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Spaniards in his employ, having purchased them at three, seven, and ten dollars respectively. Jews are not allowed to hold slaves; which appeared to be the cause of much regret to our host, who no doubt would most willingly have procured some apprentices at the above specified prices. Black slaves here are extremely numerous; their price varies, according to their sex and age, from thirty to eighty dollars: a good-looking female has been known to cost one hundred dollars; but this is the highest price I have heard of having been given. A handsome White female will bring as high as three hundred dollars; but if they are of a certain age, as Byron terms it, or not good-looking, they are then considered as of no more value than a Black slave.

*

On arriving at a defile through which we had to pass, the convoy halted, and refused to go any further unless another hundred dollars was given them. To be left here was certain robbery; therefore there was no alternative but to pay whatever they might choose to exact. After a little

hesitation on the part of the Jews, the sum required was promised, and we resumed our journey. From the rear, cries continually assailed the ear, proceeding from those who having loitered behind were being plundered by the Arabs, whilst every now and then shots were fired in front, and the robbers were seen scampering off up the mountains: my interpreter, who was only the ninth part of a man, being a tailor, did not at all relish the music of a stray ball which now and then came past us, and contrived to keep his spirits up by pouring spirits down. The agua ardiente bottle suffered considerably, as at every ball he heard pass him he gave another pull at it.

On arriving at the Arab village Ben Nonan had been at, we found that he had left early the same morning for Oushdah, paying a thousand dollars to Bouhanani, the chief of Angad, to allow him to pass in safety through his territory: it was therefore determined that under these circumstances it would be better to go to the small town of Kaaf. A short time before we reached our destination, the party was halted, and a soldier begged that I would draw off my mules to a distance from the convoy. I accordingly suspected what was about to happen, and took the hint; availing myself of the opportunity to discuss some bread and cheese, and assist my interpreter in his respects to the agua ardiente. The Arabs now commenced collecting the sum which had been promised them; and any one who was at all dilatory in paying his quantum received a hint to accelerate his motions, by a blow from one of the bludgeons of our escort. The money having been collected, we proceeded to Kaaf; on arriving there we found that our loss was three killed and some four or five wounded. The killed were two Jews and a Jewess: the latter was a sweet pretty girl, only fourteen years old; her father brought in the body in front of him on his horse; it was a melancholy sight to see the venerable old man, down whose blanched and withered cheeks the tears trickled, falling on the lifeless body of her who but a few hours back was his sole solace. She was his only child, and her mother had been dead some years.

*

The day after our arrival, a large party of Jews who were coming here were attacked and robbed by the Arabs: twelve of them were killed, the

rest being retained as prisoners till their brethren came forward, with three dollars per head to save them from a similar fate; the poor devils arrived at night in a perfect state of destitution.

*

*

The route to-day was considered particularly dangerous, and it was dark night ere we reached the Fonduque: the ill effects of being so late on the road were felt severely by some whose animals had knocked up, as they did not reach that night, but came in at daylight the following morning en négligé. There were about twenty: the male part of them came in eased of every thing but their drawers and shirts; and the fair sex, of whose persons the day before only one eye was to be seen peeping out from under their haik, now offered all their charms to the vulgar gaze, being literally en chemise: the other females of the convoy, however, furnished them with garments to again envelop their fair forms from sacrilegious gaze, and we proceeded on our journey.

ART. VII.-The War in Syria. By Commodore SIR C. NAPIER. 2 vols. Parker.

THE "old Commodore" is too full of himself: Lord Ponsonby, the ambassador at Constantinople-Sir Robert Stopford, the commander of the expedition-and every one else who did not think and act as Sir Charles Napier dictated or would have done, being incompetent or in the wrong. These volumes are really far less interesting than one would expect, considering the position of the author, and the subject matter. They have not even the value of a plain unvarnished history of an important episode in the recent fortunes of England. No doubt the author regards the War in Syria as a theme worthy of a Gibbon to handle, and deems himself as mighty in the capacity of a diplomatist as he is as a brandisher of the sword. But there is a wondrous difference between the promise and the feat, the girding on, and the laying aside. We could not have supposed that the War in Syria would have so soon become dull and issueless, or that its hero could have so entirely written himself down. The newspapers, after all, have been the historians of the Expedition.

