ARABIA. 27 



stones. Thither the pilgrims resort, as to Mecca, but not In such 

 numbers. 



The other principal cities of Arabia are Saana, Mocha, Jedda, or 

 Judd ih, Muscat, and Lachsa. Saana is considered as the capital of 

 Arabia Felix. It has a castle, and contains a number of mosques 

 and other elegant buildings. It is about four miles in circumference, 

 and surrounded by a brick wall with seven gates. The environs pro- 

 duce abundance of fine grapes, of above twenty different species, and 

 great quantities of dried raisins are exported from this city. 



Mocha is well built ; the houses are very lofty, and are, with the 

 walls and forts, covered with a chinam or stucco, that gives a dazzling 

 whiteness to them. The harbour is semicircular, the circuit of the 

 wall is two miles, and there are several handsome mosques in the 

 city. Juddah is the place of the greatest trade in the Red Sea; for 

 there the commerce between Arabia and Europe meets, and is inter- 

 changed, the former sending her gums, drugs, coffee, See. and from 

 Europe come cloths, iron, furs, and other articles, by the way of 

 Cairo. The revenues of these, with the profits of the port, are shared 

 by the grand seignor and the sheriff of Mecca, to whom jointly this 

 place belongs. 



Muscat is a considerable town, with an excellent harbour, and has 

 been, from early times, a staple of trade between Arabia, Persia, and 

 the Indies. It was taken by the Portuguese in 1508, and held by 

 them during a century and a half. English ships from Hindoostan 

 carry on a trade with this town. 



Lachsa is a large and well built town, situate on a rapid stream, 

 which falls into a large bay opposite to the isle of Bahrein, celebrated 

 for the pearl fishery. 



Goveknment, la ws.... Arabia is under the government of many 

 petty princes, who are styled xeriffs and imans, both of them inclu- 

 ding the offices of king and priest, in the same manner as the caliphs 

 of the Saracens, the successors of Mahommed. These monarchs 

 appear to be absolute, both in spirituals and temporals ; the succes- 

 sion is hereditary, and they have no other laws than those found in 

 the Koran, and the comments upon it. The northern Arabs owe 

 subjection to the Turks, and are governed by pashas residing among 

 them ; but receive large gratuities from the grand seignor, for pro- 

 tecting the pilgrims that pass through their country, from the 

 robberies of their countrymen. The Arabians have no standing 

 regular militia, but their emirs command both the persons and the 

 purses of their subjects, as the necessity of affairs requires. 



Religion. ...Of this the reader will find an account in the following 

 history of Mahommed their countryman. Many of the wandering 

 Arabs are still little different from Pagans ; but in general they pro- 

 fess Mahommedanism. 



Learning and language. ...Though the Arabians in former ages 

 were famous for their learning and skill in all the liberal arts, there is 

 scarcely a country at present where the people are so universally ig- 

 norant. The vulgar language used in the three Arabias is the Ara- 

 besk, or corrupt Arabian, which is likewise spoken, with some varia- 

 tion of dialect, over great part of the East, from Egypt to the court of 

 the Great Mogul. The pure old grammatical Arabic, which is said 

 to be a dialect of the Hebrew, and by the people of the East accounted 

 the richest, most energetic, and copious language in the world, is 

 taught in their schools, as Greek and Latin are amongst Europeans, 



