798 Theveno 
cut off clear to the Belly, that there may be no Danger 
from them. 
The Grand Signior’s Daughters, Sifters and Aunts, 
have their Lodgings alfo in the fame Seraglio, and being 
royally ferv’d, and fumptuoufly apparell’d, live by 
themfelves in continual PJeafures, until fuch Time as, 
at their Requeft, the Sultan fliall be pleafed to give them 
in Marriage, and then they come forth, and carry each 
of them a Chefl: along with them, which the Grand 
Signior gives them full of rich Apparel, Jewels, and 
Money, to the Value of about thirty thoufand Pounds 
Sterling, befides what they hoarded for themfelves be- 
fore, which amounts fometimes to a great deal j 
and if the Grand Signior be difpofed to deal 
generoufly with them, they are fuffered to carry 
with them twenty Women Slaves, and as many Eu- 
nuchs, and he continues their Allowance of a thoufand 
or fifteen hundred Afpers a Day, which they had in 
the Seraglio, and furniftacs their Houfes ; and if the 
Hufband of fuch a Lady has not an Houfe fit for 
her, the Sultan gives her one of his own. 
As for the Hufband, he is to make her a Bill of Dowry 
of at leaft 100,000 Checquins in Money, befides, Vefts, 
Jewels, and other Ornaments, which amount to a great 
Sum. Being married, they converfe with Men no 
more than they did before, except their Hufbands, but 
only with Women, vifiting their old Acquaintance in 
the Seraglio, but not without the Grand Signior’s Leave. 
The Sidtana^s thus married, are for the mofl: part their 
Hufbands Miftreffes, infulting over them, and com- 
manding them as they pleafe, wearing an Hanjar, or 
Dagger, in Token of their Power over them, and fome- 
time they will put them away and take others, and fuch 
a Divorce commonly proves the Death of the Hufband, 
whom the Grand Seignior leaves to their Will. 
The other Women either grow old in the Seraglio, 
and fo are made Miftreffes of the young ones, or" are 
fent into the old Seraglio, which they account their beft 
Fortune, becaufe from thence they may be married, 
with the Confent of the Miftrefs, and carry away the 
Riches they have got, which is very confiderable, partly 
by faving out of the Sultan’s Allowance, and by the 
Prefents made them upon their Bairam, and by the Ea- 
Jha^s, Wives. Hither alfo, after the Sultan’s Death, are 
all the Sultana’s fent, except the Sultana Queen, and if 
they are wealthy, they marry to Men of reafonable 
Quality, yet with the good Will of the Miftrefs, and 
Confent of the Grand Signior. The Women of the 
Seraglio are punifhed for their Faults very feverely, and 
are foundly beat by their Overfeers, and if they prove 
difobedienc and incorrigible, they are by the Sultan’s 
Order fent into the old Seraglio, and the beft Part of 
what they have, taken from them ; but if they are 
found guilty of Witchcraft, Whoredom, or any fuch 
notorious Crime, they are bound Hand and Foot, 
and being put into a Sack, are in the Night caft into 
the Sea. 
14. The Seraglio may be properly termed the Semi- 
nary or Nurfery of the beft Subjedts, for in it all have 
their Education, who afterwards become the principal 
Officers or fubordinate Rulers of the State and Affairs 
of the Empire, and thefe are they which are called the 
Agliam-Oglcms, i.e. unexpert aaid untutor’d Youths. 
There are ordinarily about 6 or 700 of them, from 
twelve to twenty five or thirty Years of Age at moft, 
being all Ghnftian Children, gather’d up every three 
Years in the Morea and throughout all the Parts of Al- 
hania. They are taken from fuch Families as are fup- 
pofed to be of the beft Spirit and moft warlike Difpo- 
fition, and as foon as they are brought into the Seraglio, 
they are circumciled and made Turks, They are at firft 
put to very bafe and flavifli Employments, fuch as to 
ferve in the Stables, Kitchens and Gardens, Digo-ino- 
and Cleaving Wood, and are made to row in Sakks o? 
Barges, and to lead the Greyhounds to Courfing, or 
whatever elL they are commanded to do by the Oda- 
Baba s, or Captains. They are allow’d from tVv'o to 
five Alpers a Day, but afterwards flich as have a Defire 
to learn are taught to read and write, and generally 
all of them are taught to wreftle, leap, run, throw the 
r’s Travels Book III. 
