidah by half-past seven. The cavalry horses were just
+turning out on the plains, and looked very handsome as I rode into the
+town. At Blidah, where I breakfasted, the sun was hot enough to burn
+my face in a most unequivocal manner, and to necessitate the purchase
+of a new hat. On arriving at Bouffanieh, I got off my horse, which by
+this time had fairly fallen lame, and took the diligence into Algiers.
+At Bouffanieh I was much amused at the proceedings of a group of
+Arabs, who were squatting on the ground, selling oranges. Their first
+customer was a drunken Frenchman, who came staggering up, and began
+chaffing the vendors; but they evidently got the better of him in no
+time, and he retired in confusion. Next came a grave, steady-looking
+Spaniard, who, after much bargaining, marched off with _one_ orange.
+He was followed by a little girl, who very quickly got hold of three.
+I thought Algiers improved on a second view.
+
+Next day I went for a ride to the Maison Carree, with De Warne and
+Captain Thouars, of the _Euphrates_. We had a most magnificent view
+over the plain of the Metidja. This was the first night of the
+Rhamazan. I visited the mosques, which have been thrown open to
+Europeans since the French occupation. Thence I proceeded to view a
+strange religious or fanatic ceremony of the Mussulmans; some Swedish
+naval officers were with us. The whole affair reminded me of a meeting
+of Jumpers, or Ranters. There are no priests to take part in it. The
+men stand round in a circle, reciting prayers to Allah, and calling on
+Mahomet, while they work their bodies violently backwards and
+forwards, till they lash themselves into a state of perfect frenzy.
+One fanatic more zealous than the rest then rushes forward, cuts
+himself with a knife, and stands on the sharp edge of the weapon,
+which is held by another. The chaunt or psalm is then renewed, and
+another devotee comes forward howling; snatches a portion of prickly
+pear, and actually devours it ravenously. Then another exceedingly
+zealous performer--whose face, by the way, reminded me strangely of
+the portraits of Disraeli in _Punch_--seized some red-hot coals, and
+held them in his mouth for a time, afterwards proceeding to swallow
+lighted pipes, and execute other salamandrine feats. After witnessing
+this spectacle of degradation for some time, we retired, somewhat
+disgusted at the buffooneries perpetrated in this country, as
+elsewhere, in the name of religion.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+BONA AND ITS VICINITY.
+
+  Passage to Bona.--State of Affairs on Board.--Bona.--The Lake
+  Metitza.--Ain Mokra.--Wild Duck Shooting on the Lake.
+
+
+We bade adieu to B----, who had given us letters of recommendation to
+the Admiral, for a first-class cabin to Bona--a thing difficult to
+achieve on board the steamers here, as civilians are only allowed
+second-class accommodation, the state cabin being reserved for the use
+of naval and military officers, as the steamers on this line rank as
+men of war. The boat was much crowded with soldiers, sailors, and
+Arabs, and we had to share a most miserable berth with eight other
+occupants. We had arrived too late to procure cabin places, and were
+obliged to dine in an unsavoury den, reeking with pestilential odours.
+Most of the Frenchmen grumbled loudly at the miserable accommodation
+afforded in return for their money. Steaming along past a fine coast,
+we reached Dellis about eight o'clock. I got Angelo to bring me my
+sheepskin and cloak, and preferred sleeping on deck to passing the
+night in a locality which, for the horrors it contained, might have
+figured as a scene in Dante's "Inferno."
+
+The gentle music of the sailors, swabbing the deck, awoke me next
+morning. I found we were off Bougie, a most beautifully-situated
+place, entirely surrounded by snow-covered mountains. Here are
+distinctly to be seen the ruins of the old wall supposed to have been
+built by the Vandals. A rather tedious day on board, but the
+occupation of watching the coast, which is very fine, varied the
+monotony of the voyage. We passed Djigelli at about twelve, and
+Philippeville at nine in the evening, when I retired to rest, and, the
+Fates be thanked, it was in a fresh cabin.
+
+There was a Jewess on board, a rather pretty personage, who slept in
+the same cabin with six men, most of them French officers, with a
+coolness that astonished me. Her husband was in the berth opposite
+her; she did not appear to feel the discomforts of her position, but
+chatted away gaily in Arabic and French throughout the whole passage.
+I don't think she quitted her berth once.
+
+At half-past six on Saturday, the 25th of March, came Angelo to
+announce to me that we were off Bona. This is a very strongly
+fortified place. We were rowed ashore by Maltese boatmen, and, amid a
+great crowd and bustle on the quay, landed, and went to the Hotel de
+France. The proprietors were very civil, and assigned us a room at the
+top of the house, looking out on the place. We sallied forth in quest
+of horses to take us to the market-place. An Arab, who spoke some
+very broken and dilapidated Italian, took us round the market and
+through the streets, shouting "Reel Ain Mokra!" Several Arabs came up
+and offered us their horses, but the steeds had such a forlorn look,
+that we declined the accommodation, and settled to start by carriage
+next morning.
+
+Accordingly, on Monday, the 26th of March, we set out at five o'clock,
+on a most wretched morning. The vehicle was the most miserable
+locomotive contrivance I ever saw. Drawn by two horses, it pounded and
+churned along a most detestable road. We were obliged to get out
+several times, and in one place we stuck in the mud for twenty
+minutes. It was only by dint of putting our united shoulders to the
+wheel, that we succeeded in extricating our unhappy chariot from its
+stationary position. At length our eyes were gladdened by the sight of
+the defile which opens on the lake Metitza, where Count Z----'s
+property is situated. Though of Polish origin, the Count is an
+Englishman, and has, I believe, been an officer. Right gladly we
+alighted from the carriage, and, loading our guns, prevailed on some
+Italian fishermen to take us out in a boat for a pop at the wild ducks
+which we saw flying about by hundreds, bagged a few, and then returned
+to find that the Count's keeper had come down, under the impression
+that we were poachers, with a firm determination to take us into
+custody there and then. The production of our letter of recommendation
+brought him back to civility, and produced an offer to take us out
+shooting; Count Z---- himself was absent in London.
+
+There is an establishment here for the manufacture of oil from putrid
+fish, which agreeable occupation announced itself in the shape of such
+an overpowering odour, that I seized a glass of cognac, and fled
+precipitately, taking my way towards the caravanserai of Ain Mokra.
+Poor old Nero, whom I had brought with me, got into a scrape here, and
+narrowly escaped being drowned. It appears that the putrid entrails of
+the fish are thrown into a kind of pond, which is thus filled with a
+slimy mixture resembling clay, and exhaling a most horrible odour when
+exposed to the sun's rays. Nero contrived, in some way or other, to
+slip into this delectable compound, and there he would have remained,
+had I not laid hold of him and pulled him out by main force. I at once
+had him washed and scrubbed, and even emptied some scent on him, but
+in vain; for days afterwards, poor Nero carried about with him a
+reminiscence of his odoriferous adventure, which rendered his absence
+most desirable to the comfort and well-being of his friends. I sallied
+forth about four miles from Ain Mokra, and lay in ambush for boars,
+but none appeared, and only shot some jackals--a very poor substitute
+for the nobler game I had missed.
+
+[Illustration: R. Pheney, lith.
+
+M. & N. Hanhart, Impt.
+
+SHOOTING WILD DUCKS NEAR AIN MOKRA, PROVINCE OF
+CONSTANTINE, ALGERIA.]
+
+At five, next morning, I went out to shoot on the lake. I got Angelo
+to row a boat slowly among the reeds, and soon saw hundreds of wild
+ducks, teals, and large white birds of whose name I am ignorant; they
+looked to me like flamingoes. I could only succeed in bagging a few,
+as they were exceedingly shy, and made off as soon as the boat
+approached; moreover, the rushes were not thick enough to afford us an
+effectual concealment. As the miasma from the lake was sufficiently
+powerful to threaten fever, we returned to the caravanserai, where we
+breakfasted, and, after shooting a few quails, returned in our
+carriage, at one o'clock, to Bona. My driver, who sat beside me, was a
+very loquacious old soldier, who had served in the campaigns against
+the Arabs under Baraguay d'Hilliers and Youssouf, and been present at
+the capture of Milianah and Medeah. The Arabs, he said, never met the
+French fairly _en bataille rangee_, but always fired from ambush at
+the rear-guard, and in this way killed a great number of men. He
+described the conduct of the Arabs to their prisoners as very
+merciless. They never gave quarter, and frequently mutilated their
+captives; the women, in this particular, being more cruel than the
+men. I was informed, on my return, that the party who came out last
+year to shoot, had only killed four lions in as many months, though
+they had "all appliances and means to boot," and always kept several
+Arabs in their pay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+ON TO TUNIS.
+
+  Algeria in general.--The Arabs and their Conquerors.--Antagonism
+  between the Two Races.--Social Condition of the Arabs.--The Oasis
+  steamer.--Arrival at Tunis.
+
+
+On the 28th of March I left Bona in the steamer _Oasis_. The engine
+broke down shortly after leaving the port, and, as the sails were
+absolutely useless, we had the pleasant consciousness of drifting
+towards a lee shore; but in a short time the damage was luckily
+repaired, and we proceeded on our voyage.
+
+The accounts I had heard of Algeria had not prepared me to find such a
+flourishing state of affairs as I really found to exist in the
+community. The colony possesses fine harbours, a magnificent soil, and
+a glorious climate; numerous towns, with good hotels, are springing up
+in the interior. It is true that many of the immigrants are not
+French, but the majority are of that nation; and all the inhabitants,
+after a few years, adopt the French manners and language. The
+non-Gallic population are chiefly Spaniards, Italians, Maltese, and
+Germans. I met only one party of English at Bona, where a community of
+eighteen souls have been brought over by a Mr. Vincent; they appear
+to thrive very well. I was told that Count Z---- intended establishing
+an English village near Bona.
+
+From the general prosperity, I, of course, except the Moors and Arabs,
+who will never, I believe, adopt European civilisation; they seem to
+recoil from before it, like the wild beasts of their native deserts.
+
+The French people certainly pointed out to me in the towns one or
+two _Europeanised_ Arabs, and laughed at the idea of their ever
+becoming "_Francais_." From what I saw, the natives merely adopted
+the vices without the good qualities of the dominant race. If to be
+civilised consists in sitting in the _cafes_, drinking absinthe,
+playing cards, and speaking bad French, I certainly saw one or two
+most unquestionable specimens of the Arab adaptability to Gallic
+impressions; but, with the exception of these brilliant results, I
+never saw the least token of intercourse between the Moors and
+their conquerors; indeed, each nation may be said entirely to ignore
+the existence of the other. The peculiarity of Mussulman habits,
+with regard to women, entirely precludes all prospect of a future
+mixture of the two races--such an amalgamation, for instance, as
+occurred in our own country between the Norman-French conquerors
+and the conquered Saxons. So well are the French aware of this
+impossibility, that I have seen the question of the expediency of
+utterly expelling the Mussulmans from Algeria gravely discussed in
+the French journals.
