The Pillars of Hercules 



fact, did. This accounted to us for the seemingly inexpli- 

 cable patience with which the captain waited for us, though 

 we had made a bargain to go very cheap. He had no other 

 bill of health on board, and without us could not have 

 landed. On our re-arrival aboard, as all our small change 

 had been expended on the bills of health, the old Moor, in 

 his anxiety, gave us money to pay the boatmen, and the 

 felucca was under sail in less than two minutes, tumbling 

 heavily along over the rolling seas which the late storms 

 had left behind. From the an2;le of Algeciras we steered 

 towards the Gibel Moosa (Mountain of Moses), the other 

 Pillar of Hercules, and a much larger one than Calpe, being 

 nearly 6,000 precipitous feet above the beach, — a fine 

 rugged pile of dark rock, frowning like an iEthiop giant, 

 a vast continent's worthy sentinel, with a fillet of white 

 cloud circling his swarthy brow. 



On board, beside the corn-merchant, there were two 

 other Moors, younger men, whom we took to be his sons, 

 and about thirty Jews of all ages. They seemed to be in a 

 state of exuberant hilarity on their approaching return to 

 their native country. They were now crowding round the 

 purser of the vessel, a Hebrew also, who had in his hand a 

 roll, written in the cursive Hebrew character, seeming to be 

 a list of names, with sums in dollars and reals opposite each. 

 Set on the closed hatchway, which served as his comptoir^ 

 was an open money-bag, from which he was disbursing 

 small sums to a group with greedy eyes, and hooked, 

 avaricious fingers outstretched for their share. So eager 

 and clamorous were his customers, that one of the sailors 

 had to be stationed near with a rope's-end to keep them 

 a little in order. 



It appeared, on inquiry, that they were a party of 

 beggars, brought over on speculation by the purser, to 



170 



