Twenty Years in the Near East

Chapter I

Student Dragomans at Ortakeui — Athletic Sports at Beicos — Literary Society in Cairo — Up the Nile with Professor Robertson Smith — The Beyrout Vice-Consulate — A sham Colonel — The Woes of a fair Circassian — Villegiatura in the Lebanon — Antiquities in Northern Syria — The Metualis — The Metn — A Vice-Consul and his Colony — The Levant Consular Service

Chapter II

Transferred to Damascus — My Damascus Home — Lady Digby — Her Arab Husband— The Bint el Nejmeh — My Lady Professor of Arabic — The Story of the Amorous Jeweller — An irate Husband — The Treacle Jars — Jaunts round Damascus — Druse Women — Sednaya Convent — Sister Thecla — Syriae Villages — Ma'aloola — Yabrood Kuteifeh — Suffering from Thirst — Jews in Damascus — A Visit to Jobar — Good-bye to Damascus 23

Chapter III

The Cairo Agency under Sir E. Malet — The National Party and Sir A. Colvin — Put in charge of the Vice - Consulate — Sending away British Subjects from Cairo — Princess Nazli Khanem — The Bombardment of Alexandria — Attached to Lord C. Beresford — Quick Justice at Alexandria — Three Graves always open — Made Captain ofthe Loot — The Ruffians of Karmouss — A Gruesome Execution — Digging up the Dead — A Dangerous Execution — Flogging with the " Cat " — Arrival of Lord Wolseley — English Policy in the East . v CONTENTS VI "7

Chapter IV. I'ace

The Transports leave for Ismailia— Forming a Staff of Interpreters- Buying Horses for the Mounted Infantry — Reconnaissance to Magfar— The first Shell— Fetching Water under difficulties— Tel el Mahuta — Kassassin— A long Ride— The Night March — Tel el Kebir— " Brownie" and the Highlander— Capture o( Arabi Pasha —His Trial— The Khedive's Pipe-bearer— The Oath of Triple Divorce — I resign the Service — Lord Dufferin's Letter to me — I join the Standard — The condemned Rebels — Profitable Legal Work — The Case of Zeinab Khanem — An unnatural Brother-in-law — Thc Khedive beaten at last 61

Chapter V

The Alexandria Courts-martial— Help from England — Difficulty of Access to Prisoners — Suliman Sami objects to pay — His Execution — Squabbles with the Court — Cholera breaks out at Rosetta — Remarks on Cholera Epidemics — The Russian Cholera — Lord Cromer comes to Egypt — Public Men in Cairo — Lord Dufferin and Said Pasha — Nubar Pasha and Mr. Clifford Lloyd — Baker Pasha — Gordon Pasha — His dislike of the Khedive — His opinion of Zobeir Pasha 80

Chapter VI

The starting of the Times of Egypt — The authorisation to publish it — We buy a Press — Difficulties with Foreign Compositors — Choosing a Translator — The first Number — Improving Results — Strike of Compositors — Jealousy of the Local Press — Addition of an Arabic Sheet — Cessation of Publication — The end of the Times of Egypt — Horse-racing in Cairo — Lawn tennis — Fencing — General Maxwell boxes an Italian Champion — Gambling in Cairo — Baccarat — A Baccarat System ni

Chapter VII

Bucharest — The House of the Three B's — Belgrade — Semi-barbarity of the Serbs — The National Character — Servian Pigs — How to cure a Jibbing Horse — Perils of the Servian Streets at Night— A Murder by the Police— Quail Shooting at Nisch— The Assault on our Vice-Consul— Savagery of Servian Peasants— An Unpleasant Ride — Expulsion of Newspaper Correspondents from Belgrade King Milan tells an Anecdote— The Regents— Servian Prospects . PAGE '37 CONTENTS

Chapter VIII

From Nisch to Macedonia — Posting to Monastir— Perlipeh— Race Strife and Hatred in Monastir — Disgraceful jealousies amongst Christians— Bulgars and Serbs in Macedonia— Sport round Monastir— Partridges— A Bear Hunt— A Sporting Pope — Unruly Beaters— A Consular Excursion— Kojaneh— An Illiterate Official —The Story of Rompapa— Religious Liberty in Kojaneh— Lapsista — Across Bosnia and Herzegovina — The State Prison at Zenitza — Serajevo— Mostar — Bocche di Cattaro — On foot to Cettinje — A queer little Capital — Montenegrin Characteristics — A bad fall at Rieka — Back through Dalmatia — Atrocities of the Mudir of Shatista — Supplementary Atrocities by other Officials

