CONSTANTINOPLE. no 
reign, who folicits his friendflup. On onefide the throne 
is a niche in which upon blocks are placed the turbans 
he does not wear, which have plumes formed of fome of 
the molt valuable diamonds that are known. According 
to former etiquette, it was thought necelfary that the 
fultan fhould receive foreign minifters with, contempt 
and rudenefs; but the prefent monarch, Selim III. con- 
fiders condefcenfion and politenefs much more fuitable 
to his own dignity and his relative lituation with the’ 
other powers of Europe. 
The inhabitants of the feraglio exceed fix thoufand, of 
which about five hundred coniift of thofe feledl and beau¬ 
tiful females who form the harem. When the fultan 
comes to the throne the grandees prefent him with vir¬ 
gin flaves, who, they hope, may become their patronelfes. 
From thefe principally, feven are then chofen, who are 
fiyled Kadinns. The firft of them who gives an heir to the 
empire becomes the favourite, and has the tide of Haf- 
feky-Sultan. There are many others in the harem, but 
they feldom are fuffercd to infringe the exclufive privi¬ 
lege of producing heirs to the empire, which the kidinns 
claim ; for with the others the mod infamous means of 
prevention are forcibly adopted. If the child of the 
firft hafleky fultan fhould die, her precedence is loft. 
The old ftory of the ladies '(landing in a row, and the 
fultan’s throwing his handkerchief to his choice, is not 
true.- His preference is always officially communicated 
by the kifiar-agha. 
So dependent is opinion upon education and the early 
habits of life, that the ftate of female fociety in the fe¬ 
raglio is to themfelves that of the mod perfedt happinefs. 
It was ordained by Mohammed that women fhould not 
be treated as intelledlual beings, left they fhould afpire 
to equality with men. This fyftem he found already 
prevalent in the eaft, and received by his converts, and 
therefore cannot be charged with having curtailed their 
liberty and facial intercourfe. Throughout Turkey, in. 
every rank of life, the women are literally children of a 
larger growth, as trifling in their amufements, as un¬ 
bounded in their defires, and as abfolutely at the difpofal 
of others, being confidercd by the men merely as created 
for the purpofes of nature, or fexual luxury. None of 
our miftakes concerning the opinions of the Turks is 
more unjtift than that which refpebts the notion attri¬ 
buted to them, that women have no fouls; on the other 
hand, they are promifed in the Koran to be reftored with 
all the charms of eternal youth and unblemifhed virgi¬ 
nity, and what, in many inftances, may heighten the idea 
of perfedt paradife to themfelves, not again to be united 
With their former earthly hu(bands, but to be allotted to 
other true mufiulmans by the benevolence of the prophet. 
^ The females of the feraglio are chiefly Georgian and 
Circadian Haves, feledted from all that are either pri¬ 
vately bought, or exposed to fale in the Avret-bazar, and, 
for many reafons, are admitted at an early age. We may 
readily conclude that anaffemblage ot native beauty foex- 
quifite, does not exift in any other place. The Avret-ba¬ 
zar, or woman-market, confifts of an inclofed court, with 
a cloifter and fmall apartments furrounding it. It is fup- 
plied by female flaves brought from Egypt, Abyflinia, 
Georgia, and Circaffia, who are expofed to public fale 
every Friday morning. Thofe from the firft mentioned 
countries are generally purchafed for domeftie fervices, 
which, in a menial capacity, no Turkilh woman will 
condelcend to perform; their perfons or countenances 
are rarely beautiful, and their price feldom exceeds forty 
pounds Englilh. The exquilite beauty cf the others is 
enhanced by every art of drefs, and oriental accomplilh- 
ment, and they are uiually fold for feveral thoufand 
■piaftres. Many are referved for the feraglio, where, 
though they are conlidered as mod fortunate, they are 
molt frequently facrificed. Intrigues are concealed by 
the application of pdifonous. drugs which often occafion 
death, and upon detection of pregnancy they are inftantly 
drowned. One Ihuclders to relate how many of thefe 
vidlims are taken out at the dead of the night, and com¬ 
mitted to the deep. Formerly the Avret Bazar was 
open to Franks, who were fuppofed to purchafe flaves 
in order to redeem them, but they are now excluded, by 
order of the prefent fultan’s father. The beauty of the 
Circailian girls is.preferved by the invention of inocula¬ 
tion, which belongs to them, and not to the Turks, a 
circumftance mifreprefented by Voltaire and TifTot. The 
education of thefe girls is very fcrupuloufly attended 
to ; they arc taught to dance with more luxuriance than 
grace’ 5 ; to ling, and to play on the tamborine, a fpecies of 
guitar; and tome of them excel in embroidery. This 
arrangement is conducted folely by the elder women, 
though from the tafte for European fafhions, which the 
prefent fultan Selim openly avows, fome Greek women 
have been lately introduced to teach them the harp aiid 
piano-forte, which they had learned for that purpofe. 