+
+Another method proposed was, that the young Arabs who had attained the
+military age of from eighteen to twenty-two years, should be
+transferred to France, there to pass their period of service as
+infantry soldiers only, that opportunities might be found, during
+their "soldiering years," for instructing them in agriculture, and the
+rudiments of civilised education. This appears to me a sufficiently
+feasible plan; but I suspect that the Arab converts to civilisation
+would, on their return to their native land, quickly relapse into
+their old idle, roving habits, their primitive mode of life, and their
+inborn hatred of the infidel, whom they now regard as an instrument
+sent by Providence to inflict vengeance on the true believer for his
+apathy, and culpable neglect of his religious duties, including the
+propagation of his faith by fire and sword. Still, they believe the
+time to be approaching when every true son of the prophet shall "hae
+his ain" again; and it is past the power of mortal man to shake a
+Mahometan's trust and reliance on Destiny.
+
+For the rest, the French behave with the greatest toleration towards
+all members of the Moorish faith, who are allowed to perform every
+rite of their religion, and polygamy even is permitted to prevail
+among the Mussulman population. At Bona, a very handsome mosque is
+being erected on the Grand Place by the Government. Tolerant
+themselves, the French refuse, with perfect justice, to suffer any
+display of bigotry or fanaticism on the part of the Mahometans towards
+the Christian community; the consequence is, that the mosques and
+other resorts of Mahometans are all thrown open to European visitors.
+
+My dog Nero was a most decided favourite on board the French steamer,
+_Oasis_. Everybody was caressing and patting him, from the captain to
+the stewardess, rather a nice young female, from Germany, who took him
+under her especial protection, and looked after his creature-comforts
+in a way that must have aroused the most lively gratitude in the
+canine bosom of the said Nero. Poor old dog! he seemed quite
+bewildered at the attention he received, not only here, but also on
+board the French man-of-war, the _Tartar_, where the French soldiers
+and sailors were crowding around him all day long, and overwhelming
+him with favours, in the shape of bits of meat, when they took their
+meals. A number of Arabs were sleeping about the deck. These children
+of the desert used to excite Nero's especial wonder. Whenever he was
+let loose, he was sure to be sniffing about among the prostrate
+figures, examining their faces and _bournouses_, and often waking them
+up with a start, to the intense delight of the French tars.
+
+On our arrival off La Goulette, the only anchorage for ships, situated
+about eight miles from Tunis, by sea, and nine miles by land, we were
+greeted by a scene of the most tremendous confusion. All the feluccas
+were rowed by Arabs, and their shouting, swearing, and gesticulation
+exceeded all my former experiences of the kind, Stamboul not
+excepted. A little patience, and a good deal of backsheesh, enabled us
+to pass our baggage through the Douane; and we sent it on by boat to
+Tunis, whither we proceeded by land in a carriage, and a drizzling
+rain. Once on the way we stopped, at what the inhabitants term the
+"Carthaginian cistern," to take in some exceedingly dirty water, from
+a fountain of old-fashioned appearance. The carriage windows were
+closed on account of the rain--an arrangement which interfered a good
+deal with my view of the surrounding country. Twice only, before we
+arrived at Tunis, my companion, a Russian, opened the window--to spit!
+On the first of these occasions, I got a glimpse of a large heap of
+immense stones, which were pointed out to me as the ruins of Carthage,
+and a grove of olives, looking dismal exceedingly in the drizzling
+rain. On the second occasion, I saw the lakes, and a solitary Tunisian
+sentinel. This soldier was dressed much in the Turkish costume, and I
+should scarcely have known him from an Osmanli, but that he wore the
+brass plaque in the front of his scarlet fez, instead of at the top.
+
+As we approached Tunis, we became involved in an increasing crowd of
+loaded asses and mules; and, amid a great deal of screeching and
+shouting, we made our entry into the city, and drove to the Hotel
+de France, where we obtained such a complete view of an old wall,
+that it effectually prevented us from seeing anything else. The
+rooms, or rather holes, assigned to us, were so miserable, that we
+tried the solitary opposition shop the place can boast--the Hotel
+de Provence--but found that here we should fare rather worse than in
+the Hotel de France. There was a third establishment--a tavern,
+rejoicing in the magniloquent title of "Hotel of the Britannic
+Isles"--but as this hostelry was entirely occupied by sailors and
+Maltese skippers, we declined to avail ourselves of the "Britannic"
+accommodation. There was a great crowd of rather miscellaneous
+company at the _table-d'hote_. One French female, whom, without
+offence to gallantry, I may be permitted to describe as the ugliest
+woman I met in my travels, excited my especial horror. This charming
+person actually amused herself, and disgusted her neighbours, by
+indulging, _across the table_, in an amusement generally associated
+in men's minds with the chewing of tobacco! I discovered, however,
+that she was only a servant maid.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+MARSA.
+
+  Angelo's Horsemanship.--The Bey's Palace at Marsa.--The Arabs and
+  their Love of Tobacco.--The Friendly Moor at Camatte.
+
+
+On the first of April I rode to Marsa, a little town on the seashore.
+Angelo's horse seemed rather fresh, and my servant was evidently no
+Centaur. He came up to me in an olive wood, where I made a halt for
+about five minutes. He was holding on hard by the mane, his trousers
+were up to his knees, and his face was horribly pale. On my asking him
+why he loitered behind so, he owned, with a dismal sigh, that he was
+half afraid of the horse. "Afraid of the horse, sir!" was poor
+Angelo's lament: "Very wicked horse, sir--fell from a horse, sir--at
+Scutari, sir--broke three ribs, sir--and in hospital five weeks,
+sir!"
+
+I told him to be of good cheer, for the horse would soon be quiet
+after a good gallop; and, tying the horses to some olive trees, I bade
+Angelo wait for me by the side of a little hillock in the plain, where
+I could readily find him on my return, and went away into the forest
+with my gun. The ground was covered with long, thick, pointed grass,
+very wet with the dew. I saw some quails, and shot a few; then
+returned to where Angelo was waiting, and galloped on to Marsa. At
+this place, the Bey, and the principal inhabitants of Tunis, have
+summer residences, to which they resort for the sake of sea-bathing.
+On the way, I encountered a number of Arabs, mounted on mules. The
+foremost shouted out to me in Arabic, as I passed, asking me to stop
+and give him some tobacco. I understood the word "tobacco," which
+seems to have nearly the same sound in all languages, and knowing this
+request to be often a "dodge" on the part of the Arabs, who want an
+opportunity to rob, if not to murder, the traveller, I pointed to
+Angelo, who was following, about fifty paces behind me, with my gun,
+and shouted out that _he_ would find tobacco for them. They evidently
+understood my meaning; for they all set up a loud laugh, and my friend
+the tobacconist--or rather the tobacco-less--looked exceedingly
+"sold."
+
+I found Marsa very prettily situated, opposite to the bay of Tunis,
+near the ruins of old Carthage. The Bey's palace is a handsome
+building. The English and French consulates are also well built. I
+proceeded to a small Italian _locanda_, to get breakfast; but the old
+lady, who seemed the presiding genius of the place, obstinately
+refused to let us have anything. "_Io han niente_," was her
+unanswerable argument. But I rather ostentatiously pulled out my
+watch, whose golden blink somewhat softened the old lady's mood, and
+caused her to remember that she might have certain eggs, and some
+bread, and salad, though a moment before she had been protesting that
+she had not even such a thing as bread in the house. Her son, a
+handsome young Italian, returned at this juncture, and we soon had an
+excellent _dejeuner_ of sausages, salad, spinach, omelette, and
+cheese, with very good wine and coffee. I went down to the seaside and
+bathed, first burying my watch and purse in the sand; for the Arabs
+have a weakness for occasionally coming down under such circumstances,
+and stealing one's clothes.
+
+Past a ruined temple, down an avenue into Camatte, where I got an Arab
+to show me the way to a house formerly occupied by an Englishman.
+Here, for a wonder, I met a Moor, who spoke very good French, and was
+very civil. He asked me how I liked Africa, and laughed cordially at
+my open avowal, that it was "_un peu bizarre_." After gathering a few
+delicious oranges for me in the garden, he took me into the interior
+of the house. I found it a most charming residence, with a deliciously
+cool marble reservoir in the centre, full of gold and silver fish.
+
+I rode back by the margin of the lake, but saw only small game till I
+got to a large olive forest, where a jackal made his appearance. I
+gave chase, and, after a rattling gallop, lodged him among some cactus
+bushes, where I could get near enough to shoot him; and so back to
+Tunis.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+ABOUT BOAR-SHOOTING.
+
+  Sleeman.--The Oued el Ahwena.--Its Scenery and its Dangers.--Beauty
+  of the Landscape on its Banks.
+
+
+I started next day with the Umbra, who was remarkable for a long
+scimitar, and spurs nearly as long. Each time I put my horse to a
+gallop, he was under the impression that I wanted to ride a race with
+him, and went on at full speed, till I restrained his ardour. We
+arrived duly at Sleeman, where the Caid had everything prepared very
+comfortably for us. My friends B---- and F---- arrived later, in a
+carriage. We had a good Arab dinner, with the national kouskous,
+followed by a chibouk.
+
+There was a river about six miles off, where boars were rumoured to
+make their abode. I rose early next morning, and, proceeding to this
+stream, hid in the thicket on the banks, while the Arabs beat the
+bushes. After waiting a long time, I managed to "pot" a wild boar,
+which came rushing past me at full speed. After this, the Arabs
+refused to beat the bushes any more, declaring that the dogs were
+tired, though the real reason was that they wanted their own dinners,
+so I was obliged to give up the sport and return. The wild boar was
+dispatched as a present to the consul.
+
+[Illustration: R. Pheney, lith.
+
+M. & N. Hanhart, Impt.
+
+HOG-SHOOTING ON THE BANKS OF THE OUED EL AHWENA, IN
+TUNISIA.]
