48 
of it for my prayers. Carry it away." My servants 
took it up very briskly, and carried it to the Imam, who 
was very glad of the present. The rest of the people 
applauded this action; but the black Governor and his 
officers remained petrified. I presented some alms to 
the mosque and the poor, and, accompanied bv several 
persons, returned home, when I went to bed, being 
tormented by a strong fever. 
Notwithstanding my feeble state of health, I made 
some astronomical observations, which gave me the 
longitude by lunary distances of 36° 32' 37" E. from 
the observatory of Paris. The latitude, according to the 
sun's course, was 21° 33' 14" N., and the magnetical 
declination 10° 4' 53" W. 
Djedda is a pretty town. Its streets are regular. The 
houses are fine, built of stone, and are two and three 
stories high, but are not very solid. They all have a 
great number of windows, and flat roofs. 
There are five mosques, which are all poor and ugly. 
The town is surrounded with a good wall, which 
has irregular towers. At ten paces distance from the 
outside of the wall there is a ditch, which is entirely 
useless, as it is not flanked by any work. It is filled 
with dirt at the city gate, to serve as a passage instead 
of a draw-bridge; and although of a late construction, 
will not last very long, its sides being cut perpendicu- 
larly, without any lining. It is about ten feet broad and 
twelve deep. 
The public markets are well supplied, but the prices 
are high. A fowl costs a Spanish piastre. The vegeta- 
bles are brought froin^a distance; for there are no gar- 
dens at Djedda, on account of there not being any 
river or spring. 
The inhabitants drink rain water, which is excellent, 
♦ * 