Amongft the five hundred already mentioned, the kifiar- 
agha precifely fettles all precedence. Some are in time 
difquglified by age from the notice of the fultan, and of 
thofe who are confidered as wives there are four ; he is 
reftri&ed to feven, but as to concubines there is no legal 
limitation,, and their number depends on the inclination 
of their fub.lime matter. They moftly fpend their time 
in a feries of fedentary amufements. Drefs, the moil 
fumptuous that can be imagined, changed frequently in 
the courfe of the day, the moft magnificent apartments 
and furniture, vilits of ceremony with each other, and 
the inceftant homage of their fubordinate companions, 
fill their minds with a fort of lupine happinefs, which 
indeed is all that moft Turkilh women afpire to, or are 
qualified to experience. Sometimes, as an indulgence, 
they are permitted to go to the kiofques near the lea, of 
which circumftance the officers cf police are informed, 
that no vefiel fiiould approach too near the feraglio point. 
Every fummer the fultan vilits his palaces in rotation for 
a fhort time with his harem, when every pafsand avenue, 
within three qr five miles diftance, is guarded by fierce 
bq/landjis, or body-guards, left the approach of any male 
being fhould contaminate them. They depend entirely 
upon their female flaves for amufements which have 
any thing like gaiety for their objeff, and recline on their 
fofas for hours, whilft dancing, comedy, and buffoonery, 
as indelicate as our vulgar puppet-fhow, are exhibited 
before them, Greek and Frank ladies occafionally vifit 
them, whofe hulbands are connected with the Porte as 
merchants or interpreters, under pretence of fhewing 
them curiofities from Europe. From fuch opportuni¬ 
ties all the accurate information concerning the interior 
of the palace can alone be collefted. 
The articles cf female habiliment are infinite, both as 
to coll and number ; but change of fafhion is adopted 
only, for the head attire, which happens with Icarcely 
lets frequency than in the courts of Europe. They are 
imitated by the Greek ladies, whofe drefs differs little 
from theirs ; but the original Greek drefs, rather than of 
the Turkilh harem, is that deferibed by lady M, Wort- 
ley Montague. Both the ftyle of Leauty, and the idea 
of improving its effeft by of name nt, amongft the Otto¬ 
man women, have much Angularity. Their fades are re¬ 
markable for lymmetry and brilliant complexion, with 
the nofe ilraight and fmall, the eyes vivacious, either 
black or dark blue, having the eye-brows partly from 
nature, and as much from art, veryTull, and joining over 
the note. They have a cuftom too of drawing a black 
line with a mixture of powder of antimony and oil, called 
furmeh , above and under the eye-lathes, in order to give 
the eye more fire. Of the ftiape and air little can be laid 
from our idea of lovelinefs. All the Levantine women, 
from their mode of fitting on their fofas, ftoop extremely, 
and walk very awkwardly. Warm baths-tiffed without 
moderation, and unrelieved idlenefs, fpcil in moft in¬ 
ftances, by a complete relaxation of the lolids, forms 
that nature intended fiiould rival the elegance of their 
countenances. The nail-s both of the fingers and feet 
are 
