Chap, L 
to the L E V An t. 
ride without any Inconvienency. The Manner In which 
their Houfes are furnifhed is fuited to their Garb, and 
every Parc of that is well contrived for the great Ufe 
they make of Bathing. The only Thing in the Turkijh 
Drcfs, that feems to deferve Reprehenfion, is their Tur- 
bants, and it is obfervable, that this is the only Part of 
it that is fubje<5t to Fancy or Change j for as to the reft, 
there has been little or no Difference introduced in the 
Courfe of manv Years. 
The modeft and temperate Way of Living, in Ufe 
amongft the ’Turks, is very commendable, and the more 
fo, becaufe it is not carried to any Degree of Severity or 
Extravagance. They abftain from all Animals that 
die of Difeafes, that are choaked, ftrangled, or knock- 
ed on the Head, or that break their Necks j but in 
Cafes of great Neceffity, they allow that even thefe may 
be eat j but from Blood and Swines Flefh they moft re- 
ligioufly abftain. They hive not many Difhes, nor any 
great Variety of DrelTing, but thofe they have are fa- 
voury, cheap, provided with little Trouble, and their 
Meals are foon over. All this is alfo very agreeable to 
their Climate and Way of Life, but at certain cimes^ 
when they have a Mind to indulge, they have their Ni- 
ceties, efpecially in Paftry and excellent Liquors, which 
they ftile Sherbets, compofed of a Variety of Ingredi- 
ents, and always cool and pleafant. But after all, theif 
great Dainty is Water, and fome, from a Prin- 
ciple of Charity, carry it in Stone Veffels through the 
Streets of Conjtantinople^ and offer it with great Civility 
to fuch as defire to drink; whence we difcern the Propriety 
of that Eastern Expreffion, which occurs in our facred 
Writings, of giving a Cup of cold Water; which, from 
the Difference of our Manners, does not appear to be any 
great Matter here. 
As for the Pradlice of Drinking, the common Peo- 
ple in thofe Countries have it not ; fo that if you offer 
Workmen any Thing for that Purpofe, they anfwer 
very naturally, that they are not dry ; but ftill you may 
oblige them, if you are difpofed, by calling the Coffee- 
Man, who Hands at the Corner of every Street with his 
Utenfils, and all working People will be very grateful 
for a Difh of Coffee. But that we may not deal alto- 
gether in Generals, we will take this Opportunity of 
Ipeaking particularly to three Heads, with refpedt to 
which we find very little in our printed Books that is 
exaft and worthy of Credit. Thefe three Heads fhall 
be Coffee, Opium and Wine. 
As to Coffee, which the Turks call Caphuah, it was 
firft ufed in the Country where it grows, in the King- 
dom of Temen in Arabia-Felix, which from its producing 
Coffee, our famous Mr. Ray delivers it as his Opinion, 
that it may be ftiled not only Felix, but Felkiffma, that 
is not barely the happy, but the moft happy. A 
Multitude of Writers have defcribed Coffee, and fome 
have pretended long ago to give us diftindt Accounts of 
their own Knowledge and Experience, and yet it is but a 
very little while that we have known any Thing of it 
with Certainty, fo as to be difabufed in Reference to thofe 
Fables that have gone current for many Years, thoup-h 
without having Foundation or even Colour of Truth. 
The Tree then that produces Coffee is in Reality a kind 
of Jeffamine, which bears firft a very beautiful and odo- 
riferous white Flower, inclining to yellov/, which is com- 
pofed of five Leaves refembling the Spamp Jeffamine. 
As jhefe Flowers drop off, the Fruit begins to appear, 
v/hich is at firft green, then of a pale red, turns next to a 
bright Crimfon, by Degrees of a very deep red, and at 
laft inclines to a dufky Brown. In Size and Shape k re- 
femhles a honey Cherry, but inftead of a Stone, there 
lies within the Pulp two of thofe that we call very 
improperly Coffee-Beans, with their flat Sides joined to 
each ocher, and their Convex Sides outward ; as there 
are Flowers, green Fruit, and ripe, all upon the 
fame Tree at once, there are feveral Coffee Harvefts, 
but the moft confiderable is that in May, when by laying 
Cloths under the Trees, and fhaking them, the ripe 
fruit drops off in great Quantities, out of which the 
Beans are taken, and very carefully dried, firft in the 
Sun, and then in the Shade, and upon their curing in 
this Rdpeft, their Goodnefs chiefly depends. 
