blessed and touched with the "Sainte Etole," in order to avert madness at any future period.

The process was simple enough: the credulous countryman then applying to the guardian powers of St. Hubert, was reverently kneeling before the altar of a small chapel in the body of the cathedral, whilst the priest mumbled something over his head ;* and then carefully opening a sinall box containing what appeared to be the fragment of a silken riband, caused the pilgrim to touch it with a ring; when the latter went away perfectly satisfied in the belief of being from henceforth safe from that dreadful infliction-hydrophobia.

It was my intention to have remained at St. Hubert until the celebration of the "fete" yearly held in honour of its patron, on the 3rd of November; however, pressing and unexpected business requiring an immediate return to England, I reluctantly took my departure found myself in a few days once more snugly ensconced in the "Author's Study," where the Reader hath already been introduced; and whilst surrounded by those sylvan trophies before enumerated-which tended powerfully to recall the past-I spent the ensuing dreary months of winter in preparing for publication, the foregoing chapters of "Wild Sports, in Europe, Asia, and Africa."

• Vide Appendix.

15

FREQUENT mention has been made by nearly every traveller, of the numbers of the lizard tribe met with in Syria; however, I only remember seeing one or two species. That alluded to as basking on the grey rocks of Mount Lebanon, is common to the most distant countries of the far East, and is known in India as the "bloodsucker," a name derived from its appearance more than from any destructive quality it may possess. From the constant changes of colour it is subject to, this little animal might not unaptly be classed with the chameleon.

It must be the same described by Buffon as the "dragon,” of which, at page 60, vol. 15, of his Natural History, he gives the following account:

"The dragon has been magnified into a terrible animal by authors of all ages, and to whom the most dreadful destructive powers have been applied: happily, however, no such animal, at present, at least, is known to exist; and the only one of that name, is a little harmless flying' lizard that preys upon insects, and even seems to embellish the forest with its beauty. Fable and superstition so long dwelt upon the description of the death-dealing dragon, that even to this day the uncivilized people of Africa and America traverse the forests with terror, lest they should fall into its power, and scarcely a savage is found that does not talk of serpents of an immoderate length, flying away with a camel or rhinoceros, and who is capable of destroying mankind with a single glance!"

This account, with the exception of the flying part of it, agrees with the appearance of the Indian "bloodsucker."

The bloodsucker is also mentioned as follows in Lalla Rookh :-" While Fadladeen, besides the spiritual comfort he derived from a pilgrimage to the tomb of the Saint from whom the valley is named, had opportunities of gratifying, in a small way, his taste for victims, by putting to death some hundreds of those unfortunate little lizards, which all pious Mussulmans make it a point to kill;-taking it for granted, that the manner in which the creature hangs its head, is meant as a mimicry of the attitude in which the faithful say their prayers!"

CHAPTER XV. PAGE 157.

In a work professedly of a "sporting" nature, a few words may not be misplaced relating to that noble animal, the horse ;-that constant companion of man in the pleasures of the chase, the perils of war, and the toils of agriculture. The arid and sandy plains of the East have, from the days of Job, been celebrated for the state of perfection to which the race of this splendid creature attains, and in Syria, on the very confines, as it were, of the peculiar domains of the horse-the Deserts of Arabia,-I expected to find him faultless in shape and form, and perfect in every quality. Great was therefore my disappointment, after reading with delight Lamartine's "poetical" account of the Syrian "khiel" (horses), to find them, in every respect, below even the inferior description of Arab, I had been accustomed to see in the plains of Hindostan.

To the reader, who may not have perused the French author's glowing and beautifully written account of his "Voyage en Orient," the following translation of that part of the work relating to "horse flesh" in Syria, may not be unacceptable.

He had been on a visit to the Emir Beschir, at his palace at Btiddeen, and on the occasion of inspecting the Grand Prince's stud, says :

"From thence we went with one of the attendants to visit the court-yards and stables, where the Prince's magnificent Arab stallions were chained up.' To form an idea of the Arab horse, it is requisite to have visited the stables of Damascus, or those of the Emir Beschir.

