Travels in Turkey, Asia Minor, Syria, and across the desert into Egypt ...

SYRIA, EGYPT, GERMANY, &T~ 8j
of robbers who infested Bomelia, had succeeded iu dispersing them,
but that the commandant of the regiment, a German., had been
wounded.
On the 21st the weather was oppressively warm. [ walked to
the cemetery withoutside of Peru, and was dure witness to a verypleasing
and novel scene. It being the Easter of the Greeks, amusements
of every description were exhibited ; and the colours
and varieties of the costumes displayed by the immense crouds of
persons collected together, rendered the spectacle highly interesting.
There were
wrestling matches, stalls filled with sweetmeats and
sherbet, and groups of persons seated on the grass, playing at dif-
ferent games of chance, while others were engaged in dancing in
rings, to the music of an instrument not unlike our scene
bagpipe. This
reminded me of a country wake in England, to which i:
would have borne a still
stronger resemblance, if a considerable
number of
frying pans had not it
given somewhat the odour of our
Barthole me-dO fair. They were employed, not for
frying sausages,
but liver, lights, &c.
On every
such
day
of
festivity,
the Greeks, of course, disp
-
their best dresses, which, in many instances, are both tasteful
costly. The sobriety of their demeanour cannot be equally commended;
since it too
frequently happens that, by launching out in-
to every excess, they require the interference of the Turkish guards,
stationed purposely to repress the tumult and disorder in which the
giddy scene may chance to terminate.
During their lent they subsist on oil and fish, observing
a most
rigid abstinence. I have been told that this diet is, both among
them and the Armenians, productive of herpetic complaints, scror-
phulous affections, ophtbalmies, and several other diseases.
On the 25th I walked out with a
party, with the intention of
crossing over to Constantinople,
to make an excursion round the
walls. On our reaching fophana, we witnessed a most daring
robbery (committed in the open street, at eleven in the morning,
and in the presence of many persons who were passing at the time)
Pacha's i:
by two galangis (seamen) belonging to the Capitan
They attacked an Armenian, from whom they took two sequins,
and were
proceeding to rifle him still further on our coming up. We
were armed ; and on our
manifesting our displeasure at the conduct
of these villains, they suffered the Armenian to depart, but not
until
they had forced him to kiss one of them, as a token of ac-
knowledgment for their forbearance. In
passing through the same