Chapter IX

Sofia in 1890 — The Palace — First Conversations with Stamboloff— His mistrust of Russia — His difficulty in finding a Prince — Sir N. R. O'Conor on the Situation in Bulgaria — Stamboloff and the Sultan — His opinion of Passitch and Servian Statesmen of that Period — Prince Alexander and his Army — Zankoff and his Intrigues — The Panitza Plot — The Court-martial — Stamboloff's ideas thereon — M. Tsanoff — M. Gueshoff — Excursion to Rilo — The Monastery — Looking for Chamois — Trout-fishing — The piscatorial Abbot — Mr. Bourchier — Trip to Keupvishtitza — Our Brigand Companions — Abundance of Game 169

Chapter X

Russian Shooting Clubs — Method of "ringing" and "flagging" Big Game — My first Bear — How to buy a Bear — A Bear as a surprise amongst the Elk — How not to shoot Bears — Elk -calling — Flighting Woodcock — Capercaillie Shooting at the "Tok" — A Blackcock "Tok" — Trout-fishing in Finland — Russian Datchas — My Datcha — Visit of Inspection — Unruliness of the Peasants — Poachers — My Gamekeeper — A Russian Country Squiress — Superstitious Villagers — Housekeeping details 196

Chapter XI

Egyptian Army Water Bottles — Outfitting from the Citadel — War Correspondents with the Dongola Expedition — Camel buying — A Preliminary Canter up to Korosko — Quarters at Haifa — Telegraphing Tricks — Start for Akasheh — Bivouac at Okmeh — Night March CONTENTS VIII PAGE to Sarkamatto-Battle of Ferket-Trials of a War Correspondent- Tukul building-Camp at Ferket-Goose Shooting-Outbreak of Cholera at Kosheh-Deaths of Captain Fenwick and Major Trask -Slatin Pasha-Soudan Weather-A Gymkhana Meeting in the Desert— Water Camps— The Advance to Hafir— The Action at 226 Hafir— Capture of Dongola

Chapter XII

Start for Crete-State of Canea-Looking for Lodgings-A cheap Lease— Our Servants— Mutinous Gendarmerie— Colonel Bor takes out his Handkerchief-A very Hot Corner-The Concert of Europe and Crete— Sir A. Biliotti goes to the relief of Selino Kastel— I chase after in the Edith— Tht International Fleet shirks Greek Torpedoes — Explosion in the Sissoi Veliky — Arrival of the Seaforth Highlanders— Fall of Malaxa— Bombardment of Fort Izzeddin— The Campcrdown big Shells— Cretan ideas of Warfare —The hospitable Revenge — The Fight at Akrotiri — Narrow Escape of Bor and Buller— The absurdity of the Concert's action in Crete— Hopelessness of the Outlook 254

Chapter XIII

Back at Constantinople— Old Friends— Assassination of Stamboloff— His last Words— Therapia Hotels— Life in the Bosphorus— The Islands — Woodcock Shooting round Constantinople — Wild Boar Hunting with Cherif Pasha — Yildiz Kiosque — The way of the Sultan with his Ministers — The Palace Cliques — Ghani Bey's Exploits — The Prætorian Guard — Abdul Hudda and the Ulema — The First Secretary — The Almighty Iradeh — Disadvantages of British Traders — The Great Assassin and his Foes — The Young Turkey Party — The Armenians — Folly of their Methods — Iniquity of their Committees — The Army in Turkey — Virtues of the Turkish Soldier — The Sultan's Policy towards Europe — The Policy of England and of Russia towards the Sultan ....... 282 Index

Chapter I Perhaps

the most interesting of all autobiographies is that of Jean Jacques Rousseau, and the charm of it lies in the inimitable naivete with which the author lays bare all his little vanities and conceits to the reader, compelling curiosity from the growing intimacy he establishes with himself. In the following pages I do not wish in any degree to follow his distinguished example, but this first chapter will be in a measure devoted to an attempt at introducing the writer to those who may have patience to read a few of his adventures, and thus enabling them, perhaps, the better to understand and participate therein. If the "Ego" is sometimes too obtrusive, I can only plead that no more convenient method suggested itself for stringing together the various incidents and observations presented, and remark that the critic can always substitute Tom, Dick, or Harry, without in any way detracting from any force or sense they may possess.

