I 
JIDDA. 
309 
a store room, where he kept his money, swords, and other valu- 
ables. We were seated as on the first day, in the open room, which 
had a range of benches on the right and left, covered with green 
doth and cushions. I was seated in the left corner from the en- 
trance, on a cloth with a gold border, as a mark of distinction. 
The houses in Jidda are far superior to those at Mocha. They 
are built of large blocks of very fine madrapore. The doorways are 
handsomely arched, and covered with fret work ornaments carved 
in the stone, not put on in plaister: the zig zag, so prevalent in 
the Saxon arch, was the most common. The windows are nume- 
rous and large. 1 could not but be struck with the resemblance 
which exists between these arches, and those in our cathedrals ; 
some were pointed like the Gothic, including three semicircular 
windows; others, particularly those which were over the doors, 
were flat like the Saxon^ and retired one within another, till the 
inner one was sufficiently small to receive the door, which is never 
large. Jidda is a new town ; but these excellent houses are pro- 
bably formed after the model of the more ancient habitations of 
Mecca. If so, the architecture we call Gothic existed in Arabia, 
long before it was known in Europe. The streets are very narrow, 
which is an advantage in a tropical country, as they are conse- 
quently shaded during most part of the day. The palace is very 
pleasantly situated on the water's edge. The upper story, which we 
did not enter, seems to contain some excellent rooms, particularly 
one which terminates a wing running to the west. It is open by 
balconies to that point, and to the north and south. The custom- 
house faces the sea, and is a handsome, lofty building. The ground 
rises from the sea, and gives the town a much better appearance 
