CHAP. IV. 
MORZOUK. 
167 
observe where I lay. Mr. Ritchie moved very gently, so as to reach 
his pistol, when the intruder disappeared, and he instantly called 
out to me. He stated, that he saw as low down as the man's waist, 
that his body appeared naked, and that he had a white cap on his 
head. 
The buildings here being covered with a mixture of sand and 
clay which easily receives the impression of feet, I endeavoured to 
trace on the top of ours the tracks of ovir visitor, and succeeded in 
finding one long print of a foot, exactly in the direction in which 
Mr. Ritchie had first observed this man. The impression did not 
resemble the shape of any of our feet ; but was longer, and entirely 
flat, like those of most Negroes. Little doubt, therefore, could 
remain that a stranger had been there, evidently with no good 
intentions. 
The next morning we waited on Mukni, informing him of what 
had occurred, when he affected to think Mr. Ritchie must have 
been delirious, and lavighed very much at our alarm. Old Hadje 
Mahmoud was firmly persuaded it was Iblis, who had haunted our 
house ever since a man was murdered in it. The foot-mark, how- 
ever, staggered him a good deal, and he offered to bring a IMaraboot, 
who would by smelling it, and reciting a few prayers, tell us who 
had imprinted it. The more rational people agreed in our opinion, 
that it was a spy, but tliis was only ventured in private ; in public 
they pretended to treat the matter as lightly as the Sultan did. 
The preparations we had made, and our being observed to start 
up ready armed, perhaps secured us from any farther visits of the 
kind, and we took especial care to announce openly, that we would 
shoot the first person we saw even looking into our back yard. 
We never could positively ascertain why such a mysterious visit 
was made to us, but we strongly suspected Mukni to be the sole 