With this apology, I throw myself on public mercy, and proceed to unfold my tale. After spending my younger days, in the fashion of English boys, more in sport than study, I entered for an examination, and somewhat to my astonishment, was informed of my appointment as Student Interpreter attached to the Embassy at Constantinople. We all went out in the same steamer from Marseilles : Mr. Block, C.M.G., now First Dragoman of the same Embassy ; Mr. Eyres, Consul, also at Constantinople ; Mr. Richards, the victim of the recent outrage at Jeddah, now Consul at Damascus ; Mr. Barnham, C.M.G., our respresentative at Aleppo ; Mr. Alvarez, in the same capacity at Benghazi ; and myself. On arriving we were at first lodged at the old Missirie's hotel for a few days before taking possession of the school at Ortakeui.

I had scarcely been twenty-four hours in the place before I was arrested and introduced to various " karakols," or guardhouses, my offence being that I carried a revolver in my pocket. How the fact was discovered I cannot imagine, but I was simultaneously seized by three policemen, and hauled off most ignominiously. At last, on arriving at Galata Serai, I succeeded in inducing the officer in charge to send over to the Embassy, and of course my detention at once ceased, with many apologies. Thc school was a rickety old wooden house, with an uncared-for garden in three terraces, one of which we quickly converted into a lawn tennis court, and a very airy shed dignified with the name of stables. Here we soon shook down and commenced our Oriental studies. For Turkish we had a young Armenian Pro fessor at first, who was afterwards changed for Costaki Bey Pangiris, then an aide-de-camp of the Sultan, and now at Rome in a diplomatic capacity.

We were taught Greek by M. Maliakas, and I was initiated into the rudiments of Arabic and Persian by a reverend old Persian Hodja, named Habib Effendi. I cannot say, however, that I learnt much from him, except some tricks at chess, which he played like a true master; in fact, at least three-quarters of every supposed hour's lesson went in games and problems on the board. But if our masters did not teach us very much, we made rapid progress on our own account by spending most of our time either in converse with our neighbours or else in scouring the country round and chattering with all and sundry whom we came across. About once in every week or ten days our " superin tendent," Sir W. Baring, used to pay us a visit, and, I fear, did not altogether approve of our casual mode of " reading," but the final result proved that we had taken the best course, for when the examinations came off, we satisfied everybody, and, with the exception perhaps of the writer, I do not think the Foreign Office has ever had any reason to complain of its first batch of Student Dragomans.

This was in 1878, during the Russo-Turkish War, and when in February the British Fleet was brought up the Dardanelles to prevent the Russian entry by land, its advent was, of course, the signal for an orgie of dances, and later on of cricket, football, regattas, etc. Afterwards some Athletic Sports were organised, the entries for which were confined to members of the Fleet and Embassy, and we six young students from Ortakeui were in dulgently included with the idea merely of swelling the lists. So sure were the originators, however, of their prowess, that for several events the supposed winners were allowed to choose their own prizes. The result showed that they had been somewhat premature, as the " Unknowns" carried off every first and second prize, with the exception of the Quarter Mile Cup, given by Lady Layard, who particularly begged me to stand out, since it was evident that at that time I could easily have con ceded fifty yards' start to anybody on the ground.

Our victory was well celebrated at Ortakeui, and the sports were followed by a ball ; but, after dancing all night, I was seized next morning with hæmorrhage from the lungs, and gradually went from bad to worse. To cut a long story short, I finally lay for a month in hospital, after losing nine pounds of blood, and the lately triumph ant athlete was carried out of it up to the kindly house of Mr. Donald at Candilli, as weak as a baby. There I was carefully and affectionately nursed ; but as autumn came on, the doctors advised my removal to Egypt. The Foreign Office put no obstacles in the way, and attached me nominally to the staff of Mr. Vivian. Again I was carried on board the steamer, and on shore at Alexandria, till finally deposited, a mere shadow, in the Hotel du Nil at Cairo. Pitying glances from the groups lounging about the beautiful garden greeted the new arrival, and doubtless frequent guesses were made as to how many weeks he could last.