V©L. II. 125. 
It is faid, that the Virtues of Coffee vVere firft difcd- 
vered by the Frifldng of Goats that fed upon it, and 
their living almoft wholly without Sleep, v/hich put a 
Prior of a Convent upon trying what Effebl they v/ould 
have upon a much groffer Animal, a fat, fleepy, lazy 
Monk, upon whom having wrought a wonderful Cure^ 
Coffee came into general Ufe. I cannot vouch for the 
Truth of this Story fo well as for what follows. It 
paffed from Arabia into Egypt, where it began to be 
much taken Notice of, the Turkijh Doffors doubting 
whether the Ufe of it was not forbid by their Law, be- 
caufe they held_ its Properties to be the fame with thofe 
of Wine. This Point was cleared up by a Mufti, who 
was a great Friend to that Liquor, and wrote a Trea- 
tife in Defence of it, A.D.i^^^o. The 
Name of this learned Mufti was Abda leader Ben 
Mohammed, and his Sirname Al Anfari, and the Title 
of his Work, Omdat al Safudt fi hallal Cahuat : We have 
been the more particular in mentioning this Book, be- 
caufe there is a Copy of it in the French King’s Li- 
brary amongft the Arabick Manufcripts, N*" 944 , and 
there are in it fome very curious Obfervations. 
It is faid that there are in Grand Cairo, no lefs than 
two thoufand Coffee-houfes ; there are a vaft Number at 
Conftantinople, and in all the Cities in the Turkifh Do- 
minions ; but fometimes on Account of the diftrabled 
State of their Affairs, thefe Coffee-houfes are fhut up ; but 
in Times of Peace they are much frequented, more ef- 
pecially in the Mornings and Evenings, when fuch as 
are moft at Leifure, and are in tolerable Circumftances, 
pafs an Hour or two there in Converfation, in hearino- 
the Mufick which the Mafters of fuch Places provid^ 
or Books of Tales read, for which they have People on 
Purpofe, who from a kind of Pulpit divert the Audi- 
dience with Colleftions of Stories of all kinds, good, 
bad or indifferent. I will for the Reader’s Amufe^ment 
quote one, which is not much amifs. 
“ When the Tartar Slaves are crofting a River, and 
“ find themfelves in Danger of being drowned,* they 
“ catch hold of the Horfe’s Tail that paffes before them,- 
and by this Means frequently efcape. From hence 
comes the Proverb, Lay hold of the Tail if you can, 
and be ftire keep it faff. There was an honeft MuffuU 
man once, that by applying it luckily efcaped beino- 
empaled, and the Cafe was thus ; he had fpent many 
Years in Study, had moft Part of the Alcoran by 
Heart, was acquainted with many Sciences, but by 
attending to them, had flipt a very material Science, 
that of knowing how to live ; fo that when he orew 
in Years, though his Mind was well fed, his Body 
was in Danger of Want. He addreffed himfelf 
to the Sultan Mahomet the IVth. on whofe Memory 
be Peace ! Befeeching him to fave a Son of Science 
from ftarving. The Sultan having confidered his 
Cafe, gave him no other Anfwer than this ; Friend, 
with aU your ^ Learning dordt you know, that thl 
World is a Tail, and happy is he that gets hold on 
it. The Muffulman went Home in Defpair, where 
three Days in deep Meditation, he thus 
addreffed himfelf to his Ruffian Slave, from whom 
he had learnt that Tongue ; Infidel, fays he, let us 
change Cloaths, carry me to the Market, and fell 
me to fuch a one. His Orders were obeyed ; he 
worked for fix or eight Months in the Fields with 
the other Slaves, and appeared fo very ftupid, that 
he was the Jeft of ajl his Companions. At the End 
of that Time he began to preach, affirm’d that he had 
Vifions, and that the Prophet, whofe Name be blef- 
fed, had taught him the Alcoran, of which he repeat- 
ed many Chapters. This made a very great Noife 
he was vifited by every Body, and Nobody went 
empty handed ; at laft, the Grand Signor heard of 
k, and fent for him. As foon as he came into his 
Prefence, the Sultan recolleaed him. Friend, ffid he 
have I not feen you before? For God’s sice crTd 
fo, do not betray me you know the Wgrid iE 
iail, and I have but juft got hold of it The Iffue 
of the Matter was, that the Man got a 'living by his 
Wit, ^and the World has got a good Story. ^My 
Friends you 11 be never the worfe for hearing it, and 
9 Y believe 
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