+
+The river which we visited to-day is called the Oued el Ahwena. It
+runs through a rich valley, bordered on both sides by mountains which
+rise up gradually, and are covered to their very foot with trees of
+various descriptions. The plain itself is fragrant with myrtles,
+orange trees, and olives. The beauty of the scene amid which this
+river falls into the sea is beyond description. Here the water is
+hissing wildly among osiers and furze bushes; there it skips along
+like a young goat over the small pebbles; and yonder, again, it winds
+like a serpent among the sand hills on the sea-shore. The dark
+olive-trees on the bank seem to look seriously on, like a father
+watching the pranks of a favourite child. The large ash-trees shake
+and quiver, like old aunts, all in a tremble at the dangerous hops and
+vagaries of a lively niece; while the gay-plumaged birds of the air
+ring out their wild applause, and the flowers on the bankside murmur
+tenderly, "Oh, take us with you, dear sister!" But the joyous,
+sparkling river rushes on like a coquette, bounding and skipping
+towards its goal.
+
+Such is the river Ahwena in the glorious month of April: fair without,
+like many a gay flirt, she can yet inflict wounds incurable, if not
+death, upon those whom her wiles entrap. Woe to the traveller or
+hunter who, oppressed by thirst in this burning climate, ventures to
+taste the sparkling water that bubbles up like champagne, invitingly
+at his feet! Cholera and death would be the probable result. The
+waters are redolent of cholera, and the banks of fever. No man may
+pitch his tent in safety for a single night on the banks of this
+death-dealing water; not even the Bedouins, who avoid the locality as
+if it were plague-stricken, for fever is in the very air. Strange that
+so fair an exterior should veil so baneful a mystery. Those bright,
+sweet-smelling flowers conceal snakes and reptiles whose bite is
+almost instantaneously fatal, and the place might be appropriately
+termed the Valley of Death. Among yonder fair trees lurk the
+treacherous panther and the slinking hyena.
+
+Yet, in this world, amid present impressions of pleasure, we have
+little time to think of the danger veiled beneath the smiling outward
+shape. So, at least, it was with me, as I reclined on the carpet of
+soft grass, after slaying the boar, placidly discussing my breakfast,
+and enjoying the beauty of the scene around, with the azure-rippling
+sea about two miles off, the magnificent mountains around me, the
+sparkling river at my feet, and, across the bay in the far distance,
+the ruins of the once mighty city of Carthage, with the birds singing
+merrily overhead in the bright sunshine. There is exquisite pleasure
+in the sensation of the external world thus melting away, as it were,
+into a little world of our own, and when the green trees, the azure
+sky, the perfumed plants, all take their places in an exquisite
+picture of Nature's own painting. Women, perhaps, most indulge this
+feeling; hence they often smile with an amiable incredulity when they
+hear the "lords of the creation," proud of their scholastic lore,
+discussing and settling everything, priding themselves upon having
+divided all things so cleverly into _subjective_ and _objective_, and
+boasting that they have furnished their wise heads with so many
+drawers (like a chemist's shop, forsooth), with reason located in one,
+good sense in another, understanding in a third, and so on to the end
+of the chapter.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+SPORTING EXPERIENCES.
+
+  El Greesh.--Shooting Hyenas.--An Expedition with the Arabs.--The
+  Caid and his Family.--Another Wild Boar.
+
+
+The next day I rode on to a place called El Greesh, about twenty miles
+from Sleeman. I wanted to pitch my tent at the base of the purple
+mountain, outside the village, where I was sure we should have got a
+great deal of game, as the mountains were covered with thick
+underwood. A----, however, and the rest were opposed to it, so I
+yielded, and pitched my tent in the village itself, where I soon had
+the entire tribe around me, examining me and my arms, my gestures, and
+everything, as if I was an event. After a cup of coffee, I determined
+to start in search of game, and, with a little backsheesh, got an Arab
+to accompany us to one of the neighbouring defiles, where, after
+waiting about an hour and a half, I managed to bag a very fine hyena.
+He was just sneaking out of his hole, and was about 150 yards off. On
+my return, the natives manifested great joy, shook my hands, made a
+circle round me, tapped me on the back, &c., to my chagrin. As I was
+tremendously fatigued, I retired to my sheepskin in my tent with
+great satisfaction. The natives all slept around our tents on the
+ground, and some of them kicked up a most infernal noise till about
+two in the morning, singing a sort of chorus. The following morning
+the whole tribe collected around our tents and watched _our toilette
+du matin_ with the most intense eagerness.
+
+[Illustration: R. Pheney, lith.
+
+M. & N. Hanhart, Impt.
+
+SHOOTING HYENAS ON THE PURPLE MOUNTAINS NEAR EL GREESHE.]
+
+The greater part of them had brought their matchlocks, as the day was
+to be a grand field-day, and they were all in the highest spirits,
+laughing, and cracking jokes to an extraordinary amount. We started
+about seven A.M., and I remained till eleven A.M., till which time
+they had not succeeded in driving anything out of cover. Here I
+sprained my ankle in descending a broken gully, and was obliged to
+return to the tent. I came back about four P.M., with only small game.
+After sun-down we went out a second time in ambush after hyena. A lion
+or panther came, a little after sunset, and frightened the horses so
+that they broke loose, and we returned to the tents about eleven P.M.
+
+The next day we started early, in order to return to Sleeman. We
+stopped an hour on the banks of our old friend, the river Oued el
+Ahwenah, for luncheon, where I shot several quail and snipes, and a
+large bird, whose name I ignore, also a hare, the only one I saw in
+Tunisia. About four P.M., I reached the Caid's house; a woman, for a
+wonder, opened the door. As the Caid was there, I looked anywhere but
+at her. The next day we went out all day, after boar, to the river,
+with an Italian and some Arabs. I stood up to my knees in the river
+for about an hour in the brush-wood, when one rushed by; I fired, and
+he rushed forward badly damaged. The rest fired, and he was found dead
+a few yards off. The Italian's steed broke loose, and he left us in
+search of it. I broke from my _corps de garde_. My horse lost a shoe,
+and then broke loose, and I had to follow him for more than a mile. I
+had a kind of dumbshow conversation with the Caid's son on my return,
+a very fine, handsome lad, about seventeen. I hear his sister is most
+beautiful, and I promised to send him a present, on getting to Tunis,
+and he is to write to me and tell me if he receives it. After dinner
+the Caid came and smoked two or three pipes, drank coffee, and wished
+us adieu in a most gracious manner.
+
+We had considerable difficulty in bringing home the boar, as our Arabs
+all deserted us on account of its being the Ramadhan; but Angelo and
+B---- managed to carry it back between them. I returned to Tunis next
+day.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+TUNIS AND ITS GOVERNMENT.
+
+  Picturesque Situation of Tunis.--The Horse Market.--Effects of
+  Race.--The Bazaars.--Mohamed Medea.--The Bardo.--The Bey of
+  Tunis.--His Mode of administering Justice.--Prince Puckler
+  Muskau's Account of his Interview.
+
+
+Tunis is situated on the borders of a lake, or rather inlet of the
+sea. It is surrounded by a crenelated wall, which resembles very much
+that of Constantinople. Like that city, too, Tunis, from the exterior,
+presents a very imposing aspect; but enter the city, and the illusion
+vanishes; there is the same dirt, the same narrow and filthy streets,
+as in the Turkish capital. The dogs alone are wanting to make the
+comparison perfect. An ancient historian has called this place _Tunis
+the white_; but, like other whited sepulchres, it is very foul within.
+The horses, the really thorough-bred ones, are the finest objects in
+Tunis. As in the canine and human, so in every other race, blood will
+tell. The Arab horse, though by no means so swift for a short distance
+as his English cousin, has a most marvellous power of endurance. He is
+also extremely sure footed, and scarcely ever comes down. I weigh over
+thirteen stone, yet have frequently ridden the same horse forty
+English miles per diem, over country that would infallibly cut up your
+English two hundred guinea hunter. They also, so to speak, live on
+air. Their chief drawback is that they are, with few exceptions,
+stallions, and, consequently, when tethered or standing near each
+other, are very apt to fight most desperately, or else break loose
+from their tetherings, when a long and wearisome pursuit is the
+necessary result. It is very difficult to come across the best _pur
+sang_ horses, as the Arabs are afraid of the Bey's taking a fancy to
+them, and taking them by force; and, consequently, they often
+purposely mutilate them, lest he should seize them to himself. There
+are also some very fine bazaars at Tunis, and the otto of roses there
+is especially excellent. Our Consul has a very fine, large house, and
+dispenses his hospitalities, &c., very generously to his compatriots.
+His lady is also a most amiable person. Tunis is, I hear, celebrated
+for the manufacture of the red cap, usually termed "fez," which is
+worn generally throughout Mussulman countries, and universally by the
+military. The Tunisian soldiers wear the plaque in front of the fez,
+in lieu of on the top, like the Turkish. As soon as I had selected my
+horse, a fine black thorough-bred Arab (whose price was four hundred
+francs only), I used to make excursions every day into the country,
+sometimes alone, sometimes attended, always armed, as the Francs of
+Tunis told me many stories of the dangers arising from going out in
+the country unarmed, among the Arabs. I think a great number of them
+were very much exaggerated. One of the places I was fond of riding to
+was Mohamed Medea, about twelve miles from Tunis, very prettily
+situated, where there was a very fine ruin of a Roman aqueduct, and
+eke a French restaurant, where a _dejeuner_, made more agreeable by a
+twelve miles' ride, was served in quite Parisian style. The reason of
+there being a French restaurant is this:--The present Bey, on his
+accession, determined to build a fresh palace at this place; and,
+being under a sort of douce compulsion, employs nothing but French
+architects and operatives, who make the hotel their head-quarters, it
+being about the only Christian house in the entire place. Quail
+abounded in this vicinity, and there were _pas mal de sangliers_. To
+escape from the _ennui_ of the _table d'hote dejeuner_ at Tunis,
+occupied by French bagmen and milliners, and served in a stuffy hole
+of a back kitchen, I used frequently to make Angelo put my breakfast
+in my _sacoche_ (saddle-bag), consisting of a piece of cold meat and
+some _vin du pays_, and then ride out, dismount, and breakfast _al
+fresco_, or rather _al bosco_; sometimes I am sorry to confess to
+breaking the eighth commandment, as I helped myself to my dessert of
+oranges, from the trees near or under which I sat. The Arabs, _malgre_
+the ogre histories I had heard of murder and robbery, were always most
+civil, and would accept, in spite of the prophet, a glass of wine from
+my hands though our conversation was of course of the most limited
+description, unless Angelo was present to interpret. It is true I
+always was armed.