"This splendid animal, transplanted from his native soil and accustomed habits, into our cold climates, and the shade and solitude of our stables, loses his beauty, his sweetness of disposition, and picturesque forms. He should be seen at the entrance of the wild Arab's tent, now stooping his head and shaking his flowing mane, like a moving parasol, -whilst with his purple-tipped tail he sweeps his shining sides-polished like brass or silver; he should be seen clothed in his brilliant trappings, resplendent with pearls and golden embroidery, decorated with a silken head-stall of blue or crimson, with tingling and sonorous ornaments falling from his forehead to his nostrils,-and with which he occasionally conceals or discovers, at every movement of his neck, the inflamed, immense, intelligent, soft, and proud orb of his prominent eye;—above all, he must be seen as we

then beheld him, in a collective number of two or three hundred, some lying on the ground, some fixed by iron rings to the cords which crossed the stable yards;-others at freedom, springing over,' at a single bound, the files of camels which came in their way. Some, led by young negro slaves, richly habited in scarlet robes, and resting their heads in a caressing attitude on the shoulders of these children of Ethiopia: others, at liberty and free from bonds, playing together like colts in a meadow-rearing against each other -rubbing each other's foreheads, and mutually licking their clear, smooth, and silvery coats. Owing to our European costume and strange language, they all looked on us with inquisitive and uneasy attention, but they soon became familiar, and then gracefully extended their necks to the caresses of our patting hands.

6

"To any one who may not have witnessed it, the transparency and changes of physiognomy of these horses passes belief. All their thoughts are expressed in their eyes, and in the convulsive' movements of their cheeks, of their lips, and their nostrils, as markedly as the impressions of the soul on the countenance of a child. On approaching them for the first time, they made gestures and 'grimaces' of repugnance and curiosity, quite similar to those which a susceptible man would have expressed at the sight of an unexpected and unpleasant object. Our language,' above all, struck and astonished them much, and their surprise and uneasiness were strongly marked by the movement of their ears, either pricked forward or suddenly thrown back. I admired particularly several mares of inestimable price, reserved for the use of the Emir himself," &c.

Now as to the composition of the original, there can be no difference of opinion; it is beautifully written; but when the author talks of seeing his winged Pegasi leap over "files of camels"—and descants on their expressive "physiognomy" and knowledge of language," why, to say the least of it, he is much too far carried away by his poetic enthusiasm to be credited by any plain prose-going reader, and particularly by one who may happen to have seen what he gives such a glowing description of.

The old Emir Beschir, it is well known, had a splendid stud-of which it is very probable, some of the horses appeared at the "casting of the Djereed," described in the above pages, and, although on that and other occasions I have seen fine horses in Syria, they are not to be compared to the real Nedjdi Arab, or even to the inferior animal of that race exported to India.

Lamartine, likewise, encourages the common delusion, of the kindness and care with which horses are treated in this part of the country, and of the consequent attachment existing between them and their masters. This may be the case in the Deserts of Arabia,— but in Syria nothing can be more at variance with facts than such a supposition.

This noble animal is often, after a long and toilsome journey, neither groomed nor even unsaddled. For days he is allowed to wear without relief this heavy Eastern appendage, which, when removed, frequently displays the horribly lacerated and galled state of the back; he is in very good luck if, after toiling from morning to night, a few handsful of barley are put in a bag fastened to his nose, or, more frequently, thrown before him on the dusty ground, and although he is allowed to drink his fill, it is only at such times as chance brings him across a brook or fountain, when opportunity is taken by the forelock, and he is allowed to imbibe the pure element "ad libitum," without any regard to the heated state in which he may previously have been.

During my residence in Syria, the proper care of my horses was what gave me most trouble, as the saices or grooms could never overcome their old habits of carelessness and neglect, as a punishment for which, many is the good stick I have broken over their

backs!

CHAPTER XV. PAGE 158.

THE roads in Syria-more particularly in the mountainous parts of the country-are of such a wretched description-so thickly covered with rocky fragments and detached masses of stones; sometimes running in devious goat tracks on the rugged sides of precipitous hills; at others along dry and stony courses, or through the beds of raging torrents-that it is only matter of surprise how horses can ever maintain their footing on such apparently impracticable paths; in crossing which, however, our mode of shoeing would be little or no protection to their feet, and it is consequently found necessary to cover the whole of the lower part of the hoof with a flat plate of iron, having only a small aperture in the centre.

*

*

*

*

*

Besides the chivalrous sport of the Djereed, in more peaceable times the knightly pastime of Falconry is much in vogue amidst those wild mountain regions. Burckhardt, who visited this country in 1810, with more opportunities of observation than occur to the generality of travellers, remarks of the Emir Beschir :* That he keeps about fifty horses, of which a dozen are of prime quality; his only amusement is sporting with the hawk and the pointer."

