330 
girl about eighteen or twenty years of age, handsome 
as an angel, but the use of the pipe rendered her hide- 
ous in my eyes. 
Horns is a considerable town. It is said to contain 
from 25 to 30,000 Mussulmen, and 300 Christians, but 
no Jews. There are a great number of mosques, with 
high detached minarets, according to the Turkish cus- 
tom; two Schismatic Greek churches, and one Syrian 
church; also bazars, or markets, well supplied and filled 
with people; large coffee-houses not less frequented; an 
alcaisseria or market for silk stuffs; one large and several 
small khans. The streets are well paved, but the houses, 
though built of stone, present a dull appearance on ac- 
count of their black colour, for the material is uniformly 
basaltes or trapp. In short, all the various characteristics 
may be observed at Horns which serve to distinguish a 
great city. 
The inhabitants seem to carry on a very active com- 
merce. They have very large harvests of different 
grains; but they, obtain their oil from the coast, and 
their rice from Egypt. The provisions and water are 
good; but the bread is made in cakes as in Arabia. The 
water that is drunk comes from a fountain; that of the 
wells is not drinkable. 
The river Wad-el- Aassi, which is the ancient and 
celebrated Orontes, flows at about half a league to the 
west of the city, and supplies a number of canals which 
serve to water the gardens. 
The governor, the kadi, and all the officers of govern- 
ment are native Arabs, to the exclusion of the Turks. 
This city is dependent upon the Pacha of Damascus, 
who nominates the Scheik el Beled, or governor of 
Horns, from among the natives of the city or territory, 
conformably to the constitution of the country. 
