VOYAGE TO ALGEKIA. 



155 



csque groups. Some of the men were very fine. We 

 saw many straight, manly fellows who must have been 

 six feet four in height. They passed us with perfect 

 indifference, evincing no anger, suspicion, or curiosity, 

 hardly caring in fact to glance at us as we passed. In 

 one instance only during my stay at Oran was I spoken 

 to by an Arab. He was a tall, good-hurnoured fellow, 

 who came smiling up to me, and muttered something 

 about ' les Anglais.' The mixed population of Oran is 

 picturesque in the highest degree : the Jews, rich and 

 poor, varying in their costumes as their wealth varies ; 

 the Arabs more picturesque still, and of all shades of 

 complexion the negroes, the Spaniards, the French, 

 all grouped together, each race preserving its own indi- 

 viduality, formed a picture intensely interesting to me. 

 On Tuesday, the 20th, I was early at the bastionet. 

 The night had been very squally. The sergeant of the 

 sappers had taken charge of our key, and on Tuesday 

 morning Elliot went for it. He brought back the intelli- 

 gence that the tents had been blown down, and the 

 instruments overturned. Among these was a large and 

 valuable equatorial from the Eoyal Observatory, Green- 

 wich. It seemed hardly possible that this instrument, 

 with its wheels and verniers and delicate adjustments^ 

 could have escaped uninjured from such a fall. This, 

 however, was the case ; and during the day all the over- 

 turned instruments were restored to their places, and 

 found to be in practical working order. This and the 

 following day were devoted to incessant schooling. I 

 had come out as a general stargazer, and not with the 

 intention of devoting myself to the observation of any 

 particular phenomenon. I wished to see the whole 

 the first contact, the advance of the moon, the suc- 

 cessive swallowing up of the solar spots, the breaking 

 of the last line of crescent by the lunar mountains into 



