CHAP. VII. 
GENERAL ACCOUNT OF FEZZAN. 
285 
rest of the town's-people, having the same complement of wives and 
concubines, and dressing in the same manner. It was the custom 
with former Sultans to grant them a handsome allowance ; but this 
is not observed by the present ruler, and should they not be for- 
tunate enough to possess any garden of their own, they subsist on 
charity. They are not connected with, or have any thing to do 
with the state, neither have they any influence over each other, or 
the people, unless they are outwardly or really religious ; in which 
case, their prayers, either verbal or written, are much sought after 
and well paid for. Intellectual knowledge is here at a stand, or 
rather I should say, on the decline, as none of the Mohammedans, 
in this part of the w^orld, have books on any but religious or super- 
stitious subjects. Their prejudices and fanaticism prevent the 
introduction of any new customs, and put a stop to all chance of 
improvement. 
There are persons called Fighi (from " faquire," a poor man), 
who subsist by writing letters, and are employed to read those 
received by the principal inhabitants, who pay them in corn. All 
the Sultan's papers and letters pass through the hands of his 
scribes, who, in consequence (though his purchased slaves), are 
men of importance, and they accordingly give themselves great 
airs, knowing that their master, being unable to read, cannot 
do without their services. Few men can read from any book 
but their own, which they have used from infancy. Old Hadje 
Mahmoud, our neighbour, had gone through the same volume 
every mprning for forty years, and yet was unable to repeat one 
page of it by heart. There were certain passages of it, which, on 
reading, regularly caused him to exclaim, " God bless me ! won- 
derful ! extraordinary! God is great!" as if he had never seen or 
heard of the contents before. Many of the Figliis, however, have 