+
+The Bardo is one of the lions of Tunis. It is the country residence of
+the Bey, and, besides the harem, contains a hall of justice and
+barracks. It is at Bardo that the Bey holds his court of justice, in
+which the cases are decided very quickly, and with great precision.
+The interior of the harem, according to a French traveller, who had
+visited it, is fitted up very gracefully. There is a magnificent _jet
+d'eau_ in the marble court of the interior. The gallery running round
+this court on the second storey is furnished with a very artistically
+elaborated railing, or grating, part of which is painted green, part
+gilt. Behind this railing the ladies of the harem get a sly peep at
+those who visit his highness. The vast saloon in which the Bey
+receives his visitors is hung with crimson velvet, embroidered with
+gold, and the ceiling is also gilt and painted over in brilliant
+colours. From the two sides of the wall are suspended different
+descriptions of arms, richly manufactured; on the right, they consist
+of swords and poniards; on the left, of various kinds of muskets and
+pistols. Gold, silver, and precious stones sparkle out from these
+arms. Under these weapons are ranged three rows of divans, covered
+with a thick sort of red silk. The centre of the apartment is
+furnished with magnificent Persian carpets. On the lowest of the
+divans, the principal courtiers seat themselves, on solemn days of
+reception, in double file; while at the extremity, the Bey reclines on
+an ottoman placed crossways, and covered with white satin. In Europe,
+we might, with great advantage, take a wrinkle or two from this
+semi-barbarian prince as regards the administration of justice with
+expedition. The Bey of Tunis is, at one and the same time, the chief
+governor of the realm, the administrator of the public revenues, and
+the final judge of all grand cases. From his immediate authority
+depends the administration of the police, the imposition of taxes, the
+various diplomatic relations, and the superintendence of the army and
+navy.
+
+We Europeans can scarcely comprehend how one man can look after so
+many different details, or direct them with order and precision. But
+in this country, mark, oh! red-tapeists, everything relating to
+interior administration is reduced to the greatest simplicity, and
+from this simplicity, freed from the complicated system of European
+red-tapeism and bureaucracy, results, it is to be hoped, a strict
+economy in public expenses, and a rapid process in the courts of
+justice and other Government affairs. Where a European prince would
+require a hundred different _employes_, here five or six clerks
+suffice. Besides the celerity and economy resulting from such a
+system, a third no less important advantage is derived, viz., the
+facility with which the Bey is able to superintend the conduct of the
+ministers, being so few in number, and immediately detect and punish
+those in whom any act of embezzlement or fraud has been detected; and
+punishment in this country immediately follows detection. Verily,
+there are advantages in autocratic as well as in constitutional
+dynasties!!
+
+In the administration of justice, too, the Bey is supreme judge, from
+whom there is no appeal. The celerity with which causes are tried and
+judged, is, I am told, perfectly astounding. The case merely consists
+in a simple exposition of the facts, and such is the wonderful power
+of discernment of the merits of the case which the Bey thinks he has
+obtained from long habit, that it is said he rarely deliberates. The
+court is open to the public--even to Christians! I did not go; but
+Prince Puckler Muskau has left an account of his presence there. After
+giving a description of the room, &c., and the Bey's entry, the Prince
+proceeds:--"The Bey was now presented with a magnificent pipe, which
+was at least ten feet long. After a few puffs, the audience commenced.
+The civil and criminal procedure is so summary, that a great majority
+of cases were decided in as many minutes as they would have taken
+years in Europe. The subject of the causes was frequently very
+trivial, yet the patience of the sovereign was by no means exhausted.
+I thought, in general, that the pleaders were satisfied with the Bey's
+decision. One sees, by this, that the Bey's place is no sinecure; and
+I am told that few monarchs in Christian countries have so much
+personally to do. The Bey sits every day in the court, from eight in
+summer, and from nine in winter, till mid-day; and illness, or absence
+from town, is his only excuse for non-attendance. His other
+governmental duties occupy pretty well the rest of his day."
+
+Each country has an "idea," I suppose, that its own Government is
+best, and perhaps it is as well it should be so. The man who travels
+much sees the defects and the advantages of each. Our Parliament would
+certainly not easily be acclimatised in Barbary, nor would a Bey
+exactly do to grace the British throne. What, for instance, would we
+think of such a proclamation as this in the _London Gazette_, on a
+king's accession? It was issued by Mustapha, the father of the present
+Bey, to the consuls of Christian powers:--"Glory to princes of the
+religion of Messiah. To the chosen by the great of the nation of
+Jesus, our most honoured, most longed for, most magnificent, and most
+powerful friend, the King of ----, we make known, friendly, the
+following: On Wednesday, 23rd of the month of Moharrem the sacred, of
+the present year 1251, at the moment when the sun illumined the
+horizon, the hour marked by destiny having struck for my most honoured
+brother, Hassein Basha, he emigrated towards the mansion of eternity,"
+&c. &c.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+THE RUINS OF CARTHAGE.
+
+  Reflections on Ancient Carthage.--Hannibal and his Career.--An
+  Arab Domicile.--Picturesque appearance of the Ruins.
+
+
+I went three times to the "Ruins," and therefore should have been
+lucky. I was, however, the reverse, both as to seeing anything of the
+ruins, and also the particular object which brought me there. I think,
+myself, proverbs are very deceitful, and should, like dreams, be read
+by contrary; some are utterly unintelligible; as, for instance--will
+any one tell me what this one signifies?--"Sweet words butter no
+parsnips." I thought parsnips (and, being fond of vegetables, I should
+like to know) were generally seasoned with pepper or vinegar. I am,
+perhaps, too stupid to comprehend it, and, like stupid people, abuse
+what I don't understand. Therefore, don't let any one expect a long
+description of how this part is Phoenician, and is supposed to be
+where the Carthaginian parliament was held; or their dandies and
+"fast" of both sexes met to polka of a night, or drink Punic punch; or
+a "_cabinet de lecture_," or club, where the _Times_ or the _Globe_
+gave the latest telegram from Italy; as how Hannibal obtained a
+glorious victory over the Roman troops at Thrasymene, or that the
+commissariat was bad; then, perhaps, old grumblers decried the
+dissipation at Cannae, and the expense of the war; and ancient
+merchants on 'Change complained of the rising importance of the Roman
+navy, whose ships had just captured the large Phoenician brigantine
+_Argo_, from Sidon, laden with a valuable freight, otto of roses, and
+bound for Carthage--_apropos_ of which I will remark, there is a
+military Rome and a mercantile Carthage in modern times. Take care we
+be not the Carthage; let us remember that it was from a stranded Punic
+vessel the Romans learnt the maritime art, in which, at last, they
+excelled their enemies. Hannibal appears to me always the greatest man
+of any age, ancient or modern--Napoleon not excepted--and perhaps the
+most unfortunate. His character comes to us, as his exploits, from
+foreign and hostile sources; for I believe there exist no Phoenician
+records; so that there remains a great deal of discount to take off in
+the way of disparagement, depreciation, &c. &c. It is as if the future
+Australian, standing on the ruins of a city mightier than Carthage,
+could obtain no account of Napoleon, but through partial and
+depreciatory fragments from the pages of Sir Walter Scott's life of
+that extraordinary meteor. Napoleon, it is true, crossed the Alps, but
+Hannibal traversed the Alps and Pyrenees too, and I fancy the last are
+the more impassable of the two. It is true I have not copied Albert
+Smith, or our other heroic youths, but I have climbed the Malodetta,
+which well becomes its appellation. Then, Napoleon had a friendly
+population at any rate behind him, to bring supplies, &c. Hannibal was
+everywhere surrounded by hostile tribes, besides having had the
+disadvantage of a march through enemies' countries of several hundred,
+if not thousand miles. I hope the living in Spain, for his sake, did
+not then consist of _olla podrida_, with a variation of garlic and
+acid wine.
+
+Perhaps there existed in these days some machine, or some marvellous
+powder, by which real mountains might be removed (as spiritual ones by
+faith) at pleasure, and replaced in their original position; but as
+history makes no mention thereof, it is but fair to conclude not. No,
+the only machine used, the only mine, was the invincible and iron will
+of the Carthaginian hero. He, too, if I mistake not, lived under
+parliamentary _regime_, in the shape of a senate, a great hamper on
+military manoeuvres, where all should be done quickly, secretly, and
+unanimously. Napoleon was his own master, with a devoted people. I
+wonder if parliamentary debates, in Punic days, were as long and
+insipid as in modern; that is, I have not been to them, but judge by
+what one reads in that modern tyrant, the _Times_. Oh, mighty _Times_!
+how we abuse you, and yet how should we relish our breakfast without
+you? who ever comes up to all we look for when great occasions call
+for your wonderful pen, stirring us to the quick; or whether, in an
+idle mood, we seek to while away the passing hour by a description of
+the last new folly, or the latest odour of the Thames, or anything
+else instructive and amusing. By the way, if the senate of Carthage
+took quarter as long sending supplies to their general as the Commons
+discussing the way to purify the Thames, I fancy he would not have
+crossed the Pyrenees.
+
+I said I went three times to Carthage; the first time, an English
+friend was leaving that day by a sailing ship, and I had promised to
+lunch with him at Goulette, and then see him on board, the first of
+which I did in a small house dignified by the name of _locanda_, or
+_Hotel Francais_, where some Maltese captains were breakfasting, who
+had a strong odour of onions and garlic, and at another table a
+Savoyard was discussing the question of annexation with a Provencal,
+in what I may term _moitie Francais moitie Italien_. They gave us soup
+made of, I don't know what, but the pepper was very strong, or rather,
+I may say, would have been, if it were not for the strong taste of the
+water, and _vice versa_; after that, some dried fish, called sardines,
+which they said had just been caught. For second course, we had a sort
+of _gigot de mouton_, which, in form, resembled the temple of Neptune
+at the "ruins," and you might almost have sworn they had cut it into
+that shape on purpose; and quails, very excellent; and we finished
+with cheese, which might have been manufactured from goat's milk, or
+cow's milk, or camel's milk, or all three, or any other milk, but was
+dignified by the appellation of _Chesterrre_, and was decidedly not
+Stilton, and eke delicious oranges. In this dinner we meet, as in
+life, with much good to counteract the evil, as the delicious quails
+made up for rancid flesh of sheep or horse; so, when next Lady Julia
+Plantagenet jilts me, I will remember Jessie Jones; or, again, as
+these fragrant oranges, redolent of the East, caused me to forget the
+nauseous _fromage_, so shall the friendship and good opinion of Brown
+console me for the putty eye and freezing regard of the fashionable
+Fitznoodle, when next we meet, not at Philippi, but in the park! After
+lunch, and adieux, I mounted my horse for the ruins, as my friend's
+vessel did not start as expected that day, owing to the calm.