Not that Sir Charles is an uninformed or a tortuous writer. He disdains to speak otherwise than he thinks, and has weighty enough matters to speak about, which he does in a straightforward style. We also believe that, had his system been steadfastly pursued, the contest would not only have been promptly brought to a close, but sundry misunderstandings avoided. And yet his book is of the heaviest sort, chiefly owing to its excessive egotism, and an undue enlargement of affairs which every one has already accurately measured. Still it is not unamusing to hear him talk of the convention which he entered into with Mehemet Ali, without adequate authority, and how he outwitted his superiors in command, by direct and

independent communication with the Admiralty and Foreign Offices, who praised him for the arrangements which he had made, and which saved these Boards a deal of trouble, although they must needs finds fault with the form. Sir Charles, for example, had his revenge, even in the form of a letter, of Sir Charles Smith, the commander of the troops, who strongly and testily disapproved of the convention to which we have referred. The correspondence is characteristic, at least in so far as relates to the Commodore. We first of all copy Smith's opinion of the "hasty and unauthorized" treaty :

Head-quarters, Beyrout, 30th November, 1840.

Sir,-Had you fortunately abstained from honouring me with your letter of the 27th instant, I should have been spared the pain of replying to it. I am not aware that you have been invested with special powers or authority to treat with Mehemet Ali as to the evacuation of Syria by the Egyptian troops; and if you have such special powers and authority, you have not taken the trouble of acquainting me therewith.

The convention into which you have entered had been, as relates to the advanced stage of military events in Syria, more than attained by the retreat of Ibrahim Pasha. If therefore you have, unknown to me, had authority to treat, I must decline to be a party to recommending the ratification of the said convention; and if unauthorized to treat, such convention is invalid, and is by me protested against, as being highly prejudicial to the Sultan's cause, in as far as it has or may have relation to the operations of the army under my command. It is needless for me to add, that a copy of this protest shall be forwarded to her Majesty's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.

I have, &c.

C. F. SMITH, Major-General, Commanding the Forces in Syria.

Commodore Napier, C.B., H. M. S. Powerful.

Now, how did the "rum old Commodore" treat this snappish letter? Why he took no notice of it at all to the Commander, until he had received an approving despatch from London, when he felt himself in a position to return this smart reply :

H. M. S. Powerful, Marmorice, 6th January, 1841. Sir,-Had I unfortunately abstained from writing to you, and the Admiral had quitted the coast, you would have had just cause to have complained of my want of courtesy.

When I left Beyrout, Sir Robert Stopford was Commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces by sea and land; it was therefore unnecessary for me to communicate to you what my powers were, as on him alone devolved the duty of approving or disapproving of my convention. He disapproved of it; and Ibrahim Pasha returned to Damascus. I quite disagree with you that the convention was prejudicial to the interests of the Porte; and I

am happy to say it has been approved of (with the exception of the guarantee) by her Majesty's Government; and I am now going to Alexandria to see it carried into execution.

I have, &c.

CHARLES NAPIER, Commodore.

To Sir Charles Smith, &c. &c., Gibraltar.

Seeing that our present number already contains an unusual quantity of matter relating to wars, expeditions, and campaigns, we cannot allow much room to the Commodore's strictures and exploits. We shall merely permit him farther to be seen on Mount Lebanon, and next in company with an Emir and an Emir's family. First, on the Mount:

It was rather a new occurrence for a British Commodore to be on the top of Mount Lebanon commanding a Turkish army, and preparing to fight a battle that would decide the fate of Syria; but the very novelty was exciting to a degree. I was in my glory; standing on an eminence, surrounded by the general officers and my own staff, I fancied myself a great "Commander."