*This alludes to the old Emir Beschir, who in 1840 was sent to Malta, and subsequently allowed to go to Constantinople, where, by constantly intriguing, he is supposed to have contributed his share to the troubles which have lately disturbed the unfortunate and doomed district of Lebanon.

Since that period, until the time of his expulsion from the "Mountain," in 1840, the Emir greatly increased his stud, until he at last monopolized every horse of any value in the country. A recent French author gives the following picture of the splendid establishment kept up by the Grand Prince: The only one of his family and of the high functionaries of the states of Mehemet Ali, the old Emir Beschir, had kept up his military establishment. Nevertheless, since the arrival of Ibrahim in Syria, it had been reduced to six hundred horsemen, and to four or five hundred infantry. The splendour of his hospitality at Btiddeen, his magnificent stables and hunting establishments, strongly contrasted with the simplicity of Ibrahim Pasha. Rich or poor,-whether stranger or native of the country, who, together with his horses and attendants, might arrive at Btiddeen, was sure, so long as detained there either by business or pleasure, to be entertained with the most unbounded hospitality. An assemblage of two hundred men and horses thus daily took place, who were all subsisted at the expense of the Prince.

"He alone had preserved in Syria the old feudal amusement: the chase of the partridge by means of falcons; and every year, during the months of January and February, hawking matches took place with a numerous retinue, and in a style of truly regal splendour-a thousand or twelve hundred peasants crowned the heights in a radius of three miles from the spot chosen by the Emir as his rendezvous. There seated on a divan, smoking his chibouque, and surrounded by his relations and officers, all respectfully standing in his presence, he held on his wrist a falcon, whilst a dozen other hooded ones rested on perches by his side. As soon as the signal for the chase was given, the beaters, with loud cries, gradually diminished the circle formed around the Emir, beating at the same time the underwood to cause the partridges to rise; the instant a bird was perceived, although, maybe, at an enormous distance, the Emir let go the falcon he held on his wrist. At the same moment fifty horsemen and as many dogs, sprung over the interven. ing hills and valleys to seize on the quarry, who, in the claws of its captor, might now be seen struggling and rapidly falling from an immense height to the ground. This chase, in which the Emir sometimes captured as many as two hundred partridges during the day, presented a most magnificent spectacle, greatly enhanced by the number of horsemen, the beauty of their steeds, and magnificence of the costumes, whilst the noise and tumult were repeated by a hundred echoes from the surrounding heights."

It never was the good fortune of the author of these pages to behold one of these magnificent" parties de chasse ;" but whatever may have been the admiration caused by the princely style of such amusements; every sentiment of a pleasurable nature must have been strongly counterbalanced, on reflecting what innumerable instances of cruelty, extortion, and oppression daily took place, to enable this " Old Man of the Mountain" to keep up these almost regal and sumptuous establishments; when whole families of industrious and hardy mountaineers wasted the toil of days and weeks, and were ground down by want and famine, to gratify the whim of a despot, and the death of each poor partridge had to be lamented by the tears and groans of hundreds of human beings!

CHAPTER XVI. PAGE 159.

THE name of this fair apparition was "Zuleika Shehab," of the family of the Grand Prince of Mount Lebanon. In addition to the personal attractions of which the reader has been allowed a slight glimpse, this lady possessed all the heroic qualities becoming the daughter of a warlike mountain chief, and which, on a subsequent occasion, she had an opportunity of displaying.

During the sanguinary contests which occurred between the Maronites and Druses towards the latter part of the year 1841, and which deluged the whole Mountain in blood, the latter tribe, after a successful attack on their enemies, advanced from Dhair-el-Kamar, towards the neighbourhood of Beyrout, putting everything to fire and the sword. Amongst other villages which they burnt was that of El Haded, the residence of the Emir Solyman Shehab and his family, who were obliged to have recourse to a precipitate flight, during which it was remembered that sundry important papers, with a considerable quantity of specie in gold, had been left in one of the family coffers.

The Princess Zuleika immediately volunteered to go in quest of the abandoned treasure ; and arming herself with a brace of pistols and a scymitar, boldly galloped back towards her father's palace, which she reached as the Druses entered the other extremity of the village. In the confusion of the moment, not being able to find the key of the "strong box," she broke it open with a hatchet, took possession of what she required, and fighting her way back through flames and foes, vaulted on her steed, and rejoined in safety her alarmed and retiring friends!

CHAPTER XVI. PAGE 166.