+
+On passing the gate of Goulette, several Arab convicts, in chains,
+shouted at me for something; what it was, I ignore; perhaps they asked
+for backsheesh, or tobacco, or powder, fine or coarse; or, may be,
+they called me a dog of a Giaour, and cursed my relations and their
+limbs. This Goulette appears to be the chief place for the Arab
+malefactors, and they are mainly employed in improving the high road
+between Goulette and Tunis, and also in repairing the fortifications.
+
+The afternoon was beautiful, though hot. As it wanted some time to
+dinner at Tunis, I made a _detour_ on my return to the ruins, and it
+requires a fine air to make you enjoy fine scenery. There was
+scarcely a ripple on the blue Mediterranean. Beautiful trees of every
+description, olive and orange trees, oleanders, and others, grew to
+the very base of the mountain, and sent up a delicious perfume. I
+visited the chapel of St. Louis, from which one enjoys a most
+delicious prospect. It is built over some god's temple--whose, I
+forget, or even whether a Roman or Punic one; but this is dedicated to
+the true God and Christian worship, in remembrance of that venerable
+French king, who is said to have perished here, while on his way to
+Palestine, to fight the Moslem. Peace to his ashes! However, I
+soon left the hill to re-descend, for I was very thirsty; all of a
+sudden, behind an olive bush, I saw a head, black as ink, pop out;
+I hallooed to it first in English, then in Italian. No effect. I saw
+a female figure disappear behind a cottage, and out rushed a fine
+tall Arab, with menacing gesture, and more menacing language. I was
+in his garden. "A glass of water, please," said I, in Italian. Still
+no effect. I thought he was going to be savage, when, from behind
+the house popped, or rather rolled out, another little naked,
+curly-headed, black ball--a triennial by his looks--the Arab's only
+boy, no doubt. He was so irresistibly comic in appearance, that I
+burst into a fit of laughter. The man's face changed in a moment. I
+suppose he thought I was admiring the child. He immediately
+understood what I required, which he brought in such a large cup,
+that I thought it was intended for a pail. I nearly emptied it,
+however. He then volunteered bread and olives, which, however, I
+declined, to spoil my dinner. We then made mutual signs of greeting,
+and parted. Had I been able to talk, I would have stopped longer.
+There was a sudden friendship sprung up between me and that poor
+unlettered infant of the desert.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+THE RUINS AGAIN.
+
+  Great Extent of the Ancient City.--Marsa, on the
+  Sea-shore.--Carthaginian Catacombs near Camatte.--Quail
+  Shooting.--Trait of Honesty in the Arabs.--The Arab
+  Character.--Anecdotes concerning them.
+
+
+The second time I went to the ruins I went, like Scipio, to weep, not
+over Carthage, but the loss of my breakfast; and the more so that
+it was to have been a very good one--a regular pic-nic, or _fete
+champetre_--under olive-trees, or orange-trees, or palms, shaded
+from the scorching rays of Phoebus. Champagne, Burgundy (my
+favourite wine), were to crown the repast. Nor was the food to be
+only corporal, but eke mental, as the great explorer--the great
+excavator--was to be there, to have explained that this was a
+theatre, that an aqueduct; the god to whom this temple or that
+altar was dedicated; and how many four-in-hands, driven by fast
+young Phoenician guardsmen, would have been able to pass each other
+down that "_via longa_." How many stones made up that house; and that
+this was a bath, and not a harem; and that a certain statue of some
+celebrity--whose name I had never heard, and never shall--was, by
+some, supposed to lie 100 feet under this marble pillar, though,
+according to others, he might be 102 feet deep interred--for all of
+which, I daresay, I should have been the wiser and the better; but I
+was sufficiently mundane to regret my _dejeuner_ the most. The fact
+is, A----, whose back was not sufficiently recovered to accompany me
+riding, and the American Consul and Davies, had gone with the edibles
+and beverages in a carriage, and were to have met me at the temple
+of some god. But, unfortunately, I mistook the deity's name, and
+afterwards found that their shrine lay ten miles off from the one I
+worshipped at. This will give one a good idea of the vastness of
+the ancient city, and struck me more than all the lectures and
+description in the world. Where people were crowded like bees, as
+in our London, buying and selling, and riding and driving, some 2,000
+years past--occupied then, as now, in all the frivolities of this
+empty world--to find a complete solitude--a desert nearly--where
+wander the jackal and hyena! A very clever people, no doubt, these
+same Phoenicians were, to judge by their edifices; yet they had not
+discovered the theory of water finding its own level, as the
+peculiar construction of an aqueduct proves, the remains of which
+still exist, and which was to convey water some forty miles from the
+interior. There was a Roman city built over the Punic one, and the
+latter alone, of course, interests, as the former is seen any day, at
+Pompeii, in better perfection. Besides Angelo and myself, there was
+not a human being in view--yes, there are three Arab youths
+reclining behind that ruin of a wall, motionless as statues; I thought
+they were statues at first. Two have long flint guns, perhaps to
+keep crows off the corn, or shoot quails; or, perhaps, to shoot me
+if they can; for I have a fine gold chain, not to mention a ring,
+which would maintain them till they died of old age--which could
+keep them in ease and elegance for a couple of years, at the least.
+You have yet to learn, if you know it not, that ten Arabs, fine
+men though they be, with such rusty weapons as yours, are barely a
+match for one European with an arm such as mine. But, my poor boys,
+there is no chance for you. I have, you see, a revolver with six
+barrels. When you see that, your brow droops as much as your eyes
+sparkled when you saw the chain. It is fancy, on my part, most
+probably; so, off my horse, and off with my clothes. The sun was
+scorching, and I took a delicious swim in the sea, and then rode on to
+Marsa, where is a ruin (everything is in ruins here) of modern
+date--the late Bey's palace--a most superb edifice. I said a ruin,
+yet it is scarcely a ruin, though fast becoming so. Marsa is a sort
+of watering-place for the Christians of Tunis during the heat of
+summer. A----'s description of the part he visited I will give: "I
+went with Davies and the Yankee Consul to see the catacombs of
+Carthage, near Camatte, which completely undermined a large mountain
+by the sea coast. They contain rows of niches for the coffins, and
+each chamber communicates with others. They hold some twenty coffins
+each. Some skeletons have been found, and nails; the former crumbled
+to pieces immediately, on being exposed to the air. These catacombs
+are now inhabited by hyenas and jackals, and had a strong odour of
+those animals." It is supposed they extend for miles, but the impurity
+of the atmosphere precludes entrance to any distance.
+
+My third visit was to shoot quails on ground where, centuries ago,
+Hannibal had passed at the head of his bronzed legions, amid admiring
+groups of citizens, the bands playing, perhaps, "_Partant pour
+l'Italie_." The migration of quails takes place at this season, and,
+with a good retrieving spaniel, hundreds may be shot. But they lie
+very close, and require a dog to put them up. They are by no means
+easy to shoot, and require snipe shot. They lie in the young corn,
+which is very thick and thriving here as on the field of Waterloo. As
+I had put up No. 6 shot by mistake, and had no spaniel, I bagged but
+few comparatively, some twenty. A great number of these quails are
+sent alive to England, and on board the Italian steamer from Sicily
+there were about twenty large cages, containing about fifty live
+quails each, which they told me were going to Britain; they had been
+caught like larks by the net.
+
+By the way, I had here a proof of Arab honesty, refreshing as an
+oasis in the desert. Riding back through a village to Goutelle (where
+I was staying, previously to embarking for Malta), I dropped my
+powder-flask, unawares to myself. I had not passed two minutes when
+I heard a loud halloo, and turning, perceived an Arab running at full
+speed to me with my powder-flask. Now, powder is what Arabs prize
+more than gold even, precious stones, or tobacco, yet they might
+easily have taken this without my knowing anything. On my offering
+him coin worth about sixpence, the Arab, in broken _lingua Franca_,
+made me comprehend he preferred a few charges of powder, which I
+immediately gave, and which he carefully wrapped up in some old
+paper. I record this, because at Tunis and elsewhere, we hear of
+nothing but Arab dishonesty and thieving propensities. Is it true,
+and this exception a proof of the rule? or are all these stories
+false? It is hard to say.
+
+They are a curious race, apparently a mass of contradictions. One
+thing is certain; you must not treat them in the _du haut en bas_
+style. They are very proud, and naturally regard every Christian _ipso
+facto_ as individually inferior to the Mussulman, more specially in
+the far interior, where Christians have not as yet penetrated. A----
+and his party had started for Kef, _malgre_ my dissuasions. The fact
+of a man going to explore Punic ruins with one going to discover
+Mauritanian lions, was, to my mind, like mixing oil and vinegar, or
+fire and water, or eating meat with your knife, or soup with a fork,
+or taking two helpings of soup, or anything else incongruous. D----
+was to be their interpreter. The Arabs there told them that a lion
+can carry away a camel on his back, but not lift a sheep. This they
+firmly believe. The reason assigned is, that in former times (when
+animals spoke), the lion said, "I will carry off this sheep, with or
+without the consent of Allah;" and Allah said to the lion, "You shall
+not;" and from that time the monarch has never been able to lift a
+sheep. At one time the man and the lion were great friends, and the
+lion did not know he was stronger than the man. One day, as they were
+out walking together, a thorn ran into the lion's foot; he limped, and
+stopped to pull it out, when the man, in derision, said, "What! so
+strong a creature hurt with a thorn?" Then the lion in anger ran the
+thorn into the man's eye, who cried out with pain. This proved to the
+lion the man's inferiority, and ever after they were declared enemies.
+At a place called Tibursok, where A----'s party passed on their road
+to Keff, not a Christian, or even a Jew, were to be seen, consequently
+the Arabs were very intolerant. D---- walked into this town alone, in
+front of the party, and, speaking Arabic well, questioned one of the
+Arabs about some ruin, when another came up and said, "Why do you
+attend to that dog of a Christian?" D---- took no notice, when the
+other shouted out, "Cursed be your father, your mother, and all the
+members of your house." D---- then collared him; the Arab inquired,
+"What for?" "Because you cursed my relatives," said D----, seeing the
+rest of the party with the Bey's escort coming up, "and now, just
+show me the Caid's residence, and I will have you bastinadoed."
+However, as some of the other Arabs crowded round and begged for
+mercy, D---- thought it better to let him off.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+HOME!