Here follows description,

I have travelled in Switzerland and in the Tyrol, and admired the romantic scenery that you meet with in these fine countries; but still I give the preference to Mount Lebanon. The whole country is one mass of rocks heaped one on the other; and every spot of land capable of cultivation, is supported by terraces, and irrigated by streams of water from springs, which are abundant in the mountain. On these terraces the mulberry tree is cultivated with great care, and grows with much luxuriance. Fruit and vegetables of every description are grown in great abundance. The mountains produce only a sufficient quantity of grain for three months' consumption: the other nine months are supplied either from the plains of the Bekaa, or by importation. The roads throughout the mountain are purposely bad, to render the passage of artillery impracticable. This assists the mountaineers in the defence of their country. The mountain passes are strong, and if bravely defended by peasants alone, no army, ever so well disciplined, could obtain possession of them without immense loss. On approaching Ammanah, we descried armed peasantry stationed on the various heights to prevent surprise; and on our arrival at the court-yard of the château in which the Grand Prince was lodged, some hundreds of men were lounging about in the gay attire of the mountains, armed at all points. Many horsemen were also in the court-yard, ready to be despatched to any point whence an attack might be apprehended. On entering the château, which certainly had not much the appearance of the residence of a Prince, I was immediately ushered into his presence. The old man was sitting cross-legged, smoking his pipe, but immediately rose and embraced me with much warmth, calling me his friend, his protector, and master; praising, with much apparent warmth, the English, who had come to

release the mountaineers from the oppression of Mehemet Ali. Pipes and coffee were then produced, and after puffing away for a few minutes, the room was cleared, and an interpreter sent for.

Now for the Emir and his household:

After going over the ground, we partook of the hospitality of Padre Ryllo, at Bechfaya. He had been an officer in the Polish army; and, after witnessing the destruction of his country, became a priest, and took refuge in the mountains of Lebanon. He was a most useful and intelligent man; had a large correspondence through the country, and was most serviceable in procuring information. Besides the Padre, there were half a dozen more priests in the convent, French and Italians, who possessed great influence in the mountains, and turned their attention to the education of the people.

After enjoying a good dinner, we mounted our horses, and proceeded along the summit of the mountains leading to Brumanhar. * * We were well received by the wife of the Emir of the place, whose name I do not recollect; she was mother to the wife of the Emir Bechir Cassim. We had a tolerable dinner served on a low table; and were afterwards invited into the ladies' apartment, where were seated the Princess and her two daughters, smoking their pipes, dressed out in all their finery. The three ladies wore horns on their heads, studded with jewels, about two feet and a half long, over which were hung veils, the horn richly ornamented. The old lady had lost her beauty, but not her dignity. The husband of the eldest daughter was a prisoner in Nubia; and when she heard I was going off to Alexandria, she implored me to obtain his release; she was a determined smoker, and frequently handed me her pipe. The second daughter was unmarried and handsome, and also treated me occasionally with a whiff, which is considered a high compliment on the mountains. After a good deal of conversation through the medium of an interpreter, we were served with coffee; the ladies then retired, and we followed their example.

ART. VIII.-1. Banks and Bankers. By DANIEL HARDCASTLE, JUNIOR. Whittaker.

2. An Inquiry into the Causes and Modes of the Wealth of Individuals. By THOMAS CORBET, ESQ. Smith and Elder.

WE shall try to make a lively article of "Currency" and the "Wealth of Nations," and begin with anecdotes. Who would believe that the genealogies, the statistics, the heraldry of moneymakers, money-lenders, would ever produce such rich and fresh facts as the following?—

Apropos of Sir J. Child, I have to remark that he founded the firm which still retains his name at Temple Bar, and which, with the house of Willis, Percival, and Co., is considered to be about the oldest in London. Child's

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