There had, however, been no recurrence of blood-spitting for three months, and, if I was nearly transparent, I cannot say I ever felt in any immediate danger of death. My first sojourn in the land of Egypt was the beginning of a totally new existence. Hitherto I had been passionately devoted to field sports of every kind, and mixed principally with those of kindred tastes. At the hotel I found a society of serious and cultured men and women, whose conversation was in itself a liberal education. I need only mention the late Dr. Appleton of the Academy, Mr. Flinders Petrie, Mr. Davidson of Baliol, the Rev. W. J. Loftie of the Savoy Chapel, and Professor Robertson Smith. All of these encouraged me to the utmost in a tenacious grip on life, and in a groping for entry into the world of thought and letters.

It was now that I commenced writing articles for the Saturday Review, by the courtesy of whose proprietors I have been permitted to use them in part in the present work. Very slowly, in the lazy calm of Cairo, and basking in Egyptian sunshine, some of my lost strength crept back to me, and by degrees I was promoted from strolling up and down the balconies to occasional stretches in the Mooskee and prowls through the bazaars. Then a great project was mooted by Professor Robertson Smith for a trip up the Nile in a dahabeeyah. He himself had come out chiefly with a view to acquiring a knowledge of colloquial Arabic, and as this was also a desideratum with me, we had an object in common. We had also, I imagine, a common tie in the exiguity of our purses. The Professor, however, managed to secure the loan of a boat from the Mudir of Sioot, and we had only to pay the wages of the crew, amounting in all to about ten or twelve pounds a month.

As the third of our party we had the young Laird Campbell of Argyll, and a more incongruous trio it would have been hard to put together. We had no dragoman, and managed our own affairs as best we could, which was very badly at the outset ; but as we grew more familiar with the language and ways of our crew we settled down into comparative if not very positive comfort. Before we had been a fortnight on the Nile the magic climate showed its effect, and I was able to handle a gun and help to fill our pot with quail and pigeons ; and whilst the Professor explored tombs and temples, Campbell and I generally wandered in the maize and berseem fields in search of something to kill. This was before the days of Cook's stern-wheelers and quasi monopoly even of dahabeeyahs, and except for an occasional party of other similar lotus-eaters, we had the grand old river almost to ourselves.

So much has, however, been written about Nile voyages, that I need only add that our own most delightful journey cost no more than about fifteen or sixteen pounds apiece for over two months of the most glorious time imaginable. There was, nevertheless, an unfortunate drawback in my case, since from carelessness in the matter of broad-brimmed hats, I contracted a virulent form of ophthalmia. Boracic acid was not then known, and on my return I was obliged to pass several weeks in a dark room, thus counteracting largely the benefits of the trip, besides permanently shortening my sight. With the spring, warm weather set in, accompanied by the stifling Khamseen winds, and again the invalid was reduced to the last stage of exhaustion. It was in vain that the best doctors were consulted : no two agreed in their treatment.

One insisted on spray treatment for the throat to stop the wretched cough, another was for bolstering up the system at all hazards, whilst a third was in favour of reductive measures to check the too violent heart action which threatened another rupture of the scarcely healed veins. Finally, Dr. Sachs, the Khedive's physician, wrapped me for severals hours a day in blankets filled with crushed ice, and nearly succeeded in extinguishing the little vitality left in my carcase. At length, in desperation, I resolved to return to cooler climes, and in June re-embarked for Constantinople. From that day I began to mend, and horse exercise in Syria went far to complete the cure. Not one of my medical advisers expected me to live three months, and told me so plainly, at my own request for their true opinion.

Yet that was now nearly twenty years ago, and anybody who wades through this book will see that I have scarcely kept to a valetudinarian regime since. I have only given this sketch of a severe illness in the hopes of encouraging other similar sufferers never to lose heart, but to remember that while there is life, and the will to live, one should never despair. The next four or five months were devoted to studying for the final examination, and at the end of the year I was promoted to be a full-fledged Consular Assistant, in which capacity I was appointed to Beyrout. There I had as my Chief, Mr. Eldridge, as Consul-General, with Mr. Dick son as Vice-Consul. The former was already growing old, and was very broken in health, so that my advent enabled him to hand over his charge to Mr. Dickson, whilst I was forthwith named Acting Vice - Consul, to which office appertained also the duties of Judge of the Consular Court.

