" BIEDS OF PEEY." 7 



upon a very small donkey, his knees nearly np to his nose ; 

 then there trots the ragged little donkey-boy, a true 

 Aladdin, perfectly at his ease without saddle or bridle ; then 

 the stately Ali Baba, in flowing robes, red slippers, and 

 turban, jogs quietly along, followed by a small boy bearing 

 his pipe in one hand and a stick to keep his donkey up to 

 its pace in the other. Away we trot through the European 

 quarters ; en route a fresh-blown Briton from the west 

 attracts our attention at the door of the Hotel d'Orient, sur- 

 rounded by a group of dragomans and town-guides, who 

 are giving him such information as each imagines he may 

 require, to impress him with a sense of their individual 

 usefulness, while, from a respectful distance, a small Arab 

 shoe-black keenly watches his soiled boots, ready to pounce 

 down as soon as the larger birds of prey have done with 

 him. Thus the European in the East is daily passed on from 

 the " Harpies " of dragomans to the local guides, or " Vul- 

 tm-es, and from them by the donkey-boys, or minor " birds of 

 prey," to the little unclothed urchins, the " Jackdaws " of the 

 place, who, hoping against hope, cry for " backsheesh " until 

 their unmeaning clamour is lost in the distance. On we 

 go by the bright shops and the cafes, differing in no respect 

 from European ones, save that those who sit at the tables, 

 chiefly Greeks and Italians, wear the red fez. Turning out 

 of the square, we pass the British Consulate on our way to 

 the llamleh station, close to which stands a much-worn 

 obelisk. This is Cleopatra's Needle ; and the companion to 

 it lies on the ground half covered with rubbish. These two 

 obelisks are the sole remains of the ancient grandeur of the 

 Csesareum to be seen at the present day. From this spot 

 the view is pretty, over the bright blue sparkling Mediter- 



i 