Iron-Bar, fhoot the Bow, difeharge a Piece, and all other 
Exercifes becoming a Turkijh Soldier. 
The Grand Seignior makes ufe of them, when he 
intends a Journey to any Place for pitching his Tents, 
removing or carrying his Chefts, and fuch like Services] 
tor which Employment he never takes with him lefs 
than three or four hundred of them. The Bojiangee- 
Bajha always takes with him a good Number of them, 
when by the Sultan’s Order he puts fome great Man to 
Death, which is commonly done by the Hands of thefe 
Agliam-Oglans. They are capable of being made Stew- 
ards to the Bojiangee-Bafha, and may rife to that great 
Office, which is an eminent Place, for he hath the Keep- 
ing of all the Grand Signior’s Gardens, and Houfes, 
fteers the Sultan’s Saick, and wears a Turbant in the 
Seraglio, and if he be in Favour, he is preferred to 
higher Dignities, viz, to be Captain- Ba/ha, Bajha of 
Cairo, Damdfeus, Aleppo, Szc, and fometimes he cornea 
to be Vizier-Azem^ or Prime-Minifter. 
There are other Youths educated in the Seraglio, cal- 
led Itcboglans, but in a far better Manner than the for- 
mer. They are brought up in Learning, in the Know- 
ledge of the Law and Military Exercifes for the Sul- 
tan’s and their Country’s Service, and to underftand 
thofe Things which belong to the Government of the 
whole Empire. By the ancient Inftitution they fhould 
be always made of Chriftian Renegade’s and Captives 
of the nobleft that can be found ; but the Capee-Aga, or 
chief Chamberlain, brings in fome natural born Turks ^ 
of the beft Afpefls, and who promife well, but with 
the Sultan’s Confent. The Number of them is uncer- 
tain, but it is laid, they are commonly about one hun- 
dred. As foon as they come into the Seraglio, they are 
exceedingly well inftruded, and daily taught, as well 
polite Behaviour, as the Rites and Ceremonies of the 
Mahometan Law, and whatfoever may tend to the Im- 
provement of their Minds, and for this Purpofe there 
are four 0^^^’s, or Schools, being fo many Degrees, 
every one higher than the other. 
In the firft, called the Choukou-Oda, they all come 
when they are but Children, and there learn Silence, 
the Poftures of holding down their Heads and looking 
downwards, with their Hands before them join’d acrols, 
which are expreffive of fingular Reverence,’ and are ufed 
by fuch as are before the Sultan. Then they learn to 
write and read the Turkijh Tongue, and are taught their 
Prayers by Heart in the Arabian Tongue, and that they 
may learn thefe Things well, are encouraged to Admi- 
ration. In this School they ftay about five or fix Years, 
and fuch as are dull ftay much longer. 
In the fecond School, called ^ilar Oda, they are 
taught by more learned and Efficient Tutors the Per- 
fian, Arabian and Tartarian Tongues, and to that End 
the Profeffors take great Pains in reading divers Authors 
in thofe Languages. Here they begin to wreftle, fhoot 
the Bow, throw the Iron Mace, tofs the Pike, run and 
handle their Weapons, lAc. and in thefe Exercifes in 
feveral Orders and Places they fpend certain Hours daily, 
and are feverely punilhed if they are found negligent in 
the leaft. 
In this Oda they alfo fpend four or five Years, and 
being become ftrong Men fit for any Thing, they are 
removed to the third, where forgetting Nothing they 
have already learn’d, they are taught further to ride, and 
how to behave themfelves in the Wars. Befides all this, 
every one of them learns a Trade neceffary for the Ser- 
vice of the Sultan’s Perfon, as to fhave, make a Tur- 
banr, fold up Apparel handfomely, pare Nails, attend 
at the Bath, keep Hawks, to be Sewers, Querries of 
the Stables, Target- Bearers, wait at Table, Cfc. While 
they are in thefe three Schools they are but meanly ap- 
pareli’d, having yearly only two Cloth-Vefts, fomewhat 
fine, but their Linen is coarfe. In this Oda their Pu- 
nifhments are fevere, for their Mafters will give them 
an hundred Blows for great Faults upon the Soles of ' 
their Feet or Buttocks, infomuch that they are often- 
times left for dead. In this School none is fuffered to * 
be familiar with any but their Companions, fo that none 
may fpeak with them, but by Leave from the Capee» 
Aga, and that in the Prefence of an Eunuch. When 
they 
