EGYPT, AND SYRIA. 193 
lodging, could be of no ufe to me till I had feen the Sultan ; 
for till then no perfon knew in what charad;er to receive me. 
The object of this man therefore was to prevent my introduc- 
tion to the Sultan, and to preclude me from any opportunity of 
reprefenting my cafe. We were no fooner arrived at Sweini, 
than he found means to employ one of his affociates, who had 
been fome years eftablifhed in the place, to go to the monarch, 
and infufe into his mind fufpicions of me as a Frank and an 
infidel, who came to his country for no good purpofe, and whofe 
defigns it behoved him to guard againft ; and to fuggeft to him 
that it would not be proper I fhould remain at large, nor yet 
immediately come to his prefence, but that fome perfon fhould 
be commiffioned to watch over and report my actions, and 
thus fruftrate my fuppofed evil intentions. He added, as I af- 
terwards found, many anecdotes, falfified or exaggerated, of the 
inquiries I had made, the way I had been employed, and my 
general behaviour on the road. 
Nor was the villain himfelf idle during the time his coadju- 
tor was thus laudably engaged. I have already mentioned 
that there were no doors to the apartments of the houfe we were 
in. He took advantage of this circumftance and my momentary 
abfence, to take out of a box which had been broken on the 
road a quantity of red coral, the moft valuable article in my 
package. As the box remained locked, it was not till long after 
that I difcovered this lofs. By the help of this commodity 
he expeded to make his way with the great. At the end of 
a few days this agent returned, bearing a fpecious letter im- 
preiTed with the Sultan's feal, ordering that no officer on the 
c c road 
