2

hour after midnight.' morrow, we begged our host to show us Constantinople civility, and give us our dinner at sunset; but this was so exceedingly vulgar that he could not be brought to consent to it. With great difficulty we obtained a compromise, and the dinner was served at ten. The rich of Diarbekir are well-known for the luxuriousness and richness of their tables, for the excellence of their liquors, and, I am sorry to add, their very free use of them. On the present occasion we assembled soon after sunset, from which time till ten o'clock there was an incessant round of pipes, naghilehs, coffee, and wine. The table was spread with a dozen different kinds of dried fruit, intended as a provocative to the appetite. Interspersed among them were goblets and vases filled with the rosy liquid. These, however, were only for show. By the side of the table stood buckets filled with iced water, and in them stood the vessels from which, ever and anon, the servants filled the glasses of the guests. Now and then one would perambulate with a smaller vessel and a waiter of cups, each holding hardly more than a large thimble-full of rakkee,3 which he would administer to those who preferred such potent liquor. Think of such a ceremony continuing for six or even three hours. But the Diarbekirlees are said to be accustomed to it, of which we had very good evidence on the present occasion, for the quantity of wine and rakkee which was sipped without producing any visible effect, except perhaps to render the conversation a grain livelier, was astonishing, almost incredible. For nearly three hours it seemed to be the only employment of two or three servants

As we were to start early on the

1 The Turks, like all the Orientals, begin their day at sunset; that is to say, sunset is with them twelve o'clock. The hour varies, of course, with the changes of the sun.

2 Turkish water-pipe.

3 Turkish brandy, distilled from the juice of the grape.

to fill the wine-cups of seven or eight guests. How a party of men continuing in this way till one o'clock in the morning, could find after all capacity for dinner, or physical power to eat it, I was at a loss to conceive. Upon the whole, I did not like this specimen of Diarbekir society, far exceeding, as it did, some rather trying specimens which I had witnessed during my former visit. Least of all was I satisfied with the evident want of discernment in supposing that any other than a man of Diarbekir could stand such a preface to his dinner. My good friends (for in every other respect they seemed to be very respectable and worthy persons) were disposed to treat me as if I had undergone the same training with themselves, and possessed the same capability. In a word, they seemed bent upon my pursuing a course by which I should inevitably have lost my dinner, and been unfit for travelling on the morrow. It is the height of incivility to be backward on such occasions, for, like all Orientals, the people of Diarbekir judge of the pleasure which a guest takes in their entertainment by the quantity which he eats and drinks, and it is always easier to comply than to resist their tormenting importunities. But after carefully considering the matter, and balancing between the impropriety and the inconvenience of excess on the one hand, and the danger of offending my host on the other, I decided in favor of the latter, and by the aid of a young Greek friend present, who declared that it was not the custom of Franks to drink so immoderately, I was enabled to keep my resolution.

The dinner, when it came, was in the best style of Oriental profusion and display. I will not describe it, for I have wandered already far enough from my object in alluding to it at all-which was, to say that I introduced the subject of the poor starving wretches in the streets, in the hope that the clergy at least would second my appeal. But the result was that I found no sympathy from any quarter. Neither clergy nor laity could be convinced that it was their

duty to attend to any other than their own poor, and as for the Kurds, I evidently lowered myself in the estimation of the company by pleading for them.

And yet these Christian men had sorrows of their own, to which they were tremblingly alive. Many was the doleful tale which they poured into my ears of their recent persecution. While they were following the example of the Mohammedans in refusing even a cup of cold water to perishing men, the Mussulmans, impelled by some sudden burst of fanaticism, rose upon them and threatened to destroy every Christian in the city. They were seized and beaten in the streets. Some had their bones broken. Others escaped and hid themselves in secret places. Shops were broken open and plundered. Even Churches were wantonly entered and desecrated by the ruthless mob, and several Christians were murdered under their own roofs in cold blood. Men of note were hunted down like wild beasts, and some of them died of very fear. For several days there was a period of awful suspense. Not a Christian was to be seen in the streets. Every one lay hid in his lurking-place, fearing lest every moment might be his last. Unfortunately there were but a very few soldiers in the city, and these, in their semi-Frank dresses, were as much the objects of indignation as the Christians themselves. "You are the men," it was said to them, "who are sent hither to make us all Giaours." The Pasha, after a few fruitless attempts, declared himself unable to suppress the mob. At length he hit upon an expedient which succeeded admirably. He caused a report to be circulated in the city that Mohammed Pasha of Mossoul had been sent for, and was marching upon the city with a large force. The trick was successful. The infuriated Mussulmans shrunk back at the name of the terrible Pasha of Mossoul, and the Christians, half-dead with fear, began to creep forth from their hiding-places. I could discover no

other cause for this infamous outrage than sheer Mohammedan bigotry, in which the Mussulmans of Diarbekir are said to abound. While it continued, nearly twenty Christians fell a sacrifice to their fury. Among them was a very respectable Syrian merchant, who entertained me during my first visit for three days. When the affair came to be investigated, it was found that the principal leaders were among the most respectable Mussulmans of the city. One of them was no less a personage than the Kadi himself.

The Government at Constantinople acted on the occasion in a manner very creditable to itself. Peremptory orders were sent to Diarbekir that the Christians should be protected, and the offenders subjected to the punishment which their crimes deserved. Accordingly the authors of the outrage, about twenty in number, were seized and sent off on foot, under a strong escort, to the Pasha of Kharpout, to whom the province of Diarbekir is subject, but whether they ever received the reward which their flagitious conduct merited, I am unable to say. It is not an uncommon thing for such culprits in Turkey to escape unpunished, especially if they are Mussulmans, and the offence is committed against Christians. There is little of equal justice in the land, least of all in the provinces, and the Christians are generally the greatest sufferers. Their testimony is not taken against Mussulmans, while they are themselves subject to be harassed without cause, and are commonly the first objects of oppression. I know that there are exceptions to this statement, but I speak of the general order of things.

CHAPTER IX.

Respect for Franks.-Interposition in behalf of Eastern Christians.Greek Hospitality.-Visits from Ecclesiastics.-Relations of the Native Papal Christians with Rome.-Meeting with an old Friend.-False Reports and true Reports.-Our Company.-Kurdish Village.-Escort.-Kurdish Bey.-Polite Robbery.-A useful Lesson.-Loose Friends.-Delays.-Present State of Mardin.-Decay.-Reaction of

Reform.

THERE was one fact connected with the melancholy outrage upon the Christians of Diarbekir, related in the last chapter, which, if correctly reported to me, as I believe it to have been, is worthy of mention, as showing the respect and even fear with which Europeans were at that time regarded in some of the worst parts of Turkey. While the commotion was at its height and the native Christians were secreting themselves from the rage of their enemies, and Turkish soldiers were flying from the indignation which their half-Frank garbs brought upon them, several European, the people said English, travellers were in the city, and went freely about in their European dresses and hats, no one venturing to molest them. One or two years before, the same experiment under the same circumstances might have been hazardous. But the events of the last year in Syria, commencing with the bombarding of Beyrout, and ending with the reduction of Acre and the retreat of a Pasha whose very name had always been supposed sufficient to strike terror into the hearts of his enemies, have created a deep