32 
pass my house in groups at one and two o'clock after 
midnight, shrieking out their horrible exclamations. 
As they have not the art of printing, it is difficult to 
read their writing, on account of the arbitrary form of 
the letters they make, and from the want of vowels and 
punctuation: hence the people are plunged into the gross- 
est ignorance. I met in this country only one person 
who had heard any thing about the movement of the 
earth. Their conjectures upon the planets, the stars, 
and motion of the firmament, are exceedingly extrava- 
gant. They have not the slightest idea of physic. One 
of those who call themselves learned, seeing in my hand 
one day an artificial horizon filled with mercury to make 
an astronomical observation, gave me to understand, 
with a great deal of importance, that it was an excellent 
thing to kill vermin and insects with. He showed me 
how to apply it to the folds and seems of their clothes. 
This was the most beneficial use to which he could em- 
ploy mercury. 
The Moors confound astronomy with astrology, and 
have a number of astrologers. They have no know- 
ledge of chemistry ; but they have some pretended adepts 
in alchymy. They are entirely ignorant of medicine. 
As to arithmetic and geometry, their ideas are very con- 
fined. They have scarcely any poets, and still fewer 
historians. They know nothing of their own history; 
and of the fine arts they have not the least conception. 
Their only books consist of the Koran and its exposi- 
tions. This sketch is unfortunately too faithful; and 
these climates may with propriety be called barbarian. 
Among the Mussulmen to be a saint is a condition of 
life, or rather a trade; and it is taken up and quitted ar- 
bitrarily. Sometimes it is obtained by inheritance. Sidi 
Mohamed el Hadji was a saint greatly respected at Tan- 