+
+  My fellow-passenger, the Sportsman.--Passage from Tunis to Malta
+  in a Sailing Vessel.--Disagreeables of the Passage.--Home,
+  Overland.--Conclusion.
+
+
+On the steamer _Meludiah_, for Malta, I found a sporting Frenchman
+on deck. He had been my fellow-passenger from Bona to Tunis, and
+carried a revolver and a gun; the first for porpoises, the second
+for gulls, &c. He recounted to me, with great glee, how he had shot a
+grosbeak, and some other small birds, near Tunis, and given them to
+the cook on board for our dinner. It was a Mussulman steamer, and,
+being Rhamazan, they did not serve dinner till after sunset. I was
+nearly famished. The first course was salad served with rancid oil,
+which immediately brought me and the Frenchman on deck. During the
+rest of the passage I made Angelo serve my repasts. The Frenchman was
+a character. "_Je viens de perdre ma femme_," he said; "_il y a
+des femmes mechantes vous savez, Monsieur, et des femmes bonnes; la
+mienne etait bonne! mais bonne! Tenez, je l'ai mis dans le cercueil
+moi meme, et maintenant je suis ici pour me distraire, car je n'en
+trouverai pas une comme celle-la, allez. Je ferai le voyage, j'irai
+en Alexandrie--n'importe ou, travailler j'irai a l'Isthme de
+Suez._" At last we arrived in Malta. It is a pity for officers and
+others there is no regular communication by steam between Malta and
+Tunis; for the _desagremens_ of a sailing-vessel are by no means
+despicable. Witness a friend of mine's report thereon:--
+
+"25th.--Came on board the _Gemo_ at seven A.M.; went on shore again at
+nine, and stopped all day. Dined and slept on board; rough living
+here, but no cattle, which is a great thing.--26th. Set sail at eleven
+A.M.; fair wind; fine day, and very hot.--27th. Rain all night; wind
+light and variable, and one made but little progress. Cape Bona still
+close to us this morning. We are only going at three and three-quarter
+knots per hour. A fine breeze got up at twelve, and at seven we passed
+Panteleria Isle, going at seven knots.--28th. Wind fell away early
+this morning, and about eleven blew strong from the east: the worst
+quarter it could for us.--29th. This accursed wind has lasted all
+night, and blows harder this morning; the sea, too, is very high. It
+is intensely miserable; rough sea, bad grub, no one to talk to, no
+books, and no idea when we shall reach Malta.--30th. East wind still;
+an almighty swell on; one can neither sit, lie, nor stand with
+comfort. The coast of Sicily is very plain this morning. We are about
+forty-five miles from Malta, but no one can say when we shall reach
+it. Fresh provisions have nearly come to an end. Let any one ever
+catch me on board a sailing-ship again, unless I am forced.--1st. Half
+a gale, and a heavy sea last night; got no sleep, as the ship jumped
+so; and the mattress--fancy now!--is stuffed with sticks, and is so
+cursedly hard, that, after five days of it, one's bones ache all over.
+A very fine day; but this awful wind still east. At eleven A.M. we
+were off Gozo, only twenty miles from our destination; but it was
+impossible to get there. The diet and food on board are awful; I am
+nearly starved. There was only one thing amusing. A Maltese, who slept
+in the other berth near me, sneezed nine times in as many minutes;
+and, after each sternutation, he went through a short formula of
+prayer, beginning 'Santo Something,' to keep the devil to leeward, I
+suppose; and, egad, I think he must have been on board _in propria
+persona_, under some disguise, to have caused us so bad a passage.
+This afternoon, to vary the programme pleasantly, we had a dead calm.
+Our miseries seem to have no end. I begin to think I shall rival the
+'Flying Dutchman,' and never make my port, but sail on for ever.--2nd.
+A north-west wind sprang up at five P.M., and we reached Malta at
+seven."
+
+Thus, the sailing-vessel took seven days to do what I did in thirty
+hours on the steamer. After the usual amount of driving, dining, &c.,
+at Malta, in the words of the poet I bid
+
+    Adieu to joys of La Valette,
+    Adieu, sirocco, sun, and sweat;
+    Adieu, ye females without graces,
+    Adieu, red coats and redder faces;
+    Adieu, the supercilious air
+    Of those that strut _en militaire_.
+
+And now the word is "homeward;" and across a track well known to the
+English tourist, we journey onward, till
+
+    The mountains of Trieste afar are seen,
+    And farther yet, the Alps, whose highest peak
+    Now glitters with a gay and snowy sheen
+    In the bright sun; as quick our sailors seek
+    An anchorage in the port, where Turk and Greek,
+    Swede and Levantine, and full many more,
+    The haughty Spaniard, and the German sleek,
+    All races, from the Nile unto the Nore,
+    Into Trieste, in many a varied costume pour.
+
+    Along thy silent streets I wander now,
+    Venice, once queen, aye, empress of the sea!
+    Fairest in art as clime, yet sunk so low
+    Beneath the despot Teuton's rule, I see
+    Thy halls deserted, fallen, yet in thee
+    Much splendour to admire there still exists.
+    Well could I quit my native land, and flee
+    The rugged northern clime, the vapid mists,
+    With thee to dwell, did I that only what me lists.
+
+    The fiery car speeds on her iron way,
+    Through hill, o'er valley quickly do we fly.
+    There lies the grot of Adelberg, and day
+    Sees us past Gratze's fortress hasten by
+    Like lightning's flash, nor stop until we spy
+    St. Stephen's dome from out the darkness peer.
+    Like _bas reliefs_ her turrets in the sky
+    O'ertop Vienna, great the pious fear
+    Of holy men, who such vast beauteous structures rear.
+
+    There Coeur de Lion lived and almost died,
+    In yonder ruin gray o'erbent by time,
+    But that a troubadour, a servant tried,
+    His well-loved master sought through every clime;
+    Nor sought in vain, for by a simple rhyme,
+    A soft tuned sonnet, in a dungeon cold,
+    Imprisoned here he found him for no crime,
+    And saved. The ruins past, I now behold
+    Prague's lofty palaces arise, and turrets old.
+
+    The scene is changed by many a lovely vale:
+    Upon the Elbe my rapid way I went,
+    Where Nature reigns supreme, nor aught avail
+    'Gainst her the charms a Raphael's touch can lend
+    To Art's supremest works; these all depend
+    On light, on colour, on the master's hand;
+    Nature's own work, so thought I, as I bend
+    My steps through Dresden's galleries, and stand
+    Before Art's fairest deeds in this fair Saxon land!
+
+    Swift be my verse, and swifter still my pace
+    (Oh, pardon me, for I'll be sworn I bore)
+    By Berlin's quays, past oft a plain, I race
+    To Hamburg's crowded port, until the roar
+    Of ocean's wave is heard again once more.
+    Once more upon the deck I stand and view
+    Behind that cloud arise old Albion's shore--
+    Shore that I love, roast beef, plum-pudding too,
+    Pale ale, the _Times_, and scandal, like a Briton true.
+
+
+
+
+NOTES FOR THE SPORTSMAN OR TOURIST
+IN NORTH AFRICA.
+
+
+The best time to go to Algeria or Tunis is October, when the heats of
+summer begin to become cooler. By all means, let the traveller, if he
+wish to be independent, travel on horseback. In Algeria he will meet
+with accommodation everywhere, and proceed as safely as in London, or
+any part of England.
+
+He can go to Boussada or Laghouat, about six days' journey from
+Algiers, staying every night at caravanserais _en route_. Boussada I
+did not visit myself, but from rumour, I believe, there is excellent
+gazelle shooting in the neighbourhood. By the plains of Boussada, the
+tourist can pass into Tunisia over the French frontier. At Algiers,
+the best hotels are the Hotel d'Orient and the Hotel de la Regence, on
+the Grande Place. For ammunition, I recommend Huet, armourer, near the
+English Consul's; and for horses--Francois or Francisco, a Maltese,
+who speaks French and English. The grand thing to be considered is
+economy of space. Let every necessary for clothing, if possible, be
+crammed into the saddle-bags attached to one's saddle, as ammunition,
+guns, &c. &c., must be placed on the other horses. Well did the
+Romans call baggage by the appellation of _impedimenta_. In this
+country it is so literally, not figuratively. It is absolutely
+necessary to have an interpreter who can talk Arabic; for though in
+Algeria there are many natives who jabber broken French or Italian,
+even this _lingua Franca_ is so disguised that it is almost impossible
+to comprehend them; and in the interior there are very few "indigenes"
+who understand anything but Arabic. In Tunisia nothing but Arabic is
+of any use whatever.
+
+To travel in the interior of Tunis, it is necessary to have a mounted
+escort, and also a letter of recommendation to the "Caids" (mayors) of
+the different towns through which you pass. Here you must expect a
+great want of comfort, as there are no beds, and you generally have to
+sleep on the floor. On the Lake of Tunis, close to the city, there is
+very good flamingo shooting. The flamingoes sit on the water in rows
+like a regiment, and the method I employed in shooting them was as
+follows:--I used to take a boat with my gun loaded with buckshot
+(chevrotine), and my rifle. I fired my rifle at the line of flamingoes
+when about 400 yards off, which used to bring them flying over the
+boat for curiosity, when I managed, generally with my gun, to bring
+down one or two. This is, I am sure, the best way of shooting them,
+though several Europeans told me at Tunis I could shoot them with the
+rifle.
+
+The shortest way direct to Tunis is by Malta; and, in passing, let the
+sporting tourist visit Gozo, where, in April and September, there is
+excellent quail shooting.
+
+The inhabitants of this isle are a simple, primitive race of people,
+very lively and intelligent; they speak nearly a pure Arabic. They
+live chiefly by fishing, and also serve as sailors in foreign vessels,
+where they remain sometimes entire years without being heard of by
+their families. In this way they often find a watery grave; and in the
+isle I met some females, whose male relations had all perished in this
+way.
