164 



LETTERS FROM PROFESSOR CARLYLE 



LETTER IV. 



My Lord, Bovukdere, Oct. 9. 1800. 



As I did not wish to teaze Your Lordship with an account of the 

 various delays and disappointments I have experienced in attempting 

 to gain admission to the library of the Seraglio, I put off writing till 

 I could say something specific upon the subject. I have been this 

 morning informed by the Dragoman, who has managed the affair, 

 that he has at length obtained leave for me to inspect the private 

 library of the Sultan, and that at his audience, which is to be on 

 Saturday, a time will be appointed for that purpose. The person with 

 whom the Dragoman negotiated the business was Youssouf Aga, who 

 (as perhaps Your Lordship knows), though without any ostensible 

 title or official situation, in fact at present governs the empire ; he is 

 steward and favorite of the Valida, i. e. mother of the Sultan, and he 

 possesses as complete an ascendancy over the mind of his mistress as 

 she does over that of her son. Youssouf, from the moment of his 

 being first applied to, seemed favorable to the request, saying that it 

 was not only proper to be granted on account of the friendship subsist- 

 ing between the two powers, but also (which I own I scarce expected) 

 on account of the general use it might be of to literature ; and lie im- 

 mediately promised to set on foot an enquiry respecting the existence 

 of any collection of Greek or Latin MSS. In a subsequent convers- 

 ation he assured the Dragoman " that he had made every investigation 

 in his power, and that he found that no collection whatever of Greek 

 MSS. remained at present in any part of the Seraglio." I then had 

 a request conveyed to him to be permitted to examine the reposito- 

 ries of Oriental books that were in the palace, having previously 

 ascertained the fact that such did exist. To this he has at length an- 

 swered, " that he understands that there are two of these, one in the 

 Treasury, the other in what is properly called the Library ; that the 