Mr. Dickson was extremely easy-going, and was very glad, probably, to be relieved of the routine of the Vice- Consulate in exchange for the comparatively idle but superior post of Consul-General. The change suited all of us admirably, but was scarcely equally relished by the individuals who had to make official acquaintance with the new broom. At this time Cyprus had not long been occupied by the British, but had already become the asylum of a crew of adventurers, many of whom were swiftly pursued by writs from the King's Bench. These gentlemen usually fled before them, either to Smyrna or Beyrout, and it became an amusing and exciting part of my duties to lay violent hands on them when practicable. Many were the curious characters whom I thus came across. I remember one refugee, who passed as an Indian Army colonel on furlough, enjoying himself with some of the best shooting in the world at Mirsina with a pack of hounds.

On receiving the order to arrest him, I instructed our Consular Agent at that post to do so, but he comically replied that he simply dared not venture to interfere with so aristocratic an offender. A cargo of cartridges and other goods having arrived at Beyrout for " the Colonel," he was invited by me to come down and clear them, and was much hurt at being promptly collared on the landing-stage. He was " a member of Boodle's Club, sir ! " and I should find " what a deuce of a mistake I was making," with much more of the same sort ; but I inexorably ushered him towards the small cupboard in the Consulate which then served, and for all I know, still does, as a prison, and advised him to take things easily. He laid an action against me, I heard later, for false imprisonment, with damages at five pounds a day, or hour, I forget which ; but it availed him little, as after shipping him for England I heard 110 more of my gallant but irate prisoner.

Another curious case, though of a dissimilar nature, was that of Nazik Tershaneh. One day an old man entered the Consulate and prayed for a private audience. He declared he had been robbed of a wife, graceful as a gazelle and lovely as a star, and sought protection to enable him to recover her. The mere fact of a Moslem approaching a foreign Vice-Consul on such a subject was suspicious ; but I consented, at least, to listen to his tale. The story told me, later on, by the girl herself, in voluble and picturesque Turkish, was this. She was now fifteen years of age, and had been married at Widdin, in Bulgaria, eighteen months ago, to Abdullah Zebedani, the old man, at least sixty, who was a Customs officer at Alexandria. He came to Syria, and left her with an old woman, a certain Hadji Fatmeh el Missrieh (" Keur o/sun !

" — " May she go blind ! " remarked the fair one, in a parenthesis), and went himself to Damascus. After a little while, she was told she had been sold, and was forcibly sent to the house of one, Selim Shukri, who already owned four wives, and with whom she stayed twenty-five days. On her husband's return, she was sent back to the house of Fatmeh, where he picked her up again. Selim, how ever, appeared to claim her, took her away, vi et armis, and maltreated old Abdullah. He had complained to the authorities, but as Shukri was rich he had no great hopes of redress, wherefore he had come to me. It was really no business of the British Vice-Consul, but as bemg appar ently a contravention of the Slave Trade Convention, and altogether rather a scandalous proceeding, I wrote to the authorities, and in the afternoon went to see the Governor, and suggested the propriety of setting Nazik free.

About six o'clock the ill-assorted couple came together to visit me, and after profusely thanking me, Abdullah stated that the lady had a communication to make, and discreetly retired into the next room. The beauteous Nazik, who truly was exceeding fair to see, then threw off her veil, and passionately recited the foregoing tale, with many additional facts and comments, concluding by expressing a wish, then and there, to enter my service as maid. This offer I was obliged reluctantly to decline, as the obdurate Shukri had summoned them both to appear next morning in court for side issues to be tried, and I did not wish to be further mixed up in the dispute. The two questions posed were : — First, Had Abdullah sold his wife to Shukri? and secondly, Had Shukri beaten Abdullah? The court was crowded with the cream of native society, and in support of his claim to the girl Shukri produced a deed of sale with Abdullah's seal duly affixed.

He further brought four other "men about town" to swear that Nazik had been offered to them for sums from £ ioo downwards (Selim had paid £40). Abdullah denied the evidence in toto, and swore his seal had been stolen. By Moslem law, if Abdullah had sold his lawful wife, he thereby incurred the death penalty, and if he had sold her as a slave and she claimed her liberty, he would have to refund the £40, which he evidently had no wish to do. As the Moslem Code does not accept a sealed document without corroborative evidence, Abdullah's denial upon oath put the onus probandi on the other party. They then swore that Abdullah had offered to bring other girls as pretty from Stamboul to order, and asked, if Nazik had been his honest wife, would he ever have left her with a woman of the known character of Hadji Fatmeh?

