OF THE OLD WOELD. 369 



smoke your chibouk, surrounded with dark-eyed 

 beauties, whose voices are more melodious than the 

 cries of jackals, whose kisses are more desirable 

 than the bites of wolves, and whose embraces are 

 preferable to the hugs of bears. Heigh Allah ! 

 when shall I see the blessed place again ? " 



" Shabash ! (Bravo !) Bey Elfendi ! " I exclaimed ; 

 " you are too greedy, and it is fortunate that every 

 one is not of your opinion, or some would come 

 poorly off; for where are all the women to come 

 from, if every man required a troop ? I am more 

 moderate, being content with one at a time ; be- 

 sides which, I do not like having a continual ' kara- 

 balik' (disturbance) in the house, which is always 

 the case when women get together ; for I am of the 

 same opinion as the sage, who says that it is an 

 easier task to rule a thousand men than to control 

 two women ; and to prove that my theory is cor- 

 rect, I will relate to you the sad fate of a man you 

 all knew, who owed all his misfortunes to taking 

 one woman too many in his establishment. 



" Sulleiman Pacha, late commandant of the first 

 brigade that landed in the Crimea, was formerly a 

 collector of customs in the Pachalik of Widdin, and 

 subsequently held some lucrative civil appointment 

 at Stamboul. Tax-gathering, for a number of 

 years, had made Sulleiman Aga a rich man ; and 

 through the interest of Mehemet AH Pacha, backed 

 up with a large packet of ' kaima,' (paper-money.) 

 the Aga was made a Lever Pacha, (General of 



2 A 