"Although the latter abound with every species of game-wild boar, gazelles, wolves, jackals, foxes, and water-fowl of all kinds, the mountains of Syria are singularly deficient of sylvan population," &c.

Since the days of Scripture the sylvan population of the land of Canaan appears to have

decreased in the same proportion as its inhabitants, the holy writings making frequent mention of animals now no longer to be met with. The Lions of the valley of the Jordan appear, notwithstanding Mr. Lamartine's mysterious allusions, to have long since disappeared; and the votary of the chase would now in vain look amongst the hills of Judea for the Yachmur, or fallow deer; the Akko, or wild goat; the Thau, (supposed to be the bison,) the Pygang, and the Zomer; whilst the Desert has likewise been abandoned by the wild ass and the unicorn, the "fiery flying serpent," the "cockatrice," and "dragon;" and, in the present day, the roving jackal or the fleet gazelle, alone leave a transitory print of their footsteps on its barren and burnt up surface.

The breed of horses used in the time of Solomon appears to have been brought chiefly from Egypt, which now only furnishes those of a most inferior description; and the prohibition mentioned at Deut. xvii. 16, not to multiply horses, appears to have had for its object to prevent any unnecessary communication with the land of Misraim. That Solomon infringed this law, we see by 1 Kings, iv. 26:-"And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.”

That they were then likewise fed in a similar manner with the Syrian horses of the present day, appears from one of the succeeding verses of the same chapter:-" Barley also, and straw, (probably chopped straw, or tibbin,) for the horses and dromedaries, (meaning, it is supposed, mules,) brought they unto the place where the officers were every man according to his charge."

CHAPTER XVI. PAGE 167,

Ar page 124 of Lamartine's "Voyage en Orient," we have the following passage :"Les Arabes nous avertissent de ne pas marcher sans nos armes, et de ne nous avancer qu'avec precaution, parceque ces épais taillis sont le repaire de quelques lions,' de pantheres, et de chatstigres. Nous n'en vimes pas, mais nous entendimes souvent dans l'ombre due fourre des mugissements et des bruits semblables a ceux que font les grands animaux en perçant les profondeurs des bois."

The fact of lions having been found in the valley of the Jordan is certainly mentioned in Scripture; but their existence at the present day, together with that of panthers, of which Mr. Lamartine appears to insinuate the fact, was probably only in the imaginations of the scoundrels who acted as his guides, and who were, no doubt, anxious to enhance the merit of their services, by making their willing employer persuaded of dangers which did not exist. The "mugissements" which he himself heard, together with other mysterious noises, proceeded most probably from the cattle which graze in great numbers amidst the thick "nebek" bushes with which the plain of the Jordan is in many places covered.

The only animals which fixed our attention in our progress across the "Ghor," were numerous pretty little creatures, apparently of the rat species, of a bright colour, and with long bushy tails, who, on our approach, immediately took refuge in the many holes with which the ground appeared perforated. In these, however, we could not trace the slightest resemblance to the kings of the forest."

CHAPTER XVI. PAGE 171.

DURING the severe gale which visited the coast of Syria on the 2nd and 3rd of December, 1840, H. M. S. Zebra was driven ashore in the Bay of Acre, near Caipha, where her officers experienced, I understand, great civility and attention from that hospitable old gentleman, Catafago, who has been honourably mentioned by nearly every traveller visiting Syria for the last twenty years.

Catafago's family came originally from Trieste. His father settled at Smyrna, and mercantile transactions brought the son to the coast of Syria, where he has adopted the native dress, taken unto himself as a wife a fair Syrio-Greek; has now a large and fine family, composed of a son and some very pretty daughters; and lives in hospitable affluence and ease at Caipha, from whence, during the heats of summer, he retires to his country-house at Nazareth.

Catafago for some time occupied the post of Russian consul at Acre or Caipha, and when in this official capacity, used to wear such an enormous cocked-hat, that it became customary for the Arabs to swear by the "Bournetta" of Catafago. He has, however, now donned the large white turban, with which he is a very handsome representation of a finelooking old Oriental-good-humour beaming on his jolly countenance, and good-living in his portly person.

CHAPTER XVII. PAGE 175.

THESE Cavalcades, or rather donkey-ades of the women of Cairo, are well described in a very clever and ably written work called "Lane's Egypt and Modern Egyptians." The "himar," or donkey of Alexandria or Cairo, is very different from the slow, stubborn, and pig-headed brute, which crops the thistles on our commons. Active, docile, and en