MISCELLANIES. 



599 



" Gaika's dress did not differ 

 from that of the commoner 

 Caffre, except that he had a hand- 

 kerchief tied round his head, 

 'Tsambie's kaross was a hand- 

 some tiger skin, and he had 

 round his head a bandeau of about 

 an inch in breadth, made of very 

 small beads. 



" After the conference had ter- 

 minated, presents were produced 

 and given to the several chiefs ; 

 particular articles had been select- 

 ed for Gaika and his son. His 

 Excellency also presented Gaika 

 with a beautiful grey horse. 



" After the chiefs had with- 

 drawn, various articles were distri- 

 buted among the CaflPre soldiery, 

 and the whole party then retired, 

 seemingly well pleased with the 

 liberality they had experienced." 



METHOD OF RENEWING THE 

 GIOHAR, OR FLOWERY GRAIN 

 OF PERSIAN SWORDS, COM- 

 MONLY CALLED DAMASCUS 

 BLADES, 



(Bi/ Mr. S. Barker, His 



Britannic Majesty's Consul- 

 General at Aleppo.) 



(From the same.) 



Having bought two Kermani 

 Dabans, and perceiving that some 

 parts of them had a yellowish 

 tint, by which they were disfigur- 

 ed, I employed a sword-cutler to 

 renew their Giohar. 



The operation was performed 

 in my presence, before sun-rise, 

 which he said was necessary, 

 because two strong a light would 

 prevent his distinguishing whether 

 the blade were equally red hot ; 

 on the perfect equality of which 

 depended the success of the pro- 



cess, for it was that failure which 

 had caused the yellow spots above 

 mentioned. 



He prepared a wooden trough 

 the length of the blades, four or 

 five inches broad, with equal 

 depth, full of liquid composition 

 made of equal quantities of swre^e 

 or sesamum oil, mutton suet, 

 virgin wax, and Persian Nnft 

 (Naptha), or rather the dregs 

 of the latter, it being too costly 

 an article. 



He began by making a char- 

 coal fire in a small earthen vessel, 

 which after being well alight, he 

 strewed on the ground in the form 

 of a blade, and put loose stones 

 all round to keep it together. 



He then fanned it till it was 

 red hot all over, and laid the blade 

 flat on the lighted coals, having 

 first bent the handle for the con- 

 venience of holding it, by a pair 

 of pinchers. 



He then completely covered 

 the blade with fresh charcoal 

 unburnt, and continued to fan it 

 with a large Turkish feather faj. 

 as equally and as forcibly as pos- 

 sible, until the laUer charcoal had 

 become as red as the first. WheR 

 he judged (what experience 

 alone can teach) that it was now 

 sufficiently hot to be plunged into 

 the trough above described, he 

 seized the proper moment ; and^ 

 on this depends the success of the 

 operation, for if the blade remain 

 a little too long in the fire, the 

 Giohar will be entirely efiaced, 

 or if it is not hot enough, or 

 unequally so, it will have the 

 defect that we were endeavouring 

 to remove. 



When he plunged the blade 

 into the trough, it seemed to me 

 of the colour of a soldier's dirty 



coat, 



