A pilgrimage to the temples and tombs of Egypt, Nubia, and ...

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322 SEID HUSSEYN.
leave of us, Seicl Husseyn, our Arab Consular
Agent at Kenneh, and his son (who is agent for
the East India Company at Cosseir,) and young
grandson, rode down like a company of Patriarchs,
upon their asses, each one attended by a slave, to
pay us a visit and to invite us to dine with the
old gentleman to-morrow, which we of course
accepted. They were in their robes of ceremony,
long pelisses of fine scarlet cloth, under which
were striped silk caftans; and over their enor-
mous white turbans each wore an Indian long
shawl gracefully arranged, one end of it wound
round their necks like a boa, and the other thrown
over their heads like a veil. We gave them coffee
and sherbet, but the young boy was not suffered
to partake of these refreshments, as he is never
allowed to eat or drink in his father s and grand-
father's presence. Such are Arab notions of filial
respect
On terminating their visit, the old gentleman
kissed me on both cheeks, a mode of salutation
that would have somewhat startled me had he
not desired our Dragoman to explain that he
saluted me as he w^ould do a daughter, which at
once converted an apparent freedom into a deli-
cate compliment. So we parted excellent friends,
with a full understanding that the whole of the