20 
TRAVELS IN NORTHERN AFRICA. 
CHAP. I. 
lated by the comparative wealth or poverty of the donors ; but those 
persons are considered as most meritorious who incur the greatest 
expense in honour of their deceased relative. There are women 
whose sole employment it is to attend the house of mourning, 
where they howl, lament, and tear their hair and faces in a bar- 
barous manner. Their cries continue with very little intermission 
during three days, and the additional din occasioned by their 
repeatedly beating wooden boxes or pots is truly horrible. The - 
customs and ceremonies used on these occasions, with many other 
interesting subjects relating to Tripoli, are so faithfully and 
pleasingly described in Tully's narrative*, that they render any 
further observations on my part unnecessary. 
Mr. Ritchie, finding that Mukni still delayed his departure, and 
that some weeks might yet elapse before he commenced his journey, 
determined on employing the intermediate time in visiting Eenio- 
leed and the Gharian mountains. For this purpose he procured a 
Chowse, a person employed by the Bashaw to collect the revenues, 
and hired two camels to carry our provisions and baggage. 
At this time M. Dupont thought fit to resign the office which 
he had pledged himself to fulfil, and abruptly left Mr. Ritchie, 
influenced, as we had reason to think, by the advice and suggestions 
of some of his supposed friends. Not wishing to revive a subject 
so little creditable to tliose who influenced the conduct of M. 
Dupont, I shall only observe, that the petty intrigues which were 
carried on in order to detract from the merits of the mission, and 
eventually to obstruct its progress, were most disgraceful. 
* Narrative of a ten Years' Residence in Tripoli, 
