7 
"2 
Travels into tbehEWAN t. 
Part L 
Book ; whereupon they have this Proverb, That what is written on a Man's 
Forehead, will certainly come to pafs ; for they fay, that all Men have their 
deltiny written upon their Forehead. This Belief makes them undauntedly 
expofe therafelves to all forts of dangers, and even to flight the Plague ; fo that 
they are not at all afraid to come to and touch an infeded Perfon, nor to put 
on their Cloaths as foon as they are dead. They have beiïdes another encou-' 
ragement to be flout, which is the zeal of their Religion ; for they are very' 
zealous, and will freely venture their lives for the defence or enlargement of 
it, believing that they die Martyrs, when they die fighting againft the Enemies 
of their Law, and fhall after death enjoy the delights which Mahomet hath 
promifed them : Moreover they blindly obey the orders of their Commanders 
and go on whither foever they are fent, never confidering whether or not they 
ihall come off again ; all thefe things together, makes them run headlong into 
the greatefl dangers of War, as chearfully as if they were going to a FeaH. 
Sultan J mur at being before Bagdad^N\ûl a numerous Army, and having Ipenc 
fome days without any advantage over his Enemies j being m.ad that any thin^- 
could refill him, and fearing that he fliould be forced fhamefully to raife the 
Siege, alFembled his whole army, and telling the Soldiers what difgrace it 
Sidm Anm- would be for them to draw off from thence without doing any thing, declared 
tfLÏSr ^^^^ '"^'■^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ return into his own 
Countrey with the fhame of having done nothing, commanded a general AlTault 
to be given the next day,and aflured thera,that all fuch as fhould return from the 
AlFault before the Town was takhn, fhould be put to death with his own hands. 
Next day the Affault was given,'^and feeing all knew that Saltan Amurat was a 
Man of Execution, every one, both Soldiers and Officers, ftrove who fhould 
firll offer their bodies to the Enemies blows ^ avaft number were killed, but 
at length they took the Town by florm. Befides the advantage of their Num- 
bers and Courage, they are likewife very well armed, and likeivife very skilful 
in handling of them ^ for in thatefpecially they exceed the Chriflians,that they 
place the chief part of their Wealth in the magnificence of their Habits, Horfes, 
Arms and Harnefs, of whatfoever quality they be ; and if a wratched Janiz^ary 
who hath four or five Afpres a day, can fcrape together fifty Crowns, he'l 
freely lay them out upon a good Musket or handfom Sword. Thefe Muskets 
are big, and of very good metal, and weigh fom.etiraes forty, fifty, nay fixty 
pound weight; nay, I have feen one that weighed fourfcore: They put in 
them a great Charge of Powder, and then ram down a fizable Bullet with the 
The way of Scowring-flick, which is all Iron ^ after that, they hold their Musket with the 
right Hand againft the right Shoulder, and with the left Hand a leathern Belt 
faftened to a ring at the middle of the Musket, and to another near the Butt, 
and with that they'l fhoot as exad as one can do with a light Fowling-piece 
and their Musket never fplit. I remember that a Jamz.ary belonging to the 
French Conful at Caire^ having on a time charged his Musket with a Bullet of 
iîze, and fhot at two Turtles upon a Tree, he fhot off the head of the one, 
and the other through the body. As for the Troopers (whatever fome 
French men, who have been in thofe Countries, may fay ) they fit a Horfe 
Vi?ell ; they have, indeed, the Stirrops very fhort, but yet they look very well, 
and fit as clofe as if they were nailed to the Horfe. One day, in tht French 
Quarter, I favv a S^ahi fo drunk, that he could not ftand ; but when he was 
on Horfe-back , he made an hundred Caracolles, without the leaft reeling. 
They are very careful alfo in looking after their Horfes , and there is no 
Trooper but hath always a meafure of Oats ready for his Horfe, and every 
thing elfe that is fit to drefs him, or to fet right what is amifs about him, and 
early in the morning he rifes and dreffes him himfelf All this being coniîdered, 
it is not to be thought flrange that they are ftrong by Land, and bring to pafs 
whatever they undertake. 
TiirkiOi Sol 
diers well 
armed. 
firing the 
Masket, 
Troopers 
careful of 
their Horfes 
CHAP. 
