428 
VOYAGE FROM INEADA, 
chap, add also the joy of having escaped the dangers 
— — 1 of an inhospitable sea ; and it may be readily 
conceived, that a combination of circumstances 
more calculated to affect the heart can seldom 
occur. All our apprehensions and prejudices, 
respecting the pestilence, the barbarism, the 
vices, and the numberless perils of Turkey, 
vanished. Unmindful of the inward deformities 
of the country, we considered only her splendid 
vesture. Suddenly, our vessel, instead of ad- 
vancing, although every sail were distended by 
the wind, remained immoveable in the midst of 
the Canal. An extraordinary and contrary 
current held us stationary. The waters of the 
Black Sea, after flowing for ages towards the 
Sea of Marmora, had suddenly taken an opposite 
course, and were returning to their native bed. 
At a loss to account for this new appearance, 
the Captain ordered his men to let go the 
smaller anchor; and a number of Turks, in 
their gondolas, crowding around the Moderate, 
informed us of the cause. A south-west wind 
had prevailed during many days, and, by its 
violence, diverted the ordinary course of the 
current. It became necessary, therefore, to 
wait until a change took place ; and an oppor- 
tunity was offered, not only of examining more 
attentively the scenery around us, but also of 
making inquiry into the natural history of a 
