I continued to wait, therefore, very humbly at the gate of this great city, sitting cross-legged on the dusty ground, and holding the halter of my mule, who continued to be too refractory and ungovernable to the last to be left quietly to himself; and had lighted my pipe, to lessen the tedium of this detention; when a Turkish soldier impudently snatched it from me, and extinguished it, asking me, at the same time, how I dared be guilty of such a breach of decorum just as the Pasha was about to pass.

Presently, this distinguished personage entered, preceded by a troop of his Georgian Mamlouk guards, all gaily dressed, and mounted on fine and well-furnished horses. A troop of foot soldiers followed, all of them having English muskets, and many of them English military coats, which they purchase with the other worn-out garments of the British resident's guards; but their headdress was a huge fur cap, of a semi-globular form and savage appearance, and their whole deportment exhibited the total absence of discipline or uniformity. A few drums and reed-pipes were the only instruments of music, and the sounds of these were far from dignified or agreeable.

Nothing, however, could surpass the awe which the passing-by of the Pasha seemed to inspire in all who witnessed it, though this is no doubt a frequent occurrence. There were two large coffeehouses near the gate, the benches of which were filled with hundreds of spectators; yet not a pipe was lighted, not a cup of coffee served, and not a word spoken, during this awful moment. Every one rose, and either made an inclination of the body, or lifted his hand to his lips, his forehead, and his heart, in token of respect. The Pasha, though he seemed scarcely to turn his head or his eyes from a straight-forward view, nevertheless returned these salutations with great grace, and every thing was conducted with the utmost gravity and decorum.

At the close of this procession, Dr. Hine and Mr. Bellino, the physician and secretary of the British resident at Bagdad, passed close by me, on horseback, as I sat smothered in the very dust of

their horses' hoofs; but though I knew them at the moment to be the persons they were, from their dresses, and from hearing them converse in English as they passed, and though I felt the humiliation to which I was reduced as extremely galling, yet I forbore to make myself known to them under such circumstances and in such a crowd.

When the cavalcade had entirely passed by, and every one returned again to the care of his own concerns, I pressed hard to be released from the unreasonable and hopeless bondage in which I was thus held; but entreaty procured me only abuse, and the satisfaction of being thought an idle vagabond who wished to abandon the property of the man on whose beast I rode, with a view, no doubt, to escape from paying him for its hire. Altercations, hard words, and, at last, on my part also, threats and abuse, succeeded, however, in effecting what I believe gentler terms would never have done; till, at length, being able to bear with it no longer, I drew my pistol from my girdle, and daring any one at the peril of his life to molest me, I led off my mule in triumph, amid the execrations of the guards, for my insolence, but cheered by the shouts and applause of the rabble, for my defiance of a class on whom they look with the hatred of an oppressed race towards their tyrants.

I took the animal to the Konauk Tatar Agasi, or head-quarters of the couriers, where, on representing myself to be an Englishman, (of which the guards at the gate knew nothing,) I was treated with great respect, and suffered to leave the beast, to be delivered to its owner, without any further care of mine. As I waited here until the Tartar Jonas, who had deserted us on the road, was sent for-coffee, pipes, and sherbet were served to me, and I was entertained with the most extravagant praises, which these men bestowed on the character of the English generally, and of their illustrious representative at Bagdad in particular.

When Jonas at length arrived, I took him with me to the house of Mr. Rich, to whom I explained the whole of his beha

viour to us on the road, and all the consequent inconveniences that I had suffered; and by this gentleman I was assured that proper notice should be taken of the Tartar's treacherous conduct. The reception I met with at the hands of Mr. Rich, was warm and cordial in the highest degree. I found an apartment ready for me, servants placed at my disposal, and, indeed, all the comforts of a paternal home, with the most hearty and oft-repeated welcome. After passing a short time in conversation with Mr. Rich, I was conducted by one of his servants to the bath; and after much enjoyment there, returned to pass a day of unusual happiness in the intelligent and amiable society of Mr. and Mrs. Rich, and the other members of their family.

JULY 20th. The change from all that could be disagreeable, in the way of living, to so much comfort, and, indeed luxury, as I found in the house of Mr. and Mrs. Rich, added to the still higher charm of the intelligent society with which I had become surrounded there, was sufficient to repay me for all the vexations I had suffered on my way. I continued to enjoy these pleasures uninteruptedly for several days, before I felt even a desire to gratify that curiosity which is so generally impatient on entering a large and celebrated city.

I profited however this morning, by the gentlemen of the establishment riding out, to accompany them on horseback, going down through the whole length of the town, passing out through the south

eastern gate, and making the circuit of the walls, so as to return by the north-western gate of entrance, which leads from the Mousul road. The remainder of the day was devoted to an examination of the interior of the city, in the company of native resident guides; and from this, with the information acquired from other sources, during the few days I had already been in Bagdad, the following account, which if not as full is at least as faithful as I could make it, was carefully compiled.

The city of Bagdad stands on a level plain, on the north-east bank of the Tigris, having one of its sides close to the water's edge. The plan which Niebuhr has given of it, appeared to me generally accurate, both as to the form and extent of the city and its suburbs; to the outline delineation of which, description alone can supply the more minute details.

The wall by which Bagdad is surrounded bears marks of having been constructed and repaired at many different periods; and, as in most other Mohammedan works, the oldest portion is the best, and the latest the worst part of the fabric. The wall is built entirely of brick, of different qualities, according to the age in which the work was done; it has large round towers at the principal angles, with smaller towers, at short distances from each other, in the intervals between the larger ones. On the large towers are batteries planted with brass cannon of different calibre, badly mounted, and not more than fifty in number, including all the fortifications towards the landside of the city.

of

There are three gates of entrance and outlet; one on the southeast, a second on the north-east, and a third on the north-west of the city. The last of these is the principal one, leading from the most frequented road, to the most populous and busy part of the town, having the exercise-ground for playing the Turkish game the Jereed just without it, with the Great Market and the Pasha's Palace not far distant within. The whole wall has a dry ditch of considerable depth around it, but this is merely an excavation, without masonry or lining of any kind.