Abdullah's reply to this was that he had only expected to be away for a day or two, and Nazik swore she had seen none of the four witnesses before the previous day, when they had come with Fatmeh, and by threats and cajolery had tried to persuade her to say that she was not Abdullah's wife. Her version was that Fatmeh had hired her out for the period that her husband was away, and in support of this she adduced the fact of her being returned on the day Abdullah was expected from Damascus. After some more hard swearing, the unusual course was taken of Nazik's unveiling before her judges, and her surprising beauty probably produced its effect, as at the close ofthe case complicity between Abdullah and Fatmeh was considered proved, but Shukri was acquitted of all blame. As a matter of fact, if he had bought such a fine young Circassian in the open market, he would have had to pay .£60 at the very least for her, whereas, from other evidence, it appeared doubtful if he had really given more than £15.

If he bought her at all, he either did so from the woman knowing her to have been stolen, or from the man being aware that she was his wife, or that she was not his to dispose of. Probably the actual bargain was that he took her for a few days from Fatmeh for a small sum, on the understanding that he would give her up if the title was disputed, relying upon Abdullah's being ashamed to bring up the case. That night the wretched old man spent in prison, but next day he was released, and he and his wife immediately implored my protection against the powerful enemies they had now made. I advised them to leave Syria as quickly as possible, but they begged to dwell under the shadow of the Vice-Consul so hard, that at last I agreed to install him as gardener in a small place I had on the outskirts of the town, and I never heard of any further molestation being offered him.

Now and again the divine Nazik would bring me vegetables and fruit, or come for the month's wages, and dutifully kiss the hand of " her father "; but I seldom, if ever, saw the old rascal again. I believe that Beyrout has now become quite a fashionable centre, threatening to rival even Smyrna in the smartness of its race-meetings and other amusements, but Consule Beamano it was a very sleepy, behind-the-age town. There was nothing whatever in the shape of a theatre or other public place of diversion— only a rudi mentary attempt at a lawn tennis court, very poor shops, with stock-in-trade dating from almost prehistoric times, and no society to speak of outside the missionary element. Nevertheless, the Beyroutines used to be, and now are probably still more, pleased with themselves and their surroundings, and nobody can live long in the place with out growing fond of it, in spite of all its shortcomings and disadvantages.

In the spring it is a pleasant residence ; but as the summer advances Beyrout becomes intolerable. The heat gathers itself all day on the mountains which surround the bay, and descends in a stifling smother at night. After roasting from dawn to sunset, darkness brings with it no relies, but only a natural Turkish bath, enlivened by myriads of mosquitoes and sandflies. Every body consequently flies to the Lebanon villages for coolth, as there are about half a dozen within fairly easy distance. Aleih rules the roost with its European hotel and rich missionary clientele; but there are also Shemlane, Areyah, Beit Mary, Aytab, and Sook el Gharb. Beit Mary used to be the headquarters of the French, and enjoys the advantage of a certain amount of shade from its pine forests, although a pine or fir is not altogether a satisfactory shade - thrower, and trees also generally bring mosquitoes, whilst Aleih is almost free from these plaguy insects, except such as are brought up in the market basket daily from Beyrout.

As soon as the season for villegiatura was at hand, I chose Areyah in preference to the more fashionable resorts, moved also by the consideration of a very desirable little villa being to let by chance, as the gentleman who built it was away. It was the only European residence in or rather near the village, and stood in its own grounds, overlooking the diligence road, so that letters and telegrams could be dropped and taken up most conveniently. It also was comfortably furnished with decent fittings, and was considered the most luxurious house on the mountain. It was impossible for me to pay the rent demanded for this little palace, so I asked some friends from England to come out and try a month or two's picnic, and I think we all enjoyed ourselves hugely, notwithstanding minor trials in the shape of insects of all sorts, native servants,1 and jackals.

One of the greatest pests was the sparrow. These birds congregated in the creepers round the house, and before day broke began such a concert of twittering that sleep was henceforth impossible, and all efforts to dislodge them were futile to the end. Of nature's music there was never any lack, the tree-crickets keeping up a deafening sibilation all day, and at sunset the nightingales and frogs took up the chorus, aided by the demoniacal howls of the jackals. These brutes invaded the villa nightly, and stole everything that was not carefully locked up ; and though I several times sat up for them with a gun, and once nearly blew the lintel off the back door in a shot at a grey shadow slipping out after a raid on the milk jug, I never succeeded in killing one. During the summer I made several short excursions in the Lebanon, simply hiring the first pony offered to me, at the rate of about five shillings a day, and I found them such useful beasts that it was not worth while to buy a horse of my own.