+
+Navigation appears to have a great charm for these simple islanders;
+and when they sail along these southern waters, where the sun shines
+with a brilliant lustre, and the moon with a fairy splendour, they
+forget not the simple home where the members of their family are
+crouched side by side, enveloped in a sort of bournouse, and drinking
+perhaps tea which differs only nominally from the tepid waters of the
+surrounding ocean, and gabbling a jargon which one can scarcely
+believe that they understand themselves. The charm which binds these
+poor people together in their sober and modest existence is less the
+_penchant_ of natural and intimate affection, than the chain of habit,
+the necessity of a life of fraternal community and sentiment. A
+certain equality of position and social development gives them the
+same desires, the same ends of existence, and like ideas produce an
+easy mutual understanding. Each one reads, as it were, in the eye of
+the other; and when they talk, each knows what the other will say
+almost before he has opened his lips. All the ordinary relations of
+life are thus present to their memory; and so, by a simple intonation
+of the voice, by the expression of the visage, by a mute gesture, they
+excite, _inter se_, as many smiles or tears, more joy or vexation,
+than we, among our equals, could perhaps evoke by the longest
+demonstrations or declarations. For we civilised ones live, on an
+average, in intellectual solitude; each of us, thanks to our
+particular form of mind or education, has received a different bias of
+character; each of us, morally weighed, thinks, acts, and believes
+differently from his neighbour; and hence misunderstandings arise so
+frequently among us, that, even in the largest families, life in
+common becomes difficult, and we are often, as it were, apart, utterly
+unknown one to another, and everywhere feel ourselves as on strange
+territory.
+
+Races, indeed, have lived--aye, for centuries--in a state of community
+of ideas and sentiments such as I have described in the Isle of Gozo.
+Perhaps, but only perhaps, the Roman Church of the Middle Ages wished
+to establish among the nations of Catholic Europe such a state of
+equality and uniformity of spirit. Hence, no doubt, the reason why she
+took under her guardianship all the social relations, all the force
+and manifestations of this life--in fine, man himself, moral and
+physical man. I will not deny, nor will any one else, that much
+peaceful happiness, much piety has been established by these means;
+that human existence in the Middle Ages took an expression of greater
+fervour and intimacy; that the arts, like flowers, mysteriously
+developed, unfolded then, and showed to the day a beauty we now admire
+and deplore, and that the rash and unquiet spirit of modern days
+cannot imitate. But mind has its rights from all eternity; mind will
+not be fettered by dogmas, or lulled to sleep by the ringing of a
+bell; mind has cast aside his swaddling-clothes, and broken the string
+by which his nurse (the Roman Church) held him, and, in the madness
+and intoxication of his holiday, has rounded the globe, has traversed
+all nations, has scaled the Himalayas, and, returning again to Mother
+Earth, has begun to meditate over the wonders of creation by day, and
+the stars of heaven by night. We know not, indeed, nor ever shall,
+perhaps, the number of the stars that shine in the canopy of heaven;
+we have not yet unveiled the dread mysteries of earth or of sea.
+Enough: many enigmas are resolved; we know much--we guess at still
+more. There remains one question unsolved--it is this: Is there more
+real felicity in our minds now than there was in ancient times? I will
+confess that if we look at the many, now-a-days, we could scarcely
+answer this question in the affirmative; yet, it must also be
+remembered that happiness, which is in part due to mental tyranny, is
+scarcely true happiness, and that in the few moments of real
+intellectual dignity some educated man can enjoy more real felicity
+than the uneducated coal-heaver during many years of uninquiring
+tranquillity.
+
+But while, with a certain benevolence, I was dilating on the
+intentions of the Roman Church, I find myself all of a sudden seized
+with a zeal worthy of Exeter Hall. So I return to my Gozo friends.
+Living among these simple, Christian islanders, of Moorish descent,
+one is apt to meditate on the mighty transformations which have swept
+over Europe and left them untouched.
+
+The reason I recommend the route _via_ Malta and Tunis, instead of
+passing by Algiers, as I did, is the miserable accommodation on board
+the steamers between Tunis and Algiers. The passengers on these boats
+are chiefly bagmen and colonists of different nations. We had a
+Savoyard, a Spaniard, and two or three Frenchmen and Italians at one
+table; and the noise, and row, and heat after dinner were very
+edifying. Bottles were quickly emptied, and heads as quickly filled.
+One of the guests sung songs; another neighed; a third shouted in
+tragic verse; a fourth spoke Latin; and a fifth preached temperance; a
+sixth gave himself out for a professor, and his lecture was nearly as
+follows:--"The earth, my friends, is a cylinder, and men are but
+little diminutive dots spread over its surface, apparently at hazard;
+but _voila_, the cylinder takes a fancy to turn, the little dots are
+hustled about, some here, others there, and so emit a sort of
+vibratory sound, some frequently, others more rarely; and this is the
+marvellous, complicated music that men call universal history," &c.
+&c. A fat-looking German, who kept his nose continually dipped in a
+glass of punch, inhaling the steam with a very gratified look,
+observed that he felt as though he was in the refreshment saloon of
+the Berlin theatre; while the Savoyard kept looking at us through his
+glass, as though it were a _lorgnette_, and the red wine streamed down
+his purple cheeks into his gaping jaws.
+
+And now to proceed to matters of sport. With regard to small game,
+partridges, ducks, quails, rabbits, &c., there is abundance to be
+found in Algeria. Near Algiers there is hawking of partridges and hares
+among the Arab tribes; and, before the French occupation, falconry was
+the especial amusement of the Arab aristocracy. For shooting of small
+game I would more especially recommend a caravanserai called Oued el
+Massin, about half way between Milianah and Teniet. Partridges and
+woodcock abound there; the quarters, moreover, are remarkably good,
+and the _cuisine_, superintended by my friend, Mr. Ball, is by no means
+despicable. From Oued el Massin, a day's journey beyond Milianah, I
+am convinced excellent shooting may be obtained with a couple of good
+pointers. Quails are also very numerous. Aquatic birds abound in
+Algeria, more especially on the lake Fetzara, near Bona, in the
+province of Constantine. Nothing is more beautiful than the lake
+Fetzara at sunrise; on its banks are a thousand plants and flowers
+of every colour and hue, and on its waters repose birds of every
+description and plumage. As yet it is dusk; everything animal and
+vegetable is in repose; but with the first ray of the sun come sounds
+and cries of every imaginable description, and thousands, aye,
+myriads, of birds are everywhere on the wing. In the impetuosity of
+their flight, they shake, as it were, the plants and flowers on the
+border of the lake, who thus pay their morning salute to the sun of
+Africa. A small barque, however, advances (_vide_ picture), and from
+this frail skiff suddenly appears the flash of a gun. In a moment the
+whole air is in motion; grebes with their beautiful plumage,
+flamingoes with flaming wings, wild swans, and ducks, and teals, by
+thousands whirl through the air.
+
+Is it really to be believed that Nature has affixed (so to speak) some
+danger to everything charming? One is almost tempted to say so, after
+examining the enchanting borders of this lake, whose azure waters flow
+from the mountainous frontier of Tunisia to the opulent plains of
+Bona. You botanists, who are attracted by the singular colour or
+strange beauty of some plant or flower here, beware how you approach.
+Under this magnificent vegetation a trap--a mortal trap--is laid: the
+banks are of quick-sand! One step, and you meet death--a horrible
+death. The earth gives way, and you disappear without a trace, for
+those delicious flowers and plants close up their ranks again, like
+immortelles over your sepulchre. Listen:--A French cavalry officer
+came from Bona to shoot flamingoes on this lake. He was accompanied by
+his servant, also on horseback. He shot a flamingo, who tumbled just
+on the border of the lake, and dispatched his servant to fetch the
+bird. At three or four yards from the bird, the soldier disappeared
+with his horse; and some Arabs, coming up, at the cries of the officer
+(for the Mussulman believes that the genius of the lake, propitious to
+Mahometans, devours the profane European), with difficulty saved his
+servant. As soon as the soldier was out of danger, he cried out, with
+all the gasconade of a Frenchman, "_Je ne laisserai pas la ce maudit
+oiseau, cause de ma mesaventure!_" In spite of the energetic
+dissuasions of the natives, whom, by the way, he could not understand,
+he advanced on foot; but the earth opened again--he disappeared. One
+moment his head remained above this liquid ground, one moment he cried
+for aid, and the abyss had swallowed its prey. However, at certain
+points, this lake is quite approachable; and, there being several
+barques, excellent sport may be had. I would, however, recommend
+sportsmen to procure a letter of introduction to some neighbouring
+grandee. There is an excellent caravanserai close by, at Ain Mokra.
+For gazelles one must go quite into the interior of the desert--to
+Boussada and Laghouat--in the great Sahara desert. Ghazella is, in
+the Arab language, the synonym for beauty and velocity.
+
+Those persons who really desire sport, however, I would recommend to
+travel from Algiers to Tunisia by land, and, if possible, let them
+pass by Kef, which is the frontier town. In the vicinity of this town
+there are, no doubt, plenty of lions; and my friend (who visited it
+with Dr. Davies, the celebrated explorer and excavator at Carthage)
+heard of several there, though his stay was so short that he did not
+succeed in bagging one. For lion-hunting, as for many other things,
+"_il faut bien de la patience_." Thus it very frequently happens that
+a man may search without success for months and months for the
+whereabouts of a lion, and then, suddenly, when your hunter is least
+prepared for it, and perhaps unarmed, the monarch of the desert will
+present himself to his astonished gaze. Notwithstanding the formidable
+character attributed to the lion, he will rarely attack any man unless
+previously molested. There are three sorts of lions in North
+Africa--the black, the tawny, and the grey, though the latter is by
+some supposed to be the same genus as the tawny, only grizzled by age.
+There are two ways of hunting the lion, by day and by night. That by
+day is by battue, when a whole tribe turns out to "beard the lion in
+his den" and make him break cover. Those who are well armed are posted
+at the outlets of the cover or beaten tracks by which the lion
+generally passes; any Europeans who assist are usually so stationed;
+they, however, need have but little fear, for the monarch almost
+always attacks the _tawny_ native by preference. Is it from sympathy
+of colour, _similia similibus gaudent_, or from a sort of instinct
+that the European is better armed, or because he supposes the Arab
+will make a better repast? The other way of killing the lion is in
+ambuscade, of which there are two or three kinds. Sometimes the
+hunters dig a hole in the ground near the spot where the lion is in
+the habit of passing by night; over this hole they throw branches of
+trees, which they cover with stones and mortar; they then place some
+bait near, which can be commanded through holes made in the covering,
+and when the lion approaches to examine the carcase, he is immediately
+brought down. Another way of shooting is from a tree. My friend, Count
+Zamoyski, who has a residence at the Lake Fetzara, shot several in
+this way. I will, however, refer the reader to Jules Gerard's book for
+a description of this kind of sport. I did not stay long enough in
+North Africa to be able to judge of it myself. What I recount now with
+regard to lion hunting is from hearsay, not from personal experience.
