262 
A CRUSADE IN THE EAST. 
them in my life.” Now, I gave Ibrahim credit for sincerity 
in a good many things ; for instance, being in earnest when 
he smoked the narguilla, hating the Mohammedans with a 
bitter hatred, loving the Armenians with a Jewish love, and 
in believing that there was not a more honest man than him¬ 
self in the city of Damascus ; but it must be admitted, that I 
had room for doubt on the point above stated. Strange sto¬ 
ries are told about some of the English nobility who have vis¬ 
ited Damascus of late ; and nobody knows more about them 
than our old friend, “ except,” as our maitre cThotel was in 
the habit of saying on all occasions, “Mi-lord Bath.” Here 
is the last, translated from the original Arabic : 
There was once in the East an elegant beast, and Beck- 
ford was his name; a harem he took, and then wrote a book, 
which won him some little fame; Corruption was tired, till 
an earl it inspired to follow in his path ; when soon to shame 
it put his name, then washed it in a Bath.—Moral: Because a 
nobleman is in Damascus, he needn’t be a Damascus Blade. 
The following lines, from a book published in India, enti¬ 
tled, the “ Shurboo Muit Amil,” may be taken as another 
specimen of Oriental wit. The translation is from the mod¬ 
ern Arabic: 
ON A LITTLE MAN NAMED DAVID, WITH A VERY LONG BEARD. 
How can thy chin that burden bear ? 
Is it all gravity to shock? 
Is it to make the people stare, 
And be thyself a laughing-stock ? 
When I behold thy little feet, 
After thy beard obsequious run, 
I always fancy that I meet 
Some father followed by his son. 
A man like thee scarce e’er appeared; 
A beard like thine, where shall we find it 1 
Surely, thou cherishest thy beard, 
In hopes to hide thyself behind it. 
