86 



Notes on Zanguebar, [No. 11, new series. 



during the time of his service he had collected an immense quan- 

 tity of " shavings", the favorite Africo -Arabian slang term for em- 

 bezzlement. Captain Hassan was a man of great intellect, and 

 being a very old and experienced officer, in 1846-49 was in himself 

 a living Cyclopaedia of the history of the Eastern Coast of Africa. 

 He was very fond of receiving Europeans in his house, but such 

 were his domestic habit*, and so disgraceful was his private life, 

 that no European of respectability could visit his house without 

 incurring the reproach attaching to himself in the estimation of all 

 the Arabs of Zanguebar. I was fortunately informed of this fact 

 early on my arrival there, and to my great regret, I was obliged to 

 renounce the pleasure of consulting such a treasure of information. 

 Hassan had an immense fortune, all the produce of his plunder of 

 the Imam's property when in charge of His Highness' ships. Seyed 

 Said knew it, but never disturbed his old Commodore during his 

 life, until 1850, when Hassan being on his deathbed, the Imam 

 sent his vakeels and guards to take possession of all the fortune 

 of the old profligate. 



Having seen how the Imam gets his ships, let us see how he 

 manages his dock-yards at Zanguebar and Muscat. The fleet of 

 the Imam is composed of a dozen ships all above five-hundred tons 

 measurement, three of which are of the size of frigates of 60, 40, 

 and 36 guns— the Caroline* is pierced for 24 guns, the remaining 

 vessels of the fleet are pierced from 20 to 16 guns each, though 

 few of them could ever carry one. There are besides five 

 or six light brigs and schooners, scarcely more formidable than 

 the native dows and certainly very inferior in sailing quali- 

 ties to the generality of the dows and other craft of the Arabs 

 of Muscat and the Persian Gulf. Since 1849 four large ships 



* The Caroline was built in 1 820, and named Caroline in compliment 

 to King George the 4th ! ! The ship was despatched to England on her 

 first voyage with a present of horses and arms for the King, and jewels 

 and precious stones for the Queen. The ship arrived in England just 

 when Lords Brougham and Denman were rising to celebrity by their 

 generous and talented defence of Queen Caroline. It may easily be 

 imagined how George the 4th appreciated the delicacy of the Imam's 

 compliment to his Queen. 