+
+The panther is a more dangerous animal than the lion, and much more
+cunning. Like his relative, the cat, he is very difficult to kill, and
+it must be a well-directed ball through the head or heart that will
+prevent him from avenging his wound. For the rest, he is hunted much
+as the lion. I will not mention the jackal and hyena, both of which
+animals can be shot after dusk from the tent or hut, by throwing out
+some carcase or bait before sunset to attract them. Let us pass to
+that animal which, in my opinion, of all creatures presents by far the
+best sport on the coast of Barbary--I mean, of course, the wild boar,
+or halouf, as he is called in the Arabic language.
+
+I had long had a desire to hunt the halouf. On my arrival at the
+Caid's house at Solyman (about twenty miles from Tunis), an old Arab
+named Mahmoud was sent for, who was reported to be, like Nimrod, a
+mighty hunter before the Lord and before the tribes.
+
+The next day we started before sunrise to the river, where the boar
+was supposed to be.
+
+_En route_ I questioned my Arab by interpreter. "The halouf," he
+replied, "when wounded, is as dangerous as the lion. I have," he
+continued, "myself seen a boar repulse the attack of a young lion."
+
+Of boars there are no doubt plenty in Tunisia. They are fond of lying
+in the thickest brushwood, what the French call _broussailles_, and
+the main difficulty is to drive them out. It requires some one
+perfectly conversant with Arabic, and having some authority over the
+natives, to make them beat properly; otherwise, in a short time they
+will give over, and pretend that there is nothing there. The best
+localities for boar are near Solyman, in Tunisia, and Biserta, about
+fifty miles from Tunis. As for Algeria, the country is now so much
+frequented by Europeans of all nations, who frighten, if they do not
+kill, the game, that one has to go a long way into the interior before
+any sport can be met with.
+
+The French talk a great deal about "_la chasseaux pantheres_" and "_la
+chasse aux lions_," &c. &c.; but, in my humble opinion, their forte is
+"_la chasse aux dames_" or, in plain Saxon English, the success of the
+"_salon_." Let me conclude with a few words regarding regimen. In this
+burning climate, above all things observe temperance. I do not mean by
+that expression that you must be a teetotaller, but the more you can
+abstain from heating liquids or solids, the better. The other extreme,
+too, is bad; too much lemonade, or water, or sherbet, is apt to
+produce diarrhoea. Nature seems to have indicated to the Arabs the
+best beverage in this zone, both to quench thirst and to preserve
+health, viz., coffee; but as on a march or out shooting you cannot
+always stop to have a fire lit, the next best drink is a little weak
+brandy and water, which you should carry from where you start in the
+morning, as the water of the rivers is pestiferous. To avoid fever or
+malaria, I would always take a small quantity of bark of quinine.
+During the time I was in Africa I enjoyed most excellent health, as I
+believe everybody may who takes the commonest precautions, and does
+not indulge, as he may with impunity in more northern climes.
+
+Finally, let me give one piece of advice to the sportsman. If he
+comes to these countries with the expectation that he can, as in
+England, go out with his gun of a morning and return with his bag full
+in the evening to a capital dinner, he had better stay at home. To do
+anything in this country, a man must make his mind up to long and
+fatiguing marches in the heat of the day, with miserable quarters
+often at night, in places infested by vermin of every description; in
+a word, he must be content to rough it. I will also candidly own that,
+from the accounts I had previously received, I was very much
+disappointed as regards the quantity of large game to be found in
+these parts; still, I was, to a certain extent, indemnified for this
+by the pleasure of visiting a beautiful country, a remarkable people,
+and magnificent scenery, the entire appearance of which is utterly
+unlike what one is accustomed to see in the hackneyed countries of
+modern continental Europe.
+
+
+
+
+ITINERARY CARTE.
+
+
+ROUTE--from London to Marseilles, about forty-eight hours. Marseilles,
+Hotel d'Orient.
+
+Marseilles to Algiers, average passage, three days. Hotels--Hotel de
+la Regence and Hotel de Paris, both good.
+
+Algiers to Blidah--horse or diligence--about five hours; Blidah to
+Medeah--horse or diligence--about eight hours; Blidah to Milianah,
+about fourteen hours. Blidah--Hotel de la Regence; Medeah--Hotel du
+Gastronome; Milianah--Hotel d'Iffly.
+
+Milianah to Teniet, two days, staying at Oued el Massin, caravanserai;
+Teniet to Boghar, two days; Boghar to Laghouat, extremity of French
+frontier in Great Sahara Desert, three days.
+
+From there visit Boussada for Gargelles, thence to Constantine, five
+days; Constantine to Lake Fetzara and Bona, one day. Bona--Hotel de
+France.
+
+Another way, is to return to Algiers and proceed by sea to Bona,
+passing Boujie, and Djidjelli, and Philippeville, about forty-eight
+hours.
+
+From Bona to Tunis, by sea, about eighteen hours; or by land, _via_
+Keff, the frontier town of Tunisia and Algeria, about six days; an
+escort required. Tunis--Hotel de France.
+
+Tunis to Solyman, four hours; Tunis to Biserta, fourteen hours.
+
+On horseback, take two flannel shirts, one change of boots, and
+bournouse, &c. Average expense per diem, with horse and servant,
+twenty-five francs. I had three horses and one interpreter, and my
+expenses averaged L1 10s. _par jour_.
+
+
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+PETTER AND GALPIN, BELLE SAUVAGE PRINTING WORKS, LUDGATE HILL, E.C.
+
+
+
+
+                  *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's Notes:
+
+
+  Illustrations have been moved closer to their relevant paragraphs.
+  The page numbers in the List of Illustrations do not reflect the new
+  placement of the illustrations, but are as in the original.
+
+  Author's archaic and variable spelling and hyphenation is
+  preserved.
+
+  Author's punctuation style is preserved.
+
+  Passages in italics indicated by _underscores_.
+
+  Passages in bold indicated by =equal signs=.
+
+  Typographical problems have been changed and are listed below.
+
+
+Transcriber's Changes:
+
+
+  Page 5: Original Table of Contents lists Chapter III as page 17.
+
+  Page 8: Was 'unhapy' (his cutting sarcasm, and the =unhappy=
+          frivolity which defaces the works of the man)
+
+  Page 30: Was 'Kadir' (FURTHER EXPERIENCES:--Abd-el-=Kader= (but not
+           the Emir)--Difficult Road)
+
+  Page 33: Was 'twent' (The Arab had fired at the brute at =twenty=
+           paces, but missed his aim.)
+
+  Page 85: Was 'mattrass' (and the =mattress=--fancy now!--is stuffed
+           with sticks, and is so cursedly hard)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Notes in North Africa, by W. G. Windham
+
+*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK NOTES IN NORTH AFRICA ***
+
+***** This file should be named 30581.txt or 30581.zip *****
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+        http://www.gutenberg.org/3/0/5/8/30581/
+
+Produced by Dan Horwood and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
+produced from images generously made available by The
+Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
+will be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
+one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
+(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
+permission and without paying copyright royalties.  Special rules,
+set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
+copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
+protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark.  Project
+Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
+charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission.  If you
+do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the
+rules is very easy.  You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose
+such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and
+research.  They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do
+practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks.  Redistribution is
+subject to the trademark license, especially commercial
+redistribution.
+
+
+
+*** START: FULL LICENSE ***
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at
+http://gutenberg.org/license).
+
+
+Section 1.  General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works
+
+1.A.  By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement.  If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy
+all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession.
+If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the
+terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or
+entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.
+
+1.B.  "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark.  It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement.  There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement.  See
+paragraph 1.C below.  There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement
+and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.  See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C.  The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation"
+or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works.  Nearly all the individual works in the
+collection are in the public domain in the United States.  If an
+individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are
+located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from
+copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative
+works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg
+are removed.  Of course, we hope that you will support the Project
+Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by
+freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of
+this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with
+the work.  You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by
+keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project
+Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D.  The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work.  Copyright laws in most countries are in
+a constant state of change.  If you are outside the United States, check
+the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement
+before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or
+creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project
+Gutenberg-tm work.  The Foundation makes no representations concerning
+the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United
+States.
+
+1.E.  Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1.  The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate
+access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently
+whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed,
+copied or distributed:
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+1.E.2.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived
+from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is
+posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied
+and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees
+or charges.  If you are redistributing or providing access to a work
+with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the
+work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1
+through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the
+Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or
+1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3.  If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional
+terms imposed by the copyright holder.  Additional terms will be linked
+to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the
+permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4.  Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5.  Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6.  You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any
+word processing or hypertext form.  However, if you provide access to or
+distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than
+"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version
+posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org),
+you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a
+copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon
+request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other
+form.  Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7.  Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8.  You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided
+that
+
+- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+     the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes.  The fee is
+     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he
+     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the
+     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.  Royalty payments
+     must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you
+     prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax
+     returns.  Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and
+     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the
+     address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to
+     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+     you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+     License.  You must require such a user to return or
+     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium
+     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of
+     Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any
+     money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days
+     of receipt of the work.
+
+- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+     distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9.  If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set
+forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from
+both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael
+Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark.  Contact the
+Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1.  Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm
+collection.  Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain
+"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or
+corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual
+property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a
+computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by
+your equipment.
+
+1.F.2.  LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees.  YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3.  YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3.  LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from.  If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with
+your written explanation.  The person or entity that provided you with
+the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a
+refund.  If you received the work electronically, the person or entity
+providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to
+receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund.  If the second copy
+is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further
+opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4.  Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER
+WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
+WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5.  Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages.
+If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the
+law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be
+interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by
+the applicable state law.  The invalidity or unenforceability of any
+provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6.  INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance
+with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production,
+promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works,
+harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees,
+that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do
+or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm
+work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any
+Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause.
+
+
+Section  2.  Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers
+including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers.  It exists
+because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from
+people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need, are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come.  In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations.
+To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation
+and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4
+and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org.
+
+
+Section 3.  Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive
+Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service.  The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541.  Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at
+http://pglaf.org/fundraising.  Contributions to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent
+permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S.
+Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered
+throughout numerous locations.  Its business office is located at
+809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email
+business@pglaf.org.  Email contact links and up to date contact
+information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official
+page at http://pglaf.org
+
+For additional contact information:
+     Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+     Chief Executive and Director
+     gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+
+Section 4.  Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment.  Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States.  Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements.  We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance.  To
+SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any
+particular state visit http://pglaf.org
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States.  U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses.  Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations.
+To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate
+
+
+Section 5.  General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic
+works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared
+with anyone.  For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project
+Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.
+
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S.
+unless a copyright notice is included.  Thus, we do not necessarily
+keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.
+
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility:
+
+     http://www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.